Author's Note: Okay, I know I haven't posted for two weeks, and for that I apologize. Usually I post once a week, and I actually wrote this chapter last weekend, but because I couldn't get to the computer I usually post from I had to use another instead, and I also went back and did a slight rewrite of a couple parts. Anyway, the result is that this chapter is slightly longer than most, so I hope that makes up for it!
Thanks for all the reviews as always; glad people seem to be enjoying the story! And in answer to people who've asked about the diary, don't worry, I'm not done with that yet. There's more on that coming relatively soon.
Oh, and as far as the 'Heil Hitler' thing, I got conflicting responses, but this is the one that looked right to me, so this is the one I'll use from now on. But if anyone out there happens to be German and actually knows, feel free to correct me!
Alright, enough talk; here's the chappie!
Missing in ActionChapter 4: Bittersweet
"Hey
there, Dollface," Inuyasha grinned in what was supposed to be an irresistibly
boyish sort of way. The woman sitting at the bar ignored him even as he leaned
against it, right next to her.
He wouldn't give up that easily. Glancing back toward his table,
he saw his friends crowded around with their beers, watching intently, silly,
half-drunken grins on their faces. No way was he going to lose twenty bucks to
those jackasses. He'd melt the Ice Queen, as they had come to call her, this
time for sure.
"Oh come on Baby, let me buy you a drink."
She arched one elegant eyebrow as she turned to look at him
disdainfully. "No thank you," she replied in an icy tone.
His eyes narrowed in frustration and he straightened, crossing
his arms. Their gazes met as they stared each other down, neither one willing
to blink first. Eventually, she removed herself from the contest by elegantly
lifting her chin, not in defeat but in dismissal, and casting her eyes over to
the gang of air force men crowded over in the corner.
"Are those your friends?" she asked with a sort of patronizing
politeness that deepened his scowl.
"Yeah," he grunted as he tried to think of a new tactic.
Her gaze flicked back to him, with an almost conspiratorial look
in them. "Tell you what -- I'll go along with it if you give me half of the
winnings. Deal?" she offered, delighting in the dumbstruck expression that
appeared on his face.
Getting over his surprise, he returned her smirk with a nod,
"Deal. Now how about that drink?"
"Be my guest," she answered, indicating the stool next to her.
They could both hear the men in the corner snickering and
whispering things like "He did it!" as Inuyasha took a seat.
"So what's your name?" he asked.
She glanced over at him, pausing in consideration before
answering, "Kikyo."
* * *
Caught up in the moment, Inuyasha ran his hand through the
long, obsidian tresses of the woman before him, letting it come to rest lightly
on her cheek. To his surprise she made no move to pull away, as she had in the
past. She merely gazed back at him, her eyes quietly seductive, almost
encouraging, and her expression characteristically calm.
"Kikyo," he whispered, emboldened by her lack of resistance,
"You're the most beautiful woman I've ever met..."
Her lips curved upward and Inuyasha could no longer resist. He
captured her mouth with his, as he'd be aching to do for weeks, since the day
he'd met her in that bar. She accepted him willingly, allowing him to curl his
arms around her waist as she grasped his shoulders to deepen the kiss.
"Inuyasha..." she breathed, before they were swept up once again,
this time letting the kiss wipe away all remnants of rational thought.
* * *
He leaned against the wall of an old building, damaged beyond
repair in the bombings of the city that had occurred during the Battle of
Britain. The street surrounding him was quite empty since the area had little
to offer, having been virtually destroyed a few years previous. His eyes were
unfocused as he absently inhaled from his cigarette, trying to figure out how
to break the bad news to Kikyo.
They'd been together now for almost six months. Somehow it didn't
seem like it had been that long. He'd been away for short periods on raids, but
for most of that time he'd been stationed here in London in order to protect
the city from possible German air raids. Kikyo worked at the air base -- she
was a lieutenant in the British forces.
All too soon the woman in question appeared around the corner and
came up to him. It was their usual meeting spot after work, from which they
would often go out and have a drink or something. But not tonight.
"Hi," she said with a smile and leaned up to kiss him briefly.
"Hi," he replied, and she frowned in concern at his dour tone.
Only then did she notice that his fiery golden eyes were troubled and grim.
Her voice became cautious now, foreboding, "What's the matter?"
He had trouble meeting her eyes, afraid she would see his pain. But
he had to tell her immediately, because he knew he might never see her again.
