Ok, here's the next chapter!!!! Ooh, I'm soo happy that I got it out. I wrote the whole six pages in one day, and finished the seventh the day after. It took me a whole month to write the second chapter -.-;
Okay, not going to take your time with this note. Read on!!
Disclaimer:
Haha!! I own something!! Wait, don't sue me yet!!! I own…Hikari Takimoto and James Morgan!! They are my original characters that I made up, so I can safely (and legally) say I own them! Ha ha, take that! -gets hit in the head with a pineapple- Who threw that?! .
Demon hunter Kagome
Chapter III
( ")
"So…are you hungry?" Sango asked, momentarily taking her eyes off the road to glace at her passenger. Kagome started, seemingly breaking out of some deep train of thought.
"Huh? …Oh. Uh, sure."
"Well, would you like to get something to eat? Or would you rather go straight to H.Q.?"
"What? You mean, we're going in today?"
"Of course. You have yet to be assigned a roommate, and Naraku wants to meet you. I don't think that we'll stay very long, though. The day is already half-over, and there hasn't been that much to do lately."
"Oh…well, I guess that's okay…"
"Good." Sango said with a smile. "Now, how about that food?"
"Okay."
"…You certainly don't talk much…" Sango observed.
"Oh, I'm sorry. I'm just really…nervous I guess you could call it. 'Unsure' would be closer to it though. This is a big thing for me…"
"I understand…but you shouldn't worry about it too much. It's not that bad. We don't even kill them, if that's what you're worried about."
"But Miroku said you 'do away' with some of the low-level demons…"
"Well, that's true, but that's more like squashing a spider."
"I don't kill spiders. I always put them in a jar and take them outside…"
Sango glanced apprehensively at Kagome out of the corner of her eye. Maybe she wasn't the best person for this kind of work…
( ")
Several minutes later Sango pulled up in front of a small café and turned the car off.
"This is Suichi's, the team's main hang-out. They have good food, and the bar has pretty much any kind of alcoholic drink you could want!" From her tone, it sounded as if she used the bar quite often… "But, I guess you don't drink, do you?"
Kagome shook her head.
"No. Didn't think so. Hey, isn't that Hikari's car? Well you wouldn't know, would you? I see she's ditched work again…Naraku won't be happy." She said, frowning. "Come on. I want you to meet a friend of mine."
Sango and Kagome entered the restaurant/bar, and Sango looked eagerly around for her friend.
The restaurant walls were painted a sky-blue color, and the floor-length windows were draped with white lacy fabric. The ceiling was vaulted, and painted to look like clouds. The tables were covered in white lacy tablecloths, and each had a small vase with two white daisies sat in the center. The bar was separated from the restaurant with a white balustrade. Over-all, the place had a crisp, clean feel to it. There weren't very many people there, and Sango quickly spotted who she was looking for.
"There she is." She said, pointing out a woman who was sitting at the bar. The lighting in the bar area was considerably dimmer than that of the restaurant, but it was easy to see who Sango was talking about. A woman sat on one of the bar stools, leaning on her fist and staring at the bottom of an empty glass as she twirled it idly in her hand. From what Kagome could see, she had shoulder-length brown hair with blond highlights that was cut jaggedly, and she wore a black mini-skirt with a pair of black pumps. As a top, she wore a white button-up shirt with the first couple of buttons undone; a black tie hung loosely around her neck.
"Come on." Sango said, taking Kagome's wrist and leading her over to the woman. "Hikari!" She greeted her.
"Eh?" The woman looked up, and Kagome saw that her heavily mascara-ed gray eyes had large dark pouches under them. "Hey Sango! Come sit down!" She said, patting the stool beside her.
"Whoa, what happened to you?" Sango asked, sitting down. "You look horrible."
"Thanks." Hikari said sarcastically. "I was out late last night. So, what are you doing here during work hours? Did you get bored too…?"
"No," Sango said indignantly. "I had to pick up Kagome."
