InuYasha Fan Fiction ❯ The Corrupted ❯ Drive ( Chapter 5 )

AN: HI! New chappie! Have fun reading!!

Chapter 4: Drive

Kagome took her time packing, slowly going over everything in her room. She had had to clean the blood first, and fix her computer chair, which had been wrecked from Naraku's assault. It made her heart constrict and fill with anger when she saw all of it, her computer screen flashing; it had an automated shut down that activated after four hours. So now she had to rewrite almost her whole essay. She had forgotten to ask Sesshoumaru if he had a computer she could use, then remember she had seen one in a room that came off of the living room.

She gathered her ripped and bloodied clothes form the floor and threw them away, angry with that jackass. Those were her favorite pajamas. Damn him. She righted the computer chair and pushed the button to turn the screen off. It blanked and she sighed, staring at it for a moment. Then she turned and straightened the bed carefully, thought there was little to do. She had not used it, only for little things, like sitting on it for a moment had messed it up a little. She had already scrubbed the blood from her floor, though in some places it was still stained.

There was nothing else to do to straighten her room, so she pulled out a large duffel bag and began to sort through her meager wardrobe. She brought her three pajama sets and all of her underwear. Her three favorite jeans would go, plus a pair of loose and comfortable rain pants with multiple pockets. They were insulated and very comfortable. She put all of her skanky shirts aside, since she only wore them at home, and took all of her 4 t-shirts. She also packed a white collared shirt that unzipped part of the way down. It could be worn conservatively, mostly zipped, or provocatively, unzipped and showing her cleavage. She usually kept it zipped a little, just enough to not be provocative. She packed it; careful to keep the collar folded right and proceeded with her other packing. She took her nicest skirt, just in case, and a dress to wear on a warm day to school, or wherever. It was a white cotton dress, short-sleeved, coming down to swirl around her ankles. It came down low on her back, and ended in a V in the front. It was comfortably tight to her body and became looser from her hips down. She steeled herself at last second and packed her favorite black spaghetti strap that stayed tight to her and showed just an inch of her stomach.

After she had finished packing her sweatshirts and some jewelry, she went to find her makeup. She got it out of the bathroom cabinet and applied some the best she could to cover her bruises. A thin line of black went beneath and above her eyes, and she applied a little lip-gloss to her full lips. Satisfied, she packed that too and then a few little things she would need, tampons and toothpaste being examples. She had just finished her period, but sometimes it was very irregular and had once been only two weeks apart. She grabbed her own, personal bottle of aspirin, and other little necessities, including her toothbrush. She would have to talk Sesshoumaru into getting her some shampoo and conditioner, to keep from using his. She finished with that stuff and sat in her computer chair, feeling a tilt a little too much under her weight, still slightly messed up. Looking at her ramshackle desk, she saw a book she had not finished and picked it up. Lady Moonlight was a book of fantasy and romance. She turned over to the back and read the summary for the hundredth time.

"County Sligo, Ireland, 1899. A desperate and beautiful young woman makes a dangerous pact with a sly leprechaun-and finds herself under a spell that threatens her very freedom… and her only chance for true love."

Kagome sighed, rereading that passage before going on. There was no such thing as true love, was there? It was just part of fairytales. She read on.

"Aisling Ahearn's hand in marriage had been promised away to forgive her fathers debts. But Aisling had always wanted to marry for true love-and took a terrible risk, trusting a leprechaun's magic to save her. Now, trapped in the faery world, suspended in eternal youth, the only way Aisling can escape is to fall in love with a mortal within one hundred years. Unfortunately, mortals only see her as a white mare-except when she appears under the light of the full moon.

It seems hopeless-until she meets Conlan Sloan, a bitter but passionate young man who awakens her faith in love. Their midnight romance is fleeting-Conlan's time in Ireland is all too brief. When he finally returns to Aisling, it is 1999, with only two moons left to win Conlan's love forever…"

She flipped through the pages and found where she was, almost at the very beginning. She didn't know why she had been putting this book off, she really liked the sound of it, but she just hadn't taken the time to read it. She had just finished the first part and was now starting book two. She laughed at the first paragraph of the chapter, Sloan explaining how he was going to drown his sorrows.

