A/N - I do not own Inuyasha - Monday's update! Remember- the next update will be Saturday with the schedule of updating being Monday and Saturday. If I can get another one in I will. Thanks! (See if you can spot the WoW reference... LOL)
Chapter 8 - I Am Not Prepared
"We may have a problem," Kagome said. She cleared her throat nervously, swinging her leg back and forth beneath the tall patio table they had claimed in the tiny café's outside area. The bar stool made her feel like she was five again given she had to leap into the seat. The neon tablecloth that matched the anime posters hanging on every wall inside the cafe was torn in several places. Her fingers absently plucked at a thread while a gentle breeze wafted across her heated cheeks.
Sesshomaru did not even bother to glance up from his plate of sautéed meat and veggies when he said, "What now?" His dry tone implied he was unsurprised by the statement but clearly knew she was at fault somehow.
Which, well, she was. That wasn't the point. "I need to go to a grocery store."
"No."
She blinked then threw a crumbled napkin onto her empty plate. The lasagna had been cold and mushy, but she had been too hungry to care. At least, from the steam coming off his plate, the server had made the cook aware that Sesshomaru's food had better be prepared to a Youkai's standards. "I am not asking, Sesshomaru. I am telling you. I need a grocery store."
He finally looked up, swallowed the mouthful he had carefully sawed off the giant slab of beef, and narrowed his eyes on her. "This one already explained that security cameras were to be avoided. Why else would this one be sitting in a rundown café too gauche for even yourself on a bad day?"
Kagome scowled. "I am going to ignore that potshot simply because I am a bigger person than you. You're welcome. I need to get some supplies. Even if I had thought about it, I hadn't had anything at the shrine to grab since I gave the last of it to Sango when her cycle came earlier than planned while she was visiting."
Sesshomaru's fork dropped onto the plate. His knife was carefully crossed over it. "Your reproductive cycle is upon you? Now?" His eyes chilled.
She huffed. "Look, I don't control it. It's a fact of life. I know for a fact even your perfect full-blooded Youkai females have them. I will be in and out. I haven't started yet, but from the cramps and my headaches – which started thanks to your dad, by the way – I know it won't be long. Tonight or tomorrow at the latest."
"There are small convenience stores. You will use one of them on the way out of the city."
Kagome's eyes nearly crossed she was so frustrated. "I will not! They only carry the cheap brands they charge an arm and a leg for. I am very particular about what goes in or around my body, thank you very much. Besides, I need something for my cramps which they do not sell there. And chocolate. The good kind. You do not want to deny my cravings. You already dislike me. Let's not add to that, shall we?"
Sesshomaru pushed his half-eaten food away and leaned back in the chair. The wood creaked ominously. "What will you give this Sesshomaru for the inconvenience your trip will cause?"
Her lips puckered. "I won't talk to you all night. How about that?" A present that would be a gift for them both, she silently added. He was such an ass. He remained still as a statue and she groaned. "Kami, Sesshomaru, stop being a jerk for just once. I realize you are older than dirt compared to me, really, really old in fact, but you are not my boss. I am grateful that you are helping me even if you are only doing it to help yourself. I am human. Unlike you, I will blend in. I promise, no one is going to remember a single woman buying tampons and Midol. The clerk probably helps hundreds of us in a single day."
"For Youkai, this one is remarkably young to have achieved half so much. The Inu No Taisho has walked the earth for over a millennium."
Kagome rolled her eyes. "So, you are a baby compared to him. At least his youngling remark makes sense now, even if it wasn't accurate in other ways. Don't change the subject. Grocery store. Me. Tampons. Midol and chocolate. Then we leave the city."
"The kit was less of an aggravation."
Taking it as an affirmative, Kagome sighed in relief and fell silent while Sesshomaru picked up his utensils and cleaned off his plate. Even eating he was graceful, she noticed. She looked like a monkey figuring out a banana for the first time compared to him. She missed chopsticks. The café catered to tourists so they used forks.
An hour later, Kagome gratefully slid into the car seat. Sesshomaru had parked in the back to avoid his car tags being read by the traffic cameras near the road's intersection lights. "Got it!" she said, triumphantly holding the paper bag aloft in the small space in front of her.
"Congratulations on your achievement in purchasing items in a store," Sesshomaru drawled. He had already started the car, so he pulled out of the parking spot and began driving away from the city. "This one is sure it is a monumental and progressive step forward for humanity."
