InuYasha Fan Fiction ❯ Spring Fever ❯ Something New ( Chapter 16 )

Chapter 16

 

Something New

 

Two days had passed...

 

Two long and boring days...

 

The miko, for some unnamed reason, was determined that Sesshomaru find his own sources of amusement and leave her and her sanity be. This led him to finish all of the books within a few hours, roam the grounds for over a day, and wind up in one of the storage units; the one connecting to the house.

 

Inside it he found both a sword and an idea.

 

“I don't care how bored you are,” the miko stated around a stick of Pocky, flipping to a different channel, “I'm not sparing with a demon lord.”

 

Feeling quite stubborn, Sesshomaru propped the weapon near her blanketed self as she sat curled up comfortably on the couch for the evening. “Arm yourself or forfeit your life,” he informed, drawing Tenseiga while looking his usual unreadable self. The sword giggled in his grip as well as any sword could.

 

“A-” she began, Pocky falling from her mouth as she looked from him to the weapon and back again. “Are you KIDDING?? I've never used a sword in my life!!”

 

This was bound to be amusing then. “You have ten seconds.”

 

“What!!” she demanded, completely resistant to the idea of actually getting off that couch.

 

“Nine.”

 

“Wait a minute!”

 

“Eight.”

 

“You ARE joking, right??”

 

“Seven.”

 

“...”

 

“Six.”

 

“Shit!”

 

He smirked as she scrambled for the blade and commented on it being a prized relic from some previous holy owner. “Five.”

 

“Screw you!” she yelled cutely, trying to free the blade from its rusted sheath.

 

“Four.”

 

She threw aside the blanket and frantically ran her barely clad little body towards the failing daylight. Nighttime short-shorts and a small T-shirt, lovely… A good thing she hadn't released that blasted scent for the last two days. Speaking of scents, he was quite impressed that despite her fleeing, there wasn't a trace of fear in her. Maybe that's why fighting her seemed so promising. He'd teach her fear, and he would enjoy every second of it.

 

“Three!” he yelled so she could hear him, actually smiling faintly over all of this. She was a great torture subject, watching her fumble with the door handle then flee onwards was delightful.

 

“I hate you, SESSHY!!” she bellowed from outside, the distinct ring of the blade finally coming free echoing across the vast court.

 

“Two!”

 

“Go to hell!! I may be armed but I suck with swords!”

 

“One!”

 

She didn't say anything to that, so he zipped outside to start having fun at her expense.

 

She was nowhere in sight... There was, however, a distinct sensation of spiritual energy wafting through the air.

 

He scanned the area, seeing no place for her to have hidden herself sufficiently in so little of time. He didn't even know she was looking for a place to hide, it didn't seem to be a part of her nature to seek refuge...

 

“I'm right HERE, so just get it over with!”

 

Sesshomaru's attentions shot to where the annoying voice came from, and he noticed a very faint evening shadow on the ground.

 

“You act like you can't even see me,” she stated, making his eyes dart to where her mouth would be. He altered his view slightly upwards so he would look at her hidden eyes, and the shadow shifted uncomfortably. He indeed couldn't see her, apparently thanks to the magic-imbued sword, but he could feel her glaring at him, and his senses simply tingled with the promised challenge of finding his big-mouthed prey. This was quite splendid. She was going to have sword lessons from now on, no debate needed. “... Sesshy?”

 

“The counting is over,” he informed, raising Tenseiga. He couldn't cut her down with it, but the blade could certainly fight another blade. “Prepare yourself.”

 

Sesshomaru's senses heightened thrillingly as he ran at her. He could hear the foreign blade's path through the air, and Tenseiga swept up and for the miko's chest where she held her new weapon protectively. Sparks flew brightly between them, from the collision of both steels and energies. He apparently hit too hard, because the miko's shadow went flying a short distance.

 

“You freakin' ass!” she yelled, angry. “Are you being seri-HEY!!”

 

He could tell by her shadow where her legs were, and missed her left thigh by centimeters while digging Tenseiga's tip into the ground. The sword was having fun as well, making it somewhat hard to hold with how its handle vibrated. She rolled away and scrambled onto her feet, her sword's tip dragging loudly for a moment before being lifted. There was a swish in the air, and Sesshomaru jumped away when the sword came swinging full circle around her and towards him.

 

“This is really mean!” she yelled at him, now still and probably in that useless stance again.

