A Shadow's Vengeance by Dark Celestia

Nothing Quite Like Family

Title: A Shadow's Vengeance

Author: Dark Celestia

Chapter Rating: PG-13

Disclaimer: Hmm. . .perhaps this isn't a smart idea. . .It would totally ruin some fantasies of me and Sesshoumaru on a desert island. . .

A/N: This is an idea I had when I was reading a series from the ever-popular Laurell K. Hamilton, and my bizarre mind thought, "Hey, I think I can work the basis of this into an Inuyasha fic!" So here I am, attempting to make this idea into a full fic.

Those of you that have read this wonderful book will know most of the things that may surprise/confuse/annoy(?) some of the other readers, but hopefully I can explain some of the things good enough. But unlike the book, there will be no fey relations in it (and Kagome will not be quite as. . .whorish as the main character in the book). Yes, this will be a Sesshoumaru and Kagome fic...although there will be mentions of others.

Those of you that haven't read the book, feel free to email or contact me on AIM as CrypticLuna if you have any questions about the events in here. That's one of the reasons I put those tidbits of info in my profile, don't be afraid to use them.

Alright, now that I've talked your ears. . .erm. . .eyes off, let's begin!

First Chapter: Nothing Quite Like Family

"That's it, Kagome!" she said to herself, her hands gripping the steering wheel as her Acura rounded another corner. "No more men for a month!" Although she wasn't quite sure if she was rewarding or punishing herself, but she had to vent out her frustrations.

She had hoped that this time would be different, and boy, how wrong she was. Three weeks of him flirting, showing signs of attraction to her, Kagome had given into his relentless pleading for a date. And when she had finally decided that dating would be worthwhile, it just had to be with someone who was only interested in getting into her pants. God! On the first date too! Just what kind of girl did he think she was? It wrecked her nerves and chipped at her tolerance making her angry enough to slam her foot down on the pedal, sending the car speeding--which was something that she rarely ever did.

Dating in the past few months had been nothing short of an utter disaster. Of course, something like this happened, and she was sure that she would think twice about her judgment from now on. Naturally her friends tried to "help", but Kagome still wasn't certain if they had some kind of sick pleasure to see how badly they could ruin her free nights. She was already on a vow not to let her friends set her up on any more blind dates. There were literally enough jerks in L.A. to last her a lifetime, and unfortunately, they either seemed to be attracted to her, or her friends knew them well enough to condemn her to a couple of hours in their company.

Something in the rear-view mirror caught her attention and as her brown eyes looked into it, she swore at her luck. Great. Just great, Kagome thought as she spotted the flashing red and blue lights of the cop car behind her. Now I'm going to get a ticket. She pulled over on the shoulder and parked, nearly growling and wondering why the hell she had decided even bothering getting up this morning. She tapped her fingers on the steering wheel and waited for the officer to come around to the window. "Good evening, officer."

The policeman nodded at her as he leaned into the window. "Well, what do we have here?"

Kagome gave him a sad smile. "A woman who is ticked off and can't get home fast enough to curse her own problems." Her hand reached into the glove compartment for the necessary documents that she knew the officer was going to ask her for and handed them to him.

"Do you know how fast you were going?"

"Somewhere in the range of fifteen to twenty miles over the speed limit. I wasn't really looking at the gauge."

The officer nodded again and looked down at her license. "I'll be back with your ticket," he said as he walked back towards his car.

Kagome banged her head against the steering wheel. Well. . .this was great. She had not gotten pulled over by a cop for over a few years now, and today she managed to break that streak--over a guy, no less. Something must have been seriously wrong with her. . .her luck had usually been good in her life, so where was her good fortune now?

Ha. Good fortune. . . I think that idea went out the roof with deciding to go on that date.

That thought only made her pound her head on the wheel even harder.

". . .Are you okay. . .miss?"

Her head snapped up at the officer's voice. She must've really looked like a nutcase. Oh sure, give him reasons of how you're not in any conditions to drive tonight. A trip to jail would be such a great way to end the day. . . "I'm fine, officer."

