To Find What Cannot be Found
By Kagehoshi
Ch7 Home is where my heart lies

Since the beginning of time, Mankind has sought to improve itself. Great cities and empires have been built, which have later crumbled into dust. Amazing scientific theories about the universe have been discovered, which have later been proven wrong. Complex battle tactics and advanced fighting techniques have been developed, which have since been made obsolete with the invention of weapons of mass destruction. And while Mankind has been doing all this women have sat back and watched them as they made asses of themselves. And no group of males in the history of the world (part 1) were making bigger asses of themselves then those currently staying at Genkai's Temple.

Genkai was going to die, she just knew it. Her sides were killing her and she couldn't take in a full breath. Chuu was currently trussed up like a Christmas turkey, hanging upside down and dangling from the eaves of her temple. Apparently someone had gotten angry at the large demon since he had taken Kagome out for a walk in the woods last night and managed to grope a feel when Kagome suspiciously tripped over a foreign object. The girl's outraged shriek had been heard for miles, as well as the resounding slap that followed soon after. The enraged Priestess had come storming out of the forest grumbling to herself about perverted groping drunkards and lack of 'tree roots'. Genkai took in a choked gasp as she tried to stop laughing hysterically. She wasn't sure how much longer she could take this. From the frozen boxer shorts to the mysterious outbreak of poison ivy in embarrassing places, her poor Temple seemed to have a sudden epidemic of strange happenings. Yet oddly, or maybe not so oddly, it had only been the males who were affected. The only one of the lot who had remained unaffected was Hiei, and considering the threats that had spewed out of the small fire apparition's mouth after the Spork Incident, it was quite understandable. Genkai wiped the tears out of her eyes and took in a deep soothing breath, but upon seeing the hapless Chuu's now bright pink Mohawk and new yellow hair ribbon she was soon cracking up all over again.

Kagome stepped onto the engawa (1) wearing a pair of loose blue silk pants and a matching sleeveless Chinese style top. Her hair was held back in a braid and she held a pair of fighting slippers and a sheathed Katana in her hand. She had a worried look on her face as she watched Genkai gasping for breath on the brightly polished wood.

"Genkai-sama?" Kagome queried softly, not quite sure what was going on. Genkai merely shook her head and still gasping, pointed towards the new decoration dangling from her roof. Kagome turned to stare down the engawa and twitched in surprise as she caught sight of the dangling demon in the distance. 'What the heck is that?!' Was the only thought that crossed her mind as she slowly approached the strange object. 'Chuu!?' Kagome's eyes widened at the sight of the bright pink hair and yellow hair ribbon. Reaching out she quickly turned him around so that he was facing both her and Genkai. As his face came into view Kagome reared back in shock and Genkai collapsed back to the ground once again in hysterical laughter. Chuu's mouth had been sealed shut with some strange plant like substance, but that was not what had caused such strong reactions from the two women. Chuu's lips had been painted a bright happy pink, which went lovely with his blue eye shadow and red blush. Genkai gasped and wheezed as she struggled to control her laughter, it was all too much she couldn't handle it anymore. Even Kagome let out a cough that sounded suspiciously like suppressed laughter. Drawing her sword Kagome leapt up and swiftly cut through the rope that held Chuu to the roof. The large male crashed to the ground with a grunt and Kagome did the best she could to help him remove his bindings. When he had managed to free himself from the mass of ropes wrapped about his body, Chuu stood and peeled the thin strip of gunk from between his lips, before turning back to Kagome and clasping her hands in his.

"Will you be my woman?" It was the same question he asked her every day, and while usually Kagome managed to fend him of easily with soft denials and easy jokes, today she was at a loss for words. Staring up into his face, which was now so close to her own, thanks to the help of the engawa, Kagome did the only thing she could in such a situation.

"Bwahahahahaha! Oh Gods Chuu please go wash that stuff off your face I can't take it anymore!" freeing her hands from the curious demon Kagome turned away quickly and bit the inside of her lip. 'Now was not the time to loose control.' She thought as she hurried down the long wooden porch. 'I'm late for my sword lesson.'

Chuu watched the girl as she quickly walked away from him, his face a mask of confusion.

"What's wrong with me face? Never had a problem with it before?"

