InuYasha Fan Fiction ❯ Entrapment: A 21st Century Adventure ❯ Making Contact ( Chapter 10 )
[ X - Adult: No readers under 18. Contains Graphic Adult Themes/Extreme violence. ]
By: King Baka 
Anime/Manga: InuYasha Fan Fiction | Genre(s): Romance / Hentai / Adventure / Action | Type: Continuation | Uploaded On: 08.26.2011 | Pages: 7 | Words: 10.9K | Visits: 914 | Status: Work In Progress
Anime/Manga: InuYasha Fan Fiction | Genre(s): Romance / Hentai / Adventure / Action | Type: Continuation | Uploaded On: 08.26.2011 | Pages: 7 | Words: 10.9K | Visits: 914 | Status: Work In Progress
Disclaimer: I don’t own Inuyasha or any of the publicly known characters, plot, etc. I’m just renting them from Rumiko Takahashi, Viz, etc. I do own the plot of this story and any original characters I’ve created. I will make no money from this fic; I write for my own enjoyment and the enjoyment of my readers.
Making Contact
Kagome froze, her lungs seizing up and a shiver running from the top of her spine all the way down to her toes. That van, the same one which had been parked on that panic-stricken street in Tokyo a couple weeks ago, into which she had been abducted. There it was, sitting innocently in a parking space not ten feet in front of her. Any moment now, the mercenary inside would spot her, and she would be captured again.
But the seconds ticked by, and nothing happened. Fellow shoppers passed her, some favoring her with puzzled looks. The burning in her lungs eventually forced her to remember to breathe, and as she drew in fresh oxygen, her eyes cleared, and she realized that something wasn’t quite right. The vehicle sitting in front of her wasn’t a van-van, but a mini-van. It was probably owned by a middle-class family with kids.
Kagome sighed, putting her hand to her temple. Great, now I’m seeing things. The color of the two vehicles matched almost exactly, but the contrasting body lines were a dead giveaway that the mini-van in front of her was not the van from her memory. And why would it be? Yoshida had limited manpower available; he couldn’t hope to canvas more than a small fraction of the shopping locations in this city. Someone was probably at the mall, however, as that was surely the most popular destination. That was why she was grateful to be at this out of the way department store instead.
As she rode on Inuyasha’s back, Kagome had started to question the wisdom of heading to the mall, a place where their pursuers might expect them to go. And also, a place where Inuyasha would not be able to follow or keep an effective lookout. So she asked him to stop, and together they commenced searching for a more suitable location. When she spotted this moderately-sized department store in the same quiet area of the city as the fast food place, she knew it would be perfect. She just didn’t count on her mind playing tricks on her and scaring her half to death.
Turning around, she looked to the top of the building across the street and waved to Inuyasha to let him know she was alright. She could see the outline of his head against the sky, ears perked straight up in concern. Yes, he could keep a decent eye on her here. If he saw any of the mercenaries go inside behind her, she had no doubt shattered glass and a rapid aerial exit would follow. Hopefully it wouldn’t come to that.
Without further ado, she went inside and took a look at the floor plan posted along the wall. To her delight, she discovered that this was one of those department stores with a small grocery store in the basement. (1) Clothing was on the ground floor, while a section called ‘Outdoor’ was listed on the third floor. Between those three levels, she could probably find everything she needed. The trouble was carrying all of her purchases; since she couldn’t ask her strapping hanyou to help her, she would have to make two trips. In that case, the clothing department seemed the most logical first stop.
It was amazing how many articles of clothing people wear every day and don’t think about, Kagome reflected, as she realized how big a task this would be. For her, she purchased with an eye toward cold weather, buying jeans, shirts, socks, underwear, coat, wool hat, mittens, and a pair of heavy hiking boots. Inuyasha was a little trickier since she had to guess his size from memory. For him she bought all of the same articles, except the boots. They were too bulky to lug around when the only time he would conceivably wear them was his human night. The coat, on the other hand, he might appreciate in hanyou form since he was used to wearing a heavy, long-sleeved jacket. She also picked up a baseball cap to hide his ears.
Finished, she took her purchases to the register and paid, imploring the cashier to fit everything into two bags. He managed, but both were quite heavy. It was fortunate that she had only bought one or two of each item. Still, her arms were on fire by the time she made it across the street and into the alleyway. When Inuyasha dropped down in front of her, she plunked the bags on the pavement, hissing and flexing her sore arms to get the fifty pushup feeling out of them. It made her quite jealous when Inuyasha simply took both bags in one hand, her waist in the other, and leapt all of them up to the adjacent rooftop. Ah, to be superhuman.
“Here, try these on,” she ordered, handing him some clothes. Inuyasha had bathed with Souta a couple times, so he knew the basics of how modern clothing worked. He heard Kagome changing behind him, anxious to be out of that conspicuous—at least to their pursuers—school uniform. At first glance, she would now just be a normal girl to Yoshida and his lackeys. And though both of them flushed lightly at the thought of what was going on behind them, neither dared to peek.
“Ready,” Inuyasha declared. Kagome tried to be objective in her inspection, she really did. But the woman in her couldn’t help but notice how good the modern clothes looked on him. His usual attire had almost no shape to it, but the jeans hugged his hips snugly, and the t-shirt showed off his muscular arms.
“Does everything fit okay?” she asked. He stretched briefly, did some squats and then sprinted back and forth across the roof before giving his verdict.
“Not as good as my fire-rat clothes, but the pants are baggy enough so I can move around fine.”
Kagome gave herself a mental pat on the back for that one; she had purposely looked for baggy jeans. And the tough denim fabric wouldn’t tear too easily during high-speed maneuvers. He was right that his feudal era clothing would be better, but she was glad she had done the best she could under the circumstances.
“Remind me again why all of this is necessary?” he asked, motioning to their bodies.
“Even when we go into the wilderness, some random passerby or hunter could still spot you. And you’re too recognizable in your fire-rat armour. You need to dye your silver hair too. That’s the reason you can’t come with me…while I go back in there.”
“What?! You gotta go in there again?”
She knew he wasn’t going to like that. “We need food and backpacks to carry our spare clothes.”
“We can use my haori as a sack and I can hunt for food,” he retorted.
“Don’t be so sure. It’ll be a lot harder to find large game in this time period. Besides, I’m better disguised now and I know you’re looking out for me,” she said sweetly. Muttering under his breath, Inuyasha took her down to street level.
“I’ll be right back,” she called over her shoulder, eager to get this over with.
“Keh,” he grumbled, watching her go and noticing the way her pants highlighted her shapely backside. Her school skirt and those jeans were two entirely different animals, but each appealed to him in its own way. Or maybe it was just the wearer who appealed to him. Yep, definitely the wearer. It was nice to know she found him attractive in his new ensemble too; he hadn’t even needed his hanyou senses to see that. Jumping back up to the roof, Inuyasha pushed those thoughts from his mind and returned to his vigil. Even though he wasn’t with her, he would make sure to keep Kagome safe.
Meanwhile, Kagome entered the store again and headed straight for the third floor. There she purchased basically everything one might need for a camping trip—two oversized backpacks, cookware, matches, canteens, some dried foods and evaporated milk, and a huge foldable map of Honshu showing both roads and terrain. The one item she hesitated at was a sleeping bag. From his behavior this morning, she gathered that Inuyasha hadn’t minded sharing a tree branch with her. But that didn’t mean he wanted to do it every night, and she didn’t want to presume anything. This wasn’t some romantic fairy tale adventure; this was a quest for survival. And a sleeping bag was both pragmatic and wise, especially if the weather turned ugly up in the mountains. She briefly considered getting one for Inuyasha too, but decided against it for the same reason she declined to buy him boots. If they got caught out in bad weather on the moonless night, he could share her bag. With that thought in mind and butterflies fluttering in her stomach, she selected a wide bag and put it in her cart.
On her way to the elevator, she happened to glance in the direction of the electronics department, freezing in mid-step as one of the displays caught her eye. It was a rack of prepaid cell phones, and it gave her an idea. She had not yet decided whether to try to contact her family, but having a phone on her would be far more convenient than finding a pay phone. Adding one to the cart, she continued down to the basement. There she purchased some ninja food, ramen, bottled water, black hair dye, and certain feminine products she was sure she would need quite soon. She didn’t buy any hair dye for herself because her raven locks already blended in; changing its color would make her stand out in a crowd, which was exactly what she didn’t want.
A couple of checkouts later, she was in the foyer behind the registers packing all of her purchases into one of the backpacks. Everything except the sleeping bag fit, but that could be strapped to the outside. Still, she was glad she’d bought two backpacks because of the spare clothes Inuyasha now had with him. And because she wanted to shoulder her share of the load, though she was sure Inuyasha would demand she pack the heaviest stuff in his bag. That was fine; he was superhuman, after all, to say nothing of male ego. It was another difficult trek back to the alleyway, but she made it. Inuyasha immediately took the full backpack from her, his glare making it clear that she would not be getting it back anytime soon. Smiling wryly, she put the spare clothes in the empty bag. Even so, it was much lighter than its counterpart.
“Can we get out of this damn city now?” Inuyasha demanded, his tone suggesting he was on edge. Kagome couldn’t blame him, with the number of times she had glanced nervously around the store.
“Not yet. We need to get a hotel room so you can dye your hair. You need a shower for that.”
“Wouldn’t a pond work?”
“Do you know of any ponds around here?”
“I could find one.”
“And what if some hiker or hunter saw you before we found one?”
“They wouldn’t,” he replied quickly, but Kagome could see that her logic was starting to win out. Inuyasha just needed a little extra push.
“Please, Inuyasha? Trust me on this.”
He sighed. “Fine. Lead the way, wench.”
Kagome favored him with a sympathetic smile. He was frustrated, that much was clear. And again, she couldn’t blame him; nobody liked to feel lost. Though she sensed his angst stemmed from the unfamiliar surroundings rather than having to rely on her. She was glad he trusted her to lead them through this modern world. Because if he didn’t, then he would definitely take the reigns and never relinquish them. And it was a good thing he believed in her, because he was not going to like the next words out of her mouth.
“We can go, as soon as you put your coat on.”
“My coat? It’s freakin’ hot out here!”
“I’m sorry, but you can’t be seen with silver hair. It’ll be just a short walk; I saw a few hotels down the street while we were on the roof.”
Inuyasha swore under his breath, grudgingly moving to don the heavy outer garment. He tucked the ends of his hair into his pants so they wouldn’t hang out, and pulled the hood up over his head so his eyes were shadowed and only his nose and mouth could be seen. Kagome recoiled slightly at his appearance. Great, now he looks like a creepy stalker or drug addict. The frown curling his lips completed the look. But his misery was another reason why getting a hotel room was a much better option than searching for a pond. If she thought Inuyasha was cranky now, she could only imagine what he’d be like after spending hours in that coat. I really hope those hotels have vacancies…
Fortunately, fate was on their side. The first hotel they tried was of the western-style variety, which Kagome reasoned was ideal for their purposes—quick, easy, and private. The clerk informed her that they did have rooms available, starting at 9,000 yen for a room with a double bed and 11,000 for one with twin beds. (2) Kagome grimaced; she had no problem with a double bed—Inuyasha probably wouldn’t want to sleep in it anyway—but she had hoped to spend less than that. She supposed they could try to find a cheaper hotel, but that would test Inuyasha’s already fragile patience and the price was not likely to go down that much. And as the saying goes, you get what you pay for.
