InuYasha Fan Fiction ❯ Secret Lovers ❯ Crossing all the t's ( Chapter 18 )
[ X - Adult: No readers under 18. Contains Graphic Adult Themes/Extreme violence. ]
By: saphira404 
Anime/Manga: InuYasha Fan Fiction | Genre(s): Romance / Hentai / Drama / Comedy | Type: Alternate Universe | Uploaded On: 10.28.2012 | Pages: 4 | Words: 8.5K | Visits: 314 | Status: Work In Progress
Anime/Manga: InuYasha Fan Fiction | Genre(s): Romance / Hentai / Drama / Comedy | Type: Alternate Universe | Uploaded On: 10.28.2012 | Pages: 4 | Words: 8.5K | Visits: 314 | Status: Work In Progress
Part 18: Crossing all the t’s
A/N: Nope, not a Halloween prank, this is a new chapter. Secret Lovers is just over the one-year mark, so let’s celebrate with a new chapter. I know it was a slow update, but it will be a long chapter; I hope it makes up for the long wait. This is a bit of a transitional hodgepodge chapter, and there will be some fast forwarding in this one, which will be much needed for the rest of the development of the story.
Despite my sporadic updating, you guys still took the time to leave me a much appreciated review. So thanks a bunch!
Little25victor
Sami199
Philliwolf5
Killersuperg irl
Katekim56
Steph (Thank you for your praise and words of encouragement. I am glad to see your enthusiasm in the story and my writing. There’s absolutely no need to apologize for it.)
Disclaimer: Sadly even though I love writing AU stories on my OTP, they don't belong to me. I tried to buy them, but all I could afford were plushies. Oh well better than nothing lol.
“Talking”
'Thoughts'
Kagura gently blew on the steaming white plastic cup she held in her hand. She had never been inside a police station, but knew that the beverage brewed in their automatic coffee dispensing machines tasted notoriously bad. She therefore braced herself before taking a much needed sip. She and Sesshoumaru had been in such a hurry after he had received the phone call that she had driven him directly to the precinct without taking the time to stop for some breakfast. Since they had spent the better part of the night working on his article, they had only had very little sleep, and she was in much need of caffeine lest she fell asleep where she stood. Sesshoumaru had told her to go home after she had dropped him off, but she had refused; she was not about to miss out on the action.
‘Not that horrible’ She thought to herself before muttering aloud. “I’ve tasted much worse than this.”
“I am glad to see our accommodations are to your liking.” A deep voice said behind her. She turned around, and was greeted by a young dark haired man still handsome despite the bags and red rims under his eyes.
In response to her arched eyebrow, he introduced himself. “Detective Shinji Yaruba at your service. I was told you are with Sesshoumaru. He’s almost done with his paperwork, and should be able to see Abi soon. I just wanted to come keep you company in the meantime. Miss…”
“Kagura Jiyuu.” She answered his questioning gaze. “We work together at Shikon Magazine.” She could not help but add self-consciously.
“Of course.” Shinji replied with a knowing grin. He knew all too well that no mere co-worker would be in the company of Sesshoumaru this late or rather early in the day.
As irritated as the young journalist was by the other man’s mocking grin, she could not flat out refute his words. She decided to focus instead on the reason for their visit to the precinct that day. “So, what’s the next step?”
“As soon as your co-worker gets cleared, we will take him into the interrogation room where we’re keeping Abi so the two of them van have a friendly chat. I’ve asked my boss if you could observe, and he agreed, so I’ll take you to the interrogation room as well.” When he saw the way her crimson eyes brightened up, Shinji quickly added. “Of course from a safe distance. You’ll get to use one of our amazing two way mirrors.”
As much as Kagura wanted to be in the same room as her lover when he would interrogate the mysterious Abi Satoshi, she knew she had to be grateful that she would even be allowed to witness the interview.
“Lead the way then detective.”
He rewarded her with a smile which lit up his entire face. “With pleasure Miss Jiyuu.”
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“Feh, let me get this straight.” Inuyasha sprang out of bed. It had always been harder for him to be able to think and talk when he was lying down, and having a teary eyed and pajama clad Kagome next to him was not helping matters. “Basically, my brother has been hating my guts all these years because he blames me for his mother’s death…”
“Yes.” The miserable young woman agreed to his summary of the account she had made of the encounters she had had with Kagura then Touga.
“I guess things make more sense now.” For the longest time Inuyasha had thought that the reason Sesshoumaru had forsaken the family had to do with Touga leaving Ayaka for the younger Izayoi once he had gotten the lattest pregnant. After all despite his brash ways, Inuyasha had always been a smart boy. He knew how to count, was aware that most pregnancies last nine months, and knew his parent’s wedding date. He had therefore been able to put two and two together. ‘I really thought that Sesshoumaru hated me for being a constant reminder that dad cheated on his mother with mine, which resulted in me. I never would have guessed his mom’s death was somehow mixed in with it. No wonder his feelings against me were so strong.’
“He obviously has no reason to blame you, but somehow the events leading to his mother’s accident must have left a clear impression on his mind, and mixed in with his anger towards his father’s infidelity, and the proof of it, you.”
“Kagome, spare the psychoanalysis bullsh…”
“Inuyasha!”
“Sorry …” He quickly amended. He was aware she disliked him using profanities, and usually did his best to keep as clean a mouth as possible, but he had been too upset to filter himself. Not that he aimed to apologize for what he had meant. He knew how much she had enjoyed the introduction to psychology class she had taken the previous semester, and how she had tried to apply its principles to almost everyone in their acquaintance, but he still did not enjoy her trying to psychoanalyze him or his messy family situation. He sat back on his bed next to his girlfriend, and slipped back under the covers. “Look, we’ve been spending all these years apart, and the two of us have been just fine. Mom and dad are enough of a family to me, and seems to me like Sesshoumaru has been doing fine just by himself as well. Besides I can’t make him change his mind, or decide to want to play big brother to me.”
“Surely your father…” Kagome interjected. By the way he had spoken to her, she was sure that Touga waned nothing more but for his family to be a united family unit.
“Kagome, let it go.” The exhausted note in Inuyasha’s voice let her know just how much he did not want to carry on the conversation anymore. It was however the sadness in his amber eyes that made her stay her tongue. She had seen the same look of weariness and sorrow in Touga’s eyes earlier, and thinking that she could cause in her boyfriend the same anguish she had seen in the older man was enough to make her decide not to carry on the conversation any longer.
‘I have to let it go. This is causing them so much pain. As much as I hate it, I know I can’t make it all better this time around… At least I got it all off of my chest. It should be enough for now.’ The young woman stretched before turning towards her boyfriend. “You’re right. Enough with this. Talking about it now won’t change the situation anyways.” She snuggled as close as possible to the warm body next to hers, and sighed with relief when Inuyasha curled his arm around her. She feared he might have been too upset to accept her backing down.
“Yeah. Let’s just back to sleep. I have class with that hard ass Jinenji early tomorrow.” He sighed unhappily. Biology was not one of his favorite subject, and he was convinced that the professor intentionally always picked on him.
Kagome scoffed at his words. “Jinenji is the sweetest and kindest professor of the entire faculty.” She referred to the kind big eyed giant. “It’s not his fault you can’t differentiate between the fibula and the tibia.”
“Keh!”
Kagome smiled as she knew it would be the only response she would get from her lover. She got even closer to the man she loved, and let out another sigh. As much as she wanted to fix the situation between the brothers and their father, she knew it would not be possible. When Inuyasha leaned over to turn off his side lamp, she knew it marked the end of the discussion for good, and she promised herself she would not be bringing back up the difficult topic of Sesshoumaru.
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Sesshoumaru stared straight at the dark haired and ruby eyed woman seated across from him. While he usually would have been glad to see such a combination of features as it reminded him of his beloved Kagura, this time around his emotions were much more confused.
“Abi, you had asked to see me, and here I am. What did you wish from this Sesshoumaru?” He asked on the loftiest tone he could muster. Still she silently gazed at him. He stayed perfectly still, and tried not to show just how much he was affected by her silent perusal.
After another long minute spent without speaking a word, the younger woman finally opened her mouth. “How did you figure it out? I covered my tracks pretty well.”
‘Is this the only reason she has asked to speak to me? To satisfy her ego?’ He could not help but wonder. He still could not comprehend why Abi’s mother nor her attorney were present. ‘I simply do not understand what Abi hopes to gain from me. From what Shinji told me, she hasn’t bothered to deny the charges or try to defend herself…’
“I will answer your questions once you explain to me why you’ve asked to see me.” He retorted unperturbed; he would be damned before he let the younger woman get the best of him.
“Alright.”Abi grinned before giving him a small nod of understanding. “Other than to satisfy my curiosity, the reason why I asked you to come is that I want you to tell my whole story. I know you journalists have a tendency to speak half truths, and I figured that if you were smart enough to find me out, the least I owed you was an exclusive with me.”
At hearing her words, Sesshoumaru could not help but steal a quick glance towards the conspicuous mirror on the side wall of the interrogation room in which he and Abi were seated.
The university student chuckled at his reaction. “Don’t worry, they won’t stop you. Anything I’m saying in this room can be used as evidence against me, so it’s in their interest to see me talk. Why do you think they allowed you to come in?”
