Summary: A thoughtless wish led to her being stuck there. A new school with new faces awaits her, but trouble is destined to follow her. Team Star, a treasure hunt, putting the jewel back together, and more… Looks like catching a break isn't anywhere in her itinerary.

Pairing: Atticus/Kagome

Disclaimer: I do not own either series. Each belongs to their rightful owners.


Chapter One


It didn't make any sense. Not to her, and not to anyone else who happened to know about her peculiar situation. It wasn't as if there were a lot of people privy to these strange circumstances, and there was no chance that she would be taken seriously by the vast majority. As it was, the only reason she'd bothered telling those who knew about it…

Was all based on a hunch.

She'd taken a chance, and by some miracle alone she hadn't been deemed utterly crazy.

"I like the uniform on you!"

The voice caught her attention, and the raven-haired girl slowly lifted her head. Her hands froze as she stopped smoothing out her clothes, the appendages eventually falling down against her sides. It was faint, but a smile soon formed on her face. "You really think so?" Kagome asked. The question came out automatically, almost as if it were a reflex.

"Of course," Steven responded as he closed the distance between them with a few short strides. He met her deep blue eyes with his steel-hued ones. As she looked at him, she found herself thinking back to their first meeting, as unorthodox as it was. Despite that, he was easily the closest thing to family she had here. It was surreal to think that, had he reacted any differently to her situation, then she wouldn't be where she currently was.

"Here, put this over your shoulders."

Something warm fell to land against her shoulders, and she reached up almost instinctively to pull the fabric closer to her shivering body. Water from her hair and body slowly began to seep into the blazer. She pulled it a bit tighter around her as she tried to close out the cold drafts in the cave.

"Okay, I'm going to take your hand." Once again, that soothing voice broke through the dimly lit cave. He kept his tone level and steady, as if he were trying to keep her calm. "There's a ledge, so be careful not to slip, all right?"

Soon enough, her feet landed on solid ground. The water clinging to her frame began to puddle along the stone underfoot. His hand holding her own guided her movements away from the pond and closer to the lantern he'd placed to the side. Not long after, he'd coaxed her into a sitting position on a boulder that worked decently enough as a resting place.

"Are you all right?"

She blinked and slowly looked up. The yellowish-orange glow of his lantern was cast across his face, enabling her to get a decent enough look at him. After a moment, she nodded her head. "I…- I think so?" Even as she said those words, it was clear that she didn't fully mean them. A few seconds passed, and the throbbing ache in her head began to slowly subside.

A silence hung in the air between them for several long seconds. She felt his gaze fixated on her face, even as she avoided looking at him. She worked on gathering the present memories in her head, trying to sort through them in the silence provided. Her heart felt heavy in her chest as she came to the surreal conclusion that she was no longer in the place she should've been.

"My name's Steven Stone," he said, eventually breaking the silence. At the sound, she lifted her gaze back to his face. "What's your name?" There was something tentative in his tone- as if he was gauging her reaction and memory.

"Kagome," she murmured in response. She noted the way he nodded, his gaze shifting to the pond not far away from them. "Do you remember how you got like that?"

The weight his question brought had been unexpected. The breath she'd been holding slipped free as her shoulders slumped. Her grip on his blazer tightened a bit more, the faint scent of some sort of comforting spice surrounding her. Her vision started to blur as she looked down, trying hard to ignore the tears building up. It did no good. The dam soon burst, causing her tears to cascade down the plump of her cheeks.

He didn't miss her tearful reaction, and he hesitantly shuffled closer. "H-Hey, it's okay…-"

"I can't go home anymore…"

Her comment caused him to fall silent, hands halfway outstretched to her. There was a pause as he carefully thought over his next words, settling a bit closer to her. "What do you mean by that?" he asked.

It'd been a simple question, one not intended to cause harm, but the impact it had on her was far more. She choked out a louder sob as she shook her head. Her body moved on its own volition then, shooting forward and into his arms as she began to cry.

A part of her felt as though she should be ashamed for clinging to some stranger the way she was, but another part of her seemed to override it. It only felt more justified when he seemed to allow her the space to do so. His hands came up to rest on her back, his other combing along her slowly drying hair.

One way or another, she ended up spilling the truth to him. She didn't have an exact reason for it besides the way she perceived his aura. Something about him made her feel as though she could rely on him in some capacity. In doing so, he only seemed to prove her right. Even now, she was still surprised by just how much he tended to her.

"I feel as if this is what it's like to have a child," Steven remarked with a smile as he watched her confounded expression as she looked over the book in front of her, the language one she wasn't fully comprehending of. "You're a fast learner, though!"

It'd been a little over half a year, and she'd adjusted moderately well to this place. With Steven's help, things had been smooth. She wasn't floundering around trying to piece things together, and the companionship definitely made it more… bearable.

A part of her was still upset, and rightfully so.

Her hand strayed up, fingers idly tracing the jagged edge of the Shikon no Tama, a bitter feeling plaguing her chest.

She didn't understand it. She didn't understand how someone she'd once seen as a friend could do something like this to her. It was due to the jewel's interference that she was there.

Inuyasha had attempted to bring Kikyo back using the jewel. To protect her, it used its power to remove her entirely from the situation and place. Something strange occurred, however, and it resulted in the jewel splitting into fragments again. She could feel them, but only faintly. As she adjusted to this world, it was due to the help of Steven that she'd recovered a little over half of the jewel back. Due to that progress, he'd decided it was time she took a little break to breathe.

He mentioned that it would also help her further adjust to a more immersive environment than just hanging around him and going where he did. School was far from a foreign concept to her, after all. Maybe a bit of routine would do her good in the long run?

At least, that was her hope for it all, and she knew it was the same for Steven.


Auroua-chan: Gonna end this here!

I have a few ideas for Pokemon that Kagome will have already, but suggestions are welcome of course. No type-specific needed, though a few connections to Steven and others aren't so bad.

Kagome's only got half of the jewel, with the remaining shards seemingly scattered about. One can only wonder where they might all end up, and who might come across them…

Anyway, that's it for now! Thank you all for reading and I hope you all enjoyed! Hopefully I caught all the errors before posting, but if not sorry.

Please remember to Review, Favorite, and Follow, thank you!

Bye for now~