InuYasha Fan Fiction ❯ Lemonade, Too ❯ Hella Good ( Chapter 4 )

Lemonade, Too

By Fujifunmum

Chapter 4: Hella Good

"Nice to see you, too, Inu Yasha," said the Artist formerly known as Sesshoumaru, as he took the microphone and burst into the first song of his eagerly awaited concert. The concert hall erupted and everyone was yelling, waving and singing. Everyone, but Inu Yasha and a very shocked Kagome, who stood at his side with her mouth hanging open.

Yash dropped into his first row seat, disgusted, as Kagome just stood there next to him, alternately looking at Yash and then at the writhing performer on the stage, then back at Yash. All during the first number and well into the second, she couldn't stop looking at them, first at one then at the other. And she couldn't get her mouth to close either.

The same shock of silvery white hair. The same general facial features - although the Artist was well known for his striking facial make-up. She was particularly fond of the half moon on his forehead and had often wondered how he managed to get it to look identical every time it was painted on. And he never altered the cheek slashes or the design, either.

Then he took her attention completely away from her mate. He was a volatile performer, compelling the audience's attention with his dance routines and electric, magnetic style. His costumes were equally risqué and enticing - tonight he was wearing tight black leather pants that left little to the imagination, knee high black leather platform boots with chunk heels, and no shirt. Wrapped around his neck was his signature white boa, a perennial part of his costume; it just made her sigh and smile. He was such a handsome guy, and so talented. His CD's were usually avante garde and top of the charts. His stage shows were legendary for their stagecraft, choreography, and their salacious and blatant sexuality. He was known for his ability to choose talented and incredibly attractive back up singers, dancers and musicians - of both sexes. Tonight was no exception. He was surrounded by singers and dancers of uncommon beauty who were attired in titillating and revealing costumes that complimented his own as he joined them in a provocative bump and grind bit during the bridge of the current song. The musicians were talented, inspired and totally hot. The Artist may have been considered a musical seer, but his stage presence was the personification of sex.

She started to become entranced by the show, getting her groove on to the music. Yash growled with displeasure as he crossed his arms in disgust at the performance right in front of him. At least the strong demon presence was accounted for, and he felt the concentration here and beyond the stage, not coming from around him in the audience. He didn't like it and would have preferred to leave, but it was clear that Kagome was very happy to be here and at least she was enjoying the show.

Once the first few numbers were over, he was able to get her attention and try to get her to leave. He grabbed her arm and motioned with his head towards the aisle, hoping she would agree to leave.

"Not a chance, Yash!" She shook her head violently. "And besides, I want to meet your brother when the show is over. We're going to be family, aren't we?" She smiled sweetly at him as she shook off his arm and went back to giving her full attention to his brother, who appeared to be writhing on the stage, getting his groove thing on with a couple of the back-up singers at the moment.

Yash was beyond disgusted, but at least he didn't feel Kagome would be in any danger, at least not from his brother. Sesshoumaru had no interest in the Shikon no Tama. None.

He gave up and decided the course of least resistance was to stay for the rest of the show. Now that his brother knew he was here, he would insist on at least the exchange of a few choice words, if not a full-fledged family brawl. Might as well let Kagome enjoy this show, the next one would not be pretty.

His eyes fell on the backdrop again. Now he remembered the words he had seen on the poster in Souta's room: "The Tail". Of course. And these innocent fans probably thought that tail was part of his costume, too. Yash just snorted. Maybe he'd expose the sonofabitch for the asshole he was. That would be very satisfying indeed.

The Artist must have spotted Yash's insidious grin, because he turned his piercing stare his way. At the end of the next number, he stopped singing, leering, dancing, rubbing and posturing long enough to say a few words of welcome to his adoring fans. After introducing his back-up singers, dancers, and his band, he turned and motioned for the spotlight to be placed on the front row, right down on Yash as he gestured to him.

"Please give a warm welcome to my only brother, Yash, here visiting from California."

