InuYasha Fan Fiction ❯ Sword of Supreme Conquest ❯ Chapter 16 ( Chapter 16 )

Author's Note: A little bit more fluff before shit hits the fan. Enjoy the read and please leave a review when you're done!

--------------------------------

 

 

Humans are programmed to seek happiness. This is why, even though the odds are against them and the world is too often unkind, they continually trudge through the battlefield of life in search of those few elusive moments of bliss. The average human can likely count on their two hands the number of times they were ever truly happy in life and those moments, though beautiful in their existence, are always fleeting.

 

 

Why must they be fleeting? The nature of life itself is such that nothing can last forever. Just as misery will never be infinite, true happiness can never be sustained. On some level all humans know this; they understand that their state of peace is but a short-lived phase. This is why they hold on to those periods with a great vigour, one which leaves them to lament the passing of these happy moments all the more when they are gone. As greedy as they are for these brief respites, humans will never truly feel satisfied. Not one of them ever lives their life without suffering at least a few hardships and some, unfortunately, suffer more than others.

 

 

Demons are wired differently. Terms like happiness, joy, misery, they have no meaning - or if they do it is somewhat different from the human understanding of them. Demons are not mortal like humans, their flesh is not weak, their bones are not brittle, and thus they have more time to come to terms with the ebb and flow of life's journey. A demon will act in whatever manner best suits him, generally the one that will give him the most gains for the smallest sacrifice. This is why many people, human and demon alike, ultimately reach the conclusion that humans and demons are incompatible. They survive on two entirely different planes of existence - one mortal and one immortal - leaving many to question how they could ever peacefully coexist.

 

 

It is the sad but inevitable truth that demon and human matches are not built to last forever. It is no mere coincidence that there are no surviving examples of this kind of union. How many half demon children have grown up parentless? How many more will suffer this fate before humans and demons learn that they can never and should never be together? It is impossible for two such opposite beings to ever exist on the same plane together, to experience true happiness, yet they stubbornly strive for it anyway. That isn't to say that happiness for them is impossible. Though the odds are stacked against them such a relationship may yet be seen to be successful, but the sacrifices will be great. For in all things there is a cost and at times it is much, much greater than we were ever prepared to handle.

 

 

-----------------

 

 

He'd been gone far too long. That was the only thought that ran through Sesshomaru's mind as he watched her. He stood still at the edge of the garden, hardly breathing for fear of ruining the tranquil moment. The wind stirred the heavy boughs of the poplar tree overhead and sent a fresh wave of her scent towards him. He breathed it in greedily, reacquainting himself with her sweet aroma. It took until that moment for him to realize just how much he'd missed her. The desire to stride up behind her and wrap his arms around her tiny frame was practically unbearable, but he forced himself to remain still. It wasn't often that he had the chance to watch her like this, much less alone, and now that such a rare opportunity had presented itself, he wasn't willing to let it go so soon.

 

 

His piercing golden eyes studied her figure as she crouched, oblivious to his presence, next to a row of delicate herbs. She was utterly lost to her own thoughts as her hands moved purposefully to pick the crisp leaves and vibrant green shoots. She deposited them, almost as an afterthought, into a small leather pouch at her side. Her movements though swift and precise were delicate; her hands caressed the leaves as she picked them with the gentlest of touches. She had a mother's hands, hands that were as strong as they were gentle yet still managed to feel warm and small in his.

 

 

He could have embarked on some form of idle conversation, commented on the weather, or asked her which herbs she was picking, but scent alone told him it was basil and thyme and the sweet underlying change in scent made him pause. He wasn't surprised to discover she was with child, but it was only once she stood and began to walk towards another part of the garden that his mind accepted it as true. His eyes roamed greedily over her small protruding belly as pride swelled within him. What better way to return from four months of tedious, painstaking political wrangling and negotiations than to see his mate healthy, glowing and carrying their child?

 

 

Unable to resist any longer he called to her, the deep baritone of his voice cutting through the otherwise silent atmosphere of the tiny herb garden. He heard the inaudible gasp escape her lips before she turned towards him, her face beaming. He'd lived eight centuries and still couldn't explain the feeling that took hold in his chest when she looked at him that way.

 

 

“You're back!” she exclaimed breathless and he felt his head nod affirmatively. Feeling playful after so many endless days of stone-faced meetings and wearisome debates, he cocked an eyebrow and tilted his head towards her stomach.

 

 

“Do you have something you wish to share?” He enjoyed the look of mild confusion that crossed her features before realization dawned on her.

