InuYasha Fan Fiction ❯ Blood & Tears ❯ Reminders from the Past ( Chapter 12 )

[ X - Adult: No readers under 18. Contains Graphic Adult Themes/Extreme violence. ]

Sesshomaru starts the trip west with Kichou, Shippou & Rin. InuYasha and Kagome have another double-date with Niro and Ayume.

Warning: Mentions F/F action (does not involve main characters)

(Beta read - thanks inufan625!)

Anime/Manga: InuYasha Fan Fiction | Genre(s): Angst / Romance / Hentai / Drama | Type: Divergence | Uploaded On: 11.29.2005 | Updated On: 05.08.2008 | Pages: 15 | Words: 16.5K | Visits: 7.5K | Status: Work In Progress

Disclaimers: I do not own any of the InuYasha anime/manga characters (they are the property of Rumiko Takahashi and Sunrise) but I do own Kaminari, Kaiho, and the lovely Kichou, as well as any other original characters.

AN: Many thanks again to inufan625 for Beta reading.

Blood & Tears

Chapter 12: Reminders from the Past (Warning: mentions F/F action - does not involve main characters)

Lord Sesshomaru was leading his small party west, back towards his home. He was keeping a watchful eye on Rin and Shippou. Rin made sure that the pair did not wander too far away. She ran and laughed as she played with the young kitsune. Sesshomaru was amazed at the amount of energy the two had. No wonder Jaken was always grumbling about trying to keep up with the young girl.

As they walked, Kichou had been thinking about everything that Kagome had allowed her to see. It wasn't just the feelings that she and InuYasha had for each other in comparison to Kagome and Lord Sesshomaru. Kagome let Kichou see a bit into the great Lord himself. Kichou also had a better understanding of why Kagome willingly let Lord Sesshomaru take her and the fact she really did not have any choice if Sesshomaru so desired. While Kichou had been aware that two brothers could willingly share a mate, she had no idea that the eldest of the family could claim, and even dispose of, any mate of the younger males of the family.

Kichou was an only child, so such things had never been brought up. She would have to speak to her parents about that - no telling what might have happened to her if she had mated with someone from one of the other clans without that knowledge. Of course they probably knew she was holding out for Lord Sesshomaru, even if she had never mentioned it. They would most likely tell her they knew that, and since he was the eldest it wasn't a problem.

Kichou finally broke the silence between them. She knew Sesshomaru wasn't much for words. “Lord Sesshomaru, will you tell me about your relationship with your half-brother? All I knew was that you hated each other, but then you saved him and the miko. What changed?”

Lord Sesshomaru was silent and Kichou thought he was angry with her. “I am sorry, My Lord. I should not have asked.”

Lord Sesshomaru shook his head. “This Sesshomaru was trying to determine what to tell you.”

He stopped and looked at her. “Do you mind if I am not so formal with you? This may take a while depending on how much you want to know.”

Kichou breathed a sigh of relief. “I do not mind. Please, tell me everything. If I am going to be your mate, I would like to know everything about you. That includes InuYasha and his mate and where they fit into the puzzle.”

As they walked down the dusty road followed by Ah-Uhn, Sesshomaru started at the very beginning with how his father fell in love with InuYasha's mother and died saving her and InuYasha on the day InuYasha was born. He continued with how he blamed InuYasha for everything and how he was angry with his father for dying. He had just reached the part where he had underestimated InuYasha and lost his arm when Shippou came running up to them, followed closely by Rin.

“Lord Sesshomaru, Lord Sesshomaru!” Shippou called.

Sesshomaru stopped - at least Shippou had called him by his proper name and title rather than something like `fluffy' as he had heard behind his back. “What is it, Shippou?”

“There is a good place to stop for lunch just ahead. It is off the road a bit but has water, grass and shade,” Shippou replied.

“You have been there before?” The Demon Lord asked.

“Yes. We traveled often through this area and stopped there,” Shippou responded.

Lord Sesshomaru looked at Kichou and Rin and both nodded they were ready for a break and lunch. “All right, Shippou. Lead the way, but do not get too far ahead of us.”

“Okay!” Shippou called as he took Rin's hand and led her off the road.

True to his word, they came upon a nice clearing by a stream with an area that obviously had been used to build a fire many times before. Shippou may have been lacking somewhat in manners, but he did have a good memory and sense of direction. Kichou pulled the provisions off of Ah-Uhn's back while Sesshomaru freed him from his bridles so he could graze, water, and take a nap if he wished. The dragon plodded off toward the stream for a drink before stretching out in the warm sun for a nap.

Kichou had pulled out some rations that could be eaten cold and handed them to everyone. She then pulled out the odd bottles that Kagome had packed as well.

“What are these?” she asked.

Shippou responded, “That's water that Kagome sent. When you drink from the bottles, you can refill them and put the tops back on.”

