Ton Up
By: The Hatter Theory
Chapter 13
Disclaimer: I don't own the rights to Inu Yasha
AN: I know it's a day late. I'm sorry. I'm remodeling a house and trying to work on writing and coding for 3 different sites. I do however, have a tumblr now, which I'll have linked in my profile for news on updates and what's censored and not and where. Hopefully it will make things easier and you guys can figure out if I'm being lazy or just busy. Also, I can actually reply to anons there, which would be a plus for people that ask questions but..leave no way to respond (and responding to reviews is against TOS pretty much everywhere).
Never, not once in her life, could she remember feeling so unattractive. Between the armor built into the base layer of clothing she wore to the armor built into the jacket and pants, she looked lumpy. In fact, she didn't even look female, especially once she had the helmet on. It didn't help that Ginta and Hakkaku had insisted on watching, explaining everything to an avidly attentive Ayumi. Added to that, even though it was early sweat was already beginning to bead between her shoulder blades and breasts. Her breath was hot inside of the helmet as she straddled the bike.
It felt strange, leaning forward to grip the handlebars.
Her stomach clenched nervously and for a moment she wondered if she could do it after all.
"Open it up slowly," Kouga shouted, barely heard through the helmet.
She opened the throttle slowly, determined not to be surprised when the bike began to move forward. Exhaling slowly, she began to move her legs back to the pegs. The bike jolted forward, her hand tightening and shifting it as she moved. Squeezing her hand on the break, the bike jolted and slowed.
Feeling like a child that had just had the training wheels removed from her bicycle, she kept her weight centered, going slowly down the flat stretch of the track. Every time it felt like she was going too fast, she applied the front break.
Breathing out, she heard Kouga telling her to open it up more and did as he said, feeling the bike begin to speed up. The walls of her throat suddenly seemed to constrict and she applied the break only to feel the bike begin wobbling precariously. Instinctively tightening her grip, the bike stopped wobbling.
Because it was leaning over, tipping with her still on it.
Desperate not to be pinned under the bike, still scared of the stories she had read in the manual, she pushed against the bike, her reflexes kicking in and helping her throw herself from the motorcycle in a split second.
Her body thumped onto the pavement, and though it was a thud, it wasn't painful. It knocked the breath from her lungs, but it didn't feel like anything had broken.
Kouga was leaning over her, eyes narrowed with concern. Lifting her hand, she gave him a thumbs up and accepted the hand to pull her up.
"You're using the front brake too much," Kouga told her. "You're tightening it too much. You need to balance between the back and front brakes."
She nodded, walking over to the bike and picking it up. She gave it a once over, checking the gas tank and the fairing for cracks. It had fallen so that only a small area was scratched. Sighing, she hoped Kouga wouldn't be too angry and straddled it again.
It was easier this time, now that she knew what to expect. She was actually able to smoothly glide to the corner, where Kouga had told her to turn and come back. Feeling overconfident, she took the turn, going right, and felt the bike tipping. Her hand rolled the throttle and the bike sped up, making it impossible to use her foot for balance, which she knew was wrong, but couldn't stop anyway.
This time the bike landed on her leg.
Suddenly she was thanking Kouga for making it so light, because it felt like a safe had landed on her leg and pinned it to the ground. Unable to imagine anything heavier, she pushed on the seat of the bike and got from beneath it. Kouga was already there, helping her up and holding her shoulders. This time it was impossible to miss his concern.
"I'm fine," She told him, bending both legs to demonstrate her point. He nodded and helped pick the motorcycle up. This time he checked it over, and she couldn't help but feel a little irritated that he didn't trust her to do it. Keeping her frustration to herself out of fear that he would stop the lesson, she straddled the bike and waved him off, determined to do a good job.
Recalling what she had read, it was easier to apply. This time she also paid more attention to her body and the bike, the road no longer stretching on in the distance, but only twenty feet ahead of her.
When she came to a curve, she tilted the handlebars and took it smoothly, almost letting out a whoop of delight as she managed to keep the bike itself upright. Slowly turning, she felt it lean and compensated, feeling it tip the other way and wobble dangerously.
Heaving a frustrated grunt, she righted it and completed the turn, going back to Kouga, who was watching her with a hand over his eyes to shield them from the light. He nodded approvingly and watched her pass him, making no other move to let her know she was doing alright or to tell her to stop.
Taking that as a not so subtle hint to continue, she kept going. Shifting, she felt the bike speed up and felt a rush of adrenaline even though she wasn't going quickly. It was faster than she had ever gone on her own, and there was a sort of rush just from the knowledge of control itself.
Knowing he would probably be angry but desperate to go farther than before, she continued through the first curve and took it smoothly, surprised by how easily the machine responded to her. And it responded to her. The subtle distinction between instinct and fear settled on her, and she focused on instinct, her body easily moving the motorcycle as she slowly took part of the lap before coming to another curve. She took it perfectly, but wobbled when she saw Kouga standing ahead.
