InuYasha Fan Fiction ❯ Puppet Without Strings ❯ Family Reunion ( Chapter 10 )

Puppet Without Strings

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Disclaimer: I do not own Inuyasha.

Pairings: InuKag, MirSan. Others have yet to either be revealed or thought up. They will probably not be straying too far from canon.

A big thank you to Zonza for your review. I realize this is a little late coming and I apologize.

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- Chapter 9 -

"…And in further news, the World Medical Trust has cut back on research funding to Inari General Hospital's head of child psychology, Doctor Kuronaga Suikotsu. The decision came after the doctor allegedly lost his head and assaulted the father of one of his young charges, though the reasons for this highly uncharacteristic act of violence remains to be seen. We go now to Fuumie Kagura for more on this story-"

Sesshoumaru hit the mute button on his remote.

He'd yet to finish his report. Which was ironic considering the absolute lack of information he'd acquired to put into it. Funny, how report writing got that much more difficult when one had less to report about. It was disgraceful, really. It wouldn't be wrong to go so far as to say that the dog demon lord-to-be, was starting to feel the first inklings of… stress.

Sesshoumaru had never taken well to stress. He never showed it outwardly, but it acted on the violent side of his nature.

Back in his pre-leadership days, Inuyasha had usually taken the brunt of this uncharacteristic aggressiveness. Sesshoumaru had passed it off as combat training for the twerp. It had worked two ways. On one hand, he'd be working off his aggravations, and on the other, he'd be toughening his little brother up. It was he who'd been responsible for most of Inuyasha's fighting instruction during the boy's early years.

After all, at that period of time, existence as a half-blood was no laughing matter. It was a shock the runt had survived the four months he'd been left at the orphanage unprotected. Sesshoumaru remembered being appalled at how weak the half-demon had been when he'd first taken him in. Granted, the boy had had an attitude problem the size of Sengoku and a rather irritating habit of biting anyone that came within a two metre radius of him.

Sesshoumaru snapped himself out of his reminiscence. With a disgruntled sigh of frustration, his fingers tapped in a final five words before lifting the laptop off his knees and onto the coffee table before him. The dog demon's lean upper body bent forward slightly to allow his elbows to rest on his lap. Clawed fingers intertwined, lacing their owner's two hands together to provide a platform of support for his strong chin to rest upon.

Sesshoumaru shut his eyes and exhaled before reopening them slowly. From beneath almost-effeminate lashes, his molten pupils found themselves momentarily fixated upon the flat-screened television that hung from the opposite wall. The red-tinged gaze that met his from behind the glowing screen was bordered by heavily made up skin.

But despite this, Sesshoumaru could almost see the potent anger that the woman emanated. It was subtle, but it showed through her eyes. The redness of them accentuated it.

Sesshoumaru briefly wondered if his tamperings with her report had been anything to do with this negative emotion.

The display was soundless. Fuumie Kagura's lips moved robotically as she delivered her story in front of the aforementioned hospital.

He hadn't really meant to take such meticulous note of the fiery reporter on channel four's news broadcast. But acute observation had always been a habit of his. It was part of his nature to pinpoint subtle detail even in the most mediocre of situations. And despite his distracted frame of mind, Sesshoumaru could see that Fuumie Kagura was tired. Exhausted even. It was written all over her face. It was in her sluggish body language. The rapid blinking of her eyes.

As the woman ended her report, she gave an awkward smile. One that looked forced and unnatural. And when the screen cut back to the news room, Sesshoumaru dropped his gaze from it. Brief interest wiped clean from his mind.

The sleek, silvery device that he'd been typing on before sat, unmoved in front of him. Sesshoumaru reread the document he'd previously been working on. The words seemed to taunt him. They mocked his inability to give reason to the many unanswered questions his case presented. Yet Sesshoumaru could not find a way to prove them wrong.

Soft beeping from his wall clock signalled that it was about time he got ready. The dog demon rose gracefully from his living room couch and made the journey across the ivory carpet to his bathroom in long, brisk strides.

He needed a shower.

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Several kilometres north east of the dog demon, Inuyasha wondered if it was too late to contact his perverted friend Miroku. Knowing the monk, he was probably up to his usual Friday night mischief. Regardless of the fact that his partner in crime was currently hundreds of miles away, prepping himself mentally for dire challenges ahead.

