Here's number #7, guys. This one is turning out to have a very, very complicated plot. I just hope I can kep it all straight. Anyway, little mystery and maybe suspense for ya, hopefully. Ok, I gotta get to bed; it's been a very long weekend. As always, Inu isn't mine, but a girl can dream--can't she? Oh, when I say 'English,' I mean, as related to writing, not the language itself. And I don't know how publishing companies really work, or how papers actually get printed, this is just my idea of how it might happen. Kapeesh? Probably didn't spell that right...
Ichigo and Inuyasha are walking down the sidewalk, heading for a small park not far from the Shrine. The boys had spent a few awkward minutes staring at one another before the hanyou suggested it. He said they should try to get to know one another since they were likely to end up being related. Ichigo had agreed.
He looks so...dejected... Inuyasha thinks, glancing sideways at the red-head. Ichigo has his hands in his pockets and his head down, shuffling his feet a little on the sidewalk. He had't said a word since they'd left the Higurashi property. Inuyasha decides to break the silence.
"So...Kagome said you were a, uh...what major were you again, Ichigo?" The look the other boy gives him a look that makes Inuyasha think he should have kept his mouth shut.
"English, with a minor in Communications," he says, sneering slightly. He sighs. "Kagome told you I had that job at that publishing company? Shuppan Suru Genzai?" Inuyasha nods. "Well, they say they're going to hire several students right before they graduate, but only take the ones they think they can...manipulate easily." Ichigo grins wryly. "Apparently I can't be controlled, according to my interview. Though they didn't put it that way. 'Doesn't work well with others,' and 'Doesn't follow instructions,' they said." The boy rolls his eyes. If they only knew...
Inuyasha frowns. "Not to be rude, but that just sounds like you didn't have a good interview."
Ichigo nods. "That's what I thought--at first. But a friend of mine started there a couple of years ago. Nice guy, but too eager to please. They snatched him right up; he's been miserable ever since. Hasn't advanced at all--still stuck in a ground-floor job. But he won't, or maybe, can't put up a fuss. Got married right after he got the job; wife just had their first. He won't leave the company anytime soon. And according to my friend, he's not the only one who's stuck in the same position. Over half the people hired with him are still there, too."
The hanyou frowns again, his mouth set in a slight grimace. Something did not feel right about this. He makes a mental note to talk to Kagome about it later, before he looks up at Ichigo. "But what exactly is the company trying to do? Do they have information they don't want leaked? Higher-ups taking too many corporate vacations?"
Ichigo shrugs. "Don't know. I thought they just published books and magazines, and not any big-time or popular ones. But I'll never know now. I gotta worry about finding another job by next weekend...," he mutters, kicking a small rock as the pair crosses the street into the park. Inuyasha knows he's talking about graduation. Kagome will be getting her degree next weekend, too.
The boys make their way toward a bench stationed next to a small pond, watching the sleeping ducks, geese, and swans drift across the still water. A warm wind is blowing, making the boy's hair ruffle slightly in the evening light. The red-head takes out a pack of cigarettes and offers one to Inuyasha. The hanyou makes a disgusted face.
Ichigo nods. "I know--me, too." Inuyasha raises his brows at him. The red-head chuckles lightly. "Sometimes I take a drag, but mostly I just watch them burn. It helps with stress, for some strange reason." The hanyou gives him a look that says he thinks he is strange.
Inuyasha and Ichigo sit in silence for several minutes, watching the cigarette burn slowly. No wonder it helps with stress...you could sit for an hour doing nothing but watching it disappear... A sudden idea pops into Inuyasha's head, and he idly wonders if it's possible. Deciding there's no harm in asking, he says, "What were you going to do for that company, Ichigo?"
The other boy drops the cigarette and watches it roll a few feet before coming to a stop--still burning--before he speaks. "I was hoping to be an editor some day. I don't mean the guy who runs the show...," he says upon seeing the hanyou's slightly shocked look. "...I mean someone who actually gets to read the material and edit it. I'd rather do books than magazines, but I'd take anything right now."
Inuyasha quirks a brow. "What made you pick that as a career?"
Ichigo shrugs. "I'm no good at writing my own stuff, but I like to read. A lot. And according to some of my teachers, I'm a natural at finding flaws in other people's writing. I've never been a 9 to 5 kinda guy, and doing this would let me work at my own pace, in my own time." He looks at Inuyasha sadly. "It doesn't matter now, anyway. Openings for other companies will be filled, so I'll have to wait til next Spring before I can find something." Ichigo stares at the pack of cigarettes lying beside him on the bench, seriously considering lighting another one. Inuyasha's words interrupt his thoughts.
"What do you think of scientific papers?"
Ichigo turns confusedly to the hanyou. "Think about them for what?"
