East of the Moon
Chapter seven
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East Room, White House, 4:59 p.m., August 3:
Inuyasha yawned lightly as his fingers danced across the piano's keys. He was currently alone in the East room awaiting Kagome to be released from a meeting with her father. Apparently he had something very important he needed to tell her and it made Inuyasha feel very uneasy about his currently situation.
After being released from the hospital -due to his demon heritage the bullet wound was almost invisible now- his mother had left to go back to Seattle on a private jet. She claimed that she felt uncomfortable around the White House and that she needed to get back to work as well.
After she'd left, Inuyasha had jumped Kagome and asked her why she'd spilled everything to his mom. "It wasn't me," she said with an apologetic smile. "I guess your dad already did it; she just clarified with me. I didn't feel it was right to lie to her."
It had ended at that and they had headed home. Only when they arrived, instead of a peaceful entrance, their limo was bombarded by reporters and paparazzi. It was with this startling occurrence that Inuyasha realized that he was famous now.
Kagome had scooted closer to him in the limo and offered a small comfort from the massive amounts of reporters throwing themselves at the limo. Once they had entered the grounds of the White House, however, things seemed to cool down. Although, Inuyasha noticed that the paparazzi stuck around, hoping for some kind of picture or story.
Inuyasha gently shook his head and continued to play the music he'd originally partaken in. He was bored out of his mind and playing the piano helped him relieve stress.
The door to the East room opened and the hanyou looked up to see Kagome walking in, holding something in her hand. He paused in his music to stand up and walk towards her, meeting her half way. He smiled at her. "Hey."
"Hi," she said happily and set down what was now revealed to be a CD player. She leaned into a small hug before pulling away, a small smile on her face.
"I've seen that look before," he accused. "What are you plotting?"
"Nothing," Kagome said lightly and grabbed his hands, closing her small ones around his larger ones. He blinked in surprise as Kagome used her big toe to click on the CD player. Soon piano music streamed through the CD player and into the empty room.
"Nothing...?" he said sarcastically as Kagome moved his hand to her waist and she rested hers very lightly on his shoulder. Their other hands intertwined like lace and she scooted the CD player out of the way.
"I thought it would be fun if we could dance?" she asked hopefully.
He rolled his eyes and smiled charmingly. "As if I have a choice, right?"
"Yup," she agreed and they began to glide across the room, allowing the music to guide their steps. Inuyasha was a bit awkward, but after a few minutes he got the hang of it and after several minutes more Inuyasha was able to lead Kagome instead of the other way around.
"There, you catch on quickly," she congratulated him as they breezed around the East room.
"Yeah, but unlike some people, I don't have to really know how to dance." Inuyasha smiled. Kagome, in her last four years of being the president's daughter, had attended many parties that needed the fancy dancing.
They continued on in silence, not even noticing when the CD's tracks changed multiple times. Inuyasha paused in his steps to stare down at Kagome. The said girl tilted her head up and noticed his serious gaze. "Kagome... what did your dad say?"
Kagome bit her lip and lowered her head, continuing to dance with him. They continued to dance in silence as Kagome collected her thoughts. "He's mad," she admitted. "Agent East told him about what happened." He knew what she meant. "And he's disappointed in me because he thinks its just lust." She looked up at him and hugged him tightly. He sighed and wrapped his arms around her, gently rocking her from side to side to the beat of the soft music pouring from the small CD player.
"You and I both know it wasn't," he whispered sweetly to her as she buried her head into the folds of his tee-shirt. "That's all that matters." He pulled away gently to smile down at her. "I wouldn't do what I did to just any girl. I did it because I really care about you."
"I do, too," she whispered, "I care about you, too."
He smiled gently and nodded his head. The girl leaned over and shut the CD off. Her head turned and she returned the smile. "I should go," she said, "Dad wants me to do an interview about what happened at the park."
"Alright," he said and lightly touched her shoulder, his claws falling across the skin softly. She shivered and blushed.
"Kagome?" he called when she began to leave the room. She turned to look at him and he placed a hand over his heart. "I have no regrets."
He smelled the beginnings of tears in her eyes as she nodded. "No regrets."