`Clutching the neck of a nearly full bottle of Gramp's best Irish Whiskey, Middleton Very Rare, Conlan Ambros O'Hara Sloan set out across the moonlit field to celebrate the worst day of the worst summer in his sixteen years in a very appropriate way. He was going to get stinking, roaring, falling down, forget-his-own-name drunk.'

Little sputters of giggles erupted from her throat as she read that, then she laughed outright and packed the book carefully into her already bulging bag. There were some very funny parts to that story, though most of the time they were hidden and not funny to the people who were in the story. The author, Kate Freiman, was very good at keeping each character acting the same throughout the story. Aisling had an accent that was very neat to read, and Conlan a bluntness and unsureness that made him very funny at times. She sighed and went back to packing. Or at least, that was what she was going to do, but she found there really wasn't much else to pack. She took a few more books, including a new one she had just gotten, called Seabiscuit by Laura Hillenbrand. She had seen the movie, but wanted to see if the book was much better than the movie like it happened with most. For instance, she had the whole Harry Potter series, and the first two movies differed in large and small ways from the book, and made the movies not anywhere near as good.

She turned and her eyes searched around her room, trying to find something else she would need. Finally she spied her portable CD player and her CD's and decided that would go. She tucked that away in her bag and checked one last time for any missed items. Finally satisfied she had all of the things she might really want or need she stuffed all of her notebooks and schoolbooks into her school bag and brought them all downstairs. Her mother was still in her room packing everything she would need, so Kagome set her things by the front door and fished in the refrigerator since it was 11:30 and she was starved. She made herself a sandwich and went into her mother's room, leaning against the doorframe. She still felt tired from all of the blood she had lost.

"Mom?" She projected her voice softly across the room so she wouldn't startle her mother. Atsuko turned around and smiled gently at her daughter.

"Mom, don't pack the important stuff yet, I still have to work out the details of it with Sesshoumaru, okay? Your probably wont go until tomorrow." Her mother nodded and finished packing her clothes. She snapped her suitcase shut and placed it out of the way on the floor, turning to face Kagome.

"Why don't you stay one last night here? I don't see any real harm in it." Kagome frowned and shook her head.

"No mom, I don't want him to come after you. If he hurt you guys because I let myself stay here…" She breathed in deep. "No, I dare not. Sesshoumaru will take good care of me, don't worry." Kagome said this with as much conviction as she could, but she could already feel the tendrils of dread steal through her. She would be staying with that cold man, alone, sleeping in the room next to him. It scared the hell out of her, she didn't really know what he might do, but it didn't matter, as long as her family was safe.

Her mother came close and touched her cheek lightly, smiling reassuringly. "I'm sure he will. I just wanted to spend one last night with my daughter before I am separated from her for some indefinite amount of time." She rubbed her thumb against Kagome's cheek. "But if you insist, I will let you go to make you happy. I know you will feel better if you think you are protecting us." Kagome nodded and smiled back at her mother, who finally turned and headed out to the kitchen. Kagome followed her and looked at the clock, still only 11:55. She had to wait a whole, long, two hours before she could even think about going up there. She may be afraid of what he would do, but the waiting was so much worse. She sat in a chair and drummed her fingers on the table. She caught herself and stopped with a huge force of will. She watched her mother bustle around the kitchen, making some simple delicious desert for them. Her foot started to tap the floor and she stopped it, and checked the clock again. 11:59. This was torture!!!! She watched with a detached awareness as her mother made the batter for cupcakes and put it in the oven. She came out of it when something silver flew at her and she caught it out of reflex, looking to see car keys jangling in her hand.

"Why don't you go and get your brother, rather than drive me nuts? By the time you get back from Satoru's house, the cupcakes will be almost done." Kagome smiled at her mother and dashed out to the car, her mother's voice following behind her.

