Author's Notes: Well the massive response to chapter 8 was unexpected.
I don't know why, but I never expect anything I do to really recieve
any praise. I don't know why, I just do. It's at once a good thing and
a bad thing.
Oh well. This week is going to be interesting. RenFest, doctor's appointment, need to find new ways to trick Sakura into taking her medicine (she's such a brat), talk to the dean at my college to fix up the confusion with my housing and classes. Ugh. Real life sucks sometimes.
Moving on...
Lights, Camera, Action!
Chapter 9- This is Halloween
Inuyasha continued trying to straighten his hair out as he left the Forum with Kagome. He was a little sweaty from all of the dancing and headbanging. Still, it had been fun. "By the way, Kagome," he said as he fixed his tie, "I didn't know you were into Queensryche."
Kagome just smiled beside him. "I went out and bought their Empire album after you played a couple of their songs on your radio show. They're pretty cool."
"Oh, that reminds me," Inuyasha thought out loud. "My niece has a birthday coming up. I need to send her the present I got her. She specifically asked for Kamelot's Fourth Legacy album."
"I didn't know you had a niece," Kagome remarked beside him. "I thought you were an only child, actually."
"Yeah, well... I generally don't like to talk about my half-brother," Inuyasha responded, trying to hide his face by pretending to scratch at his temple. "I only put up with him because of the little girl he adopted. My niece."
"What's her name?"
"Rin. She's so happy it's a wonder she ever got attached to Sesshoumaru. The guy's so cold he could freeze mercury by looking at it." Inuyasha quietly wondered why he was being so open with Kagome. When he had first met Miroku and Sango, they didn't even know about Sesshoumaru until they met him months later. And Rin had come as a complete shock to them. Kagome probably... no, definately was the first person he had ever willingly talked to about his family. Yet, it didn't feel like that big of a deal all of a sudden. It just felt natural, something anyone would do. For some strange reason, there was an odd comfort in that.
Kagome giggled lightly at the description of Sesshoumaru. "That bad, huh?"
"Oh, I haven't even scratched the surface," Inuyasha said with a smirk. "He's so uptight, you could shove coal up his ass and he would cough up diamonds. The only time I heard him laugh, three birds fell dead out of the sky." Inuyasha went on listing various jokes he had come up with over the years for a moment, Kagome laughing more and more as they got progressively more ridiculous. "I better quit while I'm ahead. You don't want to listen to me bitching all night."
Kagome's laughter slowed down and she smiled brightly at him. "Sometimes it helps to just get it all off your chest. Believe it or not, there are people in my life that really annoy me sometimes."
"Like who?" Inuyasha challenged. He had a hard time believing Kagome could dislike anyobdy. He also wondered if it was possible for anyone to dislike her. Even he had come around. There was just something so pure about her. You couldn't hate her even if you wanted to.
"Well, there's my three friends back home. Ayumi, Yuka, and Eri. I love them all, really. But when they get an idea in their heads, nothing short of an A-bomb will get it out again. Throughout almost all of high school, they kept trying to hook me up with this guy I had a crush on in freshman year."
Inuyasha stiffened a little at that before catching himself. Stay cool. There would be plenty of time to figure out why this bothered him later. "Really?"
"Yeah, it was really embarrassing. He was a nice guy and everything, but after the first date, I figured he just wasn't my type and I turned him down gently."
Inuyasha felt himself relax. Damnit, what the hell was going on with him?! Why did he care?
"The only problem was that my friends kept on encouraging him anyway, giving him the wrong idea. It went on until senior year before I finally just had to be brutally honest with all of them. It wasn't mentally healthy."
"Now I see where you get that whole 'matchmaker' thing from," Inuyasha drawled with a smirk.
Kagome just elbowed him lightly in the ribs. "So, where to, Ace?"
Inuyasha looked around and spotted the gameroom where a couple of people in costume were playing pool. "You like pinball? I got a couple singles we can cash in. They've got one of the Attack From Mars machines."
"Ooh, that's my favorite!" Kagome said excitedly. "Pari, she is on fire!" she shouted in a thick, fakey French accent.
"Take zat, you stinking Martian pigdogs!" Inuyasha shouted back with an equally hokey accent. If only all decisions in life were this easy.
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Sango and Miroku decided to take a walk outside to cool off. Poor Miroku looked like he had just been through a sauna with that heavy ranger costume. In fact, his stubble was starting to run. He looked kind of funny, actually. Running make up aside, his hair, which was starting to curl from the sweat, was way too short to make him look like Aragorn. And the tiny portion of hair he had grown out in back and had let out of its usual tail was hardly enough to compensate. As she looked at him once they were outside, Sango found herself giggling lightly, something she almost never did.
"What's so funny?" Miroku asked bemusedly.
"Nothing," Sango said with a shake of her head. "You just look a little funny with your beard running. Not much like a king of Gondor."
