InuYasha Fan Fiction ❯ Made New ❯ Cookies ( Chapter 6 )
[ X - Adult: No readers under 18. Contains Graphic Adult Themes/Extreme violence. ]
By: SirenSinger 
Anime/Manga: InuYasha Fan Fiction | Genre(s): Romance | Type: Other | Uploaded On: 03.01.2010 | Updated On: 03.23.2010 | Pages: 2 | Words: 5.4K | Visits: 347 | Status: Work In Progress
Anime/Manga: InuYasha Fan Fiction | Genre(s): Romance | Type: Other | Uploaded On: 03.01.2010 | Updated On: 03.23.2010 | Pages: 2 | Words: 5.4K | Visits: 347 | Status: Work In Progress
Chapter six Cookies
* Onee is my big sister in Japanese. Onee- san when formal.
* Okaa- san is formal for mother. You would use this when talking to your mom or about someone else's mom, but when referring to your own mother and not speaking to her you would say Haha.
* Nii-san is formal for older brother. It follows the same rules as Okaa –san if you're interested.
~*~
Kagome stared straight back at him, she knew before she even attempted to run that this would happen. She would accept any punishment delved out by Sesshomaru. It was her duty, no matter what stands in her way, to stop the jewel from hurting anyone but those who harbored them evilly. She could not allow herself to forget it, even if death was staring her in the face, as it often was. She understood only a little of what a pack society was, from watching TV at home. It sounded silly to think that the man staring at her right now could be anything like those animals, and she could be dramatically mistaken but it was all the information she had to go from. If Sesshomaru was an alpha like he said, or like she understood them to be, then that made her far beneath him in the hierarchy. One thing she did learn from watching those nature shows was that dogs never disobeyed their alpha. If they did, they were severely reprimanded. She didn't know how far the similarities went between the pack wolves' of her time and the rules that she must follow under Sesshomaru's lead, but she knew she should not have undermined him. She didn't really have a choice but to call him leader. Inuyasha had taken that from her. She could accept that, but she wasn't about to let anyone run her life. It was hers after all, and she had something important to do with it. Kagome swallowed her pride. He should understand, she could tell by now that duty and honor was just about everything, aside from power to the youkai Lord.
She understood the anger that he must be feeling. It was coming off of him in waves, but he only looked at her coldly. What was he waiting for? She pushed her fear aside and tried to speak strongly. "I'm sorry, Sesshomaru-sama." She lowered her eyes and shrugged limply. " It's my job." She was sorry for making him so angry at her, but not for doing her job. If this was the consequence then so be it. When it came to the jewel, she was prepared to die for people she didn't even know, she could suffer for them too. 'My life has hardly begun and I'm ready to die.' . When did she become so mature? A few years ago she would have broken under this. She glanced back up at Sesshomaru who was still silent, and staring. She wished he'd get it over with. "Sesshomaru. " She looked back down.
He said nothing, and Kagome braced herself as she saw his hand come up, It would hurt, but she knew it wasn't worth fighting. It would only make Sesshomaru angrier. ---- The impact never came. His hand fell, slowly and she felt his aura fight with itsself for a moment. He was struggling to decide what to do. She would never have guessed Sesshomaru to be indecisive. His voice was calm; still she could tell he was anything but. "Explain." His voice gave her goose bumps.
Explain? He was giving her a chance to reason with him? She took it gratefully. "I can't ignore my responsibilities to the lives attached to the jewel. I am the Shikon priestess." Kagome, not so tactfully rushed the sentance out of her mouth. She took a sobering breath and pulled her thoughts together. Whatever she was going to say had to be important enough for Sesshomaru excuse her. She had to tell him the absolute truth, and it had to be intelligible. "I do my best, but Kikyo was a lot stronger than me. I keep letting the people who once counted on her down." The thought was a hard one to face. She would never match their original protector. It almost put a tear in her eye, but she held her resolve and looked Sesshomaru in the face. He had to understand. "But I will not abandon them. That demon had enough power to take down a small village if the conditions were right. How could I live knowing I could have saved them! It's my job to stop that, whenever I can." She lowered her eyes again from his, which were trying to burn into her. Then she took a risk "That doesn't change when I can get hurt, or when my alpha gives me an order."
'Her alpha?' Sesshomaru turned away from her without saying another word. She had deliberately disregarded a direct order from him, and she had forced him into a fight. Never would any member of his pack dare him to do either, without being taught a lesson. His beast was asking for her blood as soon as the lizard was dispatched. Sesshomaru could not agree with it anymore, but something she had said caught his ire in time. 'It's my job' She had said that already accepting the pain that her actions would cause her. It was her job, her burden that she would not turn her back on. People were counting on her, yet they would probably never learn her name. They would not blame her for that demon. Still she would risk punishment by his claws for them. The miko was not without her honor, and just as his hand had been forced into taking her into his pack, she had been forced to run. Forced by him, because he had told her to forget her responsibilities. She thought of protecting the people affected by the tyranny of the fake power, just as he must protect the people living under his rule. They were not so different when it came to such things, and Kagome he could tell was ready to die for it. He would not punish her for being noble; it was not a trait most demons possessed let alone cowardly humans.
His beast was angry, even though Sesshomaru had decided to spare her. It wanted the miko to know her place. But Sesshomaru was in control ultimately, and no harm would come to her. It was when she had acknowledged them as alpha that they had both almost dropped their jaw. His beast was sated but Sesshomaru was genuinely surprised. He turned from the woman to rein in the outburst that almost got away from him. It was not just because she had finally accepted her place, no that was expected, what got him was the fact that when she had said that, her words barely a whisper he had . . . liked it. He felt satisfied, and not only did he want to forget her earlier transgression, but he wanted to reward her. He blamed the link that had formed between him for the sudden outburst of emotion. It must come from the girl being so unstable. It wasn't comfortable, knowing her every feeling, and her knowing his. They bond would have to be dealt with and soon or else he might actually go insane.
His golden eyes locked with her sapphires for a moment and he made a decision. "You are permitted to fulfill you responsibilities as the shikon priestess, but do not assume this Sesshomaru will assist you any longer. You will either defeat your opponent or I will force your retreat. Is this understood, Miko?" He felt her gratitude come over him.
