Disclaimer: I do not own Inuyasha.

A/N: Ask and ye shall receive oh reviewers of mine! Here is the next chapter. Forgive me if there are any editing errors but I have to post this quickly before Bruce catches me doing something besides working on work-work, the shark.(sigh)

Chapter 6 - Kagome's First Day

The first day of Kagome's job went much smoother than most had suspected. Sango, Miroku, Kikyou and Sesshoumaru had all expected the new girl to have problems adjusting to the obscenely strict environment that was Taisho Command. Kikyou had feared some sort of violent confrontation between her boss and her younger sister. Inuyasha had been downright disappointed when it didn't happen.

Kagome had been dropped off by a cab ten minutes before six in the morning. She was dressed simply and professionally, but still managed to look lovely. She carried with her a duffle bag which contained training clothing, a few weapons she never liked to be without, a couple changes of clothing, and a few other personal items she would want or need in her locker (for instance a large stock of hair ties, you could never have enough of them around as any who uses them will attest to their alarming ability to frequently disappear).

She walked into the large and beautiful building which bore the logo Information Front in large blue and gold letters. The walls were made nearly entirely of glass, which she was sure would be bullet proof. Along one particularly wide stretch of the glass the company logo was engraved in an elegant foot-high script. It read, "Information Front – For the promotion of global understanding and economic growth through the sharing of information resources." At the large mahogany front desk she presented one of the secretaries there with a letter containing the company seal on it which identified her as a new class seven employee and her id. Smiling, the receptionist directed her to walk down the hall and go in room 107. Once inside the door she was immediately confronted by three guards who searched her and her bag, checked her fingerprints to verify her identity, and then presented her with the appropriate badges, codes, and information regarding her level of security clearance. Entering the elevator she held down both the door open and door close buttons while she pushed a sequence of numbers she had just memorized. She felt herself being lowered and counted the swooshes of passing floors. The upper levels of the building which were visible from the outside housed actual offices for Information Front, a legitimate international research and consulting company utilized to mask the headquarters of Taisho Command. Ten levels down the doors opened to reveal more security guards. They too checked her bag, her fingerprints, and her new ID. Next she was asked to read over a statement outlining the mission, ideals and goals of Taisho Command, then sign indicating she agreed to abide and uphold them. The main gist of it was something along the lines of ensuring the peace between the demon and human races, protecting life from the threat of an overruling evil, ensuring the continuation of peace throughout the world, protecting the balance of power…you get the picture. Kagome carefully studied the paper, making sure that she could honestly and forthrightly adhere to the principles indicated therein. After she signed it she was escorted to her desk, by way of a few other important places such as the locker and break rooms, to receive the day's instructions for her. A huge grin stole over her features when she realized what Sesshoumaru wanted her to do first. "Oh how I love this part…"

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Sesshoumaru had decided to have the girl do only paperwork the first week, extremely tedious paperwork. He wanted to see how a hotshot, top of the class and used to being fawned over agent would handle being taken down a couple of notches. Most people who came in with her kind of credentials were anxious to spar with everyone in the place, convinced that they would be able to take just about anybody down, either that or they wanted to be in on the planning sessions for the top secret missions. For the very first day however, there were some general housekeeping type tasks that needed to be taken care of in order to better ascertain who this girl was. He would not consider a person who couldn't keep herself from playing in public fountains an adult woman, therefore she was still to be thought of as a girl. After she was given the customary tour of the 'office,' and assigned a locker, he had a stack of psychological assessment tests for her to complete. Personality tests, worker type tests, relationship style tests, and even his own Roeschardt's (inkblot) test were among them. It would take her almost all day to finish them, and he was confident he would have a more accurate profile on her afterwards. Once he had that in hand he was sure she wouldn't be so puzzling and he wouldn't feel the need to call Peters for any further insight. When she was finished with the tests he had assigned her to do work for IF (acronym for Information Front), specifically a logistical analysis on how to persuade the agriculture department to lessen it's restriction on the importation of apples from Washington state in the US. It was a week long grueling assignment that was not even remotely interesting, or even really important.

