InuYasha Fan Fiction ❯ The Killer Inside ❯ Chapter 5: The Smell of Sunshine ( Chapter 5 )

Sorry this update took so long. I'm finally working again (yay) and I'm busy more often now. I'd like to thank my readers and reviewers, I'm glad you like what I've done, not that it's terribly impressive, but hey, it makes me happy!

Anyway! Enough chatter! MORE STORY! Again, Inu is a bit OCC, though Kagome is getting better, I think. No music this chapter. My fiancé gets annoyed when I play my music without my headphones (which I can't find) so I ended up listening to him blowing things up and killing aliens on his computer. HE doesn't have a jack for headphones on his computer. The sound of mutant alien spiders chittering and screaming is REALLY freaky; especially just before they get splattered by weird guns. ::shudders::

Chapter 5: The Smell of Sunshine

The fool's devotion

Swallowed up in empty space

The tears of regret

Frozen to the side of his face

The smell of Sunshine

I remember sometimes

~ NIN "i'm looking forward to joining you, finally"

"Yeah. I did."

The silence that hung over the kitchen after those three words was oppressive. Suddenly, Kagome didn't know what to say. That Inuyasha had loved her cousin deeply was painfully obvious; the quiet pain in his voice spoke volumes.

Silently, she drank her coffee, furtively glancing at her host between sips. When she was finished, she walked over to the sink and began to rinse her mug out. Might as well go home, she thought sadly. I have the feeling he's not going to welcome too much more of my company, though I'm actually beginning to enjoy his.

"There might be a bagel in the bread box if you're hungry," Inuyasha said suddenly, surprising the girl. "I'm not a cook. The best I can usually do is a bowl of cereal or a toasted bagel in the morning. I'm kinda helpless without frozen dinners."

"You don't have to make me breakfast," she whispered.

"I'm not making you breakfast," he almost growled. "You can make it yourself, wench. I'm not about to cook for every god damned, nosy bitch…" He paused, clenching his fist around the mug. Kagome heard the creak of porcelain about to crack and took a step towards him, one hand outstretched.

"Inuyasha?"

He paused and looked up at her, his fist relaxing. Shrugging, he looked away. When he spoke again his voice was not so harsh yet still conveyed his strength.

"I'm not used to people coming over. I'm not used to company. I won't apologize; I'm not sure I could be sincere and I don't like empty words. But I'd like it if you'd stay a little while. I know I'm rough around the edges but I'm- I'd like you to stay. Do you mind?" He made sure he didn't make eye contact with her while he spoke, instead looking out the kitchen window into the mess the backyard had become.

"No, it's ok. I'll stay if you like," she whispered. She wanted to comfort him, wrap her arms around him and hug some of the pain away. He wouldn't accept it, she knew. He would see it as pity and his pride would not allow it. She bit her lip trying to come up with a safe topic.

"Do you have Fruity Pebbles?" she asked timidly.

"No. Closest I've got is Lucky Charms." He laughed, though it sounded a bit more like a bark. "You still eat kids' cereals?"

Kagome grinned. "When I can get my hands on them. I kinda miss Smurf Berries."

"Haven't seen Smurf Berries in a really long time. I've got some `magically delicious,' super sugary, marshmallow toddler crack, though." He took a seat on a stool and watched her. "Help yourself. They're in the third cabinet on the right. Bowls are above the dishwasher on the left."

Kagome helped herself to a large serving and sat down at the stool opposite where he host had sat, at the kitchen island. As Inuyasha got his own breakfast ready, she watched him, fascinated by the way he moved. He's so graceful, she thought, so strong and… She bit her lip at the thought. He was attractive, true, but he was not going to be interested in her or even in a relationship at this point. Maybe a quick fuck, but Kagome was pretty sure she wasn't good at being just a quick fuck. A relationship would be out of the question. She couldn't blame him. The death of a fiancé had to be difficult to live through. Add that he wasn't sure if he'd killed her and the rumors of her infidelity and you had one horrible mess! Kagome had heard that he'd accused Kikyou of cheating on him, that he'd had some irrefutable evidence that she'd slept with another man. Apparently he'd made a public scene when he'd surprised her at the university one day and accused her of sleeping around.

