InuYasha Fan Fiction ❯ Finding Kagome ❯ Chapter Thirty Three ( Chapter 33 )

DISCLAIMER: I do not own InuYasha and company, however I DO own an overactive imagination...

 

 

Finding Kagome

 

 

 

Chapter Thirty Three

 

 

 

InuYasha stood frozen, his eyes locked with the detective's, Kagome in his arms tracing the lines of his face and his brother's words repeating in his head.

 

Don't move too fast, or you will frighten her. . .

 

She's not the same girl, now. . .

 

As far as the world at large is concerned, InuYasha died 500 years ago. . .

 

You may know who they are. . . but do they??

 

“I really don't appreciate being called Bozo,” grumbled Michael as he fought with the keys to Selene's door. It had taken him a minute to realize that of course Inudono couldn't take her past the ward. And while he was turning the second of the locks it hit him that the guy had known that he was the one who had set it to begin with. How the hell did he know that?

 

“I asked you a question. . . Caleb.” Selene could feel his eyes on her as she ventured a quick appraisal of the expression of complete contentedness that was on Kagome's face. A drastic change from only twenty minutes before.

 

She couldn't shake the feeling that she knew this man. The sound of his voice shouting at Hojo had jolted her clear down to the soles of her shoes with its familiarity.

 

“My name. . . ” the hanyou had come to his decision. The last thing he wanted to do was scare these people, especially Kagome, “. . .is Caleb Inudono. My I.D. . . .it's in my breast pocket.” He nodded down, unable to reach for it while still holding Kagome.

 

“Which. . . side?” Kagome asked, gently pulling open his jacket and placing her right palm just over his heart.

 

“Right,” he whispered, suddenly breathless from the touch. “Kami. . .”

 

Kagome reached in and fumbled slightly with the wallet before bringing it out, and at his nod she handed it to Selene. She then returned her hand to its initial position on his chest, as Michael pushed open the door leading the way in.

 

“You know, I can stand on my own, Caleb,” She grinned. “You don't have to carry me around.”

 

“What if I want to?” he raised his brows at her, and she cocked a brow and blinked in response.

He set her down reluctantly.

 

Selene pulled out the I.D. and examined it closely, motioning for Caleb and Kagome to go in first. She knew a few forgery tricks, but she found no evidence of any on the small document.

 

After listening her mutter to herself about it as they walked into the living room, the last straw was a comment about his eye color. She insisted they weren't light brown.

 

“Yeah. . . so?” the hanyou snarled. “The fuckin' picture is ME!” He tried to grab the document back, but she dodged him with a mischievous grin.

 

“Honey. . .” Kagome reached up to touch his brow. “His eyes are like golden honey. . .”

 

“I would have said amber,” Selene then saw the address, and started laughing, as she plopped into her favorite chair. “You live on Demon's Byway, Point Diablo?? Now that's just. . . too much!”

 

“My brother built the place. . . I'm just stayin' there with him.” His phone vibrated against his chest. “Speak of the damn Devil. . .” he sat down on the floor with his back to the wall, then pulled Kagome down into his lap, “He just gave me this thing this morning and he's called me about twenty times already. . .” he sighed and slapped at the unit in his pocket, causing the girl to jump, “What the hell is it now, Jackass?”

 

Michael cringed at the greeting, knowing it must be Seth Inudono calling, then looked around for a cell phone and couldn't find one. He watched Kagome wrap her arms around Caleb's neck, and his eyes narrowed.

 

Taking his usual seat on the arm of Selene's chair, he looked over her shoulder at the I.D. she still held. It looked like a gang leader's mugshot, in his opinion, the facial expression obstinate with what appeared to be a scarf on his head. He was not impressed.

 

“She just got home. . . DAMN!! I can hear her goin' on behind you, is this your call or hers?? . . . Tell the witch YES, I am behavin'. . . Her precious Mike right here, OK?”

 

The one side of the conversation intrigued Selene, and Michael's eyes widened at the mention of his name. Only people from the University called him 'Mike', which meant that Windham was probably on the other side of that phone call.

