InuYasha Fan Fiction ❯ Guilty Hero ❯ Coordination and Preparation ( Chapter 18 )

Well, I must first thank all of the lovely people who have reviewed, `cuz you guys are awesome. Next, however, I must deliver some bad news. I noticed that a lot of people were quite pleased to see daily updates, but I'm sorry to say that will no longer be possible. The only reason they were daily updates until now was because I was trying to get my account on MM caught up with another online account. With this update, the two places will be up-to-date, and further updates will commence at the same time. I am sorry to have to tell you this. *sniffsniff*

 

In this chapter: A little fight, and a discussion of darker days ahead.

Guilty Hero

Chapter 17: Coordination and Preparation

Kagome drew her coat tighter about her, shivering in the bitter November wind. It helped if she walked behind Inu-Yasha, who seemed to be impervious to the cold, but the air itself still nipped at any exposed skin, and made her rethink going out at all. With the sun gone hours ago, there was nothing to provide any warmth except Inu-Yasha, and with him rather upset with her, that was not an option.

They had started the day off on the wrong foot again, although this time it wasn't Kagome's fault. She had arrived at his apartment later than usual due to a phone call early that morning from Sango. She had offered Inu-Yasha and Kagome their first demon assignment together, and Kagome had quickly accepted. However when she arrived at his apartment, she saw that he was already up and getting ready to dive into a whiskey bottle. She understood that he was probably aching for a drink, having gone the entire day prior without one, but it was her duty to keep him sober for the assignment that night, and she had to take the bottle away. It was dreadful timing, but it had to be done.

What she didn't know was that Inu-Yasha had hardly been able to sleep the night before, he was so anxious for a drink, but had waited as long as he possibly could before leaping out of bed and running into the kitchen. There was to be no coffee/whiskey debate that morning; nothing but the contents of a bottle would do. So to have the whiskey pulled away just when it was in his grasp was more than he could bear. He had thrown an absolute fit, and it wasn't until a few hours later was he calm enough for Kagome to explain herself.

From then on, things had been a bit tense between them, but he was no longer openly hostile; he even agreed to go on the assignment, which surprised her to no end. That was how they found themselves strolling down the road at ten o' clock at night in the frigid cold. Inu-Yasha seemed to be unconcerned by the cold or the dark, so Kagome kept as close as she could to him with being an annoyance.

Glancing over his shoulder, he growled at her, “Get up here. You keep that far away and some demon's going to make off with you.”

Hm. She had misjudged his temper, apparently. Jogging up to walk next to him, they walked on in silence. She watched him from the corner of her eye, trying to gauge his mood. His emotions had been so volatile today that she wasn't quite sure what to do. For now, he simply looked tired, and a little irritated. His teeth were clenched around a cigarette and he was trembling from lack of alcohol, but he was much calmer than before. Kagome decided to take advantage of this moment.

“Look…” she said quietly, “I just wanted to apologize for earlier. It was poor timing, I know, but we can hardly give up the opportunity for an assignment, and—“

“Oh, stop,” he growled, cutting her off. “Quit apologizing. You've been doing that all day. Let's just… get this over with.”

She immediately fell silent; it wouldn't do to test his patience at the moment. Besides, she had gotten her point across.

Inu-Yasha glanced at her from the corner of his eye; he was having mixed feelings about her today. He knew he shouldn't be upset about the liquor ordeal that morning, for she was simply trying to do her job. She was right in her actions too, for he shouldn't have been drinking on the day of an assignment; it was something he had struggled with for the past seven years. But still, if only she knew how badly he had been and still was dying for that drink, then she would understand why he had been so angry.

Focusing his gaze back on the sidewalk, he pulled his cigarette out and exhaled smoke in a gusty sigh. “…I'm gonna go to the Tap once we're done here,” he mumbled, pausing to snub his cigarette out before moving on. “You can go home afterwards, if you want.” He almost felt guilty for saying his destination… almost.

Kagome, smiled at him with chattering teeth. “Oh, that's all right, I'll just go back to your apartment. I like to make sure you get safely to bed, you know.”

