InuYasha Fan Fiction ❯ Rock, Paper, Scissors: Love Beats All ❯ The New Sibling Rivalry ( Chapter 5 )

[ A - All Readers ]

By: RinLove

Chapter Five:The New Sibling Rivalry

Sesshomaru's Point-Of-View

Sesshomaru was sitting on the ground a little ways away from the fire, brooding over his ignorance. He shouldn't have allowed her to accompany him in his search for Rin. After all, it hadn't even been her responsibility in the first place. He knew that she was too weak to travel, but he had permitted her to come along because of her extreme worry and fear for Rin's safety. All of this...was his fault. It was due to his negligence that Rin had been kidnapped and to his half-second of weakness that Kagome was now walking the thin line between life and death.

Sesshomaru looked down in front of him at Kagome's dark head and his eyebrows furrowed. He could feel her rapid, shallow breaths as she rested up against him. How long did she have left? Was her will to live strong enough to carry her through her injuries? Sesshomaru felt her shiver suddenly and gritted his teeth. 'She's lost too much blood to warm herself properly. Even the fire isn't helping her at this point.' Sesshomaru brought his fluff around and covered Kagome's entire upper body with it. She quit shivering and her breathing became more steady. Her hand shifted ever so slightly and rested on the fur draped over her lap. Sesshomaru reached out and placed his hand over her's; it was ice cold. 'She'll...die, at this rate.' Kagome sighed deeply before her breathing became more rapid and fainter than ever before. Her face looked flushed. Sesshomaru's face formed a pained expression. Why was this happening...? Why was he feeling such...feeling such torment over the human's misfortune? Why? He was...the Lord of the Western Lands, wasn't he? Demon lords don't feel human emotions, do they? Kagome gasped suddenly and whimpered for a few seconds, her face contorting in agony. Sesshomaru grew rigid as he stared down at her convulsing features, his eyes widening ever so slightly, before her breathing returned to the fast, speeded breaths he'd come to consider normal. Sesshomaru felt his tense muscles droop with fatigue and rested his forehead atop the crown of Kagome's head, relieved. He'd thought that, just a moment ago, it was the end of the girl. 'If demon lords feel no emotion, then what should I call myself?'

"She'd never let you do that if she was awake, you know." InuYasha's voice said from atop a tree branch a yard or so away. Sesshomaru's face became expressionless once more as he lifted his head from Kagome's dark hair. He looked straight out ahead of himself at the open forest that lay just beyond Miroku, Sango, and Shippo; the three of them were watching Sesshomaru and InuYasha with avid interest.

"Are you saying that she would refuse my aid in sustaining her life?" The older brother asked in a flat tone. He didn't feel up to an argument with his younger brother tonight. If it had been any other night, had he not been careless with the human girls he had taken responsibility for, then Sesshomaru would have already drawn his sword. But that wasn't the case and Sesshomaru wished only to evade his brother's pathetic antics.

"Don't play stupid, Sesshomaru. We both know you're smarter than you look." InuYasha paused for a moment, obviously waiting for some sort of response from Sesshomaru, before going on to explain himself. "I meant that she'd never let you get so close to her like that if she was conscious. Kagome doesn't think of you that way and I can't even BEGIN to imagine what's happened to make YOU feel that way about HER." Sesshomaru turned slowly and looked up at his younger brother with cold eyes. What had he meant by that exactly? Feel what way about Kagome?

"I'm not your depraved monk, InuYasha, so you can stop making such ludicrous suggestions. Kagome asked to come with me to find Rin, so I am doing my part as her guardian to keep her from harm while she helps rescue my ward. That's all there is to it. There's nothing more." Sesshomaru turned back around and leaned against the tree; Kagome followed, her back flat against his chest as she continued her struggle to keep breathing. What was he going to do?

"That's not what I meant by your feelings for her, Sesshomaru...but if you're still denying it, I'm not doing you any favors." Sesshomaru closed his eyes wearily, trying to ignore the pesky half-demon that he was forced to believe he was related to, and Kagome jerked her head to the other side as she began to pant heavily. Sesshomaru's eyes snapped open and he sat bolt upright.