Since Shinji did not barge in to interrupt their meeting, Sesshoumaru inferred that Abi had to be right. Just in case Yaruba’s bosses suddenly changed their minds, and decided that this informal interview would not be in their interest, the journalist decided to speed things along. “Let us begin then. What made you decide to fabricate and distribute the Miko Powder?”
With an annoyed roll of her eyes, the dark haired young woman answered completely unapologetic. “Well I’ve always enjoyed chemistry, and I wanted to find out if I could create my own blend of synthetic hallucinogen, but most importantly, I wanted to teach all those annoying people a lesson.”
“Annoying people?” Sesshoumaru echoed even as he scribbled down notes in his trusted notebook.
Abi let out another sign before answering. “My friendly mutton-brained colleagues, and of course my dear old mom.”
The bitterness in which she had said the word “mom” let Sesshoumaru know that Mrs. Satoshi was at the root of whatever problem Abi had.
‘I need to play up on that angle.’ He thought before saying aloud. “Your mother, Tekkei, I believe…” He had quickly read through the thin case file Shinji had managed to put together based on the few sentences he had managed to get out of Abi before she had requested Sesshoumaru’s presence.
Abi had long ago learned how to read people, and how to use her skill to her advantage; she saw right through him, and knew he hoped to rile her up by mentioning her mother, but did not see any reason to let him know. ‘He is after all just a pawn to me.’
“Yes, Tekkei Satoshi. Did you know that she was named woman of the year just last week by Onna Monthly in recompense of her supposed great achievements as a mother and a career woman.” She scoffed, recalling how the news story had left a bitter after taste in her mouth; especially when the people from the magazine had called her for her impressions on the award bestowed on her mother, and she had had no choice but to lie and fake being thrilled for Tekkei.
Even though he was a journalist who was interested in a broad range of news items, Sesshoumaru did not make a habit of reading magazines aimed at women. It was therefore his first time hearing about Mrs. Satoshi being given an award. He was however still impressed. He at least knew the reputation of Onna Monthly as being one of the largest publications in the country, and the woman’s magazine with the largest circulation numbers.
“I take it that in your eyes, she is not the model mother and career woman?” He continued with his line of questioning on Tekkei.
“Far from it. My mother is a fraud. I was raised by a string of nannies, and her career.” Abi could not reign in her snort of derision. “Let’s just say that she has never been afraid of using all her talents to get a promotion.” Even as she spoke the words, her mind jumped back to the time, years ago, when she had come home from school early, and had seen her hard working mother ‘entertaining’ her boss on their living room couch while her father was away on a business trip. “Her constant infidelity and selfish uncaring attitude about everyone other than herself is what drove my father away. Unfortunately as a kid I was not given a choice otherwise I would have run far away from her too.”
Due to his employment, Sesshoumaru had come across his fair share of people filled with hatred in his life, but never had he seen a person’s eyes shine with clear loathing as Abi’s blood red gaze did at the moment.
“I think I can deduce the goals behind your Miko Powder scheme. In addition to wanting a practical outlet to your chemistry formulas, you wanted to punish your mother. You knew that if you were ever found out, the scandal would drag your mother’s name through the mud, and destroy her reputation.” Something else suddenly occurred to him. “You really wanted to be found out all along!” ‘This must be why she sold the drug on the school campus. Her mother is one of the board of directors of the university, and the scandal is sure to have larger repercussions because of that.’
“Ding ding ding! We have a winner.” She let out a humorless chuckle. “You may be smart, but I’m sorry to say that you just happened to work into my plan. It’s not like I worked extra hard to hide the trail. The whole idea was to get caught. I know that I’m going to go to jail for a very long time, but I don’t care.” The dismayed look on his face caused her smile to widen. “I am sure you’re wondering if it was all worth it. Well let me assure you that it will be. I can’t wait to see the look on that bitch’s face when her precious word comes crumbling around her. She will lose not only her position as a member of the board of directors of the university, but all the respect of her so-called posh friends. People in our circle our only fair-weather friends. At the first hint of scandal, they will all forget about the monthly party they attended at her house, or all the favors and strings she’s pulled for them. My only regret is that I was unable to find a full proof way to ruin mother financially as well.”
Sesshoumaru did not bat an eyelash when Abi suddenly jumped to her feet. Now that the words had started pouring out of the young woman, she could not help herself, but to keep on going. She had kept all her feelings bottled up for too long, and was happy to finally have an outlet to let it all go out.
“It will be such a relief to finally shake off the persona of shy poor pitiful Abi. I had to pretend to be a sheltered weakling when all I really wanted was to get out of Tekkei’s shadow. She’s always tried to rule my life and tell me what to do when she herself is such a fraud, and doesn’t have her life together…” Abi suddenly stopped her talking and pacing to stare straight at the stoic man seated at the table standing between the two of them. She had not intended to say this much about her mother, and decided to redirect the conversation before she said even more. “I do have to applaud you. You did slightly ruin my plan by finding me out too quickly. I was hoping to replace Kagome as president of the student association. It would have made the scandal even juicier.” She let out a wistful sigh at the thought of the headlines that could have garnered. “Anyways how did you find me out? I am curious to find out who was the leak. I am sure it was one of my worthless and spineless distributors.”
“Suon.” Sesshoumaru supplied.
Abi made a distasteful pout at the mention of her classmate and associate. “I should have guessed that idiot would be behind it. He was my bigger seller after all, so it’s not surprising that he caught your attention.”
“He was arrested, and is facing serious charges as well.”
She shrugged of Sesshoumaru’s unspoken accusation. “So, I wasn’t the one who forced him to sell the Miko Powder. He needed the money to keep up with us ‘rich kids’. He could have found himself a decent job as a pizza delivery guy, I didn’t force him to do anything…”
“Is this what you tell yourself to be able to sleep at night? What about the clients then? Those who sniffed Miko Powder?”
Abi pretended no to be affected by his words. “There are no long term effects.” She stubbornly stated. “I designed the drug, I should know.”
“Really? The doctors at the central hospital disagree. Whether you wish to acknowledge it or not, the drug is highly addictive. Two of Suon’s largest consumers have just been hospitalized due to several withdrawal symptoms.” “Not to mention that based on what we’ve been told by Manten’s personal physician, ever since he woke up from his coma he has shown a regression of motor skills as well as difficulty of speech.” To emphasize his point, he opened the folder Shinji had given him earlier, and slid it on the table towards Abi.
For the first time since the beginning of their interview, she seemed genuinely rattled. “You’re lying. Miko Powder does not cause any real harm.” She said even as he red eyes scanned over the few pages taken from Manten’s medical file.
“Your little revenge drug scheme was harmful; not only to users like Manten, but also to your distributors. Suon is probably going to spend the next decade in jail, which will ruin his family as well since he was the sole breadwinner for his mother and siblings.”
Abi let out a long sigh. “I guess I’ll have to rethink about the chemical concentrations. There must be an imbalance somewhere…”
‘She is an unfeeling sociopath.’ Sesshoumaru thought once he realized that the reason for her upset about Manten’s situation was not about the harm she had caused the young man, but rather the idea that her drug recipe might not be as effective as she had thought it was.
Abi saw the look of dismay plastered on Sesshoumaru’s face, and could not help but try to explain herself. “Contrary to what you may believe, I do feel bad about Suon and Manten. I didn’t want them to suffer, but it was necessary for my plan to succeed. It’s just bad luck that it fell on them, and not on someone else.”
“Bad luck?” He echoed in complete repugnance. “I guess we are done here. I have more than enough to print in my article.” He said even as he stood up, and walked around the young woman. As he started opening the door, she called over to him.
“Wait! When will you be printing our interview?”
He did not bother to mask the disgust in his voice when he answered. “I will make sure it appears in this afternoon’s special edition.” Since he did not care to stay one more minute in her presence, the journalist headed straight for the door, unfortunately not before seeing the self-satisfied smile etched on the young woman’s face.
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Shinji let out a long appreciative whistle as his eyes followed Sesshoumaru exiting the interrogation room. He, Kagura, the main prosecutor for the case and some other police officers were standing on the other side of the two way mirror, completely engrossed in the discussion on the other side of the glass.
“Well she’s a real nut job. I have to say however that Sesshoumaru handled it well. If he ever wants a career change, I can definitely help him go through the academy. He’d make a great cop.” A rumble of assent from the other officers of the law followed detective Yaruba’s praise. When it came to Kagura she was too engrossed in her own thoughts to comment.
‘She is willing to throw her life away, and damage so many other people just because her mother neglected her, and has hurt her in the past?!’ Kagura thought shuddering at the look of madness in Abi’s eyes.
She was shocked to see how far hatred of her parent had pushed the young female student. ‘I guess it’s a good thing that Sesshoumaru decided to cut ties with his family instead of letting the hurt fester into such painful hatred.’
Just as the thought occurred to her, none other than her lover walked into the observation room.
“I was just telling everyone that if you’re ever interested, I can help you start a career in law enforcement. That was good interrogating skills you showed over there.” Shinji commented as he walked towards Sesshoumaru to give him a friendly pat on the back.
