InuYasha Fan Fiction ❯ Laying Down the Law ❯ Race Wars I ( Chapter 22 )

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

WOOHOO! I'm really excited for the Race Wars chapters because they're like the pinnacle of the story, full of action and romance, blood and guts aweomse! Okay, so before we start I'm gonna have a quick FAQ because it'll help you guys out.

Q: Why can't the guys tell Gan is a girl?
A: Glad you asked. I haven't actually gotten to the part where I explain it yet, but Gan is using an illegal scent masker called Plain which is produced from the skin oil of Leopards. It masks her scent to smell like a boys, at least hormonally. Otherwise, the guys take her to be a rather effiminate boy; I mean, if Keira Knightly, the hottest girl ever, can get away with acting like a girl on a pirate ship for thirty minutes, Gan can get away with it for three years. Right? Sure.

Q: When/Will Kagome become part of the Wildcats?
A: Haha, silly question, of course, but it takes place near the end of the story. This story has several plots and one of them is Kagome's journey to becoming a Wildcat.

Q: How long will this story be?
A: About 30 chapters is my guess. We're already well past 100,000 words, so it'll end up being pretty lengthy

Okay, that pretty much sums up the FAQ for now, so on to the story. If more questions arise, I'll be sure to answer them. Thanks to all my reviewers, I love you guys, you make my day. I'm really excited to share this chapter with you...like, seriously. I'm really really pumped.

Kagome took a deep breath as she stepped out of her beat up Triumph, gazing at the warehouse for what seemed like the last time. According to Rin, Race Wars was the highlight of the gangs' year and defined what life would be like for another twelve months. Despite the ominous aura surrounding this statement, Kagome couldn't help but feel strangely excited.

The previous day, a double decker truck transporter had arrived to take away the cars and motorcycles, which Sesshomaru insised be kept in mint condition until the races. Due to this decree, the racers had loaded their vehicles onto the transport, bidding them farewell until the arrived at Race Wars the next day; for their six hour drive to the race location, the Southern cores would split themselves up amongst two RVs.
A great deal of carpooling had taken place that morning, due to the lack of cars and motorcycles nearing the race, and Kagome was in charge of transporting the Wildcats. Kagome locked the Tiumph behind her, though she doubted anyone in their right mind would steal such a car, and began walking purposefully towards the RVs with a duffle bag slung over her shoulder. The other girls followed suite, carrying their own bags, while Rin was carrying an enormous rolling suitcase. It skipped and hopped over the gravel, causing her slight discomfort, though she continued valliantly on.
The boys were already present and accounted for, standing in circles and waiting for the leaders to conclude their brief meeting. As soon as the girls walked up, the boys grinned and boyfriends broke away from the crowd, greeting their women in their own special ways. Rin brought her suitcase to a stop and jogged towards the other leaders, adjusting her bikini top absent mindedly.

"Hey, sorry I'm late. We had to get the Triumph push started at every stoplight," she said breathlessly, smiling all the while.

Sesshomaru rolled his eyes, massaging the bridge of his magnificent nose as he asked, "Couldn't you have taken another car?"

"Well, mine's in the shop and the other girls' put theirs on that truck yesterday," Rin argued, crossing her arms pertly across her chest. She was becoming rather flushed, either with embarrassment or anger she wasn't sure, but Sesshomaru couldn't help but find the sight pleasing.

Bankotsu chuckled, crimson eyes twinkling with mirth. "We really should fix that old car for Kagome," he mentioned in his laid back tone, shaking his black head regretably.

At this, Ranbou only grinned. "Hell, for the money we'd spend fixing that piece of shit, we could buy her somethin' else."

"Perhaps an upgrade is in order. Like a Vespa, for instance; I'd say that's an upgrade from the Triumph," Akago deadpanned, earning laughs from the other leaders. During their first week in the South, the Sharks had proven thesmelves to be an integral part of any mechanical, financial or social situation. As Gan had stated previously, every Shark was well mannered, wise, and generally the sort of boy you would bring home to meet your mother. In fact, Sesshomaru couldn't recall meeting so many wholesome men in any gang before, even his own. He knew quite a few Fangs had shady pasts, but they were good men...just far from "wholesome." All in all, it surprised everyone how easily the Sharks smoothed out the wrinkles in Southern life.

"Well see how she does at Race Wars. Whatever she does will warrant the vehicle she receives," Sesshomaru said with a small smile, eyes gleaming with excitement. Race Wars was not only the pinnacle of his year but the saving grace of his gang. He couldn't help but release a smile. "But back to business. The only thing left to decide is how to split the RVs. They're the same model, hold the same amount, and drive the same way. It's really a social question."

Ranbou shrugged, holding out his hands plantively. "Well, c'mon now, we're civilized adults. We can work this out without a fuss. Let's just ask the others."

The leaders turned to face their gang members, only to find a good percentage of them making out with each other. Sesshomaru frowned, crossing his arms with a weary glance in Ranbou's direction. "You were saying?"

"I retract my previous statement," Ranbou said dully, cocking an eyebrow as his brother's tongue searched for unknown treasure in Ayame's throat.

Sesshomaru was, fortunately, spared the unwanted sight of his own brother doing nasty things, but Inuyasha's arms were currently locked protectively around Kagome's waist as he planted warm kisses on her neck. She was carrying on a conversation with Shitora, both of them looking for all the world like everything was completely normal.

Akago made the mistake of settling his eyes on Sango and Miroku, who were talking with Hiten, Ginta and Hakkaku about the upcoming races. Unbeknownst to the other three, Miroku's hand seemed to be massaging Sango's right but cheek through her jean pocket. The white haired demon made a choking sort of sound, pale cheeks growing slightly green; how revolting.

Rin followed his gaze, wondering what could turn the stomach of the mighty Akago, and immediately flushed a pretty pink. "Holy shit, gross," she murmured, turning away to bury her head in Sesshomaru's side. Sighing, Sesshomaru tried to work the angry knots out of his temples, but he couldn't seem to bring down the pain.

Bankotsu regarded the pulsing vein on Sesshomaru's head with considerable caution. "Shomo, calm down now..."

"Oh for the love of Kami," Sesshomaru barked, amber eyes opening with a terrifying snap.

Rin pulled away from her boyfriend, who looked positively angry, and took her place beside Akago. "This is going to be interesting."

"Indeed," came Akago's quiet reply; he watched the goings on with a small smirk, pale arms stark against the black of his Sharks jacket.

Sesshomaru took several steps forward, addressing the crowd before him with fire in his stare. "Males in that RV," he said commandingly, pointing to the one on his right. "And females in that RV," he continued, pointing to the one on his left. All activity ceased as the others regarded him curiuosly, wondering what could've set him off. If the protruding vein on his forehead was any indication, Sesshomaru was in a downright vile mood at the moment.

"Wait a damn m-" Inuyasha began, only to find his mouth covered by a smooth, rose scented hand.

"Inuyasha, do you want to die?" Kagome hissed, brown eyes narrowed dangerously.

Gulping at the scary looks on both his brother and girlfriend's faces, Inuyasha shook his head rather quickly and quieted down, skulking back into the shadows where he couldn't be seen. After a confused moment of silence, Sesshomaru said silkenly, "Think of it as a cleansing experience. Move. Now."

With these words, everyone hefted their bags and began walking to their specified RV. It became apparent as they neared the cars that this idea of boys and girls wasn't going to work; there were more than twice as many boys than girls, making the idea of living with eleven boys in one RV rather bleak. Sesshomaru, nonetheless, stepped boldly into the RV, hefting his back into one of the overhead compartments. There were two seating areas, like restaurant booths in the center of the car, with the two bedrooms in the back. Several seats occassionally popped out of the walls, wood panneling and all, and the RV seemed like a cozy place to be for the seven hour trip. As the boys all began piling in, Kouga raised an eyebrow curiously.

"Shomo, the way I see it, three guys can sleep in each booth, right? That's six. We got another four in the bedrooms, and that makes ten. But then we've got one more guy and putting him on the floor is gonna be impossible; none of us are thin enough," the wolf demon said, blue eyes rather muddled with confusion.