"And be careful, okay! Don't beat on that poor old car! Mind the speed limit, especially when you have Souta in the car!" Kagome grinned and opened the car door, revving the engine, Her mother had done just the right thing, she loved to drive. Atsuko appeared in the doorway and waved her off, smiling as Kagome yelled an "OK!" to her. She pulled out of the driveway and roared off, her mother shaking her head.

~**~

Kagome hummed to the sound of the loud music thrumming in her ears, rocking the car. Her Linkin Park CD was in and she tapped her fingers on the steering wheel to it. From The Inside was one of her favorite songs by them, and she sang the words out loud. She rolled down the window and allowed the wind to ruffle her hair, feeling good on this abnormally warm day in April. The speed on the highway thrilled her and she shifted and put her blinker on to go around the tractor-trailer in front of her. She reveled in the speed; she was going 80, now 85. Not really all that fast, but this car was a piece of shit and she didn't want it to die on her.

After she passed the vehicle, she slowed a little and pulled back into the right hand lane. The exit she wanted was after the next one, so she didn't bother to pass the next car she caught up to. It was going 65 anyway; so she just waited until her exit and put her blinker on to go that way, shifting down to stop at the light at the bottom. Numb by Linkin Park came on the CD player and she yelled the words, making people stop and stare as she drove by. She laughed when a guy whistled at her and she flipped him off, feeling free, for some reason. She saw a hott guy walking on the street and had the urge to do something.

"Ow-ow-OW!" She yelled out the window. The guy looked at her and blushed before ducking his head and walking again. She grinned and turned down the street Souta was on. She had to contain herself now; Souta would tell if she did anything… `stupid'. She pulled into the driveway and beeped the horn to tell him she was there. He came out with his bags and smiled a greeting at her before putting them in the back and getting in the passenger side. He put his hand over his ear when Crawling blasted over the CD player and she apologetically turned it down a little. He grinned at her.

"You weren't driving crazy again were you Sis?" She pretended to look shocked and slapped his shoulder gently. He gave her a face and pouted. They both broke into grins and she accelerated onto the highway onramp and onto the highway. He gripped the seat and she rolled her eyes.

"Come on, Souta, I'm not even doing the speed limit, see?" He leaned over and saw that the speedometer read 50 and nodded, still looking nervous. She sighed and remembered what she was going to have to do when she got back. She looked at the illuminated clock on the dashboard. It was now 12:30. Since she had to drive slower on the way home, she would be home a little after 1. About quarter after. Then she remembered that she was leaving, and she aught to explain to Souta. She glanced his way.

"Souta, I have something very important to tell you, and I want you to listen carefully okay?"

~**~

Sesshoumaru had the Witness Protection problem all solved; Kagome's family would go as soon as possible. He just had to finish a few things before he showed up at his house to meet her. Hm, maybe he wouldn't. An idea formed its way into his brain and took hold, infesting itself. He glanced at the clock on the wall and saw it was now about 1:30. He shuffled the rest of the papers together and put them away, deciding to do it. He grabbed the forms he needed for Kagome's mother and his coat, leaving it off in the heat. He started to his coveted car and got in quickly, figuring it would take 15 minutes to get there, normally. Today, probably 10 minutes.

~**~

Souta got out of the car, thoroughly filled in, though Kagome had smoothed over some things and skipped others. She did not want her little brother to know, for instance, exactly what had happened to her. He had asked if the `Bad Man' had given Kagome the cuts and bruises, and she replied only some, not wanting him to think she had been that abused. She could tell that his young eyes had not believed her though and she sighed as she pulled the keys out of the ignition. Her good mood had totally dissipated, talking about that was not the best way to stay in a good mood. One thing was for sure; she had to get a job soon, and her own car. She leaned back in, remembering her CD, and then went back into the house with it, glad she had remembered to bring it in. She had left it in the car before, and she loved that CD. This time if she left it, she would not have it for a while, so she packed in into her stuff, sliding in into the case and putting the CD case back in her bag.

When she straightened up her mother was glaring at her and Kagome winced. That was not a good sign.

