ATTENTION READERS: This is the Beta version of LH5W, if you want to read the official, updated version of the story, you'll have to go over to DeviantArt. com and head on over to my page. My username is Aloubell. You can also get there by going to my fanfiction. net profile which provides a link over there.
In any case, this Beta version is basically the rough draft of LH5W, my first attempt at it. Much of the plot points from this version will be the same in the official version, but there are significant and consistent characterization changes, a few (but very important) plot differences, expansion of past ideas, and overall better quality in storytelling.
All of this will be done over on DeviantArt. I no longer will write the story in traditional prose nor submit/update it here to fanfiction. net. The Beta version will remain here, just know that it isn't the 100% official story.
The official version will be written in a lazy prose mixed with play-writing elements (you'll get what I mean when you see it).
This is the new format for the story from now on.
So please head on over there if you're interested in updates to the story! Thank you for stopping by =D
-Aloe
PLEASE NOTE: The official version is being written somewhat out of order. The official version will start on chapter 46, the place where the Beta version left off. The official version will go on to complete the last chapters of Season 2. Once those are done, I will redo the story over again from Chapter 1 which will be the official version.
Having said that, if you choose to continue on reading, I hope you enjoy the Beta version and look forward to the official!
"Mom! Dad! I'm leaving for school now!" I yelled down the hallway, reluctantly walking to the awfully quiet kitchen knowing exactly what to expect.
There they were: the scene of two adults—my parents—sitting silently at the table. My mom, in her baggy silk pajama top and bottoms, complimented with frizzy bed-head, had a small cup of coffee in her hand, while she neglected it by staring into space. Dad, who was already in a dark grey suit and ready for work, was reading some papers, mumbling to himself. I sighed. Another happy morning…
I decided to try again—by shouting. "I'm going to school now!"
"Dammit we heard you!" Mom roared. I swore that I saw a vibration in her coffee at the time of that outburst. I used to jump when she yelled at me like that, but I was all too used to it to even flinch.
"Oh…well, I just wanted to tell you." I was definitely going to skip breakfast at home just like I did every day. That was the only real reason as to why I left for school earlier than I had to. I was lucky enough because my school served breakfast right before classes began. Besides, staying there would have been unbearable. If there's one thing I hated, it was being in a room filled with awkwardness and tension. It would have been nice to have a homemade breakfast, but even I knew that was asking for too much. For my Mom, it was just coffee, while my Dad went without. As you could see, nutrients were completely lacking in this family.
"Just…go. You are giving us a headache." She said finally deciding to take a sip of her probably luke-warm beverage. "We have work to do."No you don't. I see you there drinking coffee.
"Daughter," My Dad chimed in with disinterest, still focusing on his papers, "is someone taking you there?"
I silently growled as I looked away shamefully. Even if the two did notice, they probably didn't care.
Forcing a smile, I told them, "Yeah, Saru and Kyoko said they were gonna come and get me. Oh, I think I hear them now!" As fast as I could, I dashed towards the door, slipping my shoes on.
"Bye!" No answer from them. Opening the door, there wasn't anyone there waiting for me. I sighed heavily again while closing the door behind me. "You could at least call me by my name…"
"You've been awfully quiet, child."
Blinking my eyes, I snapped myself out from the daydreaming and remembered where I was: back in the endless bright red light following the demanding Taiitsukun. "What?"
"I said that you're quiet. The last time we met like this, you wouldn't stop with the irritating questions." That's 'cause the last time we were here, you practically kidnapped me without any real warning.
It wasn't long ago that I had to leave my friends in the Feudal Era. Trying to forget the pain of leaving them caused, I had to focus on what was important: getting my wish granted. Maybe the first few months resulted in a dud (in Taiitsukun's eyes), but I'm determined to make this work. Wherever I ended up next, losing hope wasn't an option.
"Well, I guess I'm just not as curious this time." I said smugly.
She stopped to turn and look at me, her seemingly angry, wrinkled face looking directly at mine. The last time she did that, if I recalled right, she gave me a bunch of directions before dumping me.
