InuYasha Fan Fiction ❯ The Arsonist ❯ One ( Chapter 1 )

[ X - Adult: No readers under 18. Contains Graphic Adult Themes/Extreme violence. ]

Kagome blinked hard, groggily coming to, in the darkness of her quarters. She woke up with the worst possible hangover.

Grunting at the unexpected lurch and stab of pain in her side, a cold sweat collected at the back of her neck as she pressed a clammy hand to massage her temples.

She wiped her face and paused in her search for a clock.

"Oh no, not this again." Kagome tried to even out her breathing as hot flashes and pangs begin to clench in her gut more intensely.

The shrill witch hunter voices of the showbiz correspondents droning on in the background.

She laid her sweaty forehead on the cool porcelain seat for several moments, her harsh breathing the only sound filling up the tiny compound.

She tried to remember the last nights events, and how she managed to get wasted enough to end up sleeping at her desk on a Thursday night. She remembered her best friend, Sango, dragging her out for drinks after her lame protests, and her attempts to finish up her labs from work. And then one thing led to the next thing.

"Damn it Higurashi, you're too old for this." She stumbled away from the toilet and reached into the cabinet over the sink for a bottle of aspirin. Shaking out two tablets in shaking palms, she gulped them and opened the faucet, to cup a few mouthfuls of water to wash down the chalky aftertaste.

Kagome headed back into the living room, where the news was playing and stood listening as she poured a bowl of cereal.

Two historical sites were among the four locations targeted. Four explosions were reported at the Fine Art Museum, – two in the lobby, two in the elevators, and one at the Trident Hotel where the Prime Minister has been abducted and is being held hostage. Several people were held hostage. Police evacuated adjacent buildings and exchanged fire with the attackers, wounding one. Residents were told to remain indoors. After a long battle one of the attackers was captured and is being held for questioning, while one has escaped.

The suspect, who is now on the run, rented a black Volkswagen Polo used by the hostage takers, the officials said. An international warrant has been issued by police. They have warned that the suspect is armed and dangerous and must not be approached.

A deep frown pursed her brow as she chewed thoughtfully, and a thrill of fear went through her as she recognized her jobsite near the hospital. Her heart leapt into her throat, as she mechanically grabbed the remote and shut off the news reporter in midsentence.

"Stupid news, stupid terrorists."

Just then, her cellphone chirped. It was an urgent text from work.

There was trouble down at the Headquarters. The young medical student wasn't expecting too much of a commotion. Afterall, in all her years interning at HQ there was nothing that she couldn't handle.

As she made her way into the large conference room, several pairs of eyes turned her way.

Her boss gave her a slight nod, as she took her seat, before continuing to debrief the room.

"We have an incredible security crisis on our hands. The city has just been hit with another arsonist attack, hitting too close to home. A recent communique has been sent out. Their demanding that if our suspect is not released, that they will go ahead and attack one of the townhouses that the Prime Minister's family is staying in."

"The Prime Minister's life depends on how we move. The demands of the terrorist states that we give our suspect medical treatment from one of our own people, not the hospital."

She could feel her heart dropping into her stomach as her boss made eye contact with her.

"That's why we called you here today." The older woman added softly.

"You've got to be kidding me. Since when do terrorist get preferences in medical care?"

Kagome looked around the table, and the resounding silence from her colleagues told her that no one would be coming to her defense, and she swallowed thickly.

"Send me the chart. I'm going to need to be debriefed on his file, so I know what I'm dealing with." Before anyone could get another word in, she abruptly got up out of her seat and strode out the conference room.

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She had one helluva time finding an extra pair of scrubs that fit her.

Her office was the size of a closet. Books littered every corner with a surface, and only her work desk remained free. There was a few of her mementos lining her shelves and old scattered drafts of her research.

"Knock, Knock. Anybody there." Hojo, one of the phlebotomy technicians, and an old childhood friend popped in. She smiled despite her mounting anxiety, as he placed a can of iced coffee in front of her.

"Thanks, I needed this today. How'd the bloodwork go?"

"Boy, you really are starting to let yourself go. When was the last time you slept?" He ignored her question, and a sly grin tugged at his lips as she threw a pen at him and snorted in mild indignation.

