InuYasha Fan Fiction ❯ Laying Down the Law ❯ That's What It's All About ( Chapter 35 )

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

Okay guys. Well, this is the end of the first story, which has become my pride and joy even before the renovation. I'm going to renovate it and fix all the typos in hopes that an IYFanguild award is not too lofty a goal. Don't worry; this story will continue for quite a while. I've already made loads of plans for it and, in my brilliant forsight, wrote them down (heehee...)

There is an explanatory note right after this talking about the sequel and how it's all gonna go down. Love to everyone; read on and conquer!

"It's hard to believe the summer is almost over," Rin sighed, smoke pouring from her nostrils as she balanced skillfully on the fence before her.

The night air was warm and loose around Salter Street's west end as the gangs gathered for what felt like the first race since the beginning of the summer. Kagome watched the people milling about, a sea of red and black as boyfriends embraced girlfriends, grinned at old friends, smiled at new ones. The ocassional eye was bruised from a fight and the odd scar marring someone's cheek, but she couldn't remember seeing such beautiful people in all her days. The nostalgia made her yearn for a smoke and she gave in to the temptation quickly.

Kagome glanced down at her own arm as she reached into her pants pocket and the sight made her smile; she'd waited a long tim to look down and see white. Rin glanced over at her cousin as she dug out a box of cigarettes and lit one, looking easy and somehow refined as she leaned forward on the fence, watching the crowds before her with a small smile on her face. Rin couldn't help but smile as well, since she knew Kagome's smile was a product of her own doing.

Rin remembered the day she'd received her Wildcat jacket clearly: she hadn't stopped smiling until she fell asleep at 3 in the morning and she had the strangest suspicion that the smile might've lasted through the night. Her cheeks hurt for days afterwards. Kagome wasn't handling it in quite the same manner, of course Rin had only been 11 or 12, but Kagome seemed content to just look down at her new article of clothing with a wistful gaze. Rin had to admit, the jacket looked quite good on her.

The Wildcat leader would always remember the moment she asked Kagome the fatal question. It was a warm evening at the Shark's beach house, a few days after the battle at Naraku's headquarters. The breeze was salty and cool on her sweaty skin, which might've been a direct result of the heat or her nervousness, she wasn't quite sure. Kagome hadn't said anything when her cousin leaned against the banister beside her, though both girls knew that certain words were useless at this point in time.

"I know this has been a long time coming," Rin said quietly, closing her eyes as a wave crashed against the bungalow below and gently showered her face with soothing spray. "I also know that you have every right to turn me down when I ask because...because you don't need us."

Kagome glanced up at this, turning her almost confused, solemn gaze towards her cousin. "Rin-" she began.

Rin held up on pale hand, replying softly, "You don't. We all joined the Wildcats as kids because we had no where else to look and no one to turn to. We were alone, a lot of us scared, even more hurt by the people they loved. We all had a shit time...but that's not why we really went. We needed to hang on to something because sometimes it hurt so much that we didn't even know who we were anymore. That's what the Widcats and the Fangs were to us; a lifeline. I can go home to my big house, sit in my room surrounded by anything money can buy and still not feel as alive there as I do in the warehouse or the racetrack. It's just the way things go." Rin's face was so solemn that Kagome was struck into silence. Rin continued.

"But you don't need it like that. You need this because you're strong enough to lead, Kagome. I mean, I always knew you were smart, that you had a grip on things like the rest of us didn't, but I never knew just how smart and strong you were until you came here. I figured it out withint the first three weeks, saw that you had something special...but I was holding on to something I would never be able to have." Swallowing a painful lump in the back of her throat, she choked out, "Kikyo was the best friend we ever had. She had something about her that made people just want to be with her all the time because she made you feel like you were worth something. I mean, she had her problems too, we all knew that, but feeling wanted was just so gratifying that we didn't even care. I think she joined because she felt like we could help her, in some weird way. Obviously we couldn't. But I couldn't let Kikyo go because it always felt like she was coming back."

Kagome knew exactly what she meant. Even though she knew Kikyo was leaving for Paris in a few days time, if she hadn't already, she felt like the girl might waltz up wreathed in white and laugh at her confusion any moment. That was the way Kikyo was.

