Crossover Fan Fiction / InuYasha Fan Fiction / Yu Yu Hakusho Fan Fiction ❯ Love's True Light ❯ Chapter 11 ( Chapter 11 )

[ Y - Young Adult: Not suitable for readers under 16 ]

Authors note: (review replies are at the bottom!) I was just watching the episodes again and when I was on episode 40 where Yusuke was fighting Jin, I noticed that Kurama started to laugh and even commented “It seems you don’t know brother’s very well Boton.” This is so going into this story to later support Kurama’s claim that he has a brother!

I also want to let you know that the name ‘Kurama’ will only be used when it is under his POV, and hardly is he addressed by that name not by the SD gang. Kagome prefers the name Suuichi, because it is the name the he introduced himself with, and it was easier on Shiori if she used it. (Shiori is still having problems dealing with Kurama’s admittance, but she’s slowly getting used to it.)

Yet again I’ve done some new artwork for Kagome/Kurama. Since my scanner is still busted I won't be able to post them for some time. When I get them up I'll be sure to post a ridiculously long note here for you all to see. It’s of them in the school uniform. (I have two of those actually!)

Summary: Kagome and Kurama are in an arranged marriage formed by their fathers many years ago, thought Kurama has the right, being 18 years of age, to revoke the proposal, he does not. For some reason he becomes entranced by the newly turned 17 year old carefree, spitfire Kagome Higurashi.

Kagome and Kurama learn quickly of each other’s most kept secrets and fall fast in love. But when the every changing barrier finally breaks letting in a torrent of crazed Youkai, what will Kurama do when Kagome, his family, neighbors, and not to mention his 8 and a half month pregnant mother get caught in Koenma’s mess and are attacked in their own home.

Struggling to keep the group alive all the while helping Shiori with the birth of her child, Kagome and the rest of the group get stuck in a crumbling house in the master bedroom with a barrier surrounding them, their only protection to the Youkai trying to break in.
How will the couple work when the world is literally tearing them and itself apart?

This is only centered on the relationship of Kagome and Kurama there are no other relationships to be expanded upon. There will be hints of other relationships such as Yusuke and Keiko but don’t ask me to give you a lemon or anything from them I will not do it. This is Hard Core Kagome/Kurama!

Disclaimer: I do not own Kagome or any Yu Yu Hakusho Characters.

Previously on Love’s True Light:

“You’ve been to war?” Souta asked, stunned that such a young–well, not so young–man actually participated in one.

“Hai.” Kurama turned to look at his mother to see how she was fairing the story. He couldn’t tell from her expression, it was blank, devoid of any emotion to give him any guess to what was going on in her head. She was pale, curled up on her seat, her arms clutched together cross her bosom just above her heart.

He quickly surveyed the other listeners in the room. Ms. Higurashi was seated on the arm of the sofa next to her daughter. She seemed rather fascinated by his story, but her eyes told a different tale with different-darker-emotions. It was one he knew she had partaken time and time again. Her own insecurities with Kagome while she traveled, never knowing whether her daughter would return the next time, if she may be dead, or worse. It was something that she could relate to his mother with now. Though his mother had been blissfully unaware for the most part, he knew that she still worried over him, and now with this information, he wondered if she would ever by able to treat him as she used to. He wondered if she would joke with him, still attempt to tuck him in at night and reminisce over the past. He doubted that things would ever be the same.

The other two males stood or sat transfixed. Their eyes never wavered from him as he spoke his words and recounted the past few years. Though the old man was trying to hide his interest behind a scowl, he could clearly see where the old man disturbed the blood on the wood floor as he shuffled silently closer to the couch to get a better ear on things.

Souta sat leaning in, his full torso nearly bent fully over his knees. He had scooted a few inches from where he previously sat so that he was now level with the table instead of behind it and near the small love seat that his mother was perched on.

Kagome however, her face told him something he couldn’t quite name. It was a face he had never seen before and knew little of how to categorize or react to. She sat comfortably, leaning heavily against the pillow that cushioned her from the hard frame of the sofa arm. She had the best view of him, and thus probably could she every flicker of emotion that crossed him eyes or how the corner of his lips might twitch in regretful smiles. It may very well be this close range that gave her the look she sported.

It was a rather odd cross between knowing, pity, and possibly regret. He knew little of why she regretted anything in his tale, and pity wasn’t a good look upon her face, it spoiled her large eyes and pouty lips. He could deal with everyone else and their reactions, even the closed up one of his mother he could deal with. It was this look, this one girl that he could not understand, and he desperately wished to figure her out.

He had already labeled her a mystery, and he was good at solving them, they kept his mundane human life entertaining. He wanted to know her. He wanted to know how she worked, why she reacted the way she did. He wanted to know what made her laugh and smile, what made her cry and what made her love.

Kurama couldn’t help but soften his gaze at her when she met his eyes. It wasn’t a happy connection between the two, but rather a deep understanding that only ones with such pasts as themselves could forge. She understood him. She understood why he kept it hidden, and that might be what she regretted. She regretted not being able to hide it from her mother and keep her from worrying. He understood, and he promised that he would protect her, just as she promised to protect his emotions, his being, his everything. It mattered little that they knew nothing of each other. In that one instant they knew all the needed to know, and they each promised the other to protect them; body, mind and soul.

It had been a month since he previously walked up this long flight of stairs the first time, which ended up with a strange and disturbing battle where later he had to explain to his mother for the first time why he could fight and transform into a demon.

During that time, his mother hadn’t taken the rest of the story any better than she had the beginning part of it. She sat alone most of the time, mumbling to herself, and constantly worrying over anything that included him or had the briefest mention of his name related to anything that could possibly be dangerous. She had even taken to calling him on his cell phone during the school hours–just to make sure he was there of course. Kagome one time answered the phone when he went to the restroom during one of their breaks, and she rushed over when she didn’t hear his voice. It was a rather hard scene to deal with but somehow Kagome was able to diffuse it–he now owed her big time, as she so mildly put it during lunch right after the incident. Right now he planned to repay her.