 

“Think of it as a roller coaster ride,” he offered. “You are experiencing those same sensations after all.”

 

“Yeah, maybe I am, but I wasn't facing off with a demon who's claimed six hundred years of sword experience at that time either!”

 

He smirked, watching her shadow take a step back when he took one closer. “The 'immanent death' on the ferries wheel was worrying because it proved to be a situation completely out of your hands. So do the proper thing and take matters into your hands now.”

 

He performed the same cut as he had before, straight for her chest in a perfectly ground-level stroke, and her blade bent to where her face was suppose to be and sent Tenseiga passing over and through with the motion. This time she had ducked with her sword still lifted, and now skittered off somewhere. Well, she tried to. With his senses nicely sharpened he could practically see the air part around her form, the noise molding form, he easily tripped her because her ankle was only ten inches from his and darting away.

 

She gave a hard 'oof' and fell onto her stomach, suddenly reappearing as her sword went clattering a few feet out of reach. She went to grab it, and found Sesshomaru's foot weighing it down.

 

“That was easy,” he told her, Tenseiga held under her petite chin.

 

She glared passionately up at him, the sunset reflecting amber sparks from her blue eyes and hair. Despite the scowl, she looked quite lovely in that light. “Yeah, I told you it would be.”

 

“Stand,” he ordered, toe catching the hilt and making the sword jump onto its tip. He grabbed the handle and then the blade, offering it to her. “Let us see how long you last next time, after some instruction.”

 

She allowed him to proffer the blade to her longer than need be, eying it like it would bite. “You've got a lot of good jokes of late, don't you?”

 

“Take it, miko.”

 

“I don't want to, Sesshy.”

 

“Then die unarmed.” He lowered the blade away from her, and she immediately grabbed it with a stubborn expression. She didn't disappear this time, which solved one little mystery. No miko powers meant no special sword techniques. “We will practice. Without using energies this time.”

 

“You know,” she commented an hour later, the sun completely at rest and allowing the stars to blink awake, “I once thought that being trained by the great son of the dog general and lord of the western lands was laughable.”

 

So she said when he was behind her, favoring her right, and shifting her grip on her new sword. It was too heavy for a woman, especially for a beginner, but she didn't need to know that. In fact, this wasn't even a European double-handed longsword, just a regular looking double-edged blade which was suppose to be handled with a single hand, not two. If it were a katana, she'd have a far easier time with it, but the metal was as straight as could be at a hand's width of blade, along with ridiculously heavy. “Even royalty can pity your form.”

 

“U-huh,” she replied, her pitch higher at the beginning of the word for her doubt. Her loose grip allowed him to move her right hand further up the handle, which would let her deal with the weight more easily than having them knuckle-to-knuckle. “You're having fun, aren't you?”

 

He spared her a glance, her blue orbs glimmering with the stars along with the faint amount of sweat on her brow. He frowned slightly at her. Any man with eyes could tell that she was using the elements to her advantage, yet she seemed completely ignorant of the fact.

 

She quickly continued before he could reply. “I thought you were suppose to resent mikos, not train them to be less than hopeless.”

 

“It is in my nature, yes,” he admitted, watching the sword drop slightly when he wasn't holding it up with her. “Keep a fist's width between your hands. You do not want to be swinging it around as uselessly as a certain hanyou does.”

 

“Aw, but it looks like fun,” she teased with a smile.

 

He ignored that. “From this point on you will be receiving physical reprimands.”

 

“Come again?” she asked. “You mean you've shown me the basics and now you want me to learn through experience??”

 

He nodded. It seemed like a waste of time to show her how to do this, but considering the sword made her concentrate her energies and provided him with amusement when she experienced irregular spurts of invisibility it was not a total loss. Perhaps they would have a decent spar once on the other side of the well. One she would indefinitely lose. He could kill her through a fight, but he would admit having a hard time committing such an act otherwise; a fact which showed she had already rooted herself too securely in his mind. That was a flaw on his part, and he tried to clear his mind on whether dueling her would be more rewarding during the sunset or night. He was favoring sunset, it made her skin look so much warmer than usual. “The basics are all anyone should learn. The rest would be gained through experience. In such way, specialization of form is acquired, and that gives the wielder an advantage in battle.” Definitely sunset... Or sunrise?

 

“Being unpredictable, you mean?” she asked, glancing down to make sure her feet were still placed properly.

 

He'd decide when they spared in the morning...