The room would not bankrupt them either; through some thrifty shopping she had managed to spend only 50,000 yen on supplies. The hotel room would leave them with about a third of their original bankroll remaining, enough for two or three more stops at hotels and provisions along the way. (3)
“We’ll take one with a double bed,” she told the clerk.
“Okay,” he replied indifferently. “How will you be paying?”
“Cash,” Kagome answered, pulling the necessary bills from her pocket, counting them, and handing them to the clerk.
“And your names?”
“Uh,” Kagome hedged, thinking quickly. She obviously couldn’t give their real names, but a couple fake ones would do. “Sato,” she said, giving the first surname which popped into her head, “Ichiro and Rumiko.”
“Welcome,” the clerk replied, not even noticing her hesitation. He then finalized their check-in and handed Kagome the room keys.
“Damn, this thing is hot!” Inuyasha exclaimed as soon as he entered, peeling it off and tossing it on the bed. He then freed his hair from his jeans and pulled his t-shirt over his head, using it to wipe the sweat which had collected on his brow. Kagome quickly closed the door behind them and took a moment to calm her suddenly elevated heartbeat. It was not as though she had never seen Inuyasha topless before. Though usually it happened while she was treating his injuries, and the visual appeal of his toned upper body was the last thing on her mind at those times. Still, after a deep breath, she was able to turn and face him with reasonable confidence that she wouldn’t make a fool of herself.
“You’ll be grateful for it if we get caught in a blizzard on some mountain,” she told him. “But you can have the shower first. Just let me get the hair dye.”
She did so, reading the instructions and quickly deciding that asking Inuyasha to color his own hair would be too much. It would be much easier for her to do it. When she told him that, he didn’t object; he wasn’t thrilled at the prospect of putting some strange modern concoction on his head. At least Kagome would know what she was doing. In fact, the young miko had never had occasion to dye her hair before, but she did have a general idea of how to do it and could follow the instructions on the box.
“I should just cut my hair to make it easier,” Inuyasha said.
“Are you sure?”
Inuyasha shot her an incredulous look, as if to say ‘I’m a guy; do I really give a shit what my hair looks like?’
Kagome shrugged. “Some men care a lot about their hair,” she defended.
“Feh,” the hanyou retorted dismissively as he made his way into the bathroom. He seated himself on the edge of the tub and took a lock of his long silver hair in his hand. Next he proceeded to trim his extensive tresses with measured swipes of his claws, one section at a time. He moved quickly and efficiently, which surprised Kagome, as she watched him. Eventually he noticed her gaze.
“What?” he snapped.
She shook her head. “Nothing. I just didn’t realize you cut your own hair.”
“Keh. Ain’t nobody gonna do it for me,” he replied, resuming the task.
“Do you have to do it often?”
“Nope. That’s pretty much as long as it gets in the back. I have to trim the front once every lunar cycle so it doesn’t hang into my eyes, but that’s about it.” (4)
“It doesn’t grow faster because you’re a hanyou?”
He shook his head. “Good thing. It’d be a pain in the ass if it did.”
Kagome wouldn’t argue with that. She did, however, take issue with one of the things he’d just said, namely that there was no one willing to cut his hair for him. She knew at least one person who was.
“You know…it might be easier next time…I mean, I could cut your hair for you, if you wanted.”
He froze, stunned amber eyes meeting hopeful chocolate, seeing the nervous sincerity in her expression. Even if he had wanted to say no, he found that he suddenly lacked the ability to do so.
“F-fine. If you want to, I won’t stop ya.”
His words were causal, indifferent even, but his throat tightened and he was unable to convey them with the tone to match. Kagome smiled hesitantly, making a mental note to pick up a pair of scissors in the next store they passed. Then she turned her attention to the box of hair color, breaking the sudden tension between them. Inuyasha watched her as he finished cutting his silver locks, eyes widening at the sight of her donning protective gloves. It made sense; the object was to color his hair, not her hands. He was very glad he wasn’t stuck figuring this out on his own.
Kagome left the bathroom and returned with a dark gray t-shirt, one she had bought for him. She told him to put it on, since any dye spillage wouldn’t show too much on the dark fabric. He obeyed, and Kagome went to work. She applied the dye cautiously at first, then with a little more confidence. Throughout, she was careful to only color the outsides of his ears, while leaving the delicate insides unblemished. It was a necessary step; she didn’t plan on making him wear a hat while they were in the wilderness. The small benefit wasn’t worth the enormous aggravation for the both of them. Or more accurately, aggravation for him, which he would then surely transfer to her via crankiness.
As Kagome massaged the cool, gooey substance into his hair, Inuyasha relaxed. He allowed his mind to wander as he contemplated the miko’s latest unexpected proposal to do something nice for him. The little things she did for him always seemed like a big deal, maybe because to him, they were a big deal. People didn’t do ‘little things’ for hanyou; the most he would have expected from humans in his youth was grudging tolerance. He preferred not to think about the times when he’d experienced the worst of humanity. But Kagome went out of her way to be kind to him, whether it was thinking of his comfort while making purchases, or offering to cut his hair for him. The latter was especially meaningful; humans used grooming to show affection. It was something a woman might do for her husband. Speaking of which, she had told the hotel clerk they were married, hadn’t she?
Now, Kagome obviously didn’t think much of the ‘little things’ she did, because to her they were just that. He knew why, too; she saw him as a companion, hanyou or no. She would do the same for any of their other friends. Although, he was special to her in some ways, wasn’t he? Hadn’t he just come to grips with her romantic feelings for him this morning? Still, it was wonderful to be reminded of that attachment, and it made him appreciate her ‘little things’ all the more.
“Okay, I’m done,” she said, seemingly satisfied with her efforts. She used some toilet paper to wipe the excess dye from his forehead and neck before removing the gloves and tossing them in the trash. “Now it says to wait ten minutes, then rinse your hair until the water runs clear. Then you apply the conditioner, wait five minutes, and rinse that out too. Got all that, Inuyasha?”
He nodded. “Thanks.”
“You’re welcome,” she replied with a grin, but then her face fell and she sighed.
“What’s wrong?” he asked. “Is my hair gonna fall out or something?”
“No, nothing like that. I’m just going to miss your long silver hair.”
“K-keh,” he stuttered, not so much surprised to hear Kagome say such a thing as he was embarrassed. “It’s just a little different, is all.”
“But it was unique to you. It set you apart.” She shook her head. “I guess there’s nothing we can do about it. We both have to blend in. I’m going to unpack the bags. Bring your clothes out when you’re done with them and I’ll wash them later.”
“Already? I haven’t worn them for very long.”
“This might be our last chance to use a real washing machine for awhile. In fact, I should probably just wash all the clothes we bought, to make them more comfortable.”
“Whatever you say, Kagome,” he conceded, knowing when something just wasn’t worth arguing over.
She smirked. “I like the sound of that. You should say that to me more often.”
“Wench.”
Chuckling quietly to herself, Kagome departed and shut the door behind her to give him some privacy. Inuyasha snorted, finding amusement in the absurdity of it all. He loved his hanyou senses and abilities, but had spent most of his life hating the things which made him appear different, unable to integrate into human society. His ears could be covered, his claws weren’t that noticeable; hell, even his eyes could be explained as simply abnormal. But his hair, that was the one thing he could never pass off as human. It was of a color and brilliance unique to those with youkai blood, and it had always marked him as one of ‘them,’ a something rather than a someone, to be feared or mistrusted rather than welcomed. And Kagome had just said she would miss it.
Sometimes he didn’t understand the wench at all. She was by far the strangest human he had ever met, and not just because of the time gap. She was alone in her total lack of prejudice toward youkai; even Miroku and Sango harbored some. How could they not, with their upbringings? But from day one Kagome had not treated him any differently for his hanyou heritage. It had weirded him out at first, but gradually he came to cherish her acceptance, and her friendship.
It occurred to him that it was kind of ridiculous for him to call her strange, since he was obviously the strangest boy she had ever met, by leaps and bounds. Perhaps that was one of the reasons why they were so attracted to each other, on multiple levels.
“Okay, Inuyasha,” she called from the other room. “It’s been ten minutes.”
Clearing his mind, but allowing his contented smile to remain, he stepped into the shower and followed Kagome’s instructions. Once the conditioner was out, he shed his clothing and took a real shower, washing the sweat from his body. That done, he wrapped a towel around his waist and hesitantly exited the bathroom.
“All yours,” he told Kagome, who was lounging on the bed flipping through the channels. She glanced at him, her eyes very briefly trailing down to his exposed abdomen before shooting back up to his face as a light blush stained her cheeks.
“Thanks,” she mumbled, rolling eagerly off the bed, gathering up a change of clothes, and practically breezing past him into the bathroom. He heard the faucet running and surmised that she was taking a bath. That was alright with him; she had definitely earned it.
Inuyasha sought out and donned his fire-rat garments, immediately feeling more at ease in the familiar robes. Now it was his turn to flop on the bed. He didn’t even bother trying to figure out how to work the strange picture box, much preferring to doze off instead. He emerged from his light slumber when he heard the door open, and turned to see Kagome exit the bathroom appearing completely refreshed.
“Well, don’t you look comfortable,” she commented cheerfully, referring to his choice of dress and relaxed posture.
“Keh.”
“I’m taking these down to the washing machine,” she said, packing their dirty clothes into a backpack with the others she was going to wash. “I’ll be right back.”
“I’m coming with you,” he declared, rising from the bed.
“That’s not necessary, Inu—”
“Don’t start, wench. You’re lucky I let you take a piss out of my sight. We’re not taking any more chances!”
Kagome rolled her eyes at his overprotectiveness. She would be perfectly safe walking down the hallway to the washing machines. Then again, she had been kidnapped while walking home from school, another journey which was ‘perfectly safe’ under normal circumstances. Well, then I guess I can’t really blame him, can I?
Inuyasha took her silence for acceptance, shed his haori, and snatched the pair of jeans he had been wearing from her bag. He exchanged his hakama for the modern pants in the bathroom and marched into the hallway, ready for a fight. Kagome shook her head; he looked pretty silly in jeans and a traditional kosode, but then style was the last thing on his mind right now. But even with the mismatched outfit, even with his gorgeous locks now colored black and shortened to a few inches below the shoulder instead of extending past his waist, he was still roguishly handsome. His graceful but deadly take-on-all-comers gait only added to the look.
In the end, there was nothing to worry about. Even so, Kagome was glad Inuyasha was with her; she always felt safe by his side. And it was clear that having her there under his protection made Inuyasha happy as well. One benefit of his altered appearance was that he could now go wherever she did, a fact both of them intended to take advantage of in the future. Since they were hungry, they considered going out and grabbing a bite to eat while the clothes were washing. But neither wanted to go out into the city again, so they decided to stay in. Ninja food would have to do. Kagome walked over to where she had put the food, and spied the prepaid cell phone she had purchased out of the corner of her eye. Her cheerful mood vanished as she picked it up, worrying her lip with indecisiveness.
