InuYasha Fan Fiction ❯ First Class Dog ❯ The Date ( Chapter 7 )

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I've gotten some excellent feedback and I'm really excited to be turning out these chapters the way I have. I'm sorry this one didn't come as quick but it's a much longer chapter. Again, though, if you have ideas for activities or if you think there's something—anything—in the story that could help make it more rich *please* let me know. It doesn't even have to be about *my* fanfic. It could be other problems that bugger you about fanfic authors. I really want to hear about it. Just the other day someone was talking to me about a pet peeve they had with some IY stories and it really helped me to visualize the direction for some of my later chapters. With any luck I hopefully won't make the same mistake. That's why it's so important to speak up! I want to make this story just as enjoyable for you as it is for me.

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Inu Yasha and Kagome slept through breakfast.

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An hour after that Kagome stirred. Blue-gray pools opened slowly to an unfamiliar sun-filled bedroom. For a moment she wondered where she was; closing her eyes to ponder the question; then gradually remembered that she was at the hotel. Relaxing at the thought she shifted a bit to stretch but found her shoulders wouldn't move. Perplexed, the miko pressed her arms against the offending object. It wouldn't budge an inch. It felt like she was trapped in steel, but it was warm. She pushed with a little more effort and was rewarded with a soft growl—right by her ear. Her eyes snapped open and shot down, discovering that it was an arm. She recognized the grip, gentle but firm, and her eyes followed it down to a very familiar clawed hand. Oh gods. It couldn't be!

“Inu…Yasha?” She breathed, barely able to get the words out.

Pointed ears twitched. From somewhere ephemeral the dog-demon heard the whisper and murmured a response.

“Hmm?”

The voice was in her ear, near the nape of her neck. She could feel his breath. Her heart did a back flip. Awareness seeped back in. If his arm was around her, and his face was close enough for her to feel his breath behind her…then the warmth she was feeling all along her backside could only be…Inu Yasha's body. But how?

Her eyes darted about, taking stock of her situation, trying to piece together the events from the previous night. She wriggled about, recalling leaving for dinner, the dark lounge, the fantastic food, the funny-tasting drinks—drinks? Oh no!

At that point the hanyou began to regain consciousness. His sensitive nose had picked up the smell of adrenaline in the air and his ears' attention was drawn to the thrum of Kagome's heart beating rapidly. Immediately, cloud nine vanished from his dreams and his eyes opened wide. What he saw was a girl wiggling frantically in his arms. With a yelp Inu Yasha retracted his arms and somersaulted backwards away from her. In mid-roll he pulled himself upright, squatting on the bed. At the same time the miko shot forward and stumbled out of bed, whirling around to face the half-demon, sputtering.

“Wh-what the—“

He waved his hands in front of him while retreating backwards.

“It's not what you think! I—“

“Not what?! What would I think?!”

She interrupted, and then abruptly froze, the color drained from her face. Her head fell downward, suddenly aware that she wasn't wearing any pants. For a moment she stared, dumbstruck. Not only was she half naked but Inu Yasha's sash was wrapped around her waist. Her hands balled into tight fists.

“WHERE….ARE…MY… PANTS?!”

The mighty demon stammered and backed up further until he was precariously close to the edge of the bed, “B-but you said—“

“I was drunk!” She interjected; her voice shrill in his ears.

“But—“

“Sit! Sit! Sit! Sit! Siiiiit!”

Inu Yasha went crashing off the edge of the bed, crushed into the floor by the enchanted beads about his neck. As he lay stunned on the floor Kagome stomped out of the bedroom and to her suitcase in the living area, tears of rage hot in her eyes. As she passed through she realized that there was a cart parked next to the coffee table with covered platters resting on it. It occurred to her that they'd probably missed breakfast but that didn't matter. She wasn't done being angry yet. Grumbling and fussing the miko went to her suitcase, flipped open the lid and tore through her belongings. She grabbed some fresh clothes and stormed back through the living area and into the bathroom, noting that the dog-demon was still trapped by the power of the beads behind the bed.

