InuYasha Fan Fiction ❯ Pride (In the Name of Love) ❯ Chapter 55

Pride (In the Name of Love) 55 / ??
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!
Questions or Comments? - Email me at megami_no_remon@hotmail.com
Update List - If you wish for new chapters of this story to be e-mailed to you directly, please send me an email and I'll add you to my update list! Chapters will be mailed as soon as they're ready to go! If you are on my update list, I still appreciate reviews at any of the usual sites I post to!

// blah // indicates thoughts.

A/N - For those that were confused about Shippo's discussion with Rin - he does not have any idea that the potion he accidently broke was put into play and is still just plotting what to do with his one vial.

On another note, I got a review yesterday on mediaminer that said "OMG WTF IS WRONG WITH YOU!?" And proceeded to tell me that I desperately needed to see a shrink. My grammar, readability, overall enjoyment, and whatever else one can rate were all rated at 1/10. Made me giggle. A lot. Even if one does not like my story and DOES grasp my insanity...*huffs*... my spelling and grammar are NOT that bad. Hmph. XD It really did make me laugh though. Anyway, on with the insanity for all those that do not suffer from it but enjoy every moment as I do.
------------------------------------------------------------------- --------------------

Sesshoumaru couldn't bring himself to move for a long moment as he stared at the woman he was half tangled up with. His senses confounded him. Excepting the slight undertones that differentiated between male and female, the woman had the same scent as his father...and she looked as though she could be his twin. She was tall and graceful, with the same long silvery hair, the same markings on her face and body, the same twin mokomokos dangling behind her......

Sesshoumaru didn't know if he should avert his eyes or not. The woman was only wearing a loose pair of pants that seemed entirely too big on her. Had his father been rendered female, this was precisely what he would have imagined.

Except his father was very much NOT female, he knew that for a fact. That didn't change the fact that he woke up with a half-naked woman in his father's image snuggled up to his chest with a long leg threaded between his own. Although he hadn't made it here to bed on his own...in fact, this was his first time being conscious since Sairex had put him down to operate.

Sesshoumaru put the mystery of his bedmate on hold for just a moment as he yanked off his bandage and looked at his skin. All traces of the horrible bite-scar were gone, simply healing flesh that had been taken out in a neat, surgical line. The raven did have his uses...

The inu's eyes snapped back as the woman's eyelashes fluttered open. Golden eyes...his father's eyes. Sesshoumaru just stared helplessly. The woman's head cocked slightly to one side as she took in his earth-shattering confusion and helpless look, and the fact that his fingers were rigid and ready to strike if the need arose. "My Sesshoumaru? What..." She stopped abruptly, raising a hand to her throat.

Sesshoumaru couldn't believe it, but he had to ask. "My...my Lord Father...?"

"Of course. What..." Slowly golden eyes traveled down and flew impossibly wide as Toga scrambled to sit up, gawking at his...her...body. "What in all the hells?!" Frantically she poked and prodded bits of herself as if to deny their reality, not caring that some of it was more than a little inappropriate fondling. She cast a rather panicked look to Sesshoumaru.

"I don't know. When I woke, you were like this..."

"What...what sort of trickery is this?!"

Noting her expression and horrified for an instant that she might cry, Sesshoumaru hesitantly reached for her in a futile effort to console her. He had no answers for her, only just as many questions.

The door abruptly flew open. Inuyasha came in, looking somewhat agitated. "Hey, you guys need to ...oh, shit, I'm sorry...!" Inuyasha did a double-take mostly at the woman his brother was half-embracing. "S...Sessh, don't you think our father will be a little upset with you for having a woman in his bed?"

The hanyou yelped as he was hit in the back of the head with one of Toga's boots. He turned around and blinked, noting the female glaring at him. "Hey, what the hell..."

"This is my bed, damn it. I AM your father!"

Inuyasha REALLY hated to point out the obvious. "Um...but...."

"I don't know. That is what we were trying to figure out. What troubled you enough to come flying in here, though, pup?" Toga slowly rubbed her temples. Oh, she could feel a headache coming on alright.

"The...the guests are starting to arrive already and I'm not sure what to do with them."

"Guests?..." Toga asked.

Sesshoumaru groaned. "Oh, hells...the ball...I scheduled it for today. To announce your return as Lord of the West..."

"I can't be seen like this! Inuyasha, send them away!"

Sesshoumaru frowned. "Disregard that, Inuyasha." Toga looked at him in surprise. Inuyasha was nearly as shocked. Sesshoumaru, denying their father? Flat out disobeying him...er...her... at the same time? "If you send them away after we have told them we can prove a preposterous claim, that my Lord Father is indeed returned from the dead...and we not only fail to produce proof of such an outrageous thing and, indeed, simply send them away..."

Toga sighed. "Forgive me. You're right...but I cannot be seen thus. Send Sairex in."

"I'll tell em you got called away on some temporary business, and they're welcome to stay until your return. As for Sairex, he left with Miroku this morning and won't be back until tonight. Maybe tomorrow."

