UGH. Everything went SO SLOW these past two weeks. But now, I literally have no excuse for being late. I'm done school with the exceptions of my exams starting on the 14th of April. So. Kick my ass if I'm taking forever? Thanks.

By the way, I now have an "Author's Update" section in my profile. This is a more accurate description of how far along I am on each of the three stories. I'll update that fairly frequently so you know how long I'm taking.

Disclaimer: I do not own Inuyasha or All or Nothing by Cher.

How to Kill Me

Chapter Ten: What's Up, Doc?

"Well, I work all day and fight all night with my girl who I treat right. Maybe just one day she'll go on and marry me. Well the meals ain't made and the dishes ain't done; just a whole lot of hurtin' for everyone. Hell just ain't the same without you babe. Oh, well Hell just ain't the same without you babe."

-Hell Just Ain't the Same, Theory of a Deadman

Okay, so dog boy was growling.

Well what the hell is his problem?

"Mr. Ueda," I said, tilting my head. "Could you give us a moment please?"

Hojo had stopped us in front of two large bedroom doors. Inside was Botan's mother, and as much as I wanted to ask the damn questions and go, I really needed to figure out why Inuyasha was so upset. While McYummy seemed to be completely oblivious as to the reason why, he nodded. "Of course. I'm just going to check on her before you come in there. Just knock."

Waiting until he slipped into the peaceful room beyond, I spun on my heels with what must look like the most confused face in the world. I mean, looking at Inuyasha now I could see the hard lines of his face, the clamped jaw and his eyes... Jesus, they weren't entirely gold. I took a step closer, his almost inaudible growl getting louder.

Holy shit, fuck, damn. His eyes were traced with red, the colour lining the beautiful melted amber. It wasn't enough for me to withdraw my gun, but it was enough that I quickly backed off.

"Inuyasha, what's wrong? Is there something wrong with Mc – uh – the doctor?" I coughed a bit, trying to hide my clear discomfort on the fact I almost blabbed my thoughts like an idiot.

For a long moment, Inuyasha did nothing but stare at the bedroom doors, shooting daggers. I waited it out, unsure of what else to do. I mean, he was half-demon. I couldn't purify him. Salt couldn't purify him. Hell! I didn't even know how to kill the bastard if he went off the deep end.

"I don't like him." The words seemed to bounce around in my head like an echo, breaking down and fragmenting over and over until it didn't make sense.

"I'm sorry, but what?" That was it? Inuyasha just didn't like him?

Inuyasha took a step towards me, his body inches from mine. He glared at me, like I was the problem and for the first time I actually wanted to run away or take a step back. Instead, I held myself straight and I stayed planted to the spot. I had a gun in my holster that was hidden under my skirt, if that action was necessary.

"Something's not right with him," Inuyasha clarified, still keeping the short distance, still staring at me like blinking would mean the end of the world. "He's...off."

I frowned, escaping his gaze and looking at the bedroom doors. "Anything specific? Smell?"

A pause, and then he shook his head. "No."

"Then...what makes him seem odd to you, because I think he's pretty normal," I countered. I dared to meet his gaze again. "Anything else? Anything worth looking into him for?"

"He's weird."

I nodded. "A perfectly viable excuse to stalk someone," I muttered, sarcasm laced in my voice. "He's shy. He's the exact opposite of you Mr. Cocky."

"Great. Make this about me," Inuyasha snapped, tone in a low hiss. "There's no evidence, no. There's nothing other than this weird feeling that he's not right."

This couldn't be happening. Of course the only guy for what, days, that I had considered attractive (besides my half-demon companion) is tied to something sneaky. Potentially. This was Inuyasha's gut talking, and I hadn't had a lot of experience with it. But I couldn't just ignore him because I wanted to have a nice time with someone normal. Go to the movies, have dessert, dance or something, I don't know! What do normal people do anyways?

