A/N: I am still so in shock as to the response I got for this chapter…I think it turned out to be something like 12 reviews or something…that blows my last record to shreds! I'm soooo happy! Thanks everyone, you're reallyreallyreally too nice. (Well, not too nice, there can be no such thing as too nice…::thinks of Houjo:: Okay, so obviously there can. But not when it comes to reviewers there can't! big grin ) I hope this chapter doesn't disappoint. And after all those wonderful and kind reviews, I go and don't post for a few days…sorry. Really, I have no excuse except that my muse wasn't behaving himself. (Yes, it's a *he*…he's my muse, so why not?) Anyway, he wasn't behaving himself…he was running around all over the place, throwing out ideas for other chapters and making me write them and then giving me bits and pieces of what might constitute this chapter, but the story was everywhere…eventually, I just printed up what I had typed, and spread it out along with everything I had written by hand and started trying to piece them together. (I eventually had to give my muse a sedative…he started giving me ideas for a new story…so…you can see how I had no choice, can't you?) In any case, I put it together, hopefully relieving some of the angsty tension and making it a bit more lighthearted. I think the next few chapters are going to be at least a little humorous…(That's what happens when you give your muse the happy drug…) I was really starting to bother even myself with all that angst.
Oh, yeah, and this chapter has a little more M/S in it. In retribution, my muse snuck me into Mirouku's head and shifted the focus to Sango for a little while…(not that Kag wasn't relieved, as you'll see.)
And one more thing, stick around till the very end, read the special notice on the bottom…I could really use your help!
Disclaimer: If I don't get some sleep soon, I might start believing that I'm Cleopatra and claiming that of course I own Inuyasha…I'm a Goddess, and I can own any damn thing I want…I got Ceasar, didn't I? But so far, 3 hours of sleep a night is holding the schizophrenia at bay…for now…
Thanks
::sobs:: Oh, ::sobs:: my ::sobs:: god! You guys are so ::sobs some more:: incredible! Wonderful! Unbelievable! ::sobs uncontrollably and runs off to the bathroom:: ::5 minutes later:: I ask for a few more reviews to make the 50 mark and I get like 12 reviews for this one chapter! I now have reached the count of 60! WOO-HOO!
Eartha: I made it! I made the 50 mark! ::happy dance:: ::clears throat:: Right. In the water…Death? well, I don't know, what do you think? Shall I tell you? I'd like to see if I can write it so you understand without having to tell you outright. If you're one of those people who really like to read the end of the book before you're halfway through the end and really want to know, email me. I hate them throwing themselves at each other, too. It's why I'm having so much angst in this fic, cause from what I know of them, it just seems natural for them to fight rather than be all lovey-dovey. I have promised some fluffiness, though, so let's see how I fit that in there, shall we? Thank you for reviewing again!
Kagomesjewel: blush You always make me blush! Thanks!
Angel Moon: I tried to send you a card for your b-day, one of those e-cards but I don't know if it was my pc or what, but I'm not sure if it went through or not. Hope you had a great day and if my fic made it even a teensy bit better, then I'm satisfied and immensely proud. In the bathroom was…uh…what bathroom? (heehee) Keeping in the dark? What dark?
RinoaOHeartilly: Hey! I'm glad to see you're still with me! whew! I'm so glad the scene in the bathroom went over well. I wasn't sure about it at all after I wrote it, but as I wrote it, it came out so easily, that I just trusted my instincts and left it in there. Thanks for reviewing again!
Sailor Universe: (For 11) You gotta kow what's after Kagome?! Imagine me! I'm writing the damn thing and I don't rightly know either! ::sigh:: The things we suffer for art! ^_~ I don't know what you mean about the brick, though. It went right over my little mousy brain.