Kagome still couldn't believe that Kikyou would be unfaithful. Something was not quite right here. Kagome and Kikyou had not been the sort of cousins to giggle over schoolgirl crushes. First off, Kikyou had been quite a bit older and much more serious than Kagome ever had been. But they did share interesting experiences on occasion.

When thirteen year old Kagome had called, bubbling and giggling about her first kiss, Kikyou had related the tale of hers, which was not quite as exciting, but still interesting to hear. Kikyou had never cheated on a boyfriend. Ever. In fact, Kagome only knew of two other men her older cousin had dated and both relationships had ended amicably because one or the other had moved. Kikyou had confided that Inuyasha had been the only lover she'd ever had, a fact which now made Kagome somewhat uncomfortable because she found him so attractive. Her cousin had made it clear she was satisfied with the relationship and had said she was now ruined for other men. There had to be some reason Kikyou had betrayed him! It wasn't like her to… do something like that.

Kagome mulled over the question as she munched her sugary treat. Well, whether she cheated or not, there was definitely another man involved and he might have something to do with her death. Of course asking Inuyasha who the guy was might be like walking up to a lion and saying "boo." But what about all those people she worked with or her friends? Someone had to have known something about what had gone on.

"Inuyasha?" she asked hesitantly. "What was Kikyou working on when she died?"

He made a face as he ate his own cereal. Swallowing a mouthful, his forehead wrinkled. "She was working with a group experimenting with Shikon; I think she said it was a hallucinogen?" Kagome nodded. She was familiar with the drug; some of her friends who were med students had stolen it from their labs to sell as a natural alternative to LSD. "She said something about it being used for control over delusional patients with powers; youkai run amuck and the like."

"Yeah, I've heard of that; we discussed it in my botany classes. But Kikyou worked with a university group, not a drug company. It's seriously strong shit. Most universities won't touch it unless they have a hospital attached and use it in their emergency rooms, mainly because it tends to get stolen for recreational uses."

"I don't know, Kagome," Inuyasha shook his head. "I'm just telling you what Kikyou said. She didn't often talk about her work to me, so when she did I paid attention. I think she felt that it might corrupt the data if she shared it outside of the scientific community."

"Was she in charge of the group or was it someone else?"

"I think she said it was Naraku, the guy on the list she sent you. He and Kanna transferred here the year before Kikyou started."

"What else did Kikyou do?"

"Not too damn much, as far as I remember. She was a bit obsessed with work. She worked out at the university gym and I think she'd made friends with Sango Tatian."

Kagome smiled. "Huh. That's funny. Sango never mentioned spending time with her to me. I know they knew each other but I didn't know they were friends."

"You know Sango?" Inuyasha looked a little shocked

"Of course!" Kagome giggled and shook her head, taking a bite of her now nearly soggy cereal. "I've lived here a year now; you think I've been a recluse or something? I pretty much grew up here, as well. You know we visited this place three or four times a year, right?"

"No, I didn't know that. I'm a bit shocked that you even know Sango, actually. Sango is a few years younger than me and she's also not one of the easiest people to get along with. Sure she's a nice girl and a dedicated police woman, but she's a tad defensive and hard to get close to."

"Well, I like her. I've spent most of my summers here and I played with Sango when we were younger. We were pen pals for a long time as well. Our brothers are friends, too. Hell, even our cats get along!" She smiled more widely and pointed her spoon at him. "Actually, I'm really surprised you and I never met; Aunt Kaede told me you grew up here but I never saw you. I was pretty social when I was visiting and I know just about everyone in town, except for those affiliated with the university. With your features, I'd remember if I'd met you."

It was Inuyasha's turn to smile. "That might be because I'm fifteen years older than you and we moved to New York when I was thirteen, which would have been two years before you were born." He chuckled at her blank stare.

"You're thirty-six?"

"Yeah."

"Damn. You don't look a day over twenty-five!"

"Hanyou age well."

Kagome blinked at him and then laughed. "Duh, that's right, you are a hanyou. I'd forgotten. Hanyou hardly age at all, baka. I remember learning in school that most can live a good six to seven hundred years if they take care of themselves. Especially hanyou who have a taiyoukai parent."

"True. Dad is definitely a taiyoukai. He's almost three millennia old, now. My half-brother Sesshomaru is seven hundred years old and doesn't look at day over thirty." He smirked, obviously thinking about his brother. Then his eyes clouded over in what cold only be called grief. "Kikyou often told me she wished I were human so we could have similar life spans."

