A special thanks to…
ffgirlmoonie
Remenescent
Hearii-sama
Ladeh Hitomi
sweetrosie
Demon-dreamgirl
Miko no Kaze
priestessmykala
Avelyn Lauren
elvira-inu-gurl
MeiunTenshi
A certain sister who shall not be named here. ()
Al: Well, of course you know. Jenny's doing…erm…well let's just say that she recently learned about the wonders of hacking. She's been having a lot of fun with that…
alchemistgrl09
Congratulations to Miko no Kaze, priestessmykala, MeiunTenshi and Ladeh Hitomi for getting the odd lady's identity right on the first try. (Remember, we've already got Kaede accounted for)
Disclaimer:
Pwale: What are you doing back here?
Mr. X just smirks and cracks his knuckles.
-Pwale turns to the two lawyers in the room-
Why is he here?
The lawyers just smirk.
"Well," ome of the lawyers says. "Since you don't have a lawyer to represent you, and everyone is too afraid to go up against us, we can actually do whatever we want to you…until you tell us what we want to hear that is."
Pwale: Where? Guantanamo Bay?
Lawyer #1: For the thousandth time, there is no torture here…I mean there…
Pwale: Yeah. That's what they want you to think. Literally.
Lawyer #2: That's not the point! The point is that we can get away with anything!
Pwale: You can not! I represent myself! And I will not be broken!
Lawyer #1 & #2:…Did you just sing?
Pwale: Oh, I don't own Inu! But guess what? This is a song so I can pretend that I do!
Al:…This disclaimer is too silly. Just too silly. It makes no sense, even for Pwale.
Lia: This is sad.
On with the story!
The Stamp Of Gold
When Last We Left Our Heroes…
It was cleaning day. That's what Mondays are for. Cleaning. Cleaning in preperation for the new week.
Now, most people do their cleaning on Sunday or Saturday. But Inuyasha was on firm in his belief that weekends were a time to sleep till dusk and if you woke him up before then may the Gods see fit to take you swiftly because quick death would be the only thing that you could hope for. And cleaning was one of the many things that woke Inuyasha up.
So, they did it on Monday.
Early on in the day Kagome had gotten into a discussion with the children about communities and ones role as a part of one.
"But if you have maids then it's their job to do work!" Satsuki was arguing, and Rin and Shippo were both agreeing with her. "Why should we do their work? We pay them to do it! They should be thankful!"
Kagome sighed. How does one explain to rich children how poor people feel?
Then an idea hit her.
"Well," she said. "You have a point." Behind her back Kagome crossed her fingers and hoped that the children would never figure out that she was lying to them, as small children have a tendency to do. "But…as the rich…well…" Suddenly in an amazing flash her lessons on the Labor vs. Management Negotiations returned, and with them the arguments that the old rich men had actually managed to use in a way that almost made sense if you excelled in Spin. "As upstanding and upper class members of this society," Kagome said. The children were charmed by the big pretty words and all three of them blushed. "Then it is your responsibility to uphold the arts so that the lower class can be…enlightened by your beauty."
Now, Rin didn't know what Kagome had just said. But she had heard the word 'responsibility' and her Papa had always told her that a responsibility was an important thing. So, to be a good 'responsibility', whatever that actually meant, Rin would do what Kagome wanted. Rin wanted to make her Papa proud.
Now, Satsuki didn't know what Kagome had just said. But she had heard the word 'beauty.' And her brother, when they had lived on the streets, had always told her to hide her inner beauty and find a place where she could let it show. When Satsuki had come to the Fuedal Era she had secretly hoped that this was the place where she could let her inner beauty show…but before now the opportunity had never presented itself. But now it had! So, to show her good 'beauty' Satsuki would do what Kagome wanted. Satsuki wanted to make her brother proud.
Now, Shippo didn't know what Kagome had said. But he had heard the word 'arts'. Shippo loved to draw. His secretest most darkest secret of all was that he was going to be a big important artist when he grew up. But Inuyasha had always said that Shippo wasn't good enough. But now…well, to 'uphold the arts', whatever that actually meant, Shippo was going to do what Kagome wanted. Shippo wanted to prove Inuyasha wrong.
See, that's the difference between little boys and little girls.
