InuYasha Fan Fiction ❯ Shades of Gray ❯ Godzilla ( Chapter 36 )

~<>~ Shades of Gray ~<>~

 

~<>~ Chapter 36~<>~ Godzilla

 

 

Throwing her arms over her head, Rin mentally prepared herself for the next hour and ten minute lecture about the wonders of English syntax, something she would never grasp. With a sigh, the lithe girl dropped into her chair and cracked her neck to each side. Flipping her hair over her shoulder, she pulled her book from her backpack and eyed the door hopefully. It was foolish as she had been told many times over but she still was holding onto that small strand of hope. After all, it was the human condition; who was it, she wondered, that said hoping against hope was such an enduring human trait? She giggled at the outlandish answer. But so far, at least this year, it had worked well for her. She had hoped against hope for Sesshoumaru to return to her and someone had answered her prayers. She had prayed for her son to grow to know his father and now he did. Maybe that was why she still tried where it seemed everyone else had given up. For her, it held relevance.

 

Speaking of… she grunted as InuYasha passed by her, ruffling her hair before dropping into his seat next to her. Offering him an annoyed glower, she attempted to pat down the messed up pony tail. “Thanks,” she joked as she stuck out her tongue.

 

InuYasha winked and dropped his bag nosily to the ground. “So how's it hangin'?”

“A little to the left today,” she replied with a completely dumbfounded glower etched on her face, “but thanks for asking.” Rolling her eyes, she busied herself with lining up her highlighters on her desk.

 

“Leave it to my brother to be crooked,” InuYasha mused, “always thought he would be gay. Sorry it came to that but you can't say I didn't warn you. There's something about a male being able to quote Shakespeare that screams homosexual.”

 

Rin sighed heavily. “He isn't gay, as I have assured you in the past.” Before he could respond, she snapped, “trust me, I'm positive. And there is nothing wrong with knowing Shakespeare; it can make a girl swoon.” She made a face that ended the debate quickly.

 

InuYasha slouched back in his chair and grumbled, “'Jiro agrees with me.”

 

“Jiro's drunk twenty five hours out of the day. What point are you making?”

 

“There's only…”

 

“I know,” she ground out.

 

“I'm just sayin'.”

 

Rin nearly snapped her pen in half. “Well don't,” she bit back.

 

InuYasha stared at Rin with his eyebrows drawn together done up with a tight frown. “You're quite the little bitch when you don't get any; I just want you to know.”

 

Rin rolled her eyes and stared deadpanned at her friend. “My sex life is not on display right now, InuYasha. Come by my place about ten tonight and you'll see how much I get.”

 

“First off, thanks but no thanks. That's my brother and that's gross. I really don't want to confirm that I have a larger cock than he does.” He held his hands out at exaggerated proportions. With a nasty smirk that could have made weaker girls melt at the knees, he crooned, “I could split you in two.”

 

Rin just stared, slightly horrified. “You would be walking with a limp if your cock was that big. It's like, can I get a table for three; me, my ego and my cock?” Rin giggled for a minute before noticing that InuYasha's attention had quickly been filtered elsewhere.

 

“Talk about dead sex lives,” InuYasha muttered before sitting a little bit straighter in his chair. His eyes darkened as he regarded the door, his mood quickly souring.

 

Rin bit her lip as the raven haired girl entered the room. Her eyes followed Kagome from the door to the front of their chairs. She knew how this was going to go, she knew the bitch-fit InuYasha would throw after class, but it still didn't deter her. Even Sesshoumaru was telling her to drop it at this point, but she couldn't. The nights of staying up giggling like high school students was too fresh in her memory to simply let it fade to black. She had never had a friend as close as Kagome, and though it was only a few weeks of the tight bond, she felt horribly betrayed by the girl's sudden silence.

 

“Hey, Kagome,” Rin called out weakly as the girl passed her desk. She couldn't help how meek she sounded, how the defeat in her voice rang true. It was the same scene every Tuesday and Friday. Kagome breezed right by them without acknowledging her words or even her presence. Focusing dead ahead, the Higurashi girl ignored them for the sixth week in a row.

 

“Fuckin' bitch,” Rin heard muttered spitefully from her right. Turning slowly, she locked eyes with InuYasha. She wasn't sure what hurt the most; watching the first friend she had in nearly three years ignore her day in and out without so much as a reason why or watching InuYasha slowly destroy himself over it. Though it was heart breaking for Rin to lose the friend, she could only imagine how it was slowly tearing InuYasha to pieces. In brief snippets of conversations with Kagejiro and Miroku over the past month and a half, Rin had learned how much more InuYasha was binge drinking, how he would disappear nearly every weekend. He was on a path to self-destruct, just like Kagome was.

 

Rin noticed the changes in Kagome as well, and could only wish that she was there for her. Kagome had lost nearly ten pounds in the last six weeks, making her dangerously skinny. She seemed so lethargic, so dead; she was like a walking corpse. She didn't speak in class anymore, she never went to lunch, and Rin never saw her smile. It was as if she had died on D-day, but her body didn't know it. D-day…that's what Miroku had called it, and she couldn't agree more.

 

Staring at InuYasha, she could just about feel his pain. Sure, he could dress it up with snide comments and vulgar remarks but it was raw pain nevertheless. “Give her time, Yash,” Rin repeated for the second time that day. “Anger is funny thing and vengeance more so. She's just really pissed and you have to let her cool off.”

 

InuYasha growled under his breath. “It's been six fucking weeks Rin, what the fuck else does she need? A whole God damned vacation? It's what she's gonna fuckin' get. Fuck her, I don't know why you still try.” Slouching in his seat, the hanyou crossed his arms.

 

Rin frowned. “For the same reason I know you hope she'll come around. You haven't given up, regardless of your words. Don't try that bull with me.”

 

“Fuck that,” InuYasha clipped, “she wants to not exist, I can go back to that.”

 

Rin rolled her eyes. “No, you can't.”

 

“You're wasting your breath, Rin, trying to convince me that I still have feelings for her.” Glowering to the one side of the class room, InuYasha eyed the being of his contempt. Fuck Rin for prying open that gaping wound. Everyone had their own comments to add about him and Kagome: give it time and she'll come back to you, if you love it, let it go and when it comes back it's yours forever, she'll forgive you…and the list just kept building. Kagejiro was the only mother fucker who was willing to tell it to him straight; `she'll probably never forgive you, and its better that way.' He hated `Jiro for it, but at the end of the day, it was the mantra he recited. He wouldn't have to worry about death claming her life when he lived on forever, she wouldn't cry over half-breed children not being accepted. She wouldn't have to put up with him not aging while she withered away. She had escaped, leaving him in hell.