Slowing, she was at a complete stop when she came to him. Pushing up her shield, she waited for the tirade that his frown portended.
"I told you to turn before taking the curves," He reminded her.
"I'm sorry," She murmured sheepishly.
"You're doing good," He said instead. "Your steering is perfect."
"The book helped," She admitted. "It's a lot easier now that I know what it was talking about."
"Alright. But don't go further. I want to be able to get to you in time, and with your friend here-"
She immediately understood what he meant. Though she had no doubt he would use his youkai abilities to get to her as quickly as possible, explaining the ability itself would prove difficult, and she didn't want to force him into that decision.
"I'll stay close," She promised.
He nodded and she pushed the shield back down and turned the bike.
The next hour went smoothly. She went back and forth, turning perfectly. When Kouga waved her down, she pulled over to him and turned the bike off. Pushing her shield back up, she gave him an inquisitive glance.
"Breakfast. Now that I know you won't vomit, we can grab some grub and come back."
She nodded and pushed the kickstand down and moved to get off the bike.
And tipped both herself and the bike over.
Kouga caught her and pulled her away in time, the motorcycle on the ground.
Her legs were killing her!
"Forgot to mention that," Kouga muttered.
"It's worse than when I was just riding behind you," She muttered, trying to step away and finding herself with a strange sense of vertigo. Swaying dangerously, she felt Kouga's hands on her shoulders steadying her.
"It can be disorienting, especially at first. Just stay still for a minute."
"The bike-"
"It's fine. You need to just get your bearings."
They stayed that way for several more minutes, until her body grew used to being upright. Kouga bent to right the bike and began walking for the paddock. Kagome followed, her feet still feel strangely puffy, even numb, as if she wasn't quite hitting the ground beneath her feet. Tugging her helmet off, she looked over to Kouga, who was smiling a sort of half smile.
"Is it alright?" She asked.
"Looks like it. I'll give it a once over before you take it back out. The fairing is aluminum so you'll ding it more than breaking anything."
"Was that intentional?" She asked shrewdly, surprised by his shrug.
"No one is graceful the first time they get on. I figured you needed something that could take a beating."
"What about you?"
"I told you I wasn't exactly the paragon of ridership when I first started," He snorted, giving her a look that was half frustrated, half amused. "The guys weren't either. Everything considered, you're not doing bad."
Kagome wished that sounded more reassuring than it did. When they got back inside, she quickly stripped down to the base garments and grabbed her bag, heading for the changing room. Eschewing a shower for later, she changed into her normal clothing and walked out, the bulky protective gear in her arms. The others were waiting, Ayumi chattering excitedly.
"I'm starving," Kagome admitted as she walked over to them, putting the gear back in the box with a grateful sigh. It wasn't that she disliked the gear, which if she admitted to herself, she did dislike it. It was hot and heavy and bulky. But it wasn't uncomfortable and it did keep her safe. It did not make her like it any more however.
"Let's get out of here for a bit," Kouga chuckled, throwing an arm over her shoulder. She flinched, surprised by the soreness, and he stopped, looking down at her with concern. "You guys go on ahead, we'll be up in a minute."
The others walked out, still speaking in an excited babble that echoed and rebounded in the paddock. Once they were gone, Kouga gave her a worried glance.
"Take off your shirt."
"This isn't the place-"
"Now."
Something about his voice told her that arguing would not only be pointless, but probably a bad idea. Doing as he said, she waited for him to walk around her. He paused at her back, a hand going to her shoulder.
"You've got a bruise forming. It's not huge but-"
"But?" She asked, worried at the anxiety in his voice. His hand wasn't moving, but it was resting very lightly over her skin, as if afraid to apply any pressure.
"Do you need to stop for the day?"
"No," She gasped, turning on her heels to face him. "It's just a bruise, I'm fine. The gear is doing a good job of protecting me."
He looked doubtful, and for the first time she wondered if he was regretting the offer to teach her.
"Maybe-"
"Maybe what?" She asked when he paused. It was a dramatic, nerve wracking pause, one that made her stomach clench nervously.
"You're human-"
"Lots of humans ride motorcycles," She replied, tugging her shirt back on and giving him a flat look. "I can either learn from you or from someone else. I'm not giving up."
He looked ready to say something, and determined to keep him from even thinking about backing out of teaching her, she shook her head and crossed her arms. She even affected her mother's hip tilt, knowing the effect it had on both herself and her brother even after years of seeing it. Kouga's frown only deepened, as if calling her actions.
"Kouga, I will learn. I'm going to get bruises. I'm going to get hurt. But lots of humans do it. You're not exclusive because you're youkai. You can teach me here or I can learn elsewhere. But I will learn." The last sentence was said firmly, and there was no way he could mistake the determination behind them, which had been exactly why she had said it that way. Ookami were stubborn from what she had seen, and protective. She was not going to be blocked from learning because he was worried about her after a bruise.
"Alright," He conceded. "But-"
"Kouga, I'm wearing two tons of protective gear, I'm on a track where there is no traffic to speak of. With you teaching me. There's no way for me to be any safer," She interrupted, voice flat. He nodded, acknowledging defeat.
