Categories > Anime/Manga > Inuyasha > Okaeri
Chapter Four
0 reviewsAfter the end of their quest, Inuyasha and Kagome adjust to life in modern Tokyo. But there are still secrets in the past, and dangers in the present. And finding a place to call home may be the mo...
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Okaeri Chapter 4 Disclaimer: Inuyasha and associated characters are the property of Rumiko Takahashi.
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Chapter 4
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The next two days passed uneventfully. Kagome threw herself into her studies every minute she was home, completely ignoring him and everything else. The lack of attention frustrated Inuyasha; he made several more exploratory forays at night in an attempt to relieve his boredom, but found not much of interest. He was especially disappointed to not have caught the scent of the possible tai-youkai again. Another strong demon could be trouble, especially if it didn't want to leave his territory quietly. At least he was able to run. This city was so overstuffed with humans, with buildings spread as far as the eye could see; being able to run and leap at top speed along the rooftops let him breathe easier and regain an illusion of solitude. The sky was still open, at least. In the early morning hours the city, at least this part, was dark and sleeping; many of the artificial lights were turned off by then, and he could see some of the stars through the scudding clouds. Inuyasha wondered how all the forests that had covered the land could have disappeared so completely. It was disquieting. /What happened to all the youkai that lived here? /Not that he had a problem with a lack of pest youkai, the kind that Naraku had made frequent use of, but there were a lot of other demons that had roamed the woods and fields. Where had they gone?
The days weren't dull, for the most part because the old man usually had some task or another he would present to Inuyasha. It was amazing how a shrine that looked so well-kept had so many roof shingles and rotting boards to replace, shelves to shore up, and crumbling stonework to be dug out, replaced and mortared. The hanyou grumbled about the chores, but he never refused to help regardless. He recognized that a lot of it was heavy work that the geezer wouldn't be able to manage, but was ridiculously easy for him. Besides, there was something in the old man's expression that gave him pause; an air of challenge, almost, but nothing he could put a finger on. So far all of the old man's demands had been reasonable, except maybe for the first day when he had to pull down all of those fucking boxes when he knew there was nothing but junk in them. Kagome had helped afterwards, though, which compensated a bit for it. He hadn't had much time with her since then, as the tests she was taking on Saturday were apparently so damn important. She even had set aside the search for the old records, which did indicate how serious she was about school right now. He managed to assuage his disgruntlement by commandeering the remote control from Souta and Jii-chan in the evenings, now that Souta had so obligingly shown him how to use it. Their whining complaints about his channel surfing were amusing, at least until he got bored again.
Souta had been by turns annoyingly ubiquitous and helpful. Any time the kid was home from school and not studying, he was following Inuyasha around. The kid was constantly burbling on about school, his friends and his interests, like 'football' and his 'skateboard', but was always keen on whatever the hanyou was doing. It was completely unlike having Shippou around, as the kitsune had been sarcastic and critical much of the time, but still as aggravating. Inuyasha was uncomfortable with the hero-worship, but he had to admit that the kid imparted useful information once in a while; he would rattle off details about anything of interest, from the 'planes' in the sky (Inuyasha had wondered if they were dragons) to the million and one bizarre things on the 'TV'. Since the boy so obviously looked up to him, Inuyasha couldn't bring himself to deliver the putdowns he wouldn't have hesitated to use on Shippou, and grudgingly allowed the kid to hang around. Whenever it got too much he could just disappear to the roof or a favored tree, anyway. He could see why Kagome didn't allow her brother in her room without permission.
Kagome might be too busy to look for buried treasure, but he had plenty of time when he wasn't hauling crap around for the old man. He quartered the grounds, looking for signs of disturbed earth, though frankly after nearly sixty years he had faint hope that there would be any way to tell. The deeply forested hillside around the shrine was dotted with numerous little piles of dirt from exploratory holes by Friday, though he'd turned up nothing interesting. Nothing interesting to him, anyway. Souta, who had been 'helping', had gone wild over the corroded remnants of an old sword Inuyasha had dug up after smelling a faint trace of metal; after seeing it, Mama had asked him to let anything else he found lie undisturbed so that she could call some "archaeologists" from the "antiquities department" to come take a look at it. He'd shrugged and agreed, with the caveat that if he found the lost records he'd bring them up immediately. Privately, he wanted to find something spectacular to show Kagome, something that would draw her away from her books and turn her attention to him again. The only place he left alone was the area near the well; he didn't want to get anywhere near it without Kagome. He knew it was stupid to think that something might reach out of it and snatch him back to the feudal age without her, but his hackles rose whenever he even thought about going near the well house.
On Friday afternoon, Mama took him out clothes shopping. He had initially resisted her suggestion that he get more clothes; his fire-rat outfit was good enough for him. What did he need with more? But despite his stubborn rebuff of the idea, he somehow found himself accompanying her and Souta, a cap on his head to disguise his ears, on an expedition to what she called a "department store." She picked out a number of outfits for him, including reassuringly familiar yukata and hakama to wear at home, though she also pulled out modern clothes for wearing in public; she guessed at his size since he refused to try them on. Despite his protestations he found himself carrying a number of bags of clothes home. Souta had enthusiastically assisted in selection, and had assured him that all the clothes were "cool" enough for him- the boy had vetoed several choices that Mama had proffered. Since the clothes were uniformly strange to him, he went along with Souta's advice, though he hadn't made up his mind as to whether he would wear them or not. He couldn't even admit it to himself, but he harbored a dread of wearing something weird enough that Kagome would laugh.
They stopped in a noodle shop on the way home for a bite to eat. The ramen here was different from the cup noodles he was used to, but still good; he and Souta gulped theirs quickly, while Mama ate at a much more sedate pace. He finished so quickly that Mama urged him to have more food, but to try some udon this time. She looked pleased when he scarfed it down, finding it very tasty. She ordered some more of both to take home, for Kagome and Jii-chan. When Souta finished, he got up to play a "video game" at a machine in the corner of the shop, leaving Inuyasha and Mama sitting at the table to finish their tea. Blowing at some of the steam curling from her cup, she turned to him with her customary smile.
"So, how are you settling in, Inuyasha?" She took a delicate sip, and considered him over the rim. "I know the changes that have happened can't be easy for you."
Inuyasha slurped down a large mouthful of udon and swallowed hastily. "Everything's fine." He wondered if her question had something to do with not sleeping indoors; he had slept outside since the first night, sometimes on the roof of the house, but more often in a couple of the larger trees on the shrine grounds. He wasn't sure yet if he wanted to stay in the little room behind the shrine office that the old man had him clean out. It had only one small window, which might make it difficult to smell or hear anything going on outside; how would he be able to tell if something attacked the shrine? He waited for her to pester him about living inside or some such thing. But she didn't pursue the topic; she was silent for a few minutes, picking at the remnants of her noodles with her chopsticks.
