Disclaimer: If you still have some idea that I own Inuyasha in any form except for various pieces of individual merchandise, you're silly. And wrong.
A/N: Yeesh. Life will not leave me alone. Very, very tentatively, I'd say this puppy won't go past 42 or 43 chapters…though certain female siblings of mine are betting it'll hit 50 simply because I ramble so much. But we're getting there, plot and everything, I promise…
By the by, one is gratified that so many people knew that the musical was "Wicked," but only Albino Black Sheep knew that the manga was Fushigi Yuugi…most perplexing. Perhaps the description was just more general than I thought…ah, well. On with the show.
BeastChapter 33
Kikyou sensed the girl getting up just after dawn, and from her vantage point within the Tree, she could also satisfy herself that Kagome was still in her futon and hadn't moved since she fell asleep before Inuyasha returned the previous night. The former priestess had witnessed the betting before the duel as well as its aftermath, and promised herself a visit with the glib monk should he try to connive any more nights away from his usual room after this; though it was good to know that Inuyasha was behaving himself even with her reincarnation sleeping right at hand – and vice versa – it simply wasn't proper, and Inuyasha's leniency in permitting it to go on for so long was annoying, to say the least.
Her other feelings on the matter, she didn't care to examine any further for now, especially as the Tree's aura flickered and a sense of intrusion diverted her irritation. Kikyou narrowed her eyes out of habit, though her vision always remained the same now that she lacked flesh, whether her 'eyelids' were open or not.
Yes, there it was again, a sharp twinge on her awareness—gone just as suddenly. This wasn't the first time it had happened, but it had never been so distinct. Someone was tapping into the Jewel's power, and growing bolder. Now, if she could just confirm a few other suspicions…
A cursory check of the area with the Tree's help eliminated the possibility of a demon accessing the Jewel's power, either by direct contact or from a distance; there was no trace of energy in the vicinity to suggest a demonic presence, and no demon in existence could cover its tracks so neatly as to escape her notice once it had been there.
…Or could it? Without a body, the residue of her physical senses could detect a shadow moving away from the dusk-grey clearing as she wafted away from the trunk. But Kikyou couldn't be sure if she had imagined the barest hint of a familiar taint as someone or something had physically touched the Tree. It hadn't been a demon, no…but what human here could do anything with the Jewel except perhaps the girl? She hadn't been anywhere near the clearing—
Kikyou was nearly startled out of her thoughts again: an impression of unsettling power was all the warning she received before Kagome herself appeared directly in front of the Tree, landing on her rump with an undignified plop.
Bemused, the priestess' spirit watched as the girl stared blankly at the ground, apparently unaware of her audience, and slowly drew her arms around her knees. What was she doing out here at this hour? Inuyasha was still in his room.
Vestiges of some long-unfelt emotion – concern, perhaps – stirred faintly, and she added another question as the girl made no move to get up: what had happened to make her reincarnation come out here alone? Her posture indicated something highly unpleasant at the least…
Something to do with Inuyasha, no doubt. Kikyou knew better than anyone how careless the hanyou could be of others' feelings, particularly before he was fully awake. Still, Kagome had displayed unusual resilience to his rudeness, and whatever her personal feelings toward the girl, Kikyou had to admit that such a display of sensitivity wasn't like her.
A particularly unlikely but interesting notion dismissed any nascent inclination to offer Kagome some measure of comfort: did this have anything to do with the use of the Jewel?
Even in its present form, Kikyou's mind was capable of doing many things at once, so that she could notice the odd black cloth the girl clutched in one hand, wonder about the gold ringing both wrists, make note of both, and send herself up to Inuyasha's room between one thought and the next—and did, with no time wasted in trying to converse.
She was not surprised to see him standing at the window, hunched over and leaning against the wall, ruby eyes not taking in the cloud-muffled horizon or so much as flickering at the sound of his name spoken behind him. That in itself was slightly disturbing, more so than his sullen profile in the dim light, and Kikyou moved nearly right next to him for a better look.
"What do you want, Kago—" Inuyasha literally bit the word off. "Kikyou. This isn't the best…" He stopped again, eyes slowly widening till Kikyou fancied a living person would have been able to see her own reflection in them. His fangs clenched so that the nearer one drew his own blood. "Oh, shit. That's why she…" He struck the wall so hard that the centuries-old wood split like rice paper. "Fuck!"
"Slightly mixed up, Inuyasha?" Kikyou didn't know whether to be amused or disgusted as the pieces fell neatly into place. The hanyou must have called Kagome her name and only just now realized it. No wonder the girl had been upset. For the moment, Kikyou decided to be neither and make no assumptions about the circumstances under which the mistake had been made. "That would explain a great deal."
"What? Did you see Kagome?" Inuyasha made as if to grab her by the shoulder and caught himself just in time, raking the errant hand through his hair and getting it tangled instead. "It was an accident, dammit! I woke up, and she was standing there, and she just…"
"Looked like me, and so you used the appropriate name. A perfectly natural mistake, given your inability to properly wake up." Asinine though the slip was, it also meant she was in his thoughts as much as ever. Kikyou lifted one shoulder gracefully, allowing a frosty little smile to curve her lips. "She will realize as much soon enough. Give her an hour or two, and all will be well."
The smile faded as Inuyasha whirled away and began to pace. Kikyou didn't bother to conceal her frown. "Are you that afraid of her temper?" She would have laughed, but it seemed…inappropriate. "Surely another childish argument or two won't hurt you."
"That's not it!" The hanyou was genuinely agitated, and she did not like what she could read in the set of his ears and tone of voice. His frustration was plain, and unnerving. "Those damn things Shimoko gave her to wear, they mask her scent, and she put 'em on first thing, so I couldn't tell the difference that way like I usually would…" He was almost babbling, which was enough to raise her suspicions further. "I didn't mean to, Kikyou!"
"Inuyasha!" she said sharply. He stopped pacing, curling and uncurling his fists in still-palpable distress. Why wasn't he calming down? "I know you didn't mean to, and so does Kagome. Calm yourself before someone hears you."
Inuyasha buried his hands in his hair again, then extricated them and thrust them into his sleeves, gripping his elbows tightly. "Okay, okay, fine, you're right." He growled softly, almost involuntarily. "Come on, Kikyou, wouldn't you be pissed if it happened the other way around?"
He didn't realize his error till the priestess spoke, nearly thirty seconds later, very calmly, and coldly enough to shock him back into reality. "I don't believe circumstances would be quite the same if it were to happen the other way, Inuyasha."
"I know! I know, you're right. Sorry. Just…" Inuyasha growled more loudly. Why the hell had he gone and said that? "Sorry. Forget it."
A curt nod was his only answer. For once, he wasn't entirely sorry to glance up and find that she was gone.
Kikyou briefly wondered if she should have brought Inuyasha back with her to discuss what she had felt this morning as she returned to the Tree. She was disinclined to speak with him again for the time being, though, and he was already aware that there was a threat somewhere in his castle; if he wanted her help in finding it, he always could come to her and ask. It was unfortunate that his powers were limited to playing watchdog and being able to manipulate the castle's environment, or else he would have caught the thief himself already. At this point, that couldn't be helped.
