InuYasha Fan Fiction ❯ Okaeri Nasai, Welcome Home ❯ Well ( Chapter 2 )

Okaeri Nasai

Chapter 2: Well

"Hello, there. My name is Kagome Higurashi. Welcome to Tokyo." Kagome smiled at the three girls.

Akkiko stepped forward. "Hi, I'm Akkiko. I'm insane, just so you know." Kagome sweatdropped as Meg smacked Akkiko with her fist.

"Baka-gomi. What did we say about telling people about your insanity?" Meg snapped.

"I'm just warning the poor girl!" Akkiko said.

Kat sighed and held out her hand to Kagome. "My name's Kat. Please ignore our insane little friend."

Meg smacked her. Kat glared. "What was that for?"

"You're not helping!" The brunette snapped.

Kat smiled. "Am I supposed to be?"

Meg growled and held out her hand to Kagome. "Hi, I'm Meg. I'm probably the only sane one here."

Silence. Kat and Akkiko suddenly burst out in hysterical laughter. "What?" Meg snapped.

Kagome laughed, thinking, `For some reason, they remind me of Sango, Shippo and Miroku.' She held out her hand to grasp Meg's, saying, "Please to meet-" she stopped. Something pulsed from around Meg's throat.

Meg raised an eyebrow. "Uh, why are you staring at me?"

Kat placed her hand on Meg's shoulder. Coincidently, this was the hand with the ring on it. "Probably because she just realized that her mind is in danger."

Kagome sensed something pulsing around Kat's hand. `That's so weird,' she thought.

Akkiko ruffled Meg's hair. "Or she realized you have nails the size of Alaska."

Meg gasped and let go of Kagome's hand. "I'm so sorry, did I prick you?"

"Huh?" Kagome said. For moment, she had felt something pulse around Akkiko's hand.

"My nails. I file them to keep them sharp." Meg explained.

"Oh, um, no, you didn't prick me. Really it's nothing." Kagome smiled, trying to shake off the feeling that there was a jewel shard nearby. "Come on; it's getting late and I'm sure you want to get to your new houses."

Meg, Kat and Akkiko collected their baggage. "So, how long are we staying here?" Akkiko asked.

"Uh . . . three months?" Meg said.

"Oh, that should be fun," Kat said.

"Yeah, I guess," Akkiko muttered. All of a sudden she stopped dead in her tracks, then grinned wickedly.

"Akkiko? Why are smiling like that?"

Akkiko turned to them. "I forgot-we're in Japan!"

Kat sweatdropped. "How could you forget? All the signs are in, uh-JAPANESE?"

Akkiko ignored her, grabbed her hands and spun in her around in a parody of a polka, while singing out, "Japan means Squaresoft, and Squaresoft means Final Fantasy, and Final Fantasy means Kingdom Hearts!" She stopped and turned to Kagome. "Hey, do you guys have a PS?"

"A what?" Kagome asked.

"It's a little box you play video games on," Kat said dully.

"Oh, yeah, my brother has one of those." Kagome smiled.

Akkiko grinned. "YAHOO!!" She grabbed Kagome's wrist and dragged her off. "Let's go! Let's GO!!"

Meg said to Kat, "Here we go . . . again!"

Kat replied, "Do you think we should warn them about the iced tea?"

Meg shuddered. "No, let's leave the poor people to find out on their own."

As the four girls got in a taxi, an ominous figure smiled to herself, and drew a crystal ball out of her jacket pocket. Looking into it, she saw red smoke, a symbol of danger. The grin on her face faded and she replaced the ball in her pocket. "I hope those three find the portal soon." She turned and disappeared into the crowd.

~~~

Akkiko scowled. "You CANNOT expect me to stay here!!" she yelled. Looking around at Eri's room, you could see the reason for her discomfort.

The walls of the room were pink, with pink carpet and a pink comforter on the bed. The walls were plastered with movie and rock star posters, all of which seemed to feature Johnny Depp, Savage Garden, or Orlando Bloom. The pillows all had flowers on them, as did the dresser and wooden desk.

Akkiko turned to Mr and Mrs. Midori. "Why don't you get Meg to stay here? She likes this stuff!"

Eri's parents frowned a little. "I'm sorry you don't like Eri's room, but you'll be staying here for three months, so you'd better get used to it."

As they left, Akkiko growled. "What did I do to piss God off SOOO much?"

