InuYasha Fan Fiction ❯ Light in Dark Places ❯ Chapter 5: On the Edge ( Chapter 6 )

(A/N): Hi! I'm sure you're all wondering where I ran off to… Japan was fun, but I'm happy to be home where people speak the language I speak (although I got quite good at ordering meals in Japanese). :o) In any case, here is another chapter, as promised (if a little late). Thank you for the reviews, they really make my day! A few people left questions in their reviews, and I have answered them at the bottom.

 

Oh, and I'm an idiot and should have mentioned this earlier, but there are significant quantities of HBP spoilers from here on out and spoilers for the most recent manga chapters of Inuyasha. Sorry if you found out stuff you didn't know yet!

 

Thanks again to my beta reader FieryFaerie!

 

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Light in Dark Places

By: Eilan-san

 

ooo

 

Chapter 5: On the Edge

 

And this is why my eyes are closed,

It's just as well for all I've seen.

And so it goes, and so it goes,

And you're the only one who knows.

 

--Billy Joel, “And So It Goes”

 

ooo

 

Kagome almost felt bad for the beef she was currently taking her anger out on. She chopped and shredded the beef into very thin slices with an intensity rivaled only by Inuyasha and his Tetsusaiga when he slew an enemy. Unfortunately the beef wasn't the one she was actually angry at; the object of her current frustrations was sitting on her couch and flipping through the channels on her television.

 

When she'd woken up that morning, she'd been so surprised to see Harry asleep on her couch that she'd screamed. Harry had been so startled, he'd jumped off the couch, his wand drawn and eyes still glazed over with sleep. When he'd finally realized that there was no attacker, and Kagome had just been surprised to see him, he'd put his wand away and headed into the loo, grumbling something about “Tonks' stupid orders.”

 

She heard the hot water turn on, signaling that he had gotten in the shower before she noticed that a large suitcase was now sitting underneath a shelf in her living room. She had been so angry that she nearly missed the large snowy owl pecking at her window. Curious, she opened the window and let the bird in and saw that it was carrying a piece of parchment with her name on it.

 

The letter read: Dear Professor Higurashi, I am writing to inform you that even though you are reticent about the plans for your protection, I must insist that you be placed under a protective detail, and since Auror Potter is the only suitable person available, he has been assigned (much against his wishes) to you. Try not to hurt him too badly. Sincerely, Nymphadora Tonks-Lupin, Chief of the Auror Division, Ministry of Magic.

 

And so Harry was going to be living with her until God-knew-when, or at least until this madman or woman was found and put away. It would have been made slightly more bearable if Harry would talk to her, or at least show some sign of accepting the situation, but he was still being a prat.

 

So she was taking her frustration with him out on the food, which was just as well since the food couldn't complain. She added the beef to the wok and was busy chopping up a white onion when she felt his presence over her shoulder.

 

“What are you cooking?” he asked, peering curiously at the wok as the beef fried happily in the oil.

 

“Gyu-don,” she answered shortly. “It's a mixture of beef, onions and sauce over white rice.”

 

She saw his nose wrinkle up and she frowned. “What you don't like onions or something?”

 

“No, I just don't like Asian food,” he answered curtly before walking back into the living room.

 

“How do you know you don't like something you've never had?” she called to his retreating back. He didn't answer. Gritting her teeth, she finished chopping the onion and tossed it in with the beef and added the bottled teriyaki sauce. `What is it with men never liking my cooking?' she thought angrily.

 

The rice cooked merrily away in its cooker, and the beef would be done soon, she would just have to change the stove setting to low and let it simmer in the sauce for a while. All in all, she was rather proud of herself. She hadn't had to cook for anyone other than herself in a long time, and tonight she was cooking for not two, but four people.

 

She pursed her lips. Where are we all going to sit? She had a very small kitchen table, which was barely big enough for her, much less four grown adults. Gyu-don was a bit messy so the coffee table was out -

 

She felt like an idiot. She was having three wizards over for dinner. One of whom was already here.

 

She walked into the living room and saw that Harry was still sulking on the couch. He had large circles under his eyes signaling that he probably hadn't slept well and there was still a bit of a bruise on his face where she'd hit him the day before. She felt a twinge of pity; she knew that couch wasn't very comfortable to sit on, much less sleep on.