He looked unconvinced. "Alright then." He handed her the ticket. "Watch how you're driving next time."

Her eyes closed as she gave him a smile. "Will do." She let his patrol car pass her before she started her own vehicle down the road.

She drove--although much slower this time--to her home in one of the many apartment buildings that composed the part of the city she lived in. It was an average apartment, nothing special in particular; rates were reasonable, and there was no huge problem with it. It was in a decent neighborhood as well, and Kagome enjoyed living in it. The environment made her feel. . .normal--just what she wanted in her life.

She steered her car into the parking garage, her mind thinking of just going to sleep. If she went to bed, she wouldn't have to deal with the rest of the night--just relaxing into slumber. That sounded good, Kagome decided as she rode the elevator up to her floor.

Kagome stuck her keys in the lock and gently pushed open the door. If she didn't, he would run out into the hallway, and chasing him down the corridor was not something that she was up to tonight. To her relief, he was nowhere near the door, rather laying on the couch. His head rose when she peeked around the door, then he lowered his head and closed his eyes, as if dismissing her completely.

A wry grin made its way across her face. "Gee, nice to see you too, Buyo." She threw her keys on the metallic dining table and with a sigh and dragged her feet to the answering machine. Her finger punched the play button and she waited for the monotonous voice to finish telling her she had three new messages, which she already understood by looking at the large neon red number flashing on the machine.

The first message was from Sango, who just called to see how the date went. . .well, she would wait a little while before returning that call. She just wanted to forget it for the time being.

The second one was from her colleague telling her that he had come across some new evidence that she could use for her current case. She nearly smiled. Hojo was such a sweet guy. He didn't even have to do most of the things that he did for her, but she was grateful that there was at least one male on the planet that didn't make her aggravated. A yawn escaped her mouth. She would call him tomorrow morning before she went to work. Right now, she didn't feel like changing into work mode. It had been only a few hours since she left the courthouse, Kagome had no desire to act like a lawyer again right now.

She was heading to the kitchen to get Buyo's dinner ready when she heard the mechanic beep that signaled it was going to the next message. She smiled at her cat as he strode into the kitchen when he heard the shake of the bag of dry cat food. Her hands were in the process of pouring it when she heard a familiar voice speaking in perfect Japanese. She gasped, eyes going wide with recognition.

"Mom?"

Her mother never called. Okay, that was a lie. She rarely called her. Since she had left a year ago, the most contact they had with each other was through the mail. Occasionally, however. It wasn't as if they weren't close, because they were as close as friends as a mother could be to a daughter, and Kagome knew she could tell her mother anything. Things had just. . .changed between them, and she couldn't explain it. She went to the refrigerator and took out a plastic pitcher of iced tea as she listened to the remainder of the message.

". . .things have been amiss. I spoke with your sister a few days ago, and she has told me that she needs to speak with you. She says she'll call you soon." There was a pause. "I just wish she could have handled things differently." A sigh.

Kagome's brow furrowed at that point. What was the matter? However, she could wait to wonder about that until her mother finished.

"But what's done is done. I'm sure she'll tell you all about it. Until later. Goodbye, Kagome."

The beep ended the message.

Kagome groaned as she poured the iced tea into a glass she had retrieved from the cupboard. Her sister could cause the worst of problems and not even care whom she hurt in the process, and it was fairly obvious that she had wounded their mother. Family to her sister meant practically nothing, and Kagome knew that her older sibling dismissed the rest of the Higurashi's and lived her life on her own. Kikyo had done so even before Kagome left home. She was much stronger in the miko sense than her younger sister and didn't even bother to hide it. It used to bother Kagome before, the way Kikyo would prove that she was better at channeling the power. But Kagome had left Japan and had wanted to hide the fact that she was a miko, live somewhere where she wasn't acknowledged for her powers or family name, and coming to the United States had been her choice.