Recognizing Kouga's point, Sesshomaru glanced around the cabin at the men present. Since he was still in a rather dodgy mood about public displays of affection in his gang, he decided to send the least manly man to stay with the girls for the trip. His eyes traveled over the crowd before they finally settled on the one boy he was thinking of.

"Gan, you're one lucky man; you get to stay with the girls."

The other boys groaned, occasional moans of "lucky bastard" and "why not me." Gan's face showed no expression as he sighed, recollecting his duffle bag and rolling his violet eyes plantively. "Oh boy. I'll call you guys and let you know what the latest gossip is, who Brad Pitt's screwing, all that delightful stuff."

Laughing, the other boys sent him off, none of them worrying about their women in the presence of the Gun. If there was ever a man they trusted with their women, it was Gan; not only was he polite and respectful, but he showed absolutely no interest in women. He didn't seem gay, though a-sexual might've been an option. As Gan stepped out of the RV, making a slow walk to the other one, the man facade fell off and she whimpered. While keeping on a man face before other men was bad but easy, keeping one in front of girls was worse; they were the smarter sex, the more intuitive race. If she made it through this weekend with only a bottle of scent masker and the luck of God, Gan would be incredibly surprised.

Sighing, Gan opened the door of the girl's RV, coming face to face with a mildly surprised Sango, who was in the driver's seat. "Well, hey there Gan," she mumbled. "What's up?"

"There were too many people in the other RV, so Sesshomaru sent me over here," Gan replied formally as Sango stared mercilessly at her, obviuosly, as Gan saw it, breaking down her disguise piece by piece. Any minute now, Sango was going to yell something like, "you're a girl?!" But nothing like that happened.

Shrugging, Sango said, "Welcome to the girl's RV then."

Nodding slightly, Gan trudged up the steep steps and entered the RV, which was a carbon copy of the boy's RV, except with less bag clutter and less rotten colon scents. Smiling slightly, Gan remembered for the briefest moment what it was like to hang out with girls. She had, after all, been undercover since she was thirteen; hanging out with girls hadn't exactly worked it's way into her schedule as of late.

"Hey bitches, where's the deode-...holy shit!"

There stood Shitora, naked except for a pair of red lace underwear, thinking her bare breasts were safe from the eyes of peeping males. Upon seeing Gan, the girl grew red and let out a shriek, running quickly into the bathroom and slamming the door. Gan gulped, massaging her temples wearily; this was going to be a long trip.

At this moment, the sound of screeching tires was heard and a blue Jeep pulled up to the gravel parking area, stopping witha deadening jolt. With high pitched "thank yous," Souten Mitsarugi and Shippo Sasuga came sprinting towards the RVs with duffle bags slung over their shoulders. With a shrug, the driver of the jeep gunned the car in reverse and sped away from the warehouse, hurrying off in the opposite direction.

Sesshomaru raised an eyebrow at the scene, which he observed rather boredly out the RV window, and asked, "Whose turn was it to pick up Shippo and Souten this morning?"

There was a brief pause before Kouga smacked his forehead and exclaimed, "Shit!"

Raising a delicate eyebrow, Akago turned to Hiten and asked, "Weren't you at all worried about your sister's whereabouts?"

Hiten only stared mutely at Akago for a few moments before he replied confusedly, "I forgot she was at Shippo's. I figured I'd...see her later?"

Sighing, Akago shook his head and turned away as Shippo came sprinting up to the door of the RV, which Miroku promptly opened. "Good thing you made it in time, Shippo, we were about to take off," the driver informed him, grinning to show he was joking.

"How'd you even get here?" Kouga asked, eyebrow cocked curiously.

"We thumbed a ride."

Souten took a tentative wiff of the air and scrunched up her nose. "There's only guys in there," she announced, making a face.

"You're in the girl's RV," Miroku informed her, waving a hand in the other car's direction. Shrugging, Souten waved goodbye to Shippo and hurried off towards the other car, wondering what she could possibly talk about for eight hours with a bunch of women; women were annoying, she'd learned. She much preferred men.

Miroku watched Shippo's eyes, which followed Souten's every step to the RV, and the violet eyed boy chuckled lowly. "You were staring at her ass, weren't you Shippo?"

The fox demon whirled about to face Miroku, blushing a bright red from where he stood on the concrete. "What?! Of course not!"

As the boy climbed the steps, still a brilliant red, Miroku closed the door with a hiss of air and said, "Those who protesteth much, my friend. Sounds like you've got a crush."

The others laughed at the sour expression on Shippo's face as the boy threw down his bag by the others and sat down on the end of a booth seat. "Yeah, well at least I don't have my hand on Souten's ass the whole day long. Like this one guy and his girlfriend I know..."

The other boys cracked up and let out woops of approval at Shippo's comeback, which was generally unlike the well tempered boy; the Fangs were starting to rub off on him. Miroku laughed nervously and rubbed the back of his head in embarrassment, mumbling, "Well, got me there; at least your skinny enough to sleep on the floor, Shippo. Alright, let's get this show on the road."

Eventually, the two RVs got off and running, Sango and Miroku in the driver's seats; generally, they were considered the best drivers, best being a loosely used term. The conversations in each car were distinctly different, but each interesting in its own way.

In the boy's car, Inuyasha leaned back against the window and sighed, closing his eyes to take in the hum of the road. He was just drifting off into oblivion when a voice asked, "So, you're going out with that Kagome girl then."

Opening one amber eye, Inuyasha took in the sight of Akago, who was sitting across the table from him. The Shark leader held a rather ambivalent look on his face, though his curiosity was still clear; perhaps it was the way his eyes twinkled like two rubies in the light, but Inuyasha couldn't help but answer. "Yeah, I am. Why, is that a problem?"

"No problem," Akago replied easily. "Just a wonder. It seems rather surreal to me, you two going out. As though you're heart's not in it."

This cause a disdainful snort to erupt from Inuyasha's throat and he muttered irritatedly, "Shut up, Tsume, you don't know what the fuck you're talkin' about."

"Mutt-face, don't be a bitch," Kouga murmured, neglecting to look up from a rather interesting article in Biker Weekly. Sesshomaru sighed, shaking his head; it had been quite a while since Kouga and Inuyasha fought, though he's sensed it coming for a while. Most of the time, they refrained from speaking; this worked for a few months before the fighting would start again. Despite his seemingly violent nature, being the Fang leader and what not, Sesshomaru would rather his brother and best friend avoid fights. It was quite troublesome.

"Yeah, shut up, ya dead beat wolf," Inuyasha shot back, barring his fangs.

With a grin, Kouga displayed his substantially larger demon teeth. "Not impressed by your baby teeth, mutt."

"What, you wanna start somethin', ya dumbass Yakuza bitch ?" Inuyasha yelled, rising from his seat with a threatening motion. Kouga made as though to fly forward in a blind rage, stung by the insult which Inuyasha had so callously paid his family; their dealings with Yakuza were a sensetive subject.

Immediately, two figures stepped between them and two held them back, quickly breaking up a fight before it began. Sesshomaru dragged Kouga back, rolling his eyes as both Kouga and Inuyasha began to struggle against their captors. Akago sighed as Inuyasha tried valliantly to get past him, arms and legs flailing like a petulant child. Ranbou and Bankotsu shook their heads, refusing to move away from their position between the hot headed Fangs; would they never learn?

"I ain't no Yakuza bitch! Joh-ranei rawool rashuwah janeiloo!" Kouga barked fiercely, slipping into vicious sounding wolf tongue in the middle of his rant.

Lowering his eyebrows dangerously, Inuyasha yelled, "Whadya call me?!"

"You don't wanna know," Ranbou replied with a snort, ignoring Hakkaku and Ginta as they cracked up over what Kouga had just insinuated. Inuyasha, not liking to be left in the dark of insults paid to him, gave a rumbling growl before a surprisingly cold voice deadened his attitude.

"Are you quite finished behaving like a child or would you rather continue looking like a fool?"