 

Shoving away the feelings of sympathy, she asked, “Harry, is there a way you can come up with a table and chairs for us to sit on for dinner?”

 

Harry looked at her strangely. “Why? Can't we just use the one in the kitchen?”

 

“I barely fit at it, much less you, me, Ron and Hermione,” Kagome said impatiently, crossing her arms over her chest.

 

“Fine,” he said tersely, getting up and drawing his wand. Kagome watched him intently; she hadn't seen him cast a spell without being under threat of physical harm before and she was curious to see exactly how it worked. He closed his eyes and whispered an incantation and suddenly her couch had been turned into four chairs and her coffee table was now a large oak table.

 

He turned to her with a smirk on his face, as if to say, “I'm brilliant,” but Kagome just stared at the chairs.

 

She looked up at him thoughtfully, “Can you turn anything into something else?”

 

“Yep. I could turn that couch into a desk or a bed or a rice cooker, or just about anything,” Harry said, puffing up his chest and looking quite proud of himself.

 

She couldn't help it; she burst out laughing.

 

“What?” he said, eyes widening in confusion. “What's so funny?”

 

“I -- I'm sure you would have slept much better,” Kagome panted, barely get the words out because she was laughing so hard, “If you had turned the couch into a bed last night.”

 

He looked almost angry for a moment, but she could see the grin threatening on his lips as understanding dawned on him and eventually he was laughing just as hard as she was, clutching his sides.

 

“I guess I'll have to remember to do that tonight, I don't know if my back could take another night of sleeping on that infernal thing,” Harry said, his laughter diminishing to a chuckle.

 

“I could have told you as much. I picked it up off of an undergraduate and it absolutely reeked of beer when I first got it, not to mention the fact that it sags in the middle,” Kagome giggled. It felt so good to laugh with him, the tension of the past thirty-six hours was suddenly lifted and she finally felt at home with him again.

 

Harry smiled at her, his earlier sour expression completely absent as if it had never been there at all, and she grinned back, her own eyes dancing gleefully. She heard a sharp crack and saw Ron and Hermione appear just inside the foyer, which just sent her and Harry back into hysterical giggles.

 

“What're you lot carrying on about?” Ron asked, clearly bewildered and gripping a foil-covered plate like a lifeline to sanity. “We just apparated.”

 

“Nothing, Ron, I was just being an idiot,” Harry grinned and turned to Kagome, “Do you want me to set the table?”

 

“Yes, that would be lovely. Thank you,” Kagome responded and turned on her heel to go check on the food, Harry and Hermione following her.

 

“Well, I think it's wonderful that you and Harry decided to grow up and not let a little row get in the way of you working together,” she said slyly. Kagome looked at Harry and rolled her eyes as she handed him the plates and he just grinned.

 

“What did you bring, Hermione?” Kagome asked absently as she handed Harry a bowl and pointed at the rice cooker. He took the hint and began spooning large amounts of sticky white rice into the bowl while she checked the beef for the last time and turned off the stove.

 

“I brought dessert - I knew you were cooking, so I tried to make something Asian. I hope it's alright,” Hermione fidgeted slightly, twisting the hem of her shirt in her hands.

 

Kagome quirked an eyebrow, “You do know that most Japanese desserts aren't sweet, and are made from a red bean paste right?”

 

Hermione flushed horribly, “Er, no, not really, actually. I guess we'll just have to wait and see.”

 

“Our Hermione is not that great of a cook, but she tries hard,” Ron called from the living room.

 

“I resent that, Ron,” Hermione called back.

 

“Only because it's true,” Harry added, coming into the kitchen to stand beside Kagome; Hermione crossed her arms dejectedly and Kagome chuckled.

 

Kagome, after checking everything over and deciding she was pleased, announced, “Alright, dinner's ready, let's eat,” and marched into the living room with the wok and a potholder.

 

“Bloody fantastic!” Ron was positively salivating as she set down the wok on the table in front of him and handing him a pair of chopsticks.

 

“Ron! Do you ever think with anything other than your stomach?” Hermione admonished, but dropping spoonfuls of rice into a bowl and handing it to him anyway.