"Fine," He said, taking her hand.
"I'll be safe," She promised, lacing her fingers through his as they walked inside. He was quiet until they stepped back out into the fresh air, blue eyes troubled.
"It's not you I'm worried about doing something stupid."
"I understand the risk. After Taki, how could I not understand it?" She asked. "But I want to do this."
His face darkened at the mention of Taki, and she immediately regretted bringing it up. Maybe she should have just stuck with saying she had accepted the risk. Seeing Taki limp with her cane and her prosthetic leg had been an eye opener, and it was one she was still sorting through emotionally. But even though she'd been faced with one of the worst outcomes of riding, she didn't want to give it up.
"Come on," She urged him, nudging him with her body. "You were excited this morning. And I'm excited. I don't think I could bear it if you were unhappy now. I want us to do this together."
"Alright," He sighed.
But despite his words, he unhitched the trailer from the truck and hopped into the automobile instead of pulling his motorcycle from the back. The others looked at them questioning and she shrugged, unsure if he was still worried about her being on a motorcycle or if he was giving her body time to rest. Not willing to argue with him, he was the one teaching her after all, she got in the front with him, not saying anything.
Breakfast was a strangely quiet affair, one that felt strained in it's silence. Kagome fidgeted nervously and couldn't stop the relieved sigh when Ayumi mentioned going to the bathroom, an oblique blink in her direction. Eagerly walking to the restroom with Ayumi, she leaned against the wall when her friend ignored the stalls and leaned against the sinks, arms crossing.
"He's worried about me. I got a bruise and he's just-" How to explain that he was a youkai and trusted his ability to heal and not hers? The more she thought about it, the more she worried, and not for herself.
"Talk to him about it," Ayumi suggested. "He rides, so obviously he's aware of what can happen. Let him know that you are too."
Kagome nodded, knowing that even if she did, the ookami would still worry. There was no way to tell her best friend that unless she somehow became immortal that Kouga would see it as a huge risk. And it was. But it was less of a risk than say, facing Naraku, or traveling through feudal Japan with a bit of broken quartz that had attracted everything from impish kitsune to psychotic, deranged youkai and even more psychotic humans.
Which, once she thought about it, made the idea of riding a motorcycle seem almost like child's play. Surely if she could defeat Naraku while handling the emotional fallout of her first real crush being in love with her because of her previous incarnation, she could handle anything. Right?
"It'll be alright. He's worried about you because he cares, remember that, okay?" Ayumi reminded her quietly. Kagome nodded and they walked back out. Kagome saw Kouga's expression and felt mildly relieved. Obviously the ookami had all been talking and Kouga had been giving a similar lecture. When she sat down she leaned against him and shoved him gently with her body.
"Smile."
"Or else what?" He grumped, giving her an over exaggerated frown, although the amusement in his eyes was clear to see, immediately relaxing any lingering traces of anxiety that had persisted.
"I'll taze you."
"Taze-" Ayumi asked.
"Only way to get old dogs to listen," Kagome said, looking to her friend and ignoring the choked sputters coming from next to her.
"Old dog?" Ginta asked, brow raised.
"Seems little sister has everything under control then."
"Hey," Kouga grumped, crossing his arms.
And things were back to the way they were, the rest of breakfast going easily, the conversation flowing smoothly, laughter erupting several times. When Kouga's arm reached across her shoulder, she relaxed into the simple comfort and joked with her friends, mind already on the track.
But when they left and got in the truck, both Kagome and Kouga turned to one another, eyes widening when their mouths opened at the same time, the beginnings of a word coming out, suspiciously akin to 'I'.
"Kouga, I'm sorry," She sighed.
"No, there's no reason for you to be. I overreacted."
Kagome was not going to admit that she agreed with that at all, knowing it wouldn't help what she was going to say next.
"When I was fifteen, I faced down Naraku and put the jewel back together and lost my friends," She said quietly. "I fought youkai and humans and hanyou. If my mom had known what it was really like, I'm pretty sure she never would have let me back in the well. Actually, I'm sure she would have destroyed it. That's why she still thinks of it as a grand adventure instead of it being-"
"Horror," Kouga supplied when she tried to think of a word. Kagome nodded, taking his hand in hers.
"A whole part of my life was closed off from me. It hurt," She admitted. "But it taught me something most people don't learn until later, I think. I want to cherish everything I do have at that moment, and do the things that make me happy. I'm scared things will go away again, and I want to hold onto them and experience them before they do."
Kouga was quiet for several moments, regarding her evenly. His hand squeezed her lightly and he finally nodded, and she would swear that while he smiled, there was a flicker of resignation in his eyes.
"I understand. The guys said something like that."
Kagome nodded, leaning forward to hug him before sitting back and putting on her seatbelt.
They drove with the windows down, and she turned on the radio. The tension had broken, although she wondered if he was hiding his personal feelings in light of her confession.