Sesshomaru's question seemed to dissolve what anger remained in the room, shaming even the garrulous Inuyasha into silence. With a snort, Kouga allowed his muscles to relax and avoided Inuyasha's gaze as Sesshomaru unhanded him, allowing the wolf to storm back towards the bedrooms. The others watched him go, Ranbou with a slight regret and sadness, before the Fang leader spoke again.

"An inappropriate comment," was all Sesshomaru said, amber eyes betraying his disappointment at Inuyasha's thoughtless jibe; talking about the Ookami's Yakuza connections was uncalled for.

Snorting, Inuyasha looked away with a definite redness spreading across his cheeks. "Yeah, that bastard started it."

"What are you, fucking five?" Ranbou burst out, throwing his muscular arms akimbo. "Jesus Christ, Yash, that was low no matter who started the damn thing."

"Well it applies to you too, don't it? Why didn't you get your panties all in a twist and he did? Why? Cause he's a frickin' pussy!" Inuyasha screamed, ears twitching madly atop his head as he gestured wildly with clawed hands.

Before he could even blink, a deadly strong hand was clasped around Inuyasha's throat, belonging to none other than Ranbou Ookami. Ice blue eyes narrowed to a frightening degree, he shoved the hanyou up against the RV wall and hissed, "The Fangs shelter you. I've been dealing with comments like that for years. Kouga's been running around with you and your little buddies, fixing cars and having a grand old gay time. Some of us do different shit than that; I've been the brunt of every fucking Yakuza stab since I joined the Reikons. At least around one of your own core, you could have a little respect." With a certain coldness about him, Ranbou practically threw Inuyasha down in his seat, not even sparing a nod to the others as he stormed towards the bedrooms, joining his brother and slamming the door behind him.

The others were quite for a moment as they glanced awkwardly around the cabin, unsure how to deal with this situation; it was rare that anyone fought in a way such as this, but when they did, heads flew and bridges were burned. Clearing his throat in a sophisticated manner, Sesshomaru said, "Inuyasha, if you have harmed our relations with the Reikons in any way, I will personally see to it that you never touch the wheel of a car again."

Knowing that his brother was completely serious, Inuyasha gave a curt nod before adjusting himself comfortably in the booth seat, resting his forehead against the cool window glass. This was shaping up to be a rather difficult journey.

In the girl's cabin, Shitora had finally recovered from flashing Gan and was back to her irrepressable self. To preserve her masquerade, Gan had taken to working dilligently on papers and finance planning for the Shark's upcoming year, head bent over her work at a dilligent angle. Kagome and the other girls were playing cards, Souten included, as they talked about the boys; the men could provide an endless well of conversation. At the current time, they were discussing the flaws among their boyfriends.

"I just wish he would open up to me more," Kagome commented about Inuyasha, frowning as she reorganized her hand. "It's like there's something important he's not telling me and it makes me uncomfortable."

Sango, who was listening in while driving, nodded sympathetically, agreeing, "That's always distracting in a relationship. Miroku's not that way, though; his problem is in avoiding conflict. When I try to talk to him about a problem, he keeps on ignoring it and brushing it aside like I never mentioned it. Like he's so afraid of fighting, or something."

"Hah, I can see how Miroku would do that," Ayame laughed, green eyes sparkling. As she moved her head, her red hair shimmered in the light; just before she'd left, the girl had Rin straighten her hair with a flat iron and it was brilliantly shiny. "Kouga's great; I guess my only problem is that he distracts me a lot. Like he wants to ignore the world and have it just be me and him. He doesn't, like, become all possessive and take me away from places, he just whines about it. I think it's our breed, though; wolves are like that."

The other girls laughed a little at this comment, turning to Rin as she played a card on the table; it was her turn, not only to call trade as dealer, but to share her boy problems. "Trade one. Yeah, Sesshomaru and I don't have any problems that I can think of. We're past that problem stage. I don't think we ever really hit a point where we couldn't talk about issues in our relationship. If one of us had a problem, we talked it out; simple as that."

"Souten? What about you?" Kagome asked the youngest girl, who seemed completely fascinated by this whole "girl talk" idea.

Upon hearing her name, Souten's crimson eyes grew adorably wide, little demon fangs glinting in the sunlight as she cocked her head curiously to the side. "Ise don't got boys, so Ise don't got problems."

"Amen to that philosophy," Sango joked, earning chuckles from the others. "But Shippo and you are close enough that you could talk about him, right? Any problems there?"

The question brought a blush to Souten's cheeks and she immediately began playing with her ponytail, indulging her nervous habit as her cards lay neglectedly in her lap. "We don't got any problems. Well, except sometimes, I think he's not listening to me and he's just saying, 'yes, So, right, So.'"

Snorting, Rin agreed, "Probably is. His father does just the same thing when Nan starts going off on a tangent. Say something outrageous and get him to agree with it, like 'wow, it's getting so hot I might have to take off all my clothes!' And then he'll go, 'yes, So,' and there you go."

Souten giggled madly, face alight with glee. "That would be so frickin' sweet!"

"I bet you could do it too," Ayame said with a grin. "I wanna be there, though. Get him in the zone and then call us; we'll watch."

Souten agreed and the others began rearranging their cards into suitable suits before Kagome turned rather interestedly to Shitora, whose white head was bent intently over her hand. "What about you, Tora? Boyfriend problems?"

"Like the kid said, no boyfriend, no problems," Shitora mumbled disinterestedly, switching two cards before examining their order with calculative amber eyes.

Exchanging a smug glance with Sango in the rearview mirror, Kagome continued, "But you're practically dating, right?"

"Psht, we're not dating," came Shitora's bored reply as she shifted her small body in the seat, still completely focused on her cards. Seeing that this would take some more affective woman power, Kagome glanced at Rin, who sighed softly and decided to help her friends to unwravel Shitora's tangled love life.

"Do you like him?" Rin asked on her cousin's behalf, not really wanting to pressure Shitora further.

The hanyou paused momentarily, glancing up with a look of pure disdain on her features. "Like who?"

"Ranbou, duh," Sango interjected from the driver's seat, rolling her brown eyes plantively.

"I don't even like him, we're barely friends," came the youngest Taisho's dismissive reply; she pretended to be completely enthralled by the card game when, in reality, these questions were making her distinctly hot under the collar. For a while now, she'd suspected herself of actually liking Ranbou, but was far from admitting it; that would take a sort of humility she wasn't ready to expend...right? Shitora was convinced that she wouldn't come to terms with her feelings for at least another month, but what if it happened sooner? What if she actually fell for him? Had she already fallen for him? Her friend's questions were creating more question and, frankly, it made the amber eyed girl uncomfortable.

"Friend...with benefits?" Ayame asked daringly, making light of Shitora's comment.

"Hardy fucking har," Shitora bit sarcastically back.

"I thought youse guys were, like, already goin' out," Souten said confusedly, obviously having misinterpretted Ranbou and Shitora's relationship.

The others grinned while Shitora blushed a brilliant red, stunned by the young girl's comment. "What? No! We're not going out, I don't like him, end of story."

"Hey, make a move; you never know. You might get lucky," Kagome suggested.

Throwing down the cards with which she'd been so preoccupied, Shitora stood from the booth to retreated towards the back when she tripped on the ugly purpled carpet, sending herself crashing to the floor with the threat of rugburn looming over her head. The sudden motion created a wind which whisked her cards into the air, causing them to float gently down to the ground like leaves in a light breeze. One single card landed on Shitora's forehead, sticking to the fine sheen of sweat collecting on her nervous brow.

Ayame flipped the card over and glanced at it, grinning. "Yeah. You just might get lucky." With a smug smile, the redhead turned the card to show Shitora, who looked dismally up at the Ace of Spades.

Maybe, she mused, this whole relationship idea might really work out. But Shitora wasn't one to rush into a binding contract of any kind; she only did things like that when she had good reasons and strong conviction. On this subject, there were few good reasons and even fewer convictions in her opinion, but the hanyou stoutly refused to entertain the thought a minute longer.

Any longer, she reminded herself, and you might admit the truth. That you're falling for him. Hard.

With a sigh, Shitora reached up and took the card gently from Ayame's grasp, examining the design boredly. She couldn't argue with the Ace of Spades. Some things were just fate.