He rolled his eyes. Yes, he did know. He couldn't say that he recalled her forcing him back into the bedroom, for whiskey tended to erase his memory more often than not, but he did notice waking up in his bed rather than on the couch, which was his usual place of rest.

“If you like, you can just give me a call when you're done at the Tap; I'd be happy to give you a ride home.”

Scowling, he did his best not to snap at her from fear it might just be his flighty temper. He wasn't thinking so far ahead; he only knew that he was going straight to the Tap once the assignment was over. What happened after that was none of his concern. But Kagome, always planning ahead… He uttered a low growl and shoved his hands deeper into his pockets.

“So what exactly are we going after?” he grunted, trying to switch the conversation to something that wouldn't spark his temper.

Pleased to see him initiating a conversation, Kagome replied, “Oh, just some low-level demon causing a ruckus, that's all. Sango told me that they could have sent one of their lesser agents to deal with it, but she wanted to give us the opportunity to work together. We need to practice and coordinate our abilities, is what she said.”

Inu-Yasha stopped dead and turned to look at her, disbelief etched in his face. “Are you serious?” he growled, his hands fisting at his sides. “This is just to `coordinate our abilities'? Over some damn wimpy demon that doesn't even have a Shikon shard?!”

“Inu-Yasha, please…” Kagome said soothingly. “We need to do this. If we're to start taking on higher-level demons that do carry shards, we need to know how the other fights, what strategy they use, and how we can effectively work together.”

“Who said we were taking on higher-level demons? Was it Sango? Because I told her—“ He abruptly stopped talking and stared down at his shoes, a deep scowl marring his features.

“Inu-Yasha…?” Kagome stepped forward and slowly grasped his wrists, realizing how badly his limbs were shaking. “What's wrong?”

He stayed silent for a moment; he didn't want her to know about his meltdown at the quarry, but he had no intention of getting involved in this war brewing. The thought of taking on more powerful demons scared him half to death, and yet he had to try and pretend like nothing was wrong; Kagome didn't need to know of these inner demons.

“Just… Let's go. We need to get this over with.” He wasn't sure how much longer he could go without a drink. After several minutes of silent debating, he had opted to leave his flask back at the apartment to avoid temptation during the assignment, and was now very much regretting that decision. This awkward conversation, on top of his physical needs, was only increasing his desperation, and he wanted nothing more than to finish this job and move on with the night.

“Inu-Yasha.” Kagome held fast as he tried to walk away.

“Never mind!” he snarled, whirling suddenly to face her. She involuntarily released his wrist in surprise, and he pulled away, glaring at her. However, seeing her hurt expression, he immediately felt chastised, and floundered for a moment. “I—Look, this isn't the time or place to chat. There's a demon nearby, and if we stand around here chattin' like fools, we could get hurt. All right?”

With a rather weak smile, she nodded silently and moved forward. “I was told it was a crow demon; it's been killing and devouring stray dogs and alley cats, but Sango and Miroku hope to prevent it from switching over to humans. And it was last seen in the alley between the office supply store—“ she glanced at the building they were standing next to, “—and an office building.” Suddenly, she gave a soft shriek and ran over to the window at the front of the office supply store.

“Inu-Yasha, look at this! This notebook set is adorable!” She pointed through the glass where a set of notebook and pens covered in simple cartoon cats was sitting on display.

Although rather relieved that Kagome had chosen not to press the awkward conversation, Inu-Yasha couldn't help but snap, “Dammit, we are in the middle of an assignment! Do your window shopping some other time!”

Quickly stepping away, she nodded, flushing in embarrassment. “I'm sorry. I just love cats. I was distracted.”

Rubbing his face in frustration, he simply growled an turned away. “Never mind. Let's just get back to business.” He took a deep sniff of the air, trying to see if he could find the crow itself. “Hm… I do smell a couple of corpses close by, probably a product of his crow.”

“'Corpses'?”

He looked back at her, a little confused by her tone. “Yeah, corpses. Why do you ask?”

She pointed straight ahead, her eyes wide and her hand trembling. “Because that doesn't look quite like a corpse.”