"What in the world did you tell Souta that stuff for? I could have explained it to him!" Her voice was not loud, but the force of words made up for it. Kagome swelled with indignity.

"Souta is twelve years old and plenty old enough to hear that! He had every right to know. I didn't tell him the details, but I think he guessed just as easily as you did. He's not stupid, Mom, and he deserves more credit than you give him sometimes. He's not a baby anymore." Her voice had become soft near the end, and with it her mother's face. She knew her daughter was right, he was old enough. He probably heard about worse things in school. She sighed and apologized.

"I'm sorry, Kagome. I'm just a little stressed and didn't see it the way you did. But your right, he is old enough to know." The room fell into a heavy silence for a moment that was broken by Souta entering the room, singing Pushing Me Away. Kagome smirked and tried not to grin, while Atsuko gave her a dark look. She wasn't supposed to play that dark and depressing stuff around him. Her mother rolled her eyes and grabbed two potholders. She opened the oven door and a delightful aroma filled the room, making Kagome's mouth water. Chocolate cupcakes were placed on the table, and Kagome had to exercise a lot of self-control not to grab them and eat them all.

Souta sat at the table to wait and Kagome followed suit, sitting across from him. Atsuko brought over the bowl of vanilla icing and spread generous amounts on each cupcake, making Kagome go crazy with the smell. Her mother set the bowl on the counter and sat at the table, giving them each a small paper plate. She slid one cupcake slowly out and placed it one Souta's plate, who waited impatiently for Kagome to get hers. Her mother slid hers out and handed it to her. Kagome stared at it and licked her lips, almost unable to wait; finally her mother set hers on her plate and pulled off the paper. Souta and Kagome both grabbed their cupcakes and peeled off the wrapper, taking huge bites of them. MMMmmm's and the sound of three happy people eating was all that was heard over the ticking of the clock and the sound of cars zooming by.

Kagome finally slowed down and enjoyed the taste of it, savoring the rich flavors. She was interrupted from her reverie when there was a sharp knock at the door, making her jump. She quickly got up to get it, thoroughly confused as to who it may be. She slid past her mother and padded in her socks down the hallway, turning to see a face haloed by silver. Golden eyes stared into hers almost reproachfully as she slowly opened the door.

"Sesshoumaru." She breathed. He raised an eyebrow. She swallowed and tried to make her brain work properly.

"Yes, that would be me. Now can I come in, or shall I stand here all day?" Kagome blushed deeply and opened the door a little wider, mumbling a quick sorry. He stepped into their apartment and then followed her into their kitchen. Souta looked at him wide-eyed with chocolate all over his mouth. Her mother stood and ushered him to the table, having him take the available seat, to Kagome's right and across from her mother. Sesshoumaru sat gracefully and accepted one of the precious cupcakes. She sat down at the table and almost flipped her chair. She fixed it and blushed again, going very red under his amused gaze as he peeled the paper off the cupcake. Atsuko gave her daughter a knowing look before making unrelated comments, from the weather to the latest news. Kagome finally collected her wits. When there was a short silence as he finished the confection and she jumped at it.

"So, why are you here Sesshoumaru? You said not to come before 2 because of work, and yet you are here and it's quarter of 2." His eyes bored into hers and she forced herself to return his gaze and not blink.

"I have come to give you mother these papers, which she needs to sign, then tomorrow she and your brother will go into the Program. I also thought I'd collect you on the way back to my house." His cool voice took a moment to flow into her ears and process. She felt shocked at first that he would do that, but why she didn't know, she didn't even know him. For all she knew, he could be really nice guy with a cold exterior. Why was she suddenly judging him?

