InuYasha Fan Fiction ❯ Strike a Pose ❯ Pay the Price of Perfection ( Chapter 8 )

Chapter eight: Pay the Price of Perfection.

“GET OUT!” a piercing scream had the slumbering Sesshoumaru falling out of his bed in shock before jumping to his feet to see what the problem was.

What he encountered however shocked even him. Kagome and Kikyo were stood in the doorway to their room arms folded looking none too pleased in various states of undress. Kikyo was wearing a shirt but no skirt, just her pants and Kagome was wearing some red jeans but not a shirt, just her black bra. Inuyasha was on the floor, one foot twitching, it appeared his head had impacted hard with the east wall and rendered him immobile for a while. His ears were still twitching though, at least he was still conscious.

“Do you have no concept of personal space? Does the word privacy mean nothing to you?” Kagome fumed at the Hanyou “Who in their right mind walks into a teenage girls room without knocking dumbass?”

“A pervert” Kikyo prompted stoking Kagome's ire

“Exactly” she threw her vanity chair at the spread-eagled Hanyou mercilessly “you are the lowest of the low! Everyone is entitled to privacy you know!” she then proceeded to pick up some seven inch stilettos ready to let fly.

“As much as this is entertaining” Sesshoumaru stepped in as he looked down at his brother in disdain “I think he's had enough”

“Why are you here?” Kagome screeched, drawing Sesshoumaru's attention back to her. He raised an eyebrow

Why is she arguing whilst without a shirt? Is she really that oblivious?

Why are you complaining?

Shut up

Kagome took that pause to notice where his eyes were, blushed a red colour that a tomato-mama would be proud of and threw the stilettos at Sesshoumaru instead.

Ducking the deadly Miko launched projectiles he grinned lazily and beat a strategic retreat to his own room, chuckling darkly. Leaving the irate Miko to fume where she stood.

***

“Wake up you lazy Inu!” Kagome yelled slapping Inuyasha around his lazy head with his own discarded shoe.

“Piss off bitch, I'm still tryin' to recover from this morning” was his mumbled reply before he rolled over on the sofa and buried his face into the sofa cushions.

“He's going to get drool on them” Rin told Kagome. She corrected most people on their foul language but she had already learned that it was futile to try and teach the old dog that was Inuyasha new tricks.

“Baka Inu!” Kagome exclaimed “Get up!”

He muttered something incomprehensible into the sofa. Kagome growled and turned to Sesshoumaru who was sat in the egg chair reading as per usual.

“Moon man, lend me a paw here” she ordered

“Since when do I obey you?” he enquired serenely “and besides if you want me to do something for you then being derogatory is not the best way to go about it”

“Do something before I purify your ass” she threatened

“I'd like to see you try” he muttered

“Shut up!” Inuyasha yelled at them all from the sofa “Some of us are trying to sleep you know”

Kagome chuckled, but the noise was completely devoid of humour and Sesshoumaru balked as he sensed her aura for the first time.

He remembered her words `If you sense our aura it means we're extremely pissed'. Suddenly fearing for the life of the only person alive who was related to him he sprung into action.

He grabbed the sofa on the underside and tipped it, thus shaking the drowsy Hanyou from his perch and dumping him on the hardwood.

“What the fuck?” Inuyasha growled

Rin covered her ears from the uncensored cussing.

“Move your ass Hanyou before I break it for you” Kagome threw a garment bag and a set of car keys at him “Kikyo's shoot begins in three minutes and this is one of the dresses she was supposed to wear but forgot to take.”

“Why can't you go?” he grumbled getting up off the floor and bringing the thrown items with him

“I have to take Rin to the D-E-N-T-I-S-T” she spelled it out for him

“I'm ten, not stupid” Rin told Kagome “do I have to go Kagome-neesan?”

“Yep” she said taking Rin's hand firmly in her own

“Why can't he go?” Inuyasha gestured at his half brother

“He has a test tomorrow” Kagome explained “now move your butt”

***

Inuyasha had been dragged into the building by a very frustrated Sango who was waving a blusher brush at him.