~~~

Kat sat at the dinner table at Yuka's house. She had three older brothers, as well as her mother and father. These five seemed to have a thing for talking.

"So, Kat," a smiling Mr. Noriko started, "Do you have any siblings at home?"

"Uh, yeah." Kat took a bite of her supper, and then noticed Yuka's parents staring at her. `Oh, God,' she thought. `They actually expect me to talk here?' "Uh, I have a half-brother Dain and a sister, Kim."

"Are they older or younger than you?"

`God, why don't these people just leave me alone?' "They're both older." `Something tells me that this is going to be a very long three months.'

~~~

"Now, then, Meg," Arimi's mother, Mrs. Haru, smiled at the brunette. "We only have one rule in this house."

"Yes?" Meg was a little nervous. "What is that?"

"We want you to be very serious about your schoolwork." Mr Haru said. "You are going to be living with us for three months, and we expect you to be a better student than Arimi."

"She was always so busy gossiping and reading magazines." Mrs. Haru shook her head. "We hope that you are a much better student."

Meg sweatdropped. Back in Canada, she was lucky if she pulled a seventy in some subjects.

`Yep,' she thought. `Three months-I'm going to die.'

~~~

(The next day)

Meg and Kat met up with each other in front of their new high school. They took a deep breath, and said, at the same time:

"My family for the next three months is going to kill me!!!" They stopped, looked at each other in horror, and then brushed it off, wallowing in their own misery.

"Hey, guys," said a dead voice behind them. Kat and Meg turned to see Akkiko, who had leaves in her hair and grass stains on her knees.

"What the hell happened to you?" Kat asked.

"Yeah, did you run into a tree on the way here?" Meg asked.

"No, I did not. I just couldn't stand sleeping in that-" Akkiko shuddered. "PINK room, so I slept outside . . . in a TREE!"

Meg and Kat sighed in sympathy, and then Kat started giggling. Meg raised an eyebrow, and then started laughing as well.

Akkiko growled. "What?"

"You're in a skirt!" her friends said at the same time. A vein twitched in Akkiko's temple.

"Good morning!" said a voice behind Akkiko, and she felt someone slap her back. Turning, she saw Kagome.

The three girls sighed. Great; a morning person.

Kagome looked at the leaves in Akkiko's hair, and said, "Couldn't stand the pinkness, could you?"

Akkiko stared. "Oh, you're good. You're good."

Kagome shrugged. "Yeah, well, whenever we have sleepovers at Eri's house, it scares me too."

The bell rang. Kagome went off to her first class, and Meg, Kat and Akkiko went to the principal's office. Getting their time tables and locker combinations, they hurried off, five minutes late.

Akkiko walked into her classroom. The teacher smiled and said, "Everyone, this is the exchange student from Canada. Please make her feel welcome." She turned to Akkiko, who was pulling leaves out of her hair.

Akkiko gave the class one glance and returned to her hair. "Yeah, hi. Name's Akkiko, lord of destruction-stupid twig."

Kagome waved from the centre of the classroom. Akkiko sighed, "Wonderful; I'm in the same class as the morning person."

~~~

A few halls over, in the Grade Eleven room, Kat and Meg ran in, quite late. Their teacher read the note they had, and smiled.

"Class, these are the two exchange students from Canada. Could you please introduce yourselves, ladies?"

"I'm Meg. Call me Megan and die," Meg snapped.

"I'm Kat, sorry about Meg." Kat smiled sweetly. "She isn't a morning person."

"Understatement of the year," Meg grumbled.