The kitsune took one from her and demonstrated. “That way we have water to drink, even if we are in a dry area.”

Kichou took the top off of one of the bottles and sampled it. As Shippou said, it was water. It had a slightly funny taste to it because of the plastic bottle, but Kichou knew if you were thirsty, you wouldn't care. Kichou was starting to think that there might be far more to Kagome than she ever suspected and wondered where she was really from.

Once everyone had eaten and was well rested, Lord Sesshomaru motioned that it was time to continue on their journey. Shippou and Rin had finally grown tired, so Rin asked if they could ride Ah-Uhn for a while. Kichou set them both up on the dragon, and Rin dozed off almost immediately - she was obviously used to sleeping on the dragon's back. Shippou decided if she could do it, then he could too, and dozed off with her.

Kichou looked back at the two sleeping children and then looked toward Lord Sesshomaru. “My Lord, will you continue your story?”

The Demon Lord also glanced back to see that the two were indeed asleep, and picked up where he left off.

~ ^~^ ~

Kagome and Ayume had agreed that they would meet at a restaurant that was near the carnival so they could walk there after dinner. It was only a few blocks from the shrine, so Kagome and InuYasha decided they would walk. Since the nights were starting to cool off a bit, both Kagome and InuYasha wore black jeans with a sweatshirt - Kagome's shirt was blue and InuYasha's was red with black trim. Each of them decided to leave their hair down rather than tie it back, though InuYasha had covered his ears with a black bandana again. Holding hands, they left the shrine and headed out to meet Ayume and Niro.

They arrived at the restaurant just before 5:00. Kagome saw Ayume waving at them and led InuYasha over to meet them. The place was pretty crowded - apparently a lot of people had the same idea Kagome and Ayume did. Fortunately, Kagome had thought to call ahead and they had a table waiting. Kagome didn't miss the number of people staring at InuYasha, mostly female. Fortunately, within a few minutes they were seated with menus in front of them. Kagome tried not to giggle as InuYasha once again found the section of the menu that was basically the restaurant's versions of different flavors of Ramen. After assuring him none of them had any curry in them, he picked the one he wanted to order.

Ayume had given Kagome a funny look, so Kagome said, “He hates curry - he likes to double-check to make sure that it isn't hidden in the description anywhere.”

Ayume used dinner to help catch Kagome up on what had been going on at school. Apparently Eri had found even more trouble to get in to. Since she could no longer order Kagome and Ayume around, Eri started laying in on Yuki. Yuki finally had enough and told her to take a hike, so Eri had progressed to picking on the younger girls.

Kagome shook her head as she said to Ayume, “I just don't know what has gotten into her.”

Ayume grinned. “I think I've figured it out. First, she couldn't stand seeing any of us happy. She tried to force Hojo on you because it turned out that she knew all along Yuki liked him. Eri couldn't stand seeing you happy with InuYasha - it was much more fun to bash him. Then, she started in on me, first because I wasn't dating any one, and then because of Niro. I wish you could have seen her face when she saw Yuki and Hojo out on a date - it turned out that Hojo liked Yuki, too, but Eri kept telling him that Yuki couldn't stand him. Eri turned into a slut and was going out with any guy who would have her and didn't understand why none of them wanted to see her again after one date.”

Ayume still had a grin on her face that told Kagome that she was leaving something out. “Okay, Ayume, spill it. What aren't you telling me? She's not pregnant or something, is she?”

“Nope - she's a lesbian,” Ayume said.

“She's what?” Kagome and Niro both replied. InuYasha looked puzzled.

“She's gay. They caught her in the locker room after the volley ball game with another girl. She likes girls! Remember that crack she made at me about not liking boys?” Ayume said.

Kagome nodded - she remembered thinking the comment was totally uncalled for.

Ayume continued, “She was sleeping with every boy trying to prove something to herself. She tried to break us up because she didn't want us to be happy. Now that she's been exposed and everyone knows, she has actually started to act reasonable again since she doesn't have anything to hide or prove any more. She found out that no one really cared as long as she treated them decent. She could have saved herself and everyone else a lot of trouble if she had done something to help herself rather than try to make the rest of us miserable because she was. So, if you see her with a new girl, you know why. At least I know she won't be trying to steal Niro from me any more.”

Kagome looked shocked. “She didn't!”

“Yeah, she did. InuYasha made it pretty clear that he couldn't stand her, so she decided to go after Niro to try and upset me. Needless to say, it didn't work. She got caught in the locker room shortly after that,” Ayume answered.

Kagome couldn't stand it. “What exactly were they doing?”

Ayume blushed. “Well, she had her face buried in the other girl's…well… you know…”

Kagome blushed - she did know.

Even InuYasha understood that.

After they had finished their dinner, it was time to walk to the carnival, which was just down the block. Ayume and Niro led the way with Kagome and InuYasha close behind. Kagome slid her arm around InuYasha's waist. Kissing her on the forehead, InuYasha wrapped his arm around her shoulder as they went down the street.