Clearing her throat, she spoke with obvious annoyance in her tone. "Curious or not, there are some things that I didn't mention last time." Making sure she didn't yell at me for interrupting her like last time, I decided to continue listening without the tempted "Like what" question at her.
"First off, you cannot tell anyone your wish. No one. The only time you can mention your wish out loud is to the person that you are looking for. And it has to be them. No exceptions."
My eyebrow cocked up. "What harm would it do?" Couldn't resist.
Luckily, she seemed to ignore it. "If you were to tell someone, it could greatly influence the outcome altogether. This is your wish, so you have to achieve it on your own without outside help."
"That's fair, I suppose."
"The second thing is that you should restrict the number of people you tell your powers about." While opening my mouth to say why, she shot me an intimidating look that shut me right up. "You don't need to draw any unnecessary attention to yourself. Other than the group of people you befriend, no one should know. The last thing I need is for you to be the talk of the world, giving me a harder time when it comes to a memory swipe—should there be one. If you encounter any trouble, just use that sleep spell you stumbled across with that half-demon fellow. Focus more on the spell and you can affect as many people as you need."
The memory of how I "stumbled" onto the spell replayed in my head, recalling exactly what state Inuyasha and I were in when it happened. I couldn't help but flush a little. Then something occurred to me.
"When I last did that, I had absolutely no idea what I was doing—"
"But you do now."
"Ye…ah…I guess. But I don't really know the time limit of the spell…"
She scoffed. "Foolish girl! One of the basic rules of magic is that you have to control it, don't let it control you. If you want something to happen, don't hesitate! There should be no question as to what come out of that wand. You should never be surprised. Know what you want, then make it happen."
When I used that spell, I was totally confused and had just decided to go with it. It was a huge surprise and I just let it be as it was—almost as if there was no control there, just blind hope. In any story having to do with magic of any kind (that I've read), the conjurer knew what they wanted to happen and allowed their ideas to manifest into a spell of their choosing. Those people who were unsure often ended up in some deep trouble for not having more faith in their powers. It was said "with magic, all you got to do is want something, and then let yourself have it!"
"I understand."
Taiitsukun's face started to form a small, sinister grin. I cautiously took a step back. "Well, now that all of that is said and done, we can get down to the point."
"Which is…?" A giant hole appeared under me, and I gasped. For some reason, though, I wasn't falling. There was a very evident uneasiness at the pit of my stomach. Crap!
"Granting your wish of course," She floated up to me and got in my face. "We'll be seeing each other again soon. Best of luck to you."
"Taiitsu—" The moment she snapped her fingers, the law of physics was reinforced, causing gravity to make me plummet into a cold darkness screaming my ears off. When I realized what was happening, I figured screaming wouldn't really do much good.
I didn't bother to look and see if the hole I fell in was still there, it didn't matter since there was a light coming up below me, signaling that my inter-dimensional tunnel was coming to an end. As the light got closer and closer, I saw that the light was a hole showing what I figured was the next new world. The peculiar thing was that it seemed to be showing some kind of flat, light grey surface. Identification was totally out of the question no matter how much closer it got. I really didn't understand until it hit me. Really hit me.
Crash!
There were obvious voices shouting around me, but all I could focus on was the hole in the ceiling of some place. My whole body ached, no doubt reopening some of the wounds Naraku inflicted. For a second, I was sure that I felt someone under me, but it was like they suddenly poofed away. All I could feel was the various planks of wood and other wreckage made by my fall.
When the world finally went back into focus, I shot my upper body up and shouted to the hole while showing my fist at it. "What the hell Taiitsukun! Who the hell even does things like that? I—"
That was when I realized that there were two guys staring at me. One looked like he was about my age, with pale skin, soft, purple eyes, and dark grey hair with long bangs wearing a black school uniform lined with white and a white tie. To be honest, he looked as if he was lacking a bit on masculinity while at the same time, not losing his charm. The other guy looked a few years older, maybe in his twenties, but he was pretty good looking. He had black hair with a space in between his bangs showing most of his forehead, as well as a cute mini cowlick sticking up in the back. His dark, almost black eyes were kind and inviting, although at the moment, were filled with confusion.
