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Friendly Persuasion	By : Ookami13 Category: InuYasha > General Views: 2417 -:- Recommendations : 0 -:- Currently Reading : 0
Disclaimer: I do not own InuYasha, nor make money from this story.

Chapter List
- 3
- 4
- 5
Chapter Four:
Name Calling
He wasn�t there.
All day Kagome looked for him, but no matter where or how
hard she looked, Kyo Ookamia Usuya was nowhere to be found.
�What�s the matter, Kagome-chan? You seem more out of it than usual today.� Yuka commented as she took a sip of orange
juice.
�Are you thinking about that punk boyfriend of yours
again?� Eri asked, popping a fry into
her mouth.
�Oh boy, you can always tell it�s lunch time when they
bring up that question,� Kagome thought as she sighed, �no, Eri, I�m
not thinking about him. I�m thinking
about someone else.�
Both Yuka and Eri dropped their food and slammed both hands
onto the table, �What?! You�re seeing another
guy now?!�
Putting her hands up to protect her, Kagome smiled nervously,
�No, no! It�s nothing like that... it�s
just that...�
�Are you finally thinking about Hojo-kun? Oh Kagome-chan, that�s great
news!� Yuka exclaimed.
�Yes, Kagome-chan, that�s wonderful! Why didn�t you tell us sooner?�
�You guys, I�m not thinking about him. I�m just worried about Kyo-kun...�
Both girls nearly choked on their drinks, �Why in the world
are you thinking about him?!
Kagome-chan, has he poisoned your mind?!�
�Yuka, Eri, he walked me home yesterday, and then he ate
dinner with us...�
�He what?!
What is wrong with you?!�
�Would you two let me finish?!� Kagome exclaimed, thinking she�d finally had her fill of her
friends making fun of her other friends, �You can�t talk about someone like
that until you know them! And I
think you two would much rather jump off a cliff than try to talk to
Kyo-kun! So unless you two want black
eyes, I suggest you let me finish!�
Yuka and Eri blinked, �He�s rubbing off on her.� They thought.
�Anyway,� Kagome began again, �he had dinner at our
place and some stuff happened, then he said goodbye and left. It was pretty dark out by then, and I�m
worried that something bad might have happened to him.�
Silence followed Kagome�s voiced concern and so all three
jumped when a voice interrupted it.
�Excuse me?�
Kagome�s head whipped around as though she�d been slapped,
�Huh?�
�Are you Higurashi Kagome?�
Asked a boy with dark hair and light brown eyes.
�Yeah, who are you?�
�Nice to meet you, Kagome-san. My name is Kenkichi, but all of my friends call me Tora.�
�Tora? As in Kyo-kun�s
friend?�
�That�s right. Wow,
he talks about me to pretty girls,� Kenkichi, or rather Tora, laughed, �anyhow,
my table and I couldn�t help overhearing your conversation, but we did miss
some things. Were you talking about
Kyo-sama?�
�Yeah.� Kagome answered,
feeling a little better knowing that this boy was one of Kyo�s friends.
�And, if I heard you correctly, you�re worried about him,
yes?� Tora asked, kneeling by the side
of Kagome�s chair.
�Yeah, I am. He ate
dinner with us last night and he�s not at school today, so I�m worried about
him. Have you seen him?�
Tora ta sharp arp breath, �I won�t lie to you, Kagome-san, I have
seen him, and I know where he is, too.�
�So you know where he lives?�
A sort of strangled laugh came from Tora�s lips, �Of course I
do. He lives near me, you could say.�
�Could I see him? Or
could you just tell me where his house is?
I have to thank him for something.�
�You could give me your message or whatever.� Tora suggested.
�No. I have to see
him and thank him myself.�
Tora sighed and looked to his friends, who shook their heads
violently.
�Even though it�s against my better judgment, and because I
know he�d kill me if he found out, I�ll take you to him. Okay?�
Kagome�s face brightened, �Okay! Thank you so much!�
�Glad to see you�re so excited. This�ll be one of the only times that I know of where someone
will be glad to see Ookami-sama.�
�Huh? Who?�
�Kyo-sama�s middle name is Ookamia, so we call him
Ookami-sama or Ookami-chan. Still some
of us call him Ookami-san. It all
depends on where you stand with him.�
�When should I meet you and where?�
The bell sounded then, indicating that there were ten minutes
before classes resumed.