As the hours went by Sesshoumaru went about his day, adjusting himself to the constant presence of the new and powerful aura in the building. It was similar to Kikyou's and Mia's but there was something added, something distinct, and yet distinct from itself as well. It was almost as if there was a part of her aura that felt like separate beings on its own, but he scoffed at the idea. There was not a way in which that could be the case.

Sometime after lunch he summoned Ikeda, Watanabe, and Higurashi into his office. As the three entered and sat he glared at them, making each nervous, that is except for Kikyou. Her aura remained calm and her face impassive, just like Sesshoumaru himself. "I would like for you three to please explain to me why I am just now finding out about Miss Hando." It was understood that his polite choice of words did not hide the fact that this was a command. "Please explain," he continued, "how it is that the two best friends and older sibling were unable to bring her to my attention before this? Why is it that I learned of her existence through Peters? Higurashi, you recruited Watanabe and Ikeda here, why did none of you recruit Hando?"

Sango looked at Miroku who spoke up first. "Please forgive us Sesshoumaru-sama, but I assure you that the extent of Kagome's abilities was unknown to us."

"We knew she was athletic, and had some miko powers, but we never guessed she had the talents she does," Sango contributed. "Nor did we know that her time in America was spent training under Peters. Whenever we visited it always appeared as if she was just your average college student."

"On top of which," Miroku added, "even you Sesshoumaru-sama, must admit that upon first glance she does not appear to be the, uh, how shall I say, type of woman who would be working at Taisho Command."

Sesshoumaru had to work to keep himself from growling. Watanabe had just reminded him of what had been eating at him since Friday night. He looked the three over, and then noted that while Higurashi would still meet his gaze, she had not spoken. She had failed to claim ignorance in the matter as the other two had. He did not wholly doubt the other two's honesty, but his young commander was not admitting something. "Watanabe, Ikeda, you are dismissed." They exited the room and the two occupants were left staring at each other. "Do you deny that you knew of the extent of her powers?"

"Yes," she replied, her gaze never faltering. "I deny knowledge of that extent even at this moment." Sesshoumaru narrowed his eyes and was about to speak but Kikyou cut him off, a move which both knew was not something to be done lightly. "I will not deny that I have for some time known her potential, nor that when she left for America it would not be long before her strength could grow to exceed my own, if it had not already, but even now that I have had a chance to spar with her, seen her reaction to you and Inuyasha, I still have no idea as to the limits of her power. I doubt, no, I am certain, that even she is unaware of her limits."

"What do you mean Higurashi? How can any warrior be unaware of their limits?"

"You will soon see, Sesshoumaru-sama, that my sister is by no means lacking in confidence, but she is also incorrect in her assessment of her own abilities. I'm sure you noticed on Friday how she disagreed when you said she was the stronger opponent. She believes herself to be inferior to me and our mother."

"Laying that aside, it still does not explain why you never informed me of her." The office had grown icy in its atmosphere. Those within a fifty foot radius could feel the tension inside. "You have worked here for over four years, and though you did mention you had a sister who was possessed of some miko ability, you actively concealed her from me. Why?"

"Kagome was seventeen, and already had plans to go to America for college when I was recruited. She at that point had no intentions of becoming a warrior. I and my mother both felt it would have been wrong for her to stay in Japan at the time, we wanted her to be able to live a life free of battle if that was what she chose. And even if for some reason she could not escape that lifestyle, we could not begrudge her a few more years of innocence." The mention of her mother had the desired effect on Sesshoumaru. Kikyou knew that he deeply respected the head of the Higurashi household, and the fact that she had been behind it, and not just Kikyou, had relaxed him somewhat. "Please do not believe that we meant it as an insult to you. What is more than that, I was unaware she had become a student of Peters. I knew that she was training with someone, but she managed to keep from me exactly who." After a few moments of silence Kikyou once again spoke. "There is something else that I think you would like to be made aware of, call it a peace offering if you like."

Sesshoumaru was surprised at the light manner which had come over Higurashi. He could tell that whatever was coming was going to be annoying in some way. "What?"

"I believe that Kagome knew she was coming to work for you, and that I was an employee here as well." The briefest of smiles flitted across her face.

