Here I will have a few different fan fictions. I'll make an index so that if you're not interested in one series you can skip over it and go to the post that has a series you are interested in. Some of the stories do expect you to know a bit about the characters in the stories before you can read them. Thanks for stopping by!

Post One: Introduction

Post Two: “Between Two Species� –Pokemon-
- Summery: As a young eevee, Candy was taken out of the wild and forced to evolve into a flareon then taken to a lab where harsh experiments were performed on her. While in the lab she meets a young boy who wants to save her from all the pain she went through.

Post Three: “Between Two Species� –Continued-

Post Four: "Between Two Species: A New Beginning"
- Part two of "between Two Speices"

Post Five: “Strawberry Picking� –Digimon-
- Summery: A short fan fiction about Yamato and Taichi going strawberry picking.

Post Six: “Chocolate Cake Mix" -Digimon-

Post Seven: "One Soul, Two Loves" -Inu-Yasha-

Post Eight: -Reserved- Story coming soon

Post Nine: -Reserved-

Post Ten: -Reserved-

(2)
Between Two Speices

I felt as a tear ran down my face, brushing it away with my paw quickly. I curled my tail around my body as I sat down in the corner of the cell I was in. I stared at the white walls of the cell, longing to know what it was like outside the walls. All I knew was the terrible conditions in the laboratory. Day after day I was experimented on and treated like I wasn't a living thing. The food portion I was given was small and the living conditions were awful. I brushed another tear from my face. I hated what those humans had done to me.

I laid my head down on my knees, putting my tail over my head. Although the physical pain of the morphing procedure was gone, the physical evidence of the experimenting had remained. Instead of being a normal flareon, I was now what the scientists called a "Pokè Morph". I looked nothing how I used to. Now I had the body shape of a human, my paws where more like human hands and feet then paws, and I had chestnut brown hair that reached down to my mid back. There was however, the evidence of me once being a flareon. I had a fine red fur that covered my entire body and a flareon- like tail, ears and nose.

I sighed, still having my head down on my knees. At that moment I just wanted to be out of that room, away from all the experimenting and pain. I was the only Pokè Morph that I knew of at the time. I felt so alone and just wanted to give up on life, then I remember how great it was to be free. I was captured as an eevee and brought to the testing facilities, having a good home for a few months before being forced to evolve in a flareon and turned into what I am now. I hated being different then all the other pokèmon. I just wanted to go back to those days where I could do whatever it was I wanted to do, being able to sleep without having to worry about some weird experiment being done to me while I was asleep, being free and understood.

The humans who where in charge of taking care of me looked at me as a monster, something that was only one more thing they could use to make money. I hated being viewed like that, but what could one expect when you were between two species? I began to cry harder as I thought about what my life was now like. I heard a door open and stood up, quickly brushing the tears from my face. A man with a white lab coat on walked into the room, followed closely by a young man, who seemed to be around the age of 16. He had black hair and brown eyes and was about the same height as I was. I walked to the bars lining the cell I was in, placing my hands on the bars as I watched the young boy walk through the lab. He was absolutely the most beautiful thing I had ever laid eyes on. Everything about him seemed perfect. I smiled, continuing to watch him.

The boy looked over in my direction as he looked around the lab. I felt a strange feeling when he looked at me. It wasn't unpleasant, just felt as if my heart was fluttering around inside me. The boy stopped, noticing me.

"Professor Drake, what's that?" He asked, still looking at me. The man in the lab coat stopped, looking over at where the boy was looking.

"That is experiment 3602." He said in a flat tone as he looked over at me. I backed away from the bars of the cell in an automatic manner. I was deathly afraid of that man. Every time he looked at me that way I knew something bad was going to happen. It was always him who experimented on me and punished me when I refused to do something for him. I stopped when I felt the wall behind me, never once taking my eyes from Drake. I felt my body begin to shake as I stood there, watching Drake. He smiled at me as he noticed the concerned look on the trainer's face.

"It's a new edition to our collection of rare pokèmon." He said, looking back to the trainer. The trainer continued looking at me, walking closer to my cell. I knew he wouldn't hurt me like Drake did. I slowly walked back over to the bars, sniffing the air as I picked up his sent. He smelt so good, unlike anything I have ever smelt before.

"What is that smell?" I asked softly as I picked it up from him. The trainer jumped in surprise, hearing me talk.

"Y-you can talk?" he asked with a stutter, backing up a bit. I tilted my head to the side slightly, still looking at him.

"Come now, Akemi. You don't want to be hurt by it." Professor Drake said as he shuffled the boy into the next room. I sighed, watching as the walked out of the room. I know that the boy wasn't supposed to see me and I knew I would be severely punished for talking to him.

I felt the whip hit my arm again, stinging as it formed a cut. I began to bleed from the small wound. The whip once more hit my flesh as it made yet another wound on my arm.

"I never want to hear you speak or be seen by outsiders ever again! Is that clear!!!" Professor Drake yelled at me as he held the whip tightly in his hands. I was in the corner of my cell, standing against the wall as he hit me again with the whip. I closed my eyes, feeling great pain from the slices of skin torn away by the whip. Drake left my cell, slamming the cell door behind him. I fell to my knees, crying softly to myself as watched him walk into the next room. I put my hand on my arm, covering some of the wounds from the whip. I felt blood seeping through my fingers as I closed my eyes, trying to forget the pain. My body began to shake as I tried not to think about what had just happened.

After sometime, I fell asleep, still having my hand on the wounds on my arm. I was awaken by a taping sound on the small window that looked to the outside. I stood up, looking up at the small window. Seeing nothing, I looked away sighing. Another tap came at the window. I stood up on the small crate in the cell, looking out the window. The young boy who was in the laboratory earlier was kneeling outside the window looking in at me. I blinked, being surprised he was ever able to find the small window amongst the grass that grew outside the window.

"It's about time you came to the window." He said with a smile. I said nothing, but just stood there looking at him. "I'm going to get you out of there."

"You are?" I asked, hoping he was telling the truth, but at the same time knowing he couldn't possibly free me. I sighed, realizing the truth of the manner. "You would be wasting you time if you did try to free me." I said sadly, looking back up at him.

"Do you like it in there?" He asked, looking me in the eye. I didn't answer, but just stood there. I looked behind me, making sure no one was around.

"I hate it here." I said softly, afraid of being heard by someone in the next room. "But what can you possibly do to convince them to set me free?" I asked him in a softer tone of voice.

"I'll figure out a way, don't worry." He said in a confident sounding voice. I smiled slightly, brushing my hair off my face. "What's your name?" He asked me as he came closer to the window.

"My name is Candy." I replied, watching him.

"I'm Akemi." He said softly as he laid down on his stomach in the long grass. I could smell that sent again coming from him.

"What is that wonderful smell?" I said sniffing the air a bit more. Akemi blinked then realized what I was smelling. He took out a small bottle from his backpack, setting it in front of the window.

"It's something I've been developing. A type of perfume." He said as he opened the small bottle. I could smell the wonderful scent stronger then I could before. It smelled like spiced apples. I loved that smell, even though I had only smelt it once before when I was an eevee.

"Give me your hand." He said, moving as close to the window as he could. I stuck my hand out the window, allowing him to take it in his. I felt myself blushing as he splashed a small amount of the liquid from the bottle onto my wrist. I looked at him, feeling that feeling that I felt when I first saw him. It was defiantly something I didn't understand, but I did like it. He continued to hold into my hand.

"You have beautiful hands." He said as he looked down at my hand. I felt myself blush even more. I wanted to be outside with him at that moment not being trapped in this cell.

I perked my ears up, hearing someone open a door in the next room. "Someone is coming." I said, still looking at Akemi.

"I better be going then." He said as kissed my hand before letting it go. "I promise I'll be back and set you free soon."

I pulled my hand back inside the window as he quickly walked away. I sighed happily before someone opened the door to the room I was in, causing me to jump slightly. I quickly jumped down from the crate, sitting down in the corner of the cell. Professor Drake walked into the room, walking over to my cell. He looked in at me, giving me a dirty look. I looked away from him, not wanting to be hit any more.

Drake put his hand to the whip under his lab coat, clenching his fist. "What the hell where you just doing?" He roared. I flinched, knowing I was going to be hit if I lied to him. I couldn't tell him the truth, more for Akemi's safety then my own. If Drake found out Akemi was planning on freeing me, he'd kill him. I kept quiet, still not looking at him.

"Answer me damn it!!!" He yelled, getting more and angrier by the second. I still didn't move or answer. He opened the door to my cell, taking the whip from under his lab coat. "I said answer me!"

I shook my head, not looking up at him. He drew the whip back then slashed my face as hard as he cold with it. I closed my eyes, feeling the pain of the leather that hit my face. Drake picked up the sent of the perfume Akemi had splashed on me.

"You saw him again, didn't you?!!!" He yelled furiously. I still said nothing, staying in the corner too afraid to do anything. Drake drew the whip back, slashing my face again. I began to cry, feeling the pain of the whip hitting my face.

"It was only for a moment." I said softly crying.

Drake kneeled down to my level, taking my chin in his hands. "I thought you would have learned your lesson last time." A tear fell onto his hand as I looked at his face. He was angrier then I have ever seen him and that scared me. I feared what he might do to me. He stood up, yanking me up angrily by my wrist. Drake dragged me to the room next door, pushing me down on a white bench. I sat there, not knowing what he was going to do to me this time. I was guessing he was going to inject me with one of those drugs they often used as punishments for pokèmon they could hardly control. They were the worst thing you could do to a pokèmon.

Drake let my hand go, locking the door then turning to a table with several needle laying on it. My body began to shake as I saw him bring out a clean needle, filling it with some kind of fluid from a bottle. I stood up, running to the door as I attempted to unlock it. Drake quickly loaded a tranquilizer gun and shot me with the drug filled needle. I felt it sink into my left arms as I struggled with the lock. I pulled the dart from my arm, throwing it to the ground. Only seconds had passed and I could feel the drug starting to take effect. My arm began to stiffen up and become very painful as if someone was slowly cutting it off with thousands of tiny knives.

I managed to get the lock open just as my legs began to hurt. It felt as if my skin was on fire. I couldn't do anything to stop the pain as it progressed to my legs, causing me to fall to the ground in pain. The whole time Drake just stood there and watched as I began to feel more and more pain. Finally the full effect of the drug took place and I passed out.