Inuyasha laughs lightly. "Could you edit those? I know a lot of them might have stuff that's over your head, but me or my advisor could help you understand. The guy that did Mr. Kioshigan's for Zientifike retired a few weeks ago. Now he's looking for someone who can check the reports before they're sent off to be published. The company who prints the magazine takes them 'as is'; we have to do the editing ourselves. Interested?"
Ichigo stares at the other boy as if he's just been slapped. It takes a few minutes for the words to sink in. "You...you're offering me a job?" he asks dazedly.
Inuyasha grins. "Yes. I have to run it by Suru first, but he's pretty easy-going. As long as you can do it, I can safely say, 'Yes, Ichigo. I'm offering you a job.'"
Ichigo contiues to stare.
---------------------------------
"No, Zurui. I am not pregnant; that's what birth control is for," Kagome says, rolling her eyes and staring out the window nervously, trying to act annoyed. The younger girl seemed to ask the miko this everytime she saw her lately. They hadn't told anybody, but Kagome and Inuyasha had decided to stop taking the birth control about a week ago--despite the problems they were having. That way, she would be back on her normal cycle by the time they were married. But the fact that Kagome wasn't actually on anything wasn't going to stop the miko from cursing the younger girl the next time she asked.
The auburn-haired, emerald-eyed 16-year old sitting behind Kagome in Sota's Toyota 4-Runner, was very smart and very tricky--Kagome wondered why she had ever agreed to date her brother in the first place. She got far better grades than her boyfriend, even fruitlessly tutoring him in several subjects. She also worked 25 hours a week at a small diner and babysat on the weekends. Kagome liked to think she would have been like Zurui had she not been pulled into a magical well by a centipede demon, traveled 500 years into the past, met and fell in love with a half-dog demon, helped to kill another, very powerful half-demon, and ridded the world of an even more powerful, and extremely dangerous magical object. The priestess sighs, then smiles. She would do it again in a heartbeat.
"But, Kagome. You didn't say that you were on birth control," Zurui says, hugging the older girl from behind.
Kagome frowns. How...? She can hear Sota stiffling his snickers from the driver's seat. She glares at him.
"It wasn't me," he says, raising one hand at his sister. He keeps his eyes on the road, but Kagome can see the smile on his face from the light shining from the streetlamps.
"You and Inuyasha have been acting more, uh, flirty lately, Kagome. And you've been on it for, what? Three years already? And you're going to be married in a little less than a month. It makes sense that you'd come off it about now," Zurui says, laying her head on Kagome's shoulder.
The priestess holds her glare for another minute before she sighs. "You're right, Zurui. I stopped taking it a little more than a week ago. And you've apparently told Sota already," she says, looking at the excited expressions aimed at her. "But don't tell mom. Or anybody else. Inuyasha and I don't know how long it'll take, and we can only handle so many happy people at once," Kagome warns.
Her brother and Zurui nod their heads, huge grins on their faces. Kagome looks from Sota to his girlfriend, thinking--not for the first time--that she must be a descendent of Shippo's. Kagome and Inuyasha couldn't tell either of them this, of course, but it was comforting to know that a part of the past had survived to today.
Kagome is about to ask the girl how school is going when she suddenly frowns. The miko turns completely around in her seat and looks out the back of the SUV, drawing confused looks from the other two.
"Wh...?" Zurui starts to ask. Kagome interrupts her.
"Floor it," she says, looking at her brother with a deadly serious expression. Sota stares at his sister for exactly two seconds before slamming the gas pedal down.
----------------------------
"Well, do you want it or not?" Inuyasha asks the still flustered-looking red-head. Ichigo is gaping at the hanyou with his mouth open and his eyes wide. He hasn't said a word in five minutes.
Ichigo slowly closes his mouth and blinks at the other boy, a small frown on his face. From his expression, Inuyasha guesses that he is thinking his offer over, and is weighing his options. The dark-haired boy remains silent, letting Ichigo make the decision on his own. Inuyasha made the offer; it was up to the red-head to decide if he wanted it or not.
Ichigo's frown deepens and his brow furrows together before he speaks. "I'd be working with you?" he asks.
Inuyasha nods. "And Suru Kioshigan. My advisor and Head of the Paleontology Department at Tokyo U. There's also the possibility that you might see some other professors and maybe some grad and undergrads, too. It depends on what paper you're working on."
Still frowning, Ichigo asks, "What would the hours be? And where?"
Inuyasha grins to himself, but doesn't display his emotions to the other boy. Papers had been getting a little backed up, since most of the staff and students working on each project also had other things going on and couldn't divert their attentions to getting the papers ready to be published. Inuyasha himself was trying to get his thesis finished, work part-time, graduate, and get married. Suru had been pestering his fellow professors, students, and advisees to find him someone who could take on the work. If Ichigo agreed to do it, Suru would be ecstatic.
"It'd probably be 8 to 5 the first month or so--til you get used to the terminology and what's supposed to be left in the papers and what can be edited out. After you know what you're doing, you'll only have to go to the campus to check certain things with the researchers, and to run the final cut by Kioshigan. Usually that's on Friday's, when he has the most free time. His schedule will be a little different now--since it's almost summer--and you'd be working in the Paleontology Department, but I won't know where unless you take the job."
