AN: I've been meaning to get this up sooner, but I've been having internet difficulties the last couple days that resulted in my having to wipe my hard drive. I have a new story out! Go read it! I'm really excited about this one! It's called A Whore's Life. A summary of the story can be found in the AN at the bottom of this chapter.

Disclaimer: I don't own Inu Yasha, the characters, etc. That honor goes to Rumiko Takahashi. I do, however, own this story and the pair of socks I'm wearing. So no stealing!

Warning: Coarse language alert.

Note: This chapter backtracks to the morning Kagome ran away from the dojo and then jumps forward to the night she left.

Sex and Drugs

Chapter 13: Deadly Sins: Envy and Lust

The cab ride back home was a long one and Kikyou continuously found herself shifting from side to side whenever a butt cheek went numb. Pins and needles would torment her backside once the blood rushed back to the area. She winced in discomfort.

Without much interest, but with a lack of anything better to do, Kikyou looked out the window and into the forest. The scenery hadn't changed much since she left almost an hour ago but the wind had picked up and the sun had begun to hide behind some clouds. It reminded her of the day her father had ordered her to track down and bring back her sister.

"Kagome…" Kikyou mumbled in contempt. Truth be told, Kikyou had never cared for her younger sister. She had convinced herself long ago that this was because Kagome was sick in the head and required "special treatment", treatment that required so much time and effort that her parents found little time for her. But now, because of recent circumstances… Kikyou was no longer sure.

Kikyou's usually self-possessed and stoic face turned down in a frown, her lips curving downward ever so slightly, her brows knitting together just a fraction of an inch.

The cab hit a large pothole in the road and Kikyou's thoughts were disrupted as she was bumped into the air, the top of her head hitting the roof of the car.

"Is it too difficult to drive a little more smoothly? I chipped a nail because of your inability to drive properly!" She hissed at the driver.

"Sorry, miss. Nothing I can do 'bout these roads…filled with potholes they are." He replied automatically, grinning from ear to ear as he watched his rude passenger straighten herself.

Kikyou huffed in irritation and straightened out her black traveling slacks, then gave the incompetent cab driver one last good glare before looking out the grimy window at the mundane scenery. Her thoughts traveled right back to her sister and the family's predicament. She loathed being caught in the middle of whatever was going on, but couldn't help but wonder.

Kagome is sick. She doesn't seem to understand the gravity of the situation at hand. Father has done nothing but be understanding and helpful and she has the nerve to shun our family aside, run away, and make crude accusations against him! I must make her see reason! She needs to see a psychiatrist. Her delusions will only worsen!

But she couldn't help but worry her lip a little, a little doubt dangling precariously in the back of her mind, daring her to see reason. But Kikyou's dislike for her younger sibling kept rearing its ugly head and refused to listen to reason. It was only out of total respect for her father that Kikyou agreed to find Kagome. With Kikyou's influence and money tracking down a rogue sibling was simple as pie.

The similarities between Mother and Kagome are irrefutable, both physically and mentally. Kikyou frowned at the unwanted remembrance of her mother and the day she died. Visuals of the argument from that night ensnared her and she remembered just exactly why she hated Kagome so much. It wasn't because she was mentally ill. No, it was because of their mother. Their mother, the whore. Giving in, Kikyou closed her eyes and remembered precisely what happened, her twenty-four year old mind trapped once again in a thirteen year old body.

The argument was intense. They had been screaming at one another for over twenty minutes and Kikyou wondered when it would end. She was currently hiding in the upstairs closet trying to listen in on the latest argument, the worst one in a series of arguments her parents had been having these last two weeks. She chewed the inside of her cheek until it bled and picked at a spot on her acne prone chin. She was thirteen years old, the awkward stage where her hair stuck up funny and her once flawless skin prone to acne. She was a woman now, Kikyou thought proudly. She had started her period for the first time this week. Her mother promised to take her shopping for new clothes the next day as a celebration.

The volume of the arguing increased and Kikyou shut her eyes tightly, wincing at the harsh words her parents were throwing at each other.

"You're nothing but a god damned whore! You've been out fucking this fucker for weeks while I slave away at work providing for your whoring ass!" Her father spat. "Go ahead, defend yourself! Give your damn excuses like you usually do!"

"Please! You must understand that our relationship was destroyed long ago! You've ignored me since Kagome's birth, choosing to lust over your secretary rather than me!"

