Here if the first chapter of my latest story, enjoy.
Chapter 1
"Never Drive faster than you Guardian Angel can Fly."
-Car Bumper Sticker
It was a wonderful, cheerful day, June 5th, 2005...if you call being suffocated by car fumes and greasy cheeseburgers wonderful.
"Will racers please come to the starting line? I repeat, will all racers please come to the starting line." The annoying sneering voice of the announcer rang through the concession stands causing the crowd to scramble back to their seats, holding fresh hot dogs with globs of mustard and relish.
"Did you hear that Inuyasha?" asked Miroku Hitomi. Hitomi was a tall man in his late thirties with jet-black hair tied in a rattail. He had three golden earrings on one year, and a lone earring on the other. The piercings were the results of a pack of beer, an younger version of himself and a dare.
He pulled his baseball hat that read "Car 59" backwards and wiped away a gasoline smudge on his cheek, only causing it to get worse. His rattail was fluttering in the wind, his dark mysterious eyes gleaming with pride, his lips set in a confident grin, his mind focused on the prize: one million dollars, and a gleaming gold trophy...
"Miroku! Snap out of it, I'm gonna be late!"
"What? Oh, yeah. Okay Inuyasha, just remember if anyone bumps you, restrain yourself -- its only a little competition. Stay on the inside for as long as you can, and then on the third pass go outside to gain altitude and close in to overtake the other cars for the finish -- got that?"
"Keh, whatever." The 23-year-old hanyou pulled his gloves on and tied back his wild hair.
"Good Luck," called out Miroku.
"I don't need luck!" was the answer.
Miroku gave an exasperated sigh, youth these days. "I don't know how I managed to live this year."
His mind went back to the day, that fateful day, when this had all begun.
(December 31st, 2002/January 1st, 2003 – "The Sunset Diner")
"One large espresso and a double-glazed donut," called the waitress.
A dark-haired man sitting on a tall, fifties-style chair had his hands propped on the counter.
"That'll be me, and here's a tip for you honey." The stranger gave a small smile while handing the surprised waitress five dollars.
It was an hour until the New Year and he had just come from the hospital, where his wife had given
birth to their second child.
He took a sip of the warm, inviting coffee, as the hot steam poured out of the cup, random strands of steam disappearing into the wind. The day was bitter and cold; it was quite ironic that his second child was born on the day he would come to dread. He was about to take a bite out of the fattening donut when a voice startled him.
There was the sound of a door opening, and the ferocious attacks of the storm closed in after the newly-arrived customer.
"Miroku Hitomi! I am looking for Miroku Hitomi -- I need to talk to him, now!"
"I didn't do it -- I promise it was a mistake. How was I supposed to know the pony ride would break under a adult's weight...wait a minute you're not a cop!"
"Sure as hell I'm not -- my name's Inuyasha Yazumi. You're Miroku Hitomi, right?"
"What if I am?" the man questioned warily, "What business do you have with me?"
"You won the international boxcar derby in '91, right?"
"Oh, so you are a reporter, are you. Well, sorry, but I gave up that business a while back."
The coffee was turning cold as he took another cool sip. He didn't know who the stranger was, but the name Yazumi did ring a bell. Still, he had to be careful, he didn't need another reporter writing an false article about the lecherous Miroku Hitomi. Last time, Sango nearly beat him to death when the newspapers sported a picture of him groping another woman's behind. He swore he was only checking for injuries, but who'd believe him?
The stranger smirked, stepping into a broken light, so Miroku could see him better. What he saw puzzled him: long white tresses, tangled from the harsh winds, wound down the person's back, bright amber eyes shining at him from beneath the silvery bangs, and what looked like two dog ears were planted on his head.
He wore a long red over coat with black trousers, the ends of which were muddy and wet, as if he had walked the whole way here.
"Like I said, I am Inuyasha Yazumi, son of Inutashio Yazumi, 5 time winner of the International Boxcar Derby -- 1952 to 1957. I want to learn to race, and I'm looking for a coach." Inuyasha smirked, two canine teeth glittering at Miroku.
Miroku understood what he wanted, "And what If I don't accept?" replied Miroku coolly.
"Then its your loss. I mean, I could win the international cup -- my father did -- and besides, the word has it that you're looking for a trainee. You wanted to stand in the spotlight ever since having a family pulled you down. And otherwise you would miss out on forty grand...per month."
"Hmm...word has it pretty good. Make it fifty, and maybe I'll consider it."
"I'll make it forty-five even -- take it or leave it."
He considered this momentarily before giving an approving nod. "You got yourself a coach. So...when do we begin, Mr. Yazumi?"
"Your place, tomorrow, 9:00 o clock sharp. I know where you live, and dont call me Mr. Yazumi." And with that, Inuyasha turned around and walked out the door, his white hair trailing behind him, the sound of the wind following him and dying down when the door closed.