Ichigo nods, his frown lessening somwhat. The boy sits back agains the bench, stretching his arms over his head and taking a deep breath. "What's the pay like?" he asks nonchalantly.
Inuyasha can't help himself this time. He grins widely. Got him... "Pretty good. Twenty-five to thirty, with benefits. But since you'd be working for the University, the pay probably won't go up much. Maybe a little, but not more than 35, at the highest. Still pretty good, though. It'd be a good experience for you, too. In case you ever want to come back to it later on; you'll already know how scientific papers are handled."
The red-head clenches his jaw muscles a few times and closes his eyes--thinking. He stays this way for a few minutes, occasionally muttering to himself. Inuyasha remains quiet, watching the stars twinkling overhead, wondering what it'll be like to work with the man sitting next to him. Because, despite Ichigo's calm demeanor, the hanyou knows the other boy will take the job, and is excited about it, too. After a moment, the red-head leans forward and looks at Inuyasha. The brunette turns his head.
"You've got a deal," Ichigo says, holding out one hand.
Inuyasha smiles. "Great...," he says, taking the other boy's hand and shaking it. "...be at the apartment at 7:30 on Monday and you can come in with me, and the boys and I will get you started." Ichigo nods, still slightly in awe. Inuyasha stands and stretches, turning back the way they came. "Let's head back. Sota, Kagome, and Zurui are probably back by now. Have you met Sota's girlfriend?" Ichigo stands and follows Inuyasha before answering.
"No. Only Kagome and Siore before tonight, though Kagome's told me about everyone, of course," Ichigo says, dropping his voice. Inuyasha narrows his eyes a little before sighing.
"Yes...she and I are gonna have a little...big...talk, later tonight," he mumbles, stuffing his hands in his pockets. He shrugs after a minute. "Anyway, Zurui is...well, let's say you won't forget her anytime soon," the hanyou says, a sly grin on his face.
Ichigo raises one brow but doesn't comment. The boys exit the park and make their way back toward the Shrine, a strangely comfortable silence between the two of them. When they round the last corner and are only a block away from the house, a dark green and white 4-Runner goes flying past them--too fast for Ichigo and Inuyasha to see the occupants inside--but the half-demon knows what Sota's car looks like. He gives the red-head an alarmed glance before he takes off running, grudgingly keeping his demon speed in check, so the other boy can keep up.
-------------------------
Ichigo's pretty fast... Inuyasha thinks as he climbs the steps to the Shrine. He pants a few times--pretending to be out of breath--as the other boy is gasping, trying to get his back to normal. The two of them are about a minute behind the others. The hanyou glances up and sees Kagome standing on the steps leading into the house, a vaguely amused expression on her face. His gaze connects with hers and Inuyasha stifles a gasp. His fiancé looked scared.
Kagome looks away from Inuyasha and gazes down at Ichigo. "Sorry, you guys. I saw you as we passed, but Sota wasn't going to slow down. Zurui felt sick, and my brother's a little... protective of his car...," the miko apologizes, staring sorrowfully at the two boys. "We didn't mean to worry you. She just hasn't eaten in a few hours... Zurui should be fine now." Kagome puts on a happy grin and walks down the stairs. "Why don't you go get some water, Ichigo?"
The red-head stares at Kagome as if she is personally responsible for his flushed cheeks and lack of breath. He exchanges a look with Inuyasha--noticing that the brunette is wearing a similarly annoyed look--before huffing up the stairs and heading into the house. Kagome waits until she hears the door close before she starts walking back to the steps leading down to street level.
"What is it?" Inuyasha growls, yanking off his necklace and stuffing it in his pocket as he follows his fiancé. He'd played along with Kagome in front of Ichigo, but now the hanyou wanted to know what was going on.
"On the way back, I felt...," Kagome begins to say. The miko suddenly stops--making Inuyasha walk into her--but she hardly notices. The half-demon hears a small intake of air from the girl before a bright blue bubble of light surrounds the two of them.
Inuyasha gasps. Kagome's barrier? Wha...? The demon's thoughts are interrupted by several large, curved, white, and deadly blades of wind flying around them. The hanyou watches in stunned silence as the edges bounce off the barrier, dissipating harmlessly into the air. Thankfully, the blades vanish just short of the house, leaving everything but the grass beneath their feet untouched. Inuyasha takes a deep breath. If Kagome hadn't put up her barrier, the two of them would be sliced to ribbons right now.
"Well, well. Looks like the little princess knows her stuff..."
Inuyasha frowns as he and Kagome stare ahead of them, toward the top of the stairs. I know that voice... The hanyou growls as he recognizes the woman standing before them, an identical sound echoing from the girl by his side.
"Kagura."
Well??
