InuYasha Fan Fiction ❯ Special delivery ❯ Convalescence ( Chapter 88 )
[ Y - Young Adult: Not suitable for readers under 16 ]
By: saphira404 
Anime/Manga: InuYasha Fan Fiction | Genre(s): Romance / Hentai / Drama / Comedy | Type: Alternate Universe | Uploaded On: 10.15.2011 | Pages: 5 | Words: 9.1K | Visits: 251 | Status: Work In Progress
Anime/Manga: InuYasha Fan Fiction | Genre(s): Romance / Hentai / Drama / Comedy | Type: Alternate Universe | Uploaded On: 10.15.2011 | Pages: 5 | Words: 9.1K | Visits: 251 | Status: Work In Progress
Chapter 88: Convalescence
A/N: Long chapter as we still have much to address.
Disclaimer: If I owned Inuyasha, Sesshy and Kagura would be happily mated and working on silver haired baby number three by now…
“Talking”
‘ThinkingR 17;
“Enough!” Sesshoumaru roared. For the better part of the past two hours, he had been touched, probed and looked all over by Suikotsu. Ever since he had awakened from his coma a few hours ago, he had had to endure a long examination at the hands of his physician, which did not seat well with the dog demon. After all this was not how Sesshoumaru had expected to spend his first hours awake.
“I don’t want to hear one word of complaint.” Kagura sent her fiancé a nasty glare. “Don’t listen to him Suikotsu, do whatever it takes to prevent Sesshoumaru from lapsing into a coma again.”
The young doctor could not help but snicker at the way Kagura was so effortlessly bossing the dog demon around. The Sesshoumaru he knew would never be caught dead being told what to do; especially by a little woman.
Noticing the amusement present on his doctor’s face, Sesshoumaru grew irritated. He intended to let the other man know exactly about his feelings, but his façade fell when Suikotsu probed his left arm. Sesshoumaru did his best to pretend he was not hurt, but he could not prevent himself from wincing.
“Kagura why don’t you go join your daughters and your mother for lunch downstairs? I’m sure they would enjoy the company. I’ll keep Sesshoumaru busy here for at least another hour.” Suikotsu turned from his patient to look at the young woman seated in the nearby chair.
The wind sorceress was about to refuse as she really did not want to be separated from Sesshoumaru now that she had him back, but considering that her stomach had been growling furiously for the past half hour, she figured it might not be such a bad idea.
‘I was too upset to eat breakfast this morning at the idea of bringing the girls to see Sesshoumaru… but now I could definitely use some food. Not to mention that I want to talk to the girls, and warn them to tread carefully. The last thing I’d want would be for them to tire him out.’ She briefly thought back to how Sakura and Morio had to practically pry Rin and Kanna off of their father’s bed to let Suikotsu take a look at the inu youkai.
As if noting Kagura’s hesitation, Sesshoumaru averted his gaze from his doctor’s smiling face to his fiancée. “Go Kagura. I can assure you this Sesshoumaru is not going anywhere.”
The wind sorceress chuckled at his last comment. She had not had much reason to laugh as of late, and doing so felt so good.
“Alright you guys win. I’ll make it back as quickly as possible. Sesshoumaru, you better get ready to get assaulted by the girls again.” Kagura was so glad to have her lover back, and would have loved to press a kiss to his lips, but did not dare to in the presence of Suikotsu. She contented herself with sending him a bright smile, and left the hospital room.
“Good thing you sent her to eat.” Suikotsu said once the door was shut after Kagura. “I’ve been worried about her, especially because of her anemia. I know she’s been taking the iron supplements I prescribed her, but she hasn’t really been taking care of herself. She’s been sitting in that chair at your bedside day and night. At least she’ll get the chance to eat and rest now.”
The wind sorceress had filled in Sesshoumaru about his coma, but had left out that part, which did not really surprise him.
‘The witch probably did not want to worry me…’ He thought even as his heart swelled with love for the woman who had stayed faithfully by his side.
“Anyways let’s focus back on you. Everything looks good so far… except for the arm. When exactly were you going to tell me you’re in pain?” The easy smile the doctor had had on his face earlier was replaced by a dark scowl.
“This Sesshoumaru is doing fine.” The youkai retorted. He had no intention of staying in the hospital any longer. He wanted to put Kanna’s abduction and his ensuing injury and coma behind them, and be able to spend some much deserved quality time with his family.
“Uh-hum. Then why is it you looked on the verge of tears when Rin hugged your arm earlier?” The doctor commented on the scene he had witnessed upon entering his patient’s room.
“What nonsense.”
Suikotsu did not bother denying his patient’s words. He simply slapped Sesshoumaru’s arm as hard as he could, paying attention to hit the closed off bullet wound. The dog demon growled and glared, but despite his best efforts was unable to mask the look of pain which transpired in his eyes.
“There might have been some more serious nerve damage than I had anticipated.” Suikotsu said thoughtfully. During the time of Sesshoumaru’s blood poisoning and coma, the young doctor had pushed back the thought of the bullet wound. He had expected for the injury to heal completely considering that Sesshoumaru was such a powerful dog demon.
‘It seems I might have been mistaken. I will need to look into this.’ Even as he thought this, the young human extended his arm towards his patient. “Sesshoumaru, shake my hand.”
Grudgingly, the other man did as told. Suikotsu sighed when Sesshoumaru reached for him. “You know I meant with your other hand, the left one. I want to see if your arm is as unaffected as you claim it is…”
Baiting the dog demon and mocking his pride had a tendency to work pretty well, and this time was no different. Sesshoumaru struggled to lift his left arm, which seemed to weigh three tons, and awkwardly gripped the other man’s hand. The simple action exhausted him, and had him almost sweating in exertion by the time he let go of his doctor’s limb, and allowed the arm to fall back down on the bed.
‘As if I falling into a coma was not bad enough. Now my damn arm won’t work. I hate feeling this weak!’ Sesshoumaru thought angrily as he clenched his teeth.
Suikotsu’s keen eyes easily noticed his friend’s upset, and sought to reassure him. “It seems the nerve and muscle damage was more than I had anticipated, but there is no need to be worried. This is of course not uncommon with people who have been shot. You might need some physical rehabilitation…”
Sesshoumaru interrupted his doctor’s words by sending the other man a sharp glare. The mere thought of having to go through a physical rehab program was unconceivable to a strong dog demon as him.
“Well of course I’m not sure the physical therapy will be necessary. I need to make you go through some tests first of course.”
“No more tests.”
“Fine with me, I don’t care that you can barely move your left arm. But let me assure you that you’ll be the one who will explain to your kids why you can’t lift them anymore. Not to mention Kagura, how will you explain that to her…”
Sesshoumaru knew there was truth in the other man’s words. Even if he had wished to deny it, he would not have been able to. His golden eyes lowered to his left arm and hand lying on the white sheet of his hospital bed. He clenched his fist, and was angered when he did not manage to summon as much strength as before.
Sesshoumaru however did not get the chance to dwell on his feelings as Kagura suddenly burst back into the room. Her daughters, Morio and Sakura following behind her.
“Explain what to Kagura?” She asked looking from Suikotsu to Sesshoumaru expectantly.
“Did you eat?” Her fiancé asked her, purposely ignoring her question.
“Grandma and grandpa let us have ice cream even if it’s cold!” Kanna said excitedly.
“They said we had to celebrate having you back.” Rin interjected, eager to defend her newfound grandparents.
“Good. I can see you enjoyed yourselves.” Sesshoumaru was unnerved by the fact of being the only person lying down, and since he knew none of the adults would let him out of his bed, he beckoned his daughters closer. “Come up here.” Rin and Kanna did not waste any time, and quickly obliged. Rin carefully slipped under his left arm, paying attention not to bump into the large IV giving the dog demon Mukotsu’s potion, which Suikotsu had decided to leave in place for now. When it came to Kanna, a large smile was displayed on her lips once she snuggled under her father’s right arm.
The dog demon pushed though the pain in his left arm, and using both hands gently caressed the heads of his daughters then looked towards Kagura, and raised an eyebrow in question, she knew he wanted to know if she had eaten as well.
‘I’m the one who should be fussing over him, not the other way around.’ She smiled indulgently when Rin and Kanna almost purred in pure contentment.
She grinned in Sesshoumaru’s direction before answering. “No I didn’t eat, but I will in a second. I ran into mom, Morio and the girls on my way to the cafeteria. They were coming back to your room, and were nice enough to bring me lunch.” As proof, Kagura raised a white container up to Sesshoumaru’s gaze. “So what were the two of you talking about before we came in?”
Suikotsu sent his patient an uncomfortable glance, hoping Sesshoumaru would confess his problem to Kagura. As much as he knew the wind sorceress should know, the young doctor could not betray his patient’s confidentiality.
The anxious look did not escape Kagura’s sharp gaze. “Mom, would you mind taking the girls to the mansion for the evening?”
“No mom!” Kanna scowled unhappily before her grandmother had the chance to abide to her daughter’s request. Even if Rin had too wanted to express her displeasure, she had decided not to speak up.
“Honey, Sesshoumaru has to rest if you want him to come back home with us.” The wind sorceress gently pacified her youngest daughter. She placed her lunch on the table next to her, then walked closer to the bed. “There’s no need to worry, he’s not going anywhere, I promise.”
“Besides remember that you haven’t blown the candles on your cake yet. We can still have a little birthday celebration for you Kanna.” Sakura smiled in her granddaughter’s reaction.
The void demoness’s words caused Sesshoumaru’s heart to clench. He had not realized that it was his daughter’s birthday, and had he known he would have had the girls and Kagura to go home to celebrate Kanna’s birthday.
‘She should not have to spend this special day in that damned clinic.’ He thought guiltily.
“I don’t need a party. Now that daddy is back, I don’t want anything.” Kanna said bravely and honestly.
“What a pity. I guess grandma Sakura and I will just have to throw away the presents we bought for you. And we can probably get rid of the cake you, Rin and your mommy baked yesterday…” Morio noted thoughtfully.
