InuYasha Fan Fiction ❯ Value Of A Woman ❯ Sunday ( Prologue )
[ Y - Young Adult: Not suitable for readers under 16 ]
By: Inu-Channie 
Anime/Manga: InuYasha Fan Fiction | Genre(s): Romance / Drama / Comedy | Type: Continuation | Uploaded On: 09.07.2005 | Updated On: 10.12.2005 | Pages: 3 | Words: 4.3K | Visits: 413 | Status: Completed
Anime/Manga: InuYasha Fan Fiction | Genre(s): Romance / Drama / Comedy | Type: Continuation | Uploaded On: 09.07.2005 | Updated On: 10.12.2005 | Pages: 3 | Words: 4.3K | Visits: 413 | Status: Completed
Author’s Notes: Not much to say except this is something that I’ve changed based on an earlier fic of mine that was never posted here but on another SM fic site (moonromance, author name Lady_Inspirationa). Its funny for me to look back on that fic and see how weak it was so I thought lets play around with Inu-tachi, tweak a few bits and pieces to suit their world and voila!
It was also down to the fact that Kagome and Inuyasha have replaced Usagi and Mamo-chan in my league of top 5 anime couples :P.
Of course all chapters are done so I have no excuse not to post them or be late.
P.S: I’m not a Kikyou hater, but its necessary that she be the problem so that the story can move forward. Sorry Kikyou fans!
<< >> - the little people thoughts (you’ll understand)
Disclaimer: Don’t own Inuyasha nor Usa/Mamo who were my original base couple for this.
Inu-Channie :P
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The Value Of A Woman
Prologue – Sunday
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The past can strike in the most unlikely of places…
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Sunday was the universally adopted day of garage cleanouts. Everything was so easy and laid back on Sundays and you had the lowest stress levels ever during the whole of your stressful working week. It was nice to take time out and do things that were important to you, even if it wasn’t important to others. This was the basis of Kagome’s beautiful Sunday morning.
“Thanks you guys for helping me clean out the garage. Couldn’t have done it without you,” Kagome said, beaming happily at her friends.
“No sweat, I just want pay for my efforts!” Sango, the long haired raven beauty, said with a wink. Her grey jogging pants and pink tank top were littered with spots of black from all the dust circulating in the moderate sized concrete garage.
“Funny ha ha Sango. You know she’s only joking right Kag?” Ayumi replied with a smile, smudges of dirt on her face. She knew Kagome could take some things literally sometimes and wanted to avoid a spat if possible. Her yellow shirt and white trousers were still clean in bright contrast to the rest of the room and the other messy occupants.
“Yeah I do, thanks Ayumi,” Kagome replied a little irritated.
“Anyway I’m sure Kagome knows a joke when she hears one!” Eri yelled from the inside of a cardboard box. All that could be seen of her was her blue shorts, and pale legs.
“Yeah, maybe after she hears it a couple of times,” Yuka, the short haired brunette, mumbled while flicking through an old photo album.
“You guys are so nice!” Kagome said through gritted teeth, refraining herself from grabbing her old volleyball trophy and lobbing it at the nearest backside available. Sango came over and squeezed her shoulders in what was, Kagome assumed, meant to be in a friendly way. Sometimes the girl didn’t know her own strength however…
“We’re only playing Kagome-chan! Allow us some sort of fun!” and with that Sango turned abruptly, her hair flicking in Kagome’s face. The action wasn’t intentional but still Kagome lapsed into the eye-twitch, crazy and frustrated mode. (May a note be added that Kagome isn’t responsible for her thoughts or actions during this disturbing transgression. Thank you.)
‘My idea of fun is to cut every last lock of your hair,’ Kagome’s thoughts began racing, head cocked to the side in a perfect example of what her husband might do yet she had a crooked malicious smile on her face. A thought bubble appeared above her head with a picture showing a super deformed Sango and Kagome appeared. The SD Kagome was wildly cutting off the SD Sango’s hair. ‘Then I’ll chuck it in the bin after I’ve-‘
“Kagome! You’re spacing out!” Yuka shouted breaking Kagome out of the twilight zone.
“Sorry, sorry!” She looked down to find her friends playing a game of ‘Monopoly’. She looked bewildered. Each girl had already had a large amount of property each and quite a bit of fair cash too.
“How long have a spaced out for?!” Kagome squealed.
“Around 35 minutes or so.” Ayumi explained. “We were still rummaging around in boxes when we found this…started playing then we noticed you looking at Sango’s hair strangely…” Sango suddenly bunched her hair to the side and stroked it gently, a look of fear on her face. Kagome chuckled and decided to let them continue playing while she finished up bits and pieces left in the garage.