(3)
Between Two Species (continued)

I woke up in my cell lying on the cold stone floor. I sat up slowly, but quickly laid back down feeling a sharp pain in my chest. I breathed heavily, the pain beginning to go away as I laid there unable to move. Closing my eyes, I realized I was lucky I wasn't killed, although that may have been a better result then suffering all the pain I was enduring. At that moment I thought I would never get out of there alive.
Later on that day after I had regained my strength, I sat in the corner of my cell as I often found myself doing. I felt hopeless and helpless to do anything to improve my position. I knew that if I didn't do something to get myself out of there soon I'd end up dead. Walking to the bars of my cell, I griped them in my hands, looking out over the laboratory. Test tubes and needled laid on several of the tables. On the far wall from me were several pokèmon in pokèballs lining the wall. The pokèmon in those balls weren't treated nearly as bad as I was. They at least fit in somewhere, where as I fit in nowhere. Unfortunately, they too had experiments performed on them although not as cruel as the ones they had done on me.

The morphing experiment was the most painful thing I have ever experienced. I remember thinking to myself how much I just wanted to die when they injected me with the drug that began the transformation. Imagine the worst pain you can image and multiply that by a thousand. Pain that you can barely live through, pain that just brings more and more pain as you continue to change physical bodies to one that was totally unknown to you. All the time you where in a small cage, used for transporting pokèmon from lab to lab. I arrived here after the morphing completed. It astounded scientist that a pokèmon could be successfully merged with human DNA and live. Many morphs died while in the morphing process or shortly after.

I hated being the only different living thing on the planet. I hated being alone and often thought that I deserved to be treated like I was. Then I thought about when I was free to do whatever it was I wanted to do and how great that felt. That is what I wanted, I knew for sure now. Freedom. My eyes continued to scan the room, noticing several small Growlithes in a tiny cage across from where my cell was. I hated seeing pokèmon confined to the horrible living spaces they where forced to live in. One of the Growlithe puppies looked over to me, placing its tiny paw on the bar of its cage, wagging its tail.

I felt sadness and anger come over me. I couldn't stand it any more, I had to get out of there now. I stood back from the bars of my cell, bringing up my right hand in front of me as I pointed my index finger at the bars of the cage. A fireball began to form at the end of my finger getting bigger and bigger as I concentrated more and more energy into it. I released the fireball, sending it towards the bars of the tiny cell. The bars melted away as the fire met them, making a small hole in the bars. I stepped outside the bars and ran over to the cage with the Growlithe puppies inside it. Taking the lock in my hands, I allowed the heat from my body go to my hands as the seal of the lock began to give way. I picked the three tiny puppies up and walked quickly to the exit of the lab.

I reached the front door, setting down the Growlithe puppies on the ground next to me. I created another fireball on my fingertip, allowing it to hit the door. The door opened to the outside. It was dark out almost nothing was visible. The small puppies followed me as I took my first step outside the door. I could feel the grass beneath my feet as I just stood there for a few moments taking in the smells and feeling of the outside world. I snapped back to reality, realizing I had to get the puppies and myself out of there before someone came. I picked the three puppies back up, running away from the labs and into the forest a few yards away.

Fortunately for me, the researches thought that once the morphing was done, the pokèmon's abilities would disappear but that wasn't the case. I set the puppies down on the forest floor once I thought we were far enough away from the lab. It seemed like I had been running for hours. The forested property that the lab owned was used to capture pokèmon for research and I knew we wouldn't be safe in there for long. Where else did we have to go? I knew no one from the outside world.No one except Akemi. but where was I to find him?
We kept moving during the night further and further into the woods, stopping a few times to rest. Finally we reached the edge of the woods, nearing morning time. There was a human town and a house a few yards from the woods. I quickly became worried. What if someone saw me, not understanding what I am? I could very well be killed on the spot. I sighed, kneeling down on the ground as the Growlithe puppies ran up to me wagging their tails happily. I'm sure news of the missing puppies was going to be in the news, but they would never expose the fact they had a Pokè Morph alive and breathing that had escaped.

Sure, few people knew about the existence of Pokè Morphs but they were told that all the pokèmon that completed the morphing process all died shortly after wards. They never mentioned the existence of a Pokè morph that was very much like a human and spoke the human language. If people knew how advanced Pokè Morphs were and how painful the experiments were for the pokèmon the experiments would surly be protested against. I continued petting one of the Growlithe pups as I looked at the small house yards away.

I needed away that I could walk into the town without people realizing what I really was. I glanced around the area and my eyes fell upon a clothesline that had some sheets hanging on it. Picking up one of the Growlithe puppies, I held it in my lap.

"Could you get the sheet for me?" I asked it, looking down at it. The puppy wagged its tail and jumped down from my lap, running over to the clothesline. It sat down under the sheet then jumped up, attempting to pull it down. The first time it didn't succeed but the second time it did, dragging the rather large sheet over to me. I smiled and petted the small puppy on the head, picking up the sheet.

I stood up and covered my body with the sheet, using it like a cloak to conceal my body and face. Walking out of the wooded area, I decided I would walk to the house and explain my situation to the owner of the house. I hoped that they would understand and not react in a negative way. I sighed as I began walking to the house, followed closely by the three Growlithe puppies. I was aware of the fact that I could very well not be welcomed by the house owner and I was scared of what reaction the owner may have if they saw what I really was. At that moment I wanted just to have somewhere I could go to get away from the laboratory and the cruel experiments.

I knocked softly at the front door of the house, making sure I had my face and body covered well by the sheet. Nervously, I waited for an answer hoping to be understood for once in my life. The door opened before I could knock a second time. I couldn't believe who was standing in the doorway.

"Akemi?" I said softly, still having the sheet wrapped around me. Akemi blinked, not recognizing me at all.

"Do I know you?" He asked, looking at me trying to figure out who I was. "And why do you have my sheet?" One of the Growlite puppies grabbed a hold of the end of the sheet, pulling it off my face and part of my body. I quickly tugged it back over my body, leaving my face uncovered.

"Candy?" He asked me a bit surprised.

I nodded. "Yes, I ran away from the lab and took these puppies with me." I said looking down at the three puppies at my feet. Akemi blinked a few times, looking down at the pups.

"Come in." He said, ushering me inside the house and closing the door quickly behind us.

We were sitting in his living room, the Growlithe puppies playing on the ground in the middle of the room. Akemi had made some tea and I held my cup in my hands, allowing the sheet to fall from the upper part of my body. Akemi sat on the opposite end of the couch as I was, looking over at me.

"How did you escape?" He asked, still having his eyes on me.

"I used an ember attack to melt the bars of my cell." I said, taking a sip from my teacup. "I am sorry I stopped by here so early, I just had nowhere to go and I know they will not rest until they find me.." I looked down at the ground knowing that my freedom could not last long. I set my teacup down on the table.

Akemi scooted closer to me, placing his hand on my upper arm. "I won't let them take you back there." He said firmly, still having his hand on my arm.

I smiled slightly at him. "And the puppies?" I said, wanting them to be safe as well.

Akemi nodded. "Of course, they'll be safe also."

"Akemi?" I began, looking over at him. "Why are you not afraid of me?" I asked, not understanding why he did not see me as a monster like the scientists at the lab had.

He smiled softly at me, looking me in the eye. "How could someone fear something as beautiful as you?" He replied, placing his hand on mine. I felt myself blush. Beautiful..I was never told I was beautiful. I looked down at his hand on mine then looked back up at him.

Akemi moved his hand, noticing this. "Sorry." He said quickly, apologizing to me, looking down to the ground slightly.

"It is alright." I said softly, still blushing slightly. It was quiet for a few moments before I broke the silence. "Akemi?"

"Yes, Candy?" He replied, looking back over to me.

"Do you live here alone?" I asked, not wanting to attract attention if there were other humans in the house.

"I live with my parents, but they're away on a business trip for another week." He replied.

"Oh.." I responded as I looked back to the ground. "Akemi, Can I stay with you tonight?" I asked, not having anywhere else to go.

Akemi nodded. "Sure." He replied. "I know you don't have anywhere else to go..You can stay here as long as you want."

I smiled at him and quickly kissed him on the cheek, not really thinking about it. He returned my smile, not seeming to mind the kiss.

"Thank you, Akemi." I said, glad that I would be safe for the time being.

Akemi had allowed me to have the guest bedroom that was beside his bedroom. It was a small room, like him own bedroom but instead of having white walls, it have dark red walls and décor. I sat down on the edge of the bed, feeling the feather down comforter beneath me. Softness is something I didn't feel in the cell I was staying in. I had taken the sheet from my body, revealing a long black skirt that was badly torn and a black tank top that was just as badly torn as the skirt. The growlithe puppies had curled up on the bed and fallen asleep. I looked over at them and smiled, petting one of them on the head.

Akemi had left me some nightclothes on the foot of the bed. They were a pair of dark blue pants and a dark blue short-sleeved shirt. I reached over and touched the material the clothes were made out of. It was softer then anything I felt in a long time. I stood up from the bed and changed into the nightclothes, folding up my old clothes and setting them on the ground in a neat pile.

The clothes Akemi had given me were a bit big on me, but were much more comfortable then my old clothes. I looked at my reflection in the mirror on the back of the door, smiling. Akemi was so kind hearted and I was thankful for him opening his home to me. But what if the lab looks for me here? I knew I couldn't stay there for long. I frowned, looking down at the ground. I didn't want to leave..I had taken even more of a liking to Akemi. I sighed, walking over to the bed and sitting down on the edge of it. Why couldn't things be simple for once?

A knock came at the bedroom door. "Candy? Can I come in?" I heard Akemi ask from the other side of the closed door.

I smiled and replied. "Yes."

He walked into the room and smiled at me, standing at the door. "Is everything comfortable for you?"

"Yes, everything is wonderful." I replied, returning his smile.

He blushed a bit then looked to the ground slightly then looked back over at me. "If you need anything, let me know."

I nodded. "Akemi..What if they come here looking for me..?"

Akemi walked over to me, sitting down on the edge of the bed next to me. "I won't let them take you without a fight."

I smiled at him, looking up at him. "Thank you." I said softly before hugging him tightly. I felt him hug me back, resting his head upon mine. Akemi lifted his head, kissing me softly a top the head. I smiled and pulled away from him slightly. He let me go, blushing deeply.

"I'm so sorry....I.." He said quickly when he realized what he did.

I smiled at him. "It is quite alright." I said, interrupting him. He blushed even more.

"We better be getting to bed." He said as he stood up from the bedside. "Sleep well." He said as he turned to face me.

"You sleep well as well." I said, smiling at him.

Akemi blushed, looking to the ground slightly. "Good night." He said softly as he walked out of the room, closing the door behind him.

I smiled then laid down on the bed, slipping under the covers. I reached over to the bed stand and turned out the lights then fell asleep.