"Jii-chan says that you have been very helpful." He blinked suspiciously at the abrupt change of subject; she was looking away from him now, out the window of the shop. He followed her eyes, but there was nothing of note outside, just more humans hurrying to wherever people went these days. The only ones walking slowly were a man and a woman, laughing together as they passed.
The statement didn't seem to require an answer, but he felt compelled to respond anyway. "A weak old man like that always needs help," he said with a snort.
She focused on him, the smile back on her lips. He suddenly saw an echo of Kagome's kind expression...was that why he felt so comfortable with this woman? "Yes, but you're always willing. That's wonderful, Inuyasha. Jii-chan is getting quite old, and needs a lot of help, it's true. He hadn't expected to have to keep working at his age, you know. Kagome's father was supposed to have taken over as head priest at some point so that he could retire. As it is, he hopes that he can keep on until Souta is old enough to take over, but he's worried that something will happen to him, or that Souta won't be interested, and some outsider will take over the shrine."
Inuyasha poked at the bits at the bottom of his bowl. "What about Kagome? Or you?"
"Kagome...well, we didn't think she had any interest. She never used to listen to Jii-chan when he would talk about the history of the shrine, so we thought that it would have to be Souta. As for me, I don't know that the people in the neighborhood would accept me. I'm not trained or anything." A faint blush tinted her face. "I don't have any spiritual powers to speak of, anyway."
"Neither does Jijii," said the hanyou sardonically, and laid his chopsticks across his bowl. "Let's get going. Hey, half-pint, leave that," he called across the room to Souta as he got up. After a short delay in which Souta demanded to finish his game, they proceeded home. Inuyasha had the feeling that there was something else Mama had wanted to bring up; whatever it was, it was probably something he probably wouldn't want to talk about anyway. He counted himself lucky to have escaped another female interrogation.
Kagome was already immured in her room studying when they got back; Inuyasha managed to peel her away from her books long enough to eat some of the noodles that her mother had brought home for her, but as soon as she finished she was back upstairs, and threatening to sit him into a crater if he didn't leave her alone. He went up on the roof to sulk for a while. /Dammit, I'm going to find a way to make that well work again, but this time we'll be stuck on the side without books, and cars, and millions of humans, and you'll be with me instead of studying... /He almost wished that there were still shards back there to find. They always made a great argument for dragging her away, especially since she felt so guilty about breaking the fucking jewel in the first place. If there were shards then the well would still work, and everything would be back to normal... he fantasized about that for a while, and drifted off into a doze. He awoke when the other members of the household were going to bed, and he swung down to Kagome's window to check on her. She was still awake and studying when he slid the window open. "Oi, Kagome, time to knock it off- "
She didn't look up from her book. "I'm not going to sleep yet. Go away and let me study."
"You've been studying for days! Are you going to stay up all night?" He crouched on the windowsill and stared at the back of her head. Maybe if he kept staring at her she'd get the message and get some rest. She had to get some rest because he wanted her to help him look tomorrow after her test, and she'd be useless if she didn't get any sleep. He stared for some time without a twitch out of her. Impatient, he opened his mouth to berate her, took a breath for a satisfying yell, and--
"Don't do it."
"Or what? Why don't you do what I say and get some fucking rest, moron?"
"Osuwari."
"Oof!" He slammed into the floor below her window. He managed to angle his face up to look at her, and he gulped. She looked furious. "Kagome, you have to get some sleep you dumb bitch! How are you supposed to take your fucking tests if you're falling asleep?"
"Osuwari!" The floor met his face again as the supports underneath it creaked dangerously. A sleepy voice called a question from downstairs. "Inuyasha, I told you I'd subdue you through the floor if you bother me tonight! I have to do well on these tests if I'm going to graduate!" Her eyes glinted. "I can get by with four or five hours of sleep, but I have to get /uninterrupted study time/. Do you understand?"
"Keh! Fine, bitch! Have fun with your fucking books! I'll be out of your hair as soon as you let me up!" They glared at each other until the spell released him, and he jumped to his feet. With a disdainful sniff he leaped out the window with the intention of heading for his favorite tree to stew for a while, but paused on the ground outside for a moment to see what she would do. She appeared momentarily and shut the window; she didn't lock it. Her face reflected resignation and weariness. He was still angry, but it was fading somewhat at the sight of her expression. Damn it, Kagome, he fumed as he headed for his tree, /this studying shit better be over soon. It looks like a big waste of time you could be spending on other things. /He settled on a sturdy branch, and impatiently waited for the morning.
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Kagome got up early, gulped down her breakfast, and left quickly the next morning. Inuyasha stayed in his tree until she was gone. He was still pissed at her for sitting him -/twice!- /the night before, and for what? He'd been looking after her, hadn't he? Stupid wench. He came down for breakfast, still sulking. Mama handed him a plate she had evidently been keeping warm for him, just as if she had expected him to be late for breakfast. Jii-chan was finishing his while scanning the paper, and soon went out to attend to the shrine. Souta had already finished and was watching TV.
He picked at his food broodingly. He was slightly surprised when Mama sat down with her own plate; hadn't she eaten already? They ate in companiable silence. When Mama cleared her throat, he looked up at her, an eyebrow cocked.
"Inuyasha, I know it's been hard for you to adjust to being here, especially with Kagome so absorbed in schoolwork." He snorted and looked away quickly.
"Hmmf. Like I care what she does."
"Er, yes." Dammit, was she laughing at him? He slid a look at her; she was smiling! Before he could remonstrate with her, she continued. "I have to warn you, this will be going on until she graduates." Shit, how long will she be occupied with this studying crap? What about finding out about the runt? His ears lowered, he frowned, staring at a spot on the table while he contemplated the boredom he faced. Abruptly Mama got up, picking up their breakfast dishes and carrying them to the sink. "You know, I think she'll be glad to have these tests over so she can have a little more free time. I think she's anxious to help you look for the old shrine things." She started washing the dishes, her back turned to him, as he watched her curiously, wondering where she was going with this. "And since she's been studying so hard, I'll bet she wouldn't mind a little diversion this afternoon when she comes back. Why don't you take her out to eat?"
"Take her out- what's wrong with the food here? Why the hell should I- "
Mama looked over her shoulder at him. "You want to spend some time with her, don't you?"
"Keh!"
"Right." She turned back to the dishes. "Inuyasha, when young men of this time want to spend time alone with young ladies, typically they take them out on a date. That usually involves getting something to eat, and then doing something entertaining. Maybe you could go for a walk, see some sights. I think Kagome would welcome the chance to show you the city."
"You do? Uh, I mean, why wouldn't she?" Inuyasha said, flustered. Young men and young ladies? A date? She wants me to- to do something like that? With Kagome?