"Who?"
"Oh, sorry! I haven't introduced you yet." Sango cast an apologetic look at Kagome who was standing uncomfortably beside her, unsure if she should sit or not. "Kagome, this is Hikari Takimoto. Hikari, meet Kagome Higurashi. She's our newest member."
Hikari raised an eyebrow.
"She's kind of young isn't she?" She whispered to Sango. "Are you sure you have the right person?"
"You do know I can hear you, right?" Kagome asked, annoyed.
"She has good ears…is she a demon?" Hikari asked, still whispering. Kagome clenched her fists.
"Hikari, she's not a demon." Sango said. "You better stop whispering before she blasts you." She teased.
"Blasts me?"
"She has miko power. Sure she's young, but she's powerful."
"Whoa…" Hikari looked at Kagome with a newfound respect. "Hey, she looks kind of like Kikyou. Speaking of the bitch, doesn't she have that kind of power?"
"Yeah." Sango snickered at the term.
"…Kikyou?" Kagome asked.
"Eh…yeah." Hikari said, looking at her. "You know her?"
"Oh…no. The name just sounds familiar…Who is she?" Kagome wasn't sure if she should say anything about being mistaken for Kikyou after hearing Hikari's opinion of her…
"Psh. Just about the bitchiest person that ever lived…" Hikari said casually and patted the bar stool on her other side. "Here kid. Why don't you have a seat?"
"Um…sure." Kagome walked over and sat down.
"So," Hikari said, throwing an arm around Kagome and Sango. "What brings you two down here?"
Sango laughed.
"We were going to get some lunch, then go on to H.Q."
"Aw…you're such a drag. Making this poor girl work on her first day…" She shook her head. "What a tyrant."
Sango rolled her eyes, and Kagome giggled.
"Well, at least someone thinks I'm funny." She glared playfully at Sango. "Stick with me, kid. I'll watch out for ya'." Hikari winked, and Kagome smiled.
"I hate to spoil your fun, but we were only here to get lunch." Sango said. "Besides, we have a live animal in the car."
"Oh, that's right! I forgot about Buyou…" Kagome said, feeling slightly guilty.
"Buyou?" Hikari asked.
"My cat. Sango let me bring him with me…"
"Aw, that was nice of her." Hikari smiled. "What are you going to do with him while you're at HQ?"
"Eh…I didn't think of that." Sango admitted. "Oh well. We'll work it out. Now, let's order some food."
Almost an hour later, the three women (Hikari had decided to eat with them) had finished their lunch, and were getting ready to leave.
"So, Hikari, you are going to come back to work, aren't you?" Sango stared at her friend as if daring her to say no.
"Aw, hell." Hikari said. "…Oh, you don't have a problem with swearing do you, Kagome?"
Kagome shook her head.
"Whew, good. That would've been awkward."
Sango continued to stare, and Hikari sighed. "…Fine. You win."
"Good." Sango smiled. "See you there!"
Sango and Kagome got in the car and headed for the STN-J.
( ")
Half an hour later, Kagome found herself standing in front of an enormous office building, holding Buyou in his travel cage. There was no sign indicating what it was, but it certainly stood out.
"Man, I thought you said the STN was a 'hush-hush' organization…" Kagome said. "What's with the skyscraper?"
Sango laughed.
"Sure, it is a bit imposing…but no one really knows what goes on inside. People just walk by and wonder. We've never had anyone actually come in and ask…Which is probably best, for their sake."
"But, surely the government would have something to say…"
"Kagome, we are the government."
With that, Sango started towards the building, Kagome in toe. They stepped inside the building, and Kagome's jaw dropped. Before her lay a spacious entryway, the high ceiling adding to the roominess. The floors were of a black slate, and their footsteps echoed loudly through the building. Several benches sat back-to-back down the center of the room, and a receptionist sat at a desk at the far end. As Kagome was admiring the stained glass windows, a man poked his head out of a glass door that stood somewhere in the far right-hand corner, and Kagome recognized him as being the man who was with Sango. Miroku something-or-other…
"Hello? Hikari, is that you?" He called.
