Disclaimer: Not yet.

A/N: Hey...sorry if this chapter was a little late. It wasn't letting me upload anything yesterday...but I'm back now. My reviewers got me revved up. Keep reviewing like this and the chapters might start coming quicker. Can't make any promises, though.


Chapter 5 - Secrets Revealed

Kagome and Sango entered the back door of their dressing room, hoping to draw as little attention to themselves as possible. The concert was once again set in Tokyo, and it was Friday night, meaning there would be more of a crowd than on Sunday. Joy.

Kagome was wearing black skirt, an almost a dark blue shirt, and black sandals. Sango donned a black skirt as well, only with a green long-sleeved shirts and forest green sandals. They both had their hair up in high ponytails. It was a rare sight to see these two in mid-thigh skirts...As for why they dressed so much alike for their concerts was unknown, even to them, but they did it anyway. Both of them were carrying their guitar cases and Kagome had a black jacket draped over her shoulders.

When they opened the door, Taiko and Rizumu were sitting on two director chairs in the middle of the tiled floor. Kagome was about to berate them for coming into their girls dressing room, but decided against it. It was about twenty minutes before the concert, and setting the two of them off would not be a good idea. They had practiced together after school, and Taiko and Rizumu had set out earlier than Kagome and Sango had, but had promised to arrive soon. Thirty minutes later, they had.

Tai shook his head and stood up, obviously impatient because of their late arrival. But instead of reprimanding them as he usually would have, he took a glance at the large wooden door blocking them from insanity. "It's a mob out there. Looks like we got a full house tonight."

Kagome set her guitar case on the floor and flashed a wide smile. "That's great! Except for one exception." Her smile slowly faltered as she unlocked the case and pulled her red electric out, glancing briefly at Sango. "Think they'll recognize us?"

Sango followed suit and propped her case against the nearest wall. "No clue. If they do, we'll just have to take it from there." At the looks of confusion on Tai and Rizu's faces, she chose to elucidate. "Two guys from our school are coming tonight, and they've already heard us play. Although, I'm surprised they haven't figured anything out already." She shrugged and turned to Kagome instead, who rolled her eyes.

"They're probably the densest guys in Tokyo. We'll just have to be extra careful, that's all," Kagome remarked as she pulled the guitar strap over her head. "Now all we need to do is hook up and we're good, right?"

Tai nodded and Kagome couldn't help but notice a smirk forming on his face. "So, do you have any interest in these guys that are coming tonight?"

Kagome began fuming visibly at the suggestion, and the temperature in the room began to drop a couple ten degrees. "How could I ever have feelings for an arrogant jerk like that?! He's rude and ignorant and completely dense, I don't know why you would even suggest that!"

Rizu and Tai started laughing after her outburst. Sango glanced at Kagome and saw that she was blushing like mad, the red dark tint appearing as if it would stain her cheeks forever. "Whatever you say, Kags," Rizu teased lightheartedly and opened the wooden door, gesturing for Sango and Kagome to leave.

Kagome slapped Rizu's shoulder as she exited the dressing room. "Don't call me that. You made me lose my temper." She huffed as he sandals loudly slapped the tiled hallway floor, heading for the backstage. They were already late as it was.

Very soon the four came to a double set of wooden doors, and above them, a large sign that read 'BACKSTAGE. AUTHORIZED ADMITTANCE ONLY.' Sango and Kagome pushed open the doors with ease, and a rush of noise greeted them instantly. The shouts from the crowd reverberated among the high ceiling and long walls, and were heard clearly by the band members.

"Kagome! Sango!"

Kagome turned her head in the source of the noise, only to find their one and only, way too energetic publicist, Nanami, running towards them. She wrapped her arms around both the girls before taking a step backwards and clapping her hands together. "Alright, let's get down to business. There's going to be shots taken after the concert, for magazines and posters and whatever. Tomorrow there's a CD signing at the mall, in celebration of your new CD coming out tonight." She paused for a breath, seemed to remember something, and practically jumped off of her feet. "Oh! We have t-shirts too, which you'll be autographing along with the CDs, whoever buys them. 'Kay?"

Sango nodded numbly and tried to replay everything Nanami had just told them in her head. "Yeah...right. Got it," she replied, although she had forgotten it all already. "We have to get on stage. See you, Nanami." She watched as Nanami gave a short bow before leaving.

Kagome released the breath she had been holding and sighed. "Wow...how does she do that?" Sango shook her head in response, and since they were already late, they stalked towards the stage. As they took their usual places on stage, one of the assistants plugged in Kagome and Sango's guitars. Now all they need to do was wait for the curtain to rise.

