The It Couple
Chapter Fifty-Six
"What are you doing later?"
Kagome sighed. "Let's not."
"What?"
She turned a wary eye towards Hiten, who was posing in front of a white background, his hands casually in his jean pockets, giving her a hopeful and seductive glance.
"Let's." Camera flash. "Fucking." Camera flash. "Not."
"Hey, Kagome," Sango said, "How were the photoshoots?"
"Ugh, don't ask. Why the hell do Hollywood guys only notice anyone if they suddenly have tabloid name recognition? Is it some sort of game they all play, trying to steal each other's girlfriends?"
"Hiten gave you trouble, then?" Sango pulled aside the hospital room blinds, looking down at the parking garages below in only mild interest.
"And Bankotsu Shichi too! I thought they were all kinda sorta friends with each other!"
"They are," Sango said, a smirk rising to her lips as she glanced over her shoulder at Miroku, who was in his hospital bed deeply absorbed in his reality TV with that damn teddy bear still sitting on top of his head (she'd set it there as a joke when he'd fallen asleep a few hours ago, but he clearly wasn't minding it at all). "It's all a power play with them. Like whipping someone with a towel in a locker room. Everyone wants to be top dog, and that's Inuyasha right now, so they try to muscle in a little for a piece of the pie."
"The pie being me in this situation."
"Maybe I could have worded that better."
"No, it's fine, I got you. It's just...ugh."
"Well, if it improves your mood any, our dresses arrived this morning right on time, so we're right on schedule to start getting ready at Inuyasha's in a bit. Warner's sending us hair and makeup people, too. Guess he wants all of us looking like shiny new pennies tonight."
"How kind of him." The sarcasm practically radiated through the phone line.
Sango's phone beeped. Another call. "Speak of Satan himself," she grumbled to Kagome, "I'd better take this. See you in a few."
"Tell him he's got a huge fat ass!"
Sango smirked and switched the line over. "Sango Ryoshi."
"Sango, my dear! I take it everything's going smoothly over there in preparation for the Globes tonight? You remember this is our last chance to make an impression on the Oscar voters, right? The nominations close tonight at midnight."
I don't need you to tell me that. I don't need you to tell me how to do my job, you pompous -
"Of course, sir. We're all ready to roll out with our red carpet plans. And the studio afterparty is good to go as well."
"And my two stars?"
"Just fine. They're bringing along their charity plus-ones. Such a great idea, sir. Using the platform of the Golden Globes to highlight the less-fortunate in our communities. The press will love it!"
She glanced over at Miroku, who had averted his eyes from the television to give her a disgusted look, his mouth hanging open in disbelief. She waved him off and turned back to the window. Miroku was distracting her.
"I know they will. Kagome is going with them as well, yes?"
"Of course, sir." Sango rubbed her eye with one hand and leaned her forehead against the window glass.
"How did her photoshoots go today? I want them sent to the press as soon as possible."
"Don't worry, sir. Kagome knows what's expected. I'm sure she's already sent everything their way."
"Make sure to get tons of photos of the three of them on the red carpet today. Understood?"
You don't have to tell me this shit, I know how to do my goddamn job you tub of lard -
"Absolutely, sir. See you tonight."
"What are you wearing?"
UGH. Sango suppressed a shudder as she pictured his face curling into a lecherous grin.
"Um...Givenchy, sir."
"I'm sure you'll look radiant. Until tonight, then, Sango." And he hung up without another word.
Sango turned back around to see Miroku's face still stuck in that look of outraged repulsion.
"You know, if you keep it up your face will get stuck that way." She pocketed her phone.
"You gave him credit for my idea?" He looked positively scandalized. If his arm weren't in a sling to keep him from jarring his wound, he probably would have done some dramatic, say-it-ain't-so pose.
"Of course I did," Sango said, folding her arms and coming to sit at the foot of the bed facing him, "How else would I get him to agree to Inuyasha and Kikyou not walking the carpet as a couple, unless he was under the impression that he'd thought of it?"
"How on earth did you even plant the idea into his head?" Miroku was staring at her like she'd grown a second head.