Miroku just wrapped an arm around her waist and pulled her toward him, causing Sango to blush a little. She kept on walking though. "Well then, I guess you'll just have to settle for Miroku Masanobu, starving artist, instead of Aragorn, son of Arathorn."
"Hmm... That doesn't sound so bad. Can you at least do that look?" Sango knew Miroku knew what she was talking about. She didn't know why, but she liked it when guys could show both a tough side and a sensitive side.
Miroku closed his eyes for a moment, then turned to face her with a look of smoldering intensity as she had heard it described before that could rival even Viggo Mortenson. She couldn't help but laugh and lean against his shoulder. "That's the one!"
Miroku then leaned his head against hers as they walked down the brick-paved sidewalk. "Whatever it takes to make you happy. Speaking of which, would you be interested in going out some time soon with an admirer of yours?"
Sango could have danced. He was asking her out! About damn time! She decided to have a little fun and tease him a bit. "Maybe," she said in answer to the question. "Is he cute?"
Miroku however caught on to her little game immediately. "He likes to think he is."
"Well I hope he can be a gentleman."
"He has his moments."
"So he has a sensitive side, huh?"
"He guards it, but at least he doesn't deny it's there like other guys."
"I like that. Do you know what he had in mind?"
Miroku put on a mock thoughtful expression. "I believe he wanted to go by that old standard, dinner and a movie. Specifically, I think he mentioned doing both at once by wanting to take you to the Thriller Chiller Dine-In."
Sango's smile widened. She loved that place. It was a restaurant in Newfield with an indoor dining area designed to look like a drive-in that showed old B-movies and schlock films on a big screen. The whole gang had gone to hang-out there last year on Devil's Night Out since that and Halloween were big events for the restaurant. "Sounds fun. What time did you have in mind?"
"Tomorrow at 6:30 sound good?" Miroku asked.
Sango looked up into his eyes and kissed him on the cheek. "It's a date."
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Shippo was feeling higher than a kite. The girl of his dreams had just kissed him and phase one of his masterplan was underway. And the night was still young. Things couldn't get much better. He left the Forum with Kirara after sticking around for a couple more dances, their arms around each other's waists.
"So what now, cutie?" Kirara asked. She sounded just as happy as Shippo felt.
"How about we just walk around for a while and find some trouble to cause?"
"Sounds like fun."
They wandered together into the forum where a couple jazz teachers and their students were playing in the corner, all in costume. There was a large table full of candy and canned soda in tubs of ice. Shippo decided to try and steer Kirara toward that table. But she beat him to it.
As soon as the two of them reached the table, they both grabbed a soda and started picking at the candy, carefully considering which one would go next and best compliment the other. "Hey Shippo," Kirara said after taking a sip fo Sprite. "Out of curiosity, why are you starting Phase 1 this early? I mean, there are months left before you spring the big surprise on Kagome and Inuyasha."
Shippo just smirked. "Simple. In the words of Ricardo Montalban, revenge is a dish best served cold... Or with pinto beans and muffins. I've learned over the years the importance of subtlety." Shippo took a lot of pride in his work. His fascination with cinematic and televised comedy and taught him a lot of important lessons.
"Care to elaborate?" Kirara asked with a smirk. God, she was beautiful.
"Gladly," Shippo answered with his own smirk. "You've read Oedipus Rex, right?"
"Naturally."
"Do you remember Oedipus' meeting with Tiresias, the blind prophet? And how many times Sophocles used the words 'sight,' 'eyes,' 'seeing,' et cetera?"
"Yeah." It seemed Kirara was starting to catch on. She was always pretty quick.
"Well, by playing the song repeatedly throughout the next several months enough that they notice it without becoming too aware of it, the impact of the final phase in my plan will be all the more dramatic. It's a classic element used not only in drama but also in comedy. Getting it to work is the tricky part."
Kirara just shook her head. "You're a genius."
"Why, thank you," Shippo responded with a devilish smirk.
"You're also evil," she continued.
"Don't you just love me?"
"Yes, I do," she answered in a sultry whisper. She took a step closer and Shippo could feel the heat in his body rising. "How about you? Don't you just love me for being a cunning little vixen?"
"You're damn right I do," Shippo said through a light blush.
Kirara just smirked at him as she finished off a miniature Twix bar. "You know... my parents are helping out an uncle of mine with a haunted house tonight. It's a big tradition for my father that the two of them have to spend the night scaring kids. In fact, Mom and Dad won't be back home until tomorrow afternoon... Do you see where I'm going with this?"
Did he ever! Shippo took a deep breath in to steady himself. "Before we make a mad dash to my car, grab as much candy as you can carry. I'm feeling very kinky."
Seconds later, half the room was staring strangely at the glass double doors as they swung closed after being thrown open by a blur of blue and white leaving a scant trail of peanut-butter cups, bite-sized candy bars, and Hershey kisses in their wake.