It looked a lot cleaner than it did before. The floor, once littered with boxes, DIY tools, bikes, trunks and whatever else you find in an extremely mucked up garage, could now be seen, although there wasn’t much to be seen: just cold grey concrete. Items had been packed into boxes according to type so Kagome’s school things on one side, her uniform packed away nostalgically, holiday albums on a shelf, Kagome’s photo album including a picture of her first kiss…with Inuyasha…in the deepest, dankest corner she could find. She wasn’t ashamed of Inuyasha…oh no quite the opposite. It was just the eye popping predicament they were in when they kissed…
Inuyasha was Kagome’s husband of 3 years but they had been together a lot longer than that: roughly 6 years, since Kagome was 15 and Inuyasha 17. It’s funny though because they used to be mortal enemies…the slightest little annoyance from one party to the other would have set off the next World War (together they had reached WW 637 and yes times have moved on). It was by pure heartbreak and maybe part guiltiness for putting Kagome through so much that made Inuyasha open up and tell Kagome how he really felt. Stunned by this wonderful show of affection from the Abominable Ice King made Kagome return the affection…the girls had taken a picture of this first, passionate kiss and their love had been going strong ever since.
“OK, I’ll pay you $300 for Disneyworld plus any one of my properties.” Yuka tried to haggle with Ayumi. A big mistake to make with the girl who breezed through all levels of school and all exams.
“I don’t think so! I bought Disney for $500 that means I’ll be losing out on a profit of $200. Plus even if I take one of your properties, altogether, that measly $300 and the highest rent on that property, will not even amass to the amount Disney is worth with a hotel!” Ami cried indignantly.
“Alright, whoa ‘Yumi-chan…how much you pushing it for?” Yuka replied exasperated as the other girls giggled slightly at the commotion. Ayumi looked at the highest rent charge on Disneyworld: it was £1,900 dollars…plus a handsome profit…
“$2,500, final offer!” As she watched Yuka’s mouth open and close like a fish, Ayumi smiled evilly, a rare trait, and she wafted the Disney card under her nose. “Can you smell the money and power just rolling off of it?” Yuka’s nose followed every which way the card went. “It’s a bargain!” Ayumi said in a singsong voice, withdrawing the card from Yuka’s face. Yuka suddenly became determined, face set.
“Alright then…I’ll give you $400 for Disneyworld and any one of my properties.” All the girls groaned in frustration. Wasn’t she listening to a word that was being said?
Kagome laughed again and continued picking up strewn ends: a broken picture frame, an old teddy bear, old lingerie (at which Kagome promptly blushed after reminiscing the last time she was in the garage with Inuyasha) and a thick black photo album.
This was an unknown item. Kagome had looked through every album in her house and had never come across one she didn’t recognise. She dropped the rest of the junk in her arms, not cringing when the photo frame landed on her foot and turned the book over curiously. Etched neatly in gold handwriting was Inuyasha’s name in beautiful calligraphy and then his name in kanji. She looked on the side and saw the book had a lock…
…that was broken.
“Hey guys, come have a look at this,” Kagome mumbled, still looking at the album deciding on whether opening it or not. While she had been busy inspecting the album the girls had gotten wrapped into a paper money fight. Each of them stopped in varying body poses in the middle of Kagome’s sentence, ranging from lying flat on the floor with a foot stuck up one’s nose to hovering in mid-air (do not ask how), each frozen in attention. They quickly stood up and rushed over to the dark haired woman.
“What’s up?” Yuka called.
“Yeah got a maths problem? Consult me, not her,” Ayumi added looking at Yuka.
“Listen Ayumi, I love you and everything…but GET OVER IT!! I won square and fair, no maths involved!”
Sango interrupted Ayumi, before the normally quiet and peaceful girl was about slip into SD mode, her eyes widening gleefully. “Hey Einstein and Tyson, let the game slip for a minute please? I mean, anyone would think a verbal boxing ring has just been set up.”
“People, people. Attention if you please? I called this meeting I wish to have all my people listening.” Kagome looked about for quiet faces. Quiet they were yet one face was pouting because she couldn’t argue, one looking bored as she picked at her shorts, one glaring daggers at the ‘genius’ and one looking intently at Kagome. “Thank you,” Kagome muttered sceptically before continuing. “Now look at this.” She brought the album into view and immediately heard tuts and groans of disappointment.
“Is that all it was? Sheesh, who’s up for watching Einstein and Tyson battle?” Eri asked. All four girls said “I” and moved back to the middle of the garage. Kagome shook her head in disbelief. Did they not register that her husband’s name was scrawled along the back of this…ahem…’little black book’? Would it be right to invade his privacy?
‘Of course it would!’ a little voice said. Without a second thought Kagome lifted the cover and upon opening it her eyes came upon the greatest set of pictures of her husband she had ever seen.
“What the-? These are amazing!” Kagome cried out loudly. The girls who were just about to settle into their fighting match, looked at each other and skidded to Kagome’s side…again. They gasped too.
“Wow, these are amazing!” They cried simultaneously, pushing over Kagome’s shoulder to get the best spot to ogle at the handsome man portrayed within the photos.
“Wow…wow…wow…Kagome I hate to say this but…wow.” Sango muttered. “And you know that I’m already committed to a wonderful man but…wow!” At that SD Miroku, appearing of course from nowhere, began to fade into the background.
Down below in the pictures was Inuyasha, topless, leaning against a wall and…sporting leather trousers? His head was tilted up with eyes closed as if enjoying a good dose of sunlight, which picked out the shadows on his body and defining his muscles. His dark, lustrous hair flowed down his back to reach his hips.