The hands rubbing her back soothed away tension that she had not, until that day, believed possible. A relieved groan built in her chest and escaped into the air. Ayumi, on the table next to her, giggled lightly, turning her head to look at Kagome.
"You sound like an old tree in the wind," Ayumi observed.
"Far too poetic for how I feel right now," Kagome muttered, trying not to arch into the hands of the masseuse. "I didn't think leaning like that would hurt so much. It feels like my arms are going to fall off."
And they did. Two more hours of practice and she hadn't noticed the pain, not at first. But her whole body felt sore, like she'd run a marathon, which made no sense. Kouga had told her to go relax in one of the hotsprings and she had taken that as a direct order to go to one of the spas and get the royal treatment. What had been slightly strange at first was now a welcome relief from the practice she had put in at the track.
"When we go back to Tokyo I'm finding a massuse and going once a week, maybe more," Kagome groaned, the last word dragging out and ending in a muffled moan when the technician found a knot in her upper arm and kneaded it.
"Is it worth it?" Ayumi asked, amusement still lighting her brown eyes, making them twinkle merrily.
"Of course. It's amazing," Kagome admitted. That was the one thing she would defend heatedly, perhaps because of Kouga's doubt. What had been a small worry still nagged when she was off of the motorcycle, but when she was on it, learning the simple basics of driving took over. What she had read combined with actual riding and she was finding it easier and easier to take the curves and make turns, although she wasn't going nearly as fast as she had hoped she would be.
"Are you going back out tomorrow?"
"Yeah," Kagome sighed. "Kouga says I need to work with obstacles, so we'll be doing that."
"It could be worse, you could be paying someone to learn," Ayumi pointed out. Kagome nodded, knowing that paying for lessons would have eaten into the meager fund she had brought with her to the island for vacation. Since it wasn't she actually felt better, more relaxed about being able to go buy things, although for the most part Kouga and Yuka had been taking care of it, something she still wasn't entirely sure how she felt about.
Ayumi's cell phone went off and Kagome almost told her friend not to answer it. When she heard Ayumi say Eri's name, she felt a flash of guilt. Even if her other friends were turning into party monsters, she hadn't spent much time with them either. After what she had told Kouga earlier, she remembered that she had wanted to spend time with all of her friends.
"Eri said there's some big DJ playing at a club nearby tonight," Ayumi said, turning to Kagome. "She's telling us we have to go, she got us on the VIP list."
"But-"
"Even the guys."
Well, that settled her initial argument, although she wasn't entirely sure how Kouga would feel about going to a club. But if he could live riding motorcycles, she supposed a club shouldn't be awful. Motorcycles and races were loud, very loud. A club couldn't be much louder. Although the scents of the building itself would be a trial, he endured Tokyo.
"I'll call," She sighed. The timing couldn't have been better, she supposed. And while she had been out dancing with her friends, she had never been to a club with a major DJ. Reaching for her phone, she flipped it open and quickly dialed Kouga's number, holding it to her ear and waiting patiently.
"Hey Kagome," Ginta answered cheerfully.
"Everything alright?" She asked, brow furrowing. Why was Ginta answering Kouga's phone?
"Yeah, boss is just talking to Hayate about something and left his phone with his bag. Whatcha need?"
"Yuka got us VIP into some club where some big DJ is playing, and I wanted to see if you guys were interested," She started, awaiting the inevitable let down.
Which never came.
"Sounds awesome. Want us to pick you girls up?"
Kagome turned to Ayumi, who was still on the phone with Eri.
"Do you want them to pick us up?" Kagome asked. Ayumi shook her head.
"Eri said it's girl time before we go, we can meet them there."
"What time, and where?" Kagome asked, realizing she didn't even know the name of the club.
"Zensoku, Eri says we'll get there at nine or so."
"Ugh, I'm going to need a nap," Kagome groaned. It was just past one according to her phone, and the idea of being out late after her day didn't really appeal. "Did you get that?"
"Sounds good little sister. We'll see you there."
"Thanks," She sighed, closing her phone and putting it back on the small stand next to her massage table. "This is going to be interesting."
"The guys not coming?" Ayumi asked.
"They are, just, I didn't figure them for the club types."
"They might be going for you," Ayumi reminded her.
"Us," Kagome snorted. "Someone has to keep us safe from Yuka's party animal."
"I'm sure it won't be that bad. They'll probably be dancing with their boyfriends. You should too, you know. It is summer, and we are all on vacation."
"I don't know if Kouga even knows how to dance," Kagome admitted. "But I don't think he'd be the type. Besides, I'm not leaving you alone again."
"Thanks," Ayumi sighed gratefully, gratitude evident in the relaxing of her body. "I don't know if I could deal with being by myself in a club. So many people."
Kagome nodded, understanding in a way. She wasn't much for big crowds, but they could always skip out early. Yuka and Eri probably wouldn't even notice.
"So what are you going to wear?" Ayumi asked.