"Yay!" All three children shouted. Kagome jerked back, surprised by their sudden excitement. "What do we do?" They asked. "When do we start?"
"Well," Kagome said, thinking on her feet. "Give me a moment."
The children got quiet. They knew that "Give me a moment" was what adults said when they needed to think about something.
Kagome looked around the bright schoolroom where she and the children spent their lessons. It was attached to the nursery and on the other side there was a bedroom for Kagome to sleep in if the need ever arose.
Some sort of idiot had furnished to room itself. Lacey and ladylike and delicate seemed to be the theme. There was so much white and pink that Kagome hadn't been able to open her eyes for five minutes after entering the room that first time for fear of being blinded by the sickening colors. And it wasn't even a normal shade of pink! It was that hideous salmon orange shade of pink that you find in rubber. Nothing was fit for a place where children were to play.
But it did get nice light. That was it's one saving grace.
Kagome looked at the white walls of the room and at long last she knew how she was going to do this.
"Well," she said. The children all sat up straight on the pink couch that they were sitting on. "Remember that white wall downstairs in the Entrance Hall?" She asked. The children all nodded. "Let's paint a mural on it!" She suggested.
"Yeah!" The children all exclaimed, very excited about the idea. Then they paused to think of it for a moment.
"Wait…" Shippo said. "What's a mural?"
"A mural is a HUGE painting on a wall." Kagome explained, throwing her arms out wide so that the children would understand just how big she meant. "It's a lot of work, but it's our responsibility. Think you're up to the challenge?"
The children nodded fervently to show that they were indeed up to such a challenge. Kagome smiled.
"Then let us be off! Let us leave this horrid place of horrid pink!" She cried, and she led her three charges down to the Entrance Hall.
In the annoyingly dark room a certain someone smirked. Finally he had the perfect revenge.
Now…how to get away with it…wait…what could she do to him?
Inuyasha shrugged. He still needed a way to get away with his plot.
He thought…and he thought…and he thought…finally Inuyasha groaned and broke a vase that was next to him. Revenge was harder then he thought! Maybe it was all stupid and elebortate. So far the only thing that he could figure out about the necklace was the fact that he couldn't get it off.
Inuyasha snorted. Some revenge that was. It would have been worse if the rosary had been feminine. But no, a masculine rosary was no revenge. It was a nuisance in retaliation for building the brats character. And that was no excuse for revenge!
Embarrassment, on the other hand, and intelligence, now those were things to get revenge for!
"…um…what?" Miroku asked. Inuyasha blinked…and realized that he had just said everything aloud. He looked over at Miroku who was shaking his head and staring at Inuyasha with a withering glance.
"What do you want?" Inuyasha barked. Miroku sighed.
"Remind me why I didn't quit years ago?" Miroku asked Inuyasha. Inuyasha smirked.
"Well, my friend…" Inuyasha said, standing up and clapping Miroku on the back. "Three factors come to mind. One: The size of your wage. Two: The fact that a certain someone would kill you if you left these grounds. Three: Sango would kill you if you even thought about quitting."
Miroku glared up at the smirking Inuyasha for a moment.
"Whatever you're planning to do to Kagome, don't." Miroku said flatly. Inuyasha's face fell.
"But-"
"No."
"I just-"
"No!"
"Want to-"
"No!"
"But I-"
"No!"
"And she-"
"Do it and I'll tell Sango where you put Hiraikotsu!"
Inuyasha froze. He looked at Miroku with an expression of perfect horror.
"You wouldn't!"
"I would Inuyasha, don't make me!" Miroku sighed and rubbed his temples. "I just don't understand this. Ever since that girl arrived it's been confusion after confusion." He glared up at Inuyasha. "You need to get on with it! This is like a bad book where the author doesn't know how to introduce the plot!"
"Well I don't see you coming up with any ideas." Snapped Inuyasha in reply. "How should I do it? Hi Kagome Higurashi! I'm Inuyasha, your employer! Yes, I know, I know. Don't worry. Many people are put off by the dog ears! Anyway down to business! I really hired you so that I can use you as bait for an evil that is centuries old and to get revenge on my ex who continues to make my life a living hell…in the most literal sense of the term."
Miroku and Inuyasha looked at each other in a monotone silence for a moment. It was Miroku who broke it.