"Kikyo," he began, forcing himself to look at her, "I've been transferred away
from here. I have to leave for North Africa...tonight. Apparently there's some
big new air base there and I've had my turn here, away from the fighting."
Her eyes darkened as she began to comprehend what he was saying.
"I understand," she said roughly, dropping her gaze to the pavement.
But he wasn't finished. He lifted her chin to bring her eyes to
his. "I love you," he said fiercely, "You have to know that. I...I want to
marry you when this is all over. Please...will you wait for me?"
Her eyes flooded with a happiness greater than he had ever seen
her express, lips curved in a glowing smile. "I thought you'd never ask," she
whispered, "Of course I'll wait...I'll wait for you forever. I love you,
Inuyasha."
Overcome with relief, he drew her into his arms and kissed her
deeply, sealing the promise between them. When he released her he said, "I
don't have a ring or anything..."
"That doesn't matter," she assured him, "Just make sure you come
back to me, safe and sound."
"I will. I promise you."
* * *
Inuyasha stared bitterly into space as he sat on his bed in the
apartment above the cafe, thinking about Kikyo. He didn't exactly remember how
he'd gotten home from the square, since he'd been a bit preoccupied at the
time, but somehow he'd managed to make his way back.
With a sigh he stood, ambled over to the drawer in which he'd
hidden his possessions, and fished around inside it for the particular item he
was looking for.
It was a well-worn piece of paper, folded and somewhat dirty, for
he'd been carrying it around in his pocket for months, taking it out every once
in awhile to peruse it again and again. Settling heavily back down upon the
bed, he unfolded the letter and studied it's contents with a dull expression on
his face, though he'd long since memorized them by heart.
My dearest Inuyasha,
I can't believe I'm writing this to you in a letter, but I can't
go on like this and I can't think of any other way. I've been doing a lot
of thinking these past few months. We've grown apart since we last saw
each other; you must have sensed it. I know I promised that I would wait for
you, that we would be married as soon as the war is over, but that was a
foolish promise made in the heat of the moment, and it would be a mistake for
us to be bound by it.
Inuyasha, I will always treasure our time together, but the love
that we once shared has been sundered by time and distance. I don't love you
anymore. I wonder sometimes if I ever truly did, or if I was merely blinded by
your advances toward me. Now, in your absence, I have found someone else;
someone who completes me, gives my life purpose. He has a unique vision of hope
for a dying world, a vision that I want to share. All that we ever gave each
other, you and I, was heartache. Search your feelings; you know it to be true
as well as I do.
I hope that you can be happy for me. Separation is the nature of
war, Inuyasha, and relationships such as ours are among its casualties. Do not
try to contact me; I'm leaving London with him, to aid him in his work, and I
do not plan to return.
Goodbye,
Kikyo
His gaze hardened and his jaw clenched as he felt once again the
emptiness that she had left within his soul. Now, having seen her again, that
emptiness was tinted with a fresh resentment. All this time he'd read and
reread her letter, searching for a loophole, something to tell him that she
didn't really mean it. He'd been certain that if he could just get back to her
he could make her see that she still loved him, that he would be the one to
make her happy. Thoughts of her had kept him going in times when it seemed that
all hope was lost.
But now everything was different. With his newfound knowledge of
this man she had supposedly fallen in love with, he saw in her letter what he
had not seen before. How he "gave her life purpose," with his "unique vision of
hope for a dying world," and she left London "to aid him in his work." He
couldn't believe it; he'd been cast aside because she fell in love with a Nazi.
Of all the things he might have expected from her, he never would have expected
that. The Kikyo he knew was cold at times, but good and kind. She could never
be corrupted by such vile, twisted ideas about the natural order of the world.
Yet it was true; she'd all but told him so in that letter, and
now that he'd seen her with that general, he knew it. And to think that he had
actually convinced himself that he could win her back! Maybe she was right in
the first place -- it was a foolish promise.
Still, his mind wanted to linger over the memories he had of her,
as much as it pained him to do so. He couldn't ignore the fact that he had
loved her then, and after all that had transpired, he heart longed for her
still. All he saw were her beautiful eyes gazing up at him as she promised that
they would be married when the war was over. He just couldn't see that same
girl telling him that it was over, that she had fallen for someone else. Was it
possible to love someone and hate them at the same time?