As though reading her mind, Rin chuckled tearfully, "I got a letter from her this morning. She's going to Paris, but you probably already knew that. She says her flight is tomorrow and not to see her off because we'd cry and she hates that. It's all so Kikyo. But she's not coming back and you're not her, so its almost irrelevant." At this point, Rin stood tall and turned to face her cousin, brows eyes determined and pretty face hard set. "Kagome, I want you to be a Wildcat. A core member. You've got what it takes and if I wasn't so weak, I would've seen that. Please, I'm begging you, Kagome. We need you. I need you."

The tears which Rin had been trying to hold back this entire time trickled down her grim face, leaving streaks in their wake. Kagome's face was placid, her eyes half hooded and almost kind. Without another word, she took her cousin in her arms and Rin broke down, crying so hard that Kagome had to hold her up. Kagome knew that this was all the answer Rin needed in the end, but she still murmured, "Yes," to be official. As Rin stood there, crying into her shirt, Kagome realized that while all of these people looked so strong, they were probably dying inside. They came to the gangs to escape, but those things they left behind would always be there. It was so sad that Kagome wanted to cry herself, but instead, she set her jaw. She was going to help all of them. Every single one.

Rin blinked away the memory, which warmed her and haunted her at the same time. Kagome was still leaning against the fence, smoking her cigarette languidly as her dark hair provided a glorious contrast on the clean white of her brand new jacket; Rin could almost smell the new leather from where she stood. The contours of the jacket fit Kagome's body perfectly, almost as though it were made for her; in the end, Rin knew it might as well have been, since it was Kikyo's old one. The jacket had arrived with Kikyo's letter that morning and Rin knew it was a sign of formal resignation, one which she never expected to receive. All the same, she'd given the jacket to Ayame, their resident seamstress and allowed her to refurbish the jacket with new paneling and a new core member's star on the breast. In some sort of sick way, Rin didn't plan on telling Kagome that the jacket was Kikyo's and no one but she and Ayame would ever really know. Maybe Rin just needed to know that Kikyo would always, somehow, be with them, even if it was really Kagome standing physically beside her.

"Hey, sexy bitches!"

Kagome and Rin both looked up as Shitora came sauntering over in solid black leather with a cigarette between her lips, looking every bit the grungy Fang core member. Her hair was back to its shimmering silver sheets, as opposed to the grungy white mess it had been the day Kagome helped carry her inside the beach house. Shuddering, Kagome doubted that she would even forget carrying the lifeless bodies of friends with tears in her eyes. It wasn't exactly forgettable.

"What's up with those faces?" Shitora asked as she hopped upon the fence, balancing her elbows on her knees as she looked pointedly down at her friends with inquisitve amber eyes.

Realizing that she must look positively depressed, Rin put on a smile and replied, "Just thinkin' about shit, its nothing."

"Well, stop thinkin' and just do somethin'," Shitora replied wisely, as though this answer were obvious.

Kagome smiled a little and glanced down sheerly out of habit, though her smile faded when her eyes landed on Rin's hand; there were several circular scars on her hand, ones which Kagome hadn't noticed before. Without even thinking, she grabbed Rin's hand and asked quietly, "Rin, what are these?"

Rin locked eyes with her cousin, eventually lowering her gaze because Kagome's brown eyes were so intense; it was like trying to survive on the surface of the sun. "Just burns. From the...fight, you know..."

She trailed off, sweet cherry voice sounding oddly sour as she focused her soft mahogany eyes on the grimy concrete. Kagome dropped her cousin's hand and turned back to the raceway as though she hadn't heard, though she knew what Rin was referring to; though no one had really addressed the manner, it was a well known fact that Sango and Rin had been tortured during capture. The issue was sensetive, which deterred most from bringing it up, but Kagome had other reasons. She knew the girls didn't want to talk about it for the moment, let alone talk about what had occurred or the marks it might've left. When it all came down to it, physical scars would turn to white and fade from view, but their mental counterparts weren't so easy to kill. Sango and Rin weren't the only ones suffering mental and emotional damage from the battle.

Miroku had been clinging to Sango's side for the past week and a half, as though he were afraid to let her even walk on the street. Kagome suspected that this had something to do with feeling responsible for the torture incident, but again she said nothing; these days, there was just nothing to say.

