
Posted originally on the Archive_of_Our_Own at https://archiveofourown.org/
works/6281812.
  Rating:
      Explicit
  Archive Warning:
      Graphic_Depictions_Of_Violence, Major_Character_Death, Rape/Non-Con,
      Underage
  Category:
      F/M
  Fandom:
      InuYasha_-_A_Feudal_Fairy_Tale
  Relationship:
      Higurashi_Kagome/InuYasha
  Character:
      InuYasha_(InuYasha), Higurashi_Kagome, Inu_no_Taishou, Izayoi_(InuYasha),
      Sesshoumaru_(InuYasha), Higurashi_Souta, Kikyou_(InuYasha), Sango_
      (InuYasha), Miroku_(InuYasha)
  Stats:
      Published: 2015-03-14 Chapters: 22/? Words: 103617
****** Forget the Storm ******
by TheMondayChild
Summary
     Inuyasha spends all day working at the Sunset Shrine as a jack of all
     trades and all night in bed with the lady of the house. It's the
     ideal life for him until a girl comes back from summer camp and
     changes everything. Now he finds himself struggling to survive with
     her rather than dying without her.
Notes
     Note: Happy Pi day!
     It's good to be back! And with a brand new full-length story, too. I
     like my one-shots, but stories are my jam. This one here has all
     you've come to expect from me, such as: no character development, a
     weak plot that makes no sense and shows up maybe twice in between
     lemons, lots of uncomfortable-to-read unrealistic sex, instant (and
     disturbing) love between InuKag, chapters that are maybe two pages in
     length, and long author's notes nobody ever reads where I wonder if
     anyone understands or even enjoys my humor and if my time and small
     amount of talent is being wasted writing pervy stories for teenage
     girls who have problems socializing irl. WOOHOO!
     The theme song for this story is Golden Dawn by The Legendary Pink
     Dots. I wanted to name the story Golden Dawn, since it is such a
     pretty title and goes quite well with our heroes, but did not want to
     have people thinking of the rather controversial political party of
     the same name while reading this story about children's cartoon
     characters boinking. Now on to the story, since I'm pretty sure you
     don't care much for some ignorant internet person's half-baked
     thoughts on dumb stuff.
     Many thanks to BashiYami for being a wonderful beta and amazing
     author who really takes the time to edit my confused and off-putting
     ramblings into something people would actually maybe want to read.
     You're the best!
***** Introductions *****
One: Introductions
Inuyasha wiped the sweat from his brow and squinted into the bright afternoon
sun. Today, his employer had requested that he paint the tall wooden beams that
stood proudly at the entrance to the ancient shrine, which would have been easy
if it weren't so damned hot.Grumbling to himself, he resumed his work, cursing
when he accidentally splattered his left cheek with a bit of sticky red paint.
Ignoring it, he instead thought back to this morning and how enthusiastically
his employer had woken him up. A very satisfied and very male grin made its way
onto his face as he remembered the curve of Mrs. Higurashi's backside and how
she had looked on all fours in front of him, begging to be fucked like an
animal. Thirty-two and already a widow, she was fit, the damage her body had
taken from having two children almost entirely unnoticeable, aside from a
couple faded stretch marks on her belly that weren't visible unless one was
looking for them. She wanted nasty, depraved, rough sex, and that was all he
had been giving her the entire summer. On the floor, in the kitchen, in the
living room, in the shower, on the dining room table, outside in the dirt. He
would never have been able to manage working and fucking like he did were it
not for his demon blood. It was good. Sex and money were two of his favorite
things, and he got both right at the Sunset Shrine, along with a place to stay.
Too bad all that ended today.
Scowling, he remembered how she had practically thrown him out today, and even
though she had smiled apologetically, it had stung. Her daughter was coming
back from summer camp, and Mrs. Higurashi didn't want her offspring to know she
had sexual needs and satisfied them just like everybody else. Everything had
been fine and dandy when her kid Sota was at home. The boy slept like a rock
and idolized him, calling him "big brother" and following him around
everywhere. He was kind of a nuisance, but it was nice to be looked up to for a
change. But no, now that her female child, who apparently was more observant
than her brother, was returning, she didn't want to continue their
relationship. Which would have been fine, except he had been practically living
there for months and he knew she still wanted him. Hell, she was making him
repaint the goddamn torii gates which he had done just a few months ago at the
beginning of his hiring, and she found little nothings for him to do all the
time, like opening jars, or moving furniture so she could vacuum underneath it,
or fingering her while she did laundry—
An angry, rapid tempo of pounding feet coming up the stairs interrupted his
thoughts. His ears twitched; he was impressed. Most people were panting by the
time they got half-way up, but this person was fucking sprinting. As they
cleared the top, he saw a sweaty teenage girl in tiny jean shorts and a large
t-shirt that had probably belonged to a guy at one point. Inuyasha smirked.
Another idiot for another love charm. He studied her curiously as her eyes
darted about, completely missing him where he crouched on top of the gate just
above her. Her legs were long for her petite frame, and they were toned to
perfection. Her breasts were noticeable beneath the loose material of the
shirt, and he watched as they bobbed along with her movements. No bra? Really?
And she had been running up those stairs. Inuyasha suddenly wished he had paid
more attention and looked at her as she made her ascent. That would have been
quite the show indeed. Her long, wavy black hair fluttered in the breeze and
suddenly she took off again, quickly darting away from his appreciative eyes.
Wait, that wasn't the direction to the charm shop!
Curious, Inuyasha jumped down and watched her kick open the screen door of the
house, storming angrily inside. Not having worn shoes, he padded silently after
the girl, slowing his breathing to better eavesdrop, before remembering that he
had more of a right to be there than she did and brazenly entered the house
after her. Before he could open his mouth, Mrs. Higurashi burst into the room,
probably having heard her door nearly kicked down by a furious adolescent, and
went completely still when she saw the fuming girl in the middle of the room.
"You sent Jii-chan away!" she screamed without preamble, a tremor in her voice.
"Kagome, please, try and understand…" Mrs. Higurashi started, extending a hand
towards the girl, who slapped it away.
"You sent him to a nursing home after forcing me to go to summer camp after you
promised me you wouldn't. You're a liar!" Her eyes, which he realized were big
and blue, were watering. Her lower lip trembled and his eyes couldn't help but
be drawn to it.
Wait, had Mrs. Higurashi called the screaming beauty Kagome? His eyes went
wide, recognizing the name as belonging to the mysterious daughter whom he'd
never met and was supposed to return today. Damn. He'd assumed the girl would
be a child, around Sota's age, but Kagome was gorgeous and grown.
"And who the hell is he?!" Kagome shouted, pivoting in his direction angrily.
His mouth was dry. Inuyasha could not speak, could not think, when she turned
her sapphire-like glare on him. What was going on? He had never had this
problem before.
"That's Inuyasha, dear. I hired him to do some work while you were gone. He's a
great boy, and so good with his hands."
Kagome and he stayed staring at each other for another moment, her in anger and
him trapped in her gaze, before she finally turned back to her mother and he
was released.
"Why?" she asked simply, her voice sounding small.
Mrs. Higurashi faltered, perhaps stunned and unsure of the sudden change in her
daughter. "Er, well, first of all, how did you find out?"
The question seemed to reignite Kagome's earlier ire and she responded, "Sota
told me in a letter. I knew something was up when you shipped me off to summer
camp of all things when I haven't gone since I was ten. I was the oldest kid at
camp! Hell, one of my friends was even a counselor!" Kagome crossed her arms
and looked down, hiding her face with her long hair. Inuyasha smelled tears and
had to stop himself from moving towards her, longing to know her well enough to
comfort her. Suspicion rooted itself somewhere near where his chest was
currently pinching. Comfort her? Had fucking a mother transferred parent-
y feelings to him?! Did he subconsciously think of himself as her new father?!
"How could you? Being in a place like that will kill him, I know it. If he's
not surrounded by his family and the place he loves, he'll be gone in a week."
He discretely scanned her body once more, just to make sure he hadn't missed a
talisman or charm of some sort. The kind of reaction he was having to her could
only be magical in nature.
"Kagome," her mother murmured, "we can't care for him here. You know that! He
needs to be looked after by professionals." Inuyasha glanced at her mother,
wondering if she knew what her daughter was up to.
The girl's head shot up and she glared at the woman, fire in her eyes. "I won't
forgive you. I can't!"
If she thought he could be overtaken that easily, the bitch had another thing
coming. Just because she had toned legs and a great rack, big blue doe eyes,
ink-black hair that caught the light just so, and damn if her flushed angry
face wasn't sexy—
And then she was off, running down the hall and up the stairs, presumably to
the fluffy pink room he had reasonably assumed belonged to a much younger
little girl.
Mrs. Higurashi rolled her eyes, her lips quirking in a small smile. "Sorry
about that. If there's one thing teenage girls know how to do, it's make a
scene." She walked over to where he stood, still frozen, and wrapped her arms
around his neck. "I think you should stay a little longer, Inuyasha. With
Kagome like that, I'm going to need more help."
She kissed him, her talented tongue probing at his lips, and he closed his eyes
and let her have her way with him. Mrs. Higurashi backed him up until his back
was against the kitchen counter and her hands dragged down his chest to
skillfully undo his belt, where she teased him and cupped him until he growled
and grabbed her bottom, pulling her to grind against him.
All he could think about was Kagome.
***** Obsession *****
Chapter Notes
     Note: Loving all the feedback. You're making me so happy! Except for
     AFF. You guys are stingy.
     Originally, this started out as a little PWP one-shot that I was
     working on in a math class I eventually failed (you're welcome). But
     class was just so goddamn boring and I expanded the story and it grew
     into a monster scribbled in between equations. I also had mild carbon
     monoxide poisoning after a poor attempt at barbequing last
     Independence Day and wrote half of this while not able to breathe
     properly or move, which may explain the lack of a plot. So I'd just
     like to apologize for how quickly the first few chapters move. I get
     too excited for the latter parts of the story and tend to rush
     beginnings. However, this is not a "getting together" story, but a
     "staying together" story, so keep that in mind.
     Anyway, did you guys hear about Lee Min Ho and Suzy?! I HAVE BEEN
     SCREAMING WORDLESSLY FOR OVER 24 HOURS. MY HEART IS BROKEN FOREVER.
     D'=
     Tell BashiYami thank you for editing this chapter.
Two: Obsession
It took Inuyasha the better part of three weeks to finally admit that he had it
bad. The girl was always in his thoughts; he hadn't even realized now natural
her presence felt until it was gone. The smell of her lingered in his nose long
after dark and even wormed its way into his head while he was sleeping, a dark-
haired nymph dancing through his dreams with her bright eyes and flowing hair.
When she left the shrine, the slow waning of her scent had him on edge so much
that he would unconsciously glance out the windows, lift his head to scent the
air, or sometimes say he had to trim the Goshinboku just to see if he could
catch sight of her return. Chopping wood became a habit more than a hobby, and
he had started to keep a smaller block in his sleeve or pocket just to scratch
at in her absence since finding himself anxiously shredding the underside of
the coffee table—the latest victim of his anxiety. Better a pocket full of
sawdust than turning the furniture into tinder.
They hardly spoke, since she somehow partially blamed him for her mother
sticking her grandpa in a nursing home, but it was probably for the best. He
would have just made a complete fool of himself, anyway. Whenever Kagome
actually deigned to speak to him, it was usually only to grumpily tell him to
move out of the way or the like. His mind would instantly go blank and he
clammed up and just did whatever she said, even when she'd scoff and mutter
unflattering names under her breath. Women didn't respect spineless idiot
doormats, he knew that already, but he couldn't help himself.
Even worse, he found himself looking for hints of her in her mother. Mrs.
Higurashi, while more secretive about their relationship than before, was no
less generous, and he was a very busy man. But he could no longer see her as
herself. She was Kagome's mother now, but only during the day. In the dark, she
was Kagome. In the half-dark, she was maybe Kagome in the future. It was the
only way he could keep coming back to her. He didn't want her to suspect
something was wrong, and he certainly didn't want her to even come close to the
truth. And he enjoyed the sex. Kagome was very fond of wearing skimpy clothing,
with little skirts and tight shirts making up the majority of her wardrobe. His
eyes couldn't help but admire the bared flesh and take mental pictures which he
would bring out again at night, playing them in his head like a slideshow as he
vigorously fucked the lady of the house. The self-exposure seemed innocent on
Kagome's part, done without a care, never dreaming greedy eyes would want to
own her, a factor that made his lust burn all the more.
Kagome's innocence also served to make her completely oblivious to his desires,
and, for most of the time, to Inuyasha himself. He was like wallpaper, always
there but never noted. And that wasn't an exaggeration: he was alwaysthere. He
had developed a bad habit of watching her sleep, peering at her through her
window, marveling at the glow of her skin in the moonlight, the slight shimmer
of her dark hair. When he could tear himself away, he'd make his way back to
the bed he shared with her mother, the woman in whom he searched for glimpses
of the one who captivated him: her fifteen-year-old teenage daughter who barely
acknowledged his existence and yet entranced him so thoroughly he often
wondered if maybe she really had cast a spell on him all those weeks ago.
There was still much work to do around the shrine, mostly general little things
that had not been done since there was a man around the house who wasn't a
child or a senior citizen. Even when he was working, Kagome seemed to always be
near him. It would have made his heart beat faster and his face heat with the
secret wondering if she was drawn to him as well but for the fact that she was
always with her friends. Three girls whose names he always got confused and her
friend/suitor/former camp counselor Hojo. They were a close-knit tribe and
usually spoke in whispers, not wanting to be overheard by the help (meaning
him) or Mrs. Higurashi.
One day, while he was doing shirtless yard work, sweating and glancing over at
where she was picnicking with her friends under the God Tree and trying to
ascertain whether she was looking at him or at the butterflies frolicking to
his far right, he finally spoke to her. Inuyasha had been quietly seething,
watching the baby-faced boy shyly put his arm around her and present her with a
box of high-end chocolates, something he would only be able to afford if he
worked his ass off for about two months and didn't make any expenditures. And
Kagome didn't even glance at it.
"Put it with the others," she said exasperatedly, and Hojo jumped up to do just
that, sprinting to what Inuyasha was sure was her room.
Inuyasha dropped his shovel. He knew it! There was no way any man could ever be
that spineless unless there was magic at work. Her grandfather had been a
priest of the shrine, and Kagome was technically a shrine maiden. When he had
first come to work at the Higurashi Shrine, Inuyasha had always teased the old
codger about the useless seals the powerless priest was constantly slapping him
with, and even laughed off his purification salt. Or would have if it hadn't
gotten into his eyes. But who knew? The old fart might've accidentally taught
her something useful.
"Isn't that so nice of Hojo? You should really give him a chance, Kagome.
You're perfect for each other!" her friend with the buggy eyes said. "Hojo's
really great. It's not fair to keep stringing him along."
Kagome shrugged. "Who says I'm stringing him along?"
Her friends collectively sighed, apparently used to that response. "Whatever.
You're not doing yourself any favors by waiting, you know. I hear there's
another girl at his job that's out to steal him!"
"Can we go inside and have some of your chocolate if you're not going to eat
it?" All three girls stared at the wavy-haired one before the two more
talkative ones looked back at Kagome, apparently having forgotten about the
expensive chocolates waiting for them.
Kagome let out a breath and waved them away with impatience, leaving her alone
on the quilt. The girl sighed again and lay down on her back, spreading her
hair around her head like a dark, waving halo.
A breeze picked up none too soon, soothing the effects of the harsh sun beating
down on them and giving his sensitive ears a short reprieve from the humming of
insects the heat brought with it. But the lazy wind also brought to him the
unique perfume ingrained in his senses and he unconsciously leaned into it. She
arched her back and he heard a pop, after which she inhaled deeply and briefly
closed her eyes before opening them again to search the sky.
"That your boyfriend?" Inuyasha asked. Immediately, he began to panic. Without
him noticing, he had edged closer and closer until he was nearly standing over
her. What had possessed him? He nearly ran, cursing his jealousy and the anger
it had created in him.
"No," she snorted, glaring at him. "Don't you have some grass to cut?"
The anger flared up again at being reminded of the distance in status between
the two of them. "So are you a lesbian, then?"
"Why do you care so much?" she asked softly, her eyes curious and not upset.
They were the one thing he couldn't see when he was with her mother. Perfect
blues that always pulled his gaze just to find them a little bit different
every time. Hard blue of the deep ocean when she was alive with fury, sometimes
clear pools when her thoughts were somewhere far away from him, and now? In the
shadows of the Goshinboku her eyes held a storm that engulfed him from all
sides, trapped him breathless in its dark depths and only seemed larger the
longer he stared. Storm clouds gathered and dissipated, though the dark of her
eyes was still large.
Paranoid that she had read his secret in his own eyes, he sputtered, "I-I don't
care!" and ran off to trim the trees in the forest.
O/\o/\O
Kagome let out a large sigh at his departure and flopped back down on the
picnic blanket, covering her eyes with her hands. It was hopeless. There was no
way a guy like Inuyasha would ever notice her. She had been born too late, and
unless he was into pale girls who had barely started to wear a bra the year
before, she didn't have a chance. He probably had some beautiful, modelesque
girlfriend at home with the body of a porn star and the face of a Madonna. Not
even all the slutty outfits in the world, let alone in her pitiful wardrobe,
would make him attracted to her the way she was attracted to him. To make
matters worse, she couldn't even talk to him. He made her face heat up and her
heart beat frightfully fast and then she would just end up saying something
bratty to get him to leave her alone before she embarrassed herself further.
At first, she had been angry that her mother had hired him at all, thinking she
had just imported some eye candy to attract more girls buying love charms,
which was really their main source of income. More than that, her grandfather
was the last piece of her father that she had left. Sending him away was like
losing Daddy all over again, and visiting him at the nursing home proved heart-
wrenching when she realized he didn't even recognize her most of the time. But
as the days went by, she wanted to hug her mother in gratitude, even if she was
dead set on ignoring her for her cruelty to her only living grandparent.
Inuyasha was freaking hot.
Never before had she seen someone outside of photoshopped images in magazines
look so incredible. His tan body was all muscular, just the way a man's should
be. If it wasn't for how soft his amber eyes could get or how warm his rare
smiles were, her crush would have been just that, a little crush, and not this
all-consuming fascination that bordered on the obsessive, if she hadn't already
crossed that line. The dream of him smiling just for her was the one thing that
could bring her out of the depression she had been plagued with of late.
Knowing he was out there working in the hot sun, sweat giving his already
beautiful golden skin a bright sheen as he toiled away, was the only thing that
got her out of bed these colorless mornings. He was her only happiness, but he
also added to her sorrow. It was no fault of his, she just was realistic enough
to know her stupid little childish fantasies of love, marriage, and a baby
carriage would never come true. One day, he would go away and leave her behind,
none the wiser to her affection for him. Knowing that, Kagome felt compelled to
be around him constantly, but she was still frustratingly timid, so she hid
behind her friends, inviting them over nearly every day so she'd have an excuse
to just watch him.
Blowing her bangs out of her eyes, she sat up. Thinking about Inuyasha had made
her feel hot all over, which wasn't exactly a rare occurrence. The man made her
feel things she had not thought existed outside of the romance novels she once
despised. Trailing her fingers down her bare thigh, she decided that a cool
dunk was definitely in order. Then maybe she could find out where Inuyasha had
gone and imagine what touching his beautiful chest and abdomen would feel like.
But first, she needed to get Hojo and company out of her room. The stink of his
cologne would linger for days, and the last thing she needed was Eri, Yuka, and
Ayumi going through her stuff.
O/\o/\O
Inuyasha hid for hours, going from tree to tree and thinking over the situation
he'd gotten himself into, his mind conjuring up images of her big blue eyes and
how for once they hadn't looked at him in a negative light. Finally, when it
was almost sunset, he began to slowly trek back towards the house, stopping
only when he smelled an enticingly familiar scent.
Quietly, he made his way through the trees and to a secluded little pool he had
noticed his first day on the job. It was circular and lined with blue-green
tile. He had never before seen it used. But there Kagome was, standing right on
the edge, friends nowhere in sight. Part of him wanted to leave, still
embarrassed at having had the gall to open his mouth anywhere near her, but the
temptation to watch her go for a swim won out. Kagome peered around, looking
for another presence, and when she was satisfied she was alone, she took off
her shirt and shorts, leaving her clad only in a modest blue one-piece.
Inuyasha was somewhat disappointed, but then she did something he didn't
expect.
Kagome, a small smile on her face, shimmied out of her bathing suit and flung
it to the side, leaving her standing naked in the breeze.
Inuyasha's mouth went dry and his eyes immediately roamed her body, trying to
take in everything. Her hair covered her breasts and she was holding the
bathing suit in front of her private area, but the tops of her legs and her
flat, toned stomach were new to him and he went hard in his pants, an immediate
reaction. Kagome turned and then her back was to him, her smooth, pale bottom
making his heart pound. Knowing he would never get an opportunity like this
again, he unbuttoned and unzipped his pants, pulling himself free and openly
caressing his cock as he watched her. She never faced him again, but with the
way he was feeling, that wasn't necessary. He stroked himself, imagining her
hand on him, wet from the water and eager, but shy. Hesitant and forward.
Biting his lip, he held back all the groans and hissing moans he wanted to
make, concentrating instead of preserving the moment in his mind. Kagome
splashed about and played so innocently, smiling at the patterns the sunlight
made on the water as it filtered through the trees, looking even younger than
she was. His hand moved faster, his hips pumping as well, and it was hardly a
few minutes before he was shooting his sperm onto his hand and the ground, jet
after jet. Inuyasha couldn't hold back the animalistic growl as he climaxed,
and Kagome stopped splashing, turning around in the water with big, scared
eyes.
"Is someone there?" she called out, arms crossed to cover her breasts.
Horrified, Inuyasha stared at the mess on his hand, then back to the frightened
girl. His cock jumped as she shivered and bit her lip, her eyes still searching
for another person or thing. After a while, she went back to swimming, and he
went back to masturbating, exchanging his soft strokes for rough, punishing
tugs.
He came three more times before he admitted he had a problem aside from
chafing.
End note: And so begins the unrealistic sexual activity. He's a half-demon,
though, so let's just say demon dick doesn't need to rest, like in every other
story.
***** Milkman *****
Three: Milkman
Inuyasha took his weekly day off, something he hadn't done since he first
started working at the Higurashi Shrine. Now that he had given in and actually
masturbated to Kagome herself, he was having trouble refraining from doing it
all the time. He knew that soon he would want more, and that more was not a
good thing to want in this case. So he sought help. Unfortunately, the only
person he knew well enough to ask for help was his friend Miroku, who was also
a raging pervert. Inuyasha used to be a bartender and Miroku used to prowl
around looking for desperate, vulnerable women. They struck up a friendship,
which lasted even after Miroku married his high school sweetheart, Sango, whom
he had been in a relationship with before, after, and during his one-night
stands. Inuyasha was the only one who knew of Miroku's other life, which he
desperately needed to keep secret, so it was not unreasonable for the half-
demon to trust him with his own shame.
"Inuyasha!" Miroku cried, happy to see him. "You sounded so freaked out when
you called. What's up?"
Inuyasha shouldered past him and into the hall, going straight to the kitchen
and grabbing two beers, tossing one behind him to Miroku, knowing he was there
and would catch it. He had good reflexes for a human.
"Are we alone?" he asked as he flicked the cap off the bottle.
Miroku nodded. "She's out grocery shopping. So what's up?"
He sighed and leaned against the counter. "I'm in trouble, man." Already,
admitting it felt like a weight off his chest.
"Money?" he guessed.
Inuyasha shook his head and Miroku relaxed somewhat. Much to his shame, the
half-demon had begged a loan or three from his friend during the course of
their acquaintance. He gave him monthly payments, but still owed a bit. Their
friendship was suffering and not much more than their secrets were keeping them
together.
"A girl," he croaked out.
Miroku's eyes brightened and he nodded, setting down is beer. "Now this is
something I can handle. Has a woman finally managed to rope in the eternal
bachelor Inuyasha? Shouldn't we be celebrating?"
Inuyasha just shook his head. "Not a woman, Miroku. A girl."
His eyes widened in understanding. "Well, shit."
"Yeah."
"Care to share?"
Inuyasha glared at him, his hands clenching into fists.
Miroku laughed uneasily. "I meant information, Inuyasha, that's all. How'd this
happen?"
He sighed. "Well, you know how I've been working at that old Shrine for a few
months?" At his friend's nod, he continued, "I've not really been working in
the traditional sense. I mean, yeah, there's stuff to do and I do it, but
mostly I've been sort of a… A kept man."
"Holy shit!" Miroku breathed, his expression awestruck. "Was she hot?"
Inuyasha nodded. "Mrs. Higurashi's pretty decent, but that's not what this is
about. She's got kids, and I've sort of become too interested in one of them."
"First of all, how old is she? The girl, I mean," he asked, his tone all
business.
The half-demon closed his eyes and took another sip. "…Fifteen."
"Virgin?"
"Pretty sure." Though Kagome had a tendency to dress pretty provocatively,
there was something in her face and the way she moved that revealed her
innocence.
Miroku sighed and raked his hand through his hair. "Fuck. Sorry, Inuyasha.
Don't feel bad, it could happen to anyone. Kids don't look like they used to.
It's the fuckin' hormones in the milk, man." He laughed, pathetically trying to
lighten the mood. "Ha, I said milkman."
Inuyasha glared at him, setting his beer down nearly hard enough to break the
glass. "Are you gonna say anything helpful?"
Affecting a wise look, Miroku said, "If I were you, I'd choose the MILF. MILFs
are rare and elusive creatures, and it sounds like you've got yourself a fine
cougar. As for the girl, virgins don't know how to fuck. She'd just lay there
crying and you'd feel like shit and there's blood and it's just one big
unpleasant experience. Plus, jailbait can get you sent to fucking jail, dude,
where I can assure you there will be no lovely women around to confuse you."
He nodded, feeling his heart sink in his chest. It was nothing he hadn't known
already, but hearing it made it so much more final. "So what do you suggest I
do, then?"
"Stick with the cougar. If you really do like the kid, wait until she's
eighteen. Hell, if you really want to take her virginity, she might even still
be inexperienced. And you have the perfect opportunity to scare off any
boyfriends she might get."
Inuyasha snorted. "I can't imagine this 'relationship' Mrs. Higurashi and I
have continuing for three entire years. Hell, it was almost over the day the
girl came home since she didn't want to get found out."
"Well, what else is there? Just stay safe and stay smart, man."
Inuyasha nodded glumly. Both men heard a key turn in the lock and Inuyasha
hightailed it out of there, right through the open kitchen window. The last
thing he wanted was for Sango to see him drinking a beer in her kitchen and
have her start screaming at him and Miroku over the debt. There was just no
pleasing that woman, but somehow Miroku seemed to love her. Living with her
would be unbearable or even impossible if she found out about his nocturnal
activities, though. The knowledge Inuyasha possessed of these, including the
phone numbers of several of the women who had also tried to come on to him
after Miroku had his wicked way with them, ensured that he wouldn't have to
repay his debt anytime soon, but he would anyway, as quickly as possible. He
needed at least one friend in his life so it would stay interesting.
O/\o/\O
Inuyasha took Miroku's advice, as much as he hated it. He overdid it with Mrs.
Higurashi, opening doors for her, cooking dinner, ravishing her at all hours of
the day and night. It was only in order to forget Kagome, but it made it even
worse. She was somehow always around right before or right after he decided to
sex up her mother, and several times he had nearly said her name while going at
it. Body, soul, and mind, they all yearned for her.
Completely oblivious, Mrs. Higurashi blushed and seemed happier than ever. It
occurred to him some time after he started behaving differently that everything
he was doing were things one did during courtship, and he faltered. But then
Kagome skipped out in her short skirt and cropped tank top, going in the
direction of the little pool, and the lust in his gut was nearly impossible to
overcome, telling him to follow her, to watch and take. But he won, even though
it was Kagome's image in the water that day that he thought of as he came, not
the writhing woman beneath him.
It went on for a while, and Inuyasha became weary. He would have quit had he
had anything else to do. Being a gardener/carpenter/painter/electrician might
have seemed like he should be able to put a roof over his head, but work was
scarce. If you weren't affiliated with a company, tough luck. He had been lucky
to get this job in the first place. He still paid rent on his sad little
apartment downtown, but only because he could not trust that he'd be at the
shrine for long.
Mumbling curses to himself, Inuyasha trudged through the tall grass that grew
deep in the forest. He was checking for any dead wood or trespassers or fire
hazards. He did it once a day, and only found things occasionally. Even so, he
had yet to explore the forest in its entirety. Inuyasha could not comprehend
how a seemingly middle-class family like the Higurashis could own such a vast
amount of land in the city. The taxes must have been ridiculous.
Stumbling into a clearing, he was brought out of his thoughts by how beautiful
the tiny place was. The sun shone down in golden waves and illuminated a small
patch of wild flowers of all sorts and colors. A rabbit dashed away from him
and into its burrow. Birds were tweeting, and while that sound usually annoyed
him, here it was nice. He walked to a large tree and leaned against the base,
sinking to the ground. The place was for Kagome. Even if she had never been
there, it was hers.
Indulging himself, he pictured her. She was lying down on her back, watching
the clouds, black hair fanned out around her, smelling sweeter than the
flowers. Inuyasha began to stroke himself, not afraid to groan her name out
loud with only the wind and trees and flowers to hear. There would be a small,
secret smile on her face, like she'd had in the pool. He'd go over to her and
her eyes would lock with his, her lips begging for a kiss, for his kiss. He'd
give her one, and then another, and another, over and over, all over her sweet
face. Kagome would get so worked up and lift her skirt up, bringing his hand to
touch her uncovered core, and he'd give her what she wanted and more. Fingers,
lips, tongue, and finally him. She'd gasp but not cry, clinging tighter to him,
begging him to make her feel good. Even though Inuyasha had never had a virgin
before, he knew there wouldn't be blood and tears with her and him. If there
was pain, it would be sweet, like her. He'd make it so. And she'd gasp his name
and press her lips to his once more, fingers tangling in his hair, urging him
on to his release and they'd cry out together…
A loud grunt signaled his orgasm, and he looked at his palm in a daze. He'd
done it again. Grimacing, he wiped it off on some grass and decided to go back
to the house. He would get nothing done like this. Glancing back at the flowers
once more, an idea struck him and he smiled. The flowers were beautiful and
would make a perfect gift for Mrs. Higurashi. Gathering up all the ones near
him, he held them tightly while being careful not to crush them, jumping from
branch to branch, startling the birds on his way.
He waked through the open door, surprised to see Kagome at home and without her
friends for once. Her mother was making lunch, cutting up bread for sandwiches
and humming something. The girl was staring out the window, an almost tragic
lack of expression on her face. Setting the flowers down on the counter, he
washed the now invisible evidence of his orgasm off his hands.
"Inuyasha!" Mrs. Higurashi said with a grin, her eyes lighting up. "Just in
time for lunch."
"Uh, yeah," he muttered, not able to take his eyes off Kagome. She didn't
appear to have noticed his presence or her mother's voice. "These are for you,"
he said, thrusting the bouquet into Mrs. Higurashi's hands.
Her smile widened. "Oh, how lovely! I'm going to find a vase right away. You
always know just what I need, Inuyasha."
When she turned her back, he went over to where Kagome was sitting, blocking
her view of the nothing she had been so absorbed with.
"What do you want?" she said with a weak glare, lacking her usual venom.
Something seemed to be bothering her more than usual.
"Here." Inuyasha gave her the littlest flower, the one he had personally
thought was the prettiest. It was just a tiny daisy, the tiniest he'd ever
seen, but she took it from his hands like it was a precious diamond, her eyes
widening and locking with his before her face colored and she looked down
demurely.
After a short silence, she looked up at him with a small smile on her face. "No
one's ever given me flowers before. Thank you."
He could do nothing but smile at her, his heart pounding. She ran a finger over
the petals before slipping it behind her ear, in her hair, where it was almost
completely obscured. Kagome gave him one last studying glance before sliding
off the couch and going upstairs. Finally, finally he had gotten her to notice
him. It was a few seconds before he realized he was supposed to be forgetting
about her, not wooing her. He'd have to make sure to give Mrs. Higurashi some
extra attention today.
"Ham and cheese or turkey—"
Inuyasha leapt over the counter and, ignoring her loud gasp, knelt on the tiled
floor and stuck his head up her skirt, immediately pushing her panties to the
side and snaking his tongue inside her passage. Somehow, although he never
meant to these days, he'd end up picturing Kagome. He'd lie to himself and
think that if he just kept picturing her, the novelty would fade and he'd get
tired of her and no longer want her so badly. But it only made things worse,
especially now with that look she had just given him, the shy surprise,
studying him like she had only just realized he was real and really there.
Driving his fingers into Mrs. Higurashi speedily, it didn't take her too long
to reach orgasm, and she was left panting as he resurfaced, hard cock in his
pants needing a turn.
The phone rang, surprising both of them, and Mrs. Higurashi answered it,
ignoring his glare.
"Hello? Yes, it is. Yes." Her expression turned from mildly pleasant to
concerned. "Oh, no. Yes, I'll be right over." She hung up the phone and turned
to him. "I have to run over to the nursing home really quick. I'll make up to
you tonight, okay?"
Inuyasha sighed and nodded, and she gave him a quick kiss on the cheek before
grabbing her purse and leaving. Distractedly, he rubbed at the hard bulge in
his jeans. He could go back to the clearing or even to the pool. Both options
were tempting. But then again, he could just conserve his energy, jerk off in
the bathroom like a normal person, and then go downstairs and have a sandwich.
A grumbling in his stomach decided for him and he grabbed half of the finished
sandwich on the counter, intending to eat that as he pleasured himself and the
rest after his session.
Bounding up the stairs, he reached the bathroom door, yanking it open only to
be met with the sight of Kagome in the bathtub, earphones in and her iPod
safely on the ground. He was so scared he didn't even think to stare, and
instead just tried to back away without her noticing he was even there.
Unfortunately, his shock had caused his grip on the sandwich to loosen, and it
flopped to the floor with a deafening splat.
He was frozen.
As if in slow motion, Inuyasha watched Kagome open her eyes, turn her head, and
yank out her earphones. Quickly, she rose to her feet, and his eyes followed
the paths the drops of water traveled as they ran down her body, not able to
hide the lust in his gaze. Then the situation hit him full force, and he
attempted to bolt.
"Wait!" Kagome said, holding out a hand. She just stood there, silent and
naked, her big eyes begging him to do something.
His body ached for her. Never had he felt so hot, so hard. His fists clenched
and unclenched, almost hard enough for his claws to draw blood. The effect she
had on him was ridiculous, but he'd rather have it than nothing at all. His
body ached for her and had since the very first moment he saw her running up
the shrine steps.
Inuyasha gave up and gave in.
Kagome, seeing the change in his expression, held out her arms, and he went to
her, gathering her up in his own, savoring the feeling of her wet, bare flesh
soaking his work clothes. Carefully, he avoided the sandwich on the floor and
walked to her room, the fluffy mess of pink that hurt his eyes if he looked at
it too long. Gently, he laid her down on the twin bed, never separating from
her. Her eyes searched his and her fingers brushed across his face, ghosted
around his lips. He suddenly felt like crying and was embarrassed, but covered
it up with a kiss, their first real kiss. Her lips were moist and soft and he
made no secret of how much he enjoyed them, sighing contentedly at the feeling.
At first, she was hesitant and barely responsive, and he realized she had never
been kissed before. The tears threatened to fall again and he pushed away
thoughts of how great a gift this was and concentrated only on pleasing her.
All his previous violent lust was nowhere to be found as he kissed her over and
over and over. His own needs could wait. Kagome was already trembling by the
time he reached her breasts, but her eyes were never unsure, never giving him
the chance to hate himself. Again, more kisses, and he took a rosy nipple into
his mouth as she ran a fingertip along his left ear. Inuyasha was almost
overwhelmed by the serenity of the moment, but the feeling passed as Kagome
carefully but quickly unbuttoned his shirt, her eyes lighting up at the sight
of his own bared flesh. He grinned; perhaps working shirtless had done more
than he even hoped it would. She caressed his own nipples and ran her palms
down his chiseled stomach to rest on the waist band of his jeans. Teasingly,
she slipped a few fingers inside and just barely skimmed his navel.
Smirking at the mischievous, enchanted expression on her face, he unbuttoned
his pants and freed himself from his boxers, pulling them off and trying not to
fall off the bed as he did so. Now as naked as she, he allowed her to look at
him, memorize the one who would be her first. Seemingly pleased with what she
saw, she made eye contact with him again and nodded. At her signal, he lowered
himself onto her and gently probed her entrance, making sure she was prepared
even though she had already given him permission. She was thoroughly wet,
something that surprised him, and incredibly tight, something that worried him.
He really didn't want to hurt her. Noticing his hesitation, Kagome reached
between them and touched his cock for the first time, her small hand rubbing
his tip up and down her slit, bumping it against her clit. He shuddered and
collapsed to his elbows, where he kissed the triumphant smile off her face.
After a time, he pulled his lips away from hers and guided himself into her,
wanting to be able to see her face and reactions. Kagome's eyes were unafraid
as they held his, though she did flinch when he forced his way inside, her eyes
shutting and her nose wrinkling in discomfort. She was twitching around him and
not in pleasure, although his was through the roof. Feeling selfish, he kissed
the bridge of her nose and then her lips, his hand going to her breast and
toying with a red hot nipple. That loosened her up some, and by the time he
began to massage her clit, she was wordlessly whining for more, pushing her
hips up, laying kisses on every part of his skin she could reach. Inuyasha gave
her what she wanted, what they both wanted, and dragged his tongue down her
neck, sucking on her pulse as he pulled himself almost all the way out and then
thrust back inside. Kagome released a loud cry and he picked up the pace,
moving within her while tasting her sweat, longing to feel more of her flesh in
his mouth, between his teeth.
He finished before Kagome did. It was only to be expected. Still, she didn't
seem disappointed, especially not when he continued to pleasure her with his
fingers even as he spurted inside of her and sucked on a nipple. The combined
sensations pushed her over the edge and she pushed back onto him further, her
thighs squeezing his waist hard as she released the sweetest moans that had
ever existed. After the most powerful part of her climax had passed, she
loosened her arms from around his neck and collapsed onto her pillow, where she
promptly fell asleep after a few gasping breaths.
Inuyasha smiled at her and gently withdrew from her opening, rolling to her
side and studying the sweaty girl. She was the type that kept her problems on
the inside and didn't share them, and the whole deal with her grandfather was
hurting her more than she let on, more than her mother guessed. With a single
claw, Inuyasha lifted a strand of hair and pulled it away from her face. She
didn't even stir. Smiling softly, he remembered all the times he had heard
women complain about men falling asleep right after sex, and how he had rolled
his eyes at their talk. What else was there to do? But now he understood. He
wanted to actually hear her voice and be taken into her confidence. Instead, he
settled for draping an arm across her and kissing her soft cheek. Inuyasha came
to the conclusion that there should be at least a little bit of pillow talk,
and that it had to come from him.
"I think I'm in love with you," he whispered.
End Note: Told you they get together super quickly. This is waywayway too
early, I mean seriously, chapter three? I wanted to wait at least seven to ten
chapters, but I got bored writing Kagome fending off Hojo and Inuyasha fucking
Mrs. Higurashi and the two leads intentionally misunderstanding each other and
tiptoeing around their feelings (how did Rumiko manage?!). Since it's
fanfiction, just pretend I actually wrote a whole lot of suspenseful scenes
full of relationship building moments between InuKag and you have been
anticipating this chapter for months, okay?
***** Wasn't Prepared *****
Chapter Notes
     Important Note: So there's a first chapter of a story now posted with
     what is shaping up to be a very similar plot to Strictly Taboo, only
     with poor spelling and grammar as well as a couple differences. It's
     only the first chapter, so no worries. A couple of people who have
     read ST have already remarked on the similarities. It may be someone
     copied ST, or maybe they thought of it independently. It wasn't a
     very original idea, as I said multiple times. The only comment I will
     make on the possibility of it having been copied is what I told my
     friend yesterday: "It's like carrying a child in your womb for a
     terrifying nine months, and when it is finally delivered after hours
     upon hours of agony, they hand you your precious baby and you look
     into his or her eyes and feel that beautiful connection unlike
     anything else on this earth, like all the pain was more than worth
     it... And then a stranger runs up and vomits shit all over the both
     of you before stealing your baby and naming it Hashtag."
     If this happens again, please notify me.
     Note: Unbetaed. Will update once perfected. Major props to whoever
     spots the reference. Chapters will be much longer after this, once we
     GET TO THE DRAMAAAAAAAA (I'm doing the Arnold Schwarzenegger "get to
     tha choppah" voice in my head when I say that. Holy hell, I'm tired).
Four: Wasn't Prepared
(I Wasn't Prepared by Eisley)
A few hours after Kagome fell asleep, Inuyasha got up and got dressed,
everything in him wishing he could stay with the slumbering girl who had clung
to him even while unconscious. Unfortunately, her mother was to arrive home
very soon, and should have been home already. Frowning, he looked at his watch,
a cheap red plastic thing he had gotten from the dollar store because he kept
arriving late to things when he used the sun with the help of his internal
clock to keep track of time. It was nearly midnight, and Mrs. Higurashi still
had not come home. Even while making love with Kagome, he had kept his ears
alert for any noise that would indicate her return, but had heard nothing.
Sighing, he laid a kiss on Kagome's forehead, then her cheek, then her lips
(where he stayed for a while), then her neck, then her shoulder, then her
chest…
And then he stopped himself, since somnophilia wasn't really something he
wanted to add to his list of fetishes.
Sighing, he tucked the naked girl in securely and backed away. She had been so
irritable and tense, and while Mrs. Higurashi had excused her behavior by
telling him repeatedly it was just needless teenage angst, he knew she was
naturally a different person inside. That was what had drawn him to her. The
moodiness that seemed so grudgingly part of other kids her age was foreign when
she displayed it. She was not a girl meant to act that way, but she was
grieving for her grandfather when no one else was, and thought she should
continue to be negative for propriety's sake.
Gently closing the door behind him, Inuyasha tiptoed to the master bedroom to
wait for Mrs. Higurashi. It was a few hours before she got back, looking grim
with dark circles under her eyes, her mouth a small, crinkled line across her
face.
"Hey," he said quietly, already knowing what had happened by the smell that
enshrouded her. "What kept you?"
Mrs. Higurashi shook her head a bit and sat down on the edge of her bed with a
sigh. "He died. Fell out of bed, right onto his skull. It wasn't instant."
Inuyasha was sad, remembering the crotchety old man, wondering how he'd
suffered these past few hours, hoping he'd been spared the pain of
consciousness. His throat felt tight when he imagined how Kagome might react to
the news. Never again would her grandfather haunt the Shrine steps, sweeping
away imaginary dust while glaring at the teenage girls picking out charms,
making sure they wouldn't slip any of the cheap things into their purses. Never
again would he drift off at the table in the middle of dinner while telling a
long, rambling story. Never again would he go on about demons and claim a
petrified cat turd of Buyo's was proof of kitsune in the woods.
"Can you hold me?" she said softly. "Just hold me, Inuyasha. I can't handle
anything else tonight."
Inuyasha nodded, secretly relieved. Sometime during his impromptu coupling with
Kagome, he had resolved to be completely faithful to her, to honor the
innocence she had given to him. Grateful tears in her eyes, Mrs. Higurashi
crawled into bed with him, falling asleep instantly, not even changing her
clothes. In contrast, Inuyasha laid awake the rest of the night, his ears
twitching when he heard Kagome roll over and mumble something in her sleep a
couple rooms away. He wished he was there to hold her in the cramped space of
her bed. He'd sacrifice leg room and stay hunched up against the wall if it
meant he could hold her in his arms like he was currently holding her mother.
O/\o/\O
Sota was dropped off from camp by bus the next morning, and Kagome greeted him
with a big hug, lifting the boy in her arms and swinging him around.
"You've gotten so big!" she exclaimed, her face looking the way it should be
for the first time in Inuyasha's memory, sunny and smiling. Apart from when
they had been together, of course. He liked to think he had glimpsed the real
her when she had been rippling around him and that he had helped bring her true
personality back out. "What did they feed you? Protein shakes, falcon eggs, and
rocks?"
Laughing, the boy pushed his older sister away and ran toward his mother,
pulling all sorts of sea shells and rocks he was convinced were arrowheads out
of his pocket, babbling away excitedly. Inuyasha wiped the sweat off his brow
and put down the hedge trimmers, walking over to the house. Mrs. Higurashi had
told him about what was to come and had requested he be there for emotional
support and also as a buffer, although that had never worked before.
"How about we all go inside, hmmm?" she said pleasantly, glancing at Inuyasha.
He nodded and they went in, where she led them to the kitchen table. They each
took their seats, Inuyasha ending up next to Kagome not entirely by accident.
"—and this one was a present from Minoru, and I found this one in my shoe after
a hike, and this one—"
"I have something very important to say," Mrs. Higurashi stated, her voice and
expression solemn. Everyone's attention snapped to her, Kagome's especially.
Her posture was strained and Inuyasha longed to massage the tenseness from her
limbs. "Yesterday, I went to the home to visit with your grandfather. He had an
accident and fell out of bed. When people get to be that age, they don't
recover like you and I do. Late last night, Jii-chan passed on."
Silence reigned at the table until Sota, eyes wide, asked, "So he's with Daddy
now?"
Mrs. Higurashi nodded, flinching back when Kagome stood, her chair tumbling
over behind her, and slammed her hands on the table.
"No!" she screamed, her face dead pale, her eyes haunted. "I knew this would
happen! I toldyou this would happen! You killed him! You killed Jii-chan!" Her
chest was heaving with repressed sobs and Inuyasha feared she would make
herself sick. "He's not with Daddy, Sota. When you're dead, you're dead." Her
voice cracked on the last word, as if she only began to believe it once she
said it. Then her eyes sharpened, trained on her mother. "Never forget that
this is your fault."
Kagome stormed out, slamming the door behind her. Mrs. Higurashi's hand was
pressed to her mouth and her eyes were watering.
"How about you two stay here and catch up?" Inuyasha suggested calmly. "I'll go
after her and see if she's ready to listen."
She nodded her assent, and he sped out, only to double back when he saw Kagome
leaning against the wall to the right of the door. Her head was bowed and her
thick, wavy black hair was in her face, obscuring her lovely features from his
probing eyes. He didn't know what he could say to make it better. He only knew
she didn't deserve to hurt like that, to blame everyone, herself included.
"Come on," he said quietly, not wanting to be overheard by the woman and child
inside. "I'll take you somewhere."
Kagome wiped her eyes and made a noise he thought sounded like a "yes", so he
knelt in front of her. She climbed on as if they had done that a thousand times
before and he took off, bounding away and to the forest, one special
destination in mind. Her hands clutched at his hair and pulled, but it didn't
bother him. He knew she was startled and just trying to get a good grip. He
tightened the hold he had on her thighs and slowed down a bit so they weren't
jetting through the air quite as fast. The girl relaxed a little and pressed
her face into his mane of hair, burrowing in and letting her tears wet the
silver strands. She cried as quietly as she could, but Inuyasha could hear the
little whining sounds she made.
Finally, they arrived at their destination. The little flower patch where the
sun fell more perfectly than anywhere else. He knelt down and she slid off of
him, and, without a word, yanked on his t-shirt until he was standing up
straight and gave him the most beautiful kiss of his life. That was the only
way to describe it: beautiful. She was sad and she was grateful he was there
for her. She needed him. She allowed him inside in more ways than just the
physical.
Groaning, he fell with her to the ground, protecting her from the hard earth
just underneath the bed of flowers with his muscled arms. Kagome's tears
gradually came to a stop the more he kissed her, but he would always remember
the bittersweet and salty taste. Again, his lust took a backseat, and he only
wanted to wipe the sad look off her face however he could. Even though he had
just taken her virginity the night before, she spread her legs for him, her
cheeks a ruddy pink and her eyes suddenly shy. Inuyasha kissed a path down her
body, removing her clothing as he went, making a brief stop at her breasts
where he laid long, wet, intimate kisses on both nipples until she was gasping.
When he arrived at her formerly innocent place, he inhaled deeply, smelling
himself faintly and smiling. She was a little swollen and slightly too red, and
he decided to help her out with his tongue. He licked and licked her as
cleverly as he knew how, pulling out everything from his bag of tricks and
inventing a few more. Kagome reacted by attempting to shove his entire face
against her, into her. Nibbling around her outer lips, he licked her from
bottom to top, and right when that tell-tale shivering of hers began and he
knew she was on the verge of a marvelous orgasm, he withdrew, only to replace
his tongue with his cock.
Beautiful blue eyes wide and begging, she wordlessly pleaded with him to go
faster, harder. And he obeyed, knowing instinctively where to touch and kiss,
exploring every secret place she possessed, possessing them in turn. Kagome
graciously allowed his frantic explorations until it all became too much and
she simply grabbed his shoulders and came powerfully, moving her arms to wrap
around his neck and bring him flush against her to stop his extra stimulations.
The feel of her nipples rubbing against his sweat-slicked skin brought him over
the edge and he poured himself into her, wondering in the back of his mind
which rendezvous was dearer to him: when he had taken her virginity, or this
fulfilled fantasy in the clearing. Kagome was still trying to catch her breath
when he rubbed his cheek against hers and gently pulled out, rolling over to
the side.
They stayed like that for more than a few moments, Inuyasha enjoying the
sunlight streaming down on him and warming his skin. He longed to hold her, but
could smell the tears she wasn't allowing to fall, and knew that she did not
want to be touched. It hurt him a little, that much he realized, but some
people preferred to be alone in their grief. He took comfort in the fact that
she allowed him to be in her presence at all during this time. It meant more
than he suspected either of them could put into words. But maybe just one would
do…
Trust.
"You know," he drawled after he felt an appropriate amount of time had passed.
"I watched you before. When you were skinny dipping."
Kagome gasped in feigned outrage and plucked a flower, throwing it at his face.
"You sicko! I knewsomeone was there!" she squealed, her eyes looking bright and
happy, though red rimmed.
Grabbing the flower before it could hit him, he replied, "It was my favorite
memory until yesterday, or maybe today. Still not sure on that." Smiling softly
at her in a way he could not remember ever being capable of doing before, he
ran the flower over her stomach and up her chest, tickling her breasts before
tucking the little white bud behind her ear, admiring the way it complemented
her sweaty, tangled dark hair that had never appeared more glorious to his
eyes.
With a laugh, she took the flower from her ear and held it in front of her,
lifting her head and bringing his arm underneath her to serve as a pillow.
Meeting his eyes shyly, she said in a coy whisper, "He loves me, he loves me
not…"
The petals fluttered in the air and spun down, hitting the naked flesh of her
lower stomach and drawing his eye.
Mind made up, he snatched the flower out of her hands and again placed it in
her hair. "You don't need a fuckin' flower to find that out, I'll tell you
right now." He paused, just to see the look on her face, the almost painful
hope-filled yearning. Smiling, he finished, "I love you, Kagome Higurashi."
More tears welled in her eyes, but she shut them before they could fall, and
when her eyes fluttered open again, they were so radiant that it was like she
had never known sadness. "I love you too, Inuyasha."
Their kiss was more gentle than any they had shared before, than any he had
given or received in his existence, and he knew then that there was no before
and no after in his life. There had only ever been a time when he had waited
for Kagome, the time he'd be with Kagome, and, God forbid she ever left him,
death. Though they'd hardly exchanged a handful of words, there was no need for
anything like that. Words were not his forte, and at the moment they weren't
hers either. He had a sneaking suspicion she'd be much chattier when she was
able to go back to normal, but for now he'd be fine with the silence. There
would be time for them to get to know each other later, and he knew there would
only be more love. He'd never believed in soul mates before, had laughed at the
very notion, but now he knew. He just knew.
They spent the rest of the day soaking up the sun and one another's company,
Kagome fashioning flower crowns and necklaces and draping them over them both
like they were a fairy tale Adam and Eve until Inuyasha fucked her so
exuberantly the majority of them broke or wilted or simply came undone. They
only put their clothes back on and headed back when the sun began to set, and
not even the thought of their real life could make Inuyasha believe that the
worst was not behind them.
***** Rigmarole *****
Chapter Notes
     Note: I know, I know, this is all happening way too fast, too early.
     That's just how I do. I personally prefer to write about the
     consequences of love rather than taking the time to develop the love.
     Honestly, it's more fun this way.
     Also, a few people have asked me over the past year and a half that
     I've been writing why I usually make Kagome a teenager and Inuyasha
     older. A lot of the times it's just a plot thing, but other times
     it's a way for me to write out my feelings since my first boyfriend
     was 10 years older than me and most of my relationships have been
     with older guys. I met him when I was 13 and our relationship ended
     when I was 16, but we only became intimate when I was 15, which was
     when I felt ready. I honestly wouldn't even know how to go about
     dating a guy my own age, and I'm glad I never did when I was a
     teenager, because teenage boys are just super gross.
     Please review! I won't get mad if you do, you know.
     I'm posting this a day earlier (I update a story every five days, but
     that will change soon) than I intended since I'll be attending a
     political conference at *POPULAR LOS ANGELES UNIVERSITY* this weekend
     where I will hopefully get very drunk and very sexed up at the after
     party. Enjoy, my pretties.
Five: Rigmarole
Months passed, during which Inuyasha and Kagome only grew closer, their bond so
strong and solid it was nearly tangible. All of that intimacy had to happen on
the down low, and they made sure to meet in the forest at different times,
never taking a chance and doing it in the house again. Now with two potential
witnesses and the awkward silence that remained ever since that morning of the
fatal announcement, secrecy was even more important than before. Inuyasha had
taken to making excuses and working until after Kagome went to sleep, only to
sneak in her mother's bedroom window soon after. He had lied and told Mrs.
Higurashi that he fell and hurt his back while trimming the trees and needed
time to heal, further lying that he strained it repeatedly every day with the
work around the shrine and that prolonged his recovery, even with his demon
genes. That seemed to work for her, but Inuyasha began worrying that he'd lose
his job soon if he was just the help and not the bed warmer as well. Mrs.
Higurashi seemed to enjoy his presence regardless, content just to snuggle and
go straight to sleep, although if her scent was any indication, which it most
certainly was, she wanted to do much more than that and wanted to do it now.
"Inuyasha?"
Said half-demon turned around, surprised out of his thoughts. Kagome was
looking at him nervously, repeatedly clenching and unclenching the straps of
the backpack she was wearing, worrying her dark pink bottom lip with her teeth.
With her shorter than short school skirt and knee highs, she was looking more
than good to Inuyasha, who already couldn't get enough of her. He was about to
suggest they reschedule their evening romp for right now, but then something
occurred to him.
"Shouldn't you be in school?" he asked, a bit worried. Kagome was dedicated to
academic success, something Inuyasha admired greatly as someone who had dropped
out of high school and was now suffering in severe financial straits because of
that carelessness.
"I needed to talk to you," she muttered, her eyes on her feet.
"About what?" he asked, distractedly looking at all the grass he had yet to mow
and trying to calculate how long he could make it last.
Kagome sighed in frustration and blew her bangs out of her eyes before glaring
at him. "You'll know when I tell you, now come on!"
Quirking a brow at her tone, which had previously been nothing less than sweet
and soft since they first began their secret relationship, he responded,
"Whatever the boss wants."
Following the girl as she stomped into the forest, he wondered what could
possibly have made her so angry. She'd babbled excitedly a couple weeks ago
about a school dance, even knowing he couldn't go with her since he was
obviously over the age limit her school imposed. Had someone else asked her?
That Hojo kid or maybe even another one? Pain in his stomach, he knew he'd let
her go with another kid, even though he'd be insanely jealous the entire night
and probably even follow her just to make sure the boy kept his hands to
himself. And then he'd bring her home at exactly nine, no arguments, and if she
was upset at not being able to stay out later, he'd just remind her how good
she had it at home with him…
But now he was getting even hornier, and far too ahead of himself.
Kagome kept walking, not even glancing behind to see if he was following her,
his bare feet not making a sound on the forest floor cleared of any leaves and
sticks, something he made sure to do on a daily basis. Finally, she came to a
stop in a clearing, their clearing, where if he squinted he could see their
outline on the crushed flowers.
Spinning around, she squared her shoulders and, with what seemed to him a great
effort, met his eyes directly, the quickly moistening orbs the only thing that
betrayed she wasn't quite as hard and fierce as she was trying to be.
"I—" she choked out, a few tears spilling on her face. Kagome swallowed a few
times, trying to get her voice back.
A million thoughts ran through his head during those few seconds. Inuyasha knew
with a certainty that she was going to leave him. Meeting him in secret was
probably fun, but the novelty had worn off and now she was frustrated with not
being able to be seen in public with him. Or maybe she had finally figured out
she was slumming it, that fucking a labor worker with rough hands and
animalistic features so far removed from her perfectly delicate human ones was
beneath her and should be a crime. Or she'd met someone else. That Hojo kid had
finally stumbled upon a gift that won her over once and for all, and they'd go
to the dance together and waltz off to his car and—
"I'm pregnant!" she said abruptly, her eyes immediately going to her shoes and
a scowl appearing on her face.
It was probably a good thing she had stopped looking at him, since she missed
the absolutely horrified expression on his face. A child. His child. Kagome's
child. Theirs.
"No," he said, his voice hardly more than a ghost of breath. "No, that's not—
No."
"I…" she whispered, her voice breaking. "I don't know what to do about this."
Inuyasha hardly heard her, wondering how this was all possible. Sure, he'd
never worn a condom and was very aware of the fact that she wasn't on any kind
of birth control, something he'd appreciated about her since it made her smell
better and more natural and prettier than the other girls her age, most of whom
were forcibly put on the pill or something by their parents. But he'd made sure
they'd never done anything when she was fertile. Well, they'd had sex a few
times during her fertile periods when they both felt particularly eager, yeah,
but he had pulled out. His face heated when he realized that pulling out and
the rhythm method were probably the two greatest causes of unwanted pregnancies
in the world. He hadn't had to worry about kids with Mrs. Higurashi since she'd
reached menopause incredibly early, a side-effect from the shock of her
husband's death. With all the other women who weren't on birth control, he'd
just used a condom, but those occasions were rare since he absolutely hated the
feel of them.
"Fuck." His eyes focused and he realized she was looking at him, silently
weeping, her chest heaving, wanting him to tell her what to do.
"I-I-I w-want to k-keep it," she said in a tiny, strangled whisper that even he
could barely hear.
In a second, he had her in his arms, trembling only slightly less than she was.
"Kagome, you know we can't do that," he said softly, kissing her forehead. "I
know it's tough, but we can go down to the clinic tomorrow and get you checked
out. I'll take care of everything."
He had meant for the statement to be comforting, but she only sobbed harder,
shaking her head against his chest.
"No. No, no, no!" She stayed quiet for a bit after that, waiting until she was
no longer on the verge of a hyperventilating fit before she spoke up again, her
voice thick. "I've been watching videos about that all week. I don't want that
to happen to our baby, Inuyasha," she protested, looking up at him with her big
blue eyes.
He knew what was going on and he was helpless to prevent it, that beautifully
heart-stopping affect she had on him to make him follow her every order. He
wasn't going to force her, even if he had to go through hell with her to give
her what she wanted, not when she looked at him that way.
"Okay," he said without meaning to, his voice sounding surprisingly steady in
contrast to how he was feeling. "When did you find out?"
Kagome was calmer now, her shoulders no longer so tense, but he rubbed them
anyway in apology. Inuyasha hated that she had been so scared to tell him. She
shouldn't ever have to feel that way about anything, especially something which
wasn't her fault.
"I started suspecting last month, but I wasn't throwing up at all so I wasn't
exactly sure. But my boobs just kept getting bigger and bigger and my stomach
did too, no matter how many meals I skipped," she explained, her eyes looking
strained as she recalled her solitary adventure. "Last Saturday, my friends
finally convinced me to go take a test, and it came out positive."
Inuyasha nodded, remembering how delighted he had been at her larger breasts,
the weight gain in her hips and stomach making her figure fuller and even more
enjoyable than her slim and toned one of before, though he loved her look then
as well. He had assumed it was just her maturing naturally, completely becoming
a woman.
"There's no vomiting in demon pregnancies," he explained. "No morning sickness.
And it's shorter than nine months."
"That's good to know," she said softly, bringing her head up from where it was
resting to look at him. "But I read that demons can smell pregnancy. Didn't you
know already?"
Inuyasha snorted. "Obviously not, or I woulda said something." His face
softening when he glimpsed the slight hurt in her eyes at his terse reply, he
tapped his nose and said, "Half, remember? I can't smell as good as the full
ones can."
"Oh," she replied, sounding relieved, as if she had actually believed he had
known all along, even before she did, and had acted normally, without a care.
"Does this… change anything?"
It did. It changed everything. But he knew what she meant and what she wanted
to hear, what he wanted to tell her.
"No, you know I'll always stay by you. I love you, Kagome."
The girl in his arms beamed at him, as though his support and love were all she
needed to go through this terrible ordeal. Did she even understand the pain and
heartbreak she'd go through? The judgmental stares, the loud whispers, the
exclusion? Sacrificing everything, her reputation, her entire life, her bright
future, all for a tiny thing they didn't even know yet. It upset him, but he
loved her, and while he did not yet love their unborn child, he knew she did
and he wanted to please her. Inuyasha was annoyed at the tiny life growing in
her womb, the miniscule existence that was going to be a huge inconvenience. At
best, he was curious about it. He'd never even thought of himself as ever being
a father, had taken extreme precautions to prevent such a case in the past, and
he had no idea what had possessed him to continue to have sex with Kagome when
he knew such an abhorrent possibility existed. Something had just made him so
crazy over her, and he'd not been quite himself ever since he first laid eyes
on her. But all that thinking was giving him a headache.