"That wasn't nice," Kagome responded with a frown. "Kinda stupid, too. Taiyoukai can generally give their `mates' extended life spans and their hanyou children have been shown to generally have similar powers. With an aura as strong as yours, you could have done it."

"I offered. She declined."

"Idiot," Kagome muttered under her breath.

"I agree," he replied. He was beginning to feel exposed. Fucking hell, why the fuck has she got to be so damn nice? I want to be nice back! But I don't want to encourage her. Things will just get harder, for both of us. He watched as she ate her breakfast, his inner demon wavering between forcing her up against the wall and kissing her breathless and grabbing her by the hair and throwing her out of his house. Ignoring both desires was probably best.

"How the hell do you know so much about hanyou anyway, wench?" he growled, trying to deny that she affected him.

"You know, you sound really dumb when you call me `wench,' dog-boy," she snapped.

"Feh." He just crossed his arms and stared at her. She laughed.

"`Feh!' You're such a dork." He curled his lip at her in a mock snarl, making her giggle. "Anyway, I studied because I was curious. Humans share this world with several other sentient species yet tend to isolate themselves, mainly out of fear of the unknown. I feel that knowledge is power; the more I know, the less likely I am to make some type of error dealing with one sentient or another. There are many more Youkai out there than Fae. I found them similar when I studied them, though. For instance, half beings are common in both species, especially half-humans. Actually, I find it a miracle that hanyou exist at all with all the trouble humans have reproducing, not to mention the species DNA barrier. It should be scientifically impossible for human DNA to mix with youkai DNA. Yet there are many hanyou born every day."

"Few hanyou have children, though."

"I noticed that. I've often wondered why that is."

"We can live a long time. Often, we want to have all our fun before settling down and having a family. Children with any youkai blood can be difficult to raise and need the parents' undivided attention. Some of us wait too long, though. I have a hanyou friend who is nearly two-hundred years old, looks about thirty and has no intention of fathering children until he looks a bit closer to fourty."

"You were ready to start a family with Kikyou though and you're still young. Why?" Kagome leaned forward, her brow furrowed.

"I felt I was ready. But it was a moot point; Kikyou did not want a family with me. I doubt she wanted to have children at all but she especially didn't want them with me."

"But-"

"She told me if I wanted kids I could adopt," he interrupted.

Kagome looked at him in horror then closed her eyes and put her hands over her face. Kikyou, how could you? His heritage is something to be proud of, not something to hide and shun. You little fool. She took a claming breath and looked back up at her companion. She could feel the anger eating at her and she was sure that it was nothing compared to Inuyasha's. The woman he'd asked to be his wife had rejected even the thought of having his child. It had to hurt like hell.

"I'm so sorry, Inuyasha."

"It's not your fault."

"No, but she was my relative. She may have been a good person, but she let her prejudices and her emotional scars get in the way of your relationship and that was wrong. Kikyou should have been in therapy but negative feelings against youkai are so common, no one thought to suggest it. Did she ever tell you about Ainako?"

"Who?" Inuyasha looked confused.

"Ainako was her older sister. I think she would have been thirty-eight last month. They weren't extremely close, but they were sisters all the same. I didn't know her at all. She was fifteen when she died and I hadn't been born yet.

"Most of the family lived in the Washington, DC area at that time, Kikyou and her parents were living in the Alexandria area. I don't know all the details, but I do know that Ainako was kidnapped while on the metro. The kidnapper contacted the family but didn't demand anything, he just put her on the phone and told her to scream. I think he just wanted to let them know she was being tortured." Kagome took a deep breath and closed her eyes for a moment. When she opened them again, they were filled with tears. "Her body was found a few days later. There was evidence of torture, mutilation and rape. After a few autopsies it was decided that Ainako had been murdered by a spider youkai."

"Kikyou would have been about six," Inuyasha whispered.

Kagome nodded. "She never got over it."

"No. I don't expect she would have."

"She hated youkai and hanyou," she said sadly. "I think it was amazing that she fell in love with you. You must have been very special to her."

"Was he ever caught?"