"I mentioned offhand in the middle of a conversation about how great Kikyou was that a few B-listers are bringing some Boys and Girls Club kids as their dates. Casual, like. And then it was a matter of sitting back and waiting for him to think the idea was his own. Boom, done."
"You're a fucking rock star," Miroku said after a moment, an almost serene smile on his face. With his good arm, he took her hand and pulled her up the bed toward him.
"Like you didn't already know that," Sango said, nestling her head under his, content to just take a minute and relax before the world exploded in flashbulbs and designer gowns once again.
"Wish I could come with you," Miroku grumbled, glancing down at the sling over his arm, "but that nurse is a hell of a dictator."
"Don't worry," Sango said, leaning up to kiss him chastely, "You won't be missing anything but Kikyou being a bitch, Inuyasha and Kagome trying everything to keep from acting like a married couple in public, and possibly me having to kick the ass of one Randall Warner if he doesn't stop acting like I'm some sort of cut of meat on his plate."
"Stop it." His tone was almost petulant as he frowned down at her. "You're making it sound even more fun. I'm getting jealous."
"You're home!"
As she walked through the front door, Kagome was engulfed by Inuyasha's arms and nearly dropped her camera equipment. "Whoa there," she said, laughing as she shrugged off her bags gently and returned the embrace, thinking to herself how much she liked the sound of this being 'home.'
"How did the shoots go? Was Ayame - "
"She was fantastic. A real sweetheart. And you won't believe what she's got in her condo. I never would have guessed it in a million years."
"Are you gonna tell me," Inuyasha smirked, "Or are you going to make me read the article?"
"Speaking of which," Kagome said, ducking under his arms, "I bet it's been posted! That blogger, reporter, whatever she was, was typing a mile a minute when she was talking to Ayame. Let's go see!" She took off toward the study, pausing only to kick off her boots, then sliding along the tile at a full clip.
He caught up to her almost immediately, wrapping a single arm around her waist and lifting her bodily from the ground, bracing her weight against him as he stumbled further down the hallway. Kagome gave a delighted shriek as her legs flew out from under her, and she clung to Inuyasha's forearm as he awkwardly paraded both of them into the study.
"Dammit, woman," he was saying, "You just got home and I've been waiting for you all day and you just scurry off without even a kiss hello?"
He set her down in front of the computer, feigning a very grumpy face as he leaned over the back of the chair.
"Awww, I'm sorry," Kagome said, knowing that her face was flushing pink again as she reached up and kissed him, "I know I'm the worst."
"I'll never forgive you," he said, knocking his forehead gently against hers with a smirk and leaning down for one more peck before reaching across and clicking the computer on.
Kagome did a quick search, and there it was. Right at the top of the page. She saw the image splash and recognized her work, and couldn't help the small tingling in her spine at the thought that her photos were published, online, in an actual article for everyone to see. Even if they were celebrity photos, that was still quite different from just sharing them on Instagram for likes and comments.
"Wait a second," Inuyasha's face appeared next to hers, his eyes narrowed as if he wasn't sure he was seeing correctly, "Is that a giant wrestling ring? In her house?"
Ayame was standing there, in a skimpy sports bra and shorts, a towel draped over her shoulders. She had smokey eye makeup and dark lips, her long red hair teased like a lion's mane around her. Behind her was a literal wall-to-wall display of wrestling action figures and replica title belts.
"Did they mention - " Kagome knew she was talking more to herself than anyone as she scrolled through the article, "They did! The writer made sure to say the stuff was all hers! I swear, Inuyasha, that girl's the biggest wrestling fan I've ever seen. She has everything you could think of. Apparently her dad was a pro wrestler in the eighties, and she grew up in his gym, so she can actually do a ton of stuff. Here, look."
The next shot was a kinetic one of Ayame in the middle of a standing backflip.
"Holy shit," Inuyasha said, his eyes wide, "How did she keep her face normal? Like, she looks amazingly good. Who looks hot in the middle of a flip?"
"Apparently it's called a moonsault in wrestling. But I know, right?" Kagome said with a laugh. "Obviously she's a hell of a supermodel. I think if they want her to look good on camera in the movies she'll be just fine."
"I never would have guessed. I just thought she was another Victoria's Secret girl. Good for arm candy, but not too interested in anything past her own face." Inuyasha rubbed the back of his neck.