Inu Yasha blinked stars out of his eyes and wheezed. The fall had knocked the wind right out of him. At that point he had been so used to getting sat for various reasons that he simply laid there and waited for the effect to wear off. No point in struggling. The crashing and clomping had stopped when the door closed with a loud *wham!* Gradually regaining movement the hanyou scooted back until he was no longer pressed into the side of the bed with his neck bent uncomfortably against the floor but rather could lay completely on his back. The sound of running water finally stirred him back into action. His head peeked above the bed; just to be sure Kagome was really taking a shower, and then scrambled back onto his feet and sauntered into the living area. His nose picked up the scent of food, instantly aware of his empty stomach. Spying the covered platters he lifted one up and investigated the contents. It certainly smelled edible. With a shrug he went to town devouring his plate of breakfast.

After finishing his meal he flopped down onto one of the couches. The shower was still running. Feh. Women always took so much time to get ready. He was always having to wait on Kagome for one thing or another. Always packing those damned backpacks. The thought of hanging around the well and her house for endless hours immediately put his restless spirit into a foul mood. His poor frame of mind turned his thoughts back to their disastrous awakening. The hell had he done? She was the one who had lost her damn pants. She was the one who had asked him to stay. She was the one who had the nerve to fall asleep right when he was about to—he shook his head with a growl. No, he wasn't going to think about that. He forced his mind firmly back on its' ugly track with his utter embarrassment; wanting to keep himself worked up. She'd made him a damned fool!

Inu Yasha continued to let his mind boil, only vaguely aware that the shower had stopped running. Kagome emerged moments later with her hair wrapped up in a towel. She had on a pair of dark blue jeans, a pale yellow button-down top, and a black vest left open. The dog-demon glared indignantly at her but kept quiet. The silence was deafening. The only sound came from the clink of tableware as Kagome ate her breakfast.

When she finished her meal she pushed the cart towards the door to leave it outside the room when she realized there were two small envelopes at her feet. The notes must have been pushed under the door while they were asleep.

Inu Yasha had shut his eyes where he sat so she couldn't yell at him about staring at her but opened them when he heard the serving cart move and then abruptly stop. Kagome was reading some sort of letter. She had another envelope clasped in her other hand. She began to read aloud.

“My dear Kagome, I missed you at dinner last night and then again at breakfast this morning. A man could think you were being rude. I, however, believe you were simply being coy and I must insist that you allow me to take you out. I would be shirking my duties as your host if I did not make up our lost time to you in some way. If your acquaintance would not mind parting with your company for a few hours then I will meet you in the lobby at noon. I'll see you soon, Shiro. P.S. If your associate does mind then I suppose I might have to remove him from the premises.”

The miko was almost certain she could hear a blood vessel explode on Inu Yasha's forehead.

“WHAT THE HELL?!” He bellowed, cracking his knuckles; fangs bared. “Who the hell does he think he is? Sesshoumaru?” He spat his half-brother's name out with a great amount of venom. Kagome blanched at the thought. She supposed it was possible for a full-blooded demon like him to live so long, but no, it couldn't have been him. Inu Yasha would have known his scent immediately. However, he had said something about Shiro and Ikume holding a strange scent. The dog-demon was very busy cursing Shiro and his kin to no one and shouting about how many different ways he would shred the man who dared say those things to Kagome. He did not notice the miko's contemplative look, her fingers rose to the bridge of her nose and rubbed it in hopes it would coax out some sort of plan.

“I'll make sure he regrets those words! I'll throw him off his own damn—“

“Inu Yasha,” Kagome interrupted, “Wait. Let's think about this for a minute. Hey, this note is addressed to you.”

His bloodlust fizzled out momentarily, completely at a loss.

“Huh? What note? Give me that!”

He snatched the letter from her hands and slashed the top off the envelope with one sweep of his claw. She waited expectantly for him to read his letter out loud but the dog-demon never did. His amber eyes darted along the fancy cursive for a few minutes, pouring over the words. Then with a disgusted “Feh” he tossed the letter to the floor and crossed his arms over his chest. The miko retrieved his letter (covered in little, hand-drawn hearts, no less) and read it silently.