* * *
Naraku sat comfortably in an armchair next to the fire in the
living room of the villa. He took a lazy drag of his cigar as he observed the
room approvingly.
It was quaintly decorated with some rather mixed vintage, antique
furniture. The dark wood floor sported a deep scarlet Persian rug embroidered
in gold with some unidentifiable eastern-style symbols. On the walls hung
several treasured paintings, and other artistic oddities were presented
strategically about the room.
Kouga himself had never had much of an appetite for such
trinkets, but many of his superiors did. He had discovered that displaying a
few masterpieces could do wonders for his career. They were more like trophies
to him, symbols of victories over the towns and cities he had acquired them
from.
Apparently they had served their purpose yet again, because
Naraku soon commented, "You have quite a collection, Colonel."
"Indeed," added Kikyo, who sat on the couch near the General. She
too cast an appraising glance about the room, acknowledging it's artistic
historical value, though the decor was not to her personal taste. From the tone
of his voice she could tell that Naraku thought similarly.
Kouga, on the other hand, was unaware of this subtlety. "Why
thank you General," he replied with an ingratiating, yet professional smile,
"They're just a few little treasures I managed to acquire as we moved across
France. After all, it is our duty to preserve past culture for the future
generations of the Fatherland."
"Quite so," said Naraku, his eyes not betraying the slightest emotion.
"Well, to what do I owe the honor of your visit, Sir? I assure
you that my men are up to any task that you might wish to put us to."
Naraku inhaled from his cigar once more before fixing his quiet
gaze upon the wolf-demon. "You are a trusted officer in the army of the
Fatherland," he said, seeing Kouga swell with pride, "It has been decided that
you are the best man to be placed in charge of a new operation. Things are
changing, Colonel; the enemy is making plans against us, and we cannot have
that. You must uncover their spies. It is imperative that the French Resistance
be eliminated if we are to quell their latest plans."
"Would my men not be better put to use elsewhere, in combat?"
Kouga questioned, longing to be spared from the unending flood of paperwork
that came with this 'occupation' he had been charged with. Such an operation
would only increase it.
"We have many units fighting elsewhere, but that is not what is
required of you at this time. Better to be here than to be fighting on the
eastern front, I think you would find."
'Not likely,' thought Kouga, irritably. But he had learned to
suppress his aggressive tendencies, especially in the presence of superiors.
"We have kept this area under the tightest of supervision, Sir. Surely you are
aware of that. I would be very surprised if there were any Resistance members
operating-"
"Indeed you would Colonel Kouga. That is one of your faults; you
are far too arrogant at times. Redouble your efforts. I am not impressed by
words of self-gratification -- only by results. You will follow my orders and
you will stamp out the Resistance. Is that clear?" he finished with a sinister
raise of the eyebrow.
Kouga narrowed his eyes, feeling a growl itch at the back of his
throat, longing to be released. He did not care for this man one bit. But
personal opinions were inconsequential in such cases. He would follow orders;
he had no choice in the matter. "Yes, Sir."
With a slight smirk of triumph, the General stood and turned to
the woman, who had sat quietly observing the conversation. "Come, my dear
Kikyo. We will retire to our rooms for the time being and leave the Colonel to
his work."
Kikyo returned his smile and took his offered arm, smoothing her
neat black skirt and allowing him to escort her from the room.
* * *
She heard footsteps on the stairs behind her and turned from the
table she was waiting to see Inuyasha appear. He looked unusually pensive and
troubled, which concerned her. With an apology to the young couple at the
table, who incidentally seemed more interested in each other than in ordering
their dinner, she moved across the room toward him.
"Inuyasha?"
He looked up in slight surprise, not having noticed her approach,
and saw the concern in her eyes. Funny, he'd never noticed quite how much she
resembled Kikyo, especially with her hair up in a bun like that. Sure he'd
noticed similarities, but he hadn't really given it much thought since he'd
been a bit too busy fighting with her.
Eying the strange look he was giving her, she questioned him
again. "Inuyasha, are you alright?"
This snapped him out of his thoughts and he shook his head to
clear it, saying, "Um...yeah, I'm fine. Don't worry about it."
"Are you sure?"
"Of course I'm sure," he said, his voice growing irritated,
though with much less conviction than she was used to. "Just drop it, okay?"
She was not convinced in the slightest, but decided to let it go,
since he obviously didn't wish to discuss the subject any further. "Okay. Well,
I have to get back to work. Call me if you need me." She turned to leave, but
Inuyasha caught her arm, and she turned back with a curious look in her eyes.
