Kagome opened her eyes and yawned. Rubbing her tired eyes, she realized she smelled a weird odor. Her eyes focusing, she searched for the source only to land on something red on the wall.

Blood.

Kagome gasped and she got an unbearable feeling in her stomach. Wait... Where's InuYasha?! She jumped up and was about to push open the door when she heard her mother's angry voice.

"Last time I called 677, but this time I'll deal with you myself. I told you this before why do I have to tell you again?! Stay away from Kagome!"

InuYasha snarled. "Do you realize how much pain you're putting Kagome through?"

Mrs. Higurashi yelled, "Don't tell me how to raise my child!"

InuYasha grunted, as if he was struggling against something. "What will she think when she sees my blood? You fucking sick ass!"

"Don't use that language with me, hanyou!" A loud crash and InuYasha groaned. "Now, I'll make this quick before Kagome wakes up. You really are a gruesome sight. Awful."

Kagome knew this was the time to interrupt, but her legs were planted. She was dizzy with the new information and the sight of InuYasha's bloody body irked her. But she sighed. Slowly, she opened the door and stepped out...

"Kagome?" Mrs. Higurashi asked in fear. "I--"

Kagome barely heard her. She looked at InuYasha. Seeing that her mother used a knife and anything she could find to make him suffer. He was breathing heavily on the grass, his face and clothes soaked in blood. His once white t-shirt was fully red. "InuYasha!" Kagome cried and ran over to him.

Mrs. Higurashi pushed Kagome back. "Kagome, inside the house."

"No!" Kagome protested, side-stepping.

Mrs. Higurashi grabbed Kagome's wrist. "Kagome Higurashi, you are to go inside the house and stay in your room."

"Your tone doesn't scare me anymore," Kagome growled. She bit her mother's fingers and took Mrs. Higurashi's moment of shock as an invite to make her way to InuYasha. The smell of blood made her nautious but she kept going. "InuYasha, I..." She collapsed onto her knees and sobbed.

InuYasha stared at Kagome. How many times has she cried over me? How many times has she worried about my safety? InuYasha brought Kagome into his arms and held her.

Kagome stiffened at the contact, but soon wrapped her arms around InuYasha. "Kagome... I'm sorry of all the things I put you through." He settled a lock of Kagome's hair back behind her ear. "If it wasn't for me, you and your mother would still be friends."

Kagome sniffed. "I don't care."

InuYasha stiffened when he felt Kagome's lips on his cheek. She's done it before, but this time it was different. Her salty tears had moistened her lips and she poured all her passion into it. When she pulled away, InuYasha swallowed. Kagome looked so sad and something about her expression told InuYasha something. This is the last time we'll meet...? I don't want that. 

Their moment was over when Mrs. Higurashi shrieked, reminding them of their time and current situation. "Vile! Kagome, wash yourself now!"

Kagome refused, "No, I'm staying here."

Mrs. Higurashi stood there powerless. "Say your final goodbye. The well is being sealed for good now." She went to the well house, leaving Kagome and InuYasha alone.

"Two failed attempts, huh," Kagome laughed bitterly.

"Yeah..." InuYasha replied, his tone distant.

"InuYasha, you're everything to me. Please come back for me."

InuYasha gripped Kagome. "You really care for me? A filthy hanyou?"

"Never say that again. Baka." A tear slid down her cheek.

InuYasha stared at her and Kagome drew in a breath when something shone in InuYasha's beautiful eyes that she had never seen before. Love. Slowly, he leaned in and Kagome felt his lips on hers.

Blushing, she pushed him away gently and he smirked. "When you come back for me," she smiled.

InuYasha sighed and feigned defeat, and Kagome giggled. "Aren't you missing something before I go?"

Kagome frowned. "I don't think so."

InuYasha coaxed, "You said it to me the last time. I want to hear it again."

Kagome blushed. "Oh that? I was 7!"

"Come on, wench."

Kagome smiled and said, "InuYasha, take me somewhere we can be alone. I'll be waiting; all there's left to do is run. You'll be the Prince and I'll be the princess. We'll finally be together."

"Kagome, is that what you want?"

"InuYasha... I want us to be more," she started hesitantly. "I want us to be... Dating."

