InuYasha Fan Fiction ❯ A Demon's Heart and Ultimate Sacrifice (Kag/Sess) ❯ Kagome's Pain/Sesshoumaru's Wrath ( Chapter 8 )

Kagome had now been with Sesshoumaru and Rin for nearly two weeks. Days ago Sesshoumaru had begun allowing Kagome to take Rin out of the castle on her own. Occasionally she would catch him watching them from a window. But today he had yet to check up on them. Kagome didn't mind it, however. She and Rin were once again having fun. The young girl seemed to be fascinated with Kagome. It was apparent to her that Rin had not been around humans for quite some time. Rin seemed to soak up Kagome's affection. Something the girl probably did not receive from Sesshoumaru.

Sesshoumaru sat alone in the castle contemplating the last couple of weeks. He knew that he had grown to respect the young woman that was a companion to his brother. He found himself growing accustom her scent, which to his surprise he found tolerable. Most humans had a stench that made Sesshoumaru wince when he came into contact with it. He had quickly grown accustom to Rin's scent, as she was young and it was not a strong one. What further surprised him was a scene from the night before. He thought back upon it.

Sesshoumaru had come upon Kagome in Rin's room. She was knelt beside Rin's bed. Rin was near sleep but had had a hold of Kagome's hand. Kagome was singing softly to Rin. The demon lord found the sound of her voice to be oddly soothing to his sensitive ears. He remained outside the door for a moment listening to her voice, and then he heard Rin begin talking to the young priestess.

"Kagome, will you stay with Rin?" Kagome took a moment to answer the girl. "Rin, I can't stay here forever, but I promise that I will come back to visit you and Lord Sesshoumaru." Sesshoumaru heard silence followed by Rin's voice again. "Does Kagome like Rin?"

He heard Kagome give a small laugh. "Yes, Rin I like you very much. You are a wonderful little girl. I can see why Lord Sesshoumaru cares about you so much." Rin fired off another question, one that Sesshoumaru found himself interested to hear the answer to. "Does Kagome like Lord Sesshoumaru?" Kagome's voice sounded more serious as she answered this question. "Yes, I do like Lord Sesshoumaru. He has been very kind to me." Again he heard Rin's voice. "That good, because Rin thinks Lord Sesshoumaru likes Kagome too." Immediately he again felt heat rise into his face. He noticed that Kagome gave Rin no reply to this, but rather she began singing again. After a moment, Sesshoumaru entered the room. Rin was nearly asleep.

"Good Night, Rin." He said as he entered the room. "Lord Sesshoumaru, Kagome says she will come visit Rin and Lord Sesshoumaru after she has gone. Kagome likes Rin and Lord Sesshoumaru." He looked toward Kagome who was still near Rin's bed. She was stroking Rin's hair and looking at her in a very motherly way. "Yes Rin, I am sure Kagome will visit us often." He turned and walked out of the room, again listening to the voice that had begun to sing again.

Sesshoumaru's thoughts were interrupted by the sound of Rin. She sounded terrified and was calling out to him.

Kagome hadn't realized they had wondered so far from the castle. She took Rin's hand and decided it was time to head back. After a few steps, Kagome felt eyes on her, and then she heard a slight rustle in the trees. She looked around but saw nothing. Afraid there was a demon near by, she led Rin into some bushes. "Rin, I want you to wait here. If anything bad happens, I want you to run to the castle and find Lord Sesshoumaru." The girl looked up at Kagome with frightened eyes. She quickly hugged Rin to her. "Don't worry Rin, he will protect you."

"Come out, wench, we know you ran into the bushes." A gruff male voice shouted. Kagome instantly froze in fear. "Yeah, girl, we only want to have a little fun" shouted another voice. Then came the laughter of many men. At least half a dozen. Kagome realized that the men only referred to her, they did not acknowledge Rin. Maybe they didn't see her. If she tried to run with Rin, it might result in getting Rin hurt. Kagome quickly whispered into Rin's ear "Rin, run to the castle, do not stop or turn around no matter what you hear." With that she gave the girl a slight push in the direction of the castle. Rin ran as fast as she could. Behind her she heard the rustling of bushes and a small scream from Kagome. Then the laughter of men.

Sesshoumaru went to the small girl. She had been shouting his name when she entered the castle. That was not unusual as Rin was easily excitable. But her voice was different. It quivered in fear. When he appeared before her, she babbled something to him about Kagome but he could not understand her. "Rin, calm yourself and tell me what's wrong." The girl wiped a tear from her eye and spoke to him again, "Kagome and Rin went for a walk. Kagome pulled Rin into some bushes. Rin and Kagome heard men talking. Then Kagome told Rin to run to Lord Sesshoumaru. The men were mean; Rin heard Kagome scream and then the mean men laughed at Kagome."

