InuYasha Fan Fiction ❯ His Past, Her Present, Their Future ❯ Anon ( Chapter 17 )

[ X - Adult: No readers under 18. Contains Graphic Adult Themes/Extreme violence. ]

Disclaimer: No own. I do, however, own Kaori, and the personality of Mattaki. XD And I own the nifty little poem I wrote to be “Midoriko’s Words”…I am rather pleased with it. *puffs up* I also own the personality of younger Sesshou. And…umm…I own…others that have no bearing on my story. Kyahhh. Shut up, I am just happy to HAVE things to own now. *weep*

I apologize in advance for the possible condition of this chapter - I did not have time to re-read and fix my errors.


----------

His Past, Her Present, Their Future
Chapter 17 - Anon

----------



Kagome stared up at the ceiling of the room she would once again occupy five hundred years hence, trying to put the pieces of the rhyme together. Though the gist was obviously that she had been purposely sent farther into the past, she couldn’t fathom the why of it. What part could she possibly play in this past? What necessity was there? She groaned and flipped herself over on the lumpy futon. It was not very comfortable - but she supposed it was better than nothing.

‘How can I face Sesshou?’ she buried her face into her “pillow” and yelled into it, the sound muffled in the fabric. She didn’t know what to say around him, how to act. She had a bounty of knowledge of his character, his preferences, and his future, yet he did not know her.

Sleep reached out its soft hands to wrap around her weary soul, and Kagome cried silently into the fabric of her blanket. Here she was, in yet another time period, and the only person she knew didn’t know her. What in the hell did she do to deserve this?

--

A quiet knock sounded on the chamber door early the next morning, and Kagome moaned her displeasure at being awoken. The ever loathsome Interrupter of Sleep took her disapproving sound as one of welcome, and slipped into the room, quiet as a mouse. Kagome’s half-lidded eyes decided this probably wasn’t far from the truth…the girl had a rodent-like appearance. She also was selectively mute.

In a silence that Kagome repeatedly tried to break, the taciturn servant dressed and fussed with her until she was presentable, if not uncomfortable, in several layers of silk. Apparently she was considered an honest guest, but the look in the serving girl’s eyes obviously showed her disagreement with such a decision.

When she was sufficiently dressed, she was led down corridors she knew well, but allowed herself to be led anyway. She moped behind the servant with heavy steps, dreading every footfall that led her closer to a substantially younger Sesshoumaru. What would he be like, now, before the things that made him withdrawn? He was veritably a teenager at the moment, and she knew he would be different. Poor Kagome never could have fathomed.

When she was announced and entered the hall, all was silent. The warm, inviting eyes of Lady Kaori and the brilliant smile of Lord Mattaki did little to soften the blow of seeing a young Sesshoumaru openly staring at her. His jaw could have been unhinged and had the same effect, and his eyes were burning with so many emotions even her skilled knowledge of his inner workings did not help. Not that she needed her skill to see the primary emotion - disgust.

Seeming to recover himself, the young Prince of the West scoffed out loud and made a very childish face at her before turning back to his meal. She cringed, unable to hide it, and was silently reassured by her host and hostess. She folded her legs under her at her spot at the table and listened to the idle conversation between the other three occupants, careful not to look up at the burning gaze she was receiving from Sesshoumaru.

“So, Father, are we in the habit of taking in strays, now?”

Kagome ground her teeth. He had been making little comments like that the entire meal, and she was growing weary. Her mantra repeated in her head as she kept her eyes off him, ‘He is not my Sesshou. This Sesshoumaru has never tried to kill me, this Sesshoumaru has never gone after InuYasha, this Sesshoumaru never took care of me while I was sick, this Sesshoumaru isn’t the one who protected me, this Sesshoumaru isn’t the one who kissed me those times…this is NOT my Sesshou…’ She tried to assure herself over and over, but it did little to assuage her own fears. She did not see the comically widened eyes of Lady Kaori as Kagome stared at her food, shoving it around with her chopsticks.

