Order of the Sun by Harlecorn

Chapter 1

Disclaimer: I don't own anything other than my own OC's and the plot.

A/N: This story will feature a lot of angst, some of it triggering. I'll have warnings on the chapters that discuss it. There'll also be smut, a lot of fluff, and some OOCness. I try to keep the characters mostly IC, but it's fanfiction, and this is set in the modern age- folks change, they grow, evolve, etc. Hope you guys enjoy the story! **Edited 6/30/21**

xXx

Kagome hums quietly as she sits in the empty apartment across from the building she's been watching. She has her feet propped on the window ledge, a laptop on the table next to her, and a telescope set up next to her for easy access, as she strips and cleans her weapon for the second time that day. Blowing out a breath, she looks at the camera feeds on her laptop again and then checks the telescope, confirming that her target still hasn't left.

Suddenly, she hears a strained grunt and then a soft thud behind her. Hand flying to her Glock in its holster on her side, she turns silently in her seat. Holding the handgun in front of her, she stands and slips along the wall towards the door of the bedroom. Switching the safety off as quietly as possible, she nudges the door open more with her foot, using the mirror she'd hung on it to check the hallway before stepping out. Another soft sound comes from the living room of the apartment. Padding silently down the hallway, Kagome stretches her senses out. She nearly stumbles when she feels a powerful youki seem to slam against her reiki, barely having time to throw up a barrier when a figure crashes into it. Steadying herself, she looks up and her jaw drops.

"Sesshoumaru?!" The figure then freezes, stepping back to appraise the woman before him. "How... Why? What?!" Kagome stutters out, her gun lowering as she stares dumbfounded at the former Western Lord. His moon spun silver hair only comes down to just below his shoulders now and he no longer sports the bangs he used to. Instead, he now has his hair tied back in a low tail just above the nape of his neck. His markings and claws are hidden, but she'd know that face anywhere. Especially that narrowed gilded gaze.

"Miko," he says finally, his eyes widening fractionally as he steps back again.

"Uh, yeah. Used to travel with InuYasha some 500 ish years ago. We were kinda sorta friends for a while there. What're you doing here? What happened to my partner?" Kagome leans to the side to look behind the large inu, but isn't able to see anything past the hallway.

"Why are you here?" Sesshoumaru clips out.

"Uh, I asked first, but okay. Doing my job," she snarks.

"And, that job is?"

"Can't really tell you, at least not without knowing what you're doing here," she replies easily. Her eyes narrow as she raises her gun slightly again, pushing a bit more power into her barrier. Silence surrounds them then, as they size each other up, eyes roving each other's forms. They dress similarly both in dark clothes, Kevlar vests and weapons sheaths, or holsters in Kagome's case, strapped to their persons. Slowly, Sesshoumaru reaches down his collar and pulls out a leather cord holding a small silver disk, about an inch in diameter. It has a sun stamped into it with an embossed arrow and knife crossed on top of it. The feeling of reiki and youkai both anchored to it has the miko widening her eyes.

"Fuck," Kagome says as she yanks out her own necklace to show him. "We got sent on the same assignment. Why?" she snaps out, flicking the safety on her gun before holstering it again. "I'm gonna drop the barrier. Don't attack me, please. Gunna go check on Kouga then call and find out what the fuck's going on. Check that the target hasn't left his apartment, equipments in the bedroom," she calls out as she marches down the hallway, pulling her phone from her belt and dialing her handler as she goes. Finding Kouga laid on the couch, she checks for a pulse. Once she finds one, she inventories his injuries, which seem fairly minor- a black eye and a wicked bruise growing along his left bicep.

"Yo," a voice answers over the phone.

"Why weren't we told that a cousin was coming, Hirito?" Kagome snaps bluntly, really trying to keep with the code language.

"What are you talking about?" her handler replies, confusion clear in his voice.

"I just had someone else show up. Kenzou's passed out, and I was nearly done in." Kagome looks up when she sees Sesshoumaru enter the room again, arms crossed and eyes narrowed dangerously. "Hold on," she tells her handler before clicking the mute button on her phone. To the inu, she asks, "What name are you using now and what's your Agent ID?"

