InuYasha Fan Fiction ❯ Paradox: The Power of Letting Go ❯ A Friend Indeed ( Chapter 9 )

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

Disclaimer: InuYasha is owned by Rumiko Takahashi/Shogakukan Inc. and Viz Media.

Story and all original characters created are owned by me.

A Friend Indeed

-x-x-x-x-

Raising her gaze up, Kagome stared into the glowing depths of amber coals. She licked her lips and slowly leaned in. She couldn't breathe as a shudder of need coursed through her body, her breath coming out in little hitches. His breath was warm and silky as it caressed her cheeks and skimmed over her lips like a butterfly's kiss. His mouth was a whisper a way and Kagome parted her lips, ready to receive him…

The sudden knock on the door brought them both to a halt. They stood frozen in place as they stared at one another.

Kagome was the first to react. She stepped back hastily, her face burning with embarrassment.

Yash regarded her for a moment, indecisive, before he spun on his feet and opened the door.

Kagome turned around quickly and tried to stop the rapid beating of her heart. She put her hands up to her cheeks, trying desperately to dissipate the pinkness she knew was there. She willed herself to breathe as one of the secretaries breezed into the room.

The wolf youkai quietly took in the scene before her, noticing the strain on the human girl's shoulders and the slightly erratic beating of her boss' heart. Narrowing her eyes imperceptibly, she gave Yash a saucy look. “Mr. Takahashi, I was to inform you that Mr. Gourou Kato will be joining your meeting this morning. He wanted to get a better handle on the research project for his press releases.”

Yash nodded curtly, silently willing the youkai secretary to leave. Damn, did he almost kiss Kagome? Why the fuck did they have to be interrupted now?

The secretary had other ideas, however. Taking advantage of Yash's wayward thoughts and inattention, she linked her arms through his and purred, “What time are we going tonight? I thought we could have dinner beforehand.”

What?! Yash startled by the turn of events looked down at his secretary. Shit, he forgot about tonight. His attention momentarily turned away from Kagome, and he didn't notice the stiffening of her shoulders. Unfortunately, the secretary did and pressed on unabashed. “It should be so much fun. Everyone we know will be there. I even bought a dress especially for the occasion. You'll love it.”

Kagome took in the rush of words as her spine tensed. When did InuYasha start liking wolves? That seemed to be her only coherent thought as she willed herself to pull it together. She pasted a smile on her face and turned around. The wolf was practically clinging onto him like saran wrap, she thought sourly.

The secretary smirked at Kagome, and, making a show of releasing Yash's arm, she seductively trailed her painted fingernails along his forearm. Winking, she said huskily, “See you tonight,” before heading out the door.

Yash quickly looked up at Kagome, noticing the coolness radiating from the girl. Opening his mouth to explain, he was cut short by the arrival of several people in the doorway. Damn, it was 10:30.

With Kazuki leading the way, the rest of her team members filed into the room. A moment later, an inu-youkai that Kagome had never seen before entered the office.

Kazuki noticed the rigid way Kagome held herself, and shot Yash a look. What the hell happened up here? And why the hell does Yash smell like wolf? Siding up to his partner, he whispered under his breath, “You okay?”

Kagome took comfort in his presence, giving Kazuki a quick nod and what she hoped was a reassuring smile.

The inu-youkai unknowingly broke the tension in the room as he approached Kazuki and Kagome. Bowing briefly, he said, “I am Gourou Kato, the vice president of public relations for the Takahashi Group.”

Kazuki bowed back. “Kazuki Matsumoto and this is my project co-chair, Dr. Kagome Higurashi.”

Kagome smiled and bowed, still a little shaken, but satisfied that she had her feelings under control.

Yash, who couldn't wait for the meeting to start fifty minutes ago, was now frustrated that he didn't have more time. He did the only thing he could, he gestured for everyone to take their seats. He watched with narrowed eyes as Kazuki instinctively put his hand on the small of Kagome's back and led her to the table.

The six of them sat at the round meeting table. Yash immediately grabbed another donut and slouched down into a chair, facing slightly away. He was agitated that the intimate moment with Kagome was lost. He blew out a breath, frustrated at the intrusion. Shit, was she really going to let me kiss her? He didn't even taste the donut in his hand; it just kept him busy.

Gourou addressed the team, “I am preparing my initial press releases for the Takahashi Group. Let me just say that the project you are working on is at the top of my priority list. Mr. Takahashi has mentioned that he wanted to reveal our findings to counteract the Hatanaka Corporation, yes?”

“Yes, it has been mentioned,” muttered Kazuki. Great, another one to pressure us.

Kagome caught Kazuki's frustration and gave Gourou a genuine smile that belied her own inner turmoil. “Mr. Kato, if you have any questions please don't hesitate to stop us for further explanation.”

