InuYasha Fan Fiction ❯ Himitsu ❯ Secret Tête à Tête ( Chapter 32 )

Title: Secret Tête à Tête

Author: aimee_blue

Prompt: Powder [oneshot#47]

Words: 2,048

Genre: Romance, Humour.

Rating: T

Warnings: None.

Summary: Kagome's relative visits and imparts a few home truths on Sesshoumaru... whether he wants them or not.

 

With shrewd eyes, Sesshoumaru watched Kagome strive to achieve normality. She was wearing a light rose summer dress that flirted around her knees and boasted a modest neckline. But he was busy paying attention to her temperature, the flush of her cheeks, the manner in which she carried herself, was she really well now after such a long - and painful - illness?

 

Sensing scepticism, Kagome turned to alleviate it. “Honestly, I'm fine,” she vowed, “I'll even be able to go to work on Monday.”

 

 

“Hn.” He'd believe that when he saw it.

 

Mulishly, Kagome folded her arms under her breasts and wrinkled her nose at him. “Don't `hn' me!”

 

Resisting the urge to do just that, Sesshoumaru gazed languidly out of the apartment window at the sweltering Tokyo beyond it. The temperature was broiling and the light breeze provided by the fan in the far corner of Kagome's sitting room did nothing to alleviate the humidity of the small room.

 

Brow puckering, Kagome shivered, clasping her bare upper arms with her hands. It felt like something was coming, something not so good.

 

Unaware of the attention her unusual reaction had garnered from her guest, she tilted her head to one side, stared vacantly at a potted plant and tried to recall how long she had been ill exactly. It took a moment of mental arithmetic, at which she was not exactly brilliant, before she panicked and dashed to the wall calendar, skidding a little in her slippers.

 

One finger traced a path through the weeks and she tapped a square that had been outlined in red pen with abject horror.

 

“No way,” she muttered to herself, tossing a harassed look at the ticking clock that proclaimed it to be half past eleven.

 

Irked at being ignored and dismissed, Sesshoumaru traversed the cluttered living room to Kagome's side. “What is it?” he asked.

 

“It's today!” she lamented shrilly, sprinting from the room into the kitchen where she hastily stacked the dishes back into the cupboard before dashing into the living room to straighten the sofa and plump the cushions.

 

Her words didn't explain much of anything, except that something she was apparently unprepared for was happening today. Whatever it was...

 

“Cease your twittering and explain, woman,” Sesshoumaru commanded dangerously as she scurried past him holding a feather duster aloft.

 

“No time for explaining,” Kagome dismissed the time-wasting notion and attacked her wonky lampshades, righting them hastily.

 

A restraining hand wrapped itself around her elbow and she ground to a halt, glaring at Sesshoumaru.

 

“Explain,” he demanded.

 

“Aunt Bea is coming here, today, for her annual visit,” Kagome hastily explained, tugging on her arm but failing to extricate herself from his iron grasp, “and if she sees my apartment in such a state she'll disown me!”

 

“Of that, there is no doubt,” a haughty voice intoned, causing Kagome to freeze wide-eyed where she stood.

 

“Bea?” Kagome spun around jerkily to blink dumbly at the woman in the doorway, twirling Miroku's keys on one elegant finger tipped with an infallible French manicure.

 

“I let myself in,” the blonde explained, allowing an expensive cashmere jacket to slide from her shoulders, “your flat mate... that charming, groping man... Miroku, was so kind as to lend me his keys.”

 

Underneath the coat Bea was dressed in understated yet expensive garments that seemed to be tailor made. At around fifty, she exuded a grace and poise that Kagome obviously hadn't inherited. Her accent had the faintest English lilt and it was obvious from her platinum blond hair and sparkling blue eyes that she was not native Japanese. But the eyes were perfectly replicated in Kagome's face.

 

Though Kagome's eyes were less shrewd and more innocent.

 

“You live in a sty, Kagome,” the woman admonished, sweeping dirty plates into the sink with proprietary intent before turning her gimlet stare upon Sesshoumaru.

 

Topaz eyes narrowed as the demon glowered back at this woman and Kagome hopped from foot to foot anxiously as they engaged in silent battle.