"Here," she said shyly, taking his hand. She brought it to her lips and pressed
a loving kiss to his palm before lowering it to her stomach.
Inuyasha went rigid. Of course, it was far too soon to be feeling any sort of
movement the baby would make, but he was right there, his hand directly above
where their child was growing. Sure, he had touched her there before during
these past few months, but that was before he knew of the pregnancy. Now he was
scared shitless.
"I-is it a boy or a girl?" he whispered as he took his hand away, uncertain of
why he felt the need to keep his voice down like they were in a church or
something.
Kagome laughed. "I don't know! I think it's too little for that. And I still
haven't even gone to the doctor yet. I'll have to ask Mama. I hope she won't
get too mad at me."
"I'll take you!" he said suddenly, startling himself. "Uh, let's just hold off
on telling your mom, okay? I'd like to stick around and keep an eye on you for
a while longer, and I don't think she'd let me work here anymore if she knew."
She wanted to argue, he knew it by the look on her face, but she just sighed
and grabbed his hands, taking one in each of hers, swinging them a couple times
before enveloping herself in his arms. He clutched her to him, his heart
beating like mad. Kagome was more precious than ever now. The ache he felt in
his heart was excruciating. He was in love with her, that had been long
established, but this new development was going to add on another few layers of
difficulty he had not signed up for. He lived the way he did for a reason.
Inuyasha didn't like difficult things. The simple life was the best life. And
this? The furthest thing from simple he could think of.
"I want you to talk to the baby, Inuyasha," Kagome murmured, her lips moving on
his collar bone and making him shudder with desire and apprehension. "He or she
needs to know their daddy loves them as much as their mama does."
Inuyasha nodded and kissed her, loving her with lips, tongue, and teeth. They
didn't go further than that, although she seemed like she really wanted to, but
for once he wasn't in the mood. A celebratory fuck in the flowers was probably
what she had been picturing, and she almost got her way, but the thought of the
baby inside her would take some getting used to for him. After a while, she
merely sighed happily, giving him one last, lingering kiss before trotting off
in the direction of the shrine steps, presumably to go and update her friends
on their conversation. Once he was sure she was well out of earshot, Inuyasha
bit his lip hard enough to draw blood, the pain centering him, and dragged his
claws down the nearest tree trunk, the deep gouges showing the white and green
soft wood previously kept hidden. Again and again he ripped through it until
his fingers bled, healing around the splinters lodged in his flesh.
If he were any less crazy about Kagome, he would have run far, far away and
never come back.
O/\o/\O
A few hours and several completely decimated trees later, Inuyasha trudged back
to the house, his stomach growling. He had successfully almost exhausted
himself, and now he was looking forward to a big dinner and a long sleep.
Taking a sniff, his nose was met with the tantalizing aroma of steak and
potatoes with grilled onions. His favorite. Nearly tearing down the door in his
eagerness to get to the food, he almost bumped right smack into Mrs. Higurashi,
who had apparently been waiting for his return. Immediately, she laid a kiss on
him, one of the few things he had not stopped doing with her during his
relationship with Kagome.
Pulling away before it got too deep, he smiled and asked, "Wow, what did I do
to deserve all this?"
Beaming, she replied, "What haven't you done? You work so hard, Inuyasha, and I
feel like I've been neglecting you. There's just been so much going on since
Jii-chan's death, especially with Kagome acting the way she is…" Her eyes
turned sorrowful, but then she was back to her almost supernaturally sunny
self. "Just let me take care of you tonight."
Nodding gratefully, he made his way to the head of the table, having long since
stopped thinking about what that signified and the man who had previously
occupied it years ago. He was no usurper, and he did help this family, although
he was paid for it in several different ways. Almost immediately, a steaming
hot plate of his favorite food was set in front of him. Inuyasha dug in
voraciously, his fork and knife more weapons than utensils, attacking the meal.
About halfway through, he felt a touch on his crotch and was surprised enough
to yelp, although the sound was muffled by the food in his mouth.
"Wha da fuh?!" he said loudly, almost choking, scooting back to see what was
going on. There, on her knees under the table, was Mrs. Higurashi.
"Just let me take care of you," she repeated, unbuttoning her blouse. "I've
missed being with you. I'll do all the work, you can even keep eating if you
want."
Swallowing, the half-demon dumbly gaped at her, mentally grasping at straws for
a retort. Taking advantage of his paralyzation, she sat in his lap, her skirt
hiked up around her waist. Mrs. Higurashi rocked on his lap a few times,
ignoring how rigid he was everywhere but where he should be for the kind of
activity she had in mind. Frantically, Inuyasha tried to think of something
that would get her off of him without actually getting her off. He had been
pushing her away for months, and while she had acted like everything was all
fine and dandy, he had known it wasn't. Hell, there really wasn't anything for
him to do at the shrine now that Kagome was back from camp and Sota was tall
enough to reach the top shelves in the shed. The only reason why he had been
kept on was for the special extra service he had provided her, and they both
knew it. Despite all the recent stress in his relationship with Kagome, he
wanted nothing more than to be faithful to her, and it was important for both
their sakes that he stuck around. Racking his brain, he finally came up with a
solution. He could fake a seizure and miraculously recover before she tried to
call an ambulance. Cursing himself for not being smart enough to think up
something else, he was just about to bite his tongue and start thrashing around
wildly when a hushed gasp reached his ears.
Mrs. Higurashi didn't notice and let out a husky moan. "Come on, Inuyasha, it's
been too long. I can make us both cum in under ten, please!"
Inuyasha was staring at Kagome, who had the most heartbroken look on her face,
like she was in physical pain. Something in Inuyasha's expression, perhaps the
horror, made the woman on his lap turn around, where she promptly blushed when
she spotted her daughter.
"Kagome, t-this is not how I wanted you to find out—"
Her panicked statement was interrupted by a wordless scream of incoherent
anguish from the girl, who burst into tears and collapsed to her knees.
Inuyasha carelessly tossed Mrs. Higurashi off his lap, feeling like retching.
He had thought Kagome was out, that she was with her friends. Never would he
have even dreamed that Mrs. Higurashi would do something like that with her in
the house. Cursing himself for allowing her to be in his lap, to touch him when
he belonged to another, he tentatively reached out an arm and touched Kagome's
shoulder, too afraid to do anything. There was no response from the girl, whose
sobs were now nothing more than gasping breaths, and then nothing at all.
Kagome jerked away from him and doubled over, her forehead nearly touching the
ground and her arms wrapped around her stomach. His nose began to twitch like
mad when he smelled the last thing he ever wanted to scent.
Her blood.
No sooner than he smelled it did he see it, spilling onto the floor from
between her thighs, a small trickle but enough to make his heart stop. Mrs.
Higurashi was yelling something now, but he didn't stay to listen, instead
grabbing Kagome and running away, running like he had wanted to earlier, the
only difference between his previous desire and his current action being that
he was taking the cause of his stress with him. Inuyasha completely forgot
about the baby, however, only concentrating on the blood spilling from his
beloved and the small cries of pain she released whenever he touched the ground
and launched them both into the air again.
The nearest hospital was not too far, but it seemed like it took him over an
hour to reach. He burst into the crowded emergency waiting room, not even
bothering with pushing people out of his way, just moving forward and knocking
patients over, young and old, ill and healthy alike. They didn't matter, only
Kagome mattered. Security guards arrived, somewhat fearful when they realized
he wasn't human, but he didn't even waste energy looking at them. He went to
the window where a wide-eyed woman in scrubs sat before a computer. She stared
at him, and something in his face must have reached her, because she only
nodded and pressed a button to open the doors to the emergency room, closing
them the second he was beyond them. The minute he was through, nurses came and
glared at him before noticing the girl he held, leading them over to a free bed
and allowing him to place Kagome on it before shooing him away, the petite
women unafraid when in a group. Inuyasha didn't want to obey, but he realized
that the more time he spent being rebellious, the longer it would take them to
treat her. So he returned to the waiting room, ignoring the curses and furious
words directed at him, wondering if he would ever see her again and knowing he
didn't deserve it.
But she deserved to live.
An ache formed inside, wholly different altogether from the burning agony and
guilt stemming from his part in Kagome's miscarriage. Deep down, he felt
relieved that this had happened, and the ache was a satisfied one that made him
want to hurt himself. Inuyasha wasn't ready for a child, and Kagome certainly
was not. The awful truth was that though everything had all happened incredibly
fast, in the space of only a few hours, he would prefer to go on that emotional
rollercoaster a hundred times over rather than have Kagome carry their child to
term.
"Inuyasha!"
He turned around, pushing away his dark, secret guilt at the sound of Mrs.
Higurashi's voice. Answering her question before the flustered woman could even
speak it, he said, "She's being taken care of now. I got her ahead of everyone
else."
Her lower lip was trembling although there was no sign of tears in her eyes. "I
didn't think she'd come downstairs. S-she's been locking herself up in her room
as soon as she gets home after staying out all day."
"It's not your fault," he said, his words soothing but his voice hard. Even
though Inuyasha knew the responsibility was all his, a part of him still blamed
her.
"But why?" she cried out, startling him and causing several people to look
their way. "What happened?! She looked so hurt and there was blood all over—"
"I guess we'll find out," he said grimly, turning from her and going to sit in
one of the few empty chairs. After a few seconds of gaping at his abrupt
attitude, Mrs. Higurashi followed.
For once, Inuyasha tried to think about his problems in depth instead of just
ignoring them until they went away or solved themselves. Kagome had seen him
and her mother in a compromising situation hours after she had told him of her
pregnancy. All that blood she expelled at the sight could only mean one thing:
she lost the baby. Unless she also lost her memories of the past few hours, she
would no longer want to be with him. That was simply unacceptable. And what if
she informed her mother of the affair they'd been having these last months?
He'd lose his job on top of losing his girlfriend. Hell, because of Kagome's
age, he could even lose his freedom. Fifteen was the age of consent in the
area, but only if the other partner was no more than two years older, and
Inuyasha was certainly older than seventeen, even if he didn't exactly look it.
The courts were harder on demons, half-demons especially. Their dual natures
were seen as giving them a propensity towards violence, and incredibly long
sentences for minor offenses with little evidence were more than common, they
were practically the rule.
"You don't have to be here, Inuyasha," Mrs. Higurashi said softly. "I can—"
Inuyasha turned to look at her, intending on barking out something harsh and
insulting, but apparently the look on his face was enough, and she recoiled as
if he had struck her. Grunting in mild satisfaction and feeling assured that
she would no longer bother him, he decided to zone out and stare at the wall,
his nose and ears working overtime for any scent or mention of Kagome. Nothing
made her situation known, however, and his stress began to show in the set of
his shoulders and jaw, in how his hands turned to fists in his lap. They waited
and waited, the rest of the room emptying excruciatingly slowly until they were
the only ones there aside from a snoring man who was most likely homeless. When
a nurse finally approached them, he almost bit off his tongue with how on edge
he was. The small woman merely motioned at him and he followed her back through
the swinging emergency room doors, Mrs. Higurashi anxiously trotting at his
heels.
They passed a few beds filled with mostly quiet or sleeping patients and then
arrived at Kagome's. An older man was patting her hand sympathetically while
she chattered away. Once they arrived in the small, partially curtained space,
all conversation ceased and both Kagome and the doctor looked at them,
expressions neutral. They stared at one another for a few moments, Kagome not
meeting his eyes directly, and then the doctor coughed nervously, opening his
mouth to speak.
"Well, I'm happy to say you brought Miss Higurashi here just in time. We were
able to prevent early labor. After that, we checked up on the baby and
everything seems fine and normal for a pregnancy of this sort," he said,
glancing at Inuyasha, who nearly fell to his knees at that bit of information,
and then back to Mrs. Higurashi. "I gave Kagome a couple prescriptions and
she's okay to leave. Just remember to be very, very careful around her and make
sure she doesn't get upset. Any questions, concerns?"
When no one said anything, he seemed to sense the awkward atmosphere at last
and scuttled away after a muttered "good day".
Mrs. Higurashi's nostrils were flared, her eyes bright and hard. "What is the
meaning of this, Kagome?" she asked in a clipped tone.
Kagome looked up from where she had been twisting the sheet, damp with the
nervous sweat from her palms. Her chin raised and gained a stubborn look, her
bottom lip twitching a few times before calming. Glaring at her mother with all
the spite she had in her, one corner of Kagome's mouth lifted up in a defiant
little smirk.
"It's Hojo's," she announced confidently, not a single tremor in her smooth
voice. "And once I tell him, we're getting married."
End Note: Dun dun dunnnnn. Before I get people telling me in their review that
Inuyasha is an asshole for not wanting a baby, just remember that when a woman
doesn't want to be a mother, she can get an abortion or give the child up for
adoption. When a man doesn't want to be a father, he goes to jail for not
paying child support. So just let him have his dramatic inner chaos moment.
***** The Kampf is Real *****
Chapter Notes
     Important Note: Please vote in the very important poll on my profile
     that decides the fate of my ongoing stories. If you don't have a
     fanfiction account, feel free to tell me which story you like best in
     a review. More info below.
     Note: Shout out to my name twin reviewer, who left a very well-
     phrased review.
     A guest reviewer said last chapter that men do not go to jail for not
     paying child support since that makes no sense and instead have their
     wages garnished. Google would have told them otherwise had they
     actually checked (The New York Times had an article on it just a
     couple days before the last chapter came out). That's the way it goes
     in the US, though I don't know what country you're in or its own
     particular laws. When men lack the funds to pay, they go to jail (the
     threat of imprisonment is seen as a deterrent for not paying). If
     they have the funds, they do have their wages garnished, even if
     what's left over isn't enough for them to live off of. Indeed,
     jailing men who cannot pay doesn't make any sense. But many prisons
     are private and make a profit, so of course the US has the largest
     prison population on the fucking planet and stuffs it full of non-
     violent offenders.
     The court system is incredibly biased towards women, there's no doubt
     about that, and it needs to change if we're to have real equality.
     There's even a guy who was statutorily raped, the woman became
     pregnant and never told him, and years later he's being forced to pay
     child support. And there's a guy who was forced to pay $30k in child
     support for a child who was not his just because an ex-girlfriend put
     him on the birth certificate and he did not dispute it in time when
     many people refused to tell him how to do so. Madness. But let me
     stop with this bleak shit and let you continue onwards.
     Lastly, there was a bit of confusion concerning my last author's note
     in Bizarre Love Triangle. I'm not going anywhere nor am I going to
     stop writing anything. I guess it was kind of easy to misinterpret,
     so I apologize. I was just saying that I could concentrate on
     uploading one story and continue posting a chapter every week for
     that one while updating the others after it was done. I appreciate
     the flood of reviews, which were nice though I don't expect them to
     continue. If I only cared about the amount of reviews and attention,
     I could easily write for the Twilight fandom or a boy band or some
     other crap, I honestly don't know what people like. I intentionally
     write for a smaller, dying fandom because I feel more comfortable
     that way. I was just a bit peeved because the last chapter of H2H got
     nearly twice the viewers of BLT (yum) and only had 2 reviews. That's
     2 out of 500+ viewers. Thanks to MadamScorpio and Ai shadow-chan for
     being the original chapter reviewers, by the way. You guys are
     awesome.
     But yeah, Bizarre Love Triangle is currently in the lead, Highway to
     Hell is lagging behind by one vote, and Forget the Storm is in last
     place. Please vote. I'll be redistributing the votes for "All of 'em,
     now. Gimme" and applying them to the story I feel like updating, just
     fyi ;)
Six: The Kampf is Real
"Hojo?!" Mrs. Higurashi gasped, her face quickly forming a frown. "But I
thought—"
"You thought wrong," Kagome responded, some of the fire gone from her as she
leaned back into the mountain of pillows she had somehow wrangled out of the
stingy hospital staff. "Hojo and I are inlove."
"How did this happen?" the older woman whispered with concern.
"Yeah, Kagome," Inuyasha butted in, his tone furious. He knew she was lying. If
there had been even a whiff of something sexual going on between the two teens,
he would have eviscerated him before that fucking fruit would be able to take a
breath and yell for mommy. "How the fuck did it happen?"
Mrs. Higurashi looked at him askance and Kagome just closed her eyes. "None of
your business," she said, her tone the same as it had been around the time
they'd first met.
"My grandchild is certainlymy business, Kagome," Mrs. Higurashi said, for the
first time sounding genuinely a little angry at her daughter. "Now, how did
this come about?" When the girl still didn't respond, she leaned a little
closer, trying her best to look severe. "Am I going to have to call his
parents?"
Kagome huffed irritably, managing to blow her bangs out of her eyes. "At camp.
We got closer than we were before and we've been doing it ever since."
Mrs. Higurashi frowned. "He's a nice boy, so I'm assuming this was all your
idea. I just… I don't know how to punish you. You've gotten so wild."
"You're not going to punish me," Kagome bit out. "I'll go live with Hojo and
his family and we won't have to speak to or see one another again."
Her mother turned away, a corner of her mouth turned down in a frown. "If
that's how you want it. I can't deal with you anymore, I'm afraid. I never
wanted you to make my mistakes. When I was your age, your father and I were the
same, and we had you. You saw how that ended." No response. Shaking her head,
she moved aside the curtain and said, "I'm going to check with the nurses and
get your discharge papers."
Meanwhile, Inuyasha was hardly listening to the exchange and barely glanced at
her as she walked out, giving him a glance telling him to follow. Instead, he
was steaming on the inside. His mind was running through a thousand different
scenarios and possible reactions. Kagome would probably go straight to Hojo and
tearfully tell him her tale, complete with a few embellishments, of course. And
the boy would heroically do as she said and marry her, raising Inuyasha's child
as his own. Since he came from money and already had his own entry-level job at
his father's company, they probably would move in together right away in an
abode separate from his parents, probably a cute little love nest of an
apartment uptown somewhere. Then in a year she'd be pregnant again with a human
baby and would have already long forgotten about him. Maybe he'd still be
working at the Shrine and would have run out of outdoor work to do, reduced to
scrubbing toilets and kissing Mrs. Higurashi's feet while being Sota's
surrogate dad in order to keep his exalted position as a rent-free "sort of"
tenant.
He didn't want that.
"I wonder how you're going to explain your kid having dog ears and silver hair
to your little boyfriend," Inuyasha said, trying to sound casual, although his
voice shook a little and his heart was pounding in his ears.
There were a few seconds of nothing, then finally Kagome looked at him, her
eyes narrowing and her lips just barely parting before turning down in a
trembling frown, showing her hurt and disgust. All too soon, that bratty little
pout was back on her mouth and she turned away from him, glaring at the curtain
behind his head.
"Hojo would be a good dad. Even if that doesn't turn out to be the case, at
least I know he won't ever make out with my mom."
Attempting to calm himself down, Inuyasha grit his teeth and released, feeling
marginally better. "Are you gonna listen to what I have to say or not?"
After a couple seconds, she nodded, and he launched into his half thought out
spiel, feeling like a salesman selling a product he knew was not up to par.
"Kagome," he said, his voice tight and tainted with the remaining fear from
losing her not once but twice in one night, one of those times with the
possibility of being fatally permanent, fear he knew he was not experiencing
the fullness of yet. "I've been faithful to you. I know I ain't been all that
honest, but I swear you're the only girl I've been with since this started.
The—the baby, our baby, needs us both, okay? I'm going to be there for you just
like I said."
She remained expressionless throughout his little speech, but suddenly her big
blue eyes got bigger and she paled. Wondering what had caused that, knowing it
couldn't have been his words which he was sure even a kid Sota's age could have
improved, he turned around, only to see the woman whose feelings he had been
trying to spare.
Mrs. Higurashi just stared at him, so many emotions and thoughts visibly
passing behind her eyes with a manic speed that even he couldn't keep track of.
Inuyasha realized that even though he had known her longer than he had known
Kagome, he did not know her as well as he knew her daughter. There was just
never an effort made on his part. Plus, she had always kept certain parts of
herself hidden, buried under layers and layers of pleasant motherliness and
only occasionally letting free that lustful personality with no signs of
maternal behavior to come out and play. Neither of them were really her. He was
surprised he hadn't noticed before this moment, and a little ashamed as well. A
woman like her deserved better.
"What are you saying?" Mrs. Higurashi said in a low voice he thought was quite
unlike her usual bright and cheery one.
Inuyasha didn't look at her. He couldn't. It was true that he didn't want to
hurt her, didn't want to hurt anyone, and he didn't want to have a baby, but
Kagome was his and he wasn't letting her go. Not for anything. Ignoring his
former lover, he simply looked at Kagome, wordlessly pleading with her to
respond. The bitter expression melted off her face and her eyes grew big and
filled with tears, her slim, delicate hands rushing up to cover her trembling
lips.
Kagome nodded, a weak smile on her face, finally showing him how tired she was
from everything that had happened. Inuyasha walked the few steps to her side
and sat by her on the bed, his hand finding hers and grasping it, caressing her
smooth, pale skin with just the tips of his fingers.
Mrs. Higurashi snatched her purse from where she had laid it on the end of the
bed, her heels click-clacking loudly as she sped to the exit. Without turning
around, she said in that same low, foreign voice, "Inuyasha, you are no longer
my employee. Kagome, you are no longer my daughter. Never approach the Shrine
again."
Neither he nor Kagome said anything to her.
"I can't just forget," Kagome whispered to him, making his heart clench. "But I
don't want to think about it now. I don't want to think about it ever." Her
eyes were sincere and filled with tears that she did not let fall. "So I'm
choosing to forgive you, okay? I'm choosing you over her because you chose me.
Please don't make me regret it, Inuyasha."
Overwhelmed with the knowledge that she wasn't going to leave him, he clasped
her tightly to himself, releasing a little earlier than he wanted to when she
began to squirm uncomfortably. He didn't know what to say to her, so he said
nothing, letting her doze a little while as he stared at her, lost in thought.
After a while, Inuyasha stood up, anxious to get out of the stuffy building. It
was going to be a long, hard road, but he and Kagome would create happiness for
themselves, as well as magnify the happiness they'd already found in each
other. Frowning, he wondered how he'd manage to get some new clothes for Kagome
and himself and still be able to pay rent on his shitty apartment. He knew it
would be incredibly difficult to try and get any of Kagome's things, even her
essentials, from the shrine after what had happened. Not to mention his own
things, including several of his favorite work shirts and his most comfortable
sneakers. Shaking his head, he told himself things would work out somehow.
"You ready to go?" he asked gently, knowing he had come this close to losing
her forever to some idiot kid, not even wanting to think about the other thing
that had almost taken her.
Kagome nodded, a big smile on her face. "Am I finally gonna see your place?"
Inuyasha grinned back at her. She had been asking him where he retreated to
every new moon, begging to go with him. Once, she actually had the gall to
follow him, but he had sped off as fast as his retreating demonic abilities
allowed him to, which was still much faster than a car. It had taken quite a
few kisses to get her to talk to him again the next day.
"I've told you it's a complete mess," he said, taking a hand of hers in each of
his and helping her stand up. "Don't want you to get your hopes up."
She shook her head, waves tumbling adorably. "I'm just happy to be with you.
Now help me out of this stupid papery gown, I can't reach the freaking ties in
back."
It was the most perfect thing she could have said. Bending down to kiss the top
of her sweet-smelling head, he put his arms around her, untying the sloppy bows
some nurse or other had trapped her with. Once that was off and he had ogled
her a bit, he fished around in the plastic bag under the bed full of the
clothes she had been wearing, pulling out her school uniform and tugging the
shirt over her head, tying her little red scarf just because he liked to see it
on her. It made the outfit complete. Thoroughly looking over the small pleated
skirt, he noticed a few blood stains in the back. The cloth was a very dark
green, so it didn't show up too much, sort of looking like a period stain, if
anything. They could get the stain out with a bit of oxyclean and a lot of
work. After he'd gotten another job and saved up a bit, they could get her a
new uniform, but for now they'd have to make this one last. He held out the
skirt for her to step into and she did so, gingerly grasping his shoulders to
steady herself. After he had zipped it up, he made sure her shoes were on
securely, tugging to see if they would be able to endure the ride.
Crouching down in a now familiar fashion, Inuyasha said, "Hop on."
"But we didn't get my discharge papers and—"
Inuyasha sniffed delicately, an expression of distaste appearing prominently on
his face. "I'm tired of the smell and the noises. It's all shit and screaming.
Maybe you can stand it, but I've gotta run."
The slight weight and familiar warmth on his back told him all he needed to
know, and he ran out, kicking open the doors of the emergency room and hearing
the enraged squawks of the nurses with a satisfied smirk on his face. They
passed through another set of doors and then they were out, the cool night air
refreshing him and making Kagome burrow into him a little further, a slight
shiver racking her frame. His apartment was across the city, deep in the bad
part of town, a part he knew Kagome had never ventured before. Cookie-cutter
two-story homes with wide, green, impeccable lawns gradually gave way to one-
story homes with peeling paint of a garish color, lawn chairs with broken arms
and legs decorating the porches and "Beware of Dog" signs hanging crookedly on
rusted fences. Then they were passing run-down apartment buildings that looked
like cardboard boxes stepped upon by a giant toddler, loud, angry voices coming
from the open windows along with a few babies' cries and screams. Kagome's
hands tightened on his shoulders, this time not to secure her position or from
the cold, but from fear. Comfortingly, his thumbs rubbed her thighs, the
gesture tinged with an apology.
Finally, they arrived at his place.
The outside of the building was crumbling and dirty, trash littered about the
sidewalk and street, mostly fast food junk and used condoms with the odd glove
or flip flop or pair of panties here and there. A strange smell wafted up out
of the sewers and into his nostrils, and Inuyasha reprimanded himself for
forgetting not to breathe in until safely inside his apartment. He was well
aware that he lived in what was definitely the worst part of town. It was far
from what Kagome had been used to. While the Higurashis weren't incredibly
wealthy, they had all that lovely property and just enough money to pay the tax
on it every year thanks to donations and tourism. Since he had stopped, Kagome
tried to get down from his back, but he wouldn't let her. Something in him
didn't even want her feet to touch the ground. He'd just carry her until they
were in a better place. Sighing, he trudged up the stairs, mapping out a plan
in his mind for taking care of Kagome. And the baby.
He lived on the third floor of five, with the noise of a dirty bunch of
worthless pigs above him and below him going 24/7. Kagome cringed at the loud
voices, the dirty words, the mindless rage. It was like a madhouse, he knew
that. But they had no other options at the moment. The only thing they could do
was make the best of it, and for a pessimist like Inuyasha, that was going to
be tough. Keeping a grip on her smooth thigh, he let go of her with one hand to
open the door to his apartment. The lock was broken and he had lost his key
months ago. The only reason his apartment wasn't stripped of the few things he
had was because everyone knew who he was. He'd had to prove his strength in a
few fights after first moving in a couple years back and now no one fucked with
him.
The door creaked open and he flicked on the light, the bulb making a loud pop
and the light disappearing immediately after. He sighed, wondering if he had
some leftover light bulb somewhere or if he could borrow one from a neighbor
until he could buy another. They had to save all the money they could now.
Letting Kagome slide off his back, he went over to what he called the kitchen,
which was really just the corner in which he kept his hot plate, microwave, and
mini refrigerator. A few inches away from that was the bedroom, AKA his
sleeping bag. Behind them was the bathroom, which was an actual bathroom,
although it barely qualified as that. He had a toilet which worked most of the
time and a shower without a tub and a sink he had used to use to do his dishes
before he had given up completely on living like a person and began using paper
plates and bowls and cups.
"This is it," he announced, now thoroughly embarrassed that she knew how he
lived. No longer would he be that exotic older guy to her. Now he was just some
poor freak who had knocked her up. It wouldn't be long until she begged her
mother to take her back and filed a restraining order against him.
She said nothing. After a couple seconds, he gathered up the courage to look at
her, his heart hurting with the knowledge that she couldn't hide how she felt
from him, not even in the dark, and seeing her anger and pain would finally do
him in. To his surprise, her eyes were bright and shining, but not with tears.
There was a smile on her face and her expression was full of excitement, of all
things.
"This is so cool!" she whisper-shrieked, sounding so very much her age. "It's
like camping at a hotel!"
Inuyasha laughed out loud and she stumbled into his arms, her eyes useless in
the dark room even though the glow from the streetlights and the flashing neon
sign from the bar across the street made his eyes ache. Deciding the day had
been too much for them, he moved them both over to the sleeping bag, unzipping
it and leaving himself half out in the cold, even though he was spooning her.
Kagome wriggled around a bit, and he realized he had preemptively put her to
bed. Sighing, he sat up, leaning on his elbow, and helped her undress. It
wouldn't do to have her school uniform all wrinkled and smelling of him. Her
shoes and socks were the last to go, and he lined up everything neatly on the
floor, tossing her clothes to the cardboard boxes he called his closet.
Finally, they were ready to go to sleep. Inuyasha tried to think of something
to say, something profound and loving, but knew that would take quite a while
and he wanted to tell her something to reassure her before she drifted off.
"I love you," was all he said, his voice sounding strangely choked. Having her
there brought back the sadness he'd felt upon first moving in and living in
such surroundings. He'd grown used to it and had ceased to realize it, but now
that he had someone else to take care of, it was breaking his heart. "We're
gonna be okay, you know," he vowed.
"I know," she said, her voice soft and sleepy and adorable and more confident
in him than he could ever be.
Smiling, he turned her towards him to give her a kiss, just barely letting it
linger on her lips, not wanting to tempt and arouse himself. He'd have to be
very careful after what had happened tonight. If he lost her, he knew he'd go
with her.
O/\o/\O
Inuyasha awoke to the smell of pancakes, eggs, and sausages. At first, he was
elated, but then he remembered he didn't have any of those things at home and
he was probably smelling something from one of his neighbors. When the scent
persisted in teasing his nose even after he had drifted back into dreamland, he
opened his eyes, surprised to see Kagome huddled over the hot plate with one of
his pans.
"You're up!" she crowed, glancing back at him. "I'm almost done here, just a
few more seconds."
Confused, he crawled over to her. "Where'd you get that?"
"Your downstairs neighbors," she said pleasantly, turning over a pancake and
plopping it down on a huge stack of pancakes on a paper plate. "They really
like you. They said I could take whatever I wanted, so I did."
Inuyasha chuckled and rolled his eyes. He had only met those neighbors once,
months and months ago. They'd been arguing, the man and woman he assumed were a
couple, quite loudly in the middle of the night. He'd gone to their door,
knocked politely, and then kicked it down, screaming at them to shut the fuck
up and go the fuck to sleep. Inuyasha liked to think he'd saved their marriage.
There had been no loud fighting from downstairs ever since, although they still
watched TV like they were deaf. Odds were they were probably horrified of him.
At least he knew Kagome could get whatever she needed from them.
"That was nice of them," he said with a smirk, kissing the crown of her head.
"I'm gonna need all the energy I can get from now on," she said, determinedly
piling scrambled eggs on her plate. "Mid-terms are coming up and the baby is
getting pretty active."
He nearly dropped his plate. "You don't mean you're still planning on going to
school, do you?"
She drizzled maple syrup on her pancakes and took a plastic fork and knife,
digging in. "Of course! I've been working too hard to give up now. I'll take
some time off when the baby's born, but until then—"
"No!" he said firmly, putting his half-eaten plate of breakfast to the side.
"Kagome, just take this year off, just this one year. You can go to school
online or something, we'll figure it out. Just rest!" His heart was thundering
in his ribcage. He had come so close to losing her, to being alone for the rest
of his life, to dying inside. If something were to happen to her, he would
never forgive himself, never forgive her.
Slowly, Kagome placed her fork down on the edge of her plate, her eyes bright
and hard. "No. I'm not going to hide."
He scowled. "I don't think your pride is worth your life. Just stay here until
the baby is born, and then you can go back."
"This is important to me," she emphasized from between clenched teeth. "I'm not
going to be like every other teen mom and just give up. School is the only
thing I'm good at, so just let me keep it."
A staring, or really glaring, contest ensued, one which he lost almost as soon
as it began. "Fine," Inuyasha muttered grudgingly, stuffing the remainder of
his breakfast into his mouth in a few quick motions. "But I walk you to and
from every day."
Kagome's glare immediately turned into a huge smile and his heart fluttered in
a most unmasculine way in his ribcage. "I wouldn't have it any other way!" she
chirped.
Allowing her a small smile in return, Inuyasha brushed a kiss across her cheek
and went to take a quick shower. By the time he was finished, Kagome was
dressed in her stained uniform, blushingly tugging her blouse down in the hopes
it would cover the stain, but to no avail.
"You can hardly see it," he told her, opening the door and leading her outside.
"Besides, you'll be sitting down most of the time, anyway."
She scowled and blinked rapidly in the morning sunlight. "I just don't want to
look all sloppy like my life is falling apart. It's more important than ever
for me to look presentable."
Inuyasha rolled his eyes and tugged on her hand, kneeling in front of her so
she could get on his back. After she scrambled on, he took off, dodging the few
people in the hallways who were ending their night when they were just starting
their day. He had been like them once, before Kagome, he thought smugly. Now he
had a reason to live properly again. The run to Kagome's school was shorter
than the run had been from the hospital to his apartment, and again they were
in the nice part of town. Her school was a stately-looking red brick building
that looked more like a university, several early students milling about
socializing or studying. He let her off his back, feeling awkward at the stares
directed their way.
"I'll come for you fifteen minutes after school ends," he promised, already
knowing her schedule and that she liked to talk to her friends a little after
classes ended. He wanted to keep looking for work until four in the afternoon,
as any later it would be dark already and he'd have less luck.
"Thank you!" Kagome beamed, kissing him right on the lips in front of everyone.
"I got some spaghetti and sauce from our downstairs neighbors, so I'll make
that for dinner."
With one last, lingering kiss, she took off for the building, leaving him alone
and his back slightly chilly. Glaring at the other students until they stopped
staring, Inuyasha took off, heading for the suburbs around the school. The area
was nicer, the homes more expensive than where he had worked before, but he
needed more money than he had before as well. Had he been anyone else, he would
have just looked for work online or gone to various businesses, but the problem
with establishments was that they tend to check someone's background. Regular
people didn't quite care that much most of the time, especially when it's just
someone mowing their lawn. As a half-demon, he did have a bit of trouble with
certain types of people, more demons than humans, but over the past few years
attitudes had changed, so he no longer feared simply knocking on a door and
offering his services like he used to.
The first house Inuyasha called on was a large, three-story white building with
an open iron gate and a flower garden that had potential but was disorganized
and neglected. Summoning what was left of his confidence, Inuyasha straightened
his work shirt and knocked on the door, ringing the bell once. And then he
waited. Nothing. After almost an entire minute, some shuffling footsteps, and
then some pressure on the door, as if someone were leaning against it. Then
nothing for an even longer period of time than before. Finally, the door opened
a crack, and a wrinkled old face looked out at him. After a silent bit of
staring, he coughed and attempted a smile.
"Hello, ma'am, my name is Inuyasha and I noticed your plants were looking—"
SLAM!
"Stay off my property, I don't want nothing you're selling!"
"I'm not selling anything," he said urgently, trying to get her to open the
door again. "I just wanted to offer my services—"
"My husband built this house with his own two hands and I am staying in it, no
matter what you banksters think!" she shrieked, pounding on the door for good
measure.
"I'm not from any bank, I'm a gardener!" he said loudly, wondering if the woman
had something wrong with her or had figured out how to discourage any kind of
soliciting apart from that offered by very desperate half-demons.
"And one more thing, if you're going door to door, you should either have
cookies or wear deodorant."
Gaping at the heavy wooden door which he knew he could knock down with nothing
more than a flick of the wrist, Inuyasha soon recovered himself and yelled,
"Well at least I'm not some crazy old bitch with no manners! And I know this
was a planned community; your husband didn't build shit, even if he had
existed."
It was obvious to them both the old woman had won, he thought as he stormed
off. There she was, shut up and comfortable in her fancy home, alone and
decaying. Meanwhile, he had a shitty apartment he didn't know how he was going
to pay for from now on, a naïve girlfriend who thought he was matched only by
God and trusted him completely, an unwanted baby inside that girlfriend, and no
way of getting a job to support them. Inuyasha shook his head and looked for
another house to try. He knew he was prone to damaging negativity, and he knew
he needed to stop that if he was ever going to support Kagome and give her
everything she needed. Trying to muster up just a fraction of Kagome's attitude
from when she was at her best, he continued on his journey.
It only went downhill from there.
Every house he went to already had a gardener, which he could understand since
it was a well off area and all, but he knew it wasn't true. Usually when he
looked for work, he had fliers and business cards to make him look more
official, but he had none of that now. All the money he had saved had been
spent on stupid stuff that was all at Mrs. Higurashi's shrine. He wasn't good
with money, not when he was by himself. But now there was someone else to
consider, and he'd turn himself into a fucking ascetic accountant for her.
Every increment spent would always be for only the most necessary things, every
shopping trip carefully planned out beforehand to avoid impulse buys.
At least the people were nice about rejecting him, even if their scents told
him they were afraid, thinking him a potential robber just casing the joint or
whatever. They needn't have worried; he was all done with crime, not that he
would tell them that. A couple people even took down his name and number, but
he knew they wouldn't call. Inuyasha went to several more neighborhoods, where
most of the people didn't even answer the door. Five minutes before four, he
sped back to the school, not allowing himself to regret being caught confessing
to Kagome.
She was the only one at the high school's gated entrance, her black hair
billowing in the breeze, contrasting prettily with her pale skin. Immediately,
his heart warmed and he embraced her, for once initiating a public display of
affection without sexual thoughts running through his head. It was only the
first day. Everything would be alright.
They traveled back to his apartment the same way they had left it, her skirt
and hair flapping behind them. The apartment building was quieter now, most
people living there working unusual hours or just out most of the time, like he
used to be. Going right up to the apartment, he immediately kicked open the
door and went straight to his sleeping bag where he collapsed, Kagome hopping
off just before he hit the ground. Toeing off her shoes, she placed them neatly
by the door and skipped back to the mini fridge. Inuyasha leaned his back
against the wall and watched her kneel in front of the almost completely empty
appliance, admiring the shiny waves of her hair. He'd have to buy better
shampoo. The bar of Irish Spring he used for everything wasn't good enough for
her. Even if they did sell it at the 99 cents store six for a dollar, he
thought regretfully. It was a damned good deal, and you didn't see much of
those these days. Sighing, he wondered what he was going to tell her about his
job hunt. She was just so full of optimism that he couldn't bear to crush it.
"Here!" Kagome said brightly, handing him a cold glass bottle of beer he knew
hadn't been in the fridge just this morning. Taking it, he saw it was his
favorite brand, the one that had a hint of orange in the flavor and reminded
him of summer growing up, before shit went wrong. "I had some change left over
in my pocket from lunch yesterday," Kagome explained, answering his unasked
question, "and I thought you could use a treat."
Inuyasha smiled at her, pushing down some of his annoyance at her frivolous
spending, even if it was hardly anything. They'd talk about money later, and
she was still very young and had a lot to learn. He'd been the same once upon a
time. Flicking the cap off with his claw, he grabbed her hip and jerked her
down into his lap, facing away from him.
"Thank you," he whispered, nuzzling her. "How was your day?" he asked, trying
to avoid speaking about his latest failures.
After a short pause, Kagome turned her head and kissed him on the nose. "Long.
I missed you so much."
"Missed you too," he murmured truthfully, dragging his lips along the shell of
her ear.
Stealthily, he positioned his hand under her skirt. He knew it was too soon for
her to have sex, but he just needed some sort of intimate contact, it didn't
matter what. Dismissing her protests with a firm nip to her jaw, he pushed her
panties aside, running the pads of his fingers along her slit, rewarding her
with a kiss to the temple when she instantly moistened and pushed back against
him, her squirming in his lap making him hard. Circling her clit, he gave it a
little pinch, concentrating on that area more than ever, wary of touching her
where she had bled just a short time ago, guilt making him heat up in an
entirely different way from what he was used to experiencing with her.
"Come for me, Kagome. Go on," he urged her, grinding into her bottom, seeking
her heat but denying himself. Somehow, that made things hotter. Unlike most
people, he hadn't ever had frantic dry humping sessions during his teenage
years. The experience was new.
She obeyed him with a little cry that he stored away in his mind, putting it
with all the other precious little things he collected that related to her. His
arms going about her waist, he rested his head on her shoulder, humping into
her. Hardly a minute later, he came in his pants, wondering if this was awkward
now or what. He'd just needed the contact so badly, and that need aroused him
more than any dirty talk or sexy lingerie would. Kagome seemed to be fine with
his impression of a schoolboy, smiling at him and scooting off his lap before
kneeling beside him. Grabbing his hands, she held them against her abdomen, and
he tried not to recoil.
"He knows I'm happy and now he's jumping around," she laughed.
Inuyasha imagined he could feel the baby squirming around inside her and
laughed uneasily. "So it's a boy?"
Kagome nodded. "And he's going to be just like his daddy. So energetic I can
hardly keep up."
He removed his hand from her and gave her a kiss. "Maybe we'll get lucky and
it'll be a girl."
"Nuh-uh, the first one has to be a boy," she stressed seriously, as if it was
completely up to her. "And he'll always protect his younger siblings and play
with them and look out for them. Do you have a name in mind?"
Inuyasha coughed. "I'm kinda beat, so maybe we should talk about this later."
Ignoring him, she continued, "I would like to name him after my dad. Or you. Or
maybe your dad."
Pushing down a growl and more feelings of nausea, he said, "Your dad, fine. Me,
fine. But my side of the family's not going to be involved, not with a first
name, not even with a middle name, got it?"
Kagome stared at him, her eyes tearing up slightly from his sharpness. "O-
okay…"
He sighed. "Hey, I'm just tired, alright?" he lied. "I'm not mad at you. I love
you, Kagome."
She nodded, appearing relieved. "I love you too, Inuyasha," she said,
punctuating the heartfelt declaration with a kiss. "And if you ever want to
talk about your family, I'll be there to listen." When he didn't say anything,
she stood and slid off her underwear, taking the damp cloth to the bathroom
where she'd wash it later as she showered. "I'll make dinner, okay? Maybe you
should take a nap."
Inuyasha easily complied, dreaming about running from the things he carried
inside his head.
***** The Sweetness and the Sorrow *****
Chapter Notes
     portant Note: And the winner of the story that will continue without
     pause issss… *drumroll* THIS ONE!
     So, Highway to Hell technically won. You guys voted for it in both
     reviews and in the poll, which surprised me since, although it is my
     favorite, it is the least popular of all my stories. Bizarre Love
     Triangle looked like it was going to win all the way up until almost
     the end. But quite a few people voted for things that were not an
     ongoing story, and those votes go right to me. Since Forget the Storm
     is the story that has the most already written, I decided to just go
     ahead and pick this one.
     For those of you who are disappointed, do not cry or stop reading or
     jump off a bridge. I'm not worth it (jk, I totes am). BLT will get a
     new chapter posted in a few months, maybe even before FtS is
     finished. It's only 12 chapters anyway, so it's quite the shorty.
     As for H2H, I decided to do a HUGE editing of the unreleased parts
     and will be giving the chapters names and stuff. As of now, there are
     a total of 17 planned chapters. It's probably going to remain that
     way. BUT there's gonna be a sequel. An awesome sequel. Probably (I
     might just extend it). I haven't thought it up all the way yet.
     However, I shall hasten to my idea box and remain in exclusion until
     I have a thorough outline, even if I have to skip snack time.
     For the two of you who voted for more one-shots since, no offense, my
     stories are kinda boring, there will be more one-shots. LOTS MORE
     ONE-SHOTS! And I agree with the whole boring part, obviously, since I
     created that option. Yet still I feel obligated to tell you to go
     fuck yourselves in the ass with your short attention spans, no
     offense. It's like when you don't like your kid but the minute
     someone else voices their thoughts on your kid and they're just as
     negative as yours you suddenly want to punch that person.
     I don't have kids.
     Also I probably should have made an option to just pick one-shots
     without the added jab at myself, but then I would have lost an entire
     paragraph of this note, and I know that's what you guys really come
     here for, and far be it from me to deprive you of my sweet, sweet
     rants.
     Speaking of sweet, here's chapter 7. Thanks for sticking around!
     Posted a little early since I've been surprised with a free trip to a
     shitty place with no internet for a whole entire almost week. Yay.
Seven: The Sweetness and the Sorrow
Nearly a month passed and he was still jobless. Searching for work had turned
into part-time searching and part-time begging. Constantly, he was tempted,
looking at the flashy cars and fine clothing and jewelry of the people in the
city. It was risky, he knew, but they were out of money and soon the downstairs
neighbors would overcome their fear of him and stop giving Kagome food. If it
was just him, he'd have been digging through trash cans long ago, but he
wouldn't allow that to happen to her. So he panhandled. Being a half-demon in a
large area wasn't too troublesome, but he did encounter some prejudice, such as
some demon teens kicking his cup of change over, causing him to pick up every
goddamn cent, which was hard for someone with claws, therefore making him late
to pick up Kagome from school, on a rainy day no less.
And then there was his home life. Kagome was showing now and becoming
increasingly hormonal, crying almost constantly unless, of course, she was
screaming at him or sucking him off, which he only allowed out of absolute
desperation for peace and quiet. She was horny and achy and sad and happy and
really, really scary. He was constantly on edge, afraid she'd leave him and
half hoping she would, just so she could eat properly and sleep in a real bed
and wash her hair with shampoo and conditioner instead of baking soda and apple
cider vinegar. He had taken to washing her clothes for her, carefully cleaning
them every night so that they'd be ready in the morning. Already they showed
signs of wear, pills on the skirt and thin, almost transparent patches on the
blouse from where he had scrubbed too hard. She claimed to have morning
sickness, which might have been possible since their child would only be a
quarter-demon, but he didn't know. Hell, he'd never even heard of a quarter-
demon existing. Either you were full, half, or had some insignificant speck in
you going way, way back.
But the day was dawning and he had no time to dwell on their situation.
Kagome's clothes should have been dry, but sometimes they were damp in the
morning and he didn't want her to catch cold. Carefully, he got up, trying not
to disturb the girl, who was having an increasingly hard time sleeping. Wishing
he could kiss her without having her wake up and start crying and/or yelling,
he sighed and went to the bathroom, splashing cold water on his face and
wondering how the landlady would react when he notified her that he wouldn't be
able to pay rent this month and probably not for a few more months.
Inuyasha had options. Sure, being a high school drop-out had been a mistake,
but there were still jobs for people who had decided education just wasn't for
them. Unfortunately, most of those jobs were for humans, and even if that
wasn't the case, there were some powerful people who had made sure he'd never
make a living unless it was off of them. And he hated that, so he rebelled and
fucked himself over and committed some crimes and then started gardening since
no one gave a shit about gardeners. Sometimes, he ripped off his employers, but
never with big things. He had been planning on stealing some stuff from the
Shrine, but everything was either incredibly old and valuable or fucking
worthless, so he had just worked there for real, staying on longer than he
usually did when the rather unusual benefits began.
Kagome apparently wasn't in a very talkative mood. Taking her clothes from him
without a word, she dressed with her back turned, mumbling something about not
wanting breakfast and needing to go to school early to study for a test.
Inuyasha bent down to allow her to get on his back and they took off on their
daily run. He hadn't told Kagome about what he did while she was at school and
he had no plans to do so. After he had dropped his silent girlfriend off at her
deserted school, he hurried to his usual corner, his stomach growling audibly,
even to human ears. There was an old guy and his dog in his usual place; the
guy had probably been a veteran, one of those kids they lied to in high school
and stole years from. Scowling, Inuyasha crossed his arms and stared him down,
feeling only the smallest twinge of guilt as the guy sighed, stood up, and
limped away. That man had a dog to feed, but Inuyasha had a girl, and he'd
never show her off in the hopes of getting a few nickels more.
The day was slow and boring, as his days usually were now. He passed the time
by trying to remember when it was he had last eaten. Probably sometime the week
before. Kagome had made meat pies, so proud of thinking to fry them instead of
baking them, which was impossible since they had no oven, not even of the Easy-
Bake variety. It felt like his stomach was trying to eat itself, spurred on by
the mere memory, and he clenched his fists, pounding them into the textured
brick of the department store behind him. The small bit of pain in his knuckles
distracted him from the pain in his gut. Bringing his fist to his mouth, he
licked away the blood before he could heal, his first meal in days. He noticed
a few of the people on the street quickening their pace while glancing at him,
so he hid his hands behind his back, rubbing them self-consciously.
Inuyasha leaned against the wall and sighed, nudging the paper cup he had
placed down earlier with his foot. A small man with a mustache tossed some
quarters in, saying off-handedly as he walked away, "You should get a sign."
He flipped him off behind his back.
Some more people passed him and he quickly brought his hand down again, wanting
to at least appear polite. A guy dropped several singles into the cup and
smiled at him. Inuyasha, not one for smiles unless they were directed at
Kagome, simply nodded his head.
"Have a good day," he said gruffly. It was the least he could do.
"Ohhh, hellno!"
Inuyasha looked around, confused. That had seemed to have been directed at him,
but he couldn't see anyone and couldn't think of any reason why they'd say
that. A short, husky, androgynous blob of a person separated from the unrelated
group of people the man he had received money from was walking near. As it
approached him, he realized it was maybe a she, and she was very, very angry
with him.
"I have had enough," it began, already breathing heavily from the taxing
combination of walking several steps out of her way and yelling, "of you
fucking monsters cluttering our streets with your disgusting presence. You
should all be eradicated! Wiped out!"
Inuyasha growled at her. "I've got just as much of a right to be here as you
do, bitch," he spat. "If you've got a problem with half-demons, then you can
just take it and shove—"
"I have no problems with half-demons, you fucking shitlord! I am accepting of
all diverse peoples," she screeched, tossing her head in anger and making her
Skrillex haircut seem even more unappealing. "I'd at least appreciate one
goddamn motherfucking day where I'm not catcalled by another fucking pig!"
He outright laughed. "You think I catcalledyou?" he said in disbelief, his tone
rife with amusement. "I ain't the pig here, lady. Maybe you need a mirror."
"Wah, wah," she said mockingly, seemingly oblivious to his actual feelings
regarding herself. "Cry me a river of your male tears, go on. Fucking cis
scum."
"Fuck off," he muttered, already tired of the altercation. He was tired, he was
hungry, and he was angry with everyone and everything.
"As if the stare rape wasn't enough," she continued obliviously, "you just have
to go and verbally proposition me! Isn't that just like a—"
"Is there a problem?" broke in the police officer who watched him warily every
day with more than a hint of disgust in his expression.
"I am being harassed by this thug!" the woman whined.
Before she could say anything else, as she was undoubtedly preparing to do, the
policeman said, "I think it's better if you hit the road. Go on." He postured
himself to seem intimidating, but that had no affect on Inuyasha.
"I'm not doing anything wrong!" he protested loudly. "That crazy bitch just
decided to make shit up! I didn't—"
He was cut off by the stout woman pepper spraying him just as the policeman
whipped out his taser and went right for the exposed skin of his neck. Had the
man not been equipped with a demon-strength taser, Inuyasha would have just
laughed and walked it off, going home with an interesting story to tell later.
But as it was, he was brought to his knees before falling flat on his face,
dazedly watching his limbs jerk around, unable to control them. And the pain
was a bitch compared to the pepper spray. It was like locusts were eating away
his every muscle, bite by bite, leaving nothing in their wake. Finally, the
officer moved his finger off the trigger and he cursed softly in relief, only
to immediately have his body flooded with that same pain, even more agonizing
now that he had experienced relief. It lasted for only about ten seconds, but
to him it was a humiliating life time. As soon as the pain stopped for the
second time, he brought his hand to his throat and yanked the tiny barbs out,
shakily getting to his feet. There was a crowd, some faces were concerned, but
the majority were mocking, enjoying his punishment as though he deserved it.
"Mind if I give that a go?" a tubby man jokingly asked. The little girl holding
his hand, presumably his daughter, stared at him with big, fearful eyes.
The officer laughed, not at the joke but at him, his eyes on the front of his
pants. The walking, talking, eating misrepresentation of feminism had already
departed, probably to blog about the incident on her favorite website and
exaggerate before going back to routine and posting pictures of her cats.
Inuyasha looked down and saw the rather large wet mark on the front of his
pants with some surprise, not having been aware of releasing the contents of
his bladder. Before the cop could stop laughing and think to arrest him on
bullshit charges, the unfortunate half-demon ran from the scene, knocking over
his cup of money and scattering its contents. He heard the sound of people
squabbling over the meager amount and turned a corner. He'd just go visit
Kagome. It was earlier than he usually arrived, seeing as how she had asked him
a while back to give her time to study afterwards. But if he ran, he'd be able
to make it just as the students were released, and maybe he could catch her
before she ran to the library in the building next door. After everything that
had happened already that day, he needed to see her face, even if she would be
upset with him.
Ducking into a random fast food establishment, his energy recovered at the mere
thought of being reunited with the girl he loved after what seemed to be too
long of a separation, Inuyasha locked the door of the private bathroom behind
him and quickly dabbed at his pants with a paper towel soaked with soapy water,
more concerned about scent than the actual urine in his only pair of pants.
He'd wash it properly later. Taking to the rooftops, he leapt from building to
building, the air drying his clothes. His feet moved even faster than the rapid
beat of his heart, each step bringing him closer to what was making him stoop
to such shameful lengths, his reason for everything.
Finally, he arrived at the school, the shrill ringing of the last bell echoing
in his sensitive ears, making them twitch. Sighing, he stood at the outermost
gate, hoping she'd be happily surprised. It was only a little while before he
saw her, looking pale and grim, walking so fast she was almost running, looking
neither in front of her nor to her sides, eyes focused on her feet. It struck
him then how different she was from how she had been when he had first met her.
Before, she had been confident to the point of being aggressive, almost
confrontational. It had annoyed him before he had found it endearing and
recognized it for what it was: emotional frustration. He had given her an
outlet and then she had been as she should have been all along. A beautiful,
happy, loving girl. But now she was something else, something he'd never seen
her be, and he couldn't even put a word to it.
It scared him.
As he stood still, unable to do anything but watch her, the laughter started,
even crueler than what had been directed at him not even ten minutes before. A
group of boys moved and blocked her way, but Kagome seemed not to notice them,
only stopping like it was her idea, eyes examining her shoes, her face blank.
"Gonna look up condoms in the dictionary when you get to the library,
Higurashi?" one boy sneered, his eyes full of disgusted contempt. The others
around him guffawed, all but the boy he recognized as Hojo, her former suitor.
He merely turned his head away from the scene, pain etched into his features.
"Nothing to say?" the same boy said. "Wow, and you used to never shut the fuck
up before. Unless you had a dick in your mouth, apparently."
"Stop it, Ken," Hojo said quietly.
"Don't tell me you still care about her even after everything this cunt put you
through!" the boy exclaimed, angrily rounding on Hojo. "That slut shouldn't
even be here! Her mom rescinded her tuition payment."
"Kagome's a good student," Hojo insisted, his voice barely stronger than a mere
mumble. "I'm sure keeping a scholarship will be no problem for her."
"Is something the matter?" a short girl with curly hair asked, elbowing her way
to stand beside Kagome. Inuyasha belatedly recognized her as one of Kagome's
friends. "Did you have something to say to Kagome that wasn't abusive?"
Ken glared at her before his face cleared and he smiled in a way that made
Inuyasha growl. "We'll just have to see Higurashi later, then, guys."
At that statement, Kagome shouldered her way through the human wall and
straight up ran in the direction of the library, turning a corner. Inuyasha
sprang into action and caught up with her in a few seconds, darting past her
friends before they even knew he was there. When he reached her, she was
leaning against the brick wall of the library, her chest heaving and her eyes
filled with unshed tears. His heart was breaking for her. What good were all
his sacrifices if she still wasn't even close to happy? What good was anything?
"Inuyasha!" she gasped in surprise, noticing him standing a couple feet in
front of her. "Y-you usually don't c-come for another hour."
That was it? That was all she was going to say? "Fuck, Kagome, why didn't you
tell me?!" he hissed angrily, angry at the morons back there for hurting her,
angry at her for being hurt, angry at himself for not intervening sooner, for
not noticing sooner. "You said everything was fine. You said you had a lot of
support!"
That did it. Reminded of what wasn't true, the floodgates burst. Her tears
rushed forth and she sobbed vocally, uncontrollably. Rushing into his arms, she
just let herself be held, and he held her tight, as tight as he could without
being afraid of hurting her.
"I'm sorry!" she moaned, her face pressed into his neck. "You've been so strong
and I wanted to be strong too, but I can't anymore. Every day is hell. Every
day!"
"I'll fucking kick their asses," he snarled viciously. "What was that boy's
name? Ken? He gets it first."
Kagome shook her head. "They're not even the worst. It's everything and
everyone. The lunch ladies have started calling me Miss Piggy and now they're
only serving me beans with bacon," she babbled, her voice hoarse from her
tears. "Mom fought to pull my tuition money and she won and so they're letting
me stay on scholarship, but it's so hard. And everyone's so mean and I just—"
He kissed her hard on the mouth. The unfairness of it all was enough to make
him scream. But he couldn't let that get to him. The nearly broken girl in his
arms had said he was strong, not realizing he was only strong because of her.
Right now, he needed to keep her quiet and take her home. Reliving all that she
had suffered the past few weeks through telling him about it would only make
things worse. At least he knew why she had been so crazy these past few weeks,
almost like she was bipolar. Well, besides the mood swings a pregnancy gives a
woman.
Ah, the baby.
Inuyasha had been trying his hardest to forget about that detail, which had
become more difficult ever since her baby bump sprouted. Still, he persevered,
and had managed to just pretend she was getting fat. Not that he ever said
anything about that. He let her prattle on about fetal development and names
and sexes and possible problems, nodding his head to agree with her and
soothing her worries with kisses and backrubs. Of course she had sensed
something and frequently would stop in the middle of her rambling and really
look at him, studying him, before her face softened and she'd give him a kiss
and ask about his day, listening attentively to the vague lies.
Sighing, Inuyasha pulled away from her lips and gave her cheek a fond caress
before kneeling down. Without a word of protest, Kagome hopped on, clinging to
him tighter than she ever had. Taking to the rooftops again, he made up his
mind about what he was going to do. There was only one option, one he never
would have resorted to had he not been responsible for a life. Two lives,
actually. It was time to start remembering that.
The run seemed longer than usual, due to both his hunger and his anxiousness.
If he were human, he knew he'd have developed an ulcer already. When they were
finally home, he let Kagome down, only to immediately pull her into his arms
and rest his chin on the top of her head.
"I'm going out," he said, wincing when his voice shook. He coughed, trying to
cover it up.
She pulled away from him, looking up with her big blue eyes, earnest and heart-
piercingly adorable. Her lower lip quivered as her eyes filled with tears
again, making them brighter, a lighter color than they usually were. "Inuyasha,
I can handle it, okay? I'll be fine. Don't do anything that will take you away
from me."
With a wavering smile, he grabbed her chin and gave her a quick few pecks, not
wanting to get drawn in when he was so resolved but still wanting to feel her.
"If our kid is even a little like you, I'll have a hell of a time saying no to
anything."
Her face showed surprise, probably at the fact that he had just verbally
acknowledged their child for the first time in what seemed like forever. Before
she could get any more words out, he was out the door, on his way to a place
he'd sworn never to even think of again. But, like with most promises he made,
there was a time to break it. And that time was immediately. Part of him
thought he should have done so ages ago. He shouldn't have been so stupidly
selfish. There was no conceivable way he could support Kagome. And a baby? Hell
fucking no. Girls were expensive and babies were doubly expensive.
It took him only a few minutes to arrive at the hated location, the tall
building's windows still glowing with artificial light, the drones inside
slaving away for families they hardly ever saw. In contrast, the top floor was
lit only dimly, with a flickering light he knew from experience came from a
single fire and maybe a dozen or so candles. Inuyasha began to pace, crossing
his arms and hugging himself, shaking not from cold, but from the sick feelings
of dread eating away at his stomach and worming up into his heart. Couldn't he
just go back to Kagome? They still had a few more weeks before they'd get
thrown out, if he explained things to his landlord just right. He could find
another place to beg and maybe one of the houses he visited would need
something substantial and they'd be okay.
"Sir?"
Inuyasha jerked his head in the direction of the voice and saw a security
guard, looking a combination of wary and concerned. "Yeah?"
"Sir, you've been out here for going on an hour. Are you waiting for someone?"
the man said, carefully trying to sound polite and not draw attention to his
hand on his belt's pepper spray canister.
Recalling all the events of the day and the suffering of the past month,
Inuyasha nodded his head. "I'm… about to go in. There's someone I have to see."
The man nodded, smiling tightly at him with closed lips, still suspicious. "I
can take you up if you'd like. What floor?" he asked, holding the door open for
him and leading him to the elevator directly inside.
"Top," Inuyasha mumbled impatiently. He needed to get this over and done with
as quickly as possible.
"I'm sorry?" the security guard said with a crinkled brow, pressing the "up"
arrow only to have the doors open immediately. "The fiftieth floor is for the
use of one man and his invited guests only."
"Yeah, take me to the top," he said more forcefully. "Trust me, that bastard
will be more than happy to see me."