"Let me help," he said, almost sheepishly. "Look, I'm not a
freeloader. I want to work so I can repay you two for letting me stay here." He
dropped his gaze and she smiled at his light embarrassment.
"Go on in the kitchen and talk to Sango. She'll give you
something to do."
He nodded and headed off in that direction, unable to look at
her. Her smile grew.
"Inuyasha," she said, and he paused, looking over his shoulder,
"Thanks."
"Feh," was his oh-so-intelligent reply.
* * *
Stifling a yawn, the silver-haired hanyou slipped into his
darkened room and flipped on the light. He'd stayed late downstairs to finish
cleaning up so that the girls could get some sleep -- especially Kagome, who
looked dead on her feet. Not surprising, considering she usually worked all day
and stayed out all night.
Speaking of her, Inuyasha suddenly recalled the little treasure
of sorts he'd discovered in that old dresser several days ago. He'd meant to
keep reading, but then Kagome had come in and he'd forgotten all about it. With
any luck it was still...yep, right where he'd left it.
With a wary glance at the door and a flick of his ear Inuyasha
satisfied himself that both women were sound asleep, and retrieved the diary
from the drawer, settling in to read further.
Where had he left- ah! That was it! The one about that...Hobo,
was it? The wimp she'd fallen in 'love' with at the library. He smirked in
amusement, eager to read about how the little moron had dumped her and she'd
cried her eyes out for a week until the next 'love of her life' came along.
Little girls were so predictable.
Flipping to the next entry after the one he'd left off on, he
began to read.
November 5, 1936
Dear Diary,
Ugh, I feel absolutely horrible.
He smirked again triumphantly, Ha! Told you he dumped her!
But it didn't last long.
I've got the most awful cramps because my period just-
"Whoa! Shit!" he jumped and nearly dropped the book in his
haste to turn to a less...personal entry. Okay, maybe not...
After pausing briefly to make sure there were no approaching
footsteps in response to his shout, and to skim the new entry for key words,
such as 'period' for instance, he continued.
November 20, 1936
Dear Diary,
"All is for the best in this, the best of all possible worlds."
It's from Candide, by Voltaire. Hojo's been coaching me a bit. They're really
quite fascinating, all these books he gives me to read. He promised that next
week we could read Hamlet -- in English, the way it was written! I'm not sure
I'm quite good enough with my English for Shakespeare yet, but Hojo says I'll
do fine.
He's so wonderful and sweet; I still can't believe he wants to
spend so much time with me. Last weekend he took me to see a play -- Tartuffe,
I think it was called. It was about this man who pretended to be holy in order
to con a rich man into letting him stay at his house and basically run the
place -- all in the name of God. But of course one day the man overreached
himself by trying to seduce the rich man's wife, and he was cast out. It was fun
to watch, but somehow I felt as if I didn't really understand what it was
trying to say. Same with Candide -- maybe it's just a bit over my head.
Oh well, it's fun anyway. Bye!
-- Kagome
Inuyasha found himself frowning by the time he'd finished,
and he wasn't entirely sure why. Part of it was perhaps disappointment that
there had been no tragic wailing over lost 'love,' but it was more than that.
Something had struck a chord with him in there. He'd read some of that kind of
stuff himself, in high school, though he'd be damned if he'd understood any of
it in the least; literature had never been his forte. But now he felt as if it
was trying to tell him something -- it just wasn't speaking the right language.
"Feh," he grunted dismissively and stuffed away the book, rolling
over with the intention of going to sleep.
But just before he drifted off, one line from the entry he'd just
read echoed softly in his mind, stirring him awake ever so slightly. 'He's
so wonderful and sweet...'
I wonder where he is now... Inuyasha mused absently, before
slipping fully into unconsciousness.
* * *
It had been just over two weeks since this strange hanyou had
shown up on her doorstep -- or rather, passed out on her floor due to massive
blood loss. At least that was what the calendar claimed, but she'd sort of lost
track of time lately, and it felt like she had known him longer than that.
Still, as she was constantly having to remind herself, she really
didn't know him all that well. She had no idea where he came from exactly, or
what he was doing there. And she could tell that there had been something
nagging at him for the past week or so, but every time she broached the subject
with him he abruptly closed off and refused to talk about it. What on earth
could he be hiding?
