InuYasha Fan Fiction ❯ Pride (In the Name of Love) ❯ Chapter 21

Pride (In the Name of Love) 21 / ??
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.
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// blah // indicates thoughts.

A/N - Mm...This one probably could have been a little longer but....I figured the...'added bonus' that's buried in here would make up for it.
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Miroku couldn't sleep. It was the middle of the night, but he was too worried. Inuyasha and Sesshoumaru may have considered the quirky raven demon as a friend, but they hadn't walked around in the same skin as him. After tossing and turning for a long while, he finally dug out the feather Sairex had left with him and concentrated on the bird.

The response was a long time in coming, and when it finally did, it was bone-deep weary. // Vhat can you possibly need me for at dis hour...? // There was no anger or ire in the raven's tone, simply exhaustion.

// Nothing...// Miroku thought back with a slight frown. // I was just...concerned for you. //

The raven's mental voice softened. // Kaa... you humans and your zentimental natures... I cannot zay I am fine and unharmed, but I can zay it's noting zerious. Noting dat von't heal. Just flesh vounds. In all honesty, Zetsukosei...for all his rage at me...is too afraid of hurting me, damaging me beyond repair. If he breaks me, he loses my power. At least, dat's my theory. Does Inuyazha or Zezzhoumaru know da truth of it yet? //

// No. I haven't told them. //

// Good. Please do not. //

// Inuyasha will be PISSED when he finds out, and I don't say that lightly. I can't imagine Sesshoumaru will be too thrilled either. If they knew, they'd be beating down this demon beast's door trying to get you out. //

// And all dat haste and lack of planning vould quite possibly be deir undoing. I'd rather dey plan dis out right and vin den have dem rush in blindly. From vat I have zeen, Inuyazha is not much given to lengthy plans and rather does tings...on da zpur of da moment. //

// Oh, you've got him pegged pretty good. Sesshoumaru's pretty well the opposite though, from what I've learned. He plans things out with meticulous detail. You should see his paperwork...I thought I was well organized... //

// Vell, hopefully da two of dem vork together on dis instead of fighting over vhich vay is right... //

// Mrr... yeah. I suppose I'll intercede and try and mediate that as best as I can. The chances of them bringing me are slim...Inuyasha is still convinced that, for all my training and years of practicing, I'm still in dire need of protection and cannot take care of myself. It's cute, his concern, but it does get oppressive at times. //

// Vell, I'll have to agree vith him on dis one. Not in general, but...you have noting to fight zomething like Zetsukosei vith. Maybe vhen I am done training you. //

Miroku couldn't help but grin. // Eh, what makes you think I need so much training?...I'm not too bad. I almost fought you off the first time you tried to take possession of me. //

// Kaaa, dat one hurt me. But I vas trying not to hurt YOU, or it vould have been easy. You have lots of potential, Miroku. You are good, zurprisingly zo, but I can make you great. I can teach you tings lost...long ago. //

// How long ago? You must be a pretty old bird, if you claim to have known the Inu no Taisho and such... //

// Yes...I am. Plenty of time to learn a trick or two. But I vill have to talk to you another time...Zetsukosei is coming back for another round... // Miroku could almost hear the raven rolling his eyes, more annoyed than worried at the prospect of being tortured. // I do hope to zee you zoon, Miroku. It vill be nice to meet you in person. //

// Same to you. Take care, and I'll make sure those two come for you soon. //

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

Inuyasha had a brief moment of panic when he woke up. Sesshoumaru was not in his room - indeed, it looked as if he had not been there for a while and his scent was a few hours old. The hanyou heaved a tremendous sigh of relief when he found Sesshoumaru in his study scowling darkly at a stack of scrolls.

"Jeez, Sessh, you should warn a guy before you just up and vanish."

"Hn. You claim to be running this place and yet you are this far behind in dealing with important documents? And what sort of filing system is this?""I haven't touched the paperwork, how the hell should I know?"Sesshoumaru stared at his brother in something approaching horror. "Then...you can't tell me you've done NONE of it...?""Meh... I can't read all that well, let alone write. Miroku's been taking care of things."