“Thank god” Sango said as she dragged him by his collar into the dressed set.

He frowned as people ran past him in various stages of distress, the scent of panic was thick in the air and so he traced the scent of Sakura blossoms back to Kikyo who was stood under the lights of the set looking perfect and aloof as always.

But there was something else about the way she held herself that portrayed another emotion, he just wasn't sure what it was.

She was dressed in black, surprisingly... yeah right. It was her colour. They had constructed a fake balcony around her and she was sat with one leg along the wall her arms across that knee and her head resting on her arms as they positioned the fans so her hair blew out strategically against the backdrop of a city at night.

“Look forlorn Kikyo!” the photographer that had been on task at Sesshoumaru's shoot was directing her today.

“Did you hear?” one of the women from the set whispered to another and Inuyasha's dog ears began to twitch “She asked Naraku-sama out but he said no, he's going out with that famous model Kagura-san now”

“Really?” the other woman laughed “she deserved that slap in the face”

“I know right? She's such a stuck up bitch, always looking down on us just because she's a model and we aren't”

“She never says anything and never shows any emotion, it's so creepy”

“Is she even alive in there?”

Inuyasha started to growl low in his chest at the two women and Sango came to stand next to him and shook her head.

“They always get like this when Kagome-chan isn't here” she confided in the Hanyou

“What do you mean?” he asked in a soft snarl trying to bear in mind that she was not the cause of his anger.

“I mean Kikyo-san is too polite to say anything to them, plus she never seems to hear them. Kagome-chan on the other hand hunts them down and gives them a piece of her mind” she sighed “I'd say something but they'd only poison my lunch when I wasn't looking”

Sango walked away from the Inu Hanyou and smirked. He would get to play Kikyo's knight in fluffy armour... or something like that.

The photographer had apparently gotten all the shots he wanted because he dismissed Kikyo and she turned, still in full dress and makeup and escaped the bitching through a hidden fire escape. Inuyasha didn't see where she went due to the people milling around but his dog like sense of smell led him to the fire escape and up a flight of stairs onto the roof.

He glanced around the roof and realised he couldn't see her, though his nose told him she was there. He walked round and found that she was sat with her legs dangling over the side of the building looking out at the darkening landscape.

“Are you okay?” he asked softly

“Sticks and stones may break my bones but names will never hurt me” she repeated it like it was her own personal mantra, her back still turned towards him “what a crock of shit” she sighed and it hitched a little in her throat. He didn't know what to say, he had little experience in dealing with emotional women and Kikyo being emotional was so foreign it was choking. He simply looked at her, watched her hair lift and swirl around her in the breeze, dancing so forlornly.

“Look” she pointed a long slim pale arm out and he was struck for the first time at how fragile she looked. He'd never noticed it before, with her being the way she was. He followed the direction of her arm and saw another Kikyo. This billboard Kikyo was sassy and confident like the advertisement proclaimed her eyes challenging and fierce. So different to the Kikyo presented to him now.

“I'm Kikyo Higurashi, model extraordinaire, beautiful and unstoppable” she spat the words as if they were vicious poison “I'm not so strong” she whispered she brought her legs away from the edge and folded them into her body wrapping her arms around them and leant her head on her knees. She had never shown so much weakness in front of anyone who wasn't Kagome before and it was strange to her. Her shoulders shook at the cold whipping air.

Inuyasha watched her shuddering hunched shoulders and did something he'd never done before and probably would never do again. He reached out a tanned clawed hand to rest it on her shoulder before leaning down to whisper to her “Me neither”

***

Sesshoumaru was trying to revise for his test, he really was, but they were simply calling out to him. It was not everyday such an opportunity presented itself; Kikyo and the half-breed were at the shoot, Kagome and Rin at the dentists and Megumi nowhere in sight. However her keys were.

Megumi kept a study, and though he had been living in the apartment for many months now he had yet to go inside as she kept it locked and under normal circumstances he respected people's privacy. However since he had learnt more about the circumstances under the will he was almost over come by an unwelcome curiosity. And today she had forgotten her keys.

