InuYasha Fan Fiction ❯ Patchwork Family ❯ A Misunderstanding, Bees, and Advice ( Chapter 27 )

A/N: All Inuyasha characters and references belong to the creator of Inuyasha, Rumiko Takahashi and published by Shogakukan. Any other characters are more than likely my own creation. If I borrow from another story I will do my best to make sure I give credit where credit is due. I will also be pulling some material (direct ideas and inspirations mostly, rather than exact material) from Burn Notice, Scorpion, the Greywalker series, Supernatural, and Lockwood & Co.

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When Inuyasha was clean, calmed down, and dressed in clothes fit for the garage, he walked back into the room to find Kagome sitting on the side of the bed while she waited, her clothes in her arms, covering her bra-less chest. She stood and brushed passed him without a word, limping a little again as she closed the bathroom door behind her. He stood for a second, confused, before he shrugged it off. He picked up his phone as he rubbed the water away from one ear. When he saw the text message, a grin spread across his face.

Kagome was back in fifteen minutes. She faced away from him, one hand on the dresser for balance while she pulled a shoe on. He looked her up and down, noting with some relief and a little appreciation that a few square meals had helped soften the rough edges a bit already, though she was a ways from where she should be. Clothing that fit helped too. It was possible she wasn’t quite as underweight as she’d looked in clothes that were too large for her. She just wasn’t a very big person. She wore the long black jeans and a black, V-necked, long sleeve shirt. Her thick, wet hair had been pulled into a fishtail braid that hung down over one shoulder. She was tense though, in a way she hadn’t been when he’d left for the bathroom, and he couldn’t help feeling he’d missed something.

She didn’t quite meet his eyes when she said, “ready when you are.”

He nodded, tucked the two phones, the walkie, and his wallet in various pockets, and motioned for her to go ahead of him as they made their way to the kitchen. The pocket doors were half open and he pushed them back into the wall as he entered, following the smell of fresh bread. Rosalind stood, liberally coated in flour, kneading a large amount of dough. Two oblong loaves and a round one, as well as two dozen single serving bread rolls sat on the counter cooling, crusts golden. The red head smiled brightly as they walked in and tossed one of the warm rolls to Inuyasha. “Morning sleeping beauties!”

Inuyasha snorted and tore a bite off the roll. When he swallowed, he sighed happily. “Man I’m glad your back.”

Rosalind smirked and gave Kagome a wink. “Just the food, that’s all he cares about.”

Kagome smiled a little, and caught the roll that was thrown in her direction. “Thanks,” she said. “I didn’t mean to sleep so late.”

Rosalind shrugged, tearing the dough she was working into three pieces. “No worries. You probably needed it. Oh… Inuyasha you might want to call Gabriel back. He went ahead to the garage. He called fifteen minutes ago and said he still hadn’t heard from you, and your friend was getting antsy.”

Inuyasha just shrugged. “I messaged him back two minutes ago. He can keep his shorts on. I’ll get up there as soon as we eat. The next cannonball isn’t for three weeks.”

Rosalind motioned to the refrigerator. “If you guys want breakfast, I saved you plates this-morning, it should heat up fine. If you want lunch, there isn’t anyone around today and I’m up to my elbows here so you’ll have to fix yourself a sandwich or something. I think there’s a few leftover burgers.”

Inuyasha opened the fridge and pulled out the breakfast plates. Unwrapping one, he took a whiff of the cinnamon and said, “this’ll do the job. Thanks.”

Rosalind nodded and added, “in the brown bag at the end of the counter, one of the smaller bags says ‘nettle’ on it. Kagome, you should probably have some steeped in hot water. It should help the stiffness and cramping in your leg. It’s a little bitter; you’ll find sugar in the second largest jar by the toaster.”

Kagome poked through the bag while Inuyasha put their plates through the microwave. Once she’d found the nettle leaf, she filled the tea kettle and put it on the back burner to heat. Inuyasha brought the re-heated breakfast to the table and gestured for her to sit down. She did, taking a bite of one of her cinnamon rolls and sighing in appreciation. “You made these? They’re great.”

The red head smiled and Kagome watched with interest while she braided the three lengths of dough she’d rolled out into a single loaf. She pinched the ends together and situated it on a baking sheet. “I’m glad you like them. They were a hit this morning. I may make another batch or two and put them in the freezer.”