"I'll keep him in mind then," I told him, trying to keep my expression still from the clear disappointment that was there. For once in my life, I would like to have a relationship. Someone that would at least care about me – not necessarily love me, because that can't happen – for a couple days. And he seemed like a really nice guy. Hojo seemed like someone who would understand that I had to go, but take the time to get to know me anyways. Not ignore me. Not give me the cold shoulder.

Inuyasha growled again, but it was short lived. "Yeah, oh I bet you will."

Before I could say anything back, he stomped around me and knocked on the door, bursting in seconds later without care.

Why me?

I followed behind him, since there was nothing else I could do. A woman in her fifties was lying peacefully on her bed and Hojo was sitting beside her, eyes wide with Inuyasha's brash appearance. Pushing past Mr. Bitchy-Mood, I walked over to the woman's beside, noticing her frail body and trembling hands.

"Mrs. Nishimura," Hojo whispered soothingly, patting her hand and holding it to the duvet cover. "These are FBI agents. This is Agent Katsuki and her partner Agent Nobutoshi. They want to ask you some questions."

"Will you find who did this to my daughter?" Mrs. Nishimura rasped. It sounded like she hadn't had anything to drink for days, the hoarse grit of what would normally be a melodic voice.

I nodded, trying to give a small smile. "I will. I promise. Can I ask you a couple questions, please? If you don't mind?"

Mrs. Nishimura nodded, relaxing almost instantly against the covers. "Anything."

Inuyasha came closer, his shoulder barely touching mine as he leaned down. "Was your daughter, Botan, acting strangely the week or so before?"

I noticed that he specifically didn't mention before her death, and I was grateful that his emotions were subtle enough for her.

The older woman shook her head, a frown lining her pale features. "No. She was her normal, happy self. Botan, she was so full of life. I can't believe..." Pain crossed her features, and I intervened quickly, hoping to slow it down.

"Was she friends with Momiji Kikuchi?"

"Momiji? I...I'm not too sure. She never spoke too much about her friends, she was always at work. Isn't she...Isn't Momiji the other young woman who was, well..."

I sighed and held out my hand to touch her wrist. "Yes. We're sure the two may be connected. We're hoping if we can figure out how, then we'll find who did this."

Mrs. Nishimura nodded. "My Botan...She worked at PJ's Bar, down on East Newlands. I know she talked and kept up with people there."

"Was there anything strange that she had mentioned recently? Anyone giving her problems?" Inuyasha asked, his long black hair flowing over his shoulder. I couldn't help but notice how gentle he looked, even though moments ago he was so angry and so ridiculously stupid.

"No, I promise, there was nothing. She was just...gone..." Her lips tightened and instantly I took a step away, feeling like I had crossed a boundary that shouldn't have been crossed. I had talked to a lot of grieving members of family and friends, but it never got easier. Nothing really about this job got easier.

"Thank you so much for you time," I murmured, patting her hand and giving her a reassuring smile. "We'll find out who did this."

The problem with that statement is that we would. There was no doubt that we would find the monster who killed Botan and Momiji. The thing was Mrs. Nishimura would never know because she would never understand demons existed.

And this was definitely a demon. The body intact but the heart gone? Something really big was happening with this case.

Inuyasha and I started back towards the front, neither of us talking because Inuyasha was still in a snit and I, well, I didn't want to deal with his PMS-y state.

"Suijin!"

I turned around, almost at the door when Hojo called. Inuyasha was doing that growling thing again and I felt like whipping around and telling him to Go Mat or Play Dead or something that would make him shut the fuck up. "Yes, Mr. Ueda?"

"Uh," Hojo faltered, head ducked low. "Please, call me Hojo."

I gave a lop-sided smile. This guy... He was literally the definition of adorable, named McYummy with his picture on the side. "Sure."

Inuyasha growled.

Well there the fuck we go again.

I grabbed the keys from my inside jacket pocket and tossed them his way. "Do you want to wait in car? I'll be right there. I'm fine, really."

