Disclaimer: Inuyasha belongs to Rumiko Takahashi

Chapter Six: August 30th

We'd been in protective custody for almost twenty days now. I still retained my hope that we'd be out within the next few of weeks, and I had still been living out of my suitcase rather than completely unpacking. All of my books I'd brought along for entertainment had been read, I'd lost interest completely in my invented personal game with Kagome-chan and Inuyasha as soon as it became apparent that the attraction was, in fact, highly mutual, and according to Sesshomaru-san himself, they hadn't made another break in the case sense we'd left. He reported no more attacks on my building or anybody in it, a fact that slightly calmed my fears for leaving Hachi behind in the dark. Koharu-chan, Sota, and Kagome-chan's mother and grandfather were also reported to be safe and unsuspicious.

While Kagome-chan and I had grown to feel safe to some extent living in the overly-fortified cabin, there was no quelling our trepidation to learn that Kumo, Hakudoshi-san or whoever was behind the threats on our life hadn't been caught.

This, of course, was in no way helped by the fact that I had neglected to tell Inuyasha and Sesshomaru-san about my female intruder two weeks ago. I didn't know why I didn't want to tell anybody about her; with her threat about intending to have some "fun" with me, all the reasons were there for me to sound the alarm. And, while originally I had taken her line to mean something sexual, I'd come to the realization some time ago that in her profession, it could mean anything but.

Though two weeks had passed and I hadn't seen any sign of her. I became pensive and withdrawn, filling my days replaying our brief meeting in my head, or trying to perfect my memory of how she looked that night. It was somewhat distressing to learn that, due to my even briefer glimpse of her actual person, I had forgotten exactly what she looked like. I remembered bits and pieces, though not enough to put the actual picture together. I blamed this on the fact that she'd worn a mask, and therefore rendered me unable to register what her face looked like save for her eyes.

And those eyes were something I knew I couldn't easily forget. They haunted me, kept me up and night and made me stare passed everything I was looking at the next day. I couldn't believe that somebody could house that much emotion in just their eyes alone, but there was no denying what I'd seen.

So I invented a new game. A guessing game, where I tested myself to see how many plausible explanations there were for the pain I'd seen in her eyes that night. I carefully analyzed all the different reasons a person could feel so hurt and I invented scenarios to fill out those reasons. None of those scenarios, however, would hold for long, and I'd be forced to go back to the drawing board, continuing my game.

Inevitably, I began to wish I knew her more, knew her better.

Which was ridiculous, really, because who wants to be better acquainted with someone who's been sent to kill him?

Ridiculous or not, it didn't stop me from trying. It proved difficult to corner Inuyasha without Kagome-chan around, but eventually, I succeeded, finding him lounging on the small couch in the front room while Kagome-chan had left to shower for the night.

I cleared my throat, alerting him to my presence as I moved to sit on the couch next to him.

"What's up?" he asked, not looking up from his phone as he tapped away at the keypad. I figured he was texting his niece, Rin again.

"Not much," I hedged. I was still trying to figure out how best to approach the subject without admitting the presence of the intruder and a few moments passed in silence as I stewed over the matter.

Finally, Inuyasha seemed to sense my consternation. "Did you want something?" he prompted gruffly.

I looked at him for a second, my eyebrows raised in innocent surprise as I stalled further. "Uh," I stammered, "I guess I was just wondering if there was any news."

"News?"

"You know, from Sesshomaru-san. Have you heard anything?"

Inuyasha snorted impatiently. "Hey, Miroku, when I know something, you'll know something, got it?"

I nodded quickly. "No, I know. I was just wondering if you could expound a little for me."

He studied me warily, glaring as he tried to figure my ulterior motive. "Expound on what?" he finally demanded.

"Oh, come on," I responded expectantly, "You only tell us the necessary details. I want to know everything." When he still didn't look too inclined to share, I continued emphatically, "I do think I am entitled, since I'm the one that everybody wants dead."

He paused for a moment more, still looking irritated and cautious.

"I want to know everything you know about Kumo," I pressed on insistently.

Huffing, Inuyasha settled back into the couch further, bringing his knee up and resting his wrist on it lazily. "Fine," he agreed tersely. He cut me a sidelong glance. "It's not much, though, so don't complain if I don't answer all of your questions."

I nodded again, leaning forward eagerly.

"It's a relatively small organization," Inuyasha began, "Maybe only five or six important figures." He looked at me out of the corner of his eye again. "The rest are lackeys."

