InuYasha Fan Fiction ❯ Pride (In the Name of Love) ❯ Chapter 120

Pride (In the Name of Love) 120 / ??
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
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// blah // indicates thoughts.

A/N - Haha! Sneaking a chapter in while the sneaking is good. I really SHOULD be hauling furniture but I....feel guilty not updating daily...and since my computer is still not unhooked...I'll make a little time to squeeze in an update. THIS one probably will be my last for a few days. The painter / builder guy gets here first thing tomorrow morning to start work, so unless I manage to hook my comp up somewhere else in the house...heh, unlikely that I could write in public...yeah. I should be back to normal by the end of the week though. (Course, I have to move everything BACK into my room too...ugh.) So consider this your farewell chappie instead. ((And yes, you can hate me know, it is going to end on a cliffhanger of sorts.))
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Tsetsukosei snorted as he blinked fully awake, puzzling over the rather curious scene before him. He had sensed...something...but couldn't pinpoint the slippery energy.

Upon looking up, he watched Sesshoumaru's mokomoko slide past his door along the floor, looking for all the world like some sort of strange, furry snake.

// What in all the hells...? // The dracolich got to his feet and headed towards the door, slowly poking his bony head out to observe the mokomoko. It had paused. The moment his head appeared in the doorway, however, the furry thing jumped in alarm and then shot off down the hallway.

Naraku cursed mentally as the dracolich bounded out of the doorway in pursuit. This mokomoko was proving very troublesome, far more so than the Tenseiga had.

Naraku had found the two items together, as luck would have it, in one of the underground storage rooms. Tsetsukosei either had not known their uses - unlikely, at least on the part of Tenseiga - or had not thought anyone would ever find this place and had thus not bothered to hide them or guard them in any real fashion.

Tenseiga had been easy enough to attune to his power, and soon Naraku was able to shapeshift and the sword would shift with him, just like his clothes and other items he carried. The kumo strapped the blade to his belt and proceeded to ignore it.

Sesshoumaru's mokomoko was a different matter altogether. It wasn't merely an object - it was a demon of sorts in it's own right. It wasn't exactly alive, but nor was it truly inanimate. Naraku scowled. The mokomoko was some sort of strange, parasitic, pseudo-lifeform, a manifestation of Sesshoumaru's demon-form and yet partially it's own entity as well. While Naraku wasn't really bothered by the fact that the odd furry thing was somewhat alive...the fact that it was a demon for his purposes meant he could not attune it to himself. No matter what he tried, if he attempted to force his power on the mokomoko, his body attempted to absorb it.

Absorbing the mokomoko would have assuredly been counterproductive to what he was trying to accomplish, especially since he wasn't really aware of how to UNabsorb things, or if he even could. That left no choice but to carry the thing out. He couldn't shapeshift it and haul it through the walls, as he had entered. Taking on his full-sized form would draw unwanted attention. The mokomoko was surprisingly lightweight, and so Naraku compromised with what he felt was his best option for avoiding immediate detection. He shrank himself down to a height of a mere handful of inches, grabbed hold of the furry length, and took off down the hall. He still possessed his full demonic strength and speed, even in his shrunken state, and so it was no trouble to buzz along the halls as he headed towards the exit, praying that nothing would notice the mokomoko seemingly moving of its own accord.

Much to his chagrin, Tsetsukosei himself had.

Naraku cursed again and ran full speed for a crack in the stone wall. The end of the mokomoko squeezed through just as Tsetsukosei reached the wall. Naraku felt like all the world like a mouse diving into a hole just ahead of a cat.

Tsetsukosei lowered his head, attempting to get one of his malevolent red eyes even with the crack in the stone. The dracolich was baffled, truly. Was this strange furry thing Sesshoumaru had been wearing actually alive? Why had it waited so long to move? What the HELL, seriously?...

Naraku huffed in annoyance. The only weapon he had that would work against the dracolich was the Tenseiga...and the kumo was the first to admit he was NOT a master of swordsmanship. He could hold his own against most...but somehow he doubted that that would be enough to take out this powerful undead fiend - and that was supposing he could even properly wield Tenseiga. As the beast wasn't truly alive, his miasma would be worthless. Despite inroads on his abilities that he had made thus far, Naraku still hadn't learned much in the way of combat or using his body for such a purpose. Any time he tried to focus on being properly ruthless, his head started to ache and he soon gave up.