That was when I realized that I probably crashed into their house. No, I was certain that I crashed into their house. Double crap.
While I sat blushing and at a loss for words, the grey-haired one spoke up. "Miss, are you…okay?" His voice sounded as sweet as honey when he spoke.
"Uhhh…" Was all I could manage.
"Miss?"
I snapped out of it and started to ramble uncharacteristically. "OMIGOSH! I am sooooooo sorry! I promise that I didn't even know this would happen. I am reaaaally sorry about this! I'll try and fix it somehow…wait! I don't know how to fix a ceiling... I'll pay for it somehow. No….that won't work either—"
"Would you like me to replace that bandage for you?" The guy with black hair kindly said as he pointed to my forehead. Feeling the wound, I realized that it had indeed opened back up and was starting to bleed once again.
Calming down, I said, "Yeah, thanks." He's being awfully hospitable for someone who just crashed into his house. Is he an idiot or something? Or is he just that nice? The man got up and headed into another room, leaving me and the other guy. I couldn't help but blush some more from the situation. "Sorry, I usually don't spazz out like that…" I was still wondering why these people weren't freaking out from some random girl turning up out of nowhere.
"That's quite alright Miss—"
"Tsubaki. Akimoto Tsubaki. But I usually go by Aki. And you are?"
"Yuki Sohma." That's a cute name. In a feminine-ish sort of way…"That was Shigure Sohma who went into the other room. May I ask how this all happened?"
"Uhh…well, I—it's a bit difficult to explain, " I told him while laughing nervously. That was when I felt some kind of lump moving under me.
"WILL YOU GET THE HELL OFF OF ME! I CAN'T BREATHE!" Gasping, I shifted a bit to see what, or who I was sitting on and all I could see was an orange cat who had its paws covering its mouth. I quickly scooted over and picked up the small creature that was gasping for air.
"I can't believe that I landed on a cat!" Looking over at Yuki, I gave the best apologetic face I could. "This is your cat, right? I am soooooo sorry that I almost squished it!" Then I blinked a few times and gave the cat another look. Did this thing just talk? And...is it glaring at me?
Yuki immediately lost the sweet tone in his voice and looked away. "It's not my cat. You can continue using him as a cushion if you like, Miss Tsubaki."
Assuming he was joking, I gave a brief laugh and looked the now growling intensely cat that was, I swear, glaring at Yuki as well. "I just like you to know that I really like most animals, especially cats, and didn't mean for this to happen. Even if you are…" I smiled sneakily, "a talking cat." That fact was waaay too juicy to let go. Both Yuki and the cat's eyes widened after making that statement. "What? You didn't honestly believe that I forgot he said something. Heck, I wouldn't even have known if he didn't."
Yuki closed his eyes and gave a controlled, yet anxious laugh. "Miss Tsubaki, I'm sorry, but you're mistaken. Cats can't talk. Especially stupid ones." In less than a second, the cat leaped towards Yuki and started to slash at him. Without much effort, Yuki dodged each attack. Without either of them noticing, I gave the most skeptical face I could. Yup, no cat is that conscious of what's going on around them. I don't care how smart it is. Something is definitely up.
Magic perhaps?
I tried to think of all the ways this could be possible: an enchantment, possessed body, or maybe even a demon. None of those possibilities would have been much of a surprise considering the things I saw in the Feudal Era. Despite the fact that it was a cat, it was extremely apparent that these two clearly didn't like each other.
Without any warning, there was an evident poof!followed by a bunch of white smoke. Realizing a while ago that carrying a wand around would be a HUGE pain the ass, I managed to find a way to make it disappear into a space and make it materialize when I needed it. Knowing that, it instantly appeared in a string of light into my hands, ready for anything and everything. But I definitely wasn't expecting this.