Without stopping for gas or food, the RVs were able to arrive at Race Wars in eight hours time, pulling in the gate around four in the afternoon. Miroku grinned, slowing down slightly to allow the gates to swing open, announcing, "We're here!"

Shippo joined Miroku in the front of the car, gazing out the window at the scene before him. Race Wars took place annually on an abandoned air force base, uniting gangs and racers from miles around to celebrate the rarities of their craft. It stretched out over about a week, allowing everyone to get their fill of motors and tires, while showcasing the talent inside each specified group. The left most runways were used for racing and the right most for parking, though the center was where most of the action took place. Each respective group had a tent set up, allowing people to drift in and out asking questions and making small talk. The bigger the tent, the more imporant the group.

The tent tops created a multicolored rooftop which occupied the better part of a quarter mile, encompassing each and every group present. People milled about, the crowd forever growing as teens dressed in leather scurried about preparing themselves for the races. Immediately, Shippo felt accepted and at ease around the crowd; they all looked just like him and the others.

The RV pulled to a stop in the parking area, where many shimmering sports cars were already parked, and killed the engine, letting out a woop of excitement as he bounded down the stairs to stretch his stiff legs. The others followed quickly behind him, forgetting momentarily about Kouga and Inuyasha's fight that morning; Race Wars quelled worries right out of the hat.

"Holy crap," Shippo murmured as he stood with the others on the concrete, observing the line of impressive cars. As a mechanic and general enthusiast, he had a great appreciation for each and every vehicle, shining with wax and chocked full of hard work. He could almost imaging the engines beneath the hoods, but a voice interrupted his before he could continue.

"Yeah, impressive, isn't it?" Miroku asked his young friend, giving the kitsune a reassuring pat on the back. "Just like the warehouse, only bigger."

"Right," Shippo murmured, walking numbly behind the others as Sesshomaru led the pack towards their tent. As they walked, several people waved and others whispered behind their hands, muttering to their friends as the infamous Tokyo South came strolling by. Kagome blinked at the attention, shifting her eyes sideways to Inuyasha, who seemed completely unaffected by the attention.

"Inuyasha?" she whispered confusedly, furrowing her brow. "What's going on with all these people?"

"We're pretty famous around here," the hanyou replied with a shrug, unimpressed to say the least. Kagome couldn't understand what about this was unimpressive; they were practically superstars at Race Wars and she hadn't even known.

Rin waved light heartedly to people as she passed, some who she knew on a first name basis and some who she didn't know at all; as Sesshomaru watched his girlfriend trying to ease the crowd, he couldn't help but release a small smile. That was something he'd always enjoyed about Rin: her sheer uncaring when it came to the status or position of others. She could make conversations with a perfect stranger and not bat an eyelash; it was remarkable. And he loved that.

Finally, the group arrived at a rather large tent, a brilliant firetruck red which flapped slightly in the wind. Beneath it were several strategically placed chairs and tables, along with a peculiar looking device which sat on the table. Sesshomaru walked calmly under the tarp and took a seat, sighing and crossing his arms. "And we're finally here."

"Says the man who didn't drive eight hours straight," Miroku mumbled, sitting down sorely in a chair beside his leader before taking off his boots.

Sango nodded in agreement, letting out a stream of air. "I don't see what's so wrong with stopping for food or something."

"It's all about conserving time; it will all be worth it in the end," came Sesshomaru's irritatingly vague reply.

The others began filling the chairs in a steady stream until Bankotsu took a seat in the last one, leaving Shitora standing haughtily just beneath the tarp's shadow. She crossed her arms pertly over her chest, cocking her hip moodily to one side. "Hey, I wanna sit!"

Bankotsu started to stand, saying, "Here, have m-"

"Naw, there's no reason for that Bank. Put your tiny ass here, Sukini," Ranbou remarked boredly from his seat, gesturing to his open lap. Shitora's face was a thing of wonder as she observed the wolf with dinner plate eyes, taking in his completely serious expression haltingly.

The others didn't even spare the scene a glance, wrapped up in their own conversations as they tried valliantly to will away the dry desert heat, and Ranbou cocked an eyebrow at Shitora's hesitation. "Sukini? You hear me?"

"What? Yeah," Shitora said rather quickly, ears swiveling madly about like little white satellites. Not wanting to seem cowardly, she took a seat on Ranbou's lap and found herself completely balanced, not teetering like lap seats normally defined. Ranbou's legs were strong and lean, as wolf's tended to be, and she adjusted herself rather placidly. This was a comfortable seat, however much she hated to admit it.

"Geez Sukini, it's like you ain't even there. Do you eat at all?" Ranbou asked bluntly, eyebrows raised to a skeptical angle.

Bristling with indignation, Shitora barked sharply in reply, "Of course I eat, I eat my fuckin' share. I just got a fast metabolism, that's all."

"Sure, sure," Ranbou replied sarcastically, rolling his eyes at the response; he couldn't remember a time when he'd seen Shitora eat other than a burger she'd once brought him. Together they'd sat in his room eating burgers, talking about whatever came to mind; that had been an interesting day, he recalled, smiling slightly.

Meanwhile, Kagome covered her mouth demurely as she found herself consumed by a rather large yawn. "I think I'll go to bed early tonight," she mentioned, eyes half hooded wearily.

But beside her, Inuyasha gave a derisive snort. "Not fuckin' likely, babe. We party tonight."

"Party?" Kagome echoed confusedly.

Inuyasha nodded. "Every year, we have a party on the first night to open the races. Dancing, drinking, smoking, stripping, you name it, it goes on at this party."

Unable to ignore the somewhat lustful look in her boyfriend's eye, Kagome frowned and glanced thoughtfully up at the sky. "Well in that case, I might have to ask Rin to borrow some clothes for the occassion. Nothing I brought is...party like. Any preferences on what I wear?" The girl was smiling craftily, knowing what kind of answer she'd receive, but she still couldn't help but ask the obvious question.

At the thought of Kagome in tight little leather outfits, Inuyasha began to drool unconciously. "Uh...something...short? Leather. Yeah, leather. Red. I like red."

Giggling, Kagome repeated, "So, something short, leather and red. I'll see what I can do."

"Yes!" Inuyasha exclaimed quietly, grinning as Kagome reached over to tweak his ear. He evaded the attempt and rounded on her, proceeding to tickle her in all the most sensetive places. She let out a shriek of surprise and was soon laughing hysterically, ignoring the smiles radiating from her spectating friends.

"Yeah, baby, what are you wearing?" Kouga asked Ayame, who was hugging her knees to her chest in the chair beside him.

With a smirk, Ayame replied, "You'll just have to wait and see."

"Yeah, it's a surprise; we'll all be wearing something hot, though," Rin assured the boys, winking flirtatiously. Sesshomaru came up swiftly behind her, leaning down until his mouth was right at her ear.

"I prefer it when you wear nothing."

At his sensual voice vibrating through her eardrum, Rin gave an involuntary shudder and then gasped, smacking her boyfriend across the chest. He merely smiled before exchanging glances with an amused Akago. Was this the sort of behavior he'd been missing in the North?

"Quite a culture shock, isn't it?" Gan murmured, as though he could read Akago's thoughts.

"Indeed. Why don't we take a walk, Gan? Scope out our surroundings and whatever," Akago replied rather vaguely, waving his wrist back and forth unnecessarily. Gan gave a brief nod and the two rose, making their way quietly out of the tent while the others talked excitedly about the upcoming party.

The two friends walked in silence for a while, observing the many different gangs and brightly detailed cars in their own quiet way. Gan appeared apathetic on the outside, but on the inside, she fluttered around rather crazily just as she did whenever she and Akago were alone. Shaking her head slightly, Gan tried to will away such ridiculous thoughts and notions. Look, kid, you're not here for reasons romantic, pleasurable or self-indulging. Every reason keeping your here revolves around necessity, like the necessity to breath and eat and sleep in a safe bed. You've survived three years undercover and you haven't been caught yet; revealing yourself to Akago would only put you in danger! Remember what father said, find a hiding place and don't come out until the Yakuza's lost interest in the family. "Don't come out" includes not spreading around the fact that you have boobs and a vagina, okay? Okay. Just making sure we're all on the same page. God, now I'm talking to myself like there's two of me, which is a stupid habit since I've been alone for...a while. Alone. Just me. Living a lie. And now I'm feeling sorry for myself, God, stop being such a woman about it! Well, shit, you are a woman, I mean I'm a woman, I mean...crap!