Pausing in her labors at the sink, Mama dried her hands and went over to her purse, hanging by its strap over the back of a chair. She took out her wallet and withdrew some of the modern money he had seen Kagome use at the store, and extended it towards him. "This should be plenty to cover both of you for an outing."
He didn't reach for it, sitting up stiffly. "I don't need charity, woman."
She gave him an innocent, doe-eyed look, and kept extending the money. "I wouldn't dream of it. This is for helping around the shrine. Jii-chan discussed this with you, didn't he?" At his incredulous expression, she looked dismayed. "Oh dear. Well, you can talk to him about it at some point, I suppose. At any rate," she took hold of one of his clawed hands and stuffed the bills into it, "take this for the time being." Too surprised by her action to shove them back- she'd actually touched his hand?- he stared down at the bills; it was hard to believe these flimsy things were actually worth something. "Oh, and wear some of your new clothes. Be ready to go by the time she comes home. I'd say that will be around 1:30, so you have plenty of time." She smiled at him, and then turned back to the dishes. Speechless, he let her.
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Mou, that was tough, Kagome thought as she slowly climbed the steps to the shrine. She felt fairly confident that she had done well- her spate of cramming had helped, but she had been able to concentrate on her schoolwork earlier in the school year, which she thought had given her a good foundation. Right now, she was starving. I hope Mama has something ready for me, since I didn't have lunch. She wound her way through the crowds of people visiting the shrine today, making it to her house without being stopped, either by well-meaning neighborhood busybodies or by Jii-chan. He had floated a proposal earlier this week that she work part-time as a miko- though he meant duties a lot different from the ones Kikyou or Kaede had taken on. Modern shrine maidens were essentially part-time clerks, other than taking part in certain ceremonies. He needed the help with the gift shop and the office, he said, and she could probably use more pocket money, couldn't she? She could, but she didn't even want to think about taking on more responsibilities right now, while she still had finals. She was still apprehensive about whether she'd passed the entrance exams for the two universities.
Opening the door, she kicked off her shoes, her called "Tadaima" answered by a couple of replies of "Okaeri." She advanced to the living room, to find Inuyasha and Souta sitting on the floor, engaged in playing a video game. She was taken aback to see that Inuyasha was not wearing his usual outfit. He was wearing modern clothes, a jersey and loose-fitting jeans. He didn't take his eyes off the game, but asked her, "Oi, Kagome. You want to go get something to eat?"
"You mean go out? Uh, sure." Wait, is he asking me out?
"Alright. Just wait a minute so I can demolish this punk here."
Souta scoffed, "Hah! You can't beat me at this game- you just learned how to play!" They played furiously for a couple of minutes; Kagome watched briefly. Inuyasha did seem to be playing very well. She supposed his incredible reflexes would help with virtual fights as well as real ones. She went upstairs to change, dragging her bookbag behind her.
She dressed carefully in one of her nicer outfits. He had changed for her, hadn't he? How and why were in question, though. When she came back downstairs, she found Souta sitting sullenly on the floor; the score blinking on the television indicated why. She grinned at him. "So what happened? The great Souta lost?" Souta just grunted. Inuyasha was smirking as he stood up and adjusted the cap on his head. The modern clothes were startling on him; still loose, they were more close-fitting than his fire-rat outfit. But he looked...good. Very good. The clothes suited him, and...made him suddenly look like he belonged here in modern Tokyo, golden eyes and white hair notwithstanding. If I saw him passing on the street, I would definitely give him a second look. But not because he looked out of place...
She was staring at him; just as she realized it, he noticed, blinked and started to recoil, with a glance down at his clothes.
"Shit, I knew this was a bad idea." He began to back up, away from her, but she reached forward and grabbed his jersey.
"Wait, Inuyasha. You...look really nice like that." She smiled up at him; his golden eyes reflected surprise, and suddenly she felt her face heat and her grip on his shirt loosened. He stopped pulling away, staring at her a moment, and she saw his face pinken. "It's just, you look different. Where'd the clothes come from?"
He looked away with an annoyed expression, pushing her hand away and crossing his arms across his chest.
"Your mother said that what I was wearing would draw attention if I went out in it. She kept on about it, so I put these on to shut her up."
"O-kay." She hid a smile. Right, like he would change his clothes to suit anybody else. "So, what's the occasion for going out?"
"Nothing, wench. I just thought I might go with you to get something to eat." He paused to glance at her out of the corner of his eye. "Are you hungry?"
A wide smile spread across her face. "Starving!" she chirped brightly. "Where are we going?"
He unbent enough to face her. "Wherever you want." He looked nervous now. Souta, watching the byplay from his spot on the floor, grinned.
"Hey, can I come too?" he asked innocently.
"NO!" was his simultaneous answer from both of them.
He sniffed in mock offense. "Fine, have fun on your /date/."
He got up, still grinning, and took himself upstairs after turning off the TV. The two of them headed for the entranceway, carefully not looking at each other; as Kagome reached for her shoes, she murmured, "Inuyasha, you're going to have to wear something on your feet. Most restaurants don't allow people in barefoot."
"Keh, I know that. I'm wearing these." He indicated a pair of straw sandals that he was slipping on, a little awkwardly. I see my mother's hand in this, she thought in amusement. She actually got him to wear shoes!
She peeked at him again, admiringly, as they left the house. Unlike his voluminous fire-rat outfit, the modern clothes, though by no means tight, still defined his lean, wiry form nicely. Those clothes definitely look good on him. But something's different besides what he's wearing...
"Where's Tessaiga?" she whispered, as soon as she realized what it was that seemed amiss. Not that I think he'll need to use it, but he should have it with him at all times...
He nodded to a strap over his shoulder that she hadn't noticed before. A long kendo bag was slung across his back; it would be completely unremarkable on the street. "Your mother said it's illegal to carry swords openly in this realm, not that I care, and got me the bag." He shrugged. "If I need Tessaiga I can grab it easily, and this way no assholes will bother me about it."
"Hm." As they moved across the courtyard to the torii and the steps to the street below, Kagome noticed her grandfather glance at them from the shrine, where he appeared to be in conversation with several people; he looked dyspeptic about something. Shrugging to herself, she waved and continued on. Inuyasha was silent until they reached the street.
"Well, wench, what did you want to eat? There's a good ramen shop up this way..." He started tugging her by the arm in the indicated direction.
She planted her feet like a mule. "Oh, no. I've had plenty of ramen in the last three years, thanks. You said we could eat what I wanted today. Right?"
He sighed and stopped pulling. "Right. So what the hell do you want? That 'WacDonalds' place you've talked about?"
"No way. I've had enough of that too. Let's get some sushi. I know a great place..." This time she pulled him, in the opposite direction, and after a show of reluctance and a little complaining, he went willingly enough.
