InuYasha Fan Fiction ❯ Invitations to Trouble ❯ To Rule The South ( Chapter 11 )

Chapter Eleven

Kagome put Shippo to bed despite his drowsy protests that he wasn't tired at all. Still feeling the after effects of having her son back with her once more, she was adamant about him getting some rest. Her tone was gentle, but firm as she looked down at his little face.

"I need you to lay down for a moment so I can scry for Inuyasha and the others. If you're moving around, I'll pick up your youki and not theirs." Seemingly satisfied that his confinement in the downy prison would serve a purpose, Shippo laid still and promptly fell asleep.

The sight brought a smile to her face. 'Silly thing.' kissing him warmly on his brow, Kagome straightened and left the room. 'Now for that baka I married.'

Kagome was worried. It was well past midnight and even as she watched, dawn was breaking outside of the window. "Where are you Inuyasha?" Taking a seat on the floor of their room, she cupped the jewel shards in one hand and placed the other over her children. While not as strong and sure as the link between her mate and his sister, the connection inherent in the blood of his offspring might be enough.

Her thoughts stilled as she followed the breathing lessons Kaede had taught her.

'Open your mind…'

Inhale.

'Open your heart…'

Exhale.

'Open your spirit…'

Inhale.

'Open your soul…'

Exhale.

'Open the place within in you and let the power free…'

Inhale.

'Open the front door…'

?

Kagome was so deep in her introspective state that she sputtered for a moment as her lungs struggled to remember how to breathe correctly. When the sound that had initially broken her reverie came again, Kagome fell backwards as she tried to get to her feet.

Someone was knocking at the door.

"Wait a minute! Wait a minute!" Finally managing to gain her footing, she rushed to the door and yanked it open. When her gray-blue eyes saw the figure standing there, Kagome immediately reached for the bow and arrow she kept near the threshold, screeching.

"SNAKE!!!!!!!!!!!!!"

Mystically enchanted arrows flew at the hapless youkai who dodged and wove frantically to avoid them. "Wait!! Wait!! I come from the Lord Yamatsu!! ARGH! That was my best robe!!!"

The proclamation of ruined fashion did more to stop the onslaught than the old lord's name. "Oh, I'm sorry, about that. It really is a nice color….what the hell am I saying?!"

Drawing the string taut once more, the pregnant young woman aimed the crackling arrow directly at the cowering youkai. "Start talking!"

Even without any obvious appendages, the snake youkai managed to give a very good impression of begging for mercy.

"Wait mistress Kagome! I have been sent by the noble Lord to summon his sons and their…mates to the mansion at once." Once more, despite the lack of the required body part, the messenger somehow managed to look as though he had blinked during the momentary pause.

His voice carried a hollow quality much like a soft wind passing through reed pipes. "I have been sent here along with a loyal entourage, to retrieve you all."

Only then did Kagome notice the rather large squadron of soldiers standing a short distance away. A hot flush filled her face when she heard one of them mutter, "Are you sure we don't need the protection?"

Kagome quickly cleared her throat and drew back her shoulders as she set her weaponry aside. "Excuse me. I apologize for the way I greeted you…"

The messenger hurried to supply her with his identity. "My name is Hebiki, if it pleases the Lady." Coiling into an intricate dip and sway, the messenger managed a bow. "I understand your…excitability when confronted with unknown persons. As the keeper of many shards of the Shikon no Tama, you cannot be too careful. However, it is advisable for the young lords to hurry. Time is of the essence."

"Well, that might be a small problem Hebiki." Turning to go inside, Kagome motioned for the snake to follow. Hebiki did, sliding inside with a brilliant blue tongue flickering out to taste the air. Yet again, his eyes managed the impossible. The rainbow orbs widened.

"They are not here!!" nearly shrieking his declaration, the youkai folded himself down to the floor. Kagome kept from screaming herself at the outcry, but just barely.

"No, they're not! I was in the process of scrying for them when you knocked on my door." A line formed between her brows as she studied the limbless body. "How did you manage to knock on the door anyway?"

"Practice, mistress."

"Ah."

"But, where have they gone to mistress Kagome?" Mild annoyance flavored the air as the tubular body stretched up to face her. "The three of them are all urgently needed by the Lord Yamatsu!"

