Oh my gosh…I didn't think I would have this much fun writing this story…
Also of course I forgot the disclaimer on Chapter 1. My bad.
Disclaimer: I don't own Inuyasha or its characters. All rights to Rumiko Takahashi.
Chapter 2: Going Down
At the sound of her five-fifteen alarm going off, Kagome groaned. She hit the snooze button and rolled over in bed. She had to clock in for her shift in exactly forty-three minutes, but all she wanted to do was go back to sleep.
She and her best friend, Sango, had celebrated Sango's birthday the night before, so Kagome was really feeling the effects of too much cake and ice cream being eaten at an inappropriately late time of night.
Tossing the covers off and stretching, Kagome yawned and got out of bed. Her first stop was the bathroom to shower and brush her teeth before getting dressed and coming out to her small kitchen.
With a pot of tea boiling on the stove, she glanced at the clock. Upon seeing that it was five-forty-five, Kagome sighed.
Note to self, she thought. No more celebrating birthdays on Friday nights when I know I have to work on Saturday morning.
Sango had just turned twenty-one, and Kagome herself would turn the same age in a mere three weeks. She and Sango had been friends since they were five, so they would often have joint birthday parties as children. Now they celebrate separately so they had a reason to buy two cakes. They were just smart like that…and rather sugar-obsessed.
Kagome put her tea in a to-go mug and put on her shoes. She grabbed her room key before she closed the front door behind her and began to head downstairs.
As she clocked in at exactly five-fifty-eight like always, she put her small bag in her designated cubby in the staff room and headed to the front desk to find Myoga.
Upon finding him, Kagome smiled. "Good morning," Kagome said as she greeted him. Myoga smiled back at her.
"Good morning, Kagome," he replied. "How was Sango's celebration?" Kagome nearly grimaced at the mention; she hadn't quite shaken her initial morning exhaustion.
"It was a lot of fun," she said. "We had a great time." Myoga smiled again as he began to set out the room keys for the people whom would be checking in that day.
"You're next for a birthday," he replied. "How many jokes has Sango made about being 'a year older than you?'" Kagome laughed.
"Too many already," she admitted. "But it won't be for too long. We'll even out in a few weeks and then we'll be the same again." Myoga chuckled.
"You girls are too much," he teased. Kagome laughed again and peered at the room keys he'd laid out.
"Am I running the desk today?" she asked.
Myoga typically had her do a different job every day. Sometimes it was cleaning, running the desk, helping in the kitchen, or other odd jobs that she knew like the back of her hand.
"Yes," he replied. "Then after your lunch break you'll be cleaning the newly-vacated rooms. Also, I mentioned last week that I hired someone new for some odds and ends work around here. Could you give our new employee a tour after you've finished cleaning?" Kagome nodded.
"Absolutely," she replied. "Now go get some rest." Myoga mock-saluted.
"Yes, ma'am," he replied. "I'm going to kick off the end of my last night shift for the next month with a solid night's rest…or day's rest, I suppose." Kagome laughed.
"Then poor Miroku is going to be stuck with that shift, right?" she joked. Myoga rolled his eyes.
"He can handle it," he replied. "The women guests need a break from his constant flirting. Sometimes I wonder why I hired him in the first place." Kagome held back a giggle.
"Because he does a good job with our finances…remember?" she reminded, feigning seriousness. Myoga chuckled.
"Oh, that's right," he chimed in. After laying the rest of the room keys out, Myoga ran a hand through his thinning hair.
"I'm off to bed," he announced. "Good luck here. I'll be back around three to check on things." Kagome nodded.
"Good night," she replied. With a wave, Myoga was off to his own suite. One of the perks of the managerial positions was being able to live in a suite within the hotel. It wasn't required, but it was offered. It was one of Kagome's favorite parts about working at Goshinboku. It felt like she was always on vacation.
That is, until someone arrived and pretty much ruined it all.
Needless to say, she wasn't expecting a bad check-in after the successful morning she'd had.
But, of course, you can't predict the future.
Kagome was checking in her third to last guest of the morning when she heard a loud groan from the back of the line.
