A Body She Couldn't Control

by Black Ice and Blood Rain

Back when she was the nerdiest girl in the whole school, he'd taken her virginity, then left her with a broken heart. She had a nervous breakdown, mental problem after mental problem...until she snapped, and now, five years later... Lemons. InuKag. Done.

21. Chapter 21

You've waited, and waited, and waited some more! Well, it's time to read! Oh, and for those who thought I was just gonna jump right to the concert? THINK AGAIN!

WARNING! THIS IS THE LONGEST CHAPTER I HAVE EVER WRITTEN IN MY LIFE! IT'S OVER TWENTY PAGES! If you don't like long chapters, I suggest you turn back now. Or, if you read this one and got mad and impatient, I suggest you write a review telling me to break it in half.

I was pretty much on edge for the rest of the following week. For once in my life, I was actually dreading my birthday. Every time somebody tapped me on the shoulder, I tended to jump and be all edgy. So, to ease my obvious discomfort, on Thursday Inuyasha suggested we—that is, he, I, and Hakudoushi—go to the carnival this Saturday. That cheered me up like nothing else could. However, my high temporarily came crashing down over me when Inuyasha sat me down after I'd put Hakudoushi down for a nap. He looked me in my eye, which made me extremely uncomfortable.

"Kagome, what's wrong with you?" Oh, goddamn it. I swear to—I hate when he tries to be all analytic!

"Why, nothing's wrong with me, Inuyasha. Well, if that's all—" I made to get up, but he gently grabbed my wrist and sat me back down.

"No, something's wrong with you. We've been through this before, Kagome. I told you, anything bothering you is bothering me." He quirked his eyebrow. "Does this have anything to do with the concert you and Sango are going to?"

"What?! What—how did you—"

"Miroku. You'd be surprised how much he tells you under threat of castration. Now, I know that Juun'rai Sanzenin is your ex-boyfriend or whatever." Oh, my God...is he going to stop me from going? Please, God, let him say it...I really don't want to go...and if he says no, I'll have an excuse not to go... "I understand your mental predicament, and I want you to know that I love you and trust you. So you can go if you want to." I blinked at him.

"I'm...I'm sorry, I think I misheard you. Did you—did you say I could go?"

"Uh-huh. Trust and believe, it's really killing me inside to do it, and I really don't want you to go—" You wouldn't be the only one, buddy... "--but it's the right thing to do. I don't want to prohibit you from doing something you want to do and have you hate me."

"Oh, no, I wouldn't hate you!" I quickly amended. "If you don't want me to go, then I won't go. It's fine."

"No, it's not. You should go."

"Are...are you sure?" I said weakly, hoping and praying to the Good Lord above that he would change his mind suddenly and forbid my going.

"Yep. Completely sure." I sighed, mustering a feeble smile.

"Uh...I don't know what to say here..." I said truthfully. He embraced me tightly, murmuring in my ear, "You don't have to say anything. Just...please, try to respect my trust." I gulped quietly. God help me that I did...

——————

Finally came Saturday, after two agonizingly long days. As soon as I woke up, I wanted to get Haku and haul ass, but Inuyasha reminded me that we weren't leaving until five that evening. I was royally disgruntled, but sagged off to take my shower anyway.

Afterwards, I felt much more refreshed, and seeing as it was only eight in the morning and I didn't feel like cooking or having ramen, I decided that we could all head for WacDnalds for some breakfast. Hakudoushi was suckling less and less, and had taken to swiping food from my or Inuyasha's plate. I hadn't expected him to be eating solids so soon, but it made things for us much easier. It also marked the beginning of the end of the yummy baby food Hakudoushi ate, much to my dismay. But then again, as was said in the song "No Pain, No Gain," in order to get something, you gotta give something.

In addition to this, Hakudoushi was becoming a bit too big for his crib. The boy was already abnormally lanky, and was even developing a little muscle. It almost scared me. I did know one thing, though—I for damn sure couldn't be carrying his big ass anymore. So, after we'd all eaten a bite of fast-food, we headed to the local kaguya to see what they had in stock there. (Fun fact: "Kaguya" actually means, in its entirety, "furniture store" or "furniture dealer." For those who've seen the second Inuyasha movie, I'm sure you'll get a kick out of that. I sure as hell did...) As we walked in, we were met with a rush of cool air. I sighed happily. Hakudoushi babbled incoherently, something that I took as "I know just how you feel, Ma."

"If there's one thing I love about stores, it's that they're nice and cool." I commented, looking around at all of the beds and shelves and chests of drawers.

"Yeah, well, we're not here for the atmosphere. Just here for a quickie bed."

"A quickie bed?" I purred, gently running my fingers down his back. He shivered, chuckling amorously.

"For the kid, woman. When we have a quickie, we don't need a bed." He chuckled.

"Ooh...touché." I smirked. There are times like that that remind me of how lucky I am to have a mate like him.

And how stupid you'd be to betray his trust.

Now, of all times...!

Some sales guy came bounding up to us, a huge grin plastered on his face. Inuyasha and I exchanged looks.

"Why, h-h-hello there!" Hakudoushi blinked, like "What the fuck?" "My name is Mr. Kanzejima. How may I help you...ma'am?" My son and Inuyasha cleared his throat, as if to say "Apparently, you can't count very well." Kanzejima ignored this and continued to beam, more specifically at me. I yawned, bored already. Inuyasha noticed the ocular interest he took in me and reacted by draping his arm around my shoulders. Kanzejima's lips fell, but his teeth remained in place, making a nasty grimace.

"We would like a suitable bed for our son. If you please." I smirked.

"Ah. I see. Well, then. How old is your son?" he said tightly.

"About 8 months." Inuyasha answered. Kanzejima got a strange look on his face.

"Uh...how tall is he?"

"Fifteen inches." Hakudoushi laughed.

"Right...step this way." We started after him, but there was a tap on my shoulder. I stopped in my tracks and looked behind me. There was nothing but a bureau. I looked around strangely. Inuyasha called, "Coming, Kagome?"

"Er...I'm gonna hang back for a little. Try to worm some gumballs out of the machine." Inuyasha shrugged and went on. I turned completely around and was more than surprised to see Juun'rai step partially from behind the chest of drawers, a closed-eyed grin on his face. "Juun'rai?! What the hell are you doing here?" I narrowed my eyes at him. "Have you been following me?" He chuckled.

"Of course not. Though I'm surprised the paparazzi hasn't been tailing you. You have the qualifications of a model—without the anorexia." Both of us laughed.

"That wasn't very nice, with regards to supermodels." I grinned.

"Yeah, I know." He smiled. There was a mildly comfortable silence between us—until he said, "So...that's your boyfriend?"

"Mate, actually." I smiled, turning down my collar to reveal the mark Inuyasha had laid upon me.

"And that's your son."

"Technically, just mine. Not Inuyasha's."

"Oh?"

"Yeah..." I sighed. "I wish it were his, though...it pretty much broke his heart when he was born."

"I'm sorry to hear that." He said seriously. That was why I liked Juun'rai. He didn't know how to be jealous or angry. It was like he didn't even possess any negative emotions or something. "For both of you."

"Yeah, but it can't be helped. He loves Hakudoushi like his own son, regardless."

"He looks like he does. You said his name was Inuyasha?"

"Indirectly so."

"Cool name. And your son's name is Hakudoushi?"

"Yeah."

"Hmm. Did you tell Inuyasha about the concert?"

"Technically, no. My friend's boyfriend, also his friend, told him about it 'cause he's nosy."

"Inuyasha or his friend?"

"Pretty much both." Juun'rai nodded, then paused.

"Let me let you get back to 'im. He's probably wondering whether you've busted the machine wide open or something." We both smiled. That was Inuyasha's nature. Though, I was kinda surprised at Juun. He didn't say anything regarding rekindling our former relationship. Maybe he's...forgotten us? I was filled with a mix of hurt and relief. I made to turn around, but he grabbed me around my waist and engulfed me in the deepest—yet somehow, tantalizingly brief—kiss I had ever received. My eyes widened.

Ohhh...you are so getting taken down.

But-but I didn't—Juun'rai—Seimegami, you gotta help me! Conceal Juun'rai's scent on me, please!

Huh! What makes you think I should help you?

But none of this is even my fault! I told this guy I had a mate and a son, and he's still Frenching me!

...Oh, yeah. Yeah, that about wraps it up. Okay, I gotcha.

Finally, Juun'rai broke away from me, wiping his lips and winking at me before darting off somewhere. I stood there, bewildered, until Inuyasha peered behind the dresser, looking at me. Seimegami quickly masked Juun'rai's scent.

"Hey, what're you doing back here?"

"Uh...I...I think I lost a gumball around here somewhere..." I muttered, pretending to search the white carpet for a gumball.

Maybe a couple marbles, too.

Shut up...! I hissed mentally. "Oops. Damn. That thing's gone for good. Well, that's a fifth of a quarter gone to good waste, huh? Hehe..." I chuckled decrepitly. He gave me a weird look.

"Yeah. Anyway...I think Haku's chosen his bed. Come and check it out; see if you like it." He took my hand and I followed him to my son. However, my mind wasn't exactly on Hakudoushi's new bed, or even the boy himself. I was more preoccupied with the lingering taste of Winterfresh gum...

——————

Thanks to the grace of God, five o'clock came much faster than I'd expected. Since the carnival was all the way across town, even in my car, we didn't get there until six. It was cool, though, because we got to enjoy the neon lighting of the rides. Inuyasha and I grinned at each other.

"So...what should we do first?" I asked simplistically. Suddenly, Hakudoushi began jumping up and down and pointing to something. I looked in the direction of his finger.

It was a huge inflatable slide. You had to climb a frigging tall-ass, probably ten-foot-tall ladder to get to the top, and when you did, you slid down one of the spiraling chutes and come out on a bouncy pad. There was a tunnel that it connected to, and also a three-step. Truth be told, it looked fun. We took Hakudoushi over to it. Since I was afraid of heights, Inuyasha carried him on his back up to the three adjacent chutes. He squealed as he went down the middlemost, followed by six other kids. Inuyasha climbed back down the ladder and we waited with some other people until Hakudoushi flew out of the slide to land on the pad. An attendant came out of the tunnel and announced, "Through this tunnel is the carnival's daycare, where your child may be kept for a predetermined amount of time. The doorway is right to your right." All heads turned stage right to confirm her words. Hakudoushi looked at us, we back at him. I made my way onto the pad, and told the woman, "I want to keep my child—Hakudoushi, that's the lanky one staring at the white-haired man—in the daycare, please."

"Alright, then." She smiled, and I called Haku over. He waddled on the PVC to the attendant and grinned widely. More parents began copying me, and I left Hakudoushi with the woman as I went back to my mate.

"C'mon. Let's go on something else." I said, hooking our arms. So we began walking around in search of a good ride.

"Ooh, how 'bout the Swinging Ship?" He smiled toothily. I grimaced.

"How 'bout hell no?"

"Aw, c'mon, Kagome, it's fun."

"Well, you can go on it. I'm gonna go get some popcorn or something."

"Okay. I'll meet you at...oh, how about the drop?"

"So long as we're just meeting there." He laughed, and we parted ways. I looked around for the popcorn stand—and my eyes widened when I saw the Tunnel of Love. I dashed over to the ride.

"I've always wanted to go on this thing...but I was never with anyone seriously enough to even come to the carnival with. Huh. Guess I'll just go it alone." I waited for one of the blue swan boats to float up, and when it did, the man steering it had on a huge, sombrero-like hat and had on an ugly rubber mask. I giggled as he stopped.

"Care to come aboard, ma'am?" a familiar voice grinned. I blinked.

"J...Juun?! Didn't I just see you today?!"

"Yeah."

