Kagome never imagined that one day, being incarcerated would be the least of her worries
A/N: Here's another chapter! Yay! If all goes according to plan, I might be able to wrap this bad boy up in another 4-5 chapters. (Crosses fingers)
I just want to say at this point that, yes, this story is labeled as a comedy. I know that the past few chapters have been kind of heavy for something that's supposed to be funny. Please bear with me. This is all a part of the story—without valleys, there can be no mountains, eh? There will be funny parts to come, fear not! In the mean time, enjoy the drama!
Warning. There is some violence and slightly disturbing images in this chapter. Keep in mind this should not be read by those under age 13. Thank you and enjoy.
Kagome never imagined that one day, being incarcerated would be the least of her worries.
She sighed as she checked off another disillusion about America: in the movies, they always were read their rights and given a phone call, yada, yada, yada. Not the case here. Technically she didn't even know why they were arrested. She had a couple of pretty good guesses, but they hadn't told her anything or even questioned them yet. They'd been in the 9 x 9 cell for 20 hours now. It was 9:00 am on Tuesday morning.
--
Sango hadn't stopped moving since they got back to the apartment with Hojo on Sunday night. The drive back had been painful with Miroku obviously trying to keep Sango and Koga from killing the poor half-wit with the big mouth and tiny brain. Seriously, Sango thought bitterly, I thought we had him with the "How long can you go without speaking?" game, but not two minutes into it he says, 'How long has it been?'
They had made the trip mostly out of a desire to be productive and now were faced once more with the task of merely waiting. She was in the middle of cleaning her face when Miroku finally insisted that she must go straight to bed. Confused and a little indignant, Sango wanted to know what exactly gave him the right to decide that. He pointed out that instead of astringent, she was rubbing nail polish remover on her face. Even Sango admitted that was a pretty strong indicator that beddy-bye was a good idea. Sango finally fell asleep around four in the morning and slept fitfully. When Miroku shook her awake, she told him that she'd had the strangest dream…
She was beside this beautiful lake, admiring the scenery. It was a picnic. She looked to see who she was picnicking with, and saw her car parked on the blanket with her. She felt a wave of relief at seeing her car again. Suddenly, the skies turned red and fluffy clouds now dripped black. She looked around in fear and confusion to find none other than Satan standing there, demanding her car.
Looking slightly amused, Miroku said, "Yes, love, I know you miss your car…" But Sango continued speaking, her brow furrowed as she tried to remember more details.
"I told him he couldn't have it, that I really liked my car." Miroku nodded indulgently and patted her hand. "He said that he would settle for taking my soul instead!"
Miroku managed to keep the laugh from escaping his lips at the thought of anyone, much less Satan, wanting Sango's P.O.S. car. He instead rolled his lips together tightly and tilted his head, trying to look concerned and interested.
"But I wanted to keep my soul, too!" Sango seemed genuinely concerned about the dream dilemma. Then she turned and looked at Miroku for the first time. "…So I offered him your soul, instead."
Miroku felt his eye twitch. "Darling, it was but a dream…" he said, half trying to convince himself that his girlfriend really wouldn't be willing to sell his soul to the devil in order to save her car.
She shook her head to clear the sleep and the remnants of her dream. Looking at him again, she asked Miroku, "Oh, what did you need, baby? You woke me up…" she said a bit petulantly. It was one of the rare things about Sango that Miroku truly loved—these unguarded moments first thing in the morning, when she wasn't afraid to pout to get her way.
"Oh, yes. Dearheart, your phone was ringing. I didn't recognize the number, so I didn't ans—" He never finished his thought because Sango had heard enough. She pushed Miroku out of the way and fought her way free of the remaining sheets. She ran out to the kitchen where Hojo was cooking an omelet and Koga was still sleeping on the couch.
She grabbed the her cell phone from the counter—she had plugged it in the kitchen socket last night to charge it and forgotten to unplug it. Before she could call the number back, Hojo looked up smiling. "Oh, good morning! Yeah, the phone kept ringing, so I couldn't sleep. I thought I would make us some breakfast! Hope you like omelets!"
Sango stared at him for a moment before asking, hesitantly, "Hojo-kun. If you heard it ringing, why didn't you answer it? We're kind of waiting for an important call, remember?"
He just smiled even brighter. "Of course! I answered I think it was the third time they called. Some police station apparently has some car impounded. I thanked them for letting me know. Very polite. Although, I can't for the life of me figure out why they would call and tell us that… Is that a public service here?" He tilted his head to one side in what would have otherwise been an adorably inquisitive expression had Sango not been filled with murderous rage.