"Agent ID is 0961. I go by Seto Itsuma."

"White elegance, nice." Unmuting her phone, she stands as she addresses her handler again. "Itsuma just showed up. So, why wasn't I told?" She pauses and looks at the daiyoukai again. "You don't know, do you? Would make this a lot easier," she asks, knowing he doesn't, or he wouldn't have attacked them.

"No. I was given orders to come here and eliminate the target. Upon arriving at the assigned location, I smelled the wolf."

"And proceeded with removing the perceived obstacle until more information could be gathered, got it. Fuck. The target still in his living room?" she inquires, receiving a nod. "Right, gonna go finish with my rifle while Harito figured out what the hell's going on and gives us some answers. You're welcome to join me." Kagome sighs as she walks back to the bedroom, her phone still in hand.

"Kaiya, you there still?" the handler's voice squeaks out of the cellphones speakers.

"Yup," she answers, popping the p. "What'cha got?" She puts the phone down on the table next to the laptop and settles back into her seat to finish dealing with her rifle. The inu leans his tall body against the wall facing her, crossing his arms across his chest.

"'Kay, lines secured. I don't know what happened. Apparently, you were both assigned the target at the same time. There's no mention of you guys working together. It seems to be a complete accident. The assignment was just assigned twice. I'm guessing someone forgot a step when pushing it through, making it so it wasn't labelled properly. I… I'll have to let the higher-ups know, figure out how it happened and such. I assume you'll both be paid upon completion, regardless, but I'll keep you updated," Hirito explains, voice tinting with anxiety.

"Fucking…" Kagome starts before biting her tongue. "It's not your fault, not your job to do. You just pass me my assignments and make sure I'm healthy and well-stocked. Keep us in the loop," she says instead before hanging up. Sliding her phone back into its holder on her belt, she groans aloud, letting her head thump against the back of the chair before sliding her eyes over to the annoyed inu.

"So, working for the Order, huh? When did that happen? Must've been sometime semi-recent, given your Agent ID," she queries, finishing up with her rifle and reassembling it.

"End of the 1800s."

"Ah, humans evict you from your lands?" she asks quietly, knowing what happened. The same thing happened to most youkai. The Order she and her friends had started in the 1500s went from being a small scale 'business' that helped with rogue youkai to a secret organization that helped youkai to hide and adapt to the world as the human population grew too quickly and began hunting youkai to steal their lands and possessions. While she was glad that her organization had helped so many, it still upset and angered her that youkai had been forced into living on the fringes of society, having to hide what they were just to survive.

"Something like that," he bites out between clenched teeth. "And, yourself?" He assumes the well must have let her travel back through at some point, as he hadn't seen her since their pack left Edo, and had halted any contact that was non-peripheral before that, even. And the fact that she is still alive.

She looks up at him, a little startled and confused that he'd care to ask. Shrugging, she turns back to the laptop. "When it was created." Her eyes slide to him from the side, watching his face as his eyes widen and his arms fall a bit.

"Impossible," he whispers.

"Hm, nope." She waves a hand flippantly in his direction.

"You are unmated. It is not possible for you to have lived for nearly 500 years as a human," he snaps out, stepping closer to her.

"Yep, you're right," she replies unhelpfully.

"Then, again, it is impossible," he repeats.

She turns to him fully now, crossing her arms. "And, again, nope." His eyes rove over her form, scenting the air deeply and his youki probes her reiki, looking for an explanation. "Come on, you can find it," she teases him, leaning back in her seat and hooking an ankle over her other knee. After several minutes of standing there staring at her as he tries to unravel her mystery, he suddenly flashes to her side and grabs her wrist, bringing it to his nose.

"You lack the smell of human decay," he breathes out, eyes wide.

"Mhm. Consequence of the Shikon. Maybe one day I'll tell you. So yeah, I was part of the group that created the order. Wanna know my Agent ID?" she asks as she smirks deviously at him.

"Your pack. You were the creators."

