InuYasha Fan Fiction ❯ Persistence ❯ Chapter 15 ( Chapter 15 )

All pics for this fic can be found on a public post on my livejournal. The link is on my profile.

 

Disclaimer: I do not own Inuyasha or any Inuyasha characters.

Chapter 15

 

Two weeks had passed since Kagome found herself in bed at the Western castle. She had thanked Sesshomaru for his kindness and apologized for ruining their date. He insisted that she rest up for the next week and that he would call her to check on how she was doing. She didn't think it was necessary for him to fawn over her. Especially if he's just pretending, she thought bitterly. She was walking back home after her last exam when her phone rang. She sighed, pulling it out of her pocket and expecting Eri to be the one calling, begging Kagome to go on a double date to the movies with her, Cameron, and (oddly enough) Hojo. Even though she had told Eri she was seeing someone, Eri didn't let the topic of Hojo drop. Flipping her phone open, she saw that it wasn't Eri.

 

“Hi, Kagome, how are you doing? I heard you got food poisoning a few weeks ago.”

 

“Oh, haha, yeah. Sesshomaru and I went out to dinner and I wound up literally spilling my guts downtown. It was so embarrassing!”

 

Shippo laughed quietly. “Well, I'm sorry that happened to you. Did you have to go home and cut the date short?” he asked, already knowing what really happened.

 

“Apparently Sesshomaru was concerned and brought me to the castle to get better. He said something about the shrine being too far away.” Kagome sighed. “It doesn't matter, anyway. He's probably just being nice to me so I'll mate him and give him an heir.”

 

“Kagome, that's not true,” Shippo scolded, frowning.

 

“I don't know. How do I know if he's being sincere?”

 

“Hmmm. Okay, here's what you do, Kagome. Call him up and ask him if you can watch him at work. Sesshomaru is very possessive of his tattoo shop and his art. It's like his baby or something. If he's hesitant then he's not pretending but if he says `sure, come on over', then you know he's pretending.”

 

“All right, I'll give it a try. Thanks Shippo,” she said before hanging up. Kagome considered Shippo's advice. Sesshomaru's pride and self importance would come into play if she were to ask him about watching him work. She sighed. And if he's too eager then I guess I know he's not for real about all of this.

 

Kagome obsessed for a week about whether she had enough courage to ask Sesshomaru. If he said yes then her heart would fall and she would know he was using her. She wasn't sure if she would be able to handle that kind of truth. He had been so wonderfully kind and fun to be around. She really felt she had finally found a friend in Sesshomaru. But if he hesitated or even said no then she knew he was being sincere. She blushed at the thought that Sesshomaru would possibly actually want her and be pursuing her to be his mate.

 

“Right, I need to do this. I gotta find out the truth!” she said, determination providing the extra edge she needed to push herself along. Picking up her phone, she dialed Sesshomaru's number and waited for him to pick up. One ring, please don't pick up. Two rings, oh gods, please don't pick up. Three ri-

 

“Sesshomaru,” a husky male voice answered.

 

“H-hi Sesshomaru,” she said, making her voice sweet and pleasant.

 

“Hello Kagome, it's nice to hear from you,” his voice cooed. His voice is so sexy… Concentrate, Kagome!

 

“I was wondering if I could ask you a question.”

 

“Of course. What is it?”

 

Kagome bit the inside of her cheek. Okay, here goes. “Could I come to your shop and watch you work? I've been curious about what you do there. Then I can see you in your new element since you aren't traveling the countryside, killing anything that gets in your way anymore.”

 

His eyes narrowed on the wall of his shop. “I recall a priestess who got in my way once but I was unable to kill her.”

 

Kagome smirked, “maybe you're not the `killing perfection' you think you are.” She heard a soft laugh on his end and smiled sadly. If he says yes, I'm going to really miss his laugh and smile.

 

“No. Absolutely not,” was his cutting response. His voice was cold and hard in his attempt to hide his true thoughts. You would be a distraction, Kagome. A tempting, delicious distraction. … I must remember to kill Shippo.

 

Kagome nearly gave a shout of joy. He didn't say yes! Wait, no? Tsk, why not? “Please Sesshomaru?” she begged, making her voice sweet and pleading.

 

“Do you promise to sit quietly? And not whine? And to not be a distraction?” he asked. Kagome grinned on her end of the phone.

