I Will Find You Again
An InuYasha alternate fanwork by Wolfye Productions.

All InuYasha characters are ©Rumiko Takahashi, Viz Communications, Inc., Shonen Sunday, Sunrise and Nihon TV. Characters are used without the express prior permission of the aforementioned. Story concept, other characters and original situations are ©Wolfye Productions; this fanfic is written for entertainment purposes only.

This installment is dedicated to ISIMS and kikyo hater, who creamed my butt several times in a row to hurry up with this. My apologies, but life just simply got in the way.

Apologies to everyone for the extremely long wait. I've had some major personal and business issues hit me all at the same time, but now I'm ready for another go. Before anyone gets confused again over my different spelling of "daiyoukai", I would like to clear it up in advance of the chapter. I simply use the letter "d" because that's what it sounds like to me in the anime. But for all intents and purposes, it is the same word. Please allow me my creative tendencies.

Part 07: Disturbing Revelations

It had been two weeks. He had been searching for her ever since he had scented her those two excruciatingly long weeks ago, and still he had found nothing. Granted that Tokyo was an extremely large city, but he had had the absolute finest of his ranks on the job. Still nothing. In fact, he was beginning to wonder if he had just imagined the whole thing up.

He listened with only half an ear while his long-time acquaintance, Shuichi Hamasaki, rambled on about the affairs of his business to him.

Since he had come across the elderly human a scant ten years ago, he had taken to watching over the man through the financing of his business. It was a subtle way for him to ensure the man's safety, most especially when he had discovered who the man's nephew was.

He had been shocked initially to find out that the hanyou had reincarnated, and in his own twisted way, he deeply envied that fact. As a youkai, and as the most powerful to have ever existed in Japan, he was bound to an abnormally long life, prolonged only more so by his possession of Tenseiga. In truth, the mystical sword had refused to allow him to die, as it had demonstrated on numerous occasions over the course of time. And it had proved equally stubborn in its own demise, only to prove to everyone that the legendary Blade of Heaven was all-eternal. It was because of his seeming immortality that he had, over time, come to envy those whom led a mortal life, instead of begrudging their meager existence as he had in his youth. Countless times over the past two-hundred-odd years he had caught himself wishing that he were one of them. There was so much buried within his past that he wanted to forget, most keenly that which caused his chest to ache unbearably everyday for the past several hundred years.

"So Lord Sesshoumaru, have you found a mate yet?"

The roughed tones of Shuichi's voice broke the esteemed daiyoukai from his wandering thoughts, the question triggering his defenses. Shuichi was one of the few humans alive that knew that he was a youkai, and as such understood the predicament that he had found himself in ever since the passing of the treatise forged by the Holy Council over three centuries ago.

"My situation is the same as when I last visited your establishment," he replied ambiguously.

Shuichi gave him a knowing smile; his aged eyes still alight as though he were twenty.

"Ah, my Lord, you really need to get out more."

Sesshoumaru gave the man a withering look. He understood that the remark had been made in jest, but he was annoyed and offended all the same. He lifted his chin in a haughty manner, a gesture worthy of a noble youkai such as he.

"This Sesshoumaru refuses to consent to mate with a human."

Shuichi merely shook his head back at him.

"Well, according to law, you can't mate with another youkai anymore, and you definitely can't take a hanyou or a goddess. So what other choice do you have other than to mate with a human? We're not that bad, are we?"

Shuichi was completely unaware of Sesshoumaru's past history, and he certainly wasn't going to divulge the information anytime soon. He had actually grown quite fond of the human during the short time he had known him, as rare as that was. And it didn't hurt that the man's business turned a decent profit for him, either.

"Humans smell," he replied, giving a dignified snort. "And I do not intend to mate."

"But don't you need an heir, my Lord?" Shuichi inquired curiously. The Great Lord had never announced his intentions regarding his succession before, as far as he knew.

"An immortal being such as I need not concern myself with an heir," he stated with a final air. Subject closed; time to move on. Shuichi was highly intelligent for a human, which was the main cause for his fondness of him. He caught the hint and quickly changed subjects, much to his relief. It was bad enough that he had to deal with his many advisors on a constant basis regarding that subject.

Sesshoumaru inwardly groaned when he heard what Shuichi had changed topics to - his business financials. If there was anything more tedious and more boring than being forced to listen to someone drone on and on about finances, he would probably have to say it to be listening to the Lord of the Northern Lands recount his numerous mating excursions - in detail. But even then, financial statements came in at a close second. Very close.