Sesshoumaru could tell the terror in Rin's eyes was a direct result of fear Kagome had when she sent Rin off. He became instantly enraged. "Rin, stay in the castle" He rushed out the door. He didn't need to ask Rin in which direction the men were, he could smell them. The sight he came upon was enough to evoke the full rage of the great demon lord. Six men stood around laughing and hurling vulgar remarks, while another had Kagome on the ground. He was tearing at her Kimono like an animal. Sesshoumaru's ears were nearly deafened by Kagome's desperate screams of terror. It angered him that her screams seem to amuse them. Sesshoumaru's eye's blazed red and his fangs and claws were out. It took him only seconds to slay the filthy men that appeared to be a group of thieves.

Afterwards he stood there, blood dripping from his claws. Kagome too had blood of the thieves on her. The look in her eyes was that of a wild animal that had been trapped. Instinctively, he retracted his claws and calmed himself. He looked down at her. Her Kimono ripped apart, covered in the scent of the retched humans. She looked up at him in horror. At first he believed she was fearful of him. After all she had just watched him tear apart seven humans.

However, to his surprise she got up and stumbled towards him. She then threw her arms around his waist, she was trembling terribly. He did not know how to react to her. He had never witnessed such fear in a human before, even before he killed one. He did not understand her fear. Her life had been threatened by demons on numerous occasions, yet these men were not trying to kill her. He could not see how their attack could put more fear in her, than a life threatening attack from a demon. The demon Lord stood there stiffly, not knowing how to proceed. Kagome began to sob heavily and he could still feel her body trembling. He put his hand over her shoulder, in what seemed to be an attempt to comfort her. The stench of the human's on her was overpowering. Yet, for reasons he did not understand, he let the girl stay attached to him.

The thought of Rin, finally made him speak. "Kagome, Rin was very frightened when she returned to the castle. I would like to get back to her and see that she is ok." This seemed calm Kagome's sobs. She released Sesshoumaru and wrapped what was left of her kimono around her body. When they began to walk he noticed that she was in great pain. "Kagome, are you injured?" She looked to the ground as though she were ashamed. "I hurt my ankle when I tried to get away from them." Again he found himself becoming enraged, but suppressed it. He watched her attempt to walk, but it was like watching a wounded animal. He reached out for her, but as soon as he touched her shoulder she jumped, as though she were suddenly terrified they had returned. "I will carry you to the castle, so that you can clean up and tend to your wounds." When he first lifted her, he could feel the tension in her body. But she seemed to relax almost immediately. When he looked down, her eyes where closed, and she was still clutching her kimono as closely as she could to her body. She still trembled, though it had begun to subside.

When Kagome opened her eyes she noticed that they were not headed towards the castle. She looked at Sesshoumaru. He did not look at her, but still spoke. "I do not wish Rin to see the human's blood. We will go to the springs and wash as much off as possible. You will change your kimono before I send Rin to see you." Sesshoumaru set Kagome on the ground near the springs. He then began cleaning the blood off of himself. He turned to Kagome. "I will allow you to bathe if you like, though you will have no towel to dry yourself with." Kagome became embarrassed at the thought of bathing in front of him. However, when he washed most of the blood off of himself, he walked away from the springs. She could still see him, but it was obvious that he intended to give her privacy. She took what was left of her kimono off and began to bath. Her body hurt all over. She had scratches and bruises on her arms and legs. She had a particularly large bruise on her right shoulder. Admittedly, most of her injuries came from her own struggling. The thought of putting that bloody kimono back on sickened her, but what choice did she have?

Kagome tried not to think about what had transpired. She was still shaking as she washed herself off. Her muscles where aching, and just the thought of walking was painful. She limped out of the water and did her best to ignore the bloody kimono she was putting on. Sesshoumaru heard her emerge from the water and started back towards her. She was studying his face now. So different from the face of the demon that had attacked those horrid men, and had saved her. She had seen him standing above her just after he had finished killing them all. His eyes where red and he truly looked like a demon. Kagome could only remember having a feeling of relief when she saw him there. It didn't matter to her what state he was in. The way he looked at her and instantly went back to the Sesshoumaru that she knew amazed her. It was as though he sensed her fear, and called back his demon nature. She had not known why she hugged him. She was so frightened, that she could not control it. He had, in fact, saved her from a fate worse than death.

He came to her and again lifted her up. This time he took her to her room in the castle where she immediately got out of that filthy kimono.

"Lord Sesshoumaru, is Kagome ok?" Sesshoumaru had already changed out of his armor and put on a clean kimono. He refused to appear before Rin with human blood on him. "Kagome will be fine Rin, but she will need to rest." He saw that the young child still had fear in her eyes. "I will take you to see Kagome shortly." This seemed to please the child, and she began to play.

His thoughts flew back to the scene he had come upon. Again he questioned the reason for Kagome's immense fear. He understood that she had great reason to be upset, but still did not grasp why that upset her more than the thought of death. He had to admit to himself that her violent trembling had frightened him briefly. Most of all he growled to himself, for it was his fault she had been hurt at all. He should have been watching over them. Rin too, could have been hurt. That very thought was enough to make him want vengeance all over again. Though Kagome was just a human that traveled with his brother, he had taken on the responsibility of protecting her for the time being and the fact that he, Lord Sesshoumaru, had failed did not sit well with him.