Author's notes: hmm, so first fanfic. Can't say I'm not totally up to it, it's just that this is also my first crossover. I've written a few crossovers before just for fun, but I've never posted it up before like this. So, without further ado, I give you the story!
Warnings/plot settings: this story starts after the Bounto arc and before the Arrancar arc, so that's the time between each. Also, nearing the end, heavy spoilers on current manga chapters. With Inuyasha, let's just say you'll be spoiled right away if you haven't any damn clue who the hell Naraku is or what the Shikon Jewel is, either.
Disclaimer: I only wish, but even in my dreams, I still can't imagine me owning Bleach or Inuyasha…sad, aint it?
Maybe it was because he hadn't had any decent sleep in weeks or maybe it was because he was just plain delusional that he could see things so out of the ordinary today; well, more out of the ordinary then usual, anyway.
Maybe he had taken one too many hits to the head from dear old oyaji (as well as a few good kicks, damn the senile bastard). Maybe it was from balancing a normal high school life and a life of a shinigami. Those two didn't really mix that well, if someone where to ask.
Whatever the matter, Kurosaki Ichigo was definitely seeing something, and he had a sinking feeling about it, too.
He shook his head lightly, frown ever in place on his roughened face, as he continued to glare at the girl with the funny spirit strings. She was milling about, a grocery bag tucked in between the crook of her arm and forearm, as she picked out apples from their display.
Ichigo considered himself to have seen a lot of weird things in his day. Dead people, Hollows, pink chibis, soul reapers, Rukia's poorly drawn explanations (though he'd keep his mouth shut with a twitch of his eye; he knew what Rukia was capable of), and the occasional talking cats. Ichigo considered himself very jaded, for that matter, but looking at the multicolored spirit threads floating gracefully around the ebony haired girl (that had legs that kept going forever he just couldn't help but add), he had to reconsider.
'She's got blue, pink and white mixed all together.' Ichigo thought with a narrowing of his eyes. The three colors blended well, making a dark violet purple whenever any of the colors touched the other. Never in his life, had he seen something so utterly unbelievable. It was making him feel just a touch queasy, actually.
"Maybe if I go check her out," Ichigo wondered out loud as he strayed away from his place in line. He ignored annoyed glances his way and the intermittent rolling of the eyes of other people waiting in line to pay for their goods as he stuffed his hands in his jeans pockets. Yuzu wouldn't mind if he'd be a little late bringing her cocoa powder for her chocolate cake if he had a good reason. And obviously, this was a good reason. As shinigami representative living on Earth, he had a duty to uphold, and damn him if he ever got showed up by the residential soul reaper keeping watch just a block away.
"Eh, hey you, girl-san," Ichigo called out awkwardly, unsure how to address the one he had spotted. Some people sent him weird looks, but he paid no mind to them. He was used to it, with his orange hair and his rough demeanor.
Apparently, the girl hadn't heard his uncomfortable cry, for she continued on her way to the next column of fruits and out of Ichigo's sight. Cursing that today as a Sunday and that most people did their grocery shopping today, Ichigo tried to weave his way through throngs of people with much difficulty.
Futility then reared its ugly head when Ichigo was just so suddenly stuck in a grocery line with no memory of wanting to get in line to purchase anything yet. "The fuck," the teen cursed quietly as he strode out of line to glower with the avocadoes at his side. The line took his spot and moved forward.
'I'm imagining things, maybe.' The boy sighed. Was there really someone who had multicolored spirit threads? The only colors he'd ever scene were all white and red for the humans and shinigamis respectfully, nothing that was ever mixed. Decided that he needed more sleep, Ichigo was only just a block away from home when he remembered the cocoa powder Yuzu requested.
"I do need more sleep," Ichigo grumbled darkly as he turned right around and stomped all the way back to the super market.
Maybe it was paranoia. Maybe it wasn't. Whatever it was, Higurashi Kagome knew the feeling well; the feeling of being watched, that is.
Ever since the final battle in the Sengoku Jidai with Naraku, Kagome had always felt paranoid. She couldn't help it, really; the trip to Naraku's castle was reason enough for anyone. She would always be first to sense that something or someone was following their little group to Naraku. Her intuition was always correct when Sango hauled her giant boomerang at a nearby bush to slice a youkai puppet or when Inuyasha would unsheathe his sword.
It was second nature to her; she couldn't do much for their group other than to track down shards of the jewel, so she made it habit to locate danger whenever it was present because she, (out of their group, Miroku-sama not included) was most in touch spiritually. She was never wrong; her sixth sense, how Miroku-sama would always say, was deadly accurate.
That was why she was positive someone was watching her.
