Obligatory Disclaimer: The "Inu Yasha" series and its characters are the property of Rumiko Takahashi, Sunrise, Shounen Sunday, Viz, and other corporate types. I am none of those entities. I'm just a silly fan writing silly stories because it's fun. Suing me would only be a waste of time and funds, so please don't. Any original characters that show up belong to themselves. Just ask them.
Author's Disclaimer: Thoughts and opinions expressed in this work of fiction do not necessarily reflect those of the author.
Overall Rating: M
I CHOOSE NOT TO WARN!
This story contains material that may be disturbing or outright triggering to some. Reader discretion advised.
Two Plus Two
By Misarae
Chapter Thirty-Eight
Reliving the Past
"Kagome!"
Inu Yasha's voice snapped Kagome out of her shocked paralysis. She focused on him like a lifeline, seeing him quickly look back into the room, then nod, before racing toward her.
"Are you okay? What happened?"
Kagome prayed as hard as she could that everything wasn't about to blow up in her face.
"My sincerest apologies," the human man beside her said. "I wasn't watching where I was going, and ran into her."
Kagome caught Inu Yasha's glare as he stared at the man.
"Well, be more careful next time," Inu Yasha snapped, before turning his full attention to Kagome. "You okay?"
"Yeah," Kagome said, a little winded. "Just surprised me. He caught me before I hit the floor."
Inu Yasha's nostrils flared, and he fought down a small cough. The guy who'd run into her apparently bathed in aftershave. "Thanks," he said to the man.
"It was the least I could do. Maybe we should have her looked at..?"
Inu Yasha shook his head. "She'll be fine. You might want to wear less aftershave, though, if you're around pregnant ladies a lot."
"Inu Yasha," Kagome hissed, even if her heart wasn't in it.
"All right, here we go," Inu Yasha said, blithely ignoring her protest as he draped her arm around his neck, and slipped his own arm around her waist. "Up you go."
Kagome blushed furiously at the scene she and Inu Yasha had to be making, yet at the same time, her heart pounded at the reminder of the stark differences between the man she'd once loved, and the man she'd pledged her heart and the rest of her life to. Her feet somehow found the ground, and her knees felt weak, but they would hold, especially with Inu Yasha actually taking most of her weight.
"C'mon, Kagome," Inu Yasha urged her.
Kagome concentrated on putting one foot in front of the other, even as she felt Hojo-kun's gaze burning into the back of her neck.
Inu Yasha settled her back on the couch in Sachiko's room. "Knew I shouldn't have let you go without me," he said, gazing at her reproachfully.
"Well, tell your son to stop using my bladder for a pillow, then," Kagome replied, doing her best to smile and let him know she was joking.
"You okay, Mom?" Naoki asked.
Kagome looked up to see both Naoki and Sachiko were awake. Then she blushed. "You all felt me fall, didn't you?"
A chorus of "yes"es answered her question beyond any doubt.
"Sorry for worrying you all," Kagome said.
"What can we say, Mom?" Sachiko said. "We all love you!"
Sachiko's statement steadied Kagome's nerves, reminding her that no matter what, she had a new life now. "And I love you all, so very much."
The next morning dawned bright and early, bringing with it a horde of very familiar people.
"Granny!" Sachiko cried.
Kirara leapt out of Mama Higurashi's arms to wind around Sango's feet as Mama Higurashi rushed to Sachiko's bedside.
"Sa-chan!"
"Now where have I seen that before?" Inu Yasha quipped as he took in Mama Higurashi's reaction, giving Kagome a sideways glance.
Kagome gave him an affectionate, backhanded smack on his bicep.
"Do you think Sachiko-chan will be up to giving her statement today?" Aohara quietly asked as he came into the room just behind Miroku and Sango.
"I think so," Kagome said. "This would probably be the best day, since her surgery is scheduled for tomorrow."
Aohara nodded.
After everyone had settled in, and Sachiko's breakfast arrived, they eased into what was going to be a long and difficult day by making fun of the hospital food. Sachiko poked at the eggs and miso on her tray with a spoon. "Which one's which?" she asked.
"Probably both taste the same," Inu Yasha said.
"You're not helping," Kagome said with a mock glare at her mate.