(For 12) I think Inu comes to some realizations in this chapter, but if everything goes as planned (what little of it I do have planned, which is like…uh, an idea?) Then Inu will come to some further realizations very very soon. But as to finding out that Kag heard what he said to Mir…well, I don't know. I hope it's soon…the angst is really getting even to me. Hmmm…I think I could fit it in the next chapter, now that I think about it…
See? That's why I love your reviews…you always give me things to think about that end up working well in my fic! Please keep it up! Don't give up on me!
Janet: Yeah…blushes and grins I love it when Kag tells him off, too. Thanks for reviewing and please let me hear from you again!
Moon Fairy: ::rolls eyes:: Please! You can too write well. But you know, I wouldn't feel I'd done anything right if Moon Fairy didn't come and spoil me with her reviews. Like I told Rinoa above, I'm glad that the bathroom scene seemed to go over well. I was a little nervous about it, but I personally loved it too much to take it out. A creative writing teacher of mine once told us though, that the lines or paragraphs you love the most are usually the first ones you should edit out. (Cruel, wasn't he?) It hurt like loosing a child.
Pink Twilight: Yey! I'm happy you're back! I don't rightly know who the guy that Kag saw is, yet. I hope he tells me soon, though, cause I feel like I'm getting close to the end of the story and I should know before then, dontcha think? ^__~ ;
Aeyikie: ::mumbles incoherently about the lack of understanding of parents in general and of the parents of fanfic reader / reviewers specifically:: I'm just deliriously happy that you found your way back to my story and that you're still nice enough to review and that you still like my story! Welcome back! And long may you remain! ^_^
Fairies Hope: Hey, there! I hope this satisfies. It took me long enough, right? winces Sorry, bout that. I was having a little tiff with my muse. He was jumping around from idea to idea without giving me a chance to organize them all coherently! Hopefully, this was worth the wait…
Evil Irish Eyes: Hey! Lovely to hear from you again…and sorry it was so short. I've been having a little trouble organizing. I've got so much I want to do, I just don't know how I'm going to put it all in. Plus, it just seemed like a good spot to end it. I'm not so sure about my story being "just THAT good" it's sweet of you to say so, but…well…at least the "evil" part was right, huh? ^_~. Suspense is good for you…and if I'm really keeping you in suspense, then I'm doing my job! big grin You really are sweet…
Chapter 12: What It Feels Like…
"Strong Inside but you don't know it / Good little girls they never show it / … / Do you know what it feels like for a girl? / Do you know what it feels like in this world? / For a girl?"
-What It Feels Like For A Girl, Madonna
K stood just inches from the dance floor, looking at Ayumi, Eri, Yuka and Sango dance joyfully to the music. If nothing else went right tonight, she would always be glad she got to spend time with both her old friends and her new ones. One, she corrected. Not plural, just one new friend…Sango. She couldn't really claim Inuyasha as a friend, now could she? Of all of her traveling companions, her only real friend was… 'Okay,' she conceded, 'maybe two.' Mirouku might not be what she would normally consider to be a friend, but he made her laugh and he had never let her down, even if he was a little perverted. She smiled, surprised at how right it seemed to her to consider Mirouku a friend.
She didn't see Mirouku on the dance floor with the girls, but she didn't doubt he was somewhere with Inuyasha. Despite appearances, she knew Mirouku cared about Inuyasha as a friend. Probably because of male bonding or something, because there couldn't possibly be two more different people on the face of the planet. No, wait…sure there were, if she counted herself and Inuyasha. She sighed, thinking about joining the girls on the dance floor, but couldn't seem to make herself move. The idea of joining the crowd and giving in to the music seemed so tiring to her suddenly. What she really wanted, she realized, was to go home. She had come to some realizations this night, and not all of them pleasant. She was ready to go home and slip under her comfortable covers and give in to sleep. 'Ah, but in that sleep of death, what dreams may come?'* she quoted in her mind. She sighed. Too much Shakespeare had definitely warped her mind if she was quoting him in her thoughts. But it was nonetheless true. She was afraid of what dreams she may have…that look of pain surrounded by water…those eyes would haunt her sleep if she went now.