"Ses...Sesshomaru..." She murmured. Sesshomaru felt his face begin to burn. Why was she...saying his name while she was unconscious...? "Rin...Inu...Yasha..." Sesshomaru's face cooled down. She was worried about everyone, that was all. Even as she suffered so much, she was still thinking of others before herself. He couldn't understand human beings at all. If he'd been in such a situation, he wouldn't have thought twice about anyone but himself. An image of Kagome and Rin laughing together back at the castle caused Sesshomaru to wince. Or would he? There may have been a time before when that would have been the truth...but then Rin showed up. Of course he would care for her safety above his own...and as long as he was the only one who knew that, he didn't mind admitting it to himself. He stood up, gently laying Kagome back against the tree he'd been lying against, and looked back at InuYasha.

"Keep a close eye on her or you'll die a long and gruesome death." Sesshomaru then disappeared through the trees and towards the only person who could possibly bring Kagome back to health.

InuYasha's Point-Of-View

"Ses...Sesshomaru..." InuYasha about fell out of his tree. Did Kagome just...did she just pant Sesshomaru's name...in her sleep? He gulped. Just WHAT in Hell was Kagome dreaming about exactly? "Rin...Inu...Yasha..." InuYasha let out a long breath as he leaned back against the trunk of the tree. 'Geez! How is it that she can scare me half out of my damned mind even when she's out cold...?' He stared up into the blackened tree branches of the tree he sat in and seen Kagome's face...or maybe it was Kikyo's? What did he care? It was an image that he had no qualms about confessing his love for any longer. 'Kagome, did you really mean it...? Did you really mean it when you said that you didn't love me?' He stared at the vision among the tree branches and it changed to Kagome's tear-stained face. He remembered it from when she'd first come upon him and Kikyo at the Sacred Tree. 'No...I suppose you hadn't meant it, after all. I wish you had, though...because now I'm left with the same decision all over again.'

"Keep a close eye on her or you'll die a long and gruesome death." Sesshomaru's voice drifted up to him. InuYasha leaned over just in time to catch Sesshomaru's eye before his older brother vanished into the night. That was wierd. InuYasha had thought that he'd seen...some sort of spark in the demon lord's eye. The hanyou had seen that spark many times before when he caught his reflection or looked into Kikyo's eyes...but surely it couldn't be the same thing! He'd only been pestering Sesshomaru earlier, of course. He hadn't REALLY believed that his elder brother was...was in love with...

InuYasha, still stunned, looked down at the tormented form of Kagome, his fire-rat kimono top still wrapped securely about her mid-section. 'Sesshomaru can't love Kagome; Sesshomaru can't love ANYBODY! And he wouldn't be caught DEAD making eyes at human girls!' InuYasha huffed and leapt from his branch to sit next to Kagome. He looked at her curiously, his face a foot away from her's, and observed her breathing. It was becoming shallower. He noticed that Sesshomaru had left his fur wrapped around her. It looked to InuYasha that he'd be back...unfortunately. InuYasha plopped down next to Kagome and leaned up against the tree with her. 'Stupid girl. Why can't she ever just stay out of trouble?' He reached down and squeezed Kagome's icy hand; she whimpered in her sleep.

Sesshomaru's Point-Of-View

"A demon! There's a demon in the village!"

"Run for your lives!"

"Save the women and children! Inform the priestess at once!"

Sesshomaru quietly continued through the village as about twenty villagers stampeded to the opposite end of the little town, glancing back at the expressionless Sesshomaru fearfully. He came to a hut and slid the door back. Inside sat an old woman wearing an eyepatch over her right eye.

"Ye are the brother of InuYasha, are ye not?" Sesshomaru looked on at her, not responding as of yet. He truly hated that ridiculous accent of her's. The vision of the dying Kagome flashed before Sesshomaru's eyes.

"The reincarnation of your older sister is presently bleeding to death in a clearing a mile and a half north of here. I request your aid in saving her life." Sesshomaru didn't even blink as he spoke. His voice expressed no emotion, even a faint rise or fall in pitch, and Kaede appeared to be taking a page from his book as she responded.