Besides, Inuyasha would be useless in general till the real problem facing the Tree could be taken care of. Best she deal with it now.
"Get up," she said brusquely, and Kagome shrieked, stumbling to her feet and nearly tripping over a root in her surprise. Kikyou waited with thinly veiled impatience for the girl to straighten, hard put to remain impassive as Kagome dropped the black cloth, hastily scooped it off the ground, brushed the dirt away, and finally stood uncomfortably.
Five seconds of staring at the mirror image was suddenly more than the dead priestess could take, and she looked away as if in boredom or disgust. She had been ready to say something about Inuyasha, but the emotion on the girl's—on her face was too raw. Had she ever looked like that when she was still alive…?
Kikyou would not permit herself a frown, which was surprisingly difficult given her lack of muscles. Nothing would be accomplished by allowing herself to wallow in melancholy now. The most inane question at hand would be safest, for both of them. "What are you holding, girl?"
Kagome flinched, almost dropping it again. "It's…it's a kind of necklace. I got it last night. See?" She brought it up to her neck, fumbled at the back, and let her hands drop, leaving a constrictive black band around her throat. Kikyou noted absently that the pearl, besides its size, perfection and likely value, was nearly the color of Inuyasha's niece's hair.
"I see." Thus reminded, Kikyou also suddenly saw that only Shimoko would have been able to procure such a thing, and that the demoness had given Inuyasha two boxes yesterday. Kikyou had come out just in time to overhear the explanation of the gold and silver loops, and now the mystery of the item Inuyasha had requested a few days before was solved. If Kagome had gotten the necklace last night as well, when she was with Inuyasha… "Was that also from the demon woman, or is Inuyasha giving you gifts?"
Rumbling overhead forestalled Kagome's answer, and a light patter of rain gave her ample excuse to move around the Tree. "Any chance of this thing getting hit by lightning?"
"This thing will be fine," Kikyou replied, apparently calm as ever despite the slight emphasis.
Kagome flushed darker. "Okay, just checking." Without minding her long yukata, she suddenly leaped for a low branch, scrambled a bit up the rough bark, caught it, and slowly hauled herself up, clambering higher and crawling back against the trunk. Guess Inuyasha's realized what he did by now… "There we go," she said aloud, arranging the fabric around her legs more modestly as Kikyou appeared to 'sit' on the branch next to hers. Aside from a few scrapes on knees and feet, she hadn't suffered any visible damage. That was a relief: she'd half expected to fall or otherwise make an ass of herself in front of the priestess. It was just that kind of day.
"You seem accustomed to this," the ghost remarked evenly.
"Mmm." They exchanged polite little nods. Again, Kagome wondered just what she was actually feeling, and how much…and if she really wanted to know. "Yeah, Souta – my little brother – used to climb trees all the time, and I'd have to go after him to get him down. He still does once in a while." Kagome tapped her chin as something occurred to her. "Actually, now that I think about it, this one was his favorite. Poor kid must be bored stiff without it."
"That's impossible," Kikyou said immediately, and through her surprise, Kagome was ashamed to feel a little smug at the unexpected reaction.
"Why? It's true.…Oh, right, the barriers." Kagome swung her bare calves idly, one to each side. The air was warm without being muggy quite yet, though the earthy-wet smell was beginning to wear on her nerves. "I think Inuyasha once told me the ward near the shrine where we live fluctuates sometimes. I know Souta's spent a lot of time here, and he's as human as they come. I've been here, too, even touched the trunk once when we first moved in…" She shrugged. "Weird. Maybe the shrine has some kind of power that messes with the curse or something."
"It does not." Kikyou looked out at the forest, which wasn't growing much lighter thanks to the clouds. "The human warding should have been completely intact, and remained thus, even when the curse was not fully active. And you were not nearly powerful enough to have brought it about yourself."
The rain became a needle-like downpour. Kagome pressed herself back against the bark, though the branches above her head formed a waterproof canopy several feet out from the trunk. "Well, yeah, and Dad got into the castle without any trouble. Even Inuyasha doesn't know how. Do you?" And are you going to tell me if you do?
"If you have sufficient power to travel distances at will, and if you've raised that many questions on your own, I'll trust you with three more." Kikyou glanced at her for the first time.
That's a no. Despite herself, Kagome sat up straighter as Kikyou continued. "The first is no more than a hunch of mine, but I have known Inuyasha long enough to be sure of what he may do as the curse draws to a close. I have measures of my own to consider as well. I wouldn't trouble myself with the necessity of having to save the other inhabitants' lives by agreeing to marriage if I were you."
Kagome opened her mouth. Kikyou kept speaking, forcing her to close it irritably. "Second, I don't know what kind of records have been maintained in this era, or for how long, but you may wish to investigate family ties you might have to this area. I'll say no more on that. Third, you may inform Inuyasha that your hidden enemy in the castle was active again this morning, not for the second or third time."
"Active? What do you mean? Was it Naraku?" Kagome nearly fell off in a futile lunge as Kikyou tilted her head and evaporated. "HEY! Come on, Kikyou, that's not fair! Is he using the Jewel? He can do that if he's controlling the curse, can't he? Why doesn't he just kill everyone instead of screwing around like this?! And what's Inuyasha going to do? Just tell me!" The pent-up stress she'd been trying to ignore came loose in a torrent of pure frustration, and she had to resist the urge to kick the bark with her heels like a little girl throwing a temper tantrum. "Tell me something! There's still a month to go, and I'm gonna go nuts in another week at this rate!"
"If you would calm down and stop acting like Inuyasha, you would be able to accomplish more than I possibly could in my current condition" was the cool reply, somewhere above her head. "Has Inuyasha done anything to you? Your petulance is usually better controlled than this."
"He…" Kagome swallowed, then swallowed again, but it didn't help the lump in her throat. "He just rubbed something in my face I've known for a while, and he didn't even mean to." She crossed her arms. "And that's all I'm saying." There. See how it feels.
"Does it bother you so much that his thoughts remain devoted to me?"
Kagome stiffened. How…?
Kikyou reappeared. There was no hint of smugness or gloating in her features, but they weren't quite blank, either. "I visited him earlier, and I don't have to tell you—" She flicked a glance at the wind-tossed rain. "—that he hardly enjoyed his mistake."
"Yeah, I know…" Kagome developed great interest in examining her lap, the leaves surrounding them, the weather, anything but the unmoving shade at the end of her branch. "It's just…"
She hesitated. It would probably not be a good idea to whine about unrequited love to Kikyou. Not only might she use it against her somehow – if she didn't already know – but Kagome was painfully and ironically aware that the priestess would give a great deal to be in her place, alive and bound to Inuyasha, as it were. "It's just kind of embarrassing, being with him all the time and knowing he'd rather be with you." No reply. "Not to complain or anything, but…it's really frustrating." She exhaled shortly. "I'm sorry, I know—"
"Quiet," Kikyou said abruptly. Before Kagome could work up more than the beginnings of indignation, a faint prickle at the back of her neck silenced her, just as Kikyou drifted to the ground and a familiar voice asked if she'd seen Kagome here today.