Standing in front of me was a nicely built guy around also around mine and Yuki's age with bright orange hair—the same color as the fur on the cat—accompanied by short bangs and piercing reddish-brown eyes. And he was not…wearing…anything. Nothing. At all.
My face instantly heat up and turned my body around the fastest I could. OMIGOSHOMIGOSHOMIGOSH!Was all I could really muster in my head. Since that was true, I figured speaking may come out as complete loud and obnoxious gibberish. I was honestly getting dizzy just thinking about what I just saw—from knowing he was still standing there!
"Look…" The guy started with an irritated tone in his voice. I could tell that there was a bit of embarrassment in there too…somewhere. "Can you just hand over my clothes?" Clothes? "You're sittin' on them."
Quickly snatching them up, I threw them behind me without even bothering to look. The throw was a bit pathetic considering my whole body was a bit stiff still. Luckily, he didn't have a comment on the toss, which made me feel a little better…but not much. The feeling was so bad that something snapped in me again. Wind formed in the room and started blowing things around. It was too hard to focus to make it stop. The wind calmed down the moment Yuki leaped across the table and put his arms on my shoulders.
He looked back at the dressing guy and sternly said, "Kyo, you idiot. You scared the poor girl." Completely stupefied would be a better description. Talking, for me, was still quite the obstacle.
"Shut up you rat. It was her fault anyway for fallin' on me!" He sounded really annoyed at this point. I also figured I was right about these two not liking each other. Not only that, but that guy—Kyo—was most likely that cat that was just here.
Hearing him say what he did finally allowed my vocal chords to work. I maneuvered around Yuki to face the angered Kyo. "Hey! Don't blame me, I—" My word's trailed off the moment I actually saw him. His features were blurred before, but now, him as a whole, finally hit me. Damn, he's hot! He was wearing a skin-tight short-sleeved black shirt and olive green cargo pants. That combination plus his looks, made my stomach do flips all over the place. I mean that boy was fiiine.
"You what?" He asked harshly while looking at me. He has fangs, I noticed. Sexy.
Shaking my head to clear those thoughts, I tried my best to form a proper sentence. "I—I…"
"Well?"
I looked away. "N-nothing" Damn, damn, damn! Why does this always happen? Whenever a cute guy is around, I freeze up! I hate, hate, hate that! C'mon Aki, speak! Just don't look at him."It wasn't really my fault…"
Yuki tried to comfort me. "It's okay, Miss Tsubaki. Don't listen to that guy. I'm sure this was out of your control." You got that right! Damn Taiitsukun.He narrowed his eyes at Kyo. "Can't you be a bit more hospitable?"
"Can't you stop bein' a pain in the ass?" He countered.
"Now, now you two. We have a guest." Mr. Sohma said next to me. I jumped a little. Where the hell did he come from?His kind eyes fell on me as he offered me my wand. "I'm guessing this is yours, my dear?"
Reluctantly taking it, I nodded. "Yeah, thanks." I'm still waiting for someone to tell me what the hell is going on in this house!
"Now hold still, this will sting just a bit…" He rubbed my wound with some kind of cloth with stinging a liquid. I winced at both the tingle and the strong smell. Alcohol. Coulda used this to clean the wound up in the first place.While unrolling a new roll of bandages, he casually talked. "It's nice to have a visitor around as cute as you. Can you tell us where you come from?"
I was shocked that he didn't ask about the wand, the wind, or the wreckage in my house, so I answered him the best I could without sounding suspicious and without freezing up from Kyo being there. "Well…I come from America, I guess…" It wasn't a lie. I had been living in America since the seventh grade. Just not the same America that may exist in this world.The whole ordeal was the result of me getting hold of a bunch of money from a contest that I had won after the completion of sixth grade. America seemed like the best opportunity for me, so I took it. Saru and Kyoko had come along with me, Saru had family in America, and Kyoko came along as well, although her situation was different since she went back to Japan every month to visit her family (her family was loaded). And last year, Saru's family allowed me to use the money I earned to rent a room directly next door to them in our apartment complex using the money I earned from my job at the local bookstore.