 

“I promise to be a good girl,” she said sarcastically but with the same sweet tone.

 

“You may come tomorrow if you wish,” he said, his mind whirling with thoughts of her being with him all day, sharing something he enjoyed.

 

“Yay!” she squealed. “Thanks, Sesshomaru!”

 

“Okay, okay. You can meet Shiori at the front door tomorrow at 8:45am.”

 

“Oh no, I'm meeting you at the front door at 8:45am,” she replied. There's no way I'm letting him prepare in any way ahead of time.

 

“I use the back door,” he said matter-of-factly. Hearing her laughter, he realized his mistake. Ugh.

 

“I thought you didn't like men?” Kagome teased. A few sputtered giggles slipped past her lips.

 

“You know,” Sesshomaru purred playfully, “some women enjoy that, too.”

 

“Gross. See you tomorrow!” she said before hanging up.

 

Sesshomaru set his phone down on the counter and let out a soft chuckle. He suddenly realized how much he had missed her quirky, sometimes hyper personality.

 

Shiori walked into the back room while reading the newspaper. “Who were you talking to?”

 

“It seems that Shippo planted the idea in Kagome's head that she needs to watch me at work,” he said.

 

Shiori smiled. “Oh. You're saying Kagome will be here tomorrow?”

 

“Yes,” he replied, sighing. “All day.”

 

Shiori turned around and walked back out to the front of the shop. Tomorrow is going to be LOTS of fun!

 

 

---000---

 

Kagome slipped on a pair of jeans and a white, long sleeve shirt before leaving the house to make her way to the tattoo shop. She was excited that Sesshomaru had initially refused to allow her to come. She grinned that she had to beg him to let her shadow him in his shop. Normally she wouldn't be happy about having to plead with someone but this was a man, er, demon that was truly showing affection for her.

 

Turning around the corner, she saw him walking toward her from the opposite direction. His hair was braided down his back again like the first day she saw him. The message on his t-shirt made her eyes go wide and she looked away to try to stave off the blush that was quickly creeping up her face. Indeed was all she could think. The rest of him was clad in blue jeans and grey sneakers.

 

“Good morning,” he said, his voice slightly gruff from disuse so early in the morning. He noticed her attempt to hide her blush upon reading his t-shirt. He had worn it on purpose, a gift he had received from Inuyasha.

 

“Morning,” she replied. He pulled out some keys and unlocked the front door to the shop and pulled the door open, motioning for her to enter. Kagome dipped her head in a respectful and grateful gesture and entered the shop. Sesshomaru followed behind, flipping the `closed' sign in the front window to `open'. Kagome stayed out of the way but followed Sesshomaru through the short hallway to the back room where he did his work. She spotted one of his rolling stools and sat down on it.

 

“So what do you do when you get here?”

 

“Shiori usually unlocks the front door at 9am. But since you insisted I meet you at the front door, our whole day is thrown off,” he teased sarcastically.

 

“Ha Ha, smartass,” she said, crossing her arms over her chest. She heard the ring of the bell on the front door chime, noting Shiori's arrival.

 

Smirking, he turned at looked at her. She looked cute today, wearing a soft-looking white shirt and dark jeans. Her hair was as it typically was; wild and untamed but looking silky and beautiful. “I check with Shiori for my schedule,” he said, walking past her toward the front of the shop. Kagome stood and followed him, noting the gentle sway of his braided hair. It was no longer knee length as it had been 500-some years ago but it was at least down to his hips and looked thick and almost feathery.

 

As he approached the desk, Shiori said, “You have one at 10am and one at 1pm,” without turning to look at him. He grunted, possibly a signal that he had heard her. Kagome watched their interaction with interest. She had always been amazed how demons were able to sense others so acutely.

 

In the back room, Kagome watched Sesshomaru collect the inks he needed and prepare the sanitized equipment for his first customer. When the client came in, Shiori sent him straight back to Sesshomaru. The man was very tall, muscular, and possibly middle aged. He had been to the shop two days before and had sat down with Sesshomaru to go over the artwork he wanted done. He was getting old English lettering done across his broad shoulders that said “Freedom”. Sesshomaru prepped the man and Kagome had to look away and purse her lips together to keep the huge grin off of her face as Sesshomaru shaved the man's shoulders and upper back area. She saw his eyes flick toward her once or twice and was able to finally contain herself as he started the outlines of the letters.