InuYasha opened his mouth, then closed it. Opening it again, he said, "Are you sure?"

"Stop asking me that," she pushed him playfully. "Have some confidence."

"It's just that... I don't deserve someone like you, Kagome."

"Well, I think you do. Sure, you use foul language, you're not a huge fan a bathing, you have bad people skills, you--"

"Yeah, yeah, I get it."

"But you're still InuYasha. The first guy I cared for."

InuYasha smirked gave Kagome one last squeeze. "Stay safe, wench. I don't wanna come back to find something wrong."

"I will. You stay safe. I know that you have a tough life over on the other side."

"I can handle it."

"I know you can." Kagome sighed. "This is it?"

"For a while..." InuYasha let go.

"Let me get your clothes." Kagome got up and went inside her house. Returning moments later, she gave the unwashed bundle to InuYasha. "Sorry, I didn't have time to wash it," she apologized.

"Don't worry about it," InuYasha said, taking his clothes eagerly.

"You better wash them once you get back home."

InuYasha shrugged and Kagome glared at him. "Okay, okay."

Her eyes softened. "Bye... Wait!" She took out a strange silver cube. "InuYasha can you smile for me?"

"Smile?"

"Please?"

InuYasha attempted to smile only for it to come out as a smirk. Kagome laughed and took the picture.

"Now try to really smile."

"I can't just smile. I need something nice to happen."

"InuYasha, those sweats are so sexy on you." Her tone suddenly low and inviting.

InuYasha blushed. "Wait, what?!"

Kagome snapped the picture of InuYasha's shocked red face and fell over laughing. He smiled and Kagome gasped and took another picture before the moment was over. "You're quite the model, InuYasha," she complimented, wiping a tear. "Now I have memories of you."

"Let me see." InuYasha was amazed at the device. It had occurred to him before that Kagome's side of the well had strange things and he realized she was from another time. He didn't know how many years though.

He saw his face in the small rectangle screen. He looked stupid! "Kagome, I look horrible."

Kagome smiled. "No you don't."

InuYasha began to protest but thought better of it. "So, I guess I'm out?"

Kagome twirled a lock of her hair. "Y-yeah..."

"I'll um... M-miss..."

"You don't have to finish," Kagome giggled. "I'll miss you too."

InuYasha looked at Kagome one last time and set off. He turned to wave at her before disappearing into the well house.

--------------------------------------------------------------------------------

Kagome watched for Ayumi's reaction. She wasn't surprised when her best friend's eyes began welling and she sniffled,

"That's so romantic! Let me see the pictures of him!"

Kagome smiled. "Sure, I'll get them." She got up and went upstairs to her room. She searched for the photos that she couldn't go a day without sneaking a glance at. She found them on top of her math textbook and drew in a sharp breath. 13 year old InuYasha looked up smirking at her. Every day his smiling face held an effect on her. With a happy sigh, she took the pictures and trotted downstairs. "Are you ready?" Kagome asked Ayumi while taking her seat.

"Yes! Finally, I get to see Romeo-kun!" Ayumi breathed in excitement and Kagome blushed.

"Here you go." Kagome handed her sacred treasures to her best friend. Funny how she wouldn't trust Eri or Yuka with these photos.

Ayumi cooed, "Kagome-chan, he's so handsome! His hair must be dyed and his eyes are so sparkly! He truly is Romeo-kun. I can just picture a crown on his head." Ayumi laughed. Suddenly, Ayumi noticed something. "He must be a cosplayer. He has dog ears on his head."

Kagome froze and said quickly, "Yeah, he's a cosplayer."

"Oh, so his hair must be a wig and those must be color contacts, right?" Ayumi sighed in disappointment.

"No, that's all real. Just the dog ears."

"Weird, but okay. When will I meet him?"

Kagome smiled. "Hopefully when he comes to get me."

"Ah, to be carried off with the man of your dreams... Kagome-chan, you're really living a fairy tale and I'm envious!"

Kagome laughed and Ayumi gave back the pictures, but Kagome noticed her eyeing them. She giggled and said, "You want him, don't you?"

