InuYasha Fan Fiction ❯ Pride (In the Name of Love) ❯ Chapter 15

Pride (In the Name of Love) 15 / ??
Written by Jezz-Ra
Warnings - Not all warnings apply to all chapters. Yaoi, Het, Rape, Lemon, Violence, Language, Torture, Angst, Incest, Dark (at times). It's a massive story, folks, it's got a little bit of everything.
Disclaimer - I don't own Inuyasha, don't make money off it. Wish I did.

Sidestories can be found under my author profile at any of my archive sites.
Archived at - inu.adultfanfiction.net, fanfiction.net, and mediaminer.org ::: Anywhere else, ask!
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// blah // indicates thoughts.

A/N - I may not be able to update tomorrow, as I have to work a long shift and may be too tired when I get home in the morning (I work nights). So I'll post this chapter early. =D I can't respond to individual reviews from my email, but I do so love receiving them. If anyone ever has any questions, feel free to drop me a line.

I also am starting an update list. Anyone that wants to be added to said update list, just drop me a line at my email listed above and I'll mail chapters to you directly as soon as they're ready to go! This story is probably going to be long...possibly a series, or I may just keep it as one story. Eventually it'll branch out and involve other characters more heavily...so I'll probly make it a set of stories rather than just one. Anyhow, here's the chapter. I'll update again tomorrow if I have the energy!
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The journey to the Bone Eater's Well didn't take as long as Inuyasha had originally thought it would, although he wished it had. Sesshoumaru drove himself far beyond his limits, and Inuyasha hadn't even realized it because his brother never said a word or gave any sign that their pace was too fast - indeed, he had set the pace himself.

The hanyou learned that his brother wasn't quite as ready for this as he gave the appearance of being when Sesshoumaru abruptly stumbled forward, rolling head over heels from momentum and crashing into a tree, not moving. Inuyasha let out a yelp of surprise, skidding forcefully to a stop and hurrying over. Sesshoumaru's breathing was ragged and his eyes were rolling, unfocused. "Fuck...Sessh, you IDIOT!"

Sesshoumaru didn't answer, his muscles quivering from strain. Inuyasha just couldn't understand...he NEEDED this collar off...damn his body for not being up to traveling properly...// So...damn...helpless!... //

Inuyasha sighed when he noticed Sesshoumaru's consciousness slip away. "Guess we camp here for the night. I should have known you weren't up for this. I'm just so damn used to you being stronger than me..." The hanyou sighed as he arranged his brother in a more comfortable position and started a small fire, leaning back against a tree. He generally preferred to be up in said tree, but then he wouldn't be able to keep as close an eye on his brother.

The night passed uneventfully. Sesshoumaru was awake when Inuyasha woke up, although his brother hadn't moved and simply lay on his back, staring up at the gray, pre-dawn sky. Inuyasha eyed him for a long moment. "Er...good morning, Sessh."Sesshoumaru's eyes flicked in Inuyasha's direction, but that was all the acknowledgment he bothered to give his brother's greeting. Inuyasha's ears slicked back in annoyance.

"Damn it, Sessh, I'm doing everything I can to try to help you and you're being so fucking difficult..."

Sesshoumaru's response was robotic, flat, and automatic. "Then stop. I did not ask for your help."

Inuyasha growled. "Sorry, can't do that. I'm not into abandoning my family when they need me. Whether or not they want to admit it.""So we're close family now...""Fuck...Sesshoumaru, I am TRYING. I set aside all my anger at you...and fuck, you better believe I had plenty of it. And I'm starting to realize that a lot of it was...I dunno. You never really hated me, did you?""I did."

Inuyasha blinked and then narrowed his eyes.

"I blamed you for my Lord Father's death. I hated you for having human blood. For tainting the family line with human weakness and shaming our House. For these things, I did hate you. I learned you were not weak, and I learned to accept that you are not responsible for my Lord Father's death. I released my hatred. This Sesshoumaru learns from his mistakes."

"So...you want to try a real like...brother relationship?"Sesshoumaru sat up slowly, emotionless eyes flicking to his brother. "I do not know what you expect of me."