“My sweet love, I was so sad when you did not wait to see me at dinner. I put on the prettiest dress for you and everything! I've missed you soooooo much since we last saw each other. When you closed the door on my nose on the train I really did want to sue you but I love you too much to do that to you…” Kagome had to stop reading so she could roll her eyes before diving back into the letter, “…So in order to make up for it all I want you to take me to a movie. It'll be lots of fun! I'll meet you in the lobby this afternoon. XOXO Ikume”

The miko read and then re-read the line about suing him. Not good. If the Baines family were to try and sue the half-demon Kagome could wind up with a huge mess on her hands. Lawsuits were a long-standing affair at best. Her family certainly didn't have the kind of money to hire lawyers for several years of battling courts; especially battling a family as high-profile and rich as the Baines… Not to mention the media frenzy that might ensue if Japan suddenly realized there were real-life demons in the world. Her brow wrinkled in consternation.

“Inu Yasha,” She began carefully, “I know you think we should head back but, I think we should humor them.”

“The hell I will!” He snapped back, “I'm not letting you go off alone with some…some… I don't know what the hell he is but I don't like him.”

Kagome knew she had to keep her composure if she were going to get the hanyou to listen so she pressed on, “Listen to me. If Ikume doesn't get her way she might sue. That's why she's mentioning it. My family can't afford that—and what if you got discovered in all this, huh? You might never be able to see me again!”

The way Inu Yasha froze in place told her that he was taking things far more seriously so she continued, “Look, besides that. We need to find out more about these people. You say they smell different and I'm sensing something different in them as well. What if they have a Shikon fragment?”

His white ears twitched, they looked almost out of place on his dyed black hair; she was still half-expecting to see human ears even though it was not yet time for him to change. A frustrated growl emanated from the dog-demon, finally ready to respond.

“You'll be alone. I can't protect you if I'm at… whatever that thing is. I don't even know how far away you'll be.”

His eyes betrayed the slightest hint of worry. A thought suddenly struck the miko. Jogging over to her luggage she dug around in it until she came back up with several arrows. She returned to the half-demon with them.

“Can you cut the arrow heads off of these for me?”

He frowned, ready to question such a stupid thing until he realized what she was doing. His scowl instantly changed to a fanged smile.

“You want to keep the arrow heads in your pocket.”

Kagome smiled back and then nodded. He had to admit she was very clever. If this Shiro person happened to get too close to his woman she'd be able to stab him with one of her purified arrow heads. He still did not like the idea of letting her go off alone while he had to deal with a squeaking banshee but admittedly she would be carrying some protection. Still, though, he had to get in the last word.

“All right, but you better not fucking enjoy yourself. I sure as hell won't—and what the hell is a movie, anyway?”

The rest of the time was spent preparing Inu Yasha for his date.

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Kagome's Date

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The cheery chime of the elevator signaled that the two companions had to separate. Kagome stepped brusquely past the doors, giving one last glance back to the hanyou before putting on her biggest faux-smile for Shiro. The blonde man waited for her at the lobby's main desk, leaning against it nonchalantly. He smiled wide to her. Kagome noted that she saw no fangs like other youkai or even half-demons. She wondered if fangs could be filed down. Shiro quickly closed the distance between them and placed his hand on the small of her back (she knew Inu Yasha had to be glaring daggers at Shiro), ushering her out of the lobby and to a waiting limo. She clambered in and sat on the opposite side from the door. To her dismay Shiro sat next to her and threw an arm around her shoulders. The miko quickly plucked his arm off her shoulders. He, in turn, raised an eyebrow but seemed bemused by the action and let his arm lay on the top edge of the seat behind her back instead. As the car door closed Kagome could see Ikume rushing towards the dog-demon with her arms up in the air as if to embrace him in a large hug. To her amusement she watched as he quickly side stepped her. She allowed a small, smug grin to cross her lips for the briefest of seconds.

The car door closed and moments later the familiar lurch of the limo moving off could be felt. After a few minutes of silence she spoke.

“So, where are we heading?”

Shiro smiled and replied, “To the tailors, and then to lunch, I've picked out a nice spot for just the two of us.”

“Why the tailors?” She queried.

