Drowning Delight
~ Oh Kami-sama, is all you can think, standing frozen to the spot, stuttering. Your mind was
playing tricks on you, making you hallucinate. No way! There was just no way! But it had to be
real, right? After all, this would not be one of your outta-this-world dreams you have... Never in a
million years would you even dream of dreaming a dream about a dream like this. Oh Kami-sama,
save you! ~
I stood, frozen. My mind barely registered that Sango and Miroku had gotten close...
VERY close in the last few minutes. She was wearing my bathing suit, already in the water, with
Miroku hugging her- her back to his chest- and both sported a content smile. How the hell that
had happened was beyond me. I didn't even stop to think about it.
Nor did the fact that Inuyasha was swimming with Rin. The only thing that really caught my
eye about that was his *cough* nearly naked state *cough*. I didn't have time to admire him,
though, as much as I hate that, it was the truth...
'Damn! Damndamndamn! This is NOT good...'
"M-mama!?" I screeched in shock, staring at a woman in the captain's cabin doorway.
Everybody on the deck stopped what they were doing to see what had caused me to scream in
such a way.
'Duh. Why else would I yell 'Mama'?'
"M-Mrs. Higurashi!?" Sango and Ayame gasped.
Ayame dropped Shippo, who she was currently splashing around with. Sango slapped
Miroku, yelling the inevitable accusation, and sunk chin deep into the water.
"Ah! Kagome," called my mother, as if it was no surprise to see her... That creepy smile still
in place.
"Th-that's your mother!?" Inuyasha shouted, jumping outta the water with wide eyes. "You
mean-" he looked back and forth between us, sputtering, then stopped. "Kagome," he said,
serious in no time at all. "Your mother doesn't know how to navigate a boat... does she?"
"Iie. Why?" I asked in confusion, still staring at my mom as if I'd seen a ghost.
'This is NOT happening. Snap out of it Kagome!'
"Umm... Well, she said she was the captain," he muttered.
"Mama!? The captain!" I hollered, feeling my knees give away. "But... we'll never be on dry
land again..."
"Kagome," my mother scowled... with a smile... Spooky! "You shouldn't talk about your
mother that way! And I AM captain."
"I... think I'll faint now," I voiced, before falling. I saw four things happen at once. Shippo
and Inuyasha leapt to catch me, a swooning Sango was caught by Miroku, Ayame also collapsed,
to which Kouga jumped in the water to rescue her, and my mother- oh, the nerve! - smiled and
winked... Well, she always smiled, but this one was different... The message:
'I knew you'd find one. It only takes time.'
******
"Kagome," a voice called as a gentle hand grasped my shoulder. "Wake up, kawaii."
"Hmn?"
"Wake up," it repeated. I opened my eyes slowly, finding myself in a small room, my mother
standing over me. "Daijobu, ka?"
I sat up, rubbing my eyes and stretching. Beside a small headache, I seemed fine. "Daijobu,"
I mumbled, placing a hand to my forehead. After a while, I remembered what had happened...
"Mama? What are you doing here?"
"I told you I was going on a vacation with Eri and Shiori, ne?"
"Hai..."
"Well," she sighed, "a man called me the other day and said he had an interesting proposition
for me. He said that I would be captain of a cruiser for one whole week."
"And?"
"I'd have to keep an eye on some people," she said.
"Let me guess. This man wouldn't happen to be Mr. Himitsu, would it?" I asked, already
certain that the answer would be 'hai'.
"Hai," she replied in a slightly curious tone. "How did you know?"
"Who are you supposed to be watching?" I inquired, narrowing my eyes dangerously.
"That gorgeous man that caught you," she answered nonchalantly, adding a wink, "and his
buddies." She stood up to move about the room. "I was surprised to see you here, though."
"You didn't look like you were," I muttered. "Where are Mrs. Sasayaku and Mrs. Tajiaya?"
"There around here, somewhere," she stated, opening the door. It seemed like I was in the
captain's cabin. The pool was right outside, along with many people.
"Mama... Why didn't I see you, earlier?" I wondered, watching as Sango and Ayame chatted
quietly with worried expressions.
"I was in here, most of the time. When I wasn't, I was touring the boat... I guess it's possible
that we passed each other, although unlikely," she said, walking over to me. "Come on. Everyone
is waiting for you." I nodded and stood.