InuYasha had to stop and adjust to all of the sights, sounds, and smells that accosted him as they drew near the entrance to the carnival. He realized the screams he heard were not from fear, but from excitement of those on the rides or trying the games. Niro spotted one of the booths to purchase tickets and led the group in that direction.

Kagome decided it would be best to not make InuYasha try to puzzle out how many tickets to purchase. She told him to go ahead and buy one book for each of them. Most of the rides and games took a fair number of tickets each, not to mention the food and drinks. If they had any tickets left over, it wouldn't be many. Niro and InuYasha forked over the money and came back with two books of tickets each.

Niro looked at his companions. “Well, what should we try first?”

Kagome looked down the long aisle of booths with games and food vendors. “Why don't we just start down that row and see if anything looks interesting?”

The others nodded so the four started down the aisle.

Kagome came to a halt in front of one of the games. She couldn't believe the stuffed animal that was hanging from the ceiling of the booth - it was a cat with two tails thatwas marked like Kirara.

Kagome pointed. “Look at that InuYasha, can you believe it?”

InuYasha's eyes opened wide. “Where do you think?”

Kagome shook her head. “I don't know, but I want to try and win one.”

The game was a variation of a standard. There was a backboard lined with balloons, but instead of throwing darts, you had to shoot arrows. Kagome figured she couldn't do any worse than the others that were trying. Arrows were going everywhere except at the balloons.

Kagome called to Ayume and Niro, “I'm going to try this one. We can catch up to you if you don't want to wait.”

Ayume looked at her. “Archery - it's not that easy Kagome.”

“Tell me about it,” Kagome replied as she stepped up and asked how much and how many balloons she had to break to win the two-tailed cat.

The vendor handed Kagome her bow and quiver of arrows to use. She nocked an arrow and looked down the line. No wonder no one could hit anything - the arrow was crooked. Kagome handed the quiver to InuYasha to hold and whispered something to him as she nocked the first arrow. Before she started, InuYasha leaned over and quietly reminded her not to put any energy behind it or she might accidentally fry the entire backboard. Kagome grinned and loosed the arrow. It went downward as she predicted and managed to catch a balloon. InuYasha had run the next arrow through his hands and handed it to her. Kagome grinned as she looked down the line this time - the arrow was much straighter than the last. She fired and popped another balloon.

They continued the process through the entire quiver of arrows - InuYasha would run the arrow through his hands and then hand it to Kagome. One after the other the balloons disappeared from the board.

The vendor looked at Kagome and then InuYasha. “What's he doing to my arrows?”

Kagome looked at him and replied, “Oh, he's just warming them up for me. It's good luck, you see. Do I have enough for a cat yet?”

The vendor reached up and grabbed one of the two-tail cats from its hook and pulled it down. He traded it to Kagome for her bow and quiver back. InuYasha smirked as he looked down the line to see the other prospects `warming' their arrows. Of course they wouldn't have the strength to straighten them as he had.

Before they left the booth Kagome asked, “Where do you get these from?”

The vendor shrugged his shoulders. “The owner of the carnival had them made. He thought they would be a sure-fire winner.”

Kagome grinned when she looked at the tag - it said `A product of Shippou-Rin Enterprises, 2004.'

She showed it to InuYasha as she said, “It looks like Shippou and Rin are alive and well. Do you think they are mates?”

“They may be - or it might be that Sesshomaru marked Rin like Midoriko suggested, or both,” InuYasha said, then continued, “Have you noticed there are some youkai and hanyou here?”

Kagome nodded. “I can feel them. They don't feel dangerous, though. They must be with the carnival. It would make sense if this has anything to do with Shippou and Rin. If they are involved, then your brother must be, too.”

Kagome and InuYasha had forgotten that Ayume and Niro were waiting on them. “Come on, we'd better catch up.”

They caught up to the other two fairly quickly. Niro was trying to win something for Ayume. InuYasha looked up and said, “Why don't you want to try and win one of those?” as he pointed to the prizes in the booth they were at.

Kagome laughed - hanging from the ceiling this time were large white dogs with pointed ears and a curly tail - and they each had their own rosary around their neck with a tag that said, `Guaranteed to make him sit'.

She just looked at InuYasha and told him, “I won the last one, so you should win that one for me. It's appropriate, don't you think?”

“Wha' do you gotta do?” he asked.

There were seven balls stacked in a pyramid on top of an old-fashioned milk canister. You had to hit the canister hard enough to knock down all of the balls. It wasn't too easy, not too many balls were falling.

Niro wasn't faring too well. He would get almost all of the balls, but the canister wouldn't quite go over and one ball would always remain. That seemed to be happening a lot.

InuYasha was watching and said, “There must be some trick to it. I wonder what the kitsune dreamed up.”

