InuYasha Fan Fiction ❯ First Class Dog ❯ The Masquerade ( Chapter 11 )

-*-

Note: Most of you probably know this term but I'm still defining it just in case: “Gaijin” is a derogative term for a foreigner. Kind of like how some people call southerners “Rednecks.”

I sew cosplay costumes in my free time so if I get a little technical with some of the clothing descriptions I apologize.

I know I didn't write much about the dance but I'm a terrible dancer and it's hard for me to picture it in my own mind. If I can't picture it, then it's difficult for me to describe. If you want me to elaborate later I'll need someone to help me write it. Also, if you've got some ideas for what they can do now that the masquerade is over I'd really appreciate it. Otherwise, I'm going to be forced to end this story soon.

-*-

It was just a day before the masquerade. Shiro had come by their hotel room with two gifts for Kagome, which she was instructed to leave unopened until the following day. He had told her it was her outfit. The jewelry she had received at the amusement park had not been fitted with fake Shikon fragments.

Inu Yasha had sniffed suspiciously at the new boxes before pronouncing them safe. He had tried in vain several times to open the box; curious to see what Shiro had planned to dress her in, but was sat so many times he gave up trying.

The dog-demon found it odd that Shiro did not try to ask her out again but decided towards the end of the day that her kiss had put him off. Hours after Kagome's mystery gown had arrived Inu Yasha's tuxedo was delivered. He doubted the tux could compete with the manliness of a traditional formal robe… but he was convinced he would look pretty damn good. He'd seen a gaijin guy named “Bond” wear one in one of the movies the miko had taken him to see and he had to admit he approved of the look.

Ikume never appeared at all.

-

The morning of the masquerade moved too slowly. The afternoon was no better, at three in the afternoon a member of the hotel staff requested that the two bring their garments to a specified conference room in a few hours' time. Kagome was instructed specifically to not wear or bring any make up and to wash her hair but not dry it. The hanyou's only order was to bring his suit.

Watching the woman scurry about the hotel room in the last few hours before the masquerade was a fascinating sight for the half-demon. Her distress gradually grew as she worried about what boxes needed to accompany her to the conference room. She was convinced several times that she had forgotten one thing or another. The last minutes before they had to depart were the worst.

As Kagome worked herself into a frantic tizzy he suddenly realized why it took the girl so long to leave her parent's house each time he came to take her off to the Sengoku period. All of Shiro's boxes were piled at the door—he knew for sure that all of them were there—but the miko continued to ask him if she had all the boxes. After the tenth time (he had amused himself by keeping count) the exasperated hanyou picked up all the boxes and his tux in a plastic protective barrier hung on a hanger. Without a word he walked right out the door. Minutes later a grumpy miko fell in step behind him.

The elevator ride was surprisingly relaxed. It was apparent that she had resigned herself to believe something was lost but would not argue it any further. When they got to the floor designated for conference meetings they were separated by attendants. Two conference rooms had become dressing areas, apparently split by gender.

Inu Yasha was fussed at by a man who helped him with the complicated buttons on his tux and then assisted with the bow tie. Fully dressed the dog-demon began to head for the door when he was stopped again by the same man. A moment later his long hair was tied low in the back with a band.

“There. That gives you more class.”

Inu Yasha was not sure what that meant but an initial glance in the mirror confirmed in his mind that having more class was a good thing. Yes, he was quite the stud. He did not have much time to preen because another attendant arrived to assist with cufflinks and to give him his mask.

Kagome's experience was far more complicated. The girls were placed on a veritable assembly line of dressers, make up artists, and hair stylists. The first part of the line involved two dressers to each girl. They quickly helped each one into their dresses and then passed them off to the hair dressers. The second leg of the assembly line proved to be the longest one. The stylists mostly ignored their subjects in favor of a speedy up-do. It was clear the stylists were experts in their trade because none girls had any complaints for their styles. The last leg of the women's beautification involved make-up. The fancy dresses were carefully covered to protect the expensive silks and satins from falling powder. The artists also assisted the ladies with their various jewelry accessories. Lastly, each girl was ejected from her seat, cleaned up, and then helped into her shoes.

The girls were ushered out a back door and around to a set of large double doors. There, they were told to wait until they heard music. On the other side of the doors most of the men were lined up, waiting impatiently. Some of them were still being dressed or hung up on last-minute tailoring.

The music began and the doors burst open. A stream of girls in a rainbow of colors and shades came through. Kagome scanned the line of men until she picked out a familiar shape. The hanyou had been looking around, searching for her masked face until he quickly identified and then jogged to her. Amber eyes stared, taking in every detail of her figure. Without a word the half-demon took one of her gloved hands and led her out onto a balcony away from the crowd.

