Assassination

A/N: School just sucks all kinds of ass. But, I finally escaped the damned place and am now giving up another meager chapter. Enjoy, my duckies!

No, I haven't gotten ownership of Inuyasha, Kagome or any of the crew. DO you really think I'd bother with school if I had? Nah, I'd buy...a million Sesshomaru plushies!!!


CHAPTER 7: Realizations / The Foray into The World


Inuyasha stared at the people passing blissfully by, trapped in the safe bubble of their own private worlds. He really didn’t want to be out here, not so soon after Kikyo’s murder, but his father had ordered him out. He had even sent Sesshomaru with him to make sure he didn’t skulk in the shadows.
Inuyasha had come, after much argument, debate, and the promise from his father that Sesshomaru would follow him wherever he went.
Which is precisely why Inuyasha found himself in the obnoxiously cheerful park on a perfectly fine Saturday.
One look at the vision of disgust etched on Sesshomaru’s face was all it took to raise Inuyasha’s spirits.
They both sat under the shade of a huge tree, Sesshomaru sitting with one knee pulled up and his wrist resting on his knee, while Inuyasha sat with his legs folded, arms crossed over his chest.

It had been exactly two months since Kikyo died, and his father had tired of seeing Inuyasha terrorize the servants and generally act like a big baby.
Sango had agreed with an evil glint in her eyes, even suggesting that Inuyasha find a nice cold lake.
The bickering that had followed had Inuyasha’s ears ringing even now.
Inuyasha looked around at the happy, picnicking families around him, eyes clouding over slightly as he looked upon the families with tiny children. At the proud fathers and laughing mothers who tumbled and played with their progeny.
He was especially disturbed by a tiny little girl in particular. The girl had long, straight black hair and odd-colored eyes, eyes that in the proper light looked gold.
He saw clearly then that this was the little girl he could have had if Kikyo were still alive.

The girl fell while running towards her parents on unsteady feet, the ball she held flying out of her arms and landing gently at his feet.
She picked herself up, dusting off stray bits of dirt from her knees, and looked directly at him.
She smiled, showing her perfect white teeth, before holding out her hands for her ball.
Inuyasha picked the ball up carefully, taking care not to prick the ball with his claws, and deposited the ball in the girl’s arms.
With another smile, she trotted back to her parents, her long hair shining in the sun.

Inuyasha felt a sharp, painful stab well within the boundaries of his heart when the girl turned within her parents’ embrace and waved cheerfully at him, her smile shooting innocent darts at him.
He smiled back at her, his heart breaking just a little bit more.
However much his brother proclaimed it, Inuyasha was not a fool. Occasionally an ass, but never a fool, and it was the height of foolishness to deny what was staring you in the face.
He knew just how broken, how torn both he and his heart were. He also knew that this sharp pain he felt now was just an innocent little girl stomping on the broken pieces, crushing them into shards that stung.

He leant back against the tree, eyes closed as his hand raked roughly through his hair. He knew that someday, some far away day, he would have to pick up the pieces and reconstruct himself, but the edges were so sharp, the pieces reflecting memories so painful that he knew it would be a bloody, monumental task.

He sincerely hoped that one day; he would be up to it, because all he saw now when he took a
look at himself was a sadly broken man.

Sesshomaru dug a sharp claw into Inuyasha’s side, effectively jolting him out of his deep introspection.
Inuyasha slit one eye open and scowled mightily.

“What the hell do you want?”

“When was the last time you saw or spoke to Kagome?” Sesshomaru asked without preamble.
Inuyasha’s eyes opened as he blinked slowly, surprised.

“Why?”

Sesshomaru, however, remained silent, instead looking pointedly at Inuyasha, who sniffed then
dug back into his memory for Kagome’s unusual blue eyes. He did not, could not fixate on her face, for very obvious reasons, instead electing to categorize her by her difference, not her similarity to Kikyo.

“Uh, I think I was the day of my bid for freedom.” He mumbled.

Sesshomaru lifted one eyebrow very slightly at that.

“Why?” Inuyasha repeated, curious as to the enigmatic look on his brother’s usually blank face.

“I would not expect you to understand my logic. Or any logic for that matter.” He replied loftily.
Inuyasha raised a lone finger and yawned widely.

Without looking, he could hear Sesshomaru’s temper skyrocket, and he inwardly grinned at the battle that was sure to follow.
Sure enough, Sesshomaru grabbed him by his collar, and dragged him away to a thick, forested area of the park behind them. Usually, Inuyasha would fight, tooth, nail and claw against Sesshomaru’s grip, on bare principle.
Blood would already be drawn and Sesshomaru would never drag him away so quietly.
However, the little girl was still smiling at him, and he would not, could not intrude upon her innocence.
So, for the first time in ever, he allowed his brother to drag him, and he smiled. Not only for the waving girl, but for himself.