He crested the top of the hill and expected her to be outside waiting for him, but he noticed quite quickly that she wasn’t planning to come out any time soon when the curtain to her window was still closed and she wasn’t sitting near the Goshinboku waiting for him. He entered when Ms. Higurashi answered the door, taking the offered cup of coffee that she always seemed to have for him. Every morning since he began to walk Kagome to school, she always had a cup of hazelnut coffee ready for him–his favorite flavor, prepared daily with cream and sugar. He never did get an answer from her as to how she knew. He ended up chalking it up to his mother, since he always forgot his thermos at home on the counter.

It became a part of his new routine. Get up in the morning, shower, dress, eat breakfast, fill the thermos, rush out the door and forget the mug, get to Kagome’s house, drink coffee as he waited for her to finish her daily rush out the door, get to school, drop Kagome home if she didn’t return with him and find the thermos gone. He had just recently found out that his step-father was now taking the thermos to work with him when he realized that his step-son continued to forget it on the island countertop. Suuichi had no complaints; after all, he got hot coffee at the Higurashi’s every day.

“Kagome dear, Suuichi’s here.” Ms. Higurashi called up as she ascended the stairs to her daughter’s room. When she reached the top, she turned briefly to address Suuichi who was standing by the foot of the stairs. “Excuse me Suuichi, but it seems that Kagome’s late night studying went far longer than planned. I’ll wake her now.”

“It’s not a problem, I’m in no hurry.” Suuichi replied taking several more sips of his coffee.

“Well if that’s the case, I have more coffee in the pot on the stove. Help yourself to as much as you like.” Suuichi nodded and watched as she disappeared around the bend behind a horribly colored wall.

The paint was chipping off and the trim was falling apart. He winced and stepped back when a bit more of it came off and nearly landed into his drink. Suuichi made a mental note to reserve a day to fix it. He knew what Souta wasn’t going to be able to fix it; his weak attempt at mending the corner was strikingly noticeable. There was fresh paint in one portion that the young boy could reach, the old trim removed haphazardly. It was an odd mix of old and new that needed to be tended too.

Suuichi stepped to the side when he heard shouting from the second floor. When he was safely away from the front of the stairs he took his final sip of coffee, placed the mug on the tabletop that Ms. Higurashi had recently moved there for him and began to count the seconds.

It went faster than usual. Normally it took Kagome nearly forty counts before she went barreling down the steps, tripping at the end. Today she was down in about ten. It was so unexpected that Suuichi nearly missed catching her when she stumbled on the last step as usual. Kagome gave him a quick ‘thanks,’ and when she regained her balance she continued her deadly sprint to the kitchen.

He had to laugh, normally every time he caught her, which was every morning, she would blush, stutter repeatedly while trying to thank him and turn away when he caught her eye. Today, she didn’t even bother to act bashful; either she felt they were really late, or she was becoming immune to him–that was something he didn’t want to happen…ever.

Kagome came running out of the kitchen with a piece of toast hanging from her mouth. She entered the laundry room next to him, picking through the clean clothes still sitting in the dryer. “Anything I should know before we leave?” She called out to him with the toast muffling her words.

“Anything that could get wet is fine.” Suuichi replied, the empty mug back in his hands as she stood in the doorway of the laundry room, watching as she made a mess of the clean clothes.

“Oh god, what the hell do you have planned, Kitsune?” She questioned him when she turned around, a bra hanging from her wrist.

Suuichi blinked, staring unabashed at the lacy pink bra. His lips pulled back into a smirk as he crossed his arms leaning against the doorframe. “Nothing that involves lingerie, at least, not yet.” He deepened his voice, glad when Kagome squeaked when she realized what he was saying.

She blushed and quickly turned around, throwing the lacy bra back into the dryer before closing it roughly. “Pervert.” He heard her mumble under her breath, stuttering a bit on the letter p.

He moved out of the way when she exited the small room, rushing back up the stairs without a word, a furious blush spread on her cheeks. She did not meet his eyes, in fact, she lowered her head when she past him, her heart racing just a bit. His grin grew.

Good, she wasn’t immune after all…

*******
“Suui-chan, I’m hungry.” Kagome groaned, tugging on his hand as they stood on the train. Suuichi groaned at the cute name that she started to call him. He was older than her, how does that warrant the suffix ‘chan’? Best to ignore it, she’ll find another name to call him by if he denied her this one. How many had they gone through, again?

There was … oh wait… that was Yusuke and Kuwabara. Suuichi sighed again, even Hiei started to call him by some of those nicknames… so much for sticking to ‘Red’.

Suuichi’s right hand was hanging on the rubber loops that hung from the train’s roof. The entire car was packed with people. Suuichi and Kagome had given up their seats a long time ago for an elderly woman and granddaughter. They were now standing in front of them by a bit, Suuichi hanging onto the handgrip, where as Kagome hung onto him. She couldn’t reach the grip; her fingers just barely brushed them.

“What happened to the piece of toast you were eating?” he asked, pulling her closer as a shady man came alarmingly close to her, his hand near they hem of her white dress.

“Oh god,” Kagome gasped, covering her mouth with her unoccupied hand. The tan wicker basket held on her arm falling to her bent elbow.

“What is it?” Suuichi asked, lifting his eyes to the man that was slowly shuffling closer to them. He glared at the man and watched happily as he stopped moving.

“I think I dropped it in the dryer.” If he could have fallen over, he would have.

“How could you drop it in the dryer?” Suuichi looked at Kagome. Her eyes were wide in shock, possibly imagining her mother’s face when she found the half eaten piece of bread amongst her clean laundry. “I thought you ate it.”