"Wait a second, my place! Sango's gonna kill me!"
(present)
Miroku gave a small chuckle. He remembered that day as pure as gold. How could he forget? It was the day his son had been born, the day he'd gotten a job, and the day Sango had almost given him a concussion.
He turned around to see Inuyasha giving him the thumbs-up from his car. He loved that car; Inuyasha polished that car every day like it was his life...and frankly, Miroku thought that car was his life.
"Okay racers, get ready...set...and we're off!" the announcer yelled, sending the race cars off revving and screeching.
Worried, Miroku looked at the racetrack. He watched as a blue car closed in on Inuyasha, the car giving him more than a rub and nearly causing Inuyasha to crash!
"Shit" muttered Inuyasha. The blue car speeded up beside Inuyasha.
"Oh hell no, I'm not easy to beat." Inuyasha mumbled.
He pushed on the gas pedal and sent his car firing ahead. The adrenaline was building up inside him, his ears deaf to the roaring crowd. He was one with the car, and he wasn't going to let some jackassed driver beat him up.
Two years of training and screw-ups weren't going to go to waste for him -- oh no, he was going to make it the semi-finals, whether the other driver liked it or not.
It was the third lap, and he drove to the outside. One car had already crashed into the sidelines, and two cars turned over.
He muttered, "Idiots."
He stepped on the gas pedal, checking to make sure no one closing in on him. He was gaining more speed with each passing minute. He was in third place; he only needed to overcome two more cars and he would make it.
The fourth lap passed, then the fifth, and then the last lap of the day came. Seeing Miroku's signal he closed in on the speeding cars, intimidating them to fall back.
He nudged several cars, causing them to lose balance, and gained on the second car rubbing its bumper, just to make the driver mad. It worked like a charm, the driver starting to get pissed and lost concentration until his car crashed into the sidelines. Now it was only Inuyasha and the car in front of him -- the blue car that had been in his way.
"Get ready to taste deafeat!" the hanyou yelled. He pushed down harder on the gas pedal and the car roared out.
Meanwhile Miroku was growing more anxious with each passing second. "What is that imbecile doing! If he goes any faster he's gonna lose control!"
Miroku ground his teeth in frustration. "Yazumi, don't you dare lose it! I spent the past two years wasting my ass on you!"
Into his headset Miroku shouted, "Yazumi, slow down – you're gonna get into an accident! Inuyasha are you listening to me! Inuyasha!"
The hanyou wasn't to listening to Miroku. Oh no, it was fifteen seconds until the lap was over, and he was only a foot away from passing the car.
"Watch out, cause the Hanyou's coming!" Amber eyes blazed with confidence and determination.
Ten seconds were left, and he was only centimeters away.
Nine seconds...only a little closer...
Six seconds...just a little more...
"Five...Four...Three...Two...One!" screamed the crowd.
The two cars crossed the finish line, the checkered flag waving frantically in the air, the crowd roaring with confusion and opinions; no one knew who had won.
After five minutes of fighting and chaos the announcer finally announced, "After examining the photos and video the judges have determined that CAR 59 TAKES IT! INUYASHA YAZUMI ADVANCES TO THE SEMI-FINALS!"
"Yes!" Inuyasha screamed in victory as he drove over to his spot. A relieved Miroku ran to the vehicle in joy. The two men cried in each other's arm shamelessly, photographers and cameras closing in for a brief statement.
(2 days later)
Inuyasha was sipping on his morning coffee and looking at the newspaper
headlines.
Crowd's Favorite Rookie, "The Hanyou" Manages To Make It To the Semi-Finals!
The hanyou looked at the picture of him triumphantly shaking his fist into the air, giving off a small smirk.
"Not bad, little brother," came an unexpected voice from not far off.
"Sesshomaru – didn't think you'd be at home today!"
"I came as soon as I heard the news," the older demon replied. "Father would've been proud."
"Keh, whatever, the race was a breeze anyways."
"Don't get too confident, little brother or you might find yourself with an early death."
Inuyasha lived with his brother in a fairly large house with four rooms and a pool in the backyard. It wasn't exactly a mansion, but it was nicer than other houses.
Sesshomaru was a stable businessman with a steady girlfriend, and doing pretty well for a man of twenty-seven. Inuyasha, on the other hand, was twenty-four and single. Ever since their father had died, when Inuyasha was seven, he'd wanted to continue the family name, so he'd started visiting racing arenas and research racers on the internet.
Sesshomaru was Inuyasha's half-brother, but it didn't matter because brothers were brothers. Sesshomaru had taken Inuyasha in when he couldn't afford his apartment rent, after he lost his job at the construction company.