Kagome chewed thoughtfully, and found she was able to enjoy her food a lot more now that she was sure that she really was just that hungry, and that the feeling wasn’t in part due to a baby looking for nourishment. Inuyasha was wolfing down his breakfast at a rate that might give a starving hyena pause. Rosalind straightened, closing the oven door and setting a hot casserole dish on top of the stove. Inuyasha had come up for air and sniffed with interest. “What’s that?”

Rosalind tossed her oven mitts on the counter and said, “shepard’s pie. I made several. Whatever doesn’t get eaten tonight will go in the fridge for leftovers.” She glanced at the clock. “The rest of my dough just has to rise now. Do you want some sandwiches to take with you? Gabe’s probably starving by now.”

The demon nodded, taking his plate to the sink and rinsing it. “That’d be great. Thanks.” As Rosalind wiped the floured counter down and began slicing one of the fresh loaves of bread, Inuyasha got out the sandwich fixings. “Where’s everybody at?”

Rosalind laid out the bread slices and began spreading them with mayo and mustard. “Sesshomaru’s in his office, kids are at school, Sango and Miroku are at work, obviously. Koga and Ayame left first thing this morning to a payday down by . They found a buyer for the hives.”

Inuyasha dropped the cooler he’d pulled out to the counter with a clunk. “Are you kidding me?”

Rosalind smirked happily. “I told you they’d find a way to move them. Anyone who’s had to order fresh produce on a halfway regular basis knows how much healthy bees are worth; time for a certain dog man to cough up.”

Inuyasha rolled his eyes, pulled out his wallet, and slapped a fifty dollar bill into Rosalind’s palm with a good natured grumble. She brought it to her nose and took a long whiff, eyes dancing. “Mmmm… the smell of victory.”

Kagome couldn’t help but laugh at the exchange of a bet, apparently lost on Inuyasha’s part. “They’re selling bees?” she asked, interested.

“Yeah,” Inuyasha said, pulling the top of the cooler open. “They made a selling trip down to two weeks ago, and once they moved their stock, they had two empty trucks on the way back.”

Rosalind picked up the story, tucking the money in her pocket and opening the turkey slices. “They were passing tons of almond groves that had a several colonies per acre; so they stopped for the night and called up a few of our demon stringers that are working in Most demons can take some bee stings without much fuss. They got their ducks in a row and when it got dark the next evening they went in and loaded both trucks full of hives. They’ve been parked out behind our warehouse here in town for the last two weeks, until they could find a buyer. Koga promised me a 15 percent cut because he wouldn’t have had any idea how valuable they were, except I’d been going on last month about the colony collapse disorder that’s been affecting food prices… and the corresponding fortune being paid out in insurance claims.”

Kagome shook her head in disbelief. “Weird… So… how much does a person make selling stolen bees?”

Rosalind considered the question a moment while she separated slices of cheese. “Well, I know a guy who knows a guy, who made about $300,000 dollars. If it’s done right and you don’t traumatize them too much, it can be worth the effort.”

Kagome sat back in her chair, looking impressed. “Seriously? $300,000?”

Inuyasha snorted out a laugh. “Yeah, I’ve never heard of it either. I never thought they’d find a buyer. I figured they’d be stuck with a trailer full of dead bugs and honey. There’ll be no living with them after this.”

Rosalind tossed a pickle at him and grinned ruefully. “Be nice.” He caught the pickle in his mouth and started putting the sandwiches in bags as she finished them

Kagome watched their familiar banter, realizing suddenly that she would be left here with Sesshomaru and Rosalind. She liked Rosalind well enough, but the idea of being alone in the house with Sesshomaru made her chest tighten uncomfortably. When Inuyasha looked over at the table Kagome was no longer really eating and he started feeling that increasingly familiar buzzing anxiety of hers at the edge of his thoughts. After she’d spent a full minute pushing her oatmeal around, he caught her eye and raised a brow.

She shrugged and put her hands in her lap. “Am I hanging here then today?” She tried not to sound as pathetic as the question made her feel. The attempt at an off-hand tone only worked to a degree and Inuyasha screwed the lid back on a jar of mayo, considering the matter. Rosalind shot him a look and, defensively, he asked, “what?”

The flour coated woman suggested, “why don’t you take her with you? I bet she’d love to see the garage.” She waggled her eyebrows teasingly. “You could show off the Bugatti. It’s pretty hot stuff.”