“My mother is going to murder me!” Kagome shook as she spoke, worrying her bottom lip after Suuichi pushed her thumb from her teeth when she started to chew on the skin at the inside corner.

“Stop doing that.” Suuichi whispered, letting go of the handgrip to pull the abused lower lip from between her teeth with his thumb lightly. He lifted her chin so he could look into her eyes. “You mother will forgive you. It’s only one load of laundry.”

“Yes, but my brother and grandfather make up more than their fair share of dirty clothes.” Kagome turned away from him when he released her to grab the handgrip again. “That’s more work than she needs.”

“I’m sure it will be fine, besides, if you feel that guilty why not do some of the laundry.” Kagome started to laugh now, a rather unwarranted response. “What’s so funny?” Suuichi asked, now completely confused.

“I don’t know how to do laundry. I only know how to wash them in a river with nothing but a bar of body soap and a twig to stick it on to dry. I’ve never done it with a machine; my mother won’t let me near them.” Kagome doubled over a bit, clutching the stitch in her side.

“Well–that was unexpected.” Suuichi smiled. Figures his Amazonian woman wouldn’t know how to use a machine to wash clothes.

“I’m not an Amazonian woman.” Suuichi smiled wider when she got angry.

“Who said anything about that?” He laughed. She knew it was a complete lie, he knew she was going to take revenge soon.

“I know you; you’re just waiting to say it, aren’t you?” Kagome jabbed him in the side with her finger. With his hands both occupied by the grip and her hand, he could do nothing to defend himself.

“Whatever you say my little Amazon,” Suuichi said with another laugh. Kagome nearly screamed, but instead took to poking him with her free hand repeatedly, the toast incident forgotten.

“So Suui-chan, where are we going?” Kagome questioned him after she finished her poking–her revenge complete. “I’m still hungry.”

*******

When they exited the train, Suuichi pulled her down several blocks to a section that was dedicated to nothing but shops.

“Uh…Suui-chan?” This was rather odd, if he wanted to take her shopping, he didn’t have to freak her out by telling her to wear something compatible with water. For that matter, he didn’t need to drag her half way around town to the middle of nowhere. His house (mansion was more the term, but Suuichi forced her to call it a ‘house’ so his fan girls wouldn’t try to stalk him more-so than they were doing now) was conveniently a few miles from the nearest super mall.

“I need your help, Kagome,” Suuichi turned to her, clasping both her hands gently. “Today’s my step-aunts 49th birthday, and I have absolutely no idea what to get for her.”

“Wow, you, coming up short on ideas….let me get my camera!” Kagome playfully opened the wicker basket she carried on her elbow, fumbling inside to poke at his nerves.

“Yes, it has been known to happen.” Suuichi laughed at her antics. “But all fun and jokes aside, I truly need the help.”

“Why don’t you just get her a gift card to a day at the spa, or something? I’m sure she’d love that.” Kagome said while closing the lid of the basket. “My mother always does.”

“Do I look like a gift card person to you?” Suuichi asked, raising an eyebrow as he pulled her down the street quickly browsing through the windows of nearby shops.

“What’s wrong with gift cards? They’re perfectly fine.” Kagome countered. Her favorite thing, if she had nothing else to give, was to buy many different gift cards. They were easy and much better than buying a present that would only be returned later. “I’m sure she’ll understand, I mean, your mom and Hanatanaka-san have only been married for less than a year now.”

“Yes, well. I’ve never met the woman, or that side of the family except for those who came to the wedding, or personally stopped by to congratulate them on the baby.” Suuichi stopped before the window of a woman’s boutique. The display case held many beautiful styles of clothing that looked rather expensive, but too young for a woman of 49. He shook his head and turned to her. “It’s best to make a good impression.”

“Yes, and the best impression is to start slow and gentle. She’s 49 and doesn’t need more stuff than she already has.” Suuichi nodded his head at those words. True, she didn’t need more than she already has in her house, no matter how recently she and her family moved to Japan. “A gift card would be much better, and much simpler.” Kagome continued.

“I still don’t like gift cards. They have no sense of style.” Suuichi relinquished as the two walked down the road to a local spa and bathhouse that was well known around this area.

“If you really wanted to make a grand impression, why not get her something that you’ve hoarded away in one of your caves. I’m sure you won’t mind missing a few pieces of jewelry.” Kagome laughed at him lightly, picking up an elegant card from the front desk painted with a single Sakura blossom that rippled the imaginary water beneath and handed it to the cashier who was too busy staring at Suuichi to notice the item dangling before her to take.

“Okay, but let’s get one thing straight.” Suuichi turned to her, his emerald eyes sharp, smoldering nearly with a slight golden hue.

“Oh, and would that be?” Kagome asked with a raised eyebrow as Suuichi broke their gaze to hand the staring blonde the money to place into the card.

“Kitsune’s don’t hoard,” Suuichi said as he leaned over, the smell of his cologne strong because he stood so close, his lips rather close to her own. “We collect.”

Kagome couldn’t move. For just one moment, she truly felt…almost as if…

She couldn’t fully describe it. One minute they were enjoying a playful banter and the next, he was serious all too alluring. That one moment sped her heart to race faster than ever imaginable. Her mind couldn’t function, process anything but him.

The sight of him, as a predator and completely masculine, captivated her as did the scent of him. Though he may have splashed himself with rather pungent cologne that only seemed to enhance his natural scent as well as detract unwanted demon attention, she could not bear to look away. His eyes stunned her to the very core like a caught deer. When his eyes turned from her, she could but momentarily regain her lost breath and watched, dazed, as Suuichi took the card from the woman with a polite thank you and turned to escort her out the door.

