InuYasha Fan Fiction ❯ Laying Down the Law ❯ Ambush ( Chapter 28 )
[ T - Teen: Not suitable for readers under 13 ]
By: The Kouga Lucius Connection 
Kagome gets ambushed and the ball starts rolling.
Anime/Manga: InuYasha Fan Fiction | Genre(s): Romance / Action | Type: Alternate Universe | Uploaded On: 12.22.2006 | Pages: 4 | Words: 7.0K | Visits: 1.4K | Status: Completed
Kagome gets ambushed and the ball starts rolling.
Anime/Manga: InuYasha Fan Fiction | Genre(s): Romance / Action | Type: Alternate Universe | Uploaded On: 12.22.2006 | Pages: 4 | Words: 7.0K | Visits: 1.4K | Status: Completed
And moving on. This is getting really intense, ya'll, not even joking. I'm really excited.
Sighing impatiently, Kagura recrossed her legs, allowing the room a clear view of her red lace thong as she said irritably, "I don't understand why we can't just send the Dragons and their little elite boys off to kill all those faggots in the South. We've got guns, right?"
This elicited a snort from Ryuukoytsusei, who tossed his emerald green mane with his usual arrogance. "We don't need guns, ya stupid slut, we get all we need with our hands. But we can't take out that many of em just us alone."
Kagura heard little of Ryuu's explanation and only fired angrily back, "Oh, a stupid slut, am I? I've gotten you off enough times, haven't I, dragon?"
Naraku's dark chuckle accompanied the sound of Ryuu's chair scraping back on the concrete as he observed Kagura with raging crimson eyes. "The day you get me off is the day I fuckin' die!"
"Oh yeah? You're a fuckin a-"
"Please, children," Naraku said patronizingly, eyeing both combatants with a sort of condescending irritation. "I was looking for quiet, which I see I was mistaken in expecting. Am I to be allowed to think?"
Never removing their eyes from their deadlocked stare, Kagura and Ryuukoytsusei retook their seats in a decidedly stiff manner, disgruntled by their recent spat. Naraku returned to his thoughtful pose, arched gracefully over the back of his chair, when Ryuu grew impatient as Kagura had a moment earlier.
"What are you thinking about, spider?" the Dragon leader asked gruffly. "I don't like that look in yer eye."
In response, Naraku blew out a stream of cigarette smoke, which pooled in an ominous cloud around his haunting face. "I want that girl, Kagome, the one the Wildcats are stringing along."
Kagura made a small gasping sound, as though she'd just been fatally shot in the chest, while Ryuu gave a derisive snort, crossing his muscular arms over his broad chest.
"Hardly an impressive human, Naraku. You have your pick of twenty more attractive women right here."
But Naraku was not to be swayed. In a suprising display of violence, he suddenly lashed out with his fist and brought it crashing down on the table, causing the weak wooden structure to split cleanly in two. Kagura gasped and fell unceremoniously out of her chair, staring frightfully at the recently destroyed table. Ryuu looked unimpressed, if not annoyed by the disappearance of the table, which he'd been resting his feet on.
"I don't want them, I want her; she's not just any fuck, dragon. She's Inuyasha's bitch; if I was to take his bitch, it would all be smooth sailing from there," Naraku declared through gritted teeth, the source of his anger still unevident.
Ryuu's face was one of confusion. "Why not just kill Sesshomaru's wench?"
"Because Sesshomaru is too in his head; if I kill his women, he'll destroy us. If I take Inuyasha's woman, not kill, but take her, he'll come running in a blind rage after her, leaving the Fangs to run around chaotically and try to back him up. That's the way we're going to bring them down," Naraku declared.
Kagura had, by this time, scrambled to her feet and retreated off into the corner, deciding to neglect her leadership duties until Naraku's rage had calmed. Ryuu, however, was used to the Spider leader's outbursts and only leaned forward on his knees, observing Naraku through still muddled crimson eyes. "I don't get why Inuyasha would pick such an unsuitable wench when he could have a far better fuck."
"Do you have someone else in mind?" Naraku taunted, intrigued by the whimsical look on Ryuu's face. When the Dragon made no reply, Naraku realized his initial assumption had been correct. "You do, don't you? A girl of the Taisho line, isn't it? A fine bitch to be sure. But way out of your league, Dragon. She's an expensive fuck."
With a terrifying roar which sounded from deep within his gut, Ryuukoytsusei rocketed to his feet, sending his chair flying out behind him. "Don't speak of her that way, Spider, you don't have the right! Take your worthless human whore, what should I care? But leave me and the elite out of it!"
And with that, Ryuukoytsusei stormed violently out of the room, slamming the door loudly behind him. Naraku watched him go before turning to Bokoru, who'd been picking his grimy nails during the conversation, paying it no mind. "What do you think, Bokoru? How would you deal with this situation?"
"I would take the Higurashi girl, sure, but then I'd take the Taisho girl too and string her up, maybe fuck around a little, just to piss that Dragon bastard off," Bokoru said tactlessly, never raising his gaze to meet Naraku's.
Smiling strangely, the Spider leader said quietly, "What an uncharacteristically good idea, Bokoru. Maybe there's hope for you yet."
The graceful girl sat smoothly upright, coffee brown eyes deepers than oceans and skies could ever imagine. It was the immenseness of her eyes which was truly frightening, Kagome imagined. But in all their time together, Kagome was forgetting to be scared. Kikyo's swaddling white clothes dwarfed her as she sat there, untameable, silken black locks pooling around her on the hospital bed. The contrast of her black hair on the starch hospital bedding was striking.
"His car exploded?" Kikyo finally said.
Kagome managed a small laugh, as she'd told the story about Miroku's misfortune nearly ten minutes ago. It had taken Kikyo ten entire minutes to mull over the startling occurance in her strange head. "Yeah, exploded and caught on fire and burned."
"And you kissed Inuyasha?"
Here, Kagome's laughter came to an abrupt halt; she hadn't told her that. Blinking her brown eyes curiously, Kagome asked, "What do you mean?" in a steady voice.
Kikyo's humorless chuckle was answer enough, though she continued, "It's written all over your happy face, Kagome. You did it, didn't you?"
It sounded almost accusatory, the way she said this, but Kagome knew the girl meant little or no harm by it. It was simply Kikyo's way, putting things in blunt terms a three year old could understand, as though she feared being unable to connect with other humans. Kagome found her relatively unconnectable right then anyway, but hadn't the heart to tell her; it didn't seem right.
"I...he...we did. At Race Wars."
Kikyo nodded so slowly that Kagome imagined a nearly waveless sea lapping against the side of a boat. "I should've known; I suspected it would happen after our last visit."
"Really?"
Kagome knew that of course, Kikyo really had thought this, but "really" seemed to be the only word she could speak correctly at the time. With a sigh, Kikyo draped herself over the bed in a way reminscent of a silken throw cover. "It was on your face again. Maybe you should check in here yourself, Kagome, the helpless victim of an emotional face; it gives away everything you think."
"Pretty bad, huh?" Kagome laughed, not altogether comfortable. "I could never lie to anyone, I guess."
"If only that were true," came Kikyo's cryptic reply.
There was a silence between the two girls, as there was prone to be. Kagome had learned not to twiddle her thumbs or seem uncomfortable in the silence, for it only led to Kikyo's taunting and titilating responses. Something about her was so alluring that it alarmed Kagome; she wasn't a lesbian, to be sure, but why then did she find Kikyo so attractive? Why did her mouth seem to stop working whenever she visited? What about Kikyo dulled the senses like a sweet smelling poison?
"You really love him."
It was a statement from Kikyo, not a question nor a suggestion. A statement. Kagome bit her lip in a fretful manner, nearly drawing blood in her nervousness; there were times when she wanted nothing more than to escape the limitless black of Kikyo's stare.
"I do."
"And it kills you, too," Kikyo pointed out astutely.
After a silence, Kagome practically shouted, "Why won't they let me in? What's so wrong with me, huh? Haven't I been loyal? Haven't I proved myself? Why won't they let me in?!"
The desperation in Kagome's beautiful face provoked no visible emotion from Kikyo, who merely lifted one lily white hand to examine her nails. "They're not ready. At this point, I think it has less to do with you and more to do with them. You can only sit back and wait now."