The next page showed him leaning against another wall, his hair wet and dripping onto a quickly dampening white t-shirt on and Levi’s jeans. His hands were in his pockets and his dark hair was coming over his forehead, some shading his eyes, some attaching to his face in a sort of caress.
“This is fantastic!” Kagome breathed, completely entranced by her husband. These pictures were obviously taken when Inuyasha was going through his human period – probably because at the time when these pictures were taken, demons, let alone hanyous, were still not readily accepted. Of course today it was quite the opposite. Everybody wanted a demon whether for personal gain or companionship.
Feeling the burning stares of her friends behind her, Kagome was starting to get a little jealous. They had yet to see Inuyasha during his human phase. He preferred to stay away from them lest his ‘overwhelming handsomeness knock them off their feet’. Quote courtesy of Inuyasha. But Kagome knew that he only EVER had eyes for her and that he preferred not to show the girls his ‘weak point’. Of course this streak of possessiveness she learnt from none other than her beloved hanyou and she was mortified to find it was spreading to her as it had never done before.
Another page turned, another delicious picture of Inuyasha who was on a balcony, hands on railings looking at the landscape, topless once again. But he had a companion this time, someone who looked vaguely familiar…a woman with her cheek pressed to his back was behind Inuyasha, his hair cascading over his shoulder and her as her own black hair cascaded down her own back. She had her arms wrapped around his waist and all in all she seemed very happy.
The group of women thought of it as nothing, you know just part of the job. This was reasonably fair…despite the niggling feeling that Kagome felt that she knew the woman.
The next picture was a scene with the same woman and Inuyasha in a staged restaurant of some kind. In a silk black shirt, Inuyasha was looking over the table at her and holding her hands affectionately, kissing one of them, as he had so often done with Kagome. You could see a soft blush on the woman’s cheeks, a contrast to her pale skin and the white halter dress she wore. Kagome wondered whether her jealousy level would twinge and snap any second now. Resignedly Kagome turned the page almost and almost closed the book with thunderous force.
The setting was a elevator, after the restaurant so it seemed. Inuyasha had the woman, who had recurred for three pictures now, up against the wall, one hand on the small of her back, the other on the thigh of the leg that had wrapped around his waist. His mouth was open on her neck, his eyes closed. She in the meantime had her head thrown back, more space for him to work no doubt, her hands embedded in his deep, dark hair. You could see the strings of her halter had been released causing the upper half of the dress to hang dangerously low on her ample chest and the white dress pushed far up her leg…
Kagome could just imagine Inuyasha caressing that smooth expanse of skin, murmuring and kissing the woman’s neck lovingly, teasingly, holding her with controlled strength. She could imagine because on so many occasions had Inuyasha done the same thing with her, albeit not in an elevator. Did he whisper sweet nothings to her, stroke her back, and then whisper things that made her blush so deeply yet still made her want him even more?
“I can’t look anymore…its torture,” Kagome said quietly, her thoughts circling round in her head. She was well aware that these were just pictures, that there might not have been a relationship between these two beautiful people…but the intensity of the emotions along with the feeling that she knew the woman didn’t help.
Ayumi put her arms around Kagome consolingly, voicing Kagome’s thoughts, as the other girls passed looks between each other. “These are only pictures, Kagome. We all know Inuyasha loves you deeply and he wouldn’t be so stupid to keep something like this. Maybe the last page says nothing at all.”
Wrong. It said everything.
Which in turn gave an answer to Ayumi’s previous statement.
Inuyasha was stupid enough to keep something like this.
Lying on a bed of silk was Inuyasha…clearly naked. The top sheet barely covered “downstairs” but that wasn’t what rocked Kagome the most. Lying next to him, tucked under one arm was the same woman, just as naked as he. She had her arm over his toned chest and a satisfactory, smug smile on her face. Her chest was pressed against his side and it was obvious their legs were entwined in some way, as well as their hair. Kagome gave a whimper, tears forming in her eyes as she sat down. Yuka, Eri and Sango flared up instantly as Ayumi lowered to the floor with Kagome.
“How could he keep something so smutty like that with him!? Who does he think he is?” Sango shouted angrily, her eyes flashing.
“I think a good teeth-breaking session is in order,” Yuka said calmly, while cracking her knuckles.
Ayumi tried to ease the tension in the room. “Hey guys, I don’t think violence is the answer-”
“In this case it is!” Sango, Yuka and Eri retorted. They all fell silent for a while until the familiar sound of a car pulling up could be heard. They all looked towards the garage door.
“Inuyasha,” Kagome whispered. Shouts of “dirty toe rag” and “male scum” and “hot pictures” (everyone then turned to look at Eri) were voiced. Kagome quietened them down.
“I’ll do this by myself,” she said softly. “This is something my husband and I need to sort out, if there’s anything to sort out.” The girls protested but she ushered them out of the garage and towards the front door.
Inuyasha wanted nothing more than to get inside his home, sink into a dining chair to eat, sink into a hot bath to relax, and then to sink into bed with Kagome - or perhaps sink into Kagome with the aid of a bed – to show his love for her and to push away his troubles. The hanyou grinned widely at his last thought and prepared to put his routine into action.