 

 

“Oh!” she exclaimed before laughing light heartedly. Her hand drifted unconsciously to her stomach where it touched self-consciously at the gentle swell before falling away. “I was going to send a messenger to tell you but then I thought it would be better to surprise you when you came back. I didn't think you'd be gone so long. It was harder than you think to keep people around here from talking! So what do you think? Surprised?”

 

 

Sesshomaru sighed inwardly at her plotting. He could just imagine the rampant threats of purification that would've travelled through the corridors of his palace in an effort to keep anyone from spilling her secret. She was a persuasive woman when she needed to be.

 

 

“Indeed,” he replied, responding offhandedly to her question. Taking a step forward, he emerged from the shady canopy of the tree and closed the distance between them. She gazed up at him when he stood before her, her chocolate eyes shining brightly in the afternoon sun. His claws were unconsciously drawn to the silky strands of her hair, where he buried them as he bent his head to kiss her. The moment their lips touched it felt as though a shockwave of pure energy had passed through them. He pulled away for barely a second but she wasn't ready to relinquish her hold on him just yet. Snaking her hands around his neck she pulled herself up and pressed her mouth against his once more.

 

 

Her lips were warm and soft, pliant beneath his touch, yet firm and demanding at the same time. He felt his insides wither when her tongue darted out to languidly trace the contours of his mouth and his body grew hard it met his in a heated dance. Summoning what felt like every ounce of restraint within himself he slowly pulled away from her tantalizing embrace, relishing in the whimper that sounded in her throat as he did so. There would be time to become reacquainted later, but for now he had other more tedious matters to take care of. Smirking at the look of disappointment on her face he brushed a placating kiss against her forehead.

 

 

“I have matters to attend to inside, but perhaps you'd be interested in taking a long soak in the bath house later?”

 

 

Noticing the lascivious gleam in his eye Kagome smiled broadly and nodded in agreement. “It feels good to have you back again,” she added quietly, her voice ringing with sincerity.

 

 

Nodding, he turned away and headed towards the palace. Indeed. It is good to be home.

 

 

-----------------------

 

 

The day that spelled the end of Kagome's happiness was a day like any other. It was in the late months of summer, when the days had begun to shorten but the air still hung with the last vestiges of summer warmth. With her six months swollen belly and aching feet, Kagome waddled out to the main courtyard with Ronin in tow. Barely over his fifth birthday, the next heir of the Western Lands held tightly to his mother's hand as the sound of swords clashing against one another grew steadily louder.

 

When the pair emerged from the short stone tunnel into the courtyard, their eyes squinted against the bright afternoon sun. The grunts and curses of men enveloped them and they watched as twelve of Sesshomaru's most skilled retainers attacked him simultaneously. They were no match for his demonic power of course, but training like this staved off boredom and kept his reflexes sharp.

 

 

Ronin watched his father gracefully defeat one attack and pivot to block another as though every sword but his moved in slow motion. The boy's bright amber eyes grew wide and his mouth formed a tiny “O” as one man tried to catch Sesshomaru off balance by attacking his weaker side, but he quickly countered. The clash of their blades resonated loudly across the field and sparks flew in every direction. With barely a flick of Sesshomaru's wrist, the offending soldier was thrown backward through the air and landed hard against the unforgiving earth.

 

 

Watching his father fight with Tokijin or Tetsusaiga was the young heir's favourite past time. He begged his mother daily to go watch and generally snuck away for a quick peek even when she said `no'. The awe and pride he felt at watching the Lord of the West move like a graceful killing machine fed his own desire to be a skilled swordsman, just like him. He pestered his father constantly with requests to learn how to fight, but was always met with the same tired reassurance: “Some day you will be a great swordsman my son, just not today.”

 

 

Upon hearing these all too familiar words he would pout, cross his arms in front of his chest and skulk away to his mother's side. Not one to give up easily though, he would be back at it again the next day. As it was he spent most of his waking hours playing with the wooden sword his Aunt Sango had made for him. Face screwed up in concentration he would move about the gardens mimicking the movements he'd seen his father make, determined that he would one day be great. Ronin was a hopelessly stubborn child, a trait he unfortunately inherited from both parents.

 

 

Kagome looked down with a smile at her son's awed expression and gave his hand a gentle squeeze. He looked up at her quickly before his keen golden eyes were drawn back to the field by the powerful clang of swords. She ran a hand lovingly across the top of his dark curly head and lowered herself onto her knees so she could be at his height.

 

 

“I heard a secret today. Would you like to know what it is?” she asked in a low voice and drew her mouth close to his ear. His head nodded slowly, though his eyes remained glued to the action in front of him. Kagome smiled inwardly, already knowing exactly how he would react to the news. “I heard that Daddy is going to teach you how to sword fight VERY soon.” Ronin's eyes were as wide and round as a pair of saucers when he turned to face her, his face beaming with excitement.

