Chapter VII
"You alright, Sesh?" Inuyasha asked curiously as he popped his head into his brother's office.
"Fine, why?" Sesshoumaru asked, looking up from the sheet of paper he had been blankly staring at for the past few minutes.
"You seem a bit off today."
"Off?"
"Distracted, I suppose," Inuyasha said with a shrug before grinning in a way that made Sesshoumaru become instantly wary. "Not to mention your shirt is hanging out, not buttoned properly and that suit looks suspiciously like the one you wore yesterday."
"Inuyasha, all my suits are black. How can you possibly know the difference between one I wore yesterday and the one I'm wearing today?"
"Easily."
"Care to enlighten me?"
"It's creased."
"I'm sorry?"
"You never have creases in your clothes and I can see quite a lot in that shirt you're wearing."
Sesshoumaru sighed softly and leaned back in his chair to look at his grinning brother. It was true that the suit he was wearing was the same one from the day before, but that was because he had not been back to his apartment since leaving it the day before yesterday. He had spent the previous night at Rin's and as he thought about it, he felt a smirk tugging his lips, but quickly decided that smirking would only rouse Inuyasha's suspicions.
"You were also a bit late coming in this morning," Inuyasha said, crossing his arms and tapping his chin thoughtfully before pointing a finger at his silent brother. "You are never late for work. You were with a woman last night!"
"And if I was?" Sesshoumaru asked calmly, smirking when Inuyasha's jaw dropped.
"I thought you were after Rin?!"
"Regardless of where I was and whose company I was in, Inuyasha," Sesshoumaru said firmly, looking at his brother seriously. "I don't believe any of that is any of your business. What would your wife think if she knew you were asking about what I did in my spare time?"
Inuyasha's jaw closed instantly when Kagome was mentioned. If he was honest, Kagome would probably be quite interested to find out more about where Sesshoumaru had been the night before and if it had been spent with Rin as she suspected, but Inuyasha knew better than to tell his brother that. Not only would Sesshoumaru inflict damage upon him, he had a suspicion that Kagome would do the same when he got home for revealing her curiosity in the pair's relationship. Shuddering at the thought, he turned his attention back when he realised that his brother was speaking again.
"Sorry, what?"
Sesshoumaru shook his head. "I asked if you had come here specifically to delve into my personal matters or if you had something else to tell me?"
"Ah, right. Kagome wants you to come round for dinner tonight," Inuyasha said with a nonchalant shrug but chose his next words carefully and waited for his brother's reaction. "Rin's coming as well. I think it's supposed to be a 'thank you' for looking after Hanako, but I've got two guys from my department coming over as well. I suspect Kagome's going to try and have a matchmaking session."
After pretending to grimace at the thought of what Kagome had in store for her best friend, Inuyasha began to congratulate himself on what he considered to be expert acting skills and waited patiently for his brother's reaction. There were a couple of minutes of silence between the two as Sesshoumaru looked at his brother carefully before nodding. The younger brother felt himself deflate slightly as he watched his brother quietly accept this fact. Whatever reaction he had been looking, it certainly wasn't this one.
"Inuyasha!" Sesshoumaru exclaimed impatiently.
"What?"
"Could you put aside your fantasies long enough to tell me what time I'm supposed to arrive?"
"I'm not fantasising about anything!" Inuyasha denied hotly and frowned when his brother raised an eyebrow at his vehement denial. "Seven."
Sesshoumaru shook his head as he watched his brother leave the office, muttering something to himself that was most likely some form of profanity. A frown creased his brow as he thought over what Inuyasha had said about Kagome attempting a 'matchmaking session' that evening. Things had only just started progressing with Rin and now Kagome was planning this? He and Rin had not discussed where they wanted their tryst from the day before to lead so he could not even begin to predict how Rin would react to Kagome's plans. Glancing at his watch, he noticed that it was nearly time to leave and then dialled a number, waiting patiently for an answer.
"Hello?" a feminine voice greeted although it betrayed her as being slightly preoccupied.
"Rin, it's Sesshoumaru."
"Oh! Hello!" she said cheerfully, all traces of her being preoccupied disappearing as she seemed to give him her full attention. "This is a first; you have never called me before."
"Hm, that it true. Are you busy?"
"Not really."
"You sounded preoccupied just now."
"Ah, I was doing a crossword," she giggled. "But I'm struggling with the last few clues."
"I see. There is something I need to tell you."
"Oh? Will you be coming here soon then?" she asked, not bothering to keep the hope from her voice.
"Indeed."
"Oh good! I'll start making coffee now then."
A smile crossed his face as she giggled before bidding him goodbye and presumably going to make coffee. He had discovered that she had a playful side to her that she didn't seem to show very often, but he was pleased that she had revealed it to him. Putting aside his thoughts, Sesshoumaru made his way to Rin's house to tell her about Kagome's plans for the night since he was sure that Inuyasha would not reveal something like that to her. However, when he arrived and Rin wrapped her arms around his neck, planting a kiss on his lips, he found himself unable to keep his hands to himself and it was only an hour later as he lay in her bed beside her that he finally remembered the reason for visiting her.
