InuYasha Fan Fiction ❯ Enemy of My Enemy ❯ The Trap ( Chapter 4 )
Er, I know that I posted a note on Adultfanfiction.net that I was discontinuing this fic, but I've changed my mind. Too many parts of the story are too clear in my mind, and I can't seem to abandon it. Well, I originally planned for only two more parts. But alas, it's not to be. More chapters will be coming, with more of the original characters making appearances. I'm sure everybody is as disappointed as I am. ^_~
Enemy of My Enemy
The Trap
He stiffened beneath her, the fingers that had been running absently through her hair stopped. In the same motion she sat up, her eyes swinging about as if she could see beyond the walls of the dark room.
She looked back down at him, her eyes a little wide. "He's coming."
Sesshoumaru nodded, pushing up with his one arm. He stood and she quickly followed, the twighlight around them painting her nude body in lines of silver. She didn't seem concerned about her state of undress. Her eyes were steady on his, anxious and worried. When had she abandoned all fear of him? Her ready faith made him uncomfortable, he didn't understand it. He didn't understand her. But it didn't seem important. She was right, he would protect her now.
And for the moment, protecting her meant getting her clothed. For some reason that escaped him, he did NOT want the hanyou's offending eyes to fall on her as she was. Or even at all. Forgoing his own clothes, he swept up the pieces that remained of hers and realized there was not enough to adequately cover her. The ragged scraps puzzled him a moment, and a long-quiet voice awakened. It would be so easy to leave now, wash his hands of such a pathetic creature. He, better than most, understood that one good fuck did not constitute a commitment of any sort. Leave the girl, take care of the Hanyou, and move on.
Or better yet, kill her.
Lifting his gold and blue obi, shaking it free from where it rested among his clothes and armor, Sesshoumaru glanced down at it, then up at her.
"Come here."
And like that she crossed those few steps, completely trusting of him, because in her own mind they had shared something special. She stared up at him fearfully, though none of it seemed directed at him.
She fears that hanyou more than I. How peculiar. Especially now that her life rests so completely in my hand.
"Lift up your hair."
Again, her hands moved as if his words were strings that pulled at them. With a certain amount of familiarity, she gathered her thick dark hair in two hands and lifted it away from her neck. In pure effect to her cause, her back arched slightly and her breasts rose more noticeably with her not so steady breath. Her body still blushed with the memory of his touch.
With a neutral face, Sesshoumaru draped the dominantly gold cloth across one of her shoulders, then tried to pull it across to the other. His one arm made the action more awkward then it should have been, but the girl caught on quickly. Dropping her hair so that it fluttered down around her shoulders, she grasped both edges of the lengthy sash and crossed it over her breasts. Pulling it tight, she then took it across her back and down over her thighs, wrapping it twice to be sure. She secured the entire makeshift outfit with a knot tied tightly at her hip, leaving the free ends to trail down to her knees. It left her stomach bare and brought emphasis to the womanly curves of her body, but it covered her. And that was all that mattered for the moment.
"Thank you," she whispered, smoothing various edges into place and pulling once again on the knot. Sesshoumaru stepped back, barely acknowledging that she had spoken.
He had an intense, but utterly ridiculous desire to run. Somewhere. Anywhere. As long as it was away from her.
Why aren't you killing her, that inner-voice demanded of him. He didn't hear it. The gold and blue of his obi made her eyes nearly glow. A scared shade of blue, but also a determined one. He said nothing as she stepped forward and began helping him put on the rest of his garments, her fingers fumbling over various unfamiliar fastenings. He wanted her to stop. It was important that she stop. But he couldn't seem to tell her that.
Her eyes flicked hesitantly up to him, and then away. Her hand ran down his fur pelt absently, then she bent to retrieve his swords, Toukijin being first since it was closest to her. Her fingers had nearly brushed the demon-sword's hilt when she found herself sprawled on her back, her elbow throbbing sharply as it caught most of her weight against the hard floor. Sesshoumaru stood over her, his gold eyes blazing in something very close to rage. He reached down and hauled her up by her protesting elbow, bringing her close to his face and shaking her angrily.