He had a puzzled look on his face as he applied the bandage. "Odd, you don't look American."
"I'm mostly Japanese with a bit of Native American—Cherokee to be exact. That part of my heritage is lost to my family unfortunately."
"Who cares about all that? You should be askin' how the hell did she came through the ceiling like that! Seems suspicious to me." Kyo commented. "And look," He walked over to where I was, making me get stiff, and looked up at the damage. "The roof wasn't damaged. It was just the floor of the second level. How do you suppose that happened?" That was when he gave me a dirty look, causing me to want to both clobber him and…other things.
I kept my cool considering talking around him was already difficult, and the fact that I wasn't looking for enemies after just getting there. "I honestly couldn't explain the mechanics of it even if I wanted to," I told him, while looking away.
"Stop interrogating her." Yuki ordered.
"Make me! You damn rat!" The two of them faced each other, fists up and ready to fight. My stomach began to twist with guilt. This has to be my fault...Those two were probably friendlier to each other before I had crashed into their lives. It wasn't good for me to sit there witnessing such animosity when I could have just got up and left them alone. It was just as I thought...The weakening of my curse in the Feudal Era was just temporary and now I had found more victims to fall prey to its effects. At this rate, I could already tell that my stay in that world would not be enjoyable—not with my conscience eating at me for yet again bringing misery to those around me.
After tending to my wound, Mr. Sohma coughed. They looked at him. "Aki will tell us things when she is comfortable to. No need to pressure her. Besides," His eyes glistened, "don't you two think that we owe her some kind of explanations ourselves? After all, she did see everything." Kyo and Yuki relaxed as they slowly sat down, never taking their eyes off each other. Wow, it's like you can actually see the tension in the air.
I should probably just leave...
"Mr. Sohma?"
"Please, call me Shigure. You make me feel old when you call me that. I'm only twenty seven after all" He flashed an attractive smile.
"Huh? You mean you're not their father?"
"Heavens no! We're all cousins part of the prestigious Sohma family. And don't mind Kyo and Yuki, they quarrel like that often." What? I couldn't help but breathe a sigh of relief when he said that. From the start, I thought that I was the one who was making them act so hateful towards one another. Wouldn't have been the first time that I had that affect on people. But still... That doesn't seem healthy to constantly fight like that. Are they really family? "But I am curious as to what your thoughts were to what you saw." He looked at me with interest.
"Which part? The Kyo being a cat part or the…" I stopped myself after seeing the look the hot one himself gave me. The decision was made that if I was ever going to get through a conversation around there, I was going to have to avoid looking at Kyo. "…other part?"
Shigure laughed. "Either is fine—"
"The point that Shigure is trying to make is that you saw something that was supposed to be a secret." Yuki calmly explained after cutting off Shigure.
Yeah, I can see why you would want to do that."I don't mean to pry or anything, but what exactly was the thing I saw that was supposed to be a secret?"
"Hmm…where to start…Well, Kyo isn't the only one in the family that can transform. Yuki, and I as well as ten other Sohma's can turn into one of the animals from the Chinese Zodiac."
Kyo became offensive. "Why are you telling her this?"
"Simply because she already saw it and you both know as well as I do that this girl is observant. She never even considered the possibility of you being a regular cat, Kyo." Kyo's only response was to look away without a retort.
"Besides, you stupid cat, you were the one who talked in your cat form. It's your fault that she found out." Yuki calmly said.
I noticed Kyo blush the moment that was said. All he could reply with was, "Shut up!"
To break the obvious tension, I asked, "So Shigure…thirteen signs? I thought there were twelve."
"In modern telling's of the zodiac, there are. But in actuality, the Cat, is the thirteenth, less heard of sign." Glancing over at Kyo, I noticed that his eyes showed a bit of pain at the sound of Shigure's words. I wonder what that's about. Is he upset that the Cat doesn't get recognition? Or is it something else? Shigure continued. "The story about that is actually quite interesting. I'll make sure to tell you about that another time when those with sensitive feelings aren't around."