"Gan, you look troubled."

Jerking out of her inner monologue, Gan slipped easily into the slightly deeper tone she'd been using for three years. "Troubled? Do I? No, I'm not troubled. I'm...confused."

The Shark leader furrowed his white brow slightly, clasping his hands behind his back in thought. "Oh? About what?"

"Truthfully, I'm confused about my family," Gan admitted, allowing herself to think this was slightly truthful; she was, afterall, remembering her father's words. So what was so wrong about that answer? Nothing. And truly, despite her gender confusion, Gan hated to lie to anyone, especially Akago. If she couldn't tell the whole truth, at least she could tell half.

At the word "family," Akago gave a rueful smile. "A confusion we all have, to be sure. You've never really told me anything about your family, Gan."

Chuckling darkly, Gan gave a weary shrug. "My family is a thing of the past. Simply put, my father bet my brothers and I in a poker game and lost us to the Yakuza. He ran home, horrified, and told us all to pack up and run away as fast as we could and as far as we could. He wouldn't allow us to go together, saying it would make us a target for the mob, so we scattered. That's all there was to us."

Akago looked curiously at the smaller boy for a moment, crimson eyes sparkling with interest. "Hm. He bet you?"

"He was a drunk, and, for lack of a better word, a fuck."

Now, while Gan cussed occasionally, Akago was unused to hearing his friend use such derogatory language with such a light tone. "I'm sorry he was so careless," Akago said quietly, glancing at Gan with a carefully chosen crimson eye. "My own father was just as bad."

"You never did tell me why you and Kanna left the house," Gan confessed, his own violet stare intercepting Akago's.

The demon shrugged, replying rather dismissively, "After my mother's death he drank himself into a hole and the rest was history. I'm afraid it's a very uninteresting story."

"Uninteresting is sometimes good," Gan laughed humorlessly. "With interesting plots comes complications for the characters, don't you agree?"

Sighing slightly, Akago allowed himself a small smile. "Indeed I do. Well, I pulled you out because I felt something was wrong. Now that it's resolved, we may go back to quietly observing the animalistic habits of our new company."

"They're weird, aren't they?" Gan mused, shaking his head at the thought of Sesshomaru and his followers.

Akago shrugged. "It's all relative, my friend, all relative to be sure."

And with this, the two "boys" turned on their heels and looped back around towards the tent. Everyone had preparations to make in order to ensure the night's entertainment and, while the girls rushed off to get dressed, the boys met with old friends and gossiped the hours away. The night promised to be an interesting one for all involved. And therefore complicated for its characters.

"Do I look like a slut?"

"Well, that depends. What do you want me to say?"

"Duh, I'm not going to tell you before you answer. Then you'll just say what I want to hear."

"And what's so wrong with that?"

"Um...nothing, I guess, but I want your honest, serious, 100 % truthful opinion."

"Okay...well, if you wore it to the mall, you'd definitely be a slut. But tonight you might just be the only girl with her top on. So you don't look like a slut."

Ayame glanced up from her magazine to observe this conversation, which took place in front of the bathroom mirror between Kagome and Sango. Kagome was worried that her red leather miniskirt and black corset looked slutty which, in Ayame's opinion, they most certainly did. Of course, her opinion was quite conservative compared to her friends; it's not as though anyone would take her advice seriously. Glancing down at her own ensemble of white leather pants and a red halter top, Ayame shrugged and returned to her magazine; she could really care less what people thought of her. It was what she thought of herself that really mattered.

"Hey, does anyone have a red bra?"

The girls glanced up at Rin's call and Shitora's voice responded quickly. "Yeah, what size?"

"Double D."

"Yeah, here."

Souten's eyes grew wide and she addressed Ayame from across the table. "Isn't that really big?"

At this the wolf demon only snorted and continued to thumb through Mechanics Weekly. Kagome answered smoothly, "Size is relative when it comes to boobs. But, as an innocent bystander, yes, that's absolutely huge."

"Huge and uncovered; the story of Rin and Shitora's breasts," Ayame joked dryly, never looking up from her reading.

Sango and Kagome finally stepped out of the bathroom, primped and made up to perfection. Sango felt rather risque this night and was wearing a black miniskirt with matching leather tube top. Souten observed the two girls side by side, taking in their equally revealing ensembles before noting disdainfully, "Ya'll look like ho's."

Shrugging, Sango replied, "I try to be pretty virginal during the year, but Race Wars is an excuse to dress like a slut. I'm not ashamed."

"Me neither," Kagome chimed in brightly. "It's liberating; you should try it, Souten."

At this point, Ayame actually glanced up from her magazine. "She's eleven."

"Well, no time like the present."

Before Ayame could reply, the two bedroom doors in the back burst open and two scantily clad figures burst out, exclaiming simultaneously, "We're ready!"

Souten's jaw positively came unhinged as she observed both Rin and Shitora, who brought a whole new meaning to the word "bare." Shitora wore a black bikini top and a black miniskirt which barely covered her ass. Rin, who was perhaps the more blinding of the two, wore a pair of red leather short shorts and Shitora's red bra. Perhaps you were reading on expecting more, but that's all you're going to get; yes, it was just that bad.

Ayame groaned and allowed her head to drop on the table. "Holy shit, my friends are hookers."

"Yeah, sexy hookers," Shitora fired back, grinning wildly as she slapped triumphant hands with Rin.

Sango blinked. "I think they missed the insult there."

"Mhmm," Kagome agreed, shaking her head slowly; this quite the sight to behold.

Shrugging, the girls gathered en masse and grabbed their jackets from the couches, hurrying down the stairs of the RV. The night outside was warm and alight with excitement, issuing mainly from the screaming crowd near the runways. Several ridiculously large SUVs were positioned around an area of concrete, connected by wires and blaring a simultaneous beat; people and demons of all shapes and sizes were gravitating towards the music, hypnotized by the methodical thumping of the bass.

Some intelligent person had possessed the foresight to bring spotlights, which lit the makeshift dance floor to a moderate degree, sillhouetting shadows as they twirled and grinded on the pavement. Kagome's eyes practically lit aflame as she listened to the music; she absolutely loved to dance.

Seeing that several people were already there, Rin grinned and said, "Alright girls, let's go."

The group was about to approach the crowd when a voice called, "Wait just one damn minute."

Whirling about quickly in their stiletto heels, the girls felt their bodies quiver at the sight of the boys, dressed in muscle shirts and jeans with their jackets proclaiming their gangs proudly on their backs. Inuyasha crossed his arms, observing the girls accusingly. "You ain't suppsed to go anywhere without one of us, remember?"

Deciding to quell an argument before it began, Kagome giggled and sauntered up to her boyfriend, whose expression softened at the sight of long, bare legs and a thin line of cleavage. "We were just coming to find you, Yash!"

Sesshomaru rolled his eyes as his baby brother was rendered momentarily speechless and he sighed, allowing his eyes to drift to his own girlfriend. Rin grinned excitedly and bounded up to him, chest bouncing around in the scant red bra. "Sesshy!"

Wrapping a protective arm around his girlfriend's waist, Sesshomaru said quietly, "Stay close to me Rin. I don't want you running around alone in...that."

"Oh, you don't like it?" Rin asked, pretending to be hurt as she showed off her outfit.

Licking dry lips, Sesshomaru replied serenely, "No, I like it Rin. I would just prefer if I was the only one liking it...rather the only one liking it enough to touch it."

Rin smiled and gave a chipper nod, sensing her boyfriend's discomfort; she knew how important her safety was to him and she wasn't about to ruin her night over some stupid fight. Really, she was flattered by his vigilance.