Glancing up from the computer, she saw a man with long silver hair frowning at her. His golden eyes glared at her, shocking her into a quick pause.
"Miss?" said the guest Kagome was currently checking in. She looked concerned. "Are you alright?" Kagome broke away from the man's gaze and turned back to the guest.
"Yes, yes," she replied quickly. "I'm sorry. You're in room 227." The guest smiled.
"Thank you," she said. Kagome nodded and motioned for the next guest to approach the desk.
Before she could greet her, she heard the man from the back of the line groan again.
Kagome glanced up and frowned right back when she saw the impatient expression on his face.
Usually she was pretty good at dealing with rude guests, but for some reason, this one was really testing her patience.
"Do you need a glass of water, sir?" she asked in the politest tone of voice she had. The man frowned again.
"No," he replied gruffly. "I need you to do your job so I can check in. I've been waiting for fifteen minutes." Kagome willed herself to be calm.
"I apologize, sir," she said. "We have had a busy morning, but I'll be with you shortly." The man scoffed, but remained silent.
The guest currently checking in looked sympathetic. "I am so sorry you have to deal with people like that," she whispered. Kagome smiled.
"I've worked here for a long time," she replied. "It doesn't bother me too much anymore." The woman scoffed.
"I could never have the patience for that," she whispered. "Good on you." Kagome laughed.
"Enjoy your stay," she said as she completed the check-in process.
The man with the silver hair stepped up, his seemingly ever-present frown still on his face.
"Do you normally take this long to get your guests checked in?" he asked. Kagome smiled politely.
"I will do my best to get you checked in as quickly as possible," she replied, allowing just the smallest bit of sarcasm to leak out of her voice.
Seriously though…this guy deserved it.
To her surprise, the guy smirked. "Impatient, are we?" he asked. "Welcome to the last fifteen minutes of my life." Kagome's patient smile disappeared, a frown appearing instead.
"You're in room number 304," she replied curtly as she handed him the room key. She hid a grimace at the fact that it was the same floor in which she lived. "Enjoy your stay." The man took the key from her and slipped it in his pocket.
"Thanks," he replied, his voice lacking in sincerity.
Kagome found herself in a rather sour mood until her lunch break. She knew she would feel better once she started cleaning the rooms. That tended to help her whenever she was in a bad mood, which she had to admit wasn't too often.
But that guy…he had stomped all over her last nerve.
Begrudgingly, she went up to her suite to cook something to eat.
After a nice meal, Kagome felt better. She headed downstairs to clock back in and check the list of rooms that needed to be cleaned that afternoon.
Several hours later, Kagome was finished cleaning and went back to her room to take a quick shower. Although she enjoyed cleaning, she had worked up quite a sweat and just had an overall sense of other people germs on her.
Thirty minutes later, Kagome was showered and exhausted. Before she could crawl into bed to go straight to sleep, she remembered that Myoga had wanted her to meet the new employee.
Groaning, she got up and changed out of her pajamas. She wanted to crawl into bed and just sleep, but instead she went back downstairs to find Myoga so she could meet the new employee.
As Kagome rode the elevator down, she wondered what the new employee would be like. She hoped it would be another woman…she was currently surrounded by mostly men at this job. She would definitely like a woman to talk to about the handsome guests…oops, did she really just think that?
Excitement filling her at that admittedly very small possibility, Kagome only smiled and made her way to the employee lounge.
At the sight of Myoga, she smiled again.
That is, until she saw the man with whom Myoga was speaking.
A familiar man with long silver hair.
Who was now wearing a hotel uniform.
Kagome combusted internally.
"Ah, there's our Assistant Manager." Myoga said when he caught sight of her. "Kagome, please come meet our new employee!" Throwing on the fakest smile she could muster, Kagome walked over and bowed her head slightly.
"Hello," she greeted the rude man. "I'm Kagome. It's a pleasure to meet you and I look forward to working with you." She half-expected the man to say something rude to her or bring up their encounter earlier, but he only smirked.
"I'm Inuyasha," he replied. "Likewise." Eyes widening at his nonchalance considering the heated exchange they'd had that morning, she tried to stuff down her bitter irritation. Luckily, Myoga began talking again.
