#7 in 8 battles because I went back over an area after a blood moon

[mandasfandoms]

I fought 7 Yiga clan members in 8 different battles. They were just all over the area I wanted to explore.

#me talking about Legend of Zelda #7 in 8 battles because I went back over an area after a blood moon #anyway I was actually looking for bears

[mandareeboo]

SU Music Rankings

Bc I can and I wanna start some Disk Horse rip. These are all in order of preference, with explanations, etc. It’s a long bitch. That said, I’m not counting little short jingles or small joke songs like Little Butler. This is the meat and potatoes of SU music- just under 30 songs. I might do the rest if people like my takes lol.

I scored it mostly on three bases- how dear it was to my heart, how much/often I relisten to it, and also what it means to the plot. That said, little fun songs don’t automatically go farther down than big, plot-heavy songs either! It’s a strange little balance.

Special Note: I don’t dislike any of this music! I love SU and that includes its bumps and glitches. I just pick favorite children lol.

1.) Change

Was there ever a more Steven moment than when he wiped the blood off his face and kissed it into sparkles? I think not. 

If “Be Wherever You Are” is an ode to young Steven, then this is teen Steven’s. Talking about change, and how much and how little it can do. How he holds his arms up for Spinel to hug him, so trusting. How he seems able to just. Break into soft tears at will, and not to be manipulative- it’s just his kind nature. The warmth in his voice. Fuck yesssss.

2.) Change Your Mind

This song is only fifty five seconds and it’s EVERYTHING to me. It really felt like someone was speaking the words I’d always held deep inside of me, unsure of how to say. It feels like a goodbye to someone who never really loved me. 

As much as I enjoyed Future, if this was the finale of SU, I would’ve been perfectly okay with that.

3.) Drift Away

This song gave me legitimate shivers the first time I heard it, and it still haunts me to this day. Spinel stayed, and waited, and all she got was a transmission thousands of years later. Fuck.

4.) Here We Are In The Future

THE MOVIE IS SU AS ITS BEST AND I WON’T BE SWAYED ON IT. Steven being a teen who loves his weird family but is growing just a bit sarcastic to their drama. The adorable love he and Connie share. His slow realization that he will always be working, always have things to do, is both somber and real. The Crystal Gems won’t be safe with one epic battle. They’ll be safe with years of hard work and love. HIS LITTLE HANDSHAKE WITH AMETHYST.

This is a helluva bop and a great way to summarize the main character’s backstories.

5.) Let’s Only Think About Love

Did ya’ll know that Zach Callison killed his throat with that last note? He gave his all for this performance in a vocal range he no longer comfortably do and by god did it SHINE. The FLAIR. The FORESHADOWING. All of the Gems all being awkward about Rose and Steven trying to bring them to the present. Peridot having a mini-existential crisis in a cute yellow dress. I love Zach Callison’s normal singing voice but man is that a fucking bop. Nothing will ever beat it.

6.) Here Comes A Thought

This bad boy helped me out a LOT with some mental issues I was dealing with in high school. I was unmedicated, unsupervised, and full of anxiety. I’d have break downs when I tried to speak about certain things. I couldn’t function. This song inspired me. It helped me feel okay with my intrusive thoughts.

And the episode! -chef’s kiss-. Once again bringing up the morally gray area of training child soldiers. Connie expanding her social group. Steven’s trauma hauling ass in that second half. The ANIMATION. Stevonnie’s gorgeous singing voice. GOD yes.

7.) It’s Over Isn’t It?

Just barely squeaking above Stronger Than You, this ballad is everything gorgeous. The whole episode is. I think Mr. Greg stands in the top five of my episodes for the entire show. It even got nominated!

There’s just so much about this song that I love. The gentle melancholy of Pearl’s voice. How the crew had to redo the shots for this bit bc Deedee went so fucking hard. The hard cuts between Pearl, remembering the love of her life, and Steven, who has begun to feel like he took her away. I’d recommend this song to anyone, regardless of what they do or don’t know about SU, simply bc it tugs so many heartstrings of love, loss, and responsibility.

8.) Stronger Than You

Did you realize this episode aired SEVEN years ago? This bitch was what got me into SU! Hearing about Ruby and Sapphire made my little gay heart so happy inside, and then getting a whole song confirming that they were a couple, that their love powered the strongest Gem on the team? Aaaaaaaaa

To this DAY I get excited when I hear Estelle start singing. This song is timeless. This song will live in media history. God I fucking love this song.

9.) Other Friends

I’m not the biggest musical person, so I hadn’t heard of Sarah Stiles before her casting as Spinel, but JESUS CHRIST the lady went hard. She went SO fucking hard. Sarah Stiles started on 100 and somehow just kept CLIMBING. You can just hear the sheer manic energy building in her voice, the anger and resentment. 10/10 Sarah Stiles is a queen.

10.) Independent Together

This made the list entirely bc the crew was like “you’re gonna get a himbo ass Steven-Greg fusion singing with Opal while Garnet flies across the moon on Lion while floating” and I am forever thankful to them for it

11.) Who We Are

Bismuth deserved more songs. ‘Nuff said.

12.) Peace and Love (On the Planet Earth)

It Could’ve been Great is EASILY one of my favorite s2 episodes. I love the entire concept of this song. Of Steven making music to reflect how much Earth means to him and his family. Of him teaching Peridot some self-care. Also Peridot’s singing voice is really cute and squeaky. 

I know it’s silly, but I would’ve really enjoyed a flip around of this in Future! Like Peridot reminding Steven how much he loves music, that he needs to take time to relax for himself, maybe with a new verse or just a remix of the original song!

13.) Something Entirely New

I watched this episode as it aired, and I legitimately almost cried. I love Charlyne Yi’s voice so much ya’ll- her raspy, not perfect singing voice against Sapphire’s deep soothing lull is great.

And to have Ruby and Sapphire’s meeting be the way it was- for Ruby to bemoan Sapphire losing Homeworld, to being stuck with a single Ruby, while Sapphire is a noble who has always been taught everyone in her “caste” is vitally important (and has, in her own mind, taken that to mean every Gem, as she should) and how they come together and make each other happy. Good shit good shit.

14.) I’m Just a Comet

The fact that Greg’s music career never really blasted off pisses me off to this day bc Tom Scharpling’s voice is fucking BUTTER. Also the song really feels like a jab at his parents now that we know the kind of dynamic he had growing up. “This life in the stars if all I’ve ever known” is definitely him wiping away their existence after reminding them (and himself) the things they used to say about him.

15.) Do It For Her

This episode. This fucking episode. This episode got me permanently hooked on SU. I’d just binged season 1 and was kinda meh about it overall after the bop of Stronger Than You. “Oh,” I thought to myself, foolishly, “I’ll probably just casually watch this from time to time.”

Like three days later Sworn to the Sword aired and that was it. I was hooked! Pearl’s gentle training song turning darker and darker, Connie’s accompaniment from nervous to determined to fully into such a toxic mindset. The fact that SU had the BALLS to discuss the repercussions of training child soldiers, now and later. This episode was everything to me, STILL is everything to me.

Six years and well over 100 fanfics written later, I think it’s safe to say this show swallowed me whole and never let go.

16.) System/Boot.pearl_final(3)

I debated putting this on the list because it’s not anything crazy important, just a way to show things are Wrong, but I had to do it entirely bc Pearl is so damn SALTY.

Like telling us about the Gems makes sense, she felt like she was given a duty, but she went so damn petty. WHY is that Ruby alone. Gross. This Amethyst is a trash dump. Wtf are you people.

17.) Full Disclosure

This episode really feels like a turning point for SU. Before, the show had its dark moments- but now we’re in the thick of it, and it’s not going away. Full Disclosure felt like an rebuff to the idea of returning to any normal we’d established in season 1. Gems are actually a giant species now. Gems tried to kill us now. There’s this Yellow Diamond bitch who got namedropped. Something about a Cluster. 

The song itself is BALLER, with its ingenious use of Steven’s ringtone and photos as he tries to decide whether to clue in Connie on all this nonsense. Meanwhile we, the audience, already know damn well Connie about to yeet some common sense into him.

18.) What’s the Use of Feeling Blue?

I’mma admit it- I’m a Yellow Diamond stan. I’ve always loved her- her anger, her poise, her hardworking nature. I actively argued against the “Yellow Shattered Pink” theories back in the day. But, man, when this arc leaked? I got so overexcited I was too jittery to watch it for like two days. It’s easily my favorite arc of the series. The sheer alien nature of the zoo, the Famethyst, and absolutely Patti Lupone’s beautiful ballad. Goddamn. Yellow singing to Blue to try and help her regain her old status, the warble in her voice as she reminds Blue she misses Pink too, the movement of the bubbles as she talks about attack. It gives me shivers to this day. FUCK.

19.) Tower of Mistakes

This is, fun fact, that only SU song I have completely memorized. The story itself is kinda funny! See, we lost internet at my house for a solid 5 to 6 months when these episodes aired, so I only got a very brief window to view them all. But this was the first Amethyst song in a long while, and I didn’t want to forget it! So I keep replaying it in my head for ages. And that’s still definitely a thing.

Anyway will never not be sad that this entire song was about making it up to Garnet for Amethyst’s perceived slights with Sugilite (which was a two-way road), only for Garnet to pressure her into fusion later when pissed and never discuss it again bc Garnet probably never thought twice about it and Amethyst has the emotional openness of a clam that’s just been told its ugly. Helluva way to make someone feel like shit, G. Helluva way to bottle that shit, Ames.

20.) On the Run

I’ve said it once, I’ve said it a million times: Amethyst! Needed! More! Songs! 

The dichotomy between Steven’s play and Amethyst’s honest desire to run away from home is so well-done, especially when you consider a lot of Steven and Amethyst’s actions are playing together. The song is also near and dear to me simply bc it’s my favorite Amethyst episode to exist (well, maybe second to What’s Your Problem, but not by much). Moments like these are all the proof I need that they were right to fuse first.

