InuYasha Fan Fiction ❯ Scorched ❯ Uncertain Colleagues ( Chapter 3 )

(A/N-I would like to thank those who did read, and my wonderful reviewer who convinced me to write this next chapter. Thank you mentallydisturbed!)

Chapter 3

Uncertain Colleagues

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"So you're saying that a demon took her? I'm talking a real, live, actually here demon from the past?"

"Yes, I'm afraid so. I felt the presence before I could arrive on time, and all the signs point to her kidnapper being demon. Especially since all the neighbors claim that they saw or heard nothing out of the ordinary, and they'd been home all day."

Sango shrank even more into her seat. She just had no idea what to believe anymore; Kagome would find this incredibly stupid had it not actually happened to her. Everything he had told her just completely blew her mind, and she was having a hell of a time soaking it all in.

He was a monk, a truly powerful monk who is only here to help them both to stay alive. He had been the unknown caller and had attempted desperately to reach her by phone on his journey here. Kagome is in the biggest of danger between the two of them, and she had already been found out by whatever demon had captured her. There was a war underway, where the demons were planning to do some damage to get back on top, and it wasn't looking too good for the humans.

Believe him? He was asking her to believe him? His existence alone was insanity…how was she going to believe any of this?

He placed a gentle hand over hers, which she noted was supposed to be a sincere gesture, but was practically meaningless when she felt so horrible. "Please, Sango, listen to me. I'm not doing this to upset you. I'm trying to help you."

"Why did it take you so long to get here?"
"I admit that your apartment was not easy to track down. It took a while before I could find it, and once I did, even longer to remember why I came in the first place, since I seemed to suddenly have a…accident."

She almost smiled when she remembered their encounter. Sango had been absolutely terrified when she realized the door was wide open, and when she saw Miroku standing beside her door looking inside, she knocked him out with a karate palm-up punch to the face (which could actually kill a man if she had hit his nose just right), fearing he was a burglar. "Yeah…I'm sorry about hitting you…but you shouldn't have been standing there like that!"

Although he didn't regret getting hit, he did make a point of acting pitiful in the presence of sympathetic women. "Yes, it still stings a bit…but I did frighten you, after all. It could have been worse."

"I thought I was defending myself…" Her hands clamped tightly over her ears, drowning out noise that only she could hear. "If I hadn't had gotten angry and left, I would have been here to help her…"

"Please, don't blame this on yourself, Sango. You had no way of knowing."

Finally tired of sitting groggily, Sango forced herself off the couch and into the kitchen. "Coffee, tea?"

"Either is fine, thank you."

"Look, I hear what you're saying, Miroku, about being a monk, but I don't see it. Why aren't you in monk clothing? Where's all those mystical…artifacts, or whatever it is that monks are supposed to carry around?"

He smirked, looking through the wall as if he could see through it into the mourning beauty's back. "If it weren't for the price on my head within demon criminal rings, I would dress in my traditional purple robes and carry my golden staff, but I need to keep my features a bit more hidden so that I can continue helping the misfortunate."

She reentered the room with two teas, gave him his and sat down again. "Why won't you let me phone the police? She's been missing for a while already, Miroku…"

He grasped her hand in both of his and willed her to listen closely to him. "I know that it's hard for you to trust me right now, Sango, and I completely understand. But I am asking you to try and comprehend this; unfortunately, getting the police involved would only complicate things for everyone. We can't simply go to them and tell them that demons had kidnapped her; they'd never believe us anyway."

"Then you tell me just what the hell I'm supposed to do?! My best friend in the world has been kidnapped, Miroku, and it's very important that we find her." She shivered, bringing her knees up to her chest and wrapping her arms tightly around them. "I'm so scared for her."

"As am I, Sango. As am I."

"Where could she be, Miroku? What are they doing to her? Is she even--"

Hesitantly, he pulled her into an embrace, and noted the normally easily-angered woman had been so shattered and frightened for her friend that her normal reluctance in accepting the gesture was diminished. She gladly gripped him for all he was worth, and even though she had only known him for twenty minutes, she felt as if he was the only thing she had in the world that would help her get her friend back.

However, the monk felt that he had thoroughly failed his mission. The woman had been kidnapped, and he hadn't been anywhere nearby to stop it. Now the fate of mankind was uncertain.

The doorknob began turning frantically, and both people gasped as they watched the door rattle. It stopped, only to regain it's insistency as it began pressing down, the doorknob turning and moving dangerously out of rotation. Someone was insistent on coming inside…

"Miroku…someone's breaking in…"

Before anyone could do anything a very loud click was heard before the inside of the doorknob fell onto the ground with broken pieces of the inside scattering across the floor. The door simply swung open, revealing a very interesting man holding the other half of the doorknob in his hand, paying it no heed as he looked around from outside the doorway, scenting the room from his outside position.