 

“No, but you knew that before you married me,” he grinned and accepted the bowl gratefully before adding huge amounts of the beef mixture on top of the rice.

 

Kagome wandered over to Harry who handed her a bowl of rice; “Are they always like this?” she asked in a low voice.

 

“You should have seen when they first started out,” he smiled. “They were a nightmare. Fought every chance they had, and I seem to remember Hermione setting some birds on him because she was angry that he'd gone off to snog his then-girlfriend Lavender.”

 

Hermione blushed, but recovered quickly. “Oh, Harry, like you were really any better,” she teased. “What was your description of your first kiss? Oh yes, I believe you said it was, and I quote, `wet'.”

 

Kagome stared incredulously at Harry, “That was the best you could come up with?”

 

“She was crying and I was fifteen!” Harry exclaimed, embarrassed. He plopped down at the table with his food and dug his chopsticks into his rice.

 

“Well, I hope she wasn't crying because you were a bad kisser,” Kagome joked, and Harry flushed and mumbled something under his breath.

 

“What was that, mate?” Ron asked, leaning over the table and nearly knocking the rice over.

 

“He said, `Ginny didn't think so,'” Hermione supplied helpfully, smirking as Ron put his hands over his ears.

 

“I don't want to hear about what you did with my sister!” he cried.

 

“You dated his sister?” Kagome asked, somewhat surprised. Something rose up in her chest and tugged at her heart, something that teetered on jealousy. She shoved it away.

 

“We dated for a few weeks during my sixth year, and then several years later for a few months, but it didn't work out. Apparently, she's engaged to one of our classmates,” Harry said nonchalantly, staring at his food.

 

“All the better for you, mate,” Ron said, shoveling food into his mouth, oblivious to the awkwardness that was beginning to infiltrate the room. “She may be my sister, but she's absolutely bonkers. You're better off without her.”

 

“Oh, like you're not bonkers yourself, Ron,” snorted Hermione, “I think it runs in your family.”

 

“I'm mad about you, Hermione,” he responded. Hermione tried admirably to hide her smile of joy and rewarded her husband with a kiss.

 

Harry shot Kagome a sheepish glance over his bowl, as if he was trying to apologize for his friends' behavior.

 

Kagome only laughed, “You guys are so cute I think it makes me ill.”

 

“Amen to that!” Harry raised his glass and Kagome clinked her own glass cheerfully with his. “Enough with the sappiness already, and down to business.”

 

“And that would be?” Ron asked. “What could be more interesting than me snogging my wife at our new friend's flat over dinner?” Harry was obviously trying to send his slightly-thick best friend telepathic messages, a smirk plastered on his face, and it was equally obvious that Ron wasn't getting them.

 

Hermione also stared at this silent exchange, and suddenly lit up. She turned to Kagome; “We know everything about each other already, that's boring. We want to know about you!”

 

“I agree,” Harry said, grinning broadly. “We need dirt on you, Professor, as there's already plenty on us to go around.”

 

Red crept up Kagome's neck and stained her face, “There's - There's not much to tell,” she stuttered, not sure where to begin and how much to say. She liked her new friends a lot, but there were just some things that were better left to herself and her family, not to mention in the past.

 

Exactly 500 years in the past.

 

Harry's eyes flashed predatorily and he leaned over to whisper in her ear; she shivered as his warm breath hit her skin, “Come on, Miss Higurashi. Surely there's something interesting in your past.”

 

Oh, Harry, you have no idea.

 

“I was actually ill for most of my adolescence, if you would believe it,” she lied thinly. She glanced at Harry and was mildly surprised to notice that Harry was looking at her strangely, but he made no move to contradict her. “I spent my childhood in Tokyo at a Shinto Shrine that my family has been the caretakers of for five hundred years.”

 

Kagome giggled; Ron was now filling up his fourth bowl of gyu-don. “What?” he asked, his mouth full. “I like good food.”

 

Kagome smiled and looked plaintively at Harry, “At least someone does.”

 

“Okay, so I was wrong about the gyu-don. It is actually rather tasty,” he said good-naturedly, but then his brow suddenly furrowed in thought.

 

“Didn't you say that your family is connected to the legend of the shikon no tama?” he asked.