"I don't understand," Kagome confessed. Her brown eyes were fraught with anger, fear, confusion, betrayal, and a whole manner of conflicting emotions. "I really don't and I never will. I might as well leave because they're never going to get over you."
It was the first time Kagome had used the word "you" when talking about her obstacle in the Wildcats. It was always slightly understood, that Kikyo was the real milestone in this equation, but Kagome didn't want to sound accusatory. Now was not the time for formalities, however. With this simple word, "you," Kagome confessed the deepest fear she'd harbored since she learned of the Wildcats and their tantilizing life style: the Wildcats would never make room in their hearts for another core member. Not after Kikyo.
Kikyo only shrugged. "You don't know that and neither do I. We don't know anything. That's something you need to face, Kagome; we don't know anything and we never will. Life is a painful, confusing, undisectable blur and no one knows what's going on. But that's why we're all here together, to see if two or more heads can make sense of this chaotic mess of feelings called the world."
Kagome was silent for a moment in reverence to Kikyo's wise words, a habit she'd taken up in the past few months; sometimes, Kikyo said something so deeply profound that silence was required afterwards. Finally, she mumbled, "Sorry about all this. Me and Inuyasha, I mean. I feel like its unfair to you."
At this, Kikyo only gave a rather thick throated laugh. "Don't worry about any of it; I need a bigger man than Inuyasha to tame me." Kagome knew not to be offended by Kikyo's statement for, indeed, it would take someone rather incredible to tame her. "I'm being released in a month."
The news startled Kagome, not only because it was delivered in such a flippant way, but also by the sheer meaning of it. Kikyo had only been in the clinic for one summer; was that truly a long enough time to cure someone of depression and nymphomania?
But Kagome didn't voice these concerns. If Kikyo said it, it was true. "Where will you go?"
"Paris."
"Paris?" Kagome echoed incredulously.
As though it were perfectly obvious, Kikyo replied, "Of course. What better place for a depressed, sex starved enjenou than Paris? France is a haven for sexual depravity and I will be their queen."
Kagome laughed. "I guess that makes sense. I'll come see you off."
"Don't bother," Kikyo replied with a gentle smile. "I'll be gone before you know it."
Kagome could feel their conversation drawing to a close and something in her gut made it seem rather final, as though they would never speak again. Standing rather slowly, Kagome sobered and said earnestly, "It's been my pleasure to know you, Kikyo."
"And mine to know you," was Kikyo's simple reply, though Kagome could tell she meant every word.
As Kagome exited the room, leaving behind a woman so extrodinary that she might only be immortalized through spirit, she felt a sudden weight lift from her shoulders. Kikyo had overcome a terrible trial, several to be precise, and come out the amazing human Kagome had come to know. Perhaps if someone could do all that in one summer, Kagome might succeed in the long run. Who knew what might happen.
It had been a rather rainy day and the sky was darkly overcast, threatening to rain down another load of water upon the hapless city. Kagome crossed her arms fretfully over her chest as a cold sea wind blew past. She'd worn a simple red t-shirt and jean mini skirt for, when she left the house, it had been almost 90 degrees outside, even in the rain. But the temperature had dropped considerably and Kagome was missing her jacket.
The bus stop was deserted, most having opted to stay home in the gruesome weather; the Triumph had broken down for good and was currently in the shop under Akago's careful consideration and Kagome felt rather strange being driven to visit Kikyo by one of her friends. The bus schedule showed that the last bus to Rin's neighborhood had left three minutes prior and Kagome wrinkled her nose; perhaps she could hail a taxi. But the street was all but deserted as shop keepers boarded up their windows, fearing strong ocean winds in the evening. Rin's house was only about two miles away; she could simply walk.
These were all little details, miniscule and unimportant to Kagome, but they were all variables adding into a dangerous equation. The circumstances were indeed just right to facilitate on of Naraku's hideous plans, but Naraku was the last thing on her mind. Without a care, Kagome turned and began walking boredly down the sidewalk at a leisurely pace, enjoying the stormy skies.
Tokyo was laid out in a rather strange pattern, with the borders between sections of town painfully obvious to a passersby. The rich portion of town directly bordered the slums and, in one intersection, the entire atmosphere could change. Such was the area in which Kagome was currently walking, a dark and seedy area near Rin's beautifully large and extravagant neighborhood. Kagome chuckled to herself as she passed what must've been the tenth headshop since she left the clinic.
She'd covered perhaps a mile before she got a rather strange feeling in her stomach; looking left and right, she saw nothing suspicious and decided it was just her imagination. Kagome continued walking until the feeling struck her again and her eyes began to shift unconciously back and forth. "Hello?" she called, feeling rather foolish. Of course no one would answer.
The footsteps behind her were so quiet that Kagome couldn't even hear them. In one smooth motion, a hand came over Kagome's mouth and she found herself roughly dragged to the side, obviously into a side alley, without so much as the ability to scream. She could feel rough clothing against her legs, callouses on her lips as the hand pressed closer, and her eyes grew wide as she screamed; no one could hear and, in this part of town, no one cared anyway.
She managed to land a painful kick in her agressor's stomach and he grunted, releasing her as she fell unceremoniously to the ground, wiping fervently at her lips. Kagome whipped her head around and took in the sight of her attacker, whose face was slightly familiar. She could remember him as Kaijinbo, Naraku's violent second in command, who had a love for knived and weaponry, though in a much sicker way than most.
Tall and skinnier than anyone should be, Kaijinbo loomed over her, blood red eyes glittering with malevolence. His bald head was dull in the gloomy light, though his razor sharp fangs managed to catch what little light there was; he resembled a vampire in that moment and Kagome shuddered.
"Don't give us trouble, girl," he hissed.
It was then that Kagome noticed two Spiders, flanking him on either side with bored expressions on their faces. Apparently, assaulting women was an every day occurance and they weren't impressed by Kaijinbo's frightening display.
Kagome opened her mouth to scream for help, but Kaijinbo quickly raised his clawed hand and hissed, "Scream and I'll gut you like a fish."
Her mouth clamped shut rather quickly and Kagome found herself unable to do anything but sit there against the dingy alley wall, limbs dirty and wet as she stared frozen at her assailants. Kaijinbo leaned forward to grab her and she made as though to run away, only serving to make the demon mad; he held her with such force that the claws on his fingertips dug into her arm flesh, causing her to whimper in pain. She couldn't breathe, she couldn't speak, she couldn't think as the tears rolled down her face in a steady stream. This was it; she was really going to die.
"Let go, Kaijinbo."
A pained grunt was heard from one of the bored Spiders as someone landed a painfully hard kick in his abdomen and he stumbled backwards, leaning against the wall for support. Kaijinbo turned abruptly and scowled, eyes flickering with hatred. "Gan the Gun, you fucking traitor."
Gan stood tall, violet eyes burning a deep mauve. "Kaijinbo, the witless wonder."
The boy reached into his jacket and removed a revolver loaded with strangely colored bullets, his movements precise yet languid in his typical careless manner. Distracted by Gan's presence, Kaijinbo threw Kagome bitterly to the side, causing her to land with a thud against the alley wall. Kagome's vision blurred and then disappeared altogether as she lay their helplessly, listening the sounds of Gan as he faced the Spiders without fear.
"What the hell are you doing here?" Kaijinbo growled.
But Gan only gave a mirthless laugh. "I was wandering by when I heard what sounded like attempted rape. Though I might check it out."
Kaijinbo was not amused and, without further banter, threw his hand forward to send the Spiders after his opponent. They rocketed forward with their fists raised, causing Gan to sigh and shake his head as he refused to move despite their alarming closing speed. He simply pulled the trigger and watched as the first Spider fell to the ground, eyes wide open as he felt his blood freeze in his limbs; he was paralyzed.
The second Spider, who was slightly smarter than the first, reached down to his belt and unhooked a 9mm, raising it until the barrel was pointed directly at Gan's forehead. Gan seemed unfazed and merely sidestepped, shooting his opponent with the same type of bullet which immobilized his friend.
Kaijinbo scowled and crossed his arms bitterly across his abnormally thin chest. "You took that gun from our warehouse."
"Well, yes," Gan admitted, pretending to rub the back of his neck sheepishly. "It looked so lonely with only idiots attempting to shoot it. I felt bad for it and decided to take it with me when we left your sorry asses behind."