"So what are you doing here?!"

"Shhh...come on the boat and I'll explain. I don't want to risk being found out." Confusion clouded my mind, but I allowed him to help me on the boat anyway. He placed his oar in two clamps on the side of the boat to hold it in place. "The rowing is just for special effect. The boats are all on a conveyor." He sat down beside me, removing his mask and hat and placing them on the boat's floor. "Whew!" He sighed, shaking his head. "You wouldn't believe how hard it is to breathe in those things."

"Okay...get to explaining. Because with all these frequent appearances of yours, I'm beginning to think you really are following me."

"I know, and it's really weird. You see, my cousin, Shippou, normally does this boat, but he was feeling sick, so I volunteered to fill in for him this weekend." The boat slowly crept into steadily darkening atmosphere, and soon it was completely black, except for the neon pink hearts that popped up one after the other in varied places. Juun'rai lowered his lips to my neck, kissing and sucking at the spot Inuyasha had only recently mastered--the one right below my ear. I released a shuddering moan, gripping with my right hand the edge of the boat and with my left hand...an appendage I'd rather not have touched. And much to my complete and utter misery, an appendage rather...well, jumpy, if you know what I mean... "It must be fate that keeps bringing us together like this, Kagome." Something had told me not to wear a dress before I even came here, because my choice in clothing was definitely working against me at present. Bad thing about it—it was one of the dresses I'd kept before Inuyasha and I hooked up. Translation: I was now in full slut mode, and there wasn't anything I could do about it. Juun's hand made its way right up my dress and I gasped.

...Oh, you are so gonna get it now. Now, you're not even trying to push him away.

Well, what the hell do you expect me to do?!

I expect you to tell him to back the hell off, and that you have a mate and child!

HE ALREADY KNOWS THAT, GENIUS-ASS!

...Oh, yeah. Well, either way, y'know, you're fucked up.

I forced myself to stop thinking with my loins and pushed both Juun's head and hand away from me. We had now come into the lighter section of the tunnel—that is, if you consider pink and red and blue "light." His face showed mild confusion, but no hurt.

"Kagome, what's wrong?"

"What's...what's wrong? You can't be serious. Juun'rai, I'm with Inuyasha. I have a son now. I'm not the same as I used to be back then. I mean...of course, I still love you, but I can't be with you." He blinked, then his forehead creased, like he was thinking about something. What in the hell could he possibly be thinking about?!

"Huh. So...you're saying if Inuyasha weren't your mate and Hakudoushi weren't your son, you would be with me?"

"I never said that. Are you threatening my family, Juun'rai?" The word was new to me, and felt weird. It would take some getting used to.

"No, of course not." He shook his head, giving me an emotionless look. Damn him and his ability to mask his true intention!

"That's what it sounded like you were doing."

"But I wasn't. I could never hurt anyone you cared so deeply for."

"So, if you know I love them both, why are you doing this? You know I'm mentally unstable, and if I didn't have Inuyasha and Hakudoushi, my nymphomaniacal instinct might've taken over and I may have jumped you in this blue swan boat! Right now, that's the last thing I ever wanna do!"

"...I dunno. I guess I just really love you, despite your situation. There's a part of me that will always think that you're the same girl from back in the day, 'cause I'm pretty much the same guy. And as for me threatening your family? I could never even carry out a vindictive threat. You know I've never obtained anything by malicious means, I've never tried to, I've never wanted to, and I never will, especially when it comes to you. I don't even think I have the emotional ability to get mad!" he chuckled, rubbing the nape of his neck. I shook my head, smiling.

"Inuyasha probably wouldn't like you very much."

"You mean, if he disregarded the fact that I'm in love with his mate?"

"Yeah."

"I also want you to know—I'm not gonna give up on you. I know it's futile, but hey, you've never known me to give on anything before, right?"

"That's true. But please, I beg you to give up on me. Inuyasha is trusting me enough to let me go to your concert. I really don't want anything happening to betray his trust. If he even smells you around me when I get back, he'd leave me. I've already had my mental breakdowns regarding that. And I mean that so literally. He's an inuyoukai, and inuyoukai mate for life. I can't just go off rutting with you."

"I understand completely." He shrugged. And I know he did, but he still wasn't giving up on me?! I merely stared at him.

"You're smart enough to understand that I'm already with someone, and that I have a child, yet you still chase me?" He paused before nodding casually.

"I told you, I love you. There's no other girl—no, I'm sorry. There is no other woman for me, and there never will be. Even if I live to the end of time, I'll still love none but you." He smiled calmly.

Oh...that's so beautiful. (sniffle) I think I'm going to make you cry.

I rolled my eyes. "Seimegami says that's so beautiful."

"Who? Do you have an alter ego or something? I think that's so awesome." He grinned.

"Umm...actually, no. Well, not really. Well...it's like...I have a sex goddess who happens to be inuyoukai dwelling within my body. Literally. And, uh, she's been pretty much against you coming onto me ever since the first day you came back, 'cause her mate, who is the sex god Seikami, dwells within Inuyasha's body, coincidentally. This is how she sees it: if I fraternize with you, then she's betraying Seikami. I dunno. Her mind's kinda warped. But anyway, I bet that whole thing pretty turns you off, right?" He looked at me with wide eyes.

"...Wow. Seriously. So you were serious when you said you had mental breakdowns?"

"Uh-huh."

"Huh. I always thought you had mental inclinations." I anime-sweatdropped.

"Really, thank you for the compliment!" I growled. He chuckled.

"No, I didn't mean it like that, Kagome. I've always liked strange women, and you were definitely no exception. To top your being psychologically disturbed with regards to your sex drive, you're smart, beautiful, and can even be nice at times." He beamed. My own smile widened until I had to laugh.

"You always have something outlandish to say to make me laugh." I shook my head, playfully biffing him in the arm.

"So does that mean you will still come to the concert?" I cocked my eyebrow warily.

"If I do, will you hit on me?"

"Most likely. After all, you do have a backstage pass—and are the only person that does. I didn't give one to anybody else."

"Could you try not to?"

"I make no promises. I'm sorry, Kagome, but I can't control myself around you. I've had to sit on my hands ever since you pushed me away, and if you'll notice, I now am speaking somewhat lispingly because I've been biting my tongue." I blinked. Now that he mentioned it...he did sound kind of defective, speech-wise. "And ever since your hand fell on my ding-dong, my pants have become too tight." My face turned the same color as the neon hearts. "Looks like the ride's coming back to the beginning." He sighed, smiling at me and shrugging his shoulders. I hadn't even remembered that we were in a boat, moving.

"Juun..." I began, looking back at him and breaking out into uncontrollable giggles to see that he'd put back on that Halloween mask and the boater hat.

"Just know, Kagome, that I will do anything for you. I don't care how big it is, I swear to the kamis I'll find a way to do it. If you want me to leave you alone, then I think I can do that. But there's one thing I won't do, for you or anybody else. Not even for Inuyasha." I quirked my eyebrow, gazing sidelong as the boat came to an automated stop. How the hell Inuyasha become a part of the equation, I don't think I'll ever know. "And that's be your friend. I couldn't be your friend in a million centuries. I have way too many sexual and romantic tendencies towards you. Let me escort you off." I looked at him, the Juun'rai Sanzenin behind the mask—literally—and saw just how much this man really loved me. I didn't even think Inuyasha loved me that much. Nor Kouga, nor Tobushikai, nor Suikoutsu. He stood to help me out.

"Uh...wait, Juun. Before I leave..." I lifted his mask, staring into his calm yet quizzical blue orbs before leaning in to kiss him.

Now that one was entirely you. It reminds me of the time you willingly kissed Tobushikai...

Oh, stuff a bone in it.

How 'bout Juun'rai's tongue instead?

I glared inwardly. My only hope was that I could stop after Juun wrapped his arms around my waist, cupped my posterior, and compressed me closer to his body.

Probably not.

Shut up, Seimegami!

We quickly broke apart, gasping for air. "I...better go..." I panted, wiping my lips.

"Yeah...yeah." Juun nodded frantically, but I could feel his distinct happiness in the air. He helped me out of the swan boat and back onto the carnival scene. I took one last look at him before turning and dashing off. Conveniently forgetting that I had on high heels, but then that's just typical of me, isn't it? I tripped. "Kagome!" Juun'rai must've leaped out of the boat and bolted to my aid. I felt his arms wrap around me once more, preventing my fall.

"Kagome!!" another voice, one I recognized as Inuyasha's, called out. Ay-yi-yi...

"Oh, no..."

Yep. Yep, yep, yep, I told you. Time and time again, I TOLD YOU, but did you listen? Nope. You're so gonna lose Inuyasha after that little stunt you pulled.

Please, Seimegami, mask my scent, just this once...again!

Why?

BECAUSE! If I lose Inuyasha, you lose Seikami!

...Shit. I hate you, little girl.

I clenched my eyes shut as I sensed Inuyasha rapidly approach and the next thing I knew, Inuyasha yelped in pain and was somehow catapulted backwards by some unknown force. I opened my eyes again, looking around in horror. Juun and I were in some kind of...bubble or something. Juun and I looked at each other, confused.

Seimegami, did...did youdo that?

Me? Hell no. This looks like a barrier. I'm a demon, I couldn't do that in a minute. Only those with spiritual power can do that. Looks like Seikami was right about you being miko...

"Um...Kagome, what in the hell was that?"

"Seimegami says it's a barrier...but I don't know why I put it up against Inuyasha like that..."

"It was probably inadvertent. But maybe you should put it down now...?" With a sheepish giggle, I let down my guard—literally. I got to my feet, brushing off imaginary dust from my dress.

"Inuyasha, are you okay?" I called, power-walking over to him. Can't tell me I don't learn my lesson. My mate in question groaned, coughing as he lay on the concrete. I kneeled at his side, kissing his bruised face.

"Aggghh...shit, bitch, why the fuck did you do that?!"

"I'm sorry, I didn't mean to!" I cried out. "It was an accident!" He sat up, growling at Juun. I praised the Lord that Seimegami had the mercy to hide Juun's smell on me.

"Hey, you ugly motherfucker! Who the hell d'you think you are, puttin' your filthy hands on Kagome like that?!" Inuyasha got to his feet, stomping in Juun's direction.

"GAH! Uh...I'm sorry, good sir, I didn't know she was yours...I was merely preventing her fall, that's all!" Juun explained rapidly, grinning apologetically.

"Inuyasha...!" I grunted, stumbling after him with a broken heel. I don't even know how the hell that happened. I snatched off my shoes and chucked 'em in some random direction. From the resounding clunk and very male howl of pain, I knew I'd hit someone. I didn't care, though. I leaped to Inuyasha, holding him around his waist as he came within kissing distance of Juun. Unfortunately, he wasn't planning on doing anything of the sort.

Also unfortunately, Juun'rai's scent is off of you, but yours isn't off him...

My arms fell at my side, my whole body turning pale. I slowly backed away, chuckling nervously, "I'm...gonna go...get Hakudoushi. Bye." I turned and ran off.

"Wait, Kagome!" Juun called. I looked over my shoulder, eyes wide at the sight of Juun pushing Inuyasha out of his way and running after me.

"DAMN!" I cried, picking up the pace. Good thing I wasn't fat anymore. I looked back over my shoulder again, and Inuyasha was bounding after Juun. Good Lord, how stupid we all must look. Juun with that ugly ass mask on and the gondola hat, me with no heels and callused feet, and Inuyasha looking rabid. "Juun, you idiot, Inuyasha's gonna kill you!"

"I don't care!" Juun'rai declared. "Kagome, I love you!" I anime-sweatdropped.

Jeez, that guy's stupid.

Or like my mother always said: He's so smart, he's stupid.