InuYasha walked up after Niro stepped aside and asked, “Oi, what do you have to do to win one of those big inu?”

The vendor grinned. “You have to knock over three of the canisters and the balls on top of them. You get five balls.”

InuYasha tore out the number of tickets required and handed them over. The vendor handed him the balls.

InuYasha weighted the balls in his hands first to make sure there wasn't anything odd about them. They were a little off balance. He decided to try something. Instead of aiming the ball at the middle of the canister like everyone else, he stood a little to the side and aimed near the rim toward one side. WHAM! The canister hit the ground and the balls went everywhere.

InuYasha stepped to aim at the next one and repeated the performance. The next canister joined the first on the ground, and the third one quickly followed.

InuYasha looked at the vendor. “Can I get anything if I knock over two more with these?”

The vendor nodded and pointed towards the wall where there were smaller toys to win. InuYasha answered by hurling the last two balls and felling two more canisters.

InuYasha turned to Kagome with a grin. “Okay, tell him what you want.”

While Kagome was adding the oversized white dog and one of the smaller toys to her growing collection, InuYasha stepped back and told Niro what to do. Niro went up to try again and this time felled three of the canisters with his five balls. Ayume squealed and pointed at the large stuffed red fox that was hanging from the ceiling with the dogs.

Kagome had returned to InuYasha with her hands full to say the least. She looked at him and said, “Okay, what do you want to carry?”

Kagome had the large two-tailed cat, the large white dog, and then a smaller version of the same dog.

InuYasha grinned. “One dog not enough for you?”

Kagome blushed - she caught the meaning but replied, “I was thinking of Souta. You're his hero so I thought he would like one, too.”

Then she leaned forward and kissed him and whispered, “You're more than enough for me.”

InuYasha smirked as he took the smaller dog and the cat from Kagome.

Ayume and Niro had joined them and Kagome pointed at an open table. “Do you mind if we rest for a few minutes? I'm thirsty, too.”

Ayume nodded so they grabbed the table, setting their assortment of animals on top, before sending Niro and InuYasha for something to drink.

Once the guys were out of earshot, Kagome said, “You seem really happy with Niro. He seems nice.”

Ayume nodded. “He's been really understanding. He hasn't pushed me into anything I wasn't ready for, which was partly why I was afraid to go out with him. Older boys - well - they're used to getting more if they've been going out with older girls.”

Kagome just smiled. “Well, maybe he decided you were worth taking his time and waiting on. You'll know when you're ready.”

Ayume asked, “How about you and InuYasha? You seem really happy and well, comfortable with each other.”

“Well, you have to remember I've known him for a lot longer than you have known Niro. To be honest with you, I can't imagine spending one day of my life without him. It just took a long time to see past our stubborn streaks and our fears. When I got hurt, it brought everything out,” Kagome responded.

Ayume blushed. “So have you…”

Kagome blushed as well. “Yeah…its more wonderful than you can ever imagine when it's someone you love that you know loves you, but don't mention it to anyone, please. My mother knows, but no one else.”

“Your mother?”

“Well, Mama knew how we felt about each other even before we did, and I had to ask her about birth control before we did anything. So yeah, she knows, but she understands. I feel better not trying to hide anything from her,” Kagome said very softly.

“Maybe, one day I won't be afraid any more,” Ayume said equally as soft.

“Don't try to rush anything. Like I said, you'll know when you are ready. I waited over two years for InuYasha. It was worth every minute when we were finally together,” Kagome said.

Ayume nodded and then changed the subject. “I should tell you, just in case we run across her - Eri does still carry a grudge against you. She was pissed when you knocked her butt on the floor and then when she got into even more trouble for lying about the whole incident. I thought you should know.”

“Thanks, Ayume.”

About that time the boys came back with their drinks. Niro and InuYasha handed the girls their drinks and then sat at the table.

They pulled out their tickets to see what they had left. When they pooled their tickets they had enough to ride one of the tamer rides. Kagome said, “Well, I don't really want to ride anything fast and furious, anyway. How about the Ferris wheel? We can take our prizes with us and they won't get messed up. We'll just have to take two different cars to have enough room for everything.”

Kagome had pointed over in the direction of the Ferris wheel, mostly for InuYasha's benefit. They looked at the big, slow moving wheel and nodded.

“Why not?” Niro said.

They sat for a few more minutes to finish their drinks when Yuki and Hojo showed up.

InuYasha didn't growl this time. He had suspected before that the two liked each other even though that Eri girl kept trying to set Hojo up with Kagome.

Yuki looked at Kagome then hung her head. “Kagome, I'm…I'm sorry.”

Kagome replied, “For what, Yuki? You didn't do anything to me.”

“For Eri, school, the movies… it was my fault,” Yuki replied.

“How was it your fault? Eri was the one who chose to come after me even after she had been warned,” Kagome replied.