He came out looking for me? Kagome very carefully folded her yukata and scooted sidesaddle along the branch, peering through the leaves at a blob of red and white on the ground. A slow rotation of both ankles and wrists reconfirmed that she still had the bangles on: no scent for him to track. Hmmm… Her shoulder chose that moment to remind her that the bruise wasn't entirely gone, nor happy with its recent abuse, and she obediently remained seated as Kikyou made a noncommittal reply.
"Which way did she go, then?" Inuyasha demanded. Thunder rolled in the distance, and Kagome absently wondered how far the mood-controlled weather extended.
"Nowhere beyond your reach. You may prefer to wait for her at the castle."
Kagome drummed her nails on the bark lightly. Was Kikyou being helpful, or did she just want to keep Inuyasha off balance? If she knew about the business with the names, she couldn't be much happier with him than Kagome was at the moment…
Inuyasha growled, shaking water from his ears. Kagome felt a stab of guilt. He hates being out when it's raining, and he still came to look for me, huh? Maybe she should come down now. It was selfish to keep him standing around out here when he was just worried about her and probably remorseful to boot.
Her mind heartily agreed. Her body didn't argue, but didn't move, either, though she wasn't sure whether to blame laziness, apprehension or sheer curiosity.
"Oh, yes, Inuyasha—"
She didn't look up, but Kagome had a feeling that Kikyou knew she was listening as closely as Inuyasha was.
"Couldn't you have chosen a more tasteful gift for the girl than a collar?"
Kagome sucked in her cheeks violently to keep from jumping in and making the situation worse. Dammit, Kikyou, he doesn't need anything else to beat himself up for right now!
"I didn't know what it was!" Inuyasha snapped. "She was talking about getting crap on her birthday, and she missed it with her family this year 'cause of us, so I wanted to make up for it." There was a brief pause. "Shit, it was the least I could do after I got her into this."
"Her father 'got her into this,' Inuyasha, not you."
"You know what I meant." Inuyasha moved closer to the trunk, forcing Kagome to scoot back. She doubted he'd be able to see her even if he looked straight up, but one never knew. "If I could take the damn thing back, I would."
"She took it out here with her, and she has it on now. Best of luck in getting her to remove it."
"So you did see her?" Neither missed the impatience in his tone, bordering on eagerness. Kagome's heart lifted, then sank into her stomach at the long silence that followed. The rain slackened, but a long rumble of thunder belied Inuyasha's loud snort. "C'mon. I just don't want her sulking and everyone giving me crap about it. That's all."
Kikyou didn't answer. Kagome could almost see Inuyasha's ears swiveling defensively, and the mental image made her feel even worse.
"Look, just tell me which way she went. The kugutsu's still out somewhere, too. She shoulda known better than to run off by herself." There was a distinct edge to his careless tone.
"You should have known better than to permit her to be in your room in the first place. You could have made a much worse mistake than an idiotic slip of the tongue."
That did it. "I'm right here, Inuyasha," Kagome called down, and squirmed around to shake the huge limb as much as possible under her weight. "Yoo-hoo, up here."
"You…" Inuyasha spat a long line of undulating, mostly incomprehensible curses under his breath as his head snapped up and rain found its way into his ears almost freely. "What the hell are you doing up there?!"
"Staying dry. What are you doing down there?" she answered tartly, giving him a chance to recover.
"Looking for you! Now get your ass down here!" If he was relieved to find her unharmed, none of it was apparent in his snarl.
"M'kay." Pulse hammering, Kagome made sure her yukata was as securely closed as possible, then eased down the branches, hesitated at the lowest, and squeaked as Inuyasha hopped up next to her, took her by the waist and set her down in the space of two very rapid heartbeats.
The first thing he did upon releasing her was to hold out one hand. "Gimme the bracelets. Now."
Kagome blinked at him. Kikyou drifted a little closer.
"I'm serious, Kagome. If you're gonna be out of my sight, I have to be able to find you without just lookin' around at random. The kugutsu doesn't give a damn whether it can smell you or not, but I do." He motioned impatiently. "And the collar, too. Anything with eyes could pick you out at a distance with that thing on."
"Bracelets, sure. Choker, nuh-uh," Kagome said firmly, praying he wouldn't press the issue in front of Kikyou, and that Kikyou wouldn't keep after him with her standing right there. Not that her presence had dissuaded her before, of course, but she could always hope that propriety would win out now that she was in the open.
"Stubborn wench." Inuyasha's nose twitched as the second gold band came off. He took his time stowing them in his sleeves, collecting his thoughts. Dammit, I forgot about the ankle things. Her scent was distracting enough without being amplified, and he had to fight the sudden and very stupid urge to poke his nose into her neck like some kind of addict; the tang of fear helped dissuade him, though, even faster than a glance at Kikyou could. The hell is she scared of? …Me? He pawed at his ears, hoping the women would mistake their involuntary cringe into his hair for aversion to the rain. "Why the fuck didn't you come down sooner?"
"Why d'you think?" Kagome softened her tone. "I just wanted to be alone for a little while, Inuyasha, and I thought this place would be safer than the treehouse."
"Surely you didn't think I would permit anything to happen to her, Inuyasha?" Kikyou moved further out from the Tree, so that they could see the rain slanting straight through her. Kagome tried to repress her shudder. "Your lack of consideration is—"
"Let's go," Kagome cut in, tugging at Inuyasha's sleeve lightly. She bowed shortly to Kikyou before the priestess could speak again. "Thanks for the company, and for watching out for me, but I think Shimoko's back already. We'd better go see what's up."
"You go ahead, girl, and Inuyasha will be along shortly. I have something to discuss with him alone." Kikyou glided back to the Tree, her form shimmering into solidity from its partial translucence. "She's in no danger in this weather, Inuyasha. The magic that binds kugutsu together has a tendency to fail when exposed to water."
Inuyasha grunted softly in surprise. "Really?" Kagome's scent spiked softly, more fear and a little anger thrown into the damp air. He scowled at her in confusion, and promptly kicked himself as she drew back, hurt adding itself to the mix. Shit. Now what? "Uh…" He couldn't just tell her to get lost, especially not when he had yet to make up for his other gaffe. But he could hardly talk to Kikyou with Kagome standing right there, either… "Uh…you mind waiting for a minute?"
There was no right answer, really, but that didn't make him feel any better as Kagome flushed and Kikyou said, politely but very firmly, "We don't need any further intervention, Inuyasha."
Inuyasha shook his head lamely. "Not here. I meant—"
"Exactly," Kagome chirped, offering them a brilliantly fake smile. Her scent made Inuyasha's head and chest hurt. "I think I feel Kouga back, too. I'll just keep him busy for you for a while. Please, don't mind me. You'll know where to find me. Have fun." She jerked a bow, turned on her heel and disappeared into the trees.
"Oi!" Inuyasha stepped forward, unaware that he was standing in the rain. "OI!"
