Disclaimer: I do not own Inuyasha, nor do I profit from using its trademarks in any material way.
Author's Note: This chapter probably should have gone up with the last, so I'm posting them consecutively. Hopefully, this will clear up some confusion.
By the way, Kagome is telling this story in the present tense. She's remembering events, and those are told in the past. But this story is told in first person, and must therefore reflect Kagome's state of mind. As she is broken down further and further by Fukouka's torturing, her story will become more and more detached. It will still be coherent, but the events may not happen in chronological order.
In summary, the shower stuff in the last chapter was Kagome's present, and the first part here is also in her present. Everything else already happened.
Chapter 9, Reprise
I'm alone now. Well, as alone as I ever am in this shit hole. My tormentors are absent, non-communicating.
Every couple of hours, they wake me up, pull me into a bright room, and push me down into a steel chair roughly. Then Fukouka appears. And he asks me, "Do you still think Inuyasha is alive?"
"Yes," I always respond.
"And is he coming for you?"
My response to this varies. Sometimes, Inuyasha's already on his way. Sometimes, I don't know. Sometimes…I'm sure he's never coming for me at all. At these times, I bow my head so they can't see my tears, and I scream on the inside.
WHY DID YOU LEAVE ME?
But I'm getting sidetracked. I have to take advantage of this precious time. For this rare moment, I am alone. For this rare moment, I can finish my story.
(…)(…)(…)
I was, well, relieved to hear of Fukouka's death. I felt like now my life could start returning to normal. I went to work the next day without dread. I served my customers with an easy smile and gentle grace. I even laughed when the attorney general examined my butt with his hand.
Sango stopped in to see me at lunchtime. She said she was busy at the moment, but asked if I wanted to go out shopping after my shift. I happily agreed. Normalcy ensued. Well, as normal as life was then. Everything about the day was contributing to my smile.
And then I saw him.
He was sitting in the corner, cradling a pistol. His sun-glassed eyes were focused on me. He beckoned. I came.
"Can I help you?" I asked, pulling out my notepad.
"You never answered my question the other day," he said slowly, his voice threatening.
"I'm sorry, sir. I can't remember…" I said, my smile not faltering for an instant.
His grin contorted into an ugly, twisted line. "Do you know why you're safe here? Do you know why no one springs on you and brings you to the President this very instant?"
I must have lost all the color in my face, because his grin widened, splitting his face like a jackal's leer. "I'll have a vodka, and then won't you join me?"
I retrieved the vodka with wooden movements, and seated myself across from him. He was playing with his gun, running the barrel up and down his forearm so I might see and appreciate the bullets it contained.
"Curiosity killed the cat, dear, but it's not stopping you, huh?" he said, swinging his head back to down a huge gulp of the clear liquor.
"What do you want from me?" I asked.
Suddenly, I was staring at him down the length of the pistol. It was all I could do to keep from screaming right there.
"Why are you still alive, Kikyo?"
I gasped. The next thing I knew, my hand was in my pocket, fumbling for my cell phone. I pressed number 3, and then the call number. It began dialing Inuyasha's cell.
Fukouka leaned back, cackling. His gun was still pointed between my eyes. "I saw you die, bitch. You died right in front of me. And then he somehow got blamed for it. You useless piece of trash!" His gun caught me across the cheek, and I tumbled out of the booth. My blood bloomed in a little pool across the well-polished floor.
I lifted myself onto my elbows. No one in the restaurant moved. The waitresses were cowering behind the counter. One of my friends was reaching for the phone. Fukouka saw her, though, and snapped the phone cord with a well-placed bullet.
So much for depending on his foggy mind and slowed reaction time, I thought as I scrambled to my feet.
Fukouka left the booth, still pointing the gun at me.
"Sir, please, you've made a big mistake," I pleaded, backing away. I muttered prayer after prayer under my breath that Inuyasha would answer the phone, hear the conversation, and come running.
"Shut the fuck up!" Fukouka shouted. He shot the floor in front of me. This time I did scream.
The government agents were eyeing each other uneasily. One stood up and walked towards the door. Fukouka made no effort to dissuade him. His colleagues followed, one after the other. So much for protecting the country and every person in it.
"You bitch!" Fukouka cried. "You ruined my life!"
Familiar words, I thought through my panic. Apparently, Kikyo was big on humanity. I placed whatever I could between the advancing Fukouka and me. I was headed for the door. If I could get him on the street, we would attract more attention, and maybe Fukouka would be less likely to act.
I got to the door at last. I reached behind me to grab the handle, and my breath stopped.
It was locked.
I stumbled away, back, back. Away from the creature that was still pointing the gun, and whose maniacal, twisted face showed no sign of mercy. "Please, sir…"
"All you had to do was deliver him. All you had to do was give him over to us, and you failed to do it. Was it love, Kikyo, that stayed your hand? Or, perhaps, was it your last rebellious act against your paternal Government?" Fukouka gun had slackened a bit, but he raised it with renewed force to my head now. My back struck the wall. There was nowhere left to go.
Several things occurred to me just then. One was that Fukouka was a raving lunatic, and I wanted some of whatever he was on. Another was that if I struck his wrist forcefully, he'd be force to drop the gun. Another was that if I pushed his arm out of the way and moved a bit to the left, his shot would miss. But none of these thoughts could bring action to my paralyzed limbs.
I was going to die.
And then, I wasn't.
Fukouka was teetering backwards, an arm wrapped around his throat. He fired and I ducked, covering my head. The bullet shattered the glass above me, subjecting me to an angry, piercing rain.
When the glass had settled, I dashed forward, and began wrestling with Fukouka, determined to get the gun out of his hands. Fukouka's elbow met my savior's head, and my poor boss fell backwards, clutching her newly broken nose. I renewed my efforts, my throat giving voice to the strain of my muscles.