Following her gaze, he suddenly tensed when he spotted a dog emerging from the alley, walking with a pronounced limp due to the complete lack of flesh on its right foreleg. Once it came completely into the light from a street lamp, he realized that half the creature's flesh was rotting away and blood was dropping steadily from its panting mouth. When it turned to gaze at them with empty eye sockets, he heard Kagome give a small squeak and duck behind him.

“Listen…” he whispered over his shoulder as the dog slowly turned to face them. “Do you have a weapon on you? A gun or something?”

“I-I have a pocket crossbow.” He had to give her credit for trying to keep her cool; he had a feeling she hadn't been in any demon fight before now. “Sango gave it to me when I completed my training.”

“What the hell is a pocket crossbow?”

Reaching into the inside pocket of her coat and trying not to shiver as the icy air sliced at her, she pulled out a small metal crossbow, flipping a switch and allowing the prods to snap out. Another push of a button, and a bolt was ready to be fired.

Raising an eyebrow at the fancy mechanical weapon, he shook his head. “All right then, here's the plan: I'm gonna try and behead the blasted thing, because that sometimes kills undead creatures. If he's still moving, you need to shoot it, and your powers should purify it. Got it?”

She nodded nervously and held up the crossbow. “G-got it.”

With a shake of his head at her unnecessary anxiety, he took a deep breath to try and calm his own shaking limbs, then sprang forward with his claws bared. The dog reacted in quite the same way, but before its bloody fangs could embed themselves in Inu-Yasha's arm, its head was ripped clean off in a single blow. As the head dropped with a wet thud to the sidewalk, the body froze, becoming eerily still.

“Get ready, Kagome…” he growled warningly, taking a step away from the dog's stiff, headless body. “I don't think that killed it.” Suddenly, the exposed muscles in the dog's neck twisted and roiled, making Inu-Yasha jump in surprise. “What the hell?” He involuntarily took a step back.

Slowly, something sharp and black started to emerge from the neck; Inu-Yasha watched in disgust as a jet black bird pushed its way out, pausing to glare at him with three glowing yellow eyes.

“Huh…” he grunted, crouching and baring his claws for another attack. “This isn't just a demon crow, it's a carrion crow! It fights by taking over the corpse of a more powerful creature than itself.”

“So it took over a… stray dog?” Kagome's dry tone made him shrug.

“I never said they were that powerful to begin with. But never mind that. Just get your cross—“

Without warning, the crow let out an ear-splitting screech and burst from the dog, whose body collapsed in a heap on the sidewalk. The cry made Inu-Yasha cringe and stagger backward, and the crow took the opportunity to try and escape, attempting to dart to the top of the office supply store.

But following its deafening cry came the harsh twang of Kagome's spring-loaded crossbow, and a bolt enveloped in a white-blue light sliced cleanly through the crow, sending two halves to drop like stones next to the dog's head.

As the ringing in his ears slowly faded, he gave Kagome a look of mild surprise; he honestly hadn't expected her to be such a great shot. “Where'd you learn to shoot like that?”

Still looking rather rattled by the sudden action, she tried to smile brightly at him. “The Order trains its members well. You of all people should know that.” She then snapped the prods down and tucked her weapon in her inside pocket.

With a scoff, Inu-Yasha kicked the crow's head out of the way and stumped over to her. “Whatever. I'm just glad that's over with. Now let's go.” Now that the fight was over, his body was reminding him that a drink needed to be on the horizon or there would be hell to pay. Shoving his restless hands in his pockets, he started off down the sidewalk with Kagome quickly coming up next to him.

“Sango and Miroku asked me to call them once we finished; they want to know how it went.”

“Hmph.” He was busy pulling a pack of cigarettes out. “Damn busybodies…” It took him a minute to get one lit, but at last he achieved his goal and stuck the lighter back in his pocket. “They think just because they're the head of the Order that they can stick their noses in anyone's business.”

Kagome let out a soft laugh, causing Inu-Yasha to glance at her in surprise; for just experiencing her first demon fight, she was well in control of herself. It took most others a couple days to fully recover from the rather gruesome battles. “Well, it's their job to stick their noses in other people's business. They can't very well protect the city if they don't know what's going on, hm?”