“Nuh-huh. Kanna wants nothing.” She persisted, albeit a little more weakly. As much as she tried, she could not help but wonder what her grandparents had gotten her. She knew it was not going to be a pony, or a puppy which had been her number two choices, but her curiosity had been piqued, and she wanted to know what the gift would be.
“It would please me if you celebrated your birthday with your grandparents.” Sesshoumaru told his daughter. When Kanna opened her mouth to formulate a protest, he quickly added “Once I am released from the hospital.” He paused to send Suikotsu a pointed look. “We will have another, bigger celebration with everyone.”
Kanna mulled over his words for a few seconds, then smiled again brightly. “Okay! What’s my presents?”
Sakura chuckled at seeing the young child’s excitement. “You will have to wait until we get home to find out.” The void demoness headed towards the bed, and gently plucked Kanna from under her father’s hold. Rin did not need any encouragement, and after pressing a quick shy kiss over Sesshoumaru’s striped cheek, jumped out of the bed.
“Goodbye dad. Get better soon.” The young human said as she walked towards Morio. She smiled up at the older demon when he protectively took a hold of her hand.
“Bye bye daddy.” Kanna waved at the dog demon from her position in her grandmother’s arms.
Sesshoumaru nodded to the two children, but did not voice anything; he was not about to say his feelings aloud in the presence of the Fujibayashis or Suikotsu.
“Morio and I will take care of everything, so don’t you worry.” Sakura said as she walked towards the exit, Kanna securely in her arms. “Kagura be sure to eat please, and let us know if you-know-who shows up again.” The distaste in the woman’s voice was quite clear.
The wind sorceress chuckled at her mother’s words. “I must admit I’m surprised she hasn’t yet considering that yesterday she was so eager to get rid of me.” Kagura could feel Sesshoumaru’s surprised gaze burning a hole in her back, and winced.
‘I probably should have told him about his mother earlier. But everything happened so quickly…’ She tried defending her choice to keep quiet about Asuka’s machinations to get her son rid of her.
“Anyways, you guys go along now, and enjoy yourselves. I’ll call you later, and mom please don’t let them have more than a piece of cake.” Kanna and Rin made small noises of protest, but Kagura ignored them. “You already had ice cream for dessert today.” Their mother reminded them.
“Okay mommy…”
“Bye mom.”
The voices of the little girls blended. They might be disappointed at the idea of not getting more cake, but nothing could compare with the joy of having their father back.
“Don’t worry girls, grandma will sneak in another piece of cake to the two of you. What your mother doesn’t know won’t hurt her.” Sakura chuckled as she, Kanna, Rin and Morio walked out into the clinic’s corridor.
Kagura shook her head as the door closed after her family. She pretended not to have heard her mother’s words and her daughters’ ensuing cheer. ‘Great now when I get home I’ll have to deal with their sugar high…’ She thought to herself. Since she had come that morning anticipating not to come back to the clinic, she had removed all of her personal things from Sesshoumaru’s room, and would have no choice but to go back to her parents’ house to spend the night.
“What were you referring to earlier? Who is you-know-who?” Sesshoumaru asked Kagura. There was nothing he hated more than being kept in the dark.
“I think it’s about time for me to make my exit as well. I do have other patients waiting…” Not even bothering for either youkai to respond, Suikotsu quickly slipped out of the room. Despite Sesshoumaru’s protest he decided to go get one of his aides to come get the dog demon later on to make him go through some additional tests for his arm.
‘I will let the two of them have enough time to talk things out.’
Kagura thoughtfully looked at the door which had closed after Suikotsu, and turned back towards her lover. “I’ll answer once you tell me what you and Suikotsu were talking about when we came in earlier.
Sesshoumaru let out a heavy sigh, but decided to give in. After all Kagura was sure to find out eventually about his arm.
“The bullet wound was more serious than anticipated. It appears my left arm has suffered muscle or nerve damage.” Sesshoumaru struggled to bring his weak arm closer to his gaze.
“What?” She gasped as she suddenly turned very pale. “I don’t understand. But… Suikotsu said the surgery went fine, and that he got all the bullet fragments out.” She added in shock. She had just gotten Sesshoumaru back, and the idea of him having to go through more pain was unbearable to her.
“I suspect it is due to whatever spell that bastard of Naraku put on the bullets.” He spat angrily, not bothering to mask his feelings.
Kagura was devastated. She felt tears rise up inside her, and her previous hunger was quickly forgotten. Her tears were mostly due to fear and exhaustion. She had stood by her lover’s bedside for so many long days, fought with his mother repeatedly, and hoped for him to wake up so much. Now that he had, thinking that his recovery was not complete broke her heart. Her fear increased when something else occurred to her. ‘He uses his left hand to draw. How can he work without it? Not to mention that he must be in pain.’ She thought back to the way he had winced when Rin had jumped on his arm earlier. She sat by his side on her bed, and carefully took his injured arm in her hands.
Sesshoumaru was so focused on not displaying any outwards sign of the pain her hold on his limb created, that it was only when one of her warm tears touched his skin that he realized she was crying.
“Kagura…” He reached over with his right hand to gently brush away a tear. “You have no reason to worry. Everything will be fine, I promise you.”
“I am so sorry. This is all my fault. Ever since I entered your life, all I’ve done is create trouble. By lying to you about my past, and not trusting you I have hurt you so much. If I had told you sooner about working for Naraku, he never would have tried to blackmail you, and things probably would never have escalated to him kidnapping Kanna.” She took a brief pause to produce an undignified sniffle. “You never would have met Naraku had it not been for me. He hurt you… because of that you were in a coma… and now you’re unable to use your arm. How are you going to draw and work without your hand?”
Sesshoumaru gently raised his hand to extend his caresses to the top of her head. “Wind witch, you are not to blame. The reason why Naraku resorted to such drastic and desperate measures was that I backed him into a corner by exposing his… business. When it comes to my arm.” He spared the offending limb an annoyed look. “Do not underestimate this Sesshoumaru. Have full confidence that it will be restored fully soon.” The dog demon assured his fiancée.
She brightened up upon hearing his words. “You’re right. I know you’re strong, we’ll get through this.” She reached up to press a kiss on Sesshoumaru’s forehead. Not satisfied with the innocent peck, he used his hand to push her head down for their lips to meet. For the first time since he has awaken from his coma, the two of them were finally alone, and Sesshoumaru intended to take full advantage of it. The wind sorceress grinned, but kept her lips shut as she was not about to complain. She after all could think of better things to do with her mouth at that precise moment.
The door of the hospital room was suddenly thrown opened, interrupting the privacy of the two entwined lovers. Sesshoumaru reluctantly relinquished his hold on Kagura’s head, and gently pushed her away. His golden eyes widened when he saw who had dared intrude.
“What are you doing here?” Sesshoumaru spat distastefully when none other than his mother strolled inside the room.
The older woman ignored him, and walked towards the table to place her designer clutch bag, and matching white coat on it. After taking her time, and sensing her son’s growing irritation, she finally answered. “Jaken has informed me of your recovery.”
“This does not explain your presence.”
“Tut-tut Sesshoumaru, has your dear fiancée not informed you that I have been visiting you almost daily. Kagura, Sakura and I have quite become good friends.” Asuka said sarcastically.
Things finally clicked into place for Sesshoumaru. “I take it my mother is this ‘you-know-who’ person you were referring to earlier when talking with your mother.” The dog demon turned to his side to speak to Kagura. He then gave his attention back to his mother. “Why have you come here?”
“Is this how you show your gratitude? I have raised you better than this. If you must know, I have been very worried about you.” Asuka leaned over her son’s bed to take a closer look at him. She was relieved to see that he seemed alert and awake. ‘I guess Sesshoumaru’s doctor was not as incompetent as I might have thought.’
Again Sesshoumaru asked his question, adding emphasis to his voice as he really wanted an answer this time around. “Mother, why are you here?”
“I had originally come to check if some things...” Her cold golden eyes rolled to the side to look at Kagura briefly. “had been disposed of. However when Jaken told me you had awakened from your coma, I just had to come and see how you were doing.”
He knew his mother too well, and her comment, coupled with the tidbits of information he had gathered from Kagura’s earlier conversation with Sakura had led him to believe that Asuka had not been very welcoming of his fiancée. ‘Which is something this Sesshoumaru will not stand for.’
“Now girl, I would like to be left alone with my son. Sesshoumaru and I do have to catch up.”
The wind sorceress sent the older woman a nasty glare. “If you think I’ll stand by, and let you talk shit about me to Sesshoumaru…”
“Wind witch.” Sesshoumaru interrupted her. “Nothing my mother could say could ever make me doubt you, that you can be assured of.” As if to emphasize his point, the dog demon used the pad of his uninjured thumb to gently caress the Tenseiga which adorned her finger. “Now I would appreciate it you could go get me something to eat; I am famished. Please take the time to eat something this time around.” He saw her frown, and quickly added. “You have no need to worry, this Sesshoumaru will be fine if left alone with my mother.
Kagura was backed into a corner. She really had no choice but to leave; even though she could not shake off a negative feeling. “Okay. I’ll be back in fifteen minutes.” She reluctantly agreed. She did take the time to take the food her mother had gotten her, then give her fiancé a brief kiss before walking out of the hospital room.
“Ah much better.” Asuka smiled happily before plopping herself down on the left side of the bed. Sesshoumaru pushed his injured arm out of her way, gritting his teeth in effort, but keeping his face as closed off as possible as he did not want his mother to learn about his injury.
“What did you wish to talk to me about? Let me warn you in advance mother, if you intend to say anything about my fiancée…”
Asuka sighed in exasperation. “I have more important things to deal with right now than talking about that… woman.” ‘As unsuitable as she may be for him, she has stood by his side during his hospitalization, and has proved to be devoted to him. Not to mention that he seems to have genuine feelings for her.’ The dog demoness pulled her thoughts away from Kagura, and decided to focus back on what she considered to be a most pressing issue. “I am here to talk to you about the agency.”
