InuYasha Fan Fiction ❯ Laying Down the Law: Abuna i Dansu ❯ Forr� ( Chapter 9 )

[ T - Teen: Not suitable for readers under 13 ]

This chapter ate my lunch; I hope it's believable. Love you guys; read on.

9191919

Forró: A Brazilian dance which celebrates passion, love, jealousy, and reminiscing about an ex-lover.

9191919

"It's healing alright; if it looks fucked up, we'll go to the Gun tomorrow."

Ryuu let go of Mizumi's face, sighing as she winced. It was the day after her dance brawl and, if not the large bruise discoloring the area of flesh near her nose, it was almost impossible to tell that anything was amiss. The brother and sister were currently sitting in their kitchen as the sound of stir-fry sizzled on the stove; Shale's thin shoulders were bent artistically over the burners, her hair tied up in a loose ponytail as she worked busily away on the meat and vegetables. She wasn't sure if there was any pepper in the cupboard, seeing as though she'd used a liberal amount on the previous night's pot-roast, but she could always dodge into her apartment and grab some; the hole in the wall was proving to be a nice little addition to their living space.

Ever since the day of Madozu, the Tousen siblings and Shale had worked their way into a very peaceful coexistence, one in which Shale cooked and Mizumi did the shopping. Ryuu was useful for fixing broken appliances (which the beaten down apartment complex seemed to have a lot of) and providing strong, if not tacit, protection. It was a well known fact that the entire complex was filled top to bottom with Dragons and, while Shale didn't have the knowledge to be truly afraid, her newfound close proximity to the leader of a gang seemed to make life all the more simple. With the Tousens at her aid, she no longer had to limp her way to school; South Tokyo High was a simple car ride away. Everything was working out for Shale Johannsen, despite the gloomy look it had taken on during her first week in Tokyo. Truly, she couldn't be happier.

As for Mizumi, she was thrilled to have a mother and/or big sister figure running the household. Ryuu and Shale were providing her with the role models and love she'd always needed. Ryuu's feelings about the living arrangement were generally unspoken, like so many of his opinions, but Mizumi knew her brother well enough to understand this: Shale's presence was one of the few he could tolerate and one of the five he actually encouraged. As long as Shale made herself useful, Mizumi had a feeling she would be a rather permanent part of their lifestyle. Besides that, Ryuu was a sucker for good cooking.

"It's puffy," Mizumi said, almost to herself, as she examined her reflection in a handheld mirror, which lay amongst antiseptic, a thermometer, and painkillers on the table. She was currently taking stock of her bruise, which seemed to have leaked like an oil spill across the entire left side of her face.

While Ryuu said nothing, a rather sharp sound echoed from the kitchen as Shale pulled out three plates and three sets of silverware; her motions were loud and pronounced, as were her arm motions. Mizumi watched the girl's back curiously, irritated that she couldn't see her face. Without a word, Shale forked helpings of stir-fry onto each plate and removed her apron with a frightening whip crack.

"Shale?" Mizumi asked finally, cocking her porcelain face curiously to the side. "What's wrong?"

Ryuu entered the living room, pulling a white wife beater over his head. He too had been alerted by Shale's impertinent kitchen noise, a rather new sound; she was normally delicate and careful when she cooked, precise and doll-like at all costs. It was simply the way she moved.

"Nothing," Shale said, trying to sound light but unintentionally allowing a hint of bitterness to creep into her voice. The plate appeared before Mizumi with a rather hard smack and the Dragon girl jumped before quickly gathering her napkin and utensils, lest she end up like that plate; she had never seen Shale mad and had no idea what kind of injuries it might cause.

Ryuu watched Shale carefully as she limped distractedly back and forth from the table to the kitchen and back again, setting two more places before she mumbled a prayer and crossed herself dutifully. She plopped down in her seat and began her dinner, blonde fringe obscuring her eyes from view as she ate with a surprising veracity.

"What crawled up your ass and died?" he asked finally, cocking his dark eyebrow as he too sat down and dug into his stir-fry, perfectly seasoned as always.

Shale glanced up reprovingly at him, as though admonishing him for using such language. Though he was normally offended by people scolding him, Ryuu had to admit that he got a kick out Shale's scandalized nature; no one had ever reacted to him quite the way she did. "Nothing is currently up my butt, but thank you for asking," she said aloofly. With this she returned to her food, looking as though the conversation was closed.

"You're mad, aren't you?"

At Mizumi's question, Shale unintentionally banged her fist on the table, causing the silverware and plates to rattle. "No, I'm not."

"Like hell," came Ryuu's grunted reply. He sounded as though he found it all rather funny. "What's your problem?"

Not at all offended, as she'd learned that this was just Ryuukoytsusei's way, Shale replied dully, "I'm just a little annoyed by Mizumi getting hurt, that's all."

There was an awkward silence at the table, broken only by the humming of the fluorescent light and the scraping of metal on porcelain. Finally, Ryuukoytsusei murmured quietly, "I took care of it; it won't happen again."

While his words were frightening, Shale only glanced up and asked worriedly, "Are you sure? She doesn't seem like she'd give up that easily." Mizumi glanced up unsurely at the blonde; apparently, she hadn't caught the dangerous edge in Ryuu's voice or she would've known just how taken care of things were. No one disobeyed her brother if they valued their life and Shitora Taisho had certainly been around long enough to know that.

Ryuu just shrugged and replied dully, "I'm sure."

As Shale gave one last worried glance and then returned her gaze to her food, Ryuukoytsusei allowed his eyes to linger on her face; she was so delicate, like a flower or glass. From the slope of her nose to the blue of her eyes, Shale was one of the most beautiful people a man was likely to see simply walking the streets of Tokyo. She was a creature of wonder...all besides that limp. What was the story behind that anyway? Even after weeks with her, no one in Tokyo knew the story. The Dragon snorted and shoveled some stir fry around his plate; apparently he wasn't the only one with secrets.

9191919

"South Tokyo High School, Principal's office. May I ask who's calling?

The secretary chattered away and began taking notes on a paper pad, nylon legs crossed elegantly across one another. The high school office was busier than most, noticed a man in the waiting room; he was used to a certain level of apathy from the educational system. The man had a head of curly blue hair, the color of an ocean, and his eyes were a surprising cotton candy pink. He was dressed rather like a college boy, though he looked to be about twenty eight; ripped jeans and a button down were his clothing of choice. He tapped his tan hands uselessly on his legs and glanced nervously around; he'd been waiting for maybe twenty minutes and it was making him anxious.

"Thank you for your time, Sesshomaru; I'm glad to see your health intact."

The principal's office opened to reveal an elegant silver haired boy, dressed in a crisp school uniform with tie perfectly folded. He looked rather thin, though there was undoubtedly a healthy pallor to his cheeks; his eyes seemed chipper, if nothing else.

"Thank you, Sensei," he said in a low monotone, nodding to the man inside before brushing past the waiting man and breezing out the door. He left behind him a scent of mint and sickness, one which the blue haired man would forever associate with Sesshomaru Taisho, even after his complete recovery.

"Ah, Pierre-san. Sorry to keep you waiting."

A tall blonde man, hair pulled back in an elegant ponytail, smiled kindly at the newcomer. The blue haired demon leapt to his feet and bowed his head slightly. "Apollo is fine, I'm not old enough for 'san' yet." His voice was young and gruff, almost playful.

Numa Shikaruni smiled and beckoned the man inside his office, closing the door behind him. "I trust you're getting moved in alright?"

"Fine, yeah. Nice place over on Nagini way," Apollo replied, taking a seat in one of the uncomfortable chairs before the principal's desk. The entire room was navy blue and smelled like office paper. Shikaruni took his own seat in a plush revolving chair, templing his fingers thoughtfully.

"Have you looked over the terms of your employment contract?" the blonde asked.

"Yeah," Apollo replied. "No problems or anything."

"Good. In that case, why don't we take a look at the facilities you'll be working with?" the principal asked, smiling brightly as he stood resolutely to his feet. "I'm sure you'll be...impressed."

Wondering what the principal meant by this, Apollo rose as well and followed the principal out into the hallway. The blue haired man cocked an eyebrow as they passed three delinquent looking boys arguing with the vice principal; one of them had his lip and nose pierced. Suddenly Apollo wasn't getting such a good idea about this whole idea.

"The theater class is small and you shouldn't have much to worry about there," Shikaruni explained as they walked. "As far as the productions go, you're focus and anxiety will probably be there. The auditions for the first musical need to happen in two weeks."

Apollo faltered slightly, looking like he was about to choke on non-existent food. "Two weeks? You're joking. I don't even know these kids, I haven't see them act or heard them sing, haven't even met them! I don't have a production picked out, or a set, or anything! Things like this take time, Shikaruni-san!"

"Numa is fine, I'm not old enough for 'san' yet," the principal countered, smiling mysteriously as Apollo spluttered behind him.

"Well, fine then! Numa, I can't put together a production in two weeks!" By this time, Apollo's pink eyes were wide with frustration.

"I'm not asking you to put together an entire production in two weeks, Apollo; I'm asking you to think about how to put it together later," the principal replied, shrugging as though this were old hat to him. They neared the large double doors of the theater and the elegant blonde smiled. "Welcome to your new home, my friend."

As the doors swung wide open, a cloud of dust actually kicked up on the door frame and Apollo waved it dismissively away, staring around at his proposed sanctuary. The theater, contrary to the rest of South Tokyo High, seemed to be a cuss pool of un-funded trash. The seats were covered in a garish red velvet, torn by years of abuse, and the gold metal was an unpolished brown. The rafters were high and dark in the shadows of the roof, creaking under the weight of the sky even as the two men stood below; the carpet, Apollo noticed, was stained in several places by tasteless black ink. The stage was a disaster; covered in dust, dirt, tape and the remnants of the only shows South Tokyo had ever seen those many years ago, it resembled a trashy street more so than an actual stage. The stage lights flickered on laboriously as Shikaruni flipped a light switch on the wall, illuminating the dimness with an air of bitter pride.

"As you can see, you've got your work cut out for you, Apollo," he said conversationally, smiling.

Apollo stared dumbly around the theater. "I quit."

"You haven't even started yet."

"Oh."

The two men stood there, staring at the glum theater, before Apollo sighed and murmured, "So you want me to put on a musical?"

"Yes sir," Numa nearly laughed.

Another sigh escaped Apollo's mouth before he breathed, "Fine. But my sister is gonna get it; all Polly could talk about was South Tokyo's great arts program and their beautiful campus. As far as my sister is concerned, she is officially denied a plate at thanksgiving. This is going to be impossible.:"

"I have faith in you," Numa replied over his shoulder as he exited through the doors from whence they'd come.

"Yeah. That makes one of us," Apollo murmured to himself, shaking his head.

9191919

Mizumi arched her back elegantly, creating a perfect semi circle as her hand touched the bar behind her. The dance balcony was filled with its normal thrum of female chatter, but today's gossip was focused on one target and one target only. A blush rose to Mizumi's cheeks as someone whispered her name rather loudly; unfortunately, Shitora's punch was still fresh on everyone's minds. It was fresh on Mizumi's face as well, having occurred only two days ago. It was healing nicely, but was in a rather gruesome green and black stage. She couldn't wait for the blasted thing to simply disappear; every time Shale and her brother looked at her, they turned away, eyes livid.

"That looks bad-ish," Fennella mentioned, arriving at the bar beside Mizumi and stretching her legs languidly. Her red curls dipped low over the bar as she bent forward, green eyes still focused on her friend.

Mizumi shrugged. "It could've been worse, I guess. I mean...I'm lucky I still have my face."

"Me too," Fennella murmured, still remembering the sight of Shitora stalking towards her. "Um, look; I meant to say this before, but I was kinda...well, anyway...thanks for standing up for me like that. I thought she was gonna kill me."

The dragon girl smiled kindly, crimson eyes sparkling despite the bruised cloud around them. "No problem; what are friends for?"