No answer.
Kagome had the presence of mind to remove the silver anklets just after she willed herself just inside the castle. After all, if Inuyasha could smell what she was feeling, no doubt the other demons would be able to as well. At least Kikyou doesn't have a body. I know they're not…
She wouldn't let herself finish that one. But something Upstairs must have taken pity on her before she sunk into total melancholy, because as Kagome was trying to wipe her bare feet at the entrance area, a casual glance to her left lifted the pall from her heart almost entirely. "How cute!" She dropped to her knees on the edge of the entrance area, mindful of her muddy soles. "Could you bring them over here?"
Three of her new friends from yesterday's meeting in the huts obediently scooped four wobble-legged kittens off the floor and rushed to deposit them on her lap. Kagome tactfully lifted all but the smallest off, stroking the calico's tiny head with one finger as the kitten squeaked her uncertainty at the new situation. "How old are they?"
"Born a little bit after we all woke up, Kagome-sama," the oldest girl said proudly, dropping to her knees as well so as not to speak down to her better. Her cousins followed suit, each plunking a tabby onto her legs. "Just weaned a few days ago."
Kagome's heart melted as her calico took a tremulous step, looking up at her siblings and mewing faintly. "They're so cute!" How could anyone with a soul stay in a bad mood when there were kittens on her lap? Kagome gently picked up the unclaimed kitten, a black tortoiseshell with a white bib and paws, depositing it next to its sister on her legs. The calico promptly staggered into the tortoiseshell and tried to climb over it, eliciting a series of cross objections as Kagome separated them. "Whose cat is their mama?"
"Our aunt's," another girl said, giggling as the orange tabby tried to scale the front of her kimono. "Rats have gotten back into the kitchen, so Tori can't spend time with her babies anymore."
"Bird"? Now there's an interesting cat name. "I see. Well, you guys will just have to take over." She gave in to the urge to pick up the calico, holding it at eye level. Small as her hands were, the kitten almost fit in her palm. Tiny marble-green eyes widened at her soft clicking noise, and Kagome cuddled her against her shoulder, not caring if the ragged fur contained fleas or other icky stuff. "Just keep them away from Buyo, okay?"
"There you are, Auntie."
With utmost regret, Kagome set the kittens down and stood to straighten her yukata as Shimoko approached, white kimono rustling, one eyebrow raised. "How very picturesque. But whyever haven't you changed yet? It's well past dawn."
"It's a long story," Kagome hedged, willing the girls to come back as they collected the kittens, bowed as deeply as they could around the protesting bundles of fur and baby claws, and scurried off. "What brings you here?"
"Another gift for you, delivered at Kouga's behest." Shimoko eyed the silver bands Kagome had dropped next to her feet, then the choker at her throat. "It looks good. If I may say so, your scent suggests oji-chan didn't quite approve. What did he say this time?"
"Kagome!" Kouga's strident greeting spared her from having to answer. He stopped just short of where Shimoko had discreetly positioned herself between them, nodding and smiling genially. "It's been too long." Both women started as he switched to fairly decent English. "How have you been doing?"
"Impressive. You've actually used the language CDs Ginta gave you," Shimoko remarked, largely for Kagome's benefit. "You need to practice your v sounds more, though that wasn't at all bad for a beginner."
"You flatter me." Kouga bowed deeply. For once, Kagome couldn't read his tone. That in itself was saying something—what, she didn't know. At least he hasn't grabbed my hands yet…
"You'll excuse us long enough for Auntie to change, of course," the demoness said conversationally, though the bracelets had somehow reappeared in her hand and she was already urging Kagome around Kouga and towards her room as she spoke. "It'll be just a minute."
Unfortunately, Kouga's nose was every bit as good as Shimoko's, and the scents of distress were just as apparent to him, even in passing. Shimoko gave Kagome a gentle push to keep going and paused to speak over his indignant concern: "By the way, Kouga-sama, I've heard Ayame-san has made plans to return to the country. Would it be indelicate to ask whether you'd prefer I let her know about the curse or not? We do have a business relationship, after all—"
Kouga's panic wasn't covered fast enough, and Kagome would have given quite a bit to hear his reply. Sango chose that moment to round the corner, though. "Kagome-chan! What are you doing out here? Come and see this!"
What is it with today and interruptions? Kagome wondered as Sango seized her hand with uncharacteristic impatience and pulled her away from the scene as she tried to hear what Kouga was stammering. I guess anything that distracts me is good at this point, though…
As if to drive the point home, no less than Miroku, Kohaku, Shippou, breakfast, and a massive cardboard box awaited her in her room. The second shoji had been removed to expand the chamber almost half again, and the women were left alone long enough for Kagome to change as Sango explained. "Shimoko-sama said it's a gift from Kouga and his pack members, and it's supposed to go to the…D-D-R game." The pronunciation was atrocious, but close enough, and Kagome let it slide, amused by her friend's obvious curiosity. If she hadn't been fully recovered yesterday, she definitely was now. "We've been trying to figure out exactly what it does, but Shimoko doesn't know, Kouga forgot what Hakkaku said it was, we couldn't find you or Inuyasha, and Inuyasha's done something to the room so that it seals itself whenever Kouga tries to get in…"
Kagome finished buttoning a white sweater, smoothed her jeans, and tried to puzzle out what the box was. Then, inspired, she circled around and looked at it from a different angle. "Oh…oh, COOL!"
"Kagome-sama?!" Miroku burst into the room, staff ready. "What is it?"
"It's metal!" They didn't get much sense out of her till Shimoko had joined them and Kagome could be persuaded to sit down and explain in between bites of breakfast. "They're DDR mats, like that one—" She indicated the folded rubber mat atop the TV, then resumed feeding Shippou. "Except they're made of metal, and joined together. These are reallyexpensive, or at least they were back when DDR was really popular."
"Does the magic work the same in metal as in the softer material?" Miroku asked curiously, eyeing the box and then the mat.
"Yep. The game itself isn't changed by what you use to control it, but it's a lot easier to do on metal." Kagome petted the kitsune's hair thoughtfully. "I hope they fit in here."
"The noise should be another consideration," Shimoko pointed out. "I've heard these things at arcade centers before. You will keep the sound down, won't you?"
Kagome nodded. "Especially with Inuyasha around."
"Where is Inuyasha-sama?" Kohaku wanted to know, and Kagome cringed inwardly as the others expressed similar curiosity.
"That's right, he still hasn't really seen the game…" Sango caught the shadow across Kagome's features. She frowned, then forced a smile. "You know, Kagome-chan, if the metal is sturdy enough, perhaps we should get Inuyasha to try it."
"You think so?" Kagome couldn't restrain a snort at the idea of Inuyasha hopping around on the mat. "There's no way we could get him on there."
Amused silence reigned briefly as everyone turned attention to food. Shimoko refused the younger slayer's portion with a slight shake of the head, though Kohaku's discomfort at eating in her presence was evident. Sometimes Kagome thought he was a bit too well-mannered and gentle for this place; the strain of his sister's poisoning and of an enemy lurking somewhere was probably affecting him more than he was willing to show. I'll ask Sango and Shippou to keep an eye on him. He's losing too much weight.