He pushed the door open ready to bellow for his wife when he saw a long line of women coming towards him. As each of them passed Inuyasha’s now hanyou form, a dirty look was thrown at him. Bewildered, he watched them walk to their respective cars and pull away, smelling their anger. Still confused, he bent down to kiss his wife good afternoon as she came to the door. Kagome turned her head at the last moment so he grazed her cheek. He pulled back more confused than before, his ears flicking momentarily. He could sense her anger…at him?
“Wow, what have I done to upset you guys?” Inuyasha tilted his head to the side and then shrugged, thinking nothing more of the matter, making his way into the house and then launched himself into how his day at work was, the annoying calls, inconceivably stupid employees…typical work lingo. Kagome had to slam the door shut to get his attention. He looked up, his amazingly beautiful gold eyes wide. Then they narrowed into confusion as he growled softly in discomfort at the foreign feeling. He held her gaze unwaveringly and unloosened his tie.
“Kagome? What’s wrong, koi?” he asked softly as he moved to her and tilted her face to look at her properly. She looked upset…but what about? He smelt her confusion and the threat of tears but was no closer to finding the reason. Her dark blues narrowed angrily. He tried to kiss her again but she pulled back yet again.
“Kagome,” he growled threateningly. “I don’t know what’s going on here. I mean when you get death looks from four angry women, who would all definitely fulfil their promise, a man gets kinda confused. And then when his own wife won’t kiss him, a man gets pissed off.” With that Kagome turned on her heel towards the garage, leaving Inuyasha to continue growling in a steadily growing sound. She promptly returned and pulled Inuyasha’s album from behind her back, chucking it at him. His reflexives allowed him to catch it perfectly with one hand while the other was untying his shoe on the floor. Inuyasha looked at his fiery wife curiously, and then opened it.
Kagome wasn’t expecting what he was about to do: the hanyou laughed. He had a big smile on his face beaming at his own self.
“Wow,” he said. ”I’d thought I’d lost these when we moved house!” he continued through. It was only until he got to later pages that he slowed down a bit. “Oh.”
“Yes Inuyasha, ‘oh’. Care to explain?” Kagome demanded tapping her foot impatiently. She wanted desperately for him to tell her that there was nothing to the folio, nothing at all.
“Listen Kagome, I can explain-“ but the said woman cut him off. His words only signalled that there was more to the pictures than she hoped.
“That’s what I’m hoping for. Why did you keep this hidden from me? Does it mean something to you?” He sighed deeply, which only caused her even more irritation and anger.
Inuyasha started to explain. “The woman you saw here…she’s nothing…not anymore-“
“Not anymore? So she used to be something? And a good lot of something it was too,” Kagome retorted indicating the elevator picture.
“She’s an ex of mine Kagome,” Inuyasha growled, getting annoyed and frustrated. “She’s nothing more. She can’t compare to you-“
“Wait - she’s an ex?” the hanyou nodded dumbly as he watched the fire spark in Kagome’s eyes, the very same fire he hadn’t seen in a very long while. “AN EX!? Inuyasha the whole point of the term ‘ex’ means past, gone, an EX-tra thing to throw away out of your life! Why are you keeping this if your ex is in it? Sure there are times when you stay friends with them, but you wouldn’t keep pictures like this of you and your ‘friend’ would you? And I highly doubt she’s a friend anymore.” He had no answer and the tears and anger were just increasing rapidly. “I just don’t-!” and then it hit her.
“Kikyou,” she mumbled absently.
Kikyou.
Kikyou - Inuyasha’s ex.
Kikyou – the woman who had Inuyasha in a daze and who threatened Kagome’s future relationship with Inuyasha.
Kikyou – the woman who had cheated on Inuyasha when he was seventeen, when they had been going out for a year.
Kikyou – the woman draped all over Inuyasha in those pictures.
Suddenly Kagome got hit by a severe bout of self consciousness. During her first steps with Inuyasha in their relationship, Kikyou had always tried to come between them and Inuyasha would be helpless as to what to do. He loved Kagome but it seemed at the time he still loved Kikyou. It now looked like Kikyou was coming between them again. Did he still…love Kikyou? Gods forbid otherwise Inuyasha was about to lose his life…
Kagome’s tears fell freely. “Do you still love her? No don’t answer that…what am I not pretty enough? Clever enough? Sexy enough-?”
‘Shit,’ Inuyasha thought as he first smelt her tears and then glanced upon her face with compassion.
“Kagome, baby, koishii, that’s not true! You’re more beautiful than her in a lot more ways than one! I know I was confused before but not anymore Kagome. I love you, koi, not her.” There ensued a heavy silence, both parties wondering who was going to speak first.
“Why’d you keep it?” Kagome asked sullenly, voice now quiet. Inuyasha cringed. He knew the exact reason why and it wouldn’t help matters to lie. His ears flattened against his head.
“…I guess…I guess ‘cause it reminded me of my younger, reckless days-“
“And how’s that supposed to make me feel!?” Kagome burst suddenly, slightly startling the hanyou. “Do you even know how that makes me feel, Inuyasha!? Mou, sometimes you’re so dense!”