Toga scowled. "Of course...damn it all, what sort of attack is THIS?" She gestured frustratedly at her body.

"A brilliant one," Sesshoumaru murmured when Inuyasha left. "You are not incapacitated, but your credibility is destroyed - and without fighting you, which is a feat none will willingly perform. But should you still make the attempt to rule, your ideas and ideals may well be changed due to your...er...changes. You will be flustered and confused for sure, and angry...and may make poor decisions, thus leaving some angry rival with a crack in the armor of our House."

Toga scowled darkly. "Just because I'm a woman I have to be moody?"

"Are you not?"

"I have damn good reason to be."

"I am sure we can figure out a way to deal with this. Until we do, I shall remain with you." Sesshoumaru calmly walked over and locked the door before returning to bed.

"Your scar is healing nicely." Toga noted with a smile. "And what is it you intend to do all day? We cannot very well remain in bed."

Sesshoumaru shrugged. "Why not? It is one of the most secure locations in the castle, guarantees you will not be seen, and is a place we can wait in comfort for the raven to return that we might ask him of your state."

Toga smirked slightly. "I think you just want to take advantage of me now that I am female." Sesshoumaru blinked at the accusation, pausing midway back into his customary position in the bed.

"I would never do such a thing."

"Am I not attractive like this? You think I'm ugly." Sesshoumaru gaped in growing horror as he saw tears welling up in Toga's eyes and her lip quivering.

Toga couldn't help it. Hell, if she was going to be stuck like this for a while, she may as well make the best of things. Besides, Sesshoumaru WAS fun to tease, being as uptight as he usually was...

"Wh...no, I do not! You are a very attractive female! I simply would not take advantage of your current state."

"I am uninjured and in my right mind, despite the fact I have had a few physical changes. Relax, my Sesshoumaru. I am only playing. Although you do look terribly cute when you're all flustered."

"Are you sure you are in your right mind?" Sesshoumaru muttered, aware that he was blushing. There was that damned 'cute' word again. Toga merely chuckled and leaned against him.

"Alright, I'll quit teasing you."

Sesshoumaru paused, unaware of how to phrase his current problem. Nothing tactful came to mind, however, so he decided being blunt would work just fine. "If quitting teasing me is truly your intent...I suggest you put a shirt on prior to laying against me."

Toga blinked and looked down. The fact that females - and thus herself at present - had a rather bouncy frontside had really escaped her. It simply wasn't something she was used to having to worry about. "Ok. That particular aspect of my teasing truly was unintentional." Toga struggled against the sudden urge to poke, prod, and otherwise experiment with her current body.

A thought occurred to her then. "What if I am stuck like this?"

"Then you will be Lady of the West instead and they will learn to fear you anew in short order." Sesshoumaru's tone was matter-of-fact and his eyes were tactfully averted to staring at a spot on the ceiling. Toga chuckled and simply pulled up the sheet before yawning and stretching out against Sesshoumaru again. Just because she was stuck in this body did not mean she was going to change all her habits...and Toga rather enjoyed snuggling.

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

"Are you sure we should be doing this? Rin does not know if Lord Sesshoumaru would approve..."

Shippo grinned and began digging curiously through the large leather bag on the shelf. "Eh, don't worry so much, Rin. It will be fine. Wow, I bet we could make some really cool stuff...."

Rin eyed all the various unidentifiable powders and liquids Shippo was pulling out of Sairex's bag. "Rin really does not think this is such a good idea...what are these things?"

"Oh, smushed up flowers, mostly, I'm sure."

Rin frowned. Flowers were pretty, not meant to be smushed up!

"Ooh, look at this!" Shippo pulled out a small leather-bound book and flipped it open. He stared at it a while, flipping pages. He then turned the book sideways...then upside down.

"What is it?""Er....I'm not sure."

"What does it say?""That's why I'm not sure." Shippo handed over the book. It was written in Sairex's neat, spidery hand...and all of it with unfamiliar symbols and script.

"Oh. Rin can not read this."

"Me either. Never saw writing like that before."

"It's probably a recipe book." Rin smiled, picking up a container and pointing to the label, which matched a line on the page. "See? These match."

Shippo's eyes lit up. "That's great! We can just match up the symbols then and make some really cool potions!" He rubbed his hands together gleefully. Rin blinked.

"But we do not know what they will do."

Shippo realized he was about to lose his partner in crime. He smiled slyly. "What if you made Sesshoumaru a really awesome potion that made him stronger?""Sesshoumaru-sama always says he needs nothing he does not already have to be strong. He would never even use those jewel shards.""What if you made him a potion of....er....happiness then?"

Rin blinked. "How will we know if it's a potion of happiness?" That DID sound rather nice...

Got her. "We can test it, of course!" He said with a grin. "I'm sure you can pick out a good one."

The two flipped through the book until they decided on a recipe with only a handful of ingredients. Rin was surprisingly adept at picking the correct vials from the pile, and Shippo was soon mixing, stirring, and squishing things together.