Should she call? Doing so would lift an immense weight from her shoulders and those of her family; they would know she was alive and she would know that they knew. But it could also put them in additional danger, especially if Yoshida and his goons found about the call. There were ways to keep the communication secret, but even if she could, there was still the likelihood that her mother would go berserk, call the police, or otherwise make a mess of things. Still, Kagome was fairly certain her mother could be reasoned with. Could she be persuaded to move to another town until this blew over, as she, Souta, and Jii-chan probably should? That was more doubtful.
On the other hand, not calling them avoided giving her family knowledge they would be better off without. But it also deprived them of any warning, and foreclosed the possibility of them moving out of the danger zone. For sooner or later, Yoshida would send forces to watch, or perhaps even booby trap, the bone eater’s well. And if a middle-aged woman, a little boy, and an old man got in the way…
“What’s that?” Inuyasha asked, startling her from her musings.
“Huh? Oh, this? It’s a cell phone.” At his confused look, she explained, “It’s like a telephone you can take with you.”
Inuyasha nodded in understanding. “And you’re wondering whether to call your family or not.”
Kagome smiled wryly; he knew her so well. “Yeah.”
“Do it.”
She glanced at him in shock. “Inuyasha?”
“Call them.”
“B-but what if—”
“There’s a risk no matter what you do, Kagome. At least this way they know you’re alive and what they’re up against.”
Kagome thought about it, and realized he was right. If she didn’t call them, and something bad happened because of it, she would never forgive herself. At least if she made contact it gave them an opportunity to avoid trouble. She would take steps to keep the call confidential; hopefully Yoshida would never be the wiser. It was for this reason that she put the phone down, as badly as she wanted to call immediately and shout ‘I’m alive!’ for the whole house to hear. Instead, she walked over to Inuyasha and gave the surprised hanyou a grateful hug.
“I’ll do it in the morning,” she declared, pulling away. “Thank you.”
“Y-you’re welcome,” he stammered. “C-can we eat something? I’m starving!”
Kagome grinned at his sudden change of subject; genuine expressions of thanks always seemed to make Inuyasha uncomfortable, probably because he wasn’t used to them. Vowing never to hide her gratitude from him, she went to grab some food.
“Hello, can I talk to Souta?” she intoned politely, trying to sound like an older woman. “This is his aunt Himiko.”
Now, she and Souta really did have an aunt Himiko. She was their late father’s only living sibling, but she hadn’t been close to her brother or his family since leaving Tokyo before Kagome was born. They spoke to her rarely and saw her even less. She was also a little loopy, which was perfect in Kagome’s mind. Aunt Himiko was the kind of person who wouldn’t think anything of calling her nephew at school. And it would also help alleviate any suspicion the secretary might have about unknown relatives calling students.
“Souta?” the confused secretary repeated. “Um…”
Kagome grinned; leaving out Souta’s surname had been a nice touch. “You know, Higurashi Souta. I really must talk to him; it’s important.”
“O-oh, he’s a student?”
“Yep. Smart as a cat o' nine tails, that nephew of mine.” (5)
“A what?” the woman asked before hastily continuing as if realizing that she didn’t want the explanation. “I’m sure your nephew is in class now. I can pull him out if it’s an emergency, but we prefer to have callers leave messages for students.”
“Oh, very well,” Kagome agreed with simulated reluctance. “Just make sure you have him call me at brunchsies.”
“Brunchsies? Oh, you mean…yes, we’ll have him call you during lunch. What’s your number?”
Kagome gave the secretary the number of the prepaid cell phone, thanked her, and hung up. She could almost picture the poor woman shaking her head and wondering why all the crazy people seemed to call while she was on phones.
“You pull off a nutjob pretty well, wench,” Inuyasha quipped.
Kagome grinned. “I’m more talented than you think, Inuyasha.”
Inuyasha grimaced, pinching his eyes shut and stifling a groan. Did his mind really have to go straight to the gutter? Kagome obviously hadn’t meant anything sexual by her statement, but the first thing that popped into his head was one possible ‘talent’ she definitely hadn’t shown him yet. Damn hentai I am. At least he kept it to himself, unlike a certain bouzu he knew. Perhaps in that sense he was just a normal man with a normal physical attraction to a normal woman. Well, as normal as either of them could get, he supposed.
“Keh.”
They left the hotel after that, had breakfast in a small café, and walked around the city for awhile. Kagome stopped at a couple stores and picked up a few items she hadn’t thought of yesterday, like scissors, playing cards, books, and other things to occupy their down time. They would probably have plenty of it over the next two to three weeks. Inuyasha wanted to start on their journey, but she explained that she didn’t want to go into the wilderness and risk losing cell phone signal. So he took them up to a convenient rooftop and they relaxed until early afternoon.
The phone rang at about the time she expected it to, the caller id showing the number of Souta’s school.
“Hello?” she asked, wanting to hear her brother’s voice before she said anything else.
“Auntie? I was surprised that you called. What did you want to talk to me about?”
“Quick, Souta,” Kagome replied, no longer bothering to disguise her voice. “You broke your leg last year. What was the name of the doctor who mended it for you?”
“What? Who is this?!” Souta demanded, realizing that the caller was not who she said she was.
“Just answer the question,” Kagome ordered forcefully, her tone conveying the importance of his response. She was probably being overcautious, but she wanted to verify that it was really him before identifying herself.
“Uh…his name was Doctor Kinjo. And it was my arm, not my leg. Now who the hell are you?!”
Kagome sighed in relief; it was definitely him, right down to the slightly whiny quality of his voice when he got agitated.
“What’s the matter?” she spoke gently. “Don’t you recognize your own sister?”
Silence. Kagome smiled as she reflected on what her brother must be feeling right now. Recognition, disbelief, joy—his jaw was probably slack and his eyes wide as saucers. She just hoped he didn’t pass out from the shock.
“Souta?” she asked after a few moments.
“K-K-Kagome?” he whispered weakly. “Th-that’s impossible!”
“I’m alive, Souta. Inuyasha is too.”
“Inu—oh, Kami, it really is you! You’re not d-d…” He trailed off, sniffling into the receiver. Kagome gave him a few moments to get it together, feeling her own eyes flood with unshed tears.
“There, there, Souta; I’m perfectly fine. You’re gonna make me cry if you keep that up.”
“B-but how?! How did you survive the crash?”
“I was never in the crash. I was kidnapped just before it happened. They captured Inuyasha too and took us far away. But we’re free now, and we need your help. I need to talk to Mama, and I need you to make it happen.”
Souta gasped at her words, but when he spoke again, his voice had hardened noticeably with resolve. “What do you want me do to?”
“Tell Mama to call this number from a payphone, but don’t tell her it’s me. You can say it’s Aunt Himiko’s new cell phone number if you want. Make sure she doesn’t call from the house. None of you can ever mention me or Inuyasha over the house phone; I think it might be bugged.”
“By the people who kidnapped you?”
“That’s right.”
“Who are they, nee-chan? And where are you? We can call the police—”
“No, we can’t, Souta. The government can’t be involved, for Inuyasha’s sake. You remember that news story, don’t you?”
“Oh…yeah,” her brother replied, conceding her point.
“So will you give Mama the message?”
“Of course!”
“Thank you. Alright, Souta, I have to go. Try not to worry about me too much, okay? I’m in good hands,” she said, winking at Inuyasha.
“I know. I’m j-just really glad…it’s good to have you back, nee-chan. Be safe.”
“You too, Souta. Bye.”
“Later.”
Kagome pushed the end call button and dried her eyes, smiling wryly as she did so. “I love that little scamp.” She had not expected him to get so emotional, but he held himself like a man afterward. He was still a child, but her little brother was definitely growing up fast, a process her apparent demise had probably accelerated. She hoped that after all this was over, he could go back to being a kid again, at least for a little while.
Knowing it would be at least a few hours before Kagome’s mother called, the pair resumed walking through the city, more purposefully this time. They continued heading away from where they’d spent the night, toward the other side, while still avoiding downtown. Inuyasha didn’t even complain about the air quality, since it was certainly less polluted than Tokyo. And both thought they blended into the mass of humanity very well. If their former captors were driving around the city searching for them—a seemingly unlikely proposition given the low chance of success—then anything other than a careful examination would reveal them to be nothing more than a couple tourists, perhaps carrying heavier backpacks than most.
Around mid-afternoon, Inuyasha practically demanded that they stop and rest, no doubt for her sake of course. Kagome caved after a brief argument. Inuyasha would have to take them via rooftop if they wanted to get out of the city tonight, and any ground they could cover in the next hour or two was pretty insignificant to him anyway. Besides, she was growing weary of the constant crosswalks and crowds; walking in nature would be much more pleasant.
The ringing of the cell phone found them in a secluded corner of a city park, just as the tallest buildings on the horizon began to obscure the bottom edge of the sun. Kagome had been worried that her mother wouldn’t follow Souta’s instructions, but the caller id listed the number as unavailable, which probably indicated a payphone. Perfect, thought Kagome. Now she just had to get through what was probably going to be one of the most incredible and challenging conversations of her life. After the initial reunion, her mother was not going to like what she had to say.
“Hello?” she said softly, concealing her true voice as she had done with Souta.
“Himiko?” her mother responded, an edge of frustration in her tone. “What’s the big idea dragging me to a payphone? For the last time, the government does not tap everyone’s home phones! Now, why is my son acting so weird this afternoon? What did you say to him?”
Kagome felt her lips curl inexorably upward until she was beaming uncontrollably. Despite the harsh words, and the protective anger bubbling below the surface, her mother’s voice was one of the most wonderful sounds she had ever heard.
“I just told him his sister was alive,” she replied as herself, with all the joy she was feeling.
Mrs. Higurashi drew in a rapid breath, as if in preparation for a scathing tirade, but the words never came. The light switch had been clicked on, memories of her child’s voice and a mother’s intuition warring with logic and a broken heart which refused to be stirred by false hope. But try as she might to convince herself that this was nothing more than a twisted prank, she knew, deep down, that her heart would lie shattered no more.
“K-Kagome?”
“Yes, Mama. It’s me.”
“Oh, Kami…”
Kagome knew it was coming. So she didn’t resist her own tears when her mother’s sobs began drifting through the phone. Driving away the dark cloud of her apparent death hanging over her family, she was sure that was almost as sweet as finding out she was alive.
“Kagome, I—” her mother tried, her words broken by a sniffle. “We missed you so much! I-I haven’t been this happy since you and Souta were born!”
“I know, Mama. I know,” Kagome told her, basking in her mother’s euphoria. As the older woman continued to weep joyously, Kagome spared a glance at Inuyasha to find him staring at her. His eyes were glistening in the light of the setting sun, but then he blinked and it was gone. Perhaps she had been imagining things.