So he was trapped, then. What to do?...What to do, indeed...

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

As hours turned into a couple of days, Sairex began to worry. The raven would be the first to admit he had no love for the kumo. However...Naraku literally wasn't capable of regaining any true sense of evil with his mind damaged. His amoral but relatively minor schemes were, while not always nice, generally harmless. The Naraku that had hurt his mate was as good as dead. THIS Naraku had actually been helpful, even if he had done it largely for selfish reasons. Or, at least, self-proclaimed selfish reasons...Sairex figured that half the time, they were simply covers. Couldn't be seen doing something nice, after all. While Sairex didn't actually LIKE Naraku now, he couldn't honestly bring himself to DISLIKE him either.

So when Naraku did not arrive, Sairex began to worry. This was not good. Something was wrong. // So what do I do?...I know how important that damn fluffy is. Toga told me about his own, before, and it only stands to reason Sesshoumaru's is just as fully important. That sword is incredible, too. And damn it all, I can't just abandon the kumo. But I really don't know if I would survive Tsetsukosei. I've some skill with a blade, but nowhere close to what I'd need to damage something as big and stout as him. I don't have the power, nor do I know what or where his phylactery is. And I fear this time he WOULD kill me. His anger at me outweighs my worth to him. //

Sairex scowled as he slipped into his humanoid form. Honestly, his mind had been made up before his mental argument.

He was not like his long-dead kin. The raven would not leave an ally behind.

With a grim look of determination, Sairex took to the sky towards Tsetsukosei's lair.

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

Life in the West was progressing at as normal a pace as any of them had ever seen. Miroku missed his mate dearly, but accepted his absence as necessary and went about his days in relative peace and quiet.

Aliana missed her father as well, but was largely distracted from worrying about it by playing with her new best friend Kouga. The two young demons both possessed seemingly limitless energy and bounded about the castle and its grounds, playing games with rules that baffled any of their adult onlookers.

Sesshoumaru was blissfully content and hadn't had any sort of relapses in the past few days, feeling safe and more or less protected in his Lord Father's presence. He made it a point to stay in said presence, and Toga was more than happy to have him near, enjoying Sesshoumaru's company.

Not to mention, of course, the fact that their relationship, renewed after so long apart, left the both of them with a burning desire to make up for lost time and soothe their long pent-up hormones....which they did at every given opportunity.

Both Toga and Sesshoumaru were in the study at the moment. Toga was making a genuine effort to deal with some of his paperwork, and Sesshoumaru was helping...although their conversation had begun a definite drift from business and was becoming more and more laden with innuendo and flirtation, starting to melt into outright seduction. Really, Toga knew that the main reason he was behind on any of the work, especially with Sesshoumaru's help, was the fact of just how many times the past few days had resulted in piles of scrolls being knocked off the desk and having to be resorted...things getting rumpled or torn and having to be rewritten...and just how much time had been spent using the study of late for things that were assuredly NOT business related.

Toga smirked as he idly fingered his quill pen, debating on whether or not he should give up this rapidly failing attempt at getting some work done and simply move on to ... other things. // Heh. I'm acting like a damned pup that just discovered sex myself. I have no excuse...I just can't help it. Three years was a long time and...well...he's so hard to resist, especially when he's so damn willing. //

This time, however, fate had decided they would not be accidentally destroying documents in the throes of passion, nor leaving unexplainable claw-marks in the walls or the rugs or the desk. Or breaking the chair again...Toga's back had hurt for the rest of the day after that one but he really couldn't say it hadn't been worth it.

Toga and Sesshoumaru both looked up at the sudden knock on the door. "Enter."

One of their personal attendants entered and bowed respectfully to them both. "My Lords." This attendant, Enriki, was an old and wily coyote demon. He had once been a fearsome warrior, but battle had left his right side mangled. He could walk but his leg was stiff, and his arm didn't have enough mobility to wield a sword properly. He knew he didn't have enough range of motion with his crippled leg to properly practice swordsmanship anyway, so he didn't bother trying to learn more than basic defense with his left hand. His mind was still sharp and intact, however, and he made a shrewd and observant attendant, proving useful to the inu clan many times since he had taken up the post.