Inu Yasha grinned unrepentantly, before turning his attention back to Sachiko. "Eat up, pup, or we'll never get out of this place."
That did it, a look of confusion washing over Sachiko's face as she gummed a bit of her eggs. "This tastes really weird."
"Well, which would you prefer," Sango said, "weird eggs, or getting fed through your IV?"
Sachiko shuddered. "That's even weirder, though I know that's what they did yesterday," she said, then ate her meal as fast as possible.
"Good job, sis," Naoki said. "You've been taking lessons from me and Dad!"
Sachiko gulped down her water. "Didn't have to taste it that way," she said with a grin after putting her glass down.
"Sachiko-chan?" Aohara gently asked.
Sachiko turned toward him.
"I know this will be very difficult, but we really need to hear what happened while you were gone."
Sachiko swallowed and pushed her tray away, her face falling a million kilometers. "Please, don't hurt Suzumi-san. She really did take good care of me."
Sango slowly got up and closed the door, which earned her a grateful look from Sachiko. Sango returned it with an encouraging smile.
"We'll do whatever we can," Aohara said, "but she needs help."
Sachiko nodded. "She was just.. lonely," Sachiko began. "She didn't tell me much, really."
"Well, why don't we start at the beginning? How did she lure you away from your parents?"
Sachiko blushed, her cheeks flaming. "It was my fault. Mom told me to stay in sight of the umbrella. I did, but it was really far away. I could still see it, though!"
"It's all right, Sachiko-chan," Aohara replied, doing his best to soothe her.
"I..." Sachiko gulped. "I was collecting pretty rocks, when I heard Suzumi-san call out to me. She looked so sad and lonely, I just had to go over and talk to her. We talked for a bit, then she offered me some of her coconut water. I'd never seen anything like it, so I said yes."
Aohara's blue eyes hardened slightly. "What happened after that?"
"I started feeling really sleepy. I tried to keep my eyes open, but I couldn't. The rest is all a blur," Sachiko said, self-recrimination plain on her face. Naoki, who was still by her side, took her hand and squeezed it. She smiled shakily at him, seeming to rally, before turning her attention back to Aohara. "I kind of remember walking, and being moved, but when I first woke up, we were already in her house. The one Sango-san and Papa found me in. She'd changed my clothes."
"While we were looking for you, we found your bathing suit covered in blood," Aohara said carefully. "Do you remember anything about that?"
"Not really. I did tell Suzumi-san that my nose felt funny, and she told me I'd tripped, fell, and broken it. She said she healed it for me." Sachiko tapped the end of her nose very, very lightly. "I can still feel it, but the doctors haven't said anything."
"It looks fine to me," Naoki said. "I'd never have guessed."
Sachiko looked around him to her parents.
"I had no idea," Kagome said quietly.
"Same here, pup," Inu Yasha replied. "That bloody bathing suit did freak me out, though."
Sachiko's eyes went wide. "You found it? I'm so, so sorry, Papa!"
"Shhhhh," Inu Yasha said, Naoki carefully shifting over to her right side, so Inu Yasha could hug her from the left. "It's okay," he murmured into her hair. "All that matters is you're safe now."
"Papa, could you..." She looked warily at Aohara. "Hold me, please?"
Inu Yasha snorted. "Like you have to ask."
"Inu Yasha-san, I really don't think that's a good..." Aohara trailed off as he saw how careful Inu Yasha was, using his youkai-blooded grace to get up onto the bed and pull Sachiko into his lap without so much as even jostling her injured leg or any of the equipment she was still hooked up to. Inu Yasha put his arms on either side of her, resting his hands in her lap, while she snuggled back against him, one hand resting on his, the other reaching for Naoki again.
Once they were all situated, Aohara cleared his throat and continued. "So her intent was not to harm you?"
"No," Sachiko replied. "She'd get really angry sometimes, but she didn't take it out on me. She'd break things instead, but it was still scary."
"When would she get angry?"
Sachiko's eyes clouded. "Whenever I tried to tell her I wasn't who she thought I was!"
"What do you mean?" Aohara pressed.
Sachiko's lip quivered. "She never called me by my real name. She kept calling me Keiko. As long as I pretended to be Keiko, she was okay. But if I said my name was Sachiko, she would sometimes say things like, 'oh, it's make believe day', but other times she would get really, really mad. So after a few days, I just stopped."