"Take me to her at once. Ye shall explain what has happened to the girl on the way." Sesshomaru's face remained an immutable blank at her suggestion, but as Kaede quickly gathered herbs and bandages together to treat Kagome, the demon lord knew that he would tell her all he knew.

Kagome's Point-Of-View

Kagome slowly returned to consciousness. She knew that she was waking up because she began to feel again. She felt something soft and warm next to her face and it smelled strangely pleasant...it was a familar scent and she felt her face tighten with a big smile as she nuzzled against the soft material. She sighed and her eyes fluttered open. She didn't move, yet, but she could tell that she was lying on the ground; she seemed to be at some sort of campsite. It was nighttime. She instantly sat upright and stared around the campsite with wide eyes.

"Oh no! Rin!" Kagome began to stand up, but she felt a hand on her shoulder and followed it to the golden eyes of Sesshomaru. She put her hand over his, her face contorting in insane worry. "Sesshomaru, please! What about Rin! You just decided not to go after her because I was hurt? Naraku's probably tortured her out of her mind, by now! I can't believe that she's having to suffer because of my weak--!" Sesshomaru dropped down next to her and drew her towards him. Kagome gasped, her eyes wide, as she felt herself instinctively relax as he held her.

"She'll be fine, Kagome. You have nothing to worry about. Naraku won't harm Rin for fear of losing our cooperation in handing over the Jewel." Kagome sighed and collapsed against Sesshomaru's chest out of both relief and exhaustion. What had happened to her exactly...?

"Yeah! You're still recovering, Kagome, so you should just relax!" Kagome pulled away from Sesshomaru and turned around to look at Shippo. He was wearing that tough-guy expression that he always wore when the going got rough. "Don't worry about Naraku! We can take care of him!" Shippo said as he threw himself at her chest. Kagome reached up and caught him in a hug. The green-eyed kitsune had always been fond of Kagome and the human had always felt a sort of motherly instinct over the bushy-tailed fox boy.

"What the Hell? WHO'S handing WHAT over to our sworn ENEMY?" InuYasha's familiar voice demanded from about two feet behind her. Kagome twisted around to look up at him with a weak smile.

"InuYasha..." She began, but fell prey to an inconvenient coughing fit at that exact moment.

"Kagome!" InuYasha shouted, taking a step towards her. Sesshomaru clutched his hand tighter over her shoulder to hold her steady as the fit came to an end. When she pulled her hand away from her mouth, she seen a small puddle of blood in the palm of her hand. She winced at it, disgusted. Sesshomaru was looking at her hand with something of distaste before bringing a bowl of water up suggestively. Kagome washed her hands in the bowl and Sesshomaru set it back off to the side. Kagome took a breath and shakily got to her feet, turning to look at InuYasha.

"We aren't REALLY giving him the Jewel, you moron! We're just acting like we--unh--we are so that he won't hurt Rin, okay?" Kagome slid her hand down to her right side as a small bolt of pain zipped through her. Luckily, it didn't hurt as bad as before. She noticed with horror that something was different now and looked at InuYasha as a panicked expression overcame her features. "Where's your jacket!" She looked at him with fright, worried that something terrible had happened while she was unconscious, before glancing down at her abdomen expectantly. It wouldn't have surprised her to see that he'd used it as some sort of bandage for her.

Her wounds HAD been re-bandaged, but the only red she seen, to her slight disappointment, was a few spots of blood where her wounds had opened up a little more. The bandages had been wrapped tightly and neatly--more expertly, was Kagome's first impression--and her thoughts on the workmanship was strengthened when she seen a few herbal leaves poking out from behind the bandages every now and then. All of a sudden, a new possibility darted across her mind. She slowly rose her head to look at InuYasha, her face inquiring. He crossed his arms stubbornly and looked pointedly off to the side. Kagome followed his gaze curiously and realized with delight that she'd been right.

"Kaede! Ugh!" Kagome had did a sort of leap into the air when she seen Kikyo's little sister, but when she'd landed she felt a shock of pain course though her abdomen and felt her knees buckle for it. She was caught by a pair of hands and turned to look up at Sesshomaru--but it wasn't Sesshomaru. It was Sango. She helped her stand back up and then they smiled at one another.