*******

His aunt’s house was just as large as Suuichi’s (if not larger), which would not have classified it as a house, for that would entail it to be within a certain square footage and less than 6 bedrooms. From what she could tell by the main exterior, this mansion had at least ten rooms, a few with a balcony, and was situated rather nicely on premium property. This home went under the classification of ‘damn, I wish’ which was more commonly known as a mansion.

Suuichi pulled Kagome to the front door, ignoring the fact that her mouth still hung open from gaping at the size. He rapped lightly with the back of his knuckles, taking the time that the owner took to answer to straighten his shirt. Kagome pulled at the hem of her dress, hoping that it wasn’t too short or too casual for the occasion.

When the door opened, the couple came face to face with a blonde haired youth. He appeared to be Suuichi’s age and roughly the same height and build. His eyes were grey and he sported a few piercings, most of them collectively located at the ears, though there was one on his eyebrow and another on his lip. He raised the pierced eyebrow in question, not bothering to vocalize it, but rather glared at Suuichi.

Unfazed by the hostile atmosphere the other presented, Suuichi bowed respectfully then outstretched his right hand in greeting while introducing himself and Kagome. The boy lifted the other eyebrow (not pierced) in surprise then quickly took the offered hand in an enthusiastic handshake.

“I didn’t know that you were my cousin, honestly, I was actually expecting someone more ‘nerdy’ and Asian than you.” He spoke rapidly in broken and heavily accented Japanese. “I’m Kai; the family’s outback so please come in.”

Kai scrambled from the doorway, motioning with his hand for them to enter. Suuichi allowed Kagome to pass the threshold first before entering himself, his left hand on the small of her back in case she decided to trip over the welcome mat.

“It’s a pleasure to meet you Kai, I’m sorry that we haven’t had the chance to meet before, but since we live in different districts, it’s rather difficult to get in contact with you or your family, my sincere apologies for not welcoming you to the family.” Suuichi spoke, in English since he noticed Kai’s difficulty with their native tongue.

“Oh, wow, you speak English!” Kai switched, immediately welcoming the change. “Does she speak English?” Kai questioned when he realized Kagome hadn’t spoken yet.

Kagome smiled, bowed then stretched out her hand to greet him since she didn’t do it when they were at the front door. “You can be well assured, I speak the language well enough.” He took her hand, delighted to know that this will make things much easier. “I’m Kagome Higurashi, Suuichi’s fiancée.”

“Fiancée! Aren’t you two a bit young to be thinking about marriage?” Kai questioned as he shut the front door before leading them through the large house to the back.

“Well, normally it would be, but since this is an arranged marriage, there is very little choice involved for either of us.” Suuichi answered. “But because I’m now eighteen, I can legally revoke the arrangement, but Kagome and I decided to try and honor our fathers’ wishes and see if we can make it work.” Kagome nodded her head in agreement.

“So, in other words, you two are dating?” Kai questioned as they paused before a sliding glass door.

“In a complicated sort of way, yes, we are.” Kagome replied, looking too Suuichi to see if he wanted to add anything.

Kai too glanced at his cousin, wondering if he were going to add anything else, but the redhead only nodded an affirmative with a small smile tugging at the corners of his lips.

The subject wasn’t broached again, instead Kai opened the door to the back patio, which in Kagome’s opinion was too large to even be considered a patio, and rather it should have been named a small meadow.

From the back doors of the house, a large expanse of puzzled concrete pieces of various earth tone colors stretched to a small line of sakura trees. It wrapped itself around a luxurious (and impossibly large) pool, complete with a waterfall that fell from an equally massive hot tub, a slide, a volleyball net, a springboard for diving and two floating basketball hoops with the brightly colored ball floating upon the gentle wake.

The concrete space was filled with patio equipment. There were beds for sunbathing, tables and chairs complete with umbrella sprinkled around the pool deck, and a few hammocks and swinging chairs for relaxing. Whatever went beyond the concrete was lost beyond the line of tall sakura trees.

Kai led them to their right, where everyone was camped around a roaring fire where a spit was turning a skewered pig. The large fire was acting as a makeshift grill, but it reminded Kagome of the many times where she and her fellow compatriots had roasted wild boar for their meager supper. Of course, they never cooked the entire animal at once, it always took longer if they tried it that way and time was never available to them for such acts.

Kai began the introductions, going quickly around the circle. When he finished, he turned to introduce the two who were as of that moment struggling to remember all the names thrown at them. “Everyone, this is my cousin Suuichi Minamino and his fiancée, Kagome Higurashi.” Kai fumbled slightly when it came to Kagome’s name, having forgotten it momentarily.

After the introduction, much time was spent shaking hands and making small talk. Suuichi and Kagome were congratulated many times and repeatedly questioned or warned that ‘young love’ was not all as it seemed. Others congratulated them on entering the family as well.

Kai’s mother, the woman whose birthday was being celebrated, was a charming woman with hazelnut brown hair and light green eyes. She welcomed Suuichi and Kagome with open arms into the family, speaking in surprisingly fluent Japanese and congratulated them on their upcoming marriage.

Kai’s father was also just as welcoming. It surprised Suuichi just how much he resembled his stepfather. Thought the two were brothers, they were at least five years apart from what he remembered; he thought that the similarities would be slightly less pronounced.

Before they could truly get into any sort of conversation after the pleasantries, Suuichi and Kagome were whisked off by Kai and two girls.

“We just need to borrow them, see ya.” Kai quickly shouted to his father as he pulled Suuichi by the arm. Kagome was being dragged and pushed by the two women.

The one in front, pulling at Kagome’s wrist was rather tall and skinny with short, unevenly cropped blonde hair with red highlights sporadically thrown in. The other one was much shorter, her golden hair was long and softly curled to her hips.

“Mauri, could you stop pushing the poor girl.” The woman with the red highlights growled. “She won’t run away, I’ve got her.” She held up the captive arm for the other to see.