Sesshomaru kept pulling, and Inuyasha stayed perfectly still, until they were out of the sight of the girl, and then turned on his brother.
In the chaos of limbs flying, connecting, snapping back, of bantering words, of discarding clothes that were more hindrance than protection, Inuyasha’s soul sang.
He was about to nail Sesshomaru with a brilliant kick when a familiar voice stopped him cold.
“If you think that you’re going to get away with that, you’re more deluded than I thought.”

************************

Contrary to popular opinion, and even common logic, Kagome truly believed that she could distance herself fully from Inuyasha and the Kingreaves as a family forever.

She had survived two hellish months, especially so as television stations decided to flash pictures of Inuyasha and Kikyo together almost daily, prattling on about the tragic love story that didn’t have an ending. Some stupid newscasters even sighed sadly, commenting gravely that it was looking more and more impossible that Inuyasha would ever get over Kikyo.

Because they mirrored her thoughts, Kagome had, several times, come mightily close to smashing her television, if only to shut up the external voices that paralleled her internal turmoil.

Sango and Miroku occasionally dropped by to check up on her, make sure she was still among the living, so to speak, but they always eventually left to return to the Kingreaves’ side.
IF not only to be there for a friend, they also had business there, seeing as how they were a couple of the Kingreaves’ corporation highest-ranking executives.
When they came, they always tried to persuade her to return to the mansion with them, cajoling her with funny stories of Inuyasha and pleas of Rin.

Kagome always politely, graciously declined, while inside she filled with jealousy.
She hated the fact that they could be in the presence of Inuyasha and even Kaede and not cause them pain, cause them to flinch and shy away. As she did, just by having her face.
She had moped around her home, rousing herself only to bully her son and brother into school, ending their inevitable protests to the contrary with a parental glare that she had perfected ever since her mother and grandfather had died in a plane crash seven years ago, effectively leaving her the sole parent of Souta and Shippo.

That morning, however, both boys had ganged up on her, telling her in no uncertain terms that she was looking vaguely vampiric with her lack of sunlight, and that she was going to the park with them to play, and if she had any problems she could complain to exactly no one, because they would be the people who cared.
To which Kagome had laughed, really laughed, for the first time in months.
Which is why she found herself chasing after two surprisingly fast teenaged boys, hair streaming behind her in a banner of silken black.
Shippo, the wretched little stinker, slowed down enough so that he was in arm’s reach, and then sped up, causing Kagome to grab at air.
She stopped, mock-glaring at the boys, who were on the far edge of the clearing, hands propped on her hips in exasperation.

“Fine. See who cooks for you tonight.” She called, threatening.

For some reason, long smiles pulled at the boys’ faces, threatening to split their faces in half.

Out of nowhere, they pulled out two small, glistening balloons that experience told her were filled with water.

She took a step back, eyes wide.

“You wouldn’t dare.”

The boys crept towards her, balloons pulled back from throwing.
With a shriek, she pivoted and fled, away from the clearing, bursting into the woods to hide better from them and their weapons.
Not fast enough, however, as Shippo appeared in front of her, Souta behind her, those devilish grins widening even more.
She turned from boy to boy, eyes narrowed.

“Do not even th-” she started softly, but was cut off by a double balloon attack.

Looking down at her drenched shirt and hair, she shook her head slowly, softly.

“If you think that you’re going to get away with that, you’re more deluded than I thought.”

Shippo’s green eyes widened, his grin fading, and Souta followed suit. She raised her head, reaching for both boys, but the slippery bastards eluded her, both shifting away.
She chased them, wet hair flying, catching them right as they burst into a clearing nearby, by the scruffs of their necks, and sent them tumbling to the floor.
They lay there, face-down into the mud, as she stood over them, considering.
They turned and looked up at her, eyes wide and expressions pleading.

“We’re really sorry?” Souta and Shippo asked simultaneously, trying for contrite expressions when their eyes sparkled with laughter.

“Try again.” She challenged.

“You’re the best mother in the world?” Shippo tried.

“And the best sister. And you’re really pretty and smart and…did I mention pretty?” Souta joined.

“I can accept that.” When they sighed in relief, Kagome grinned evilly, before asking a friendly water sprite nearby for a favour.

While their mouths were open, a deluge of icy cold water fell from nowhere onto them.
A little chuckle from behind her had her turning, still smiling.
Sesshomaru stood behind her, for some reason bare-chested.

Kagome stared, partly because she was looking at an admittedly impressive specimen of male abdomen, mainly because Sesshomaru always wore clothes, always, and there was only one time when he shed his clothes; when he was sparring with Inuyasha.
Heart beating wildly, she turned again, to see Inuyasha, also bare-chested, staring at her with a stricken expression.