"Yes," She said, once more looking away and nervously shifting her feet. Everything seemed way too heavy lately. It was starting to really get to her. She waited for Sesshomaru to start in front of her before following close behind.
They walked back the flat forest land jaken and Rin rested on in silence.
~*~
"Inuyasha! What are you doing here!?"
Inuyasha flattened his ears and opened one amber eye. Oh yeah, he was in Kagome's room. Was that Souta's voice just now? He sat up in his friend.s bed and stretched out his arms. With a yawn, he rubbed the sleep from his face. He had a massive headache, must have been up too late last night. "Hey kid, keep it down would ya?"
"Sure, sure. Where is Onee?" He walked in further to his sister's room. Souta had come in to borrow Kagome's algebra book. He liked to get a head of the class. He pulled it off the shelf and then turned to Inuyasha when he didn't answer. "Uh, oh. What'd you do? You know she's pretty much a softy." Souta put the book down. T'here's not much just saying sorry won't make fix with her." He punched Inuyasha's arm. "I bet you stole her Ramen again didn't you?" He laughed but Inuyasha was still silent. Souta's grin disappeared. "What happened?" He sat down next to the hanyou. This didn't seem right.
Inuyasha wasn't about to tell Kagome's little brother everything. He would go crazy if he knew, he'd always been as protective of her as Inuyasha was himself. It would just cause him to worry when there was nothing he could do about it. The brat was annoying as hell when it came to Kagome. The person he did need to tell though was probably down stairs making breakfast at the moment. "Is your mom awake?" He got out of the bed and rolled his shoulders.
"Yeah, you must be slipping Inuyasha. Can't you smell breakfast?"
He could now that he tried. Maybe he was slipping. "Not likely, twerp" He grabbed the kid in a head lock.
"Hey, cut it out!" Souta struggled out of the hold and rubbed his head. Glaring, he went back to the important subject. "So, really where's Kagome?"
Inuyasha sighed wordlessly and started walking away.
"Hey Inuyasha, don't ignore me I-" It was useless, the hanyou was already out of the room.
The smell of miso and fried fish finally filled his overly sensitive nose as he walked down the stairs. He followed it straghit to the kitchen. If there was anyone who could cook better then Kagome, it was her mother.
"Oh, good morning, Inuyasha," said parental unit called as she stirred something in a pan.
"Morning Higurashi-san, do you have a minute?" He didn't really want to say anything, but he didn't want to go back to the feudal era even more. He couldn't really do that without telling someone something of what was going on. He couldn't face Kagome or Sesshomaru right now either.
"Sure, dear, just a second." The women picked up a couple plates of delicious looking food and started over to the table. "What is it?" She said looking over her shoulder, plates still in hand. "Oh, before you say anything will you go bring Kagome down stairs for me?"
"I would. . . . but Kagome's not with me this time. That's what I wanted to talk to you about." 'She would blame me if I let them worry too much' "She won't be coming home for a while." 'Where's the monk when you need him?' Miroku would know how to explain himself out of this.
"How come?" Kagome's mother's face pulled into confusion.
"I can't give you all the details." His reply was too quick.
". . . " Mrs. Higurashi had never been a fool to the dangers her daughter was in, and Kagome had always been forth comeing when asked about it, so if Inuyasha was informing her that Kagome would be gone instead of the girl herself then this must be pretty serious. What could she do now but pray for her? It's not as if she could make her come home. Kagome would make it no matter what, she was sure, but still. "Inuyasha. . ." Her looked clearly stated, "I better get some answers out of you or this plate of food is going over your head."
The hanyou gulped. She was almost scarier than Kagome. "Don't worry, she's safe"
"Where is she?" The death stare worsened.
Inuyasha's ears flattened. "With my brother-Sesshomaru."
CRASH!!!
~*~
Rin's little mind was working full speed, but she just could not grasp the situation. What was going on? Her Lord would not answer her questions, and her new friend would not even look at her! Kagome's eyes were glued to her feet and her right arm was bent over her stomach. Was she biting her lip? Rin wished she'd smile again. They had been like this all day! Rin skipped up to Kagome from her place by Ah-Un. "Kagome-chan?" No answer. "Kaaaggooomee-chan!"
Finally the miko realized she was being talked to. "Oh, um, yes Rin?"
The little girl grabbed Kagome's hand and pulled it away from her elbow. "Is Kagome-chan alright?"
Kagome pushed a smile on her face. She didn't realize she had been letting her attitude show. Ever since she had returned to the group with Sesshomaru, she had been a little off. She was so sure she would not have walked away from him without a limp before. She just couldn't figure out what made him stop. On top of that, he told her she could continue to hunt for the jewel shards. What happened to 'you will not disobey me'? No, nothing about that had changed she could tell. What she would give to look inside that handsome head of his and find out what was going on. She forgot about Rin as her thoughts kept buzzing. The child squeezed her hand and brought her back to earth.
"Kagome-chan?"
"Sorry, Rin, I'm fine, just a little hungry." Kagome reached back and swung her yellow pack forward. She was sure she hadn't left Shippou all of the pocky. "Here" She handed the box to the girl and watched her eyes get wide. "Want to share some with me?"
Rin bounced but left the cookies in Kagome's hands "Kagome–chan are these really pocky? They look so weird"
At that Kagome had to laugh and it was honest. She forgot Rin didn't know where she was from. Did Sesshomaru know for that matter? She had never really discussed it with anyone besides those in her group before. She remembered how surprised they all were. Well everyone but Miroku. He said something like, 'Well, if any one of us was a time traveler, it would be you." She didn't know what he meant but back then she let it slide, Sango had already punished him enough. "Yeah, it's special from the place I come from." Kagome took a long cookie out of the box. Chocolate was her favorite. "It's good, try one."
Rin put her little fingers in the box and took three out. "Can Master Jaken and Sesshomaru-sama have some too?"
"Sure." She doubted they would even try one though. She watched Rin dance away from her, over to the toad that was following his Lord right on his heels. That would annoy the heck out of her, but she supposed that the demon was used to being waited on. He did rule the western lands.'I wonder what his palace looks like.'
"Master Jaken! Kagome-chan has a present for you!" Kagome cringed. Things were beginning to go horribly wrong. 'Just don't say that to Sesshomaru!'