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Kagome leaned further and focused on the little silver ball as it ricocheted through the pinball machine. Inuyasha had managed to get his name on the highscore chart at number 8. Kagome was determined to beat him. Only a few hundred thousand more points.
"You only have one ball left," Inuyasha said haughtily at her side. "You're gonna crack."
"Bite me," Kagome muttered as she focused on trying to destroy the flying saucer on the little screen at the back of the machine by launching the ball into it.
"Remember who you're talking to."
"Ask me if I care," Kagome shot back. So close.
"Relax. Just because I own you at pinball is no reason to get upset."
Much to Kagome's dismay, the ball shot straight down the center. She hit the flippers reflexively, but it was no good. The ball simply whizzed in between them without even brushing them. She growled a little in frustration.
"Better luck nxt time," Inuyasha said with a smirk.
Kagome was about to make a sarcastic comment when she glanced up at the scoreboard as it added in her bonus points. "Think again," she grinned as her score totalled up to surpass Inuyasha's by 900 points.
Inuyasha looked at the screen flatly as Kagome put her initials in. "Son of a bitch," he drawled.
"If it's any consolation," Kagome offered, "you're the only worthy opponent I've had in two years."
Inuyasha seemed to take that as cold comfort. "Before the school year is done, I will beat that score."
"I'd like to see you try." Their banter continued even as they walked out of the gameroom. For some reason, Kagome actually enjoyed these little arguments. There was no real malice or anger in anything they said. It was like a game. She had never figured herself to be a very contrary person. And yet she and Inuyasha always found at least one thing to argue over every day.
After a minute, the argmuent just kind of petered out without either one of them really winning.
They walked into the lounge in silence and surveyed the room. "Damn," Inuyasha remarked. "Someone did some damage to the snack table."
Kagome looked over. Half the dishes and bowls were either empty or nearly empty. And there seemed to be a few scattered pieces leading to the doors. "Probably just a couple of freshmen who thought they were funny," she said off-handedly.
Inuyasha walked over to the table with a shrug and grabbed a Coke and a couple miniature Butterfingers. "Keh. As long as they don't make off with all the food around here, let them be dumbasses."
Kagome took a couple of Hershey kisses and grinned. "You know as well as I do that if you had caught them in the act you would have beaten them within an inch of their lives."
"Guilty as charged," Inuyasha admitted. "I'm more protective of food than a starving dog."
"Aren't they showing some movies down in the auditorium?" Kagome asked after a moment.
"Yeah. A couple of Miroku's fiends are showing the old Universal Classic Monsters movies from sunset to sunrise." He shook his head lightly. "Bunch of fanatics."
"Says you," Kagome said with a smirk. "You wanna go watch it or not?"
"Are you kidding? Grab some Snickers for the road and let's move."
On their way out, Kagome and Inuyasha recieved a few compliments on their costumes from fans and two requests for bit parts in future episodes. Kagome took down their names on a napkin, figuring it would better help the reputation of the station if they were nice to people. Besides, they needed extras for upcoming episodes anyway.
The movie was already in progress when they arrived. It was The Wolfman and Lawrence Talbot was in the process of transforming. "Hard to believe people used to think this was scary."
"That was before the day of shockers and slashers," Kagome grumbled. Classic movies like this were infinitely better. And not just because of the production values, but because they actually had some heart to them metaphorically speaking instead of literally.
"Yeah. At least these have some taste," Inuyasha said as he took a seat. "I actually liked the first Friday the 13th movie. Guilty pleasure. But the sequels were crap."
They stayed quiet through the movie. There weren't many other people in the auditorium. Just a few couples who got sick of dancing and a couple groups who just really liked movies. It wasn't too bad, actually. A little spooky. Maybe even a little... romantic.
When the movie ended, one person in the front row stepped up to switch to the next feature. Kagome then realized that at some point during the film, she had taken hold of Inuyasha's arm and leaned up against him. She didn't dare move, but Inuyasha didn't say anything about it either. Kagome tried to find the courage to say something, but decided to just stay silent for the time being. After all, this was kind of nice.
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Miroku decided to call it a night. He had done what he wanted to and had to get up for class in the morning. He walked Sango back to Ravencroft Hall and smiled softly. "I'll see you in class tomorrow, Sango."
"And for dinner," she added. "Remember, Miroku, you better be on time. You stand me up and I'll break both of your legs."
"You're beautiful when you're violent," Miroku said with a deliberately saccharine sweet voice.
Sango just shook her head and smiled softly. She looked up at him and Miroku couldn't help but reach a hand up to cup her cheek. "Why couldn't you have shown me this side of yourself before?" she asked.
Miroku let a little half-smile creep up along his face. "To be honest, I'm still not quite sure." He slowly leaned forward and place a gentle, chaste kiss on her lips. "I'm just grateful you were willing to put up with me."
