InuYasha Fan Fiction ❯ The Arsonist ❯ Two ( Chapter 2 )

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

A/ N: Hello everyone! I know it's been a while; life has caught up with me and had to step away for a little bit. I've been getting messages in my inbox about the TPOF, and updates are coming! I promise. As always your comments/reviews are always welcomed, cheers! :)

"Kagome!"

Someone was shaking her hard, and she mumbled in protest, trying to shoo away the hand softly patting her cheek. When a bucket of ice-cold water was dumped in her face, her eyes flew open, and she stared up into twin pools of concerned eyes.

She began to register that she was back in her office, her head was splitting in two, and one of her front teeth was loose in her mouth.

"Hojo?" She slurred, trying to stand, but a firm hand pushed her back down on the floor, where she was lying on a makeshift bed made of hospital gowns. Hojo tsked under his breath, as he placed a cool towelette on her forehead.

"The boss told me what happened." He said quietly, averting his gaze. She sucked in a sharp breath as memory assaulted her, accompanied by a wave of righteous indignation that caused her head to pound in earnest.

"Hojo, they attacked me. It happened so quick; I just did the first thing that came to my mind. I was finishing patching up our patient when the boss came in and I could see it in her eyes. She was going to torture him." Her voice dropped in a conspiratorial whisper, and he gently shushed her.

"I know, they didn't hold back on you either."

Kagome gingerly touched her left side, sure that an ugly bruise was forming.

"We have to do something." She looked at him imploringly. Hojo lightly scoffed, stuffing his fists in his pockets as his expression tightened.

"What are we supposed to do? You knew before joining the Headquarters, what this organization is all about. The HQ is our only hope in keeping those monsters away. And that monster you're trying to protect is the same bastard setting fires all over the damned place. They burned down the orphanage and the old church last month. Don't you see that we're at war? "

"Don't lecture me on HQ, I know more than anyone what kind of world we're living in." She shot up, ignoring the pain, and tearing the towel from her forehead.

"Kagome, you shouldn't"

"Torture is torture. We took a pledge for God's sake. A patient is a patient, whether he's the Prime Minister or a murderer."

"You can't be an idealistic schoolgirl forever Kagome. Don't you see those monsters for what they are?"

"It doesn't mean anything to you, but I still have a shred of integrity. it matters to me that my patients aren't tortured right in front of my eyes."

Before Hojo could retort, the door beeped, hissing open.

"Commander Hayamoto." Hojo leapt to his feet and stiffly saluted, as the boss came in, this time without any guards.

"At ease, there's no need for the formality. I'd like a word with Dr. Higurashi, alone please."

Kagome's eye glittered, as the older woman held up a hand, as a peace offering.

"I'm sorry for what happened back there." The older woman began.

"Care to explain then?"

"This is a level 5, Kagome. I value you as a member of our team. But I cannot allow you to interfere with my process. That patient back there is no man, he is an abomination, a demon. Before the HQ, he and his kind have committed atrocious acts against humanity for centuries."

"Yes, I know all of that." Kagome's voice began to lose its edge and she felt very tired.

"Good. It's important to me that you understand. There's not a lot of people I can trust, but you are someone I know I can always rely on. Our Prime Minister's life is in danger at this very moment, and I need someone to transport our prisoner to the Wharf to make an exchange. I've already programmed one of the company cars with coordinate points."

"Oh God, please don't tell me you're asking me what I think you're asking me."

"We need him in good condition. He's sustained some considerable damage. I need you to monitor his recovery progress, while transporting him to the exchange site. We need to be as discreet as possible, so you will have to travel by car. It's approximately a 7-day journey."

"Seven whole days?" Kagome spluttered.

"Can I count on you?"

Once Kikyo turned her solemn eyes on the young doctor, all Kagome could do was nod dumbly.

--------------

The elevator descended slowly and through the transparent glass, Inuyasha could see the weak sunlight breaking through the clouds, and the overcast skies looked heavy and somewhat foreboding.

Inuyasha was led in chains by two men in full military gear, to a black Cadillac with tinted windows. He was shoved in the back seat by one of the burly men, who he could tell was waiting to rough him up. He grunted, his wounds were slow to heal, and he could still hear his breath rattling in his chest.

He watched from the backseat as the ditzy doctor that treated his wounds, climbed into the front seat, and he scoffed as she tried to smile and make eye contact with him.

If everything went according to plan, he would be home free, and he would regroup with the others. They peeled out of the garage, and soon they were on the road.

He watched as the dilapidated city rolled by, and he flexed his bound hands, testing the durability of the metal cuffs. It gave a promising click.

The woman fiddled with the radio and flipped through station after station of news reports.

There is significant damage in the downtown district that Headquarters are attributing to the fires allegedly set by the arsonist, Commander Hayamoto told NSE News today.

"Let's turn that off." She sighed and drummed her fingers against the steering wheel.

"This definitely wasn't in my job description. My grandfather was heartbroken when I chose to become a doctor, over continuing the family business." She chuckled, her eyes wrinkling.

"Do you want to guess what kind of business it was?"

Inuyasha let out an inaudible sigh. This was going to be a long drive. He eyed the back of her head and judged thar she was young for a doctor, probably right out of medical school. He almost felt bad for her that she was dragged in the middle of something she didn't understand.

He didn't want to have to put up with her incessant babbling. Inuyasha prayed that she would get the hint and just drive the damn car.

He concentrated on the urban sprawl, and the high-rise buildings in the distance. One of the things he liked about the human cities was how they were places of contradictions. He watched with mild interest as bone thin waifs of humans stood by the side of the road, peddling their worthless goods.