"I have one other thing that I forgot to pack." She mumbled and grabbed her duffel. She hauled it onto her shouldered and tripped, almost falling. A strong arm caught her and steadied her. She smiled gratefully into golden eyes, blushing once again. She headed up the stairs and into her room. She flung herself onto her bed and wondered why she was acting like that. She shook her head and then saw the rose Inuyasha had given her, sticking out of the book she had put it in to dry and preserve. She pulled it out and smiled sadly at it for many moments. Finally she put it back into the book, King of The Wind, and placed the large book at the bottom of her bag, digging to accomplish this. She held the two flaps together and managed to get them zipped. She hauled it over her shoulder again and this time managed to keep her balance. She exited her room, astonishingly calm and somehow content with something. What, she didn't know. She went down the stairs carefully and stood at the bottom, watching them all as they peered at her.

"Are we going?" She asked in a light voice. Sesshoumaru did not reply but instead stood from his spot at the table and made his way around it. She stepped forward to meet him and her mother stood from the table. She hugged her tight, then Souta, and told them she would see them soon. Souta was pouting at seeing his older sister leave, and waved at her forlornly. She waved back and started for the door, accompanied by Sesshoumaru. She held the door until he grabbed it and squinted into the bright sunlight.

His magnificent car stood in her driveway, flashing in the sunlight. God, she wanted that car. Maybe someday she would talk him into letting her drive it. One look at his impassive face said it would not be today. She sighed and went over to the rear of the car and waited for him to unlock it before opening the trunk and stowing her stuff in there. She was glad he had the top back on this nice day and said so as she got in the car. He did not answer her and she grimaced and shook her head. It was going to be hard to get used to that. She inhaled the scent of fresh leather and smiled, she loved that smell. She settled comfortably into the seat and watched as Sesshoumaru got in next to her and started the beast up. It roared to life and quieted to a low purr. Kagome listened carefully and heard exactly what she expected, perfection.

Sesshoumaru could hardly believe it as he watched her face glow in relaxed contentedness while she smelled the leather of the seats. She seemed to have a far away look when he started it and he realized she was listening to the engine purr. He almost chuckled at her, but instead let out a small sigh and put the car into gear. That seemed to get her out of her daze and he was sorry to see her eyes grow worried and nervous. Her body radiated sadness and longing he decided was to stay with her family. She turned to watch her house as they drove away and he saw her little brother's face plastered against the window and her mother waving sadly from the doorway in his rear-view mirror. He went back to watching the road and cast sidelong glances at her, seeing a single tear roll down her cheek. She made no effort to stop it or wipe it away and he had the urge to do it for her. He stopped himself by gripping the steering wheel tightly and accelerating. Her face registered no surprise, nothing except sadness. He growled out loud this time and shifted up a gear. She darted him a look.

"Your not planning on getting us a ticket, are you? And what's the growling about?" Her voice was distant and seemed unlike this girl. She should be the cheery, happy sort, not the type to keep herself wrapped up and unhappy.

"Stop crying. It's pointless. There's absolutely no need." His voice flowed smoothly and she stiffened and turned angry eyes on him.

"What, am I supposed to be happy that my mother is forced into the Witness Protection Program because I made a mistake? I am supposed to be glad that I am being chased and abused by a maniac who wants a powerful jewel and will probably do terrible things if he gets it?" Her voice got higher and higher as she spoke, ending in a screech. He growled again and gave her a swift and deadly look.

"I only ask that you do not brood, it does not become you. And do not yell in my presence, please. There's absolutely no point in dwelling on what's to happen or what has happened, there is no way of changing it." His voice came out sharper than usual and his cold, hawk eyes pinned her to the spot. But it made her think before she spoke again, and she realized he was right. What was done was done, and there was no way to change it, the only thing she could change or determine was the future. She settled back into the seat and smiled at the side of his face, as he was concentrating on driving.

"Your right, I'm sorry. We just have to do the best we can to catch that asshole, okay?" Her smile undid his anger, rather quickly, and softened his eyes. He felt a nagging feeling tug at him for yelling at her and sighed irritably at it. He saw her once again studying him while he drove, and watching every move he made. He looked ahead and saw the sign to go onto the highway, and then remembered something. He drove past it like he would have anyway and pulled into McDonalds. Where they were going did not require going on the highway, and he wasn't going to, until he got the idea. He abruptly opened the door and got out, catching her unsure and surprised glance. He smirked and went around to her side of the car, watching as she looked up at him through the sun. Her eyes looked slightly frightened and he almost said something to reassure her, but bit his tongue. After many moments her fear almost diminished and he finally spoke.

