Disclaimer: -Glare- Shut up and go away. We all know who he belongs to.
A/N: New chapter. . . yay.
AGE:
Inuyasha: 19
Kagome: 18
Kouga: 19
Naraku: 19
Miroku: 19
Sango: 18
Kaede: 65
A Dark Past
Chapter Twenty-Three: Questions and a Plan
He bent his head down and placed his mouth on Kagome's open mouth in a sweet kiss.
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That shut her up.
Pulling back in surprise, Kagome's eyes widened as her cheeks brightened. "Uh. . . Inu. . . I- I. . ."
Flustered, Kagome managed to mutter a bye' before whirling and quickly exiting the hall they were standing in.
". . .Um. . ." 'What the hell just happened?'
'What?'
'What just happened? Why is she leaving?'
There was a pause as his youkai tried to see how serious his stupid host was. 'She left.'
'. . . Why?'
'What do you mean 'why'? . . .Wait, were you even paying attention to what you were doing
Why. . .?' A small, cold stone of fear placed itself in his gut. What did I do?'
'I thought you knew what you were doing! Do I need to give you a chaperone?'
'What did I do?'
'I leave you alone to solve your problems for one second and you mess it up. Idiot!'
'Shut up and tell me what the hell I did!' Inuyasha demanded, panicked.
' . . . What do you think you did? You kissed her.'
'Oh, that's okay, I only ki- - -' There was a very long pause. Suddenly, his face flamed to a red dark enough to threaten purple, and his thoughts jumbled each other. 'I. . . kissed. . . her?'
'Yeah.'
'Oh. . . Well, shit.'
Stumbling to a stand, supporting himself with the wall he had been leaning against, Inuyasha decided to find her and. . . well, he'd think of what to do when it happened.
He knew going after her was a bad idea. . . He really did. . . But, like the idiot he was, he followed her scent - looking like a puppy that had lost its master as he sniffed the air indiscreetly.
He had only searched a few seconds when he found her.
She was leaning against a wall, looking incredibly red.
Clearing his throat, Inuyasha tried his voice. "Kagome. . .?"
Hearing him speak, said nurse darkened even more to a maroon, not turning to look at him.
Not being able to resist the temptation, Inuyasha chuckled. "Get any darker, wench, and I'll have to put you on a string, put you on a pine tree and call you a Christmas light."
Kagome slowly turned her head to look at him. Making eye contact, Kagome's eyes darted away.
"Seriously, wench." Inuyasha was now realizing the color was vanishing from his face - which was a relief.
Kagome swallowed before braving another look at him. "I could say the same to you."
"Keh, what'cha talkin' 'bout? I ain't red!"
Kagome shrugged, almost carelessly. "You're right. . . you're maroon."
Sputtering indignantly at her, Inuyasha huffed. "Yeah, right!"
Despite herself, Kagome couldn't help but smile and give a small giggle.
After a minute, she calmed down and stood up. "Guess I better get your dinner," she remarked. "C'mon." She grabbed his sleeve and pulled him along, their kiss totally forgotten and put away like an old family album to be revisited later.
"Stay here," she ordered as she reached the entrance to the cafeteria. She came back a few minutes later with a full tray.
"Let's go," she murmured as she made her way to his cell, unlocked the door - with Inuyasha opening it - and walked in, Inuyasha grumpily following.
Placing Inuyasha's tray on his stand, Kagome turned. "And now I get a question."
Inuyasha rolled his eyes before sighing. "Ask away."
"Okay. . ." Kagome stopped and thought about what to ask. It seemed she was never going to speak as the long seconds ticked by. Inuyasha slumped onto his bed, his arms bracing himself, as he waited.
And waited.
And waited.
And- - -
"Wench. . ." Inuyasha tried to keep his voice level. "Are you done thinking?" Unfortunately, he failed.
Miserably.
"Okay; okay! Um. . . oh! I have one! So, Inuyasha. . ." Kagome drifted off again, in thought.
Inuyasha lost his patience. "Here's what I've got to say, how bout I get to ask a question."
Kagome blinked and looked up at him. "But. . . I ask the questions."
Inuyasha shrugged. "Don't you think I feel a little. . . weird, having you digging at me with questions, but I don't know a thing about you?"
Kagome sighed before rolling her eyes. "Fine, ask away."
"Where's Miroku?"
". . . Miroku?"
"Yeah, Miroku - you know, my real nurse?"
". . . If you really have to know, he's seeing his sick mother in the hospital - which I think is totally honorable!" Kagome added at Inuyasha's look.
"Keh. . ." Inuyasha's voice was soft. "You think. . . what he's going. . . is honorable?
Idiot!"
Kagome glared. "It is! He visiting his sick mother- - -"
Inuyasha didn't raise his voice as he interrupted her. "Who died when Miroku was seven."
"- - -and. . . what?" Kagome broke off and asked.
Rolling his eyes, he replied, "Let me say it slowly - Miroku's. . . mother. . . died. . . when. . . he. . . was. . . seven."
