&&&&&&&

Sesshomaru glanced at his chronograph. 3pm. Time for his car's inspection. Taking one last sip of his black coffee, he carefully put on his racing jacket and checked his reflection in the mirror before he calmly stepped out of his trailer toward the garage area, not a hair out of place. He wasn't necessarily prone to vanity, however the marketing of the drivers, particularly the consistent winners, was so intense that the sponsors demanded the drivers be photo-worthy at all times. Nothing worse than taking a picture with a fan while sporting a coffee or catsup stain on one's jacket.

Although many drivers left the condition of their cars entirely up to the crew boss, Sesshomaru was a perfectionist by nature, and that almost insane attention to detail extended to the car he drove. If he could, he would be happy to examine every bolt and weld personally.

Jaken was rubbing his temples; a splitting headache had overcome him. He never admitted to anyone, but he much preferred when the team was in the middle of the pack, as the pressure on him was nowhere near as intense as it was with one driver as the leading points accumulator, and another driver in third, less than 50 points behind. Any little thing could mean the difference between success and failure. There is no second place at the end of the season. There is just the winner, and everyone else. There were so many details to take care of, and he felt that if he didn't oversee them all, everything would go to hell.

That didn't make him a very efficient crew manager, and the stress was taking its toll on him. Presently, he was working on a brake re-calibration for Naraku's car that the technician who had been working on it failed to complete.

'If I ever succeed in hiring a real crew...'

He suddenly felt a chill down his spine as he looked up from his work, his palms becoming sweaty.

'That's right! 3pm. Sesshomaru will be here any minute to inspect his vehicle.'

As he fretted over Sesshomaru's arrival, he thought of how he might make himself immune to any criticism, but he knew it was a losing effort as Sesshomaru exhibited amazing attention to detail, and was not easily fooled.

And if he was fooled, woe unto the perpetrator when he was found out.

"Didn't you tell me during the last race that you'd re-modify the right rear suspension linkage so that the slippage I experienced wouldn't require that I go to a heavier tire?"

Jaken almost jumped out of his skin as Sesshomaru had moved right behind him without Jaken even realizing it.

'How does he do that?'

Sesshomaru eyed Jaken coolly, then stepped under the lift to inspect the rear axle assembly.

"Y...yes. You're absolutely right. I did say that, didn't I?"

"So, what exactly have been the modifications?" He pulled a pencil-beam flashlight from his breast pocket and examined the assembly as the conversation continued.

"Well, Sesshomaru, you see, I... I haven't m...m... made them yet. N... Naraku wanted...

"We're not talking about Naraku, now are we?" Sesshomaru interrupted, a glint of anger flashing across his golden eyes.

"Tha...that's right

Jaken, you like this job, don't you?

Jaken rubbed the back of his head as he knew where this was going.

"Yes sir, Sesshomaru. I really love my job." His eyes were downcast.

"Tell me, Jaken. Where am I in the points standings right now?"

"You... you're in the number one position."

"And who else besides me is in the number one position?"

"N... no one."

"There are two reasons that I am the points leader at this juncture of the season. Would you care to tell me what they are?" Sesshomaru never lost his cool demeanor, but Jaken knew what lurked just beneath the surface, so he carefully considered his answer.

"You're the best driver."

"And?"

"And... you have the best car."

"See to it that I do. Is that clear?"

"Yes sir."

&&&&&&&

Kagome chewed her lower lip as she cast her eyes down at her fidgeting fingers. Totosai had just read her the riot act and had not yet excused her, so she was forced to sit and contemplate her actions while waiting for whatever he was going to say next. Totosai regarded her carefully. She was talented and he didn't want to break her spirit, but she had to understand this lesson, or she would be no good to him. He rubbed his chin before speaking.

"Kagome. When you drove for Team Myoga, I assume they had rules and regulations?"

"Yes, sir." She said meekly.

"And when it came to decision-making, Myoga had the final say?"

"Yes, sir."

"And did you ever willfully ignore a direct command given to you by Myoga?"

"No, sir."

"And, following his leadership and his rules, you were all very successful as a team?"

"Yes, sir." It was painful, but it was sinking in.

"Do you respect me any less than Myoga?" Kagome looked up and directly at him.

"No, sir." Totosai leaned back in his chair.

"Kagome, what do you want more than anything else?" After hesitating a moment, considering that it may have been a trick question, she spoke up.

"I... I want to race, sir. I want to race and I want to win."

"Can you accomplish that all by yourself?" He steepled his fingers together. Kagome averted her eyes for a moment, then looked back at him.

"No sir. I... need a team."

"Good. Will we have this conversation again?"

"No sir!"

"All right then. You may go. I want those fuel consumption stats by 6 pm tonight. I have to call in before the tanker makes its delivery."

Kagome stood stiffly, then marched out of the room as quickly as she could, trying very hard to not run.

&&&&&&&

It was hot and it was humid.

Even though the heat shields and deflectors sent most of the engine heat away from the driver's cockpit, it was still an oven inside.

The crowd numbered more than thirty thousand for this race, the TV broadcast to millions more, and as the cars lined up behind the pace car, the sound of the revving engines seemed to ignite the passions of the spectators even more as each one cheered for his or her favorite.

From his pole position, InuYasha had no one in front of him. Right next to him was Sesshomaru, who had finished with the second fastest qualifying time. Behind InuYasha was Naraku, and this more than anything else gave him a slight feeling of discomfort. It was Naraku who "nudged" him from behind into a spin from which he could not recover in the last race in the series. Naraku then slipped past him as he spun out of control. InuYasha took out two other drivers who failed to get by before he hit the wall opposite the pit area. Luckily, he was more angry than shaken up, and had thrown his helmet at Naraku's car when it came around the next lap. The other cars were moving slowly under the yellow caution flag, so his aim was true and his helmet bounced off Naraku's windshield.

"You son-of-a-bitch! I'm gonna kick your ass for that!"

Of course he never got the chance, but today was another day. He wouldn't put his chances of a high placement at risk, but if Naraku exposed himself at all, InuYasha would be right there to give him a few licks.

'Payback is a bitch.' He glowered as he revved the engine.

The steward raised the flag. The noise at ground-level was almost deafening.

The flag dropped, starting the pace car, and everyone else behind. After everyone was up to speed, the pace car ducked into the pit area and the starter flag fell.

The race was on.

&&&&&&&

Next: This is how the game is played.

Vixen12089: Glad you like. Thanks for the review.

Darkened-Halo: Kagome will have a lot of challenges, both professional and romantic. Thanks.

cynical chaos: I'm not a huge racing fan either, but I'm learning the sport to represent it properly in the fic. Just wanted to try to hit a niche no one has attempted before on ffn. Hope I get it right...

Everyone else: If you like this, please C & C. Thanks. Also, if anyone has any ideas for the numbers for Kouga's, Sesshomaru's and Naraku's cars, let me know. InuYasha's car is '57' because his haori is red, like 'Heinz 57' catsup. Yep, that's how I came up with it.