 

“Sess, um. . . damn, they all stink like that mangy bastard. . .” three pairs of eyes were on Caleb at this point, and he scowled. “Oi! Jackass! Gimme time, huh? They just got here, I don't know anything yet. . . yeah right. . . FINE!!” and he reached into his pocket.

 

“Here we go with the stink stuff again,” Michael groaned.

 

“You said the same thing at my apartment, Mikey. . .”Kagome reminded him, “you said it stank of youki. . .”

 

“Yeah ok, right after you threatened to go hunt them down, and purify them. . .” He countered,

“You scared the living hell out of me, I was afraid you were going to take off on your own. . . OK, I have to know, who's precious Mike am I??”

 

“Kate's up at the compound, guess he thought he was gonna have to hunt me down again,” Caleb sighed.

 

“Don't tell me you just called Kate Windham a . . . witch. . .” Michael was amused and aghast, all at once.

 

“Like you've never at least thought it. . . Don't tell me you haven't.” Caleb fixed him with a knowing look. Michael cocked his head and shrugged with a half smirk. The woman could be intimidating, that was a certainty.

 

“Let me see that thing. . .” Kagome reached into his pocket, and pulled out the unit.“What stink are you complaining about Caleb?” she asked, pushing a button which caused him to cringe and grab the thing away from her. He quickly placed it back in his pocket. “I don't smell anything. . .”

 

“Kouga is all over you, Koi. . . I really wish you would go wash. . .” he wrinkled his nose, then touched her cheek causing her to look into his eyes, which had become dangerously intense. “But first, tell me why that asshole was touching you. I wanna be real fuckin' clear about that when I kill him.”

 

Kagome got a vacant look that morphed into a grimace, then pushed herself off of his lap and stumbled off toward the bath, a worried Selene at her heels.

 

“Oi!! Wench!! I asked you a question!” the hanyou rose to follow them, but Michael jumped up putting an arm out to stop him.

 

“Maybe you should just go, Inudono. . . she's had a really bad day and it's just not a good night for this,” Michael motioned toward the door

 

“Who made it a bad day for her?” knuckles cracked and Michael winced. The expression on Caleb's face brought concerns about keeping his arm attached, and he pulled it back to his side. He heard the shower running and Selene returned to find what appeared to be a stand off between the men.

 

“You better think twice, Inudono. . . The monk isn't your enemy,” she squared her stance.

 

“I fuckin' know that!!” he spat, annoyed at being told something he saw as obvious. “I just wish SOMEONE would give me a straight answer!! Why the hell were you guys anywhere NEAR Kouga?? He's dangerous DAMNIT!!”

 

There was brief, silent exchange between Michael and Selene, and she assumed a more casual posture..

 

“He's with my cousin. . . he's her mate,” she began, “We didn't know for sure. . . what he was, until we got there and then Kagome seemed to remember him. It was after they talked that she got so upset.”

 

“He carried her. . . she was upset and she fainted. . . Kouga carried her,” Michael reported.

 

“Mate? a. . . human?? That makes no sense. . .” he glanced back and forth between the two of them with an air of confusion. “What the hell do you mean, Kagome remembered him??”

 

Michael shot Selene a warning look, and a quick shake of his head. He wasn't sure he trusted this newcomer.

 

There were too many connections for him to be comfortable with, like the fact that he was waiting for them when they got home. His connection to Kate Windham seemed a little too convenient, or that he knew, and quite apparently despised Kouga..

 

Then there was the possessive way he acted around Kagome, and that she seemed to not only allow it but welcome it, after pushing Hojo away like she had. How the hell did he know I set those wards?? And why the hell doesn't he take that damn hat off??

 

“Let's sit down. . .” Selene could see the turmoil Michael was going through and motioned Caleb to the couch. “Before I answer your questions, I have one or two of my own.”

 

Michael watched in fascination as Caleb took a cross legged seat right where he stood, his back straight with folded arms, his face grim. He looked like he was playing Indian chief, with those braids and that leather hat. The counselor folded his arms and leaned against the wall, settling in for what he assumed would be an interrogation.

 

“Is this 'official'?” Caleb asked peering up at her.

