Author's Note: Ho ho ho! I have published two chapters, close together. If you haven't read chapter 32, do that first?

Since the Inuyasha series (manga) began in 1996, I count that as the 'beginning' date for the series. And since the series supposedly only takes place within ONE YEAR, I count the beginning of this fanfiction as the end of 1997, beginning of 1998. (Really, Rumiko, I'm still having trouble with the "Let's pretend Kagome was still in middle school throughout ALL of the shard-hunt-festival"… That seems impossible, but hey!) Hence, by this chapter – the "year" should be about 2001-2002. And at that time, Japanese electronics companies were actually suffering. I'm not just (completely) making it up?

A Distant Promise – Mini-Chapter # 33

Dresses bite back.

Apparently – just like any other animal – when cornered and unwilling to be touched, even blue fabric felt willing to unleash a fighting frenzy at the slightest provocation. Or, at least, this was what Sesshoumaru thought. It seemed the only way to explain his current predicament. The idea that he had just been traumatized by an article of clothing was impossible, of course. Clearly, this had to be the fault of the dress.

That morning, he had allowed his companion to sleep-in, while he attended a day-long meeting. In truth, he had never intended to torture her with the boring, technical side of this conference. For Kagome, he left a note in the sitting room, suggesting fun activities to do in the hotel for several hours. Also, he indicated that she should get any shopping out of the way, before Sunday. The hotel was close to Kawaramachi, Kyoto's central shopping district, but he did not feel the need to frequent such places.

Seven hours later, activities drew to a halt, and Sesshoumaru found himself in their suite once more, with more than enough time to prepare for supper. And the moment that he walked through the door, treacherous fabric had attacked him. Not physically, only mentally.

Kagome stood in the doorway, fastening her earrings, and practically quivering with both irritation and excitement. The dress fit her very well. Too well, in fact, reminding him that her figure had changed a great deal since the feudal era, when he first saw her. Hm…

"You liar," she chastised him soundly. "You told me that the trip would be 'boring and tedious.' Yet the only one who went to a boring meeting was you. But me? I went swimming and visited the spa. Then, I walked to To-ji."

"Good," answered the dog-demon complacently. That was good, wasn't it? What was she talking about, again? Blue was a distracting color.

She pattered after him, into his room, when he exited the sitting room to lay down his briefcase. Now that she had rebuked him (if only slightly) for abandoning her for hours, her irritation was fading away. Sesshoumaru studiously ignored her, resolving that he could easily speak without glancing at her directly.

"So, where are people meeting for dinner, tonight?" she asked curiously. "I know you said the 'hotel restaurant'… but seriously, there are six of them!"

"Since there are foreigners in the group, they loudly requested traditional Japanese food."

This earned a laugh. "Loudly, eh?" she grinned. "Isn't everyone too loud, to your ears, though?"

As if she could ascertain his internal debate, by looking at the back of his head, Kagome ended the battle by deciding matters for him. She wandered around him, to sit at the bedside table, in plain view. And because it really would seem strange to converse with her, from the bathroom, he stood his ground. For goodness' sake, he had bought the damn dress, hadn't he?

It was supposed to be more… modest. All right, actually, it was conservative. Perhaps his mind was simply suffering some sort of depraved, attention-deficit syndrome. He was not supposed to think that she was pretty, to the point that it kept him from focusing on anything else. Even if she was pretty. Which she was.

She had asked him another question, while he was daydreaming. Staring at her, Sesshoumaru tried to guess what she might want to know. It did no good, of course. This particular woman was an endlessly inquisitive creature, and she tended to pick (what seemed like) random subjects. "Hmm?" he asked, blankly.

"The other guests," she repeated carefully, "Am I supposed to know anything about… anything?"

Shaking his head in a curt gesture, he sat beside her at the table. "Everything you need to know about the business interests of conference guests, I explained to you last night, while we drove," he explained. "The Japanese electronics industry has suffered a great deal, lately. So, we are exploring other options. However, our competitors would prefer it, if companies like Panasonic, Sony, and Matsushita simply surrendered the market."

"Computer chips and DVD players are cheaper, now," summarized the dark-haired girl, "So big Japanese companies need to invent some other way to scalp consumers."

Somehow, the synopsis of what he had said sounded different when she repeated it back to him. Sesshoumaru repressed a smile. "No, no, priestess," he responded smugly. "Small Japanese companies intend to do this, as well."

With a tiny grin, she replied, cheekily. "I see, demon. But putting these companies aside, what do we intend to do tomorrow?"

Gradually, as she discussed their plans, the nervousness bled away from him. While he still found it difficult to focus, around her, he could distract himself from the distraction that was… Kagome. Sesshoumaru counted this as a triumph.