InuYasha Fan Fiction ❯ A Marriage of Convenience for Whom? ❯ Knowing Is Not Knowing ( Chapter 13 )

Disclaimer: I do not own Inuyasha. Inuyasha is the property of Rumiko Takahashi and Viz Productions.

 

A/N: Just so none of you have coronaries from anticipation anxiety, I want to say this story has a bit of a way to go. There's build up to the wedding, a little leveling off while they're newly weds, and finally build up to the end. Don't worry, I'm in the zone for this story at the moment, so it is getting my sole attention for a while, probably until its done.

 

Thanks to the following for reviewing Chapters 11 and 12: cougiecat1,  moussajinx, Kat_Castle,  lil_one, KaIvAl,  Inuyasha Baby_bre, Kikyo_must_die2, Autumn_the_Reviewer, Seiteki_Tenshi, Sassa, Totally Kawaii, @___@, j jarviss, Rose of Sharon, karshepottsoner_18, katcastle, Magawa, xXAngel of DarknessXx, Ru-Doragon, Beatrix B., cutee2054, Cold Kikyo, Sakura onto Hitomi, srg1, Tahitianbabe, and cyberdemon

 

Sakura onto Hitomi: I'm graduating May 12thso you'll be done like a whole week before me. Graduation, its sooo crazy!

 

Sutlesarcasm: thanks for the email, its really encouraging to know fans are willing to wait so long for a story. I hope I can keep updating, but you're right, you never know what comes up in life outside of fanfiction.

 

A few of you also pointed out what a shitty name “Mr. Kikyou” was for Kikyou's husband. I know it is, but 1) I know little to nothing about Japanese names and 2) when Britney Spears married K-fed, there was a time when he was called “Mr. Britney” and “Mr. Spears”. I also think that happened to a few other famous women who married no body men. So I was just playing around with that. I know, I watch WAY too much television.

 

If you asked me a specific question that I missed and you need to know, let me know. Or if I missed you (I did only do reviewers for 11 and 12) and you like to see your name in print (I know I do) tell me. I'm going to try to be more responsive to reviewers in the future because you guys are so great.

 

Chapter 13

 

Kikyou sat at her kitchen counter smoking a cigarette.

 

There really wasn't anything else she could do at the moment anyway.

 

All matters of shit had hit the fan earlier that morning.

 

And now she had no idea what to do.

 

So she was waiting to hear back from the suits from the movie studio.

 

As she put her cigarette out in the ash tray, she made little ash tally marks to count the things that had gone wrong in the last twelve hours.

 

First and foremost her bumbling security—who she shelled out a fortune for—had let a cameraman past and he had gotten pictures of her snuggling with her husband in their living room. That was by far the worst thing to have gone wrong. The only silver lining was the fact the paparazzi had not pegged him down as her husband—just some random guy she was with.

 

The second line of ash was for Kagome who had shown up mysteriously sometime in the early morning hours looking penitent but happy after being missing for the better part of the night. Kikyou fumed while thinking of her sister. There would not be so much media hype about this mess if she had not been seen in public the night before.

 

Finally, Kikyou thought of Sango who was still MIA. The most dependable assistant she had ever had had picked the worst possible time to go missing. Sango's cell phone was turned off and she was not in her apartment—unusually unreachable.

 

The phone next to her rang loudly, and Kikyou wondered if she should pick it up. The actress knew she probably needed to talk to who ever was on the other line, but she really didn't want to. Ever since she and her husband had been woken up before the crack of dawn to be yelled at, Kikyou had not been looking forward to this phone call.

 

Sighing, she picked her cell, flipped it open, and clamped it to her ear.

 

“Hello?” Listening to the squawking voice on the other end, Kikyou tried not to audibly groan. “Yes, I understand,” more bitching and the actress was fumbling for another cigarette. “Today!? Are you sure?” She let the smoke and lighter tumbled onto the counter. “You are sure. I see. I'll let her know. You too, bitch.” Clicking the phone shut, Kikyou dropped it onto the smooth tile of the counter. She snatched up the cigarette and her lighter and was in the process of lighting it when Kagome strolled into the kitchen, still looking serenely happy from whatever it was she had been doing the night before.

 

Kikyou couldn't take it anymore. Her frustration boiled the surface in an instant and she snapped.

 

“What are you so happy about?” She growled. “You do realize that we're fucked?”

 

Kagome stared at her sister blankly, one hand on the on the refrigerator door.

 

“Kikyou?”