"What did you say?!?!" Inuyasha roared, and with a final glance over my shoulder, I saw him leap in the air, definitely about to pounce on Juun.

"Juun, watch out!" I screamed, stopping and going back to help him. He skidded to a halt, head jerking around wildly.

Oh, my G—idiot human. Let me do this...

I transformed in a heartbeat and used my newfound speed to launch into Juun, pushing him out of the way as Inuyasha landed on his feet. I grabbed Juun by the scruff of his collar and dragged him to his feet. His legs were shaking slightly, but he looked at Inuyasha defiantly.

"Kagome, this guy's a little dangerous, isn't he?" He grunted, not taking his eyes from my slowly approaching mate. He snatched the mask off his head. "Shit, I can't breathe in that damn thing."

"He's only protecting me." Juun suddenly whipped around to face me, taking my hands in his and gazing at me pleadingly.

"Kagome, I can protect you. Even without the strength of a demon. Please, be with me." Before I could politely decline, Inuyasha's fist came out of nowhere and rooted itself in Juun's face. Inuyasha seized my waist with one arm and brandished the index of his other in Juun's face, snarling, "Touch my woman again and more than your nose will be broken, you stupid son-of-a-bitch. I'm trying to be lenient here, but you're making it hard on your own self by—" Inuyasha's eyes went wide all of a sudden and he released me before falling to the ground, clutching his manhood where Juun's foot had collided with it.

I gasped. "You...Juun'rai, you didn't..." That was the lowest blow I could think of to a guy.

A straight-up bitch move. Inuyasha's face was purpling with either anger or pain. Juun coughed up a bit of blood before gradually getting to his feet.

"She was mine first!" Juun wheezed.

"Oh, wait a damn minute, now! I don't belong to anybody! I ain't no fucking object!" Though, with the way I was being handled tonight, that was debatable.

"I know; I'm sorry, Kagome." Juun'rai cooed, kissing me on the lips. I squeaked. What the hell was going on?! I fended him off with my elbow, spitting and wiping my lips.

"Damn it, Juun'rai!" I growled. He stumbled backwards, right into Inuyasha, who effortlessly clutched his neck and slammed him to the ground. Ooh, somebody's been watching wrestling... "Inuyasha! What the hell—" Before I could verbally beat him up, he himself planted a kiss on my mouth. I absolutely melted, but I didn't know what he was doing.

Oh. Oh-ho-ho. The hanyou's not as stupid as I first surmised.

What is he doing?!

He's scent marking you! He's eliminating Juun'rai's smell by replacing it with his own.

Huh. ...And his breath smells pretty sweet, too.

Which do you prefer, fresh or sweet?

I dunno. Juun's breath smells like good ol' Winterfresh, and sometimes the one that comes in the green pack. Is that Wintergreen? Well, whatever. Yeah, that, and Inuyasha's breath now smells like...ooh, funnel cake. I love funnel cake...that, elephant ears...and popcorn.

After this meaningless conversation with Seimegami, I realized that Inuyasha was still kissing me. I looked down at Juun, who merely shrugged and sighed, getting up and trying to pull Inuyasha away from me. The hanyou growled against my mouth, deepening and roughening the kiss.

"Inuyasha...sweetie...I can't breathe...!" I mumbled. He broke away, panting and gasping. I took in deep breaths. "Juun'rai. Maybe you should go, um, get your face fixed. I'm sure you don't want to be looking like that at the concert..."

"Oh, yeah. The concert." Inuyasha said mockingly. "You ain't going."

"I'm not?"

"No."

"Eh, okay." Juun's eyes widened.

"What?! But K-Kagome, you have to go! You're my inspiration!" he cried out, coming towards me, but Inuyasha held out his hand. Juun's face landed in Inuyasha's palm, but his feet kept moving. I peered over Inuyasha's shoulder curiously. When Inuyasha dropped his arm, Juun fell to his knees on the ground, staring tearfully up at me. "If...if you don't come, there's no telling what I'll do!" Inuyasha rolled his eyes.

"What a punk." He muttered. I ignored this and looked back at my former lover, pity glossing my own eyes.

"Inuyasha..." I scolded lightly. "Juun's very sensitive."

"What, is he gonna cry? You gotta be fucking kidding me." Inuyasha scoffed. Juun covered his face in his hands, and I could just smell the beginning of tears.

"Ohh..." I sighed, kneeling down and wrapping him in a friendly embrace. I could hear my mate growling behind me. "Inuyasha, hush! It's your fault he's crying."

"No, it's not! It's his, the idiot! He shouldn't've touched you in the first place, and maybe you could still go!"

"Kagome..." Juun sobbed. "My life has been in shambles ever since I had to leave you! And now that—and now that I'm back, here with you, your stupid mate is trying to take me away from me! I mean, you away from me!" I stifled my giggle. Whenever Juun cried and tried to talk at the same time, his words never came out right.

"It's okay, Juun." I soothed, raking my fingers through his shoulder-length ebony locks.

"Jeez, Kagome, can we go now?!"

"Inuyasha! Can't you see that Juun needs my consolation right now? Please, just let me go to the concert. I hate to see people cry, especially when I'm involved in the reason for their crying." I said.

"Tch! Fine. Jesus Christ...fine, you can go to the stupid thing, but if you ain't home by eleven, I'm coming out there and breaking my foot off in his ass. And I wear cleats, baby."

"No, you don't." I sucked my teeth. "No, he doesn't, Juun'rai."

"I...I know." Juun sniffled, and unburied his face from my now wet shoulder, giving me a watery smile. "Thank you so much, Kagome. I l—"

"Say it and I'll leave you here to cry." Inuyasha said gruffly.

"Noted." Juun'rai grinned. "Thank you, too, Inuyasha. And...I'm sorry for kicking you in the balls. If you want to, you can kick me back."

"Heh! My pleasure!" Inuyasha sneered, gearing his foot up.

"Goddamn it, Inuyasha, don't be an asshole." I lambasted. With a frustrated grumble, he lowered his foot onto the ground.

"Guy says lemme kick 'im in the nuts, I wanna...(trails off)" I helped Juun'rai to his feet.

"Kagome, I really do thank you. And I apologize for coming on to you. But like I said, I just can't help it!" Juun'rai shrugged, smiling.

"You're gonna need help if you keep prattlin' on like that." Inuyasha grumbled.

"I know how to compensate for all this. How about I take you two—oh, hell, we'll make it a three. I'll take you, Inuyasha, and Hakudoushi out to eat Monday. I would tonight or tomorrow, but I gotta rehearse for the concert."

"Okay, that's fine with me." I nodded.

"How do you know about our son?!" Inuyasha spluttered. "Has—have you been spying on us, you nosy prick?!"

"Haha!" Juun'rai laughed. "Kagome asked me the same thing earlier. Maybe you two were made for each other. No, I wasn't spying. Kagome told me." Inuyasha shot me a nasty glare. I just shrugged.

"Hey, he asked, I told him. The guy's charming; what can I say?"

"Look here. I am not sticking around to be trampled by the idiot masses, a.k.a. hordes of bitches, running to see Juun'rai Sanzenin. I also don't want you to be killed by 'em since you were lucky enough to be in his presence." Inuyasha said sarcastically.

"She's done more than—" Both Inuyasha and I narrowed our eyes at him to shut him up. "Hehe...sorry."

"So we're leaving. Let's go get Hakudoushi and go home and forget tonight ever even happened. Is that fine? Me and you never saw no Juun'rai Sanzenin."

"JUUN'RAI SANZENIN?!?!?!" a girl shrieked, provoking many more loud and girlish utterances of Juun's name. I shook my head as all heads turned Juun's way. His eyes widened.

"Damn! I knew I should've kept the ugly mask on...!" he panicked as they began running his way. "Kagome, no matter what happens, I love you—don't forget me!" He blew a kiss to me before pulling a Scooby-Doo and hightailing it. Inuyasha growled angrily.

"God, I hate that guy. Crying one minute, running the next." He groused, linking our hands and leading me out of the way of the idiot masses.

You mean, the hordes of bitches.

Eh, whatever.

——————

As Inuyasha and I made our way to the daycare, I said, "So, since we're going to forget this night ever happened...we should tell each other what happened when we were apart." He fidgeted slightly, making me think that we both had our little secrets.

"Well...some woman came onto me. She was a hanyou, too. A kitsune hanyou." My eyes narrowed in thought. That description sounded familiar...

"What was her name?" I questioned coolly.

"I dunno...I forget..." he lied. I gave him a look.

"What was her name, Inuyasha?" I repeated, more firmly this time.

"Jeez...it was Ka—"

"Katsumi, isn't it?!" I growled, clenching my fists. The bitch...

Oh, yes. I remember Katsumi. Charming woman, she was.

Inuyasha looked startled. "Uh...yeah, actually. How did you know?"

"Mm. Let's just say we have a history." Flashbacks of college catfights ran through my mind, each making me angrier than the last.

Why don't we just...calm ourselves down, hmm? I mean...c'mon, it's old history.

Old history shit! That slut has always tried to take what was mine! Katsumi Kobayashi, bonafide asslicker.

"But that ain't nothing big." Inuyasha waved it off. "What about you?"

"Ahem...I kissed Juun'rai."

"..."

"It was originally intended to be a quick peck on the lips, but he developed it into something more passionate. I broke away from him before it could get too deep, though." I said casually, then mocked, "But that ain't nothing big." He glared at me.

"Like I said, tonight never happened." He grunted. I nodded, an identically hard look on my face. We finally got back to the daycare. Inuyasha went in the building, while I stood outside, leaning on the wall.

"Shit!" I swore when I remembered that I was shoeless. Great...I'd have to get Inuyasha to carry me. I was definitely soaking my feet tonight. I was in a very sour mood.

"Kagome? Kagome Higurashi, is that you?" a sickeningly-sweet voice called.

"Grr..." I wasn't one for fakery. "Kobayashi. What the hell do you want? Tch—I mean other than Inuyasha, that is." As she approached me, it royally pissed me off to see that she was wearing the exact same dress as I. God, I fucking hated her!

"Why, just what would provoke you to think—"

"Save that fake-ass bullshit for somebody who gives a good fuck, bitch. I don't wanna hear it." I said, avoiding eye contact. If I had to look at those disgustingly bathetic baby blue eyes for a second, I would most likely claw them out.

"Hm." She smirked. "That Inuyasha is definitely a piece of work, though. Wonder what he's doing with you?"

Okay, now, see, she's about to piss even me off.

"Don't worry about my mate, okay?"

"Your what? Who in their right mind would mate a whore like you?" Katsumi scoffed. Again, I clenched my fists, feeling myself transform. "Hmm? What's this, then? I'd heard you were possessed, but this is a whole 'nother thing. I don't like the hair. It's so flat. No body, but then I suppose that's not very uncharacteristic of you yourself, right, Kagome-chan?" My fingers trembled with the desire to throw down. I was about to go ballistic.

"Every single syllable that you spew out of your revolting mouth brings you closer and closer to a bloody death." I growled lowly.

"Ha! What-ever. Say...where did Inuyasha go? I'd like to discuss a few things with him."

"Somebody call me?" my mate said as he came out of the daycare with Hakudoushi. Without warning, I grabbed him by his collar and slammed my lips against his. His eyes widened, but the fierce and predatory look in my own told him—no, demanded of him—to follow suit. He quickly shut his dilated pupils and put his arms around my waist. I smirked against his lips at Katsumi's disgusted and frustrated grunt.

"Ugh! Get a room, Higurashi—nobody wants to see you throw yourself at someone who obviously doesn't even want you." Okay. That was the last motherfucking straw. I pushed Inuyasha away, whipping around to face Katsumi with an angry snarl upon my face.

