Carpe Demon by GinaBristow

Raising Kagome

Chapter 1: Raising Kagome

Disclaimer: InuYasha is the property of Rumiko Takahashi. Carpe Demon is the property of Julie Kenner.

Chapter 1: Raising Kagome

It was a night like any other late inthe month of November. It was nearing nine o'clock and most people were home cleaning up after a hearty meal, getting ready for bed or settling in with warm drinks and snacks to be entertained by some must see tv. It was cold outside and the park was nearly empty save for the few who were braving the elements for a moment before reaching their final destinations.

There was a lone petite female sitting stiffly on one of the benches in a small aclove of trees seemingly transfixed by the adjacent water fountian. Her onyx shaded hair was pulled back into a tight French braid. Her face was without make-up and she was free of and of the usual female adornments. Her clothes we black, nondescript, breathable, and allowed for a full range of movement. Everything about her was utilitarian except her black and white Samoa Adidas. Hey, a girl's got to have style, even when she's out for blood.

She was Kagome Higurashi: Demon Hunter Extrordinaire and she was freezing her ass off.

'Geez this is so high school'she thought meanly 'he set this whole night fight thing up and he's not even on time!' But such was her life, she was destined to lurk in dark corners on Wednesday nights when she could be doing something entirely more enjoyable. She tore her eyes away from the lifeless water fountian and gazed across the landscape of the seemingly deserted park. She hunched over hugging herself in the cold driving wind, and mumbled "For this crap I missed ALIAS?"

Now she'd have to hear it secondhand from Sango if Vaughn actually went through with his plan to kill Lauren. Sango was a good story teller but ALIAS just isn't the same without seeing Syd in action. 'Why oh why do I not have TiVO?' Oh she was seriously going to kick some demon ass tonight. In her brooding over missing her favorite spy drama she almost missed the tingling sensation dancing along her spine that signaled an approaching demon aura.

Almost missed it, but not quite.

Her holy powers flared to life and she felt the aura falter in its approach. She stood and with a calm ire stalked out from the treeline and followed the sidewalk into the open. Her head slowly turned and her eyes met with a red T-shirt blue jeans and ghostly white hair. Talk about conspicuous. This half-demon had to be cocky if he was going to fight her in that.

"So you finally decided to show up huh? What, you lost track of time while pillaging grocery stores and raping helpless young schoolgirls?" Her voice was filled with her distaste for his tardiness.

Golden eyes narrowed at her comment. "Feh, shows what you know I don't have ta rape em, they fall at my feet and beg me to touch em."

Kagome's pretty face quickly contorted into an ugly mask of disgust as an image of this demon with his hands innapproiatly touching a young girl in a middle school uniform popped into her mind's eye. "Wow what are you like three hundred? Isn't it a bit icky for you to be laying hands on someone who's not even a quarter of your age?"

His left ear, which had a small gold hoop attached to the tip, twitched and he let out a jagged sigh. "I know your mommy prolly taught you to use your words but can we get this over with? I've got ALIAS on TiVo."

Kagome remembered her former righteous indignation at missing one of the best shows to grace the small screen this century, and here this little demon was basically rubbing it in. As if she would let him live to see it. If she missed it he defiantly would never lay eyes on it or anything ever again. There was once more a spike in her holy powers and she growled out, "Bring it on you selfish jackass."

He let out a dry chuckle and launched himself at her claws drawn aiming for the jugular. The demi-demon smirked, most likely thinking how easy this fight was going to be. He blinked and his jaw dropped when he saw his target was no longer there.

Kagome smiled and then dropped to the ground from her wicked jump over his form. " No, no, no, little demon boy that just won't do, you must try again." He circled her at a distance, growling low in his throat all the while. She suddenly rushed forward and caught the over confident demon with a quick kick to the face, causing him to stumble backwards. She felt the slight vibration of her cell phone in her pocket.

It was always the same, no one ever called her when she was at home alone, bored and looking for a reason to do anything besides train but when she was in the middle of a good ass kicking her phone suddenly turned into Grand Central Station. Kagome punched him twice in the face and followed up with an elbow to the windpipe as she turned away from him. She executed a swift solid kick to his stomach and knocked him to the ground. She answered the phone with a breathy hello.

"Hello Kagome-sama, it is I, Miroku Yamada, your faithful attorney at law here." Kagome rolled her eyes did he always have to use his whole name as if they hadn't known each other since elementry school?