Irritated by his newly acquired attitude, Kagome snapped, "What is so blasted important that their father would send the green berets after them?!"

It was really unnerving to watch eyes blink when they shouldn't be able to. "I am unsure of what these 'green berets' you speak of are mistress Kagome, but the Lord Yamatsu does need his sons and the Lady Kuroi. The Lord Inuyasha is required to be at the mansion while the Lady Kuroi and the Lord Sesshomaru are to be sent to the Western Palace where Lord Yamatsu himself is currently at."

Kagome knew she was being difficult, but she really didn't care. Her husband was missing, and the snake was withholding what felt like important information from her. Previous irritation made her voice tight and low,

"That's lovely, but it still doesn't answer my question. Why is Yamatsu sending for them at all?"

A dusky yellow tail flicked in shock at the note of familiarity used by the human girl, but Hebiki made no comment. It seemed that this woman would not cooperate until she knew everything. Very well.

"The youngest son, the Lord Inuyasha, is to be one of the guardians of the Lady Shinaki at the fortified mansion where you and the young master Shippo will be residing as well. The Lord Yamatsu fears for your safety and the potential destructive power of the shards you guard. Lord Sesshomaru is to join his father in overseeing the troops being rallied at the Western Palace. As the eldest, he is second only to the Lord Yamatsu as a military leader.

"Lady Kuroi is to go with him since she leads the covert forces known as the Kurobuchi, or Dark Edge."

Hebiki's head bobbed once as his hypnotic gaze fell to the floor, "They are all needed because the Ookami no Taisho Gorotsuki, has recently declared war."

How do you catch a fainting woman without any arms?

Practice.

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If one were to look at a map of the floating jewel of ancient Yamato, one would find it divided into four great providences.

The iron-fisted Wolf ruled in the North and the ever-vigilant Dog reigned over the West. To the East, one need only to listen for the throaty purr of the Cat in the balmy wind.

So then, who could possibly hold sway over the South?

Servants scattered like chaff in a summer storm. One tried to get a momentary word in with his ruler about some matter or another, but was promptly cut off by the wave of a regal hand. To judge by the look he was given, the poor man counted himself quite fortunate to not have been physically cut as well.

Immaculate doors were slammed forcefully against high walls decorated with numerous murals as the sovereign headed for the inner chambers. While spacious, the suite was done over in warm tones with beautiful and obviously hand-crafted furniture. All together, they gave the room a tranquil appearance meant to soothe and calm.

All of this was ignored as the figure stalked hotly through the room in search of someone in particular. Clutched in one hand was a large, ornate scroll.

"Keimba!!!!"

Tawny ears twitched as a svelte figure shot up from her place on a rather comfortable pillow and raced forward to answer the bellowed summons.

"Yes my-eep!" Keimba only had a second to react as the rather heavy-looking scroll was flung towards her. She easily caught it, but felt a trace of nervousness since she'd never seen the ruler so upset before.

"What could this be?" Her voice was kitten soft since she had yet to reach the rumbling roar of full maturity. That youthfulness was one of the reasons she had been napping in the palatial suite instead of being out and about her duties.

Dainty claws made light scratching sounds as Keimba turned the papers over in her hands. Almond eyes narrowed in mild perplexity as she looked at it. "What is this thing that angers you so?"

"Read it."

Now she did frown. The ruler of the Southern Lands was renown for being even-tempered in any situation, so the barely contained fury in that order was most unusual. Keimba unfurled the scroll and scanned its contents before settling on one painting near the bottom. Because of her youth, Keimba could not achieve the girlish outcry the image warranted, but she came as close as she could.

"May the Bright One reign eternal that's a picture of Lord Yamatsu's heir!" Her heart fluttered at the painting of the gorgeous youkai. After all, every girl, woman (and quite a few men) in all four of the Lands had heard of Lord Sesshomaru! "Ooh, I can hang it on my wall and look at him every night! Or I can…"

There was a grating noise, like stones being dragged across one another, before the next order slid out in exasperation. "Look…next…to…him…"

Oh, right.