"Money lending," Fennella sniggered.

The two girls laughed but were interrupted as the door swung open and a dark cloud descended upon the dance balcony. Shitora stomped in, ignoring the silence which washed over the other girls as she entered; nothing seemed to matter anymore. Her break-up with Ranbou had become the talk of the school the next day, especially when they passed each other in the hall, silent as ships in the night. Just the sight of him made Shitora want to cry and Ranbou had been decidedly silent since the whole event. Naturally, girls especially had taken quite an interest in the terminated love-affair and, now, Shitora stood against the bar stretching her ham-strings. The bags under her amber eyes were telling, as were the pale sallows of her cheeks. The girls around her began to murmur nervously, whispering behind their hands as though she couldn't hear every word spoken.

"She looks awful," Mizumi said quietly, looking almost pitying as she unconsciously stopped stretching.

Fennella snorted. "Oh yeah, my heart just breaks. You know what? Let her be all quiet and sad for a while; she could use some let-down. That's one thing about the Taishos; everything goes right for them and they never have to work. Maybe she needs to work for a while, ne?"

Mizumi sighed. Her crimson eyes traveled far away as she whispered, "That's funny; I haven't watched a single good thing happen to them since I got here."

"What's that?" Fennella asked curiously; as far as she was concerned, the Taishos were a lucky lot.

"Well," Mizumi began, "Right off the bat, Sesshomaru was sick. And then Inuyasha's girlfriend got hurt by Kagura and her friends. I know Bankotsu and Kouga are always fighting with Inuyasha and the Fangs are starting to lose faith in Sesshomaru too. And then Shitora wasn't the best in her dance class and she punched me. Then she and Ranbou broke up. Sesshomaru's in the hospital. It's all gone to hell, I think."

When Mizumi began to stretch once more, Fennella lowered her eyebrows and cocked her head to the side. How could this little dragon-girl, with her cut up face and deep pains, possibly find kindness and pity in her heart for her enemy? It wasn't in the lion's make-up to feel love for her rivals, that was for sure; could dragons, of all species, actually like the ones they hated?

"Line-up," Shitora said dully, not even sparing the others a glance as they walked slowly to their places, seeming reluctant to follow their wayward leader. "We're working on the bon-fire dance today, so listen carefully; I don't want to repeat this a bunch of times or else Polly-sensei might catch us and I don't wanna deal with that shit."

Shitora began dancing slightly to herself, working out moves at half-speed as the girl's behind her whispered and shook their heads judgmentally. Though the girls weren't actually friends of Mizumi's, it bothered them to see one leader physically assault the other. Though Polly-sensei hadn't heard the entire story as of yet, she knew there was a possible connection between her class's silence and Mizumi's bruise. As far as she saw it, the girls would work it out amongst themselves. Hopefully.

Mizumi leaned towards Fennella and asked quietly, "What's the bonfire dance?"

Fenella snorted, crossing her freckled arms sarcastically. "Only the sluttiest dance this side of America. Every year there's this big bonfire before the football playoffs; it's put on by seniors and the dance team always does a really slutty porn-show for the crowd."

"Porn?" Mizumi echoed, eyes wide and afraid.

"Well, not actual porn," Fennella said quickly. "I just mean, like...a Christina Aguilera video but a little worse; it wouldn't pass censors to get on television, but we keep our underwear on."

"That's reassuring," Mizumi replied wryly, shaking her head; of course Shitora had choreographed this dance on her own. Though Mizumi could shake her hips, dancing like a slut wasn't her biggest talent. She preferred to just learn the dance and follow in line this time; there was nothing technical about grinding your butt against some guy's crotch, she decided. Shitora stopped dancing and addressed the crowd.

"Okay, the first four counts are a hip switch, back roll, then just pop lock and drop it."

At the sound of these instructions, Mizumi lowered her eyebrows and began walking discreetly towards the doorway. Or at least "discreet" had been the quality she'd hoped to achieve.

"And where the hell are you going?" came Shitora's crass drawl.

Mizumi glanced over her shoulder, finding the hanyou's angry yellow eyes staring intently at her own in the mirror. Mizumi cleared her throat and replied, "Nurse; my ankle hurts."

Without another word, Shitora returned her gaze to the other girls and began teaching them the raunchy steps as they mimicked her dutifully. Mizumi barely even spared the disgusting dance a look before hurrying out of the room, feeling downright giddy that she'd lied and gotten out before she actually had to learn it. The halls were quiet during last period with only the sound of occasional footsteps or the droning of teachers. Dance wouldn't end for another two hours, so Mizumi figured she might as well take a break before the real trouble began.

Just as Mizumi turned the corner, she ran into someone's rock solid chest and was about to fall backwards when they caught her quickly around the waist.

"You skipping class too?"

Mizumi opened her frantically closed eyes to find the handsome face of Bankotsu Hiashi smiling down at her, crimson eyes warm and friendly as always. She let out a whoosh of breath; she'd been expecting a teacher or one of the scarier gang members. Fortunately, it was only her secret friend and confidant.

"Hey," she breathed, regaining her footing and playing with the hem of her shirt. "Yeah, they started doing some slutty dance and I thought I'd get out of there before I got so embarrassed I cried."

Bankotsu chuckled and shook his head, marveling over the girl before him. He was secretly running amess inside; he'd been hoping to run into her over the past few days but luck had yet to be on his side. Finally, they had some time to talk.

"I was about to go take a smoke behind the gym, wanna come?" he asked hopefully, watching as she grinned.

"Yeah, sure; I've got time to kill."

The pair walked quietly down the hallway, footsteps like separate claps, until they reached the end of the hallway; the industrial double doors gave way beneath Bankotsu's strength and they entered the sunny fields of South Tokyo High school. The gym was situated in such a way that it was the last building on the campus lot. Because of this, the land behind it was relatively undeveloped and was nothing more than a poorly kept field. Bankotsu retrieved a box of cigarettes from his pocket, tapping them lightly before drawing one calculatively from the pack. Mizumi watched him intently, rocking back and forth on her heels with the feeling of the cold concrete porch beneath her.

"You want one?" he asked, holding the box towards Mizumi, eyes honestly curious. It struck Mizumi how completely genuine he was about everything.

She smiled lightly. "No thanks, I don't smoke."

"Good. S'nasty habit," the boy mumbled, shaking his head. "Kinda wish I'd never started."

Suddenly wanting to approach him, Mizumi took a step off the porch into the grass, giggling as it tickled her bare feet. Bankotsu watched, as though in a trance, as she approached him. She was a little doll, porcelain and perfect, dark emerald hair a beautiful contrast on the white of her cheeks as she gracefully glided towards him. She was a dance in every single way, he noticed, right down to her unconscious turnout.

"Smoking can be kind of...sexy," she replied, shrugging. The word "sexy" sounded odd coming from her little red mouth and Bankotsu barked with laughter.

"Sexy, huh?" he replied, grinning widely; his fangs glittered. "Then you must think the whole goddamn school is sexy, girl. Everyone smokes around here."

"So my nose tells me." With this, Mizumi tapped her nose lightly, smiling like she was merely five or six. "The nose knows."

"You're tellin' me. My nose hurts after one day here," Bankotsu lamented, shaking his head mournfully. "My poor olfactory senses."

Without warning, Mizumi plopped down on the grass, flipping over so that she could stare at the sky from her back. The clouds were a beautiful beard white, the sky that familiar rich blue. "I love that word," she whispered strangely. Sometimes the desire to suddenly be quiet struck Mizumi and this was one of those times. Realizing she'd done something "strange," she blushed suddenly and glanced nervously up at the place where Bankotsu had been standing.

But he was no longer there. Suddenly, Bankotsu plopped down beside her, cigarette still dangling from his lips. He'd done this in such a rush that Mizumi actually jumped, emitting a small sound of surprise. The boy just laughed heartily, arranging his silky braid so that it didn't cause a ridge in his back. He turned his head so that their crimson eyes locked in place and smiled in the most handsome of ways.

"What, olfactory?" he whispered in return.

Mizumi was suddenly charmed; she'd done something as strange as laying down and whispering her love for a weird word. Yet, despite that, here he was beside her, falling in kind with her. As the smoke trailed from his smile, Mizumi felt her breath oddly stolen. Perhaps it was improper to find a boy "beautiful," but that was the only word she could think of to properly describe him.

"Yeah," she mumbled, transfixed.

Bankotsu, too, seemed unable to move in that moment. When they met eyes like this, it always seemed as though a line were stretching between them, connecting them, ensuring them that someone else could understand them if only for a moment. Feeling so suddenly encompassed, Mizumi somehow wanted to cry.

"What's your favorite color?" she asked instead. The words had just tumbled forward and it confused her how she could say something without meaning to.

Shrugging, Bankotsu never removed his gaze as he said, "Green, I think. Maybe blue. I like colors that make me think of the outdoors."

"That fits you," Mizumi giggled, turning her eyes suddenly to the sky. "I like red."

This caused the black haired demon beside her to blink in confusion. "That's hard for me to picture."

"Why?" she asked quietly.

After a moment, Bankotsu answered, "Because red reminds me of sinners and sex and devils. And I don't think of those things when I think of you."

Mizumi didn't take offense but only thought inwardly for a moment. As the clouds ahead skated by on the winds, Mizumi echoed, "When you think of me. Well, then what do you think of?"

"Strawberries and summer. And Pointe shoes...and coffee for some reason," Bankotsu said absently without pause. He let the word "coffee" simmer and boil on his tongue.

These words made Mizumi smile and she said happily, "I like all of those things. Do you know what you make me think of?"

"What?" Bankotsu asked easily; talking to her was almost like floating on a river. Everything was natural and predetermined by some unseen force; he could feel her waves moving him playfully along and it soothed him.

Mizumi rolled over on her stomach and turned her head to regard him, wide smile on her full lips. "You make me think of the beach and clouds and motorcycles. And smoke, but I like smoke."

Bankotsu turned his own head away from the clouds, meeting eyes with her for the umpteenth time; it was like a cigarette he couldn't put down, her eyes. He was struck by the things she'd listed; only one of them was even remotely connected to the gangs and that was the motorcycles; still, he liked to think that motorcycles were his own personal joy as well. As she smiled back at him, he was struck with the strangest urge; he suddenly wanted to kiss her.

"Can I kiss you?" he voiced, again surprised by his voice. He'd never asked a woman before and had frankly never though anything about it since he turned fourteen. Something about her face made him want to ask.

Mizumi felt thousands of thoughts suddenly enter her mind but leave subsequently out the holes in her ears. It was a mad rush of chaos and then nothing as she debated the question, knowing full well what she wanted to answer and simultaneously entertaining a question.

"Could this ever happen? Us?" she asked in return, a doubtfulness suddenly entering her crimson gaze.

Bankotsu frowned. He could see "yes" written all over her face, but he knew that this was still bordering on "impossibility."

"I don't know," he replied truthfully, voice quiet and almost hurt. It was starting to physically hurt his chest to know that being with Mizumi would cause so many problems. It wasn't as simple as walking away, though; something about her drew him and he couldn't stop running back to her. He wanted so badly just to kiss her and run away...they'd only just met and he was beginning to feel swept away.

"Could we make it work?" Mizumi pressed; it was strange, saying these things to a boy she barely knew...but she felt as though she knew him anyway.

"If you try hard enough, anything works," Bankotsu replied strongly; his eyes burned with the conviction Mizumi was beginning to associate with him.

The girl was just about to respond when her life's responsibility began tugging on her and she felt as though she'd forgotten something. Her eyes went positively wide as she exclaimed, "Oh no, I'm in dance right now! I've missed half the dance! Oh, shit!"

Scrambling to her feet as Bankotsu laughed helplessly at her realization, she said joyfully, "We'll make something work, I know it! I have to go dance like a slut, but I'll see you later and have a good football practice! Don't hurt yourself!"