"You're one to talk. I heard they've got you on float duty at the hospital, when was the last time you went home?"

Hojo caught the pen in midair, and twirled it thoughtfully, before tucking in his shirt pocket.

"You have a point. The wife has been complaining about the same thing."

"It must be nice to have someone to go home to."

Hojo cleared his throat, and side stepped the sore subject between them. They had dated years ago in high school, but Kagome decided that they were better off as friends.

"You're in for a rough ride. Your patient is ready for you, he seems to be stabilizing okay, but there might be signs of a concussion." Hojo handed her the chart, and he looked hesitant as he rubbed the back of his neck.

"What? Spit it out?"

"You know Yuka and I would love to have you over for dinner."

She saw the familiar look of pity in his eyes, and she bristled as she snatched the clipboard from his hands.

"Don't even start with that pity bull crap." What, did she have a huge sign on her forehead that said, sad, pathetic loser, pity me! Rolling her eyes, Kagome gathered her wits, and mechanically gathered her hair into a ponytail.

"I'll see you in the debriefing room." She strode past him and his apologies fell on deaf ears.

Kagome flashed her medical badge. Kagome Higurashi, Medical Scientist, Rank A. The computerized voice spoke, as the stone-faced guards stepped aside to grant her access.

Pale shafts of light from the window cast her patient in a sickly glow, he seemed more like a corpse, than a high-level security threat.

"Hello Mr. Arsonist. So, I finally get to meet the man whose causing all the mayhem. Huh, you don't look so tough."

"I have never seen a man like you." Her hand moved to his neck, and then it lingered while she drank in the magic of wide-arched ribs. White dog ears sat on top of his head, and she tugged them to make sure that they were real. They flickered on their own accord. A mass of silver hair cascaded down his shoulders and his back, and she understood why he needed special medical care.

Demons and humans lived in two separate worlds, she was fascinated by their biology and their physiology, which led her to study Inter-species medicine in school.

Kagome quietly went to work, as a web of questions got tangled up in her mind.

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In a moment of disorientation, despair gripped him, and his lungs grew hot, almost bursting from exertion. He felt for a moment that he was fighting against death pinning him down as he failed to move his limbs.

His gaze lifted to the harsh light. Was he in prison? The face of his brother flashed into his mind's eye, colored with disappointment. Did I Fail?

He slowly eyed everything within his range, noting the dark cell, the medical equipment haphazardly arranged on a table, and at last leveling his eyes upon a slumped head at the foot of his bed. His lips curled, and his eyes glowed like goals from hell.

What the hell? Where the hell am I?

His eyes narrowed into slits, but as he tried to move silently from the bed, pain caused him to fall back as a gush of blood leaked from his bandages. The woman resting at his feet, shot up at once as if possessing some special instinct.

"Y-you're awake!" And then she began to laugh hoarsely.

"Oh my god, I fell asleep on the job. What an idiot." She muttered to herself.

"Oh man, I hope nobody finds out about this. Eh? You've reopened your wounds. You're one hell of a patient you know."

Clenching his fist, his nails bit into the palm of his hands as she helped him sit up. She turned her back to scribble something on a clipboard and he couldn't muster the strength to strike her.

"I suppose that I should be afraid of you. Afterall, you created a lot of havoc." She wore a strange expression as she scribbled the last of her notes and fetched a fresh roll of gauze.

He snarled, and weakly tried to bat her away, and instead began coughing violently and spitting blood.

"Well, somebody needs a sense of humor."

Above them, a red alarm blared causing Kagome to jump. The intercom clicked one, and an androgynous voice sliced through the static.

"Paging Dr. Higurashi. You are wanted in the debriefing room. Please proceed with caution. This is a level 2 alert."

Suddenly, the doors hissed open as the boss sauntered in, with two armed guards flanking her side.

"Kagome, you did a wonderful job. Please get some rest and have the full report on my desk before you leave."

The boss beamed at her, and placed a hand on her shoulder, before turning to her patient.

"Hello Inuyasha. You're finally awake."

