InuYasha Fan Fiction ❯ Chronicles ❯ Humanity ( Chapter 16 )

~~Chapter 16~~

~Humanity~

 

InuYasha remembered Mrs. Higurashi's instructions to hold the door open for Kagome when they reached the small restaurant near the shrine. Though not very big, it had what Mrs. Higurashi called `ambience', whatever that meant. If `ambience' meant `dark' then the place fit the bill. Candles burned in small paper lanterns on the tables, and the place wasn't very crowded. That suited InuYasha. It never ceased to amaze him, how many people there were in Kagome's Tokyo.

 

“Welcome,” a little man said after InuYasha followed Kagome into the restaurant. He glanced at InuYasha's waist and held his hands out. He seemed to be waiting for something. Finally he looked down at a book standing on a pedestal. “Higurashi? Party of two.”

 

“Yeah,” InuYasha replied, feeling warmth rush to the surface of his skin. Mrs. Higurashi had made the reservations and had instructed him to give their name when they arrived. He'd forgotten, which just figured. It seemed as though there was a lot to remember on a date, and InuYasha was pretty certain he was going to forget more of the instruction than he remembered before the night was over. He made a face and pushed away the feeling the vulnerable feeling caused by the exposed flesh on back of his neck and tried not to frown too much as the small man showed them to their table.

 

But when the little man tried to help Kagome take off her coat then proceeded to pull out chair and lift his hand to help her sit, InuYasha couldn't quite contain his growl. The waiter smiled nervously and stepped aside, allowing InuYasha to hold Kagome's chair as she sat. He draped her coat over the back of an unused chair before he sat down across from her.

 

He was almost scared to look at her after he was seated. Afraid that she would be angry with him for growling at the waiter, InuYasha stared at the menu the man had handed him before his hasty retreat, instead.

 

He sighed. He didn't recognize anything on the menu, and he dared a subversive glance at Kagome. She was gazing down at her menu, as well, though it didn't look like she was actually seeing anything but she did look like she was amused and when her lips quirked up in a small grin, InuYasha swallowed hard. Whether or not she sensed his discomfort was arbitrary. She really was enjoying herself, and that helped to assuage his acute discomfort. `Why can't this place just serve ramen?' he wondered with an inward `Keh!'

 

“Do you know what you want?” Kagome asked, finally breaking the stilted silence.

 

InuYasha opened his mouth to lie then sighed. “Not a clue.”

 

She smiled. Her eyes caught the candlelight. He gulped as his mouth abruptly dried out completely. “You liked steak the time Mama made it,” she suggested gently.

 

He blinked. “That's on here?”

 

Her smile widened, and she nodded. “Yep.”

 

“Okay,” he agreed, closing his menu and setting it aside.

 

Suddenly she giggled. He arched an eyebrow at her in silent question. “I really was worried that you'd cut your hair. I'm glad you didn't.”

 

He shrugged, relaxing just a little. “Even if I did, it'd grow back before morning.”

 

“Really?”

 

“I can grow a tooth back in one night. You think I'd have a problem with hair?”

 

She looked relieved at that. “Where's Tetsusaiga?”

 

“Keh! Your mother said I couldn't bring it.” Kagome hid her smile behind her hand but not before InuYasha saw it. “What's so funny?”

 

She gave up her attempt to hide her humor. “You're pouting.”

 

“I don't pout.”

 

“You do.”

 

“Keh.”

 

 

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Kagome stole a glance at InuYasha. “Are you sure you want to do this? I mean, do you know how?”

 

“Keh.”

 

She bit her lip and stared a moment longer but decided against saying anything else. `Don't let this be bad,' she prayed.

 

“You scared?”

 

Her chin lifted. “I'll have you know I'm pretty good at this, so you might be surprised.”

 

She narrowed her eyes when an evil smile surfaced on his face. “You gotta admit, wench. You're clumsy as hell.”

 

“Am I?” she shot back as she got to her feet. “We'll just see about that.”

 

He chuckled.

 

“Need some help, dog-boy?”

 

Slowly, he stood up, arms crossed over his chest as he smugly grinned down at her. “Keh! I don't need the help of a pathetic human like you.”

 

“Hmm. Like I said, we'll see.” She tiptoed carefully across the floor, stopping at the entrance to wait for InuYasha. To her unabashed amazement, he strode over to her as though he was completely unaffected by his ice skates.