 

“Does it need to be?” She easily dropped to sit directly in front of him, giving him a knowing look. “I know where you were last Wednesday night, I just want to know why you were there.”

 

InuYasha thought about the question, his eyes locked on the detective. Only the truth would suffice, but he had to use caution on how much of it to give her.

 

“Kagome was sick. . . I had to see if she was ok,” he stated simply. “But she wasn't home,” his eyes darted toward the hallway.

 

“Sick?” Michael asked. “She wasn't sick. . .”

 

“YOU said she was,” he turned a glare on Michael. “That day on the road when you guys almost hit us??”

 

“That black limo. . . that was you??” Michael leaned forward. “She wasn't feeling well, but she was fine after. . .” he stopped short of revealing the appearance of the Jewel, “after she got some rest.”

 

Selene nodded watching Michael, it made a strange kind of sense. They found the apartment already destroyed while trying to check on Kagome.

 

“But that happened on Saturday,” she turned back to Caleb. “Why did you wait until Wednesday to go check on her? Why didn't you try before that?”

 

“I was. . . sick,” he looked down, fleeting portions of his dream nagging for his attention. The wolves had Kagome. . . his voice low, “The jackass didn't want to go. . . But I had to know that she was ok, then we found her place like that. . . and it stunk of wolf. . .” he lifted his eyes to her, his expression open and concerned, “I could never hurt her, Sally.”

 

“I believe you, Caleb,” and she did, though she would be hard pressed to logically defend her reasoning. “But what the hell was that smell?? You keep talking about stink. . . When I got back to the apartment with forensics we damn near choked to death, what did you do?”

 

“Oh. . .” he blushed, then looked at the floor. “The jackass melted the back window lock so we could get out. . . he said we'd be in serious trouble for just bein' there.” He looked up at her hoping he hadn't opened yet another can of worms for his brother.

 

“Well, it certainly was. . . melted. . . but how?” Selene had seen the forensics report, and the substance used had been unidentifiable.

 

“His claws,” he blinked at her. “He's poisonous.”

 

He watched their expressions morph from disbelief to shock, then Selene began to nod with understanding. Of course forensics wouldn't easily be able to analyze demon excretions. Her mind began to wander to other strange reports she had read over the last week. Could it be that this recent crime wave was directly related to demon activity in the city? That could explain some of it perhaps, she would have to go over those reports again with a new eye.

 

“Look, it's my job to protect Kagome. That's why I'm here. . . to keep her safe.” Caleb rose gracefully, his arms still crossed. “That can happen either with. . . or without your help.” He nodded toward the bath, where the water had stopped and a blow dryer whined. “She's all that matters. Those bastards have her targeted for some reason, and I fuckin' wanna know why.”

 

“It will be better to discuss all of this on a full stomach, I am thinking,” suggested Michael. “I'm starving. . . What's for dinner, my dear? I mean since we didn't eat at Miranda's. . .”

 

“Dinner?” Selene blanched. “Not sure what we have in there, um. . . come help me forage, monk,” and she rose taking Michael's hand, leading him to the other room and closing the door behind them.

 

InuYasha took a guard position in the hallway just opposite the bathroom door, waiting for Kagome to emerge. He didn't like having her out of his site, not after the way she looked when she had come home. He heard wisps of the conversation that ensued in the kitchen, enough to feel guilty for eaves dropping. Earning the trust of the monk was going to be a challenge, after facing off with his friend. He could hear Kagome too, a sniffle as things were moved around behind the closed door. He hoped he hadn't made her cry. . .

 

 

 

 

o~O~o

 

 

 

 

“Tell me what you're thinking, I see your wheels turning. . .” Selene prodded in a whisper.

 

“I don't know, Sally. . . Hojo changed. . . he's not the guy I thought he was. I don't know if it was Kouga influencing him. . . or what,” Michael stood with his arms folded, speaking low. “He's dangerous, and I don't want her around him anymore. But this guy. . .” he nodded toward the closed door, “I sense danger around him too, he's unpredictable. . . have you seen how quickly he jumps from angry to warm and affectionate?? He's gotta be Bi-polar or something. . .”