“Ah, Kagome my friend, I am afraid some things have come to my attention this morning that I must look into. Would you mind meeting me after the noontime meal instead?” Lord Mattaki asked, tilting his head to the side slightly.

“Mm, of course Mattaki, that would be fine.”

A loud scoff made her look up, only to be pinned by a familiar, yet so different, golden glare, “Show some respect, baka! He is LORD Mattaki to you.”

Kagome gritted her teeth, unable to break the searing gaze until he was thumped hard on the back of his head by a hard clawed hand, “Don’t speak to my guests in such a manner. I have informed her to speak to me in a friendly manner, and so she shall. You, my son, are not in a position as of yet to demand subservience from anyone.”

Kagome turned her shocked eyes to the Taiyoukai, who glanced at her apologetically. She blinked and looked back at her plate, ‘Well…as much as I have taken a liking to Mattaki…I can already see the unrest between he and his son….I wonder if this is part of why Sesshoumaru doesn’t speak of him much?’ After finishing her food, she asked to be excused, looking up to the lord who sat at the head of the table.

“That is fine, Kagome. Would you like me to assign you a servant to help you get around?”

“That is not necessary, my lord, I know this castle like the back of my hand. I’ll probably just go to the Northern gardens until I am to meet with you.”

He smiled his usual charming smirk, “So be it. Until then, child.”

She nodded to Kaori and scowled at Sesshoumaru before rising to her feet and exiting the dining hall, not looking back at Sesshoumaru’s loud comments. ‘Jeez, he sure was like InuYasha when he was younger…rude and not thinking before he speaks. Gah, I can’t stand this. I look at him, and sure he’s younger…maybe looking about sixteen…but he still looks so similar…gods I miss my Sesshou…’

Kagome reached the northern gardens, which she was particularly fond of in the Sengoku Jidai because of the abundance of Sakura trees that surrounded it. In spring, it was truly a sight to behold. Even in summer though, the beautiful greens made for a peaceful retreat; before her and Sesshoumaru got along during her ‘captivity’, she would retreat to these gardens for her peace of mind.

Walking over the arched bridge that spanned the oversized koi pond, she breathed deeply of the natural, calming scents that pervaded her senses. This was definitely her favorite place in the House of the Moon, and she enjoyed it even now in its younger form.

She was called out of her reverie by soft laughter, and turned to see the lady of the house standing beside her, “I see you enjoy this garden as much as I do, ne?”

Kagome smiled genuinely, “Hai. It is just as beautiful when I know it, and the atmosphere is the same. It calms me, relaxes my nerves.”

Lady Kaori nodded in agreement, “Since I have been here, this has always been where I have come for the same purpose. I love it in the winter best.”

“I have yet to see it in autumn or winter, but I would like to someday,” Kagome said softly, with regret in her voice.

“Why is it you have traveled through time to now, Kagome-san?”

“No, no san, just Kagome, please my lady. And I don’t know…according to Midoriko’s words to me, I have to assure the future here…but I don’t see what I have to do with it.”

Kaori pursed her lips, “I ask the same, just Kaori is fine. My mate told me of you, and the bond you have with Sesshoumaru - future or not - is enough for me to want to be your friend. As for what you need to do…I suppose there is no way to know, but you were obviously found by my lord for a reason. All you can do is go through each day and hope to understand.”

Kagome offered a wan smile, “I miss my friends. I want to go back to their time…”

“Sesshoumaru is your friend, and he is here, is he not?”

“He is…not the same…”

“Hai, I heard your musings at breakfast.:

Kagome paled, “Ano…what?!”
A poorly concealed giggle was her response, “I am not much for physical fighting, so I developed my mental abilities instead. I usually cannot read thoughts, per say, just moods…but you were thinking rather strongly, and I could not ignore your words…I apologize if you are offended.”

Kagome forced a smile, “No, that’s fine. I just hope you would not be upset.”

“Why would I be, child?”

