Lies Aren't Much Fun

. x . o . x .

Kagome Higurashi's personal version of Hell consisted of a multitude of things that were often grouped together: cleaning her grandfather's storage houses for him, being told she didn't have to come into work (meaning she wouldn't get paid), and being reminded of the fact that she was a woman who rarely got to see her boyfriend due to his business trips. Sango and her boyfriend, Miroku Takemitsu, did it unintentionally of course, but still. Not exactly fun to deal with.

"Remind me," Kagome grunted, heaving a box up and nearly dropping it when the heavy weight surprised her, "how you got the day off, Miroku?"

Miroku grinned, taking the heavy box from her as if it weighed nothing. She glowered momentarily. "I lied and told my boss that my girlfriend, who lived alone, had caught an illness and couldn't take care of herself."

Kagome cast a glance at Sango, who was easily carrying a box that must have weighed twice as much as she did and laughed. "She's deathly ill," Kagome promised, fighting the urge to laugh again. "If anyone asks, I'm your alibi. You were at Sango's with your deathly ill girlfriend, nursing her back to health until her little brother could come to the rescue and take over. Kohaku Nakamura arrived at exactly eleven P.M. this evening."

"What if they want proof?" Sango questioned as she returned. She wiped her hands free of dust on her jeans, raising an eyebrow and propping her hands on her hips with a barely held back smile. "Then what?"

"...I'll get back to you on that." was Kagome's answer. The three laughed and returned to their work. When all of the boxes in the storage shed had been removed and was sitting outside in miscellaneous piles and stacks. Kagome handed Sango and Miroku a bandana, tying one around her own face, and they did the same. "And now," Kagome said sarcastically. "The dusting."

Sango moaned. "Can we just, you know, send Miroku in there? You and I can go get some ice cream down the street or something." When Miroku pouted, she patted the top of his head, her brown eyes gleaming. "We'll bring you something after you're done, I promise. My treat."

"As much as I long for the idea of leaving Miroku alone to do it, we can't. You know how Grandpa is about his valuables and we both know how clumsy Takemitsu here is." She received a scathing look from Miroku, and she simply shrugged. "It's the truth," she said honestly, shoving her black braid back. It fell against her back, stopping just under her shoulder blades.

"Can we just get to work?" Miroku sighed, exasperated. He grabbed a cloth to dust with, taking a deep breath before ducking into the storage house. Sango and Kagome exchanged mournful looks, then followed suit.

It took them no time to dust the entire storage house and soon they were returning the boxes to their homes in the storage shed. Rather than helping Miroku and Kagome, however, Sango simply began to dig around in a box. Kagome gave her a rather nasty look, but Sango ignored her in favor of pulling cloth out. "Whoa," she breathed, a smile crossing her face. "Look at this." She held it up, revealing what looked like a pair of nagabakama that a miko might've worn. "Where'd you get this Kagome?"

Kagome shrugged, not seeing the worried look that was exchanged between Miroku and Sango. "I dunno. We've had it for a long time. Grandpa pulled it out once. I'm not sure how it's not all gross, he said it was there before he was born." Kagome peered into the box. "It's a complete set. See? There's the hitoe and the kasode, and the tabi and sandals, too. And here's the bow. Looks like there's a full set of arrows in here, too."

"Huh," Sango murmured, carefully folding the clothes and tucking them carefully back into the box. Kagome replaced the bow she'd been examining. She then proceeded to scoop the box up and quickly deposited it in the storage shed. She shoved the bandana that she'd been wearing into her pocket, tilting her head back to enjoy the smell of fresh air. "So," Kagome said, turning to face Sango and Miroku. "About that ice cream..."

"I have to go," Sango said apologetically, her warm brown eyes emotionless, however. She held up her phone. It was dead, but only she knew that. "My father just texted me, he wants to speak to me and Miroku about something." She rolled her eyes to the heavens. "I swear, the guy's determined to get the two of us married as soon as possible." She made a face, not noticing the hurt look that passed across Miroku's face when she said firmly, "Not happening."

Kagome sighed. "Guess I'll go alone, then," she murmured to herself. With her grandfather ill, her boyfriend away for his job, and her mother and brother at a championship for Sota's soccer team, she was home alone. And she wouldn't lie. It was lonely.