Genkai had managed to get a hold of herself by this time and decided to enlightened the bewildered demon before her.

"I believe it's the over accessorizing that she has a problem with. Next time you might want to tone down on the eye shadow. Sometimes less is more." And with that Genkai turned on her heel and entered the temple, intent on a teacup full of steaming tea and heavily laced with sake(2).

Chuu cursed under his breath as he rushed to the nearest water source, intent on giving himself a good scrubbing before running into Kagome again.

Getting herself calmed down Kagome sat down on the edge of the engawa. Slipping on the fighting slippers, Kagome looked up when a shadow fell across her form.

"You're late."

"Sorry, I got slowed up by a large dangling Barbie doll on steroids."

"Hn." Hiei turned around, but Kagome caught sight of a slight grin on his face as he moved out into the courtyard.

When it had become apparent to Genkai that Kagome was mastering control over her powers much faster than expected, the aged psychic had decided to expand the girl's training into new fields. After browbeating him for about two hours Genkai had gotten Hiei to agree to teach Kagome the use of the sword. Chuu had agreed to teach her grappling and Yusuke was teaching the oh so joyful art of street fighting. As well as all of this Kagome was still expected to do her regular training with Genkai, keep up with her archery, learn about plants and such with Kurama, and spend some time in the library each day studying the ancient scrolls there. Sighing to herself Kagome rose and began going through her stretches. With so much on her plate is was a wonder she still managed to slip in several hours of sleep each night. Thankfully she was granted Saturdays off, and she often spent the day in quiet relaxation. 'Or, more recently laughing my ass off.' Kagome thought wryly, recalling the fire-ant fiasco. That one had her laughing hysterically for hours, and even now as she thought about it a light giggle escaped.

"What are you giggling about, woman?"

Kagome sighed again as she straightened up from her position, and shot a glare at the stoic demon before her.

"What have I said about calling me that, Hiei? You know my name so use it."

"Hn."

Kagome frowned to herself as she followed Hiei out into the courtyard. She was completely confused about him, ever since that first afternoon the youkai had avoided her like the plague. It was as if that kiss had never happened. 'Well who knows what's going on in that little firebaby's mind.' Kagome thought to herself, as she lifted her leg upwards for some deep hamstring stretches. As soon as her warm-up exercises were finished Kagome stood and made her way to where Hiei was waiting impatiently.

"First Kata!" Hiei barked out, and Kagome instantly got into the correct starting position for the prescribed series of movements. "Hajime!(3)"

Kagome instantly began to move her body in studied graceful movements, swiftly and accurately completing the first Kata of her lesson. When she was done she held her final position until Hiei spoke again.

"Fourth Kata. Hajime!"

Her sword whistled through the air as Kagome followed the commands of her teacher. After going through several more Kata's Hiei made the sign for Kagome to stand down. Then he proceeded to draw his own blade and go over some new techniques with Kagome. After two hours of technique development Hiei called the session to a close and Kagome gratefully sunk down on the edge of the engawa.

"Jeez this isn't getting any easier, my shoulders are killing me." Kagome grumbled as she stretched her arms above her head in an attempt to loosen her aching muscles.

"Be grateful you haven't started sparing with him yet." Kagome looked up to see Yusuke standing behind and to the left of her holding up a very cold looking bottle of water.

"I don't even want to think about that yet." Kagome groaned, and gratefully reached out for the bottle Yusuke handed to her as he sat down beside her, "I have a feeling I'll be ending up on my back more often then not." Yusuke nearly choked on his own water as a sudden image of Kagome naked, on her back and underneath him, flashed through his head.

"*cough* Well I do have some good news for you." He said, slightly louder then necessary since he was trying to hide his discomfort. Kagome took a swig of her water and let out a sigh of satisfaction.

"Please tell me that you guys finally got that smell out of the kitchen. If I have to endure flash fried dryer lint for one more night…"

Yusuke let out a bark of laughter as the memory of that prank replaced the naughty image of Kagome in his head.

"Well I'm not sure if the smell is still there or not, but chances are you won't be eating diner here anyway." Kagome raised an inquiring eyebrow as the Sprit Detective grinned cockily beside her.

"Care to elaborate? Or would you prefer to just sit there and grin like a deranged clown."

Yusuke faked a sad expression.