"That's it. I am sick and fucking tired of you degrading me. Inuyasha!" I barked.

"Aroo?" he and Hakudoushi simultaneously whimpered.

"Take my son far away from here. I don't want him to witness his mother delivering a serious-assed beatdown to this bitch."

"Yes, ma'am!" He gathered Haku up and ran off. People began to crowd around Katsumi and I, apparently sensing the tension between us.

"See, 'cause I already got my shoes off, so I can't beat you too senselessly." I said tightly, taking out my earrings and tossing them on the ground. I loosed my hair from its already messy bun and whipped my hair around my shoulders. Katsumi just scoffed.

"I thought I smelled the stench of your putrid feet." She insulted. "Besides, I don't need to take off my earrings, nor my shoes. I can beat you with two paws tied behind my back and paraplegic legs." The crowd ooh'ed.

"You couldn't do it four years ago, and you for damn sure can't do it tonight." I hissed. We circled each other, my knuckles white with my claws digging into my palms, and Katsumi's own claws poised for attack. I crouched in a pugnacious stance before leaping at Katsumi.

I was so fast, I was a lightning bolt to onlooking humans, but due to Kobayashi's half-demon nature, she could see me quite clearly, and thrust out her sharp elbow, hitting me dead in the face. The bitch was never one for evasion. I got back on my feet and, despite an already bloody face, commenced slapping the shit out of her in rapid succession. She shrieked, literally turning the other cheek. That was good, 'cause my claws "accidentally" slashed up her face.

With an irate growl, she responsively smashed her heel into my gut, provoking an "oomph" from yours truly. I hunched over, inadvertently baring the back of my neck to her. She used this as an opportunity to strike the vulnerable nape with the back of her leg. I clattered to the ground. It did hurt, but my body was exceptionally tough, even without Seimegami helping me. So, I decided to lay there and play a bit of possum. I let my miko and demonic senses determine when Katsumi raised her foot to drive her heel into and possibly through my spine. Before she could, however, I shot up my hand to catch her by the ankle and, scrambling to my feet, performed a rather clean dragon whip in which I, still holding Katsumi's ankle, looped her leg around my head, thus tripping her up onto her face. Our audience hissed with sympathy pains. I merely sneered. That was gonna hurt in the morning.

However, despite this combatant triumph, the score—and yes, I was keeping count—was 3 to 2, and I was basically bringing up the rear. That dirty neck shot had me lagging behind. In order to win, I had to do some pretty nasty things that I definitely didn't mind doing when it came to Kobayashi.

I wasted no more time in kneeling in front of Katsumi's grounded head and crunching her face further into the gravel. There were some shocked gasps and I supposed some parents covered their naive children's eyes. Katsumi released a muffled scream of obvious pain.

"I wouldn't open my mouth if I were you, Kobayashi..." I whistled. "Your teeth will be even blacker than usual, what with the gravel." Much to my surprise and chagrin, she somehow managed to lift and bend her lower body to punt me in the face with both of her cheap-ass French heels. I fell flat on my ass and cracked my skull. Shit...I was really fucking up.

Katsumi straddled me and began choking me, her face blood mixed with bits of gravel dripping onto my face. Due to my dwindling strength, my movement was slow as I raised trembling brachial limbs to throttle her in return.

"Die...Higurashi..." Katsumi gasped, my thumb pressing down on a very tender spot in her neck.

"No...whores first...I insist..." I groaned, feeling my air supply cut off. Gradually, like always, both of us got tired and our hands dropped. Katsumi rolled off of me, producing a very wrong scene to certain close-minded people.

"I'm gonna kill you one day. You know that, right? I hate you."

"I hate you more."

"I hate you so much, I'd kill myself before I allow you to do it."

"Then by all means, be my guest."

"Fuck off."

"I'd rather fuck Inuyasha." I growled, turning my head to face her.

"You know what? I'm gonna snatch those three-dollar heels off your feet and plant 'em in your ass, huh? Maybe you'll piss shoelaces." There was a pause before she chuckled.

"Y'know, that was actually somewhat amusing."

"Considering it's at your expense, it should be."

Apparently seeing that the fight was over, the crowd began to disperse. I heard my name being called by none other than—

"Hey, that sounds like Juun'rai Sanzenin..." Katsumi mused aloud.

"It is...God, leave me alone." I groaned, wishing I could get up and run off.

"KAGOME!!!! My dearest flower! Are you all right?!" Juun cried out, dashing in my direction with the idiot masses after him. He got down on his knees at my side, stroking my face, much to Kobayashi's dismay and horror.

"What in all the hells?!?! Higurashi, you know Juun'rai Sanzenin?!"

"Unfortunately..." I grumbled. "Damn it, Juun!"

"I'm so sorry, Kagome." He cooed, nuzzling my cheek. A growl from above stopped this in its tracks.

"I told your little scrawny pussy ass to leave my girl alone, Sanzenin!"

"Goddamn it...! Inuyasha, Juun'rai, instead of arguing like the dumbasses you both are, how about helping me up?!" Katsumi stared openmouthed at me. Inuyasha gathered me up into his arms, as if I were a baby getting burped.

"Come on, Kagome, let's just go home now."

"Wait, I'll take you home, Kagome!" Juun'rai tried.

"Juun, please go home." I sighed, leaning my head over Inuyasha's shoulder and rasberrying Katsumi. "Ha-ha, Kobayashi!" Katsumi growled enviously. "Hey, since I feel sorry for you—Juun'rai!" Juun snapped to attention.

"Yes, my beloved?" he asked hopefully.

"Help Katsumi out." He noticeably deflated and turned to Katsumi, a sour look on his face. Katsumi apparently didn't know what to think. That's just the way I liked everything.

——————

After a long-ass evening of multiple fights, kissing, and whatnot, I was plumb tuckered out. However, I couldn't very well go to bed bloodied. So, after Inuyasha put Hakudoushi in his new bed, he got out the peroxide and some cotton balls. I hated peroxide, but it was better than rubbing alcohol by miles. I was laid on the couch and thoroughly treated.

"So," Inuyasha smiled, dabbing at my wounds with the cotton ball, "did you win the fight?"

"Well...in the end, the score was five to four. I came up short, but only by technicality. If I see that bitch again, I'll have on heels. That's how she got most of her points. She...lemme see, she kicked me in the face and in the gut. She would've had six points if I was dumb or weak enough to let her slam her stilettos into my spinal cord."

"I thought you did have on heels? What'd you do with 'em?"

"I chucked them back when I was running from Juun."

"So, in laymen's, you lost."

"...No, my dear mate. Technically, I won."

"But we ain't talking technicalities. We're talking straight detail."

"Well...I drove her face into the ground. Does that count?"

"Okay, yeah, so I guess you did win. Hakudoushi would be proud." I grinned, the expression quickly morphing into a grimace as my wounds widened with the effort.

"Damn whore." I huffed.

"Now, now. She's nobody important, so don't stress yourself or your wounds dwelling on her." Inuyasha assured.

"Yeah. Guess you're right. Heh...I bet that'll be a cool thing for Hakudoushi to tell his classmate when he goes to school. "My mom kicked kitsune ass!" Inuyasha laughed out loud. "Ohh...so how's my face look?"

"Eh. You were much cuter when you weren't so fucked up." He shrugged.

"Why, thank you so kindly. Why don't you just wrap up my face in some gauze, so as to soften that emotional slap?"

"Heh...I still love you, though." He chuckled, tweaking my nose.

"That's nice."

"What, you don't love me?"

"Not particularly, due to the fact that you allowed my worst enemy to flirt with you."

"Wh—okay, come on, now. I didn't trip when—" I raised a skeptical eyebrow at him. He rolled his eyes.

"Inuyasha, when don't you trip?"

"But she bought me a candied apple! I love candied apples!" he whined.

"All you had to do was tell me! I could've bought you a stupid-ass apple!"

"Hey. Don't bring the apple into this, alright? This is between me and you." He said firmly. "And besides, when exactly did I get the chance to tell you? Uh, before or after Juun'rai was feeling you up?" I gaped at him, appalled that he would bring up something so...so dirty.

"That was really wrong of you, Inuyasha. I'm hurt." I harrumphed.

"So it's true! I knew it! I've been detecting that faint odor on you all day! Tell me, how did you manage to hide your scent, huh?! Miko powers? Seimegami?"

"Who by the way did the crappiest job ever." I sighed.

Hey, I didn't even have to do it. See what your scent-masking skill produces when your heart isn't in it. Oh, wait—you don't have scent-masking skill! Alright, then! So I suggest you shut your trap, or I'll conveniently use my excellent memory to recall this moment when you're having another scent dilemma.

"Seimegami, huh?" Inuyasha shook his head, tutting at me.

"What time is it?" He looked at the clock hanging on the wall.

"It's 11:28."

"Okay, then. The night is almost over. When all three of those hands reach that twelve—minute hand, hour hand, second hand—then we'll forget any of this ever happened, okay?"

"Agreed. What else happened between you and Juun'rai that I should know about?"

"In the kaguya, he was hiding behind the dresser behind us when I said I was gonna go get some gumballs. I asked him if he was following me. He said no, but he wasn't surprised the paparazzi weren't, because I had the makings of a supermodel—without the anorexia. We laughed and I said he wasn't right, with regard to supermodels. He said he knew. He then asked whether you were my boyfriend. I said mate, actually, and showed him the mate mark." Inuyasha looked confused.

"So if he saw the mark, why hasn't he backed off yet?"

"I'm getting to that! Yeesh! So anyway...right, I showed him the mark, and he asked if Hakudoushi was my son—our son, really. I said he's mine but not yours. He said, genuinely, that he was sorry to hear that. He said your name was cool."

"Cooler than his, obviously." I glared at him.

"He asked if I'd told you about the concert. I said technically, no, my friend's boyfriend, also your friend, a.k.a. Miroku, told you 'cause he's nosy as hell. Juun said which one? I said both. So then he said let...let him let...me? Yeah, yeah, let him let me get back to you. You were probably wondering whether I'd busted the machine wide open."

"I was."

"So I made to leave, thinking that he'd forgotten about our past, but I was proven very wrong when he snagged me back and kissed me." I noticed that Inuyasha's grip on the couch cushion tightened considerably.

"How many times, exactly, has this guy kissed you? I need to know how many of his balls to rip off."

"But he only has two balls."

——————

I didn't see Katsumi anymore for a few days, nor Juun'rai. I was back to my dreary little life again. Great. And that's not sarcasm. On the day of the concert, which was to start at seven, I hung with Sango. The fact that Juun'rai Sanzenin, internationally known singer, was madly in love with me, some unknown Japanese nymphomaniac, and the fact that the whole world would probably know it after the televised concert, didn't hinder me from wanting to look good. And so, Sango and I dedicated the time between ten in the morning to five thirty in the evening to...well, looking good!

As soon as I woke up at eight, I jumped out of bed and got ready to go to Sango's. Apparently awakened by the sound of my bustling, Inuyasha sat up in the bed as I picked out my clothes, scratching his long hair.

"Baby girl, what are you doing up so early in the morning?" he grunted.

"I'm picking out my clothes to go to Sango's. We're gonna go shopping and get our hair and nails done."

"What, for the concert? Pssh. I thought you didn't want Sanzenin?"

"I don't." I shrugged. "I just wanna look good regardless. I mean, think about it—the thing is gonna be televised."

"Guh. I don't like his music no way. I got better things to do than to be watching that bullshit concert."

"Or maybe you just don't wanna see Juun?"

"Hell no. I don't have much of a reason to hate him, but I do, even though I don't remember anything from yesterday." He claimed. I shook my head. He was really taking it seriously about forgetting last night ever happened.