~~~

When the majority of their first class was over, Kat and Meg sat chatting.

"Hey . . . excuse me ladies?" Kat and Meg looked up to see a guy their age with brown eyes and dark blond hair. "You know Kagome-chan, don't you?"

Meg and Kat looked at each other, then at the boy warily. "What's it to you?"

"Well, I'm a friend of hers, and I was wondering." He flushed. "My name is Houjo, and I, um . . . I want to go on a date with a Kagome."

Kat raised her eyebrows at him. "Uh-huh . . . and?"

"Well, now that her crazy friends are gone, I thought you could . . . nudge Kagome into going out with me."

Kat and Meg stood up, their chairs clattering back. They both grabbed the front of Houjo's uniform.

"Don't you have any respect for her?" Meg demanded.

"Have some pride in yourself!" Kat lectured.

"Ask her your own damn self!" they said at the same time. Releasing the front of his uniform, they sighed.

"I mean, it's not like she'll ditch you," Meg said, a little more calmly. There was an uncomfortable silence.

"Oh. . ." Kat scrutinized Houjo carefully. "You mean, she has ditched you?"

A nod.

". . . More than a dozen times?"

Another nod.

"Well!" Meg clapped her hands together. "In that case, you're screwed, unless I give you some advice!" And with that she forced Houjo's butt into a chair.

~~~

At lunchtime, Kagome, Meg, Kat and Akkiko all met up outside the school.

"Hey, Kagome," Kat started. "Do you know someone named Houjo?"

"Yeah, sort of." Kagome looked at Kat suspiciously. "Why?"

"Well, let's just say . . . Meg gave him some tips."

Akkiko choked on her soda. "Oh, God, what happened?"

Kat sighed. "Please don't make me tell you."

Akkiko grabbed the front of Kat's uniform, dragging her down a few inches. "Listen, this involves my safety, and possibly what little sanity I have. So spill."

Kat sighed, and whispered in Akkiko's ear: "Let's just say . . . it gave him a nosebleed." Akkiko sighed, went up behind Meg, pulled a paper fan out from behind her, and. . . .

WHACK!! "What the *BEEP* was that for?" Meg demanded.

Kat scowled. "Meg! Language!"

Kagome sighed. "Three months, eh? Well, I'll just think of it as a test of my sanity." She stared at the three girls, who were now throwing napkin wads at each other. `I mean, they can't be any worse than Inu-yasha,' she thought, sweatdropping.

Suddenly, Akkiko yanked on Meg's braid and slammed her face into the table. "That'll teach you to call me Bing!"

"Oh, yeah? Take this, then, you psychotic demon-thing!" Meg whirled her purse around and chased after a very scared Akkiko.

"Good thing Akkiko's on the track team," Kat commented, sipping her milkshake.

Kagome sweatdropped even more. `On second thought-worse, much worse than Inu-yasha.'

(A/N: It took us *me and Akkiko* a good three minutes to come up with something worse than what Inu-yasha would do. It ain't easy)

~~~

(The next day, lunch time)

"Hey, guys!"

"Oh, great," Meg said, rubbing the bandage on her nose. "It's the mini terror."

Akkiko sat down at the table where Meg and Kat were waiting. Kat looked around. "Where's Kagome?"

"I have no idea," Akkiko said. "She hasn't shown up all morning."

"That's weird, I wonder if she's sick," Kat said.

"She was fine yesterday," Meg said.

Akkiko sighed. "You know how sudden this stuff is; it's sudden and. . .Sudden and. . ."

Kat and Meg stared.

"What? I'm trying to come up with a word, here!"

Kat raised an eyebrow. "Sudden?" she suggested.