“H-hi, Sesshomaru.” She smiled at Sesshomaru, whose amused expression faded just a bit as he looked at her.

“Hello, Kagome. I have not seen you in quite some time. How are you?”
Kagome was about to give a superficial reply, when she realized that Sesshomaru wanted a deeper truth.

“I’m surviving. It’s hard, but I’m surviving.” She replied truthfully, watching at Sesshomaru’s eyes widened marginally.
She turned slowly to Inuyasha, who was still staring at her.

“Hello, Inuyasha.” She said quietly, not expecting an answer.
She was not disappointed, as Inuyasha’s face suddenly closed down, becoming blank, expressionless.
Souta and Shippo, water forgot, stared at them, eyes bouncing between Kagome and Inuyasha, who both stood like smooth stone statues, neither showing any expression or thought whatsoever.

Kagome was the first to turn away, blue eyes bright with unshed tears that she would let fall as soon as she got away.

She quickly walked out of the clearing, head high and heart cracked.
Nothing had changed. She knew now, with a cold certainty that astonished her, that nothing would.

As long as she had Kikyo’s face that would be all Inuyasha would ever see.

*********************

His brother was an idiot. A fool, dolt, moron, ass. All of those and more. Sesshomaru watched as Kagome walked away, head held high, but shoulders slumping.

Inuyasha still stood there, expression cold, blank, much like Sesshomaru’s.
Both boys sat in the mud, looking downcast.
Shippo and Souta stood, staring at Inuyasha, both mumbling about stupid coincidences, eyes filled with pity and anger that Inuyasha had obviously hurt their Kagome.
They slowly trailed after Kagome, nodding at Sesshomaru as they passed.

Sesshomaru picked up his discarded shirt, shrugging into it and leveling his best what-an-idiot look at his brother, who had yet to move. Inuyasha still stood still, shocked at his meeting with what he obviously saw as a ghost.

He sniffed, watching as Inuyasha’s nose also worked, so they both picked up on the trailing scent of salt at the same time.

Tears.

Kagome was crying. Strong, cheerful Kagome, who always viewed everything with a smile and a laugh.

And it was entirely Inuyasha’s fault.

“You made her cry.” Sesshomaru stated simply.

Inuyasha turned to him, their golden eyes meeting, and Sesshomaru saw that Inuyasha really was in a state of shock and guilt.

“Did you know she would be here?” Inuyasha asked softly.

Sesshomaru scoffed, seeing where Inuyasha’s thoughts were headed.

“You chose the park, Inuyasha. How could I have possibly known?”

“Why did you ask about her, then?”

“I was curious. Have you never heard about coincidences?” Sesshomaru retorted.

Inuyasha’s lips twisted into a humourless smile, before he, too, pulled on his own shirt.

“Are you going to find her and apologize?” Sesshomaru persisted, folding his arms over his
chest and assuming a belligerent expression.

“Why?” Inuyasha asked, confused.

“Because you made her cry, you idiot.” Sesshomaru imparted gravely.

Inuyasha shrugged, as if you say that he didn’t care, but Sesshomaru saw guilt light up his eyes as he did.

“Kagome has always been too sensitive for her own good.” Inuyasha said flippantly, still looking in Kagome’s direction.

“Is she your friend?” Sesshomaru asked suddenly.

“What?”

“Was she ever your friend, or did you tolerate her because she was Kikyo’s friend?” Sesshomaru elaborated, staring his brother down.

“She was my friend. She introduced Kikyo and me. You know that.” Inuyasha said, confused.

“Some friend you are.” Was all Sesshomaru said, even letting Inuyasha receive his infamous sneer, guaranteed to make you feel like the worst kind of idiot.
Inuyasha didn’t reply, turned as he was in Kagome’s direction, brows drawn downwards.
Sesshomaru wrapped his palm around Inuyasha’s neck, pulling him from the clearing, exasperated.
Having an utter dolt for a brother could be taxing.

************

The woman perched on a high branch over the clearing studied the departing brothers with a sharp eye. She had been following them since they had left the Kingreaves mansion, undetected by either brother. She had been rewarded with a glimpse of their fighting styles when they both attacked each other in the clearing. She had also been privy to some obviously personal struggles concerning her target and one Kagome Higurashi, a woman remarkably resembling Kikyo Innesly. She mulled over her new information, her agile mind twisting the facts to form a scenario greatly to her advantage.
She was sure she could use the tension there to eliminate Inuyasha Kingreaves with a minimum of fuss. She was especially skilled at using inner turmoil of a target to destroy them. She was not particularly proud of her talents, but they kept food in her belly and money in her pocket.
Who was she to argue with her talent?

A/N: So? SO? SO???? By the way, an evil, evil, evil idea just popped into my twisted head. AAAHHHHH!!!!
Read, rate, and review, s'il vous plait.

Next Chapter: Recollections