His drifting thoughts were pulled sharply to the front of the store behind him as his sensitive hearing picked up the sounds of the metal doorknob turning, the predictable ringing of the tiny bells on top of the doorframe following immediately after. He watched with mild interest as Shuichi's eyes flicked over to the front of the store to whoever had just walked in, and thought it curious when he made no move to greet his new customer. Considering this kind of response rate, how was it that his store had been doing so well as of late? Ha! And here you thought that the great Sesshoumaru wasn't listening one bit, didn't you?

The nauseating stench of fast food wafted past his olfactory cavity as the intruder came closer, nearly causing him to gag. How in the seven Hells could humans consume that disgusting garbage? Of all the things that had come with human advancement over the course of time, fast food had to be the most wretched thing they had ever come up with. The stuff was ninety-percent composed of grease, fat and entrails. There was nothing remotely nutritious at all in the so-called foods, so why bother eating it at all? Sure, he had tried eating a hamburger once on a dare from the Northern Lord, and it had turned out to be an experience that he never wished to repeat.

Whoever it was walked right past him, and now he could smell the overpowering stench of raw onions and garlic - definitely not a crowd pleaser. But underneath all that, something decidedly familiar drifted past his nose, and he instinctively inhaled to try to determine what it was that he smelled.

He used his mental capabilities to strip away all of the unpleasant smells, the stench of onions making his eyes water somewhat as he did so. After countless layers that smelled like ketchup, mustard, onions, garlic and rotting meat were finally pushed away, his amber-colored irises shot open once his brain pieced the scent together, his back unconsciously going stiff.

It couldn't be, he thought to himself, as he turned about face, interrupting Shuichi in mid-sentence, his hungry eyes locking onto the distinctively feminine figure in front of him, her back to him. But was it her? Was it really the girl for whom he had dispatched his finest to find, to only come back empty-handed just yesterday? Was she truly the one whom, up until a scant two weeks ago, had been presumed to have died over five-hundred-years ago with his last and only kin?

The sacred word slipped past his trembling lips as he gazed upon the girl's back, her hand slowly inching towards the doorknob to the backroom.

"Miko."

Time seemed to slow for Sesshoumaru as he watched the female turn towards him, his sharp eyes roving her figure, taking in every detail and contrasting them to that which he remembered.

Once long flowing locks were now cut short to a shoulder-length style, wisps to either side neatly feathering her delicate face. All traces of baby fat had now left her, accentuating high porcelain cheekbones and a slim jaw line.

His gaze continued downwards, following the graceful curvature of her throat, to the budding lines of her now womanlier figure. The miko-girl he had once known had finally blossomed into a woman of remarkable figure, he thought with a bit of amusement, and she had filled out in all of the right places. If only InuYasha were here to see her now, he silently mused. Even Kikyou had not fully matured before her untimely death to the Shikon jewel, and he doubted she would have come close to comparing to the vision he now saw before him.

A short gasp brought him back to himself, and he watched as her hand flew up to her chest. Tearing his gaze away from her twin full breasts, he brought his eyes up to hers, suddenly mystified at the uncharacteristic sadness that he found there.

But before he could contemplate on that which he saw, Kagome finally spoke, her soft voice coming out in a ragged whisper.

"Ses… Sesshoumaru?"

Time restarted.

With the sound of her voice, it was as if the glass shield that he had so carefully constructed around himself for so long suddenly shattered. His heart began pounding in his chest, and the deep knot of anxiety suddenly formed in the pit of his stomach. He opened his mouth to say something to her, but immediately clacked it shut when nothing came out.

What the devil was wrong with him? Why was he suddenly so nervous to see her again? Was this not what he had been searching for these past two weeks?

Before he could make more of a fool of himself, Divine Intervention by the name of Shuichi Hamasaki occurred.

"Ah, Kagome dear," Shuichi spoke up quickly, curiosity in his voice as he stepped slightly between the two. "I see that you're familiar with Lord Sesshoumaru."

Sesshoumaru watched as several different emotions flitted across Kagome's face, careful to keep his own as blank as possible. He had always been amazed at how open and readable the miko-girl was, and was somewhat relieved that at least there were some things in this world that hadn't changed so much over the long centuries. Which was more than he could say for himself.

Her features finally settled on a look, and it was a strange cross between suspicion, surprise and perhaps a little anticipation. What a strange creature indeed.

