InuYasha Fan Fiction ❯ Same Thing, Different Time ❯ Second Meeting: The Wait ( Chapter 8 )

Disclaimer: I don't own any part of InuYasha, and am still not seeking to gain anything in means of profit, rights, or anything else from creating this.

Re-announcing that this is my first fanfic story, EVER that I've shared with anyone and have allowed. Appreciate the reviews.

The 'bold, Italic' print words are what people are saying silently to themselves in. The Italic print words are stressing that particular word in the sentence.

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Same Thing, Different Time

by: aishiteru_inu

Part 8: Second Meeting: The Wait

It had been three days. Three days that he watched her: following her from above the tree tops, above the roof tops, staying out of sight. Already he had slayed two demons that had unwittingly picked up the jewel's essence. He could sensed that there were others about, but none were of any alarm…yet. And he had no doubt that more would come, would be drawn to it. Bigger. More dangerous.

And she didn't even have a clue to any of it. Not his presence. Not theirs.

He didn't doubt that Kaede had at least told her some things concerning that necklace…and him. But what and how much was the question. He knew that she had to have recognize the jewel in the girl's hand that day, if not the similarities between her and…

He just shook his head to rid himself of that thought.

Yeah, surely the old woman would have 'enlightened' the girl as much as she could. She of all people would be the only one to really be able to do that.

Maybe that was why the girl walked around in a sort of stupor. Aware, yet unaware. Looking, but not seeing. Or maybe it had been the events which happened. Too much to handle. At any rate, she was such easy prey.

With this damn collar on, he knew he wasn't going to get very far at taking the necklace outright from her, but he wasn't going to let anything else lay claim to it either. Until he was able to get it himself he would… well, he would just have to keep the girl safe.

For three days he had watched over her, doing just that.

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Kagome walked behind her three friends while heading home from school. She had spent the last few of days in a clouded fog because of the recent events that had happened in her life. Consequently, it had gotten her a few embarrassing reprimands from the teachers for her lack of concentration.

Even though that police officer, the older woman…… What was her name? -- Kaede something or other? -- had came by the house that very next day, Kagome still wasn't sure if it had all been just a dream. Surely, it couldn't be true about the things that she had told her! And yet, still, the circle of people and events she had started drawing toward her of recent months kept nagging at the back of her mind. She had already thought things were a bit more unusual since the necklace came into her possession, so why was she finding it so hard to accept any of the rest?

'Well, you'd have to accept that there is a real demon after you, for one,' she mentally told herself. 'And that some old woman wants you to believe that you're some kind of reincarnation of her dead sister. And that the gemstone you have has some kind of mystical power to it that you - of all people - are entrusted with."

"Hello-o? Earth to Kagome," her friend Yuki's voice broke through her distracted thoughts.

"W-What?"

"What's with you? You've been in a fog for the last few days. What gives?"

"N-nothing gives."

"It's a boy." Ayumi chimed in.

"What's a boy?" Kagome asked still dumbfounded at trying to figure out the conversation.

"The reason you've got your head in the clouds lately."

"It is not!"

"Then what's the reason?" The third one piped in.

"It's… It's…" 'Well,' she thought, 'what can you say?' "It's just… that I've a lot on my mind."

Yuki rolled her eyes up. "Of course there's a lot on your mind! We're just trying to figure out what it is since you haven't told us anything as to what it is."

"Oh,… I-It's nothing. Just… contemplating life."

"Oh, God!" her other friend exclaimed. "Kagome's brain has finally cracked from too much school, not enough boys."

"I still say it's a boy." Ayumi replied again.

"I… That's…not…" 'Better off just keeping your mouth shut.'

"We still going to the mall this weekend?" Eri asked.

"I am."

"Me, too."

Silence.

"Uh, Kagome?" Yuki asked when she failed to respond.

"Umm?"

Rolling her eyes a second time, she repeated the question. "Are you still going to the mall this weekend?"

"Yeah. Sure, I'll be there."

The four of them -- or at least three of them did -- carried on their conversation as they continued to walk down the sidewalk. They badgered Kagome, trying to get her to answer more of their questions, but they finally gave up since you can't get blood out of a stone.

As they got closer to the secondary entrance of the park, Kagome said, "I'm going to go this way, guys."

"Ok. Sure. Fine." Her friends answered, but didn't push as to why she was taking the scenic way home as of late.

"See you tomorrow."

There was a brief farewell from her friends as they parted directions.

Kagome turned from the walkway into the commons, and nearly jumped out of her skin when InuYasha immediately appeared before her. She cried out in alarm and found herself starting to fall backward: her backpack unbalancing her weight and was helping to pull her to the ground. The next instant, instead of a jarring thud she expected, she felt herself caught in a strong grasp which prevented her from hitting the hard ground.

When she dared to open her eyes, she saw InuYasha standing there with one hand on her arm and the other about her waist. For a couple of seconds they remained standing there like that. She blinked in disbelief, looking into his gold color eyes that were so close to her face at the moment, then she felt a pull as he righted her once more to her feet. He then released her and stepped away.

