InuYasha Fan Fiction ❯ A little goes a long way ❯ Only For You ( Chapter 2 )

 

Disclaimer: I own nothing but the mere sparks of imagination. Characters are property of Rumiko Takahashi, VIZ Media et al. Original story idea, The Lion and the Mouse by Aesop.

 

A/N: This is only my 1st fic and while I would love reviews and feedback, I do appreciate everyone who favorites/alerts it. Many thanks go to Danyealle & Sugar0o for the mental push to write my own instead of just being a beta. FYI: There are some gross bits in this chapter - a warning for the squeamish.

 

When he finally released her wrist, she had him turn to his side with his back facing the opening of the cave. `I need more light to see exactly what I'm doing' she fretted to herself.

 

“Sesshoumaru-sama, I need more light to see the extent of the damage. I do not want to injure you any more than you already are” she calmly told him, knowing full well that he would not appreciate her dalliances.

 

“Hn, your weak human eyes are not this Sesshoumaru's problem.” was his stiff response.

 

Searching around in her backpack for her torch and not finding it, only to remember that she had given it to Shippo a couple nights back after a round of campfire ghost stories. The little kitsune had been scared out of his wits and had suddenly developed a fear of the dark, moonless woods. `Hmmm, I hope he is ok without me' she idly thought. Her only alternative was to start a fire.

 

Her face suddenly scrunched up as she wondered aloud, “What did I do with all that wood I gathered earlier?”

 

And in classic Kagome fashion, she took two small steps forward and clumsily tripped over the kindling that was strewn all over the cave opening, which had her landing flat on her butt. `It's a good thing Sesshoumaru can't see me, that was embarrassing' as she started picking up the wood from her still seated position. It didn't take her very long to get it together and lit, thanks in part to the fact that she had lots of practice doing it nightly and of course because she used her “futuristic fire sticks” as Miroku called them, her matches. With the small fire going, the cave was suddenly much brighter as she ventured back to the daiyoukai's side.

 

What she saw made her stomach churn uncomfortably. `It's a good thing I have not eaten anything. This is much worse than I thought but I can do this. I HAVE to do this' she silently prayed for her nerves to calm and for the kami to lend her strength to finish the task.

 

The arrow, still intact with its feathered end was lodged into Sesshoumaru's left shoulder blade just above his armor. Only a truly skilled miko could land such a precise shot from a distance. It had gone straight through his inner and outer haori and left a black, charred-looking mark in its wake. She could see his skin through the hole of his clothing and the area looked infected and blistered not unlike a person who had received severe 3rd degree burns. She was sure that the arrow had probably gone through his scapula and possibly stopped near his vertebrae. If he was human, he would have suffered from paralysis if he had survived the arrow and attack. But this was Sesshoumaru, daiyoukai of the Western Lands and most likely the strongest youkai in all of Japan - he would survive and she would make sure of it. But it was going to hurt like hell.

 

“Sesshoumaru-sama, the arrow has gone through your shoulder blade. Even if I use my miko powers to try and dissolve it, it is possible that I won't get the arrowhead. I am going to have to remove it by surgical means. You are going to have to remove your armor and haori and lie on your side for me” she explained to him in the most knowledgeable, authoritative voice she could muster.

 

He could not sense any falseness in her words but the idea of him allowing her to perform any kind of surgery on him was most unsettling. He knew she was from the future and that medicine in her time was much more advanced - he had seen the things she used to bandage and treat her group with from her “first-aid box” time and time again but she was talking about having to cut into him to remove the metal arrowhead. He barely had the energy left to argue, his vision and sense of smell all but gone, only his hearing remaining but even that was being drowned out by the pain in his head.

 

“Miko, do what you must; just see that you do that use my weakness to your advantage or this Sesshoumaru will haunt you for all existence” his unmistakable baritone sounding more and more pained as he spoke.

 

She didn't waste any time removing his armor, outer and inner haori and mokomoko, trying her best not to look at his lean, chiseled chest and abdomen. Using the folded clothing as a pillow and the mokomoko like a sheet on the cold ground, she helped him lay down on his side. His skin was very feverish and he could no longer keep his eyes open. It was better that he was not awake while she did this because she knew she would not be able to bear to look into his face when the pain overtook his senses.

 

As she went to pull stuff out of her backpack and first aid box in preparation, Sesshoumaru was left to think how ironic it was that he too had been struck by a miko and needed another, the very same one in fact, to help him very much like InuYasha had. `At least I was not pinned to a tree' he smirked. He could hear what sounded like water boiling and the sound of metal rattling in the small pot over the fire.