This comment only proved to enrage Kaijinbo further and he let out a roar, lengthening his claws to nearly four inches in length before launching himself at Gan. Unlike his backup fighters, Kaijinbo was very skilled and Gan adopted a strict face as he fought, replacing his gun inside his jacket; he knew the bullets in his gun would do little against someone like Kaijinbo. It was well known that the crazed demon had injected himself with all sorts of steroid type concoctions in order to achieve immortality, an obssession of his. The result of his experiments varied, from hair loss all over his body to inpentrability of the skin on his legs. Whatever the cause, Kaijinbo was becoming frighteningly close to invincible.
Gan fought almost mindlessly with the Kaijinbo, raising his arms in a solid X as Kaijinbo brought his claws crashing down at Gan's face. The four inch claws imbedded themselves in Gan's forearms and he let out a pained grunt; he could see the claw tips protruding from his underarm, having gone in one side and come out the other. Blood rained down on Gan's face as he struggled to keep Kaijinbo at arms length. Though he appeared calm on the outside, girl Gan was raging on the inside.
"Crap, crap, crap, this is bad, this is really, really bad. I'm not suppose to die this way! This isn't the way it's supposed to be! Damnit, this bastard deserves to die. I should just kill him...except that I'm strictly against that kind of behavior. Why am I so fucking sensetive?! Why can't I be a man for real? I bet Akago would have no problem in killing Kaijinbo's sorry ass, but oh no, here you are losing the fight because of your damn hormones! God dammit, Misaki, pull yourself together!"
Kaijinbo had since grown tired of the stalemate and yelled impatiently, leaning forehead his head in a startling motion. In one stunning movement, Kaijinbo executed a rough headbutt and sent Gan's head cracking back on his neck, causing his hat to fly backwards to the wet ground.
Gan felt as though the moment moved in slow motion, his hat coming away from his head and leaving both girl and boy Gan with a sense of lost security. I knew I shouldn't have grown my hair long, was all Gan could think as her golden hair tumbled down around her, damp with sweat and dull with lack of care. The way long hair changed the look of Gan's face was startling and Kaijinbo paused, withdrawing his claws from Gan's arms as he stared aghast at her fallen body.
Both paralyzed Spiders let out gasps and curses of wonder while Kaijinbo could only murmur, "A woman?"
Kagome blinked as her vision began to return and she could barely make out the blurry outline of Kaijinbo's back as he stood over someone on the wet asphalt. As her sight regained some of its sharpness, Kagome wondered is she was suddenly seeing untruths for, on the ground beneath Kaijinbo, lay a girl. She was young, Kagome estimated, maybe 15, but she was wearing the baggy jeans and shirt of a boy. Her jacket was leather, like those of the gangs, with a familiar trinket hanging on the leather cord around her neck; a shark's tooth.
The girl raised her bloody face slightly, staring up at Kaijinbo as she spat crudely in a nearby puddle. Kagome could only stare as she recalled those familiar violet eyes. That girl was none other than Gan the Gun and there was no doubt in her mind.
Gan coughed bitterly as blood ran down her throat from her bleeding lips and nose, a product of Kaijinbo's heatbutt. "Fuck this," she mumbled in a voice quite like Gan's, if not slightly higher.
Kagome couldn't quite understand what "fuck this" was supposed to mean but, in one quick moment, Gan reached inside her jacket and produced a six shooter pistol, which she proceeded to fire three times. Each bullet was directed at the heart of a Spider and each died in that single moment as the sharp sound of shots echoed around the alleyway. Kaijinbo's face was pained as he fell to his knees, breathing his last breath as he gazed into the eyes of his killer. In that one, undefined moment, Kaijinbo died, knowing Gan the Gun's deepest, darkest secret which he could never reveal in death.
Kagome said nothing as she and Gan sat there in silence, eyes locked, brown upon violet, as they wondered what came next in such a situation. Finally, Gan struggled to her feet, shaking away the dizziness which haunted her aching head. Kagome shakily brought her palms to the gritty floor, pushing herself into a trembling stand with the brick wall as her aid. The two continued to stare at one another, Kagome in wonder and Gan in an unreadable state; neither knew what would come of this.
Gan finally hung her head and looked down at her pistol; she supposed this didn't count as senseless killing. Knowing her secret, none of them could live; they would only use it for their own devious gain. Besides that, it would end her stay here in Tokyo. And she wasn't finished yet.
As Gan stared at the pistol, Kagome wondered for a moment if the girl was going to shoot her. After all, Kagome knew something that obviously wasn't meant to be known. Didn't that warrant her death?
But Gan replaced the pistol inside her inner jacket pocket, wincing as her arms contracted painfully; her fight with Kaijinbo had been difficult and, by all standards, she should've lost. If she hadn't used a gun, Gan was quite sure she would've.
Blood pooled at Gan's feet as she finally sighed, glancing up at the dark skies. "An accident. That's what this was." Kagome shivered as another cold wind blew by. She couldn't think of anything to say and, in kind, she remained silent. Gan continued with an almost defeated smile on her lips. "If you can imagine, Kagome, you weren't supposed to know this."
The entire scene was surreal for Kagome; all this time, she'd regarded Gan as a male, spoken to her as one, thought of Gan as another masculine being in the gangs of Tokyo. But all this time, she'd been speaking to a woman in man's clothing, masquerading as the opposite sex for whatever reasons she had. It was strange and awkward as she huddled against the wall, cold, hurt, filthy and afraid. There was a heavy silence as Gan gauged Kagome's reaction.
"Why?" was all Kagome could choke through her tight throat.
Another humorless smile attacked Gan's lips and she gave a dry chuckle. "Why. I have my reasons, none of which include cross dressing fantasies or gender confusion. At first it was simple necessity, but it changed long ago. I came and...couldn't leave. Do you understand that?"
Kagome didn't answer right away and Gan sighed lightly, chest constricting even as she stood there. "I suppose you don't."
The rain began to fall, a few drops which grew into a steady pour from the angry, black heavens. Kagome's hair struck to her forehead as she stood stupidly against the alley wall, staring down at the three dead bodies before her and the girl leaning blankly against the wall across from her. Surreal.
"I'm at your mercy, Kagome."
Kagome hadn't thought about the situation in exactly these terms, though she knew now that it was true. Obviously, Gan had her reasons for pretending to be a boy, as she'd said, but having one person know her secret wasn't reason enough to tell the whole world. Why ever it was Gan was walking around in disguise, Kagome knew it was important and needed to continue.
"I won't tell," Kagome whispered, a sound which came out almost as a cry. She hadn't noticed tears mingling with the rain on her cheeks.
Gan glanced up, slightly surprised. "I know you won't tell, Kagome," she said quietly. "I never thought you would. But let it be known...I am at your mercy."
Kagome managed a slight nod before standing strong on her two feet, if not with a slight tremor in her legs. Smiling sadly, Gan reached down and managed to barely grip her hat before a lance of pain shot down her arms. She gasped and closed her eyes, waiting for the pain to subside. After watching this, Kagome took a deep breath and shuffled slowly across the alley, reaching down and taking Gan's hat in her own bruised hands before placing it beneath her chin. This done, she gathered Gan's golden tresses in her hands, folding them neatly up before placing the hat securely on the girl's head. In that one moment, Gan the Gun transformed back into his normal boy persona and Kagome almost gasped; the change was so radical it was almost unreal.
Gan gazed at Kagome with his violet eyes brimming with gratitude. "Thank you."
Kagome nodded and helped Gan to his feet once more, wary of his wounds. "Is...is Gan your real name?"
A smile played at Gan's lips. Indeed, a humorous question. "No, it's not...I used the first name which came to my tongue. I'm not sure why it was Gan."
The two began stumbling brokenly out of the alleyway, leaving the three bodies behind them. Kagome asked tentatively, "What's your real name, then?"
"Misaki," Gan replied curtly. "It never fit me, I don't think."
"Gan fits you well."
Smiling at the girl beside him, Gan replied quietly, "I think so too." The two were silent, expressing tacit thanks in both directions, before Gan continued, "We should get you back to Fang headquarters."
"And we need your arms looked at," Kagome reminded him, caring brown eyes wide with concern.
Gan only shook his head ruefully. "I'm sure Akago will want to do it; he likes to lecture me when I get hurt doing 'stupid Gan things,' as he calls them. If he does it when he's bandaging me, I can't talk back because he yanks the bandages if I do. He's a cunning fellow."