"I'm glad you're alright. You scared me for a little while back there. You scared all of us, actually. Even the Ice Lord couldn't keep up that indifferent facade, could you, Sesshomaru?" Kagome turned around for a moment to look at Sesshomaru, who met her eyes for only half a second before turning around and walking into the shadows. If Kagome didn't know any better, she'd think he was one of the bad guys. He always fled to the shadows whenever the opportunity arose.

"Sango?" Kagome turned back to look at her best friend after a few moments. "Sango, what happened to me? Why's Kaede here?" Sango smiled and looked over to the old woman.

"Why not let her tell you for herself?" Sango said with a smile and a coy glance in Sesshomaru's direction. InuYasha gave out a noise of disgust. Kagome looked from Sango to Sesshomaru to InuYasha with a genuinely confused expression before looking to Kaede.

"Has everyone here lost their minds, Kaede?" Kagome smiled as Kaede nodded her head in all sincerity.

"That may be the most resonable explanation..." She said, a bemused tone overtaking her voice that made Kagome smile. The old woman's face suddenly became grave and Kagome could tell she was about to tell her why everyone was acting so wierd all of a sudden. "I hadn't known that ye were dying until Sesshomaru came to ask my help in treating ye. He came to my hut tonight and asked me to come here and save ye life." Kagome blinked and looked into the trees where Sesshomaru was standing, though he was well-hidden among the thick darkness. "That is why everyone is acting so strangely, Kagome. Sesshomaru not only compromised his pride, but he compromised it for ye. A human." Kagome turned around and looked to Kaede, blinking in sincere puzzlement.

"What's so strange about Sesshomaru wanting to protect someone?" She asked, making InuYasha look at her as though she'd just grown a truly repulsive second head.

"Sit." InuYasha head-butted the ground and Kagome turned back to the rest of the group. "InuYasha's a demon, and he protects me all the time. Rin's a human, but Sesshomaru has protected her ever since they've met. You all think it's so strange that he cared enough to ask for help to keep me alive, but I think it's strange that you're all thinking that way." Everyone looked at her in open disbelief and Kagome blushed and laughed nervously. "Heh-Heh, so I guess that I'm the weird one now? I guess I can't really blame you..." She smiled more comfortably and looked around the clearing at all of her friends as, one-by-one, they shut their gaping mouths. "After all, I probably would have thought the same if I hadn't been travelling with him this past day or so." Everyone looked to one another with curious expressions, but Kagome had gotten really tired all of a sudden and sat back down next to the tree she'd woken up beside. She looked to her right and seen the fire-rat cloth. "Hey! I found it!" Kagome picked it up and balled it up, throwing it at an astonished InuYasha, who had just managed to drag himself up out of his crater. He caught it, but was looking down at it like it was cursed. Kagome scratched the back of her head anxiously. "Sorry. It looks like I might have gotten some blood on it..." InuYasha looked at her like he was about to say something, but then he closed his mouth and looked off to the side. Kagome stared in mild bewilderment at the strange expression over his face while he turned and walked out of the clearing, disappearing into the darkness. 'Now I'm SURE they're related...' Kagome thought slyly as she layed back on the ground, closing her eyes. She felt her back lay up against something soft and remembered the pleasant-smelling material that she'd woken up against. She opened her eyes and brought some of it around. It was Sesshomaru's fluff! She looked off into the darkness where Sesshomaru had gone, curious for a moment, before smiling. He hoped that he would recognize it as a silent "thanks". She turned over to her side and covered herself up with the fluff, falling into a deep sleep where she dreamt of floating on clouds. Sesshomaru's fluff was actually very soft.

Sesshomaru's Point-Of-View

"What's so strange about Sesshomaru wanting to protect someone?" Kagome asked, causing the demon lord to turn back to face her from the shadows. He had been determinedly ignoring the whole group of ignorant humans, halflings, and cowardly demons since the dead priestess' sister had spoken of his so-called "compromised pride". They thought they understood everything. They thought that they were the most intelligent beings on the planet. But they didn't know anything about why Sesshomaru did what he did. He hardly did, himself, for that matter. All he really knew was that he wished to keep her safe, just as he wished to keep Rin safe. Sesshomaru caught an amusing scene out of the corner of his eye and turned to better enjoy it. InuYasha was gaping at Kagome like the witless fool that he was and obviously trying not to choke on his tongue. Sesshomaru watched the spectacle for a few more moments before InuYasha finally found his voice.