Both women regained their composures rather quickly, for there were many unanswered questions and much to discuss.
“Kagome, what happened? I thought you…they told me you were in the crash, and when you didn’t come home…”
“They were wrong, Mama. I was snatched off the street during the pandemonium. The whole thing was set up by the people who kidnapped me and Inuyasha.”
“Kidnapped?!” Mrs. Higurashi repeated, utterly appalled. “By who?!”
“It doesn’t matter,” Kagome answered, dodging the question. “What does matter is that Inuyasha and I are safe now.”
“Hmmm, I always thought it was odd that Inuyasha never returned after he went out looking for you. I guess part of me always clung to the hope that you were alive, because of that.”
Mrs. Higurashi paused, but when she spoke again, she seemed like the kind yet stern parent she had always been.
“Don’t think I’ve forgotten about my question, Kagome. Who kidnapped you?”
“I…can’t tell you.”
“Nonsense! Even if you don’t know their names, give me something. I’ll send the whole damn army after them if I have to! I’ll blow down their front door with a bloody tank!”
Kagome’s eyes widened; she had never heard her mother speak like that before. Still, she knew her response was the correct one; she just had to convince her mother of that before she received a serious tongue-lashing.
“I think it’s better if you don’t know, Mama.”
“What on earth are you talking about?”
“Because then—” Kagome faltered, unable to complete the sentence. Because then there’s less of a chance they’ll kill you for what you know. Fortunately, she thought of another, more palatable way to phrase it. “Because it might put you, Souta, and Jii-chan in danger.”
Kagome hated to bring her brother and grandfather into this, but her mother needed to be reminded that it wasn’t just her life at stake on the home front. It worked, because when Mrs. Higurashi spoke again, her tone was noticeably softer, more controlled.
“I understand that, Kagome, but you and Inuyasha are in danger too.”
“Not really, Mama. At least, not any more than we are in the feudal era. Our abductors took us far away from Tokyo, but we escaped and they don’t know where we are. We’re going to head back on foot and try to get through the well; if we don’t, our friends in the feudal era will probably be killed by Naraku.”
“But why were they after you in the first place?”
“Money, plain and simple. They think Inuyasha is worth a boatload of it. That’s why you can’t tell the police about us. The government will treat him as a science experiment; he’d be no better off then if he had stayed in his cage! Please, please, don’t do anything to jeopardize Inuyasha’s safety in this world.”
Said hanyou choked, shocked to hear Kagome pleading for his sake. The warmth flooding his system helped him deal with the guilt. He would just have to protect her better than those ‘po-leese’ ever could.
“Okay, Kagome, I understand,” Mrs. Higurashi replied, somewhat exasperated. “So the bad guys—bastards know what Inuyasha is. Do they know about the well?”
“Unfortunately,” Kagome answered darkly. “They know everything. “The bastards…interrogated me,” she spat, shuddering uncontrollably.
“Oh, my poor baby…”
“I’m fine, Mama,” Kagome stated firmly, wishing to avoid more waterworks. “I’ve put it behind me. The problem is that they will expect us to head for the well. It’s probably the only place they’re positive we’ll eventually show up. That’s why…” she trailed off, taking a deep breath before continuing. “That’s why I want the three of you to leave.”
“What do you mean?”
“Go stay in a hotel, rent an apartment, or even go live with the real Aunt Himiko. Just get out of Tokyo, and stay away from the shrine.”
“Don’t be ridiculous, Kagome. The shrine is our home; we’re not going anywhere.”
“Please, Mama! These guys are trained killers; even Inuyasha has trouble with them. Do you think the idea of murdering a few innocent people would phase them? I was almost executed, Mama! The only reason I’m alive is because they figured I’d be useful as a hostage to keep Inuyasha in line. The police aren’t going to give you around-the-clock protection unless you give them a substantial reason for it, and you can’t do that. Think about Jii-chan and Souta. Please, leave while you still can.”
For a long moment, only the sounds of agitated breathing broke the silence. Kagome wanted to say something, but bit her tongue. She had said her peace; now it was up to her mother.
“I’ll…think about it,” Mrs. Higurashi muttered a few seconds later, her tone conveying a certain level of defeat.
“Thank you,” Kagome replied, realizing that the noncommittal answer was the best she could have realistically hoped for. Her proposal was too contrary to everything her mother believed in to be accepted immediately. But she was fairly confident that given time, the wise leader of the Higurashi family would do the right thing.
Her mother was too deep in thought to respond, and Kagome sensed it was time to end their conversation. She had said everything she needed to, and there was no point in prolonging their goodbyes.
“I should go, Mama.”
“Already? I wish I could talk to you all night. But I suppose you have a long journey ahead of you. Can I call you again?”
“I’m going to throw the phone away; I don’t want them to be able to track us if they…somehow get the number. Sorry.”
“Oh…I guess I understand. Thank you so much for calling, dear. The days will seem so much brighter now that I know you’re out there, safe and sound. Give Inuyasha my gratitude for taking such good care of you.”
The hanyou scoffed, indicating his disagreement with that sentiment. Kagome grinned and placed her hand comfortingly on his knee. He could think what he wanted, but even she would admit that keeping her alive and uninjured was a difficult task at times, especially in a world he didn’t know battling against humans armed with weapons he wasn’t prepared for. So yes, she was quite satisfied with his protection so far. There was nowhere in the world safer than by his side.
“I will. Tell Jii-chan I love him. Just try to break the news easy.”
“His body isn’t as fragile as you think, Kagome. He won’t have a heart attack, but he will cry. Not in front of anyone, but he will.”
“If you say so, Mama.”
“Ye of little faith.” Mrs. Higurashi chortled, the sound almost giddy. “I’m on cloud nine right now. I think I might skip home.”
“Now that would be a sight to see.”
“I don’t even mind that you’re making fun of me, I’m so happy to hear from you.”
Kagome chuckled. “Okay, Mama, I have to go. Hopefully we can see each other again when all this blows over.”
“I look forward to it, dear.”
“Me too. Bye, Mama.”
“Goodbye, Kagome.”
The miko hung up and sighed, leaning back against the bench, hating what she had to do next but knowing it was necessary. Then she tossed the phone into a nearby trash can. That little device had the potential to become a homing beacon for their pursuers. At least now if, Kami forbid, Yoshida and his lackeys got the number—and there was only one way they could—it couldn’t be used against them. That scenario, as well as the conversation she’d just had with her mother, brought home a chilling truth to Kagome. One day soon, she might have to choose between Inuyasha and her family. She hoped her family could say out of it, but what would happen if they became involved? Hostages, even? What if, in order to save their lives, she had to sacrifice Inuyasha?
She knew what the hanyou would say to such a proposal; he would agree without a second thought. But could she make the same call? Who was more important to her: the man she loved, or the people who had raised her since she was born? It was an unanswerable question, one she prayed to every Kami she could think of that she would never be confronted with.
Inuyasha did not know what Kagome was thinking at the moment, but he could easily tell that her thoughts were not positive. Wishing to offer some comfort, he placed his arm around her shoulders and pulled her gently into his side. Somehow, after holding her in his arms as she slept last night, such a gesture didn’t seem so embarrassing.
Kagome sniffled once but did not cry. Instead, she accepted his embrace and allowed his presence to chase the insecurities to the back of her mind. Whatever challenges awaited them, they would contend and overcome, as they had always done.
“Thanks.”
Kagome glanced up at him in shock; she hadn’t been expecting him to say anything, much less a word of gratitude. Confused but intrigued, she waited for him to explain.
“For trying to keep my secret, and protect me from your world.”
Kagome couldn’t help it; she giggled. At the absurdity of him thanking her for protection. But he cast her an offended glare, so she clammed up quickly.
“Look, Inuyasha, it’s the least I can do. You only save my life, what, three times a week in the feudal era?”
“More than that.”
“So,” she continued, ignoring the jibe. “I like returning the favor once in awhile. And how often do I thank you for rescuing me?”
“You don’t need to,” he replied sincerely, earning a brilliant smile from his companion. He swallowed, entranced by the sight of her face, the receding rays of sunlight setting her skin aglow.
“I know. But still, you know I appreciate it, right?” she asked seriously.
“Keh. ‘Course you appreciate not being dead.”
Kagome grinned and shook her head, muttering something under her breath about ‘ruining the mood.’ But she was content to watch the sunset, and so was Inuyasha. It wasn’t quite as magical with buildings in the background, but the sky was absolutely gorgeous, tinted a lovely shade of soft pink. For a few minutes at least, hanyou and miko departed from reality; they were together, without a care in the world.
Eventually, however, darkness began to settle over the land, commencing its nightly battle with the artificial light of the human world. Inuyasha stood and stretched, then knelt in front of her. Kagome climbed on and they were off, heading for the forest which felt more like a home than the city for both of them.
What made this decision difficult for her was the part of her that wanted to be as stubborn as Jii-chan. A rather large part. But she had always been a woman of reason and emotion. She never made decisions solely based on her feelings, though they still played a prominent role. Seldom did her head and her heart hold such diverging opinions as they did now, however. Reason sided with Kagome, but her natural attachment to her home, her aversion for uprooting her family from a place they loved, pulled in the other direction.
Money was not really an issue. She could afford an apartment in a smaller city for at least a few years, especially since the odds of Kagome going to college were slim to none. Perhaps it was the fight or flight response she was having trouble with; part of her wanted to do each. She was glad the gun laws were so strict in Japan; if not, she might have gone and done something crazy like buying a firearm. Those people could capture a superhuman hanyou, but a little widow with a pistol would beat them. Right.
Still, it would be nice to be able to do something besides running away. She didn’t want to be completely useless, forced to get the hell out of the way and abandon Kagome to her fate. Maybe that’s the best thing you can do for her.
Growling to herself, she took another swig of tea and poured herself another cup. She had vowed not to go to bed until she had made her decision. It was going to be a long night.
(1) This is an interesting feature of some Japanese department stores
(2) From what I’ve gathered, Japanese couples, especially middle-age and older, prefer to sleep in twin beds. So it makes sense that rooms with a double bed would be cheaper because they are less desirable
(3) The yen/dollar conversion I’m using in this story is about 81/1; that was the rate when I first needed to look it up. Now it’s about 76/1, and in 2007 it was almost 125/1. Man, the dollar is going down the crapper. I’m just going to convert all the numbers in those two paragraphs at once:
Cost of room with double bed (9000 yen) = $111
Cost of room with twin beds (11,000 yen) = $136
Approximate cost of supplies (50,000 yen) = $617
Original bankroll (90,000 yen) = $1,100
(4) I didn’t know this until I looked it up, but human hair won’t grow past a certain genetically-determined length, which is unique to every person. Something about each hair will only grow for a certain period of time before moving to a dormant stage and falling out. Then a new hair springs up in its place
(5) This is a more eccentric version of the common expression “smart as a whip”
A/N – Sorry this chapter took so long; real life took over for awhile. Bar exam, vacation, temporary full-time job while completing summer research and searching for “real” job…that’s still going on, btw. But I’m plugging along. I had writer’s block for about a week, then rediscovered my creativity. The length of the chapter didn’t help either. Hopefully I can get next one done within a month at worst.
