InuYasha Fan Fiction ❯ The Cousin ❯ ...Scroll One... ( Chapter 2 )

Author's Thing That I Just Feel Like Putting In Here: Well, I got a lot of comments from past readers of this along the lines of `Why the hell is there a prologue in here? Was there one last time?' The answer is, `Because I felt like it.' and `No.'

Disclaimer: Don't own, so don't sue. I only own all my original characters, and even some of those had to be created by enlisting the help of others.

…Scroll One…

Standing under the God Tree, Kagome Higurashi released a held breath as she took in the peace of her era. Sure, the noise of civilization floated up to the Higurashi Family Shrine every so often, but at least she never had to worry about dying while she was in her own time period. But, Inuyasha had been adamant about her returning by noon, and the raven-haired girl did not want to get on the hanyou's bad side. Sighing, Kagome watched as the leaves moved in the late morning breeze, then straightened her back and began to walk towards the small hut in which the Bone Eater's Well was housed. Only seven feet from the sliding wooden door, the young miko-in-training heard the sound of running footsteps only seconds before she heard a slightly familiar voice yell, "Kagome!"

Quickly turning on her heel, Kagome felt a pair of strong arms encircle her shoulders, bringing her into a close hug that could even rival Shippo's. Seeing the flash of blonde hair, Kagome was instantly able to place the voice of the person hugging her to a face in her memory and pulled back to see if her assumptions were correct. Seeing the familiar smiling girl and the glinting of well-known blue eyes, Kagome felt her face break into a smile as she exclaimed, hugging the girl before her, "Jenni! I didn't know that you were to get here today! I thought that your flight was in a few more days! How was your trip?"

Pulling away from each other, the two girls walked to the shade covered bench that was situated beneath the large branches of the God Tree. Tugging her black tank top down a bit, Jenni crossed her legs and watched happily as the leaves above her swayed in the wind, much like Kagome had earlier. Looking at her slightly older cousin who was related to her on her mother's side, Kagome waited while the girl took in all the familiar sights of the shrine. Looking to meet the other girl's gaze, Jenni blushed slightly and said, "Sorry, forgot your question! Uh, the plane ride was fine! I talked to Auntie, and she said that if I hurried that I would be able to catch you before you left. But, why were you going to the well house? Some sort of chore?"

"Uh, yeah! I have to sweep it out!" Kagome fibbed quickly, all the while thinking to herself, `My cousin has great timing. Now I can't get back to the feudal era! Inuyasha's gonna be mad at me now, but I really don't think that it would be very polite to just leave Jenni here after she's traveled all this way to stay with us… And family does come before Jewel Shards…' Noticing that Jenni was quirking an eyebrow at her, Kagome realized that she had been silent for a short while and hastily asked, "Uhm, do you wanna go up to my room to catch up on old times? You are going to school here, right? Mom can get you the forms and register you on Monday and get you a uniform. Wanna go do that now?"

"Sure! Auntie told me to go ahead and put my bags in your room. I hope that you don't mind?" Jenni informed the Japanese girl as they stood and began to move towards the large house located on the shrine property.

"That's great! It will be like when we were little and we would have those sleepovers!" Kagome smiled, taking her cousin's arm and quickly running to the front door, intent on getting the topic off the reason that she was nearing the well house earlier. The time-traveling girl just didn't see the sense in telling her cousin about the Jewel Shards, Naraku, and the whole kit-and-caboodle at the moment.



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Leaning against the worn wood that marked the hole that was the Bone Eater's Well, the half-dog, half-human Inuyasha huffed under his breath as he marked the distance that the sun had traveled in the sky. That wench had said that she would be back by the time the sun was high in the sky, when the shadows were directly underneath you! The hanyou suspected that it was already half a candlemark past that time! Standing, the silver-haired teen stuffed his hands inside the sleeves of his outer coat and began to pace in a quick line, turning on his heel sharply to begin the pacing once more. Watching through hooded eyes, the young kitsune Shippo sucked on a lollipop that Kagome had given him before she left and asked around the large, round candy, "Why don't you just go after her Inuyasha? We all know that you want to!"

"Shippo…" Inuyasha began slowly, keeping his back from the young demon pup. Turning slowly, the hanyou pinned a bone-chilling glare on the young child and questioned, "What have I told you about sneaking up on me?"

Beginning to worry for his safety, Shippo answered stutteringly, "Uh, to n-not sneak up on y-you?"