 

“Don't Kikyou me,” she mocked, sucking hard on the cigarette she had managed to only light halfway. “You have the gall to sneak away from Sango last night and now you're here acting all innocent.”

 

“Wow,” Kagome held up her hands in self-defense. “Slow down, Kikyou, what's the matter? What happened?” Letting go of the refrigerator door and crossing her arms over her chest, Kagome tried to figure out was the matter with her sister. She had known she was going to be in trouble for sneaking around with Inuyasha, but Kikyou's flat out rage was not what she had been expecting.

 

Kikyou was too angry and stressed to speak. She pulled out the newspaper covered with pictures of her and her husband and slammed it down on the counter. “I think we can safely say the shit has hit the fan, Kagome.”

 

Kagome picked up the paper, the blood draining from her face.

 

“Open it, go to page ten,” Kikyou commanded.

 

Obeying, Kagome found the page. Spread over the top was the headline, “Double Life?” followed by the subheading, “What does Inuyasha think?” The pictures accompanying the article were collages of her outside the club where the bachelorette party had been and the other half was of Kikyou and her husband curled up on the couch together looking like any homebody couple. The worst picture was probably the one of herself trekking behind a man with white hair and doggy ears.

 

“This is bad,” Kagome breathed, unable to think of anything more eloquent to say. She could feel her hands start to shake and quickly she tossed the paper back onto the counter.

 

“No shit, Kagome,” Kikyou barked. “Not only does this fuck with my fucking career, it fucks with my entire life! My personal life!” Kikyou didn't know how much more she could take. She was so close to getting Kagome out of her house and married off safely as planned and now something like this had to happen.

 

“I'm sorry Kikyou, I—” Kagome tried to say something comforting, but her sister interrupted her.

 

“You're sorry! What the fuck were you thinking of leaving that club? You do realize this is all your fault, leaving the party with some guy like any other tramp. I thought you were better than that, I thought I could count on you.” Kikyou was crying now, and she tried to smudge away the tears without burning her face with the cigarette she clutched between her fingers.

 

Kagome jerked back like she had been slapped. Where was all this coming from? Her sister of all people had just called her tramp.

 

Her mind reeling, she could only manage a cracked whisper, “Kikyou?”

 

“The guy you were with, Kagome.” She jabbed her cigarette at the back of Inuyasha's head in the newspaper picture. “Sango was right, and I didn't listen to her.” Kikyou rested her head on the back of her hand, her elbow propped up on the counter. Tears flowed freely and silently. She sniffled loudly, but still kept her head bowed on her hand.

 

“I—he…” Kagome didn't know what to say. Kikyou knew about Inuyasha, in a way. Dating was so rare for Kagome, she almost felt embarrassed by the fact Kikyou know she had been spending time with a boy. Granted, her family had known about Kouga and perhaps suspected the other men she had been with in the past, but there was something nauseatingly scandalous about this. Not only did her sister know she had been running around with Inuyasha, the entire city—no the entire country—thought Kikyou was leading a double life with two mystery men before she got married because of her.

 

Shaken, Kagome took the bar stool opposite her sister. “I don't know what I was thinking. I—”

 

“You're damn right you weren't thinking,” Kikyou hissed. Her head shot up and she glared at her little sister. “Who is he Kagome? Do you even know him? He's probably just another reporter using to you get a story. Do you ever fucking think or are you always like this? No wonder you were taking time off from school.”

 

Kagome had had enough. “Are you always such a bitch? I said I was sorry—”

 

“Like that helps—”

 

“I know I should I have been more careful, and I wasn't, but I think this guy—”

 

“Kagome!” Kikyou jumped off her bar stool to loom over her sister, getting the younger woman's full attention. Slightly more calm but still urgently, she began, “You should know one thing about Hollywood guys: they use women. They use us for sex and publicity and that's it. However `special' or `different' you may think he is, I can assure you he's not. You may want to fuck with your own life like this, but please don't fuck with mine. Is this why you had to take a break from school? Because you had some guy trying a little too hard to get into your pants?”

 

Kagome started to cry with her sister's harsh words. Biting her lower lip, she tried to answer Kikyou, “Could you just leave school out of this?” Kikyou only glared in response, but stayed quiet. “I guess this is a bad time to say it, but I've met someone Kikyou. And I think he actually likes me.” Suddenly, her words and actions sounded painfully naïve, but Kagome continued anyway, trying to explain the situation to herself and her sister. “He—he's a hanyou, and I like being around him. I don't think he's using me, he actually avoided me for a while. I've been sneaking off to see him,” Kagome finished, unable to think of anything else to say.