Converting /tmp/phpZYYlt8 to /dev/stdout
Making Contact
Kagome froze, her lungs seizing up and a shiver running from the top of her spine all the way down to her toes. That van, the same one which had been parked on that panic-stricken street in Tokyo a couple weeks ago, into which she had been abducted. There it was, sitting innocently in a parking space not ten feet in front of her. Any moment now, the mercenary inside would spot her, and she would be captured again.
But the seconds ticked by, and nothing happened. Fellow shoppers passed her, some favoring her with puzzled looks. The burning in her lungs eventually forced her to remember to breathe, and as she drew in fresh oxygen, her eyes cleared, and she realized that something wasn’t quite right. The vehicle sitting in front of her wasn’t a van-van, but a mini-van. It was probably owned by a middle-class family with kids.
Kagome sighed, putting her hand to her temple. Great, now I’m seeing things. The color of the two vehicles matched almost exactly, but the contrasting body lines were a dead giveaway that the mini-van in front of her was not the van from her memory. And why would it be? Yoshida had limited manpower available; he couldn’t hope to canvas more than a small fraction of the shopping locations in this city. Someone was probably at the mall, however, as that was surely the most popular destination. That was why she was grateful to be at this out of the way department store instead.
As she rode on Inuyasha’s back, Kagome had started to question the wisdom of heading to the mall, a place where their pursuers might expect them to go. And also, a place where Inuyasha would not be able to follow or keep an effective lookout. So she asked him to stop, and together they commenced searching for a more suitable location. When she spotted this moderately-sized department store in the same quiet area of the city as the fast food place, she knew it would be perfect. She just didn’t count on her mind playing tricks on her and scaring her half to death.
Turning around, she looked to the top of the building across the street and waved to Inuyasha to let him know she was alright. She could see the outline of his head against the sky, ears perked straight up in concern. Yes, he could keep a decent eye on her here. If he saw any of the mercenaries go inside behind her, she had no doubt shattered glass and a rapid aerial exit would follow. Hopefully it wouldn’t come to that.
Without further ado, she went inside and took a look at the floor plan posted along the wall. To her delight, she discovered that this was one of those department stores with a small grocery store in the basement. (1) Clothing was on the ground floor, while a section called ‘Outdoor’ was listed on the third floor. Between those three levels, she could probably find everything she needed. The trouble was carrying all of her purchases; since she couldn’t ask her strapping hanyou to help her, she would have to make two trips. In that case, the clothing department seemed the most logical first stop.
It was amazing how many articles of clothing people wear every day and don’t think about, Kagome reflected, as she realized how big a task this would be. For her, she purchased with an eye toward cold weather, buying jeans, shirts, socks, underwear, coat, wool hat, mittens, and a pair of heavy hiking boots. Inuyasha was a little trickier since she had to guess his size from memory. For him she bought all of the same articles, except the boots. They were too bulky to lug around when the only time he would conceivably wear them was his human night. The coat, on the other hand, he might appreciate in hanyou form since he was used to wearing a heavy, long-sleeved jacket. She also picked up a baseball cap to hide his ears.
Finished, she took her purchases to the register and paid, imploring the cashier to fit everything into two bags. He managed, but both were quite heavy. It was fortunate that she had only bought one or two of each item. Still, her arms were on fire by the time she made it across the street and into the alleyway. When Inuyasha dropped down in front of her, she plunked the bags on the pavement, hissing and flexing her sore arms to get the fifty pushup feeling out of them. It made her quite jealous when Inuyasha simply took both bags in one hand, her waist in the other, and leapt all of them up to the adjacent rooftop. Ah, to be superhuman.
“Here, try these on,” she ordered, handing him some clothes. Inuyasha had bathed with Souta a couple times, so he knew the basics of how modern clothing worked. He heard Kagome changing behind him, anxious to be out of that conspicuous—at least to their pursuers—school uniform. At first glance, she would now just be a normal girl to Yoshida and his lackeys. And though both of them flushed lightly at the thought of what was going on behind them, neither dared to peek.
“Ready,” Inuyasha declared. Kagome tried to be objective in her inspection, she really did. But the woman in her couldn’t help but notice how good the modern clothes looked on him. His usual attire had almost no shape to it, but the jeans hugged his hips snugly, and the t-shirt showed off his muscular arms.
“Does everything fit okay?” she asked. He stretched briefly, did some squats and then sprinted back and forth across the roof before giving his verdict.
“Not as good as my fire-rat clothes, but the pants are baggy enough so I can move around fine.”
Kagome gave herself a mental pat on the back for that one; she had purposely looked for baggy jeans. And the tough denim fabric wouldn’t tear too easily during high-speed maneuvers. He was right that his feudal era clothing would be better, but she was glad she had done the best she could under the circumstances.
“Remind me again why all of this is necessary?” he asked, motioning to their bodies.
“Even when we go into the wilderness, some random passerby or hunter could still spot you. And you’re too recognizable in your fire-rat armour. You need to dye your silver hair too. That’s the reason you can’t come with me…while I go back in there.”
“What?! You gotta go in there again?”
She knew he wasn’t going to like that. “We need food and backpacks to carry our spare clothes.”
“We can use my haori as a sack and I can hunt for food,” he retorted.
“Don’t be so sure. It’ll be a lot harder to find large game in this time period. Besides, I’m better disguised now and I know you’re looking out for me,” she said sweetly. Muttering under his breath, Inuyasha took her down to street level.
“I’ll be right back,” she called over her shoulder, eager to get this over with.
“Keh,” he grumbled, watching her go and noticing the way her pants highlighted her shapely backside. Her school skirt and those jeans were two entirely different animals, but each appealed to him in its own way. Or maybe it was just the wearer who appealed to him. Yep, definitely the wearer. It was nice to know she found him attractive in his new ensemble too; he hadn’t even needed his hanyou senses to see that. Jumping back up to the roof, Inuyasha pushed those thoughts from his mind and returned to his vigil. Even though he wasn’t with her, he would make sure to keep Kagome safe.
Meanwhile, Kagome entered the store again and headed straight for the third floor. There she purchased basically everything one might need for a camping trip—two oversized backpacks, cookware, matches, canteens, some dried foods and evaporated milk, and a huge foldable map of Honshu showing both roads and terrain. The one item she hesitated at was a sleeping bag. From his behavior this morning, she gathered that Inuyasha hadn’t minded sharing a tree branch with her. But that didn’t mean he wanted to do it every night, and she didn’t want to presume anything. This wasn’t some romantic fairy tale adventure; this was a quest for survival. And a sleeping bag was both pragmatic and wise, especially if the weather turned ugly up in the mountains. She briefly considered getting one for Inuyasha too, but decided against it for the same reason she declined to buy him boots. If they got caught out in bad weather on the moonless night, he could share her bag. With that thought in mind and butterflies fluttering in her stomach, she selected a wide bag and put it in her cart.
On her way to the elevator, she happened to glance in the direction of the electronics department, freezing in mid-step as one of the displays caught her eye. It was a rack of prepaid cell phones, and it gave her an idea. She had not yet decided whether to try to contact her family, but having a phone on her would be far more convenient than finding a pay phone. Adding one to the cart, she continued down to the basement. There she purchased some ninja food, ramen, bottled water, black hair dye, and certain feminine products she was sure she would need quite soon. She didn’t buy any hair dye for herself because her raven locks already blended in; changing its color would make her stand out in a crowd, which was exactly what she didn’t want.
A couple of checkouts later, she was in the foyer behind the registers packing all of her purchases into one of the backpacks. Everything except the sleeping bag fit, but that could be strapped to the outside. Still, she was glad she’d bought two backpacks because of the spare clothes Inuyasha now had with him. And because she wanted to shoulder her share of the load, though she was sure Inuyasha would demand she pack the heaviest stuff in his bag. That was fine; he was superhuman, after all, to say nothing of male ego. It was another difficult trek back to the alleyway, but she made it. Inuyasha immediately took the full backpack from her, his glare making it clear that she would not be getting it back anytime soon. Smiling wryly, she put the spare clothes in the empty bag. Even so, it was much lighter than its counterpart.
“Can we get out of this damn city now?” Inuyasha demanded, his tone suggesting he was on edge. Kagome couldn’t blame him, with the number of times she had glanced nervously around the store.
“Not yet. We need to get a hotel room so you can dye your hair. You need a shower for that.”
“Wouldn’t a pond work?”
“Do you know of any ponds around here?”
“I could find one.”
“And what if some hiker or hunter saw you before we found one?”
“They wouldn’t,” he replied quickly, but Kagome could see that her logic was starting to win out. Inuyasha just needed a little extra push.
“Please, Inuyasha? Trust me on this.”
He sighed. “Fine. Lead the way, wench.”
Kagome favored him with a sympathetic smile. He was frustrated, that much was clear. And again, she couldn’t blame him; nobody liked to feel lost. Though she sensed his angst stemmed from the unfamiliar surroundings rather than having to rely on her. She was glad he trusted her to lead them through this modern world. Because if he didn’t, then he would definitely take the reigns and never relinquish them. And it was a good thing he believed in her, because he was not going to like the next words out of her mouth.
“We can go, as soon as you put your coat on.”
“My coat? It’s freakin’ hot out here!”
“I’m sorry, but you can’t be seen with silver hair. It’ll be just a short walk; I saw a few hotels down the street while we were on the roof.”
Inuyasha swore under his breath, grudgingly moving to don the heavy outer garment. He tucked the ends of his hair into his pants so they wouldn’t hang out, and pulled the hood up over his head so his eyes were shadowed and only his nose and mouth could be seen. Kagome recoiled slightly at his appearance. Great, now he looks like a creepy stalker or drug addict. The frown curling his lips completed the look. But his misery was another reason why getting a hotel room was a much better option than searching for a pond. If she thought Inuyasha was cranky now, she could only imagine what he’d be like after spending hours in that coat. I really hope those hotels have vacancies…
Fortunately, fate was on their side. The first hotel they tried was of the western-style variety, which Kagome reasoned was ideal for their purposes—quick, easy, and private. The clerk informed her that they did have rooms available, starting at 9,000 yen for a room with a double bed and 11,000 for one with twin beds. (2) Kagome grimaced; she had no problem with a double bed—Inuyasha probably wouldn’t want to sleep in it anyway—but she had hoped to spend less than that. She supposed they could try to find a cheaper hotel, but that would test Inuyasha’s already fragile patience and the price was not likely to go down that much. And as the saying goes, you get what you pay for.
The room would not bankrupt them either; through some thrifty shopping she had managed to spend only 50,000 yen on supplies. The hotel room would leave them with about a third of their original bankroll remaining, enough for two or three more stops at hotels and provisions along the way. (3)
“We’ll take one with a double bed,” she told the clerk.
“Okay,” he replied indifferently. “How will you be paying?”
“Cash,” Kagome answered, pulling the necessary bills from her pocket, counting them, and handing them to the clerk.
“And your names?”