Nodding, she tilts her head, eyes drifting off to the side as she remembers the past. "Yeah. After Naraku, the well was closed, so we stayed in Edo for a while, as you know, so I could learn from Kaede properly, travelling to help with rogue youkai in the area. After a year or so, we moved to the old slayer village, where we rebuilt and revived the slayers, sorta. We changed several of the old doctrines and created our own thing. We weren't looking to kill all youkai, merely protect people, both human and youkai. Word spread about the group, so we gave it a name. Bit of a two-part reasoning, though I still don't think the second reason means much. Japan is the land of the Rising Sun. The more well known we became, the more people were requesting help from us, from all over Japan. We became the protectors of the country. We were a group of humans, both holy and not, and youkai, working together to protect both humans and youkai from others who wished to do them harm."

Sighing wistfully, she turns back to the inu, smirking at his expression, before continuing. "Around the early 1700s, the Order noticed that humans were requesting our help for any youkai's, and then getting upset when the Order refused to kill them for merely existing. Then, the uprisings started and youkai started flocking to us, looking for work and a place to live. Fast forward a couple hundred more years, the Order's now a secret organization that ensures youkai can live as fully as possible while keeping themselves hidden."

"Including assassinating threats to our society," Sesshoumaru states, nodding stiffly.

"Mhm, including that. I wish that the world was a place where everyone could just live together, but... sadly, that's not how it works. So, when problems arise, we deal with them."

"I must say, I am surprised to see that you are an Order assassin," he remarks, eyes scanning her form again.

"Yeah, well. People change," she replies, looking at him. A loud groan and a thud draw their attention to the door, where Kouga appears a few moments later, holding his eye and leaning heavily on the doorjamb.

"What the hell hap- you! What the fuck are you doing here and why the fuck did you attack me?!" Kouga barks, flashing over to stand in front of the miko, bristling.

"He's not gonna hurt us. He's with the Order. Seems we were double-booked. Speaking of, sun's down in 30 minutes," Kagome says as she checks her watch. Kouga still stands in between Kagome and Sesshoumaru, warily eyeing the inuyoukai.

"You sure he's good?" Kouga asks over his shoulder.

"Yep, positive. Now, sit, grab one of the snap packs from the bag for your eye, got a wonderful rainbow going on there." She smirks as she resettles herself in her chair to check the telescope. "Still there, though he's moved to the kitchen now."

"How do you wish to do this, Miko," Sesshoumaru demands.

"Same way Kouga and I were planning to do it before. Dart him, then clear out his place for any information on youkai." Kagome shrugs blithely, leaning back in her seat again.

"A dart. Filled with what?"

"Guess," she answers cheekily.

"I could guess several things, from tranquilizers to potent poisons, however, all will leave a trace, which will then point to homicide, which draws attention."

"How do you normally kill your targets?" Kouga asks as he looks at the inu, slightly confused until Sesshoumaru holds up his hand and his fingers glow green.

"A few small drops, if injected into an artery can cause the human heart to stop, without leaving enough of a trace to point to anything that would lead anyone to believe it to be a homicide."

"So, same thing then. It's possible it was even developed from your poison originally, or at least with that in mind. The dart's filled with a synthetic toxin that leaves no discernable trace but causes the heart and lungs to stop working. So, I dart, Kouga goes and clears out the intel. Then leave, drop an anonymous call tomorrow morning when he's long dead and everything's set. That work for you?" Kagome looks up at the scowling inu as he leans against the wall again.

"I would prefer to handle it on my own," he growls.

"Yeah, well, we were here first, so, just take the easy job. You're welcome to go help Kouga clean out the place, if you want. We've already cleared his work systems." The girl scowls herself at the aggravating youkai before her. While he hadn't tried to kill her since the first couple of times she'd met him in the Feudal Era, he was evidently just as bristly and difficult as he was then, but she had far less patience than she did when she was a teenager.

Kouga catches her eye then, his brow arching before his eyes flick to the inu and back, head tilting minutely, asking if she was okay with the inu being there. Reaching up, Kagome scratches below her ear and tilts her head to the side a bit before rolling her shoulders and nodding almost imperceptibly. Kouga relaxes his shoulders as well, slapping the snap pack over his eye and groaning at the cooling sensation.