"He is such an ass," Kagome muttered. She dug into the bag and pulled out a bag of chocolate covered cherries. She popped one into her mouth. Chewing, she began to search for the Midol beneath the packages of chocolate-covered everything she had binge purchased thinking about the Youkai waiting to make her life hell for the next few weeks. "I should have bought the peanut butter cups. The one thing a dog wishes he could eat but can't," she told herself with a wide smile.
Inuyasha had puked for hours after eating some chocolate. She would hate to think what it would do to Sesshomaru. Death by chocolate – for real. "Hey, Sesshomaru" she asked him suddenly, noting his hands had tightened on the steering wheel until his knuckles were almost completely white, "are all Youkai allergic to chocolate or is it just inuyoukai? I mean, you said that drug wouldn't work on you but chocolate? Why hasn't anyone tried to poison you or something with it? Can you eat garlic or tomatoes? What if you kiss someone with chocolate breath? Kikyo loves it. I noticed Inuyasha won't go near her while she eats it."
Did his eye twitch? Kagome asked herself.
Sesshomaru throttled all desire to yell at the Miko to keep her asinine questions to herself. It required a great deal more effort to manage than he felt was seemly. Why did she, of all beings, hold the power to get under his skin in ways not even Inuyasha had managed? "Miko, your promise," he intoned, enough chill in his voice to freeze oil.
"Tonight," Kagome reiterated, popping another cherry into her mouth. "It is only four and the sun is still up. Come on, Sesshomaru. You are always telling me I am ignorant. This is your great chance to unlearn all my 'gross miscalculations' and 'improper teachings.'" She finger-quoted the last line.
They passed the sign stating the city limits had been reached. Sesshomaru pulled off the main road and took a smaller lane to head into the mountains. He looked to the sun in the sky. It was still a good three hours before it would set. Shippo had been left with the Slayers. He had volunteered to walk inside and had called on Higurashi's cell once he was with the main security detail. He was pleasantly surprised Higurashi had not whined about sacrificing her phone. She had told him she fully planned on buying a Youkai communication device anyway, so it was no loss.
He had not pointed out that their technology was not allowed to leave Youkai hands. She already knew such. As a Miko, however, she could have access to some items. He supposed he could assign her one in his name. What could she possibly use it for that would prove harmful? Humans did not have the ability to reverse engineer Youkai power that went into their specialized batteries.
"This one assumes, from your reference, that Inuyasha has an abhorrence to chocolate," Sesshomaru finally said to fill the silence only broken by her obscene chewing noises. "His mother was unable to tolerate cacao among other things. His human genetics are what makes his digestion so poor. Youkai are not animals. We do not have the same weaknesses as our mortal counterparts."
Kagome stopped chewing to swallow. Then, "Huh. I don't know why I didn't think about that. I just assumed because Inuyasha is a hanyou that his intolerance came from being part inu." She waved her hands in the air before he could respond. "Don't. Please, do not. I know. Ignorant people make assumptions, et cetera."
He shook his head but kept his eyes on the road. "There are many compounds that can affect Youkai. Rapture being one of them. It is deliberately crafted to interact with Youkai genetics. Were a human to consume the same substance they would either not survive it or would be completely unaffected. There are no foods, as far as this one is aware of, that can affect Youkai stomachs. Youkai do not have allergies or food intolerances. Only weak human digestive systems suffer from such."
"You had to go there," Kagome griped.
"Is it not the truth?" he challenged.
"There isn't a person on the planet who does not know Youkai are stronger, faster, and have more power than most humans. Knowing that, it is still really rude and condescending to point out human shortcomings every chance you get. Besides, for all our shortcomings, human populations are still outgrowing Youkai by leaps and bounds."
"What has made us strong has also weakened us," Sesshomaru admitted after a moment's silence. He turned off the paved road onto a gravel one. "Some female Youkai seek to empower themselves through battles, but few continue to do so. Males, most of age to this one or older, have long battled to defeat foes to increase power. In this manner our ability to procreate has become unbalanced."
Kagome cocked her head to the side and regarded his profile. The shadows of low-overhanging trees flowed across his face as the car continued to drive deeper into the forest. "How does that work?" she asked. "You don't eat each other do you?" Snide words to Sesshomaru aside, she hated being ignorant. Her mentor, Kaede, had only just been assigned to her. She had worked with Kikyo for years already, though her cousin knew nothing about Youkai. Youkai are so secretive. And Miko – though they were considered ancient enemies to Youkai in the past – were trained in modern times only to help humans. Not to understand or fight Youkai. That was left to the Slayers.