“Hmph,” he grunted again.

The rest of the trip back to the care was silent, for Kagome could see that his temper was being tested and didn't want to push him further. She was, however, quite touched when he waited by the car as she climbed in, making sure she was in safely. It was late at night, and she wouldn't have felt comfortable had he not been there with her.

Rolling down the window, she said, “Call me when you want to come home, okay? I'll be happy to come get you.”

“Shut up and get goin'.” It wasn't meant to be mean, it was simply his way of saying goodbye. Once the window was back up, she cheerfully waved goodbye and pulled out onto the road, leaving him standing alone on the sidewalk.

For a couple minutes he stood still, watching her car drive off. However, the moment it turned the corner, he clamped his teeth around his cigarette so it wouldn't blow away, and then leapt to the top of the nearest building and began his rooftop chase of her car, always keeping it in sight. He knew that just because she was in her car didn't necessarily mean she was safe from all the dangers of the city. There were plenty of carjackers about, and also a few demons that weren't afraid of attacking small automobiles. So, even though the headache beginning to pound reminded him of the large stock of whiskey waiting for him at the Tap, he followed silently after her.

Though the trip didn't take long, he was more than relieved to come to a stop on the roof of a two-story building next to his apartment building. Eager to take off, he watched intently as Kagome turned off her car and pulled out her cell phone before finally climbing out of the vehicle.

“Hello, Sango, it's Kagome,” he heard her say as she locked her door. “Yes, it went quite well; it was over in a matter of seconds. Inu-Yasha's very good.”

He couldn't help but flush a bit at the comment.

“Oh, really? Well, sure, that sounds fine. He said he was going to the Tap, so… Oh, Miroku's coming here? Okay. I'll be waiting. Bye!”

He took a drag of his cigarette as he eavesdropped, although the last bit of the one-sided conversation made no sense. Watching closely, he growled at her for standing outside to talk on her phone when it was much safer inside, but she now had her phone away and was walking briskly to the doors. However, she paused with her hand on one of the handles, then glanced up in his direction. He knew she couldn't see him, for it was much too dark, but he ducked down anyway, and she soon was inside.

“Finally.” A couple bounds and he was gone, headed straight for the Cornerstone Tap.

oOoOoOoOoOo

Kagome sighed in relief once she made it to Inu-Yasha's apartment on the seventh floor; she never felt quite comfortable going about the city by herself. She would have asked him to accompany her, but hated to keep him away from the Tap, especially after the incident that morning. But still, she thought that she might not have gone home alone at all, for as she was about to open the door to the building, she swore she smelled cigarette smoke. Rather than assuming that it was an attacker, as she probably should have done, she had glanced towards the rooftops, thinking perhaps Inu-Yasha had followed her. While she wasn't certain, she thought she had seen the tiny red glow from the tip of a cigarette on top of the neighboring building, but it disappeared before she could be certain.

With a shrug, she pushed the thought from her head. Miroku was going to be over in a few minutes to discuss things with her, and she wanted herself and the place to be a bit more presentable than they were now, so she bustled off.

Roughly thirty minutes later, she had a fresh change of clothes on, and had cleaned Inu-Yasha's apartment as well as she could before there came a knock on the door, and then Miroku poked his head inside. “Hello?”

“Hello!” she replied cheerfully, emerging from the kitchen to greet him. “Come in, please. I was just making some tea, if you wanted any.”

“Um, yes, that would be fine.” He took a seat at the end of the couch as Kagome disappeared again, then took in the apartment. He had to admit to some surprise; he couldn't recall seeing the place look as nice as it did now. The tables and furniture weren't covered in a thick layer of dust, the carpet was a beige color rather than dull gray, there weren't overflowing ashtrays everywhere, and there weren't empty whiskey bottles adorning the coffee table. The place still smelt of stale whiskey and cigarettes, but he doubted Kagome would be able to do much about that, for those scents were ingrained in the fabric and added to daily. Still… He nodded in appraisal. She was doing quite well.