“Not much skill was needed. Abi was more than willing to talk… as long as her words will be spread in the media of course.” The journalist retorted. Despite the unemotional mask on his face, he really had been affected by his encounter with Abi. He simply could not understand how her hatred for her mother lead her to put so many people in jeopardy.
‘I am sure that Kagura and my father would say that I left my disagreement with father affect my life as well, but I didn’t let it get out of hand as Abi did. Besides now that I know mother’s death was not a suicide, I can lay to rest this part of my life, and look towards the future. I will not let my anger consume me as it did with Abi.’ His thoughts were interrupted when an older woman in a sharp suit walked towards him as well. Shinji had earlier introduced her as the prosecutor for Abi’s case, but Seshoumaru could not remember her name.
“In any case Mr. Tashio, I thank you for your cooperation. Abi only wanted to talk to you, so unless you had agreed to come down, we might not have been able to get this confession out of her. The tape of this interrogation will go a long way towards getting her convicted for her crimes.” Kujaku, the prosecutor gently rubbed the bridge of her nose to keep her tiredness at bay. She was more than aware that until Tekkei Satoshi unleashed her lawyers on her, her legal battle had not started. ‘With some luck Abi will refuse the help of her mother, and this will be a much easier trial.’
“It was no bother at all.” Sesshoumaru replied. “I take it we can take our leave?” He then directed the question to detective Yaruba even as he stared in Kagura’s red-rimmed eyes. By the look of shock still on her face, he was sure that he was not the only one affected by Abi’s ranting and raving
“Yeah. Since you and Kagura already signed the legal agreements, you’re free to go.” Shinji let the two journalists know. “I’m sure that the two of you are looking forward to getting some shut eye.” He quickly glanced down at the watch on his wrist before commenting. “You could probably get an hour or two more of sleep before having to show up at the office.”
“We could, but we have to work on getting Abi’s interview published. Sesshoumaru did promise her to have it up by this afternoon.” Kagura pointed even as she stared into her lover’s golden eyes.
“Fine.” Kujaku agreed. “Please make yourselves available in case there is some other development before the trial.”
With a nod of understanding Sesshoumaru took a hold of Kagura’s hand, and lead the two of them towards the exit. Neither of them spoke as they headed towards the visitor parking space, nor did they let go of the comforting hold they had on each other.
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“So, what are your intentions towards my sister?”
The question directed at him caused Sesshoumaru to lose his train of thoughts. He had been busy recalling the interview he had had with Abi two months ago at the police station. He averted his golden gaze away from the blank spot on the wall where it had been glued to, and turned his attention towards Kanna. The petite white haired woman was seated with him in her living room. He and Kagura had been invited to dinner by Kanna and her husband, and while Yukiyo put the kids to bed, and Kagura finished clearing up the table, Sesshoumaru found himself alone with the intimidating woman. He always felt mildly uncomfortable when left alone with her. In the past months, as Kanna’s pregnancy developed, he and Kagura had become frequent visitors during their little time off from work. The revelation of the Miko Powder scandal by their magazine had made circulation numbers explode, and led to Kagura and he having to shoulder ever more responsibilities. They however managed to spend as much time as possible alone, or with Kagura’s family. Not that Sesshoumaru minded much. He was interested in the economy and in finance, so he and Kanna’s husband, Yukiyo, had had some interesting conversations while Kagura played with her nephews or hovered over her sister. The other man had even used his capacity as financial analyst to recommend a few placements. However despite their shared passion for books, Sesshoumaru still felt uncomfortable when left alone with Kanna without her adorable sons or friendly husband to get their attention.
‘The way she looks at me is as if she could see right through me.’ He thought of the pale woman was seated next to him on the small armchair. Each of them was waiting for their respective partner to join them.
“Do you know what is the one thing Kagura wants the most?” She then asked Sesshoumaru when he failed to answer her first question.
This time he did not miss a beat before answering. “Being editor in chief and part owner of Shikon Magazine.”
The words had barely left Sesshoumaru’s mouth that Kanna had reached over to punch him in the arm. He was so stunned by the usually even tempered woman’s action that he did not even know how to respond.
“I am so sorry!” Kanna clasped her hands over her mouth in horror. “I usually don’t lose control like this. I blame it on being crazy hormonal and pregnant with another boy.” She lamented resting a hand on her bulging abdomen.
“Apology accepted.” He quickly muttered. A part of him could not wait to let Kagura know about her sister’s unusual action, she always enjoyed hearing about her deceptively cold sister showing some emotions, but another part of him acknowledged that to do so he would have to give her a summary of the conversation he was about to have with Kanna. ‘And something tells me that I won’t want to let Kagura know about it…’
“Thank you.” She nodded, a light blush bringing color to her usually pale cheeks. “The truth is that Kagura wants nothing more than a family of her own. She might say that she wants Naraku’s magazine, but the truth is that she’s always wanted a family she could belong to.” As much as she wanted to share with him her theory that Kagura’s attachment with Shikon Magazine was only due to her wanting to connect with their estranged father, she stayed her tongue. ‘I should still keep some of Kagura’s secrets.’
“Basically, all I want to know is whether you are ready to give her the baby she’s been wanting for so long.”
“Excuse me?!” Sesshoumaru gasped incredulously at Kanna’s direct question. During their many visits to Kanna and Yukiyo’s home, he and Kagura made it a point not to discuss their relationship with the other couple, and he had no intention to start doing so now.
“Well she is ready, and I hope you are too.” The hopeful glint in Kanna’s deep dark eyes made him feel uneasy. “Besides she’s not getting any younger.”
‘Did Kagura tell her she wanted to have a child? Why would she not tell me first?’ He wondered puzzled by Kanna’s sudden insistent behavior.
“Kagura will make a fantastic mother. She’s great with Haku and Akago.” Yukiyo entered the conversation without missing a beat. He had finally managed to convince his sons to stay in bed, and was glad he had not missed the ‘big talk’ his wife intended to have with Sesshoumaru.
When it came to the journalist, he could not shake the feeling that he had fallen into a carefully planned ambush. ‘Knowing Kagura’s distaste for chores, I am sure she will drag the clean up as much as possible, and remain occupied in the kitchen for quite a while.’
“Beside having the family she’s always wanted might be just what Kagura needs to finally shake off her constant attempt at catching Naraku’s attention. Perhaps she’ll finally agree to go work somewhere else.”
“Somewhere where she will be able to thrive professionally.” Yukiyo agreed with his wife. He was rewarded by a small smile, causing him to grin in return. The little glint in his wife’s eye let him know that he could expect a very positive ending to his night. In the past few weeks, she had been too tired and made too uncomfortable by her pregnancy to let him touch her.
“Look who I found sneaking around?” Kagura exclaimed as she walked towards the living room, Hakudoushi precariously perched on her hip. “Ugh! You’re way too heavy for this. I will break my back if I try to carry you around again.” She added as she plopped her oldest nephew on the ground.
Seeing Kagura holding on to her nephew made Sesshoumaru feel as if he had been punched in the gut. If he squinted his eyes, he could almost pretend that the child’s white hair resembled his own mane, which prompted thoughts of babies with his co-worker. ‘Whatever Kanna intended to do, it was obviously successful.’
“Haku! Didn’t I tell you not to get out of bed?” Yukiyo asked crossing his arms over his chest. At seeing the anger in his father’s lavender eyes, the little boy let out a defeated sigh.
“I just wanted to say goodnight to aunt Kagura and uncle Sesshoumaru. See I’m done now, so I’ll go up. Good night!” Hakudoushi did not wait to get scolded some more by his dad before running up the stairs towards his bedroom.
Sesshoumaru thoughtfully watched the pale lavender eyed child left the room. ‘I don’t know what Kanna is up to, but I wouldn’t put it past her to have orchestrated this little scene. She does have a fertile imagination courtesy of all the reading she does…’ He had not failed to notice that it was the first time one of Kagura’s nephews had referred to him as ‘uncle’.
“Bah, don’t be too hard on the kid. He wanted to wish us good luck for tomorrow.” Kagura commented as she plopped herself on the sofa on the other end of Sesshoumaru, who suddenly found himself sandwiched in between the two Jiyuu sisters.
“Are you ready for your big award ceremony tomorrow? You must be nervous Sesshoumaru.” Yukiyo said as he sat opposite from the three.
Kagura scoffed openly at her brother in-law’s suggestion. “He doesn’t get nervous…not that it matters, I will be nervous enough for the two of us. If Shikon wins the award, I won’t be responsible for my own actions.”
Sesshoumaru agreed non-committedly to her teasing comment as he was still trying to make sense of the earlier conversation he had had with Kanna and her husband.
“I would be nervous if I were you too. Sounds like it will be a glamorous affair. Didn’t you tell me Emi Yamada would be hosting? She’s a very beautiful woman.” The moment the words left Yukiy’s mouth, he wanted to take them back. He looked straight into his wife’s eyes, and was no surprised by the cross expression on her face. He suddenly felt as if the goodwill he had accumulated earlier by agreeing to side wit his wife had gone away because he had not been able to control his mouth.
“Are you saying that I can’t compete with those entertainment industry bimbos and starlets?” The way Kagura’s dark eyebrow was arched let Yukiyo that there was only one correct answer to his question. He looked nervously at Sesshoumaru for help, but the other man just shrugged, trying to keep his amusement as quiet as possible.
