Chapter Three: Mushrooms on the Floor
A/N: Ah, just to let all of you know – those of you who aren't aware of some basic Boston things:
Back Bay is a relatively nice part of Boston. It holds Beacon Street, Storrow Drive and Commonwealth Avenue, three very nice streets/neighborhoods that really only the fabulously wealthy can afford. MIT is across a pond from the three parallel roads and the Prudential Shopping Center (a big, famous mall that sells expensive clothes, has a large Barnes and Noble and Cheesecake Factory) is about two streets down from them. There is college-style housing there so it is conceivable that Kagome found affordable housing so near to where rich little Sango Katagiri lives. (I love Sango's surname, by the way. .)
And ignore the addition problems I had in chapter two. If any of you beautiful people even noticed… –
Sango Katagiri considered herself to be a reasonable sort of girl. There was a lot in life she put up with, a lot of people who annoyed her, a lot of problems that could have had better situations had certain people only thought through the entire difficulty…
But this, apparently, was not one of them.
Sango's townhouse on Commonwealth Ave was a nice thing. Bought for her by her late father, lived in by her little brother and her boyfriend, it was really a home. It was made of brick with a wrought iron fence and went up four stories. Four flagstone steps led to the heavy, wooden door some strange color in between blue and purple.
Inside was usually tidy, black and white photos lined hallways and accentuated rooms. The pictures in color were beautiful – some of them in explosive colors that jumped off the page, but most were not. Most were done in soft greys, blues and greens, calling to mind a misty mountain morning in some Asiatic country where men worked in rice fields dug into steppes.
And so, back to the important part of what was happening (Sango):
There were things Sango could put up with, and things she couldn't. One of which happened to be her little brother and his eating habits.
"Arrraagh!"
Sango lifted her foot from the cheesy pizza box she had stepped in. The Persian rug of geometric shapes based mostly in a deep shade of crimson was dotted with the festive grey confetti of week old mushrooms. Papers were strewn about, some with writing, most without, and empty soda cans covered every surface that was not covered with more food items. A lot of them didn't even have coasters.
Okay, make that "mostly empty cans".
Sango's fists curled as the can she accidentally knocked over from its precarious perch on the lid of an antique, porcelain vase fell to the floor, spilling dark cola.
"KOHAKU!"
The effect was immediate. Two pairs of hurried steps thundered down the stairs. The first to arrive was a tall, thin boy with freckles. His puffy hair was pulled back in a short, high ponytail and his cheeks were dotted with freckles, lending the college student a childish air.
He stopped in the doorway, panting.
"What?"
Sango gestured to the room. "I give you the entire living room for your studies and this is how you treat it? What is this? This is disgusting!"
A winsome man appeared behind Kohaku, a smirk on his lips and a twinkle in his purple-blue eyes (that matched the front door). He leaned against the jamb, his arms crossed over his chest, a tight purple tee shirt that strategically emphasized his unique eyes stretched over defined pecs and biceps. His dark hair was pulled back in a small, low ponytail. Baggy charcoal pants hung over bare feet, and Sango couldn't help but give an internal shiver at the ultimate masculinity he exuded, even while she was so angry.
"This is all your fault, Monk," she spat, turning on the newcomer. "You're a bad influence."
"I always clean up after myself," he disagreed, his smile still on his face. "You know that."
Sango scowled. "How is it that everything you say comes out dirty?"
Miroku's lip curled over his eyetooth. Sango blew out her breath in a huff, making her bangs puff up, before she returned her attention to her younger brother.
"Clean this up! I can't believe you're doing this to my house."
"I'm in college and I'm a guy! What do you expect?"
"I expect you to take care of your things! How do you do anything? How do you find anything? Look at my foot! It's covered in cheese! Why are there mushrooms all over the floor? If you don't like them, why do you order them on your pizza?"
"If you like, I'll take care of the cheese for you, Sango, dear, or any other foodstuffs you might find covering your body."
"Shut it, Monk!"