“Here we are.” Kagome quickly came back to the living room with a tray, handing him a mug of tea before settling into the armchair with her own cup.

“I can see you've made some improvements around here,” he told her with a teasing grin. “Although, I'm sure Inu-Yasha's not happy about you removing his bottle collection from its beautifully arranged display on the coffee table.”

Kagome smiled back. “You know, I don't think he actually minds too much; it gives him more room to prop his feet up.”

With a short laugh and a sip of tea, he set his mug back on the table and settled into the couch. “Well, let's get on to the purpose of my visit. As you know, Peace Day is coming up within a couple of weeks.” Peace day was the day of Naraku's defeat, celebrated city-wide. Businesses closed, children got a day off school, there was a parade and a festival, and at the end of the day there was an enormous gala at the mayor's mansion.

Kagome blinked, then quickly ran over the dates in her head and nodded. She had been so busy with her new patient that she had forgotten what day it was. Peace Day was December 4th, and today was November 20th. “You're right. I can't believe I forgot…”

“You've had your hands full, I understand. But, there are a few things I need to discuss with you concerning Inu-Yasha on Peace Day. Now, I'm sure you know that Peace Day is quite possibly the worst day of the year for him. However, he is forbidden to drink until after the gala is over.”

“Why?” Kagome was rather confused; she thought that no one was able to forbid Inu-Yasha to drink at all. He had been very stubborn about that.

Miroku sighed and shook his head. “It's a little complicated. You see, Inu-Yasha is invited, dozens of times a year, to attend city events, charity functions, school visits, etc., etc., in order to speak about his `heroic deeds' and to screen any questions people might have. And I'm sure you know he's not that type of guy.”

Kagome tried to picture him giving a speech to young students, and horrified herself at the thought of him staggering up to the podium with a cigarette dangling out of his mouth and a whiskey bottle clenched in his fist. “No, you're quite right.”

Miroku grinned slightly at the look on her face. “Right. So, we cover for him by turning down any and all offers that we get, save for one. He is required to attend the Peace Day Gala, to prove to the public that he is still alive, and hopefully keep up his image as the city's defender. It inspires hope in the citizens, and keeps him out of the tabloids. He tried to get out of the gala as well as all other offers he got, but we told him we wouldn't send away the other offers if he didn't show.”

Kagome nodded in understanding. It was a smart plan.

“So, the year after the battle with Naraku happened, he never showed. We found him two days later passed out in the alley behind the Tap. Not only did it give us a scare for his life, but it also embarrassed both the Order and the mayor when they called his name to get his medal and he never walked up on stage. We gave him a whipping for that one, and threatened him good if he never arrived at the next one.”

Frowning slightly, Kagome said, “But surely, as his friends, you know how he reacts to threats. He just digs his feet in even more.”

Miroku sighed. “He was a different person back then. We still weren't used to his alcoholism, and… I guess we expected him to be as easygoing as he had been while he was with Kikyo. That certainly wasn't the case anymore.”

“Ah, I see. All right, so what happened the next year?”

“Ugh.” Miroku covered his face with his hands at the memory. “Well, he did show up like we required, but was only able to stay sober until the speeches began. By the time he was called onstage, he had to be helped up by two of the presenters, he belched in the mayor's face while receiving his medal, and then, when he got to the microphone to give his acceptance speech, he shouted `Damn, it's hot in here,' and passed out, knocking down the mayor's wife.”

“Oh, goodness…” Kagome mirrored Miroku's position. “Please tell me he's gotten better since then.”

“Oh, yes. Do you really think we'd allow that kind of behavior to continue? The mayor was positively livid, as were Sango and I. After the three of us got through with him, he agreed to our restrictions, and has since then behaved well at the gala.”

Kagome stared at him, clearly impressed. “I… well, I just find that hard to believe. You actually got him to stop drinking on the day when he lost everything?”

With a sad smile, he replied, “I never said that. We've gotten him to stay sober up through the end of the gala, but after the dance is over and everyone has gone home… Well, let's just say it usually takes him a couple of days to recover once he's done. It's never been good.”