"Two points come to mind at that question: One, he's Sesshomaru. Two...he's friggin' SESSHOMARU! Did you forget that already, or did you hit your head too hard when you got attacked or however you got so messed up?" Sesshomaru almost felt like laughing out loud when he seen Kagome's furious face. He knew what happened whenever his little brother made her angry...and it was always highly entertaining for Sesshomaru. He watched as Kagome shrugged and uttered the single most beautiful word in the world.

"Sit." Kagome said casually as she faced the group. InuYasha did a fantastic face-plant in the rockiest patch of forest floor within the camp, making this night the best Sesshomaru had lived through for the past three months. Sesshomaru fought the urge to smile, his face was twitching horribly in his efforts. How did this happen to him? Why couldn't he control himself as he had in the past? Smiling and laughing wasn't exactly part of his daily regiment. He'd felt happy and amused many times, of course--all living beings did--but he'd always been able to keep it to himself. He'd always been able to lock it deep within himself to where only he would know the emotions he was experiencing. Why couldn't he do that anymore...? Why was he having such trouble stifling his manic laughter? And why on EARTH was he grinning like a lunatic! Sesshomaru suddenly sobered as Kagome began to speak. "InuYasha's a demon, and he protects me all the time. Rin's a human, but Sesshomaru has protected her ever since they've met. You all think it's so strange that he cared enough to ask for help to keep me alive, but I think it's strange that you're all thinking that way." Sesshomaru stared at her as her friends began to look at her as though she'd lost her mind. He didn't exactly know how he was supposed to react to this. What was she doing? Why was she taking up for him like this...? Kagome began to laugh nervously as her face turned pink under her friends' astonished stares. "Heh-Heh, so I guess that I'm the weird one now? I guess I can't really blame you..." As Kagome's smile became softer and more like herself, Sesshomaru leaned against the tree and smiled as well, curious as to what she might say next. "After all, I probably would have thought the same if I hadn't been travelling with him this past day or so." Her friends all looked to one another curiously as Kagome turned her back to them and made it back to the tree where Sesshomaru had sat with her while she was unconscious. He pushed himself back up from the tree. 'Surely she doesn't think that--that I was carrying her and forcing her to rest because I was WORRIED about her. She's my ward, just as Rin is. Our relationship doesn't go beyond that...' Sesshomaru's eyebrows furrowed in deep confusion as his subconscious drew up old memories of Rin bringing him crowns of flowers and fishing in creeks as he watched over her. She smiled and laughed and seemed to think that he was the best person on the earth. It was as though...it was as though she thought that... Image after image of Rin skipping and twirling next to him on various pathways zipped through his mind. 'It's as if she thinks I'm her father.'

Sesshomaru's eyes fell to the grassy forest floor as he frowned. Sesshomaru now realized that such had always been the demon lord's idea of his and Rin's relationship. She WASN'T just his ward, but more like... 'My daughter.' Sesshomaru gritted his teeth and clenched his fist in rage towards himself. How did this happen? Why hadn't he ever noticed this before? And if he had failed to notice such a thing once already, then who was to say he wouldn't make the same mistake again? No. What he was really worried about was how he was to be sure that he wasn't MAKING the same mistake again.