Sango looked up at him for a moment with her lips slightly parted. She had her vulnerable side just like anyone else. Those rare moments when she let it show past her strong, fiery exterior just made her even more wonderful to Miroku. She was unlike anyone else he had ever met in his life just by that alone. "Ever the charmer," she said after a moment. "Remember that you're just setting the bar for yourself when we go out tomorrow night."
"I always like a challenge," Miroku answered slyly. He slowly took a step back and Sango walked to the door. She gave Miroku a smile over her shoulder as she walked in.
Once she was out of sight, Miroku heaved a contented sigh and wandered off to Barker Hall in a daze.
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Inuyasha had no idea what to say. The movie was over. Kagome was still attached to him. They both needed to leave to get some sleep for tomorrow's class. But this was so awkward! Kagome stood up with him and they both walked out of the audiorium and outside. Neither said anything.
As they proceeded down the brick sidewalks lit by wrought-iron lamp posts, Inuyasha began to wonder if he really minded this so much. After all, Kagome didn't really seem to be bothered too much aside from being unusually quiet.
They got to the point where the path split, one way going to Ravencroft Hall, the other to Barker. There was a long pause before they looked to each other, blushing almost simultaneously.
Kagome tentatively let go of Inuyasha's arm, and he was surprised to find that he actually missed the warmth. "I-I guess I'll see you tomorrow for lunch."
"Y-yeah," Inuyasha stammered. They were going to meet Shippo and Kirara in the pub tomorrow for lunch to discuss plans for the next couple episodes of Ace Space and Substance With Style. "See ya then."
They continued to linger for a moment staring at one another before they walked off in different directions. Inuyasha was confused, but he wasn't quite sure how to feel about that yet. Kagome had brought about such strange reactions in him. No one had ever managed to make him feel this way. It was so wierd. But right now, he was just too tired to care. There was plenty of time to figure this out later. Maybe things would be clearer in the morning when he could think straight...
Yeah, right.
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Author's Notes: And another chapter finished. I'm currently awaiting the verdict from the Midnight Society on whether or not I'm in. Wish me luck.
Until then...
Mimiko: You mentioned in a pervious review that the only guy you knew who liked soaps was your brother. I was just going off on another one of my little tangents.
bluefuzzyelf: I've seen the video for I Believe In a Thing Called Love and Growing On Me. My brother and I are both now convinced that Justin Hawkins is as gay as Rob Halford and Ian McKellan put together. There's nothing wrong with that, of course. It's just a nagging suspicion we have. Though it was really funny when they were fighting the space squid in the first video.
Dragon of Sesshomaru: Kirara's costume is actually loosely based on a mental image from one of my more... "mature" fantasies. How many of you could have lead a nice life without hearing that?
Araine: I once had my head slammed against the cornerpost of a bannister at school in 3rd grade. I'm not sure if I lost consciousness or not, but I do remember a lot of blood. Is it any wonder I turned out so fucked up?
Em Starcatcher: I was thinking of being either Aragorn or Jesus for Halloween this year. I'm neither a man of Gondor nor a Pallestinian Jew, but everyone else seems to think I look like them anyway.
chocobo pirate: Squirrely wrath enough to deal with all the stupid people I must put up with in my day-to-day to life. We shall all press on in the name of our Lord and Master.
lilmoonDemon: Like I said before, they'll be around. Just have patience.
SilverMyste: You have no idea how much it makes my day to hear that someone reads through my works in one sitting.
Father Malvado: Rogues are really low-end learner brands. They're more expensive, but consider an Ibanez starter pack. Also, there will be more fluffy and cutesy scenes later. For now, there's more fun to be had.
inu-sm-fan: It never made sense to me that people either make Inuyasha irrationally bellicose or surprisingly subdued. I always try to focus on the characters in all of my stories. I don't know why, but character interaction has always been very fun for me to write.
Gina: Having an addictive personality can really suck sometimes, huh? Chocolate, caffeine, internet, reviews. Once I get laid I'm pretty sure I'll be addicted to that, too. Anyway, Kikyo will appear later. And which kiss scene were you referring to?
Magellan-chan: I really like Foamy Fan-Mail 3, Foamy's Rant, Foamy's Dating Advice, Spell-a-caster, and Fat-kins Diet. The hospital trilogy was pretty good too along with the new Squirrel Songs.
Divine-Red-Crayon: I hope this chapter clears up your questions. Miroku and Sango would naturally be in on Shippo's plan since they went to him to arrange it. You now know that the song has something to do with it, but from there, you're all free to speculate.
exyvixen: In love? With me or the story? ;)
beth1685: Like I said, the characters are what I really focus on in each story. You'll have to wait a while longer, but Kagome and Inuyasha will delve a little more into each other's pasts eventually.
Krusty: If this story wasn't better than LTMBYM, then I would worry. In regards to why I'm still single, I don't know. Maybe I just scare people off. I'm a little wierd in real life.