Kai laughed as Mauri blushed, the color setting off her beautiful cornflower blue eyes. She immediately backed off Kagome’s shoulders and stuck the offending hands behind her back, pushing her hip a bit to the right as she shifted her feet.

The two were led around a few corners, some narrow hallways and up a flight of winding and rickety stairs. There were lights on the sides of the walls, the stairwell must have been hidden in a small tower. The stairs went up for several flights, if Suuichi had to guess, he’d say they were at the fourth floor by the time they reached an old wooden door.

“Damn,” Kai fidgeted with the door handle. “What the hell did you do Karin, and weren’t you supposed to change the light bulbs?” He gritted his teeth when the key continued to refuse to turn.

“Shut your trap, you little baby. I didn’t do anything to the damn door, and no, this is your little “club house,” you need to change the bulbs.” She glared right back, her short hair and red color dark in the new lighting.

“Why don’t you let me try?” Mauri danced up next to him, reaching for the key with her tiny hand.

“And have you break it, I don’t think so,” Kai growled out, his frustration already getting to him. “Karin, you do it.”

“Just because I’m the oldest, doesn’t mean I have to do everything.” Karin huffed, combing her many ringed fingers through her short hair.

“Only by a few minutes, I wanna try.” Mauri pouted.

The bickering continued for some time, Suuichi and Kagome forgotten a few steps below. The two shared a glance, and as Kagome moved to step forward and settle the argument, her foot caught a thin piece of rotting wood. It collapsed under her added weight and with a small astonished cry she fell backwards, straight into Suuichi’s arms.

The three above heard the splintering of wood and her sudden cry they and turned sharply, nearly pitching forward themselves to see the two in a rather awkward embrace, Kagome’s food caught upon the wooden step.

“Now that the shouting has stopped, I think I will try to open the door,” Suuichi said calmly, the tone implied that there was no room for argument. He helped Kagome onto a safe plank of wood then stepped forward. “Kai, would you please make sure that Kagome doesn’t fall, she has a nasty habit of finding everything possible to trip on, no matter how small it could be.”

The others blinked where as Kagome stood unfazed. Kai moved down the steps, having to turn sideways to allow Suuichi to pass through the narrow steps. He took place where Suuichi once had been behind Kagome, her hand tightly gripped in his.

The two sisters parted and Mauri stepped down to allow Suuichi through. Once at the door, Suuichi noticed the key was no longer jammed into the keyhole. He searched quickly, thinking that it may have fallen during the fight. The concrete landing was clear of any bronze old-fashioned key, as were the few steps that preceded the landing.

Suuichi turned to Kai, noticing the key was tightly tucked into the enclosed palm of his hand. “I need the key to get in through the door,” Suuichi began, stretching his hand a bit. “Unless you prefer that I pick the lock.”

“You can pick the…” Kai began, but was cut immediately by Karin.

“That wasn’t the point you moron. Just hand him the blasted key, this place is getting really stuffy and hot.” She growled out, tugging a bit at the collar of her shirt to cool off.

Kai grumbled a few choice words under his breath as he handed the key to Mauri, who then proceeded to trip, the key flying from her hands.

Karin wrapped her arms around her sister, saving her from a nasty fall, where as Suuichi stretched his hand a bit farther to catch the key before it fell between the cracks in the steps.

Everyone released their bated breath.

Noticing that everyone’s nerves were about to snap, Suuichi turned on his heels and shoved the key into the brass lock. When he couldn’t turn the key, he ran his fingers through his hair, pulling a seed from the strands. The reason for the motion went unnoticed to all as he continued with the stubborn lock. He pushed a small amount of energy into the seed, he could hear Kagome pull a sharp breath as it charged the room a bit with free static. He pushed the growing roots into keyhole with his right hand, and when he heard a light click, he turned the key and pushed the door open.

“About frickin’ time,” Karin sighed as she rushed in pasted Suuichi who was still at the door, removing evidence of his lock picking, putting back the seed into his hair.

The others filed in one after another. Kagome entered, but as she passed, she sent him a knowing look and a tiny smile.

“How did you do that?” Kai asked loudly, slinging his arm across Suuichi’s shoulders. “We’ve been having problems with that lock for weeks, then here comes boy genius and opened the door like it was nothing.”

“I just have magic hands,” He laughed as they entered the air-cooled space. “But don’t get me wrong, you still need a new lock.” He looked back as Kai closed the door, his eyes lingering on the battered old wooden staircase. “And a new set of stairs.”

Kai laughed and clapped his cousin on the shoulder. “Welcome to my bachelor pad,” Suuichi hid his mirth behind his hands when Kai’s eye twitched when he noticed the many boy-band posters and bright colored pillows that coved the room like large skittles. “That has been infested by girls.”

Kai sulked for the remainder of the walk to the large plasma TV mounted on the wall, where the girls were setting up the Rock Band game. As the game booted up, Kai’s mood lightened, and proceeded to fight with Karin over the plastic red guitar controller.

Suuichi watched from the corner of his eye as Kagome sneakily picked up the other guitar controller and strapped it to her torso. He turned to her and smiled, taking a seat on the soft plush couch before the drums, twisting the plastic sticks in his hands. “I call next on that guitar, Kagome, so don’t forget to share.”

Kagome laughed and tossed a pink plush pillow at him. “In your dreams pretty boy,” she said as she played with the whammy bar, her white dress contrasting with the sharp purple and black colors of the controller.

Suuichi smiled and tossed the pink pillow back at her, getting her square in the stomach as she tried to use the guitar as a bat. The other’s laughed as Mauri took the mike from its stand, Karin winning the small battle of tug-of-war with the guitar stood to his left.

As they picked their characters, Kai grabbed Karin’s controller and fiddled with the keys, “If I’m not going to be playing for a while, at least I’m going to pick the songs.”

