InuYasha Fan Fiction ❯ Pride (In the Name of Love) ❯ Chapter 41

Pride (In the Name of Love) 41 / ??
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 - The bad guy has been revealed! Bwahahaha...two points to anyone that saw it coming.
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The search proved to be long and fruitless. After scouring three different mountains - and pausing for the brief trip when Sesshoumaru had to go back to the castle to retrieve some warmer clothing for the humans, which he did with minimal grumbling - their search was still proving fruitless. Miroku looked sorely disheartened. Sesshoumaru found himself feeling bad for the monk, even if he didn't let it show. He decided it was time to try emergency methods.

"Rin."

"Yes, Sesshoumaru-sama?" the girl asked with a smile.

"We must find these flowers. Tell me, which mountain do you suppose is the best place for them to be located on?"

Rin squinted off into the distance as if studying each of the visible peaks. She finally pointed at one in the distance. "That one."

Miroku shrugged - one was as good as another to him. He closed his eyes and prepared for the gut-wrenching teleportation. Each one left him feeling more and more ill.

The new mountaintop looked to be much the same as the last three, save for a small frozen spring hidden amidst the crags. The surface was frozen, but Miroku knew the water underneath must be flowing still. A few trees actually clung to life - this particular peak was at a lower elevation than the others. Sesshoumaru simply sat back, smirking triumphantly. Miroku paused next to him before taking up the search again. "Why so smug? We haven't found anything yet...""Rin will find them."

Miroku sighed and picked a direction to trudge off in. He was beginning to think that maybe Sairex was right and the flowers had indeed gone extinct over the years. So it was with a good measure of surprise and a huge burst of hope that just reeked of threatening disappointment that he heard Rin's joyful singing.

"I found them! I found them!" Like some sort of strange floral bloodhound, against all odds, the girl had indeed located them. The tall silvery-white vine was camoflauged well against the snow. It snaked all around the base of a tree and up it's length. Clear, narrow thorns that looked almost like icicles and ranged in length from a quarter inch to four studded the length of the vine. Beautiful four-petaled blooms grew along the vine's length as well, white and delicately traced with an icy blue pattern.

Miroku stared, dumbfounded. Sesshoumaru looked at him, genuinely amused. "You have not been the subject of Rin's floral escapades over the past several years as this Sesshoumaru has. I could not get the smell off my skin. She would find them in barren wastelands." Miroku simply chuckled helplessly.

Sesshoumaru nodded to Rin. "Thank you, you have done well." He then walked over to the vine and examined it before grabbing hold of a section.
Instantly, the vine came to life in his hands, lashing around him and stabbing thorns at him. The startled taiyoukai growled and leapt back, yanking with tremendous force and slashing at the bloodthirsty plant with his claws. The vine writhed and recoiled, squirming about in vegetable agony. Sesshoumaru growled and gave Miroku an accusatory look as he started plucking dagger-like thorns out of his forearm.

"Hey, I knew it was carnivorous but not that it was so...er...lively." Miroku hesitantly prodded the several-foot length at Sesshoumaru's feet. When it didn't move, he bent down to pick it up. "Think this is enough?"

Sesshoumaru didn't answer - he stalked back towards the plant with murder in his eyes.

"Oh dear." Miroku sighed.

Sesshoumaru stalked around the base of the tree until he found the thickest part of the vines, where they dug into the ground. Rather than yank out his sword and begin wreaking veggie vengeance, however, the taiyoukai ducked in close, neatly dodging vines that lashed at him abruptly. As the vines struggled to break free of snow and ice, untangle the little creeping tendrils that had held them so still in place for so long, Sesshoumaru grabbed the base of the massive plant and pulled with all his strength.

Miroku blinked as the plant was slowly pulled out of the ground, trailing thick white roots. Several had broken, but there were many intact. Sesshoumaru yanked the rest of the plant free of the tree, using a few of the smaller vines to bind the mess into a mostly immobile, sizeable bundle. "I ... I didn't think we needed quite that many..."

"This Sesshoumaru is taking up gardening upon our return."

"What?!"

"It will provide excellent protection along the outer walls if it survives. If not, it dies for daring to stab me."

