InuYasha Fan Fiction ❯ The Longest Journey ❯ A Game of Strategy ( Chapter 5 )

[ X - Adult: No readers under 18. Contains Graphic Adult Themes/Extreme violence. ]

Chapter 5: A Game of Strategy

Kagome sighed. It had been two weeks now since her life had become unrecognizable. If she'd thought that had happened after leaving her old friends, she'd been mistaken.

Right now, while Sugimi was busy taking care of certain tasks that came with being a youkai Lord, she was getting ready for another meeting with Suma. Suma was the head of the household servants, what in her time would be called the head housekeeper, or chatelaine, if you prefered the french term. She was cheerful, efficient, knowledgeable, and extremely friendly. Kagome found she'd already become terribly attached to the attractive female youkai.

The first meeting, the week before, between them, went well - it appeared that they would work well together, and the changes for the better that came directly after that first meeting had been drastic enough to immediately catch the Lord's attention. He'd been most grateful to her for her 'stepping into save him the frustration' of having to deal with another task, when he already had so many.

However, she was beginning to wonder if there wasn't more to it. He'd slipped a few times and said things that had begun to make her a bit suspicious - except that what it sounded like, couldn't possibly be what it really was, could it?

No. She had to be imagining it - or taking something the wrong way. That had to be it. She was just missing something... maybe it was a misunderstanding brought on by the fact that she was ningen, and he was youkai. They just did things different, that's all.

Right?

That's one reason she was glad to be meeting with Suma today - without Sugimi around. She'd decided to ask her - if anyone, Suma would know, and be able to set her mind at rest. And most importantly of all, keep a secret. She didn't want Sugimi finding out about her mistaken assumptions. It would be much too humiliating.

Knocking on the frame of the rice-paper door she'd stopped in front of, she waited for Suma to answer, not sliding the door open till she heard the "Come in."

Smiling widely, she stepped into the room and slid the door shut. "Suma! Good morning!"

"Good morning, Kagome-sama. Are you ready for more work?"

Kagome nodded, then blushed slightly. "Yeah, I am, but... I also wanted to talk to you. I'm..." She turned her hot face to the floor, feeling a fool, as Suma tilted her head to the side questioningly. "I needed to ask you some things about, well about... how youkai males react around females."

Suma smiled internally. So the tiny miko was finally beginning to wonder about the Lord's behavior, was she? Every youkai that had come into contact with the two knew exactly what Sugimi-sama was after - only Kagome-sama had, so far, been oblivious.

"Well, if you would explain what the situation is, I would be happy to help you, Kagome-sama."

Kagome nodded again and sat nervously on the indicated cushion. "Okay, well... Sugimi-sama has been confusing me, Suma. I guess it's different, how ningen males, and youkai males, act towards a woman, that's the only thing I can think of - he doesn't realize the signals he's giving off."

She can't possibly be that innocent, can she? A male is a male is a male - animal, youkai, or ningen, even the kami - it is always the same. Suma was finding this quite funny, although she just managed to keep her face straight.

She gestured gracefully. "Go on, Kagome-sama. What is it that you find so confusing?"

"It's some of the things he says and does, Suma! If he were ningen, I'd say he was... flirting with me! But he can't possibly be," she got out, almost desperately. "It has to be some kind of misunderstanding."

Suma raised a brow. "What has he said or done?"

Kagome blushed a deeper pink. "Well, for instance, he watches me like a hawk. Do you know how disconcerting that is? And then, a few times, he's made certain comments like, the other day, I was talking to him about some of the refurbishing of the palace, and I made a stupid comment without thinking, about how I wanted the rooms I've been sleeping in redone in certain colors, and he just smiled at me, and told me to do so, since they were my rooms. But then, well, then he said that if he had his way, I wouldn't be sleeping in those rooms for long. It was the way he said it, like it was a come on or something."

"What else?"

"Then there's been the just slightly suggestive comments, that have gotten a tiny bit more suggestive this last week... but the weirdest thing of all, is the way he all of a sudden got all growly and possessive when one of the soldiers tried to get a little grabby the other day. I mean, he acted like he was gonna go all youkai or something and start killing people - it's confusing, Suma." She dropped her hot face and stared at her hands.