 

Kagome was fortunately well prepared. She pulled out her water bottle and poured some water into a small pot which she set over the fire. She then dug around in her pack until she came up with the tweezers that she had used before to pull porcupine quills out of Shippo and InuYasha once and dropped them into the quickly boiling water. Next on her list was her tanto, a gift from her grandfather - it was the only thing sharp enough to cut through flesh and possibly muscle. The thought of cutting into Sesshoumaru's back made her slightly nauseous, it was a good thing she wasn't afraid of a little blood. She pulled out a small clear plastic bottle and opened the cap, secretly glad that the inuyoukai's sense of smell was inhibited; the rubbing alcohol would have upset his sensitive nose, worse than it did when she used it on InuYasha. The tanto's blade was dipped into the hot water and then some alcohol was poured over it, a small towel under it to catch the overflow. Once the water had boiled, she removed the pot from the flame but kept it close so it wouldn't lose its heat. It was now or never.

 

Moving closer to Sesshoumaru's back with her tools in easy reach, she clasped her hands together and said a silent prayer before she grasped the arrow shaft and chanted over it. Soon her whole body was covered in a layer of iridescent pink light, with a heavier pink glow over the hand that held the arrow. Very much like she did when she removed the arrow from InuYasha's chest three years ago, the magic in the arrow fought hers before it crackled and was defeated, the shaft disappearing leaving the bloated black hole where it had punctured Sesshoumaru. However unlike Kikyou's sealing arrow, this arrow was laced with very powerful dark magic meant to kill whatever youkai it struck. It was only because of the magnitude of the daiyoukai's jyaki that he was still alive and not purified. With her hand still over the wound, she could sense the location of the arrowhead still buried within his body “Darn piece of crap arrow” she muttered.

 

It was finally time for the hard part. She was pretty adept at healing and bandaging up people but she was no doctor. ` Maybe if all goes well, I should think about going to medical school once I go back to my own time for good…As if I could get into university with my grades' she mused, her emotions running the gamut from determined to depressed in a matter of seconds. She kneeled down and looked over at Sesshoumaru's face, he looked so peaceful asleep but she knew it was the holy energy that had put him in a painful, almost drug-induced like sleep. He was completely unconscious now, any spasms he made totally out of his control. She did take liberty and lightly dragged her fingertips across the stripe that ran along his side, it felt like crushed velvet. `Here is a youkai who could conquer the world with his raw power, he's normally so cold and reserved and untouchable. Who would have thought that he could be so hard and so soft at the same time' her heart ached again for the inu at her feet.

 

Using the towel that had the rubbing alcohol on it, she wiped the area on his back where the hole was, the infected area bubbled and oozed when the cloth touched it. She took the clean and sterilized tanto and made a circular incision around the entry wound, effectively cutting off and removing the outer most layers of burnt skin. She knew when it was all done that his youkai healing ability would re-grow the skin that was removed. Once the dead skin was thrown into the flame, she wiped the blade clean and made a long deep incision across the wound, large enough for her to stick the tweezers in so she could pull the arrowhead out. His blood was trying to congeal but it still leaked out of the opening; promptly using another rag that had been dipped into the hot water she wiped up what she could. She carefully stuck the blade of the tanto directly into him trying to assess how deep the deadly arrow tip was, when she came to a stop at his scapular bone and the resounding clink of metal hitting metal. `Whoa, that's deep in there' pulling the tanto out and realizing that about seven inches of it was covered in blood. New worry clouded her mind - she was going to have to stick her hand into his back in order to pull it out. The notion thoroughly troubled and disgusted her. Knowing it was the only way to get the job done; she hastily washed her hands with some hot water and slowly eased the tweezers and her right hand into the incision while she used the tanto in her left to hold the skin and muscle back.

 

“Be glad I have small hands or this would hurt more” she whispered lightheartedly to the resting dai.

 

The tweezers firmly planted within him finally struck bone and she continued her intrusion reaching around the rounded edge of his scapula, her whole hand now buried in his back before she felt the tweezers hit something hard. `Ooh, now I now how it feels when InuYasha and Sesshoumaru punch their fist through demon's stomachs - this is so gross!' memories of both inu inflicting such wounds during battles flittering through her brain. She wiggled her fingers around the bone a little more and latched the tweezers around the arrow shaft that remained, trying hard not to puncture anything important or prick herself in the process. When that was done, she gave a mighty tug moving only her wrist and it was pulled free. She carefully and slowly pulled her arm out, the arrowhead finally clearing the entry wound and dropped it almost haughtily onto the bloody rag. “Ha, got you, you little bastard” she taunted to the inanimate yet so evil object lying next to her.

 

Not even waiting to wash her hands she rested both of her palms over the open wound and called on her healing power to seal the incision and stem the blood flow. “To whatever kami that hears me, please heal Sesshoumaru. He didn't deserve this and there are lots of demons and humans alike who rely on his guidance and protection. Little Rin would be devastated if she lost her “Sesshoumaru-sama”, she needs him…I, I need him…” her prayer brought tears to her eyes and as they flowed down her face, they landed on the body of the daiyoukai below her. A brilliant blue light encased the sleeping youkai and open wounds slowly knitted back, his bleeding stopped, his breathing became less ragged and his fever broke. What neither realized, he because he was still unconscious and she because was sobbing too hard and her eyes were closed, was that the healing light centered over the stump of his left arm and it was slowly regenerated - bones, muscle, tissue, blood and finally pale skin ending in a perfectly striped wrist and clawed hand.