"How long have you two been together?" comes the sudden inquiry from the daiyoukai, making both miko and wolf jump before then burst into laughter.

"Oh, Kami. No. We're not together. Gods. Sure, we've fooled around a few times in the past, happens when you're stuck with the same person for long periods. But, no. Not together. He's been my partner for… gods… " Kagome turns to Kouga, eyes flicking up as she tries to remember, "80 years? As official partners, anyway. I'm not counting the joint missions we did before that." Kagome continues to giggle as she shakes her head, while Kouga hasn't stopped guffawing.

"Dude, we would've killed each other if we were together. She's a loyal friend, a hell of an agent and partner, and great in the sack, but Kami, she's a nightmare otherwise. I love ya, but it's true, Kags," Kouga manages to get out after a few minutes, making the miko glare half-heartedly at him.

"Yeah, well, could say the same for you," she grumbles.

"Hell yeah, and proud of it." Kouga winks at her, chuckling again.

The inu looks between the two agents, unsure what to think of the information just imparted upon him. "Who was your partner before the wolf then?" he asks finally, his gaze returning to the miko's.

"Before Kouga, I didn't have one for a long while. Didn't want or need one, and no one aside from this bucket of laughs and Ship would stick, anyway. The only reason I have one now is because I'm still basically human and need youkai abilities for some things, namely the enhanced senses. Plus, no one else will work with either of us long term." Kagome smirks, turning to look at the grinning wolf.

"I can only imagine why," Sesshoumaru mumbles. "If you needed youkai still, you must have had a partner before," he presses again, immensely curious, as he always was when it concerned her, it seems.

Sighing, Kagome looks back over at the laptop. "Guess," is all she says.

"My brother."

"Bingo." She rolls her neck to look at him, twirling her finger in the air lightly.

"Why are you no longer partnered with him?" Sesshoumaru can't seem to help himself. Kouga clears his throat lightly draws his attention to see the wolf shaking his head lightly.

"Doesn't matter. We're not anymore, went a century without a partner, then teamed up with dumbass here," she bites out, earning a cry of 'Hey!' from the ookami.

"Hn. Apologies. I was merely curious," the inu replies.

"'S'fine. Well, it's not, but can't blame you for being curious. Not your fault for what all happened." Kagome shrugs, then checks her watch again. "Showtime, boys," she announces, grabbing her rifle and propping it on its stand, cracking the window open.

"You can make the shot?" Sesshoumaru questions as he steps up behind the miko. A loud snort seems to echo the room as both Kagome and Kouga do so at the question.

"Man, she's the best shot in the Order. No one's broken her record in nearly 40 years," Kouga tells him smugly. "Imma head over, buzz me when he's down," the wolf tells her as he leaves the room.

"You are Agent 1," comes a quiet remark from behind Kagome as she tucks her head to the rifle, eyeing down the sight and waiting for the target to be in a good position.

"Yup," she replies, popping the p. "Can you see across the way clearly without a sight?" she asks him, not removing herself from the rifle.

"I can," he answers, stepping up closer.

"Good, you can see me hit the guy, then. Right... about… now…" she murmurs. She pulls the trigger as the target walks in front of his open window. "Nice of him to keep his windows open for us, don'cha think? Saves us having to fabricate how a crack formed," she says with a small smirk as pulls out her phone. She quickly types out something before putting it away and then breaks down the rifle, followed by the telescope.

"Miko. Were you aiming for the inside of his ear?"

"Uh, yeah. It's a dart. When they collect his body and do the autopsy, they'll be checking for signs of homicide. A puncture wound, even a tiny one, is a dead giveaway. Since he's alone, and there aren't any drugs in his house, presumably, it's unlikely they'd be doing a tox screen anyway, but a puncture wound, even a small one, raises flags, and there are plenty of poisons that can dissipate within a few hours. The whole point is to not have anyone be suspicious."

"So, you aimed for his ear canal."

"Yep, should've hit down by the drum, which is too deep for human eyes to see on their own, so unless they know to look for it, pretty impossible they'll find it. Kouga'll fish it out during his clean up."

