InuYasha Fan Fiction ❯ Afternoon is Ours ❯ Second Impressions ( Chapter 2 )

Disclaimer: Ownage=zippo.

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"You'd better not try something like this again, woman," he hissed, words filled with icy venom. "You're mine, you hear? All mine. Nobody else can have you." He struck her, a vicious backhanded slap across her cheek. The impact threw her into a wall.

"Naraku, listen to me…" she pleaded. "I wasn't doing anything with him. He's just a friend, I swear!"

His lip curled and he shoved her back harder. The most disturbing thing was his expression; he almost smirked at her.

"Don't insult me, Kagome," he warned. "I don't want to hear excuses. Now, get dressed. We have a dinner party tonight." With that, he swept out of their room, leaving a weeping woman in his wake.

* * *

Kagome woke with tears on her face. She sniffed and brushed them away, then looked out her window. The sight that greeted her was enough to bring back her trademark beam. There was the ocean, the cliffs, the sandy beach. She was free, and all Naraku could do about it was skulk in her dreams. She crawled out of bed and heaved open her new dresser drawers, pulling out a comfortable-looking outfit. As she tugged it on, her stomach growled in a general plea for food.

Kagome sighed. In between nearly drowning, meeting Kouga, leasing her house, and unpacking her things, she hadn't had time to buy any food. She wasn't desperately hungry, but nourishment was definitely on the top of her list.

I'll go find a restaurant, I guess, she thought as she stopped in the bathroom. She put on a little make-up; just enough to hide the bruise on her cheek from where he had struck her. She frowned at the memory. He was in her nightmares; that was enough. He didn't need to be in her waking thoughts as well.

She left the bathroom and walked down the stairs, grabbing her purse but not her keys as she passed the kitchen counter. It wasn't like she needed her car to get anywhere. She opened the door, took a deep breath, and started down the road. Her flip-flops clapped against her feet as she strolled towards the main street and the faint roll of the ocean calmed her after the horrible dream she had awakened from. She quickened her pace as she spotted a bistro a few blocks down. Wonderful smells were blowing towards her from the place, making her mouth water and stomach rumble.

She pushed the door open and stepped inside. The place was decorated in a rustic French theme and made Kagome feel right at home. A few customers dined with staff members doting on them, but it was otherwise empty. A young woman with red hair and green eyes spotted her from across the room and waved. She trotted over, her black apron flapping slightly. She tied it as she moved.

"Hey, you need a table?" she inquired, smiling.

"Yeah, that'd be good." Kagome returned the grin whole-heartedly.

"And for how many people?" The girl scanned the room as she spoke.

"Just one."

"Very daring of you!" she chuckled. "Follow me, please." She led Kagome to a small table towards the front of the restaurant, handing her a menu. "All right, my name's Ayame and I'm your humble servant for this morning. You look that over and flag me down when you're ready. Anything to drink while you're waiting? Orange juice, water, coffee, a bit of morning liquor to drive off last's night bad sex?"

Kagome laughed, covering her mouth with a hand. "Just OJ, thanks," she managed to say.

"No problem," Ayame replied kindly. "Oh, and by the way, welcome to Netarts…"

"Kagome," the other girl supplied.

"Kagome," she finished. "I'll be seeing you around, I'm sure." With that, the redhead disappeared into the kitchen.

Kagome, feeling happier than when she'd come in, pulled out her sketchbook. This town was exactly what she needed.

* * *

Inuyasha opened the door to Bistro Jeanty, his favorite place for breakfast. He waved to Ayame as she placed a glass of orange juice before a woman whose back faced him.

"Who's that?" he mouthed to his long-time friend.

"New girl," she replied in the same fashion.

He nodded and looked her over. She wore a light pink off-the-shoulder top, long-sleeved to accommodate the chilled weather, and her black hair fell long and loose down her back. She reached her hands back and twisted it slightly in her hands, pulling it over her shoulder. Inuyasha had to stifle a gasp when he saw how severely bruised she was. The whole of the area exposed to him was one mottled purple blotch and it obviously hurt. He wondered what could have caused it all.

Ayame, seeing his eyes widen, came up to him with a questioning look.

"It's nothing," he answered. "She here alone?"

"Yeah. Why? You wanna sidle up to her?"

Inuyasha forced out a harsh bark of laughter. "You could say that."

Ayame shrugged and went to help an elderly couple that was waving to her. The hanyou took a deep breath and went to join the young woman.

* * *

Kagome had heard the door open, felt the cold rush of air. She had sensed the eyes watching her and noticed when Ayame looked up and mouthed something. It had taken all of her discipline not to turn around and see who was there. Her hands twisted her hair nervously, curiosity threatening to consume her.