Kagome managed a weak smile. "Yeah, he is."
"My car is in the next alley over, but I'm afraid you'll have to drive; I don't believe I can," Gan admitted.
Kagome took the keys from his jacket pocket and said strongly, "I can do it."
This said, the two girls walked to Gan's blue mustang, getting slowly inside as they mulled over the recent events; this was the beginning of change and both knew it. What kind of change, they weren't sure, but it couldn't possibly be good. Little did they know that more change would take place in the near future. Dangerous change.
He'd spent the morning with Rin working on one of the Cobra's Toyota Celica's, which he'd spun out and crashed that very morning. He'd been driving on the highway when he hydroplaned and hit the concrete divider; the entire front end was trashed and bent, but Sesshomaru and Rin could fix it. While they didn't normally do mechanic work and stuck to their papers and filing, they were two of the most capable mechanics in the warehouse. Sesshomaru smiled slightly as he watched Rin bent over the hood of the Celica hammering out dents, wearing her Dickie's zip up mechanic overalls. She certainly looked cute just then.
A pair of headlights through the deluge outside caught Sesshomaru's attention and he watched as a familiar blue Mustang came rolling up to the gravel parking area. With his less than adequate dog vision, he couldn't quite make out the passenger, though he noticed something strange right off the bat. When the car shut off and the driver stepped out, Sesshomaru was able to recognize the person as Kagome, who was walking quite laboriously as she hurried to the passenger's side. She opened the door and helped the passenger to their feet, a passenger who proved to be none other than Gan the Gun. The way she supported Gan as they walked could mean nothing but bad news and Sesshomaru dropped his cigarette, crushing the flame beneath his boot.
"Inuyasha, get Akago up here!" Sesshomaru called urgently, jogging out to meet the two as they crossed the threshold into the warehouse.
Sesshomaru could now see that Kagome was covered in dirt and blood which trickled from puncture wounds on her upper arms. It didn't look too serious, if not painful, but Gan seemed to be quite injured; the eight puncture wounds on his arms, obviously inflicted by the same attacker, were pouring blood and Sesshomaru could see they'd gone all the way through his forearms.
"What happened?" he asked as he took over Kagome's position helping Gan inside; the gun weilder seemed to be quite dizzy from loss of blood.
Kagome replied in deep distress, "I was walking home from visiting Kikyo when I got attacked by three Spiders. They would've gotten a lot farther if Gan hadn't showed up; he took care of them."
"Sess...sesshomaru," Gan managed to get out blearily. He couldn't quite make out shapes as they walked, blurs of color distracting him every which way. He did remember his important message, however. "Clean up in an alley on...on...Morai street, near the i-intersection at Coral...three bod...bodies...clean up..."
Sesshomaru was able to make sense of Gan's mumbles and he called out to Ranbou, who was already hurrying in their direction to offer his assistance. "Ranbou, three bodies in an alley near Morai and Coral, take the elite," the Fang leader said curtly.
Ranbou nodded and called to Hakkaku and Ginta before withdrawing his motorcycle keys from his pocket. Shitora arrived just as he was preparing to leave and asked confusedly, "What's going on?"
"Clean up, I'll be back soon," he replied, placing a quick kiss on her forehead before hurrying out to the gravel parking lot, Hakkau and Ginta hot on his tail.
Inuyasha and Akago came hurrying to the front of the warehouse and, upon seeing Kagome standing there covered in mud and blood, Inuyasha felt the breath leave his body in a woosh. She looked so hurt and frightened, he couldn't imagine what had transpired, but he was already feeling guilty for not preventing it. "Kagome?" he said confusedly, hurriedly grabbing her shoulders as he looked her over for injuries.
Kagome gasped as one of his claws grazed her upper arm and Inuyasha furrowed his brow, noticing the claw holes for the first time. Fire enveloped his gaze and he barred his teeth, asking murderously, "Who did this?!"
"K-Kaijinbo..." Kagome stuttered, fearing the look in Inuyasha's eyes. "He's dead, Inuyasha, Gan got him," she said quickly, for the hanyou looked as though he were two seconds away from sprinting out of the warehouse.
Inuyasha's amber eyes held not only anger, but a look of hoplessness that nearly broke Kagome's heart. He looked so helpless and scared as he stood there, unsure of what to do. This confusion only last a moment before he drew her into a tight hug which she returned desperately; she felt so safe in his arms, it was as though not even the hounds of hell could drag her away. She clung to him as though he were her only link to life, relishing in his scent and wishing they might never part.
Meanwhile, Akago had taken one look at Gan and cursed, crimson eyes flashing with an angry sort of concern. "Damn," he muttered as he briefly examined the puncture wounds. "I'll take him Sesshomaru." This said, the albino demon hefted Gan easily onto his back, carrying him towards the lounge area with a quickness in his step.
Gan was feeling slightly stronger, just from the energy in Akago's presence. Akago could still see the blurry look in his second's eyes and he growled, "You're in a heaping lot of trouble, I hope you know that."
This only provoked a dry chuckle from Gan, who felt the dizziness overcome him once more. "I...bet...oh, shit..." and with this, the boy fell unconcious.
Akago grunted as the dead weight descended upon him, but he adjusted to it quickly and easily. "Not a good sign," he murmured to himself.
At the front of the warehouse, Sesshomaru was already starting to pace restlessly back and forth. Rin sighed as she rubbed Kagome's back soothingly, having interrupted her hug with Inuyasha a few minutes prior. The others were just becoming aware of the situation, as the demons could smell almost nothing in the rain, and people crowded around the grit and blood smeared Kagome.
"What the hell happened?" Shitora asked urgently.
"Yeah," a few echoed, obviously concerned as they exchanged worried glances.
Kagome replied quietly, "I was ambushed downtown by some Spiders."
The girls gasped and the boys cursed as yet more glances were exchanged. Inuyasha furrowed his brow momentarily and said, "Wait a second, you were alone downtown?"
Kagome was silent before she angled her gaze downward, hesitant to meet Inuyasha's eyes. "I missed the last bus," she all but whispered.
Miroku said pleadingly, "Kagome, next time, just call one of us, any of us would've gotten you!"
"How could you be so stupid?!" Inuyasha practically yelled, throwing his clawed hands akimbo as his amber eyes glittered indignantly. "You could've gotten raped or worse! You know you're not supposed to be alone downtown, or anywhere for that matter! We've told you that! I've told you that!"
The others murmured and voiced agreement as Ayame quickly put her arm around Kagome's shoulders, saying defensively, "Hey, she wasn't thinking 'gee, I might get attacked by perverts today.' She was only walking to Rin's house, weren't you? It's only, what, two miles away? Cut her some slack!"
"Aya, we can't cut slack," Kouga cut in sadly. "This is exactly why; they'll target you girls because they know it's a good way to get us angry and start trouble. They're going to try to use you and we don't want that, which is why we made this rule. Not to belittle you or some shit, just to protect you."
Though the honesty in Kouga's blue eyes made Ayame's hard demeanor soften at first, she soon remembered the irritation she felt for this entire situation. "But we're going to make mistakes, okay? I bet lot's of us wandered off at Race Wars before remembering. Besides, you can't be with us absolutely all the time!"
"Yes we can!" Kouga roared back, displaying a more passionate emotion than even Ranbou could remember him displaying. The wolf looked so desperate to make Ayame and the other girls understand, it was truly heartbreaking. "We can be with you all the time and we will be! It's the only way!"
Ayame stared, quietly shocked, back at Kouga, who was breathing quickly in his fervor. After a moment of true silence, Sesshomaru interrupted, "We should get you treated, Kagome, before those wounds get infected. Then we'll need to talk about this attack. Did you recognize any of them?"
"Kaijinbo," Kagome said at once, recalling the face of her vampirical attacker.
Sesshomaru sighed deeply; he'd feared as much. "This is going to be a difficult conflict," he said quietly, walking back with Rin, Inuyasha and Kagome as they approached the lounge area.
Little did Sesshomaru know that this conflict would arrive much quicker than he anticipated, within the next week to be exact. And it would indeed by difficult.
That was quick, huh? Much quicker than normal for me, as you're all painfully aware. I'll start work on the next chapter right away; we're getting close to all the meaty stuff now!