The sushi was good, as she knew it would be; she knew Inuyasha hadn't had it often, and he ate enthusiastically. After the last roll was gone (she let him have it after a short squabble) and the platter was scoured for the last bit of sashimi, an awkward silence descended between them.
Inuyasha cleared his throat. "So, how did your tests go today?" he asked, rather grudgingly.
He's really making an effort, isn't he? she thought wonderingly, and suddenly felt embarrassed for her outburst last night.
"I think I did pretty well. The studying helped a lot." She paused, and offered in a low voice, "I'm sorry about last night."
"Keh. You should be." He scowled and looked away.
Okay, so now he's being difficult. She gave a mental sigh, and asked, "Alright, how can I make it up to you?"
"No studying until we find those fucking papers. I've done my part, you have to do some looking too."
"I can't promise no studying, Inuyasha." Before he could do more than turn his head and glare, she said, "I don't know how long it'll take, or even if we'll find them. However," she held up a hand as he opened his mouth, "I promise I'll spend the rest of this weekend. How's that?"
He looked a bit mollified. "We'd better find them, then."
She nodded. "We'd better get back to the shrine. We've got lots of the afternoon left." She began to rise, and was surprised when he put a hand on her arm. She looked at him questioningly as she sat back down.
"Uh, we don't have to get back right away. There's a shitload of people at the shrine right now. Why don't we walk around a little before going back?" He posed the question calmly, but it still seemed strange. I thought he was in a hurry!
"I thought you wanted to look, but okay." She looked at him, eyebrows raised skeptically. "So where do you want to walk?"
"I don't know, wench. Around here. Aren't there any historically important places or some shit like that near that we can look at?" Miroku had been big on local history, and had frequently annoyed Inuyasha by insisting on detours to spiritual sites. At least ones where he thought he might be able to pull scams on pilgrims, anyway. Why would Inuyasha want to go to something like that now? She stared hard at him, and was rewarded by some indication that he was getting uncomfortable; he didn't meet her eyes and squirmed a bit in his seat.
"And you want to see these places why?"
"Look, let's just go for a fucking walk, okay?" He stood up abruptly. She rose also, and opening her purse, began to dig for money to pay for the meal. Inuyasha then seemed to remember something; he reached into his pocket and pulled out a wad of crumpled bills, and stared at them a moment before thrusting them at Kagome. "I don't know how this paper shit replaced real money. How much of this should I give this guy?" He jerked his head at the counterman who looked over at them, curious.
"Uh..." Startled, she took the money from him and counted out the appropriate amount as he watched. "Where'd this come from, Inuyasha?" she asked as she left it on the table, and started to hand him back the rest.
"You hold on to it." She shrugged and put the money in her handbag, looking at him questioningly. "It's for working at the shrine," he muttered, not looking at her, and started walking for the door. Huh. I thought Jii-chan would still have him working off the cost of all the stuff he's broken over the years. Well, I guess part of it has been my fault, for sitting him.../With a faint blush at the memory (and forgetting about her destroyed bike), she joined him outside the shop and they paused on the sidewalk; she looked up and down the street, thinking. /Okay, places of interest we can walk to. Nothing came to mind immediately; she looked up at him.
"Anything in particular? Shrines, monuments, parks, what?"
He seemed to seize on her statement. "Shrines. There's an Inari shrine not too far from here, right?"
"Yeah, the Tokozawa shrine. It's not too far. The head priest there is a friend of Jii-chan's." She put her hands on her hips as she faced him. "So spill. What's going on?"
"Shit, you ask a lot of questions," he grumbled. "Nothing's going on. We can't take a damn walk for a while? Which way is it, woman?"
Giving him a sharp look, she acquiesced and began walking in the right direction to reach the shrine in question. She figured it would take about twenty minutes to get there if she remembered right; they walked in silence for a while, and she began to regain the good mood she'd had earlier. It was really a pretty day, cloudless, with a deep blue sky. The air was crisp and bright; she breathed it in, and felt a little disappointed. The cleanliness she had gotten used to on the other side of the well had spoiled her. If she had not experienced the air in the feudal age she would have said that it smelled great. I wonder how much worse it is for him, with his sense of smell. She looked over at him, and caught him gazing at her, with what looked like an uncertain expression. He started a little and twitched his gaze forward, but then glanced back at her, and with an air of resolve he reached for her hand.
His hand was warm and dry; it closed carefully but firmly around her smaller one. As she had before, she marveled at how such a hard, calloused hand could convey such strength and yet enfold so gently. His action at first surprised her, but she recovered and pressed his hand back, with a small grin. He actually gave a relieved, small smile in answer, and looked away again. He was maneuvering them carefully through the foot traffic on the sidewalk, his eyes flicking watchfully around at their surroundings.
Kagome was thoroughly enjoying their walk now, but she was also burning with curiosity. A lunch date, a walk afterward...he was holding her hand... "So, Inuyasha. Is there a reason we're going to see this shrine?"
He shrugged. "Not really. I've been going out at night to check out the territory; when I passed by here a few nights ago I noticed there were a bunch of kitsune at this shrine."
She suddenly felt excited. "And you think Shippou might be there?" He shook his head, to her disappointment.
"No, I think I would have caught his scent if he'd been there. I was just thinking that maybe the foxes here might know something about him."
She frowned. "Inuyasha, I've been to this shrine a bunch of times and never saw any kitsune. Do you think they'll talk to us?"
He shrugged again, with a little grin. "They'd better."
Inuyasha and Kagome were soon in sight of the Tokozawa shrine, located across a busy street. A series of bright red torii framing a short run of steps marked the entrance, and just at the top they could see the komainu, guardian statues, in this case foxes. There were a few people coming and going through the entrance. Inuyasha sniffed and frowned slightly. "Huh. There's only one out there today." Kagome mentally shrugged at the non sequitur, and maneuvered them across the street when the pedestrian light went on.
Shortly, they were crossing under the first torii; Kagome's senses prickled at the way street noise seemed to fade immediately. She didn't remember this ever happening on any previous visits here. Had she just not noticed? She maintained a good grip on Inuyasha's hand as they ascended the stairs. His expression was sharp and intent, and she imagined his ears pointed aggressively forward under his cap. Clearing the last step, they stopped in front of one of the statues. It seemed the same as she remembered it: grey stone, one paw raised, on a pedestal about even with her chin. However, Kagome was surprised to detect youki coming from it; it was definitely not made of stone, the way the other one opposite seemed to be, but it was just as still and unmoving. Nervous, she tried to look casual while several people passed by. Inuyasha wasn't helping- he was staring fixedly at it.
Finally, after the last person had passed and there were none in sight, Inuyasha said in a low voice, "Hey. Got a minute?" He continued staring. It didn't move.