Sango was the first to see me and ran over with Ayame in tow. Miroku looked up from a
book-
'where'd he get that?'- and smiled. Inuyasha, Shippo, Rin, and Kouga were no where in
sight.
"Daijobu, ka?" they asked in unison.
"Daijobu," I giggled, shaking my head. "What's going on?"
"Ummm... Well," Sango mumbled, looking around, "it seems my mom is navigator, not
yours, and Mrs. Sasayaku is going around and hooking people up."
"I was taking about them," I said, not needing to explain any further.
"Them?" my mother repeated, curiously.
"Umm... Well," now it was Ayame's turn to stutter and look around, "Dogboy is with his
sister, eating. Shippo is annoying people again and Kouga is... somewhere."
"Oh..."
"Them?" my mother continued to ask.
"'Demonic'," Ayame answered. "The music band that we went to see, 'Demonic'. The lead
singer's brother told us that my-"
"Aya-chan!" I hissed. I'm not sure why, but I really didn't want my mom knowing that 'the
gorgeous man that caught you' was currently staying with us. Actually, we were staying with
them, but that is beside the point. I sighed, gave my mom an apologetic smile, and mumbled, "I'm
a little hungry... I think I'll go get something to eat."
"Alright, Kagome," she replied, grabbing my friends by their arms as they tried to leave with
me.
"Mama, let 'em go," I ordered. Disrespectful? Hai. Unnecessary? Iie. She sighed and released
them. "We'll be back soon. I still want to swim."
"Okay." She walked back to the cabin, humming with a knowing smile.
'Oh, boy...'
"Why'd you stop me?" Ayame asked.
"How do you think my mom will respond to the fact that I've been spending time with- in
her words- 'the gorgeous man the caught you'?" I replied, mocking my mother. Ayame giggled
and Sango smirked.
"She'd be ecstatic," Ayame said. "After all, you are supposed to find a man before you go
back home, ne?"
"Hai, but-"
"Who better than Inuyasha?" Sango giggled, punching my arm teasingly. "You are awfully
close as it is. I mean, you've already slept together." She paused, then paled.
"Don't worry, Sango-chan," I said, smiling. "I know what happened. I woke up after the first
picture." The girls turned and stared at me.
"Nani!? Why didn't you move or yell or something?"
"I couldn't," I stated calmly. "Plus, I wanted to know why he did that."
"You are weird, ne, Kagome-chan?" Sango asked, shaking her head with a chuckle.
"Hai!" I cheered. I was in a considerably good mood. That good mood didn't last long,
though. Shippo ran to me, crying. "Nani?"
"Dogboy hit me again, Okaasan!" he wailed.
"He did?" I asked, my eyes narrowing maliciously.
"Hai," he whined, sniffling lightly.
"Where is he?"
"I donno," he pouted, "he hit me then ran." I sighed, pursing my lips. "You'll get him back,
right, okaasan?" he asked, the tears disappearing in a flash. I giggled and nodded.
"Why don't you go find Rin and swim some more. I'll be there soon." He nodded and
skipped away. I walked toward the diner, cheery once more.
'Sugoi, mood-swings are strange...'
"But right now," I said to no one in particular, "I'm starving!"
"I bet," Sango muttered. That's when I remembered it...
"Oh, Sango-chan," I called sweetly, looking to my fidgeting friend.
"N-nani?" she stuttered, cautiously.
"What was it like?" I wondered, with a thoughtful expression.
"What was what like?"
"Well... I might have imagined it, but... from the looks of it, Miroku and you were awfully
close before I fainted," I mumbled, watching Sango blush profusely. "What was it like?" She
didn't answer, just glared. "Oh well. We all knew it would happen sooner or later."
"Hai," Ayame cheered.
"Finally," I sighed in mock exasperation. "It sure did take you long enough." Sango fumed,
paused, then smiled... A very dark smile.
'Oh, Kami-sama, what is she thinking?'
"Two down and one to go," she said, walking ahead of us. I choked on my oncoming retort
as my stomach growled.
'Grrrrrr.... I'm gonna get her for that!'
******
Lunch was uneventful... VERY uneventful considering the past week and a half of my life. I
sighed and slumped back in my chair, yawning in sheer boredom.
"Well," Ayame muttered, standing. "I'm going to go find Kouga..."
"Ja," we called, watching our retreating friend leave, both sighing for what had to be the
fourteenth time in the past half-hour.
Sango turned towards me, a light bulb appearing above her as her face lit up.