"That…ah…decoration is very attractive, Kagome-sama," Miroku said delicately as the dishes were cleared and stacked. "Am I mistaken to assume we've seen it before somewhere?"
Kagome's throat went dry. "In that magazine we were looking through before, yeah." She didn't know for sure if demons could smell tension, but the way everyone was looking askance at her, it probably wasn't necessary: her face had to look as if she'd smelled sour milk. A forced smile didn't convince them, either. "Inuyasha didn't really like it."
"That would be my fault," Shimoko said unexpectedly. "I'll be more careful the next time I buy jewelry for anyone here, Auntie." She inclined her head. Kagome nodded gratefully, and Sango held her questions at the unspoken exchange, knowing Kagome would tell her later anyway.
"I like it," Shippou volunteered, and Kagome hugged him fiercely.
It was the work of a few minutes – made much easier by Shimoko's insistence upon helping Miroku move the slabs of metal, and by her ability to easily lift them above her head with one hand – to hook up the new platform and turn on the TV and PlayStation. Wide as the metal surface was, the television's screen was big enough to permit the player on the left a full view at nearly any angle.
Within another minute, Kagome was already demonstrating this and other principles associated with the new apparatus, alternately expressing relief at the solidity underfoot and yelping as her heel connected with the heavy studs at each arrow's corner.
"Are you sure you prefer those, Kagome-chan?" Sango asked doubtfully at the song's end. The thudding each step made sounded painful enough without considering potential missteps.
"Uh huh. Hey…" Kagome stepped off the platform, edged around and gestured grandly at the TV. "You guys want to try it together?"
"Absolutely not, thank you," Sango said flatly.
"We'd love to, Kagome-sama," Miroku said at the same time.
They looked at each other.
"No, houshi-sama."
Miroku put on his most winsome smile. "But, Sango dearest—"
Sango dug out her most unrelenting scowl. "I've been unwell the past few days, remember?"
He eyed her appreciatively, stepping a little nearer as if to feel her forehead in concern. "You're looking more than well enough now."
Shimoko raised an eyebrow as Sango just barely caught a grab at her backside. "Keep your hands to yourself! Honestly, have you no shame?!"
"For you, most beauteous and gifted one, I might see fit to locate some…if you would just—"
"No!"
"But…"
"Absolutely not, houshi-sama."
"What if—"
"Under no circumstances am I going to get on that thing and make a fool of myself. Is that clear?"
Miroku looked injured. "I'm surprised at you, Sango. Are you slighting Kagome-sama?"
"Yeah, Sango-chan," Kagome chimed in on the spur of the moment. The slayer blinked, and Miroku kept his expression carefully blank as Kagome went on, urged by some inner demon: "I mean, I know I'm not that good at it, but that doesn't mean you have to say I look stupid on it, does it?" She pulled a face, and only Kohaku didn't have to suppress a laugh at Sango's guilty head shake. "No, no, I see how it is. If you want, I can just have Kouga-kun take it back."
Neither she nor Miroku were tactless enough to say anything further, especially when Sango was busy stepping on the arrows a moment later and growing increasingly flustered. "This is harder than it looks," she admitted as Miroku completed the song with relative ease, leaving him with a decent score and her at rock-bottom. "And I thought Hiraikoutsu required good coordination, not to mention agility."
"Abilities mean nothing without experience, as you well know," Miroku replied, and they exchanged smiles as Kagome stepped up to help them select another song.
"They're quite the pair," Shimoko remarked to Kagome over the sounds of irregular pounding and painfully chipper English lyrics. Kohaku and Shippou were too busy watching the screen to pay any attention elsewhere. "Pity he's a monk."
"That doesn't really matter in his case," Kagome said honestly, shrugging at Shimoko's curious head tilt. "He usually doesn't pay attention to the rules anyway, and…well, you know about his hand, right?" The woman nodded sadly. "With that and the fact that he's, well, Miroku, no one really minds him acting the way he does. I know monks aren't even supposed to think about women, much less get married, but…"
"I see. I'd hardly begrudge him, either." Shimoko sighed. "Speaking of grudges, where is—"
"Hey," Kagome said accusingly over her shoulder, and Shimoko's head whipped around. Inuyasha was standing just inside the shoji, a gold loop clutched in each hand. He recoiled as if she'd thrown something at him, but Kagome merely gestured at him to come in. "You're missing the show. What, did you grow some fashion sense all of a sudden?"
"Indeed. I didn't even smell you back there," Shimoko said accusingly.
"What's going on?" Sango asked without taking her eyes from the screen, growling as her concentration slipped anyway, feet and vision falling out of sync. "Look at what you made me do, Inuyasha! …That is Inuyasha you're talking to, isn't it?"
"Who else would come in just to mess you up?" Kagome rose and took the bracelets from his hand, half-smiling to indicate he needn't fear being verbally dismembered even if he wasn't quite forgiven yet. Inuyasha merely blinked. "Come on, it's your turn."
"Fuck no." Inuyasha watched the remnants of the song, squinting at the offensively bright blue and white background. "…That first letter is an…ech? And there's another one, plus an…ah-ee?"
"An H, yep, and an I." Kagome applauded playfully. "Very good. You almost said it right, too." English contains many sounds Japanese does not – and excludes several sounds that Japanese uses as a matter of course, particularly vowels paired with consonants – but Kagome had been pleasantly surprised to find that the substitutes she'd used as loose examples, like 'ai' or 'love,' had served as decent bases for the pronunciations she was trying to get both hanyou and demon to use correctly.
"Have you been teaching oji-chan English as well?" Shimoko smiled as Inuyasha sat down near them, completing a loose triangle. Miroku sighed near the front of the room and agreed to repeat the song at Sango's insistence that she'd get it right this time.
"No, just the alphabet. But Kouga doesn't know that yet, so they're about even." Kagome shrugged. "They both learn pretty fast." Can't claim much credit when your students aren't even human.
Inuyasha's ears bobbed in unison, and they were saved from Kagome's impulsive touch only by a muffled sound from outside the room. "Go away," Inuyasha snarled at the shoji, which shuddered under the force of a blow from outside in response.
"Oh, let him in," Kagome said peevishly, as annoyed as she'd just been pleased a moment ago. If the rice paper was still intact after Kouga hit it, it meant Inuyasha had a hand in it still. "He's not gonna go away, and besides, he got that new metal thing for us to play on. The least you can do is let him come see it."
"Maybe later." Inuyasha shoved his hands into his sleeves.
Shimoko eyed them, correctly assessed Kagome's temper as approaching dangerous levels, and cleared her throat. "So, oji-chan, what would you say to some new clothes?"
He snorted. "What the hell would I do with more clothes? I have some already. Fire-rat fur doesn't wear out, and it repairs itself when I get into a fight. Normal stuff would just get screwed up."
Shimoko chuckled. "Ah, but what about clothes that you could wear whenever you're guaranteed not to be fighting?"