Kagome started when the fox's stone mouth suddenly moved and a harsh, biting voice emerged. "I'm on duty. Beat it."
TBC
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A/N:
Tadaima - "I'm home"
Okaeri - "Welcome home"
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Chapter 4
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The next two days passed uneventfully. Kagome threw herself into her studies every minute she was home, completely ignoring him and everything else. The lack of attention frustrated Inuyasha; he made several more exploratory forays at night in an attempt to relieve his boredom, but found not much of interest. He was especially disappointed to not have caught the scent of the possible tai-youkai again. Another strong demon could be trouble, especially if it didn't want to leave his territory quietly. At least he was able to run. This city was so overstuffed with humans, with buildings spread as far as the eye could see; being able to run and leap at top speed along the rooftops let him breathe easier and regain an illusion of solitude. The sky was still open, at least. In the early morning hours the city, at least this part, was dark and sleeping; many of the artificial lights were turned off by then, and he could see some of the stars through the scudding clouds. Inuyasha wondered how all the forests that had covered the land could have disappeared so completely. It was disquieting. /What happened to all the youkai that lived here? /Not that he had a problem with a lack of pest youkai, the kind that Naraku had made frequent use of, but there were a lot of other demons that had roamed the woods and fields. Where had they gone?
The days weren't dull, for the most part because the old man usually had some task or another he would present to Inuyasha. It was amazing how a shrine that looked so well-kept had so many roof shingles and rotting boards to replace, shelves to shore up, and crumbling stonework to be dug out, replaced and mortared. The hanyou grumbled about the chores, but he never refused to help regardless. He recognized that a lot of it was heavy work that the geezer wouldn't be able to manage, but was ridiculously easy for him. Besides, there was something in the old man's expression that gave him pause; an air of challenge, almost, but nothing he could put a finger on. So far all of the old man's demands had been reasonable, except maybe for the first day when he had to pull down all of those fucking boxes when he knew there was nothing but junk in them. Kagome had helped afterwards, though, which compensated a bit for it. He hadn't had much time with her since then, as the tests she was taking on Saturday were apparently so damn important. She even had set aside the search for the old records, which did indicate how serious she was about school right now. He managed to assuage his disgruntlement by commandeering the remote control from Souta and Jii-chan in the evenings, now that Souta had so obligingly shown him how to use it. Their whining complaints about his channel surfing were amusing, at least until he got bored again.
Souta had been by turns annoyingly ubiquitous and helpful. Any time the kid was home from school and not studying, he was following Inuyasha around. The kid was constantly burbling on about school, his friends and his interests, like 'football' and his 'skateboard', but was always keen on whatever the hanyou was doing. It was completely unlike having Shippou around, as the kitsune had been sarcastic and critical much of the time, but still as aggravating. Inuyasha was uncomfortable with the hero-worship, but he had to admit that the kid imparted useful information once in a while; he would rattle off details about anything of interest, from the 'planes' in the sky (Inuyasha had wondered if they were dragons) to the million and one bizarre things on the 'TV'. Since the boy so obviously looked up to him, Inuyasha couldn't bring himself to deliver the putdowns he wouldn't have hesitated to use on Shippou, and grudgingly allowed the kid to hang around. Whenever it got too much he could just disappear to the roof or a favored tree, anyway. He could see why Kagome didn't allow her brother in her room without permission.
Kagome might be too busy to look for buried treasure, but he had plenty of time when he wasn't hauling crap around for the old man. He quartered the grounds, looking for signs of disturbed earth, though frankly after nearly sixty years he had faint hope that there would be any way to tell. The deeply forested hillside around the shrine was dotted with numerous little piles of dirt from exploratory holes by Friday, though he'd turned up nothing interesting. Nothing interesting to him, anyway. Souta, who had been 'helping', had gone wild over the corroded remnants of an old sword Inuyasha had dug up after smelling a faint trace of metal; after seeing it, Mama had asked him to let anything else he found lie undisturbed so that she could call some "archaeologists" from the "antiquities department" to come take a look at it. He'd shrugged and agreed, with the caveat that if he found the lost records he'd bring them up immediately. Privately, he wanted to find something spectacular to show Kagome, something that would draw her away from her books and turn her attention to him again. The only place he left alone was the area near the well; he didn't want to get anywhere near it without Kagome. He knew it was stupid to think that something might reach out of it and snatch him back to the feudal age without her, but his hackles rose whenever he even thought about going near the well house.
On Friday afternoon, Mama took him out clothes shopping. He had initially resisted her suggestion that he get more clothes; his fire-rat outfit was good enough for him. What did he need with more? But despite his stubborn rebuff of the idea, he somehow found himself accompanying her and Souta, a cap on his head to disguise his ears, on an expedition to what she called a "department store." She picked out a number of outfits for him, including reassuringly familiar yukata and hakama to wear at home, though she also pulled out modern clothes for wearing in public; she guessed at his size since he refused to try them on. Despite his protestations he found himself carrying a number of bags of clothes home. Souta had enthusiastically assisted in selection, and had assured him that all the clothes were "cool" enough for him- the boy had vetoed several choices that Mama had proffered. Since the clothes were uniformly strange to him, he went along with Souta's advice, though he hadn't made up his mind as to whether he would wear them or not. He couldn't even admit it to himself, but he harbored a dread of wearing something weird enough that Kagome would laugh.
They stopped in a noodle shop on the way home for a bite to eat. The ramen here was different from the cup noodles he was used to, but still good; he and Souta gulped theirs quickly, while Mama ate at a much more sedate pace. He finished so quickly that Mama urged him to have more food, but to try some udon this time. She looked pleased when he scarfed it down, finding it very tasty. She ordered some more of both to take home, for Kagome and Jii-chan. When Souta finished, he got up to play a "video game" at a machine in the corner of the shop, leaving Inuyasha and Mama sitting at the table to finish their tea. Blowing at some of the steam curling from her cup, she turned to him with her customary smile.
"So, how are you settling in, Inuyasha?" She took a delicate sip, and considered him over the rim. "I know the changes that have happened can't be easy for you."
Inuyasha slurped down a large mouthful of udon and swallowed hastily. "Everything's fine." He wondered if her question had something to do with not sleeping indoors; he had slept outside since the first night, sometimes on the roof of the house, but more often in a couple of the larger trees on the shrine grounds. He wasn't sure yet if he wanted to stay in the little room behind the shrine office that the old man had him clean out. It had only one small window, which might make it difficult to smell or hear anything going on outside; how would he be able to tell if something attacked the shrine? He waited for her to pester him about living inside or some such thing. But she didn't pursue the topic; she was silent for a few minutes, picking at the remnants of her noodles with her chopsticks.