"Although I'm not complaining," Rin started, propping herself up on an elbow beside him. "Didn't you say you had something you wanted to tell me?"
"Indeed."
"Before you tell me though, there's something I wanted to do."
Sesshoumaru sat up and watched curiously as she slipped from the bed and pulled on a short bathrobe before picking up the clothes he had been wearing and disappearing out the door. Despite the fact that he was now left completely naked with no clothes to wear, Sesshoumaru couldn't help but admire her slim figure as she walked away. She returned moments later with a smile and sat beside him.
"Where did you go?" he asked curiously, propping himself up against the headboard and pulling her forward to sit between his legs.
"Just to put your clothes in the washing machine," Rin replied with a smile as she leaned back against his broad chest. "Inuyasha and Kagome might notice you're wearing the same clothes as yesterday since they're all creased. I was going to do it this morning, but I got a bit distracted."
Smirking at the memory of what had distracted her that morning; Sesshoumaru leaned forward and nuzzled her neck gently. Rin giggled and gave him a happy smile over her shoulder before turning sideways slightly to look him in the eyes.
"What was it you wanted to tell me?" she asked curiously, her fingers playing with a long strand of silver hair.
"It's about the dinner tonight," Sesshoumaru replied, watching her slender fingers loosely braid his hair with a smirk. "Kagome is apparently going to try to match you up with one of Inuyasha's colleagues."
"Is she?" Rin sounded unsurprised and undid the braid only to start again. "I thought she had learnt her lesson from the last time she tried that."
"You are not surprised?"
"Not really. She's always telling me I should find a man and have a family. All her attempts at matchmaking have been disasters so far, I wonder why she thinks she'll be successful this time?"
The pair sat in silence for a while as they pondered Rin's question and Kagome's actions. Rin sighed quietly as she felt a hand on her waist and leaned her head against Sesshoumaru's shoulder as she finally stopped playing with his hair. Now that she knew what to expect when she went to dinner that evening, she suddenly found herself a lot less inclined to put in an appearance.
"Do I have to go?" Rin asked, pouting slightly as she rolled onto her stomach and looked up at Sesshoumaru.
"You've already agreed to go, haven't you?"
"Unfortuantely."
Sesshoumaru couldn't help but smile at her reluctance as she lay against him, pouting cutely. He noticed then that her robe was loosely tied and was falling off one shoulder. Leaning forward slightly, he nuzzled her neck again and left a trail of kisses along her shoulder until she sat up with a giggle. Rin didn't seem to mind that her robe was slowly losing its battle with gravity and that it would soon fall off altogether, leaving her as bare as the man lying comfortably in her bed. Smiling mischievously, she leaned forward to kiss his lips before pulling away and standing up.
"If you start that now we'll be late for dinner," she admonished gently.
"Is that such a bad thing?" Sesshoumaru asked, watching as she turned away and closed her robe more securely.
"Well not really, but how would we explain it to Inuyasha and Kagome?"
"We could just not go at all," he suggested, sitting behind her and wrapping his arms around her waist as he gently kissed her neck.
Rin turned around with a smile, wrapping her arms around his neck as she stepped closer. She had been so sure that he hadn't wanted anything to do with her that the kiss he had given her on her doorstep the day before had been unexpected, but she counted help but be glad that she had responded the way she did. As she looked down at him, it was a bit hard to believe that the unclothed man currently trying to disrobe her was the same one Inuyasha had once described as being emotionless and that it was virtually impossible to hold a proper conversation with him. Allowing herself to be pulled down onto his lap, Rin tilted her head slightly as she looked up at him. It was strange that Inuyasha would say such a thing since she had absolutely no problems at all trying to get him to talk to her.
"Is there a reason why you're staring at me?" Sesshoumaru asked, pulling her from her thoughts.
"I was just wondering by I can hold your attention and have conversations with you, but your brother can't," Rin murmured, kissing the corner of his mouth gently.
"Inuyasha is not nearly as interesting as you, Rin," he replied, tightening his arms around her and returning her kiss. "There are times when my attention is so focused on you that I can't do anything else even if I wanted to."
"And what is it about me that holds your attention to such an extent?"
"I've not got enough time to show you, perhaps later."
Laughing merrily, Rin sat back on his knees and grinned at him. "I'll hold you to that promise."
"Are you sure this is a good idea?" Inuyasha asked again as he stood in the kitchen with his wife, looking into the dining room where their guests sat.
"Of course it is, dear," Kagome said airily as she started pulling things out of the oven. "He'll get jealous thinking that someone else might take her from him and then recognise his feelings for her. It's quite simple really."
"What if one of the other two decide they like her?"
"Not my problem. Sesshoumaru will have to deal with it."
"There are so many ways this could go wrong," Inuyasha said softly as he picked up a tray of food and followed his wife back to their guests.