This is it…the place smells so much like her it makes my head swim.

He took a step inside and dropped the piece of doorknob on the floor. His eyes landed on Sango and Miroku, who stared at him angrily and shocked now. Sango stood and glared at him dangerously for breaking into her home as if it were child's play.

"Just who the hell are you? What are you doing here?!"

He kept his cool, barely sparing them his attention as he spoke. "Another woman lives here. I'd like to have a word with her."

Miroku noted that Sango looked ready to attack him, almost a cat-like gaze settling on him, like she wanted to claw his eyes out. "Get out you asshole!"

Inuyasha found his impatience growing and wandered off into the kitchen for a better look around. Realizing it basically went nowhere important, he turned and scowled at the people who followed behind him. "Where is she? Where's the other woman that lives here?!"

"That's what I'd like to know! Would you care to tell me who the fuck you think you are bursting in here like that?!"

"None of your goddamn business. I'm here to speak with the other wench that lives here, not you."

"You're here to kidnap her, too, aren't you? Well you're too late; another demon beat you to it!

He frowned, scenting the air and looking into her eyes for a trace of truth, which it seemed she wasn't lying. Fuck…she's not here? Someone kidnapped her?

Sango stared him down, finding something eerily familiar about him…was this the same man that Kagome was going completely crazy over bumping into?

He didn't look or sound as nice as she said he was…but his eyes were breathtaking, and his hair a surreal color. Damn, she knew a demon when she saw one. For someone who didn't believe in demons, Kagome certainly was getting into lots of trouble with them.

Miroku took a daring stand in front of Sango, now sensing the alleged foe was at least partly demon. "What do you know about Kagome, demon?"

Kagome, eh? He took another step forward and mused how cautious the man was, blocking the woman from sight and reach but never removing himself from harm's way. "I know that she has something that belongs to me, and I want it back."

Miroku stared at him searchingly until he straightened his spine, coming to a realization. "Wait…I know you; you're The Hanyou Inuyasha…a living legend."

"You think you're so smart?" The Hanyou fisted his hand in Miroku's collar and lifted him effortlessly off the ground in a second flat. Although the monk did not appear frightened, Sango went into another hysterical fit, and it certainly didn't help Inuyasha's mood with the shrill sound of her voice in the background. "If you're smart, you'll tell me where Kagome is so that I can get back what she took from me."

Miroku frowned very deeply with a sudden thought. If Inuyasha was here like the legend had said, his elder brother could be out there somewhere, too…making him the demon lord and ultimate king in this entire thing. No one was more dangerous…and that made this demon incredibly powerful, too, because the blood of royalty lived in his veins. He'd have to be very careful…"Even if I knew where she was, I don't think I would tell you."

Inuyasha growled dangerously low, and through gritted teeth spat, "Why not?"

"Because your intentions towards her could be just as evil as the demon that had taken her. I won't risk Kagome's life even more by sending another murderer out for her blood."

"I'm not here to kill anybody, but, your ass is pushing it."

Miroku eyed him carefully, still nonchalant about his current position that would normally have any man at the half-demon's mercy. "If you don't want to kill her, then what does she have that belongs to you?"

"A very important object that I'm trying to stash away from other demons to help you pathetic humans, and if I don't get it back, a demon's gonna happily slaughter that little bitch and take it."

Sango visibly panicked, and Miroku glared at his captor heatedly. "Stop saying things like that, you will upset the lady!"

Inuyasha merely cocked an eyebrow, but did not release his hold.

Miroku sighed. "Listen, Inuyasha, I believe we should sit down and talk. We could help each other."

"No." Dropping him to the ground with a thud, Inuyasha looked down on him, crossing his arms tightly across his chest, knowing that threatening him was now pointless since he wasn't going to be a threat. "I don't make pacts with humans."

"Why not? You're helping them."

"My reasons for the things I do are my own, nosy bastard. I want what's mine, and if I don't get it, you two will pay for it in blood payments."

Sango helped the lecherous monk to his feet while he rubbed the newly forming bump on his ass carefully. "Indeed. I cannot say that I'm surprised that you're trying to help the humans to a degree, but if you do absolutely nothing to help Kagome mankind will be destroyed anyway."

"What are you talking about?" He snapped. He didn't get it…Why was she so important?

"We are on the same side."

"I'm on my own side; just because I'm doing one good deed for you dirty bastards doesn't mean I'm giving you my life."

"The demon breed is destroying anyone that could possibly impede their taking over the world again. Kagome is an important asset because Kagome unknowingly to herself is a Miko with unleashed powers, fully capable of purifying all demon blood when harmed or threatened."

Inuyasha said nothing, but Sango voiced his thoughts with a look completely disbelieving. "…What the hell are you talking about, Houshi?"