"Jii-chan says that you have been very helpful." He blinked suspiciously at the abrupt change of subject; she was looking away from him now, out the window of the shop. He followed her eyes, but there was nothing of note outside, just more humans hurrying to wherever people went these days. The only ones walking slowly were a man and a woman, laughing together as they passed.
The statement didn't seem to require an answer, but he felt compelled to respond anyway. "A weak old man like that always needs help," he said with a snort.
She focused on him, the smile back on her lips. He suddenly saw an echo of Kagome's kind expression...was that why he felt so comfortable with this woman? "Yes, but you're always willing. That's wonderful, Inuyasha. Jii-chan is getting quite old, and needs a lot of help, it's true. He hadn't expected to have to keep working at his age, you know. Kagome's father was supposed to have taken over as head priest at some point so that he could retire. As it is, he hopes that he can keep on until Souta is old enough to take over, but he's worried that something will happen to him, or that Souta won't be interested, and some outsider will take over the shrine."
Inuyasha poked at the bits at the bottom of his bowl. "What about Kagome? Or you?"
"Kagome...well, we didn't think she had any interest. She never used to listen to Jii-chan when he would talk about the history of the shrine, so we thought that it would have to be Souta. As for me, I don't know that the people in the neighborhood would accept me. I'm not trained or anything." A faint blush tinted her face. "I don't have any spiritual powers to speak of, anyway."
"Neither does Jijii," said the hanyou sardonically, and laid his chopsticks across his bowl. "Let's get going. Hey, half-pint, leave that," he called across the room to Souta as he got up. After a short delay in which Souta demanded to finish his game, they proceeded home. Inuyasha had the feeling that there was something else Mama had wanted to bring up; whatever it was, it was probably something he probably wouldn't want to talk about anyway. He counted himself lucky to have escaped another female interrogation.
Kagome was already immured in her room studying when they got back; Inuyasha managed to peel her away from her books long enough to eat some of the noodles that her mother had brought home for her, but as soon as she finished she was back upstairs, and threatening to sit him into a crater if he didn't leave her alone. He went up on the roof to sulk for a while. /Dammit, I'm going to find a way to make that well work again, but this time we'll be stuck on the side without books, and cars, and millions of humans, and you'll be with me instead of studying... /He almost wished that there were still shards back there to find. They always made a great argument for dragging her away, especially since she felt so guilty about breaking the fucking jewel in the first place. If there were shards then the well would still work, and everything would be back to normal... he fantasized about that for a while, and drifted off into a doze. He awoke when the other members of the household were going to bed, and he swung down to Kagome's window to check on her. She was still awake and studying when he slid the window open. "Oi, Kagome, time to knock it off- "
She didn't look up from her book. "I'm not going to sleep yet. Go away and let me study."
"You've been studying for days! Are you going to stay up all night?" He crouched on the windowsill and stared at the back of her head. Maybe if he kept staring at her she'd get the message and get some rest. She had to get some rest because he wanted her to help him look tomorrow after her test, and she'd be useless if she didn't get any sleep. He stared for some time without a twitch out of her. Impatient, he opened his mouth to berate her, took a breath for a satisfying yell, and--
"Don't do it."
"Or what? Why don't you do what I say and get some fucking rest, moron?"
"Osuwari."
"Oof!" He slammed into the floor below her window. He managed to angle his face up to look at her, and he gulped. She looked furious. "Kagome, you have to get some sleep you dumb bitch! How are you supposed to take your fucking tests if you're falling asleep?"
"Osuwari!" The floor met his face again as the supports underneath it creaked dangerously. A sleepy voice called a question from downstairs. "Inuyasha, I told you I'd subdue you through the floor if you bother me tonight! I have to do well on these tests if I'm going to graduate!" Her eyes glinted. "I can get by with four or five hours of sleep, but I have to get /uninterrupted study time/. Do you understand?"
"Keh! Fine, bitch! Have fun with your fucking books! I'll be out of your hair as soon as you let me up!" They glared at each other until the spell released him, and he jumped to his feet. With a disdainful sniff he leaped out the window with the intention of heading for his favorite tree to stew for a while, but paused on the ground outside for a moment to see what she would do. She appeared momentarily and shut the window; she didn't lock it. Her face reflected resignation and weariness. He was still angry, but it was fading somewhat at the sight of her expression. Damn it, Kagome, he fumed as he headed for his tree, /this studying shit better be over soon. It looks like a big waste of time you could be spending on other things. /He settled on a sturdy branch, and impatiently waited for the morning.
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Kagome got up early, gulped down her breakfast, and left quickly the next morning. Inuyasha stayed in his tree until she was gone. He was still pissed at her for sitting him -/twice!- /the night before, and for what? He'd been looking after her, hadn't he? Stupid wench. He came down for breakfast, still sulking. Mama handed him a plate she had evidently been keeping warm for him, just as if she had expected him to be late for breakfast. Jii-chan was finishing his while scanning the paper, and soon went out to attend to the shrine. Souta had already finished and was watching TV.
He picked at his food broodingly. He was slightly surprised when Mama sat down with her own plate; hadn't she eaten already? They ate in companiable silence. When Mama cleared her throat, he looked up at her, an eyebrow cocked.
"Inuyasha, I know it's been hard for you to adjust to being here, especially with Kagome so absorbed in schoolwork." He snorted and looked away quickly.
"Hmmf. Like I care what she does."
"Er, yes." Dammit, was she laughing at him? He slid a look at her; she was smiling! Before he could remonstrate with her, she continued. "I have to warn you, this will be going on until she graduates." Shit, how long will she be occupied with this studying crap? What about finding out about the runt? His ears lowered, he frowned, staring at a spot on the table while he contemplated the boredom he faced. Abruptly Mama got up, picking up their breakfast dishes and carrying them to the sink. "You know, I think she'll be glad to have these tests over so she can have a little more free time. I think she's anxious to help you look for the old shrine things." She started washing the dishes, her back turned to him, as he watched her curiously, wondering where she was going with this. "And since she's been studying so hard, I'll bet she wouldn't mind a little diversion this afternoon when she comes back. Why don't you take her out to eat?"
"Take her out- what's wrong with the food here? Why the hell should I- "
Mama looked over her shoulder at him. "You want to spend some time with her, don't you?"
"Keh!"
"Right." She turned back to the dishes. "Inuyasha, when young men of this time want to spend time alone with young ladies, typically they take them out on a date. That usually involves getting something to eat, and then doing something entertaining. Maybe you could go for a walk, see some sights. I think Kagome would welcome the chance to show you the city."
"You do? Uh, I mean, why wouldn't she?" Inuyasha said, flustered. Young men and young ladies? A date? She wants me to- to do something like that? With Kagome?
Pausing in her labors at the sink, Mama dried her hands and went over to her purse, hanging by its strap over the back of a chair. She took out her wallet and withdrew some of the modern money he had seen Kagome use at the store, and extended it towards him. "This should be plenty to cover both of you for an outing."