"Hell yeah. If he wasn't taken by you, Kagome, I'd steal him away! You should've gotten a picture of him sleeping."

Kagome opened her mouth to speak before she heard her mother come down the stairs. Mrs. Higurashi, dressed in a beige pencil skirt and white blouse, approached the two teens.

"Girls, I'm going to the grocery store. Kagome, please watch over the house, Jii-san is sleeping." Kagome saw her mother glanced at the pictures and Kagome could've sworn she saw a flash of disgust in her mother's eyes.

Kagome gritted her teeth. "Okay."

"Oh, hello, Ayumi," Mrs. Higurashi greeted. "Are you hungry?"

"No, I just had ramen. But thanks for asking, Mrs. H."

"No problem, dear. Well, I'll be off." Mrs. Higurashi waved and went out the door.

Kagome sighed and got up.

"Putting them away already?" Ayumi pouted.

"Yeah. I don't want them to get dirty." Kagome went upstairs and bumped into Sota. "Watch it!" She snapped and instinctively checked if the pictures were okay.

Sota rolled his eyes and asked, "Is Ayumi still down there?"

"Yes, try not to make yourself look like an idiot." Kagome stepped past him and walked into the safety of her room. She stored the pictures in a drawer and looked at her appearance in her mirror. She still looked okay. While going downstairs, she called, "Hey, Ayumi, want to go running?"

"Sure, but aren't you supposed to watch the house?" Ayumi answered before shrieking. Looking down, she exclaimed, "Buyo, don't scare me like that!" she scolded and picked Kagome's cat up. Smoothing his ruffled fur, she continued, "When Mrs. H comes back and finds you gone..."

Kagome shrugged. "It's not like Jii-chan's defenseless. He's got shrine stuff to protect him."

"Didn't you say those things are fake and don't work?" Ayumi smirked.

"Shhh..." Kagome giggled. "Come on, I need fresh air."

"Sure," Ayumi agreed and got up. She brushed off her shorts and fixed her T-shirt. "Ready when you are."

Kagome nodded and went to the door. On the way out, she yelled, "Sota, Ayumi and I are going running! Tell Jii-chan!"

A muffled "okay" answered and with that, the two girls stepped out and relished the feel of the sun on their skin. They stepped down the large amount of stairs and once reaching the bottom, set out in a steady jog. Kagome lasted longer than Ayumi and she giggled when her best friend trailed farther and farther behind. She slowed to a stop and waited for Ayumi to catch up.

"Kagome... How... Are you... Not.... Tired?" Ayumi panted.

"I do this a lot to pass time," Kagome answered honestly. And to take my mind off of InuYasha...

Ayumi took in a last gulp of air and announced with determination, "Let's jog again! No... Let's run! Race you to our school!" Without waiting for a response, Ayumi ran off to the direction of Tokyo Middle School.

Kagome rolled her eyes and allowed Ayumi a head start since she knew she would race past her friend. After 10 seconds, Kagome darted off. Ayumi was far off, but steadily Kagome passed her and Ayumi growled.

"You won't beat me!" she protested, speeding up.

They went back and forth and as the school came into view, Kagome pushed her legs and she skidded to a halt before she crashed into the entrance gate. In a second, Ayumi was standing next to Kagome, breathing heavily.

"I'll beat you one day," Ayumi smirked. "Ah, I feel so refreshed."

Kagome laughed and they stood there for a while, just calming their breaths. Soon, the girls started their trek to the shrine.

"Hey, Kagome," Ayumi started. "Has Romeo-kun kissed you yet?"

Kagome blushed and scolded, "Ayumi!"

"I'm curious," Ayumi sighed. "It must be nice having a boyfriend."

"We're not dating," Kagome replied quietly. "We promised when he came for me we'd give it a shot."

"Oh... I thought when he came for you, you guys were getting married."

Kagome nearly tripped in surprise. "Me? Marry InuYasha?" Although I want it to happen...

"Why not? You guys love each other right?"

"Yeah, but..." Kagome looked at the sky, suddenly finding the clouds interesting. "You never know what might happen."

"Kagome, didn't you give Romeo-kun a locket? You never told me what happened to it."