"Because Kagome doesn't know about her powers, her abilities are useless, and the demons want her dead or under control before the powers have a chance to wake. She is a powerful weapon, one of very few in the world, if I'm correct, and her death would be a major loss for the human side."

"Wait, Houshi, how the hell did you know she was a Miko if she doesn't even know it!"

Inuyasha would have chuckled at Sango if he didn't have a reputation to maintain. She was getting herself terribly worked up to the point that everything she said was practically hysterical.

Not that he could really blame her…it was a human female thing, right?

"I have my sources, milady. I am a true monk, after all, and rarely does a monk contain my powers of insight and/or charm."

"Stop bragging…where is Kagome! You people go out and find her, dammit!" Hastily bringing her hands up to her face and slapping them down over her forehead, she stomped away into the living room to pace in peace, while the males in the household discussed Inuyasha's true nature for being here in the solitude of the kitchen.

Inuyasha's mouth opened to speak, but Miroku beat him to it. "And before you ask what this has to do with you, protecting the…object…automatically places you for the humans. Kagome-sama is depending on you to help, even though she isn't aware of it yet."

"Look, what makes you think that me going after her is gonna save anything? If the demons want her dead and they took her, she's probably dead by now, anyway." Why that made him so…uneasy…he would never know.

"Well, I didn't think it was possible…"

Instantly, the Hanyou knew that whatever Miroku had to say was just going to anger him more, but he couldn't resist. "What's not possible?"

"You're scared to go after her."

"I'm not afraid of anything."

"Of course you are; why else wouldn't you take this challenge? The Hanyou Inuyasha I heard of was never afraid of taking a challenge, never afraid to do anything he was dared to, and you just proved me wrong."

Inuyasha released a feral growl and pointed his clawed finger in his direction with his no-bullshit tone. "Listen here, you sonofabitch--"

Miroku held his hands up defensively. "Whoa, whoa, back off, Spike."

"I didn't come here to make a deal with a little punk bastard like yourself, I came here to get my object back. And if you insult me again I'll rip your throat out."

"Look, Kagome couldn't purify you, Inuyasha, she doesn't even know who you are. You're still half-human. Kagome is a very valuable weapon to the human society; that's why I came to protect her, but she had already been taken."

"Well, what a supportive person you are," He mumbled incoherently.

"I'm not asking you to perform a great act of heroics, Inuyasha, I'm just asking you to retrieve Kagome and make certain that she is safe. After you get your 'object' back and she is safely home, I will protect her from there."

Snorting rather loudly, Inuyasha sighed mockingly at the monk and gave him a great disbelieving look. "Are you kidding me? You couldn't protect her at first; nothing would stop demons from killing you, too. She needs someone with power to protect her, not cheap theatrics."

"Someone like you, Inuyasha?"

The phrase caught him off guard. "No way am I getting stuck with that bitch; what do I look like, a fucking nanny?"

"Well if the only thing you were doing was protecting the jewel, you might as well protect the miko that can keep it pure, ne?"

He shifted uneasily but invisibly on his feet and kept himself from looking skeptical. Just how did Miroku know that it was the jewel he was after?

Clever bastard...clever, stupid little bastard…

It didn't matter. He wasn't here to baby sit some twenty year old human bitch; he just wanted his jewel back! But he did admit silently that someone with such a beautiful scent and aura shouldn't die for something as trivial as her existence; that was what he'd been fighting against all his life. And if it meant the humans could continue living, as pitiful as they were…

"I'm not one to just go out and rescue someone without a price."

"Very well…what would you like as payment to find her and bring her back here?"

He scoffed childishly and crossed his arms. "I just told you, she isn't safe staying here with you. You can't even stomach a punch from a girl."

Miroku muttered inaudibly, crossing his arms over his chest. "Then you will watch over her?"

Inuyasha suddenly realized he, the only person with human blood around that was willing to bad mouth them, had been openly negotiating with two humans. Now he was practically taking up the opportunity to be that woman's legal guardian and keep her from harm altogether, which was probably just about as nice as he got. He found it rather ironic; come here out for blood, leave with a new responsibility.

And things could get ugly, too. If he got her back the demons after her could get stronger and stronger, his older half-brother included. He'd probably spill blood from the girl without a second thought if he took this upon himself. And even if he didn't come after her, she could get hurt pretty damn badly…

Who am I kidding? I'm not gonna let something happen to her…

But if he was going to be protective, whether or not he had a choice in the ordeal, and he definitely did not, he was going to kill two birds with one stone. If he didn't, he'd look insane to his kitsunes, and personally, he didn't want to deal with their mocking looks and jokes for the rest of their reduced existence.

Still, no one had ever trusted him to do anything without knowing him first. Miroku acted like he knew him well enough to know that Inuyasha wasn't the type to go against his word, and that bugged the hell out of him. "Why do you trust me with her life, Houshi?"

"Because I know that the human species depends on you, and you aren't going to just stand idly by and watch their demise, like I won't."