His hand that was holding the textbook was shaking violently with restraint and his eyebrow was twitching. Eventually he gave up; self restraint was all very well but not at the cost of developing so many bodily ticks.

He glared at the keys for causing his distress and then plucked them from the counter before almost flying up the stairs in his haste to get to the door.

When he actually opened the door however he had to bite back the urge to laugh. Megumi, it appeared was a lot like Kagome with the absolute chaos that ran rampant throughout her study. There was stuff everywhere. Coffee cups littered the desk, in a small ring around the bin were crumpled faxes and sheets of paper, her notice board was lost under the inch thick deluge of reminders, business cards were heaped in an ungainly pile underneath a rock that served as a paperweight, swathes of fabric nestle everywhere, the designs were the only things even remotely organised in a thick file that consisted of see-through plastic cases each one was preserved and perfect.

“If I were a disorganised woman where would I put the important documents?” he asked the room, which of course provided no answer.

He riffled through the room carefully, every time he touched something it seemed to fall down around his pointy ears and he was having a hard time not tidying up as he was want to do.

Eventually he found some semblance of a clue in a drawer that seemed bottomless. It was a small scrap of paper that wouldn't have demanded his attention had it not been for lingering traces of his fathers scent. He pulled it out, it read:

I'm sorry about the way this turned out. Maybe someday you can forgive me. I live in hope.

Yours, Touga

He frowned at the cryptic note, all it really revealed was that Megumi and his father had known each other and that his father had done something to upset her at one point. It was not dated but he could tell it was old, his father's scent was only there in trace amounts and Megumi's scent was distorted from what he assumed to be age.

It was when he made his way to the carefully disguised filing cabinet that he nearly lost his nerve, it was locked and so he could not look inside she had left the key for the door and for nothing else, what he was interested in was the briefcase atop it, that was distinctly out of place even camouflaged as it was under piles of paper.

He put his hand on the handle and was about to pull it down when he smelt Rin and Kagome. He stiffened and then turned around to see them staring at him, conveniently forgetting his grip on the unlocked suitcase he pulled it with him and the papers inside flew at the girls.

Kagome grimaced in surprise as her own birth certificate hit her in the face before fluttering to the floor.

“What are you doing moon-man?” Rin asked as she followed Kagome and began to pick up the documents up whilst Sesshoumaru stood there in some kind of shock.

“I'd like to know too” Kagome said raising an eyebrow at him

“I was looking for something” he hedged sheepish at being caught

“Whatever” Kagome said shoving the documents back inside before ushering them both back outside.

She waited until Rin had Sesshoumaru engaged downstairs before wandering back to the door. She pulled a scrap of paper from her pocket and wrote the word `protect' on it before slicing her finger with a corner allowing some of her blood to touch the writing. The writing glowed gold for a second before she folded the paper as small as she could and tucked it into the doorjamb. It would keep the nosy Yokai out she figured. She was very fierce about everyone having their own personal space and whilst she suspected nothing from Sesshoumaru in the way of evil intent she appreciated her mother's privacy.

Sesshoumaru tensed as he felt the slight flare of Miko energy before it subsided, he realised the girl had warded the room and smiled, at least he could detect no distrust in her aura. It would appear she was merely as adamant about privacy as she had been that morning.

She appeared at the foot of the stairs and skipped across the room to sit in his lap, as was the norm. He attempted to remove her and she clung on, it was a ritual of sorts.

“So why were you in there?” she asked

“You mother has my social security card” he said lying fluidly as he was able “I needed it”

“Oh” she pursed her lips “you shouldn't have just gone in there though”

“I'm not used to boundaries” he told her truthfully “back when I lived with my father there was no place I could not enter”

“I guess I understand” she said as Rin pulled out her English homework and sat down at the desk. “but privacy means a lot when you're in a mixed household, back then it was just three guys, now you have to account our needs too” she grinned “privacy is about respecting a person”

“You make a point” he acknowledged

“I'm not all tea parties and opium” she rolled her eyes

“What?”