"Boy, you must not speak much at all, huh? I asked what your name was?" Kagome turned fully to face him, and his scowl turned menacing.

"I'm Dr. Higurashi. But I guess you can call me Kagome."

After a few moments went by, quite descended again and he closed his eyes, meditating on the previous night's events, he turned failed attack over in over in his head, trying to find what went wrong.

The job was simple, retrieve the artifacts from the Fine Arts Museum, and send a message that would let their enemies know that they weren't playing around. Demons had long ago been forced to exist in the margins of society, disguising themselves, trying to blend in with humans. But those days were over. In the last 50 years, demons had been asserting their dominance.

There were some groups who wanted to go on full rampages and whet their appetites through carnage and bloodshed. There were other groups who wanted to play politics with humans and negotiate new conditions. Inuyasha and his brood fell somewhere along the middle.

Inuyasha frowned, something gnawed at his belly and he was starting to get a bad feeling. What made matters worse was that the assholes left him to be captured.He could almost smell the kerosene, and his gut wrenched as he plummeted back in the plume of smoke and flames, in his mind's eye. He had his own code of no man left behind, and he had never on any of his missions left one of his men astray. His thoughts began to turn rancid, and his eyebrows furrowed deeper.

"Oh, look a tea shop. I haven't seen one of those in a while." The chatty woman perked up, glancing at him from the rear-view mirror, and flashed him a small smile.

Inuyasha schooled his features, as he took in the run-down premises. The smell of sweat and booze assaulted him, mingled with the stink of smoke. This was no teahouse.

"I'll come too. Gotta go to take a leak."

"Oh, so you do speak?"

"Occasionally."

Kagome's hand hovered over the safety lock.

"Okay, but you better not try any funny business, mister." She gave him a pointed look, and he did his best not to roll his eyes.

"Look sweetheart, the faster we get to the checkpoint, the better it'll be for me. Trust me. Now can you open the door and let me out?"

The breeze was refreshing, and Inuyasha inhaled deeply as the woman hesitantly moved towards the teahouse. There was a couple of patrons, an old man talking in low whispers on a cellphone, and a couple of fellas in motorcycle jackets sitting and talking amongst themselves.

"Heelloo gorgeous! What's a pretty girl like you doing at a dump like this?" The bartender perked up at the strange couple. He was her height, with his glossy black hair pulled back into a ponytail. His lips were painted ruby red, and his eyes were heavily lined with kohl.

"Tea?" Kagome said lamely as she tried to find a menu.

"Oh honey, this isn't your run of the mil tea shop. Let's just say we sell experiences." He laughed to himself and winked at her. But Kagome wasn't quite sure what he was alluding to.

"What kind of experiences?"

"Oh dear, you must be from the Upper city. Bless your heart." The bartender studied her and poured them a glass of something cool.

"I'm Jak, I opened this place about a couple of years ago before the everything turned batshit crazy. It's been hard trying to make a living, but we do alright for ourselves. Now, I've been dying to ask you, who is this tall drink of water standing behind you?" The bartender purred as his attention shifted to Inuyasha.

"None of your damn business, that's who."

"Okay, big dog. Whatever you say... Hmm, now that I get a full good look at you, you look kind of familiar. Do I know you from somewhere?"

"Nope, I think you might be confusing me for someone else?"

Jak, leaned back and rubbed his chin.

"Hey, can we use the bathroom?" Kagome nervously cut in.

"Sure doll, it's downstairs and to the left."

Inuyasha trailed behind her, and he slipped into the men's restroom.

Kagome sighed in relief, she finally had a moment to herself. She turned on the faucet, splashing cold water on her face.

A man stumbled into the lady's room and nearly bumped into her. Kagome whirled, she was about to reprimand him but when she took in his pointed ears, the words died in her throat as a slight shiver raced down her spine. Demon. Her heart hammered in her chest, she quickly dried her hands, training her eyes to the floor as she tried to make a abrupt exit.

"Hey sweet cheeks, where are you rushing off too." Keen sky-blue eyes focused on her; Kagome could smell liquor on his breath. She noticed that he was wearing the same motorcycle jackets as the men in the front of the shop. He was at least a foot taller than her, and used his height to leer down at her.

"Excuse me, I have to get back to my table."

"Care to have a little fun?"

"No, I don't think so."

He grabbed for her, and she stiffened when his clawed hand bit into the delicate flesh of her wrist.

"What's the matter, there's nothing wrong with a little fun." He slapped her on her rear end, and she felt her face grow hot.

"Let go of me." She hissed, as he yanked her closer, a wolfish grin tugged at his lips.

"I think you better do what the lady says." Inuyasha's voice cut in without amusement.

"What's that? I knew I smelled dogshit when I walked in."

"You're one to talk. I can't stand weaklings like you." Inuyasha sneered.

"Tch. Do you know who I am? I'm the Prince of the wolfpack." He stuck out his chest a little bit, and finally released his grip on the spooked doctor who sagged with relief.

"Feh. I don't give a damn if you're the king of the apes."

"You dare insult my pack? I'm going to make you regret that."

Inuyasha smiled without humor, he cracked his neck and he knew that he was going to enjoy putting the asshole in his place. Kagome tugged the back of his shirt.

"Let's get out of here. You're still recovering and it's too dangerous."

"We're not in Kansas anymore Dorothy." Inuyasha chuckled lowly as the wolf demon took a menacing step towards him.