“Kagome I didn’t mean it like that! I love you and that’s all that matters-!”
Kagome shoved a blanket at him and pointed to the couch, blue eyes flashing with a foreign emotion - anger. “Well whatever you’re thinking right now, now that you’ve got a blanket in you hands, ‘I’ mean it like ‘that’.” And she stormed upstairs. Inuyasha sank to the couch, the open album in front of him.
“Kikyou,” Inuyasha muttered and flung the album far across the room, into the fireplace, without even looking.
***
It was also down to the fact that Kagome and Inuyasha have replaced Usagi and Mamo-chan in my league of top 5 anime couples :P.
Of course all chapters are done so I have no excuse not to post them or be late.
P.S: I’m not a Kikyou hater, but its necessary that she be the problem so that the story can move forward. Sorry Kikyou fans!
<< >> - the little people thoughts (you’ll understand)
Disclaimer: Don’t own Inuyasha nor Usa/Mamo who were my original base couple for this.
Inu-Channie :P
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The Value Of A Woman
Prologue – Sunday
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The past can strike in the most unlikely of places…
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Sunday was the universally adopted day of garage cleanouts. Everything was so easy and laid back on Sundays and you had the lowest stress levels ever during the whole of your stressful working week. It was nice to take time out and do things that were important to you, even if it wasn’t important to others. This was the basis of Kagome’s beautiful Sunday morning.
“Thanks you guys for helping me clean out the garage. Couldn’t have done it without you,” Kagome said, beaming happily at her friends.
“No sweat, I just want pay for my efforts!” Sango, the long haired raven beauty, said with a wink. Her grey jogging pants and pink tank top were littered with spots of black from all the dust circulating in the moderate sized concrete garage.
“Funny ha ha Sango. You know she’s only joking right Kag?” Ayumi replied with a smile, smudges of dirt on her face. She knew Kagome could take some things literally sometimes and wanted to avoid a spat if possible. Her yellow shirt and white trousers were still clean in bright contrast to the rest of the room and the other messy occupants.
“Yeah I do, thanks Ayumi,” Kagome replied a little irritated.
“Anyway I’m sure Kagome knows a joke when she hears one!” Eri yelled from the inside of a cardboard box. All that could be seen of her was her blue shorts, and pale legs.
“Yeah, maybe after she hears it a couple of times,” Yuka, the short haired brunette, mumbled while flicking through an old photo album.
“You guys are so nice!” Kagome said through gritted teeth, refraining herself from grabbing her old volleyball trophy and lobbing it at the nearest backside available. Sango came over and squeezed her shoulders in what was, Kagome assumed, meant to be in a friendly way. Sometimes the girl didn’t know her own strength however…
“We’re only playing Kagome-chan! Allow us some sort of fun!” and with that Sango turned abruptly, her hair flicking in Kagome’s face. The action wasn’t intentional but still Kagome lapsed into the eye-twitch, crazy and frustrated mode. (May a note be added that Kagome isn’t responsible for her thoughts or actions during this disturbing transgression. Thank you.)
‘My idea of fun is to cut every last lock of your hair,’ Kagome’s thoughts began racing, head cocked to the side in a perfect example of what her husband might do yet she had a crooked malicious smile on her face. A thought bubble appeared above her head with a picture showing a super deformed Sango and Kagome appeared. The SD Kagome was wildly cutting off the SD Sango’s hair. ‘Then I’ll chuck it in the bin after I’ve-‘
“Kagome! You’re spacing out!” Yuka shouted breaking Kagome out of the twilight zone.
“Sorry, sorry!” She looked down to find her friends playing a game of ‘Monopoly’. She looked bewildered. Each girl had already had a large amount of property each and quite a bit of fair cash too.
“How long have a spaced out for?!” Kagome squealed.
“Around 35 minutes or so.” Ayumi explained. “We were still rummaging around in boxes when we found this…started playing then we noticed you looking at Sango’s hair strangely…” Sango suddenly bunched her hair to the side and stroked it gently, a look of fear on her face. Kagome chuckled and decided to let them continue playing while she finished up bits and pieces left in the garage.
It looked a lot cleaner than it did before. The floor, once littered with boxes, DIY tools, bikes, trunks and whatever else you find in an extremely mucked up garage, could now be seen, although there wasn’t much to be seen: just cold grey concrete. Items had been packed into boxes according to type so Kagome’s school things on one side, her uniform packed away nostalgically, holiday albums on a shelf, Kagome’s photo album including a picture of her first kiss…with Inuyasha…in the deepest, dankest corner she could find. She wasn’t ashamed of Inuyasha…oh no quite the opposite. It was just the eye popping predicament they were in when they kissed…
Inuyasha was Kagome’s husband of 3 years but they had been together a lot longer than that: roughly 6 years, since Kagome was 15 and Inuyasha 17. It’s funny though because they used to be mortal enemies…the slightest little annoyance from one party to the other would have set off the next World War (together they had reached WW 637 and yes times have moved on). It was by pure heartbreak and maybe part guiltiness for putting Kagome through so much that made Inuyasha open up and tell Kagome how he really felt. Stunned by this wonderful show of affection from the Abominable Ice King made Kagome return the affection…the girls had taken a picture of this first, passionate kiss and their love had been going strong ever since.
