InuYasha Fan Fiction ❯ Head Over Heels ❯ Where Your Eyes Don't Go ( Chapter 8 )

[ Y - Young Adult: Not suitable for readers under 16 ]

Sesshomaru leaned forward over his clasped hands. �You possess an iniquity I�ve never felt before.� His voice was velvet, I knew this was not meant as a criticism; he�d sensed my sinister shadows and found them intriguing. Perhaps even attractive.

Anime/Manga: InuYasha Fan Fiction | Genre(s): Comedy / Hentai / Romance | Type: Alternate Universe | Uploaded On: 01.08.2006 | Pages: 9 | Words: 8.1K | Visits: 547 | Status: Completed

Chapter Eight

Where Your Eyes Don't Go

Kagura:

“Okay you're on. Let's do dinner.”

Rin squealed in delight, jumping up and down. Sesshomaru said nothing.

Wait. What had I just agreed to?

I asked cautiously, “So what are we having?”

And without missing a beat, his royal Mutt-ness replied, “People.”

Rin giggled at this so I felt pretty safe in assuming this was some kind of running gag between them.

Though to be honest for a moment I was just a bit worried. There are still a few yokai who aren't beyond the old ways of consuming human flesh. Needless to say those yokai aren't very popular and don't get many party invitations. Also many yokai families, even the best ones, are stained with the taint of human blood so such an act is now considered barbarous but one can never be too careful.

Later I would learn Rin was a huge fan of the latest version of Charlie and the Chocolate Factory and this was indeed an inside joke. Thank goodness for that because I have enough problems without being stalked by the ghost of an old dinner.

I laughed along with Rin then said, “Funny man, no really what are you having?”

He shook his head, “Cook was in charge so I suppose whatever it is it'll be…festive.”

Oh well festive sounded more appetizing than the frozen turkey dinner I had waiting for me at home in my mini fridge; there had been a buy one get one free sale on them at the supermarket.

“Sounds good”, I allowed then gave into my driving impulses. I dug through my bag and pulled out my camera. Before Sesshomaru could protest I snapped his picture.

“Do you plan on sketching me?” he asked while he bent down to pick up Rin's new bicycle.

I threw out a flippant answer, “Perhaps, if the mood strikes me.” I wasn't confessing that I had bypassed all moods and gone straight to obsession.

I read somewhere that truly crazy people never questioned their own sanity. So I've been clinging to the beautiful notion that as long as I wonder about my sanity then I couldn't be crazy.

Rin took the hint it was time to go and skipped ahead of us singing.

The sun is a mass of incandescent gas

A gigantic nuclear furnace

Where hydrogen is built into helium

At a temperature of millions of degrees

I knew there was a reason I loved that kid. I didn't have to look to know that Sesshomaru was shaking his head, but I did anyway. Hey you can't fault a girl for knowing what she likes.

“She's played that CD you made her non-stop. And thank the Gods; she likes the Sun song even better than the tuna song.” His tone was conversational, he wasn't really complaining.

I smiled smugly, “I thought she might like that song.”

“Please tell me that band isn't into devil worship.”

I was tempted to say something horrible but gave in to the truth, “Nahh, those guys are great. I've seen them twice.”

We walked across the park and it occurred to me that from a distance we might appear to be any normal couple or family even out for a holiday walk.

His hand accidentally brushed mine and I felt his fingers linger on my hand for a moment as brief as the wind. It was really silly that all of this had spurred from a simple fall in a run down book store.

Then who am I to question fate? But then she hasn't often been my friend and perhaps the bitch felt she owed me one.

_-_-_-_

His silver Bentley was impressive. At the sight of it my lips flew open to announce my complete lack of class. “Wow! Hey, did you know the Queen of England rides around in one of these?”

Sesshomaru opened the truck and fit the bike inside. If I owned a car like this would I put a kid's bike in it? Hell no. Would I drive around my neighborhood for hours on end until everyone had seen me? You'd better believe it.

He answered in a flat tone. ”No, you are the first person to ever tell me that. I had no idea.” I had to admit he even wore sarcasm well.

Rin opened a door and climbed in the back. I watched her shut the door behind herself and determined she was used to riding shotgun but was willing to sacrifice her seat to me.

Sweet she might be but innocent she wasn't.

_-_-_-_

To say they lived on the nicer side of town was an understatement.

I watched out the window as the city quickly gave way to the upper side neighborhoods.