"Hate to disappoint." Sango said dryly.
"Oh, hi Sango. I thought--"
"Yeah, I know what you thought. She's on her way, so you won't have to wait much longer."
"Whoa, what's up with you?" He jogged towards them.
"Nothing. I'm completely fine…" She growled.
"Okay… Why, hello again, Kagome." He smiled, noticing her for the first time. He took Kagome's hand, and Sango's eye twitched.
"Kagome," He began. "I know that you are still a young girl (a very beautiful one, I might add) but, would you consider--"
Sango punched him hard in the shoulder.
"Don't even try it, lecher!" She hissed.
"Why, Sango…I didn't know you cared…"
Sango growled.
"I don't! I do care about Kagome, however. It won't do to go traumatizing her on her first day here!"
"Um…" Kagome asked, blushing. "Could you…let go of my hand?"
"Huh? Oh, sorry." Miroku released her. He smiled and rubbed his neck nervously.
"Kagome, I am so sorry." Sango apologized. "Miroku is such a lecher…"
"Dear Sango, I cannot help it." He said, placing a hand on his heart. "Women are just such fascinating and beautiful creatures…I cannot help but admire them." He sighed and placed a hand discreetly on her butt.
Sango's face turned as red as a tomato. A loud slap echoed through the building. Miroku rubbed his abused cheek where a red handprint was starting to appear. Sango was trembling with rage, and Kagome had a hand over her mouth (either out of shock, or to keep from laughing).
"You do know that that's sexual harassment, don't you?!" Sango shrieked.
Kagome raised an eyebrow and wondered if they always acted like this…they certainly hadn't the first time she met them…
"Come on Kagome!" Sango took her by the hand and started to stomp towards the elevator, leaving Buyou with the woman at the desk as they passed. Kagome looked back and noticed that a second hand print had appeared on Miroku's other cheek.
"Ouch…" She whispered.
"He deserved it!" Sango fumed, pressing the button for the elevator.
"Oh, certainly." Kagome quickly agreed. So, he harassed her, and she assaulted him… It must be a love-hate relationship, Kagome decided. They stepped into the elevator, and Sango pressed the button for the seventh floor. She was still fuming when they stepped out of the elevator and into the large room. The one room pretty much accounted for the whole seventh floor, save for a small office in the corner that was surrounded by textured glass, and a small hallway on the same side that led down to what looked like restrooms. The back wall was made entirely of glass, providing a spectacular view of the city. The room was full of activity. In the center of the room sat a large semi-circular desk, papers and folders stacked around it, with seven computers on it. The three people that were seated in front of their computers looked up as they entered.
"…Is that her?"
"Must be…"
"Ooh, fresh meat…"
So went the whispers as the people stared at Kagome. Kagome started to blush.
"Um…hello…" She said timidly.
"Why, hello there…" A young man said standing up and striding confidently over to her. He had sandy-colored hair, and sported a lecherous smirk. "What might your name be little one…?"
"Oh, cut the crap James." Sango glared at him. "Kagome you want to stay away from this guy, trust me."
"Oh, come on Sango. I'm not that bad…" He protested.
"Right. You're worse. Kagome, if you thought Miroku was bad, think of James as being ten Miroku's all in one."
Kagome imagined it, and it wasn't pretty.
"Psh. Miroku? That boy wouldn't know what to do with a woman."
"Oh, and you would?"
"Of course…I could show you if you want…" He smirked suggestively.
"Psh, like hell. Leave Kagome alone. She's just a kid. Now, be a good little boy and go sit down." She waved him off to his chair.
"And if I do, will you give me a reward…?" He asked.
"Bite me." Sango said dryly.
"With pleasure…" He purred.
"Ugh, you are such a pig, you know that? Come on Kagome. You can take the computer between mine and Hikari's."