"I'm hurt Kagome, and here I am already to take you back home for a visit." He barely held onto his water as he was suddenly hugged by a very happy Kagome.

"Oh do you mean it Yusuke!? I can visit my family tonight?" Kagome looked up at him her blue eyes filled with hope, and Yusuke couldn't help but smile back.

"Yeah, Genkai thinks it would be a good for you. Plus she says you need more clothes and stuff, you can't keep doing laundry everyday."

Kagome smile widened and she stood up enthusiastically.

"When do we leave?" She said clapping her hands together in excitement.

"As soon as I finish my water." Yusuke replied lazily, taking a small sip from the bottle in his hand and smiling cheekily.

"Oh well in that case." Kagome replied her tone a little too sweet for Yusuke's liking. Without warning Kagome's hand shot out and Yusuke found himself soaking wet from the contents of his water bottle.

There is something innately soothing about trains. The gentle rocking of the cars and the soft clanging of the tracks somehow set a soothing background to any situation. However this was not the case with Yusuke Urameshi, currently Urameshi-san was trying very hard to keep his hormones under control. Kagome had taken advantage of the empty car and long train ride to catch up on her sleep, and she was currently using a very 'happy' Detective as a pillow. Yusuke grit his teeth and tried everything he could think of to just calm down. 'Damn this just isn't working.' He thought as Kagome let out a soft moan and snuggled further into his warmth. Usually a mental picture of Kuwabara naked was enough to cool his raging hormones but tonight it just wasn't cutting it. Desperate Yusuke formed a picture of Kuwabara and Takanaka-sensei, his old teacher, naked together. While this series of images did manage to help him gain control, it also managed to make him quite ill, enough so that when Kagome's stop was finally called out he gratefully gathered the girl up in his arms and carried her out instead of waking her.

"Eh? Are we there already?" A slightly sleepy voice questioned from his arms. Yusuke looked down and couldn't help but smile at the picture Kagome made in his arms. Her eyes were only half open and glazed over from sleep and she blinked owlishly up at him. He groaned internally as the unbidden thought of how she looked like she had just come from a bout of wild sex flitted across his mind, and he instantly felt himself harden again. Gently putting down the groggy girl Yusuke thanked every Kami that was listening for the loose training pants he was currently wearing.

"Yeah we're here, you feeling better now?"

Kagome smiled warmly and nodded her head.

"Much, I can't wait to get home. I miss my Mama's cooking." Kagome licked her lips in anticipation. Her mother had been so happy to hear from her, and when Kagome had mentioned she was coming home for a visit she just about cried over the phone. Kagome had high hopes for an Oden dinner this evening.

"That good huh?" Yusuke asked, grinning as he noticed the starved look on Kagome's face.

"You'll be ruined for every other woman once you have a taste." Kagome responded. Yusuke bit back another groan as more images popped into his head, he just prayed he could make it to her house. Once there he was positive that the constant presence of her mother would significantly cool the raging fire that Kagome stirred in his body.

Kagome quickly made her way through the train station, and only paused a brief moment to scan her J-card through the turn-still. Yusuke quickly followed, and caught up with her as they exited out of the station and into the late afternoon sun.

The streets were filled with people coming home from school or work, or shopping for that night's meal. Kagome expertly weaved her way through the crowd, nodding her head and smiling at those people she recognized, she was finally back in her own safe little neighborhood and she couldn't be happier.

"Hey Kagome! Wait!!" Kagome paused and looked behind her in surprise as she heard someone call out her name. Yusuke stood besides her watching curiously as three girls dressed in green sailor uniforms converged upon the startled girl.

"Oh Kagome-chan it's been such a long time since we've seen you. Have you recovered from your bout with lymes disease?" Asked the girl with short-cropped hair. Kagome held her hands up in a placating gesture and smiled wanly.

"Hi Yuka, Eri, Ayumi, nice to see you guys. Yeah, I'm all better now. I'm just here visiting my family now."

"That's right we heard that you had gone to some temple in the middle of nowhere." Yuka said, "You're going to become a priestess right? Lucky you."

"Well I suppose it's for the best." Ayumi spoke up, "With all the school you've missed it would be very difficult to graduate."

"Yeah, at least I have an option with the Shrine." Kagome said smiling weakly.