Miroku couldn't help but grin, and Rin was all smiles at the concept of her Lord taking an interest in planting flowers - even if they WERE bloodthirsty carnivorous vines. Right now, however, he couldn't care less what Sesshoumaru wanted to do with the remainder of the plant. He had what he needed to help Sairex, and that was all that mattered.

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

"Lord Inuyasha, the guest you required sent for has arrived."

"Good, send 'em in."

The attendant bowed and scurried off. A moment later, the doors were thrown open.

"Well, I see castle life hasn't changed you a bit. You're as ugly as ever, mutt-face."

Inuyasha wrinkled his nose and stalked towards his visitor. "And you smell as foul as ever, wolf. Ugh."

Kouga grinned widely and clapped Inuyasha on the shoulder. "So you're a big fancy lordling now, huh? Why the hell did you send for me? And my pack, no less? I'm not draggin' em all the way here for no reason."

Inuyasha beckoned for the wolf prince to follow them. While the two of them still regularly insulted each other, they had become friends over the years. They had gotten closer after Kagome's departure, both admitting that their protectiveness of the priestess was the real reason they fought, not really so much a personal dislike of each other.

Inuyasha led Kouga to the dining hall and told the attendants to bring some food - a decision the wolf prince heartily agreed with. "So yeah, mutt...what's this all about?"

Inuyasha fidgeted before trying his best to look diplomatic, to adopt the casual and smooth expression his father and his brother both so easily wore when dealing with business matters. Kouga snorted and then burst out laughing, drawing a deep scowl from the hanyou.

"Meh, stupid wolf..."

"I'm not the one that looks like I just sat on an anthill!"

"Bah, I hate this political bullshit. I'll be straight with you. It's impossible to get good help around here. The castle guard all suck. We've been attacked several times and not one of them noticed a single one. Our chief advisor is laid up, my father's a mess, S--""Maybe the political bullshit is eating your brain, dog-breath. Your father's dead, has been all your life...remember?" To his credit, Kouga attempted a gentle tone when breaking that news.

"Long story, believe me, but our chief advisor is this crazy raven youkai with all sorts of magic and shit. Him and my monk friend did some sort of ritual thing with my brother's sword and they brought him back from the dead."

"No shit?"

"Yeah. Anyway, the castle guard sucks and I can't trust any of them. So I wanted to ask you if you'd replace em, you and your pack. In return, you get food, shelter, and paid."

Kouga frowned, thinking about it. It certainly was an opportunity to get out of the caves his clan lived in...not that they really minded the caves. Living so 'civilized' would be incredibly strange for all of them...but they wouldn't have to deal with random predators, bouts of starvation or poor weather. "Wait a second...this means I'd be under you, doesn't it?"Inuyasha smiled demurely. "I don't recall you complaining last time you were under me."

Kouga flushed, his tail bristling. "Don't be an ass, you know what I meant."

Inuyasha chuckled. "Yeah, you would..but only for a couple weeks. Then the old man is takin' back over. But he'll stick by my decision, he's not fond of anyone workin' on the staff right now since they're all new and the guards have been fucking useless. So you'd be serving under him. Directly."

Kouga grinned. "Got it. I suppose this place COULD use some demons of REAL character with nothing but you mutts and some worthless servants around..."

"Oh, spare me...the stench of wolf is barely worth the benefit of having you watching our walls. I'm probably half mad to even consider it."

The wolf prince snickered, then squinted. "Hey, wait a second...what about your brother? What's he got to say in all this?""Er....Sessh...doesn't contradict my decisions and doesn't outrank the old man, lets just leave it at that. I really can't say much."

"I got ya. Well, mutt, you have yourself a deal. Consider us hired."

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

Sesshoumaru smirked as he finally finished planting his new 'flower' just outside the eastern wall of the palace. He rather hoped it would survive but wouldn't be too sad if it didn't. Still rather amused, he headed into the palace towards his room.

The scent of blood - his FATHER'S blood - hit him like a physical blow and he stared at the servants working to scrub the mess from his floors. He grabbed one by the throat and hoisted the unfortunate demon off the floor, growling dangerously. His worry was almost tangible. "What happened here?! Where is my Lord Father?!"

The servant somehow managed to choke out that he had been brought to the healer's quarters. Sesshoumaru dropped the man and almost ran down the hall. He threw open the door to the healer's chamber so forcefully he nearly tore it off its hinges. The healer squawked in surprise and almost fell over.