Akkiko snapped her fingers. "That's it!"

~~~

(That night)

Meg, Kat and Akkiko phoned each other on three-way, and decided to give Kagome's house a call.

"Wait," Akkiko said, "Give me a minute-damn Japanese numbers! Too damn long!"

The phone rung a few times and someone picked up. "Higurashi temple."

"Hello, is Kagome there?"

"No, I'm afraid she can't come to the phone. Her diabetes are acting up again."

Meg blinked. "Is. . .That why she wasn't in school today?"

"Oh, yes, it's just so horrible," Kagome's grandfather said.

"But . . . you don't need to stay home because of diabetes," Meg said.

Grandfather coughed. "Oh, well, her rheumatism is pretty bad, too. . ."

"I didn't think anyone in high school could get rheumatism," Kat said.

"Well, and she had to go to counselling too, because of her inferiority complex."

Akkiko swore. "Dammit, aren't there any sicknesses I know about?"

Grandpa sweatdropped. "Well, sorry she can't come to the phone; I'll tell her you called, bye!!" There was a click.

Akkiko raised her eyebrow. "Doesn't he need our names to tell her we called?"

Meg blinked. "That was weird."

"Very weird," Kat said.

"Very very very weird," Akkiko finished.

~~~

(One week later)

Kagome walked up to school, looking tired. Suddenly someone slapped her back.

"Kagome!" Akkiko squealed. She hugged Kagome. "I missed you." She stopped, and stared at the girl. "Hey, where's the usual pain-in-the-butt greeting that life is wonderful?"

Kagome yawned. "I was up all night studying, okay?"

Meg and Kat approached the two. "Hey, Kagome, haven't seen you in a while. Where ya been?"

"Yeah, how's your . . . rheumatism?"

Kagome snapped awake. "You called my house and talked to my grandfather, didn't you?"

"In a word, yes." Meg grinned. "So, you want to do something after school today?"

"Uh . . . no, I'll probably have homework . . . or . . . something. . ."

Meg stared. "But . . . It's . . . Friday!!" She shook Kagome gently. "Are you that insane woman, even Arimi's family doesn't make me work on Fridays.'

Akkiko nodded in agreement. "Yeah-Friday plus homework equals doesn't work!!"

Kagome now looked very uncomfortable. Suddenly the bell rang. She sighed, `I love that bell.' She ran off, saying, "Don't wanna be late!"

Akkiko called after her, "Don't think you can escape! You're in my class, remember?"

From the distance, there could be heard a word that sounded like: "CRAP!!"

~~~

"Come on, Kagome, you definitely aren't ill, so where were you for a week?" Akkiko prodded.

Kagome sighed and put her head in her hands. `Great-the first person who actually knows I'm not sick is the person who will prod into my life, find out every aspect of me, and probably fall down a well. Not mention she's insane . . . and she and Inu-yasha would probably kill each other.'

Akkiko sighed, and patted Kagome's shoulder. Coincidently, this was the hand with the ring on it. "Fine, I won't ask any-" she stopped, noticing that Kagome was looking at her funny. "What? Do I have something on my face?"

"Uh . . . it's nothing, really!" The bell rang for lunch. "Well, see you!"

~~~

(In Meg and Kat's classroom)

The bell rang for lunch. Kat looked over at Meg, who was in peaceful slumber. "Imouto-san?" Meg mumbled. Kat poked her back with her chopsticks. "I-mou-to-san?" More mumbling. "Imouto-san NO BAKA!!" WHACK!!

Meg rubbed the goose-egg on her head, beads of tears coming out of the corners of her eyes. "Feh! What was that for?!"

Kat glared at her. "It's lunchtime!"

"So?" Meg rested her head on her desk again. "Whoever put math before lunch was an idiot."

Kat sighed. "It doesn't matter what country you're in, some things never change."

Kat and Meg met up with Akkiko and they went to their usual spot to eat lunch. Kagome didn't show up at all.

Kat turned to Akkiko. "Where's Kagome?"

Akkiko thought for a moment and grinned. "Oh, she fell asleep in class, and she just looked so cute, I didn't think I should wake her up."

Kat stared. "Are you serious?"

Meg turned to her. "The translation: Houjo was in the class and Akkiko wanted to leave the two of them alone."