 

“And you are?” Bea prodded, one brow crooking as she rested an elegant elbow on the kitchen unit beside her.

 

“I could ask you the same,” Sesshoumaru needled, chin tilting upwards in a superior manner.

 

“Please! You two! Stop sizing each other up,” Kagome pleaded, glancing between them exasperatedly, “Aunt Bea, this is Sesshoumaru. Sesshoumaru, my Aunt Bea.”

 

Bea was the first to break eye contact, though she did it with an air of majesty and arrogance that spoke volumes about her exuberantly unstoppable character. It was clear in the smug lilt to her smile that she felt she had won the standoff, Sesshoumaru's scowl rang true with that assessment.

 

“Well,” Bea trotted to Kagome's side to peck a kiss on each of her cheeks, Kagome returning the favour and pressing kisses to Bea's own powdered cheeks, “You look a little peaky darling.”

 

Kagome shuffled her slippers against the kitchen tiles uneasily. “Yeah, I'm recovering from a demon flu virus.”

 

Sesshoumaru sneered as Bea tossed him a scathing look; she'd obviously assumed he was responsible for Kagome's illness. This woman was already rubbing him the wrong way. Ever quick to make judgements, Sesshoumaru had already relegated her to his list of people who habitually got on his nerves.

 

“Oh dear,” she mollycoddled; smoothing Kagome's hair and fluffing it in a preening manner that made Kagome squirm and wrinkle her nose, “how are you now?”

 

This simple inquisitor statement into Kagome's well being seemed ambiguous enough, but the penetrating stare that Bea then treated her too was anything but simple polite courtesy. Kagome gulped uneasily and nodded frantically, unable to disengage eye contact.

 

“Fine!”

 

“Fine is superfluous,” Bea chided, twirling a golden strand of hair around her finger, “people use it even when they are the exact opposite of well,” she huffed.

 

“Then... I'm feeling a lot better,” Kagome hedged, beaming as her Aunt smirked at her.

 

“Marvellous!” Bea enthused, “then, we will have to have a little Tête à Tête in our restaurant tonight... right now I have to have my hair trimmed,” she thrilled, tossing her hair over her should happily.

 

“The usual place?” Kagome confirmed.

 

“Yes... at, say, half seven,” Bea agreed happily, watching as Kagome scrawled it down on her wall calendar.

 

Sesshoumaru stiffened when Bea turned to him in a blasé manner. Appearing for all the world as if she had forgotten his presence because he was, to her, insignificant. He almost growled at that, he was not insignificant he was Sesshoumaru.

 

“Ah, yes, you,” she sniffed haughtily, “you may come too.”

 

“Such a reluctant offer doesn't persuade me,” Sesshoumaru uttered contemptuously.

 

Bea winked at the ornery Daiyokai. “But you will go because she'll be there,” she indicated, eyes shrewd.

 

Sesshoumaru sneered and Kagome sighed and rolled her eyes to the heavens, silently pleading for some kind of help.

 

“You are arrogant, prideful of your own musings,” Sesshoumaru dismissed Bea, his chin tilting stubbornly.

 

“I'm also right,” she chuckled, “you'll be there.”

 

***

 

Sesshoumaru scowled darkly as he tucked Kagome's hand into the crook of his elbow and led her into the low lit classy restaurant she'd showed him, that was squirreled away in the middle of nowhere.

 

He hated the fact that he was proving the insufferable Bea right by turning up, but he couldn't resist.

 

The music was understated and elegant, the ambiance cosy and relaxing, overall Sesshoumaru believed he would return here at a later date. But, with a glance to the wine list, he realised it was not cheap per say.

 

“You can afford to eat here?” he enquired softly in Kagome's ear as the proficient maître d' led them through the throngs of tables.

 

“Bea can,” Kagome corrected, not taking offense at his callous manner towards her lack of money. She knew he was ridiculously rich and she was getting by, she also knew that she'd never be able to eat here unless Bea was in town. Realism never lied.

 

“What does she do for a living?” he enquired as he pulled her chair out for her.