Sesshoumaru ignored him, hurrying to the bedside. He sucked in a sharp breath at the sight of his father's wounds. The healer narrowed his eyes at Sesshoumaru but kept his tone respectful. "He was injured fairly deeply, but will recover with no lasting ill effects. He is already much healed."

"If he is healing on his own, then what are you doing?" Sesshoumaru's tone had dropped from angry and worried to a more level tone, his question more out of curiosity than anything.

"I am cleaning his wounds. There is some sort of...black film in them preventing them from closing on their own. The ones I have cleaned are already starting to heal on their own."

"And you are sure he is out of danger?"

"Unless something has occurred that I do not know of? Yes.""Leave us. I will tend to him."

The healer's eyes widened marginally but he nodded and took his leave of the room. Sesshoumaru eyed his father's prone form for a moment, biting back the whine that formed unbidden in his throat. Even though he knew he was going to be alright, seeing him so cut up and pale just didn't sit well with Sesshoumaru.

After taking off his armor and his haori so the long sleeves wouldn't get in the way, he set to the process of cleaning the wounds the healer hadn't gotten to yet. He hesitated, unsure of how hard to press to do the job sufficiently without hurting him worse, but still getting them clean. A gentle swipe proved ineffective.

Sesshoumaru learned that he actually had to scrub fairly hard to get the caustic black substance out of the wounds, and that once he did so, they bled freely, but cleanly. It took longer and more work than he thought and he was a bloody mess by the time he was finished, but he found he felt better in an ironic sort of way.

He knew both him and his sire would benefit from a long bath in the hot springs, but he was tired and didn't want to leave. He knew he would probably regret it come morning, but he gave in to the urge to lay down. Sesshoumaru hesitantly curled up next to Toga's less injured side and shut his eyes. Sleep claimed him far more quickly than he would have imagined.

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

Miroku returned triumphant to his room. Sairex was sleeping, but Miroku was a little too excited to allow THAT to continue. "Sairex...wake up."

Sairex mumbled something low in his throat and curled his wing over his head in response. Miroku smirked and trailed his finger along the arch of said wing, causing the raven's body to stiffen slightly and his breath to hitch. However, much as Miroku liked the thought of teasing and caressing his lover awake, he regrettably did not want to delay his good news for the inevitable bout of loving that would result. // Maybe next time. // "Sairex..." he purred. Well, maybe he could have a LITTLE fun...

With a little maneuvering, Miroku managed to get the shielding wing out of his way, leaning in to nip at the raven's ear. Sairex let out a sleepy noise and the monk simply smirked, moving to trail his lips down the slender throat. His hands slowly slid down Sairex's sides in a gentle caress.

Miroku sighed inwardly. If he didn't stop this VERY soon, he knew he wouldn't have the willpower to. He settled in, determined to kiss his lover awake.

Eventually he got a conscious reaction from Sairex and paused to let his sleepy bird wake up and breathe a bit. "Well, good morning to you...or evening, I suppose. It's fairly late."

"Mm, you're back faster dan I expected."

"We found them."Sairex's eyes flew open at that - not that it did him any good, but despite being sightless his expressions still showed clearly in them. "You did? Really?""I wouldn't lie to you. Sesshoumaru brought the whole damn plant back and planted it outside the castle wall. I don't know if it'll live, though, considering it's warmer here."

"I...I didn't tink you'd ever find it." The raven broke into a wide grin. "Da rest is almost all easy, its just..preparation. Da only other difficult ting...I need da heart of a dragon youkai.""Er...I suppose I'll send one of the others for one in the morning then. I could go myself, but...I'm not fool enough to think that I can hold a candle to any of our inu friends in a demon battle."

"Dis is vonderful news. It may be difficult for me to describe how you'll have to prepare tings, but ve'll manage." Sairex's fingers hesitantly found Miroku's face, trailing lightly over his cheeks before grabbing him and pulling him down for a kiss. Miroku was more than happy to comply, his arms curling around his lover and pulling him close.

"I take it there is time for celebration then?" he murmured with a smile.

"After vaking me up like you did, it'd be cruel if ve didn't."

"Well, I would never want to be accused of cruelty!" Miroku said in mock horror before grinning and moving to make up for his 'torment' of the raven.