Instead of scoffing further, Inuyasha tensed, and Kagome started at the warning note in his voice. "What do you mean?"
If she had been paying attention, she would have found the game's warbling very ironic: "Lose your fear, 'cause there is no one here—"
"Well, you don't have to tell me when it is, of course," Shimoko said casually, frowning a little and misinterpreting his apprehension, "but surely you've been curious as to what it's like to wear human clothes as a human yourself, even just for one night a month."
In retrospect, Kagome was amazed that Inuyasha didn't even scream at his niece, much less attack her or do anything similarly unwise. He merely dug his claws into the tatami so deeply and swiftly that Kagome didn't dare ask what Shimoko meant. "I hate to break it to you, dear, but I don't give a shit about that, and if you try to say anything else about it, the curse'll shut us all up for however long it feels like. Thanks a hell of a lot for bringing it up."
"You didn't…" Shimoko's elegantly pale face went chalk-white. The air had grown heavy again, so much so that Kohaku and Shippou looked around at them, and Sango faltered again on the game towards the end of the song, cursing under her breath. For the first time, the demoness seemed at a loss for words. To complete Kagome's bewilderment, Shimoko edged back and bowed so deeply that her forehead rested against the floor. "Please forgive me, Inuyasha. I had no idea it was forbidden to speak of."
"Feh." Inuyasha rapped his claws on the tatami, reforming the furrows as he composed himself. "Forget about it." He took a huge breath and let it out in a rush. "So, where's that camera thing today? Gonna use it to screw anything else up, or do you not need the help?"
It was a testament to their discomfort that, like Inuyasha, neither woman really remembered what the camera had interrupted yesterday; he was merely being crabby. "I don't have it with me. But…" Shimoko sat up and dug into her sleeve, extracting a slim object and unfolding it. Inuyasha vaguely recognized the kind of thing Kagome's father had once tried to show him, and sure enough, several pictures came out. "This was when she was first born, and here she is in her first crib at home. Wasn't she adorable?"
Naturally, nearly every picture was of Tadako, and they wouldn't have seen any other if not for Inuyasha's idle curiosity in flipping through them all till he came upon a fresh face.
"Who's the dumbass?" Inuyasha wanted to know, pointing to a nervously smiling, fairly nondescript man sitting under a tree with Shimoko and the baby. "Some kind of servant?"
"That would be my husband," Shimoko didn't quite snap.
"Oh." Inuyasha almost sounded apologetic. Almost.
"Let me see that…" Kagome almost snatched the picture out of Inuyasha's clawed hand. She brought it so close to her face that her breath fogged the plastic cover, and her eyes grew wide. "Holy…"
"What, you go for skinny morons or somethin'?" Inuyasha drawled, though the purpose of the joke was slightly defeated by a prick of something akin to jealousy. It was probably just disgust. Yep, that was definitely it.
"I think…" Kagome looked up at Shimoko, too perturbed to hear Sango successfully argue for just one more time at the same song, which she had almost passed this time, over Miroku's growing exasperation. "I met him once. He and Mom knew each other. I remember, that scar under his eye scared me 'cause I was so little…. Does he have an Osaka accent?"
"He does." The demoness sat up straighter, eyes taking on a strange gleam. "Did your mother have any siblings…no, not siblings, but aunts, or uncles?"
"Aunts or uncles? No, her family was really small, and they're all…" Kagome snapped her fingers, scaring Shippou out of his half-sleep. "Wait! Yes, she did, one uncle. He died in some kind of accident way before I was born, before Mom even got married. I don't know anything else about him, though, whether he was married or not. She never talked about her family."
"What was your mother's maiden name?" Shimoko was leaning almost into Kagome now, forcing Inuyasha to lean back uncomfortably.
"It was…I think it was Saotome, definitely not your husband's last name. Dead end." Kagome sighed in disappointment.
But Shimoko was shaking her head. "Shiro took his mother's name when his father died. Apparently his father was something of a delinquent, even after he married, so his mother didn't want to risk being associated with him after his death." Kagome grimaced, and it deepened as Shimoko nodded thoughtfully. "You're positive you recognize the photo?"
"Very." Kagome thought about it very hard for a minute. "Yeah, I do. Could you bring him in somehow, the way you do with Tadako?"
"Nope." They blinked in perfect unison as the demoness raised her hands in a helpless gesture. "My powers are stretched to their limits bringing a very small and inconspicuous human in safely. There's no way I could get my Shiro past the wards without risking his life. It would hardly help if I were to bring his pieces inside for you to look at…" She shuddered. "No, I have a better idea."
Inuyasha was perfectly willing to watch, listen and wonder as Shimoko produced a small handkerchief and directed Kagome to spit in it, then folded it carefully. But when she pondered for a moment, found another hanky and asked Kagome to hold still so she could get a small blood sample, he stepped in. "You need to cut her—why?"
"DNA samples, oji-chan," Shimoko said blithely, taking Kagome's hand in hers and positioning it over the white material. "Modern science can compare tiny components of two people's saliva and blood to see if the individuals are related or not."
"Well, that's great. Don't cut her," Inuyasha snapped.
Shimoko popped her knuckles. "Do you have any idea of the ramifications of our theory being correct, oji-chan?"
"No, I don't, but if you can just use the spit for whatever weird ceremony you want to do, then leave her alone," he shot back. "And if you can't, then leave her alone."
Kagome was inclined to agree for once. She wasn't sure, but she did seem to recall old crime shows and science classes claiming that saliva was all they needed for those kinds of tests. Or were those the same shows that claimed you could tell what a person had for lunch by looking at his fingerprints? Those were fun to watch, but—
But Inuyasha snatching her bodily away from Shimoko's sharp nails was hard to argue with, and the demoness gave in with another series of crackling snaps from her hands and an eyebrow arch. "If you insist, oji-chan. I'll be back soon with the results, Auntie. Till then, try to behave, both of you." She was gone, though only to the hall, if Kouga's voice rising again and a faint alto reply were any indication.
"Maybe you should unseal the door now," Kagome said flippantly, trying to dislodge the butterflies in her stomach as Inuyasha showed no plans to put her down, scowling at the shoji as if Kouga would come bursting in or Shimoko might return to attack her. It wasn't as if he should be holding her like this after the way Kikyou had manipulated him into ditching her at the Tree less than an hour ago…
…Well, that was a little extreme, but it was basically true. The only thing that rankled more than the inability to tell him she forgave him for the name mix-up was the inability to tell him she was mad at him for something else that wasn't really his fault. But she was, dammit, and what was worse, she was too embarrassed to ask him what Kikyou might've said about the Tree or their lurking enemy.
Therefore, I need to tell him to put me down. Kagome snuggled against him a little as the sound of footsteps died away in the hall. If I don't tell him why I'm mad, he'll get the wrong idea and get all guilty. …Which he will anyway.
Her inward resolve did her little good otherwise, as it took Sango and Miroku turning back from the machine to ask her if she wanted a turn for Kagome to realize that Inuyasha still had an improperly decent grip on her, and the speed with which they separated did little to repair the damage done as measured in thoughtful looks and words unspoken.