Ayame and Kouga had been staying almost exclusively to themselves, except when Kouga stepped out of his silence to argue with Inuyasha; their rivalry seemed to be at an all time high. Ayame didn't say much on the matter, which was a radical change from before, and let Kouga continue to take out his aggression in a healthy way. Well, it seemed healthy compared to some methods.

Methods such as Ranbou's were what really concerned Kagome. Though Shitora hadn't said much on the matter, her lips were always tight and drawn when Ranbou showed up tired to work in the morning. Everyone knew what Ranbou's half hooded eyes meant, but their thoughts just added to the current amassment of unspoken words. If Ranbou wanted to kill half the town in a sick vengeance against the already dead Naraku, let him; it wasn't their business.

The Jackrabbits had gone home peacefully after their tazer burns wore off, smiling and laughing just as they always had. Kagome knew that they hadn't been as emotionally invested in the battle as the Fangs, but just to see anyone smiling was almost sick. It made Kagome mad just to watch them being happy; she supposed that could be considered her defect.

Bankotsu and Hiten hadn't been working in the Fangs warehouse since the battle. When everyone started back to work, they returned quietly to the Cobra house and had only been seen in limited amounts and never for long. Kagome suspected that it had something to do with the tension, but she could never really be sure; all she remembered was Bankotsu's sad gaze as he left the Sharks beach house the previous week. She couldn't really decipher it, but she supposed it had a deeper meaning behind it than eyes could tell. Hiten hadn't said a word.

Akago and Gan were fairly quiet these days, taking it all in stride and no doubt digesting their worries about the battle in their slow, processive ways. They were rarely seen outside of each other's company, though the feel of the air around them had a definite change. Many of the gang members were having trouble relating to Gan now that she was publically female, which seemed to annoy her more than anything. She'd been tense and curt since the battle, but Kagome knew that had little to do with the tensions surrounding her coming out and more to do with personal anxiety; the reasons which drove her to cross dress hadn't disappeared and it scared her.

Inuyasha was, surprisingly, dealing with the trauma in the most normal way out of his friends. He'd been clinging to those he loved, a little more quiet than normal, and letting out the occassional agressive bark in Kouga's direction. He worked a good deal, though not enough to be considered "an emotional escape" and had started eating regularly three days after his awakening. Kagome was pleased, albeit mildly stunned, and something in her just continued to wait for her boyfriend's inevitable melt down.

None of the ways in which her friends dealt with the aftermath really bothered Kagome except for one. Sesshomaru had undergone a definite change since the fight and the only one who could seem to even get through to him was Rin. He'd been abnormally quiet and when he spoke, none of his usual harshness or command was present; it was almost perpetually apologetic. He wasn't eating well, which was made obvious by his frightening weight loss, and his amber eyes had lost their normal luster, which had been replaced by a dull, pensive glimmer. Though Kagome couldn't really know for sure, she suspected it had something to do with the events of the final showdown; after coming out on top and nearly murdering his friends and family, Sesshomaru was constantly walking on egg shells and it was disconserting.

Shitora's surprisingly quiet voice brought Kagome back from her thoughts. The hanyou girl had moved to stand in between her friends and mirrored their position, arms cross over the fence as she smoked a sad cigarette. "Sesshomaru is starting to look like a skeleton."

Kagome turned her eyes haphazardly towards the starting line, at which Sesshomaru had recently arrived. He looked like the late violinist Paganini, like the undead; his face was gaunt and his limbs almost frail, his already thin waist growing thinner and thinner with each passing moment. Even from a distance, Kagome could see the dead look in his eyes and she shuddered, looking away; the only thing about him which retained even the smallest sense of vitality was his hair, still its usual shimmering silver. Kagome knew that Rin had taken it to washing it for him these days, as they sat in the mansion kitchen on servant off days as she shampooed his head in silence. Though it might seem comical to someone else, Kagome couldn't think of anything sadder at the moment.

"Maybe we should tell someone," Kagome said finally, voice sounding old against the thrum of the race crowd. "A parent? Your dad?"

"He'd never forgive us," Shitora replied, lowering her eyebrows and shaking her head. "Sesshomaru, I mean. Dad wouldn't know where to start; he would want to know what happened and I ain't about to tell him that."