 

She had moved on, so it seemed. The pain he felt in just seeing her seemed null and void in her frigid demeanor. There was never a stray glance, not even one fucking twitch, in his direction; there were simply artic winds of her aura that ravaged his soul. “I wish it was that simple,” he muttered, watching her dive into the lecture.

 

“Jesus Christ, Yash…you're so full of shit your eyes are brown!”

 

InuYasha grumbled non-compliantly. He hated the knowledge that they were back at square one. But it wasn't square one of the fun game. No, this was square one of death row. He had returned from the visit with his father hopeful, to say the least. He had gotten everything off his chest; he had cleaned the slate to start his relationship with Kagome. He had run from his apartment to campus to find her, to apologize and beg her to understand; he was ready to plead if need be. All he was greeted with was an empty dorm room and a disconnected cell-phone number. When he approached Sango for her home address she had turned him away while blaming him for Kagome's screwed up logic. Apparently, in the six weeks of silence, she had bound Rin and Sango to the same fate he suffered. Sango was still very non-compliant when it came to asking how to get in touch with Kagome but he could see it in her eyes as well…Kagome had just about said `fuck it' to all the friends she knew.

 

Listening to the teacher drone on about the archaic dialects in Beowulf, InuYasha found himself thinking about everything that had happened. It seemed like yesterday he was adamantly worried about Bankotsu showing up on campus to hurt her, to drag Kagome back to his dungeon in New York City and torture her. He had worried about her safety and her mental state; he worried about how to tell Kikyo that he had feelings for someone else and how to explain his choices to his father. But he had worried in vain; everything had blown up in his face. Bankotsu had vanished off the map, as far as he was concerned, Kikyo and Kagome were both pointedly ignoring him, even though he only would see Kikyo in passing on campus. His father accepted his rejection to the family business and had promptly cut off all funding to InuYasha's education. And InuYahsa had gotten a `fuck you very much' in return for all of it. His considered his heart ripped out and stepped on as the result of all of the bullshit. Thankfully, Kagejiro had stepped in to make sure his brother was well taken care of. Hell, at the end of the semester, InuYasha and Miroku were going to move into a townhouse down the block from the campus.

 

But there was no Kagome, and that made life nearly insufferable. For five years, he had pretended to hate her because he was afraid. Then he dared to hope and it was all smashed right before his eyes.

 

InuYasha was pulled back to reality as Rin prodded his shoulder.

 

“Come on,” Rin hissed as she packed up her school bag.

 

Glancing around the room, he was startled to find it nearly empty. He had zoned out through the entire lecture. With a deep grunt, he worked his way to his feet. “Shit,” he muttered. He had failed the midterm because he hadn't paid any attention to the material for the first half of the semester, when he was worrying about Kagome and their `problems'. Now he was failing for the exact same reason, minus him actually getting anything out of it.

 

Kagome breezed by the duo without a word, her attention steadfast on the door.

 

Rage boiled beneath InuYasha's skin. “I'm so sick of her self righteousness. She really thinks…” with a groan, he slammed his hand down on the desk. He was sick of it all.

 

“Yash, wait!” Rin ran to the door only to hear his trail of vulgarity. Clutching her hand to her chest, she prayed it wasn't about to get as ugly as she thought it was.

 

“Yo bitch! Wait the fuck up,” InuYasha hollered as he strode down the hallway. Watching Kagome's back like a hawk, he continued his vulgar insults. “Get the dick out of your ear so you can hear me! Kagome, you fuckin' bitch, can't you for once acknowledge someone beneath you?” He knew how hurtful the words coming out of his mouth could be but he really couldn't care. She had ripped the very fabric of life out from under his feet, forcing him to accommodate while she strutted around like there wasn't a God damned thing wrong. He wanted to see her hurt; he wanted her to hurt as much as he did damnit.

 

Kagome had known it would come to this eventually; every day she walked by as if he didn't exist. It had been hard at first, and she cried the entire way home from school. Just seeing his face was enough to make her second guess her directive but she couldn't…wouldn't…dare dabble back into that life. As far as Kagome was concerned, that part of her life was over. InuYasha Taisho was the dumb jock that fucked up her relationship with Kikyo and nearly got her killed by consorting with Oberon. He had pretended to be her knight in shining armor to prove her disloyalty to Bankotsu. And she fell for his trap. She wondered if he knew how much it destroyed her. Did he know how everyday she wondered what he was doing, regardless of how much she hated him? Did he know how she would wish, at the darkest hour of the night, to just feel his hands on her one more time? She didn't care if it was the callous hands that had forcibly molested her in the alley all those weeks ago or the soft and gentle touch he had exhibited in the morning, waking her from her sleep. She just wanted to feel his presence with her…to know that a piece of her was still on his mind. But when the sun rose, those feelings were packed away with epoxy and ductape. She couldn't spend her days longing for the man who nearly single handedly destroyed her.

 

She could hear him yelling in her wake, demanding her to stop and acknowledge his presence. Kagome grit her teeth in frustration; what did it matter? Why was he still hawking her? Bankotsu had disappeared from her life, why hadn't he taken his lackey with him? She didn't want to talk to InuYasha; he had already hurt her enough. And…though she would never acknowledge it, she didn't want to be subjected to the temptation to listen to his reasoning.

 

Kagome quickened her pace while keeping her face down, trying to melt through the crowd like a thin layer of smoke. Rounding the corner at break neck speeds, she crashed directly into the one person she didn't mind seeing.

 

Masculine hands came to her shoulders, steadying her before Kagome could topple over on impact. “Careful,” his voice purred out with all due sexiness. A smirk worked its way onto his ruby lips as his hand brushed over her chin sensuously. “How do we always end up meeting this way Kagome?”

 

Kagome glanced up into his ruby red eyes and shivered before she could stop herself. Naraku was a lot of things; sexy, gorgeous and a pure God…but there was also something else, something that lay beneath the surface that always sent a cold shiver up Kagome's back. Holding his hand on her shoulder for a moment, she offered him a brief smile. “Thank you, Naraku.” Finding herself captured in his gaze, she nearly forgot about the belligerent jerk behind her. “I…don't… that is, I was just…” Hearing InuYasha's vulgarities getting closer, she rolled her eyes. “Maybe now isn't the greatest of times,” she muttered as she looked behind her.

 

Naraku's eyes slipped from hers to lock onto InuYasha and Kagome could just about hear the fuse be lit between the two. Countdown in three…two…

 

“Is he bothering you?” Naraku's voice was as venomous as she had ever heard it. The complete hatred in his tone made her balk. “Do you want me to handle this?”

