dISCLAIMER: i oWN nOTHING. aS pREVIOUSLY sTATED eVERY tIME i pOST. wHEN wILL pEOPLE fINALLY rEALIZE tHAT i dO nOT oWN iNUyASHA!
Oh, I've recieved a few reviews from peple wondering about why Rin wasn't called to testify on Sesshoumaru's behalf. This is because:
1. The gods in this story are sadistic idiots who don't know that Rin exists.
2. The point is that Sesshoumaru is cold-hearted to everyone but Rin. So even if they did know, he's still be in this predicament.
And now, on to the story.
Last Time:
Kagome waved good-bye, waiting till he was out of sight before dropping her head onto the table. "Dung Spitters!"
Sesshoumauru raised an eyebrow at the miko. Perhaps she was not as sane as he had first thought.
CHAPTER 8: BONDING
Kagome sat in her room miserably, a headache practically splitting her in half. If she heard one more "Demon Begone!" or another snide word out of Sesshoumaru's mouth, she was seriously considering suicide. She really couldn't blame him for being curious. But she wasn't used to being pestered.
A small knock on her door alerted her to the presence of another. While she debated answering, she took a casual look with her powers. It was just Souta. "Come on in, Souta." She called.
Souta walked in. "Kagome, I want to talk to you."
Kagome turned to her brother, and saw the seriousness in his eyes. She gestured to the bed. "Why don't you sit down. I'll listen."
Souta sat. "Kagome, I-"
"Human!" Kagome growled in annoyance as SEsshoumaru barged in. "Why is it that you have so many demons under spells in this house?"
Kagome bit back irritation. "Its called technology, Sesshoumaru. I will explain it all in a moment. Right now, I am speaking with my brother. You can wait."
Sesshoumaru grabbed the miko and started to drag her out. Kagome finally lost her patience. "SESSHOUMARU YOU ARROGANT ASSHOLE, IF YOU DON'T LET GO I WILL KEEP SCREAMING LIKE THIS UNTIL YOUR EARS BLEED!" Sesshoumaru immediately dropped Kagome's arm and winced in as his ears throbbed. Kagome continued. "Now, get out of my room so I can speak to my brother. Then maybe if you're nice, I will explain about technology for the last and final time. You. Can. Wait." She slammed the door in his face with a loud scream of frustration.
Souta waited until she sat down again before speaking. "You okay, sis?"
Kagome sighed. "Yeah, I'm alright. He's got to be the frustrating individual I've ever met. I swear, he's as bad as InuYasha sometimes!"
Souta gulped, knowing that his sister was probably going to kick his butt for what he was about to do. "Actually, Sesshoumaru is what I wanted to talk about."
Kagome sobered quickly. "What's the matter, Souta?"
Souta began stuttering. "He's so. . . but you're. . . and he's. . . I mean it. . . ARGH!"
Kagome giggled softly. "Just say it Souta. I won't get mad, I promise."
Souta blurted it out. "I want him to leave!"
Kagome blinked. "You have a problem having him around here?"
Souta shook his head. "No. I have a problem with him being anywhere near you." All the words started tumbling out. "I mean, he's tried to kill you before, and anytime you've mentioned him it was always when he tried to kill InuYasha, or threatened someone, or was trying to get Tetsusaiga! Whenever you mention him, its always bad! So why would you let him anywhere within one hundred feet of you?" Kagome tried to speak, but Souta cut her off. "And don't try that bullshit about 'healing his ward.' You may be able to fool Mom, but I know you better!"
He breathed heavily, feeling a bit uncomfortable as his sister looked at him sadly. Finally he sighed. "I just want to understand."
Kagome came over to sit with her brother, and hugged him close. "Souta, I want to be able to tell you, but its not my place to tell. But I can promise you, Sesshoumaru wouldn't be able to hurt me even if he wanted to." Souta gave her a look of disbelief, and she chuckled. "Can I ask you to trust me on this?"