Rin sat between Sesshoumaru and Kagome and two men she didn't know sat opposite her which made her feel slightly awkward. During a brief discussion on the way to the house, Sesshoumaru and Rin had decided that Rin would simply decline any of Kagome's suggestions although the idea of playing along with her idea had crossed Rin's mind only to be banished when Sesshoumaru dropped a last kiss on her neck before entering his brother's house. Even if it was to teach her friend a lesson about meddling in her life, Rin couldn't bring herself to let any man other than Sesshoumaru touch her. A shudder ran through her every time she thought about it and was glad that she had gone along with Sesshoumaru's plan and not her own.
"So Hiten," Kagome said casually, as she served food. "How did the divorce go?"
The shorter of Inuyasha's colleagues looked up from his food with a look of surprise on his face. He glanced across at Inuyasha who had stilled and was staring at his wife as though he had never seen her before. When Kagome had said that she was going to attempt matchmaking to make Sesshoumaru jealous, he had initially thought it was a good idea but as time wore on he was seeing an increasing number of ways this plan could backfire and if Kagome was going to be this blatant about it then it would be obvious to everyone what she was trying to do. Turning his gaze to Hiten, he shrugged slightly and shook his head as he turned his attention back to his food.
"Uh… there were no problems," Hiten said slowly, still surprised by the question.
"Oh that's good. Sesshoumaru got divorced a few months ago. It went pretty well for you too, didn't it?" Kagome asked sweetly and turned her attention to Sesshoumaru.
"Hm."
Kagome shook her head and sat down when she finished serving the food. Sesshoumaru cast a glance at his brother who looked slightly pale and was pushing his food around his plate in a way that clearly showed he had no appetite. It certainly seemed that Kagome was intent on her task and was completely oblivious to the fact that she was causing some discomfort. Or perhaps she was aware and carried on regardless?
"So you're single now, Hiten?" Kagome asked cheerfully, casting a glance at Rin as she spoke. "Rin's single too, you know. She used to present the news."
"Ah… I know," Hiten said quietly, nodding briefly in Rin's direction. "I recognised her."
"Maybe you two can go out sometime?"
"I'm not looking to jump into any relationships right now," Hiten interrupted hastily before Kagome could go any further with her idea.
"That's a shame. What about you, Bankotsu?"
"No can do," the other man shook his head and winked at Rin. "I'm taken."
"Really?" Kagome asked, looking up in surprise. "When did this happen?"
"About two months ago."
"Ah, good for you."
Eventually, Kagome seemed to give up on both men but had a faint frown on her brow for the remainder of the evening as she realised her plan had failed. Inuyasha, on the other hand, wore an expression of relief as the awkwardness passed. Rin sank down in her seat towards the end of the evening, sighing as she suddenly realised how weary she was. A thought struck her and she looked up, glancing around the room.
"Where's Hanako?" Rin asked, just realising that she hadn't seen the child at all that night.
"She was asleep last time I checked on her," Inuyasha said as he came back into the dining room with a bottle for the child. Grinning, he placed it in front of her. "You can have the honour of feeding her."
Shaking her head at her friend, Rin picked up the bottle as she got to her feet and headed for the stairs. The child was awake when she came into the room and smiled as Rin picked her up. Taking a seat in a chair nearby, Rin watched the child drink eagerly from the bottle and smiled to herself as she let her thoughts wonder. It was fairly obvious that Kagome was plotting something but she just didn't know what. She had felt a tremendous pity for the man Kagome had been pestering throughout dinner and was just glad that none of that attention ended up focused on her. Making a mental note to discuss Kagome's behaviour with Sesshoumaru at a later date, Rin picked up the child and headed back downstairs.
"She's awake, is she?" Kagome asked from the kitchen as she saw Rin and Hanako descending the stairs.
"She was very hungry," Rin said with a smile as she kissed the little girl's forehead gently.
"Wow, she looks nothing like you, Inuyasha!" Bankotsu exclaimed when he saw the little girl for the first time. "Well, the eyes definitely give away her connection to your family though."
"I had hoped she would have hair like her father's," Kagome murmured as Rin handed the child to her. "Maybe the next one will."
"Next one?" Rin asked in surprise. "Don't tell me you're pregnant already?!"
"Don't be silly," Kagome said with a giggle. "Maybe when this one's a bit older."
Sesshoumaru shook his head slightly as he saw a look of shock pass over his brother's face when he, like Rin, had assumed his wife was pregnant. Stepping towards Inuyasha, Sesshoumaru patted him on the back in an unusually friendly gesture.
"That is a relief to hear, isn't it?" Sesshoumaru asked quietly.
"It is."
"At least I won't have to remind you about the 'birds and the bees' then."
Inuyasha shuddered visibly and turned to stare incredulously at his brother who merely shrugged nonchalantly before replying to something Kagome had asked. Inuyasha couldn't believe what he had just heard. Was it truly possible that Sesshoumaru had made an attempt at teasing him? His brother smirked at him over his shoulder and Inuyasha couldn't help but shiver. The world might just end tonight.