 

“Correct.” Although he couldn't fight to his full potential without making things extremely easy, for himself, Sesshomaru was still enjoying the passing time. She made a sloppy charge at him, and he stepped aside and smacked her backside with the flat of Tenseiga.

 

“AH!! Owie!” she yelped, covering her tush with a hand and offering him an offended look.

 

He rolled his shoulders, finally succeeding at keeping his facial expression the same. “You allowed it to happen.” Dear kami, he sounded like his father...

 

“I didn't think you'd mean THAT kind of physical!” she yelled, rubbing the spot in a rather adorable manner. “I'm getting you back for that one.”

 

“Good luck,” he granted her. She'd need it.

 

“It'll be dumb luck,” she sighed. “If any.”

 

Sesshomaru had to admit, he didn't think the miko would hold up for so long.

 

“This,” she panted two hours later, nails attempting to insert themselves into the wall while her sword arm hung limply at her side, blade touching the ground, “is HELL!!”

 

“Hell is worse,” he assured her, examining the healthy bruise that was developing on her outer thigh. Although Tenseiga couldn't stab or slice anything down, the sides and back of the blade were usable. Most of her minor injuries were from the torso down, as he was avoiding her bitten shoulder. The marks remained, but she didn't mind revealing them since they were scared over. She commented on them being a 'tattoo' to her friends, and went on talking about beings called vampires. If he exposed the wound to any demonic energy though, her weak seal would break and the amount still in her would run wild and happily once more. “If you tire, then go inside. It will be raining soon.”

 

Maybe during sunset while it was raining...

 

“Really?” she asked, looking up to see the nicely sized clouds boiling overhead. “I don't mind the rain, it would be nice to cool off a bit.” He quirked a brow at her as she reclaimed her feet and held up the sword. “Unless you want a break, then by all means I'll take a bath.”

 

She was teasing him, so he smirked faintly in reply to her sarcasm as per usual. After five minutes the miko was panting and on her back with a blade at her chest, again, and the first raindrops began to irregularly speckle the pavement. By the time she laboriously stood, it was an utter downpour.

 

“You could have said it'd be a monsoon!!” she yelled over the sound of hundreds of buckets being poured out all around them, let alone on them. Rather, on her… Sesshomaru had jumped speedily to the overhang of the well shrine. It was an impressive amount of rain, those tiny drops actually tickled. Kagome ran over, the mystic sword now in its scabbard as she entered the two foot wide dry zone outside the well doors. She was sodden while he was mostly untouched, and looked quite miserable as her hair was drawn into little rivulets of rain traveling down her pink-cheeked face.

 

“How long is this going to last?” she asked, leaning over and wringing a short stream from her dark locks. Her skin was missing its natural flush and had grown odd little bumps.

 

“Hours,” he replied, opening the door and taking a seat inside. He quickly learned that certain light colors of thin sleeping fabric, when wet, revealed undergarments and the lack there of rather easily while clutching to curves.

 

...

 

He looked away from the not too displeasing sight, and saw her ridiculously large yellow bag was still propped against the side of the well. She always had it there in case the time traveling device decided to randomly work once more.

 

Kagome gave a vexed sigh, and checked for the fifth time that day to see if the doorway to the past had activated. It hadn't.

 

“I'll bet it's clear skies over there too,” she sighed, now sitting on the lip of the well and rubbing her wet, naked, bumpy arms. Her bare little feet had dirt clinging to the moisture, and he had no idea why he would ever note such a thing. “And to think I could still be inside, watching TV, and warm, and commenting on how glad I am to not be stuck in this exact situation...”

 

She gave a mighty sneeze for someone her size and shortly after began to shiver, rubbing more vigorously. Apparently she was cold, which Rin had taught him wasn't the best thing for humans. Without a second thought he shrugged off his pelt, removed his swords and then the sash, and stood to peel off armor as the miko continued to rant. It's alright, she could rant, he had selective hearing.