Keimba had the good graces not to flush hotly for failing to notice the other figure in the painting. Personally, she didn't think it would look very good with her coloring anyway. 'Now, if I was a bit more gray around the neck and cheeks, then the red might be quite fetching on me. Hmm, let's see.' It was a touch difficult for her to focus properly when the visage of the gorgeous youkai was staring right up at her.

'Sesshomaru-sama and a girl.' Already large and amazed from simply gazing down at the epitome of male perfection, Keimba's eyes threatened to swallow up her triangular face as she finally understood the significance of the painting.

'I cannot believe it! He's married!' Outwardly, she had an equally shocked, but different response.

"This is impossible! She's not supposed to be there!" Wide brown eyes looked towards the figure sitting rigidly in the divan.

Tilted, multi-colored brown eyes looked right back in poorly concealed exasperation. "I know that you silly kitten! I had wondered where she had gone off to myself." Rising easily from the seat to take the scroll back, a hand born of mahogany silk reached out and scratched lightly between fluffy brown ears. "Now I think we both know the answer."

Keimba leaned into the gentle touch which caused a purr to be heard in her voice. "If she is wed to his son, does that not violate the agreement between you and the lord Yamatsu?" Keimba mewled in protest when the hand moved away and looked up into the face of her goddess.

Those vibrant, hazel eyes were made pale by the rich, coffee-color of the skin gracing the oval face. Kohl darkly lined the lowered lids, accenting the thick lashes surrounding those dizzying eyes, which were given an elfin tilt near the corners because of high-swept cheekbones. Full lips the color of dark roses pursed slightly as the Lady Niambi looked at the paper in her hands once more.

"Something is strange here Keimba. Yama knows better than to betray me and this would constitute a treachery most vile." Low and sultry, her voice reflected her puzzlement. Moving away in a swirl of fine linen and exotic oils, Lady Niambi went to the balcony overlooking her palace. "He would not have done something like this frivolously, so there is more to this than we are seeing." Slender fingers curled around the railing.

"Of all people, the Dog knows that I am not to be taken lightly."

Behind her, the lion-headed young woman followed and perched beside one shapely leg. Confidence colored her every word, "They all know that you are a force to be reckoned with milady! The Dog, the Wolf and the Cat would be insane to attempt to fight you."

A wry smile touched the dark face. "Such a lovely kitten you are Keimba. Sometimes, I wish I could once again have even half of that kind of unwavering faith." Lady Niambi's eyes searched the distant horizon for something only she could see.

"I could shape the world with it."

Large fuzzy triangles drooped at the wistful tone, making the young girl furious with herself when she heard it.

'A kitten you are called because a kitten you still are Keimba!! The Lady needs your support, not your incessant prattling so be silent and let her think!' Drawing herself up, the lioness hoped that her small presence would be enough comfort for her Lady.

Keimba loved her mistress and knew how hard she had worked to be accepted in this new land by both the other lords and those she ruled. When Lady Niambi had first proposed taking the disused and largely ignored southern providence, she had only encountered resistance from one corner.

Lord Enjuku had seemed uninterested in the lands altogether, since they had no material riches to draw on or any significant sources of power to be gained. When he had learned that the gaijin had brought an entire legion of Bas'ti; or man-cats with her, the neko youkai had signed a pledge of non-conflict on the spot and went home laughing his furry head off.

As for Lord Yamatsu…

Keimba glanced at her Lady's profile from the corner of her eye. Well, there had been more…informal…negotiations between the two of them.

The black button nose curled as if scenting something unpleasant in her thoughts.

The only things that had kept that foul man Gorotsuki from trying to wrest control of the southern kingdom from the kokujin woman and her people were Lord Yamatsu's lands which blocked all routes to it, and the fact that Lady Niambi was a goddess.

The sun had set long ago but a soft glow still suffused the area around the Lady Niambi as though she carried the light of that heavenly flame within her body at all times.

Yes, she was a true goddess.

A sorrowful sigh left Keimba's whiskered lips. Not a powerful one though, or else she would not have left her homeland all those centuries ago. 'Our homeland. I wonder how my people have fared in the wake of the new demons?'

