Desire and Disaster

Kagome cleared her throat. "Well," she started uncertainly, "that was a really…intriguing song."

Inuyasha's grin intensified. "Hell yeah. I love that one."

"Is the 'sun-eyed' girl supposed to be me or something?"

"Well, if you want it to be…but I then I'd have to kill you." He shrugged.

"I wonder what songs you sang to your girlfriend…" She sniffed and crossed her arms over her chest.

He glanced sharply at her. "What makes you think I have one?"

Kagome gave him a shocked look; just realizing what had come out of her mouth.

"Um…I dunno, I just thought…you looked like someone who would have one…" She glanced at him, not sure of what his response would be.

Inuyasha seemed to be busy tuning his guitar, a stern expression on his face. "It's nice to know you don't judge a book by its cover."

"What?" Kagome huffed. "You should be flattered! It's not like I'm saying you seem like someone who served fifty years in jail, and saw a thousand and one whores every night, and—"

"Kagome…" Inuyasha's voice was cold. "Shut up."

The girl looked down, slightly offended, though one part of her knew she shouldn't have said that comment about jail and the whores…

"Besides…" Inuyasha said quietly after a while, "I did have a girlfriend. Maybe even more than just that…" he stopped suddenly. 'What the hell am I doing telling her this stuff?' He glared at the floor, annoyed at both her and himself.

Kagome was going to apologize, but then something clicked in her brain.

'Girlfriend…the kiss at the nightclub the other night…'

Things gradually started falling into place.

"Was she Kikyou?"

Inuyasha got up with such force that Kagome almost fell off the edge of the bed she was sitting on.

He just about threw aside his acoustic guitar, and stomped out of the room. He had told her an entire story without saying a word.

Kagome just sat there, clutching the bed's frame, stunned.

'I guess that's a yes…'

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"My turn." Miroku grinned devilishly. "Truth…" he paused dramatically, "…or dare?"

Sango swallowed. "Dare," she answered, to which Miroku's smirk grew tremendously.

After just hanging around the house, bored, the pair had decided to play the ever-audacious game of "Truth or Dare", in the kitchen, too. Just imagine the suspense, accepting a dare, surrounded by a stove and numerous cupboards, sitting at those island tables in the middle. Oh, and the gentle hum of the fridge just addedmore pressure to the game.

Previously, Sango had dared Miroku to go and flirt with a middle-aged hotel maid. Yes, it was a quite unusual challenge, but it had turned out to be hilarious. Truth be told, Miroku hadn't found it very fun, especially when the woman had actually responded to him, but Sango had fell to the floor, trying to stop her sides from splitting with laughter. Now, there was no telling what he would do to avenge himself. She fidgeted uncomfortably on her stool, wondering what horrible thoughts were going through his mind right about now.

"Okay then…" he paused again. "Kiss me."

She gave him an incredulous look, certain that she had heard him wrong. "What?"

"Easy. Just a simple kiss." Miroku shrugged, "Oh," he added as an afterthought, "and no cheating."

"Cheating?"

Miroku's grin grew even wider, if possible. "No baby kisses, and no pecks on the cheek."

Sango blushed. "But—"

"Aw c'mon!" he protested, "Is it that horrible to kiss me?"

The girl sighed, then leaned over the kitchen island and gently pressed her lips to his. She was surprised when Miroku responded by dragged her closer and adjusting her head so he could deepen the kiss.

He was a good kisser, she could give him that. She closed her eyes, suddenly experiencing a very fuzzy feeling, starting from the tips of her ears all the way down to her toes. It was a somewhat pleasant yet exhilarating feeling, and she couldn't help but wonder if this was what she really wanted in the beginning, instead of the constant groping.

Miroku slowly drew back, and met her eyes. They just stared at each other for a while, a tinge of pink on Miroku's cheeks, a full-fledged blush on Sango's.

Then the boy grinned. "See? I told you it wouldn't be that bad."

Sango smiled in return, and surprising both herself and Miroku, leaned in for a second kiss.

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"Kanna," Naraku drawled, and there was a glimmer of excitement in his otherwise cold gaze. "It's time."

His secretary looked up cautiously. "Time?" she asked quietly.

"Yes. Call up Kouga. It happens today."

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She couldn't wait. The ocean beckoned to her. The crystal-clear sapphire waters of Hawaii gently lashed about. It rose into waves as soon as it came close to land, frothed into white when it hit the shore, and slowly retreated to calmness.

Kagome breathed in deeply. Something about the ocean always made her happy. The smells, the sights, the sounds…it all reminded her of happy times when her family was still intact…while her father was still alive.