Kanna finally took pity on her husband, and decided to help him out of the hole he had dug for himself. “Of course not. You’re going to look fabulous. You even got your hair and nails done today.”
“Well, that didn’t do me a load of good. I chipped the polish on two of my nails while washing the dishes. When are you going to invest in a dishwashing machine like everyone else?” She stuck her fingers out for her younger sister to see.
Kanna chuckled at her sister’s reaction. “You know I enjoy cleaning; it helps relax me.”
“Well that’s clearly a gene we don’t have in common.” Kagura’s quip made both sisters chuckle as pointing out their difference in genetics was a common joke. After all the two of them were almost as opposite as night and day when it came to their appearance.
“Oh well, Sesshoumaru and I should head out soon. We have a three hours drive back to home, and I still have to put my overpriced manicure to rights before we leave for the award ceremony tomorrow. Not to mention that our dear boss wouldn’t splurge on plane tickets, so we have to drive all the way to the resort ourselves.” Had Kagura been honest, she would have admitted that she did not mind the last part one bit. Not only would she be left alone with her lover for the eight hours car drive, but they also would be staying the night in the luxurious resort where the award ceremony would be hosted. They had of course had to book two separate bedrooms, but she had every intention to sneak into her lover’s bed the second every other member of the press would stagger into their own bed. ‘From the pictures I saw online, our rooms come with large bathtubs. I can’t wait to try one of them.’
As soon as the words left Kagura’s lips, the four adults took to their feet to say their goodbyes.
“You’ll have to tell me all about the award ceremony; you know I live vicariously through you.” Kanna announced as she gave her sister as tight a hug as her swollen abdomen permitted. “If you can, try to get an autograph from Emi Yamada for Yukiyo. He is such a big fan of hers.”
His wife’s request brought a grin to her husband’s lips. He knew that she wouldn’t have asked her sister for such a favor unless he was growing back in her favors. ‘Maybe tonight will get to be a great evening after all, and I will be able to get Kanna back in bed.’ He thought suddenly eager for their dinner guests to leave.
“I will try, but I won’t make promises. Sesshoumaru may be the one nominated for an actual award for his piece on the Miko Powder scandal, but I still have to represent Shikon Magazine and look all professional. I do have appointments lined up with tons of advertisers…” Kagura winced when she saw the crushed look on her brother in-law’s face, so quickly added. “I will try my very best to corner that pop starlet of Emi when no one is watching, and get an autograph out of her.”
“That would be very appreciated.” Yukiyo finally admitted as he hugged Kagura then shook Sesshoumaru’s hand in goodbye.
As soon as their guests had safely departed, the young financial analyst turned towards his wife. “Now, I believe something was said earlier about a reward if I helped you out with a certain plan.”
Kanna tried not to smile at the hopeful glint in Yukiyo’s eyes. “Go make sure the boys are asleep then come join me in bed; I will be waiting for you.” Not needing to be told twice, he literally rushed up the flight of stairs in the direction of their sons’ rooms.
‘I wish I could be a fly on the wall tonight, and find out what Sesshoumaru will tell Kagura…maybe I should give her a call tomorrow.’ Kanna thought to herself as she slowly made her way up the stairs as well. ‘Let’s just hope that my little plan works out.’
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“I just realized we didn’t finalize the details for tomorrow. Who’s driving on the way up?” Kagura asked her boyfriend. Even though she was standing in the bathroom of her condo, scrubbing her face over the sink, she knew Sesshoumaru would have no trouble hearing her from the adjacent bedroom.
“You drove your car to your sister’s today, so I assumed we were taking mine tomorrow. Besides my car is bigger, and would be more comfortable for the long ride. I do not mind driving.” Sesshoumaru replied as he settled himself under the covers of Kagura’s bed. The two of them had driven straight to her apartment after leaving Kanna and Yukiyo’s place, and after double checking their bags for their weekend away had decided to call it a night as they were planning to wake up early. They also would need to make a quick stop by his apartment as when checking his bag, he had realized he was missing his pair of shoes. Kagura had of course not failed to make fun of him, who had a tendency to plan everything, for having forgotten such a crucial part of his outfit for the award ceremony.
“Sure, that works for me as long as we trade off on the driving if you get tired.” She let her know even as she vigorously brushed her hair. While her lover had shown his appreciation for her wavy locks in the past, she could not help but secretly still wish she shared her sister’s sleek hair. ‘This will have to do for tonight.’ She thought to herself; she was not about to apply her weekly moisturizing and straightening hair masque when her lover was sleeping over. ‘Some things he just does not need to know.’ She reflected as she gave herself one last critical once over in the mirror.
From his position of sitting against the headboard of Kagura’s bed, Sesshoumaru had a clear and unobstructed view of her. He was still quite surprised at how easily the two of them had slipped into a domestic routine. In the past weeks they had come to divide their nights almost identically between her condo, and his apartment. They would leave work at different hours, and meet up to spend some time then dinner together before spending the night at either his place or hers. He allowed the ghost of a smile to appear on his lips while he spied on Kagura dutifully applying her facial night cream. Witnessing her nightly routine made him feel as if he was seeing a special and secret part of her life that no one else would be privy to. It was his first time being linked so intimately with another woman. His past relationships never included enough intimacy, or lasted long enough for him to even want to spend any time at his ‘girlfriends’ house.
“What are you smiling at?” Kagura’s question thrust him out of his thoughts. She joined him in the bedroom, and discarded her robe. While a couple months ago she would have thrown the red silky material towards the armchair in the corner of a room, Sesshoumaru’s influence on her could be seen in the young woman carefully hanging her robe on its designated hook.
“Nothing.” He assured her even if his smile had not been completely wiped off.
She lay next to him under the warm covers. “Just like how I interrupted this interesting conversation about ‘nothing’ you were having with Kanna and Yukiyo after dinner?” She simply could not help but tease him. During the three hours ride back from her sister’s house, she had asked her lover on several occasions what the conversation had been about, and he had refused to answer. “You know I have ways to make you talk.”
Since Sesshoumaru had no intention of letting her know about her sister’s plea to have her pregnant as fast as possible, he contented himself with giving his lover a shrug as a response.
“Now that sounded like a challenge… one I am more than willing to take on.” To emphasize her point, she reached under the comforter to run her hand over his T-shirt covered chest prompting Sesshoumaru to arch an eyebrow in clear amusement.
However before the young woman had a chance to actually do anything, he pounced on her, and reversed their positions. She suddenly found herself pinned on her own bed under her lover’s weight. While he was paying attention not to crush her, he had her completely immobilized, and even if she squirmed, she could not get him off of her smaller frame.
“Damn you!” She groaned even as she looked up into his golden eyes. When she rolled her hips, and came in contact with a very sensitive part of his anatomy, it was his turn to groan, but still he did not let go. “Fine Sesshoumaru. You win, and I waive an imaginary white flag.” He found the little disappointed pout on her lips simply irresistible, and bent his head to press a gentle kiss to her mouth.
“That’s more like it.” She commented before fastening their lips in a prolonged languorous kiss.
Once they broke apart for some much needed air, they stared at each other in comfortable silence for a good long minute. Just as Kagura was about to break the silence to suggest a naughty scenario she had come with, courtesy of their present position, Sesshoumaru made a sudden announcement.
“We should move in together.”
“Wow…” Her body stiffened in surprise. “Where did that come from?” She blurted out in complete shock after a couple heartbeats of pure silence.
Sesshoumaru frowned at her less than thrilled reaction. While they had not discussed in which direction their relationship should be going, he had assumed that she would be happy at his suggestion, and made his disappointment known. “You are not interested?” He asked. The two of them had been spending so much time together since the beginning of their affair that he thought his suggestion would be a great idea. It would allow them to be in contact for much longer as well as save time, and prevent them from having to go back and forth between their homes. Just like he would be forced to do the next morning to go pick up his pair of forgotten shoes.
“Well…no…I… Naraku doesn’t even know about us yet.”
As soon as she had spoken the words, Kagura wanted to take them back. She could tell how hurt Sesshoumaru was by her protest, or more precisely the reason behind it. He immediately let go of her, and sat up in bed. He simply silently stared down in her crimson eyes for a long time, not a word escaping his lips.
“Sesshoumaru…” She started, but he interrupted her.
“Let’s just go to sleep. Tomorrow will be a long day.” The finality in his words put a definitive and sudden stop to the conversation. To make his point even clearer, he leaned towards the side table, and turned off the lamp. He then lay back in bed, paying attention to stick strictly to his side of the bed, and not to come in contact with his lover.
Kagura knew that she had wounded the man she loved, but was not sure how to make him feel better. She quite enjoyed their present living arrangements, and did not quite understand why Sesshoumaru suddenly wanted to change things up. ‘He keeps his toothbrush and shaving kit in my bathroom, and I gave him a drawer in my closet. Why is this not enough for him?’ She wondered silently. ‘Ever since we came out and actual admitted our feelings, everything has been so good between us.’ While she may feel like the conversation would not go on, she wanted to remind him of the feelings they had for each other. With this clear goal in mind, she inched closer to his body, and reached over to run an inviting hand over the broad expense of his back.