"Fine, then I ask again; what do I get out of the deal?"

The monk set his jaw, crossing his arms protectively over his chest. Why did he suddenly get the feeling that he was selling his soul to the devil? "Well, Inuyasha…what do you want?"

Inuyasha made himself perfectly comfortable, leaning against the kitchen counter and shoving his other hand into his leather pocket. An idea popped into his head, and it proved to be too good an opportunity to pass up, especially at this point in time. "Miroku, do you know anything about electronics?"

Something about the slightly saccharine undertone held him on the edge. "A little."

"Can you defend yourself like a man?"

"Of course I can; I'm still alive, aren't I?"

He smiled a smile that bared fangs, and Miroku knew that he had indeed just sold his soul. "Then I'll protect Kagome, but only if you work for me. You'll travel with my kitsunes and I and lend your equal share on missions. By no means, ever, will you sell me out or betray me, or I'll kill you. Got it?"

He stayed silent for a second, before nodding. "Very well, Inuyasha, but I must inform you that my sole purpose in life is to defend the human race. Should there come a time when I am needed, I need to go. And you'll have my friendship and allegiance, but unless it's for one of your missions or something involved in keeping Kagome or people safe, I won't necessarily listen to your orderings. I am for the existence of mankind, but against serving anyone completely like I serve Buddha."

The Hanyou nodded once in affirmation and hesitantly shook the Monk's hand. "Fine. Get your stuff; we'll go find her."

"HEY! You're not leaving me here alone!" Sango shouted, moving to the doorway of the kitchen to block them from moving out. "I'm not going to be stuck here by myself while you people are traveling with my best friend. I'm not defenseless; take me with you."

"Oh gee, I don't think I've got enough humans traveling with me."

"Kagome is my best friend, and I want to help her! I'll…" Sango paused to think her actions over carefully and swallowed her pride. "I'll do what I'm told, mind you that it's reasonable, but I'll work with you on missions. I'm good with electronics and I can knock the monk into next week, so I think I'm entitled to go."

"It was just a lucky hit…" Miroku added, rubbing his still stinging cheek quietly, but no one was listening anyway. The monk was actually hoping Inuyasha would agree to this; it would place Sango under more protection. Inuyasha was known for loyalty and protection more than anything; if Sango earned his trust in the game, he'd probably kill for her.

In fact, they were all better off with him, as long as they didn't disobey or betray him. He knew he felt better…but Inuyasha wasn't going to hear that.

She continued to plead, not caring how badly it would make her look. "Please, just let me come along. I promise to be helpful…and since it looks to me like you're not the patient type, I'll give Kagome something to do."

Inuyasha blew the bangs out of his face, looking up to the ceiling as if questioning the very gods that resided up there. "I can't believe this…" He turned, pointing a clawed finger in her direction. "You bitch and moan about anything, woman, and your ass is coming right back here."

Sango smiled sincerely. "Thank you, Inuyasha."

"Get your shit, and I'm not waiting all day."

She didn't hesitate to run up the stairs as fast as she could. Miroku, body-admirer and all around pervert, took the opportunity to get a good view of her backside and leaned far enough that he nearly fell over, but then righted himself to avoid embarrassment from his new boss.

Inuyasha groaned, letting his head fall backwards. "What have I done?"

The monk cleared his throat and immediately changed the subject. "It was kind of you to allow Sango to come along, Inuyasha."

"Shut up. I let her come along so that you don't get bored, Miroku."

He grinned. "Well, I do promise to keep her on her toes. I'd aide in Kagome's entertainment, too, but I somehow doubt the girl could knock me out like Sango does. She wouldn't be up to it, anyway, after being around belittling demons for a while."

Inuyasha just stared at him, his eyebrows snapping together in mild irritation before he spoke again. "Well, you can grope Sango until she beats you into your grave, Houshi, but leave Kagome alone. One screaming, hair-pulling wench is enough; in fact, it's probably too much."

Miroku nodded hesitantly. "Noted; Kagome is off limits."
"Do the police know about this?"

"No, but they're bound to find out. Kagome and Sango are both college students, and Sango teaches a Karate class. They'll become suspicious when both girls turn up missing."

"Keh, perfect…" Inuyasha proceeded into the living room without another word and scanned all the objects inside this once humble abode. He hadn't really taken notice to the condition the house had been left in, especially since both women struck him as the organized, clean type. This room was a very popular place for the women to reside, it seemed; their scents were both greatly concentrated here, more so than in the kitchen…therefore, he expected this room to be the cleanest, which it wasn't.

Kagome hadn't been gone for very long. School books and papers scattered on the couch had been left in the spot she had been doing her homework right before the kidnappers had messed up everything else, leaving nothing overturned or touched.

The kidnappers' scents were very distinctive and sharp, obviously demons. There were only two reasons that he knew of for demons to take her this early, but neither truly worked out in his mind.