"I like the taste they leave on the pizza," Kohaku explained. "But the actual mushroom flavor itself is too strong."
Sango threw her hands up in the air. "This is impossible! You're both disgusting!"
And she hopped down the hall, her cheesy foot in the air behind her. Miroku followed her to the stairs, peering up at her though the railing as she struggled to climb up on one foot.
"Sango, if you like, I will carry you up the steps for I am willing to suffer to be in such beauty as yours, though I would hardly call it suffering to hold your firm, supple-"
"One more word, Monk," Sango growled down at him. "And I will make you eat the mushrooms from the floor."
"Sango, dear…"
"And I won't let you use your mouth."
Miroku's mouth snapped shut and Sango continued her way to her bathroom. Chuckling to himself, Miroku tugged on the golden hoops in his right ear and returned to the living room to help Kohaku clean.
Typically on Saturdays, people who work during the week or go to school (or both) are able to rest and relax without issue. They may take the time to do some food shopping or sleep or eat food. Saturdays are days of rest and enjoyment, freeing the human soul from the difficult tasks of life.
Kagome Higurashi was woken up by her door slamming open and banging against her wall.
Kagome shot up in bed, her arms flailing and tangling in her limbs. She fought them off in her frenzied state of half-asleep and ended up rolling off the bed. Thankfully, her bed was simply a mattress on the floor and she only fell a foot, but still.
Not a happy way to wake up, I (and Kagome) can tell you.
"Disgusting!" screeched the grating voice. "This dwelling his far beneath my master's standards! It's like the home of pigs! Or peasantry!"
Kagome took one corner of her pillow and flung it sideways like a Frisbee at the squat man across the room. A muffled squawk made Kagome smile and drop back to the floor to sleep a bit longer as the short man was felled by her fluffy pillow.
Seconds later, the sheet was ripped away from her poor body.
"Get up, wench!"
This was a moment for weeping, Kagome rued as she clutched her arms around her torso. What a terrible fate, to be attacked by such… a strange man… in her… home?
A strange man was in her home?
A strange man was in her home!
On this beautiful September morning in the Back Bay of Boston city a terrible, feminine scream cut through the eardrums of all within a mile radius.
"Be silent, you loud woman!"
Kagome stood in a fighting position, her feet shoulder length apart, another pillow grasped firmly in her hands. The short man was covered in warts and barely had a nose. He was about four feet tall, total, and wore a disgusting suit of a hideous brown color. And a strange little hat.
"Get out of here, you freak! Get out of my house!" Kagome screamed at him.
"This sty is little more than a hovel, you insolent female!" returned the little man. "It's hardly worthy to be called a house or home to anything than the lowest sort of creature!"
Kagome let lose a growl of rage and flung the pillow at the short man. It slammed him into the wall with its force and he dropped to the floor, his face blank and unconscious.
Just as she was about to smile smugly and do a victory lap around the room, a strange, flirty ringtone came from a pocket in the man's suit.
What a strange ringtone, thought Kagome as she made her way through sheets and pillows to the little guy.
Kagome dug into his pocket and pulled out a sleek black phone. Flipping it open, she put it to her ear but before she could speak…
"Jaken, have you obtained the girl yet? Bring her to the office immediately or there will be repercussions."
And a dial tone.
Kagome looked at the phone in disgust. What- no goodbye? No hello? No is-this-even-Jaken?
She looked down at the ugly creature.
Yup. Definitely a "Jaken". Lordy, what an ugly name.
The voice… that man sounded familiar. What was going o- oh yeah. That.
Sighing, Kagome's shoulders slumped as she made her way over to the simple wooden drawer against the wall. She pulled out some things and went to the bathroom to get ready to face the day. Whatever was going to happen, she hoped it would pass more quickly because it already felt like she'd been up forever.
A/N: Okay guys, here's the big Q: Would you all prefer longer chapters more spaced out or shorter chapters closer together? I've been writing long chapters (I'm only halfway through the full chapter three, this is like a mini chap) but I can break them up like this if you all want. So let me know.