The first notes of the song rang out as Karin expertly touched her matching keys. Suuichi soon joined in with drums, and Kagome following quickly on bass (though she was on easy). Mauri took a deep breath, opened her eyes and sung the first word, her voice shocking Suuichi and Kagome so that they missed the next few notes.

Mauri had an extremely beautiful voice. Her English was perfect, but that was to be expected since she previously lived in the United States, but as Mauri continued to sing, her voice perfectly matching the pitch bars on the television screen, Kagome could only say she was a bit…envious.

Where Kagome had a great voice for ballads like Celine Dion, Mauri was another Shakera or Christina Aguilera, hitting every vocal range with a smooth tenor. The sound of it put Kagome too much to shame that when Mauri passed the mike to her, asking if she wished to trade for her position on the bass, Kagome refused. “You’re so much better at it than I am,” she replied modestly and continued to stoke the keys on her controller for the rest of the game.

Suuichi noticed this, and pulled her aside when the others left to the small built in kitchen for snacks and drinks.

“You should have sang, you have an amazing voice.” He stroked her arm soothingly as she shook her head silently.

“There’s no point in embarrassing myself,” Kagome replied, shaking off Suuichi’s hand that rested on her shoulder. “She should try out. She could be a famous singer with a voice like hers.”

Kagome stayed solemn for the rest of the time they spent in the attic game-room. That was, until, everyone started to complain that Mauri’s cooking was so awful.

“Stupid twit, you’re supposed to watch it, not leave it to burn,” Karin screamed at the nearly crying blonde, pulling the spatula out of her shaking hands. “It’s simple chemistry.”

“Nuh-uh, no way are you going near the food, Karin.” Kai forcefully grappled the spatula out of his older sister’s hands. “The last time you cooked, we were all locked in the bathroom for hours. Cooking is not like chemistry, A plus B doesn’t always equal C.”

Kagome and Suuichi laughed at the bickering siblings, and wondered how they ever ate if they didn’t go down to the main kitchen on the first floor.

“You know, Kagome’s a great cook,” Suuichi smiled and grabbed her hand when she nearly fled when all the attention was thrown to her. “Why not let her try?”

“What are you doing?” Kagome seethed low under her breath, knowing full well that he heard her.

“Allowing you to show off some of your skills since singing is obviously out of the question.” He whispered to her as she stood shakily.

“You will regret putting me there, fox. I wouldn’t eat anything if I was you, you might just end up, locked away.” She growled out, claiming the spatula from Kai’s outstretched hand.

“The kitchen is all yours.” He said cheerfully and took her empty seat next to Kurama.

“Okay, so non-burnt pancakes coming right up.” She laughed lightly, dumping the burnt cakes into the trash, only wishing there were some way for her to get out of the mess that her soon-to-be-dead-fiancé put her in.

*******

After many well paid complements on her cooking, Kagome and Suuichi immediately found themselves back downstairs for the rest of the evening. The two were separated nearly five minute after walking out the sliding screen doors. Many of the family members began to ask them questions about the upcoming marriage, how romantic young love was, and even, if the two of them had been sleeping together which immediately sent Kagome’s cheeks on fire.

She was saved by Karin, who glared at her mother’s guests and pulled her to the safety of a glass patio table shaded by a large green umbrella. Kai and Mauri were sitting there with colorful classes in their hands, complete with bendy straws and tiny umbrellas. Mauri handed her a pink glass with red colored liquid. She took a sip and was delighted to find the mixture was strawberry-kiwi, wonderfully sweet.

“Don’t worry, I didn’t mix it,” She laughed and took another sip of her drink. “And, it’s alcohol free. I didn’t think my dear goody-two-shoes cousin would want a drunken fiancée to worry about.”

Kagome bit her lip to stifle the giggle she nearly released. If only the two knew the real Suuichi, or better yet, Kurama. There was clearly nothing goody-two-shoes about him, though it would appear that way to the general public.

There, however, must have been something rather deceiving on her face, because the three were immediately questioning her about her sex life with their dear cousin.

“Have the two of you… oh my god, you have, haven’t you!?” Mauri shrieked. Her cornflower blue eyes wide and her narrow lips parted in a large ‘O’ shape. “Tell me, was it good?” She leaned over the table when she recovered from her shock, a wide grin spread across her face.

“No we haven’t, he’s been a perfect gentleman.” Kagome looked down at her hands that held the plastic pink cup with her near empty drink. “Besides, we haven’t even kissed yet.”

“Then he’s not as good as they claim.” Kai haughtily exclaimed. “There have been major rumors of our dear cousin being a god among men in the bedroom, but it seems that he’s not that great.”

“I can’t state his prowess in bed because frankly put, I’m still a virgin, and secondly if you wish to find that answer, ask him yourself.” Kagome seethed. She didn’t know why she was so angry, maybe it was because she knew he would be good, hell, he’d be great, after all–he is a Kitsune.

“Oh, the little one’s in love.” Karin laughed. “I wouldn’t get your hopes up girly, most men are deceiving, and we don’t want you thinking that he’s something he’s not. There is no such thin as Adonis.”

Kagome bit her lip again, and for some reason the mention of Suuichi made her wonder where her fiancé was in the first place. “Where is Suuichi anyway?”

“Simmering away with the old cronies, he should be on his way over here sooner or later, that is, if he can get out of their clutches.” Mauri said after finishing her sip.

Karin leaned over to speak for a moment before she stopped entirely and rephrased whatever she was going to say, muttering, “He got out quicker than we expected.”

Suuichi walked over, a small smile playing at the corner of his lips. Kagome knew that grin anywhere–he was in the mood to play. Something had changed his mood and for the life of her, she couldn’t understand what; and then it hit her like a speeding train.