"You bitch!" Inuyasha bristled at once and tried to lunge for her. But one of the guards stepped in, and roughly handcuffed him, while the other drew out a deadly taser gun.

Kagome stood helplessly by, unsure what was unfolding.

"You know, I should've saw this happening. Guess I was too stupid to see it." He began to laugh to himself.

Kikyo's frown deepened, and she made a motion for the men to step aside as she inched closer until she was hovering over the subdued man.

"There's no way for you to escape. You have something of ours that I need back from you before I can let you go."

She placed a cool finger on his chin and tipped it up so that she was staring into his stormy eyes.

"I must retrieve it at any cost. Do you understand Inuyasha?" Her tone was as flat as her expression.

Kagome's brain finally clicked on, as a fierce protectiveness rose inside of her.

She dived between her patient and her boss, and stood with her arms spread out, a determined glower on her face.

"I won't allow it. I won't allow you to harm my patient that I just bought back from death."

All eyes were on her. She felt like a fool, but she could not simply stand by and watch such a thing unfold without trying to intervene.

"You're in the way." The older woman said calmly.

But the younger womans eyes sparked with intent and emotion.

"I can't! This is against my code of ethics!"

"Very well. You leave me no choice."

"Ginta. Hakkaku." Kikyo gave the orders, and the guards turn on her, whipping out their taser guns.

"Don't you dare." Kagome hissed, as they advanced.

They lunged for her, and she gave a wordless cry, as a terrible pain shot up her side as everything fades to black.

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Inuyasha slowly regained consciousness, as a pool of blood dripped from his temple, blinding him in the right eye.

It took him a moment, to assemble all the images and whisps of memory. His mind flashed back to the explosion that happened just before the last attack in the inferno something had struck his head and arm, and he knew nothing more until he had opened his eyes to find himself on an operating table with the strange doctor and, the cold bitch who was a spy all along.

The plan had gone wrong. He wondered if the others had managed to escape in time. His mind was pulled back to his current predicament, when a burning hot sensation caused him to tense in the hospital bed as he gritted his teeth in agony.

The bitch was trying to torture the answers out of him.

Above his head, Kikyo lifted a bottle of clear liquid, pouring them over his wounds. Not to heal them, but to prolong his suffering. The silly woman did not catch on that he authentically didn't have the piece of information that she was looking for. But he would rather go on with her pathetic attempt to torture him, than to give out any information.

He had approximated from the number of times that she came and left the small room that 6 days had passed since she had captured him.

He was bound by tight prison cuffs. There was a ringing in his right ear, and he coughed out a brownish red liquid that he was sure was due to a broken rib.

"Where are you hiding it? If you continue to hold back, I'm afraid that you won't survive this ordeal."

He gave a short bitter laugh when he could hear the thin edges of her control begin to slip.

"Yeah, right bitch. You and I both know that you can't kill me." He spat a wad of blood at her. She eyed him narrowly.

Kikyo struck him with a great blow across his back with a pronged leather whip. He did not cry out, for he knew that she would get satisfaction from hearing his pained moans.

"Your brave act won't get you anywhere."

"I must be one hell of a fool then. You know, you are something else entirely." Inuyasha said chuckling darkly.

Even in the violet cast of her hair, in the steel gray of her eyes, in the soft face, an echo of her beauty lingered in faint allure.

She was getting angrier and showed less restraint, as she turned her back on him. And began to pace back and forth with her hands clasped tightly behind her back.

She had to give him credit for not breaking under her, but she was running out of time.

"You wish to do me harm Inuyasha?" She was mocking him, and he struggled as if he could somehow strike her. She laughed bitterly, before her face folded in an icy glare.

"Moving into phase 2. You will be delivered to your rag tag entourage. If we do not receive the Prime minister and then there will be hell to pay."

She sighed and brushed the blood from her face.

"Feh." He was in too much pain to speak, his jaw clenched as his labored breathing filled the room.

"I will send in the good woman who tried to defend you from me in due time. You are not to speak a word of what transpired here. She will be your doctor from here on out, and if you are to harm her, you'll have to answer to me."

"And if I don't cooperate?"

"You're only half of the bargaining chip, nothing more."