Kagome kept her head down, making it seem that she was just out shopping for fruits. She moved her lips without really saying anything, so it seemed like she was muttering to herself on what to get so that no one would bother her. She moved to another section of produces, hoping to Kami that who ever was watching her would lose interest at such a boring person out shopping. Luckily for her, it seemed that she had lost whoever it was.
Placing a hand to a wildly beating chest, the school girl calmed her nerves and got in line. Whoever it was gone now, so she need not worry herself anymore, she told herself. Paying the uninterested cashier placidly, Kagome rushed back home in hopes of appeasing a surely waiting half-demon with her long-awaited presence (for heaven knows she was already over an hour late to meet him). She stopped only a block away from the shrine; damn, she forgot the ramen. No use getting back from the store to Inuyasha if you didn't have any of the instant noodles on hand. Cursing her forgetfulness, she scurried back to the market to pick them up.
"Aren't you the early bird," Inuyasha growled as he watched Kagome slide the shōji door open and slip off her brown loafers. He was leaning casually on the stair post, his arms crossed with his brows furrowed. Inuyasha frowned when he saw Kagome was carrying two bags, seemingly all filled with various fruits. She shouldn't be carrying such heavy things, and he berated himself for letting her go shopping by herself. His ears twitched when he heard Kagome suck in a quick breath.
"Gomen, gomen, but I was almost home before I forgot to buy some ramen for you guys." The school girl said, relieving herself as she let the heavy grocery bags sag to the ground. That was when the dog demon noticed that one bag had instant noodles lined inside.
"Keh."
"Yeah, yeah." Kagome refused to say a thing about the creepy feeling she had back while shopping. Knowing the overprotective hanyou well, he'd totally freak about it, and over all have a seizure.
She decided she wanted to spare Inuyasha of that. For now, at least.
"Wanna help me put these in the kitchen? Mama is making a fruit salad for guests that are coming over tonight and she needs these." Kagome gestured to the bags on the floor with a helpless look. Inuyasha grunted and lifted the bags with ease to swing them so that they lay supported on his back. His other hand was on the back of his head scratching, making it seem as if he was doing this because he was bored. Maybe, Kagome thought with a thankful smile.
Seeing her mother working furiously on an onion (chopping it up good with swift movements), Kagome motioned for Inuyasha to drop his burden on the table. "Mama, your fruits." She said.
"Ah, thank you, Kagome." Mama Higurashi smiled good naturally as she stopped her cutting. She looked thoughtful for a moment, putting a finger to her chin, before she had a smile on her face once more. Inuyasha took that opportunity to wait for Kagome outside, presumably in the Goshinboku. Kagome had that it was weird before that a dog demon such as Inuyasha himself would have such an unhealthy attachment to the sacred tree in their shrine grounds, but it made perfect sense, really... it was just a little weird (well, Kagome thought it weird, anyway; how could anyone have any sort of affection for something that would remind you of pain? An arrow right in the damn heart, no less!)
"Kagome, I know you might not be all that excited to have moved to a new school," her mother began. Kagome was indifferent with the situation; on one hand, she'd miss her three friends and Houjo-kun a lot, but on the other, no more poking and prying from them on a daily basis, either. She knew they meant well, but really, a girl could only take so much.
"No, mama, I'm okay. I'll miss everyone alright, but I'll make new friends." She hated having to worry her kind mother.
"That's exactly what I was thinking!" mama cried joyously…and strangely out of character of her, may I add.
"Eh?" Kagome said intelligently.
"I have friends in many places, Kagome," mama said, resuming her chopping of the onion. "And I know one that has a daughter going to Karakura High."
"That's great, mama!" Kagome said. What a weird off topic this was.
The older woman set her knife down and collected the onion pieces together and dumped them into a steaming pot on the stove. "But she passed away with her husband a long time ago, I'm afraid." Kagome felt a twitch in her heart. It must be a horrible feeling to lose someone as close as a friend.
"They had two children, but unfortunately, the older of the two passed away as well, leaving the younger of the siblings." Mama Higurashi shook her head with a light frown.
Kagome didn't know what to say. How did such a lighthearted topic turn to one such as this? "That's horrible, mama."
She nodded with a sympathetic sigh. "The daughter of my friend is still here, and is attended the school you're transferring to next." She said. "I think it best for you two to meet. It would be quite nice if you two would be friends."
Ah. So there was a means to everything, Kagome guessed. "Someone attending Karakura High, with me, huh? At least I'd know someone then before going to classes." Kagome quirked her head to the side. "What's her name?"