InuYasha even joined the conversation, “Everyone has been blaming themselves for things they had nothing to do with. It's that fucking girl's fault, and no one else's. Don't blame yourself for something you didn't do.”

Ayume added, “They're right, Yuki. We tried to warn her, but she didn't listen. In the end, it was her own choice. She was just trying to make all of us miserable because she was.”

Hojo took Yuki's hand. “Yeah, we found out the hard way. Eri knew we liked each other and tried to keep us apart by telling me Yuki didn't like me but you did. By the way Kagome, are you better?”

Kagome nodded. “I'm much better. I'm still going to home school, though. If nothing else, I don't want any more incidents with Eri. I may try coming in for my tests - I'll have to see.”

Yuki looked at the prizes on the table. “How did you win those? We couldn't get anything we tried.”

Kagome answered, “Well, I won the two-tail cat. I was lucky that I had archery to help build my upper body strength. InuYasha will have to tell you the trick with the canisters and balls though. It must have worked because Niro was able to win the fox for Ayume and InuYasha won both of the white dogs.”

Yuki and Hojo looked expectantly at InuYasha, so he beckoned Hojo closer. He whispered in his ear and Hojo nodded.

Hojo took Yuki's hand and said, “Well, we need a few more tickets and I'm going to try again. We'll see you later!”

As Hojo and Yuki vanished into the crowds Kagome said, “Should we head for the Ferris wheel? It usually takes a while to get on and get loaded.”

The others nodded so they gather up their trophies and started across the fair grounds.

Fortunately they didn't have to stand in line too long. Most of the kids were going for more exciting rides that either spun upside down, in circles, or up and down really fast. Mostly adults and teenagers wanting some time alone to neck were in line for the slow moving ride.

InuYasha and Niro handed over the last of their tickets as the four of them were admitted. As requested, they gave each of them their own cage to ride in. Kagome set her dog on the seat opposite her and then took the two from InuYasha and placed them with it. InuYasha sat down and pulled Kagome into his lap. He was content to sit with his lover's arms around his neck as he held her to him. The car moved up and stopped until the wheel was loaded and started to turn in its slow pattern.

As they neared the top Kagome looked over the lights of the city. “Isn't it beautiful up here?”

InuYasha answered, “Not nearly as beautiful as you,” and then pulled her into a kiss.

Below them, Niro finally kissed Ayume for the first time, very softly. When they pulled apart, she settled into his shoulder, and he wrapped his arm around her. He reached over and kissed her again before the ride came to an end.

When they finally reached the bottom and unloaded, both Ayume and Kagome were flushed. They just looked at each other and grinned.

The four were headed back across the grounds when they ran into Hojo and Yuki again. Kagome almost laughed when she saw the very large prize he had won for her. Kagome did not know how she missed seeing it before - a large two-headed dragon complete with bridles and harness. She was certain the tag also said, `A product of Shippou-Rin Enterprises.'

They exited the carnival grounds and headed back towards the restaurant they had eaten at earlier. It was on Kagome and InuYasha's way home, so the four of them walked together.

Kagome heard InuYasha emit a low growl as he suddenly pushed in front of the three of them and shoved the stuffed animals he was carrying into Niro's hands. Niro took them in surprise, and InuYasha held his hands out to stop them.

“I know you're there, come out,” InuYasha said.

Four tough looking guys came out carrying knives.

“You can keep the stupid animals. We'll take your money and the girls,” one of them said.

One of them lunged at InuYasha. He caught the arm with the hand wielding the knife and twisted it so far behind the thug's back you could hear the bones snap. InuYasha threw him on the ground and glared at the other three.

It was a blur as the other three jumped InuYasha together. At least Kagome had enough sense to drag Ayume and Niro away from the fray. All they could hear was a flurry of cursing and more bones crunching. When he was done, InuYasha had piled the other three on top of the first one.

“Damn fucking humans! What the fuck did they think they were doing?” InuYasha swore.

He turned to make sure the others were okay and realized that Niro and Ayume were staring at the top of his head with their mouths gaping open. InuYasha felt the top of his head and realized, `oh fuck - the bandana came off.'

Kagome spotted and retrieved it from the ground and gave it back. InuYasha hurriedly put it back on as the police were coming up. Someone had spotted the ruckus and apparently called them.

Kagome looked at Ayume and Niro. “Don't say anything, please. As far as you know, InuYasha is an expert in self-defense. We'll try and explain later.”

Ayume and Niro nodded and closed their mouths when the police came running up.

Kagome did most of the talking as the police asked questions. They were coming home from the fair when the four guys tried to attack them. InuYasha was an expert in self-defense and took care of them when they attacked him.

One of the policemen looked at InuYasha and said, “You seem familiar to me. Were you involved in that incident at the theater a month or so ago?”

InuYasha nodded, so the policeman continued, “I work security there on my days off. You saved that girl from that gang. Have you considered teaching self-defense? Whatever method you use seems to work.”