"Hey! I found it!" Sesshomaru was torn away from his unusually deep and emotional thoughts as Kagome suddenly called out. Wondering just what it was that she had found, Sesshomaru looked up just in time to see her throw InuYasha the scarlet kimono jacket that the hanyou had been given by his human mother. InuYasha snatched it out of the air and stared down at the maroon spots that had been left on it from Kagome's blood with something of mingled horror and fury. Kagome seemed to think he was mad at her, or something to that effect, because she instantly apologized. "Sorry. It looks like I might have gotten some blood on it..." InuYasha's head shot up to look at Kagome, who was scratching the back of her head nervously, and opened his mouth to say something...but then he closed it again and looked off to the side of himself with a pained expression over his face. Sesshomaru noticed his grip tighten on the fire-rat kimono jacket. Sesshomaru watched his brother in mild curiosity as he turned and vanished through the trees, leaving the demon lord to sort him out. InuYasha had appeared to grow indignant when Kagome had mentioned her blood getting on the jacket...so perhaps he had wanted to tell her that he was the one who had tied it around her abdomen to keep her from bleeding to death? Sesshomaru sensed a touch of self-satisfaction stir within him. It was a likely probability. And when he'd suddenly looked away, deciding not to tell her after all...that was because he felt guilty at feeling the need to claim credit. Sesshomaru looked up into the tree branches and seen the crescent moon shining brightly in the black sky. He knew that there was one other reason that his pathetic hanyou of a brother had decided against telling Kagome the truth of how his jacket had been soaked through with her blood. It was an ignorant reason...and petty. InuYasha was having a sort of relapse and believed that he was in love with Kagome. Now that Kikyo was out of the picture again and all that was left was Kagome, why not return to her and confess his "true" feelings? This idea made InuYasha feel guilty, however, so he had kept quiet tonight. But he'd tell her eventually, Sesshomaru knew, if Kikyo wasn't rescued soon enough for his liking.

Sesshomaru looked back down from the moon and over to Kagome, whom he was surprised to see was looking straight at him with a smile. She was holding his fluff in her hand. She turned around and wrapped herself up in it, falling asleep again. Sesshomaru smiled. He was glad that SHE appreciated the gesture, at least, because, upon retrospect, he was feeling a little ridiculous for doing such a thing. 'I need to rescue Rin soon. Otherwise, I'll be faced with another emotional attachment.' Sesshomaru loathed admitting it...but he wouldn't be as foolish as to deny the fact. Kagome was growing on him. He gave out a little "hmph" before turning to stride further into the forest. He needed a walk...

InuYasha's Point-Of-View

InuYasha sat on the branch of the dead tree and crossed his arms stubbornly. What was Kagome and Sesshomaru up to? Were they trying to make him jealous or something like that? He could believe it out of Sesshomaru, his evil full-demon brother who wished for nothing more but to watch him die slowly and painfully...but Kagome? No. There was no way that Kagome would do such a terrible thing. Besides, why would she need to make him jealous when she openly gave InuYasha and Kikyo her blessing? She said herself that she wanted him to be with Kikyo...but InuYasha knew that she really had loved him when she said it. So why? Why would she tell him to be with another woman if she loved him so much? InuYasha knew that Kagome was the type of person who thought of just about everyone but herself...so it wouldn't surprise him all that much to learn that she'd done what he had so that he could be happy with the woman he loved. 'So that's why she was so upset when she found out about Kikyo being kidnappped by Naraku. She told me that she didn't feel anything for me so that I wouldn't have to choose anymore. I get that much, but... but what now? Now that her plan hasn't turned out the way she expected, what's she thinking?' Then it all clicked. It was so simple! 'She wants me back! Now that Kikyo's gone, she knows that she's the only one in my life now! That's why she was trying to make all jealous about Sesshomaru and her earlier!' It couldn't have been more perfect, in InuYasha's eyes. She really had him going there for awhile! He did wonder how she got Sesshomaru to play a hand in the whole thing, though. Maybe his brother was in on it for the fun of tortuting his younger sibling? She must have known that he was still watching her from the shadows when she snuggled up to that ratty fur-thing that Sesshomaru always wore. That was it...and so she thought she'd get under his skin, was all. InuYasha smirked and put his hands behind his head.

"Girls! They think they're real smart. I see through your little plot, Kagome..." InuYasha said to the crescent moon in front of him.

"Plot...?" The deep, annoying voice of his older brother came from the ground below InuYasha's tree. He growled irritably.

"Why're you eavesdropping on me like that! Get lost!" InuYasha shouted as he glowered down at Sesshomaru's indifferent features. Sesshomaru looked up at the moon and said quite casually,

"I wouldn't be eavesdropping if you weren't talking to yourself..." InuYasha started, embarrassed that his brother had gotten the best of him on that round.The hanyou calmed down and leaned back against the trunk of the tree, closing his eyes and crossing his arms. "What plot do you think Kagome has devised, InuYasha? You seemed to be quite maddened by it, whatever you might have been thinking." InuYasha growled deep in his throat before regaining his composure. He opened an eye and looked down at his brother.