Inuyasha frowned - he didn't have much idea either, but he was damn well going to come up with something. "Y'know, brother stuff..."Sesshoumaru slowly raised one eyebrow, waiting for more of an explanation. Inuyasha scowled, flustered at being put on the spot. "Meh...come on. We're almost to the well. I warn ya, the place is gonna overwhelm you. It's loud, the smells are...confusing, at best...and just...different than anything you can imagine. There's all this...this...techomaloggy stuff everywhere. A lot of it has to be magic, but Kagome insists its not. And you have to at least TRY to not draw obvious attention. Hide the ears and whatnot."In response, Sesshoumaru yanked the tie from his hair and let it fall to its typical loose state, his ears vanishing behind a curtain of silver.

"Keh. You got it easy, I have to wear a stupid hat. Although I don't have stripes to worry about...but you wouldn't be the first tattooed human I'd seen." Inuyasha grumbled a bit and got up before offering Sesshoumaru his hand to help him up too. Sesshoumaru eyed his hand contemplatively for a minute before accepting it.

o-o-o-o-o-o-o-o-o-o

Sesshoumaru stopped next to the well and gave Inuyasha a very serious look, speaking for the first time since they'd set off that morning. The silence hadn't been terribly uncomfortable or oppressive - neither of them had anything to say and Sesshoumaru, even before the incident, had never been much of an idle conversationalist. "Inuyasha.""Yeah?""I...I meant it. I do not want to see Rin.""You mean you don't want her to see you."

Sesshoumaru favored his brother with a brief glare. Inuyasha sighed. "You know how much she'd like to see you, though. Shit, Sessh, that girl worships the ground you walk on. She'd crawl through a mile of broken glass to lick the feet of the last person lucky enough to touch you."

Sesshoumaru's pain was evident and he clenched his fists tightly. His voice was terse and strained. "And that is exactly why she cannot see me like this. I do not...want to be anything less."

Inuyasha sighed - his brother just didn't understand. "Sessh, the kid loves you. Love doesn't work that way. It's not all about looking good or the show you can put on.""She's hardly a child now," Sesshoumaru muttered. Inuyasha blinked, then stared at his brother in dawning comprehension.

"Heyyy... I'm starting to get the impression...you love her, don't you?""If you wish to keep your tongue, you should cease its ignorant wagging, hanyou."

Inuyasha grinned ear to ear. "Well well...who woulda thought. And you're right, she's borderline adult. I've seen plenty of girls her age already married off and whatnot. I..." Inuyasha stopped dead before looking at his brother with wide eyes. "I saw that mark you gave her! Does that mean you two...er...""It will be most difficult to have a proper brotherly relationship if I kill you, Inuyasha. In answer to your question, no. I have not mated with the girl. I claimed her as my own to offer her some protection from other youkai in the absence of my presence."

"So you're going to take her as your mate someday?"Sesshoumaru growled low in his throat. "This conversation ends now."

Inuyasha smirked, almost twitching from the desire to continue prodding his brother about it. "Alright, fine. But are you sure you don't want to see her? Last time I saw her she was hugging that fluffy thing of y--""Mokomoko-sama."Inuyasha blinked slowly, then blinked again. "Er. Yeah. That thing...she was hugging it like it was the only thing keeping her floating in the middle of the ocean. She's been devastated since you were gone." Inuyasha looked at the floor, somewhat guilty. "She...spent every night sneaking out of her room and just staring at your bedroom door. She was waiting. She was th...she was the only one that didn't believe you were dead. I...we felt so bad because she was so...I dunno...so bad off, I agreed to look into things and figure out what killed you or if you were still alive."

Sesshoumaru paused, a frown etching his features. He closed his eyes and sighed, his heart twisting at the unintentional grief he had caused the little human that meant too much to him. "Fine. I will...see her."

Inuyasha grinned. "Good. She'd be crushed to find out you were there and didn't say hi, y'know. We...we tried not to tell her...anything about...well. Anything. She knows you were...hurt, but thats about it."Sesshoumaru nodded. "Let us go. I am eager to get rid of this damnable thing." He flicked the collar in annoyance.

"Alright, hang on to me," Inuyasha said with a grin before hopping into the well.