 

`He's going to make me look like a baby,' she thought as he took her hand and stepped out onto the ice.

 

She had been coming to this indoor rink ever since she was a little, but it had been a long time since her last visit. Spending so much of her time in the past hadn't been kind to her dexterity on the ice. InuYasha, on the other hand, didn't seem to be affected in the least.

 

He didn't let go of her hand while they made their way around the ice. She had to admit that she was glad. Bad enough that she hadn't been on the ice in so long. It would be horrible if she fell in front of him. “Are you sure you're not a feline hanyou?” she questioned, staring around at the nearly empty rink.

 

“Am I supposed to answer that?”

 

She giggled then gasped as she hit a rough spot on the ice. He caught her around the waist and steadied her. “Hopelessly clumsy,” he muttered.

 

“If you weren't human I'd say `it'.”

 

“You wouldn't.”

 

“And how do you know?”

 

He shrugged. “Because I'd drag you down with me, on accident, of course.”

 

“Have you done this before?”

 

He sighed. “Not with these things,” he said, staring down at his feet with a scowl. “When you're running for your life, you learn to run on everything, ice included.”

 

“You don't have to run anymore.”

 

He shook his head slowly and stared at her, determination lending his eyes an unnatural light. “I refuse to run anymore.”

 

He stared at her in that familiar but unsettling way, the same way he had the night by the fire. She didn't look away, and she didn't run. `If he was hanyou right now, he'd hear my heart,' she thought.

 

“Kagome?”

 

She couldn't find her voice as her eyes locked with his. She opened her mouth to answer but no sound would come. Human for the night, maybe, but that really didn't make him any less dangerous. He was still InuYasha, and hanyou or human, he still embodied every single trait that she had come to depend upon. She didn't think her heart could beat any faster but it did. The look on his face as his gaze dropped to her lips was enough to send her pulse skyrocketing as her heart hammered against her ribcage, as her hands trembled and her knees threatened to give way under her.

 

He sighed and looked away. Disappointment welled up in her, and she seriously considered saying `it' to vent her frustration.

 

“I'm glad we came here.”

 

Her irritation melted away as she glanced at him. He looked almost happy, and that was enough.

 

They skated around the rink a few more times in companionable silence. Kagome caught him gazing at her more than once though each time he'd blush a little and quickly look away.

 

She felt a little more confident with her footing, and she pulled away from InuYasha, increasing her pace as she managed to turn herself. It might have been awhile since she'd been on the ice but it was all quickly coming back to her. Staring over her shoulder, judging the distance, she built up speed and managed a clean kick off of the ice. Amazingly, she landed the double toe-loop without a hitch, and by the time she turned her blades to skid to a stop two feet from InuYasha, she was smiling. `I'll have to tell Mama that those years of lessons paid off.'

 

Ice skating had always energized Kagome, given her a sense of flying, the same freedom that she felt when InuYasha ran with her through the forest. Before she thought about it, she threw herself against InuYasha and kissed his cheek. “Thank you,” she whispered. “Did Mama tell you?”

 

“She might have mentioned it.” He didn't let go of her right away. She couldn't read his expression. Eyes bright, not a smile but close, he tilted his head to the side and nodded slowly. He let go of her and held out his hand, and she took it, content to let him set the pace as he led her around the ice once more.

 

Kagome stole a glance at him only to find him staring down at her. “So,” he mumbled with a sigh, “this is a date, huh?”

 

“Nope.”

 

His smile faded though his eyes still held a hint of amusement. “No?”

 

She lowered her chin, staring at their feet as the glided over the ice. “This is the best date ever.”

 

 

 

 

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A/N:

 

Tetsusaiga was fine to be left behind in this instance only because InuYasha, in human form, cannot transform. (Fateful Night in Togenkyo, Pt. 1). The main obstacle would be prying his hands off the sword for him to leave it behind . . . LoL!

 

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Blanket disclaimer for this fanfic (will apply to this and all other chapters in Chronicles): I do not claim any rights to InuYasha or the characters associated with the anime/manga. Those rights belong to Rumiko Takahashi, et al. I do offer my thanks to her for creating such vivid characters for me to terrorize.

 

~Sue~