"Rin, what are you prattling on about?" Jaken turned toward her. "What is that?" His voice grated on her nerves.
"A present." The girl laughed as she tried to hand him the gift.
"Get that away from me you insolent child!" The pathetic demon brushed her off. "I will not accept anything from a human!" Kagome scowled at him. How dare he call Rin names? He yelled at her too. Just as she was going to give him a piece of her mind she saw Rin skip up to Sesshomaru. 'Don't, please don't say it!'
Sesshomaru stopped walking when he felt Rin's familiar pull on his hakamas. He looked down at the small girl without saying anything. He didn't much feel in the mood for talking. She was holding out three chocolate dipped cookies and smiling her usual wide grin. She was apparently trying to give him one. That smile he thought would fade if he refused, as unimportant as that was; he didn't want to be the cause of it disappearing over a mere cookie. He took one from her and raised his eye brow. It smelled sweet.
Rin smiled bigger "It's a present from Kagome-chan. Pocky is weird were Kagome-chan comes from."
¡¡
A present from Kagome? Where she comes from? Such matters did not concern him, but he had to admit the girl was incredibly strange. Maybe it would do him some good to learn what made her so. He sniffed the cookie again. It didn't seem to have any toxins, it only smelled sweet, and a little like the bag Kagome carried with her. 'A present from Kagome?' He ate a small part of the Pocky. It was good, not extraordinary, but good all the same.
"Sesshomaru-sama!" Jaken's squeal was absurdly astonished. Kagome rolled her eyes at the thing.
With that, Sesshomaru finished the cookie off and took another from the girl's hands. She giggled, and Jaken's eyes bulge even more. "B-but mi Lord?" Jaken glared at Kagome and then ripped the last Pocky stick from Rin's hand. If it was even possible Jaken's eyes got wider. He ate the cookie in one bite.
Kagome put her hands over her eyes. This could not be happening, she in no way intended to bring more attention to herself. 'Great, just great.' She peeked at the scene in front of her with one blue iris. Everyone was looking at her. She dropped her hands. "Eh . . . good,right?"
Jaken made a girly "humph" while Sesshomaru said nothing but continued to stare at her with a thoughtful intensity. What he was thinking only the gods could guess. Under his gaze Kagome began to shift nervously. She grabbed her elbow and looked away.
Rin's cheerful voice brought her face back up. "Does Kagome-chan have any more? Rin did not get to try one." She pulled Kagome hand back down from its resting place.
"Uh, yeah here " Kagome pulled another stick cookie out of the box once Rin released her. It was then she noticed Sesshomaru was walking dangerously close to her. His aura didn't feel angry, but the miko still fought the erg to back away.
"Miko," Sesshomaru stopped next to Rin, which was still too close for Kagome's comfort. "Your gift was not satisfactory" and with that he plucked what was left of the box right out of her hands before she even had a moment to conceive what had happened.
"H- Hey!" She yelled at his back. He was making his way back towards the front of the group, cookies rapidly disappearing. "Hey, wait a second., mister!" He ignored her. "It wasn't even a gift!" Her anger was quickly rising, hell hath no fury like an angry Kagome.
"Then you wish to be compensated?" He said over his shoulder.
She heard his voice in front of her, and she stopped walking. "Well . . . no but-" She faltered.
"Good, I would have refused." He kept going without so much as looking back at her. He decided her anger suited him a lot more than her fidgety nervousness. Pocky was not his favorite treat but it would do in payment for her earlier transgression. Besides, he rather enjoyed being the cause of the girl's frustration.
"Sesshomaru!" Kagome yelled from behind him. He imagined her red in the face and stomping like a child. Sesshomaru almost, almost wanted to smile.
~*~
¡¡
"Higurashi-san!" Inuyasha helped the woman onto her feet and out of the mess of food and porcelain scattered everywhere. "Are you okay?"
"I'm fine. I just slipped." She huffed. "Getting a little too old for that."
"But you were standing still?" Inuyasha tried to question her but Souta came down into the kitchen that moment.
"Okaa–san?" The boy looked worried. "I heard a loud noise, is everything alright?"
She brushed herself off and looked at her son with one of those smiles Kagome was so good at putting on. "Yes, yes, nothing a good bath won't fix. Dear, do you think you could clean this up for me? I'll have to start again. Can't let you boys go without breakfast can I? Besides, we've still got to get you school." She sounded a little flustered.
"Eh–sure mom but, its Saturday. Are you sure you're okay?"
"Yes, don't worry too much; I'll have breakfast done again soon."
"Kay . . ." Souta looked at Inuyasha awkwardly and left the kitchen. The hanyou followed his lead.
The living room was quiet even with the sound of paused video games coming from the corner. Inuyasha vaguely recognized the lump of blankets and clothes on the couch as Kagome's sleeping grandpa. Good thing, he didn't really feel like dealing with the cranky old story teller. Souts walked over to the TV and before he sat down he looked up at Inuyasha."What was that about?"
Inuyasha shrugged, picked up a controller and sat down next to him. "I'm gonna kick your ass!"
Souta laughed at Inuyasha's crude Language. He'd never get away with that if Kagome were here. "Hey, you never said where onee was. Did you guys really get into a fight or is something wrong?" The little boy was surprisingly perceptive. He was more mature than any of his family suspected. Kagome might have known, but he doubted it. If anything was wrong with her, he didn't know what he would do. His sister was just too naive. There's no telling what a bunch of demons could trick her into, or worse-what kind of trouble she would fall into herself He had never seen Kagome fight, but he was pretty sure she wouldn't be good at it. Or at least she shouldn't have to be.
Her nature was too kind to handle anything like that easily. She also used to cry when she saw blood too. She said it felt bad, looking at people in pain, like it actually hurt her to watch it. She never even watched scary movies because it made her feel to bad, watching people get hurt.. Souta remembered her coming home one day and fussing over him for what felt like an eternity just because he had a scraped leg and arm. His bike wasn't good to him that day. His sister chased him around like a mad man until he let her treat his 'wounds'. She looked like she was in pain when she was wrapping him up. When Inuyasha didn't say anything, he asked again. "What's going on Nii- san?" the fighting game raged in the back round.
