A/N: So the changes have been made, and if you'd like you can go back and reread the first six chapters - now the first five chapters plus prologue – but nothing major was changed, just some of the wording, the tense, and I took the opportunity available to fix whatever typos I came across.
Anyway! On with the show. The track for this chapter's IK is "Oxygen" by Shelby Merry, and the rooftop and ending scenes were inspired by "Hey Italy" by Halifax and "The Kill" by 30 Seconds to Mars.
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Blame It on the Changes.
Chapter Seven:
A lone figure dressed in form-fitting black armor crouched low on one of the taller buildings in central Tokyo, her clawed hands gripping the stone edge just underneath her. Aloof golden eyes surveyed the city below, practically glowing in the darkness with every light that was reflected on the shimmering skyscraper across the way from her lonely rooftop. Long, silver hair whipped around her wildly as the wind caught the strands, though she paid it no mind. There were much more pressing matters at hand...
Such as the scent she caught on that very same wind.
A smirk graced her delicate visage. "Gotcha," she murmured before rising gracefully from her crouch at the roof's edge, turning her head to the left to face the breeze. She broke out into a sprint along the edge, to the unknowing eye dangerously close to slipping right off. When she reached the end of this rooftop, her knees bent, bringing her back down into a low crouch before they straightened suddenly, throwing her up into the air and through it, her hair fluttering behind her when she came down. Her feet made light contact with the next roof, never losing her balance thanks to the thin yet strong boots she wore. She didn't stop there, however; she was a woman on a mission, and she'd found her stride. She was still running when she repeated the jump, landing herself on the next rooftop, and they gradually started rising higher and higher into the air, her rising with them.
Finally, his scent was so strong she didn't need the wind to locate him anymore.
No doubt he already sensed her himself. When she landed on the roof of the smallest building amid a cluster of skyscrapers toward the south of the one she'd started on, she stopped abruptly, sniffing the air lightly.
He's here.
She whirled around to face the darkness when she heard him make a clicking sound with his tongue. "My enemy has arrived."
She scowled. "I don't have to be."
His red eyes flashed with something she couldn't identify. Anger perhaps? "Oh, but my Lady, that's exactly what are." He stood and came closer, into the light cast on them from the full moon above.
She stood her ground. "We weren't always."
He released a deep, amused chuckle. "Oh, koi," he murmured. "Yes, we were."
She was ready when he attacked first, leaping soundlessly through the air and swinging his elongated claws down from overhead. She spun out of the way, the white pup's ears atop her head twitching amid her hair at the whistling sound they made as they barely missed her. Instead, they caught some of her hair, a thick bunch of strands that came to about midway down her back. The ones that came in contact with his claws were hacked off, but the ends sizzled with unused poison, eating its way up the length of her hair.
Growling as she threw herself out of his reach, she grabbed her hair and bunch it just below the neck, taking a swipe at it with her own claws and releasing what was below from her head. She glared at him as she released her hair, brandishing her own claws at her sides. "That was low," she stated, her tone low and dangerously quiet.
He only shrugged. "I always did like you better with short hair, koi." He practically spit the pet name.
She threw herself forward, determined to take him down a peg once and for all. She dodged another swipe of his poisonous claws before twisting mid-air, sticking out her tongue and running all five of her own on her right hand along it from pinky to thumb. Surging her youki, she swiped at him, shouting "Claws of Corruption!" as the glowing energy strike left each claw individually, dragging strings of her acidic poison along with them. Two hit the roof, two veered off to the left and hit the next building over, the last one hitting the male square in the chest before he could do anything more than widen his eyes at her, surprised she would use such an attack against him.
He flew backward, colliding with the roof and skidding to a stop just before reaching the opposite edge from where the female hanyou stood.
Her nostrils flared in surprise as she landing gracefully on both feet, pausing to watch his still form skid to a stop just feet from her. She hadn't anticipated him being actually caught off guard by her attack, so she had assumed he would defend himself appropriately.
Now she couldn't be sure if he would get back up.
Slowly, she stalked to where he still lay on the cement, unsure if he was even moving.
Suddenly, strong arms wrapped around her slight frame, holding her still and clutching her against a hard chest, jaws clamping down on her right shoulder as sharp fangs sunk into the delicate skin, puncturing right through her armor. The hiss that poured from her lips was a mixture of anger and surprise, and her mind whirled with possibilities as to who had managed to get the drop on her – and how.