It had broken her mother's heart.

But it was virtually nothing, compared to Kikyo. It wasn't like her mother thought; Kagome hadn't given up on her powers, or was ashamed of them. They just weren't necessary for what she wanted to do with her life. Being a miko princess was not something she wanted to be anymore, and besides, Kikyo was already all the miko the country ever needed. That was already crystal clear to Kagome, and she had come up with a plan to satisfy herself, since she would never compare to her sister.

But this. . .Kikyo was going to call her? That was a very scary thought.

She walked out of the kitchen drinking her tea, being careful to step over Buyo. The last time she had tried to leave the room while he was eating had resulted in her stepping on his tail. . .Kagome was in no mood to hear his screeching and hissing again.

Her feet took her to the bedroom and she set her glass on the end table near her bed, walking to her dresser to select a pair of pajamas. Sleep would be so great right about now, Kagome thought, finally deciding on a pair of cotton PJ's and shutting the drawer with a snap.

"Hello, sister." A familiar voice said behind her. Kikyo.

"Ah!!" Kagome nearly lost her footing when she whirled around. She was glad that she had not stumbled over the bed; that would certainly embarrass her in front of her sister. Reflection manifestation. Contacting people through glass or a body of water--anything that gave a reflection. One of the fun ways that people with her power could use. Oh joy.

Still, to say she was shocked that Kikyo had decided to use her miko powers to call her was definitely an understatement. Her sister, on the other hand remained calm, as if she didn't see the problem of barging in peoples' houses without permission. Her sister was sitting in a chair center of Kagome's large mirror, giving Kagome the feeling as if she were watching a television that she could talk through--the image was that clear.

One of Kikyo's raven brows rose in amusement at her alarm. "Are you not pleased to see your older sister?"

Kagome quickly recovered from her shock. A sardonic smile flashed across her face. Pleased. Yeah right. Way far from the truth. "Of course I am, Kikyo. I was only surprised to see you--" Her voice dropped to a mumble. "--without warning."

"I was told that you were informed that I would be calling on you."

"Well. . .yeah. But I just got that message like five minutes ago. Picking up a phone might've helped to tone down the stun," Kagome said with her hands on her hips.

"Normally, I would have merely written you a letter. . .if I desired to come in contact with you." Kikyo said the end of that sentence subtly bitter, making sure Kagome knew that she would much rather slit her wrist open with a smile on her face before talking to her younger sister. "However, such news must be told face-to-face."

Kagome's teeth were grinding together until she heard the last of her statement. Her eyes widened. What could possibly have happened that made Kikyo call her? "What news?"

Kikyo sat back in her chair, satisfied that she now had her sister's undivided attention. "As of three months ago, my stature changed somewhat. I am currently not only the miko queen, but also a queen of a large demon territory as well."

"Wha. . ." Kagome's eyebrows shot upwards. "You're married? To a demon lord?" Her nose wrinkled in distaste.

Kikyo simply shrugged. "It was necessary."

At this, the younger sister's eyes narrowed. Necessary? Kikyo had something up her sleeve, some sort of plan formulating in her mind, but Kagome was no fool. Kikyo was not going to tell her anything about it. If she wanted her to know, she would have mentioned it already. But what was so important that she needed to marry some guy to carry out her plan?

..Wait a minute. This wasn't her problem.

"Well, I'm happy for you, Kikyo," she said in a dry tone. "Really, I am. Glad to hear the news. Now, if you'll excuse me, I have to rest for work in the morning."

"Did you really think I would waste my time calling you if that was the only news I bring?"

"You know, it's hard to tell that you love me, sis. But I'll let that slide, since I really don't want to waste any more of my time. Not that I don't just love our little talks." Kagome didn't even bother to bury the sarcasm. "What is so vital that you had to resort to talking to me?"

"You are to come back to Japan."

Kagome laughed. "Yeah right. What's the point? Mom stepped down, making you queen and there's really no one other than our family that would miss me."