"You better pay attention kid, or your gonna. eat dirt." Inuyasha blasted through his character..
"Inuyasha?" Souta paused the game. "What happened?" He had ignored him long enough.
The hanyou took an exaggerated sigh and put down his controller, seeing as the people on the "magic box" refused to move for him. "Look, it's nothing to worry about. She is safe where she is. We got into a fight, and then something came up that I couldn't help her with."
Souta looked at him for a minute not knowing if he could press the issue. He wasn't satisfied. "So, why didn't she just come back here?"
"Just stay out of it, twerp, it's none of your business." Inuyasha picked up the controller. "Now are you going to let me make a fool out of you!?"
Souta let it go and smiled with gusto. "Don't bet on it!"
~*~
¡¡
It was getting colder outside every day. The chill of early morning air stung the inside of her hollow body. Kikyo picked up her pace behind Takeshi. The dark man's stride was much larger than her own, and despite the new reserve she had taken in last night, she was struggling to keep up with him. He was more like a panther than spider. Naraku would laugh at that she thought, as they walked into an open clearing. He liked panthers, maybe that was the kind of demon the hanyou had spawned with. It didn't matter so much, but at the speed they were going she would have to bring new souls to her in less than two days. She didn't even know where they were headed. All the bastard had said was that he had a plan, and that involved finding help. She didn't know why she had to tag along. She was a little more than angry because of it.
"Takeshi, slow down." Her voice was calmer than she felt.
"Oh, forgive me." He stopped. "I am not used to traveling company." The demon tilted his handsome head in apology and smiled a wickedly sharp grin at her "I thought the powerful shikon miko would be able to follow unhindered. Was I wrong?" His black hair swayed a bit as he had left the braid undone today and even Kikyo found it stunning. At least he was fully clothed this time, in black hakamas and a traditional black shirt with red inlay. It looked like it was made for him, and in the soft morning light there was nothing as beautiful. Kikyo hated him for it. He had taken too much thought into his appearance. Wherever they were going, it was a very important place for the demon. His smooth voice regained her attention. "Don't fret, we are almost there."
"You act too much like a noble. Your father would roll over in his grave if he knew."
Takeshi laughed in his deep rumble. "I am twice the man my father was." He moved fluidly. Kikyo stiffened when he brought her chin to face him. His hands were cold. "I'll prove it."
She swatted his hand away breathing a little harder than she wanted to. "Don't touch me." Takeshi just laughed again. Kikyo didn't back away, she was too proud. "You're insufferable"
He feigned a saddened look. "Don't be so cruel, my lady." He flashed that grin at her again. It only widened when she got angrier. "You'll come around, they all do" He started off again.
~*~
Another day had passed and Kagome still hadn't gotten her Pocky back. 'Jerk.' They were packing up their camp site, and Kagome had made a simple cereal for breakfast, out of the oatmeal pakets she still had in her pack. Rin traced her every step all the way to how many spoonfuls of oatmeal she shoved in her mouth. It was really cute. The sun was beginning to peak out from under the trees they had slept beneath, but it was colder today. Maybe winter was on its way. It didn't seem like that long ago that Kagome had been cursing the heat. Oh well, at least she was fitting in nicely. She was starting to pick up their traveling routine. Sesshomaru was usually nowhere to be seen in the morning, Rin said he was practicing. Practicing what she had no idea, but seeing as his aura felt peaceful for a while after words, she didn't really need to know. Before they ate, Jaken would get up and Kagome made breakfast for three. Sesshomaru rarely ate with them. In fact now that she thought about the Pocky incident was the only time she had ever seen him eat anything. Then they would roll up their beds and pack Ah-Un. It was nice, but Kagome couldn't help feeling that they weren't really getting anywhere though.
It had been a long time since she had heard anything about Inuyasha, and Kikyo was nowhere insight. That was probably for the best. She was in no hurry to watch Sesshomaru take the women's life. Kagome took a big breath of cool air in. 'She deserves to be here more than I do.' It was a fair enough thought. She belonged in another time period. She was only allowed to meet her friends by some grace (or curse) that the Kamis gave to her. She pushed the last of her things in her bag, and walked over to help Rin put out the embers of last night's fire. What were they going to do?
She didn't honestly think Sesshomaru would just wander around forever. She was sure he wanted to get rid of her as fast as he could, but the search for her would be murderer was pretty fruitless. Where could she have gone? She guessed that didn't matter, as much to her as finding Inuyasha. She had some words to throw at him, and maybe she could find some way to save Kikyo's life if only she could speak to him.
"Miko," a familiar voice said.
"Y-yes?" Sesshomaru's voice made her jump. Kagome turned to him. When did he get back? His aura shifted uncomfortably for a moment. She raised her eye brow.
"Remove your belongings from Ah–Un, we will not be traveling with him any longer." Sesshomaru looked down to the questioning face Rin put on.
"Lord Sesshomaru–sama. Where is Ah-Un going?" Rin put her head on the pack youkai's scaled shoulder.
"You and he will be leaving with Jaken'"
"We're going home?" Rin dared to pout a little bit. She wanted to stay with her lord and her new best friend.
"Yes." He didn't want to explain to the girl.
"Why?" The question came from Kagome who found it hard to watch Sesshomaru break Rin's heart.
He closed his eyes in annoyance. "I have heard something interesting that requires investigation. It may be dangerous." When he opened his glowing orbs again they set on Kagome's face, pulled into a look of hesitance. "What is it, Miko?"
She attacked the hem of her sleeve with her other hand. "Well, it just would have been nice of you to tell me you knew something. I was starting to think . . . I should know what's going on is all."
"Hn," was the reply given to the miko, even though she was probably right. Rin looked up at him with a frown, but he could not afford any more distractions right now. It was time to get this over with. Sesshomaru ignored the quiver in the girl's lip, and walked over to his retainer.
Rin looked at Kagome with big tawny eyes that were starting to leak. "Will Rin ever see Kagome-chan again?" Her normally jubilant voice was far too sad for Kagome's liking.
She nodded "I promise," Kagome kneeled down so that she could look Rin in the eye. "Don't worry." She smiled. "Sesshomaru-sama will take very good care of me."