"I'm sorry," Sango said earnestly, biting her lip guiltily. "I'll come back as soon as this discussion is done with, I swear," she promised. But even she knew that it was unlikely. Sango was called for jobs often, and she rarely had time for herself, let alone time to sit with her friend at an ice cream parlor.

"Don't worry about it," Kagome murmured, waving her off. "Go, you know how your father gets if you're late."

Sango studied her friend. Kagome Higurashi was smart, pretty (even though she denied it), and one of the nicest and most patient women Sango had ever met. Not once in her life had Kagome lied to her face. Yes, she'd given a white lie about her health or something, but not like the lies Sango gave. Unlike Sango, Kagome wasn't aware of the hidden beings that plagued the world, hiding themselves from vision: demons. Half-demons, as well, but they were rare and hard to find. Sango longed to tell her the truth, that she was a demon slayer in charge of keeping the misbehaving demons in check. But it was against the Elders' laws, so she often found herself in a position like the one she was in now: unable to tell the truth and physically sick over the fact that she couldn't.

"Sango," Miroku said quietly, resting a hand on her back. "Come on, you know how Takeshi gets."

"I'm really sorry, Kagome," Sango insisted as Miroku gently pushed her towards the stairs that led to the street below. Kagome simply forced a smile onto her face, watching as the duo left. She'd be fine. She was always fine, never showed any fear or sadness in front of others. Always. It was the promise she'd made the day her father was murdered. She remembered the day easily. What person wouldn't remember watching their father being murdered in front of their eyes? Of course, her version was definitely different then what was the official story.

"Kagome, stay here," Shichiro Higurashi murmured, stroking his seven year old daughter's cheek to comfort her. She was terrified. Someone had smashed through the window and was now climbing in. He kissed her forehead. "Stay here, little one. You'll be alright. Don't make a sound, alright? I don't want them to find you."

"Yes, Papa," Kagome whispered, her large gray eyes full of terror. Tears streamed down her cheeks.

"Remember," he murmured, shushing her and closing the closet door. "Don't make a sound. I love you, Kagome." With that, he turned away from the closet, heaving a huge sigh. "Alright, you bastard," he hissed. "You've got me, Naraku. Killing me won't help you." Shichiro smirked, raising his chin proudly. "You still won't win. The future has been decided; the miko told you before you killed her. You can't change the future."

"Watch me," the man her father had called Naraku spat. Kagome watched through the crack of the closet door, her mouth dropping in horror. She could only watch as Naraku descended upon Shichiro, eyes glittering a malicious red. And when her father was nothing but a dead man that had been torn to ribbons, he turned to stare at the closet for a few moments. Kagome shrank back, terrified that she'd been seen. But then there was another crash, and Naraku vanished just in time for the door to fly open.

Never before had Kagome been as scared as she was at that moment. This made her nightmares look like lovely and wonderful dreams. People with fangs, claws, and other features exploded into her home, and there was an enraged roar. Dizzy, Kagome thumped to the ground in the closet, letting a soft sob escape her. Silence suddenly fell and the closet door opened after a few seconds. Kagome gave a shriek, jerking back from prying hands, but they caught her and pulled her out.

The fear got to her. The child passed out, and hours later, she was found in the closet by her mother and a few policemen.

Of course, when she told everyone what she'd seen, nobody believed her. Nobody believed her about the man with the red eyes and the people with fangs and claws. She'd been labeled as crazy by anyone she'd told and evenutually, she'd agreed that she'd imagined it all. The official story? Shichiro Higurashi had been murdered by a madman with steak knives and had died at around eight o' clock PM on April 4th, 1997.

Shaking her head, Kagome snapped back to what she'd been doing. She quickly locked the storage shed, biting her lip as she started down the steps herself. Yes, she'd agreed she'd been imaging things that night.

But why was she constantly seeing things out of the corner of her eye?

Sango stormed into the home with a furious look upon her face, slamming the door behind her, and Miroku soon appeared, following after her with a sigh escaping him. "Sango," he said with an exasperated sigh, "I'm sure it meant nothing."