"You could always just marry Hojo, he's got a great chance of getting into Tokyo U after graduation, and a great job after that." Eri said slyly, "Hojo-kun would be a great husband for you Kagome."

Yusuke let out a snort of disbelief, 'no way some goody-goody nerd boy is going to get anywhere with Kagome.' He raised an eyebrow as he noticed that all four girls were staring at him. Yusuke was wearing a tight black T-shirt that molded to his abs and the loose dark blue fighting pants he had worn in the dark tournament. He had not bothered to gel his hair back this morning so it fell freely about his face.

"Kagome…" Eri asked, eyeing the boy like a piece of meat, "Who is this?"

"Oh I'm sorry I forgot to introduce everyone. Guys meet Yusuke Urameshi, he's my…"

"I'm her boyfriend." Yusuke cut in. At the mention of his name all three girls had gone white, but with the announcement of his 'relationship' with Kagome their mouths hung open with shock. Kagome had turned and was staring at him with a dumbfounded expression on her face, so she was completely taken by surprise when Yuka grabbed her arm and she was forcibly dragged away.

"Huddle!"

The three schoolgirls surrounded the dazed Kagome and began firing questions at her.

"What is it with you and bad boys?"

"What happened to the two-timer?"

"Do you have any idea of who that guy is?" This last was hissed by Eri, who snuck a quick peek at the boy standing not to far away.

"Yusuke?" Kagome queried, unsure of what Eri was talking about.

"That's the Great Urameshi, he's the toughest kid in the whole city. Rumor has it that he was hit by a car and walked away without a scratch."

Kagome, who had already heard the story of Yusuke's first death, stifled a giggle at the inventive retelling of the tale.

"This isn't funny Kagome, that guy is really dangerous. You could get hurt."

Kagome shook her head in denial.

"I'm fine you guys, Yusuke would never hurt me. He's my friend." Kagome stood up and backed out of the huddle, "I got to go, my Mom is expecting us, and I don't want to keep her waiting. See you later" She grabbed Yusuke's hand and ran off before they could say anything else.

The two of them were laughing hysterically by the time they reached the Shrine steps, and Yusuke was pleased to note that Kagome still hadn't released his hand.

"What on earth possessed you to tell them that you were my boyfriend?" Kagome asked panting slightly from the run and laughter.

"The look on your face when that guy was mentioned reminded me of the time we got Kuwabara to eat a whole lemon. I thought they might lay off if they thought you were already taken."

"Ha! You don't know my friends. They have it in their heads that Hojo is perfect for me. They'll never give up."

Yusuke's grin widened and they both turned to look up the stairs to the Higurashi Shrine.

"Hey Yusuke."

"Hmmmm."

"Remember when you offered to carry me up Genkai's stairs that one time?"

"Yeah."

"Is the offer still open?"

Yusuke raised an eyebrow in surprise.

"Why Kagome I thought you didn't want to be coddled. You said you wanted to become stronger, so you wouldn't have to rely on others."

"Yeah, but I'm too tired to be noble right now."

"You're right screw the stairs." And with that Yusuke grabbed a startled Kagome in his arms and promptly jumped up the set of stairs.

"Oh my God that was awesome!" Kagome cried out gleefully as they landed smoothly on the top of the stairs. Their laughter floated out around the yard and soon the residents of the house were alerted to the two teenager's presence.

"It's Kagome! Hey Mom Kagome's here!" Souta yelled out before running out of the house and launching himself at his big sister.

"Hey squirt, how have you been?" Kagome said, giving her little brother a big hug.

"I've missed you a lot Kagome, and don't call me squirt."

Kagome ruffled his hair affectionately and moved forward motioning Yusuke to follow. When she entered the house Mrs. Higurashi was waiting in the foyer her hands clasped nervously in front of her. As soon as Kagome caught sight of her, all pretenses of mature adulthood vanished and she was six years old again.

"Mama!" The young cry cried out before launching herself into her mother's waiting arms. Yusuke watched the mother and daughter reunion feeling awkward and out of place. He shifted his eyes to the side noticing an old man dressed in temple robes eyeing him suspiciously.

"Demon be gone!!" The old man suddenly yelled sticking several strips of paper on the confused boy.