 

Kagome dropped her eyes to her lap and she played with her napkin while trying to figure out how to best answer that question, “Yes, my family shrine is on the site of the original shrine where the Jewel was kept. Even though it is no longer there, we are still the main caretakers of that particular legend.”

 

“I read the chapter of the book you gave me,” Harry said and Kagome's head snapped up, stunned that he'd actually read it. She'd figured that he would have not paid any attention to what she'd said after the debacle the night before.

 

“Dr. Yamato was quite thorough in his article,” he continued. “He said that the Jewel arrived with a contingent of demon slayers who asked the shrine maiden there, Kikyou, to be the guardian of the Jewel. Is that the same Kikyou as the legend you told us about?”

 

Kagome nodded dumbly. Hermione and Ron were now listening with great interest, each lost in their own thoughts.

 

“What I find most curious,” Hermione said, tapping her chin thoughtfully. “Is how the wizards after this Jewel even heard about it in the first place? I mean, it's not a very well known legend, now is it?”

 

Kagome bit her lip. “Well,” she began, “It's most likely that the person after the Jewel isn't a wizard.”

 

“But all of our intelligence says that it was,” Harry countered. “They hired a wizard to attack you! Most muggles aren't even aware we exist at all.”

 

“And most people, wizards and muggle alike, aren't aware that youkai exist either,” she said fiercely. “The fact of the matter is that a normal person, even a witch or a wizard, would simply not be able to use the Jewel.” She took a deep breath and was suddenly very glad that she had used this information in her dissertation and that it was available in literature instead of stemming from her own practical experience.

 

“The Jewel responds to spiritual magic, and only people capable of wielding this spiritual magic would be able to use the Jewel. The battle raging on inside the Jewel consists of the soul of a very powerful miko, who would use shenki, and many youkai, who would use jyaki. The battle, and thus the balance of the two types of energy present within the Jewel is influenced by the person that holds it,” Kagome paused, the revelation of this information coalescing inside her head at a rapid pace. “Which would mean that if it was in the hands of a miko, or a priest or something, it would be purified by the shenki, and thus rendered harmless in their hands.” Her eyes widened in understanding of the situation, “And that would mean that if it was in the hands of a youkai, the Jewel would increase its jyaki, and thus the youkai's abilities would increase!”

 

She slapped her hand down on the table, “Harry!” she cried, “That's it! Your culprit isn't a wizard at all, it's a demon!”

 

Harry, Ron and Hermione simply gaped at her, open mouthed, and she secretly was quite proud of herself for figuring this out.

 

“But… but according to the reports from the Japanese Ministry of Magic we received this morning, nearly all of the youkai died out a long time ago and the Jewel just simply disappeared into legend,” Ron said quietly, looking troubled. “There has been no real mention of the Jewel or anyone even trying to find it in the last five hundred years. So why would it come up now?”

“I flipped through that report when you brought it home this afternoon, Ron,” Hermione said, “And I think it might have something to do with the unexplained spike in spiritual energy activity thirteen years ago.”

 

Fear sliced through Kagome's heart and she struggled to keep her body from shaking. `That's when my quest finished,' she thought, distraught. `That was when I permanently re-entered this world.' She had always assumed her quest had gone unnoticed by the world, but she was clearly mistaken.

 

Hermione continued on, not noticing Kagome death-like grip on the table, “There was a sharp spike in shenki briefly, but it faded, and shortly after this initial spike, there was an increase in youkai sightings… it was like they'd actually been simply dormant for all these years, rather than gone. It was quite difficult for the Japanese Ministry to keep everything under control for those few years.”

 

Kagome's heart hammered in her chest. `I'd been so caught up in my own feelings of rejection that I never even noticed,' she thought miserably. `I threw myself into embracing normality as much as possible that I shut down that part of myself that was able to sense these things, and now it might be gone forever just when I need it again.'

 

She looked up and saw Hermione looking at her expectantly, “I'm sorry,” she said, reddening, “What did you say?”

 

“I said you could probably find more information about these kinds of things at the Ministry library instead of at the University Library. We specialize in magical literature, and even though it's a bit different than our kind of magic, I'm sure there's something there,” Hermione repeated, throwing her a small smile.