Back in the changing area Inu Yasha was still being fussed at. It seemed that the man with the cuff links had a serious case of the shakes. The attendant appeared to have the worst trouble keeping the tiny metal pieces in his hands. He would drop one part, stoop down, and then pick up another, babbling an incoherent apology. The dog-demon grew even more impatient as the men with wardrobe malfunctions were patched up and led out. Eventually, he and the attendant were the only two people left in the room. When his sensitive ears (taped down, but none the less working) picked up the sound of music he got fed up and abandoned the blubbering man.

On the balcony Kagome deserted her silent partner to jog up to the railing. She was awestruck by the fantastic view of the glittering city at night. The music hummed faintly in the background as her soundless partner followed behind. When he caught up to her he grasped her waist, smiling down at the blushing girl.

“Inu Yasha… what's gotten into you?”

The hanyou continued to smile. She could not help but feel that something about his smile was just a little different. The miko stifled the feeling, attributing it to his unusually direct approach.

Inu Yasha followed Kagome's scent away from the crowd until it met up with a familiar aroma, this time much stronger than he had known it to be. The pit of his stomach sank and grew cold. Shiro's scent led in the same direction as hers. His eyes fell on the open door to the balcony and he rushed towards it.

The half demon ignored Kagome's question. He raised a hand to cup her cheek and drew her closer to him. She felt her heart thud in her chest, elated that he was showing her the affection he barely exhibited. Still, something felt wrong. Part of her kept whispering that she should be suspicious. She studied his face and it hit her that his teeth were not quite right, there were no sharp fangs and his ears were human. That made no sense, Inu Yasha had already transformed and the timing was all off. Her hands moved against his chest and just as she was about to pull away someone shouted her name.

“Kagome!” The real Inu Yasha burst in.

Immediately his eyes locked on his own reflection holding his woman as he had always wished to. The sight of himself immediately conjured images of another time in place where someone had used his face to rip his heart away.

“Naraku spawn.” He snarled and leapt towards the man.

He had not been able to bring the Tetsusaiga so he readied his claws. As the dog-demon moved at lightning speed towards the man the fake Inu Yasha stepped behind Kagome, yanking her towards his chest. The action caused the half demon to stop dead in his tracks. Claws curled at her throat, ready to strike if he got any closer.

“You would dare take my woman in the same manner? Did your scum bag father teach you that?” He roared. “I'll kill you!”

“Oh, come on. It was just a joke!” Shiro's voice rumbled behind her.

“Yeah it's all a fucking joke to you, Naraku-swine.” Inu Yasha snapped back.

Shiro blinked, his image shifted back to the familiar blonde she knew, though his claws were no different. She had expected the man transform into Naraku, yet he kept the old form. Perhaps he did it to spite the dog-demon?

In the background people where applauding from within the ball room. Slowly the miko crossed her arms over her chest, her hands curled around her upper arm. One of her fingers slipped inside the cuff of her left glove, fingering an arrow head she had carefully attached to the inside the night before.

Shiro's claws crooked under her chin and forced her face up to look at him.

“I don't know what you see in him. I can provide you with so much more, you know?”

“Oh really? How? By killing and absorbing every living thing in sight? Sorry, that's not my idea of romantic.” She scoffed.

“Absorb? What kind of power is that? It doesn't matter; I'll make you mine one way or another.”

His face began to descend on hers, hers. Her fingers tightened on the arrowhead, she instinctively knew her companion was ready to strike the moment she made her move. It sickened her to think that her first kiss would be taken by a child of Naraku.

“That will be enough, Shiro.”

A new voice halted the demon's advance. His blue eyes were wide in shock. The voice was right behind Shiro. She could barely see the face of the man behind the blonde but the voice was far older. Her heart sank. It had to be Naraku.

“But—agh!” Shiro gasped suddenly.

He released Kagome immediately, grasping the back of his neck where the man had torn away a tiny glowing shard.

“Let's show her your true form.” The man said.

As he spoke there was a sudden plume of purple smoke where Shiro had been a moment ago. When it cleared she was shocked to see a little boy, who barely appeared twelve, with mahogany brown hair with similarly colored ears poking out at the top of his head. The tips of the ears had a tiny shock of blonde-tipped hair. His eyes were the same bright blue but his hands had become blonde-furred paws. His feet had also become blonde paws which became the same color as his hair at his haunches. Instead of the tuxedo, his clothes had been replaced with a traditional robe. The little boy whined.

“Dad! What'd you do that for?”

“Do you know who you were trying to kiss? This is your grandmother!” He snapped back.

For a moment the air changed, the dog-demon picked up a very familiar scent. Inu Yasha's frown suddenly transformed into raucous laughter.

“No, no. You're shitting me. Shippo?”