"What is it that they fill your head with? Lies and fluff?" he sneered.
Kagome narrowed her eyes but stayed silent.
"Miko," he said on a low growl, "You are sorely in need of an education. This one will undertake it only on the vow that what this one will reveal stays within your head. Not even your friend or cousin are to be told. Nor the old one who is to teach you the little she knows."
"How did you know I have a cousin or that Kaede is old?" Kagome blurted. "Do you have a file on me or something? Inuyasha said you do for everyone."
He raised a brow and she sighed. "I promise," she vowed, a hand raised in the air with pointer and index fingers straight up.
"This one obtained all necessary information on you once you became a friend to Inuyasha. The whelp causes enough trouble for himself. He did not need another to aid him in his juvenile acts nor to contribute to his immaturity."
"You were looking out for him?" she asked, incredulous. Sure, she knew Sesshomaru had practically raised Inuyasha. If you could call basically ignoring Inuyasha except to punish him for misdeeds while feeding and housing the hanyou 'raising him.' But this was actually kinda sweet. He wanted to make sure Inuyasha wasn't hanging out with the wrong crowd? He cared that much? Or…
"Afraid he would embarrass you further if I was a bad sort?" Kagome asked.
The chill in his eyes returned when he turned them on her briefly before his gaze flashed back to the road. "Inuyasha is and was this one's responsibility until he reaches his maturity. Others may take up then leave their honor at a whim, but not this one. None could embarrass this one's clan more than the Inu No Tashio already had. This one is not his father, and neither will Inuyasha become as his sire."
Kagome cleared her throat. Yeah. She was not going to touch that topic with a ten-foot pole. Not without armor and a hefty dose of courage she did not currently possess. "So, tell me then, teacher Sesshomaru, how do you get stronger fighting other Youkai?" Her attempt to draw the topic to a safer ground was lamely executed, but she sighed when his grip on the wheel loosened.
"To become more a Youkai must battle against foes who hold power equal to or greater than theirs. Through the trials our power is drawn forward. Each time it is used to depletion it regenerates in greater amounts than what was sacrificed to emerge victorious."
"So only fighting more powerful Youkai can make you more powerful?"
"This one has battled many Youkai. There are no individuals left aside from a few of the ancients who choose not the continue to battle who hold as much power as this one. To continue to grow more powerful this one seeks to battle multiple challengers at once."
Kagome bit her lip. "Do you kill them?" she asked, remembering Shippo's story on how his mother died.
He raised a brow again and said, "This one would empty Japan of most Youkai males if that were so. Death is not necessary. Only challenges between Youkai without proper training and discipline result in serious injury or mortal wounds. He smirked, "Miko and monks used to be the same, before modern times saw Mikos relegated to tending wounds and healing spiritual woes. Miko were the greater of the two. Monks would travel across the world to challenge the strongest of Mikos in packs to hone their skills."
"Really?" Kagome burst out, grinning. Then she scoffed, "It figures. Women always get the bum deal when it comes to history. I never knew Mikos were that powerful in the past."
"Indeed," Sesshomaru intoned. "While this one was unaware of the Shikon No Tama until recently, your ancestress was not unknown to this one. The death of many rogue Youkai at her hands had garnered respect even amongst our society. That was one reason this one allowed your friendship with Inuyasha."
Too happy learning about her history from a male who had lived it, Kagome didn't bother getting upset that she, personally, had been approved of only because of a dead ancestress. "Did you ever meet one of those Mikos?"
"No," he replied, tone firm but not cold any longer. "This one is not old enough to have walked the same lands, despite your opinion on the matter of this one's age. Your ancestress, as far as Youkai society knows it to be, was the last of the great ones."
"Tell me more," she begged, uncaring that she sounded desperate.
"You will remain silent while this one speaks?" he questioned with a smirk.
"I don't care. Insult me some more and I still won't care. Not right now. You're better than a history book and a vlog combined."
He frowned, then sighed, apparently deciding that it was worth a few moments of her silence to keep talking. Kagome manfully kept the grin from spreading across her face when he broke into a tale he had heard from his retainer, Jaken, who had been alive in the time of her ancestress. Kagome's head dropped back onto the seat's top and she allowed the history she had never known existed flow inside her heart, utterly enthralled with the combination of the deep timbre of his voice and the reality that her ancestress was a total badass.