If Inuyasha was ever going to find out what the strange drug he'd nicked from Bankotsu's room was made of, he'd need the unholy monk's help. Miroku was a specialist on anything magical. This included talismans, artefacts and many medicinal items. After all, his role as a monk demanded certain skills.

The hanyou checked his watch for the third time that hour.

Half past ten. Time to face the music.

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The warm water that pattered his back could have been therapeutic. As it ran in meandering rivulets down his skin, Sesshoumaru felt some of the tension leak slowly out his body. But as always, this momentary comfort worked two ways. With the lessened distraction from his bothered nerves, Sesshoumaru's mind found itself running into overdrive.

The puzzles seemed to keep on stacking. Currently, the one question that burned at the surface pertained to the wolf demon, Kouga.

Upon arriving from Genrai that afternoon, Sesshoumaru had made a stop at Government Headquarters to visit his unconscious former comrade. By all accounts, Kouga should have been completely healed. He should have been in perfect physical shape even, despite the obvious lack of consciousness.

That had not been the case.

To Sesshoumaru's complete bewilderment, the wolf had looked no better than when he'd seen him nearly four weeks ago.

The gashes on Kouga's body had yet to start closing up. It made absolutely no sense. Even a human person would have recovered at least partially given the same amount of time. The worst thing was that the bleeding never seemed to completely stop. Had Kouga not been in government care, he would have met his death slowly from the blood loss. A long and drawn out end. As of now, he relied totally upon transfusions to remain alive.

The doctors had at first speculated the cause to be an induced bleeding disease. They'd tried stemming the blood-flow with everything from stitching to clotting without so much as a hair's worth of success.

Sesshoumaru frowned. Silky tendrils of his platinum hair fell past pale shoulders as the dog demon bent his head in a habitual posture of contemplation. Twin palms braced themselves upon the wall under the shower head as he allowed the water that spilled from it to soak into his silvery mane.

Kouga's condition was another problem to be added to his growing pile. He needed answers and he needed them now. Capturing the presidents' killer would be the first step. He had yet to discover the motive to the killing. Perhaps, along the way he'd even find a cure for Kouga.

If it continued this way. Sesshoumaru knew the higher ups would be forced to put his former team mate down. After all, what good was a demon to them comatose.

Sesshoumaru's right hand slid down from its position against the wall and twisted the shower handle shut. He stepped out and towelled himself off.

Had the killer been using some sort of purifying weapon? One that was preventing Kouga's demonesque body from healing itself? It didn't add up in Sesshoumaru's mind. Purifying weapons were meant to eliminate youkai as quickly and efficiently as possible. A demon-blooded person subjected to the effects of a purifying agent upon death would have disintegrated. Literally.

The corpses of the two dead youkai bodyguards, however, had been whole.

The bullets retrieved from each and every one of the bodies had been just that. Bullets. Nothing fancy. No modifications. No traces of purifying energy. Perhaps the killer or his contractor had found some non-conventional way of exterminating youkai? If so, Sesshoumaru shuddered to think what they might be up against.

Soft beeping from his mobile phone echoed through the hall and the dog demon pushed aside his musings for the time being. It was time for him to leave.

He got dressed and exited the apartment.

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Inuyasha glanced down at his ensemble. Dark jeans, dark shoes, dark hair pulled back by an equally dark elastic band and stuffed down a dark hooded sweater that hid a dark button down shirt. And to top it all off, he grasped a dark cap to hide his hanyou ears with. For later use. Inuyasha glanced at himself in the mirror and growled.

-I look like some sort of hobo-

The day was shaping up like no other before. Inuyasha counted off mental fingers. First, he'd found out a rather shocking secret about Higurashi Kagome. Then there'd been the incident in principal Kinou's office that had threatened to stunt him for life. And after that, had come the little snoop-job in Satsugawa Bankotsu's room. Where events that he'd rather wipe from his memory had taken place. And finally, not two hours ago, he'd landed himself in a compromising position on the cafeteria floors with none other thanthe president's daughterherself.

Inuaysha concluded that he had absolutely no good luck at all.