He clomped over to the two kitsune while Kagome gaped. It was his sandy, reddish-blonde hair, highlighted with shocks of gray, which she should have recognized. How had she missed it? When Inu Yasha was directly behind Shippo he clobbered him over the top of his head in his typical fashion. Familiar ears poked out from the top of his head, the face of a man in his forties was replaced with the image of a man closer to Inu Yasha's age. Shippo grimaced and rubbed his head.

“Sorry about that, mama.”

“Mama?”

Kagome's cheeks got a little red until it clicked in her mind. She had very likely adopted Shippo at some point. He had no parents after all; it made sense.

“You're lucky I didn't kill your kid.” Inu Yasha growled. “I thought he was Naraku with that damned stunt he pulled.”

“I know, I'm sorry about my kin. They're a little spoiled. I'll be grounding him from this for a while.” The fox-demon sighed.

Shippo shook his head and opened his palm to reveal a tiny shard. Kagome reached a gloved hand out to touch it but he quickly withdrew his hand.

“You'll shatter this if you touch it. It's a fake. I've figured out a way to manufacture these little buggers to partially amplify demonic powers. It gives us kitsune just enough power to hold a disguise for a full day without growing tired. Other demons can use it to mask their scent and hide demonic features. I've also managed to keep the shard from becoming corrupted by demonic blood by encasing it in this ceramic bead. A priestess is the only person who can make them.”

“Why would you want to help demons?” The half-demon spoke, crossing his arms dismissively.

“Well, I don't think it's a good idea for me to tell you specifics… but, essentially the demons I make these for are the good ones. I can't tell you how I know, but these demons just want to be left alone. They don't hurt anyone and they don't want to attract the bad ones with their scents.” The kitsune replied.

He looked down at his son for a few minutes, seemingly lost in thought; and then handed Shiro back his bead. Both kitsune transformed back into the forms they wore out in public.

“Shiro, apologize to the lady. We're going to have to have a little talk about your behavior after the ball.” Shippo gave him a hard look before turning back to his old companions. “I'm going to talk to my daughter as well. Would you mind staying out here for ten minutes while I find her?”

They nodded and the father and son disappeared back into the ballroom. When they were gone Kagome began to rub her upper arms. The night air was a little chilly and she had only just noticed it.

“Well, I sure wasn't expecting that.” She said.

Inu Yasha was still in the process of digesting all the new information he had just received and nodded absently. The miko shivered from a change in the direction of the breeze and his sharp eyes quickly picked up on it. The dog-demon had not been given the opportunity to take in her appearance until just then. She was stunning.

She wore a dark indigo gown made of shimmering silks. The strapless bodice had a silver beaded broach which sat in the center of her chest, a hair below her breasts. From each side of the broach silver pleated strips wound around her chest and tied in a complicated-looking, yet elegant bow low on her mostly bare back. He could tell the elbow-length matching blue gloves she wore would not keep out the chill breeze. With a shake of his head he quickly drew her into his arms, feeling her hands slip under his jacket around his waist.

“Don't sit me. I have to… you'll freeze.” He fumbled with his own words.

He was surprised when she gave no reply. The hanyou figured she was shocked or angry, after a couple of seconds of silence he snuck a look down at her face. She was looking up at him, but it was hard to see what she was thinking with the masquerade mask on. Without thinking—he seemed to be doing that a lot lately—he raised a hand and gently pulled the mask off. He hadn't had time to put his on; it was still lying in the changing room where he had abandoned it in his rush. Her cheeks were pink and he wondered if she was catching cold.

“Are-are you getting warmer?” He asked.

She nodded. He noticed little silver pieces sparkling in her black locks. They'd been carefully placed in her hair when it had been pulled up into a matching silver comb studded with blue stones that perfectly matched her dress. Amber eyes found her stormy blues again as he got lost in them again.

In his mind he could hear himself speak. “You're so beautiful…”

The look of surprise which registered on her face and the brightening of the blush on her cheeks made him realize he had spoken his thoughts aloud. Her response made his heart beat so hard in his chest he swore she would have felt it, ignorant to the fact that her own beat just as hard.

“Inu Yasha, I-I have to tell you…” His heart sank for a moment when she hesitated, he was sure she was going to let him down. Instead, she said, “I love you.”

His reply was immediate and seemed weak in comparison as it fell out of his mouth. “I love you, too.”

This time he would not ask, he was too afraid he might he might lose his chance. Inu Yasha was almost certain the night had been a dream anyway. He took a chance, his hand found its way under her chin, gently turning it up to his. His head tilted down and their lips met in a small kiss. As soon as he had done it he drew his head back a little and locked eyes with her. He had to make sure she had wanted it.