"And I take it you've known quite a few of those Victoria's Secret girls in the months we were apart? After you and Kikyou broke up?" Kagome grinned and nudged at him playfully.
Inuyasha scoffed. "Not me, personally. But you have to remember, sweetheart, I was hanging out with Kouga Okami and his goons that whole time. I paid attention."
"You were just too hung up over me to grab yourself a hot model, huh? That had to be it. You were just dreaming of me the whole time."
She was teasing, and she was sure he knew she was teasing, but she saw his smile falter, and he turned to look at her with something unreadable in his eyes.
Before she could say anything, utter any sort of awkward apology, she heard the front door open again, and what sounded like a whole flock of people walking into the foyer.
"Hey, you two," Sango said, stopping quickly to remove her sunglasses and stash them in her purse before returning her attentions to the throng of hair and makeup people following in her wake.
"Let's set up in the living room, and we can have everyone dress in the bedrooms. Makes for more space, so we're all not just climbing all over each other." She gave a bemused glance at the palacial entryway and seemed to laugh at her own private joke as everyone rushed to do her bidding.
A stout older woman was pushing a wheeled garment rack down the hallway, and Kagome rushed to give her a hand as Inuyasha stood there, watching people fly around him, and thought how badly he needed a drink.
"What are you still doing here?" Sango said when she looked up from her notebook full of lists and saw him doing his best deer-in-the-headlights impression, "Go shower. We need to get that hair of yours blow-dried, and you know how long that's going to take."
Inuyasha knew when to do as he was told, especially given the clear stress all over Sango's face. But something also told him she was loving every minute of it, even when she had to answer three simultaneous phone calls while also signing off on a flower delivery to one Kikyou Higurashi's house, courtesy of Randall Warner and Sunrise Studios.
"Alright, alright," Kagome said testily over the sounds of snickering from everyone else in the room, "Yak it up, you guys. It was a nightmare."
She was sitting, draped in a simple satin bathrobe, in front of a hastily-set-up vanity table as a girl applied black and gold eyeshadow to her closed lids. Her hair was damp, hanging loosely down her back.
Across the room, she could hear Sango (who was currently getting her hair done into a loose chiffon with braided accents, how chic) still laughing into her hand before saying, "Poor sweet Kagome. Just has all of Hollywood suddenly pining for her."
"I didn't say that!" Kagome felt her cheeks burn as she fought the urge to open her eyes and glare at the other girl. "I said it was just Hiten. And Bankotsu Shichi. That was it."
"Don't forget Kouga," Sango said.
"I wish I could forget Kouga," Kagome heard Inuyasha grumble. "But hey, Kiddo, take it all in stride. You're the most beautiful woman I know. It was only a matter of time before everyone else noticed."
Dammit, Inuyasha, I'm sitting here getting my makeup done and I know the makeup girl can see how red my face is. Kagome let out a small sigh with the effort to remain still, but couldn't help the twitch of a smile on her lips.
"Can I get anyone anything?" She heard Nazuna's voice.
"Whiskey! Oh god, please, whiskey. And a cigarette." Inuyasha sounded like a kid ordering a Happy Meal.
"Whiskey, yes, cigarette, no," Sango interjected sternly, "I am not having that smoke smell in my hair for an hours-long awards ceremony. Or in yours, for that matter."
"You smoke, too," Inuyasha protested grumpily. He was getting his hair brushed, so he couldn't get out of his chair for at least a few more minutes. Getting that mane of his red-carpet-ready was almost a job in itself.
"No I don't," Sango said smoothly, closing the subject, "Nazuna, if you have any white wine or champagne…?"
"Okay," Kagome heard Nazuna say, "What about you, Miss Kagome?"
"Beer, please!"
"I should have known." She heard snickers as Nazuna walked out of the room.
Finally, she was able to open her eyes, and the makeup girl moved on to the rest of her face.
"Here, a toast," Sango said when Nazuna brought the drinks, holding her glass aloft, "To the Golden Globes, and to Oscar nominations closing tonight. We're almost done, guys. We did it."
Both Inuyasha and Kagome raised their glasses as well. "I just wish Miroku was here," Kagome said, "You know he'd be three whiskeys deep by now and flirting with Sango so much she wouldn't be able to get her hair done."