"What happed last night, between you and 'the gorgeous man that caught you'?" she asked,
smirking slightly.
"Nani?"
"I heard that you had him on the verge of tears," she said, the smirk turning into a frown.
"Whatever you did Kagome-chan... that was uncalled for."
"Tears!? Me? Make Inuyasha cry?" I repeated, trying not to laugh. It was ridiculous
sounding... But then again........ My expression went from humored to saddened. I guess it was
true. "Iie. He didn't cry. I did hurt him, though..."
"Explain," she ordered.
I lowered my head, my bangs concealing my face. "We fought again. It was foolish, really.
He had said I was childish and I argued that everyone else was too mature. He said something like
'not everyone can afford to cut loose like you can'," I muttered. "I said 'I'm sure
you can' or something like that."
Sango gasped. "Kagome-chan, how could you!?"
"Iie," I cried defensively, waving my hands to ward off the accusing words. "It wasn't what I
said. He told me himself." I felt tears well in my eyes. "Sango-chan, he thinks I hate him..."
"Why?" she wondered, frowning.
"Because... He said that I spoke as if I hated him, with all of my heart," I whispered, barely
loud enough for her to hear. Sango leaned back in her seat.
"Did you tell him it wasn't true?"
"Of course I did," I huffed.
"And he still thinks you hate him?"
"I don't know," I mumbled.
"Kagome-chan," Sango smirked, "I am positive that he doesn't think that..." I frowned,
puzzledly. "He wouldn't let anyone near you when you fainted. He even carried you into the cabin
and sat beside you until Rin started complaining about being hungry."
"He what?!" I gaped.
She grinned. "You still have to do something about him and Shippo," she said, confusing
me yet again. "There's no way you can have a boyfriend that your son hates."
"B-boyfriend!?" I sputtered. "He is not my boyfriend!"
"Hai he is," she stated, matter-of-factly. "Why else would he do something like that?"
"Because he is a
friend. You should have stayed there, too," I muttered, glowering.
"I have better things to do," she mumbled.
"Like frenching houshi?"
Ummm.... I don't remember what happened after that, since my world went black. The last
thing I saw was a fuming Sango, holding a waiter's serving tray.
******
I was searching the halls, looking for the elusive singer. I had awoken to find myself in
Sango and Ayame's room. My guess was that Sango had felt bad about the whole thing, or just
didn't want to leave me out in the open. Sugoi, what a considerate friend.
I snorted. Considerate, my ass! I had a large lump on the back of my head and a pounding
headache. That didn't make me very tolerable, either, so I stayed away from the pool area. No
way was I up to listening to Shippo cry or laugh or beg for me to swim or something like that. I
just couldn't stand it right then.
Turning down yet another hallway, I stumbled and fell, landing on my face. Now, in a
greatly fouler mood, I pushed myself to my feet, grumbling and cursing as if I'd been reading from
the 'World's Foulest Language' book- which does not exist.
"And I get threatened every time I say 'hell' or 'bitch'," a voice teased.
I choked on the last few words, turning to see a certain chuckling singer.
"I-Inuyasha!?" I stuttered in surprise. He was soon backing away as my expression darkened
to a murderous snarl. "WHERE THE HELL HAVE YOU BEEN!? I'VE BEEN LOOKING
EVERYWHERE FOR YOU!"
"I-I-I-"
"WELL!?"
He turned to run, falling backward when I grabbed his hair.
"Itai!" he yipped, pushing himself to his elbows. "Bitch, don't do that!"
"I'LL DO WHAT I WANT! NOW TELL ME," I hollered, uncaring as to who heard me. I
was mad, don't ask why. I have absolutely no idea.
"I WAS LOOKING FOR YOU, OKAY!?" he shouted, glaring right back at me.
"Looking for me?" I mumbled dumbly, blinking a few times. "Nani? Why?"
"Hai, looking for you," he said, standing and dusting himself off. "I was wondering if you
were okay. I heard you had gotten up, but when I went to find you, you had disappeared."
"I- Sango hit me over the head and knocked me unconscious again," I explained.
'He didn't say that... did he? There's no way he actually worried... Sango said he had,
though...'
"She must have dragged me into their room or something."
"What did she do that for?" he asked, frowning.
"I said something about her and Miroku."
"Oh..."
::::::Silence::::::
"Umm... Anyway..."
"Hai?" I asked, walking to the pool area. I still had to swim with Shippo, since I didn't
earlier.