The houses were built close together and the neighborhood was old, maybe well over a hundred an fifty years old. The water spouting was guarded by diligent and solemn stone gargoyles. The house fronts sat directly on the sidewalk but I knew the walled backyards contained generous gardens.

When we pulled up in front of one of these gothic architectural wonders, I leaned back in my seat and sat about pretending not to be impressed.

We turned down the side alley and he parked the car beside the house. I knew it was likely someone would move it for him later on.

I followed them up the elaborate stone walkway and when he threw open the front door I was over taken by a barrage of elaborate Christmas decorations.

We stood in the foyer and I allowed him to pull off my coat. We were at the foot of a curving staircase. The stair spindles had evergreen garland woven through them, accented with golden fruit and tiny white lights.

A live potted spruce sat in the corner down up in white lights, gold ribbons and more of the fruit. I wasn't expecting Sesshomaru to be so enthusiastic about anything much less Christmas.

“Wow.” Yeah I was using that word a lot today.

I watched him hang my coat beside his and Rin's in a tiny closet. “This place is unbelievable.” In my jeans and sneakers I was feeling the part of Little Orphan Annie in the din of Daddy Warbucks sans all the dancing.

The scent of evergreen hung in the air and every door was graced with a live evergreen wreath. Suddenly I was glad I agreed to come. The house alone was well worth the trip.

Sesshomaru waved a dismissive hand at the décor. “My housekeeper did this.”

Okay now I was jealous. He had a housekeeper and she did things like this? “Did she get a raise?”

“What for? She went over and beyond my request for something simple for Rin.” His voice rang with his aggravation.

Rin looked up at me proudly, “A magazine man came and took pictures. My Christmas trees are famous!”

Now that the midget mentioned it the stairway was familiar. “That's right. I think I saw them in the special holiday issue of City Homes and Gardens.”

What can I say? You don't miss much when you work in a bookstore.

_-_-_

I swear the maids must've been watching the street for Sesshomaru's car because dinner was ready and waiting.

The dining room had it's own tree except this one was done up in silver. Sesshomaru pulled out my chair for me and I being a silly female type was flattered.

The table seated twelve but we sat cloistered at one end for a more intimate meal. It was a shame too because I was looking forward to shouting across the table to see if he'd really get up and walk the salt over to my end.

The maid, I'm sure she was more than a maid but I never did figure out her exact title, poured an amazing Riesling in my glass. I was appreciating my first sip when Rin got down to business.

It deserves to be said that no trained adult can interrogate quite as well as one simple child. “Why aren't you with your family?”

Sesshomaru, who was sitting on the end of the table sat down his wine glass and admonished, “Rin.”

I shook my head. “It's okay. I don't mind.”

The maid presented her with what appeared to be a wine glass of apple juice and Rin pressed, “So?”

“My parents were coming to visit but our plans fell through.” Actually the whole idea was nuts. Naraku would never agree to stay in my cramped apartment anyway.

Rin asked, “Where are they now?”

I took another drink, “Hawaii.”

“You didn't want to go to Hawaii?”

With Naraku? That was a resounding HELL NO.

“Nah and I wasn't able to get the time off from work.”

Rin frowned, “That's not fair.

Sesshomaru swirled the wine in his glass, watching me over the rim, listening intently to our every word.

I unfolded the linen napkin, which was far cry from my paper Scooby Doo print napkins at home, and spread it across my lap. “It doesn't matter, it's just one day. And now I'm here with you.”

Rin must've had a list because she tossed me another question, “Where do you go to school?”

I laughed, “I've been out of school a long time. What grade are you in?”

She sat up straighter in her chair, “Second grade. Where do you work?”

Sesshomaru apparently decided he wasn't going to learn anything new about me and cut her off, “A bookstore Rin. Now if you wish to dine with us then be quiet.”

Rin blinked but wasn't upset but his gruff words.

_-_-_

Dinner was a standing crown roast; the kind in a circle with the bony rib ends standing up like the points of a crown wearing the little white hats. I watched Sesshomaru carve it, a feat in its self and managed not to drool.

Frozen turkey Budget gourmet dinners be damned!

Rin ate most of her thin slice than began pushing her asparagus around her plate. Sesshomaru noticed and whispered to the maid.

Minutes later a thin woman with short blonde hair appeared. “Rin dear, it's time for your bath.”

Rin looked up from her plate and protested, “Can't I stay here? I don't feel dirty.”

Sesshomaru pointed to the woman, “No Rin. Go with Jane.”

The girl pushed her chair away from the table and dragged her feet as she followed the woman. She gave me a forlorn glance over her shoulder.