"Since you're Assistant Manager," Myoga began, turning back to Kagome, "I would like for you to show Inuyasha the ropes for the next week or so. He will be shadowing you at the different positions until he gets used to the place."
And so it gets better…
"Great," Kagome replied politely. "I'd be happy to do so." Myoga smiled proudly.
"Kagome has been here for several years," he explained to Inuyasha. "She knows this place as well as I do and I've worked here for forty-five years." Kagome laughed genuinely at that.
"No one could ever know the Goshinboku like you do, Myoga" Kagome chided lightly. "You give me too much credit." Myoga shrugged, feigning modesty.
"I suppose you're right," he replied, gusto leaking in his voice. "I'm very seasoned…it takes many years to get that way."
To Kagome's surprise, even the new employee cracked a grin at Myoga. She knew that the manager could be difficult at time; occasionally he had moments where it seemed like his head was somewhere else or he had the attention span of a flea. But for the majority of the time, he was great.
"Okay," Kagome said to Inuyasha. "Let's go." Inuyasha gave a quick wave to Miroku before he and Kagome left the reception desk out the back of it. They had to first go through the employee area then out its door.
Deciding to give another go at being friendly, Kagome turned to Inuyasha as they walked.
"So you were checking in yesterday morning," she began, her voice taking on a kind tone. "Did Totosai offer to let you live here?" Inuyasha glanced at her.
"You know," he replied, "I pegged you as someone big on small talk, but I figured you would just give me the silent treatment. I'm devastatingly surprised." Kagome rolled her eyes.
"We're co-workers now," she explained. "I have to at least pretend that I can stand to be around you." Inuyasha chuckled.
"Well, you're doing an amazing job at it," he replied sarcastically. Kagome seethed internally as they continued walking. It was silent until they reached their destination.
"Here's the lobby, which you've already seen," she explained as they walked through the hotel. "There's the reception desk, this floor's common area, and the guest kitchen. There's also a pool, a sauna, and a gym." Inuyasha seemed surprised.
"Wow," he replied. "Big hotel." Kagome nodded.
"We have ten floors," she continued. "Our prices are expensive, but that's because we're a five-star hotel. We're usually at ninety-four percent capacity, our customer satisfaction rate is an impressive ninety-eight-percent and we've never gotten below a ninety-six on our health inspections." Inuyasha looked around the common area.
"Lot of nineties," he replied. Kagome led him around to the rest of the areas open to the guests, and when that was done, she began to fill him in on the more interesting aspects of the hotel.
"For the employees, there's a whole other set of hallways," she began. "Since the hotel is so big, we have secret shortcuts that get us from different areas to others more quickly." She motioned to the hallway that led to the pool.
"Right now, we're back in the common area," she explained. "If we used the guest hallway, it's about a one-minute walk to the pool." She led him over to a door that's usually just assumed to be some sort of custodian closet. Whipping out her room key, which would open the door solely because it belonged to a member of the staff, she unlocked the door and led Inuyasha inside.
"This is the employee hallway," she said as she stepped aside so he could see. "It takes exactly fifteen seconds to get to the pool from here because it's a straight-shot instead of the turns we would have had to take in the guest hallway." Inuyasha seemed genuinely impressed.
"Wow," he replied. "Seems like it might be easy to get lost." Kagome shrugged.
"There's one of these hallways on each floor," she explained. The doors that lead to the guest hallway are labeled." She motioned to the door they'd just approached.
Pool, it read.
Opening the door, Kagome stepped out and showed Inuyasha that they'd just ended up in a door five feet away from the pool.
"Okay, that's pretty cool," Inuyasha admitted. Kagome smiled at him. For once, it was sincere.
"Yeah, it's a great place," she replied. "Once you've gotten accustomed to everything, you'll be able to get around with no trouble at all." Inuyasha nodded.
"How long do you think that'll take?" he asked. Kagome thought for a moment.
"It honestly all depends on how quickly you get used to navigating the guest hallways," she explained. "For some employees, it'll take a week. For others, two weeks. We've even had a few people take about a month to get completely used to just getting around the normal hallways." Inuyasha chuckled.