Her nose scrunched and her eyes widened as her shoulder went cold, and the same biting ice flooded through her as fear permeated every sense. "You-" she managed to choke out as the teeth pulled away and the arms released her, allowing her to stumble forward, her left hand darting upward quickly to put pressure on the bleeding wound at her shoulder. It was already puffing up and felt hot beneath her fingers. Before her eyes, her fallen ex-lover rose from where he'd lain moments ago on the roof, his expression more or less blank as he took in her shocked and now somewhat disheveled appearance. She reached for him, her feet barely remembering to respond before she fell over herself, but he moved away, behind her to join her still unknown attacker.
Spinning slowly – or was it quickly? She couldn't be sure anymore, with the way her body had become consumed with the cold that was now beginning to force piercing, icy tendrils upward now, into her brain, which was now fogging up and trying to make sense of the sight she found when she finished turning.
All her breath left her body as she stared at the identical figures standing before her, wondering if she was so far gone under the influence ofwhatever that she was seeing double.
"H-Haku-?" she murmured, her eyes darting between the two of them, unsure which was her ex-lover and which was...
"My twin," the one on the left intoned quietly, barely able to bring himself to look at her, avoiding eye contact. That was him, she knew, her Haku, the kumohanyou who had secretly courted her for half a century before her nerves won out, forcing her to break it off with him before her father discovered them. She was so sure he would never have approved, and she still maintained that same childish desire to win his approval no matter the cost... Yet another trait she'd gained from her sweet, naïve, ningen mother.
They had been so alike in some ways; that was what drew them together.
But she had known all along there were secrets she wasn't privy to, things that were different, things that he kept from her.
Things that had driven them apart.
This must have been one of those things, she realized with a start, her eyes widening as the concept of her ex-lover having a secret twin she'd known nothing about sinking home.
The figure on the right, identical to Haku minus the evil smirk her wore, bowed at the waist, his eyes never leaving her face. "Heru, my Lady," he practically purred; even his voice was identical to Haku's. "At your- Well." His red eyes narrowed. "At your disservice, I guess."
It was only then that she realized her feet had continued to move herself backward, and she was dangerously close to the edge of the roof opposite from where she'd first landed. Haku's gaze finally darted up to meet hers as his twin disappeared from his side, and it was almost comical, the way his eyes widened almost in slow motion at the realization of what was happening. Her senses had been slowed, dulled, to the point where her reactions were severely limited. She barely realized it when Heru appeared directly in front of her, and with that same smirk gracing his familiar features, gave her a purposeful push that sent her flying over the edge faster than she could stop her own momentum.
As she fell backward, sinking through the air with a weightless feeling that wasn't her own, her thoughts were a jumble, and she thought she heard her name cried out in Haku's voice – but that couldn't be right? Haku hated her now. Of course he did.
Her hand still clutching her shoulder, her eyes slid closed as her breathing slowed.
"Iyo!"
Everything went black when she slammed into the asphalt below.
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Morning came much faster than Kagome anticipated. She'd barely been able to get to sleep, even after calming down from... From whatever it was that had happened upstairs, in Yash's bedroom. Four hours, she'd tossed and turned, dozing on and off, trying to figure out what it was that had happened. Why did he grab her like that? And kiss her the way he did? Did he-
Lurching out of bed, she shook her head, taking a deep breath through her nose. He doesn't remember being Inuyasha, she reasoned with herself for the thousandth time since returning to her own bedroom. He doesn't remember being in love with Kikyo, or us...
She paused in front of her dresser, taking a long look at herself in the mirror. I never told him how I felt. And I never found out how he felt in return.
And now it seemed she may never find out...
However, she couldn't dwell on Inuyasha- Um, Yash and the mysteries his sealed head held. Not today. There were other mysteries that needed unraveling – one being Sesshomaru's secret he refused to reveal about her occupation.
Another was waiting to be confronted in the kitchen, if the sound of the coffee machine whirring to life was any indication...
Stepping out her new bedroom dressed in blue jeans, a black baby tee, and the same black flats from the day before, Kagome looked down the hall at Eri's closed door, wondering if her friend was already up and about. Walking down the corridor the short way to the kitchen, the girl couldn't help taking a deep breath and basking in the smell of bacon and eggs that grew stronger as she approached the door to the right.