"You have your license, correct?" She lost all fear at that and was overcome by confusion. What did that have to do with anything?

"My driver's license? Yeah, I do, why?" She shaded her eyes and looked back up at him, his face shadowed with the sun behind him, his silver hair haloed in golden sunlight. She flushed and tried not to show how much his mere presence affected her.

"Well. Crawl over and show me what you know." His voice was emotionless, as usual, but she could detect the slightest amount of kindness and understanding in his demeanor. She grinned at his meaning and slid over, watching him as he climbed into her vacated seat. He raised his eyebrows at her and she flushed again, this time with happiness. She bit her lip, grinning at him, and then turned to look at the car from this point of view. After checking everything out, she put it into gear and rolled quickly out onto the road. He directed her onto the highway and she gladly obliged, too happy to care where they were going. The car handled like she thought it would, shifting smoothly and quickly, with the smallest of sounds. It seemed to read her mind as she flew down the highway in the middle lane.

"Do you mind if I…?" She motioned to the CD player and his CD case. He lifted a hand to tell her to do whatever and she smiled in delight. She found one of her favorites, Evanescence, and put it in. She turned the volume up and pushed play. `Going Under' boomed out of his Speakers and floated out and around the car. She laughed happily and passed a car going slowly in front of them. She stayed at the speed limit, not sure if he would want her to be speeding in his car. He leaned his elbow against the doorframe and glanced at her, compelling her to look at him.

"Do you plan to get there today, or in a few days?" She smirked and gave him an innocent look.

"You wouldn't be suggesting that I speed, now would you?" She said, in mock concern. He saw it and actually laughed at her playfulness, unable to help it. She grinned at him and shook her head. "Well, if you insist…" She pressed on the gas and shifted, letting off it and pressing it down lightly again. He was surprised at the skill she exercised as she shifted smoothly and passed car after car, going slowly faster and faster. Her face was joyous and she sang the next sang that came on his CD; `Haunted'. He could not stop the grin that graced his lips when she started singing loudly to it. She gave him a huge smile as she sang and tapped the steering wheel in time to it.

She checked their speed, 85, and then 90. She stayed there and flew past other cars, weaving easily in between car after car. She glanced at him and began to sing, seeing his face break into a small grin.

"Watching me/ Wanting me/ I can feel you pull me down/ Fearing you/ Loving you/ I won't let you pull me down.

Hunting you I can smell you -Alive/ Your heart pounding in my he~a~a~d.

Watching me/ Wanting me/ I can feel you pull me down/ Saving me/ Raping me/ Watching me!!!" She drummed her fingers to the song and didn't sing the last verse, just listened to it. He hoped she sang some more, she had such a pretty voice. It was musical and rich, complementing the song and the singer, Amy Lee.

Kagome felt so elated driving that car down the highway with him, teasing and whipping past other people. She avoided a bad driving car and hummed happily to the next song, `Tourniquet'. She hoped he didn't mind her singing. She just couldn't help it, when she drove, she liked to sing.

A sudden crashing noise and a bang startled her and she glanced in the rear-view to see a cloud of smoke swirling into the sky. Another glance revealed that the car she had avoided had crashed into another car and blew up. She forced her eyes back on the road and slowed down a little, sure there would be cops. She slowed down to 75 and hoped that would do. Sesshoumaru gave her a piercing look and turned back in the seat from his twisted position when he had been trying to see what was behind them. He gave her another odd look before turning back straight and turning down her favorite song just loud enough to still hear it clearly, `Imaginary'.

"It seems it was a good bit of driving on your part that you avoided that car." His low voice carried easily over the music. She bit her lip and glanced at him in worry.

"What do you mean?" She asked, dreading the answer. He arched an eyebrow at her and stayed silent for many moments.