“Goodnight.” The cold tone he used spoke more volumes than him not returning her gentle caresses. Feeling quite put out, the young woman had no choice but to let go of her lover.
“Goodnight.” She replied sadly even as she thought to herself ‘Tomorrow trip will be a very long drive.’
To be continued…
A/N: They will once again be away…wonder how things will turn out between our two favorite journalists, and will Sesshoumaru win the award? We’ll see next time in Travel and leisure.
A/N: Nope, not a Halloween prank, this is a new chapter. Secret Lovers is just over the one-year mark, so let’s celebrate with a new chapter. I know it was a slow update, but it will be a long chapter; I hope it makes up for the long wait. This is a bit of a transitional hodgepodge chapter, and there will be some fast forwarding in this one, which will be much needed for the rest of the development of the story.
Despite my sporadic updating, you guys still took the time to leave me a much appreciated review. So thanks a bunch!
Little25victor
Sami199
Philliwolf5
Killersuperg irl
Katekim56
Steph (Thank you for your praise and words of encouragement. I am glad to see your enthusiasm in the story and my writing. There’s absolutely no need to apologize for it.)
Disclaimer: Sadly even though I love writing AU stories on my OTP, they don't belong to me. I tried to buy them, but all I could afford were plushies. Oh well better than nothing lol.
“Talking”
'Thoughts'
Kagura gently blew on the steaming white plastic cup she held in her hand. She had never been inside a police station, but knew that the beverage brewed in their automatic coffee dispensing machines tasted notoriously bad. She therefore braced herself before taking a much needed sip. She and Sesshoumaru had been in such a hurry after he had received the phone call that she had driven him directly to the precinct without taking the time to stop for some breakfast. Since they had spent the better part of the night working on his article, they had only had very little sleep, and she was in much need of caffeine lest she fell asleep where she stood. Sesshoumaru had told her to go home after she had dropped him off, but she had refused; she was not about to miss out on the action.
‘Not that horrible’ She thought to herself before muttering aloud. “I’ve tasted much worse than this.”
“I am glad to see our accommodations are to your liking.” A deep voice said behind her. She turned around, and was greeted by a young dark haired man still handsome despite the bags and red rims under his eyes.
In response to her arched eyebrow, he introduced himself. “Detective Shinji Yaruba at your service. I was told you are with Sesshoumaru. He’s almost done with his paperwork, and should be able to see Abi soon. I just wanted to come keep you company in the meantime. Miss…”
“Kagura Jiyuu.” She answered his questioning gaze. “We work together at Shikon Magazine.” She could not help but add self-consciously.
“Of course.” Shinji replied with a knowing grin. He knew all too well that no mere co-worker would be in the company of Sesshoumaru this late or rather early in the day.
As irritated as the young journalist was by the other man’s mocking grin, she could not flat out refute his words. She decided to focus instead on the reason for their visit to the precinct that day. “So, what’s the next step?”
“As soon as your co-worker gets cleared, we will take him into the interrogation room where we’re keeping Abi so the two of them van have a friendly chat. I’ve asked my boss if you could observe, and he agreed, so I’ll take you to the interrogation room as well.” When he saw the way her crimson eyes brightened up, Shinji quickly added. “Of course from a safe distance. You’ll get to use one of our amazing two way mirrors.”
As much as Kagura wanted to be in the same room as her lover when he would interrogate the mysterious Abi Satoshi, she knew she had to be grateful that she would even be allowed to witness the interview.
“Lead the way then detective.”
He rewarded her with a smile which lit up his entire face. “With pleasure Miss Jiyuu.”
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“Feh, let me get this straight.” Inuyasha sprang out of bed. It had always been harder for him to be able to think and talk when he was lying down, and having a teary eyed and pajama clad Kagome next to him was not helping matters. “Basically, my brother has been hating my guts all these years because he blames me for his mother’s death…”
“Yes.” The miserable young woman agreed to his summary of the account she had made of the encounters she had had with Kagura then Touga.
“I guess things make more sense now.” For the longest time Inuyasha had thought that the reason Sesshoumaru had forsaken the family had to do with Touga leaving Ayaka for the younger Izayoi once he had gotten the lattest pregnant. After all despite his brash ways, Inuyasha had always been a smart boy. He knew how to count, was aware that most pregnancies last nine months, and knew his parent’s wedding date. He had therefore been able to put two and two together. ‘I really thought that Sesshoumaru hated me for being a constant reminder that dad cheated on his mother with mine, which resulted in me. I never would have guessed his mom’s death was somehow mixed in with it. No wonder his feelings against me were so strong.’
“He obviously has no reason to blame you, but somehow the events leading to his mother’s accident must have left a clear impression on his mind, and mixed in with his anger towards his father’s infidelity, and the proof of it, you.”
“Kagome, spare the psychoanalysis bullsh…”
“Inuyasha!”
“Sorry …” He quickly amended. He was aware she disliked him using profanities, and usually did his best to keep as clean a mouth as possible, but he had been too upset to filter himself. Not that he aimed to apologize for what he had meant. He knew how much she had enjoyed the introduction to psychology class she had taken the previous semester, and how she had tried to apply its principles to almost everyone in their acquaintance, but he still did not enjoy her trying to psychoanalyze him or his messy family situation. He sat back on his bed next to his girlfriend, and slipped back under the covers. “Look, we’ve been spending all these years apart, and the two of us have been just fine. Mom and dad are enough of a family to me, and seems to me like Sesshoumaru has been doing fine just by himself as well. Besides I can’t make him change his mind, or decide to want to play big brother to me.”
“Surely your father…” Kagome interjected. By the way he had spoken to her, she was sure that Touga waned nothing more but for his family to be a united family unit.
“Kagome, let it go.” The exhausted note in Inuyasha’s voice let her know just how much he did not want to carry on the conversation anymore. It was however the sadness in his amber eyes that made her stay her tongue. She had seen the same look of weariness and sorrow in Touga’s eyes earlier, and thinking that she could cause in her boyfriend the same anguish she had seen in the older man was enough to make her decide not to carry on the conversation any longer.
‘I have to let it go. This is causing them so much pain. As much as I hate it, I know I can’t make it all better this time around… At least I got it all off of my chest. It should be enough for now.’ The young woman stretched before turning towards her boyfriend. “You’re right. Enough with this. Talking about it now won’t change the situation anyways.” She snuggled as close as possible to the warm body next to hers, and sighed with relief when Inuyasha curled his arm around her. She feared he might have been too upset to accept her backing down.
“Yeah. Let’s just back to sleep. I have class with that hard ass Jinenji early tomorrow.” He sighed unhappily. Biology was not one of his favorite subject, and he was convinced that the professor intentionally always picked on him.
Kagome scoffed at his words. “Jinenji is the sweetest and kindest professor of the entire faculty.” She referred to the kind big eyed giant. “It’s not his fault you can’t differentiate between the fibula and the tibia.”
“Keh!”
Kagome smiled as she knew it would be the only response she would get from her lover. She got even closer to the man she loved, and let out another sigh. As much as she wanted to fix the situation between the brothers and their father, she knew it would not be possible. When Inuyasha leaned over to turn off his side lamp, she knew it marked the end of the discussion for good, and she promised herself she would not be bringing back up the difficult topic of Sesshoumaru.
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Sesshoumaru stared straight at the dark haired and ruby eyed woman seated across from him. While he usually would have been glad to see such a combination of features as it reminded him of his beloved Kagura, this time around his emotions were much more confused.
“Abi, you had asked to see me, and here I am. What did you wish from this Sesshoumaru?” He asked on the loftiest tone he could muster. Still she silently gazed at him. He stayed perfectly still, and tried not to show just how much he was affected by her silent perusal.
After another long minute spent without speaking a word, the younger woman finally opened her mouth. “How did you figure it out? I covered my tracks pretty well.”
‘Is this the only reason she has asked to speak to me? To satisfy her ego?’ He could not help but wonder. He still could not comprehend why Abi’s mother nor her attorney were present. ‘I simply do not understand what Abi hopes to gain from me. From what Shinji told me, she hasn’t bothered to deny the charges or try to defend herself…’
“I will answer your questions once you explain to me why you’ve asked to see me.” He retorted unperturbed; he would be damned before he let the younger woman get the best of him.
“Alright.”Abi grinned before giving him a small nod of understanding. “Other than to satisfy my curiosity, the reason why I asked you to come is that I want you to tell my whole story. I know you journalists have a tendency to speak half truths, and I figured that if you were smart enough to find me out, the least I owed you was an exclusive with me.”
At hearing her words, Sesshoumaru could not help but steal a quick glance towards the conspicuous mirror on the side wall of the interrogation room in which he and Abi were seated.
The university student chuckled at his reaction. “Don’t worry, they won’t stop you. Anything I’m saying in this room can be used as evidence against me, so it’s in their interest to see me talk. Why do you think they allowed you to come in?”
Since Shinji did not barge in to interrupt their meeting, Sesshoumaru inferred that Abi had to be right. Just in case Yaruba’s bosses suddenly changed their minds, and decided that this informal interview would not be in their interest, the journalist decided to speed things along. “Let us begin then. What made you decide to fabricate and distribute the Miko Powder?”
