Disclaimer: I do not own Inuyasha nor do I make any money off of it.
Author's note: The beginning of this story is during Kagome's time in her time after the Shikon is destroyed, and the story itself contains many spoilers for the end of the series. If you have not finished the anime you will be confused… I hope you enjoy ~Zerhai
Chapter 1
An Internship with the Insane
Kagome straightened the skirt of her business suit before she started walking up the stairs to the plain building she was to work at, the local mental health hospital. It had been over a year since she had returned to her time after completing her quest. Since then she had not felt a single yokai aura until she had passed by this nondescript building, and it had felt muffled and out of place. That had been 3 months ago, finally she had managed to get herself accepted as an intern. She was determined to find out who or what was giving off yokai energy here in a time when she had never sensed any other yokai. Part of her hoped it was Inuyasha, however she knew his aura, and even after five hundred years she would still be able to recognize it.
Days passed slowly, filled with nothing but answering phones and making small talk with the more sane patients, they had given her a nightstick and a taser just in case. Apparently every once in a while one of the inmates would escape and would try to attack the person sitting at the front desk. Oddly enough she missed her days when her best personal protection had been her miko abilities and her bow and arrows. The only area they did not let her go into was the high security area. I would be three and a half months before she would have her chance.
One night the guy who was supposed to take the shift after her got sick and she volunteered to work it. She had a feeling she would not get a chance to investigate the mysterious yokai energy which she found was pretty steady, and had already figured out where in the building it was located, the high security wing. She waited until most the staff left then told the night she was making a restroom run. Using a key card she had swiped earlier that day, she made it past the high security door. Suddenly she was bombarded by sheer amount and intensity of the yokai energy around her. Though none of these were the one which she had sensed. She went from door to door, saw many hanyous behind most of the doors, as well as a few full blown yokai, all seemed in shock.
She was aghast at the treatment of these beings. Finally she made it to the end of the high security wing and found the source of the energy which had brought her to this hospital in the first place. The door seemed more secure than others around it, she peaked in the little window and a being curled up in the corner with its hand wrapped tightly around a long thin object which seemed vaguely familiar. Suddenly the being moved and uncovered her body from large black leathery wings. The first thing Kagome noticed as the being was the ears, they were exactly like Inuyasha's. Though her hair was a black as a raven's wing, her eyes were also the same color as Inuyasha's, that beautiful gold she loved so much. Suddenly the being rushed the door, causing Kagome to shriek in freight as she also recognized the object this woman held in her hands, So'unga.
Suddenly one of the night guards came running through the door, glaring at her, "you are not supposed to be in here, how did you get past the wards?" Kagome backed away slowly from the woman holding So'unga saying dumbly, "what wards?" He narrowed his eyes and sniffed and only then did she notice he was not human how had she not noticed this before, she looked closer and saw he was wolf yokai, as she now saw his tail wrapped around his waist. She stared at him stunned. When she did not respond to his inquiry he growled, "you are the new miko they hired, I was wondering when they would have an excuse to put you on night shift. Come with me there is something else you need to see."
She blinked up at him, he had light brown hair cut military short and now that she was looking noticed his fangs, she glanced at his name tag as he turned and finally responded, "I am sorry Raul, I was curious." He rolled his eyes and took her by the elbow guiding her out of the high security wing, "Don't worry about it, legally they cannot just tell someone who doesn't know about the yokai world about it they have to let them stumble upon it." As they exited the wing she noticed his tail disappeared and he appeared fully human, not a sign of yokai energy to be felt, only the stead stream coming from the door they had just left.
"How are you hiding yourself," she asked. He rolled his eyes and guided her to an out of the way office. "The door to the high security wing keeps out normal humans, only a human with holy powers can make it through. It also strips a yokai of any illusion they carry. About four hundred and seventy five years ago a miko who was sympathetic to yokai discovered how to make a charm which could cover up any hint of yokai, from something as simple as a strange hair color to making a tail disappear or appear to be another object, like a belt, or wings into a jacket or cloak." He sat her down in the chair meant for visitors to the office and sat behind the desk. "Don't worry about your shift at the front of the building, your real job starts now, you are going to learn how to make and charge the charms and amulets used to hide yokai, as well as recharge the barrier around the high security wing from time to time."
She stared at him, "I have one question, who is the woman at the far cell in that wing and how did she get that sword?" He sighed, "that would be Inukameko, she used to be one of our best patients, as well as one of our largest contributors, a few years ago she came her on her own and told us to check her in, that she felt part of her mind slipping, that she was hearing voices in her head, other than her beasts, which she has two of since she is a cross-breed. Just one day she was wondering the yard and she started to dig in the dirt, some of the nurses and security guards tried to stop her but she refused to be stopped. She dug for three days straight and when she came out of the hole she had dug that sword was in her hand, and her eyes were turning red, she refused to let go of the sword which had glowed at the time and told us to lock her in the most secure cell we had and to beef up the security for the room as well. Even though it appeared she was struggling with something inside she let us guide her to that room and lock her up. She has been in there ever since, between her and that sword they give off so much yokai energy it cannot be contained within the wards."
Kagome nodded, "I see, that sword doesn't belong on this plane of existance it belongs in Hell, how it escaped is beyond me." He narrowed his eyes, "How do you know what that sword is and not know about the charms used to control the illusions that hide yokai from humans?" She bit her lip, "it was found in the dry well on my families' shrine before it disappeared down the well again, and stories say it was sent to hell by a group of adventurers."
He narrowed his eyes at her, knowing she had not lied but also that there was more to the story, "it doesn't matter now, you need to go ahead and head home, you need to be here in the morning you have your first lesson with our resident miko, she will be teaching you all about the charms."
Kagome nodded and stood up, he did as well and walked her out the building, then asked, "do you need a ride?" She shook her head and went to her bike where she had left it chained, bowed to him then got on her bike and quickly headed home.