"It did not!" Sango shrieked over her shoulder, brown eyes determined and angry. "You and I both know it doesn't mean nothing! That bow reacted when Kagome touched it, and you know it! We both felt that power that came from it, Miroku! You know that something like that doesn't just happen!"

"What is going on in here?"

Both young adults froze at the familiar sound of Izayoi Takahashi's voice. Her long hair loose and her large, expressive brown eyes concerned, she said softly, "You two don't usually argue like this. So what's going on? Did you have something you need to tell us?"

"Even you do not come here often, Sango," a deep voice said sharply as Izayoi's husband appeared beside her. Inutaisho towered over his petite mate, her head barely reaching his shoulders, silver hair swaying and mingling with her own pitch black. Golden eyes ablaze with curiosity, he continued, "What has happened? Have you come across any leads to Naraku?"

Miroku didn't miss the flash of hope that crossed Izayoi's face, the way she bit her lip hopefully. "No," he admitted, apologetic. "It's not that impor-"

Sango cut in, casting Miroku a sharp look. "I think we've found a miko." That had Inutaisho's attention in an instant, and Izayoi straightened with an emotionless look. "I'm not sure if she's the miko we're looking for, but I'm pretty sure she's a miko, Inutaisho." She bit her lip. "I'd rather not involve her if we could, though," she added quietly. "She's a friend, a close friend at that."

Inutaisho growled softly in response, blinking thoughtfully. "Do any other demons know of her? Has she been attacked before?"

Sango exchanged a mournful look with Miroku. "I'm not sure about her being attacked," Sango said honestly, shoving a hand through her thick brown bangs. "But she's dating one of your allies. Koga Arakaki, the leader of the wolf demons. She doesn't know that he's a demon, but...he protects her, keeps an eye on her when he's around."

"When he's around?" Izayoi huffed, her hope gone. "That boy is never around. I know that he's one of the best lawyers in Japan, but honestly! That's not going to cut it if she's a miko...should we send someone to protect her and keep an eye on her?" She turned to Inutaisho, who was nodding slowly.

"I think," he said slowly, "That I will have one of our men hang about wherever they live. Give me a location so that I may send someone to guard over the potential miko, Sango."

"Higurashi Shrine," Sango replied confidently. She frowned when Izayoi slapped her hand over her mouth with a gasp and Inutaisho automatically began to growl. "What?" the demon slayer demanded, confused. "Why are you two so freaked out?"

"It is of no concern," Inutaisho muttered, looking surprisingly sick. He shook his head to clear it. "I will order one to go to her tonight." He paused, glancing to his mate, who looked slightly deflated now that she'd learned that this had nothing to do with their missing son. "Have the demon slayers heard any word of Inuyasha just yet?"

Sango shook her head, her eyes flashing with grief and Miroku pursed his lips unhappily. Their shared half-demon friend had vanished nearly three weeks before after heading out to deal with a particularly nasty demon that even the demon slayers couldn't handle. "I'm sorry," she murmured, "We're keeping an ear and eye out for him though, I promise. Should we learn of anything, I'll call." She gave a wry smile. "I'm sure Sesshomaru's showing some uncharacteristic happiness that he's not around."

Izayoi gave a shaky smile. "For the first few days, yes. Now he's claiming that he's bored and is looking now, too." A frown encased her face. "His secretary, Ayame Sagimura is missing as well. She was a wolf demon, though not of Koga's particular pack."

"Who else?" Miroku questioned, suddenly thoughtful. "Inuyasha, Ayame... how many other disappearances have occured in the last three weeks?"

"None that we know of," Inutaisho murmured. "You believe that perhaps Inuyasha and Ayame were taken by the same person?" Miroku nodded, crossing his arms and Inutaisho admitted, "I suppose it's possible. I know Inuyasha likes to be alone most of the time, but he wouldn't stay away for this long. He always comes back, if not because I say so, then because he's worried about Izayoi."

Izayoi bit her lip, looking away. Steering the conversation away from one that hurt and back onto the original problem, she said firmly, "I'd like to meet this miko as soon as possible. She may be able to find him."

