InuYasha Fan Fiction ❯ "Shards of Our Memories": The Soap Opera ❯ Chapter 7: It's Like Another World ( Chapter 7 )

DISCLAIMER: I do not own Inuyasha…..that job goes to my idol, Rumiko Takahashi!

A/N: ::trumpets sound:: ::red carpets unfurl:: Chapter 7 is here!!! Sorry for the wait….I wanted to make it real good for all you readers….speaking of which, thank you so much for all the positive reviews!! You don't know how it thrills me to see that people are actually enjoying my writing (And I'm glad I didn't muck up that obligatory "Oops-Kagome-hurt-her-ankle-now-Inuyasha-must-carry-her-home" scene too bad)…..It gives me a wonderfully warm-and-fuzzy feeling! ::cuddles reviewers::

Ok…..this time around we've got some more InuKag relationship development, some epiphanies, and a possible cliffhanger…. Don't forget to review!!

"Shards of Our Memories"

Chapter 7: It's like Another World!

A strange sense of fogginess spread through Kagome's brain as she took it all in. No one had told her that this many people would be here. Even in her wildest dreams, she wouldn't have been able to fathom the energy and the excitement that surged through the crowd at their feet.

Today was the cast's first appearance together in public. Before, all their publicity had been done through the morning talk shows, but Hiten and Sesshomaru, the devious businessmen they were, had pushed hard for them to greet their fans personally. It would increase viewer-ship, they said. It would increase the number of swooning women. Most of all, it would increase the profit on the "Shards of Our Memories" merchandise.

So, Inuyasha, Kagome, Kouga and Kagura would soon be besieged on a small stage in the courtyard of the downtown shopping mall, the fans swarming like locusts, waiting for them to work their magic. The MC was conferring with the burly security guards at the foot of the stage, as Kagome turned to comment to Kagura.

"….I didn't realize we had so many fans…." She breathed out in amazement.

Kagura rolled her eyes dramatically, popping her gum loudly. "This is so idiotic. I don't understand why we have to come to these stupid things, anyway."

Kagome was surprised. "…You've done a lot of these…?"

Kagura returned her gaze lazily, then began inspecting her blood-red nails. "One too many. Naraku deserves the shit beaten out of him for forcing me to come," she said spitefully. "It wasn't my choice to be here."

The man at the podium finally switched on the sound system, greeting the audience as the microphone blared with an unpleasant electric yelp out of the speakers. "Good afternoon, everyone!" He pulled the microphone cord along with him, as he stepped out into the middle of the stage, gesturing widely to the waiting fans. "Before we bring up the talent that you came for, I'd like to do a little introduction…."

Kagome leaned on the partition behind the stage, apparently the only one of the four interested in the actual introduction.

"…Early this fall, soap opera fans everywhere were treated to the newest and best creation yet from Kakera Studios, the same wonderful people that brought you such hits as `Soul Sharing' and `Minions.' Right away, it was easy to be drawn into the plot of `Shards of Our Memories,' which follows the harrowing romance of Maya and Damien, their murderous past, and those that scheme to come in between them. Since the day that the first episode was aired, the series has grown to become the highest-grossing daytime soap in television history- and the first season hasn't even ended!"

The crowd applauded fervently at this, and the sound technician beside the podium caused the theme music to swell dramatically and echo out into the courtyard.

The MC flashed a wide grin to the fans. " `Shards of Our Memories' has grown in popularity, not only because of its plot and setting, but mostly because of its colorful cast…. At this time, I have the pleasure of introducing to you to some of the great actors that are behind this hit!"

"Here for you today, we have the talent of `Shards of Our Memories'- Kagome Higurashi…Inuyasha Tanaka…..Kouga Murane….and Kagura Ayatachi!" As the four stepped out, the sea of heads cheered wildly, screams rising up through the air. The music boomed again.