They should have been here for her Miko powers, but then, why would it look like instead they were searching for something? And why didn't they just kill her on the spot, when there was no sign of violence or blood?

They also could have been after the Shikon Jewel, but if he couldn't feel it any longer, then a normal demon shouldn't be able to, either. Unless for some reason they'd had a bug on her for a long time and managed to witness her discovery on the sidewalk, they couldn't have found out otherwise.

An unopened bill lay carelessly tossed on the floor, and as he bent over to pick it up he retrieved his cell phone out of his pocket. He dialed Shippo's number while observing Kagome's full name addressed across the middle.

"Shippo, get a car to 103 Maple Drive, I've got a surprise for you and Kira."

"…Sure thing, Inuyasha…"

He clamped it shut and returned it to his pocket as he read her name over and over again in his head. Kagome Higurashi…it suits her…

She had been and still remained the most beautiful human woman he had ever seen in his life. Now, it was his duty to protect her, and because he had given his word, he'd do nothing less than the best job he possibly could. It was like a calling…or indigestion.

The question still remained; why had the demons taken her? Why did they ransack the entire house?

What the hell was taking that Sango chick so long?

Uptight and secretly concerned, the Hanyou waited impatiently for Kagome's friend to finish gathering her things as he leaned against the kitchen doorway in silence to ponder just how, exactly, he planned on getting her back alive and well.

It's my job now…if she's hurt in any way I'll pound the demons to a bloody pulp before they realize what hit 'em.

Inuyasha didn't feel the least bit guilty about these people signing off their lives to him, he just wished that he knew where the girl could be located right off the bat so he could go there now and get her back.

He was livid.

He knew that this girl meant something not only to human society, but to him. His mother was a Miko too, and a great one at that. Up until the last few days of her life, she practically lived the position of Queen Miko and held the respect of everyone that wasn't demon.

She was the only person that ever loved him, the only person he loved, and she loved him even while welcoming death on her last day alive. And he still loved her, more than anything in the world, and would trade anything for her to still be with him, today.

His mother believed fully in all life getting the chance to exist in whatever way they wished; that was why she was so respected. She healed wounds and told people of himself, and how his father had truly loved them both before he died. The secret there was that a demon loved a human.

Basically, she considered demons to be just like humans, only much more powerful…and they lived until something killed them.

That was a lesson he knew too well; nothing lived forever. That meant getting attached to anything was pretty much pointless.

She would have lived like a demon, though, if his father hadn't died, giving her back her human strength and lifespan. She couldn't have healed the wounds she obtained that day, and he still couldn't have saved her, no matter how many times he hated himself for watching her die and doing nothing but crying.

But even though he loved her dearly, Inuyasha had never been a complete follower in his mother's teachings. Hell, if you pissed him off, especially if you were demon, he'd gladly slit your throat without a second thought or remorse. But there were some things that he wanted to savor, some things that he believed should probably continue happening, even if it wasn't his place to say so or not.

If Kagome was a Miko like this delirious bastard had said, then he'd do whatever it took to make sure she comes out of this alright. He felt like he owed it to his mother, society, himself…and maybe even her, too, for keeping his jewel safe and sound, of course…IF it was still safe and sound…

Oh, it better be, or I'm ripping some demon heads off…

"Ok, I'm ready," Sango said, coming down the stairs with a backpack full of things over her shoulder and a second dragging behind her. Her clothing had been changed to a simple pair of jeans and a blood-red halter top with a navy blue jacket over it. Her long black hair was left down with a navy blue French hat slanting just slightly towards the side, drawing attention to her newly made-over face. "When do we leave?"

"In a minute…"

"Sango, you look lovely."

She spared the admiring monk a cautious look before nodding carefully. "Thanks…"

Inuyasha walked towards the stairs. "Where's Kagome's room?"

Sango narrowed her eyes into his back. "Upstairs…why?"
"She needs a bunch of shit, too, doesn't she? She's a girl."

"Ah, wait," She dropped her bags onto the floor and moved in front of him to block him. "I'll pack for her…she might not want someone going through her messed up room like I wouldn't."

Inuyasha rolled his eyes as she retreated again and grabbed the leather coats hanging on the coat-rack in case either girl wanted one in the future. He couldn't have one of them complaining…

Women were so damn picky. He never needed very much, just a couple changes of clothes and his leather coat, gloves and something to put over the top of his head. Women had to bring their entire closets and all the makeup they could carry in order to travel, like they actually needed all those things to survive.

Heh, women…

"Inuyasha, would that be our ride out front?"

"Yes, that would be our ride," He responded sarcastically, hanging all the hats, belts and gloves also on the coat rack over his arm.

Miroku continued to stare out the window at the nice-sized limousine parked directly and conspicuously in front of the women's apartment. "Nice ride…"

"Don't get used to it. I only use it for rare occasions."