A cell phone on the man's belt began to ring and Inuyasha snatched it before he
could, turning around so as not to be hit with pepper spray twice in the same
day. Flipping it open, he spoke without waiting to hear.
"Tell your rent-a-cop to take me up," he barked, tossing the phone over his
shoulder back to the security guard, who fumbled with it a couple times before
holding it up to his ear.
"Hello? Uh, y-yes, sir. Right away. Sure." Flipping the old phone closed, the
man looked at him with no small amount of wonder in his expression as he
glanced back at him.
Crossing his arms once again, the half-demon impatiently waited for the
elevator to jerk to life and take them all the way to what he hated most. His
fingers gripped tightly to his shirt in a sad attempt to stop the trembling of
his hands, his claws piercing the fabric and ruining it. Closing his eyes, he
forced himself to relax his shoulders and stop clenching his jaw. He must
humble himself in time, find a thread to lead him back to what he used to be so
he would survive this interaction with his mind and nerves mostly intact.
Hearing a jingling sound, Inuyasha opened his eyes to see that they had arrived
on the forty-ninth floor and the guard was turning a special key in the slot of
a hidden panel. Upon further inspection, there wasn't even a button for the
fiftieth floor. With one last jerk, they came to a stop and the doors slid
open, revealing a hallway tiled white from floor to walls to ceiling.
Inuyasha stepped out, almost wanting to ask the guard to accompany him, but
before he could even properly consider it, the doors closed and he was alone
with a daunting path ahead of him, more figuratively than literally. Walking
down the long hallway, his ears twitching with each of his echoing footsteps,
he reluctantly approached the solid cedar doors with the floral engraving and
gold embellishments. Taking a deep breath, he closed his eyes and pictured
Kagome before turning the cold handle and walking into the scene of all his
worst nightmares.
"Welcome, bastard. Close the doors behind you, there are cameras in the hall."
He did as commanded, preparing himself for what was to come. "You know why I'm
here," he said bitterly. "Let's just get this over with."
Sesshomaru turned around in his chair, the firelight playing over his features
and making them seem even more devilish. "How unexpectedly intelligent of you
to realize I've been keeping an eye on you all these many years. But I'm afraid
I'm going to have to take my time tonight, little brother. We do have to spend
some time getting reacquainted."
Inuyasha accepted his as of yet unvoiced offer to sit, settling in on the
velvet-covered chair. "I need a job with the biggest salary you've got," he
grunted, crossing his leg at the knee in a concentrated effort to seem
unaffected.
Sesshomaru was not fooled. One brow raised and a corner of his mouth turned up.
"Very well. I suppose I could just get rid of my current assistant. Anything
else?"
He shook his head. "No. Just don't talk to Father about this," he amended
quickly.
"Have I ever?" he said smoothly. Inuyasha turned his face away, missing the
flash of a smile. "I ordered dinner for us ever since I first saw you lurking
about outside. It should be here in another half hour."
"Fine," Inuyasha muttered, all hopes of being able to talk to Kagome before she
went to bed dashed.
Silence filled the room, the only sound being the crackling of the fire.
Inuyasha fidgeted about uncomfortably.
"Well?" Sesshomaru said in a bored tone. "Get in position."
The old phrase triggered an immediate response and Inuyasha was unbuttoning his
pants before he even stood up, almost tripping over himself in his hurry to get
to the large desk. Bending over, he awaited further instructions. A sharp slap
to his left buttocks was all he received, his brother's claws leaving a
stinging mark.
"Not that way!" he growled angrily, and Inuyasha quickly turned over, pulling
his shirt over his head and folding it before placing it neatly behind him,
going on to do the same with his pants, leaving his shoes on as a small,
pitiful act of defiance. Sesshomaru always made it face to face. He was hoping
it would be different, but hope did not exist in this particular demon's
presence. Lying back down, he made sure to cushion his head with his clothing,
knowing he'd need it. "That's better," Sesshomaru sighed, freeing his cock but
keeping all his clothes on, just like always.
"Make it quick," Inuyasha mumbled, enough of his pride left to mouth off that
bit.
"Just for that," the full demon whispered, rubbing the head of his cock on the
reluctant, dry hole in front of him, "we're going to have seconds. And then
we'll get to the food."
Before he could bite out a properly angry retort, his ass was jammed full of a
very familiar hardness, and Inuyasha had to concentrate his every thought on
not weeping like a child. He quickly discovered that thinking of Kagome would
make him do just that, so his only comfort was gone. All he could do was live
in the moment, pretend it was years ago and he had nothing but this office and
his room and drunken, drug-filled parties with leeches he called friends. Money
was Sesshomaru's pacifier for him, and once upon a time Inuyasha had
contentedly accepted it, until about his fourth suicide attempt.
"Tell me what you are," Sesshomaru growled.
Inuyasha opened his eyes, which he had not realized were closed, and saw his
brother's red ones blazing in his face. Spittle from his earlier command had
landed on his face, and he groaned in pain and humiliation, feeling the blood
trickle down his ass.
"I'm your nasty little bitch," he growled back, a sudden spike of rage
emboldening him to spit right in the smug fucker's face.
A flash of light and an aching head were the only way he knew he had just been
punched square in the jaw. He knew from experience he was lucky to have kept
his teeth.
"I've missed this," the older man sighed, pumping away at a steady pace. "Tell
me, Inuyasha, do you get your little girl to fuck you like this? Do you make
her put on the strap-on and stroke the giant rubber cock as you suck it,
preparing it for your dirty, slutty ass?"
Immediately, Inuyasha had his hands around his brother's neck, claws pricking
into the flawless skin of his throat. "Never. Bring. Her. Into this," he said
threateningly, for the first time sure of himself and his ability to fatally
destroy the tyrant above him, come what may.
They glared at each other, and another first happened. Sesshomaru nodded his
head slowly, acquiescing. "Very well."
Inuyasha removed his hands and kept them clenched at his sides, knowing there'd
be hell to pay if he were to scar the priceless desk. A sadistic smile was his
only warning before he felt an immense pain in his own manhood. Sesshomaru was
squeezing and pulling far, far too hard. He gasped for breath, wondering if
this was the end of being a man for him and the future would contain nothing
but dickless ass slavery. Eventually, after what seemed like forever,
Sesshomaru's grip gradually eased into teasing strokes. He knew he'd have to
get hard, knew he'd have to cum all over himself before it was over. But
nothing that was happening was the least bit arousing.
Before he knew what his older brother was doing to him, he'd cum every time
without a thought, but as the years went on and he discovered just exactly what
this act was called, pleasure was more difficult to find, every possibly good
feeling overwhelmed by crushing disgust and helpless fury. Immediately, he
wanted to picture Kagome, the fulfillment of his never dwelled upon nor hoped
for fantasies, but decided that he had dishonored her enough already. Besides,
he didn't want to take the chance that he really would be brought to tears by
imagining her sweet face. So instead he thought of other girls, the ones that
went to her school. The ones that looked like her but were missing all the
special pieces that made her his beloved. Slowly, he began to become erect, all
his dirtiest old fantasies brought back out of his mental closet, one after
another in desperately quick succession.
His brother's grin loomed over him and he released a growl, a sound that grew
deeper as he began his transformation into his true form.
O/\o/\O
After several hours and many scratches, tears, bruises, and bites, it was
finally over. Sesshomaru was zipping up his pants and yawning lazily, looking
at the clock and not at his bloodied brother on the floor in the center of the
room.
"Our dinner is cold by now, bastard. It will be on a tray outside the door.
Bring it."
Shakily, Inuyasha got to his feet with great effort, limping to the heavy
wooden door. With a grunt, he muscled it open, a feat that had been effortless
before. Two silver platters with an array of rare and raw meats lay on the
tray. He sighed, wishing for bread or something. As he was not a full demon,
the meal would leave him craving other things. But at least he could eat now.
Grateful that the dinners were on a wheeled trolley, he rolled the food into
the romantically-lit room, stopping when he was in front of the couch.
Sesshomaru settled himself in his seat on one corner of the leather monstrosity
and Inuyasha placed the plate with the greater portion in front of him on the
coffee table, only taking his own and sitting at the other end of the couch
when he began to eat.
"Your duties will mostly consist of being available whenever I require you,
which will be most of the time," Sesshomaru said between small, vicious bites.
Inuyasha merely nodded and picked at his food with his claws, no longer as
hungry as he had once been.
"Well?" Sesshomaru asked. "Don't you want to hear news about Father and his
whore?"
He slammed his plate down on the table. "We don't bring them into this either!"
he said harshly, as though he were the one with the power.
Sesshomaru merely went back to his meal. "They know where you are and what
you've been doing as well, though they haven't been monitoring you like I have.
They just check from time to time to see if you're dead." Meeting his angry
brother's eyes, he continued, "They don't know about the girl and your
predicament. Only I know."
Inuyasha released a breath, exhaling in relief. Then he started, the full
implications of what the older demon had just said kicking in. He knew about
Kagome's pregnancy. That was the "predicament". Even though Inuyasha thought of
it as among the most negative things to have ever happened to him, he was
suddenly enraged that Sesshomaru was taking away his child's personhood using
just that one word. Swallowing his anger and a rather too room-temperature
piece of raw steak, he told himself over and over that this was all nothing in
comparison to seeing his family—his family—taken care of. Kagome was all that
mattered now, and the life inside of her was a part of both of them as well.
Coughing uneasily, he said, "I'd better go."
Sesshomaru sighed. "Yes, go back to your fat, whining bitch and your shit
apartment. You'll have to pay for a new place out of your salary. I'm not that
fond of you, you know."
Clenching his fists and gritting his teeth at the insult to his girl, Inuyasha
abruptly stood and went to the door, only to be confronted by his brother's
cold scowl. Sesshomaru liked to remind Inuyasha of how much faster he was and
obviously superior, and he never missed an opportunity.
"You've forgotten something."
Shutting his eyes tight, Inuyasha accepted the rough, lingering kiss that was
all about domination, nothing to do with love. Not like Kagome's kisses. He had
been feeling more or less okay, meaning numb, until that one little touch of
the lips, but now Inuyasha wanted to vomit. When the "kiss" ended, the feeling
persisted, and he fled down the hall, his vision darkening on the edges.
Fighting to stay conscious, irrational panic nearly overtaking him, Inuyasha
darted into the elevator, rapidly punching in buttons hard enough to nearly
break them. When the doors finally opened, he ran for the exit, kicking the
metal and glass doors of the business open. The run helped to prevent
hyperventilating, and he kept up his pace, wanting and needing to be back to
his little love nest.
Just as he was about to burst in through the door, he remembered that it was
late and Kagome had gone to bed as she always did at this time. Quietly, not
wanting to disturb her rest, he opened the door and tiptoed over to where she
was laying, her brow furrowed worriedly even in her sleep, tear tracks that
looked fresh marring her pretty features. Just seeing her was a balm to his
heart, and he crawled in beside her, turning her on the side and holding her
close in a spooning position.
"Inuyasha?" she murmured sleepily.
"Hey," he said quietly, his voice jarring him back into a panicked state when
he noticed it sounded weak, very much unlike his natural one.
"It's late," she whispered, trying to turn around and face him. Inuyasha held
her tighter, not wanting her to see his face. He knew he'd break and tell her
everything, and she couldn't handle hearing everything. He didn't think he
could handle telling her, either. "Where were you?"
The dreaded question. "I, uh, had a meeting…"
"Who with?" she asked, some of the sleepiness gone from her voice.
He had known he wouldn't be able to get away with not telling her. "My
brother," he said, coughing when his throat began to close off just by uttering
the words.
"Your brother? I thought you didn't talk to anyone in your family."
"I didn't. But I went to see him and he gave me a steady job," he replied.
"Really?!" she squealed, again trying to turn around. "I'm so happy for you!
That's wonderful, Inuyasha."
"Yeah."
"We should celebrate," she said slyly.
Inuyasha's heart beat with stress, thinking she'd want to go out and party with
Sesshomaru or something, but then she rubbed her bottom across his crotch and
he understood what she was hinting at. They hadn't had full-on sex since her
miscarriage scare, with him being worried about hurting her and her depression
from school and life in general getting in the way. But now that one of their
big problems (that she knew about) had been taken care of, it seemed like a
good time to her. And normally Inuyasha would have been 110% on board, but his
ass still hurt and he could still feel Sesshomaru's slimy tongue in his mouth
like one big, fat, dead worm. But could he reject Kagome? To his paranoid mind,
that act would lead to her immediately connecting the dots and leaving him, and
that couldn't happen. She was all he had. She was all he wanted. And he didwant
her. He just had to stop being so fucking stupid and get out of his stupid
funk.
With trembling hands and a greater trembling inside, Inuyasha dragged his hand
from where it was resting on her lower stomach and cupped a breast, massaging
it, rubbing her newly super sensitive nipple with his palm. When she began to
moan, he moved his hand to her thigh, lifting it up and over his own. With a
few deft movements, he freed his cock from his jeans and pushed the crotch of
Kagome's panties to the side. Soon they were moving together, Kagome not as
gracefully as she used to, still adjusting to her new size and shape. He didn't
mind. It sounded terrible, but he just wanted to get it all over with.
Frantically moving his fingers back and forth across her clit, he humped away
at her, his face in her hair, nose nuzzling her neck. Inuyasha wanted to be
close to her, but any kind of sexual activity would have to wait until he
recovered himself.
When Kagome came with several beautiful cries of his name, he almost sighed in
relief, his own orgasm following soon after, a small one more in reaction to
the physical stimulation than any lust or erotic feelings. Again, he tightened
his arms around her, hoping she would just go back to sleep.
"Is there something wrong?" she asked quietly a few minutes later, her voice
soft and kind and not at all judgmental.
Of course she noticed something was wrong, him not wanting to face her being
the biggest giveaway. But besides that, she was his heart and soul and would
have noticed anyway. Inuyasha wanted to tell her everything, nearly did, but
then remembered what Sesshomaru was capable of. Kagome would probably hold him
as he cried in her lap and urge him to run away, far away. They'd live on the
run for a while, however long Sesshomaru allowed them to, and then just as he
would begin to let go of his paranoia and become comfortable, Kagome would be
killed in a horrific way and he'd be taken back and kept away from all sharp
objects, declawed and sedated, for a minimum of ten years.
"I just wanted to tell you," he said shakily, his words running together, "that
you're the prettiest girl I've ever known and the n-nicest and I love you."
Kagome laughed, as he knew she would, and turned so swiftly he wasn't able to
prevent it in time. "I know," she murmured, "and you can tell me what's bugging
you later. I love you, Inuyasha." She kissed his chin, and then his nose, and
then his lips in quick succession, the movements showing him her own adoration.
It was love expressed and transmitted through touch, the purest and sweetest
he'd ever known.
Immediately, all feelings of despair left him and no residual phantom feelings
of the other kiss were left on his skin. Still, once she snuggled into his
chest and fell sound asleep, he wept into the black waves of her hair,
struggling to remain silent and still so that his sorrow wouldn't even make its
way into her dreams.
***** Settle Down *****
Chapter Notes
     Note: Is anyone like a master at summary writing? Because it has been
     brought to my attention numerous times by numerous people that my
     summary writing skills are below average and I have a few stories
     that need above average summaries, both one-shots and multi-chapter.
     Please? You get sneak peeeeeeks…
     I almost never develop a summary until it's time to post my story,
     and then I kinda just panic and smash the keyboard, so anyone who can
     do better than that is A-okay in my book.
Eight: Settle Down
Inuyasha walked up the steep stairs, wondering exactly why he was back here.
Sighing to himself, he took the steps three at a time, fast enough to make
himself stop fidgeting but slow enough to give him time to think. If it weren't
for Kagome's rapidly accelerating pregnancy he wouldn't be here at all, but
there was just something he had to do. Sighing, he eyed the red torii gates he
had painted just a few months ago, remembering how he had been perched on them
the first time he had admired Kagome's body. A part of him wished to go back to
those times. They were simpler, although he had struggled with what he had
thought to be an unrequited love towards and bizarre fascination with a bratty
teenage girl. Now, however, he had come almost full circle to where he had been
before he'd run away from home. It turned out, not at all surprisingly, that
Sesshomaru had confused "secretary" with "sex slave and punching bag". Even so,
he was willing to suffer through all that if Kagome could be happy and well
fed. Now they even had health insurance and Kagome went to the doctor's
regularly, the demonic pregnancy taking a toll on her human body.
He'd be sure to mention her daughter's health to Mrs. Higurashi in order to
awaken her maternal feelings. A little sympathy certainly wouldn't hurt his
cause. What he had come for was of the utmost importance, and if he didn't
leave with her agreement today, he didn't know what he'd do.
Inhaling deeply before exhaling, Inuyasha knocked on the old screen door, the
frame still slightly dented from where Kagome had kicked it open the first day
he saw her. He had never gotten around to fixing that, preferring to work
outside more since it was where Kagome had spent most of her time. He heard the
shuffling of slipper-encased feet making their way to the door, picturing the
ratty old gray things Mrs. Higurashi nearly always had on. When she was in
sight, he stiffened. She was the one who had all the power here. Things could
either go his way, or they could go terribly wrong. When she finally saw who
was at her door, her mouth dropped open slightly in shock and her eyes scanned
his frame, noticing the fine suit he wore instead of the dirty jeans and t-
shirts she had been accustomed to seeing him in. Inuyasha drew himself up
taller, subconsciously copying Sesshomaru, wanting to appear powerful.
"What do you want?" she asked suspiciously, her tone not in the least bit
hospitable. She left the screen door closed.
"Just to talk," he said soothingly, trying to remind himself of how he'd
wronged her in order to keep from becoming angry.
"I don't have anything to say to you or to her," she scowled, turning to leave.
"Kagome's sick," he burst out. She stopped in her tracks and turned, but the
look on her face was strange. Like she thought some almighty power had taken
her side and was punishing her enemies. He continued, stumbling over his words,
"Carrying a demonic baby isn't easy, and it's especially hard on her since she
didn't have any help during the beginning of her pregnancy." He left out the
part that he'd been too poor and too ignorant to care for her properly. He
hadn't even given a thought to what they were going to do when she went into
labor. He supposed some part of him had just thought he'd be the one to deliver
the baby, even though he hadn't any idea how.
"And what am I supposed to do about that?" she said, looking bored and very
much unlike the woman he had known. Inuyasha stared at her, studying the
changes. She had let her gray hair grow out, the texture frizzy compared to the
rest of her smooth, dyed black waves. Mrs. Higurashi wore no make-up and looked
to be at least ten years older. It gave him a strange feeling, like he had when
younger and all his childhood playmates had continued to mature and get married
and get real jobs and he had just stayed in the same eighteen-year-old body
with the same eighteen-year-old lifestyle. This time, however, it had only been
months instead of years.
Shaking his head, he pulled a folded paper from his suit pocket. "You can sign
this," he said, holding it up so she'd see. Her face went gray and her lips
twitched angrily. "I want to marry Kagome," he explained unnecessarily. "She's
still too young, so we need your permission." When she just continued to stare
at the document, he continued, "I'm willing to pay. Name your price."
The twitching of her lip became quicker and quicker, and Inuyasha couldn't help
but stare at it. After a few incredibly uncomfortable seconds, she began to
laugh, more of a snorting and barking thing than that practiced tinkling of
bells he had heard before. It went on long enough that he contemplated leaving,
but came to a stop just as he was about to back up and get the hell away.
"No!" she yelled, her face twisted in rage. "No! You stole my daughter from me,
ruined me, ruined her, and you want my permission to keep her? You can both
burn in hell for all I care!"
Inuyasha growled. It was one thing to be angry at him, but to say that about
Kagome? If Mrs. Higurashi had been a mister, he would have punched her square
in the nose.
"If you were any kind of decent fucking parent," he began, letting loose only
some of his internal rage, "you would have banned Kagome from seeing me and
shut her up in that house until she forgot my face. But you just handed her
over like she was a leftover dish of food you didn't like. How do you think she
feels about that?!" he roared. Too often he had been awoken by the sound of
Kagome weeping, tearing him apart with guilt, but she always dried her tears
for his sake and assured him she only felt bad about her mother's reaction, not
that she regretted anything with him or that she held their relationship
against him.
"Goodbye, Inuyasha," Mrs. Higurashi said calmly, shuffling back to whatever it
was she had been doing before he'd arrived.
Choking on his failure, Inuyasha clenched his fists until his claws pierced his
flesh and the blood stained the paper he still held. He had known from the very
beginning that it was a lost cause, but he had wanted to surprise Kagome. He
had been working for Sesshomaru for a month now and had more than enough money
for their little family. Inuyasha hadn't yet formally proposed to her, but he
wanted to make sure they could actually get married before he did so. The ring
had been picked out and purchased since the day after he'd gotten the new job
and the venue was chosen and everything planned. The only thing missing was the
bride, or, more accurately, the mother of the bride's consent to let her young
daughter marry. He knew Kagome well enough to feel confident she'd say yes even
though everything in their life screamed at her to say no. The girl never had
developed any common sense.
They were alike that way, as in many others.
Sighing, Inuyasha retreated. He was a proud man, and dragging himself to face a
woman he'd wronged had made him feel physically ill. He'd told himself he'd
cared for her, but when it really came down to it, she was just a good fuck and
a meal ticket. For fuck's sake, he hadn't ever even asked her what her first
name was!
There was only one option left that he could think of, but that was even less
desirable than what he had just tried. Still, he wanted this. He wanted Kagome.
Never again would she be called a slut by the stupid kids at her school. A
married woman couldn't be a slut, not in his mind. She would be Mrs. Taisho and
their child would have his name as well, the name he'd thought he'd abandoned
years ago. It was one of the only things he could give her now, so he would.
Nearly flying down the steps in his urgency to get his business taken care of,
Inuyasha thought about how nice it would be to have a wife. Never before had he
even considered that he could be a family man or a salary man, but now he was.
She had given that to him. If he overlooked the bad stuff, life was going
smoothly and trending upwards. Kagome would say yes, they'd have sex, he'd give
her money for a dress and invitations and let her do all that since women
seemed to like those sorts of things. And then they'd get married and that was
where it all ended in his mind. Thinking about the pregnancy still made him
sweat.
The large office building where he spent all his daylight hours was finally in
sight. The guards knew him well enough now to open the doors without being
prompted, smiling at him and waving him in, groveling before him as much as
they did with his brother. Inuyasha's lips curled in disgust and he reflexively
attempted to cover up with a smile that was more a baring of teeth than
anything else. Gesturing for them to leave, he entered the elevator, detesting
seeing his reflection in its mirrored walls. Impatiently, he jabbed the button
for the top with his finger, fitting his claw into the keyhole for the top
floor and wiggling it just so. Sesshomaru had given him a key, but he preferred
not to use it. Something like that just made things feel too intimate.
Barging in through the heavy doors, long having overcome his fear (or just
stuffed it so far inside that it couldn't bother him anymore), Inuyasha barked
out, "I need a fuckin' favor!"
His brother sat at his desk, calmly drinking some sort of expensive tea and
going through his emails on his tablet. Placing his delicate little porcelain
cup down, he nodded and said, "After you say hello properly."
Inuyasha grimaced as Sesshomaru began to unzip his pants and change. Some
disconnected part of himself laughed internally at seeing a giant white dog
sitting all prim and proper in a seat much too small for it. He wasn't at his
full size, and the suit he was wearing had disappeared. He still didn't know
what happened to the clothes, never having had the courage to ask over the
years. Did he really need to unzip his pants? Would something get stuck if he
didn't? The longer he thought about it, the less he cared. Silently, he dropped
to his knees, parting the thick white fur to reveal the blister-red penis that
was, appropriately, shaped like a canine's. Taking care not to let his
expression reveal how much he hated this, as that would only heighten the
demon's pleasure, Inuyasha started with small licks, covering the rod before
taking it completely in his mouth, wishing his sense of smell wasn't quite so
good. Sesshomaru liked it when Inuyasha got rough and used his fangs, although
he had to be very precise with the amount of pressure or he'd wind up with a
jaw broken by the disgustingly giant cock once again. He really wouldn't know
how to explain something like that to Kagome.
Kagome.
Growling, he quickened his pace. He'd already left the office for the day and
had no desire to be back in the hated place. If it weren't for such an earnest
reason, he wouldn't have even dreamed of coming back. But there was no way he
was going to let Kagome be justhis girlfriend or his mistress or his baby mama
or his common law whatever. She was special to him, and her status would
reflect that soon enough. Finally, Sesshomaru released in his mouth, and
Inuyasha almost blessed the salty, bitter mixture that slid down his throat
since it meant that soon he'd be getting his way.
Immediately, the demon began to change back into his humanoid form, not the
least bit out of breath or anything less than perfectly composed. Inuyasha
waited until the zipper on his suit pants was pulled up before clearing his
throat and serving himself a glass from a pitcher of water without the other
man's permission, a small act of defiance.
"I need to get married, but her mother won't give consent," he muttered.
Sesshomaru sighed. "You do know she needs to be at least sixteen, right? Even
with parental permission."
"I know that!" he scowled. "I wanted to do it on her birthday."
"I fail to understand the fascination you and Father have with mortals," the
older demon said with a quick roll of his eyes.
"So can you do it or not?" Inuyasha asked in aggravation. He didn't like giving
head for nothing.
"Of course I can, you idiot." Inuyasha's shoulders sagged in relief. "But you
have to work for it."
"What do I have to do?" he said in a tone that revealed he'd do anything. He
just hoped it wasn't another one of those gross orgies Sesshomaru used to be so
fond of before.
Sesshomaru leaned back in his chair and looked at him from narrowed eyes. "You
remember Jaken, correct?"
Inuyasha nodded. The toad demon was one of the most annoying creatures he'd
ever encountered. He'd had the misfortune of growing up listening to his
stories of how great Sesshomaru was, which he felt contributed in no small part
to the fear that had caused him to stay in that abusive home for as long as he
did. Even now, a ball of hatred formed in his gut just from hearing that name.
"I ain't fucking that freak," he growled, glaring at his brother.
The corners of Sesshomaru's mouth turned up just a bit. "That is not what I had
in mind. My former retainer has become something of a nuisance lately. Starting
a family made him somewhat hesitant when following my orders, and I cannot
allow that," he said calmly, a touch of warning in his voice. "He has carried
out his last service to me and now I fear it is time I terminate him."
Inuyasha smiled so wide his fangs showed. "So all I've gotta do is waste that
green moron and I get to marry Kagome?"
He nodded. "Him and those he chose as family. Leave no one alive and bring back
that staff as well. The documents will be given to you upon your return. I'd
prefer for this to be finished this very evening."
The idea of having to kill innocents briefly made his stomach turn, but then
again, this was Jaken. Who in their right mind would settle down with that
psycho? The ring box felt heavy in his pocket and Inuyasha longed to take it
out and present it to Kagome, to prove to her she hadn't made a terrible choice
in being with him. This was the only opportunity he had left to make her his
officially before her pregnancy ran its course.
"I'll be back in an hour," he said with a nod. That would be more than enough
time.
"I'll make some calls. Jaken resides at this address," Sesshomaru said, handing
him a small piece of folded paper. "Don't mess this up."
Inuyasha took off out of the room and down the hall, wishing he could claw his
way down the elevator shaft instead of waiting for the damn thing to move. Why
was everything so goddamn slowall of a sudden?! Unfolding the paper as he
walking out of the building, he saw that he recognized the street, having
worked several houses in that area over the years. It was a nice area, nicer
than scum like Jaken deserved. Mostly upper middle class homes that were
spacious with big yards, not quite cookie cutter but still horribly suburban.
Cracking his knuckles, he took to the rooftops, suspending his prematurely
triumphant grin for the time being so as not to catch any bugs.
The sun had just set and there were lights within the home. Inuyasha crept
towards the place without fear of being heard, seen, or smelled. Jaken was weak
even among his own kind and likely had not improved since they'd last met. Not
able to spy anything through the window from his current vantage point,
Inuyasha decided to just get the whole thing over with and went to the front
door, sliding in his claw and feeling around until he heard the right series of
clicks and pushed the door open. There was laughter from upstairs, the
artificial kind. Some sitcom had been left playing on a television. Not even
bothering to muffle the sound of his footsteps, Inuyasha casually walked up the
stairs and made a right, entering what he assumed was the master bedroom. A
female toad demon, distinguishable from Jaken only by her scent and choice of
clothing, had been dozing on a king-sized bed but was now waking up.
Before it could open its beak to scream, Inuyasha had severed the head from the
stubby body, shaking the green, gooey blood off his hands in disgust. There was
the sound of someone pissing in the bathroom adjoined to the room and Inuyasha,
impatient as always, kicked down the door. His eyes were met by the unpleasant
sight of Jaken pulling up his pants in a panic but continuing to urinate,
visibly wetting himself. Not breathing through his nose, Inuyasha raised his
hands to strike.
"Sesshomaru-sama!" Jaken shrieked, terrified. "Save your servant, O Great
Sesshomaru-sama!"
Inuyasha smirked. "Who do you think sent me?"
The shocked, betrayed look on Jaken's face made him grin, and he decapitated
him in the same fashion he had decapitated his mate. Going to the sink, he
washed his hands, using nearly the entire bottle of liquid lavender-scented
hand soap. The thick, green, mucus-like blood was stuck underneath his claws
and made them itch to get clean. When he was done, he walked out of the
bathroom and to the television, turning off the device and ending the stupid
goddamn laugh track once and for all. The Staff of Two Heads was leaning
against the door of the closet and he grabbed it quickly. Still not breathing
through his nose, he made his way back to the stairs, intending to make a hasty
retreat and be back at the office before the 45-minute mark.
He was halfway down when he heard the baby crying.
At first, he just thought maybe another television was on, or a radio, or
something. But he knew he wasn't that lucky. Never had been and never would be.
Reluctantly, he went back up the stairs, into the small room to the left of the
master bedroom, the one he had previously ignored. Gently, he turned the
doorknob, his eyes immediately assaulted by bright blue and yellow decorations.
A boy. Kagome was sure their baby would be a boy, too. Crossing the small room
in just a few steps, he looked into the wooden crib, looming over it. The baby
was young enough to still be cute, although he didn't think of it that way. It
was green, like its parents, and had giant eyes and a very round face. Had
Kagome been there, she would have cooed and picked it up, talking to it in a
nonsense voice. She did that sort of thing with all babies nowadays, talking to
the women in their building and asking questions, caressing the face of each
child as though it was her own. Maybe he could keep it? Give it to Kagome as
some sort of gift? Maybe even a pet? But no, Sesshomaru had said to leave no
one alive.
And the crying was starting to piss him off, anyway.
Silently, he debated how he was going to end it. The other two deaths had been
quick, maybe even painless for them. But he had no desire to get that
disgusting ooze under his claws again. Add to that he wasn't sure he could go
through with it if he had to rend the child's flesh. And the damn thing just
kept crying! He hoped the kid Kagome had would be quieter. Suddenly, an idea
came to him, one that solved both his problems. Lifting up the little pillow
from behind the baby's head, he swiftly brought it down on its face, holding it
in place and trying to pretend it was nothing.
An old memory came back to him. When he had been just a child, too young to go
to school, his mother had given him a kitten for his birthday, putting a bow
around its neck and everything. He had been delighted with the cat, giving it
the name Nekoyasha and taking it everywhere with him. There had still been
genuine happiness in his life back then, as it was before Sesshomaru had
started that specific soul-crushing sort of abuse he had remained so very fond
of through the years.
One morning, he couldn't find Nekoyasha anywhere and searched the entire house,
which took hours for one so young. Only when he couldn't find his beloved pet
in any of the other rooms did he check Sesshomaru's room. Sesshomaru was
already fully grown and had been for longer than Inuyasha had been alive, but
still stayed with his father in order to be properly trained as heir. Inuyasha
didn't understand that at the time. All he knew was he didn't like Sesshomaru
and didn't want to go into his room. But he did, overcoming his fear for
Nekoyasha.
Sesshomaru had the cat in his lap and was petting it. Inuyasha immediately
became angry, not liking that something he loved would be so comfortable with
another.
"That's my cat!" he shouted, stomping his foot. He was on the verge of calling
his mother, but suddenly they were in the bathroom, and Sesshomaru had him by
the scruff of the neck.
"Cats and dogs aren't supposed to be friends," he explained in an almost kindly
fashion. The coldness seeped through, though. "Prove you are your father's son
and end this farce."
Not knowing what he meant, Inuyasha just gaped at the sight of his little
Nekoyasha in the sink, meowing at him as though asking what was going on.
Letting go of his neck and putting his hands over Inuyasha's as though teaching
him to write, Sesshomaru brought them to the kitten and enveloped both hands
around its neck. Inuyasha struggled, but his grip was impossible to escape.
Nekoyasha did the same, weakly clawing not at its master but at his brother.
Tears fell down his face and he sobbed, screaming for his mother, who never
came. In the moment, he had forgotten that she was outside gardening and that
humans didn't have such good hearing. When it was finally over and both victims
had stopped struggling, Sesshomaru stepped back and wiped his hands on the back
of Inuyasha's tiny red polo shirt.
"Keep your things out of my room," he said sternly.
Inuyasha ran. When his mother came back, he crashed right into her arms and
started crying, but said nothing of what had made him cry, too afraid of
Sesshomaru, knowing he could hurt him and his mother without a care or any
effort. Worried, quickly becoming frantic, she asked what was wrong, but
Inuyasha just shook his head and sobbed Nekoyasha's name. His mother assumed
the cat had run away and later offered to buy him another, but he refused.
Feeling numb, present day Inuyasha removed his hands from the still child. It
had stopped moving several minutes ago.
He left the house as it was and fled the scene, knowing Sesshomaru would take
care of it. He had people for that sort of thing. If anyone had managed to see
him, that would be taken care of as well. The most it would ever amount to was
maybe a blog post on some looney conspiracy blog. That was all that ever
happened.
Before he even really realized it, he was back at the office and in front of
Sesshomaru's door, which opened before he could get to it. His brother was
standing there, an impatient and withdrawn look on his face. Inuyasha had known
he hadn't gone over the hour limit he'd imposed on himself, so that look must
have been concerning another matter. Disgusted by the feeling of the staff in
his hands, he flung it past his brother and onto the leather sofa. The taller
man flipped a piece of paper towards him with the name of a judge and turned
around, dismissing him.
"Is this it?" Inuyasha asked, bending over to pick the paper off the ground. It
seemed like such a small issue now. And he had done so much.
Sesshomaru nodded. "Go and inform your woman of the wedding date, which I will
not be attending, by the way. And do not bother me. I am going to enjoy Jaken's
final gift," he said, his voice becoming soft but still retaining its cold,
steely quality.
Inuyasha nodded, trying to ignore the inquisitive voice of a female child that
he heard coming from somewhere in Sesshomaru's office. Why even bother poking
his nose where it didn't belong now? At this point, he was far too involved to
ever be a whistleblower, even if he really wanted to be. Shaking his head, he
stuffed the paper in his pocket and continued onward, thoughts centered on
Kagome now. He had to get her out of the shitty apartment and take her
somewhere nice. First he'd take her shopping again and buy her some nice
dresses, telling her to wear one out of the store, where they'd stroll on over
to the best restaurant in the area. There, he'd pull out the ring and tell her
how precious she was to him and ask her to be his formally. With how wrong
everything had already gone this evening, he knew there was nowhere to go but
up.
A sigh leaving his lips, he trudged up the stairs littered with garbage and
empty fast food bags and unsupervised children, wishing he had a working window
to enter through. That way he could jump in and avoid all the horrific smells
and sounds he always experienced on the way up or down. Unfortunately, their
one window was just a solid piece of glass with no way to move it at all. The
frame was loose and let in water, creating a weird warped look on the paint.
When it was windy, it made a howling sound that brought wolves to mind, always
making him on edge. The sooner he could get Kagome out of this place, the
better.
Immediately when he entered his apartment, he knew things were going to get
difficult. The scent of tears filled the small space. Not the sad kind that
made him feel helpless, not the happy kind that made him feel soft inside, but
the angry kid that made him want to run for the hills. Kagome had been
experiencing more mood swings lately. The last one was just two days ago, when
she had tried to tie her shoes and got frustrated realizing she couldn't bend
over in a comfortable fashion. Inuyasha had spent maybe four hours in total
telling her she wasn't fat and he still thought she was pretty, and no, he
wouldn't leave her for some random anorexic bitch whore slut at the office.
"Kagome?" he murmured, wishing he had some kind of cutesy nickname for her,
thinking that might calm her down.
"Did you bring me a McFlurry?" she asked in a trembling voice, nothing but a
little lump in his sleeping bag. He had wanted to buy a bed, but thought it
more prudent to save up for a place first.
"What?" he asked, confused.
Kagome threw the sleeping bag open and sat up, her face screwed up in anger. "I
asked you for a McFlurry," she said, almost sounding calm. The clenched jaw
kind of gave her away, though.
"No you didn't," he retorted. "I would have gotten it if you had."
"I asked you this morning when I was tying your tie," she said, eyes blazing
with a fury previously only seen in attacking soldiers.
He rolled his eyes. "No, you just told me to have a good day. It's probably a
good thing I didn't get it, anyway. You've been having too many of those
lately."
It was only when her eye began to twitch that he knew he'd said something
horribly wrong.
"So now I'm fat anda liar?!" she shrieked, more tears running down her face.
His mouth fell open in his terror. "N-no, I never said that!"
"Why do you hate me?!" she sobbed, covering her face. "I told you I thought
swallowing was weird now since the baby gets all its nourishment from me, but
if you really—"
Inuyasha tuned her out, somewhat embarrassed that his neighbors could hear
through the painfully thin walls. If he let Kagome go off on a tangent like
this, she could go at it for hours until she forgot what she was talking about.
How could he best defuse the situation?
"I did get you something…" he said softly, fumbling around in his pocket. This
certainly wasn't the way he had envisioned doing things, but if it would
prevent another fight, then he'd make the sacrifice, especially if it
distracted her from murdering him in her hormonal rage. "Here." He knelt before
her and placed the ring container on her lap.
Kagome removed her hands from her face and looked at the little black velvet
box. "This isn't a McFlurry."
"Open it up," he urged, his heart pounding in his ears.
Glaring at him, Kagome did so, gasping when she saw the platinum ring with the
big diamond surrounded by a cluster of sapphires and smaller diamonds. "Oh…"
"The sapphires reminded me of your eyes," he said shyly, feeling a bit less
than his idea of masculine. "So… what do you say?"
"What do I say?" she repeated blankly.
"Yeah," he said, nodding. "Yes or, uh, yeah."
Her big blue eyes raised to his, made brighter by her tears. Hypnotized by
their beauty, her beauty, he leaned in to kiss her, only to reel back when he
felt something hit his nose.
"No!" Kagome yelled.
"W-what?" he breathed, rubbing his nose and staring at the box on the floor
between them. Kagome still held the ring clutched in her fist, which seemed to
be shaking with the urge to sock him. Growing angry as well, he yelled back,
"What the fuck do you mean 'no'?!" He had thought this would be the one easy
thing of the day. He had thought she was the one reliable person in his life.
"How much do you even know about me, Inuyasha?" she asked, her voice still
angry but not enraged. He adjusted his mood accordingly without realizing it.
"How well do you know me?"
Such an obviously ridiculous question made him snort. "I know you well enough.
More than well enough," he said in a low voice, eyeing the swell of her
stomach.
"Oh yeah?" she returned, narrowing her eyes. "Then what do I want to do with my
life?" When he just continued to stare at her without comprehension, she said,
"What does Kagome want to be when she grows up?"
He got what she was doing. He reminded her she hadn't gotten pregnant by
herself and she reminded him she was still underage. Hardy-har-har.
Bitch.
"I kinda just thought you would stay at home after high school," he answered
honestly.
Again, his nose was a victim, this time to one of her shoes that had been lying
so conveniently next to her.
"I want to be an architect!" she screamed. "I've wanted to be an architect
since I was five—years—old!"
"I don't need to know everything about you to know that I love you!" he
retorted lamely.
Kagome's eyes softened and she sighed. "I have nothing against stay-at-home
moms, and I'd like to be one until the baby starts school," she explained,
taking one of his hands in both of hers. "But I feel that to not do anything
with my dreams, with my talent, that would be terrible. That would be a sin."
Inuyasha grunted in acknowledgement. Bringing her hands to his mouth, he laid a
small kiss on them, letting it linger. "I won't stop you from doing what you
want to do if you won't stop yourself from doing what I want to do."
And with that, he slipped the ring he had stolen from her lap onto the
appropriate finger.
"Thank you," she whispered, her eyes shining with the happy tears he liked.
When she kissed him on the lips and crawled onto his lap, he knew she was going
to give him something else he liked quite a bit as well.
O/\o/\O
It was Kagome's sixteenth birthday. Sweet sixteen. Inuyasha looked at the girl,
now a woman, his woman, across from him. They were beaming at each other, her
in the poofy white dress he thought was ridiculous but wisely kept his comments
to himself. She had insisted on a flower crown and a flower cape in lieu of a
veil and train, and he of course agreed and ordered them post haste. The cape
was woven out of the tiniest white flowers, a reminder from him to her of the
first flower he'd given her. Her crown was of pink roses. She was beautiful,
and she even made her dress beautiful. The abundance of flowers complemented
her instead of making her look childishly absurd. Well, there was also the fact
of her bulging, pregnant stomach that prevented her from looking like a child.
The few friends Kagome had left were in attendance, and that was it. Those
three girls and Hojo, the latter of whom was doing a terrible job of covering
up his tears. It made Inuyasha's smile brighter and tinged with triumph. He
hadn't invited anyone from work, since he didn't know anybody, and he wouldn't
have invited them even if he did. Belatedly, the thought occurred to him that
Miroku and his wife Sango would have maybe liked to come, but it was too late
for that. He had paid his debt to them already with interest, thanks to his new
job. Since neither he nor Kagome had any family that could come due to a slew
of reasons, that left the wedding party small and rather sad-looking. But none
of it mattered when the judge spoke the words and he kissed her, kissed her for
the first time in the new chapter of their lives.
There were no candles on her birthday cake, just a little plastic bride and
groom that looked nothing like either of them, but she had plenty of presents.
Inuyasha growled. There was no doubt which guest they were all from. Kagome
cried a little and hugged Hojo as tight as she could without squishing her
child's temporary home, and Hojo hung onto her like she was a piece of
driftwood in a hostile ocean. The neglected groom scowled at the boy's choice
of wrapping. All of them decorated with "Happy Birthday" and
"Congratulations!". None explicitly wedding-themed. Like he was completely
ignoring the occasion and Kagome's new off-the-market status.
His oblivious wife tore into the presents with undisguised glee, face lit up.
She had never acted this way when receiving gifts from the kid before. Inuyasha
made a mental note to get her things. She seemed to like things. At least he'd
know what to get her. All of Hojo's gifts were thoughtful, he had to admit,
Eastern medicine-type things intended to ease the discomfort from her
pregnancy. It was more than he himself had done. Suddenly feeling even more
territorial than he already was, Inuyasha sauntered over to Kagome, disrupting
the perfect circle of friends gathered around her, giggling over the cute
little baby clothes they had given her.
"It's a wedding, not a baby shower," he grumbled angrily. Why were they even
there?
The kids glared at him, but not Kagome. Like she hadn't even heard him, she
laughed and dragged him over to the cake he was beginning to realize was much
too large for the size of their party. It towered tall above Kagome, ten tiers
of pure white frosting, a different flavor of cake with every layer. He had
threaten to sue the bakery in order to get them to make the cake on time.
Normally, obtaining the cake would have been something he'd leave to Kagome,
but even the mere mention of food sometimes made her cry and throw up, so he'd
taken it upon himself. It wasn't his fault he kind of forgot the cake detail
until two days ago. There were a freaking bakery, they should bake! Everything
else he had organized as well, since Kagome's pregnancy was becoming very hard
on her. A few times, he wondered if he should have waited, if maybe he had been
too eager. They certainly would have had a better party. But he wanted her tied
to him now. Before she figured out what he was.
The room he had rented for their hurried wedding/reception was nice, but not as
nice as he had envisioned. The place was surrounded by cherry blossom trees,
which were not yet in bloom, and the inside was somewhat chilly. The furniture
was dusty and made him sneeze, but the quality was good.
Kagome walked over to where he was musing by the green velvet fainting couch
and slapped him in the face with cake, laughing with her friends at the shocked
look on his face. He didn't enjoy humiliation, and the laughter made him cringe
and start to heat up with anger, but Kagome carefully grabbed his clenched
fists, threading their fingers together, and kissed the mess off his face. By
the time she was done, they were both smiling, his near-eruption nothing but a
vague memory. He was even feeling good enough to tolerate Kagome's friends.
After all, he had fought for her and won. She was his.
When the chatter began to die down and Hojo had finished eating half the cake
to try and fill the eternal void left by Kagome's rejection, Inuyasha told
Kagome to say her goodbyes, not bothering to say anything to her friends beyond
the occasional grunt. He had no interest in these people, and had Kagome
finished high school without incident and gone off to college, she wouldn't
either. Human friendships were like that. He had won their approval in the end,
but only with money. Money was power with humans.
After he had forcibly separated a whining Hojo from Kagome, he ordered the
building's attendants to box up the cake and send it to their address. He had
no idea where he was going to put it. Taking Kagome's hand, he brought her to
his new car, glad he had not had a meal for everyone since that would have
taken hours more and he was bursting to show her his surprise. Stopping
suddenly before reaching the car, Inuyasha wondered in frozen horror if he
should have gotten a limousine. That was standard, was it not? But Kagome just
brushed past him and went to the passenger seat, sitting down and immediately
putting her feet up, rubbing her perpetually swollen ankles. Shaking his head,
he followed. She hadn't even allowed him to show off his gentleman skills and
open the door for her.
"My feet are so tired!" she whined, kicking off her shoes.
"Told you not to wear heels," Inuyasha scolded, leaning over to give her toes a
quick kiss despite their rather ripe scent.
Kagome laughed. "I can't wait to get back home. Ugh, I don't think I can ever
have cake again." Her hands went to her stomach and rubbed, as though she was
full of cake instead of a baby.
Inuyasha gave her a fond pat on the head, feeling a little emotionally drained.
Being around people always did that to him. "We'll be there soon."
She nodded and grabbed his hand, holding it contentedly in both of hers. After
a few twists and turns, he got onto the freeway, and it wasn't long before she
asked, "Where are we going? We passed the exit for home."
He grinned. "I've got one last gift for you."
Pulling into the now familiar driveway, the house no longer seemed as boring as
it once did now that Kagome would be living there with him. Unable to stop
smiling, he got out of the car and opened Kagome's door, taking her by the hand
and then bringing her into his arms, first to hold and then to carry. She was
smiling back at him, a questioning look on her face. Going to the front door,
he shoved it open, somehow maneuvering the handle with his elbow. The inside
was all lit, everything was decorated with new furniture, and it had all been
professionally cleaned twice, leaving it smelling like cinnamon. Fresh flowers
were on the living room table and he placed Kagome down in the overstuffed blue
arm chair.
"Welcome home, Kagome."
Kagome laughed, her eyes going brighter and wider than ever. With a small
shriek, she jumped up and down before throwing her arms around him, momentarily
forgetting about his sensitive ears. He didn't mind, though, and he held her
tightly, just feeling the solid realness of her in his arms. Yes, he had done
the right thing. Nothing was wrong if he did it for the good of this girl. He
tried not to think about the stains in the master bathroom and bedroom, the
ones that hadn't come out no matter how many times the cleaning crew had
scrubbed. The floors had been replaced with nicer things. The nursery had been
aired out and redone. Inuyasha was not a superstitious man.
"We'll have our honeymoon as soon as the baby is born," Inuyasha promised. He
was sorry he was not able to give her everything in the right order, but vowed
to make it up to her a thousand times over.
She laughed, her blue eyes sparkling. "I don't need one of those! Thank you for
the best wedding present in the world!" Kagome gushed, the joy in her eyes
rekindling some of the enthusiasm that he'd lost during his brief private
recollection.
Smiling back at her, he replied, "You've already given me the greatest gift of
all."
Tears filled Kagome's eyes and he wondered if the generic line had hurt her
feelings. "Oh, I just know this baby will be the greatest thing for us. It's
good to know you feel the same way."
Coughing nervously, he only nodded, grabbing her by the hand, not bothering to
correct her on her thoughts. He had been referring to her, but if she wanted to
think it was about the baby, then okay, he wouldn't fight it. They had to make
their room their own, and he wanted her so badly he felt he'd burst. Work had
been taking its toll on their relationship, and while Kagome was almost always
in the mood, some side effect of the pregnancy, she told him, he was not always
there to satisfy her. No, she never sought out the company of another, but he
still always worried she would, even though he trusted her and didn't really
think she'd do that to him. When he was away from her, he was constantly put in
sexual situations, but he took pleasure from none of it. Only with her. She
didn't know that, and he would never tell her, but tonight he'd make her feel
it.
The room was done up in a way he found sort of predictable, but he couldn't
think of anything better on his own, and he wanted to do everything himself for
her. Candles were flickering, rose petals were strewn, and a remote
conveniently produced from his suit pocket had some violin music he'd always
thought of as sensual filling the air. The clean scent of her hair was enticing
him, and he leaned in, kissing her brow. His clothes were easier to take off,
so they were the first to go. The flower cape was done away with by a flick of
his claws, the little buds just beginning to wilt. Her flower crown followed.
He just wanted her tonight, pure her. The dress was a little harder to get rid
of, but that soon was on the floor as well, Kagome's half-hearted protests
silenced effectively with just a touch of his lips. It wasn't like she'd ever
wear the things again.
Kagome was as passionate as he was, showing him how much she'd missed being
together. Her kisses were hot, wet, and urgent, and he responded in kind,
letting her set the pace. It ended up being near frantic, much to his surprise
and smug delight. With a moan, she dragged him onto the bed and he fell with
her, staying away from her stomach, not wanting to crush her. The bra she wore
was a white, revealing lace he had actually picked out on one of their recent
shopping trips, but she had rejected it, claiming it was too impractical for
her now. Just the fact she had gone back to get it on the sly made him hard and
he grinned at her, showing how much he liked her gift to him. As much as he
enjoyed seeing her in it, he took it off quickly.
Her breasts were bigger than before, the nipples as well. Snaking his tongue
out, he circled the edge of her areola with just the tip of his tongue,
following the line of the small circle. Kagome was trembling, letting out
little whines of want that were driving him crazy. Slowly, with great
restraint, he circled the areola of the other breast in a similar fashion. The
anticipation became too much and he gave in, sucking her nipple, groaning into
her flesh at the taste. Even better than he remembered. Kagome arched into him,
whimpering. The nipple in his mouth was so hard and hot, delicious in its every
quality. Giving it a hard lick, he switched to the other, loving it even more
wildly.
His little wife began to buck her pelvis up, unconsciously searching for the
part of him that completed that part of her. Always eager to satisfy, Inuyasha
abandoned her breasts, giving each one a long, tender kiss, promising to visit
again soon, and kissed his way down her torso, derailing his path so as to
avoid the bump. When he was between her thighs, he grabbed her behind the knees
and brought her to the edge of the bed, nuzzling the crotch of her panties with
his face. Looking up, he saw Kagome panting, leaning on her elbows, blue eyes
darkened to sapphire, nipples wet and still pointed. His tongue unfurled of its
own accord and rubbed her clit through the matching white panties, trailing
down and then up again over the scratchy material until her juices soaked
through. Using just the tips of his fingers, he brought down her panties,
running his digits slowly but firmly over her flesh until there was none of her
left to tease. Flinging the flimsy and expensive material behind him, he went
back to work with a vengeance.
Her taste had become even sweeter to him. Before, she had tasted of ripe
tropical fruit, but now there was honey there as well. His tongue dove into her
and explored, darting in and out, licking every place it could reach. Her clit
was poking out, insisting on being treated to his love. Inuyasha indulged her,
every part of her, going to suck on the little nub once teasingly before going
back to the tunnel, bringing his face in up close and personal until his nose
rubbed her button. Shaking his head from side to side, he increased his efforts
incrementally. When she was tight and he knew she was close, he pulled back a
little, wanting to look at her. Kagome was still on her elbows, although he
noticed her hair was very out of place, probably from having grabbed it several
times during her torture. Her nipples looked like they had received some extra
treatment as well. The sight of her out of breath and lustful made him growl,
and he went back to her pussy, treating it like one of the messy tropical
fruits it reminded him of, smacking his enjoyment loudly for her to hear. The
added sound pushed her over the edge, and Kagome gushed her release onto his
face, grinding herself against him.
She hadn't yet recovered when he was leaning over her, his gold eyes intense
and blazing, his skilled tongue licking her mess from his lips. Before she
could say his name, he kissed her, using her mouth as he had gifted her cunt.
It was all she could do to cling to him and try to keep up. When she had become
aroused again to the level he wanted her to be, he slid back a ways, once again
nestling himself between her thighs, letting them cradle his hips. A quick
probe of her followed by a moan told him she was ready, more than ready. As he
was quickly reaching his limit, he resolved to have a drawn-out day of sex with
her some other time. A lack of tricks wouldn't make this night any less
special. Positioning himself appropriately, he caressed the outsides of her
thighs, telling her without words to wrap her legs around him. Kagome obeyed,
her eyes shining with love, anticipation, and that familiar look of wanting to
please him.
This joining was soft and sweet, not rough or desperate like they were used to.
Sure, he liked fucking her, loved it even, but "making love" was best. He hated
the term passionately and found it ridiculous, but there was no better one for
it. His home was her, mostly in the spiritual sense, but at times like this one
he felt that it was physical as well. Nowhere in the world felt as good as she
did. Nothing in the world felt as good as she did.
When he was fully lodged inside of her, he wanted to kiss her, but could not
bend over her and risk crushing the bump, so bit his lip instead, drawing back
out and slamming back in. That hard bit of contact caused Kagome to cry out,
her fists clenching the sheets. He repeated his actions a little faster, this
time swiveling his hips in a circle when they were completely joined. The
sounds she made in her enjoyment spurred him on, and faster and faster he went,
until the bed shook and every part of her was visibly straining in wait for her
orgasm. With a grin, he thrust again, reaching down to barely circle her clit
once before she exploded around him, meeting his hips as best as she could in
her position and condition. Now that Kagome had reached completion, he sped up
even faster, eager to find his own. It wasn't difficult; he'd been wanting this
for weeks. Even so, his orgasm was spectacular, and he mentally filed it as his
new number one, dimly realizing his top ten all belonged to Kagome now and had
for a while.
He was out of breath, but she was more so, and he lifted her the couple of feet
to the head of the bed, laying her down on the brand new pillows cased in brand
new cloth. The corners of his mouth turned up in a smile when he saw her gaping
grin. Inuyasha wondered to himself if she could ever look more beautiful than
she did now.
"Wow," she said in an exhale.
He laughed. "You tired?"
Her dark head bobbed up and down in a nod. "I take it back. Thatwas the best
gift ever."
Inuyasha snorted and brought the covers over them. "You're easy to please. That
wasn't even half as good as I coulda made it, but I've been hard for you for a
fuckin' month."
She merely rolled her eyes and stole his arm to wrap around her. "I wasn't the
one too busy working all the time, Mr. Big Bucks."
He said nothing, just smiled at her and kissed her softly. She'd made all the
"work" worth it.
Kagome's eyes lowered demurely, and her voice seemed shy. "I didn't ever expect
you to actually marry me, Inuyasha."
His brows came together in offended confusion. "What the fuck is that supposed
to mean?!"
She kissed him quickly before he could formulate a rant. "I just want you to
know that I never would have forced you, that's all. I never even felt like we
had to get married. I love it, but it seemed like something people in our
situation would do just to please others. And I don't need anyone else. Just
you."
Inuyasha's eyes softened in understanding. "I proposed because I wanted to
marry you, Kagome. Maybe I'm just old-fashioned, but that's what I've always
understood people who love each other to do."
Her smile was sleepy and she cuddled closer to him. "I love you, Inuyasha. I
love that we met when we did and I'm not sorry about anything."
He murmured something similar, wishing he had her blind confidence, and reached
to turn off the bedside lamp, the light of the candles not bothering either of
them enough to prevent them from sleeping.
End Note: THEYGOTMARRIEDOMG. And Inuyasha killed a baby. Wtf.
Yes, Mrs. Higurashi is a bitch. Still. BashiYami wanted to fix her, but cruel
fate and my impatience intervened and now she is stuck that way. I apologize.
***** In Veins *****
Chapter Notes
     Dear Guest: You said you can't read this story anymore, and I'll take
     you at your word, but since you don't have an account I'll just say
     here that your review made me literally lol. I love it when people
     read and read and then just snap and give up. In a way, I have
     reached my goal. I want a real reaction. The people who read any
     story and love every bit of interaction between the characters,
     negative or positive, just because it's their OTP kinda bug me, even
     though I tend to be like that, though the amount of InuKag stories I
     have ragequit would probably fill their own library. I do enjoy
     pushing boundaries, especially my own, and seeing how I pushed you
     right out of the audience not from any of the extreme content but
     from portraying Kagome as a teenage girl who acts like one was
     interesting.
     But seriously, dude, cut Kagome some slack. I've noticed people tend
     to sympathize solely with the character whose point of view the story
     is primarily from and judge all others harshly. And your accusations
     of them not really being in love are valid, something which I began
     to explore last chapter, but that's where you probably stopped
     reading. There are different types and degrees of love, and it's best
     to remember that.
See the end of the chapter for more notes
Nine: In Veins
Transitioning from life in their terrible flat to life in a large suburban home
was more than easy. Inuyasha was grateful that Kagome had more space to move
about in. She had become a little claustrophobic during her pregnancy and was
always going out alone for walks when he wasn't around, which angered and
scared him in a neighborhood like theirs. The house, which they had explored
immediately in the morning after their first married night in it, was large and
very modern. The girl especially liked the large kitchen and spent more time in
that room than in any other room in the house, something he teased her about. A
barefoot, pregnant, teenage bride. At least they could laugh about it. However,
the other women in the neighborhood seemed suspicious of them and disliked
Kagome in particular, thinking her a whore of some sort. He didn't hit women,
but sometimes he wished his wife would do it for him. No one should speak of
her like that.
As her due date approached, Kagome finally took his advice and stayed home from
school, meeting with a teacher twice a week to turn in homework and briefly go
over lessons. Inuyasha tried to be home as often as he could, but his boss
wasn't the understanding type. Quickly, he learned the more he asked for time
off, the longer Sesshomaru would make him stay in the office. So he shut his
mouth, unless performing a task that required it to be open, and anticipated
his half-brother's wants. That cut down the time spent away from home to almost
a normal work day.
It was on one such day that Inuyasha quietly entered his home, not wanting to
wake Kagome in case she was already asleep. Though she was doing less, she was
more fatigued than ever. To his surprise, instead of the microwaved meal he had
been expecting, the table was laid out with a feast. Kagome sat facing him,
already halfway done.
"Hey there!" she smiled, spearing another roasted red potato on her fork. "How
was work?"
Already at the table and piling food onto his plate, Inuyasha took a while
before he answered. "Same old shit," he mumbled, buttering a roll before
dipping it in gravy.
"Such as?" she asked, her tone ringing with false warmth.
Inuyasha looked at her. She was wearing a dress he had not seen before, a wine
red one that did nothing to hide her pregnant stomach. It was nice. Like they
were eating out at an expensive place. Her hair and makeup were done to
perfection, something she hadn't really bothered doing since they began to live
together. The last time he had seen her done up was the wedding. It wasn't that
he thought she was ugly without makeup; that was far from the truth. He just
enjoyed her natural beauty. It was one thing to know how to paint the features
you found desirable and another to maintain them in their natural state. Not
having perpetually glowing pink cheeks and filled-in eyebrows didn't make her
ugly. He had thought about it before, and she was perhaps the prettiest girl
he'd ever seen without makeup. Not that he'd ever told her any of that, of
course. It had never occurred to him to share such things.
"I mostly just answer calls and file paperwork. Sometimes I get him coffee."
That much was true. He felt his skin get hot. Why did this feel like an
interrogation?
"Oh. Why would you need to stay hours late every day if that's all you do?" It
was said lightly, like she was just asking a normal question that would have no
impact on their relationship.
Inuyasha's brows came together and he scowled. "I don't fuckin' like it either,
Kagome, but I do what I have to do to keep us off the streets." Her lower lip,
made an opaque scarlet by the help of what he thought to be a rather foul-
smelling lipstick, began to tremble. Fuck, his words had come out harsher than
intended. "Come here," he sighed, going to her when she merely covered her face
and stayed in the same spot. Wrapping his arms around her, he kissed her head,
saying, "I'm sorry. It's stressful, and I like coming home from my shit job to
you and have at least you be as happy to see me as I am happy to get back to
you."
Her sniffles quieted down and she turned her brilliant eyes back at him. As
always happened when he did not prepare himself, her gaze made him breathless,
his heart skipping a beat. Unable to help himself, he kissed her softly on the
lips, more to comfort than to initiate anything, pulling away to lick his lips.
When he only tasted the cosmetics instead of him and her, he rubbed the paint
off her mouth, a vaguely irritated expression taking over his face.
"Do you promise me you haven't been seeing anyone else?" Kagome asked, her
small voice tremulous. At his blank stare, she continued quickly, "If you are,
just tell me. I would at least like to know. You—you don't have to pretend with
me."
His heart ached. Taking both her hands, he looked into her eyes, willing
himself not to cry, not to fuck up and act like a little kid. He had her, and
she needed him to be a man.
"Kagome, I swear to you it's only Sesshomaru keeping me from being here with
you. That's all." It wasn't a lie, and that was the best he could do.