"We don't know if she is truly a miko, though, Izayio," Inutaisho replied gently, his golden eyes gentle. He glanced at Sango. "I will take a guess and say that this girl you speak of is Kagome Higurashi? The eldest of the two siblings?"

Sango blinked. "Yes, how'd you know?"

Inutaisho ignored her question. "A demon will be there momentarily." Without a single other word, he was gone, seemingly vanishing into thin air. Izayoi simply rolled her eyes, then huffed, glaring at nothing when she went silent. Recognizing the concentration on her face as the moments when they spoke through a silent bond that nobody else could hear, Sango turned to Miroku. For a brief moment, she wished she could share the same bond with Miroku, but quickly reminded herself that neither of them were a demon. "Better safe than sorry," she reminded when Miroku gave her a sour look.

Miroku let out a sigh of exasperation. "This isn't necessary, Sango. I bet the bow was just responding to echoes of Kagome's bloodline, that's all."

"Better safe than sorry," Sango repeated, turning away and biting her lip. She certainly hoped Kagome didn't catch the demon that Inutaisho planned to send. It would ruin all hopes of keeping Kagome out of the war that she herself had been raised to fight in. She didn't want her friend to be involved in something that she didn't have to be involved in.

"Sango?" Izayoi's soft voice had both looking back at the worried woman. She hesitated, then asked quietly, "You will look for my son, won't you? I'm worried about him. I..." She trailed off, then admitted, "I can't have any more children, and he's my son..."

Sango's eyes softened with a gentle look. "We'll do our best, Izayoi, but I can't guarantee we'll be able to."

"I know," Izayoi sighed, "But...I figured it would be best to ask..." She adjusted the simple T-shirt she wore, running a hand through her hair nervously. Curious, she asked suddenly, "Did...did Inuyasha know Kagome? Do you know? Maybe if she really is a miko...she could help us find him."

"They don't know each other," Miroku said quietly. "Unlike Inuyasha, Kagome's not wealthy in the slightest. She isn't all that fond of the rich other, no offense intended. She just...she's a normal girl who has had a hard childhood."

"Shichiro...he was her father, wasn't he?" Izayoi murmured. "He and Inutaisho were good friends when he was alive, and I was fairly good friends with Kaori. Unlike me, however, Kaori wasn't ever aware that there were demons. Shichiro kept her out of the war he wandered into." She bit her lip. "Naraku was the one that killed Kagome's father, did you know that? Inutaisho was the one who found him...and Kagome."

"Before Kagome stopped telling the story, she always spoke of people with claws and fangs pulling her out of a closet," Sango giggled, "Who would've thought it was Inutaisho?"

"I'd like to keep Kagome out of this if we can, but I doubt it's going to happen," Izayoi sighed softly. "With Koga dating her and the possibility of her being a miko along with her father's background..."

"It'll be hard, but we can try," Miroku said confidently. He glanced at Sango. "I'll help in any way I can, though it's not that much that a normal person like me can do. Then again, while you guys are all busy with the secret stuff, I can keep an eye on the human news stations and what not."

"People are bound to notice he's gone missing at some point," Sango agreed, looking slightly amused. "With all the women who throw themselves at the guy, you'd think they would have noticed already."

Izayoi nodded her agreement, a soft smile whisking across her features. Miroku studied the two women with a thoughtful look on his face. Perhaps he'd be able to find some things that nobody else here could...maybe he'd finally be considered useful to their cause and not just the human who wasn't able to do anything...

Pouting to herself, Kagome took a bite of her ice cream. She sat alone at a booth in the corner of a room, savoring the taste of ice cream by herself. Just as she usually did every Friday. Years ago, when she'd still been in high school with Sango, they'd come to this place every Friday to enjoy themselves, celebrate the end of the week, and, for Sango, to admire the man who usually came alone on the same day. It was only half way through their senior year that Miroku finally approached and ask if he could join them.

Now it was just Kagome. "Because my friends are too busy with other things to remember that I'm around," Kagome muttered in addition to that thought, scowling to herself. A child squealed excitedly as he and his parents entered the shop, and Kagome's gaze softened. She'd always loved children. Always. Even when she'd been one herself, she'd adored them. She let her gaze follow the child with an amused look as he bounced up and down excitedly.