It was only a few minutes later when the curtains began to pull apart and the cheering crowd caught sight of the band on stage. Kagome let her eyes wander around the crowd, wondering to herself if she would be able to pick Inuyasha and Miroku out from the mob. But when Tai set the beat on his drums, she snapped out of it and smiled towards the mob. The struck chords on her and Sango's guitars were amplified tenfold as they began to play, every note memorized like the back of their hands.

(Song: Why'd You Lie to Me?)

"I see what's going down.
The way you always avoid my eyes.
The way you act like you're innocent.
And I'm sick of the put downs.
Why'd you lie to me?"

"I can see straight through your lies.
What do you take me for?
You thought that I would sit here and take this,
Expecting you to be truthful like I was to you.
Now I'm pushing you right out the door.
Because I thought I could trust you.
So why'd you lie to me?"

"You thought you could hide it from me.
You weren't everything I thought you would be.
Every second I take is another you waste.
This isn't how it was supposed to be."

"I can see straight through your lies.
What do you take me for?
You thought that I would sit here and take this,
Expecting you to be truthful like I was to you.
Now I'm pushing you right out the door.
Because I thought I could trust you.
So why'd you lie to me?"

"I can't even see you there.
It's like you've disappeared from my life.
As far as I'm concerned, you have.
Don't you dare
Lie to me again."

Kagome sat on a chair back in their dressing room, Sango next to her and Tai and Rizu standing behind them. They were waiting for Nanami, so she could lead them to the area for the pictures. Kagome and Sango almost forgot, had it not been for Rizu stopping them from leaving.

Kagome drummed her fingers absently on the wooden arm rest, her guitar strapped over her shoulder. Sango occasionly strummed a few chords, out of boredom. A few minutes later, the door to the dressing room person and in ran Nanami. "Come on, you guys, time for the photo shoot!"

Kagome snorted as she stood up and cast a meaningful glance Sango's way. "Sounds like fun," she muttered, and more or less stalked out the door. The one thing she hated more than the enormous crowds and the claustrophobic feeling it gave her was the photo shoots. She was pretty sure Sango felt the same way, because she didn't seem any more excited than she did.

The four of them were led to a large room. Way too bright lights flooded the room, and cameras were set up in a semi-circle around a white backdrop. Nanami pushed them onto the backdrop and smiled. "Wait here. One of the cameramen will go through the poses with you. I'll stand on the side."

Kagome rolled her eyes and placed her head on Sango's shoulder. "Please, Sango, can we ditch Tai and Rizu and make a break for it?"

Though Sango wanted so badly to agree with her, she shook her head. "Come on, Kagome, we can't be that cruel to them." She heard Kagome groan, quite audibly.

One of the men that had been behind the cameras stepped forward and clapped his hands together. "I'm Mr. Hideaki, the photographer. We'll have to start right away. Now...Kagome, Sango, I want you to kneel in front. Make sure your guitars are facing the front, and tilt the handles up slightly - there, like that. Taiko, Rizumu, stand in the back, cross your arms and tilt your body slightly to the side...perfect!" He ran back to one of the cameras adjusted the lens. "Smile wide!" he chimed, and then there was a bright flash.

And so the torture begins...

Inuyasha still stood near the stage, Miroku right next to him. They were watching the backstage assistants pack away the amps and microphones.

Miroku turned to Inuyasha, a sly smirk dancing on his face. "How 'bout we sneak back by the dressing room?" he suggested, and by the time Inuyasha was about to make a comment about him being a lecher, Miroku was already standing by one of the Exit doors. "Come on, Inuyasha!"

Inuyasha scowled and ran to catch up with Miroku. "Whatever, you lech. S'long as we don't get caught." Actually, he couldn't care less, but didn't feel like dealing with any security guards that night.

The tiled hall was deserted. Inuyasha and Miroku's footsteps echoed quietly along the walls. Truthfully, they had no clue where they were going. That is, until there was a sign saying 'Dressing Rooms,' and an arrow pointing left. Inuyasha shrugged and turned left, Miroku eagerly following.

Kagome numbly exited the photography studio, one of her knees cracking along the way out. "My legs have officially fallen asleep. And there's a CD signing tomorrow? Great." She tried to work the kinks out of her jaw from smiling for so long. Sango didn't seem to be faring any better.

"Let's get to the dressing room, grab our stuff, and leave. Tai, you're driving back here with Rizu tomorrow, right?" When the two boys nodded, she sighed heavily. "Then we meet up at the mall, eleven o'clock." She could hear Kagome groan beside her.

"If it wasn't for the signing, I would still be sleeping. Why is everything set so early in the morning?" Nobody responded to Kagome's question, because they knew she would just retort to it, either that or bite their heads off.

When they came to the girl's dressing room, Tai and Rizu set off to their own. "See you tomorrow," Kagome called, and threw open the large door. "Let's make this quick. Mom said she'd be waiting up front in her car." Kea had got the night off and she chose to pick them up after the concert. She was probably already waiting.