Before she could kill the smiling idiot, though, her phone beeped, indicating a voicemail. Her heart pounding, Sango grabbed a pad and a pencil and listened to the message with tears already flowing.
It was the police. They had found a car fitting the description of her Volvo in the possession of a young Japanese woman and a hanyou with silver hair. They were in a small city in Nebraska. It was 10:00 am in New York City on Tuesday.
--
Kagura smiled to herself. There were few things she found true joy in, and easy money was definitely one of them. When the toad had given her the specs of the job, she nearly laughed in his face: it was like taking candy from a baby. No, it was more like taking candy from a spoiled brat whom you despised from the depths of your very soul. There was even a time limit to make things interesting. She was also intrigued by the dark horse—this human girl the mutt was traveling with. All who were close to the great inu youkai, Lord Sesshoumaru, knew the shameful relationship Inu Yasha'd been through with a different human, years earlier. Fewer knew that that was not the first time.
Silly puppy, making the same mistakes again, mm?
Oh, yes, Kagura was going to deeply enjoy humiliating the half-breed and returning the sword of power to its rightful owner. She would move soon, now that he knew it was her. Inu Yasha could not defeat her. From the time they first met, he had been nothing but pathetic. His very presence made her furious.
Yes, she would move swiftly. She would strike silently. Like the wind.
The sword was to be returned to New York City by midnight Wednesday. It was 9:05 am on Tuesday.
--
Kagome shivered. Inu Yasha hadn't spoken since his vague warning that this was all a "set up". She had tried several times to draw him out but he seemed to have tuned her out completely. She was forced then to spend her time with her own thoughts.
They weren't pretty. She was furious with him for keeping the cell phone from her, for one thing. And the fact that she still couldn't decide how she felt about him was making her unfairly irritated with the handsome hanyou. He did have his moments where he was exceptionally sweet to her, but he usually seemed determined to make everyone dislike him.
Unfortunately for him, however, Kagome was rather the obstinate type. So trying to make her dislike you is only going to make her want to like you even more. This was exactly what she was afraid of. But she still couldn't figure out how you could fall in love with a person who was so abrasive and secretive…
Her thoughts kept coming back to the same points, each time becoming more uncomfortably close to, but never yielding, a conclusion. She sighed again.
They had been making great time, too. They were about half a day's drive from the Colorado state line when they were pulled over. The town was not large, so the station was quite modest. Although, Kagome was pretty sure that most things in rural Nebraska were quite modest.
She looked out the window high in the cell wall. As tiny as it was, she could still tell that they were in for some bad weather—and soon, if she was correct.
Unfortunately, she was completely correct.
It was 9:17 am on Tuesday in Brady, Nebraska.
--
Inu Yasha couldn't believe how stupid he was. He knew his half-brother and how he works. He, the high and mighty demon lord would never deign to go after his lowly half-breed, half-brother himself. No, he'd send Jakken, the toad, to do the dirty work. And Jakken would find another bigger, stronger, and dumber demon to do it for him.
But he didn't see this coming. Not her. Kagura was stronger than Jakken, certainly. In fact, she was stronger than a lot of demons twice her age. That wasn't what worried him about her, though. Strong he could fight. But Kagura of the Wind was different. She wasn't like Jakken's usual strong arms—she was smart. Inu Yasha knew it was her from her first breath over the phone.
The first time he'd seen her she was at the side of his brother. Inu Yasha was just a puppy—not even 10 years old yet—but she was the most beautiful woman he'd ever seen, aside from his mother. And even though he thought her beautiful, his instincts warned him of danger in those jeweled eyes. She sought to be the companion of Sesshoumaru and her infatuation with the inu youkai was painfully obvious to the most casual observer.
On that day, the day when she was rejected coldly and plainly by Sesshoumaru's ice-gold eyes, no one saw where the heart-broken demon had flown to—none save one insignificant hanyou hidden from all but the higher circles of the demon societies. Inu Yasha was playing in his mother's chambers when he smelled the frozen wind coming. It carried sweetness with it, but also anger.
When their father had taken a human to wife, he had gifted her a small palace of her own. Some said it was meant to hide her from the world but others insisted it was meant to hide the world from her and the half-blood child she bore. After she passed, however, the young Inu Yasha was left nearly deserted in the palace, with but one or two to feed and watch over him.
On this morning, he was in his mother's favorite room. Mirrors were rare in those days, and quite costly. His father, however, was a very great demon and had fashioned for his lovely human wife a room with delicate murals depicting legendary heavenly maidens bathing and extravagant gold leaf covering the walls. Within the walls, however, he had dozens of different sized mirrors covering the faces of the women. Inu Yasha had heard many theories about that room.