It took a full minute for that to sink in. When it finally did, Kagome smiled. "Stop joking."
Rolling his eyes at her idiocy, Inuyasha snapped, "Why the hell would I joke?"
Another minute passed.
"So. . . you're not. . .?"
"Joking?" Inuyasha filled in. "No."
Another minute.
"He's not visiting. . .?"
"His mother? No."
Another minute.
"So. . . all this time he's been somewhere else. . . basically partying?"
Inuyasha shrugged. "I dunno; maybe."
There was another pause.
Kagome growled. "Great. . . I was tricked into watching you."
"No shit, Sherlock," Inuyasha muttered.
There was another short pause.
"So. . . now my question." Kagome smiled at him, suddenly bright.
Inuyasha rolled his eyes and tch'ed at the sudden change of atmosphere - way too happy. . .
"Fine," he grumbled.
"Who do you think is closest to you?"
Inuyasha gave her a look that suggested her head had fallen off and rolled away.
"Like a friend or family member," she enlightened him.
Inuyasha shrugged again. " I dunno." His tone was nonchalant.
His eyes wouldn't meet hers.
His ears were slightly tilted in a hidden droop.
The topic died there.
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There was a hesitant knock at the door and Kaede didn't even glance up form her paperwork as she called, "Come in."
The door opened and she glanced up. "Sango," she murmured, giving a signature to the bottom of a small file before slapping that paper onto her done pile and starting the next one.
"Yes, Mistress Kaede. . . uh. . . there was a slight problem during a session today. . ."
Kaede didn't even bat an eye as she continued to rapidly summarize the month's progress with one of younger patients. "What is it?"
"Well, it's Inuyasha- - -"
Kaede's head snapped up. "What happened?" she demanded.
"Uh. . ." Sango sputtered under the stony stare the elderly woman was giving her. "I. . . I was in the middle of a session with him when he left on me."
"Did he just leave?"
"Well. . ."
"Did he just leave?" Kaede repeated, more stern this time.
"No, he cursed at me and then left."
Kaede studied her for a long minute.
Finally, she sighed. "We'll have to report this. . ."
She reached over her desk and picked up the receiver of her cream, corded phone. She dialed a number and listened for a few seconds before hitting a button and putting the receiver back down.
The button had been speaker phone.
There was a few rings before there was a click and a professional voice drilled off a long title before asking, "How can I help you?"
"This is Kaede," was the elderly woman's brisk reply. "I have a report."
"Of course, I'll connect you right away."
There was another click, a short pause, and then a few more rings.
Finally, there was another click and an uncertain voice asked, "Yes. . . Kaede?"
"There was a problem."
"With what?"
"Inuyasha."
The woman on the other line paused. "Nothing bad, right?"
"No, nothing bad."
The woman gave a sigh of relief. "Good."
"There was an. . . incident today at his session with Sango."
"What happened?" Her voice took up a worried edge. "He never was good with that session. . ."
"Everything will be taken care of. Sango will give you a full and detailed account of what happened."
Sango blinked at Kaede.
"Good; I'll need one."
Kaede nodded at Sango and with a little persistence from Kaede and the woman on the line, Sango told them what had taken place in her office just moments before.
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There was a moment of silence as Sango finished.
The woman on the other line had given a few rants, but not much more than that. . .
"Just like that?" she asked.
Sango nodded, though there was no chance the woman could see it over the phone. "Yeah."
The woman sighed.
Kaede took advantage of the silence and asked, "What should we do? Punish him longer?"
". . . No, I have a better idea that might just change his attitude," she replied slowly.
Sango and Kaede exchanged looks of doubt.
Kaede decided to ask. "What?"
There was a light laugh. "I'm glad you asked. . . ."
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There was a long pause.
Sango broke it. "W- Wow, it just might work!" she sputtered.
Kaede said nothing for a long minute.
"What do you think?"
The elder looked thoughtful. "With some work, it might go well."
"I thought so, too!" the excited voice squealed over the phone.
Kaede nodded. "Yes, I do believe we'll have Inuyasha better by his birthday. . ."
Sango blinked in surprise. "So soon?"
The woman on the phone answered. "Yes, it shouldn't take that long, like you said, that n- - - What?" the woman's voice grew muffled as she apparently covered the mouth piece. "Oh, I see. Yes, thank you." She uncovered the phone and resumed talking. "I have an appointment, but we'll start the plan immediately. Good day, Kaede, Sango."
With that, the line went dead.
Kaede pressed the button to turn off the speaker. "Well, Sango, I expect you keep this under the table. I'll tell you how to guide this along the way as I receive more instructions."
Sango nodded, waved, and left in a way as though she had just been conversing on the weather over a cup of tea.
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So Kagome finally realized she was duped. :D Go 'gome! And now I have gone through and put in all of my cute little 00000000s that show time/PoV lapse. :) I rock.
Ja ne!