"Do you have a thesaurus, I'm sure there's another word for 'bait'."
"I already looked."
"Well…let's try again."
G
The first thing that Kagome and the children had done was wash the floor of the Entrance Hall. Kagome had explained to the children that they needed to have a clean area before they could begin the mural.
Kagome was never going to let Shippo touch a mop again.
Next they had to dry the floors, so that they could lay down a large white sheet that Sango had found them.
Satsuki had learned about the startling amount of pain that wet rags can inflict when you roll them up tightly and use them as a whip.
And we're not even going to think about Rin's adventure with the soap suds.
All in all the servants were all sitting on the steps, eating various snacks and watching the new governess try and calm down the children. It was even better then the time Sango and Kagura had ganged up on Sesshomaru and had forced him to wear a dress. And that was saying a lot!
Finally it was all clean…and Kagome realized that they didn't have paint.
With a feral grin she whirled around on the servants who were sitting on the steps.
"Split yourselves into two groups!" She commanded without a seconds hesitation. "If you're sitting on the left side of the stairs then go find paint for the walls. If you're sitting on the right side of the steps go find brushes for everyone!"
All the servants looked at each other and Kagome's glare got hotter as she bore down on them.
"What?" She demanded. "It's not like you've got anything better to do!"
Well, the servants had spent so much time in the household of Inuyasha Takahashi that they knew a fiery temper that's best left alone when they saw one. You couldn't have paid them to disobey Kagome at that moment. She was even scarier then the older Master Takahashi himself!
And it was with that evil glare that Kagome won the respect and loyalty of the household servants. After all, someone who can best one of Sesshomaru's glare is worth that and much more!
And with that thought in mind it didn't take long for the servants to complete the missions that Kagome had given them.
When the group who had been sitting on the left side of the Grand Stair returned with a colorful array of paints and the group that had been sitting on the right side of the Grand Stair returned with a large assortment of brushes of all different sizes they all found Kanna, Kaede, Kagome, Sango and the children setting out a picnic in the middle of the hall. There was a wonderful lunch for everyone (except Inuyasha and Miroku who were sill looking of ways to rephrase Inuyasha's confession) and during the picnic Kagome gave the children a big piece of white paper and a box of crayons.
"Draw a picture, all of you together." She told them. "Draw a picture of something meaningful to you all. It'll be what we paint a mural of."
After lunch was over the children presented their picture. Satsuki and Shippo held it up while Rin explained the picture and pointed out several different aspects with a wooden spoon that Kaede had given her. The servants and Kagome all sat on the steps, listening intently and stifling their giggles at how cute and earnest the young ones were.
"See," Rin said sternly, looking around to make sure that everyone was listening to her. "These are the horsies," Rin pointed to a big brown splotch. "And they're running through the forest." Rin pointed to brown lines with green circles on top of them. "And here's the well and here's Kagome climbing out of it. Then Uncle Inuyasha is waiting for her," Rin points to a red and silver splotch. Kagome blinked, confused, why would Mr. Takahashi be waiting for her? No one else was confused though.
"Awww!" They all said.
Kagome remembered something then.
Flashback
"Well, I'm glad that I can call you Satsuki, Satsuki." Kagome said. "My name is Kagome, and I'm here to be your-"
But Shippo interrupted her.
"Our new mommy!" He asked, excited. Kagome's mouth snapped closed with an audible click. She opened and shut her mouth several times before she was able to trust herself to answer.
"Not quite." She said. Rin stuck her tongue out at Satsuki. "But I am here to be your governess, and depending on the governess, that could be a lot like a…an auntie." Kagome could not quite bring herself to say mommy.
"So then you're married to Uncle Inuyasha?" Rin asked. Kagome nearly fainted on the spot.
"Is he your uncle?" She asked weakly. Rin nodded severely.
"He's not very nice though." She said. "He's always yelling at Shippo when Shippo doesn't do nothing but bite Uncle Inuyasha's ears."
End Flashback
They didn't still think that she was at all involved with Mr. Takahashi on anything but a business level, did they? But then again…they were children. Kagome could probably kill Mr. Takahashi in front of them and they still would believe that she was madly in love with their mysterious benefactor.