Kagome's breath caught in her throat again, blinking rapidly as the lights on the stage glared. She couldn't see out into the edges of the courtyard, but if the deafening yells were any indication, they were a very popular bunch. She waved shyly, suddenly becoming a little self-conscious, dressed in silly designer clothing and masquerading like she was royalty. This was too weird.

She shot a look to the rest of the gang, and drew back a bit in surprise. Kagura was grinning. No, not just grinning. Smiling in a blinding kind of whiteness and waving at the fans. Kouga, too. Though, she couldn't say that that was much of a surprise. He was a ham at any opportunity. Perhaps the one that took her most aback, though, was Inuyasha.

He was grumpy, shuttered, dark, even hateful- every day of his life- right? But, here he was, shooting a playboy's toothy grin to anyone who would take it. And the girls just gobbled it up, she noticed, pinpointing a few choices shrieks along the lines of "Inuyasha, even though you're a successful TV actor with millions in the bank and just as many romantic offers, you can run away with me- a pre-teen girl with no visible source of income or intrigue!!!!"

….OK….so perhaps she took a few liberties with the translation…..but, close enough…..

After the frantic cheering died down, the MC took the opportunity to open up the microphone to questions from the audience. Kagome found her seat at the row of folding chairs set beside the podium. Fixing her tight jeans nervously, she squinted out into the crowd.

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Kouga's face was solidified in a dangerous glare. His arms wrapped tight around Kagome, his whole body radiated a clear possessiveness. She was frozen, too, in a kind of pouty surprise. To top it all off, Inuyasha was compelled to bring out his famous piercing stare. Cold and bitter, with a hint of ferocity behind it.

Ah…..promotional posters were such fun.

It had been quite a start for Kagome to realize that, when signing autographs, she would be placed directly in front of a huge picture of herself. It was slightly unsettling, being able to see every feature of your face blown up to ridiculous proportions.

They were seated at card tables that were decked out in blue cloth and plenty of glossy portraits. Inuyasha and Kouga sat on either side of Kagome, and she was learning how to sign her name quickly and efficiently with minimal amount of hand-muscle damage. They were coming in droves, all armed with some quirky compliment, and all with a shining face full of amazement.

And Kagome was enjoying it completely. The fans were so devoted, so supportive, so dedicated, that she was willing to smile wider and hug them closer for the cameras. Though she was still sure that she was probably the least deserving of worship, at least she could make them happy by giving them attention.

Taking a short oxygen break in between signings, she glanced over at Inuyasha, who seemed to have entirely transformed from his normal antisocial behavior. He was shooting everyone smiles, laughing back retorts to the men, and winking casually at the wavering girls. Her lips quirked up a little at the corners, as she observed him. It felt like she was seeing a flicker of the past….perhaps the way he once was, years before.

As the current young teen girl scuttled off after receiving her autograph, Inuyasha noticed that Kagome was watching him with an amused expression on her face.

He rolled his eyes at her. "What the hell are you laughing about?" But, unlike normal, there was a hint of a smile behind his voice.

"Your fans certainly seem to love you!"

Inuyasha grunted a little, pushing a cap down on one of the markers. "Huh. Yeah. They love my character- not me. There's a very big difference there."

Kagome giggled a little bit, resting her chin on her fist, fixing him with a mock-dreamy stare. "So, you aren't the slightest bit dashing and mysterious like him?" She teased lightly.

His eyes glinted a little bit, as he stared back at her. "…….what do you think?" She could tell that he wanted to push her buttons, the way he leveled her with his golden eyes.

She flushed darkly, wondering in the back of her mind why the look in his eyes was making her stomach flutter dangerously. "….I…think there are similarities…." Although her mind was racing wildly, she met his gaze.

One of his eyebrows arched, and he held her eyes for a few more seconds.

With a start, they both noticed that a fan was waiting patiently in front of Kagome's table, clutching a magazine that needed signing.

Inuyasha let her greet the girl, as he pushed his chair back from the table and stood. "I'm going to go get a drink of water." Kagome flinched a little, as she could have sworn she heard a chuckle rising from his throat. He certainly was different today….