"No, not that," Kagome muttered, flushing hotly at the outfit Yuka had picked out. It was one of the tiny tops her friend had bought, a shirt that exposed almost all of her midriff. The only thing that kept it from looking like a sports bra were the sleeves and the high neck. It's only redeeming quality was that it was her favorite shade of purple, and she had a suspicion that her friend had bought it for her for just such an occasion, knowing that she liked the color.
But not the cut. Not by a long shot.
"You can wear pants with it," Yuka offered, as if negotiating.
There would be no negotiations, of that Kagome was certain.
"No."
"Kagome," Yuka wheedled.
"It's tiny, I'll look ridiculous."
"Kouga will like it," Yuka pointed out shrewdly, only to earn a dismissive sound.
"I doubt that." Because the wolf had been less than pleased when she joked about wearing his boxer shorts into public, and that shirt would reveal as much of her torso as allowed without getting her in trouble for indecent exposure.
"Kagome, do you even have anything else club appropriate?" Yuka asked, the worlds coming out in a frustrated huff.
Which made a good point. The only other thing she had that might be okay for a club was the tube top her friend had bought her at that store when they had been searching for race outfits, and she would rather wear the purple shirt. Maybe they had time to go grab some clothes, something that would cover her stomach.
"You don't. Okay, here's the deal. We can flip on it," Yuka offered. "Heads, you wear the shirt and whatever bottom I decide on. Tails, you can wear whatever you want and I won't complain the whole night."
That offer was too tempting to pass up. Her luck had been fairly smooth, especially given her lack of spills the second time she got on the motorcycle, and Kouga's attitude, which had gotten considerably better, especially once she had gotten off and proven to only be sore, not bruised or, as he had probably feared, broken in some way.
"Fine," She agreed, going to her purse and pulling out a coin. Yuka eagerly took it and flipped it in the air, catching it on top of her hand and slapping the other over it, a pleading expressing the ceiling before lifting her hand.
And a smile blossomed, the likes of which Kagome had rarely seen. She peered down at her friend's hand.
Heads.
In ten minutes she was wearing a short denim skirt that looked like it had been splashed with bleach and the hated top. With no bra, at Yuka's insistence.
"Kouga's going to kill me," Kagome muttered, running a hand through her hair. The only saving grace of the ordeal was that Yuka didn't have any make up that would survive the most likely humid conditions of the club, and she wasn't willing to chance anything running for any of them.
"Not even for Ken?" Kagome called out as Yuka changed in her room. Ayumi had likewise been pulled into wearing something, although it had only taken Yuka's gregariousness to bowl her over into submission, and no coin tosses. Ayumi was wearing a short skirt and a shirt that was baring her stomach, although it was a halter top with a v that dropped down beneath her friend's chest.
"They left this morning," Eri said, walking out of her room in a tiny dress that revealed more than it concealed.
"So you're going manhunting?" Kagome asked, brow raised quizzically.
"Maybe," Eri giggled, dropping onto the couch next to her and automatically adjusting her dress so that the top didn't fall below her breasts. Kagome rolled her eyes and shrugged, knowing immediately that her friend would probably be adjusting herself all night.
"Kagome, you should wear your jacket with it, open. It'll complete the look," Yuka called out.
The look? Kagome had no idea what look she was supposed to be going for to begin with. Not to mention the jacket would be stifling inside the club.
"Besides, you'll probably be riding back with Kouga won't you?"
"Maybe we should both bring our jackets," Kagome suggested, giving Ayumi an oblique glance before walking back to her room. Ayumi went to her own, but Kagome was still regarding herself in the mirror on the back of the door, jacket on.
"I look like something out of-"
"A magazine," Ayumi said. "You just need to let your hair down."
"I know I need to relax," Kagome muttered, still feeling like she was going to have someone ask her how much she charged for a night the minute they saw her.
"No, not figuratively, literally," Ayumi said, pointing to her head. Kagome looked in the mirror and tugged the elastic scrunchie from her hair and ran a hand through it.
"You look like one of those girls from the advertisements. I think Kouga will like it. You look like you ride a motorcycle," Ayumi said, voice clear with conviction. Kagome looked at her friend in the mirror and then back to herself.
She did look sort of like the girls that were featured in advertisements, although not nearly as beautiful, she told herself, eying herself critically. But for someone on the street, she didn't look bad. Shrugging she walked through the door and closed it behind her, wanting to get away from the mirror before she changed her mind.
"Let's go," Yuka crowed, Excitement making her voice tremble as she almost flew out of the hotel room. Eri followed, shimmying and dancing in circles.
"How do they do that in those heels?" Ayumi asked, eyes wide.
"No idea."
"We could lock them out," Ayumi whispered. "Stay in for a night."
"Will you two hurry up?" Yuka demanded loudly, voice echoing down the hallway and making Kagome and Ayumi burst into giggles as they exited into the hallway and walked to their friends. Kagome sent another small thanks to the heavens for the small allowance of tennis shoes instead of the strappy contraptions Yuka and Eri wore. Ayumi had not been able to escape it either, and though her friend walked with confidence, Kagome wasn't sure how long she would hold up on a dance floor, if she could get Ayumi to dance.
