Interlude
"What the hell was that all about Kagome?"
"Why did Kouga just leave like that?"
"Lady Kagome, have you perhaps been engaging in your experiments again"
"Kagome? Kagome!"
I could hear them, really. But I just couldn't bring myself to answer. Too much information, my brain had gone into overload.
First and foremost, my experiment worked again! Kouga had responded to the wolf pheromones even better than I could have expected. Not only had he identified and pursued the potential threat of another alpha wolf in his territory, but he had been so engrossed by his natural instincts to seek out and eliminate that threat that he had nearly lost control of himself.
So my first and second questions have been answered. Youkai in humanoid form not only could detect pheromones, but they also were affected by them beyond their normal range of control. This could be dangerous information in the wrong hands. It's a good thing that I am responsible, dependable, trustworthy…but just imagine what I could get that thick-headed wolf to do…or even…Inuyasha. NO! Bad Kagome, BAD! I am not conducting these experiments for personal gain. Science for the sake of science, yup that's it.
Where was I? Right, on to point number two. I am now an alpha female. Can you imagine! I just talked a stubborn, thick-skulled wolf prince into believing that I, me, Kagome, am an alpha in my pack! Oh – my – god! Alpha, oh what I wouldn't give to be able to share that little piece of information with my social sciences professor. Give me a 'D' in leadership now! Granted, claiming to be a leader doesn't necessarily mean that you possess leadership qualities, but the wolf bought it so that's a start at least. I know I could blow a hole in this argument by saying again how thick-headed that particular wolf is, but I'm going to ignore that fact and focus on the idea that his baser instincts told him that I was indeed in a position of Alpha in my pack and as such I am to be given the due respect. A stretch you say? Perhaps, but this is my monologue so you don't really get a say, so there!
I have been left wondering though; since Kouga didn't even bother to talk with Inuyasha does that mean that he sees me as a completely dominant female? That's just too funny! Imagine me, bossing Inuyasha around and making him obey my every command…command…well lets just not think about that right now, after all it wasn't me that put that subduing necklace on him and I can't help that the average person says the word sit at least ten times a day.
Anyways, on to point number three. I think that I am officially no longer Kouga's woman. Even though I never agreed to be such in the first place, it is still something worth mentioning. The way he looked at me before he left, like he was looking at a complete stranger, it gave me the chills. I hope that my quest for knowledge hasn't caused a rift to form in our friendship. I like Kouga; I really do; just not in that way you know? I had to do something to get him away from the idea that I am…or was…his woman and that all he needed to do was hand Naraku's head to me on a platter and I would all of a sudden say 'oh Kouga you're the strongest, bravest, most handsomest youkai I have ever met; please take me away with you so that we can have mad monkey sex and produce multiple heirs', right, not very bloody likely.
Now on to the most pressing matter. Now that I know that youkai, even those powerful enough to take humanoid forms, are susceptible to the natural lure of pheromones, where do I go from here? So far I have only touched on the most basic of drives. I got a cat high and possibly hooked on catnip (yes Kirara I have noticed that you have been unusually interested in my backpack recently and that you wander into the woods for extended periods of time only to come back with your fur slightly tinged the color of leafy green), and I have conned a wolf into protecting his territory from a potential threat; but I have yet to actually prove that pheromones can actually influence behavior to the point of manipulation.
But if I want to manipulate a youkai I can't do the experiment on my friends. There would always be the potential of bias with them because they may inadvertently act the way I want them to without ever realizing it. No, if I want to prove that pheromones can indeed affect the behavior of youkai, I must use an unwilling and non-friendly subject. But who? Who should be the unfortunate victim…ahem…subject (I just have to stop doing that) of my pheromonal manipulation?
Do I even need to ask? Who else would serve as a better subject than the king of manipulation himself: Naraku. Certainly any participation on his behalf would be entirely unwilling, and there is no way that he would comply with my wishes simply because he wanted to be friendly, so I think I would be pretty safe in that department. The problem is I don't know if I could find any pheromone strong enough to work on him that wouldn't involve me being up close and personal with the vile youkai. More than that, Naraku isn't even a full demon. There might be unexpected effects on the hanyou physiology that I haven't considered yet. I'll have to remedy that oversight in the near future (oh the possibilities).
If not Naraku, then perhaps I could make use some of his minions. I think that would be my best bet. After all the earth wasn't built in a day, so I can't expect my newfound knowledge of pheromones to suddenly hand my enemy over to me now can I? Lets see…minions…minions…oh I've got it! The Saimyoushou; those poisonous insect thingies that are always buzzing around Naraku and preventing Miroku from using his wind tunnel; they would be perfect. If I could get them to follow some sort of bee-related pheromone instead of flying directly into the cursed void in Miroku's hand, then I will have succeeded in proving that youkai can be induced to act in response to pheromones to the point of manipulation.
Well then, now that my thoughts are in order, I had better get back to the group and their questions. I've got a lot of things to do. Planning a new experiment, writing down my observations from my last experiment, cleaning up the…ewww. First things first,
"I think I'll go wash my hands."
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Sorry that this chapter was so short, but it isn't really an experiment, so I thought it best to give it its own chapter. Tune in next time for Experiment #3: Busy Little Bees.
So far my little experiment is working wonderfully. In only one day I got three reviews (yippee) and I couldn't be happier. A few more additions to my stats board and I might just have to give myself a medal. (Ok perhaps I'm over exaggerating a little bit, but I really like reviews.)
A/N: not like the rest of this section hasn't been an author's note, but this one is more serious. In science it is unethical to conduct experiments on unwilling and unknowing participants. Even when using animal subjects, scientist must go through several boards and committees to gain ethical clearance to continue in their studies. Human subjects are even more complicated, and most often require express written consent by an informed participant for the scientist to use them in their study. It is a very complex procedure, but thankfully, this is fiction, and a good 450 or so years before these particular guidelines will be in place, so Kagome doesn't have to worry about it.
Anyways, that's all for now; until next time
ShadowsWeaver1
Disclaimer: I do not own Inuyasha or any of the characters I am about to weave into my web of chaos. Any and all definitions have been taken directly from Wikipedia the online encyclopedia because I am far too lazy to do any further research to support my Inuyasha obsession.