Kagome slowly picked up her tea and took a sip. “Oh dear…”

“I'm telling you this as a warning. Trying to tackle this problem is a nearly impossible task. That's why, for at least this year, Sango and I are only asking that you simply make sure he's safe. Maybe see if you can keep him at home rather than let him go wandering off to the Tap. We just don't want him getting hurt. One year he got hit by a car trying to stagger home, and it was touch-and-go for a while.”

Looking more than a bit daunted, Kagome nodded slowly, her hands tight around her mug.

Miroku, thought he hated to continue to talk on such an awful subject, had to go on. “There's one more thing: on the nights after the gala, Inu-Yasha's temper is at its absolute worst. He usually says some incredibly hurtful things, and he can get violent with anyone who interrupts his night of drinking. Sango and I bear both physical and unseen scars.”

He shrugged out of his jacket and then unbuttoned his shirt sleeve and rolled it up, showing Kagome four thin white lines embedded in the flesh of his forearm. “He was too drunk to do much damage, fortunately, but I did have to get stitches for these. He could have taken my arm off had his perception been better.”

Kagome fingered one of the lines, and expression of horror on her face. “But… Why does he keep drinking, if he knows that he could lose control and hurt his friends? How could he do that?”

Pulling his sleeve back down, Miroku shook his head in sorrow. “He can't help it. He hurts for Kikyo, and it causes him unbearable pain. Drinking is the only way he knows to deal with it. Sango and I can't hate him for that.”

Her expression easing, she sighed and sat back. “I don't know if I've met anyone so tolerant of a friend's behavior like you two.”

He shrugged, pulling his jacket back on. “We've been through a lot together. That's enough for Sango and I.” Glancing sheepishly at Kagome, he said with a touch of embarrassment. “I'm sorry for bringing your evening down like this. I just thought it best to warn you before it happened. It certainly took Sango and I by surprise that first time.”

Kagome waved her hand, trying to be at ease even though it was still obvious she was worried. “Don't worry about it. I appreciate the news.”

Trying to smile and bring the mood back up a bit, Miroku decided to draw on his vast knowledge of women to move on to happier subjects. “So, what are you going to wear to the gala? The Order will be paying for your dress, so don't worry about that.” Women loved to talk about clothes, right?

Kagome blinked at him. “Excuse me? What are you talking about?”

“Why, you do know that you'll be accompanying Inu-Yasha to the gala, right? Everyone must have a partner.”

“…What?!”

oOoOoOoOoOo

“Ah…ah…ACHOO!!!”

“That's lovely,” Iro said dryly as Inu-Yasha sniffed, looking a little surprised at the sudden sneeze. “Is someone talkin' about you, boy?”

“Like I know,” he growled, sniffing again before downing the rest of his drink. “Just fill `er up an' quit chattin'.” While feeling a little better now that he had almost an hour of liquor in his system, it would still take yet another hour before his mood would improve.

As Iro silently poured more whiskey into the demon's glass, Inu-Yasha heard the door to the bar open and his nose told him that it was Sango. Peering at her out of the corner of his eye as she took a seat next to him at the bar, he grunted, “What th' hell are you doin' here?”

“Why do you have to say it like that? Maybe I just wanted a drink. Beer, please,” she added when Iro looked expectantly at her.

“Like hell you did,” Inu-Yasha muttered around the lip of his shot glass.

The two drank together in silence for a little while, until at last Sango's presence was bothering him so much he snapped, “Look, you got somethin' t' say t' me, then say it!”

Trying to hide the wry grin on her face, she set her glass down on the polished wood and said quietly, “You know what day is coming up.”

A low growl rumbled in the back of his throat, and he drained his glass in a gulp. “Leave th' bottle an' go away,” he snapped when Iro came to refill it. Rolling his eyes, the bartender did as he was told and disappeared into the break room behind the bar to eat his dinner.

Pouring his own drink, Inu-Yasha replied, “Yeah, I know what god-forsaken day is comin' up. Why th' hell d'you gotta bring it up now?”