There was also the added detriment of sharing a cab ride with Inuyasha. There was no doubt in her mind that he wouldn't stay behind this time. He seemed like a silent bodyguard the whole night, watching her with a disapproving look to his eye and having only harsh words. She frowned. She couldn't stand another confrontation right now. Better to go and dance. She started for the floor, then saw the bar. 'Wait,' she told herself, pausing in mid step. 'Better to go for a drink,' she smiled. 'Yes, that'll do nicely.'
Kagome swallowed the sigh that came to her lips and tried very much to smile into the tender eyes staring at her. 'Why can't that look do more for me?' she wondered. He had melted his fair share of hearts, after all, but why not hers? Was she demented? Did she only care about those people who would hurt her? She almost gasped. 'Sweet Buddha!' she thought, alarmed. 'Am I one of those people who go on Jerry Springer?'
"Kagome-chan!" he greeted warmly.
"Houjo," Kagome smiled and hoped it looked real. "I didn't know you were here."
He smiled. "I saw you and your friends leaving, but I didn't know you were here until I saw you walking past the restroom."
Kagome tried to keep the smile on her face even though the strain was starting to get to her. She liked Houjo, she did…really, but there was only so much you could take of him before you felt like smashing his head against a brick wall. 'Yee, Gods,' she thought inanely. 'Inuyasha is really rubbing off on me if my thoughts can turn so violent.'
"Are you alright, Kagome-chan?" he asked, concern marring the perfect smile. "That case of Go-Bloots** isn't acting up again, is it?"
'Gu-what?!?' Kagome ground her teeth together and thought of violent things to do to her grandfather. Hot oil…ripping fingernails off one by one…exposing him to all these supposed diseases she had…Instead, she sighed. "No, I'm just…" she trailed off, not sure of what to answer, not sure of what she felt. "…hot," she decided. 'That's as good an answer as any, I suppose.'
He nodded, as if he understood. 'Houjo always looks as if he understands,' Kagome thought, not exceptionally kind.
"Can I get you something to drink?"
She almost said no. Almost. She really should say no, after all, it wasn't like she particularly wanted Houjo to be buying her drinks and inviting any more attentions from him. Come to think about it, if that scene in the bathroom was any indication, it's not like she needed to drink anymore, period. But still…"Sure, why not?"
H grinned. "What do you want?"
Let's see…she had stuck with Tequila most of the night. Time for a change. What would have the most liquor in it? A slow smile spread on her lips. "How about a Long Island Iced Tea?"
Houjo rose his eyebrows but smiled. "One Tea coming up."
+~+~+~
'What in bloody hell is *he* doing here?' Inuyasha asked, eyes narrowing. 'I thought we had left that hobo freak in the other club?' He felt his claws press into the flesh of his palm and he realized he was making a fist. The realization didn't stop him from squeezing his hand tighter. 'What? Is he stalking her, now?'
He watched them talk, leaning toward each other as they sat on the purple couches. Kagome's face was away from him, only the perfect outline of her back clearly visible which meant he couldn't see her expression. But he could see Hobo's: it was expectant, interested, open and inviting.
'The bastard,' Inuyasha thought. He started toward the two and stopped himself, frowning with the effort of remaining planted exactly where he was. What was he going to do? Separate them? What for? Hobo was annoying, but not threatening. He seemed to be even tender with her.
You're acting like a jealous boyfriend or something!
Kagome's words came back to haunt him. He was *not* jealo…
The thought left him in a gust of anger as he watched Hobo reach out a hand to push a stray strand of Kagome's hair back from her face.
What the hell was he doing touching her? And what the hell was Kagome doing letting him? He fought against his need to jump on Hobo, rip his arm from the shoulder and beat him on the head with it until he was unconscious or better, dead.
'Okay,' he admitted. So maybe he was jealous.
But it was only because she should be...
The jewel!