Bobo11: Sorry I didn't get to you before. Truth be told, I'm not very comfortable writing lemon scenes just yet. However, the story already has some risque material and is going to get a little citrusy not far down the road.
Oh well. This week is going to be interesting. RenFest, doctor's appointment, need to find new ways to trick Sakura into taking her medicine (she's such a brat), talk to the dean at my college to fix up the confusion with my housing and classes. Ugh. Real life sucks sometimes.
Moving on...
Lights, Camera, Action!
Chapter 9- This is Halloween
Inuyasha continued trying to straighten his hair out as he left the Forum with Kagome. He was a little sweaty from all of the dancing and headbanging. Still, it had been fun. "By the way, Kagome," he said as he fixed his tie, "I didn't know you were into Queensryche."
Kagome just smiled beside him. "I went out and bought their Empire album after you played a couple of their songs on your radio show. They're pretty cool."
"Oh, that reminds me," Inuyasha thought out loud. "My niece has a birthday coming up. I need to send her the present I got her. She specifically asked for Kamelot's Fourth Legacy album."
"I didn't know you had a niece," Kagome remarked beside him. "I thought you were an only child, actually."
"Yeah, well... I generally don't like to talk about my half-brother," Inuyasha responded, trying to hide his face by pretending to scratch at his temple. "I only put up with him because of the little girl he adopted. My niece."
"What's her name?"
"Rin. She's so happy it's a wonder she ever got attached to Sesshoumaru. The guy's so cold he could freeze mercury by looking at it." Inuyasha quietly wondered why he was being so open with Kagome. When he had first met Miroku and Sango, they didn't even know about Sesshoumaru until they met him months later. And Rin had come as a complete shock to them. Kagome probably... no, definately was the first person he had ever willingly talked to about his family. Yet, it didn't feel like that big of a deal all of a sudden. It just felt natural, something anyone would do. For some strange reason, there was an odd comfort in that.
Kagome giggled lightly at the description of Sesshoumaru. "That bad, huh?"
"Oh, I haven't even scratched the surface," Inuyasha said with a smirk. "He's so uptight, you could shove coal up his ass and he would cough up diamonds. The only time I heard him laugh, three birds fell dead out of the sky." Inuyasha went on listing various jokes he had come up with over the years for a moment, Kagome laughing more and more as they got progressively more ridiculous. "I better quit while I'm ahead. You don't want to listen to me bitching all night."
Kagome's laughter slowed down and she smiled brightly at him. "Sometimes it helps to just get it all off your chest. Believe it or not, there are people in my life that really annoy me sometimes."
"Like who?" Inuyasha challenged. He had a hard time believing Kagome could dislike anyobdy. He also wondered if it was possible for anyone to dislike her. Even he had come around. There was just something so pure about her. You couldn't hate her even if you wanted to.
"Well, there's my three friends back home. Ayumi, Yuka, and Eri. I love them all, really. But when they get an idea in their heads, nothing short of an A-bomb will get it out again. Throughout almost all of high school, they kept trying to hook me up with this guy I had a crush on in freshman year."
Inuyasha stiffened a little at that before catching himself. Stay cool. There would be plenty of time to figure out why this bothered him later. "Really?"
"Yeah, it was really embarrassing. He was a nice guy and everything, but after the first date, I figured he just wasn't my type and I turned him down gently."
Inuyasha felt himself relax. Damnit, what the hell was going on with him?! Why did he care?
"The only problem was that my friends kept on encouraging him anyway, giving him the wrong idea. It went on until senior year before I finally just had to be brutally honest with all of them. It wasn't mentally healthy."
"Now I see where you get that whole 'matchmaker' thing from," Inuyasha drawled with a smirk.
Kagome just elbowed him lightly in the ribs. "So, where to, Ace?"
Inuyasha looked around and spotted the gameroom where a couple of people in costume were playing pool. "You like pinball? I got a couple singles we can cash in. They've got one of the Attack From Mars machines."
"Ooh, that's my favorite!" Kagome said excitedly. "Pari, she is on fire!" she shouted in a thick, fakey French accent.
"Take zat, you stinking Martian pigdogs!" Inuyasha shouted back with an equally hokey accent. If only all decisions in life were this easy.
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Sango and Miroku decided to take a walk outside to cool off. Poor Miroku looked like he had just been through a sauna with that heavy ranger costume. In fact, his stubble was starting to run. He looked kind of funny, actually. Running make up aside, his hair, which was starting to curl from the sweat, was way too short to make him look like Aragorn. And the tiny portion of hair he had grown out in back and had let out of its usual tail was hardly enough to compensate. As she looked at him once they were outside, Sango found herself giggling lightly, something she almost never did.
"What's so funny?" Miroku asked bemusedly.
"Nothing," Sango said with a shake of her head. "You just look a little funny with your beard running. Not much like a king of Gondor."
Miroku just wrapped an arm around her waist and pulled her toward him, causing Sango to blush a little. She kept on walking though. "Well then, I guess you'll just have to settle for Miroku Masanobu, starving artist, instead of Aragorn, son of Arathorn."