"Sachiko-chan, I want you to listen to me very carefully," Aohara said. "You did everything exactly right. It's probably what kept you alive and safe until we could find you. You did what you could to keep your kidnapper calm and protect yourself."
Tears spilled out again. "I just wanted to see my Mom and Papa again," Sachiko said, her voice breaking.
"And see, you have." Aohara leaned forward, resting his elbows on his thighs, with his notepad and pen still in hand. "She told you to call her Suzumi-san?"
Sachiko shook her head. "She wanted me to call her Mama. I only remembered her name, because she said it the first time I met her."
Aohara made a note. "Did she ever mention a last name?"
"No."
"Did she ever mention anyone else?"
"Just one person. She kept saying that now that 'I' was home, 'Papa' would come back. I hated it when she'd say that. There's only one Papa to me in the whole wide world."
Inu Yasha gave Sachiko an affectionate squeeze, before allowing himself to drop a kiss on the top of her head, which made her giggle as she wiped her tears away.
"You've been a very good and brave girl, Sachiko-chan," Aohara told her.
"Papa said Suzumi-san was hurt. Is she okay?"
Aohara met Inu Yasha's gaze, and Inu Yasha minutely shook his head.
"She will be," Aohara said. "Her body is trying to recover, so she's sleeping."
Sachiko curled in on herself as best she could with Inu Yasha's arms around her. "I don't want her to take me away again, but I want her to get better."
"She won't come near you," Aohara promised. "We already have a restraining order in place. I don't know how things are going to go, legally. There are too many unanswered questions right now that we won't get answers to until she wakes up. But I promise, she won't take you away again."
"Okay," Sachiko said, very quietly.
"If you won't trust him," Inu Yasha said, his voice soft but rough with emotion, "trust me. She will never lay a hand on you again."
Sachiko nodded, clinging to him.
Aohara took a deep breath. "Okay, well, as soon as you get loose, Inu Yasha-san, I need to speak with you privately."
Inu Yasha grunted, which Aohara took as a positive sign. Then he turned to Sango. "Why don't you and Kagome-san go down to the cafeteria and get her something to eat? I'm sure she could use a break." Aohara turned his attention to Kagome and gave her a soft smile, which was at odds with the hard look in his eyes. "As you can see, your children are in the absolute best hands."
Kagome looked uncertain, until Inu Yasha gave her an encouraging nod.
"Gotta keep your strength up for our pups," he said.
"All right," Kagome replied, almost too softly for even him to hear.
Sango leapt up from her chair to help Kagome to her feet. "C'mon, I promise I won't let you fall."
Kagome blushed and allowed Sango to lead her away.
"Kagome-chan, if you don't eat more than that, Inu Yasha will take my head off!"
Kagome gave Sango a wan smile as she picked at what passed for a chicken caesar salad. "I'm sorry, Sango-chan. I have a lot on my mind."
"Obviously." Sango picked up her own unused plastic fork and stabbed a healthy amount of chicken and lettuce before holding it in front of Kagome's mouth. "Open wide."
"Sango-chan!" Kagome squeaked, blushing furiously.
"You're not going to pass out on my watch, and I will not be responsible for your pup starving," Sango said. "No food for you, means no food for him."
Kagome's eyes widened, then she looked sheepish. "I'm sorry. I guess I really am tired."
"So, are you going to feed yourself, or do I have to?" Sango waved the fork menacingly.
"So it really is you, Higurashi."
Both women turned to take in the newcomer who now stood by their table. Sango discreetly slipped her badge out of her pocket and put it on the table.
"Agent Sango Teramoto, FBI. Who do we have the pleasure of addressing?"
The man looked startled, as if he wanted to run.
Kagome sighed. "Relax, Hojo-kun, it's not you she's after."
He relaxed a fraction. "It's Tamura now."
Sango blinked. "Wait, come to think of it, you look familiar." Then she frowned slightly. "Tamura.. Yoshiaki Tamura?"
Now it was Hojo-kun's turn to stare at Sango. "Yes."
"Oh this day is just getting better and better," Sango said.
