Half-caste

Hope and Charity

All the way home Kagome couldn't help but think of Inuyasha. He looked like he had taken a beating from those demons. He didn't deserve that, no one did. She threw her shoes off and relaxed onto her bed. How could they be so heartless? No matter what he did he shouldn't be punished like that. Kagome felt her bed tilt with the weight of a new arrival. Buyo purred as it rubbed up against Kagomes feet. She laughed when his whiskers tickled her feet. Sitting up she grabbed the cat and put it on her lap. Stroking it gently she started to talk about her problems.

" Buyo what should I do? I want to help him, but he's so surly and rough that I don't think he'll let me." Buyo yawned and rested his head on Kagomes knee. She smiled down at the cat scratching behind his ear. " How do I get him to trust me? Maybe if I just talked to him… but then again last time I did it didn't go so well. Oh Buyo, what would you do?" The cat looked up to her with an oblivious stare and a loud 'meow'. Kagome scrunched her nose, " Well your no help." Buyo got up and stretched. He jumped off her bed and waddled away with a tickle of his bell. Kagome flopped back on her bed. " Argh why does this have to be so hard?" She'd never before had any problems with talking to people. She was quite a sociable person and was well liked. But this boy, he was proving to be a real problem. She needed a plan, a plan to talk to him without him ripping her tongue out. She gulped at the thought.

Her thoughts were disrupted though as Buyo gave a loud meow. She sighed getting off her bed and shuffling towards the kitchen. There Buyo stood meowing loudly looking expectantly at his empty cat bowl. Kagome laughed at the cat's expectancy for food. She often thought that this was the reason for the cat's liking towards her. She would be the one to give it extra treats here and there. Her poor mother always wondered why Buyo was so big.

Kagome opened the pantry and grabbed some fish snacks. Buyo's sensitive ears twitched at the sound of the bottle rattling. Automatically he started to meow clawing at the cupboard. " Alright, alright I'm coming." She swiftly picked up his empty cat bowl and half filled it with kitty snacks. Buyo purred loudly and rubbed against her leg. Kagome rolled her eyes, "Geez I should have guessed the way to a cats heart would be through its stomach" She paused for a second, the clogs in her head starting to turn. " Hmm I wonder if it would be the same for dogs?"

Quickly she ran back to her room and grabbed a coat. Then she went back to the kitchen and started to go through the fridge. Pocking her head around the corner she yelled to her mum, " Ma, I'm going to take the rest of this roast next-door okay?"

Seconds later came her mothers reply from somewhere else in the house. " Sure that's fine, just be back before six." Kagome looked down at her watch. It was only four so that gave her plenty of time.

" Okay ma, bye."

" Bye honey." Kagome carefully took the roast out of the fridge and balanced it in her right hand while closing the fridge door with her left. Then she had to do the same for the front door. Walking briskly down the path and around the fence she made her way to Inuyasha's front door.

When getting there she paused to examine the house. As far as she knew it was nearly as old as the shrine. Grandpa once told her that it used to be a part of the village the shrine used to overlook. The only building left like it. She had to admit that it did look pretty old. The paint was pealing all over it giving it a shabby appearance. She looked closely at the door and saw what numerous dents and what to her looked like bullet holes.

If they were in fact bullet holes it wouldn't have surprised her. People seemed to refuse Inuyasha's existence. People would pick fights with him for no apparent reason other than for what he was. It wasn't his fault, he didn't choose be born a hanyou. Fate just had another plan for him.

Kagome took a deep breath and tried to push down her nerves. She knocked crisply at his door. She heard clattering noises coming from inside but the door didn't open. She tried again this time knocking a bit harder. Halfway through a knock the door swung open to reveal a disgruntled looking hanyou.

" What?" he barked at her through the fly wire door. Kagome froze, her heart starting to beat wildly in her chest and her nerves rising. " Well?" he snapped.

