InuYasha Fan Fiction ❯ That's Show Business ❯ A Dark Truth Revealed ( Chapter 17 )

Disclaimer: I don't own Inu Yasha or anybody else. Yeah. Like you even care whether or not I write a disclaimer. No little American teenage punk would write something as cool as Inu Yasha. Why even have disclaimers? Oh, yeah, because I don't want to "infringe on copyrights". Feh. If you can't tell, someone is acting sarcastic today.

chihiro-san: S'up y'all? How're you doin'? I'm alright, I guess. School's bummin' me….keeping me from WRITING….grumble grumble…You guys thought that I gave up on this, didn't you? No? Good. I'm just reluctant to ending it, so I figure that the less I write, the longer it'll take to end. IT SHALL NEVER END!!!!!! I WON'T LET IT!!!!

~*~*~*~

"What was that all about, Kagome?" Sango asked as her friend sat down. Kagome was a bit miffed to say the least. Then again, anyone would be upset if they were in her position. The man that she was in love with had called her ex-boyfriend (whom she also loved) a murderer. `Inu Yasha had to be lying. Kouga would never do something like that. He's too sweet and kind…Why did I ever break up with him? Oh, right, I remember: because Inu Yasha told me to! Hm. Evil little git. First, he "forces" me to break up with Kouga, and then he lies to me about him! My life is a badly written sitcom…" she mentally lamented as she stared blankly around the room. People filled the opera-like theater room in packs; only settling down after a few minutes of chatting. The interior was a strikingly soft crimson/gold combination. `Very impressive place they set up,' She thought in an off-hand way. The lights of the chandeliers began to slowly dim. The conversation dropped with the visibility until everything was as quiet as death at midnight. Sango gripped her friends arm and whispered into her ear.

"This is it!"

"I know," Kagome muttered back. The opening credits flashed onto the gigantic screen with an explosion of heavy, slit-your-wrist music. When the last acknowledgement faded from view, a rather handsome close-up of Inu Yasha replaced it. Kagome winced and dug her nails into her seat cushion. Sango noticed her tense up and nudged her softly.

"Hey you, what's wrong?" she whispered. Kagome scoured her brain for an excuse. She searched for anything other than the fact that she felt guilty about calling him a liar. He began to speak in a subtle English accent and she had her scapegoat.

"His accent. It's way off and I'd missed it in the filming." Sango knew that Kagome was covering for something (best friends always know, right?) so she didn't press the matter. `You can keep your secrets, Miss Higurashi, but if it's anything juicy I'll just ask Miroku about it later,' Sango thought before turning back to the movie.

They had gotten through most of the movie without many worries. Here and there Sango mumbled about "not enough foundation" or "too much eyeliner", but that was it. Kagome, on the other hand, wasn't paying attention to the movie at all. She hadn't taken her mind off of Kouga and Inu Yasha for two seconds, but when the movie came to a close, something wrenched Kagome out of the clouds into the present. It was the scene they shot when the accident took place. Her eyes grew as Inu Yasha ran to center stage.

"Tishina! Wait!" He pleaded. When he skidded to a halt just a few meters from the camera, he panted and looked around the "field" wildly for Tishina, Kikyo's character.

"TISHINA!" he howled. A small, metallic sound came from behind the on-screen Inu Yasha, causing him to stop acting and stare at the camera. `Oh shit,' Kagome thought. `They forgot to delete the accident in editing! Oh my God, this is terrible!' Naraku was thinking the same thing. He leapt out of his seat and bounded out of the theater in an attempt to stop the camera man before the audience saw his mistake. Kagome followed her boss with her eyes until she couldn't take it anymore. She had to see what had happened again. She was so frightened when it disaster struck that she threw her hands over her eyes. This time it was different. This time she knew that no one would be hurt and she wanted to see from another point of view. Sometimes that's the only way to know what really went on.

"Hold it, guys. Keep rolling; this'll be just a second." Inu Yasha said. Many people in the audience murmured complaints. This was very unprofessional and completely unexpected. The actor walked over to where the metallic sound was made, bent double, and picked up the screw that had fallen.