Yes! She should be looking for the jewel instead of here and…and…that had absolutely nothing to do with why he was jealous. Damn. It must really be bad if he couldn't even deny it with the old jewel excuse. It had to have been the dance. That and his inexplicable desire to beat any man who spoke to her with severed appendages.
He wanted Kagome.
Why had he let her touch him? Why hadn't he pulled away? Why hadn't he…
But he *certainly* wasn't her boyfriend…
And…that was the problem, wasn't it?
He wanted Kagome, but Hobo had her.
'For now, at least.'
+~+~+~
"What?" Inuyasha growled, turning to pin Mirouku with his murderous glare.
Mirouku took an unconscious step back, then looked at where Inuyasha had been staring. He nodded wisely. "Ah, I see," he said shrewdly. He looked back at Inuyasha and could practically feel the venom coming from him. He handed him the glass he had been holding. "Here, my friend, I think you need this more than I do."
Inuyasha looked at it, then took it. "What is it?" he asked, smelling the brownish liquid. "It smells like if you brought fire to it, you'd singe your eyebrows off."
Mirouku shrugged. "It's not half bad," he motioned for Inuyasha to taste it. "I wondered why everyone was so enthralled with the liquor which didn't seem to be sake, so I went up to the bar and when a man in front of me ordered what he called a 'rum and coke' I ordered one too."
"Rumand coke?" Inuyasha questioned. 'Well, what the hell,' he thought, bringing the cup up to his lips and drinking. This night couldn't possibly get any worse. The pungent-sweet liquor burned down his throat and only his pride kept him from coughing. As soon as the initial reaction was over, though, he saw what Mirouku meant. The drink settled in his stomach like a warm blanket, spreading its warmth into his limbs. "You're right for once, monk," Inuyasha conceded, taking another drink. "It's not bad." This time, he had been prepared for the feel of the liquor, so it didn't surprise him into coughing. It was rather pleasant, actually. He brought the cup up to his lips and drowned it in one gulp.
The calming effect of the liquor allowed him to notice the small trickling sensation in his hand. He looked down and was immediately assailed with the scent of his own blood. He had clenched his fist until he had bled. He blinked and reached out for the fresh glass that Mirouku was holding. He opened and closed his hand, palm facing him so that he could see the crescent moon shaped wounds open and close and bleed. He felt the slight pain of it, but instead of stopping, he continued. The pain centered him, helped him to realize that he couldn't kill Houjo. Oh, not because he had any qualms about making the freak squeal like a girl and bleed like a pig. (Actually, the thought seemed rather pleasant.) But more because…
He took another gulp of 'Rumand Coke' and sighed, watching as the wounds were slowly closing in on themselves.
'Because you know she'd hate you for it.'
Gods, when had Kagome become so important to him? How?
He looked up as Kagome stood at Eri's prodding, smiling her goodbye to Houjo and letting the birthday girl lead her onto the dance floor.
The music changed, became slightly more upbeat. The energy in the crowd crackled around him as it was stirred on by the new rhythm.
Inuyasha watched as Kagome danced happily, almost mockingly with her friends as they all sang aloud to the lyrics of the music, along with most of the club. It seemed the song was rather popular.
Ooh! Tainted Love / Don't touch me, please! / I cannot stand the way you tease! / I love you though you hurt me so! / Now I'm gonna pack my things and go / Tainted Love…/ Touch me, baby, tainted love.
Mirouku watched as the girls danced, realizing that the liquor was finally starting to affect them. They were dancing almost crazily and singing at the top of their lungs to the music. He smiled as he saw Kagome dancing, singing, and laughing with her friends. But when his eyes drifted to Sango, dancing easily as if she had been doing it all her life, his mouth went dry and he had to take another gulp of liquor to be able to swallow. He was sorely tempted to join them, but made the mistake of glancing at Inuyasha. He withheld a sigh. 'I better keep him company,' he thought. Not that he'd be able to stop him if Inuyasha decided to do something stupid, but at least he might be able to talk him out of it.