In fact, words unspoken seemed to dominate the rest of that day at the castle. Kouga latched onto Kagome as soon as she left the room and paid her more persistent attention than either she or Inuyasha would have liked. She was much more pleasant to him in return than usual, though, and Inuyasha was alternately more irritated and more aggressively indifferent than ever.
The only way to escape both was either to stay in Kaede's shrine or in the bath, and Kagome found comfort in neither. The former provided them with odd, slightly disturbing news, which was then dissected in the latter.
"Why would anyone put stimulant in your herb dosage, Kagome-chan?" Sango asked for the fourth time, frowning distractedly as Shippou accidentally kicked up water. "And a safe amount, no more or less? If it wasn't an attempt to poison you…"
"I dunno. They might've gotten it into yesterday's, too. That would explain why I was so hyper." Kagome let her hand rest on the surface idly. "But why would anyone want me to get hyper? Were they hoping I would run into a wall or something?" Kaede prepared each dose of suppressant only an hour or two before it was to be taken, since the ingredients didn't keep well, and the would-be poisoner evidently didn't know about the bracelets. Yet.
"I don't know. Did she say anything at the Tree this morning that would make sense of it?"
Kagome sat up. "Sango-chan, that's the fifth time you've asked me that. Are you sure you're feeling okay?"
"I think I played the game a bit too much, too soon." Sango abruptly stood, rocking uncertainly on her heels. "Let's get out now."
"Sure." Kagome helped her friend out of the water, distracting her after they got dressed by French braiding her own hair before clipping the choker into place and slipping the gold bracelets on. When Sango admired the effect, Kagome persuaded her to sit down long enough to remember how to braid someone else's hair that way, and the minutes of female bonding helped ease the stress of knowing that not only were things not right, but Sango was too out of it to help her figure anything out.
Kagome chuckled in self-deprecation as they went to the room, where Kohaku had already had dinner for all of them laid out as Kagome had "suggested." Listen to me. "How dare Sango not be up to fixing all my problems for me?!"
No, she was worried about her friend, too. There was just something odd about her. Nothing like Kohaku's weariness, or Inuyasha's defensive guilt. She really shouldn't have pushed it. The slayer wasn't in shape the way she had been when she was fighting demons on a daily basis, and after her illness, that much exercise had probably been a bad idea. Oh, well. Live and learn. …The same way that Miroku's going to learn a lot about pain if he so much as breathes a word about rooms tonight.
Word had naturally filtered through the castle grapevine and into Miroku and then Inuyasha's ears about the suppressant, though the monk deflected Inuyasha's pointed inquiries about Kagome not taking anything from Kaede by admiring the women's matching hairstyles.
"I didn't notice the other things before, either." Shippou took one gold loop off Kagome's slender wrist and sniffed at it. He coughed, nearly jamming it back on before Inuyasha could warn him to put it back. "What the heck is that thing? It makes my nose burn!"
"It's designed to do something like that," Kagome said apologetically, mentally running back till she ran into the fact that she'd hid the silver anklets safely under the bed before they went out to see Kaede. She bounced the kit on her knee, smiling as his paws slipped on her gauzy blue skirt. "So, Shippou-chan, you want to try DDR sometime?"
Inuyasha tuned them out, uninterested in whether the brat was interested in some weird, loud game that involved hurting bystanders' ears and manipulating pictures by jumping around. His mind wouldn't stop slipping back to that morning, watching Kagome march away from the Tree. Just after she'd left, Kikyou had apologized for being so harsh with him—
"What if there was four of me? D'ya think it'd work then?" Shippou demanded, hopping on Kagome's lap and nearly sliding into her bowl.
"You can't be more than one Shippou at a time," Kagome declared with as much skepticism as she could, so that he could protest with equal vehemence. She actually figured he probably could pull off a trick like that, as kitsune were supposed to be able to. Now that'd be something to get a picture of!
She caught Inuyasha watching them and sobered. How many people can one real person be? If she was feeling conflicted, God only knew what Inuyasha was thinking, with the names and the Tree and Shimoko and suppressant business all occupying him while he waited to die.
Wait. What had Kikyou said about him doing something, maybe? And not having to marry him?
Kagome wondered.
Inuyasha looked at his food and rearranged his rice grains listlessly.
He hadn't heard a damn thing Kikyou had said. Once he stopped wondering why she'd bothered apologizing when she was right, and why she'd yelled at him in front of Kagome but waited till she was gone to say that she shouldn't have lost her temper, all he'd thought about was what Kikyou would do if she knew that he hadn't even seen Kagome's face when he woke up that morning.
It was so complicated that he still had trouble sorting out what the problem was. At the most basic, he had called the woman standing by the window "Kikyou" because his nose had recognized a faint scent. It was several hours old, and tainted with the hot stink of the dead brazier in the corner, but the emotions that that clean, feminine smell evoked were unmistakable: peace, contentment, absolute comfort in being his impure and worthless self for once, simple and unconditional happiness—in short, soft, warm, fuzzy things he'd never deigned to feel before that scent imprinted itself on his brain.
Unfortunately, his memory dealt as heavily in logic and hard facts as it did in sensations, no matter how keenly they might be felt, and his mind knew who he loved just as well as his heart did. If the girl standing at his window with her back turned to his futon was the source of that scent, and that scent made him feel that way…
"…this rate, we'll be dead before then anyway."
Why shouldn't I have called her Kikyou? It should've been her scent screwing with my head like that, not Kagome's…but if she can't leave it anymore, it shouldn't have…aaaaugh!"Sango-chan!"
His right ear flicked. He ignored it.
"Well, it's true, Kagome-chan. Are you going to accept Inuyasha?"
His ear flicked again. He started to pay attention.
"Miroku-sama. Why did you let her have sake?"
"With all respect, Kagome-sama, I'm not her keeper. Besides, she's stronger than I am."
Uh oh. Inuyasha focused on the land of the living.
"There's no point in getting depressed about it now, Sango-chan," the object of his disquiet was saying to the slayer, who did indeed look as if she'd had a few cups too many. "You never know what might happen."
"Oh, really?" Sango reached for the bottle, which was mysteriously empty. Kagome wouldn't discover the puddle of sake under her bed until the next day. "Did she tell you something?" She hiccupped. "Why the hell we have to keep going around it? You already know everything, Kagome-chan."
"I don't know what she meant when she told me not to worry about saving everyone's lives by marrying Inuyasha," Kagome mumbled tightly, half to herself.
Half to oneself means the other half is very much not to oneself, though, and even Sango snapped to attention. "What was that?"
"It was something Kikyou said this morning." Kagome deliberately used the name, pausing to see if the curse would retaliate against her. Nothing. Not even that usual heaviness, which had at least made sure she knew it was there whenever she said the name before. Huh. "She told me…" Kagome glanced at Inuyasha. He was watching her like a hawk on one of those caffeine pills everyone took nightly for months before the high school exams. "Not much. Just that she thought Inuyasha would do something and…and no one in the castle would have to die."