"Never! NEVER touch Toukijin!"
Kagome hung in the tight grip of his one hand and whimpered.
Finally, he thought, she is coming to her senses!
"I'm so sorry," she whispered breathlessly. Sesshoumaru froze as she, instead of shrinking back from his anger, stepped forward and buried her face in his chest. "I wasn't thinking! Please don't be mad!" She started to cry, soft tears against his collar.
Sesshoumaru stood utterly still. He did not move to draw her near, or even push her away. She was unlike anything he had ever come across before. As delicate and frail as a snowflake on the outside, but she carried an aura around her that was as unyielding as tempered steel.
"Don't be mad," she whispered again, quieting against his warmth. His one hand rose to the small of her back, then up, through the waves of her hair to rub against her shoulder. She was soft under his touch, susceptible and easily broken. But he thought that maybe it was this vulnerability that drew him, that puzzled him. He knew she was strong, stronger than he would ever verbally give her credit for...and where such strength should have been bought with broken trust and broken innocence, both elements still seemed intact within her.
He would never admit it, but as the glow finally folded completely from his body, and his thoughts came circling closer to the surface, he was terrified. Of what he had done, what he had never meant to do. That his beliefs were wrong, or...
He was wrong.
Just like his father. Just like Inuyasha.
His fingers wrapped tight around her arm, just above the elbow, and he shoved her away, forced her back. She stumbled, but didn't fall. Her eyes were wide, but still trusting in the dark. He growled. Not out of threat or warning, but the sound of a dog backed into a desperate corner. He could smell her all over him, taste her in his mouth!
I am not my father! "Have you forgotten who I am?! I am not some pathetic hanyou to beg at your heels!" I won't let some bitch destroy me like he did! "Do not take such liberties with me! I am Lord of the Western Lands, and you are nothing! A miko, a weak human female. Did you honestly think I cared for you?! That I would protect you?!" Sesshoumaru does not care for any human!
He swiped at her with his one clawed hand, and though the motion was abrupt and looked dangerous, it came nowhere near harming her. All the same, Kagome threw herself instinctively back from the 'attack', her blue eyes wide and just beginning to brim with more tears. He paced her across the dim room until her back hit the open screen, exciting a tiny shriek from her lips.
The youkai part of him, the same part that desired her so, responded to her fear with a snarl, a flashing of delicate fangs. Prey, it said. Fear. Food. Easy kill. But the wires were crossed. Prey, prey, but the leaping wolf did not take the doe down only to fuck it on the forest floor. Her breath was coming faster and faster, her pants filling the shadowed dark. And Sesshoumaru once again found himself frozen before her. For a moment he was completely lost.
He lifted his hand, this time to draw her close and soothe away her anxiety, like smoothing down the ruffled fur of a frightened cat. But she flinched from the touch, her labored breathing finally giving way to strangled sobs.
With a panicked glance she threw herself out the door. The movement was so swift and unexpected that he only saw the end of his obi flutter and disappear into the dark hall. Nothing more.
"Wait," he whispered, though the reason why escaped him. It didn't matter. She was already gone.
He should let her go.
Sesshoumaru picked up Toukijin and Tenseiga, unsure of what to do with them since the absence of his obi was proving problematic. He finally settled them as best he could, and took those steps that carried him across the floor and toward the still open screen. She couldn't have gotten far.
"Sesshoumaru-sama, is this lowly Naraku not worthy of your attention?"
Sesshoumaru paused on the edge of one step, then turned gracefully into another, giving a neutral profile. Inside he was seething. How could his senses fail him now? Even the ever-creeping Naraku, with his false, soft paces, should not have been able to slip in under his notice.
"Or can you not think too far beyond your brother's pet-miko?"
That was so close to the truth of the matter that Sesshoumaru instantly felt rage. And though the emotion bubbled hotly within him, the surface remained calm and smooth. His grip shifted on Toukijin slightly, going from loose and ready, to threatening.