I awoke in the middle of the night, hearing a strange noise. I listened carefully, sitting up in the bed. Nothing was to be heard. Moments later I heard the noise again. It sounded like something scraping against something else, but I couldn't tell where it was coming from. I turned the lamp on the bedside table on and listened. The Growlithe puppies awoke, also hearing the sound. Something just did not seem right. I pulled the covers up to my chin, leaning back against the wall behind me. One of the Growlithe puppies began to growl as a knock came at the front door. The knock came again, this time a bit louder then it had been before.

I pulled the covers up over my head. All I could think about is the people at the lab coming for me. I knew it was them and my time of freedom was up. I began to cry, still having the blanket tightly held in my hands.

"Oh really?" I heard Akemi's voice coming from the other room.

"Yes and they're missing three Growlithe puppies." Another voice said. "Do you mind if I have a look around?"

"Actually, I must get up for work in the morning, so I do." Akemi said firmly. I could hear footsteps coming closer to my bedroom door. I closed my eyes, not wanting to go back to the lab. They cannot take me back.

"What the hell are you doing?!" I heard Akemi shout at the other person. "It's Three O'clock in the morning now leave."

"Okay. I will be back in the morning, understood?" The other voice said. I heard the front door slam shut. I loosened my grip on the blanket, allowing it to drop from my hands.

A few moments later, Akemi opened the door to the room I was staying in and walked inside.

"Candy? Are you alright?" He asked as her walked over to me.

I brushed a tear from my face. "Yes, I am fine." I replied, my voice shaking slightly as I spoke.

Akemi sat down on the edge of my bed. "I'm guessing you know that man that was just here is from the labs."

I nodded my head. "I do not want to go back, please Akemi.." I began to cry harder. Akemi put his hand to my face, brushing away the tears from my face. I looked at him, still crying a bit.

"I promise, I won't let them take you." He said, looking at me with a slight smile.

"Akemi.." I leaned over and hugged him tightly. "Thank you."

I woke up in the morning having my head resting on Akemi's chest. The puppies were curled up at the foot of the bed and Akemi was still asleep. I smiled at him, brushing my hand across his face. He was so thoughtful. I never met anyone like him before. I laid my head back down, resting it back on his chest, just listening to him breathing and his heart beating. I sighed contently, liking things the way they were right then and there. I snuggled up to Akemi, falling back asleep and not wanting to wake him.

Later that day, I was sitting on the living room couch, drinking a cup of hot tea and watching as the tiny puppies played on the floor. Akemi had stepped into the kitchen to make himself a cup of tea. A knock came at the door and Akemi rushed to answer it. I looked over to see who it was at the door. One of the people was someone I did not recognize. It was a man around the age of 40 or 50 that had slightly grayed hair and was wearing an officer uniform. The other person, I recognized. I gasped then quickly ran into the back bedroom, closing the door behind me. I felt my body begin to shake as I leaned back against the back of the door.

The man at the door I recognized was Drake, the scientists who had been performing experiments on me since I arrived on Cinabar Island. I could not let him take me back to the lab.

"Where did you get these Growlithe puppies from?" I heard one of the men ask Akemi.

"They belong to my sister." He quickly said, sounding like he really did mean it. I heard one of the puppies growl at something then yelp as if being hurt of frightened by something. I closed my eyes, leaning back against the door still. I felt my heart rate go up as I slid down the back of the door, feeling my legs get weak beneath me. I was so scared of being taken back to the lab, I had left the puppies behind. Now Drake will know for sure I am here. My hands began to shake as I heard foot steps in the hallway.

"Where is the girl?" I heard Drake ask.

"What girl?" Akemi said, his voice staying steady.

"You know exactly what I am talking about." I felt chills go down my spine as I heard him speak. I knew then he knew I was there. I couldn't do anything to escape and soon I'd be back in the lab. No, I couldn't allow that to happen. Freedom is what I wanted and I will not give it up that easily.

"No, I don't know what you are talking about." Akemi said firmly. I had a feeling Drake didn't believe him and wouldn't rest until he found me and had me locked back up.

"I'll find her myself then!" Drake yelled as his footsteps grew nearer to the bedroom I was in.

"You can't just come in here like this!" Akemi yelled.

I felt the door being pushed open behind me then slammed shut again. I stood up quickly moving away from the door, being more afraid then I had ever been. The sound of fighting could be heard from the other side of the door. It fell quiet after a few minutes. The bedroom door opened as Drake stepped into the room, holding onto his jaw. Akemi was being held back by the other man that accompanied Drake. I backed away from him as he came towards me.

"I knew you would be here, now come with me." Drake said as he walked closer and closer to me.

"Candy! Don't touch her!" Akemi yelled as he struggled to get free from the man's grip.

"Stay out of this, boy!" Drake roared as he looked back at Akemi. Akemi glared angrily at him.

I felt, a tear make its way down my cheek. "Please.....just leave me alone....." I said softly, not wanting to go back to the lab. I was so afraid of Drake I had lost all my fight. It was almost as if I forgot how to fight.

"Silence!" He roared. I backed up against the wall, not having anywhere else that I could go. I fell to my knees as my legs gave out underneath me. My whole body began to tremble with fear. Fear of going back to the lab and fear of the pain that will come with that.

"Candy! You have to fight him!"" Akemi yelled as he continued to struggle with the man that was holding him back. I knew he was right, but I was too scared to fight him. Drake pulled a gun out from under his lab coat, pointing it at my face. I was frozen with fear, not being able to move.

"It's a shame that all that work has to go to waist." Drake said as he held the gun steady, looking down at me with his icy gray eyes.

"No, please don't.." I began begging for him not to kill me.

"Silence!" he yelled, moving the gun lower and pointing it to my chest. My breaths began to become shorter. I knew he would kill me right then and there.

"You have to fight him! Don't let fear control you!" Akemi shouted to me. If I did attack Drake he would surly shoot me. I should have attacked when I had the chance. I felt myself beginning to cry even more, closing my eyes tightly.

Akemi managed to free himself of the man and tackled Drake from behind, knocking him to the ground. The gun fired, the bullet going though the window a few feet from me. I opened my eyes to see Akemi sitting on top of Drake, struggling to get the gun from him. The gun fired again, the trigger being pulled by Drake in attempt to shoot Akemi. He missed and hit the wall behind Akemi, nearly missing the man who was holding Akemi. The man ran stood there for a moment before retreating, afraid of having himself shot.

I finally was able to get to my feet, knowing I had to help Akemi before he was killed. My hands were still shaking badly as was my whole body. I managed to steady myself, extending my arm and pointing my index finger at Drake as a small ball of energy began to form. I was never so scared in my life, yet I managed to put my fear aside for a moment. I focused more of my energy to the tip of my finger as I felt my hand continue to shake. Releasing the fireball at the tip of my finger, I aimed it at Drake's hand that held the gun. The ball of fire hit his hand, causing him to drop the gun.

I fell to my knees, not believing that I actually attacked Drake. He yelled as the flame hit his hand, burning it rather badly.

"Damn!" Drake yelled as he tried to reach for the gun. I rushed over to the gun and picked it up, moving quickly away from Drake's grasp. I couldn't allow him to hurt Akemi, he means too much to me. Akemi pinned Drake down, holding onto his wrists.

"I can't allow you to hurt Candy." Akemi said angrily as he looked down at Drake. At that moment, I thought Akemi would kill Drake.

Suddenly Drake kicked Akemi off him, sending Akemi to the ground. Akemi stood back up, glaring at Drake as Drake also got to his feet.

"Stay out of this, boy!" Drake yelled as he wiped some blood from his mouth. "It doesn't have feelings so why do you care so much about 3602?"

"Her name's Candy. And she has a right to be free as much as you or I do." Akemi said with anger in his voice as he sent another punch at Drake's face. Drake managed to block this, countering it with a punch of his own. Akemi fell back, being hit in the jaw.

"Stop it!" I shouted as I pointed the gun to Drake's back. "Stop it, Drake! I will shoot!"

Drake and Akemi both froze. Drake slowly turned to me.

"Don't be a fool! You know you won't shoot." He said grinning. I felt my hands shaking as I held the gun.

Drake took a step closer to me. "Give me the gun." He said as he started coming closer to me. I kept the gun pointed at him, moving it up so that it pointed to his chest.

"Do not move, or I will shoot! I am not joking!" I said angrily as I kept the gun steadily pointed at his chest. Drake stopped as he began to realize I was not joking.

I held the gun as my hands began to shake more and more. What was I doing? I could not really shoot him could I? I looked over at Akemi, who still had not moved from the spot he was at then back at Drake.

"Candy, don't shoot him." Akemi said as he moved a bit closer to me. I kept the gun pointed at Drake, wanting to shoot him, but at the same time, knowing Akemi was right. I could not shoot Drake, no matter what he had done to me. I lowered the gun so it pointed to the ground. Akemi ran over to me, taking the gun from my hand as I began to cry even harder. Akemi put his arms around me, holding me close to him.

"It's okay..." He said, trying to comfort me.

Suddenly, Drake hit Akemi from behind, causing Akemi to drop the gun and le t me go. Drake picked the gun up and aimed it at Akemi, pulling the trigger. Akemi quickly pushed me down onto the ground, taking the bullet himself. He held the chest wound with his hand as it began to bleed.

"Akemi!" I quickly stood up, rushing over to him. I could not stand seeing him in so much pain. Drake smirked, looking at me and still holding the gun. Akemi stayed standing, although in a lot of pain. Drake pointed the gun at Akemi once again.

"Come with me 3602 and he won't get hurt any more then he is." Drake kept the gun pointed at Akemi. I could not allow Drake to kill Akemi. I stepped forwards in front of Akemi.

"Leave him alone! Your fight is with me!" I glared at him, knowing if I did not fight him now I could never be free. I had to stop him from hurting Akemi and fight fro my freedom. No more was I just going to stand back and let things happen like I have done so often in the past. I had to take manners into my own hands.

"What could you possibly do?" He said mockingly. "You wouldn't dare attack me again. You are too afraid to."

I looked to the ground slightly. He was right about one thing, I was afraid of hurting him. I heard the gun fire once more, quickly looking up from the ground. I quickly formed a flame thrower attack, hitting the bullet and Drake, knocking Drake back a few feet into the wall.

"Are you alright?" I asked him as I turned to him. He nodded his head slightly, still holding his chest where the bullet had hit him.

"You are bleeding..." I said as I looked down at the wound on his chest.

"I'll be alright." He said, trying to hide the pain. I began to cry again. It was my fault Akemi got hurt, all my fault.

"I am so sorry, Akemi..." I said as I wiped a tear from my face. "IT is all my fault..."

"No...It's alright..." He fell to his knees, holding the wound still. I quickly knelt down, putting my hand on his shoulder.