With this, Mizumi ran off towards the door, green curls swinging back and forth beautifully. Bankotsu watched her go, shaking his head pitifully with that stupid smile still glued on his lips. What was she doing to him?

9191919

"...and if you're so incapable, don't even bother coming back tomorrow; you may be the only human in here, but keep up or else. I'm not gonna cut you slack just because you're weak."

Mizumi stood in the doorway to the dance balcony, staring blankly at the sight before her. In her absence, Shitora had apparently lost her mind and was currently berating the poor blonde girl Mizumi had noticed a few days before. Up close, the dragon could now see that she had a cute little face, pert nose and freckles to match. She was indeed human as Shitora had accused her of; it was strange to realize that she was the only human on the dance team, but Mizumi was frankly unsurprised. This school seemed to favor demons indefinitely anyway and the dance program was no different. If this girl had made it this far, she was incredibly talented. She was, however, unfortunately unequipped for the routines she was being forced to perform. The repeated turning and jumping was easy enough for demons, but obviously this girl was suffering.

Shitora stared down at the girl, who was incredibly small, almost like a child, and eventually lost interest in it all. Snorting derisively, the hanyou declared, "I'm done for today; forget after school practice, let's just go home." The other girls let out breaths of relief, exchanging nervous glances; they'd been afraid Shitora would really lose her mind and do someone the same physical harm she'd done Mizumi.

The girls scampered to the walls and grabbed their things before hurrying out, saying quick goodbyes to Mizumi, who was still standing frozen in the doorway. Shitora spared the little freckled blonde one last scathing glance before rushing out the door, brushing past Mizumi rudely and knocking her into the doorframe. Mizumi barely even winced, somehow expecting this kind of attack, and only frowned. She wasn't going to let Shitora get the better of her anymore, she decided.

Seeing that Shitora was gone, the little blonde girl sighed heavily and turned to gather her things from the back corner. Mizumi watched her sadly, feeling rather sorry for the poor girl; finally, the dance captain entered the balcony and called out, "Hey."

The blonde didn't turn and only continued packing her bags in silence.

"Hey," Mizumi tried again; maybe the girl was shy.

Yet again, there was no response from the freckled human and Mizumi frowned. "I'm sorry Shitora was mean to you, but you could at least turn around when I'm trying to talk to you. Or answer...or something."

When there was absolutely no response, Mizumi threw up her hands and was about to storm out when the blonde suddenly turned as though noticing something for the first time. At the sight of her captain, the little girl gasped and held up her hands, performing several motions as she garbled out, "Ah'm sorry, Ah didn't nootice yoou."

Mizumi blinked, confused; the girl's voice was cute a little but her words were mashed and muddled, as though she had cotton balls in her cheeks. It was then that the dragon put everything together; the girl was signing with her hands. She was deaf.

"Oh...I'm sorry, I didn't know you were...I don't know sign language," Mizumi managed to get out, stumbling over her words and blushing madly.

The blonde only smiled, a cute little sight, as she shouldered her now-packed bags. "Is okah, Ah can read yoou're lips. Ah don' talk muuch, mos' people can't unerstan meh anehway."

"I can understand you fine," Mizumi exclaimed, cocking her head to the side; the girl seemed completely unoffended by her blunder and for that the dragon was thankful. She was horribly awkward when embarrassed.

"Aw, tank yoou," the blonde laughed, green eyes smiling. "Ah'm Lileh. L-I-L-Y."

Mizumi smiled as well, managing to make out the spelling. "Lily, it's nice to meet you. I'm Mizumi Tousen."

"Ah know whoo yoou ahre," Lily replied, shaking her head slightly with a little smile. "Yoou're da best dancer Ah eva seen."

The green-haired girls' cheeks flushed an even deeper red than before and she bowed her head slightly. "Thank you so much; that's very flattering. Um, actually, I was going to ask if you needed help in class. Shitora was out of line talking to you like that, she'd just a jerk sometimes. You're a fabulous dancer, I can tell."

"Ah've studied enough tha' Ah oughta be," Lily muttered, frowning. "Shitora Ta'sho has a bunch o' rocks up 'er butt anyway."

At the sound of this, Mizumi burst out laughing, completely caught off guard by the little girl's vulgarity. "I agree." Just then, a thought dawned on her. "Can I ask...how do you hear the music if you're deaf?"

Lily shrugged. "Ah can feel da beat sometimes an when I can't, Ah watch da otha girls an' stay in time. Is not soo hard after 'while."

"Wow," Mizumi muttered. "I could never do that. And you're human too..." When Lily raised her eyebrow skeptically, Mizumi hurriedly interrupted, "Well, not that humans couldn't do what you do because obviously you're doing it and you're doing a great job a-"

"Mee'umi, is okay. Ah undastand," Lily laughed slightly. By this time, the girls had arrived at what was apparently Lily's locker; it was situated in the senior hallway and Mizumi frowned slightly.

"Oh...you're a senior...I didn't know that," she muttered, puzzled over how little she knew about this girl.

"Ah jus' got here, Ah'm from Colorado," Lily went on to say. She was loading a fair amount of books into her bag, glancing up occasionally to see if she needed to read Mizumi's lips.

The dragon grew rather excited. "Wait, America? Would you rather speak English?" she asked in her second tongue.

Lily smiled widely. "That would be nice. Thank you."

Mizumi's eyes grew rather wide. "Wow, you're English is almost perfect; how did you learn to talk so well if you couldn't hear? That's amazing!"

"It's not as hard as it seems, I guess; I've never heard a word, so I can only assume I talk the way I should," Lily replied, generally unimpressed by herself.

"You'll have to teach me sign language!" Mizumi exclaimed, lapsing back into Japanese as the girls began walking together towards the front of the school; at that moment, the bell rang and students began pouring forth from their classes. "I mean, isn't it rude not to sign when I talk to you?"

"Ah guess," Lily shrugged, dodging a few wayward sophomore boys as they wove quickly through the now thrumming hallways. "Ah didn' really exepc' it anyweh."

It was perhaps a miracle or simply a twist of fate what happened next; Mizumi and Lily happened to glance across the hallway to find a strange but uplifting sight. A tall boy with cherry bomb hair was moving his tan hands at a rapid rate, nodding and mouthing words to a beautiful dark haired girl with ice blue eyes. She signed back, smiling all the while; both of them seemed to have an ultimate understanding of the other and Lily watched, open mouthed; she'd had no idea that anyone else in the school was deaf.

"Look! They speak sign language! You should go talk to them!" Mizumi exclaimed, giving Lily a light push in their direction.

But Lily shook her head decisively, arguing, "Ah don't know dem."

"Well, you'll never get to know them if you don't go talk!" the green haired girl continued; she was determined to help Lily make friends.

"No, Ah..." Lily protested lamely, finding herself suddenly pushed towards the chatting couple.

Mizumi gave her a hefty shove and Lily was thrown momentarily off balance. She stumbled forward and when she'd finally caught her feet, she straightened up to find her gaze locked with two confused ones; the cherry bomb boy and the deaf girl were staring at her, of course she'd practically careened into them. Lily was about to run away from pure embarrassment when the dark haired girl smiled and signed to her.

"Hi; are you okay? You almost fell there."

Lily read the signs easily and blushed. "I'm fine, thank you. Sorry about that."

Kotone Ookami's eyebrows raised indefinitely; she'd been expecting Benkan to translate for her, but the blonde girl had beat him to it. Kotone had been unaware that anyone but her friends spoke sign language and the fact that someone she barely even knew had stumbled into her, able to understand her, was exciting.

"Oh, you speak sign language. That's handy," Benkan Bones said jovially, grinning at the two girls; they both looked excited about their kindred spirits, though the blonde looked rather apprehensive.

Lily squinted in confusion when Kotone looked expectantly at her. Turning to the redhead, she asked, "Sorry, 'id yoou say somethin'?" Normally when people looked expectant, it meant they were waiting for an answer, the question of which Lily hadn't heard. She'd become accustomed to reading people over the years.

Benkan furrowed his brow. "Oh..." He had only just realized that she was deaf. "Yes, I just said it was handy that you spoke sign language."

"Ya, Ah'm deaf," Lily replied, chuckling slightly. "Which Ah bet yoou know noow."

"Yeah, it's cool," Benkan replied, grinning sheepishly as he placed a hand boredly on the back of his neck. "Koto's mute, so I figure sign language is sign language and that's that."

Lily smiled ruefully. "Oh, muute. Ah though'...oh well. Any'ne whoo caahn speak sign lang'age is good."

Mizumi watched with a small smile as her new friends struck up a half sign, half word conversation with the Kyoto refugees. After a moment, Mizumi tapped her on the shoulder, waving goodbye as they continued talking; she would leave them to converse for a while. She turned a corner to retrieve things from her locker, finding herself suddenly along in the hallway; most students were already home for the day and the last few lockers were slamming. Mizumi was just getting used to the quiet when someone called out to her in a soft, reserved voice.

"Ms. Tousen."

The girl turned to find none other than the famous Sesshomaru Taisho standing before her, skinny as a ghost but finally a fleshly peach color; he no longer looked like the waif she remembered. He nodded his great silver head slightly, igniting her with a strange feeling of insignificance; there was something positively godly about him.

"I wanted to apologize for Shitora's behavior in my absence. I heard from my brother...in any case, I'm sorry it affected you like that; are you healing alright?"

"Yes, fine, thank you," Mizumi replied quietly; she was so quiet, Sesshomaru actually had to strain his ears to understand her.

"I'm glad to hear it," Sesshomaru said finally, frowning. He'd expected a bubblier answer, perhaps; she was, after all, a cute little dancer with a big smile. He'd watched her around campus and this seemed a strange polar opposite according to her normal hops and skips.

"Thanks. Well...I'm glad you're feeling better," she nodded to the taller man, bowing her green head momentarily. With this, completely forgetting about her Biology book, Mizumi hurried down the hallway in the opposite direction; Sesshomaru was frighteningly powerful and it emanated like a stunning light. It scared her.

Sesshomaru watched the girl go, seeming to understand her hesitation; she had yet to see him at full strength, what with his sickness, and it often frightened people past the point of speech. It irritated him to a certain extent, but often flattered him as well. At the current time, it only served to make him feel small.

"Shomo?"

The white haired demon turned to find Kouga standing a few feet from him, looking confused. "Come on man."

"Yeah," Sesshomaru muttered, looking briefly after Mizumi before following his best friend down the hall and out the doors.

*!*!*!*

Kibishii Ookami resettled his calloused hand on the wheel of his Mustang and sighed. "Taish, slow down, I can't understand a fuckin' word yer sayin."

After three weeks away, Kibishii had just now stumbled back into town; though he hadn't exactly told his sons he was leaving, he figured they would decode that fairly quickly. After a few tepid meetings, the Ookami king was now officially free of the Yakuza in every way, shape and form. He was wary, since word had it that no one ever truly freed themselves from mob arrangements, but he had enough friends that things were finally looking up. The Tokyo sun was like a fresh new life on his skin as he drove along, top down, cigarette dangling from his lips as he talked boredly to his best friend on the telephone.

"I said Sesshomaru was in the hospital for treatment because he somehow became anorexic. I can't believe I wasn't home, Kibi, what does that say about me? I'm a terrible father," Inutaisho lamented, dog whine creeping up in his anxious voice.

Kibishii rolled his eyes as he turned onto his street. "Not as bad as me; think of that whenever you feel paternally inadequate or whatever. He was probably just doin' one of those weird Taisho repentance things, I know how you sick fucks are."

"Shut up. Like the Ookamis are anyone to talk about sick fucks. I just now got a call from Kouga, by the way. I didn't even get a call from my own kids, I got one from yours; he's already out of the hospital and I wasn't even there."