The human recovery rate was frustratingly slow. That semi-self-inflicted bite to his tongue, from when the girl's head had had a rather violent collision with his jaw was still not healed. It stung when he touched the wound to any other part of his mouth.

Inuyasha had to wonder if there was some sort of de facto limit to the number of embarrassing situations one could go through before a breaking point was reached. When he stepped out into the hallway, his instincts demanded that he dive right back into his dormitory for a last minute change of attire. And he would have, too. Had it not already been so darn late. He needed to leave.

The corridor lights had been dimmed, which might or might not have been a good thing. It made his shadowy figure blend in soundly with its surroundings. Inuyasha rolled his eyes. Why in the seven hells had Jaken told him to dress like this? The toad was so paranoid it was funny. It wasn't like he was doing anything illegal. Sure his intended destination was a technically `out-of-bounds' area to the institute and all its students but the school board sure as hell didn't know that. If anyone checked, he was simply leaving academy grounds to visit family.

Inuyasha had even prepared a well-spun little tale for the security guards at the front gate. He'd gone for a rather heart-wrenching number. A loving younger brother rushing off to see his critically cancerous older sibling in his finals days on Earth. It would tug at the very strings inside each and every one of their hearts. He would not get into trouble. The school board would certainly sympathise with his story. It wasn't totally fabricated. What would Sesshoumaru be if not family?

The half demon descended the stairs and stalked into the lounge area of his dormitory block where Jaken stood waiting.

"What took you so long?"

The toad's angry question grated on Inuyasha's nerves. It wasn't like he was late or anything. His fist twitched with the effort it took to refrain from hitting the older demon. No. He could do that later when he wasn't on a time restraint. Instead he bit out a reply.

"Had to pick out something decent to wear."

Inuyasha gestured to his clothing with a heated glare at Jaken. The toad growled. He simply could not understand the hanyou's stubbornness. It made perfect sense! If you didn't want to be recognised, you wore inconspicuous clothing! It was simple as that!

He stalked up to Inuyasha and jabbed his ugly two-headed walking stick intothe boy'schest.

"Stop complaining you twit. You face expulsion if someone recognises you on that side of town. This is just to make sure you don't get caught."

"Caught?! Caught by who? The fashion police?"

Jaken narrowed his eyes.

"Cut the crap, hanyou. Lord knows you've already gotten yourself into bad enough situations. Don't think I didn't find out about your little romp in the cafeteria earlier."

Inuyasha rolled his eyes. It wasn't so much that he was adverse to the clothing he wore. It was just that, where Jaken was concerned, being difficult had always been a must for him.

"So what? You going to tell on me again? Why don't you get your facts straight? The bitch fell on me. It's not like I instigated anything."

Jaken's threw the half-blood a calculative look.

"Yes. I'm sure."

He said it in a totally unbelieving way.

"Ass."

The mumbled remark saw Jaken rounding on him again.

"You immature hanyou brat! Your father and brother would not have complained. Get it through your thick skull that we are simply erring on the side of caution."

Eye-rolling had become Inuyasha's specialty for the evening.

"Well you can err the fuck away from it, then. I'm not going to get caught."

Once again the half-blood had to wonder why Jaken could take so well to his brother who he, by all accounts, bore a spitting resemblance to. The toad could not so much as hold a decent conversation with him without breaking into some sort of squabble.

Not that Inuyasha had any intention of making things better, mind you.

Ever since the day they'd first met, Jaken had held a burning grudge toward the half-blood. Despite his premature mindset, Inuyasha had known the feeling ran deeper than mere irritation sparked bya six-year-old 's casual dubbing of `Wrinkled Old Fart' to Jaken's then… less-wrinkled self. Looking back on it now, Inuyasha cringed at his limited choice in vocabulary. But what was a pre-schooler to do when he hadn't yet been exposed to the wonders of profanity. From the very beginning, the toad hadn't liked him. Had despised him even. Inuyasha hadn't understood such unprovoked hostility at his young age and like any other confused pup, had retaliated aggressively to the toad's ill-will.

It had taken life at So54 and another several years before the hanyou finally came to understand Jaken's animosity toward him. He'd also come to realise that the toad demon had not been the only one to blame him for the death of his parents…

"I'm done with your childishness. Let's get going before I bust a nerve over this. The sooner you're out of my sight, the better."