I furrowed my brow. "So… what about Hakudoshi-san? Is he a figurehead or just a stooge?"

Inuyasha shook his head. "We don't know that much." He gave me a strange look. "It seems you've had the most interaction with any of the members." It seemed as though he now expected me to divulge what I knew. An eye for an eye, as it was.

Frowning, I sat back a little. I was stymied. Because of my appointment with Hakudoshi-san last month, was I suddenly expected to testify? It wasn't like I knew any more than they did; I was fairly certain that everything he'd told me that day, besides Kumo's motive, was a lie.

Still, Inuyasha was waiting.

"Hakudoshi-san told Hachi and I he was PR," I finally explained. "Like he was the public figure on account of his company or something." I waved my hand dismissively, stressing how weak his story sounded.

Inuyasha narrowed his eyes, looking disappointed and irritated with my explanation.

"Look, I know it sounds stupid," I said defensively. "But it's what he told me."

Shaking his head again, Inuyasha scoffed. "Nah," he disagreed roughly, "It sort of makes sense." He looked at me knowingly. "Public figures take the place of the actual boss."

I looked at him inquisitively. The actual boss… did they know who was in charge of the Kumo conglomerate?

"Ueno Naraku," Inuyasha revealed, lowering his leg and folding his arms. "It's only a name but that's all we have."

"Ueno," I repeated, testing the name in my mouth. "He's the head of Kumo?"

Inuyasha nodded. "Like I said, though, that's all we have. Naraku and the rest of those bastards at Kumo are very good at covering their tracks." He cracked his knuckles angrily.

I laughed bitterly. "They'd be better with me funding them."

He gave me a slightly startled look before he settled into the joke. "I'd say it's good you're on our side, then."

Kagome-chan entered the room then, wearing a fluffy purple robe and toweling her hair dry. She looked from me to Inuyasha curiously. "What did I miss?"

I shook my head and turned back to Inuyasha resolutely. "There's got to be something more," I insisted. He'd given me useful information, though I was still empty-handed when it came to the mysterious hit man—erm, woman.

Kagome-chan wriggled her way between Inuyasha and I on the couch, inadvertently inserting herself into the conversation. "Something more about what?" she asked brightly.

Inuyasha shrugged. "I don't know what to tell ya, Miroku," he said unapologetically, "We're still working on it."

"What are you guys talking about?" Kagome-chan demanded, her patience wearing thin.

I ignored her. "So, you guys don't have any idea about what Ueno's lackeys do? Are they really just employees or are they like some sort of trained assassins?"

Inuyasha gave me a weird look. "No, I don't know," he said, sounding bewildered. His demeanor suddenly changed and he looked at me accusatorily. "Do you know?"

I backpedaled hastily. "No, no, I don't," I floundered, raising my hands up to prove my innocence. "I was just wondering. You know, based on what they did with the bomb and the threatening mail and all, I just thought they seemed like the type."

I was nervous that he wasn't going to buy my excuse, and for a little while, he still fed me that same criticizing look. Thankfully, Kagome-chan and her short patience saved my hide.

"What on earth are you guys talking about?" she interrupted insistently. "Who's this Ueno guy? Does he have assassins after us now?"

"No," I finally addressed her, sighing and settling back into the couch, feeling defeated. "Well, I dunno. Maybe."

Wide-eyed and horror-stricken, she turned to Inuyasha for further explanation. "What's going on here?" she asked, her voice trembling slightly.

"Nothing," Inuyasha assured her gruffly. I saw the corners of his mouth tilt upwards as he looked at Kagome-chan fondly, and I rolled my eyes. Not this again.

He continued, "Ueno Naraku is the head of the Kumo conglomerate, but there's not much more we know beyond that." He shot me an irritated look. "Miroku was just asking questions."

"Oh," Kagome-chan sighed in relief. "Okay." She turned to me, slapping my arm in a light reproach. "Dammit, Miroku-sensei, you scared me!"

"Sorry," I said sheepishly. I stretched and stood up from the couch. "Well, I guess I'll turn in for the night." I checked my watch, making sure the hour was appropriate enough to turn in. I shrugged repentantly at Inuyasha. "Sorry for bothering you."

He shook his head, almost vaguely, though remained silent as I made my way towards the back of the cabin. I walked slowly, my mind going over the information that Inuyasha had given me and trying to fit the intruder into the scheme somehow. Was she just a lackey or an important figure? If she was out doing the dirty work of removing Kagome-chan and I from the picture, it seemed much more likely that she was the servant, not the master.