"Hi Miro, we're gonna have to make this quick, I'm working here."She quickly replied.

"Work, at this time of night?" he asked. "Kagome, the dojo closed . . . oh that work, I'll make it brief then. Remember your brother Ichigo?"

"Vaguely, as you know he was out of the house before I finished preschool." As she answered the demi-youkai sat up clambered to his feet. He eyed her as if he just realized that she really wasn't Malibu Barbie in disguise and she observed cooly him in return.

"Well I am sorry to be the bearer of bad news" Miroku continued on, "but, your brother and his wife have passed on."

She stood still in shocked silence. Kagome took the phone from her ear and looked at it as if Miroku's head would suddenly pop out of the screen and loudly exclaim 'Gotcha!'. She may not have known her brother well and it was true that she did slightly despise him for leaving her to deal with the 'family business' alone. However she didn't have much family it was only her and her grandfather Since her mother died of cancer three years ago. She always imaganied that one day Ichi would come to his senses and return to his family. It seem that now that dream would never come true.

Little demon boy took note of her distraction and used it to his advantage to land a kick directly in her stomach. As she fell to the ground winded, she quickly gathered her bearings and switched the phone to speaker and tucked it securely into her bra. However as she began to get her breath back the demon pounced on her again and managed to put a large shallow gash in her shoulder before she rolled away. The demon grinned at her blood on the cold concrete.

She spared her shoulder a quick glance. It's a good thing this shirt came in a pack of five. "Ok Miro not that the news isn't sad, but what does it have to do with my lawyer?" she said as she jumped to avoid the demons sweeping kick.

"Well," he drawled out before quickly saying, "Your brother left his son to your guardianship."

"WHAT!" came her screeched reply, as the advantageous demon once again used her distraction as a chance to land an uppercut square on her jaw. She landed on the ground shocked from both the mental and physical blows she received. The demon walked toward her and kneeled, smirking before her stunned form. "Well Ka-go-me I guess the kids will never meet Auntie Slayer-bitch" he said as he prepared to rip her heart from her chest. He pronounced her name as if he was one of the kids off of the short bus. She felt the only thing missing was the short clap accompanying each syllable.

Her eyes glinted in the moonlight and she quickly put her right hand over his face as left hand settled over his heart and sent an enormous blast of purification energy directly from her body to his. The demon was projected away and out of her line of sight.

"Kagome-sama!" the almost screeching voice from her phone repeated gaining volume with each utterance. She slipped the phone out of her bra and put it to her ear "I'm ok Miro, "she quietly replied; "it's just a kid . . . I don't know how I can do that."

"Well, Kagome you should also be informed that if you are unwilling or unable to support him . . . he will go to your Aunt Sakura." She sat up at attention.

"Aunt Sakura!" she vehemently whispered. "That woman, that woman practally tortured me when she came to visit! I'm lucky that I'm even halfway sane! Lord knows what she'd do to a boy. There is absolutely no way I could ever let another living person be subject to her attentions 24/7."

"Indeed, ok then Kagome-sama" Miroku replied in a bright, cheery voice, "come to my office say, around eleven and we can work out the details."

"I'll be there" she replied curtly and flipped the phone shut.

She stood and tossed a glance over to the moaning demon who, for all intents and purposes should be dust in the wind, and immediately did a double take. Oh God, the freak was human now. She walked over to him. "Hey," she kicked him in the side for emphasis; " what's with the new look?"

He lifted his hair into his field of vision and sighed. "What, you want I should be dead?"

She rolled her eyes and replied "That's what I was going for."

He closed his eyes and sighed again. "I guess there actually was an upside to being a half demon" he said in cryptic explanation.

"Hey," she said while her toe was gently prodding him in his side; "You got a place to stay?"

"Not really I'm just squatting" He opened his eyes and looked at her petite form towering over him.

"You really got ALIAS on TiVo? Tonight's episode I mean?"

"Yeah . . . "he eyed her suspiciously as he pushed himself up on his elbows, "why?" At his answer she leaned over and offered him her hand.

"Let's go"

"Go?" he asked warily as he put his hand in hers.

She tugged him up and began to walk away. "Yeah we're going to go to your illegal abode and watch ALIAS while you pack your stuff and then you're gonna move in with me" she tossed over her shoulder.

He stood there dumbfounded for a moment before answering, "All right but I get top bunk."

She smiled and he led the way.

"Hey!" She said in sudden realization.

"What is your name anyway?"