"No, but through witnesses and a few similar crimes he was eventually identified as a spider youkai named Onigumo. He disappeared about ten years ago, no trace has been found of him since. Kikyou warned me to stay away from all youkai and anyone with any youkai blood, just in case."

Inuyasha smiled. "She was protective of you."

"I was the next most powerful miko in the family." Kagome laughed. "I think a lot of her interest in me stemmed from that, you know. We've had a few other miko in the family; Ainako had been a miko, actually." Kagome looked down at her empty bowl and smiled sadly. "I should get going. Thank you for breakfast." She stood and took her bowl to the sink, rinsing it out. Inuyasha's eyes followed her.

"You're welcome." He stood and walked to the kitchen door. "I can walk you out if you like." Hands stuffed in his pockets, he looked somewhat shy to Kagome.

"I'd like that," she responded, walking to the door to stand facing him. She looked up at him and smiled, hoping to see him again soon. "Would you mind if I came and worked on the kudzu out there later on this week?" she asked meekly, not wanting to reveal her eagerness to see him again. "I really am interested in seeing some of your mother's base spells. I can feel some real power in this ground."

"That would be… nice." He slipped past her and began to lead her through the house. He could smell her behind him, the warm floral scent relaxing him. "Thank you," he finally said as he reached the front door and opened it for her.

"For what?" she asked as she walked past looking up at him.

"The disk."

"Oh! No problem!"

He followed her out onto the porch and stuck his hands back in his pockets and avoided her eyes. "Still, you made an effort to help me and I appreciate it."

"Well, thank you for breakfast, then."

"You're welcome." He looked off at the trees and tapped his bare foot against the weathered wooden boards of the porch. "Would you mind helping me?"

"Anything you want, all you need to do is ask, Inuyasha," she responded.

"Be careful what you say to a youkai, wench," he warned. A chill had gone through him as she'd spoken and he'd felt a flare of miko magic. "Most of us will hold you to it and not all of us are as friendly as I am."

"Yes, yes, oh evil one."

"I'm not kidding, bitch!"

Kagome rolled her eyes. "I'm sure you're not! But I'm perfectly willing to do what I can to help you. I have no qualms about making you that promise."

"Because my eyes are killing you?" he snarled, throwing her words back in her face, now glaring directly into her warm brown eyes.

"Because, for some strange reason, I like you." It was Kagome's turn to look off into the trees. "I trust you and I like you. You seem like a decent person beneath the jack-ass exterior."

"Feh. I'm not."

"Oh that's so obvious. And it's also obvious I'm not a bitch who has the sudden desire to make you sit like the dog you are." Kagome turned back at him to glare as he smirked at her remark. Her glare didn't last long and soon she was smirking back, enjoying the banter between them. She was looking forward to coming back and working on his yard, to seeing him again. It might be torture to see and not be able to have, but she felt she could deal with it. When his eyes became serious again, her smile faded as well.

"Will you help me look for Kikyou's killer?"

"Yes. But you have to promise me something."

His eyes narrowed. Kagome knew he was debating about trusting her, even though he was the one who had asked her for help. "What?"

"Promise me you will be honest, even if I ask questions that are hard or that you don't want to answer." She bit her lip in anticipation. She could always cast a truth spell, but they weren't pleasant and she didn't want to destroy his already tenuous trust in her.

"A promise to a miko is like a spell and truth spells are damn uncomfortable," he replied.

"Yes and no," she hedged. "A promise to a miko is sacred but it won't cause discomfort unless I actually cast a truth spell, which I can't if you make this promise. It binds both of us."

"So I can't lie to you and you can't disbelieve my words."

"Pretty much."

Inuyasha smiled. That wouldn't be too hard. "OK. I promise to answer your questions as honestly as I can." Kagome raised an eyebrow. "I promise to answer all questions conserning Kikyou and her death-"

"And your relationship before her death!" Kagome interjected.

"And our relationship before her death?" Inuyasha growled. "What the fuck! You do not need to know more than you already do about that. No fucking way am I going to tell some girl hardly out of puberty about my sex life with her cousin!" Both of them blushed.

"I won't ask for… details like that." Kagome's blush turned hotter. "But think about it, you're not sure if you killed her or not. Something happened in your relationship and it ended. I'll need to know what happened between you the night before she was killed. And I'll need you to be completely honest, as hard as that might be." She reached up and put a hand on his shoulder and looked into his burning gold eyes. "Do you understand now?"