"What the Fuck!!" Yusuke yelled falling back as the strips of paper stuck to his face and arms.

"Oh, jii-chan! Yusuke's a friend of mine from the temple!" Kagome cried out in exasperation, "Now put those things away! Not like they ever do any good anyway." The last sentence was mumbled under her breath, but Yusuke caught it anyway and smirked as he peeled the strips of paper off.

"What the heck are these things?" He grumbled staring at the strip of paper covered in strange symbols.

"Those are just Jii-chan's ofudas." Kagome said, not bothering to hide the wide smile on her face, "Don't worry he only does it the first time he meets you."

"Well isn't that a relief." Yusuke grit out, trying to pull one stubborn strip out of his hair.

"Kagome dear," Mrs. Higurashi queried softly from the entrance hall, "Why don't you introduce your friend."

"Oh of course! I'm so sorry how rude of me." Kagome stood a little sheepishly, "This is Urameshi Yusuke, he is a friend from Genkai's Temple. Yusuke, this is my mom, my Grandfather, and my little brother, Souta."

Yusuke gave a slight bow in greeting, still keeping a watchful eye on the old man.

"Urameshi?!" Souta exclaimed excitedly, "The Great Urameshi?!"

Kagome giggled into her hand and after kicking off her shoes, walked further into the house.

"Yeah that would be me, but I don't really…" Yusuke began, edging around the overly excited boy, trying to follow Kagome.

"I've heard all about you!" Souta interrupted, "You're the toughest guy in the whole city. Is it true you got hit by a car and didn't even get a scratch?" Souta was practically vibrating in excitement now.

"No, that's not exactly right…" Yusuke had managed to remove his shoes and make it into the house.

"Do you fight Demons too? Is that how you know Kagome? Do you beat them up, or do you have a weapon? Inu Yasha ni-chan had a sword. Do you have a sword?"

"Ummm…"

"Enough Souta, leave the poor boy alone." Mrs. Higurashi shooed her youngest child away from the uncomfortable teenager. Kagome smiled softly at her younger brother's disappointed expression and laughed.

"Why don't you show Yusuke that new game you were telling me about, Souta?" Kagome suggested softly, "I know for a fact that he likes video games almost as much as you." Souta looked hopefully up at Yusuke, who looked a lot happier with the mention of mindless video-game violence. When the older boy smiled and nodded his head, Souta let out a whoop of joy and grabbed his arm, pulling him towards the TV.

After standing and watching them play for a couple minutes, Kagome decided to take this time to pack. She would prefer Yusuke not hang around as she packed her clothes. When she entered her room Kagome's eyes began to water as she noticed two new large book bags sitting on her bed, just waiting to be filled with necessities. 'Oh mom, no matter how much you hate to let me go you're still helping me along.' Kagome knew how difficult this was for her mother, to constantly watch as Kagome walked away, a great deal of the time into dangerous situations. Yet still she did her best to help her daughter in the path she must walk.

Kagome packed one bag with additional clothing and shoes, as well as more hair ties and a new brush that her mother had left out for her. Finally she'd have more than three pairs of panties, the one's she'd been using had been getting rather threadbare. The second bag was packed with some extra toiletries and some personal items that she had missed greatly during her time away from home. Soon both bags were full to bursting and Kagome managed to muscle the heavy bags out of the room and down the hall. She decided to leave them there until it was time to leave, no sense in having them get in the way downstairs.

As she came down the stairs Kagome noticed Yusuke and Souta still sitting in front of the TV playing their game. Shaking her head in amusement she exited out of the house and walked quickly towards the comforting branches of the Goshinboku. Abandoning her shoes to the slick grass Kagome clambered up the sacred tree's rough bark to the branch that had come to mean so much to her. It was Inu Yasha's branch, the one he always sat upon when waiting for Kagome to come back from a visit home. The branch had come to hold a very special place in her heart, for months after the well had sealed Kagome's eyes would stray to the Goshinboku and to the branch, almost expecting to see Inu Yasha sitting there, the same grumpy look on his face.