Okay, so I completely understood that this adorable ball of cuteness was making him uneasy. If that was his gut feeling, I wasn't going to just toss it to the back burner and forget it. So far though, Hojo had done nothing to make me feel anything other than happiness, and frankly, Inuyasha had no valid reason for disliking the guy. I would stay on my guard. I would take Inuyasha's words into account.

But if this guy gave me a potential two-day happiness spree? Well, I wasn't going to fight that.

Inuyasha caught the keys and left so quickly that I could almost feel the blast of frigid air sent my way. For the life of me, I wouldn't understand him.

"Sorry about that," I muttered, still staring at the slammed door my half-demon just exited out of. "What were you saying?"

"I was just wondering if you wanted...dinner sometime? I mean, you'd probably want some sort of reprieve from this case... It's pretty difficult with the brutality of it all." Hojo tilted his head, eyes hopeful and awwwwwwwww he was so CUTE!

Maybe I'm overreacting but I had never been...asked out before so nicely. He wanted to take me to dinner? I took myself out to dinner. Always. I took Inuyasha out to dinner. Always.

So YES is the answer.

Wait. I can't look desperate, can I? Hmm. How shall I handle this? How? HOW? I don't deal with real human contact, what the hell do I know about this shit? Ugh. Maybe this was a bad idea.

...But he's...all smiles...and rainbows...

"I think I can definitely fit some time in for dinner," I managed, trying not to look too happy. "Any day in mind?"

"Tomorrow evening? At seven? I mean, only if you're available and not working too hard." Hojo shrugged and smiled. "Your job here is obviously far more important to this town."

"No," I replied. "I'm sure it'll be no problem."

And so I HAVE A DATE! Like, an actual teenage DATE! Wow...

I don't know how to describe it actually. I mean, I used to do this all the time before D-Day arrived but that seemed like a lifetime ago.

A DATE!

WOO!

So we exchanged numbers and I more or less skipped back to the car. No, it was not dignifying in gravel and high heels but damn, it felt good.

Even Inuyasha's pissy glare didn't stop my happiness. I could still hear the low rumbling in his chest, and instead of getting angry at him and telling him to grow up, I blasted the radio. Since I literally knew every song known to man, it wasn't a surprise that I knew the lyrics.

"Baby it's all or nothing now! I don't want to run and I can't walk out! You're breaking my heart if you leave me now! Don't want to wait forever..." Yes. I knew Cher. Who the hell doesn't?

The death glare sent my way by Inuyasha was pretty much leaving massive holes in my head, but I honestly didn't give a shit.

"Who do you think you're fooling? Who do you think you're fooling? Baby it's all or nothing now. Baby it's all or nothing now!"

Epic. I know.

Inuyasha still refused to talk to me the next morning, even when I enticed him with a chocolate bar I got from the vending machine at the motel. It's not like I felt guilty or anything. I mean, just because I was going on a date with a guy that Inuyasha totally despised (for no reason, might I add), doesn't mean I should feel guilty about it.

I shouldn't feel guilty.

Goddammit, he was actually taking away my happiness.

Fuck.

Fuck my life.

I growled as I slammed the car into park and stormed off towards the address the sheriff gave me. We were both headed to see the bodies of Botan and Momiji, so I was yet again overdressed in the disgusting Nevada heat. My feet were starting to kill from overbalancing in the fucking gravel. As much as I prided myself in being a pro with heels, gravel and dirt that just loved to give freely away sucked to walk in. I fell almost thirteen times.

Inuyasha laughed and sometimes, he pushed me just to watch me stumble.

"Fucking stop!" I hissed, flailing my arms to catch my balance while trying to hit him in the process. "Why is it that when I offer you a chocolate bar, you still gave me a death glare? Yet, when I'm practically dying while walking, you think it's the funniest thing in the world?"

"Because giving me a chocolate bar isn't making you suffer any. Walking on a dirt road? Well, that's funny because you're suffering." Inuyasha smirked at me, flashing white teeth and flicking my arm.

