InuYasha Fan Fiction ❯ The Syndrome ❯ Not My Problem ( Chapter 7 )

Chapter 7 - Not My Problem

 

 

 

 

Kagome wanted to laugh at her friend. He'd brushed his teeth the whole time she was in the shower and when she'd finally thought he was done she found out she was wrong. Instead of walking away from the sink to give someone else a chance, he'd whipped out floss and set to work. She'd never seen someone floss so thoroughly, not even in the dental health videos they'd shown in middle school. After nearly five minutes of flossing, Inuyasha brushed his teeth again before rinsing with mouthwash. He turned around and gave her a fang-filled smirk and she had to agree, he had beautiful teeth. They were pearly white and shiny. Maybe his twenty plus minute morning routine was worth it. But probably not.

 

While Inuyasha was scrubbing imaginary plaque from his teeth Shippo had been struggling with his bushy red hair. After a few minutes of frustrated little growls and the occasional yip when he caught a snag Kagome took over. She flipped the lid down and sat on the toilet, her smaller friend standing in front of her. She started on the ends first, brushing carefully and painlessly removing the knots that had formed while he slept. When she got closer to the top she stood and a minute later she was securing his ponytail with one of the ouchless bands she had found for him. He turned around and she combed through his bangs with her fingers. “Perfect,” the miko said with a smile.

 

“Man, I wish you were here every morning. You are the only one who can get the mess of knots out without ripping out half my hair in the process.”

 

“It just takes patience,” she said, wishing secretly that she could be there every morning.

 

“No, it takes the special Kagome touch,” Inuyasha said, now finished with his teeth. “My turn, wench.” She only laughed, sat back down, and pointed at the floor. The inu hanyou sat at her feet and purred quietly while his miko brushed out his bright silver mane. While Sesshoumaru's hair was perfectly straight, Inuyasha's had a lot more volume which resulted in a mess of knots just like Shippo's. Kagome was the only one he trusted with a brush anywhere near his head though, having learned the hard way in the past that she was the only one who understood just how sensitive his ears really were. That and when she brushed his hair it felt like a soothing scalp massage and she always rubbed his ears gently, claiming that she was flattening down the fur on and around them but he knew she just liked to touch them. He didn't mind a bit. It felt wonderful.

 

“Down or up today?” she asked while rubbing his right ear. Kami, she loved his ears!

 

The half demon made a sound like he was thinking before answering. “Pulled back but low.”

 

She gave his ears one last tweak each before gathering his mass of hair and pulling it back to a ponytail at his neck. “Alright, you're all done. Now do ya think I can go put some clothes on?”

 

“I don't know, Kagome. You do look quite beautiful just as you are.” Kagome shot the lecherous monk a glare causing him to lift his hands in defeat. “Okay, okay, if you really want to get dressed then… I guess it'd be alright.”

 

“Did you bring clothes with you, Kagome?” Shippo asked from where he sat on the bathroom counter next to the sink.

 

“Nope. I didn't make it past the doorway of my room. And I am so not telling the story to Miroku. I know all he'd do is interrupt for more details,” she said, purposely talking like he wasn't in the room with them.

 

“Really? Is it a good story then?” the monk asked with a lifted brow.

 

“Only if finding six strangers screwing in your bed is good. For me, not so good.” The miko stood and Miroku moved to unlock and open the door for her. “Always a gentleman, huh? Keep your hands where I can see them,” Kagome said with a glare, knowing from extensive amounts of experience that he only opened the door for girls so he could grab their ass as they walked past him.

 

“So whose clothes is it gonna be today then?” Miroku asked, trying to distract her from his slowly moving hands.

 

“I'm just gonna rifle through Bank's closet. And if you make me say it again I'll break all your fingers one by one.” Immediately his hands were at his sides, fingers curled up tightly. “Meet me downstairs? I'm hungry.”

 

Shippo laughed and Inuyasha said, “When aren't you?” before both followed her out of the bathroom, Miroku at the end, snapping off the light on his way past. Each friend entered a different room to get dressed for the day.

 

 

 

 

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When Bankotsu had left the house, he made a point to drive past Kagome's house in an attempt to figure out what had happened the night before. He slowed to a stop at the sight on the front lawn. Not only was there random garbage and bottles spread across the grass like they'd hosted Woodstock last night but there also were piles of furniture. As he sat in his car trying to guess what was going on he saw Kagome's landlord, a friend of his mother, directing a few burly demons he recognized from campus as they hauled out more furniture. He immediately pulled all the way to the curb and got out, intent on finding out what was going on and why Kagome and her roommate's furniture was being removed.

 

As he walked across the lawn, Mr. Yokubari looked up and smiled. “Hello, Bankotsu. It's nice to see you again. How's your mother?”

