Kiss and Control

Inuyasha groaned as the rain continued to drizzle down. It was one of those rains that refused to fall in any particular direction – rather, it came from everywhere, making an umbrella pointless. His baggy cargo pants clung to his legs like a second skin, his hoodie was quickly following suit. In the first five minutes, the puddle at his feet had managed to soak up through the material of his pants and trail all the way up to his knees. In ten minutes, the insides of his shoes were saturated, leaving him with that nasty lukewarm water slushing between his toes. Fifteen minutes, and he looked like he had been lying in said puddle.

To say he disliked water would not be entirely correct. He just preferred it in large amounts, like say, in a bathtub, or in a pool.

There was just something about the excessively small drops that continued to lay siege against him that annoyed the fuck out of him.

Speaking of annoyances, where the hell was this girl? A growl began to reverberate deep inside of the hanyou's chest that didn't suit his human disguise at all. Not that it mattered, since there was no one around. Seemed he was the only one stupid enough to be outside in this lovely weather.

"Tut tut...looks like rain..." he smirked, even as an especially obnoxious drop found its way down the curve of his nose.

His assignment was simple enough, find the girl, get close to the girl, kill her father.

Peachy, nice and simple.

Now where the fuck was she?

His bus would be arriving any minute now, and he would get on it, whether the girl had arrived or not. This was strictly a recon job - he was to be there at 5 p.m., confirm the girl’s location, then get on the bus that would take him downtown.

His employer’s informants had been watching the girl for some time now - and had reported that every Wednesday and Friday, she arrived at the diner across the street at exactly 5 p.m. to have coffee with her friends – which consisted of two females, small build, average height, and one male, average build, and roughly 160 lbs. – all of them Caucasian.

Every Wednesday and Friday for the past two months, and the first fucking day he shows up to confirm it for himself, she doesn't show.

The bus had given him a perfectly good reason to be standing outside in the pouring rain, and if she didn't show, he'd be damned if he was going to wait around for the next one. He'd just have to try again Friday.

Maybe his employer’s sources were just blowing smoke out their asses - either way, he was getting tired of waiting.

Just as he was about to call it quits, a blue SUV pulled up in the diner’s parking lot. A boy stepped out and popped open a red umbrella before opening up the rear door and helping out two girls. Inuyasha's brows furrowed. They matched the description, though it was vague to begin with, but then again, how many teenagers would want to spend Wednesday night at Meg's Cafe? The place seemed relatively empty.

Sure enough, from the passenger’s side-door, slid a petite frame grasping a pink umbrella. He couldn't see her very well at first - not through the vehicle’s tinted windows - but as she rounded the front of the car to join her friends, he knew he had hit paydirt.

There stood Kagome Higurashi, clad in a green knee-length skirt and a long-sleeved cream-colored sweater. Even at what was probably thirty yards away, and even through the continuous downpour, he could tell she was a real looker. Her slim waist was the center point to a pair of long legs, curvy thighs, and a gracious bust if he did say so himself.

He knew from her photos that she had a pretty face, but all of that was irrelevant - she was irrelevant. Just as the young Higurashi entered the dim-lit cafe, the local transit pulled up to the curve, its large doors swinging open, as a scowling bus driver glared down at him. Inuyasha matched the man’s look of disgust as he dropped the proper amount of money into the slot and grabbed a seat.

'Like I wanted to get on your fucking bus...' Inuyasha growled as he stared out the window long enough to watch the girl and her friends be seated in a corner booth. As he ran a hand through his long ebony-colored hair, he couldn't help but think about how he'd been suckered into this.

"One last job - it'll be easy, then you and that old hag you live with can live out your lives however you want," his employer had said.

That’s right, he was doing it for the same reason anyone does anything. He was doing it for the money. It had been two years since his last job, and he needed the last paycheck. After all, killing was what he did best, and mercenaries were always paid well.

*****

Kagome Higurashi waved good-bye to her friends as she walked up the long staircase that led to the shrine. Home. She hadn't been feeling well and really hadn’t wanted to go out tonight, but after Eri and Yumi's begging and Hojo's insistence, she somehow found herself sitting in a booth with her friends, sipping on hot cocoa. It wasn't that she didn't enjoy the time she spent with her friends, she just hated going out in the rain. There was something about the half-wet, half-dry feeling that made her cringe. She'd take her water in a pool or in a bath tub thank you very much.

Walking through the door, she dropped her purse and jacket unceremoniously into a handy chair before trudging upstairs where she could find a nice comfy pair of pajamas and a hot bath. She didn't bother looking to see if anyone else was home, because no one ever was. Her father was a businessman and married to his work, which was the exact reason Kagome’s mother had walked out on him several years back, taking her little brother with her. Kagome had been in high school at the time, and it was decided that it would be best for her to stay - not to mention that she had already been approved for a scholarship by the local college. Oh yes, Kagome was the brainchild. Never had a B in her life. Straight A's and an empty social life to show for it.

Not that she regretted not going out more in high school - she never was the party type, but she did plan on relaxing a bit more in college. Now that she had fought her way to the top, it was time for her to relax. Not that she was going to rush out and get drunk or high, but skipping a couple of classes, getting a few B's wouldn't hurt.

Grabbing a pair of pink and white pajamas, she grinned as she slipped into the bathroom and began to fill the tub.

Hell, maybe she would get a boyfriend in college.

She had been on dates before, but she had never really accepted any of those guys as a boyfriend.