Ayame and Sango were laughing over something when Sango let out a sharp gasp, turning around with her hand poised to smack her daring attacker. Miroku only grinned, catching Sango's hand in mid blow, before leaning down to claim her lips; Ayame could barely see his other hand still firmly grasping her leather clad ass cheek, which she didn't seem to mind at the moment.

Kouga kissed his girlfriend briefly on the lips, furrowing his brow at her disdainful expression. "Something wrong, Aya?"

"Please promise to never grab my ass in public," the redhead almost whimpered, burying her face in his shoulder; it was calming to take in his scent, a wild one of cigarettes and pine leaves.

Chuckling, Kouga replied, "Only in private, if you so wish, milady."

"Yeah, private is fine," Ayame giggled, cheeks blushing a pretty red which caused Kouga to grow rather hot under the collar. It was amazing how one smile could do that to a love struck man.

While the couples doted upon one another, trading compliments and kisses alike, Shitora tried to ignore the tugging in her gut. It seemed to be pulling her backwards, which seemed like a strange direction to go, but she followed her instincts and took one daring look over her shoulder. Her eyes fell immediately on Ranbou, whose hands were placed easily in his jean pockets as he smoked a cigarette; the way his hair fell just perfectly before his ice blue eyes sent a shiver down her spine. His muscular body was even more obvious in his tight black sleevless shirt, though she couldn't see most of him because of his jacket. Hopefully, she thought, he'll get so hot he has to take it off...holy shit, where's that comin' from? Ew, I'm starting to sound like Rin! Or Kagome! Jesus! Get outta my head!

While Shitora berated her concious, Ranbou raised his glance and took in the sight of a barely clothed Shitora Taisho, which he had to admit was pleasing. Ever since he could remember, Ranbou had admired pefect butts; as Shitora turned away to hide her blush, Ranbou caught sight of his number one favorite ass and grinned. Yes, this night was starting out just perfectly.

"Sukini," he greeted marginally as he approached her, smoke drifting lazily from his cigarette.

Shitora's heart leapt at his voice and she whirled about, finding his broad chest clouding her vision. Tonight, she was slightly taller because of her heels, but the sum wasn't much; she was still a good seven inches short of his impressive height. "Bo," she replied, swallowing her uncertainties. Maybe if she just ignored her attraction to him, it would go away. Yeah. There we go.

"You ain't gonna go chargin' off with anyone tonight, are ya?" Ranbou continued conversationally, casting a calculative blue eye over the girl.

To this, Shitora snorted and crossed her arms. "That depends."

"On what?"

"On how fast his car is," Shitora replied with a mysterious wink, provoking a laugh from Ranbou despite himself.

"C'mon, Sukini, let's go," he said, still laughing as they followed the group towards the thumping light and defeaning music.

As the Fangs approached, several peopled on the crowd's edge gave a hearty cheer, raising the beer bottles to the sky; the inner crowd soon followed, realizing that the life of the party was finally here. Tokyo gangs were reknowned for their street smarts and partying habits. Every year, they danced the hardest, smoked the longest and drank the most; no doubt, this year would be the same.

"Woohoo!" Rin called, grabbing an ice cold beer from one of the cooler tubs before beginning to chug it vigorously.

Several of the others followed suite, grabbing their boyfriends and girlfriends before heading out on the dance floor. Souten lingered behind, staring at the crowd with some hesitation, before Shippo grinned and held out his hand to her. "Come on, Souten; let's dance."

Shitora grinned as the two youngsters dissolved into the crowd, no doubt to have their first real grinding experience, and she glanced back at Ranbou. "I'm gonna go dancing too. You coming?"

Nodding slightly, Ranbou replied, "Lemme finish my cigarette, I'll be right behind you."

With a wave, Shitora danced her way into the crowd, pushing through sweaty bodies with a light gleaming happily in her eyes; she simply loved the rush which came with dancing in large groups and she couldn't wait to dance with one certain wolf demon. Just as she thought this, however, she happened to bump violently into someone's shoulder before lurching backwards. A strong arm caught her and she blinked, looking full into the face of a vaguely familiar Cobra, an ox demon with a forgetable name.

"Sorry about that, I'm a fucking bull in a China shop," the boy joked good naturedly at his own heritage, handsome face breaking into a smile.

Shrugging Shitora pulled herself upright with his helpful hand, rolling her shoulders routinely. "No problem; its crazy out here."

"Yeah," the boy replied, red eyes reflecting the gleam of the spotlight; Shitora could almost remember his face from several races, during which he was always close to Bankotsu and his brothers. Those red eyes of his were familiar, framed and overshadowed by strands of waywards black hair. Something about him was wild and dangerous; perhaps a little to dangerous.

"I'm Shitora Taisho," she said finally, sticking out her hand to shake.

The boy let loose a booming laugh, replying rather drunkenly, "Hell girl, I know, who doesn't know that? I'm Bokoru. I'm one of Bank's trick riders."

"Oh yeah, that's how I know you," Shitora exclaimed, grinning at the realization. "Having a good time, Bokoru?"

But before the Cobra could answer, Shitora felt a leaden hand on her shoulder. Ranbou's presence was unmistakable as he loomed over her, chest touching her back as he practically molded against her. "Who the hell are you?"

Bokoru blinked before cocking a slender black eyebrow. "Why should I tell you?"

"Cause I fucking wanna know, that's why," Ranbou replied sharply, ice blue eyes fading towards a frighteningly pure white. Shitora felt his hand tighten on her shoulder and realized, suddenly, that the wolf was jealous. While she would've normally been flattered by such a show of affection, he was being rather predatorial and, dare she say, possessive at the moment. The very thought of the word possessive sent lances of irritation down her neck; she was no man's property.

"Lay off, Bo," she commanded, breaking away from his hold.

Ranbou seemed slightly surprised by her defiance, but replied nonetheless. "This guy's a sleeze, Sukini, come over here."

"Excuse me?" Shitora practically screamed, though no one took any notice over the ridiculously loud rap music. "You don't even know him, Ranbou, besides, I'm not yours to call anywhere!"

"Don't be a dumbass!" Ranbou replied, eyes narrowing.

"What the fuck! Who do you think you are?!" Shitora shouted hotly, amber eyes flashing a telling gold.

"Doesn't matter! What matters is that you get the fuck away from this assfucker!" came Ranbou's crude response. The way his eyes blazened with anger only furthered Shitora's own wrath and she let out a screech of half indignation and half defeat.

"Fuck you, wolf boy!" Shitora shouted before turning rebelliously on her heels, grabbing Bokoru's hand before leading the bewildered boy away from that portion of the dance floor.

Ranbou could only watch as Shitora led Bokoru in the opposite direction, knowing that if he tried to grab her she would only resist him, making the situation worse. But still, a ringing in the back of his mind worked insistently away at his already growing headache; something was incredibly wrong with that Bokoru character, he was sure of it. The ox demon hadn't cause any noticeable trouble during his gang days, but something about him rubbed Ranbou the wrong way. Shaking his head, Ranbou retreated back towards the edge of the crowd, taking a seat in South Tokyo's designated seating area.

The wolf demon nervously lit another cigarette as he glanced around the crowd, trying to catch sight of Shitora and Bokoru. When he saw none he sighed, leaning back to glance up at the sky; the stars twinkled obliviously above, smiling down on the sinful pit of hormonally charged teens. How little the stars knew.

On the other side of the crowd, nearest one of the speakers, Kagome and Inuyasha were grinding front to front, never breaking eye contact as they did so. Inuyasha's eyes continually drifted down to her lips and Kagome began to grow nervous, knowing that the two hadn't shared a real mouth to mouth kiss yet. Sure, she kissed him on the cheek and he kissed her on the neck, but they'd never actually kissed. As Kagome saw it, however, it was only a matter of time; the way they were growing progressively closer was practically foreshadowing.

Sango, who was grinding back to front with Miroku, was smiling at Kagome's nervousness when she caught sight of a familiar group of teens making their way through the crowd. She frowned, leaning back to speak to Miroku. "Look who's here."