 

“Nice to see you too. My mom's fine. I'm actually picking up some groceries for her in a bit. I was just wondering… what's going on?”

 

Mr. Yokubari looked confused for a minute before glancing around him. “Oh, this? My tenants are in jail and they're being evicted.”

 

“In jail? Evicted? Kagome's not in jail. She's at my house.”

 

“The police hadn't mentioned her but I didn't figure she would have been involved. Such a sweet girl. I wish I didn't have to do this to her but I have to evict all of them or none and those other three aren't staying another minute in my house.”

 

“What happened here? Why are the others in jail?”

 

The landlord let out a sigh and rubbed a hand over his face. “From what the cops told me, they were called out for a noise complaint. They were throwing a huge party and the whole place is trashed. Apparently there was a lot of alcohol visible, as well as several intoxicated minors, which led them to search the rest of the house. I swear I'm going to have to wash every surface with bleach. Besides finding kids having sex just about everywhere possible they also found quite a stash of drugs in Tsu… Tsu… whatever her name is, in her room.”

 

“Tsubaki?”

 

“Yeah, that's it! I guess they found more in the other two's rooms as well, not as much but enough. No illegal substances in Kagome's room but I guess even her bed wasn't exempt from the orgy.”

 

“Ahhh, now I see why she said she would need to burn her bedding and mattress.”

 

“I don't blame her.”

 

“But what about their stuff? Their clothes and textbooks and things?”

 

“I've contacted the parents listed on their application for the three in jail to come collect their daughters' belongings. Didn't know where to find Kagome but I figured she'd show up sometime today. We haven't touched her room and we won't so long as she gets packed up and moved out by next Friday.”

 

Bankotsu's eyes widened. “She has to be out in a week? Where is she supposed to go?”

 

“As bad as I feel for the girl, it really isn't my problem. Can you tell her for me since she's at your place?”

 

Bankotsu wished he could growl like his friends, hell, even like Kagome, at the moment. “Yes, I'll tell her,” he said through clenched teeth. Before his anger became apparent he turned and walked back towards his car.

 

“Tell you mother I said hello!” Mr. Yokubari called after him. Without another word the furious friend got in his car and drove off. He had to get to the bank, but once he'd done that he had a phone call to make.

 

 

 

 

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Sesshoumaru was feeling desperate. He'd yet to figure out any possible way of taking back his cruel words, and thoughts of how she must feel about him were making the pain in his chest to grow in intensity until he began to wonder if demons could have heart attacks. He paused in the middle of wishing that he could kick his own ass when he heard movement in the next room. He knew that Bankotsu hadn't returned yet so it had to be her. He made his way towards the connecting wall and slowly sat against it, leaning his head back in an attempt to hear her better. Hearing the sound of drawers opening he remembered that she hadn't brought a bag with her when she showed up on their doorstep in the middle of the night. She must have decided to borrow some of her friend's clothing. He couldn't stop the smirk, remembering how she'd looked the last time she wore the much larger male's clothes. If only she was wearing his clothes…

 

Kagome was looking for something in particular. All of Bank's clothes were way too big for her but there were a couple of things that had drawstring waists so she wouldn't have to worry about holding her pants up all the time. It took her nearly five minutes of digging to find what she wanted, smiling when she finally did. In the bottom drawer of his second dresser were the three pairs of pants she could wear, along with the button down shirt he knew she absolutely adored and a few comfortably worn t-shirts that she loved to sleep in. She'd even gone so far as to sneak a few back to her place. Even after being washed she could still smell him and it really helped her to sleep. It took her a second to notice the items off to the side of the drawer, almost hidden beneath the other things. `I was wondering where that bra and panties went! Apparently I left them here. He's so sweet. I can't believe he cleared a drawer for just my things, well, his things that I like to wear. I'll have to remember to thank him when he gets back.'

 

She pulled out the pair of silky white pajama pants and her absolute favorite red button down shirt, making sure to grab the bra and panties too. Dropping the towel to the floor, Kagome slipped quickly into the clothes. She tightened the drawstrings on the jammie pants before rolling them at the waist several times to shorten the legs enough so that she wouldn't trip over them. Sure, she had long legs, but not that long. Once she had the shirt arranged the way she wanted she picked up the brush she'd brought from the bathroom and two ties, setting out to put up her hair. A few minutes later she was hopping down the stairs, her pigtails set high on her head and her hair bouncing with every step. Finding her way into the kitchen, she found Shippo, Miroku, and Inuyasha waiting for her, Chinese food already heated up and a pair of chopsticks waiting. “I love you guys,” she said before sitting down and digging in.

 

“Didn't I tell ya that's what she'd wear?” Inuyasha said smugly.