21.) Be Wherever You Are

This tune really just feels like an ode to who Steven was as a kid. Trapped on an island with no way home, and he’s just happy to be with his friends. The stars are beautiful and not oppressive. Also that one animatic with Lars and the Off Colors playing in the Homeworld Kindergarten to this music was iconic and made this song get stuck in my head for a solid month.

22.) Familiar

I ADORE how the crew use bright neon colors to show how alien Homeworld can be. And Steven recognizing that the Diamonds treat him how the CGs used to, and how prepared he is to “fix” a broken family. It’s a soft, gentle tune about melancholy. Also the Pebbles are beautiful.

23.) Let Me Drive My Van Into Your Heart

Such a cute little love ballad, but every time I listen to it now I just imagine the heart attack Rose must’ve had at the line “And if we look out of place/Well, baby, that's okay/I'll drive us into outer space.” like there’s a Vietnam war flashback if I ever heard one

24.) What Can I Do?

I’m kind of neutral on this one? Rose and Greg both have great voices, but the song itself lacks many lyrics. I think it was definitely a good way to show Rose’s flaws in thinking.

Also, I’m shocked they managed cram that much vaguely sexual innuendo into two minutes, followed by how Not Hetereo that dance between Rose and Pearl was, and not get their asses chewed by it. You go guys.

25.) Cookie Cat

I love a lot of the vibes this song has. The lyrics are so damn prophetic, but they also sound like the kind of weird 90s commercials I grew up on. It’s been like two decades since I saw the Shirley Temple commercial but I’ll be damned if I don’t remember “Animals crackers in my soup! Monkey and rabbits loop-de-loop.”

26.) Giant Woman

I am. NOT the biggest fan of Steven’s original singing voice. I feel bad saying that, since it was just Zach Callison as a kid, but he never jived well with me for some reason. So I wouldn’t listen to this on the fly. 

The song itself is still really good though, with all sorts of fun animation of Amethyst and Pearl being bitchy to each other. It’s a bit sad in hindsight to see tiny Steven trying to get his moms to get along. Ahh, season 1.

27.) Strong in the Real Way

This song has SUCH a strong start. Pearl reflecting on Sugilite’s problems, but the show making sure to show us that Pearl’s lack of enthusiasm towards her also lends itself to jealousy as well as just general malaise. How much she cares about Steven, and wants him to grow up strong. 

And then Steven just kinda. Ruins it? I appreciate his enthusiasm for tryna bulk up but to take what was starting as such a rich, personal song and broadcasting it to random strangers just makes me a bit sad. Almost a bit angry on her behalf?

28.) That Distant Shore

I KNOW this is gonna create some discourse, but I’m just not the biggest Lapis stan. I love her voice. I love the visuals of the song. And I get why she felt afraid and needed to flee.

But Lapis never got to take responsibility for her own actions. And, in the end, the song feels hollow to me- because we all know she’ll never talk to anyone about it, know she’ll burst back in and destroy the barn, and no one will ever question it. I like Lapis a lot, but I feel like her arc never was fully finished. She never got help. She never learned to feel safe.

29.) Dear Old Dad

I’ve yet to meet a single human being who likes this episode tbh. There’s some great discussion about what kind of parent Greg is from it, and what kind of dynamic he has with the Gems that he felt he had to fake an injury to hang out with his son. Honestly the first half was fine and dandy. It’s just that then they Greg just went out of his way to drag Steven away from missions and such. It never jived well with his character before or after.

Also, is it just me, or does Zach himself sound like he hates the song as he sings it? There’s no passion or heart in his voice. It sounds like they told him to read off cue cards and he did. Tom Scharpling’s best attempts didn’t save this one for being a skipper. But the episode, unfortunately, isn’t, so it gets a spot on here.

#Steven Universe #Steven Universe Future #SU Analysis #(I guess????) #Music #Steven Quartz Universe #Amethyst #Garnet #Pearl #Yellow Diamond #Blue Diamond #Blue Pearl #Yellow Pearl #Greg Universe #Bismuth #Spinel #Lapis Lazuli #Steg #Opal #Rose Quartz #Lars Barriga #Sadie Miller #Sapphire #Ruby #Stevonnie #Falc talks

[splendidlyimperfect]

When a magical mishap transforms Natsu, Sting and Rogue, Gray finds himself responsible for a horde of dragons.

Chapter Summary: Being in Isvan brings back memories from Gray's past.  

Chapters (9/?): 1 | 2 | 3 | 4 | 5 | 6 | 7 | 8 | 9 Relationships: Rogue Cheney/Natsu Dragneel/Sting Eucliffe/Gray Fullbuster, Laxus Dreyar/Freed Justine, Levy McGarden/Gajeel Redfox Additional Tags: Canon Universe, Fairy Tail Dragon Slayers, Magical Accidents, Spells & Enchantments, Transformation, Dragons, Fluff and Crack, Crack Treated Seriously, kind of, baby dragons are basically kittens, I make the rules here, Fluff and Humor, Cute, like super fucking cute, it’s just dumb and fluffy okay, Nonbinary Character, Freed’s enby, because i say so

**i'm basing everything about isvan on inuit (ᐃᓄᐃᑦ) culture and language (specifically inuinnaqtun). unfortunately my only source for inuinnaqtun comes from a dictionary, so if any inuit folk are reading this and have corrections for me, i warmly welcome them!

-----

“This was probably not my best idea.”

Gray sat next to the campfire, keeping a careful eye on Natsu as he stalked toward the flames, tail flicking back and forth in excitement. “Be careful,” Gray warned, holding Sting in his lap and stroking behind his ears. Sting purred happily and rubbed his head back against Gray’s fingers.

Natsu gave Gray an offended look, then pounced forward, eating some of the flames. He scrambled backward after a second, smoke spilling from his mouth, then turned to Gray and opened wide to breathe out a line of fire.

“Not at me, you little idiot!” Gray yelped, quickly patting out the tiny fire that started on his sleeve. Sting made an indignant noise on Gray’s behalf and pounced at Natsu, knocking him onto his back and nipping at his neck. Natsu kicked at him with his hind feet, growling half-heartedly as the attack turned playful.

Continue reading on AO3

“Hopefully he doesn’t burn down the tent,” Freed said mildly from the other side of the fire where they were bundled up and holding their hands out to keep warm. Laxus had already proven he could use his lightning magic when he ate the sparks from the flint for the fire, and he watched Sting and Natsu’s battle with something like disdain from where he was settled in front of Freed. Rogue, who seemed to have taken a liking to Laxus despite his initial uncertainty, was curled up next to him, fast asleep with his tail over his nose.

“I probably shouldn’t encourage him,” Gray mused, shifting close to the fire and prodding at it with a stick. Sparks drifted up into the sky, highlighting the soft flakes of snow that drifted slowly down around them. The area where they had made camp was sheltered in a grove of pine trees, and Freed had created a rune barrier above them to keep out most of the snow.

Sting, who had scampered away from Natsu’s retaliatory attack, dove into a pile of snow just outside the area they’d cleared. When he surfaced, his muzzle was wet from the snow he’d eaten. Natsu stalked toward him, then yelped when a blast of white magic hit the ground next to his front paws. Sting made a chittering sound that was almost a laugh before pouncing back onto Natsu and sitting on his stomach.

“I think he wins,” Gray said, laughing at the outraged look that Natsu managed to throw his way. Natsu turned back to Sting and bit his foot, kicking him off when Sting stumbled back in surprise. A line of fire shot out from Natsu’s mouth, scorching the ground in front of Sting and lightly singeing the fur on his chest.

“Natsu!” Gray chided, reaching out for him and grabbing him by the scruff of his neck. “Don’t be an asshole.”

Natsu whined, twisting in Gray’s grip and trying to nip at Gray’s fingers. “I know you’re excited about your magic,” Gray said, setting Natsu down in his lap and scratching the top of his head. “You can’t just light everything you see on fire, though.”

A small puff of smoke wisped up from Natsu’s nostrils as he huffed, then slowly relaxed under Gray’s hands. When Sting clambered up next to him, Natsu made an apologetic noise and started to groom the singed fur on Sting’s chest.

“That’s better,” Gray said, leaning back and shifting so they could both curl up between his legs. “So, what about you?” He looked over at Rogue, who blinked at him sleepily as he uncurled from his sleeping position, then stretched out his front legs, kneading the ground as he yawned.

“He should be able to just…” Freed gestured around them vaguely. The sun had set not long ago, and the forest was filled with shadows cast from the bright silver light of the moon. Rogue ambled over to the edge of the makeshift campsite, watching the dark spots on the ground shift and flicker with the light of the campfire. Gray watched in fascination as the shadows solidified for a second before they disappeared into Rogue’s open mouth.

Rogue turned back to the two of them, looking pleased with himself before he disappeared.

“What the—”

Gray’s panic was short lived when Rogue reappeared on the other side of the fire next to Laxus, who jumped in surprise and bared his teeth.

“Interesting,” Freed said, reaching out and running their finger across Laxus’ head until he stopped growling and settled next to their leg. Rogue followed, standing on his hind legs and headbutting Freed’s other hand. “So it’s not just their breath magic.”

“Well that’s inconvenient,” Gray muttered, raising an eyebrow at Rogue, who purred happily as Freed petted him. “The last thing we need is him disappearing. They’re small enough as it is.”

“You’re not going to disappear on us, are you?” Freed asked Rogue, voice shifting into a soft, fond cadence as they scratched beneath Rogue’s chin. Rogue flicked his tail contentedly, then wriggled his entire body and hopped up onto Freed’s lap. Laxus gave him a quiet growl and Freed rolled their eyes, holding out their hand so Laxus could scramble up as well.

“You’d better not disappear,” Gray said seriously as he grabbed the stick from next to him and poked at the fire. “We have to stick together; it’s just going to get colder the farther north we go.”  Natsu, who was now curled up underneath Sting and using him as a blanket, grumbled.