�About one hour after school ends right outside the school
grounds.�
�Okay. I�ll see you
then.� Kagome said as she stood.
Tora, too, stood, �Actually, Kagome-san, where do you
live? I�ll take you to him myself.�
�The Higurashi Shrine.�
�Oh yeah, that�s a lot closer to where we live. We�re practically neighbors!� Tora smiled as he turned to go to class with
his friends.
Realizing that she only had a few minutes to get to her own
class, Kagome turned to go.
�Uh, Kagome-chan, you�re not actually going to go see him,
are you?�
Her anger at a medium level, Kagome stated calmly, �Of course
I am, and do you know why? I�ll tell
you why: I�m going to go see him because I will do whatever I damn well
please.�
Kagome heard Yuka and Eri�s gasps of surprise as she walked
away, but she didn�t care.
�Kyo-kun is right,� she thought, a smile coming to her
lips, �I should stick up for myself.
All I have to do is treat everyone like I do Inu-Yasha. Except, of co, fo, for Mom, Grandpa, Sota,
and Kyo-kun.�

School ended like it usually did: uneventful and boring.
Despite that, though, Kagome was in a good mood. She had picked the friend to take with her
to the Feudal Era, she�d stood up for herself, she was going to see Kyo, and
once she asked him to come with her on �vacation�, she�d get to see Inu-Yasha
and the others again.
As she reached the top of the Shrine�s stairs, Kagome
smiled. In just one hour, she�d put her
plan into action.
�Mom, Grandpa, Sota, I�m home!�
To Kagome�s surprise, all three of her family members came to
see her.
�Hi Kagome!� Sota
said, hugging a wide-eyed, openmouthed Kagome.
�Welcome home, Kagome-chan!
Can I get you anything?� Mrs.
Higurashi asked.
�Did you bring that boy home again? I have a few talismans for him.�
Kagome blinked.
Something was up. Her family was
acting way too weird for her liking.
�Sota, good to see you, too.
Mom, I�m fine. And Grandpa,
Kyo-kun wasn�t at school today. I�m
going to visit him in a little bit, though, so I can give these to him then.�
�Be careful with them,� her grandfather warned, �they�re very
powerful.�
�Uh-huh,� Kagome said as she took the strips of paper that
her grandfather called talismans, �so what�s going on?�
�What do you mean, Kagome-chan?� Mrs. Higurashi asked.
�I mean that you�re all acting... weird. Most of the time it�s only Mom that meets me
at the door. So why are you all
here?�
Kagome�s mother and grandfather exchanged nervous glances.
�Well, Kagome-chan... just go upstairs. Come down whenever you can.�
�What does she mean by �come down whenever you can�? What�s up there, the Grim Reaper?� Kagome thought as she went upstairs and into
her room.
What awaited her might as well have been the Grim Reaper, for
she certainly didn�t want to have to deal with this. At least, not now.
Her executioner sat on the windowsill and nodded at her,
�Kagome.�
Kagome had to force herself to breathe, �Inu-Yasha.�
�What�s the matter?
You look like it�s Naraku sitting here instead of me.�
�It might as well be,� Kagome thought, �I�m sorry, I
just wasn�t expecting you. What�s up?�
�Not much, just sittin� around waitin� for you to come
back. Sango and Kaede can�t stop
talking about how �fun� it�s gonna be when you bring your friend over.�
Kagome tried not to choke on her own air, �They probably
think I�m bringing a girl back with me!
Shoot! But I can�t take Yuka or
Eri, they�d just get in the way, and I really don�t know anyone other than
Kyo-kun that could handle being over there.�
�Kagome? Is something
wrong? Your eyes just crossed four
times.�
Shaking her head, Kagome tried to calm down, �No, nothing�s
wrong. It�s just that since I wasn�t
expecting you, I made plans to go out this afternoon. You see, one of my friends wasn�t at school today, and I want to
know why. He ate with us last night,
and I hope he didn�t get food poisoning or something...�
Kagome stopped, for she noticed that Inu-Yasha wasn�t paying
her any attention.
Inu-Yasha must have finally noticed that Kagome wasn�t
talking anymore.