"What for?"

"Because people would start asking questions if they saw an unknown limo traveling around town."

"Ah…"

"We aren't going to waste any time. Once we get set we'll search her out, but it's not going to be easy."

Miroku nodded, agreeing completely. Too much time had been wasted already on his part, and Kagome could already be badly hurt by now, if not worse. No need to tell that to Sango…either she had no idea it could be so bad, or she was in denial and pushed all possibilities of it out of her mind.

As Sango came down a second time, Inuyasha instructed that Miroku help with the bags while he finished gathering anything he figured these people would need from him in the future. They had a lot of work to do, since it was going to take more than a simple scent trail to track her down this time.

Time was not on their side. Every minute she wasn't in sight was another minute off her life, just that much quicker.

Well, this is it; Kira and Shippo will have a cow, but the girl and the jewel are urgent priorities. He couldn't help but spare the apartment one last glance as he inhaled one last breath full of her scent from what was still there. If anyone had harmed her, the only human goddess that gave off such a realistic scent like a blast from the past, he'd hope for nothing less than to do some gutting, and perhaps eye gouging, too, since that was always fun when he was pissed off.

He sighed, and double checking his privacy, snatched the small framed photo from off the wall so he could continue observing her in secret. Where could they have taken you? You better not die on me, woman…

*~*~*

The cold night only grew worse for the humans.

However for a certain man working late at his company headquarters, the night simply could not get any better.

His greatest achievement yet had been made tonight. His demon squad was on it now. Uncovering and extinguishing potential major threats before they even knew they could be threats was brilliant. Finding that information was even more ingenious, and it took a completely radiant mind to uncover it.

She should be dead by now, and she wouldn't even know what she had done to deserve it.

The moonlight illuminated everything outside his window, the only gateway to the world he'd ever need. The constant and refreshing sound of chaos in various parts of the city was like music to his ears. What was best was knowing that he was the one causing most of it.

Ah, but the night was young, and there were so many naïve lives he intended to mess around with…

The door to his estate opened without warning, even though he felt the presence outside. The woman that followed the hateful entry made him both pleased and irritated, for the files in her hand were exactly what he asked her for, and as usual, she retrieved them, but the manner in which she had done so was seemingly unorthodox.

Like him, at first glance she appeared to be nothing special, but her eyes, ears and impossible to hide fangs had intelligent people questioning her position within mankind. Of course, also like him, they asked no questions in fear that it would be the last thing they ever did.

When he faced her he could only grin, and as her now obvious anger increased, so did his amusement. "You brought the files like I asked. Thank you; however, you also read them when I told you it wasn't your business."

She all but slammed the papers onto his desk. "This is what you're giving me? After all the shit I do for you, you're selling me out to that dog bastard with the broking company?!"

"Now, now, Kagura, this is no way to repay me for letting you live."

"REPAY YOU? You don't do anything except order me around and blackmail me, anyway! You might as well kill me before you send me off; he'd do it anyway!"

His cold, yet still amused eyes narrowed ever so slightly. "You know how important it is for me to get as close as possible to him. You should be thankful you're part of such a wonderful scheme."

Kagura growled and began chipping the wood on his desk with the ridiculous strength in her fingers alone. "You will never knock him out of the picture, Naraku. He's been alive for this long; if he's even the least bit suspicious about something he'll kill me; he's not stupid."

"I'm aware of that. Reading into his mind will be a challenge, but I'm up for it."

She smiled bitterly. "Of course you're up for it, Naraku; you're not doing anything. You're sending me on the death journey, REMEMBER?"

He chuckled, seating himself and lifting his feet on top of the folder on his desk. This action only further irritated her because it showed that he welcomed her angry comments without any negative emotion at all. "On the contrary, Kagura; you are merely the trade. He will probably speak with me over the phone and in meetings more than he'd speak with you."

Her eyes glinted dangerously. "That bastard cannot keep assistants in his office for more than a year. They all either leave or die, which implies that he would take his anger out on me like he did those women."

"Give him nothing to be angry about, as in the settlement, and you will be fine. Do and I'll squeeze the life out of your heart before he gets the chance."

Kagura could only glare. It was all she could do to not jump across the table foolishly and try to rip his spinal chord out of alignment. No matter what, that was instant suicide. Naraku wasn't a man to mess with, especially when he was scheming. "This isn't fair…"

"Our meeting with our demon lord is tomorrow night. Dress nicely."

That was her cue to leave. It was exactly like every other time she had come in with the intent of chewing his head off and left hating him even more than before.

She and her sister would never win against him as long as he held her heart in his hands.

There was still no way to escape. God knows she'd tried, but he was always one step ahead of her, and one step ahead of everyone else that got in his way. Staying was insane; asking for help from anyone was redundant, and suicide was just out of the question. She still had her honor and would not die by her own hands as long as she still held free will of her own.

