CANDIDACY
By Priestess Skye
A Presidential candidate and his campaign worker discover each other as they work toward a common goal. Told through a series of one-shots and drabbles from the LJ Community IY no Kakera
Special Thanks to Wiccan for the edits.
Title: Cherries
Genre: Romance
Pairings Represented: Sesshoumaru/Kagome Romance
Theme: Set #1, Theme #069, "Makeup"
Word Count: 435
Warnings:
Universe: Alternate Universe
The office was filled with its typical hustle and bustle of pre-campaign work. Phone lists were being put together, envelopes were being stuffed, stamped and readied for the mail. A few volunteers were already in the next room putting several signs together so those who were delivering them would be able to do so with due speed.
Twenty-four hours... the last time he was filled with a sense of anticipation at the thought. The fight, it would send his heart pumping knowing there was very little he needed to do and would still succeed.
But his thoughts today weren't focused on the time, or on the many volunteers, checking to make sure they were doing everything just right.
No, they were focused on her.
The way she chewed her lip between her teeth as she finished putting together some of the details of on his householders. The way, every now and again when she was concentrating, she would apply the lip-gloss, as if she weren't thinking about it at all, it was just second nature.
Cherries, he thought as the scent of it made its way across the room to him.
Her lips would taste of cherries. It was almost as if he could feel them against his; soft, pliant, submitting to his own will.
The image came to him unbidden and he immediately shook his head, trying to figure out where it all came from.
Her lips widened into a smile, as it seemed she figured out what she was trying to do and her lip-gloss fell to the desk without a second thought. Her fingers typed furiously at the keys, in between moving the mouse around the screen.
For just a moment, he was tempted to walk up behind her and bend over her shoulder to see what she was working on. To see if she smelled as enticing up close as she did from afar.
"Mr. Taisho, we need to go over your schedule for tomorrow one more time."
He looked up, startled to see his campaign manager standing next to him holding a leather folder. A quick glance toward the young girl told him she hadn't noticed him staring as she continued to work. Ridiculous, he said to himself, trying to convince himself that there was no reason he should be fascinated with one of his employees.
She was there to work for him, and nothing more. After everything was said and done, she would be working somewhere else and he would have forgotten her. Gesturing to his manager they turned to walk into his office.
Still… cherries.
Title: Perfection
Genre: Romance
Pairings Represented: Sesshoumaru/Kagome Romance
Theme: Set #1, Theme #048, "Early Evening"
Word Count: 645
Warnings:
Universe: Alternate Universe
Yawning lightly, she arched her back as she tried to work out the kinks in her shoulders. Sitting at a desk all day couldn't be good for her, she noted, as she felt, more than heard, several of her joints pop in protest of the quick movements. The ten-hour days were becoming murder on both her back and her sleep, but even now there was nothing she could do about it. Official campaign kick-off was tomorrow morning at 8 am. Everybody was working overtime this evening, followed by a quick toast before everybody made their way home.
Although she had worked on campaigns before, her experience did nothing to prepare her for the enormity of this particular candidate.
Sesshoumaru Taisho.
The name itself sounded presidential, she mused, and she managed to send a quick glance his way to see what he was doing. Although maintaining the appearance of aloofness the entire time, there was something about him that told her he was actually watching everything very closely to make sure it was to his liking.
He was a man of few words, but his actions told her everything she needed to know.
He demanded perfection in everything. He was a candidate she could throw her support behind without worrying she'd be betrayed by his policies. He was straight forward, in an enigmatic way, and offered no bull-shit.
Smiling, she had to admit that was what she admired the most about him. He found no use for lies, and had told his team as much the first day they gathered to get to work. No lies in the office. No lies in the campaign. It only muddied clear waters, or so he said. She had a feeling this would be a memorable campaign, and she would never work on another like it.
His gold eyes met hers briefly and he raised his eyebrow ever so slightly, letting her know she was caught. Feeling the blush rise in her cheeks, she turned back to her screen. The householder was nearly complete as she typed the last of his key platform highlights on the second page.
The picture on the front didn't do him justice she realized. He looked intimidating, hard. She could only hope it didn't work against him.
"Higurashi."
She nearly jumped in her seat when she turned to find him standing right behind her, his eyes alight with amusement. Steeling herself she glared back at him, not appreciating whatever joke he was thinking of playing.
"Mr. Taisho."
"Which householder are you focusing on today?" She watched as he skimmed over the page on the screen and, for the second time that night, she blushed as she had been caught looking at the picture of him.