I asked, “Is Jane the babysitter?”

“No, she's the nanny.”

A real live nanny, I thought those went out of fashion with Mary Poppins, unless you were a movie star who needed a scandal to liven up your publicity. “Oh.”

At first I was uncomfortable at the thought of being alone with him. But we weren't technically alone; the staff was still here, somewhere. And now that I was in the lion's din, he seemed more relaxed and content to take his time getting to whatever it was he had in mind. The air of blatant hunger had calmed.

Dessert was a gorgeous chocolate torte. It took more self control than I realized I possessed not to dive right in to the slice on the china plate sitting before me.

Sesshomaru licked the thick frosting from his fork giving me a serendipitous answer to my earlier cake question. He was definitely an extra chocolate icing man. “Pulled any good stunts as of late?”

I sighed, “No.” Not that I hadn't thought of any.

“Two days and no pranks? That must be a record for you.” His voice was cool amusement. Now I wish I had thrown leaves in his hair while we were at the park.

“Not everything is a joke.” It was the best answer I could muster with my attention wrapped up in the cake.

Then a question I'd been dying to ask rolled off my lips. “How did you become Rin's guardian?”

A single wrinkle appeared in his brow, “Her family was murdered and I found her.”

Could he be any more vague? “She was homeless?”

“They were mugged and she…was injured but escaped. I found her and took her to the police station. Once the full extent of her situation was known, I asked to foster her.”

I wanted to hug him and strangle him with his own black turtleneck all at the same time. “Are you keeping…I mean adopting her?”

“This is her home. It would be cruel to send her away; the papers will be finalized soon.” He picked up his fork and returned to his slice of torte.

Poor Rin, she'd been through so much. “How long have you had her?”

I was worried I was prying too much but he answered easily, “Just over two years.”

“She seems to love you.” It was true, that kid worshipped the ground he walked on. Of course being a taiyokai he was probably used to it.

Sesshomaru's answer caught me off guard. “Why? Before you met Rin, did you think I wasn't loveable?”

Loveable wasn't quite the word I would've used. “You just don't appear to be an overtly…affectionate.”

The room was quiet except for the clang of his fork against his china plate. “Affection is sometimes overrated. It is too often mistaken for passion.”

The conversation was taking an odd twist. I countered with, “I think it's possible to have both affection and passion.” He had some odd ideas about love.

Sesshomaru's eyes caught mine. “True passion can not last; it burns too fiercely and soon runs out of fuel.”

“So I take it you are not a big fan of Romeo and Juliet?”

He smiled and I caught a glimpse of a fang. “Hardly.”

“I agree. I've always preferred Beatrice and Benedict myself.” I sat back in the chair watching with remorse as the maid whisked away the heavenly chocolate torte.

Sesshomaru stood. “Beatrice and Benedict were too easily manipulated. Lady Macbeth was an admirable woman; she knew exactly what she wanted. Come have a drink with me in the living room. ”

Power.

The word was never said but still sat heavily in the air. In this world where Christmas trees sat in every corner, power superseded all including love.

I followed him down the hall, fully under the influence of the wine, and good chocolate. “Perhaps but she wasn't successful. Machiavelli now…”

He pushed open a door, “Machiavelli was a god.”

The living room had yet another elaborate Christmas tree. The furniture was all white, his seemingly favorite color. The fireplace was lit and the fire roaring a clue that our arrival was anticipated.

I sat in the over stuffed chair beside the fire and he poured two glasses of bourbon from a crystal decanter sitting on the mantel. The glass was appealing but I had to go home sometime. Much as I'd loved to, I couldn't just move in here.

Sushi would never approve.

I accepted the glass, “Thanks but I can't stay too much longer. Don't get me wrong, dinner was lovely but it's almost eight.”

Sesshomaru didn't answer me. Instead he pulled the curtains aside on the large picture window. I saw it was snowing something fierce. “I'm not sending out the car in this and you sure as hell aren't walking home. I have guest rooms, you can pick one.”

Oh shit.

Well there was no arguing, I was stuck. I sipped the bourbon and sat back down in the chair. “C'est la vie!”

He perched on the end of the ottoman studying my reaction as though he expected more of a fight than this. His silver hair was long enough that he was almost sitting on it. “So you are resigned to staying?”

I shrugged, “Well you made a very reasonable argument. But then I suppose you would, how Machiavellian of you to win an imaginary argument with logic.”

Sesshomaru blinked then broke out in sincere and full bodied laughter. “You are a clever witch.”