She nodded, smiling brilliantly at him, seemingly convinced. "I'm sorry,
Inuyasha, I don't know what's wrong with me. These crazy hormones…"
"It's alright," he said, going back to his now cold plate of food.
"I'm really sorry," she repeated. "Let me make it up to you. We can have
Sesshomaru over for dinner to thank him for all he's done. It'll give me
something to do and it would be nice to meet your family."
He froze, not able to think of any reason to say no. The fork in his shaking
hand began to clink against the plate, something he could not control.
"A-alright. We can do that," he said, feeling faint.
Kagome smiled, looking exhausted and relieved but still beautiful. She'd always
be beautiful to him, even if she somehow became ugly. Dinner continued, both of
them comfortably quiet, her too tired and busy planning another feast and him
wondering how to survive what would undoubtedly be his undoing. Sesshomaru
hatedhumans. And he hated Sesshomaru. How was he going to come out of this
alive? An idea occurred to him. He could just not tell him and then have him
regretfully cancel at the last moment. Perfect! Setting to his meal with
renewed vigor, Inuyasha ate three helpings, wondering if the massage he gave
his pregnant wife that had become their evening ritual would lead to sex
tonight, hoping it would.
O/\o/\O
"Inuyasha," Sesshomaru greeted as pleasantly as an icy man like he could.
The half-demon grumbled a meaningless nothing in reply, going over to the large
desk and kneeling in front of Sesshomaru, unzipping his pants. His morning
ritual. He was hungry, even after the big meal of last night. Sesshomaru had
mandated long ago that he never eat before arriving at the office for the
twisted reason of having his cum alone inside his stomach. Inuyasha grimaced
and glared at the stubborn button that was difficult to undo with his claws
getting in the way. He was also horny. Kagome hadn't wanted to have sex last
night, even after the massage and some sneaky foreplay on his part. She'd
claimed exhaustion, something she'd been using as an excuse for the entire
week. He tried to understand, really, he did, but hell, couldn't she at least
give him a hand job? He'd reciprocate, he always did, but she didn't even want
that. Just remembering her taste had him salivating. Finally getting the button
undone, he robotically slid his boss's pants down. A crumpling sound tickled
his ears and he patted the left pocket.
"What's this?" he asked, pulling it out. He wouldn't have bothered but for the
fact that Sesshomaru never had anything in his pockets, instead preferring his
briefcase, so it must have been put there for him to find. That was the demon's
style, after all.
"I was hoping you could tell me," he said, sounding amused.
Confused now, he unfolded the small white envelope, his heart slamming against
his ribs when he recognized the neat, girlish handwriting on the front. Kagome.
What the hell was Sesshomaru doing with something of hers?! Taking the small
slip of paper out of the already opened container, Inuyasha's eyes proceeded to
grow wider and wider.
"What the fuck is this?!" he said out loud, mostly to himself.
"It is not at all surprising that your lowborn mother neglected your education
to the extent of you being illiterate," he responded smoothly. "Dinner.
Tonight. Seven."
Shaking his head, Inuyasha began to sweat. "No, no, no. Fuck," he mumbled. "She
didn't even ask me!"
"Looks like you are getting off work early today, half-breed," Sesshomaru said.
"Now complete your task before I begin to desire more."
Unclenching his jaw, he obeyed, glancing hatefully up at the now calmly reposed
expression on his brother's face, eyes closed and head leaning back. If worse
came to worst, Inuyasha vowed, he would kill him. Even if he ended up dying
himself.
O/\o/\O
Ringing the doorbell to his own home felt strange, but Inuyasha wanted to give
Kagome some sort of warning. It wasn't like he could actually warn her about
the monster his brother was and what he made him do. His wife was a beautiful
and sweet soul, but he could not allow himself to tell her about the acts he'd
been forced to perform and endure for most of his life, couldn't allow himself
to appear less than a man in her eyes. Even if she would understand, it still
would change her opinion of him, warp and twist her love for him into pity, and
he would not survive that. He could survive being fucked since before being
biologically, mentally, and emotionally ready for that sort of thing, but he
would be destroyed if Kagome ever saw how dirty he was.
His ears twitched as he heard her coming to the door, rushing as much as she
was able in her condition. Tonight she wore blue velvet, her eyes and pale
complexion more striking than usual. Crumbling inside, Inuyasha gathered her
into his arms and just held her, trying to get some comfort and strength from
her touch. Inside, he was breaking, and knew he would not be alright again
until Kagome and he were alone. With a quick kiss to his cheek, Kagome pulled
away from him, her eyes concerned and confused.
"And you must be my sister-in-law," Sesshomaru said, his voice deceptively
warm. Inuyasha tensed up. "My, it's no wonder Inuyasha is always wanting to
leave early. You're quite lovely."
Kagome assessed him, looking him up and down before smiling and welcoming him
inside. Did she hear the disingenuous quality of his voice that was so obvious
to him? "Thank you for the compliment. The table's set and the food is waiting.
I hope you like pot roast."
"It happens to be one of my favorites when I am forced to partake of human
cuisine."
Kagome's eyes narrowed the slightest bit. "Interesting. Well, come inside and
tell me more about yourself and the kind of work you do."
Sesshomaru nodded, breezing past the both of them and into the house like he
owned it. True to Kagome's word, the food was on the table, still steaming. If
Inuyasha could handle having anything but the twisted coil of rope that was
dread in his stomach, he'd be salivating. She had really outdone herself. If
he'd known how well Kagome could cook, he would have gotten them kicked out of
her house much sooner. Just before he got to his customary seat at the head of
the table, his half-brother swooped in, perching himself on the very edge of
the chair like a well-bred Victorian lady. Immediately, Inuyasha went for the
seat that was clearly intended for their guest, the one across the table from
Kagome. Very pregnant, she had a hard time sitting down and an even harder one
getting back up again.
"Let me help you, dear sister," Sesshomaru murmured smoothly, going to Kagome's
side and taking her elbow. Gently, he helped her lower herself down, not at all
oblivious to the pink blush on her face hiding beneath the artificial one.
"Inuyasha, you should be helping your bride," he chided. Turning back to
Kagome, he said, "If only we'd met before such irreversible circumstances, I
could have enlightened you as to what kind of brute you'd be tying yourself
to."
Looking intensely uncomfortable at how close he was standing to her, Kagome
yanked her hand out of his grasp and faked a chuckle. "The gravy's made from
scratch. If your tastes are anything like Inuyasha's, you'll lick the plate!"
she chirped, her voice a little higher than normal.
Inuyasha watched her, feeling helpless. At least she wasn't falling for his
act. In all honesty, he didn't know what kind of act it was. He'd neverseen
Sesshomaru pretend to be nice like this. It only happened those times when he
was about to be especially cruel, but even then he'd never laid it on so thick.
"I'm sure I will like it as much as I like the hands that made it," he said,
grabbing her hand once again and laying a kiss on it.
Watching with his mouth open in outrage, Inuyasha began to feel a resurgence of
the hatred he felt toward his brother. He had buried it many times throughout
his life, it had been the only way he could go on living, but now, seeing him
try to provoke him by touching his wife with his dirty, evil hands made him
want to kill the bastard fucker in the worst possible way. Said bastard did not
even glance at him, instead moving back to the stolen seat at the head of the
table. Kagome looked slightly disgusted and that was his only consolation.
"So what is it that your company does, Mr. Taisho?" Kagome asked, her knife and
fork digging into her already served food. "I've asked Inuyasha a time or two,
but you know how he can be." The smile she sent his way made him stop digging
his claws into the palms of his hands. Normally, he'd be offended by that, but
he knew that was what she was expecting and she was trying to trick him into
saying something and making conversation.
"Oh, just your basic buying and selling," Sesshomaru said vaguely, twirling a
carrot with his fork. "But a woman like you wouldn't want to hear about
something like that, and a man like me wouldn't want to bore you with it and
have you think less of my conversational skills. Tell me, when exactly did you
become so beautiful? Is this the glow of pregnancy I've heard about?"
Inuyasha stabbed his fork into a piece of tender meat, gritting his teeth.
Kagome did not have a glow. She did normally, but it had faded the longer the
pregnancy dragged on. She was still beautiful, heart-stoppingly so, but even he
noticed the dark circles under her eyes and the lankness of her hair. A demonic
pregnancy took a lot out of a human, and his girl was no exception. Was
Sesshomaru mocking her? Daring to come into his house and mock the only one
who'd ever mattered to him?
Kagome laughed again, not at all genuinely. "I'd hardly call it a glow.
Honestly, I was unprepared for how drastic the changes in my appearance would
be."
"Oh no," the demon murmured, abandoning all pretense of working on his meal.
"You mean Inuyasha hasn't been telling you how beautiful you are? That is a
crime. But I appreciate an unappreciated beauty more than one who knows her
worth."
Kagome looked at Inuyasha, pleading for help. But he couldn't give her any. How
could he help her when he couldn't even help himself, hadn't been able to for
years? Even the thought of doing something paralyzed him. As if realizing the
futility of trying to get her husband to relieve some of the awkwardness she
was feeling, Kagome furrowed her brow and helped herself. Suddenly bowing her
head forward, she stopped quickly and pretended to catch herself, pressing a
hand to her forehead right after.
"Oh goodness," Kagome said breathlessly. "I-I'm feeling faint. This baby's been
taking so much out of me lately." Her eyes traveled over the food she had so
painstakingly prepared and she made an exaggerated gagging noise. "Oh
goodness!" she repeated. "I hope you both can forgive me, but I really must go
and rest. This is so sudden…"
Sesshomaru was at her side again, missing the glare Kagome gave Inuyasha. He
looked back at her sorrowfully, wishing he could have done something so she
would not have had to resort to such a ruse just to get out of the dinner. It
was childish, her decision, couldn't she see that? She was leaving him alone
with his worst enemy! But she didn't know. Kagome didn't know and because of
that, he could forgive her, even allow her to abandon him at a time like this.
On the bright side, at least she would never invite the bastard over again.
Kagome said goodnight to them both, not going over to kiss him like she usually
would, probably upset he had not warned her that his brother was a pervert.
Since she obviously did not have the patience to sit through a dinner at the
moment with someone she found so unpleasant, he smiled, showing her he was not
upset and that he was sorry. And he wasn't really upset, not with her. Hoping
he had avoided a fight later, he watched Kagome go, wishing he could leave the
room with her and never have to see his half-brother's disgusting face ever
again.
They both stayed still and glared at one another until they heard the sound of
the master bedroom's door shutting. Inuyasha's ears twitched, feeling like an
abandoned dog. Was he?
Pushing his plate away from him in disgust, Sesshomaru said, "I am surprised.
For once, you've shown good taste."
Inuaysha just sneered. "Don't try and pretend you meant all those things you
said about Kagome, asshole."
Sesshomaru rolled his eyes. "And if I did? I have a girl just like her at
home…" he trailed off, eyes looking at the expensive watch he wore on his
wrist. Inuyasha stared at him dumbly, processing the information. A girl? Just
like Kagome? Did that mean human? "Only about half her age," he finished with a
smirk. Inuyasha sighed. The bastard really hadn't changed too drastically. "Why
have you not mated her yet? Do you plan to leave her and take the child?"
Inuyasha growled at him, offended and enraged at the very thought. "I'm waiting
until the baby is born. There's still some stuff I've gotta explain." When the
baby was born, she would be really and truly tied to him, and he was too afraid
to ask her about mating before then. Maybe then, she wouldn't reject him, even
if she wanted to, thinking of the good of their child.
Sesshomaru raised a brow. "It is still possible for her to miscarry, you know.
She could die from that. She could even die in childbirth. The girl you chose
does not look particularly hearty. It makes one wonder."
Inuyasha froze. Kagome dying? He hadn't even thought of that, not since the
night she had almost miscarried. Pushing those frightening thoughts away, he
went back to glaring.
"And why the fuck do you care?"
Sesshomaru merely shrugged one shoulder. "That girl is like Rin. People like
Rin should not be forced to stay normal humans."
Inuyasha nodded, assuming Rin was the name of the girl he kept. Normally, he
would have questioned Sesshomaru more deeply about the girl, about how
something like that had come to be, what his intentions were. But he really,
really wanted him out of his house. Not normally a very tidy man, Inuyasha
wanted to scrub every surface of the place, even the rooms his unwelcome guest
had not gone into and the things he had not touched.
"See you at work tomorrow," he grumbled, trying to keep his dismissal rather
pleasant and still submissive. He didn't want to get fondled or fucked with his
wife waiting for him just upstairs.
Rising in one smooth motion, Sesshomaru got to his feet, straightening his
already straight suit. Approaching the still seated Inuyasha, he leaned over,
pressing his lips to his half-brother's. Inuyasha's eyes remained wide open in
shock. Too stunned to respond, he allowed his mouth to be dominated, holding
back vomit. The kiss was long and excessively wet, and it was all he could do
not to blow chunks in the older man's mouth. He pictured it, though, and it
gave him a small feeling of satisfaction. Something like that would be just
what the bastard deserved.
Finally, after several minutes, it was over. Inuyasha wiped his mouth and
fought the urge to spit, no longer able to look Sesshomaru in the eye. All he
could see was his mouth, twisted in a grin, another thing he had not seen
before. With silent footsteps, the demon left the house, closing the door
behind him. Immediately, Inuyasha raced to lock it, knowing it would not keep
his enemy out but feeling safer that way. Glancing at the delicious food they'd
barely touched, he told himself he'd clean it up later. Right now, he needed to
see Kagome.
To his surprise, she was sitting on the edge of their bed, apparently waiting
for him. Her expression was not angry, making him relieved, as she had been
kind of moody of late. She had changed into her comfortable white night gown,
the pink ribbons along the front making his heart feel at ease. So normal, so
domestic, so comfortable.
"That was quick," she said, sounding happy. "What did you two talk about after
I left?"
He grunted, lying down on his back on his side of the bed, reaching out a hand
to drag her with him. "Work crap. There was no real reason for him to stay
after you left, which pissed me off, by the way."
She just laughed, her eyes twinkling. "You would have done the same if you had
an excuse. That guy creeps me out. I wouldn't think you two were related if not
for the obvious resemblance."
With a roll of his eyes, he turned onto his side to face her. "Don't remind me.
I hate looking like that bastard."
"Let's not talk about him," she said soothingly, sensing his agitation.
It was in times like these he remembered the full force of his love for her.
Her arms wrapped around his neck the best they could in their position and
Kagome just looked at him, her eyes seeing something he couldn't and filling up
with love. Touched, he interrupted her observation to kiss her lips. When he
remembered Sesshomaru's words from earlier, an urgency entered into their kiss,
driving him to arouse her, needing her to not refuse him.
"Please?" he breathed, having momentarily broken his lips from hers. "Just
tonight, Kagome. Please let me have you tonight."
Her tired eyes seemed conflicted, but concern and love and maybe a little worry
for his affections won out, and soon she was kissing him back just as
passionately, her hands roving where she had not even looked in what felt like
so long. Sighing happily, he dragged the bodice of her nightgown down, tonguing
her nipples frantically while rubbing his knuckles against her clit. Her
reaction was immediate and strong, making him wonder why she had been turning
him down. It wouldn't have been a problem for him to just go down on her or
something, and he'd explained that a hundred times. How tired must she be to
not want to do what she so obviously wanted to do?
When her whimpers turned to moans, he unzipped his pants, bringing her hand
down to stroke him a few times before he entered her, filling her up carefully,
inch by inch. They were both still on their sides, facing one another, one of
her legs thrown over his hip and clinging tightly. Her breasts were bare
between them as he kissed her, rocking into her, the sight exciting him.
Warily, he glanced at her stomach. He had no desire to touch it, and so he was
curled in a rather awkward fashion, his body a "C" on the bed. Even with the
nightgown acting as a barrier, every time he accidentally brushed against it, a
shiver ran through him. This was certainly not the best position for him, but
there was something important he needed to do.
"You taste different," Kagome whispered, bringing his attention back to her. "I
don't know what it is, it's just—different."
Unable to suppress a growl at the memory of the hated kiss, Inuyasha just
closed his eyes, not giving her a response. When the moment was right, when he
was on the edge, he opened them again, studying her face, how her eyes had
become as deep and as blue as the ocean, her lips parted in her desire for him.
Now. Molding himself against her, his abdominal muscles contracting
involuntarily when coming into contact with her stomach, he laid a soft kiss to
the side of her neck, a kiss that turned into a bite as soon as she came, the
walls of her vagina clasping him so hard and so fast it was no surprise he came
right then, allowing himself to release.
A few more rocks and he was done. Taking his teeth out of the wound they'd made
in her neck, he pulled out of her and rolled to his back, his breathing rapid.
Closing his eyes, he waited for Kagome to yell at him, demanding to know what
the bite was for. When a few moments had passed and she still hadn't said
anything, not even her usual endearments, he ripped himself away from where he
had been on the verge of dreamland to look at her inquiringly.
Kagome was still on her side, just as she'd been during their joining, only her
eyes were wide and blank, looking pained. Foaming red-tinged spittle bubbled
from her lips and onto the bed. A growing sense of horror erupting in him, he
turned his wife onto her back and brought her into his arms.
"Kagome?!" he yelled, feeling like he was about to have a heart attack.
"Kagome, say something! What the fuck happened?!"
No response came from her. Feeling nauseated, he shook her, succeeding only in
getting some of the spit bubbles to leave her chin and fall on his thigh. When
her fingers began to twitch, he felt relieved, and almost cried for joy. But
the twitching moved from her fingers to her arms to her other limbs, and soon
she was convulsing violently, making painful-sounding choked noises that tore
at his heart.
Through the panic filling his mind, he remembered something from long ago, a
girl who had come to visit their family home back when both Sesshomaru and he
had been living there. He'd been young, in elementary school, and Sesshomaru
had recently made him his own private bitch, something he hadn't yet known
enough about to resent. A girl had come over, a girl named Kagura. She was
pretty, but so were all the girls his brother allowed to speak to him. Someday,
Inuyasha wanted to be like that, too. He wanted pretty girls to fight for his
attention. But this girl was different. The others left when Sesshomaru told
them to, taking his threats to heart, but this one was not intelligent enough
to sense danger, or maybe she was just too heartbroken. After showing up drunk
and standing inside their living room screaming for a good fifteen minutes,
Sesshomaru finally came down from his room. Inuyasha had been hiding in the
hall closet, taking peeks at the scene even though it was far past his bedtime.
His older brother spoke in a low voice, too low even for his ears, and that
seemed to calm the girl down, although tears still streamed from her eyes. But
it was the kiss that he'd remember. It was long, it was wet, and it disgusted
him. A few minutes later, the girl had died, still in their home, foaming out
the mouth and seizing.
And now present-day Inuyasha hated himself.
More terrified than he had been as a child, he brought Kagome to his chest,
holding her so close and so tight that he could almost believe they really were
one. It did little to stop her shaking. Letting out a sob, he fumbled in the
pocket of the pants he still wore for his cell phone, almost crushing the
numbers for the demonic emergency line in his haste. The line rang and rang and
rang, far longer than it should have, before he finally heard a click. And then
nothing. Had they just hung up on him? Again, he dialed the number. This time,
he heard a voice.
"Hello!"
"I need your help! My wife is convulsing and—"
"The demonic emergency line is no longer available in your area," the recording
continued. "For further help and direction, please visit our website at—"
Inuyasha ended the call, dumbfounded. There was no way that emergency was not
available here in this crowded and popular suburb. It was the demonic
equivalent of the regular emergency line and legally mandated. He neededdemon
paramedics. He knew in his gut that this was Sesshomaru's doing, Sesshomaru's
poison. Humans would not be able to deal with such a powerful thing, if they
would even respond to his call. The tears came, spilling over without control
onto his face, dripping down rapidly and hitting her hair.
The girl in his arms stopped convulsing quite so hard, and Inuyasha wondered if
this was it. The end of their brief relationship and even briefer marriage.
Maybe he should have been a little superstitious and not moved them into
Jaken's old home, even if it was priced lower due to the disappearance of the
former owners. Maybe he should have gone home that day he stood outside
Sesshomaru's building. Maybe something would have come up and he could have
paid the rent and kept the both of them fed and clothed. They didn't need fancy
things like a house and car and all these clothes if they had each other.
He knew then that if she died, he would as well. He'd slit his throat with his
own claws and bleed out holding her body.
Just when that thought finished running through his mind and making a home
there, Kagome began to glow. The shaking had stopped completely, her heart beat
faint in his ears. Her skin became hotter and hotter to the touch, almost like
she was burning from the inside, and even began to burn him. Still, he held
her, not willing to surrender that one thing. A pink light began to emanate
from her body and he blinked, wondering if he was hallucinating from the shock
and pain. Or had he already died? The glow lightened from pink to white by
degrees and he burned, a scream rising in his throat that he'd never allow to
be released. Was this some effect of the poison he'd missed before? Turning her
body into a bomb and taking them both out?
And then, like it had never been, the light and the pain ceased.
"Inuyasha? Why are you squeezing me so tight?"
Kagome's voice was the sweetest thing he had ever heard. Tears continued to
course down his cheeks, and he let them, astounded. How could this be real? How
could such a miracle happen in a life like his own?
His wife pushed away from him, her eyes big and concerned. "And why are you
human? The new moon was just last week."
Confused, Inuyasha looked down to see his hands with flat nails, his hair
black. Sniffing, he realized he couldn't really smell anything apart from
Kagome's moisturizer and a faint whiff of their sex. Surreal. The entire night
was surreal. Brushing Kagome's own black hair aside, he looked at her neck.
Nothing was there to mar the perfection of her skin.
"The mark didn't take," he murmured, torn between being upset and relieved.
"Mark?" Kagome asked, fine brows drawing together in confusion. "Do you mean a
mating mark? You tried to mate me?" He saw the memory flicker in her eyes and
then her hand rushed to her neck, feeling the spot he had bitten her. "The
mating didn't take! But why? Am I… Am I not meant to be yours?" Her lower lip
trembled and her expression was nothing short of heartbroken.
"No," he murmured, taking her into his arms. "There's no way that's true. This
is all Sesshomaru's fault," he explained before he could stop himself. "It was
his poison, and you somehow purified it. But only people with spiritual powers
can do that, and I've never even sensed anything from you."
"But how was his poison in your bite?" Kagome asked, bewildered.
Inuyasha's jaw clenched. Sesshomaru could control and create his poison. It
would not have been difficult for him to make one that would not harm a demonic
being, instead only a human. He himself had acted as the host and transferred
it to her. That meant Sesshomaru wanted Kagome dead. But why? Could he really
not stand seeing him happy?
"You aren't leaving this house again," he growled as threateningly as he was
able to in his human form.
"But—"
"Kagome, I swear to all the fucking gods out there that if you don't obey me
this time, I will tie you to the bed and feed you all your meals through a
fucking tube, got that?! You're in danger."
Leaving the bed, he closed all the blinds, first making sure the windows were
locked. Room by room, he went through the house, locking every door and making
sure the place was sealed tight. He knew it wouldn't stop anyone from attacking
if they really wanted to, but again, it made him feel safer. When he was more
or less satisfied no one was in the house and no one would come in without him
knowing, he went back to their bedroom. Kagome was clutching his pillow to her,
having fallen into an exhausted sleep. Settling in beside her, Inuyasha did
nothing but watch her, his demonic features gradually returning little by
little throughout the night and into the day.
This meant war.
Chapter End Notes
     End Note: Fuck SessKag.
     I tend to respond to negative reviews like pretty much every single
     time and only respond to positive ones when there is something I need
     to address. This is because I feel negative ones are more genuine
     than positive ones. I say this only because EVERYONE on here gets
     positive reviews. EVERYONE.
     The other day, I was reading a Sailor Moon fanfic that wasn't even in
     proper story format. It was literally just like: He went home. He
     told his father hello. His father said hello. He went upstairs. He
     talked to Usagi. He took a bath.
     Only imagine the above with terrible spelling. For example, they kept
     writing "throught" instead of "thought". How the fuck does anyone
     even make that mistake and why is it only ever native English
     speakers (I hate to say it, but usually my fellow Americans) who
     sound like monkeys that managed to press the right series of keys to
     write a fanfic? And that writer wasn't even 12 or anything. The
     "writer" mentioned having a husband and kids. So yeah, my brain
     pretty much exploded and I went to the reviews section to laugh at
     what I was sure would be a ton of negative comments, but they were
     all praising the author for the "best story ever".
     It was then my faith in humanity died. I can no longer trust good
     reviews. :(
     I don't aspire to be a writer of any kind. I'm majoring in a fucking
     science, not English or Literature or Creative Writing. I'm the first
     to admit I don't know how to write. I welcome criticism and do try to
     improve. I go off on tangents because I never sleep and my brain gets
     all loopy and I forget what my original point was. Yeah. Thank you.
***** On a Roll *****
Chapter Notes
     Note: Just because I said I could not trust good reviews anymore does
     not mean I do not cherish them and read them over and over and press
     my lips to the screen to caress such sweet words and run them through
     my mind when I shower. I need you, [insert name here]. I love you,
     bae[s]. Don't be silent. :'(
     Anyway, does anyone else feel like this story has been dragging on
     forfuckingEVER?! 'Cause I do. There are gonna be like 30 chapters so
     we're only like a third of the way done and I am just DYING and
     incredibly tempted to upload it all at once because it's boring me to
     tears and I want to concentrate on other junk. Highway to Hell is the
     only story that I like, but I know everyone else seems to dig Bizarre
     Love Triangle. It's like you guys can sense which stories are the
     hardest for me to write and you decide en masse that you're only
     going to like that one, haha.
Ten: On a Roll
Even though Kagome had been breathing steadily with no interruptions the entire
night and part of the morning, he didn't relax until she opened her eyes. Long
having regained his half-demon form, Inuyasha smiled down at her, so happy that
she was alive he couldn't even begin to express himself in words. While she
blinked and rubbed the sleep out of her eyes, he bundled her up, fixing a
blanket so that soon she was wrapped up tight, like his own little thoroughly
swaddled baby in a little papoose. Yawning, she kept one questioning eye open.
He ignored her and picked her up. In her condition, she could not ride on his
back like she normally did, so he'd have to carry her this way. It was nice, he
supposed, though certainly not as efficient. At least he could see her face.
He'd come up with a plan during the long hours he'd waited for her to wake, too
afraid to move her lest she begin shaking again and really leave this earth.
They'd go away, go to a place Sesshomaru couldn't hurt her. The car he'd leave
behind, not knowing if it was bugged or traceable or even wired to explode. He
couldn't be too paranoid, too careful. Not when it concerned Kagome.
"We're going to my parents' house," he explained as she started to wriggle.
However much he hated his father, he needed the man on his side.
"But I have to pee!" Kagome explained, still mostly asleep.
He growled. "That can wait. We need to get moving now."
Holding Kagome with one hand, keeping her balanced against his hip, he shoved
open their largest bedroom window. Taking a sniff and not smelling or sensing
anything out of the ordinary, he clawed apart the screen, leaping out in one
movement. Thankfully, Kagome did not scream, although she did look incredibly
confused. It made him laugh, seeing her little face all scrunched up and
quickly becoming more alert, and he suddenly felt lighthearted. They were going
to make it. Kagome was alive, Kagome was fine, she had saved her own life and
therefore his.
"Wait, whatare we doing?" Kagome called to him as he leapt from rooftop to
rooftop.
"We're visiting my parents," he called back, knowing the wind was making it
hard for her to hear him. As an afterthought, he added, "I haven't seen them in
over twenty years."
The girl in his arms nodded, and then her eyes went wide. "Wait, did you say
twenty years?! How old are you?!"
He almost came to a stop. If the situation was less urgent, he would have. As
it was, he merely stumbled and continued at a faster pace than before.
"Uh, didn't I tell you?" he asked, knowing it was already too late for lies. At
the glare she gave him, he sighed and said, "Okay, okay. I'm seventy-five..."
"Even older than my grandfather…" she whispered to herself, but he could still
hear. With a sigh, she fixed her eyes on him again, looking only mildly
annoyed. "We're going to have a long talk after I pee."
Inuyasha laughed aloud. The only reason he had not told her was because he
feared she would not want to be with him, although now he saw how stupid that
was. Were it anyone else, they probably would have been screaming by now,
disgusted they had let an old man touch them, but only Kagome loved him enough
to just roll her eyes and continue to wish for a bathroom. As the sun rose
higher in the sky and buildings gave way to fields and forests, Inuyasha
breathed deeper, swearing he could smell his mother. After a while, a building
came into sight, and Inuyasha rushed towards it, subtly shaking an again
slumbering Kagome awake.
The house he had grown up in was massive and ancient, sprawling over a huge
section of land. It had once been a palace, his father's, where he had kept
court. Those imperial days were over, though, and the place was used only for
his family and whatever guests they had at the time. As he drew near the front
doors, which were twice his height but still smaller than he remembered, he
began to feel scared. To him, his father was an even more frightening version
of Sesshomaru, but nevertheless, he would hope the ancient demon would
intervene since there was a human girl involved.
The door knocker was solid bronze in the shape of a snarling dog's head,
complete with metallic gobs of saliva coming from between the fangs. It was
realistic and hellish, something he had been afraid of as a child, always
closing his eyes and clinging to his mother's hand when he was forced to pass
it. After setting Kagome on her feet, he grasped the metal circle in its maw
firmly, hitting it against the door a half dozen times. Once this business was
taken care of, he'd make some suggestions about them getting a doorbell, though
he had no doubt it would be ignored, just like everything else he said.
It wasn't too long before he heard the telltale scurrying, and then the doors
opened, revealing a petite girl of about Kagome's height and right around her
age. Her face was doll-like in its delicacy. Inuyasha grimaced. He had been
hoping for a servant to answer, but it would appear luck was not always on his
side.
"Mother," he said formally, bowing his head. "I must speak with Father. Please
allow us entrance."
Kagome, oblivious to the tension of the scene playing out before her, yawned
loudly, covering her mouth with one hand. The blanket fell from her shoulders
to reveal her very pregnant belly and Inuyasha cringed. Izayoi gasped, her eyes
going wide as they looked back and forth from her prodigal son to the girl who
looked like she was about to burst. Small hands going to cover her mouth, her
large violet eyes filled with tears and she threw herself at Inuyasha,
embracing him with all her might. Too choked up to speak much, for which he was
thankful, she merely led him inside by the hand, and he dragged a still yawning
Kagome with him.
"I'll g-go and get your f-father," she said tearily, sniffling. "He'll be s-so
happy!"
Inuyasha snorted as she scurried away. As if.
Kagome leaned her head on his shoulder, one hand on her stomach. "Who was
that?"
"My mom," he explained, kissing the top of her head and putting an arm around
her. He had to have her close.
"Why is your mom younger than you?" she asked. "She's like my age, maybe even
younger!"
Letting out a small laugh, he said, "My parents met about two-hundred years
ago. Things were a little different back then."
"Not too different," Kagome said slyly, a grin present in her voice.
He nodded. "Not for us, I guess."
"Where's the bathroom?"
Inuyasha led her to the nearest restroom, the one that had last been updated in
the 1940's. Getting a quick glimpse of the inside, he saw even the décor was
the same, with the striped green and gold wallpaper peeling on the ends, the
powder his mother had used before the use of modern deodorant caught on still
in its decorative porcelain container on the counter to the right of the sink.
"My baby!" Izayoi exclaimed, running to him from the end of the hall. A ragged
sob was released from her throat and then she was holding him again, petting
his head just as she used to do when he was a child, even though now he towered
over her by about a foot. "Your father will see you now in his study, and then
we can have lunch and you can introduce me to your mate!"
He shook his head, twitching his ears away from where she tried to grasp them.
"She's not my mate, she's my wife. Please feed her and keep her from coming
in."
Hands clasped together, the look on her face hurt, his mother said, "Why are
you scared, Inuyasha?"
The half-demon just closed his eyes, and when he opened them again, all she
could see was resolve. "I'm going to see Toga now. Kagome will be hungry. She
likes potato salad a lot."
And with that, he left, his steps quickening when he heard the flushing of the
toilet. He knew his wife would be angry he'd left her all alone with his mother
with no notice or preparation, but he needed her to be occupied while he
addressed his father. The hall he stomped through on his way to the study was
dark, the carpeting a dark blue with the walls the same. Portraits hung every
foot or so, all of them of the demon he was going to see in various outfits,
poses, and eras. He and his mother weren't in any of them, nor was Sesshomaru.
They'd never had a portrait together, though there were some pictures, mostly
of his mother, contained in the office.
The door was slightly open and Inuyasha pushed it open further with his hand,
not nudging it with his foot like he'd do normally. This was important, and he
had to remain on his best behavior, as his father had always commanded. The
demon knew they were there; Inuyasha hadn't been trying to be stealthy. Their
voices and scents announced their presence, as well as his mother's loud and
enthusiastic welcoming. The large, mostly wooden room was made bright by the
giant window letting the sun in. Inuyasha held back a scowl, remembering all
the times he had stared into the window while playing outside, wishing his
father would come and play with him, maybe even just speak to him. True, his
mother was usually with him and he had many toys, but that was it. His father
was cold and ignored him, unless he felt he needed to be corrected, meaning
relentlessly criticized.
"Inuyasha," his father nodded in greeting, looking away from his laptop for a
split second. His hair was long and a lighter silver than either of his son's,
seeming to glow even in the sunlight, eclipsing it where he sat. Eons old, he
appeared to be in his mid-to-late thirties. For just a second, the son wondered
if the man had even known he'd been gone.
"Father," he nodded back, his tone cold and formal. "I've come to seek
protection."
Toga looked back at him in alarm. Protection was a very serious request. It
meant one was losing a war and had come to ask for an alliance. Nine times out
of ten, it meant somebody would die. When one sought protection, talking it out
was no longer an option.
"What has happened that you would ask such a drastic thing of me?"
Kneeling down, humbling the pride inside of him that fought back at such an
act, Inuyasha continued with forced formality, "I come before you not as your
son, but as a subject. I renounced my heritage long ago; you know that. I ask
only for the sake of my wife, Kagome. Sesshomaru has attempted to murder her,
and while he is your heir, I believe he went too far, even for someone of such
a status."
His face a mask of pleasant calm, Toga said, "And what exactly has Sesshomaru
done? Give me the details."
Clenching his jaw, Inuyasha decided enough was enough. He wanted to rip the
condescending half smile off his sire's face.
"Made your other son into his bitch all his life and poisoned the only thing
that made him want to go on living," he hissed. In the moment, he hated the man
before him more than the man who had ruined him. The pure rage he felt eclipsed
the sickening shame dully pounding throughout his solar plexus. He'd always
imagined it would be worse to actually admit out loud to what Sesshomaru did
than to keep letting his older brother keep abusing him, and in a way it was,
but there was also a feeling of liberation. No one could ignore it if he didn't
allow them. "Since I was a child, Father, getting me alone and doing things
that made me want to die. And I was always, always alone." His throat tight, he
decided to stop.
There was a pause. Inuyasha was afraid to look up. And then, "Why did you not
say anything before?"
Clearing his throat as quietly as he could, the half-demon retained a scowl. At
first, he had thought his father knew. All his life, he had believed the
powerful demon had known everything going on in the world, not to say his own
home. And if he didn't know? That was somehow even worse. That meant he was as
really and truly alone as he had always felt. His mother was human and could
not sense or smell or hear the way he could. If he told her, that would only
endanger her life. But his father, that demon without peers, should be able to
hear and smell anything going on in his house. True, he spent most of the time
in his study or at work or with his mother on the opposite end of the house
from where Sesshomaru's old room was. True, the vast structure they called home
had been built by demons for demons in such a way that sounds and smells were
reduced to nearly nothing if one was not in the room. But still. If he was any
kind of parent at all, he should have noticed.
And Sesshomaru had always been the favorite. Born three hundred years before
him, the man had fought and worked alongside his father for many lifetimes.
They were more friends and business associates than father and son. Toga always
compared him to Sesshomaru, making him out to be the ideal son, telling
Inuyasha to stand up straighter, speak quieter, listen more attentively like
his brother. The memory made him sick to this very day.
"Because he is your heir," was his only response.
He felt the clawed hand on his shoulder before he even noticed his father had
moved. Unable to prevent himself from glancing up, he was taken aback by what
he saw on the other man's face. A deep, deep sorrow warring with hatred.
Inuyasha stopped breathing. Had he made a mistake? Had he put Kagome in more
danger by bringing them to his family?
"I will support you, Inuyasha," Toga said, his voice hoarse. "I will fight your
war, my son. My only son."
The embrace Toga pulled him into was fierce and protective, as well as
completely unexpected. Inuyasha at first felt disgusted. Now, now when he was
grown and no longer a frightened child longing for his parent's notice, only
now did he receive it? It was sick. His father was not supposed to act like
this, like a real father. This wasn't the man he knew. His father was cold and
distant, with only a quick smile and a pat on the head at most to spare him
before he left for work and then again when he returned home. Stunned, Inuyasha
did not know how to react. Struggling to pull himself away, he patted the demon
struggling for composure a couple times on the back.
"I need to see Kagome," he muttered. "She'll be wondering what's going on."
His father nodded. "I have things to take care of as well. Tonight, I will
introduce myself to your wife over dinner. Tell your mother to get your old
room ready."
Inuyasha nodded, feeling like a child again, only instead of being choked with
misery and sorrow and loneliness, he was filled with hate. The sooner he got
back to Kagome, the sooner he would feel normal again. Better than normal.
Bolting down the hall, Inuyasha went to the kitchen, part of him thinking
Kagome would already be halfway through with a sandwich by now, knowing her
recent habits. But she was not there. The room was upgraded, however, and he
felt a pang of loss for the clunky old refrigerator he had played in front of
for years, staring at his reflection in its silver surface and pretending it
was another boy to play with, a brother who was nice and enjoyed the same games
he did. Sniffing, he realized Kagome had been in the room but had left a few
minutes ago. Following her invisible trail, he wound up in the living room.
Kagome was on the couch, looking somewhat uncomfortable. Izayoi was kneeling in
front of her, whispering to her stomach and rubbing it with a silly grin on her
face. Rolling his eyes, Inuyasha picked up the tray of untouched food that had
been left forgotten on the coffee table.
"Kagome needs to eat, Mother. She never had breakfast."
His wife looked up at him gratefully, a smile on her face. Still in her
nightgown, she made a pretty picture, resting again the dull beige of the sofa,
a burgundy pillow behind her back. Sitting next to her, he held the tray while
she took from it, letting her presence soothe him like a balm to his soul.
Sighing, Izayoi sat on Kagome's other side, her eyes staring at her stomach
with longing. "I wish I had other babies," she said quietly, her eyes filling
with tears again. "Inuyasha always begged me for a brother or sister, and I
wanted to give him one so badly."
"It's okay, Mom," he said, not wanting to see her cry like she had done most of
his childhood. "You couldn't help it."
When Kagome looked between them questioningly, Izayoi explained. "Toga and I
tried for years to have children, but nothing worked. I miscarried more times
than I can remember," she said softly, her unusual eyes staring off into the
past. "And then when I got pregnant with Inuyasha, I decided that failure was
not an option. I would rather lose my life than lose another baby. I refused to
leave my bed, and Toga was very distraught. But it worked! I got farther along
in that pregnancy than in any of my others." A smile lit up her face. "But then
the doctors told me I would die if I continued to carry the child, something
about a problem with my womb. Toga demanded that I terminate, but I refused.
And I had my baby, my Inuyasha." Her eyes softened and she reached over to rub
his ear. "They removed my womb and ovaries after he was born. Even if I could
go back, I wouldn't change a thing."
Kagome looked distinctly green around the gills, her ham sandwich pushed aside.
Concealing a smile, Inuyasha put the tray back on the coffee table. At least
his mother loved him, had always loved him. But that was never the problem.
There was a knock on the door and his mother jumped up, skipping over to the
door immediately. He knew it was unkind, but she'd always reminded him of a
small dog when she did that. He supposed it made sense. At least she fit in.
"What have you been up to?" Inuyasha asked quietly, putting his arm around
Kagome and leaning in to smell her hair. It was amazing how not even a hint of
the poisoned scent remained on her.
"Just talking to your mom and telling her about our crazy night," she said,
following it up with a sigh. "She's been asking how we met. What do I tell
her?"
"The truth!" he shot back, somewhat offended. "Well, not the part about me and
your mom, but—"
"Fine," Kagome said, her brow wrinkling in the way it did whenever something
reminded her of her family. He did his best not to bring it up, but sometimes
it was just unavoidable.
"Inuyasha, time for your check-up!" Izayoi sang out, skipping over back to
where they were.
"My what?" he asked, mouth full of the ham sandwich Kagome was no longer
interested in.
"Your father brought a doctor," she explained, and a bony old man suddenly
slinked into the room, looking more dead than alive. "We found your old
pediatrician! He's going to check you out, take some samples. Just make sure
everything's okay."
"My pediatrician?!" he asked, confounded. Shit, the man must be ancient! Kagome
began snortgiggling, something she did only when particularly amused and in the
presence of elders. Rolling his eyes, he said, "I don't need to be checked out,
Mother. Kagome's the one who needs help."
"But you said she was a miko," Izayoi said. "If she healed herself, she's
fine."
Meanwhile, the doctor had meandered over, shaking hands outstretched almost
alike the manner in which Frankenstein's monster went about. Before Inuyasha
could escape, the deceptively fast man had already grasped his arm, found a
vein, and punctured it. With a yelp, he watched the blood drain from him and
into the small vial, such a deep red it seemed almost purple.
"We'll be doing some testing over the next few days. Your case has been
prioritized," the man said, his voice so dry and old-sounding that Inuyasha
would not have been surprised if he held cobwebs in his mouth. "For now, do not
exchange bodily fluids with anyone. Eat with plastic utensils off of paper
plates and take care to dispose of them thoroughly yourself."
Inuyasha's eyes went wide. No sex. "We can't even kiss?!" he burst out, upset.
That had been all he'd wanted to do all day!
While Izayoi chuckled, the doctor shook his head. "Not until we are certain the
poison has left your system. And you might be in danger as well. It might be
slower acting because you are not fully human. Whatever the case, one of my
colleagues will be present here until we are sure the danger has passed."
Inuyasha nodded, again putting his arm around his wife. His mother thanked the
doctor and walked him out of the room, chattering away as they went to the
door.
"You okay?" Kagome asked, her tired eyes concerned.
He nodded. "I'm okay if you are," he said, looking her over for any kind of
lasting injury.
"Why did your brother do that?" Kagome whispered urgently, her lower lip
beginning to tremble. It seemed like it was only just now hitting her. "Are you
absolutely positive it was him? I-I can't believe someone would do that. Not
just to me, but to our baby." Her own words had her crying, and soon she was
clinging to him.
"I'll kill him for that," he said, his voice hard. "I'll destroy him for trying
to hurt you, for trying to take you from me. I'll do it for you and for the
child I was."
"What?" Kagome asked, pulling away. Seeing something in his face, she brought a
hand up and cupped his cheek, her thumb caressing his skin. "What did he do to
you, Inuyasha? You've been hurting. Tell me the whole truth, please. You know I
love you, so let me understand."
A tear fell, he couldn't control it. Never had he wanted her to see him cry, to
see him weak. If at least she never thought of him that way, he could go on
believing it was true. The look on Kagome's face was shocked, and she wiped the
tear away with her fingertips. He could tell she wanted to kiss him, to comfort
him in one of the only ways he found acceptable, but as things were, that would
be impossible for quite a while.
"You don't want to know," he said. More like he didn't want her to know. "Just
know that this has been going on for a while, with him hurting people and
trying to ruin them, and it's far beyond the time when it should have stopped."
Kagome nodded, her eyes filling with tears for him, crying his tears when he
would not allow himself to do so. "I'll kill him," he whispered, his voice
almost a coo, gentle like he was telling her of his love. "I'll do it myself,
all myself. That way, I can be a person again. I can be a better man."
He knew now. In order to reclaim his personhood, to move on from the trauma and
abuse that had been his life, he'd have to end this himself.
Something in the corner of his vision caught his attention, and he looked out
the window, wondering if a deer or something had wandered onto the property
again. His mother would love that. One of her greatest pleasures was playing
Snow White and collecting a veritable zoo of animals around herself that she'd
sing to, much to their displeasure. To her own disappointment, none of them
could be trained to do housework, and Toga had finally outlawed bringing wild
animals in the house when a possum she had "rescued" escaped and destroyed the
sitting room. Remembering the moment fondly, he turned back to tell Kagome.
Right before he looked away, however, the animal was back in his sight.
Twoanimals.
Two giant white dogs.
Shooting up to his feet, he only dimly registered Kagome asking in a panicked
voice if something was wrong. Before he could take another breath, he joined
his brother and father in the large expanse of neatly trimmed grass, ignoring
the cries of his mother for him to stop. How dare he. How darethat bastard try
and take his revenge from him! Oblivious to his small, humanoid form, Toga and
Sesshomaru continued to fight, paws swiping at each other, giant globs of toxic
drool oozing from their mouths and scorching the earth where it fell. For just
a moment, he felt that old smallness, that feeling of being less than. He had
no other form. What he was now was all he would ever be and he could never
transform into something big and powerful. Shaking his head, he hardened his
resolve and dove into the fray, scratching and biting and throwing punches left
and right, not caring which one was his brother since they were bothhis enemies
and always had been.
He didn't even last two minutes.
O/\o/\O
The panicky, chattering voices of his mother and wife brought him back from the
darkness where he had been sent. Groaning, he tried to sit up only to
immediately fall back onto the soft surface he had been laying on.
"Inuyasha?!" Kagome whispered. It was hard to hear her over the ringing in his
ears, but he could make out the tears in her voice. Testing his nose, he found
that he could smell them as well. He wanted to ask what was going on, but then
he remembered with a flash of pain what had rendered him unconscious.
"Did I get 'em?" he rasped. Either of them, it didn't matter anymore. If he had
annihilated just one of them, he wouldn't be the fucking failure everyone
thought he was. If he had even seriously injured them, it wouldn't matter so
much that he had been made to be some sort of fucktoy his entire life. It
wouldn't matter so much that he was a shitty fucking husband who only hurt
Kagome. It wouldn't matter so much that he was already a shitty fucking father
and his kid wasn't even born yet. It wouldn't matter so much because he would
have finally succeeded at something and that success would possibly transfer to
the other areas of his life and he wouldn't be such a fucking fuck-up. If he
ruined what had ruined him, he would be a different person, the person he was
meant to be. The person his family deserved.
"Are you okay?" Kagome asked again, smoothing his hair away from his forehead.
Forcing his eyes open, he squinted, trying to get the world to a place where it
wasn't so goddamn blurry. "How long was I out?" That was the important thing.
If he had missed his one chance at saving himself, then he didn't know what
he'd do.
"Only a few minutes," Izayoi whispered, taking his hand and holding it to her
damp cheek. "Don't you ever scare me like that, Inuyasha! You're my only child,
do you understand? I can't lose you right after I got you back again!"
Ignoring the sharp stabbing agony in his head, he wrenched away from the women
and stumbled to the window, almost falling down immediately due to the
unexpected burst of nausea. Blinking rapidly, his vision focused. Sesshomaru
and Toga were no longer fighting where they had been before. Flipping the latch
with his claw, he pushed open the giant, antique window and leapt outside, nose
working overtime trying to pinpoint where on the vast estate they had gone. To
his great despair, he soon discovered that tracking them would be nigh on
impossible. His ears were still ringing like bell towers and the two full-
demons had rolled around everywhere in their fight. Their stench was on
everything they had not dissolved. Looking around him, feeling the beginnings
of hopelessness in his chest, he saw entire trees uprooted and chunks of earth
large enough to be mini-mountains scattered here and there. His one fucking
chance and he had been knocked out straight away.
Just as he was about to give up and howl, a pale object in some taller grass
near an uprooted tree caught his eye. Curious, he ran over to it, leaping over
several dirt piles and various other pieces of debris along the way. Once he
was close, he picked it up, almost immediately dropping it back down again in
shock.
An arm.
One pale arm. A familiar arm that had touched him in ways that still made him
sick and always would. Mind working quickly, he put the pieces together (pun
not intended), idly staring at the ragged, stringy flesh where it once had
connected. Sesshomaru had been gravely injured before the loss of his limb,
hurt badly enough so that he was no longer able to sustain his true form. Toga
had dealt him a grave blow, but that didn't mean it was over yet.
His ears perked up. It wasn't over yet.
Dashing back to the house, he jumped through the window, intending to go into
his father's office and take from its place of honor in the glass cabinet that
had been its home since before his birth the sword that had won his mother. It
was obvious to him that he needed a weapon. Yes, he was certainly stronger than
most humans and even most demons, but the fight had proven to him that he
needed a little something extra.
What he wasn't counting on, however, was Kagome throwing herself in his path
and locking her arms around his knees. Her pregnant stomach was flush against
his calves and he stopped so suddenly he nearly fell over.
"Kagome, get the fuck offa me!" he growled dangerously, angry that she was
slowing him down and just as angry that she had almost made him hurt her.
"No more fighting!" Kagome sobbed, her words barely clear enough to make out.
"They're going to hurt you and you'll dieand if you die I'll die too!"
In spite of the urgency pumping through his blood, his heart softened. Kagome
was scared, which was understandable. She'd never seen him hurt before.
Honestly, he had gone through much worse than this before. Grabbing her by the
elbows, he lifted her up as gently as his temporary patience allowed and led
her to the couch, not understanding her babbling but greatly concerned by her
shaking. What if she hadn't purified the poison completely? Biting his lip, he
glanced back at the hallway that led to his father's office. That sword could
kill a hundred demons in one strike. If he found where Sesshomaru was and used
it, he would be back in five, ten minutes tops. But how to restrain Kagome? Her
sobs had quieted now that she thought he was staying with her, but she was
still trembling and he didn't want to chance her coming after him, especially
not in her condition. What he needed was for his mother to come back right away
and promise to keep Kagome far from where he would be dispensing justice.
The telltale creak of the front door sounded and Inuyasha's ears twitched along
with his nose. The powerful footsteps sounding could only belong to his father.
Finally, his father was bringing him to Sesshomaru to land the killing blow! It
was less than he had always wanted, but at this point it seemed like waking up
to a sweet reality after a terrible nightmare, and he'd take whatever he could
get. Removing Kagome's hands from his, he sniffed around for his mother, but
Izayoi was nowhere to be found. She'd probably walked outside to look for him
and missed her husband's return by just a split second. Rising to his feet,
Inuyasha postured himself to greet his father, running through what he'd say to
him to show he was joyfully anticipating his revenge but he still did not trust
him and it would take more than this act to win him over.
Toga entered the room, his tie askew. That was the first sign something was
off. Inuyasha's eyes darted to his father's blood-soaked claws, widening when
he saw what he held. With a flick of his wrist, Toga sent Sesshomaru's head
rolling towards the sofa his youngest son stood in front of. The head tumbled
over until it reached Inuyasha's bare foot, hitting his toes. Sesshomaru's eyes
were clouded over in death, his mouth open and filled with blood, the ragged,
torn flesh of his neck tinged with blue.
Fists clenched in anger, Inuyasha knew he had lost the way to give himself
peace of mind.
"Thank you, Father," he somehow managed to say through the whirl of rage and
depression gaining speed and volume in his mind. It was a reflex. It was all he
could say. It was a lie.
"I-Inuyasha," Kagome gasped. Her groan of horror shook him to his core and he
looked to see her standing up as well, face chalk white. "Is that… Is that…"
He opened his mouth to respond, but was interrupted by the sound of liquid
falling to the floor. Confused, he looked around, seeing the mug of now cold
tea still safely on the coffee table. What had fallen? It was only when he
heard Kagome begin to whimper that he figured it out.
The baby was coming.
End Note: Much thanks to BashiYami for coming up with the idea for the fight
scene. Originally, I just had Inuyasha promising Kagome he'd kill Sesshomaru
and then the scene where Toga rolls his head at him, but she pointed out it
would be much better and much angsty-er this way.
As for the ancient doctor, back when I was a receptionist for an evil ENT, one
of his patients was another doctor who was 99 and still practicing. My boss was
86. Seriously, it was crazy.
***** Old Enough to Bleed *****
Chapter Notes
     Note: This story seemed so fun when I was dying of boredom in summer
     math class but now I'm just totally burned out on it. This conflicts
     severely with my need to finish everything I start, but seriously. I
     always reach a certain point where I never want to see a story ever
     again, but with this one I'm beginning to wonder why the hell I even
     wrote it to begin with. It never should have progressed beyond the
     original one-shot, which in hindsight was much, much better. It gets
     only slightly less viewers than Bizarre Love Triangle, but the
     viewers for this story are not reviewers, which is okay, but it makes
     me think you're feeling the same way I am. I guess what I'm asking is
     does anyone even like this thing? Would you be cool if I broke up
     with it? I probably won't, due to the aforementioned need to finish
     everything, but that doesn't mean I won't fantasize about it every
     single day.
     Not edited.
See the end of the chapter for more notes
Eleven: Old Enough to Bleed
Kagome was crying and Inuyasha could not breathe. Toga seemed confused, as
confused as he could seem, anyway. Izayoi ran in, took one look at the
situation and whipped out her cellphone, her eyes going wide when she saw her
stepson's head at her son's feet, going wider when they saw Kagome struggling
to take in breath, a small trickle of blood beginning to leak from between her
legs, dripping onto the golden brown carpet and mingling with the amniotic
fluid. Inuyasha barely heard his mother call for an ambulance, wondering if
this normal, if she would be okay. All births were bloody, he knew, but he
thought that would come later.
His father had to hold him back when the paramedics came and took her from him.
The visiting doctor had brought an ambulance complete with staff just in case,
and they were only a couple minutes from the house. Feeling feral, he even took
a swipe at his father, but was quickly subdued and dragged to their car. Toga
stayed in the backseat with him, rubbing his back almost affectionately while
he hyperventilated. His mother drove, vaguely impressing him as she went to
speeds he would have attempted only when feeling particularly daring. When did
she learn how to do that? What else had he missed all these years?
The roads were long and dusty, living out in the rural country like they did.
It was a few hours' drive to the city, and any kind of building was at least
half an hour away. Only when he was a child living under Sesshomaru's thumb did
he feel so frighteningly isolated.
"You must be so excited!" his mother said brightly, a strained smile on her
face as she nearly overtook the very vehicle they were following. "My baby's
having a baby!"
Inuyasha wanted to tell her that he didn't give two shits about the kid, but
was too busy trying not to swallow his tongue.
"I think you're the most excited one here," Toga said, a fond smile on his
face. "You'll be getting a little one to spoil and overfeed."
Izayoi laughed. "I bet this one will look just like their daddy! I can't wait
to break out all your old little booties and ear warmers, Inuyasha." The sigh
that followed her words was pure happiness. "I hope the baby gets her eyes.
Such pretty eyes would go well with my son's pretty ears!"
Things continued in that vein until they arrived at the hospital, by which time
Inuyasha was feeling quite a bit beyond nauseated. Maybe it was carsickness.
Maybe it was anger. Maybe it was fear.
The hospital was a smaller building than he would have liked, more like a
clinic. It had only one floor and its emergency ward took up most of it.
Breaking out of his father's recently relaxed hold, Inuyasha rushed toward the
building, following the stretcher that carried a very pale but otherwise fine-
looking Kagome. Shoving one of the paramedics out of the way, he took their
place, grabbing her hand and helping to steer her inside. Her eyes were big and
grateful, and his heart hurt at how scared she must have been when she was all
alone. Holding her hand as tight as he felt comfortable doing, he vowed she
would never be alone again.
And then his father caught up to them. Inuyasha smelled him and did not have
time to run before he was yanked back by the collar of his shirt, doomed to
wait outside the big swinging doors his wife had disappeared through.
Heedless of the others in the waiting room, he roared, "What the fuck?!"
Toga took him by the shoulders and shook him a little, his expression remaining
perfectly neutral. "I will not have you preventing the doctors from doing their
job. The way you are right now, you'd probably end up destroying the place, and
I don't very much feel like having another wing in this hospital named after
me."
Inuyasha shrugged resentfully out of his grasp, seeing a little sense in his
words. "What do you mean 'another wing'?"
Eyes twinkling with memories, Toga responded, "When you were born, I was so
afraid for Izayoi that I went outside, blacked out, and somehow obliterated the
parking lot. And now here we are again, with you all grown up and your mother
trying to find a parking space in the very area I once blew to bits. It cost a
terrible amount of money to make it up to them."
The son snorted, eyes rolling. "Do you really think I'd be stupid enough
destroy a building where my wife is trying to give birth?"
Toga merely rolled his eyes in turn. "The fact you have to ask that shows
you've been gone for far too long."
"Don't insult me, old man," Inuyasha growled. The stress from the situation was
making him fearless, otherwise he would never have even dreamed of being so
bold.
His father merely smiled. "Me insult my only son?" Inuyasha winced at that
comment. "Never. I'm about to give you a gift, boy, but you wouldn't let me
lead up to it with one of my famous speeches."
Eyes narrowed in suspicion, he asked, "What kind of gift?"
"The kind a father who has wronged his son beyond any excuse gives." Toga's
eyes were serious and sincere.
A lump in his throat, Inuyasha decided that continuing to be obnoxious was his
best option for retaining his composure. "Well, where is it?"
"At the Taisho building," Toga said with a grin, walking over to a row of
chairs. He proceeded to sit, looking ridiculous in such a small chair. The
demon's build was fit for a throne and not anything less. "You are my heir,
therefore everything that wasn't yours now is."
Throat burning, Inuyasha returned, "I never wanted any of that shit. I just
wanted…" He trailed off, not wanting to remember the truth so he would not lose
control.
"You wanted us," his father said, voice low. Inuyasha looked at him, unable to
keep glaring. "You wanted your family, and I was too selfish to give it to
you." With a sigh, the old demon looked away, his gaze on a past best not
dwelled upon. "Your mother suffered too, you know. Of course you know. Izayoi
could not be a proper mother because I was always away, even when I was with
her. The mating bond made that so, and affected her more than it did me, as her
soul is much more sensitive. I wanted to build an empire in this modern world
for her and for you.
"Though I did not realize it at the time, Sesshomaru steered me away from my
original goal." His hand, still coated in his firstborn son's blood, clenched
at his side. "I gave him more and more responsibility, responsibility I had
intended to give to you once you were old enough, but the way I saw you, the
way he made you and the way he made you appear in my eyes, told me you were not
ready. I was blind, Inuyasha, and too stupid as well as stubborn to realize
what was going on in my own home to my own child."
Not able to do anything but clench his jaw, Inuyasha trembled hearing his
father's words. It was not enough, he knew, and wondered if it ever would be.
Only time would tell. But for now, his father's speech had served its purpose,
the beginnings of a bridge being built to fill the gap that had appeared early
on in his life. And it had momentarily distracted him from Kagome.
Kagome.
The tenseness in his body once again became too much. He longed to tear into
something, to destroy, to kill. An image of his brother's head popped up in his
mind, and he felt bile rise. The only living thing he could have taken his rage
out on was gone. Still, he could not bring himself to scream and curse at his
father. After all, in a way it was only right. Taking out the evil he had
brought into the world. It had been for his benefit, he knew, but still he felt
robbed and slighted, so much like the child he had been and thought he had left
behind. After moving away, he was able to reinvent himself into the person he
had always wanted to be. A guy who fucked hot girls, whenever and wherever he
wanted, whoever he wanted. A guy who had fun and was never in one place long
enough to establish much of a routine and fall into despair over the little
drudgeries of life. A guy everyone liked.
For a time, he'd been that guy. He was able to figuratively run fast enough to
get away from his past, from his memories and terrible thoughts. Then Kagome
had come along, and he remembered his real dreams, the dreams that were not in
reaction to abuse, ones that were not of running away. A girl like Kagome loved
him, his fantasy brought to life. She understood, even when he didn't want her
to, and it was always good. She was hurt too, but not as much. She had never
been completely broken. That was good. He had never liked associating with
other broken people. With her, he didn't have to run. The bad things just
seemed to retreat on their own, or just not matter as much.
Thinking back on his childhood, his heart gave a sick twist and lurch in his
ribcage. The human children of the few servants they'd had, even if they had
wanted to play with him, were forbidden by their parents in the fear he would
hurt them, whether intentionally or otherwise. He saw the reason in it now, but
back then, coupled with his father's apparent rejection and his brother's
meanness and his mother's tears whenever she looked at him, he had felt that he
was somehow cursed. An undesirable. There were demons who visited and worked
for them as well, and the few times their children were present, things were
much the same. However, unlike the human children who would run from him on
sight, the demon children gawked at him like a freak. He had only the one form,
the mostly human-looking one, and to them that was worse than any kind of
mental or physical disability. It was just wrong, going against the natural
order of things. There was disgust and alarm in their eyes, and their whispers
were never quiet enough.
"What ishe?"
His mother could not hear them, his father was never there to hear them, and
Sesshomaru would not have cared. So he stayed alone, climbing the trees in the
forest behind the house, talking to the little animals that did not run from
him, pretending to lead armies of bugs. Any playmate, boy or girl or what have
you, he would have welcomed. And as he grew older, the desire for a playmate, a
friend, grew into a desire for a girl, someone to love who would love him just
as much. Not like the girls his brother forced him to be with, with their
smudged makeup and bad breath and tight clothes, but a real one. A nice, sweet,
genuine person to show him even creatures like he could be loved. When the
darkness had entered him and grew to such proportions he could no longer will
it away, he'd given up on the dream as it only made him feel more depressed.