Kibishii shut the door to the Mustang and pocketed his wallet boredly; the house looked just like it always did and he was hardly in a hurry to enter into a surely unkempt living room that smelled faintly of fast food. "Inutaisho, stop being a fag," Kibishii muttered gruffly, pausing outside the door as he searched the ring for his house key. "Let yourself chill out for a minute; if he's out of the hospital, then you've got nothin' left to do but pay the bills." The door opened and revealed the dark, musty familiarity of the den. "Sesshomaru was always yer self sufficient kid; you should worry about Inuyasha more."

"Thanks for your brilliant insight, Kibi. We weren't all blessed with kids that could take care of themselves a hundred percent of the time like yours."

"Yeah, mine are pretty good, huh?" the old wolf laughed to himself; he peered inside as he shut the door, noticing that the TV was on and Ranbou was sitting boredly in front of it; his eyes were lifeless and his cheeks pale. Kibishii's smile faded and he muttered, "Taish? I'll call you back later."

"What? Sure, what's wrong?"

"Nothin'...just gotta go."

"Oh. Alright, bye Kibi; thanks for listening to me complain."

With this, Kibishii folded his cell phone into his pocket and made his way through the sterling clean room to the couch. He was mildly surprised that it smelled nothing like MacDonald's and wasn't even remotely dirty; the only clutter in the room was Ranbou, his empty shell of a body laying boredly on the couch staring at the bright screen turn blue in the dark. He was in sweatpants and nothing else, hair wet from the shower; the only other sound was the rustling of pots in the kitchen. Kouga was obviously making dinner.

"Hey pup," Kibishii greeted as he took a seat beside his eldest child.

Ranbou glanced at his father, nodding slightly. "Hey."

"You look like you lost your best friend," the older wolf commented.

A look of pure agony crossed over Ranbou's face for a split second before he murmured, "I got homework," and rose from the couch, exiting the room and shutting his door behind him.

Kibishii blinked in confusion. "What the hell...?"

"He and Shitora broke up," Kouga explained as he entered from the kitchen, handing his father a bowl of pasta. "I thought you'd come home today."

The father accepted the bowl with a slight nod, barely even ruffled by his young son's uncanny ability to predict the future. Kouga had always been rather ethereal and difficult to understand, but it had always reminded Kibishii of his late wife and he never objected. Now, as they sat together watching a toothpaste commercial eating pasta, Kibishii managed to process the information he'd just been given.

"Wait, he and Shitora broke up? Over what?"

"Dance, each other...everything. It's hard to explain without a lot of background, so just don't talk about it for a while, okay?" Kouga advised, looking a little bothered by the whole idea of the break-up in general.

"Oh...well, how's Ayame?" Kibishii asked awkwardly, scratching the back of his neck; he often didn't know how to talk to Kouga.

Kouga shrugged, replying, "Great, she's always great. By the way, I thought you would probably want to know...we found Kina and Koto."

The silence which followed was a deafening one, broken only by the scraping of utensils on porcelain as Kibishii continued eating his pasta. "In Kyoto, you mean?"

Kouga paused in his eating, suddenly surprised; he had intended to be the controller in this conversation, but Kibishii had caused the tides to turn rather quickly. For a moment, only the blue and white of the television caused movement on Kouga's face. Finally, he said in a deep monotone, "You knew."

"Course I knew, boy. I was a Yakuza scout, I had the ability to know whatever I wanted; I've been checking up on them for a while."

"Then you know that...they're...here."

The control soon became Kouga's a second time as Kibishii turned to face him fiercely, ice blue eyes wide as stones. The cocky attitude drained from his face and Kibishii swallowed with a certain amount of difficulty, glancing nervously down at his feet and then quickly up at his son once more. The confusion in his face was uncomfortable for Kouga, who still expected a certain amount of strength from his father. They sat there in silence, staring at one another with their mirroring eyes, until Kouga cleared his throat and rose, taking his half empty bowl to the kitchen.

"In...the house?" Kibishii finally asked, voice quiet and small.

"Yeah," Kouga answered from the kitchen. When Kibishii started looking around as though expecting his girls to pop out of the wall, Kouga elaborated, "They're at the warehouse working right now, but they should be home by seven."

Kibishii glanced down at his watch and murmured, "That's in fifteen minutes. Maybe I should get out."

"What for?" Kouga asked calmly, already knowing the answer but finding it foolish to lord himself over his father even more than he already was.

"They think that...that mom...they probably haven't given up on that," Kibishii confessed, garbling his words but causing Kouga to nod gravely anyway.

"They're not sore like they used to be, but...total forgiveness probably isn't your best bet," The boy agreed, shaking his head.

Kibishii was about to respond when the front door opened and familiar scents swept about the house, causing the man to close his eyes and savor the sweet smell of his daughters.

"Guys, we're home....dad?"

9191919

"...and then the asshole says, 'Ookami, that's two detentions for sleeping in my class,' and I was like 'look buddy, it's a great environment for rest.'"

Lysander laughed and took a deep breath of the suddenly crisp autumn wind; it was already the first week of October and the unbearably hot summer was beginning to fade. As Lysander adjusted his shoulders against the hard metal of Ranbou's pick-up bed, watching his friend's smoke trail ascend gracefully towards the clouds; they were currently skipping eighth period, but no one ever cared about gym anyway. As Ranbou saw it, he was already the quarterback on the football team; how much physical exertion were they expecting?

"Hey Ran?" Lysander began, looking rather hesitant at first. Finally, he turned his yellow cat eyes towards his best friend, mop of red hair catching dust from the tailgate. "I was wondering...do you think you and Tora are ever gonna get back together? If you don't wanna talk about it, I understand, but..."

"No, dude, it's cool," Ranbou replied quietly, all traces of humor gone from his face. "I...don't think it'll ever happen again. The problems we had were pretty foundational."

Lysander regarded his friend silently for a moment. "Foundational? Like, you didn't love each other?"

The question caught Ranbou off guard and he blushed, an unusual occurrence in the life of the hard-nosed quarterback. Lysander was just staring innocently at him, channeling his mother's uncanny ability to ask strangely invasive questions but still seem polite.

"Not like that, cause we did," Ranbou eventually said, still embarrassed by the fact. He knew that, theoretically, Lysander was the last person he should feel embarrassed in front of.

Lysander seemed to ponder this for a moment, sitting up on his elbows when he finally delivered his verdict. "Then you didn't have foundational problems at all, man. The foundation of your relationship should be love and, if you loved each other and put that first, then you had problems of some other kind. Like...anger problems. Or how impulsive you are. I don't think it has anything to do with the foundation."

The words were so profound that Ranbou allowed them to sit untouched on the air. He closed his eyes softly, listening to the birds twittering on their way overseas, relishing in the slight breeze hinting at a cold front. He felt suddenly in tune with the world around him, suddenly a part of something; it was in this moment that he felt that void creep over him.

"I miss her, man," he whispered, unembarrassed by his weakness for the first time.

Lysander sighed sadly, reaching over to grab the smoldering cigarette from his friends hand. He took a leisurely drag on it, watching the smoke twist away into nothing.

"I know, dude. I know."

"Lysander?"

The redhead sat up slightly, glancing about for his twin sister; he could recognize her voice and smell from miles away. Fenn's startling shock of red hair became slowly visible in the sea of cars and Lysander squinted; surely he couldn't be seeing what he thought he saw. He could smell the salty clash of tears and the spoiled crimson sharpness of blood, but he could barely believe it. Fennella was hardly the type of girl to get hurt or cry afterwards, for that matter; if anything, she'd been the one standing up for him when they were children. She looked huddled and cold as she trembled about in her dancewear in the parking lot.

"Over here," he called, waving his arm slightly until her muddy green eyes focused in on the pick-up. She came rushing forward, cradling her left hand tenderly in her arms as the tears streamed down her face. Dread filled Lysander as he unhitched the tailgate and reached down, offering his sister a strong arm into the bed. As soon as the gate was locked back into place, Ranbou and Lysander exchanged nervous glances; it was difficult to tell, but Fennella's hand looked mangled, scratched and bloodied to the point of unrecognition.

"Fenn, what the hell happened?" Lysander asked sharply, emerald eyes becoming dangerously dark.

"I was getting my things in the locker room and I got on the wrong side of Kagura's girls," she sniffed, rubbing violently at her tears with her right hand. "It's not that I couldn't take them, I could! I just...Kijo just yelled at me about fighting the other day and I couldn't...not after she'd..." the girl trailed off, cheeks flushing darkly, before she finally murmured, "Anyway, one of the Vixen tigers got a hold of my hands and started eating away at it...I didn't know what to do, so I yanked it out and ran. I could hear them laughing behind me...I just wanted to kill them all." More tears leaked down her cheeks at this, causing her to shut her eyes tightly.

Ranbou frowned. "She...ate away at it? She bit you?!"

"That's what it looks like," Lysander murmured, turning Fennella's grossly mangled hand over in his calloused ones. "No wonder you're crying; I can see your thumb muscle!"

Fennella still wasn't looking, perhaps because of the gross vision which lay in wait for her, and Ranbou could only watch in horror. He'd seen his fair share of muscle, bone and brain, but seeing it on one of his friends was an entirely different matter.

"Those sick fucks!" he yelled suddenly, pounding his tailgate floor and causing a dent which seemed not to bother him. "After everything we're going through, everything the country's going through, how can some little tiff like south versus north be important to them?! Someone please enlighten me how a person's world can be so SMALL!"

Fennella only continued to cry softly as Lysander heaved a heavy sigh. Ranbou eventually seemed to come down from his craze, running a hand through his hair as frustrated air escaped his lips. "Well, whatever. Gan'll take a look at it," he finished, shrugging his shoulders; the only sound across the parking lot was that of leaves scraping the pavement, puppets to the wind.

"Oh yeah, good idea; I'll go crawling to my enemy with my fucked up hand so she can laugh about it!" Fenn cried, scrubbing at her tears; her voice barely impacted the empty lot. "I already look like a coward!"

"Do you want your hand to fall off? You're going to see Gan," Lysander said crisply, standing to his feet and unlocking the tailgate. "School should be done by now."

"Well, then, I have dance," Fennella countered, eyes flashing.

Lysander never bothered to face her, replying stiffly, "Somehow I think your balance would be off. Just come on, imouto."

The sound of that familiar pet name caused Fennella to roll her eyes as Lysander lifted her carefully down from the tailgate. Ranbou gave his best friend a wave, which the flustered redhead returned. The twins walked off towards their Corvette as Ranbou rolled his eyes plaintively, lightning a new cigarette as he grew generally tired of the circumstances around him. Hate, fighting, killing...and he was only part of the problem.

Shouting from the schoolyard brought his attention back towards the school and the wolf furrowed his brow; those were the shouts and hollers only associated with a fist fight and he'd been in enough to know. Muttering a curse, the boy leaped out of the tailgate and took off towards the school at a jog; there was no telling who was inches away from facial reconstruction surgery this time.

Mizumi and Shale exited the school together, talking and laughing about their days; for some unknown reason, Shitora had cancelled dance practice and Mizumi was enjoying a day of after school freedom. Shale smiled as Mizumi explained the sight of Ranbou Ookami sleeping in their Home Ec class but her smile soon disappeared as she noticed the growing crowd before them. Boys and girls were running towards a central attraction, shouting madly for their favorite contenders as they created a sea of school uniforms on the front lawn.

"What's going on?" Shale asked no one in particular.

"Ryuu's about to fuck Hiashi up," Kobu replied as he arrived beside Mizumi, shaking his tanned head baldly. His black samurai knot caught the wind and danced behind him as he muttered, "Right in front o' the school; crazy ass."

"Wait, Bankotsu?" Mizumi screeched. "He's fighting Bankotsu Hiashi?"

"That's the one," Kobu replied, crossing his arms, which bulged dangerously in the sleeves of his uniform shirt. "Unlucky bastard; he should've known better than to pick that fight."

Mizumi stared aghast at the growing circle and, though Kubo seemed not to notice anything amiss, Shale watched her young friend's face very carefully; there was something more than surprise there and the blonde girl knew precisely what it was.