The drive was longer than Kagome anticipated, and it gave her plenty of time to become nervous with the clothing. Inhaling deeply, she kept her eyes on the road, wanting to roll the window down. But the moment she had tried Eri had said something about messing up her hair, and Kagome had been forced to concede. She wasn't entirely sure she was comfortable with admitting that being in a car felt too foreign now, and the lack of rushing air felt almost suffocating in it's way.
But when they got out, the line waiting outside of the club stretched all the way around the side, and she felt slightly better. Not only because most of the women there were dressed in clothing that made hers look absolutely modest, but because it meant waiting.
Except Yuka walked over to the bouncer and gave him her name, talking to him rapidly and saying that they expected three others and giving him Kouga's 'name'. And then the doors opened and what had been merely a dull thudding became a full force blast of sound and heat as they walked in. She and Ayumi walked in more slowly than Yuka and Eri, who almost ran in.
There was a coat check, although she was loathe to part with the jacket in a strange setting. Good sense prevailed though, she knew she would end up passing out from heat if she didn't. Already she could feel herself begin to sweat, the club itself packed with people.
"Let's go dance!" Yuka demanded, tugging at her arm. Kagome looked to Ayumi, who was being pulled forward to the dance floor by Eri. The look they shared seemed to convey a mental shrug as they allowed themselves to be led to the dance floor.
The combination of the people around them not staring and the loud music vibrating through the air and floor into her body made it easier to relax and dance, ignoring the others around them in favor of dancing with each other. Ayumi was smiling widely, hands over her head, and even Kagome felt free to move her body and lose herself in the beat. Yuka and Eri stayed for a time, all four of them dancing in a small group before they departed, moving off to dance with others while she and Ayumi stayed.
Her heart slammed in her chest and she grew more daring with her moves, rolling her hips closing her eyes, imagining for a brief second she was in the air. Even Ayumi seemed lost in the music as they danced together. Sweat beaded her stomach and she could feel it between her breasts and in the small of her back. Her hair brushed against her bare skin as she swayed and moved. Light headed and almost dizzy she dragged in warm lungfuls of air, tilting her head back in the hope that she could find a cool current, although there was nothing.
What had been a bad idea initially was suddenly just a good time, and Kagome couldn't deny that she was having fun just dancing, ignoring everything else going on. The bass bounced and throbbed, pulsing through her until she was sure it was commanding her heartbeat to move in time. The flashing lights were disorienting, even behind closed lids, and the noise was deafening, combining into a roar that became simple thuds and bounces in the air and floor.
When hands settled on her waist she turned, surprised to see Kouga staring down at her with something akin to stunned disbelief. Immediately she felt self conscious, knowing what she must have looked like to him. Faltering, she began to step away when his hands pulled her closer, until she could feel the button of his jeans pressing into her bared stomach.
"You look wonderful," He told her, although she couldn't hear it, but could only read his lips. No longer flushing from the heat, but from sheer embarrassment, she smiled shyly up at him. He leaned down, lips brushing against her ear.
"You'll dance for strangers but not with me?" He asked, and this time she could hear it, and flushed even more deeply.
At first it was awkward, because she hadn't ever danced with a man before, not really. There had been occasional dances in passing, the kind that didn't even last a whole song. But he made it easy to settle into, his hand running up her sides and then back down, as if wanting to continue but only too aware of the crowd.
Her courage began to come back, sparked by his heated stare as she moved against him, rolling her hips again and feeling his hands tighten on her waist. Despite what she had thought, he seemed to be taking the noise without any problems, and he didn't seem to mind being there at all. If anything, he seemed focused solely on her, which might have been unnerving, given that he gaze was predatory and she knew exactly what he was beneath the glamor.
Shimmying her hips and undulating, she moved against him, their bodies getting pressed closer together as more people joined the dance floor. For a heated moment she felt claws pricking into her skin, making her shudder, but in the next moment they were gone and she was turning, her back to him as she moved.
She didn't know how long they stayed like that, dancing against one another, his hands roaming over her body, barely within the confines of propriety. Once or twice she felt the tips of claws again, and shivered at the promise his grip seemed to insinuate. But when she pulled him away from the dance floor and over to the bar, she was gasping and out of breath, her whole body tingling with awareness and her throat dry.
"Water," She shouted. He nodded, going to the bartender and talking to him. She turned, feeling someone knock into her. Ayumi was giggling and red faced, as out of breath as she was.
"Having fun?" Kagome asked. Ayumi nodded, hips still moving. Kouga came back, two bottles of water in hand. He gave one to Ayumi, and Kagome nodded to the doors leading outside to a patio area where people were milling about. They walked outside, trailed by Ginta and Hakkaku, who were each carrying a bottle of water. Kagome wondered if they had gotten one for Ayumi, because he handed one off to Kouga, who drank half of it in several quick swallows.
"Having fun yet?" Hakkaku asked, still having to speak loudly to be heard over the music.