 

“I don't believe either of us disagreed with you,” Miroku replied, leaning back in his chair and watching a very happy Kagome. Too bad she wouldn't be so happy for long. He'd been the one to answer Bankotsu's call but he hadn't gotten a chance to tell the others yet. It was their job to take care of her and even if it was self appointed they took it seriously. They would figure out what to do before they told her so she didn't freak out and get all stressed. An overstressed Kagome wasn't a pretty picture, nowhere near as pretty as she looked with her bright gray and blue eyes and adorable pigtails. Dressed in the oversized clothing and combined with the hair style she looked like an innocent little girl, even if she did have the top couple of buttons of the shirt open and the ends tied together at her waist, allowing cleavage and her bellybutton to peak out at them. The little pink jewel dangling from the silver ring that punched through her navel was the only thing, besides the breasts of course, that labeled her a grown, albeit young, woman.

 

He glanced to the side, seeing that Inuyasha and Shippo were both looking at him funny. He knew they could sense his stress and anger about the situation, even if they didn't yet know about it. “You guys done eating?” he asked. When they nodded he continued. “Think you could help me out for a couple minutes, in the backyard?”

 

“What the fuc… I mean, yeah, sure. Let's go.” Inuyasha started to protest before a sharp elbow to the ribs from the kitsune at his side made him realize what Miroku was really saying. He and Shippo both stood, tossing their empty containers in the trash on the way by. “You just make yourself at home Kags. Watch TV or something. We'll be back in a few.”

 

“Yeah, sure, whatever,” she mumbled, not at all interested in whatever boring guy chore they had to do. Not when there was leftover Chinese takeout to eat!

 

 

 

 

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Sesshoumaru had finally worked up the nerve to leave his room. He was hungry, having missed dinner the previous night, and he could smell the reheated takeout all the way upstairs. He decided that even demons had to eat sometimes and maybe if he saw her he could judge just how angry she was, maybe even figure out a way to apologize. His pride was against it, as was his ego, but the very real physical pain in his chest made him override their complaints. He couldn't let her hate him. If the knowledge of her hatred hurt like this then he would have to find some way to fix it.

 

He walked slowly down the stairs, his mind trying to come up with any reason to return to the safety and privacy of his room, not wanting his brother and his idiot friends picking up on his pain. He had no way to explain it and he knew they would jump to the strangest conclusions available just to taunt him. How he wished his father would allow him to murder the hanyou. The world would be such a nicer place. When he reached the bottom of the stairs he heard the back door click closed and let out a sigh of relief. If they were outside then he could just grab something and run, his courage and determination melting under the crushing agony and thoughts of how his brother would mock him if he only knew the true cause, or at least what he thought was the cause.

 

He looked perfectly calm when he walked into the kitchen, though when he saw her, his eyes widened in surprise. `They left her alone?' He knew she'd noticed his entrance as her shoulders were tense, almost like she was preparing for an attack. Maybe she was. Maybe she thought he was going to insult her again or embarrass her some more. She didn't have any reason not to. She seemed to shrink under his stare and he quickly turned away, opening the refrigerator door to block her from his line of sight.

 

“There's some chicken lo mein left over here,” she said softly. “You can have it if you want. It's already heated up.”

 

He turned around slowly while his brain turned quickly. Had she just offered to share her food with him after what he'd said this morning? The very thought lessened the pain, as if one of the steel bands contracting around his heart disappeared.

 

Kagome didn't know what else to say. She'd offered and now he was just staring at her. “If you'd rather have pork fried rice, there's some of that too,” she almost whispered.

 

He realized that he was staring as he caught the scent of her nervousness flooding the air around her. `Quick! Think! What do I say? Fuck! Why does my brain have to shut down around this girl? How am I supposed to accomplish anything when I turn into a stammering idiot in her presence?'

 

Kagome put down the little white takeout box she'd been eating from and picked up the others laid out on the table one by one. She couldn't stand the silence in the air. It was like she was being slowly smothered by cherry gelatin. Why cherry she had no clue but that's what it felt like at the moment. She had to break the quiet. “I guess you'd probably want more meat, huh? Shippo always orders the steak and broccoli and the orange chicken. I like the General Tso's but I guess it's too spicy for sensitive demon taste buds.”

 

He couldn't stop the small smirk at her nervous rambling. It was endearing or at least it would have been if she wasn't so nervous because she was afraid he'd be nasty to her again. Yeah, that last thought slapped the smirk right off his face. “This Sesshoumaru thanks you for offering to share,” he said slowly, trying not to sound quite so monotone, something else his brother loved to mock him about.

 

Kagome's eyes snapped from the food in her hand to the demon who'd actually thanked her, something she didn't think he was even capable of. The look in his eyes made her look away and blush, though she couldn't figure out why for the life of her.