KOLU
*!*!*!*
Naraku leaned back in his chair, allowing his neck to crane gracefully over the back as he smoked a cigarette between his restless lips. His crimson eyes held a bitter, annoyed quality which made all those around him wary; their fearless leader was a ticking timebomb, able to be set off at any one moment in time. His unpredictability was perhaps the scariest thing about him.Sighing impatiently, Kagura recrossed her legs, allowing the room a clear view of her red lace thong as she said irritably, "I don't understand why we can't just send the Dragons and their little elite boys off to kill all those faggots in the South. We've got guns, right?"
This elicited a snort from Ryuukoytsusei, who tossed his emerald green mane with his usual arrogance. "We don't need guns, ya stupid slut, we get all we need with our hands. But we can't take out that many of em just us alone."
Kagura heard little of Ryuu's explanation and only fired angrily back, "Oh, a stupid slut, am I? I've gotten you off enough times, haven't I, dragon?"
Naraku's dark chuckle accompanied the sound of Ryuu's chair scraping back on the concrete as he observed Kagura with raging crimson eyes. "The day you get me off is the day I fuckin' die!"
"Oh yeah? You're a fuckin a-"
"Please, children," Naraku said patronizingly, eyeing both combatants with a sort of condescending irritation. "I was looking for quiet, which I see I was mistaken in expecting. Am I to be allowed to think?"
Never removing their eyes from their deadlocked stare, Kagura and Ryuukoytsusei retook their seats in a decidedly stiff manner, disgruntled by their recent spat. Naraku returned to his thoughtful pose, arched gracefully over the back of his chair, when Ryuu grew impatient as Kagura had a moment earlier.
"What are you thinking about, spider?" the Dragon leader asked gruffly. "I don't like that look in yer eye."
In response, Naraku blew out a stream of cigarette smoke, which pooled in an ominous cloud around his haunting face. "I want that girl, Kagome, the one the Wildcats are stringing along."
Kagura made a small gasping sound, as though she'd just been fatally shot in the chest, while Ryuu gave a derisive snort, crossing his muscular arms over his broad chest.
"Hardly an impressive human, Naraku. You have your pick of twenty more attractive women right here."
But Naraku was not to be swayed. In a suprising display of violence, he suddenly lashed out with his fist and brought it crashing down on the table, causing the weak wooden structure to split cleanly in two. Kagura gasped and fell unceremoniously out of her chair, staring frightfully at the recently destroyed table. Ryuu looked unimpressed, if not annoyed by the disappearance of the table, which he'd been resting his feet on.
"I don't want them, I want her; she's not just any fuck, dragon. She's Inuyasha's bitch; if I was to take his bitch, it would all be smooth sailing from there," Naraku declared through gritted teeth, the source of his anger still unevident.
Ryuu's face was one of confusion. "Why not just kill Sesshomaru's wench?"
"Because Sesshomaru is too in his head; if I kill his women, he'll destroy us. If I take Inuyasha's woman, not kill, but take her, he'll come running in a blind rage after her, leaving the Fangs to run around chaotically and try to back him up. That's the way we're going to bring them down," Naraku declared.
Kagura had, by this time, scrambled to her feet and retreated off into the corner, deciding to neglect her leadership duties until Naraku's rage had calmed. Ryuu, however, was used to the Spider leader's outbursts and only leaned forward on his knees, observing Naraku through still muddled crimson eyes. "I don't get why Inuyasha would pick such an unsuitable wench when he could have a far better fuck."
"Do you have someone else in mind?" Naraku taunted, intrigued by the whimsical look on Ryuu's face. When the Dragon made no reply, Naraku realized his initial assumption had been correct. "You do, don't you? A girl of the Taisho line, isn't it? A fine bitch to be sure. But way out of your league, Dragon. She's an expensive fuck."
With a terrifying roar which sounded from deep within his gut, Ryuukoytsusei rocketed to his feet, sending his chair flying out behind him. "Don't speak of her that way, Spider, you don't have the right! Take your worthless human whore, what should I care? But leave me and the elite out of it!"
And with that, Ryuukoytsusei stormed violently out of the room, slamming the door loudly behind him. Naraku watched him go before turning to Bokoru, who'd been picking his grimy nails during the conversation, paying it no mind. "What do you think, Bokoru? How would you deal with this situation?"
"I would take the Higurashi girl, sure, but then I'd take the Taisho girl too and string her up, maybe fuck around a little, just to piss that Dragon bastard off," Bokoru said tactlessly, never raising his gaze to meet Naraku's.
Smiling strangely, the Spider leader said quietly, "What an uncharacteristically good idea, Bokoru. Maybe there's hope for you yet."
*!*!*!*
Sunlight streamed through Kikyo's open window, lighting the deceivingly dark room with a hint of sunshine. Kagome smiled as Kikyo began using her index finger to draw shapes and figures in the air, a typical Kikyo motion; Kagome wasn't sure how she'd survived with Kikyo's weirdness in her life.The graceful girl sat smoothly upright, coffee brown eyes deepers than oceans and skies could ever imagine. It was the immenseness of her eyes which was truly frightening, Kagome imagined. But in all their time together, Kagome was forgetting to be scared. Kikyo's swaddling white clothes dwarfed her as she sat there, untameable, silken black locks pooling around her on the hospital bed. The contrast of her black hair on the starch hospital bedding was striking.
"His car exploded?" Kikyo finally said.
Kagome managed a small laugh, as she'd told the story about Miroku's misfortune nearly ten minutes ago. It had taken Kikyo ten entire minutes to mull over the startling occurance in her strange head. "Yeah, exploded and caught on fire and burned."
"And you kissed Inuyasha?"
Here, Kagome's laughter came to an abrupt halt; she hadn't told her that. Blinking her brown eyes curiously, Kagome asked, "What do you mean?" in a steady voice.
Kikyo's humorless chuckle was answer enough, though she continued, "It's written all over your happy face, Kagome. You did it, didn't you?"
It sounded almost accusatory, the way she said this, but Kagome knew the girl meant little or no harm by it. It was simply Kikyo's way, putting things in blunt terms a three year old could understand, as though she feared being unable to connect with other humans. Kagome found her relatively unconnectable right then anyway, but hadn't the heart to tell her; it didn't seem right.
"I...he...we did. At Race Wars."
Kikyo nodded so slowly that Kagome imagined a nearly waveless sea lapping against the side of a boat. "I should've known; I suspected it would happen after our last visit."
"Really?"
Kagome knew that of course, Kikyo really had thought this, but "really" seemed to be the only word she could speak correctly at the time. With a sigh, Kikyo draped herself over the bed in a way reminscent of a silken throw cover. "It was on your face again. Maybe you should check in here yourself, Kagome, the helpless victim of an emotional face; it gives away everything you think."
"Pretty bad, huh?" Kagome laughed, not altogether comfortable. "I could never lie to anyone, I guess."
"If only that were true," came Kikyo's cryptic reply.
There was a silence between the two girls, as there was prone to be. Kagome had learned not to twiddle her thumbs or seem uncomfortable in the silence, for it only led to Kikyo's taunting and titilating responses. Something about her was so alluring that it alarmed Kagome; she wasn't a lesbian, to be sure, but why then did she find Kikyo so attractive? Why did her mouth seem to stop working whenever she visited? What about Kikyo dulled the senses like a sweet smelling poison?
"You really love him."
It was a statement from Kikyo, not a question nor a suggestion. A statement. Kagome bit her lip in a fretful manner, nearly drawing blood in her nervousness; there were times when she wanted nothing more than to escape the limitless black of Kikyo's stare.
"I do."
"And it kills you, too," Kikyo pointed out astutely.
After a silence, Kagome practically shouted, "Why won't they let me in? What's so wrong with me, huh? Haven't I been loyal? Haven't I proved myself? Why won't they let me in?!"
The desperation in Kagome's beautiful face provoked no visible emotion from Kikyo, who merely lifted one lily white hand to examine her nails. "They're not ready. At this point, I think it has less to do with you and more to do with them. You can only sit back and wait now."
"I don't understand," Kagome confessed. Her brown eyes were fraught with anger, fear, confusion, betrayal, and a whole manner of conflicting emotions. "I really don't and I never will. I might as well leave because they're never going to get over you."
It was the first time Kagome had used the word "you" when talking about her obstacle in the Wildcats. It was always slightly understood, that Kikyo was the real milestone in this equation, but Kagome didn't want to sound accusatory. Now was not the time for formalities, however. With this simple word, "you," Kagome confessed the deepest fear she'd harbored since she learned of the Wildcats and their tantilizing life style: the Wildcats would never make room in their hearts for another core member. Not after Kikyo.