"That is... most impressive, miko." Sesshoumaru stares at the woman before him, appraising her in a new light. Everything he had learned in the hour and a half he had interacted with her had changed his perception of her, which, admittedly, was left over from what he could remember from nearly five centuries ago. He knew back then that she was immensely intelligent and had the mind of a tactician, even if it was untrained. However, this side of her was new. He found himself once more intrigued, and most curiously, he could feel his inner beast stirring. "Miko, I have a proposition for you," he blurts before he can fully think it through.

"Hm, what's that?" she replies, only half paying attention to him now as she packs up their equipment.

"I will have to clear it, but I would like to be partnered with you." His shoulders tense slightly in apprehension, not entirely sure why he wants this as much as he does, just knowing that he wants her to say yes.

Kagome freezes, half bent over the bags at his request before straightening slowly and turning to look at the former Western Lord. Her gaze drags over his form, noting the tension across his shoulders, the slight frown on his lips, and the minute tilt of his head.

"I'm not breaking my partnership with Kouga," she states slowly, unsure if that's what he meant.

"That is fine. I would still like to be partnered with you if you are willing," he answers evenly.

"I… why?" is all she can say, her brows pinched in confusion. No one wants to partner with her; she's surly after all these centuries and has little patience for people. The only reason she and Kouga got along was that nothing ever seems to affect the wolf, and he knows why she is the way she is now. He never stays angry for very long, and pretty much everything just rolls off his back. So, she could be her snappy self without worrying that she'd be abandoned mid-mission, like a certain someone.

"May I be candid?" he queries lightly. Upon seeing her nod, he shifts his feet and crosses his arms. "You intrigue me. You differ vastly from how I remember you, and I am curious. As well, I do not have a partner, and while I do not need one, with your skills as demonstrated here and what I have heard of Agent 1, I would like to attempt it. If we are incompatible, then so be it." Sesshoumaru shrugs one shoulder, golden gaze locking with her cerulean one.

"Uh… wow. Okay. I mean, I guess we can try it. If it doesn't work then, like you said, it doesn't work. I'm warning you now though, I'm not the peppy school girl I was. If you're easily offended, this will not work. I won't waste my time approving it if you're going to get offended when I get bitchy. 'Cause I will." Kagome narrows her eyes and arches a brow.

"Understood." The inu nods, smirking slightly before looking up at the door, just as Kagome can hear Kouga open the door to the apartment.

"Yo! We're all set, so let's vamoose," Kouga calls out before popping through the bedroom door and looking back and forth between the miko and inu. "Uh, did I miss something?"

"Kouga, meet our new partner," Kagome answers as she hands him a bag before tossing another to the inu. "Starting now."

"I have not put the formal request through yet, but indeed, I wish to work with you both," Sesshoumaru tells the wolf.

"Oh, you already put in the formal request, buddy," Kouga snorts before grabbing another bag and leaving the room, chuckling at the confusion that crosses the inu's face.

"What does he mean?" Sesshoumaru inquires, turning to the miko again as he grabs another bag himself.

"I'm Agent 1, Sesshoumaru. Congrats, you're our new partner," she comments simply.

"Yes, I am aware you are. What I fail to understand is how-" the inu stops suddenly, staring at Kagome. "You can approve the request."

"Congrats, you're not an idiot. Yeah, all I have to do is sign off on it when we get back to headquarters and it's official. The only way they can overrule me is by getting a unanimous vote, which they won't because they, frankly, don't care what I do so long as I'm not endangering anyone, which I never do. In fact, I foresee only one of them actually voicing an issue on the matter."

Sesshoumaru can feel the hairs on the back of his neck prickle at the steely tone the miko has taken, especially when coupled with the almost malicious smile on her face. Giving himself a mental shake, he grabs the last bag from the floor and leaves the room, wondering precisely what the hell he just got himself into.

xXx

4/15/21 A/N: NEW STORY! Still working on SHM, but had this idea and wanted to explore it. It's not finished, but I do have a dozen chapters done. I hope you guys enjoy it. I'm pretty happy with it thus far. :D