InuYasha mumbled something about growing up alone and having to learn to defend himself.

The policeman just patted him on the shoulder and said, “You're all right, kid. We can call you at the shrine if we need you?”

InuYasha nodded. Kagome had told them he was staying with them.

Kagome breathed a sigh of relief. Fortunately, since the other three of them had their identification with them, they had not questioned InuYasha too much when they told them he was worried about pick-pockets and had only brought enough cash for the fair and left his wallet at home. Kagome had not really considered before that InuYasha was going to need some proof he existed in this era.

After the police had left with the thugs in tow, Ayume and Niro turned to InuYasha and Kagome. Kagome said, “Not here, can you take us home?”

Niro nodded and they walked the rest of the way to where his car was parked and climbed in.

Before Niro or Ayume had a chance to say anything Kagome said, “Let's wait until we get home. You can come in, and we'll try to explain.”

They drove to the shrine in silence. Kagome was trying to decide exactly what to tell them. InuYasha could tell she was worried from the way she was rubbing his hand between hers. He gently squeezed her hand to let her know it would be okay.

Kagome and InuYasha gathered their stuffed animals out of Niro's car and led him and Ayume into the house. It was a bit late, but Kagome was certain her mother would understand under the circumstances.

Mama met them at the door and was surprised when InuYasha pulled off his bandana as they came in the door, considering they had Niro and Ayume in tow.

Kagome looked at her mother. “We have a slight problem. We were attacked and one of the thugs pulled off InuYasha's bandana. We hope Niro and Ayume were the only ones who saw. By the way, Mama, this is Niro. You know Ayume.”

Niro and Ayume bowed politely to Mama and they headed to the kitchen.

“Would you like some tea, dear?” Mama asked.

“Thanks, Mama,” Kagome replied.

Kagome sat next to InuYasha and pulled his hand into her lap and decided how to start. “First of all, you can never tell anyone about this. If anyone finds out, they'll try to take him away and either lock him up or experiment on him. We'd both have to leave and never be able to come back. Do you understand? This is important.”

Ayume and Niro nodded.

Kagome took a deep breath and continued, “You know all of those fairy tails and myths they taught us about youkai and hanyou? How we thought that it was all just a dream and couldn't be possible?”

Ayume and Niro nodded again.

“Well, they aren't just dreams or legends. They are real. There are youkai and hanyou that still exist among us. Most of them are peaceful so you don't know about them. InuYasha is one of them,” Kagome said.

Ayume asked, “You mean he isn't human?”

“He's half-human. He's an Inu-hanyou - half Inu-youkai and half human,” Kagome responded.

Ayume was curious. “So that explains the ears, hair and eye color. InuYasha, do you have any other traits?”

Kagome answered her, “He is incredibly strong and fast. He has fangs and claws, and he also has extremely good senses of smell and hearing.”

“Wow,” Was all Ayume could say.

Kagome reiterated, “You do understand you can never tell this to anyone.”

They both nodded their heads.

Niro breathed a sigh of relief. “I thought my grandfather was crazy.”

Ayume looked at him and said, “What do you mean?”

“He kept trying to tell me his great-great grandfather was a kitsune youkai. I thought he was nuts,” Niro said.

“So you are part fox?” Ayume asked.

“Only a small bit - that was a bunch of generations back. I did think it was funny when you picked the fox at the carnival game.” Niro smiled.

“I don't think your grandfather was lying to you,” InuYasha said. “I can smell a bit of kitsune in you.”

Niro looked at Ayume. “I'll understand if you don't want to see me any more since I may not be well - all human either.”

Ayume just looked at him. “Maybe that's why I like you - you aren't like all the other guys. It's okay with me.”

Kagome picked up her cup of tea to drink it before it got cold. “Thanks guys. By the way, I had a good time tonight.”

InuYasha nodded. “I just wish we could have one of these double-date things without a bunch of thugs getting involved.”

The others just laughed and nodded in agreement.

Kagome walked Ayume and Niro back out to their car and came back in to find Mama had joined InuYasha in the kitchen.

“Mama?” Kagome asked.

“Yes, dear?”

“Do you know of any way we might be able to get papers for InuYasha? We were lucky tonight the police didn't insist on his ID - he doesn't have any. I don't want to have to go running back to the past because of that.”

“Let me give it some thought. I don't want to ask too many questions and raise suspicions,” Mama replied, and then asked, “By the way, did you have a good time at the carnival?”

“Yeah! Did you see what we won?” Kagome asked.

Kagome went and retrieved the animals where they had set them down in the entry. First she showed the dog to Mama. Mama gasped when she saw the rosary and the tag.

“Is this someone who knows you?” she asked.

“See the tag?” Kagome replied. “Shippou-Rin Enterprises?”

“Shippou - isn't that the fox child you told me about?” Mama asked.