The poison tongues said that his mother was so jealous and vain that she didn't want any other woman's face to have her husband's attention. Inu Yasha believed that his mother wasn't like that. He believed what his favorite servant, the strong and gentle human, Mamoru, told him. Mamoru would sit the young hanyou on his knees and tell him of his warm and kind mother and the inu youkai's great love for her. Mamoru said that the reason for the Mirror Room was to say that Inu Yasha's mother was more beautiful than all the beauty of the heavens.
When Inu Yasha smelled the strange wind coming and knew he must hide from the wrath the wind must be carrying. As he scurried to hide behind his mother's dressing table, he briefly remembered hearing Mamoru's strong voice call out for him. It was time for his lessons. Before he could call back to his tutor and guardian, the window coverings flew open. Wind tore at the room and threw the lighter furniture and objects in the room into the chaotic tempest. Mirrors began shattering from flying debris and from the shaking of the walls.
Terrified, Inu Yasha clutched his sensitive ears tighter to his head and burrowed as far into the corner as was possible. After what seemed an eternity, the wind began to subside. Inu Yasha poked his head around the corner to see if the danger was gone.
Grief washed over the child as he saw his mother's beloved room in wreckage. Standing amidst the broken glass and assorted shrapnel, was the beautiful demon from earlier. Her kimono was all askew and her hair, once immaculate, was disheveled and falling from its place atop her head. He saw her struggling to compose herself and slow her ragged breathing. He realized she had been crying. He remembered Mamoru telling him once that when you see someone who's sad, you should try to comfort them. Wiping his dripping eyes and nose on his sleeve, Inu Yasha began to get his feet underneath himself to go to the sad woman. She was so beautiful and so sad… "Please don't be so sad…"
At the sound of his voice, she whipped her head to stare at him in fury. She locked eyes with him and slowly straightened herself to her full glorious height and took a fan from her obi. Pointing the fan at Inu Yasha, she coldly said, "You pathetic mutt. I do not need the pity of one whom I would rather see never born. Take it with you to the bosom of the whore you called mother."
With one precise and fluid flick of her slender wrist, the fan was open and lifted above her head. Wind rose from nothing and began to swirl around the fan, growing in intensity until the wind itself solidified into a single curved blade along the edge of the fan. As she readied herself to strike, however, there was suddenly someone at the door. Without thinking, Kagura of the Wind redirected her attack. Inu Yasha watched the world stop spinning as his last true guardian and friend, the strong Mamoru, was ripped apart by blades of wind.
She turned back to the sobbing hanyou child and watched him cry. She spoke only once. "I want you to remember. Your birth was a mistake. In you flows half the blood of the greatest inu yokai to live. It is a gift bestowed upon the unworthy and as such, recompense is necessary. You do not deserve happiness. Those of purer blood and strength and wealth are even denied it and so you shall find this life to be doubly cursed. That human for whom you weep is dead because of you. Remember that and never speak to me again, lest another should suffer the same fate." Shortly afterwards, she silently would leave the room and the child behind.
It was Inu Yasha's first memory of the demon Kagura and the last time he had wept in the presence of another.
When the phone rang he knew he was screwed. He didn't even know it was there, actually. And when the person on the other line asked for him, he knew that he was wrong: they were both screwed. He'd been found by his brother's lackeys and they were toying with him. Someone had to have planted the damn cell phone—it couldn't have been with them the entire time, the batteries would be dead by now.
But he never thought it would be her. His hatred and mistrust of women began shortly after she had murdered his guardian in cold blood. If there was anyone that he hated more than his brother, it was Kagura of the Wind. And of course she would take the job. She was desperate to get in the good graces of Fluffy no matter what the cost. And when you consider that her hate for Inu Yasha was nearly greater than his, he began to seriously worry.
I should have left the girl behind. Kagura knows I'm with a human girl now and she'll be in danger. How could I be so stupid?! I have to find a way to get out of here, and fast. Kagome will be safer here, with the cops, anyway. She can go home and forget all about the mean old hanyou who kidnapped her… she can go back to her friends… and family…
Kagome had been trying to talk to him since they were locked into the tiny cell. She was trying to not be angry with him—which only increased his feelings of guilt. She had reason to be angry, sure. But still, it was her fault for not leaving when he told her to. He told her it was dangerous and that he might not be able to… protect her.
At the admission of that, there was absolutely no way that he could bring himself to look at her. Better if she's angry at me. She won't want to follow me anymore. Then she'll be safe…
Inu Yasha heard her sigh and settle into the cot on the other side of the room. Even though it was morning, neither of them had slept much during the night. She must be going to sleep… It was 9:06 am.