Drake had gotten back to his feet and picked the gun up, shooting me in the back. I felt the bullet pierce through my skin as it hit me in the back. It became harder for me to breathe as my vision went blurry and I passed out.

When I woke up, I found myself laying on a bed in a white room. I tried to sit up, but quickly laid back down, feeling a sharp pain go through my back. Glancing around the room, I noticed a small bouquet of flowers sitting on the stand next to me with a small card attached to them at the bottom of the vase they were in. Someone entered the room and I turned to see who it was.

"Candy..." Akemi said with a smile as he walked quickly over to my bedside. He knelt down by the bedside, taking my hand in his. "How are you feeling?"

I returned his smile, happy to see he was alright. "What happened?" I asked him, only remembering being shot.

Akemi looked up at me, his smile disappearing. "Drake's dead...I killed him..." Akemi said as he looked down slightly. "I'm sorry, I thought you were dead and I couldn't let him get away with..."

I brushed my hand along his face, bringing his chin up with my fingers. "It is alright." I smiled down at him as her stood up, still having my hand in his.

"Candy..." He said as he ran his thumb across my hand, seeming a bit nervous. I looked at my hand, then up at him. "...I love you Candy." He said, looking me in the eye.

I smiled up at him. "I love you too, Akemi." Akemi smiled, leaning down and kissing me on the lips.

After being released from the hospital, Akemi asked me to move in with him permanently and so I had done so. The growlithe puppies also lived with us and Akemi asked me to marry him. Of Course I said yes.

The morphing experiments had been outlawed, due to the pain the pokèmon suffered during the morphing process. So everything turned out okay in the end after all.

(4)
Between Two Species: A New Beginning

I looked at my reflection in the mirror as I finished brushing my long brown hair. I sighed a bit, being slightly nervous. Today was the first time I was to meet Akemi's parents.

Although Akemi and I have known each other for two years, I haven't met his parents yet. I was afraid of how they might react when they saw what I was. Of course they knew I was an anthromorphic flareon, but they had never actually seen one and on top of that, I was pregnant.

I sighed slightly. What if they looked at me as a monster like they did at the lab? What if they hated me? I looked down to the ground slightly. Then again...they are Akemi's parents and Akemi is so loving...

I felt someone wrap their arms around me from behind and jumped a bit. I smiled, looking back at a raven-haired boy with soft brown eyes. He smiled at me and I returned his smile slightly, still thinking about what his parents would think of me.

"What's wrong, Candy?" He asked, still having his arms around me.

I sighed, moving my hands up to his. "What if your parents do not like me?"

Akemi blinked a few times at my question. "Don't be silly, they'll love you." He said as he bent down and kissed me on the cheek.

I smiled and kissed him back. "I hope so."

A knock came at the door and Akemi took his arms from around me.

"That must be them." He said as he smiled down at me.

"Don't worry, they'll love you." He said as he kissed me once more on the cheek before rushing off to answer the door.

I sat for few moments looking at my reflection in the mirror. I looked somewhat like a normal human, but I had essence of a flareon still left in me. I had long brown hair, that reached to my mid back, blue eyes, a nose that looked like that of a flareon, along with the ears of a flareon and a fine red fur that covered my whole body, including my face.

I was wearing a red tank top with a long black skirt that reached down past my knees. I also had my hair tied back with a small red bow. I put my hand to my face and sighed softly to myself before standing up and walking out of my bedroom.

I walked into the living room, nearly running into Akemi.

"I was just coming to get you." He said with a smile.

I smiled, still being nervous. He hugged me, knowing that I was nervous and led me out to where his parents were sitting.

"Mom, Dad, this is Candy, Candy this is my mother, Anne Marie and My Father, Thomas." He said, introducing me to them.

I smiled, still feeling a bit nervous. Akemi gave me a slight squeeze, hugging me.

"It's a pleasure to finally meet you, Candy." His mother said, looking me up and down. "My, you are as beautiful as Akemi said you were."

She smiled at me, causing me to blush slightly.

"Thank you, Mrs..." I began.

"Please, call me Anne Marie." She said interrupting me. I smiled a bit more.

"Anne Marie." I said, finishing my sentence.

Akemi led me over to the couch, sitting down on the end of it. I sat down next to him, holding onto his hand.

"Mom, Dad." Akemi began as he squeezed my hand slightly. "Candy and I have something we would like to tell you."

Anne Marie looked over at her son and then at me. His father seemed like he could care less and continued glancing about the room.

"What is it dear?" She asked, still looking at us.

"We're going to have a baby." Akemi said to his mother.

His mother blinked a few times as his father glared at me as if hating me for what Akemi just said.

"That's wonderful!" Anne Marie said happily. "I'm so happy for you two."

"Wonderful! What do you mean wonderful?!" Akemi's father exclaimed standing up. "Stupid boy!" he yelled as he stormed out of the room.

"Excuse me." Akemi's mother said as she quickly followed his father out of the room.

Akemi held me tight, noticing this upset me.

"It's okay, Candy. He didn't mean it." Akemi said. "He looks at me as a mistake...and thinks children are a waist of time and energy..."

I looked up at him. "That is awful." I said, wiping a tear from my face.

A few moments later, Akemi's mother walked back into the room.

She looked over at us. "I'm so terribly sorry about Thomas' actions."

"It is alright." I said, still not sure what she thought of me.

She walked over to me and placed her hand on mine.

"I hope all goes well." She said with a smile. " I have to go, your father's throwing a fit out there." She let my hand go and kissed Akemi on the cheek.

"Good luck to you both. And congratulations." She said with another smile before walking out of the room and outside.

Later that day, Akemi's mother called and he was sitting at the kitchen table, talking to her on the phone. I walked into the kitchen and took a seat at the table.

One of our three growlithes nudged my hand with his nose, wagging his tail happily. I smiled a bit at him and patted him on top of the head.

"Alright. I'll see you tonight then okay?" Akemi said to his mother.

He nodded a bit. "Alright. Bye." He said as he hung the phone up.

I looked across the table at him, wondering what he was talking about.

"Is it alright if mother comes by tonight?" He asked me, looking to me.

I nodded. "Sure..." I said, not really wanting to tell him no.

"Thomas isn't coming this time....He seems to have some things to sort out..." Akemi said as he looked to the ground slightly.

"Alright." I said, kind of glad he was not coming.

I had a feeling he did not like me too much and did not approve of Akemi and I having a child.

A few minutes later, Akemi's mother arrived and rushed into the kitchen and over to me, hugging me tightly.

"I'm so sorry about earlier. I had no idea Thomas would react that way." She apologized to me, still hugging me tightly.

"It is alright." I said, not really sure what to do. Akemi walked into the room.

"Mom, want to sit down?" He asked her.

She let me go and nodded.

"Yes, of course dear." She replied as she sat down in a chair next to me. "I must apologize for Thomas' behavior earlier. He's got nothing against you having a child it's just that..." She paused, looking to Akemi then back to me. "...you're...you know...different then him..." She said almost in a whisper.

I blinked a few times. "I see..." I said, standing up from the table. "Humans...You will never understand..." I said as I walked into my bedroom, slamming the door shut behind me.

I did not hate people, just the fact they were so closed minded about things. I knew there was a chance of Akemi's parents not accepting me for who and what I am.

Throwing myself on the bed, I laid on my stomach, looking out the window. I sighed slightly as I closed my eyes.

I kept my eyes closed for a few moments before someone walked into the room, sitting down on the bed beside me. I opened my eyes, just staring straight ahead, not looking over at them.

I knew it was Akemi without looking. He leaned over, leaning on his elbows and looking at me.

"Candy, forget what they said...that's one of the reasons I love you, is because you're different." Akemi said is a soft tone.

I turned and looked back at him. "I hate being different...all it has ever done is make people hate me..."

"They just don't understand that's all." Akemi said as he sat up, looking down at me. "Candy...I love you and nothing anyone says is going to change that." He placed his hand on top of mine and smiled softly at me.

I sat up, returning the smile then hugged Akemi tightly.

A few months later, I gave birth to a baby girl named Keiko. She has black hair and blue eyes, like her father. She also had the same fine red fur covering her body and the flareon-like traits that I had. I laid Keiko down in her crib, covering her up with the small blanket that was in there.

I smiled down at her, watching her sleep for a moment. Back in the lab, I would never imagine that I would ever be a mother, let alone free today. I had Akemi to thank for that.

Before I met him I was afraid to do anything and just wanted to die. I brushed my hand softly along Keiko's head before turning to leave the room. I walked to the kitchen table, picking up the paper for the day.

Glancing over the front page, I noticed an article on the experiments that scientists had done on other pokèmon that had been turned into Pokè Morphs. I was quite surprised to see such an article. There were pictures of a jolteon morph, an umbreon morph, a dragonite morph, an eevee morph, and an espeon morph.

One that caught my eye, was an umbreon morph named Mai. She was created in a lab and later abandoned as a small child. She was sixteen and had long gray hair and red eyes. She had black skin, which I assumed was covered in a fur, much like mine but you couldn't tell by the picture.

She also had ears like an umbreon's and the golden rings near the tips and on her forehead and upper arms and tail. The young umbreon-girl was sitting on a stool, holding onto a human child that seemed to be around the age of three.

A human family had found her and they treated her like she was one of their children. Mai had also started to sing for a living and had recorded her first album, soon disappearing afterward.

I finished reading the article, setting the paper back down on the table. Akemi walked in the front door at almost the same time. I looked over at Akemi, who had just walked into the kitchen. Akemi blinked a few times.

"What's wrong?" He asked.

I shook my head slightly. "Nothing, I was just reading this article on morphing experiments...I was not the only one..." I slid the paper to the other end of the table as Akemi walked over to it and picked the paper up, looking at the picture of the morphs.

"She was a singer..." I said, referring to Mai. "Mai Noriawichi. I admire her for having the courage to do something like that..."

Akemi looked from the paper over to me and smiled slightly. "I'm sure you could do something like that, Candy."

I returned his smile slightly. "I do not have the courage to get up in front of people like that...and besides...I am different, remember..."

"You're the same as any human is to me..." Akemi responded, looking over at me.

Keiko grew into a beautiful little girl. Last week, she turned six. She now had mid-back length hair that was tied back with an emerald green hair tie. She also had the most beautiful sapphire blue eyes. Keiko was dressed in an emerald green dress that reached to just above her ankles.

She looked over at me and smiled before running through the field. I smiled at her and chased after her, running through the tall grass. Keiko loved to play in the field. She was nearly hidden completely by the tall blades of grass.

I looked around, trying to find where she was hiding. Suddenly, something hit my legs from behind, causing me to fall over, landing on my knees. I looked back at what hit me. It was Keiko, who has a huge smile on her face.