"I think that car was meant for us." He confirmed what she had been thinking. She glanced at him with big eyes and licked her dry lips.

"That, that's not possible! Naraku wouldn't try to kill me, he doesn't know what the thing he wants is or looks like! He can't kill me until he finds out! If he does, he'll never know." She divided her eyes from between the road and Sesshoumaru. His face held nothing, still was stoic, even now.

"I don't think it was meant to kill us, just warn us. I think he was trying to scare us." His level voice never failed to get on her nerves, not when she was in a state like this. She saw a rest spot and pulled into it, getting out of the car as soon as it was stopped and in park. He did not question her, just watched her struggle quickly out of the car and onto the grass barely 20 feet away, before crumpling down and wrapping her arms around her long legs. He slowly got out and went to her, kneeling next to her. He did not touch her or say anything, just waited. And after many moments his patience was rewarded.

"That's one more person hurt or killed, all because of this stupid jewel, all because of Naraku. How many more innocent people will die at his hands before we can catch him?" Her voice was dull, her face set. Her chin was resting on her knees and he tried not to stare into her hanging shirt. It was loose in the front and left a large gap, which he could easily see into, from this angle. He berated himself and tore his gaze away.

"I don't know what is going to happen, but it will happen whether we sit here and moan about it or not. You have to let come what will come." She turned her blank face to him and just stared up at him for many moments, realizing just how wise his words really were. Finally she stood with his help and started slowly back to the car, getting into the passengers seat.

He said nothing of this, just got into the drivers side and roared out of the resting area, the faint sounds of `Whisper' playing. He turned it up and got off on the next exit, which was the one to get to his work. She stayed silent the entire time, staring out across the countryside as they drove. When the CD started over he heard the faint sound her singing when `Bring Me To Life' came on. She smiled as she sang when he glanced at her and stopped.

"Sorry." She murmured. He grunted and she took that as acceptance. But she was wrong.

"Keep singing." He said gruffly, his usually smooth voice different. She darted him a look and began to sing again, not questioning it.

"Frozen inside without your touch without your love

Darling only you are the life among the dead"

She waited for the next part and sang, allowing her voice to rise a few decibels. Maybe he liked her singing. She was glad, everyone always said she sang good, but you could never believe what your mother and your best friends told you, it was often not the truth. They didn't want to hurt your feelings. Just as it ended she felt them come to a stop and snapped to attention, checking out where they were. It was the some type of lab place, what were they doing here? He cut the engine and motioned for her to come with him. She got out of the car and followed him into the tall building, careful to avoid eye contact with anyone else in there.

The receptionist was talking to Sesshoumaru, and handed him something. She was curious what it was but decided to wait until later to ask, now was not the time.

She did not make a noise behind him and he tried not to sigh in annoyance. Finally her got sick of it and placed a hand on her back, feeling her jump and grow tense as he did so. He pulled her up next to him and introduced them, explaining to her that he was checking out the evidence. She answered direct questions only and kept her eyes down, making him worry. This was not how he wanted her to be, she should not be so withdrawn. It seemed so out of character for her. He hoped she got over it soon, though he didn't see how she would until Naraku was captured and either in jail or electrocuted. He slowly removed his hand from her back and watched her shiver. She was so afraid, and something within him called to help her. He bit it back with all of his arrogant pride and paid attention to what he was saying.

"We have to be leaving now. Kagome still has to unpack. I will check again tomorrow." He turned and checked to see if she was following, having the urge to slid his arm around her petite waist as they headed out of the building.

Kagome got in the car and tried to work out what had just happened. When Sesshoumaru had put his hand on her, her immediate reaction was to pull away in fear. She had, out of habit, quelled the feeling and bent to his wishes, coming up and standing next to him. But he did not remove his hand for many moments, and it sent shivers up her spine where it touched. His hand, being near him, all made her breath quicken and something in her tighten. But this wasn't fear; she wasn't sure why she felt it so strongly. His hand slowly going across her back had made her feel tingles, all the way down to the pit of her stomach. She almost wished he would do it again.