He nodded. "Yeah. I understand. I don't like it too damn much but I understand. I'll make the promise." He took her hand from his shoulder and placed it over his heart. "I promise to answer all your questions concerning Kikyou, her death, my relationship with her and our life together as best I can." Kagome felt her miko powers flare and wrap around the man in front of her.

"I promise to not doubt your truthful answers in those matters and to not cast any type of truth inducing spell on you." She gasped when his youki wrapped itself around her, binding her to her promise. "That was… very… interesting, Inuyasha." She shuddered for a moment, awed at the strength of his youki. God, I never want to have to fight this man, she thought. With a youki that strong, he could easily decimate whole cities and he's not even full demon.

"Feh," he huffed. "Just keep your promise, bitch."

"Of course." Several long moments of silence passed and each studied the other's feet, lost in thought. Kagome fidgeted with her keys, which were sticking out of her pocket. She noticed that his toenails were slightly clawed but not as obviously as his fingernails. Not wanting to seem like a total dork, she looked back up at his face, meeting his eyes as he brought them up to hers. For a second, she was still a bit off balance, startled by his eyes. Then she cleared her throat and spoke. "So… When do you want me to come over?"

Inuyasha shrugged and opened his mouth, then closed it again. "Um, I don't know. I mean-"

"Why pursue an uninterested hanyou," a voice interrupted, "when you could have a perfectly willing priest, young miko."

*@*@*@*@*

When Miroku had driven up the long lane to his new home, he had noticed two things: one was the not so new red jeep parked in the turn around and the other was that his landlord was having an intense discussion with a beautiful woman on his front porch. Not wanting to disturb the obviously irritated hanyou, he had driven over to the garage. But when he'd felt a flare of miko power and an answering flash of youki, he became curious and a little worried. He'd never felt so much power before and seriously hoped he was not seeing his first miko/hanyou battle. He ran over to the porch without thinking further and stopped in surprise.

Both of them were perfectly fine. He could tell that the woman was really little more than a girl, her curves more complete than a teenager's but not quite that of a woman in her late twenties, placing her at twenty-two at the oldest. And she was powerful, so powerful it almost hurt to look at her. Miroku's own spiritual powers were on the moderately strong side, not enough to attract attention but enough to serve his purposes. This girl's power was like a nuclear furnace: bright, fierce and strong.

And Inuyasha's youki was equal in strength.

They were avoiding each other's eyes as Miroku walked up to the porch steps. Oddly, neither noticed him. Miroku smiled. So the hanyou is falling for a miko. Stranger things have happened.

The girl looked at the hanyou and cleared her throat. "So… When do you want me to some over?" Her voice was hesitant and soft. Miroku's grin widened. She was just as interested in the hanyou, but nervous as well.

Inuyasha began to answer but Miroku, ever the mischief lover, interrupted.

"Why pursue an uninterested hanyou, when you could have a perfectly willing priest, young miko." Oh, yeah. He was going to get beat. The look on Inuyasha's face was priceless. He was livid.

"Hoshi," he growled.

"Yes, esteemed landlord?"

"Shut the fuck up before I tear your limbs off."

Miroku chucked. "Forgive me. It is hard for me to resist teasing a beautiful young woman."

"Fuck off."

"Inuyasha, is this the tenant you mentioned?" The girl had finally spoken up. Miroku surreptitiously looked her over, noting her long legs, warm eyes and firm curves. Yes, she was beautiful. Still, he couldn't help but compare her to Sango and in that comparison, this young girl came up somewhat lacking.

Inuyasha huffed, sneering. "Yeah, this is the letch I told you about. I hope you remember I also told you to stay away from him because he's quite accomplished at groping women?"

"I remember. Asking his name is not inviting a sexual advance." Her eyes narrowed for a moment and a somewhat sadistic smile spread across her sweet features. "And should it be seen that way, I am friends with the daughter of the chief of police here." She glanced his way and raised an eyebrow.

"Perish the thought! My name is Miroku Hoshi and I'm very pleased to meet you." Miroku gave one of his trademark smiles and quickly ran up the steps. "And who might you be?"