Gold eyes grew, if perhaps, even cooler as they narrowed slightly. "And what makes you think so. I have been careful to keep you, Watanabe and Ikeda from her all day, as I wanted to wait before letting her know you three are part of the command center."

"Kagome took a taxi here this morning."

"Which means what?"

"Kagome never takes a taxi anywhere, she likes to drive too much. I think she knew I'd be giving her a ride home. That," and here Kikyou looked slightly less confident, "And she made certain comments last night."

"Did she mention my name?" He wasn't sure if he wanted her to answer or not.

"No, but she said…that is she um, communicated the idea that she would have to be very particular in her appearance for work today because she felt sure her new employer would be looking for a reason to ah…find fault with her. She expressed, um, a concern that he would find her, ah, childish." Looking at Sesshoumaru made it clear to Kikyou that he knew she hadn't been quoting directly, and that she had 'cleaned up' Kagome's remarks in order to make them sound more respectful.

Sesshoumaru wanted to go and interrogate the girl immediately, but something Higurashi had said to him made him pause and inquire further. "You said that when she left she had no intentions of being trained as a fighter, yet within three months of her stay abroad she began her training with Peters. Do you know what caused her to change her mind?"

"I believe it was the death of that man, Stanton," Kikyou replied, iciness creeping into her voice as she very nearly spat the name 'Stanton'.

'Looks like I've hit the nail upon the head,' Sesshoumaru thought, pleased at the development. "The man she married?"

"Hai, the man she married," Kikyou said, her voice deadly cold. "And before you inquire further milord I will tell you honestly that I do not know of all the circumstances surrounding the ordeal, nor do I fully comprehend my sister changing her name to Hando."

Sesshoumaru was not pleased. He felt that the truth was close, but he was still being denied somehow. "You are dismissed."

"Very well then sir, good afternoon." Kikyou walked quickly from the office and sighed once she felt she was far enough away to keep it from reaching the taiyoukai's ears. That wasn't quite as painful as she had expected. Sitting at her desk she pondered not for the first time the ramifications of Kagome coming to Taisho Command. "I hope they're both up for this…"

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Sesshoumaru waited till he felt Kagome's aura finally make it back to her desk, signaling she was done with the hours of testing he'd set for her. Getting up he made his way to her office, determined to see if Higurashi had been correct. He gave the door a token knock before entering, not even giving her a chance to reply. She was at her desk, and had already pulled out a file to work on, but she stood and bowed respectfully at his entrance.

"How may I be of service, Taisho-sama?" she asked as she took a rigid stance, placing her hands behind her back and her feet shoulder width apart.

He registered her proper use of protocol. 'Well at least she was capable of doing that correctly,' he mused. "Is it true?"

"Would you please clarify so that I might have the opportunity of making sure I answer correctly, sir?" Her words and face were polite and calm, but she couldn't hide the glint of mischief in her eyes.

Sesshoumaru felt his fingers tighten into a fist, but he knew that a look in someone's eye was not enough reason to strike them when their actions were without reproach. He wouldn't admit it, but had he not been looking for some sign of rebellion he might not have even noticed that little detail. He considered answering her by saying "You know what I'm talking about!" but he felt it would just amuse the girl. Besides that, it was an emotional way to respond and he, Lord Sesshoumaru Taiyoukai of the Western Lands, did not have such lax control over himself. His voice cool and even, he chose instead to say "Is it true that you knew ahead of time that I was head of Taisho Command, and that Higurashi worked for me?"

"I believed it to be so, yes." Looking at her eyes he now saw that they were the same dark brown as her sisters. 'Hmm, she must have contacts to change her eye color.'

"Are you aware then of Watanabe Miroku and Ikeda Sango as well?" he didn't like this.

"Yes sir, I believed them to be in your employ as well." She remained standing as Sesshoumaru had yet to sit because she was far too well-trained to ignore the required decorum.

"When was it that you found out? Surely it was not in America?"

"No sir, Peters was careful not to divulge any inappropriate information." She paused briefly, and then continued knowing Sesshoumaru was not the type of demon to repeat a question. "I realized it the moment I sensed you aura at our home on Friday."

"Explain," he commanded, still not sitting.