~*~
Thanks so much to everyone who reviewed. You guys really keep me writing and I hope this chapter doesn't disappoint you! =) So the plot thickens! You like? As you know any review helps but if there are any mistakes please let me know. I do my best but we all fall short right? I wanted to get this out last month but it didn't feel done yet. School is picking up so expect a little lag when it comes to updates, but I promise they'll keep coming! Happy reading everyone.
~ Songmiko
* Onee is my big sister in Japanese. Onee- san when formal.
* Okaa- san is formal for mother. You would use this when talking to your mom or about someone else's mom, but when referring to your own mother and not speaking to her you would say Haha.
* Nii-san is formal for older brother. It follows the same rules as Okaa –san if you're interested.
~*~
Kagome stared straight back at him, she knew before she even attempted to run that this would happen. She would accept any punishment delved out by Sesshomaru. It was her duty, no matter what stands in her way, to stop the jewel from hurting anyone but those who harbored them evilly. She could not allow herself to forget it, even if death was staring her in the face, as it often was. She understood only a little of what a pack society was, from watching TV at home. It sounded silly to think that the man staring at her right now could be anything like those animals, and she could be dramatically mistaken but it was all the information she had to go from. If Sesshomaru was an alpha like he said, or like she understood them to be, then that made her far beneath him in the hierarchy. One thing she did learn from watching those nature shows was that dogs never disobeyed their alpha. If they did, they were severely reprimanded. She didn't know how far the similarities went between the pack wolves' of her time and the rules that she must follow under Sesshomaru's lead, but she knew she should not have undermined him. She didn't really have a choice but to call him leader. Inuyasha had taken that from her. She could accept that, but she wasn't about to let anyone run her life. It was hers after all, and she had something important to do with it. Kagome swallowed her pride. He should understand, she could tell by now that duty and honor was just about everything, aside from power to the youkai Lord.
She understood the anger that he must be feeling. It was coming off of him in waves, but he only looked at her coldly. What was he waiting for? She pushed her fear aside and tried to speak strongly. "I'm sorry, Sesshomaru-sama." She lowered her eyes and shrugged limply. " It's my job." She was sorry for making him so angry at her, but not for doing her job. If this was the consequence then so be it. When it came to the jewel, she was prepared to die for people she didn't even know, she could suffer for them too. 'My life has hardly begun and I'm ready to die.' . When did she become so mature? A few years ago she would have broken under this. She glanced back up at Sesshomaru who was still silent, and staring. She wished he'd get it over with. "Sesshomaru. " She looked back down.
He said nothing, and Kagome braced herself as she saw his hand come up, It would hurt, but she knew it wasn't worth fighting. It would only make Sesshomaru angrier. ---- The impact never came. His hand fell, slowly and she felt his aura fight with itsself for a moment. He was struggling to decide what to do. She would never have guessed Sesshomaru to be indecisive. His voice was calm; still she could tell he was anything but. "Explain." His voice gave her goose bumps.
Explain? He was giving her a chance to reason with him? She took it gratefully. "I can't ignore my responsibilities to the lives attached to the jewel. I am the Shikon priestess." Kagome, not so tactfully rushed the sentance out of her mouth. She took a sobering breath and pulled her thoughts together. Whatever she was going to say had to be important enough for Sesshomaru excuse her. She had to tell him the absolute truth, and it had to be intelligible. "I do my best, but Kikyo was a lot stronger than me. I keep letting the people who once counted on her down." The thought was a hard one to face. She would never match their original protector. It almost put a tear in her eye, but she held her resolve and looked Sesshomaru in the face. He had to understand. "But I will not abandon them. That demon had enough power to take down a small village if the conditions were right. How could I live knowing I could have saved them! It's my job to stop that, whenever I can." She lowered her eyes again from his, which were trying to burn into her. Then she took a risk "That doesn't change when I can get hurt, or when my alpha gives me an order."
'Her alpha?' Sesshomaru turned away from her without saying another word. She had deliberately disregarded a direct order from him, and she had forced him into a fight. Never would any member of his pack dare him to do either, without being taught a lesson. His beast was asking for her blood as soon as the lizard was dispatched. Sesshomaru could not agree with it anymore, but something she had said caught his ire in time. 'It's my job' She had said that already accepting the pain that her actions would cause her. It was her job, her burden that she would not turn her back on. People were counting on her, yet they would probably never learn her name. They would not blame her for that demon. Still she would risk punishment by his claws for them. The miko was not without her honor, and just as his hand had been forced into taking her into his pack, she had been forced to run. Forced by him, because he had told her to forget her responsibilities. She thought of protecting the people affected by the tyranny of the fake power, just as he must protect the people living under his rule. They were not so different when it came to such things, and Kagome he could tell was ready to die for it. He would not punish her for being noble; it was not a trait most demons possessed let alone cowardly humans.
His beast was angry, even though Sesshomaru had decided to spare her. It wanted the miko to know her place. But Sesshomaru was in control ultimately, and no harm would come to her. It was when she had acknowledged them as alpha that they had both almost dropped their jaw. His beast was sated but Sesshomaru was genuinely surprised. He turned from the woman to rein in the outburst that almost got away from him. It was not just because she had finally accepted her place, no that was expected, what got him was the fact that when she had said that, her words barely a whisper he had . . . liked it. He felt satisfied, and not only did he want to forget her earlier transgression, but he wanted to reward her. He blamed the link that had formed between him for the sudden outburst of emotion. It must come from the girl being so unstable. It wasn't comfortable, knowing her every feeling, and her knowing his. They bond would have to be dealt with and soon or else he might actually go insane.
His golden eyes locked with her sapphires for a moment and he made a decision. "You are permitted to fulfill you responsibilities as the shikon priestess, but do not assume this Sesshomaru will assist you any longer. You will either defeat your opponent or I will force your retreat. Is this understood, Miko?" He felt her gratitude come over him.
"Yes," She said, once more looking away and nervously shifting her feet. Everything seemed way too heavy lately. It was starting to really get to her. She waited for Sesshomaru to start in front of her before following close behind.
They walked back the flat forest land jaken and Rin rested on in silence.
~*~
"Inuyasha! What are you doing here!?"