I returned her smile. "You little..." I reached behind me, attempting to grab onto her arm.

She jumped up on my back, giggling and putting her arms around my neck loosely hugging me. I held onto her legs and stood up, having her on my back. Keiko hugged me tightly, cuddling to my back. She yawned, still holding onto me. I walked towards the house, making sure Keiko didn't fall off my back and tucked her in bed.

Keiko looked up at me, taking my arm in her hand.

"Mama..." She yawned. "I'm not tired..." She yawned again, letting my arm go and rubbing her eyes. "Not yet..."

I smiled down at her, brushing her raven colored hair off her face. "Take a short nap, okay?"

She nodded, pulling the blankets up to her chin.

"Okay, Mama." She said. "Wake me up when Daddy gets home."

I got up and walked out of her room. When I was about to sit down on the couch, a knock came at the door. I walked to the door and opened it.

"Sorry to bother you, ma'am but I was wondering if I may step in for a moment to rest." An umbreon morph with long gray hair said.

She looked familiar from somewhere, but I just couldn't think of where I saw her before.

"Who are you?" I asked her.

The umbreon morph smiled. "My name's Mai Noriawichi. I travel around a lot and don't have a home to call my own..." She said sounding a bit sad and looking to the ground slightly. "If you don't want a complete stranger in the house, I understand completely."

"It is alright, you may come in to rest for a few moments." I said with a smile.

The umbreon morph smiled and looked up at me.

"Thank you so very much!" She said as she hugged me tightly.

I blinked a few times, not really knowing exactly what to do. She let me go, blushing a bit.

"I'm sorry, I shouldn't have done that. I'm just so happy someone's kind enough to let me in their house."

"It is all right." I said smiling nervously.

I lead Mai into the house and was making some tea when Akemi arrived home. He walked into the kitchen and looked to the umbreon morph, blinking.

"Hello." Mai said. I turned away from the stove and looked over at Akemi.

I walked over to him and kissed him on the cheek.

"Akemi, this is Mai. Mai this is my husband, Akemi." I said, introducing them to one another.

Mai smiled sweetly at him. "Pleasure to meet you."

Akemi returned the smile slightly.

"Mai travels around and needed a place to stay for the day, is that all right?" I asked Akemi, putting my arms around him.

Akemi blinked a bit then nodded. "Sure."

"Oh and I told Keiko that I would wake her when you get home." I said, looking up at Akemi.

"I'll go in to see her." Akemi said, smiling down at me.

He kissed me quickly on the lips before walking towards Keiko's room. I turned back to Mai, who seemed to be glaring at where Akemi was standing.

"Is something wrong?" I asked.

Mai quickly shook her head. "No, it's nothing." She said, looking to me. "Candy, how did you end up with a human for a husband?" She asked.

I looked to her and blinked a few times. "I was in a lab a long time ago and met him there..."

Mai blinked a few times, looking up at me. "A lab?" She said questionably.

I slowly nodded, not wanting to remember those days. "Yes...a lab..." I said slowly, turning back to the stove.

"Miss. Candy, would you mind telling me what you mean by that?" Mai asked.

I poured some hot water into two cups I had sitting on the counter and picked them up, walking to the table. I set one in front of Mai then sat down across the table from her, resting my hands on the table in front of me.

"Years ago, there was a laboratory and inside they performed inhumane experiments on pokèmon...including morphing experiments...I am a result of those experiments..." I said, looking down a bit.

Mai blinked a few times. "I don't remember ever being in a lab." She said as she looked across the table at me. "It must have been awful." She said, placing her hands on mine. I looked up at her and blinked.

She smiled slightly at me, blushing slightly before moving her hands off mine. "I'm so sorry about that. I just get caught up in the moment sometimes."

I moved my hands off the table and onto my lap. "It is all right." I said, not making direct eye contact with her.

The next day...

Akemi had left for work and I was outside with Keiko, watching her and Mai playing in the field. I sat down on one of the lawn chairs on our patio, enjoying the sunshine. I closed my eyes, allowing the warm sunrays to fall upon my fur. Suddenly, I felt a cold splash of water, jumping a bit at the sudden coldness. I looked over at Keiko, who was giggling with the garden hose in her hands. I smiled slightly at her, not being too happy about being wet, but on the other hand not minding it too much.

Mai walked over to me, giggling slightly. "Sorry about that." She said, looking down at me. I continued to watch Keiko, who was now spraying the long grass with the hose.

"It is alright." I said to Mai, who knelt down besides the chair, resting her chin on the arm.


I looked over at Mai, who seemed very content with watching me. I blinked a few times then looked back over to Keiko, standing up from the chair.

"Keiko, come on inside and I will make you some lunch." I said to her, loud enough so that she could hear me.

"Coming mommy!" She said as she turned the hose off then ran over to me. I smiled at her then looked over at Mai, who was standing besides me.

"Would you like something to eat?" I asked her with a smile. She nodded slightly, looking down at Keiko, who was now hugging my legs lightly. I smiled and looked down at Keiko.

"Let Mommy's legs go Keke." I said with a light tone. Keiko giggled and leg go of my legs, running to the back patio door. I looked back at Mai, who was now looking at me.

"Miss Candy, I must say that you look very beautiful today." She said with a smile. I blinked a few times then smiled at her.

"Thank you, Mai." I said thanking her for the compliment.

Mai nods, putting her hand on my shoulder. "It is no problem at all." She said with a smile as she took her hand from my shoulder, running it down my arm slightly as she did so.

I returned her smile nervously before turning to go into the house to start lunch.


Later that night, Akemi and I were sitting on a garden bench outside. I had just told him about what Mai had said to me earlier.

Akemi put his arm around me, pulling me into a hug. "Don't worry about it." He said, kissing me softly a top the head.

I smiled, leaning against him slightly. "You are right, It is nothing I should worry about."

He nodded, leaning against me slightly. I smiled, putting my arms around him.

I heard footsteps from behind us, looking to see who it was. No one was there. I blinked a few times.

"What's wrong, Candy?" Akemi asked as he looked over to me.

"I thought I heard someone." I replied, having my ears perked up. Rustling of some leaves was the only sound I heard at the moment. "Maybe it was just the wind or something." I said, relaxing a bit.

Akemi nodded. "Probably." He said as he took my hand in his. I looked over at him and smiled, leaning over and kissing him on the cheek.

Suddenly someone tackled Akemi to the ground. I blinked a few times, not knowing what exactly was going on. Akemi managed to get whoever it was off him and get back to his feet.

I looked over at him, standing up as I lifted my right hand, forming a small flame at the tip of my index finger, lighting the area.

I blinked a few times, realizing whom it was. "Mai?"

She got to her feet, glaring at Akemi, who was just as surprised as I was to see her. "Leave Candy alone." She said, not taking her eyes off Akemi.

I looked from Mai to Akemi, who obviously hadn't a clue what was going on either. "I didn't do anything to her." He said, clearly not knowing what else to say.

Mai continued to watch Akemi, flicking her slender black tail as if being very upset about something. Her gaze was intense, her crimson eyes seeming to have a flare to them.

"I don't want you near her." She said as she moved between Akemi and I.

"What is going on here?" I asked, being very confused why Mai was acting the way she was.

"Candy, there's something I need to tell you." Mai said, still not moving from the spot she was in.

Mai stood between Akemi and I, returning her gaze to Akemi. "Ever since I came here, I've tried to keep quiet, but I can't any longer. I can not allow a human to be with Candy."

"Mai, I want to be with him." I began, being interrupted by Mai before I could continue.

"You don't belong here." She said almost angrily.

She turned to me, placing her hands on my shoulders. I blinked a few times, still not understanding what exactly was going on.

"Miss Candy, come with me." She said, looking me in the eye. Her expression seemed to soften what she spoke these words.

"What are you talking about, Mai?" I asked, being very confused.

Mai hugged me tightly, moving her hands off my shoulders. "I love you, Miss Candy." She whispered in my ear as she hugged me. "I want you to come with me, away from here." She said in just above a whisper.

"I can not do that." I said firmly, not wanting to leave Akemi or Keiko. "I have a family here and I am very happy with them."

Mai sighed, letting me go. "I anticipated on you saying that." She said as she turned to face Akemi, raising her left hand as she formed a dark sphere in the palm of her hand. Bringing her hand up, she aimed the sphere at Akemi, releasing it quickly. All this happened in a matter of seconds. I moved quickly to Akemi and in front of the attack, which hit my left shoulder.

Akemi moved forwards to me. I put my hand in front of him to keep him behind me. IK knew a human didn't stand much of a chance against a poke morph and knew I had to protect him no matter what.

"Stay behind me." I said as I looked over at Mai, who seemed quite surprised I had taken the hit for Akemi.

Standing my grounds, I put my right hand over the wound that was on my shoulder. It was bleeding and very painful, but none of that mattered at the time. I glared at Mai, prepared to protect Akemi at any cost.

Quickly, I brought my left hand up, focusing my energy to the palm of my hand as a sphere of fire began to appear in the palm of my hand.

Mai smirked, disappearing quickly before I had time to attack her. I looked around for her, not knowing where she went until I heard a noise from behind. Quickly, I turned around to face her as I moved towards her, increasing my speed as I used agility. Mai was unable to move out of the way as I knocked her to the ground, tackling her.

Suddenly, I was unable to move. I fell to my knees, coughing as the stinging became worse as my vision began to blur.

Mai stood up, looking down at me. "Sorry to have to had done that, Miss Candy. It's for your own good." She said as she turned to Akemi, who was only a few feet away.

"What did you do to her!" I could hear Akemi yell at Mai.

"She'll be fine in a couple of hours." Mai said as she moved closer to Akemi. I wanted to attack her, but couldn't. I felt myself becoming weaker by the moment. I didn't know what she had done to make me like this, but I had to protect Akemi.

Mai took another step closer to Akemi. I still couldn't move, it was like all my strength was being drained from my body. Mai lifted her index finger, putting it to Akemi's chin.

"Now to do away with you and that kid." She said as she moved her finger down slightly.

"Daddy..." Keiko said, seeing what was going on from the doorway of the house.

"Keiko..." I said, hardly being able to speak.

"Keiko, get out of here!" Akemi shouted to her, Mai still having her finger on his chest.

"Why Daddy?" She asked, not knowing what was going on.

"Daddy's just confused." Mai said as she brought her hand back up to his face, beginning to form a small black sphere at her fingertip. Akemi froze where he was, unable to do anything.

Keiko was still standing in the doorway, watching this.

"Keiko...do what Daddy says...Mai's...a very bad lady...." I managed to say, still not being able to move.

Keiko looked to me then to Mai and Akemi. "Daddy..." She said softly.