He was walking as a predator, his eyes narrowed on her, freezing her in the lawn chair that she sat in, unable to move. Gold bled into his normal emerald eyes, mixing rather wondrously, almost other-worldly.

He knew. How could she have forgotten about his hearing? He could easily pick out their conversation between the many loud voices, they weren’t being too quiet about it either. By the looks of him, he was about to prove something, and she had a feeling she was going to be the guinea pig.

He leaned over her chair, some of his red hair spilling over his right shoulder as he gripped the metal with his right hand. His lips were slightly parted, grinning as he drew closer to steal a kiss and prove to her that he was the best.

She leaned back as far as she could away from him, blushing as she tried to occupy her mouth with the straw of her sweet strawberry-kiwi fruit drink that he was pushing down and away from her, he could hear her heart beating like a humming bird. With her distraction now resting against her thigh, both hands wrapped around it securely as if letting go were not even an option.

He closed the gap.

Kagome could hear the gasps from her table occupants for one moment before she couldn’t think anymore. Her heart could have stopped for all she knew, its existence lost in the fog of the kiss. She was vaguely aware that the strap on her right shoulder fell down the entire way, his hair brushing delicately against the exposed skin of her arms, and every tiny hair on her arms stretched as the skin bumped when she managed to shiver from the feel of his small caress with his thumb near her elbow. She couldn’t breathe or think as he pushed past her lips and teeth to engage in a one-sided battle of tongues. It took her another moment to gain her wit; this is exactly what he wanted, he wanted to win and dominate and like hell she was going to let him win.

She fought back as much as she could, but she soon learned that it was this reaction, as she twisted her tongue around his, that he was really wanted. What she thought was a pleasantly beautiful kiss before (mind you that her only kisses to compare with were to Inuyasha and one from Hojo; those as far as she could tell were not so great) had turned into a rather heated and passionate moment that completely blew her mind.

Her mind was once again lost in fog, searching frantically for a way back with her tongue, her grip on her cup tight.

When he pulled away, he could tell that the audience had gained one hell of a show. His cousins were stunned speechless, the three of them gapping wide as he turned to give a triumphant grin. “Who said I couldn’t kiss?” He glanced again at his victim as she continued to stare into space, barely able to breathe. He leaned in again, his lips next to her ear and whispered, “Don’t forget to breathe.” He gave a light chuckle and left to find his uncle.

Once she regained her breath, she cursed him for all she was worth. For one, he just gave her the best damn kiss of her life, and probably will be the best damn kiss for the rest of her life, and he had the nerve to walk away with a stupid grin on his extremely gorgeous face. “Damn him…” she cursed aloud.

“Was that really as good as it looked, cuz that was movie style hott with a large sprinkling of Venus!?” Mauri asked, leaning over the glass table, her drink forgotten from its seat on the thin arm of the patio chair.

“You make absolutely no sense Mauri.” Karin said, brushing her multicolored hair off her shoulders, while watching her younger cousin engage in a conversation with her father by the grill–what he did was impossible. How could he do that, he was virgin…right? Was their Intel that wrong?

Kagome noticed that the others were looking at her, possibly expecting her to debunk their theory, and as much as she wished she could… she couldn’t. Suuichi was the best damn kisser… possibly in the world (all of them)! She couldn’t form words if they didn’t involve some sort of curse attached to them along with Suuichi’s name, she just nodded, her lip still trembling slightly. Even the damn curse words came out stuttering.

“Damn….that bastard.” Mauri leaned back into her chair, knocking over her drink to the concrete floor. Nobody paid any attention to it, thankfully the cup was plastic. Everyone mulled over the fact that Suuichi not only just gave the best kiss, but showed them all up as well, for keeping Kagome preoccupied with it even well after he left. Had she not been sitting… well, she would have been a lovely heap of goop on the floor… possibly pudding (as Kai put it earlier).

“Damn it, and I have to compete with that…” Kai mumbled to himself, the straw of his drink lay forgotten near the corner of his lip, some of the red liquid dribbling from his chin. “What the hell is he on? I want some!” He added, wiping his chin with the back of his free hand.

The three of them spent the rest of their time stuck there, mulling over Suuichi and his complete control over women, no matter how resistant they could possibly be to his advances (not that Kagome was a good example of that said strong resistance, she was already, to lightly put it, head-over-heals).
_____________________________________________________ ___________________

Please take note that when Mauri mentioned ‘Venus’ after the kiss between Kagome and Suuichi, it was in reference to the planet Venus that is incredibly hot (over 740 degrees Kelvin/ over 878 degrees Fahrenheit/ over 470 degrees Celsius). Yes it was stupid, but she’s air-brained, so I forgive her.

Oh, and I’m collecting pet names for Suuichi. ‘Red’ is used by Hiei only. I need some that are interesting, funny and completely stupid and embarrassing.

Even some for Kagome would be nice; Suuichi needs a comeback after all.
________________________________________________________________________

I was wondering, if you guys don’t mind, what is your age and if you were male or female? I’ve been trying to find out who is the general audience that I cater to. My creative writing teacher told me that I was definitely a writer for women (young adult and teen) so I was wondering if that was true. Think of it as a way for me to understand my writing, and thus I will know how much action should be balanced against the romance and stuff like that.

If you don’t want to answer me, that’s fine. I’m not going to pressure any of you into anything you don’t want to tell me.

Also, have any of you seen my bio page (yes it’s rather long)? I tend to post stuff there, a lot of links and what not. Is it useful, or should I stick to something smaller?

________________________________________________________________________

Review Replies: (in order of when you reviewed)

Dark Inu Fan: That sounds like a great idea, though I don’t think it’d be the best. I’ll consider it since he still baffles me. The only thing that would be wrong with that is that Suuichi is a spirit or sliver fox where as Shippou is more on the red and fire side. But maybe I’ll play with the idea. If I do happen to use it I’ll let you know and credit you for it. Thank you so much for the review.