Kagome frowned. "Vitamins, then? If he's not going to eat, we have to keep him alive somehow."

"He'd never take them and besides, if you slipped them into his food he'd leave them on the counter just like a dog leaves them at the bottom of the food bowl." Shitora sighed, running a hand through her own silver hair. "I don't know how to get through to him; I've never not been able to talk to him about something before."

Rin had remained quiet during this conversation and Kagome hesitated a glance in her cousin's direction; Rin's eyes were dutifully trained on Sesshomaru and she seemed unwilling to look away. As though she feared he might shatter into pieces on the ground if she quit watching even for a second.

"Hey," came a voice from Kagome's left.

Inuyasha saddled up beside her, smiling faintly in a depressing sort of facade, and she offered him an encouraging smile in return. "Hey. Ready to win?"

"I'm always ready to win," Inuyasha replied garrulously, his old grin returning for just a moment before it was lost in uncertainty and sadness, just like everything else. He was recovering slowly, as was to be expected, but it pleased Kagome anyway.

In an abnormal display of affection, Kagome reached up her hand and cupped Inuyasha's cheek, murmuring, "Don't be afraid to smile, Inuyasha. It's okay to be happy."

Struck by the comment, Inuyasha looked down even as he covered Kagome's warm hand with his own, which seemed ice cold on her skin. He closed his eyes for a moment, as though savoring her very presence, before answering dully, "I know that. I'm not stupid or scarred or something; its just...hard to smile when no one else is smiling. Like its unfair that I get to smile and none of them are happy enough to. Or something."

Kagome knew it was hard for Inuyasha to confess feelings like this, but she was always amazed at how profound he was whenever he mustered up the courage. A true smile graced her lips as she replied, "I'm smiling."

Inuyasha glanced up and took in the sight of Kagome's beautiful face, smiling gently and almost glittering with sheer joy, despite the fact that everything seemed so rotten these days. It was one of the many things he loved about her; no matter how overcast the sky seemed, she was always sunny...or something poetic like that.

"I know," he said, managing the honest upturning of his lips before he placed a loving kiss on her forehead, almost missing the warmth of her hand on his cheek as she let it fall. "I have to go pull the car up to the line, but I'll see you at the finish. Wish me luck."

"Good luck." Kagome watched Inuyasha go, her heart tugging her towards his retreating back even though she knew he was only going for a few minutes, 10 at the most. Perhaps the battle had gotten to her as well; she was afraid to be alone.

Shitora watched her brother go, smiling slightly at the moment she'd witnessed; she knew Kagome and Inuyasha were close, but in that single moment she'd realized just how deep the connection was. It was good to see Inuyasha so tied with someone; even growing up, she'd never been able to totally get through to him.

"Why so sad, Sukini?"

Shitora gasped at the sudden voice, clapping a hand to her heart as she recognized the scent; she'd been so preoccupied with her thoughts that she hadn't even thought to observe her surroundings. In her mind, this was carlessness.

Ranbou cocked an eyebrow, leaning against the fence beside Shitora. "Easy, Sukini. You okay? You look all worked up."

"You just caught me at a weird time is all," Shitora replied vaguely, calming her breathing and trying to arrest her facial expressions as she retook her spot against the fence as well. "I'm jumpy lately."

"I noticed," Ranbou replied dryly, reaching into his pocket to light a cigarette.

His ice blue eyes were half hooded as they had been all week and Shitora frowned; even with the dark fringe of his hair falling before his eyes, she could see the weariness sketched on his features. It didn't worry her because Shitora Taisho didn't worry, but it certainly...concerned her. Yes. Concerned her.

"Bo-" she started to say, only to lose her courage after the first word.

Ranbou turned his glance towards her, watching as she sighed and returned her gaze to the ground; as he took a deep drag on his new cigarette, he realized dimly that she had obviously been about to address his increase in assassinations as of late. He didn't mind talking about it, but he wanted to hear her ask before he said anything in return. She needed to come to terms with the fact that this was part of his life.

"What," he prompted, giving her his full attention.

Shitora glanced up briefly, meeting his eyes and eventually plucking up enough boldness to say, "You've been really tired this week."

Ranbou's eyes seemed to darken for a moment before he took a long drag on his cigarette and muttered, "You know why that is, Sukini."