“OK, I’ll pay you $300 for Disneyworld plus any one of my properties.” Yuka tried to haggle with Ayumi. A big mistake to make with the girl who breezed through all levels of school and all exams.
“I don’t think so! I bought Disney for $500 that means I’ll be losing out on a profit of $200. Plus even if I take one of your properties, altogether, that measly $300 and the highest rent on that property, will not even amass to the amount Disney is worth with a hotel!” Ami cried indignantly.
“Alright, whoa ‘Yumi-chan…how much you pushing it for?” Yuka replied exasperated as the other girls giggled slightly at the commotion. Ayumi looked at the highest rent charge on Disneyworld: it was £1,900 dollars…plus a handsome profit…
“$2,500, final offer!” As she watched Yuka’s mouth open and close like a fish, Ayumi smiled evilly, a rare trait, and she wafted the Disney card under her nose. “Can you smell the money and power just rolling off of it?” Yuka’s nose followed every which way the card went. “It’s a bargain!” Ayumi said in a singsong voice, withdrawing the card from Yuka’s face. Yuka suddenly became determined, face set.
“Alright then…I’ll give you $400 for Disneyworld and any one of my properties.” All the girls groaned in frustration. Wasn’t she listening to a word that was being said?
Kagome laughed again and continued picking up strewn ends: a broken picture frame, an old teddy bear, old lingerie (at which Kagome promptly blushed after reminiscing the last time she was in the garage with Inuyasha) and a thick black photo album.
This was an unknown item. Kagome had looked through every album in her house and had never come across one she didn’t recognise. She dropped the rest of the junk in her arms, not cringing when the photo frame landed on her foot and turned the book over curiously. Etched neatly in gold handwriting was Inuyasha’s name in beautiful calligraphy and then his name in kanji. She looked on the side and saw the book had a lock…
…that was broken.
“Hey guys, come have a look at this,” Kagome mumbled, still looking at the album deciding on whether opening it or not. While she had been busy inspecting the album the girls had gotten wrapped into a paper money fight. Each of them stopped in varying body poses in the middle of Kagome’s sentence, ranging from lying flat on the floor with a foot stuck up one’s nose to hovering in mid-air (do not ask how), each frozen in attention. They quickly stood up and rushed over to the dark haired woman.
“What’s up?” Yuka called.
“Yeah got a maths problem? Consult me, not her,” Ayumi added looking at Yuka.
“Listen Ayumi, I love you and everything…but GET OVER IT!! I won square and fair, no maths involved!”
Sango interrupted Ayumi, before the normally quiet and peaceful girl was about slip into SD mode, her eyes widening gleefully. “Hey Einstein and Tyson, let the game slip for a minute please? I mean, anyone would think a verbal boxing ring has just been set up.”
“People, people. Attention if you please? I called this meeting I wish to have all my people listening.” Kagome looked about for quiet faces. Quiet they were yet one face was pouting because she couldn’t argue, one looking bored as she picked at her shorts, one glaring daggers at the ‘genius’ and one looking intently at Kagome. “Thank you,” Kagome muttered sceptically before continuing. “Now look at this.” She brought the album into view and immediately heard tuts and groans of disappointment.
“Is that all it was? Sheesh, who’s up for watching Einstein and Tyson battle?” Eri asked. All four girls said “I” and moved back to the middle of the garage. Kagome shook her head in disbelief. Did they not register that her husband’s name was scrawled along the back of this…ahem…’little black book’? Would it be right to invade his privacy?
‘Of course it would!’ a little voice said. Without a second thought Kagome lifted the cover and upon opening it her eyes came upon the greatest set of pictures of her husband she had ever seen.
“What the-? These are amazing!” Kagome cried out loudly. The girls who were just about to settle into their fighting match, looked at each other and skidded to Kagome’s side…again. They gasped too.
“Wow, these are amazing!” They cried simultaneously, pushing over Kagome’s shoulder to get the best spot to ogle at the handsome man portrayed within the photos.
“Wow…wow…wow…Kagome I hate to say this but…wow.” Sango muttered. “And you know that I’m already committed to a wonderful man but…wow!” At that SD Miroku, appearing of course from nowhere, began to fade into the background.
Down below in the pictures was Inuyasha, topless, leaning against a wall and…sporting leather trousers? His head was tilted up with eyes closed as if enjoying a good dose of sunlight, which picked out the shadows on his body and defining his muscles. His dark, lustrous hair flowed down his back to reach his hips.
The next page showed him leaning against another wall, his hair wet and dripping onto a quickly dampening white t-shirt on and Levi’s jeans. His hands were in his pockets and his dark hair was coming over his forehead, some shading his eyes, some attaching to his face in a sort of caress.
“This is fantastic!” Kagome breathed, completely entranced by her husband. These pictures were obviously taken when Inuyasha was going through his human period – probably because at the time when these pictures were taken, demons, let alone hanyous, were still not readily accepted. Of course today it was quite the opposite. Everybody wanted a demon whether for personal gain or companionship.