Standing there in the doorway, she paused, blinking a few times at the sight in front of her. There was Yash, standing in front of the stove cooking, barefoot and wearing a pair of black slacks and a white button-down shirt left untucked with the top button undone. Channing sat at the island counter in one of the barstools, fully dressed in violet scrubs and a practically gleaming pair of white sneakers. Sensing her arrival, Yash had turned, and both men were now giving Kagome twin looks of surprise.
For a moment, all she could do was stand there, lips slightly parted, and stare at Yash. His hair had yet to be braided, so it billowed around him, long and full and black, and right then he looked... So much like Inuyasha... she couldn't help thinking, though obviously he more closely resembled her old friend on the night of the new moon, when he turned human. Her heart jumped into her throat before settling quickly in the pit of her stomach, and she took another step to come fully into the kitchen. Yash licked his lips right then, eyeing her warily... Nervously. Truthfully, he wasn't sure how to approach her... Not after what had happened between them the night before. Not after what he'd tried to say... And what she had said.
He'd spent the entire night thinking it over. The pain on her stricken face, the hushed whisper of apology as she'd dashed out the door and disappeared before she could be forced to face whatever it was he wanted to say. Does that... Does that mean she doesn't return my feelings? Yash had wondered over and over, and now, as they stood in the kitchen watching each other, it was frustrating to know that he wasn't any closer to knowing the truth.
Kagome...
"Good morning, Kagome," Channing piped up, and her head whipped to one side to look straight at him. She'd never admit it, but she was somewhat thankful for the intrusion. That look in his eyes... she thought as she came forward, offering the doctor a small smile as she took a seat at the barstool two seats down from him. She didn't miss the snort Yash released, meaning he'd noticed the obvious way she kept her distance from the perv.
"Guess you two've already gone and gotten acquainted," the now-human grunted as he turned back to his cooking, scrambling the eggs thoroughly and flipping the bacon.
Kagome hadn't taken her eyes off Channing, even as she had reached over the counter to pour herself a cup of coffee. "I'm just trying to figure out how long he's known my real name," she stated as she took a sip.
Neither of the two seated at the bar missed the way Yash's shoulders tensed. He paused what he was doing again to shoot Channing a questioning glare over his shoulder. The kitchen was tense and silent for a minute, as Kagome smirked knowingly, watching Channing sweat under Yash's intense look. Gotcha! Maybe this'll teach you to not be such a lecher...
Taking a deep breath, Yash started to dish out the food. He seemed relatively calm at first, but then... "So... Those nights you said you were needed at the hospital... You were at the club, weren't you?!"
Channing raised his hands defensively, sitting back in his chair. "Y-Yash, come on, man! Think about it for a minute! If you were in my shoes-"
"And what shoes are those?! Pervy sneakers?" Yash huffed, too angry at his friend to notice the way Kagome was snickering quietly to one side. "I bet you spent your time there ogling Kagome!"
Kagome sipped on her coffee while Channing sputtered. "Oh? He didn't tell you what happened the last time he was there?"
The doctor shot her an incredulous look, and Kagome just gave him a wide-eyed one back, as though she had no idea of the danger he was in. She just raised her brows at the way Yash was almost completely ignoring her now, his entire focus on Channing, except for the sideways glance he cast her. She knew from past experience - Even though he's not aware of it! - that it was her cue to go on. "Oh, he just... came to the VIP room, where I mainly... Uhhhh... Work." She paused as she felt her face flame right then, but the boys were too distracted to notice. "Well, then he startled me and I fell." She finished quickly before her nerve got the better of her.
At the mention of what happened, Channing's expression lost all traces of anxiety and turned from Yash to look at her. Speaking of... "Oh, Kagome! How is your leg doing, anyway?"
WHAP!
Neither Kagome or Channing – or Yash, for that matter – had known what was going to happen, but the temperamental human let the spatula he'd still been holding snap through the air, nailing Channing right across his smug, foreign face before anyone knew what had happened. Pieces of egg flew through the air as the spatula stilled, and there was a quickly reddening, greasy print on Channing's left cheek, where the spatula had struck him.
Yash may not have realized what his body was doing when it lashed out in anger, but he sure didn't regret it. How dare that asshole! he thought, still glaring at the other man as the other two humans stared at him in shock.
Suddenly, all those involved were distracted by the sound of loud, rambunctious laughter just inside the kitchen door. There stood Eri, howling and cackling at the entire display, her laughter only growing in intensity when Kagome's face turned red, Channing rubbed his injured cheek, and Yash blinked, seeming to come back to himself a bit more as he brought the offending spatula close to his face and stared at it in confusion.