"'Lord' Sesshoumaru?" Kagome asked, one delicate eyebrow arched in a manner with which he was entirely too familiar with. Her eyes seemed to pierce him to his very soul, and somewhere within him he could feel his heart flutter.

"Uh, yes, of course," Shuichi replied, clearing his throat in the process. He glanced nervously at the Lord, knowing full well the demon's predisposition towards humans.

Sesshoumaru, for his part, continued to stare at the suddenly defiant girl, eyes narrowed slightly in recognition of the insulting tone with which she had spoken. So, even after all this time, the girl now turned woman was still a fiery upstart. Perhaps his brother would have been pleased with this outcome, were he still alive. Then again, he thought, the two of them used to bicker a lot due to her obstinate attitude... and his stupidity.

"I see that you're tongue is as sharp as ever," he commented blandly. He was somewhat pleased when she immediately began to emulate the facial expressions of a fish out of water. But his victory over the vexing creature was short-lived when she snapped her jaw shut with a resounding clack of her teeth and instead performed the equivalent of an angry pout.

"And I can see that you're as much of an asshole as ever!" she retorted, lifting her chin high and crossing her arms in front as her chest, much to his personal delight, as it only increased her amount of already-ample cleavage for his ever-observant self to gaze upon. The thought of being angry with her for her obvious insult never really seemed to cross his mind.

"My my," he chided, softly clucking his teeth in reprimand of her, thin lips pulling back in a devious grin. "It would seem that your time spent in the company of my dear little brother has only served to lower your standards of proper etiquette."

His words had the correct effect that he was looking for when she immediately backed down at the mention of the hanyou.

Shuichi, for his part, was now thoroughly confused, though he wisely chose to keep his mouth shut. There was no sense in inciting Japan's most powerful demon's ire just to sate his own meager curiosity. He rather enjoyed living, thank you very much.

Now it shouldn't have been a surprise at all that Kagome knew of the Lord, as he personally owned a good chunk of Japan, not to mention a few islands in the South Pacific. He had also founded the oldest and largest international investment chains on this side of the Pacific. No, despite his Lord's tendencies towards being a recluse, his infamous reputation as Sir Sesshoumaru Inukai the XII was well known across the lands.

Instead, what had baffled him was when his Lord had mentioned her association with his brother, whom was known to have died over five hundred years ago at the end of the First Evil. How could this be? As far as he could tell Kagome was human, and his Lord had just called her a miko, so she couldn't be a demon. At least, not to his knowledge she couldn't be. Then again, what did he know? He could have sworn all those years ago that Lord Sesshoumaru had been human.

After a somewhat awkward pause between all parties Kagome spoke up, because Lord Sesshoumaru certainly would not.

"So..." she began, blushing and scuffing her foot on the commercial grade carpet in a very un-Kagome-like manner, "You look... different. Good, but... different. What happened to you?"

So, Sesshoumaru thought, unconsciously performing his trademark eyebrow-raising routine, she's avoiding talking about the hanyou. Well, if that were the case, then perhaps he'd humor her some.

"That is a rather... long story," he stated after a moment's hesitation, "...saved best for another time. In the meantime, why are you here?"

She looked at him with an odd expression then, and he wondered if he had said anything wrong. Perhaps not; he always planned his words carefully before speaking. She was most likely simply curious over that which he cared not to elaborate on.

"Umm... I work here?" Kagome stated in a somewhat questionable tone.

Sesshoumaru immediately turned his penetrating gaze onto Shuichi.

"You did not inform me," he stated rather than questioned. Shuichi visibly sweatdropped.

"It was included in last month's report," Shuichi stated quickly, hoping to stave off imminent death.

Sesshoumaru hurriedly reexamined said report in his mind, having just read it last week, and to his mild surprise, he found that it had in fact mentioned the hiring of a new employee. It just so happened that an actual name hadn't been provided, and at the time, he couldn't have cared less. Now he regretted his thoughtlessness.

"Hn," he said in response, wishing to end the subject. He turned back to Kagome. "You will have dinner with me tonight," he said in his most authoritative voice. To his amusement, he watched as her eyes grew to twice their normal size, then narrow dangerously into thin little slits as her more than supple lips contorted into a thin line.

"Ex-CUSE me?" Kagome replied in a threatening voice. Shuichi blinked. What in the world had happened to his cheerful and quiet employee?

Sesshoumaru grinned back in response. Despite the dulled change in her scent, her fire was still as scorching as ever.

"As you are aware, I am not in the business of repeating myself."