“You mean you didn't get that?” she demanded incredulously “it was a blatant Alice in Wonderland reference”

“Of course” he rolled his eyes

“What I meant was I'm not always completely crazy you know” she argued

“Sure”

“You're not very nice”

“So they tell me”

“Don't worry, the gremlins are nasty to everyone” she consoled

“Why are you blathering about gremlins?” he asked raising an eyebrow

“You did not specify who `they' were” she told him “so I presumed you were talking about gremlins”

“She's obsessed with them” Rin commented

“They are mythical” he told the slightly delusional teenager currently taking over his lap

“So are demons” she replied “and yet I'm sitting on you”

They all looked up as the door opened and Kikyo and Inuyasha walked in looking slightly forlorn but strangely content.

“You look like you need ice-cream” Kagome commented springing from Sesshoumaru's lap to go rummage through the freezer.

“What happened?” Rin asked

“Keh, nothing” Inuyasha shrugged flopping onto the sofa like his bones had suddenly turned to liquid, Kikyo joined him soon after.

“We're fine” Kikyo assured her

“Here, it's vanilla, but it's all we had” Kagome dumped it ruthlessly on Inuyasha's lap making him squeal like a little girl.

“Bitch”

“Puppy”

“Who you calling puppy?” he demanded slipping easily back into his usual angst ridden persona

“You obviously, if I was talking about Sesshoumaru I wouldn't have a head anymore”

“You surprise me by your moments of insight” Sesshoumaru smirked and Kagome stuck her tongue out.

The door opened again, but this time with such force that it bounced off the wall and nearly closed on Megumi.

She skipped into the room happily and ran up to them “Guess what!” she was a hyper child

“What?” Kagome asked grinning

“For our new Essence of Nature range we are going to be in the forest!” she enthused

They all looked at her blankly “And?” Kagome ventured

“The local hot spring owner had agreed to let you four stay for the three days, free of charge! Isn't that great, you'll be surrounded by nature and it saves having to keep driving up and down for three days. I guess we're lucky that Myoga-san knew your father” she gestured at Inuyasha and Sesshoumaru “he agreed to let you stay for free!”

“Hot spring?” Kagome's eyes lit up “really?”

“Yep” said Megumi

“You're telling me we are stuck in a hot spring for three days with them?” Kikyo frowned “but they're both perverts”

“Therein lies the fun” Sesshoumaru murmured

Inuyasha, the only one who heard grinned in anticipation “Hells yeah”

A/N: O.O Sesshoumaru Inuyasha naughty! He he he, I do not own Inuyasha! Anyway hope you enjoyed it things are moving forwards little by little to my little drama! Kukukukuku! Anyway please review!

With thanks to those on fanfiction: TheAnonymous, Whitecloud1, Inu-lover-aslee-288, Sesshomaru's Beautiful Kristin, XxMadhatter-NojokerxX, dangitsesshomaru and Moonlight X Luna.

Also on dokuga:

Ameire: here ya go, don't say I never give you anything! The pics were from the shoot when she baited him, but he got her flustered so she couldn't think of any good comebacks!

WhiteRose-Kurama: A hotspring scene is coming soon! Thanks for the review and I agree with the fanart thing!

Kayla: He will be wearing less than a towel very soon! Don't you worry!

jaimesesshy: would you like another present?

Debra Timson: here ya go

AmiOtaku: the inspiration behind this was bizarre I was sat there reading someone's crack fic and they were complaining about how the clearing scene where Kagome sees Inuyasha and Kikyo together and runs to Sesshoumaru is overdone so I sat there determined to find something that hadn't been done and this popped into my head! Thanks for the review!

Looking back on that I probably overused the exclamatory in the responses huh? Oh well the fic is over no complaining about my punctuation.

I felt that a bit of sad bonding was due between Inuyasha and Kikyo so they had their moment and Sesshoumaru is still snooping around, curiosity killed the cat but he seems to think he's immune. Whatever, from a slightly more serious chapter to a completely pointless hot spring chapter next time! Ja ne Aimee-chan.