Suma began to laugh. "Oh, my dear. Men are men, no matter the species. Yes, Sugimi-sama is showing interest in you. And in more ways than you think."

Kagome's eyes had widened impossibly as Suma had spoken, and she squeaked out a "What?!"

She waved a hand at the girl. "Ningens do not have a very developed sense of smell. Pretty much any youkai can smell things better than any ningen, and then, there are youkai that have an even more developed sense of smell. Inu are one of those groups. In fact, smell is probably their best developed sense. Even without being Inu, though, every youkai that comes across you will know that Sugimi-sama has scent marked you - and is releasing a certain set of pheromones aimed specifically at you."

"Ph-pheromones?!" Kagome barely got her voice to spit that word out. "Why? Ningens don't respond to those!"

"Most don't, that's true. But you are not most ningens. You are a miko. While your nose isn't responding to his scent claim, or pheromones, your aura is. That's why you've been increasingly nervous, this last week. He's male, you're female, and he's - basically, for lack of a better word - hunting you."

Kagome hysterically waved her hands in front of her, almost panicked. "Oh, no, no, no! I don't flirt, and I definitely don't do one night stands! No, absolutely not!"

Suma frowned. "What is this 'one night stand' you speak of?"

"Well, it's where a guy chases a female for sex with no strings attached... and I am most certainly not that way. I don't do that kind of thing, I'm a good girl!"

This time, it was Suma's eyes that widened. "You mean, this is what you think he wants of you?" She shook her head emphatically. "This is not what Sugimi-sama is after. What he is initaiting is a courtship, Kagome-sama. It is a very serious intent. He wants you as his mate. That is for life."

Kagome sat back on her heels in shock.

She stayed shocked through the whole afternoon as she worked with Suma, in fact, she never did manage to remember what they'd talked about that day - ever.

---zZz---

That night, Kagome decided to sneak out of the shiro and go for a long walk. Not being stupid, she took her bow, and quiver full of arrows. Once she'd come down from the huge shock she'd gotten that day, the hundred million questions that had run amuck through her mind had almost driven her insane in the quiet dark of her room, and so she'd fled out here to try to sort through it all.

Little did she know that sneaking out wasn't about to happen with Sugimi. He was far too experienced in the ways of onnas to be fooled - he'd known something was up as soon as she'd pled a lame excuse to avoid dinner, and he'd immediately gone looking for Suma. It was a good bet that she'd know what was wrong with his little miko, since they'd spent most of the day together.

He was most pleased to find out exactly what the problem was... it was about time for her to begin figuring it out, and for him to up things to the next level. It was time to sit her down and have a nice, long talk about what he wanted from her - sort of re-iterate what Suma had told her. He wanted to be sure she was clear on where this was going - he wouldn't tolerate any confusion on that score.

Sugimi watched her walk towards the forest ahead of her, and quickly figured out where she was heading. Just inside the boundaries of the woods, there was a large meadow, filled with flowers and small running stream that was very beautiful. He knew she'd been out here before and wasn't surprised that she would choose to go back when she needed a place to think. It was a good area for that.

As she reached the clearing, he settled himself in a tree high above her position, and prepared to watch over his miko. He wouldn't interfere with her desire to be here, only watch and make sure she stayed safe. It was an inu thing... he was just naturally protective of what he considered his - and she was most definitely his.

Over the two weeks she'd been here, he'd had to admit that the kami sure knew what they were doing - it was like she'd been made for him. He couldn't imagine anyone more perfect from his point of view... she actually hit every need he had - even ones he hadn't realized, and he was already absolutely crazy about her.

And that wasn't even talking about what she did to his libido. Every hot button he had, she pushed, and then some. He couldn't imagine a more beautiful onna... and every time he saw her, it got harder to resist just throwing her down and claiming her. He wanted her so badly he was almost in a constant state of arousal - and every youkai in the shiro knew it, and they were all getting a great deal of amusement out of it.

He frowned thoughtfully. He'd never been in a place quite like this before, with the way that the youkai and ningen population seemed to get along so well, and when he'd asked about it, he'd been surprised. Apparently, the youkai he'd killed in combat hadn't been the original Lord here. Well, hell, he knew that, but he hadn't really thought about it much. He'd just assumed that the old Lord that he'd known had died off.