The two lived together in Sesshomaru's house, taking turns cooking. When Inuyasha had started racing he also gained publicity, which earned him a job as a model. It wasn't exactly the best thing for him, always having to smile and listen to the idiotic photographers. Still, he was able to pay half the mortgage payment each month and buy the groceries every other week. He also kept the house clean when Sesshomaru was away on business. Recently Sesshomaru had left for Singapore, but now he had returned.
"If I get to the finals and win, I could win one million dollars. Screw the trophy -- the money is what I care about. Then I could finally repay you for the forty grand every month, and maybe even find out where my mother is..."
Sesshomaru's mother had passed away from cancer, but Inuyasha's mother had gone missing when he was ten, on the anniversary of his father's death. He didnt know whether she committed suicide or just simply disappeared, because the police couldn't find anything and she left no evidence of
where she was going.
Inuyasha just hoped the media would get his mother's attention and she'd come back home.
"All right, little brother, itt's your turn to cook."
"What! I cooked last time," the hanyou protested.
"You poured water into ramen cups." Sesshomaru stated evenly.
"Okay, you got me, I'll find something."
Inuyasha and Sesshomaru cleared the dishes from the microwave lunches. "Inuyasha, I am going to go out to get groceries."
A knowing smile slid on the hanyou's face. "Say Hi to Kagura for me" he called back.
Sesshomaru, trying to ignore what his brother had said, left the house in a hurry.
"Well, time to have a little beer and spend time with a man's best friend: Television."
Inuyasha was searching the fridge for the aforementioned beer when the telephone began to ring. Choosing to ignore it, he popped the can open and turned to the sports channel.
But the telephone wouldn't give up -- it kept ringing, making someone a little irritated.
"Cursed telephone," an ill-tempered voice muttered as he stood up from the comfort of the couch.
"Hello!" he snapped.
"Geez, Inuyasha, it's me, Miroku!"
"I know."
"Oh, anyways your probably wondering why I am calling you right now, when the semi's are in a month."
"Yeah, I am."
"Heh heh...well you see, it seems I can't be your coach anymore."
"What! Inuyasha sputtered. "
"No, no, no, I don't mean permanently," the man corrected quickly, "I just can't be with you twenty-four seven. I mean, I'll come to a couple of practices and be there on the semi-day, but I can't be at your beck and call anymore. My wife is getting pissed cause I leave her with all the chores and the kids and-"A female voice rang through the phone: You bet your ass I'm pissed!"... "I think you got the point Inuyasha."
"Well, what the hell do you want me to do!" "Don't worry! I've got it covered; her name is Kagome Higurashi and she is a very close friend of Sango's and mine. I'm sure you've heard of her father -- he was the 4 time champion before your dad came into the game. You know, Kensuke Higurashi? Anyway, she already agreed to coach you, so you don't have to worry."
"You got me a chick! Miroku, is this one of your crazy schemes to get me hooked up...again! Don't you remember what happened when you set me up with Kikyo?"
"I swear, how was I supposed to know! Everyone has a few secrets of their own. It wasn't my fault! Come on, Inuyasha; what do you have to lose?"
"Fine, but if I lose the cup I'm blaming it on your sorry ass," the hanyou groused reluctantly.
"Good -- meet me tomorrow at twelve at your favorite diner. We'll have lunch so you two can get to know each other."
"Keh, whatever."
The dial tone reached Miroku's ears and he smiled triumphantly.
"Did it work?" asked Sango.
"Yep!"
"Good; I'm sure Kagome is perfect for Inuyasha."
"Excuse me! Hello, when did I agree! My answer was no!" yelled a very angry Kagome.
The vibrant twenty-three year-old woman was indeed beautiful. Her black hair was tied up in high ponytail with a New York Yankee's hat, her shining brown eyes stormed with rage. The tight jeans complimented her petite figure nicely and turtle neck sweater that hugged each curve. A vein was popping on Kagome's forehead.
"Oh come on Kag, please. Besides, I saw Inuyasha – he's pretty cute. You haven't been on a date since College! Besides, dont you want to get back at the competition producers for unaccepting you because you were a woman?" Sango asked slyly. She caressed her little boy that was sleeping in her arms. Her other son was playing video games with her younger brother, Kohaku.
"Yeah! How dare those bastards refuse me! I thought this century changed for the better!" Sango smiled, Kagome was easily persuaded when you hit a nerve. "So, how about it Kagome. It would be good for the both of you. I am not asking you to go out with him, the main thing is, he really needs a new coach." Miroku pleaded. Kagome sighed in defeat, "All right. I will do this for you Miroku."
"Thank You Kagome. Meet us at the Sunset Diner tomorrow at twelve."
"Okay. -- bye Kane." Kagome tickled the little baby and ruffled Hiroshi's hair. She acknowledged a greeting with Kohaku and walked out the door.
"Well, I guess when life hands you lemons you make lemon meringue pie." She pulled on her dark sunglasses and walked to her car.
On the back there was a bumper sticker that read: "Never drive faster than your Guardian Angel can fly."