 

InuYasha rounded the corner in time to see Naraku all but fondle Kagome directly before him. He might of well have been feeling her up, as far as InuYasha was concerned; seeing Naraku's hands on Kagome set off a rage like no other inside of the hanyou. Sucking in a deep breath, he tried to ignore the overwhelming jealousy that surged through his blood. “Handle me? You best stop handling her right now, that I can warn you.” InuYasha approached the two quickly, his hands balled into white-knuckled fists. “I got a fuckin' bone to pick with her, Itogowa. You can go away now, this shit don't involve you.”

 

Naraku looked down at Kagome, his fists at the ready. Kagome had no doubt that if she said the right word Naraku would attack InuYasha right in the middle of the hallway. “Do you want to talk to him?” The disdain in his words was impossible to miss.

 

Kagome swallowed thickly and stared into Naraku's eyes. She hated the way her gut wrenched around every time she had to do this. “Talk to who?” Week six had begun; no communication, no acknowledgement, nothing. As far as she was concerned, InuYasha Taisho didn't exist.

 

Naraku smirked and offered Kagome his arm. “In that case, would you accompany me to lunch?”

 

Kagome smiled pleasantly and linked arms with the demon, blinding herself to the crestfallen look on InuYasha's face.

 

They were long gone before InuYasha would recognize the hand wrapped around his bicep or the younger girl's head resting on his shoulder. Another piece ripped off and stomped on, what little was left of his heart was bleeding profusely. This time she had added poison with her actions. His mouth was completely dry, the burn in his blood demanding retribution. Digging his nails into his palm, he ripped himself away from Rin's grasp.

 

“InuYasha…” she called out forlorn, reading his body language before his brain could interpret the anger.

 

“I'm going home,” he called out in a very monotone nature. With a sigh, all of the rage and hatred drained from his body; all of the pent up frustration and anger simply faded away and left him barren, exposed. He simply felt dead.

 

“Yash!” Rin raced forward and grabbed his hand. “Come on, have lunch with Miro' and me. Forget her, all right, just come out with friends.” This InuYasha scared the hell out of her; she would rather him put his fist through the wall than to just walk away in this state.

 

InuYasha gently removed his hand from hers. “I'll see ya,” he said sullenly.

 

Rin watched with tears in her eyes as InuYasha left the building. Turning back, she noticed his backpack remained on the floor where he had dropped it upon seeing Naraku with his hands on Kagome. He had forgotten everything.

 

 

*X*X*X*X*X*X*XX*X*X*X*X*X*X*X*X*X*X*X*

 

 

Sliding into the lunch table, Rin dropped her bag and InuYasha's noisily to the ground and crossed her arms over her chest. She slid back into her chair, anger swirling through her gray eyes. Avoiding Miroku's questioning gaze, she honed her sights in on Kagome and Naraku who sat adjacent across the lunch room from the duo. They actually had the audacity to show up in the commons and that astounded Rin. If glares could kill, they would have been incinerated. Kagome was laughing and touching Naraku's arm as if nothing had transpired, as if it were easy for her to rip out the heart of the guy she had confided in Rin that she loved. That earned her points in Rin's black book. The girl was living up to the reputation of her cousin quickly and that did not sit well with Rin. It only took Miroku a moment to catch on, and nearly as fast for his mood to sour.

 

            ;     “I don't get that,” he commented, tapping a French fry in the girl's direction. “I mean, seriously, I get that she's pissed and what not at Yash, but Naraku? Really? Is it a spite thing, just to spit in Yash's face?”

 

            ;     Rin muttered under her breath and shrugged indifferently. “She thinks she has it all figured out. She thinks he betrayed her to Bankotsu and was against her the entire time.”

 

            ;     “That's because she's stupid,” Miroku jabbed, his eyes narrowing to slits. “I don't get why she won't listen to reason.” Glancing around, Miroku raised an eyebrow, “speaking of our faithful friend, where is the poor bastard?”

 

            ;     Rin ripped her attention back to Miroku. “It's because she doesn't want to hear it. I told you, she has everything sitting pretty in her mind.” With a growl that was very Inu-youkai like, she rationed; “I'll give you two guesses as to who ruined his day. First guess doesn't count.”

 

            ;     With a guttural sigh, Miroku shoved his hands behind his head. The smirk that resided on his face was without mirth. “I really hope she was a good fuck.” Noticing the look of disgust cross Rin's face, he quickly finished, “because he's suffering way too much for one chick. Don't get me wrong, Sango's great and all but if she was to call me out on being a scum bag, slap the crap out of me in front of my friends, after I just screwed up my life royally so I could be with her…I wouldn't want to see that bitch again. Ever.” Chewing on the French fry that he wielded to accent his points, he continued to rant, “I told him I'd set her straight but he doesn't want anyone interfering. It's stupid, that's what it is. A whole bucket load of stupid. If I were him…” shaking his head, he finished his fry, “man, she's be in for a verbal raping.”

 

            ;     Rin sighed sadly. “I wish I could help you out, Miro, and I agree that talking sense into her is the best course of action but if Yash wants us hands off, who are we to argue?” She let her sight drift back over to the two on the other side of the cafeteria and apparently, in their own little world. “As much as I appreciate what a friend she was, I would not oppose a strong verbal bombardment, that's for sure.”

 

            ;     Miroku sniffed indignantly. “Kagejiro would walk over to that table and demand to know what kind of whore she was. First she's screwing her cousin's boyfriend for kicks, then when he gives it all up to be with her, she dumps him on the side of the road. Now she's shacking up with the guy he hates. I bet it's just to see him squirm. She probably doesn't really like that douche.” With a sneer, he shook his head, “she's making Kikyo look like a saint. Do you know how fucking hard that is to do? We're talking about the girl who fucked the entire football team…and then the cheerleaders!”

 

Rin's eyes widened as her jaw dropped, “really?”

 

Miroku shrugged with exaggerated hatred, “probably! And she didn't even buy them ice cream afterwards! Fucking whore…”

 

Rin stumbled over her words for a moment, completely caught off guard by the absurdity of his claims. “Do you even know what you're talking about?”

 

Miroku nodded astutely, “No, this is all just ridiculous. It's like a giant horse cock in a tiny mouth!”

 

            ;     Rin glanced back to watch Naraku reach across the table and swipe a piece of stray hair out of Kagome's face. She doubted that Miroku noticed the very slight flinch in Kagome's torso as the man's hand came near her face. “I don't think she likes him that way,” she answered slowly, “but I think that she wants InuYasha to believe that she does.”