The corner of Inuyasha’s lips twitched in a reluctant grin and he sighed. “She’d be safer here.” His eyes cut back to Kagome to see her face carefully blank. Breathing deeply, he smelled the tang of nerves and the buzzing in his head increased by a small amount. He was trying to figure out if her upset was in response to the idea of staying or going. He dropped into the seat across from her, trying to gauge her mood, but she wouldn’t look at him.

This made him frown and he leaned forward, crossed arms on the table. “Do you want to stay here?”

She licked her lips and asked hesitantly, “do I have a choice?”

His frown deepened. “Yeah… I’m not going to make you do anything.”

Her eyes flicked back up to him at that, then away again to her cooling breakfast. Slowly she said, “then… I’d like to come with you… if that’s alright. I promise I won’t get in the way.”

It seemed like she was waiting for him to shut her down, like she was sure he wouldn’t want her there, and he was at a loss as to why. He thought about it for a minute, then bargained, “if you can finish that bowl of oatmeal, you can come with, deal?”

She looked up, a little surprised. “Are you sure?”

He shrugged. “Yeah, it’s fine, as long as we keep you out of sight. The whole point here is to keep you safe. I can’t do that if one of Naraku’s crew sees you walking around in the front maintenance bay when he drives by on his way to grab lunch.”

Kagome nodded, taking another bite of oatmeal. Rosalind tossed the last of the sandwiches into the cooler with a couple cans of coke and said, “hang on, I have an idea.” They watched her jog out of the kitchen and within a minute she returned, carrying a faded yellow backpack. She set it on the chair next to Kagome. “If you want you can have this. I have another one now, but I lived out of this bag for years. It’s a good one. I don’t know if you’re the purse type but this way at least you have something to carry what you need with you.”

Kagome drank the last of her tea and picked up the bag. “Thank you. That’s perfect… actually. You’re sure you don’t mind?”

Rosalind shook her head. “I don’t use it much anymore. A bag is meant to go places, not sit in a corner.” Kagome smiled at her gratefully, running her fingers over the worn yellow canvas. She stood up and looked at Inuyasha to ask, “how close are you to leaving?”

He shrugged and stood from the chair. “We have a few minutes.”

“I’ll be right back,” she said, and left the kitchen quickly, then popped her head back around the door to say, “thanks again Rose, breakfast was great.”

Rosalind gave her an amused wave and crossed her arms to lean against the counter. Inuyasha put their plates in the dishwasher and Rosalind watched him, saying with a sly smile, “soooo… she’s staying in your room hugh?”

Inuyasha’s shoulders stiffened a moment, but he nodded. Rosalind was tempted to give him a good ribbing, but something in his face made her change track and instead she asked, “how’s she doing? Her voice sounds a little better.”

Inuyasha opened his mouth and started to say something, then closed it again, rethinking his words. Finally he just said, “last night was rough, but I think it’ll get better now, after a while.”

Rosalind looked grimmer than he’d ever seen her as she asked, “is she sleeping?”

He leaned one hand against the counter as he said, “yeah, she’s been exhausted.”

Rosalind nodded and asked quietly, “any nightmares yet?”

He looked up sharply and she gave him a sad smile. “I see the way she is around any of the guys. It’s not hard to figure out at least part of what happened Inuyasha.” Her voice picked up a barely detectable edge of bitterness. “I know she didn’t get all those bruises having a tea party with Naraku and company.”

The chilly expression he saw bothered him a little and something told him she was speaking from personal experience. His eyes narrowed a little and he thought back to when she’d been kidnapped. He studied her, wanting to ask exactly what had happened to her then, but knowing she wouldn’t talk about it. She never did. He sighed heavily and walked over to pull her into a one armed hug. She hugged him back, pulling away after a moment to tuck a bag of chips into the cooler and close the lid.

Inuyasha admitted quietly, “I want her to stay.”

Rosalind smiled and told him, “so does Rin. I think she could stay, when all is said and done. But she needs to make the decision on her own. Before she can do that, she has to feel safe.”

Inuyasha nodded once and said, “she’s already better than she was when I pulled her out of the river. You should have seen her the first time she woke up. I thought her heart was beating so hard it was going to explode.”

She sighed and bit her lip for a moment, looking out the doorway quick to make sure no one was near. Then she asked, almost in a whisper, “can I make a few suggestions? I think I know, at least partially, what she’s going through.”

He frowned again and nodded. “Yeah, fire away.” He almost never knew Rosalind to be nervous or afraid. She was one of the most even tempered and bravest humans he knew, in her own quiet way. But she fidgeted now as she spoke, her manner becoming a little jittery, her scent laced with a strange hot tang of discomfort as she went on.