"Not that it's any of your business, but I was just thinking of how desperate Kagome must have been feeling to fall back on YOU of all people." Sesshomaru slowly turned his head to face his brother, his face still expressionless. InuYasha could tell that he'd hit something, though, so he continued. "I'm not worried about her all that much, really. She's not as stupid as most girls; she's bound to realize she's made a mistake." Sesshomaru smiled and began to chuckle softly. InuYasha's other eye snapped open and both of them went as wide as dinnerplates. Then, InuYasha LITERALLY fell out of his tree and landed hard on the ground at his brother's feet. He quickly stood, watching in disbelief as his brother began to laugh even harder. "Damn..." InuYasha began, "What the Hell happened to YOU!" Sesshomaru instantly sobered and grabbed InuYasha by the neck, lifting him off of the ground as his brother gasped for air. InuYasha wriggled and brought his hands up to pull at Sesshomaru's fingers around his neck, trying to make him quit choking him.

"You bastard..." Sesshomaru spoke icily, glaring at InuYasha with every ounce of hate he had in his being. InuYasha was very nearly terrified of that look. He'd never seen that before in his entire life... "Before you get any ideas concerning what I'm about to say, know that I am not defending the girl, but only putting a two-timing halfling in his place. Are we clear? Good." Sesshomaru slung his brother with all his might into the tree he'd fallen from. InuYasha felt pain course through his entire body, but forced himself to stand, taking in huge gulps of air that made the world tilt and spin. It didn't matter, though, because as soon as he had gotten to his feet, his brother grabbed him by his neck again and pinned him against the tree. "Do you wish to cause her pain? You must know that she still loves you, right? Of course you do. She loves ONLY you, but you love Kikyo, the woman she was reincarnated from, as well. You are worse than Miroku because, while the monk can show his true colors to the demon slayer, you decide to creep about and make both woman believe that you love only one woman...and that "one woman" purely depends on whichever is presently available to you, doesn't it?" Sesshomaru punched his brother as hard as he could in his jaw and released his hold on his neck. InuYasha slumped to the ground and tried to remain conscious as he took in deep breaths. Spots had begun to appear around the edges of his vision. He nearly died! His jaw felt like it had broken, but InuYasha was sure he'd be fine by morning. Sesshomaru's foot suddenly came up and made contact with InuYasha's stomach, knocking all of the breath out of him. Sesshomaru reached down while his brother was struggling to breathe and grabbed a handful of his long hair, drawing him up by it to look into his brother's face. "She won't let go of that feeling she has for you...and it causes her torment beyond imagining. She sees you everywhere, but for your happiness, the stupid human has sacrificed everything." InuYasha suddenly caught his breath and made a wild kick at Sesshomaru's chest, but his full-demon brother released InuYasha's long locks and leapt back a few yards, drawing his sword in time with InuYasha. The hanyou glowered at his brother with malice. Who was he to call him heartless and selfish when he felt nothing at all? Except maybe hate, but this was a definite first for showing it. "And when I say she's sacrificed everything, I mean EVERYTHING. It only started with you, if you can't see that much yourself." InuYasha looked at his brother questioningly, mad as Hell. What was his brother trying to say? How had Kagome sacrificed everything for InuYasha? The hanyou watched his brother take on a horrifying scowl. "When she let you go with Kikyo, she lost you. Now, she can't stay with the her friends because you'll be there and she doesn't want to confuse you with the choice between her and Kikyo again. Then there's her confusion of what exactly to do with the Shikon no Tama now that you've run off into the sunset with Kikyo. After all, you don't really think about becoming a full-demon now that you're with Kikyo, do you? Of course not. And why become human if the clay-pot accepts you as you are? You'd only be abandoning the strength that you could use to protect her, am I right?" InuYasha's eyes narrowed as he grit his teeth. His brother always did things like this. He waited and observed until he had enough facts and blackmail to drive a person mentally insane. it only hurt the person so much, though, because they knew that he was destroying them with the undeniable truth. Lies could be waved away easily...but the truth was irreversible damage. "I see that I am," his brother said coolly.