 

When the light receded, she stepped back, wiping her face as she did. She felt dirty and tired. The surgery was a success but there was no one around to celebrate with. She quickly and neatly picked up all her medical tools and rags, the small pot that had the water and her backpack and made her way out of the cave. As an afterthought, she placed a barrier at the cave opening, sealing Sesshoumaru inside away from any rogue demons; she couldn't have anything attack him in his present condition. There was a small creek about a mile away from the cave that she had passed earlier that night and at that point, she didn't care how cold the water was, she needed a bath.

 

Reaching the bank of the creek she knelt down and washed off all the blood off of her tanto, tweezers and various rags and emptied and rinsed the small pot off before leaving them all on a boulder to dry off. Her aching body cracked and felt stiff as she peeled off the sweater and jeans she was wearing; they reeked of sweat and blood. Slowly easing herself into the cool water, she ducked under and came up fast. It wasn't too bad if you were fully submerged but she had no intention on lingering there long. She grabbed her soap and scrubbed hastily, forgoing her hair for another day and rinsed off within mere minutes before running out of the water for her towel. After drying off and re-dressing in a warm sweatshirt and comfortable-enough-to-sleep-in yoga pants, she bundled up her dirty clothes and the rags into a giant plastic bag and stuffed everything back into her backpack. She was mindful to fill up her water canteens remembering that she had used most of the water already and that Sesshoumaru would certainly be parched once he regained consciousness.

 

In less than fifteen minutes, she was back at the cave and casually walked through her barrier, dropping her bag to one side of the fire. Her main focus was the wellbeing of her patient as she crept over to him. The wound on his back was completely closed and the skin back to normal, only a silver scar where the incision was made remained. He was still lying on his side and asleep. `Maybe he'd be more comfortable on his back now that it's healing so well. I wonder if that is all his youki healing or both mine and his, either way he'll be fine to go in the morning at this rate' she reasoned, a huge sigh later. She was cautious of his presence even in his current state, so she carefully lifted him up around the waist and chest, his head resting against her shoulder; the intimacy of that hold not lost to her as she rested him down with his back completely lying on top of mokomoko, his head back on the makeshift pillow made from his haori, his hair spilling out over the sides like a silver halo. It was when she pulled back that she realized the enormity of his healing - he had two arms again. `Did I do that?' she questioned, not believing in the power and strength of her own spiritual abilities.

 

She was stuck, unable to stop looking at the youkai lying next to her. He truly was magnificent and now that he had both his arms, he looked more complete. Under her awestruck eyes, he suddenly shivered which broke her out of her little trance. She ran over to her pack and pulled out the spare blanket she always carried, it had recently been washed so it didn't smell too much of human, more like springtime flowers and sunshine, at least that's what the detergent bottle had said. She walked back and covered up his bare torso and arms, the bottom of the blanket not even reaching his booted feet. As tired as she was and as much as she wanted to stay by his side until he awoke, she knew it was best that she didn't. He might have been receptive to her presence while he was injured but she knew once he awoke, well rested and healthy that he would want her gone from his sight. It choked her up thinking about having to go back to being on uneasy terms with him after everything she had gone through this night; especially knowing that she had to keep it all to herself.

 

Mind made up, she unhooked one water canteen and left it within arms reach of him and she leaned forward and kissed him on his forehead on his crescent moon, letting her hand push back some stray strands of his silken hair. “Be well Sesshoumaru-sama.” she whispered into his ear before standing and walking towards her pack and the fire. She put enough wood in it for it to last the night and shouldered her pack, grabbed her bow and quiver and headed towards the cave entrance. She stuck her hand in the pack's side pocket looking for her matches, and instead pulled out the ominous arrowhead that had caused the entire ruckus. Using one of her handkerchiefs she bundled it up and placed it near the fire on a small boulder with a little note that simply said “Your secret is safe with me for as long as I live.” Stepping through her barrier, she chanted and made it one-way, so that Sesshoumaru would be able to leave whenever he was ready but nothing else would be able to enter.

 

The temperature had gotten colder but there was no stopping until she found somewhere else to camp out. A sudden tingle alerted her to the presence of a Shikon shard and she turned and headed in that direction while masking her own aura. `No need to let whatever it is knows that I'm coming' she surmised. In the dead of night, with only the draw of the Shikon guiding her path, she had no idea that she was in fact heading further into the Western Lands, drawing closer and closer to Sesshoumaru's Citadel.