Sesshoumaru raised an eyebrow in surprise. He had asked Kagura about the situation at the Takahashi agency, but she had remained tight lipped. She assured him that she had been too busy caring for him and their daughters to ask Inuyasha about the agency, but Sesshoumaru was convinced she remained silent by fear of tiring him out.
‘She is misguided if she thinks that being stuck in this hospital bed will keep me away from my company.’ He thought angrily as he raised his gaze to look at his mother. “What is the matter?”
Glad to have her son’s full attention, Asuka started speaking. “Jaken has been telling me everything about the going-ons at the agency.” Sesshoumaru was polite enough not to point out that his ‘faithful’ retainer was obviously spying on him and his company in favor of his mother, which was something he vowed to put an end to soon enough.
“To put things in simple words, the board is stuck, and no decisions has been made in the past weeks. Of course I don’t need to tell you that we are approaching a crucial time. Soon enough we will be receiving requests from new clients for ad and commercial campaigns for the holiday season. You’re also aware that unless the board votes in favor of it the agency cannot take on new clients… I always thought that this was one of your father’s most stupid ideas…. After all most board members are old goats. At least you got us rid of Kichiro Kanzaki; I’ve never been able to stand that man. He did manage to have you agree not to let you and your brother be major shareholders in your own company. Not to worry, we will get through this easily enough.”
‘When exactly did this we business start?’ Sesshoumaru could not help but wonder. “There is no we.” His words caused his mother to frown. “The agency is mine, and I will deal with it.”
Asuka grinned, revealing a sharp fang. “My dear son, I am not about to step on your toes. All I wish is to help. I’ve learned about the shares of the company you finally managed to get back from Kanzaki, and I have also been aware that you have yet to let someone buy or won these shares. Until they are redistributed, the board is unable to vote. You know that.”
Things were finally taking shape in Sesshoumaru’s mind; he now knew what his mother wanted. “Let me guess, you wish for me to put the shares in your name.” He said in an icy voice.
“I stayed silent when you let that horrid Kanzaki talk you into promising you and your half brother would not own more than 45% of the company, but I do not intend to stand back and let you screw up again. Your company needs you, and by giving me the shares, you can be assured that I will always vote in favor of your proposals.”
“Mother, did you think that my coma would have addled my brain? The reason you were not here to advise me on the best course of action after father’s death was that you were too busy with your lover the ambassador.” Sesshoumaru said viciously. At the time he had not cared that his mother had not been there; ever since he had gone to live with his father she had not been an important fixture in his life after all. “If you are in such desperate need of money, instead of trying to convince me to give you these shares, why don’t you go back to your most recent lover? I am sure that if you play your cards right, the baron will take you back.”
The dog demoness shot to her feet, and sent her son an angry stare. “He begged me to come back, but I refused because I knew you would need me. I made the choice to stay by your side. I do not care about the money, I only wish to help you.”
“Your concern is touching, but you have no need to worry. I have every intention of giving the shares to someone: my daughters. Of course until they are old enough to sit on the board, their mother will be the guardian of the shares.” Sesshoumaru informed his mother.
“I had Myouga draw the necessary paperwork. All that is needed is Kagura’s signature.” Sesshoumaru said even as he made a mental reminder to ask his lawyer to add Rin’s name to the papers. ‘I do hope that my close call will make Kagura see how important it is for her to accept to sign the damn papers.’
“You would put her in charge?” Asuka asked incredulously. She was so angry that if her son had not been lying in a hospital bed, she would have tried to shake some sense into him.
“Of course. You may doubt it, but she is going to be my wife. She is already the mother of my children, your granddaughters, and as such you owe her respect. Let me tell you this one last time, I will not tolerate any words spoken against Kagura.”
“Your coma has indeed addled your brain! I will come talk to you once you have regained your damn mind.” Huffing angrily Asuka left the room, and slammed the door angrily after her.
Sesshoumaru let her go. He was not in the mood to get into yet another argument with his mother. He was tired, hungry, and his arm and head were throbbing. However he knew Kagura would be back soon, and before she did, he was determined to solve the problem his mother had revealed to him.
He leaned to the side, and picked up the phone placed on the side table. His exhausted body cried in protest, but he ignored the pain. He quickly punched in the number, and was relieved when the person on the other line answered after only one ring.
“You have much explaining to do.” He growled into the phone.
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“Surprise! I’m kidnapping you to go to lunch.” Mayumi said cheerily as she popped her head inside Suikotsu’s office. He smiled up at her, and pushed his chair away from his desk, but did not stand up.
“I wish I could go with you, but I’m working on a case…” He pointed on his desk littered with opened files and papers. “I’m sure you’ll be glad to know that Sesshoumaru has woken up.”
“Thank God!” Mayumi clapped her hands in happiness. “Kagura and their daughters must be so happy.” The young woman walked towards her friend’s desk. Since as of late she had been spending quite a bit of time in his presence, she did not wait to be invited to sit up in one of the two chairs which faced Suikotsu’s working station.
“Is that for Sesshoumaru?” She asked as her eyes took in a medical book which was opened to the gruesome picture of a dissected arm.
“I can’t really tell you that; I have to protect my patients’ confidentiality…. So let’s just say that I have a very important patient who suffered from a gunshot wound to the arm. I thought the wound had healed, but he is having difficulty moving his arm. I’m still waiting on lab results, but I think he may have suffered muscle damage.”
The young woman easily figured out who her newest friend was talking about. Even though she had not been the one who had pulled the trigger, Mayumi still felt responsible for what had happened to Sesshoumaru and Kanna. ‘Had I not helped Naraku, he might not have been able to take Kanna away, and Sesshoumaru would not have gotten hurt.’
“Mayumi. You do realize you have no reason to feel guilty, right?” The doctor asked the younger demoness. He could tell his newest revelation had upset her, and he only wished to make her feel better. In the past weeks the two of them had grown closer, and Suikotsu had started developing feelings for his friend. For this reason only he wanted nothing more than to cheer her up.
Her past involvement in Naraku’s nefarious plans was not something she liked talking about with Suikotsu. Mayumi therefore decided to quickly change the subject by blurting the first thing that came to her mind.
“A few nights ago, mom and I watched a program on television about a young human man who had been shot in the leg by accident. Doctors told him it was a miracle he had kept his limb, but that he would never walk again. But then he managed to gain back full control of his leg after a few months of physical training. Repetitive motions and exercise helped him build up his muscles back, and now he’s walking just fine. If a human managed to do it, I’m sure Sesshoumaru can as well.”
Suikotsu smiled briefly at the young woman seated across from him. Her bruises at the hands of Naraku had faded long ago, leaving behind a beautiful confident young woman, a woman for who he was falling fast.
“You’re right, Sesshoumaru is the one person I know who can defy prognostics.” The young doctor stood up from behind his desk, and rounded the piece of furniture to come stand next to his friend. She too stood up as she did not like having his larger form towering over her. She trusted Suikotsu completely, and knew he would never hurt her intentionally, but Mayumi had spent months as Naraku’s personal punching bag, and was finding it hard to break her past habits and preservation instincts.
“I’m always glad to help cheer you up, so now that your mind is at ease, can you spare a few minutes to go eat with me? I convinced Jakotsu and Bankotsu to give me the afternoon off, and it’d be a shame if we didn’t enjoy it together…”
Her gently spoken plea went straight to his heart, and before he realized what he was doing, Suikotsu was bent forward, his lips pressed firmly against Mayumi’s.
“You shouldn’t have done this…” She whispered taking a step back once he broke their kiss. Tear threatened to fall from her eyes, but she tried her best to keep them at bay.
Suikotsu looked at her with resolve burning in his dark eyes. “Why not? I know you like me, and I like you too.”
“I do like you, but the two of us can never be; it wouldn’t be right… You know about my past, you know what I’ve done…” She responded as tears ran down her pale cheeks.
The dark haired man could not help himself, he dissolved in laughter. “I could care less about your past. If you must know, I too have been on the wrong side of the law, more than once. In fact I’ve spent time in jail.” His smile only broadened when he saw the younger woman’s open wide in shock. “Let’s just say I wasn’t always the most upstanding citizen. But I’ve changed, and I know you can change too. You’re working an honest job now, and all you need to be really respectable is a doctor boyfriend.” He used the pad of his thumb to wipe away the stray tears that had escaped her eyes.
Despite her previous misgivings, she once again found herself unable to refuse Suikotsu anything.
“Okay… but we’ll take things slowly.” She said as she thought ‘I want to give him a chance to back out any time he wants.’
“Fine by me. I just want you to feel good when you’re with me.” He bent down to press another quick kiss to her unsuspecting lips, then looped his arm around hers, and taking her along walked towards the exit of his office. “Now why don’t we go on this lunch date you promised me? Today I’m in the mood for sushi.”
“Sushi sounds good.” She agreed eagerly even as she leaned her head against his strong arm.
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Kagura Onigumo, soon to be Takahashi, hurried down the corridor leading to her fiancé’s room. Since she had been able to tell that Sesshoumaru really wanted to be left alone with his mother for a little bit, she had done as asked, and left the room. However she had just taken enough time to go heat up the food her mother had bought for her at the cafeteria, wolf it down, and buy some vegetable soup for Sesshoumaru. She knew he would have enjoyed a nice chunk of meat better, but she was not sure it would be recommended since he had just woken up from a coma. Holding on closely to the warm container in her hands, she hurried her steps.
‘I really hate the idea of leaving Sesshoumaru alone with his mother.’ She thought worriedly. After all she could remember all too well the numerous occasions the dog demoness had tried to get rid of her.
As Kagura approached Sesshoumaru’s room, she was greeted with a sight she would have never expected: Asuka Watanabe-Takahashi was leaning against the door of her son’s hospital room, a forlorn expression on her face. The one thing that surprised and really shocked Kagura the most was the unusual shine in the woman’s usually cold golden eyes.
“Are you crying?” Kagura gasped incredulously.