---
Oval Office, White House, Noon, August 6:
Inuyasha let out a sigh and glanced hesitantly at Kagome. It had been three days since she'd talked to her father, and he felt slightly nervous. He was currently in the Oval Office awaiting the interview he was about to give about the attempted assassination. He was slightly annoyed and bored with the whole thing. It had been days ago; shouldn't people be over it now? Apparently not; apparently the near death of the president's daughter made many people come up with farfetched stories and tune into the news channels in order to learn the truth.
Throughout the week the press had come up with many possibilities about who the attempted assassination had been by. It went from the Republican Party to the vice president to anarchist groups to foreign terrorists.
The public responded the most to the terrorist theory.
Inuyasha wasn't entirely sure who had done it, but he was certain his father knew. His dad had been avoiding him ever since that fateful morning he'd found him in Kagome's room. During the training he had to undertake constantly, his father would simply observe and not say much at all to him. It was mostly the trainer that did all of the work.
Kagome met Inuyasha's eyes and smiled sweetly at him. He returned the smile and whished he didn't have to do this ridiculous interview. The reporter had been here for about half an hour going over with him what he would say. He was growing more and more uncomfortable by the moment and if it wasn't for the fact Kagome was in the same room he was certain he'd go insane.
"Well, Inuyasha, we're going to start the interview soon; are you ready?" the reporter asked kindly as she positioned herself in a chair next to him and Kagome. He nodded his head. "Excellent, now just answer like we told you to and you'll be fine."
Kagome leaned over and grabbed the tie he was wearing. "Hey!" he yelped in surprise as Kagome sat in his lap and began fixing his crooked tie.
"Honestly, Inuyasha, try and look professional," she said jokingly as she straightened his tie. He rolled his eyes.
"You're the one sitting in my lap," he accused with a point of his finger. Kagome laughed sheepishly and repositioned herself next to Inuyasha, her hand lightly touching his.
The camera man began the countdown, "And we're on in five, four, three..." He began to count down with his fingers and stopped speaking once his fingers hit two. Inuyasha swallowed a lump in his throat. He knew it wasn't live, but still he was a little nervous.
"Thank you Diane," Amy, the reporter, said right away, even though she'd had no introduction. "I'm here with Inuyasha Takahashi and Kagome Higurashi Jones in the Oval Office," she said, turning to Inuyasha. "Inuyasha, thank you for taking the time to do this."
"Thanks for having me," Inuyasha said as he was instructed.
"As I'm sure you know, Inuyasha, you're an American icon ever since you saved Ms. Kagome Jones from being shot by an anonymous sniper. How does it feel to know that you were able to save Kagome before she was murdered?"
Inuyasha smiled charmingly, as he was once again instructed beforehand, and looked at Amy, his golden eyes unwavering, "I'm glad I was able to save Kagome, and I'd do it for anyone else. I wouldn't allow a defenseless person to fall victim to an attack. Especially Kagome."
And so the interview continued much like that. The reporter would ask Inuyasha questions, such as what happened the fateful day, how the hospital visit was, how his bullet wound was healing (and they even managed to get Inuyasha to take off his dress clothes for just a second in order to show the said wound), and why he was even in the White House in the first place. (That had been planned by the president that he'd won a contest, not because of the prophecy, which they were trying to keep under wraps).
"Well, Inuyasha, one final question," Amy said with a large smirk. Inuyasha blinked in surprise, remembering that the question beforehand had been the last one. He glanced nervously at Kagome.
"Okay," he said uneasily when Kagome smiled reassuringly.
"There have been rumors," Amy said slyly and inched closer to the teenaged boy. "Are you and Kagome... an item?"
He sputtered in surprise and their faces ignited into a bright red. Kagome covered her face and giggled, turning away from the camera. Inuyasha gulped down a lump in his throat, unsure of how he was supposed to answer that. He glanced at Kagome, who was still blushing brightly.
He turned back to Amy and grabbed Kagome's hand, holding it in his as he intertwined the fingers. He smirked. "Why yes; yes we are."
---
Kagome's room, White House's basement, 8:28 a.m., August 7:
Inuyasha stirred in his bed and his ears twitched. He'd trained himself to awaken before his father came and did his rounds. He opened his golden eyes and looked around Kagome's bright and sunny room, the golden sunlight seeping through the thin curtains that covered her door. Kagome slept on beside him. He smiled and yawned, scratching an ear absently. He found it hard to believe he was even here with Kagome.