“Uh,” Kagome hedged, thinking quickly. She obviously couldn’t give their real names, but a couple fake ones would do. “Sato,” she said, giving the first surname which popped into her head, “Ichiro and Rumiko.”
“Welcome,” the clerk replied, not even noticing her hesitation. He then finalized their check-in and handed Kagome the room keys.
“Damn, this thing is hot!” Inuyasha exclaimed as soon as he entered, peeling it off and tossing it on the bed. He then freed his hair from his jeans and pulled his t-shirt over his head, using it to wipe the sweat which had collected on his brow. Kagome quickly closed the door behind them and took a moment to calm her suddenly elevated heartbeat. It was not as though she had never seen Inuyasha topless before. Though usually it happened while she was treating his injuries, and the visual appeal of his toned upper body was the last thing on her mind at those times. Still, after a deep breath, she was able to turn and face him with reasonable confidence that she wouldn’t make a fool of herself.
“You’ll be grateful for it if we get caught in a blizzard on some mountain,” she told him. “But you can have the shower first. Just let me get the hair dye.”
She did so, reading the instructions and quickly deciding that asking Inuyasha to color his own hair would be too much. It would be much easier for her to do it. When she told him that, he didn’t object; he wasn’t thrilled at the prospect of putting some strange modern concoction on his head. At least Kagome would know what she was doing. In fact, the young miko had never had occasion to dye her hair before, but she did have a general idea of how to do it and could follow the instructions on the box.
“I should just cut my hair to make it easier,” Inuyasha said.
“Are you sure?”
Inuyasha shot her an incredulous look, as if to say ‘I’m a guy; do I really give a shit what my hair looks like?’
Kagome shrugged. “Some men care a lot about their hair,” she defended.
“Feh,” the hanyou retorted dismissively as he made his way into the bathroom. He seated himself on the edge of the tub and took a lock of his long silver hair in his hand. Next he proceeded to trim his extensive tresses with measured swipes of his claws, one section at a time. He moved quickly and efficiently, which surprised Kagome, as she watched him. Eventually he noticed her gaze.
“What?” he snapped.
She shook her head. “Nothing. I just didn’t realize you cut your own hair.”
“Keh. Ain’t nobody gonna do it for me,” he replied, resuming the task.
“Do you have to do it often?”
“Nope. That’s pretty much as long as it gets in the back. I have to trim the front once every lunar cycle so it doesn’t hang into my eyes, but that’s about it.” (4)
“It doesn’t grow faster because you’re a hanyou?”
He shook his head. “Good thing. It’d be a pain in the ass if it did.”
Kagome wouldn’t argue with that. She did, however, take issue with one of the things he’d just said, namely that there was no one willing to cut his hair for him. She knew at least one person who was.
“You know…it might be easier next time…I mean, I could cut your hair for you, if you wanted.”
He froze, stunned amber eyes meeting hopeful chocolate, seeing the nervous sincerity in her expression. Even if he had wanted to say no, he found that he suddenly lacked the ability to do so.
“F-fine. If you want to, I won’t stop ya.”
His words were causal, indifferent even, but his throat tightened and he was unable to convey them with the tone to match. Kagome smiled hesitantly, making a mental note to pick up a pair of scissors in the next store they passed. Then she turned her attention to the box of hair color, breaking the sudden tension between them. Inuyasha watched her as he finished cutting his silver locks, eyes widening at the sight of her donning protective gloves. It made sense; the object was to color his hair, not her hands. He was very glad he wasn’t stuck figuring this out on his own.
Kagome left the bathroom and returned with a dark gray t-shirt, one she had bought for him. She told him to put it on, since any dye spillage wouldn’t show too much on the dark fabric. He obeyed, and Kagome went to work. She applied the dye cautiously at first, then with a little more confidence. Throughout, she was careful to only color the outsides of his ears, while leaving the delicate insides unblemished. It was a necessary step; she didn’t plan on making him wear a hat while they were in the wilderness. The small benefit wasn’t worth the enormous aggravation for the both of them. Or more accurately, aggravation for him, which he would then surely transfer to her via crankiness.
As Kagome massaged the cool, gooey substance into his hair, Inuyasha relaxed. He allowed his mind to wander as he contemplated the miko’s latest unexpected proposal to do something nice for him. The little things she did for him always seemed like a big deal, maybe because to him, they were a big deal. People didn’t do ‘little things’ for hanyou; the most he would have expected from humans in his youth was grudging tolerance. He preferred not to think about the times when he’d experienced the worst of humanity. But Kagome went out of her way to be kind to him, whether it was thinking of his comfort while making purchases, or offering to cut his hair for him. The latter was especially meaningful; humans used grooming to show affection. It was something a woman might do for her husband. Speaking of which, she had told the hotel clerk they were married, hadn’t she?
Now, Kagome obviously didn’t think much of the ‘little things’ she did, because to her they were just that. He knew why, too; she saw him as a companion, hanyou or no. She would do the same for any of their other friends. Although, he was special to her in some ways, wasn’t he? Hadn’t he just come to grips with her romantic feelings for him this morning? Still, it was wonderful to be reminded of that attachment, and it made him appreciate her ‘little things’ all the more.
“Okay, I’m done,” she said, seemingly satisfied with her efforts. She used some toilet paper to wipe the excess dye from his forehead and neck before removing the gloves and tossing them in the trash. “Now it says to wait ten minutes, then rinse your hair until the water runs clear. Then you apply the conditioner, wait five minutes, and rinse that out too. Got all that, Inuyasha?”
He nodded. “Thanks.”
“You’re welcome,” she replied with a grin, but then her face fell and she sighed.
“What’s wrong?” he asked. “Is my hair gonna fall out or something?”
“No, nothing like that. I’m just going to miss your long silver hair.”
“K-keh,” he stuttered, not so much surprised to hear Kagome say such a thing as he was embarrassed. “It’s just a little different, is all.”
“But it was unique to you. It set you apart.” She shook her head. “I guess there’s nothing we can do about it. We both have to blend in. I’m going to unpack the bags. Bring your clothes out when you’re done with them and I’ll wash them later.”
“Already? I haven’t worn them for very long.”
“This might be our last chance to use a real washing machine for awhile. In fact, I should probably just wash all the clothes we bought, to make them more comfortable.”
“Whatever you say, Kagome,” he conceded, knowing when something just wasn’t worth arguing over.
She smirked. “I like the sound of that. You should say that to me more often.”
“Wench.”
Chuckling quietly to herself, Kagome departed and shut the door behind her to give him some privacy. Inuyasha snorted, finding amusement in the absurdity of it all. He loved his hanyou senses and abilities, but had spent most of his life hating the things which made him appear different, unable to integrate into human society. His ears could be covered, his claws weren’t that noticeable; hell, even his eyes could be explained as simply abnormal. But his hair, that was the one thing he could never pass off as human. It was of a color and brilliance unique to those with youkai blood, and it had always marked him as one of ‘them,’ a something rather than a someone, to be feared or mistrusted rather than welcomed. And Kagome had just said she would miss it.
Sometimes he didn’t understand the wench at all. She was by far the strangest human he had ever met, and not just because of the time gap. She was alone in her total lack of prejudice toward youkai; even Miroku and Sango harbored some. How could they not, with their upbringings? But from day one Kagome had not treated him any differently for his hanyou heritage. It had weirded him out at first, but gradually he came to cherish her acceptance, and her friendship.
It occurred to him that it was kind of ridiculous for him to call her strange, since he was obviously the strangest boy she had ever met, by leaps and bounds. Perhaps that was one of the reasons why they were so attracted to each other, on multiple levels.
“Okay, Inuyasha,” she called from the other room. “It’s been ten minutes.”
Clearing his mind, but allowing his contented smile to remain, he stepped into the shower and followed Kagome’s instructions. Once the conditioner was out, he shed his clothing and took a real shower, washing the sweat from his body. That done, he wrapped a towel around his waist and hesitantly exited the bathroom.
“All yours,” he told Kagome, who was lounging on the bed flipping through the channels. She glanced at him, her eyes very briefly trailing down to his exposed abdomen before shooting back up to his face as a light blush stained her cheeks.
“Thanks,” she mumbled, rolling eagerly off the bed, gathering up a change of clothes, and practically breezing past him into the bathroom. He heard the faucet running and surmised that she was taking a bath. That was alright with him; she had definitely earned it.
Inuyasha sought out and donned his fire-rat garments, immediately feeling more at ease in the familiar robes. Now it was his turn to flop on the bed. He didn’t even bother trying to figure out how to work the strange picture box, much preferring to doze off instead. He emerged from his light slumber when he heard the door open, and turned to see Kagome exit the bathroom appearing completely refreshed.
“Well, don’t you look comfortable,” she commented cheerfully, referring to his choice of dress and relaxed posture.
“Keh.”
“I’m taking these down to the washing machine,” she said, packing their dirty clothes into a backpack with the others she was going to wash. “I’ll be right back.”
“I’m coming with you,” he declared, rising from the bed.
“That’s not necessary, Inu—”
“Don’t start, wench. You’re lucky I let you take a piss out of my sight. We’re not taking any more chances!”
Kagome rolled her eyes at his overprotectiveness. She would be perfectly safe walking down the hallway to the washing machines. Then again, she had been kidnapped while walking home from school, another journey which was ‘perfectly safe’ under normal circumstances. Well, then I guess I can’t really blame him, can I?
Inuyasha took her silence for acceptance, shed his haori, and snatched the pair of jeans he had been wearing from her bag. He exchanged his hakama for the modern pants in the bathroom and marched into the hallway, ready for a fight. Kagome shook her head; he looked pretty silly in jeans and a traditional kosode, but then style was the last thing on his mind right now. But even with the mismatched outfit, even with his gorgeous locks now colored black and shortened to a few inches below the shoulder instead of extending past his waist, he was still roguishly handsome. His graceful but deadly take-on-all-comers gait only added to the look.
In the end, there was nothing to worry about. Even so, Kagome was glad Inuyasha was with her; she always felt safe by his side. And it was clear that having her there under his protection made Inuyasha happy as well. One benefit of his altered appearance was that he could now go wherever she did, a fact both of them intended to take advantage of in the future. Since they were hungry, they considered going out and grabbing a bite to eat while the clothes were washing. But neither wanted to go out into the city again, so they decided to stay in. Ninja food would have to do. Kagome walked over to where she had put the food, and spied the prepaid cell phone she had purchased out of the corner of her eye. Her cheerful mood vanished as she picked it up, worrying her lip with indecisiveness.
Should she call? Doing so would lift an immense weight from her shoulders and those of her family; they would know she was alive and she would know that they knew. But it could also put them in additional danger, especially if Yoshida and his goons found about the call. There were ways to keep the communication secret, but even if she could, there was still the likelihood that her mother would go berserk, call the police, or otherwise make a mess of things. Still, Kagome was fairly certain her mother could be reasoned with. Could she be persuaded to move to another town until this blew over, as she, Souta, and Jii-chan probably should? That was more doubtful.