 

“You are such a child, Kagome.” Kikyou spat. “You are going to ruin everything for a stupid little crush!”

 

Kagome was feeling very guilty, but at the same time her sister's perpetual blame focused at her was not helping her quell the anger that she felt.

 

“I said I was SORRY!” Kagome screeched, stamping her foot in exasperation, now feeling even more like the child Kikyou was accusing her of being. A dark blush flushed her face and Kagome found herself staring at the ground.

 

“Sorry isn't going to get you anywhere.” Kikyou said dryly. She turned to go, suddenly more poised, an indifferent mask on her face. “Go get dressed, the wedding has been moved to today for damage control. As soon as Sango can make it here, you'll be going to the church.”

 

With that she made her way up stairs, leaving her baby sister to handle her wedding day all alone.

 

XXXXXXXXXXX

 

Sango was having the most wonderful dream. Not particularly sure of its events or even the landscape in which she was in, she still felt the greatest sense of calm she had known in an extremely long time. Snuggling deeper into the blankets that surrounded her, she suddenly came to the realization that she was not in her own bed.

 

She had only managed to fight her way out of the knot of covers and pillows she found herself buried in when the door to whoever's bedroom she had spent the night in swung open.

 

“Miroku! Get up! I have a prob…lem.” The hanyou stopped short when his eyes locked on Sango, half propped up on one arm, her hair disheveled and spilling over half her head into her face.

 

“You—I—you're not Miroku!” The hanyou blurted out, his white puppy ears swiveling wildly on top of his head.

 

Reflexively, Sango clutched the sheets to her chest. It would not be her first time waking up in a strange guy's room, but it would be the first time a disgruntled hanyou had barged in on her asking for “Miroku”.

 

Miroku…Miroku…Why does that name sound so familiar?

 

In a mind numbing rush of nausea, Sango found herself hit by the mother of all hangovers. Struck by the need to get to the toilet as fast as possible, she momentarily forgot the hanyou and dashed though the open door of the bedroom's bathroom.

 

Inuyasha flattened his ears to his head to block out as much as possible of the strange woman vomiting.

 

After several minutes, Sango returned to the bedroom, attempting to straighten her suit jacket, skirt, and nylons—all of which she was very pleased to have woken in. She looked to see the hanyou staring nervously at her, unsure of what to do with the weird woman who had been in his friend's bed as she was of him.

 

Working off her usual polite autopilot she used to get out tight spots in any Hollywood function, Sango decided to go on with introductions. “Good morning, I'm Sango,” she said, holding out her hand. On seeing the hanyou's look of disgust, she quickly withdrew the hand, holding it behind her back.

 

“I'm…Yasha, I'm um,” he looked her crumpled business suit up and down awkwardly, “I'm looking for Miroku. You haven't seen him have you?”

 

Miroku…Miroku…Miroku! He was the guy from the club! She remembered the night though the blurry beer goggles of Yeager bombs.

 

“I'm assuming this is his apartment…house…condo?” Sango asked as she began looking for her shoes.

 

“Yeah, his house,” Inuyasha, said, holding up one of Sango's heels just as she stood with the other.

 

Thanking him, she moved out of the bedroom, looking around. Immediately, she was drawn by the sound of someone snoring. Following the din she came into a living room where Miroku was sprawled out on his couch, like herself still dressed in his business dress.

 

Inuyasha came up behind her. “Sleeps like a baby,” he said with a smirk.

 

At the sound of Inuyasha's voice Miroku snorted in is sleep, waking himself with a start. “Inu…yasha?” He asked blurrily as he made eye contact with the hanyou. The monk's eyes slowly drifted over to Sango. “Lady Sango?” Miroku exclaimed, now fully awake. “You're still here! I'll cook breakfast!”

 

Leaping off the couch, he rushed into the kitchen, leaving Sango standing where she was, the fact that she did not eat breakfast still on the tip of her tongue.

 

Sango stared at the empty couch for a moment, wondering how any one could move so quickly before she turned on her heel and traced Miroku's steps into the man's kitchen. It was there she found him frying eggs, mixing pancakes, and cooking bacon all at the same time. The man appeared to be everywhere at once and to be working with as many arms as Kali.

 

“I don't have much in the way of breakfast goods, Lady Sango, but I hope its not too shabby,” Miroku spoke quickly as he delivered a stack of pancakes with a side of scrambled eggs and bacon in front of Sango where she had flopped down, dizzy after watching him cook with all the speed of a cartoon character.

