InuYasha Fan Fiction / Crossover With Non-anime Series Fan Fiction ❯ Sanctuary Nights ❯ Sanctuary Nights ( Chapter 1 )

[ T - Teen: Not suitable for readers under 13 ]

Disclaimer: I claim no ownership of Sengoku Otogizoushi - InuYasha nor the Dark Hunter series. Inuyasha belongs to Takahashi Rumiko, Shogakukan, Viz Media, ShoPro Entertainment, and Shounen; while the Dark Hunter series belongs to Sherrilyn Kenyon. No profit or monies of any kind are made from this fan-created crossover.
Warnings: Set post-manga for InuYasha, and post Aimee's book (Bad Moon Rising)
Word Count: 1810

Ever since she had arrived, she had been screwing with his mind.

Kagome Higurashi...

Such a strange name for such a girl.

Though, perhaps he should not say girl. Oh no, she was quite the woman. A human woman, but he could forgive her that. Though the more he thought about it, the more he found it suited her. She was a strange woman, one he wouldn't mind getting to know more.

She had arrived one year ago, and hadn't even thought to lie about the reasons why she chose their nightclub. Sanctuary, the club he was the bouncer for. He had thought she was just another customer, and with how smoking hot she appeared in those jeans and that halter top, he had kept a close eye on her. No one messed with any woman in his family's club without the permission of that woman, save for Aimee. No one messed with his only sister, and his ten other brothers agreed.

All would be suitors became the most appetizing appetizers. As Aimee would say, "Sometimes you eat the bear and sometimes the bear eats you." For all those men, it happened to be one of those latter times.

Yet, much to his surprise, Kagome went straight to Aimee and the two began talking like old friends. He hadn't been the only Peltier in the club confused as to how or why their sister knew someone so human. They were Ursulans, they didn't mingle with just any humans. Though, Dev would reason, ever since Aimee became entangled with that mangy Fang, things involving his sister had been odd.

He never guessed the extent of it. What could those damn wolves know of humans, especially humans like Kagome, enough to keep them close? Her involvement with that clan had lowered her in his eyes, though he accepted her new position at Sanctuary as Aimee had been harping on all of them to hire some more women. There was a reason why they hadn't hired more women: it was more people to keep an eye on.

However she grew on them all despite their wishes. She was too open, too friendly, too kind, and had a mean slap. That last thing was what had won him over. Not to mention, she had no qualms about sitting with him after hours and enjoying a nice drink. They didn't even have to talk those nights, sometimes it was nice to just sit and enjoy the silence. And he was smart enough to never voice that out loud; he had more valid and less embarrassing reasons for beating on his brothers or being beat on by his brothers, especially Etienne and Remi.

Again, not something he would ever admit out loud.

Dev leaned back against the wall, keeping an eye on everything and one. Only when he was done surveying the place did he find his eye lingering on one woman. After all, it wasn't like he was actually working at the moment, he could look all he wanted.

He always found her, and she always knew when he was staring at her. It had something to do with her background, some "special" human woman from Japan. She had some odd title that he could never be bothered to remember -- none of them could, save for Alain and Zar -- but she seemed just fine with that. When asked why, she had the strangest sad smile as she would say, "Just painful memories." It was always the look in her blue eyes that stopped him from prying further into the situation, they held time in them. It wasn't a look normal humans had, then again, she couldn't be too normal to be on friendly terms with Katagaria wolves.

She had to feel his eyes on her because she straightened after placing down the customers' orders and looked right at him. He could never hide from her gaze, not like he could given his height and build, but most humans couldn't be bothered to look beyond what they saw. She gave him a smile before heading towards him, something that was new.

Dev straightened and pushed off from the wall, intrigued by this new turn of events. Normally it was him heading over to her and harassing her until one of his brothers or Aimee harassed him to stop harassing her. They couldn't say a thing about it this time: she was the one who would be harassing him. Hah!, he couldn't stop the goofy and somewhat mischeivious smile from taking over his face.

Kagome was impeded half-way to him by a group of the mangy Katagaria wolves. They weren't from anywhere near here, but from Kagome's homeland. Foreign or not, just meant he hated them all the more. They could speak Japanese to her and no one had a clue as to what was being said. And it caused his hackles to rise even more when they would make her laugh, or that blue-eyed ass of a leader would wrap his arms around her waist to pull her close despite her protests.

He hated the way wolf tasted, it was always stringy dark meat that got caught in his teeth, but for that group of mutts, he'd make an exception. The look that screamed for help from Kagome had him pushing his way through the crowd. He was a bouncer, and someone was going to be bounced. Right before he took them to the backroom for a special treat. And by "special treat", Dev meant for himself.