"About last night," he began, taking a deep breath.
I tensed slightly, hoping beyond hope that he wouldn't bring up my last statement from the
night before. "Nani?"
"Here," he said, holding a closed hand out. He handed me the keys, muttering, "gomen. I
didn't mean to keep them..."
"Eh?" I stared at the key... Just stared...
"Oi. Fangirl, snap out of it!"
"Eh?" Now I was staring at the singer... And an arrogant smirk... That woke me up. "Ah! I
forgot..." I walked toward Inuyasha, stopping a mere inch away. Flashing a grin, I stomped on his
foot, yelling, "THAT is for Shippo," and walked away. "You are too damn arrogant for your own
good, Inuyasha."
I made my way to the pool and found a snoozing Miroku and a bored Ayame sitting at a
table with an upset Sango sitting across the pool, glowering at the drummer. Shippo and Rin were
swimming and dunking Kouga.
"OKAASAN!!!" Shippo squealed, leaping from the water- to Kouga's relief- and hugged
me... Well, the covering clothes weren't much help anymore. I giggled.
"I'm glad to see you, too," I laughed, ruffling his soaked hair. "I'll get in with you in a
minute, I promise, okay?"
He nodded, ran, and jumped into the water, splashing Miroku who shot awake, sputtering.
Sango fell over laughing and Ayame giggled. I walked over and patted Miroku on his back to
calm him.
"Calm down, Miroku," I commanded. He stopped, looked at me, then narrowed his eyes.
"What did you say to my darling Sango?" he inquired. "She won't even listen to me
anymore."
"Nani? She won't?" I asked. Ayame nodded. I sighed. "I'll talk to her."
That's just what I did, too, after I got her to stop laughing. She wiped some tears away,
clutching her stomach to hold back any more outbursts. I proceeded to slip out of my cover-up
clothing, asking what the problem was.
"I never kissed him, Kagome-chan," she huffed.
"Eh?"
"That whole 'frenching' thing that you said... It got me thinking," she stated.
"And?"
"Just think about it. A man that gropes every woman in sight," she muttered, "do you really
think he has never kissed a girl, before?"
"I still don't understand..."
"I..." She blushed and looked away. "I never kissed anyone before. Not even my first
boyfriend... Miroku would think I was strange."
"Oh... Sango-chan, don't worry about it. If he really likes you," I said, watching as Inuyasha
appeared, slipping into the water to play with Rin, "then he won't mind."
"Are you sure?"
"Hai. And if I'm not right, then I'm sure he can always teach you," I suggested, giggling.
Sango sighed, shaking her head. "Whatever..."
"That's the spirit!" I cheered. Smiling to my friend, I walked away, VERY conscious to the
glances thrown my way. I called over my shoulder, with a frown, "Sango-chan, I want my
swimsuit back, A.S.A.P."
"Okay."
I sat on the edge of the pool, testing the temperature of the water with my feet. It was a
little chilly for my liking, but I got in anyway. As soon as I was in, I felt something grab my arm
and yank.
"Okaasan," Shippo whispered, pulling me farther into the water, "does San- san really, really
like Miroku?"
"Hai. Why?"
"I have an idea."
"Nani?" He told me the idea and I giggled, nodding. This would be fun. Shippo made his
way to the edge, faking a shiver.
"Miroku-san," he called, the drummer looked up.
'Alright. Now for my turn.'
"Sango-chan," I called, also going to the edge of the pool. "I forgot to grab a towel. Can
you get one for me?"
She nodded and left to get a towel from the pool storage room, which just so happened to
be where the towels were stashed. She didn't seem to realize that I'd just gotten in, which was
working to my benefit.
I watched as Miroku sighed, stood, and left for the same area, neither seeing each other
leave. I climbed out, following Miroku silently. He stopped at the doorway and I heard Sango
gasp, startled at his arrival. I smirked, pushed him all the way into the room and slammed the door
shut. A few muffled yells were heard as well as a lot of cursing and threats...
"A few minutes will do you two some good," I yelled.
Whistling, I made my way back to the pool. Shippo looked to me and I nodded. He yipped
in glee, before giggling, and singing about his awesome plan that worked.
Inuyasha gave us both a quizzical look. I shrugged it off. Shippo sung some more. I snorted
and slipped back into the pool. I sat in the corner for a while, just relaxing.