"I don't have sensitive feelings!" Kyo shot up and roared.
"Oh, Kyo. I didn't even mention your name. Feeling a little insecure are we?" He taunted.
"N-no." He turned and started to walk away with his arms crossed. "Tell her the damn story if you want, I don't care!"
"Hmm…nah." That's when Shigure momentarily stuck out his tongue as he teased. "It wouldn't be as fun that way." This caused him to growl a little. "Be a good sport Kyo. After all, Miss Aki here will be staying with us for a while."
"WHAT?" The three of us said simultaneously.
"Well, do you have anywhere else to stay?" I shook my head. "Plus, we can't have someone who knows about us prancing around can we?" He said while chuckling jokingly. What exactly does he plan on doing with me? "Then it's decided then!" This was going by much too quickly...How the heck can I survive living in a house with a guy like Kyo? I won't even be able to be my normal self around him. I'll just freeze up! But…what choice do I honestly have?
"I guess…if it's alright." Are these the people I can tell about my powers to? I guess I'll have to find out. Which reminds me… "Hey, what causes the…changes?"
"Being hugged by someone of the opposite gender. Or if the majority of the opposite gender's body goes into contact with one of us."
Yuki sighed. "You could have made that explanation a bit less perverted sounding." He then added, "Are you sure this would be alright? I mean, I'm okay with it, and anything the cat dislikes is always welcome to me, but what if—"
"You worry too much my dear Yuki. We'll deal with those problems later." Problems? What kind of problems?Shigure took hold of my hand as he put his attention back onto me. "I'll try to make this place feel as close to home as possible Aki." Thinking about my situation with my parents, I couldn't help but think, Oh, please don't do that.
I tried to give a sincere smile. "Thanks."
"It's no problem at all. Is it Kyo?" I mustered up enough courage to look Kyo in the eye as he turned back around at us. In that moment, it seemed like something clicked. I couldn't tell what. He suddenly softened up.
"Yeah, fine, whatever." He scratched the back of his head nervously. "I'll start working on fixin that hole."
"Thank you, Kyo," Shigure said with a certain amount of amusement.
Kyo began to walkaway only stopping to look back at me momentarily and saying, "Sorry about bein angry like that…" So he can be a decent person...
Looking away was a reflex at this point, so I quietly thanked him without sounding like a gawking idiot. So, not only was I going to live with an insanely good looking, hot-tempered guy, I was going to live with his mortal enemy, the semi-mellow Yuki and the nice, but a bit-off Shigure. Mixing them all together made a family full of people who changed into animals (and back into naked humans) for a reason completely unknown to me. The rest of the family was probably just as colorful if not more so, than these guys here.
I groaned. What did I get myself into?
ATTENTION READERS: This is the Beta version of LH5W, if you want to read the official, updated version of the story, you'll have to go over to DeviantArt. com and head on over to my page. My username is Aloubell. You can also get there by going to my fanfiction. net profile which provides a link over there.
In any case, this Beta version is basically the rough draft of LH5W, my first attempt at it. Much of the plot points from this version will be the same in the official version, but there are significant and consistent characterization changes, a few (but very important) plot differences, expansion of past ideas, and overall better quality in storytelling.
All of this will be done over on DeviantArt. I no longer will write the story in traditional prose nor submit/update it here to fanfiction. net. The Beta version will remain here, just know that it isn't the 100% official story.
The official version will be written in a lazy prose mixed with play-writing elements (you'll get what I mean when you see it).
This is the new format for the story from now on.
So please head on over there if you're interested in updates to the story! Thank you for stopping by =D
-Aloe
PLEASE NOTE: The official version is being written somewhat out of order. The official version will start on chapter 46, the place where the Beta version left off. The official version will go on to complete the last chapters of Season 2. Once those are done, I will redo the story over again from Chapter 1 which will be the official version.
Having said that, if you choose to continue on reading, I hope you enjoy the Beta version and look forward to the official!