"What the-?" Everyone who was on the set that day held their breath. They knew what was about to happen, but it was still a bit frightening for them. The entire lighting structure groaned, and with a loud crack, fell from the ceiling and landed exactly where Inu Yasha had been standing just seconds before. Glass shattered and sparks flew. Many women screamed in fright (and so did a few men). As people leapt back, someone knocked over the camera. The picture fazed in and out for a second as it went flying, but when it landed on the ground it got a perfect shot of where the lighting structure had been hanging. As the picture crept into focus, Kagome screamed. There, in the rafters, crouched on one of the wooden supports, was Kouga. And he was holding a screwdriver. Everyone who knew Kouga yelled various strings of sentences and leapt from their seats. No one could believe it, save for one dialect coach. `Inu Yasha wasn't lying…Oh my Godd-y God God…Kouga really tried to kill him. TWICE! Oh hell…oh God…Oh-oh-ungh,' Kagome thought as she stood, clutching her stomach. Sango (who was on her feet as well) snatched up Kagome's wrist and yanked her out of the theater and into the similarly decorated foyer. Both girls were shaking from tip to tail with shock.

"Oh gods, Kagome," Sango breathed. "Did you know that Kouga would…?"

"Of course not! I didn't have a clue that he would do anything to hurt Inu Yasha! You know that!" A look of dawning comprehension fell on Sango's face.

"Where is Inu Yasha, anyway? I didn't see him in the theater? D'you think that Kouga found him and `finished the job'?"

"No," she said flatly.

"Are you sure?"

"Yes."

"How can you be so sure?"

"Because…" Kagome hesitated. It was hard enough to imagine that her loving ex tried to kill someone twice, but it was excruciating to think about the fight with Inu Yasha and how he'd been right all along. "I know, for a fact, that Inu Yasha isn't dead right now because he was attacked by Kouga earlier today and turned him in to the police." Sango gasped in fright and clutched Kagome's arm.

"Oh my God, Kagome! Inu Yasha was almost killed and you didn't tell anyone?! What's wrong with you?!"

"I thought that he was lying! Okay?! There! I said it. We were fighting and I just couldn't bear to think of Kouga as a killer, so I immediately assumed that Inu Yasha was a liar! Besides, it's a bit easier to think of Inu Yasha as a liar than Kouga as a murderer, don't you think?"

"Yeah, okay, I see where you're coming from, but we have to find Inu Yasha right NOW. He could be in serious trouble!" Kagome wondered for a minute as to where an almost assassinated movie star would hang out on the night of her premier. When nothing came to mind, she shrugged her shoulders. The door next to them burst open as hundreds of disgruntled people trudged out of the theater. Many had sour expressions, but a good number of them were more scared than anything. A familiar face pranced up to them as they searched through the crowd.

"Did you guys just see that?!" Miroku panted, bending over and clasping his knees in his hands.

"Why are you so out of breath?" Sango asked.

"I had to go find Naraku and calm him down. He was about ready to strangle Kouga and only give the police his mangled body. Mon Capitaine didn't want his `little billion-dollar star' to be injured. Plus, he figured that he could make a fortune in law suits."

"Ah. Why am I not surprised?" she sighed in a half-sarcastic tone.

"Come on, you guys! Inu Yasha could be in serious trouble and we're just standing around, wasting time!" Kagome whined.

"Why don't I call him and see if he's all right?" Miroku suggested. Kagome paused, going completely calm, until she exploded with anger.

"YOU MEAN WE COULD HAVE JUST RUNG HIM ON YOUR CELL PHONE, BUT INSTEAD WE DECIDED TO STAND HERE LIKE WORRYING LOONS?!?!!? WHY DIDN'T YOU TELL US ABOUT YOUR PHONE EARLIER?!" She ignored the stunned people around her and focused more on controlling her anger. Miroku blinked at her a few dozen times in a rather bored way before answering.

"You never asked me if I had a cell phone," he stated calmly.

"EVERYONE IN HOLLYWOOD HAS A CELL PHONE!" she shrieked.

"Then why bother yelling? If everyone in Hollywood has a cell phone, then you could just whip out yours and call up Inu Yasha yourself." Kagome flushed a violent shade of scarlet and yanked the mobile phone out of the lining of his coat.