Fukouka punched me across the jaw with his free hand. I pinned his hand with my body and responded by kneeing him in the stomach. Then we toppled onto the floor. We rolled among the bits of glass, the gun clutched in both our hands. I bit him more times than I care to remember, and his toes managed to form some dark bruises along my legs.
We rolled back and forth, the tiny bits of glass cutting into my arms and legs. He rolled on top of me, and pressed my poor body into the glass shards. I used my arm to strike his chin decisively. A little jet of blood spurted forth, hitting my cheeks.
The glass door behind Fukouka exploded into a tiny million pieces, and Inuyasha darted into the room.
"Inuyasha!" I exclaimed in relief.
That second almost cost me a lifetime. The gun went off, and my world went black.
(…)(…)(…)
"Don't move around too much yet," said a soft voice at my ear.
"Inuyasha?" I asked hoarsely. The room was swimming in and out of focus. I could see my husband's form over me, with his white hair and his captivating golden eyes. "Am I dead?"
"Sh," he said. I had never heard his voice so calming before. "You shouldn't talk, either."
I looked down. My uniform was all red. I felt like crying when I realized it was blood, but it occurred to me that that was probably on Inuyasha's don'ts list as well.
"Sh, sh," he breathed. "You're alright. You were hit, but you're alright. You're going to be in the ambulance in a minute, and you'll be at the hospital before you know it."
"Where?" I mouthed.
"Fukouka shot you right under your arm. I'm not sure what the damage is like," he said. He started smoothing my hair, which I found surprisingly relaxing. I closed my eyes.
"Stay awake," he said. I opened my eyes, and looked up at him. "You're going to be fine, just stay awake."
"I thought you said Fukouka was dead," I commented bitterly.
"Apparently, the police wanted us to think he was," Inuyasha said. He reached down, and started tearing his shirt into thin strips. "It was good that you called me."
"Did you get him? Is he dead?" I asked as Inuyasha gingerly started applying pressure to my side to stop the bleeding. I don't think I could even feel the additional pain.
"No," he said without looking at me.
"He thought I was Kikyo," I said.
Now Inuyasha looked at me. He frowned. Then, he put a finger to my lips. "No more talking now."
Minutes passed like hours, all in perfect silence. When I thought I couldn't stand it anymore, the ambulance pulled up, and I was being lifted onto the cot. Inuyasha rode with me in the ambulance, and stayed with me as I was being ferried to ER, a mask over my face to keep me breathing.
(…)(…)(…)
I woke up a couple of hours later. A nurse was freshening the room, airing it out or whatever nurses do. She smiled at me and came to my bedside. "How are you feeling?" she asked.
I nodded and smiled to show that I was feeling fine.
"Well enough for a couple visitors?" she asked.
"Visitors?" I echoed, confused.
The nurse went to the door. "Your brother and husband are here to see you," she chimed.
Now I was really confused. She must have the wrong room. My brother was in Government custody. And the thought of Inuyasha coming to see me of his own free will was preposterous.
Just the same, the door opened and Inuyasha strolled into the room. "Hey," he said.
"My brother?" I asked him, blinking.
Miroku walked into the room. "Hey! What's going on, sis?" He came to my bedside and kissed my cheek. "You're looking a little peaky. How do you feel?"
The nurse bowed and left. The situation relaxed. Inuyasha lit up, filling the room with his wispy grey breath.
"My brother, huh?" I teased, laughing at Miroku. "I can really see the family resemblance."
Miroku smirked and punched my shoulder playfully. "Well, they weren't going to let me see you otherwise. And with your married name on the door, I could use my last name and get in as easy as pie. They really need to tighten security around here."
"Aren't we at Sango's?" I asked, confused.
"Nope," Miroku said, stretching. "No, the ambulance just brought you to the nearest hospital. You'll be transferred tomorrow, when you're stabilized."
"Oh," I said.
"So, how are you feeling?"
"Pretty good, considering."
"We can always pump up the morphine if you like," Miroku said, laughing.
"I'm good," I said, frowning.
"Miroku, can you leave us alone for a minute?" Inuyasha said suddenly.
Miroku's eyebrows met his hairline as he turned to look at Inuyasha. "Uh…Yeah, sure." He looked back at me to make sure I was ok with him leaving. I nodded. Miroku shrugged and messed my hair a bit playfully. He kissed my cheek again and then walked out of the room.
"What's up, Inuyasha?" I asked.
Inuyasha walked across the room and sat down on my bed. He was staring straight ahead, in the direction of the door. "You didn't do so badly back there." He looked at me, his golden eyes capturing my full attention at once. "You're going to have to take it easy for a while, but afterwards…"
"Yeah?" I pressed as his voice trailed off. My heart was picking up, pumping anticipation through my veins.
Inuyasha sighed and looked away again. "I'm leaving."
"What?" I blinked.
"I don't know how long I'll be gone," he said in a resigned, tired voice. "Sango and Miroku will look after you until I get back. When I do, well, we'll see about it then." He reached across the bed and took my hand in his. The intimate gesture caused me to jump as my eyes flew to his face, but he was still looking away from me.
"You shouldn't be involved in what comes next. You've done well so far. You've learned everything Miroku's taught you, you've conquered your fears, and you've become a force to be reckoned with. But what comes next…you're not prepared for it."
"What?" I barked. "How am I not prepared?"
Inuyasha looked at me, and the look in his fantastic eyes caused my words to be stillborn in my chest. "Sayonara, Kagome." He stood and walked out the door.
It sat in silence, muted once again by Inuyasha's unpredictable behavior. It was the first time I had ever heard him say my name. And, strangest of all, the sound of my name on his lips had caused my heart to flutter wildly against my ribcage.
- Ichimu