 

He watched as her face flushed red. Something had happened when their eyes met, something powerful, and he wondered if she felt it too. When her eyes locked with his it felt like electricity shot from the back of his neck down his spine and out to his fingertips and toes. His whole body was humming and for a moment the pain in his chest was completely gone. He sat down in the chair directly across from her, hoping she would make eye contact again. He could already feel the steel bands tightening around his heart again, getting tighter and tighter as she refused to look his direction.

 

He realized he'd found a way to stop the pain and even if the relief was for less than a minute it was absolute. Not even a tiny twinge of discomfort had remained. If only he could get her to look into his eyes for longer than a second. Maybe then the pain would be gone longer. He still wasn't sure of the cause of the pain, just knew that it had to have something to do with her and how it seemed she perceived or felt about him. It didn't make a lot of sense but it was the only thing he could think of.

 

Deciding she wasn't going to turn back towards him, he grabbed a set of chopsticks and began looking through the containers like she'd been doing before finding one that looked good. He sat back with the takeout container in one hand and chopsticks in the other, trying to look at her without it looking like he was looking at her. It wasn't easy but he was a determined taiyoukai and he would figure out a way. After a minute she slowly began to eat again, having turned in her chair so that she could look out the kitchen window. He glanced through the glass and saw his half-brother, the monk, and the kitsune talking. Inuyasha looked pissed, Shippo looked worried, and Miroku looked like he was thinking very hard. `I wonder what the problem is now,' he thought to himself before returning to his much more important task of watching her while he ate.

 

 

 

 

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When Miroku led them outside, Inuyasha immediately demanded to know what the problem was. The monk slowly relayed what Bankotsu had told him, making sure to keep his voice low. You never knew when Kagome was lurking around a corner, ready to try and startle them. She really seemed to enjoy doing that, taking it as a serious challenge. She hadn't gotten Inuyasha yet thanks to his demon senses, even if they were only half as strong, but she never stopped trying. Shippo had been surprisingly simple to catch off guard since the kit was easily distracted and hadn't had an older brother who enjoyed sneaking up on him just to punch or kick him like Inuyasha had growing up. The hanyou had learned at a young age to be aware of his surroundings. He no longer bothered to register Sesshoumaru's presence, but he always felt the little miko coming.

 

When Miroku got to the point, that Kagome was being evicted and would have no place to live past next Friday, Inuyasha's jaw had clenched painfully, his claws lengthening and his eyes flashing red for a moment before he calmed himself. Only when Kagome was concerned did he get angry enough to lose control. Only she mattered enough. Shippo immediately asked where she would go and Miroku explained that his question was the reason they needed to talk.

 

“We'll have to find her a new place,” Miroku said calmly, an expert at hiding his anger.

 

“Yeah, but you remember how hard she looked! I went with her to a couple of those places. Trust me, we wouldn't have let her live with those creeps. Nothing is available that isn't disgusting, in a terrible neighborhood, or equipped with at least one guy that made her uncomfortable. Some of them had the nerve to flirt with her right in front of me! She's not moving in with some guy or guys we don't know!”

 

“Perhaps we can find a group of females that need another roommate?”

 

“If there were any Kagome would have moved already. She reads the classifieds every day and is always checking online listings too. There's nothing,” Shippo said, knowing for certain there was no place for her to go.

 

“Well then what the fuck are we gonna do?” Inuyasha almost yelled. “No way in hell is she moving in with some strange guy, you got that right runt! The only guys I trust around her are me, you two,” he looked pointedly at Miroku, “you a little less than Shippo with the wandering hand you've got,” he said with a smirk, “and Bank.” He was silent for a minute and if you were quiet enough you could hear the hamster running like crazy in his squeaky wheel in the hanyou's head while he tried to think of another option. Then it hit him. “Why the hell doesn't she just move in here? Then we'd know that she's safe and protected.”

 

“And happy,” Shippo added. “She's always saying how happy she is hanging out here with us.”

 

“I know that I wouldn't be against it and neither would Bankotsu. You two are obviously for it, but what about Sesshoumaru?” Miroku asked, always looking at things from every possible angle.

 

“Fuck him! If I wanna move her in here I will.”

 

“If you mean that then you can be the one to tell him,” Miroku said. Inuyasha growled at the monk. “What? You're the only one he's been forbidden to kill after all.”

 

Shippo laughed. “Looks like it's on you man.”

 

“Shut up, runt. Fine. I'll do it. But where is she gonna stay? There isn't an open room.”

 

Miroku appeared to be thinking again and the other two kept silent, knowing he would figure something out. Suddenly his eyes brightened and a smile tugged at his lips. “Come with me,” was all he said before opening the door and leading them back inside.

 

 

 

 

@@@@@The Syndrome@@@@@

 

 

 

 

Author's Note: Yokubari - greedy person