Oh, she'd get him…it didn't matter to her that he created her and her sister; she just wanted to be free of him, to live life like she was never supposed to, because she was never supposed to exist in the first place.

They'd beat him at his own game.

Naraku watched her leave with something akin to interest. His lovely spawn was plotting against him again; he could read her like a book. Keeping her in her place had proved to be one of the greatest challenges of all, so he made it a point to manipulate her as much as possible so that she knew who ruled who.

As of yet, no one had ever defeated him in his games. Inuyoukai/all powerful Lord Sesshoumaru would be a challenge for anyone; even his presence in the neighborhood made the strongest of demons' skin crawl.

In fact, by his hands, the three other lords had been destroyed, simply because they were a "nuisance" to him. That had been hundreds of years ago. He had never been known to be foolish, and he certainly wouldn't start now, not with all that hard earned respect and power, and not with his intellect because of his insatiable need for knowledge. By hard-learned instinct, trusting anyone was out of the question, let alone trusting anyone upon first meeting.

That was something his own family had a hard time doing…A challenge? Try an unfathomable problem.

But he had passed the first test when the stone-cold prince of the demon world agreed to a company meeting. It meant he hadn't looked like something was scheming hotly under his sleeve.

Naraku wasn't a fool, either. He had begun the secret orderings of random deaths, and every holy person found or known was to be assassinated without a trace. Sesshoumaru was taking his time to perfect his movements, and once his orders began it was law. Anyone who disobeyed would be killed, including him.

However, Naraku was already a step ahead of him in his quest for full knowledge in this new age world, and being one step ahead of the best, and staying there, always gave him the ultimate control.

If he could get under the demon leader's plan and commit the ultimate of mutiny, he'd really be in business.

…and just who would dare to come after him then?

*~*~*

"No way! Absolutely not; I refuse!"

"Stop that!"

"I will not." Kagome hissed, and that was that. She wasn't going down willingly, everyone in that vehicle knew it, and everyone within hearing range of the horn probably did, too...

"Then what would you suggest?" Came a slightly irritated reply from the thug on her right, formally known to her now as Ginta. The man was the only one she could get a name out of, and she wasn't impressed with anything about him. Just look at how he did his own hair, all shaved and spiked and crazy; there's no way she'd let him cut hers!

Kagome wound her arms tightly around her head to protect her pride and joy. "I don't know! Color it, spike it, anything else, just don't cut it off!"

"Kouga, she won't let us cut her hair!" The second whined, looking to their boss like children trying to get the other into trouble.

Kouga, currently drinking an entire bottle of wine in his seat across from them just smiled in their direction. "I can't say I blame her; her hair is lovely the way it is. She doesn't want it messed up, and I don't either, personally. Says a lot about her personality…"

"But we have to make her look different, don't we?"

Smirking, the man Kagome now knew wasn't possibly human just bared fangs as he sat his bottle down on the wine tray. "So put some red streaks in it. She can keep her hair's length since we've changed just about everything else on her."

He ain't kidding…Kagome mused silently, overlooking the outfit they'd made her put on over her thin clothing. They hadn't been in the limo for too long, but already Kagome had had a manicure, a makeover, color contacts, some sort of spray that was scentless to her, and she even the other thug do her make-up. What choice did she have? She refused to endanger her family's life just because she didn't want to change something.

…Except her hair. That was the one thing she'd put her foot down on. Her hair was one of her most prized possessions, something that had taken her too long to grow for any kind of cut that would shorten it as of now. And she was glad Kouga let her keep that, if nothing else.

They had made her look like an evil business woman, with black slacks, a tight red sleeveless shirt with a black scarf and a long black-leather coat with gloves that she hadn't put on yet because of the manicure. Truth was, she actually liked it, but she'd have never bought them on her own.

She was also glad that nobody had noticed the necklace tucked underneath her undershirt and taken it from her. It felt right holding onto it and she'd be damned if a car full of demons would get her to let it go!

If that's what they really were; demons...she was no longer certain of anything since the things that were happening to her ranked in the category of impossible in the past. She still couldn't believe this was happening, and would absolutely refuse had she not just seconds before been arguing about her hair-do.

Kagome really didn't know what the purpose of the nails and spray were; she couldn't smell anything, and now her nails resembled short claws, nowhere near as impressive as Kouga's, but still sharp enough. Her contacts made her eyes green and cat-like, for some odd reason, and right now both thugs were working on her ears, but she had no clue what they were doing.

In fact, she still had no idea why she was being taken, to where, and to whom…and she didn't care anymore. They hadn't hurt her, and if they were they'd have done it by now.

Not that she was scared to die or be harmed; she just didn't feel like they were really a threat right now.

God, Kagome, your stupid instincts haven't been doing well with you lately, why listen to it now? They'll probably kill you as soon as you get there.