Inuyasha flattened his ears and opened one amber eye. Oh yeah, he was in Kagome's room. Was that Souta's voice just now? He sat up in his friend.s bed and stretched out his arms. With a yawn, he rubbed the sleep from his face. He had a massive headache, must have been up too late last night. "Hey kid, keep it down would ya?"
"Sure, sure. Where is Onee?" He walked in further to his sister's room. Souta had come in to borrow Kagome's algebra book. He liked to get a head of the class. He pulled it off the shelf and then turned to Inuyasha when he didn't answer. "Uh, oh. What'd you do? You know she's pretty much a softy." Souta put the book down. T'here's not much just saying sorry won't make fix with her." He punched Inuyasha's arm. "I bet you stole her Ramen again didn't you?" He laughed but Inuyasha was still silent. Souta's grin disappeared. "What happened?" He sat down next to the hanyou. This didn't seem right.
Inuyasha wasn't about to tell Kagome's little brother everything. He would go crazy if he knew, he'd always been as protective of her as Inuyasha was himself. It would just cause him to worry when there was nothing he could do about it. The brat was annoying as hell when it came to Kagome. The person he did need to tell though was probably down stairs making breakfast at the moment. "Is your mom awake?" He got out of the bed and rolled his shoulders.
"Yeah, you must be slipping Inuyasha. Can't you smell breakfast?"
He could now that he tried. Maybe he was slipping. "Not likely, twerp" He grabbed the kid in a head lock.
"Hey, cut it out!" Souta struggled out of the hold and rubbed his head. Glaring, he went back to the important subject. "So, really where's Kagome?"
Inuyasha sighed wordlessly and started walking away.
"Hey Inuyasha, don't ignore me I-" It was useless, the hanyou was already out of the room.
The smell of miso and fried fish finally filled his overly sensitive nose as he walked down the stairs. He followed it straghit to the kitchen. If there was anyone who could cook better then Kagome, it was her mother.
"Oh, good morning, Inuyasha," said parental unit called as she stirred something in a pan.
"Morning Higurashi-san, do you have a minute?" He didn't really want to say anything, but he didn't want to go back to the feudal era even more. He couldn't really do that without telling someone something of what was going on. He couldn't face Kagome or Sesshomaru right now either.
"Sure, dear, just a second." The women picked up a couple plates of delicious looking food and started over to the table. "What is it?" She said looking over her shoulder, plates still in hand. "Oh, before you say anything will you go bring Kagome down stairs for me?"
"I would. . . . but Kagome's not with me this time. That's what I wanted to talk to you about." 'She would blame me if I let them worry too much' "She won't be coming home for a while." 'Where's the monk when you need him?' Miroku would know how to explain himself out of this.
"How come?" Kagome's mother's face pulled into confusion.
"I can't give you all the details." His reply was too quick.
". . . " Mrs. Higurashi had never been a fool to the dangers her daughter was in, and Kagome had always been forth comeing when asked about it, so if Inuyasha was informing her that Kagome would be gone instead of the girl herself then this must be pretty serious. What could she do now but pray for her? It's not as if she could make her come home. Kagome would make it no matter what, she was sure, but still. "Inuyasha. . ." Her looked clearly stated, "I better get some answers out of you or this plate of food is going over your head."
The hanyou gulped. She was almost scarier than Kagome. "Don't worry, she's safe"
"Where is she?" The death stare worsened.
Inuyasha's ears flattened. "With my brother-Sesshomaru."
CRASH!!!
~*~
Rin's little mind was working full speed, but she just could not grasp the situation. What was going on? Her Lord would not answer her questions, and her new friend would not even look at her! Kagome's eyes were glued to her feet and her right arm was bent over her stomach. Was she biting her lip? Rin wished she'd smile again. They had been like this all day! Rin skipped up to Kagome from her place by Ah-Un. "Kagome-chan?" No answer. "Kaaaggooomee-chan!"
Finally the miko realized she was being talked to. "Oh, um, yes Rin?"
The little girl grabbed Kagome's hand and pulled it away from her elbow. "Is Kagome-chan alright?"
Kagome pushed a smile on her face. She didn't realize she had been letting her attitude show. Ever since she had returned to the group with Sesshomaru, she had been a little off. She was so sure she would not have walked away from him without a limp before. She just couldn't figure out what made him stop. On top of that, he told her she could continue to hunt for the jewel shards. What happened to 'you will not disobey me'? No, nothing about that had changed she could tell. What she would give to look inside that handsome head of his and find out what was going on. She forgot about Rin as her thoughts kept buzzing. The child squeezed her hand and brought her back to earth.
"Kagome-chan?"
"Sorry, Rin, I'm fine, just a little hungry." Kagome reached back and swung her yellow pack forward. She was sure she hadn't left Shippou all of the pocky. "Here" She handed the box to the girl and watched her eyes get wide. "Want to share some with me?"
Rin bounced but left the cookies in Kagome's hands "Kagome–chan are these really pocky? They look so weird"
At that Kagome had to laugh and it was honest. She forgot Rin didn't know where she was from. Did Sesshomaru know for that matter? She had never really discussed it with anyone besides those in her group before. She remembered how surprised they all were. Well everyone but Miroku. He said something like, 'Well, if any one of us was a time traveler, it would be you." She didn't know what he meant but back then she let it slide, Sango had already punished him enough. "Yeah, it's special from the place I come from." Kagome took a long cookie out of the box. Chocolate was her favorite. "It's good, try one."
Rin put her little fingers in the box and took three out. "Can Master Jaken and Sesshomaru-sama have some too?"
"Sure." She doubted they would even try one though. She watched Rin dance away from her, over to the toad that was following his Lord right on his heels. That would annoy the heck out of her, but she supposed that the demon was used to being waited on. He did rule the western lands.'I wonder what his palace looks like.'
"Master Jaken! Kagome-chan has a present for you!" Kagome cringed. Things were beginning to go horribly wrong. 'Just don't say that to Sesshomaru!'
"Rin, what are you prattling on about?" Jaken turned toward her. "What is that?" His voice grated on her nerves.
"A present." The girl laughed as she tried to hand him the gift.
"Get that away from me you insolent child!" The pathetic demon brushed her off. "I will not accept anything from a human!" Kagome scowled at him. How dare he call Rin names? He yelled at her too. Just as she was going to give him a piece of her mind she saw Rin skip up to Sesshomaru. 'Don't, please don't say it!'