“Until she gets to know us and gets to be more comfortable here, try not to leave her alone with any of the guys unless all three of us girls are there too. That’s probably part of why she wants to come with you I think. She would have been left here in this big house with Sesshomaru. When he walks into the room Kagome just about jumps out of her skin, like she’s waiting for him to come at her. It’s not anyone’s fault, it just is what it is until she gets to know him a lot better. He can be enough to make even a normal, well-adjusted person nervous.”

Slowly he nodded his understanding, and she continued. “Also, is she sleeping in bed with you or on the pull-out in your living room?”

Inuyasha reddened a little and said, “on the first night she was asleep when I brought her in so I just put her down on my bed. She was pretty uncomfortable with the idea of her own room when I asked her. I told her I didn’t mind, so she’s still in my bed.”

Rosalind nodded, her expression calculating. “How’s she keeping her things?”

Inuyasha looked surprised for a moment but frowned in thought. “Clothes stay folded in the bags we brought back from the store, even the pajamas she changed out of. The bag of Sango’s clothes is right next to them. She brings her tooth brush and everything back and keeps it in the bag every time she uses it.”

“And her shoes?” Rosalind asked.

“By the bed, right next to the night stand.” He remembered something else and added, “she keeps everything in the bags but she leaves the knife and notebook I gave her on the nightstand when she goes to bed.”

Rosalind nodded again thoughtfully. “Did you see how excited she was about that backpack? Having everything in one place, easy to grab and run, helps her have control over her situation. Try to let her have that wherever you can. Leave doors open where possible, especially back there in the corner with no windows.”

Inuyasha leaned back against the sink, frowning. “When I closed the door on the front room last night she was a little weird for a second.”

“Enclosed spaces could her feel trapped.” Rosalind explained. “It depends on what happened exactly, but if you’ve been locked up- it makes you feel like you’ll suffocate.” She swallowed, mouth a little dry, and went on to ask, “how does she do in the dark?”

He sighed heavily. “It wasn’t a problem because she’s been in and out of sleep so much until recently, but this morning when she woke up….” He stopped, his eyes flicking to the kitchen door, ears twitching to listen for footsteps before he continued. He rubbed a hand over his jaw and said quietly, “I can’t forget the way she sounded. She didn’t know where she was and begged me not to hurt her. I haven’t heard someone beg like that in a long time.” His voice trailed off, frown deepening, eyes narrowed in thought.

Rosalind asked softly, “what did you do?”

“I turned on the light. She calmed down a little after that. It took a few minutes to bring her around. It’s hard to remember sometimes that you guys can’t see anything when I can see fine.”

Rosalind smiled ruefully, voice dry, “yeah… Sesshomaru just about gave me a heart attack this morning. I went to check on Rin and when I came out of her room he was standing there looking at me. I almost ran right into him.”

Inuyasha smirked and then remembered what Kagome had asked him the evening before about Rosalind and Sesshomaru. “How are you guys doing?”

She looked at him blankly. “What do you mean?”

Inuyasha tried to think of a way to gracefully ask his question. “I mean… is he treating you ok?”

Rosalind blushed a little, remembering the way Sesshomaru had looked sitting on Rin’s bed, shirtless and staring at her as she sang her lullaby, and the warmth of him as he stood next to her drying dishes, the way he’d sat her down and made her more tea that morning when her traitorous mind had started to fly into pieces. “Yeah…” she said slowly. “He’s been great actually, why?”

Now it was Inuyasha’s turn to look uncomfortable. He almost chickened out, but laughed a little and said, “Kagome asked me yesterday if you two were seeing each other.”

Rosalind’s eyes widened. She felt her cheeks grow hotter and her voice thinned a little. “What?”

He nodded, grinning, getting some entertainment out of throwing her off kilter. “Yeah, she said she got that impression. What about it Rosie? You got the hots for my brother?”

If it was possible, she went the same shade as the tomato sitting on the counter. She had to work her mouth a few times before she could get words out. “NO!... That would be… that would be…” The sight of him sitting in his chair, golden eyes staring at her over his glass of cognac last night, came back to her and she stuttered, realizing at least privately, that it might be… a little bit… a tiny bit… partially… maybe true. Sesshomaru was a prepossessing example of a male of any species. ‘Oh gods…. We are not doing this…’ she thought.

Rosalind turned and punched Inuyasha in the arm. “No! I do not. That would be leagues beyond ridiculous.”