“It would help if we knew where we were going,” Freed pointed out, shifting so their feet were closer to the fire. “Does anything seem familiar?”

Gray stared at the flames, watching the patterns as it crackled and spit. Fragments of memory had come and gone all day, but any time he tried to focus on them, they drifted away like smoke into the night.

“Sometimes,” he said eventually. “It’s hard to know what’s real and what’s dreams. It was a long time ago.”

Freed nodded, shuffling closer to the flames. “Memory is a strange thing,” they said softly. “Especially when it’s tied to trauma.”

Gray continued to stare into the flames as heat crept into his cheeks, and he nearly dropped his stick into the fire. Freed was his best friend, but even they only knew bits and pieces of Gray’s past.

“I think—we might be close to where I lived,” he said hesitantly. “With my parents. Before Ur. I’m not sure. I think—that lake we passed, earlier today… I think I went there with my paappak.” When Freed made a curious sound, he clarified, “My dad. I remember that much. And amaamak – my mom.” The words felt foreign in his mouth, and they filled his chest with a soft sense of longing.

“You don’t talk about them,” Freed said. A cold breeze picked up around them, tossing small flurries of snow into the air. Freed reached out a hand and made a few simple gestures, pulling the barrier above them down until it surrounded them on three sides and kept the wind out.

“It was a long time ago,” Gray said. Sting made a soft trilling sound from his place on top of Natsu, and Gray smiled, scratching behind his ears. “It hurts to talk about them,” he admitted quietly. “I miss them. And forgetting… it feels like I’m losing them. I wish I remembered more.”

“Of the language, you mean?”

Gray nodded. “I didn’t even speak Fioran until Ur adopted me,” he said. “I know other people up here must speak Isvanian, but nobody in Fiore does, so I don’t have anyone to speak it with. So it just disappears, bit by bit, and it feels like I lose them even more.”

“I could learn,” Freed offered. Gray looked up at them and they smiled at him through the flames. “I’m good at languages, you know that. I’m sure there’s books on it somewhere.”

“That’s a lot of work.”

Freed shrugged. “I like work,” they said simply. “And you’re my best friend. If it helps you feel connected to your past and your culture, I want to do it.”

Gray swallowed against the lump that suddenly pressed against his throat. Sting, who seemed to sense the change in his mood, purred loudly and squirmed off of Natsu, sitting up on his back legs and pressing his paws to Gray’s chest. Gray laughed, kissing the top of Sting’s head and helping him clamber up until he was tucked into Gray’s hood, head resting on Gray’s shoulder.

“Ilannaq,” Gray said, looking up at Freed. “It means ‘friend.’ Actually, ‘ivjurnauti’ would be better, it’s—like best friend, I guess.”

“Ivjurnauti,” Freed repeated. Hearing the word spoken by someone else after so many years made Gray feel warm – like he was little again and sitting by the fire while amaamak told him stories. “What else do you remember?”

A memory of pain and blood flashed through Gray’s mind and he pushed it away, soothed by Sting’s soft purrs and the way Natsu burrowed closer to him, making soft, contented sounds.

“There was another village,” Gray said, closing his eyes to try to pull the threads of memory together. “I don’t remember what it was called. My grandfather came from there and we’d visit sometimes. The way we’re going, it feels like we’re close.”

“Hopefully we’ll find it tomorrow,” Freed said, covering their mouth as a yawn escaped. “Maybe someone there can tell us about the guild.”

Gray nodded and rubbed his face as exhausted slowly started to overtake him. He scratched behind Natsu’s ears as he relaxed back against the log behind him, tipping his head back to stare through the rune barrier at the sky. Millions of stars spilled across the deep black night, forming unfamiliar constellations.

They sat in silence for a while, watching the campfire smoke drift up into the sky. Eventually the horizon started to shimmer, and a faint green light began to paint itself into the night. It drifted higher, twisting and turning and spilling out lines of pink and purple as it trailed overhead.

“Aqhalingiaq,” Gray said softly as memories of sitting on his father’s lap and watching the northern lights filled his mind. “The light,” he explained when Freed looked over at him. “That’s what it’s called.”

“I’ve never seen it before,” Freed said, tipping their head back to stare at the brilliant display. The lights gave their hair a soft bluish tinge “I’ve only read about it in books – it’s beautiful.”

Laxus, who had fallen asleep in Rogue’s lap, blinked slowly awake and stretched, then tipped his head back to stare at the sky along with them. Sting made a contented sound and rubbed his cheek against Gray’s before yawning and cuddling closer.

Gray sighed happily, closing his eyes and letting himself drift into memories. They came in bits and pieces – some of them painful, some of them not – and he let all of them wash over them, releasing them when they hurt too much. It was easier here than back home, and Gray felt a comfortable warmth fill him as he let himself exist and remember, surrounded by love and the snow and the northern lights.

~

That night, Gray dreamed about his mother.

Instead of crying next to her still body, dream-Gray was little – two or three years old, peeking over her shoulder from where he was tucked snugly into the sealskin akuq she wore. She was sitting outside under the bright winter sun, carefully sewing tiny beads into the fabric on her lap. Her hands were small and quick, the soft brown skin weathered from years of work.

The needle flew in and out of the fabric, pulling beads after it that told stories Gray couldn’t remember. After a moment, his mother began to sing an Isvanian lullaby as she rocked back and forth.

“I am proud of you,” she said softly to dream-Gray, reaching back and touching his cheek as the dream started to dissolve. “And I love you very much.”

~

Gray woke to the sound of cursing.

“Stupid lizard!” an unfamiliar voice shouted. Gray was immediately up, throwing off the heavy blankets and scrambling out of the tent into the clearing. Two women stood near the extinguished fire, one of them holding her bleeding hand against her chest. Natsu sat on the ground a short distance away, growling and spreading his wings to look as big as possible.

“Natsu!” Gray shouted, darting forward and grabbing him while forming a shield of ice to block the blast of dark energy that flew from the other woman. It smashed against the barrier hard enough to shatter it and knock Gray onto his back. His head hit the ground as his breath rushed out of him, blurring his vision for a second before he managed to scramble backward and push himself to his feet. Natsu struggled against Gray’s grip, growling fiercely at the women as Gray stumbled toward the tent.

“Gray! Get back!” A wall of purplish runes sprang up between Gray and the attackers as Freed appeared behind him, looking disheveled but ready to fight. “Is it—”  

“It’s them,” Gray said, immediately recognizing the Vengeance Soul guild mark on the back of both the women’s hands. A hot, stinging fear rushed through him, and suddenly all he could see was Sting lying on his back, blood dripping from where Gray’s hands were pressed against the devastating wound his side. “Where are the other—”

Gray’s panicked question was interrupted by the appearance of Sting, Rogue and Laxus at the flap to the tent, all peering curiously out at the commotion. Gray quickly dropped Natsu next to them and nudged them all back with his foot, keeping one eye on the women as he formed a blade of ice.

“You did this,” he hissed at them, gripping the hilt of the sword. “What do you want?” Neither of the women responded, and the one in the back held her hands out as a dark, rippling miasma began to form above them.

“Get them out of here,” Freed said, right hand holding up the barrier as their left hand started to draw symbols in the air. “Dark Ecriture: Pain,” he murmured as a blast of runes flew through the air. The woman in front easily deflected the magic with a flick of her wrist and Freed’s eyes widened in surprise.

Gray shook his head, eyes dropping to the scar on his wrist. “It was a trap,” he said quietly, exhaling as he let the demon markings appear on his arm. A wave of nausea flowed through him, just like every time he used the magic, and he shook his head to get rid of the dizzy sensation. “They just want me.”

“You can’t just let them take you,” Freed hissed. “I can use—”

“You can’t use Darkness Magic,” Gray said quickly, grabbing Freed’s arm. “It’s demon magic. I don’t know what’ll happen.” He gestured to the markings that crawled down his arm and made twisting patterns across his skin. Images of Natsu with bared teeth and dragon scales appeared in his mind and he shuddered. He wasn’t about to repeat that fight.

Another blast of dark magic shattered Freed’s barrier, knocking them back into the tent. Gray quickly stepped in front of them as his devil slayer magic started to take over, spreading a bone-deep chill through his body.

“Go!” he shouted, shoving Freed back toward the dragons. Before they could argue, Gray dropped to his knees and pressed his hand to the ground, satisfied when a wall of ice sprang up behind him. He could hear Natsu and the others whining in confusion and his heart ached as he ignored the sounds and stepped forward.

“Don’t worry,” the woman in front said as she stepped forward. “We’re not after them. They aren’t much a threat like that anyways.” Her laugh was grating.

“You did this to them,” Gray growled, pushing himself to his feet. “It was all just to get to me? What do you even want with this?” He held out the arm that was patterned with black, showing them the scar. “You already tried to cut it out, what more do you—”

Before he could finish his sentence, the woman disappeared. Gray blinked, then cursed as he felt a sharp pain in the side of his neck. When he tried to reach up and touch it, he couldn’t move his arm.

The last thing Gray saw before everything disappeared was the woman’s grinning face, and a set of glowing red eyes.

#fairy tail #gratsustingue #ot4 #discord&dragons #gray fullbuster #natsu dragneel #sting eucliffe #rogue cheney #fraxus #freed justine #laxus dreyar #update #new chapter

[newagesispage]

                                                                        OCTOBER 2017

 *****The beautiful dino, Sue will be moved to her own gallery in Chicago’s field museum. New to her long fixed spot will be a cast of patagotitan mayorum, the biggest dinosaur ever found.

*****Richard Thomas is selling his NY midtown coop for $2,995,000 and is located at 7th Ave. and w. 58th.

*****California is waiting for Jerry Brown to sign a bill that bans puppy mills.

*****WWF has released wild tigers back into Kazakhstan. Scimitar horned oryx were released into the Sahara desert and indigo snakes were reintroduced into Florida.