Souta sighed, and nodded slowly. "I don't have to be nice to him, do I?"
Kagome glared at him, then sighed. "Fine. But at least be polite."
Souta grimaced. "Can't I just kick him in the balls and run away?"
Kagome laughed out loud at the thought. "I don't know how well that would work. Although, he can't hurt you, so maybe I should let you."
Souta grinned and stood up. "Thanks, sis. Really."
Kagome smiled. "Thank you for letting me know you were worried. It's nice to know my little bro's got my back."
Souta skipped out, and set out to find Sesshoumaru. I wonder if Kagome was serious about that kick in the balls. . .
Thursday, The Feudal Era
"Damn it all to hell!" InuYasha screamed.
"Language, InuYasha." Sango shouted. "And if you're not going to do anything but pace, then try to at least keep it down."
"Sesshoumaru has probably already killed her!" InuYasha fumed. "And if not, then he's killed half of Japan!" He yelled in frustration, and kept pacing.
Miroku sighed. "Why not go and find out, InuYasha? You can still pass through the well, though you choose not to."
InuYasha straightened. "Oh yeah." He started running to the well.
Miroku sighed. "Some things never change."
Kagome
Kagome glared at the mirror. "I hate dressing up. I hate it, I hate it, I hate it!"
Souta glanced in to see why his sister was talking to herself. "Ooh! Who's the lucky guy?" His eyes twinkled at the thought of his sister going out with somebody.
Kagome glared at him. "Say anything, and I'll let Sesshoumaru eat you."
Souta rolled his eyes at her. "You'd miss me too much." Souta came back in and watched Kagome wade through purses. "So who's your date with?"
"Hojo." Kagome said with a groan. "He caught me, and I couldn't say no." Souta gave her a look, and she explained. "He'd lent me his notes to copy from Monday."
Souta rolled his eyes. "How about you just tell him you don't like him?"
"I will. I'll do it tonight." Souta looked at her. "I will! Get that smirk off your face!"
"What smirk?" Souta asked innocently. He ducked out of the room before Kagome could throw something at him.
He caught sight of Sesshoumaru, and smirked again. His plan was almost ready to go. He just needed to maneuver the taiyoukai into the correct position. He walked down the stairs to prepare everything. This is gonna be fun.
Kagome finally made it downstairs after nearly an hour. Kagome's mother looked her over. "You look beautiful, dear. The perfect outfit for a date."
Kagome groaned. "Crap! Now I need to change!"
Sakura grabbed her arm before she could move. "I'm joking dear. The outfit looks like something you'd wear when going out with a friend. And you still look beautiful."
Kagome relaxed. "Thanks Mom." She hugged her mother before heading out to the backyard to talk to Sesshoumaru.
Souta
Souta was ready to begin. Sesshoumaru sat outside, so Souta went up to him. "Hey, why do you have tattoos?"
Sesshoumaru remained silent. Souta tried again. "Why is your hair like a girl's?"
Sesshoumaru's eye twitched, but Souta didn't notice. Instead, he continued. "Actually, now that I think about it, are you a girl?"
Sesshoumaru resisted the urge to strangle the boy. Consider it a lesson in patience.
Be silent. I do not need such advice from you.
Souta frowned. This would be harder than he thought. "Cause you really do look like a girl. And when you got mad, you looked like a woman who was PMS-ing."
Sesshoumaru could not hold back the growl that erupted. However, it was so low that Souta didn't hear. "So should I call you Lady Sesshoumaru from now on?"
Sesshoumaru stood, having reached the end of his patience. "Human, I suggest you leave this Sesshoumaru alone."
Souta glared at him. "Why don't you make me, my lady?"
Sesshoumaru growled, and this time Souta heard. With a smirk, he aimed and kicked at Sesshoumaru's balls.