Jaken's hoarse voice cut through his train of thought. Inuyasha waved him off and sauntered in the direction of the car park.

"Likewise Croaky."

Silence permeated the trip to Jaken's awaiting car during which Inuyasha intermittently fought down the urge to trip the little bugger up. The half demon cringed at the thought of having to sit through an entire half-hour car ride with no one but Wrinkle-Head for company.

Inuyasha's chance to feed his bogus story to the security people never came. They let them through without a second glance when Jaken handed them some false medical documents and letters. Thirty minutes should not have been a very long time to wait. But to Inuyasha, it felt like an eternity. During the first ten minutes, he succeeded in thouroughly pissing Jaken off on a whole new level. After shrugging off his sweater, he'd fidgeted, played around with the car seat, rummaged through the glove compartment, pressed down on the cigarette lighter no less than five times and toggled at the air-conditioning control.

Jaken's response was to grit his teeth and step down harder on the accelerator. His only consolation being the fact that Inuyasha would suffer by Sesshoumaru's hand.

When deafening black metal suddenly blasted from the car's four speakers after the boy flipped his radio on, the little toad lost it. He floored the accelerator.

They arrived at their destination five minutes later.

`Shijun'. The six letters flashed bright over metal doors that lead into the afamed nightclub. The line of waiting patrons extended nearly up to the road.

Pride was the only thing that stopped Inuyasha from scrambling out of the vehicle the minute it pulled to screeching halt. This confirmed his theories about Jaken with wheels. The man was a maniac! There had been times in the last five minutes when Inuyasha could have sworn that bits of his life had flashed before his eyes.

The good thing was that it had made him half an hour early.

A sudden thought struck Inuyasha. Jaken hadn't been instructed to accompany him. Which meant that he'd be tattle-tale free for the time being! This was great! With no one breathing down his neck at every action he made, Inuyasha would be able to contact Miroku about Satsugawa Bankotsu's pill. He hadn't done so before because he knew Jaken would have found out. The little git had ways of fishing for information that Inuyasha knew could not be taken lightly. After all, this was merely his own curiosity at work. It was in no way part of his assignment.

The hanyou pretended to wait in line. The crowd was pretty thick. As Inuyasha got engulfed by it, he snuck his hand into the coat pocket of the man beside him. When one could pick a high-grade lock in thirty seconds flat, one could most definitely pick a pocket with ease. The man never even noticed his designer phone being lifted out of his jacket and into the pocket of the boy beside him. Inuyasha smirked.

He'd give it back when he was finished with it.

The hanyou knew that using his own mobile phone was out of the question. Somehow he had a sneaking suspicion that Jaken monitored his line.

When Inuyasha was sure that the toad demon's car was far enough away, he darted out of the crowd and whipped out his new accessory.

With the number to Houshi Miroku's cell punched in, the half demon propped the phone against his shoulder and ducked into the alley behind between two large brick buildings. Now that his hands were free, he was able to revert back into his hanyou form. Inuyasha counted four rings before the call was answered.

The voice on the other end had been overly deepened.

"Hello there. How may this humble monk serve you tonight?"

For the umpteenth time that day, Inuyasha rolled his eyes.

"One word, Miroku. Tacky."

For a few seconds, there was nothing on the other end. Then, what sounded like an exasperated sigh finally broke the silence.

"Inuyasha?"

"Took you long enough, idiot."

Miroku's voice sounded dejected this time.

"You're not Michelle."

Inuyasha checked himself. No. No more eye rolling.

"No shit Sherlock."

"Damn. I had a whole new pick up line and everything."

Some things never changed.

"Okay cutting the crap, monk. I need you to help me out with something."

Miroku's reply sounded weary.

"I don't know. The last time you said that I ended up locked in the broom closet for a night. That wasn't very comfortable."

"That was different, you ass."

"Er huh."

Inuyasha continued like he hadn't said anything.

"Listen I need you to help me with this drug I got off some kid here."

The caution in Miroku's voice increased.

"What you're asking... It wouldn't happen to be illegal would it?"

"Yeah. So?"

"So you could get me in trouble. Again."

"Well. I guess. So what do you say?"