"Neither can I," I grinned, "but I do distinctly recall kicking a bit of ass." I spread my clothing out on the stand at the foot of the bed and pounced on top of Inuyasha. He oomphed jokingly.

"Damn, girl, you trying to kill me with your buffalo butt?" I gave him an alluring smile.

"Have you been watching Good Times again?"

"Hey, hey, hey, what can I say? That show is dynamite." He cackled.

"Okay, you know what? You have just been deemed too uncool to be seduced." I adjudicated, crawling off of him.

"Wait, no, no, I'm sorry!" he laughed, pulling me back on top of him.

"Are you sure?" I teased.

"Definite. Gimme a morning kiss." He reached up to smooch me, but I turned my head, blushing.

"Okay, my breath is kicking more ass than I do myself." I muttered.

"What, is that all? So is mine, but I don't mind kissing you."

"Let's wait until we've both showered and brushed our teeth. Ladies first, of course, 'cause I'm heading out on a girls' day." I jumped off of him, winking. He grumbled as he got up, too, yawning and stretching. I slapped him on the ass, waking him up very thoroughly. Before I went into the bathroom, I called, "And you better have that bed made when I get out, too." He groused under his breath. I lobbed my bedroom shoe at the back of his head, but by the time he'd whipped around, the bathroom door was closed and locked.

——————

About fifteen minutes later, I waltzed myself out of the bathroom, freshly laundered, with my breath smelling like Scope. I had a towel wrapped around my body and a smaller one around my head. I smiled to see the bed made, but there was no sign of Inuyasha. I shrugged and tossed the head towel onto the bed. I then dried off with the body towel and chucked that on the bed, too. I scampered over to my bedside drawer and pulled out my black blow dryer—the one with the comb attached to the mouth. Whistling jauntily, I put the blower to its designated use. The noise was naturally irritating to my ears, but for some strange reason, it seemed to suddenly double in intensity.

"The hell?" I grumbled, cutting it off. The other sound continued. Huh. Must've been Inuyasha. All this noise was bound to wake up Hakudoushi. Since my hair was already dry enough, I spritzed it for it to retain its shine and ran my Unbreakable through it. The red comb glided through my tangle-free locks and I grinned toothily. The phone rang. I dashed into the kitchen to get it, pretty much ignoring Inuyasha's hoot of obvious approval. "Yeeees?" I answered.

"Yeah, it's Sango."

"Obviously not one for formalities, my dear friend."

"Whatever. Be here at nine thirty."

"Why? What time is it?"

"It's eight twenty-six."

"Then why in the hell are you calling me now?!"

"Because! The mall opens at nine! We have to get there before the cougars!"

"...Cou...gars?"

Sango gave an exasperated groan on the other side. "Cougars, Kagome. Haven't you been watching Nancy Grace on CNN?"

"Hell no! I'm surprised you do!" I laughed. I could almost hear her roll her eyes.

"It was also on the phone commercial, where that girl was like, "Looks like ol' cougar over there is chatting him up" or something, but... Cougars are women over the age of forty who date younger men because they're going through their midlife crises and they need mental stability."

"Oh. Any other cat-related terms you wanna just...throw out there?"

"As a matter of fact, there are. We also have to get there before the bobcats and the haguars."

"And these would be...?"

"The decade-younger equivalent of a cougar, and an unattractive cougar whose advances are unsuccessful. Respectively." She added.

"Huh. Wow. Guess you really do learn something new everyday."

"So...BRING YOUR ASS!!!" Before I could retort, there was a dial tone. I could do nothing but laugh as I hung up the phone and leaned with my elbows on the table, looking around my kitchen.

"I should really—" The next thing I knew, Inuyasha's form was molded against my naked body and his shaft was plunged right up my perineum. Since I was bent over, basically, I think we should all know what that one means. My back arched, more from reflex than pleasure, but it felt pretty damn good, too. Heh.

"Um...is there any particular reason you're getting your dick more acquainted with my ass?" I asked politely. He gripped my shoulders in his palms, leaning forward and immersing himself further into me. He whispered in my ear, "You were in the customary bitch position. What could I do?"

"Mmm. Well, I know what you can do." I smirked.

"I'm only happy to do it." He grinned, thus commencing the anal version of the reproductive act...

By the time we were done, it was—shit, Sango was gonna kill me—eight forty. And now, to top off having to get dressed and all that other shit, I now had to take another shower. When I cleared my throat and innocently suggested Inuyasha and I take one together...you know, to save water, well...I think we all know that he was more than happy to indulge me. Hehehe.

——————

I sprinted through Sango's door at 9:29, 49 seconds and counting.

"Okay!" I panted. "Here-here I am!" Sango was standing by the couch, tapping her foot rather impatiently.

"I do recall requesting you be here at 9:30." She said icily.

"What?" I desperately glanced at my watch. It was a few seconds after 9:30, but I technically was here at 9:29. "Okay, so I was a little earlier than expected. And I do mean a little earlier." I chuckled. "But I thought you'd be happy about that!"

"Happy about what—the fact that you're thirty minutes late, or the fact that the watch on your wrist has been slow for three months? Hmm? Let me know, 'cause I'm slightly confused about which one."

"Slow...? Ah. Damn." I sighed. "This thing sucks."

"Just please come on, before you piss me off further."

"Noted." I followed Sango out the door to her car. We got in, she sped off, and in minutes, we were on the highway, doing about seventy.

"I told you about the cougars, didn't I? I told you."

"Hey, I couldn't help it!"

"Help what?! And anyway, I called you at eight twenty-six, and don't hear from you until you get here at ten! What in the hell could you have possibly been doing for almost an hour and a half?!"

I chuckled sheepishly. "The call of the dick is indeed a mighty one, Sango-chan." I admitted dreamily.

"GAH!" Sango blushed. "You're telling me you spent all that time having sex?!"

"Yes. Yes, I did. And I'm not ashamed, nary a bit."

"Kagome, I have nothing more to say to you."

"Okay, yeah, right, like you've never done something like that with Miroku when you had the time." As soon as her former blush seemed to be retreating, it flared up fully. "Uh-huh. That's just what I thought."

"Well...in the winter, yeah, sure. But it's fall now, and therefore the need to share body heat is unnecessary."

"It's always cool to share body heat." I grinned, reminiscing on how much body heat Inuyasha shared this morning. "Probably enough to heat all of New York for the whole winter." I thought aloud. Sango looked at me.

"Uh..." My phone rang. "I mean, nothing." I picked it up and said, "Yes, this is Kagome speaking, how may I help you?" The person on the other line laughed richly.

"Kagome, did you know that you sound exactly like a WacDnalds cashier?" Sango burst out in laughter as I anime-sweatdropped.

"Wow, Juun, you're so kind!" I growled.

"But you're extremely sexy-sounding when you growl." I smacked my forehead. Really, now—an international pop star calling me on the cell to call me sexy. I shall be the envy of every woman on Earth.

"I hate you, Juun."

"Juun who?" Sango muttered.

"This is Juun'rai Sanzenin, Sango, an idiot who has nothing better to call women when they're about to go shopping!" Sango had to swerve to narrowly avoid an eighteen-wheeler.

"Oh, Kagome, don't be like that."

"You know what, Juun, I'm sure you have some rehearsing to do, don't you? So let me let you get back to that."

"Oh, no, I'm done rehearsing. I know everything by heart now. You see, Kagome, ever since that fateful night at the carnival, I was stricken by new invigoration. I whizzed through all nine of my songs in only two hours!" I blinked. "So now I have until...five-thirty to spend the day with you. Whether it be by phone or in person, I shall have contact with you on today, the day of all days!"

"Why is today the...the day of all days?"

"Because it's the first day you've ever come to any of my concerts!"

"Oh. Hm. Well, anyway, if you really wanna spend the day with Sango and I...I guess you could come meet us at the Ryukyuan Outlet Mall. You know where that is, right?"

"Yeah! Sure!" He sounded very excited. Sango stared at me.

"You're going to invite your ex-boyfriend, Juun'rai Sanzenin, to the mall with us?"

"Um, duh, Sango." I covered the mouthpiece to grin, "If we do, he'll buy everything for us!"

"Oh, you're devious." Sango smirked.

"Make sure you wear a mask or something, now. We don't want to be mauled by anybody." I warned Juun.

"Gotcha! Um...where will you be?"

"At the huge water fountain in the middle, soon as you come in, in about ten minutes."

"Okay! Thank you, Kagome!"

"Bye, Juun'rai." I hung up, leaning back in my chair and sighing.

"That boy just doesn't know what to do with himself."

"Good thing he's not in love with anybody else, or we'd be pretty boned as far as tickets and stuff. I just don't get why he loves you of all people."

"Young Sango, when you become beautiful as I am, if ever, you'll understand." A vein burst in Sango's forehead and she noticeably gripped the steering wheel harder.

"So what are you trying to say, Kagome?" she ground out. "Don't forget who holds your life in her hands!"

"Oh! I mean...hehe..."

——————

Despite the packed parking lot, Sango managed to find a good spot. And luckily enough, it was right near the entrance. With matching smirks, we exited her car. I removed my shades, hanging them at the drop of my neckline.

"All right. We go in, get the perfect outfit, no takesies. Then we come back out. Make sure it's not too big, or too small. Also, it can't be so casual that you can wear it once a month, but not so formal that you only wear it this once. Make it something you can wear anytime you wanna blow someone away." I said gravely, as if we were on a secret mission.

"Right!" My stomach gurgled.

"But first...we eat." With an affirmative nod from Sango, we walked to the mall entrance.

Inside, I looked around for Juun'rai. I wasn't really gonna make him buy anything, but I guess it would be nice for him to tag along. I didn't have to look for long; the hyperactive singer called me out by my name. I looked in his direction, smiling sheepishly as he ran my way, grinning happily.

"Hi, Kagome." He said moonily, like he'd been admiring me from afar or something. Whenever he would talk like this to me in our college days, I would point this out, and he said, "Why admire you from afar when I can appreciate you up close?" That statement nearly had me swooning.

"Hello, Juun."

"Shh...in the mall, that's not my name."

"Well, then, what the hell is your name, Juun?" Sango snickered.

"My name is...uh...how about Inuyasha?"

"WHAT?!"

"Kidding, kidding!" he chuckled nervously, backing off at the venomous look in my eye. "Just joking...sheesh...Aoitsuki, then."

"...That name rings a bell..." I muttered. That is, other than the bell already ringing, labeled "This is what you considered naming Hakudoushi back when you were pregnant."

"It should. It's my middle name." My eyes widened. I was horrified. I was going to name my first son after my ex-boyfriend?! "Is there something wrong, Kagome?" I shook my head and smiled.

"Nah. Nothin's wrong, Aoitsuki." It didn't sound right, talking to Juun. But what could I do?

"Okay, then." He seemed to notice Sango for the first time. "Oh, my—I'm so sorry, I seem to have slighted you. Are you a friend of Kagome's?" Sango pinked, stammering incoherently.

"I-I, um, that is to say..." She took a deep breath and smiled at Juun'rai. "Yes, I am. I'm Sango. Pleased to meet you, J—I mean Aoitsuki."

"Hehehe!" Juun chuckled, shaking Sango's hand. I was sure she was going to scrape the dead skin off later, put it in a Petri, and sell it on eBay. "Honored to meet you, too, Sango-sama. Any friend of Kagome's is a friend of mine!"

"Is any mate of Kagome's a mate of yours?" I snickered.

"Your attempt at humor is feeble at best, sweetie. Stick to being sexy." Juun winked, releasing Sango's hand and putting his arms around us both. "So! Where are my two new favorite ladies headed for?" Sango must be thanking God that she met me last year.

"Actually, we were gonna go to the foodie court. I'm starving." I grinned, rubbing my stomach.