"Uh..." was all the hanyou-turned-human could say before he also burst into uncontrollable laughter at the ridiculousness of the situation. After another minute, Kagome and Channing joined in, grateful for Eri's interruption.
As the other girl took her place at the bar between Kagome and Channing, the four of them settled down and Yash started to make her a plate. "Y'know," he said, pausing to give Channing a look, "we're still gonna have a talk later."
Channing visibly gulped.
Laughing again, Eri just turned and slapped him hard on the back. "Don't worry about it, doc. It's just a talk."
"That's what you think," Channing shot back petulantly. At that, Kagome just laughed as they all dug in, Yash included as he took his seat on the other side of Channing.
"He's right though," Yash told the girls. "Bouzu's lived with me long enough now to know what happens when I wanna talk."
Kagome stilled at that, her mouth hanging open in surprise as she turned to stare at Yash. The other three blinked at her change in demeanor, offering her questioning looks and waiting for her to elaborate. "You- You called him-?" She couldn't seem to form the words.
Yash and Channing shared a look while Eri gave Kagome a confused one herself. "Did I miss something?" the other girl asked, feeling much like she had.
"That's just something I call him sometimes," Yash replied to Kagome, his eyes watching her in concern as he shoved a forkful of eggs into his mouth. "Nothing to it, really." Channing, however, seemed somewhat subdued, and it was strange for Kagome to realize that, for the first time she could remember, someone else was easier for her to read than her old hanyou-sometimes-human friend. But Channing's face was just too easy to figure out right then.
Her eyes narrowed. "I was right... Wasn't I?" Her focus was on Yash. She knew that, despite his lack of memory, he still knew much more than he'd let on so far. With the way he was sitting quietly at the end of the bar, Kagome knew she'd hit the mark, and that he knew exactly what she was right about.
Beside her, Eri huffed. "I still don't get it."
Yash sighed. "Channing knows, but Eri..." He rubbed his face in irritation. "Kagome, you tell her."
She glared at him. "But you're the one who seems to know everything!"
He glared right back. "But I already took care of the lech!"
The two of them sat there, glaring at each other across Channing, who was sitting akwardly between them and finally sighed.
"Eri, you and I are both reincarnations."
Kagome and Yash both blinked at Channing, obviously surprised by his unexpected admission, and the sight would have been rather comical had it not been for the serious subject they were discussing. Eri herself, though her eyes widened just a bit, didn't seem all that shocked to learn this news. She just nodded, taking a bite out of her toast and chewing thoughtfully for a few moments before swallowing.
"You mean from the monk and demon slayer you used to know?" Her question was directed at Kagome, whose mouth fell open at her calm question.
"Uh- Well- I- Uh..." The younger girl was starting to turn red. "Yeah. I mean, I've had my suspicions for the last couple of weeks, but I wasn't sure, and I didn't feel okay voicing my opinion until I was sure... Or, at least, more sure than I was at the time..." Shut up, Kagome, she couldn't help thinking, cringing inwardly at the awkwardness she was allowing to permeate the group. She just sighed quietly and returned to eating.
Beside her, her best friend just chuckled good-naturedly, wolfing down the remainder of her food and patting Kagome on the back. "It's all good! Can't say I'm surprised though. I always thought she sounded like a kickass chick." Eri grinned. "Now come on! We need to get to work!"
At that, the rest of them hurriedly finished their own breakfast before heading back to their own spaces to finish getting ready. Before long, all four housemates were on their way to the club, fully dressed and ready for whatever surprises might be thrown their way.
Or so they thought...
Yash and Kagome pulled up first, Eri and Channing right behind them in the other sedan. The building was the same one the two girls remembered working at for the last couple years, but the outside had been completely redone. It was still bricked up, but the flashing neon sign of a woman raising and lowering her leg had been replaced with an equally large plain white sign with the words Club Taisho written in elegant black kanji.
The miko shifted suddenly in her seat to regard Yash with probably her millionth look of surprise that morning alone. "Sesshomaru bought astrip club?"
Her reaction had Yash howling with laughter as he threw the car in park, too distracted to turn off the engine until his amusement managed to subside. He had honestly had the same thought when Sesshomaru first told him of his plan, but when the older brother had elaborated, Yash hadn't been able to deny that it was, in fact, a good idea.