�She stopped talking... how long has she not been
talking?! Shit! I�m in deep trouble!�
�Inu-Yasha, did I say something wrong?�
�What do you mean by �he� ate with you last night? Who�s this �he� that you�re talking about?�
�My friend. His name
is Kyo, and he somehow reminds me of you.�
�What?�
�And he reminds me of Sesshomaru, too.�
Inu-Yasha�s jaw nearly dropped at this statement, �Do you mean
he�s trying to kill you?�
�No, no, no! His face
is almost always the same, unless he�s talking about something he feels
strongly about. And his eyes are like
yours, they show his emotions, and they show so many at once! He reminds me of the two of you.�
�Just as long as he doesn�t remind you of Miroku in any way,
I guess he�s all right.� Inu-Yasha
mumbled.
�No, Inu-Yasha, he�s in no way similar to Miroku.�
From downstairs, the sound of a doorbell reached Kagome�s
ears.
�Shoot! That�s
Tora! Inu-Yasha, I have to go now, so
I�ll see you in a couple of days and I�ll bring lots of Ramen, I promise!�
�What makes you think I�m gonna leave you alone with all
these �he� people you keep meeting? I�m
not leaving; I�m coming with you to see this guy.�
�Inu-Yasha! Why do
you have to be so difficult! Goodness,
you act like you�re jealous or something!�
Inu-Yasha made sure to duck his head before Kagome had the
chance to see him blush, �What are you talking about this jealousy stuff
for? As if I�d be jealous over you!�
�Oh of course, I forgot, you�re too good for
petty human feelings, right? Well think
whatever you want, because I�m going to go and visit Kyo-kun. You got that?�
�That�s fine, Kagome, but at least let me come with
you. I don�t want you getting in
trouble, and by the way, who�s this Tora guy?�
Kagome sighed as she jammed a baseball cap onto Inu-Yasha�s
head, �Fine, you can come with me.�
�Good,� Inu-Yasha said as Kagome began walking down the
stairs, �hey, you never told me who that Tora guy is!�
�He�s one of Kyo-kun�s friends, Inu-Yasha. He�s taking me to his house� Kyo-kun�s that
is. Now let�s go!�
Finally making it down the stairs, Kagome and Inu-Yasha said
goodbye to Kagome�s family before meeting Tora outside.
�Kagome-san!� Tora exclaimed as he gave Kagome a loose hug,
�Good to see you again. Ah, who�s
this?�
�Tora, this is my friend Inu-Yasha. Inu-Yasha, this is Tora, Kyo-kun�s friend.�
Inu-Yasha made sure to stand up straighter than usual, trying
to intimidate this boy that Kagome seemed to like so much. He madre tre to throw in a scowl for good
measure.
�Nice to meet you, too, Inu-Yasha. Like Kagome-san said, I�m Tora, or you can call me Kenkichi if
you really want to. Well, come on,
let�s go. I�d rather not delay my death
any longer than I have to.� Tora said
as he crossed the street and headed towards the alleyways forbidden to Kagome
the day before.
�Hold it, Tora.�
Kagome said, holding up her hand.
�What�s the matter, Kagome-san?�
�Kyo-kun made me swear earlier today...�
�That you wouldn�t ever come here again? I know, I heard about it. I was there when he made you swear. He forgot to say that it was okay if you
were escorted by me or one of his other trusted friends.�
�How could you have been there? I only saw Kyo-kun and those other boys.�
Tora laughed, �I�m wherever Ookami-sama is. I wasn�t in your house or anything, but I
was nearby in case he needed me. We
have this thing, he and I. We know
whenever the other is in trouble. It�s
amazing. Wherever he goes, I
go. Now c�mon, let�s keep going.�
�What did you mean when you said that you didn�t want to
delay your death any longer than you had to?�
Inu-Yasha asked, the question having nagged at him all the while Tora
spoke with Kagome.
Tora laughed again, �Well, I didn�t exactly tell Ookami-sama
that he was going to have company.
He�ll kill me if he ever finds out.
Ookami-sama hates it whenever people see him like this. I�m still not sure if I�m doing the right
thing. I�m just glad I was there to
help...�
Kagome stopped suddenly, �Why? What happened to him?
Tell me what happened to him!�
Tora said nothing, but kept walking instead. Inu-Yasha took Kagome�s elbow and pushed her
along behind Tora.
Inu-Yasha leaned close to Kagome�s ear and whispered, �It
must be too bad for him to talk about, Kagome.
Let�s just let him take us to him and see for ourselves.�
Kagome nodded, her eyes looking as sad as they did whenever
he spoke of going to hell with Kikyo.
After a few minutes of silence, Kagome asked, �So you guys
live on the other side of these alleys?�
�No.� Came Tora�s
short reply.