"An aura as unique and powerful as your own leaves distinct traces of itself on those who would be exposed to it for long periods of time. When my sister and friends would visit me in America, I recognized the traces to be the same as those that have periodically lingered on Commander Peters when he returned from trips here to Japan. Upon your arrival I was able to match them with your aura. When I greeted my sister at the airport, and again that evening when we met with Ikeda and Watanabe for dinner I could once again sense it, though out of the three of them your traces were strongest on Kikyou." Her eyes glinted with mischief once more, and strangely enough, pride as well.

Sesshoumaru realized what she had just implied, that because his aura was more easily detectable upon Higurashi it would mean that he spent more time with her, which in turn would be indicative of her higher ranking in Taisho Command. The pride must have been for her sister. "I had not previously heard of auras leaving traces."

"I am not aware of anyone besides myself who would take notice. Kikyou and my mother surely could if they took the time to teach themselves what to look for, but they have spent it instead on perfecting other skills I myself lack." Her eyes darkened and some of her calm demeanor weakened, though only for a moment.

He could see what Higurashi had meant about the girl's feeling inferior to her family. While he fully intended to investigate that later, he still wanted to clarify the situation. "The notion still seems odd to me. An aura is distinct, like a finger print. How could mine linger upon that of another?"

"It works in much the same way as how you perceive another's scent, I believe. Though I cannot tell, I know you are capable of detecting and recognizing a person by their unique scent. If one is close to another, their scent will linger upon that person, though it can be washed off or simply fade away. Auras are the same, but since yours is so powerful, Taisho-sama, it takes longer to dissipate."

Sesshoumaru looked the girl in front of him over. She was relaxed, but alert all the same. He wondered if this last speech was supposed to flatter him. 'Hmph, I am not so easily won over, miko.' "If this is true then why did you not recognize Inuyasha's aura and withhold your attack? Surely there are traces of it on Higurashi, though I know his is not as powerful as mine."

"I did recognize his aura, and if you recall I did not truly attack. The use of my powers was just a show, a test to see how he would react. I had no intention of harming either of you, I was merely interested in what measures would be taken to protect my sister. I wanted to see what kind of person my sister's intended mate was." She spoke as if this was the most logical course of action, and she knew Sesshoumaru could not fault her in it since he had done something similar in holding off to see the outcome of the match between her and Kikyou. He also noted the use of the demon term mate, as opposed to the human term husband, most likely an attempt to appease his ego or appeal to his natural way of looking at things. Peters was right, she was indeed highly cunning.

Glancing around the office he saw a newspaper lying on a filing cabinet. It had a large picture of IF on the front page. He glared menacingly at the offending object. Kagome noticed this and decided to venture a comment on it.

"Though I would never presume to make an assumption, Taisho-sama, I will say that I can see how being an object of public curiosity would be distasteful to one such as yourself," she said mildly.

"It is wise that you do not make assumptions," he replied coldly. "However, I will acknowledge that I find the press despicable, and I will also take this opportunity to warn you that when I am near you, or when we are required to be in each other's company for family functions, I had better not find any reporters or photographers about by your invitation. Doing so would be grounds for suspension or perhaps dismissal."

"I would never dream of it sir," she responded comfortably, though she still had that glint in her eye. It seemed as if she always had some secret delight, an inner thought which entertained her. He wondered if she ever expressed them, or if he even wanted to know.

After a moment it became clear that she would not speak further and he left, muttering some sort of farewell. In the hall he suddenly realized that she had been aware of who he was when she'd disrespected him at the shrine. Turning back he was prepared to give her a tongue lashing for it, but then he reasoned doing so would only a.) reveal it'd taken him this long to put two and two together, and b.) seem petty since she was at the time not a Taisho employee. He was annoyed. That girl was annoying. Tomorrow morning he'd have the results of her tests to go through, and he had a foreboding of even greater annoyance. He needed to work off some of the tension from the day, so he headed for one of the dojos, intent on getting some kind of exercise. Perhaps, if he were lucky, he'd come across Inuyasha on the way and he could give him a good beating. That was always relaxing.

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A/N: Many thanks to my genteel, gracious, generous and sometimes gregarious reviewers. Your continued support gives me all the excuse I need to neglect my real work (silly research papers) and pay attention to this story instead :-P