 

            ;     “Why, to be a ruthless bitch?” Miroku shook his head and chewed on his tongue for a moment, allowing the anger to fester. “I should go over there and bust some shit up.”

 

            ;     “No, you shouldn't. You should stay out of it,” Rin reprimanded him. “Going over there is only going to cause a scene and without InuYasha here, Naraku might actually put your face through the table.”

 

            ;     Miroku glanced to the two then sighed sadly. “Maybe…but then again, I could find some kryptonite and…” His eyes lit up as he began to rant incoherently.

 

            ;     Rin held up her hand and snapped her fingers twice in Miroku's face. “Back to reality, Miroku; he's a demon, not Superman.” Rin glanced to her right and locked eyes with Kagome, who happened to be staring in their direction. Rin delicately hiked an eyebrow, refusing to be the one who looked away first. This was the first real interaction they had in weeks and Rin was baffled. Had Kagome heard Miroku's rant? Could she sense their eyes on her? Either way, Rin wasn't breaking this. Kagome simply rolled her eyes and returned to her conversation a moment later.  Pursing her lips, Rin stood suddenly. “All right, I'm done.”

 

            ;     Miroku blinked in surprise. “Wait…done with lunch? I haven't even started.”

 

            ;    Rin angrily glared at Miroku, “Fuck what I said, I'm going over there.”

 

Miroku sighed heavily and reached for Rin's hand. “Sit down, you'll make a scene that you know will get back to Yash. It's like you said, we have to stay out of it.”

 

Rin took a step away then came back only to pace for a moment. “Why is she being like this?”

 

“Because she can,” Miroku responded quietly, “she's trying to cope with this the only way she knows how. She's pretending as if nothing happened. I'll bet that this is some type of instilled trait. She's apparently run this path before because she's got one hell of a game. I'll bet this is how daddy-dearest handles things and she's following in his foot steps. If you pretend as if nothing is wrong and ignore your problem, it will fade away. To bad that's horseshit.”

 

Rin's mind shot to all of the problems Kagome had half mentioned to her that had plagued her life. She had wanted to ignore Bankotsu at the height of that situation, hadn't she? Maybe Miroku was right, maybe this was just some defense mechanism. But damn her if it didn't hurt.

 

“Defensive or not, she has no right to treat people like this. We're her friends!”

 

Miroku shook his head, “No, you're the enemy. Or at least, you're sleeping with the enemy's brother. Of course she's going to ignore you; she's covering all of her bases. She won't talk to Sango because she's my girl and I'm InuYasha's best friend. She's trying to cut out the cancer.”

 

Rin's attention drifted to Naraku. “Something in my gut tells me he's no bed of roses. I think he's nearly as dangerous at Bankotsu.”

 

Miroku pressed his lips together to form a thin line. He had known Naraku by reputation for some time. While he was a bit of a man whore (he had nothing on Miroku), he also had a hard on for getting even with InuYasha for their sophomore year incident. Could he be using Kagome to simply shove it all in Yash's face? That was a possibility. While Miroku didn't think he would hurt Kagome, he knew for a fact he wasn't going to help. Wasn't there a rumor, anyway, that Naraku had been shaking up with Kikyo? Maybe Kagome just had a fetish for being sloppy seconds to her cousin.

 

By time Miroku rationed everything, he found himself alone at the table. Glancing around wildly, he found Rin stalking towards Kagome's table. “Oh, not good!” he repeated over and over as he shot from his seat and bounded across the lunch room. As he reached Rin, he could over hear Kagome and Naraku's conversation as it drew to a sudden halt. Words burned into his mind with laser precision, `tonight, my place, eight o'clock'. `That bitch,' Miroku thought as he reached Rin's side.

 

Grabbing Rin's arm a few feet from Kagome and Naraku, who had both turned to stare at the two, he pulled her past them with haste. Glancing down at Kagome, he stared coldly. “Kikyo,” he acknowledged with a tilt of his head.

 

“Fuck you,” Kagome growled back.

 

“No thanks, I see what destruction your vagina wreaks,” he hissed as he pulled Rin back towards their table.

 

Settling her down in her seat, he eyed her maliciously, “Now do you see what you have done?”

 

Rin rolled her eyes, crossing her arms like a disciplined child. “You should have let me say something.”

 

“I think that would have been a bad idea.”

 

Rin crinkled one eye and stared aghast at Miroku. “You just compared her vagina to Godzilla. Don't lecture me on bad ideas.”

 

Miroku raised an eyebrow, “you may have a valid point.”

 

“Where do you get off?”

 

Miroku and Rin both whipped around to find Kagome standing behind them, hands on her hips and fire just short of spitting from her eyes. Miroku scratched his head and attempted to avert his eyes. “I can tell you where I don't…”

 

“Save it,” Kagome snapped, “look, I'm doing what the hell I need to, to get over the shit your douche bag friend—“

 

“Chose your words carefully,” Miroku growled

 

“—put me through. You want someone to blame, talk to him. He's the one who set out to fuck up my life.”

 

“Hold the fuckin' phone and back up,” Miroku shot to his feet, his eyes ablaze in anger, “first off, I'm pretty sure he actually liked you. Secondly, I don't think he's ever liked anything. And thirdly, you're a crazy bitch, but apparently, you fuck so good, he was on top of that. To bad paranoia and schizophrenia weren't in the instruction manual.”

 

Rin interjected with a yell, “Miroku…” turning to Kagome, she attempted to reason beyond her anger. “Kagome, I know how it looked…”

 

Kagome held up her hand to silence Rin. Eyeing Miroku, she ground out, “I'm trying my best to try to pull what little I have of my life back together. No thanks to Bankotsu and friends, I have a lot of shit to clean up. I would really appreciate all of you keeping out of my business.”

 

Miroku fumed, “I would appreciate you to stop being a fucking cunt. To bad we can't all get what we want.”

 

Kagome closed her eyes and counted backwards from ten, praying to god that they couldn't see how much her hands were shaking. “Just keep out of my business.”

 

Miroku took a step towards her. “As long as your business is ruining my friend's life, I'm going to be right smack dab in the middle of it, baby. Get used to this face.”

 

Rin put a hand to Miroku's chest, forcing him back a step. “Kagome, you can't seriously believe that InuYasha and Bankotsu were collaborating together, do you?”

 

Kagome turned to stare at Rin, forcing down all of her raging emotions to keep a semi-calm countenance. Was she sure that InuYasha had sided with Bankotsu? “If the shoe fits,” she snapped.

 

“Kagome, I know you're hurting, I understand that. But he was ready to…”

 

“Shut up!” Kagome cut Rin off soundly. “I don't care nor do I want to hear it. What I'm saying is this; tell InuYasha he's dead to me. I am moving on with my life.”