Mirouku watched as Inuyasha's look went pensive and almost soft as he watched Kagome dance. 'It must be the alcohol,' he thought to himself, then slowly grinned. 'Maybe I can get him to dance again,' he thought. After all, he did it once, and he hadn't even had two drinks like he had now. "Oi, Inuyasha," Mirouku called out.
"What?"
"Why don't you go on and dance with them, you keep staring at them…"
"Don't start with me, monk," Inuyasha said darkly.
"I'll even go with you…"
"Save it."
"But if you'd only…"
"Say it and I'll rip your legs off."
Mirouku sighed. He didn't take the threat seriously, but he didn't push it. "You're a horrible drunk, you know that, don't you?"
"And you're a horrible monk," Inuyasha replied smoothly. He crossed his arms over his chest defiantly. "And I am nowhere near drunk.".
Mirouku frowned. He was right, of course, Inuyasha didn't sound drunk at all. He sighed. 'More's the pity.'
+~+~+
Ayumi sidled up next to Kagome on the couches and handed her another Long Island Iced Tea. "Oi, Kagome," she said as Kagome took a sip.
"Hm?" Kagome asked, enjoying the feel of the fuzziness in her head.
"What's with your friend, huh?" Ayumi asked.
"Yeah," Yuka questioned. "He's so…so…"
"Yummy," Eri piped up dreamily from next to Kagome.
Kagome raised her eyebrows at her and laughed. "I think you're drunk, Eri," she said astutely.
Eri looked hurt. "I'd still think he was yummy even if I hadn't drunk," she reasoned out.
"You're repeating yourself," Kagome explained.
"Oh," Eri smiled, then went back to her drink.
"What I meant to say was brooding," Yuka finished her previous thought.
Kagome nodded, then shrugged. "Well, what can I do?"
"Why'd he come here just to be bitter?" Ayumi continued.
Kagome sipped her drink. "I really don't know," she said dismissively. She didn't want to think about Inuyasha. "I think he has a bodyguard complex…" she answered.
"A bodyguard who can smell you?" Ayumi pressed.
"What?" Kagome asked, looking at her, clearly not remembering her previous comment. "Who told you that?"
"You did," Ayumi answered, smiling like the cat that ate the canary.
"I did?" Kagome looked at Sango who nodded slowly. "Hm…" Kagome replied, then laughed. "Well, he always seems to be sniffing, you know, like sticking his nose up in the air…" she trailed off and went back to sipping her drink, too buzzed to care if her explanation was good enough. "He's just bitter because things didn't go the way he'd planned."
Ayumi opened her mouth to continue the discussion, but was interrupted.
"And Mirouku is really yummy…" Eri interjected, as if they hadn't already left that topic in the conversation.
Sango snorted. All eyes turned to her and she cursed under her breath. 'Damn.'
"He's a pervert," she answered.
Yuka and Ayumi exchanged glances…Kagome looked down at her drink and Eri was humming to the music playing in the dancefloor.
"I don't know, Sango," Yuka started. "He's funny, and sweet, and obviously well-bred…"
"He's a gentleman, really," Ayumi concluded.
A strangled mix between a cough and a laugh came from the general vicinity of Kagome, but by the time her friends looked at her, she was sipping her drink innocently.
"What?" Sango exclaimed, drawing the attention back to her. "Don't tell me he didn't ask any of you to bear his children?"
They all nodded with smiles on their faces. "Sure," Ayumi replied.
"And you don't care?" Sango asked, disbelief etched on her features.
"Why should I?" Ayumi asked in return.
"It's original," Yuka offered.
"Original?" Sango was confused. Very confused.
"Sure," Yuka smiled. "All these old lines, 'Did it hurt when you fell from heaven?', 'You've got so many curves and me with no breaks' , 'Aren't you tired after running through my dreams all night?'…"
"I'm sure we've met before'" Yuka mocked, taking Sango's hands in hers as if she were a man delivering it. "Maybe in my dreams?" Sango laughed when Yuka made a face. "Lame, really."