"This one is for the major urban centres, focusing on crime, pollution, funding for cities, etc. I have the template set up for those living in rural areas. Your platform ideas will have changed on that one, focusing more on the family. I just have to fill that in."
He nodded as he continued to scan the page, carefully removing the mouse from her hand as flipped through the pages. "This one looks fine. Enter the information for the rural householder and shut down for the night. We'll send them to the presses tomorrow and begin distribution afterward."
It was her turn to nod as she reclaimed the mouse, and she nearly sighed when he moved toward another worker. She needed to catch her breath, she dumbly realized. Smiling, she looked at her householder. He had said it was fine, had told her to move on, so in his eyes it must be perfect. Saving the file, she closed it and began to work on the second.
The sun was just beginning to set, but she knew her night was far from over.
Title: The Intimidation Factor
Theme: Set #1, Theme #038, "Height Difference"
Word Count: 327
Standing behind him at the podium, she couldn't help but look up. His presence was imposing, his very demeanor demanded everybody's attention. But he was so much taller than her, something she hadn't noticed before. She knew he was tall, couldn't help but see it when he walked around the office and towered over everybody, but standing behind him at this moment put it all into perspective.
A united front, he had called it. He wanted a united front standing in front of the reporters when he kicked off his campaign, with his employees and volunteers all standing behind him in a show of solidarity.
The key word, though, was behind him, not so much with him. There was an arrogance and a level of pride to him that she knew wouldn't let him place himself on the same level as the rest of them. He was always one step ahead, one level above.
Much like his broad shoulders, she mused, as her head barely reached them. To the world in front of him he looked like a man ready to do battle and fight for his dream, or at least she hoped it was his dream. He stood tall, confident, poised, and elegant.
From behind, it was impossible not to see his back rigid, as if he needed to be ready to pounce on something at a moment's notice. His shoulders were tense as the wind blew through the silver tresses tied at his nape.
Listening to him speak, though, she remembered why she was standing behind him, fighting with him. There was something inspirational about him, something that told her he would follow through on every one of his promises. His honour demanded no less.
Yet, despite his speech, despite the constant barrage of questions from the reporters, the flashing lights from their cameras, she could do nothing but focus on how tall he was.
And how short she was in comparison. It was truly intimidating.
Title: Distractions
Theme: Set #1, Theme #079, "Gentle Strength"
Word Count: 344
The faces in front of him were a blur, although he knew he should know some of them. Reporters from every major newspaper and television show were there, as well as spies from the camps of other candidates. But he didn't pay attention to any of them as he continued to recite the speech he knew by memory.
It was the girl standing behind him that gave him pause. It was almost as if he could feel her there, her support rolling over him in waves giving him the fuel he needed to bolster his campaign kickoff speech. Everybody in the audience was focused on him at that very moment.
He was finely attuned to her, and didn't need to see her to know she was standing straight and gently smiling, her way of showing everybody she believed in him.
It was a heady feeling, knowing that somebody like her could believe in him enough to want to work for him and help him achieve his goal. For some odd reason it humbled him, although he wasn't sure why.
There was nothing special about her. She was young, fresh out of school; in dire need of work, which meant she would work hard for him. Five days ago he didn't know her from a hole in the wall. He would never have taken a second look at her. Yet, she fascinated him and evoked thoughts he had long since buried.
Perhaps it was her naiveté that allowed her to believe in him so. She didn't know him well enough to know that in essence, he was not a good man. But something about her made him want to change and made him want to prove to her that he could be everything she thought he was and more.
It was disturbing to say the least.
Focusing his thoughts, he shifted his mind back toward the crowd as he finished his speech. They would be asking questions no doubt, and the last thing he needed at this moment was a distraction.
AN
This is something I've been working on off and on. I'll update as I get four drabbles written or one longer one-shot. There is a set of 100 prompts I have to choose from and this is my attempt to tell a story using these prompts. It's my sanity break when Mirrored Pasts becomes too heavy, or doesn't wish to cooperate with me, or in the case of tonight, when I'm trying to take a break from reading three chapters of history. This is actually one of two pairings I'm using for IY no Kakera. The other is a Sess/Inu Family relationship pairing with a different set of 100 prompts. That'll go up on one of these days when I get a fourth one written for that pairing.
Disclaimer: The characters belonging to the anime Inuyasha do not belong to me. They belong to Rumiko Takahashi