"Shit!" the dragon girl exclaimed, dropping her bags at her feet and running towards the growing crowd, wherein she began pushing her way bodily through the spectators.

Kubo muttered a curse of his own, glancing down at the bags and shrugging them onto his shoulder as an afterthought. "She might not wanna see what's goin' on in there," he mentioned, earning an anxious whine from Shale.

"What are they fighting about anyway?" she asked, blue eyes shining with concern.

"One 'a Hiashi's boys gave Ryuu some kinda weird look or somethin'. Ryuu was about to start up with the bastard, but here comes Hiashi, all stickin' up for his people, and now they're fightin'. So to answer you're question, nothin'. They're fightin' about nothin'," Kubo replied, shaking his black head. "Christ." His leather face, however marred with scars, looking only frustrated in that moment. As though this fight reminded him of all the reasons the Dragons were often a hassle.

Meanwhile, Mizumi pushed and shoved her way through the masses, grunting as bodies much heavier than hers pressed her against the many students. She managed to duck down and practically crawl her way to the center, knocking legs and knees aside until she was finally standing in the innermost ring of the circle, watching the madness before her.

Bankotsu was on one knee, wiping blood away from his mouth and nose as Ryuu stared down at him from above, arms crossed imperiously. Ryuu's crimson eyes were hard and cross, occasionally obstructed by the wicked winds as they picked up his emerald green hair and threw it about. He was so tall and powerful, he looked practically royal. Bankotsu, on the other hand, looked more the worse for wear as he stood carefully to his feet, cherry-red eyes narrowed and pieces of fringe hair escaping from his braid. Mizumi bit her lip fretfully, hands tightening into little fists; not to belittle Bankotsu's abilities, but her brother was a tank. There was no guarantee that Bankotsu would come out of this scuffle on two feet.

"Had enough, Hiashi?" Ryuu asked in his usual gruff monotone, looking bored by the whole thing.

"No, I ain't had enough, asshole," Bankotsu growled. The Cobra leader wiped more blood from his aching face and glanced haphazardly around the circle. Jakotsu, Hiten and Inuyasha were standing on one side shaking their fists encouragingly and cheering. On the other side, Sesshomaru and the recently appeared Ranbou were watching the goings on grimly, looking as though they disapproved but not daring to interfere in another man's pride battle. Kagome, Sango and Rin were directly behind Ryuukoytsusei, calling out occasionally to him but looking like they didn't want to get involved. In any case, if he stopped fighting now, what would they all think of him? However much Bankotsu wanted to just walk away and leave this all lie, he knew his reputation depended on a finish, whether or not he won or got knocked out.

"Fine," Ryuu growled venomously, launching forward with his fist upraised.

Bankotsu's eyes got momentarily wide as he processed the sight of the 250 pound monster practically on top of him, teeth barred and eyes narrowed. Using his natural speed at his aid, Bankotsu ducked deftly to the side and left Ryuu connecting his fist with only air. In a rare moment of clear-headedness, Bankotsu delivered a fire-filled punch to the back of Ryuu's neck, hoping it would knock the hefty dragon out for the count.

The hit only succeeded in causing Ryuu to grunt with pain as his nerves screamed in agony; Bankotsu had hit him right where it hurt on his spine. "Motherfucker," the dragon murmured lowly, spinning and delivering a swift hit to Bankotsu's stomach. The Cobra leader felt his breath leave him and heard the cracking of ribs as he fell to his knees, blood leaking from his lips and pooling on the ground. Many of the onlookers gasped, several boys issuing sounds of gruff sympathy for the poor boy; they could hear the bones splintering from where they stood.

Bankotsu happened to fall right at Mizumi Tousen's feet and hear her terrified gasp, one which echoed in his ears right up with the beautiful sounds of the heavens. She was about to bend down to tend to him, but she knew better; there was a dangerous myriad of onlookers, none of which would fail to notice the converging of enemies.

Ryuu seemed so charged by his anger that he roared, eyes aflame as he prepared to deliver another blow to his fallen enemy.

"Stop right now," Sesshomaru demanded as he entered the circle, slightly thin body still as intimidating as ever. With that familiar clip to his amber eyes, the circle realized just how recovered their fearless leader was. In only two weeks time, their leader had put on ten pounds and regained the strength in his limbs that everyone remembered. Now he was practically back to full-strength and staring Ryuukoytsusei coldly in the eyes. He knew the story of his rush to the hospital, but even Sesshomaru wouldn't allow his savior to get off so easily.

"He's down, you've had your fun," Sesshomaru continued when Ryuukoytsusei remained silent.

The crowd watched with baited breath as their two leaders faced off, crimson and amber dancing like fire on the wind. Finally, Ryuu hissed, "What, you want some too, Taisho?"

Immediately, Inuyasha, Kouga, Miroku, Hiten, Jakotsu and Ranbou stepped into the ring, arms crossed and faces hard. Ryuu knew in an instant that he was outnumbered and mentally chided himself for trying to pick a fight with the rock-solid Sesshomaru Taisho; his web was practically solid across town and it was foolish to think victory was possible in a circumstance like this.

It was then that several Dragons stepped forward behind their leader, Kobu in the forefront; they weren't about to let the Dragons be disgraced on neutral territory.

"Everyone get out, this ain't your fight!" Bankotsu cried out hoarsely as he stumbled to his feet, breathing laboriously and wheezing with the pain of his ribs clouding his vision. "Everyone get out now!"

Sesshomaru watched the boy for a moment before he nodded to the South and they began to withdraw back towards the edge of the circle, albeit quite reluctantly. Jakotsu watched his brother anxiously as Hiten tugged him backwards all the while; Bankotsu might not get out of this one, Jakotsu had decided.

"You too," Ryuu said to the Dragons behind him, never turning. Without a word, the boys exchanged glances and melted back towards the center ring as ordered.

Now standing alone, just the two of them, Bankotsu and Ryuu met eyes fiercely, their fight reigniting as quickly as it had come to a close. "Let's finish this," Bankotsu said lowly, arriving in front of Ryuu with speed which shouldn't accompany three four broken ribs. Before Ryuu could even catch his breath, Bankotsu's fist caught him cruelly across the face, splitting his cheek and causing a familiar hotness around the eye; that would be a shiner.

"All of you, stop right where you are!"

The cheering and talking stopped abruptly as principal Numa Shikaruni came bursting into the center circle, brother Kuma-Bear making his way behind him. The stately blonde principal was frowning, green eyes a dangerous emerald as he addressed the two boys before him. "Tousen, Hiashi, my office now. If you can make it there, that is. If not, consider your punishments doubled."

The other students winced; harsh.

Bear allowed his brother to squeeze past him as he entered the circle for himself, brawny arms crossed in a dangerous display of anger across his chest. His own green eyes were narrowed so far it was difficult to discern their color behind the brow.

"Let's go you two," he said without a hint of his normal cheerfulness.

Ryuu and Bankotsu exchanged a glance walking calmly towards the opening in the circle. Ryuu exited swiftly, wiping blood from his face, though Bankotsu seemed to have a little more trouble. After his stunning display of physical endurance with that last hit, the pain in his ribs was coming back to bite him and he was barely able to move. Hiten ran to his best friend's side and quickly offered him a shoulder, helping him hobble towards the main door of the school. Bear glanced around the circle and shook his head before exiting.

"Oh shit," Kubo murmured as he arrived at Mizumi's side. "Looks like yer brother's in a whole lot of hurt."

Mizumi said nothing and only continued to look anxious, even when Shale pushed through the dispersing crowd to meet them. She too looked troubled, though not like her young friend. "Do you think he'll get a detention?" she asked Kubo.

"He'd be lucky if he got off with ten; Shikaruni doesn't take to fighting. He hates it; guys have been expelled for less," Kubo replied, shaking his head sadly. "All we can do is go home and wait."

"Do you live in our apartment complex?" Shale asked, knowing that many of the dragons did.

"Room 202," Kubo replied, grinning. "Best fuckin' pad ever, chicks dig the rats; that's hot, apparently."

Shale laughed slightly as she ushered Mizumi towards the car; the green haired girl was still anxious and lost looking. She'd never witnessed a real fight before, but it would be too soon if she never did again. Kubo paid her moroseness no mind, figuring that she was just rattled by the sight of her brother getting hit. Little did he know that Bankotsu was the only one on her mind.

9191919

"...and fighting on school property is inconceivable. I'd rather you not fight at all, but off campus I have no control; on campus, however, is where you find yourself now. And let me remind both of you that this is not your first offense. Bankotsu, you've been caught fighting three times since sophomore year, and Ryuukoytsusei..."

Numa Shikaruni trailed off as he stared down at the records before him. Ryuu and Bankotsu were sitting, more like propped up, in the office chairs before the principal's desk, not seeming to hear a word out of his mouth. Bankotsu was breathing laboriously, staring down at his bloody hands, while Ryuukoytsusei stared bad-temperedly out the window. When his name was called, the bloody dragon barely glanced up and drew in the principal's silence.

"That should be thirteen," he commented, nodding down to the record books.

"Twelve," Shikaruni corrected, still struck by the sheer enormity of the number.

"Pity," Ryuu replied, continuing to stare out the window as though nothing were of consequence to him.

Bear, who was leaning against the back wall, rolled his eyes plaintively as Numa's shoulders began to tremble. "You two have no pride in your school, you administration, or your fellow students. It's abhorrent!"

Bankotsu had the grace to look ashamed, while Ryuu only scoffed rudely.

"I should expel you both," Numa growled.

At the sound of this, Ryuu glanced up and Bankotsu's mouth dropped nearly to the floor. "Please don't, sir, it would break my mom's heart."

"What a fag," Ryuu growled, rolling his eyes dramatically.

Bankotsu's face turned violent, but Bear stepped in quickly, muttering, "Cool it," to both boys, accompanied quickly by his warning glare. Ryuu and Bankotsu both relaxed reluctantly back into their seats, pointedly avoiding each others eyes. Numa rolled his emerald green eyes and gave his much larger brother a hopeless sort of look. Kuma only shook his head as though to say, "your job, not mine."

"Alright, you two, this is what we're going to do. Since you have so little pride in your school, you get to participate in the school activities of my choice for at least an hour a day. For you, Tousen, it'll be..." the principal trailed off as he fingered through a few files, looking tired and worn by these students and their troubles. Finally, he withdrew a leaf of paper triumphantly, declaring, "Art. You will be taking art classes with McGarr Sensei; he won't take your attitude like me, so be careful."

Ryuu stared blankly at the principal for a moment before he repeated. "Art."

"That's right," came Numa's stiff response.

"Like, drawing shit? No way."

"Expelled."

"Fine," Ryuu replied after a moment. "I'll take your little art class, but watch your back Shikaruni."

"Sure Ryuu, threaten my brother right in front of me, that's a great idea," Bear interrupted sarcastically, coming up behind the dragon's chair as though reminding him just how large he was.

When Ryuu realized his anger was getting the best of him, he rose abruptly and murmured, "Fine," before storming out the door, wiping the still free-flowing blood from his face. The door slammed angrily behind him and, as soon as the northern leader was out of earshot, Bankotsu gave a groan and shifted in his chair. The pain he'd been masking rose to the surface of his handsome face, creating a rather pitiful, bloody, bruised picture of a man.

"Remind me to never piss him off again, damn, he hits like a hurricane," Bankotsu moaned, ignoring Bear and Numa as they chuckled darkly at his predicament.

"Fighting in general is a bad idea, Hiashi, because someone always has to lose and you have a 50% chance of it. Now, for you school activity, I think..." Numa rifled through the papers again, generally unsatisfied by his choices. Finally, a brilliant idea came into his head and the blonde principal smiled mysteriously. "Ah yes. For you, I've chosen the school musical. Auditions are soon, so keep an ear out. No matter what part you receive, and you will receive one, you'll be there every day doing whatever Pierre Sensei wants you to do."