"Oneechan?" a voice called. "Is oneechan going to play with Rin? Is oneechan going to play
with Shippo? Rin is playing with Shippo. Rin want oneechan to play with Rin and Shippo. Rin
sure that Shippo wants oneechan to swim and play with Shippo and Rin because Rin wants to
play with oneechan and Shippo and it would be fun for Rin to have oneechan and Shippo to play
with Rin."
I giggled at her breathless ranting and swam out to her. "Sure, oneechan will play with
Rin-chan and Shippo-chan."
Shippo began to splash me as Rin attacked Kouga. Kouga in return, sputtered and got out
of the water, going to sit next to Ayame. I went under water and came up behind Rin, whispering,
"good job", and thoroughly startling the girl. She squeaked and swam away, splashing with her
feet.
Shippo had made his way up to me. He grinned, then lunged, dunking me under the water. I
came up, tickling him. "Stop! O-okaa-san, stop *gasp* *giggle* onegai."
"Alright," I sighed, and swam away, going under water. I came up a few feet away. Water
splashed me from all sides with unrelenting force. I went under and came up near the edge of the
pool. Inuyasha, Rin, and Shippo looked at me with... A smirk, a smile, and a grin. They were
working against me!
"Time for some payback," Inuyasha said, moving forward. Shippo and Rin moved to the
sides, closing in on me. "Three... Two... ONE!"
Why I didn't duck, I don't know. Instead, I splashed back, moving toward the singer. I had
an idea.
The kids were now splashing each other, since I was out of the way, but they didn't know.
However, Inuyasha saw that I had moved, and stopped, getting a face full of water from my
continuing splashing. In his time of hesitance, I lunged, just as my son had, and pushed him down.
I laughed mechanically, before I felt a hand grasp my ankle.
I was pulled under and brought into a light embrace. Inuyasha grinned, his eyes flashing
mischievously- I could even seen it through the water, which means a lot- as he leaned forward. I
would have gasped, if not for my mind ranting,
'water... not... breathable... Don't... breath... non.... breathable... substances.'
Plus, remembering the last time, I told myself this was another joke...
'NOT A JOKE!' it screamed as I felt his lips cover mine.
'IT'S A DREAM!' It felt like fire; the feeling behind the kiss, I mean. Total and utter bliss.
The only thing that kept me from drowning right then and there was my own sadistic mind.
'Dreamingdreamingdreamingdreamingdreamingdreamingdreamingdreamingdreaming.'
Before I knew it, it ended and I found myself alone. Surfacing, I searched for him, only to
get another face full of water.
"Gotcha," Shippo yelled.
I splashed back, making my way to the edge. I spotted him walking away, water dripping
from his hair to form a trail, which I followed after dunking both Shippo and Rin. I guess neither
saw anything... If anything happened...
Following the trail, I realized where he was going...
'Not good,' I thought and sprinted toward the soon-to-be hazard zone. Rounding the last
bend, I reached out to stop him. Too late. I am sooooo dead.... -_-;
The door was flung open and two very angry people lunged from the room, tackling
Inuyasha. One looked ready to kill, while the other looked like he had been killed... A few dozen
times.
"Kagome! You're gonna-" Sango choked on her words as she looked at the person she
currently straddled. "I-In-Inuyasha! Oh, Kami-sama. Gomen nasai, Inuyasha. I thought-"
"So, San-san, did you make any progress?" I asked slyly.
She sputtered and turned to face me in disbelief, her face flushing. Miroku had a questioning
brow raised as he stood.
"Explain," he commanded.
"Iie. San-san will kill me," I said.
"She's going to kill you anyway," he reasoned.
"I want to live a few more minutes," I mumbled, looking to Inuyasha. "I have a certain
Dogboy to interrogate."
"Sounds interesting," Sango smirked. "You made progress, too, huh?"
"Eh? Iie, that's not what I was talking about," I stammered, looking away. "Chotto! Does
that mean you made some progress after all?"
"I-iie!" she screeched, then stalked away, fuming. "I cannot believe you actually did that,"
was the last thing I heard her say.
"What, pray tell, was that about?" Miroku asked, helping Inuyasha to his feet.
"Unless she tells you herself, houshi," I stated, walking away, "you'll never know."
I was tired, again... Very tired... I'd ask Inuyasha later, when I was feeling up to it. I don't
think I ever will be, though. *sigh* I just hope I don't wake from this dream any time soon.
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