"I will strangle you," I threatened, glaring at him.

His smirk only grew. "Love to have you try wench."

"You would, dog boy." I grinned wickedly in return, suggesting something that was sure to shut him up for good.

Entering the build, we were directed to reception where a young woman led us to the office of a man called "Doc". She didn't give him any formal name, and told us that he preferred the name Doc over every other title. I shrugged, since it didn't make any difference to me. So we walked down the white, well-lit hall before opening a door and going into another white, well-lit hall. There was a room to the left, and Inuyasha's clawed fingers touched my back, making me jump.

"What's up?" I whispered, taking in his face. He looked like he was trying to calm down with his half-lidded eyes and tight lips.

Inuyasha grimaced. "The smell... It's pretty intense for me."

"It's usually pretty regulated and cleaned, so hopefully it won't get any worse," I murmured, continuing on and trying to shake off the feeling of his claws on my back. They gave me a feeling worse than the shivers, and I didn't know what to make of that.

"You must be the good agents Sheriff Yanaka told me about," a deep voice boomed and both Inuyasha and I turned around to see a short and balding man. "Agents Katsuki and Nobutoshi, I presume?"

"And you must be Doc," Inuyasha replied, giving a small smirk.

"That I am," Doc said, pushing his glasses up his nose with his finger. "Am I that."

I nodded. This was definitely not my first wacked out coroner meeting. Many people could call me a brat for being so "stereotypical". Well. Fuck you is what I have to say because those stereotypes? I'll let you in on a secret.

They. Are. True.

"Let's go see Momiji and Botan, shall we?" Doc murmured, gesturing with his hand in an "after you" sort of way.

We ended up leading the way to the metal tables that lined the room. Several bodies were covered with blankets, and some were not. I could pick out the two women we were searching for easily because Inuyasha was zeroing in on them like a bee to honey.

"What is it?" I asked in a low voice, trying to get a read on his emotions.

"Smell," he answered tightly.

"Dead people smell or other?"

"Other."

That was all I needed to know.

"Probably the strangest deaths I've ever looked into," Doc said sadly, shaking his head. He stood by Momiji, lowering the blanket to waist. Her skin was a sickening colour, and I had to tell myself to be calm and professional. Seeing a dead body never really got easier. "As you can see, the upper body is unscathed. There are no lacerations anywhere on the body, however, her skin shows bruising to her wrists and palms."

"Defensive," I stated, looking at her chest. "So she was definitely attacked. What about this heart business?"

Doc shook his head. "Hell if I knew. Seriously, I've been in this job over thirty years. Never once have I seen anything like this. When she was brought to me, there were no lacerations, as I mentioned. There was bruising but nothing more. Due to the strange circumstance of her death, I cut her open to study her heart. Since there was no visible trauma, I figured C.O.D. was internal. You can imagine my surprise when she didn't have a heart. Nearly took out my flask of whiskey right then and there."

"And you were positive she wasn't cut beforehand?" Inuyasha asked, obviously ignoring the last statement and studying the body as well. I could tell by the slight flare of his nostrils that he was smelling around, and as much as that freaked me out, I tried not to think about it too much.

Doc nodded, sighing and heaving his shoulders. "Positive."

"What about Botan Nishimura?" I asked, turning around to look at the dead, pale body of the young girl. "Same thing?"

"Literally," Doc replied, turning as well. "Defensive wounds on the wrists and palms. Not a single laceration on her until I opened her. No heart."

"What about the surrounding area?" Inuyasha asked, eyeing the coroner with his golden eyes. "Can you tell if it was removed clean, like it would be if done surgically or what?"

Doc frowned for a moment. "No and I found this very strange. Take for example the pulmonary vein. At first glance, it looked almost ripped from the body." His hands made a grasping motion, and his face was turning red from the excitement in his voice. "Immediately I knew this wasn't done surgically. Even if, it's nearly impossible for a scar like that caused of surgery to disappear completely. However..." He pointed to the vein in question, gesturing with his head to both of us. "See the tears? By examining the vein at a closer distance, I was about to distinguish some very interesting marks."