"Yeah, his is…original."
Sango smiled at them, then remembered the other proof she had that Mirouku was no gentleman. "Gentlemen do not grope ladies all the time."
Ayumi laughed uproariously. "They do if they get the chance."
Yuka joined in as did Eri and finally, Kagome nodded, laughing too. "I guess you could say that Mirouku is a man ahead of his time, Sango."
Sango raised her eyebrows at her. Was Kagome really used to men behaving this way? Was this why Mirouku's comments and attempts at lechery didn't really surprise her? Now that she thought about it, Sango realized that although Kagome had often groaned at his efforts, she had never really seemed surprised or really very angry.
"Well," Ayumi said, sobering and settling in for what promised to be a juicy discussion. "It's an art form, you know, the good ones manage it so that you don't feel offended, but…well, um…"
"Appreciated," Yuka added.
Ayumi nodded. "Yeah, exactly. Appreciated."
Sango looked disbelievingly from one to the other. "So what you're saying is that you like it when men grope you?"
"Not grope," Ayumi shook her head.
"Never grope," Yuka added.
"If they grope we slap them silly," Eri confirmed.
"I fail to see the difference."
They all looked at Sango. "Well," Ayumi started, taking another sip. "Grope is when they squeeze you like you were a ripe melon."
Yuka nodded. "Oh, yeah…" she shivered and frowned. "I hate those."
"And then there are The Starers." Ayumi shook her head. "They talk to your breasts instead of your face if you know what I mean."
"Those are my least favorite," Eri piped in. "They creep me out."
"The smoooth operators," Kagome offered from her corner.
Ayumi giggled. "Oh, yeah," she looked at Sango. "They think they're God's gift to women."
"The key features of a Smooth Operator," Yuka started in a surprisingly good impression of Jane Goodall, "Is the slicked back hair, the fashionable clothes worn with just the right amount of je ne sais BLAH, and the propensity to wink and grin." She took a sip of her drink to give Eri and Kagome time to pause in their laughter. "Their call," she continued, "is the ever distinctive, 'Hey, baby,'."
Sango smiled, but wouldn't be deterred. "So there are all species of perverts out there, how does that make what Mirouku does art?" Sango insisted.
Ayumi laughed, placing a hand on Sango's shoulder. "What Mirouku does doesn't make you feel dirty or creepy, does it?"
Sango thought about it for a moment, and then blushed. "Well, no…" she admitted.
Ayumi raised her eyebrows. "How does it make you feel?"
"Embarrassed," Sango answered, taking another sip of her drink. She looked at Kagome but her friend just shrugged.
"And?"
"And…" Sango stalled for time by taking another sip of her drink.
"Hot?" Eri asked, her eyes gleaming.
"Excited?" Yuka provided.
"Special?" Ayumi rose a brow.
"Like a na-atu-ral wo-man…" Kagome sang playfully.
Sango glared at her and Kagome shrugged innocently again, stirring her drink as if it were the most interesting thing in the world.
"So what if he does?" Sango answered, half defensively. "It only better illustrates my point. If he makes every girl he…uses his skills on special, then they're not really, are they?"
Eri chuckled and the others followed. "He doesn't make me hot, silly," she said. "He does make me feel pretty, though."
"He doesn't excite me, just makes me laugh," Yuka explained.
"I never said he made me feel special, either, did I?" Ayumi asked.
"Face it, Sango, he doesn't use those special skills on anyone but you," Yuka concluded. "For the rest of us, he's just fun to have around."
"Kuso," Sango said on a breath. "So that means that…" she looked up at Kagome who was smiling and nodding. "He does…" she faltered, unable to finish the thought. "Then I am…special?"
The girls yelled and applauded. The group of people immediately around them turned to stare, but soon went back to their own business. Sango's eyes went from shock to crying bloody murder. "That…that…" she faltered and drowned her drink. "I'll kill him!"
+~+~+~
"That can't bode well," Mirouku mumbled as he watched the girls cheer and Sango frown.