Asuka had been too wrapped up in her own thoughts to notice the younger woman’s approach. However she was not about to be caught off guard, and let Kagura be a witness to her moment of weakness. She quickly rubbed her eyes, pretending to rearrange her makeup. “Of course not you stupid woman.”
The fearsome dog demon turned the full force of her hard glare on Kagura. “Go ahead. Gloat! You won. You have Sesshoumaru all to yourself, and wrapped up around your little finger.”
Kagura could not help but snort at the other woman’s words. “You do realize that winning Sesshoumaru’s affections isn’t a competition, right?” She then grinned and added. “In truth if you weren’t such a bitch, I wouldn’t mind sharing him.” Of course her remark had the desired effect on Asuka, namely her eyes thinned in pure fury.
“The problem with you,” Kagura continued, undeterred by the other woman’s fierce glare. “is that you think you can control your son. I know that Sesshoumaru has helped support you forever, but you can’t expect to be able to make him do what you want. Especially when it comes to his choice of woman.”
Asuka was still reeling from Sesshoumaru’s refusal to give her the shares of his company, and having Kagura gloating, and telling her how to handle her son. ‘What does she even know about my relationship with Sesshoumaru?! ‘ The inu youkai thought angrily.
“You and Izayoi believe you have the monopoly of motherly instinct. I love my son, and only want the best for him. All I want is to help him…” Asuka started, but interrupted herself. She would not give Kagura the satisfaction of seeing her breakdown. “I realize now that Sesshoumaru will not get rid of you as I had hoped. I suppose it will be something I will have to live with. However be sure that if you ever hurt him, I will destroy you.”
Kagura was nonplused by the opened threat. “I am not scared of you, but you can rest assured. I have no intention of hurting Sesshoumaru in any way. I love with, and I thought I had proved to you that I too only want what’s best for him.”
“Unless you wish to have to deal with me, things better remain this way. I will keep an eye on the two of you. Tell Sesshoumaru I had to leave to catch my plane. I am going back to Germany where my lover has been waiting for me.” The dog demoness raised her head high proudly, and walked away, the resonating sound of her high heels was the only sound in the empty hallway. As she watched the older woman leave, Kagura could not help but notice the aura of sadness emanating from Asuka.
‘I don’t know what happened in there with Sesshoumaru, but she looks miserable…’ The wind sorceress opened the door of the hospital room, and stepped in. ‘More importantly, why exactly am I feeling so bad for her? She’s a horrible person…’
“You are looking quite thoughtful.” Sesshoumaru’s voice caused her to come out of her thoughts.
“I ran into your mother outside.” Her words caught his attention. He was ready to reassure her in the event his mother had once again said something unkind to her, but before he could, Kagura said something that shocked him. “She was crying in the corridor.”
“Preposterous!” Sesshoumaru scoffed. “You must be mistaken. Asuka Watanabe-Takahashi does not cry. She is too cold for such a display of emotion.”
Kagura shrugged, and walked closer to her lover. She placed the container full of soup on the side table closest to the bed, and turned her attention back to Sesshoumaru. “I know what I saw. I don’t know what you told her, but she really looked miserable.”
Kagura opened the soup container, and fished out the spoon she had picked up earlier from the cafeteria. The next thing that came out of the bag was a wad of paper napkins.
“What do you think you are doing?” The dog demon asked in shock as she placed a napkin around his neck.
“Taking care of my future husband. Now open up and let me feed you your soup unless you want me to hurt you. After all I still haven’t forgiven you for drugging me, and leaving me behind to go face up with Naraku. I’m pretty sure that had I been there, you wouldn’t have gotten shot.” She placed the spoonful of warm brown liquid in front of his lips. “Plus you do owe me for standing by your bedside for so many days. Now eat up!”
Sesshoumaru did not really wish to speak about his deception, or his ensuing hospitalization, so he let her have her way for now. He did decide to switch the focus of the conversation.
“Since when do you care about so much about my mother’s feelings? I thought you hated her.” Sesshoumaru commented after dutifully swallowing the first spoonful of soup.
“Hate? Hum dislike would be a better word.” Kagura responded before feeding him some more soup. “I may not like the way she uses you as a personal ATM, but in the past few weeks, I’ve seen the way she fought for what she believed was your best interest.” Sesshoumaru arched a suspicious eyebrow in response. “No really, I do think that in her distorted and slightly foolish way of thinking, she thought she was protecting you.” His fiancée added.
“Since when have you become such a connoisseur of people’s psychologies?” He asked then frowned when Kagura presented him with one more spoonful. “No more, I am full.”
“Okay one last bite.” She gently cooed as if talking to Kanna, which of course earned her a sharp glare from Sesshoumaru. He did take the last of the soup as instructed, and was rewarded by a big smile from Kagura. The wind sorceress then put the food away, wiped his mouth, and rid him of the fluffy white napkin before she resumed speaking.
“I might not be a pro of psychology, but I know firsthand a mother who cares for her kid. Plus lately I’ve found out that with family, things can be more complicated than we might think. I mean look at me and Sakura. I used to hate my mother, and a year ago I never could have imagined her being such an important part of my life.”
‘Is the witch comparing our mothers?’ Sesshoumaru incredulously. In his eyes Sakura had fought for years to be reunited with the daughter she loved so much while Asuka had never been bothered to be a true mother to him. “If I understand you well, you wish for me to be… on better terms with my mother.” He struggled to put his thoughts into words. The idea of Kagura becoming Asuka’s champion was just that ludicrous to him. ‘Then again if mother was crying as Kagura claimed, I can understand this may have affected her view.’
“I know she wouldn’t get the mother of the year award, but I just feel bad for the old woman.”
“Old woman?” Sesshoumaru scoffed. “If mother ever heard you call her that, she would rip your head off with her poisoned claws.”
Kagura did not care to comment as she knew his words were true. “She does care for you, and besides we owe her one I guess. If she hadn’t given you blood, you wouldn’t be here right now.” She took a brief pause to think about what she was saying. “Now I don’t expect her to join us for dinner on holidays and stuff.” A shudder went through her at the idea of having a family dinner with Asuka. “But I think you should talk to her more… apart from the times she calls to ask you for money. Just give her some time to cool off first, she seemed very upset. Besides she is going back to Germany.”
“Germany?” The dog demon echoed in surprise. ‘Didn’t mother say she had broken things up with the baron?’ He recalled that she had thrown in his face earlier that she had refused to reconcile with the wealthy man only so as to stay by his side. ‘Why would she lie to Kagura? To protect her pride?’ He could not help but reflect on his mothers unusual behavior. ‘Since when do I even wonder about her love life… this is all Kagura’s influence.’
“Fine. You win. You are a terrible influence on me, you have managed to convince this Sesshoumaru to contact my mother.” He reached up to press a kiss to his fiancée’s cheek, careful not to move his left arm. “Who knew that inside you was hidden a person with such a heart of gold.”
“Pfft! Please do not confuse me with Kagome, and the other goody two shoes who try to make everything better for everyone. I only care about you, and our family, so I guess Asuka too by extension.” Even as she thought back to the other woman, Kagura could not help but think of how dejected she had looked. “Now, I want to ask you a favor.”
He was immediately interested; it was after all very uncommon for Kagura to ask anything of him.
“I want to thank Jakotsu and Bankotsu for helping us get Kanna back safely. I know there is one thing they both would love to see happen, but unlike you, I don’t have the connections to make it happen.”
“What is it?” He asked. He knew that whatever Kagura would ask of him, he would do his very best to make happen because he loved her so much. And if at the same time making her happy could allow him to repay the debt he owed Bankotsu and Jakotsu then he did not see any reason to turn down her request.
“Jakotsu would love to reconnect with his brother.” Kagura sighed as she thought back to her friend’s hurtful story. “His father threw him out of the house when he was a teenager only because he was gay. Jakotsu hasn’t seen his brother since then, and I know he would love to see him again. Of course if I find out he’s a judgmental spineless bastard like their father, I wouldn’t let Jakotsu know, but if he’s not, then putting them back in touch could be the best thank you we could give him and Bankotsu.”
“I see. I am sure this can be arranged. I will have Touran look into it; she is skilled at this kind of things.” Sesshoumaru commented even as he thought. ‘How could a parent treat their child in such a callous way. Nothing Rin or Kanna could ever do would make me renounce them.’ He briefly blinked his eyes several times, which caught Kagura’s attention.
“I’m sorry honey. I’m talking to you now when you should be resting.” She gently pushed his bangs out of his tired eyes before pressing a tender kiss to the crescent adorning his forehead. “You look exhausted, so I’ll leave you for now.” She left his side, and picked up her purse and coat. “I’ll go talk to Suikotsu to find out what he plans to do about your arm.” Even as she tried to mask he worry, she could not help but let a small frown crease her forehead.
“Then you’ll go home. I am not the only one who needs rest.” The definitive tone of his voice let her know this was not up for discussion.
“Alright I’m leaving for home, but I’ll be back tomorrow bright and early, so be ready.” Kagura bent over her lover’s form to press a quick kiss to his lips. “I’m so glad you came back to me. I don’t know what I would have done without you; I love you so much.”
He reached up with his right arm to gently run his hand against the soft skin of her cheek. “I feel the same wind witch.” He whispered tenderly, causing her heart to flutter. He did not often voice his feelings for her, but when he did, she felt like the luckiest woman on the planet.
Kagura reluctantly broke their embrace, and after giving Sesshoumaru’s immobile arm one last look, headed for the door. “I’ll see you tomorrow.” She threw over her shoulder cheerfully. During Sesshoumaru’s long coma, every time she had left his room, she had feared this was bound to be the last time she would see the man she loved, but knowing he was going to live was all that mattered to her.
‘He may not be fully healed yet, but having him back means the world to me. Whatever happens, I know we’ll be alright.’
To be continued…
A/N: A lot happened. Expected, and not so expected things. I really like the interaction between Asuka and Kagura. I wanted to show there was more to the dog demoness. The next chapter will be the last one (before the epilogue), and it will be aptly named Tying up loose ends. I don’t know when I’ll update next, but I’ll try my best not to have you guys wait too long.