Stripping down, she sighed as she slid into the warm water until it came to her nose. As she scrubbed up with her scented soaps and shampoos, she couldn't help but drift off into a daydream about her would-be, could-be boyfriend. He would be tall of course, handsome and smart, but not a pushover. He'd be polite and charming - a complete gentleman - and he would treat her with the utmost respect...at least, that’s what the rational side of her mind told her. Her darker half, however, was whispering secret desires that were best left unsaid. Desires of being swept up by a dark handsome rogue. Desires of being completely dominated as he had his way with her. His mouth would be warm and moist as it tasted her, his lips soft as they latched onto her own. He would take his calloused hands and trail them up and down her sides before grabbing her by the hips and pinning her to the wall and....

'Whoa Kagome...where the hell did that come from?!' she thought, as she rinsed herself off. 'Better quit that...unless you want this nice warm bath to be followed by an ice cold shower...'

Pulling the plug, she stood and quickly dried off, mindful not to let her thoughts slip again. As she dressed and climbed into bed, she found it more and more difficult to think about....well anything other than....that...

'Hormones...blame it on the hormones...'

She sighed as she fought to clear her mind. Eventually sleep did come, but only to bring her dreams much more provocative than her earlier fantasies.

*****

The apartment Inuyasha had leased was nothing short of a cruel joke. To call it a rat hole would have been an insult to vermin, and to call it a shit hole would have been an insult to...well, you get the idea. Walking through it, doing a quick survey of exactly what he was dealing with, he had discovered several disgusting details. Apart from the usual mystery stains in the bathroom, and the cliché non-working toilet, Inuyasha had made the mistake of opening the refrigerator and instantly realized his error. The odor which poured from within the large white box could be described as nothing less than month-old rotting meat, spoiled milk left in the sun for days and a touch of compost. The only thing missing were the maggots - and if he had checked, he was sure he wouldn't have been disappointed.

And apparently, whoever had left the mess in the fridge had also occupied the second bedroom, which was in the nicest word, uninhabitable. Inuyasha had learned at an early age that some things are best left alone. The second bedroom, with its god-awful stench and a dozen-plus mystery garbage bags and boxes, was one of these things.

One thing to be grateful for was at least he had a clean bed, even without a frame or a box spring, it was still a decent bed. When he leased the apartment, he had also gone to the local furniture store and bought a mattress. As any intelligent adult would know, used mattresses are disgusting. They're lumpy, smelly and stained with things you really don't want to know about. He had tossed said mattress out on the curb where it belonged.

Inuyasha sighed as he stripped off his wet clothes, almost hesitant to drop them on the floor. Beneath his shirt, lying against his tanned chest, was a beaded rosary. Its bright purple-red beads glistened, as well as the small fang-like spacers. He fingered the necklace absent-mindedly.

He was cold, he was wet, and he had a horrible fucking headache.

The smell, or smells, of the apartment were working overtime on his sensitive nose. He had tried opening a window, only to find that they were all nailed shut, and of course the air conditioner didn't work. As he pulled on a pair of boxers, he fell onto his new bed with a sigh. He still had some cash on him; tomorrow he would go to the store and buy some cleaning supplies; disinfectant and an economy-sized bottle of Fabreeze were on the top of his list.
Tomorrow was Thursday, and that meant Higurashi wouldn't be showing at the diner. That gave him the day to try to sterilize the apartment as much as possible and get in a little shopping.

He supposed he would probably need some clothes and some bedsheets. He hadn't really packed much when he left. A few guns, some ammo, a couple select knives that could be easily hidden and an extra set of clothes. He never liked bringing anything of too much value with him when he did a job - chances were they would have to be left behind or discarded.

One thing he was going to see to immediately were the nails in the windows. His chateau came with both a front and a back door, but he wouldn't object to a few more exits. Besides, the fumes from the cleaning materials would need to air out.

As part of a nightly ritual, he reached into his bag and pulled out a pack of Marlboro's and lit it up. The smooth nicotine did little for his headache, but it did soothe his nerves some, allowing him to think.

He wasn't sure how long this job would last, but the paycheck at the end would be well worth it. And this time he wouldn't fuck up.

He had already decided the best place to initiate contact would be at the café - it would be the least conspicuous. He would have thirty minutes to get in and get out. Long enough to do what needed to be done, but enough time to get out before he spooked the girl. The last thing he needed was for her to think he was some kind of stalker. She was young, and judging by her papers, naive, which would make the assignment that much easier. He didn't like it - getting so close to his target, getting involved - it went against all of his instincts. If it were up to him, he would just kill the man outright - he didn't see the need in involving the daughter. But that was what his orders were, and he was damned if he was going to screw up and not get paid. He would do his job, and if the girl got in the way, well...casualties happen, and he wasn't going to be one of them, not again.

"You better appreciate this, Baba..." Inuyasha grunted before putting out his cigarette. Before turning out the lamp he had placed near the bed, he removed the beaded rosary from his neck. As soon as it cleared the top of his head, his ebony locks turned a silvery white, his eyes became a deep honey color, and atop his head rested two fur-covered dog ears.

As he tossed and turned his mood only grew worse.

"Note to self....buy a fricken' pillow..."

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A/N: First of all I would like to thank my wonderful beta Atelaar for dealing with my bad spelling and grammar. Secondly I'd like to apologize to the readers of "Creative Writing" because I will be taking it down and re-writing it until I am satisfied with it. This story wouldn't leave me alone until I put it to paper, so hopefully I'm not the only one to find it interesting. Since it will probably take up most of my free time, I'm not sure when I will be able to repost CW, so please bare with me.
Thanks,
Kijo