“Oh right, you did not stay long enough to hear our little table-to-table announcement.” He responded, “We're holding a masquerade next week so I had our entire lady guests fitted for ball gowns. The tailor had come straight here after breakfast but since you were obviously preoccupied I have to take you now.”

At that moment the car stopped and they were released in front of a tailor shop. Barely ten minutes later, the two emerged from the shop; Kagome's cheeks a hot shade of pink. Shiro had practically burned holes right through her with his staring while the tailor had shuffled around her, taking measurements everywhere. Without thinking the miko had crossed her arms over her chest and Shiro regarded the motion with amusement.

“My, my, you look just your little friend.”

With a startled look she dropped her hands, her cheeks a brighter shade of red. The action further entertained the man. He could not resist teasing her about it as he held the door open to an upscale café.

“He's been hanging around you for a while then, enough to influence your mannerisms. Oh? Did I strike a nerve? So that must mean you two aren't quite an item yet. Good news for me.”

With a frown she brushed past him through the door. Shiro was very perceptive. Most demons seemed fairly oblivious to human emotions. Even Sesshoumaru, though he could irritate Inu Yasha to the point of causing him to make mistakes, he didn't seem terribly aware of Rin's feelings. Once more Kagome wondered if Shiro truly was a demon. Then again, Shippo was very empathetic…

Her musings were interrupted as she was led up a flight of stairs to a private table overlooking the rest of the café. The fair-haired man held her chair out for her and then took his seat opposite from her. Menus were given to each of them and they were left alone to decide their meals. Shiro continued to regard her across the table. The silence made her uncomfortable so she decided to speak.

“So, I assume you've made everyone's dress a surprise? You had them take my measurements but you haven't let me try on anything.”

He laughed, “No, dear, just yours.”

She raised an eyebrow, “Are you giving me special treatment?”

“You could say that.”

A sly grin played across his lips. His bright blue eyes had taken on an almost feral gleam. That look she knew all too well amongst demons. An uneasy feeling threatened to overwhelm her for a moment. Just then the waiter returned and they ordered their food. When she glanced back to Shiro the look was gone from his face. Something tugged at her senses but it was so faint it was hard to justify considering the man a demon. She wondered a little if she was simply put off by his advances.

While they waited for their lunch to arrive the two prattled on about daily life, Kagome hoped that he might reveal something that she could tie to a particular demon from the Sengoku Period. They spoke of school and she learned that he had only recently entered college at a prestigious university in Tokyo. His mother was half-Japanese and half-British and his father was an American. She asked if he had a picture and he replied that he did not. His mother ran a series of hotels in Japan and his father had been a famous actor who frequented her priciest suites on vacation. The two invariably crossed paths and quickly became an item. Shiro was born first. Ikume was born a few years later. Kagome saw nothing in his history that screamed of demonic blood. She highly doubted that a demon would risk going into a job field as intrusive as acting and what could possibly benefit a demon working with a string of hotels?

In exchange for his information she talked a little of living at a shrine and of meeting Inu Yasha when he came with his mother on a visit. They had agreed together with this version of events so that their stories would not contradict each other. The miko spoke of her brother, mother, and grandfather but had time for little more than that when the food arrived. Between the conversation and lunch Kagome relaxed a little about Shiro. He did not seem all that bad and nothing else besides a nagging feeling in her gut told her to worry about anything demonic.

The rest of their lunch was uneventful until they tried to leave the café. Shiro attempted to open the door but someone else had beaten him to it. The door swung open and Kagome found herself face to face with Inu Yasha. He didn't seem surprised, in fact, if she hadn't known better she would have thought that he followed her scent there. With an inward groan she realized that had to have been the reason.

“Kagome…”

He began, his amber eyes searching her; she knew he was checking to make sure that she hadn't been harmed. With a flash of irritation the miko realized Ikume was hanging from one of his arms. The hanyou did not seem to notice. Shiro cleared his throat and spoke up.

“My, you two seem to be awfully comfortable with each other.”

