WHOO-HAA! Time for another amazing installment of "The Other Swordsman!" In this thrilling chapter...aw, heck, I can't just tell you. Read it and find out. STOORRRRRYYYYYY!!!!
Chapter 31: Not Again
While Kagome lounged about in her time, Inuyasha was restless. He paced back and forth next to the well; stopping occasionally to throw a menacing glare at the bottom, as if daring Kagome to come through and see him like that.
"Where the hell is she?" he roared. "She said she needed time to think...I didn't think she needed a whole fucking day! She should be done by now!"
"Calm down, Inuyasha," said Miroku, trying to soothe the hanyou's temper. "She'll be back and you know it."
"Feh. I know it, but she's sure taking her sweet time about it." He resumed angrily pacing. Kagome... he thought. Why aren't you coming back? Will you?
"New, Peter Pan Makeup!" chirped the ditzy blonde on the television. "Use Peter Pan before your pan peters out!" The picture shrank to a small white dot, then receded into nothingness.
Kagome put down the remote and went into the kitchen. "Where's Tobias?" she demanded loudly. "He said he would-"
*DING DONG*
"I'll get it!" She jogged over to the door and opened it to see Tobias standing on her doorstep.
He looked very bedraggled. His hair was mussed up, his clothes were wrinkled, and there were dark circles under his eyes. He walked in, walking just a bit bowlegged.
"Hey, Kagome," he said brightly. Despite his appearance, he seemed very cheerful. "So do you want to go?"
"What happened to you? You look rotten," said Kagome.
Tobias grinned. "Can't tell you the details, but suffice it to say I'm in a very good mood right now. I didn't get much sleep last night..." his grin grew wider, "I was otherwise occupied with Lasako." He glanced at his watch. "It's a little late to go now...we wouldn't get anything done tonight. It's already 8:36. Want to see a movie instead?"
"Umm..." Kagome thought. I do want to see Inuyasha...but he has a point. "You're right, Tobias. It's too late now. We'll go in the morning." Besides, I'm still tired from the whole chase. Apparently, sleeping till 1:30 isn't long enough.
"There's a movie called The Lights of Paris at the Googolplex..."
"No!" said Kagome hurriedly. Tobias looked puzzled. "Just...no. Is there anything else?"
"Well..." Tobias glanced around to see if anyone was watching. "The Return of the Skeleton King is premiering tonight."
"Oh! I've wanted to see that one...where is it?"
"It's not at the Googolplex. It's at another theater I know downtown." He stood to one side, inviting her to leave. "Shall we? The next showing is in 30 minutes."
"Okay. Hold on a second." Kagome went back upstairs.
"Mama, I'm going to a movie with Tobias. We'll leave for the Feudal Era in the morning. Okay?"
"All right, dear. But won't Inuyasha be disappointed?"
Kagome looked to the side. "I still need to think about some things...I'm sure he'll understand."
"WHERE THE FUCK IS SHE?!" Inuyasha bellowed. "She all but said she was coming back YESTERDAY!!!"
Tobias and Kagome got out of the taxi. Tobias paid the driver, tipped him generously, and told him to wait outside until the movie was over. They walked into the building.
"Suckers..." muttered the cabbie as he sped off. "Ain't stayin' in this part o' town for any more than I hafta. It's dangerous 'round here." He drove away.
The movie was beginning. Tobias had a popcorn bucket the size of a bathtub, and a soda as big as a kitchen sink. Under the seat, he had a box of candy that could have served as a small coffin.
"I love the snacks at this place," remarked Tobias as the previews rolled. "Big sizes for a guy with a big appetite." Kagome, who had gotten more normal-sized munchies, looked around in evident approval. The walls were freshly painted, the seats were padded and actually reclined a bit, the projector never flickered. It was a very nice place...but the surrounding area was another story.
Condemned buildings, low-rent restaurants and shops, graffiti-covered walls, and shady-looking people littered the streets. She had seen at least one car up on blocks. Kagome turned to Tobias.
"Tobias? I don't like this neighborhood very much..." Tobias swallowed some popcorn and looked at her for a second. "How is it this place is so nice when the whole area is so...so ghetto?"
Tobias smiled. "Yeah, ghetto just about describes it. Did you notice how much things cost here? The tickets set me back twenty-five bucks each, and the bill for our snacks was one hundred thirty dollars." Kagome gaped.
"This is a high-rent kind of place. There's security who stop people from messing with it, and it only caters to the richer sort."
"Why would a place like this be in an area like that?" Kagome wondered. It seemed a difficult puzzle, but Tobias smiled again.
"Actually, I was the one who bankrolled this place into existence. See, a lot of my jobs take place down here, and I needed a place to sit back and relax after a hard day killing people. So I commissioned the theater. I love watching movies..."