Akkiko stared then shrugged. "Sure, Meg. You think that."

Kat looked at Meg. "Why are you so intent on playing matchmaker?"

Meg pulled a fan out of her purse and held it up dramatically. "It's fun!"

Kat and Akkiko sweatdropped. Kat glared at Akkiko. "So what really happened?"

Akkiko shrugged. "She just ran out the door when the bell rang, okay? I have no idea where she went."

Meg shrugged. "Well, she was gone for a week. She probably has a lot of homework . . . maybe we're making too big a deal out of this."

Kat frowned. "Maybe, but Kagome is definitely keeping some sort of secret from all of us; she probably kept it from Arimi, Eri and Yuka, too."

"Yeah, maybe. But why wouldn't she tell us? I mean, it's not like we'll be living here forever."

~~~

(After school)

"I still wonder why Kagome wasn't in school yesterday," Meg mused. "Or the day before that."

"Or the day before that, or the day before that, or-" Akkiko stopped when Meg's fist collided with the back of her head.

"We get it, Akkiko," the brunette snapped.

"Yeah, and why didn't she seem so keen to talk about it?" Kat said.

The three passed by the Higurashi temple. Kagome was running up the stone steps, almost to the top. She seemed to be yelling at someone.

"Hey, Kagome!" Akkiko yelled, waving. Kagome didn't seem to hear her. Akkiko sighed. "Come on!" She started up the steps.

Meg and Kat looked at each other. "Akkiko! What the Hell are you doing?" They yelled together, following her.

"Finding out what's up with Kagome," Akkiko called over her shoulder.

"Haven't you ever heard the phrase: `Curiosity killed the cat'?" Kat called.

"`And satisfaction brought it back'," Meg finished. Kat shot her a death-glare.

"You're not helping!"

Reaching the top, the three girls stared as Kagome was dragged into a mini-shrine by a boy dressed in a red kimono. He had silver hair and. . . .

"Is it just me, or did that guy have dog ears?" Kat said, shocked.

"If it's just you, then I think we're all losing our minds, 'cuz I saw them too." Meg's eyes were very wide.

"Ah, but we would have to have minds in the first place in order to lose them." Akkiko jogged over to the mini-shrine, opening the door that had slammed behind Kagome and the boy.

"Akkiko-" Too late. The girl had already ducked into the building. Coming up behind her, Meg and Kat's jaws dropped as they watched Kagome and the dog-eared boy jump into a well. There was a shine of light from the bottom, and silence.

Akkiko raised a shaky finger. "Did you guys just see what I just saw?"

Kat and Meg nodded. Akkiko grinned. "Let's follow them!"

Kat stepped in front of her overly-excited friend. "Akkiko-no! That's going a little too far, I think."

Meg called down the well. "Hello? Kagome!? Are you down there?" There was no answer, save the echo of Meg's own voice. "Come on, Kat. I'm sure there's no harm in trying."

Kat shook her head. "No way. Let's go!" Walking past Akkiko, Kat felt something tugged out of her backpack. "What the-"

"Meg! Catch!" Akkiko shrieked, throwing Kat's science textbook at the brunette. Meg caught it with a devilish gleam in her eyes and threw it down the well.

"Ha!" She said to a shocked Kat. "Now you have to jump in!"

Kat glowered, going to the well's edge. Grabbing the collar of Meg's uniform, she forced her friend over the wooden lip. "You go get it!" she snapped, and let go.

Meg shrieked and grabbed Kat's wrist. As she fell, Kat screamed bloody murder and grabbed the shoulder of Akkiko's uniform. Akkiko swore as all three girls tumbled into the well. There was a flash of pearly light and then all was black.

# # #

End of Chapter 2! We finally make the journey to Feudal Japan! But I'll save that for the next chapter! Byes!

Disclaimer: I own no Inu-yasha characters mentioned, nor do I own Meg or Akkiko. I own only myself and the plotline.