She got even more pissed off with that statement, and he found that he was enjoying every second of it.

Kagome stomped her foot on the carpeted floor, the sheer force behind the impact causing the sound to echo in the small store. Good thing they were the only people there, thought Shuichi, taking a few steps back from the angry woman. Even from back here, he could swear he could still feel her aura pulsing, and he was just a typical human! Scary. And to his utter shock and dismay, he watched as the girl took two brazen steps forward to stand toe-to-toe with the high demon lord and started poking him in the chest! Shuichi was sure he was going to faint.

"Just who in the hell do you think you are, jackass!" Kagome practically screamed at him, his chest beginning to feel slightly sore where she kept insisting on poking him repeatedly. Sesshoumaru suddenly found himself starting to miss his old amour. "You can't tell me what to do, and I'm not one of your miserable subjects either! In case you haven't noticed, Mr. 'Lord of the Western Lands', Tokyo's on the Eastern side of Japan!"

Shuichi nearly choked on his own spittle with that outcry. Has she been living in a hole somewhere? He had thought that Kagome had known who Lord Sesshoumaru was. But if she did, then why was she so clueless?

Sesshoumaru merely raised an eyebrow at her. He need not explain himself nor his actions.

Shuichi quickly cleared his throat. "Um, Kagome dear, his Lord Sesshoumaru does in fact own Eastern Japan," he clarified to the suddenly mystified girl, who was now staring at him with her jaw gaping wide. "Basically, his Lord owns nearly all of the islands of Japan, save for Hokkaido, which belongs solely to the Northern Lord, Lord Mizukake. Oh, and he owns some islands in the South Pacific as well."

Sesshoumaru smirked at the girl's flabbergasted expression. She didn't know, which was odd since he was rather well known in the world. But then again, he did try to keep as low of a profile as possible to avoid human curiosity and suspicion.

"But... how?" Kagome asked, seeming to have finally found her voice.

Sesshoumaru finally allowed himself a small sigh. He so did hate having to repeat himself. And by doing so, he completely missed the second strange look Kagome threw his way before her eyes suddenly rolled to the back of her head and she collapsed in a dead faint. As quick as ever, however, he managed to catch her before she actually fell to the ground.

Shuichi nearly flew into a state of panic when he saw his employee fall, and quickly rushed to his Lord's side to see what was wrong. To his surprise, he found him delicately sniffing Kagome's throat.

"My Lord?" he tentatively asked.

Sesshoumaru paused in his perusal of Kagome's unique scent, though he didn't bother looking up. "The girl is fine," he informed. "She merely fainted."

Shuichi frowned. Kagome fainted? Whatever in the world for?

Sesshoumaru could just feel the questions rolling off of the human, and for once decided to oblige him.

"Most likely from stress and shock."

"Shock?"

Sesshoumaru decided to pick his words carefully. "It has been... awhile... since we have last met," he intoned. "What has she been doing to cause her stress?"

Shuichi thought about that for a second, seriously hoping that his Lord wasn't implying that she was stressed out from working. Honestly, how many times watching your life flash before your eyes in a day was too many? "She only works here part-time, but she goes to school at the university. She just had exams."

Sesshoumaru merely nodded his understanding to the human. So, she was attending college, and more than naught she was likely staying on the campus. No wonder they had had trouble looking for her; she wouldn't have been registered in the city's registry if that were the case.

"She was to work today?" he asked as he gathered her limp form in his arms, the simple question sounding more like a statement coming from his lips.

"Yes, my Lord," Shuichi hastened to answer, helping to gather up Kagome's bag and handing it to the Lord.

Sesshoumaru nodded again, his head barely moving with the slight action. "You may close the shop early today on account of recent occurrences," he said, turning and making his way to the front door. "You will be compensated accordingly."

"Thank you, my Lord," Shuichi replied as he quickly opened the door and bowed as the demon lord passed through. There was no answer; but then again, he never expected one to begin with.

He watched for a bit as the Lord made his way down the street, long silver hair glinting mischievously in the afternoon sun. Once they were out of sight, he went back into the shop to begin closing down, all the while wondering what the deal was between the high demon lord and his new employee. From what he had heard, no one talked back to the Lord without facing dire repercussions in the process.

No one seemed to notice the dark pair of eyes watching everything from the blackened shadows across the street.

A/N:

All I'm going to say is that I'm already working on the next chapter. Please sit tight and bear with me. It's hard getting started again after everything that's happened to me.