"Should've known I'd find you here."

Kagome blinked in surprise at the familiar voice, her face breaking out into a grin. "Koga!" she squealed like the child had moments before, leaping to her feet and throwing her arms around his neck in greeting. He chuckled, icy blue eyes amused as he pressed a kiss to the top of her head. "What are you doing back so soon?" she demanded, "You were supposed to be gone for another week."

He shrugged. "The subject of the case confessed and was sentenced early, so I came back." He raised an eyebrow at her, pretending to look suspicious. "Why? There something you're not telling me?"

She simply laughed, throwing herself back into her seat. "Only that now I don't have to eat ice cream by myself," she said with upmost cheerfulness. Koga slid into the seat across from her, watching her for a brief moment before she said, "I got close to convincing Sango and Miroku to join me. It didn't work though, apparently Sango's father is still working on getting them married."

"Someone has to talk them into it," Koga snorted, rolling his eyes. He sat back, letting his arms drape over the back of his seat, looking out of place in his expensive suit while in an ice cream shop. "Since I've got the rest of the day off, how about we go out to the movies or something? We can go get some dinner afterwards."

Kagome blinked. "I'm not dressed for a date, and neither are you," she replied with a frown, looking down at herself. She was still dressed in a simple T-shirt and jeans, followed up by a pair of converse. Compared to his fancy suit, she was dressed poorly.

"Who cares?" Koga snorted, "People can stare all they want. It's not like they can do what they want about it."

Kagome thought about it for a brief moment before finally giving a shrug. "Why not?" she said, her gray eyes flashing with amusement. "Let me finish this ice cream and we can go catch a movie. Are there any good ones that have come out just yet?"

Koga shook his head. "Not that I know of." Something in his pocket beeped and he paused to pull out his phone. He examined the screen quickly, then sighed, answering it. "Hello?" He paused, then let his gaze flicker to Kagome, who raised an eyebrow curiously, taking another bite of ice cream. "Yeah. Yes." His eyes widened. "Seriously? Okay, I'll make sure to do that. Who's going to be watching...you sure he's good for the job? He's fairly new... Fine. I'll stop questioning your people. Yes, I understand the importance of all this. Yeah. Thanks. Bye." He hung, rolling his eyes though looking more intent as he turned his gaze onto Kagome. "Sorry. People bothering me about...work."

"It's fine," Kagome answered, taking a last bite of her ice cream before standing. The suspicious look didn't leave her eyes. "Let's just...go and get to the theatre. Kay? I have to be home before Grandpa and Mom get back tonight. Mom'll be irritated if I don't get the chores I told her I'd have done done."

Koga frowned at the attitude that had suddenly appeared, but gave a curt nod. He headed for the door, pausing only to wait for his girlfriend before holding the door open for her. As Kagome slid past him, she suddenly froze, jerking her head around to stare at him. She narrowed her eyes for a brief second. "...Kagome?" he asked, voice cautious. "Something wrong?"

She studied him for a brief moment, breath hitched. She could've sworn she'd just seen a tail swishing around behind him. But instead, she shook her head to clear it. "No," she muttered, then firmly. "No, I was imagining something. It's not important. Come on, let's go see that movie you promised me." She blinked innocently at him. "You are paying for it, right? 'Cause I don't have enough for more than movie tickets."

He rolled his eyes playfully, throwing an arm around her shoulder. "Fine, since you're obviously unprepared for everything."

"I'm prepared for everything and anything," Kagome protested, leaning into him.

"Sure," he snorted. He steered her towards his car, opening the passenger side door for her. Kagome, who'd walked from the Higurashi Shrine to the ice cream parlor, gratefully climbed in, happy to not have to walk the entire way back. While the exercise was good, it didn't mean the bookworm exactly liked it. "I believe you entirely."

The two continued their bickering banter as Koga climbed into the car as well, and they reached the movie theater after a short time. He helped her out of the car, ignoring the curious looks a person would shoot their way every now and then as they made their way towards the building. He pressed a kiss to her head, then made a sound like a growl in frustration when his phone went off again. "Dammit," he muttered irritably, scowling as he dug it out.