 

 

“Really Mama? He's going to teach me how to fight like him?”

 

 

Kagome nodded and winced at the feeling of air being forced from her lungs as his small body leapt into her arms for a hug. Ronin still had his pudgy arms wrapped around her neck when the sounds of battle halted and Sesshomaru made his way towards them. The sun glinted off the bare skin of his chest even though he hadn't broken a sweat despite endless hours of combat. Detaching himself, the little one ran towards his father and quickly jumped onto his leg, hugging him with all his might. Sesshomaru absently placed his hand atop his son's head and looked to Kagome questioningly. She shrugged and mouthed “I told him.”

 

 

“Ronin.” His voice was soft but his tone commanded obedience and the boy released him immediately. “Go inside and wash up for dinner.”

 

 

“Okay!” Without dawdling the young heir tore across the field towards the palace as fast as his tiny legs would carry him.

 

 

Kagome waved goodbye to his retreating form and shot her mate an apologetic smile. “Sorry, I couldn't help myself. You should've seen the look on his face. He's so excited!”

 

 

Sesshomaru nodded and smiled inwardly as his eyes flicked to the child within her growing belly. Stepping close, he took hold of her chin and caressed the side of her face with his thumb. “How are you feeling today?” he questioned, his gaze never leaving her dark expressive eyes.

 

 

This pregnancy had been particularly hard on her. She'd felt sick and exhausted for the past three months and the thought that there was still more to go made her want to give up entirely. Today was different though. For the first time in weeks she'd awoken feeling energized and healthy and even though it was well into the afternoon her usual aches and pains had yet to emerge. She felt no qualms about returning her mate's steady gaze as she brought her hands up to meet his. “I'm doing just fine. This baby is another story though. I think it wants to eat some dinner!”

 

 

He blinked at her before nodding almost imperceptibly to himself. “I'm going to wash up. Care to join me?” His voice was practically a purr and a mischievous smile tugged at the corners of his lips as he spoke.

 

 

Kagome slipped quickly out of his grasp and playfully scolded him. “I don't think so mister. Not before dinner! Besides, I think I should stay out here and take in some of this fresh air while I can.”

 

 

Sesshomaru shrugged nonchalantly and slowly raked his claws through his long silver tresses. “I see. Well, do as you wish. You know where to look if you should change your mind.”

 

 

Kagome playfully stuck her tongue out at his retreating form and folded her arms in front of her chest. They always played this game. He would try to entice her to bed at the most inopportune times and she would do her best to resist his charms. Most of the time she ended up giving in, but she was getting better at saying `No'. Even so, she thought while nibbling at her bottom lip, sometimes the temptation is too much to resist.

 

 

Inuyasha watched Kagome from a distance as she paced slowly back and forth before easing her body down onto a small wooden bench. He'd struggled for weeks over whether or not to talk to her about the affair. He'd done his best to avoid her since it became apparent she had no memory of their night together. After that it hadn't taken long for him to come to the realization that telling her about the affair would achieve nothing. She and Sesshomaru appeared happy and very much in love. Who was he to take that away from her?

 

 

He'd made every effort to put the affair behind him until rumours began to spread that the Lady of the West was with child. With child…Those two seemingly innocuous words sent icy chills down his spine. What if? No…it wasn't possible. Surely it was Sesshomaru's…

 

 

He tried to reassure himself in the months that followed that there was no way it could possibly be his child. Not after one time! If the child wasn't his then there was no need to tell Kagome about the affair, he reasoned. But as her belly grew so did his reservations. They ate away at him every time he saw her and Sesshomaru together. If the child wasn't his brothers it would ruin everything she'd worked so hard for. She'd be disgraced and shamed before the entire court and there was no telling what Sesshomaru would do to salvage his pride.

 

 

It was fear for Kagome's safety that finally convinced him he needed to tell her the truth. If she was going to face any kind of adversity in the coming months, she had a right to know why. Swallowing hard, his mouth suddenly achingly dry, Inuyasha forced his body forward.

 

 

“Jeez! Inuyasha you scared the wits out of me! You can't go sneaking up on pregnant people like that!” she chastised him when he appeared suddenly next to her.

 

 

“Sorry,” he mumbled apologetically while scratching distractedly behind one furry ear.

 

 

“Was there something you wanted?” Kagome prodded gently after a moment of awkward silence had passed between them. Why is he being so weird all of a sudden? She eyed him thoughtfully, remarking to herself that his expression resembled Ronin's when he knew he was going to be scolded for doing something bad.