Inuyasha strolled over to the table where the water cooler stood, purposefully ignoring the giggling girls that gave him long and loving stares. He filled a cup to the brim with cool water, smirking a little to himself. He didn't know why, but something about spending all of this time beside Kagome made him feel lighter than he had in months- no, years. He snorted a bit, remembering her clumsiness a few nights ago. Only Kagome would trip on a curb. He made a mental note to tease her about it later.

Refilling his cup, he began to move back towards the signing tables. The girls were probably missing him already, he thought, brightly.

Suddenly, Inuyasha picked up a snippet of a conversation behind him. He froze in his tracks, waited to hear the rest.

"……Think they chose her cause of her looks?" He had noticed them before. Two men standing next to the `Shards of Our Memories' poster besides the water table.

Inuyasha frowned a little, guessing that they were speaking about Kagome.

The other man snickered. "Why else would they choose her? She looks exactly that dead chick- you know- that one that Inuyasha was fucking."

Inuyasha's glare deepened, as his breath caught over the implications.

His friend laughed loudly. "Yeah- you're right! I mean, she can't even act anyway! She probably hooked up with one of the producers or something…"

Inuyasha felt like he was burning up inside with rage. His fingers pulled themselves into a tight fist, as he crushed the still-full paper cup in his hands in one violent snap. He had a deep urge to whip around a slam one of their faces into the ground. The way that they spoke about Kikyo….and about Kagome.

He cracked his knuckles dangerously, his shoulders tightening.

Then, he saw Kagome from over the sea of heads. She was shooting him a smile, beckoning him to come back to the tables. The anger in him dissipated slightly, as he saw the innocent shine in her face. He wouldn't get her involved in this, and he wouldn't get himself into trouble…

He satisfied himself, though, by stalking back towards the men to throw away his crumpled water cup. Sending them both a long glare, he stepped within a foot of them. "Watch where you talk, assholes. You never know who may be listening." He growled low. Then, without missing a beat, he whipped around and left them with stunned, fearful looks crawling across their features.

Shaking the discontent out of his face, he returned to his seat.

Kagome grinned at him, speaking to him as she signed another autograph. "What was that all about? We had to hold back the incoming fangirls with dogs while you were away," she quipped.

"….It was nothing…." He grumbled, glancing at her out of the corner of his eye. He did a double-take, to see if she really looked as much like Kikyo as he had first thought. No…..for him, the two had become almost different beyond recognition. Kagome had a strange fire in her eyes that made her an entirely separate entity.

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Kagome took a ling sip of cool water from the crystal glass, enjoying the way it slid down her throat. She wondered to herself if it would be wrong of her to run her finger along the edge of her glass to make noise in the middle of the restaurant, and entertained the idea for a moment. She decided quickly against it.

She didn't think that Kouga would appreciate it.

Kouga flashed her a toothy smile. Had he been speaking to her? Chastising herself, she realized that she hadn't been paying attention. Here, Kouga had paid for a nice dinner for both of them, and she thanked him by pondering the auditory qualities of her water glass. She sighed quietly, steeling herself to listen to his story.

Within a minute, her mind had drifted off under it's own will. No matter how hard she was working to keep up with Kouga's talk, her thoughts quickly moved on to other topics. The chief topic in her mind seemed to be Inuyasha. Watching the other man's mouth move quickly, her brain began conjuring up memories of their conversations from the autograph signing.

But, why was it so hard for her to enjoy Kouga's company as much as Inuyasha's? They were both handsome, popular actors who both shared the same set with her day by day. The answers came quicker than she expected, as Kouga's brash words rolled over her.

--Kouga's just not…..the same…-- He wasn't all the things that made Inuyasha so unique. The simplicity and honesty and mysterious tragedy just weren't a part of Kouga. He didn't have those eyes either…..the round lips and the strong jaw.

She shook herself a little, noticing where her mind was going.