 

“She... dabbles,” Kagome evaded the question, tucking her loose curls behind her ears.

 

“Dabbles?” he niggled, unwilling to allow her to escape his questioning.

 

“She's my dad's sister,” Kagome explained, “and in the Greenwood side of the family -“

 

“Your name is Higurashi,” he interrupted.

 

“I hadn't noticed,” she quipped dryly, folding her cotton napkin into folds like it was a fan, “My mother kept her name - because I did live in Higurashi shrine - and we took hers because dad wanted us to fit in when we went to school.”

 

“Hn.”

 

“Anyway, on the Greenwood side of the family the blue eyes are a prominent feature,” she continued, splaying her fingers under her eyes to indicate her blue orbs, “and there's kind of a belief that they are an indicator of... precognition.”

 

She closed her eyes at this point, fingers knitting together anxiously in her lap. She prayed he wouldn't wonder if she had the gift. She never wanted him to pick up on her little... sideline income of predicting futures for paying customers and businessmen who enjoyed having an edge in the business market.

 

“So your Aunt can... see the future?” he was sceptical, his voice was saturated in doubt.

 

“Sort of,” Kagome shrugged, “she dabbles in stocks and shares... she's quite good actually - made herself a small fortune.”

 

“Hn,” he scoffed, “and you?”

 

She blushed brightly. “I just have a very high awareness of impending doom,” she placated him.

 

“Kagome!” Bea thrilled as she reached their table in an opulent flourish of expensive overcoat and subtle perfume. Her newly trimmed hair glittered magnificently and curled gently about her collar bone.

 

“Bea!” Kagome grinned happily as her Aunt claimed the seat next to her own.

 

Sesshoumaru said nothing, merely glowering at the woman. Though his eyes widened in astonishment as, minutes later, she caught a glass that fell from the passing waitress' tray whilst batting nary an eyelid.

 

The water sloshed inside and she grinned toothily.

 

***

 

The unlikely trio leant back in their seats a little while later, bellies full, appetites sated and lethargy taking hold of them.

 

“Are you guys going to kill each other if I leave you two alone?” Kagome enquired, glancing between them dubiously, “because I have to go to the bathroom.”

 

“We will be fine,” Bea assured, patting Kagome's hand softly.

 

“Sure,” Kagome acquiesced hesitantly; deciding to return quickly to make sure nobody maimed anybody.

 

Bea's astute eyes tracked Kagome's retreating for as she disappeared into the bathroom and waited until the door closed behind her before she turned to face the dog demon.

 

“So, dog,” Bea began, hands clasped under her chin, elbows resting on the table, “in place of my older brother I feel obliged to ask, what are your intentions with my niece?”

 

“I have no intentions, she is merely amusing,” Sesshoumaru harrumphed, looking away from the irksome woman.

 

“Are you trying to convince me or yourself?” she baited, eyes narrowing.

 

“I need to convince no one of the truth,” he barked, eyes shooting Bea a sidelong glare.

 

“Sure,” she niggled, rolling her eyes, “and so you looked after her whilst she was ill out of...”

 

“Duty.”

 

“Of course,” she shrugged, trying to dispel the tension that his affronted glares were causing, “It couldn't be that, on the way, in the midst of the teasing and the baiting and the niggling, you've begun to see her as more than amusement?”

 

Bea spat the word amusement as if it were a curse word and Sesshoumaru's glare intensified.

 

“You are ridiculous,” he dismissed the woman haughtily.

 

“No, you are the ridiculous one.”

 

“You two!” Kagome chastened, scampering back to the table side, a blush dusted across her cheeks, “you're disrupting everyone else.”

 

Their heated words had indeed incurred an agog crowd and Sesshoumaru slouched in his chair and sulked.

 

“It was her.”

 

“Pup,” Bea needled waspishly.

 

“You guys!” Kagome groaned.

 

***

 

Bidding Kagome and the dog farewell, Bea folded herself gracefully into a taxi and slipped her phone from a pocket of her coat.

 

“Keiko-chan? It's me, Bea. Do you remember when you said you owed me for life? Well... I need a little favour,” there was a pause as Bea chortled, “no, nothing illegal... this time.”