Sesshomaru stopped walking when he felt Rin's familiar pull on his hakamas. He looked down at the small girl without saying anything. He didn't much feel in the mood for talking. She was holding out three chocolate dipped cookies and smiling her usual wide grin. She was apparently trying to give him one. That smile he thought would fade if he refused, as unimportant as that was; he didn't want to be the cause of it disappearing over a mere cookie. He took one from her and raised his eye brow. It smelled sweet.
Rin smiled bigger "It's a present from Kagome-chan. Pocky is weird were Kagome-chan comes from."
¡¡
A present from Kagome? Where she comes from? Such matters did not concern him, but he had to admit the girl was incredibly strange. Maybe it would do him some good to learn what made her so. He sniffed the cookie again. It didn't seem to have any toxins, it only smelled sweet, and a little like the bag Kagome carried with her. 'A present from Kagome?' He ate a small part of the Pocky. It was good, not extraordinary, but good all the same.
"Sesshomaru-sama!" Jaken's squeal was absurdly astonished. Kagome rolled her eyes at the thing.
With that, Sesshomaru finished the cookie off and took another from the girl's hands. She giggled, and Jaken's eyes bulge even more. "B-but mi Lord?" Jaken glared at Kagome and then ripped the last Pocky stick from Rin's hand. If it was even possible Jaken's eyes got wider. He ate the cookie in one bite.
Kagome put her hands over her eyes. This could not be happening, she in no way intended to bring more attention to herself. 'Great, just great.' She peeked at the scene in front of her with one blue iris. Everyone was looking at her. She dropped her hands. "Eh . . . good,right?"
Jaken made a girly "humph" while Sesshomaru said nothing but continued to stare at her with a thoughtful intensity. What he was thinking only the gods could guess. Under his gaze Kagome began to shift nervously. She grabbed her elbow and looked away.
Rin's cheerful voice brought her face back up. "Does Kagome-chan have any more? Rin did not get to try one." She pulled Kagome hand back down from its resting place.
"Uh, yeah here " Kagome pulled another stick cookie out of the box once Rin released her. It was then she noticed Sesshomaru was walking dangerously close to her. His aura didn't feel angry, but the miko still fought the erg to back away.
"Miko," Sesshomaru stopped next to Rin, which was still too close for Kagome's comfort. "Your gift was not satisfactory" and with that he plucked what was left of the box right out of her hands before she even had a moment to conceive what had happened.
"H- Hey!" She yelled at his back. He was making his way back towards the front of the group, cookies rapidly disappearing. "Hey, wait a second., mister!" He ignored her. "It wasn't even a gift!" Her anger was quickly rising, hell hath no fury like an angry Kagome.
"Then you wish to be compensated?" He said over his shoulder.
She heard his voice in front of her, and she stopped walking. "Well . . . no but-" She faltered.
"Good, I would have refused." He kept going without so much as looking back at her. He decided her anger suited him a lot more than her fidgety nervousness. Pocky was not his favorite treat but it would do in payment for her earlier transgression. Besides, he rather enjoyed being the cause of the girl's frustration.
"Sesshomaru!" Kagome yelled from behind him. He imagined her red in the face and stomping like a child. Sesshomaru almost, almost wanted to smile.
~*~
¡¡
"Higurashi-san!" Inuyasha helped the woman onto her feet and out of the mess of food and porcelain scattered everywhere. "Are you okay?"
"I'm fine. I just slipped." She huffed. "Getting a little too old for that."
"But you were standing still?" Inuyasha tried to question her but Souta came down into the kitchen that moment.
"Okaa–san?" The boy looked worried. "I heard a loud noise, is everything alright?"
She brushed herself off and looked at her son with one of those smiles Kagome was so good at putting on. "Yes, yes, nothing a good bath won't fix. Dear, do you think you could clean this up for me? I'll have to start again. Can't let you boys go without breakfast can I? Besides, we've still got to get you school." She sounded a little flustered.
"Eh–sure mom but, its Saturday. Are you sure you're okay?"
"Yes, don't worry too much; I'll have breakfast done again soon."
"Kay . . ." Souta looked at Inuyasha awkwardly and left the kitchen. The hanyou followed his lead.
The living room was quiet even with the sound of paused video games coming from the corner. Inuyasha vaguely recognized the lump of blankets and clothes on the couch as Kagome's sleeping grandpa. Good thing, he didn't really feel like dealing with the cranky old story teller. Souts walked over to the TV and before he sat down he looked up at Inuyasha."What was that about?"
Inuyasha shrugged, picked up a controller and sat down next to him. "I'm gonna kick your ass!"
Souta laughed at Inuyasha's crude Language. He'd never get away with that if Kagome were here. "Hey, you never said where onee was. Did you guys really get into a fight or is something wrong?" The little boy was surprisingly perceptive. He was more mature than any of his family suspected. Kagome might have known, but he doubted it. If anything was wrong with her, he didn't know what he would do. His sister was just too naive. There's no telling what a bunch of demons could trick her into, or worse-what kind of trouble she would fall into herself He had never seen Kagome fight, but he was pretty sure she wouldn't be good at it. Or at least she shouldn't have to be.
Her nature was too kind to handle anything like that easily. She also used to cry when she saw blood too. She said it felt bad, looking at people in pain, like it actually hurt her to watch it. She never even watched scary movies because it made her feel to bad, watching people get hurt.. Souta remembered her coming home one day and fussing over him for what felt like an eternity just because he had a scraped leg and arm. His bike wasn't good to him that day. His sister chased him around like a mad man until he let her treat his 'wounds'. She looked like she was in pain when she was wrapping him up. When Inuyasha didn't say anything, he asked again. "What's going on Nii- san?" the fighting game raged in the back round.
"You better pay attention kid, or your gonna. eat dirt." Inuyasha blasted through his character..
"Inuyasha?" Souta paused the game. "What happened?" He had ignored him long enough.
The hanyou took an exaggerated sigh and put down his controller, seeing as the people on the "magic box" refused to move for him. "Look, it's nothing to worry about. She is safe where she is. We got into a fight, and then something came up that I couldn't help her with."