Sango swirled the beer around in her mug. “Well, I just needed to remind you of the rules concerning the gala, which I'm sure you already know by heart.”

“If I know `em by heart then why are you here?” he retorted, peering fuzzily at her.

She turned to face him, looking sternly at his flushed, scowling face. “There's a new factor this year. Kagome.”

He looked a little taken aback, and quickly turned away, swallowing another shot of whiskey. “What's she got t' do with anythin'?”

“She's going to accompany you to the gala this year. I hope you understand that this means you'll have to be on your best behavior around her. I get the feeling she'll be very nervous about an event as big as the gala.”

“Feh. Whatever.”

Narrowing her eyes as she gave him a very piercing stare, she continued, “Then there's the matter of after the gala. Now I know that you have no qualms about ripping into Miroku and myself—“ Inu-Yasha flushed a deep red and quickly downed another drink at the comment, “—but you will not do that to Kagome. You need to keep in control of yourself this year; if she's hurt by anything you do, you will have hell to pay, understand?”

“Look, what I do after th' gala is my own damn business, all right? Kagome shouldn' even be around! Why don't you an' Miroku take her home, if you're so worried?! I'll do what I like when that stupid thing is over!” He was about to continue, but Sango's fierce glare made him falter, and he soon quieted and turned away. He never liked talking about his antics after the gala; he always felt incredibly guilty the next day, but he knew just as well as Sango how little control over himself he had.

“All I'm saying…” she said quietly, “Is that you may want to remember all the hell you've put that poor girl through already.”

He didn't say anything, so Sango sighed and got up, leaving her half-finished beer on the counter. “Come on, I'll give you a ride home.”

Relieved at the subject change, he grunted, “I ain't done yet. Besides, Kagome's gonna come get me later.”

“Actually, she and Miroku are having a meeting back at your apartment, so I volunteered to give you a ride home. And I'm not waiting for you. Let's go.”

Scowling, he turned to glare at her. “And I say, I ain't done. Jus' `cause of your stupid assignment, I haven' had a drink in two days. Now lemme alone. I'll call Kagome later for a ride.”

She knew how difficult it was to persuade Inu-Yasha to do something he didn't want to do, so Sango quickly came up with a little white lie. “Look, once she found out that I was picking you up, she got changed into her pajamas. Do you really want to make her come and get you in her pajamas? Or worse yet, make her change back into her clothes to get you, just so you don't have to ride with me? That's really not very nice of you.”

He floundered for a moment, not realizing that Sango was teasing him. Finally, he slid off the barstool and left some money on the counter. “Guess I can jus' finish drinkin' at home…” he mumbled, stumbling a couple steps before Sango lent him some stability. “Don' wanna make her change clothes again…”

Stifling a laugh, Sango led him to her car, and they made it back to his apartment in no time. It took another several minutes to get him up the steps, but since he wasn't quite as drunk as usual, the task was a bit easier, much to Sango's relief.

At last they made it to the seventh floor, and Sango knocked once on the door before leading Inu-Yasha inside. “We're home!” she said, winking at Miroku as Inu-Yasha slowly followed after her.

“Hello, Inu-Yasha,” Miroku said, grinning as he stood up from the couch. “How was the fight?”

“Stupid…” he muttered, trying to get around Sango to go into the kitchen and get one of his own bottles whiskey, but he was having a rather difficult time of it.

“Inu-Yasha! Back so soon?” Kagome's sweet voice punctured his thoughts, and he turned blearily around to find her.

“Uh… yeah. Sango gave me a ride…”

“Oh, I see. Well here, come with me and we'll get you in bed; it's very late, and I know you didn't sleep much last night.” Kagome came forward and put one of his arms over her shoulders and her arm around his waist to help him back to the bedroom. “Bye Sango, bye Miroku!” she called back at the two of them.

He really didn't need the help, nor did he want to give up the rest of his night of drinking, but seeing Kagome smile so nicely at him, he relinquished his hope of more whiskey and gave in. “All right…”

Stifling laughter, Sango and Miroku watched as Kagome took Inu-Yasha down the hallway and they heard him say groggily, “You aren' in your pajamas…”

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