Sesshoumaru's eyes widened significantly almost as soon as they reached the other side of the well. Inuyasha hadn't lied about the smells being overpowering and confusing, that was for sure! Inuyasha gave him a long glance. "Um...you'll have to leave your swords here." He had to speak hastily to counter the dire glare sent his way. "Look, Sessh, that kinda thing...er...they don't allow people to walk around armed in this time. No one comes here, anyways. I promise you they'll be safe."

With extreme reluctance, the taiyoukai unfastened his sword belt and hid it amidst some of the boxes being stored nearby. "Fine. Can we go?"Inuyasha grinned as he tugged on the hat he left here. "Sure...I should show you this thing Kagome calls a 'bus' but I don't have any money.""This Sesshoumaru has plenty. So do you. A large trust in your name is within our family's treasury.""Eh, humans don't take gold."Sesshoumaru looked at him as if he had said fish didn't swim in the water anymore. "...""They have mostly paper with all sorts of colorful pictures on it that represents gold that they got in some hidden treasury."

Sesshoumaru scowled. "That's ridiculous. They accept paper that represents gold they do not actually possess, but will not take actual gold in trade?"

"Heh. Your gold is worth a whole lot more than their paper. Gold is worth plenty, but you'd have to sell it for their paper-gold stuff. And it'd take more time than its worth. Kagome's place isn't far."

Whatever Sesshoumaru was expecting, it was not anything like the city that greeted his eyes. He stared in shock at everything, trying to take in all the sights and sounds. His hands twitched reflexively near his where his sword should be - too many things looked as though they could be a potential threat. Lights and colors flashed everywhere. Buildings shot up into the sky. The ground was mostly covered with some sort of odd stone. Smells, ranging from sickeningly sweet to downright disgusting and almost all unidentifiable assaulted his sensitive nose.

Inuyasha delighted in his brother's culture-shock for a moment, understanding completely what he was going through. It hadn't been any easier for him to get used to. However, some of the passers-by on the sidewalk were starting to take an interest in his brother.

Inuyasha really couldn't blame the girls for staring. Even when he wasn't wearing his more fancy clothing, his brother was still gorgeous, all lean lines and slender angles. His hair was of course immaculate again after it had been properly tended to. The only thing taking away from his pristine beauty was the not-so-pretty rubber-wrapped collar at his throat.

Sesshoumaru's eyes abruptly flicked to the girls that had begun gathering nearby and were whispering to each other and looking at him. They giggled at being noticed and the tone of their whispers became more excited. Sesshoumaru glanced at his brother. "What is wrong with those humans? Is it so readily apparent that I am youkai?"

Inuyasha smirked. "Nah, the just think you're hot."

"Why would they assume such a thing? It is not that warm."The hanyou smirked - he had picked up more than a few colloquialisms from Kagome in their time together. "Not like overheated. I mean like...good-looking. Sexy. Desirable. Pounce-worthy."

Sesshoumaru's eyebrow hiked to his hairline as his brother spoke. "And you share this opinion?"

Inuyasha gaped like a landed fish, his face immediately flaming a bright red. He tried to speak several times but failed. It took a while for him to actually force words out. "Wh...What?! I didn't s-say that...""So you do not find me attractive." Sesshoumaru frowned slightly.

"Shit, Sessh, you're gorgeous, alright? Entirely lust-worthy. Can we go now?"

The dark voice whispered in Sesshoumaru's mind that he was far from attractive...no one could want him. He was dirty, tainted, unclean...used and subjugated. Claimed.

But despite the knotting in the pit of his stomach as he considered those dark words and believed them...he couldn't help but feel an odd little rush of amusement and interest at his brother's unintentional admission. In some weird, minor way...it made him feel better.

Inuyasha noted the conflicting series of emotions rapid-firing through his brother's eyes. He was pleased to note that, while the despair was still evident, for a moment at least it had lifted and the tiniest of smirks had graced his lips. // Better than nothing, I suppose. // Before he could contemplate the unexpected turn their conversation had - or think too much about what he had said - he snatched Sesshoumaru's hand and headed off towards Kagome's apartment.