 

“You know, I really did like you,” Miroku commented suddenly, “but you seem determined to ruin Yash. You fucked him over, royally, and now you're moving in to fuck his enemy.”

 

“My life does not circle around InuYasha Taisho,” Kagome snapped back, her hands balled into fists, “and who I decide to fuck is none of your concern.”

 

“You're making a huge mistake Kagome,” Miroku added after a moment, “Naraku's just going to use you and lose you. And I'll tell you this; InuYasha will never take sloppy seconds to that.”

 

“InuYasha can go fuck himself,” Kagome spit back. Turning on her heels, she stormed away from the duo back towards Naraku on the opposite side of the room. Naraku seemed less than pleased, Miroku noted, as he shoved his hands into his pockets as Kagome walked by him and out the door of the cafeteria without any acknowledgement. Turning to glower across the room, Naraku and Miroku's eyes met.

 

“Fuck,” Miroku muttered before grabbing his book bag. “Peaces,” he called to Rin while taking off like a fighter jet. By time he was out the side door of the cafeteria, Naraku was at his heels.

 

 

*X*X*X*X*XX*X*X*X*X*X*X*X*X**X*X

 

Kagome was able to reach her car, put her backpack into the back seat, and get herself into the driver's seat before she fell into a fit of sobs. Tears poured down her face like rain from the sky, her chest constricting so tight that she felt she may as well suffocate. How did it all get to be like this? She hated feeling this way; she wasn't supposed to cry over him! He was the source of her mental agony; the physical affects of the mental strain were now taking seed in her life. Anxiety attacks, depression, he had ruined so much for her! And yet seeing that forlorn, gut wrenching look on InuYasha's face was enough to make her question her entire conclusion. He looked so…miserable. As if she was the one inflicting the pain on him. But it wasn't that simple! He had started the game first! He was the one who lied; he was the one who had known all along! He was the reason she now was balancing forty hours at work and living at home to help with bills while stressing to get her undergraduate degree. He was the reason for the destruction of her life! Or at least, she thought through sobs, that she could blame him. The truth on hand however was a whole other story that she was hardly ready to ration.

 

Grinding her hands into the steering wheel, she wanted to make it all stop. Just, everything needed to stop; she needed a moment to think. Ever since the whirlwind hit her life six weeks prior, she hadn't a moment to really take a deep breath and remove herself from the situation. It was a constant battle; the thoughts, the raw emotions, the longing to be in his arms again versus the pain of knowing the situation he thrust her into. She should hate him, in all rights. She should loathe him from the very inner being…demon…that he was. He had ruined so much for her. Things had finally started to look like they were turning around; she was rid of Bankotsu, she was content with life and she had someone who… She cut off that sentence where she always did. How could she say she had someone who loved her and use the same subject in the following rants of hatred? He had made her mind a confounded mess. It seemed at points that she couldn't tell what way was up or down! All she knew was that she didn't want to play this game anymore, she couldn't do it anymore. Everyday was slowly digging those six needed feet in the ground. Every breath was one closer to that casket.

 

She hated her conscience; it had made these last six weeks hell. She had been lividly angry, and that anger made her willing to say and do unspeakable things to get her revenge. She wanted him to suffer as much as she had. Now she saw; he was suffering the same and it made her none the happier. In fact, it was very much the opposite, as highlighted by the conversation she had just endured with Rin and Miroku. She missed Rin; by the Gods did she miss that girl. She missed all of her friends, but her decision was final. InuYasha had poisoned everything with his lies and everyone had been infected. Miroku knew that InuYasha was a demon, which he had to have mentioned to Sango. Even if he hadn't, Sango was still a part of that circle. Rin knew InuYasha was a demon and hid that from her as well. Her son was a product of that family which meant that the child would be hanyou as well. She had never thought to help Kagome put two and two together.

 

`It wasn't your business to know,' her brain screamed back at her. `Just because Rin knew they were demons, doesn't mean that she knew that InuYasha was a dom in some sub-underground kinkfest.'

 

She had played devil's advocate to everything in her mind. She had rationed out each thought again and again, and she was dizzy from the circles it drove her in. She just wanted it to stop! She knew none of it made sense, why avoid Rin and Sango when they weren't directly linked to the Bankotsu/InuYasha debate, but seeing them, in all truthfulness, was too painful. It reminded her of him; it wore away at her resolve.

 

When he had approached her in the hall earlier that day, even with Naraku's arms around her, she wanted to run to him. She wanted him to take her back, to accept any apology she could give him for acting like an A-class cunt. But that would never happen; she could never go back to that. He had lied to her; he had linked himself with the one man who had the power to kill Kagome. Regardless of his rejections to that thought and his complete disregard to his relationship with Bankotsu, Kagome knew the truth. They had been friends, they had been linked together at some point, and if it was once….

 

The vibrations of her phone dragged her out of her mental suffering. She glanced once at the number before flipped the device open. Attempting to pull herself together, and failing miserably, she sniffled out a pathetic hello.

 

“Hey, Kaggie, you got a minute? Good…”

 

Kagome rolled her eyes. If there was ever a walking description of the typical New Jersey male, it was her boss on the other end of the phone. He was the MTV stereotype of the Jersey Shore character; bossy and glossy with frizzy hair. Too bad they had no idea what someone from the shore really was like. However, Hiten was the epitome of a Guido.

 

“I need some coverage tonight. We're short staffed and could use some help slinging. It's like a fuckin' circus in here, ya know? I know I have ya covering tomorrow night already but I just thought…”

 

Kagome cut him off. “Hiten, I'm really sorry but I…” she swallowed thickly, pushing back her tears. Was she really going to do this? Having to work would help her escape the impending doom of the night. But…a part of her felt she had to do it. That she had to go out this one time to prove that she could move on. “I have a date.” Her chest constricted as she forced the words out; `this shouldn't be painful,' she reflected, `I should be happy to be going out with Naraku tonight.' But she wasn't, and she didn't need her conscience to tell her why.

 

Hiten hesitated and seemed to rethink his approach. She had known the Thunder Demon for five years and he was a good guy who really cared about his associates; when he wasn't trying to sleep with them. The inflection of his voice changed to a much haughtier baritone. “A date, huh? Should I get out the shotgun now? I got a rocking chair I can put on in the entrance. You bring him here to see papa before he takes out my little girl.”

 

Kagome smiled despite the tears. “I'll see about that, Hit. I'm really sorry but I just can't help out tonight.”

 

There was a very long pause and Kagome could just about see the man on the other end of the phone, glaring into the receiver. “Honey,” he said after a moment, “you gonna tell me what got your snatch in a twist or should I just start swinging?”