Kagome followed Sango to her computer chair and sat down, thankful that it was on the opposite side of James'.
"Man, who is that guy?" Kagome asked disgustedly.
"That's James Morgan. He transferred from the STN's North American branch about a year ago. I mean, working with Miroku was hard enough, but James? To him, women are nothing more than playthings. At least Miroku actually has some interest in the women he flirts with…"
"Oh really…then he must absolutely love you." Kagome teased.
"Oh, hush." Sango said sternly, but she couldn't keep herself from blushing.
One of the women rolled her chair over to where they were sitting. She was dressed casually, and her brown hair was tied back with a blue ribbon.
"Hi. My name is Rin Koboyashi." She said, offering her hand. "You must be Kagome."
"I am." Kagome smiled and shook her hand. "Nice to meet you, Rin."
"You too. I'm sorry that you had to deal with James. You handled yourself pretty well though."
"Um, thanks, but I didn't really do anything…Sango kind of stepped in and saved me. Gosh, is everyone here perverted?" Kagome asked, and Rin giggled.
"No, just Miroku, James and Hikari. You won't have met her yet."
"Actually, I have. Sango and I bumped into her at Suichi's restaurant."
"Oh, so that's where she went…why didn't you bring her back, Sango?"
"I tried, but I made the mistake of letting her take her own car." Sango rolled her eyes. "She'll probably turn up around two in the morning…"
"So…how many of you are there?" Kagome asked, looking around at the computers.
"Well, there are eight, including you and Sesshoumaru." Rin answered.
"Who?"
"Sesshoumaru Hattori. That obstruction over there," She jerked her thumb at the glass enclosure. "Is his office. He's not really any more important than us, but he gets his own office anyway." She rolled her eyes. "Naraku wanted him to have it for some reason…"
"I'm sorry, who is Naraku again? Sango told me on the way over, but I forgot…"
"He's the man who runs this whole place. Naraku Arachna is his full name. I'm pretty sure that's not his real last name though. It's too corny to be real." She winked.
"Oh…who's that?" Kagome asked, referring to the one other person in the room.
"Oh, that's Kikyou Wantanabe. You shouldn't pay much attention to her. None of us do."
"Why?"
"Well, you kind of have to see for yourself…" Rin said, returning to her work.
"Um, okay..."
Kagome wheeled her chair over to the woman. Her long black hair was braided, and her bangs were feathered. She wore a white silk button-up shirt and black dress-slacks. She was staring intently at the screen, and made no acknowledgement to Kagome's presence.
"Um, Hi. I'm Kagome." Kagome smiled and held out her hand.
"Hush, I'm working."
"Oh, uh…sorry. I just thought I'd introduce myself. See, I'm new here and--"
"And, you're bothering me." Kikyou said, not taking her eyes off the screen. "Please leave. Go do…whatever teenage girls do. Chase a butterfly or something."
"Humph." Kagome frowned. 'We don't look that much alike…' She thought.
"Heh, I see you couldn't resist." James said, smirking at her. His computer was at the end of the desk, and Kikyou was stuck sitting next to him.
"Doesn't that guy bother you?" She whispered to Kikyou.
"You truly are dense, aren't you?" Kikyou replied tersely. "I told you to go away."
"Oh, don't let the robot get to you." James said, rolling closer to Kagome. "Come here…I'll make you feel better…"
Kagome narrowed her eyes and gave his chair a good, hard kick.
"Ah!" James went sailing across the room and crashed through the elevator doors that had just opened.
"Whoa…who came up with that one?" Miroku asked, stepping out of the elevator, closely followed by Hikari. He quickly pressed all the buttons on the panel, and, grinning, waved goodbye to the crumpled James.
"See you later, Morgan!" He called cheerily.
"Morita, I swear I'll kick your--"
The doors closed before he could finish his sentence.
The two women cracked up, and Kagome blushed.
"I must congratulate you. That…was great." Miroku said, laughing.