"Oh... Well, the first time I gave it to him; he dropped it while being shoved down the well... After that, I just forgot to give it back. I regret that now," Kagome answered wistfully.

Ayumi nodded. They arrived at Kagome's house in silence and the two went inside. Mrs. Higurashi was waiting, her foot tapping in annoyance.

"Kagome," she said once she spotted her daughter in the doorway. "Didn't I tell you to stay here?"

Kagome shrugged. "It's not like Jii-chan is helpless."

"I entrusted the safety of our home and the safety of Sota to you! How dare you leave!"

Kagome fumed. "Get off my back!" She ran upstairs and went into her room. Turning to slam the door, she yelled, "I want the old Mama back!" Slam.

Ayumi looked at the angry yet shocked Mrs. Higurashi and apologized awkwardly, "Er, Mrs. H, maybe I should go... Sumimasen." With a bow, Ayumi scurried to the door and slid it closed after her.

Mrs. Higurashi glared at Kagome's closed bedroom door and went upstairs not even glancing at it. With an angry sigh, she went inside her own room and closed the door.

Kagome sat huddled, her knees pulled to her chest and her head bowed. Her small arms wrapped around her calves and she sniffled. She remembered her mother. Her nice mother. The one who tucked her in at night and soothed her when she had a nightmare about her father. The Mama now would never do that... She never was nice to me after I met InuYasha... She knows that one day I plan to go to him. She's given up on me... That thought brought a tear to Kagome's eyes. She sniffled and decided to do some homework since there was nothing else to do. Getting off her bed and pulling up and chair to her desk, she flipped open her neglected math textbook and found the pages of homework stuffed in there. With a sigh, she set to work.

-----------------------

Kagome rubbed her eyes and wiped the line of drool that had escaped her mouth and dripped onto the pages. She sighed at her wet homework and left it there to dry. Stretching, she looked at the time and saw 6:30 pm. She went downstairs and went to grab a bowl for cereal only to bump into her mother.

Mrs. Higurashi didn't acknowledge her, except for an angry glance sent Kagome's way. Kagome ignored her and began pouring her Frosted Flakes. She poured the milk and got a spoon slowly, before sitting to eat.

Mrs. Higurashi watched, leaning against the counter, obviously waiting for Kagome to make the first statement. Kagome rolled her eyes and kept chewing.

After 5 minutes, Mrs. Higurashi had enough and she said, "Kagome, we need to talk. About everything."

Gulping down milk, she stuck up her index finger to signal for one minute. Swallowing, she wiped her mouth and asked, "What's there to talk about?"

"You and your obsession with that hanyou filth." Mrs. Higurashi glared.

"He's not filthy! And it's not an obsession. It's love."

"He is filthy, which is what you fail to understand. You're never seeing him again as long as you're under my roof and my rules. Do you understand me?"

"Get out of my life! He's coming for me and when he does I'll leave here without a word." Kagome got up to leave the kitchen.

Seeing her daughter walking away, Mrs. Higurashi said, "At first I was nice about this. But now... I'm telling you this. If I see one flash of silver or red, he's dead."

Kagome kept walking away and walked upstairs to her room. With an angry scream, she slammed her door and locked it. "FUCKING DOUCHE!" Her hands flew over her mouth in shock. She never cursed and especially not out loud. The house was eerily quiet after that, you could hear a pin drop. Ignoring a tear, she sat down at her desk and grabbed a pencil and paper. She drew her and InuYasha, living happily together and watching their kids play. They had three, two girls and a boy. Kagome named the eldest, who was one of the girls, Hanako. The middle child which was the other girl was named Kaori. She had planned to name her after InuYasha's mother but she had never asked what his Okaa-san's name was. When she found out she would change it. And finally, the youngest was named Ichiro. She liked the names a lot and was pleased with her selections.

Hanako had her hair with InuYasha's eyes. Kaori was an exact copy of InuYasha and Ichiro was an exact copy of Kagome. She sighed when she realized that most likely none of this would happen, but still hung the picture up on her wall, for all to see. Kagome walked over to her opened window and looked out, her arms resting on the pane. The wind gently moved her hair and toyed with it. Kagome looked at the setting sun, so close it looked like she could reach out and touch it. Smiling softly, her mind quickly forgot about her unfair mother and her love life. She was so absorbed in the scenery that she almost missed when her cell phone rang.