"All will be explained upon your arrival."

Her eyes were filled with confusion and curiosity. "Why?"

"All will be explained upon your arrival," Kikyo repeated.

She glared as she put her hands on her hips. "If that's the only thing you can tell me, then the answer is no! I won't leave my life here to come to your beck and call if there isn't a good reason to."

"There is a good reason. And what of Mother? She is looking forward to seeing you again. Do you really wish to disappoint her?" Kikyo smirked almost gracefully, knowing that the last part of the speech had won her the argument.

Kagome found her teeth grinding together again. Damn her. She had probably told their mother and gotten her hopes up that she would be coming home. "I hope that you'll at least give me a week to get prepared," she said, her mind already trying to figure out how long it would take for her present case session to wrap up.

"You only have two days. Your airplane tickets will arrive tomorrow morning. Farewell until then." And with that, the image on her mirror faded, showing her the contents of her room through its reflection.

Despite the fact that she knew Kikyo had gone, Kagome raised her fist to the mirror angrily. "This had better be good, Kikyo."

~~~~~~~~~~~~~~

"So you're going to be leaving, then?"

Kagome nodded, stirring her coffee, listening absently to the commotion of other customers of the coffee house. "Yep, that's my sister for you. I don't even have a clue as to what this is about."

Sango shook her head sadly. "Marrying someone that the family disapproves of and telling you about it months after it happened. . .That's really inconsiderate."

Kagome couldn't agree with her friend more. She had told Sango about it--leaving off the fact that she had talked to Kikyo through her bedroom mirror--and her friend had sympathized. That was Sango's personality. She listened to the problems and expressed her support. . .or dissatisfaction--depending on the situation. Kagome sighed. She was through with the matter.

"So. . .any luck with Miroku?"

It was Sango's turn to give a pensive sigh. "No. He still hasn't asked that question yet. I'm starting to think he's afraid to."

"That's a possibility. Maybe he's not ready yet."

Her friend's face took on a wistful look. "Hmm," she absently noted.

"And when he does ask, you'll be ready."

Sango nodded, taking a sip of her own drink before changing the subject. "So, have you arranged a replacement for your case?"

"Yep. I asked Hojo to take it for me. He's been following the case closely and even found something that could be used to defend our client." Kagome poured a bit more sugar into her coffee. "Since he's probably the most familiar with the case in the firm, I thought he would be the best choice for a replacement."

"Hmm. . .Hojo helping you out? Maybe you should have gone on a date with him instead of that loser."

Kagome shook her head. "I don't date the people I work with, Sango. That's an important rule. If something goes wrong in the relationship, then it would be too awkward of an environment to work in." She stared down in her cup. "It's not like he hadn't asked me out yet, anyway."

"He did? When did that happen? What did you say?"

"Yes, about a month ago, and the same thing I told you. He's nice, and I suppose if we didn't work together I would be more than happy to accept his offer, but. . ." her voice trailed off as she looked at her watch. "Man, I better get home to pack. My sister booked the flight early tomorrow morning."

Sango looked at the watch on her own wrist. "Yeah, I had better head down to the precinct. Lunch hour's almost over anyway." They both stood. Sango looked at her questioningly. "You'll call before you leave, right?"

Kagome nodded. "Sure. And I'll call you when I get there and give you the number."

"Alright. I guess I'll see you. . ." Sango was unsure what to put at the end of that sentence.

Kagome laughed. "You know, I'm not even sure of how long I'll be gone. My sister never even gave me a time period."

"How considerate," Sango said dryly before embracing her friend in a hug. "Have a safe trip then."

To Be Continued.

A/N: Ah..Laurell K. Hamilton did a much better job explaining the 'special powers' in her book..I hope I made the descriptions well enough. If not, you can always ask in an email, AIM, or reviews. I'll try to answer all of your questions. And speaking of reviews, tell me what you think of the beginning! It's going to get a little strange and definitely a shade darker, but trust me, it'll be good. Until next time, folks~