 

“AAAGH!! You just HAD to drag me outside in my lounging attire too, didn't you?! Shorts and a thin tank shirt, I can't believe this! ... AGH!! And it's WHITE!! That's MORTIFYING!!” Alright, his hearing was not so selective on a select few... She quickly covered her chest and turned away from him, but still rubbed her arms. Humans... She would probably freak out over his loosened hakama ties too if her back wasn't squared at him . “Look at me and die,” she then threatened, which was laughable. Although wearing clothing is to be expected, being naked was only natural. And here she was, 'mortified', because the various colors and curving slopes of her breasts revealed themselves. The sight certainly never bothered him... Or, so he thought as he loosened the under obi which held his haori in place. Taking the heavy outer fabric off, he tighten various ties once more and looked at the miko to see that she was indeed still bitching. “This is so unfair, and mean, and spiteful, and I can't believe this is happening, and I'm going to die of hypothermia, and it's all your fa-”

 

She shut up immediately when his white and red haori settled over her shoulders, and she stood immediately and turned around in shock with a questioning look, automatically clutching the warm fabric tightly around herself.

 

“I have invested too much time in you to have you fall over dead from disease, little miko,” he explained, shifting his shoulders slightly. He wasn't too used to not wearing his outer haori, it was a lot heavier than the white one he wore underneath, and it being off sort of made him feel undressed. Well, he was in an incomplete outfit, but that was fine. Aside from all of that, he never got sick, so she had a greater need of proper attire and warmth anyway. This was an investment decision after all, he didn't care about her well being... ... He really didn't...

 

“Um,” she stuttered with several other unintelligible sounds, fingers flexing uncertainly over the garment. He was only slightly amused at how she kept staring wide-eyed at what he wore underneath the haori, then looking away and back. “Thanks, but I... I don't want it. You can have it back.”

 

“You will be sick if you do not stay warm,” he informed her nonchalantly. What was her brilliantly horrid mind working on now?

 

“I know,” she replied, pink flushes forming in her pale face for some odd reason. “But I feel sick already. I don't want to be a burden.”

 

“To be a burden would be to give back what someone has given,” he informed her, watching her shift her feet. It was not very often he extended such generosity; only Rin had received as much as Kagome now did. Besides, taking off the haori was far easier than getting it back on.

 

“Fine,” she replied, letting the heavy material slide down her shoulders and shivering for the cold air, “then I'll be a burden.”

 

“You will not.”

 

She balked at his reply. “Y-yes? I will if I say I will. So here, have it back.”

 

This was getting annoying. “Just wear it until you are dry. At that time I will be expecting it back in my possession.”

 

“Listen,” she began with a huff, the collar now resting bunched up around the small of her back and over her forearms as she held them around her middle, “the very thought of you being generous towards me is literally stomach churning, so I'd rather be sick from disease than from worry and confusion and feeling like you're going to kill me very soon over something I couldn't foresee.”

 

“Wear it or suffer through something even more embarrassing,” he replied, nearly growling at her ridiculous antics. She was being paranoid now, not afraid in the least though.

 

“Like hell,” was her answer, moving to take it off without letting the red decorated hem be dirtied on the ground. She froze though when he was instantly in front of her, and he easily maneuvered her chilled arms into the warm cavities of the sleeves before folding the front closed. By that time she had realized what he'd done, and grabbed the folds to yank it off. “Sesshy, this isn't funny!”

 

“It indeed is not,” he replied. Tenseiga had clattered to the floor from where it had been propped against the wall, and was off vibrating in slow circles of mirth over what it was seeing, which irked him even more.

 

“I don't want to wear this.”

 

“But you will.”

 

“But I won't!” she yelled, now trying to draw her arms out from the sleeves to squirm through the bottom of the garment. Sesshomaru was, to say the least, fed up.

 

“About time,” the miko grumbled when he released her. She opened the front yet again to shrug out of it, and froze when he easily cut whatever she was wearing underneath his haori into unusable palm sized pieces. He turned around, smiling at the humor which only he got out of this, and heard the wet clothes gradually peel off and plop to the ground.

 

“EEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEK!!!” she shrieked, obviously clutching the haori around herself now as more drenched fabric fell. “How DARE you!! What the hell do you think you're -GAH!!” she screamed when he grabbed her by the waist and lifted her off her feet. “LET ME GO!!”

 

“Not likely,” he informed, walking up the steps from the well and off to where he had chosen to sit for the evening, holding her tucked under an arm like she was a piece of luggage. The only difference was that luggage didn't squirm.

 

“This is embarrassing!!” she protested, kicking and grappling with his arm as though it would do all the good in the world. She even started to yank a lock of his hair, which only stung a little...

 

“You had your warning,” he informed her. She was as easy to handle as a rag doll, and in a mere five seconds she was frozen with shock and humiliation when he had a seat and made her sit next to him. He could hear her heart galloping in her chest, let alone feel it. His left arm was behind her back so as to hook around and hold her firmly swaddled in fabric. The last thing he wanted to risk was having to chase a nude little miko around the shrine. Perhaps at that point he'd have to imprison her in that well until she either activated it or perished...