"Ah-ha! Say no more. I'll buy you breakfast."

"But Juun..." I tried. He silenced me with a look. "I mean Aoitsuki..." I grumbled. "We can afford it, y'know."

"Nonsense! ...Well, it's not nonsense that you can't afford it...I mean it's nonsense that you..can't afford it...I mean, it's not nonsense that you can afford it, I'm just being polite here. Stop me anytime."

"No thanks. I'm being entertained." Sango laughed.

"Let's just go to the food court and split it up 33-33-34, alright? Since I was the hungry one, I'll take the 34."

"I refuse to allow you two to pay for your own food. I'll buy it for you." Juun'rai assured. I sighed.

"Fine, Aoitsuki. If you insist. Because I know you won't shut up until I give you what you want." We started for the court. Juun leaned into my ear, whispering, "You still haven't technically given me what I want." He nipped at my ear, licking and kissing. I shuddered, trying to make it seem like he wasn't making an attempt at seducing me.

"And you still haven't shut up about it." I mumbled, pushing his head away. "Please, Juun'rai, don't do that."

"Why not?" He moved his arm from atop my shoulder to hook it around my torso and casually brush his fingers against my breast.

"You're evil, Juun'rai." I muttered, restraining another shiver at the delicate touch. "We've been through this multiple times. And besides, Sango's right there. We're probably making her feel like a third wheel."

"I can't imagine why. I'm sure she has a boyfriend or something. She's attractive."

"...I'm not going to, um, comment." I cleared my throat, feeling mildly jealous. "Hey, what happened with you and Katsumi?" I changed the subject, speaking in a louder tone.

"Who?"

"Uh...the kitsune hanyou I had you help."

"Oh, her. Well, it turned out that Shippou wasn't really sick, he just didn't want to work. But like an idiot, he was hanging out at the carnival. So when I busted him, I dumped the bitch—excuse my language—onto him. I figured they'd hit it off, since they were both kitsune, and therefore deceptive by nature. I wanted to catch up to you, but I wasn't inuyoukai, so I couldn't exactly trace your scent or anything." I looked at him. His tone when saying the word "inuyoukai" sounded slightly bitter.

He could be jealous of Inuyasha.

It's not entirely improbable.

He also seemed to be mocking us.

Us who?

Inuyoukai.

But I'm not really an inuyoukai.

I wasn't talking about you. I was talking about Inuyasha and I.

Oh. ...

Don't get jealous. I don't want him.

Ah. But, uh, your mate resides in his body, and—

Shut the hell up.

It was weird, though—I never pegged Juun'rai as the jealous type.

Not openly, no, because he didn't want to smother you. But if you just use your senses, you can tell. There's a moderately-sized ball of envy in his heart.

Hm...like I said before, jealousy turns me on.

"Okay, here we are." Sango's voice brought us back to reality. Juun'rai and I looked in front of us. Atop the large opening that made the food court look like a hollowed-out box was a neon sign flashing "Food Court." And we did not already know that. Sango's phone rang. "Hold on...you guys go on." I shot her a deadly look, one which read "Leave me with this horny idiot and I'll slaughter you." But she only shrugged as she answered her cell and walked away to a bench near numerous machines. Juun wiggled his eyebrows at me, smiling toothily as he placed his arm around my waist and led me into the court.

"Don't worry, Kagome—I remember every single thing you like to eat for breakfast. Remember the stunt we pulled after watching that one episode of Neon Genesis?" I couldn't help but grin.

"Yeah...that week was one of the best I ever had." I sighed dreamily. Juun strolled up to the counter and said casually, "Yes, um, are you serving breakfast?"

"No, I'm sorry, sir, but breakfast ended at ten." Damn! Damn, damn, dingity dang dong! (AN: Maxine is my favorite character from Living Single. I'll leave the rest up to you.)

I sighed. Juun'rai looked at me, then back at the cashierwoman. Keyword: woman. This would affect his next move quite greatly.

"Are you sure you couldn't whip anything up back there?" He smiled, lifting his mask to reveal his face. The woman's eyes widened considerably and she stammered, "Oh, I-I'm sorry, Sanz—"

"Shh...nobody else can know that this is me. Just call me Higurashi-san." I glared at him, baring my teeth.

"Um...Higurashi-san, I mean...of course, f-for you, anything!" She ran to the back, screaming like a fangirl. I smacked my forehead.

"Goddamn it, Juun, I swear to God, I hate when you do that!"

"Aw, you know you love it." He lowered his voice. "You know I could've been, though?" I froze, but feigned stupidity.

"Could've been what?"

"I could have been your husband, Kagome." I blushed, lowering my head and averting my gaze. He was right. And, at the risk of sounding redundant, the cocky prick knew it well.

"I guess so. That is, if I wasn't already in love with Inuyasha. If you hadn't gone away for so long and left me to find somebody else. But then if you were my husband, I wouldn't've gotten to have Hakudoushi. I wouldn't've met Sango and Miroku and Kinamadare and all my other friends. I wouldn't've found out that I wanted a child and a family. And hell, I probably would've cheated on you anyway." I said coldly.

...Now, I think you went a little too far with that one.

Well, hell, it's true!

But you didn't have to say it out loud.

Juun looked at me, his azure eyes welling slightly. He gave a long sniffle and replaced his mask as the cashier came back.

"Okay, sir, breakfast is now available. What would you like?"

"You heard the lady, Kagome. What do...what do you want?" His voice was wavering a little, but I could tell that he was trying his damnedest to keep it straight.

"I'm not hungry anymore." I said simply, turning and leaving. I could feel Juun'rai tearful gaze burning into my back as I left, my chest pained with guilt.

——————

Juun'rai didn't follow me like I expected him to. Naturally, this made me feel even worse. Now I didn't even want to go to the concert. I told Sango about what I'd said to Juun while she changed into her normal clothes in the dressing room. A couple hours later, she'd finally settled on, for the concert, that is, a pair of white denim/spandex jeans, with little rhinestones running down the sides of the legs, a pair of black-and-white high-topped Filas, and a black cotton/polyester halter which read in blue glitter, white outlining each word, "Can't Touch This." My outfit was similar, an indication of just how badly I felt. However, I did feel well enough to get different colors. My jeans were blackish-blue, and my halter was a white midi-length bustier. Since I was sure I would be standing a lot, I decided to buy some sneakers, too—a pair of black-and-white suede Pumas! We looked pretty good, clothing-wise, but now it was time to go and get our hair done.

"Sango," I said as we sat down with our bags full of clothes, sipping Icees and dunking pretzel bites into hot cheese fondue, "what time is it?"

"Hmm..." Sango looked at her watch. "Some time after noon."

"Okay, so we have time."

"Time for what?" she asked as I whipped out my cell phone, looking through my recent calls. Aside from telling me that I needed to get out more (Another Note: This statement had nothing to do with that of my flamer. It was written much before he or she flamed me.), I was shown Juun'rai's cell phone number. Luckily, he hadn't used the hotel phone when he'd called me earlier. or I'd be screwed. I had to apologize to him, today, and not just because he'd fuck up at the concert if he was sad. He did say, after all, that I was his inspiration, and lately, I seemed to be the only one saddening him. After multiple rings...

"Hello?" His tone was miserable; listless, lacking its usual enthusiasm utilized by most circus monkeys.

"Juun'rai? This is Kagome."

"...Oh." I thought he was going to say something further, like... "What are you calling me for?" or "Haven't you made me suffer enough?" But his reticence only served to disconcert me even more.

"Listen...I'm really sorry for what I said. That was the bitchiest thing I could've ever said to you. I didn't mean it in any way, and...well, I apologize. I was a real flibbertigibbet." He chuckled on the other end and it made me smile. "Flibbertigibbet" was a word on our list of hated words, a list we made back in college.

"Yeah...I guess you kinda were. But I still love you. Ya gonzo flibbertigibbet." I laughed aloud. "Gonzo" was on the list, too. It made me think of garbanzo beans, which I hated. But the word garbanzo was a cool word.

"So does that mean you forgive me?"

"Yes, of course. But could you do me a favor?"

"Sure. What is it?"

"I want you to meet me over in the Foot Locker. I have a surprise for you..." Vaguely, I wondered what it was, but my intuition—namely Seimegami—was flashing warning bells in my head. But then again...the miko side of me, the nice side which provoked me to apologize to Juun in the first place, reasoned that if I didn't go, he'd be heartbroken again.

"O...okay."

"See you later, Kagome."

"Bye, Juun..." I hung up, wondering whether I made the right decision.

Probably not.

Thanks for your support.

"Hey...Sango...I'll be right back. Don't go anywhere."

"Hmm? Okay...but make sure you're back by one. Our hair appointment is at one thirty."

"I'll probably be back before then, don't worry." I rolled my eyes, and headed for the Foot Locker.

When I got there, I looked around for the familiar black-and-gray striped dress jacket to find him waaaay in the back, out of sight of the cameras, even.

I wonder why.

I don't appreciate your sarcasm.

I walked his way—

There's still time to back out.

—past the rows of size 5s, 6s, and 7s—

Turn around, now, Kagome!

—past the rows of eights, nines—

If you go two sizes further...

—and finally, I arrived to the tens and above, where Juun awaited me.

"Okay. So what did you—mmph!" I was abruptly cut off by Juun simultaneously dipping me and clashing his lips with mine.

I told you...

My limbs went limp and Juun'rai gently laid me upon the floor. I was too weak to retaliate, or to even get back up.

I could help you with that, if your mind wasn't so blank!

Well, maybe I don't want your help!

(fake appalled gasp) Oh, really? Let's just see what Inuyasha has to say about this, then.

...You bitch. And I'm not referring to your canid heritage, either.

I surmised that.

But I could not speak, for Juun'rai had our lips sealed like, if not tighter than, a bank safe. He straddled my body, not breaking the lip lock. Whereas my eyes had been lazily closed throughout the entire thing, when I felt this guy's pulsating erection, my eyes shot up.

Well, well, well. You should've known not to start something you knew you couldn't finish.

I almost hate to say it...but you're right...

"Um..." I mumbled against his lips.

I say nothing more.

"Wait...Juun'rai..." I pushed him away, despite my reluctance to do so. He looked at me as if nothing had even happened.

"Is something wrong, Kagome?" Again, I felt that sense of deja vu.

"Yes. Something is wrong with my soul and yours. I love you, Juun'rai—dearly so, but not enough to cheat on Inuyasha. He probably still hasn't truly forgiven me for kissing you all those other times. So, if it's all right with you, I'd like you to get up, please." He shrugged and did so, even helping me to my feet. I brushed off my clothing, blowing a sigh. Boy, was that hard to do.

"It's okay, 'cause that prolonged kiss was definitely enough to fuel me up for the rest of my life." He grinned, wiping lip gloss off of his mouth. "Ooh, strawberry."

"Strawberry-kiwi, thank you." I smirked. "I gotta get back to Sango, okay? You take your ass back to that hotel or to the concert hall, or whatever the hell."

"Okay." As I walked out, earning strange looks from the others—probably because of my mussed-up hair—, Juun called softly, "I love you, Kagome." I paused to smile.

"I love you, too, Juun'rai."

——————

Sango didn't question why I looked so complacent when I returned to her. All she said was "Let's go." So I followed her back to the car, wordless. It wasn't until we were halfway to the beauty salon that she cracked.

"Alright. That's it, 'cause you know it's killing me. What happened?"

"Nothing happened!" I lied. "We just talked it out, and forgave each other."

"My ass, you talked it out. Your lip gloss was smeared."

"What can I say? My lip gloss was cool; my lip gloss was poppin'." I shrugged nonchalantly. "I came into Foot Locker, and all the boys was stoppin'." Sango laughed.

"Good one."