Drinking and drugs and sex and spending and fighting were able to temporarily
fill the void left by the loss of hope, but each time it grew harder to keep on
going and he knew he had to leave.
And he had fallen so hard and so fast for Kagome, the fulfillment of all he'd
wished and prayed for so often, so long ago. Everything he'd ever wanted and
everything he'd never even known he wanted and things he'd never even dared to
wish for. Is this what his father felt when he disregarded tradition and mated
his mother, the first great demon to ever successfully mate a human?
"H-how…" he started, eyes on the floor. "How did you and Mom meet?"
Toga grinned. "I was on a trip surveying my lands after a long period of
feeling restless. Things in the human world had changed since the last time I
departed from my home. Buildings were taller and closer than I liked to my own
property; humans were more mobile. So I decided to extend my venture and spy on
the humans located closest to the edge of my land.
"A river ran through my land, right at the border. It was wide and usually
calm, but that year the current was exceptionally strong, though it looked
harmless enough on the surface. I set up my camp there, hidden in a tree.
Scarcely two minutes had I settled myself in than I first saw her." His eyes
flashed, and Inuyasha almost swore he could see his mother reflected in the
darkness of his pupil. "She was beautiful. More beautiful than anyone I had
ever seen. I know demons are considered to be more striking than humans, but
there is always a lack of gentleness there, and humans possess a uniquely
delicate quality I saw exemplified in Izayoi. So beautiful. I was captivated,
under her spell, convinced she was some sort of goddess. And then she ruined
it.
"She had seen a pretty rock in the river while out earlier in the day with her
attendants," he continued, a smile quirking the edges of his mouth. "She was
convinced it was a moon rock from the stories her old nurse had told her, since
it glowed and sparkled like nothing she'd ever seen, and she snuck out after
returning home to grab it. The water was so clear that the bottom of the river
seemed just a reach away, but in reality went up to my neck. Of course, she
fell in, and of course, I followed after and fell in something else.
"We stayed three days and nights in the forest. When I returned her, intending
to ask her father for her hand, I was met with an army. Izayoi had been
promised to a prince of the land, though her family was not as prominent as it
had been, and he was furious his intended had been 'tainted' by me. I had been
kind up to that point, doing things the human way to woo her, even though I
could have just stolen away with her. But they persisted in trying to get her
back, so finally Izayoi gave her consent to the slaughter, and I spared only
those she chose. The rest is history," he finished with a satisfied sigh.
Inuyasha blanched. He knew what his father was capable of, but his mother? Even
giving her consent to a massacre of her people? Shaking his head, he wondered
at the silly, emotional woman who had raised him. Was it evil, or was it just
what one did for love? Did love absolve such things? He chose to believe it
did, rather than examine his own past actions.
"Was it hard? To… To let her have me?" The question was one he'd wanted to ask
ever since he first learned that he had not been completely wanted.
Toga's face hardened but his eyes went soft. "At first. She wanted a child of
our flesh and blood so badly, though I could not see the point after so many
failed attempts. I believe she thought it would keep me around more often, or
at least occupy her when I was not there. And when she had you, and you were
the spitting image of me, I found myself working harder and harder, leaving
even more. I needed to give the both of you something to be proud of. In that,
I failed you."
With a snort, he replied, "At least I know what not to do."
Conversation came to a halt after that, and he was grateful, feeling the closed
off man beside him probably felt much the same. Izayoi rushed in a few seconds
later, sandals making absurd flopping noises on the tile, tears on her face.
Toga embraced her and the two of them whispered things together, exchanging
smiles and kisses. Inuyasha grit his teeth at their display. The least they
could do was not flaunt their love in his face while his own wife was in a room
suffering without him there to even hold her hand.
It was no less easy to bear as the hours went on. The pictures his mind
conjured up of Kagome suffering, possibly dying, became more vivid the longer
he sat in the stifling waiting room. He knew giving birth took a while, but
half a day? It was insane! Why would any woman agree to have children if she
knew where it would lead? Guiltily, he remembered that Kagome had not exactly
been expecting to be in such a position so soon in her life.
"Mr. Taisho?"
Inuyasha paid no attention to the drone of the woman's voice. When his father
didn't rise, he finally realized she was talking to him, and he shot to his
feet, nervously expecting the worst.
Eyeing him critically, the nurse said after a pause, "Your… wife is asking for
you."
Inuyasha followed her down the hall, pushing past her when he caught Kagome's
scent. The door was open to the tiny, dirty room she had been placed in, and he
burst inside, wanting to make sure she would not contribute to the lingering
scent of death all over the place. He came to a stop a couple feet from her
bed. There she was, sweaty, tangled ebony hair spread out on the pillow, her
face pale and strained, eyes closed with dark, bruise-like circles underneath.
On her chest was a little white bundle.
"Inuyasha," she said, opening her eyes. Something about the way she said his
name suggested fear. Of him? The room reeked of blood and sorrow.
"Kagome," he murmured, coming to her side. Pressing a kiss to her cool
forehead, he asked, "Is everything alright?"
"The baby…" she whispered, eyes filling with tears. "He's—"
"A boy?" he asked, eyebrows shooting up in wonder. So she had been right. Well,
she had a fifty-fifty chance, anyway. Curiosity filled him and he looked at the
still bundle on her chest.
"The baby…" she whispered again, choking on her tears. "I'm sorry. I'm so, so
sorry."
Beginning to panic, Inuyasha picked up the bundle, turning it over. The little
red face had its eyes closed shut, its mouth slightly open. Could it be? Had
Sesshomaru's poison taken out not his wife, but the child she carried inside?
The baby began to bawl, protesting the tight hold he had on him, and Inuyasha
relaxed, only to realize something else.
It was human.
Numb inside, he placed the baby back on her chest. The chair beside her bed was
more cushiony than the ones in the waiting room, and he gratefully collapsed
into it. A human baby. That wasn't possible. All the work, all the sacrifices,
all the fucking love,and she had been fooling him the entire time. A growl
escaped him, and she flinched.
"All this fucking time," he hissed, hating her more than anyone because he
loved her more than anyone. "Was it really Hojo's? Did he not want it so you
decided to string me along? How the fuckdid you expect to pull this shit off,
bitch?!" he roared, his volume increasing with each sentence.
Her eyes were big and terrified, and now he hated himself for hurting her and
still wanting to comfort her, even after everything.
"Mr. Taisho?"
Inuyasha turned around, prepared to take all his anger out on whatever
unfortunate had chosen to interrupt him. But the man was a doctor, and he was
holding a clipboard and smiling, and something about the combination made him
spit out, "What?"
Slightly taken aback by the obvious rage, the doctor nervously cleared his
throat and continued. "I, uh, we ran some tests on Mrs. Taisho after she told
us what happened earlier yesterday. She tested positive for being a miko. The
rather amazing reaction to the poison was actually an emergency purification,
which she unknowingly triggered to save her life." The doctor's face took on a
grim look, and he said, "Unfortunately, that came at a price, and she purified
her child. Thankfully, he was only a quarter-demon, and she was well along in
the pregnancy, so the baby is fine although she only carried him for six
months."
Inuyasha dropped back into the chair again, wondering if he'd start
hyperventilating once he could breathe again.
"Thank you, doctor," Kagome said from the bed, tears still evident in her
voice. "I'd like to speak to my husband alone now, please."
"Yes, of course," the man said, glancing back and forth between the two of
them.
After a few moments of strained silence, Kagome tentatively said, "Inuyasha?"
He couldn't face her, didn't want her to see him. His face was hidden in his
hands and it was all he could do not to break down, but he had cried too often
these past few days and he was sick of it.
"Inuyasha, please say something!" she cried out. The baby reacted to his
mother's distress and began to whimper. "I'm sorry!" she sobbed. "I'm so, so
sorry."
It cut like a knife to hear her say that, so broken-hearted. His pride was not
strong enough to keep him from her then, and he was at her side in an instant,
crushing her to him, the baby only just missing being suffocated by his
embrace.
"Oh god, Kagome," he said, releasing a shaky breath. "You don't have to be
sorry. I fucked it up. I fuck everything up."
He held her as she cried, until they were both more exhausted than before.
Inuyasha even let a few tears trickle from his own eyes. Everything had almost
been ruined because of him. He would have thrown all this away because he
couldn't fucking listen. After a while, her tears wound down, and they
separated. At her request, he untied her hospital gown, and she began to nurse.
The baby's contented suckles and burps made him feel his earlier anxiety once
again. How the fuck was he going to raise a kid?!
"I thought of a name," Kagome said softly.
"What is it?" he asked. Early on in her pregnancy, he had told her she could
pick the name and he wouldn't fight her on it.
"Hajime," she murmured, the look on her face the softest, sweetest he had ever
seen, her gaze on the baby at her breast.
Inuyasha wrinkled his nose. He'd always thought the name sounded girly. But
again, he had told her she could pick, and he honestly could not think of
anything.
"Alright," he nodded. "Hajime it is."
They sat a few more minutes in silence, with him watching Kagome watch the
baby. It gave him time to think. His child would not look like him, which would
probably make its life easier. Or maybe the kid would look like him on his
human night. But above all, the child was mortal. The boy would surpass them in
physical maturity, grow old, and eventually die. Once he marked Kagome, she
would not age at all and would not die. He knew there was no way his wife would
be able to handle seeing her child pass away. But what could he do?
"You want to hold him?" Kagome said after she had burped the baby the way all
the many videos she watched had taught her.
Before he could respond, she thrust the baby at him. Hajime. Struggling not to
wake the dozing child, he positioned it the way he had seen babies be held in
movies and on TV, letting the soft little head be cradled in the crook of his
arm. But beyond that, he had no idea what to do. Anxious, he looked at Kagome,
scowling at her when she did nothing but smile, her tired eyes lighting up and
looking beautiful. Glancing back down at the baby, he saw it had opened its
eyes, perhaps disturbed by the frantic rocking. The brief little glare it gave
him before closing its eyes again left him speechless.
Hajime had Kagome's eyes, the eyes he loved.
"He looked at me," he whispered in amazement, turning to Kagome. "He has your
eyes."
His wife smiled again before snuggling further into her pillow, drifting off
almost immediately. No sooner than she had done so then a nurse quietly entered
the room, taking the baby from him and explaining she needed to run tests just
to make doubly sure everything was fine and dandy. Dazed, Inuyasha let Hajime
go without a protest, giving Kagome one last kiss before wandering the halls in
the direction of the waiting room. Just before he arrived at his destination,
he was intercepted by the same doctor who had informed him of the reason for
the baby's mortality.
"Mr. Taisho?" he questioned cautiously, scanning his somewhat dazed features.
"Your father has requested that we find you a bed and flush the poison out. One
of our demonic specialists will see to your treatment."
A nurse took him by the arm and steered him towards a room on the opposite end
of the building from where Kagome was, the maternity ward. The rooms were even
smaller, the beds harder, and he sat down on the one his guide gestured to,
waiting in silence to be tested and cured. He'd have to think of something to
help Kagome adjust to the idea of having a mortal child. Maybe he could get her
pregnant again as soon as she could be intimate again and she'd give birth to
quarter-demons? That was a possibility. The children with the longer lifespans
could take her mind off the other, or at least minimalize the depression she'd
face. Nodding to himself, he awaited the doctor.
O/\o/\O
What he thought would only take a moment to remove took over two weeks. Two
weeks of hospitalization, getting the poison flushed out little by little. Most
of his blood had to be drained, the doctor explained, telling him they had not
seen such a persistent and lingering poison before. His veins ached and he
healed around the needles, making it necessary for them to pluck them out every
few minutes and stab them again. Kagome visited every day and brought the baby
when she could, though it did nothing but sleep and occasionally cry, taking
away the girl's attention. Her face would always light up whenever Hajime did
the slightest thing, Inuyasha thought with a scowl. The kid threw up in her
hair and all she did was laugh. What the hell kind of behavior was that?!
Feeling woozy, he closed his eyes, wondering when Kagome would return from
feeding the kid. She had stopped breast feeding in front of him when he began
to get "too touchy", according to her. It wasn't his fault he liked her
breasts, even when they were all big and hard. A normal woman would feel
grateful that her significant other still found her attractive after
childbirth. Even before she was back at her normal weight! Deepening his scowl,
his turned slightly on his side and readjusted his pillow.
A knock sounded on the open doorway of his room and he said, "Come in!"
"Inuyasha," Toga said pleasantly, his rich voice filling the room and making
his son's ears twitch in irritation.
"What?" he said, annoyance obvious in his tone.
"Just informing you of some changes," he continued in the same tone. Inuyasha
heard the squeak of the vinyl chair telling him his father had sat down. "Your
house has been put on the market and all your things have been placed in your
old room, along with Kagome's."
"What the fuck?!" he roared, sitting up. "You can't just take my life from me
away like that!" The latter sentence came out sounding like the whine of an
adolescent and he flinched.
"You will be better protected this way," Toga said, sternness in his eyes.
"Kagome and Hajime need to be protected. And Izayoi needs something to occupy
her, so you'll be getting a free babysitter in the bargain."
Rolling his eyes, Inuyasha sank back down onto the pillow in degrees.
Sesshomaru had been the only threat to their safety and now he was gone. But
what was the point in fighting it, anyway? His father was powerful, he wasn't.
His father was rich, he wasn't. His father was smart, he wasn't. Normally, he
would have fought before realizing the futility of it all and then fought a bit
more before sinking into a familiar kind of depression, but the drugs they gave
him were top quality and he just wanted to sleep. He still hated it and by no
means would go without being as bratty as possible, but he'd put up with it for
Kagome's sake.
"Good!" Toga said, clapping his hands once before getting up. "I've already
hired some private tutors to get her back on track with her education. This
way, she'll graduate high school with some college credits and be able to
enroll as a junior when the time comes. She drew up some designs for a guest
house and your mother adores her twice as much now," he finished with a
chuckle. When Inuyasha didn't respond, he merely sighed and patted him on the
head right between the ears before leaving.
"Stole my revenge and now you're taking away my wife and freedom," he muttered
to the empty room. "You're not even getting a tie for Father's Day this year,
you old fuck."
O/\o/\O
Kicking aside the wheelchair brought specifically for his convenience, Inuyasha
stumbled out of the tiny hospital room, pushing aside his mother and Kagome
when they tried to help him. He'd been thoroughly bled several times, the
demonic poison returning with a vengeance each time. The specialists had been
on the verge of giving up, not seeing any difference no matter what they tried,
when finally the foreign substance began to dissipate. They also gave him
plenty of "medicine" that induced vomiting, thinking he could expel some of it
that way. Whatever it was, it had eventually worked, and he celebrated by
leaving the stuffy building he had been confined in, squinting in the sunlight,
and planting a big, wet kiss on Kagome, who blushed and pinched him, telling
him with her eyes she did not want to be so openly intimate in front of his
mother, who was currently giggling like a child at their antics. Izayoi was
holding Hajime, who was sleeping silently in the blue baby hammock she'd
bought.
The drive back was quiet, with Kagome shushing anyone who tried to speak, not
wanting the baby to wake up and screech for whatever it would need. She sat in
the back with him, the baby in a car seat between them, and he leaned over it
carelessly, stubbornly trying to touch her. Inuyasha wasn't really expecting
anything, but he had been denied too many times and now it was a kind of game.
Kagome acted annoyed but he recognized the sparkle in her eyes and the pretty
pink flush of her face. She wanted him. It made him smirk and some plans formed
in his mind before he remembered that she couldn't have sex for at least
another month or so. Now annoyed, Inuyasha glared at the baby, who was too busy
drooling in his sleep to notice or care. He poked at Hajime's puffy, soft
cheek, but he just slept on.
When they finally arrived back at the house, he bounded through the door, the
only one of the party not to stay and coo over Hajime being taken from the
seat. Tapping his foot impatiently, his nose began to twitch, unfamiliar scents
swirling throughout the house. Just as he was about to go and investigate, his
family came in.
"As I was telling Kagome and your mother, we have guests!" Toga announced, his
loud voice making Hajime open his eyes and squint around the room before
dismissing everything and falling back to sleep once again. "Let's go to my
office, all of us. Yes, even Hajime," he said when Kagome moved to put him
upstairs.
And so they moved as one to the office, Inuyasha's nose still twitching
suspiciously. They never had guests unless it was an important business matter.
When that was the case, Toga took care of it alone, shutting himself up with
only the maids going in and out, bringing drinks, snacks, and when it was all
over, some champagne. What kind of meeting would require the entire family
sitting in?
"Kōga!" Toga boomed, his arms open in welcome the moment he entered the office.
"Toga!" A wolf demon unfamiliar to Inuyasha said in a similar tone, standing up
and holding his hand out for a shake. "I'm honored to receive your invitation,
and my family thanks you."
A red-headed wolf demoness nodded her head at Toga, bouncing the bright-haired
baby on her lap. Inuyasha examined her. She had once been pretty, he could
tell, but nothing very exceptional. Now all that beauty was gone, with heavy
bags under her eyes and lines on her face. Her hair seemed coarse and stringy
all at once, a stark contrast to her healthy mate and daughter.
"And is this precious little one Noriko?" the powerful dog demon asked, bending
over and looking at the baby with a paternal eye. The little girl had her
drool-soaked fist in her mouth and her blue eyes stared at him vaguely, without
a sign of comprehension. Inuyasha almost snorted. Had he been a dumb baby as
well or were these kids just completely hopeless? "And how old is she again?"
"Six months," Kōga said proudly, practically glowing. "Right, Ayame?" His tone
seemed threatening for a second, and the woman perked up, glaring at him before
turning her attention to Toga.
"Six and a half, actually."
"Ah," he said, removing himself to sit behind the desk, officially placing
himself in business mode. "Thank you so much for answering my summons so
promptly, Mr. and Mrs. Ookami. I told you of my reasons beforehand, but I'm
afraid there was not time for me to inform the other half of this arrangement."
"Completely understood," Kōga broke in unnecessarily. Inuyasha glared at him.
What an annoying asshole.
"Yes. Now, if I may..." Toga turned to Inuyasha, where he was sitting on a
loveseat that had been placed in the room specifically for this occasion,
Kagome next to him cuddling Hajime to herself, rocking him every now and then.
"Inuyasha, Kagome, you both know of your son's mortality and what that means.
You are aware of the pain that comes with having a child who will die before
you." At this, Inuyasha smelled Kagome begin to tear up, but she pridefully
held back and kept in control. "And I do not want to lose my first-born
grandchild. So I asked Mr. Ookami here, whom I've worked with on several
occasions, to consider arranging a mating between his Noriko and our Hajime."
Inuyasha bristled at his father taking ownership of his child like that. "Our"
Hajime? Fucker.
"My deepest condolences are yours, Miss Kagome," Kōga said.
Inuyasha whipped his head around, seeing the wolf had suddenly changed his
place and was now kneeling directly in front of Kagome. A growl began in his
chest and he punched it down, not wanting to seem violent but quickly losing
control. Kagome finally allowed a few tears to fall and the wolf grabbed one of
her hands, sandwiching it between two of his stupid sweaty ones. The half-
demon's claws punctured the material of the love seat. Didn't that idiot know
to keep his hands to himself, especially when someone else's wife was in the
room?! And what the fuck was up with his own mate, why wasn't she controlling
the damn moron? Looking away from the far too cozy scene to his left, he
changed his gaze to Ayame. Her green eyes were burning with disgust and hatred
and jealousy, but not surprise. Noriko still bounced obliviously on her lap,
her nonsensical baby babblings the only noise in the room.
"Inuyasha?" Kagome asked, her voice soft. "So what do you think?
Turning back to her, he realized Kōga still held her hand but was now perched
on the arm of the seat right next to her, leaning into her. The only thing
stopping him from tearing the bastard's throat out was the very heavy gaze of
his father he could feel on him, through him. Hajime burped a little and Kagome
withdrew her hand from Kōga's grasp with a little difficulty, switching the
baby to her other shoulder and patting him on the back with a few gentle taps.
Her big blue eyes were begging him, her face still wet with tears, and all the
anger inside of him melted, replaced with a softness. She was leaving it up to
him. The future of the child he had been a little less than enthusiastic about.
Kagome was letting him make the decision as if he had never done anything
wrong.
"Yes," he said, speaking to her and her alone. "Yes. We accept."
"I'm so glad my little Noriko will be a part of such a beautiful family," Kōga
said, pulling Kagome to him for a hug that lasted far too long. "Not even a
year old and already helping her husband!"
Instead of slapping him in the face and kicking him in the balls like she
should have, Kagome merely smiled and patted his shoulder. "Thank you so much,
Mr. Ookami! You're going to be a wonderful father-in-law, I can already tell."
"Very good," Toga said, a pleased expression on his face. "I honestly expected
some objections from you two."
"Well, I—"
Kōga shot a glare at his wife, cutting her off with a single look, and her
mouth twisted down in bitterness. Grunting unhappily, Inuyasha crossed the room
to his father's desk and signed his name on the contract Toga had not mentioned
but left out in the open. Kōga was at his side a second later and somehow
finished before he was even halfway done. Scowling, Inuyasha watched him go
back to Kagome's side and lead her out of the room, asking a maid along the way
to prepare some lunch like he owned the fucking place. His wife leapt up and
followed after him, a distressed look in her eyes. Inuyasha could relate. It
seemed the only ones genuinely happy with the thing without any other agenda
were Toga and Kagome. He turned to protest the sudden arrangement and the
manner in which his father went about it, but his sire was leaving the room,
calling for his wife.
Clenching his fists, Inuyasha vowed that this was the last overstep he'd allow.
One fucking more, and he was going to destroy any part of Toga he made
vulnerable.
Chapter End Notes
     End Note: A man in a relationship with a woman that he ditches for
     her daughter. A human baby from a half-demon father purified in the
     womb. Sound familiar?
     STRICTLY TABOO NEVER ENDS, MWAHAHAHAHAHA!
     Yeah, I only have like one idea… But don't worry, Inuyasha isn't
     going to ever have sex with Hajime. Just no. And Hajime is more
     related to him here than Kagome is in Taboo because I am the god of
     this story and I said so. Just think of it as Hajime being conceived
     on Inuyasha's human night, okay?
***** Post-Happy Ending *****
Chapter Notes
See the end of the chapter for notes
Twelve: Post-Happy Ending
Inuyasha lay on his side in his childhood bedroom, the new bed more comfortable
and much larger than his old one. Kagome was dozing now, the baby in its crib
just a couple feet away. Earlier, he had complained about it, saying that
Hajime should have his own room, but he supposed it was better this way. She
told him he would cry less if they were nearby, and he certainly didn't want to
have his ears abused with more screeching wails or be forced to get up in the
middle of the night to walk down the hall. Sighing, he snuggled closer to his
wife and put an arm around her. Nuzzling her hair aside with his nose, he
pressed his face into the side of her neck, kissing her where soon he'd mark
her. One day, when everything was right.
To his surprise, Kagome turned around to face him, her eyes bright and
mischievous. "Good morning, Daddy!" she said softly, and he was about to
respond with more role play when he remembered he was actually a father for
real now and his favorite trailer park scenario would always remind him of
that.
Rolling his eyes at what had come so close to killing his morning wood,
Inuyasha flipped her onto her back and crawled over her, a growl in his chest.
Kagome started to say something, but he pressed his lips to hers, cutting her
off. Her mouth still tasted of the minty toothpaste she used last night. He
remembered how he'd watched her brush her teeth, her larger breasts bouncing
from the jerky movements of her arm. Fuck, she had turned him on just by
concentrating on dental hygiene. It was too much, he needed her now. His hand
quickly traveled down to her purple flannel pajama pants, where he followed the
familiar path to her pleasure center. Instead of the moan he had been
expecting, Kagome let out a whimper, one that sounded pained. Concerned, he
pulled his hand away from her, ending their kiss.
His fingers were stained with blood.
Eyes widening, he jumped up to his knees, ready to take Kagome back to the
hospital. To his surprise, Kagome just laughed, sitting up and getting out of
bed.
"That's going to be happening for a while yet, Inuyasha. It takes more than a
few weeks for a woman to bounce back after childbirth, but you'll be the first
one to know when I'm ready again."
The shock making him fully awake, Inuyasha followed her into the bathroom to
wash the icky lochia off of his hand. Now with his wits about him, he
remembered that it would be about another month until Kagome would go to her
post-baby check-up and then the doctor would tell them if she was ready to
resume her wifely duties. Just one more month. Inuyasha wondered if he'd ever
gone so long without sex since his first awakening, but soon came to the
conclusion that he hadn't. There had always been women, and yes, men, to spend
his time with. Monogamy always took some adjusting, especially now that he had
to masturbate, but he was determined to stay faithful. Even if he felt the itch
so strong he started palming himself right there as Kagome washed her face in
the sink not even a foot from him. Glancing at her bent over, plump ass jutting
out as she washed the cleanser off her face, he wondered if she would object to
a blowjob, or a handjob, or even just letting him rub against her, any part of
her, until he was finished.
Sweating, he made his way out of the room and went downstairs, hoping for a
good breakfast to distract him. Maybe if he ate twice as much as he usually
did, he'd feel so full and uncomfortable he wouldn't want to place his penis in
between his wife's thighs and squeeze them together and stimulate himself until
he came. It hadn't been this bad in the hospital! Then again, he was drained of
so much blood that having an erection was probably impossible or he would have
died. Once he was on the bottom steps, he noticed an unusual flurry of
activity. What the hell was going on? Men and women were scooting furniture
around and cleaning. Were they moving?
"Mom!" he shouted over the noise, going to where Izayoi stood in the middle of
the chaos, directing people almost twice her height and apparent age with
authority. "What the hell is going on?!"
"My baby!" she squealed, pulling him into an embrace. His mother always greeted
him like she hadn't seen him in years, even when he was just a child and they
spent nearly every waking moment together. "I'm just getting everything ready
for your party!"
"Party?" he questioned, separating from the hug which was certainly not the
most welcome thing in his condition and looking around him. There was no one he
recognized, not that he knew a lot of people anyway. "For what?"
"Your mating!" Izayoi said, pointing a finger to the window and forcing a
sweaty, burly man to change the position of a large armchair. "Your father and
I didn't get to go to your wedding, so we're having a mating party, just like
they used to do in the old days!" Her face got a dreamy look on it. "I remember
our mating festival. It lasted seven days and seven nights, and anyone who
objected to our union was impaled on your father's sword and had their lands
absorbed into ours. Their heads piled up almost higher than the gifts and
offerings. Toga used to be so sweet!"
Mouth open in shock, Inuyasha recovered himself and managed to sputter out, "B-
B-But I haven't even talkedto her about mating! I sort of just tried it last
time and that didn't turn out too well. What if she doesn't want to anymore?!"
Eyes narrowing in anger, Izayoi stomped over to him, her pink bunny slippers
somewhat minimizing the threatening look she was going for. "Then you ask her,
Inuyasha. She is your wife, the mother of your child, and I already called the
caterer." When he did not move, her hands clenched into fists and she shrieked,
"NOW!"
Jumping into action, Inuyasha ran like the coward he had temporarily become,
bounding up the stairs and darting into his room, where Kagome was just
beginning to take Hajime to her breast. Odd feelings of jealousy beginning to
curl in his stomach, he pushed away thoughts of what he could be doing if her
vagina was only back to normal and instead concentrated on how to break the
news to her.
"What is it, Inuyasha?" Kagome asked in her soft mom voice, her eyes on Hajime,
rubbing the fine black hairs on the back of his head.
"Uh…" he began, hoping she wouldn't freak out and start yelling and make the
baby cry and turn him deaf for the rest of the century. "Well, um, Mom kind of,
without asking me, organized a sort of party."
"Party?" she asked in interest, eyes glancing up and meeting his. "For what?"
"Uh, it's a mating party."
"But we're not mates," she pointed out, brow furrowing in slight confusion.
"Yeah, it's, uh, sorta like a wedding. We'd have the mating after."
"…But I can't have sex."
"That's not essential to mating," Inuyasha informed her, edging closer to her.
At least she didn't seem mad. "It's really just the bite, but traditionally sex
is involved."
"Oh. Okay."
"Okay?" he repeated, dumbfounded. How was she alright with his parents making
decisions for her? He'd thought it was the two of them against the world, that
she would feel the same way he did about such important things.
Shrugging, she said, "Yeah. We kind of planned on mating, anyway, even if we
didn't really talk about it. Seems like a good time to me now that you're free
of poison and all."
Sighing, not having entirely absorbed what she just said, Inuyasha watched
Hajime happily sucking away on the breast that used to belong just to him.
Kagome had a free one already out, couldn't she just let him have a taste of
her too while he jerked himself off? Mouth already opening to ask her, he
looked up only to see his wife glaring at him, already knowing what was on his
mind. Without words, Kagome merely shook her head and clutched Hajime to her a
bit closer as if to say that was his space and his alone for however long she
wanted.
Grimacing, Inuyasha headed to the kitchen, coming to terms with the idea of
cold cereal followed by a cold shower.
O/\o/\O
Since Toga had not told him to go into work, Inuyasha played hooky and ran
around in the woods all day just as he had done during childhood. It seemed
that returning to his parents' house had made him regress in several ways, and
he was not oblivious to the fact. Unfortunately, that just made everything
worse for him. Try as he might to fight against it, he could not help feeling
stuck, just as he had during the worst years of his life. Even though the one
who had created his hell was no longer there, the ghost of him remained, and no
place was safe aside from the forest. Sesshomaru had been something of a neat
freak and detested the dirty outdoors, leaving Inuyasha that one haven, that
little slice of a sanctuary.
But to the adult half-demon, it was a sanctuary no longer.
Instead of tall trees with swaying branches that seemed to welcome him and
invite him to climb them, everything was still and dark, the only noises being
that of the animals rustling about and surviving. He no longer had the glow of
childhood to protect him, not now that he had found real happiness only to have
it ripped away by an unplanned pregnancy and controlling parents. But it was
too late for wishing now. With a sigh, he hopped off a naked tree and ran
towards the house. It was evening now and the party was about to begin. The
fact that no one had come looking for him made the bitterness cling a bit
tighter to his soul.
He entered through the French doors in the back of the house, ignoring the
tables full of steaming hot trays of finger food and his mother's nagging,
going straight up the staircase, wondering what to wear that would seem
suitable but not too uncomfortable. The door to his room was closed, and he
pushed it open just in time to see Kagome step into a pink evening gown,
struggling to get it over her hips and then again over her chest. Once her
naked body was completely obscured, he felt it was safe to walk over to her.
"I don't think that's gonna zip," he murmured, putting his arms around her
waist, savoring the feel of her bare back against his clothed torso.
With a humph, Kagome squared her shoulders, wriggling out of his grasp. "Just
try!" she hissed, irritated for some reason.
Sighing, Inuyasha did as she asked, surprised when it went up without straining
at the seams. She turned around, brushing past him to go into the attached
bathroom and finish her makeup, giving him a good look at how the sleeveless
dress pushed up her breasts, making them appear too large for her frame.
Frowning, he followed after her. He never told her, but he liked to see her go
through her beautifying routine. It reminded him of when he was a very young
child and used to watch his mother do the same, making herself beautiful for
when his father would come home.
"Did you pick me out a suit?" he asked, leaning against the counter on his
elbows, watching her face in the mirror. Her layers of powder foundation and
blush were already on and she was finishing up her eyeliner, emphasizing the
blue of her eyes with a silver pencil over the black cat-eye wing.
Pursing her lips, she responded in a tight voice, "Izayoi said you had all your
old clothes in the closet."
"Fine, fine," he mumbled, heading towards the walk-in closet. Back during the
short amount of time they had been living in the house together, which now
seemed like forever ago, she had always picked out his clothes for him every
single morning, even his socks. It had annoyed him then, but now he missed it.
Picking a suit at random, he began undressing, avoiding the full-length mirror
on the opposite wall. "I don't get why we have to do this thing today," he
called out to Kagome.
"I think your mother's just bored," she replied, sounding bored herself. "She
didn't even ask if there was anyone I'd like to be there. It's an excuse to
dress up."
Inuyasha grinned. So he wasn't alone in resenting their loss of freedom.
Pulling on his trousers, he continued, "It's probably just gonna be the same
old crowd of ancient demons talking about the good ole days when they used to
eat humans and rule the world, yada yada yada."
"Did demons seriously eat humans?!" Kagome asked in a hushed, curious voice,
entering the closet. Her eyes were big and conveyed her sudden morbid
fascination with the subject. "Did your dadeat humans?!"
Inuyasha shrugged and finished buttoning his shirt, which would certainly be
wrinkled and stained by the time the evening was through. Fuck, he hated
dressing up. "Probably. He's really fucking old. But I don't think any of them
have done it lately. Pretty sure it's illegal."
"Wow," Kagome breathed. "I guess they leave a lot out of history books."
Before he could respond, there was a knock on the door, and some random hired
help called to tell them the first guests were arriving. Inuyasha watched
Kagome tug on the loose tendrils of her hair nervously and rolled his eyes. It
was a party, not a fucking battlefield. Granted, it sucked, but still. She
scurried over to check on the sleeping Hajime in his crib, her face softening.
Looking away, he decided to go down first. Might as well get it over with.
While the party was far from being in full swing, the guests were already
drinking and their noise level was that of people who have known each other a
long time and had no secrets. Alcohol was in everyone's hand and the band his
mother had hired was playing some old timey big band swing shit. Inuyasha knew
it was Izayoi's favorite kind of music since she had played it throughout his
childhood (when it had actually been popular), further proving the party might
be in their honor but was not exactly theirs.
Grumbling negative nonsense to himself, he wandered over to the bartender and
glared at him until he gave him a glass of champagne. Turning his back to the
bar and leaning against it, he scoped out the party-goers, recognizing each and
every one of them. The only thing missing from the old days was his brother and
his stupid troupe of degenerates. Sighing in relief, he relaxed his shoulders
the littlest bit.
"Inuyasha!" a voice boomed, and he tensed up again.
"Miroku?" he questioned wonderingly, watching his friend approach, his tired
wife following behind him, glaring at all the women they passed. "What the fuck
are you doing here, man?"
With a grin, he clapped him on the shoulder and grabbed the champagne from his
hand, downing it as he appeared to have downed many others already. "Your mom
called us up and invited us today! She apologized it was on such short notice,
but when she explained the reason and offered us a freaking limo ride here, we
just had to come. Shit, you didn't tell me you were fucking married, dude!"
"Hello, Inuyasha," Sango muttered, visibly perking up when the bartender handed
her a drink. He knew she usually abstained, but she probably felt free to let
loose since she wouldn't be her husband's babysitter and designated driver for
once.
"So is it the Milf?" Miroku asked in what he almost certainly thought was a low
voice. "Did you get over the jailbait yet or are you just keeping her around
for later? You kinky fucker," he finished, his voice full of admiration.
Rolling his eyes, he was about to explain when the hairs on the back of his
neck stood up and the color pink filled his peripheral vision.
"K-Kagome," he faltered. She looked angry, but the expression in her eyes was
complete hurt. "Uh, this is my friend Miroku and his wife Sango. I was planning
on introducing—"
"Did everyone know but me?" she said from between clenched teeth, the aura of
anger radiating from her petite frame bringing them to the attention of every
demon there. "Everyone knew you were doing—that—with my mother but me?"
He opened his mouth but no words came out. Miroku was openly staring at
Kagome's chest, ignoring both the severity of the situation and his wife's
glares.
Kagome's eyes filled with tears and he felt lower and dirtier than gum on a
city sidewalk. She continued, "Did you think you'd just build yourself some
sort of harem? Had we never found out, would you just have kept going back and
forth between us, stringing us both along?" Her voice picked up volume with
each word she spoke and now the guests were openly staring, easily able to hear
her over the noise of the band since they were primarily demons. A laugh
escaped her, sounding choked, and was quickly followed by a sob.
"It's not like that!" he pleaded, glancing around at the judgmental faces he
had known all his life.
"Shut up!" she demanded. "I don't want to hear it. I'm tired of lies, Inuyasha.
I'm just… I'm just tired."
His heart began to thump in panic, knowing she wasn't saying she was sleepy or
something. No, she was tired of him, tired of life with him.
"Kagome!" he implored as he grabbed her wrist, her name the only thing he was
able to say under the circumstances. When she didn't pull away, he found the
courage to continue. "Please, let's talk upstairs. We'll go over it all, okay?
Just not here."
Her lower lip trembled but she still did not let tears fall. Her head jerked
downward once before righting, and he recognized it as a nod. Gradually, the
chatter around them turned to different topics and he was glad his parents were
nowhere in sight. Toga usually retreated early on to his office with several of
his closest business partners, where they gambled large sums of money and other
things. Izayoi preferred to micromanage the staff as much as possible before
coming out when the party was at its best and mingling with the more important
guests.
"So," Miroku said casually, reminding Inuyasha of his presence. "You're the
jailbait, I'm guessing."
Inuyasha scowled at him and was about to take out his frustrations on his face
when Sango came over and shook her head at him, eyes stern. Something about
that amazon warned him not to fuck with her tonight, so he kindly kept his
hands by his side and glared at the ground.
"No, I'm Kagome. His wife and the one who gave birth to his child," Kagome
said, her voice dripping with venom.
"Ohhh," Miroku nodded, taking a half-empty flute of champagne someone had
abandoned on a nearby table and downing it quickly. "Wait, there's a baby?
Shit, dude, we don't hang out for a few months and suddenly you're Mr. Family
Man. What the hell happened?!"
Inuyasha shrugged. "I told you I fell in love, didn't I?" he said, casting a
sheepish glance at Kagome.
"Aw, boy or girl?" Sango asked, her expression taking on a soft feminine look
he had never before seen on the gym teacher's face.
"A boy," Kagome replied, smiling genuinely for the first time all evening. "We
named him Hajime."
"How old is he?"
"Two weeks. I'll introduce you two sometime tonight," Kagome promised,
obviously having taken to the woman already.
"Don't be giving Sango any ideas," Miroku said loudly, throwing an arm limply
around his wife's shoulders. Oblivious to her growing annoyance, he nuzzled her
ear and took the lobe into his mouth. "We're not gonna have any little monsters
running around anytime soon."
Inuyasha cringed. The entire time he had known Miroku, he'd heard him
complaining about Sango's infertility. For some reason Inuyasha could not
comprehend, Miroku wanted a large family and always had. His relationship with
Sango had begun to go south as soon as they knew for certain she was the one
with the problem, but he stayed with her because he loved her. Over time, Sango
had suggested adopting, as she too really wanted a family, but Miroku refused
and now acted like he never wanted kids in the first place.
"You two are… married?" Kagome asked, obviously confused.
Sango nodded and discreetly elbowed Miroku in the stomach, making him dry heave
a couple times before he recovered. "We met in high school and we've been
together ever since," she said with a tight smile. "Though we've only been
married about a year."
"Twelve yearsss," Miroku groaned, sounding pained. "A baker's dozen minus one."
Kagome nodded uneasily and shot him a quick look which he read instantly. She
was afraid they were going to end up like that. Grimacing, Inuyasha took
another sip of champagne, wishing for something stronger. He knew Sango and
Miroku looked like a mess right now, but he was also privy to a lot of personal
information via the male portion of the duo, who was as chatty and needlessly
candid as a teenage girl most of the time. Miroku loved her deeply, he just
forgot sometimes. Sango was just as attached, but was far more dedicated to
their relationship. He only seemed to remember how much she mattered to him
when he saw her speak to another guy or when she threatened to leave, which she
didn't do as frequently as she should, in his opinion. Several times Miroku had
made it obvious he cared for no one like he cared for her. Hell, to him all
other girls were just sluts worth nothing more than an hour here and there. It
was Sango he came home to, Sango he gave gifts to, Sango he married, and Sango
he loved.
Him and Kagome would never have their problems, he promised to himself. He'd
never cheat on her. Why would he when she was everything he'd ever wanted? And
she wouldn't be unfaithful to him. The mere thought frightened him and he
clutched his champagne in reaction. No, Kagome was too good to ever be with
another. They were made for each other and he was sure she felt the same way.
Feeling a small amount of uneasiness anyway, Inuyasha reached out and put his
arm around her shoulders, bringing her flush against his side. Only when she
relaxed against him and did not try and pull away did he begin to breathe
normally again.
"So what have you—" Sango began to say, but a disturbance from across the room
captured her attention and their eyes followed hers.
At first, Inuyasha did not recognize her. She was too far away for him to smell
in such a crowded room and was much changed. Her hair now reached her shoulders
in gray-streaked black strands, greasy and unwashed but still frizzing. The
raincoat she wore was long and brown, missing a plastic button or two, the open
spaces revealing a dark men's shirt over matching sweatpants, and she wore
ratty old gray slippers on her feet. He was about to make a joke of the old
woman's appearance when she began to speak, her familiar voice horrifying him.
"Inuyasha Taisho is a liar and a thief!" Mrs. Higurashi yelled in a powerful,
hate-filled voice that managed to be louder than the still playing brass band.
Everyone turned to look in his direction and he smiled tremulously on instinct
when confronted with the sudden attention. Remembering Kagome's overwhelmed
state, he glanced at her, quickly taking in her terrified eyes and trembling
lips. Her face had gone white as a sheet beneath her make-up and there were
visible drops of sweat on her bared neck and temples.
"He lied to me," Mrs. Higurashi continued, her voice sounding rough, breaking
at the end. "He lied to me and pretended he loved me and then he took my
daughter and twisted her. And now he invites me to their mating party like
everything is fine!"
Miroku giggled nervously next to him and Sango just looked highly
uncomfortable. Inuyasha began to sweat as well, the anxiety and complete guilt
and sorrow radiating from Kagome making him feel physically ill. Just as he was
about to dart away and take his wife with him to his forest of sanctuary, his
parents made an appearance. Izayoi's smile outshone any beauty pageant queen's
and his father looked just as wealthy and powerful and confident as ever.
Several men in plain black suits streamed from the doorway they had just
entered from and two of them grabbed Mrs. Higurashi by her arms, speaking in
low, soothing voices to her and dragging her away when she dug her heels in and
did not cooperate. Inuyasha felt Kagome next to him begin to shake, and he held
her tighter, worried she would faint.
Izayoi skipped over to them, leaving Toga to address the guests and use his
commanding presence to make them understand it was in their best interests to
forget the small blight on the otherwise good party. Inuyasha noticed the skin
around his mother's eyes was tight, the smile plastered on her face not
distracting those who truly knew her from her obvious nervousness and mild
embarrassment. Without a word, she slipped her hand in the crook of his elbow
and dragged him away and up the stairs to his room. He switched from keeping
his arm around Kagome to holding her hand, and they went through the deserted
halls of the rest of the house like a human chain.
When finally they reached his room, Izayoi closed the doors and took a deep
breath before facing them.
"What," she asked in her sugary voice that told him he was very much in
trouble, "was all that about?"
Since Kagome had immediately collapsed and sat on the bed, staring with blank
eyes at Hajime's cradle, the burden of a response was on Inuyasha, who
swallowed past the lump in his throat and tried to think of an appropriate
answer.
"Uh, well, that—"
"Just tell her," Kagome whispered hoarsely, her face still expressionless.
Worried, he moved a bit closer to her, wanting to comfort her but not wanting
to do so in front of a witness, especially his mother.
Sighing, he decided to just go for it. "That was Kagome's mother. I'm guessing
you sent her an invitation?" At her hesitant nod, he continued, "She and I…
Well, before I met Kagome, I was working for her mother at their shrine as a
sort of handyman. And uh, we had a—physical relationship," he finished in a
mumble, his ears burning. "But that ended when Kagome and I got together. When
she found out about us, she sort of lost it and kicked us out and well, now
we're here." He shrugged, not very fond of the topic.
Concern the only emotion etched onto her face, Izayoi sat next to Kagome on the
bed and put her arm around her. "I am so, so sorry, Kagome," she said in a
quiet voice. "I had no idea. This was supposed to be a fun surprise for you,
but I didn't think…"
"It's okay," Kagome murmured, wiping a tear from her eye.
"No, it's not," Izayoi returned, her voice upset. "Now you can't be mates!"
"What?!" Inuyasha roared, his outburst disturbing Hajime and making him
whimper. "What do you mean we can't—"
"I meant not tonight," Izayoi clarified, her arm still around Kagome. "Your
mating will be officially rescheduled until you are both at a place of peace,
love, and harmony."
"Why?" Kagome asked, seeming only a fraction as upset as he was.
"The feelings you both possess during your mating will be preserved throughout
the entire course of your relationship." When Kagome and Inuyasha just looked
at her in confusion, she rolled her violet eyes. "I suppose it's my fault for
not teaching you, Inuyasha. I never thought you'd find your mate this early,
though. But anyway, what you feel for your partner during your mating will be
the same sorts of feelings you have for them during the rest of your lives."
"But… Why?" Kagome asked again, glancing at him.
"When you mate, your lifespan will match his, unless he dies first, in which
case you will revert back to your normal human one, right where you left off,"
she explained patiently. "Imagine—living that long. Humans weren't meant for
that. Our feelings aren't like theirs, Kagome. Even you, Inuyasha, aren't fully
capable of that demonic unconditional, eternal love. That's why once you mate,
your feelings during that moment are going to be preserved. "
"So we'll never fall out of love?" Inuyasha asked. No one had ever told him
anything like that before; he just knew about the bite. He never even thought
about what would happen when their very mortal feelings were brought into the
realm of immortality. Like most people, he liked to believe true love was
everlasting, but had realized long ago that among most human and unmated
couples, the romantic love was only there during the first few months. The rest
was just stubborn faithfulness.
Izayoi nodded. "Not if you do it right. Take Toga and I, for example. When we
mated, we both knew we wouldn't be accepted by my family or by the demon world.
Even now, hundreds of years later, I cry when he has to leave, even if it's
just for work or we're at a restaurant and he's going to the bathroom. And he
feels compelled to keep me away from people as though we're still living back
then and my life could be in danger." She sighed. "It's not like I want to be
that way, but our mating was tinged with sadness. I love him more than
anything, and I know he loves me, but because we were not just focusing on how
much we loved one another while we mated, we have complications."
Kagome looked at him and he realized he had been staring at her. Before she
could recover and change her expression, he saw the doubt in her eyes.
"How long do you think it will take for us to get to that place?" Kagome asked.
Izayoi shrugged. "I don't know. However, I think you two should talk now while
I go downstairs and help Toga out with damage control." Rising to her feet, she
kissed Kagome's head, tweaked Inuyasha's ear, and stopped to look down into
Hajime's crib. "It's important for you to be your own little family right now.
We'll have another party after you mate."
As soon as Izayoi closed the door behind her, Inuyasha sat down next to Kagome
on the bed, making her bounce with the force of his actions. The look on her
face was pure annoyance, but he pushed his wounded feelings aside and glared at
her.
"You don't want to mate me," he stated, thankful he was only feeling the anger
now and none of the despair.
Kagome snorted and turned away, her nose going up in the air. "You're acting
like youeven want to mate me."
With a growl, he grabbed her chin and forced her to look at him. "I fucking do
and you know it. Now why the fuck are you acting like such a fucking bitch?!"
"Why am I acting like a bitch?!" she screeched, rising to her feet. "You're the
one who's been ignoring me for months, even while I was pregnant. 'Working', my
ass," she scoffed, glaring at him. "And the only times you pay attention to me
are when you want sex or when you're telling me I'm fat!"
Gaping at her, he quickly recovered and stood as well, ignoring the baby's
increasingly distressed noises. "And what about you, huh? First Hojo, then
Kōga, and a fucking human baby. How do I even know it's mine?!"
He knew he had gone too far as soon as she said it, and instead of feeling
gratified when she burst into tears, he just felt like shit.
"Do you want a DNA test?!" she sobbed. "Do you really want to do that to us?"
Groaning, he covered his face with his hands and lay back on the bed. "I don't
want to get into this shit with you right now."
Of course, that just made her tears worsen, which made Hajime's whines turn
into screams, and she grabbed him out of the cradle and locked herself in the
bathroom. Shucking off his suit jacket and unbuttoning his shirt, he listened
to Kagome try to soothe the baby while still choking on her own pathetically
heart-wrenching sobs. Feeling his ears droop, he dropped his pants to the pile
of his clothes on the floor, not caring if they wrinkled, and got in bed,
pulling the covers over his head and pressing his cheek into the pillow. It
wasn't like he doubted the baby was his. He had at first, though. Who wouldn't?
The words had just come out before he could stop them and then it was too late.
After everything he had done for her, shouldn't she understand by now? Sure,
she didn't know the details, he thought, his brow furrowing, but didn't she
just instinctively feel something? Kagome had known something was up while he
was working under Sesshomaru (in the most literal sense). Couldn't she just
connect the dots and save him the agony of trying to explain himself to her?
A headache beginning to form behind his eyes, he allowed it to combine with the
nausea he'd felt ever since Mrs. Higurashi had appeared and force him to sleep.
If Kagome crawled into bed next to him that night, he didn't feel it.
O/\o/\O
Kagome sighed happily, giggling at Hajime as his bath bubbled even before she
could put the soap in.
"Silly boy," she said, wrinkling her nose. "Just don't make a habit of it."
He giggled back at her, his eyes so very much like hers sparkling with the pure
innocence she cherished. Had her mother ever felt this way about her and Sota?
Pushing that depressing thought away, she grabbed one of his tiny feet and
gently wiped it with the soft sponge shaped like a star. The soap she scrubbed
him down with was a mild one so as not to offend her husband's nose. Though it
wasn't like he spent any time with him, anyway, Kagome thought with a small
frown, not even her child's laughter at the sensation of his toes being tickled
enough to lift her spirits after that thought.
Putting on a smile for his benefit, somewhat paranoid about showing her sorrow
and damaging him in some way and ending up with a grown-up murdering
degenerate, Kagome finished bathing him in the little plastic tub in the
bathroom sink, wondering at how he had grown so much in such a short amount of
time. His skin had lost all the redness and his hair seemed somehow finer and
darker. Grabbing the blue towel to the right of the sink, she wrapped him up
tightly—but not too tight—and traveled over to the crib, where she patiently
fitted him with a new diaper and began dressing him in his best crochet booties
and matching white onesie. The reason for his beauty treatment was, as usual,
his playdates with Noriko and Kōga. It wasn't a playdate per se, since Hajime
was too young to even sit up by himself. The occasions mostly consisted of
Kagome and Kōga talking about anything and everything while they watched Noriko
chew on every toy and sometimes even her fiancé, which his mother always made
sure to put a stop to immediately.
His wife, Ayame, never came. Kagome used to feel a bit strange about that
detail, but then Kōga explained to her that having a baby had taken a deep toll
on her nerves and she was quite grateful for the little vacations from
mommyhood. She couldn't understand it herself, as any time she spent away from
Hajime had her feeling on the verge of an anxiety attack, so certain that
something terrible would happen. But to each their own.
Now that Hajime was clean and handsome, Kagome carried him to the playroom,
which had been the room Izayoi had set aside for a nursery before Kagome had
insisted on keeping him with her. Her guests had arrived a few minutes ago,
comfortable enough to settle down and wait without supervision. Fixing a smile
on her face and hoping it looked genuine, she swept into the room, greeting her
future daughter-in-law and her father before setting Hajime down in his little
swing seat.
"How was work?" Kagome asked, fighting off feelings of nervousness when Kōga
immediately switched from his seat near his daughter on the floor to the
cushion next to her on the sofa.
He shrugged. "It runs itself."
Kagome nodded, wishing he'd at least make something up so they'd have something
to talk about. She knew he only went in a couple times a week and only then for
a few hours. Sometimes she wondered at how a man who seemed as energetic as her
husband would avoid activity like Kōga did. The thought of Inuyasha made her
feel like crying. Ever since their fight a little over a week ago, he had gone
back to work and made a point of avoiding her, only coming to bed when she was
already fast asleep. Though she wanted to wait up for him, her body was still
recovering from giving birth and looking after a little one thoroughly
exhausted her. Getting the hang of parenthood was sort of hard, she was
discovering, especially since she was going it practically alone. Sure, Izayoi
helped out as much as she could and was glad to do so, and even Toga liked to
help sometimes, but that was different. She wanted Inuyasha.
"That's nice," she murmured, too emotionally drained to bother with keeping up
the conversation like she normally did.
"It is," he said with a grin, leaning closer to her. This time, she thought to
herself rebelliously, she wouldn't lean away. Even if his presence did have the
uncanny ability to make her develop a nervous tic in her left eye. "I can do
whatever I want, since I own the company," he continued. "My father doesn't
control my life. I made my own way."
Kagome winced at how obvious he was being. Why didn't he like Inuyasha? The
least he could do was keep those kinds of thoughts to himself while in her
presence.
A small furrow in her brow, her only response was a murmured, "How wonderful."
To her horror, that only seemed to encourage him. "You know, you could do a lot
better than that boy you're with."
Tearing her eyes away from where Hajime was dozing next to a babbling Noriko,
she responded, "You mean Inuyasha?"
He nodded, blue eyes flashing with something she could not identify. "I could
take care of you, Kagome," he wooed her, grasping her hands, seemingly
oblivious to how thoroughly uncomfortable she was.
She was thisclose to flinging him off of her and forbidding him from ever
coming to her home again, but then she remembered why they knew each other in
the first place: Hajime. But she would be lying to herself if she said she
didn't appreciate the attention. That's what made her so scared of him all the
time. What if one day, Inuyasha pushed her too far and she did something she'd
regret just in the hope of getting his attention? Already it was hard not to
give in to his kind words and heated looks. Again, Kagome reminded herself of
Hajime, calming her rapidly beating heart and tried to reason with him (and
herself).
"But what about Ayame?" she asked, keeping her gaze on his forehead. Something
about staring into his eyes directly unnerved her.
He snorted. "Our mating was arranged. Believe me, if I could have avoided it, I
would have. I can't stand her." The vehemence in his tone nearly made her gasp.
"Then why are you condemning your own daughter to that same life?"
With a sigh, he said, "It's for a good cause. I came here sure I was going to
turn down Toga's offer, but once I saw you, I knew I couldn't. I can't let you
see your son die, Kagome."
"Thank you," was all she could manage.
The heaviness in the air increased and Kōga leaned closer to her. Kagome felt a
helpless feeling rise up in her chest. All she could think about was Inuyasha
and how this wouldn't be happening if he would only come home and spend time
with her. Before whatever was going to happen happened, a splash of liquid on
the floor and a series of little burps distracted her, giving her the courage
to pull her hands away. Hajime had spit up, most of it going to the wood floor
where Noriko was now slapping it with her little hands, screeching in delight.
"Shit," Kōga cursed, a dark scowl on his face.
Kagome laughed uneasily and gathered Hajime up into her arms. "I'm so sorry,
Kōga. I'll clean up and then it's time to put Hajime down for his nap and
Izayoi wanted me to expand some rooms in the design of the guest house…" she
trailed off, trying to look apologetic rather than relieved.
The demon sighed and got to his feet. "It's no problem, Kagome. I'll grab
Noriko and get outta your hair. See you tomorrow!" he finished pleasantly, the
tone of his voice belying the spark in his eyes.
Before she could react, he leaned down and kissed her cheek before picking up
his daughter and leaving the room. She didn't move until she heard him wash off
Noriko's hands, bid Toga and Izayoi adieu, and then leave the house. A sigh
that was more like a sob escaped her, and she held Hajime tighter, not caring
that his mouth was dirty and he was probably about to give her a repeat
performance of earlier. Tears trickled out of her eyes and she rubbed her cheek
on the soft top of the baby's head to comfort herself. If only Inuyasha were
there…
Chapter End Notes
     End Note: So, several people have told me they miss the sex scenes.
     They're kinda hard to fit in (no pun intended) when the two leads are
     fighting and one's vagina is still all messed up. Also, I like to
     think that the few parts of my stories that are not sex scenes are at
     least a little enjoyable. I don't want to keep writing porn 24/7. It
     gets boring. I'm very tempted to make a new account after this series
     of stories are finished and just start over so I don't have to deal
     with everyone's expectations.
***** Imagination Is a Powerful Deceiver *****
Chapter Notes
     Note: Sorry I'm not updating as quickly as I used to. I kinda don't
     have as much time to write as I thought I would. Just know a whole
     lotta junk is going on right now (like A LOT, holy shit, just
     thinking about it makes me tired) and also I'm more than sad and
     things just don't flow like they used to. This story is only written
     up to chapter 20, so if I don't get time soon then the time between
     updates will be even longer. On the bright side, I'm about halfway
     done with the sequel to Want Some Help to Please Myself and started
     the next chapter of Bizarre Love Triangle, so feel free to celebrate.
     There's also another one-shot coming up soon and it's kinda different
     from everything else I've written in that it is very normal and
     sweet.
     Fear not, I'm not abandoning anything. Even if something happened and
     I couldn't ever continue, I would post my completed outline so you'd
     be able to see how it would end (unless I die or something). I'm a
     reader too, you know, and I hate stories without proper endings
     (fucking Movie House Hanyou and S-Android, I will fucking finish you
     in my head, you bastards). I've even written some not very charitable
     reviews on stories that weren't given an ending, so you know I'm
     passionate about that.
Thirteen: Imagination Is a Powerful Deceiver
"What's this?" Inuyasha asked, kicking over a large plastic-wrapped woven
basket. Sniffing around, he realized it was full of fruit and chocolate. The
scent dizzied him a bit, and he leaned against the wall.
"A gift," Kagome replied distractedly, busy playing with Hajime's toes on the
bed.
Rolling his eyes, he clumsily shucked off his jacket and lay down on the bed.
After a long day of dealing with incompetent, mouth-breathing shit faces who
all thought they knew better than him, all he wanted to do was come home and
sleep. This fucker Naraku glared at him during every meeting and went on and on
about how much more experienced Sesshomaru was, how better suited for the job.
The way those red eyes looked at him made Inuyasha feel like he knew everything
his bastard brother had done to him, and he'd begun having very vivid fantasies
of clawing the executive open. Such stress had made him sloppy with work, which
led to more hours to fix his mistakes, which led to his father yelling at him
all the time, which led to him going out to drink with Miroku at the end of the
day and coming home smelling like he'd bathed in alcohol. Under the influence,
he could tell his only friend all his problems, and he gave him answers that
seemed to make sense.
Every day this week there had been a different package or basket of some sort
filled with delicacies and various goodies. After ignoring it and hoping Kagome
would just open up and tell him, he had finally become curious enough to
actually ask her. Miroku had said communication was more important than pride.
He'd also said Kagome was too hot to wait around at home for him all day and
was probably fucking someone as they spoke. This struck Inuyasha right in that
part of his heart that housed all his deepest fears, and he had rushed home and
began the rather stilted conversation they were currently in the middle of.
"I know that," he scoffed. "But from who?" Could it be the return of Hojo? He
thought he'd scared the fucker off by marrying Kagome. What more would he have
to do to get her to himself?
"Kōga," she said after a short pause.
Immediately, he sat up and glared at her, a growl in his throat. "What the fuck
was he doing here?"
Of course he had known about the visits. Even if he couldn't smell the wolf's
rancid scent all over his goddamn house, his father and mother had mentioned it
over dinner several times, delighted he was making an effort to have the
engaged children grow up close to one another so as to avoid any unpleasantness
when the time came for them to be mated. But gifts? That was a whole other
thing. Gifts implied courtship, and a married woman was not eligible to be
courted. Especially when that married woman was his wife and her suitor was a
no good fucking wolf.
Kagome shrugged and went back to tickling a bored-looking Hajime's feet. "He
comes over and plays with Hajime and Noriko and we talk and stuff. Usually we
have lunch together."
He didn't like where this was going. "And about how long does that take?" he
asked from between clenched teeth.
"A few hours. Most days, Kōga comes right after breakfast and leaves right
before you get home." She didn't seem to notice how badly this was affecting
him, and if she did she didn't say anything.
A few hours. A few hours. Inuyasha couldn't honestly remember the last time
he'd had a few hours to spend with Kagome. Just a few pleasant hours when they
did nothing but enjoy each other. All day he worked in that fucking office that
had been Sesshomaru's, feeling just as confined and imprisoned as he had felt
when being dominated every day in the same room. Even the color of the paint
nauseated him, taking him back to feelings of helplessness and despair. And the
fucking employees who had previously worked for his brother weren't exactly
fond of him. No, they resented him, his half-demon blood, his sudden gain in
status. They made everything so much harder for him than it should be.
Especially Naraku. If he could, he would fire the lot of them, every single
goddamn motherfucking one, but Toga had told him to wait it out and give them
time to adjust. The last thing they needed now was some disgruntled ex-employee
who knew too much taking their personal business to the media.
And here some fucker who had only met his wife, hiswife, not even a month ago
was spending all fucking day with her. It wasn't fair, he thought, his hands
clenching into fists, claws piercing the rough skin of his palms and letting
his blood free. It wasn't fair that he worked so hard and so long wanting to
come back to her and she didn't even care. All she cared about was the fucking
noisy, smelly baby he didn't even like and its fucking engagement. What about
him? When was the last time she had kissed him, made him dinner, asked him how
his day had gone? She didn't even fucking look at him anymore! She never waited
up for him, unless he got home early like today, which had only been possible
because he'd worked his ass off all week for such an opportunity. It was like
they'd gone back to those days when he was a mere laborer and she the daughter
of the house he worked for.
If that wasn't bad enough, he'd also had way more to drink than he should have
with Miroku earlier. It was never exactly a planned thing. One day, he had
shown up outside his office and flirted with his secretary until she let him
in. It never took more than half an hour since he had wanted to come home so
badly, but he had consumed quite a quantity of demon strength hard liquor in
that short amount of time. His friend had a way of getting all his secrets out
of him, and it wasn't long before he was on the verge of tears like some
adolescent girl, whining about his marital problems. Miroku's solution had been
a sympathetic pat on the back and another round, which turned into three and
then four before he lost count. Not being a stranger to alcohol, thanks to his
younger party days, Inuyasha could hold his liquor very well. But it had been a
while since he'd gotten so very drunk, and that combined with his rather
turbulent emotional state was not a very good combination.