"Well no shit! You became fat, ugly, lazy, and always complained of being too fucking tired! So what if I thought of my secretary! So what if I brought home a few pornos! I never fucking violated our marriage! You went after the fucking mailman!"

"He's the milkman! And of course I went after him! He doesn't care if I'm a little overweight! He treats me in a way that you never could! He makes me feel like a woman! He doesn't treat me like the scum on the bottom of his shoe! He doesn't verbally torment me and constantly remind me I'm fat or unworthy of being loved. You treat me more like a whore!"

"Stupid, bitch! You had a fucking affair! AN AFFAIR!" He screamed.

The rest of the argument went on in the background as Kikyou thought about what her father had said. Her mother was having an affair…with the milkman? Was this some kind of joke? Disbelief washed over her. Her mother wouldn't do that! Her mother was honest and devoted to her father! Kikyou shook her head in denial. But what came next stabbed at her heart like a thousand knives.

"You've done nothing but betray me since the day we were married! And our children! You've betrayed our children!" He accused.

"I have stayed truthful to you up till now! Don't you dare spread your lies!"

"LIES! What fucking lies? I've got photographic evidence of you fucking some bastard in our bed a year after we were married! I didn't say anything about it because you broke it off!"

Her mother… her honored mother was truly betraying her father. She was betraying her family! She was betraying her! Kikyou! Her own daughter! How could she! Kikyou began to shake, tears of anger welled up in her eyes and she barely flinched when she heard a resounding slap from within the kitchen. Kikyou had no doubt her father had hit her mother. But Kikyou didn't care. In her eyes, her mother deserved everything she received and more.

Downstairs Kikyou heard her mother whimper, the only sound cutting the eerie silence and tension post slap. With cries of indignation her mother pounded from the kitchen vowing to leave at once and file for a divorce. She was pursued by Kikyou's father, still screaming and yelling and threatening bodily harm if she dared walk out on their family and disgrace them all. Kikyou's mother began pounding up the steps, still yelling obscenities at her husband.

But the pounding fell on deaf ears. Kikyou's face hardened in resolve and she emerged from her hiding place, determined to face her mother and let her know just how much she hated her, how much she deserved the slap she received from her father, and how much she deserved to burn in the deepest level of hell. But she never got the chance.

When Kikyou emerged from the closet her mother had reached the top of the steps, her father hot on her heels. Kikyou watched as her father grabbed her mother's arm at the top of the steps and forced her to look at him. She struggled violently in a rage Kikyou didn't know she had possessed. Kikyou just stood there and continued to watch, her own rage blinding her, and her father yelled at her one last time before moving his free arm in a backward motion.

His arm swung forward as if in slow motion and struck her mother so hard across the face that she lost her balance and began to fall backward, his grip on her arm the only thing keeping her from falling down the flight of stairs.

In that instant Kikyou saw the fear in her mother's eyes as her mother made eye contact. Kikyou kept her face stoic, but her eyes revealed the burning anger that churned within. At that same instant Kikyou looked to her father who glared at his wife without remorse. His teeth clenched and he gave his wife a little shove before releasing his hold on her upper arm.

Kikyou made no move to stop the deadly descent. Instead, she stood as a spectator, watching her mother roll and tumble down the long wooden staircase and then fall in a heap at the bottom.

"MAMA!" Kikyou's eyes shot to the seven year old girl who was running toward her mother. Kikyou fought the urge to charge down the stairs, pull her sister away from their hateful mother and tell her that their mother deserved it. But she held back. Instead she once more watched with a coolness she didn't think she had.

She saw Kagome shake their mother in an attempt to wake her and when she rolled her mother on her back she clenched her fists at her side and seethed in anger. Seeing her sister's face so close to their now dead mother… how could she not have seen how closely they resembled? Their noses, the same… their mouths, the same full pink lips forever curved upward in a smile even when sad… the shape of their eyes… the high cheekbones… the same color hair…. They looked identical and could have been twins if years did not separate their ages.

Kagome was sobbing and Kikyou looked directly into her sister's wet eyes and vowed to hate her. She would be the living reminder of their mother's betrayal. And Kikyou was convinced that Kagome would end up being just like their mother. Kikyou stared down at Kagome, not hearing –or caring– that her father was now on the phone with the police, reporting an "accident". She just stared at Kagome, hatred and anger still blinding her.

Kikyou sighed and glanced out of the dingy cab window once more, her memories still plaguing her very existence. Rationally, she knew it was stupid to hate someone because they resembled someone else. But Kikyou found that that hatred wouldn't go away. And she knew it wasn't just because Kagome resembled their mother. That was only the seed of her resentment. Why she truly hated Kagome was because of what happened after their mother's death. She blamed it all on Kagome.