Kagome proceeded to start the meeting off, going into details of their project.

Throughout the meeting Yash did not once look at the other occupants of the room. Instead, he opted to stare out the window, lost in thought.

Kagome, too, was lost in thought. Kazuki noticed his partner's distraction. Even though she did a good job of hiding it, he knew her too well. He knew that while she was answering the questions directed at her with utmost ease and professionalism, the faraway glaze in her expression belied her true thoughts. Shit, she's good, he thought admirably. She knew her stuff well enough that she answered questions readily and automatically, never giving any indication of her inattention.

Stupid, stupid, stupid, Kagome berated herself. He has a date tonight. He has his own life now. Just because he's been so cordial and approachable doesn't mean he wants things back the way it use to be. Doesn't mean he wants me. Kagome stilled as she remembered Yash's words from their previous meeting, It's in the past. I don't need to re-live it. The last time in his office he was just trying to be nice! Kagome had thought that he just didn't want to talk about their past. Stupid, stupid, stupid! How could she have mistaken his genial manner for something more? I thought… I thought there was a chance for us… stupid, stupid, stupid. Why would he want her now, after all that she had put him through, especially when he had women throwing themselves at his feet? Her rage was directed at herself as feelings of jealousy consumed her.

Kagome turned her gaze to the hanyou. He seemed just as distracted as she was, but she could tell he was listening to the conversation around him, with the way his ears rotated and twitched on top of his head like little radars.

His ears… She loved his ears. Damn! Stupid Kagome, stop thinking about his ears. He doesn't want you anymore… yet… he almost kissed me…

Yash felt the gaze of the girl, and turned slightly to look up. He sucked in a sharp intake of breath at the frosted look Kagome was giving him. Shit, she's mad. What the hell? Yash looked at her, trying to assess why she was shooting daggers at him. Fuck, does she regret that I almost kissed her?

His eyes narrowed. She was thinking about the past: Shippo, Miroku, Sango. Shit, she was emotional. Was that all it was? A fallback to the damn past? He clenched his jaw as he watched Kazuki lightly touch her hand, bringing her back into the discussion. Kagome automatically complied, the harsh look in her eyes replaced by a lying tranquility as she turned and smiled brightly at Mr. Kato. Yash continued to stare at Kazuki's hand still resting on Kagome's. And dammit, she didn't pull away! What the fuck? She was going to kiss me! Does she fucking regret it? She must, the way she's letting Kazuki touch her like that. In a meeting, no less! Fuck!

“Sources tell us that the Hatanaka Corporation is using moth youki. Why aren't we doing this?”

“Because it doesn't work,” Kazuki stated bluntly.

Kagome nodded her head in agreement. “Their youki is too weak. The transformations would never hold.”

“Then why is Hatanaka releasing their findings based on that?”

Kazuki simply shook his head. “Your guess is as good as ours. Why they would want to ruin their reputation on a formula that doesn't work is beyond us.”

Gourou leaned forward. “Dr. Matsumoto, to be blunt, you and Dr. Higurashi have spent the last twenty minutes explaining what doesn't work. Now tell me what will work.”

Kazuki gave an exasperated sigh and looked Gourou straight in the eyes. “If we knew that, don't you think we would have the formula by now?”

“There's talk about using the concealment barrier technology to fuel the transformations. Why can't you do that?” Gourou waved his hands in the air. Like all marketers, he was frustrated at the lack of information he could put into his press kits. He was grasping at straws and trying to spin marketing gold out of limited information.

Kazuki rolled his eyes. What a headache trying to explain how science worked to one that obviously just wanted to have an answer now. No matter if the answer was wrong as long as he could wrap it up in a neat, pretty package to present to the world.

Kagome leaned in, her eyes bright. Her attention was now solely focused on the task at hand. She was in her element, talking about her research, that she momentarily forgot her distressing thoughts. “You are partially right, Mr. Kato. Basically, we are trying to take the concealment barrier and anchoring that technology into a personal individual charm.”

Gourou shot Kazuki a triumphant look and addressed Kagome, “So what's the problem? Why can't we just do that?”

Kazuki snarled, “Because miko power is used to anchor a concealment barrier onto a non-living object like a building or a house. We can't just use spiritual energy like that for individual hanyou unless we wanted to purify them.”

“So, what do we use?”

“Well, that's just the thing. We don't know. We can use the barrier's basic concept to mask a hanyou's looks, but we need something to reflect that spiritual energy and anchor that to a charm,” Kagome further explained.

“What would you use to direct the spiritual energy?”

Kagome smiled patiently. “Well, that's the missing link. We don't know.”