"No."

The line went dead.

Inuyasha sighed. This was going to be a long night.

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Sesshoumaru emerged from his vehicle just in time to catch a glimpse of a familiar head of black hair dart into the alley some distance away. He raised an eyebrow ever so slightly. His legs carried him silently to the area in question. As he drew closer, the scent of his brother was undeniable. What on earth was the boy up to?

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Inuyasha wondered if sending an illegal substance through the mail would be classified as smuggling.

After thinking it through. He decided against that. It'd be too risky. He'd just have to convince Miroku to come over to Sengoku City in the weekend. He could pass him Bankotsu's strange pill then.

"Come on, monk! Just treat it like a damn vacation. You come get the stuff from me, and then you're free to frolic in the city."

Miroku had hung up on him three times already.

"Inuyasha, I'm expecting a call from a potential hot date. Please stop hogging the line."

Inuyasha growled.

"Dammit Miroku, this is important! I need to find out why that girl would take something like this!"

It was Miroku's turn to roll his eyes.

"The same reason anyone else would use drugs, Inuyasha! To get high. To get away."

Inuyasha growled.

"No. You got it all wrong, monk. She's not the type of person to get off on something like that. I mean from what I've seen, Higurashi Kagome is as close to a righteous prude as you could get-"

He could almost hear Miroku perking up.

"Higurashi Kagome? The Higurashi Kagome?"

Inuyasha growled.

"Do you know anyone else with a name like that?!"

Miroku's voice grew excited.

"So you're saying your current assignment, whatever it may be, involves you being around Higurashi Kagome?"

"Em. Yeah, kind of."

Miroku's wooped in delight.

"You lucky bastard! That girl ranks in at number eight on Houshi Miroku's Top Ten Dream Dates of all time!"

"What the fuck?"

Inuyasha heard shuffling in the background. The monk must have just sat up in bed. When Miroku spoke again, his voice sounded wistful.

"I remember when she appeared on television last year. Man, I couldn't take my eyes off the girl!"

Inuyasha narrowed his eyes in suspicion.

"Exactly which part of `the girl' are you referring to?"

Miroku didn't even have the dignity to feign innocence.

"Hey, I'm only human. You can't deny Miss Higurashi looks great from behind."

Inuyasha's found his head nodding unconsciously. He caught himself and shook the traitorous appendage in annoyance. This didn't stop the blood that had started rising in his cheeks. His brow twitched.

"Can we get back on topic here? Fucking pervert."

Miroku feigned hurt.

"I'd prefer to think that I appreciate the beauty around me. Unlike some people."

Inuyasha shut his eyes in irritation. He leaned back against the wall.

"Whatever. So you in or not?"

"I'll be there at three tomorrow afternoon."

Inuyasha almost yipped in triumph.

"Knew you'd come to your senses. Meet me at Matsumi Square."

"Right. Right."

Inuyasha heard a click on the other end. He put the phone away and popped his black cap onto his head and exited the alley.

It was then that the hanyou picked up the familiar scent that he'd dreaded for days. Inuyasha heard more than saw Sesshoumaru's approach. His older brother's measured footsteps echoed in the night. They stopped a few metres in front of him. Inuyasha glanced at the cell phone's clock.

It was still early.

Obviously, the half-blood hadn't been the only one who'd arrived before the set time. Inuyasha smirked slightly. He should have known. Sesshoumaru had never been one for tardiness.

"Dare I ask what you were doing in there?"

Inuyasha cringed inwardly. He wondered how much his brother had heard. With his luck and Sesshoumaru's acute hearing, he'd probably heard quite a bit.

The taller demon's face was impassive as ever. To a silent observer, Sesshoumaru's expression might have been mistaken for nonchalance. As if the man were not really interested in his answer. Inuyasha knew better. Still water always ran deep with his older brother. That was what made him so effective a leader. He showed nothing outwardly. He could have been furious. And he could have been amused. One could never tell with Sesshoumaru.

Inuyasha sighed. He should have known how impossible it would have been to keep things from his brother. He might as well get this over with.

"Higurashi Kagome has been taking this."