"You know that Sango and I are the only ones on the planet without phones. Stop rubbing it in," she grumbled as she flipped through Miroku's phonebook options viciously. "Holy frick, how many girls' numbers do you have in here?! I can't even FIND Inu Yasha's! Oh, wait. I found it. Why is your best friend's number at the end of your list?"

"Because his was the first one I entered. Are you going to call or not?" Kagome stared at the receiver for a minute or so before reluctantly pressing `send'. She wanted to know if he was okay, but calling him was a touch nerve wracking. As soon as it started to dial, she tossed the phone to Sango.

"Here. I just can't-well, if I-I mean, I…" she stumbled through the corridors of her empty excuses file in search of a good one, but none came to mind. Sango smiled at her and nodded in a way that said `I understand completely'. She perked up a bit and smiled.

"Hello, Inu Yasha?"

"Yeah, who else would it be?"

"Oh, don't be such a wise-ass," Sango snapped. Kagome made a growling-type noise in the back of her throat to inform her friend that it was time to shut up. Sango dully noted Kagome's throaty annoyance and went straight to the heart of the matter. "Where are you?"

"Wouldn't you like to know?" he said smoothly.

"Yes, I would. Tell me."

"This is Sango, yeah?"

"Yeah…"

"Then that'd be a `no'."

"Oh for the love of-LOOK! Here's Kagome!" She thrust the phone at Kagome who, despite her high-pitched complaints, accepted it.

"Um, hi," she mumbled. Inu Yasha clearly didn't expect Sango to actually hand the phone to Kagome, because as soon as she spoke he dropped his in surprise.

"Ah shit…come here you…Kagome?! Wha-I don't-why do you want to know where I am?" She took a sharp breath and decided to play with him a bit.

"If I told you then I'd have to kill you," she said coyly. She felt bad about fighting with him, but he was rude to Sango. Being rude to one's friend deserves a bit of payback.

"Oh, well if THAT'S not the biggest cliché I've ever heard."

"Just dispense with the attitude and tell me where you are."

"Where do you think? I'm sitting here, doing nothing, with nobody, at an after party for a movie that I starred in and didn't even go see."

"So you're at the Water Gardens Park in uptown L.A.?"

"Roger, doll face," he yawned.

"See you soon," she sighed.

"What do you mean `see-*click*" Kagome hung up on him. `Let him wonder…' she thought, smiling to herself.

~*~*~*~

"What do you mean `see-*click*." Inu Yasha took the phone from his ear and glared at it. He fingered it for a minute or two. If he crushed it now then he'd just have to buy another one later. Deciding that anger was just too much to have pent up right now, he chucked the silver mobile into one of the many glowing fountains. `Stupid girl. Stupid, STUPID girl…I wonder when she'll be here?' he thought. The night air played with his hair, willing him to take a bit of a stroll. It wasn't that bad of an idea, so he hauled himself up from out of his chair and began to walk.

The Water Gardens Park was even more beautiful than normal. The usually green, flowered, fountain-ed acreage was bursting with outdoor lights and various paper lanterns. Everything had a soft creamy glow to it. The vast, looming trees seemed less formidable with tinkling rays of light in them, and the fountains seemed cheerier than normal. In the center of the park was a replica of the Trevi Fountain in Rome. It might have been a copy of the glorious marble wonder, but that didn't mean that it was any less beautiful. The pool shone and shimmered as the water lights struck the thousands of golden tiles at the bottom. Placed nicely in front of the fountain was a stage, where, in front of that, were many tables. They were graced with silken tablecloths of pearly white. The partiers sat on soft cushions, smiling and talking gently to one another. Everyone seemed to be in a trance, but that could be from a number of things. It could have been that the springtime air was intoxicating. It could have been the music, given by the lovely Norah Jones on a Baby Grand Piano. Or it could have been the wine. Inu Yasha chuckled to himself as he approached the fountain. `Definitely the wine,' he thought.

The soft buzz of conversation and the softer sound of Norah singing entwined, causing him to fall into the same trance that he had criticized. The sound of the piano being played was enticing. A suddenly strong urge to leap up onstage and run his fingers over the ivory fell upon him, but he resisted. He couldn't play; shouldn't play. No one wanted to hear him and he didn't want to be heard. But when Norah stepped off for an intermission the feeling grew. It was almost painful. He had to go up there. `No. I can't. I'll be in deep trouble if I…if I…' All that it took was a gentle wind from the south to get him to his feet. Before he knew it, he was seated behind the gorgeous white instrument. The temptation slowly seeped from him, but the urge to play remained. Slowly, he lifted his trembling hands and placed them precariously on the ivory blocks. A half-smile floated onto his face. `Let's warm up a bit.'