Feeling the burning stares of her friends behind her, Kagome was starting to get a little jealous. They had yet to see Inuyasha during his human phase. He preferred to stay away from them lest his ‘overwhelming handsomeness knock them off their feet’. Quote courtesy of Inuyasha. But Kagome knew that he only EVER had eyes for her and that he preferred not to show the girls his ‘weak point’. Of course this streak of possessiveness she learnt from none other than her beloved hanyou and she was mortified to find it was spreading to her as it had never done before.
Another page turned, another delicious picture of Inuyasha who was on a balcony, hands on railings looking at the landscape, topless once again. But he had a companion this time, someone who looked vaguely familiar…a woman with her cheek pressed to his back was behind Inuyasha, his hair cascading over his shoulder and her as her own black hair cascaded down her own back. She had her arms wrapped around his waist and all in all she seemed very happy.
The group of women thought of it as nothing, you know just part of the job. This was reasonably fair…despite the niggling feeling that Kagome felt that she knew the woman.
The next picture was a scene with the same woman and Inuyasha in a staged restaurant of some kind. In a silk black shirt, Inuyasha was looking over the table at her and holding her hands affectionately, kissing one of them, as he had so often done with Kagome. You could see a soft blush on the woman’s cheeks, a contrast to her pale skin and the white halter dress she wore. Kagome wondered whether her jealousy level would twinge and snap any second now. Resignedly Kagome turned the page almost and almost closed the book with thunderous force.
The setting was a elevator, after the restaurant so it seemed. Inuyasha had the woman, who had recurred for three pictures now, up against the wall, one hand on the small of her back, the other on the thigh of the leg that had wrapped around his waist. His mouth was open on her neck, his eyes closed. She in the meantime had her head thrown back, more space for him to work no doubt, her hands embedded in his deep, dark hair. You could see the strings of her halter had been released causing the upper half of the dress to hang dangerously low on her ample chest and the white dress pushed far up her leg…
Kagome could just imagine Inuyasha caressing that smooth expanse of skin, murmuring and kissing the woman’s neck lovingly, teasingly, holding her with controlled strength. She could imagine because on so many occasions had Inuyasha done the same thing with her, albeit not in an elevator. Did he whisper sweet nothings to her, stroke her back, and then whisper things that made her blush so deeply yet still made her want him even more?
“I can’t look anymore…its torture,” Kagome said quietly, her thoughts circling round in her head. She was well aware that these were just pictures, that there might not have been a relationship between these two beautiful people…but the intensity of the emotions along with the feeling that she knew the woman didn’t help.
Ayumi put her arms around Kagome consolingly, voicing Kagome’s thoughts, as the other girls passed looks between each other. “These are only pictures, Kagome. We all know Inuyasha loves you deeply and he wouldn’t be so stupid to keep something like this. Maybe the last page says nothing at all.”
Wrong. It said everything.
Which in turn gave an answer to Ayumi’s previous statement.
Inuyasha was stupid enough to keep something like this.
Lying on a bed of silk was Inuyasha…clearly naked. The top sheet barely covered “downstairs” but that wasn’t what rocked Kagome the most. Lying next to him, tucked under one arm was the same woman, just as naked as he. She had her arm over his toned chest and a satisfactory, smug smile on her face. Her chest was pressed against his side and it was obvious their legs were entwined in some way, as well as their hair. Kagome gave a whimper, tears forming in her eyes as she sat down. Yuka, Eri and Sango flared up instantly as Ayumi lowered to the floor with Kagome.
“How could he keep something so smutty like that with him!? Who does he think he is?” Sango shouted angrily, her eyes flashing.
“I think a good teeth-breaking session is in order,” Yuka said calmly, while cracking her knuckles.
Ayumi tried to ease the tension in the room. “Hey guys, I don’t think violence is the answer-”
“In this case it is!” Sango, Yuka and Eri retorted. They all fell silent for a while until the familiar sound of a car pulling up could be heard. They all looked towards the garage door.
“Inuyasha,” Kagome whispered. Shouts of “dirty toe rag” and “male scum” and “hot pictures” (everyone then turned to look at Eri) were voiced. Kagome quietened them down.
“I’ll do this by myself,” she said softly. “This is something my husband and I need to sort out, if there’s anything to sort out.” The girls protested but she ushered them out of the garage and towards the front door.
Inuyasha wanted nothing more than to get inside his home, sink into a dining chair to eat, sink into a hot bath to relax, and then to sink into bed with Kagome - or perhaps sink into Kagome with the aid of a bed – to show his love for her and to push away his troubles. The hanyou grinned widely at his last thought and prepared to put his routine into action.
He pushed the door open ready to bellow for his wife when he saw a long line of women coming towards him. As each of them passed Inuyasha’s now hanyou form, a dirty look was thrown at him. Bewildered, he watched them walk to their respective cars and pull away, smelling their anger. Still confused, he bent down to kiss his wife good afternoon as she came to the door. Kagome turned her head at the last moment so he grazed her cheek. He pulled back more confused than before, his ears flicking momentarily. He could sense her anger…at him?