"Yes," he said as they both got out of the car to join Eri and Channing, who were already halfway across the parking lot, "but he refuses tooperate a strip club."
At that, Kagome gave him a confused look, quirking her head sharply to one side, but Yash just shrugged and stepped up to open the door for her. Her eyes narrowed at him as she breezed by, promising that he wasn't off the hook just yet.
Though she got the answer to her unspoken question once she was safely inside. The entire interior of the club had been gutted, it looked like, and remodeled in a way that caused Kagome to freeze where she was, unable to focus on the gushing cries Eri was emitting as she dashed across the main room to where she saw some of their coworkers, Airi and Aimi included, standing by the bar. The bar, however, was literally theonly part that seemed to have been retained from the old club; it was still in the same place, but the wood had obviously been sanded down and re-stained to a much darker shade, almost black. The walls had been painted a deep crimson color, contrasting only slightly with the darker bar and the dark hardwood flooring, giving the entire place a womb-like feel. The stage had been completely torn down, opening the room up that much more, and the entire main section was transformed into a legitimate dining room, with mahogany tables and chairs arranged in a refined order, and the security booth at the front had been changed into a host stand, stained just as darkly as the bar and floor.
"The dressing rooms and other backstage areas have been refitted into a fully functional kitchen and employee area, complete with a small hallway of sorts for the waitstaff to use to refill drinks, place orders on the computer, and generally keep out of the way in the dining room so there's no one tripping over another," Yash stated quietly as he came forward to stand beside her, hands tucked into his jeans pockets as he took in her shocked state. Slowly, she turned to look at him.
"So..." she started to ask. "I'm a waitress now?"
He chuckled. "If you want to be. Sesshomaru intends for this to be a private club, a restaurant geared toward the service of youkai, hanyou, and those with whom they conduct business, whether professional or personal. You'll make the same you would before in tips, so the pay should roughly stay the same. It might even go up, if I know most of those who would take advantage of such a club the way I think I do." He was smirking by the time he finished.
Kagome was dumbfounded. All she could do was openly stare at him a moment before the squealing coming up quickly from behind her alerted her to the imminent danger that was approaching. Before she could react much more than simply turning around, Eri was upon her, leaping skillfully into the air before abruptly landing on top of her best friend, throwing both girls haphazardly to the hard floor. Kagome yelped in surprise, and then mild pain, while Eri just laughed as she landed on the Kagome-shaped cushion she'd commandeered. "Isn't this great, Kags?" she screeched, still overwhelmed with laughter.
"Human girl, you will cease your wailing this instant."
The tone was deep and serious and reprimanding, and Eri stilled immediately. From where she lay on the floor, Kagome only chuckled lightly as her friend moved off of her, bowing her head in embarrassment at the display she'd put on in front of their intimidating new boss as said intimidating new boss glided forward into the dining room like the taiyoukai he now looked like. As Yash helped Kagome gingerly to her feet, she was able to see that Sesshomaru had removed his concealment once inside the building, and now his youki was rolling off him in waves. Several of the girls standing at the bar had obviously been intimidated, moving behind the bar from where they'd all previously been positioned in front of or beside it – all except the twins. While Aimi still seemed wary, she wasn't nearly intimidated to the same level as their practically cowering coworkers, and Airi seemed to glow with adoration, her eyes wide and bright as she clasped her hands in front of her and openly stared at the tall, commanding youkai that now stood before them.
Before anyone could say anything, Airi had broken away from her sister and rushed across the dining room, the older twin hot on her heels. Aimi slowed first, but Airi went right up to Sesshomaru, still gazing up at him in complete bewitchment, grinning broadly as she whispered, "You'rebeautiful." Yash choked back laughter as Kagome and Eri stared in shock, while Aimi facepalmed at her twin's antics.
Sesshomaru, to his credit, didn't flinch away from the young human woman as she approached him at what those with lesser senses would call breakneck speed, simply observing as she stood before him in such an unconsciously submissive stance, only quirking a sleek silver eyebrow at her murmured words. He was much too interested in her face... The delicate curve of her jaw, the slight upturn at the end of her small nose, the eyes that seemed simultaneously too big for her face and just the right size.
Blinking, his gaze darted to the other girl who had followed her over, and he quirked his head to one side in a very dog-like fashion at the realization that they were identical, down to the very smallest of their features.