 

Kagome sighed heavily. She had avoided talking to Hiten about her problems because of his propensity towards violence. He might actually try to go after InuYasha for breaking her heart or worse, Bankotsu. “It's a long story.” That was the easy answer.

 

“What isn't with you? I've known you long enough, Princess, to know you come with all sorts of carry on baggage.” She heard him snicker at his own joke.

 

“Thanks,” she quipped dryly, “but it's really complicated and I don't want to discuss it.”

 

“Anything that makes you cry is worth discussing. Now stop dribbling all over the place and tell me whose face you need me to break. I'll curb stomp the bastard, you just give me the name.”

 

Kagome sighed heavily and shook her head. “Don't worry about it Hiten, I'll be okay. I just need some time.”

 

“You take the time you need Kaggie, but don't do nothing you don't want to, you hear me?” He hesitated, “just be careful tonight. You don't seem too happy and it ain't worth making yourself miserable to make another happy.”

 

Kagome crinkled her nose at her boss' cryptic advice. Deciding not to put water to it, she simply nodded. “All right Hiten. I'll see you tomorrow.”

 

“Damn straight,” he shot back, “and I want to know what the hell has been eating you, because it isn't me. I'll crack skulls.”

 

With an exasperated sigh, she hung up the phone. Resting her eyes against her knuckles on the wheel, she sighed heavily. Hiten was right; she was making herself miserable. Sniffling down the remaining tears, she set her glare forward and turned on the car. Maybe it would be time to start living for herself. Maybe it would start with Naraku.

 

*X*X*X*X*XX*X*X*X*X**

 

Walking through the front door of the apartment, Miroku braced himself for the verbal onslaught that was about to ensue. He had hardly taken two steps over the threshold, receiving two very startled glances in the process, before InuYasha was all over his shit.

 

“What the fuck happened to you?” His best friend questioned while grasping his chin with a nearly debilitating grip. InuYasha yanked his face right and then left, assessing the boy's injuries. It was bittersweet to know that the smirk on InuYasha's face was about to be erased. Yash probably thought he has fucked with the wrong guy's girl and it had finally caught up to him. Oh the irony.

 

Miroku shrugged as he pushed past his friend, barely able to keep from limping. “It was worth it,” he muttered as he kicked off his shoes and gimped his way into the kitchen.

 

“What have I told you about sleeping with girls who have boyfriends bigger than you?” InuYasha followed behind Miroku slowly, his hands jammed into his pockets.

 

Miroku pulled a piece of ice out of the freezer and began searching for a dishrag. “Get off before they get home,” he recited as he dumped the ice into the rag and placed it over his swollen right eye. “If only I got my reward for this one.” With a sigh, he leaned against the counter and cracked his neck to the side. “No, my friend, this was strictly community service.”

 

Kagejiro, who had been silently listening from the couch, took interest in the conversation. “Ey', someone knocked ya' block off for being a tool; I would consider that a service to the community. Me? I would've been in favor of castration.”

 

“Hey, hey, hey, wait a minute buddy; I haven't personally offended you today. So before you get your Irish knickers…or kilt….in a twist, let's set some facts. First and foremost, I got this defending your brother over there.” Spinning to stare at his friend, he repeated, “yeah, not that I need you to protect me, but this is what happens when you don't come to lunch.”

InuYasha's smirk vanished as he took a valid interest in the situation. “Wait, what?”

 

“Hard to believe, I know, but yeah, I stuck my foot in my mouth.”

 

“What, ya decide to give ya dick a rest for the day? That was mighty kind of you.”

 

Miroku rolled his eyes and sighed heavily. “No…all right, maybe, but still. That is besides the point. This,” he pointed towards his bloody lip, “is from when I realized that sadly, I am not the Flash and cannot outrun many things; like planes, trains, automobiles and fucking pissed off demons.”

 

That caught their attention like a red flag to a bull. “What demon,” InuYasha asked through grit teeth.

 

Miroku stared at InuYasha for a moment, assessing how pissed off he was about to become before slowly stating the facts. “Well, you see, what had happened was…”

 

“Spit it out, Miroku,” InuYasha hissed, all forms of his playful demeanor gone.

 

“I would,” he commented brashly, ire coloring his words, “if you would let me talk. Are you done?” Acknowledging the deadly glower on InuYasha's face, Miroku continued, “as I was saying; Rin joined me for lunch but after noticing that you had bailed on us, Rin directed me to the center of your latest woes. Now I love Rin but sometimes, I worry about her. She tells me not to say anything and not to get involved then goes all Cybil on me and storms across the cafeteria. Now I can't in good mind let her mouth off to a full blooded demon like Naraku. He could hurt her….worse, Sesshoumaru would hurt me. So I sprint across the cafeteria to successfully intervene the impending apocalypse. Little Miss Ray-of-fucking-sunshine-up-my-ass decides to get snippy. Now you know me guys, you know I would never intentionally say something awful to a girl; like comparing her vagina to Godzilla. But apparently…it slipped. So I'm told. It wasn't much appreciated; there was some banter, some tears and then a whole lot of pain. That's the short story. The longer one involves me running away and then eating pavement, but we'll store that away for a night of drinking.”

 

InuYasha swore loudly and punched the wall. “Fucking asshole,” he hollered. Spinning on Miroku, he continued to yell; “Naraku did this to you?”

 

“That would be said pissed off demon,” Miroku countered.

 

“And he was at lunch with…”

 

Miroku nodded in the affirmative. “I'm sorry man; I really hate to be the bringer of bad news bears on that one.”

 

Kagejiro clicked his tongue to get their attention. “Tell me Lad,” he asked with all sincerity, “more to the point; did the bastard touch Rin?”

 

“No, no way man, he didn't lay a hand on her. I booked it like a freshman on Friday out of that fuckin' cafeteria. He just happened to run faster. The upside is that I only ate ground twice. The downside is that I may have pooped my pants.”

 

InuYasha ran his hand over his face in an attempt to gain some semblance of control. “I can't believe that she's…out…with that douche bag! Why is she so stupid?”

 

“I think the answer to that question lies in the fact that she has a vagina.”

 

InuYasha held up his hand to cut off Miroku's line of thought. “Doesn't she see that he's just using her? Naraku Itogowa is in it for one thing and one thing only.”

 

Miroku shuffled his feet and exchanged glances with Kagejiro. He hated this part of being a best friend. “Weren't you?”

 

InuYasha fisted his hair and turned to look at Miroku. At least he didn't look like he was going to punch him. “Maybe at first, but fuck! I would never do her like Naraku's going to.”