*****Toys “R” Us has filed for bankruptcy.

*****Tom Price, health and human services secretary, has resigned after hic charter flight scandal.

*****After 50 years Rolling Stone may be up for sale.

*****Doc Martin is back on Acorn for series 8.

*****As social media has been telling us, we don’t need a border wall. Tourism is down about $37 billion. Thanks Trump!

*****Trump supporters don’t seem to like him fraternizing with the Dems and waffling on DACA. They have been burning their red hats but scary clown already got the money for selling them so what does he care. Anne Coulter wonders if there is anybody left who does not want Trump impeached.** Some states are suing over DACA.

*****”Holes separate men and women.”- Billy Connolly

*****The dreamer program has been signed away. The Deferred Action for Children’s Arrival has been handed to congress for 6 months to deal with. The administration says it violates the rule of law.

*****The Peoria Blues and Heritage fest went off without a hitch. The weather was perfect and we should all be looking at the Jamiah Rogers band, these guys are fucking awesome. John Butler checked them out before his own set and was great with his fans.

*****Bill Withers has his first solo record since 1985 with a cover of (You’ve been quite a doll) Raggedy Ann.

*****In this country, a woman dies every 2 hours of cervical cancer because of improper health care.

*****Can I just say that I do not want to see reporters in the middle of hurricanes. Can they just stay safe in a room and fix a camera outside? I would much rather see different angles of the storm and see no people out there.  It was often impossible to hear then anyway.  The communication between the studio and location was fucked up and did not help anyway. It also seemed like they showed an awful lot of Shell stations. JS

*****An estimated 70 million Americans saw the fake Russian ads during the campaign.  No impact??

*****The Stones are on their No Filter tour in Europe and they brought out ‘Dancin with Mr. D’ which hasn’t been played live since 1973.

*****Trumps lawyers seem to want Jared out.

*****Steve Bannon’s Great Great Grandfather was an immigrant from Ireland who needed no papers to get in this country.

*****Montgomery , Alabama is going to open a Museum of lynching.  There is a wall lined with jars of dirt that were collected from sites of lynching’s from around the country.  Very powerful.

*****Thanks Trump administration for removing references to ‘LGBTQ’ youth from a federal program for victims of sex trafficking. It also eliminates funding to international groups that provide abortions. This comes from mostly evangelical lobbyists who are reporting that they are having more discussions  with this administration than they ever had with any President.

*****Vanity Fair has their best dressed list out which includes Harry Styles, Rihanna, Solange, Jack Schlossberg, Justin Trudeau, Janelle Monae, Dev Patel, Cate Blanchett, Zoe Kravitz, Ruth Negga, and Donald Glover. The hall of fame mentioned Lauren Hutton, Jeremy irons and Prince Phillip.

*****More police brutality against the black man with the subduing of the Seahawks Michael Bennett for no apparent reason.

*****Leslie Van Houten has again been granted parole. As last year she is waiting out the 120 days to get the word from Gov. Jerry Brown.

*****Lovin’ Greg Garcia’s The Guest book on TBS. What is not to love about seeing Charles Robinson and Carly Jibson again.  It made my day to see guest Orson Bean!!

*****The U.S. office of government ethics has changed a policy that will now allow lobbyists to donate to staffers legal defense funds.

*****Cameras have taken the first pictures of white giraffes in Kenya.

*****The Simpsons will be going to New Orleans this season!

*****The Middle is starting its last season. We will miss U!

*****Jay Pharoah has a new show on Showtime. White Famous is loosely based on the life of Jamie Foxx who is the executive producer.

*****John Davis Washington, son of Denzel may head the cast of Black Klansman. Spike Lee will direct and Jordan Peele will produce the true story of an African American who in 1978 infiltrated the KKK. Ron Stallworth used phones and his own writing to communicate with the organization. When he had to appear in person he sent a white officer in his place. They were able to sometimes sabotage cross burnings and other activities.

*****IT just had the biggest horror movie opening ever. The acting is quite nice for chapter 1 but the ending a bit long.

*****Netflix is bringing a delicious doc : Jim and Andy  The great beyond featuring a very special contractually obligated mention of Tony Clifton. Spike Jonze is producing with the hundred  hours of footage from Man on the Moon. ** Other new docs on the way look at Eric Clapton, Grace Jones and Sammy Davis Jr. It is the first time that Kim Novak will talk on camera about dating Sammy.

*****September 16 brought the Juggalos march on Washington. They have been bringing awareness about their gang designation and the harm that it has caused. The running man with a hatchet is considered a gang symbol and gives cops probable cause to search. The FBI labeled Juggalos a hybrid gang in 2011. Also marching were some of the alt right calling their march the mother of all rallies but it only produced about 500 people.

*****Treasury secretary Steven Mnuchin requested use of a government jet for his honeymoon and he later withdrew that request.

*****Finally there was a confirmation from a charity that Trump claims to have given to after the Hurricanes. Direct relief received 25 thou. ** There have still been no charities that received money from the inauguration fund.

*****WGN is bringing us a new show called Bellevue.

*****Howard Buffett will be the new Sheriff of Macon county in Illinois. His father Warren had donated millions to the area.

*****Prophets of Rage are here to raise awareness with members of Cypress Hill, Rage against the Machine and Public Enemy.

*****LA summer Olympics in 2028?!

*****Sean Spicer landed on Jimmy Kimmel. Wow.. What a kiss ass whiny bitch. He tried hard to stay in Trumps good graces with compliments for the Pres and constant berating of the press. He reminded me of a ventriloquist dummy with a hand up his ass.** His cameo at the Emmy’s did not go over very well either.

***** Model Monroe Bergdorf was fired by L’oreal because of her anti- racist remarks.  She has now been hired by Illamasqua.

*****Boycott Dragon Dumps! Don’t pay your bill on time and the owner dumps garbage on your lawn.

*****It looks like Trevor Noah will stay with the Daily show until at least 2022.

*****James Woods used his twitter account to try and shame a movie about a gay romance between a 17 year old and a 24 year old. Amber Tamblyn tweeted that Woods had hit on her for real when she was only 16.

*****Scientists are trying to bring back the chelonoidis elephantopus Galopagos turtles. 80 blood samples of modern day island turtles have genetic traces of the lost species. Even though they have been extinct for 160 years, scientists think they can reproduce though not to 100%. Could they reverse the negative effects that humans cause in the environment?

***** Why do bullies feel the need to use the art of artists who want nothing to do with them? It is like using ‘You can’t always get what you want’ for Trump when there are plenty of artists who agree with you that would love for you to use their art. Now Universal music and American recordings had to send a cease and desist letter to the white supremacist site Stormfront to stop using Johnny Cash’s version of ‘I won’t back down.’ The host blames the Jews.

*****Tru tv will bring us At home with Amy Sedaris.

*****North Dakota paleontologists have been uncovering so many bones that they are inviting the public to help.  It sounds like a dream come true.

*****Paul Newman is Jake Gyllenhaal’s Godfather. JS

*****St. Louis exploded into protest with yet another acquittal of a police officer after the shooting of a black man, Anthony Lamar Smith. Peoria, Il is also dealing with the shooting of an alleged bank robber who was shot 18 times.

*****The NFL is standing together in solidarity for equality and scary clown is sniping at them like a bitch. Our leader would not know respect and maturity if it bit him in the ass.** The Packers asked their fans to stand arm in arm with them on their Thursday night game with the Bears. Respect to Aaron Rodgers and the guys for speaking out before the game on equality. Some ‘fans’ are burning their Packer stuff. ..  Why do these Trump supporters always want to burn everything? Do they have any idea how racist and ridiculous that looks?

*****Veep is going to bring us their last season while Julia is battling breast cancer. Joe Biden tweeted that us Veeps must stick together to show his support.

*****The Emmy’s with Stephen Colbert have come and gone. My best dressed were Ellie Kemper, Jessica Biel, Michelle Pfeiffer, Susan Sarandon, Leslie Jones, Matthew Rhys, Claire Foy, Evan Rachel Wood ,Gabrielle Union, Donald Glover, Emmy Rossum, Zoe Kravitz, Nicole Kidman and Julia- Louis Dreyfus. My worst dressed were Uzo Aduba, Debra Messing, Anna Farris, Tracee Ellis Ross and Prianka Chopra. I love Sarah Paulson and the back of her dress was great but …?? There was so much black fabric which was awesome. Was it mourning for the earthquake and hurricane victims or just a general sadness for the country?  Whatever the reason.. hooray black!!**Also happy that hairstyles were mostly long and loose.** I was happy to see Laura Dern win for supporting actress in a limited series or movie. ** The Handmaids tale won for show, directing and writing , for Anne Dowd who looked more shocked and appreciative than I have ever seen and Elisabeth Moss. ** I was happy for Alec Baldwin for best supporting actor but was really routing for Louie Anderson. ** When the noms came out, I could not imagine anything beating out FEUD but everything did. ** The girls from 9 to 5 stole the show with their mention of a sexist, egotistical, lying, hypocritical bigot. ** Donald Glover won for directing and acting. **Alexander Skarsgard won which gave he and his brother quite a week. ** John Oliver won two and he again flew in his whole staff. ** Julia- Louis Dreyfus has now won the most Emmys for the same character in the same show. Veep got best comedy.**It was a wonderful moment when Carol Burnett and Norman Lear came out but DeNiro looked so disinterested.** Cicely Tyson has often been described as a bit of a diva and seemed a bit out of it on the broadcast but her counterpart saved the day.** So sad that Bob Odenkirk did not win but kudos to sterling K. Brown. They seemed to play him off too quickly while Nicole Kidman and big little lies had all the time in the world.