Miroku had even suggested he not return home that night after Inuyasha had
mumbled some pretty dark things under his breath. The fact that his friend had
been willing to face his amazon of a wife's wrath and let him sleep on the
couch should have been enough to suggest to Inuyasha he should probably listen
and go along with what his mostly sober companion was saying. But Kagome's face
was stuck in his mind. A slideshow of the way she looked when she was in the
throes of passion flickered behind his eyes, all the snotty words she had ever
said to him playing like an unfitting soundtrack at the same time.
Yes, since the very first moment she laid eyes on him she had always thought
she was better than him. Knew she was better than him. Kagome with her smooth,
soft skin and attractive human features. Blue eyes with long, thick lashes and
pouty pink little lips. Even though they were married, he was still just a
lowly handyman to her, wasn't he? Only fit to work in the dirt, sweating and
slaving away. Nothing would change that. Not all the love he could give, not
the money, the house, the things, a fucking kid. Nothing. He was always just
the mistake, the half-demon, always grasping for something beyond his reach.
Mind made up, he stomped over to where Kagome was, snatching the baby out of
her arms. At first she was only startled, but when she got a good look at the
expression on his face, she became scared. Inuyasha felt like smiling, showing
off his fangs and frightening her further. Going over to the door, he ignored
the baby's screaming protests at being separated from its mother.
"Mom!" he yelled into the darkness of the hallway. When he had come in, Izayoi
and Toga had been cuddling in the kitchen, her feeding him scraps of a roasted
chicken. The cozy scene had only driven home the gulf that had appeared between
him and his own wife. "Mother!" he repeated, putting more urgency into his
voice.
Soon, just as he knew she would, Izayoi came shuffling over, the pink bunny
slippers that were too big for her feet making annoying scratchy dragging
sounds on the wood floor. Her expression was full of maternal concern, her
mouth open to inquire as to what this racket was all about. Before she could
speak, he thrust the baby into her arms, a feeling of relief making its way
into his chest when it quieted down somewhat. Kagome came up off the bed and
ran to the door, but he slammed it shut before she could reach it. She stood
there before him, eyes unsure and hands shaking. After a few seconds, Inuyasha
heard the shuffling again and then they were finally alone.
"W-what are you doing?" Kagome asked, bringing her hands in front of her and
clasping them together in a poor attempt at keeping them still.
He didn't want to talk. He was tired of words, of how something so simple could
hurt and hurt and hurt long after the echo was gone. Inuyasha wanted her to
feel instead, to feel with him. He couldn't tell her what he had been through,
even though he saw the half-formed guesses in her eyes. It would be unbearable
for him to tell her in words. In his mind's eye, he saw him struggling to say
it all, but the words would not come out of his throat, which would swell shut
and kill him, his severe allergy to the truth sending him into anaphylactic
shock. No, words were not the way to get his pain across. But she had to know.
Kagome was so scared. It hurt him to see. Tears were leaking from her eyes,
making their sluggish way down her pretty face. Inuyasha couldn't help himself.
He kissed them away, the little gasp she made spurring him forward. When the
tears were all gone, he went to her lips, lovingly touching his to hers, just
taking in the feel of her softness. To his shame, his lips trembled more than
hers, so long they had been deprived of such contact. But he wouldn't allow
himself to cry, he couldn't. Now was not the time.
As his kisses became more amorous, she began to moan a little, first in
pleasure and then in refusal.
"Inuyasha, no, we can't yet," she whispered against his damp lips,
contradicting her own words and kissing him again, sucking on his lower lip.
Was she denying him? That did it, and he growled, shoving her down onto the
bed. Kagome let out a squeak of surprise and a little fear reentered her eyes.
Within a second, he was on her, his mouth smashing into hers, attacking her
lips, nicking them with his fangs. She tried to push him off, but he didn't
care. The blood was as bitter as it was sweet, and he lapped it up with his
tongue. There wasn't much, just enough to season her skin and make it that much
more delectable. Kagome was crying and saying something, yelling, trying to get
him off of her. But it would never work. Nothing would stop him from getting
what he wanted this time. Not all the pretty looks and soft kisses and kind
eyes could take away the words.
Thankfully, she was just in a robe, a silky blue one with a nightgown made of
the same material underneath. Why tempt him like that and then refuse his
advances? It made no sense. Her hands were beating at his shoulders and he
growled at her, trying to get her to shut up. When that didn't work, he tore
the sash from the robe, breaking the loops that held it, and wrapped it around
her wrists in a strong, sturdy knot. When she continued to fight, swinging at
him with her tied together hands, he grabbed the end of the sash and tied it to
the bed post. After a few seconds of observation, they both realized she could
not fight anymore, not tied up with him holding her legs still. This
realization brought more tears to her eyes, and she begged and pleaded with him
in words he refused to recognize.
Inuyasha already had a firm hold on her legs, and he separated them, his mouth
watering at the sight of her bare parts, the ones no one had seen or touched
but him. Letting go of one leg, he was gratified to see that she did not
attempt to kick at him, already knowing it would only make it worse. He pushed
up her nightgown all the way to her neck, quickly revealing her smooth pale
waist and large breasts. Unzipping his pants, he freed himself, stroking his
cock a few times with a harder grip than he normally enjoyed. Knowing he'd need
help to get inside her, he temporarily released a leg once again and spat in
the palm of his hand several times, coating his cock with his saliva.
Spreading her legs as wide as they would go, he slowly touched the tip of his
penis to the little crinkle of a star he was not yet acquainted with. At the
contact, Kagome began to thrash about once more, and he growled at her in a
warning she did not heed. With one thrust, he forced himself inside her, her
shrieks ringing in his ears like nothing else. Another thrust, and he got the
other half of himself in. He'd had others this way, but none of them compared.
He hadn't known the others, and he certainly had not loved them. Kagome's legs
were still in shock, her mouth open wide in a mute scream. More tears began to
fall from her closed eyes, but he ignored them, turning his attention to her
breasts. He missed the nights where he'd sleep there, nuzzled against her warm
bosom like a content child. Were those days over? Not if he had anything to say
about it. Pulling out only to push inside her again, he watched her breasts
bounce, her larger nipples erect and red. Faster and faster he went, his
breathing coming in gasps and going out moans.
Now was the time for words.
"You're a dirty little bitch," he growled, following it up with a hiss of
pleasure. "Dirty, disgusting, nasty freak…" he trailed off, finally losing
himself to the tight heat of her ass.
Exhausted, he collapsed onto her chest, rubbing his face on her breasts.
Glancing up at her, he saw her face was red with shame and wet with tears.
Briefly, he thought to himself that if he wasn't so incredibly fucking
shitfaced, he'd get her a tissue and untie her. With that last thought, he
drifted off into a dreamless sleep.
O/\o/\O
A pounding head woke him up the next day. For a minute, he stayed still,
wondering at the warm pillow of flower petals beneath him. Then the pillow
shifted, and he opened his eyes to see the pale skin of Kagome's breasts.
Grunting, he slowly raised his head, squinting his eyes at the combination of
sunlight and artificial lamplight. Why were the lights on if it was daytime?
Belatedly, he realized with a start that judging by the amount of sunlight in
the room, he had slept in far past the time his alarm should have gone off.
Turning back to Kagome in order to get some answers, he was struck by the
blank, dazed expression on her face. Her eyes just stared at the ceiling and
she didn't acknowledge his presence. If it wasn't for the slight trembling he
observed in her tied arms, he would have thought she was dead.
"I think…we need separate rooms," she whispered, her voice high and shaky.
It was then that Inuyasha remembered everything from the night before, and he
wrenched away from where he was still sprawled out carelessly on her small
body, stumbling to his feet. No amount of horror and remorse he felt for his
actions could change the fact that alcohol had not been the prime motivator
behind said actions. Far more than that had been the lust and the all-consuming
rage that had made a home in him ever since he was denied his revenge and then
ordered about like a puppet. He had taken all his inner frustration out on
Kagome. Vomit made its way up his esophagus in reaction not to his
overindulgence the night prior but to seeing her bruised breasts, her left
areola bearing a small cut from what could only have been his fang. Judging by
the dark circles underneath her lovely eyes, she had not slept. And how could
she have when he was practically suffocating her with his weight after forcing
himself on her?
"Kagome…" he moaned, his self-hatred reaching a new height.
Nothing.
The lost look on her face made him clench his fists hard enough for his claws
to draw blood. Inuyasha wanted to rend his own flesh even more than he had ever
wanted to tear into Sesshomaru. What made it all worse was that some part of
him, some isolated little thing deep down inside, felt no shame at his actions.
That part of him wanted to fuck her again, this time from behind. It wanted to
leave her tied up and take her again and again until the only thing she
remembered was how to be wanted by him. A little shiver made its way down his
spine and his stomach revolted at the thoughts he only barely acknowledged.
Quickly, while he could still do so, he fumbled at the sash of her robe that he
had used to restrain her, giving up on his newly clumsy fingers and just
slashing at it until she was free. Even when he had done so, Kagome just let
her arms flop down lifelessly onto the bed, still in the same position. His
panicked breathing was interrupted by a sob at seeing what he had done to her.
This wouldn't have happened had Toga not insisted on being so fucking macho. It
never would have happened if Sesshomaru had not been such a monster and tried
to take his happiness from him. It never would have happened if that fucking
wolf had just—
As if on cue, he heard the nasally and overconfident voice of the one who had
helped set last night's events in motion. Kōga. His disgusting scent made its
way to his nose, drifting through the house and forcing its way where it was
not wanted. Growling, Inuyasha dashed from the room, more beast than man now.
As far as he was concerned, if the fucking wolf hadn't pursued what was not his
to have, then Kagome would be laughing and singing a song to their baby, not
laying all catatonic in their bed. Following his nose, he made his way to the
room that had been designated the playroom, the one that had been full of the
wolf's stench for weeks. Punching the slightly open door, no sooner than he
entered the room did he tackled Kōga, said rival's smug face instantly changing
to surprise and then disgust.
They grappled like the canines they were, neither one averse to biting or
clawing. Dimly, he registered the sounds of a baby's cries, but chose to ignore
them. That wasn't what was important right now. Revenge was. In his mind, it
was not just Kōga he was fighting, but the others who had also stolen from him,
namely Sesshomaru and his own father. Inuyasha's desire to kill and crush and
maim was so strong he didn't even notice that he himself was taking damage. A
scratch here, deep enough to tear the muscle, a bite there, taking a great
portion of his flesh with it. All that was nothing. Finally, with a great yell,
his opponent clawed his right ear nearly off his head and followed it up with a
kick to the temple. That proved to be too much for the already overtaxed half-
demon, and he fell to the ground, emptying his stomach on the rich and colorful
carpet.
"Fuckin' asshole," Kōga panted, grabbing his daughter from where she was
shrieking her distress in a playpen across the room. "Crazy fuckin' asshole,
attacking me in front of my own kid."
Inuyasha just continued to retch in response, hardly even registering that the
demon was speaking to him. With a snort, Kōga left the room, giving him a sharp
kick to the stomach for good measure. Finally feeling the combined total of his
guilt and shame and hatred along with his physical pain, Inuyasha let out a
ragged sob and closed his eyes against the tears that burned to escape.
"K-Ka-Kagome," he whispered, the name the only prayer he'd ever made.
O/\o/\O
It could have been hours or days or even minutes that he lay there. Inuyasha
wasn't sure. While he remained conscious, which, in his own private opinion,
was quite unfortunate, he was not exactly aware of his surroundings. Only when
he felt a dampness on his face did he come back to the real world. Rain? Tears?
"Kagome," he murmured, eyes focusing on the female form in front of him.
To his disappointment, it was his mother and not his wife that was caring for
him. Izayoi had a wet paper towel and was wiping the vomit from his lips and
chin like he was a little boy. The action made him so angry, angry like he had
been when he was an actual child, the kind of anger that turned to tears as
soon as one let it out. Her concerned eyes were filled with pity and it just
made him hate himself that much more.
"What in the gods' names were you thinking?" The deep baritone that was his
father's voice made him start, and he scuttled away from his mother and the
mess he'd made on the floor. Toga glared at him with a righteous fire in his
eyes. "Attacking Kōga for no conceivable reason! We're lucky he hasn't decided
to sue, but he's even kind enough to overlook this incident and continue the
engagement," he ranted, pacing across the room in only a few strides.
Mustering up the last of his bravery, Inuyasha merely snorted. "I don't care if
he sues me or breaks off that fucking joke of an 'engagement', that fucker went
too damn far!"
Once again meeting his son's eyes, Toga seemed to be holding back some great
desire to do serious physical damage to him. "And what, exactly, did he do?" he
said in a clipped tone brimming with hostility.
Inuyasha flushed in both anger and embarrassment. Anger that he was about to
tell his parents his marital problems and embarrassment that he couldn't even
keep his wife faithful. "H-he was giving Kagome gifts…" he said lamely, eyes on
the puddle of vomit Izayoi was busily mopping up, trying her best to ignore the
conversation and not get involved like a good little housewife.
Toga laughed and the sound was like a slap to his face. "Kōga has been giving
Izayoi and myself gifts, do you think he's trying to get us into bed as well?"
he barked. Inuyasha flinched at the revelation and Toga suddenly seemed
exhausted, sinking down to the couch and leaning his head back, closing his
eyes. "Whatever the case, Inuyasha, when you feel as though your relationship
is threatened, I would not recommend going after your partner as well as your
rival."
His face burned hotter, this time with shame and guilt and sorrow. They knew.
"I wasn't… She didn't…" Inuyasha didn't know if he had been trying to defend
himself, but quickly shut up when he remembered how Kagome had looked earlier.
He had broken her. Stumbling to his feet, he quickly righted himself and made
his way to the door, ignoring the aches and pains he felt from Kōga's beating.
"I need to go to her, she's hurt…" he whispered, mostly to himself.
Toga snorted, stopping him in his tracks. "Did you think we'd prioritize a few
of your bruises over the mother of our grandchild? Kagome's been taken care of
and is currently resting in the best guest room. We offered to let her keep
your room, but she refused it."
Their interference in another important thing, the most important thing, made
him want to slap the disappointment right off his father's patrician features.
Kagome was his wife, his responsibility, and he wanted to scream that at them,
make them understand he was not to be taken lightly like some idiot child.
Inuyasha opened his mouth to give them a piece of his mind, but said
treacherous organ brought Kagome's dead eyes and blank face up again and the
picture rendered him mute.
"D-do you want breakfast, Inuyasha?" Izayoi said in a small, teary voice, her
soft hands patting his arm, attempting to be comforting. "It's lunchtime now,
but I can make you the smiley face pancakes you like…"
Inuyasha knew she was just trying to be a good mother, but her voice grated
against his ears and made him angrier. Smiley face pancakes, really? He hadn't
enjoyed them since he was seven. He had to get out. He needed to get away from
this suffocating place, his domineering father and space cadet mother. He
needed to get away from Kagome. It wasn't that he wanted to leave her, but he
just knew she wouldn't want him around. If he was her, and he had been in that
place at one point, he'd never want to see him again. The realization made him
sick to his stomach, and he fought off the urge to retch again, continuing on
his path out the door.
"I'm going to work," he announced, stubbornly deciding to run away, even though
it was agony on his wounded legs, just so he wouldn't hear their protests or
any other comments.
It was only when he was a good distance away from the house, his wounds
knitting together but his pain not lessening in the least, that he wondered
what the hell he thought he was going to accomplish by going in. Sure, he could
just go somewhere else, maybe hang out with Miroku or watch a movie or go try
and buy something Kagome would like that would sweeten his eventual apology,
but he couldn't find the energy within himself to do that. All he wanted was to
go somewhere he would be respected by at least a few people, somewhere no one
knew what he had done, what he was capable of doing.
Before he knew it, he was at the tall building, one of the tallest in town,
staring up at it as he had that first night of their reacquaintance what seemed
like forever ago. Huffing an irritated breath, he entered the building, going
to his private elevator. As much as he hated it, being the boss had its perks.
Once he had arrived at his floor, he blew past his secretary, who looked more
than a little surprised to see him. Safely in his office, he collapsed on the
leather sofa, for once feeling his age. Giving a regretful glance to where
Sesshomaru had once stored his alcohol, priceless bottles he had smashed in a
pathetic attempt at a victory celebration after the bastard's demise, he closed
his eyes and just breathed. His head hurt too much to think of ways to make it
up to Kagome, but his heart hurt worse. Lately, it was like she hadn't even
wanted him around. Whenever he came home, she just turned up her nose and
ignored him, talking with his mother or doing something with the baby. He knew
she had been angry, but he didn't understand why. Now he couldn't go home. Was
that what she had wanted all along?
"Sir? Nobunaga from Marketing had these delivered for your approval."
"Thank you, Kikyo," Inuyasha said in a voice that indicated his resentment at
her interruption.
Glaring at her, he was struck for the first time by how she bore a small
resemblance to Kagome. The eyes were all wrong, her nose was straight rather
than slightly turned up at the end, her lips were a shade or two darker, and
she was much taller, but there was still something there. Kikyo had left her
hair down today where normally she wore it in a tight bun and her glasses were
nowhere to be seen. Maybe that was why. Her straight hair fell like a shining
waterfall down her back, a few tendrils over her shoulder.
"Do you need anything else, sir?"
Inuyasha stopped in the middle of shaking his head. "On second thought, I think
I do," he said in a low voice, gesturing for her to sit, which she promptly
did. "Who hired you, Kikyo?"
Appearing somewhat nervous, his secretary quickly recovered herself and cleared
her throat, giving him a small smile. "Tsubaki in HR."
He smiled at her, more a baring of teeth than anything else, somewhat
frustrated at her conversation skills. Inuyasha knew he wasn't the best at
talking himself, but girls usually tried a smidge harder when it concerned him.
Lacking any real passion for the task at hand made things harder on him, but he
had to do something and such a thing had always worked before.
"And where did you go to school?"
"With all respect, sir, all these questions could be answered by checking my
file in the email Tsubaki sent when I first arrived."
"I don't do computers," he mumbled, too tired to be pissed off.
Kikyo nodded, rising to her feet. "Well, if you need me, I'll be—"
He growled, surprising them both. "Just cut the shit and take off your pants,
Kikyo," he commanded, tired of trying to do things the way he used to, before
he met Kagome. The girl had rendered him incapable of flirting, or so it
seemed. Whatever, now that he had money and power he didn't need to rely on
things like that.
"Yes, sir," Kikyo whispered, her eyes afraid. He couldn't find it within
himself to care.
"Bend over the desk," he commanded, going over to the aforementioned piece of
furniture. "And don't talk anymore." Her voice was too low, too solemn.
Quickly, she scurried over, her movements shaky and sloppy. Briefly, he was
reminded of himself and how he had been before, in this very room, on that very
desk. His own pants were removed with a flick of his wrist and he pushed
Kikyo's face down into the hard wood, lessening the blow at the very last
possible second, remembering she was human. Even so, she let out a small cry
and he smelled a faint scent of blood. A nosebleed. Not big enough to concern
him. Inuyasha sighed as he eased into her, growing angry with himself when he
realized he was gentler with her than he was with Kagome. She wasn't wet, but
to be honest he sometimes preferred it that way, even knowing how uncomfortable
it would be for her. When girls got too wet, there just wasn't enough friction.
But it had never bothered him with Kagome.
It took him a while to find release, so long that it bothered him. Kikyo just
took it like a champ, hardly even breathing audibly. Though that was what he'd
asked for, it was somewhat disconcerting. But just when he was about to give up
and masturbate, the old feeling started to creep back, and he was able to
finish inside her. As soon as he was done, he jumped away from her, not wanting
to experience any unnecessary contact. It appeared she felt the same way and
her face was relieved. With steady hands, she straightened and fixed her
clothing.
"Thank you, sir," Kikyo said without looking at him.
Inuyasha nodded. "Now get back to work."
And so a routine developed.
Inuyasha temporarily changed his residence to a hotel, buying a few essentials
in order to avoid going home for anything. He'd wake up, have breakfast, go to
work, fuck Kikyo, maybe actually do his job, fuck Kikyo, go back to his room,
and sleep. Repeat.
Kagome never came to him.
Several months after he had started his new schedule, he felt like he was at
his breaking point. Inuyasha wanted to go home, to go back to Kagome, but he
was certain he would no longer be welcome anywhere near her. It was for the
best, he grudgingly admitted to himself. He had never deserved someone like her
in the first place. She had entered into a relationship with a freak and was
too naïve to realize what she was doing. It was pure luck their baby had been
purified and become completely human. Now it wouldn't have anything that would
separate him from the other children. Was the kid even really his at this
point? Was Kagome?
He knew he should do something, say something. It was all he thought about. But
was that really for the best? Should he keep her tied to him? If he let her go
now, if he drove her away while it was still early on, she could still live a
good life and find someone who would treat her right.
Of course, he knew these were just excuses.
Tired of thinking about it instead of doing something about it, Inuyasha
pressed the button to summon Kikyo. They'd been getting along better of late,
and now she even wore sexy lingerie underneath her work clothes, and sometimes
nothing at all. It was a better life than he'd envisioned for himself. He could
be reasonably content with it.
His secretary came in promptly as she usually did, gliding in that graceful way
only she seemed to possess over to his desk. Inuyasha had never really noticed
how attractive she was before, but things became more obvious to him as time
went on. Or maybe he just got used to her. Whatever the case, she was useful in
helping distract him from the dark thoughts that plagued him day after day,
night after night. Without him even saying a word, Kikyo knelt in front of him,
calmly, almost robotically, unbuttoning and unzipping his pants. Once she freed
his cock and began to try and make him stiff, all the anguish his brain
wouldn't stop reminding him of faded away into the background. A smile flitted
across his face. It really was true that men could only use one head of the
time. Maybe not all men, but it was that way for him, anyway.
"Sorry to interrupt, Inuyasha, but I must have a word with you."
Said half-demon jumped to his feet so fast he choked Kikyo, who glared at him
and backed away, staying on her knees so as to hide from their unexpected
guest.
"Father," Inuyasha said in a hoarse voice, trying to appear nonchalant as he
tucked himself back into his pants. Nothing like a parent's voice to take away
any and all sexual feeling. "What did you need?"
"I'd just like to talk," Toga said, a benign smile on his face as he seated
himself on the leather couch. "If you would please return to your other duties,
Miss Kikyo."
Face drained of color in both shame and shock, Kikyo swiftly exited the office,
darting back to her desk just outside the door. When the door closed, the
silence felt oppressive, and he began to sweat. Toga just sat there, legs
crossed, arms comfortably resting on the top of the couch on either side of
himself. Always powerful. Always confident. Always in control. And the goddamn
fucking smile was always there, too.
"Whaddya want?" Inuyasha glared, fear dissolving in the resurgence of his
hatred.
"To warn you," Toga said, somewhat more seriously, his golden eyes flashing
with some emotion or other. "If you continue the way you have, you will lose
what you fought so hard to keep, my son."
Inuyasha snorted. "Kagome abandoned me first!" he insisted, knowing that wasn't
exactly true. Still, it hurt the same as if she had.
The great demon outright laughed, a big booming sound that Inuyasha was sure
rattled the windows. Once he calmed down, he continued with his lecture. "That
girl is ridiculously devoted to you. So I decided to help both you and her out
and send you on your honeymoon." Before Inuyasha could protest, he cut him off
with a sharp glare, saying, "Obey me or this will be the end of your happiness.
It would be best for you to mate her while on your getaway."
"B-but this is too soon!" Inuyasha sputtered. "I have a lot of work going on
right now, and the contracts—"
"Will be handled by me," Toga interrupted. "Your secretary will be transferred
and advised that it is in her best interest to never speak about her
relationship with you." The cold look in his father's eyes almost made him
shiver. "Now, listen to me. It is very important that you do not let Kagome
know about what you have been doing since you left. You might have some
ridiculously ignorant ideas of honesty and trust, but believe me, telling her
about your affair would accomplish nothing but to hurt her."
It took everything he had in him, but Inuyasha nodded. "Understood…"
Toga beamed, rising to his feet and sending a wave in his direction. "Well,
I've got to get back home and pack your bags for you. Izayoi's been so excited
about this. I've had a devil of a time trying to keep her from telling Kagome.
But she knows if she spoils the surprise that she won't get to coddle Hajime
for the entire time you're gone. That girl is as stubborn as you are, boy. Have
a good work day, and don't try anything stupid between now and tomorrow
morning!"
Inuyasha waved back belatedly, his shoulders finally losing their unnatural
stiffness the moment his father left. Another loss of freedom. And what would
he tell Kikyo?
"Sorry," he murmured to himself, not sure who he wanted to say it to.
***** Hide and Go *****
14: Hide and Go
Inuyasha woke soon after dawn, the muted purr of the hotel telephone sounding
like a shriek to his ears. Blinking rapidly, he rose and shook his head to
clear it, not wanting to think anymore. If he just acted like everything was
out of his hands even more than it was, then he could see Kagome. Had Kōga been
coming around during his prolonged absence, or had he managed to intimidate him
just the slightest bit, chasing him away? Snorting, he went off to the shower,
knowing that he and the wolf were more alike than he liked to admit. The
bastard would not give up on Kagome after such a trifle like a minor fist
fight. No, he wouldn't give up the prize, especially when her husband was
nowhere near. The phone kept ringing and ringing away, but he ignored it, his
ears twitching in irritation. He knew it would just be the hotel staff telling
him his ride was out front. He didn't need a conversation to figure shit like
that out.
Once he had completed his rather hurried beauty routine, he took his suits and
shirts and ties out of the closet and laid them on the bed, thinking to save
his mother some trouble when she came later to take his things back home. Next,
he took the shoes and neatly lined them up in a row at the foot of the bed.
Gritting his teeth now with nothing to do, he looked about and wondered if he
could break the sink or something just so he didn't have to leave right that
moment. The thought that Kagome would be there in the car waiting for him,
perhaps not even knowing he was about to join her, made his heart beat like a
drum in his chest. Sweat began collecting in the creases of his palms and he
felt like a cross between a little boy who had just made a huge mess and was
about to be found out and a kid about to ask the girl who didn't know he
existed to the last dance of the school year.
Fuck.
With trembling limbs, he left the hotel room that had been his temporary home
for the past three months. The brightly-lit hallway smelled of both
disinfectant and sex and he sneezed, wondering how it had not bothered him
until that very moment. Even his head felt clearer, despite its sudden
pounding. Inuyasha's pace quickened, and he hurried down the stairs, too
impatient to wait for the ancient elevator. His footsteps echoed, and he ran
faster, not liking how guilty the sound felt to him. Finally, he was outside,
immediately spotting the plain, shiny black automobile that held the cause of
all his anxiety. Even though his legs felt like lead, he sprinted to the car
and yanked the door open, his heart beating like crazy once again.
Kagome wasn't there.
Confused, Inuyasha sniffed. She had been inside the car earlier, no more than
half an hour ago. Did she wander off? Had he really taken that long to get down
here?
"Where's Kagome?" he asked the nameless driver, not caring for introductions.
"Mrs. Taisho has already been dropped off at the airport. Mr. Taisho Sr.
thought it best not to throw you together too early."
Snorting in a combination of annoyance and sadness, Inuyasha slid into the car,
slumping in his seat, not feeling even the littlest bit better when he slammed
the door. So, he'd have to wait to see Kagome. That was fine by him. It was
actually a really good idea, even if it had been his father's. This way, he
could prepare himself for the shock of seeing her face after so long. Maybe
he'd even somehow manage to think up a good excuse. Hearing that Kagome was
already at the airport made him feel a little less depressed. She probably knew
by now that he was going to show up and they were going to be alone together
for an extended period of time. The fact that she had gone even knowing that
gave him some hope. Maybe she did still want him, or would at least be willing
to help him out.
After a few minutes of looking out the window, he had finally arrived at the
airport. It was too small for a city of this size and was always obscenely
crowded, making it one of his most hated destinations, even if flying itself
wasn't such a fucking painful ordeal. The driver pulled up to the sidewalk, and
Inuyasha grasped the door latch, his fingers shaking.
"Circle the block," he croaked.
"What?"
"Just fucking do it!" he shouted, removing his hand from the door and crossing
his arms. "I need time to fucking think."
What was his problem? He thought to himself as the driver, obviously
reluctantly, obeyed his orders. All this time, he had been wanting to see
Kagome, longing to see her face, smell her scent, touch her soft skin, and now
that he was finally on the verge of being with her again, he panicked. What was
wrong with him? The motion of the moving car made him feel sick, and he crossed
his arms tighter, holding his stomach, holding himself inside.
"Sir, your plane is leaving in fifteen minutes. I doubt they will let you on."
Going cold from the shock, he jumped out of the car even as it moved, dashing
towards the entrance. How long had he been hiding? It wasn't right. Not for him
and not for her. Ignoring the long line of people, he pushed past them and just
barely avoided crashing into the giant body scanner.
"Sir! Sir, you can't go—"
Inuyasha ignored the voice, too, until someone yanked on the back of his shirt
and pulled with all their might, making him stumble backwards and just barely
catch himself.
"What the fuck do you want?!" he growled, glaring mercilessly at the TSA agent.
Unimpressed, the burly woman said, "You have to wait in line along with
everybody else. You can't go further without being checked."
"But my plane leaves in fifteen minutes!" he complained, just beginning to feel
the sweat that collected at the small of his back, sweat caused by fear and not
by any physical exertion.
"Let 'im go," the older man at the X-Ray said, holding a walkie-talkie in his
right hand. "He's good to go."
Beaming distractedly to himself, Inuyasha ignored the complaints of the other
travelers and the scowl on the TSA agent's face. Having an insanely powerful
father did occasionally have its benefits. Leaping away, ignorant of the near
riot he had left in his wake, he followed the faint scent of Kagome all the way
to where the bridge connected to the plane. Sighing in relief that they had not
yet taken off, Inuyasha headed right for first class. Immediately, he saw her,
nose in a book and ear phones plugged in, iPod turned up so loud that even the
other passengers could hear her. Not giving himself time to remember why he had
been so reluctant to reunite with her, Inuyasha took his seat at her side and
yanked out her earphones.
"Hey!" she shrieked, turning her big blue eyes on him, her expression going
from angry to shocked in no time at all.
"You're gonna go deaf like that, you know," he said gruffly.
"I-Inuyasha," she whispered, her eyes filling with tears. "Inuyasha, you—"
"I'm here," he murmured, gathering her into his arms. "I'm here, Kagome."
"I thought you weren't going to show up," she sobbed, holding him tighter. "I
thought you left me forever."
Pressing a kiss to her temple, he glared at the passengers in the seats behind
them who seemed far too interested in their business. "It wasn't right for me
to… To just go ahead and do that," he said quietly. "We can talk when we get
there, okay?" He knew she wanted to talk now, but he didn't like the idea of
all their dirty laundry being aired in front of a plane full of strangers. The
captain began his customary announcement at the beginning of each flight,
telling the passengers where they were going as though they had already
forgotten, and making some ancient jokes he tuned out.
Pulling away from his embrace with a jerk, Kagome turned her face to the
window. "I'm not talking to you," she said, her nose going up in the air in
that way he hated, the way that told him she still thought she was better than
him. Glancing down at her hands, he noticed with a shock that she was not
wearing her ring. He didn't know what he had expected, but the absence of his
greatest material gift to her struck him like a punch to the solar plexus.
Too emotionally exhausted to formulate a proper comeback, he merely snorted and
rolled his eyes. After a few minutes, her posture relaxed and she pulled out
her phone, a bored expression on her face. Shooting him a glare, she quickly
shifted in her seat so that he would not be able to see the screen. He hadn't
been interested before and had been formulating a plan on how to best sulk away
the forced honeymoon, but her actions angered him so he stared at her.
"Who're you texting?" he grumbled, trying to peer past the barrier of her hands
without success.
No response.
Remembering she wasn't talking to him, he decided to up the ante on the
childishness and grabbed her phone, the one hehad paid for, out of her hands
and tried to read the texts before she could take it back.
Eyes wide, he read the message several times, holding an upset and embarrassed
Kagome back by continuing to gently shove her hands away.
Kōga: Fine. Gonna be missing that milk while you're away, though. Try and have
fun ;)
Kagome finally succeeded in capturing the phone back, hitting him in the
stomach not entirely on accident, typing a hurried reply with a small smile on
her face. Once done, she placed the phone back in her pocket, bored expression
returning, this time with a hint of wary annoyance.
"What—the fuck—was that?" Inuyasha hissed, leaning in closer to her so that
nobody would hear.
"A text," Kagome said snottily, refusing to look at him.
"From another guy about missing your fucking milk," he said a little louder,
unable to control himself. Inuyasha wanted to strangle someone, either Kōga or
himself. Was it possible for a person to strangle themselves with their bare
hands? Maybe he could MacGyver something out of the seatbelt and the headrest
in front of him…
To his surprise, Kagome began to laugh, but not the happy kind of laugh he
liked. Taking her phone back out of her pocket, she threw it at him, her eyes
filled with tears.
"Read all of it."
Knowing her passcode already, he entered it in, fear gripping his heart. If
this was the way in which Kagome asked him for a divorce, he'd fucking lose it.
Having to read his wife's texts to and from the man who had ruined their
marriage would really do him in. Just knowing that wolf bastard had also tasted
Kagome's breasts (and probably a lot more) made him want to scream.
Regretfully, the thought occurred to him with a shock that hewas the one who
had ruined their marriage. If he hadn't forced himself on her and then walked
out, this wouldn't be happening. Hell, if he had just done one instead of both,
she probably would have forgiven him after a few long talks. Anxiety steadily
creeping back, he went to her texts and began scrolling through, his ears
drooping the more he read. Finally, he handed her back the phone, closing his
eyes and exhaling heavily.
"Wow," he mumbled.
"Kōga's visiting with Noriko right now and I was just asking how Hajime was,"
she said in a whisper, her explanation now completely unnecessary.
Inuaysha's fingers tightened on the armrests, his claws digging into the plushy
fabric. "I don't want that fucker around our son," he stated, sounding about as
calm as he felt.
Kagome laughed again. "Ourson? Kōga has more of a relationship with him than
you do."
They both went silent, Kagome's eyes looking at him in a mixture of what seemed
to be curiosity for his response and regret, whereas he just didn't know what
to say to make things alright again.
Clearing his throat, he looked back at her. "I-I know I fucked up really bad.
I'll… I'm coming back home. We're going to spend more time together, Kagome.
You and me and Hajime."
Before Kagome could respond, they were interrupted by the arrival of a flight
attendant. She leaned over them, well, she leaned over Inuyasha, her rather too
firm to be real vulgarly large bosom nearly brushing against his face.
"Refreshments?" she asked, her voice a hair away from a breathy baby girl lisp.
It almost sounded like she was doing an impression of a mentally challenged
Marilyn Monroe.
"Uh, no thanks," he said, annoyed at the interruption.
"Are you sure? I can mix you up something real nice," she said teasingly,
flipping a lock of red hair behind her shoulder.
"He said no," Kagome cut in bitingly, glaring at her. Inuyasha noticed she
adjusted her hands in her lap so that her left hand was on top, showing off the
small band of skin that was whiter than the rest, that special place where he
had put the ring, thinking she would always wear it. Noticing his gaze, Kagome
glanced down at where he was staring, and seemed to remember with a start that
she was not wearing the ring.
Turning her attention to Kagome, the woman smiled, her painted red lips
stretched tight over her large teeth. "And what would you like, little girl? A
ginger ale?"
Attempting to win some points, Inuyasha flipped up the armrest between them,
put his arm around Kagome and said, "I think my wife can decide for herself."
Nodding, Kagome leaned into him. "I'll have the apple juice."
Defeated and a little weirded out, the flight attendant proceeded to serve her
the apple juice in the tiny plastic cup. Once she was gone, Inuyasha broke out
in a fit of laughter, not releasing Kagome from his grasp now that he finally
had her back.
"Way to assert your maturity," he said, feeling absurdly happy for such a small
incident.
Kagome snorted. "I'm somebody's wife and somebody's mother. I don't have to
prove or assert jack."
Nodding, he stayed silent, just enjoying her company, grateful that at least
they were reunited and he'd have a chance to bring her back around to the idea
of loving him. After a few yawns, Kagome leaned on his shoulder, her eyes
drooping closed and her breathing evening out. Had she been having as hard a
time sleeping as he had? Not daring to let himself believe it, he gently kissed
her forehead, letting his lips linger, trying to transmit all the things he
couldn't say to her in that one small bit of contact. Carefully, he extracted
himself, going slowly so as not to wake his sleeping beauty, and slid off his
jacket. It always got cold on planes, and he didn't want Kagome to be
uncomfortable. Draping the garment over her, he brought her back to his
shoulder and settled in for the rest of the flight.
***** Woo Her or Rue It *****
15: Woo Her or Rue It
Note: The island is not a Hawaiian one or a Greek one or Catalina (duh, but
does anyone even go there anymore?) or anything else. The island does not exist
in our reality (oooh spooky). I am too lazy to think up a name or research
actual islands. You know what? Let's call it Kawaii. Yeah. The island of
Kawaii. Ha.
The flight attendant who could've been Jessica Rabbit's twin ignored them for
the rest of the flight, which was fine by him since he never drank on planes
anyway in case he'd have to take a piss later, disliking the pathetic little
cramped excuse for a bathroom. Inuyasha would have liked some of those
pretzels, though, but Kagome wasn't awake and she was better at opening little
plastic baggies without making a mess. His stomach began to grumble and he
realized he'd be craving pretzels for some time yet.
Finally, they had landed, and he didn't wait for permission before jumping out
of his seat and grabbing Kagome's carry-on luggage. The hustle and bustle of
everyone competing to be the first one out of the flying capsule of nightmares
woke Kagome, and she blinked her eyes rapidly in an attempt to clear the sleep
from them, wrinkling her nose in a cute way that reminded Inuyasha of Hajime.
Briefly, he wondered if the kid would be okay without his mother's milk for the
duration of their honeymoon or if he was even still breastfeeding. Before he
could ask Kagome, however, a travel rumpled and weary family of four pushed
past him, not noticing or caring when he was knocked into the seat.
"Fuckers…" he mumbled, sending a glare at their backs.
"Are we there yet?" Kagome yawned, her distorted voice making him smile.
"Whaddya think?" he asked, shooting another glare at all the passengers that
were passing them. He always felt like a loser if he wasn't the first person
off the plane. With the way the stream of humanity was steadily flowing, they'd
be lucky if they weren't the last. He knew he was exaggerating, since there
were only about twenty people in first class, but he was still pissed off.
"I can carry my own bag," Kagome said, her anger and rejection back in full
force now that she had come to her senses.
"Nope!" he responded, leisurely walking to the front, elbowing an overweight
businessman along the way.
Kagome scurried after him, her sandaled feet making loud slaps on the floor.
"Do you even know what hotel we're going to or what we'll do here?"
"I know what I'd like to do here," he said, his tone wavering with a lack of
confidence that he despised.
To his surprise, she laughed. "Me too! I read up about these temple ruins and
they're super ancient and all mysterious and just so cool. I've been wanting to
go since I was twelve!" she squealed, clapping her hands in delight.
Ears drooping, he held back on explaining what he had really meant since she
seemed to have been looking forward to this for quite a while. Now that he
thought about it, how had his father discovered something about her that her
own husband didn't know? Kagome had never told him about any temples or ruins
she wanted to see or vacations she wanted to take. Maybe it had just never come
up, but he didn't like how someone else knew something about her that he
didn't. It didn't really make sense, considering that he had only known her for
a fairly brief amount of time during their courtship period and they were
always either meeting in secret or separated by work, but that was just how he
felt.
A man he didn't know was holding a sign with their names on it, a fake smile
plastered on his face, dressed in the plain black suit typical of a chauffeur.
Sighing, Inuyasha brushed past him, opening the trunk of the car nearest them
and slamming her stuff down, making the entire car shake before he slammed the
trunk down and the shaking repeated. When he was alone on trips, he normally
made the driver sit in the back and drove the car himself, but he was tired and
just wanted to go to the hotel and pass out. Not looking back at the confused
man and his apologetic wife, Inuyasha slid in the car and closed his eyes,
wanting to relax but not allowing himself.
Soon, though it seemed far too long for his liking, the car door on the other
side opened and he was joined by Kagome, who bounced about in her excitement.
It seemed she was one of the few people energized by travel whereas he always
felt drained by what he considered to be unnatural transportation. Taking a
deep breath, he tried not to glare at her.
"Please take us to Ludiceros Temple!" Kagome said to the driver, leaning back
in her seat and putting on her seatbelt with all the hyper glee of a child.
"Now?" Inuyasha grumbled, his head pounding with fatigue.
The girl just nodded, forgetting she hated him in her moment of happiness.
"It's almost sunset and I think that the temple would look its prettiest right
now."
"But I'm tired," he replied, a hair's breadth away from whining.
Kagome rolled her eyes, attitude back in place. "Why are you so sleepy? We only
just got here."
"It's because I let yousleep on the way over," he shot back, ears flicking in
irritation.
"You could have slept too, you know. There's not a limit to how many passengers
can sleep on a plane."
He didn't respond, not wanting to admit to her that he was too caught up in
watching her sleep and pretending none of their problems existed and they were
just a regular couple on a regular honeymoon about to have regular make-up sex
for the regular fights that they did not have regularly. Inuyasha just wanted
all the bad things to be over and done with already. Since they weren't
physical, not things he could see outside of the pain in her eyes and the
coldness of his bed, they troubled him more than he could express. So he just
blushed and slumped in his seat, not noticing the way Kagome's eyes studied
him, a small smile quirking her pink lips.
"Fine," he muttered, grudgingly agreeing to go frolic at the rundown old
building she seemed so fascinated with.
"Thank you," she said softly, surprising him into glancing at her.
Traffic was terrible, as it so often is at popular tourist destinations, so
Inuyasha spent the time in and out of a light sleep, dreams merging with the
sounds around him. When the car came to an abrupt stop some hour and a half
later, he jerked awake with a loud snort. Ignoring the driver's muted laughter
and Kagome's less discreet amusement, he exited the car and stretched, glaring
about the location. The sun was almost gone, hanging low and red in the sky.
Inuyasha sneezed, eyeing the visible clouds of dust their arrival had stirred
up. The remains of the temple were far less run down than he had expected as
well as somewhat small, but still looked like an abandoned movie set and
altogether perfectly uninteresting. Who the hell would actually want to spend
time in this dump?
"Ohmygosh, look at the size of those columns!" Kagome squealed, running past
him and to the official entrance. "The lines are so perfect! However did they
manage that without our advanced technology?"
Rolling his eyes, he dutifully followed after his wife, who had quickly found
an attendant and was currently talking at him. Seeing the somewhat distressed
look on her face, Inuyasha quickened his reluctant pace, wondering what could
have wiped the happy smile off her face so suddenly.
"I'm sorry, ma'am, but it's two minutes until closing time, which means we're
closed," the annoyed attendant said, rubbing the bridge of his nose in
irritation.
"But the sign said—"
"We close at five. It's now one minute until five. Did you not adjust your
watch to this time zone?"
Blushing, Kagome put her hands behind her back, clasping them as she did so.
"But I—"
"I am sorry, ma'am, but I cannot allow you inside today. You're welcome to try
again tomorrow."
Inuyasha couldn't believe his luck. There really must have been someone up
there looking out for him, recognizing how very tired and stressed he was, how
much he just wanted to be alone with Kagome. If they could only be alone
together, everything would work out fine, he knew it. They could pretend things
were like they used to be, when they had their hidden escapes in the forest and
things seemed so complicated but really weren't. Grinning, he was about to take
Kagome by the hand and tug her far, far away from the dismal junk heap, but
then he caught the look on her face.
"How much?" he said, capturing the attention of both the attendant and his
wife.
"What?" the man asked, brow wrinkled in suspicion. "Are you trying to bribe—"
Pulling several bills out of his wallet that he had planned on using for a nice
dinner and some gifts, he instead slammed them into the man's chest.
"That enough?"
Fingering the bills with an unsure look on his face, the attendant seemed to
make up his mind, his eyes flashing with a sly light. "Two hundred more will
buy you half an hour. I can't let you two stay past then; I've got to get
home."
Nodding, Inuyasha handed the money to the man, shooting a look at Kagome. She
was looking at him the way she used to, like he was some sort of superhero
instead of the money.
"Thank you," she whispered, moving closer to him but not close enough to touch.
Ears drooping slightly, he realized he'd have a lot more work to do before they
were back to being okay.
The man pocketed the money, beady eyes glaring at them. "Now, I've memorized
your faces and there are cameras everywhere, so if you vandalize or steal
anything, I'll know right away and I'll make sure to identify you."
"Yeah, whatever," Inuyasha grumbled, now resigned to his fate. The happy
feeling he got whenever Kagome was happy had mostly worn off and now he was
back to being exhausted.
"Thank you!" Kagome called to the attendant, who waved her away impatiently.
Mood unaffected, she skipped off into the temple, dragging a sullen Inuyasha
behind her with the invisible thread that bound them.
"Why do you like this place so much?" he muttered the minute he felt they were
safely out of earshot.
She laughed. "It's amazing. I like being in places people hung out in hundreds
or even thousands of years ago. It's cool. We're connected. Also, it's
incredibly romantic," she finished her voice going soft and her eyes doing that
misty thing that made him want to kiss her.
"How so?" he questioned, feeling his lips itch and twitch from denying them.
"Well, the temple is dedicated not to the goddess of love or to her husband the
god of war, but instead to the love they share," she said, turning around and
craning her neck to see the mosaic on the ceiling, her back to him. "It's
beautiful. Their love was stronger than either of them, so strong that people
revered it."
Thinking it was the perfect time to put the moves on her, Inuyasha closed in
for the kill, briefly observing how the sunset lit up the raven blue undertones
in her hair in a way he had nearly forgotten. Reaching out a hand, he let his
claws lightly play with her hair. To his surprise, instead of the response he
had been expecting, she let out a screech and jumped away.
"What the fuck was that for?!" he yelled, hands over his ears. The adrenaline
in his system after that painful sound of alarm had woken him up, but that was
about the only good thing he could say about it.
"I'm sorry!" Kagome said, putting her hands over his and rubbing his skin in
apology. "I thought you were a ghost!"
A sound between a laugh and a sigh left his lips and he shook his head,
bringing his hands down and taking ahold of hers. "Have you seen everything you
wanted to see?" he asked.
Kagome nodded, a pretty blush on her face. "Yeah. It's a pretty small place and
they only had the one restored mosaic and it's not the time of year for the
gardens to be in bloom… Thank you, Inuyasha."
"Let's go check out our hotel room."
She nodded, and instead of separating their hands like he was expecting, she
instead swung them back and forth, intertwining their fingers as she did so.
O/\o/\O
The drive to their hotel was considerably easier, and this time they sat next
to each other instead of separated by the useless middle seat. Content,
Inuyasha wrapped his arm around her and rested his head on hers where it laid
on his shoulder. It had been too long since he had been with her like this.
What was he thinking just running away from her, from what they had together?
It never felt anything like this with anyone else. Once they arrived at their
destination, he nearly jumped out of the car, dragging a surprised Kagome with
him and leaving a very un-tipped driver behind. The hotel was not as crowded as
he would have guessed, which had more than a little something to do with the
fact that they had come during an unpopular time.
Going up to the front desk, he said without waiting for the woman to get off
the phone, "Inuyasha and Kagome Taisho, honeymoon suite."
Looking somewhat nervous, the woman clumsily hung up the phone. "Oh, uh, yes,
Mr. Taisho…"
"Key?" he asked impatiently, needing a warm bed and a good fuck.
"Um, well, there's a sort of problem—"
"And that would be?" he cut in, ready to strangle her.
Eyes downcast, she shifted about like a misbehaving child. "Uh, we, uh, had a
seminar this weekend. Sex and Seniors. The participants were quite riled up,
and some only checked out this morning. One couple had the honeymoon suite, and
they left it a bit… messy."
Cringing, Inuyasha fought to keep down his vomit. "So you don't have our room
ready?"
"I would be happy to move you to our Presidential suite. It doesn't have quite
the view, but—"
"Whatever, we'll fucking take it," he grumbled, too tired to fight it.
"Thank you!" Kagome chimed in, the only one of the party not looking the least
haunted or disgusted. Inuyasha wondered if she understood.
Nodding, the woman behind the desk handed him the key cards and he took off for
the elevator, keeping physical contact with Kagome. Now that he had it back, he
didn't want to give it up. Their new room was at the very top of the building,
which he resented since it would make getting in and out of the place that much
more difficult. If he had his way, they'd never leave their room, but he was
pretty sure Kagome wasn't ready for that and maybe also wanted to see a bit of
the island.
To his surprise and Kagome's delight, their room was giant, more like an
apartment. He wondered if the honeymoon suite was any better, and if not, why
had his father not bought them this room? Sure, it was a bit over decorated,
but surely a view wouldn't top this luxury. Sighing his pleasure, he collapsed
on the bed, groaning aloud at the feeling of softness.
"Um, Inuyasha?"
"Yeah," he said, the word muffled by the comforter. At this point, he didn't
even care if seniors had sexed upon it.
"What about our bags?"
"They're already here."
"Oh," Kagome responded. He felt a weight on the bed, signaling she had joined
him. "Well, what about dinner? I thought we were going to go out somewhere." As
if on cue, her stomach grumbled loudly, sounding like a demonic destroyer of
villages.
Gritting his teeth at the thought of once again going out into the foreign land
and suffering through strange noises and smells, he offered her a compromise.
"How about room service? Anything you want."
A swift kiss to the back of his head surprised him. "I'll order right away,
then. Do you want me to get something for you, too?"
Inuyasha nodded, reaching out a hand to grab a pillow. "You know what I like,"
he yawned.
The soft, familiar sound of Kagome's voice lulled him into a sort of half-
sleep, the knock on the door signaling the arrival of their meal making him
jerk awake. Turning over onto his back, he saw Kagome generously (too
generously) tip the maid with money from his wallet, which he had not noticed
she had taken from his back pocket. Snorting, he got up and went to the metal
rolling tray, inspecting the items laid out on its surface. A giant burger, a
basket of fries, chicken parmigiana. All good things. A bottle of chocolate
sauce? Confused, he picked it up, examining the label to see that it was not
for food, but for couples. A leftover of the "Sex and Seniors" seminar,
perhaps?
"Did we order this?" he asked Kagome, hoping she had taken the initiative.
"It's included, Mr. Taisho," the maid said with a wide smile.
Inuyasha just rolled his eyes, knowing it was his father's doing. It wasn't the
worst of his interferences, but it still bothered him. Ushering the woman out
the door, he then sat down at the table to eat, too tired to attempt
conversation. Kagome prattled on about the temple, mentioning how she would
like to return once the gardens were in bloom. He filed the information away
for later, intending on surprising her next year during the springtime. Once
the meal was done, he rolled the cart with their dirty plates outside the door
and returned to Kagome.
"Gosh, that was good!" she sighed, stretching her arms upward and arching her
back.
Studying her breasts, Inuyasha flipped open the bottle of chocolate sauce that
he had kept and squirted some in his mouth. It was okay, a bit oily, but okay.
Kagome laughed. "Care to share?"
The magic words. Inuyasha backed her up until she was in front of the bed, when
he promptly pushed her on her back. Her expression was nervous, and he ignored
it, knowing that if he paid too much attention he would never get anywhere, and
that wasn't what he wanted. Crawling over her, he slowly and carefully removed
her shirt. Kagome was panting now, and the look on her face made him wonder if
she had missed him as much as he missed her. Shaking the bottle, he squirted
some chocolate on her stomach. She gasped at the cold feeling and he smeared
the chocolate over her stomach and ribs, rubbing it in and tickling her, which
surprised a laugh out of her. Now that he had her feeling comfortable, he
ducked down and licked a bit of the chocolate off her belly button, dipping his
tongue in and teasing her. His tongue made wide, quick swipes everywhere else
the chocolate was distributed, and soon she was rubbing at his ears, her
breathing coming in quick little pants and sighs.
When he was done with her stomach, he turned his attention to something a
little higher. Grateful that her bra unclipped in the front, he undid it, not
bothering to take it off completely and just letting it flap to the sides.
Grabbing the bottle once again, he poured a liberal amount over both nipples,
watching the chocolate sauce as it dripped down her breasts and raced towards
her ribcage. Mouth watering at the sight, he dove right in, sucking and biting
at her nipples, allowing his tongue to dart out now and then and lick the
surrounding areas. After a little bit, he started tasting ice cream too, and
sprinkles. Inuyasha could practically taste the rainbow coloring. The sound of
Kagome's laughter broke his musing and he snorted awake.
"What?" he asked, the sleepiness thick in his voice.
Kagome just smiled and kissed him on the forehead. "You kept on going even when
you were sleeping. I wouldn't have said anything, but I started feeling like I
was taking advantage of you," she giggled, wiping the mess of chocolate off his
face with her fingers. Suddenly, her face was serious. "When was the last time
you slept, Inuyasha?"
His face felt like it was on fire. "Not since I… Not since I hurt you. I've
barely been able to sleep since then."
Kagome nodded understandingly. "We'll sleep together, then, and that's all. The
fun stuff can wait."
Inuyasha sighed, feeling further embarrassed when it turned into a yawn. "Can
you at least get naked all the way so I feel like I accomplished something?"
She laughed and reached over to turn off the lamp. "Only if you do the same."
He did so quickly, anxious to go to sleep and maybe finish in his dreams what
he had just ruined. Kagome shucked off her jeans and sneakers and he studied
her form in the darkness. No scars. Suddenly, he could breathe again. She
pulled the sheets and blankets back, flinging the decorative pillows to the
floor in a show of laziness he could appreciate, revealing the much more
comfortable pillows underneath. Feeling a contentedness he hadn't experienced
since things were alright between them, he crawled in next to her, wondering
what the future would bring.
They fell asleep holding hands.
***** Fluffernutter *****
16: Fluffernutter
Note: The man on the bus is based on two real people, one of whom followed me
through a Wal-Mart and paid for my groceries once when I was sixteen (the
description belongs entirely to that guy). Shit was pretty cash. Stuff like
that happens because I'm like really, really pretty (jk, I just have big tits
and dress slutty). The other was a guy my mother knew back in high school who
ate his rather strange snack every day on her bus home.
The sunlight woke him up and Inuyasha groaned, turning from where he had been
sleeping on his face to his side, where he proceeded to stare at Kagome. Her
hair was in her face and he was amazed she wasn't awake from the tickles.
Brushing back the tendrils of hair, he observed her further. She had aged. It
wasn't noticeable, but he knew the signs would soon show. She was mortal, as
was their son. If he didn't complete the mating soon, if she wouldn't let him,
what would happen? True, she was only sixteen, and he had stopped aging at
twenty-one, so they had a few years yet, but he felt an itching need inside him
to make her his for the rest of his life. To put it simply, he didn't want to
be without her. But how to go about that?
Seduction.
Inuyasha had never seduced Kagome. Now that he thought about it, she had
seduced him. He had been too much of a tongue-tied idiot to flirt with her, and
if she hadn't told him to wait that time in the bathroom, they wouldn't be here
now. And after they were together, he was too busy acting like a dumb kid in
love to really get her in his thrall the way he had always been in hers. It
wasn't fair. It was important for him to make her want him, to take control. He
didn't think it would work otherwise.
Deciding on a plan of action, Inuyasha gently kissed the side of her mouth.
Kagome did not stir, so he continued, his fingers brushing against her bare
nipple. That gained him a small moan, and he rubbed her a little harder, his
other hand inching down to her pussy, eager to reacquaint the digits with her
warmth. Once he arrived at his destination, he went straight for her clit,
circling it slowly, not ceasing placing kisses on her lips and cheeks.
Until, of course, since this holiday was cursed, he was kicked in the gut and
pushed off the bed.
"Sorry, gotta pee!" Kagome said apologetically, jumping out of bed and going
straight for the bathroom.
Inuyasha couldn't respond, too busy trying not to tear the room apart using
only his bare claws and the force of his rage. An hour later, after Kagome had
showered and dressed while keeping herself locked in the bathroom (he had
checked every ten minutes), he had his temper more or less under strict
control. Seduction was not possible when one's eyes were filled with hellfire.
"Let's go see the sights!" Kagome chirped, pulling her hair into a high
ponytail.
He wanted to tell her to keep it down, but felt he had overdone the commanding
thing and it would no longer be sexy. What he needed was a new approach. But
what would she like? The wheels in his brain began turning, prolonging what he
had not noticed was an awkward silence, and he finally hit upon the answer.
Before she had become his little wife, she had been a first class bitch, and
who did she enjoy being a bitch to the most? Hojo, of course. If he began to
emulate some of the wimp's more annoying qualities, such as being sweet and
sensitive, she'd be taken off guard and try to get him back to the way she was
used to, and one thing Kagome was always generous with when she felt confused
in terms of their relationship was sex.
"We'll go anywhere you want, darling," Inuyasha said gently, almost forgetting
not to cringe at the term of endearment.
"Um, alright…" Kagome faltered, obviously having expected him to put up a
fight. Her striking eyes studied him, trying to figure out what he was up to.
He just continued to smile, confidence oozing out of his pores. When her
expression turned devious, a shadow of regret descended upon him. "How about
that cute little amusement park we passed on the way here?"
His jolly smile turned into a mere clenching of teeth. "Of course, sugar. Let
me just call a cab…" Maybe by the time the cab came they'd be so engrossed in
one another they wouldn't leave the room for the rest of the trip.
Kagome shook her head, her ponytail bouncing along like it had a mind of its
own. "Nope, I wanna take the bus and soak up the local culture."
"…Oh. Kay."
Knowing he had lost and that the day was truly Kagome's, Inuyasha just nodded.
He'd continue with Operation Beta Male only for the rest of the day, hoping
against hope things would eventually swing his way. Even if Kagome wanted to
stuff herself on overpriced park food that was always in the shape of one
goddamn mascot or another. Even if she wanted to get face painting done and
pose for photos in one of those booth thingies. Even if she became so
insufferable that all he wanted to do was take her over his knee and paddle her
ass until kingdom come. Even if—
"Inuyasha, if we don't leave right now I'm going to put on a bra."
"Coming!" he called back to her, scrambling from his position on the bed and
hurriedly tugging on pants and a shirt.
Thankfully, the day was not too hot, the overcast sky making the place more
bearable than he would have thought. There was a bus stop directly in front of
the hotel, and while Kagome sat down and patiently began to wait, pulling a
compact mirror out of her little backpack that she used as a purse, Inuyasha
checked the bus schedule and his watch every two minutes, feeling both very
annoyed and somewhat gratified when the bus was running late, just as he had
thought it would. Turning to give Kagome an impatient glare, he instead got
lost in the way she applied her lip balm, dragging the applicator along her
bottom lip before smacking her mouth and giving her mirror a kiss. Holding back
a growl, he crossed his arms and went back to glaring at his watch. He was
there, he was real, why couldn't he have a kiss?
Just when he was about to take her in his arms and steal a kiss for himself,
forgetting completely about Operation Beta Male, the bus rolled up to the curb,
its shrieking brakes making him wince, the sharp sound grating against his
ears. Before he could curse at the driver, Kagome grabbed his hand and pulled
him along towards the open doors, the skirt of her dress borne up by the wind
and letting him glimpse a good bit of thigh.
"Two fifty," the portly and sweaty driver demanded.
"What?" Inuyasha replied, mind still on Kagome's thighs.
"Pay or get off. I ain't gonna wait."
Pulling out his wallet, Inuyasha shuffled through it until he found his credit
card. Examining the box that contained everyone's fare, he saw no slot for
payment of that sort. So, cash it would be.
"Do you have change for a fifty?" he asked, pulling out his smallest bill.
Before the driver could yell at him, Kagome started plopping coins in the box,
going slow so the driver could see. To Inuyasha's surprise, she was blushing
and embarrassed and would not look at him. What was her deal? Once she was
done, she again grabbed him by the hand and tugged him over to the seats in the
back, all the benches up front already full.
"Looks like you got used to being a rich boy again pretty quickly," she mumbled
as she settled into her seat, crossing her arms.
Inuyasha snorted. "I've never taken the fucking bus before, okay? I prefer to
run. And I never really had much money to spend, even on bus fare." Her posture
relaxed somewhat, and he scooted closer to her so their sides were pressed
together. Even though they had gotten on what seemed like only a couple minutes
ago, the bus stopped again and let on a few people. "Is it gonna keep on doing
that?"
Giggling, Kagome leaned into him. "First you were too poor for the bus, now
you're too rich. How does it feel?"
Smirking down at her, he dragged his claws through the waves of her ponytail,
savoring the texture. "It feels—"
His response was interrupted by the arrival of a man in a trench coat, pajama
pants, cowboy boots, and nothing else. In one hand was a Big Gulp container
filled with what smelled like urine and in the other a plastic bag containing
groceries. Inuyasha knew it was rude to stare, but he just couldn't help it.
Kagome seemed to be experiencing much the same thing he was, and the couple
continued to stare at the man in fascination. Unexpectedly, his eyes focused
and then zeroed in on Kagome. In a move that was mostly reflex, Inuyasha put
his arm around her shoulder and drew her tight against his side. The man gave
him an almost imperceptible nod and turned his gaze away from him, beginning to
rummage through his plastic bag. Just before Inuyasha was going to turn away
and start a conversation with Kagome, trench coat guy pulled out an onion.