"Moshi moshi?" she answered, slightly frustrated that the caller had interrupted her Kagome time.

"Kagome-san?" Kagome groaned inwardly when she recognized the voice of Hojo. "I realized that I never apologized to you."

Kagome was tempted to hang up the phone but chose to respond with silence instead.

"How about we start over? With a real date?" Hojo coaxed.

Kagome seethed in rage. Did this guy ever give up? "You don't understand, Hojo. I do not want to date you. I do not want to be your girlfriend. EVER."
"Kagome, why are you being so difficult? I love you."

Kagome froze at those words and started crying. Hojo did a little squawk and said quickly,

"Wait, I um... Shit! Uh... Just think about my offer, okay Kagome-san?" He hung up.

Kagome sank to her knees and her phone dropped to the floor. Covering her face with her hands, she bawled and all her emotions spilled out. All the held back thoughts. "How come it was Hojo-kun?" she choked out. "InuYasha was supposed to be the first guy to tell me. Hojo-kun ruined it! He ruined my dream!" Many times she had imagined InuYasha telling her that he loved her but it never happened so along the way she made it her wish that InuYasha would be the first boy... but now...

Sota must've heard her crying because a few moments later, he knocked on the door, asking softly, "Nee-chan?"

Kagome sniffled and said, "Leave me alone."

A short silence then Kagome heard Sota say, "Nee-chan, I really wanna know what happened. Mama and Jii-chan won't tell me. They're scared I'll follow in your footsteps. What happened eight years ago?"

Kagome realized that indeed, no one had told Sota. She blew her nose with a tissue from her tissue box and got up. Opening the door a crack, she said, "Come in."

Sota walked in and sat on his sister's bed as she closed the door. She sat down next to him and began,

"When I was seven, I fell into the well by accident. I found myself in another dimension on the other side. I walked around and found no one, well no one that could help me. A few minutes later, a ball rolled up to me." She smiled at the distant memory. "A boy stepped out and the first thing I noticed were his pretty eyes and how they shone in the sunlight. He asked me to play with him, and I agreed. I had so much fun and I decided to keep coming back. To play with him. When I was younger, I didn't do much except pick flowers and sit in the garden, so actually meeting another human being who liked the outdoors like me was such a miracle. He was my first friend... I wanted to introduce Okaa-san to him, so we jumped over the well and we went inside the house."

"What happened next?" Sota asked, his eyes wide and his voice filled with awe.

Kagome shook her head sadly. "All hell broke loose. Mama called the 677 troops to take InuYasha away."

"677 troops?" Sota interrupted. "What's that?"

Kagome took in a sharp breath then sighed. "You know 911 right, Sota? It's if you're in an emergency and require immediate help. Same with 677 except they deal with hanyou and youkai emergencies."

"I don't get it... The guy you met was a..." Sota shuddered. "Hanyou?"

Afraid he would run out in disgust, Kagome said desperately, "But he wasn't like the youkai that the teachers tell you to be aware of like in school. He was different, Sota."

"How was he different?" Sota murmured. "Youkai are awful." He looked up, crying silently. "They killed Papa, Kagome."

Kagome winced and told Sota, "That was a long time ago. I was little when it happened, and you weren't born yet."

"Yeah, but I still know the story," Sota said angrily. "Kagome, how could you love a hanyou? How?!"

"Sota!" Kagome tried to explain. "He's not like--"

"I don't want to hear it, Nee-chan." Sota wiped a tear. "I don't want to talk to you anymore." He walked out in rejection, closing the door after him. She could hear him mutter, "My only sibling, and she broke her promise."

Promise? Kagome wondered. What could I have possibly promised Sota...? Now uneasy, she sighed in despair and resumed her spot at the window. The only family member that wasn't mad at her now was. "I knew I shouldn't have told him," she whispered. She looked at her neglected textbook and sighed. I still need to finish this stupid homework. Too tired to even think about math, Kagome stretched. She did anything she could think of. Sing, dance, write poems, draw, sleep... Anything to get her mind off of InuYasha.