Outwardly, Sesshomaru seemed to be doing nothing more than contemplating, but Yash's eyes had narrowed as he observed what was happening. He may not have been able to remember the way things used to be between himself and his half-brother, but he'd spent plenty of time with Sesshomaru and Iyo in the last couple years since his awakening, and he felt like he'd gotten to understand some of the taiyoukai's more subtle quirks pretty well.
He noticed something about her... Yash mused, failing to notice the way Kagome was also observing the scene in front of them with a very knowing smile creeping its way onto her face. They watched as Aimi stepped forward and took Airi by the arm, pulling her gently away from the godlike creature who was now their boss. Yash watched the two girls, his own head quirking to the side in a similar way to Sesshomaru's as he noted something off about the way the two girls interacted with each other. He would have to sit back and observe more, before he could know for sure if his inkling was correct or not. Though by that look on Sesshomaru's face, I might just be right for once, Yash thought, unable to ignore the fact that Sesshomaru's eyes remained trained on the two girls as they stepped away, heading back to the bar.
Finally sparing his human half-brother a quick, dangerous glance that conveyed the message of death if he decided to tease him about what had just happened, Sesshomaru was relieved when Yash simply smiled and shook his head. Nodding somewhat gratefully, the taiyoukai cleared his throat and approached the bar, still looking mostly the part of the Tokyo businessman, though his youkai markings and coloring made him look, in fact, more regal.
"You have been chosen from those employed by the previous owners to continue on with the new direction my company has chosen for this space," he began, addressing the human women cluttering the bar area. They all practically held their breath, causing a collective silence with palpable awe and interest hanging in the air. "As you are aware, my people have already been through to remodel the building, and during the process, they conducted interviews with the staff. Those of you remaining here were found to be the most trustworthy and loyal. We have paperwork for each of you to sign, including a non-disclosure agreement. Most of you did not know before this day that youkai and other supernatural beings were less legend and more reality, but know that we do not expect word to leave this place of our true natures – and we do not take kindly to threats or betrayal of any sort."
Kagome blinked in surprise at his thinly veiled threat. More of a promise, really, she thought, immediately impressed with the way her handful of coworkers still remaining seemed to be holding their ground, ready to roll with the punches, as the saying went. They all seemed surprised to find out that the demons of legend were actually real beings that walked among them on the sidewalk or in the supermarket, going about day to day lives with humans being none the wiser, but she sensed no hostility from any of them. That was probably what Sesshomaru had meant, she realized; he must have had some of his people come through and speak with everyone working at the club at one point or another, gauging in secret who would be most likely to run to the masses with the news of youkai being real, whether from fear of the unknown or the strive to make it rich with their newfound knowledge... And who wouldn't.
Apparently these were the only ones from the entire place that could be trusted with such knowledge.
Well what did you expect? she berated herself as Sesshomaru continued to speak with the others, Yash staying by her side as Channing stepped forward and laid out paper after paper across the surface of the bar. It was a strip club, Kagome! Baka...
She was roused from her internal dialogue by an elbow softly nudging her arm. Jerking her head to the right, she looked at Yash somewhat sheepishly as she took the paperwork Channing was holding out to her, embarrassed that she hadn't even realized the other man had come up to them. Yash was just smiling at her in that gentle way of his that reminded her both of the way he was when she knew him before... and of the way he had become. As much as the differences between Inuyasha and Yash were like night and day, it also struck her at random moments, when she caught him watching her from the corner of his eye, when he blushed when he knew she'd caught him... When he impatiently mumbled "Keh," and turned his back toward her, leaving her to smirk in peace as she continued signing paperwork for her new employers.
When they exchanged silent promises to talk later that night, after their housemates had gone to bed, so similar to the looks he'd given her to catch some alone time in a nearby meadow once their travel companions were none the wiser – but with unknown emotions awash in golden irises, silver hair fluttering in the wind.
The memory of his hanyou face forced a slightly nauseating sense, akin to homesickness, to flood through her. She tried not to let her hurt and anguish show on her face, but she knew from Yash's own expression morphing to one of confusion, his violet eyes darting across her face, trying to figure out the cause for the sudden plummet in her mood. Biting her bottom lip, Kagome just gave him a small smile, one that didn't quite reach her eyes. She knew she hadn't managed to placate him when his brow furrowed in concern.