*****Bobby Moynihan stars in the new  ‘Me Myself and I’ on CBS.

*****Word is that the Trump campaign is asking supporters to contribute money to build the wall.

*****Can we pay a little more attention to Puerto Rico? Why is the Pres giving them grief? Things were tough enough before the devastation. Puerto Rico has no bankruptcy and running a business is so costly there. Companies there must buy American which we don’t have to do.  Forty percent of residents don’t have insurance. So many of the supplies sent to help are just sitting there in San Juan.

*****Angela Merkel has won a 4th term as German chancellor.

*****Singapore got their first female President, Halimah Yacob. She was the only candidate.

*****There was a settlement in a lawsuit against Club Cabaret. Dancers sued to be employees instead of individual contractors. The dancers won a million and cost of legal fees.

*****Art Garfunkel has a memoir/diary/ book of musings out called ‘What is it all but luminous.’

*****The personal account of Ted Cruz hit ‘like’ on a porn site on 9/11. He calls it a mistake by a staffer. A college roommate of Cruz said that he was not surprised.

*****After a tweet from the Pres about hitting Hil with a golf ball, Stephen King tweeted: Thinks hitting a woman with a golf ball and knocking her down is funny. Myself, I think it indicates a severely fucked up mind.

*****Brooklyn 99 is back and funnier than ever with the same great cast and opening.

*****Bill Maher and Jimmy Kimmel are rated number 1 of tv personalities based on Facebook, Instagram, twitter et al.

*****R.I.P Richard Anderson, Walter Becker, Don Williams, David Tang, Troy Gentry, Murray Lerner, Mexico’s earthquake victims, those lost to hurricane Irma, Frank Vincent, Len Wein, Grant Hart, Harry Dean Stanton, Michelle Rounds, Bonnie Angelo, Hugh Hefner, Jake La Motta, Eddie Russell Jr., Edith Windsor, Tony Booth and Monty Hall.

ȅ

[asterinjapan]

Stars over Sendai

A good evening after a long day again!

I had agreed to meet up with my Japanese friend at Sendai station, so I got up early and drove the (this time correct) train to Omiya in Saitama, from where I caught the Hayabusa shinkansen to Sendai. It took slightly over an hour then to make it to Sendai at 10 AM, just when all the festivities would have started. I met my friend and together we quickly already reserved train tickets for the way back, since the Tanabata festival draws in about 2 million visitors each year… Obviously not all at the same moment, but the trains were definitely busy.

After that, travel time! We sought out the bus stop for the loop bus, very creatively called the Loople Bus, which looks like a cute retro bus and loops around the main attractions in the city in one direction. You can get a day pass which also gives you discounts, so naturally, we went with that.

Our first stop after early lunch was the Zuihoden mausoleum. It’s actually a complex of several mausolea of Date Masamune, a famous samurai lord, and his heirs. Masamuna was known as the ‘one-eyed dragon’ (since he had one eye, you see), and was one of the most powerful daimyo (lords) in the region. He was the founder of Sendai city, so it’s a name you see a lot here. His traditional appearance is very striking since he’s known for his golden headgear, shaped like a crescent moon. He’s also the one who appreciated the Tanabata festival so much that it became such a big deal in Sendai, though we’ll be getting to that later.

Actually, the Zuihoden and the other buildings are all rebuilt: at the end of World War 2, Sendai was bombed and the buildings burnt down. The reconstructions were done in the original style, and though that does mean they look very flashy and new, it does give off a genuine feeling.

It is quite the uphill walk to the Zuihoden, the actual mausoleum of Masamune where they’ve enshrined a wooden statue of him. On the corners of the mausoleum, you can spot dragon heads, true to his nickname. There’s also a museum right next to it, which opened with information about Tanabata until you got into the real exhibition: that of excavated items found when the mausolea for the second and third Date lords were reconstructed. This was super interesting, because they’d found remains of both the three lords as well as their swords and armors. No replicas, but the real deals, and in pretty good condition at that. They also had replicas of their skulls on display along with facial reconstructions, and actual bone and hair fragments of Masamune, which is both a little creepy as well as fascinating, because he lived in the 17th century. And here we were, four hundred years later, and they had been able to tell from his bones exactly how tall he’d been and what his blood type was. Masamune also sympathized with foreign causes, meaning he was interested in technology from outside Japan and didn’t exactly like the presecutions of Christians that the shogun Tokugawa Ieyasu insisted upon, although there was little he could do about it. (Make no mistake, he was still a brutal warlord.) Anyway, it also meant that they’d uncovered the remains of a pair of glasses for one of the other two lords. Impressive.

We made our way to the other two mausolea next, the Kansenden for Date Tadamune and the Zennoden for Date Tsunamune, second and third daimyo respectively. They look pretty much alike, and these too are rebuilds after being destroyed in the fires. There were also stone tablets for numerous other Date lords, including one that only lived to the age of 17. Nice times, you can tell.

Anyway, after the interesting history lesson, we made our way back out again, past the now put up Tanabata decorations and the warning plates for wasps (understandable), snakes (… right, we’re on the other side of the planet here), and bears (wait, come again?). The Loople Bus had just arrived, so we ran for it and made it, along with the fifty or so other people who wanted to get on. I’m still amazed that we all fit, because these buses look tiny, but I guess the Japanese are just used to being crammed into vehicles? Anyway, we got off two stops later, to something I had been really looking forward to: Sendai or Aoba Castle.

Truth being told, not a whole lot is left of it. Very unsurprisingly, Date Masamune started the construction of this castle, although a main keep was never finished. The whole castle mostly served as headquarters and administrative center rather than a defensive force, and it was destroyed a couple of times in earthquakes and fires. By 1870, most of the castle was dismantled after the downfall of the shogunate, and in 1945, whatever remained was destroyed completely.

All that’s left is the outer stone walls and a guard tower, and it’s quite a climb to get there as it’s on a mountain top (Aoba mountain), looking out over the city of Sendai. Atop is a statue of Masamune on horseback, which is a pretty iconic statue you’ll see constantly if you visit Sendai.

The view was great, and we could actually spot the great Kannon statue in the distance once the clouds shifted a bit (it was cloudy all day, but not a drop of rain). It’s white, so that was a startling sight, haha. (I wanted to visit it, but it’s on the opposite end of the city. It IS the second tallest statue in Japan though, at 100 metres tall. Maybe next time!)

Walking around the premises, we came across a group of actors carrying a paper mached version of Masamune over to the main area, where they re-enacted one of the famous battles, haha. It was fun, though mostly for the kids present. Instead, we made our way to the Aoba Castle museum, which has assorted artifacts and scale models of the castle. It’s a bit tricky if you don’t speak Japanese (or are too tired to really focus at this point, like me, haha), because there’s no information in English at all. There’s a movie playing with more information about the castle, which is really interesting, even if it’s narrated by two talking birds and a talking soy bean, haha. Apparently head sets with English audio were available, but I missed out on those. Just for the record!

I was getting pretty tired, but I really liked the visit to this castle, even though not a whole lot is left of it. (It still made the Top 100 anyway, because half that top is ruins, I swear.) With it being close to 5 o’clock, all major attractions were closing anyway, so it was time to go into the direction of the station – time for Tanabata!

The Tanabata Festival finds its roots in a star-crossed lovers story, literally. It involves the stars Vega and Altair, or Orihime (the weaving princess) and Hikoboshi (cow herder). Orihime weaved clothes for her father the sky king, but once she fell in love with Hikoboshi from across the river known as the Milky Way, she neglected her weaving and Hikoboshi let his cows run wild. Thus, Orihime’s dad separated the two using the river, but struck a bargain with them: if they fulfill their duties, they’d get to meet once a year on the 7th day of the 7th month, when a group of magpies will make a bridge with their wings so Orihime can cross and meet Hikoboshi. Unless it rains during the festival, in which case they have to wait another year. During this time of the year, the stars Vega and Altair are shimmering on opposite sides of the visible part of the Milky Way in the skies – that is, if you’re in an area with a clear sky and no light pollution, haha.

So that’s why it’s the star festival! It’s also a summer festival, so that means a lot of food and game stands, open air musical performances and lots of people in yukata. It was a fun sight and I really enjoyed being able to attend an actual summer festival in Japan, because I’ve always missed out on them by a hair (never been in Japan at July 7), and the fireworks festival at Asakusa is so huge that you kind of lose the feeling of an actual festival.

After lingering around this park area for a while and having a super responsible dinner (I had an omelette-clad sausage, takoyaki (octopus dumplings) and a chocolate covered banana, and it was pink too), we slowly made our way back to the station, but traveling the decorated shopping roads.

This was pretty amazing! The streets were lined with countless kushidama, large paper balls with long streamers. Those streamers are meant to represent the string Orihime uses in her weaving. They are donated from all over Japan; I just read up on it and found out that the ones featuring cranes most likely came from Hiroshima and Nagasaki, as paper cranes symbolize the lives lost in the atomic bomb blasts. And well, Sendai was the biggest city hit by the earthquake in 2011 – no doubt there were decorations for them, too.

On a more cheerful note, these decorations were amazing and seemingly endless; all colourful, some simple, some extraordinarily detailed, and some featuring historical figures or well, Pokemon, haha. You can also find racks of bamboo, where you can write a wish on a slip of paper and hang them on the bamboo. These will be either burnt or set adrift down the river at the end of the festival to carry your wish.

Just talking about it doesn’t really do it justice. I realize that saying ‘yay food and pretty decorations’ doesn’t really sell a festival, but actually being there made me realize just why this is considered one of the biggest festivals in the country. I really loved it and I was super glad to have made my visit to Sendai in this time.

Sadly, our train was scheduled to depart, but I’m far from done with Sendai and I’ll definitely be back here, whenever that might be.

And now, time for bed, although I have no idea yet what I’m going to do tomorrow. I’m getting kind of worn out, haha. Tomorrow is the last day I can use my JR pass, so I might go do my Kamakura-Ofuna-Enoshima route, or just skip around Tokyo a bit, who knows. On Wednesday, I’ll be meeting up with my friend one last time in Yokohama, and then Thursday is my last full day in Tokyo… I think I’ll use that time to go visit Shibuya once more and say my goodbyes to Ikebukuro. It already makes me sad thinking about it, actually. Let’s not and let’s just enjoy these last couple of days to the fullest!