Kagome rubbed a hand on the back of her neck, “Because, I was not being very complimentary to your son…”

The badly hidden giggle was back, “Ah, I ignored those bits. You are entitled to your opinions, and my son was very rude to you. Trust in me when I say he is usually not so uncouth. But the thoughts I was referring to were your…comparisons of his future self to his present self…”

Kagome turned a fluorescent shade of red, “Oh goodness…and you were not offended by that?”

“By what? That at some point my son tried to kill you? He obviously changed his mind if he was kissing you…”

Kagome’s flush burned brighter and she resisted the urge to press her cool hands to her cheeks, “I was just afraid that since, you know, I’m human…”

“You have no control over the way you were born, child. There are, of course, many demons who would persecute you for such, but we are not some of them. I admit to not being fond of most humans, but that has nothing to do with their species or mortality.”

Kagome nodded and her blush receded a bit, “I miss my Sesshou terribly. In the last few months, he was just about the closest person to me…and now he’s just gone. And I don’t know if when I am done here I’ll be sent back to his time or my own…”

“Inuyoukai live almost an eternity, I am sure you will see him again.”

“Yes but…I am not sure of the existence of youkai in my era…”

Kaori gasped, startled, “Oh heavens, that’s impossible! A time without youkai? Humans and youkai balance one another, it is yin and yang! I do no think it is possible for one to exist without the other.”

“I hope you’re right, because I don’t think I can go back to a life without him and my friends.”

“I know I am. Just you want and see.”

--


Lunch went by in companionable silence between the two women; Sesshoumaru had apparently been banished from the dining hall to save the miko any further grievances. She was thankful, but at the same time she was eager to perhaps get to know this Sesshoumaru. Sure, he wasn’t the one she knew, but it would still be nice to talk to a Sesshoumaru whom she could read like a book.

As Kagome paced out of the dining hall, she sighed into the quiet hall. Of course the dining hall was on the other side of the palace from the Lord of the West’s study. She trekked through the expansive maze of halls, not paying attention to her surroundings; she knew this path by heart.

She gasped as she was seized by the shoulders and slammed into the wall…a portrait bit hard into her back as her pain receded enough to let her see. Sesshoumaru stood before her, a menacing scowl on his face. Kagome didn’t know what was funnier: that she was pinned by his two arms, that he was scowling in a rather comical manner, or that she found those things funny. Yet more proof that this was not her Sesshoumaru at all.

“Wench, I do not know how you have my parents fooled, but I am not as blind to you as they seem to be.”

“Wha--blind?” Kagome asked, looking at him incredulously.

“I know you must have cast some spell on them and yourself to make you smell like me - I don’t know what you hope to gain, but you will get nothing, wench. And as soon as I have convinced my mother and father of the same, you will be dead before you can attempt anything.”

Kagome’s ire was roaring as she struggled against him, “Baka-yaro! You think you know me? Well, you don’t, nut I sure as hell know you! And you are just being a stubborn bastard, and I’ve been in enough fights with you just like this one. You don’t scare me, Sesshoumaru-sama, and you can go to Hades and back for all I care!”

She raised her aura around her, the Daiyoukai teen dropping her instantly. His face was contorted in anger and pain, and this time Kagome couldn’t stifle her laughter. This stopped him in his tracks, “What is so funny, bitch?!”

“Your…your face!” she gasped, unable to stop the laughter that shook her frame.

His scowl came back, “Insolent wench, you dare to speak to this Sesshoumaru in such a manner?! I should just kill you now and save my family the trouble,” he snarled as he rose, ironically, his left hand. Even with her human sense of smell she could smell the sickly scent of his poison gathering in his fingertips and she stiffened. The actuality of her situation was setting I.

“Whelp, you would do well to step away from the miko,” a low bass rung out, freezing Sesshoumaru in his tracks. Mattaki loomed over his son’s already tall form, the fire in his eyes visible, “I made is expressly clear to you that you were not to harass Kagome. If you cross me once more, the consequences will not be so easy to manage, pup.”