Her mother brightened considerably, and smiled. "Inoue Orihime, Kagome. I hope you'll
warm up to her, the girl is quite sweet and she'll be arriving at seven."
After many apologies and apology presents later (that consisted entirely on the ramen she had bought earlier that day), Kagome had finally convinced Inuyasha to give her another two days to enjoy dinner with someone new and to attend her new school tomorrow. He had grumbled, but finally relented when Kagome's mother asked him (as well as bribed him of sorts with some baked cookies). He waved his clawed finger under Kagome's nose and told her specifically to "get back after the two days are over, wench"; he promptly got sat into the dry well for the 'wench' comment. Kagome didn't feel at all entirely satisfied because she couldn't hear the ignorant hanyou hit compact dirt ground as he disappeared from her in a holy blue-pink light.
Returning from the dry well house, Kagome was pleasantly surprised by the arrival of Inoue Orihime. A pretty girl with long orange hair and- dare she say it?- overflowing… breasts. Looking down onto her own chest, Kagome felt somewhat lacking.
"So, Orihime-san, is Kurakara High a fun environment?" Mama Higurashi asked over dinner that night as she passed the soy sauce to Sota.
"Ah, yes it is, Higurashi-san! And Orihime is fine." She was bubbly and friendly… she also preferred to eat Udon with peanut butter. How…weird. She turned to Kagome. "You'll like it there, Kagome-chan, its so much fun! There's Tatsuki-chan, Ishida-kun, Sado-kun, and Kurasaki-kun though he might glare at you the first time he sees you, but don't worry! He does nothing but glare!" Orihime giggled, chewing noodles and peanut butter merrily.
Kagome smiled with a twitch of her mouth. Orihime-chan was so… funny in that 'I'm trying not to but I'm funny anyway' sort of way. She liked the girl already. "You wouldn't mind showing me around and introducing me to your friends, would you Orihime-chan? I'd like that very much."
"Oh, sure! There are lots of people there and since I like you already, I'm sure everybody else will, too. Don't mind Kurasaki-kun, though. Did I tell you he'll glare at you first time you see him?" she put a finger to her chin and quirked her head to the side. When Kagome nodded her head in the affirmative, the orange haired girl polished the rest of her Udon/peanut butter dinner. "Ah, that was great, Higurashi-san! I enjoyed the meal!"
"It was nothing, Orihime, and really, I'm still holding my offer to you. Won't you come live with us here at the shrine? It wouldn't be a big deal, dear, we have a spare bedroom upstairs that needs filling."
The girl shook her head, and Kagome caught a glimpse of a sadder Orihime-chan for a split second. "No, it's alright, really. I like living at my apartment, it reminds me of my family and onii-chan a lot."
"If you'd have it no other way, dear. But if you ever are in need of a place to stay or for someone to look after you, the Sunset Shrine is open at all hours." Mama Higurashi walked the younger girl to the front door and handed her purple sweater. Kagome brought up the rear as well as Orihime's loafers. Smiling at the other, the two girls waved a peace sign under their noses and bid goodbye until tomorrow morning. Kagome slid the door shut and got ready for one hell of a day tomorrow.
"Ano, Hello? Kurasaki-kun, is that you?" Orihime had returned home from dinner with the Higurashi's and was currently on the phone.
"Ah, yeah, Inoue. What's up?" Ichigo sounded on the other line.
"I went to dinner to someplace on the far side of Tokyo, 'cause, you know, Tokyo isn't that far from Karakura Town, and I went to shrine that was name 'Sunset Shrine' and though it was named 'Sunset Shrine', it wasn't really sunny because I went at night, and"
"Inoue, slow down, would you. And get to the point, while you're at it." Ichigo cut her off her rambling.
"Eh, yeah, sorry." Orihime apologized quickly, scratching her head a bit sheepishly. "Anyway, I just wanted to ask you something."
"Well, what it is?" Ichigo sighed.
"Have you ever seen mixed spirit threads before?"
Terms:
Oyaji-old man
Shinigami- soul reaper
Chibi- short person or a kid, referring to someone/something as small and generally cute
Sengoku Jidai- warring states era (the era when Kagome makes her trips)
Youkai-demon
Kami- god
Gomen- sorry
Hanyou- half demon
Goshinboku- the sacred tree in Kagome's backyard
Author's notes: so, the adventure begins next chapter. I know the first chapters to stories aren't always the best chapter, but bear with me, m'kay? It's gonna get better from here on out, if you like the story enough to continue it with me. Anyways, happy reading, hopeful potential reviewers! Constructive criticism is welcomed and reviews would be absolute love! I'll answer questions too if you leave a review!
Food for thought: the beginning is always started with the first step. –anonymous