On the other hand, not calling them avoided giving her family knowledge they would be better off without. But it also deprived them of any warning, and foreclosed the possibility of them moving out of the danger zone. For sooner or later, Yoshida would send forces to watch, or perhaps even booby trap, the bone eater’s well. And if a middle-aged woman, a little boy, and an old man got in the way…
“What’s that?” Inuyasha asked, startling her from her musings.
“Huh? Oh, this? It’s a cell phone.” At his confused look, she explained, “It’s like a telephone you can take with you.”
Inuyasha nodded in understanding. “And you’re wondering whether to call your family or not.”
Kagome smiled wryly; he knew her so well. “Yeah.”
“Do it.”
She glanced at him in shock. “Inuyasha?”
“Call them.”
“B-but what if—”
“There’s a risk no matter what you do, Kagome. At least this way they know you’re alive and what they’re up against.”
Kagome thought about it, and realized he was right. If she didn’t call them, and something bad happened because of it, she would never forgive herself. At least if she made contact it gave them an opportunity to avoid trouble. She would take steps to keep the call confidential; hopefully Yoshida would never be the wiser. It was for this reason that she put the phone down, as badly as she wanted to call immediately and shout ‘I’m alive!’ for the whole house to hear. Instead, she walked over to Inuyasha and gave the surprised hanyou a grateful hug.
“I’ll do it in the morning,” she declared, pulling away. “Thank you.”
“Y-you’re welcome,” he stammered. “C-can we eat something? I’m starving!”
Kagome grinned at his sudden change of subject; genuine expressions of thanks always seemed to make Inuyasha uncomfortable, probably because he wasn’t used to them. Vowing never to hide her gratitude from him, she went to grab some food.
* * *
Kagome called the operator and asked to place a call to Souta’s school in Tokyo. She took a deep breath as the connection was made, and by the time the secretary picked up, she was ready. “Hello, can I talk to Souta?” she intoned politely, trying to sound like an older woman. “This is his aunt Himiko.”
Now, she and Souta really did have an aunt Himiko. She was their late father’s only living sibling, but she hadn’t been close to her brother or his family since leaving Tokyo before Kagome was born. They spoke to her rarely and saw her even less. She was also a little loopy, which was perfect in Kagome’s mind. Aunt Himiko was the kind of person who wouldn’t think anything of calling her nephew at school. And it would also help alleviate any suspicion the secretary might have about unknown relatives calling students.
“Souta?” the confused secretary repeated. “Um…”
Kagome grinned; leaving out Souta’s surname had been a nice touch. “You know, Higurashi Souta. I really must talk to him; it’s important.”
“O-oh, he’s a student?”
“Yep. Smart as a cat o' nine tails, that nephew of mine.” (5)
“A what?” the woman asked before hastily continuing as if realizing that she didn’t want the explanation. “I’m sure your nephew is in class now. I can pull him out if it’s an emergency, but we prefer to have callers leave messages for students.”
“Oh, very well,” Kagome agreed with simulated reluctance. “Just make sure you have him call me at brunchsies.”
“Brunchsies? Oh, you mean…yes, we’ll have him call you during lunch. What’s your number?”
Kagome gave the secretary the number of the prepaid cell phone, thanked her, and hung up. She could almost picture the poor woman shaking her head and wondering why all the crazy people seemed to call while she was on phones.
“You pull off a nutjob pretty well, wench,” Inuyasha quipped.
Kagome grinned. “I’m more talented than you think, Inuyasha.”
Inuyasha grimaced, pinching his eyes shut and stifling a groan. Did his mind really have to go straight to the gutter? Kagome obviously hadn’t meant anything sexual by her statement, but the first thing that popped into his head was one possible ‘talent’ she definitely hadn’t shown him yet. Damn hentai I am. At least he kept it to himself, unlike a certain bouzu he knew. Perhaps in that sense he was just a normal man with a normal physical attraction to a normal woman. Well, as normal as either of them could get, he supposed.
“Keh.”
They left the hotel after that, had breakfast in a small café, and walked around the city for awhile. Kagome stopped at a couple stores and picked up a few items she hadn’t thought of yesterday, like scissors, playing cards, books, and other things to occupy their down time. They would probably have plenty of it over the next two to three weeks. Inuyasha wanted to start on their journey, but she explained that she didn’t want to go into the wilderness and risk losing cell phone signal. So he took them up to a convenient rooftop and they relaxed until early afternoon.
The phone rang at about the time she expected it to, the caller id showing the number of Souta’s school.
“Hello?” she asked, wanting to hear her brother’s voice before she said anything else.
“Auntie? I was surprised that you called. What did you want to talk to me about?”
“Quick, Souta,” Kagome replied, no longer bothering to disguise her voice. “You broke your leg last year. What was the name of the doctor who mended it for you?”
“What? Who is this?!” Souta demanded, realizing that the caller was not who she said she was.
“Just answer the question,” Kagome ordered forcefully, her tone conveying the importance of his response. She was probably being overcautious, but she wanted to verify that it was really him before identifying herself.
“Uh…his name was Doctor Kinjo. And it was my arm, not my leg. Now who the hell are you?!”
Kagome sighed in relief; it was definitely him, right down to the slightly whiny quality of his voice when he got agitated.
“What’s the matter?” she spoke gently. “Don’t you recognize your own sister?”
Silence. Kagome smiled as she reflected on what her brother must be feeling right now. Recognition, disbelief, joy—his jaw was probably slack and his eyes wide as saucers. She just hoped he didn’t pass out from the shock.
“Souta?” she asked after a few moments.
“K-K-Kagome?” he whispered weakly. “Th-that’s impossible!”
“I’m alive, Souta. Inuyasha is too.”
“Inu—oh, Kami, it really is you! You’re not d-d…” He trailed off, sniffling into the receiver. Kagome gave him a few moments to get it together, feeling her own eyes flood with unshed tears.
“There, there, Souta; I’m perfectly fine. You’re gonna make me cry if you keep that up.”
“B-but how?! How did you survive the crash?”
“I was never in the crash. I was kidnapped just before it happened. They captured Inuyasha too and took us far away. But we’re free now, and we need your help. I need to talk to Mama, and I need you to make it happen.”
Souta gasped at her words, but when he spoke again, his voice had hardened noticeably with resolve. “What do you want me do to?”
“Tell Mama to call this number from a payphone, but don’t tell her it’s me. You can say it’s Aunt Himiko’s new cell phone number if you want. Make sure she doesn’t call from the house. None of you can ever mention me or Inuyasha over the house phone; I think it might be bugged.”
“By the people who kidnapped you?”
“That’s right.”
“Who are they, nee-chan? And where are you? We can call the police—”
“No, we can’t, Souta. The government can’t be involved, for Inuyasha’s sake. You remember that news story, don’t you?”
“Oh…yeah,” her brother replied, conceding her point.
“So will you give Mama the message?”
“Of course!”
“Thank you. Alright, Souta, I have to go. Try not to worry about me too much, okay? I’m in good hands,” she said, winking at Inuyasha.
“I know. I’m j-just really glad…it’s good to have you back, nee-chan. Be safe.”
“You too, Souta. Bye.”
“Later.”
Kagome pushed the end call button and dried her eyes, smiling wryly as she did so. “I love that little scamp.” She had not expected him to get so emotional, but he held himself like a man afterward. He was still a child, but her little brother was definitely growing up fast, a process her apparent demise had probably accelerated. She hoped that after all this was over, he could go back to being a kid again, at least for a little while.
Knowing it would be at least a few hours before Kagome’s mother called, the pair resumed walking through the city, more purposefully this time. They continued heading away from where they’d spent the night, toward the other side, while still avoiding downtown. Inuyasha didn’t even complain about the air quality, since it was certainly less polluted than Tokyo. And both thought they blended into the mass of humanity very well. If their former captors were driving around the city searching for them—a seemingly unlikely proposition given the low chance of success—then anything other than a careful examination would reveal them to be nothing more than a couple tourists, perhaps carrying heavier backpacks than most.
Around mid-afternoon, Inuyasha practically demanded that they stop and rest, no doubt for her sake of course. Kagome caved after a brief argument. Inuyasha would have to take them via rooftop if they wanted to get out of the city tonight, and any ground they could cover in the next hour or two was pretty insignificant to him anyway. Besides, she was growing weary of the constant crosswalks and crowds; walking in nature would be much more pleasant.
The ringing of the cell phone found them in a secluded corner of a city park, just as the tallest buildings on the horizon began to obscure the bottom edge of the sun. Kagome had been worried that her mother wouldn’t follow Souta’s instructions, but the caller id listed the number as unavailable, which probably indicated a payphone. Perfect, thought Kagome. Now she just had to get through what was probably going to be one of the most incredible and challenging conversations of her life. After the initial reunion, her mother was not going to like what she had to say.
“Hello?” she said softly, concealing her true voice as she had done with Souta.
“Himiko?” her mother responded, an edge of frustration in her tone. “What’s the big idea dragging me to a payphone? For the last time, the government does not tap everyone’s home phones! Now, why is my son acting so weird this afternoon? What did you say to him?”
Kagome felt her lips curl inexorably upward until she was beaming uncontrollably. Despite the harsh words, and the protective anger bubbling below the surface, her mother’s voice was one of the most wonderful sounds she had ever heard.
“I just told him his sister was alive,” she replied as herself, with all the joy she was feeling.
Mrs. Higurashi drew in a rapid breath, as if in preparation for a scathing tirade, but the words never came. The light switch had been clicked on, memories of her child’s voice and a mother’s intuition warring with logic and a broken heart which refused to be stirred by false hope. But try as she might to convince herself that this was nothing more than a twisted prank, she knew, deep down, that her heart would lie shattered no more.
“K-Kagome?”
“Yes, Mama. It’s me.”
“Oh, Kami…”
Kagome knew it was coming. So she didn’t resist her own tears when her mother’s sobs began drifting through the phone. Driving away the dark cloud of her apparent death hanging over her family, she was sure that was almost as sweet as finding out she was alive.
“Kagome, I—” her mother tried, her words broken by a sniffle. “We missed you so much! I-I haven’t been this happy since you and Souta were born!”
“I know, Mama. I know,” Kagome told her, basking in her mother’s euphoria. As the older woman continued to weep joyously, Kagome spared a glance at Inuyasha to find him staring at her. His eyes were glistening in the light of the setting sun, but then he blinked and it was gone. Perhaps she had been imagining things.
Both women regained their composures rather quickly, for there were many unanswered questions and much to discuss.
“Kagome, what happened? I thought you…they told me you were in the crash, and when you didn’t come home…”
“They were wrong, Mama. I was snatched off the street during the pandemonium. The whole thing was set up by the people who kidnapped me and Inuyasha.”
“Kidnapped?!” Mrs. Higurashi repeated, utterly appalled. “By who?!”
“It doesn’t matter,” Kagome answered, dodging the question. “What does matter is that Inuyasha and I are safe now.”
“Hmmm, I always thought it was odd that Inuyasha never returned after he went out looking for you. I guess part of me always clung to the hope that you were alive, because of that.”
Mrs. Higurashi paused, but when she spoke again, she seemed like the kind yet stern parent she had always been.