Then, she heard footsteps approaching the back of her chair and the feeling of being watched increased. Whoever it was stood there, silently contemplating something.

"I know you're there," she said irritably. "If you want to sit down, just do it."

A man chuckled. "Sorry," he apologized. "I was just looking at your drawings. They're very good."

Kagome twisted around in her seat to thank him, but the expression of gratitude died on her lips as she saw whom it was. Her pleasant smile twisted into a scowl. "You!" she hissed. "What are you doing here?"

"I was just trying to make polite conversation," he protested as he sat down across the table from her.

"No! No, goddammit! Go sit somewhere else!" She stamped on his foot under the table and he shot her a glare.

"Not until you tell me what those bruises are from," he said stubbornly.

Kagome's eyes narrowed. "Why do you care?" she asked suspiciously.

"I don't, it's just…I…well, you…" He struggled to find the right words. "Just humor me, ok?"

"Fine. Nothing happened. I fell down some stairs."

It was a lie and they both knew it. An uncomfortable silence fell between them, stretching over minutes that felt like hours. Ayame came and went twice, leaving a toasted bagel and cream cheese and then the check for Kagome. Still, no words passed between them.

When the girl came back for the money, Kagome finally looked up at the youkai. "Can you teach me how to surf?" she asked abruptly.

Inuyasha jumped, having been lost in thought. "What?"

"Can you teach me how to surf?" she repeated, more slowly this time.

He stared at her for a moment. "Yes," he replied.

She smiled brilliantly. "Great! My name's Kagome," she said as she held out a hand.

"Inuyasha." He took her hand in his own, shaking it firmly. "Meet me in the parking lot in fifteen minutes," he ordered firmly. "Wear a swimsuit and board shorts, if you have them."

"I don't."

"Whatever. Don't be late." He smirked at her and they left the bistro. Kagome began walking briskly towards her new house. She wasn't about to miss this opportunity! Naraku had never let her surf, saying it wasn't befitting for a lady of her social stature. She was excited.

* * *

Inuyasha frowned as Kagome turned onto the same street he was headed for. He had been following her since they'd left Jeanty, and not on purpose, either. She made a left and entered the house directly next to his. His eyebrows shot up in surprise. She was his…neighbor? This was news to the hanyou. Kouga was definitely going to get a talking to next time he came around to collect the rent. The stupid bastard deliberately put that girl in the house beside him. That girl who could be Kikyou's twin!

Inuyasha entered his house with his mind quickly devising ways to torture and kill that damn wolf demon.

The woman in the house next door, however, was blissfully unaware of her neighbor's identity. She hummed a song as she changed into her suit. Certainly, she didn't like Inuyasha, but she had been dying to learn how to surf since she'd first seen Naraku's friend Miroku do it in a competition back in LA. She put her clothes from earlier on over the bathing suit and made her way back down to wait for her new instructor.

* * *

Inuyasha eyed the pretty girl as she sat on the wooden fence, facing away from him. She was attractive, he'd give her that. But then, so was Kikyou.

He snorted at the thought and readjusted his grip on the surfboards beneath his arms. "Oi, bitch!" he called out. "I thought I told you to change!"

Kagome turned to face him. She was scowling lightly at him. "You did," she replied as she pulled her shirt over her head to reveal a stylish burgundy bikini. The hanyou blinked. It was deep wine color with embroidered flowers over both breasts, the bold but sophisticated hues making her skin glow healthily despite the bruises she sported. He frowned as he noticed the distinctly hand-shaped ones on the outer edges of her collarbone. Whoever this bastard was, he sure as hell was strong. Inuyasha frowned. They really were ugly little buggers, no matter what her swimsuit did to make them look better.

Kagome cleared her throat. "Um…'Yasha? Yeah, my face is up here."

He let out a deep, rumbling chuckle when he saw her cherry red face. "Just admiring your bruises, wench. Don't take it personally," he snorted. "I just was wondering how falling down stairs got you such pretty handprints." A wicked smile took over his face, making Kagome blink in surprise at the change in expression.

She quickly recovered, however, one perfectly formed eyebrow twitching. "That's none of your business," she protested. "I didn't beg you to ask me questions, you know; all I wanted was to learn how to surf."

Inuyasha shrugged. "Good point," he replied dryly as he handed her the longer of the two boards he carried. "We can start with how to carry the damn thing."

Kagome looked at him in awe. "Th-that thing's huge!" she stammered.

"Hardly. It's only eight feet long." He thrust the thing at her more forcefully. "Look, I don't want to stand here all day, arguing about what's big and what's not in surfing. Just take the fucking board, bitch!"