BlueEyedWolf: Really? That’s interesting. Well I wanted Youko to have some sort of competition, at least in his younger years. His twin was that form of friendly competition and strong friend. As of right now the twin’s personality is slowly taking shape, though he is still dancing around somewhere in my head taunting me. Thank you so much for your review.

yue no rei: Thanks for letting me know, I’ll fix them when I’m done with the story…eventually. I didn’t have time to proof read it too much since I got annoyed reading it over and over again and my beta has been MIA for some time, but I still love her. This would have been the first chapter she’d work on and as of right now, none of my work has been fully edited. (I don’t have that much time!) Thank you so much for the review.

Kage Fushichou: Thank you so much for the compliment. I try to change things up ever now and again, though this time it was just some boring explanation. Now the real fun begins.

DarkFallMoonBeloved: Thank you so much. I don’t think I’m great, but I still love the flattery.

Kaori Minamino: Hm….what you say interests me. Karasu–dead? Read chapter 9 again and let me know if you think he’s really dead. I won’t say if he is or isn’t (though I’m sure most of you know the answer).
I’m glad that it made your day, but I don’t think it’s perfect. Actually far from it. I read back on some of the earlier chapters and I think they’re horribly written! Maybe I just don’t like my work? Who knows… but thank you so much for the review. I was trying to change the normal boring and rather long explanations of Kagome’s past, since everyone seems to write them. I hope it was better than most. As for Suuichi’s story, well that one took some time to write since it was so long and I decided to cut it off halfway through since the rest is generally known. (Plus I wanted to start writing the good stuff immediately.)

regretfully-yours-Cassy-chan: Thank you!

OhBrother: I don’t plan to wait that long ever again! I hated having writers block on how to write that scene. It wasn’t hard to describe Kagome’s story since I knew what was going on with her, but for Suuichi it was different. I wanted to give him a deeper background that not many people have written about. I hope I did just that.

Kittyb78: Thanks, I can’t wait to describe him, though I haven’t fully planned for him to appear in this first story. I want him more to appear in the sequel. I’ll figure him out sooner or later. (Yes, I planned for a sequel!)

Ice: Thank you so much for waiting. I’m sorry to keep you in that state for so long. Hopefully there won’t be anything longer than a month and a half or two months between chapter updates. I can’t make the best of promises, but that I can probably manage (so long as my muse stays with me and my fingers don’t fall off–too many college essays.).

JessicaAnnCowley: Thank you so much!

CrowNoYami: *falls over from the glomp* ouch! Was that a glomp or a tackle? Thanks for worrying. I was worried myself that I wasn’t going to be able to finish this, but now It’s starting to pick up. Now if only I could straighten out the romance with Suuichi and Kagome, and the whole thing with Youko’s twin–then I’ll be set.

Lillikyi: I like the idea, though it sounds more Arabic than Japanese…but I like it–a lot! I think I just got inspiration…. Thank you so much. I know more or less what to do with him now… and he’s an arrogant ass!!! I’ll definitely use it, though it. When I do happen to use it however, I’ll add it to my disclaimer. Thank you so much.

BLAQUE-VIXEN-SHIVA: I know, I though I would never get around to updating, but I finally did. Don’t worry, I don’t plan to have another long wait like that one again. Thanks for sticking with me.

Sorasatomoru: Romance is on the way, but it will take some time for it to fully bloom. I’ll give you some fun filled stuff like this chapter, so I hope that this worked out well enough for you. The characters are slowly developing, as well as the story. Hang in there, everything is slowly building up. Thanks for being a loyal fan. I hope that this story will keep you entertained.

Crimsonvixen333: Thank you so much for reviewing. I’m glad that you like this, I hope that this chapter is making things better.

Raine44354: I’m glad that you love this fanfiction. Thank you so much for reviewing and adding me to your alerts.

Jessica: I’ll try my best to keep to my schedule that is now posted on my bio page, but I can’t make any promises.

HieiKag: I’m not sure if Mamoru is a good name for him. I’m still looking so if you want to keep suggesting that is perfectly fine.

Kyekye: Thank you so much for sticking with me. I’ve noticed that nearly every one of my stories has at least one review from you. Thank you so much. I’m going to try to keep to my schedule, but again, no promises.

Fairyfox: I hope I gave you enough of the Yu Yu gang. Yusuke and the others won’t meet Kagome for a LONG time. I want to make it dramatic and one hell of a shock to them. Suuichi is going to be keeping her a secret from them for a some time (nobody but the family needs to know–that’s what they both think anyway). As for Suuichi’s twin, he’s not going to be a huge feature in this one, but he will be spoken about here and there. He’s more for the sequel (yes there’s a sequel!). Thanks for reviewing.

ICE: Was this a good update? I know it was still a while, but life is busy, my best friend just got back from her four and a half month training up in Fort Jackson for the Military. I wanted to spend time with her before I updated.

Lily887787: I know that you wanted for me to update quickly (like every other reviewer on ff.net) but I wanted to spend time with my best friend who just came back from her training in Fort Jackson for the Military (Army branch). I will be posting the expected dates that I will be updating on my profile from now on for all my active stories. I hope that helps. Thanks for being patient.

IchikoKitsuneKoumori: Most of the stuff that I omitted was not important. For Kagome’s story, what was important was the ending, as for Kurama, small details like that were not necessary. The Four Saint Beasts played a very small role and Yukina is not his responsibility nor is it his story to share. Most of that was unnecessary; all that they needed to know was how he got dragged into it and some of the major battles that would explain prolonged absence. Had he gone into farther detail then Shiori would never let him out of the house again.

If there is anything else in Kagome’s story that needs to be added (same with Kurama) it will be later added within farther chapters. Some things need to stay secret…right? Thank you so much for reviewing.