Kagome practically pushed Yash out of his seat, insisting he stand and acknowledge the simpering self-serving, "welcome" his sneaky idiot brother had forced him into accepting. He wouldn't be able to expose him now without also exposing himself and subjecting Kagome to the same ridicule and ostracism.

Torment over, he slumped back in his seat, reconsidering his decision to stay for the remainder of the concert. It was coming to a climactic end, he could tell by the collective efforts on the stage in front of him to work the humans around him into a mass of sweaty frenzied excitement. When it came to drama, no one could top his asshole brother.

He knew even if he succeeded in getting Kagome out of here, Sesshoumaru would track him down and insist on having a little "conversation" or worse. Might as well get it over with so he and Kagome could get back to their lives.

As expected, as soon as Sesshoumaru left his stage after the second encore, a couple of his crew came over to escort both of them backstage. They were led down a backstage hallway towards an exit at the rear of the building. The announcer hadn't lied; the Artist had truly left the building.

Parked at the rear of the building was a very elaborate custom-made touring vehicle. They were cleared by security, and passed a wealth of other very young and quite attractive women and men waiting for a glimpse of their idol, hoping he might choose them for some closer attention.

"Not tonight," Yash muttered as he passed them, "consider yourselves lucky." He kept his voice low; knowing these sentiments would not be well received by this crowd.

They went into the "bus" and realized that it could only be called that due to the undercarriage and the driver's alcove at the front. It didn't resemble the base vehicle in any other respect. Kagome felt just like Dorothy in the Wizard of Oz as she and Yash were led behind the red velvet curtain that separated the driver from the driven.

"Why the fuck are we here, Sesshoumaru?"

"Courteous as always, I see, brother." Sesshoumaru extended one elegant arm out of the hot tub he was reclining in, flicking his fingers to indicate a sumptuous buffet to the side of the compact suite. "Would you care for refreshment? I find these pedestrian performances so draining. But one must give the public what they expect if one wishes to retain the favor of such a fickle bitch."

"Get off it, Sesshoumaru. You have enough fame and fortune to last several demon lifetimes, brother. Why a demon would risk such exposure is beyond me."

"Nearly everything is beyond you, Inu Yasha." He took a very definite sniff and turned his languid eyes to glare directly at his brother. "Apparently even the most simple of family rules is beyond you, hanyou. Only an idiot such as you would mate and then even stoop to spawn with that mate without the required marking." He paused to look Kagome over with disdain. "A pitiful human, what else could one expect of you, hanyou?"

The adoring smile Kagome had worn as she entered the inner sanctum of someone she had admired withered in appalling disgust. The hard words he had flung at her mate, her fiancé, were unkind, unfair, and downright cruel. She would tolerate no more.

"Listen up, Artist formerly known as human. Yash is a wonderful person, er, hanyou, and you have no right to speak to him like this."

Sesshoumaru merely turned a bored expression in her direction. He seemed about to speak when a small toad of a thing bounded into the room holding a staff that appeared to have two heads.

"Silence human, the Demon Lord of the Western Lands has not given you permission to speak. You should kneel in his presence."

"Jaken," said the Artist.

"Yes, m'Lord?"

"You forgot to point out that I am far more attractive than this lowly human."

"Sorry, m'Lord…" Jaken was unable to continue, as Kagome had drop kicked him into next week - or at least as far as the front windshield. She turned to Yash and asked, "Want me to take him out, too?" She gestured with her head to his brother.

"I appreciate the thought, bitch," he said as he put his arm around her and gathered her to him under his arm, "but my asshole brother is a full demon. You wouldn't have a chance against him. Besides, it's a family tradition - only I get to kick Sesshoumaru's ass."

A hissing sound drew their attention. They both looked back towards the hot tub in time to see an acidic substance sizzling the carpet under The Artist's dripping claws. "You wish," he murmured, reclining into the luxurious warmth, eyes closed, but clearly alert. "You still need my Approval, hanyou."