"Hmm... That doesn't sound so bad. Can you at least do that look?" Sango knew Miroku knew what she was talking about. She didn't know why, but she liked it when guys could show both a tough side and a sensitive side.
Miroku closed his eyes for a moment, then turned to face her with a look of smoldering intensity as she had heard it described before that could rival even Viggo Mortenson. She couldn't help but laugh and lean against his shoulder. "That's the one!"
Miroku then leaned his head against hers as they walked down the brick-paved sidewalk. "Whatever it takes to make you happy. Speaking of which, would you be interested in going out some time soon with an admirer of yours?"
Sango could have danced. He was asking her out! About damn time! She decided to have a little fun and tease him a bit. "Maybe," she said in answer to the question. "Is he cute?"
Miroku however caught on to her little game immediately. "He likes to think he is."
"Well I hope he can be a gentleman."
"He has his moments."
"So he has a sensitive side, huh?"
"He guards it, but at least he doesn't deny it's there like other guys."
"I like that. Do you know what he had in mind?"
Miroku put on a mock thoughtful expression. "I believe he wanted to go by that old standard, dinner and a movie. Specifically, I think he mentioned doing both at once by wanting to take you to the Thriller Chiller Dine-In."
Sango's smile widened. She loved that place. It was a restaurant in Newfield with an indoor dining area designed to look like a drive-in that showed old B-movies and schlock films on a big screen. The whole gang had gone to hang-out there last year on Devil's Night Out since that and Halloween were big events for the restaurant. "Sounds fun. What time did you have in mind?"
"Tomorrow at 6:30 sound good?" Miroku asked.
Sango looked up into his eyes and kissed him on the cheek. "It's a date."
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Shippo was feeling higher than a kite. The girl of his dreams had just kissed him and phase one of his masterplan was underway. And the night was still young. Things couldn't get much better. He left the Forum with Kirara after sticking around for a couple more dances, their arms around each other's waists.
"So what now, cutie?" Kirara asked. She sounded just as happy as Shippo felt.
"How about we just walk around for a while and find some trouble to cause?"
"Sounds like fun."
They wandered together into the forum where a couple jazz teachers and their students were playing in the corner, all in costume. There was a large table full of candy and canned soda in tubs of ice. Shippo decided to try and steer Kirara toward that table. But she beat him to it.
As soon as the two of them reached the table, they both grabbed a soda and started picking at the candy, carefully considering which one would go next and best compliment the other. "Hey Shippo," Kirara said after taking a sip fo Sprite. "Out of curiosity, why are you starting Phase 1 this early? I mean, there are months left before you spring the big surprise on Kagome and Inuyasha."
Shippo just smirked. "Simple. In the words of Ricardo Montalban, revenge is a dish best served cold... Or with pinto beans and muffins. I've learned over the years the importance of subtlety." Shippo took a lot of pride in his work. His fascination with cinematic and televised comedy and taught him a lot of important lessons.
"Care to elaborate?" Kirara asked with a smirk. God, she was beautiful.
"Gladly," Shippo answered with his own smirk. "You've read Oedipus Rex, right?"
"Naturally."
"Do you remember Oedipus' meeting with Tiresias, the blind prophet? And how many times Sophocles used the words 'sight,' 'eyes,' 'seeing,' et cetera?"
"Yeah." It seemed Kirara was starting to catch on. She was always pretty quick.
"Well, by playing the song repeatedly throughout the next several months enough that they notice it without becoming too aware of it, the impact of the final phase in my plan will be all the more dramatic. It's a classic element used not only in drama but also in comedy. Getting it to work is the tricky part."
Kirara just shook her head. "You're a genius."
"Why, thank you," Shippo responded with a devilish smirk.
"You're also evil," she continued.
"Don't you just love me?"
"Yes, I do," she answered in a sultry whisper. She took a step closer and Shippo could feel the heat in his body rising. "How about you? Don't you just love me for being a cunning little vixen?"
"You're damn right I do," Shippo said through a light blush.
Kirara just smirked at him as she finished off a miniature Twix bar. "You know... my parents are helping out an uncle of mine with a haunted house tonight. It's a big tradition for my father that the two of them have to spend the night scaring kids. In fact, Mom and Dad won't be back home until tomorrow afternoon... Do you see where I'm going with this?"
Did he ever! Shippo took a deep breath in to steady himself. "Before we make a mad dash to my car, grab as much candy as you can carry. I'm feeling very kinky."
Seconds later, half the room was staring strangely at the glass double doors as they swung closed after being thrown open by a blur of blue and white leaving a scant trail of peanut-butter cups, bite-sized candy bars, and Hershey kisses in their wake.
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Kagome leaned further and focused on the little silver ball as it ricocheted through the pinball machine. Inuyasha had managed to get his name on the highscore chart at number 8. Kagome was determined to beat him. Only a few hundred thousand more points.