The silver ring in one of her ears tickled sensitive hairs, making it flutter irritably. Aye, demons had rained down on the land in the laughing forms of men and actual creatures of evil. Their lands were old and the gods had been too pacified by easy and constant worship to consider the new intruders a threat to them. Lady Niambi and a mere handful of younger gods had tried to rally them together to drive out the demonic forces.

The elders had merely laughed and cast Lady Niambi and those that had supported her out from the place of their birth.

'It would serve those unbelieving fools right if they now found themselves as the ones not believed in any longer. I hope the lot of them are dying from a lack of veneration.'

Lady Niambi had been spared the dwindling fate of most gods who found themselves separated from their worshippers. Keimba kneaded the floor distractedly. 'As long as I breathe I swear that the Lady will always have one who adores and believes in her. When she left our lands behind, did my kinsmen not follow her and our faith?'

Slitted pupils narrowed as the rosy fingers of a new dawn crept up over the horizon and sent out its sanguine light to shine through the fastidiously cultivated plants situated along the outdoor vestibule.

A soft mew of regret escaped the little kitten as she saw the distant vista of her beloved savannahs in that scene. Her eyes felt full and heavy with tears she could not physically shed, however much she wished to.

'May the Darkness have them all for the fools they are!'

Reaching out a paw-like hand, Keimba sought to settle her heated thoughts by neatly combing through and resetting many of the lengthy, bedecked braids that were woven into an intricate crown upon her Lady's head. Whisper-soft, her voice revealed none of her previous concerns.

"The Dog would not betray you my Lady. Perhaps if you sent for him, he could tell you what is happening?"

"No, my kitten." Pulling away from the soothing grooming, Lady Niambi left to room cloaked deeply in her troubled thoughts. "I will go to him. I have absolutely no time for that man and his dawdling because I need an answer now."

Racing after her mistress's long-legged strides, the lion-girl asked, "But, how will you find him? The Western lands are as large as your own milady!"

A secretive smile pulled at the full lips. "Let's just say that I now where sleeping dogs lie."

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To say that Sesshomaru was unhappy would be a gross understatement. To say that he was upset would be to unfairly misjudge the true depths and scope of the youkai lord's emotional range.

Sesshomaru was as far past the tawdry emotion of wrath as anyone in history had ever gotten.

(Except for this one man who traded all his worldly possessions for a mountain of lead on the rock-solid promise that his best friend had discovered the secrets of alchemy. I believe he still has the lead.)

No, the young lord was only now exploring all the myriad flavors and subtleties of his anger in much the same way that a sommelier would savor a favorite wine.

He was going to kill this girl.

For her part, Anbu didn't seem to notice. "Have you ever noticed how pretty the moon is? I could look at it for hours and hours on end and never get tired of it! It's just so beautiful and bright. Did you know that when I was little I used to dream that I could fly up and touch it. That would be the greatest thing in the whole wide world, don't you think?"

"…how about I throw you so you can find out…"

Hearing a muttered noise, Anbu stopped and tilted her head at him. "Did you say something Sessy?"

Couldn't she hear his teeth cracking as he desperately fought the urge to wrap his kousen around her little neck and squeeze? Sesshomaru knew he could! Pulling himself up in his customary pose of youkai nobility at its grandest, Sesshomaru leveled his best 'you are a speck in the way of my royal wind so prepared to be blown asunder' gaze.

"You will address me as Lord Sesshomaru. Should you utter anything else, I will behead you."

Anbu gave a tinkling laugh that worked under his skin like sand in a cut because of how wrenchingly familiar it was, "You're so silly! But if it makes you happy, I'll call you Lord Sesshomaru."

"…gods preserve me…"

"Do you hear something? I swear I keeping hearing a grinding sound."

Yellow eyes vaguely dreamed of evisceration in ten easy steps. 'Well, it's nice to know she's not as stupid as she looks.' At the ugly words, Sesshomaru instantly regretted that thought.

Anbu didn't look stupid. If anything, she looked heartbreakingly lovely. 'You hideous, horrible thing. How dare you run around and look like my wife?' Sesshomaru's tail twitched irritably so he drew it tighter around his shoulder so it wouldn't reveal his emotional turmoil. 'Can I make it home with this woman and not kill her?' As she broke out into another burst of rambling chatter, he seriously doubted it.