There was the slightest hint of annoyance to the man's voice. The dog-demon sputtered and attempted to dislodge his arm from Ikume's grasp. Kagome felt Shiro's hand return to the small of her back and her cheeks flushed in embarrassment as he gently pushed her through the door. She wasn't able to see Inu Yasha's reaction as she was quickly escorted to a waiting limo. The miko crawled in and sat down, to her dismay Shiro had walked back over to the half-demon. He leaned in to say something to him but she couldn't make out what from so far away. Through the tinted windows but she could see Inu Yasha smirk and roll his golden eyes; then shake his head. For a moment Kagome could have sworn the hair got slightly heavier, again that uneasy feeling in her subconscious pulled on her. The feeling vanished just as suddenly as it came. Shiro quickly returned to the limo, his mood seemed to have soured a little but whatever look had been on his face while outside vanished the moment he sat down next to Kagome. Inu Yasha was still watching them; still holding the café door open as the limo moved off.

Kagome was only slightly relieved to find that they had returned to the hotel. She was directed towards the elevator and was disappointed when Shiro followed her in. The miko had hoped they could have parted ways in the lobby. Her distress grew when Shiro ordered the elevator attendant to take them to a floor past the one she was on. The elevator doors opened to a single entrance. It had to be Shiro's floor. He led her to the door and allowed her in, her heart fluttered nervously in her chest.

As she entered the space she gasped as she realized the entire floor was one huge apartment. From the floor to the ceiling the walls were all glass windows reflecting a spectacular view of the city. A large kitchen sat in one corner of the room with black marble countertops laced with glittering white and gold veins. The cabinets were some sort of rich mahogany and there was even a space for a dining area right beside it. The Living room was immediately in front of her with black modular leather sofas and a huge flat screen television hung over a fireplace mantle decorated in the same marble as the kitchen. On the left were walled-off areas that could only be bedrooms.

The fair-haired man took her hand with a warm smile and led her to one of the leather couches. He sat down first and gently pulled her down to sit next to him. Releasing her hands Shiro reached over and took a box with a fancy red bow tied around it from the mahogany coffee table nearby. He handed the box to her.

“Here, this is for you.”

Kagome took the box, carefully untied the ribbon, and then pulled off the top lid. Inside was a silver bracelet. She stared at it for a moment. It took her several seconds to find her voice again, forcing her gaze away from the pretty bangle.

“I can't take this. I'm not—“

Her voice broke off; Shiro was much closer to her than he had been seconds before. With a start she realized he was trying to lean in for a kiss. She quickly turned her head to the side; his lips touched her cheek.

“Don't be coy, Kagome.” He murmured; his hand on her knee.

The light touch on her knee somehow kicked her brain into high gear. She stood up abruptly. Her cheeks were so hot she felt like they might burst into flames.

“I-I have to go.” She stammered and ran to the door, leaving a stunned Shiro, and the bracelet, behind in her wake. Moments later she had called the elevator. Her heart pounded in her chest fearful that Shiro might burst through the door at any moment and stop her retreat. The doors closed. He never came. Kagome let out her breath. She leaned against the wall of the elevator for a few moments, allowing her mind to catch up to her. The attendant waited patiently until the miko could tell him what floor she was on.

Once she was let out onto her floor she made a beeline for their room, swiped the key through, and then let herself in. She looked about for Inu Yasha but quickly surmised that he was still out on his date. With a sigh she plopped down onto one of the couches, staring up into the ceiling. Kagome wondered if Ikume might try to kiss him, too. The thought made her groan in frustration, she slid sideways from a sitting position to a laying pose. Her hand moved to her cheek, rubbing the spot Shiro had kissed that seemed to burn her skin. Her eyes felt heavy. All that running around and pent-up nervous energy had made her exhausted. Gradually, Kagome fell asleep on the couch.

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Inu Yasha returned to their room an hour later. He felt like he'd had more squealing and squeaking than any man ought to be able to tolerate in a lifetime. He swiped his keycard through the reader and pushed through the door, a sigh passed his lips.

Immediately he saw Kagome laid out on the sofa, sleeping with a small frown on her lips and one of her hands resting on her cheeks. Worried, he rushed to her side and shook her gently. He let out a relieved breath when she stirred; blue-gray eyes squinted groggily at him.

“Inu… Yasha?” She queried.