Kagome stared at him. He wants entertainment, so he builds an entire movie theater? He is RICH rich rich. And he has a lot of free time on his hands. "You get bored easily, don't you."
Tobias almost choked with laughter through some gummy bears. "Yeah," he coughed. "That's about it. Shh, the movie's starting."
About three hours later, the movie was over. Kagome was falling asleep on Tobias's shoulder. He prodded her until her eyes opened.
"Kagome," he said softly. "The movie's over. It's time to go."
"Right," she said blearily. Shaking the sleep from her eyes, she followed Tobias out and onto the street.
Tobias threw up his hands in frustration. "Great. The cab's gone. And we'll never find another one at this hour." He glanced around. "Well, there's nothing for it. We'll have to walk."
"Walk?!" Kagome glared at him. "At this time of night, and in this area of town? You want to walk?"
"I don't see what the problem is, Kagome," he said calmly. "I mean, you have the most feared assassin in the country protecting you. What could possibly happen?" He paused. "Wait...saying that is a death wish, isn't it." Nothing happened.
"All right, then. Let's go."
*BANG!!*
A small, red hole appeared in Tobias's forehead and he dropped to the pavement. Kagome shrieked and ducked to see if he was hurt, but Tobias's strong arm reached out and yanked her down.
"The irony gods are laughing their asses off right now," he said through clenched teeth. "But it'll take more than one bullet to stop me." He grasped Kagome tightly in one arm, and with the other arm and both legs, propelled himself into the air. He landed on his feet and dashed into an alleyway.
Not the best idea, it transpired, as a mob of gunmen spotted them and opened fire.
"It's him!" they shouted to each other. "Kill him!"
Not my day... thought Tobias grimly. He twisted around, ducked behind a Dumpster, and leaped high into the air. He landed on the roof of a nearby building. A man stood up, he was holding what Tobias recognized as a sniper rifle. Shouting a guttural war cry, the man attempted to bring the rifle to bear. Tobias had his sword out and sliced through him in one swift movement.
Inuyasha... thought Kagome desperately. Help me!
Inuyasha had been pacing, still; when suddenly his ears shot up and he stared into the well. Miroku looked at him.
"Is something wrong, Inuyasha?" Inuyasha didn't seem to notice. All he knew, somehow, was that Kagome was in danger, and she needed him. I'm coming, Kagome. Without so much as an explanation, he barreled toward the well and leaped inside.
He clambered out, in modern times. He was frantically smelling, trying to locate Kagome through her scent, but it was all mixed up in everyone else's. Think, goddammit, think! She's got to be around here somewhere!
Tobias twirled desperately, searching for would-be assassins to flee from or neutralize. Another man, standing a few roofs away, brought a rocket launcher into firing position. A blast of flames curled out of the butt end as a rocket roared towards Tobias and Kagome.
"Shit!" Tobias yelped as he twisted his body, narrowly avoiding the rocket. It hit a brick chimney on the next roof over and exploded into flames, the shockwave tossing Tobias off the roof.
A burst of fire and a loud noise to the southwest immediately caught Inuyasha's attention. Somehow, in some way, he knew that Kagome was there. It was as if there was a bond between them. He raced off in that direction.
Something flickered in Kagome's mind. She couldn't explain it; it just seemed like Inuyasha had just arrived and was coming to protect her. It was as if she had a sixth sense.
"Tobias!" she shouted over the din. "Inuyasha's coming!"
"How do you know?" he roared. Tobias dashed across an alley. More assassins cut loose with automatic weapons as they ran through. Bullets bounced off of Tobias's armor, and one or two drove themselves into his flesh; but none touched Kagome. They sped into a mercifully vacant side street and lay still.
"I don't know...I just know somehow."
"Well, I hope you're right, because I need all the help I can get," Tobias snarled. He gripped his sword tightly in one hand and Kagome in the other arm. "I get attacked a lot, because I put most other assassins out of a job, but never this organized or this many people before." He ducked as a fusillade of bullets streamed his way. He picked Kagome up and ran again.
"It's like they have an entire army," Tobias panted. He zigzagged across the streets and alleys, avoiding assassins the whole way. "But they're not after you...they're after me. We need to get you to safety..." More men appeared at the end of the alleyway they were in. Tobias dropped Kagome behind a Dumpster. With a roar, he charged the men and sliced them to bits.
Kagome tried to slow her breathing. Suddenly, a large and hairy man appeared behind her and picked her up. She shrieked as he held a pistol to her head.
"Give up, Tobias," he growled, "or she dies."
OHH NOOOO! Kagome's being used as bait! WHAT WILL TOBIAS DO?? (What do you think?) REVIEW!
As a side note, anyone remember Marcus, the arrogant prince from a few chapters ago? He HAS been mentioned in this story before...try Chapter 17 to look for him.