 

“Let me go...” she 'requested' firmly, trying to push herself up with already worn out arms. They had been sparing for about three hours, so that explained things such as her temper and how hard she was panting over a short struggle session, which she promptly continued against his forearm on her left side. He rolled his eyes, tired of this, and easily moved her onto his lap where he had the advantage of two hands instead of one and could more easily train her... It was odd to think that she had let off that scent for him and yet did nothing about it. “I said `let me go' Sesshomaru!” she screamed in his ears, trying so hard to pry at his grip that even her legs flexed where they were draped to the side. When that didn't work, she boldly struck his chest and tried to break his nose, which was easily avoided.

 

With a resigned sigh he turned her to face away from him and wrapped one arm around her upper waist and the other across her chest to make her lay back. Doing this had her not only pinned but completely secured in the haori as well, and she was glaring.

 

The miko was less than warm, he realized, when her back hit his chest and their temperatures slowly mingled, but that was barely registered when she began to pinch his wrist. “Do not annoy this Sesshomaru, little miko,” he said near her ear. “You will be free to go when you regain a normal body temperature and will not fall ill.”

 

She was obviously scowling, but she wouldn't turn her head to share it. “Are you going to kill me?”

 

“Perhaps,” he said, hoping her talking would distract her from her bludgeoning. She, on the other hand, was utterly unnerved, and that proved to be a little funny.

 

“Oh goodie, I'll take that as a `no'…” She took in a deep breath, and tried to shatter his eardrums with her next scream. “RAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAPE!! SOMEBODY HELP ME!!”

 

...

 

If that didn't confuse and/or piss him off enough, she began drumming her heels into his shins and hitting the back of her head against his shoulder, though probably aiming for his nose again.

 

“You think this will do you any good?” he asked, his patience more affected by this than his body was. Really, of all the things to scream, rape? Perhaps she risked that amongst other humans or with lowly demons, but certainly not him.

 

“It's doing ME some good!” she yelled. “HELP!! I'M BEING HUGGED BY AN ASSASSIN!! SOMEONE PRY ME FROM THE GRIP OF DEATH!!”

 

Hugged by an...

 

He couldn't help it. He simply couldn't. Sesshomaru began laughing.

 

The miko's attacks continued, but slowly decreased to a dull thumping as she turned around with a look of horror riddled into her face. “You're laughing! WHY!!”

 

He shook his head with a shrug, still chuckling. Seeing that expression on her made things all the more hilarious.

 

“You're being scary!” she yelled, now actually more desperate to get away.

 

“Laughter scares you?” he inquired, trying very hard to calm his diaphragm.

 

“Coming from a frigged man who only finds joy in the torment of others, YES!” she cried.

 

He calmed a bit, but couldn't erase the smile.

 

She was glowering at him still, but the corners of her mouth soon quirked up. “You...” She shook her head and huffed, which was about all she could do with her torso pinned by him. He imagined that she would be slamming a fist into his chest otherwise. “You enjoy this. Don't try to deny it.”

 

“Then I will not,” he replied. ... Damn, she stole his bad mood.

 

She frowned, and tilted her head up and towards his to study him. “... You've changed.”

 

He blinked at her.

 

“What? You have...” she supported herself, looking straight ahead now. “Not that I'm complaining... I mean, it's good to see you laughing instead of being completely unimpressed with anything and everything you see. Besides, if you were your old self still, I'd not want to be in the same building as you let alone here in your l...” Her sinewy neck almost got displaced with how quickly she looked back at him. “... Sesshomaru, I'm still in your lap.”

 

“That is quite evident,” he replied.

 

“... And I'm still alive...”

 

“That is also obvious,” he answered, smirking over what she was getting at.

 

“Those two don't add up...”

 

He replied in the only appropriate way. He shrugged. “Some things in life do not make sense.”

 

She was the one left blinking this time. She opened her mouth, then closed it, then frowned. “You're annoying.”

 

“I'm annoying?”

 

“YES you're annoying!” she attacked. “How DARE you come here as a regal son of a bitch and then change into THIS!”

 

He was starting to wonder if the secret tally of wins was determined by how many times you could either shock or confuse your opponent. If so, the miko was winning...