He nodded and then froze as she locked her arms about his neck in a tight hug.

“Thank goodness you're back. I had a terrible time.”

His claws were on her arms in a heartbeat, gently pulling her arms away from his neck so he could look her in the eyes, amber pools full of concern, searching her face for any sign of trouble.

“What's wrong, Kagome? Tell me.”

She began to relay to him the story of her date. Forty minutes later she hesitated when she came to the part where they were headed to Shiro's floor. If Inu Yasha learned that the man had tried to kiss her he was as good as dead. If he turned out to be a human then that would be a huge mess on their hands. Instead she chose to tell him about going up to his place, even about the gift, but left out the part with the kiss. From the growling she could tell the hanyou was already worked up enough as it was.

Kagome quickly ended her story with, “So how did your date go?”

The growling stopped as the dog-demon was forced to change gears suddenly from having been the listener to the story teller.

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Inu Yasha's Date

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Watching Kagome leave to go off with some other man had been harder for him to deal with than he had initially realized. Part of him had wanted to simply bum-rush the suitor. He really wanted to pummel his face into the marble floor of the lobby. That would have made Kagome mad though, which in turn meant a lot of sits. When Shiro put his mitts on Kagome, again, Inu Yasha couldn't take it anymore. With a snarl he began to approach the retreating couple—but a squeal shattered his dreams of taking down the cheeky bastard. Ikume had arrived.

The blonde bounced her way to him her arms thrown up to embrace him in a hug but the half-demon had other plans. He quickly stepped aside and she trotted a few feet forward and stopped. Ikume turned on her heel and made her way back to him with a pout. Inu Yasha would not let her get far enough to say a word.

“So, are we going to this movie?”

Kagome had explained to him that a movie was sort of like going to the theater or a shadow-puppet show but the show was projected onto a screen instead of seeing live actors on a stage. He concluded that it must have been magic and Kagome had not felt like it would make any difference to explain it any further.

Before he could protest Ikume grabbed his arm and dragged him off to a waiting limo. She went in first and sat down in a seat next to the door, Inu Yasha quickly sat across from her. He did not want to give the girl any sort of impression that he was interested. However, she had other ideas. The blonde scrambled over to his side and snuggled up against his shoulder. Inu Yasha crossed his arms over his chest and waited out the long car ride in silence.

When they reached the theater they were let out at the entrance. Kagome had instructed him to let her choose what she wanted to watch. Ikume, in turn, was ecstatic that he was so generous. The movie theater was an odd place but interesting place to him. It was full of humans milling about, talking, there was a strong scent of food in the air that Inu Yasha would later learn was popcorn. They waited in line for snacks and, as per Kagome's direction, the hanyou bought them on the credit card Kagome had explained to him ho to use. He was grateful that the cashier ran the card at the register, rather than having to use the complicated card reader she had discussed with him as well. He took hold of all of the snacks, happy that it meant that he didn't have to have Ikume hanging all over him. She took this as another chivalrous act by her prince charming.

He followed her to one of the rooms and they picked their way through to a couple of seats high and near the center of everything. The previews were a mix of shows that Inu Yasha found intriguing. Some of them, like the romance previews, seemed ridiculous. Others though, one for an action flick with a single human man taking down at least twenty other human enemies (in a business suit no less!) sucked him in completely. He was disappointed to find out that they were not the subject of the film they were going to watch but he decided that he would have to take Kagome back there. He was certain she would be interested in the very manly film.

The flick turned out to be an animated flick Ikume referred to as `anime'. It looked like a shadow puppet theater event but full of colors and without strings or sticks or anything. He was instantly fascinated. The plot of the story was too girly for his tastes. It was some sort of magical romantic tale full of colorful transformation sequences and girls crying over weak men who seemed to get their asses kicked at every turn. He could forgive it, though, just on looks alone. The half-demon wondered if they had this anime stuff for guys, too, even going so far as to ask Ikume if that was the case. She obliged and even invited him to watch some at her place. Inu Yasha considered it for a moment, but thought that would possibly make Kagome mad, and he could always get her to watch this stuff with him anyway and that would be ten times better, so he declined.