Sango blushed, but smiled and shrugged in agreement.
"Hey, his suit's hanging in the closet, ready for the Oscars," Inuyasha said, "And we get to tease him about how much fun we're gonna have tonight, right?"
"Oh, don't worry," Sango said, taking a sip of her wine, "I've already started."
The doorbell rang, and Nazuna sprang to answer it from her perch on one of the couches.
"Look who's here!" Sango's tone indicated that they should all turn on the charm, and turn on the charm Inuyasha did, like clockwork.
The makeup girl stepped away dutifully, and Kagome sent her a smile and a wink as she stood up to greet the guests coming through the threshold.
"This is Mayu," Sango was saying, her hands on the shoulders of a girl of about thirteen or fourteen. The girl was small and skinny, her hair pulled into small pigtails at the nape of her neck, and she was looking around with that all-too-familiar deer-in-the-headlights look that always came with first entry into one of these obscenely wealthy LA homes. "Mayu, this is Inuyasha Takahashi."
"I know," Mayu said softly, her eyes the size of dinner plates. She began awkwardly fidgeting with her hands as Inuyasha stood up from his seat and crossed toward her.
"Inuyasha," Sango said, "This is Mayu. She's here because she made a wish."
"And I'm going to make sure it comes true," said Inuyasha with a glowing smile as he approached. Kagome could watch in real time just how he could make people melt with a look. Of course, she'd known that already, but it was still quite the thing to watch. She realized her heart was pounding and that she was staring, so she quickly shook herself out of it as Inuyasha offered Mayu his hand to shake.
"Can I -" Mayu had her hands over her mouth to hide her nervous grin, "Can I hug you instead?"
Inuyasha's smile widened and he picked her up under her arms and gave her a full-on hug, complete with a happy, excited, friendly growl. Mayu laughed delightedly, that combination of star-struck and overjoyed and freaking out and just genuinely happy.
"Mayu," Sango said, clearly unable to keep the grin off her own face, "This is Kagome."
"Kikyou Higurashi's sister!" Mayu gasped again and looked Kagome up and down like she wasn't sure if this was real.
"Yep, that's me," Kagome said, giving a small wave from her position a few feet back. "It's so nice to meet you, Mayu."
Mayu smiled at her, then seemed to look past her, as if looking for someone else. Kagome caught Sango's eye for an instant, then smiled warmly at the young girl once more. Keep it together, girl. No one said any of this would be easy.
"Mayu," Sango said quickly, sweeping in and taking the girl by her shoulders, "We've got your red carpet dress all ready to go, and you're getting your hair and makeup done just like a star. Because tonight, you are a star!"
Mayu looked genuinely thrilled as Sango led her away and got her situated. "Kagome," Sango called over her shoulder, "I'd also like you to meet Kanna."
Kagome turned around to find a pale-haired young girl staring at her sagely.
"My name is Kanna," the little girl said, with not a single change of expression, "I'm dying of cancer so you have to be nice to me."
Kagome blinked for a moment, then forced a smile. "How about I just choose to be nice to you instead? Kanna, huh? That's a beautiful name."
"It means 'God of Nothingness,'" Kanna said, her dark eyes drifting up to look around the foyer with a sort of detached acknowledgment.
Kagome really had no idea what to say, so she twiddled her thumbs behind her back and changed the subject. "How old are you, Kanna?"
"Thirteen." She looked years younger. The cancer had clearly stunted her growth somewhat.
"So you're in eighth grade?"
Kanna's gaze returned to Kagome, looking bored (or was that just her face?) with this line of questioning. "I finished high school last year."
"O-oh," Kagome said, rolling with it as best she could, "Well, you must be very smart then! It really is great to meet you. I'm sure we'll have a ton of fun tonight, okay?"
"Maybe." Kanna's gaze drifted elsewhere again.
Okay, the Mayu kid's a little bit of a Kikyou fan, I get that, but what on earth is this melancholy kid doing with me? I think she's bored of me already.
"So why did you pick me tonight? For your wish?" Kagome said, ignoring Inuyasha, who seemed to be holding his hand over his mouth for fear of bursting into uncontrollable laughter from his perch at the vanity table.