Thankfully he didn't say a word about it during their car ride home. Sesshomaru had told all the employees that the new club wouldn't be reopening for another couple of while the remodel finished and his contacts got the word out. Channing and Eri had agreed to go get dinner at some American-esque restaurant the Aussie knew of, and their friends had declined the offer to join them, immediately heading back to the house. Somehow the ride wasn't tense.
Once they were inside the house however...
Yash slammed the door shut behind Kagome, fixing her with an agitated stare. "Spill," he demanded.
Immediately, her face scrunched in anger, her hands darting straight to her hips as she geared up for what was obviously about to be one of their infamous arguments. "I don't have to tell you anything, Mister 'I'm gonna completely ignore Kagome for three years just because I don't remember who I am'!"
His glare became incredulous. "Did you even listen as you said that?"
She huffed. "That isn't important!"
Her statement had been ridiculous, but it had effectively taken the wind out of Yash's sails. He sighed, running a shaking hand through his midnight bangs and watching her. "Does it really bother you that much that I didn't come to you immediately after I woke up?"
Without even realizing it, Kagome's foot slammed against the hardwood as she balled her fists at her sides. "Yes!" she cried out angrily. It seemed like everything she'd been trying to keep bottled up since the awkward reunion Sesshomaru, Kouga, and Iyo had facilitated the previous day was about to come out with more of a bang than she'd intended. "I mean... How could you?!"
He was starting to get frustrated himself. "How could I what?"
"How could you do that to me?"
"How could I do what to you?"
Suddenly her vision was blurring, and Kagome tried desperately to hold onto what little control she still had as she blinked back the tears as much as she could. It was always a losing battle though, and she knew it was a done deal when the warm wetness spilled onto her cheeks, first her right and then her left. "How could you ignore me?" she demanded as the tears made their way to her lips, and she licked some of the saltiness away before continuing. "How could you ignore Shippo? We needed you, Yash- Inuyasha- Whatever you want me to call you! We needed you! I needed you!"
The hanyou-turned-human had gone painfully still and silent throughout her tirade, and all he could do for several moments was simply stare at her as she vented, his eyes wide and his mouth opening and closing like a fish gasping for water. All manner of thoughts were whirring through his head, and for literally the first time in three years, Yash had to legitimately wonder if Kouga's idea not to include Kagome in the goings-on of their little organization had been a good one.
Before he realized what was happening, he'd stepped forward, gripping her tightly by the arms. Her anger slipped into surprise, though the damned tears didn't stop. Coming closer to her, Yash thought with a pang that he could actually smell her tears, all salty and sad. Holding her so tightly, so close to him, that she couldn't move away, Yash looked Kagome directly in her eyes. "You really think I chose to stay away from you?" His voice cracked a bit on that last word - you - and he knew his resolve to give them time was slowly but very surely crumbling. The thought of her angry with him... Of hating him...
Of leaving him...
It was almost too much.
But she just got back... he couldn't help thinking, and his jaw tightened as something down deep – the same thing from the day before that had tried to rise up at the sight of her upset – was currently trying to claw its way out again. Yash didn't know, in the face of those tears, if he could push it back down this time.
The girl was surprised by the hurt that floated so readily to the surface in Yash's eyes; it had been a long time since she'd seen this face, but she couldn't remember him being so forthcoming with his emotions before. Except on his human nights... she couldn't help thinking, and brown eyes widened just a fraction in abrupt realization. He had been human for three whole years now... This is like one big long human night for him... That must be why he's been acting so different from how he used to be. That was probably only one reason, and she knew it, but this was such a huge one that it should have slapped her in the face immediately... But it had somehow taken her over a day to figure it out.
Her chest tightened when it suddenly occurred to her just how hard the past years must have been for him... He had awoken, not knowing who or where he was, not understanding their time or why he was there or why he'd done the things he'd supposedly once done...
"I..." His whisper brought her back to the present, and she watched him hesitantly as he went on. "I don't know you anymore, Kagome. But," he said before she could feel any kind of pain at his negative words. "But I want to. Hell, I apparently let some old hag purify me – which Sesshomaru and Kouga have both made clear is not a pleasant experience – and put me under some wonky spell so that I could make it to this time – so that I could make it to see you again." He met her eyes. "So I could be with you."
She gasped. "You- You really think-"
"Keh," he muttered, rolling her eyes, and she broke off into sheepish laughter at his very Inuyasha-like reaction. "What makes you think I'd do all that for someone I only wanted as a friend?"
Kagome opened her mouth to reply, but no words came out as she gradually realized that he was right.