 

“In other words, you do prefer to see me as a cold blooded killer?” he asked coolly, shifting his 'assassin' hands to see how tormented that would make her. He still had an arm across her waist and one over her chest.

 

Her bodily balk was simply divine.

 

“Of course not,” she replied, shifting her dirty little feet between his ankles and pretending to feel normal. “It's just nice to see that you've grown up...”

 

...

 

She giggled at him when he growled under his breath.

 

“Now now, don't throw a hissy-fit. Hissing's for cats.” She smiled up at his less than pleased expression. Perhaps killing her would be pleasurable...

 

“Hey,” she interrupted his thought process harshly, “if anyone should be growling, it should be me. It's not like I asked to be touched let alone held.”

 

He glared ever so slightly down at her.

 

She pouted angrily up at him. “Oh, just stop it.”

 

His scowl deepened, and he didn't know how it happened, but he suddenly shook his head with a grunt and wiggled his stinging nose, because she just flicked it.

 

“You're being bad,” she lectured him, now striking the offending finger towards his face with a harsh expression. “If you're good, then so am I. Got that?”

 

That was it...

 

Her eyes widened when he forsook holding the haori shut for grabbing that wretched hand and pushing it towards her back, making her torso twist so she leaned away towards his left and her legs slid to his right. Her chest heaved with breath, but he'd be damned if she was scared of him… There was not spiking sweet smell of fear, not irregular breathing, not even her eyes shifted. She just stared.

 

“Yes?” she asked him, more calm than himself. Damn that miko... Damn her for not giving him the satisfaction he sought. She just sat there, staring back at him like she were a pond of night water. He could throw insults like stones, but learned that nothing could be stirred up in her until he lost all sanity and jumped in to stir up the mud, getting himself wet and dirty in the process... But no, her eyes didn't even blink over this position. They just stared back as though he were looking down on the surface of that damnable pool, and he could see his reflection. He didn't see the sparks of anger in his eyes, but a thoughtful and captivated look.

 

Then she blinked, and so did he.

 

“Take a picture, it lasts longer,” she stated, confusing him as only she could. She sighed over his silence. “So, are you finally going to kill me and get it over with, or are you going to watch me turn into an old debilitated woman?”

 

“Neither,” he answered, watching her brow dent ever so delicately. Nope, neither sounded like a good enough punishment for flicking him in the face. Taking her life was too easy and it was too soon, and why on earth would he want to watch that? No, she should be as shocked and affronted as he was, and just for kicks there should be come mental drama with it...

 

“Maybe I'll take a nap while you decide,” she concluded, looking rather bored.

 

“So confident to not be scathed?” he inquired, irked by her casual mannerism.

 

“Well, if you were going to do something,” she stated slowly, weighing her words, “you would have done it by now.”

 

... He didn't have anything to say to that one...

 

“Besides,” she continued, “believe it or not, I have a feeling that you won't hurt me...”

 

“Really?” he asked, half tempted to do so now.

 

“I'm not saying you can't,” she added quickly. “Thinking like that is what gets people killed. I just trust that you won't.”

 

No, little miko, trusting your enemies is what gets people killed... “Do not test your fate.”

 

Considering how insane this woman was, it really shouldn't have surprised him that she began to giggle. He waited for her to stop, watching as she shook. The miko had to put her free hand behind herself since her abdominal muscles were weakening.

 

“Oh, kami...” she sighed. “I'll bet you've never heard the phrase 'my fate is in your hands,' right?”

 

“Why would anyone say such a ridiculous thing?” he asked, actually baffled.

 

She shrugged. “Some things in life do not make sense.” With a smirk over flipping his own words back at him, the miko's blue eyes darkened as her lashes lowered by a fraction and she yawned.

 

She yawned... Oye. He'd apparently have to be scary some other time.

 

There was a few minutes of silence, during which she crawled out of his lap and sat against the wall next to him. Her knees were drawn up in front of her so the haori could wrap around her legs.

 

“I bet it's four right now...” she commented, cocking her head slightly where it rested on her knees to listen to the thundering rain. “I mean, it was a little past three when it started to rain, wasn't it?”

 

Her guess was far off, and he just realized that she had stolen yet another fine bad mood from him. “The night is only half over.”

 

“Oh, goodie,” she replied dully. “Well, it doesn't seem like the weather will lighten up, so I'm going to go ahead and sleep in the corner or something.”

 

A corner? She unfolded her arms from around her legs and placed her palms on the floor, and his hand moved the three inches to cover hers. He couldn't tell which of them was more shocked, but he played through it.