Sesshoumaru looked more than a little disconcerted. "You've let...a human...deal with the politics of a demon kingdom...."

Inuyasha thought about it and then grinned sheepishly. "Erm...yes?"

"...Our Lord Father must be rolling over in his grave at this atrocity..." Sesshoumaru slowly massaged his temples with his fingers, sitting at the desk.

"To be honest, I don't know how the hell you did all this on your own, Sesshoumaru. Patrols, meetings, paperwork, court functions...and you still had time to drop in to spy on me or cause trouble or whatever the fuck it is you do..."

Sesshoumaru lifted his head to gaze flatly at his brother. "Inuyasha. I was born here and raised practically from birth to assume this position.""Yeah? Well...I wasn't. So you should take your damn job back. No one can do it better than you. Or near as good as you."

Sesshoumaru flinched. "I cannot."

"Sessh..."The taiyoukai growled. "Inuyasha, my own feelings on the matter aside...only an alpha demon is fit to run these lands and I have been VERY clearly branded as a beta. Even if it is not true...perception is something that matters a great deal in the political game. If a leader is PERCEIVED as weak in any fashion, then they are tried, and they are tested, and sometimes simply being thus perceived leads to actual weakness, or the discovery of one."

Inuyasha frowned. "So hide the scar and do what you were born to do. Shit, the old man didn't want ME running this joint with a human as my secretary."

Sesshoumaru scowled darkly. "Have some respect for your sire in these walls, Inuyasha. I will not brook any insults against him."

"Keh. I wasn't being disrespectful, just...sayin'. And anyways, I thought you got over your whole anti-human thing. What's it matter if Miroku helps me with the paperwork if you aren't gonna do it? You don't have a whole lot of room to talk when you're sweet on a human yourself. Everything you blamed our father for in regards to humans you're a hair from repeating!"

Sesshoumaru growled dangerously, and Inuyasha sensed he had just stepped over a line. Well, perhaps it was more of a giant diving leap over said line, judging from his brother's reaction. // Yep... // he thought as he attempted to scramble backwards as Sesshoumaru flew over the desk at him. // Definitely went too far there. //

Inuyasha hit the ground hard, landing flat on his back as he was tackled. The breath left him in a whoosh, and he was rather alarmed at the pained but enraged look on his brother's face. // How the fuck was I supposed to know it was such a sensitive issue?! // "Dammit, Sessh! Get off of me!"Sesshoumaru wished fervently he had his claws - gouging Inuyasha in his rage would have been SO much more satisfying! How DARE he bring up THAT, of all things...it was so hard for the taiyoukai to attempt to accept himself. He had tried to put the issue down, hide it under the rug, and forget about it so he wouldn't have to think about it...only to have his brother dig it up and throw it in his damn face!

// Bastard might not have claws, but I'm going to fucking bruise! // "Let me go, you ass!" Inuyasha attempted to rake Sesshoumaru with his own claws, but his wrists were caught. The hanyou thrashed madly and managed to get his leg braced on the floor enough to flip Sesshoumaru to his back. Then it was his turn to hang on.

Inuyasha's anger dissipated when he got enough of a chance to take a good look at his brother's face. Tears gleamed in anguished golden eyes and his snarl had a broken edge to it. "Sessh...?"Sesshoumaru allowed the fight to drift out of him and instead concentrated to try and pull his emotionless mask back on but it was too late and he knew it. His snarl turned into a low whine. "I...l-let me go."

"Sessh, I'm sorry...I didn't...."

"You wouldn't. The last thing I ever said to my Lord Father before he died was to scathingly insult him for his human lover and worse, his hanyou pup... I didn't...I didn't understand... He died thinking I despised him!"

Inuyasha was silent for a time before he finally started speaking slowly. "Everyone keeps telling me how wise and great our father was.""He was," Sesshoumaru hissed, misinterpreting Inuyasha's words for another insult.