"You need to get rid of that thing," Kagome muttered, sighing as he answered the phone.

"I'm busy doing what you told me to do, what do you-" Koga cut off with a curse, earning an angry look from a mother as she walked her wide-eyed daughter past them. Lowering his voice, Koga hissed, "What do you mean you lost her, Ginta? Did you report this? Great. Thanks. Just what I needed." He paused, glancing at a frowning Kagome. "Hold on," he muttered into the phone. He covered the mouthpiece, murmuring to her, "I'll be right back." He searched the area around them. "Sit on that bench," he nodded towards a specific red bench, "and don't move until I come back, okay? I'll be right back. This is important."

"Every call is important," Kagome sighed in exasperation, but did as she was told. Something in his tone made her want to listen. It wasn't often that Koga was worried, but when he was...it didn't usually turn out well for very many people.

He turned, walking away with the phone back up to his hear. She listened for as long as she could, then just gave up and sat back, crossing her arms with a frustrated look. "Every time," she grumbled. "Every single time we go out, he gets a call." He wouldn't be back for another half hour if her predictions were correct. And her predictions usually were. Not strange at all.

She let her head fall back, closing her eyes. Dealing with people was exhausting. Sometimes she wished she could just become a hermit and not talk with anyone at all. Become someone who just wasn't needed around for no reason all the time. Maybe even like her grandfather, who was generally avoided at all costs, even by their usual visitors. That sounded wonderful at the moment.

Taking out her own phone, Kagome peered down at it to check for messages. To her surprise, there was one from Miroku. Curious, she hit a button, then lifted the phone to her ear to listen to whatever voicemail Miroku had left. Miroku never called women other than Sango, not even Kagome, though the other woman knew that there would never be anything between the two.

Kagome raised the phone to her ear, curiosity overwhelming her. "Kagome!" Miroku's message said urgently in his voice. "Listen to me. I was ordered not to say anything, but...I figured you need to know since this involves you..."

"Hm...little mikos running around without their big bag guardians to defend them? That's new."

The stranger's voice made Kagome nearly drop her phone, her eyes locking on a smirking woman that leaned against a corner of the movie theatre nearby. She was, strangely enough, dressed in a traditional Japanese kimono, her hair pulled up out of her face with clips that looked like they were feathers. What caught Kagome's attention the most, however, was her ruby red eyes, which stared unblinkingly at her. Frowning, Kagome snapped her phone shut, cutting off the message. "...can I help you?" she asked cautiously, glancing in the direction that Koga had gone. Something didn't sit right with her about this woman, and she desperately wished Koga would come back.

The woman continued in a drawling tone, as if she hadn't heard Kagome. "You'd think they'd keep you well protected, not leave you alone like this. Makes it easier for us, though, let me tell you." A malicious smile crossed her face, giving Kagome the shivers, and wind suddenly gusted around them, blowing her hair around her face. Kagome's face paled, and it suddenly hit her that this woman wasn't one she should be speaking with. "Looks like it's Naraku's lucky day."

When Koga finally came back, all that was left was a wide open phone, a voice droning out of it.

"Kagome! Listen to me. I was ordered not to say anything, but...I figured you need to know since this involves you... Remember when you were told to stop with the stories about the red eyed man and the people with claws and fangs? The story you gave about your father's death? Those stories are true. Those people? They were demons. Not all of the demons are so bad, I swear. We're good friends with a couple, we help them out. Or at least Sango does. She can tell you about that later. Anyways, be careful.

"Because it looks like there are some after you because of a very, very slight possibility."

Glossary:

-nagabakama: the long red pair of pant-like clothing that priestesses wear, like that of Kikyo's or Kaede's and, on occasion, Kagome

-kosode: the inner top that is worn underneath the outermost, much like a tanktop being worn underneath a shirt

-hitoe: the outermost jacket that is worn over a kosode

-tabi: socks

(A/N)

Well. First chapter has been written for Falling Apart.My hope is that people who are interested in this will grow to like reading it as much as I enjoy writing it. Thank you for reading! Leave a review to let me know what you think so far!

Note: The glossary information comes from the Inuyasha wikia.