“Don’t think I’ve forgotten about my question, Kagome. Who kidnapped you?”
“I…can’t tell you.”
“Nonsense! Even if you don’t know their names, give me something. I’ll send the whole damn army after them if I have to! I’ll blow down their front door with a bloody tank!”
Kagome’s eyes widened; she had never heard her mother speak like that before. Still, she knew her response was the correct one; she just had to convince her mother of that before she received a serious tongue-lashing.
“I think it’s better if you don’t know, Mama.”
“What on earth are you talking about?”
“Because then—” Kagome faltered, unable to complete the sentence. Because then there’s less of a chance they’ll kill you for what you know. Fortunately, she thought of another, more palatable way to phrase it. “Because it might put you, Souta, and Jii-chan in danger.”
Kagome hated to bring her brother and grandfather into this, but her mother needed to be reminded that it wasn’t just her life at stake on the home front. It worked, because when Mrs. Higurashi spoke again, her tone was noticeably softer, more controlled.
“I understand that, Kagome, but you and Inuyasha are in danger too.”
“Not really, Mama. At least, not any more than we are in the feudal era. Our abductors took us far away from Tokyo, but we escaped and they don’t know where we are. We’re going to head back on foot and try to get through the well; if we don’t, our friends in the feudal era will probably be killed by Naraku.”
“But why were they after you in the first place?”
“Money, plain and simple. They think Inuyasha is worth a boatload of it. That’s why you can’t tell the police about us. The government will treat him as a science experiment; he’d be no better off then if he had stayed in his cage! Please, please, don’t do anything to jeopardize Inuyasha’s safety in this world.”
Said hanyou choked, shocked to hear Kagome pleading for his sake. The warmth flooding his system helped him deal with the guilt. He would just have to protect her better than those ‘po-leese’ ever could.
“Okay, Kagome, I understand,” Mrs. Higurashi replied, somewhat exasperated. “So the bad guys—bastards know what Inuyasha is. Do they know about the well?”
“Unfortunately,” Kagome answered darkly. “They know everything. “The bastards…interrogated me,” she spat, shuddering uncontrollably.
“Oh, my poor baby…”
“I’m fine, Mama,” Kagome stated firmly, wishing to avoid more waterworks. “I’ve put it behind me. The problem is that they will expect us to head for the well. It’s probably the only place they’re positive we’ll eventually show up. That’s why…” she trailed off, taking a deep breath before continuing. “That’s why I want the three of you to leave.”
“What do you mean?”
“Go stay in a hotel, rent an apartment, or even go live with the real Aunt Himiko. Just get out of Tokyo, and stay away from the shrine.”
“Don’t be ridiculous, Kagome. The shrine is our home; we’re not going anywhere.”
“Please, Mama! These guys are trained killers; even Inuyasha has trouble with them. Do you think the idea of murdering a few innocent people would phase them? I was almost executed, Mama! The only reason I’m alive is because they figured I’d be useful as a hostage to keep Inuyasha in line. The police aren’t going to give you around-the-clock protection unless you give them a substantial reason for it, and you can’t do that. Think about Jii-chan and Souta. Please, leave while you still can.”
For a long moment, only the sounds of agitated breathing broke the silence. Kagome wanted to say something, but bit her tongue. She had said her peace; now it was up to her mother.
“I’ll…think about it,” Mrs. Higurashi muttered a few seconds later, her tone conveying a certain level of defeat.
“Thank you,” Kagome replied, realizing that the noncommittal answer was the best she could have realistically hoped for. Her proposal was too contrary to everything her mother believed in to be accepted immediately. But she was fairly confident that given time, the wise leader of the Higurashi family would do the right thing.
Her mother was too deep in thought to respond, and Kagome sensed it was time to end their conversation. She had said everything she needed to, and there was no point in prolonging their goodbyes.
“I should go, Mama.”
“Already? I wish I could talk to you all night. But I suppose you have a long journey ahead of you. Can I call you again?”
“I’m going to throw the phone away; I don’t want them to be able to track us if they…somehow get the number. Sorry.”
“Oh…I guess I understand. Thank you so much for calling, dear. The days will seem so much brighter now that I know you’re out there, safe and sound. Give Inuyasha my gratitude for taking such good care of you.”
The hanyou scoffed, indicating his disagreement with that sentiment. Kagome grinned and placed her hand comfortingly on his knee. He could think what he wanted, but even she would admit that keeping her alive and uninjured was a difficult task at times, especially in a world he didn’t know battling against humans armed with weapons he wasn’t prepared for. So yes, she was quite satisfied with his protection so far. There was nowhere in the world safer than by his side.
“I will. Tell Jii-chan I love him. Just try to break the news easy.”
“His body isn’t as fragile as you think, Kagome. He won’t have a heart attack, but he will cry. Not in front of anyone, but he will.”
“If you say so, Mama.”
“Ye of little faith.” Mrs. Higurashi chortled, the sound almost giddy. “I’m on cloud nine right now. I think I might skip home.”
“Now that would be a sight to see.”
“I don’t even mind that you’re making fun of me, I’m so happy to hear from you.”
Kagome chuckled. “Okay, Mama, I have to go. Hopefully we can see each other again when all this blows over.”
“I look forward to it, dear.”
“Me too. Bye, Mama.”
“Goodbye, Kagome.”
The miko hung up and sighed, leaning back against the bench, hating what she had to do next but knowing it was necessary. Then she tossed the phone into a nearby trash can. That little device had the potential to become a homing beacon for their pursuers. At least now if, Kami forbid, Yoshida and his lackeys got the number—and there was only one way they could—it couldn’t be used against them. That scenario, as well as the conversation she’d just had with her mother, brought home a chilling truth to Kagome. One day soon, she might have to choose between Inuyasha and her family. She hoped her family could say out of it, but what would happen if they became involved? Hostages, even? What if, in order to save their lives, she had to sacrifice Inuyasha?
She knew what the hanyou would say to such a proposal; he would agree without a second thought. But could she make the same call? Who was more important to her: the man she loved, or the people who had raised her since she was born? It was an unanswerable question, one she prayed to every Kami she could think of that she would never be confronted with.
Inuyasha did not know what Kagome was thinking at the moment, but he could easily tell that her thoughts were not positive. Wishing to offer some comfort, he placed his arm around her shoulders and pulled her gently into his side. Somehow, after holding her in his arms as she slept last night, such a gesture didn’t seem so embarrassing.
Kagome sniffled once but did not cry. Instead, she accepted his embrace and allowed his presence to chase the insecurities to the back of her mind. Whatever challenges awaited them, they would contend and overcome, as they had always done.
“Thanks.”
Kagome glanced up at him in shock; she hadn’t been expecting him to say anything, much less a word of gratitude. Confused but intrigued, she waited for him to explain.
“For trying to keep my secret, and protect me from your world.”
Kagome couldn’t help it; she giggled. At the absurdity of him thanking her for protection. But he cast her an offended glare, so she clammed up quickly.
“Look, Inuyasha, it’s the least I can do. You only save my life, what, three times a week in the feudal era?”
“More than that.”
“So,” she continued, ignoring the jibe. “I like returning the favor once in awhile. And how often do I thank you for rescuing me?”
“You don’t need to,” he replied sincerely, earning a brilliant smile from his companion. He swallowed, entranced by the sight of her face, the receding rays of sunlight setting her skin aglow.
“I know. But still, you know I appreciate it, right?” she asked seriously.
“Keh. ‘Course you appreciate not being dead.”
Kagome grinned and shook her head, muttering something under her breath about ‘ruining the mood.’ But she was content to watch the sunset, and so was Inuyasha. It wasn’t quite as magical with buildings in the background, but the sky was absolutely gorgeous, tinted a lovely shade of soft pink. For a few minutes at least, hanyou and miko departed from reality; they were together, without a care in the world.
Eventually, however, darkness began to settle over the land, commencing its nightly battle with the artificial light of the human world. Inuyasha stood and stretched, then knelt in front of her. Kagome climbed on and they were off, heading for the forest which felt more like a home than the city for both of them.
* * *
Mrs. Higurashi sat brooding in the dark of the kitchen, nursing a cup of strong tea. Jii-chan had obviously been thrilled at the news of Kagome’s survival, but predictably less so about her proposal. He was adamantly opposed to going anywhere; his exact words had been ‘let them come. I’ll show them true power!” Never mind the fact that even if he had spiritual abilities—which he didn’t—they wouldn’t work on normal humans. Ah, the privileges of being slightly senile. Souta hadn’t said anything, which also wasn’t surprising. For all Mrs. Higurashi knew, he was lying in bed right now pondering. What made this decision difficult for her was the part of her that wanted to be as stubborn as Jii-chan. A rather large part. But she had always been a woman of reason and emotion. She never made decisions solely based on her feelings, though they still played a prominent role. Seldom did her head and her heart hold such diverging opinions as they did now, however. Reason sided with Kagome, but her natural attachment to her home, her aversion for uprooting her family from a place they loved, pulled in the other direction.
Money was not really an issue. She could afford an apartment in a smaller city for at least a few years, especially since the odds of Kagome going to college were slim to none. Perhaps it was the fight or flight response she was having trouble with; part of her wanted to do each. She was glad the gun laws were so strict in Japan; if not, she might have gone and done something crazy like buying a firearm. Those people could capture a superhuman hanyou, but a little widow with a pistol would beat them. Right.
Still, it would be nice to be able to do something besides running away. She didn’t want to be completely useless, forced to get the hell out of the way and abandon Kagome to her fate. Maybe that’s the best thing you can do for her.
Growling to herself, she took another swig of tea and poured herself another cup. She had vowed not to go to bed until she had made her decision. It was going to be a long night.
(1) This is an interesting feature of some Japanese department stores
(2) From what I’ve gathered, Japanese couples, especially middle-age and older, prefer to sleep in twin beds. So it makes sense that rooms with a double bed would be cheaper because they are less desirable
(3) The yen/dollar conversion I’m using in this story is about 81/1; that was the rate when I first needed to look it up. Now it’s about 76/1, and in 2007 it was almost 125/1. Man, the dollar is going down the crapper. I’m just going to convert all the numbers in those two paragraphs at once:
Cost of room with double bed (9000 yen) = $111
Cost of room with twin beds (11,000 yen) = $136
Approximate cost of supplies (50,000 yen) = $617
Original bankroll (90,000 yen) = $1,100
(4) I didn’t know this until I looked it up, but human hair won’t grow past a certain genetically-determined length, which is unique to every person. Something about each hair will only grow for a certain period of time before moving to a dormant stage and falling out. Then a new hair springs up in its place
(5) This is a more eccentric version of the common expression “smart as a whip”
A/N – Sorry this chapter took so long; real life took over for awhile. Bar exam, vacation, temporary full-time job while completing summer research and searching for “real” job…that’s still going on, btw. But I’m plugging along. I had writer’s block for about a week, then rediscovered my creativity. The length of the chapter didn’t help either. Hopefully I can get next one done within a month at worst.
Converting /tmp/phpZYYlt8 to /dev/stdout