'Kami knows that I am used to incessant ramblings from all the years Jaken has been my servant, and Kuroi used to talk a blue streak before we wed. So why is this…this child's constant prattle so disturbing?'

"I think you're really nice, Lord Sesshomaru. Even if you did try to assault me when I wasn't dressed, I still think you're an okay guy." Silver hair fluttered as Anbu sighed gently. "I just wish you'd let go and show your emotions a little more." If the girl hadn't turned away at that moment she could have seen quite an emotional display on the stoic features of the handsome young Lord.

Sesshomaru couldn't remember the last time he had found it so hard to breathe. Why did the lilting, heavenly voice disturb the hell out of him?

'Because she sounds like my wife.'

Sitting down and howling in sheer frustration was appealing to him more than he wanted to admit. In an attempt to bolster his waning control, he tried to meditate as he walked along behind the figure in red. 'You know how to do this Sesshomaru. All you have you do is think back to before you married Kuroi. Just do what you did then.'

Let's see. He'd been miserable and foul tempered before she came along. After Kuroi showed up, he had burned her things, she'd screamed at him a lot, they kept kissing each other in the strangest times and places, and she sometimes ran around naked when she wasn't sleeping next to his brother. Helpful?

Feathery bangs were moved aside with a rough shove of his hands. 'Not in the least.'

Anbu paused right before she began dancing from one foot to the other. The motion was threatening to dislodge the loose red fabric belted over her body. Sighing as he pinched the bridge of his nose, Sesshomaru bit out, "What is wrong now?"

"I have to go."

Did his jaw actually drop? Closing his mouth with an audible snap, the young lord barked, "Then go! Hopefully, you are capable of doing something like that without adult supervision!"

Her expression suddenly turned coy. "Would you like to come and make sure of that?"

Sesshomaru let loose a growl that made his thoughts on the subject crystal clear. Shrugging, Anbu disappeared into the brush. For a moment, Sesshomaru was prompted by his libido to follow and see just how far the similarities between the two women were. The lecherous thought shocked him as badly as he had previously been angered.

His voice was a faint hiss in the night, "If my heart survives the fact that Inuyasha might have been right, I'll start paying more attention when he talks. Even though we made love just this afternoon, the previous week without Kuroi's attentions has me sniffing after the first thing that resembles my wife!"

Off in the distance, Sesshomaru could detect that the little mystery calling herself Anbu, hadn't gone too far away. 'Am I actually relieved that she's chosen to stay near me or is it because I won't have to chase her down again?' Trying to calm himself, he took another deep breath. 'I vow to never tease my brother about his inability to deal with emotional conflicts again because so far I'm getting completely undone by mine.'

Turning away to test the air again for traces of his real mate, Sesshomaru growled in displeasure. Not only might it rain soon, which would obliterate any clues as to Kuroi's whereabouts, but he also could no longer detect any lingering hints of her.

All he could smell was Anbu.

He wondered how long he had before he completely lost his mind.

'Can I trust myself to make it to the cottage with this girl and not throttle her senseless or do something with her that I know I would regret?' Pinching the bridge of his nose in dismay, he suddenly recalling something Kagome had once asked of him.

'If it looks like a duck, sounds like a duck, and acts like a duck; is it a duck?'

A stiff breeze blew by, bringing the eerily similar smell of the girl to his nostrils before Anbu herself popped back up next to him. She was all bright smiles and curvaceous lines. "Miss me?"

The future lord of the west turned without answering and strode away n a way that forced Anbu to jog in order to keep up as she followed behind him.

He had his answer.

'No. It's a goose and I'm the idiot chasing it.'

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A/N: What's the deal with Anbu and Kuroi? Twins? Clones? Evil entities bent on hellish destruction of the world we know?

Do you honestly I'll just come out and tell you?! My God, you really haven't been paying attention to the twisted way I think, have you?

Trust that the Mistress will take you somewhere both wondrous and weird as shit.

I promise.

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"I like fudge."

"What's fudge."

"Something warm and crumbly and good to eat."

"Where do you get it?"

"Chickens make it."

"…oh my god…"