Yeah, right. You're too old to be quoting hip-hop lyrics.

I know you ain't talkin'.

"Seimegami just called me old, Sango."

"Say huh? ...But...you're younger than me." Sango's eye twitched.

...Uh...

"She says, oh, no, never mind."

"Hm." Sango huffed.

"What she meant to say was, Grandma Sango's not old."

"THIS COMING FROM A GODDESS THOUSANDS OF YEARS OLD?!?!" Sango yelled, cutting the car left, to once again avoid a pedestrian.

Seimegami, perhaps you should stop angering the driver, hmm? Lest we both be pushing up chrysanthemums.

Pushing up whats? I thought it was daisies.

Yeah, well, I hate daisies. They suck ass. I don't want no fuckin' daisies on my grave. That would be dishonourable to my spirit, and I would come back and haunt the asses who put 'em there.

But who in their right minds would pay for chrysanthemums to put on dirt

My son, damn it! And whomever else I happen to conceive! "Listen, Sango, Seimegami says she's sorry, so don't kill us, alright?!" I said in an attempt to calm the raging girl.

"Okay, fine. But if one more joke is made at my expense, I swear, we're goin' on a one-way trip to Ditchland!" I gulped, clearing my throat rapidly.

Seimegami, if you don't wanna live in Ditchland for all eternity, I suggest you shut the hell up.

Oh, I won't be living in Ditchland, baby—all I have to do is transfer myself to another vessel, and I'll be good.

Oh, you are a bitch.

Why, thank you kindly.

——————

It seemed that Sango and I weren't the only ones gettin' our herr did. An assload of women were up in that salon, and I know there had to be a minimum of thirty. I glared at Sango, who shrugged.

"Yeah, but we got appointments." She smirked.

"I don't give a damn about y'all's appointment! I made an appointment two weeks ago in preparation for this day!" One woman yelled, and others agreed rather fervently.

"Um, hold up a damn minute here! I don't care about your little preparations and shit, because we wasn't talking to yo' fat ass!" I snapped my fingers at the woman in defense. Who the hell was she to be gettin' all up in our business?

"Oh, the hell no, you ain't talkin' to me! Bitch, I'll pull your damn weave slam outta ya damn skull!"

"Look. I don't even have to be wasting my time with you. I frankly don't even wanna go to this damned concert." I chuckled. All eyes turned onto me. There was a yell and I smelled burnt hair. "What? I'm serious! Juun'rai Sanzenin is not all that, okay?" My cell phone rang, breaking the silence like thin ice, and I answered it. "Hello?"

"Hi, Kagome!" My eye twitched. What a wonderful time to call me, Juun!

"...Hi, buddy. Hey, listen, there's been some difficulties, and I can't get my hair done, apparently, so we'll have to give you your tickets ba—"

"No, Kagome!" I was startled at the urgency in his voice.

"Kagome, who is that? The entire salon is listening in on the conversation!" Sango muttered frantically.

"It's you-know-who. The one who gave us the tickets." I cleared my throat. "Look, dude, don't worry about it, alright? Inuyasha will probably be glad for it, and I'm sure Haku-chan is tearing his hair out."

"Kagome, I can't...I can't do this concert without you!" The demonesses' ears perked up at hearing this.

"Concert?!" They yelled. I slapped my forehead.

"Who are you talking to?"

"It's my damn cell phone, and—"

"She's talking to Juun'rai Sanzenin." Sango smirked. I turned blazing purple eyes onto her.

"Shut your damn mouth." I hissed.

"Kagome, where are you? I'll be right down there and set things straight."

"Boy, you come down here and I'll kill you! Or better yet, I'll have Inuyasha do it! I'll call you later." I hung up on him and stashed the cell back in my pocket. "And you. You traitorous skank, how dare you?!"

"Shit, I wanna get my damn hair done." Sango scoffed. "Yes, my friend here had relations with Juun'rai Sanzenin, and what can I say? He can't get enough of her! He's in love with her, and why? Hell, look at her! She's hot, she can sing, there's a sex goddess residing in her body—who wouldn't love her?" God, how I wanted to die.

"Sango, I fucking hate the hell out of you, you know that?" I sighed, massaging my temples.

"You're lying." One scoffed, and the others agreed.

"Yes, she was lying—she's a pathological liar. We gotta get her checked out for that."

"Hypocrite." Sango muttered.

"I'll be that today, sweetie!" I trilled. "Let's get the hell outta here." Hopefully, we could make an escape before Juun'rai actually did make his appearance.

Unfortunately, hope was not on my side today.

Juun'rai burst through the double doors, grinning like the idiot he is. My lip trembled and I tried to cry, but no tears would come out. Sango's lip trembled, too, but for a much more different reason, because she turned around and let out a loud, triumphant laugh in the faces of all the flabbergasted women.

"HAAAAAAAAAAAAAA!!!!Oh, excuse me, ma'am, is this your lip? I think it dropped! HA-HA!" Sango cackled.

"Juun'rai." I said quietly.

"Yes, Kagome?" he said eagerly.

"Why are you here?"

"I followed your car!" Son-of-a-bitch, he even sounded proud.

"Why?"

"I was in the parking lot, and you sounded like you were having a hard time getting your hair done. Both of you can come and have your hair done by my own stylist."

"Okay!" Sango grinned, but I held up my hand to silence her. Pinching the bridge of my nose, I said, "Juun, I just...don't...even go there. Okay? You and I both know that clout doesn't impress me."

"But I-I'm not trying to—"

"Juun, please let me finish." I sighed. "I told you not to come here, yet you did anyway. You are going to get me in some mega trouble, you know that?"

"Okay. I'm sorry, Kagome. I can't help it, though—I have to be around you!" he said hysterically.

"I would appreciate it if you would leave, please. We can talk about this later." He nodded, and made like he was turning to leave, but the sneaky bastard went and kissed me, in front of all these women!" I was utterly helpless to the feel of his expert lips, so what did I do? Stood right there and took it.

Oh-ho, you are screwed in the head. I suggest you make him leave, like right now, because I hate to tell you, but you've been caught on candid camera, babe. My eyes widened and I pushed him away and out of the door.

"Sango, we are, um...we're leaving." I cleared my throat, grabbing Sango's hand to drag her the hell out of there.

"Ohhhh! So that's why you were rejecting Juun'rai's advances." The hated voice of my bitter rival rang out from the crowd of still staring women. My eye twitched and I turned back around, dropping Sango's hand.

"Kobayashi, you bitch. You obviously didn't get enough of your last asskickin', didja?" I growled.

"Well, now that was a mere technicality." She scoffed. "I didn't know that I was fighting both a lesbian and a starfucker(this term was used by Sarah Silverman once: her exact words were "You're a star and I'm a starfucker!)." Ooh...! Fuck, she just made me so mad! "And looky, looky! I've got a few little memoirs of the whole affair!" She held up her cell phone, and there it was, a picture of Juun'rai and I kissing. I growled aloud.

"I'll fucking murder you!" I made a mad leap at her, and it surprisingly made contact. The women crowded around, hooting and hollering. The apparent owner was yelling for us to break it up. I punched the hell out of Katsumi, not caring how I looked. Sango pushed past the crowd and pulled me off of the bitch. I glared nastily at Katsumi, who coughed up a little blood, but still had the nerve to keep smirking.

"Murder me all you like, but the, uh, proof's in the proverbial pudding here, Kags." I growled, hating that woman and that nickname with every fiber of my being.

"Hey, whoa, Kagome, what's this freaky thing going on with you?" Sango asked.

"I must be transforming." I grunted.

"Transforming?" Katsumi scoffed. "That's so geeky, and yet so you, Higurashi."

"Sango, we're going to leave right now. Because I don't feel like having blood on my claws today." I huffed, turning on my heel, Sango hurrying behind me.

"Now, wait until a certain Inuyasha sees this." I didn't know what happened the next moment, but I do know that I was suddenly consumed with blind fury. It was a good thing that Katsumi was at least a hanyou, or she would've probably been dead.

——————

I drummed my fingers angrily on the outside of Sango's car door, grumbling to myself. I had calmed enough to reform into my human form.

"Kagome, don't let that whore faze you. I don't know who she is, but apparently neither of you like each other very much."

"Like each other?" I scoffed. "I kicked her ass just last week, and she was probably purposely put on this earth to make my life miserable. I've hated her since college."

"So..." Sango sighed. "Guess the concert's off, huh?"

"I'm...I don't know anymore. But I do know this; if Katsumi shows those pictures to Inuyasha, she's gonna wish she were dead. However, if we do go to the concert, I say screw the hair and the nails. We can improvise."

"You're right. We've already got the clothes. It's just...damn, 'cause today was supposed to be a girls' day out. Miroku's at work today, and Inuyasha's taking care of Hakudoushi. If we go to your house, he's bound to ask questions, so what do we do now?"

"I don't know. I'm too pissed to even see straight right now. How about we go to a spa or something? We got the money, don't we?"

"Sure, I guess. A spa, and we can stay there for the rest of the day."

"Okay. That's cool." Sango looked at me carefully.

"Kagome, do you still even want to go to the concert tonight?"

"I don't know yet. I'll probably be able to figure all of it out once I calm down a little more. In the meantime, can you crank up the radio, please? Music sedates me."

"Alright." She turned up the volume, and my "favorite" song, "Party Like A Rockstar" began to play. My eye twitched as Sango yelled out, "I make it rain from the center of my giya-tah!" I stared at her.

"What..in the fuck...is a fucking...giya-tah?!"

"That's what he sounds like. It's supposed to be guitar, but he goes giya-tah. It's funny as hell." Sango grinned.

"Please, Sango. For the sake of my life, please turn the station." I sighed.

"Okay, okay." Now a much better song was playing—Big Girls Don't Cry, by Fergie.

"Thank you kindly."

——————

By the time we got to the spa, I was calm enough to decide that I wanted to go to the concert. Of course, Sango was all ecstatic, but all I did was roll my eyes. It really wasn't that big of a deal to me.

"Yeah! I KNOW it's not a big deal to you, because you know Juun'rai Sanzenin personally!" Sango hissed as we got the kinks blasted out of our joints.

"It wouldn't matter to me no damn way!" I scoffed emphatically. "I mean...to tell the truth, I don't really know any of his songs." Her eyes widened at me.

"Ka-go-me. I am in appall."

"Yeah, I can see that."

"Well, luckily for you, I have every song Juun'rai Sanzenin has ever made before, so listen to them all once or twice, and let your demon powers implant the lyrics in your brain." I shook my head as she handed me her earphones and her cell. "Heh, it's funny because all of 'em seem to relate to you. Well, a good bit, anyway." I quirked an eyebrow, then saw exactly what she meant when I noticed my name in one of Juun'rai's songs. Called "Hey There, Kagome." Huh. I scrolled down and clicked on it, and therein was a soft guitar intro. Wasn't bad.

"Hey there, Kagome, what's it like in New York City

I'm a thousand miles away, but girl, tonight you look so pretty, yes, you do

Times Square can't shine as bright as you

I swear it's true..." I tried to hide my smile and blush from Sango's knowing eyes, but I couldn't. It was just so sweet! Somewhat off, since a bitch ain't even in New York City, but the gesture is sweet, overall.

"Uh-huh. See? You have to know the lyrics, 'cause we'll be in the front seats, and—and I've seen this happen before—he'll most likely be putting the microphone in your face for you to sing the remaining lyrics!!!!"

"Lemme guess. Family Guy." I said dryly.

"So?" she huffed. I gave a scoffing laugh, then tuned back into—literally—my song.

"Oh, it's what you do to me

Oh, it's what you do to me

Oh, it's what you do to me

Oh, it's what you do to me

What you do to me...