Kagome grabbed her guitar cases and undid the locks. She set her electric in the lined black felt whole the exact shape of her guitar. Then she took out her ponytail and grabbed her jacket off the make up counter. By the time she turned to Sango, they were both ready. "Right. Let's go," Sango enjoined and practically ran to the door, Kagome eagerly following.

When the door was opened, Kagome could hear muttered voices in the hall. She figured it was just some of the assistants still cleaning up, so she didn't pay any attention to them. Sango obviously didn't either. But as soon as they turned around, they stopped dead in their tracks.

Kagome almost dropped her guitar case as she stared ahead. She wanted to run back in the dressing room and hide. But that would just make the situation worse.

Inuyasha stared at Kagome - her guitar case, the skirt, the pink top, and suddenly felt as if the wind had been knocked out of his lungs. "Kagome?" Miroku didn't say anything, as he seemed just as speechless.

Trembling slightly, Sango set her guitar case on the ground so she didn't end up dropping it. "What. The. Hell. Are you doing here?" she demanded, her voice raising with every word. Her mind was in a state of pure confusion and disorder. Vaguely, she heard another door shutting a distance away and running footsteps.

Kagome turned around, down the hall, only to see that Tai and Rizu were standing behind her. "We thought we heard shouting. What the hell's going on?" Rizu demanded, eying Inuyasha and Miroku as he glanced down at Kagome and Sango.

Kagome sucked in a shaky breath and tried to smile. She really did. "Hey...Tai, Rizu...I'd like you to meet Inuyasha and Miroku. The boys from our school we said would be coming tonight." She gestured to each of them in turn as if this was some sort of friendly introduction.

Inuyasha closed his mouth once he realized it was hanging open. 'Kagome...wait...I knew her voice sounded familiar! And that song, how could I have not noticed it?!' But the only thing he could think of to say was "Why didn't you tell us?"

Sango winced and began twiddling her thumbs nervously. "Well...we wanted to keep it a secret. Living with people crowding around you twenty-four seven and giving autographs everyday didn't appeal to us. So we practice at home and try to keep our outings as a group to a minimum." She shrugged slightly and glanced behind her towards Tai and Rizu for support, but they didn't say anything.

Kagome raked trembling fingers through her black tresses. "It's nothing against you. But you guys have to promise you don't tell anybody - anyone at all. Look, we have a CD signing tomorrow...You could come with us, if you wanted."

Miroku turned to Inuyasha and then back to the band. "We'll go. Couldn't hurt, right, Inuyasha?" he replied and nudged Inuyasha in the ribs. He nodded.

Kagome smiled in relief and turned her head over her shoulder to Tai and Rizu. "You guys can leave. See you tomorrow, all right?" They both nodded before turning around to leave, their shoes making dull thuds on the floor. "Listen, do you need a ride home? My mom's waiting out front, I'm sure she wouldn't mind. Tomorrow morning, come over around ten thirty. We'll be leaving for the mall around then." Before they could give an answer, she began walking down the hall. Her sandals slapped on the tile and soon Sango was walking next to her, Inuyasha and Miroku lagging slightly behind.

When they stepped outside, the almost full moon cast light on the grass and sidewalk. The crowd had cleared away some time ago. Kagome immediately spotted her mom's car, and with a slight bounce in her step, ran through the grass instead of on the cement. Sango jogged behind her with her guitar case repeatedly thumping against her bare leg, whereas Inuyasha and Miroku chose to stay slightly behind.

Kagome opened the trunk and set her guitar case inside, quickly moving to the passenger door. As soon as she opened it, Kea greeted her with a warm smile. "I'm guessing the concert went well. Who's that, behind you?"

Kagome leaned in until her head was just inside the door. "That's Inuyasha and Miroku. I'll tell you the story later, but do you think you could give them a ride home?" When her mom nodded brightly, she turned around to the boys and waved them over. They hesitated a moment before making their way towards the backseat, where Sango was already sitting.

Kagome rested her head on the padded seat and set her hands in her lap. 'It's been a long night...What I need is a hot bath, food, and then some sleep. I still can't believe they know...I just hope they can keep their mouths shut.'


Kagome: You better keep your mouth shut, Inuyasha.

Sango: You too, Miroku.

Inuyasha: Keh. Whatever. Like I would tell anyone.

Miroku: I'm sure...

Stephenie: Inuyasha, Miroku, you're going to keep your mouths shut, or I will personally staple them shut. Understand?

Kagome: R&R please!

A/N: Hey, sorry for the abrupt ending. I am so exhausted...I didn't get very much sleep last night, so try and ignore it if some parts in here are messed up...or just don't make sense at all...I think you'll live. R&R, if you have a heart. Later dudes.


Hey...maybe you guys should do what the button says. It might not be very happy if you don't...