 

“You do not seem tired,” he commented, taking his hand away.

 

She stared at him, definitely not sleepy now. “... Want to chat?”

 

And so they chatted. For over an hour. Kagome apparently had plenty of pent up questions for when the conversation got dull, such as on demon customs, his close and extended family, why he tolerates Jaken, the list went on.

 

“So seriously,” she began when the last conversation came to a natural halt, securing his haori over her nude self with her arms around her legs again, “are you as popular with the ladies as you so egotistically claimed a few days ago?”

 

He smirked. This woman was far from bashful, which was a nice change in the history of his social life. “As I honestly stated,” he corrected.

 

“I see,” she replied, a small smirk on her face. “You know, nowadays they say that any number of women a man claims to have bedded you're suppose to cut it in half.”

 

“A human thing,” he assured. “And in regards to women?”

 

“Double it,” the miko replied. “It's amazing how that works, but it makes sense. Oh! I read this brilliant thing online, and it said 'women want one man who can satisfy all of their needs, and men want all women to satisfy their one need.' How brilliant is that?”

 

“Not very,” he replied, now wearing a small frown. “Why would any man want that many possessive females at his throat?”

 

“Well, you live a lot longer, so there's that part,” Kagome supplied, lifting a finger. “Also, most men have no sexual control. I don't know how it is for demons, but I expect it's better.” Another finger went up. “Also, some women are real sluts... Like, second date lays, so that makes it easy for horny men who will dump their dumb asses the morning after, or when they get boring.” A third finger went up. “... There are too many reasons, and all of them point out how dumb humans can be.” She shrugged, then caught his gaze. “So, do you have any kids?”

 

“Hm,” he chuckled, shaking his head. “No. That will not happen for a while.”

 

She frowned. “But you just said that you've had ample of sex in your life.”

 

“Not within my species, no,” he replied. “Conception is impossible outside of the species. You will not see many half-dog-half-bird demons around.”

 

“I bet she was a fun one,” Kagome commented with a smirk.

 

“It was an example,” he replied, looking away. “And they squawk too much...” She giggled. “What happened to this topic being disgusting?”

 

Kagome blinked, memory trying to loop back around in her head. “Oh! Yeah, that, before the movie. I just wasn't in the mood to talk about... such a thing. Besides, you were acting funny.”

 

“I was acting funny?” he asked, a bit surprised.

 

She blushed furiously. “I said I was sorry, won't you drop that issue?”

 

“It if is an issue, then certainly it should be discussed until resolved,” he replied, twisting her meaning on purpose.

 

“It's just embarrassing. I don't act like that every day, I was really put on the spot.”

 

“And it was entertaining.”

 

She glared at him. “I knew it. You sadistic ass.”

 

“You were the one to go declaring titles and digging nails into hands, miko.”

 

“And you are a horrible actor, Sesshy. I'm never picking you to play a sticky-position role ever again.”

 

“So you lied then?” he asked, egging her on to admit it.

 

“Of course I did,” she replied, “it was for the sake of my sanity, and me being sane means your life is easier, so consider it a mercy blow. Besides, you know I lied. Like I'd ever want you for a boyfriend.”

 

Ah yes, back to that interesting subject.

 

“You'd be admired for good instincts at the very least,” he told her, enjoying her flabbergasted expression.

 

“That is the most self-righteous thing I have ever heard come from your mouth,” she accused.

 

“One is not made self-righteous by declaring the truth,” he replied, smirking faintly. “And being mistaken for a god is not uncommon in my history.”

 

“Gawd,” she sighed with a chuckle. “You're ego's in the clouds, Sesshy. It's going to get sucked through a turbine engine sometime.”

 

“A what?”

 

He was then informed on airplanes, and by the time their conversation began to slack again the birds began to wake up and beacon for the sun to tint the sky.

 

“Now you appear tired,” Sesshomaru commented, seeing the miko's head slowly crank to one side, jerk upright, then to the other as her chin lay on her knees. She was nodding off.

 

“Now you appear observant,” she retorted drowsily, making him chuckle. She gave a mighty yawn, and her tired mind came up with something random. “That dragon demon you fought before we went through the well... Was it related to RyÅ«kotsusei?”

 

The demon Sesshomaru's father had bound to the cliff with a claw before his untimely death... The old Lord of the Eastern Lands. “Yes. He was.”