"And exactly why should I give a shit?"

"Other than to honor our father? No reason." He paused, nothing like adding a dramatic moment to an already overheated conversation. "However, if you do not honor our father's memory, there would appear to be no reason for me to bother to convey his gift to you."

"What the fuck are you talking about?"

"A legacy. For a hanyou. I admit it is totally unbelievable that our father should have taken any notice of you, half-human. But I suppose your bitch of a mother must have talked him into it. I wouldn't care to speculate at the persuasion she must have used."

Yash was growling louder than Kagome had ever heard him, his amber eyes were flashing brightly and she could see flecks of red in his irises. That was new. She was shocked at the antagonism between the brothers. Clearly, Yash had not exaggerated when he had mentioned that his brother was totally worthless as family.

In a flash, Yash's clawed hand was at his brother's throat, and he was practically roaring as he barked, "You're not fit to speak my mother's name, leave her out of this."

Sesshoumaru reacted not at all. Not even an eye flutter. He merely breathed a tolerant sounding sigh and continued, "Very well, brother. Her persuasions aside, Father had the bad taste to leave you something. A very valuable something, if I am not greatly mistaken."

"Is that why it took you so long to mention it?"

"It must have slipped my mind. But now, as you are here, near my home, and the inheritance is here, I thought it my duty as a loyal son to fulfill our father's dying wish. However, as you have no family honor, flaunting a mate who is unmarked, you are hardly worthy of such consideration, even if you are a blood relative. And you are about to inflict your spawn on an unsuspecting world, too. I do wonder what your mother would have thought of that, don't you, Inuyasha?"

Yash withdrew his hand and was silent. His eyes still flashed, although the red receded. He cast a pleading glance at Kagome, closed his eyes, and gruffly growled at his languid brother. "Can we do it tonight? Kagome and I need to get back to Los Angeles. And where is Rin? If we are going to do this, I want Rin there. At least she will make Kagome feel welcome."

Turning to Kagome, Yash continued in a much more quiet and controlled voice. "He has a point. I have not marked you as my mate, with the Approval of my family. It is a demon tradition that I should have followed."

"And I, Sesshoumaru, Lord of the Western Lands, am your only family."

"Get over it, Sesshoumaru! You were Lord of the Western Lands on a puny set of islands on another continent!"

"Asia, North America, whatever. As far as I'm concerned, I'm the Demon Lord of whatever portion of the universe that is 'West' of wherever I am. You still need my Approval for the marking to be fully recognized and effective. You may not care, Inu Yasha, but what about your pups?"

Kagome interrupted the brother's bickering to draw Yash's attention back to her. "Do you want me to do this, Yash?"

With a sadness and regret in his voice, Yash whispered, "Yes."

"As you wish. Have Jaken get the limo to take you to my compound. I will join you there soon." And with a dismissing flick of his hand, the Demon Lord of the Western Lands went back to his soak.

Yash took Kagome's hand and led her back to the front of the bus, barely snarling at Jaken as he led them to the waiting limousine. The chauffeur deferentially helped them into the back of the luxurious car, offering them food and drink for the drive to Sesshoumaru's compound. It was located some distance into the countryside outside of the city, past the suburbs. Yash forestalled Kagome's questions, waiting until they were settled and the driver had raised the privacy window as he requested.

"Kagome, I thought we could avoid all this. I never wanted you to even meet my asshole brother."

"So, this 'marking' thing is a big deal for demons, eh?" Yash shook his head very slightly in agreement, taking off his hat, gloves, and loosening his hair now that he would be among demons.

"What do I have to do? And who will be there? And who is Rin?" She paused. Yash was avoiding answering. She took his hand in hers and reached up to turn is face toward her. "Tell me."

Yash reached over to pull her into a big hug, sighing and rubbing his chin against the top of her head. He usually did it to comfort her, but now it was more to comfort himself.