He reached into his pocket and pulled out the pill in question. Sesshoumaru took the object from Inuyasha's grasp and examined it. Never being one for unnecessary use of speech, the taller dog demon stayed silent and waited for his half-blooded brother to continue. Inuyasha started his next sentence slowly.

"I have my suspicions about what it does."

Sesshoumaru's reply sounded bored. If his brother intended to leave this place unscathed, he'd better make his explanation good.

"Enlighten me."

Inuyasha inhaled and started.

"Four days ago, the girl let off a reasonably powerful blast of purifying energy-"

It was feint, but Inuyasha could see the slight interest kindling in his brother's eyes. Sesshoumaru might have been surprised. This egged him on.

"It incapacitated her bodyguard. You should have seen it. The woman was charred!."

Sesshoumaru cut in.

"And so, being Inuyasha you decided to play the hero. Hn. Typical."

The half blood glared.

"What the hell did you expect me to do? Leave Kouran there to rot? There was no one else around."

Sesshoumaru quirked an eyebrow at this.

"So you simply defied your orders and made contact with the girl."

Sesshoumaru had meant it more as a statement than an admonishment. But Inuyasha took offense anyway.

-Hn. Made contact…-

His brother made Higurashi Kagome sound like some sort of extra terrestrial being. Inuyasha's voice increased in volume.

"Oh excuse me for not running off to hide whenever I come across a smoking heap of flesh."

Inuyasha scoffed loudly and pocketed the drug his brother handed back to him. Sesshoumaru spoke next.

"I've heard only bits and pieces of this story. Kouran can't remember much at all."

The dog demon dropped his amber gaze to his raised right hand, where a strong thumb fingered the talons at the tips of his fingers. His next words were delivered in a deceptively calm voice.

"I find it peculiar that you seem to know so much more than Jaken does. I don't suppose you could tell me why."

Sesshoumaru turned condescending golden eyes on Inuyasha, who forced himself not to take notice of the razor-sharpness of his brother's claws. Instead, the hanyou clenched his fists and met the older demon's glare with defiance. Sesshoumaru's voice grew a tad colder.

"Your immaturity appals me. Knowing the importance of this assignment I would have expected you to push aside your resentment towards Jaken in favour of your duties. Apparently even that was too much to ask. Why didn't you report your findings to him?"

Inuyasha scoffed. No one nagged like Sesshoumaru could.

"Keh! You think I'd give the old man the satisfaction? You know him, he'd march right up to Higurashi Kagome and question her straight out-"

"And why would that be a bad thing?"

Inuyasha frowned and turned his eyes to the floor once more. He crossed his arms as his gaze became distant.

"Because that wouldn't have done shit except for making the girl more scared than she already was. She can't control her powers, Sesshoumaru. I don't even think she really knew what she'd done."

At this, Sesshoumaru blinked. How could a person with as high a profile as the president's daughter, not have known of her own powers? The slight surprise on his face only lasted a moment.

"So you think that pill has something to do with her abilities?"

Inuyasha shrugged.

"It's just a hunch-"

His voice grew distant.

"But you should have seen her after she injured Kouran…."

The hanyou frowned.

"The girl was terrified."

Inuyasha went on to recount to his brother what he'd heard that afternoon when he'd seen Kagome buying the mystery drug off Bankotsu. He recalled her nervous comment to the boy…

"I never thought I'd come back but- Well… its been acting up again."

As Sesshoumaru listened, his mind pieced the information together. The dog demon caught on fast.

"So you think that she was referring to her powers. And the drug is her way of coping with them?"

Inuyasha looked up and nodded again. The taller demon now looked mildly interested. He glanced around.

"We'll continue this inside. It's quiet here. Anyone could be listening."

Inuyasha complied and the brothers made their way towards Shijun. Inuyasha found himself thoroughly surprised when the bouncer at the doors immediately stepped aside at the sight of Sesshoumaru. Perhaps his brother held more influence than he let on.

On their way through the entrance, Inuyasha seized the chance to slip his borrowed phone back into its rightful owner's pocket. No one but Sesshoumaru noticed the action. The older demon merely quirked a brow.

They were seated at a secluded spot in the back of the nightclub. Blasting music in the background made conversation hard. But the Taisho brothers would cope. The noise lessened the chance of eavesdropping. Sesshoumaru gestured for his brother to continue.