"I didn't mean to kick him that hard…"
"Aw, don't worry about it. The pig probably deserved it." Hikari said, patting Kagome on the head. "'Atta girl." She winked, and wandered over to Miroku. Sango quickly sobered, and turned to her computer. Kagome rolled over to her.
"Hey, what's the matter, Sango?"
Sango took a deep breath before grinning widely.
"What makes you think that something is wrong?" She asked cheerily. "I'm just fine. Excellent, really! I should get to work. Thanks for dropping by!"
Kagome backed away slowly. What was that about…? She looked up, and quickly understood what was bothering her.
Miroku and Hikari were chatting away, laughing every time the other said something funny. At one time, Hikari was laughing so hard she had to rest one hand on Miroku's shoulder while she laughed into his chest. He looked shocked at first, then smiled and laughed along with her. Kagome growled, and turned to Sango.
"Men are idiots." She whispered.
"Tell me about it…" Sango answered miserably.
"Hello ladies." Miroku said, walking over and leaning on Sango's chair.
"What do you want, lecher?" Sango asked, glaring at him.
"I came to check on Kagome. Morgan didn't do anything to her, did he?"
"No, I'm fine." Kagome answered. "I if could deal with some of the guys at my school, I can deal with him."
Miroku laughed.
"Glad to see you can take care of yourself."
"Hey, where's Hikari?" Sango asked, glancing over his shoulder.
"She decided to 'get some fresh air'." He made quotation marks in the air with his fingers. "Hikari is a nice girl, but she has absolutely no respect for authority…"
"Really…" Kagome said, shooting a pointed glance at Sango. Sango rolled her eyes.
"Um, did I miss something?" Miroku said confusedly.
"No. It's a girl thing." Kagome answered.
"Oh… So, do you know who you're going to be rooming with?" He asked. As if on cue, the door of the glass office opened, and Sesshoumaru stepped out. ((A.N. sorry to interrupt, but you already know what he looks like from the first chapter, so I'm not going to write it out. Okay, that's all.))
"Wow…" Kagome whispered, staring at the strange markings on his face. He had a purple crescent moon on his forehead, and two dark red stripes on either of his cheeks. Sesshoumaru spotted Kagome, and strode briskly towards her.
"Why wasn't I informed of her arrival?" He asked Sango.
"Eh, sorry Sesshoumaru. I just wanted to get her settled in…" Sango said, standing up.
"Hn…"
Kagome stood up as well.
"I'm sorry. I just wanted to meet everyone." She said. "I didn't mean to get Sango in trouble…"
"Hum…I'll let it go this time. I understand that Miss Takashi has informed you of your role in the STN?"
"She has."
"Very good. Naraku has informed me that he wishes you to room with Miss Takashi. He believes she will be a good influence. This will be acceptable, no?" He said.
The two nodded.
"Good. Miss Higurashi, you will begin your training tomorrow. Miss Wantanabe has agreed to train you."
Kagome groaned.
"Is there a problem?"
"Um…no. No problem."
"Alright…" He turned to Sango. "If you wish, you may leave early today to get her settled in."
"Uh, thank you."
Sesshoumaru nodded and returned to his office.
"…Let me guess." Kagome said, staring after him. "He's a demon?"
"Eh, yeah. How'd you know?"
"No human could be that beautiful…"
Sango giggled.
( ")
Meanwhile…..James Morgan stood sandwiched between seven people, all going to different floors.
"I'll get you for this, Morita…" He grumbled. One of the people shifted, stepping on his foot.
"Ow!!"
( ")
Almost an hour later, Sango pulled up in front of a large apartment building.
"Well, here we are." She said, turning of the car and removing her seat belt.
"Wow…it's…big." Kagome said. Sango laughed, and got out of the car.
Sango's apartment was on the eighth floor, and, after several minutes of quietly thanking whoever invented the elevator, the two found themselves in front of apartment 823.
Sango grunted as she inserted the key into the door of her apartment.