�Then where do you live?�
�In them.�
�What?!�
�Ookami-sama and I live in the alleys,
Kagome-san. That�s why he didn�t want
you coming in here. It wasn�t just
because of the thugs around here, but because he didn�t want you stumbling upon
our living space. Mind you that he
lives upstairs and I live downstairs.�
�But how can you live here? It�s so... so...�
�Drab? Gray? Dead?
Cold? Anyone of those? Or how about dark? Dark suits this place just fine for me,� Tora laughed when he
looked over his shoulder to see Kagome�s face, �don�t worry, I know what you�re
thinking. It is hard living
here, but we manage, Ookami-sama and I.
That and all the others that can�t afford a place to live. We�re so poor, the tax collectors come here
to give us money. Which, of
course, Ookami-sama would never let us take.�
�Why not?� Kagome
asked.
�Because he says we have to earn our money. That we can�t just always take freebies,
�cause life isn�t gonna hand you a free one just �cause you can�t afford
something. And, well, we all believe
him, because we know he�s right. So,
some of us have jobs and we work for our money, but most of it goes in a safe
that Ookami-sama has up in his half of our �apartment�.�
�Well that�s stupid,� Inu-Yasha commented, �how do you know
he�s not gonna go out and spend it all?�
Tora whirled around and pinned Inu-Yasha to a nearby brick
wall, �Listen, you, all of us down here trust Ookami-sama, and we are all loyal
to him, so don�t you dare go on saying anything bad about him.�
Forgetting that he could easily push this human kid off of
him, Inu-Yasha let himself be thrown against the wall one more time before Tora
let him go. The way this boy spoke of
his friend made him think of Kouga and how loyal he was to his pack. The loyalty was all there in his voice, and
it would make Inu-Yasha think twice before he spoke.
From where she stood, Kagome spoke softly, knowing that
Inu-Yasha could hear her with ease, �I should say s-i-t, you know, but I think
sometimes it hurts more not to.�
That said, Kagome walked on behind Tora, leaving a stupefied
hanyou behind her.
A few minutes later, Tora stopped in front of a small,
abandoned building. There were three
floors, and almost all of the windows had boards nailed across them.
�Well, here we are. I
live on the ground floor, and Ookami-sama lives on the second floor. The entire third floor is rotten, so we
didn�t even set foot up there. Way too
dangerous, �ya know?� Tora smiled as he led them inside, �I brought
Ookami-sama�s bed down here though, so I could watch him to make sure he
doesn�t get up illegally.�
�Where is he?� Kagome
asked.
�He�s in back where the sun won�t get in his eyes whenever he
opens them. Before you go in to see
him, though, I suppose I should tell you what happened.�
�That would be nice.�
Kagome said as Tora gestured for them to sit down.
Tora took a deep breath and then let it out slowly, �All
right. It obviously happened last
night, so here goes. Ookami-sama was
walking down the sidewalk and was so lost in his thoughts that he didn�t notice
three black-clothed persons following him.
By the time he came to his senses, it was too late to draw his sword, so
he took out his dagger and tried attacking them that way.
Well, he managed to get one guy down, but helped hold him
down along with a second guy. The third
guy went to kill him with his own dagger, I guess to make it look like suicide,
but I kicked him aside and rescued him.
By the time I saved him, though, Ookami-sama was already cut up pretty
badly, and also unconscious. I picked
him up carefully and carried him all the way here and then moved his bed down
where I could watch him in case he tried to get up and run away from my
ever-watchful gaze.�
�How is he now?�
Kagome asked, her voice quiet.
�He�s still unconscious, but his breathing�s a lot easier
than it was last night. I stayed up
most of last night just pushing on his chest to try and regulate his
breathing. I stayed up for just about
half the night before someone asked to take my place. I went to bed at two and got up at five thirty to check on him,
run, check on him, take my shower, check on him again, and then go to school
right after making sure someone was with him.
He hasn�t been alone since last night, and I�m gonna keep it that way.�
�Shouldn�t you take him to the doctor?�
�With what money?
Ookami-sama�s the one we trusted to hide the key because we knew he
never got sick and that he never got hurt this badly. For him to get attacked like this without his knowing, he must�ve
had a shit load of stuff on his mind.
He�s gonna be at the gym more often now, I can tell you that. He hates weakness, and you won�t be seeing
him for quite a while.�
�But what about school?
He can�t just skip class.�
�Sure he can.
Ookami-sama�s got straight A�s.