With an annoyed roll of her eyes, the dark haired young woman answered completely unapologetic. “Well I’ve always enjoyed chemistry, and I wanted to find out if I could create my own blend of synthetic hallucinogen, but most importantly, I wanted to teach all those annoying people a lesson.”
“Annoying people?” Sesshoumaru echoed even as he scribbled down notes in his trusted notebook.
Abi let out another sign before answering. “My friendly mutton-brained colleagues, and of course my dear old mom.”
The bitterness in which she had said the word “mom” let Sesshoumaru know that Mrs. Satoshi was at the root of whatever problem Abi had.
‘I need to play up on that angle.’ He thought before saying aloud. “Your mother, Tekkei, I believe…” He had quickly read through the thin case file Shinji had managed to put together based on the few sentences he had managed to get out of Abi before she had requested Sesshoumaru’s presence.
Abi had long ago learned how to read people, and how to use her skill to her advantage; she saw right through him, and knew he hoped to rile her up by mentioning her mother, but did not see any reason to let him know. ‘He is after all just a pawn to me.’
“Yes, Tekkei Satoshi. Did you know that she was named woman of the year just last week by Onna Monthly in recompense of her supposed great achievements as a mother and a career woman.” She scoffed, recalling how the news story had left a bitter after taste in her mouth; especially when the people from the magazine had called her for her impressions on the award bestowed on her mother, and she had had no choice but to lie and fake being thrilled for Tekkei.
Even though he was a journalist who was interested in a broad range of news items, Sesshoumaru did not make a habit of reading magazines aimed at women. It was therefore his first time hearing about Mrs. Satoshi being given an award. He was however still impressed. He at least knew the reputation of Onna Monthly as being one of the largest publications in the country, and the woman’s magazine with the largest circulation numbers.
“I take it that in your eyes, she is not the model mother and career woman?” He continued with his line of questioning on Tekkei.
“Far from it. My mother is a fraud. I was raised by a string of nannies, and her career.” Abi could not reign in her snort of derision. “Let’s just say that she has never been afraid of using all her talents to get a promotion.” Even as she spoke the words, her mind jumped back to the time, years ago, when she had come home from school early, and had seen her hard working mother ‘entertaining’ her boss on their living room couch while her father was away on a business trip. “Her constant infidelity and selfish uncaring attitude about everyone other than herself is what drove my father away. Unfortunately as a kid I was not given a choice otherwise I would have run far away from her too.”
Due to his employment, Sesshoumaru had come across his fair share of people filled with hatred in his life, but never had he seen a person’s eyes shine with clear loathing as Abi’s blood red gaze did at the moment.
“I think I can deduce the goals behind your Miko Powder scheme. In addition to wanting a practical outlet to your chemistry formulas, you wanted to punish your mother. You knew that if you were ever found out, the scandal would drag your mother’s name through the mud, and destroy her reputation.” Something else suddenly occurred to him. “You really wanted to be found out all along!” ‘This must be why she sold the drug on the school campus. Her mother is one of the board of directors of the university, and the scandal is sure to have larger repercussions because of that.’
“Ding ding ding! We have a winner.” She let out a humorless chuckle. “You may be smart, but I’m sorry to say that you just happened to work into my plan. It’s not like I worked extra hard to hide the trail. The whole idea was to get caught. I know that I’m going to go to jail for a very long time, but I don’t care.” The dismayed look on his face caused her smile to widen. “I am sure you’re wondering if it was all worth it. Well let me assure you that it will be. I can’t wait to see the look on that bitch’s face when her precious word comes crumbling around her. She will lose not only her position as a member of the board of directors of the university, but all the respect of her so-called posh friends. People in our circle our only fair-weather friends. At the first hint of scandal, they will all forget about the monthly party they attended at her house, or all the favors and strings she’s pulled for them. My only regret is that I was unable to find a full proof way to ruin mother financially as well.”
Sesshoumaru did not bat an eyelash when Abi suddenly jumped to her feet. Now that the words had started pouring out of the young woman, she could not help herself, but to keep on going. She had kept all her feelings bottled up for too long, and was happy to finally have an outlet to let it all go out.
“It will be such a relief to finally shake off the persona of shy poor pitiful Abi. I had to pretend to be a sheltered weakling when all I really wanted was to get out of Tekkei’s shadow. She’s always tried to rule my life and tell me what to do when she herself is such a fraud, and doesn’t have her life together…” Abi suddenly stopped her talking and pacing to stare straight at the stoic man seated at the table standing between the two of them. She had not intended to say this much about her mother, and decided to redirect the conversation before she said even more. “I do have to applaud you. You did slightly ruin my plan by finding me out too quickly. I was hoping to replace Kagome as president of the student association. It would have made the scandal even juicier.” She let out a wistful sigh at the thought of the headlines that could have garnered. “Anyways how did you find me out? I am curious to find out who was the leak. I am sure it was one of my worthless and spineless distributors.”
“Suon.” Sesshoumaru supplied.
Abi made a distasteful pout at the mention of her classmate and associate. “I should have guessed that idiot would be behind it. He was my bigger seller after all, so it’s not surprising that he caught your attention.”
“He was arrested, and is facing serious charges as well.”
She shrugged of Sesshoumaru’s unspoken accusation. “So, I wasn’t the one who forced him to sell the Miko Powder. He needed the money to keep up with us ‘rich kids’. He could have found himself a decent job as a pizza delivery guy, I didn’t force him to do anything…”
“Is this what you tell yourself to be able to sleep at night? What about the clients then? Those who sniffed Miko Powder?”
Abi pretended no to be affected by his words. “There are no long term effects.” She stubbornly stated. “I designed the drug, I should know.”
“Really? The doctors at the central hospital disagree. Whether you wish to acknowledge it or not, the drug is highly addictive. Two of Suon’s largest consumers have just been hospitalized due to several withdrawal symptoms.” “Not to mention that based on what we’ve been told by Manten’s personal physician, ever since he woke up from his coma he has shown a regression of motor skills as well as difficulty of speech.” To emphasize his point, he opened the folder Shinji had given him earlier, and slid it on the table towards Abi.
For the first time since the beginning of their interview, she seemed genuinely rattled. “You’re lying. Miko Powder does not cause any real harm.” She said even as he red eyes scanned over the few pages taken from Manten’s medical file.
“Your little revenge drug scheme was harmful; not only to users like Manten, but also to your distributors. Suon is probably going to spend the next decade in jail, which will ruin his family as well since he was the sole breadwinner for his mother and siblings.”
Abi let out a long sigh. “I guess I’ll have to rethink about the chemical concentrations. There must be an imbalance somewhere…”
‘She is an unfeeling sociopath.’ Sesshoumaru thought once he realized that the reason for her upset about Manten’s situation was not about the harm she had caused the young man, but rather the idea that her drug recipe might not be as effective as she had thought it was.
Abi saw the look of dismay plastered on Sesshoumaru’s face, and could not help but try to explain herself. “Contrary to what you may believe, I do feel bad about Suon and Manten. I didn’t want them to suffer, but it was necessary for my plan to succeed. It’s just bad luck that it fell on them, and not on someone else.”
“Bad luck?” He echoed in complete repugnance. “I guess we are done here. I have more than enough to print in my article.” He said even as he stood up, and walked around the young woman. As he started opening the door, she called over to him.
“Wait! When will you be printing our interview?”
He did not bother to mask the disgust in his voice when he answered. “I will make sure it appears in this afternoon’s special edition.” Since he did not care to stay one more minute in her presence, the journalist headed straight for the door, unfortunately not before seeing the self-satisfied smile etched on the young woman’s face.
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Shinji let out a long appreciative whistle as his eyes followed Sesshoumaru exiting the interrogation room. He, Kagura, the main prosecutor for the case and some other police officers were standing on the other side of the two way mirror, completely engrossed in the discussion on the other side of the glass.
“Well she’s a real nut job. I have to say however that Sesshoumaru handled it well. If he ever wants a career change, I can definitely help him go through the academy. He’d make a great cop.” A rumble of assent from the other officers of the law followed detective Yaruba’s praise. When it came to Kagura she was too engrossed in her own thoughts to comment.
‘She is willing to throw her life away, and damage so many other people just because her mother neglected her, and has hurt her in the past?!’ Kagura thought shuddering at the look of madness in Abi’s eyes.
She was shocked to see how far hatred of her parent had pushed the young female student. ‘I guess it’s a good thing that Sesshoumaru decided to cut ties with his family instead of letting the hurt fester into such painful hatred.’
Just as the thought occurred to her, none other than her lover walked into the observation room.
“I was just telling everyone that if you’re ever interested, I can help you start a career in law enforcement. That was good interrogating skills you showed over there.” Shinji commented as he walked towards Sesshoumaru to give him a friendly pat on the back.
“Not much skill was needed. Abi was more than willing to talk… as long as her words will be spread in the media of course.” The journalist retorted. Despite the unemotional mask on his face, he really had been affected by his encounter with Abi. He simply could not understand how her hatred for her mother lead her to put so many people in jeopardy.