 

“Excuse me, sir?”

 

“Yes young lady?” he asked. His voice was not as deep as Sesshomaru's and it had a certain gravely touch to it.

 

“I was just wondering. A-and you don't have to answer if you don't want to, but I was wondering… why the word `freedom'?”

 

The man cleared his throat and Kagome swallowed, not sure if she wanted to know. “Let's just say I spent several years of my life in a relationship I didn't want to be in,” he said, flexing the fingers on his left hand. Kagome noticed his twitch and saw the pale stripe of skin around the base of his ring finger and heard the coldness in his voice. “I finally got out and this is how I'm celebrating.”

 

“Oh,” she said timidly. “I'm sorry it didn't work out.”

 

“Don't worry about it, young lady. I was young and made some stupid choices.” The man looked over at Kagome. “Do yourself a favor and make sure you really truly love the one you decide to be with forever and that they love you back just as much. That was the mistake I made.”

 

Kagome's eyes widened a little bit and she nodded. The man looked away and continued to wiggle his fingers a little bit while Sesshomaru continued his work.

 

Sesshomaru was silent throughout the interaction. The man, named Joseph, had told him two days ago about the woman he married. He had loved her and tried to convince himself for 15 years that she was in love with him just as much all the while she was out cheating on him. After an hour of work, Sesshomaru wiped all of the excess ink from Joseph's back and applied a thin coat of A&D ointment before gently taping a layer of paper towel over the tattoo.

 

“Leave the bandage on for at least 45 minutes. Shiori can give you information on aftercare and some A&D ointment for healing.”

 

“Thanks man,” Joseph said before walking toward the front of the store. Kagome watched him leave, her eyes never leaving the covered tattoo reaching across the top of his back along his shoulders. Sesshomaru began cleaning up, collecting the instruments and equipment to be sterilized.

 

“Do a lot of people have stories like that?” she asked quietly. Sesshomaru kept working quietly, sure that she was curious about the man's story.

 

“Some do. Some don't. Some people have very joyous stories to go along with the tattoos they get,” he said, sitting on his stool and turning toward her. “People get tattoos for many reasons, Kagome; to express themselves, to make themselves `interesting', and to create a permanent memory of something. When someone comes in to schedule an appointment, I evaluate whether they are completely dedicated and clear in their mind that the tattoo they are asking for is something they want and are not having second thoughts about. I can refuse but it rarely happens.”

 

“Hmmm.” Kagome looked at Sesshomaru. “Do you have any tattoos?” Sesshomaru's eyes met hers and he looked at her for about 30 seconds.

 

“No. I was born with all of my markings and they are natural.” Kagome looked away to contain the blush that threatened to show on her face. I wonder where all of his markings are located. Jeez, that really made the dirty thoughts pop up out of no where. The shirt doesn't help.

 

Thankfully, Shiori walked into the back room at that moment to announce that lunch had arrived. In a room to the left of the work room that functioned as a lunchroom, the three ate a simple meal of taco salads.

 

Sesshomaru's 1pm appointment was a woman who was having her daughter and sons' names done in her upper right arm. She told the story of how she and her husband had tried for 8 years to have a baby and, when they had almost given up, she found out that she was pregnant with twins. They had been born two months premature two years ago and were now healthy toddlers. Kagome sat on her chair and chatted animatedly with the woman, asking all sorts of questions about the joys of parenthood and told her how blessed she was to have two wonderful children.

 

Again, Sesshomaru bandaged her up and sent her to the front of the shop to get after care information and ointment from Shiori. “You're quite happy,” he commented to Kagome as he, again, began to sterilize his equipment. Kagome grinned at his profile.

 

“Don't tell me her story didn't warm your heart? Can you imagine? She and her husband tried for so long to have a baby and then they were blessed with two!” Kagome bubbled excitedly. Sesshomaru smiled lightly at her excitement. If she's this happy about someone else having babies…

 

Around 2:30 pm, Sesshomaru had been explaining to Kagome how ink does not have lead in it and that a tattoo would not explode in an MRI machine no matter what her friends have told her when Shiori walked into the back room.

 

“Misaki-san, these three girls were wondering if you'd be able to do this small tattoo on each of them,” she said, handing him the design sheets.