#japan 2017 #report #report: japan 2017 #places: sendai

[lonestorm]

The Inugami - Chapter 8

Summary: When Kagome Higurashi moved to the bad side of Chicago to help with her grandfather’s restaurant, she expected chaos. Being thrown into a fake gang, caught in the middle of a drug war and grudge that stretches centuries back in time, befriending a grumpy half demon along with a ragtag bunch of three other misfits… wasn’t exactly what she had in mind. High school AU. Inukag. Rating: T (some language)

Pairings: Inukag, Mirsan

Chapters: Ch. 1 | Ch. 2 | Ch. 3 | Ch. 4 | Ch. 5 | Ch. 6 | Ch. 7

Shorts: 1. Sesshomaru

**Also on ff.net here.

“There’s a thing.”

The rest of the Inugami paused in chewing during their lunchtime to regard Inuyasha with an exasperated stare.

Miroku swallowed. “How fascinating. Would you care to enlighten us about a thing?”

Gritting his teeth, Inuyasha grounded out, “A masquerade night this Friday at that nightclub, Gehenna. It’s a known peaceful ground for Spiders and Wolves. They both go there.”

“Good for them,” Sango said dully.

After dealing out a scowl, Inuyasha said, “Well, stay home if you want. Kagome and I are going.”

Kagome choked on her water. “S-since when?!”

“Since I feel like it. What, you don’t wanna go?”

“N-no, I do, but-”

“Okay. Then stop blabberin’.”

Her heart sped to impossible rates and she stared off into the skyline while Inuyasha continued to eat nonchalantly. The others gaped, and Kagome wondered, thinking she might pass out in shock and sheer joy, if this was his way of maybe asking her out.

Kagome took a shuddering breath out and smoothed her red, skater dress for the fiftieth time. Her wide eyes continued to regard her reflection in the mirror. Her red and white bandana circled her throat, white combat boots encased her ankles. A sparkling, snow-colored masquerade mask adorned her face, edges sweeping up like angel wings. “You’re sure this is okay, Sango?”

“Kags,” Sango said for also the fiftieth time in the bathroom, shooting a glance from where she was applying red to her eyes instead of her usual pink. “You look awesome. You’re a hot, cute badass dressed to kill a man. The outfit is fine.”

“Okay,” she muttered. “Okay.” She’d managed to tame her wild bangs slightly, so that she was managing to pull off the ‘shaggy pixie cut’ look. “I can do this. I’m a hot, cute badass dressed to kill a man.”

“Atta girl.” Sango’s hair was curled and hanging down her back. She was in a red, sleeveless top and white skinny jeans with red boots that reached just under her knees. Her red and silver mask curled across and down the left side of her face to her jawline. As always, she looked absolutely gorgeous. “C’mon, the boys will be here soon.”

Of course, Miroku had asked Sango to come to the club immediately after Inuyasha had. (Kagome almost wished that Shippo was coming too, because the little fox boy would relieve her nerves, but he was too young to get in the club.) Neither Kagome or Sango actually knew if those two were actually dating… what with that random battle kiss and stuff. They’d certainly been more flirtatious, and he hadn’t chased other girls since. Sango didn’t seem to require any sort of absolution, though.

“Plenty of time to figure it out,” Sango had told her simply when Kagome asked. “I guess we’re both more focused on getting Naraku now, getting my brother back. After that, we’ll have time for all that stuff.”

But Kagome could tell Sango was excited that he’d asked her to go. She wasn’t worried about whether it counted as a date or simply an outing with friends.

Kagome, on the other hand…

“Is this a date?” she said in anxiety. “It kind of feels like a date. A double one. Does that mean he likes me? Or he still loves Kikyo and just wants to hang out for some weird reason? Since when does he like this kind of stuff? I mean, I like dancing, but-”

“Well, Inuyasha knows that.” Sango had a sweet, half smile. “Maybe he’s counting on having a good time just because you’ll be happy.”

Kagome’s face matched her dress. “B-but… does this mean he…?”

“Honestly Kags, are you blind? He’s crazy about you. Who would want the ice queen when they could have you?” Sango hugged her tightly. “Stop worrying so much! Just have fun, okay?”

Now, she couldn’t stop the grin from taking over her face. “O-okay. Thanks, Sango.”

Sure enough, the boys showed up at Kagome’s doorstep within the next five minutes, Miroku in white t-shirt that matched his simple, white mask, and crimson skinny jeans for once (which should have looked hipster, but Kagome thought in a completely platonic way that it was plenty attractive on him). Inuyasha was in his white washed jeans and jacket as always, but it still made her breath catch. His golden eyes and silver hair stood out even more shockingly with the complement of his blood-red mask.

“Well, you two both look simply stunning,” Miroku purred smoothly. “Not that I’m surprised.” He kissed Sango’s hand, then tucked it under his elbow. “Shall we?”

Inuyasha blinked at her a few times, and Kagome admitted to being slightly disappointed when all he did was gulp and jerk his head towards Miroku’s SUV. But then again, she figured she really shouldn’t have expected him to compliment her or something.

The car ride was filled with their usual banter, debating on how, if Inuyasha existed, surely unicorns did as well. After twenty minutes, they’d arrived, being helped out of the car. The club’s name glowed in green lights, Gehenna, over the entrance that was swarming with excited teenagers that had their identities sealed with a mask. Fog drifted from within, capturing the colors of the flashing lights. All but normal citizens were wearing black and purple or blue and silver. The red and white of the four of them stood out as they strode forward together, causing the crowd to part and mutter in their wake, “Inugami…”

It was Inuyasha who dished out some cash and IDs to get in, and she was surprised at how quickly they entered. Had he come here before?

The four of them pushed through the mass of people until they made it to an opening towards the side. From there, Miroku snatched up Sango’s hand and dragged her, laughing, to the dance floor. Kagome watched them with a wide smile, their happiness infectious. She turned to Inuyasha, a bit shyly, wondering if he could possibly do the same-

“Okay, we’re in,” he said, giving a triumphant grin. “Let’s do this! Faithful Jewel detector, you walk around and scan for Shikon so that no one else gets addicted. I’ll carry out part two… Kikyo is here tonight; I heard them talking about it at school. It’s the perfect chance to corner her and make her talk to me. Holler if you find something; I’ll be able to hear you!”

And he was gone.

For several, long seconds, Kagome just stared straight ahead. Unconsciously, her arms came up to wrap around herself with a suffocating tightness.

Of course.

Of course.

“I’m stupid,” she said aloud to no one, weak voice drowned out by the pumping bass.

Feeling rather as if someone had kicked her in the gut, she numbly began to walk forward. After all, searching the place for Shikon was the smart route. Their hunt for Naraku took priority over all. And their goal to get Kikyo safely back into the arms of Inuyasha. No time for fun or Kagome’s ridiculous, schoolgirl daydreams that he could ever actually want her.

Her eyes dully swept the place from behind her mask, but she honestly wasn’t sure what to expect; if this was peaceful ground between the two gangs to have fun, then surely the Spiders wouldn’t want to risk getting caught addicting others or carrying something illegal? Likely, many of them took some Shikon before they came, but didn’t bring extra…

Sure enough, all she saw were a few faint glows--how it appeared when it had already been ingested, smoked, or snorted. She felt no tugs on her gut other than her own stupid heart ache, saw no pink light other than the ones flashing with the beat that she now only wanted to escape.

With a heavy sigh through her nose, she made her way to the upper level, which wrapped around the club so that you could see into the lower level through the middle. It was near deserted, maybe an employee’s only area. Kagome couldn’t bring herself to care.

Once she’d scanned there too and from above, she found a small window seat, where she settled with her legs off to the side. It was a full moon tonight, casting silver down on her skin so that it reminded her of him.

Everything seemed to.

“-can’t avoid me forever, Kikyo.”

Kagome stiffened at the sound of Inuyasha’s voice, footsteps accompanied by smaller ones close by. She knew this window seat sat close to a corner that led to a hall… he wouldn’t be able to see her from here.

She also knew she shouldn’t eavesdrop. But…

“I know. Once you set your mind to something, you were never able to let go,” Kikyo mused. “Very well. I’ve wanted to talk to you too.”

“You… you have?”

“Of course. But you know the hold Naraku keeps on me. He has eyes all over the school. And… I was afraid that perhaps… you’d grown to hate me…”

“Why would you think that?” he answered aghast.

Kikyo was quiet. “Well, I’m an addict now. I thought maybe you’d be disgusted with me, decide you no longer want-”

“Don’t be an idiot!” Inuyasha all but shouted back. “I could never be disgusted with you… This isn’t your fault! Thinking I hate you… don’t you understand? There hasn’t been a day where I haven’t thought of you!”

Kagome forgot how to breathe.

“Inuyasha…” Kikyo sounded gentle. “Truly?”

“Truly. I’ll always protect you, the best I can. And to do that, I’m going to need to know a few things. Like how Naraku got a hold of you a year or two ago!”

There was a pause, and then, “I went to him.”

“You wha-?!”

“I heard he was an expert in demon energies. It was foolish of me not to learn more about him first, but I was determined to find a way…” “A way…?” Inuyasha prompted.

“A way to make you human. So that we could be together.”

Kagome’s mouth dropped open; she didn’t understand. Why… why would Kikyo want that? Why couldn't they be together the way he was? Kagome had never thought he would need to be human for any reason…

“O-oh,” was his response. “Really?”

“I did it for you,” she told him, which made Kagome want to barf. “And there still may be a way. Don’t you want to be together?”

“W-well I…” he trailed off, voice edging in uncertainty. And then he said nothing.

“Inuyasha?” Kikyo’s voice took a new tone. “It isn’t… that girl, is it?”