‘I am sure that Kagura and my father would say that I left my disagreement with father affect my life as well, but I didn’t let it get out of hand as Abi did. Besides now that I know mother’s death was not a suicide, I can lay to rest this part of my life, and look towards the future. I will not let my anger consume me as it did with Abi.’ His thoughts were interrupted when an older woman in a sharp suit walked towards him as well. Shinji had earlier introduced her as the prosecutor for Abi’s case, but Seshoumaru could not remember her name.
“In any case Mr. Tashio, I thank you for your cooperation. Abi only wanted to talk to you, so unless you had agreed to come down, we might not have been able to get this confession out of her. The tape of this interrogation will go a long way towards getting her convicted for her crimes.” Kujaku, the prosecutor gently rubbed the bridge of her nose to keep her tiredness at bay. She was more than aware that until Tekkei Satoshi unleashed her lawyers on her, her legal battle had not started. ‘With some luck Abi will refuse the help of her mother, and this will be a much easier trial.’
“It was no bother at all.” Sesshoumaru replied. “I take it we can take our leave?” He then directed the question to detective Yaruba even as he stared in Kagura’s red-rimmed eyes. By the look of shock still on her face, he was sure that he was not the only one affected by Abi’s ranting and raving
“Yeah. Since you and Kagura already signed the legal agreements, you’re free to go.” Shinji let the two journalists know. “I’m sure that the two of you are looking forward to getting some shut eye.” He quickly glanced down at the watch on his wrist before commenting. “You could probably get an hour or two more of sleep before having to show up at the office.”
“We could, but we have to work on getting Abi’s interview published. Sesshoumaru did promise her to have it up by this afternoon.” Kagura pointed even as she stared into her lover’s golden eyes.
“Fine.” Kujaku agreed. “Please make yourselves available in case there is some other development before the trial.”
With a nod of understanding Sesshoumaru took a hold of Kagura’s hand, and lead the two of them towards the exit. Neither of them spoke as they headed towards the visitor parking space, nor did they let go of the comforting hold they had on each other.
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“So, what are your intentions towards my sister?”
The question directed at him caused Sesshoumaru to lose his train of thoughts. He had been busy recalling the interview he had had with Abi two months ago at the police station. He averted his golden gaze away from the blank spot on the wall where it had been glued to, and turned his attention towards Kanna. The petite white haired woman was seated with him in her living room. He and Kagura had been invited to dinner by Kanna and her husband, and while Yukiyo put the kids to bed, and Kagura finished clearing up the table, Sesshoumaru found himself alone with the intimidating woman. He always felt mildly uncomfortable when left alone with her. In the past months, as Kanna’s pregnancy developed, he and Kagura had become frequent visitors during their little time off from work. The revelation of the Miko Powder scandal by their magazine had made circulation numbers explode, and led to Kagura and he having to shoulder ever more responsibilities. They however managed to spend as much time as possible alone, or with Kagura’s family. Not that Sesshoumaru minded much. He was interested in the economy and in finance, so he and Kanna’s husband, Yukiyo, had had some interesting conversations while Kagura played with her nephews or hovered over her sister. The other man had even used his capacity as financial analyst to recommend a few placements. However despite their shared passion for books, Sesshoumaru still felt uncomfortable when left alone with Kanna without her adorable sons or friendly husband to get their attention.
‘The way she looks at me is as if she could see right through me.’ He thought of the pale woman was seated next to him on the small armchair. Each of them was waiting for their respective partner to join them.
“Do you know what is the one thing Kagura wants the most?” She then asked Sesshoumaru when he failed to answer her first question.
This time he did not miss a beat before answering. “Being editor in chief and part owner of Shikon Magazine.”
The words had barely left Sesshoumaru’s mouth that Kanna had reached over to punch him in the arm. He was so stunned by the usually even tempered woman’s action that he did not even know how to respond.
“I am so sorry!” Kanna clasped her hands over her mouth in horror. “I usually don’t lose control like this. I blame it on being crazy hormonal and pregnant with another boy.” She lamented resting a hand on her bulging abdomen.
“Apology accepted.” He quickly muttered. A part of him could not wait to let Kagura know about her sister’s unusual action, she always enjoyed hearing about her deceptively cold sister showing some emotions, but another part of him acknowledged that to do so he would have to give her a summary of the conversation he was about to have with Kanna. ‘And something tells me that I won’t want to let Kagura know about it…’
“Thank you.” She nodded, a light blush bringing color to her usually pale cheeks. “The truth is that Kagura wants nothing more than a family of her own. She might say that she wants Naraku’s magazine, but the truth is that she’s always wanted a family she could belong to.” As much as she wanted to share with him her theory that Kagura’s attachment with Shikon Magazine was only due to her wanting to connect with their estranged father, she stayed her tongue. ‘I should still keep some of Kagura’s secrets.’
“Basically, all I want to know is whether you are ready to give her the baby she’s been wanting for so long.”
“Excuse me?!” Sesshoumaru gasped incredulously at Kanna’s direct question. During their many visits to Kanna and Yukiyo’s home, he and Kagura made it a point not to discuss their relationship with the other couple, and he had no intention to start doing so now.
“Well she is ready, and I hope you are too.” The hopeful glint in Kanna’s deep dark eyes made him feel uneasy. “Besides she’s not getting any younger.”
‘Did Kagura tell her she wanted to have a child? Why would she not tell me first?’ He wondered puzzled by Kanna’s sudden insistent behavior.
“Kagura will make a fantastic mother. She’s great with Haku and Akago.” Yukiyo entered the conversation without missing a beat. He had finally managed to convince his sons to stay in bed, and was glad he had not missed the ‘big talk’ his wife intended to have with Sesshoumaru.
When it came to the journalist, he could not shake the feeling that he had fallen into a carefully planned ambush. ‘Knowing Kagura’s distaste for chores, I am sure she will drag the clean up as much as possible, and remain occupied in the kitchen for quite a while.’
“Beside having the family she’s always wanted might be just what Kagura needs to finally shake off her constant attempt at catching Naraku’s attention. Perhaps she’ll finally agree to go work somewhere else.”
“Somewhere where she will be able to thrive professionally.” Yukiyo agreed with his wife. He was rewarded by a small smile, causing him to grin in return. The little glint in his wife’s eye let him know that he could expect a very positive ending to his night. In the past few weeks, she had been too tired and made too uncomfortable by her pregnancy to let him touch her.
“Look who I found sneaking around?” Kagura exclaimed as she walked towards the living room, Hakudoushi precariously perched on her hip. “Ugh! You’re way too heavy for this. I will break my back if I try to carry you around again.” She added as she plopped her oldest nephew on the ground.
Seeing Kagura holding on to her nephew made Sesshoumaru feel as if he had been punched in the gut. If he squinted his eyes, he could almost pretend that the child’s white hair resembled his own mane, which prompted thoughts of babies with his co-worker. ‘Whatever Kanna intended to do, it was obviously successful.’
“Haku! Didn’t I tell you not to get out of bed?” Yukiyo asked crossing his arms over his chest. At seeing the anger in his father’s lavender eyes, the little boy let out a defeated sigh.
“I just wanted to say goodnight to aunt Kagura and uncle Sesshoumaru. See I’m done now, so I’ll go up. Good night!” Hakudoushi did not wait to get scolded some more by his dad before running up the stairs towards his bedroom.
Sesshoumaru thoughtfully watched the pale lavender eyed child left the room. ‘I don’t know what Kanna is up to, but I wouldn’t put it past her to have orchestrated this little scene. She does have a fertile imagination courtesy of all the reading she does…’ He had not failed to notice that it was the first time one of Kagura’s nephews had referred to him as ‘uncle’.
“Bah, don’t be too hard on the kid. He wanted to wish us good luck for tomorrow.” Kagura commented as she plopped herself on the sofa on the other end of Sesshoumaru, who suddenly found himself sandwiched in between the two Jiyuu sisters.
“Are you ready for your big award ceremony tomorrow? You must be nervous Sesshoumaru.” Yukiyo said as he sat opposite from the three.
Kagura scoffed openly at her brother in-law’s suggestion. “He doesn’t get nervous…not that it matters, I will be nervous enough for the two of us. If Shikon wins the award, I won’t be responsible for my own actions.”
Sesshoumaru agreed non-committedly to her teasing comment as he was still trying to make sense of the earlier conversation he had had with Kanna and her husband.
“I would be nervous if I were you too. Sounds like it will be a glamorous affair. Didn’t you tell me Emi Yamada would be hosting? She’s a very beautiful woman.” The moment the words left Yukiy’s mouth, he wanted to take them back. He looked straight into his wife’s eyes, and was no surprised by the cross expression on her face. He suddenly felt as if the goodwill he had accumulated earlier by agreeing to side wit his wife had gone away because he had not been able to control his mouth.
“Are you saying that I can’t compete with those entertainment industry bimbos and starlets?” The way Kagura’s dark eyebrow was arched let Yukiyo that there was only one correct answer to his question. He looked nervously at Sesshoumaru for help, but the other man just shrugged, trying to keep his amusement as quiet as possible.
Kanna finally took pity on her husband, and decided to help him out of the hole he had dug for himself. “Of course not. You’re going to look fabulous. You even got your hair and nails done today.”
“Well, that didn’t do me a load of good. I chipped the polish on two of my nails while washing the dishes. When are you going to invest in a dishwashing machine like everyone else?” She stuck her fingers out for her younger sister to see.