--
The first thing that creeped into Kagome's consciousness was that it was awfully drafty in the cell. She coughed and turned away from the wall to see what Inu Yasha was up to. She was tempted to laugh at what she saw. He was standing stock still, with his nose pointed straight up and his eyes closed in concentration. She was about to loose control and start giggling when his expression changed. It grew dangerous and feral. She felt herself swallow hard when she heard the threatening growl emanating from his throat.
She sat up and tentatively began to reach for him. "Inu Yasha…?"
Before she could touch him, however, his eyes suddenly flashed open. He looked to her and in an instant had grabbed her shoulder, spun her around and wrapped himself around her, forcing them both into a huddling position near the bars of the cell. Too shocked to say anything before, Kagome felt herself going red as she heard and felt his breath against her neck and ear. Sputtering, she managed to get out a few words, "What do you think—" before Inu Yasha's hand moved from around her ribs to cover her mouth.
His lips were pressed against her hair, just above her ear, as he whispered in a tone she'd never heard from him before, "Don't worry. I'll protect you."
Before she had time to wonder what he was protecting her from, the opposite wall of the prison cell suddenly exploded. Chunks of brick and mortar were flying everywhere as wind whipped all around Inu Yasha and Kagome. She could barely even open her eyes, the wind was so strong. She noticed an alarm was blaring in the background and she heard the rush of feet as the men on duty at the station came to investigate. Inu Yasha's arms held her tighter.
She never saw what happened to them but Kagome would never forget the scent of flowers on the wind and the feeling of blood splashing against her skin and quickly turning cold. In fact, it was that along with the sound of a woman's cold laughter that would haunt her nightmares for years to come.
--
As soon as the wall burst open, he knew he had failed. His brother would get the sword, the girl would be killed, and once more he would be left alone with his grief and his remorse. The alarm was blaring and the wind shrieked. He felt as though his ears would burst from all the sound. When the cops came, he knew they, too, were doomed to dance for Kagura's wind blades. He couldn't even hear if they screamed. He felt the blood of the humans' splash against himself and Kagome. She had begun to shake after the wall burst and when the wetness touched her skin, he heard one thing above the howling of the wind and the screaming of the alarm—he heard Kagome whimper once in fear.
It was this one small sound, which somehow managed to reach his ears, which ultimately steeled his will. Not this time. Not again. …Not her…
--
It was even better than Kagura had hoped for. The puppy was obviously in love with the human girl—look at how he's trying to cover her body with his. She was filled again with a sweet hatred for the half-breed. He had no right to play the hero. He was the dirty hanyou thief and it was time for him to be reminded once more of his place.
She allowed herself an indulgent smile. She was going to enjoy this.
--
Suddenly all had grown quite, save the blaring of the alarm. Kagome could feel Inu Yasha's arms holding her tightly and she could feel the beating of his heart increasing. His breathing became ragged and he slowly began to loosen his grip around her. Wiping away tears she didn't know she'd shed, Kagome forced herself to not look at the deformed bodies of the police men lying at her feet.
Inu Yasha turned from her and faced the rubble where once their third cell wall had been. As she followed his gaze she saw the source of this chaos: a devastatingly beautiful woman. She was cold and elegant. By the point of her ears and the shear viciousness of this attack, she knew this had to be a demon sent by Inu Yasha's half-brother.
When she saw the demon smiling at Inu Yasha, she knew that if they didn't do something fast, they were both going to die. It was 9:12 am.
--
They had left the apartment in such a hurry, Miroku was certain they had forgotten something important behind. He had said as much to his beloved but she seemed to have not heard him. That happened a lot.
They had gotten a call at about 10 o'clock that some small town cops had found a car that's plates came up as stolen. It matched the description of Sango's car and had two passengers—who matched the descriptions of Kagome and Inu Yasha. Once Sango had stopped crying, she told them all as much and they quickly mapped out the route most likely taken by the others and packed a few days' worth of clothes into Koga's car.
They were safe, at least. That's what really mattered, Miroku thought sagely. It was 10:22 am in New York City.
--
"Well, well. I thought you might have learned by now, mutt." Kagura seemed to lavish each word. Inu Yasha growled lowly in reply. The wind demon laughed. "What a naughty puppy." Her laughter stopped suddenly and her cheeks flushed with an ill-concealed rage. "You steal your dead father's sword and run away from home with nothing less than some new human whore and you have the nerve to growl at me like some filthy stray?"
Kagome felt rage of her own bubbling within her. This was it. This was why Inu Yasha became the emotionally constipated wreck that he was now. She stepped in front of him and threw her arms out, as if to stop the demon's words from touching him. Perhaps he didn't mind or perhaps he didn't even see her anymore, but Inu Yasha made no move to stop Kagome. Even if he had tried to stop her, she would have spoken her mind.