"I didn't," Kanna said, looking Kagome dead in the eyes, "but a red carpet is a red carpet, right?"
There was a snort from Inuyasha that he immediately turned into a cough. Kagome wanted to glare at him, but Kanna was studying her face very closely.
"It's okay, though," Kanna continued, "You have a nice face. Very honest eyes. I don't hate you like I thought I would."
Inuyasha got up from the vanity table. His cough had apparently returned. "Excuse me for just a minute," he choked out, his face red with the effort to keep his expression straight. He stumbled off down the hallway, the coughs fading out and turning into almost maniacal belly-laughs as soon as he thought he was out of earshot. He wasn't.
Kanna, however, took no outward note of this, and held Kagome's gaze in silence as Kagome struggled, once again, with something to say. How the hell do you respond to that? Do I say, "Thank you?"
The click-clack of super-tall heels heralded Sango's return to the room. "Okay," she said, clasping her hands and walking up to Kanna, "Now that we've got Mayu all set up with her red-carpet treatment, it's your turn, kiddo. Why don't you come with me and we'll decide how you want your hair done?"
"Beauty is meaningless. I have no preferences."
Sango took it in stride, because she was paid to do it and she was damn good at her job. "Great! Your red carpet team will love getting to surprise you!"
When Sango returned, she asked where Inuyasha was.
"In the game room, probably still laughing his ass off," Kagome said, "Where did you find that kid? This can't have been her wish. To be on a red carpet."
"No," Sango admitted sheepishly, "She wanted a sensory deprivation chamber and a roomful of mirrors. The foundation gently suggested we do this stuff first."
"Is she still getting that stuff?"
"Yes, but after the fact. Warner made sure Kikyou got her biggest fangirl, and then Mayu was an Inuyasha fan."
"So I get left with Mirror Girl."
"I mean," Sango said awkwardly, "That little girl's wish was so weird no one else would touch it. Hence the reason she agreed to come out with us on such short notice. But hey, maybe she'll have fun despite herself?"
Kagome knew she didn't look sure, and Sango answered her look with a reassuring shoulder squeeze. "Not to worry," she said, "Just a few hours. Then the Oscar noms are announced tomorrow and we can all relax for a hot minute."
"So, Mayu," Inuyasha offered his young charge a champagne flute filled with sparkling grape juice, "What's your favorite subject in school?"
"Theatre class!" Mayu answered eagerly, "I want to be an actor when I grow up too!"
"Then this red carpet is practice, huh?" Inuyasha grinned, "For when you hit the big time and start the rest of us running for our money?"
Kagome couldn't help feeling a little jealous as she sat across from them, smiling, with Kanna quietly ignoring them all and staring out the limousine window. Inuyasha was always so good at this, so easy-going, able to get people comfortable and liking him within seconds.
Sango, in the middle of a phone call to god-knows-who, paused to clear her throat and nod her head at Kagome, her eyes flitting to the silent young girl, who was tracing an expressionless face over her own expressionless reflection in the window glass.
Kagome got the hint, so she decided to try again, as Inuyasha and Mayu's conversation continued in the background.
"Hey, Kanna," she said a little hesitantly, "Is there anyone tonight you'd particularly like to meet? Maybe someone I can try and introduce you to?"
"Not really," Kanna said, not turning around, "Celebrity is a strange concept to me. I don't comprehend why some people are considered better than others."
Inuyasha was talking to Mayu, but Kagome just knew he was listening, because he shot her a mirthful glance that made her want to smack him upside the head.
"Well, uh-"
"Like your sister, for example."
Sango's head shot up and she stared at Kagome, eyes wide, speechless.
Kagome softly folded her hands in her lap. "What do you mean?"
Kanna turned around in her seat, staring straight ahead. "I see the magazine covers. Everyone says she's the nicest, most beautiful person who ever lived. Like she's some sort of perfect woman."
Kagome remained silent.
"But I disagree."
"What do you mean, you disagree?" Mayu piped up, looking a little outraged. The fangirl is strong in this one.
"I don't think she's perfect," Kanna said simply, "And I don't think she's very nice at all."