Time seemed to come to a complete standstill after their mother's funeral. There was a brief investigation into the death of Mrs. Higurashi because of the domestic dispute prior to the accident. Kikyou, being the only witness to the true events leading up to her mother's death, stuck with her father's version of what happened: Mr. and Mrs. Higurashi were arguing about financial issues but decided to turn in for the night without resolving the problem at hand. At the top of the stairs Mrs. Higurashi slipped on the recently polished wood and fell, breaking her neck in the process. Kikyou said nothing about what really happened that night.

After the investigation and the funeral Kikyou's father took a strong liking to Vodka and Bacardi. He lavished Kikyou with personal possessions, letting her run wild and do as she pleased, but ignored her otherwise. For the years following her mother's death Kikyou vied for her father's attentions but he seemed fixated on Kagome.

Envious of Kagome Kikyou went to the extremes to capture her beloved father's attention. But in the end he would hand her a wad of money and tell her to take a bus to the nearest shopping district, all the while eyeing Kagome and repeating over and over how much she resembled his dearly-loved, dearly-departed wife. He was greedy and always wanted Kagome by his side. He was protective and possessive of her, never allowing her to leave the house except for school. And he ignored Kikyou.

She lived her teenage years unloved and unwanted, yet desired by the young men that surrounded her. She took advantage of her father by taking thousands of yen and buying expensive clothing and perfume. She grew up to be a beautiful woman and whenever she took a man to bed she let him know who was boss. Soon, she was recruited by a modeling agency for her flawless skin and lithe body, and soon became the envy of many women across Japan.

Yet she never received the attention she wanted and deserved from the one person that should have been giving it to her all along. And it was all Kagome's fault. Kikyou would forever despise her sister for it.

Brakes squeaked and the cab came to a halt outside the steps to the shrine. Kikyou stepped out of the car, handed the cab driver a few bills (while neglecting to give a tip), and unloaded her baggage from the trunk.

When the cab driver looked at her expectantly she smiled coldly and replied, "Your tip is going towards my next manicure considering it was your terrible driving that chipped my nail."

The cab driver frowned, called her a "greedy bitch" and drove off leaving her at the bottom of the steps. Kikyou glanced at her authentic German automatic skeleton watch and noticed it was a little after lunch time while wondering who was going to bring her bags up to the shrine for her. She pulled out her cell phone and dialed next door, commanding her flea size of a neighbor (Myoga, was it?) to get her bags.

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"Damn it all to hell! Where the fuck is that wench?" Inuyasha cursed as he nearly flew down the steps of yet another shrine, the sixth one that night.

The search for her was going badly, very badly. It was nearing two a.m. and there was no sign of his angel. She, and her shrine, seemed to have disappeared from the face of the earth. Not even the priests and priestesses of the shrines he visited had heard of a Kagome Higurashi living in a shrine in the general area.

When Inuyasha landed at the bottom of the steps he growled and looked up into the dark sky. The moon was but a sliver in the sky. Tomorrow was the new moon. He growled again, frantic and anxious to find her before tomorrow evening. He would be of little help bashing in her father's head while he was human.

He took off in the direction of the next shrine, bounding from rooftop to rooftop, stopping to sniff the air occasionally for even just the tiniest whiff of her alluring scent. He hadn't realized just how much he depended on her scent.

Inuyasha stopped suddenly, spotting a payphone on the side of a brick building across the street. He fumbled through his pockets and found just enough change for one call. In one swift jump Inuyasha landed gracefully in front of the payphone and carefully inserted a couple of coins. His claws made it difficult, however, and he growled angrily when he dropped the same coin for a third time. He dialed the number and impatiently waited for the lecher to answer.

"Hello, Miroku speaking."

"Oi! Did you find her?"

There was a worried sigh on the other line and a deflated reply, "No. Not yet. Obviously you haven't either. We've only been to two shrines since we started, both of which the priest running the place threatened to call the police."

"Keh! That's nothing! One of the shrines I've been to had a protective barrier against youkai and I got zapped! I landed on my ass twenty feet away!"

"I apologize for your misfortune, Inuyasha. Sango and I found a suitable hotel. We should retire and rest until the sun rises, lest a beautiful shrine maiden forces us to do her bidding until we agree to leave. Uh, Sango, I didn't mean it! OUCH!" There was a thud on the other line and soon Inuyasha found himself talking with Sango.