Claire De Lune reverberated from inside the piano and bubbled out into the enclosure. It was soft, beautiful, and magical for the hanyou and for its listeners. He stroked the keys as tenderly as one would a kitten. This was heaven on earth for him. Or, as close to heaven as he expected it to be. Only one thing could make it perfect and, thankfully, Miss Perfect waltzed up onto the stage just as he finished the masterpiece. He placed his hands calmly in his lap as she joined him on the piano bench. He waited for her to speak, but she said nothing. She wanted the ball in his court, but he didn't even know what the game was.

"Hello, Kagome," he whispered, avoiding the microphone that was hidden in the piano. Microphones were the only way for the whole park to hear his beautiful music. Well, Miss Jones' music. Technically he'd stolen her piano. Kagome unintentionally fluttered her sky blue eyes at him, bringing a lump to his throat.

"Hi."

"Listen…I'm really sorry that I-"

"OhmyGodIhadnoideathatKougawasakillercanyoueverforgiveme?" she exhaled. He blinked for a moment, obviously dumbfounded that a human being could say so much in one breath.

"Run that by me again," he said.

"I had no idea that Kouga would ever do something like that! I'm so sorry, can you ever forgive me?" His smile widened at the anxiousness in her voice. Instead of answering, he turned back to the piano and began to play a song. His song. Kagome's breath caught sharply in her chest. `He's playing it for me. Finally. After begging and pleading him to…why now? What's in his mind?' His eyes almost closed as he fingered the river of white and black. This was his sanctuary. His Eden. His heaven. This was ecstasy in its purest, rawest form for him, and he was sharing it with someone that he wanted to share life itself with. `But she doesn't need to know that,' a small voice in the back of his head muttered. `Yes she does. She deserves to know,' piped up a stronger voice. `No, she doesn't! What will telling her how you feel accomplish?' `A lot more than we have right now!' `Well, what if she turns you down?' `Hey, at least she'll know. That's the main thing.' `Moron. You're not good enough for her. She'll never love you like you love her.' `There's only one way to find out.' His fingers stumbled unexpectedly. Kagome jumped ever so slightly in her seat. She had been in a trance too. Inu Yasha sighed and turned to her on the bench.

"Why did you stop? It was so beautiful."

"Listen, Kagome, I-"
"Kagome! Inu Yasha! There you two are!" Shippo bounded up to the stage with Sango and Miroku in his wake. They were smiling like fools in a way that made it seem that they knew what was about to happen. Inu Yasha rolled his eyes and hopped to his feet.

"Let's go somewhere else. I'm feeling a bit CROWDED." He barked the last word and sent their audience a death glare. They, in turn, sent him an offended look. Either way, when he and Kagome retreated to a smaller lighted fountain further into the park, they were followed. He finally accepted that they wouldn't have a lick of peace from their friends, and just decided to tell her then and there.

"Kagome, we need to talk."

"Obviously. I didn't expect us to do anything else, seeing as you dragged me half-way across the park. What is it?" The happy, bubbly tone in her voice made his knees quake. This was going to be so hard, and yet… `Oh, for the love of God! Get it together, man! They're just three tiny little words. You've said them a bajillion times on the silver screen, you've said them a kazillion more times in the unused takes, so WHY IS IT SO HARD TO SAY THEM NOW?!' Then it came to him. Acting! That was his way out. His loophole. He could just conjure up some acting technique and he'd survive. It wasn't an act that he loved her, but telling her that he did was another thing.

"Kagome, we've known each other for a considerable amount of time, haven't we?" She shifted nervously. She wanted to tell him so bad, but the diplomacy act he was pulling was making it difficult.

"Inu Yasha?"

"So I would say that two peoples in our position might consider, well, a merger, as it were."

"Inu Yasha…"

"Yes, a merger of our professions and our-"

"INU YASHA!"

"What?"