For a moment he feared she might have meant a different kind of love, like the platonic kind she had obviously shown towards Shippo in the future. His fears quickly vanished as she threw her arms around his neck and pulled herself up into a second kiss. This time she wouldn't let him end it so quickly. They held the kiss for several seconds, even though it felt like barely a heartbeat's worth of time.

When they finally parted for air Kagome was flushed and breathless. The music from the ballroom thumped in the background. He gave her waist a small, gentle squeeze. The air had grown chillier and he feared his thin jacket could not keep out the cold forever. He bent his head down and murmured into her ear.

“Let's go back in. It's too cold out here for you.”

Kagome concurred and the dog-demon escorted her back into the building.

-

Hours later Kagome and Inu Yasha returned to their room. Shippo had dropped them off at their hotel room. He could not resist dropping his disguise for a moment to give Kagome a bear hug, saying that because of his business he did not get to see her often and had missed her terribly. He bid her goodnight and waved at Inu Yasha. When the miko turned her back away from Shippo to unlock the door the kitsune gave him a knowing wink which made him blush more than he cared to admit it. Sure, they had finally admitted their feelings for one another and kissed… but he wasn't about to go that far yet! The dog-demon had little time to think about it, as his companion let them inside.

The first thing Kagome did when she entered was to remove her high heels with a pained groan. She had nearly forgotten what it felt like to dance for several hours in heels. It took even longer for the miko to coerce the half-demon into being her dancing partner. He was far more interested in observing her movements, which had the westernized style of dancing, and was happy to enjoy the show from a distance. He was also a little concerned he might have other issues that tight clothing would not hide.

Inu Yasha discovered he had little to worry about. There was so much moving involved with dancing that he had little time to worry about any physiological problems he might have. The miko had vanished into the bathroom as he fumbled with his shoes and removed his jacket; then gently undid his tie.

By the time his tie had come off (he was proud of himself for not having clawed it off) Kagome had returned to the living area. She had taken out her hair save for a few silver beads she had missed but seemed to be having trouble with her dress.

“Uhm… you'll have to help me with this.”

She said shyly, turning her back to him, revealing the bow and a zipper at her mid-back she was having trouble reaching. He recognized the obnoxious device from the ones that had come on several of his jeans and had little trouble bringing the clasp down all the way. The bow took a little longer. It had been tied tighter than he had thought and he had to fight the thing for several minutes before he finally got it loose. When it did the miko caught the dress and clasped the bodice to her chest to keep it from sliding down while she returned to the bedroom to finish dressing in pajamas.

When she came back Inu Yasha was in a pair of red, loose sport shorts and a white t-shirt. He was in the middle of adjusting his pillow on the sofa. At some point while she was dressing he had un-taped his ears and they swiveled in her direction.

“Inu Yasha, would you…” She paused for a moment, making sure he was paying attention before she continued, “…would you sit with me for a little bit?”

He sat back on the sofa, expecting her to join him until she replied, hesitantly.

“No, I mean, in there?” The miko pointed to the bedroom.

His ears became hot as a thousand probabilities popped into his mind all at once but he quickly convinced himself that it had to be to help her sleep. They had been through quite a night, after all.

“Sure.” He replied and followed her into the bedroom.

Without a word Kagome climbed into bed, slithered under the covers, and watched as the dog-demon plopped down in a squat next to her. She quickly realized he would not relax unless he was requested to do so. The miko wondered if the time she was drunk she had asked him to rest beside her. She tested the theory.

“You can lie down. I know you're tired.”

He seemed uncertain for a moment; then slowly lay down. The last time he had done this it had ended in intense pain, but then again, the last time she had been pretty trashed. This time she was completely lucid. Amber eyes watched as her eyes slid shut. Before she fell into a deep, exhausted sleep she managed to mumble.

“You can stay here, it's all right…”

That settled it for him. He nodded, dumbly even though she had no way of seeing it. It felt good to be close to her again. He could keep a better eye on her this way. After all, he wasn't one hundred percent sure that Shiro was entirely finished with them. Shippo had obviously grown up but it was obvious he did not have complete control over his kin. Would Shiro always be a threat to Kagome?

His eyes lingered on the miko's face. She was already asleep, her breathing slow and even. He wondered how she had kept out of trouble for so long without him. Noticing a silver bead still trapped in her raven locks, he reached a claw out and gently dislodged it from her hair. He inspected the bauble for a moment before it was tossed over his back unceremoniously. The dog-demon reached out again, running his fingers through her soft hair. Only a few days ago he wouldn't have dared to dream that he might sleep so close to his love. Yet, there he was, able to touch her, hold her, and even managing to kiss her—twice!

His hand slid from her face. It felt heavy. The hanyou realized he had been more worn out than he had guessed. He tried to stay awake in vain but gradually succumbed to the temptation of a worry-free rest.