Luckily, Sesshoumaru was an expert at fighting. With ease, he caught the human's foot and pulled, sending him flying into a tree. Souta yelled. "Ow!" He stood, fake tears filling his eyes. "How could you?" He rushed towards the house, just as Kagome exited. Souta ran into her.
Kagome immediately saw the tears. "Souta! What happened?"
Souta looked up at her, and his expression nearly broke her heart. "Sesshoumaru tried to kill me!"
Sesshoumaru had to admit, he was in awe of the boy's planning. He'd purposely provoked Sesshoumaru, and now was using his sister's maternal instincts to his advantage. The boy could be a master strategist.
Perhaps now is not the best time to admire a human who is trying to get us into trouble with the one person on earth who is not afraid of us.
Sesshoumaru refocused his attention on Kagome. "HE DID WHAT!" Kagome shouted in outrage. She turned her attention on Sesshoumaru. "Sesshoumaru! BAD-" She froze. Shakily, she took a deep breath to calm herself before turning back to her brother. "Souta, tell me everything that happened."
Souta was surprised. He'd expected his sister to fly into a rage, and now she wanted details. Crap. "I came out to see Sesshoumaru, cause he's so cool! He's even better than InuYasha! I just wanted to ask him a few questions. But I only asked a few, and then he attacked me for no good reason."
Kagome looked at him skeptically. Then she turned to Sesshoumaru. "Sesshoumaru, do you have anything to add?"
Sesshoumaru was slightly taken back that she had asked him. "The boy attacked this Sesshoumaru, and this Sesshoumaru defended himself. That is all that happened."
Kagome nodded thoughtfully. She turned to her brother. "So Souta, what kind of questions were you asking Sesshoumaru?"
Souta gulped. She knows. "I wanted to know why he had tattoos and why his hair's so nice."
Kagome crossed her arms. "I'm going to tell you the same thing you told me, Souta. 'You may be able to fool Mom, but I know you better.'" She glared at Souta as he squirmed. "Now, tell the truth."
Souta knew he was in deep trouble. Crap. "Oh look, Hojo's here." He exclaimed. Kagome whirled, and Souta made his escape.
Kagome turned back. "Nice try, brat, but-" She noticed his absence. She looked around for him. "That little brat!" She exclaimed. "I'm going to kill him when I get back."
A door slammed, and Kagome jumped. "Dung spitters! Hojo's here!" Kagome turned to Sesshoumaru. "Look, I know that you can't be too far away. Is there any way that you could stay just far enough away that I can spend the night with Hojo? I don't want to be unfair with him."
Sesshoumaru stared at her, which she took as assent. "Okay then. I'll see you later."
She started to leave, when Sesshoumaru called to her. "Why did you investigate into the matter?"
Kagome turned in confusion. "What do you mean?"
"Why did you not believe your brother?" It had been bugging him. The miko usually jumped to defend her loved ones. So why was her brother interrogated?
Kagome paused before answering. "I guess I trust you somehow." She giggled. "Strange, isn't it? I suppose you still think I'm the devil incarnate. But somehow, I feel that I can trust you."
Sesshoumaru growled. "Never mistake, miko. When this curse is removed, there will be nothing to stop me from killing you."
Kagome smiled. "Nothing except yourself." She entered the house, leaving behind a very confused Sesshoumaru.
InuYasha
InuYasha slammed through the door, and saw the Higurashis. "Where's Kagome?" He asked.
No one answered. "Hey! Where's Kagome!" He shouted louder.
Still no one answered. Sakura did look up, however. "Oh! I thought I told Souta to shut that door." She passed right through InuYasha and shut the door. "Really, the boy is so absent minded."
InuYasha's ears drooped. They can't see me.
Kagome rushed into the room and froze. "InuYasha! What are you doing here?"
Sakura whirled, and saw no one. "Kagome, InuYasha's not here."
Kagome ignored her mother. "InuYasha, what are you doing here?"
"Keh." He answered. "I had to make sure Sesshoumaru wasn't destroying half of Japan."