"And here's Missy Sango and Miroku." Said Rin, pointing to a red-faced curvy figure that could only be Sango. She was holding aloft a massive boomerang that Kagome recognized immediately and lying on the ground below her was a bloody heap that could only be Miroku. Everyone chuckled.
"Here's Kohaku and Auntie Kanna," Rin pointed to two figures that were standing behind the horses, one was pure white and the other black and blue.
Kagome froze.
How did they know?
Was it possible…
But now was not the time to think of such things. Kagome returned to the present and focused on Rin, who was still talking.
"-Papa and Mommy." Rin said, now pointing to two very…flowery figures.
"I'll do them…" Kagome heard a whisper from behind her. She recognized the voice as one of the resident artists. Apparently she had been the one who had redone all of the flower paintings in the main rooms, turning them from girly monstrosities to works of art.
"Better you then me." Another voice whispered. "Make sure you get that health coverage before they get back though…"
Kagome wasn't even going to ask.
"And this," Rin said loudly, now pointing to a big pink ball in the middle of the paper. "Is the Shikon no Tama!"
Sango fell off the top of the stairs where she had been standing, tumbling down over all the people, many of whom were staring in shock at Rin.
When Sango had landed on the floor she stared up at Rin.
"Sango!" Kagome shouted, rushing to her friend's side. "What is wrong with you?"
"Nothing…" Sango said. "Nothing at all. I just…thought she said something else." Sango shook her head. "Okay…I've been spending too much time around Miroku."
Kagome drew back, watching Sango get up with an apprehensive look.
"I don't want to know, do I?" Kagome asked. Sango shook her head.
"No you do not." Sango confirmed.
"Anyway…" Shippo shouted loudly, drawing the attention back to the mural project. "Can we start painting now?"
Kagome looked around at all the waiting servants. Then she looked down at the three children who were all holding big brushes and were wearing the sunniest grins. Kagome smiled.
"Let the painting begin!" She said.
G
The mural wasn't finished until late that night, after Kagome had put the children to bed. But, once it was finished, everyone took a step back to examine their masterpiece.
Kagome looked at it in wonder.
A herd of multicolored horses were running through a forest. Their coats gleamed with colors she had never seen before and their eyes danced with merriment. She could almost hear the sound of hooves and fast paced breath. The trees stood tall a proud, she could almost smell them growing. Nearby a village stood, and each servant had painted themselves as a villager. Their faces were all made of purples and reds and greens and yellows. In front of them all Kaede sat quietly, Shippo, Rin and Satsuki in her lap. In the forest was the well, set apart from the horses. She was climbing out of it, and a figure wearing traditional red clothing and with long silver hair was standing there waiting for her. But Kagome could not see his face. The same went for the other two figures that were sitting next to each other on a hill. They were so amazingly beautiful and graceful all the same though. And then there was Kagome's favorite part of the mural, an angry Sango standing over a cowering Miroku with a massive boomerang in her hand.
"Well." Kagome said, clapping her hands together. "I think that this is a job well done." All around her people nodded and smiled in happy agreement. "And I, for one, am going to bed now." And with that she and everyone else laughed and walked off to bed.
G
It was nearly three o'clock in the morning. Inuyasha and Miroku had read the whole night through. When Miroku had realized that daylight soon would be dawning he and Inuyasha had looked in one last book and then left. Inuyasha was now taking one last stroll through his home to make sure that nothing was wrong. Even though sleep was calling to him like a melody so entrancing.
And since Inuyasha was all alone he began to sing softly to himself.
"It's three o'clock in the morning, we've danced the whole night through." He sang softly. "And daylight soon will be dawning, just one more dance with you." He stepped into the Entry Hall, one of the last places still lit by moonlight. "That melody so entrancing, seems to be made for us two. I could just keep right on dancing forever dear with-WHAT THE FCK!"
Now, in defense of Inuyasha's tongue it's not every day that you walk through your house and look up to find the face of your hated half-brother painted on the wall.
Well, how'd it go? I know that you must all be getting impatient for Inuyasha and Kagome to meet, but the circumstances have to be perfect. I also thought that this chapter was a little weak in the middle. What did you think? Remember to review! Pretty, pretty please!
Sincerely
Pwalefriend