For a few crucial moments, the duo simply stood there, staring at each other. Finally, Kagome smiled shyly. "You... You've put a lot of thought into this, haven't you?"
Yash shrugged before smiling back, though not as shyly. "I've been watching you since I woke up and got filled in on some of the blanks. I haven't completely avoided you. And," he sighed, "though I didn't feel any immediate feelings for you – no whoosh or pang or rushing back of any memories – I... still feel like there's something about you. It wasn't instant, no, but it's there. Like I'm kind of... drawn to you." His smile grew just a little broader.
So did hers. Tentatively, she leaned forward, her hands reaching up and drawing him into a small, sweet kiss that ended just a little too soon for Yash's taste, and when she tried to pull away, he held her in place, his lips resuming their previous place against hers.
After another moment, the mood of the kiss changed drastically. Suddenly there was no more sweetness, no more shyness. Yash groaned against her mouth, licking out against her bottom lip as he tugged her closer until she fell against him. Kagome gasped when her feet stumbled and she landed against his chest, her hands going immediately from his face to his shoulders to help steady herself, and Yash took full advantage, slipping his tongue into her now open mouth for further exploration. This caused Kagome to groan, low in her throat, as their tongues twined and danced, and something similar to a growl vibrated within Yash's chest. He pushed her back against the inside of the front door, fumbling around her slim form with the deadbolt to make damn sure they wouldn't be disturbed. His blunt human teeth scraped against her lip as he broke the kiss, but he was far from ready to release her.
His heavy lidded eyes met hers for a moment as he tried to steady his breathing. "We need- to go slow..." he whispered against her mouth.
Closing her own eyes, Kagome only nodded a little before reclaiming his mouth with her own, his words barely sinking in. But she knew, somewhere deep down, that what he said was true; he wasn't the same Inuyasha - Yash - she knew before, and he didn't know very much about her anymore either. It would take time, and it was time they needed.
But as they fumbled their way down the corridor and up the stairs to Yash's bedroom, his hands gliding up her taut tummy and their mouths never leaving the other's, it felt like they had all the time in the world.
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As awareness began to return to Iyo, her vision continued to swim in complete darkness for a time. Finally, as the heaviness wore off from her limbs, her eyelids fluttered, and she opened her eyes to a dimly lit room she didn't recognize. Her sense of smell, however, knew exactly where she was; the place reeked of death and disinfectant. It was a sterile room, and the cold of the atmosphere hit her just as she tried to groggily sit up. Blinking rapidly, the hanyou realized she had been lying on a freezing, metal table, covered with nothing more than a white sheet.
Gasping in surprise and embarrassment, she tugged the sheet up and gathered it around her naked form as her senses whipped back to her in a heady rush. Her pup's ears twitched atop her head, moving her hair, and she suddenly felt grimy, though her skin was clean and smooth. Someone had cleaned her and undressed her, then left her here – in a morgue.
Iyo shuddered violently. She had to get scarce, but her armor was nowhere in sight. Thankfully, her wounds were completely healed, and she thanked the Buddha silently for small favors. I can't believe it actually worked... she mused, turning and sliding off the table with grimace. Hopping stealthily to her feet, Iyo padded across the tile floor of the small morgue to check the couple of metal lockers in the corner. Scrunching her nose in disgust at the pungent scents that filled the air, she ripped the door of the left hand locker open as quietly as she could manage, wondering faintly if anyone was nearby.
The locker was vacant other than a yellow plastic bag on one of the shelves; taking it, Iyo tore it open, pleasantly surprised to find her armor crumpled up and shoved inside, along with her concealment ring. Her lips quirked upward into a quick smile, but it was gone in a flash when her left ear flicked, picking up footsteps outside the door. Down the hall, it sounded like. She'd need to be careful on her way out.
Slipping quickly into her armor and tucking her concealment ring back in his normal hidden pocket in her sleeve, Iyo slipped out the door, her boots not making any more sound against the tile than her bare feet did.
She found a window just down the well lit hallway, sliding the glass pane up silently and shimmying through. Landing on both feet in a dark alley between two buildings – obviously the hospital she'd just left and another, unknown building – Iyo dashed up the wall quickly, bringing herself to the roof undetected. Once she reached the rooftop, she stretched a little and took a deep breath through her nose. Unable to sense the enemy nearby watching from the shadows, the hanyou took off into the night, leaping from rooftop to rooftop just as the sun was rising.