"Very good." Inuyasha said coolly. Now Shippo was definitely worried for the hanyou. He never acted like this! Where was the wallop on his head, the yelling, and the grabbing of the tail? Deciding that the hanyou was not himself, Shippo stood and silently jumped from the ledge of the well's lip and quickly walked to the dog-demon. Jumping onto the older male's shoulder, Shippo advised the teen, "Why don't you go to Kagome's time and get her? Then we can begin searching for the Jewel Shards."

"Good advice Shippo. Why didn't I think of that?" Inuyasha asked, sarcasm visibly laced through his words. Faster than Shippo expected, the right fist of the hanyou was perched upon came down on his skull, creating the well known bump on top of his little head. Jumping down, Shippo yelled, "Inuyasha, you jerk! Why did you do that! I'm gonna tell Kagome, an' she's gonna Sit you!" Quickly scampering off, lollipop in his mouth, Shippo left Inuyasha alone with the well. Watching the young brat (in the hanyou's opinion) run back to the village, Inuyasha stood silently for a few moments before turning and facing the well. With a single leap, he had covered the few feet and soon was falling through time, heading for the present era.



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Up in Kagome's room, the two cousins were talking animatedly to each other, sharing stories together and laughing over their fond memories. Ever since the two had been five, Jenni had lived in the United States, and they had only seen each other six times in the eleven years of separation. Jenni had had to move to the United States at the age of five and a half because her mother, Kagome's own mother's younger sister, had been told by her boss to move to America for a job assignment. Jenni's father was himself American born and bred, and had helped his only daughter to learn the complicated new language. Now, at the age of sixteen, Jenni's mother had been transferred once again, only this time she was being sent back to Japan. The blonde had asked that she be sent to live with her cousins and aunt, so she could start her eleventh year in Japan and make some friends, instead of entering the school year halfway through. Agreeing with this idea, her parents had contacted her aunt and the small family had quickly made arrangements for the sixteen year old to stay at the Higurashi Family Shrine. Jenni was to stay with Kagome's family for half a year, or until her parents were able to move across the sea.

As they both fell into a comfortable silence, Kagome stood and asked the other, "Hey, do you want anything to snack on? Cookies or anything?"

"Yeah! Airplane food isn't really edible, ya know?" Jenni said as her stomach grumbled softly. Laughing, Kagome asked her as she walked to the door, "What would you like?" Blushing at her loud tummy, the blonde smiled and said, "Well, anything is better than the slop they tried to feed us." Smiling, Kagome told the girl, "I'll be right back then! You can begin unpacking if you would like! Momma said that we would be sharing a room!"

Raising her legs above her, Jenni swung off her upside-down position on the bed and landed solidly on the carpeted floor. Giving the Japanese girl a thumbs up sign, she stated, "Will do!" as she moved towards her large suitcase that was currently lying on the floor. Unlocking the main zipper, she said, "Oh, and don't let me forget to give you your present either."

"Present?!" Kagome squealed, imitating her school friend Yuki. Smiling, she said, "Okay, I'll be back real soon!" as she raced down the stairs two at a time, door left swinging on it's hinges from her sudden departure. Grinning, Jenni turned her attention to her bag and began to unload several of her belongings from the large leather bag.



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Jumping from the well, Inuyasha ran swiftly to the tree that he knew led to Kagome's bedroom window, intent on dragging the girl back to the Warring States Era, even if she tried to Sit him. Even he could feel that Jewel Shards were close to the village, but they needed Kagome there so they could pinpoint their exact location. Jumping the several feet to one of the largest branches, the hanyou noted that the girl had left her window unlocked again, and heard her yell, "I'll be back real soon!", followed shortly by the sound of footsteps going down the staircase rapidly, stumbling once before resuming its pace. Wondering how she already knew that he was there, Inuyasha shrugged and silently opened the window, slipping into the modern day girl's room. Looking around the girlish room, he decided to sit upon the floor, and unceremoniously plopped onto his butt, crossing his legs in his normal pose. Inhaling deeply, the hanyou felt his slightly restless nerves still and let his breath out with a long sigh.

"Kagome…" he said at the end of his breath, reveling in the smell of the girl who was the reincarnate of his one-time lover.

"No, I am actually Jenni." a voice stated mater-o-factly. "Now that we have that cleared up, would you mind telling me who you are, and why you are in this room?"