She glowered at him again, but took it, marveling at its lightness. She mimicked his way of wrapping an arm around it, holding it from the bottom. "Is this right?" she asked, comparing herself to him.

"Yeah, that's good. Just be careful when you're turning, ok? I don't want you breaking it before we even get to the waves." He began to lead her down the stairs to the sand, peeking over his shoulder at her occasionally. Kagome followed him obediently, taking extra precaution not to smack the board against the railings. She watched her feet intently, trying to hold in her excitement.

As she focused on not grinning like a madwoman, Kagome completely missed the fact that Inuyasha had stopped in front of her. She blundered into his bare, muscular back and stumbled slightly. He gave her an annoyed look and she blushed.

"Sorry," she mumbled, looking down at her feet.

"Keh. Whatever, wench." He looked out at the ocean, gauging the conditions with expert eyes. "Look," he commanded briefly, and she followed his orders without complaint. "That's a nice five-foot swell, which is a little bit big for beginners, but you'll survive. There's an offshore wind, meaning the wind is blowing out towards the ocean. That's a good thing. Last week, we had a bad time with exactly the opposite, called onshore. That makes the waves crumble, and then you just plain can't surf. Then there's the cross-shore wind. That's no good, either. No shape to the waves." Inuyasha paused, making sure Kagome was keeping up.

"Offshore good, cross-shore and onshore bad. Gotcha," she summarized for him.

He grunted his approval. "You're smarter than you look," he admitted grudgingly. Kagome stuck her tongue out at him, but he ignored it. "Now that we have basic waves down, let's work on the pop-up."

He received a blank stare.

"Maybe I spoke too soon on your level of intelligence," he muttered. Kagome sent him a glare. He sighed. "The pop-up is the move to stand up on your board. Here, let me show you."

Kagome watched with mild curiosity as the hanyou lay down on the board, his arms stretched out before him. Suddenly, he pulled his legs beneath him and stood up in a classic surfing posture. "Just like that. It starts out looking like the beginning of a push-up, then you lift your feet and bend your knees until you can stand up," he explained. "You try."

And try she did, until her arms were sore and her ears were ringing from Inuyasha's constant disparagement.

Towards the twenty-seventh practice round, as her companion opened his mouth for what was no doubt more criticism, Kagome felt something inside her snap. "No! Don't you dare say another word!" she barked. "I'm sick of you yelling at me! I'm trying my damn hardest, and all you have to say is that I'm terrible!"

Inuyasha looked at her, slightly annoyed. "You done? Because if you are, I was about to say that you're ready to go into the water."

All the anger left her with a soft whoosh, leaving her dumbfounded, her mouth making an "o."

"Yeah, that's what I thought." He fought to keep in his laughter at her sudden deflation. "Now let's go. We're working on paddling out next."

* * *

Three hours later, with the sun high overhead, Inuyasha called Kagome in. She had made good progress, though she had yet to actually catch a wave.

"What?" she demanded when she reached his position closer to shore. "I was about to get one!"

Inuyasha scowled at her. "I think we should go get something to eat," he told her. "It's about noon, and you won't get any better by starving yourself."

"I'm not hungry," Kagome insisted. Just at that moment, her stomach rumbled noisily, bringing a heated blush to her cheeks.

"Like hell you aren't. C'mon, we can go pick something up and eat on those rocks over there."

The girl sighed, but nodded. "All right," she conceded, and Inuyasha smirked. He walked out of the water, motioning for her to follow.

"We can get some great Chinese food to go just up the road at this restaurant called Kenny's," he informed her as they wrapped themselves in towels on the sand. "It's really unhealthy, but so good."

Kagome shrugged, smiling. "I'm game. Nothing like grease and MSG to fill you up."

Inuyasha rolled his eyes. "It's no good if you think about it!" he berated, picking up his surfboard. Kagome followed suit. "Then you spend the whole time feeling like a retard for eating it. I don't bother. I think people should forget about their health and just enjoy life now."

Kagome snorted. "Yeah, because you can really enjoy life with no stomach lining," she quipped.

"Ugh, now you've got me thinking all healthy. I bet you eat all organic, low-in-fat, hydrogenated oil-free food, don't you? I swear, if I wanted to meet people like that, I'd have stayed in Portland."

"Portland?" Kagome asked, curiosity overriding her annoyance. "Have you been there, then? I hear it's really nice."

"Yeah, if you like dirty rivers and hippies preaching about how we should do something about it," Inuyasha drawled. "That's all Portland is, really. They've got some good bands, though."