"Who do you think you are? How dare you speak to him that way?! Inu Yasha is a far better person that you could ever hope to be! He is kind and loyal and strong—but because of people like you, he tries to hide who he is! Knowing yourself is a damn hard thing by itself without having bullies like you coming along and telling you lies to make themselves feel better!"
The demon had turned to watch Kagome and seemed to have listened to her calmly and in a detached way. When Kagome paused to draw breath again, the demon never even changed her expression—she merely flicked her wrist across her chest and Kagome felt the air leaving her lungs. Slowly panic began to take hold as she tried to gasp for the air which would not come to her. The room began to spin as she felt her head throbbing in pain from the lack of oxygen when suddenly a huge chunk of the fallen wall flew past her and into the path of the demon's vision.
With a graceful flick, her fan was open and the piece of wall was momentarily stopped and suspended in midair in front of her. She negligently flung it behind her and studied the sight before her. Inu Yasha was standing protectively in front of the crumpled Kagome, who was coughing and greedily taking in all the air she could to replenish her depleted supply.
Kagura looked past him to the human girl on the floor. "Worm. Your criticism was almost amusing, were it not for certain glaring omissions. Firstly, I have known this pathetic creature for nearly 150 years. You have not. I have seen the humans he's used in the past and have seen what becomes of them. You have not. He is weak and craven and an embarrassment to all whose blood is pure. Knowing your place is more important than 'who you think you are'."
Inu Yasha growled once more. Again, the demon laughed. "You cannot hope to defeat me and you know it. If I choose to, I can take away your new toy, your newest human whore, and you … know … it." She smirked.
Kagome had stopped coughing and was shakily trying to stand when she heard Inu Yasha speak for the first time since the demon's attack began.
"No. …Not this time."
She seemed surprised for the first time since Kagome had seen her. She obviously thought she was going to have no trouble walking all over Inu Yasha.
"…You dare… you dare to speak to me? Do you not remember that day, mutt? The first of your human friends to die for your sins?" Kagura was now white with fury. She raised her fan above her head and Kagome saw the wind suddenly appearing and solidifying around it. Suddenly she realized that Inu Yasha had taken her hand. His eyes were intense and focused on the fan—but he didn't look as scared as she thought he ought to be.
She saw Kagura's wrist begin to bend and was knocked off her feet by Inu Yasha's body. Immediately behind their fall came dozens of blades forged from the very wind, destroying what was left of the prison bars. Without pausing to explain, Inu Yasha hauled her to her feet and carried her out through the new opening in the cell, into the police station. He stopped only when they reached an unmarked door with a number pad outside it, obviously for security reasons.
He stopped long enough to tear the door off the hinges and fling it aside. He grabbed a small handgun and the long black case containing the sword. Setting down Kagome, he put the strap over his shoulders, and speaking quickly and quietly to her. "Listen, I'm going to carry you on my back. You take that gun and shoot at whatever comes at us. You got it?" Before she could object he shook his head and said, "You don't have to hit anything, just shoot close enough to distract, okay."
Kagome looked into his eyes and saw trust for the first time. She looked down at the gun in her hand and noticed for the first time how much blood was on her. She began to shake with silent sobs.
He took her roughly into his arms and whispered into her ear, "You can do this. I need you to do this, Kagome. Don't think, don't worry. I need you." With that he pulled away from her and looked again into her eyes. Even through the tears and the fear and the panic, Kagome knew, once and for all that she would do anything he asked her to do. She would because she was in love with him.
--
After she watched Inu Yasha take the girl and run, Kagura bent and breathed out slowly. Her breath was an icy wind, which slowly collected as though in some invisible container. After a few minutes, the shape was complete. Standing before her was a lesser demon of wind and ice. It was not capable of great thought or understanding. It was, however, strong and focused. "Go," was all she said to make it turn and follow the path of the hanyou. It would not be enough to stop him, she knew, and it probably wouldn't even be able to kill the human girl if the mutt wants to protect her. As much as she hated him, Kagura had heard of how strong the half-breed had grown.
As she rode the wind to the mountains of Colorado, Kagura began to decide what to do next. This was much more interesting that she had originally expected. In an hour or two, she found herself perched upon a snowy peak, contemplating how best to relish the task ahead. She thought in passing that perhaps it wasn't such a shame the girl was still alive. This would be much more fun if it didn't end yet. Besides, she still had 60 hours left.
A/N: Well? Too dark? Believable? Just right? Let me know! Later!