How he does it, we don�t know, and we sure as hell don�t know
where the money comes from. He�ll never
tell us,� Tora said as he got up, �well, I suppose I can�t delay it longer than
I already have. You wanna go see him,
and I�d better not stop you. Just make
sure to keep quiet. When Kyo-sama is
sleeping, he�s very sensitive to loud noises.
That, and he cannot tell a lie when he sleeps.�
�What?� Kagome asked
as she and Inu-Yasha stood.
�We figured it out one night. He got hurt one night and told us he�d fallen. He fell asleep and someone was thinking
aloud and said, �I still wanna know what Kyo-sama really did�. And then he answered by saying, �I went to
kick something and hit it too hard�.
It�s just against his nature, or something like that. He just can�t lie when he�s
asleep. But now that I�ve told you, you
can�t use it against him. I don�t think
he knows.�
�How could he not know?�
Inu-Yasha asked.
Tora shrugged, �I don�t know. Can you keep track of what you say in your sleep?�
�No.�
�Then you can�t talk either, now can you?� Tora asked, a smile in his voice as he put a
finger to his lips and opened a door.
It was dark inside, the only light coming from candles
positioned so that they cast a soft light about the room. Kagome could see Kyo�s body lying on a pile
of blankets both above and beneath him, the top blankets barely thick enough to
keep him warm. Most of the thick
blankets were underneath him, helping to serve as a mattress.
Tora motioned for Kagome and Inu-Yasha to move closer, which
they would have done without being told, for they were both curious as to how
badly Kyo had been hurt.
As soon as Kagome saw Kyo�s face, she took a few steps
back. There were bloody bandages around
his head and on his cheeks. A few
bloodied rags were piled in a small trash bin in the corner.
Kyo�s head was turned slightly towards the door where, had he
been awake, he would be looking directly into Kagome�s worried eyes.
�K-chan��
Kagome�s face adopted a confused expression. She looked towards Tora and saw that he was
pointing at her.
�You.� He mouthed.
�What?� Kagome
whispered.
�He�s been calling for you for a couple of hours now. Started sometime this morning. Keeps calling for �K-chan�, and you�re the only
one we can think of whose name starts with a �k�.� Tora explained.
�But why does he want me?�
Tora shrugged, �No idea.�
�K-chan...� Kyo said,
louder than the first time.
Leaning over him, Tora spoke softly to Kyo, �It�s all right,
Kyo-sama, Kagome is safe. I�m watching
her.�
�No... K-chan... hurt.�
�Kyo-s Kag Kagome-san is fine. Just channel all of that worry into the strength you�re gonna
need to survive. You�re made of tougher
stuff than this, Kyo-sama, now prove it!�
Tora whispered, a little louder this time.
Just then, Kyo began coughing, and Tora immediately went to
grab a clean rag. Kagome soon saw why
when a trickle of blood ran down the corner of Kyo�s mouth. Tora wiped it away and then dried off his
friend�s sweat-covered forehead.
�When do you think he�ll be awake?� Kagome asked, trying to think of a way to help her friend.
�I think it�s safe to say that he won�t be at school tomorrow
either. I have no idea when he�ll be
awake, but I wish I would have taken healing lessons from him when I had the
chance.�
�What do you mean?�
Inu-Yasha asked, covering his nose with his sleeve, the smell of blood
finally too strong for him.
�Kyo-sama has a stack of talismans that he uses for healing,
but I don�t know where he keeps them.
He says he only uses them on life or death situations. Personally, I think that this is a
life or death situation, but I don�t know where he�s hidden them!� Tora said, his frustration showing in his
voice.
Remembering the talismans her grandfather had given her,
Kagome turned to Inu-Yasha, �Inu-Yasha?
Do you think you could run to my house and grab the small pieces of
paper on my desk? They�re by my
textbooks. And could you bring my bag,
too? The big yellow one that you hate
so much?�
Knowing that Kagome would s-i-t him until his back broke if
he didn�t, Inu-Yasha nodded and headed out of the old building, down the
alleys, and back to Kagome�s house.
�You do realize that he�ll kill me just if he finds out you
caught him calling for you? And the
name �K-chan�, no less. What does
he call you, anyway?�
�He calls me the same as you do: Kagome-san.�
�Heh, so �K-chan� must be a real surprise for you, then?�
�Yes, it is. But I
wish he�d call me that instead of Kagome-san.�
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Friendly Persuasion