While Sango and Hojo-kun talked, Kagome couldn't help but process what she was seeing. He was still tall, his hair the same dark brown that Sachiko had inherited. His eyes were still wide, but no longer innocent. He looked hardened and world-weary, yet beneath it all, he maintained his distant politeness, a trait Kagome had found endearing as a teenager. It had made him seem so mature. Now she, herself, was older and wiser, and she could see right through it.
Eventually, the former Hojo turned his attention back to Kagome. "What are you doing here, anyway?"
Kagome was mildly taken aback. It wasn't like him to be so blunt. Then again, a lot could happen in eight years. "Well, I came here on vacation with my family, but then my daughter.. our daughter.. was kidnapped." Kagome fought back the shiver of revulsion as she let those words fall from her lips, but she wanted to make it absolutely clear that Hojo-kun technically had a stake in everything that had happened.
Hojo's eyes turned cold. "You were right the first time, Higurashi. That child is no daughter of mine."
Kagome did her best to keep her temper, but the plastic fork in her hand snapped in two.
"Kagome-chan..."
"No, Sango-chan. He's the one who brought it up," Kagome said, before meeting Hojo-kun's gaze. "I actually feel sorry for you. Sachiko is the sweetest, most loving girl on the face of the planet. How dare you hurt her like this!"
"Me?" Hojo-kun snapped. "You're the one who kept her sick and crippled, when all I wanted to do was help her!"
"What?" Kagome asked, completely bewildered.
"You are positively cruel, Higurashi, subjecting a little girl to the kind of torturous life she must lead. I never would have thought it in you. I thought you were kind, considerate, the perfect wife for someone like me. How could I have been so wrong?"
By now the whole cafeteria was staring, but Kagome didn't care. "Right back at you, pal! First, you toss her away like garbage because I won't let you fix what's not broken, and then you legally deny her the father who loves and adores her!"
"Wait, what do you mean 'legally deny'..?"
"Guys," Sango broke in, "shouldn't we do this somewhere more private?"
"NO!" both Kagome and Hojo-kun shouted, before going back to glaring at each other.
"What are you talking about, Higurashi?" Hojo-kun continued, picking up right where they left off.
"My new husband petitioned to adopt Sachiko, but your lawyers said that you refused to give up your parental rights." Now tears were glistening in the corners of her eyes, but Kagome didn't care. "You are cruel, and heartless. You don't want her, but nobody else is allowed to have her?"
"I couldn't care less about that stupid cripple!" Hojo-kun shot back. "I told my family as much the very day the court case was settled. That's why I'm here in Hawaii. My family said they'd take care of everything!"
Kagome felt as if someone had poured a bucket of ice water down her back. "Hojo-kun," she said slowly, "your lawyers have been sending me child support all Sachiko's life, as well as a bonus around New Year's."
Hojo-kun suddenly looked as shocked as she felt. "That's not possible. My father and grandfather said they had it well in hand. I asked them to terminate my parental rights as soon as the ink on the divorce papers dried. To erase the blight on our family's honor!"
"Sachiko is not a 'blight'," Kagome said, her cheeks flushed with her poorly concealed rage. "She's a little girl! How dare you!"
"Now, now, both of you, this isn't the time or place to settle this." Sango's words were mild, but her expression brooked no opposition. "Tamura-san, Kagome-chan and her family will be here in this hospital for at least a few more days. I'm sure something can be arranged so all pertinent parties will be present in order to hash this out. Does that suit you, Tamura-san? Kagome-chan?"
Hojo-kun ran a hand through his hair. "I suppose."
"Kagome-chan?"
"Couldn't have said it better myself," Kagome muttered, picking up Sango's abandoned, still-salad-laden fork and popping it in her mouth.
"Until then," Hojo-kun said, then spun on his heel and left.
Sango watched as Kagome wolfed down her meal. "Well, at least you're eating," Sango said with a sigh.
"Better to stab a salad than him," Kagome replied.
"You have definitely been around Inu Yasha too long," Sango told her.
Kagome looked up as she swallowed, caught Sango's eye, and very carefully said, "Keh."
Author's Note: Sorry about missing a week, everyone! I didn't realize I had let my cushion of edited chapters run out. Fortunately, I was able to get this one all polished up in time. I am NOT abandoning this fic. It's just a matter of editing what I already have written. Until next time!