The look in his eyes did little to deter Shitora from her modus operandi. "Yeah, maybe, but I don't think that's all of it. Am I right?"

The look in Shitora's eyes almost made Ranbou want to throw up as he stood there, watching his girlfriend be so worried about him. As much as she tried to hide it, her motives were painfully obvious and it hurt him. He was hurt because Shitora was hurting because he was hurting; crap, this whole dating thing was so much more emotionally invested than he planned on. Then again, he thought wearily, she's worth it in the end so I ain't complainin'.

"We all got our ways of handlin' this, Sukini," he mumbled, dragging his hand down his face and looking almost 20 years older than his own 18. "This is mine, so...I'm alright."

"Yeah, well, at this rate, you'll 'handle' this right into the grave," Shitora snapped in reply, fangs glistening momentarily before she turned her face away; no doubt there was far more emotion there than she preferred to display.

She listened for the sounds of Ranbou working up a reply; when he was thinking about a response, he flicked his lighter, took two drags on whichever cigarette he was smoking and glanced up at the sky. She could hear him going through the motions.

"I'll cut back; a lot of the left over Spiders gotta go, though, I'm warnin' you. I'm busy tryin' to weed em out," Ranbou said finally.

He glanced over at Shitora, who had begun fumbling around for a cigarette as though trying to distract herself from this entire experience. Her fingers were shaking like cold children and she finally gave up, allowing the unused cigarette to drop to the ground as she muttered, "Yeah, whatever."

She turned to go, but a strong arm caught her around the waist, dragging her backwards into a rock hard chest. "Oh, c'mon Sukini, don't be like that."

Shitora covered her face with her hands, rubbing them up and down as though trying to wipe away the worry which hadn't left her eyes since the battle. She knew she was being unreasonable, but she'd been easily tweaked as of late; Ranbou turned her gently around and brushed a piece of snow white hair away from her amber eyes, noticing the defeatedness which lay there.

"Listen to me, alright? I'll cut back when I can. It's not like I wanna be runnin' around stabbin' every unlucky Joe Shit who picked up a gun in Naraku's place, but we don't got much of a choice. Shomo and I've been talkin an-"

"Oh, so you're taking advice from the guy who looks like a walking scarecrow?" Shitora interrupted, cocking one of her eyebrows cutely. "Obviously, neither of you are stable."

Ranbou sighed and his ice blue gaze grew unusually soft; Shitora noticed the change almost right away and her own eyes seemed to soften sheerly out of surprise. After a moment, Ranbou leaned forward and placed a chaste kiss on Shitora's forehead as she closed her eyes, savoring the softness of a moment unlike any other they'd ever had.

"Stay with me on this, alright?" Ranbou asked quietly, searching Shitora's eyes for validation.

"Yeah," she muttered finally. "I will."

Rin smiled as she watched the interaction from where she stood, realizing that there was a certain magic in the moment. Though Ranbou and Shitora might act as though nothing bothered them, Rin knew that ever single moment their friends were hurting was torture for the couple. Both were tightly tied to others and the tension after the battle physically and emotionally hurt them. As she glanced at Sesshomaru's gaunt form, eerily thin in the street lights, she realized that perhaps he was hurting most of all.

"Simple terms, Dragon. You're in or you're out," the Fang leader spat out, looking almost bored with the situation as he reached down to withdraw a box of cigarettes from his pocket.

Ryuukoytsusei let out a stream of air through his nose and looked up at the smoggy black sky, trying not to notice the obvious point of Sesshomaru's shoulder bone through his jacket; it was sick. "Whatever, Taisho. Just send out Houshi and let's get this over with."

Sesshomaru gave a wan smile. "Not Miroku this time."

"Whoever it is, I'll be waiting for them at the line," Ryuukoytsusei countered, turning away and storming towards his black mustang and ducking moodily inside.

When the crowd began to part, Ryuu took a break from his cigarette and glanced backwards, pausing momentarily as he watched the gleaming red lamborghini diablo purring and roaring its way along the pavement. It was sleek, beautiful and perfect; he could hardly think of another word to describe the thing. Perfect. It was when he saw the silver haired head behind the wheel that he found himself mildly confused; Inuyasha? Ryuu had never seen the car before and could only hesitate to wonder where the Fang's had acquired it, but no matter. It didn't matter in the end where the car had come from, since Ryuu already knew everything he needed to know.