 

All three of the girls gawked at Sesshomaru as he glanced down at the small art for a butterfly and nodded his head languidly. Shiori left the girls in the backroom with Sesshomaru and Kagome. Kagome secretly looked them over. One girl stood a few feet away from her and another sat on a chair. Sesshomaru was polite and professional but Kagome could tell that he held an air of disinterest and distance. The girls seemed to be around the age of college sophomores, about 1-2 years older than Kagome.

 

The last girl sat on the table, waiting for Sesshomaru. She was staring at him with a lidded, flirty expression. When he turned to her and asked where she wanted her tattoo, she leaned back and pulled the waist band of her jeans down a little bit, exposing the skin below her belly button between her hip bones. She looked up at him and asked, “Do you think it will look good here?”

 

Kagome's jaw nearly dropped to the floor. I can't believe she just did that! She noticed that the girl's friends had giggled at her antics but Sesshomaru merely shrugged.

 

“It's your body and your tattoo,” he replied vacantly. The girl smirked, thinking she had `got him' but quickly forgot him when he started inking her. She gasped in pain and Kagome had to bite the inside of her cheek to keep from grinning at her pain. She earned it, Kagome thought smugly. Sesshomaru bandaged each girl - the last one with a small patch on her abdomen, and the other two with one on the left shoulder and the other on the right. He sent them to the front of the shop to see Shiori. As he began to clean up, he smirked at the heavy aura of Kagome's jealousy and possessiveness that hung in the air.

 

Kagome rolled her eyes as soon as they were out of the room and shortly thereafter she heard the bell ring as the door of the shop opened and closed. She stood from her stool and hopped up onto the table and began to imitate the girls' high-pitched giggles. Leaning back, she lifted her shirt slightly and hooked her thumbs in the waist of her pants, pulling them down as the girl had done. “Gosh, Sesshomaru, what would look good here?” she said in an obnoxiously cute voice. At that, Sesshomaru turned and stood quicker than her mind could register. She blinked and he was standing over her, his hands on either side of her body, imprisoning her between his arms. He glanced down at the exposed skin at her waist and then up at her face and mumbled, “my lips” in a suggestive tone. Kagome's eyes met his, matching the look of lust in his eyes.

 

“Oh,” she mumbled, blushing. Sesshomaru continued looking down at her.

 

“Indeed,” he breathed before straightening up and going back to cleaning up his work area. Kagome slid off the table and dazedly walked out to the front of the shop where Shiori was clicking away at the computer.

 

“Hey. So, how was it?” Shiori asked. Kagome's eyes were unfocused and the only acknowledgement she made of Shiori's question was a gentle `hmm?' Shiori looked at Kagome and noticed her far away look. Something happened back there I think, she mused. Oh! That reminds me.

 

“Kagome, I have something for you,” Shiori said, getting Kagome to snap out of her bemused state. She pulled an 8x10x4 inch wrapped box from beneath the counter. “Shippo wanted me to give you this.”

 

“What is it?” she asked, accepting the plain brown paper-wrapped parcel. Shiori shrugged.

 

“He said you would know but that you should open it when you got home. Something about answers,” she replied while shutting her computer down. Kagome looked up at the clock and noticed it was 5pm.

 

“I should get going I guess,” she said absently, running her fingers along the creases and folds of the paper. “Bye Sesshomaru! I'm leaving! Thanks for letting me come today,” she called out. “Thanks, Shiori. Tell Shippo I said thanks, too, okay? Bye!”

 

---000---

 

Once home, Kagome decided it was nice out and that she wanted to spend some time outside. Sitting under Goshinboku she carefully unwrapped the package. A small card fell out from under the wrapping. She picked it up and read the scrawled writing on it.

 

Kagome,

 

We were doing an inventory of the castle library and I found this. I had a copy made for you; it's the most honest truth of how Sesshomaru feels about you.

 

Take Care,

Shippo

 

Opening the flaps of the box, she found a bundle of papers bound together with leather straps. Rin's journal.

 

--000000000000000000000000000000—

 

Ooooo. A HUGE thanks to Sugar0o for the idea. Once I really thought about it I could not NOT use the idea I hope you all enjoyed this chapter. Instead of posting links here for clothing, you can view public entries of my LIVEJOURNAL for the pics. The link is on my profile.