She felt hollow inside after realizing how everything in her life began crashing down on her. Her beliefs, her temporary anger at Sango, her complete guilt for not believing her about Hojo and demons…and this, of course, where she still didn't know if she'd be alive in the morning. Her brain began scanning through everything so quickly that she just couldn't feel anything about any of it.

It was just…numb.

Kouga held out a glass of white wine after the beasts were finished with her ears. "Thirsty?"

"Sorry, I'm not old enough to drink," She snapped.

"Well, we're all breaking the rules here. Why don't you just taste it?"

She just stared pointedly at him. It should have been obvious; honestly, didn't he know anything? "Because you probably put something in it, and now you want me to drink it. I'm not stupid."

Kouga sighed and downed the glass on his own to show it was harmless. "No, you're right; stupid just doesn't describe you. You're cautious, though; I like that."

"Yeah, I bet you do."

He crossed his arms smugly over his chest and relaxed a little more in his seat. "Tell me, Kagome, what would you rather be? A cat, wolf, or a kitsune?"

Kagome licked her lips and jerked her head away from Ginta, who was trying to streak red into her hair with a substance that somehow reminded her of finger paints. "That's cold…" She cocked an eyebrow at Kouga's question once her attention was redirected. "The hell's a kitsune?"

"Like a fox, or a fire cat, or even an element."

"Why?"

"Just answer the question, sweetie."

Scowling at the nickname, her entire body began to stiffen with the fear that this may have something to do with what they were taking her for. What the hell did this have to do with Hojo and anything he had given her, though? Right now, of course, she'd choose to be just about anything other than what she was now, but that wasn't going to happen…so maybe it was rhetorical?

Nah…she didn't trust him enough to believe he asked rhetorical questions.

"Is this manhandling necessary?" Ginta tugged on a piece of her hair to still her, and she quite literally tried to bite him before the other wrapped an arm around her waist, holding her back like a bear-hug. "Kami, I'd be a cat, now tell me why!"

He snorted, taking another large swig out of the wine bottle. "Sadly, I'd have to agree, even though I think you'd make a good wolf, too."

"That explains nothing."

"Did you know that I was supposed to go ahead and kill you, Kagome?"

Now why didn't that surprise her? She tried to stay silent, tried, but couldn't resist knowing the truth, anyway. "Then why didn't you?"

"Truth is, sweetheart, I simply couldn't harm a fireball like yourself. I decided once I saw you that it wouldn't be worth it since there's only one reason you're wanted dead, anyway." Kagome continued to soak it all in as he lifted and held the bottle of wine in his hands, moving it around as he beamed. "Then I realized that it would be just as easy to turn you into something different and give you a fair chance. This we are doing in secret, but once it's done, no one will object."

"You're insane…you can't turn me into anything…it's physically impossible."

Kouga leaned forward on his haunches, resting his upper body weight on his knees with the bottle still between his hands. "Yesterday you had a different opinion of beliefs, didn't you?"

This time, she bit her tongue and succeeded in saying nothing.

"Well look here, sweetie; it's either kill you, or turn you into a cat. Well I obviously don't want you dead; that's why we're disguising you until we get there."

"A cat? You can't turn me into a cat! What are you, crazy?!"

"I think its best that you open your mind up just a little more to the limitations of my powers, sweetie, or you're gonna be more than surprised by tomorrow."

A cat…a freaking cat?! What the hell was the point of getting turned into something that would be dead by now at her age? Between the both of them, one of them was crazier than she could have ever imagined, and it couldn't have been her…

Then it hit like a ton of bricks…

They weren't turning her into a cat…they were turning her into a cat demon. They were disguising her as a demon so that they could sneak her into the right place and make it official, and then who knew what the hell he'd do with her? What the hell did demons do besides kill things?!

How would that be possible? How could something that wasn't supposed to exist do something even more impossible? They couldn't play God like that!!!

…could they?

Not that it mattered. She was as good as dead; they might as well do whatever they wanted with her. If that's all she was meant for in life, she wasn't interested in being part of it.

Seeing a partially opened bottle of wine on the floor, Kagome didn't hesitate in picking it up and drinking the biggest and only swill of alcohol she'd ever had in her life as the two beasts she sat cushioned between began restyling her hair. Kouga just grinned at her, raising his bottle in solo cheers.

This was her life; this is what all those hard years working her ass off in high school were truly reduced down to. In less than four hours she learned that everything she was taught in school about their history had to be a lie when demons existed, and she learned that her death was important to the demon race, even though she wasn't sure what she had done to deserve it.

And now, by the order of her captor, she would become something she didn't know existed in the first place…

All because she didn't listen to the only person that cared about her in this town…and now she might not ever see her again to tell her how sorry she truly was about that.

*~*~*

A/N Thanks! R and R please!