"I love you." Space and time froze instantaneously. It was as if some unknown force had reached its powerful hands down and stopped the earth's rotation. Miroku, Sango, and Shippo gaped from the sidelines, unnoticed by the half-demon. No real surprise there. By then he didn't even notice if he was breathing or not. Shock soon faded to denial as he shook his silvery head.

"No you don't." Kagome balked. `What in the..? What's he saying?! I DO LOVE HIM!! I DO!!'

"Yes, I do."

"No, you don't."

"I do."

"You don't." This was getting more frustrating by the minute for both of them. She yanked on her hair and growled.

"Listen! I DO! Okay?! Is that so hard to believe?!"

"Yeah, actually it is!"

"And why is that?!"

"Because I'm virtually the last person on earth that you would ever want to be with."

"Example..?" She asked, forcing a sigh out of him. `Great, now I have to point out all of my worst traits to get her to love me! This is not working…"

"You want me to give you examples of why I'm a terrible match for you?"

"Yes, and could you get on with it? Unless they're really bad I don't want my evening to be a waste." Inu Yasha felt his fists ball up, but pushed down his anger. After searching for faults he had finally found a suitable amount that would drive her away.

"I'm terrible, horrible," Inu Yasha began.

"Sweet, considerate," Kagome continued.

"Intolerable, moronic,"

"Irresistible, romantic,"

"Chauvinistic!"

"Non-materialistic!" He couldn't believe it. She was countering everything that he threw at her, and now she was laughing! Kagome's hands were clasped tightly over her mouth as she shook silently. Tears of mirth filled her eyes as she fought to contain herself. A low growl found its way into his throat as he continued.

"An inescapable,"

"An undeniable,"

"Jerk!" they both yelled. Kagome looked fit to burst with laughter as Inu Yasha flushed a deeper shade of red.

"Why won't you just buy a vowel?! I'm horrible for you!" He barked.

"Why won't you just buy the ring?! I was meant for you!" She giggled.

"I'm stupid and selfish!"

"Nobody's perfect."

"Get over me!"

"Go out with me!"
"WHY WON'T YOU LISTEN!?" they screamed. A stillness hung over the onlookers as the two panted in frustration. The truth was out, the song was sung, and yet neither seemed to grasp the situation. They were too busy fighting to realize that they were in love. Sad, in a way. Suddenly, the voice of reason tugged on Inu Yasha's coat, and it was four feet high.

"Psst! Inu Yasha!" Shippo hissed.

"What?!" the hanyou snapped, bending down to look at the kit straight in the eyes.

"I think that you're supposed to kiss her now." He pointed to Kagome, who grinned sheepishly. Inu Yasha was tempted to slap the stupid out of the young one, but a stronger temptation overcame the first. He straightened up and waltzed over to Kagome casually, despite the fact that all eyes were on them. He took her two hands in his and nodded back to Shippo.

"He says that I should kiss you now."

"He could be a great screenwriter someday," Kagome murmured. They both closed their eyes and leaned in, but instead of their lips pressing against each other's, they were pressed against Miroku's hand.

"What's the big idea?!" Inu Yasha yipped, pulling away from Kagome.

"You owe me fifty bucks."

"WHAT?! You stopped me for THAT?!"

"I wasn't talking to you." Miroku turned to Kagome, who was busy rifling through her purse. She pulled out a fifty and handed it to the smiling producer.

"There. Happy?" He bowed once to her and bounded away with his prize. She shook her head and turned back to Inu Yasha, placing her arms precariously around his shoulders.

"What was that all about?" the actor asked in a quiet voice.

"We made a bet."

"About what?" The gap between their faces began to grow smaller and smaller. The last thing that Kagome saw was the golden glow of his eyes as she said:

"I bet that there were no such things as happy endings."

~*~*~*~

chihiro-san: Guess what you guys? THAT WAS THE END!!!!! Yup, yup, yup! But hold onto your horses! That's not the "official" end. That's right, there's going to be an EPILOUGE! Haha. Oh, and I'd like to thank Queen Klu for her outstanding help on this chapter. Let's hear it for writer's block! YAY! No, really. She did a great job with coaxing me out of my Corner of Shadows and leading me to the Computer Room of Redemption. Oh, and because this was "the last chappie" I made it extra long, just because I love you all. Until next time!