Like, for instance, that he was going to lose.

Sesshomaru wandered towards the fence where Rin was perched and leaned against it at her side, barely sparing her a glance as he continued with his cigarette. Rin was quiet for a moment, enjoying his presence as they stood there in silence, before she finally found words rising up in her mouth.

"Are you okay?"

It was a strange thing to ask, she realized, since he was so obviously the opposite of okay. It was a hard subject to approach, she realized, so she chose the simple way of addressing it indirectly.

Sesshomaru glanced down at Rin, noticing the troubled wrinkles in the crease of her brow, and for a moment he felt guilt prick his heart. He knew the question was much deeper than it appeared and, at the same time, it was incredibly hard to answer. "I'm fine, Rin. And you?"

Rin was quiet at first, wondering if the tears in her eyes were from the heavy scent of gasoline or the desperation knocking at her brain. "I'd be better if you ate something," she whispered, turning away from his sad gaze. It hurt her to see Sesshomaru looking sad, since sadness wasn't the sort of thing he usually succumbed to.

Sighing, Sesshomaru glanced up at the starry night sky before murmuring, "I've tried. I can't keep anything down."

At this, Rin whipped her head around, eyes wide with alarm. "Are you sick?" she asked urgently, knowing full well that demons were only susceptible to five diseases in the known universe, and all of them life threatening.

But Sesshomaru shook his silver head, now a dull grey with weariness. "No, I'm not. Well, I don't know. But I'm almost sure I'm not. I would know if I had anything serious."

"It sounds serious to me," Rin practically breathed; she was too busy mustering up her remaining self control to fight Sesshomaru's bony arms when they wrapped themselves around her. It was like hugging a wraith or a ghost, as though he weren't completely there.

"I'll be fine, Koi, I'll talk to Kaede tomorrow," Sesshomaru offered as reassurance.

But Rin countered, "Tonight, you'll talk to her tonight," before pressing her face against the Fang leader's hollow chest to hide her teary face; she couldn't be seen crying in public.

Sesshomaru sighed once more, resting his chin on the top of Rin's head as he leaned back against the fence. If only it were as simple as a visit to Kaede.

Kagome turned away from the scene of the lovers' awkward embrace, biting her lip as she felt herself consumed by the guilt of witnessing a private moment. She directed her attention back to the raceway where Inuyasha had pulled the Lamborghini up alongisde Ryuukoytsusei's Mustang and she managed a half smile. Maybe no one else could smile during this dour time, but she certainly could. And she'd been tied to a cross and tortured.

Inuyasha drew in a deep breath as he squinted his eyes trying to make out the finish line but finding himself unable to; dog sight was quite lacking. After a moment, he gave up with a snort and lay back against the leather seat, inhaling the sweet scent of recently polished leather. He could do this. With his racing know-how and this machine, he could do this.

"You ready?"

He glanced to his left where Sango was leaning on the window, smiling lopsidedly at him. The shiner around her black eye was still visible, as were the numerous cuts on her face, but she seemed to be pushing through; of course, everyone seemed to be pushing through.
"Ready as I'll ever be," he murmured, reaching out to give her hair a brotherly ruffle.

She giggled and swatted his hand away before pushing off the car, making her way boldly towards the center of the line. She presented herself strongly and the crowd began to quiet in anticipation of the impending race as Sango met eyes with both drivers. Inuyasha gave her a wink and Ryuu simply gave her a curt nod, so short that she might've missed it on an off chance. Finally she raised her hands; Inuyasha saw the hands as many things, like his excitement, his fear, his uncertainty all coming to a climax. He tried not to think about doubts as his heart came up in his throat and Sango let her hands drop to her sides. He couldn't even hear the squeal of the brakes as he rocketed off the line.

The sound of the Lamborghini was a purely sexual experience for every mechanic in the area. The sight of it leaping to Inuyasha's bidding was practically the world's most gorgeous fallice and, funnily enough, a gorgeous sight to everyone who beheld it. Inuyasha closed his eyes as the Lamborghini soared beneath him, gliding across the concrete as though it were riding on a cloud; there was absolutely no friction.