Fuji, up to speed on his chairs' research, interjected, “We need to find a powerful enough youkai that can make permanent transformations. A metamorphosis, so to speak.”

Kazuki nodded and shot Fuji a smile. Fuji puffed up with pride at the acknowledgment.

“How about kitsune youkai?”

This time, it was Sakura who answered the marketer, “No, kitsunes have the ability to transform, but their transfers are temporary, much like moth youkai.”

“What else is there?”

Kazuki raked his hand through his hair. He had no patience for this. “Well, let's see, there's insects, amphibians, crustaceans, mollusks, echinoderms. The list goes on, and we've tried it all.”

“Well, if you're talking about a powerful metamorphosis, why not use the most powerful one of all, a butterfly's?”

Yash sat up, his ears twitching. His attention was finally on the conversation at hand.

Kagome, normally the patient one, was feeling her patience wear thin as well. Shooting Kazuki a look and noticing that he was at the end of his rope with this discussion, she answered, “Mr. Kato, believe us when we say we've tried everything. Our next step is to combine various youki to see if we can get a decent enough transformation.”

“You didn't answer my question, Dr. Higurashi. What about butterfly youkai? You want a powerful transformation. That'll work, won't it?”

“Yes —”

“Well, then that's the answer!” crowed the marketer.

Kazuki rolled his eyes, and Kagome smiled wryly. She interpreted his expression of what the hell are we dealing with here?

Kagome leaned forward and spoke slowly as if addressing a child, “Mr. Kato, butterfly youkai has been extinct for over 200 years.”

The marketer looked abashed and huffed, “Well, of course they are. But some must have survived somewhere. Maybe in hiding? Or butterfly hanyou. What about them? Or, w-why can't we clone the damn things?”

What the hell does he think extinct means? Kazuki was ready to snarl at Gourou, but stilled at Kagome's hand on his arm.

Smiling indulgently at the marketer, she responded, “Butterfly youkai were just too delicate to survive. Believe me, they are extinct. There may be butterfly hanyou around, but our sources haven't had any luck tracking them down. Besides, their blood would be so diluted that it wouldn't be effective. The only thing we can do now is to locate a suitable replacement that can make permanent transformations. Even if it means combining various youki.”

Yash held his breath as the conversation continued around him. Yes, he was listening to every word. Should he speak up? Make a suggestion? Nudge Kagome in the right direction? Every time he attempted to open his mouth, something stopped him. He really didn't want to tell her, he decided stubbornly to himself. So, he kept his mouth shut and listened. When they moved onto another topic, he let out a sigh of relief and grabbed another donut.

When Yash reached for his sixth donut, Kazuki raised a brow at Kagome, seemingly to say, He's not paying attention to us at all. Surprise, surprise, he's not interested.

In which Kagome shot him a look that plainly said, Leave him alone.

Kazuki just rolled his eyes, and proceeded to conclude the meeting.

-x-x-x-x-

Yash sat at his desk staring out the window. His emotional rollercoaster ride was coming to an end. From the highs of the morning to the lows of the afternoon, he finally came to a conclusion.

The look of anger Kagome shot him, combined with the way she kept touching Kazuki during the meeting, finally gave him a piece of reality. She had moved on with her life. What happened here in the office, before they were interrupted, was a tail end of the past.

Where was his resolve that he didn't want her obligation, her pity? How can I change the future if the past is already written? What kind of fool would I be to try to pursue it? What was that saying? “Fool me once, shame on you. Fool me twice, shame on me.”

He closed his eyes and leaned back into his chair. He had his heart broken twice by two women he would have gladly died for. Two women, same damn soul. Ironic, wasn't it? Somewhere, someone must really, really hate him — entwining his soul with one that continually broke his heart. If Kagome ever got reincarnated, he'd better stay away from anyone who looked like her or Kikyo. Better yet, stay away from all brown eyed, black haired beauties. You know the saying: three times the charm. Fuck.

-x-x-x-x-

“Oh Yash, I'm so excited. It'll be great. It's like our very first date!” purred the wolf youkai as she clung onto the hanyou's arm as they exited the elevator.

Yash pulled his arm out of the wolf's and glared at her. “Listen Amara, this is not a date,” he hissed. “I'm only doing this as a favour to your cousin and that fucking asshole she married.” He stalked out of the building, not bothering to wait for her.

She pouted and hurried after him. A slight movement caught the corner of her eye, and she smiled secretly as she hurried into the parking lot after the hanyou.

“Oh Yash! Yash, darling!” she called.

The hanyou whipped around, and was about to retort to the darling part, when the youkai `tripped'. Taking advantage of the momentum, Amara flung herself into Yash's arms and clung on tight.

“What the hell —” Yash's temper was at its end.