Witch?

What the hell? “I'm not a witch.”

He leaned forward over his clasped hands. “You possess an iniquity I've never felt before.” His voice was velvet I knew this was not meant as a criticism; he'd sensed my sinister shadows and found them intriguing. Perhaps even attractive.

Great!

If I could just give them away then he could have them. But I've long ago accepted they were mine to keep. Well, well the stakes just got much higher. However I don't give out my secrets easily or for free.

I sat up in the chair and crossed my legs. “I'm not evil, just independent.”

Sesshomaru was forth right, “If you were evil you wouldn't be here. But there is something there.”

Maybe I was way off the mark and his drink was just going to his head. “I'm not giving up my secrets.” I said it in a jesting tone but I was serious. Some doors were not meant to be open.

He held up his glass to the firelight. “That only serves to make you more… interesting.”

“Oh come on Sesshomaru. You have your own skeletons just waiting to fall out of a closet somewhere.” And I was, excuse the pun, dying to meet every one of them.

He was philosophical, “Perhaps but what is life without a little intrigue?”

Oh that's easy. “Safe and peaceful.”

Sesshomaru sat his glass on the tiles beside the fireplace screen. “Why aren't you at peace?”

“When you say it that way it sounds as if I'm dead.” I held out my glass for a refill.

He took it and poured generously from the elaborate decanter. “Are you?”

“How many dead people do you drink with?” I shot back and took a deep slug of bourbon. The alcohol provided much needed warmth. Sesshomaru was treacherous and his questions left a cruel chill in my blood.

“Not many.” He admitted.

“There you go. And as you can see I am very much of the world of the living. You are a morbid bastard.”

“I'm not morbid, just cautious.” was his reply.

I noticed he didn't bother denying he was a bastard. In the firelight his stripes were exotic and his lips inviting. Maybe I should've passed on the alcohol.

Oh well it was too late for that.

_-_-_-_

Sesshomaru:

The witch's ruby eyes glittered in the fire light. The alluring scent of mimosa mingled with the heat of the fire.

Her eyes swam with surreptitiously locked doors. Suddenly I was possessed with the demanding desire to pick the lock on every one of them. Her true self was hiding from me in a pool of darkness. This was unacceptable.

I will have her body and soul.

She was relaxed and unwinding under the influence of her drink but not enough to give herself away.

I decided to try a different approach, “Kagura are you always alone?”

The question made her uncomfortable and she fidgeted in her seat. “Not always.”

“But it's easier for you?” I leaned forward so I could watch the firelight reflect in her eyes.

“Yes. But I think that is something you would understand. You're not exactly a social butterfly yourself.” The witch had me there but we were talking about her not me. I would not allow her to turn the tables.

“I have Rin.”

She shrugged, “I have a fish.”

I answered, “Pets don't count.” Especially fish, they are only one step up from a house plant.

She yammered on, “Sushi thinks he's a person.”

I pushed my face in hers and was assaulted with the scent of her; bourbon, mimosa, shampoo and suspicion all melded together for an intoxicating blend. “Fish don't count, even if they are cruelly named.”

Kagura stuck a finger in my chest. “You should know cruelty. I bet you wrote the book on it.” Her tone was light but she wasn't completely kidding.

I captured her errant hand that was still rudely pointing at me. When she didn't pull it back I bent down and brushed my lips across her knuckles testing her for a reaction. I could almost taste her flesh. “And pray tell what have I done to make you think this of me?”

She bit her bottom lip then hit me with an honestly brutal answer, “Because that's what you want me to think, isn't it?”

_-_-_-_

Notes:

In Charlie and the Chocolate Factory, the Tim Burton version Wonka goes on about everyone including people being `eatable'.

I read in a few places, and can't find the stupid link, that yokai often fed from the human dead on battle fields. And as much as it saddens me to say this; in the show when Rin first meets Sesshomaru and tries to give him food he tells her he doesn't eat her food. So I will let you make what you want of that. I personally have decided to ignore it.

Rin is singing a They Might Be Giant song, Why Does the Sun Shine.

Beatrice and Benedict are from Shakespeare's Much Ado About Nothing.

Machiavelli was a real person who wrote some scathing books on politics and how to get what you want.

Iz is writing angry letters right now to the Adult Swim jerks. Unfortunately she can only hunt and peck so it may take awhile.

From the Devils Dictionary:

Rumor: A favorite weapon of the assassins of character.

Saint: A dead sinner revised and edited.

Selfish: Devoid of consideration for the selfishness of others.