"I'm Kagome Higurashi." She put out a slim hand for him to shake and he took it. "I live over at Musashi Manor as Kaede's caretaker." He was surprised to feel calluses on her palm.

"You work hard for your keep?" he kept his voice light and softly worried hoping to get her to volunteer information about herself. "One as beautiful as you should not have to work so hard for her daily bread."

"I work hard because I want to. I have callused hands because I enjoy tending my gardens." She discretely slipped her hand from his grasp, her eyes narrowing slightly. Ah, so she's smart too, he chuckled internally. Not one to be easily swayed by a pretty face. Good, I think Inuyasha may need her. Something about that man worries me. "And you?" she asked politely, startling him from his thoughts. "What do you do?"

"I am about to begin teaching philosophy at Tama University," he replied proudly. "Three months ago I was the honored recipient of a letter requesting my expertise in Buddhism to fill a teaching position here."

"Oh?" The girl's face filled with curiosity and some suspicion. She'd be a horrible poker player; every emotion was on display. "You teach Buddhist philosophy? Will you be teaching anything else?"

"Well, as I am a Buddhist monk, Buddhism for the most part. I may teach a few classes on eastern religions and even a comparative religion course. The dean has not fully decided yet."

"Why does the thought of you being surrounded by nineteen year old girls send a shudder of horror through me?" Inuyasha asked absently.

"Because you are wise, Inuyasha," the monk said sarcastically. "But I shall have no time to chase students, my friend," Miroku replied.

"Yeah, that's right. You'll barely have time to prepare lesson plans. You'll be busy helping me rebuild this hunk of junk." Inuyasha smiled.

"Or you toss me out on my ass, correct?"

"Exactly," Inuyasha snarled.

Miroku noticed Kagome shaking her head at their display. Women brought out the best and the worst in men and these little pissing contests for their benefit could be either amusing or dangerous. He really hoped this was amusing to the male beside him and he wasn't about to get pummeled beyond recognition.

"Well, boys…" Kagome cleared her throat. "I have to get back to check on Kaede and then get to town to meet Sango and her brother." She turned to Miroku and shook his hand again. "It was very nice meeting you, Mr. Hoshi. Perhaps we can discuss houshi and miko powers at some point?"

"Please, call me Miroku. And I would love to discuss powers with one as powerful as yourself, Lady Kagome." Miroku bowed to her, confirming her veiled question of whether or not he had sensed her power flare.

"And as for you, Inuyasha…" The hanyou turned to look at her and Miroku felt the sudden crackle of opposing energies surround them. They weren't fighting though; they were merely clinging to each other. Power attracts power, the monk thought, and these two are going to have a hard time keeping away from each other. "I'll see you tomorrow. I'll help with the kudzu and then we'll get to work on that disk." The hanyou merely nodded and stared after her. Kagome smiled and walked down the steps, completely missing the broken one, jumped into her jeep and threw it into gear. She waved as she pulled out of the turn around, shouting, "Thanks for breakfast!"

Miroku chuckled at the implication. "Breakfast? She stayed the night? You old dog," he said, unable to keep the joke to himself. "Why, she must be half your age! But hell, for a piece of ass like that, I'd most likely do the same." He could feel the hanyou next to him glaring at him but just laughed.

"She did not stay the night. She's twenty-one. And she's related to my fiancé."

Miroku blinked, a little stunned. I did not imagine the attraction between those two, he thought, and he really doesn't seem like they type to cheat. That's more of a human trait; most dog demons are monogamous. "I didn't know you were engaged. Where is she? Who is she?"

"Former fiancé now, actually." Inuyasha growled at him. "Her name was Kikyou. She's been dead three years now."

That explains a hell of a lot.

Inuyasha turned on his heel and strode back into the house, slamming the door behind him. Miroku stared after him, deep in thought. He'd recognized the name Kikyou but for the life of him, couldn't remember where from.

*@*@*@*@*@*

I hope you enjoyed this last chapter. I'm not sure it moved the story forward much, but it got some things out of my head. There might be a bit of confusion at one point; I didn't keep very well to the single perspective per section and kinda threw in some of Inuyasha's thoughts in the middle of a Kagome part. Unfortunately, I liked his thoughts and decided they were staying.

I don't have a beta so if there are mistakes please forgive them. If you'd like to be my beta, please e-mail me!

Read and review, please!!