 

 

“Kagome, there's somethingIneedtotellyou,” Inuyasha blurted out much too fast for her to understand. Seeing her confused expression he took in a deep breath and repeated himself, this time making an effort to pronounce each word carefully. Her expression turning to one of concern, she patted the empty wooden bench next to her and motioned for him to sit down and he reluctantly obliged. He would've much rather paced back and forth, as it was his knee was already bouncing up and down in a nervous twitch.

 

 

“Do you remember the night of the banquet a while back? The one where you got really drunk?” he began tentatively, curious to see how much she might remember on her own.

 

 

“Pfft, hardly! I was so drunk that night I'm surprised I remembered my own name. I don't know how I got to bed but thankfully I didn't pass out across some table like Jiro,” she reminisced, chuckling to herself at the image of the old windbag advisor snoring loudly atop the dinner table. “He'll NEVER live that one down!”

 

 

Inuyasha grunted, realizing that she still remembered nothing. Well, there was no avoiding it. He would just have to tell her the truth and hope she understood. Knowing Kagome as well as he did, he realized with a sinking feeling of dread that that would be asking too much. “I remember you were pretty upset at Sesshomaru for leaving that night.”

 

 

Kagome nodded thoughtfully, remembering the rocky period that had driven a wedge between them. Seeing the troubled look on Inuyasha's face she tried to piece together what he was trying to tell her but came up empty handed. She gazed at him expectantly, her brow furrowing at the obvious look of anxiety on his features.

 

 

“Well…I was the one who carried you to bed that night,” he explained shakily, his eyes fixed on a wayward leaf tossing about the grass. “You…well you were so drunk and angry…and you were crying saying that Sesshomaru didn't love you…you were so sad…all the time you were sad…” He tried to find the right words to link his thoughts together, but they came out as one jumbled, disconnected mess.

 

 

Sensing his hesitancy, Kagome cut him off. “Inuyasha…what are you saying?” Though he hadn't confessed anything to her just yet, she could already feel the icy hand of dread wrapping around her heart.

 

 

“I just wanted to prove to you that you were still loved, so you didn't have to be so sad all the time. You were so sure there was something wrong with you, but there was never anything wrong with you Kagome.”

 

 

“Inuyasha!” she cut in, her voice taking on a hard edge, “What happened that night, after the banquet?”

 

 

“You wanted me to prove that there was nothing wrong with you. We kissed and then we…we…” He stopped, unable to finish his sentence. After a moment of tense silence he worked up the courage to hazard a glance in her direction. Her mouth opened and closed slowly as if she was trying to speak but no sound came out. Her eyes, that'd once danced with light, stared darkly at the ground as his words twisted images through her mind. As realization slowly dawned, one of her hands came up to cover her mouth while the other touched her swollen belly.

 

 

“A-are you saying…that…my baby might not be Sesshomaru's?” Her eyes widened with horror as Inuyasha grimly nodded his head.

 

 

Kagome's head spun in sickening circles. Her entire world was on the brink of destruction. If the child growing within her belly wasn't Sesshomaru's he would know the moment it was born. He would know of her betrayal and the affair. It wouldn't matter that she'd been drunk and angry, everything would be ruined! Sucking a breath into her oxygen starved lungs, she quickly let it out again and a pained groan slipped out with it. Covering her face with her hands, she wept bitter tears into her palms.

 

 

The sound of her sobs tore across his heart like a dull knife. Inuyasha tried to wrap his arms around her in an awkward hug but she pushed him away. “Don't you touch me,” she threatened, pointing an angry finger into his chest. Her eyes were filled with tears but there was anger behind them as well. The half demon dug his claws into the wooden beams of the bench and hung his head as she stood and practically away from him. She got about ten feet before she stopped, turned and fixed him with a scathing glare.

 

 

“I haven't done this in nearly five years,” she threatened and he looked up at her, his eyes wide with fear. He shook his head but it was no use. He couldn't blame her for it though. She had every right to be angry. If she didn't already hate him he'd be surprised. Taking in a deep breath she looked him straight in the eye as she screamed out the word he feared more than any other: “SIT!!!!”

 

 

The subjugation spell echoed across the courtyard again and again until she could no longer see his red robes peeking out from the deep crater his body had created. Feeling no better than she had before unleashing her bevy of `sit' commands, Kagome walked shakily towards the castle.

 

 

The seed of worry that'd been planted within her heart could never be removed now. There it sat, and there it would grow through the last fateful months of her pregnancy, stealing with it any joy she could have had at her child's impending birth. Just like that her happiness faded away, as if in a long forgotten dream, and was replacing by an all consuming fear of what would happen to her and the baby should Inuyasha's dire prediction come true.