 

“Leave it to Hermione to always think the answer's at the library,” Harry said with a wry smile. Hermione glared at him and he shrugged. “It's not a bad idea, I'm just saying.” He turned to Kagome, who was still looking a bothered by all of this. “Do you want to go to the Ministry tomorrow? I have to go file some paperwork anyway, so we could just go together.”

 

Kagome nodded. `Any help would be great right about now,' she thought.

 

Hermione brightened immediately at this, “Great! Why don't you come over around lunch time and I'll show you where it is and we can at least get started before class at 2:00?”

 

“That sounds good,” Harry assented, then looked at Kagome and frowned upon seeing her still staring at the floor looking for all the world like an extremely lost and troubled little girl.

 

He glanced worriedly at Hermione and Ron, both of whom shrugged as the awkward silence continued to infiltrate the room.

 

Ron cleared his throat, “I hate to be a bother, dearest, but it is getting late and we should probably head home.”

 

Hermione nodded in agreement. “We should get going. Thank you, Kagome for a lovely dinner. I hope we get to do this again.”

 

Kagome gave a forced smile and Harry wondered what was bothering her so much.

Still looking at Kagome, he said, “Have a good night, we'll see you tomorrow.”

 

Hermione and Ron exchanged a strange look before disapparating out of the flat and leaving Harry and Kagome alone again.

 

Kagome immediately went to the table and began picking up dishes and bringing them into the kitchen and dumping them unceremoniously into the sink. Harry regarded her silently for a moment before helping her.

 

What on earth is bothering her so much? What did we say?

 

The tension was so thick Harry felt he could cut it with a knife as they wordlessly got ready for bed; Kagome didn't even blink when he transfigured the dining room suite/couch and coffee table into a bed and nightstand.

 

Feeling exceptionally awkward but feeling the need to alleviate the pressure, he said quietly, “Is it hard to think that what you had always studied as an academic pursuit turned out to be real? That this Jewel and magic really exists?”

 

Kagome broke out of her haze and stared at him, surprised. “What? No, it's not that at all. You know I don't really care about the whole Boy-Who-Lived thing, right?”

 

Now it was Harry's turn to be surprised. “You don't?” he asked incredulously.

 

Kagome shrugged and a small smile lingered on her lips, “I met you as `just Harry' and you're still `just Harry' to me. No amount of magic in the world will change that.” She looked at the new bed in her living room and she chuckled. “Although it might take a bit of getting used to, I was just about to offer you a set of sheets and a pillow, but it seems you've already taken care of that.”

 

If he weren't so shocked, he probably would have laughed, but all he could do was stare dumbly at her, mouth hanging open at an unattractive angle.

 

Kagome laughed, “You better close your mouth, you'll draw flies.” She turned and walked into the kitchen and Harry shook his head to clear it before heading to the bathroom to change into his pajamas.

 

When he emerged, Kagome was sitting on his bed with a mug of hot chocolate. She gestured at another mug sitting on his nightstand, which he took gratefully.

 

She looked at him anxiously as he sat down beside her. “Hey,” he murmured. “I just wanted to tell you I'm sorry for acting like such a prat yesterday and today.”

 

Kagome just shrugged. “Forgiven. To be perfectly honest, you actually rate really low on the `I'm a jerk but Kagome will like me anyway' scale,” she said ruefully, sipping her hot cocoa.

 

He quirked an eyebrow at her, and she chuckled. “There were these two boys I hung out with a lot during middle school. One was eternally angry at everything and everyone, and the other, well, let's just say that his hands had a mind of their own.”

 

“You're joking,” he said, dubiously.

 

Kagome shook her head from side to side, “Nope, he was awful. He has probably grabbed the butt of every girl within a sixty-mile radius of where we lived, me and my best friend included.” She smiled with the memory. “It was pretty funny, looking back, actually.”

 

“I can only imagine. I think Hermione would have slugged us if either me or Ron ever did that to her growing up.”

 

Kagome giggled, “Oh, we did that, but it never seemed to work.” Harry couldn't help but join her, her laughter was infectious, but his amusement was cut short by a large yawn.

 

“And I think that's my cue to go to bed,” he said.

 

Kagome smiled and he smiled back. `It feels really good to be able to smile at her again, being angry with her took a lot of effort,' he thought, blushing faintly.