In the meantime please check out my newly posted mini story Secret Lovers. Here’s the summary: AU When away on an assignment for the magazine they work for, coworkers Kagura and Sesshoumaru engage in a passionate affair. How will they deal once they get back to their lives? Having a dirty little secret never felt this good. Sessh/Kagura. Rated M for lots of citrus and language.
Thanks for the support!
Converting /tmp/phpw87PXV to /dev/stdout
A/N: Long chapter as we still have much to address.
Disclaimer: If I owned Inuyasha, Sesshy and Kagura would be happily mated and working on silver haired baby number three by now…
“Talking”
‘ThinkingR 17;
“Enough!” Sesshoumaru roared. For the better part of the past two hours, he had been touched, probed and looked all over by Suikotsu. Ever since he had awakened from his coma a few hours ago, he had had to endure a long examination at the hands of his physician, which did not seat well with the dog demon. After all this was not how Sesshoumaru had expected to spend his first hours awake.
“I don’t want to hear one word of complaint.” Kagura sent her fiancé a nasty glare. “Don’t listen to him Suikotsu, do whatever it takes to prevent Sesshoumaru from lapsing into a coma again.”
The young doctor could not help but snicker at the way Kagura was so effortlessly bossing the dog demon around. The Sesshoumaru he knew would never be caught dead being told what to do; especially by a little woman.
Noticing the amusement present on his doctor’s face, Sesshoumaru grew irritated. He intended to let the other man know exactly about his feelings, but his façade fell when Suikotsu probed his left arm. Sesshoumaru did his best to pretend he was not hurt, but he could not prevent himself from wincing.
“Kagura why don’t you go join your daughters and your mother for lunch downstairs? I’m sure they would enjoy the company. I’ll keep Sesshoumaru busy here for at least another hour.” Suikotsu turned from his patient to look at the young woman seated in the nearby chair.
The wind sorceress was about to refuse as she really did not want to be separated from Sesshoumaru now that she had him back, but considering that her stomach had been growling furiously for the past half hour, she figured it might not be such a bad idea.
‘I was too upset to eat breakfast this morning at the idea of bringing the girls to see Sesshoumaru… but now I could definitely use some food. Not to mention that I want to talk to the girls, and warn them to tread carefully. The last thing I’d want would be for them to tire him out.’ She briefly thought back to how Sakura and Morio had to practically pry Rin and Kanna off of their father’s bed to let Suikotsu take a look at the inu youkai.
As if noting Kagura’s hesitation, Sesshoumaru averted his gaze from his doctor’s smiling face to his fiancée. “Go Kagura. I can assure you this Sesshoumaru is not going anywhere.”
The wind sorceress chuckled at his last comment. She had not had much reason to laugh as of late, and doing so felt so good.
“Alright you guys win. I’ll make it back as quickly as possible. Sesshoumaru, you better get ready to get assaulted by the girls again.” Kagura was so glad to have her lover back, and would have loved to press a kiss to his lips, but did not dare to in the presence of Suikotsu. She contented herself with sending him a bright smile, and left the hospital room.
“Good thing you sent her to eat.” Suikotsu said once the door was shut after Kagura. “I’ve been worried about her, especially because of her anemia. I know she’s been taking the iron supplements I prescribed her, but she hasn’t really been taking care of herself. She’s been sitting in that chair at your bedside day and night. At least she’ll get the chance to eat and rest now.”
The wind sorceress had filled in Sesshoumaru about his coma, but had left out that part, which did not really surprise him.
‘The witch probably did not want to worry me…’ He thought even as his heart swelled with love for the woman who had stayed faithfully by his side.
“Anyways let’s focus back on you. Everything looks good so far… except for the arm. When exactly were you going to tell me you’re in pain?” The easy smile the doctor had had on his face earlier was replaced by a dark scowl.
“This Sesshoumaru is doing fine.” The youkai retorted. He had no intention of staying in the hospital any longer. He wanted to put Kanna’s abduction and his ensuing injury and coma behind them, and be able to spend some much deserved quality time with his family.
“Uh-hum. Then why is it you looked on the verge of tears when Rin hugged your arm earlier?” The doctor commented on the scene he had witnessed upon entering his patient’s room.
“What nonsense.”
Suikotsu did not bother denying his patient’s words. He simply slapped Sesshoumaru’s arm as hard as he could, paying attention to hit the closed off bullet wound. The dog demon growled and glared, but despite his best efforts was unable to mask the look of pain which transpired in his eyes.
“There might have been some more serious nerve damage than I had anticipated.” Suikotsu said thoughtfully. During the time of Sesshoumaru’s blood poisoning and coma, the young doctor had pushed back the thought of the bullet wound. He had expected for the injury to heal completely considering that Sesshoumaru was such a powerful dog demon.
‘It seems I might have been mistaken. I will need to look into this.’ Even as he thought this, the young human extended his arm towards his patient. “Sesshoumaru, shake my hand.”
Grudgingly, the other man did as told. Suikotsu sighed when Sesshoumaru reached for him. “You know I meant with your other hand, the left one. I want to see if your arm is as unaffected as you claim it is…”
Baiting the dog demon and mocking his pride had a tendency to work pretty well, and this time was no different. Sesshoumaru struggled to lift his left arm, which seemed to weigh three tons, and awkwardly gripped the other man’s hand. The simple action exhausted him, and had him almost sweating in exertion by the time he let go of his doctor’s limb, and allowed the arm to fall back down on the bed.
‘As if I falling into a coma was not bad enough. Now my damn arm won’t work. I hate feeling this weak!’ Sesshoumaru thought angrily as he clenched his teeth.
Suikotsu’s keen eyes easily noticed his friend’s upset, and sought to reassure him. “It seems the nerve and muscle damage was more than I had anticipated, but there is no need to be worried. This is of course not uncommon with people who have been shot. You might need some physical rehabilitation…”
Sesshoumaru interrupted his doctor’s words by sending the other man a sharp glare. The mere thought of having to go through a physical rehab program was unconceivable to a strong dog demon as him.
“Well of course I’m not sure the physical therapy will be necessary. I need to make you go through some tests first of course.”
“No more tests.”
“Fine with me, I don’t care that you can barely move your left arm. But let me assure you that you’ll be the one who will explain to your kids why you can’t lift them anymore. Not to mention Kagura, how will you explain that to her…”
Sesshoumaru knew there was truth in the other man’s words. Even if he had wished to deny it, he would not have been able to. His golden eyes lowered to his left arm and hand lying on the white sheet of his hospital bed. He clenched his fist, and was angered when he did not manage to summon as much strength as before.
Sesshoumaru however did not get the chance to dwell on his feelings as Kagura suddenly burst back into the room. Her daughters, Morio and Sakura following behind her.
“Explain what to Kagura?” She asked looking from Suikotsu to Sesshoumaru expectantly.
“Did you eat?” Her fiancé asked her, purposely ignoring her question.
“Grandma and grandpa let us have ice cream even if it’s cold!” Kanna said excitedly.
“They said we had to celebrate having you back.” Rin interjected, eager to defend her newfound grandparents.
“Good. I can see you enjoyed yourselves.” Sesshoumaru was unnerved by the fact of being the only person lying down, and since he knew none of the adults would let him out of his bed, he beckoned his daughters closer. “Come up here.” Rin and Kanna did not waste any time, and quickly obliged. Rin carefully slipped under his left arm, paying attention not to bump into the large IV giving the dog demon Mukotsu’s potion, which Suikotsu had decided to leave in place for now. When it came to Kanna, a large smile was displayed on her lips once she snuggled under her father’s right arm.
The dog demon pushed though the pain in his left arm, and using both hands gently caressed the heads of his daughters then looked towards Kagura, and raised an eyebrow in question, she knew he wanted to know if she had eaten as well.
‘I’m the one who should be fussing over him, not the other way around.’ She smiled indulgently when Rin and Kanna almost purred in pure contentment.
She grinned in Sesshoumaru’s direction before answering. “No I didn’t eat, but I will in a second. I ran into mom, Morio and the girls on my way to the cafeteria. They were coming back to your room, and were nice enough to bring me lunch.” As proof, Kagura raised a white container up to Sesshoumaru’s gaze. “So what were the two of you talking about before we came in?”
Suikotsu sent his patient an uncomfortable glance, hoping Sesshoumaru would confess his problem to Kagura. As much as he knew the wind sorceress should know, the young doctor could not betray his patient’s confidentiality.
The anxious look did not escape Kagura’s sharp gaze. “Mom, would you mind taking the girls to the mansion for the evening?”
“No mom!” Kanna scowled unhappily before her grandmother had the chance to abide to her daughter’s request. Even if Rin had too wanted to express her displeasure, she had decided not to speak up.
“Honey, Sesshoumaru has to rest if you want him to come back home with us.” The wind sorceress gently pacified her youngest daughter. She placed her lunch on the table next to her, then walked closer to the bed. “There’s no need to worry, he’s not going anywhere, I promise.”
“Besides remember that you haven’t blown the candles on your cake yet. We can still have a little birthday celebration for you Kanna.” Sakura smiled in her granddaughter’s reaction.
The void demoness’s words caused Sesshoumaru’s heart to clench. He had not realized that it was his daughter’s birthday, and had he known he would have had the girls and Kagura to go home to celebrate Kanna’s birthday.
‘She should not have to spend this special day in that damned clinic.’ He thought guiltily.
“I don’t need a party. Now that daddy is back, I don’t want anything.” Kanna said bravely and honestly.
“What a pity. I guess grandma Sakura and I will just have to throw away the presents we bought for you. And we can probably get rid of the cake you, Rin and your mommy baked yesterday…” Morio noted thoughtfully.
“Nuh-huh. Kanna wants nothing.” She persisted, albeit a little more weakly. As much as she tried, she could not help but wonder what her grandparents had gotten her. She knew it was not going to be a pony, or a puppy which had been her number two choices, but her curiosity had been piqued, and she wanted to know what the gift would be.