 

“M... I was thinking as much. Not too many dragon demons in Japan...” Sesshomaru looked down at her when her speech slowly began to slur, and saw she was keeping her eyes closed. “Why didn't you kill RyÅ«kotsusei?”

 

That was a loaded question. Truly, it was because Ryūkotsusei was suppose to serve as a threatening warning to other lords and lowly demons. He was the only demon of the swarm he led to survive a fight with Sesshomaru's father, and it was an intentional end. Bashamon was wise to remain behind, for the Eastern Lands were his birth right once his older brother died.

 

“This Sesshomaru would neither kill someone in their sleep, nor undo a great man's work.” In fact, Sesshomaru use to visit RyÅ«kotsusei's resting place regularly to assure his continued imprisonment, examining the seal for any weaknesses. There never were any.

 

“M,” she replied sleepily, her head now comfortably leaned to the right so she faced away from him. “He was hard to beat, even without a Jewel shard...”

 

“The seal had weakened RyÅ«kotsusei considerably,” Sesshomaru informed. Like hell if Inuyasha could ever defeat that demon lord in full form at full power, even Sesshomaru had trouble with the younger brother of the dragons.

 

“M-hm,” she agreed, ending it there.

 

Sesshomaru was unpleasantly reminded of the note in his hand writing, and the conclusion he had reached not too long ago. Apparently, when they found the Jewel he would be able to go back to his own time. ... Why he still bothered with the miko and wasn't on a frantic search yet was beyond him. He'd start tomorrow. Knowing his luck it would be sealed in an active shrine somewhere amongst buildings like that library, so the miko would be dead by the time he found that blasted excuse for a-

 

“Mn!” Kagome squeaked lazily when she fell on him in her sleep. She jerked back up a fraction of an inch, then apparently feeling assured she exhaled and slumped back against him, far more than half asleep with that action.

 

Sesshomaru sat glued to the spot. This was odd. His heart had actually jumped for the sudden contact, and he was staring to his left to see her head cushioned against his shoulder.

 

This was very, very, very odd.

 

Her breathing was regulated, slow, and shallow. Her heart, though still calming from the mild shock of falling over, beat soft and steady. She was definitely asleep. Asleep and leaning against him.

 

“Great,” he scoffed softly to the dark room as an unfamiliar feeling began to well up inside him. It was warm, and felt like something was settling into his skin from the inside.

 

He shifted, uncomfortable, and Kagome let out a deep breath. How dare she sound so content at the sacrifice of his own contentment... It was so like her!

 

...

 

Ten minutes passed, and despite how much he tried he couldn't be mad about this. And he really wanted to be, too. Instead, that warm tickling sensation continued, but it was less prudent than before. It reminded him of how he felt when Rin came back to life for the first time in his arm.

 

The sky was a dark twilight, and the birds who survived his last slaughter were cheering for the light and flapping off to find food. It was time for him to begin the hunt.

 

He could have gotten up and let Kagome fall flat on her face. He could have left her laying in the well shrine. Hell, he could have even left her naked in the well shrine and taken back his haori. These thoughts were the ones cycling through his head when he bent a wrist back to turn the doorknob, and folding his palm back over her thigh as she sat in his arms he nudged the door open with a toe. She was a very sound sleeper...

 

Her bedroom was dully lit by the morning, the furniture still making the transition from gray to color.

 

“Mmmmmm... Where am I...?” she asked sleepily when her cheek fell from his chest to his arm, making little moans over being somewhat conscious.

 

“In your room,” he supplied, settling her onto her bed.

 

“Mm,” was her response, digging her face into her pillow when she realized it was there and sighing.

 

He stood there, watching. Her knees were drawn up towards her chest as she faced the wall. His haori was wrapped around her limbs too securely to free without waking her, so he left it.

 

Tenseiga was hopping on the ground when Sesshomaru tied his lower armor around his waist, seeming alarmed. He let the blade fret while he dressed. His sleeves were thinner and white, undecorated, but he wasn't there to impress anyone. Finally tying the sash in the fashion he preferred Sesshomaru pushed his pelt over his shoulder, feeling it automatically cling to him, and grabbed Tenseiga.

 

The sword zapped him and went clattering to the ground, where it lay under its master's glare.

 

“Do not test me,” Sesshomaru growled, overwhelming the sword with his energy and tucking it behind his sash. He closed the door to the well shrine, and in one leap was past the grounds barrier and on his way.