The other two wolves at the table looked as relieved as Kagome did when he reached it, the leader being oblivious to it all. Dev rolled his eyes; some mutts were just too dense and blind to see what was right in front of them. "I thought I told you to not start any trouble or else you'd be leaving in pieces."

The leader looked up at him, a rakish grin on his face though his eyes were cold and possessive. "And we took the words to heart. Ain't no trouble happening here." Kagome sighed and tried to stand, only to have the wolf tighten his arms around her.

The two wolves glanced nervously between him and Dev. "Uh, Kouga-sama? I think Kagome-onee-san needs to go back to work."

Dev raised an eyebrow and stared all three wolves down. "Are these guys bothering you, Kagome?"

She gave him and the other two wolves a grateful look. "Not really, but I do have to get back to work. There's a new assignment for me, ne, Dev?"

He caught on to her dilemma quickly, she always had a thing about being polite even to rowdy customers. Well, that was until they got a little too touchy-feely. But obviously these wolves were old friends. He smirked. "Yeah, I do have your new assignment for you. So come on, let's get it over with."

That Kouga had to release her this time, and didn't like it at all if the dirty look was anything to go by. She gave them a tense smile and bowed. "Ginta, Hakkaku, Kouga-kun. It was nice seeing you guys again!" He ushered her away with a hand on the small of her back, faster than any of the wolves enjoyed it.

Well, that was just too damn bad.

When they were far enough away, she heaved a sigh of relief. "Thank you so much for that." She gave him one of her dazzling smiles, causing him to cough as he looked away. "I adore Ginta and Hakkaku, but Kouga-kun... I've told him for years I just don't see him in any romantic way but it hasn't gotten through his thick head yet."

He smirked, leading her towards the kitchen. "Wolves aren't known for their smarts. Pack mentality and all, really a shame."

She laughed, hiding it behind her hand. "Oh, you're horrible! You would've gotten along fine with Inuyasha, he hated Kouga-kun as well."

"I don't hate mutts, I hate the fleas they track in," he said garnering another laugh from her.

Kagome playfully swatted his arm. "You're horrible, Dev! You better hope Kouga-kun didn't hear that, he thinks fleas are for dogs."

"He's a dog, in case he's forgotten." He smirked, enjoying the rare moment with her. She had yet to notice his hand was still on the small of her back, and he wasn't the type of bear to point it out to her.

Yet they had very little to discuss once she was away from her "old friends". He had work to get back to work soon and so did she. Silence hung between them in front of the kitchen entrance like an unwelcome friend -- one they didn't quite know how to shake. She glanced up at him from underneath her dark bangs with her expressive eyes, longing etched on her face. She had no qualms about showing all the emotions she felt towards him and that he felt for her but couldn't quite show.

Though they were in America, supposed land of the free, there existed a large distance between them. It wasn't one as philosophical or metaphysical as a distance between their bodies or their hearts or their eyes. It was one that went deeper and was that much harder to penetrate. It was a distance that hid a sweet innocent wish in it: a wish to be with the other. However the distance between their kinds and species was one not easily breached nor looked upon favorably. Aimee and Fang had managed to breach that distance, however they were different. Aimee was the heir apparent, Fang was the brother to two on the Omegerion.

Kagome was human, he was Ursulan. She simply was and he simply was.

She stepped back away from him, his hand falling away. With a small coy smile, she said, "Walk me home again tonight? These winter nights are best walked with company..."

He smiled inwardly at how she trailed off, letting her sentence hang between them. It was an unsure statement, the most either could offer the other. And if walking her home was the only way he could be with her, he was content with it. Just as she was. They would take what they could get out of their relationship, no matter how small.

"Sure. Knowing you, you'd get lost if I didn't."

She gave him a mock-glare before giving him a light punch to his shoulder. She smiled as she walked away, a "You're mean," being the last remark.

Forever the story of their relationship: one of them walking away. But that only meant that someone would be walking back. It made him look forward to every new meeting, hoping that one day it would be their last parting. It might not be anytime soon, but he had nothing but time on his hands.


Lingo:
-sama: name suffix that's the very polite form of -san, translates to "Mr.", "Mrs.", "Ms.", though only used during keigo (polite speech)
O-nee-san: lit. Honorable Big Sister, very polite and respectful
"ne?": impossible to translate, though in this instance, it means something along the lines of: "no?", "yes?", "right?", "correct?", etc...
-kun: name suffix used by those of a senior status towards those of a junior status, by males of roughly the same age, by teachers towards their students, addressing male children, and by females toward men they're attached to