Kikyo only shrugged. "You don't know that and neither do I. We don't know anything. That's something you need to face, Kagome; we don't know anything and we never will. Life is a painful, confusing, undisectable blur and no one knows what's going on. But that's why we're all here together, to see if two or more heads can make sense of this chaotic mess of feelings called the world."
Kagome was silent for a moment in reverence to Kikyo's wise words, a habit she'd taken up in the past few months; sometimes, Kikyo said something so deeply profound that silence was required afterwards. Finally, she mumbled, "Sorry about all this. Me and Inuyasha, I mean. I feel like its unfair to you."
At this, Kikyo only gave a rather thick throated laugh. "Don't worry about any of it; I need a bigger man than Inuyasha to tame me." Kagome knew not to be offended by Kikyo's statement for, indeed, it would take someone rather incredible to tame her. "I'm being released in a month."
The news startled Kagome, not only because it was delivered in such a flippant way, but also by the sheer meaning of it. Kikyo had only been in the clinic for one summer; was that truly a long enough time to cure someone of depression and nymphomania?
But Kagome didn't voice these concerns. If Kikyo said it, it was true. "Where will you go?"
"Paris."
"Paris?" Kagome echoed incredulously.
As though it were perfectly obvious, Kikyo replied, "Of course. What better place for a depressed, sex starved enjenou than Paris? France is a haven for sexual depravity and I will be their queen."
Kagome laughed. "I guess that makes sense. I'll come see you off."
"Don't bother," Kikyo replied with a gentle smile. "I'll be gone before you know it."
Kagome could feel their conversation drawing to a close and something in her gut made it seem rather final, as though they would never speak again. Standing rather slowly, Kagome sobered and said earnestly, "It's been my pleasure to know you, Kikyo."
"And mine to know you," was Kikyo's simple reply, though Kagome could tell she meant every word.
As Kagome exited the room, leaving behind a woman so extrodinary that she might only be immortalized through spirit, she felt a sudden weight lift from her shoulders. Kikyo had overcome a terrible trial, several to be precise, and come out the amazing human Kagome had come to know. Perhaps if someone could do all that in one summer, Kagome might succeed in the long run. Who knew what might happen.
It had been a rather rainy day and the sky was darkly overcast, threatening to rain down another load of water upon the hapless city. Kagome crossed her arms fretfully over her chest as a cold sea wind blew past. She'd worn a simple red t-shirt and jean mini skirt for, when she left the house, it had been almost 90 degrees outside, even in the rain. But the temperature had dropped considerably and Kagome was missing her jacket.
The bus stop was deserted, most having opted to stay home in the gruesome weather; the Triumph had broken down for good and was currently in the shop under Akago's careful consideration and Kagome felt rather strange being driven to visit Kikyo by one of her friends. The bus schedule showed that the last bus to Rin's neighborhood had left three minutes prior and Kagome wrinkled her nose; perhaps she could hail a taxi. But the street was all but deserted as shop keepers boarded up their windows, fearing strong ocean winds in the evening. Rin's house was only about two miles away; she could simply walk.
These were all little details, miniscule and unimportant to Kagome, but they were all variables adding into a dangerous equation. The circumstances were indeed just right to facilitate on of Naraku's hideous plans, but Naraku was the last thing on her mind. Without a care, Kagome turned and began walking boredly down the sidewalk at a leisurely pace, enjoying the stormy skies.
Tokyo was laid out in a rather strange pattern, with the borders between sections of town painfully obvious to a passersby. The rich portion of town directly bordered the slums and, in one intersection, the entire atmosphere could change. Such was the area in which Kagome was currently walking, a dark and seedy area near Rin's beautifully large and extravagant neighborhood. Kagome chuckled to herself as she passed what must've been the tenth headshop since she left the clinic.
She'd covered perhaps a mile before she got a rather strange feeling in her stomach; looking left and right, she saw nothing suspicious and decided it was just her imagination. Kagome continued walking until the feeling struck her again and her eyes began to shift unconciously back and forth. "Hello?" she called, feeling rather foolish. Of course no one would answer.
The footsteps behind her were so quiet that Kagome couldn't even hear them. In one smooth motion, a hand came over Kagome's mouth and she found herself roughly dragged to the side, obviously into a side alley, without so much as the ability to scream. She could feel rough clothing against her legs, callouses on her lips as the hand pressed closer, and her eyes grew wide as she screamed; no one could hear and, in this part of town, no one cared anyway.
She managed to land a painful kick in her agressor's stomach and he grunted, releasing her as she fell unceremoniously to the ground, wiping fervently at her lips. Kagome whipped her head around and took in the sight of her attacker, whose face was slightly familiar. She could remember him as Kaijinbo, Naraku's violent second in command, who had a love for knived and weaponry, though in a much sicker way than most.
Tall and skinnier than anyone should be, Kaijinbo loomed over her, blood red eyes glittering with malevolence. His bald head was dull in the gloomy light, though his razor sharp fangs managed to catch what little light there was; he resembled a vampire in that moment and Kagome shuddered.
"Don't give us trouble, girl," he hissed.
It was then that Kagome noticed two Spiders, flanking him on either side with bored expressions on their faces. Apparently, assaulting women was an every day occurance and they weren't impressed by Kaijinbo's frightening display.
Kagome opened her mouth to scream for help, but Kaijinbo quickly raised his clawed hand and hissed, "Scream and I'll gut you like a fish."
Her mouth clamped shut rather quickly and Kagome found herself unable to do anything but sit there against the dingy alley wall, limbs dirty and wet as she stared frozen at her assailants. Kaijinbo leaned forward to grab her and she made as though to run away, only serving to make the demon mad; he held her with such force that the claws on his fingertips dug into her arm flesh, causing her to whimper in pain. She couldn't breathe, she couldn't speak, she couldn't think as the tears rolled down her face in a steady stream. This was it; she was really going to die.
"Let go, Kaijinbo."
A pained grunt was heard from one of the bored Spiders as someone landed a painfully hard kick in his abdomen and he stumbled backwards, leaning against the wall for support. Kaijinbo turned abruptly and scowled, eyes flickering with hatred. "Gan the Gun, you fucking traitor."
Gan stood tall, violet eyes burning a deep mauve. "Kaijinbo, the witless wonder."
The boy reached into his jacket and removed a revolver loaded with strangely colored bullets, his movements precise yet languid in his typical careless manner. Distracted by Gan's presence, Kaijinbo threw Kagome bitterly to the side, causing her to land with a thud against the alley wall. Kagome's vision blurred and then disappeared altogether as she lay their helplessly, listening the sounds of Gan as he faced the Spiders without fear.
"What the hell are you doing here?" Kaijinbo growled.
But Gan only gave a mirthless laugh. "I was wandering by when I heard what sounded like attempted rape. Though I might check it out."
Kaijinbo was not amused and, without further banter, threw his hand forward to send the Spiders after his opponent. They rocketed forward with their fists raised, causing Gan to sigh and shake his head as he refused to move despite their alarming closing speed. He simply pulled the trigger and watched as the first Spider fell to the ground, eyes wide open as he felt his blood freeze in his limbs; he was paralyzed.
The second Spider, who was slightly smarter than the first, reached down to his belt and unhooked a 9mm, raising it until the barrel was pointed directly at Gan's forehead. Gan seemed unfazed and merely sidestepped, shooting his opponent with the same type of bullet which immobilized his friend.
Kaijinbo scowled and crossed his arms bitterly across his abnormally thin chest. "You took that gun from our warehouse."
"Well, yes," Gan admitted, pretending to rub the back of his neck sheepishly. "It looked so lonely with only idiots attempting to shoot it. I felt bad for it and decided to take it with me when we left your sorry asses behind."
This comment only proved to enrage Kaijinbo further and he let out a roar, lengthening his claws to nearly four inches in length before launching himself at Gan. Unlike his backup fighters, Kaijinbo was very skilled and Gan adopted a strict face as he fought, replacing his gun inside his jacket; he knew the bullets in his gun would do little against someone like Kaijinbo. It was well known that the crazed demon had injected himself with all sorts of steroid type concoctions in order to achieve immortality, an obssession of his. The result of his experiments varied, from hair loss all over his body to inpentrability of the skin on his legs. Whatever the cause, Kaijinbo was becoming frighteningly close to invincible.