 

“It's Kagome, she has an effect on him. . .” Selene pondered this. “But he's got just as strong an influence on her, I see it. He says he wants to protect her, then I'm going to let him. I'm not asking him to leave.”

 

“You can't be seriously considering letting that. . . person stay in this house!!” Michael hissed.

 

“Keep your voice down, Monk,” Selene whispered, as she opened the refrigerator hoping to all that was holy she would find something nutritious in there.

 

“You know what he is!! What his brother is!! We've jumped out of the frying pan into the damn bonfire!” his voice was slightly lower, but his agitation prevented an honest whisper.

 

“Will you stop??” she slammed the door with a low curse. “He can hear everything you are saying!”

 

At this Michael snapped his mouth shut, eyes darting toward the door. Selene sighed, then put her hands on his shoulders. She gave him a small smile, eyes full of earnest commitment to her stand on the matter.

 

“Did you by any chance notice how she was clinging to him? She didn't want Hojo to even touch her, but she trusts Caleb. We need to honor that. He isn't her enemy. . . he isn't our enemy. . .” she whispered, “didn't you see the expression on her face when she first looked at him? ”

 

“Uh. . .” he thought about it, “I was too busy worrying about Hojo ripping his head off.”

 

“Like that could happen,” she smirked. “He doesn't strike me as being the scrapper type. . . well at least not until tonight.” Her lips thinned. True enough, Hojo has changed. . . and not for the better.

 

She moved to the cupboards in her search for something that might resemble dinner. Kagome had wanted to go grocery shopping, but there had been no time. Selene frowned at the coffee and ramen which were all that graced her cupboard shelves, along with a half eaten box of wheat crackers.

 

“So. . . it's your turn. . . What aren't you telling me, Selene?” Michael hovered beside her. “Why do I feel like you are keeping something from me? She said Kouga didn't hurt her, but why was it that she was crying. . .”

 

“He told her things. . . it's not my place to talk about it,” she shook her head. “She should be the one to tell you the details.. . Oh, hell,” she turned to him, “You said it yourself. . . you told me that the hanyou is dead.” Her face became grim. “Kouga just. . . confirmed it. . . and it sucker punched her.”

 

Michael's eyes turned toward the doorway. “She never told me what it was she remembered. I thought it was strange the way she just dismissed it. . . like forgetting to turn the lights off before a trip or something. . . So Kagome recognized Kouga, from. . . before??”

 

“Seems that way. And he knew the hanyou. . .” Selene shrugged. “Anyway, I think that Caleb is good for her, she's perked up a lot in the little while he's been with her. You didn't see her, Mikey. . . the torment in her eyes. If having him close makes her feel better, then he's staying. And to be honest, I think there is more about Caleb Inudono that we have yet to learn, something special.”

 

“He called me a Bozo. . .” Michael frowned. “That wasn't particularly special.”

 

“Do you trust me?” she demanded pointedly, folding her arms.

 

“Of course I trust you. . .” he glanced at the doorway again, “It's HIM I don't trust. . . not here, indefinitely. . . with you two alone.”

 

Selene stared at her intended, genuine concern etched all over his features. For a brief moment she wondered why it was they kept putting off getting married. Could it be that Kagome's happiness had something to do with it? Michael was so very attached to her, Selene felt that sometimes she had to remind him that she was there too. Maybe now was a good time to do that. . .

 

“Alright, then you stay, too. . .” she wrapped her arms around his waist, eyes lowered to his mouth, “problem solved,” and she nibbled at his lower lip, his surprise at her suggestion melting into a deep kiss. Breaking away, she hummed in his ear, “ If you're afraid he's after the Jewel, ward the door so he can't leave,” she leaned back and patted his chest, “that way you'll be able to sleep. . . He just wants to be near Kagome, and something tells me that she needs him right now. . .”

 

“Sleep?” after a kiss like that, sleeping was the last thing on his mind.

 

 

o~O~o

 

Kagome opened the door and for the second time in one day was greeted by warm smiling eyes and arms around her. This time the eyes were honey gold, and she welcomed the embrace, resting her head against his chest.

 

It was as if the simple act of touching him was an energy supply for her, and she drew on it deeply as she listened to the beat of his heart. No words were necessary, it was all in the feeling of being in his arms.