Before his father had come to get him, he'd been a lonely teenager. Due to his demon heritage, he was unable to really make friends, and he was slightly unfriendly when it came to corresponding with others. He stared at the ceiling and found his gaze on Legolas. Before he'd met Kagome, he'd been all alone, always picked last when partners or groups were needed, fired from his jobs left and right, feeling no motivation to do anything...
Now... he had the most beautiful girl he'd ever met in his arms, sleeping peacefully and willingly putting her trust in his hands. He leaned over her sleeping form, a smile on her lips, and hesitantly touched her shoulder, his claws lightly tracing her bare forearms.
His eye softened as he leaned down and kissed her neck.
Without her, he'd be all alone. She was his first friend, she was his first love, she was his first time and he wanted to spend as much time as he could with her.
But he couldn't. Slipping out of her bed regretfully, he walked around the large bed to Kagome's side. She slept on peacefully as he leaned down and kissed her lips softly. Pulling away, he yawned, stretched and exited through her balcony doors and went to his room.
One hour later his father was demanding he get ready for his training.
Rolling his eyes skyward, Inuyasha grasped a pair of pants and a T-shirt and slipped them on. Scratching his ear again, he left his room and began walking down the hallway, only pausing when he passed Kagome's room, and being nearly bombarded by bodyguards. They were everywhere ever since the near assassination. Even he'd acquired some, now that he was famous.
Once in the basement turned training hall, Inuyasha was met with his father. He held something in his hands and he looked slightly peeved. "Hello, happy family," he greeted as he entered the room, waving his hand wildly at his trainer and his father.
"Inuyasha," his trainer said with only a hint of amusement laced in his voice. "We have something very important to give you."
"Why...?" Inuyasha asked with his head tilted to the side. He crossed his arms and stared at his dad, who was holding what now appeared to be a sword. "Oh great, we're moving away from the guns and moving into the swords. Awesome. That will definitely save the world."
"Silence, you stupid hanyou," his father said crossly and nodded to the other man.
"Inuyasha," he said, calmer than his father. "Recently the prophecy was stolen from the FBI headquarters. We have reasons to believe it is the enemy the prophecy spoke of. The leader is a man named Naraku, a demon, rather. He's very powerful and can shape shift."
Inuyasha stared at the lack of preamble to the dilemma he'd been faced with.
"We have reasons to believe that the assassination attempt had indeed not been after Kagome, but rather after you. Your quick action, however, made so the bullet was not fatal." Inuyasha frowned. That had meant that his attempt to save his girlfriend had all been for nothing. "At any rate, Inuyasha, it is decided that Naraku is going to make his move on August fifteenth."
"You need to be ready by then," his father said crossly.
"That's only a week from now!"
"Eight days, actually," his father said calmly and thrust the sword into his hands. "This is for you."
"A sword, great," the son said sarcastically.
"Inuyasha," his trainer said before his father could yell profanities. "This sword is special. It is called the Tessaiga."
Inuyasha glanced at the sword and drew it from its sheath. It was a rusty piece of metal. He gave it a critical look and turned a glare at the two men. "Very funny, you guys."
"You'll need to access the power of the sword when the time comes," his father said crossly. "I made it with my fang, and so you had better treat it right." His father looked away with his hands on his hips. Inuyasha slipped the sword away again.
"Why is it that I need a sword to defeat it?"
"The prophecy stated that a warrior will rise. Warriors are often associated with ancient, sword-swinging heroes. We'll provide you with guns in case we're wrong," his father said impatiently.
"Alright." Inuyasha let out a sigh and then began training.
Several hours later found an exhausted Inuyasha collapsing on the ground of the basement. His father nodded to his trainer who nodded back. "Inuyasha, that is good for today; we'll do some more tomorrow." The boy nodded and the man left the room.
Inutaisho began to exit as well when his son's words called out, "Hey, Dad?"
"What?" he asked and noticed his son staring at him with unwavering golden eyes.
"Thanks... for the sword... I know it means a lot to you," his son said and stared at the Tessaiga.
His father chuckled. "I made it to protect your mother, oddly enough."