He didn't reach for it, sitting up stiffly. "I don't need charity, woman."
She gave him an innocent, doe-eyed look, and kept extending the money. "I wouldn't dream of it. This is for helping around the shrine. Jii-chan discussed this with you, didn't he?" At his incredulous expression, she looked dismayed. "Oh dear. Well, you can talk to him about it at some point, I suppose. At any rate," she took hold of one of his clawed hands and stuffed the bills into it, "take this for the time being." Too surprised by her action to shove them back- she'd actually touched his hand?- he stared down at the bills; it was hard to believe these flimsy things were actually worth something. "Oh, and wear some of your new clothes. Be ready to go by the time she comes home. I'd say that will be around 1:30, so you have plenty of time." She smiled at him, and then turned back to the dishes. Speechless, he let her.
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Mou, that was tough, Kagome thought as she slowly climbed the steps to the shrine. She felt fairly confident that she had done well- her spate of cramming had helped, but she had been able to concentrate on her schoolwork earlier in the school year, which she thought had given her a good foundation. Right now, she was starving. I hope Mama has something ready for me, since I didn't have lunch. She wound her way through the crowds of people visiting the shrine today, making it to her house without being stopped, either by well-meaning neighborhood busybodies or by Jii-chan. He had floated a proposal earlier this week that she work part-time as a miko- though he meant duties a lot different from the ones Kikyou or Kaede had taken on. Modern shrine maidens were essentially part-time clerks, other than taking part in certain ceremonies. He needed the help with the gift shop and the office, he said, and she could probably use more pocket money, couldn't she? She could, but she didn't even want to think about taking on more responsibilities right now, while she still had finals. She was still apprehensive about whether she'd passed the entrance exams for the two universities.
Opening the door, she kicked off her shoes, her called "Tadaima" answered by a couple of replies of "Okaeri." She advanced to the living room, to find Inuyasha and Souta sitting on the floor, engaged in playing a video game. She was taken aback to see that Inuyasha was not wearing his usual outfit. He was wearing modern clothes, a jersey and loose-fitting jeans. He didn't take his eyes off the game, but asked her, "Oi, Kagome. You want to go get something to eat?"
"You mean go out? Uh, sure." Wait, is he asking me out?
"Alright. Just wait a minute so I can demolish this punk here."
Souta scoffed, "Hah! You can't beat me at this game- you just learned how to play!" They played furiously for a couple of minutes; Kagome watched briefly. Inuyasha did seem to be playing very well. She supposed his incredible reflexes would help with virtual fights as well as real ones. She went upstairs to change, dragging her bookbag behind her.
She dressed carefully in one of her nicer outfits. He had changed for her, hadn't he? How and why were in question, though. When she came back downstairs, she found Souta sitting sullenly on the floor; the score blinking on the television indicated why. She grinned at him. "So what happened? The great Souta lost?" Souta just grunted. Inuyasha was smirking as he stood up and adjusted the cap on his head. The modern clothes were startling on him; still loose, they were more close-fitting than his fire-rat outfit. But he looked...good. Very good. The clothes suited him, and...made him suddenly look like he belonged here in modern Tokyo, golden eyes and white hair notwithstanding. If I saw him passing on the street, I would definitely give him a second look. But not because he looked out of place...
She was staring at him; just as she realized it, he noticed, blinked and started to recoil, with a glance down at his clothes.
"Shit, I knew this was a bad idea." He began to back up, away from her, but she reached forward and grabbed his jersey.
"Wait, Inuyasha. You...look really nice like that." She smiled up at him; his golden eyes reflected surprise, and suddenly she felt her face heat and her grip on his shirt loosened. He stopped pulling away, staring at her a moment, and she saw his face pinken. "It's just, you look different. Where'd the clothes come from?"
He looked away with an annoyed expression, pushing her hand away and crossing his arms across his chest.
"Your mother said that what I was wearing would draw attention if I went out in it. She kept on about it, so I put these on to shut her up."
"O-kay." She hid a smile. Right, like he would change his clothes to suit anybody else. "So, what's the occasion for going out?"
"Nothing, wench. I just thought I might go with you to get something to eat." He paused to glance at her out of the corner of his eye. "Are you hungry?"
A wide smile spread across her face. "Starving!" she chirped brightly. "Where are we going?"
He unbent enough to face her. "Wherever you want." He looked nervous now. Souta, watching the byplay from his spot on the floor, grinned.
"Hey, can I come too?" he asked innocently.
"NO!" was his simultaneous answer from both of them.
He sniffed in mock offense. "Fine, have fun on your /date/."
He got up, still grinning, and took himself upstairs after turning off the TV. The two of them headed for the entranceway, carefully not looking at each other; as Kagome reached for her shoes, she murmured, "Inuyasha, you're going to have to wear something on your feet. Most restaurants don't allow people in barefoot."
"Keh, I know that. I'm wearing these." He indicated a pair of straw sandals that he was slipping on, a little awkwardly. I see my mother's hand in this, she thought in amusement. She actually got him to wear shoes!
She peeked at him again, admiringly, as they left the house. Unlike his voluminous fire-rat outfit, the modern clothes, though by no means tight, still defined his lean, wiry form nicely. Those clothes definitely look good on him. But something's different besides what he's wearing...
"Where's Tessaiga?" she whispered, as soon as she realized what it was that seemed amiss. Not that I think he'll need to use it, but he should have it with him at all times...
He nodded to a strap over his shoulder that she hadn't noticed before. A long kendo bag was slung across his back; it would be completely unremarkable on the street. "Your mother said it's illegal to carry swords openly in this realm, not that I care, and got me the bag." He shrugged. "If I need Tessaiga I can grab it easily, and this way no assholes will bother me about it."
"Hm." As they moved across the courtyard to the torii and the steps to the street below, Kagome noticed her grandfather glance at them from the shrine, where he appeared to be in conversation with several people; he looked dyspeptic about something. Shrugging to herself, she waved and continued on. Inuyasha was silent until they reached the street.
"Well, wench, what did you want to eat? There's a good ramen shop up this way..." He started tugging her by the arm in the indicated direction.
She planted her feet like a mule. "Oh, no. I've had plenty of ramen in the last three years, thanks. You said we could eat what I wanted today. Right?"
He sighed and stopped pulling. "Right. So what the hell do you want? That 'WacDonalds' place you've talked about?"
"No way. I've had enough of that too. Let's get some sushi. I know a great place..." This time she pulled him, in the opposite direction, and after a show of reluctance and a little complaining, he went willingly enough.
The sushi was good, as she knew it would be; she knew Inuyasha hadn't had it often, and he ate enthusiastically. After the last roll was gone (she let him have it after a short squabble) and the platter was scoured for the last bit of sashimi, an awkward silence descended between them.