Inuyasha tried to see the danger but couldn't see what was wrong. They were all together and not even dancing provocatively, just sitting on the couches, Kagome nestled safely in the corner of the booth with girls on either side of her, and talking. And Kagome wasn't even the one doing most of the talking. He didn't see the danger.
"Of all the things that've happened tonight, this is what worries you?" Inuyasha asked. 'At least she isn't talking with Houjo anymore.' He was rather proud he hadn't torn him apart. He had restrained himself – he had stood his ground – he had not acted like a jealous mate…
No…he had made himself bleed.
"They're just girls talking," he answered dismissively.
Mirouku looked at him as if he had just grown three heads and one of them was Naraku. "Just?" he questioned. He shook his head. "Girls just talking could be the single most dangerous thing to a man."
It was Inuyasha's turn to look at Mirouku as if he had lost his mind. Still, Kagome wasn't talking to Houjo anymore and however he had done it, he hadn't given in to his urge to tear the freak's tongue out and stick it behind his ear…he felt good, so… "How do you figure?"
Mirouku's eyes widened. "My son," he started in that voice usually reserved to talk to worried heads of households about 'ominous shadows'. "The female bonding ritual," he paused and motioned to where the girls were, their conversation seeming to be centered around Sango and punctuated with laughter. 'Holy Buddha, give me strength.' It was getting worse. "Is a strange and mysterious thing," he finished. "We may never know what truly goes on during one, but of this secret information we have been informed through the centuries…" he tried to look serious and foreboding. Inuyasha's half grin was almost doing him in. "When girls get together to *talk* it is always for one of three things," he paused dramatically and when he saw he still had his companion's attention, he went on. "The first is inane and harmless, about clothing or children or some such, but the second…" he trailed off and looked back at the girls where they had raised a cheer, drawing the attention of their neighboring occupants. "The second is usually a whole lot more devious…it is all about, us…" he said blandly as if he were tolling out a death sentence.
"Us?" Inuyasha asked. "All women talk about us when they get together?"
"Not us," Mirouku corrected, his hand moving between them. "Well, us, yes, just not…" he faltered and shook his head dismissively. "Men, in general."
Inuyasha tried not to smile and shrugged. "So what's wrong with that?" He glanced at the girls and saw Kagome's face light up with a smile as she looked at Sango.
"What's wrong with that?!?" Mirouku exclaimed, then realizing his outburst, he controlled himself. "What's wrong with that, my friend, is that they are currently sharing trade secrets, laying traps, planning plans…" he almost shuddered. "It is a war conference unlike any you have ever seen or are likely to see in your life."
Inuyasha raised an eyebrow. "Really, monk…"
"Listen to me," Mirouku said, taking Inuyasha by the shirt to draw his attention. "This comes from centuries of wisdom…" he nodded his head emphatically. "This is true."
Inuyasha removed his shirt from Mirouku's fist. "They're laughing!" He pointed out. "It doesn't seem like a war…"
"Oh, yeah, that's what it seems like, but trust me, when it comes to planning strategies, they are ruthless and cruel and take pride and immense joy in their work…"
Inuyasha almost laughed at Mirouku's emotional outburst. "I thought you liked women?" Inuyasha teased.
"I love women," Mirouku answered. "But my love does not blind me to the utter destructibility of their intelligence…they have toppled mountains, my friend," Mirouku said sagely. "They are far more intelligent than we could every hope to be and when they get together to strategize…" he trailed off and shrugged. "Well, it's the end, really."
"Ha!" Inuyasha exclaimed. "More intelligent?"
Mirouku nodded seriously. "Far more."
"Monk, you've lost your mind." Inuyasha was surprised to realize he was having…fun. "So you said there were three…?"
Mirouku had been looking at the girls. "Hunh?" he looked back at Inuyasha and blinked. "Ah, yes, the third is the truly evil…evil beyond words…"
"Don't candy coat it, monk, just spit it out," Inuyasha prompted.