Kagome jumped, surprised at the sudden noise. She wasn't sure how she should talk to him, everything that she had planned to say had fallen into the black hole of her memory. She looked down at the meat in her hands and brain started to work overdrive. Quickly she spluttered, " I brought you some left over roast, I mean because we aren't going to eat and I don't want it going to waste." She held it out in offering. When he didn't move she started to think she had offended him so quickly added, " Umm that is if you want it." Inuyasha could smell the meat and feel his stomach rumble. His better judgment was telling him to slam the door in her face but his stomach was saying the opposite. Inuyasha opened the fly wire door cautiously incase it was a trap set by Naraku. He had to admit it was suspicious. His next-door neighbor all of a sudden comes to his house offering food when in the previous five years she hadn't said a word to him. Well minus when he first came. He quickly stepped out from behind the screen door so he could grab the meat. By doing so it gave Kagome a chance to see him clearly. She was shocked to see the bruise on his cheek had disappeared. Before he could grab the meat Kagome pointed to his cheek. " Where did your bruise go?' Inuyasha growled again taking a step back from her. " I heal fast, now hand over the meat." Kagome looked down at her hands with an 'oh' and handed over the roast. He grabbed it and looked at her expectantly. She just stared back at him.

Inuyasha turned his head away. " I'm not a fucking freak show. Don't' stare at me like that."

Kagome gasped. " What, no, I didn't…"

" Keh," Inuyasha interrupted. " What you think I'm stupid or something, you think I don't see you staring at me all the time."

Kagome blushed dropping her head. " I'm sorry, I didn't realize I was doing that," she said quietly, almost a whisper.

Inuyasha glared at her. " Whatever. Did you want something else?"

Kagome looked up at him again. " Actually yeah. I saw that fight today, it was outside my English room. I was wondering if you were alright."

Inuyasha looked at her suspiciously, " Why the hell do you care?" She gave him that look again. The one he couldn't identify. Suddenly it hit him. He knew that emotion. He growled deeply and menacingly. " You pity me, don't you little girl?"

Kagome lowered her head, " I.."

Inuyasha glowered, bearing his teeth. " I don't want your sympathy!" He thrust the roast back into her hands. " And I don't need your charity bitch."

Kagome looked down at the meat and back up to him. He was angry, that was obvious. His eyes were burning with rage and spite. " I'm sorry, I didn't mean to offend you. I just wanted to help."

Inuyasha's eyes flashed dangerously, " I don't need your or anybody else's help!" He turned to leave but changed his mind. He turned around the anger and hate in his eyes smothered somewhat and said, " Look, I'm a lost cause. You'd be wasting your time." He didn't look at her as he said it. " Besides didn't I tell you that if you ever talked to me again I'd rip your tongue out?"

Kagome stood speechless. Inuyasha watched her blank expression and scoffed, " You're from a different world wench. You better get back to it before people start to worry." He turned again and went back into his house, slamming the door in his wake. Kagome stood there for a few moments before turning and heading back to her house.

As soon as she got home she put the roast back into the fridge and went to her room to sit down at her desk. She opened her journal and started to jot down her thoughts.

Journal entry: 08/06/04

Today something weird happened. When I went to school today Inuyasha had been lying in our back yard. He looked like he was hurt so I tried to help him. When he woke up he was angry. I don't think he likes people helping him. He seems so distant and surly. I just went to his house to see if he was all right. He was in a fight today, just outside my English room. I asked people to help him but they just laughed at me. I can't believe it, how can people be so heartless. Even my teacher told me to leave him to his demise. Luckily he got away. I would hate to think what would happen to him if he hadn't. I wonder what he did to get such a punishment. Then again he probably did nothing. In the past five years numerous people have come by some yelling, some shooting. For them he represents something unnatural, something that wasn't meant to happen. They hate him for what he is. It isn't fair.

Just then when I went over his house he told me he was a lost cause and that I would be wasting my time on him. How could anyone think like that? Well I'm going to help him, no matter what he says. I know there's hope for him, even if he doesn't see it.