 

“I—I do…not,” Sango could finish her statement. The smell of a home cooked meal was too tempting after years of avoiding such foods to stay thin. With the same speed Miroku had prepared the meal, Sango inhaled the breakfast.

 

Inuyasha stood in the kitchen's doorway, watching the interaction between his friend and the mystery woman. His own dilemma was momentarily forgotten. Most women were turned off by Miroku's enthusiasm and zealous attention, but in her own pretentious way Sango seemed to be reveling in it.

 

Inuyasha knew she was Kikyou's assistant and years of being the star's shadow had probably deprived her contact with normal men. No wonder she took to Miroku.

 

They were sitting chatting while Miroku slowly ate his food.

 

The couple's moment was interrupted by an obnoxious ring tone coming from the end of the table.

 

“Your cell phone, Sango,” Miroku motioned with his fork. “You dropped it last night and I left it out here so you wouldn't be disturbed.”

 

Sango smiled her thanks as she reached for the phone, which had by that point stopped ringing. “I'm sure its just my boss.” She flipped the phone open, still talking to Miroku. “We have so much to do with—37 MISSED CALLS! FUCK!!!”

 

Sango jumped up from the table so quickly she toppled over her chair. “I have to leave,” she said, already making her way to the door.

 

Miroku followed after her, “Can I see you again?” He sounded hopeful, but he was used to women running out on him. So many of them used him to get to Inuyasha and then when they found he wasn't going to deliver them on a silver platter to the actor, they left.

 

Sango, who had been distractedly flipping through the call times on her phone as she tugged on her shoes, now looked up at Miroku. “I'd like that.”

 

“Can I get your phone number?” Miroku asked, a little braver.

 

“Sure.”

 

After the two had exchanged numbers on their cell phones, Sango remembered the rush she had been in before. With a sweet smile to Miroku, she flew out the door.

 

“New girl friend?” Inuyasha asked jokingly.

 

Miroku stared at him blankly, as if he were just registering the other man's presence. “What are you doing here?” He asked, a little uneasily.

 

Inuyasha sweat dropped.

 

The anxiety he had been feeling since he had turned on the television that morning came back to him.

 

“I needed to talk to you,” Inuyasha answered gravely, all the calm he had been feeling moments earlier gone.

 

Miroku nodded, leading the was back to the table and his half-eaten breakfast.

 

XXXXXXXX

 

For the life of her, Kagome could not stop crying. She was crying because of what her sister had said to her, she was crying out of frustration because Inuyasha would have seen the pictures that made it look like she was cheating on him. And the icing on the cake was that it was her wedding day to a man she was pretty sure did not like her.

 

It just wasn't fair.

 

“Really, Miss Higurashi, if you could stop the water works for just a few minutes, I could apply your make up. Its water proof, I just need to get it on,” the make up artist was saying to her.

 

Kagome nodded, and try to calm down, but it only lead to more tears leaking silently down the sides of her face.

 

Sango, still wearing her clothes from the night before came up behind the beautician. “Marve, if you want to take five, I'll talk to her.” The man nodded and left the room.

 

Once Sango was sure they were alone she turned back to her boss's little sister who was leaking like a fountain.

 

“All right Kagome, what happened?”

 

In a cracking voice, Kagome recounted everything from her date with Inuyasha to the fight with her sister to the fact Inuyasha would probably not want to speak to her again now that he thought she was two-timing him.

 

Sango leaned against the vanity's counter, listening intently. So it was about a guy.

 

“I could say you brought this on yourself,” Sango started carefully. Kagome's shoulders slumped at the assistant's words, and Sango decided that the younger woman had been through enough already. She didn't need further reprimand. “But,” instantly Kagome perked up, but she still kept here eyes down. “You were only being human. I can't blame you for chasing after a descent guy in this town.” Though you should have been more careful.

 

Kagome still looked like a deer in the head lights, but she gave Sango a small smile, and finally brushed the tears away from her eyes. “Thank you Sango.”

 

“How about we get you fixed up?”

 

Kagome nodded, but a few stray tears slipped from her eyes.

 

Sango turned away from Kagome for a moment so she could roll her eyes. Glancing down at her watch, she saw that the ceremony was about to start soon.

 

“Is there anything I can do to make you feel better?”

 

Kagome looked down at her hands anxiously. “Can I borrow your cell phone?” She lightly dug her nails into her palms, but said nothing more.

 

Sango tried to think fast, but the only reason she could think of why Kagome would need a cell phone was to call her mystery hanyou. There was something about this that did not ring right in her mind. It was like a song she could not quite place—exactly what was wrong was right there in the fuzzy haze of her mind, but she could not drag the answer out into the light. “You know,” Sango started off carefully, trying to be soothing, “he's probably seen the papers, are you sure you won't just get more upset if you call him?”