But Inu Yasha had never turned up, nor would he, locked in the past as he was. Kagome sighed and stretched out on the branch leaning up against the wide trunk of the ancient tree. She had received her first kiss on this branch, 500 years in the past. Her last night in the past, the Shikon whole and Naraku defeated, Kagome had hoped for her fairy tale ending. But fairy tales only happened in books, and no matter how much she wished otherwise, Kagome's life was not a book, and fairy tale endings were not for her.

"Hey Kagome! Whatcha doing?" She glanced down to see an amused Yusuke standing beneath the rustling branches of the sacred tree.

"Hi Yusuke! Nothing much, just thinking." Kagome replied lightly leaning forward so that her legs straddled the thick branch and she rested her chin on her hands.

"Well move over, cause I'm coming up!" And before Kagome could react Yusuke had leaped up and gracefully landed on the branch.

"Don't get me wrong, you're brother's a great kid, but I can't take any more questions right now." Yusuke sighed in exasperation before plopping down in front of the startled priestess. Kagome stifled a giggle, and sat up straight her legs still dangling over the sides of the branch.

"He did the same thing with Inu Yasha, and Inu Yasha always did the same thing as you." When Yusuke gave her a confused look Kagome explained further, "He would always leap up onto this branch seeking some peace and quiet. Even in the past you could almost always find him on this branch, just sitting quietly." Kagome sighed and looked forlornly at the well house, "Sometimes I think it was the only time he was actually at peace."

"Do you miss him?" Yusuke asked, noticing the sad look in Kagome's eyes. She looked at him in surprise, then smiled softly.

"Very much so. I miss them all very much."

They sat in silence for a while, neither one feeling the need to speak. Yusuke puzzled over the mystery of the girl before him. While he and the others knew the basic story of her journeys to the past and the adventures she had had, they actually knew very little of the specifics. How had the hardships faced and the terrors felt changed the young girl she must have been? What made her so cheerful and carefree one instant, and sad and withdrawn the next? Had she suffered? Had she cried? Had she laughed and loved? Did she still love? He was dying to know, yet he could not bring himself to ask. Luckily Kagome solved his dilemma for him.

"I never liked the well house you know." She said suddenly, knocking Yusuke out of his thoughts, "It was dark and scary, and it smelled funny. I always avoided it when I was younger. But that day, when it all began, I had just turned 14 and I thought 'come on Kagome, you're practically grown up. This is not the time to be scared of an empty well house.' So I went in and… well let's just say I found more than my cat." Kagome sighed and looked up into the sky. Night was falling, but the lights from the nearby city obscured any sight of the stars.

"Will you tell me?" Yusuke suddenly heard himself asking, "Will you tell me what really happened?"

Kagome remained silent for a moment, and at first Yusuke thought that she had chosen to remain silent, but then she started to speak and she told him.

She spoke of a priestess, whose own purity created a gem of immense power. She told him of an evil man who desired the gem's guardian. The sad story of a doomed love between a priestess and an inu-hanyou was conveyed. She let him know of the orphaned kit, who had called her mother. The lecherous monk with a cursed hand stood beside the demon slayer who had lost everything. A wolf who had loved deeply and fought fiercely, as well as the Lord who had felt nothing save for a small human child, were woven in. She spoke of the wounds suffered, of the battles won and lost. She spoke of laughter and joy, pain and suffering, hopes and longings. She spoke of new friends and lost allies. Sometimes he laughed at her words, and at other times he held back tears. She continued to speak, as the sky darkened into night and the birds ceased to sing. He learned of the horrible deeds of the dark hanyou, and growled at the betrayal of the undead priestess. And as she continued to speak, though she said nothing about it, he saw the bravery and compassion and infinite wisdom of one single person as she gave everything she had and more to battle an evil that should never have walked the earth. He saw the bright shining light that pushed away the sorrow of others and bound them together as friends. And as she finished and spoke no more, Yusuke, for the first time in his life, felt his heart warm and spill over. He knew, even before she turned and faced him, that he would love this glorious creature until the end of his days.

He barely registered the call for diner coming from the house, yet he noticed Kagome's face brightening in genuine joy, and he registered the tugging on his arm as she laughingly told him to hurry up. Still in a daze he followed her as she softly dropped from the tree and, barely pausing to grab her shoes, ran into the warmth of the house.

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If you love me let me know in a review! Also I would like some ideas for funny pranks. These guys are tough so anything goes, let your imagination go wild!