His tongue ran over his right fang, where only the faintest little chip was, proving that the fang had been cut at one point.
"Mum...?"
"Yes," his father chuckled and shook his head. "Get rest, boy; we have work tomorrow."
"Whatever." The son watched his father leave the room, leaving the young hanyou alone.
---
Kagome's room, White house, 1:30 p.m.:
"Ta da!" Kagome announced happily as she threw her door open, holding a white box above her head. Inuyasha looked up from his position on her bed, one eyebrow cocked upwards.
"Ta da?" he asked skeptically as Kagome came marching over to him and holding the white box before him. "Twister...?"
"Damn straight." Kagome laughed and threw the top of the box over her shoulder, pulling the giant plastic mat from its depths. Inuyasha stared in shock. She gave him a bright smile. "Come forth!"
He rolled his eyes and walked over to where she was throwing the mat onto the ground. "How do you play with only two people?"
"One of us spins and plays at the same time," Kagome chirped, "I saw it happen in Austin Powers!"
"Oh, that changes everything," Inuyasha said sarcastically and ignored Kagome when she punched his arm lightly. "Alright, who's spinning?"
"You can!" she said happily and he rolled his eyes. Leaning down he flipped the little spinner and watched as it landed. "You know I'm going to win this, right? I have the balance of a cat."
"Says the dog demon," Kagome joked.
He growled. "Right hand blue."
And thus the game began.
Several odd positions and angles later found the couple twisted together as Inuyasha struggled to spin the spinner with his toe. Kagome giggled as his ears twitched against her stomach as he stretched himself out towards the spinner. He glanced at her and twitched his ears purposely.
"That's not fair," she said in between giggles. "Cheater!"
"You know you like it," he accused.
She giggled again and swatted lightly at his arm when he wouldn't stop. He continued as he reached for the spinner. Kagome slapped his ass and with a large yelp from the hanyou, the boy collapsed to the ground.
Kagome burst out laughing and landed on top of Inuyasha, her head resting on the middle of his two shoulder blades. Her giggles filled his ears and the said dog ears twitched back towards her.
"What the hell, Kagome?" Inuyasha mock growled.
"I'm sorry, your butt was too adorable for me to ignore," Kagome joked and burst out laughing again. He growled and rolled over so that she was underneath him, his hands gripping her wrists and pushing them down to the ground.
"You like my ass, do you?" he growled and smirked, sporting his fangs. His golden eyes narrowed.
"Maybe..." Kagome said as she tried to muffle her laughter.
"Feh!"
"I win," Kagome announced suddenly and he growled.
"You cheated, though!"
"And you didn't? What was that with your ears?" Kagome asked as she sat up. He pouted and said ears drooped.
"I let you win," he grumbled.
"Liar," she accused and reached out her hands, gently touching the dog ears. He jumped in surprise and stared as Kagome rubbed the appendages lightly. She giggled when they twitched away from her fingertips.
His eyes closed and he growled lightly as her fingers ran along the soft fur of his ears.
"Temptress," he murmured and Kagome laughed again.
"I have a surprise for you, Inuyasha," Kagome said with a bright smile as she stood, taking the inu hanyou with her. His legs felt like mush and he felt himself melting, like he did whenever he was around her.
"Oh, and what is that?" Inuyasha asked as Kagome began rushing around her room, searching for something. He raised an eyebrow as the girl scurried around the room, searching around. She pulled out a ring on a chain.
She walked over to him and held the silver ring out to him. "What's this?" Inuyasha asked with a small smile.
"It's a ring I got for being in boating for a certain amount of years," Kagome confessed with a small blush. "I'm a boater geek. Anyways, I... wanted you to have it. I know it would be too small for you; that's why I put it on a chain, so you can wear it as a necklace."
He smiled softly. "I don't have anything for you."
She smiled brightly and stood on the tips of her toes, slipping it over his head and letting it fall across his red shirt. "The sun doesn't give the moon light thinking it will owe it one."
Inuyasha fingered the ring softly, running the cool metal across his fingertips. He examined it for a few short moments before turning his attention back to Kagome. "Thank you. I love it," he said and grinned at her.
"Good, now let's go," Kagome announced and walked out the door. Inuyasha looked at the back of her head as she pulled him down the hallway.