Gan fought almost mindlessly with the Kaijinbo, raising his arms in a solid X as Kaijinbo brought his claws crashing down at Gan's face. The four inch claws imbedded themselves in Gan's forearms and he let out a pained grunt; he could see the claw tips protruding from his underarm, having gone in one side and come out the other. Blood rained down on Gan's face as he struggled to keep Kaijinbo at arms length. Though he appeared calm on the outside, girl Gan was raging on the inside.
"Crap, crap, crap, this is bad, this is really, really bad. I'm not suppose to die this way! This isn't the way it's supposed to be! Damnit, this bastard deserves to die. I should just kill him...except that I'm strictly against that kind of behavior. Why am I so fucking sensetive?! Why can't I be a man for real? I bet Akago would have no problem in killing Kaijinbo's sorry ass, but oh no, here you are losing the fight because of your damn hormones! God dammit, Misaki, pull yourself together!"
Kaijinbo had since grown tired of the stalemate and yelled impatiently, leaning forehead his head in a startling motion. In one stunning movement, Kaijinbo executed a rough headbutt and sent Gan's head cracking back on his neck, causing his hat to fly backwards to the wet ground.
Gan felt as though the moment moved in slow motion, his hat coming away from his head and leaving both girl and boy Gan with a sense of lost security. I knew I shouldn't have grown my hair long, was all Gan could think as her golden hair tumbled down around her, damp with sweat and dull with lack of care. The way long hair changed the look of Gan's face was startling and Kaijinbo paused, withdrawing his claws from Gan's arms as he stared aghast at her fallen body.
Both paralyzed Spiders let out gasps and curses of wonder while Kaijinbo could only murmur, "A woman?"
Kagome blinked as her vision began to return and she could barely make out the blurry outline of Kaijinbo's back as he stood over someone on the wet asphalt. As her sight regained some of its sharpness, Kagome wondered is she was suddenly seeing untruths for, on the ground beneath Kaijinbo, lay a girl. She was young, Kagome estimated, maybe 15, but she was wearing the baggy jeans and shirt of a boy. Her jacket was leather, like those of the gangs, with a familiar trinket hanging on the leather cord around her neck; a shark's tooth.
The girl raised her bloody face slightly, staring up at Kaijinbo as she spat crudely in a nearby puddle. Kagome could only stare as she recalled those familiar violet eyes. That girl was none other than Gan the Gun and there was no doubt in her mind.
Gan coughed bitterly as blood ran down her throat from her bleeding lips and nose, a product of Kaijinbo's heatbutt. "Fuck this," she mumbled in a voice quite like Gan's, if not slightly higher.
Kagome couldn't quite understand what "fuck this" was supposed to mean but, in one quick moment, Gan reached inside her jacket and produced a six shooter pistol, which she proceeded to fire three times. Each bullet was directed at the heart of a Spider and each died in that single moment as the sharp sound of shots echoed around the alleyway. Kaijinbo's face was pained as he fell to his knees, breathing his last breath as he gazed into the eyes of his killer. In that one, undefined moment, Kaijinbo died, knowing Gan the Gun's deepest, darkest secret which he could never reveal in death.
Kagome said nothing as she and Gan sat there in silence, eyes locked, brown upon violet, as they wondered what came next in such a situation. Finally, Gan struggled to her feet, shaking away the dizziness which haunted her aching head. Kagome shakily brought her palms to the gritty floor, pushing herself into a trembling stand with the brick wall as her aid. The two continued to stare at one another, Kagome in wonder and Gan in an unreadable state; neither knew what would come of this.
Gan finally hung her head and looked down at her pistol; she supposed this didn't count as senseless killing. Knowing her secret, none of them could live; they would only use it for their own devious gain. Besides that, it would end her stay here in Tokyo. And she wasn't finished yet.
As Gan stared at the pistol, Kagome wondered for a moment if the girl was going to shoot her. After all, Kagome knew something that obviously wasn't meant to be known. Didn't that warrant her death?
But Gan replaced the pistol inside her inner jacket pocket, wincing as her arms contracted painfully; her fight with Kaijinbo had been difficult and, by all standards, she should've lost. If she hadn't used a gun, Gan was quite sure she would've.
Blood pooled at Gan's feet as she finally sighed, glancing up at the dark skies. "An accident. That's what this was." Kagome shivered as another cold wind blew by. She couldn't think of anything to say and, in kind, she remained silent. Gan continued with an almost defeated smile on her lips. "If you can imagine, Kagome, you weren't supposed to know this."
The entire scene was surreal for Kagome; all this time, she'd regarded Gan as a male, spoken to her as one, thought of Gan as another masculine being in the gangs of Tokyo. But all this time, she'd been speaking to a woman in man's clothing, masquerading as the opposite sex for whatever reasons she had. It was strange and awkward as she huddled against the wall, cold, hurt, filthy and afraid. There was a heavy silence as Gan gauged Kagome's reaction.
"Why?" was all Kagome could choke through her tight throat.
Another humorless smile attacked Gan's lips and she gave a dry chuckle. "Why. I have my reasons, none of which include cross dressing fantasies or gender confusion. At first it was simple necessity, but it changed long ago. I came and...couldn't leave. Do you understand that?"
Kagome didn't answer right away and Gan sighed lightly, chest constricting even as she stood there. "I suppose you don't."
The rain began to fall, a few drops which grew into a steady pour from the angry, black heavens. Kagome's hair struck to her forehead as she stood stupidly against the alley wall, staring down at the three dead bodies before her and the girl leaning blankly against the wall across from her. Surreal.
"I'm at your mercy, Kagome."
Kagome hadn't thought about the situation in exactly these terms, though she knew now that it was true. Obviously, Gan had her reasons for pretending to be a boy, as she'd said, but having one person know her secret wasn't reason enough to tell the whole world. Why ever it was Gan was walking around in disguise, Kagome knew it was important and needed to continue.
"I won't tell," Kagome whispered, a sound which came out almost as a cry. She hadn't noticed tears mingling with the rain on her cheeks.
Gan glanced up, slightly surprised. "I know you won't tell, Kagome," she said quietly. "I never thought you would. But let it be known...I am at your mercy."
Kagome managed a slight nod before standing strong on her two feet, if not with a slight tremor in her legs. Smiling sadly, Gan reached down and managed to barely grip her hat before a lance of pain shot down her arms. She gasped and closed her eyes, waiting for the pain to subside. After watching this, Kagome took a deep breath and shuffled slowly across the alley, reaching down and taking Gan's hat in her own bruised hands before placing it beneath her chin. This done, she gathered Gan's golden tresses in her hands, folding them neatly up before placing the hat securely on the girl's head. In that one moment, Gan the Gun transformed back into his normal boy persona and Kagome almost gasped; the change was so radical it was almost unreal.
Gan gazed at Kagome with his violet eyes brimming with gratitude. "Thank you."
Kagome nodded and helped Gan to his feet once more, wary of his wounds. "Is...is Gan your real name?"
A smile played at Gan's lips. Indeed, a humorous question. "No, it's not...I used the first name which came to my tongue. I'm not sure why it was Gan."
The two began stumbling brokenly out of the alleyway, leaving the three bodies behind them. Kagome asked tentatively, "What's your real name, then?"
"Misaki," Gan replied curtly. "It never fit me, I don't think."
"Gan fits you well."
Smiling at the girl beside him, Gan replied quietly, "I think so too." The two were silent, expressing tacit thanks in both directions, before Gan continued, "We should get you back to Fang headquarters."
"And we need your arms looked at," Kagome reminded him, caring brown eyes wide with concern.
Gan only shook his head ruefully. "I'm sure Akago will want to do it; he likes to lecture me when I get hurt doing 'stupid Gan things,' as he calls them. If he does it when he's bandaging me, I can't talk back because he yanks the bandages if I do. He's a cunning fellow."
Kagome managed a weak smile. "Yeah, he is."
"My car is in the next alley over, but I'm afraid you'll have to drive; I don't believe I can," Gan admitted.
Kagome took the keys from his jacket pocket and said strongly, "I can do it."