“G-girl? You mean Kagome? What about her?”

Part of her really wished she hadn’t been dragged into this nauseating conversation.

“You care about her more than me?” Kagome’s eyes narrowed. Since when was Kikyo the whining, jealous type?

“Wh-what does this have to do with-?”

He was cut off by something, and her eyes widened with realization. Feeling a cloud of dread over her heart, she slowly peeked around the corner and-

Holy shit. Kikyo was kissing him.

The girl was gripping his jacket, eyes closed gently. His own were round and bright in shock, but it only took a moment before he relaxed more--tentatively putting a hand around her waist, tilting his head, closing his eyes…

Kissing her back.

Kagome felt bile rise in her throat, and quickly turned around the corner.

Nope.

Nope. Nope. Nope.

Somewhere deep in her chest, pain was twisting. Unwilling to make it worse, she made her way to the stairs and hurried down; she needed some air.

Finally managing to push past the mass of moving bodies, and caught sight of Sango and Miroku. Maybe she could put on a brave face, march over, and dance despite whatever was going on upstairs. But Sango...she was laughing, arms around his neck, and his hands weren’t anywhere inappropriate whatsoever. Miroku’s dark eyes shone locked on Sango only as he spun her around. No… she couldn’t ruin this for them, and dancing by herself didn’t sound too appealing, for once. Losing her nerve, she she stumbled to the back door and pushed it open with a breath out. Kagome let it shut behind her after finding a rock to prop it slightly open.

She leaned up against the brick wall of the back alley, tore off her mask so that it clattered to the moist ground, shakily pushed her hair back from her face and gripped it.

Her mind kept flashing back; the words in the hall, the kiss, his determined expression as he left her alone. Kagome drank in the city air--wet, smokey, despairing.

She should have known. She absolutely should have known that this was just another part of their mission. She was here to be the “faithful Jewel detector”, as always.

It was a little cold out; Kagome gave a little shiver and rubbed her arms. But the wind wasn’t as cold as the turmoil twisting across her mind. Yes, it was so much colder when she realized that… even though she’d been so excited to come… she was the only person in the place that wasn’t wanted here.

The thought gave her a wry, snorting laugh. Figures.

Honestly Kags, are you blind? He’s crazy about you. Who would want the ice queen when they could have you?

Why had she believed Sango, who was only trying to be nice and not hurt her feelings? Maybe the blind one was simply Sango, and Kagome had seen the truth all along.

Kikyo had looked so perfect, black dress casting an alluring and delicate spell. Kagome didn’t want to look at herself for a while; she knew all she would do was compare, and that comparison would never measure up.

Kagome didn’t want to be that weak, extra girl whose mood was directed by things one boy did or did not do.

But now, on her own, with only the maddeningly silver moon as witness, she let herself slide down the wall. Maybe Kagome could let herself be that girl for a few minutes. Maybe because he wasn’t just a boy. Maybe he was her best friend, the one she was so ridiculously in love with and didn’t want to spend a day in her life without.

The thought made her choke and lower her head to stare at her boots.

“Why do you keep doing this?” she muttered, talking only to herself. “Hoping for something stupid…”

“A valid question,” came a chilling voice, one that made her bolt up and scramble closer to the door. But it was too late; the rock holding it open was kicked away, and she was shrouded in shadow only lit by streetlight, moon, and glowing, scarlet eyes.

Fear lodged in her throat, and she froze. Kagome knew that there was no way she could outrun Naraku, and sometimes he could teleport, when he could manage to exhaust enough energy to do so. Inuyasha was up and away with Kikyo. He wouldn’t hear her when he was so… busy.

No more safeties--she could take care of her damn self, and if Naraku was so anxious to be her venting punching bag, so be it.

Immediately, she dropped one arm to block and thrust the other up towards his nose, body shifting into battle mode from muscle memory. He dodged, grabbing her wrist, but she used the momentum to knee upward. Naraku dodged that too, but this gave her the chance to throw a left hook that caught his cheek with all her force. Twisting her arm from his grasp, Kagome gave a shout as she kicked his lowered face in the side.

Normally, this would completely take out an opponent. Except Naraku was half demon, and the blows hardly seemed to faze him. Instead, he got back up, tentacles shooting out and wrapping around her body like a boa constrictor. His hand was over her mouth before she could even scream.

“Been training with Inuyasha, have you?” he purred. “Impressive. Lucky he taught you, before he left your silly little band for Kikyo.”

Kagome winced at the tightness of the tentacles, their slimy, gross feeling against her arms and legs, chest, that cut off her circulation. But he didn’t loosen; only roamed his eyes over her face hungrily. “My, you do look so much like her…” Now, nothing was more horrifying than his leer. “Not quite as beautiful, of course, as you well know, and your eyes remain so much more… innocent. Perhaps when you’re a Spider, you’ll be her twin… after all, it isn’t as if Inuyasha is coming to save you. Just realized, haven’t you? That he could never see you when compared to her. But I…”

Naraku stepped closer, and she stopped breathing as if it may lessen his overwhelming, disgusting presence. “Your spiritual power… I must know why you are immune. I can give you a place of importance, make you feel special. You won’t get that with the Inugami, what with Inuyasha using you as a Jewel detector and temporary Kikyo substitute. All that jealousy and bitterness you feel towards them? I can make that your greatest power. You won’t feel weak and useless anymore. I can help you destroy anyone who dares mistreat you. It’s what you want, after all-”

At this point, Kagome had finally had enough. She chomped down hard on Naraku’s hand covering her mouth, biting down until she tasted blood. He let out a shout, jerking his hand back. Taking advantage of his loosened tentacles and surprise, she leapt out from his grasp and punched him in the stomach. She knew the smart thing would be to run around and back into the club, but she was too angry…

“Where do you get off, telling me how I feel and what I want?” Kagome seethed, flipping out the switchblade that had been strapped under her dress. “Messing with people’s emotions to get what you want, trying to turn them against each other like a game… it’s sick! You sound pathetic doing it too, like a jealous teenage girl from a bad movie!”

He snarled, and she fended off a tentacle with her knife. Panting, she spat, “I’m nothing like her! I’m like me, Kagome, and I’m damn proud of it! So what if Inuyasha doesn’t love me the way I love him? I’m not doing this just for him! I hate you and your disgusting existence, hurting people, including the rest of my friends! I’ll never be one of your stupid followers! Because all this bitterness, jealously, it’s just my damn humanity, and in the end, all it means is that I’m in love with Inuyasha! So much so that it doesn’t matter if he feels the same or not, because I will stay with him. I’d certainly never leave his side for a lowly, pathetic bastard like you!” Her knife stabbed down into his next attack. “And for the record, I can take care of myself!”

Pink light exploded from the knife, causing Naraku to shriek and recoil. The light raced up his tentacle and to his body, where it spread white and brightness that made him cringe and cower. Kagome had no idea what she’d done to make it happen, but no time to think about it now; she ran at him and gave a roundhouse kick to the head. His tentacles were thrashing about now as if in pain, eyes were closed, and curses fell from his mouth in torrents. It gave her satisfaction, and yet a tentacle ended up smashing her in the side, sending her head smacking into the brick wall. Pain flashed black and white into her vision--the world became hazy. Her knees buckled, she fell-

Close by, there was a bang, a shout of, “Kagome!” and strong arms catching her round the middle. She was pressed to someone’s shoulder, and she took in the comforting scent of leather.

“You son of a bitch!” Inuyasha roared, and footsteps followed him out the club door. “I’m gonna tear your throat out!”

“You came…” she murmured dazily against his jacket.

“Of course I came,” he said, voice softening. “Miroku, protect her and get her out of here while I dice this guy.”

“Inuyasha,” Sango said, aghast, “look!”

The Inugami finally registered the fact that Naraku was in pain from the light. “He was struck with purification magic,” Miroku said in wonderment. “Kagome… you did this?”

“Dunno how,” she muttered back, words slurring. “Just… wanted him to be gone…”

But then, a pulse of blackness raced through the alley, and the light flickered mostly out. Naraku looked to them, tears of blood staining his face. He advanced on them. “It will take more than a beginner’s attempt at purification power to destroy me. And you will become a Spider, little miko, one way or another…”

“LIKE HELL!” shouted Inuyasha. “Iron reaver soul stealer!”

The claws of wind sliced through Naraku’s skin, sending him flying back--then he was gone, body fading into the dark with a last laugh.

“Fucking coward,” Inuyasha hissed, and then swept Kagome up with an arm under her shoulders and the other under her knees. “What did he do to you? Do you have a concussion? We should get her straight to the hospital!”

“She wouldn’t need one if you were with her!” Sango shouted at him suddenly. “What the hell is wrong with you?! We thought she was with you!”

“Why would you leave her alone in a crowd of Spiders?” Miroku added, apparently not trying to be a peacemaker this time. His voice was stern, almost scary. “It was only a matter of time before Naraku would snatch her up! You’re lucky her miko powers kicked in, or she could be dead right now!”

“Sh-shut up! I’d never mean to put her in danger! I-I thought she’d be fine! No one would take her in a crowd, and she had you guys and all the Wolves-!”

“I stepped out to get some air,” Kagome said, wincing at the pounding of her head as she tried to defend him. “I-I shouldn’t have left the building…”

“Don’t you think for a second that this is your fault,” Sango warned. “It’s even easier to take someone in a crowd, Inuyasha! What the hell were you thinking?!”

“I wasn’t thinking!” he shouted, quieting all of them. “I wasn’t thinking, okay? I was an idiot, and I’ll never leave her alone again! You can beat the shit out of me later, and I’ll deserve it, but right now we need to get her to the hospital!”

“Don’t need ho-pal,” Kagome insisted, shaking her throbbing head. “Just… home. Mom can help if there’s a problem. Please… I want to go home.”

“I saw your head hit that wall, Kagome. You could have seriously damaged-”

“Home, Inuyasha. Please.”