Kanna chuckled at her sister’s reaction. “You know I enjoy cleaning; it helps relax me.”
“Well that’s clearly a gene we don’t have in common.” Kagura’s quip made both sisters chuckle as pointing out their difference in genetics was a common joke. After all the two of them were almost as opposite as night and day when it came to their appearance.
“Oh well, Sesshoumaru and I should head out soon. We have a three hours drive back to home, and I still have to put my overpriced manicure to rights before we leave for the award ceremony tomorrow. Not to mention that our dear boss wouldn’t splurge on plane tickets, so we have to drive all the way to the resort ourselves.” Had Kagura been honest, she would have admitted that she did not mind the last part one bit. Not only would she be left alone with her lover for the eight hours car drive, but they also would be staying the night in the luxurious resort where the award ceremony would be hosted. They had of course had to book two separate bedrooms, but she had every intention to sneak into her lover’s bed the second every other member of the press would stagger into their own bed. ‘From the pictures I saw online, our rooms come with large bathtubs. I can’t wait to try one of them.’
As soon as the words left Kagura’s lips, the four adults took to their feet to say their goodbyes.
“You’ll have to tell me all about the award ceremony; you know I live vicariously through you.” Kanna announced as she gave her sister as tight a hug as her swollen abdomen permitted. “If you can, try to get an autograph from Emi Yamada for Yukiyo. He is such a big fan of hers.”
His wife’s request brought a grin to her husband’s lips. He knew that she wouldn’t have asked her sister for such a favor unless he was growing back in her favors. ‘Maybe tonight will get to be a great evening after all, and I will be able to get Kanna back in bed.’ He thought suddenly eager for their dinner guests to leave.
“I will try, but I won’t make promises. Sesshoumaru may be the one nominated for an actual award for his piece on the Miko Powder scandal, but I still have to represent Shikon Magazine and look all professional. I do have appointments lined up with tons of advertisers…” Kagura winced when she saw the crushed look on her brother in-law’s face, so quickly added. “I will try my very best to corner that pop starlet of Emi when no one is watching, and get an autograph out of her.”
“That would be very appreciated.” Yukiyo finally admitted as he hugged Kagura then shook Sesshoumaru’s hand in goodbye.
As soon as their guests had safely departed, the young financial analyst turned towards his wife. “Now, I believe something was said earlier about a reward if I helped you out with a certain plan.”
Kanna tried not to smile at the hopeful glint in Yukiyo’s eyes. “Go make sure the boys are asleep then come join me in bed; I will be waiting for you.” Not needing to be told twice, he literally rushed up the flight of stairs in the direction of their sons’ rooms.
‘I wish I could be a fly on the wall tonight, and find out what Sesshoumaru will tell Kagura…maybe I should give her a call tomorrow.’ Kanna thought to herself as she slowly made her way up the stairs as well. ‘Let’s just hope that my little plan works out.’
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“I just realized we didn’t finalize the details for tomorrow. Who’s driving on the way up?” Kagura asked her boyfriend. Even though she was standing in the bathroom of her condo, scrubbing her face over the sink, she knew Sesshoumaru would have no trouble hearing her from the adjacent bedroom.
“You drove your car to your sister’s today, so I assumed we were taking mine tomorrow. Besides my car is bigger, and would be more comfortable for the long ride. I do not mind driving.” Sesshoumaru replied as he settled himself under the covers of Kagura’s bed. The two of them had driven straight to her apartment after leaving Kanna and Yukiyo’s place, and after double checking their bags for their weekend away had decided to call it a night as they were planning to wake up early. They also would need to make a quick stop by his apartment as when checking his bag, he had realized he was missing his pair of shoes. Kagura had of course not failed to make fun of him, who had a tendency to plan everything, for having forgotten such a crucial part of his outfit for the award ceremony.
“Sure, that works for me as long as we trade off on the driving if you get tired.” She let her know even as she vigorously brushed her hair. While her lover had shown his appreciation for her wavy locks in the past, she could not help but secretly still wish she shared her sister’s sleek hair. ‘This will have to do for tonight.’ She thought to herself; she was not about to apply her weekly moisturizing and straightening hair masque when her lover was sleeping over. ‘Some things he just does not need to know.’ She reflected as she gave herself one last critical once over in the mirror.
From his position of sitting against the headboard of Kagura’s bed, Sesshoumaru had a clear and unobstructed view of her. He was still quite surprised at how easily the two of them had slipped into a domestic routine. In the past weeks they had come to divide their nights almost identically between her condo, and his apartment. They would leave work at different hours, and meet up to spend some time then dinner together before spending the night at either his place or hers. He allowed the ghost of a smile to appear on his lips while he spied on Kagura dutifully applying her facial night cream. Witnessing her nightly routine made him feel as if he was seeing a special and secret part of her life that no one else would be privy to. It was his first time being linked so intimately with another woman. His past relationships never included enough intimacy, or lasted long enough for him to even want to spend any time at his ‘girlfriends’ house.
“What are you smiling at?” Kagura’s question thrust him out of his thoughts. She joined him in the bedroom, and discarded her robe. While a couple months ago she would have thrown the red silky material towards the armchair in the corner of a room, Sesshoumaru’s influence on her could be seen in the young woman carefully hanging her robe on its designated hook.
“Nothing.” He assured her even if his smile had not been completely wiped off.
She lay next to him under the warm covers. “Just like how I interrupted this interesting conversation about ‘nothing’ you were having with Kanna and Yukiyo after dinner?” She simply could not help but tease him. During the three hours ride back from her sister’s house, she had asked her lover on several occasions what the conversation had been about, and he had refused to answer. “You know I have ways to make you talk.”
Since Sesshoumaru had no intention of letting her know about her sister’s plea to have her pregnant as fast as possible, he contented himself with giving his lover a shrug as a response.
“Now that sounded like a challenge… one I am more than willing to take on.” To emphasize her point, she reached under the comforter to run her hand over his T-shirt covered chest prompting Sesshoumaru to arch an eyebrow in clear amusement.
However before the young woman had a chance to actually do anything, he pounced on her, and reversed their positions. She suddenly found herself pinned on her own bed under her lover’s weight. While he was paying attention not to crush her, he had her completely immobilized, and even if she squirmed, she could not get him off of her smaller frame.
“Damn you!” She groaned even as she looked up into his golden eyes. When she rolled her hips, and came in contact with a very sensitive part of his anatomy, it was his turn to groan, but still he did not let go. “Fine Sesshoumaru. You win, and I waive an imaginary white flag.” He found the little disappointed pout on her lips simply irresistible, and bent his head to press a gentle kiss to her mouth.
“That’s more like it.” She commented before fastening their lips in a prolonged languorous kiss.
Once they broke apart for some much needed air, they stared at each other in comfortable silence for a good long minute. Just as Kagura was about to break the silence to suggest a naughty scenario she had come with, courtesy of their present position, Sesshoumaru made a sudden announcement.
“We should move in together.”
“Wow…” Her body stiffened in surprise. “Where did that come from?” She blurted out in complete shock after a couple heartbeats of pure silence.
Sesshoumaru frowned at her less than thrilled reaction. While they had not discussed in which direction their relationship should be going, he had assumed that she would be happy at his suggestion, and made his disappointment known. “You are not interested?” He asked. The two of them had been spending so much time together since the beginning of their affair that he thought his suggestion would be a great idea. It would allow them to be in contact for much longer as well as save time, and prevent them from having to go back and forth between their homes. Just like he would be forced to do the next morning to go pick up his pair of forgotten shoes.
“Well…no…I… Naraku doesn’t even know about us yet.”
As soon as she had spoken the words, Kagura wanted to take them back. She could tell how hurt Sesshoumaru was by her protest, or more precisely the reason behind it. He immediately let go of her, and sat up in bed. He simply silently stared down in her crimson eyes for a long time, not a word escaping his lips.
“Sesshoumaru…” She started, but he interrupted her.
“Let’s just go to sleep. Tomorrow will be a long day.” The finality in his words put a definitive and sudden stop to the conversation. To make his point even clearer, he leaned towards the side table, and turned off the lamp. He then lay back in bed, paying attention to stick strictly to his side of the bed, and not to come in contact with his lover.
Kagura knew that she had wounded the man she loved, but was not sure how to make him feel better. She quite enjoyed their present living arrangements, and did not quite understand why Sesshoumaru suddenly wanted to change things up. ‘He keeps his toothbrush and shaving kit in my bathroom, and I gave him a drawer in my closet. Why is this not enough for him?’ She wondered silently. ‘Ever since we came out and actual admitted our feelings, everything has been so good between us.’ While she may feel like the conversation would not go on, she wanted to remind him of the feelings they had for each other. With this clear goal in mind, she inched closer to his body, and reached over to run an inviting hand over the broad expense of his back.
“Goodnight.” The cold tone he used spoke more volumes than him not returning her gentle caresses. Feeling quite put out, the young woman had no choice but to let go of her lover.
“Goodnight.” She replied sadly even as she thought to herself ‘Tomorrow trip will be a very long drive.’
To be continued…
A/N: They will once again be away…wonder how things will turn out between our two favorite journalists, and will Sesshoumaru win the award? We’ll see next time in Travel and leisure.