She sat in the passenger seat and sent glances his way, peering at him and trying to watch him without his knowing. He caught her as he was turning the CD player back on and she whipped her head back forward, training her eyes on the road. `My Immortal came on and she allowed herself to sink into the music, feeling it, almost making a tear run down her cheek at the sadness of the song. Her voice flowed richly and filled with anguish or happiness depending on the song. The next song came on, and the next. She brought herself back to the surface when they pulled to a stop once again and looked at the place she would be staying. During her other visit, she hadn't taken the time to look over anything, and now she did so with awe. The building was not huge, but large enough, and an architectural accomplishment. The lawn was cut almost exactly even and the bushes all shaped the same boring size. Behind the house she could see the edge of a pool and then more yard. The pretty dark green grass rolled on for at least 50 feet before ending in tall coniferous trees.

She got out of the car and followed Sesshoumaru to the front door slowly, looking all around. It was beautiful, and she liked it. Everything was clean and perfect. The only thing she didn't like was that it was too perfect. Every bush was the same size; there were no leaves to be seen on the evenly cut grass. A flowerbed had evenly spaced flowers in an order of color, beautiful flowers, but none of the naturalness that made them truly beautiful. She bent to touch a red one lovingly, remembering the rose she had received from Inuyasha. She sighed and stood to see Sesshoumaru watching her with his empty eyes. He turned back to the house and went up the steps, opening the door and letting her in first. If she had to say one thing about him, as cold as he was, he was always gentlemanly. He really was the opposite as his brother in most ways, except his eyes and that long silvery hair, though his was even longer than Inuyasha's had been. And his eyes were so cold and vacant, dead.

She had already had plenty of time to study the inside of the house when she had been waiting for her mother earlier today, it seemed like ages ago. Was it only last night she had been attacked by Naraku?

Sesshoumaru disappeared into the kitchen and returned a moment later with two snack packs, one of which he handed her. She took it and the spoon and opened it care, licking the cover off. She heard him make a noise behind her and turned to look, but he was turning and going into the living room to sit. She did too and finally noticed the stains of blood on the floor that had not come up. She cringed at the sight of them but continued into the living room. She sat on the chair she had that morning, an oversized green recliner. She ate her chocolate pudding slowly, savoring it, she loved chocolate.

Sesshoumaru watched out of the corner of his eye as she licked her spoon and almost groaned again. It was driving him nuts, just watching her lick the spoon. He ate his own quickly and waited for her to finish hers, staring fixedly at the carpet. She finally did and he got up and took her empty container and disposed of both of them, putting the spoons in the empty sink. When he came back she was lifting up the arms of the chair to find little gimmicks under them. The left-hand one had a phone and a message with different settings, and other little features. She closed that and pulled back the right-hand one, revealing an icebox and a cup holder. He tried not chuckle at her wide-eyed exploration and coughed to get her attention.

"Lets get your stuff so you can unpack and settle in. I hope this residence is suitable for you for now." He opened the front door and she got up and went to the car to get her bags, sure now that he was rich. She returned a moment later with her bags and went across the living room and down the hallway, turning at Sesshoumaru's direction to the same room she had woken up in this morning. The bureau in the far corner was dark oak and so were the mirror and bedposts. It was painted a light blue and the thick carpet matched the walls.

"Yes, this will be great. Thank you, Sesshoumaru." He left her to unpack and get used to being there, telling her that he would be in the living room if he was needed.

~**~

I think I'll end it there since that is… 11 and a half pages, which is a lot for me. I hope everyone likes this story, please review if you do, don't, or don't have feelings either way. I would really appreciate it. Thank you to anyone who did leave a review. Sorry if you may have asked me to email you and I did not, I have been very pressed to get these chapters out and do it without feeling to pressed. Truly sorry.

RyuuAngel

ANNOUNCEMENT OF THE MOMENT: WHEN LIFE GETS YOU DOWN: "JUST KEEP SWIMMING, JUST KEEP SWIMMING, JUST KEEP SWIMMING, SWIMMING, SWIMMING..."