“Yes, and Rin is Sesshomaru's ward. They must both still be alive.”

Kagome showed the cat to Mama next. “See this? It looks just like Kirara, the two tailed fire cat I told you about.”

Mama took the cat. “She's so cute!”

“Yeah, she is, but she transforms into a cat the size of a saber-toothed tiger with fangs to match. She can fly and is a great ally when you need one. I hope she is still alive, too. Kirara is a full demon so she could be.”

Kagome changed the subject. “I'm glad Ayume and Niro took that so well. I was really worried when InuYasha's bandana came off. Do you think we can really trust them?”

InuYasha finally spoke, “You can trust them. It'll be okay.”

Kagome's energy and adrenaline she had been running on finally gave out and she sagged in her chair.

“Oi, wench. You need a bath and then to bed with you,” InuYasha stated firmly.

Kagome was too tired to argue, “Okay - you coming in the bath with me?”

Kagome blushed - she hadn't meant to say that in front of her mother.

Mama looked at her. “It's okay dear - just don't wake up your grandfather or Souta.”

InuYasha scooped Kagome into his arms and carried her up the stairs to her room.

~ ^~^ ~

The next morning a town car pulled into the lot for visitors to the shrine unusually early, especially for Sunday. Grandpa went out to meet them and then came running back in.

“You have visitors.” He was pointing at InuYasha and Kagome.

InuYasha grinned when he looked out to see who it was. Lord Sesshomaru was paying them a call.

Kagome ran out and gave Sesshomaru and Kichou a hug.

“What are you doing here?” Kagome asked.

“Well, you did invite me to come and visit. It's been a long time,” Sesshomaru replied, and then continued, “We thought we'd better come before my baka brother exposes himself to anyone else.”

“What…what do you mean?” Kagome asked. Sesshomaru and InuYasha could both smell the fear emanating from her.

Sesshomaru pulled her into a hug. “It will be all right. One of the thugs InuYasha beat up last night swore InuYasha had dog-ears and is trying to sell his story to a tabloid. We thought we had better come before some photographer shows up and tries to prove he was telling the truth.”

InuYasha was mumbling something about stupid humans attacking them.

Mama came out. “Kagome, are you going to invite your guests in?”

“Mama, will you come here for a minute? I want to introduce you first,” Kagome answered. “This is InuYasha's brother, Sesshomaru, and his mate, Kichou.”

Kagome continued the introductions, “Sesshomaru and Kichou, this is my mother. That was my grandfather you met a minute ago.”

Mama said, “It is very nice to meet you. Will you please come in?”

Sesshomaru and Kichou nodded and followed them into the house.

Sesshomaru stopped on the way to the living room - he had spotted the stuffed animals still sitting where they had been placed last night. “So I see you have been to Shippou's carnival.”

Kagome laughed. “I saw the replica of Kirara first and had to have it. I couldn't believe it when I saw the tag. Are Shippou and Rin mates now? Did you mark her as Midoriko suggested?”

Sesshomaru said, “Yes, to both questions. I should have known better when everyone was so eager for Shippou to come home with us. However, once he learned some manners, he was not so bad to be around. I was afraid my staff would kill him first because of his mouth. He actually is very intelligent and quite creative. The carnival was all his idea. I did not think much of it at first, but they have only added to his wealth. He has several of them that travel around.”

They all sat down in the living room and Sesshomaru continued, “Which brings me back to why we have come. InuYasha, you would have no way to know that much of the western lands are now part of Tokyo. I have become quite wealthy due to the sales and leases of the deeds I own. I started a trust for you after you left with Kagome to return here. I was not sure which era you would choose to live in once Kagome finished school, so I wanted to make sure you received what was rightfully yours in case you choose to stay here.”

Sesshomaru handed a bankbook to InuYasha. “This belongs to you and your mate. Do not spend it all in one place.”

InuYasha didn't really understand and handed it to Kagome. Kagome's mouth flew open and handed it to her mother.

Mama was no longer worried about InuYasha providing for Kagome - he was worth millions.

Sesshomaru continued, “There are also several buildings in your name which generate a fair amount of income. They have excellent staff running them, and I would advise leaving them under their current supervisor's control. Their income is already routed into a separate operating account for you. One of them is an upper-scale apartment complex. It has an excellent penthouse at the top. I chose the building because I know how much you like high places and visibility. It has windows all the way around and is one of the taller buildings in Tokyo. At some point when you decide you want your own place with your mate, you should look at it. You also own the shrine and the forest that is part of the property. I made sure to acquire the property to ensure that Goshinboku and the well were protected.”

InuYasha only nodded - he was dumbfounded.

Sesshomaru handed InuYasha another envelope. “Here are papers that prove you exist in this time - identification, birth certificate, etc.”

Kagome took the envelope from InuYasha and looked through it - her prayers had been answered. Everything they needed was there - even a high school diploma.