"Yeah, yeah," Kouga muttered, rolling his eyes. "You were right."
Kagome realized that she had been correct, but let it go. They were all there, and they were all having fun. Well, almost all of them. She had no idea what had happened to her erstwhile friends, but she assumed it had something to do with their hunt for men, and wished them the best. Nothing could dampen the almost giddy euphoria.
"DJ isn't half bad," Ginta said.
"The girls are good dancers," Hakkaku chuckled.
"Yeah, they definitely make it worth it," Ginta smiled. "Isn't that right boss? Or was I imagining you playing red riding hood and the big bad wolf out on the dance floor?"
Kagome choked on the water she was drinking, the analogy hitting a little too close to the truth for comfort. But Ayumi and the two youkai were laughing, and she cast a smile to Kouga, who was smiling despite the correlation.
"How am I supposed to resist a meal that lays itself out for me like that?" He asked, shrugging before downing the rest of the water.
"I what?" She laughed, not quite able to believe he had, of everything to say, said that.
"I walk in and see you on the dance floor begging for someone to-"
"Careful how you finish that," She started, brow arching. The others were laughing, and Kagome couldn't help but laugh with them, relaxing as Kouga came up behind her and wrapped his arms around her.
"Well, we could go back in and dance," He whispered into her ear.
"I hear an or coming. Multiple choice? I'm a lucky meal," She commented dryly.
"I could carry you off into the wilds-"
"What wilds?" She snorted, earning a groan.
"You are impossible."
"Practical."
"Fine, I guess I'll just have to let you ride back with Yuka, whenever she decides to leave."
Kagome paled.
Yuka would probably want to stay until the club closed, and who knew when that would be? Not to mention Eri would be with her, and whomever they decided to bring back to the hotel with them.
"So those were my only options?" She asked, turning to look up at him. "I was kind of liking the idea of the wilds, but dancing doesn't sound awful."
She was pushing through the crowd and away from him, easily making her way back inside and toward the dance floor. A hand around her wrist stopped her, pulling her back until she landed against a warm body.
And it was, to her dismay, not Kouga's.
"Excuse me," She muttered, trying to pull away from the stranger, who was, she supposed, handsome. It was a light handsome though. He was lean, too lean, and his hair was short and spiked.
"Wanna dance?" he shouted over the music. She shook her head, trying to pull her hand away. The stranger was persistently hanging on, not seeming to get the message, and his grip tightened to the point of pain, although she could tell he didn't realize. Maybe he was drunk, she couldn't judge anything in the flashing ambience of the club.
"Please let me go," She shouted, becoming lightheaded when not one, but three powerful waves of youki washed over her. And, if the feel of the energies themselves were anything to go by, she assumed that things would get very bad, very, very quickly if she didn't find some way to calm them all down.
A hand clamped onto the wrist of the hand holding onto her wrist. It would have been funny, except Kouga looked ready to rip the man's throat out, and more literally than figuratively. A strangled yelp erupted, heard even over the music, and she saw Kouga's hand tightening before the one circling her wrist let go, falling limp.
She took several steps back, surprised when a hand settled on her shoulder. Almost jumping from her skin, she saw Hakkaku, eyes narrowed hatefully on the stranger. Ayumi was regarding everything with wide eyes tucked protectively into Ginta's side, his arm shielding her from the people beginning to look at them.
"Kouga, let him go," Kagome shouted, knowing he would hear her over the music. Something strange was still flickering in Kouga's eyes, something too predatory for her comfort. It wasn't the feral sensuality she had grown accustomed too, but something far more sinister, reminding her of youkai she had seen in the feudal era, ones that had lost all sense and reason.
Like Inu Yasha when the seal on his blood broke.
"Kouga, I'm alright. Let's go," She shouted, moving forward. His aura sizzled against her palm when she lay a hand on his arm, but she was determined not to flinch. Too afraid of dulling his disguise in front of so many people, she refrained from using her power, tugging at him instead. But when he turned to her, brown eyes had turned ice blue, easily bleeding into the color of the flashing lights, seeming gold and red and orange.
"I'm safe. I want to go," She told him softly, knowing he would hear. The tension in his arm didn't abate, but she felt more than saw him release the stranger, who stumbled back into the crowd and disappeared.
Ignoring the flicker of fear that shuddered through her, she wrapped an arm around his waist and let him tuck her beside him and lead her out. Whatever the scene had provoked, she knew couldn't be dealt with in the loud club and in front of so many people.
"My jacket is in the coat check, and my helmet is in Yuka's car. Ayumi's too."
He was patient enough for her to grab her jacket, but he was not patient enough to find Yuka. Nor were the other two youkai. All three of them looked antsy, and she wasn't sure Ayumi understood. Indeed, her friend was taking it better than she had any right to, merely remaining silent and staying close to Ginta.
"Wear my helmet," Kouga instructed. Kagome nodded and accepted the helmet, pushing it on and allowing him to set her on his bike as if she was a child before he straddled it and started the engine.