“It would please me if you celebrated your birthday with your grandparents.” Sesshoumaru told his daughter. When Kanna opened her mouth to formulate a protest, he quickly added “Once I am released from the hospital.” He paused to send Suikotsu a pointed look. “We will have another, bigger celebration with everyone.”
Kanna mulled over his words for a few seconds, then smiled again brightly. “Okay! What’s my presents?”
Sakura chuckled at seeing the young child’s excitement. “You will have to wait until we get home to find out.” The void demoness headed towards the bed, and gently plucked Kanna from under her father’s hold. Rin did not need any encouragement, and after pressing a quick shy kiss over Sesshoumaru’s striped cheek, jumped out of the bed.
“Goodbye dad. Get better soon.” The young human said as she walked towards Morio. She smiled up at the older demon when he protectively took a hold of her hand.
“Bye bye daddy.” Kanna waved at the dog demon from her position in her grandmother’s arms.
Sesshoumaru nodded to the two children, but did not voice anything; he was not about to say his feelings aloud in the presence of the Fujibayashis or Suikotsu.
“Morio and I will take care of everything, so don’t you worry.” Sakura said as she walked towards the exit, Kanna securely in her arms. “Kagura be sure to eat please, and let us know if you-know-who shows up again.” The distaste in the woman’s voice was quite clear.
The wind sorceress chuckled at her mother’s words. “I must admit I’m surprised she hasn’t yet considering that yesterday she was so eager to get rid of me.” Kagura could feel Sesshoumaru’s surprised gaze burning a hole in her back, and winced.
‘I probably should have told him about his mother earlier. But everything happened so quickly…’ She tried defending her choice to keep quiet about Asuka’s machinations to get her son rid of her.
“Anyways, you guys go along now, and enjoy yourselves. I’ll call you later, and mom please don’t let them have more than a piece of cake.” Kanna and Rin made small noises of protest, but Kagura ignored them. “You already had ice cream for dessert today.” Their mother reminded them.
“Okay mommy…”
“Bye mom.”
The voices of the little girls blended. They might be disappointed at the idea of not getting more cake, but nothing could compare with the joy of having their father back.
“Don’t worry girls, grandma will sneak in another piece of cake to the two of you. What your mother doesn’t know won’t hurt her.” Sakura chuckled as she, Kanna, Rin and Morio walked out into the clinic’s corridor.
Kagura shook her head as the door closed after her family. She pretended not to have heard her mother’s words and her daughters’ ensuing cheer. ‘Great now when I get home I’ll have to deal with their sugar high…’ She thought to herself. Since she had come that morning anticipating not to come back to the clinic, she had removed all of her personal things from Sesshoumaru’s room, and would have no choice but to go back to her parents’ house to spend the night.
“What were you referring to earlier? Who is you-know-who?” Sesshoumaru asked Kagura. There was nothing he hated more than being kept in the dark.
“I think it’s about time for me to make my exit as well. I do have other patients waiting…” Not even bothering for either youkai to respond, Suikotsu quickly slipped out of the room. Despite Sesshoumaru’s protest he decided to go get one of his aides to come get the dog demon later on to make him go through some additional tests for his arm.
‘I will let the two of them have enough time to talk things out.’
Kagura thoughtfully looked at the door which had closed after Suikotsu, and turned back towards her lover. “I’ll answer once you tell me what you and Suikotsu were talking about when we came in earlier.
Sesshoumaru let out a heavy sigh, but decided to give in. After all Kagura was sure to find out eventually about his arm.
“The bullet wound was more serious than anticipated. It appears my left arm has suffered muscle or nerve damage.” Sesshoumaru struggled to bring his weak arm closer to his gaze.
“What?” She gasped as she suddenly turned very pale. “I don’t understand. But… Suikotsu said the surgery went fine, and that he got all the bullet fragments out.” She added in shock. She had just gotten Sesshoumaru back, and the idea of him having to go through more pain was unbearable to her.
“I suspect it is due to whatever spell that bastard of Naraku put on the bullets.” He spat angrily, not bothering to mask his feelings.
Kagura was devastated. She felt tears rise up inside her, and her previous hunger was quickly forgotten. Her tears were mostly due to fear and exhaustion. She had stood by her lover’s bedside for so many long days, fought with his mother repeatedly, and hoped for him to wake up so much. Now that he had, thinking that his recovery was not complete broke her heart. Her fear increased when something else occurred to her. ‘He uses his left hand to draw. How can he work without it? Not to mention that he must be in pain.’ She thought back to the way he had winced when Rin had jumped on his arm earlier. She sat by his side on her bed, and carefully took his injured arm in her hands.
Sesshoumaru was so focused on not displaying any outwards sign of the pain her hold on his limb created, that it was only when one of her warm tears touched his skin that he realized she was crying.
“Kagura…” He reached over with his right hand to gently brush away a tear. “You have no reason to worry. Everything will be fine, I promise you.”
“I am so sorry. This is all my fault. Ever since I entered your life, all I’ve done is create trouble. By lying to you about my past, and not trusting you I have hurt you so much. If I had told you sooner about working for Naraku, he never would have tried to blackmail you, and things probably would never have escalated to him kidnapping Kanna.” She took a brief pause to produce an undignified sniffle. “You never would have met Naraku had it not been for me. He hurt you… because of that you were in a coma… and now you’re unable to use your arm. How are you going to draw and work without your hand?”
Sesshoumaru gently raised his hand to extend his caresses to the top of her head. “Wind witch, you are not to blame. The reason why Naraku resorted to such drastic and desperate measures was that I backed him into a corner by exposing his… business. When it comes to my arm.” He spared the offending limb an annoyed look. “Do not underestimate this Sesshoumaru. Have full confidence that it will be restored fully soon.” The dog demon assured his fiancée.
She brightened up upon hearing his words. “You’re right. I know you’re strong, we’ll get through this.” She reached up to press a kiss on Sesshoumaru’s forehead. Not satisfied with the innocent peck, he used his hand to push her head down for their lips to meet. For the first time since he has awaken from his coma, the two of them were finally alone, and Sesshoumaru intended to take full advantage of it. The wind sorceress grinned, but kept her lips shut as she was not about to complain. She after all could think of better things to do with her mouth at that precise moment.
The door of the hospital room was suddenly thrown opened, interrupting the privacy of the two entwined lovers. Sesshoumaru reluctantly relinquished his hold on Kagura’s head, and gently pushed her away. His golden eyes widened when he saw who had dared intrude.
“What are you doing here?” Sesshoumaru spat distastefully when none other than his mother strolled inside the room.
The older woman ignored him, and walked towards the table to place her designer clutch bag, and matching white coat on it. After taking her time, and sensing her son’s growing irritation, she finally answered. “Jaken has informed me of your recovery.”
“This does not explain your presence.”
“Tut-tut Sesshoumaru, has your dear fiancée not informed you that I have been visiting you almost daily. Kagura, Sakura and I have quite become good friends.” Asuka said sarcastically.
Things finally clicked into place for Sesshoumaru. “I take it my mother is this ‘you-know-who’ person you were referring to earlier when talking with your mother.” The dog demon turned to his side to speak to Kagura. He then gave his attention back to his mother. “Why have you come here?”
“Is this how you show your gratitude? I have raised you better than this. If you must know, I have been very worried about you.” Asuka leaned over her son’s bed to take a closer look at him. She was relieved to see that he seemed alert and awake. ‘I guess Sesshoumaru’s doctor was not as incompetent as I might have thought.’
Again Sesshoumaru asked his question, adding emphasis to his voice as he really wanted an answer this time around. “Mother, why are you here?”
“I had originally come to check if some things...” Her cold golden eyes rolled to the side to look at Kagura briefly. “had been disposed of. However when Jaken told me you had awakened from your coma, I just had to come and see how you were doing.”
He knew his mother too well, and her comment, coupled with the tidbits of information he had gathered from Kagura’s earlier conversation with Sakura had led him to believe that Asuka had not been very welcoming of his fiancée. ‘Which is something this Sesshoumaru will not stand for.’
“Now girl, I would like to be left alone with my son. Sesshoumaru and I do have to catch up.”
The wind sorceress sent the older woman a nasty glare. “If you think I’ll stand by, and let you talk shit about me to Sesshoumaru…”
“Wind witch.” Sesshoumaru interrupted her. “Nothing my mother could say could ever make me doubt you, that you can be assured of.” As if to emphasize his point, the dog demon used the pad of his uninjured thumb to gently caress the Tenseiga which adorned her finger. “Now I would appreciate it you could go get me something to eat; I am famished. Please take the time to eat something this time around.” He saw her frown, and quickly added. “You have no need to worry, this Sesshoumaru will be fine if left alone with my mother.
Kagura was backed into a corner. She really had no choice but to leave; even though she could not shake off a negative feeling. “Okay. I’ll be back in fifteen minutes.” She reluctantly agreed. She did take the time to take the food her mother had gotten her, then give her fiancé a brief kiss before walking out of the hospital room.
“Ah much better.” Asuka smiled happily before plopping herself down on the left side of the bed. Sesshoumaru pushed his injured arm out of her way, gritting his teeth in effort, but keeping his face as closed off as possible as he did not want his mother to learn about his injury.
“What did you wish to talk to me about? Let me warn you in advance mother, if you intend to say anything about my fiancée…”
Asuka sighed in exasperation. “I have more important things to deal with right now than talking about that… woman.” ‘As unsuitable as she may be for him, she has stood by his side during his hospitalization, and has proved to be devoted to him. Not to mention that he seems to have genuine feelings for her.’ The dog demoness pulled her thoughts away from Kagura, and decided to focus back on what she considered to be a most pressing issue. “I am here to talk to you about the agency.”
Sesshoumaru raised an eyebrow in surprise. He had asked Kagura about the situation at the Takahashi agency, but she had remained tight lipped. She assured him that she had been too busy caring for him and their daughters to ask Inuyasha about the agency, but Sesshoumaru was convinced she remained silent by fear of tiring him out.
‘She is misguided if she thinks that being stuck in this hospital bed will keep me away from my company.’ He thought angrily as he raised his gaze to look at his mother. “What is the matter?”