Keiko ran over to Akemi and tackled Mai's legs in attempt to get her away from him.

"Keiko..." I said softly, still not being able to move.

Mai looked down at Keiko, still having the small black sphere at the tip of her finger. She moved her finger quickly from Akemi's face down to where Keiko was standing, shooting a dark beam from her finger at Keiko. Keiko quickly jumped back, as the beam hit the ground where she stood just a second before. Akemi elbowed Mai in the side while she was distracted and moved between her and Keiko. Mai winced as she straightened herself back up from the hit, glaring at Akemi.

"That wasn't a smart move." She said as she brought her hand up to Akemi's chest level and fired a similar beam to what she had fired at Keiko. Akemi stood his grounds as the beam made contact with his chest, causing him to fall to his knees in pain. Mai smirked as she moved closer to Akemi.

I felt a tear roll down my cheek as I watched this, still not able to move. "Mai...Please....stop..." I said weakly, feeling as if I was going to faint. "I will go with you..." I said, not wanting Akemi or Keiko to get hurt.

Mai smiled and looked over to me. "I knew you'd say something like that." She said as she walked over to me. "But I won't stop until they're both dead." She said as she lifted my chin with her index finger.

Suddenly Keiko tackled Mai from behind, locking her arms around Mai's neck tightly. Mai stood up in attempt to get Keiko off her, not having any luck. Mai screamed as Keiko bit into her back, causing blood to seep through Mai's clothing. Keiko clung tighter to Mai's back, nearly being thrown off. Mai reached back and grabbed a hold of Keiko's tail, pulling her off her back by her tail before dropping her to the ground.

"Keiko, get out of here!" Akemi yelled to her as he stood up, holding the wound that was on his chest and moving over to her.

Mai disappeared then quickly reappeared behind Keiko. "Now to get rid of you." She said as she quickly brought her hand down, shooting a black beam at Keiko. Keiko got hit with the beam, falling to the ground and not moving.

"Keiko!" Akemi yelled as he realized what happened as he turned around. He knelt down to where Keiko was lying, taking her in his arms.

I was not sure at that point in Keiko was alive still. I felt more tears coming as my vision blurred. At that point, I tried once more to get up, struggling to get to my feet as I pushed my body off the ground. This time I was able to stand, but I was weak from the attack Mai had used on me. I glared at Mai, who was looking down at Akemi.

Taking my right hand, I aimed my index finger at Mai's chest. My arm was shaking slightly as I took aim. I released a fireball, heading towards Mai. Mai lifted her head just in time to dodge the fireball. It hit the ground, lighting the grass where Mai once stood on fire. Mai frowned and glared at me before running off. I fell to my knees, feeling lightheaded and breathing heavily. Not being able to move anymore, I passed out.

- To Be Continued-

(5)
Strawberry Picking

Yamato and I were sitting on the sofa of my apartment watching television when my sister, Hikari walked into the room. Standing in front of the television, she looked at us.

"Hikari, move." I said sternly as I looked at her.

"Mom and I are going strawberry picking and wanted to know if you and Yamato wanted to go." She said as she placed her hands on her hips.

Yamato and I looked at each other then I directed my gaze back to Hikari.

"We'll pass." I said. "Now leave."

Hikari glared at me and shook her head before walking out of the room. Hearing the front door close, I looked over the sofa at the front door, noticing my mom and Hikari had left. I looked back to Yamato.

"You didn't want to go did you?" I asked. He blushed slightly as he looked down at the ground.

"Actually, I would have liked to go. Sounds like fun." He said with a slight smile as he looked at me slightly.

I shook my head slightly as I looked over to him. "Alright, we better hurry up and catch up with Hikari and my mom then." I said as we both jumped to our feet and ran out the door.

We arrived at the strawberry fields what seemed like hours later. I sighed as I looked out the windows of the car at the seemingly endless rows of strawberry plant. White flowers dotted the green leaves of some of the plants, while red strawberries were on others. We came to s top before I jumped out of the car, stretching slightly as I extending my arms upwards. Yamato elbowed me swiftly in the side causing me to quickly put my arms back down.

I glared over to him and he stuck his tongue out at me slightly as he smiled at me. Shaking my head, I walked with him over to a counter that had baskets for picking strawberries on it. We both took one and headed out to the fields.

Smiling, I looked over at Yamato. He was knelt down in the field of strawberries with the small wicker basket hanging from his left arm as he plucked a few more strawberries from the bush in front of him. He looked so cute, surrounded by strawberry plants. He looked up at me and flashed a smile at me before going back to picking the strawberries.

I loved his smile more than anything. It was one of the few things that made everything else seem like it didn't matter. Not bothering to stand up from my kneeling position, I moved closer to him as I set the basket I had down on the ground. The slight wind that blew across the field rustled his soft blonde hair slightly as he looked back up at me.

Suddenly, I tackled him lightly as I sat on top of him. He landed on his back as I quickly slid on top of him. I smiled down at him as I brushed a strand of his golden hair off his face. A smirk crossed his features as he pushed me off him and tackled me to the ground. He laid on top of me as he smiled down at me.

"Taichi, let's get heading back." He said with a smile. I nodded as he got off me, rising to his feet then offering me a hand. I took his hand as he pulled me to my feet.

I picked up my basket of strawberries as Yamato picked his up.

After getting back from picking strawberries, Yamato and I went to his place. His dad was away for the weekend on a business trip so he had the apartment to himself for the weekend. Setting the baskets of berries on the kitchen counter, Yamato looked over to me.

"We should find something to do with all these strawberries." He said as he went towards the cupboards. I grabbed his hands and smiled at him as he looked over at me. He returned my smile with one of his own before gently pulling his hands from mine.

"I'm going to make some strawberry shortcake, do you want some?" He asked as he went over to the fridge.

"Yeah, sure." I said as I looked towards him, noticing he was bent over. I smirked as I moved over to him and pinched his rear quickly. He jumped and turned quickly to face me, having whipped cream in his hands and slamming the fridge door quickly.

"Why you..." He said as he smirked at me. "You're going to pay for that." He said as he set the whipped cream down on the counter then pinned me against the kitchen wall. I attempted to gently push him off me. He kissed my lips before I could get away, pushing me slightly harder against the wall. I stopped struggling as I felt his soft lips against mine. His kiss always seemed to have a calming effect on me, something I never felt with anyone else.

Slowly moving his hands down, Yama rested them on my hips as he moved closer to me. I slid my hands down to his hands, placing them on top of his.

"Thought you were going to make strawberry shortcake, Yama." I said softly as I looked to him. He smiles, shaking his head slightly.

"Alright, fine." He said as he pulled his hands out from under mine and made his way back over to the counter.

After piling a bunch of whipped cream on top of some angel food cake Yama had found in the fridge, he placed some strawberries on top of it. Sliding one of the two plates over to me, Yama picked his plate up and walked into the living room. I followed and sat down next to him. He looked over at me as he took a bite of his strawberry shortcake. I couldn't help but to smile at him. He always has a way of making himself look so cute.

I moved closer to him as I set my plate down on the table in front of the couch.

"Yama." I said as I took his plate from him and set it down on the table next to mine. He looked over at me and blinked a few times.

"Let's put the strawberries to better use." I said with a smile. He nodded and returned my smile with one of his own as the room became darker with the setting of the sun.

________________________________________
(6)
Chocolate Cake Mix

I softly brushed my hand through his chocolate colored hair as I looked at his soft features on his face. He looked so cute sleeping on the couch like that.

"Taichi." I said softly to him in just above a whisper in attempt to wake him up from his slumber.

It had been a while since he crashed and we still needed to bake a cake for Sora's birthday part later on. He didn't move as I shook him gently. I should have known better than to let him lay down.

"Taichi." I said a bit louder as I shook his shoulders a bit more.

He still didn't wake up. He knew damn right we still had to bake that cake and what does he do? He falls asleep on me. I sighed and shook my head slightly as I knelt down besides the couch. Slowly I leaned over and kissed him softly on the lips. Maybe that would wake him up. If that didn't wake him up, I don't know what would. Sure enough he opened his eyes as I pulled away from the kiss.

"It's 4:30, Taichi." I said as I stood up, placing my hands on my hips as I looked down at him.

"Yama, can't you bake the cake without me?" He whined as he buried his face in the couch.

"No way am I going without you there. Sora would be disappointed if you didn't show up." I said as I sat down on the edge of the couch.

"Damn it. Why'd you have to go and tell Mimi we'd go to Sora's party anyways?" He asked as he sat up and propped himself against the arm of the couch.

"Sora's our friend." I replied with a shrug.

"Some friend..." Taichi muttered as he crossed his arms. "Friends don't try to steal their friend's boyfriend..."

I smirked as I looked at him. "Getting jealous are we?" I teased as I softly punched him on the arm.

"Why would I be jealous of her?" Taichi replied as he glared at me.

"I don't know. Maybe because she got to kiss me before you did?" I said with a smirk.

"Shut up, Yama." He snapped.

I laughed slightly at Taichi, knowing all too well he remembered what had happened at last year's Christmas party. Sora and I were the only ones left at the party and Sora had pulled me under the mistletoe and proclaimed her love for me then kissed me. I didn't know what to do so I kissed her back, not knowing that Taichi liked me and he saw the whole thing. At the time it was pretty awkward, but after a while it became a joke between Taichi and me.

I stood up from the couch then turned to him. "Are you going to help me bake the cake or not?" I asked as I walked towards the kitchen.

After a few minutes, Taichi came into the kitchen and sat down on the counter top next to where I had the stuff for making the cake sitting out.

"So, what do we do first?" Taichi asked as he looked over to me.

"Here, hold this." I said as I handed him a large mixing bowl. He took it and set it down on the counter as I moved over to the items sitting on the counter and began to put a few of them into the bowl.

A couple minutes later we had the chocolate cake mix made (most the work done by me while Taichi watched).

"Okay. Now all we have to do is bake it." I said as I preheated the oven and put the cake into the oven.

I looked over to Taichi, who was still on the counter, and shook my head a bit. He had licked the spoon that we used to stir the battler with and now had splotches of batter on his cheeks. I smiled and walked over to him.

"You have a bit of batter on your cheek." I said as I moved closer to him. I licked my index finger and brushed it softly along his cheek where the batter was. I brought my hand back down as I wiped the batter onto a cloth sitting on the counter.

"Thanks, Yama." He said as a slight blush came to his face. I smiled and shook my head slightly as he went back to licking the spoon.

"Can I lick the bowl?" He asked as he looked over at me. I blinked then shook my head as I handed him the bowl on the other side of the stove.

"Just try not to make too much of a mess." I said as I put the milk back into the fridge.