At the word "musical," Bankotsu gave a piteous whimper and closed his eyes tightly. "Man, I can feel the gay jokes just looming up in the distance."

"Put this guy in orchestra so that he can play 'my heart cries for you' on the world's smallest violin," Bear laughed, clapping his hands and obviously having quite a good time with the idea of his tailback in a musical.

"If people think your gay, get a girlfriend; that's what I did in high school," the principal joked, rising from his seat and going over to offer Bankotsu a hand. He liked the boy a good deal, as he was one of the few gang members who offered the administration any respect whatsoever. Perhaps the favoritism he's showed to Bankotsu over Ryuukoytsusei was inappropriate, but Numa could care less; he just wanted to get home to his wife and no one could fault him for doing his best in the line of duty.

"Thank you, sir," Bankotsu said wearily as he brace his ribs with one arm, shaking the principal's hand with the other.

"For punishment? Anytime, Hiashi, it brings me a perverse pleasure," the blonde said with a smile. "Get yourself on to see Kiretsu, now."

Looking mildly surprised, Bankotsu murmured, "I thought you would tell me to go to a doctor or something; Gan, really?"

"I know more than you think I do," Numa replied slyly, adjusting his spectacles and closing the door swiftly behind Bankotsu's slowly retreating form. "Damn kids take years off my life every day, I swear."

9191919

"Gan?"

The blonde girl glanced up from the kitchen table where she was busily attending to some calculus equations. Akago was standing before her, cigarette dangling from between his lips as he moved to fill a glass of wine from the refrigerator.

"You have a couple of visitors," Akago replied, shrugging his white head thoughtfully, jerking his crimson eyes towards the door of the house.

Gan furrowed her brow, raising from the table and pulling her robe tightly around her; despite the fact that she was wearing pajamas beneath, having visitors call after school made her almost uncomfortable. When she arrived in the entrance way, she found herself met with the sight of Lysander and Fennella, both of whom looked like they'd had better days in their time. Lysander was smiling wearily, arm wrapped comfortingly around Fennella's shoulders as she sniffled unconsciously, still cradling her hand. Gan's face soured at the sight of her enemy, but the tears almost made her pause; she knew Fennella to be easily angered and quick to fight, but never quick to cry.

"What happened?" Gan asked, rubbing the tiredness from her violet eyes so that she might better assess the situation.

"A vixen bit her," Lysander explained. "And I do mean bit."

Furrowing her brow, Gan approached the crying redhead and tried to get a better look at her injury; in response, the lion only jerked her hands back, holding them close to her stomach.

"I can't look at it if you hide it," Gan said stiffly, cocking her eyebrow in derision.

When faced with those violet eyes glaring sternly at her over the rim of her spectacles, Fennella drooped slightly and slowly withdrew her hand from its hiding place. Gan gave the lion one last look before taking the injured appendage carefully in her hands, momentarily stunned by the sight of it; Gan's immediate first thought was that this was perhaps a job for trained professionals. There was muscle showing, as Lysander had so astutely pointed out, and the flesh was so bruised and bloodied it was difficult to tell what was hand and what was finger.

"What did she do, try to consume it?!" Gan exclaimed, looking appalled. "She must've been out of her mind! This is horrible!"

"Since we finally agree on something, can I have a painkiller in celebration?" Fennella asked sarcastically through her tears, which were currently flowing out of a sheer physical response to pain.

"Yes, yes, come back here," Gan said absent-mindedly, walking quickly back towards the kitchen as Lysander ushered his sister along.

Akago shook his head in disbelief, sighing sadly at the fact that there were actually people rotten to the core in this world. Before he could think too deeply, the front door opened a second time and a pair of familiar, pounding footsteps came barreling inside. "Gun?" someone called in a gruff baritone.

Akago furrowed his brow and came walking out of the living room towards the entrance way. "Ryuu? Is that you?"

"Who do you think?" came the rude reply.

Ryuu came walking into the house as though he owned the place, still dressed in his school uniform as blood ran down his face onto the starched white of his shirt. From the way he was moving his shoulders, the dragon was obviously injured more seriously than a simple black eye. Akago's eyes went wide at the sight of his distant friend, who was not normally the one receiving the hits in a fight.

"Good god, did you try to fight a sumo wrestler?" the Shark leader exclaimed, looking aghast. "It looks like you need st-"

"Stitches, yeah, I figured that out," Ryuu filled in sourly, glancing haphazardly around through his one good eye. "Is the Gun here?"

"She's taking care of someone else in the kitchen; you can always get in line," came Akago's wry reply; it looked as though Gan were seconds away from starting her own business.

"Tell me it's not Hiashi," Ryuu practically moaned as they walked towards the sound of voices.

"Who, Bankotsu?" Akago asked in confusion. "Don't tell me you go in a fight with him."

"On campus. Nearly got expelled. Now I have to do some fucking art class or something; Shikaruni's a nutcase," the other man replied.

Judging by the sound of things, Ryuu had started another one of his infamous public brawls and Bankotsu had been on the unfortunate receiving end of the random desire. If Ryuu looked this bad, Akago was worried to think what Bankotsu might look like.

"Well, he clocked you," Akago commented, looking mildly pleased.

"Hiashi's no throw down; he just pisses me off," Ryuu replied, growling slightly.

In the kitchen, Fennella was sitting on a stool looking angry and pained as Gan diligently cleaned and stitched her hand; Lysander was leaning blithely back against a row of cabinets, looking unfettered by the gory sight before him. The look on Gan's face was focused and clear, almost like the sting of rain; though Ryuu tried not to internalize the fact, he immediately knew that Akago was paying more attention to his second-in-command than normal. Those calculative crimson eyes of the Shark's weren't moving from Gan's pretty face and it was, in the dragon's own word, disturbing.

"Gan, we've got another for you," Akago finally said, trying not to interrupt her work.

"Ryuu, get ice from the fridge, put it on your face, and sit your ass down. You can expect a lecture while I stitch up that cut," Gan ordered without looking up from her third set of stitches.

"Can't wait," cam Ryuu's sarcastic reply.

Lysander watched the exchange with mild interest. "Don't think I've ever seen the big guy so docile," he mentioned.

"You'd be surprised what Gan can scare people into," Akago replied with a small smile, pouring himself a second glass of wine; it looked as though he were going to need it.

"I'll skin you, Tsume," Ryuu growled from the ice box.

"Right back at you, chum," Akago called jovially. "See? Bosom buddies."

"Hello?" someone called from the front door.

Ryuu hit his head on the ceiling of the refrigerator and let out a vicious curse as Hiten and Bankotsu's bloody scents entered the house, obviously looking for some medical care of their own.

"Oh, honestly, do I look like a hospital?" Gan complained, giving Akago a pointed glare.

"Don't look at me, I'm just opening the door," the Shark protested, hands upraised protectively.

"For the fuckin' love of-" Ryuu began, looking as though he were going to continue his recently interrupted fight.

Akago immediately ran forward, positioning himself between the front of the house and the enormous Dragon, a hard look on his face. "Don't you dare. If you start a fight in my house, I swear to God, Ryuu..."

"Gan, I think Bank just passed out, can I get a hand?" came Hiten's strained, disembodied voice from he front of the house.

"Fuck," Gan murmured, narrowing her eyes. "Ryuu, expect a LONG lecture. Very long. Excruciatingly."

"What?" The Dragon asked innocently, arms akimbo. "He asked for it."

"This is going to be a long night," Akago growled to himself, running towards the doorway to help Hiten with his heavy load.

9191919

Kagome tapped her pen thoughtfully, staring down at the math problem before her as it marched ridiculously across the page. She didn't particularly care what the "log" was and found it mildly stupid that math involved words like "imaginary" and "log" in the first place. As far as Kagome was concerned, nothing about math was imaginary and it was mostly painfully real. Where the log was concerned, there were simply no trees in calculus, and therefore no logs. Kagome, of course, knew what imaginary numbers and the log of numbers were...it was just the principle of the thing.

"Are you actually gonna write anything, or...?" Inuyasha trailed off as he walked boredly into the kitchen, wearing only sweatpants as he retrieved a carton of milk from the fridge.

The Taisho house was relatively quiet, with only the dull blur of the television and Kaede's dulcet humming interrupting the chirping of crickets outside the open windows. Kagome had taken to spending her time there due to it's close, comfortable, personable feeling. A good deal of the time, Rin was with her at the Taishos'; though the Takeyama mansion was beautiful and lavish, it seemed so empty and dull. Being with their boyfriends was a far more appealing prospect.

"I can't do this, Inuyasha," Kagome whined pitifully, allowing her head to fall glumly onto the open text book before her. "I don't know what the Co-sin of any of this crap is. I give up. I'm done. Screw it. Fuck school." At the sound of cursing, Kaede rolled her old eyes and picked up her purse from the table; she might as well get the shopping done if her children were going to stink up the air with four letter blasphemy.

"It's only October," Inuyasha laughed, taking a seat beside Kagome and rubbing her back soothingly as Kaede left in a huff. "I mean, yeah, fuck school, but you shouldn't care so much. South Tokyo isn't the Academy; you don't have to work so hard here."

Kagome glanced haphazardly up at him, brown eyes hard. "Not work? Sorry, do you understand the theory of school?"

"Sure I do," Inuyasha replied defensively. "What I'm saying is that you shouldn't stress out over something that isn't gonna matter in the long run."

"One word, Inuyasha: college," Kagome replied stiffly, straightening back up and unfolding her hunched shoulders. "I have plans."

"To do what?" the boy asked, amber eyes curious as he observed his girlfriend poring over her work.

Kagome fixed Inuyasha with a glare and then softened when she saw how serious he was. Shrugging, she dropped her pencil in the book's crease and leaned back in her chair. "I don't know. Not to brag, but with my grades, I could pretty much do anything."

"I figured that out," he replied with a hint of sarcasm. "You're like Gan with the books; but what do you want to do?"

"I don't know, I said; I should probably do something with English, it's where I'm the best," Kagome sighed, shaking her head.

"Not what you should do, what you want to do."

Inuyasha's pointed look made Kagome want to fall into the floor and live underground. She knew what she wanted to do, or at least what she had wanted at the beginning of the summer, but it was all so different now. Everything about her life was different and she felt as though she should want different things. Unfortunately, her desires were still as strong as ever. She only wanted one thing and the very want itself made her guilty.

"I told you, I don't know what I want. I'm only seventeen," Kagome argued. Now was just not the time for this business.

"You know Kagome-" Inuyasha began, only to be cut off by the harsh ringing of Kagome's cell phone.

As the phone glowed and skittered across the table, Kagome smiled faintly to herself. "Saved by the bell," she thought to herself, practically sighing in relief. The phone screen revealed little information, only a number Kagome couldn't recognize; frowning, she answered it with a click of a button.

"Hello?"

"Kagome? It's mom."

Kagome froze at the table, face suddenly ice cold. "Mom? Where are you?"

"I'm on a payphone in Nakagyo," replied her mother's weary voice; it was a distant shot from Mrs. Higurashi's normal cheerful soprano.

Kagome furrowed her brow; Nakagyo was one of Kyoto's eleven wards and a full ward over from her homeland of Shimogyo. "Why are you there? Where have you been for the past two weeks?"

"We relocated to the coast. We just got back into town this morning and I thought I would give you a call to let you know everyone's safe."

"I'm glad," Kagome said shakily, nervous about her next question. "Have you been to the shrine yet?"

There was a deafening silence over the line as Kagome clutched her cell phone and Inuyasha watched in confusion; Kagome looked worried about her family when he hadn't even known they'd been in danger.

"That's what I was calling about, Kagome...we went up this morning and...it's a bit damaged. The riots swept right over it and they must've gotten inside. I'm sorry, Kagome."

"Wait...so can we still live there?" Kagome asked, trying to keep her emotions under control. She stood up from the table and began walking towards the back door just to escape Inuyasha's nervous stare.