Glancing at Kagome to see her reaction, he saw the shock on her face turn to
disgust and terror, which he took as a signal to look back at the maniac, just
in time to see him bite into the now peeled raw onion.
The smell of the onion now filled their entire section of the bus and his nose
stung with it. The only positive of the rather traumatic experience was when
Kagome sought comfort in holding his hand, which she gripped so hard he
wondered if she would break her own bones. It was then he realized that she had
started wearing her wedding ring again. Bringing her hand to his face, he
kissed her ring, holding eye contact with her. She blushed again, this time the
cute blush that showed he was making her feel special, not embarrassing her on
a vehicle full of people. Kissing down the length of her finger to the very
tip, he gently kissed it too before taking it in his mouth, sucking just hard
enough to make her gasp. Just when he was about to move to the next one, Kagome
drew her hand away with a sharp jerk. What the hell? Had he misread the moment?
Letting out an audible growl, he faced forward in his seat only to see the
onion guy giving them the look they had been giving him just a couple minutes
ago. Oh great, now the fucking weird guy thoughtthey were the weird ones. This
outing was doomed.
"This is our stop!" Kagome said hoarsely, rising to her feet as the bus slowed,
arranging her dress and making sure it didn't ride up too high in back. He
stood with her, keeping a hand on the small of her back to steady her, admiring
the tight sky blue halter dress that fell to her mid-thigh. Inuyasha didn't
know why she had chosen to wear a dress, especially a dress like that, to an
amusement park of all things. Whatever the reason why, he was glad, seeing the
way the bodice stretched tight over her chest. Noticing his gaze, she gave him
a little smirk of her own, and he observed how her nipples hardened just the
slightest bit before she turned around and exited the bus, calling a cheery
goodbye to the bus driver on her way out.
The bright sunlight outside stunned him, and he stumbled over the curb, nearly
falling to the sticky, gum littered pavement. When his eyes adjusted, he saw
Kagome well on her way to the ticket booths. A giant plaster rainbow arched
over the booths, fluffy white clouds predictably on either end on the ground.
He nearly turned right back around, but Kagome chose that moment to go and talk
to the teenage ticket booth operator, whose pimpled face was angled downward to
better stare at her breasts. Ready to kick some ass (verbally, of course, since
he didn't want to tempt fate and get arrested), he jogged over to where his
wife was chattering away and asking questions. Right as he made his appearance,
the kid quit his perusal of goods that did not belong to him and never would in
any reality. Meekly accepting the cash Inuyasha thrust at him, he mumbled some
corny thing they were all required to say and allowed them to pass through.
Inuyasha smirked to himself, his ego further inflated beyond what was safe. He
always enjoyed it when a mere look got his point across with no arguments,
although a good fight was also something he enjoyed as well.
"Ohmygosh, it's Fluff McRabbitson!" Kagome squealed, barreling through a mob of
small children to crowd the mascot with the other kids who had proven their
mettle, desperate for their reward of a hug and picture.
"Hey, man! Control your fucking kid!" some middle-aged guy yelled at him,
carrying a crying child away to a much less popular person in an animal suit.
Grumbling murderous things to himself under his breath, he pushed a path
through the children who had immediately regrouped into one nearly solid mass,
finally catching up with Kagome, who was hugging the park mascot with all the
enthusiasm of a toddler. The man in the bunny suit seemed to be enjoying it
even more. Was it just his possessiveness acting up again, or was the bunny guy
hugging Kagome a little tootightly? He didn't want to ruin her fun, but he
didn't like the way the blank plastic eyes were looking at her. But that could
just be his imagination. What was most certainly nothis imagination, however,
was how the rabbit's large, felt-gloved hands were now on Kagome's ass.
Completely abandoning Project Beta Male, Inuyasha yanked Kagome away and behind
him before throwing himself on the perverted bunny and tackling him to the
ground. Ignoring the terrified screams of the children and his wife, he
proceeded to beat the fake face off the man underneath. Again and again he
struck, until finally the mask caved. Thinking he had dispensed enough justice,
he rose to his feet, dragging the mask off the still body beneath him and
holding it up as a sort of trophy, a grin on his face. The sudden urge came
upon him to beat the actual face of the offender in, so he looked down,
intending to castrate the bastard.
Only to realize the bastard was a woman.
Mouth dropping open in horror, he backed away. Holy shit, he had just beaten a
woman dressed as a beloved cartoon character in broad daylight with a crowd of
witnesses who were mostly kindergarteners. Sure, she wasn't harmed since her
costume had acted as a most effective shield against his blows, but still.
Deciding the best thing to do would be to reactivate Project Beta Male,
Inuyasha grabbed Kagome by the hand and took off, running to a more crowded
area of the park in order to blend in, which was a somewhat ridiculous notion
for a person with dog ears.
"Wanna go on the roller coaster?" Kagome asked, already having gotten over what
could have been one of the most entertaining episodes of Cops ever.
"Sure," he responded. They might as well get all the fun they could out of the
visit before he was arrested or kicked out.
"I'm so excited!" Kagome squealed as they got in line. "We never really went to
theme parks too often when I was little and I was always too small to go on the
really good rides."
"I've never been to one, period," he grumbled, liking the way she was clinging
to his arm but not liking the loud people who were also in the line. Why the
hell was this taking so long? Didn't these idiots have anywhere else to be?!
"Your parents never took you?" Kagome gasped, looking at him like he was one of
those kids covered in flies in those sad commercials.
"We didn't really have these kinds of parks around when I was young," he
shrugged.
"Well, this will be the first time for both of us."
The rest of the wait was spent in a comfortable silence. The babble of the
crowd around him didn't even annoy him when she rested against him. Finally,
they were at the front of the line. Inuyasha felt cheated. The ride was fucking
stupid, just a bunch of metal carts connected and on wheels. To avoid putting a
damper on Kagome's happiness, he refrained from mentioning his disappointment,
instead allowing her to lead him to the very last cart, barely listening to her
claims that the back of the ride was the most fun. It was only when the
protective bar came down that he realized he had made a huge mistake. As the
ride inched forward and they started going higher and higher on a sharp
incline, he gripped the bar hard enough to pierce the foamy covering. This was
very notfun. His stomach was doing weird flips and twirls like it had when he
had first met Kagome, only it was much, much worse. When the cart dropped, he
was the only one who didn't scream, even though he was the only one who was
really truly disturbed by the motion. Kagome was shrieking in his ear, laughing
at every sharp turn and neck breaking drop. As for him, he tensed up and stayed
like that for the rest of the ordeal, even though the recorded voice that had
been repeating over and over as they waited in line had told them not to.
Thirty seconds of torture, and then it was over.
They were back at the loading and unloading area and Kagome hopped out of the
cart quickly, skipping right over to the cubby where she had left her bag.
Inuyasha followed, wanting to keep an eye on her even though his legs felt like
limp noodles. After he had stumbled out into the fresh air, he felt somewhat
better, until a breeze blew the smell of hot dogs from a nearby vendor right
into his nostrils, making him gag. Fortunately, just before he was about to
lose last night's dinner and make a complete fool of himself, he managed to
regain control completely.
"Let's go again! I wanna go again!" Kagome squealed, twirling around in her
excitement.
Inuyasha meant to say "Hell fucking no", but instead of words spewing from his
mouth, it was bile studded with unidentifiable chunks.
Holding a hand to her mouth, Kagome gently took his hand and led him over to
some trees across the way from where they were, plopping the both of them down
on a secluded little bench. Swinging her backpack from her shoulders, she
rummaged through it until she pulled out a package of tissues. Taking his chin
between her thumb and first finger, she wiped away the small traces of vomit
from his skin, seemingly unaffected by touching such foulness. With patient
movements, she continued to clean him up, dabbing some tissues with water from
the bottle she carried with her and cleaning the little splashes that had
gotten on his clothes. When she was finished, she handed him the water along
with a stick of gum, which he took gratefully, trying to ignore the burning
embarrassment he was feeling.
"Thank you," he muttered sullenly after taking a swig, popping the gum in his
mouth.
"You needed it more than I did," she replied with a smile, swinging her legs
which did not quite touch the ground.
Scowling, he screwed the cap back on the bottle. "This never woulda happened if
you hadn't forced me on that crazy fucking death trap!"
Kagome just laughed. "I've gotten enough practice with the baby, Inuyasha. You
don't have to be embarrassed."
His ears drooped in shame. Were he human, they would have been burning a bright
red. "Hajime. How is he, anyway?"
"Fine," she sighed. "He sleeps a lot better now. And he makes talking sounds
and stuff and his eyes are so aware that I can swear he understands everything
I'm saying and he's communicating back. I talk to him a lot," she said softly,
her eyes looking sad for a moment. "I tell him stories about how we met and
stuff, and sometimes I think he recognizes your name and remembers you, but
Kōga said that's not possible."
Hearing that his own son might not even remember him or know who he was made
his heart twist painfully. Taking her hand in his, he squeezed it and kissed
her cheek. "You've been lonely, huh?" Kagome nodded, her eyes filling with
tears she did not allow to fall, but he noticed them. "I'm so sorry, Kagome.
We'll be together from now on. Nothing, and I mean fucking nothingwill keep me
from you."
"I wish I could believe that," she whispered, following it up with a sniffle.
"Hey," he said sternly, taking her face between his hands and making her look
at him. "I mean it. I'm never leaving you again." He put all the feelings he
had for her in his eyes, all the things he could never even hope to express
with words, willing it to work, willing her to understand.
After a few seconds of unbroken eye contact, she nodded. "Okay. Okay, I-
I believe you."
Letting out a breath he had not realized he'd been holding, Inuyasha let go of
her face and took her hands once more. "You wanna go on any more rides?" he
asked. If he hadn't gotten through to her before, that sentence surely proved
his love for her.
Laughing, Kagome shook her head, eyes sparkling once again. "No, I think all
the rides are either really fast or really spinny. We can come back to a place
like this when Hajime is older and can enjoy it."
Relieved, he stood up. "Good, because I get the feeling that fucking rabbit is
out for my blood. The sooner we go the better."
She gasped. "I almost forgot! Oh, but Fluff McRabbitson would never seek
revenge, and I'm sure they got someone as good as he is to play him."
Rolling his eyes, he tugged her to the side of the park opposite where they had
entered. Inuyasha didn't want to risk going back the way they came and possibly
run into any people who would recognize him. Hurrying his pace, he almost
didn't see the look of want that flitted across Kagome's face for just a
second. Filled anew with a possessive rage, he stopped in his tracks and
whirled around to see just who it was that had inspired her to look that way.
He saw nothing but mothers and young children. Confused, he scanned the area
once more. What could she have— Aha! The souvenir shop! A giant stuffed version
of that Bunny McFluffington or whatever the hell she kept going on about was
there in the display window, mocking him with its blank stare and open maw
filled with only two buck teeth. Changing course, he darted inside the crowded
shop and made a bee line straight toward the stuffed animal.
"You want it?" he asked, coming to a stop before the display bunny.
Kagome gasped, her pretty blue eyes taking in the glorious sight of the toy
that stood as tall as she did, maybe even a little taller. Feeling a sudden
wave of fondness overtake him, Inuyasha put an arm around her and kissed her
head, letting himself linger and take in her scent.
"I do, but it's so big! How would we take it home with us?"
Inuyasha shrugged. "Buy another suitcase?"
She turned in his grip to stare at him. "You're not serious." When his
expression didn't waver, her eyes got bigger and she smiled happily. "You're
serious?! Ohmygod, thank you!" Throwing her arms around his middle, she hugged
him tight, swaying from side to side.
"Grab your thing and let's get outta here," he said with a smirk.
While Kagome tried to wrestle down the giant bunny that may or may not have
actually been for sale, Inuyasha quickly found himself a garishly bright
suitcase that was possibly big enough to force the stuffed rabbit into. With
that out of the way, he grabbed a children's novelty toothbrush with a handle
in the shape of some sort of cartoon cat, glad that it came with a free travel-
sized toothpaste. He wanted the taste of his embarrassment out of his mouth and
he wanted it out now. Having spied several taxis loitering about the place when
they'd arrived, he'd decided from the moment they got there that they most
certainly would not be taking a bus back or even going on one ever again.
"Inuyasha, help me get this down!" Kagome shrieked, the sound somewhat muffled
by the upper half of the toy that was smothering her.
Sighing, he went to save her from herself.
O/\o/\O
"How the fuck is this thing so goddamn heavy?" Inuyasha grumbled, carrying the
giant regret on his back through the hotel's automatic doors.
"Fluff McRabbitson is stuffed with love!" Kagome said defensively, holding the
much lighter suitcase filled with only the now used toothbrush.
"Love sure feels a lot like rocks," he mumbled, almost stumbling over his own
feet which he could barely see due to the rabbit's own limbs jutting out and
blocking his vision below his knees.
"Don't be mean!" she commanded, stomping over to the elevator and pressing the
up button.
"I married a child," he said under his breath as he rolled his eyes, dismayed
when even that felt like a struggle. An elderly man and woman passing by them
glanced at Kagome before glaring at him and quickening their pace. "I didn't
mean literally!" he called after them, which only served to make them shuffle
away faster. "Fuckin' people…"
Kagome laughed and the elevator doors open. "So what do you want for dinner?"
Rolling the abomination off his back, he straightened his posture and rolled
his shoulders before stretching. "I was hoping we could skip dinner," he said
suggestively, wondering if the sweat stains on the armpits of his shirt would
make him seem manlier or just plain gross.
A blush colored over her face, and just as he thought she was about to turn him
down, she got up on her tiptoes and gave him a quick kiss on the lips. "I was
hoping you would say that."
A ding sounded, signaling they had arrived at their floor. Marveling at his
luck, Inuyasha followed Kagome out of the elevator, dragging her present behind
him and down the hall until they were finally in the sweet sanctuary of their
room. Summoning up all his strength, he tossed the rabbit in a chair before
approaching Kagome, who stood with her back to him at the edge of the bed,
waiting patiently for him.
Feeling somehow primal, like they had just been playing a very adult game of
hide and seek and he had found her, he snaked the tips of his fingers under the
tight blue cloth of her bodice where it was on her sides, pressing kisses to
her bare shoulder. Kagome arched back into him and he heard her give the
smallest moan, could almost feel the pumping of her blood through her veins.
Slipping his hands fully into her dress, he caressed her ribs, moving forward
little by little until he was touching the undersides of her breasts.
Continuing making small circles on her skin with his fingers, his teeth began
to play with the strings of her halter, his tongue darting out to taste her
skin here and there. When he could stand it no more, he took the end of a
string between his teeth and pulled, undoing the bow at the base of her neck
before ravishing the tender flesh with sucking kisses and nips of his fangs.
Kagome smelled wet, so very wet, and she squirmed in his hold, gasping for
breath. Ignoring her non-verbal pleads for more, he continued what he was
doing, picking the exact spot where he'd place his mark and paying it special
attention. With a little mewl, she twisted out of his grasp, which he just
barely allowed. Her face was flushed pink and her eyes were bright and a dark
blue, making his loins jolt with lust. With one quick motion, she tugged off
her dress and let it fall to the floor, revealing not only her naked breasts
but also a lack of panties.
"I want you to lick me, Inuyasha," she panted, and his eyes zeroed in on the
glistening juices he could see on her inner thighs. "Lay down on the bed and
lick me."
Mute, he did just that, fumbling with his clothes along the way until he was
rid of them. No sooner than he was flat on his back did Kagome jump on him, her
lips pressing into his with such force that his fangs nicked the inside of his
mouth, making him bleed. The small spark of pain was hardly noticeable,
especially when Kagome opened her mouth and invited him in. They passed his
blood between them and he began to shake from the intensity of the moment.
"I need you now!" he growled, ripping his lips away from hers.
"It's been too long," Kagome groaned back, scooting up until her breasts were
dangling temptingly in front of his lips, her pussy leaving a warm trail of
liquid arousal on his abdomen.
"Fuckin' right."
His mouth watering at the smell and anticipation, he drew her right nipple into
his mouth and sucked hard, becoming gentler after she let out a cry laced with
a bit more pain than he was comfortable hearing while a jet of milk squirted
into his mouth. Pushing on, he savored the taste of her breast in his mouth,
his hand coming up to play with the other one. With a cry of need, Kagome moved
yet again, turning around and lowering her hips half an inch above his mouth.
Not needing to be told what to do, he gripped her thighs and brought her hard
down on his face, unfurling his tongue inside of her and moaning. It was almost
like it was all new again. How could he have nearly forgotten how she tasted?
That sweet, tropical fruitiness was unchanged. It was his duty as her first and
only to hold her memory in his mind above all others, to tattoo her flavor on
his taste buds.
"I wanna lick you too," she moaned, grinding down on him before leaning
forward.
Inuyasha waited, the thrill humming in his every cell as he licked her more
rapidly. A few seconds more and still he hadn't felt that sweet mouth of hers
on his cock. "What the fuck happened?" he asked, turning his head to the side
so she could hear.
"Uh, I um, can't reach…"
Craning his neck, he observed how Kagome was stretched out along his body yet
still a small distance away from his straining erection.
"Fuck, just stick out your tongue and lick it, you don't have to put it all in
your mouth." The most important thing was contact, and he really, really needed
at least some friction.
"It didn't work! There's still like a couple more inches, but if I move off of
you any more then you won't be able to go down on me," she said, a small bit of
a whine in her voice. Obviously he wasn't the only one who was suffering.
"God fucking dammit, just spit on it and jerk me off!" And with that, he buried
his face back in her pussy.
Not a second later, he felt something splatter on his cock followed by the grip
of her small, soft hand, which she also must have spit on. His hips rose up of
their own accord and he almost didn't care she wasn't blowing him. Kagome
worked him at a jerky, frantic pace, her hands working the miracles they always
did and making him feel like he was gonna blow in just a matter of a couple
minutes.
"'Ousekeepeeng!" The heavily accented word was followed by a series of sharp,
annoying raps on the door.
"What?" Kagome gasped just as he gave her clit a small nibble followed by a
suck.
"Ignore it!" Desperately, he went back to tonguing her, his hands traveling
over the smooth flesh of her ass, squeezing her and massaging. Just a few
strokes more, and he'd—
The telltale creak of the door opening made Kagome freeze in her actions before
removing her hands completely and scrambling off of him, falling to the floor
with a loud thump in her panic. Inuyasha nearly screamed—no, roared, men don't
scream—at the short woman with a thick mustache who had busied herself with
cleaning and was currently replacing the towels in their bathroom. The unused
towels. From where he lay on the bed, he could still see the crumpled up ones
on the counter. Moving on from the bathroom, she began stacking their dirty
plates from the night before onto her cart.
Feeling a vein throbbing in his forehead where he never before knew he had one,
Inuyasha finally burst. "GET THE FUCK OUT!"
Finally taking notice of the very naked half-demon on the bed across the room
and the girl on the floor covering her nudity with a pillow, the maid raised
her unibrow and began yelling back at him, saying things he was pretty sure
were curse words in Portuguese. After she had gotten whatever that was out of
her system, she marched over to where her cart was and stomped out of the room,
slamming the door behind herself. Growling, Inuyasha flopped back down onto the
bed, dimly noticing he had shredded the bedspread in several places.
"Um, I'm actually feeling really hungry, so could we rethink skipping dinner?"
Kagome asked timidly from her place on the floor. As if on cue, her stomach
grumbled loudly and she blushed a darker red than she was currently sporting.
Sighing, Inuyasha picked up the phone to order room service. Yes, he was
certain this honeymoon was fucking cursed.
***** Fancy Free *****
Note: Was anyone else forced to learn proper manners? My grandmother tried to
teach me when I was a child but it never worked. I even attending modeling and
etiquette classes for a while there (in between my 3 ballet classes, 2 tap
dancing classes, folk dancing, acting, comedic improvisation, voice classes…)
and I was the only girl who couldn't paint her nails. I just ended up staining
my dress forever, which super pissed my mom off. Ah, memories. I still can't
sit like a lady or pose for photos and I hunch like Mr. Burns. And I don't get
why you have to refuse something unless it's offered 3 times. That just seems
like a magic ritual or whatever. I honestly can't remember anything from my
classes, so all that money and time were wasted.
17: Fancy Free
A week and a few days later, after many interruptions and bad moods and
arguments and just not right moments, Inuyasha decided it was finally time to
bust out the big guns. If he didn't win her over tonight, that was that. Every
time he tried to approach her sexually, something always went wrong. It didn't
feel right, he was staring at her too hard, he shouldn't just jump in the
shower with her because it startled her, pushing his penis in her face was not
foreplay, feeling her up during a rerun of Jeopardy wasn't romantic… It went on
and on and on. He understood why Kagome was keeping him at arm's length, but he
hated it. Nothing he did was acceptable and he was nearing his wit's end, and
his perpetual blue balls only added to his suffering. Also, her stuffed
rabbit's eyes seemed to follow him around the room and he wondered if his
sexual frustration was somehow gradually giving it the power of sentience and
movement. Whatever the case, it certainly made seducing Kagome that much more
difficult. If she tried to bring that thing into their bed one more time, he
swore, Mr. Bunny was going to have a rather fatal "accident".
Inuyasha even reached the point where he was considering calling up his father
and asking for advice. Whatever he had done seemed to have kept Izayoi
worshipping at his feet for centuries regardless of whether he paid attention
to her or not. A thought occurred to him. Was that the key? Should he ignore
Kagome? Initially, he was repulsed by the thought, but the more he thought
about it the more tempting it seemed. All he had to do was pretend not to be
affected by her for a while and then she'd be eating out of his hand forever.
But then reality reared its ugly head. No, he couldn't ignore Kagome. If he
tried to ignore her, she'd try to get his attention for a bit before giving him
the cold shoulder, and that would piss him off and then they'd fight and maybe
they wouldn't make up this time.
So what if he did the opposite?
If he lavished her with gifts and attention and apologies the way girls always
dreamed of being treated, what then? Looking at Kagome where she lay still
asleep in the bed next to him, he smiled. He'd finally found his answer.
Gently, so as not to disturb her, Inuyasha slid out of bed and took his phone
into the bathroom. Tomorrow was their last day on their honeymoon, so he needed
to come up with something big, something that would impress her and wow her
back into his arms.
O/\o/\O
"Did you put on the dress?" Inuyasha called to Kagome who was still getting
ready in the bathroom.
The door opened and she came out, hair pinned up and white evening gown with
gold embellishments in place. The bright, too pure color kind of hurt his eyes,
but she liked it, right? White and gold were classy colors. Her make-up was
done to perfection and her beauty was marred only by the frown she had on her
face.
"What is all this about, Inuyasha?" Kagome questioned for about the thirtieth
time. "Where are we going?"
"It's a surprise!" he replied, taking her arm and leading her out the door. He
tried to cover up his nerves with a sheen of excitement and was paranoid some
cracks were beginning to show.
Kagome scowled. "I don't like not knowing where we're going."
"You'll know soon enough."
Holding out his elbow for her to grasp, he led her out of the room, keeping his
steps moderate in size and speed so she would not have to skip and run to keep
up with him. Everything about tonight had to be perfect; one mistake could ruin
it all. The limo he had rented was idling outside, so white and shiny it nearly
glowed in the dark. As soon as Kagome caught sight of it, she glanced at him,
curiosity in her eyes. Biting his tongue, he opened the door for her and gave
her a swooping bow, following in after she tugged the train of her dress after
her and arranged the voluminous fabric so that she was comfortable.
"Where's my corsage?" she asked with a small smirk on her face.
"Your what?" he responded, mind blank. What the hell was she talking about and
why did he not have it for her and would it ruin the night?
His anxiety must have shown on his face because she grabbed the hand that was
reaching for his phone and laced her fingers with his. "It's nothing, Inuyasha.
I was just making a joke…"
"Oh," he said, relieved.
The rest of the ride passed smoothly, with Kagome loosening up enough to lay
her head on his shoulder and sometimes kiss his jaw. There was a small
television in the back and they watched some foreign film about lesbians that
was supposed to be good. Inuyasha, however, just felt bored. Not even the
almost-porn on the screen could keep his attention for long. His mind just
busily went over and over what he had set up, rehearsing the words he had even
gone so far as to write out on paper in his head. Everything needed to be
perfect. So engrossed in his thoughts, he missed the contemplative frown on
Kagome's face, as well as the blush in reaction to the film he had put on.
At long last, the car rolled to a stop and he nearly leapt out of the vehicle,
wanting to get to the good stuff. Remembering just in time to grasp Kagome's
hand and help her out lest she stumble over the long hem of her dress, led her
to the boat that was bobbing in the water on the very edge of the lake nearest
them. Her lips parted in surprise, blue eyes taking in the romantic little cove
with a small, almost gently lazy waterfall on the opposite side. The only light
came from lanterns strung above the water, and they were not bright enough to
pollute the beauty of the stars and hide them from view. The lake itself was
rather small and shallow, manmade and void of any aquatic life, but it still
made a pretty picture and Inuyasha couldn't help but feel proud at the
expression on her face.
Without a word, he helped her step into the tiny rowboat, holding her firmly by
the waist to ensure she would stay steady. A second later, he was rowing them
with powerful strokes towards the waterfall, the faint strains of a violin
echoing around them. Usually, this place had a man employed to row for a couple
and sing, but Inuyasha wanted to be alone with Kagome and he was never much of
a performer.
"This is just like The Little Mermaid," Kagome murmured, trailing the tips of
her fingers in the water.
Inuyasha smirked, glad to be the only prince in her life. As they drew closer
to the waterfall, the violin music got louder and somehow sweeter with the
mournful quality that particular instrument always seems to possess no matter
the artist's intent. Soon, they were next to the waterfall but far enough away
so that they would not be splashed too much. Grinning at his wife's confused
expression, he jumped out of the boat and onto the cobblestone path that had
not been visible from the other side of the water. Again grabbing her around
the waist, he lifted her out of the boat and onto land, taking her hand and
walking behind the curtain of water that hid their destination from view.
Hidden behind the little manmade waterfall was a restaurant that served only
one table a night. The decorations were kept to a minimum to really drive home
that the patrons were dining in a cave, but the objects they did deem worthy of
cluttering the small space were only of the highest quality. The table they
would be eating at was carved out of solid mahogany and was well over a hundred
years old. Despite its age, it was still as sturdy as the day it was made, and
its age only enhanced its beauty. The chandelier was lit with candles instead
of lightbulbs and he had been told it was taken from the estate of a French
noble during the Revolution. The silverware was actual silver and the plates
were very old porcelain with goblets of crystal. All in all, it was a pretty
ritzy place.
Face colored more red than pink, Kagome allowed him to pull out the throne-like
chair for her, settling into the overstuffed cushion gracefully. She
immediately broke etiquette by allowing her back to touch the back of the chair
and began to stare at the array of forks and spoons with wide eyes. Deciding
not to correct her, he took his seat and glanced at the waiter where he stood
waiting to be summoned not two feet from them.
"Bread now," was all he said, his face taking on a cross look.
The waiter obliged, practiced enough in the art of dealing with rich fools to
not let his expression betray his opinion of the boy in front of him and what
was obviously his underage mistress. A delicately woven basket was brought to
them, filled with warm, crusty white bread. Apple butter was in season and a
small crystal butter dish was brought to them. Already starving, Inuyasha
helped himself to the bread, spreading it liberally with what should really
have been considered a dessert, in his opinion.
"Where are the menus? When do we order?" Kagome whispered, glancing nervously
at where the violinist was playing with eyes closed, swaying to the sound of
his own music.
Inuyasha placed the bread down on his plate and smiled at her. "This place
doesn't give choices. They have different surprise meals every day for whatever
customer. It took a shit ton of money to buy out the fucker who had this place
before me. You've gotta make reservations three years in advance!"
"Oh…" Kagome said, taking a piece of bread and tearing the crust from it. She
fiddled with it a little bit before dropping it to the plate.
Panicking, Inuyasha looked around for the waiter. Kagome was not reacting like
he had expected her to. Why wasn't her dress off yet?! The psychic link the
waiter had established immediately upon their arrival alerted him to Inuyasha's
distress, and he came out with a trolley of food. The half-demon relaxed
somewhat. The presentation was marvelous. Crystal, candles, white linen, good
red wine. With a flourish, the mustachioed waiter began to pour Kagome a glass
of the rich liquid, not a drop going astray to stain the tablecloth.
"Uh, do you have Dr. Pepper?"
The waiter pulled back the bottle, almost losing his grip on it and letting it
fall. Inuyasha cringed. This was nothow the night was supposed to go. Wisely
deciding to ignore Kagome's request, the man placed the delicate plates on the
chargers and retreated out of sight but not out of earshot. Clearing his
throat, Inuyasha reached out a hand to grasp her small one which was currently
fiddling with the array of forks. She didn't respond.
"How do you like everything?"
Kagome blushed and smiled tremulously at him. "It's…beautiful," she whispered,
finally choosing a fish fork and digging into her stuffed chicken breast.
"What's wrong?" he finally asked, allowing his elbows to touch the table. She
wasn't happy, he'd known it the entire trip, but it was only getting worse no
matter how hard he tried.
Glancing at him, she put the fork away and leaned forward. "It's just… Well, I
would have been perfectly fine getting some McDonald's drive-thru and listening
to Katy Perry on the radio. Everything's too much."
His mouth went dry and he suddenly felt like he was choking. Air. He needed
air. He needed to get away from this place. Inuyasha rose to his feet so
quickly his chair fell over behind him, hitting the violinist in the knees and
making him shriek. The first few steps he took were stumbles, but the further
he got away from her the more he stomped. Pushing the boat into the water with
his foot, he leapt in, trying desperately not to punch a hole through the
bottom. All the fucking work, all the fucking money, all the effort and she
rejected him and said she would have preferred fucking shit over what he had
given her. If artificial romance bought with money wasn't enough to keep her,
he was out of ideas.
Kagome appeared just as he was considering leaving her behind and rowing his
way back alone. "Inuyasha?! I'm sorry, I just—"
"Shut up and get in the boat," he said from between clenched teeth. Whatever it
was, he didn't want to hear it.
Obedient for once, Kagome simple nodded and shakily got in the boat, making it
rock precariously before sitting. She looked wounded that he didn't even
attempt to help her, but he ignored it. Using his anger, he rowed them back to
the opposite side of the lake, his sweat cold on his skin. Scrambling out of
the tiny watercraft, he jogged to the limo, slamming the door just as Kagome
reached it. It was childish, he knew, but immensely satisfying. A second later
the door was open again and Kagome was glaring at him, the hem of her dress
dripping. Inuyasha merely yawned and leaned his head back, going for
nonchalance, which was sort of hard since he had run out of a restaurant on the
verge of a panic attack not quite ten minutes ago.
The ride back to the hotel was tense, but thankfully silent. He didn't know if
he could deal with her right now. If she apologized, that was bad. If she tried
to justify it, well, he didn't want to listen. It took a lot for him to show
his feelings in such a manner. Never before had he even thought of setting up
something like this for anyone else, but he wanted to make Kagome happy.
Anybody else would have been grateful and he'd be feeling proud, but she just
made him feel hopelessly inadequate. Maybe it had to do with how they had
started their relationship, with him working for her family, but he felt like a
very poor servant. Would it always be that way between the two of them? Those
thoughts had him feeling sad, so in order to avoid that most unwelcome feeling,
he went right back to angry.
Once they were safely in their hotel room, he cringed. The hotel staff had
received orders from him that as soon as they left, the room was to be
practically carpeted in red rose petals with two bottles of champagne waiting
for them right at the foot of the bed. Everything was as he had planned, and it
only made everything worse. The lights were low, the view through the opened
curtains was beautiful, and they were together. Kagome slowly absorbed
everything and his face burned red with embarrassment and rage.
"Inuyasha… All this… Is it f-for me?"
He couldn't bear to hear her voice, the stress in it. Instead of responding, he
just clenched his fists, wishing he could blow the room away.
"Inuyasha," Kagome said again, stepping closer to him and gently putting a hand
on his shoulder, so impersonally. "Inuyasha, I'm sorry for how I acted at the
restaurant. I never meant—"
He jerked away from her, every muscle in his body tense to the point of feeling
cramped. "I'm so fucking stupid!" he hissed, kicking some of the rose petals.
"So fucking stupid!" he roared, grabbing a bottle of champagne from the bucket
full of icy water and throwing it against the wall. The crash made Kagome jump
back and they both watched the foam drip down the wall towards the shattered
green glass on the floor.
"It just felt so impersonal!" she cried, echoing his thoughts on her touch from
earlier.
Surprised, he turned to face her. "That was the most fucking personal thing
I've ever done for anyone! And you just threw it right back in my fucking
face!"
She flinched. "It was like you were desperately trying to impress me on a first
date, like you were trying to seduce me," she explained. The more she spoke,
the angrier she got, and soon her voice had risen as well. "Not like we're
married and have a child together. A child you never even acknowledge!" There
was nothing to say to that, so he just continued to swallow against the burning
in his throat. Getting into the fight, Kagome leaned closer to him, eyes alive
with fury. "You dress me up in a goddamn prom dress when I can't even go to
school, just throwing that in my face! And I never would have even gone to the
dances anyway because your fucking parents keep me locked up in their house all
the time and I can't even see my friends!"
Inuyasha barked out a laugh. "If you think my family is controlling when it
comes to you, then you have no fucking idea how bad it can get. You wanna go to
school? Well, I want to have a life where every fucking detail isn't decided by
the one person I hate!"
Kagome's anger melted into tears and she began to sob, holding herself when he
made no move to. "I-I just wish we stayed at your apartment," she wailed,
mascara trailing down her cheeks. "Even though we fought, we could be ourselves
and I was happy."
He sighed, wishing his feet would move so he could hold her, but he doubted she
wanted him to touch her right now. "I just… I want you to have nice things. A
nice life. You deserve all of that." Sitting down on the bed, he decided to
just quit the obviously pointless games and be straight with her. "I wanted to
ask you at the restaurant, but we're here so whatever." Their eyes met and he
took a big breath, shutting off his brain before it could talk him out of it.
"Let's get married again, Kagome. Let's start over. I know I haven't been a
good husband but I want to be. I want to be yours again."
She sniffled. "Starting over is impossible."
Her words crushed him. It must have showed on his face, since right before he
was going to bolt from the room, Kagome lunged at him and hugged him, making
them both fall back down on the bed. She was still crying and he could feel her
mascara tears stain his expensive white shirt, but he didn't care. At least
they were really holding each other again because they wanted to, not because
they were trying to.
"Starting over erases our history, Inuyasha," Kagome murmured against his
chest. Nodding, he stroked her hair. "The good and the bad. I don't want that."
Rising up enough to look at him, she smiled softly, the kind of smile he hadn't
seen in too long. "I've already forgiven you for what you did, Inuyasha. You
don't have to try and make it up to me anymore. And anyway, you're the nicest
gift I could ever have. You and Hajime."
Her words pushed him to the breaking point, and he quickly rolled her off him
and turned his back to her, sitting up and staring at the wall. This had been
coming for a while, he knew, but he hoped Kagome wouldn't be there to witness
it. The burning in his throat had turned to an inferno and he fought away the
pricking in his tear ducts. Of course, his wife had to ruin it by hugging him
from behind, kissing the back of his neck and resting her cheek on his
shoulder. Loving her more now than ever before, he patted her clasped hands
that dangled near his collarbone.
"I-I'm sorry for not being there for you," he whispered, barely able to manage
that. "For not being there for Hajime. I'm sorry for leaving you emotionally,"
he stressed the word with slight distaste, not liking to be reminded that he
too had feelings, "before really leaving you." Kagome nodded against him,
holding him a little tighter. "I'm sorry for—for forcing myself on you. I
just…" It was getting harder and harder to speak, and, to his dismay, his voice
cracked on the last word and a tear escaped, burning a fiery trail down his
face. But he needed to tell her. "I just wanted you to hurt. I wanted you to
hurt like I was hurt. I wanted to break you, Kagome," he admitted, struggling
to keep away the hiccupping breaths that wanted to take over. "Even if it was
just for a moment, I wanted to break you, and I can't forgive myself."
"Inuyasha?" Kagome asked tentatively after a few seconds, thankfully ignoring
the wetness on her hands.
"Yeah?" he responded, voice hoarse.
"Does this have something to do with Sesshomaru?"
His heart gave one big pump and then stopped. Unable to do anything else, he
just nodded.
Taking advantage of his temporary paralyzation, Kagome crawled to his side and
turned his face to her. Her small smile was more maternal than wifely, but it
was what he needed at the moment. Brushing his hair back, she pressed a kiss to
his forehead before kissing him just underneath his eyes, kissing the tears
away. Her lips migrated to his own and then she was sharing the flavor of his
tears with him.
"You don't disgust me," she whispered to him, kissing him again. "You never
have. And you don't have to tell me everything right now, but I think I know
what happened and I would never hate you or leave you just because he hurt you.
I understand you and I love you no matter what."
Holding back a sob, he kissed her, passionately but without tongue, not trying
to start anything but still wanting her to know that he loved her and he needed
her.
"I'm gonna be good to you," he said in between kisses. "I promise I'll make it
better than it ever was before."
Kagome smiled and pulled away after one last, lingering kiss. "I believe you.
We should probably get ready for bed, though. Our flight's first thing in the
morning and you know how I get."
Though it was disappointing that they didn't mate, Inuyasha was strangely
peaceful. And he was happy, for the first time in a long time. Even though they
just went through their bedtime routine like a couple that had been married for
thirty years rather than not even one, it was good. Though they had done sexual
things to one another during their trip, it had not felt intimate, not like
when they were at the shrine and just beginning to fall in love. Holding her in
bed on the last night of their trip, however, he felt closer to her than he
ever had. As she'd said, she understood him, and he understood her. Even if he
let his anger and low self-esteem continually get in the way, he did love her
and need her and understand her, and just because they didn't mate on their
honeymoon didn't mean they never would. Burying his nose in her hair, he
pressed her closer to him, hearing her giggle in her sleep. It wouldn't be much
longer, he vowed. Soon, they'd be together forever.
***** Flying High Again *****
18: Flying High Again
The hotel room was abandoned, their stuff was packed (even the giant stuffed
rabbit, miraculously), the baggage was checked, and they had boarded the plane.
Inuyasha smiled at Kagome, whose head was resting on his shoulder. It was like
all the bad things between them had never even happened. No, it was better than
that. It was better because they had happened and they made it through with a
new, deeper love and understanding. Kagome understood the darkness he never
wanted to tell her without him even having to speak. Somehow, as long as he
didn't say anything, her knowing was okay. One day, maybe, he would be able to
explain his life before her, but that day was not coming anytime in the
foreseeable future.
Thankfully, there was no overly amorous flight attendant to try and ruin the
newfound peace between them. Inuyasha finally got his pretzels and Kagome was
out like a light, making little murmuring noises in between light snores. In
just a few hours, they would be home, and he'd hopefully get to sleep and
Kagome wouldn't bug him to do anything. Though he knew hoping was futile since
Kagome had mentioned going out to the park, he still did. But for now,
everything was perfect.
Except for the fact that he wanted to feel Kagome's sweetly grasping wet pussy
around his cock just once before they returned to their humdrum lives.
No sooner than he had that thought did Kagome snort awake, mumbling something
incoherent before unbuckling her seatbelt and flipping up their trays so she
could get up. Patting her on the bottom, Inuyasha gave her hand a squeeze
before she was too far away on her journey to the bathroom. Sighing, he stared
out the window, wishing he could see something other than clouds at the moment.
A flash of white sticking out from where Kagome's tray was folded up caught his
eye, and he grabbed at the napkin, not even knowing why he did so. On the paper
were a few little doodles that Kagome had created before take-off, random
little things like a stick figure with what looked like his ears and a giant
rabbit stomping on a rainbow and crushing it to bits. In the corner of the
napkin framed by hearts were a few words in Kagome's loopy, girlish script.
I always wanted to join the mile high club.
Inuyasha choked on a gasp, immediately looking around him as though the other
passengers would be able to know what he had read. Once it was established that
no one on board was capable of reading minds, he scanned the little note about
a hundred more times in quick succession. Kagome, hisKagome, had written such a
thing and left it for him to find. There was no doubt about it. His cock
twitched in his pants and he wondered how he'd go about stealthily fulfilling
her desire. The brain he had been gifted with tried all sorts of scenarios, but
his inner clock was ticking louder than anything else and he wrestled out of
his belt, burst out of his seat, and practically ran for the bathroom at the
front of the plane.
He knocked twice and cleared his throat, suddenly feeling like he lacked
oxygen. The door opened and he was dragged inside the small space, wondering
how they even managed to fit and if they'd be able to get out again. Hopefully,
this wouldn't be a repeat of the spectacularly failed sixty-nine session.
Scenting the air, he groaned as Kagome's fruity arousal tickled his senses, his
mouth falling open as he almost tasted it. Suddenly, nothing else mattered
anymore. He wanted her more than he had ever wanted anything. He neededher, and
it was deeper than any physical need. It was mental, spiritual, emotional. All-
consuming. The fact that she still loved him after everything he had put her
through, still accepted him even when she knew what he allowed to happen to him
for most of his life, was everything.
Lifting her up and plopping her down on the ridiculous excuse for a sink,
Inuyasha crushed Kagome to him, his lips gentle despite the force, his entire
solar plexus burning with love for her. She melted against him, warm and soft
and eager, her arms twining around his neck as she kissed him back, loving him
without words. Her legs wrapped around him tight and he yanked her shirt up,
baring her braless breasts to his eyes. Wasting no time, he buried his face in
her flesh, idly wondering how much time they'd have before the inevitable
interruption. There were demons on the flight and probably among the staff and
they'd be sure to smell or hear what was going on in the bathroom.
Her nipples went hard in his mouth and he sucked like it was the first time.
Still sweeter than candy… Taking her legs from around his waist, he spread them
open wide, a feat that would not have been possible if Kagome weren't so
petite. A quick glance showed him she wasn't wearing underwear, and he
hurriedly began to rub her clit with his index finger, teasing her with little
clockwise circles to make her even wetter than she already was. Regretfully,
there was little time for foreplay since they were on a crowded flight and
needed to finish before they were interrupted. However, Kagome was wetter than
ever and he couldn't remember ever being so hard, which would definitely help
them.
An idea occurred to him.
"Kagome, can we do it now?" he gasped after pulling away from her breasts. They
were grinding together now, and somehow he was down to his boxers, which were
quickly on their way to his knees.
"Um, yeah," she whispered. "Has it been so long you've forgotten how it goes?"
He growled at her and gave her smiling mouth a kiss. "No, I mean, the other
thing…"
It took her a few seconds, but then her face lit up in understanding. "You
still want to? With me?"
"Nobody else," he responded truthfully. "You're the only one I've ever loved."
The admission made his face color, but it needed to be said, even if he felt
stupid for not being able to eloquently express himself.
Her eyes shone in what seemed to be something like the old adoration she'd
given him before all that shit went wrong between them. "I love you, too,
Inuyasha. You're it."
She nodded her consent to the ritual, and a second after he pulled his boxers
down he was inside her. Somehow she was warmer than anyone had ever been,
tighter, softer, wetter. At this rate, it wasn't going to last long. He wasn't
gonna last long. Kagome's eyes were little slits, the darkened and glazed blue
peeking through at him. Her lower lip trembled; she was close. Somehow
everything was in sync with the two of them. Grabbing her bottom, he lifted her
up a little more and plunged into her faster, his thrusts becoming shallower
and shallower in his own need until they were merely grinding together again,
this time as one. The side of her neck was damp with her own sweat and his
breath. Every so often, his tongue would dart out to lick it, he just couldn't
help himself. She tasted divine, the knowledge that she would soon be his
entirely forever making the very air he breathed sweeter.
Kagome cried out his name just as she began to rapidly pulse around him, and he
knew then he had to seize the moment. In a flash, her flesh was between his
teeth, and he clamped down, raising a hand just in time to cover her mouth and
subdue her surprised scream. The vibrations against his palm coupled with the
taste of her blood that filled his mouth made him shoot inside her, jet after
jet, groaning his muffled pleasure into her wound.
After a few moments of them rocking out their orgasms, he withdrew both fang
and member from her. Kagome, still recovering from her orgasm, brought her
flushed and rosy face close to his and laid a kiss on his wanting mouth.
"Did it work?" she asked, a bit of worry seeping into her tone.
Savoring the lingering taste of her blood, he nodded, fixing her clothes so
she'd at least look more or less presentable. "Of course it did. Now you're
really mine."
"More like now you're mine," she replied, tugging his boxers back up and
caressing his navel with the tips of her fingers. His muscles fluttered in
response along with his heart. "I've always been yours."
Sighing, he decided to let it go and began to pull up his pants, only to
realize he was still mostly erect and his desire was increasing by the moment.
Kagome's eyes were fixated on the bulge outlined by the thin cotton of his
underwear, and the feel of her gaze made him twitch down below. As she reached
out her hand, seemingly in a lustful trance, he caught her by the wrist before
he got too wrapped up in the mood that was beginning to permeate the cramped
chamber.
"Not now," he whispered, almost hating himself for his refusal. "Don't wanna
get kicked off the plane," he joked. It was more than that, though. Now that he
had an official position at the company, he was very recognizable, and he
didn't want to be yelled at by his father should anyone recognize him and
report his rather inappropriate behavior. There were kids on the flight, for
fuck's sake!
"But I want you," Kagome whispered back, a slight whine in her voice that made
his mouth go dry. "God, Inuyasha, as soon as we get off this plane, we're going
to bed!"
He nodded and gulped, his eyes on her pussy that was still leaking his cum and
her own juices. Grabbing some paper, he began to clean her. To his shock and
surprise, she began to moan and move her hips, and he became so drawn in that
he switched from wiping the mess away and began to concentrate on her clit,
telling himself he was just helping her out and that she deserved it. By the
time she came, expelling more of his cum on a flood of her own, he was panting,
his tongue darting out and tasting the air like some sort of reptile. More than
anything, he wanted to bury his face inside her quickly followed by his cock.
Before he realized it, he was doing just that, and instead of shoving him away
from her overly sensitized parts, his wife brought him closer, pulling him by
his twitching ears. Even thatfelt good!
"Fuck, Kagome, I think something's wrong," he moaned in between licks.
"M-maybe it's because we haven't done it in so long," she suggested, bucking
her hips.
Inuyasha began to jerk himself off, wishing it was her small, soft hand that
held him. He was about to tell her that it hadn't been that long for him, but
thankfully stopped himself at the last minute. As much as he loved Kagome, she
had never affected him quite like this before. No one had. It just wasn't
natural. It occurred to him that maybe this was just how mated couples were.
But that wasn't right! His mother and father had certainly been very close, but
if they had ever felt the way he did right now, they would have spent all of
their time in their room. Maybe it wore off? He didn't know whether that would
be a good thing or a bad thing.
In a few more seconds, they were both cumming, and when his lust wasn't abated
in the least, he knew with certainty that something was definitely off.
"Come on, let's go," he muttered, forcing himself not to look at her lest they
lose another half hour.
"I'll go first," she said shakily.
He could smell the heat between her legs that showed no sign of receding. They
were definitely, definitely in trouble. Giving in to the almost overwhelming
temptation, Inuyasha kissed her, feeling one giant, heart-piercing burst of
love after another, the rare kind he previously felt only in very special
moments with Kagome, like the beginning of their mating. It was enough to bring
him to his knees, and he was saved only by the tininess of the bathroom,
slamming his hands down on the sink. Kagome seemed similarly affected and clung
to him, taking one gasping breath after another, shaking like a leaf.
"Can you walk?" he breathed after an extended lip lock.
"I-I think so…" Her cheeks were still a charming shade of pink and he groaned,
closing the short distance between them to taste her lips again, grinding his
semi into her stomach.
"You taste too good," he said against her skin, moving down to her neck.
"Something's definitely different, Inuyasha!" Kagome said, sounding stronger.
Only the ever increasing scent of her arousal let him know that she was still
in the same state. "I better go before someone needs to use the restroom.
Follow me in a couple minutes, okay?"
Tearing himself away from her, he nodded, sure that everyone knew what they had
been doing since the bathroom was at the front of the plane, so leaving
separately wasn't needed. Still, he'd humor her, if only so he could be alone
for a few seconds to see if that would make him want to stop fucking her. What
the fuck was going on?! Had someone drugged them or something? His mind worked
to think of a possible explanation, but it only went back to the ritual. Had he
fucked it up somehow? Panicking, he fished his phone out of his pocket, pulling
his jeans back up as he did so. His shaking fingers managed to dial his
father's number and he took deep breaths in an attempt to calm himself. All
that did was force more of Kagome's delicious lingering scent into his nose and
he groaned aloud, his nether regions throbbing.
"Inuyasha! Is your plane early? The car's not going to arrive for another
couple hours, so—"
"Kagome said she wanted to join the mile high club so we went to fuck in the
bathroom and we mated and it was great but weird 'cause my dick won't go down
and she's still wet as fuck and I fucked it up somehow and I don't know what to
do!" Inuyasha hissed into the phone, his words running together in quick
succession.
Toga was silent. "You mated on the plane?" he asked, confused. "Why not the
hotel?"
"We were too busy with tourist shit Kagome wanted to do and there was just
never enough time to even have sex," he lied, knowing his father wouldn't quite
believe that.
Again, he was silent. "Inuyasha, what did your mother tell you about the
ritual?"
"That we had to be in an emotional place of peace and harmony or some shit. And
we were! We just worked all our shit out and everything was great, so I don't
know what went wrong."
His father exhaled strong through his nostrils, a sign of frustration. "That is
true, however, that's not all there is to it. The ritual preserves your
feelings for one another at the very exact moment it is enacted. Do you
remember what was going on in your head and heart at that very moment?"
"All I could think about was how much I loved her," he responded truthfully.
"Was that really it?" he asked in a knowing tone.
Inuyasha sighed. "Well, that and how much I wanted to fuck her and everything…"
"So you didn't have any kind of intimate activity at all during the honeymoon?"
"No," he pouted, remembering. "Um, well, there were a couple times when we got
all worked up but it never went all the way."
"This appears to be worse than I thought," Toga sighed. "Usually, the mating
ritual occurs after the participants are already used to one another's bodies,
preferably after they've already been intimate that day, just so lust can take
a backseat to the more important emotions. I'm just thankful you were also
experiencing higher emotions at the same time. No doubt Kagome was as well."
"So wait, we're stuck like this?!" Inuyasha squeaked. "There's no cure? It
won't wear off?"
"I'm afraid not. Once you've mated, you can't undo it and mate again. Damn it,
Inuyasha, I thought you'd at least educated yourself before taking such a big
step!"
Inuyasha remained silent, picturing his life with a constant erection. "Kagome
wanted to take Hajime to the park today. I don't wanna be arrested…" he trailed
off in a daze.
"If you just concentrate on the love rather than the lust, I'm sure you'll get
used to it eventually, son. Mind over matter. When Izayoi and I first mated, we
couldn't be out of one another's sight without her bursting into tears and me
wanting to kill someone and hurry back to her. And now look at us!"
Inuyasha thought of his currently agoraphobic attached-at-the-hip parents and
remembered his childhood of an angry, absent father and a crying mother. Fuck,
he was definitely gonna be arrested. He hoped he could talk Kagome out of going
to the park, but she had seemed dead-set on it. His pants tightened as he
imagined fucking her in a swing. Well, that might be worth the time spent in
handcuffs, and he was sure if they explained everything just right, the jury
might sympathize with them.
"Gotta go, old man. See ya," he said abruptly, hanging up.
Sighing, he looked at himself in the mirror, seeing the obvious stress in his
face. Right. Mind over matter. Brain over dick. Shouldn't be hard—or, well,
difficult. Fixing his pants properly, he exited the bathroom, ignoring the
array of looks he got, ranging from congratulatory to embarrassed for him to
offended. Hey, if they had a hot significant other with them on the plane,
they'd probably feel differently. Easily ignoring them, he found his way back
to Kagome, who was beginning to doze.
A light moan followed by a whimper and the smell of her arousal made him
stiffen. It was gonna be a long flight.
O/\o/\O
Kagome rushed into his parents' home while he opted to stay in the car, bored
and half-asleep as he waited for her to bring Hajime out. Though he had tried
his hardest to get her to stay in, it was no use. She knew very well that he
was willing to do absolutely anything to make her really trust him again, and
she was going to use that until she couldn't anymore. Spending time he could be
sleeping or fucking Kagome to instead take his family on an outing wasn't
exactly bad, but there were plenty of other things he'd rather do. About ten
minutes after she had rushed in, Kagome came back out, smiling broadly as she
attempted to wave goodbye to his parents in the doorway, run to the car, and
cover a laughing Hajime in kisses. Inuyasha was surprised at the size of the
kid. He was no longer a little red screaming ball.
"Say 'Hi, Daddy'!" Kagome said in what he recognized to be her "Mommy" voice.
Hajime completely ignored him and instead tugged violently on Kagome's hair. He
wasn't old enough to hit yet, so Inuyasha just stared at him.
"Did you bring diapers?" he asked, not wanting to be objected to the foul smell
of babyness.
Kagome nodded, busying herself with smoothing the fine little black hairs on
their son's head. Inuyasha was beginning to regret allowing her to have her
way. The kid just kept saying 'ba ba ba ba ba' over and over and over. When the
hell did they learn real words?
"…Is he going to just keep saying that?" he asked tentatively, glancing at
Kagome.
"What?"
"That same thing over and over."
Kagome rolled her eyes. "He's a baby, Inuyasha. Get that through your skull.
Here, you know what? Hold him."
Before he could react, she had shoved the baby in his lap. Immediately, he
pulled his hands away, not wanting to nick him with his claws. Hajime giggled
and the weight of his giant head caused him to fall backwards. Panicking,
Inuyasha grabbed the collar of his shirt and yanked him forward, and again his
massive cranium forced him to fall, this time into him. He stilled at the
feeling of the almost-hug, Hajime's little hands patting his stomach as he
giggled and continued with his gibberish. Becoming curious, he picked him up
and brought him to his face in order to better study him. He still had Kagome's
eyes. Something within Inuyasha softened and he sat the kid down on his lap,
intending to face him away but instead letting the boy continue to stare at him
while Kagome set up the car seat.
The entire ride to the park, Hajime just stared at him, fist in his mouth. At
first, it made him uncomfortable, but then it occurred to him: did he even
remember him? Babies had a memory of only three seconds. Or was that goldfish?
Maybe both? Either way, he didn't think the boy sitting to his right knew of
their relationship. Whenever the baby looked at Kagome, he immediately broke
out into a huge smile and reached his arms out at her. Meanwhile, all he got
was a blank stare.
Inuyasha's thoughts continued along that line even as they toured the nearest
park, which was nearly an hour away due to his father's isolationist
tendencies. Kagome spread out the dark blue blanket she had brought along and
set Hajime down on it with a stuffed elephant he ignored in favor of chewing on
the end of the blanket. Sighing, Inuyasha lay down on the blanket next to
Hajime since the length of fabric was so small he had no choice. Kagome sat
down on the other side of their child, watching him in a loving fascination he
could not quite understand. Hajime, quickly growing bored with the blanket,
reached out to Kagome and tugged on her hair. When that toy was yanked back
from him, he turned his sights on the half-demon of their company and crawled
over to him. For a while, they just stared at each other, Inuyasha wondering if
he should say something or just roll over.
"Koogoo!" Hajime screeched happily.
"What the fuck,Kagome?!" Inuyasha yelled.
She looked more confused and startled than guilty. "What? Don't curse in front
of Hajime!"
"He knows who Kōga is but he doesn't even recognize me!"
Kagome's eyes narrowed. "And whose fault is that, Inuyasha?" They glared at
each other for a moment before she sighed and looked away. "That's just regular
baby gibberish. He says it all the time. He hasn't even said his first real
word yet."
Hajime, meanwhile, had returned to his favorite sound, "ba", repeating it over
and over and over.
"Did you hear that?!" Kagome squealed.
"What?" he asked, still upset. The desire humming through his veins wasn't
making it any easier.
"He just said 'Papa'!" Kagome snatched Hajime from his lap and covered him in
kisses. Just as Inuyasha was beginning to feel left out, she did the same to
him, taking her phone and snapping photo after photo.
"He's been saying 'baba' all day, not 'papa'," he muttered under his breath,
knowing Kagome was too excited to listen.
Cooing her own gibberish at Hajime, Kagome stood up with him in her arms and
went to go show him some flowers. Feeling relieved, Inuyasha settled down for a
nap, for the first time in a long time feeling that everything was right in the
world.
O/\o/\O
"It ain't my fault we got kicked out of the park!" he snapped, keeping his eyes
on the scenery they passed as they neared home.
"You can't just dunk a baby in a fountain, Inuyasha!" Kagome said for the
billionth time.
"They do it in churches all the time. That fuckin' rent-a-cop can't tell me
what to do with my own fuckin' kid. How the hell else is he gonna learn how to
swim?"
She just rolled her eyes. "I left to go to the bathroom for two minutes and
everything goes to hell… We probably wouldn't have been told to leave had
Hajime not had an accident in the water."
Inuyasha started to laugh, trying to keep the sound muffled both so Kagome
wouldn't hear and so Hajime would not wake up. As the car pulled up to the
house, he exited, leaving Kagome to deal with the baby. He was sure that if he
did anything it would only end up hurting the kid. Looking forward to a good
fuck and a long slumber, he walked up to the door. Hearing a noise in the small
copse of trees to the right of the entryway, he looked only to see a person
emerge. They were disheveled with baggy clothes, a haunted look on their face.
At first, he thought it was Mrs. Higurashi, but that image quickly dissolved
and he realized it was Kikyo.
"Uh, weren't you transferred already?" he asked, incredibly uncomfortable with
the way she was staring at him. His mind was trying to think up a way to get
her out of sight before Kagome was done bringing the baby in.
His former secretary's face crumpled and she began to cry, a shocking act from
someone as proper and prideful as herself.
"I'm pregnant."
End note: Could not resist the soap opera end… Hahahahahaaaa. But you all
already guessed it, didn't you?
***** When It Rains *****
Note: So I was dealing with a whole lot of stuff (like an unbearable amount)
and couldn't write anything for a while, but one huuuuuge issue has been
resolved and now I'm doing a lot better. Hopefully we'll be done with this
thing soon and I can write for the stories I actually like.
19: When It Rains
Inuyasha collapsed against the front door of the house, heart racing as his
mind slowed to a crawl. Pregnant? Kikyo was pregnant? And he was the father. He
wanted so badly for that not to be the reason why she was here, but there was
no alternative explanation for her to just show up at her ex-boss/fuck buddy's
house. And where the fuck was his father? Didn't he have some security, alarms
or cameras at the very least? How the fuck did she find the house, anyway?
There were no records of it anywhere and only the people who knew how to get
there could find it. What the fuck was going on?
"Inuyasha? What's going on?"
Shit. Kagome was holding Hajime in the little baby sling she had, glancing
between him and Kikyo with a suspicious look on her face. Not now, he couldn't
have this ruined now, not after everything.
"Um, this is Kikyo. She was my secretary and got transferred and it seems she's
a little upset about that," he wheezed.
Kagome nodded and Kikyo wisely kept her mouth shut, looking at her shoes.
Clawing through his pockets for the keys, he unlocked the door with shaking
hands, intending to call his father and have Kikyo carted away somewhere she
could be easily dealt with. Shoving past him before he could even set foot
inside, Kagome practically jogged away from him.
"You didn't have to lie to me, Inuyasha," she called back without turning
around.
A man he recognized as a member of his father's security team rounded a corner,
eating half a sandwich. Darting after Kagome, he said in a low tone, "Take care
of the woman outside," and rushed up the stairs after her, wanting to beg her
to talk to him, to look at him, but not knowing how. Hopefully the security
guard interpreted his purposely vague language correctly. Somehow, she reached
the guest room she had been staying in before he did and slammed the door in
his face, Hajime snoozing peacefully against her chest. Before she could lock
it, he forced it open and slammed it shut once again, barricading it with his
body. Undeterred, Kagome put Hajime in his crib, yanked open the chest of
drawers, and rooted underneath the bed for her suitcase, jerking it out and
filling it with whatever her hands came into contact with first.
"Kagome…" he whispered. Now that he had her alone, he didn't know what to say.
"I never want to see you again!" she said from between clenched teeth, not even
looking at him.
Inuyasha moved away from the door. "I'm not gonna let you leave," he said
softly. There had to be time to explain things to her, and the only way she
would listen was if he kept a cool head. However difficult that may be…
She threw back her head and laughed, flinging a bunched up skirt out of her
tight grip. Abruptly facing him, she glared with all the hatred she had in her,
the same that had more or less died out during his absence. The kind he
deserved but never had to experience.
"I kissed Kōga," she announced, a malicious sort of pride coloring her voice.
"Right after you left me, I invited him over and I kissed him."
His mouth opened but no words came out.
"I kissed him," she repeated. "And when I was healed, I had sex with him. And
you know what? He was damngood. Kōga wants to marry me, he wants to take me
away from here, he wants to treat me the way a woman should be treated, but I
was stupid enough to want to give you another chance, all for the sake of our
baby whose name you probably don't even remember."
Though still stunned, the blow her words had dealt him now began to register,
and a sick, searing pain infiltrated his chest. Pushing away all the hurt, he
focused on turning the heartbreak into rage. But before he snapped, a thought
occurred to him…
They were even now.
He had cheated on her and she had done the same to him. Sure, she hadn't dealt
him any physical damage like he had to her and she had not conceived, but they
were more or less even. At the very least, she couldn't give him so much shit
now and the guilt he had hanging over him every waking moment would be halved.