"Alright." He replied as he began to scrape the remaining batter from the bowl with the wooden spoon. I looked over to him and smiled as I watched him. He was so cute.

"What...?" He said uneasily.

"Nothing." I replied as I moved over to him. I leaned against the counter in front of him as I looked up at him. Taichi shrugged and went to stick the batter covered spoon in his mouth. I smirked and grabbed his hand that he had the spoon in. He looked to me and blinked a few times. Slowly I brought the spoon down to my mouth as I licked some of the batter off of it. Taichi watched me for a moment before trying to pull the spoon away from me as I attempted to lick the spoon again.

I glanced at him as I pulled the spoon back over towards my mouth. Taichi pulled the spoon away just as my tongue made contact with the chocolate batter. I smirked and pulled a bit harder on the spoon. Taichi fell off the counter, dropping the bowl with the remaining batter in it on the kitchen floor. Both Taichi and I landed on the ground, him landing on top of me with a hand on either side of me. I felt a blush come to my face and noticed Taichi blushing as he looked down at me. I had a feeling I was blushing just as much as he was, if not even more.

"You have a bit of batter right there." He said with a smile as he licked my cheek.

"You have some batter right there." I said as I licked a spot on his cheek where some batter was. He blushed as we sat there for a moment looking at one another.

Slowly, Taichi leaned down and kissed me softly on the lips. I smiled and kissed him back. No matter how many times I kiss him it seems like it's better each and every time. I wrapped my arms around him as I deepened the kiss. The ringing of the timer interrupted us.

"Taichi." I muttered as he began to kiss my neck. "Tai, the cake."

Taichi stopped kissing me and looked down at me. "Do we have to stop?"

I smiled up at him. "We'll continue were we left off after the cake's out of the oven."

I pushed him gently off me as I got to my feet and walked over to the oven. I took the cake out and set it on the counter. Taichi came up behind me and wrapped his arms around me as he softly kissed my neck.

"Chocolate batter can be used for other things besides baking." He whispered softly in my ear.

(7)
One soul, two loves

"Feh...do what you want, woman." A young male hanyou growled as he turned away from the raven haired girl he was arguing with.

"You're so insensitive!" She yelled as she stormed off. She went into a nearby hut and picked up her yellow over stuffed backpack as she slung it over her right shoulder. She had enough of the hanyou constantly yelling at her. If he didn't want her around, she wouldn't be around anymore.

"I'm not coming back!" She yelled at the silver haired hanyou, who still had his back turned to her.

"Whatever, bitch. I don't care." He growled in response.

She glared at him then turned and made her way towards the old dry well in the forest. This was a doorway between the feudal era and modern day Japan. She was from the future and was now in the feudal era.

"How could he do that to me?!" The girl said out loud. She was frustrated at the fact that the hanyou had betrayed her again. She felt a tear beginning to make its way down her cheek.

"Why should I care? It's not like he's my boyfriend or anything..." She felt more tears make their way down her cheeks. Rain began to fall from the sky as she picked up her pace slightly.

"Kagome! Wait!" A female voice shouted through the sound of the rain. The girl stopped and turned to face another girl with dark hair.

"Inu-Yasha didn't mean what he said." The second girl said.

The first dark haired girl, Kagome, looked to the ground in attempt to stop herself from crying.

"I don't care anymore." Her voice shook as she spoke. The wind began to pick up slightly causing her to shiver slightly as it brushed against her bare legs. The skirt she was wearing was short and left her legs exposed to the wind. She brushed the tears from her face only to have them quickly replaced by the rain drops from the up coming storm.

"Kagome..." the other girl said softly. She didn't know exactly what to say to Kagome, but knew things couldn't be left like they were. "Let's get out of the rain and talk, okay?"

Kagome nodded her head in agreement. "Okay." She replied as the two of them took off in the direction of the village.

"Sango...I don't think I can be around Inu-Yasha any more..." Kagome said to the other girl as she looked across the now burning fire at her. The two of them had come to a hut and now had a good fire going and were sitting by it to warm up.

On one hand, the girl was glad Kagome felt this way about Inu-Yasha. On the other hand, she hated to see the one she loved so unhappy. Over the past few years, she came to love Kagome. Kagome's bright personality is what made her fall in love with her in the first place, but without the hanyou's affection, Kagome was miserable.

"I realized I've fallen in love with him...But he said he loved Kikyou still..." She choked back tears as she looked to the ground slightly. "I just can't stand losing him..." Kagome finished softly as her voice dropped to just above a whisper.

Sango, the other girl, put her arm around Kagome as she brought her into an embrace. Kagome suddenly broke into tears as she buried her face in Sango's shoulder.

"I'm such a fool..." Kagome said between sobs. Sango felt as if she too had been betrayed by the hanyou. Sango slowly moved her hand up as she rested it on the back of Kagome's head. She softly brushed it through Kagome's soft hair as she attempted to calm her friend down. She knew how much she loved Inu-Yasha and couldn't help but to have anger towards the hanyou.

Sango hugged Kagome tightly as she took in Kagome's sweet scent. Slowly, she moved her hand to Kagome's chin as she brushed away the tears that fell down her cheeks. Without thinking, Sango leaned down and softly brushed her lips against Kagome's.

Sango pulled away from Kagome, realizing she kissed her.

"S-sorry." Sango said quickly as she moved away from Kagome. Blushing deeply, Sango directed her attention to the ground. Kagome stared at Sango, not knowing how to react to the kiss. Sango directed her gaze back to Kagome as a deep blush came to her cheeks. Kagome blushed slightly as their eyes met.

"I should be going home." Kagome said as she stood up.

Sango nodded. "I guess so..." She replied. She was still slightly embarrassed about the kiss and didn't know what she could say to Kagome after something like that.

"I need time to think." Kagome said as she left the hut.

Sango sighed softly as she watched Kagome walk off towards the old dry well.


Kagome sighed softly as she laid down on her bed.

"Why did she kiss me?" She thought to herself as she rolled over onto her stomach.

She was thinking about how Sango had kissed her. She brought her hand up to her face as she softly brushed her finger along her lips. Kagome really didn't mind the kiss too much. However, she was now in a very confused state. Sure she liked Sango, but she wasn't sure if she did like her in the way she thought Sango liked her. Kagome blushed as she thought about Sango kissing her. It was a quick kiss, but Kagome kind of liked it.

"What would Inu-Yasha think?" She thought to herself as she laid her head down on her pillow. She shook her head slightly.

"Why would he care? He has Kikyou..." She sighed as she buried her face in her pillow. She was still frustrated over what happened earlier.

Inu-Yasha had gone again to meet the dead miko, Kikyou. Kagome had stumbled upon the two when they were in an embrace. Kikyou kissed Inu- Yasha just as Kagome saw them. She stared at the two for a while before Inu-Yasha noticed she was there. Kagome quickly ran off towards the village. Inu-Yasha followed her and had gotten into an argument with her resulting in him telling her that he loved Kikyou. Kagome got upset and told him she was never coming back and here she was now.

Too many tears she cried for the insensitive hanyou. Too many times she allowed him to break her heart. And yet, she was still in love with him. With Sango, she never felt like that. Never once had Sango make her feel unwanted or hated. Could she love Sango as well? She didn't quite know the answer to that yet.

Sighing softly, Kagome closed her eyes as she felt tears beginning to make their way to her eyes.

Back in the feudal era...

Sango, Inu-Yasha, a young fox youkai kit, and a dark haired monk were sitting around a fire outside the hut they were going to spend the night in. The hanyou, who was sitting on one side of the fire with the monk, stared across the fire at the raven haired demon exterminator, Sango.

"What's wrong with her?" The monk asked as he noticed the hanyou looking at Sango. Inu-Yasha blinked a few noticeable times then shrugged his shoulders.

"How should I know?" He replied as he crossed his arms over his chest.

The monk shook his head then got up and walked over to where the fox youkai was sitting on the ground. He whispered something in his ear and Shippou rushed over to where Inu-Yasha was sitting.

Sango jumped slightly as she felt the monk's hand on her shoulder. She was too deep in thought to notice he had sat down next to her. Inu-Yasha nodded to Shippou as he stood up, signaling the kit to follow him as the left Sango and the monk alone.

"Miroku, you surprised me." Sango said as she looked over to him and forced a smile.

"What's the matter, Sango?" The monk asked her.

Sango looked to the ground slightly.

"I think I made a mistake and now..." She stopped as she looked to the ground slightly.

"Never mind." She said quickly as a slight blush came to her face.

"I see..." Miroku replied as he directed his gaze to the stars above.

"Miroku...." Sango began as she looked over to him. He looked over to her as a look of interest came over his features. Sango looked back to the ground as the slight crimson shade on her cheeks became darker. "I kissed Kagome..." She said quietly.

"I see." He said calmly as he grinned at her. "So that's what you two were up to when you were alone."

Sango blushed even deeper. "I...only kissed her." Sango said. She was even more embarrassed as she was before.

"Okay." He said as he continued grinning at her. "So what's the big deal?"

"I don't know what Kagome thinks of me now. She must hate me." Sango sighed. Miroku put his arm around Sango as he moved closer to her.

"I'm sure she doesn't hate you." He replied as he hugged her tightly.

Sango looked over to Miroku and smiled slightly before realizing his hand had made its way to her rear.

"Hentai!" She screamed as she slapped him across the face and stormed into the hut.

Morning came as the sun began to replace the darkness of night with rays of light. Sango and Miroku had fallen asleep next to each other and Shippou was cuddled up between the two. Inu-Yasha had found a perch on a high tree branch next to the campsite. He had woken up quite some time ago and was now sitting on the branch near the tree trunk. He sighed softly as he watched the sun rise over the horizon. Fidgeting, he repositioned himself so that he was leaning against the tree trunk.

"I wonder if Kagome meant it this time..." He mentally slapped himself. "Why did I have to tell her that I loved Kikyou when I know damn well how I feel about her?"

Kagome wasn't even gone a day yet and already he missed her.

"Stupid." He growled to himself as he tucked his hands into the sleeves of his fire rat robes. He had become quite agitated with himself for telling her that, but wouldn't go to apologize to her.

"It was stupid of me to tell her that..." He said as he looked to the ground slightly.


Sighing slightly, Kagome looked in the mirror on the back of her door. Her long raven hair softly rested against her bare chest as she stared at the very thing she disliked at the moment, herself. Kagome had just gotten out of the shower and was dressed in nothing but a towel. Her likeness to the dead miko was bothering her. She couldn't stand the fact that she was nothing to the one that she really loved. Or was it that she loved someone else? She shook her head slightly as she continued to stare at herself in the mirror. No. She loved Inu-Yasha still.