Inuyasha grinned and waggled his brows. “Oh? The great Sesshomaru doesn’t measure up hugh? Is he not your type?”

She buried her hands in the dishwater next to him and began scrubbing a pan. “No! I mean…” Then she growled at him. “I don’t have a type.”

“Oh come on,” he said, fishing. “Everybody has a type. You’re pretty; I bet guys line up to ask you out.”

She didn’t answer and after a second, had slowed her scrubbing, her face losing some of its blush and going serious again. After a long moment she asked, “how does Kagome handle it… when you get close to her like that?”

His ears twitched out to the sides for a second and he frowned a little. “Like what…”

“Like…” she stopped scrubbing and looked at a painted tile over the sink. “Like a hug, or in bed next to you at night.”

He licked his lips at the memory of her taste, feeling himself go hot all over for a moment as he remembered arching over her, wanting her more than anything he’d ever wanted in his life. He cleared his throat and said, “she does ok now, a little skittish. It was touch and go for the first few days, but as long as she sees it coming it’s alright. She let me kiss her this morning.”

Rosalind looked up in surprise, whispering, “are you serious?”

He said a little defensively, “well… I asked first…”

Rosalind let out an incredulous laugh, trying to imagine how that had gone. She smiled a little, but said, “she told us last night you were only friends.”

He rubbed his jaw again, looking amused. “Yeah, she told me too. But you didn’t see the way she kissed me back.”

Rosalind frowned down at the soap suds. “Just be careful, I don’t want either of you to get hurt. I’m amazed she’s able to do that after… after everything.” She sounded strange to Inuyasha’s ears, almost jealous. He studied her and she shrugged. “Anyway, there are extra night lights in the hall closet. You should get one, or two even, if she’s going to stay in your room with you. It’ll help if it’s not completely black darkness. She won’t have to wake up and remind herself the demon next to her isn’t someone she needs to be afraid of. She’ll be able to see you.”

He nodded thoughtfully. “Yeah, that’s not a bad idea. I didn’t think about it.”

They stood in silence, only the slosh of the dishwater and clink of pans sounding in the kitchen before Inuyasha said, “I wish you’d tell somebody exactly what happened.”

Her brilliant green eyes flicked to his and she smiled blankly. “What do you mean?”

He scowled at her. “You know what I mean; the shipping crate at the pier.”

She stiffened, then shook her head. “It doesn’t matter, it was a long time ago.”

“Four or five years isn’t a long time. Just… think about it.” Again, he found himself nearly chickening out before divulging what had crossed his mind, but he continued. “He’d never say so, but it bothers Sesshomaru.”

She looked up at him, her face shuttered and wary as he explained. “It bothers him that he let it happen, and it bothers him that it took us so long to get to you. It bothers me too for that matter. I’m sorry we didn’t find you faster.” Her throat felt thick, and rather than try to push words through it, she nodded mutely. After a moment she smiled tightly again and nudged him playfully with her shoulder. “It wasn’t your fault, any of you. And the hero squad made it in the end. That’s what matters.”

He frowned, opening his mouth to respond, but Kagome walked back in just then, wearing her new sweatshirt, the yellow backpack slung over a shoulder. She paused, sensing the tension in the room. Rosalind tossed her a smile. “Make sure he saves one of those sandwiches for you. You can’t be skipping meals.”

Kagome returned her smile, eyes searching Inuyasha’s face for information. Now that she was looking for it, she almost thought she felt something at the border of her own mind that was distinctly not her. It was that same warm feeling, but now it felt rough, like sandpaper, and shifted uneasily. She wondered if that was Inuyasha? Was he worried… maybe? He let the frown ease and sighed, nudging Rosalind back with a shoulder. “Thanks for the grub. We’ll be back tonight. What time’s dinner?”

Rosalind thought, and said, “well… Sesshomaru wants everybody here for a meet at 9:30, so I’ll probably dish everything out at six. That gives us plenty of time to get the kids fed, clean and in bed beforehand. Will you guys be back to eat?”

Inuyasha nodded. “We’ll see you then. Think about what I said hugh?”

She hesitated, but nodded, flicking soapy water at him. “Yeah, yeah, get lost already before Gabriel calls to pester me again.”

He snorted and pushed away from the counter to stand before Kagome. “Alright, let’s get this party started.” Kagome thanked Rosalind again and followed Inuyasha out the door, giving the pouting Axel a scratch behind the ears on their way out.