Everyone's eyes were trained on the Lamborghini as it passed the Mustang with little or no trouble, traveling down the road with such skill and speed that the win was secured. Ryuukoytsusei eventually just ignored the race and watched the car in front of him, silently marveling at its mechanics; it was like the thing was built from silk.

The race would be remembered as less of a race and more of a debut since there wasn't much competition from the Mustang. Inuyasha's car finished the race in 9.4 seconds, a Tokyo Gang record and perhaps comparable to world records. As it came flying across the finish line, the onlookers broke out into hysterical cheering and Kagome screamed happily, hugging Shitora, who happened to be nearest. Shitora gave Ranbou a pathetic "help me" look, but the wolf demon just smiled; he knew Shitora wasn't used to girl bonding, but he supposed Kagome needed something to hold on to just then. It seemed like everyone else was anchoring themselves on her, so she needed to anchor herself to something as well. Or they would all float away.

When Inuyasha pulled up to the line, his car was bombarded by wild gang members clapping him on the back and shouting his name in appreciation. The boy only had eyes for Kagome as he produced his first real grin in days and he ran towards his girlfriend, watching as she hugged his sister voraciously.

"Kagome!"

She turned just quick enough to find both herself and Shitora swept up in Inuyasha's open arms. Shitora laughed and protested, "Get off me, ya crazy mutt!"

As she squirmed her way out of the embrace, Inuyasha turned his full attention on Kagome, who was smiling adoringly at him. "I'm so proud of you Inuyasha, it was perfect!"

But before Inuyasha could think of something witty and wonderful to say, his feelings fell out through his mouth. "I love you." The words hit the air and Kagome took it all in stride, digesting them and letting them sit on her heart like a blanket; the feeling was almost warming.

"I love you too," she replied, brown eyes dancing with amber.

She'd gone through a lot this summer, she realized. Fights, laughs, contests, strange situations, but she'd learned so much about herself and the world around her. Tokyo wasn't so much different from Kyoto, she realized. Perhaps every city was the same in the end; the only thing that mattered about cities and time were the people you went through it all with. As Kagome looked around the pavement at the assorted faces of family and friends, she couldn't help but feel as though life could never be more beautiful. She had everything she needed right here and she'd spent so much of her life looking for it. It all seemed so silly now.

Before Kagome could think any further on the matters of her life, Inuyasha stole her mouth in a kiss and she smiled into his lips, knowing that the feeling she had right then would never truly leave.

As Sesshomaru watched his brother kissing Kagome beneath the streetlights, surrounded by screaming gang members and more smiles than he'd seen since June, he became vaguely aware of Kouga's presence beside him. Kouga's face was bruised on the cheek and his chest was weak, but he was pulling through just like everyone else. The friends had yet to talk about that night when Sesshomaru's demon form had turned on his best friend, but Kouga didn't know if they ever would. In the end, it mattered little to him.

"It's like the end of an era," he murmured, chuckling slightly.

Sesshomaru nodded, lighting his sixth cigarette routinely. "I can't argue. We made it past this obstacle, but there will always be others."

Kouga grinned. "True. But we're still the best."

"And we've still got our pride," Sesshomaru added serenely.

Kouga's ice blue eyes followed Sesshomaru's line of sight where their friends had wrapped a protesting Inuyasha in a monstrous group hug, much to the enjoyment of the surrounding crowd. Kouga's smile was one of acceptance and love for all things.

"And that's what it's all about, isn't it?'

Sesshomaru's head was erect at a nearly impossible angle, like that of the Roman kings.

"Right.That's what it's all about."

I CAN'T BELIEVE IT'S OVER! But then again I'm so excited for the sequel(s) that I'm almost glad that milestone is passed. Oh, it's exciting! Now I just have to edit and what not to make it eligble for things; until then, I ask that no one nominate LDTL for stuff cause we all know there are some serious typos (kouga hugged kouga, haha, a little cuddle-masturbation?)

Thanks to all the reviewers who made this possible, I think of you all like my closest friends. We've been through a lot, ne? And now we get to go through even more! The next chapter will be an informational session about the next story. I left a few open ends in this one to satisfy the sequel.

Once again, I love you all!

KOLU