“Wow, what have I done to upset you guys?” Inuyasha tilted his head to the side and then shrugged, thinking nothing more of the matter, making his way into the house and then launched himself into how his day at work was, the annoying calls, inconceivably stupid employees…typical work lingo. Kagome had to slam the door shut to get his attention. He looked up, his amazingly beautiful gold eyes wide. Then they narrowed into confusion as he growled softly in discomfort at the foreign feeling. He held her gaze unwaveringly and unloosened his tie.
“Kagome? What’s wrong, koi?” he asked softly as he moved to her and tilted her face to look at her properly. She looked upset…but what about? He smelt her confusion and the threat of tears but was no closer to finding the reason. Her dark blues narrowed angrily. He tried to kiss her again but she pulled back yet again.
“Kagome,” he growled threateningly. “I don’t know what’s going on here. I mean when you get death looks from four angry women, who would all definitely fulfil their promise, a man gets kinda confused. And then when his own wife won’t kiss him, a man gets pissed off.” With that Kagome turned on her heel towards the garage, leaving Inuyasha to continue growling in a steadily growing sound. She promptly returned and pulled Inuyasha’s album from behind her back, chucking it at him. His reflexives allowed him to catch it perfectly with one hand while the other was untying his shoe on the floor. Inuyasha looked at his fiery wife curiously, and then opened it.
Kagome wasn’t expecting what he was about to do: the hanyou laughed. He had a big smile on his face beaming at his own self.
“Wow,” he said. ”I’d thought I’d lost these when we moved house!” he continued through. It was only until he got to later pages that he slowed down a bit. “Oh.”
“Yes Inuyasha, ‘oh’. Care to explain?” Kagome demanded tapping her foot impatiently. She wanted desperately for him to tell her that there was nothing to the folio, nothing at all.
“Listen Kagome, I can explain-“ but the said woman cut him off. His words only signalled that there was more to the pictures than she hoped.
“That’s what I’m hoping for. Why did you keep this hidden from me? Does it mean something to you?” He sighed deeply, which only caused her even more irritation and anger.
Inuyasha started to explain. “The woman you saw here…she’s nothing…not anymore-“
“Not anymore? So she used to be something? And a good lot of something it was too,” Kagome retorted indicating the elevator picture.
“She’s an ex of mine Kagome,” Inuyasha growled, getting annoyed and frustrated. “She’s nothing more. She can’t compare to you-“
“Wait - she’s an ex?” the hanyou nodded dumbly as he watched the fire spark in Kagome’s eyes, the very same fire he hadn’t seen in a very long while. “AN EX!? Inuyasha the whole point of the term ‘ex’ means past, gone, an EX-tra thing to throw away out of your life! Why are you keeping this if your ex is in it? Sure there are times when you stay friends with them, but you wouldn’t keep pictures like this of you and your ‘friend’ would you? And I highly doubt she’s a friend anymore.” He had no answer and the tears and anger were just increasing rapidly. “I just don’t-!” and then it hit her.
“Kikyou,” she mumbled absently.
Kikyou.
Kikyou - Inuyasha’s ex.
Kikyou – the woman who had Inuyasha in a daze and who threatened Kagome’s future relationship with Inuyasha.
Kikyou – the woman who had cheated on Inuyasha when he was seventeen, when they had been going out for a year.
Kikyou – the woman draped all over Inuyasha in those pictures.
Suddenly Kagome got hit by a severe bout of self consciousness. During her first steps with Inuyasha in their relationship, Kikyou had always tried to come between them and Inuyasha would be helpless as to what to do. He loved Kagome but it seemed at the time he still loved Kikyou. It now looked like Kikyou was coming between them again. Did he still…love Kikyou? Gods forbid otherwise Inuyasha was about to lose his life…
Kagome’s tears fell freely. “Do you still love her? No don’t answer that…what am I not pretty enough? Clever enough? Sexy enough-?”
‘Shit,’ Inuyasha thought as he first smelt her tears and then glanced upon her face with compassion.
“Kagome, baby, koishii, that’s not true! You’re more beautiful than her in a lot more ways than one! I know I was confused before but not anymore Kagome. I love you, koi, not her.” There ensued a heavy silence, both parties wondering who was going to speak first.
“Why’d you keep it?” Kagome asked sullenly, voice now quiet. Inuyasha cringed. He knew the exact reason why and it wouldn’t help matters to lie. His ears flattened against his head.
“…I guess…I guess ‘cause it reminded me of my younger, reckless days-“
“And how’s that supposed to make me feel!?” Kagome burst suddenly, slightly startling the hanyou. “Do you even know how that makes me feel, Inuyasha!? Mou, sometimes you’re so dense!”
“Kagome I didn’t mean it like that! I love you and that’s all that matters-!”
Kagome shoved a blanket at him and pointed to the couch, blue eyes flashing with a foreign emotion - anger. “Well whatever you’re thinking right now, now that you’ve got a blanket in you hands, ‘I’ mean it like ‘that’.” And she stormed upstairs. Inuyasha sank to the couch, the open album in front of him.
“Kikyou,” Inuyasha muttered and flung the album far across the room, into the fireplace, without even looking.
***