Kagome rolled her eyes. "You know, give him some credit. He promised not to destroy anything while he was here."
"Like his word is good for anything." InuYasha shouted.
Kagome sighed. "I don't have time for this InuYasha. I have a date."
"What!" InuYasha got even louder. "Don't tell me its with that Hobo guy!"
"Hojo!" Kagome shouted back. "His name is Hojo! And yes, it is with him. It's a thank you for lending me his notes."
InuYasha growled. "You're not going on a date with him, and that's final."
Kagome glared at him as the doorbell rang. "Sit boy." She said, before heading to the door. She listened for the satisfying thump that told her the action had occurred once more. She opened the door and smiled at Hojo. "Good evening, Hojo."
"You look great, Kagome." Hojo said. "You ready to go?"
"Of course." She stepped out the door and closed it behind her, to the sounds of "Get back here, Kagome!"
Sesshoumaru heard the exchange and smirked. The miko had handled his half brother quite well. As the two humans left his sight line, he started forward, not wanting to be dragged forward. He soon found himself accompanied by InuYasha.
"What the hell're you doing, Bastard?" InuYasha demanded.
Sesshoumaru ignored him. InuYasha growled, but didn't press the issue. A fight would attract Kagome's attention. And she would not be happy that they'd followed her.
Hojo
The night had been perfect. Kagome had had fun, and they'd eaten together and talked. Finally, they made it back to the shrine. He was ready to make his move. But before he could, Kagome spoke. "Hojo, I'd like to speak to you, if I may."
"Of course Kagome." He sat beside her on the steps of the shrine. "What's up?"
"Hojo, you are a really good friend, and I can't imagine enduring class without you to lighten up the mood." Kagome began. "But I'd like to stop these dates."
Hojo froze. "I don't think I understand."
"I really like you Hojo. I consider you my closest friend." Kagome placed a hand on his shoulder. "But that's all I've ever seen you as. My friend."
Hojo stiffened as the meaning set in. Kagome continued. "I would like to keep you as my friend, if I may. But I'm afraid that I just can't see myself loving you anytime soon. And you deserve someone who loves you, not just likes you a whole lot."
Hojo felt as if someone had pulled the rug out from under him, and his anger built. How dare she lead him on like this! Outwardly, he kept his normally cheery demeanor. "So Kagome, would you like to go out again some time?"
Kagome stared at him. "Hojo, I said I don't want to go out on a date with you anymore."
"I have tickets for Moons Reach next weekend, if you'd like to come." No one could resist the magical call of Moons Reach, the best band to have graced Japan.
"No thank you, Hojo. I appreciate the offer, but I don't want to go out with you." Kagome stood. "Thank you again for tonight, Hojo. I really had fun."
She stood and turned to go, but Hojo grabbed her hand. "I really don't think you want this Kagome. Who's forcing you to give me up?"
Kagome stared at him, wondering if he was that much of an idiot. "No one, Hojo. I don't want to go out with you. If I did, I wouldn't let someone pull me away. But I don't. So let me go."
Hojo stood, his anger boiling. "Tell me who it is!"
"There's no one!" Kagome yelled back, trying to pull her wrist away.
And then Hojo swung.
---------------------------Author's Rant---------------------------
Obsessive_Goddess: So, what do you think? [silence] Kagome?
Kagome: Destroy! [lunges at Obsessive_Goddess, who puts up a barrier again.]
Obsessive_Goddess: Serves you right!
Kagome: Sesshoumaru! Get your whitebutt out here!
Sesshoumaru: [cocks eyebrow] Does she seriously think I"m going to come when she summons me? Besides, I think it's wonderful that the wench is finally being put in her place.
Obsessive_Goddess: So, you're on my side?
Sesshoumaru: [cocks head] This is Sesshoumaru is on no one's side but his own.
Obsessive_Goddess: [rolls eyes] Whatever, Sesshi-kun.
---------------------------Author's Rant---------------------------