Glad to have her son’s full attention, Asuka started speaking. “Jaken has been telling me everything about the going-ons at the agency.” Sesshoumaru was polite enough not to point out that his ‘faithful’ retainer was obviously spying on him and his company in favor of his mother, which was something he vowed to put an end to soon enough.
“To put things in simple words, the board is stuck, and no decisions has been made in the past weeks. Of course I don’t need to tell you that we are approaching a crucial time. Soon enough we will be receiving requests from new clients for ad and commercial campaigns for the holiday season. You’re also aware that unless the board votes in favor of it the agency cannot take on new clients… I always thought that this was one of your father’s most stupid ideas…. After all most board members are old goats. At least you got us rid of Kichiro Kanzaki; I’ve never been able to stand that man. He did manage to have you agree not to let you and your brother be major shareholders in your own company. Not to worry, we will get through this easily enough.”
‘When exactly did this we business start?’ Sesshoumaru could not help but wonder. “There is no we.” His words caused his mother to frown. “The agency is mine, and I will deal with it.”
Asuka grinned, revealing a sharp fang. “My dear son, I am not about to step on your toes. All I wish is to help. I’ve learned about the shares of the company you finally managed to get back from Kanzaki, and I have also been aware that you have yet to let someone buy or won these shares. Until they are redistributed, the board is unable to vote. You know that.”
Things were finally taking shape in Sesshoumaru’s mind; he now knew what his mother wanted. “Let me guess, you wish for me to put the shares in your name.” He said in an icy voice.
“I stayed silent when you let that horrid Kanzaki talk you into promising you and your half brother would not own more than 45% of the company, but I do not intend to stand back and let you screw up again. Your company needs you, and by giving me the shares, you can be assured that I will always vote in favor of your proposals.”
“Mother, did you think that my coma would have addled my brain? The reason you were not here to advise me on the best course of action after father’s death was that you were too busy with your lover the ambassador.” Sesshoumaru said viciously. At the time he had not cared that his mother had not been there; ever since he had gone to live with his father she had not been an important fixture in his life after all. “If you are in such desperate need of money, instead of trying to convince me to give you these shares, why don’t you go back to your most recent lover? I am sure that if you play your cards right, the baron will take you back.”
The dog demoness shot to her feet, and sent her son an angry stare. “He begged me to come back, but I refused because I knew you would need me. I made the choice to stay by your side. I do not care about the money, I only wish to help you.”
“Your concern is touching, but you have no need to worry. I have every intention of giving the shares to someone: my daughters. Of course until they are old enough to sit on the board, their mother will be the guardian of the shares.” Sesshoumaru informed his mother.
“I had Myouga draw the necessary paperwork. All that is needed is Kagura’s signature.” Sesshoumaru said even as he made a mental reminder to ask his lawyer to add Rin’s name to the papers. ‘I do hope that my close call will make Kagura see how important it is for her to accept to sign the damn papers.’
“You would put her in charge?” Asuka asked incredulously. She was so angry that if her son had not been lying in a hospital bed, she would have tried to shake some sense into him.
“Of course. You may doubt it, but she is going to be my wife. She is already the mother of my children, your granddaughters, and as such you owe her respect. Let me tell you this one last time, I will not tolerate any words spoken against Kagura.”
“Your coma has indeed addled your brain! I will come talk to you once you have regained your damn mind.” Huffing angrily Asuka left the room, and slammed the door angrily after her.
Sesshoumaru let her go. He was not in the mood to get into yet another argument with his mother. He was tired, hungry, and his arm and head were throbbing. However he knew Kagura would be back soon, and before she did, he was determined to solve the problem his mother had revealed to him.
He leaned to the side, and picked up the phone placed on the side table. His exhausted body cried in protest, but he ignored the pain. He quickly punched in the number, and was relieved when the person on the other line answered after only one ring.
“You have much explaining to do.” He growled into the phone.
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“Surprise! I’m kidnapping you to go to lunch.” Mayumi said cheerily as she popped her head inside Suikotsu’s office. He smiled up at her, and pushed his chair away from his desk, but did not stand up.
“I wish I could go with you, but I’m working on a case…” He pointed on his desk littered with opened files and papers. “I’m sure you’ll be glad to know that Sesshoumaru has woken up.”
“Thank God!” Mayumi clapped her hands in happiness. “Kagura and their daughters must be so happy.” The young woman walked towards her friend’s desk. Since as of late she had been spending quite a bit of time in his presence, she did not wait to be invited to sit up in one of the two chairs which faced Suikotsu’s working station.
“Is that for Sesshoumaru?” She asked as her eyes took in a medical book which was opened to the gruesome picture of a dissected arm.
“I can’t really tell you that; I have to protect my patients’ confidentiality…. So let’s just say that I have a very important patient who suffered from a gunshot wound to the arm. I thought the wound had healed, but he is having difficulty moving his arm. I’m still waiting on lab results, but I think he may have suffered muscle damage.”
The young woman easily figured out who her newest friend was talking about. Even though she had not been the one who had pulled the trigger, Mayumi still felt responsible for what had happened to Sesshoumaru and Kanna. ‘Had I not helped Naraku, he might not have been able to take Kanna away, and Sesshoumaru would not have gotten hurt.’
“Mayumi. You do realize you have no reason to feel guilty, right?” The doctor asked the younger demoness. He could tell his newest revelation had upset her, and he only wished to make her feel better. In the past weeks the two of them had grown closer, and Suikotsu had started developing feelings for his friend. For this reason only he wanted nothing more than to cheer her up.
Her past involvement in Naraku’s nefarious plans was not something she liked talking about with Suikotsu. Mayumi therefore decided to quickly change the subject by blurting the first thing that came to her mind.
“A few nights ago, mom and I watched a program on television about a young human man who had been shot in the leg by accident. Doctors told him it was a miracle he had kept his limb, but that he would never walk again. But then he managed to gain back full control of his leg after a few months of physical training. Repetitive motions and exercise helped him build up his muscles back, and now he’s walking just fine. If a human managed to do it, I’m sure Sesshoumaru can as well.”
Suikotsu smiled briefly at the young woman seated across from him. Her bruises at the hands of Naraku had faded long ago, leaving behind a beautiful confident young woman, a woman for who he was falling fast.
“You’re right, Sesshoumaru is the one person I know who can defy prognostics.” The young doctor stood up from behind his desk, and rounded the piece of furniture to come stand next to his friend. She too stood up as she did not like having his larger form towering over her. She trusted Suikotsu completely, and knew he would never hurt her intentionally, but Mayumi had spent months as Naraku’s personal punching bag, and was finding it hard to break her past habits and preservation instincts.
“I’m always glad to help cheer you up, so now that your mind is at ease, can you spare a few minutes to go eat with me? I convinced Jakotsu and Bankotsu to give me the afternoon off, and it’d be a shame if we didn’t enjoy it together…”
Her gently spoken plea went straight to his heart, and before he realized what he was doing, Suikotsu was bent forward, his lips pressed firmly against Mayumi’s.
“You shouldn’t have done this…” She whispered taking a step back once he broke their kiss. Tear threatened to fall from her eyes, but she tried her best to keep them at bay.
Suikotsu looked at her with resolve burning in his dark eyes. “Why not? I know you like me, and I like you too.”
“I do like you, but the two of us can never be; it wouldn’t be right… You know about my past, you know what I’ve done…” She responded as tears ran down her pale cheeks.
The dark haired man could not help himself, he dissolved in laughter. “I could care less about your past. If you must know, I too have been on the wrong side of the law, more than once. In fact I’ve spent time in jail.” His smile only broadened when he saw the younger woman’s open wide in shock. “Let’s just say I wasn’t always the most upstanding citizen. But I’ve changed, and I know you can change too. You’re working an honest job now, and all you need to be really respectable is a doctor boyfriend.” He used the pad of his thumb to wipe away the stray tears that had escaped her eyes.
Despite her previous misgivings, she once again found herself unable to refuse Suikotsu anything.
“Okay… but we’ll take things slowly.” She said as she thought ‘I want to give him a chance to back out any time he wants.’
“Fine by me. I just want you to feel good when you’re with me.” He bent down to press another quick kiss to her unsuspecting lips, then looped his arm around hers, and taking her along walked towards the exit of his office. “Now why don’t we go on this lunch date you promised me? Today I’m in the mood for sushi.”
“Sushi sounds good.” She agreed eagerly even as she leaned her head against his strong arm.
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Kagura Onigumo, soon to be Takahashi, hurried down the corridor leading to her fiancé’s room. Since she had been able to tell that Sesshoumaru really wanted to be left alone with his mother for a little bit, she had done as asked, and left the room. However she had just taken enough time to go heat up the food her mother had bought for her at the cafeteria, wolf it down, and buy some vegetable soup for Sesshoumaru. She knew he would have enjoyed a nice chunk of meat better, but she was not sure it would be recommended since he had just woken up from a coma. Holding on closely to the warm container in her hands, she hurried her steps.
‘I really hate the idea of leaving Sesshoumaru alone with his mother.’ She thought worriedly. After all she could remember all too well the numerous occasions the dog demoness had tried to get rid of her.
As Kagura approached Sesshoumaru’s room, she was greeted with a sight she would have never expected: Asuka Watanabe-Takahashi was leaning against the door of her son’s hospital room, a forlorn expression on her face. The one thing that surprised and really shocked Kagura the most was the unusual shine in the woman’s usually cold golden eyes.
“Are you crying?” Kagura gasped incredulously.
Asuka had been too wrapped up in her own thoughts to notice the younger woman’s approach. However she was not about to be caught off guard, and let Kagura be a witness to her moment of weakness. She quickly rubbed her eyes, pretending to rearrange her makeup. “Of course not you stupid woman.”
The fearsome dog demon turned the full force of her hard glare on Kagura. “Go ahead. Gloat! You won. You have Sesshoumaru all to yourself, and wrapped up around your little finger.”