She had two suitcases in each hand, and gripped a small one with her teeth. Kagome had Buyou, as well as two more suitcases. Sango opened the door, and the two women stepped inside.
"Is 'ere anything 'reakable in 'ere?" Sango asked around the handle of the suitcase.
"I don't think so."
Sango quickly dropped it.
"I'll get that in a minute." She said. "Here, let's put these in your room, then I'll give you the tour."
Kagome followed Sango through the entryway and into a room just off the living room. She set her luggage on the bed. The room was painted a dove gray with white trim, and there was a large window on the far side. There was a small dresser complete with mirror in the corner, and the plain, full-size bed was pushed under the window. There was a closet next to the dresser, and Kagome could see through the open door that it was empty.
"Whew. What have you got in those things?" Sango asked after setting the suitcases down.
"Eh, sorry. A girl has to have all her possessions to be truly comfortable." Kagome smiled.
"Ha ha, okay. Sorry, I didn't really have time to decorate." Sango said.
"Oh, that's fine. I can do that. If that's okay with you, of course."
"Sure, go right ahead. So, you ready for the tour?""
"Sure."
Kagome followed Sango into the living room. A large window took up the far wall and a sliding-glass door led out to the balcony. The living room was furnished with a black leather couch and matching armchair, and a computer desk stood in the corner with a flat-panel monitor on it. A plasma TV hung on the wall within viewing range from the couch.
"Wow…" Kagome whispered. "This is like…my dream apartment."
Sango laughed and led her through the kitchen.
"Well, there's not much to see here. Toaster, microwave, refrigerator, dishwasher, oven, stove…And my favorite, the coffee pot." She smiled, then turned back into the living room. "The bathroom is down there," She pointed down a small hallway. "As well as the washer and dryer. Will you be okay doing your own laundry?"
"Uh-huh."
"Good. Over here is my room," She said, opening the door opposite Kagome's room. "There's not much to see in there. Well, I think that's it. I hope you will make yourself at home. Help yourself to anything in the fridge, use the computer, whatever you want."
"Thanks a lot Sango. I'm glad you're my roommate. I would hate to get stuck with Kikyou or one of the guys…Rin seemed okay, but still…thanks."
"You're welcome." Sango smiled. "I'm glad you're here too. Hikari probably would've offered to let you stay with her, but I think that would be a little much for you… Anyway. Why don't you unpack your things, and let Buyou out? I'm sure he'd be glad to stretch his legs."
( ")
After unpacking, getting Buyou settled in, and tacking up several posters, Kagome sat down to an early dinner. Afterwards, she took a shower and retired to her room.
Kagome sat at her dresser in her pajamas, an open journal in front of her. It was one of the things she bought at the mall that day…there were only a few entries, accounting for the days before Sango had picked her up. She put her pen to the paper, and began to write:
Dear diary,
Well, here I am. I'm living in Sango's apartment now. I really like her. She's a good person.
I met everyone at the STN today. I can't help but wonder what I've gotten myself into…Three of them are perverts, one of them is as good as a robot, and one is a demon. I think that Rin and Sango are the only normal ones there. I'm supposed to start training tomorrow. Whatever that is…Kikyou 'the robot' Wantanabe is my trainer. That should be fun…
Well, I think that's all for today. I'll write more tomorrow!
Kagome shut the diary, and crawled into bed. Buyou curled up on the pillow next to her.
"Night, Buyou." She said, scratching his ears and getting a soft purr in return. She giggled, and turned out the light.
( ")
So, how was it??? Did you like it? Did you like Hikari and/or James? Were they okay? Was the chapter long enough for you? Will I ever stop asking questions? Who knows? Do you? Tell me!!!! Review and I'll get the next chapter out ASAP!! Speaking of reviews, I'd like to thank everyone who reviewed my previous chapters
Shippou
junemoon777
eMeLyNoOoPeE
freezing cold
Dante Gemini
Thanks a lot people!! Keep 'em coming, and I'll keep writing!!!