Toga nodded in response. "Yes, Enriki, what is it?"

"My Lord, you have a very mysterious visitor requesting an audience."

Toga arched an eyebrow. "What do you know of this visitor?"

"Sire, she is female and claims to be a Lady, here on a diplomatic visit to discuss political matters. I cannot tell you of what species, for she is heavily clothed and cloaked. Her scent is masked under an exotic perfume. She carries no obvious weapons, and her aura is powerful but not overwhelming. I saw no sign or seal on her, her attendants, or the carriage she arrived in to indicate where she hails from. She appears to be a Lady of some wealth, if the means in which she travels or the quality of her clothing is any indication."

Toga nodded, musing. "I see...your opinion, Enriki?"

"She is no threat to one such as you, my Lord, or to your sons. She has power, but it is not great. Even if she carries a concealed weapon...few indeed are those that could hope to bring it to bear against the Inu no Taisho...and Lord Sesshoumaru is present as well. There is no danger, in my opinion."

"Very well. See her in."

Enriki bowed and left to escort their guest in.

Toga offered Sesshoumaru a sly grin as he slid his current scroll to the side and set his pen down. "We will continue OUR discussion...later. I am very intrigued to hear what it was you intended to do with the wine you mentioned."

Sesshoumaru smirked and smoothed some imperceptible wrinkles from his haori. "This Sesshoumaru will be more than pleased to show you, my Lord Father."

The two inus were both properly arranged by the time Enriki returned and rapped politely on the door. Toga granted him permission to enter and he did, escorting their guest.

Just as the coyote had said, she was covered head to toe in unrevealing but richly woven cloth, her face shrouded in the darkness of a deep hood. Enriki bowed and slid from the room, closing the door behind him.

Toga frowned, something sparking in his mind that he just couldn't put a finger on. "Greetings, my Lady...I do not believe we have had a proper introd-- Sesshoumaru?!"

Toga's head jerked over in alarm as Sesshoumaru leapt to his feet and scrambled backwards, hitting the wall and sinking to his knees with a low, keening moan. His eyes were huge and filled with wild-eyed panic as he stared at her. Toga was frozen halfway over to his pup, however, when the Lady spoke, her voice full of command and a tinge of wicked delight.

"Toga, sit back down. Now. We have MUCH to discuss."

The inu patriarch could not have been more shocked. Her voice spiked through his belly like a lance, twisting his gut and strangling his heart. He was too choked, too surprised to speak. Slowly, he turned to face her as she dropped her cloak. Disbelieving recognition warred with a dozen other emotions in his eyes as he finally managed to speak.

"Kimi...?"

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A/N - For those that don't know, Kimi is the name I chose to use for Sesshoumaru's mother, as it was the most common one I found while perusing the net. If you HAVEN'T read my sidestory 'Serenity' yet, I would recommend you do so at this time if you want a better, more detailed look on Toga and Kimi's relationship and its disastrous end as it occurred in my world. It can be found under my author profile at any of the sites I update to (Adultfanfiction, fanfiction dot net, and mediaminer). Of course, it's just a suggestion. I'm probably not going into much detail in 'Pride' over her history. For those of you that haven't and do not want to read the sidestory, I'll sum it up for you real fast. Kimi tricked Toga into thinking she loved him so she could become his mate and gain all the power and wealth that came with being Lady of the West. Toga found out while she was pregnant with Sesshoumaru that she was using him and didn't want to even keep the pup. She held the pup's life over his head to force him to do what she wanted and tried to run off right before she went into labor. Toga drug her back, and banished her from his lands for her betrayal after Sessh was born. He was honorable and provided for her to be well taken care of, but promised her death should she ever return to his lands.

Kudos to all of you that guessed at Kimi's influence and that she was Tsetsukosei's mystery guest of a few chapters ago.

Well, I'm off until the end of the week now, unless I can sneak on in the meantime. I'll miss y'all, but I can't say I can't use a little bit of a break. 120 chapters and all the other stuff in almost as many days?...Heh. Keeping things from going stagnant isn't always easy!