 

“What, like in the back of a Volts wagon?”

 

InuYasha picked up the first thing he could find, which was an apple core, and chucked it at Miroku. The piece slammed into his chest with ridiculous accuracy. “Fuck man, this isn't some Kevin Smith comedy, this is my fucking life! My girlfriend is fucking my enemy.”

 

Kagejiro shook his head slowly, chuckling under his breath. “If I had a penny for every time that happened…I'd have a penny or two. Apparently, I just fuck better.”

 

Miroku kicked the apple core off the ground like a hacky sack and threw it into the garbage. “Girlfriend?” Seeing InuYasha hesitate, Miroku shrugged, “I'm just saying…”

 

InuYasha didn't seem to notice his slip. “Will you two mother fucker's quit it? This is serious! What the fuck am I going to do? I can't let Kagome hang around that douche bag. But she is bat shit crazy over what happened with me. She ain't talking to anyone anymore. What the fuck do I do?”

 

Kagejiro sighed heavily. Picking himself up off the couch, he grabbed his bottle of Soco and brought it into the kitchen with him. Handing it to his little brother, he offered him an apologetic smile. “You clean your hands of it. If she wants to run off and snog the next Jack she finds, that's her business. You are no one to intervene. It sucks, but it's the truth.”

 

“That can't be it,” InuYasha said after taking a long drink from the bottle, “that can't be the end of it. I won't let it be.”

“Ya can't make her see it your way, Boyo,” Kagejiro replied, “You can't make her listen to reason. If she thinks your some bloke that was out to hurt her, then she's gonna believe that until she's ready to see otherwise.”

 

InuYasha tapped the bottle against the counter, his eyes darkening. It was like his heart was being ripped out, piece by piece. His chest constricted with every breath, misery latching on to his soul and drowning it. After a moment, he glanced at Miroku. “Is that everything?”

 

Miroku didn't want to encourage this behavior; he didn't want to see InuYasha screw up his life any more than he already had. But there were little things about all of this that felt so right to Miroku; he had seen how the two of them got along, he had witnessed how happy she had made his long depressed friend. He had watched her flinch away from Naraku's touch and tear up at the thought of InuYasha hating her. He could read right through her, but couldn't get his message across. Though it was destroying both of them, he felt as if it could be stopped. One just had to get over them and listen to the other.

 

“Tonight they are going out,” Miroku said after a moment. He could hear Kagejiro groan and he noted the fact that he probably shouldn't be alone with the older sibling any time soon. He didn't need another ass kicking for trying to get involved again. “Now I don't want you to go all psycho on these two, but if you want to do something about this situation, you should do it before he takes her out; because if I know guys, specifically of the scummy kind, he is going to wine and dine her and then bang her like a cheap gong.”

 

InuYasha stared at Miroku, his hands balled into fists. Miroku was right; if he wanted to get through to Kagome, he had to do it before Naraku could set in his claws. What Naraku would do to Kagome, she wouldn't be able to handle. He would systematically destroy whatever was left inside of her. While he wanted to be angry at her, he wanted to hate her for hating him; the simple answer was he couldn't. He had to take a stand and force her to listen to him; he had to make sure she understood. None of this was supposed to happen. None of this was supposed to go down. Rapping his fist against the wood twice, he made his resolve. “I'll do it,” he said quietly, “I'll force her to see that this is all just some crazy psychosis of hers.”

 

Kagejiro groaned again and swiped back his bottle. Lighting up a cigarette, he calmly stated, “I'll be `ere, then, where ya left me. When you come back from her telling you that she never wants to see ya again, I'll take ya out. Drink away your pain, that's how we do it.”

 

Miroku waved the smoke from his face and grimaced. “Dude, you can't smoke in

here!”

Kagejiro simply glowered. Turning around, he made his way back into the living room.

 

Rolling his eyes, Miroku caught sight of one mishaps. Walking across the kitchen, he grabbed a pile of mail. “Hey, Yash, before you go all Dread Pirate Roberts on Prince Humperdink, open your mail. It's been sitting on the fridge for weeks now.”

 

InuYasha stared at Miroku as he handed him the growing pile. Swiping his hand once across, he knocked all the letters to the floor. “Are you even fucking listening to me? Do you know how serious this is?”

 

Miroku stared at InuYasha in annoyance before glancing about the floor. “Serious enough for you to take it out on the poor trees. Haven't they already been through enough?” Stooping to pick up the envelopes, one caught his eye. Picking up the manila envelope that had no return address, he flipped it over in his hands. “What's this?”

 

InuYasha was to busy pulling on his shoes to take any real interest. “Probably something from Dad before I was excommunicated,” he quickly shot back.

Miroku flipped the envelope over in his hands again. “No, don't think so. There's no postage.”

 

That stopped InuYasha short. Turning around, he walked over to his friend. “Let me see.” Grabbing the letter, he checked out the label. All it had on it was his name; no stamps, no address, no sender. Making a face, he held his ear to it.

 

Miroku groaned from the side line, “don't you think…now this may be a shot in the dark; but you think if it were a bomb, it wouldn't have a six week delay switch?”

 

InuYasha made a face. “Maybe it's from Sesshiles; I haven't seen his broke ass around here in a while,” he grumbled.

 

Miroku smirked, “that's because his broke ass is shaking it up with his baby's mama.”

 

InuYasha made a face of disgust and tore open the envelope. Slipping out the folder that was inside, he checked the bottom of the envelope and then sniffed it. “Doesn't smell like poison.”

 

“Does Anthrax have a smell,” Miroku pondered, slowly placing his sleeve over his nose.

 

“Yeah, it smells like death,” the reply was from the living room. “That just smells like shit.”

 

Miroku blinked and returned his stare to InuYasha. “One step up from the paper bag on fire? Now that's junk mail…” his words faded as he took in the look of unreserved anger that darkened his friend's face. InuYasha was staring at something very intently that was inside of the envelope. “Yash?” No reply. Miroku took one step closer to him, suddenly dreading what he had inadvertently done. “InuYasha, what's wrong?”

 

If fury could rage like a solar flare, the entire town would have evaporated on the spot, if not the state. With a string of profanity that couldn't be rivaled by Eric Cartman, InuYasha jammed the folder under his arm and grabbed his car keys. The words that Miroku was able to make out between the growls and swears were `whore' and `dead'. Miroku rushed to the door, following his raging friend. “Yash, what the hell is going on?”

 

 

“That fucking cunt,” InuYasha bellowed as he spun to face Miroku in mid step, “has been fucking playing me this whole god damned time!”