Naraku did not react; he knelt in his customary stance, head down so the pale baboon pelt obscured his face. A face that could never be mistaken for innocent, but was beautiful and angelic in its own very vicious way. His crimson-dark eyes stared at the ground in a mockery of respect and humility. As an enemy, the gesture was derisive. The averted eyes suggested that he did not see Sesshoumaru as a threat, not to his plans, or his existence.
Which was a complete and utter lie. Out of all those that had ever sought to destroy him, Sesshoumaru was the one that had come the closest, stood the greatest chance, and he knew it. Naraku was master of the game, of trickery and betrayal, but Sesshoumaru's vulnerability did not reside in the fragility of emotions. Until recently, Naraku had been certain that the taiyoukai's weakness could only be found in his arrogance, or perhaps his consuming hate for his half-brother.
Then the miko, Kikyou's brighter twin came along.
And Naraku saw Helen of Troy all in a glance.
He could not pit Inuyasha and Sesshoumaru against each other, he had already tried and failed. Left with years to toss and simmer, Inuyasha's hate was fully in place, a tangible thing hammered out through many fights and callous insults. Something that set could not easily be maneuvered or altered. Not to mention he could never be bothered to actively seek out his brother. Though that tempting morsel known more commonly as Kagome may have once swayed his mind. But no more, Naraku smirked.
And Sesshoumaru, with his obstinate arrogance...he had made it clear that, though killing his half-brother was a priority, doing so at someone else's direction was not acceptable.
But love, passion, obsession...of all emotions, those were perhaps some of the easiest to manipulate. Both brothers now held a direct tie to the miko, and through those ties, like a great puppet master, Naraku could make them all dance.
Starting with the immovable Sesshoumaru.
And even if Sesshoumaru still refused, then there were other steps that could be taken. The miko, for instance, once a soft, comforting cushion for Inuyasha, would become a bag full of sharp edges and unyielding bones. And every glance from her guilty eye would cut him right to the quick. If the hanyou survived, he would be of no threat to him in his broken state. The image of such a pathetic creature was almost more pleasing than his death.
And Sesshoumaru would suffer, too. He had deigned himself to copulate with the dirt of the earth, and Naraku would make sure he remembered every stain from his joining. In his own way, the youkai lord would break.
It was subtle, the way Sesshoumaru's grip shifted on the hilt of the sword already in his hand. Naraku had thought it infinitely sweet of him to sacrifice his obi to covering the girl's nakedness. A useless gesture, really. But nonetheless gallant of the cold-hearted youkai. Naraku did not lift his head as he spoke, he did not need to, for the mocking amusement slithered through his voice like a snake through shallow water.
"And who could blame you, she is indeed a feast for the eyes," he glanced up, needing to see it, "and other senses, I'm sure."
Cold fury chased across the taiyoukai's eyes like a dark cloud blown across the moon. Satisfied, Naraku lowered his gaze, reveling in Sesshoumaru's rage where lesser creatures would have prostrated themselves and begged for mercy.
There was a tiny shift in the current of poisoned air that bled through the room, Naraku let it wash over him but did not move. "Kill me," he said, "but you know I am not truly here. Two chances to guess where I really am."
Kagome, the thought struck Sesshoumaru, echoing alarm through his being though he fought it. He was used to trusting his first instinct in its honesty, but his first instinct was suddenly one of protection. His second was to destroy this spelled doll and leave the wretched girl to fend for herself. Such internal conflict could thrust him into confusion---instead, he chose to act. He was moving nonchalantly across the room as if he were bored and meant to leave, knowing all the while where he truly intended to go. He would not think about it, not until much later.
"You leave this room and she will be dead before even you can reach her. I move at my master's will, so as I see it, he will know it," the puppet spoke in honeyed tones, a voice thick and sweet with venom. Now it was time to see if his first, and infinitely more entertaining, plan would work.
Sesshoumaru stopped. That was all. "I will not be ordered by a lowly hanyou like you."