Inuyasha cleared his throat. "So, how did your tests go today?" he asked, rather grudgingly.
He's really making an effort, isn't he? she thought wonderingly, and suddenly felt embarrassed for her outburst last night.
"I think I did pretty well. The studying helped a lot." She paused, and offered in a low voice, "I'm sorry about last night."
"Keh. You should be." He scowled and looked away.
Okay, so now he's being difficult. She gave a mental sigh, and asked, "Alright, how can I make it up to you?"
"No studying until we find those fucking papers. I've done my part, you have to do some looking too."
"I can't promise no studying, Inuyasha." Before he could do more than turn his head and glare, she said, "I don't know how long it'll take, or even if we'll find them. However," she held up a hand as he opened his mouth, "I promise I'll spend the rest of this weekend. How's that?"
He looked a bit mollified. "We'd better find them, then."
She nodded. "We'd better get back to the shrine. We've got lots of the afternoon left." She began to rise, and was surprised when he put a hand on her arm. She looked at him questioningly as she sat back down.
"Uh, we don't have to get back right away. There's a shitload of people at the shrine right now. Why don't we walk around a little before going back?" He posed the question calmly, but it still seemed strange. I thought he was in a hurry!
"I thought you wanted to look, but okay." She looked at him, eyebrows raised skeptically. "So where do you want to walk?"
"I don't know, wench. Around here. Aren't there any historically important places or some shit like that near that we can look at?" Miroku had been big on local history, and had frequently annoyed Inuyasha by insisting on detours to spiritual sites. At least ones where he thought he might be able to pull scams on pilgrims, anyway. Why would Inuyasha want to go to something like that now? She stared hard at him, and was rewarded by some indication that he was getting uncomfortable; he didn't meet her eyes and squirmed a bit in his seat.
"And you want to see these places why?"
"Look, let's just go for a fucking walk, okay?" He stood up abruptly. She rose also, and opening her purse, began to dig for money to pay for the meal. Inuyasha then seemed to remember something; he reached into his pocket and pulled out a wad of crumpled bills, and stared at them a moment before thrusting them at Kagome. "I don't know how this paper shit replaced real money. How much of this should I give this guy?" He jerked his head at the counterman who looked over at them, curious.
"Uh..." Startled, she took the money from him and counted out the appropriate amount as he watched. "Where'd this come from, Inuyasha?" she asked as she left it on the table, and started to hand him back the rest.
"You hold on to it." She shrugged and put the money in her handbag, looking at him questioningly. "It's for working at the shrine," he muttered, not looking at her, and started walking for the door. Huh. I thought Jii-chan would still have him working off the cost of all the stuff he's broken over the years. Well, I guess part of it has been my fault, for sitting him.../With a faint blush at the memory (and forgetting about her destroyed bike), she joined him outside the shop and they paused on the sidewalk; she looked up and down the street, thinking. /Okay, places of interest we can walk to. Nothing came to mind immediately; she looked up at him.
"Anything in particular? Shrines, monuments, parks, what?"
He seemed to seize on her statement. "Shrines. There's an Inari shrine not too far from here, right?"
"Yeah, the Tokozawa shrine. It's not too far. The head priest there is a friend of Jii-chan's." She put her hands on her hips as she faced him. "So spill. What's going on?"
"Shit, you ask a lot of questions," he grumbled. "Nothing's going on. We can't take a damn walk for a while? Which way is it, woman?"
Giving him a sharp look, she acquiesced and began walking in the right direction to reach the shrine in question. She figured it would take about twenty minutes to get there if she remembered right; they walked in silence for a while, and she began to regain the good mood she'd had earlier. It was really a pretty day, cloudless, with a deep blue sky. The air was crisp and bright; she breathed it in, and felt a little disappointed. The cleanliness she had gotten used to on the other side of the well had spoiled her. If she had not experienced the air in the feudal age she would have said that it smelled great. I wonder how much worse it is for him, with his sense of smell. She looked over at him, and caught him gazing at her, with what looked like an uncertain expression. He started a little and twitched his gaze forward, but then glanced back at her, and with an air of resolve he reached for her hand.
His hand was warm and dry; it closed carefully but firmly around her smaller one. As she had before, she marveled at how such a hard, calloused hand could convey such strength and yet enfold so gently. His action at first surprised her, but she recovered and pressed his hand back, with a small grin. He actually gave a relieved, small smile in answer, and looked away again. He was maneuvering them carefully through the foot traffic on the sidewalk, his eyes flicking watchfully around at their surroundings.
Kagome was thoroughly enjoying their walk now, but she was also burning with curiosity. A lunch date, a walk afterward...he was holding her hand... "So, Inuyasha. Is there a reason we're going to see this shrine?"
He shrugged. "Not really. I've been going out at night to check out the territory; when I passed by here a few nights ago I noticed there were a bunch of kitsune at this shrine."
She suddenly felt excited. "And you think Shippou might be there?" He shook his head, to her disappointment.
"No, I think I would have caught his scent if he'd been there. I was just thinking that maybe the foxes here might know something about him."
She frowned. "Inuyasha, I've been to this shrine a bunch of times and never saw any kitsune. Do you think they'll talk to us?"
He shrugged again, with a little grin. "They'd better."
Inuyasha and Kagome were soon in sight of the Tokozawa shrine, located across a busy street. A series of bright red torii framing a short run of steps marked the entrance, and just at the top they could see the komainu, guardian statues, in this case foxes. There were a few people coming and going through the entrance. Inuyasha sniffed and frowned slightly. "Huh. There's only one out there today." Kagome mentally shrugged at the non sequitur, and maneuvered them across the street when the pedestrian light went on.
Shortly, they were crossing under the first torii; Kagome's senses prickled at the way street noise seemed to fade immediately. She didn't remember this ever happening on any previous visits here. Had she just not noticed? She maintained a good grip on Inuyasha's hand as they ascended the stairs. His expression was sharp and intent, and she imagined his ears pointed aggressively forward under his cap. Clearing the last step, they stopped in front of one of the statues. It seemed the same as she remembered it: grey stone, one paw raised, on a pedestal about even with her chin. However, Kagome was surprised to detect youki coming from it; it was definitely not made of stone, the way the other one opposite seemed to be, but it was just as still and unmoving. Nervous, she tried to look casual while several people passed by. Inuyasha wasn't helping- he was staring fixedly at it.
Finally, after the last person had passed and there were none in sight, Inuyasha said in a low voice, "Hey. Got a minute?" He continued staring. It didn't move.
Kagome started when the fox's stone mouth suddenly moved and a harsh, biting voice emerged. "I'm on duty. Beat it."
TBC
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A/N:
Tadaima - "I'm home"
Okaeri - "Welcome home"
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