"Well, it's what Mushin called 'The Bard' conference."
"Bard?" Inuyasha questioned. "Your guardian is as batty as you…"
"It simply refers to the female bonding experience that turns to story telling."
"So what's so evil about that?"
Mirouku raised his eyebrows. "They do not tell fairy stories, Inuyasha…they tell stories…about us."
Mirouku watched as realization dawned in Inuyasha's eyes.
"What?!" Inuyasha exclaimed, turning instantly to look at Kagome. She was still nursing her drink and relatively silent, watching her friends animatedly talk to Sango with a lazy smile. Well, she wasn't telling stories…
Sango however looked as if she were about ready to kill something.
Inuyasha looked over at Mirouku and saw his eyes fixed on her face.
'Kuso!' Mirouku cursed in his head as he saw the look in Sango's eyes. He didn't know what they had been telling her, but whatever it was, it couldn't have gone over well for her to look like that. And, if Mushin was right (which he always was) then it had to do with him.
Inuyasha watched the dread flit over Mirouku's face and grinned suddenly, motioning the bartender for two more drinks. He silently handed Mirouku one. Mirouku took it without comment and drank half of it down before coming up for air.
"It's about damn time someone here got bitched at besides me," Inuyasha said contently next to him.
+~+~+~+~+
A/N: whew! Okay, so I feel so much better! All that angst was really just getting to me. I needed to write something a little more fun. This chapter just kinda…came out. Well, no, the first part of this chapter came out in pieces which is why it took so long for me to post. I kept writing little scenes in my head but I hadn't had time to sit down and work it all out so it flowed. The last part, just really came out, oneshot. Bam. That whole conversation with Mirouku and Inuyasha? Yeah. Bam. I probably will even just post it like this because I'm tired, but maybe not.
I promise that we're getting closer to getting them out of the club. I actually thought this chapter might do it, but I think it's going to happen in the next one. (Again, remember that I only write what the nice voices in my head tell me to, so I can't make any promises) but as it stands now, that's what it seems like.
So…worth some reviews? Yes? No? Well, review and tell me why!
Footnotes:
* This quote is from William Shakespeare's Hamlet (Act 3, Scene 1, the infamous soliloquy that begins with "To be, or not to be…")
** This is a reference to an episode of I Love Lucy. (And if you don't know the show, you should be ashamed of yourselves…) where Lucy pretends to be sick and is then told that she has a case of "Gu-Bloots" which is completely made up. I couldn't think of an illness that would be funnier. (I guess I should add the disclaimer here, too, huh? I don't own "Gu-Bloots" nor any implications of I Love Lucy which it brings to mind…)
**********IMPORTANT**************
Alright, Sparky, here's the deal…
In a few chapters, the gang's adventures in ClubLand will sadly come to an end (not telling you how…not sure how…) but they will.
Here's my proposal: Remember back in Chapter 7 when Kagome told Sango she'd take her on a Spa Day? (If you don't, go ahead and check…go on…I'll wait… ::sniffs:: )
Right, well, I need to know if I should write that chapter. If I do, it'll be after they go to sleep when they get home. Obviously, that chapter will have more talking, more jealousy maybe and maybe I could even fit in a little about the supposed plot (you remember? Death?) If I do, it'll obviously prolong the climax of the story thereby prolonging the story. It'll have some levity to it (Kag and San hung over?!) and maybe evens some fluffiness.
If not, well, then straight on to the action and then inevitably, the conclusion. (There will be some fluffiness in there, too, I promise, but there will be more with the Spa Day, I think.)
And that, my friends, is where you come in…
Votes?
I'm even willing to take ideas as to what should happen in the Spa if I go for it.
I've gotta admit, I'm inclined to do the chapter. I an itching to write some humor into this story, but I don't want to subject y'all to another "conversation" chapter if you know what I mean.
I guess what I'm asking is…make the chapter longer or keep it shorter…?????
HELP!