"And that you wouldn't get stuck marrying me?" Inuyasha's right ear slid back, while his left made an odd but cute attempt to stay upright. Otherwise, Kagome had never been in a less amusing situation. "Did she say anything else?"
"Nope. Just that." The silence in the room had nothing to do with a censoring curse, Kagome was sure. She shoveled food into her mouth, determined to be normal, act normal, before Something happened.
Her brain betrayed her, launching Windows ThinkAboutIt XP before she could hit the power button on time. Now, how does the curse end? Easy. Either he gets married, which apparently doesn't have to happen, or he dies. So…
The chopsticks dropped from her slack fingers, a glob of rice falling shortly thereafter. Cold squeezed her heart and trickled through her veins, icing her skin from the inside out.
Oh, God.
"So."
Humans, demon and half-demon alike flinched at the single matter-of-fact syllable. Shippou's nose wrinkled, and he hopped off Kagome's lap for the safety of Sango's. Inuyasha steeled himself against the half-suppressed odor of pure sorrow and prayed to whoever was listening that his dead love had not provided this beautiful, intelligent, horribly nosy wench with enough clues to figure out what he'd hoped no one would know till after he was dead.
"Inuyasha. You wouldn't by any chance have another girl hidden around here that you plan to marry, would you?"
He was trapped. One glance, a half-frightened brush of scarlet on toneless brown, and he couldn't joke or lie to her. "No."
"And you have no plans to uproot the curse at the source or anything fancy like that."
Inuyasha jerked back. "Fuck no!"
His forceful response was the eighteen-wheeler that broke the camel's back. Kagome slammed her fists into the little table hard enough to drive splinters on one rough edge into her skin. "And when were you going to tell me this?!"
"Why the hell would I tell you about it?!" Inuyasha glared at her head-on now, letting fury swallow the weakness that had been gnawing at him all day. His anger only mounted at the tears sheeting her soft eyes. Kikyou never got weepy on me, at least. Distantly ashamed, but too caught up to help himself, he lowered his head to her level. "This whole mess is my problem, and I'm just trying to fix it without hunting innocent people down or handing you a fucking leash! Did you have a better idea?!"
"Anything's better than ripping your own heart out because you've got a guilt complex!" If he thought that being on the verge of tears and the long peace since their last shouting match had pulled Kagome's teeth, he was about to learn otherwise. "If you want to make up for it…I don't know, ask Kikyou how or something! She's the one who knows everything!"
"Yeah, she damn well knows more than to argue with me when she's wrong!"
"She's never wrong! She's the one who fed me just enough info to figure out you'd rather gut yourself than just bloody ask her if there's any other way around it!"
"Guess what, bitch? There is no other way around it! And your kissing me and giving me cow eyes and trying to tell me it's gonna be just fine in the end are not going to accomplish a single gods-damned thing except to make the rest of my life fucking miserable!"
Ears rang. The dust settled. Servants clear through the third floor did not breathe.
In the room, Miroku, Sango, Shippou and Kohaku were frozen. They could have murdered each other with their chopsticks, and the two would not have noticed.
Kagome looked at Inuyasha. She let everything fall through her heart, pooling deep somewhere she'd thought drained, well below the surface, and tilted her head, letting her braid swing free. She was okay. She'd be fine for another twenty, perhaps thirty minutes. Where was Buyo? He would've loved to play with her hair right now. Cats made excellent distraction.
Inuyasha looked at Kagome. He'd done it again. He'd just wanted her to stop smelling the way his mother had when his father died. And now she had, and he should have told her she didn't make him miserable. He just didn't know how he felt, and that made him miserable. Knowing how badly he'd hurt her made him miserable. That much he knew. Maybe he should tell her? "Kagome?"
"Yes?" Light, meaningless. The lamps were on, but Kagome wasn't home.
"I…" Doitdoitdoitdoit "I didn't see you when I called you Kikyou this morning. I just smelled you. But you had the bracelets on, so it was old and I couldn't tell. You don't make me miserable. I like having you around."
Shit. He sounded like a three-year-old, and not a very bright one, either.
"You're a masochist."
Inuyasha's ears eased back up. An insult…maybe that was a good sign. "Huh?"
"You need to punish yourself for the curse. And for kissing me. And calling me Kikyou. Maybe other stuff. If you like having me around, it's because you like being told what's wrong with you. You think you deserve it."
The hair on the back of his neck was standing straight up. Her voice wasn't hers. It was…hollow. Creepy. "Kagome, snap out of it. Scream at me or cry or hit me or something. C'mon."
"Get out."
"Kagome, listen. If we miscalculate when the curse ends, I could end up killing you, and I don't want to do that. If I don't—"
"I'm not validating your feelings of assholedom just so you can go to bed and we can pretend this never happened." She scissored a glance at their friends. "Aren't you glad you got to see what our fights used to be like firsthand? We should sell tickets."
"Don't pull your head-games bullshit on me now! And don't pretend you're not upset. You're being creepy as hell."
"Tell you what, Inuyasha. Why don't you go to bed, cuddle with some I'm A Potential Murderer thoughts, and tell me all about it in the morning? I'm sure I'll be up for some more screeching by then."
Inuyasha ground his teeth. "You're not getting rid of me that easy, you—"
"You're the one who's trying to get rid of me. Emotionally, anyway." The wound opened a little wider as they stared at each other. "I'm being a bitch because you hurt me really badly and I want you to go away for a little while so I can sort through it with some dignity, but at least I have the decency to be honest about it. All you want is to die, and everyone else is a complication, never mind if someone else doesn't want you to die."
Bile suddenly rose in her throat, and Kagome buried her head in her hands. "And you feel like you have to, and in your world, you do, and no amount of whining on my part is going to change that."
She forced her head up. "Is it?" It wasn't a question.
Inuyasha had no answer. Kagome looked at him again, not in contempt, or anger, or hatred, or pity, or amusement at having seen right through him. She rose gracefully, and he watched the pearl at her throat jiggle on its minute gold ring, embedded in black velvet. Then she had his elbow, urging him to his feet as he wished again that she would take the collar off. It wasn't fair to the skin underneath to be trapped like that, and it wasn't right for Kagome to be wearing a collar. He wouldn't wish such a derogatory thing on anyone he hated, and here she was, displaying it on herself like some kind of prize.
He was through the open shoji, being turned by a small hand to face Kagome. This was his chance. He could grab her, hold her till she let loose on him again, even if he couldn't sleep with her nearby anymore or—
The shoji was closed. Miroku was looking at him with veiled…contempt? He hoped so. It was time to go to bed. Better to go now and…well, no sleep. But she wasn't going to get any sleep, either. It was only fair.
A/N: Don't kill me. I'll fix it. Eventually. I promise.
First, though, I'm going to try someone's suggestion and just upload this as is without using QuickEdit. After that, I'll start on the next chapter. Now that Ushicon and the first few weeks of class have settled, I have plenty of writing time. I promise. Let's say…a week this time. Toodles! (runs away)