 

She nodded rising from the bed and moved to leave, but Harry caught her wrist. She turned around, puzzled.

 

“I…” he started, but unsure of what exactly to say. “I wanted to tell you that, er, I'm really glad that you aren't angry with me or acting weird about who I am. I'm not used to it, but I guess I just wanted to say thank you for treating me normally.”

 

Her face contorted strangely for a second, but then she smiled at him again, and his insides fluttered.

 

“Of course,” she said softly. “Sleep well, Harry.”

 

He nodded mutely, his eyes followed her as she walked towards room. She turned and paused at the door, meeting his gaze with her own, her eyes dark and filled with a something unidentifiable. He held the stare - his insides buzzing with the intense look in her eyes - as she closed the door to her room, only breaking the stare when she slipped out of view.

 

Harry let the breath he'd been holding out and flopped backwards onto the bed.

 

`She doesn't care!' he thought jubilantly, unable to suppress the grin that lit up his face.

A part of him had absolutely danced with joy when she'd said that, and secretly - so secretly he didn't dare admit it to himself just yet - he felt his heart go out to her and mingle and connect with hers.

 

Because he'd realized that that was the real reason he'd reacted the way he had when she'd been told about his past. He'd been terrified at being laid bare in front of this person he barely knew and so he'd acted like a git.

 

But even that hadn't deterred her, and he remembered that rush of euphoria and anger and fear when she'd grabbed his arm and met his eyes in the hallway at the Ministry as he felt all of his torrid emotions rush into her, all her fear and confusion roaring in his ears as she trembled underneath the weight of all his regrets.

 

He felt her, and that connection absolutely terrified him.

 

And yet she'd forgiven him. She acted as though she had felt nothing at all, or if she had, she didn't care or mind in the slightest.

 

Who are you, Kagome? And what are you doing here? There has to be a reason for you being here, and a reason for this strange bond we seem to have.

 

Harry sighed and put his glasses on the nightstand. Turning the covers down and settling himself into bed, he thought he heard a voice that sounded suspiciously like Dumbledore's.

 

“Well, I guess you're stuck together for awhile aren't you?” it said. He could almost see his former mentor's eyes twinkling. “Make the most of it!”

 

With a grin on his lips as he began to drift off to sleep, he thought, `I intend to, Albus, I intend to.'

 

ooo

 

Reviewer Questions:

 

Several People --

1) Q: I can't believe Kagome slapped him! A: Harry was totally being a jackass, and I felt Kagome was probably the only person who could smack (literally) some sense into him. I'm glad you all enjoyed that, because I certainly did!

 

2) Q: Is Inuyasha coming back? A: As this is totally a Harry/Kagome story and although other ships in both canons will be acknowledged (there will be discussion at length between Harry and Kagome about Inuyasha later); Inuyasha will not be coming back for her. So… if you were looking for an Inuyasha/Kagome story, this probably isn't it, unless you don't mind only looking at it in the past tense.

 

Trigger Happy Bibliophile asked if Inuyasha was “evil” in this story and what he did with the Jewel. A: No, actually, Inuyasha is not evil in this story. He is good, but like most people of that era had to deal with a really difficult decision - what's more important, your personal feelings or your duty? And like most Japanese people of that era, he went with duty. This specific moral quandary actually comes up in ridiculous quantities in classical Japanese literature; check out the plays of Chikamatsu sometime. Anyway, this obviously sucked for our dear Kagome, and most certainly made her angry and upset and hurt, but that's life and people make decisions we don't like all the time. Plus, she's in London now with Harry, and she'll find her own happiness soon enough. As for what Inuyasha did with the Jewel, you'll just have to wait and see, now won't you? :o)

 

Ayme asked if I could bring Inuyasha in to kick Harry's butt for being a jerk and if there were going to be more parts about Inuyasha and his and Kagome's adventures. A: Kagome most certainly has not forgotten about Inuyasha, but thirteen years is a long time (she's almost doubled her lifespan since meeting Inuyasha, if you think about it) and people move on. He was her first love, and you never really forget your first love (especially one as special as that) and it will come up eventually. However, he's definitely not coming back to save her or to kill Harry.