This said, the two girls walked to Gan's blue mustang, getting slowly inside as they mulled over the recent events; this was the beginning of change and both knew it. What kind of change, they weren't sure, but it couldn't possibly be good. Little did they know that more change would take place in the near future. Dangerous change.
*!*!*!*
Sesshomaru sighed, exhaling a cloud of smoke into the humid sea air. The storm was pounding atop the warehouse roof, making quite a racket on the tin, as his mechanics continued working tirelessly away. It was slightly cooler due to the storm, which was perhaps the only plus to this situation; Sesshomaru disliked rain because it masked too many scents. He preferred to know where things were, where people where, what they were doing and so on. Rain stifled his favorite sense, his sense of smell, and it always set him in a bad mood.He'd spent the morning with Rin working on one of the Cobra's Toyota Celica's, which he'd spun out and crashed that very morning. He'd been driving on the highway when he hydroplaned and hit the concrete divider; the entire front end was trashed and bent, but Sesshomaru and Rin could fix it. While they didn't normally do mechanic work and stuck to their papers and filing, they were two of the most capable mechanics in the warehouse. Sesshomaru smiled slightly as he watched Rin bent over the hood of the Celica hammering out dents, wearing her Dickie's zip up mechanic overalls. She certainly looked cute just then.
A pair of headlights through the deluge outside caught Sesshomaru's attention and he watched as a familiar blue Mustang came rolling up to the gravel parking area. With his less than adequate dog vision, he couldn't quite make out the passenger, though he noticed something strange right off the bat. When the car shut off and the driver stepped out, Sesshomaru was able to recognize the person as Kagome, who was walking quite laboriously as she hurried to the passenger's side. She opened the door and helped the passenger to their feet, a passenger who proved to be none other than Gan the Gun. The way she supported Gan as they walked could mean nothing but bad news and Sesshomaru dropped his cigarette, crushing the flame beneath his boot.
"Inuyasha, get Akago up here!" Sesshomaru called urgently, jogging out to meet the two as they crossed the threshold into the warehouse.
Sesshomaru could now see that Kagome was covered in dirt and blood which trickled from puncture wounds on her upper arms. It didn't look too serious, if not painful, but Gan seemed to be quite injured; the eight puncture wounds on his arms, obviously inflicted by the same attacker, were pouring blood and Sesshomaru could see they'd gone all the way through his forearms.
"What happened?" he asked as he took over Kagome's position helping Gan inside; the gun weilder seemed to be quite dizzy from loss of blood.
Kagome replied in deep distress, "I was walking home from visiting Kikyo when I got attacked by three Spiders. They would've gotten a lot farther if Gan hadn't showed up; he took care of them."
"Sess...sesshomaru," Gan managed to get out blearily. He couldn't quite make out shapes as they walked, blurs of color distracting him every which way. He did remember his important message, however. "Clean up in an alley on...on...Morai street, near the i-intersection at Coral...three bod...bodies...clean up..."
Sesshomaru was able to make sense of Gan's mumbles and he called out to Ranbou, who was already hurrying in their direction to offer his assistance. "Ranbou, three bodies in an alley near Morai and Coral, take the elite," the Fang leader said curtly.
Ranbou nodded and called to Hakkaku and Ginta before withdrawing his motorcycle keys from his pocket. Shitora arrived just as he was preparing to leave and asked confusedly, "What's going on?"
"Clean up, I'll be back soon," he replied, placing a quick kiss on her forehead before hurrying out to the gravel parking lot, Hakkau and Ginta hot on his tail.
Inuyasha and Akago came hurrying to the front of the warehouse and, upon seeing Kagome standing there covered in mud and blood, Inuyasha felt the breath leave his body in a woosh. She looked so hurt and frightened, he couldn't imagine what had transpired, but he was already feeling guilty for not preventing it. "Kagome?" he said confusedly, hurriedly grabbing her shoulders as he looked her over for injuries.
Kagome gasped as one of his claws grazed her upper arm and Inuyasha furrowed his brow, noticing the claw holes for the first time. Fire enveloped his gaze and he barred his teeth, asking murderously, "Who did this?!"
"K-Kaijinbo..." Kagome stuttered, fearing the look in Inuyasha's eyes. "He's dead, Inuyasha, Gan got him," she said quickly, for the hanyou looked as though he were two seconds away from sprinting out of the warehouse.
Inuyasha's amber eyes held not only anger, but a look of hoplessness that nearly broke Kagome's heart. He looked so helpless and scared as he stood there, unsure of what to do. This confusion only last a moment before he drew her into a tight hug which she returned desperately; she felt so safe in his arms, it was as though not even the hounds of hell could drag her away. She clung to him as though he were her only link to life, relishing in his scent and wishing they might never part.
Meanwhile, Akago had taken one look at Gan and cursed, crimson eyes flashing with an angry sort of concern. "Damn," he muttered as he briefly examined the puncture wounds. "I'll take him Sesshomaru." This said, the albino demon hefted Gan easily onto his back, carrying him towards the lounge area with a quickness in his step.
Gan was feeling slightly stronger, just from the energy in Akago's presence. Akago could still see the blurry look in his second's eyes and he growled, "You're in a heaping lot of trouble, I hope you know that."
This only provoked a dry chuckle from Gan, who felt the dizziness overcome him once more. "I...bet...oh, shit..." and with this, the boy fell unconcious.
Akago grunted as the dead weight descended upon him, but he adjusted to it quickly and easily. "Not a good sign," he murmured to himself.
At the front of the warehouse, Sesshomaru was already starting to pace restlessly back and forth. Rin sighed as she rubbed Kagome's back soothingly, having interrupted her hug with Inuyasha a few minutes prior. The others were just becoming aware of the situation, as the demons could smell almost nothing in the rain, and people crowded around the grit and blood smeared Kagome.
"What the hell happened?" Shitora asked urgently.
"Yeah," a few echoed, obviously concerned as they exchanged worried glances.
Kagome replied quietly, "I was ambushed downtown by some Spiders."
The girls gasped and the boys cursed as yet more glances were exchanged. Inuyasha furrowed his brow momentarily and said, "Wait a second, you were alone downtown?"
Kagome was silent before she angled her gaze downward, hesitant to meet Inuyasha's eyes. "I missed the last bus," she all but whispered.
Miroku said pleadingly, "Kagome, next time, just call one of us, any of us would've gotten you!"
"How could you be so stupid?!" Inuyasha practically yelled, throwing his clawed hands akimbo as his amber eyes glittered indignantly. "You could've gotten raped or worse! You know you're not supposed to be alone downtown, or anywhere for that matter! We've told you that! I've told you that!"
The others murmured and voiced agreement as Ayame quickly put her arm around Kagome's shoulders, saying defensively, "Hey, she wasn't thinking 'gee, I might get attacked by perverts today.' She was only walking to Rin's house, weren't you? It's only, what, two miles away? Cut her some slack!"
"Aya, we can't cut slack," Kouga cut in sadly. "This is exactly why; they'll target you girls because they know it's a good way to get us angry and start trouble. They're going to try to use you and we don't want that, which is why we made this rule. Not to belittle you or some shit, just to protect you."
Though the honesty in Kouga's blue eyes made Ayame's hard demeanor soften at first, she soon remembered the irritation she felt for this entire situation. "But we're going to make mistakes, okay? I bet lot's of us wandered off at Race Wars before remembering. Besides, you can't be with us absolutely all the time!"
"Yes we can!" Kouga roared back, displaying a more passionate emotion than even Ranbou could remember him displaying. The wolf looked so desperate to make Ayame and the other girls understand, it was truly heartbreaking. "We can be with you all the time and we will be! It's the only way!"
Ayame stared, quietly shocked, back at Kouga, who was breathing quickly in his fervor. After a moment of true silence, Sesshomaru interrupted, "We should get you treated, Kagome, before those wounds get infected. Then we'll need to talk about this attack. Did you recognize any of them?"
"Kaijinbo," Kagome said at once, recalling the face of her vampirical attacker.
Sesshomaru sighed deeply; he'd feared as much. "This is going to be a difficult conflict," he said quietly, walking back with Rin, Inuyasha and Kagome as they approached the lounge area.
Little did Sesshomaru know that this conflict would arrive much quicker than he anticipated, within the next week to be exact. And it would indeed by difficult.
That was quick, huh? Much quicker than normal for me, as you're all painfully aware. I'll start work on the next chapter right away; we're getting close to all the meaty stuff now!
KOLU