Miroku glanced up, taking in the less than pleasurable sight of Naraku and his cronies worming their way across the dance floor, pushing couples out of the way as they went. Sesshomaru, who was grinding with Rin less the ten feet from his friend, had already sense trouble, however. Placing a protective hand on Rin's waist, he held her close as they worked their way back towards the others.

Naraku's crimson eyes displayed his distaste as he set them on Sesshomaru, none of his false politeness and mock sincerity present that night. "Where's Akago?" he asked bluntly, arms crossed angrily over his chest. Kagura, who was practically hanging off him, narrowed her eyes at the name before allowing her glance to drift over Naraku's shoulder. There stood Kanna, whose pale white face displayed little or no emotion. At the sound of her brother's name, the girl's bottomless black eyes barely even gave a flash of recognitino and Kagura smirked, blood red lips twisting into a gnarled monstrosity of a smile. Things were as they should be, if not for Akago's betrayal.

"Give it up, Naraku, you lost him," came Sesshomaru's reply. The seriousness in his amber eyes silenced Naraku's snarling lackies, but not the leader himself.

"It's not about winning and losing, Sesshomaru, it's about power," came Naraku's vicious reply, after which he threw Kagura away from his shoulder before stalking forward. "It's about getting what you want no matter what the cost. You should know that by now."

"I'm not so heartless," came Sesshomaru's cold reply.

Naraku snorted, hair waving slightly in a passing breeze amongst the dancing party goers. "And that will be your undoing."

"No. You're heartlessness will be yours," Sesshomaru said with a certain finality, turning on his heels with Rin at his side. "We're done here." His friends, who had gathered behind him to provide feesable back up, nodded and prepared to follow him when Kagura caught sight of something incredibly interesting. Every member of that group had a jacket except for one bare back, one which belonged to that new girl, Kagome her name was. Not quite recovered from Naraku's rejection, Kagura decided to have some fun.

"Still not a Wildcat Kagome? What a shame," she jeered, earning gasps and giggled from the scantily clad Vixens behind her.

At the sound of her name, Kagome turned to face the girl and frowned, asking pointedly, "What the hell do you want?"

"I don't want anything; you're the little ho fucking the leader's brother, trying to get a jacket," Kagura replied cheaply, beautiful face growing evil and ugly in the light.

Kagome's expression suddenly lost its confusion and she snarled angrily, "That's not how it is. Inuyasha has nothing to do with that."

"Oh really? Why do you think you're not a Wildcat yet? Because Inuyasha knows he'll lose an easy fuck as soon as you've got nothing to bargain for," Kagura shot back, pushing her breasts forward as she threw her dark head like an untamed show horse.

By this time, Inuyasha and the others were working their way back through the crowd, trying to recover Kagome and stop her from getting into something dangerous. "Says the slut who fucks everything with a dick and a pleasure," came Kagome's equally vicious reply.

Inuyasha practically gasped at the raunchiness of Kagome's reply, surprised by her show of strength; frankly, it was getting him kind of hot. Rin, however, rocketed forward and grabbed Kagome by the arm, beginning to drag her backwards desperately. "C'mon Kagome, leave it!"

"What the hell did you say you little whore?!" Kagura screamed dangerously, crimson eyes flashing before she began to make her way threateningly towards her opponent.

"That's right, you heard me!" Kagome called, despite her cousin's vicious attempts to drag her backwards.

"Yeah, well good luck trying to get into the Wildcats, sweetie! They're fuckin' trash!" Kagura yelled irately.

But Kagome only laughed wildly, voice audible even as Rin continued to pull at her arm. "They're worth forty times as much as you're ho's, Kagura! Good luck trying to get a fuck tonight!" And with that, the renegade girl was gone.

Kagura was speechless with fury and surprise, but Naraku only watched the entire scene with an analytical eye. Kagura did have a point, he noted; until the Wildcats were over Kikyo's sudden sickness and desertion, they would never induct an other member into the gang. As far as Naraku could tell, that Kagome girl was not only beautiful, but also an integral part of Sesshomaru's operation; everyone liked her, she did a good deal of the paperwork, and she was dating Inuyasha. As Naraku saw it, this would make Kagome a valuable asset in the North.

"Let's go," he said simply, turning on his heels as the group followed dutifully, leaving a spluttering Kagura in their wake.

Sesshomaru had taken one of his gangs, half of his cars, and most of his pride; Naraku would see to it that he regained ten fold what he lost. That was a promise.

Shitora laughed as Bokoru made a particularly funny comment, throwing her head back in the warm night air. She'd been trying to forget her recent fight with Ranbou and, to do so, she'd excused herself and her new friend from the dance floor and they were now walking aimlessly around the quiet tent area, enjoying the near silence and each other's company. Sure, Bokoru was a nice guy, but Shitora had really taken him with her to further Ranbou's anger. She was being childish and passive agressive, she knew, but so was Ranbou; and eye for an eye and all that.

"Yeah, it was embarassing, but everyone falls when they're learning a new trick," Bokoru confessed, oxen shoulders shrugging as he imparted his trick riding knowledge to the girl beside him.

Nodding menially, Shitora glanced down at her watch and sighed; her anger was actually beginning to wane and she kind of wanted to get back to the party. "Cool. Well, thanks for this, Bokoru, but I should really be getting back."

She turned to go but soon found a hand enclosed around her wrist, accompanied by a small sounding, "Don't go."

She turned slightly to find her face mere inches from Bokoru's as he bore down upon her, stroking her cheek with rough knuckles. "Stay." With this, he leaned down and their lips met softly, much to Shitora's surprise. She was too stunned to do anything for a moment, frozen by the feeling of his lips on hers, but she soon placed her hands gently on his chest and pushed him away.

"Sorry," she murmured. "I'm...I'm not...I really should get back."

This time, she made it a few feet before Bokoru called out, "What, you belong to that wolf?"

The girl stopped confusedly, furrowing her brow before turning to face the ox demon. "What?"

"You're fucking Ookami, huh?" Bokoru reitterated, shaking his head rather stiffly as he took a few steps towards her. Shitora was feeling rather uneasy about the look in his eyes. "Getting up next to the leader of the Reikons, is that it?"

"No that is fucking not it!" Shitora replied heatedly, fists clenching as her sharp fangs barred angrily in the front of her mouth. "We're not together, okay?"

"Oh yeah? So then why can't I do this?!" Bokoru lunged forward, grabbing Shitora's wrists and crushing his lips boldly against hers. Shitora let out a sound of outrage against his mouth, preparing to kick him away with her shuddering legs when he pushed her backwards deftly, sending her crashing into a nearby tent. He soon had her pressed against an overturned lawn chair, legs and body holding her against the floor with his oxen strength.

His breathing grew ragged and Bokoru muttered against her lips, "Oh yeah, baby, you like it dirty, huh?"

Trying to bit the boy's lip, Shitora squirmed valliantly beneath his hold, but his full demon ox powers were too much for her own hanyou dog ones. It became apparent soon enough that Bokoru was doing this for more than a few simple stolen kisses. Shitora's eyes rolled madly about in her head as she tried to look for any way out of this predicament, but she couldn't move a single part of her body; Bokoru's strength was just too immense. She could fell his sweaty skin upon hers, smell the rancid scent of his unwashed body, hear his ragged breathing echoing in her ears. He tasted like chewing tobacco and blood; Shitora thought for a moment that she was going to throw up in her mouth.

For the first time in her life, Shitora Taisho was experiencing pure hopeless and unadulterated fear; never before had she found herself in a situation so devoid of an obvious exit. It seemed as though there was nothing she could to save herself from the loss of her virginity or the scarring of her physche and immediately, terrifying thoughts began rushing through her head. After this, her life would never be the same, her friends would look at her differently, she would never know true happiness because some bastard had stolen it from her. In that moment, Shitora couldn't think, couldn't cry, and couldn't breathe; Bokoru was going to rape her and there wasn't a damn thing she could do about it.

In one split second, as Bokoru bit Shitora's lip and reached a grimy hand up her skirt, Shitora wished for death over the defiling of her body; even as she lay there, immobile, Bokoru's powerful leg was crushing her abdomen and sending her into a state of hypoxia, pain engulfed her midriff. Spots danced before her eyes as the taste of blood poisoned her tongue, making her pray for either divine intervention or a swift death. Fortunately for her, neither option was necessary.