Ikume pouted for a long portion of the movie but soon realized that her dark-haired companion was completely oblivious to it. She settled for snuggling against his arm for the rest of the film.

When the movie ended the two began looking for a late lunch. Inu Yasha quickly picked up Kagome's scent as they wandered around. So engrossed in tracking her down he allowed the blonde-haired girl to hang from his arm without complaint. His heart began to beat a little faster as her scent became stronger. It felt like his heart had almost stopped when he opened the door to Kagome's beautiful eyes.

Inu Yasha could only get her name past his lips, relieved that she looked perfectly fine. Shiro coughed.

“My, you two seem to be awfully comfortable with each other.”

The hanyou suddenly remembered how badly he wanted to punch that man in the face but knew that would get him sat. Biting back his tongue he allowed Ikume to breeze past him while Kagome was pushed towards the waiting limo. Shiro stepped in close and whispered to him.

“Don't you dare think about kissing my baby sister. You take advantage of her and you can be sure you'll disappear.”

He smirked at the thought. It was too funny to even respond to such a stupid thing. Ikume was not his ideal mate in any sense of the word. She was clumsy, naive, dumb as rocks, and her voice was an assault on his taped-down ears, even under a protective layer of thick hair the noise speared his brain like a spike to the head. His response was not well thought out but he couldn't resist replying.

“Trust me. I'm not going to do a damn thing—but if you lay one finger on Kagome you can be sure I will be the very last thing you see.”

Shiro made no response but the dog-demon was faintly aware of a strange change to the scents in the air. He had no time to consider the source of the scent before Shiro had stepped beyond him to the car. The hanyou watched the man's retreating back, wishing he could see through the black soulless demon called “car” to the woman he really wanted waiting within its belly. With a sigh he headed inside the café.

The overlook Kagome and Shiro had shared was still in the process of being cleaned up so the waiter placed them in a corner of the café slightly away from the rest of the crowd. Again, Inu Yasha allowed Ikume to sit first so that he could sit away from her. To his relief she remained there. The food was ordered with no trouble. The awkwardness, however, came with the meal.

The hanyou had been starving since they had left the theater and his hunger was only fueled further by his unfulfilled desire to pummel Shiro. When the food came Inu Yasha tore into it with gusto, instantly ignoring everything Kagome had said about using chopsticks and acting civilized. He stopped mid-way through a chicken leg to look up at Ikume, who stared in disbelief at her feral lunch mate.

“Whuff?” He asked.

Ikume burst into giggles. “Oh you're just soooo cute!” She gushed.

He shrugged and ate a hair slower, his cheeks warmed slightly. The blonde stared at him with shining blue eyes, smitten. It was then that he realized that somehow the small girl had inhaled her meal even faster than he. Ikume certainly ate like a demon; that was for sure. The meal concluded with the dog-demon quickly clearing his plate. Now that he wasn't starving he began to worry about Kagome. He'd ended his conversation with Shiro in fighting words with and then left her to him. With a sense of dread growing in the pit of his stomach he asked Ikume if she was ready to head back to the hotel.

 

The closer they got to the hotel, the more intense his trepidation grew. All of his senses pointed to normal but something did not sit right in his heart. He approached the elevator as quickly as he could without revealing his nervous energy. It was quite a feat considering Ikume still clutched his arm between two hands. An attendant called the elevator and Inu Yasha's foot began to tap anxiously. The door chimed and he took a step forward but halted as the young girl stepped into his path. She had her head tilted up, eyes closed, and lips puckered. Without a word he moved past her into the elevator. The doors closed just as the realization dawned on her that he was gone.

---

The wrinkle returned to Kagome's brow as she processed all the new information Inu Yasha had given her. Changing scents, her heightened sensitivity, and their combined discomfort all seemed to point to some sort of demonic activity at work in the hotel. It was hard to say so for certain. Then again, she couldn't be sure of anything.

“Well, we have no real proof something's up here…”

“But you and I are feeling something, too. At least, a little bit...” The dog-demon replied.

She sighed and rubbed her forehead slowly, “Well, we'll keep our eyes open for now.”

It was going to be a long vacation.