 

Kouga's words had hurt her so very deeply, she hadn't thought she could go on, she had wanted to just give up. When Caleb pulled her from Hojo's grip, everything had felt. . . right with the world. She felt a sense of complete safety in his arms, and she wasn't going to question why.

 

It had been the mention of Kouga specifically that had upset her, and though surprised that Caleb knew him, it was fine with her that there was no love lost between them. Though she wasn't so sure how serious he had been when he said he would kill him. Miranda needs him now. . . even if he is a selfish bastard, he's still the father of her baby.

 

She lifted her head off of his chest and smiled at him.

 

“Better?” she whispered into his ear. Or so she thought.

 

“Much better. . .” he pressed his nose into her hair, still warm from the dryer, then kissed her head. Crooking a finger under her chin, he brought her eyes to meet his before he touched his lips to hers in a warm but chaste kiss.

 

Kagome felt her knees give, his lips were like. . . rose petals. She ran a hand through the shorter, loose hair that framed his face, as he touched his nose to hers.

 

Eyes sparkling, he willed for her to remember him. . . anything would do, anything at all would be a start. If she could remember that bastard Kouga, then surely she would remember her mate. . .

 

Kagome's fingers combed through his hair, then as she pressed a fingertip against the side of his head she gasped. Both hands began running along the sides of his head.

 

“What is it, Koi?” He cupped her face in his hands.

 

“Caleb. . . I uh. . . where's. . .” before he could react, her hand suddenly whipped up and flipped his hat off. It hit the floor with a muffled plop, and Kagome's mouth began working but nothing was coming out, as she tentatively reached up to the top of his head and brushed her fingers over the tips of his ears.

 

They twitched reflexively, and he let out a breath of relief as her eyes sparkled at the reaction her fingers were causing. Then she began slowly, gently working the very base of each one, drawing a low moan from him, and it became purely instinctive on both parts as he leaned in for the massage that only his Kagome knew how to give.

 

“Is. . . is it really. . . you?” her voice was shaking, her eyes brimmed. “Inu. . . InuYasha?”

 

“You remember me. . . Oh Kami!!” He whispered, and they both began to cry, kissing each other's faces a hundred times, stopping to gaze briefly into each other's eyes, then more hungry kisses.

 

“I KNEW IT!!” Came a triumphant exclamation from Selene, her face beaming as she stood in the now opened doorway to the kitchen.

 

“Knew what?” inquired Michael as he came up behind her, chewing on a stale cracker. On evaluation of the scene taking place in the hallway, his jaw dropped. “Holy Hell. . . there's a Dog-boy in the hallway. . . and he's kissing Kagome. . .”

 

“That's not just any Dog-boy. . .” and she smacked him on the head for leering.

 

“Do you guys mind??” InuYasha growled, as he shut the door in their faces. “They haven't changed much, have they?”

 

 

~ooO0Ooo~

 

 

A/N :: Sorry for the delay in getting this update in. It's high season for the business that I am in, so less time to focus on the truly important things, like finishing out this story for you.

The review responses from all of you have taken my breath away. I don't wanna eat up a lot of space with lengthy explanations. People don't generally log in to read a bunch of author ramblings, they are more interested in a good story!!

 

For animaygurl:: on the “remembering” I recommend reading the works of Brian Weiss M.D. Just one of many who have done research on the topic.

 

White Luna :: could be worse... I could use a little trouble like that myself, actually

 

Golden kitsune :: hands the sweet fox a tissue happy now, darlin'?

 

Drogodden :: you were reading my mind, that's what it was ;)

 

anth :: That's another story, right now fluffy's plate is full I think ^.^

 

Lady Orange :: thank you so much for your detailed thoughts. Did you get my email response? Hoping to hear from you.

 

Broken Dreams :: Hey!! I love ya back!! gotta love a stalker that uses the 'L' word (in caps no less) :P~

 

musicmuse18 :: Glad you are enjoying it!! thank you!

 

Shippos girl :: ok, you have officially made me blush... thank you for your kind words.

 

 

 

Until Next Time!

 

metsuki