An ear splitting howl, laced with pain, anger and a heart stopping desire to kill, piereced the night air and a wrathful figure was upon Bokoru. Shitora gasped as his lips left her and she fought for breath from her crushed lungs, choking on the blood filling her throat; she could still fell the ox demons hands on her body, lifting up her shirt, reaching for her most private areas. She lay there, huddled in a ball as the far away sounds of growling, breaking and pained cries echoed dully in her ears; she could barely even hear them, she was so frozen.

Ranbou Ookami had struggled with Inuyasha's random demon transformation for some time, wondering what could possess a man to abandon his self control over a woman. It wasn't until the moment he discovered Bokoru defiling Shitora on the ground that he understood the full extent of Inuyasha's anger; as Bokoru's terrified mouth screamed for the furious wolf to stop, Ranbou couldn't hear a word. He didn't know what his face looked like at that moment, lips curled back to display sharp fangs, eyes white hot, brow all but invisible against his hair line. He couldn't quite make out the sight of his own claws as they swooped down upon Bokoru's now mangled body, like deadly pendulums with their nails drawing deep canyons in the ox demon's chest. He wasn't even sure what words poured from his lips, ancient wolf tongue cursing Bokoru and his ancestors so violently that even the gods covered their ears. But frankly, Ranbou didn't give a damn. Bokoru had tried to rape Shitora, and for that he would die.

Shitora coughed violently, eyes burning as frightened tears squeezed from their corners. It had been quite some time since Shitora actually cried out of fear or sadness, probably since her mother died those four years ago, but the thought of what might've happened loomed over her head, drawing dark curtains over her every day fearless mask. As she lay there, wretched, sick, hurt and dirty from a man's hands, Shitora choked out a broken sob.

At an all too familiar sound, Ranbou's heart seemed to stop and he paused, ignoring the deadening silence of the unconcious demon below him. The sound came again, one he hadn't heard for some time now, but Ranbou knew it deep within his heart. He turned slowly, taking in the sight of a wretched Shitora curled up in a protective ball on the ground, sobbing. He'd only heard that sound once before, the day her mother died, but he never dreamed he'd hear it again under circumstances such as these. Bokoru's body all but forgotten, Ranbou hurried towards Shitora, kneeling down before her.

"Sukini," he whispered huskily, practically crying himself from witnessing her in such a state. He could see the bruises on her wrists forming, see the blood flowing from her open mouth, and it terrified him. He knew the injuries weren't life threatening, but still; it was his Shitora that was hurting.

"Ran, h-he..." she stuttered out, unable to finish as another cough engulfed her body, sending blood flying from her callously torn lip.

"Sh," Ranbou quieted her, reaching down before gently lifting her broken body into his arms. She stiffened momentarily before relaxing, convincing herself that Ranbou and Bokoru were completely different people. She trusted Ranbou with her life, though she might never tell him that, and just the thought of him made her feel safe. "We've gotta get you help."

"N-no," Shitora hiccuped, as Ranbou began walking slowly along the line of tents, trying not to jar his fragile cargo. "Th-the RV, I c-can't let...p-please, I..."

"Alright, alright," Ranbou agreed quietly, easing the girls nerves as he set his course towards the RV, making sure to bypass the part and all those surrounding it. As soon as his anger had come, it had vanished, replace by concern, sadness and, most of all, regret. If only he'd been more insistent and not let her go, if only he'd been more vigilant. If only he'd protected her like he'd promised himself he would...but he hadn't. And now she rested, hurt and bleeding in his arms, as he carried her lamely towards the van. He couldn't do anything else for her and that killed him, right through his busted heart.

The girl's RV was dark and quiet, as the others wouldn't be back from the party for sometime now. Opening the door with one hand, Ranbou carried Shitora carefully up the stairs before moving towards the back, depositing her on the bed in the left most bedroom; he could smell her scent permeating that place and knew she was sleeping there.

After Ranbou set her down on the bed, Shitora shuddered and her ears gave an involuntary twitch. "I-I need a shower," she choked out, tears still flowing unbidden down her cheeks.

The wolf nodded dumbly. "Yeah, go on. I'll be here."

Just those words, three insignificant words, set Shitora's mind at ease and she let out a ragged breath, nodding her head before stumbling towards the bathroom and closing the door behind her. Ranbou listened to the sound of the shower turning on, water flowing through the small RV pipes before flowing down upon Shitora's thin form. Inside, Shitora used a sponge to practically scrub off her top layer of skin, wanting to erase every reminder or Bokoru and the damage he'd done her. After a while, Shitora's mind began to return and the tears came to a natural stop. That was right, she reminded herself, Ranbou had saved her, she still had her virginity, and Bokoru was all but dead on the concrete somewhere. It had all turned out okay and she was safe. She just had to keep reminding herself of that. Still, she felt so...dirty.

When she exited the shower, toweling off her body with her damp hair clinging to sun kissed skin, she grabbed a random pair of shorts and shirt which someone had left on the counter. Black bed shorts and a white wifebeater, nothing special, though at the current time she didn't feel so special anyway. She opened the door to be met with a blast of cold air as she made her way back towards the bedroom to talk to Ranbou. When she saw him sitting on the edge of the bed however, head in his hands and breathing quiet, she couldn't find the words to say.

"Ran," she began, only to find herself cut off by a sudden movement.

Completely unthreatening, Ranbou rose from the bed and crossed the distance between them in two large strides, wrapping her in his strong arms and pulling her close to his chest. "I'm so sorry, Sukini. If I could just...If only I'd pushed that dumbshit away, pulled you back...I'm so fuckin' sorry. I...I'm...I'm sorry." It seemed as though the wolf demon couldn't even find the words to say as he stood there, holding Shitora close to him as though to reassure himself of her presence.

Shitora returned his hug, wrapping thin arms around his broad back and pressing her face to his chest; he was just so safe, a haven where she knew worldly things would never harm her. "It's not your fault. It's nobody's fault but his."

"I'll never let that happen again, I fucking swear." Pulling back his head slightly, Ranbou captured Shitora's amber eyes with his determined ice blue ones, which seemed to sparkle rather brightly if only for a moment. "I'll never let anyone fucking hurt you again."

In a completely different manner from her earlier experience, Shitora found herself drawn naturally towards Rabou's lips and his to hers. Before another word could be spoken, she found herself kissing Ranbou Ookami, the man she thought she could never love. Rude, arrogant, conceited and demanding, he was just the sort of person she'd sworn to despise, no matter what the circumstances, but there was nothing she could do; against her will, she'd fallen for her greatest enemy. As they stood there, embracing warmly with their lips locked in a peaceful harmony, Shitora knew his words were true; he would do everything in his power to never let harm come to her again.

When the two broke apart, staring at each other with a sense of wonderment, Shitora whispered, "Is this really happening?"

"I think so," Ranbou mused, ice blue eyes narrowed confusedly. "I guess...I dunno."

Shitora leaned up and engaged him in another kiss, breaking it quickly, with an equally befuddled look. "Yeah, it's happening. But...how?"

"I dunno," Ranbou murmured, reaching down a large hand to brush his thumb tenderly across Shitora's bottom lip. "But I fucking like it."

With this, the wolf let loose a grin, one which mirrored that of the girl before him, and he leaned down to capture her lips in another heart stopping kiss. The Ace of Spades, huh? Shitora thought to herself, smiling through the kiss and she locked her arms around Ranbou's neck. Well, I guess I took a chance after all. And it was worth it. Really worth it. I could've lived without the whole Bokoru part, but I'll never have to worry about things like that again.

Because I have him. I'll always be safe. Happy. Loved.

And she would be.

Okay, long chapter, with a lot of important shit in it, ne? I hooked them up, but it was hard and took about two hours. Next chapter is some sweet racing action, complete with lots of couple time. Hope you guys liked it, thanks for all the reviews! I hope we break 200 before this is all over! Love.

KOLU










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