"Where are we going?" he asked curiously as she led him to the downstairs of the White House. Kagome searched around and signaled to her bodyguards to get ahead of them.
"You'll see," Kagome sang happily as she approached a limo. She shoved the boy inside and followed after him. Inuyasha, slightly confused and disoriented, straightened himself and flopped down onto the long seat that lined the left side of the limo. Kagome watched him, slightly amused, and positioned herself on the seat near the rear of the limo. "You're so cute," she squealed.
"Hm..." Inuyasha mumbled as he flipped over to look at her, resting his head on top of his folded arms. "Why's that?"
"You just are. Don't question my compliments, you dork," Kagome said.
"Was that a compliment, too?" Inuyasha joked and Kagome giggled.
"Silence!" Kagome demanded and flopped down onto the ground, resting her head near his. She smiled and he smiled back.
"Are you thirsty?" Kagome asked and Inuyasha shrugged. The girl scooted over to the holder on the right side of the limo and pulled out a Dr. Pepper for him and a Sprite for herself. She handed it to him and began drinking her own drink.
After a long car trip through D.C. traffic Kagome turned to him. "Why are you not talking?"
"You told me to be silent." He smirked.
Kagome rolled her eyes and polished off her sprite, sipping the last of the clear liquid into her mouth. She glanced out the window and smiled brightly. "We're almost there!"
"Almost where? he asked with a pout. Kagome grinned and pointed ahead of him.
"Kagome..." he said warningly as the limo pulled over into the parking lot.
"Daddy rented it for me, so there won't be anyone in there except the employees," Kagome said and gave the thumbs up. "To quote you who quoted the immortal words of Homer Simpson: I am so smart!"
He grinned and rubbed the back of his head. "I'm not very good..."
"Then I'll teach you," Kagome said. "Besides, you have 'the balance of a cat' so it should be easy for you."
"Whatever you say..."
---
Skate rink, Washington D.C., 2:38 p.m.:
Kagome skated around him happily and he frowned. "It's easy," she said as she did a small twirl around a corner, skating backwards to stare at him.
"I told you, I'm not good at this," Inuyasha yelled after her as she skated around the roller rink. He grumbled at the insanity of it all and yelped when she came up behind him and pushed him. "Ack!"
"Come on, Inuyasha; what if I held your hand?" Kagome asked and added when he started to protest. "No one's here but you and me."
"I guess..." he muttered as her hand grabbed his and she began to pull him around the rink. He skated uneasily on the wheels attached to his feet and his ears twitched wildly.
"Better?" Kagome asked with a grin as she released his hand and left him alone. She turned around and skated backwards, watching him as he skated uneasily.
"A little," he admitted as they turned a corner. He waved his hands around wildly as he tried to maintain his balance and with a shout of achievement he placed his hands on his hips and puffed out his chest. "I'm amazing."
"Wow, attitude change." Kagome smirked and darted away when he made a swipe for her.
There was silence for a long moment; Inuyasha watched her lap him. "Hey, Kagome?" he asked as she skated by. She didn't stop. He frowned when she passed again. "Hey, Kagome?"
She continued to skate. Angry, he followed her as best he could, speeding up as he tried to catch up to the graceful gliding of his girlfriend. He growled and frowned as he was unable to catch up to her and instead she lapped him.
Suddenly he felt a weight on his back and knew that Kagome had jumped on him. She kissed his ear, "Sorry, Inu, what were you saying?"
"Feh," he snorted and eyed her as best he could for a moment before smiling. "It's nothing."
"Okay," she chirped playfully and nipped his ear before jumping off and skating circles around him.
He smiled slightly, 'I think I love you, Kagome.'
---
Author's notes:
-Normally, a bullet wound not let the patient be released one day after it. Inuyasha's a hanyou though, so I think he can cope.
-Tessaiga makes its entrance. Why? Because that's just the way I am, and also notice the Inu boys were semi-decent. Silly gooses, they really do care. XD
-Twister is kick ass and the idea is thanks to the great beta: Jew.
-Fanart:
Dancing (drawn by Jew):
www(dot)deviantart(dot)com(slash)deviation(slash)11859967
Random fanart (that has no part in story):
www(dot)deviantart(dot)com(slash)deviation(slash)11860160
Happy Halloween, everyone!