"As much as we want to find Kagome, Inuyasha, it is in all of our best interests to call it a night and resume after we've all had some rest. It's been a long day."

"No effing way, Sango! Kagome is still out there! I won't allow myself to sleep knowing that fucking asshole of a father of hers is doing who knows what to her!" Inuyasha replied.

There was a pause on the other line for a moment. "You really do love her, don't you Inuyasha?" Sango said quietly, just in case Miroku gained consciousness at that precise moment.

Inuyasha's jaw went slack and his eyes grew wide. He struggled for the right words and sputtered them when he did, "N-No way! I don't l-love her! Sh-she's just a f-friend! A-and shouldn't have to g-go through this shit! I don't l-love her!"

"Inuyasha, there's a certain way you look at her that you do no one else. Even Miroku has said that you've been acting weird… that you haven't even looked or thought about another woman since she came to live with you two!"

"Get OVER it, Sango! I don't l-love her! Now are we done here! I want to go to one last shrine!" Inuyasha hurriedly changed the subject, desperate to escape the very thoughts that had been plaguing his own mind.

"Yes," she breathed out, "We're staying at the Tama Inn on Sunset Tower Street. We'll see you there. If you find her at that last shrine, call us there, okay?"

"Yeah, whatever." Without saying goodbye he hung up the phone and took off into the night, desperate to get to that last shrine, desperately trying to flee his own mind and what Sango had said. I can't love her… she's too good for me and deserves better. I can't. I won't allow myself to love her.

A few minutes later Inuyasha stood at the bottom of a relatively short set of steps leading to the shrine gate panting slightly. The steps were broken in places and chunks of concrete lay next to where they had been chipped off. The gate, Inuyasha noted, was equally dilapidated and was in serious need of a few coats of paint.

In two jumps Inuyasha had ascended the fifty some odd steps and jogged through the gate, wondering briefly if the rotted wood would collapse on him. Kagome's scent was no where, he discovered after sniffing around a few minutes. But just to be sure he made his way to the front door of the shrine house.

He pressed the doorbell twice, waiting for someone to open it. He would know for sure then if she was truly there.

Upon the fourth ring of the doorbell Inuyasha grinned triumphantly as lights turned on and he heard an old man waddle down the steps. The old man fumbled with the lock and the door creaked open.

The old man was truly old. He was squat, no taller than Inuyasha's shoulder and had a slightly unkempt beard. The old man raised his head to look at his unwelcome guest. Inuyasha was about to say something when the old man jumped back, squeaked in surprise, and pointed at Inuyasha's head yelling "YOUKAI!"

Inuyasha took a step back in alarm and regarded the old man as being insane.

"YOUKAI!" The old man yelled again and he jumped forward with surprising energy, digging his hand into his robe and pulling out a few pieces of paper and flinging them onto Inuyasha's face. "EVIL BEGONE!" The old man yelled and once more flung paper ofuda onto Inuyasha's being. He said a quick, frantic prayer and slammed the door in Inuyasha's face.

Inuyasha fell and landed hard on his backside in bewilderment. "What the fuck was that about!" He said incredulously and pulled the numerous paper ofuda off of his face, his eye twitching in irritation.

Convinced Kagome didn't live at that shrine Inuyasha walked off the property and toward the Tama Inn. Perhaps it was best he turn in for the night. He didn't know how many more purity barriers and crazed old men he could take. Inuyasha frowned, feeling completely guilty for not continuing his search. He felt as if he was letting her down somehow. He had vowed to protect her, to be by her side, and yet he wasn't. Instead, he felt like he was abandoning her for a slightly lumpy bed at a cheap hotel.

There was a time where a cheap hotel meant something different. He used to take women to cheap hotels after picking them up at bars or night clubs. He would enjoy being with her for the night, but when morning came he would always slip out. Back then it was just sex. Back then it was uncomplicated and he could have relationships without strings. He used to enjoy going to cheap hotels. But now those cheap hotels felt just like they sounded: cheap. He no longer found comfort there. In fact, he found himself despising the thought of what it had meant to him in the past.

His comfort was somewhere else. His comfort was in a shrine somewhere. And he felt like his was abandoning her.

He resented himself for it.

Inuyasha wasn't exactly sure what woke him the next morning. The sun was hiding behind clouds and the birds had seemingly taken a day off. But whatever woke him had left him wide awake and utterly anxious.