Souta looked at him for a minute not knowing if he could press the issue. He wasn't satisfied. "So, why didn't she just come back here?"
"Just stay out of it, twerp, it's none of your business." Inuyasha picked up the controller. "Now are you going to let me make a fool out of you!?"
Souta let it go and smiled with gusto. "Don't bet on it!"
~*~
¡¡
It was getting colder outside every day. The chill of early morning air stung the inside of her hollow body. Kikyo picked up her pace behind Takeshi. The dark man's stride was much larger than her own, and despite the new reserve she had taken in last night, she was struggling to keep up with him. He was more like a panther than spider. Naraku would laugh at that she thought, as they walked into an open clearing. He liked panthers, maybe that was the kind of demon the hanyou had spawned with. It didn't matter so much, but at the speed they were going she would have to bring new souls to her in less than two days. She didn't even know where they were headed. All the bastard had said was that he had a plan, and that involved finding help. She didn't know why she had to tag along. She was a little more than angry because of it.
"Takeshi, slow down." Her voice was calmer than she felt.
"Oh, forgive me." He stopped. "I am not used to traveling company." The demon tilted his handsome head in apology and smiled a wickedly sharp grin at her "I thought the powerful shikon miko would be able to follow unhindered. Was I wrong?" His black hair swayed a bit as he had left the braid undone today and even Kikyo found it stunning. At least he was fully clothed this time, in black hakamas and a traditional black shirt with red inlay. It looked like it was made for him, and in the soft morning light there was nothing as beautiful. Kikyo hated him for it. He had taken too much thought into his appearance. Wherever they were going, it was a very important place for the demon. His smooth voice regained her attention. "Don't fret, we are almost there."
"You act too much like a noble. Your father would roll over in his grave if he knew."
Takeshi laughed in his deep rumble. "I am twice the man my father was." He moved fluidly. Kikyo stiffened when he brought her chin to face him. His hands were cold. "I'll prove it."
She swatted his hand away breathing a little harder than she wanted to. "Don't touch me." Takeshi just laughed again. Kikyo didn't back away, she was too proud. "You're insufferable"
He feigned a saddened look. "Don't be so cruel, my lady." He flashed that grin at her again. It only widened when she got angrier. "You'll come around, they all do" He started off again.
~*~
Another day had passed and Kagome still hadn't gotten her Pocky back. 'Jerk.' They were packing up their camp site, and Kagome had made a simple cereal for breakfast, out of the oatmeal pakets she still had in her pack. Rin traced her every step all the way to how many spoonfuls of oatmeal she shoved in her mouth. It was really cute. The sun was beginning to peak out from under the trees they had slept beneath, but it was colder today. Maybe winter was on its way. It didn't seem like that long ago that Kagome had been cursing the heat. Oh well, at least she was fitting in nicely. She was starting to pick up their traveling routine. Sesshomaru was usually nowhere to be seen in the morning, Rin said he was practicing. Practicing what she had no idea, but seeing as his aura felt peaceful for a while after words, she didn't really need to know. Before they ate, Jaken would get up and Kagome made breakfast for three. Sesshomaru rarely ate with them. In fact now that she thought about the Pocky incident was the only time she had ever seen him eat anything. Then they would roll up their beds and pack Ah-Un. It was nice, but Kagome couldn't help feeling that they weren't really getting anywhere though.
It had been a long time since she had heard anything about Inuyasha, and Kikyo was nowhere insight. That was probably for the best. She was in no hurry to watch Sesshomaru take the women's life. Kagome took a big breath of cool air in. 'She deserves to be here more than I do.' It was a fair enough thought. She belonged in another time period. She was only allowed to meet her friends by some grace (or curse) that the Kamis gave to her. She pushed the last of her things in her bag, and walked over to help Rin put out the embers of last night's fire. What were they going to do?
She didn't honestly think Sesshomaru would just wander around forever. She was sure he wanted to get rid of her as fast as he could, but the search for her would be murderer was pretty fruitless. Where could she have gone? She guessed that didn't matter, as much to her as finding Inuyasha. She had some words to throw at him, and maybe she could find some way to save Kikyo's life if only she could speak to him.
"Miko," a familiar voice said.
"Y-yes?" Sesshomaru's voice made her jump. Kagome turned to him. When did he get back? His aura shifted uncomfortably for a moment. She raised her eye brow.
"Remove your belongings from Ah–Un, we will not be traveling with him any longer." Sesshomaru looked down to the questioning face Rin put on.
"Lord Sesshomaru–sama. Where is Ah-Un going?" Rin put her head on the pack youkai's scaled shoulder.
"You and he will be leaving with Jaken'"
"We're going home?" Rin dared to pout a little bit. She wanted to stay with her lord and her new best friend.
"Yes." He didn't want to explain to the girl.
"Why?" The question came from Kagome who found it hard to watch Sesshomaru break Rin's heart.
He closed his eyes in annoyance. "I have heard something interesting that requires investigation. It may be dangerous." When he opened his glowing orbs again they set on Kagome's face, pulled into a look of hesitance. "What is it, Miko?"
She attacked the hem of her sleeve with her other hand. "Well, it just would have been nice of you to tell me you knew something. I was starting to think . . . I should know what's going on is all."
"Hn," was the reply given to the miko, even though she was probably right. Rin looked up at him with a frown, but he could not afford any more distractions right now. It was time to get this over with. Sesshomaru ignored the quiver in the girl's lip, and walked over to his retainer.
Rin looked at Kagome with big tawny eyes that were starting to leak. "Will Rin ever see Kagome-chan again?" Her normally jubilant voice was far too sad for Kagome's liking.
She nodded "I promise," Kagome kneeled down so that she could look Rin in the eye. "Don't worry." She smiled. "Sesshomaru-sama will take very good care of me."
~*~
Thanks so much to everyone who reviewed. You guys really keep me writing and I hope this chapter doesn't disappoint you! =) So the plot thickens! You like? As you know any review helps but if there are any mistakes please let me know. I do my best but we all fall short right? I wanted to get this out last month but it didn't feel done yet. School is picking up so expect a little lag when it comes to updates, but I promise they'll keep coming! Happy reading everyone.
~ Songmiko