"Sessh, if he was as smart as everyone says he was...then I know he must have known you pretty good and would understand that you were just mad. And that you didn't agree with him. I'm sure he was wise enough to understand that what you said in a fit of anger...you didn't mean. I'm sure he knew how much you loved him. He knew you didn't hate him."Sesshoumaru went very still and very quiet, his eyes widening slightly as he looked at Inuyasha. He quietly digested what his brother had said, and it was a long time before he spoke. His voice was soft, in a way Inuyasha had never heard before - soft and painfully vulnerable. "Do you...really think that?...

"Course. People get pissed and say things they don't mean all the time. Hell, I've said all sorts of things I didn't mean to you."

The taiyoukai was quiet for a long moment. Inuyasha released his wrists, deciding that their little fight was over. So it was with a good deal of surprise and a yelp that he found himself flipped abruptly back over and pinned down. Sesshoumaru was giving him a very intent look. "You didn't mean the things you have said to me...so how is it you DO feel for me?"

Inuyasha swallowed, suddenly feeling a lot more tense under his brother's guarded scrutiny. "Well...we haven't had a long time to have a relationship develop yet...but I'm learning to know you well enough that I could like you. You aren't...like you always pretend to be. I..." Inuyasha trailed off. Sesshoumaru leaned in slightly, his words almost inaudible, his voice carrying a slight hint of a tremor as his haunted gold eyes slid shut.

"And...you can care for me..despite what I have become? Despite the fact that this Sesshoumaru is...broken and used?"

Inuyasha frowned and reached up hesitantly to brush his fingers over Sesshoumaru's cheek, startling the taiyoukai into opening his eyes. "You aren't broken...and if you are, I'll do whatever it takes to fix you. I'm not going to leave you here like this and I won't let you drive me away. No one deserves to be alone...and you have been as much as I have most of my life."

Inuyasha wasn't sure what sort of reaction he actually expected. But whatever his expectations were, he wasn't prepared for the reality of what DID occur. Sesshoumaru leaned forward, capturing Inuyasha's gaze with his own, hesitating only when he was a hairsbreadth away, close enough to draw a shiver from the hanyou. His voice was a throaty whisper. "Thank you..."

Inuyasha gasped when Sesshoumaru actually made contact, unconsciously stealing the breath from his brother's lungs. His eyes were wide as his mind tried to process that he was being kissed. By his brother. By SESSHOUMARU.

His initial reaction was to jerk away out of panic, but he was able to restrain that. He was shocked to instead find himself hesitantly responding to the gentle pressure. Something in the back of his mind whispered to him that if he HAD pulled away, irrevocable damage would have been done to his brother's already fragile psyche. He could feel the nervous uncertainty and hesitation - Sesshoumaru was EXPECTING to be pushed away.

Inuyasha's body seemed to be moving of its own accord, contrary to the whirling thoughts of his mind. His arms slowly curled around the taiyoukai and he leaned up to increase the pressure of this slow, sweet, and strangely gentle kiss. All the while, his brain was running in crazed, rabid circles.

The thought of his brother having anything to do with another male - especially HIM - was surprising. He had assumed Sesshoumaru was in love with Rin. Further, he knew how his brother had always talked of having an heir - and it wasn't like he didn't have his choice of any demoness in all the lands...

Inuyasha's thoughts were stolen as Sesshoumaru's tongue flickered teasingly across his lips. A low moan tore free of his throat and he gave himself over to it, mentally telling himself to shut up and stop over-analyzing.

Sesshoumaru suddenly yanked back as if Inuyasha had caught fire, the noise startling him. He stared at Inuyasha in disbelief before scrambling to his feet. His look was frozen between panic and horror. The taiyoukai mumbled something - probably some sort of explanation or apology - before practically running from the room. Inuyasha was left on his back, propping himself up on his elbows and blinking, his mind in a daze as he tried to figure out what the hell had just happened.