"We can, but it's going to need some clean up. Some major clean-up. Tomo is talking to the insurance company because we're not sure what the policies on this are going to be...there's a lot of broken glass, lot's of rotten food. There's bloodstains all over the kitchen and some knives laying on the ground, some dangerous smelling chemicals out back. You can see the stains on the grass where cherry bombs went on; the yard is a mess. The big tree is the only thing left and the rest of the yard is full of holes and craters I couldn't even begin to explain. I don't know what to tell you, baby. Maybe if you want, you can come clean-up with us. Some weekend in the future maybe?" Mrs. Higurashi's voice was wobbling slightly and Kagome felt tears coming to her eyes.

"Of course, this weekend I'll come up. I promise. How much time do you think it will take?" Kagome asked, trying to project a level voice.

"A while longer than a weekend, but I wanted to see you if only for a little while. I am your mother after all," the woman joked, slightly tearful. "There are cleaning crews around town, but they won't make it up here for a few weeks. Maybe you could bring some of your friends! I want to meet the people that swept my daughter away."

"My friends? Are you sure?" Kagome echoed, slightly surprised. "I mean, is this not family time, or...?"

"Darling, our house is a shadow of its old self and I want to move back home. We're staying in the guest house for now, or until Tomo gets fed up and makes us relocate to a hotel; I can't take much more of grandpa, your brother and Tomo is an enclosed space, Kagome. I want the house fixed now."

Kagome bit her lip; that certainly sounded like a religion-killing situation. "Okay, I'll ask them, but I doubt many of them will want to go up to Kyoto right now...not with the sentiments floating around."

"Ah, do you have lots of demon friends?" her mother asked conversationally; the Higurashi's had a few demon friends but not many. Kagome had really never seen as many demons at home as she had in Tokyo.

"Predominantly demon; I don't want them to be in danger, but I'll talk it over with them. Anyway...I'll drive up this weekend. I love you, mom," Kagome ended softly, cradling the phone to her ear.

"I love you too, baby," Mrs. Higurashi said, smile evident. "Just talking to you makes me feel so much better. I can't wait to see you."

"You too. Bye."

As Kagome hung up the phone and set it down on the kitchen island, sighing heavily; it was certainly a lot to take in, knowing that her house was a wreck and her family had just escaped the riots.

"Kagome?"

The girl turned, meeting eyes with Inuyasha, who she'd just now remembered was listening intently. His ears were standing up pertly atop his head like little satellites, framing his big amber eyes. He looked so innocently curious, so honestly worried; it broke Kagome's heart even further down the middle. After a single moment of silence, Inuyasha stood from the table and approached Kagome, tan face distorted in a frown.

"What's going on?" he asked, trying to earn some kind of response.

Even in a moment of crisis, Kagome found herself staring at Inuyasha's chest and stomach with a lustful eye; the very fact made her enormously guilty.

"My house...is a disaster zone, apparently. Some of the riots came through and my family managed to get out before they did, but my house is all messed up. Mom said that everything is broken and that the kitchen is covered in blood...I don't even know what's going to happen now. She asked me to come up this weekend to help clean up and said that I could bring some friends. I know that you guys wouldn't want t-"

"I'm in," Inuyasha said immediately, smiling encouragingly. "When do we leave?"

"But Inuyasha, it's dangerous in Kyoto," Kagome protested, looking stressed across her pretty face. "I don't want you to get hurt."

Inuyasha shrugged. "You live in a shrine, right? Well, if we come in quietly enough, it should be fine up on the hill. Besides, it's not like all of the demons just up and left the city. There's a bunch still there and we won't be the only terrorist target within the city limits. Don't worry so much, babe. You'll get gray hair."

"Psht, I wouldn't be surprised if I already had it," Kagome muttered, frowning to herself.

Inuyasha smiled placatingly and kissed the top of her head, murmuring in her ear, "I'll be right next to you anyway."

The words made Kagome smile slightly and she remembered that, at the most surprising moments, Inuyasha could turn into the sweet and loving boyfriend prince she'd imagined as a little girl. When Kagome began to smile, Inuyasha felt a smile creeping up on his mouth when suddenly his eyes grew serious. Without another word, he leaned in slowly and captured her lips in a kiss, gentle and velvet. Kagome's mind went blank and she forgot what she'd been thinking about for a moment. In that single second, the many cracks in her life seemed to fill and she was walking on solid ground for the first time in months. Without warning, the back door opened and there was a good deal of knocking and banging in the back of the kitchen. Inuyasha and Kagome whipped about to find a dismal sight before them.

Shitora was hanging off the counter top, knees buckled and hair falling in a shining curtain over her face. The smell of alcohol was potent even to Kagome, who couldn't imagine the culmination of scents Inuyasha must be intaking. The white haired girl paused for a moment, muttering something unintelligible under her breath before she moved shakily towards the sink with her keys threatening to fall from her hands. When her hair parted slightly, revealing the face behind it, Kagome found herself confronted with the defeated face of a broken girl. Tears left white streaks down Shitora's tan face and the amber eyes themselves were muddy and far away; that little mouth, normally cheerful or impish, was tightened in a pouty frown. Her shoulders slumped and the bones on her back protruded grossly; she barely even looked alive, she was so ghostly.

"Tora," Inuyasha managed to get out before Shitora collapsed in a tangle of limbs on the floor.

Inuyasha's face was the very picture of horror and worry as he ran forward, falling to his knees beside her as she struggled into a sitting position. "Shitora, what the hell?" he asked desperately, reaching out his hands to steady her.

"Kill me," she mumbled, falling down into his lap as more tears spilled over her ink black eyelashes. "Kill me please; I hate this."

"Hate what? Tora..." Inuyasha looked so lost, Kagome decided it was time for a second intervention.

"Sesshomaru!" Kagome called, hurrying out into the living room and running for the stairs.

Before she could even continue, Sesshomaru appeared at the top of the stairs, obviously in a mild hurry, as Rin trailed confusedly behind. If the man's face was any indication, he'd already smelt what could possibly be the downfall of his evening. Rin furrowed her brow and exchanged glances with Kagome, shaking her head as though to ask the silent question. When Kagome just shook her head, Rin's brown eyes grew blurry; that could only mean another problem for their poor little rag-tag family. Could their hand-sewn quilt of a world take any more of this constant testing?

"Shit," Sesshomaru muttered as he entered the kitchen, staring down at his sister and brother in their pile on the tile floor. It certainly was a sight he wished to forget, but Sesshomaru Taisho was too smart for this luxury; his photographic mind was already painting the picture into stone and he knew it would haunt him for a few years at least.

"She's drunk-" Inuyasha began to stutter, only to be cut off by his brother.

"Tell me something I don't know." Bending down officiously, the Fang leader gathered Shitora in his arms and hoisted her firmly into his grasp. Rin, standing nearby with a worried look on her face, started to object to the physical exertion but thought better of it; Sesshomaru was in Fang mode and she knew better than to interfere. Shitora's head lolled back and her eyes clouded over as Sesshomaru whisked her out of the living room and up the stairs, depositing her in her bed with a trashcan nearby before slamming the door shut behind him.

The demon lord returned to the kitchen abruptly, all within a minute's time, to find Inuyasha, Kagome and Rin staring at him with confusion and pain written all over their faces.

"Oh, you haven't grasped it yet?" Sesshomaru barked, eyes flashing dangerously. "She's doing what dad did after mom died; sometimes there's only one way out. I'm going outside." And with this, the Fang leader removed a box of cigarettes from his jacket pocket and stormed out the kitchen door, screen door slamming shut behind him.

Rin gave Inuyasha and Kagome a weak smile, as though trying to reassure everyone that life was still intact, before she followed her boyfriends footsteps. The recent shutting of the door left the couple alone and Kagome bit her lip anxiously.

"What did Sesshomaru mean?" she asked finally, looking earnestly up at Inuyasha.

The boy was staring down at the linoleum like it was the ugliest thing he'd ever seen, yellow eyes bitter and cross. Finally, he glanced up and replied, "Dad was in kind of a slump after mom died and he, uh, drank a lot. Kaede was there a lot...we didn't see him much. But I think Shomo thinks Tora is drinking cause of Ran; I guess he's probably right."

Kagome took a few steps forward, closing the gap between them and wrapping her thin arms around Inuyasha's muscular torso. Her words failed her as she held him, suddenly feeling as though this were the only comfort she could offer. Inuyasha buried his face in her should and drew her near him with his own arms, ill-made for this kind of sorrow. Their world was falling apart piece by piece and they were just like pawns in a chess game. A game that neither knew how to play.

919191

The Shark house was in a peaceful place that evening, even as insanity and pain caused hollows in the Taisho's side of town. The wind from the ocean blew peacefully through the open doorways, bringing with it the lovely scent of salt and clean ocean water. Many of the Sharks sat strewn about the living room, working on their homework in relative silence as was their general practice. Gan had commandeered a portion of the table and was tapping busily away on her calculator, peering through the spectacles she and Akago had been sharing for a few weeks now. Despite her leader's occasional protestations, Gan still insisted that a trip to the optometrist was unnecessary.

Besides the peaceful hushing of the ocean, another sound blew in through the curtains; Akago was practicing his violin on the deck, serenading his friends with the sweet and dulcet tones of the wine red instrument. He was an avid player and Gan often joked that it fit his persona so perfectly it would be a positively terrible shame if he quit. As of the current time, he was first chair in the South Tokyo High orchestra and enjoying his talent for the eleventh year. The music was, at least, a good background to the studying inside.

"This book doesn't make any sense," Halloween complained, scrunching up his nose from where he sat, long legs folded, in an arm chair nearby. "I mean, Oedipus didn't mean to sleep with his mother; why is it wrong?"

One of the nearby Sharks glanced up and murmured, "He went to bed with his mum, mate; that's gross."

"But he didn't know it was her!" Halloween protested, orange eyes wide and honest. "I mean, he didn't mean to! It's not like he was sexually attracted to his mom, more like some random woman! The Oedipus complex doesn't even make sense now because it was all circumstantial."

"Halloween, the point of the Oedipus complex is not whether or not he meant to; the point of it is that he was indeed sexually attracted to his mother. Since she is his biological mother and they had sex, he's attracted. The complex talks of men who are attracted to their mothers, case and point," agreed another Shark, shrugging his shoulders.

By this time, several boys in the room had turned to regard the conversation between Halloween and the group of boys. Many of them were also reading Oedipus Rex in their English class and were eager to work out the details before the test. It was a well known fact on campus that the Sharks were the smartest and most well-read gang, which might've served as a detriment to their street cred had they not been such good fighters. Inuyasha enjoyed laughing at their expense, comparing them to British Lords and other such stereotypes. Akago and Gan mostly just allowed him to insult them in such a manner; it was hardly an insult, after all.

"Halloween, it doesn't matter if you agree or not with Oedipus's sex life; just write a bullshit paper on it and consider it done. School isn't about understanding, it's about faking it," said a dark-haired boy, rolling his eyes at Halloween's ignorance.

"But I don't want to do that! I actually care about Oedipus; I feel sorry for him," Halloween argued, pouting slightly. He crossed his skinny arms belligerently as though insulted by his friends' gossiping about Oedipus's shortcomings.

"He fucked his mom but could never have avoided fucking her because it was a decision of fate and not of his own, there, write about it," Gan interrupted dryly without looking up from her calculus homework.

The boys stopped talking abruptly, staring at their second-in-command with wide eyes. "Are you sure you're a girl, Kijo?" Halloween asked blankly, cocking his head to the side.

"Do you want to check?" Gan replied levelly, still focused on the notebook before her.

The boys shook their heads fervently, causing Gan to conceal a smile in her math book. They lapsed back into silence for a few moments, listening to the strains of Schindler's List from the balcony. They had to agree that Akago's playing was very beautiful, but the theme itself was very sad and was causing a damp feeling to fall over the living room. Gan removed her glasses and sighed, rubbing furtively at her eyes; the glasses weren't exactly the prescription she needed and it was causing her a headache.