 

Miroku hesitated, unsure of which girl he was insinuating. Though he could guess and the outlook was bleak. “What…”

 

InuYasha waved his hand at his friend and made a bee line for his Hummer. “Fucking bitch, I'm ending this shit!”

 

“What the hell are you talking about?” Miroku rushed to InuYasha's side door. By time he reached it, the doors were already locked with his friend inside. “Yash, talk to me. Tell me what is going on.”

 

InuYasha held up a photo to the window, one that was blurry in nature but the jist was clear enough. “That fucking bitch has been fucking Naraku from the get go. This whole thing, her whole gushing guilt trip about me being the bad guy…fuck her! She was doing that son of a bitch this entire time!”

 

Miroku leaned in for a closer look and wished he hadn't. The nature of the photos was very graphic and though the image was blurry, it wasn't hard to make out the participants. The photo was a black and white enlargement of Naraku, naked from the waste down, facing the camera buried to the hilt in Kagome, who sat facing him on his lap completely nude. The time stamp in the corner was about seven weeks prior. Miroku swallowed down the information like nails. Grinding his teeth, he whimpered weakly. “Yash…”

 

There was nothing more to be said. The photo said it all, as did the other that he could make out among the others in the folder that InuYasha possessed. Kagome had been fucking Naraku all along. Barley making it out of the way, Miroku watched helplessly as InuYasha tore out of the lot like a madman possessed. Sitting back on his heels he swore softly. Why did this shit keep getting more twisted?

 

Turning back to the house, he was shocked to find Jiro standing in the door way. “Well…fuck me running,” Miroku breathed out, “now what?”

 

Kagejiro looked very worried, and that turned Miroku's guts to stone. “Trouble.”

 

Miroku attempted to keep his calm as he tried to read the emotionless countenance of his friend. “What does it mean when Yash's eyes bleed red?”

 

“A shit load of trouble.” Turning to stare at Miroku, his golden eyes caught the glint of the moonlight. “It means there isn't enough booze in the world that could pay me to trade places with the son of a bitch in those pictures.”

*X*X*X*XX*X*X*X*X*X*X*X*X**X*X*X*X*X*X*X*X*

 

-well…this is mildly awkward. It's been nearly six months. I am truly sorry, but there have been a lot of…problems…getting to this point (life, stress, depression, despair, school, work and did I mention stress? Oh, and a broken computer monitor that glows neon pink. Doesn't make for a conducive writing atmosphere). The point is; I'm really sorry it's taken forever to upload.

 

Mm.org

 

Drakey: I got you about Toga. He's a lot of something…what it is, is the question. If Toga knows how far gone he is? Probably… he isn't an awful person, just a very old dictator. Lol.

Ninjagurl512: LOL! I'm glad you enjoyed the knock out.

Kinky-hoe: Thank you, I throughaly enjoy Kagejiro. He's fun to write. I get a lot of assistance from my boyfriend for that. Oh I have drama by the boat load planned. ;-) we are reaching the end quickly though. I have about four more chapters, I think. Maybe.

Inyu01: sorry for the wait, life gets in the way of a lot of stuff.

Sovereignty: LOL, school is what has kept me away. Now I need to start writing my lesson plans for the end of the semester (projects due for my classes. I'm going for my masters). LOL, oh I know about boring lectures.

Blackr0s3: you know…there's evil…and there's evil. There are really maybe two evil people in the story but a lot of people who do bad things. I am a sucker for happy endings, though I'm waiting for mine. Don't see that ever coming. :-X. oh well.

Oyuki: well…Kagome went home and it was okay. InuYasha went home and was excommunicated in all forms, though he walked out alive and still in some forms of communication with his dad. He didn't want to let him down or seem like the black sheep but he also was afraid of losing what he had.

Goshibuh: I am glad that you've enjoyed it this far. I hope you tune in for the rest. You're assumptions have been very much on the mark. I would say you are a very intent reader. You pay attention to the details; I'm the same way. I can tell twists from a mile away, though it does take away from the surprise. Thank you, I'm glad that you really enjoy the story. There are scars on her back, but her and InuYasha haven't really been that kind of intimate yet; they did it on the bed quickly and in the dressing room, which he didn't have her strip.

Leilachan: the writing is coming along very slowly. The interest just hasn't been as of late. I know how it's going to end and I want to end it, trust me; I just haven't been myself for a very long time. I write and I delete and I write; it just was a constant feeling that I lost the characters. Yeah, Toga isn't really so awful. He's just….scary.

Katlady13: Yeah, Kag had to come clean at home. Yash has a lot of coming around to do. There is still a lot of drama that's going to get in the way. Yes, I have been following the anime on Hulu. So far not so bad, though they are pushing the manga together quickly, they are going to be finished with it quickly. I've read all the way through the manga so I know how it ends and all, but it's exciting never the less.

Luvininu28: I am really glad that you've enjoyed the ride. We still have a bit more to go. I am glad that you get the real jist of this story; the truth behind it all. Because that's what it is; life is a soap opera and much more interesting at that. Hopefully everyone can just last out the rain until they find their patch of sunshine.

Inulover: Thank you!!!

Twix2010: Thank you, that is quite the compliment! Bankotsu is more likely in line to get what's coming to him; Kagome's father has already lost it all when you think about it. He has money but what else; he lost his family. Thank you, I love Jiro also. LMAO, I want to be jiro as well, don't worry. He's a take from a character I'm designing for a story that I do plan on finishing one day (and possibly publishing).

Angel_up_above_heaven: LOL, sorry honey, the claim is already well tattooed across that beautiful back of his; jiro is mine. LOL. Don't worry…Bankotsu will eventually eat it.

Sutlesarcasm: Sacrifice? Sorry, that one isn't mine….my first story was a bleeding mess of fan fiction; Behind the Eyes which I deleted because of how AWFUL it was. LMAO. The one that most people know me for is Curse of the Dragon. I appreciate the compliments though. LOL, oh I know; jiro would be tied to my bed if he existed. LOL. Well…yeah….more drama. Angst is my writing style and I do say, I drown all my stories in it. I like your alliteration of it though. Can't promise anything for Kagome's dad, he's already lost it all. What does he have? Money? That's it. No family, no one who loves him…just his job. Pathetic waste of existence, if you ask me.

Frenchdiamond 1: LOL, it seems to be a toss up between favors of this and COTD. I like this one more because it deals on a more adult level. Half the people I know in life bring in the character of Miroku; I have a constant source for one liners that way. LOL. You know, I really did mean for this story to be a lot more gritty but when push came to shove…well….unfortunately, plot won out.

Arelia: LOL, thank you, I'm glad that you find it different. I agree, it's best when something takes a new approach.