"You only have one ball left," Inuyasha said haughtily at her side. "You're gonna crack."
"Bite me," Kagome muttered as she focused on trying to destroy the flying saucer on the little screen at the back of the machine by launching the ball into it.
"Remember who you're talking to."
"Ask me if I care," Kagome shot back. So close.
"Relax. Just because I own you at pinball is no reason to get upset."
Much to Kagome's dismay, the ball shot straight down the center. She hit the flippers reflexively, but it was no good. The ball simply whizzed in between them without even brushing them. She growled a little in frustration.
"Better luck nxt time," Inuyasha said with a smirk.
Kagome was about to make a sarcastic comment when she glanced up at the scoreboard as it added in her bonus points. "Think again," she grinned as her score totalled up to surpass Inuyasha's by 900 points.
Inuyasha looked at the screen flatly as Kagome put her initials in. "Son of a bitch," he drawled.
"If it's any consolation," Kagome offered, "you're the only worthy opponent I've had in two years."
Inuyasha seemed to take that as cold comfort. "Before the school year is done, I will beat that score."
"I'd like to see you try." Their banter continued even as they walked out of the gameroom. For some reason, Kagome actually enjoyed these little arguments. There was no real malice or anger in anything they said. It was like a game. She had never figured herself to be a very contrary person. And yet she and Inuyasha always found at least one thing to argue over every day.
After a minute, the argmuent just kind of petered out without either one of them really winning.
They walked into the lounge in silence and surveyed the room. "Damn," Inuyasha remarked. "Someone did some damage to the snack table."
Kagome looked over. Half the dishes and bowls were either empty or nearly empty. And there seemed to be a few scattered pieces leading to the doors. "Probably just a couple of freshmen who thought they were funny," she said off-handedly.
Inuyasha walked over to the table with a shrug and grabbed a Coke and a couple miniature Butterfingers. "Keh. As long as they don't make off with all the food around here, let them be dumbasses."
Kagome took a couple of Hershey kisses and grinned. "You know as well as I do that if you had caught them in the act you would have beaten them within an inch of their lives."
"Guilty as charged," Inuyasha admitted. "I'm more protective of food than a starving dog."
"Aren't they showing some movies down in the auditorium?" Kagome asked after a moment.
"Yeah. A couple of Miroku's fiends are showing the old Universal Classic Monsters movies from sunset to sunrise." He shook his head lightly. "Bunch of fanatics."
"Says you," Kagome said with a smirk. "You wanna go watch it or not?"
"Are you kidding? Grab some Snickers for the road and let's move."
On their way out, Kagome and Inuyasha recieved a few compliments on their costumes from fans and two requests for bit parts in future episodes. Kagome took down their names on a napkin, figuring it would better help the reputation of the station if they were nice to people. Besides, they needed extras for upcoming episodes anyway.
The movie was already in progress when they arrived. It was The Wolfman and Lawrence Talbot was in the process of transforming. "Hard to believe people used to think this was scary."
"That was before the day of shockers and slashers," Kagome grumbled. Classic movies like this were infinitely better. And not just because of the production values, but because they actually had some heart to them metaphorically speaking instead of literally.
"Yeah. At least these have some taste," Inuyasha said as he took a seat. "I actually liked the first Friday the 13th movie. Guilty pleasure. But the sequels were crap."
They stayed quiet through the movie. There weren't many other people in the auditorium. Just a few couples who got sick of dancing and a couple groups who just really liked movies. It wasn't too bad, actually. A little spooky. Maybe even a little... romantic.
When the movie ended, one person in the front row stepped up to switch to the next feature. Kagome then realized that at some point during the film, she had taken hold of Inuyasha's arm and leaned up against him. She didn't dare move, but Inuyasha didn't say anything about it either. Kagome tried to find the courage to say something, but decided to just stay silent for the time being. After all, this was kind of nice.
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Miroku decided to call it a night. He had done what he wanted to and had to get up for class in the morning. He walked Sango back to Ravencroft Hall and smiled softly. "I'll see you in class tomorrow, Sango."
"And for dinner," she added. "Remember, Miroku, you better be on time. You stand me up and I'll break both of your legs."
"You're beautiful when you're violent," Miroku said with a deliberately saccharine sweet voice.
Sango just shook her head and smiled softly. She looked up at him and Miroku couldn't help but reach a hand up to cup her cheek. "Why couldn't you have shown me this side of yourself before?" she asked.
Miroku let a little half-smile creep up along his face. "To be honest, I'm still not quite sure." He slowly leaned forward and place a gentle, chaste kiss on her lips. "I'm just grateful you were willing to put up with me."
Sango looked up at him for a moment with her lips slightly parted. She had her vulnerable side just like anyone else. Those rare moments when she let it show past her strong, fiery exterior just made her even more wonderful to Miroku. She was unlike anyone else he had ever met in his life just by that alone. "Ever the charmer," she said after a moment. "Remember that you're just setting the bar for yourself when we go out tomorrow night."