The brazen hussy quickly swung the startled hanyou around, leaned up, and kissed him. Hard.

The wolf youkai smirked with satisfaction as she noticed the shadowy figure disappear back into the building.

“What the hell are you doing?!” bellowed the furious hanyou as he pushed the wolf away.

Amara straightened out her coat and stood back, licking her lips. Giving Yash a sly smile she proceeded to the car. “Yash, darling, I know exactly what I'm doing.”

Shaking his head in disbelief, Yash followed her to the car. Fuck, the faster this night is over, the better.

-x-x-x-x-

Kagome watched from the shadows of the building. She was outside taking a break. Her thoughts were consumed with InuYasha when said hanyou came out with the wolf secretary following after him. She witnessed what she thought was a passionate kiss between the two and thought she would throw up at the display. She quickly retreated back into the building and stood watching as the couple drove away into the night.

“I told you he was a bastard.”

Kagome straightened her spine, and with her jaw set, she turned around and faced her friend. “I don't recall asking for your opinion.”

“Kagome, why the hell are you so blind? I keep telling you, that bastard doesn't deserve you.”

“Don't you dare tell me what's right for me.”

“Kagome….”

“Kaz, don't.” Kagome's voice was cool with annoyance. “Just don't. I'm sick and tired of you trying to fix me. I don't need fixing like some broken down toy.”

Kazuki eyed his friend for a few moments before casually tossing out, “She's pretty hot, that wolf youkai.”

“What?!”

“They make a cute couple.”

Kagome glared at him. “Thanks a lot.”

Kazuki shrugged, trying hard not to laugh at Kagome's incensed look. “I hear she really wants to get her claws into him.”

“You are not helping, Kaz.”

Kazuki continued on, ignoring Kagome's glower, “You shouldn't be surprised that someone of his stature would attract all types. He's decent looking, not as hot as me, of course. He's loaded. He co-owns the largest company in Japan. A prime catch, don't you think? It's no wonder so many women throw themselves at him. You should hear how they talk in the cafeteria.”

Kagome stared at him, aghast. She couldn't believe he was saying these things! “What kind of friend are you?”

The best. “I'm just saying, Kags, you have competition. I'm just trying to help out.”

With a resolved step, Kagome stood tall and looked Kazuki in the eye. “You're my friend and I love you for that, but I'm a big girl, Kaz. I can handle it. I don't need your help.” She turned away from him and crossed her arms.

Kazuki mused as he watched the emotions play on Kagome's face as she stared out into the night sky. He always knew she was a diamond in the rough. He just never realized how many facets defined her personality.

The soft, somber girl he had come to love belied the angry, flashing venus in front of him. Who the hell was this woman? He realized he truly didn't know. All she had ever shown him were the top layers. Her true self hidden underneath layers of proper decorum. This was a girl he couldn't just sweep away and hide in Canada. No, this was one who was battling to fight. This must have been what she was like in the Feudal era — warrior woman — ready to take on anything. She was hot.

Shaking his head, he reprimanded himself, Shit, she's my best friend. He really shouldn't be having these thoughts, not now, when he knew where her heart truly lay.

This past week was a real eye opener for him. He had never seen Kagome so happy. Anyone could see that she still harboured deep feelings for Yash; the way she discreetly looked at him with her eyes full of love. Anyone except that stupid, fucking bastard.

He almost laughed out loud at the meeting when he kept his hand on Kagome's. Kags was too distracted to notice that he was more or less holding her hand, but Yash, ha! The way his ears twitched! Even if he wasn't looking at them, Kazuki could tell he had a scowl on his face over that one! Okay, so I'm being sadistic, fucking with Yash's head, but I needed to know for sure, didn't I? I needed to know where that bastard's heart was. Kagome, on the other hand, well, she was another story. She just needed a nudge in the right direction.

Kazuki leaned back casually and crossed his arms. “Really, Kags, are you done with the emotional rant? I never said you couldn't handle it.”

“Then what are you trying to say?”

He slanted a gaze at her. “You know, anything that is worth having is worth fighting for. I've known you for how long? Five years? I've never seen you back down from a challenge before. I don't expect you to now.”

She didn't comment, but he could tell his words were hitting the mark. Now for the bull's-eye. “I've seen how Yash looks at you. Don't you think he has his pick of women? The fact that he's not married yet should tell you something. Those women have nothing compared to you, Kags, especially that wolf youkai. I meant what I said, she's hot, but,” he leaned in and chucked her chin, “you're hotter.”

With a grin, he turned and sauntered away, but stopped when Kagome's quiet voice reached him. “Kaz, thanks for being such a good friend.”

“You're welcome. Anything for you, darling,” he threw over his shoulder. Smirking, he exited out the door.