"I didn't mark you when we first mated because you were being so damn stubborn about accepting the fact that we were mated. Then, when you finally accepted it, there was the Shikon no Tama to consider. The marking would announce to other demons that you were my mate - which is usually a good thing. But under the circumstances, I didn't want to draw any more attention to you from any demons for any reason. And there were other dangers to consider."

"Under what circumstances?"

"Under the circumstances that you might get your ass killed, bitch! Not to mention that you're carrying my pups. I don't want any demons anywhere near you. Including my asshole brother."

"Present company excepted, I presume."

"Well, duh, Kagome. It's my job to keep you safe. I want you where I can make sure nothing happens to you."

"Yeah, I've noticed," Kagome responded dryly. "Like every time I try to leave the house."

"No reason for you to be going anywhere, Kagome. I want you right next to me and safe."

"OK, setting my rational and obvious objections to your obsessive behavior aside, what's the deal with the 'marking'? And who is Rin?"

Yash sighed again, holding her closer before taking her by the shoulders and pushing her back so he could speak to her face to face. "Rin is Sesshoumaru's mate. She is human, too." His face softened and he smiled briefly. "You'll like Rin, she's a very nice woman. I don't know how she puts up with my asshole brother."

"She probably doesn't call him asshole like it's his first name, for one thing."

Yash just scowled at her. "He deserves it. The meeting you just witnessed was actually the least violent meeting we have ever had, with the exception of his 'marking' of Rin. He didn't even try to kill me. He definitely has more in mind than this marking. He wants something else, and he wants it bad. It must be really bad if he is willing to give me something of my father's to get it. He knows I have nothing belonging to our father. I had something once, but Sesshoumaru destroyed it. This is the one thing he could offer me that I couldn't refuse." He snorted, and looked off behind her. "Maybe he thinks he's the Godfather in addition to the Demon Lord of the Western Lands."

Kagome reached over to take his chin gently in her hand, bringing his attention back to her. She couldn't help the slight smirk as she said, "So, am I doing this for you or your family?"

"Keh," was the only response she got, making her laugh and take Yash's hand as she snuggled next to him. "You know I will do anything for our baby, Yash, so just settle down and tell me about it."

"You'll like Rin. In spite of being Sesshoumaru's mate the poor girl is very kind. The last time I saw either of them was when he insisted I come for her marking. I tried to talk her out of it, but she loves the asshole."

"With all the speculation in the media about his 'sexual preference' I'm surprised he's mated at all."

"Huh? What the fuck are you talking about? And who would give a shit about his private life anyway."

"Yo! Earth to Yash. The show tonight? The screaming fans? The sellout performance? The writhing on the stage? The backless pants? The kissy kissy with the girlies followed closely by the rubbing rubbing with the guys? The boy-girl dance moves turned girl-girl and boy-boy and then back again? Didn't you pay any attention to what was right in front of you?"

"YOU were right in front of me, Kagome. Dancing your fucking ass off. I was too busy trying to decide if shaking your booty was going to harm the pups to pay any attention to my brother the drama queen. I didn't even realize the Asshole was into this music shit before tonight. He was into better living through chemistry the last time I saw him." Yash scowled, processing the ramifications of his brother's potentially androgynous public behavior. "Keh. If the Asshole wants to make people think he's a switch hitter or gay why should I give a shit. Demons know he's mated."

"Did you say 'pups' - as in plural?"

Yash looked out the window into the darkness, keeping his face averted. "Pup, baby, whatever."

Kagome's eyes narrowed as a suspicion that Yash might know a lot more than he was telling her began to take hold in the back of her mind.

"Does your brother have any children?"

"Good question. I'll let you ask Rin. I have no intention of exchanging more words with my asshole brother than are absolutely necessary."

"What do I have to do for this 'marking' thing?"

"Same as always, just do exactly what I tell you to do, like a good mate."

"Oh goody," Kagome smirked, her voice dripping sarcasm, "I can hardly wait."