They were even, as a couple ought to be.
"I don't care," he said, finding his voice.
Rather than surprised or confused or relieved, as he thought she would be,
Kagome just seemed offended. Crossing her arms and tossing her hair back, she
squinted at him.
"You don't care?" she repeated dubiously. "After everything… You don't even
care?!"
Oblivious to her growing anger, he just grinned at her. "Nope."
"But I slept with Kōga!" she screamed, her face darkening red. "D-did you even
want to be with me this past month or did Toga force you? Is that it? You're
going to be with hernow?!" When he just remained standing there, she seemed to
become even angrier. "I heard when she said she was pregnant. I heard! But I
wanted to see what you'd do about it, see who you'd choose. Well, I had your
baby first, remember?" Her anger, as it often did, had a side effect of making
her cry, and it was at that moment tears started running down her face, making
her mute.
"Kagome," he said gently, crossing the room in a few strides to cradle her in
his arms. "Kagome, I don't care about her. Not in the way you're thinking."
She only let herself be comforted for a few seconds before she threw herself
backwards and out of his arms, violently escaping the hold he had on her. The
tears were gone and the anger was back full force. "I'm still leaving you. I
mean it! I can't do this anymore!"
Inuyasha's own anger began to rekindle. "Fine. Feel that way. But feeling's all
you're gonna do. You're still my wife, and I'd rather have you as a prisoner
than not at all."
Before she could grasp his meaning, he left the room, punching in the code next
to the outside doorknob in order to employ the seldom used outer lock. All the
guest rooms had them in case his father had a "problem" with a guest. The
windows were cemented shut (though they didn't look it). It was in such a room
that he had been locked inside several times throughout his life in punishment
for imagined bad behavior. The rooms were also the sole reason why he preferred
to be outdoors, else he'd feel the walls closing in on him. He really hated to
do that to someone he loved, especially Kagome, but he'd do anything to save
his marriage, no matter how drastic his course of action.
Inuyasha waited a few seconds, and when all he heard was the sound of her
continuing to pack, the near-silence punctuated with a sniffle here and there,
he left the area in order to greet his mother and inform his father in private
of his situation. They had their differences, but he knew Toga would appreciate
this sign of commitment towards Kagome. After all, he'd done it to Izayoi
during the war that killed her family.
O/\o/\O
It had been two weeks and Kagome stillrefused to see him. Toga had told him to
respect her wishes for now, that she would soften soon, but two weeks was about
fourteen days too long for her to mope about, in his opinion. Inuyasha was
angry and irritable, more so than ever, and the rather special side effect of
their mating wasn't helping matters at all. Sometimes, he wondered if Kagome
was experiencing the same, er, discomforthe felt constantly, but those musings
usually turned to fantasizing about how she'd scratch the itch and that left
him worse off than he'd been before.
Currently in his office, he leaned back in his chair, bored with doodling after
having made the mistake of finishing his work early. When he picked up the
sound of the elevator arriving at his floor, which he had since made accessible
to the higher ranking employees as a gesture of friendship (not that the
bastards appreciated it), he almost wept with relief. The boredom was killing
him. Reminding himself not to jump up and open the door in order to appear calm
and controlled and professional, he righted himself, straightened his tie, and
quickly neatened the stacks of scratch paper he kept on his desk just to give
the appearance of activity.
Unfortunately, the person who walked in without even taking the time to fucking
knock like a decent individual was his most hated employee, the one and only
Naraku. Brazenly waltzing through the door like he owned the place, the greasy,
pale, creepy little man sat in the seat directly across from Inuyasha, staring
at his shocked expression with something akin to pleasure. A sick smile flitted
across his face for a second before he composed himself again.
"You know, I was up for a promotion before your brother left us," he said
smoothly, the confidence infiltrating his tone making Inuyasha clench his
teeth. "We were very, very close."
"Is that so?" he drawled in response, taking special care to convey his
absolute lack of care and respect.
"Had he not died in that fishing accident, I would be sitting where you are
right now," he said, a biting sarcasm to his words.
Inuyasha nearly fell out of his chair. A fishingaccident? Was that the best his
father could come up with? Really?!
"Uh, good for me, I guess," he mumbled, trying not to laugh.
That earned him a glare. "Whatever the case, at least I get to spend some time
on this floor. Mr. Taisho himself asked me to find your new secretary, but I
thought to myself no one has served this company better than myself in the
past, so why not I?"
Inuyasha's discomfort quickly turned to anger which he tried to smother. "Uh,
would that not be a, um, waste of your skills?"
Naraku nodded. "Anything below the top is a waste of my skills, but I've been
working at an inferior post for long enough that they all seem the same."
"Then get to your desk and stay there." He was tired of pretending to harbor
non-murderous, neutral feelings towards the other half-demon.
He paused, a potent, tense silence making Inuyasha shift uncomfortably. "Very
well, sir."
And then he was gone.
Finally able to breathe again, Inuyasha leaned back in his chair and put his
feet on the desk. He needed to get the fuck out of here. The thought of Naraku
sitting right outside the door, however, made him want to wait until after the
bastard left. Only two more hours… But then again, he was the type to work late
under the pretense of being dedicated to his new position when really he had
just known it would bother the fuck outta him. What to do, what to do.
The doors swung open dramatically and Miroku appeared like a heavenly
apparition, hands outstretched in benevolence and mercy.
"I'm in the mood to get wasted and I sensed you were as well," he said softly
in that unusual cadence that always reminded him slightly of chanting.
"Thank the gods," he exhaled, sliding out of his chair and bounding to the
door. "I've had the worst fucking couple weeks."
"I noticed your secretary," he said loudly as they passed a murderous-looking
Naraku on their way to the elevator. "Not as cute as your last one."
"Don't remind me," he groaned. "I'll tell you what happened to her as soon as I
get a drink in my hand."
Their short walk to the bar across the street was filled with that comfortable
silence and two-foot distance often exhibited by two males out alone together
who don't wish to appear gay. The dark one-room establishment was inhabited
only by a couple sad drunks in opposite corners of the place and one absent
bartender. As if summoned by magic, a small bald man in a loud Hawaiian shirt
appeared behind the counter just as they sat down. Already familiar with Miroku
by now, the man set out two glasses and silently filled them with the former
monk's liquor of choice. Inuyasha grabbed both of them and downed them before
demanding his own favorite drink, the kind that got him drunk enough to ruin
his life.
"Kikyo's pregnant," he muttered as soon as the bartender was out of earshot.
That would be all the unburdening he'd be doing. Telling anyone about Kagome's
own infidelity was impossible. Even thinking about it made him want to die.
Miroku let out a low whistle and pat him on the back. "Now I'm not pissed off
about those drinks. Go on."
"I was fucking around on Kagome for three entire months and I never even
thought of wearing a condom. Seventy years of being careful and now when I'm
finally happy I fuck it all up!" he lamented, letting his head fall to the
counter.
Miroku laughed, the sound oddly high. "Uh, maybe she's not pregnant and she's
just lying and trying to get some money out of this."
Inuyasha's heart filled with hope before he remembered a tiny detail. "No, she
was definitely pregnant. There was a baby bump and she was far enough along
that I could smell it."
"Well, uh, maybe, uh, Kagome will forgive you? She has so far…"
He brought his head up an inch only slam it down again. "She's. Too. Stubborn,"
he said, punctuating his words with a few more slams. The bartender arrived
again, bringing out a large chilled bottle of the drink he'd ordered as well as
a new glass. Pushing away the glass, Inuyasha drank from the bottle, reminding
himself to go slow this time so he wouldn't get as drunk as before.
Wrenching the bottle away from him, Miroku surprised him into lifting his head
once more. His friend poured a small amount of the demon-strength liquor into
one of the empty glasses nearest him, his hands shaking. Tossing the half a sip
of alcohol back, his hands steadied and he looked him in the eye.
"The kid isn't yours," he slurred.
"Which one?" Inuyasha asked, remembering Hajime. Now that would piss him the
fuck off and send him over the edge, creating a worse incident than the
previous one.
"The one in Kikyo," he groaned, letting his own head fall to the counter. "I
think."
It took Inuyasha a few seconds to process it. "Uh, what?"
"It's mykid," he groaned, his voice muffled by the wood surface. "I hooked up
with her on her first fucking day and we had a casual thing. Never wanted it to
get this far… But she was just too there, y'know?"
He remained silent for nearly a full minute, the wheels turning in his mind.
"So we're eskimo brothers? Shit."
Miroku nodded as best as he could in his position.
"But what makes you so sure it's yours?" The alcohol was beginning to wear off
just the smallest bit, so he grabbed the bottle back and poured himself another
mouthful.
"She… She wore a diaphragm every time she was with you but took it out with me.
She had a thing about, uh, non-human people…"
"So she was a fucking racist the entire time?" Inuyasha said incredulously. He
ruined his marriage over a cheating racist?!
"Not a racist, exactly," Miroku protested. "Just… Well, yeah."
"Shit," he grunted.
There was another long silence filled only with the low volume classic rock
playing in the background. Inuyasha decided they were sitting too close
together and that people might get the wrong idea, so he moved one stool over,
wobbling precariously on his new perch.
"I'm afraid," Miroku said so quietly that even Inuyasha almost didn't hear him.
"O' what?" he said slowly, trying to enunciate and doing a very poor job of it.
"Sango."
Inuyasha laughed. "Yeah, she's gonna fuck your shit up."
"I don't care if she does. I care if she leaves me forever this time," he
whined.
"You deserve it, you sick fuck." The things Miroku had done to Sango had made
him upset for years.
"You're one to talk, you fucking wife raper," Miroku shot back.
The half-demon shot to his feet, intending to fight the fucker, but immediately
fell to the ground, landing on his ass. "Shit," he mumbled, attempting to get
up but deciding he didn't like Miroku enough to sit next to him and was
therefore more comfortable on the ground. After a little while, he began to
sober up again, and the shock of his friend's confession prompted him to speak
again. "You can tell Kagome! Tell Kagome about you and Kikyo and then she won't
hate me anymore. Oh, you can tell the lawyers too and then all this shit will
just go away!" Inuyasha shot to his feet exuberantly, pouring himself a
celebratory sip of his favorite drink.
"I can't," he responded in what was certainly a louder voice than he thought it
was. "Then we'll be dragged into your court case and Sango will know for sure
and I know this will be it for her. We'll be over. I can't handle that. Just
get a fucking DNA test done."
Inuyasha rolled his eyes and plopped back down in his seat. Ears drooping, he
realized there was no way he could persuade his friend to come forward, even if
he let him know to what extent it was ruining his life. Even with all the shit
going on in his own life, he couldn't bring himself to force Miroku. He too had
a feeling that if Sango found out, it would be over for their marriage. Her
husband having a baby with another woman when she herself hadn't been able to
conceive would destroy her. Him and Kagome, however, were bound by something
far more substantial than a mere contract. They'd be together forever, and even
if she decided to leave him, he'd always find her.
"You think I haven't tried that?" he whispered, just to share. "Kikyo refused
it. Our lawyers argued for days. My side threatened that she wouldn't get any
money without the paternity test, her side is taking a gamble and saying a
judge will make an assessment without the DNA and just the other evidence. We
said she'd be held in contempt of court, she said she's willing to take the
risk."
After a while, Miroku shook his head. "It'll never work. You'll see. You'll
come out on top. Everyone's on your side."
He snorted. "Everyone I know. But the media? They fucking lovethis shit. They
are eating it up."
The former monk made a face. "Now that's a visual."
Inuyasha sighed and poured himself another drink. "That's my fucking life."
***** Fool for Love *****
Note: I thought I posted this the same day I updated Bizarre Love Triangle,
buuuut nope. Sorry.
20: Fool for Love
It was a few months before Kagome was able to cool down enough to see Inuyasha
in the halls without crying or wanting to strangle him. However, it appeared
she had cooled down too much and now she was cold. It wasn't like she could
help it. She wantedto forgive him, wanted to love him and let him love her,
wanted him to touch her like he used to. But every time she saw him, all she
could think of were the lies and the other woman, the one who looked like her.
The paternity suit still dragged on and on with no end in sight. After the
first time she and Hajime were accosted by the media while trying to buy
groceries, Toga had ordered her shut up in the house all day with Izayoi—again.
The news was terrible and she had long since stopped watching it. Every network
took it for fact that Kikyo's baby was Inuyasha's; that wasn't the issue. What
they loved to go on and on about was if Hajimewas really Inuyasha's child,
speculating that was the reason why he had been unfaithful. Every allegation
cut her like a knife and made it that much harder to look Inuyasha in the eye,
whether from the anger she couldn't let go of or the lingering guilt. The only
thing she was thankful for was that Hajime did not yet understand what was
going on.
At least Inuyasha was spending time with Hajime, she thought, her heart warming
as she sipped her tea. It was nice to see him making the effort, even if she
knew he didn't really feel comfortable acting as a father and was doing it just
to see her. Somehow, that made it even more meaningful.
"I love yooou!" Kōga cooed to a crawling Noriko. The girl crawled not on her
hands and knees but on her hands and feet, her little butt high in the air as
she made growling sounds. It was adorable and had made them both laugh time and
time again. The wolf demon stood up from where he was kneeling and went over to
her, taking her tea and placing it on the side table before enveloping her
hands in his own. "And I love you," he said smoothly, pressing his lips to the
back of her fingers.
"Thank you," Kagome murmured. It had been harder and harder to fend off Kōga
after what they'd done.
He pulled her onto her feet and into his arms, littering her forehead with
small kisses. "When are you going to leave him? When the talk dies down?"
She pulled away, glancing at Hajime for strength. It was time to take a stand,
make a choice. But which one?
"K-Kōga, um, I'm not sure I could leave Inuyasha even if I wanted to," she
whispered, admitting it for the first time out loud. At the stunned look on his
face, she quickly followed with, "We are mated, after all."
His featured relaxed. "Is that all? You scared me there for a minute."
Grinning, he collapsed into the chair she had just vacated, sprawling out a
little too comfortably for her liking. "Any mark can be overpowered by a
stronger demon as long as there's consent. It's pretty taboo nowadays, but I
don't think anyone would mind since it's just a half-demon and all."
Kagome's face colored at the casual racism he exhibited. There was no hate
behind it, just a confidence that full was better than half, just like the sky
was blue and the grass was green. She'd never experienced anything like it
until coming into the world of demons and rubbing shoulders with their elite.
On the bright side, if there was one right now, it helped her understand her
husband a little better. Knowing the world that had shaped him allowed her
insight into his soul.
"I'm sorry, but I don't think I can," she said firmly, no longer wavering in
voice or decision.
Predictably, Kōga was angry. Lips turned down in a sneer, he just looked at her
for a moment, and she came to understand why humans had always been so afraid
of demons.
"Are you really going to stay with a man who not only fucked around on you with
his fucking secretary, of all the clichés, but your own mother?"
The blood drained from her face. "Who told you that?" she whispered sharply, as
though a reporter was lurking outside the door. Toga had spent a great amount
of money to ensure that particular secret would never get out.
His face blanked before once again turning cruel. "I'm the one funding Kikyo's
paternity suit. Turns out Inuyasha did a lot more than just cheat on you. The
boy's a talker."
For a minute, she thought she'd faint. Her hearing dulled to the point that she
couldn't even pick up the noises the babies were making. Her vision narrowed to
a tunnel and the only thing she could see was his face, the one she'd once
thought was handsome enough to rival her own husband's. But not anymore, not
twisted in hate.
"Get out," she gasped, floored at the betrayal. Her chest hurt so much she felt
like she was having a heart attack. "Get out and never come back unless my
husband is present."
Once again, his face was earnest sweetness. "But Kagome, look, let me—"
"Out!" she screamed, stomping her foot like a child.
It seemed like he wasn't going to leave for a moment, but then he nodded, not
taking his eyes off her even when he picked up Noriko and her diaper bag. His
eyes tried to communicate something to her, but she was no longer receptive. It
was over.
O/\o/\O
"I never agreed to this, Kōga!" Kikyo yelled as she stormed into his home
office.
Glancing at the enraged woman, the wolf demon waved his hand dismissively and
continued his phone call without pause. "Yes, send them over there right away.
I'll call you back after lunch. Bye." Turning to Kikyo, he leaned back in his
seat and stretched. "Who the fuck let you in?"
"You gave me a key," she hissed, eyes narrowed in fury.
"Oh. Right." The tone of his voice told her to get on with it.
Crossing her arms, she glared at him, lip curling in disgust. "Ruining that
man's life over some crush is beyond criminal."
He only rolled his eyes. "I'm just doing right by you and the baby, Kikyo. When
you've lived as long as I have, you learn to be ruthlessly resourceful when
surprises like this happen."
"I don't care. I'm not going to play this part any longer." Her tone was as
serious as her eyes, big brown pools of solemn feeling. For a moment, they
wavered, and she seemed vulnerable and young, fragile. "It's tearing me apart.
I'm breakinginside."
Kōga laughed, the tone mean. "And who's gonna pay me back all the money I
invested in you? Your husband? Oh wait, the good doctor is dead, isn't he?"
The vulnerability returned and brought tears along with it. "Suikotsu was a
good man, the best of men. It wasn't his fault what happened. He just wanted so
badly to do good, and the evil of the world was all on his shoulders."
"So he committed massive insurance fraud, killed himself, and left you and your
little sister nothing. What a fuckin' saint. All the funds went to the orphans
and now you're just a worthless stand-in for a woman far superior to you. Cry
me a goddamn river." Kikyo opened her mouth to speak but he interrupted her.
"You took the money, that means you work for me. It's unfortunate you weren't
smart enough to not get knocked up, but I prefer to look ahead, and I think you
do too. Now take off your pants and bend over so we can remember what this is
all about."
Though her hands shook frightfully, Kikyo did as she was told. She had her
sister to take care of, after all, and the baby. Kōga wasted no time on
foreplay, only slamming into her, forcing her swollen stomach to bang into the
desk. She didn't protest. Maybe it would be for the best if the child never
took a breath in this world. The tears escaped and ran down her face, a first
since she had found her beloved husband's body along with the note. Kōga
continued to pound into her with ferocity, growling the name of the one who had
started all this. Kagome Kagome Kagome KagomeKagomeKagome…
For the first time, she felt hatred.
O/\o/\O
Drifting back to reality from a vague dream of her husband, Kagome opened her
eyes and waited for them to adjust. What had woken her? She didn't need to go
to the bathroom, she wasn't too cold or too warm, Hajime wasn't making any
noise. A creaking noise made her start, and she dimly made out the shape of her
open window. She usually kept it open right before sunset until right before
she went to bed, but had forgotten a time or two. Rolling out of bed, she made
her way to the window and shut it, locking it for good measure. Ready to return
to her dream, she turned around. Now that her eyes were completely adjusted,
she could see the dark wood of Hajime's cradle, along with the figure that
huddled over it.
Fear gripped her heart and choked her, cutting her off before she could even
think to scream. The figure picked Hajime up and cradled him, like she often
did.
"I wonder if my baby will look like yours…"
Belatedly, Kagome recognized the intruder as the woman who was pregnant with
Inuyasha's baby. A small tendril of anger wormed its way in with the fear. For
Hajime's sake, she tried her utmost to appear calm, not making any sudden
movements.
"What are you doing here?" she whispered, surprised she was able to vocalize it
at all.
Kikyo's voice was dreamy, detached. "…Because we look the same and our babies
have the same daddy. That's why I'm wondering."
Something about her tone, the look on her face, a false peace, made Kagome
quake inside. Clearing her throat, she tried again. "Why are you here?"
The other woman finally looked at her, and it felt like a slap in the face when
their gazes clashed. "I'm tired of other people pretending I'm you," she said
after a short pause.
She could feel herself beginning to hyperventilate, could feel herself on the
verge of a panic attack. "I-I'm sorry, I never d-did anything to encourage
that. I just—"
"That doesn't matter," she interrupted. "Nothing matters anymore."
Kagome knew what she was going to do before she did it. Kikyo had a crazy look
in her eyes, and though she wanted to talk her out of it, there wasn't time.
Even if there was, she didn't have the words and lacked composure as well. The
frightened shaking she had held inside transferred partly to her outside and
she was really and truly trembling, watching as the older woman pressed one
slender hand against the sleeping Hajime's mouth, at the same time pinching his
little nose shut.
Kikyo looked at her again, a small smile on her face like they were chatting
over lunch and not starring in every mother's worst nightmare. "No one will get
my baby and pretend it's yours. No one will take my baby from me."
She couldn't take it anymore. She couldn't move. She couldn't think. Too much
adrenaline was coursing through her system and it made her incapable of
functioning, leaving her on the edge of hysterics. The only thing that came to
mind was something she had done her best to stop thinking about. "Inuyasha!"
she screamed as loud as she could, collapsing into sobs immediately after.
Kagome didn't look up when she heard the door being broken open. Instead, she
chose to cover her eyes with her hands, pressing hard with her fists until it
hurt. If she could have covered her ears at the same time, she would have, but
she knew if she moved her hands that her eyes would fly open of their own
accord and she would see something that would change her forever. She wasn't
ready for something like that yet.
When the sounds stopped and all she could hear was the sound of her own huge,
gasping breaths, she took her hands from her eyes and squinted through the
pulsing lights her abuse had created. There was a lump on the floor. She knew
what it was, what it had been, but was too frantic to process the information.
Inuyasha was standing there, something dark on his hands, staring at her with
the guiltiest look on his face. Hajime was back in his cradle.
His chest wasn't moving.
It was too much for her to comprehend at the moment. Kagome tried to move to
him, to do what needed to be done, but she never left the floor. "CPR!" she
said in a strangled, frantic voice, her eyes wild.
Inuyasha shook his head. "I don't think—"
"Then don't, just do it!"
Sighing, Inuyasha pushed down the side of the cradle and began pumping his
son's chest. When nothing happened right away, she felt the kind of madness she
was sure had motivated Kikyo. It was edging on her mind, trying to infiltrate
it, but she didn't let it. There wasn't enough anger to cut through the sorrow.
Not yet, anyway. Without realizing it, she studied Inuyasha's face. Sweat, more
from stress than any physical exertion, was pouring from him, running down his
face. Some collected right beneath his eyes and looked like tears. But that
couldn't be true.
Inuyasha stopped. If she could speak instead of just rapidly take in air, she
would have screamed, would have cursed him, would have hit him until he brought
her baby back.
"Kagome, he's—"
"I don't want to hear it!" she shrieked, at her breaking point.
That moment was when Hajime chose to open his mouth and release the biggest
bawl she'd heard him give, and he was an exceptionally fussy baby. Had he been
any later, Kagome thought, then she would have been lost. Heart bursting with
love, she struggled to her feet, accepting the hand Inuyasha offered and
allowing him to drag her up and support her. The minute she touched Hajime, the
volume of his screams lessened, and it took only five lullabies before he was
sleeping again. Kagome kissed him softly all over his little face, being
careful not to wake him, not to hold him too tight. He was so soft and had that
special baby smell. When the thought occurred to her that she might have never
been able to hold him and smell him and kiss him and sing to him again, the
weeping picked back up.
"You're shaking, baby," Inuyasha whispered. Taking Hajime from her with gentle
hands, he gave the boy a quick kiss on the forehead before laying him down
again. "We should let him sleep until the paramedics get here and look him
over."
Kagome clung to him, wrapping her arms around his bare torso and squeezing as
hard as she could. "Why didn't anyone stop her?" she asked.
His brow furrowed. "The team's got the day off. Usually we always have a couple
guys stay behind, but one of them is getting married next week and the bachelor
party is tonight and they all begged to go. Even Mom and Dad went."
"How did she know that we'd be alone? Did you tell her?!" Her voice raised
before a look from Inuyasha quieted her.
"No. I haven't had any contact with her since she showed up here that day." He
glanced down to the corpse at their feet. "Now we've gotta figure this mess
out. Fucking hell…"
Remembering the situation, she began to cry harder. "I'm so weak," she moaned
against his chest, willing his strength to transfer to her. "I'm a failure. I'm
the worst mother!"
"Shhh, no you're not," he whispered, rocking her from side to side like she had
just done with Hajime. "Anyone can see how much you love him."
She sniffled, not willing to give up the guilt. "But when it mattered most, all
I could do was call you."
"That doesn't mean you're a failure," he scoffed. "That means you're smart. You
could see you were in over your head and you did the only thing you could."
Kagome wanted to argue, feeling like some helpless damsel in distress who
should go about wearing a helmet all the time. But still, he was pretty much
right.
"But I couldn't save our baby!" she cried, a new rush of tears arriving.
Inuyasha grabbed her upper arms and gently pulled her away from him so he could
look her in the eyes. "Kagome, you care for him to the best of your abilities
and I care for him to the best of mine. That's all this means." When she
continued to silently cry, he continued, "What if you had tried to fight her
off on your own? What if you lost? What if I had to find bothof you gone? What
then? I would fucking die, Kagome, I swear. I love you so much."
"I never had sex with Kōga," she blurted out. Wincing, she looked at her feet.
She had meant to keep that a secret.
One quick laugh made her look back up at him.
"You don't know how glad that makes me. Shit, I was going to—"
"Well, we did make out a couple times," she confessed. Might as well get it all
out.
His face turned murderous. "Well, I guess I'm still going to."
"Going to what?" She never should have opened her big mouth.
Inuyasha just shook his head and smiled at her. "Never mind that. Come on, I'll
take you and Hajime back to our room and call someone to clean up the mess."
Kagome nodded. Though this reconciliation came through in an unexpected way,
she couldn't find it in herself to resent him any longer. Like she said, she
was weak. Weak for him. Grabbing Hajime along with his favorite stuffed dog and
blanket, she followed Inuyasha back to their former room, finally beginning to
feel tired again.
***** One for My Baby, One for the Road *****
21: One for My Baby, One for the Road
"I can't believe this," Kagome whispered, bouncing an almost fussy Hajime in
her lap. "It's so sad."
Inuyasha nodded, his hand squeezing her knee gently in acknowledgement.
The day was appropriately overcast for a funeral, though no rain fell. What had
made Kagome break the small silence as they waited for the service to be over
was the fact that nobody had showed up. Well, hardly anyone. She was there,
even though she didn't want to be. Inuyasha had explained that they had to due
to the whole media circus that had taken place in the days and weeks leading up
to Kikyo's death, a death which was being reported as "suicide". Apparently,
Toga was powerful enough to control the media, but only as long as he got to
them with money before they got the real story. He'd remarked that he'd never
had a need to establish a relationship with any news agency before his youngest
son had hit puberty, and he was still navigating the tumultuous relationship
all these years later. Her husband sat at her side, a grim look on his face. It
bothered her that he grieved. She felt like a terrible person to feel such a
way and she tried to fight it, but facts were facts.
Toga and Izayoi had made an appearance, arriving with Kōga and his family in
the same limousine. When Kagome had found out about the arrangement, she had
elected to drive there separately with just her own little family. She still
wasn't sure if she should reveal what she knew about the wolf demon's betrayal.
That Kōga had been the one paying for Kikyo's lawyers had shaken her to her
very core. During the most strenuous times in her marriage, she had come to
count upon him as a friend. Sometimes, she had felt he was more than a friend,
though those times were fleeting and the emotions were shallow, motivated more
out of bitterness and a desire for revenge than any actual passion. Even though
she had rejected his offer of an affair and then even marriage, she had still
been exceedingly fond of him and thought he'd felt the same way. But people
didn't ruin the lives of those they loved. Mind going back and forth, she again
resolved to tell Toga everything after the funeral.
But what about Hajime?
Glancing worriedly down at the baby, she flip-flopped once again. Sure, there
were other demons who could create a bond with her son. And who's to say he'd
even want such a thing? But she was a mother, and she was selfish in the way
mothers are selfish, wanting the best for her child in spite of everything,
even the boy's own future decisions. Losing her firstborn would kill her.
Kagome didn't think she'd ever love another quite like she loved Hajime, even
if she had other children someday. They'd just been through so much together,
and he was all she had that was good and pure in the world. She just couldn't
lose him.
Shaking her head slightly, she went back to observing those gathered around the
grave. It was almost offensively apparent that no one was listening to the old
somber priest as he recited some lines. Inuyasha's friends Miroku and Sango
were there, though to her knowledge neither of them knew Kikyo. It made sense,
though, that they'd want to pay their respects to the mother of their adopted
child. She supposed that was the one good thing to come of all this.
When Kikyo had died, she had been far enough along in her pregnancy that the
child had just barely been viable, and even then it was a stretch. The little
girl was still in the ICU at the hospital, barely as big as Kagome's hand,
hooked up to so many wires and machines that it made her heart hurt. It still
wasn't certain whether or not the baby Sango had been too afraid to name would
survive, but Kagome had a feeling she would, and in another year they'd be a
happy family. Without realizing it, she smiled at the couple, clearly
recognizing the maternal distress on Sango's face. The woman spent every day
and night at the hospital. This was probably the first break she'd gotten and
she was worried sick. Miroku looked nervous himself, his skin a pale, sweaty
green color. Unlike his wife, his gaze was not at his watch but instead on the
coffin quickly being lowered into the ground. Curious and a little confused,
Kagome kept her eyes on him. The man got progressively worse-looking and only
seemed to recover in the slightest when the first handful of dirt was thrown on
the coffin, his complexion magically brightening in seconds, like he'd been
afraid some condemning zombie would rise and take him to hell.
Turning her attention to the slight girl who'd just buried her only family,
Kagome again felt more sad than distressed. The girl, Kaede, she'd heard her
mumble, bore only the slightest resemblance to Kikyo. It was obvious who'd
gotten the looks in the family, Kagome thought, feeling incredibly guilty
immediately after thinking such a thing. Kaede was in her late teens, on the
cusp of adulthood, yet looked no more than twelve. Her eyebrows were thick and
prominent, almost overgrown enough to distract from her lack of a right eye.
Almost, but not quite.
"Time to go," Inuyasha whispered against the shell of her ear, startling her.
Nodding, she rose to her feet, grabbing her purse which also served as a diaper
bag these days. Or was it the other way around? Walking towards the car they'd
come in, she stopped and turned around, feeling a sharp pain between her
shoulders. No sooner than she'd felt it did it disappear, but she turned around
anyway, goosebumps creeping along her flesh. Not two feet behind her stood
Kaede, her one eye looking at her not with the anger she'd expected, but
instead a calm blankness.
"H-hello," Kagome tried, her voice sounding choked.
"What did she do?" she asked, her voice far stronger than she would have
anticipated.
After a few seconds of silence during which Kagome just stared at the strange
girl, she responded, chastising herself internally for being rude. "Um, I'm
sorry?"
"My sister," she clarified, gesturing behind her towards the grave. "What did
she do to you?"
"I never met her," Kagome said quickly, her cheeks stinging red with the lie
her new family had told her to say.
Kaede just shook her head with a maddening kind of patience that made Kagome
want to scream. "What did Kikyo do to deserve this?"
The other girl's mask of serenity made her itch to leave, but her feet wouldn't
move. Hajime squirmed in her grasp and she realized she had been squeezing him.
She suddenly wanted to tell the girl everything, to confirm all that she
suspected. Kaede deserved to know! The entire world deserved to know. It wasn't
fair that a few people could pull so many strings that didn't belong to them.
The guilt of being associated with those people, of being there when the death
(murder) had happened, made her feel sick, the kind of hot and sweaty that only
happened right when she was about to lose the contents of her stomach.
"That's enough," a harsh voice broke in.
"Kōga," Kaede acknowledged, her voice going cold. "I see you've generously
allowed Ayame out today."
He grinned at the other girl in a way that Kagome correctly interpreted as a
threat, putting an arm around her to steady her in her sudden bout of near-
swooning. "I've been very generous, girl, you're right about that," he said,
his words cutting sharp as a knife while still sounding smooth as butter. "But
I'm starting to regret it."
Kaede stood her ground and Kagome admired her for it. "You've already taken all
you can from me," she said, her composure cracking just the slightest with an
angry twitch of her thin lower lip.
The demon only laughed, his volume offensively high for such a sensitive time
and place. "I wouldn't say that. You've got that nice house, you inherited her
rather inflated bank account, you're gonna go to that fancy college. No, I
wouldn't say that at all."
The small shift in Kaede's posture told them that the battle was over. For now,
anyway. Turning away from Kōga, the strong girl nodded once to Kagome and sent
her a fleeting smile before walking away, never once turning back to look at
the grave still waiting to be filled.
"Kōga," Kagome whispered reproachfully, heart heavy and head filled with
indecision, "that was cruel."
He merely shrugged, removing his arm from around her. "I don't think I'm the
one that really upset her today."
Kagome had nothing to say to him. Standing on her tiptoes, she peered over his
shoulder, her eyes soon finding Inuyasha's form where he stood with his back to
her talking to Miroku and Sango. Why did he suddenly find a desire to be social
now, of all times?!
"I've been wanting to see you," Kōga murmured, pressing down on her shoulders
and looking deep into her eyes. His hands traveled down her arms until they
were just above her elbows, where he stopped to caress the bare skin. "I've
been wanting to touch you…"
"Not now," she hissed, eyes flashing with disgust. "Not ever again!" she
corrected quickly.
Her words didn't seem to deter him, merely making him chuckle. "I'll see you
tomorrow, then? We'll have to keep Hajime and Noriko in separate playpens for a
while. She's grown her fangs and claws and doesn't know how to control herself,
so no playtime for a couple years."
"I—" Kagome began, intending to really make it brutally clear to him what she
felt about their "relationship". In that moment, Hajime squirmed again,
startling her into almost letting go, and she was so afraid for a second that
she'd drop him she didn't realize he was still in her arms. Heart pounding in
motherly fear, she hiked him up a little higher and hugged him close, not
caring when he began to chew and tug on her hair. "…I need to get a baby
carrier," was all she said, feeling defeated.
He beamed at her, not looking like he could ever do any wrong. "I'll getcha
one!" he chirped.
Seeing Toga and Izayoi approaching, Kagome took her chance and hurried off
towards Inuyasha.
"There you are!" Sango said, eyes brightening momentarily. Ever since the news
story of Inuyasha's infidelity had broken, she'd acted like they were best
girlfriends, sisters in solidarity. Kagome resented it before she appreciated
it. "I wanted to say hi before we got going. We don't have much time, what with
the baby and all," she said, blushing with a tentative kind of pride Kagome
recognized. Sango had probably never thought she'd ever get to be a mother, and
now she was one. Feeling slightly overcome with the emotion of the day, Kagome
just smiled and spontaneously decided to hug the older woman, pulling herself
back a little at the last moment so as to not squish Hajime.
Miroku's face was gentler than she'd ever seen it, all his attention on his
wife. "We better get back to the hospital, guys," he said, his hand grasping
Sango's. "It was nice seeing you, even in such, uh, circumstances. We should
get together soon."
Inuyasha nodded, his posture unusually stiff. "Maybe," he said, voice cold.
Kagome stared at him in confusion, moving to his side with a questioning look
on her face.
The human man shuffled his feet nervously, glancing at the grave. "I'll call
you."
"Bye, Kagome!" Sango practically sang, obviously having given in to the urge to
hope for a good outcome for her family. "And bye, Hajime!"
The couple left, their hands never coming unlinked. Kagome sighed, wishing she
could recapture such closeness with her own husband.
Inuyasha snorted. "Fuckin' asshole," he muttered, glaring at their backs.
"Not in front of the baby," she hissed at him, feeling a headache begin to
collect behind her eyes.
He sighed, his shoulders lowering as he forced himself to relax. Facing her, he
put his hands on her shoulders, just the way Kōga had done not even five
minutes ago.
"How about after this we go on a family date to the park, and then we'll have
another date just you and me?" His eyes were shining and sincere, that mellow,
molten gold she loved that drew her in and made her wonder why she ever
resisted.
"Sure," she agreed after a brief hesitation that had more to do with studying
his features than with any reluctance. Beaming at him, she was about to lean in
for a kiss when her cell phone began to ring.
"I'll take the boy," Inuyasha said gently, picking up Hajime who immediately
began to cry.
Finding her phone amidst the depths of her survival bag, she answered it just
before it went to voicemail. "Hello?" she said impatiently, giving in to the
urge to tap her foot.
"Kagome Higurashi?"
"This is she." She winced, belatedly remembering she had a new last name.
Inuyasha's ears twitched and she knew they'd have a conversation about this
later.
"This is officer Harada from the station on Third Street. We have your brother
waiting for you here and it would be best if you came as soon as possible."
Kagome stilled all movement, her heart beating faster as she wondered what was
wrong. Was he hurt? Had he gotten involved in criminal activity of some sort?
But he was still so young, just a child! New maternal feelings popped up for
Sota that she had never experienced before, only serving to heighten her
distress. She remembered way back when, before her marriage and pregnancy, how
close she used to be to the boy. They only became closer once Inuyasha showed
up, since Kagome if her friends were busy she rather sneakily used Sota as an
excuse to be outside and watch the built half-demon glisten in the summer
sunlight. Breaking into his room, not afraid of what she'd walk in on since he
was still very young, she would force Sota to stop playing video games and play
catch with her, or maybe even a game of tag, although she preferred the former
since it was easier to watch her future husband if she was staying in one
place. Sota appreciated the extra attention, she knew, so she'd never felt bad
about it. Jii-chan used to play with him before his knees got too bad, and he
had been too young for their father to ever be alive and roughhouse with him.
Their mother was an old-fashioned kind of woman who preferred to stay at home
to the point of seeming almost agoraphobic, so his big sister was the only
playmate he had unless one of his friends' parents drove them up to the shrine.
Before Inuyasha, Kagome had been too concentrated on her studies or her friends
or her hair or whatever and hadn't spent much time with her brother. Though she
felt kind of bad she had only started playing with Sota for her own secret
purposes, she could never regret giving him such happy smiles. And, of course,
spying on Inuyasha the way she did gave her many happy smiles as well.
"I'll be right over," she mumbled, barely ending the call before she grabbed
Inuyasha and ran to their parked car, telling herself not to cry before she
knew just what was going on and how bad it was.
O/\o/\O
Inuyasha drove like mad, worriedly glancing at Kagome every time traffic
allowed and even when it didn't. It was only luck the funeral had been in the
city since otherwise it would have taken them over an hour to get to the
station. The girl babbled something about him having become a delinquent and
joining a gang or being a serial killer or a gigolo or a terrorist or a union
agitator or whatever. When he calmly told her none of those things were very
likely, she became convinced he was dead or dying no matter what the officer
had said and began to bawl which set off the baby. Faced with a screaming wife
and child, Inuyasha went even faster, wondering what use it would be if they
only ended up dying a fiery death on the way there. Before the car even rolled
to a stop outside the dinky little station building, Kagome was out, for the
first time forgetting Hajime in the car seat. This did not sit well with the
boy, who began to shriek the moment she was out of sight.
"Okay, buddy," Inuyasha said with clenched teeth as he found a parking place.
"Be good for Daddy and you, uh, get more mashed fruit or whatever the hell it
is you eat."
His words did nothing but seem to incite Hajime further, his screams having
gone from ear-splitting to choked, out of breath madness. Sighing, Inuyasha got
out, picked him up as gently as he could, and jogged to the door, every cell on
alert and straining for any sign of Kagome. Father and son found her at the
information desk, rapidly speaking to a woman behind bulletproof glass. Hajime
quieted down to little whines once they were next to his mother, his expression
still holding something of betrayal. Distractedly, Kagome grabbed for him,
cradling him like he was her strength and support instead of the other way
around. Inuyasha suddenly didn't know what to do with his hands, his very arms
seeming empty.
After a few minutes, a man came out the door directly next to the desk, his
features grim.
"Miss Higurashi?"
"Y-yes? Where is Sota? Where is my brother?" Her words were frantic and he
could see her hands shaking.
"Your brother is fine. He's getting a tour of the station right now and is on
the worst sugar high I've ever seen."
Kagome's shoulders instantly relaxed and even Inuyasha began to breathe easier.
"So why are we here?" he interjected, his temper beginning to flare. He didn't
have the time or the patience to run around like a bat outta hell. He had
dinner reservations in an hour, for fuck's sake!
The officer ignored him. "We've been trying to get a hold of you for about five
hours now, but it seems like you've moved quite a bit recently so we had some
trouble tracking you down." His mustache seemed to disapprove quite a bit, as
though taking her multiple change of address as some kind of personal insult.
"Was your mother on any kind of medication? Antidepressants or whatnot?"
Confused, Kagome shook her head. "She and I haven't really spoken this past
year," she said softly.
Nodding, he made a note on a thick pad of paper and continued, "So to your
knowledge, she never engaged in any kind of drug use, whether prescribed or,
er, recreational?"
Her mouth dropped open in consternation. "My mother is nota drug addict!" she
said heatedly. "Now what is this all about?"
A forcibly detached look coming over his face, the officer responded after a
short pause. "Your mother went grocery shopping this morning, picked your
brother up from soccer practice, and then drove right into Mizu Lake." Kagome's
face stayed the same, almost like she did not register what the man was saying.
The only thing that alerted Inuyasha that she'd heard was the pounding of her
pulse and sudden tighter hold on Hajime. Without words, he put his arm around
her, drawing her head to his chest. "Witnesses report she made a sharp, sudden
term, seemingly spontaneously."
Kagome just nodded and kept nodding, the movement odd and jerky, her eyes
filling with tears. "Does Sota know?" Her voice was tight and high and made
Inuyasha's heart ache.
The officer nodded. "He escaped, called for help, and identified the body. If
you'd like to see her one last time—"
"Absolutely not!" Inuyasha cut in. He remembered the look on Kagome's face when
she saw Sesshomaru's disembodied head the day Hajime was born. This was her
mother, the person who had raised her. Even if their relationship had been
strained to the point of breaking, she was important and Kagome loved her.
Seeing her body might scar her in ways he could not heal.
It was all over Kagome's face that she was intending to protest, but her words
were prevented by the arrival of another policeman (sans mustache) and someone
neither of them had seen in a long time.
"Sota!" Kagome sobbed, quickly shoving Hajime at Inuyasha before opening her
arms and embracing her younger brother.
The younger boy went completely rigid at the contact before pushing his sister
away, making her stumble a step before righting herself. Kagome stared at him
with wounded eyes, her grief cutting deeper with Sota's apparent rejection of
her. Inuyasha didn't know how to react. The boy mumbled something before
crossing his arms and looking down, something Kagome didn't hear but her
husband did.
I hate you.
The car ride back was filled with silence. Even Hajime seemed to be aware of
how awkward the situation was. Kagome had opted to sit in back with the baby,
which left Sota up front with a silently fuming half-demon. He knew if he tried
to say or do anything, Kagome would bite his head off, but he still felt
compelled to correct the boy's behavior somehow.
"We're home," Kagome called out softly as they approached the house. "Your new
room will be much bigger, Sota, and your friends can come over any time you
want."
Sending her a glare, Sota left the car, slamming the door on his way out.
"Your brother's a little shit," Inuyasha said in a low voice, bright narrowed
eyes tracking the boy as he barged into the house without even announcing
himself.
"He's been through a lot," she said softly, tenderly taking Hajime out of his
car seat. "He really thought you and Mama were going to…well, end up like you
and me."
Remembering the little boy who had followed him around in worship, Inuyasha's
anger deflated. A part of him would have considered sticking around and being a
father to the boy if he had never met Kagome.
"I'm sorry," he said, putting an arm around her and walking her to the door.
"I'll be nice."
She nodded and pecked his cheek. "Thank you. He never knew our father, you
know. So he really latched on to you when you showed up. Now I'm like a
homewrecker to him."
"You'll always be his sister, Kagome. Just give him some time to cool off."
"Inuyasha!" Izayoi greeted, giving her son a bone-crushing hug. She was dressed
up for the new arrival to their family, having temporarily abandoned her
uniform of pajamas and slippers. "I made macaroni and cheese from scratch. Does
Sota like macaroni, Kagome?"
Putting on a happy face, Kagome nodded. "I'm sure he'd love your recipe even if
he didn't."
Thoroughly pleased at the compliment, Izayoi smiled and trotted off back to the
kitchen to begin serving the meal.
Kagome busied herself by waking up Hajime and putting him in his high chair. He
could more or less eat by himself now, though the food seldom ever ended up in
his mouth. The atmosphere at dinner was also tense, though Toga and Izayoi were
obliviously playing footsie under the table, which just made Inuyasha feel even
more uneasy. Izayoi had obviously been trying to cater to their guest since the
food was all basic kiddie meal stuff. Mac and cheese, French fries, chicken
nuggets. Inuyasha sighed, craving steak.
"How's school been, Sota?" Kagome asked, a tentative smile on her face.
"We're on break," he grunted, listlessly pushing his food around on his plate.
She nodded. "What's your favorite class? Still PE?"
"Uh-huh."
Her smile faltered. "…Any new friends this year?"
Sota shook his head in the negative.
"Do your teachers—"
Flinging his fork down onto his plate with a clatter, Sota turned to Inuyasha
and loudly exclaimed, "How can you put up with her!?"
Finally coming back to conversation, Inuyasha glanced around at everyone to
gauge their emotions. Part of him wanted to yell at the kid, but he remembered
all that he'd been through and again his anger receded. "Because I love her,"
he said simply.
Kagome smiled at him gratefully.
The boy snorted. "I don't get how anyone can love a stupid, ugly murderer.
Everything that happened to Mom was because of her."
Everyone at the table stilled in shock. The childish voice held such anger,
even bordering on hatred, that Inuyasha couldn't believe it. This wasn't the
boy he had known before. Sota was a happy kid who loved his sister even if she
did annoy him sometimes. The first person to react was Kagome, who could no
longer contain herself and loudly burst into tears, covering her face with her
hands.
Without even thinking, Inuyasha slapped Sota.
For just a moment, he was appalled at his own behavior, and stared at the child
with regret, frozen. A look of deepest hurt crossed his face and then he was
gone, running up the stairs and into his new room.
Inuyasha could feel everyone's eyes on him and he began to sweat uncomfortably.
"What?" he growled, glaring at his father, whose gaze weighed the heaviest.
Toga shook his head. "You cannot lash out at a child like that, Inuyasha.
Especially when the child lost his only remaining parent just today."
Inuyasha crossed his arms. "I'd slap him again in a heartbeat. The little fuck
had it coming."
Izayoi laid a hand on his arm. "Inuyasha, hurting Sota won't un-hurt Kagome,"
she whispered, her eyes traveling to the girl who continued to sob, oblivious
to all that was going on. "She just lost her mother and now her brother is
rejecting her. You need to be as loving as I know you can be, my puppy, and
help them be a family again. Don't take sides and divide them."
Face burning in shame, he nodded. Though she could be an airhead, Izayoi was
pretty perceptive. It would take a lot of work to undo the damage he'd done,
but he'd do it. For Kagome.
***** No Dream Was Bliss from the Start *****
 
22: No Dream Was Bliss from the Start
"I shouldn't have to go back to school yet! We haven't even had Mom's funeral!"
Kagome sighed and buckled her seatbelt, her head already throbbing. "You've
already been out a week, Sota. We can't bury mom until the toxicology report
comes back. Don't you want to see your friends?"
That seemed to convince him, and he finally got in the car. "I'd rather be with
them than you," he muttered just loud enough for her to hear.
Sighing again, she began the long drive to Sota's school. Inuyasha had wanted
to have him transferred to a school somewhere closer, but there just
wasn'tanything closer. Toga owned so much property and defended it from
outsiders so well that there was literally nothing but forests and one long
road for about an hour. Izayoi had suggested getting another tutor to teach
Sota so they'd have their lessons at home together, but Kagome put her foot
down and promised to drive him. She didn't want Sota to miss out on experiences
like she was doing. He needed friends more than ever right now. Her eyes misted
a little as she thought of her own friends. She hadn't seen them since her
wedding and phone calls had become sporadic, shorter every time. It seemed
impossible to prevent them from drifting away.
"Do you want some music?" she asked tentatively about twenty minutes into the
journey.
"If it'll shut you up."
She slammed on the brakes. "That is enough!" she snapped, glaring at him. "I
know you don't like me right now, but I am doing all I can to make up for what
I did. At least be polite."
"Don't likeyou? I hate you!" Sota's voice this time was filled with more pain
than anger and it made Kagome's heart break. "Y-you just left me all a-alone
with her, Kagome. She got mean and I tried to find you but I didn't know where
you were or what happened to you. I—"
Knowing he was on the verge of crying, Kagome unbuckled her seatbelt and
enveloped him in a hug. Sota cried into her shoulder and she wondered if
someday Hajime would say such things to her, would act in such a way.
"I'm sorry, Sota," she whispered. "I'm so sorry. If I could have, I would have
taken you with me. But once Mama found out about Inuyasha and I, she wouldn't
let us back home, not even to get our stuff."
"She burned it. She burned it all."
For a minute, her heart ached and she hated her mother, thinking of all the
little mementos she had left of her father and grandfather that were stored in
various places around her room. Those were things beyond monetary value, things
her father-in-law could not replace no matter how much money he threw around.
But then she put herself in her mother's place. An unwanted pregnancy, a
husband dead too soon, forced to care for a senile father-in-law, no time for
friends or a life of her own, never enough money, and then finally an
attractive man comes along and makes her feel like a woman again, gives her
hope again. All that was snatched away by a girl she had shielded from the
worst of the world, a girl who still had a future and possibilities lined up
for her if she would only take them.
And now her mother was dead. There was no hope for the dead.
"We can have a new life now," was all she said in response.
He pulled away. "What you did was wrong. It hurt her. Changed her."
"I know it wasn't the best time for Inuyasha and I to start something, but look
at what came out of it! I have a beautiful baby, Inuyasha has a good job, and
we love each other. Look," she said, pulling down the collar of her shirt to
show him the mark that was more important than her ring. "We're really
committed, Sota, and we knew it was going to be a forever thing from the start.
Do you understand?"
"So you didn't come on to him because you found out he was rich?" he asked
skeptically.
She snorted. "When Inuyasha and I were kicked out, we lived in the worst
apartment I've ever seen. It wasn't even an apartment, more like a closet with
a toilet in it. But I was happy because we were together. It wasn't until
months later that I even knew he had a family, let alone a wealthy one."
He paused, seeming to think it over. Finally, he looked at her. "We have to get
to school or I'm gonna be late."
Smiling, she started driving again, speeding on the private road to make up for
the time they'd lost. "Are we friends again?"
"We would be if you didn't drive like a crackhead."
Kagome laughed and turned on the radio, cranking up the volume of a Top 40
station she knew he hated. Life was good again.
O/\o/\O
Kagome picked up breakfast at a fast food establishment and ate it on the way
home, greedily consuming far more food than she needed. Having home-cooked food
for every meal was nice and all, but a part of her missed the disgustingly
greasy Wacdnalds she'd grown up with. She knew Inuyasha would smell it the next
time he was in the car and get mad at her for not taking him, but she saw her
chance and she took it. Tearing off a fraction of paper as she bit into a hash
brown, her phone began to ring. Glancing at it, she saw the number was
restricted, so obviously no one she spoke to regularly. She considered just
letting it go to voicemail, but she always got kind of bored whilst driving and
picked it up.
"Hello?" she said thickly through the food in her mouth.
"Kagome…" The voice sounded distorted and male, like it had been altered
through a machine. "Are you enjoying your breakfast?"
"Inuyasha?" she asked incredulously, wondering what the hell was going on. Her
pulse began to pick up.
"You're not that lucky, little girl. Are you fond of your brother?"
"Who is this?"
"If you want Sota back alive, you must go to your husband's office. He has a
safe there. Bring all the money you find inside to the building across the
street from Sota's school by noon. I'll know if you contact anyone, and then
Sota won't be the only one who suffers."
Before she could respond, they hung up.
Kagome stared at the screen of her phone, mind rushing and heart pounding. Only
when she remembered that one needed to look at the road when driving did she
really shift into high gear. What should she do? Call Toga? Call Inuyasha? Call
the police? Whoever had taken Sota couldn't possibly know if she'd contact
anyone. That was just a bluff.
But what if it wasn't?
They'd threatened to do something to someone else if she didn't follow their
exact orders. What if they killed Sota and took Hajime next? The thought had
her nearly in tears and she made an abrupt U-turn back to Wacdnalds, where she
ordered Inuyasha's favorite foods, which amounted to basically one of
everything. From there, she made a quick stop at a drug store, where she bought
a pill crusher and some Benadryl. Thankfully, Inuyasha liked to drown his food
in ketchup, so the presence of the little pink pills was easier to disguise.
Twenty minutes after the phone call, she arrived at his office, composed and
smiling and breaking inside.
"Hello, my love," she chirped as she pushed open the doors of his office.
Wincing at the false cheerfulness, she tried to act natural.
Her husband appeared to be in the middle of a phone call with somebody who
didn't sound too pleased. Though he was ignoring whoever was on the other line,
he hadn't paid too much attention to her either, and for once she blessed it.
Beaming once he saw the bag of food in her hand, he hung up the phone without a
word and held his arms open for her. Wanting to cry, she ran to his embrace,
hiding her cracking composure in his chest.
"You've never brought me lunch before," he murmured, kissing her over her hair.
"Is it okay?" she asked timidly. She knew he liked his space.
"Better than okay! I would love to have you here every day like this. It would
give me something to look forward to."
One side of her mouth quirked up. "I didn't think you hated your job that
much." Everywhere she looked in the room, she imagined him and his former
secretary going at it with a kind of wildness he'd never shown her, able to let
loose in this place where his role was so different. She'd thought she was
getting over it, but maybe it was one of those things that couldn't be gotten
over.
Inuyasha momentarily stopped rifling through the bags. His eyes looked right
through her and she felt he could see everything she was trying to keep hidden.
Leaning back in his chair, he pat his knee and gave her an almost timid smile.
Without her mind registering it, her feet began to move and then she was
sitting on his lap, crying out her stress and ruining his lovely silk tie. Her
husband said nothing, just held her with his strong arms, being her support.
When she was done, he held up a tissue that he pulled from a drawer in his desk
that she glimpsed also held lotion. Deciding not to comment on that, she
gratefully accepted it and wiped her tears.
"You wanna eat with me on the couch?"
She shook her head. "It's all for you. I already ate." Neither of them moved,
too comfortable to do so. "Let me feed you," she suggested, thinking that would
get things over with faster.
He nodded and she picked up the food drowned in ketchup, feeding him bites here
and there, careful not to get her fingers bitten. If there was one thing
Inuyasha was good at, it was eating, though he was always a bit overzealous.
After a while, he took over, able to cram food in his face faster than she was.
Kagome stayed in his lap, enjoying being close to him for the first time in
what felt like forever. In a few short minutes, he had finished his meal
(several meals, really) and just sat back contentedly, idly playing with her
hair. Snuggling against him, her eyes searched the room for the safe, finally
seeing it under his desk after she accidentally kicked it. Just touching it
filled her with impatience and dread. Her husband was languid but did not yet
seem drowsy. Thoughts of what could be happening to Sota nauseated her. She had
to save him.
Shifting until she was straddling him, Kagome leaned up and ran her tongue
along his ear. "You said you'd love to have me here every day, Inuyasha. Did
you mean that?"
His eyes darkened from sunshine to deep gold and a growl escaped him from deep
in his chest. "Fuck yes." Before she knew it, his mouth was on her neck,
sucking the mark he'd given her.
Though she'd refused him sex since they'd returned from their honeymoon, that
didn't mean she was unaffected by the side-effect of their mating. It was quite
the opposite. On the worst day, she had masturbated five times and still wanted
more, even though she had taken time with herself and made sure she came more
than once in each session. It just wasn't enough. It never was enough without
Inuyasha. But she was stubborn, and she'd rather fuck herself by herself until
it hurt than stop punishing him for hurting her. Even if it drove her crazy
sometimes. Even if she now had a collection of sex toys. Even if she'd
entertained thoughts of tying him to the bed and not letting him go until she
was satisfied. But there were more important things now than pride, she told
herself as she pushed her panties to the side and brought her husband's hand to
her already dripping pussy. Her lower lips twitched uncontrollably at the
contact, grasping at his fingers, eager to become reacquainted.
Inuyasha moaned her name and fisted her hair, dragging her mouth to his and
kissing her stupid. The touch was electric and Kagome growled without realizing
it, copying Inuyasha. His fingers continued to distractedly tease her, making
the outside of her pussy as slippery as the inside. She didn't care if he
wasn't at his most skilled. There had been times he'd teased her to the point
of torture, making her so angry once she'd rolled him over and rode his face
without his consent. It was among the most spectacular orgasms of her life.
Kagome knew he could have easily pushed her aside if he had a problem with it,
but the illusion of control had made her feel so sexy, so powerful. Just
remembering it had her cumming, a small orgasm she ignored. She was too
excited, she knew, feeling her juices dripping down her thighs. Glad she wore a
skirt, she lifted it up, putting it in her mouth and biting down to hold it.
"Oh, fuck yes," he breathed, clawing her panties apart and taking in the sight
of her cunt with hungry eyes. "I wanna watch my cock split your pussy wide
open."
Moaning in agreement, she let him grab her ass, massaging the flesh in his big
hands. Working together, they brought her down on his erection, going slowly
and easing it in. The feeling was complete bliss, even though he didn't
vibrate. They moved in sync with one another, his eyes locked on where they
were joined and hers on his face. Kagome tried to go slow, tried to savor the
moment, but it was no use. Thighs trembling, she collapsed on his lap and began
to grind against him, bringing her hands up to tease her breasts. Deprived of
the view he'd been enjoying, Inuyasha kept his eyes on the rest of her, biting
his lip and watching her fuck herself on his cock.
Without a warning, he sank his teeth into her neck in the exact same spot he'd
marked her, and that set her off. He screamed into her flesh and he burst
inside her, and she nearly punctured the material of his shirt with her nails.
Her husband moaned into her flesh as she continued to pulse around him, both of
them clinging together in a beautiful kind of orgasmic agony. Gradually, they
relaxed, Inuyasha leaning back in his chair and she following on his chest,
head against his heart. It wasn't until she heard the first almost silent snore
that she realized he had fallen asleep, probably right after his release.
Kagome indulged herself and cuddled close to him, trying not to cry. Though
their encounter had been brief and more lustful than loving, it was the first
bit of intimacy they had shared in so long, and so she wanted to savor the
moment, savor the feel of him. After a few minutes had passed, she gently got
off his lap, trying to stay silent. Grabbing the Kleenex from his drawer, she
wiped away the evidence of their quickie, dropping it in the bin.
Slinking down to the floor as quietly as she could, she stared at the safe. It
was an electronic one and bolted to the floor. She knew she'd only have maybe
one try to get the code right before an alarm sounded. The thought suddenly
occurred to her that the safe might not even be Inuyasha's. His brother had
used the office before him and he still hadn't cleaned everything out yet. It
was as though he hated him so much he'd rather ignore the reminders of him than
pay attention to them long enough to be rid of them. If that were the case, the
code might not even be something Inuyasha had set up. How would she be able to
help Sota if she couldn't do what they asked? Would she be better off telling
Inuyasha or Toga? Taking a deep breath, she decided to just dive in and take a
chance. She needed to be strong for once.
Hands shaking, she punched in the date of their wedding.
Wrong.
Feeling a cold drop of sweat make its way down her spine, she waited for some
sort of sign that something was wrong, that officials would be arriving to see
who had been trying to tamper with the safe. When ten minutes went by without
anything, she tried again, this time with the date of her husband's birth.
Wrong.
Choking back a cry of despair, she searched her mind for anything else she
could think of. It might not even be an important date but just a series of
numbers he had randomly memorized or a symbol. But she couldn't think of
anything! Quickly, before she could stop herself, she punched in Hajime's
birthday.
The green light blinked and she opened the safe door, amazed that she had
actually guessed it after all. Stopping a second to marvel that something so
important was protected by the birthdate of their firstborn, she quickly
gathered the cash into her purse. It wasn't packed to the brim like she had
expected, but there was still more than she could count, small stacks of
hundreds wrapped together with rubber bands. Why did he even have all this,
anyway? What purpose did it serve? Pushing away the questions, she closed the
safe door and stood up, giving Inuyasha an impulsive kiss on the lips before
she left.
"I promise I'll tell you everything as soon as I get Sota back," she whispered,
wanting nothing more than to shake him awake and have him hold her again as she
cried.
The drop-off location the kidnapper had chosen was only about fifteen minutes
away from Inuyasha's office. The kids had just finished after-lunch recess and
were all in class, making the area mostly deserted, apart from a couple
individuals driving by on their way to somewhere more interesting. The building
across the street from the elementary school had been an accountant's office
when Kagome had attended there, but had since been vacant. Parking the car, she
grabbed her purse and just stared at the building for a moment, trying to calm
the rampant beating of her heart.
"Excuse me?"
Kagome whipped around to see someone with their car window down halfway
addressing her from the street. Torn between wanting to ignore them and wanting
to rush into the building, she eventually hesitantly stepped a little in their
direction. Once she was just a couple feet away from the car, the woman inside
pulled out a map, her prominent sunglasses making it hard to see her expression
as she rolled the window down all the way.
"Can you tell me where Foothill Avenue is?"
Rolling her eyes, Kagome approached the car and grabbed part of the map.
"It's right here, see? Just after—"
Four hands tugged her inside the window, beating her when she tried to kick and
lash out, her purse falling to the tarred street in her struggles. Kagome
screamed and screamed, panic completely overtaking her, thrashing even as
inhuman strength flung her into the backseat where her head hit the window.
Dazed, the last thing she saw was Sota standing by the fence, safe inside the
school, expression equal parts bitter and troubled as he calmly watched the car
take her away.
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