"Just shut up, already! Kagome's fine and you know it! She's NEVER been the emotional wreck you're blabbering about!" InuYasha shouted, bringing his sword around, "WIND SCAR!" Sesshomaru leapt out of the way and came down in front of InuYasha to pin the flat side of Tojikin to the hanyou's neck. The hanyou held completely still for fear of inadvertently chopping his own head off. "Come off it, Sesshomaru! I know what you're up to and it's not working! I've already figured it out!" InuYasha was referring to the plan he and Kagome had undoubtedly cooked up to make him, InuYasha, so jealous that he would fall completely in love with Kagome again.

"Kagome may not show it, but that doesn't mean she doesn't feel the way I'm telling you that she does. You know that the stupid girl never wants to upset anyone. She practically thinks it's third-degree murder to share her problems with another person!" Sesshomaru stepped back from InuYasha and sheathed his sword, surprising the hanyou. He watched as Sesshomaru reached into his armor and retrieve a small, pink jewel. The Shikon no Tama! InuYasha's eyes went wide as he looked upon it. "She sacrificed everything. EVERYTHING. She can't go home without this jewel, as I understand it. Because of you, she's tortured with thoughts of unrequieted love, with the loss of her friends, and even the loss of her own family and time period. So, keep jumping between women, InuYasha. Keep hurting Kagome and making her feel such incredible pain for every second she has left in her miserable life. I'm sure that she'll never hate you for it. In fact, I'll bet she'll still love you right up to her Very. Last. Breath." InuYasha gaped in horror at his older brother and fell to his knees. That was it for InuYasha. What had he done...? It was the truth, he knew. His brother wasn't lying or trying to hurt him. His only agenda with telling him this was to protect Kagome from InuYasha's selfish ways. Sesshomaru turned around and left the clearing, his long, silver hair swaying as he disappeared through the trees from whence he came.

Kagome's Point-Of-View

"You pervert!"

SMACK!

Kagome opened her eyes to bright sunshine and Sango and Miroku having their usual discussion of what the ways of a monk were supposed to include--and Sango insisted that none of them said anything about stroking her backside! Kagome laughed when she noticed Miroku's usual scarlet handprint and then Sango noticed she was awake.

"Kagome? I think that InuYasha and Sesshomaru had some sort of fight last night..." Kagome instantly jumped to her feet.

"WHAT?" Kagome couldn't believe this! Couldn't she have one peaceful night? Just one? Sango nodded, letting out a deep sigh, and looked pointedly off to the side. Kagome looked as well and seen InuYasha and Sesshomaru leaning against opposite trees and facing one another. InuYasha would speak first, while Sesshomaru listened, and then Sesshomaru would interrupt every now and then to add something. It seemed as though they were...but it couldn't be, could it?

"It looks like they're...um..." Kagome began, not daring to believe it.

"Having a decent conversation with one another? Yeah, I know. That's what I mean!" Sango exclaimed, suddenly panic-stricken.

"They're getting along, so it must mean that something terrible has occurred. Probably worse than Naraku, if they're THAT focused on treating each other with respect." Miroku added.

"Mm-Hm! Whatever's happened, they've both agreed to focus all of their attention on it and put their past differences aside." Shippo said, nodding and putting a hand to his chin thoughtfully. "Hey, Kagome? Where're you going!" Kagome had finally had enough and was striding over to Sesshomaru and InuYasha, who both looked up at her with puzzled expressions as she approached.

"Hey, Kagome, what's--?" InuYasha began, but Kagome cut him off.

"Save it. Why're you guys getting along so well? Not only is it creepy, but it has everyone thinking that something terrible has happened!" Kagome shouted angrily, but then she suddenly became very worried. "There hasn't, has there? I mean, Rin and Kikyo are still okay and everything, aren't they? Or has something even worse happened? Oh my god! Tell me what's--!" Sesshomaru and InuYasha both cut her off at once.

"Calm down!" Kagome blinked, turned around, and walked back the group as dazed as ever. They had spoken in unison. That was the last straw. It was armagheddon and they were all going to die!