Then he remembered why his sleep was disturbed that evening. It was filled with dreams of a certain girl imprisoned within her own house. Growling, he shot up out of bed scaring the crap out of Miroku and Sango who shared the room. He dressed himself quickly and walked out the door without another word, leaving his two companions in the dust.

When he exited the cheap hotel he felt a light drizzle, a mist really. It was one of those chilling mists that soaked you through-and-through, leaving you cold and irritable. Umbrellas weren't of much help in this weather.

But he took no noticed and bounded through the streets of Tokyo, eager to continue his search without regard to his grumbling stomach and tired mind. He whizzed past cars and people, occasionally putting his male ego aside to ask for directions.

There were still so many shrines left to be checked and he had limited daylight time to check them. He knew without a doubt, though, that he would continue his search even if he was vulnerable, but sincerely hoped it wouldn't amount to that.

Before noon he managed to track down and find four more shines, not one of them being the shrine Kagome resided in. With each shrine he checked the more frustrated he became, and the more frustrated he became the more likely an innocent electrical pole was going to suffer from his fist being punched through it.

Still, time passed by. The minutes and hours blurred together and there was still no sign of the mysterious shrine.

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Kagome opened her eyes a fraction of an inch and almost panicked as she realized that she didn't know where she was. Memories from the previous day flooded back and it made her groan realizing the reason her entire body ached and throbbed.

Instinctively she brought a hand up to the side of her neck and hissed in pain as her fingertips came in contact with her raw, burnt flesh. It still burn. A lighter. That was a new trick. He had never used a lighter on her to burn her before. In the past it had always been scalding water.

Kagome curled up in a ball and almost wished herself to die from despair. The only thing that kept her going was the memory of the hanyou she had fallen in love with.

The two of them were an unlikely pair. He was promiscuous, she was sexually abused. He used hurtful remarks while she used sarcasm and the silent treatment. They were both stubborn. Then there was the issue of him a hanyou, her a human. She didn't care. She knew he didn't care. But society would care.

Kagome let the brief though pass over and dismissed it just as quickly. She didn't care what society said. If you loved someone enough it shouldn't matter. And to her, it didn't.

I wonder what he's doing right now? Is he worried about me?

She shifted positions and felt something dig in her side. Wondering what it was she searched her pocket and pulled out a stone. Her heart warmed and broke at the same time as she recalled Inuyasha giving it to her by the lake.

Thinking back, she remembered his exact words: "My mother said it was a gift from my father. A gift of courage and trust. Kind of like a lucky charm, I guess. She told me that whenever I was scared I was to look at the crystal for courage. She said it would protect me even in the darkest of nights. If I were to get lonely, I would only have to look at the crystal and I wouldn't be lonely anymore. She said it was a crystal of guidance."

Kagome smiled and gently placed a soft, shaky kiss on the small, smooth surface. She held the crystal to her chest then and knew she had found her courage. The crystal wasn't her courage, rather it was the person who gave it to her. So long as she held the crystal she would always have a part of him with her, protecting her.

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AN: I have a new multi-chapter story out. I posted it at the same time at this chapter. If you have enjoyed Sex and Drugs I pretty much guarantee you'll like this new story. The overview is below.

Title: A Whore's Life

Genre: Romance/Drama

Rating: M for mature themes, language, sexuality

Pairings: Inuyasha/Kagome; Miroku/Sango

Setting: Tokyo, Japan, 2006. AU fanfiction

Summary: After a tragic accident Kagome is left penniless and homeless. She turns to prostitution as her only escape from destitution. A few years later she meets an interesting surprise client who isn't interested in sex. Soon, freak accidents begin occurring and Kagome is convinced someone is out to get her and destroy her by destroying everything and everyone she has ever cared for. Her only hope lays with the strange customer who took her heart by treating her as something more than a common whore.

Few things worth mentioning! #1 There's only 1 chapter left in Sex and Drugs! #2 A few reviewers from chapter 12 raised a few questions worth mentioning/answering. They are below.

- Kagome and Inuyasha DID have sex. If you had bothered to even glance at the author's note in the beginning of chapter 11 you would have seen the link to the actual sex scene in big bold letters. Some of you are still having trouble with the link to the lemon. I have posted the link in my profile

- Naraku is NOT Kagome's father! Naraku is just an accomplice and has no further appearances in this story

- There is a bigger role for Kikyou than you all think. While I don't particularly care for Kikyou, I don't hate her either. That is all.