"So anyways, I know it sounds stupid that someone with powers like hers wasn't identified early on. But its true. It seems no one's taught her how to use them. From what I felt, the energy was strong but extremely unfocused."

Sesshoumaru had his arms crossed now.

"What caused this outburst?"

Inuyasha shrugged.

"Damned if I know."

His brother pondered the information for a while. Systematically running over fact after fact in his mind. Suddenly, an idea struck and Sesshoumaru leaned forward quickly.

"Inuyasha. Four years ago, you lost control of your body and turned into a fully demonised version of yourself-"

Inuyasha cringed. Though he couldn't remember the exact details, he did know that that had been the only time he had ever felt such utter helplessness. His body had done things against his will. He'd been… rather frightened.

Sesshoumaru continued.

"-Somehow, the demon energy that had previously been dormant within you had been released. Do you remember why?"

Inuyasha was starting to see where his brother was going with this. The memory was blurry. But he answered anyway.

"Some bastard was holding these three kids hostage. He nearly killed one of them and I got really angry. I think… that was when I started to feel sort of strange. The fucker started insulting my mother and I snapped. After that is a big blur. Do you think that Higurashi-"

"Yes. I think your situations are similar. Your dormant energy was unleashed when you lost control of your emotions. The reaction was purely out of animal instinct. Higurashi Kagome, having just experienced the loss of a loved one, lost control of her self and unleashed her purifying energy. Hn. You've managed to pull up something useful for once."

Inuyasha quirked up and smirked in triumph.

"Ha! So my making `contact' with the wench wasn't in vain! I'm so going to rub that in Jaken's face. The fucker's been on my back about it the past four days."

Sesshoumaru exhaled. The immaturity was lost on him as he chose to ignore his brother's comment. Involving himself in Jaken and Inuyasha's childish antics was not a priority of his.

But the dog demon couldn't help but feel his mood lighten. With this new found revelation. A new piece of the puzzle had just fallen into place. At last he was getting somewhere! He said the next sentence more to himself.

"I think I might have found one of the answers I've been waiting for."

Of course, with his brother only half a metre away, it was bound to have been heard. Inuyasha paused in his scheming to face Sesshoumaru in curiosity.

"What you talking about?"

Sesshoumaru's explanation came in slowed sentences, as if the man was thinking things out as he went.

"When the assassin attacked President Higurashi, all but one of the guards survived. Kouga. That was because he was the only one that had been able to land a hit on the killer. So what had Kouga had that all the other guards had not?"

Inuyasha had no idea where his brother was going with this.

Kouga?

Kouga had a bigger ego than the entire population of Sengoku put together that's what he had. Not realising the hypocritical nature of his train of thought, Inuyasha frowned. Rather than chance a guess and prove himself a complete nincompoop to his older brother. He chose to stay silent and listen as Sesshoumaru continued.

"Or more precisely, who had Kouga had that every other person in that mansion had not."

Inuyasha looked stumped for a while. Then, the answer struck him with such abruptness that his eyes widened. His answer came in an almost-whisper.

"Higurashi Kagome."

Sesshoumaru was so close to smirking, it was alarming. He pulled a tighter reign on his facial expression and schooled his features. The dog demon gave a slight nod.

He needn't have said more. It was clear that Inuyasha understood.

Higurashi Kagome had known that the assassin could have killed her and her brother with ease. Needless to say, she had been very scared. That extreme emotion and instinctive need to protect her younger sibling would have made quite the effective trigger to force her powers to manifest themselves…..

Inuyasha gaped. That was why the stinky wolf had been able to injure the killer.

It had been Kagome's body's natural way of protecting itself from danger. The energy had hit the assassin as Kouga had attacked and….

Sesshoumaru shut his eyes again and relaxed into the soft cushion of his seat. Weeks of having nothing but puzzles heaped onto him. It all seemed to melt away. For the first time, Sesshoumaru felt like he was getting somewhere. He couldn't help himself. The first inklings of a small smirk appeared at the corner of his lips. He made his final conclusion.

"Precisely. It's possible that the assassin's suit is affected by Higurashi Kagome's purifying energy."

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A/N: This chapter was suicidal. Still don't know if I'm happy with how it turned out.