“Lastly, the main reason we came.” Sesshomaru handed InuYasha a beautiful silver chain with a single silver fang hanging from it. “Wear this every time you leave this house. It contains a concealment charm. It will make you appear human to anyone who does not know you. It will hide your ears, fangs and claws. Since everyone is used to seeing you with your normal hair and eye color, we did not alter that. Hopefully, it will stop any more incidents like the one last night.”

InuYasha held up the chain and looked at it. “You mean this will make me look human?”

Sesshomaru and Kichou nodded.

Kagome asked, “Is this why we can sense the youkai near us but not see them?”

Sesshomaru nodded again. “You would be able to see through the charm if you looked hard enough, but at a glance, yes.”

InuYasha looked back at his brother. “I thought you said that-”

Sesshomaru didn't let him finish. “I should have been more clear. You could see them because you are a hanyou and can feel what they are, and Kagome can because she is a Miko. The average human will not be able to see through it.”

InuYasha nodded his understanding. “Thank you. I'll wear it anytime I go out.”

Kagome looked at Sesshomaru. “Sesshomaru, Mama and I are going to start working with InuYasha to help him learn more to function in this time - reading, writing, math, history - stuff like that. Would you be able to help later if we needed a tutor?”

InuYasha's ears perked up - he was interested in this answer.

Sesshomaru nodded. “That is one advantage to having watched Japan change for over a thousand years - I have many contacts in addition to a number of companies. Let me know, and it can be arranged.”

Kagome looked at the two of them. “So I assume everything worked out and you two are mates.”

Kichou nodded. “We have both of you to thank.”

“Excuse me for a minute, please.” Mama got up and went to cut off Grandpa. Apparently he had been out looking for sutra and Mama went to stop him before he started throwing them on their guests.

Kagome looked at what was going on before she asked, “Don't you two usually wear a concealment of some type?”

Sesshomaru was dressed in a very expensive tailor made suit, but his ears and demon markings were clear as were Kichou's.

They both nodded and Kichou answered, “We usually do, but decided for our first visit we would not attempt to hide ourselves from you. Is that what your grandfather is upset about?”

Kagome nodded. “He has enough trouble with InuYasha, and he's only half. I'm surprised meeting two full demons didn't give him a heart attack. Fortunately, those sutra of his don't seem to have any power.”

As they talked, Kichou fastened a bracelet on her wrist and then a chain around Sesshomaru's neck. In an instant, both of their markings disappeared and their ears looked human. Kagome discovered if she really studied them, she could see through the charm.

In the meantime, Mama had shooed Grandpa out and told him if he couldn't behave, go out to the shrine. She had then rejoined them in the living room.

“Do you think we could see Shippou and Rin? Do they have any kids? Do you have any children?” Kagome asked.

Sesshomaru answered her, “We haven't decided how much is safe to reveal to you. You would have to be careful not to divulge anything if you travel back to the past. I think it will be safer to wait until you decide.”

Kagome nodded, she knew it could be dangerous to know too much and then travel back with it.

“Mentioning kids, where's your brother?” InuYasha asked.

“Mama, where is Souta?” Kagome asked.

“Never mind, I think I just found him,” InuYasha said as he got up and ran up the stairs.

InuYasha came down with Souta a few minutes later. “It appears your Grandpa locked him in his room so the demons wouldn't eat him.”

Souta looked at Sesshomaru and Kichou. “Demons? Cool!”

Kagome introduced Souta to Sesshomaru and Kichou. Unlike Grandpa, he wasn't the least bit afraid of them.

Mama took Souta's hand and told him, “Let's make breakfast, okay?” and led him out of the living room.

After they left, Sesshomaru asked both Kagome and InuYasha, “Do you have any idea what you want to do yet?”

Kagome shook her head. “I'm going to finish school, but we don't have any plans past that yet.”

InuYasha looked at his brother. “Can I talk to you for a few minutes?”

InuYasha handed the chain to Kagome and held his mane out of the way as she fastened the clasp. He then stood up and led Sesshomaru outside.

Kichou and Kagome talked quietly for a few minutes until they felt their mates calling them. They went out to find Sesshomaru and InuYasha under the Sacred Tree. InuYasha seemed much happier about something as he took Kagome's hand.

Kichou joined her mate and said, “Well, I guess we should be returning home. Thank you for inviting us in.”

InuYasha replied, “Thanks for coming and for everything you brought.”

Kagome nodded in agreement. “Yes, thank you. It will be a huge help. Will you come back and visit?”

Sesshomaru said, “It was our pleasure. Take care of your mate, Little Brother. We will call next time now that you know we are here. If you need to contact us, our cards are in the envelope with InuYasha's paperwork.”

The chauffeur stood by the car and opened the door first for Kichou and then for Sesshomaru. Kagome waved to them as they drove away.

To be continued...