Naraku, or more his creation, smiled at the soft waves of pale fur that fell over his body to fold upon the floor. It was exactly the answer he had expected. For all Sesshoumaru's terrifying power, he was predictable. Partially because of that power.
"I mean no disrespect, I seek only to seal a deal with you. One, I think, will prove beneficial and give us both what we desire." Most, he added silently, though he knew not to say it aloud. The taiyoukai would object to such an extreme. And his objection would move him to challenge rather than consider.
Naraku, through his toy, waited for Sesshoumaru to demand an explanation, or at least show some interest, but his face reflected back impassively. He nearly glowed against the empty blackness of the still open shoji, his eyes promising nothing, not pain, not curiosity. Even the anger glimpsed only moments before was completely gone.
~ * ~ * ~ * ~
Kagome was running. Her only thought being more like a knot tightening in her overly-tangled mind. Getawaygetawaygetaway. From Sesshoumaru. And beneathe that, on some level still able to think semi-coherently, she was aware that she wasn't truly fleeing him, but more what he now meant to her. Naraku wasn't even a possibility to her anymore.
Until the voice came.
"Kagome..."
She didn't look around for him, because her name came from all directions. Her legs shook, trembled in their weakened state, but she pushed them on. The only indication that she had heard him being the way her head bent nearer to her heaving chest. Her speed moved beyond reckless and turned into the desperate dive of a small sparrow trying to escape the claws of a hawk. The tears quickened on her cheeks.
"Run," he whispered, "run."
"But where will you go?"
She rounded a corner and instantly went down, her barefoot catching and holding on something solid and feeling of dull sandpaper. She hit the ground hard, her momentum causing her to skid across the unforgiving floor and the breath to crush from her body in a sound very close to a dry-sob. She choked back a whimper as pain clawed up her leg in a stinging wave of heat.
Still there was the need to run.
She dug her nails in, tried to pull herself up by the shadowed wall beside her, but something held her down, dragged at her from the floor. For one panicked second she thought it was him and kicked back, wanting to shriek but not having the breath to.
Her anchor gave an ominous rattle, then her foot was suddenly free, and she glanced back to see that she had tripped over a corpse beneath armor, and that she had scraped her leg very badly on the rusted metal. Neither seemed important enough to stick in her frenzied mind, so she doggedly got up and threw herself back into running, trailing blood behind her with each step she took.
"Not to Inuyasha. Tainted, spoiled. He won't want you now. But did he ever want you?"
"Stop," she pleaded, the words striking true in her, cutting through her panic and echoing the voice beneath that was saying nearly the same thing. "Stop!"
"Not to Sesshoumaru. Oh Sesshoumaru, he gave you so little, but he took so much."
Kagome whimpered at that, covering her face with her hands as if the movement could shield her from the truth. She was running blindly now, sobbing out-right, knowing full well that all those whispered words were real. That Sesshoumaru had betrayed her, and she had betrayed Inuyasha, and she was going to die beneath the crushing weight of both. She couldn't think of any punishment more fitting.
"Don't you see?"
Running full tilt, she stumbled as she collided with something hard, and the force snapped her head up and back. She had a glimpse of eyes that burned like acid, then he lifted his hand and her world fell around her in shattering black.
The miko hung limply in his arms, as if all the bones and muscles in her body had melted into water. Ebony wisps of hair clung to the graceful curve of her cheek, her lips. In the twighlight of the hall her face glistened with tears, and Naraku found himself struck by the sudden beauty of it all, as if the universe had shrunk down to include only this moment in time.
He didn't want to break it, but he had to. And even in the breaking there was beauty. "I am all there is," he whispered, running his fingers through her hair. "The only place left to you." He leaned forward and tasted her pain.
End Part One.
It's always darkest before dawn. In the next part we delve deeper into that darkness.
Not happy with this chapter, but I am rarely ever happy with my writing. *le sigh* Worst critic and all that, ya know? ^_^ Anyway, a million thanks to those who have reviewed! I leave it to you to decide if this fic is worthy of being continued!
Ummmm, is it worthy of being continued?