He rode hard and fast away from the club. Throughout, he maintained perfect control, although the only thing she could think of was how it felt like the air consisted of dozens of tiny needles stabbing into her legs uncomfortably. She promised herself she would never wear anything short on a motorcycle again if she could get through the next few hours with Kouga without something awful happening.
Inu Yasha caught up in his bloodlust flashed through her mind, and she clung more tightly to Kouga, as if she could will away the anger he felt with the sheer force of her own need to not see it. Trying to recall the past, she couldn't think of a time she had seen him give into that part of himself, and he had been formidable despite that. What would he be like if his control snapped?
When he stopped they weren't at either of the hotels. It looked like they were in the middle of nowhere, and she couldn't pin down their location. The helmet was barely off before he was picking her up and carrying her into the woods that bordered the shoulder. The moon only provided marginal light through the dense foliage overhead, but she could see the flashes of steel blue in the darkness, eerie glints that made her wonder if he had fully returned. His ears remained hidden, and his nails were still blunted, but his eyes were blue, and she thought she could see the suggestion of fangs pressing from behind his lips.
"Kouga," She murmured, cupping his cheek. He stopped, body tensing even further, each muscle cording against her skin. A shudder ran through him, like a cold chill had hit unexpectedly.
What happened next she could only guess at later. He laid her down on the ground, oblivious to the stones and crackling leaves that pressed into her back. He was leaning over her, his cheek brushing against hers before he was roughly unzipping her jacket and pushing it away from her skin. For several minutes he inhaled, as if testing her scent and not finding what he was looking for. Down, lower until he was close to her breasts and then to her stomach. A low rumble escaped, and it was not a sound she recognized coming from him.
"You smell like human men," He snarled, his tone nothing but accusatory.
"I-"
He didn't give her time to explain that she had been massaged by a man, completely innocently, earlier in the day, or that she must have brushed against dozens of men in the club. Instead, he pushing her skirt up and tearing her panties away. She cried out, the fabric pulling at her flesh painfully before it gave, the sound of the lace ripping echoing through the almost quiet forest.
Every other time he had been almost neurotically concerned about protection, but not now; the heat of him without the latex sheath almost too much to bear. Something had snapped, and the angry sounds he made before leaning down to kiss her, fangs nipping at her lips painfully, echoed what she knew was a much more primitive side of him, one that she had never considered before that moment.
"Mine," He snarled, pulling away.
"Yours," She promised, crying out when he filled her almost painfully, body driving into hers.
Despite it, or for it, she was losing herself in it. Whatever had changed, her body was accepting it, accepting him and the stranger that had replaced the passionate, sometimes playful lover she had come to know with someone savage and half mad. Dizzy and disorienting, sensation peaked, shattered, continued thrumming and screaming through her. Hands tightened even more until she was coming back to reality, the sound of her cry echoing around them and mingling with his bestial snarls.
At some point she couldn't remember, she had locked her legs around his waist, had pulled him close. Cupping his face, she pulled him down, both of their chests heaving as he seemed to slump and go limp on top of her, his weight almost crushing her as he struggled to breathe. Lacing her arms around his neck she held him close, not caring about anything other than that he seemed to have run the course of whatever had been stirred, and that he was there.
"Mine," He growled quietly, nuzzling her neck and licking it.
"Yours," She agreed, nuzzling the side of his face and relaxing when there was only a contented rumble vibrating in his chest.
But when the euphoria faded and she felt like the ground beneath her was solid -and uncomfortable- again, she nuzzled him more forcefully, tipping his head slightly.
"I want to go to bed," She told him.
When he pulled away, she realized that something was still not quite right, his gaze was still too intent, too focused as he picked her up and carried her back to the motorcycle, sitting her on it, obviously oblivious to her flinch of pain. Still not used to sex, her groin protested what had just happened as much as it had enjoyed it before, and she knew her whole body would be aching in the morning, and merely pulled her shirt down and zipped her jacket up while he mounted the bike.
The ride back seemed to take forever, and she was exhausted. Perhaps it was the only reason she didn't complain when he carried her upstairs to his room, although it took some fumbling for him to open the door, and for a moment she was terrified he was going to force the handle. In the seconds it took him to open the door, Ginta and Hakkaku both stepped out of one of the rooms, only to step back when Kouga snarled in their direction. Hoping to keep any bloodshed from erupting, she cupped his cheek and rubbed her face against his chest. When she had finished and glanced back to where the two youkai had been standing, she saw nothing.
Kouga didn't seem to care about anything but getting her naked the minute they were in the door, and she didn't protest when he put her on the bed and pulled her skirt down off of her hips, instead using the time to unzip her jacket and shrug it off and then pulling the shirt over her head while shoving her shoes off and toeing off her socks. When she was finished, he was naked and getting into bed, pulling the blanket over them both and pulling her close.
Exhaustion, both physical and mental, won out, and deciding to worry about what had happened the next day, hopefully when he had fully come back from whatever border he teetered on, she fell asleep.