"Like?" I prompted, watching him waddle quickly around the room to a folder on a side desk. He pulled out several scanned photos, all of magnified images of the surrounding flesh. He held them out to both Inuyasha and I. We studied them, but it didn't take long for me to figure out how this mystery was interesting to him. "Teeth marks."

"How can that even be determined?" Inuyasha asked, giving me a steady look. I could tell that he believed me, but he wanted to figure out what Doc made of it.

"It's not like any of these veins are massive enough for it to be one-hundred percent determined. Thus, it is only my personal conclusion that they were bitten. If the veins were truly torn off of the heart, I'd say it wouldn't look so clean. The edges would be far more jagged but this... This is almost an in between. My report concludes tearing because there is no possible way that a heart could be...bitten out without any lacerations to the body."

I nodded. "Any epithelial tissue found under the nails? If they both fought back–"

"Nothing," Doc answered, shaking his head. "I sent as much as I could to forensics but if I have anything to say for it... Zip."

"Thanks Doc," Inuyasha said, handing back the picture. "Let us know if you find anything else?"

"Oh yes," he responded, suddenly narrowing his eyes. "You, sir, have the strangest coloured eyes. Contacts or something?"

Inuyasha smirked. "It gets ladies' attention."

How so unprofessional. I really have to talk to him about this. Maybe put on a couple television shows like Numb3rs, or Bones or anything else that includes FBI. Movies or something!

We left the building, waving goodbye to Doc who followed us to the door and made it to the car without a word. Once inside with the Corvette purring, I turned to Inuyasha. "Okay spill. You said something about the way they smell."

Inuyasha unbuttoned the top half of his shirt and loosened the tie. I tried to focus on his face and not, well, his chest. Or something else. Uh... "Yeah. While we were outside, all I could smell was rotting corpse. I guess it's not the same for humans, because you didn't cringe any but I could smell it. I could smell, once we stepped in the room, another really strange scent which threw me off."

I nodded encouragingly. "Okay, and that is...?"

"Fuck if I know."

Lovely. Just lovely.

"But it was strange?"

Inuyasha raised a brow. "No, it wasn't strange. I just told you about this weird smell that I have no idea about because it was normal."

"I should put a muzzle on you," I snapped, shaking my head and slamming my foot done. "And we were being so friendly for once too."

"Friendly? I'm never not friendly. You're just the idiot that decides we're fighting," Inuyasha shot, rolling his eyes and looking towards the window.

"Really? So yesterday after we went to the Nishimura's house, you weren't being unfriendly?" I asked, glaring at him. "I'm sorry but I was almost an ice cube because of the fucking cold shoulder you were giving me."

"Stop exaggerating wench."

"Stop being a bitch, dog boy."

"Mature."

"Right back at you."

Inuyasha growled and I focused on road ahead of me, trying to push the thought of creaming the right side of my car into a tree or something. Even if Inuyasha happened to die miraculously, my car wouldn't be doing so well and I sure as hell couldn't risk that.

We were headed back to the Reno police department to pick up the autopsy reports and get our "room". As much as I dreaded this whole business, especially with the nagging issue of real FBI agents coming, I knew I couldn't leave. Whatever demon that is doing this is powerful, and I have to stop it.

To be expected, Inuyasha didn't talk to me for the rest of the drive, which really wasn't a problem.

What was a problem was the fact that suddenly, five cop cars were headed our way, sirens blasting.

"Oh fuck me," I hissed under my breath, gripping the steering wheel tight and looking for an exit. The land was flat, and I could probably lose them–

"Not if you were the last person on earth."

Well fuck you Mr. Cocky.

Thanks for the luck.

Another chappie. I will update soon. I will update soon. I will update soon.

I hope.

Problems? Errors? Feedback? I'd love to hear it, thanks!