"I'm so dumb..." She thought to herself as her anger diminished to be replaced by sadness. She thought about the words Inu-Yasha said to her about loving Kikyou. Feeling tears making their way to her eyes, Kagome blinked a few times and quickly brushed them away.

"I won't cry anymore." She said, frustrated at herself for letting Inu- Yasha get to her like so many times before. She turned away from the mirror and rested her back against it. Sighing softly, she looked to the pink carpet on her bedroom floor.

"Am I really that blind?" She asked herself. "Kikyou...Kikyou's much prettier than I am..." She said softly to herself as tears began to fall from her eyes. "How could I have thought I could even compete with her..." Shaking her head slightly, she turned back to the mirror and glared at her reflection.

"I doubt that jerk would even care if I was dead...Heck, he would probably prefer me dead!" She shouted at her reflecting as she balled up her fists. Slamming her fists into her mirror, shards of glass shattered on her carpeting as she leaned against the door, crying.


"Am I really that blind?" Inu-Yasha heard Kagome talking softly to herself as he sat on a tree branch outside the girl's bedroom window. He had enough of waiting for her to come back to the feudal era and was coming to bring her back so they could continue looking for the shards of the Shikon Jewel and she that he could apologize to her. Positioning himself outside her window, he kept himself hidden as he listened to her next statement.

"Kikyou...Kikyou's much prettier than I am........." He heard Kagome say. She sounded like she was crying, or about to cry. Inu-Yasha leaned back against the wall of Kagome's house as he continued to listen to her.

"How could I have thought I could even compete with her.........?" Kagome said in just above a whisper. Inu-Yasha looked to the ground below him slightly as he shuffled his feet along the tree branch. Kagome didn't need to compete with Kikyou; he knew he loved her more than Kikyou.

"I doubt that jerk would even care if I was dead.........Heck, he would probably prefer me dead!" He heard a shattering of glass and quickly jumped to her window sill. Kagome was crying as she leaned against the back of her door. The remains of her mirror were shattered on the floor as she let herself cry. Inu-Yasha didn't know what to say to her or if he should do anything to comfort her or not. He wanted to take her in his arms and tell her everything's alright, but he could do nothing but just stand there.

Kagome slowly reached down and picked up a shard of glass from her bedroom floor as she continued to cry. Inu-Yasha watched her for a moment, not knowing what she was doing. Kagome quickly slashed her wrist with the shard then quickly dropped it to the ground. Inu-Yasha quickly went over to her as she fell to her knees, holding her now bleeding wrist.

"What the hell did you do that for!" He yelled at her before rushing off into the bathroom and grabbing a clean towel.

Kagome said nothing, but just watched as he ran to the bathroom. What was he doing here? She sniffled as tears continued to fall, but at a slower pace than before. Maybe he did care for her more than she thought.

"Stupid girl...What were you doing cutting yourself like that?" He softly said as he handed her the towel and crouched down beside her. "Don't ever try that again."

Kagome slowly took the towel and brought it to her wrist, pressing it onto the cut. She looked to the ground slightly as Inu-Yasha moved beside her.

"What's wrong with you?" Inu-Yasha snapped as he looked over top her.

Kagome was quiet as she looked to the shards of glass scattered on her pink carpet. A few flecks of blood had made their way to the carpet.

"Kagome...tell me what's wrong?" Inu-Yasha said as he moved slightly closer to her.

Kagome looked from the young hanyou to the ground in front of her as she stared down at the blood covered shard of glass she cut her wrist with.
"Why do you care...?" Kagome choked out.
"Why wouldn't I care?" Inu-Yasha countered as he looked to Kagome.
"Stop acting like you care about me." Kagome started to cry again as she wiped the tears from her face with her uninjured hand.
Inu-Yasha was quiet as he stared at Kagome, trying to read her features. Sadness and hurt was all he could pick up.
"Sango wouldn't ever betray me like you have..." Kagome said softly as she stood up.
"Sango? What does Sango have to do with anything?" He asked her as he stood up, clearly concerned about her.
"She..." Kagome paused as she brought her injured arm closer to her body and tightened her grip on the towel around her arm.
"Kissed me." Kagome finished in a voice so soft Inu-Yasha had to strain to hear her.
Inu-Yasha blinked a few times and stared at Kagome. Had he heard her right? Sango and Kagome...
"Why didn't you tell me you liked her?" Inu-Yasha said before turning away from Kagome, crossing his arms over his chest.
"What do you care? You have Kikyou..." Kagome countered as she tried to hold back tears.
"Feh..." Inu-Yasha quickly rushed over to the window and was gone before Kagome could say anything else.
Kagome sighed as she sat down on the edge of her bed and looked down at the blood that was seeping though the white towel that was around her arm.
"He's so hard headed sometimes..." She shook her head slightly as she stood up from the edge of her bed and walked back into her bathroom to care for her wound and dress herself.
Inu-Yasha arrived back in the Feudal era and was sitting on a high branch in the God tree. He sighed to himself as he leaned back against the trunk of the tree.
"I should have told her how I felt when I had the chance..." He thought to himself as he thought about what happened with Kagome earlier that day.
It was dark now and the stars shone through the clear night sky. Inu-Yasha sighed and closed his eyes, allowing his thoughts to wonder.
Sango looked up at the hanyou then at Miroku, who was tending to the fire him and Sango had started.
"What's wrong with Inu-Yasha?" She asked him as she sat down on the ground next to the monk.
"I don't know, he's been acting rather strangely since he came back from Lady Kagome's time." He replied as he looked over at Sango. "Perhaps they had an argument about something. I'm sure he'll be fine come tomorrow."
"Yeah, things between those two always seem to work themselves out." Sango replied as she looked to the fire.
Miroku continued to look at the demon exterminator, watching the shadows of the flames dancing softly across her face. She looked so beautiful right there and then. Miroku smirked then slowly moved closer to her as he moved his hand to her rear. Sango stiffened then glared over to him.
"Hentai!" She screamed as she slapped him across the face and stood up.
Inu-Yasha watched the two from his tree branch as Sango stormed away from Miroku as she normally would when she was groped. Everything was how it should be. Everything, but the fact Kagome wasn't there.
Kagome awake dressed in a blue silk nightgown and her injured arm wrapped in a bandage. She yawned as she stretched, only to have a sharp pain run through her injured arm, causing her to wince at the pain.
"That was pretty dumb of me." She said to herself, referring to stretching her injured arm.
She rolled out of bed as her eyes fell upon the Shikon jewel shards that lay scattered on her dresser top. She walked over to them and put them in the tiny jar she normally kept them in. She was so upset the night before she forgot to put them back in the tiny jar. Securing the jar around her neck as she normally did, she walked over to her vanity and brushed her unruly hair until she approved of the way it looked.
Today she decided she would go back to the feudal era and try life there again, but this time she was doing it differently. This time she wasn't going to let herself be played by Inu-Yasha because she would have Sango. Or at least that's what she hoped. She hoped that the kiss meant something and that it wasn't something that was "in the heat of the moment".
Kagome sighed softly as she set the brush down on the edge of the vanity then walked over to her closet to get dressed and gather a few items for her up coming trip.
Inu-Yasha was still sitting up in the God tree. He hadn't moved from the spot since he came back from Kagome's time. He still couldn't bring himself to get over the fact that she rejected him and for another girl to top it all off. He sighed as his ears flopped down softly.
"Stupid girl..." He muttered to himself as he leaned back against the tree trunk, feeling frustrated. He wanted to do something to try to get Kagome back, but knew that there was nothing he could do. After all, he had his chance. No, he had many chances to tell her how he really felt about her, but every time his stubbornness would cloud the way he really felt.
"Inu-Yasha! Are you going to come down and eat something?" Sango yelled up to him as she stood at the base of the God tree. Inu-Yasha growled as he crossed his arms over his chest, ignoring the demon exterminator.
"No." He stated firmly as he glared down at her from his perch. He envied her for having seemingly won over Kagome's love, but he'd never admit that so instead he stayed perched up in the tree not talking much to her, the monk or the fox youkai kit.
Sango sighed as she directed her gaze back to her eye level.
"Do you think Kagome's not coming back?" Shippou asked Sango as he jumped up onto her shoulder.
"I don't know, Shippou. I hope she comes back soon..." She trailed off as she looked to the ground slightly. "It's probably my fault she's not coming back" She thought to herself as she softly sighed.
"What's wrong?" Shippou asked as he looked over to her from her shoulder.
"Oh, nothing." She said in a cheery voice as she looked over to the fox youkai with a smile on her face.
Kagome stood in front of the mirror, adjusting her school uniform as she smoothed her skirt out.

“There.� She thought to herself as she turned around and pick her large over stuffed book bag up off the floor.

“Bye, mom!� She shouted to her mother as she made her way out the front door and started heading to the well house. Yes, this time was going to be different. She marched to the well house, having full confidence in herself.

Inu-Yasha twitched his ears as he picked Kagome’s light sent up. Slowly, he looked over to the old well to see her climbing out of the well with that over sized bag she insisted on bringing with her. He shook his head as he watched her set the bag on the ground.

“One of these days she’s going to end up hurting herself carrying that thing around.� He said softly to himself as he stayed perched in the tree.

“Kagome!� Shippou yelled as he jumped into Kagome’s arms. Kagome winced as the fox youkai landed on her injured arm. She quickly pulled it out from under him as she adjusted his weight to her other arm.

“Kagome, what happened to your arm?� Shippou asked, noticing this.

“Oh, it’s nothing, Shippou.� She said with a smile as she held the small youkai close to her. “I just had a small accident.�

“Where’s Inu-Yasha?� Kagome asked as she glanced around slightly.

“In the God tree.� Shippou said as he pointed to where Inu-Yasha was perched.

Quickly, Inu-Yasha turned away from the two and moved to the other side of the branch, acting like he wasn’t watching them. Kagome shook her head.

“Are you going to come down here to help me with my bag or not?� Kagome yelled up to him. Inu-Yasha didn’t move or say anything. Kagome sighed. “Fine, I’ll carry it myself.� She went to go pick the bag back up when Inu-Yasha appeared suddenly by her side and roughly slung the bag over his shoulder.

Upon arriving where Sango and Miroku were, Kagome was welcomed back to the group as she always was. Sango, however seemed to be quieter than she normally would be as was Inu-Yasha. Noticing this, Kagome walked over to Sango, who was sitting outside on an old log, and sat down beside her. She was going to tell Sango that she wanted to try being with her. This would get her mind off that self-centered hanyou for sure.

“Sango, can we talk?� Kagome asked her as she looked over to Sango. Sango nodded.

“Yes, I’ve wanted to talk to you as well.� She replied.

-To Be Continued-

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