Mattaki offered his hand to Kagome, who rose and followed him in silence. She didn’t dare to meet Sesshoumaru’s glare. When the safety of the study was breached, Kagome let her frustration show, “Why does he hate me? I did nothing…” she sobbed, sinking to her knees.

“I am sorry, friend. He will come around.”

“I am just having trouble distinguishing this him from the him I know. Its harder than I imagined it would be.”

“I can see how it would be. Just give him time, and give me time to talk to him.”

“Arigato, I am sorry to bring you so many problems.”

“Do not worry, child. You are a breathe of fresh air,” the Taiyoukai grinned and led her to a cushion and sunk into one beside her, “Now, we were going to talk about Midoriko’s words?”

Kagome recited the rhyme to him and he looked contemplative, “Hm, well, I suppose there isn’t much to figure out, is there?”

“But I can’t help but think there is another meaning behind them.”

“I have a few inklings, but I would like to think more about it before I propose any ideas. Would that be alright?”

“Hai, of course,” she awarded him with a genuine smile, the tears but a memory in her eyes.

“Good, then. I still have a bit longer until I must go to train my son, would you like to keep me company?”

“I would like that very much, my lord. Now that you have had a night to let everything I told you sink in, do you have any questions?”

Mattaki smiled, “I admit I have not made much time to really think, but in the coming days I expect I will have much to ask. Are you willing to tell me now why my sons fight one another so?”

She ran a finger over Tessaiga’s not-so-worn hilt lovingly, which was still strapped at her companions side, “The ’Iron Cleaving Fang’. You enchant it to help InuYasha to tame his demon blood, and bequeath it to him. Sesshoumaru was not happy with this.”

With a smile she continued, “You leave Tenseiga to Sesshoumaru in hopes of teaching him compassion and love. It worked, eventually, once he got over his vendetta and realized the wisdom in your actions,” she looked up to meet the amber eyes of Mattaki, “He used it to bring Rin back to life, and he went from a block of ice to a… slightly…less frigid asshole,” she said with amusement, “If not for that, I don’t think even I could have gotten through to him.”

He nodded, albeit sadly, “It makes me wonder on what my poor pup has to go through, but I understand you cannot tell me. I wonder though, what about this one?” he said, reaching up and touched the ball of his third, and most deadly sword.

Kagome’s shudder was visible, “I hate that thing. Yes, Sou’unga, if you are listening, I hate you. It caused us a lot of problems, that one did...Saya didn’t help of course,” she glared over his shoulder, willing the scabbard to be listening, “But in the end, your boys worked together to seal it away into hell. That was the only time I got to see you. You appeared to them to tell them you were proud as the gate to Hades closed. InuYasha was in veritable shock over it, and brooded for weeks. He was just glad to see you, I think.”

Mattaki chortled and nodded, “It seems I am wise after all, ne?”

A grin was his response before he noticed the suns position in the sky, “I need to leave you now, but I think you can find your way back to your room?”

“Yes, I can. Thank you very much for all your hospitality, my lord. I am very appreciative. I hope to be able to untangle all this soon so that I may leave you in peace.”

“Worry not. You are a joy to have here,” the twinkle in his eyes spoke volumes, “I shall see you tonight, friend.”


----------

A/N: Okay, I guess I still had more to iron out before I can get to the fun Sesshou/Kags action. But I promise, now it will be. XD Now the positions of the parents are smoothed, and now the fun shall begin! Bwahaha! ^__^

I want to touch on the swords - again, I take the 3rd movie as canon, though I know it is not. But at least Rumiko-san actually had say in it, unlike the first two, ey? And I am aware that he possibly didn’t forge the swords until he was involved with Izayoi, but I felt the need for him to have them now.

I want to make it clear that I ADORE you all. Your reviews have made me so happy, and I doubt I would still be writing this if not for the support I have gotten. You all made my recent days! ARIGATO, MINNA!