"You don't even know her!" Mayu said, her small hands curling into fists in her lap, "And would Inuyasha want to be with her if she wasn't a wonderful person?"
Inuyasha's eyes darted to Kagome's. His face was still passive, but there was a small twitch in his eyes that displayed his clear discomfort. Kagome could just give him her most reassuring smile and remain quiet.
"I don't like her eyes," Kanna said with a small shrug as she returned her gaze to the city lights outside.
Mayu still looked indignant. "I want to apologize for Kanna," she said, rolling her eyes, "She's so out of touch she doesn't even realize that insulting someone in front of their boyfriend and sister is rude."
Kanna didn't look the least bit perturbed by the comment.
Inuyasha cleared his throat. "No harm, no foul," he said, and that grin was back on his face. Sango looked like she'd been forgetting how to inhale and exhale for a moment as she leaned back in her seat.
They finally pulled up to the red carpet and got out. Sango first, then Kagome, then Kanna, and then Inuyasha with Mayu's hand in his. Amidst all the waving and smiling and yelling, Kagome found herself awkwardly walking next to the small, pale girl dressed all in black as they proceeded past the velvet ropes.
"You can hold my hand if it makes you more comfortable," Kanna said, "I don't have any flesh-eating bacteria or leprosy. As far as I know."
Kagome looked down at her and almost stopped walking for a second. "Hang on," she said, "Was that a joke, Kanna?"
"Perhaps," the small girl replied in her emotionless tone, "Or I suppose I could be just trying to make you comfortable so I can give you a contagious disease. One of the two."
Kagome burst out laughing, a most unbecoming cackle of pure abandon. Not great for red carpets, but there was really no helping it.
She felt Kanna's hand slip into hers.
"Inuyasha!"
"Inuyasha, over here!"
"Inuyasha!"
It was a constant, pounding drone in his head as he kept his grip on Mayu's hand and smiled for the cameras.
Little Mayu, of course, seemed to be loving it, waving excitedly to every television camera she saw. Inuyasha could only barely remember the last time he'd been actually excited to do a red carpet. It had been about two-and-a-half years ago. He and Kikyou had just gotten engaged and had walked the entire carpet clinging to each other like lovesick teenagers.
As if on instinct, he turned his head and looked back briefly at Kagome. After a brief and friendly reunion with Ayame a few moments ago (he had noted that Ayame was conspicuously dateless tonight), she and Kanna were standing talking to what looked like that Fashion Police show. Kagome was chatting animatedly, and if Inuyasha hadn't known her like the back of his own hand, he would never have guessed how awkward and uncomfortable she felt at these things. Kanna was just staring at the interviewer with a gaze that could bore through steel, but her hand was firmly in Kagome's.
It was an odd sensation, wasn't it, the way one's heart could just pound like a schoolboy's when it came to the right woman?
"Inuyashaaaaa!"
His head snapped back around and he tried not to sigh too audibly. He knew that singsong voice anywhere.
Good old Yura, beckoning him over.
"Just get it over with," Sango said, appearing suddenly behind his shoulder like some sort of fucking magical advice fairy, "Quick and easy. Like ripping off a Band-Aid."
"Where's Kikyou, anyway?" Inuyasha said quietly, "Did she get here early? That doesn't sound like her."
"Honestly," Sango said, looking down at her phone with an irritated expression, "I have no idea. No one's answering my texts, not even Hojo. That kid's gonna have a shitload to answer for when I get ahold of him later. Maybe she's already inside. Or maybe they're stuck in traffic."
"Maybe." Inuyasha wasn't sure, and he knew he certainly didn't look sure.
"It's the Globes," Sango said, "She'll be here. She can't resist it, right?" And she walked off, the little busy bee hovering off to her next flower.
Inuyasha glanced down at Mayu, who clearly was too enraptured at all the sights and sounds around her to be paying much attention.
Then Kagome and Kanna caught up to them. That beautiful smile was still on Kagome's face, but it was clearly just for the cameras as the flashes went off all around them and the crowd's uproar got louder.
"Where is she?" Kagome said. Clearly the same questions had been running through her head.
"No idea," Inuyasha said, and he truly began in earnest to feel uneasy. "Something's rotten in Denmark."
"What do you mean?"