Hey there, Kagome

I know times are gettin' hard

But just believe me, girl

Someday I'll pay the bills with this guitar

We'll have it good

We'll have the life we knew we would

My word is good

Hey there, Delilah

I've got so much left to say..." I sighed as the rest of the song played.

Well, the song's at least partially accurate. Seimegami suggested. You have the life you knew you would. I dunno about Juun'rai. He has somewhat of the life he knew he would.

No. I never thought I'd end up with Inuyasha for a mate, much less Hakudoushi for a son or even Sango for a friend. I just really badly wanted those things, and was obviously unstable enough to believe they could be substituted with dozens upon dozens upon dozens of men at my disposal.

And yeah, Juun'rai really badly wanted to sing, but I know he wanted to be with me, too, probably even more. If everything unconnected to Inuyasha's sudden reappearance in my life last year were to such disappear, and I lost all memory of it, I'm sure Juun'rai would have been the best boyfriend I could ever wish for. But even a bedlamite like myself knows that it wouldn't've mattered, because I'd still be obsessing over Inuyasha, and would've all but cheated on the poor guy anyway.

Aw, you're learning things. Well, can you now see how you were back when you were obsessing over Inuyasha?

Huh? Whatchu talkin' 'bout, Willis?

...Yeah. Now that Juun'rai can't have you, he's pretty much dedicating every aspect of his life to you. I mean, damn—the guy pretty much named a song after you! How much more loving can you get

A lot, but that's not the point, is it?

——————

And finally...we got to the concert. After a long, long time of quasi-misery, this damned concert was finally here. And it better be worth the motherfucking effort.

Needless to say, it was pretty damn packed up in there. If you looked at the bouncers at the front, you'd see they were having a hell of a time keeping the ticketless out. I had to chuckle to myself in the front row. Ah, the young, desperate, and without connections.

They might as well have not had any fucking seats in the place, because everyone, including my friend, was standing up, jumping in excitement. The guy wasn't even on the stage yet, and the bitches wouldn't shut the hell up. I think I was the only one sitting down. I felt slightly bored. If Juun didn't make this concert worth all of the shit we had to put up to make sure I got here, I was gonna murder him slowly.

"Kagome, you idiot, get up and scream!!!" Sango shouted at me.

"Fuck no. I've seen him before, fucked him before, I'll survive. You've seen him, too—what's the big deal?"

"The big deal is, I don't know him like you do, so it woulda been a big deal for me anyway! Oh, look, look, he's coming out!!!" I rolled my eyes and watched Juun'rai step out from behind the curtains. I yawned a bit. Cell phones were already being taken out to take pictures of him. Whatever.

I noticed that he had a bit of a slump in his walk, so I decided to humor him and smile as he walked right in front of me. He stared in disbelief for a slight second, then was back to his old self, grinning at the entire crowd with a mic in hand.

"Hold up a minute. Now...I could've sworn...I was in a concert hall, not church!" I chuckled, while the others roared with laughter. I could see in his eyes that he was happy to see the laughter in mine. "That's so much better. With this first song..." The band in the back began playing a lengthened intro to "I Miss You," a song I instantly recognized from Sango's collection. I blinked. "I'm gonna remind everyone of how I know they felt when that special one just up and walked out of your life." Sango smiled down at me, and I blushed intensely. Juun chuckled, looking dead at me as he began singing.

"I miss you

I'm talkin' to you, baby..." He winked and pointed at me in particular. I had to grin.

"I miss you...

I miss you

I'm talkin' to you, baby

I miss you

We used to talk

And laugh all night, girl

What happened to those days?

Did they all just fade away?

Holdin' you in my arms

Made me feel so happy

Then you said you had to go

What's wrong?

Baby, I need to know..." I could do nothing but stare dreamily at him as he sang such heartbreaking words to me.

Okay! Damn! So baby boy can sing. No big deal! I bet Inuyasha will sing for you if you ask him to.

It wouldn't be the same, though...I love Inuyasha dearly, and once this concert is over, I will be forgetting any of it ever happened. But for tonight? I was gonna be enraptured by Juun'rai's wonderful voice.

The harmonizers took over the chorus, while Juun adlibbed.

"(I miss you) Oh, yes, I do

(I'm talkin' to you, baby) Hear me when I say

(I miss you) I miss you, yes, I do

Yes, I do (I miss you) Oh

(I'm talkin' to you, baby) I'm talkin' to you

(I miss you) Only to you, baby—" The music flipped into a steady drum beat.

"Oh, shit! I love this song!" Sango cheered, along with the other thousands of women.

"...Why? From what I heard of this song, the very first verse is sung by a woman, and I don't see any sauntering out here."

"Damn, Kagome, you're stupid as fuck! Every time he sings a song with a woman in it, he picks someone out of the crowd!"

"Well, shit, then why make the damn song?!" I panicked. Oh, no. I had to smile at him! If only...I...could...sink into the floor!

The harmonizers began the chorus.

"Sunday, Monkey, Tuesday, Wednesday, Thursday, Friday, Saturday love

Sunday, Monkey, Tuesday, Wednesday, Thursday, Friday, Saturday love

Sunday, Monkey, Tuesday, Wednesday, Thursday, Friday, Saturday love

Sunday, Monkey, Tuesday, Wednesday, Thursday, Friday, Saturday love..." I braced myself for the limelight blinding me, but was surprised when the band prolonged the instrumental.

"So tell me, who out there...wants to be my Saturday love?!" Juun laughed. The result damn near deafened me. Nice going, Juun.

"Better get ready for that light, Kagome, 'cause you know it's all you in a minute!" Sango cackled. I gulped, getting to my shaky feet.

Please calm me down, Seimegami. I can't afford to embarrass myself on national television.

Just use your miko powers. Concentrate on calming things.

I did as she said, and just when the spotlight shone on me, I could look Juun right in the eye as he smiled at me. He held out his hand and helped me up onto the stage. I scanned over the crowd, and smirked because of all the astonished haters. Probably surprised I wasn't trying to kill Juun for his drawers.

"You know this song, right?" he asked quietly.

"Of course I do." I smirked. "You just don't worry about that, cutie." I added with a wink, then took the microphone and sang my little half-demon heart out!

"When I think about...you

My feelings can't explain

Why after all this time

My heart still feels pain..." Juun looked pretty amazed that I could sing. I heard Sango cheering the loudest for me, and when I looked a bit closer into the crowd, I even saw Tobushikai wolf-whistling. I grinned and continued.

"When I look at you

Memories of love

Like no one before

You stay on my mind..." In came the harmonizers with the bridge, and I actually began ad-libbing.

"(Special feelings, special time) Always so special

(I was yours and you were mine) Made for each other

(All the good I won't forget) You will stay on my mind

(Saturday, the day we met)

For always and forever

You will be my Saturday love..."

Juun'rai and I did the chorus together, and this time, the women weren't so much haters as they were impressed with my singing prowess. Heh. Oh, yes, baby, this chica right here can sing.

"Sunday, Monkey, Tuesday, Wednesday, Thursday, Friday, Saturday love

Sunday, Monkey, Tuesday, Wednesday, Thursday, Friday, Saturday love

Sunday, Monkey, Tuesday, Wednesday, Thursday, Friday, Saturday love

Sunday, Monkey, Tuesday, Wednesday, Thursday, Friday, Saturday love..." I stood there, beaming, as Juun'rai now sang directly to me. He almost made me forget that this whole event was on pay-per-view, but I didn't care anymore. I briefly wondered the time, because if I wasn't back home by eleven...I shuddered to think what would happen. But I couldn't very well just walk right off the damn stage, not when the whole thing was televised! No, I had to stick it out, whether I wanted to or not.

And I'm positive that Inuyasha will believe that entire sick excuse.

Oh, get a life.

"When I look at you

Memories of love

Like no one before

You stay on my mind..." This time, it was Juun'rai's turn to adlib, and I was just soaking up every moment of it until it was my turn to sing again. "Sing with me!" He pointed the mic at the crowd, who happily sang,

"Special feelings, special time (Always so special)

(I was yours and you were mine) Made for each other, girl

(All the good I won't forget) Stay on my mind

(Saturday, the day we met) Girl, you know I'll never leave you behind

For always and forever

You will be my Saturday love..." The music suddenly stopped, and at the finalizing drum beat, Juun'rai went acapella. Yes, this song was more of a favorite of mine—Love Makes Things Happen.

"You never know

You never know it" He pointed to me.

"You never know

You never, never, never, never, never know

No, no, no, no-oh" We harmonized.

"You never know..." After his words, the drummer dished out something moderately simple, and I waited for the actual music to play before singing my own words.

"Deep in your heart

Love has many ways

Of touching your emotions, taking control of you

And even in thought

Love can make you change

There's no way of controlling love

When it's part of you..."Juun then took over.

"Well, you could be a married man with two kids and a good woman

And you could give your heart and soul, I swear it don't mean nothing

'Cause love can pull you deep into a spell...

It will spin your mind around like a carousel, oh

(harmonizers) I'm tellin' you, love

Makes things happen

You never know where it's comin' from

You never know who you're gonna love (Who you're gonna love)

I'm telling you, love

Makes things happen (Makes it...)

You never know what it's gonna do (Never know)

Whenever true love takes over you...(Ooh...)"

"(Juun'rai) There's never a time

'Cause love will let you know

Love appears at the worst

And even the best of times"

"(together) Takes over your mind

Your heart is not your own"

"(Juun'rai) There's no way of controlling love

It controls your life..."

"(Kagome) Well...you could be a faithful girl

With a good heart and good intentions (Well, well)

And you could never leave your home

(together) I swear there ain't no prevention (No, no)

(Kagome) 'Cause love can pull you deep into a spell

(together) It will spin your mind around like a carousel, oh..." The beat switched up to something with a more solemn flow. This was a very heartwrenching song.

"(Juun'rai) Oh, oh, oh, yeah

Oh...

Oh...

Oh...

Oh...

Oh, oh, yeah... (Emotional)

I always dreamed that everything would be okay with me and you

I was wrong

When I look into your eyes, I didn't see all the things I used to see

What's goin' on?"

"(Kagome) You gave me reason to believe that we were always meant to be

But now I see

You were wrong

You can't keep runnin' back to me with all those

(together) Baby, baby pleases

No more

No more... (Never imagined)"

"(harmonizers) Never imagined you would be a faded picture

I'm emotional

(Juun'rai) I'm emotional, oh...

(harmonizers) It's all believing

No deceiving

It's official

I'm emotional

(Juun'rai) So emotional, oh..."

"(Kagome) I can't forget

That night I saw you in the corner after dark

You were wrong

Slow dancing on the floor

While I was watching from the door

So hurt

There you were...

You gave me reason to believe

That we were always meant to be

But now I see

You were wrong

You can't keep runnin' back to me

With all those baby, baby pleases

No more

No more..." As soon as I stopped singing, the music stopped, then crescendoed into the driving beat of Figure It Out. I really badly felt like dancing, but if I did, Juun'rai would probably try to dance with me, and it was already bad enough I was singing with the guy. I didn't need Inuyasha killing the guy too badly.

—————— —————— —————— —————— —————— ——————

FNC: And thus ends this incredibly long chapter, the likes of which will probably never be written again by the likes of me. Hell, for a chapter that long, I expect twenty more reviews (or more) before I next update! You people better damn appreciate this brain sewage, too! It took me, literally, months to finish this chapter!

Also, here's a fun extra: story-long dedication to the person or people who can find out original people who sung the four songs.

Clue 1: They're all songs from either the nineties or somewhere around '02.

Clue 2: You can Google the lyrics if you want.

Whosoever can correctly label the artists for these songs will have the rest of the story dedicated to them! It will probably be over in about five chapters, I dunno. I got major plans for this thing, heh.

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