"Hey!" I heard Inuyasha call me back into the front room and I traipsed in obediently.

"Yeah?"

"Did Hakudoshi say anything else at all about Kumo when you met with him?" Apparently, I sparked his interest. Kagome-chan was looking at me curiously as well, seemingly wanting to hear the answer herself.

I shook my head and shrugged again. "Nope." I tried thinking back to our appointment a month ago, struggling to remember exactly what was said. "He just told me about his company's 'policy' with assets and losses, then told me I was making a mistake when I turned him down."

Inuyasha frowned, but nodded, seeming to be satisfied enough with my answer.

I pointed back down the hallway and said, "I'm going to go now… Is there anything else you wanted to ask?"

Looking back at Kagome-chan, Inuyasha shook his head slowly. I was a little worried about how interested in the matter he now appeared to be. Maybe he was suspicious of me after all. I made a mental promise not to mention the brown-eyed assailant to him no matter what; for some odd reason, I felt unreasonably possessive about the whole thing.

"No," Inuyasha said, his tone sounding far less convinced than his word. He was still looking at Kagome-chan intently, as if trying to find some sort of verification in her face.

She seemed unaffected by his strange behavior. "Have a good night, Sensei," she called to me cheerfully.

I waved over my shoulder as I walked back down the hall towards my room. I muttered something in response, not paying them too much attention anymore as I continued to focus on my own problem at hand.

I had another restless night. Not that it was uncommon for me at this point or anything, but it was the first time I'd been kept up by nightmares. I was beginning to think that Inuyasha's information on the Kumo conglomerate he'd divulged earlier had corrupted my not-so-threatening view on the female intruder. Perhaps it was my own speculation that Ueno Naraku's lackeys were in fact highly trained assassins that had robbed me of the nostalgia of that night two weeks ago.

She really was coming to kill me, and if I was inclined to take her seriously (I rather was), she was going to take her time doing it.

About the fifth time I woke up that night, I realized it hadn't been from any nightmare. I had that same peculiar feeling that I was being watched, and my stomach immediately flew up into my throat. My breathing became shallower and I stayed completely still for a moment before I gathered a burst of courage to lean over and turn the lamp next to my bedside on.

The lamp's dim lighting cast awkward shadows around my room, and I strained my eyes to determine if there were any detectable solid shapes hiding within them. I felt my breathing slowly return to normal when I didn't see anything, and I was able to summon more courage to get out of bed and turn the overhead light on.

I all but leapt to the light switch on the far wall, spinning around quickly as my room was suddenly bathed in the sickly whitish glow of the florescent light. I frowned, not at all pleased to see an empty room before me. Feeling almost offended, I searched my room from top to bottom, looking through the small closet, behind the dresser and even under the bed. There wasn't a sign of anybody, and after checking and rechecking every nook and cranny, I finally gave up and turned both lights off. I climbed into bed, suddenly feeling very exhausted and looking forward to a very deep sleep.

I was the first one up the next morning, a rarity, but I figured that my mostly sleepless nights recently had already reprogrammed my brain into believing that I didn't need that much sleep after all. Stumbling into the bathroom, I blindly searched for the light switch with one had while I rubbed my heavy eyes until I saw red with the other.

I had to shut my eyes momentarily as the bathroom was bathed in an obnoxious light, blinking rapidly until I adjusted to the brightness. Moving to the toilet, I reached down to flip the toilet lid and seat up when something caught my eye. There was a post-it note hanging crookedly on the small cupboard mounted above the toilet. I looked around me amusedly; were Kagome-chan and Inuyasha already leaving love notes around the cabin for each other? I studied it closer as I emptied my aching bladder, and uneasiness exuded off me like sweat as I realized that this was not a love note—far from it, and it was meant for me.

The handwriting was small and cramped, yet there was no denying the femininity of it. It had been a risky move to leave me a note, since there was no way to confirm that I would be the first person up; it just happened to be coincidence that I was. If anything, it only validated the confidence of my female assailant if she was willing to leave me notes fully knowing the consequence if Kagome-chan or Inuyasha found it instead.

You sleep with your mouth open.

And she was truly confident if she could write such an innocent sounding sentiment, still knowing that it would paralyze me with fear regardless.

I crumpled the note in my hand and hastily left the bathroom, throwing open the door to my room haphazardly. I nearly tore the place apart searching in vain for her; I knew she wasn't to be found. This was her game, not mine. I was merely her opponent, stuck in the same place until she finally took her finger off her piece.

Even when she finally did, no matter what move I made, I was still the loser.