"Is James back with that Advil yet?" she asked no one in particular.

"He should be back any minute," answered a nearby boy, exchanging a glance with his friend; their Kijo had lately become an Advil junky and they weren't so oblivious; the stress from her coming out had been unbelievable.

"He'd better hurry before my head explodes," she grumbled, glancing at the front door as though hoping the Shark third-in-command would come bursting in at that moment. Just then, a sour note was heard from outside, causing several boys to wince and breaking the atmosphere which had settled over the group. "Akago, that's not how Schindler's List goes," Gan called out to the balcony, smiling slightly. Several boys chuckled.

"I thought I'd spice it up," Akago joked in return as he came walking in from outside, holding his violin at his side. He was wearing his bed clothes, a white wife beater and sweatpants, though he still looked somewhat like the classy English Lord he was always likened to. "I know what it's supposed to sound like, but I never get it quite right. I get too tied up trying to make it pretty and then the notes sour; when the notes are all right, the piece is like unleavened bread." As he explained this, the leader approached the house boom box and checked habitually to make sure the appropriate CD was inside. "I have the recording, but it doesn't do me much good." He set it on the right track and played the recording anyway.

"You were just a little sharp on that last note. I'd say by...six notes at least," Gan joked again, smiling playfully. She unfolded herself from the floor, already in a decidedly better mood.

Akago stuck out his tongue childishly, settling down to ponder the recording for a few minutes. Just then, the front door opened and a man carrying several grocery bags hurried inside; he had shaggy brown hair which failed to match his eyes, cool and grey. He was well built and serious looking, with an air of almost impossible brilliance about him. As he set down the bags on the kitchen island, several Sharks made a run towards him.

"Form a line or something you heathens," the boy complained, shrugging of his Sharks jacket and throwing it dismissively over a chair back. "Kijo, this is yours."

Gan caught the Advil thrown at her and smiled widely before breaking ferociously into the package. "James, you're god-like. I can't tell you how much I need this."

"Addiction is a serious thing," the brunette remarked, accent apparent; it seemed to be some sort of British dialect, though none of the Sharks were explicitly sure. James and Halloween shared the same air of mystery and their pasts were relatively unknown. The same could be said, actually, for most of the gang members.

Gan, ignoring the man's comment, swallowed two Advil dry and sighed happily. "It is indeed; headaches are also." The music swelled brilliantly from the speakers and, on an absolutely odd whim, Gan thrust forward her hand, declaring, "Dance with me James, your my prince at the ball."

"Dance with you to Schindler's List? You're mad," James replied, looking sour; the boy was famous for his generally upset attitude and the suggestion of dancing was ridiculous to him.

"Go on man, what are you, made of stone?" Akago said with a smile. He enjoyed ridiculing his third-in-command, insisting that he was far too uptight and needed to ingest some laxatives each morning; this always served to make James frown bad-naturedly, though he respected his leader more than he could say.

At the sound of his leader's agreement, James sighed fretfully and seemed to break down, offering Gan his calloused hand. "You can't dance to this," he protested weakly, even as Gan smiled like a fairy and took the hand before her.

James positioned his hand correctly on the small of Gan's back, taking her hand out to the side and moving them in gentle circles. Several of the Sharks stopped what they were doing to watch, smiling faintly; over the past month, Gan had slowly been working her femininity into everyday life and this was just another example of her womanhood. Seeing her led gracefully around the living room in her oversized-t-shirt pajamas made her seem oddly girlish and it was comforting to them. Humankind seemed comfortable with Gan being one sex and one sex only. If she was going to be a girl, so be it; she needed only to solidify this decision with a new lifestyle, which she was improving day by day in theory and even in practice.

The dancers never got very close and James looked stiff and displeased like always. Gan was smiling at first but soon began mocking James with an overdone stony expression. The boys laughed even as James grew rather red in the cheeks. Akago watched almost enviously for a moment, head cocked to the side and mind turning the possibilities of the moment over repeatedly. Finally, he decided to intervene.

"She's not a mannequin, James, good God. You look like you're touching plastic," he simpered, grinning as James grew absolutely crimson in the face.

"She's my superior, Toumoku," James argued, still dancing Gan around the floor but appearing quite uncomfortable.

"So what, you're afraid to touch her?" Akago shot back. His red eyes were adopting that playful Gan enjoyed so much and she decided it was time to stop this all.

"I'll let you go, James. He's right Akago, it's weird to regard those above you with a level of physical intimacy," Gan intervened placatingly, giving James a friendly pat on the arm as she dropped his hands, smiling still.

Akago frowned and stood with a flourish. "Oh, so you would be afraid to touch a superior?"

"I wouldn't be 'afraid' to do anything," Gan replied sharply, suddenly enflamed; the word 'afraid' always made her defensive.

"So then dance with me and prove yourself," Akago fired back, smile clever and otherworldly.

Gan's pretty face was flushed with anger and her jaw set like rock. Despite her previous argument, she was determined not to let Akago best her in front of the others and, with trite determination, she stepped forward and thrust out her hand. "Fine, I'll prove that I'm not afraid to touch a superior, especially you."

She said "you" with an acidity that made the boys laugh and Akago's eyes narrowed dangerously. "Fine then," he said quietly, taking her offered hand in a gentle manner.

He positioned his hand on her back just as James had, though there was a decidedly romantic quality about them as they danced. Their eyes never broke that never-ending gaze, a battle of rose red and violet. The distance between them grew rather small as they twirled, a side-effect which had ceased to occur with James; their feet moved perfectly in time to the unseen waltz rhythm of Schindler's List, one two three, one two three. As they spun in water-clear circles, Akago's hand tightened around Gan's and her narrowed eyes seemed to widen slightly. If Akago realized it, he showed no indication and they only continued like a lone couple in a room of no one.

"Your form is terrible," Gan whispered, as though trying to make the situation less intimate but failing miserably.

"So is yours," Akago replied in kind; his crimson eyes were now hooded gently and they were positively mesmerizing.

As they danced, the couple was forced to think of all the things that made them so tense day in and day out. There was an attraction, in their eyes an inappropriate one, and it was making life nearly unlivable. Now that Gan was quite obviously female, her feelings for Akago seemed to explode from her chest each morning and whine with desire each night. Akago, as well, seemed to be falling into an abyss of want that not even a friendship could satisfy. As they danced now, finally touching, finally involving themselves in the intimacy they so longed for, there seemed to be no going back.

Several of the Sharks who had gathered around were beginning to notice something strange transpiring between their leaders. At first this had all been a joke, but it was suddenly becoming serious; James and Halloween exchanged desperate glances before James rolled his eyes and pushed the leggy orange-eyed demon backwards into the boom box. His trip caused the CD to skip madly and Akago and Gan seemed to come to their senses with the interruption at their aid.

"Well then, point proven; I suppose you will touch your superiors," Akago said, trying to make the save passable enough to fool his intelligent men.

"I suppose I will," Gan replied coolly, giving Akago one last look before she hurried towards the table, gathering her things. "I'm done for the night; good evening."

"Good evening," several of the boys replied, still exchanging glances; the whole dance had obviously been some kind of romantic forefront and it interested them endlessly.

There was a brief silence before James cleared his throat officiously, sending several Sharks back to their work. Akago gave James and Halloween a pathetic sort of thank-you glance before righting the boom box, taking his violin back out to the deck. As soon as their leader was out of earshot, Halloween and James turned to one another.

"How long do you think they'll be able to keep this up?" Halloween asked in his childish bass, orange eyes fretfully covered with back fringe.

"Not long, by the looks of it," James replied tersely. "We just need to keep them on track until the end of the year. Their relationship could mean bad things for the Sharks."

"But what if they really like each other? What if it's love?" Halloween pressed, looking cutely taken with the idea of his leaders kissing on a hill during the sunset.

James snorted brusquely. "It's not. It can't be. It could never be." And with this, the British boy walked quickly out of the main room towards the bunks, eyes the firm reflection of grey denial.

Halloween sighed helplessly, glancing out to the balcony where Akago was leaning moodily on the railing, violin all but forgotten. Though many thought Halloween ignorant, he knew much about what went on and this was all rather funny to him; it really seemed like love, anyway. Why would it be so wrong? Glancing around at the Sharks as they worked on their homework, obviously mulling over the recent dance themselves, Halloween whined fretfully. Whether it was wrong or right, the tension was killing them all.

"Oh Toumoku," Halloween whispered to himself. "You're so in love in hurts."

Outside, Akago sighed and glanced haphazardly up at the new moon. He was indeed. And hurt it did. Quite poignantly.

9191919

That chapter seemed five miles long, but I'm finally done! I threw in a couple of GanxAkago scenes for the road, they're my favorites to write. As far as Ran and Tora go, I'm going to let them be heartbroken for a little while. I also got Inuyasha and Kagome in there since everyone is so attached to them. According to the polls, here are the most popular couples:

Number one: Akago and Gan. (Surprised me frankly; I thought Inuyasha and Kagome would win this one...I guess it's the mysterious romance novel allure or something.)

Number two: Kagome and Inuyasha (his name is in the fucking series title; they deserve a little air time and that's my bad. I'll write some mo', I promise.)

Number three: Shitora and Ranbou (the most disputed couple ever. Some people love them, some people hate them, but enough reviewers like them that they'll be sticking around for a good long haul.)

Number four: Sesshomaru and Rin. ( Awwwwww, I love them!!!)

So there's the polls. And just for everyone's inner-smut demon, there's going to be a lemon sometime in the near future. I think we're moving into the time when there would be one and I haven't decided who it's gonna be, but it'll happen, I know that much. Who do you think should do the dew? Let me know.

Now, exciting news: I've made a master soundtrack for fangs! I've made and am continuing to make playlists for every single character, which is really super fun, and I've complete eight so far. Each set takes about three hours when I'm doing other stuff, so it's a big time commitment. I'll post one every chapter just for fun, so here's how it works: I made a template for the playlists and here's what it looks like:

Format:

1. Good Morning

2. Dealing at School

3. Good News

4. Totally in Love

5. Sexy time

6. Laying together

7. Working Music

8. Driving music

9. Activity Music

10. Bad News

11. Angry at the world

12. Angry at your girlfriend/boyfriend

13. Heartbroken and alone

14. Make-up

15. Fight

16. Hopeless

17. Still in danger

18. Mourning

19. Sunrise; it's gonna be okay

20. Title Song

Okay. So here's Kagome's soundtrack to kick us off:

Kagome:

1. He wasn't- Avril Lavigne

2. Dani California- Vitamin String Quartet

3. Just Fine- Mary J. Blige

4. Bottle it Up- Sara Bareilles

5. Six Underground- Sneaker Pimps

6. A Bird's Song- Ingrid Michaelson

7. Calypso- Spiderbait

8. California- Phantom Planet

9. Love is All Around- The Tea Queens

10. The Moment I Said It- Imogen Heap

11. 69 Tea- Seether

12. She's Like the Wind- Lumidee
13. Fools in Love- Inara George

14. These Days- Chantal Kreviazuk

15. Smack My Bitch Up- Prodigy

16. Psychobabble- Frou Frou

17. The Hill- Market Irglova

18. Gone- Jessica Riddle

19. Wasted- Brandi Carlile

20. Just A Girl- No Doubt

I have terrible taste in music, I'm warning you. But, I currently have 6,236 songs in my iTunes so hopefully I can pick something good out of there. I like Kagome's soundtrack a lot, it's good for driving. It's a little girlier than my own tastes, but whatever; so is Kagome.

And finally, I've decided to ask you guys a question at the end of every chapter just for fun. So here's the question to my reviewers:

What do you listen to when you read LDTL? I know what I listen to because I've made my master soundtrack (I'm a huge music nerd). Tell me what you listen to because I still need some help with this ridiculous playlist project.

Love ya'll!

KOLU