"Ugh, you're hopeless!" she cried, throwing the hand that wasn't carrying her board into the air. "You should learn to be more optimistic!"

"Christ…" Inuyasha muttered.

* * *

"Um…Inuyasha?" Kagome called, voice a little higher than normal. "Are you sure about this?"

The hanyou rolled his eyes. "Yes, I'm sure!" he answered for the fifth time. "I do this all the time!"

There was a pause. "…even with carrying take-out?"

"YES!"

"Oh. Okay."

"Keh. We're almost there, anyway." He took one hand off the rock he gripped and pointed to a small ledge a foot or so above them on the inclined cliff they were climbing. "See that? That's where we stop," he told her.

"That's not so bad," Kagome said timidly. Inuyasha nodded and pulled himself up onto the outcropping. He held out a hand for the girl below him. She took it and was immediately helped up to sit beside him. "Thank you," she sang happily. Inuyasha just made a face.

"Whatever."

Kagome shrugged and began unpacking the food she'd been carrying.

"Chow mein, orange chicken, sweet and sour pork, fried rice, and spring rolls," she listed as she pulled them out. "Yum." She handed Inuyasha a pair of chopsticks, taking the other for herself.

The hanyou pulled the sticks apart and scraped the splintery sides together until they were mostly smooth. Kagome copied him, having never eaten Chinese take-out before. They ate quietly in a companionable silence that neither felt the need to break.

He's really not so bad, once you give him a chance, Kagome thought, her spirits rising. A little rough around the edges maybe, but I don't mind spending time with him all that much, and today's even been fun!

Inuyasha was thinking alone similar lines. It's kinda nice, having someone around. I could get used to it. She's nothing like Kikyo was. Maybe that makes her okay...? I just wish I knew more about her.

The hanyou cleared his throat, curiosity getting the better of him. "So. Where are you from?" he asked, arms crossed over his chest.

Kagome looked up at him. "How do you know I'm not from around here?"

"You just aren't. Answer the question."

"Fine. I'm from California," she replied, eyes twinkling.

"What are you doing here, then? Netarts is a wasteland compared to Cali."

She sighed and stared off at the sea silently. Inuyasha thought she wouldn't answer, but her mouth opened after a few moments.

"I'm avoiding someone," she said finally, looking at him again. He raised an eyebrow. "Fine, fine. Avoiding isn't the right word. Running is more like it. That, and L.A. is so superficial, so busy. I can't stand it there." She smiled sadly.

"Is…er…he the one you're running from?" Inuyasha inquired awkwardly, motioning to the bruises on her collarbone and back.

Kagome's eyes hardened. "I don't want to talk about it," she said coldly.

"He is, isn't he?"

"Yes," she replied, deflating. "Pathetic, huh?"

"Kinda. He looks damn strong, though, so maybe not. I mean, if I were as weak as you, that's what I'd do."

Kagome shrugged. "Maybe." She looked out over the ocean. "How long have you lived here?" she asked. "I mean, you seem pretty comfortable with the place…"

"Almost all my life. I just lived in Portland for two years recently, though. My mom was from here, and so were her parents. I'm a local, born and bred."

"What about your dad?"

The question was innocent enough, but it made Inuyasha's hackles raise. He hated this question with a passion. "He's a full-blood youkai. Lives in Japan," he replied shortly.

"Really? Where?" Kagome obviously hadn't picked up on his discomfort.

Might as well tell her, Inuyasha thought, defeated. "Right now? Probably Tokyo, but maybe Kyoto. He's chair of the Youkai Council over there, since my family's the ancestral ruler of the Western Lands."

"So your dad's the Inutaisho? That's cool."

Inuyasha sent her a sideways glance. "What about your parents?"

"Mine?" Kagome smiled, but this time it held no melancholy. "My mom lives in San Diego now, but she's from Tokyo. So was my dad. I lived in Japan with them for a while, up until I was about thirteen. That was when Papa died. Mama, my little brother Souta, Grandpa, and I all moved to California after that."

"Oh. Erm…I'm sorry…"

"Don't be," Kagome ordered him kindly. "It was a really long time ago."

They lapsed back into silence, just content to stare at the water. They'd been up there, eating and talking, for nearly an hour, and neither felt the need to move.

No, definitely not such a bad guy at all, Kagome thought warmly.

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Note: I have nothing against Portlanders or hippies. I live there and I pretty much am one. I just think that it's how Inuyasha would think of the area.

Also, if you're interested in Portland local bands, check out a) Pink Martini, and b) http :// www .buymusichere .net/ rel/ v2_home .php? storenr=23 &deptnr =22 without the spaces. I wasn't kidding when I said Portland's bands are awesome. ^^