He stopped talking, and then sighed, hugging her closer to himself. “Okay. We’ll take you home. Just keep talking; don’t fall asleep on me. You probably have a concussion.”

But the dizziness was fading. “I-I don’t think it’s that bad,” she managed, as they walked around to the front. “Really, I had him on the ropes…”

“You sure did,” Inuyasha said quietly as he buckled her into the back seat. Sango took shotgun with Miroku shooting a worried glance back before starting the engine. Inuyasha sat beside Kagome, arm around her as she snuggled into his shoulder. “I bet you were a badass, Kagome.”

“I’m always a badass. And Sango said I’m dressed to kill a man; guess I didn’t fulfill that…”

“There was blood coming from his eyes--pretty sure you’re still damn worthy of the title.”

“Good,” she muttered, closing her eyes.

But Inuyasha tapped her forehead. “Nuh uh. Eyes open. You can’t fall asleep.”

“Not falling asleep,” she said. She’d only been trying to blink away tears, but now that her eyes were forced open…

“Oh no… where do you hurt, Kagome?” he said, sounding anxious.

“Not that, I just…” Her emotions were everywhere. She’d been so scared, angry, depressed, and happy in such a short amount of time.

He was quiet, as if he was understanding why. Then-- “I swear on my life, I will never leave you alone again. I-I’ll never be able to forgive myself…”

“You came,” Kagome said. “That’s what matters.” Tears were still dripping onto his jacket. “I’m sorry… I should have been more focused on my job, tonight-”

“Job?” Sango spoke up from the front seat. “We weren’t here to work! We came to have fun…” Kagome saw her swivel around and stare at the two of them. “Right?”

Inuyasha swallowed. “W-well… I thought it might be a good chance to get Kikyo to talk to me, and Kagome to come with to look for Jewel-”

“You two-timing fuckboy!” Sango screamed, causing Miroku to almost swerve out of their lane. “You lead on one girl so that you can come here and slobber all over another? I can’t believe you! Kagome deserves better than this!”

“The hell do you mean two-timing fuckboy?” Inuyasha snarled back. “I’m not dating either one of them, and I’m a virgin! And there was no slobbering involved! I wanted info on Naraku and how he made Kikyo join! Kagome knew we were here for business, right, Kag…?” he trailed off when he saw her lowered gaze.

“Did you bother to tell her why you asked her before we went?” Miroku asked, steel behind his voice as he gripped the steering wheel so that his knuckles turned white.

“Oh.” Inuyasha grimaced, closing his eyes. “Oh damn. Shit. I-I thought…”

“It doesn’t matter, guys,” Kagome sighed, not wanting the remainder of this. “I should have known anyway-”

Sango rounded on her now, danger eyes flashing behind her blood-red mask. “Don’t you dare let him get out of this one. I know how happy and excited you were to come tonight with us, and it’s his fucking fault that you were there alone when Miroku and I thought Inuyasha was with you!”

“Sango…” Kagome said tiredly. “I just don’t want to talk-” “You… were excited?” Inuyasha said, voice unusually timid.

“Doesn’t matter if I was or not,” she told him, watching the city lights out the window listlessly. “Either way, I was clearly the only one in the place that wasn’t wanted there.” Damn, she hadn’t meant to say that out loud.

“Y-you can’t mean that,” Inuyasha choked. “I wouldn’t have asked you to come if I hadn’t wanted you there!”

“You didn’t want me,” she went on tonelessly. She had wanted to drop it, but now it was all flooding out. “You wanted a Jewel detector.”

“W-well you are a Jewel detector-hey!” She’d pushed away from him at those words and rested her head against the window instead.

“Just leave me alone,” she sighed, putting a hand to her eyes so that they wouldn’t show wetness.

“Says the girl that was all cuddly just a second ago,” Inuyasha growled.

“If you don’t shut the fuck up right now, I will smack you into next week,” Sango snapped at him. Kagome thought Inuyasha would protest and start a fight, but instead, he became silent.

They arrived at Kagome’s house not too long after, where Inuyasha finally broke his silence to insist that Kagome be checked for concussion by her mother.

The Inugami then sat around as Mrs. Higurashi asked Kagome questions, shined a light in her eyes. Then- “It does look like she has a minor one; lucky it’s not more, what with that big bump on her head. What on earth happened, dear?”

“Dance floors can get rough,” Miroku supplied. “We brought her home right after we saw her get accidentally hit.” Well, none of that was a lie.

“Thank you,” her mother said. “Well, I’ll give her some pain meds and ice for that bump. Sleep would actually be the best course of action at this point. I suggest you all get home and get some rest.”

“Right,” Sango said gently, putting a hand on Kagome’s back. “Take care of yourself, okay, Kags?”

“You know it,” Kagome assured her sleepily. “Sorry your night had to end early, guys.”

“Don’t you dare think of it,” Miroku said firmly. “We’re just glad that you’ll be okay. Mrs. Higurashi, would you mind if we came to check on her tomorrow?”

“That would be no problem; so sweet of you to offer. Be safe, now.”

“Text me when you get home, guys,” Kagome said as they left. “So that I know you got there.”

“Will do. Goodnight!” Miroku and Sango waved before they left. Inuyasha was still at her side, quiet. His hair had grown out a bit, so that his bangs shaded over his tight face. Standing tall and silent, casting a protective shadow over her, he looked more like a guardian angel than half demon.

“Inuyasha?” her mother said, hinting in her innocent way. “Your brother is probably wondering where you are. Do you need something?”

After a beat in which Kagome felt his eyes burn into her, he said, “No. Thank you. Goodnight.” She heard the door close.

“It seems as if he was really worried about you,” her mother said.

“Hmm.”

Pressing an ice pack to Kagome’s head, her mother went on hesitantly, “Why don’t you tell him how you feel about him?”

Kagome really hoped he wasn’t listening in. “It wouldn’t do any good. He loves his ex and I can’t compete with her. He wouldn’t accept my feelings and then our friendship might be destroyed.”

“Or,” her mother countered, sitting across from her daughter, “you could just be acting insecure and all your chances to be together the way you both want will disappear because of it.”

“Mom, you don’t-”

“Understand? Sweetheart, no one fully understands being in love. But something I do understand about it is that the most important part of a romantic relationship is friendship. It is the basis for everything, and you and Inuyasha have that.”

“Mama, he doesn’t-”

“No, you’re going to hear me out. Listen, Kagome. If friendship is the most important, than what will make your friendship strong will also strengthen any other bond. And a best friend,” her mother said, “always, always, tells the truth.” Sitting back, she gave a laugh. “Well, if your friend asks you if their dress makes them look fat and you think it does, then honesty isn’t always necessary there. But with the really important things, like how you feel, something you don’t approve of them doing… you always tell the truth, and truth takes confidence. So don’t compare yourself to that girl, and be honest with him, okay? A person deserves to know who loves them and how.”

Kagome didn’t feel like arguing. “Okay, Mama.”

Half an hour later, she was crawling into bed with ice pack still held to the back of her head. Soon after, Inuyasha invited himself in through the window, outside which he normally slept. Ignoring him, she lay down facing the wall--he finally sat himself down with a heavy sigh by her bed, and spoke. “Kagome, I’m sorry.” When she didn’t respond, he went on, sounding slightly more desperate. “I-I’m not… good with words, okay? I didn’t mean to say you’re a Jewel detector as if that’s all I think you are. I meant that you just have that ability. I wanted you there. I would have if you could detect Shikon or not. We make a good team, and it’s not the same if you’re not there.”

She still couldn’t find it in her to answer, but that just made him keep talking. “And I’ll never, ever leave you again. I figured out it was a trick to distract me and ran down to find you as soon as I could. Please believe me.”

Finally, she answered, “I believe you. I just wish you would’ve told me… why we were going. I don’t think you understand how stupid I felt when I realized you didn’t come there to spend time with me.”

“But I did want to-!”

“A good friend always tells the truth,” she bit out, turning to face him. “Don’t lie to me.”

“I’m not lying!” he protested. “I was planning on hanging out with you after I talked to her! You want me to take a polygraph? I’ll pass with fucking flying colors.”

“I doubt you wanted to do that after she kissed you,” she said in return, feeling a little petty.

“Wh-what?”

“I saw you two. Heard you. Don’t play dumb.”

He was quiet, and she was surprised he even understood that it upset her. Eventually, he said slowly, “Kagome, I don’t know why she did that, okay? I was surprised too and didn’t want to hurt her. I just… I think of her every day because… it’s my fault Naraku got her. I wasn’t there to protect her when he forced the Shikon on her. I feel it’s my responsibility to free her from it, because I should have been there to make sure it hadn’t happened in the first place.”

Kagome felt herself soften. “Inuyasha, what happened to Kikyo wasn’t your-”

“I’d fought with her before it happened, okay?” he ground out. “I was mad that she was moving away. I felt like someone else was leaving me and so I lashed out at her. She did something reckless afterwards because she felt guilty, and now it’s my turn. The year she had moved away like her family had planned, she was forced to buy drugs from that bastard and get them shipped to her, forced to join the gang and be his girlfriend when she came back. I can’t let her try to escape this on her own.”

Kagome paused to let the words sink in. “I… understand why you feel responsible. But I don’t think you are.”

“That’s because you’re a fucking cinnamon roll sunshine that rejects all the bad shit in the world.” She glared, but his mouth played with a grin. “Maybe because when you’re here, the shit in the world runs away screaming. That’s what makes you Kagome.” After a moment of hesitation, he leaned up and pressed a kiss to her forehead. “Now get some sleep. I’m not leaving your side, so don’t worry.”

“I don’t worry,” she told him, the haze of sleep already overtaking her vision of his gentle face. “Because I won’t leave you, either.”

#the inugami #inuyasha #inuyasha fanfiction #inukag #inukag fanfiction #kagome higurashi #my writing #my fanfiction