"I always like a challenge," Miroku answered slyly. He slowly took a step back and Sango walked to the door. She gave Miroku a smile over her shoulder as she walked in.
Once she was out of sight, Miroku heaved a contented sigh and wandered off to Barker Hall in a daze.
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Inuyasha had no idea what to say. The movie was over. Kagome was still attached to him. They both needed to leave to get some sleep for tomorrow's class. But this was so awkward! Kagome stood up with him and they both walked out of the audiorium and outside. Neither said anything.
As they proceeded down the brick sidewalks lit by wrought-iron lamp posts, Inuyasha began to wonder if he really minded this so much. After all, Kagome didn't really seem to be bothered too much aside from being unusually quiet.
They got to the point where the path split, one way going to Ravencroft Hall, the other to Barker. There was a long pause before they looked to each other, blushing almost simultaneously.
Kagome tentatively let go of Inuyasha's arm, and he was surprised to find that he actually missed the warmth. "I-I guess I'll see you tomorrow for lunch."
"Y-yeah," Inuyasha stammered. They were going to meet Shippo and Kirara in the pub tomorrow for lunch to discuss plans for the next couple episodes of Ace Space and Substance With Style. "See ya then."
They continued to linger for a moment staring at one another before they walked off in different directions. Inuyasha was confused, but he wasn't quite sure how to feel about that yet. Kagome had brought about such strange reactions in him. No one had ever managed to make him feel this way. It was so wierd. But right now, he was just too tired to care. There was plenty of time to figure this out later. Maybe things would be clearer in the morning when he could think straight...
Yeah, right.
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Author's Notes: And another chapter finished. I'm currently awaiting the verdict from the Midnight Society on whether or not I'm in. Wish me luck.
Until then...
Mimiko: You mentioned in a pervious review that the only guy you knew who liked soaps was your brother. I was just going off on another one of my little tangents.
bluefuzzyelf: I've seen the video for I Believe In a Thing Called Love and Growing On Me. My brother and I are both now convinced that Justin Hawkins is as gay as Rob Halford and Ian McKellan put together. There's nothing wrong with that, of course. It's just a nagging suspicion we have. Though it was really funny when they were fighting the space squid in the first video.
Dragon of Sesshomaru: Kirara's costume is actually loosely based on a mental image from one of my more... "mature" fantasies. How many of you could have lead a nice life without hearing that?
Araine: I once had my head slammed against the cornerpost of a bannister at school in 3rd grade. I'm not sure if I lost consciousness or not, but I do remember a lot of blood. Is it any wonder I turned out so fucked up?
Em Starcatcher: I was thinking of being either Aragorn or Jesus for Halloween this year. I'm neither a man of Gondor nor a Pallestinian Jew, but everyone else seems to think I look like them anyway.
chocobo pirate: Squirrely wrath enough to deal with all the stupid people I must put up with in my day-to-day to life. We shall all press on in the name of our Lord and Master.
lilmoonDemon: Like I said before, they'll be around. Just have patience.
SilverMyste: You have no idea how much it makes my day to hear that someone reads through my works in one sitting.
Father Malvado: Rogues are really low-end learner brands. They're more expensive, but consider an Ibanez starter pack. Also, there will be more fluffy and cutesy scenes later. For now, there's more fun to be had.
inu-sm-fan: It never made sense to me that people either make Inuyasha irrationally bellicose or surprisingly subdued. I always try to focus on the characters in all of my stories. I don't know why, but character interaction has always been very fun for me to write.
Gina: Having an addictive personality can really suck sometimes, huh? Chocolate, caffeine, internet, reviews. Once I get laid I'm pretty sure I'll be addicted to that, too. Anyway, Kikyo will appear later. And which kiss scene were you referring to?
Magellan-chan: I really like Foamy Fan-Mail 3, Foamy's Rant, Foamy's Dating Advice, Spell-a-caster, and Fat-kins Diet. The hospital trilogy was pretty good too along with the new Squirrel Songs.
Divine-Red-Crayon: I hope this chapter clears up your questions. Miroku and Sango would naturally be in on Shippo's plan since they went to him to arrange it. You now know that the song has something to do with it, but from there, you're all free to speculate.
exyvixen: In love? With me or the story? ;)
beth1685: Like I said, the characters are what I really focus on in each story. You'll have to wait a while longer, but Kagome and Inuyasha will delve a little more into each other's pasts eventually.
Krusty: If this story wasn't better than LTMBYM, then I would worry. In regards to why I'm still single, I don't know. Maybe I just scare people off. I'm a little wierd in real life.
Bobo11: Sorry I didn't get to you before. Truth be told, I'm not very comfortable writing lemon scenes just yet. However, the story already has some risque material and is going to get a little citrusy not far down the road.