Undercover

Fan Fiction by bittersweetmemory

All standard disclaimers apply here.

Warnings: AU (like almost all my other works) OOC sometimes. LANGUAGE is not very pretty either….

Chapter Two

Settling In

"Inuyasha, how much are you taking? I mean, Sesshoumaru said a month right?"

His golden gaze drifted lazily over the few belongings he had piled into the box. He figured it would be enough to get by and if it wasn't, he'd buy more.

It wasn't as though he couldn't afford it. His family was in the upper echelon of Tokyo society. The other people who traveled in his social circles wondered why he even bothered to work. In truth, Inuyasha liked it. Although he would never admit it, helping people gave him a warm tingly feeling that drinking one million cases of Dom Perignon could never hope to achieve.

"Yeah Miroku. Don't worry about it." Inuyasha walked to his friend's room in the apartment they shared. He took one look at the three huge piles of clothing on the bed and turned to Miroku with a teasing grin on his face.

"You've got enough packed to cover a small regiment. Now let's go. We're supposed to be there at 6."

"It's only 4:30 Inuyasha."

"Yeah I know. But we've still gotta get a feel for the neighborhood. The sooner we get settled, the better." Inuyasha turned to walk out of the room, but Miroku's voice gave him pause.

"Inuyasha, well um, what I'm trying to say is…"

"You want Sango?"

Miroku had the decency to blush.

"Yeah…"

"No problem. I wanted Kagome anyway."

Damn.

Miroku's bashful grin turned lecherous in the span of a second.

"You did, did you?"

"Not like that you pervert! You know as well as I do that this job doesn't allow you to get close to anyone. Emotions are a weakness I'd rather not deal with. You saw what happened to Kikyo", he took a breath "I don't think I could bear that again."

Miroku gaped at the unexpected show of emotion. Though Inuyasha was at once hot-blooded and quick tempered, he was never one to allow people to see his inner turmoil. He kept his secrets and rarely asked for help.

Inuyasha must have noticed the silence and looked up.

"Let's go, Houshi. Time's wasting."

Kagome was home by 5:00 that day. She was initially startled to note a few disturbances in the normally unruffled appearance of their home but then remembered that today was the day the two detectives were moving in. She still wasn't quite sure what to make of them and wondered about their true personalities because she sensed that they were definitely hiding something. Especially Inuyasha. At first glance, he could be dismissed as an emotionally-driven, hasty, arrogant and gruff man. But she had a feeling that he knew more than he let on, and when he chose to show it, was possessed of a rapier-sharp wit. Miroku seemed gentle enough and (to her dismay) he was certainly friendly enough, but she had a feeling that he had a good heart and would be a very good friend. And most importantly (to Kagome as a woman), as much as Sango had denied it earlier that morning, he was definitely a charmer.

Her musings were abruptly cut short when the objects of her consideration let themselves in with the spare keys she had left for them.

Miroku was the first to spot her, and he immediately took advantage of her prone position on the couch.

"My lady Kagome, are you injured? Hurt? Is there anything I can do—"

He was cut off by a low growl from Inuyasha.

"Houshi, get to your room."

Miroku rose and obeyed without question.

"You've got him on quite a short leash, don't you?"

Inuyasha turned to the girl with sea blue eyes and reluctantly gave her a half smile.

"Well, someone's gotta control him." He looked uncomfortable, almost as if what he was about to say was too difficult to fathom.

"I'd like to…um, that is, I'd—"

"Apology accepted."

Well that was relatively painless.

"You know," continued Kagome "you're really cute when you're flustered."

To the utter mortification of his manly pride, Inuyasha felt a blush blooming on his cheeks. To add to that, for the first time in ten years, he was speechless.

He was saved from having to respond by the timely arrival of Sango.

Sango looked at the scene in front of her with thinly disguised amusement. Though she was sure they hadn't realized, she'd been watching the two of them for quite some time. She saw Inuyasha's reaction to Miroku's pass at Kagome and Kagome's response to Inuyasha's attempted apology. It made her smile. Though a cynic she was when it came to matters of the heart, there was something about Kagome that gave her hope. The girl was vibrant, filled with life and absolutely luminous. She was sunshine and cheer and the little sister Sango had always wanted. Inuyasha was her polar opposite. He was moody and grouchy and hostile. But there was something about him that touched her. Not in that way of course. There was just something about him that told her he was more than he seemed. She knew Kagome would be good for him. And Kagome, as much as she tried to deny it, needed protection. Not that she was weak. She was just…very naïve. They complemented one another.

She decided to save her musings for later.

"Is Miroku here?"

Inuyasha smiled in a decidedly wicked fashion.

"Anticipating something tonight, Sango?"

Her cheeks flared but she quickly recovered.

"No, of course not! I just wanted to make sure he wasn't going through my underwear drawer."

A voice lilted from the confines of one guestroom.

"Sango, dearest! Is that you?"

She rolled her eyes.

"Yes Miroku! My underwear had better be in its proper place when I get up there or I swear there will be hell to pay!"

The distinct sound of shuffling feet was all Sango needed to hear.

"Oh! Just you wait 'til I get there!"

He stuck his head out so it was visible downstairs.

"Will you be rough?"

Sango screamed.

After assuring the neighbors that "no, there was not a murder" and "no" they weren't being abused, Kagome decided to cook dinner.

With Inuyasha's help.

He was surprisingly, quite proficient in the kitchen. Fluid motions on the cutting board convinced Kagome that this was not the first time he had cooked. But being the curious girl she was, she decided to ask him anyway. He replied, that it was not the first time he had cooked since Miroku couldn't and as a result, Inuyasha was the designated chef of their "bachelor's pad".

Conversation flowed easily. He told her that he was the younger brother of the police chief Sesshoumaru; she told him she had a younger brother named Souta who was currently in his last year of middle school. She found out he loved the color red, abhorred rock music and liked anything Japanese "flavored". She informed him that she hated red (preferred blue), loved classical and was particularly fond of Italian cuisine.

He wondered why he was so relaxed around her. She was pretty, but he had seen others prettier. He supposed it was her personality and that irrepressible light in her eyes. She was "un-jaded", an innocent. Untouched by the cruelties but she seemed so strong. If he wasn't careful, he might just start caring again.

I was quite satisfied by this chapter. But the all-important question is: were you?

R&R please