It had started on the day that General Naraku had arrived; she'd
found out about that from Kouga. That was another problem -- ever since then
Kouga seemed to have stepped up security around town. She supposed that might
be why Miroku hadn't shown up yet either. He must be having trouble getting
through to them for fear of being caught. It was just as well, since Kouga
hadn't been very forthcoming with her lately, due perhaps to the presence of
the General. That did not, however, stop him from 'inviting' her to 'dinner'
practically every other night. She could tell Inuyasha was getting
suspicious...
Closing her closet door, as if to cut off that particular train
of thought before it led to something that she wasn't ready to confront, she
turned to glance in the mirror. The cafe was closed today so she'd chosen a
pair of comfortable stone-colored slacks and a fitted, light blue sweater, the
sleeves of which were pushed up to her elbows. Normally she wore skirts, but on
her days off she preferred pants in which she could move more easily, without
having to worry about crossing her legs when she sat. Her hair hung freely for
once, though she had curled it a bit so it wouldn't look too dull. Absently, she
wondered when she had started becoming so concerned with her appearance, even
when she didn't plan to go out anywhere. But she waved the thought away when
she realized the answer brought her back to the subject she'd thought she'd
escaped just moments ago.
Much to her apprehension, she found that very 'subject' waiting
for her when she made her way downstairs. Inuyasha looked up as she appeared,
nearly dropping in surprise the rag he was using to clean the tables.
"Your hair..." he said, ever the eloquent speaker.
"What's wrong with it?" she questioned defensively.
"No, it's just...I've never...um...seen it down before." He was
having trouble getting the words out and he wasn't quite sure why. All he knew
was that the sight of this woman with her dark hair curling freely about her
face, and casual clothes that oddly seemed to show off her delicate figure even
more than usual, had struck him dumb. There was a strange sensation pooling
within him, similar to the one he'd gotten whenever she'd changed his bandages.
It wasn't bad exactly, but he also knew it wasn't safe. He noticed in
irritation that he'd been staring and quickly averted his gaze.
No more willing to confront the matter than he, she turned away
as well, trying to convince herself it was nothing; it was just her
imagination. But the tension in the room remained as the silence lengthened,
though both parties moved about finding things to do.
Then all at once it disappeared when the door flew open and Sango
rushed in looking extremely anxious.
Kagome jumped in surprise, her discomfort immediately replaced
with concern when she observed her friend's face. "Sango, what is it? Are you
alright?"
The woman didn't answer, flicking a wary glance over toward
Inuyasha. Instead she grabbed hold of Kagome's arm with her shaking hand and
dragged her back upstairs to her room, ignoring the puzzled expression on the
hanyou's face as she did so. Once they were out of sight and earshot, Sango
began to speak, and her voice was as shaky as her hands.
"He's dead, I know he's dead," she said weakly.
"Who?"
"M-miroku."
Kagome gaped at her in horror, "What? What happened? How do you
know?"
She began to pace restlessly, knotting her hands, "I-I heard some
soldiers talking about a man they'd shot trying to sneak into town. He
m-matched Miroku's description...It's these damned Nazis and their new
security!" she spat angrily.
"Sango, you need to calm down, okay. It might not have been him."
She put her arms around the trembling woman, trying to sooth her, but an
expression of concern remained on her face. "We'll find him, don't worry."
Sango nodded silently as a tear slid down her face, and felt
herself relaxing a bit. He'd be alright; they would find him and everything
would be alright.
But all the positive thinking in the world couldn't erase from
her mind the thought of his pale, lifeless body slumped on the ground, the soil
beneath him darkening with his blood.
* * *
A/N: That's all for now. Please tell me if the plot drags or anything; it's so hard to tell since it takes, like, four times as long to write as to read! Anyway, there's plenty of action on the way at some point here, so…yeah. Ooooh, I can't wait to write the part where- um, never mind. ;)
Say, and anyone who's as much of a dork as I am might have noticed that 'Search your feelings; you know it to be true,' is a line from Return of the Jedi (I did warn you…). I love to stick stuff like that in my stories! If you want, you can watch for other allusions to movies and stuff like that in the story and send them to me in reviews. If you don't, then just indulge me and ignore them…so there. *grin*
Please review (like I have to ask… "Wait, you mean author's LIKE reviews! Dear me, I never would have guessed!" …my family is very sarcastic – don't ask)