~Do Your Own Stunts~
Scene 1: A few good tips
"Come on Miss Higurashi, work with me here! Remember what we talked about: physicality is key! If you can't please the camera, the audience won't be any easier."
Kagome fought the urge to roll her eyes, bending herself even further over the car hood. Across the metal, her co-star Kouga leaned on his hand, now towering over her and forcing her neck to crane uncomfortably to meet his gaze. Couldn't they have shot the scene conversing at the same eye-level? It wasn't like Kouga needed to change his position, and she'd been doing nearly the same pose as him! 'Variety' she reminded herself firmly; 'he just wants variety in the shot. You and Kouga can't be doing the same thing, or, or… well, you just can't!'
They started the scene over, and Kagome worked desperately to deliver her lines, even as her co-star's attention kept drifting over her head to where her butt jutted into the air. It didn't help that her costume consisted solely of a grease-covered tank top and tiny, ratty jean shorts, but what could she do? She'd already made a not-so-subtle request for a wardrobe adjustment, and had been even less subtly shot down. She'd thought the role of a female mechanic would involve more jumpsuits or overalls or something a little more practical, but that wasn't what the camera wanted, as the illustrious director had reminded her over and over again.
"Cut! That's a wrap for today. Higurashi, I want those lines memorized – no more slip ups."
"Sure thing, sir" she chirped, fake smile plastered across her lips. Kouga's friendly pat to her shoulder dampened her annoyance, and her responding smile was a little more sincere as he gave her a thumbs up and remarked "Good job today" before heading off to his trailer. Kagome waved him off, but her attention was elsewhere. Carefully crossing the jungle of cords and tape littering the floor, Kagome made her way to the scowling stuntman hiding in the shade of the fake garage.
"Any scenes today?" she asked, stopping just short of him and biting her lip to hide just how happy she was to see him. Inuyasha shrugged, hands in his pockets and posture relaxed as he answered "just rehearsals. We're on the schedule for tomorrow though." His yellow eyes met her blue ones, expression pinching and body tensing as he continued "I saw those last few scenes. You know what Naraku's doing, right? That lame excuse for a director can sell anything, but it ain't hard to see what he's going for."
Kagome's eyebrow shot up. "What the heck are you talking about? He just had some pointers for me to help the shot, that's all."
"That's all?!" Inuyasha barked, "you really think bending you nearly outta frame is gonna help the shot? He's using it to tell a story, and it ain't a good one for your character. That's power dynamics one-oh-one, you should know that!" Kagome fidgeted uncomfortably, the nagging voice in the back of her mind nodding its head in agreement. She didn't want to hear it though – she didn't want to admit that she was being used in her first real movie. Grasping around for what to say, Kagome started hesitantly "I mean, Kouga is the main character, so making him the dominant part of the conversation makes sense, I guess."
"Dominant's an understatement. Goddamn Kagome, he had you submitting to that flea-bag like a bitch in heat! And before you get mad at me" he said sharply as Kagome's face screwed into a sour glare, "don't think that ain't exactly what the audience is gonna see. You're lucky a 'kissing scene' is as far as they're gonna make you go, 'cause every person in that audience is gonna wonder how long before your two characters start screwing."
Kagome brushed past him with an angry huff. That voice in her head was taunting 'I told you so', needling her with doubts, planting a seed of regret that she'd agreed to do this movie in the first place. "You don't understand" she said back to him in a small voice; "this is my big break. If I get kicked off now, who's to say another chance will show up?" Her shoulders hitched as she wrapped her arms around herself. "I've been wanting this my whole life. If I can just get through this shoot, if I can prove I have what it takes, then maybe… I'll be able to do the kind of acting I want to do."
Silence fell between them as the reservations she'd had through the whole shoot piled on top of her, weighing down her heart. Gentle pressure on her shoulder made her jump, and Inuyasha's rough voice near her ear had her pulse racing.
"Aw hell, of course I know what that's like. You think I like getting kicked and tossed and beat up every day? You shoulda seen me when I first started – I let them bloody me up as bad as they wanted every take because I thought that's what it took to prove myself. I was their punching bag because they knew I would take it." Kagome listened intently, mind whirling at his confession. She knew how he was on set – she'd seen his stunts, and he never let himself be pushed around. He worked hard, and he did what needed to be done, but he did it on his terms. Naraku seemed to hate him for it, but never once had he even joked about firing him.
"How do you do it?" She said suddenly, spinning to face him with pleading eyes. "How did you change?"
Inuyasha grasped her shoulders, leaning in with burning gold eyes as he told her "I realized they needed me. I showed 'em I had somethin' that no one else did, and they couldn't afford to lose it. These directors think they're top-shit, but they know talent when they see it, and they'll do just about anything to hoard that talent for themselves. You show these creeps you know what you're doing, that you don't need their crap directing, and they'll listen. Even a bastard like Naraku won't be able to fire you once he sees what you've got."
Kagome hung on every word, blue eyes brimming with hope. He made it sound so simple, so fool-proof, but she trusted him. If he could make it in an industry that hated him, then she could prove her worth too. She already had ideas for her part, a deeper personality for the character than the one her director had been pushing for, and it was time to embrace that performance and really show them her skill. Once they saw what she had in mind, once they realized that she was the only one who could play this role, who could carry this film, then she'd really have her 'in'.
Her arms were around the stuntman before he could realize what had happened, and the embarrassed sputtering above her head only made Kagome's smile grow wider. "Thanks Inuyasha" she mumbled against his sweaty t-shirt, "Thanks for believing in me."
"Y-yeah, well," he gave her an awkward half-hug, and slowly pulled her arms from around him. He seemed unable to look her in the eye, but she noticed that his hands remained holding her arms as he continued "You got a lot of talent, and I don't wanna see that snuffed out in your first film. You uh… you could really go places, y'know?"
She beamed brighter, nodding confidently, and slipped from his grasp. Beckoning him off set, she said warmly "I'm sure you're tired from training, but how about we go get a bite to eat? I've heard of a couple good dives in town. My treat!"
Inuyasha watched her with a guarded expression, but her invitation stood firm, and after a minute he shrugged and started after her. "Anything's gotta be better than that catered crap they feed us" he muttered, falling into step beside her. "But I ain't gonna let you pay."
"Oh come on" she laughed, nearly skipping with how light her heart felt, "it's the least I can do! I need to pay you back for that little 'therapy session' somehow!" She giggled at the affronted expression on his features, knowing he wasn't truly upset. "I ain't a shrink, okay? Besides, how do you have enough to cover lunch for both of us? I know they don't pay you first-time actresses that much."
"But I'm set for stardom, right? After those pointers, I'll be walking the red carpet in no time!" She couldn't stop her laughter as Inuyasha shook his head, calling her hopeless and bemoaning that he'd tried to teach her anything. Despite her self-assured words, she was still nervous about tomorrow. Naraku was a tough opponent, and she doubted he'd roll over as easily as Inuyasha seemed to think. But somehow… it didn't scare her like it had before. Whatever happened, however long it took to make a name for herself… at least she had a friend. Working on this production had led her to meet Inuyasha, and no matter what the outcome, she'd never regret that.
*Author's Note:
Hey all! So this isn't exactly a new one - I've had it up on tumblr for a while now, but I didn't realize I'd never actually posted it here! It's one of my fave aus I've created, even though I haven't written a whole lot for it, and I hope you guys enjoy it too!