 

Kagome hung her head and Sango heard a distinct sniffle.

 

“Your right, I won't try to call him. I don't think I could stand to know for sure that he's upset with me.”

 

Sango silently sighed in relief. Crisis avoided.

 

“But do you think he might what to talk to me? Maybe I can explain things,” Kagome tried again.

 

Sango answered the younger with a pointed look.

 

Kagome let out a heavy breath slouching in the chair. “Fine, I'll forget about it. I guess I'm as ready for my close up as I'll ever be.”

 

XXXXXX

 

Kikyou stared out the window at her back yard. She was feeling a little empty after the fight she had with her sister.

 

Poor Kagome.

 

Here she was getting married, and she, Kikyou, couldn't even be there for her.

 

One day little sister you will get married for real, and I promise I will be there.

 

Turning away from the window and the bright sun shine, Kikyou went off in search of her own husband who was surely doing something stupid with power tools.

 

XXXXXXXX

 

Inuyasha and Miroku sat in Miroku's car in an alley a few blocks away from the church where Kagome was trying to avoid her melt down. There, they were safe from reporters, and just to make sure, Inuyasha was still in his hanyou form.

 

“I don't know what to tell you Inuyasha—except that you can't let your anger get the best of you!” Miroku still gripped the steering wheel as he gave a sideways look at his friend in the passenger seat.

 

Inuyasha continued to stare out the window at the ever-so-interesting brick wall not a yard from the car door. “I know,” he growled.

 

“You don't really know what is going on, and unfortunately there isn't time right now to sort things out with Kagome—Kikyou—Ka—who ever the hell she is.”

 

“I know.”

 

“So we just have to go in there, get you married, save your career, promote your movie, and in a year when you get a divorce, everything will hopefully be settled.”

 

“I KNOW ALREADY!” Inuyasha exploded, punching his thighs with his fists as he jerked away from the window to glare at Miroku.

 

“All right, all right, you know,” Miroku tried to sooth, holding his hands up in a peace offering. “No need to get your panties in a twist,” Miroku said in a poor attempt to lighten the mood.

 

Inuyasha only hung his head. “I just don't get why it has to be this hard. I mean, my dad always said once you found your mate you would know by smell. You just know you know, you know? And I fucking feel like I know. Kagome has to be it, so why would she do this to me?” He spoke in a low growl, so quiet Miroku found himself straining to hear his usually brass friend.

 

“You're relying on gossip, Inuyasha,” Miroku said as rationally a possible. “And before you know for certain don't beat yourself up like this.”

 

Inuyasha nodded stiffly.

 

“You ready to go get married?”

 

“As ready as I'll ever be.”

 

XXXXXXXXXXXX

 

Kagome nervously fidgeted with her bouquet. Several photographers had already taken her picture, and in spite of the burly security guards speckling the chapel, there still appeared to be a fair number of paparazzi around who were not on the guest list.

 

This was supposed to be a publicity stunt.

 

Even if it was her wedding.

 

Brushing away the flare of sadness, Kagome put on her Kikyou-happy face and glanced coquettishly at a camera man.

 

Her mind drifted to the man who was waiting for her on the other side of the sanctuary door, waiting at the alter to be her husband. Would Inuyasha be kinder to her when they were married? She knew they were supposed to go on their honeymoon and in the mean time, her things would be moved into Inuyasha's mansion. There, they were supposed to look like any other happy couple for any spying paparazzi.

 

The wedding march began to play, and the doors were swung open.

 

On unsteady feet, Kagome started on her trek down the aisle. Nervous, she looked up to see Inuyasha standing by the priest, taking her in with something that looked like a mixture of boredom and anger.

 

The start of my perfect married life.

 

XXXXXXX

 

A/N: Ni hao my lovelies. I know I've been updating on Fridays and I missed the last one, but I now have me thesis done, and I got to go home for the weekend—even though my parents were without internet. So now I'm back, and I hope you enjoyed this chapter. The next will be the wedding/reception. At least I think that will fit nicely into one chapter, but I have been wrong before. If I have to make it two I will, but I doubt it. That chapter will probably be out next Friday. I really want to get it done this weekend, but with finals and the end of the semester coming up, I don't want to get over eager. Also, there's lots of fun to be written at the reception. This Friday, I have to present my paper at our school's symposium, so wish me luck. I hate public speaking, it makes me nauseous.