Ignoring the sad feelings that coursed through her, she leaned on the balcony's railing and stared out deep into the sea, trying to recollect the events that had happened earlier.

It was obvious, by the silver-haired boy's reaction, that Kikyou had been an older girlfriend. The question was, what had happened to her?

Somewhere in the distance, a dolphin leaped out of the sparkling water.

Judging by the fierceness in his response, she could only have broken up with him…or been dead.

A second dolphin joined the first one. They started racing, matching each other's pace and then shooting ahead.

"Maybe even more than that…" What did that mean?

The dolphins jumped into the air, and seemed to soar across the ocean before they landed back into the water with an incredible splash. Then they were gone.

She sighed, and pushed herself off the railing of the balcony. 'No matter,' she told herself, 'it's none of my business, anyways.'

But it just kept nagging at her, and she couldn't understand why she even felt a bit relieved that Kikyou wasn't there anymore.

'None of my business!' she reminded herself, and went to persuade Sango—and possibly two other people—to come to the beach with her.

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"It was a dare!"

Kagome raised an eyebrow. "Of course it was."

Sango just looked at her, and then threw her hands up in exasperation. "I give up!"

Miroku came up behind her, still grinning. The idea of being caught making out with Sango by her best friend didn't faze him at the least. "But my dear, you were the one that seemed to enjoy it so much to continue it!"

Sango gave him a dirty look, "You're not helping!" she gritted through clenched teeth.

Kagome rolled her eyes and smiled. "Anyways," she interrupted, luckily for Miroku, for Sango was just about to pound him. "How's the beach sound for you guys?"

Her best friend turned from Miroku to Kagome and almost shouted "Okay!" eagerly. It seems like Kagome hadn't been the only one that had been waiting for a while to go swim in Hawaii.

"Great!" The raven-haired girl looked around, "Where's Inuyasha, by the way?"

Miroku shrugged. "He's been sulking in front of the TV. Won't talk to anyone."

Kagome swallowed. 'Probably because of me,' she thought.

She walked into the living room, where Inuyasha was sitting on one of the beige sofas, a beer in his hand, watching a horror flick.

"Hey, Inu'?" she asked, trying to sound cheerful, "Wanna come to the beach with us?" She switched her weight from one foot to another, waiting for his response.

A minute or two passed before he shrugged nonchalantly and mumbled, "Keh. Sure."

Kagome almost sighed in relief, then stopped herself as she clapped her hands together and gave him a big smile, "Great!" she chirped. Then she left to her room to change.

Inuyasha glanced behind him, and though he seemed emotionless, there was a twinkle in his eyes.

The silver-haired boy opened his suitcase to get his swim trunks. On top of all his clothes lay a heavily decorated sword in its hilt.He allowed himself a small smile, and ran his fingers lightly over the elaborate designs.

"Tetsusaiga. We've been through a lot, haven't we?"

He gently set it aside, and fished out his shorts. Last but not least, he took out the half of a shimmering pink jewel. Glancing at it, and wondering again about the unnatural white glow in the depths of swirling pink, he put it around his neck.

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Ah, the beach. Sand, water, and eye-candy as far as the eye could see. Of course, because it was summer, it was also jam-packed with screaming, crying kids and panicking mothers putting suntan lotion on them. It wasn't even worth mentioning the old people sunbathing, taking huge amounts of space with their heavy, creased bodies.

Sango grimaced. "Good luck finding a nice place to get a tan."

"Tell me about it," her friend agreed, "don't we have a private beach, or something, since we won that thing?"

'What did we enter to win this?' She mused for a second, just realizing that they had never enter a "dream vacation" sweepstakes, but her further thoughts on the matter were interrupted when a deep voice answered her question.

"You're right."

Kagome turned around to face a grinning man. He was tan, nicely built, and his thick brown hair was pulled back into a ponytail. An amazing smile showed off rows of gleaming white teeth. His blue eyes widened when he saw what a beautiful girl she was.

"You're Kagome Higurashi?"

"Yes…" The raven-haired girl replied, a little wary.

He tore his gaze away from her and looked at Sango. "And you're Sango Taiji?"

"I am."

"I have been assigned by NaraCo Inc. to be your personal speedboat driver." He bowed elegantly.

Kagome's eyes sparkled, and her suspicion was gone. "Ooh, I've always wanted to go on one of those! What about you, Sango?"

Sango grinned and nodded.

"Hey, who's that guy?" A male voice called out.