Kagura could not help but snort at the other woman’s words. “You do realize that winning Sesshoumaru’s affections isn’t a competition, right?” She then grinned and added. “In truth if you weren’t such a bitch, I wouldn’t mind sharing him.” Of course her remark had the desired effect on Asuka, namely her eyes thinned in pure fury.
“The problem with you,” Kagura continued, undeterred by the other woman’s fierce glare. “is that you think you can control your son. I know that Sesshoumaru has helped support you forever, but you can’t expect to be able to make him do what you want. Especially when it comes to his choice of woman.”
Asuka was still reeling from Sesshoumaru’s refusal to give her the shares of his company, and having Kagura gloating, and telling her how to handle her son. ‘What does she even know about my relationship with Sesshoumaru?! ‘ The inu youkai thought angrily.
“You and Izayoi believe you have the monopoly of motherly instinct. I love my son, and only want the best for him. All I want is to help him…” Asuka started, but interrupted herself. She would not give Kagura the satisfaction of seeing her breakdown. “I realize now that Sesshoumaru will not get rid of you as I had hoped. I suppose it will be something I will have to live with. However be sure that if you ever hurt him, I will destroy you.”
Kagura was nonplused by the opened threat. “I am not scared of you, but you can rest assured. I have no intention of hurting Sesshoumaru in any way. I love with, and I thought I had proved to you that I too only want what’s best for him.”
“Unless you wish to have to deal with me, things better remain this way. I will keep an eye on the two of you. Tell Sesshoumaru I had to leave to catch my plane. I am going back to Germany where my lover has been waiting for me.” The dog demoness raised her head high proudly, and walked away, the resonating sound of her high heels was the only sound in the empty hallway. As she watched the older woman leave, Kagura could not help but notice the aura of sadness emanating from Asuka.
‘I don’t know what happened in there with Sesshoumaru, but she looks miserable…’ The wind sorceress opened the door of the hospital room, and stepped in. ‘More importantly, why exactly am I feeling so bad for her? She’s a horrible person…’
“You are looking quite thoughtful.” Sesshoumaru’s voice caused her to come out of her thoughts.
“I ran into your mother outside.” Her words caught his attention. He was ready to reassure her in the event his mother had once again said something unkind to her, but before he could, Kagura said something that shocked him. “She was crying in the corridor.”
“Preposterous!” Sesshoumaru scoffed. “You must be mistaken. Asuka Watanabe-Takahashi does not cry. She is too cold for such a display of emotion.”
Kagura shrugged, and walked closer to her lover. She placed the container full of soup on the side table closest to the bed, and turned her attention back to Sesshoumaru. “I know what I saw. I don’t know what you told her, but she really looked miserable.”
Kagura opened the soup container, and fished out the spoon she had picked up earlier from the cafeteria. The next thing that came out of the bag was a wad of paper napkins.
“What do you think you are doing?” The dog demon asked in shock as she placed a napkin around his neck.
“Taking care of my future husband. Now open up and let me feed you your soup unless you want me to hurt you. After all I still haven’t forgiven you for drugging me, and leaving me behind to go face up with Naraku. I’m pretty sure that had I been there, you wouldn’t have gotten shot.” She placed the spoonful of warm brown liquid in front of his lips. “Plus you do owe me for standing by your bedside for so many days. Now eat up!”
Sesshoumaru did not really wish to speak about his deception, or his ensuing hospitalization, so he let her have her way for now. He did decide to switch the focus of the conversation.
“Since when do you care about so much about my mother’s feelings? I thought you hated her.” Sesshoumaru commented after dutifully swallowing the first spoonful of soup.
“Hate? Hum dislike would be a better word.” Kagura responded before feeding him some more soup. “I may not like the way she uses you as a personal ATM, but in the past few weeks, I’ve seen the way she fought for what she believed was your best interest.” Sesshoumaru arched a suspicious eyebrow in response. “No really, I do think that in her distorted and slightly foolish way of thinking, she thought she was protecting you.” His fiancée added.
“Since when have you become such a connoisseur of people’s psychologies?” He asked then frowned when Kagura presented him with one more spoonful. “No more, I am full.”
“Okay one last bite.” She gently cooed as if talking to Kanna, which of course earned her a sharp glare from Sesshoumaru. He did take the last of the soup as instructed, and was rewarded by a big smile from Kagura. The wind sorceress then put the food away, wiped his mouth, and rid him of the fluffy white napkin before she resumed speaking.
“I might not be a pro of psychology, but I know firsthand a mother who cares for her kid. Plus lately I’ve found out that with family, things can be more complicated than we might think. I mean look at me and Sakura. I used to hate my mother, and a year ago I never could have imagined her being such an important part of my life.”
‘Is the witch comparing our mothers?’ Sesshoumaru incredulously. In his eyes Sakura had fought for years to be reunited with the daughter she loved so much while Asuka had never been bothered to be a true mother to him. “If I understand you well, you wish for me to be… on better terms with my mother.” He struggled to put his thoughts into words. The idea of Kagura becoming Asuka’s champion was just that ludicrous to him. ‘Then again if mother was crying as Kagura claimed, I can understand this may have affected her view.’
“I know she wouldn’t get the mother of the year award, but I just feel bad for the old woman.”
“Old woman?” Sesshoumaru scoffed. “If mother ever heard you call her that, she would rip your head off with her poisoned claws.”
Kagura did not care to comment as she knew his words were true. “She does care for you, and besides we owe her one I guess. If she hadn’t given you blood, you wouldn’t be here right now.” She took a brief pause to think about what she was saying. “Now I don’t expect her to join us for dinner on holidays and stuff.” A shudder went through her at the idea of having a family dinner with Asuka. “But I think you should talk to her more… apart from the times she calls to ask you for money. Just give her some time to cool off first, she seemed very upset. Besides she is going back to Germany.”
“Germany?” The dog demon echoed in surprise. ‘Didn’t mother say she had broken things up with the baron?’ He recalled that she had thrown in his face earlier that she had refused to reconcile with the wealthy man only so as to stay by his side. ‘Why would she lie to Kagura? To protect her pride?’ He could not help but reflect on his mothers unusual behavior. ‘Since when do I even wonder about her love life… this is all Kagura’s influence.’
“Fine. You win. You are a terrible influence on me, you have managed to convince this Sesshoumaru to contact my mother.” He reached up to press a kiss to his fiancée’s cheek, careful not to move his left arm. “Who knew that inside you was hidden a person with such a heart of gold.”
“Pfft! Please do not confuse me with Kagome, and the other goody two shoes who try to make everything better for everyone. I only care about you, and our family, so I guess Asuka too by extension.” Even as she thought back to the other woman, Kagura could not help but think of how dejected she had looked. “Now, I want to ask you a favor.”
He was immediately interested; it was after all very uncommon for Kagura to ask anything of him.
“I want to thank Jakotsu and Bankotsu for helping us get Kanna back safely. I know there is one thing they both would love to see happen, but unlike you, I don’t have the connections to make it happen.”
“What is it?” He asked. He knew that whatever Kagura would ask of him, he would do his very best to make happen because he loved her so much. And if at the same time making her happy could allow him to repay the debt he owed Bankotsu and Jakotsu then he did not see any reason to turn down her request.
“Jakotsu would love to reconnect with his brother.” Kagura sighed as she thought back to her friend’s hurtful story. “His father threw him out of the house when he was a teenager only because he was gay. Jakotsu hasn’t seen his brother since then, and I know he would love to see him again. Of course if I find out he’s a judgmental spineless bastard like their father, I wouldn’t let Jakotsu know, but if he’s not, then putting them back in touch could be the best thank you we could give him and Bankotsu.”
“I see. I am sure this can be arranged. I will have Touran look into it; she is skilled at this kind of things.” Sesshoumaru commented even as he thought. ‘How could a parent treat their child in such a callous way. Nothing Rin or Kanna could ever do would make me renounce them.’ He briefly blinked his eyes several times, which caught Kagura’s attention.
“I’m sorry honey. I’m talking to you now when you should be resting.” She gently pushed his bangs out of his tired eyes before pressing a tender kiss to the crescent adorning his forehead. “You look exhausted, so I’ll leave you for now.” She left his side, and picked up her purse and coat. “I’ll go talk to Suikotsu to find out what he plans to do about your arm.” Even as she tried to mask he worry, she could not help but let a small frown crease her forehead.
“Then you’ll go home. I am not the only one who needs rest.” The definitive tone of his voice let her know this was not up for discussion.
“Alright I’m leaving for home, but I’ll be back tomorrow bright and early, so be ready.” Kagura bent over her lover’s form to press a quick kiss to his lips. “I’m so glad you came back to me. I don’t know what I would have done without you; I love you so much.”
He reached up with his right arm to gently run his hand against the soft skin of her cheek. “I feel the same wind witch.” He whispered tenderly, causing her heart to flutter. He did not often voice his feelings for her, but when he did, she felt like the luckiest woman on the planet.
Kagura reluctantly broke their embrace, and after giving Sesshoumaru’s immobile arm one last look, headed for the door. “I’ll see you tomorrow.” She threw over her shoulder cheerfully. During Sesshoumaru’s long coma, every time she had left his room, she had feared this was bound to be the last time she would see the man she loved, but knowing he was going to live was all that mattered to her.
‘He may not be fully healed yet, but having him back means the world to me. Whatever happens, I know we’ll be alright.’
To be continued…
A/N: A lot happened. Expected, and not so expected things. I really like the interaction between Asuka and Kagura. I wanted to show there was more to the dog demoness. The next chapter will be the last one (before the epilogue), and it will be aptly named Tying up loose ends. I don’t know when I’ll update next, but I’ll try my best not to have you guys wait too long.
In the meantime please check out my newly posted mini story Secret Lovers. Here’s the summary: AU When away on an assignment for the magazine they work for, coworkers Kagura and Sesshoumaru engage in a passionate affair. How will they deal once they get back to their lives? Having a dirty little secret never felt this good. Sessh/Kagura. Rated M for lots of citrus and language.
Thanks for the support!
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