Oh, now Mayu is paying attention.
"Uh -"
"It's a quote from Shakespeare," Kanna said serenely, "Perhaps you should try reading something other than 'Tiger Beat,' Mayu." All this with a tone like she was sincerely giving constructive advice. This Kanna kid is a pistol.
Mayu glared at Kanna and opened her mouth to reply, and once again Sango the fairy godmother saw her expression and appeared to whisk them off to take photos with Warner (poor kids).
Kagome let her smile slip for just a moment as she leaned in a little closer. "There's no way she'd miss the Globes," she said softly, as if reassuring herself, "She won't sacrifice her Oscar chances just to -"
"Inuyashaaaaa! Kagoooooome! Over here!"
Kagome glanced over in surprise, then forced her smile back onto her face. "Oh god, I made eye contact," she said through her teeth.
"It's okay, Kiddo. We got this. Ten bucks to whoever gives the worst, most boring answer to any of her stupid fucking questions."
Kagome gave a small laugh that sounded more like a resigned sigh, and they headed over to Yura.
"Houshi?" Sango immediately turned away from Warner and the make-a-wish kids (who were both clearly posing very hesitantly with this obviously creepy executive) and put her hand around the receiver to muffle the sound a bit, "I'm working. I get it, you're bored, but I'll call you later, okay?"
"Babe, listen to me. Get Inuyasha and Kagome off the red carpet. Now. You've got an atom bomb on your hands, and it's about to explode."
"What the hell are you-"
"Kikyou's gone rogue. Big time."
"No she hasn't, I would have fucking killed her and she knows it. She's playing ball. She wants that Oscar."
"She was playing ball because she was ready to screw us all over, Sango. Get them off the carpet. A-S-A-F-P. Whatever you have to do."
"What's happened?"
"Action first, words later. Go, Sango. Do it. Trust me, Kikyou has the upper hand right now."
Sango hung up the phone and just stared at it for a moment.
"Everything okay, Sango?" Warner asked.
"Just fine, sir," she said smoothly, turning around and scanning the walkway for Inuyasha and Kagome.
They were about thirty feet away, talking to Yura Kaminoke.
Sango felt her heart drop into the pit of her stomach.
"Holy...fucking...shit," she whispered.
No way.
I'm baaaaaack, bitches! Sorry sorry sorry times a thousand. My summer class has been MURDER. No, literally. My class is about murder. It's awesome. ANYWAYS, hope this extra long chapter makes up for the wait! I'm already writing the next one, too, so never fear! I'm not dead!
Ayame being a pro-wrestling fan is absolutely and completely one hundred percent author appeal. No apologies. But I wonder what Warner thinks about the somewhat...different side of her that came out?
Also...I think Kanna just might be a new fave of mine? Sorry, Miroku? Hahaha I just HAD to write her as a gloomy, introspective, overly-honest goth chick. It just fits.
SONGS!
Inuyasha - "Say Amen (Saturday Night)" by Panic! At The Disco (WHO I AM GOING TO SEE IN FEBRUARY RELKJSFDOIJSFLSDKFJ SO EXCITED)
Kagome - "Mine" by Taylor Swift (I can't believe I'm doing this but the song just fits 0_0)
Miroku - "The Lazy Song" by Bruno Mars (hahahaha poor guy)
Sango - "A Little Less Conversation" by Elvis Presley (she gotta do the thing now)
Kanna - "Mad World" by Gary Jules (hahahaha couldn't resist)
AND ONCE AGAIN, APPEARING FOR THE SECOND TIME IN THIS LIST BECAUSE IT'S JUST THE PERFECT SONG FOR THESE MOMENTS...
Kikyou - "Look What You Made Me Do" by Taylor Swift (haha two TS songs in one chapter, what am I, what is life, but it's okay, right, because that one's the OLD Taylor and this is the NEW Taylor...I have a headache)
Once again guys, I love you I love you I love you I love you and thank you SO MUCH for your patience in getting this out. Hope you like the chapter! Please let me know if you have any thoughts and/or speculations as to just what's going down. I promise it's not as crazy and complex as I'm making it seem. Maybe I'm setting y'all up for disappointment. I hope not! Please review if you can, and thanks for reading! - meggz0rz