The two girls turned to see Inuyasha and Miroku walking up the beach, Miroku almost tripping over a snoozing old lady in the process.

"Watch it!" she sneered, and rolled over, giving him a dirty look.

"My apologies…" Miroku inclined his head and trudged around her. "…Bitch." He muttered.

Kagome nearly gasped when she saw the pendant around Inuyasha's neck. It looked exactly like the one she had back at the hotel. The one her miko grandmother had…a pink jewel cut in half. Could it be?

Inuyasha caught her staring. "Now what are you gawking at again, bitch?"

Kagome rolled her eyes, but stepped closer to him. Inuyasha tried not to gasp when she fingered the jewel on his neck.

"This necklace…" she breathed.

"Keh, what about it?" he snapped, trying to hide the faint pink creeping up his neck.

Her head snapped up, as if surprised to see him there, and she backed up hastily. "Gomen, Inuyasha. It's nothing…" she mumbled, her cheeks tinged with pink.

All she could think of was 'Oh, my God. Oh, my God…' over and over again. Her heart thumped wildly in her chest as she tried to reassure herself that it wasn't real. The jewel itself was too precious to be strung across someone's neck like that. It had to be a copy. Yes, that was it. There were many fakes (even ones designed to look as real as this one did) around Japan of the crystal. It was infamous, really.

"C'mon! Do you guys want to see your private beach or what?" Kouga shouted, clapping his hands.

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"Wow…" Sango said softly. "It's beautiful…"

The sun shimmered across the azure water, scattering flickers of gold and white all over it. The ocean was so clear that even the little schools of fish could be seen swimming quickly under the water. The sand was free of footprints, and a pale yellow. And there was absolutely no one there.

Even Inuyasha had to agree, it was a quite a spectacular sight.

Kouga pointed to a speedboat bobbing lazily up and down on the shallow water, tied by a rope to a wooden pole.

"You guys can swim later, but now we're going on a ride."

Miroku grinned like a little kid. "Awesome!" Sango smiled at his giddiness. Even if he was a pervert, he seemed like a lovable one.

Kagome pulled her oversized white t-shirt off, for it was time to get wet. Sango followed suit.

Inuyasha's heart nearly stopped at the sight of Kagome in a skimpy bathing suit. It was navy blue with grey stripes, and the bottom half had strings at the sides. He was right about her body. It was hot. Great, now he was thinking like that pervert.

Kagome noticed him staring at her. She giggled. He looked just like a curious puppy for some reason.

"Is there something wrong, Inuyasha?"

Inuyasha shook his head, more to dispel the ecchi thoughts revolving around it than to say no.

'Holy fuck…'

Meanwhile, Miroku was having his own problems. Seeing Sango in that black and pink bikini made his mind go into overdrive and his lower half ache.

"Sango…you look…exquisite."

The girl blushed. "Thank you, Miroku."

Before she could say anything more, he was in front of her, kneeling on one knee, her hands clasped in his.

"Sango, will you bear my child?"

Sango's eyes enlarged to two round disks.

"What?"

"Okay guys. You two…" Kouga pointed to Kagome and Inuyasha. You two sit in the front with me. Kagome can sit next to me," he smirked.

"Like hell she will," Inuyasha growled. Something about that bastard…there seemed to be a sinister aura around him. 'I don't trust him,' He thought, glaring at the man.

Kouga ignored him. "And you two can sit in the back."

'The pale guy said they weren't as important…

They all settled in their seats, and with Kagome's complaining that she was able to make her own decisions, Inuyasha grudgingly let her sit next to the other guy.

"Ready? Let's go!"

The speedboat jerked upwards as it created a huge wave, and sped across the ocean. The girls started yelling, and even Miroku stood and started to whoop. Inuyasha didn't cheer at all. His attention was focused on the driver, who kept on glancing at Kagome.

'I really don't like that guy…'

Kouga leaned in on the steering wheel, a gleam in his eye. Right when he made a swift turn, he shoved Inuyasha off the boat.

He missed. Inuyasha lost his balance, and grabbed on to Kagome involuntarily for support, causing her to slip and go sideways off the boat.

'Fuck.'

"Kagome!" Inuyasha, Sango, and Miroku yelled in unison.

The silver-haired boy whirled on the driver. "Just what the fuck do you think-"

His mouth closed when he noticed that Kouga held a revolver cocked to Inuyasha's head.

"You first. Then I'll take the woman."

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A/N: DUN DUN DUN……

Damn… long chapter.

Anyways, no curses or spooky voices this time, just a plead to review.

REVIEW. Or else.