"Arigato, InuYasha," she thanked him for saving her as she straighten her uniform, but he didn't say anything in return. He just stood there as if waiting for something. "You scared the life out of me. What are you doing here?"

"Waiting for you," he simply said.

"Me?" There was surprise was in her voice, but then she remembered the reason for their past encounter. Subconsciously, her hand went to her chest feeling the round gem that laid between her breast through the material of her shirt.

"W-Why?" she questioned, even though she knew the answer already. After all, she did have her necklace on today.

"There's a lot of bad things that could happen on your way home."

'You being one of them,' she thought silently to herself.

"Umm… I… I'm suppose to wait for a friend of mine…" and as an afterthought, she added, "here."

Maybe he would decide to leave if he thought there was another person with her, or maybe he would just get tired of waiting and go away.

Her eyes went to the necklace that he wore. She remembered the police lady had said something about it having some kind of enchantment power to it. That it was the only thing allowing InuYasha to be able to get close without worrying -- much -- about him taking her necklace. Something about subjugating his soul or other. Beyond that she lost track of the rest because it all was so overwhelming to believe, let alone remember all of it. All she really understood was that when she said 'sit' he did a face plant.

Still, even with that knowledge, Kagome didn't want to test things further. One chase was enough, and she had already taken too many dangerous chances with this guy already.

InuYasha stared at her. 'She didn't seem like she was about to wait for anyone.' Then, with impatience, he grumbled, "Fine. We'll wait, then."

"Ok." 'Great! Now what?'

They waited.

Kagome looking pensively outward toward the street, her hands gripping the front straps of her backpack. Even if he hadn't been able to smell the agitation on her, anyone could have seen it by the way she fidgeted about, snapping her knee back and forth at a hurried pace.

InuYasha just sat down cross-legged next to the nearest tree, and folded his arms across his chest.

And they waited.

And still they waited a bit more, until finally InuYasha couldn't stand it any longer.

"They're not coming," he griped, shifting himself up to a standing position and started to move closer to her.

"It won't be much longer," she tried to buy a little more time, but he wasn't going to allow it.

"Feh! We've waited here forever already. They're not coming, and if they do and you're not here, it's they're own damn fault for being late!" He didn't permit her time to argue the point further as he grabbed her wrist, gave a pull, and dragging her into the park. "Come on."

"InuYasha! Let go!" she ordered, trying to dig her feet into the ground, struggling with him to stop. Only after he had pulled her a few yards did he do as she said, and as soon as he released her, she exclaimed, "You seriously think I'm going to walk anywhere with you?! You think I don't know what you're up to?!"

Regaining her bearing, Kagome imitated what she had seen him do on occasion, she crossed her arms in front of her heaving breasts. Then she tapped her foot upon the ground in annoyance. "I don't feel like doing another marathon today, and I don't relish loosing my school books either!"

An angry look came across his face, then he turned away to present his back to her, taking his usual stance.

"I'm just making sure that the necklace stays safe."

"As if I don't know what your real intentions are," she accused. "You get me deep enough into the park, where there's no one around…"

"No." he interrupted sharply.

There was a pause of silence, then he heard her say, "Ri-i-ight. Not like you wasn't going to try and take it before."

'The past always comes back to haunt you,' the words taunted him at the back of his mind. "Listen," he turned quickly, showing nothing less than his aggravation. "You want to get home safe or not? Go ahead and walk on alone if that's what you want, I don't care! I'm tired of waiting!"

"I didn't ask you to come and wait in the first place!" she snapped back.

If one could make a face look even more infuriated, Kagome had succeeded for InuYasha's scowl deepened. "Fine then." he replied angrily. "Just go by yourself! Don't come yelling for me when you get into trouble!"

In one springing leap, he jumped high into the air.

Kagome watched with an open mouth, as he went into the treetops and disappeared.

"No way," she murmured. "How…?"

After a few moments of staring into the empty air, Kagome brought her gaze back down to earth; closing her mouth as she now realized it had dropped open. She glanced around, but nobody was there. It was strange that she felt that much alone.

She released a heavy sigh, but wasn't sure whether it was of relief or something else.

Kagome looked over her shoulder beyond the entrance way that she had came through to the sidewalk path on the other side of it. She had avoided taking that way home over the recent weeks, and now she didn't feel comfortable about going this way alone either. With another arduous sigh, she resigned herself to walk the former way home… around through the city. She didn't especially like the prospect of doing that, but at least there would be more chance of people being around.

A sharp shiver ran over her entire body as if to throw off the thought of another danger. The possibility of running into any part that new gang that decided to set itself up in the area. No, it wasn't coincidental that she etched out a new route home just soon after they appeared. It didn't completely take her out of their 'territory' but at least it had for a good bit of it.

"Which is worse? The demon or…," she started to say, but somehow didn't quite know how to finish it. She was never one to come up with those cliché' quotes of her own.

With a pivot of her feet, Kagome turned and headed out of the park grounds.

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