Suddenly, she realized that Kouga had paused, and was staring at her expectantly. He had just asked her a question.

She flashed him a startled smile, pretending like she had heard. "Er…..Yes! I totally agree!"

Kouga looked at her quizzically, his eyebrows raised. "….I just asked you what you wanted to eat….."

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Kagome twirled in the tall boardroom chair for a moment, lazily tapping her nails on the long table. Since that first cast meeting there, she had become used to the soft lightly and the stern feel of the room, and she no longer felt intimidated by it.

Today, Hiten had called her and Inuyasha in to meet with him about upcoming scenes for the next week's show. Too bad that neither had shown up yet. She rolled her eyes in the empty room, entertaining herself by humming lightly and peering out the long window behind her.

Without warning, the door swung open, and Inuyasha plunked down into the chair next to her. She nodded a greeting at him, only then noticing the dissatisfied pout that shadowed his face.

She quirked and eyebrow at him. "What is it?"

He snorted at her, then turned away angrily.

She frowned, confused. "What did I do?"

"You let that slimy….wimp…..take you out for dinner?!"

"Kouga's not a wimp! He's not slimy either." Kagome then let out a surprised laugh, seeing Inuyasha's reddening face. "Wait- let me get this straight- you're mad at me because I went on a date….with Kouga?!"

Inuyasha frowned deeper, whipping around to glare at her. "It was a date?"

"Why should it matter to you if it was a date or not? It's not like it's any of your business!"

Inuyasha's mouth twisted stubbornly, so that he almost looked like a little kid throwing a tantrum. "I never said it was my business…." He struggled, defensively. "I just think that you should….be careful around him…that's all."

Kagome groaned. "I can't believe you! I can handle myself just fine around Kouga! You're acting like a two-year-old!"

Inuyasha's frown deepened further, as his eyebrow twitched in annoyance. He shut up, though, not turning to face Kagome's eyes. She threw up her hands in frustration, then turned to face away from him with a huff.

As the tension in the room simmered dangerously, Hiten chose the moment to walk into the boardroom. Even he, with his absent-minded nature with struck with the heavy annoyance lingering between them. "Whoa…did I interrupt anything?"

"NO." They both practically shouted in unison.

Hiten shrugged a little, turning his eyes to the script he held in his hands.

"OK….well….I just wanted to inform you two of a couple important changes in the plot starting next week. You both will be having more and more scenes together as time goes on."

Inuyasha grunted a little, still irritated. "What? Am I going to get to murder Kouga or something?" Kagome shot him a warning glare.

Hiten looked a little surprised, though they both could see that new ideas were churning in his brain with the suggestion. "No, no…..nothing of the sort…at least, not yet! It's just that your character, Inuyasha, has been hunting down Kouga and Kagome for quite some time in order to get revenge over Ayame's death…..but in the process, you and Kagome have, well…… `noticed' each other…."

"… `Noticed'….?" Kagome repeated the word hesitantly.

Inuyasha arched an eyebrow. "So…what kind of scenes are we going to be doing together….?"

Kagome swallowed hard, a little dread creeping into her veins.

Hiten smiled brightly, pushing a copy of the next show's script to each of them. "Next week, Inuyasha- you're going to seduce Kagome!"

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A/N: BWAH! I can't wait to write Chapter 8! It's going to totally rock….it's so much fun to put these characters in such precarious positions ; )

So, did you like the developments in this chapter? Even in you feel like flaming me, I'll be happy to hear from you- so USE THAT REVIEW BOX! Write something helpful- something daring- something SEXY! I'll love you for it!

…..Stay tuned for Chapter 8, called "Passions"…..

Some notes to reviewers:

Radical Dreamer: I'm glad you saw my message, and came over here to read it! I hope you liked this chappie…

Raelene: You're a sweetheart….can I marry you? ; )

Also, thanks to Super Hyper Anime Lover, ilvsimplepln2, KittySamurai506, allin656, and vikki for reviewing on chapter 6!