"Wow," he commented. "How long did it take you to get used to things?" Kagome paused to think.
"I could get around everywhere after three days," she replied. "It took me a few more days to get used to the employee hallways." Inuyasha's eyes widened.
"Fast learner?" he assumed. Kagome shrugged.
"It's honestly not a hard place to learn," she admitted. "It's just very big, which can scare people sometimes. Miroku, our finance guy, is one of the ones that took about a month to get completely used to this place. Then again, he was distracted by all the women he was flirting with around the hotel." Inuyasha rolled his eyes.
"He seems like a pain," he grumbled. Kagome laughed.
"He's harmless," she replied. "Mostly." That brought a grin to Inuyasha's lips.
"What about the other employees?" he asked. "Are they tolerable?" Kagome thought for a moment.
"For the most part," she replied. "We have a lot of other staff members. There are a lot in the kitchen, a lot of other cleaning people, and we have some tech people, too. Miroku runs the finances by himself, so he's usually busy. Myoga oversees everything, so he's pretty much the eyes and ears of this place. Myoga said you're our odds-and-ends guy, so you'll pretty much be involved in a little bit of everything."
Kagome beckoned Inuyasha to follow her. "Now let's head to the second floor. I'll show you the employee hallways on each level."
With Kagome leading the way, they continued the tour.
A few hours later, Kagome had toured Inuyasha through the rest of the floors and they'd gone through every employee hallway. When they were done with that, they had, to Kagome's mild embarrassment, played a few rounds of hide-and-seek.
She's normally the epitome of professionalism, really.
When they'd finished, it was nearing midnight.
"Well, that's pretty much it," Kagome said, almost disappointed that the night was ending. "There's not much left to show you." Inuyasha smirked.
"You could show me…your room," he suggested flirtatiously. Kagome's jaw dropped and her eyes widened.
"Uh," she replied. Inuyasha laughed.
"I'm kidding," he said. "My girlfriend would be horrified that I made that joke, but the look on your face was totally worth it." Kagome rolled her eyes.
"Whatever," she replied, bypassing the girlfriend comment.
Of course he has a girlfriend, she thought to herself. All hot guys have girlfriends.
Wait. Did she really just think that?
"Anyway, I showed you where my suite is when we walked past it so you knew where it was anyway," she reminded him. "Myoga's is across the hall from me because they're the rooms closest to the employee steps that lead to the lobby. You're in 304, which is still pretty close." She peered at him.
"Although I'm curious about why Myoga offered for you to live here," she admitted. "He and I are the only ones that live in the hotel because we're the managers." Inuyasha shrugged.
"I just moved to this city," he explained. "I'm still looking for a place to live, and when I told Myoga that, he offered to let me stay here until I find somewhere else." Kagome smiled. Good old Myoga.
"That makes sense," she said. "Well, good. I hope you enjoyed the tour. This is a really great place to work. I'll show you all the ropes tomorrow." Inuyasha nodded.
"Thanks," he replied. "What time does your shift start? Myoga said I'm with you for the rest of the week." Kagome hesitated. Here's the good mood killer…
"We have to be downstairs to clock in at six," she replied. "But I always clock in at five-fifty-eight, which means you'll be doing the same."
Inuyasha just nodded. "Okay," he replied, surprisingly not heaving the sigh Kagome had expected. "I'm heading to bed then. Thanks again. Good night." Kagome gave a wave as they parted ways.
At least he's not the total jerk I expected, she thought to herself as she walked into her suite. Seems like he'll be fun to work with.
After she was ready for bed and began to get under the covers, she let her mind drift to the new employee of the Goshinboku Hotel & Suites and the fact that she'd played an actual game here for the first time ever and had laughed more in this one night than what seemed like the last month.
Looks like life just got a little more interesting here…
To be continued…
So what do you guys think so far? Just a warning, this story is complete fluff. No evil villains, no Naraku, and no death threats (spoiler alert: no one dies in this story). Just cupcakes and unicorns here with a hint of potential romantic angst…hmm…;)