He had... but not without help. He'd been told that the former Lord had had one son - who had mated a young ningen woman. She'd been well loved by her mate and his father had doted on her - and then, a crazed monk and some of his followers had come through, and attacked the son and his mate while they were together one day in the forest. They'd both died - and the father, after destroying the monk and his men, had gone into seclusion.

That's when the Lord he'd killed had come into the picture, striking and destroying the old Lord, and taking over. He hadn't been well liked, and the inhabitants of the area still remembered the old Lord and his penchant for being fond of ningens. So that gave the answer to why not one person had had a problem with him courting Kagome - she was already very well-liked by everyone... he hadn't heard one complaint against her from anyone, ningen or youkai.

That made things much easier. He still remembered the problems he'd had in the west when he'd mated Inuyasha's mother. That was why she'd been living in her family's estate still - and why Takemaru had been able to get his hands on her when she was defenseless, birthing his youngest pup.

Which reminded him. Now that he was Lord of the Northern Lands, he would need an heir... Sesshoumaru ruled the West, but he would not hand over the rule of the North to him. He was too hard - and wouldn't be well received here with his hatred of ningens. Inuyasha was not fit to rule anything, he'd spent too much of his time just surviving, and was far to wild and undisciplined to make a good ruler.

Now that he had found his soul-mate, however, the solution had just been handed to him. He'd pup his soon-to-be mate - just as soon as Naraku was destroyed and he'd mated her. He would enjoy having another young one - it had been so long since Sesshoumaru was young, and Inuyasha he'd missed out on.

That would not happen this time.

---zZz---

Kagome shifted her feet just a bit. She'd been sitting out here for over an hour now, and still hadn't been able to calm herself down. She was seriously overheated.

Ever since Suma had so bluntly informed her that yes, Sugimi-sama was interested in her, in that way, she'd been on tenterhooks. And it wasn't even as though he was just chasing her as an amusing pastime - he, according to Suma, and she had no doubt that the female youkai was right - wanted the youkai equivalent of marriage! She could hardly take it in... the single most gorgeous male she'd ever laid eyes on in either era, was after her.

What she couldn't understand was why. Again, let's re-iterate... the guy was beyond beautiful, eligible, wealthy, and a Lord. What could he possibly see in her? She'd never had any illusions about her looks - even before Inuyasha had spent so much time knocking her lack of beauty, she'd never been vain, and after him, she was very well aware that males apparently were not physically attracted to her. The only ones that had ever put the moves on her in this era was Miroku - and he was such a lecher he'd even flirted with Kaede a few times, and Kouga - and he just wanted her because she could see the shards.

Even in her time, she'd not been overly popular - only Hojo had bothered with her - and she was pretty sure that was only because of all her so-called illnesses. The guy wanted to be a doctor, what better way to get practice than to date a woman that was always ill?

She sighed despondently. There had to be some mistake somewhere. She just couldn't believe he'd want her. And that was really the crux of the problem, because she would certainly be amenable to him chasing her. Who wouldn't be? He was the most entertaining person she'd ever been around. He was smart, open, caring and funny, handsome, and powerful.

As she'd spent more and more time with him over the days, she'd quickly come to the conclusion that he was perfect. No other male she'd ever met had clicked with all her personality quirks. For instance: even though she was a very independent woman, she liked having a male be dominant within the confines of the relationship, specifically, she actually liked a male that was possessive, and she adored his protectiveness. While she was perfectly capable of taking care of herself, and she'd amply proved that after she'd left her old group, she preferred to have a man that could take care of her if she needed it.

Of course, there were limits, and maybe that was the problem with her - she was very picky. Sugimi just seemed to be perfect in everything, not too hot, not too cold as that old fairy tale went. Just perfect.

She didn't understand why she found him so - and after wondering for two weeks why she'd been so instantly, and heavily attracted, she'd quit even questioning it, and just accepted it, thinking it was all one-sided. Now she was finding out that it wasn't...

Climbing to her feet, she grabbed her weapon, and began the walk back to the shiro. She hadn't really figured anything out, but she had at least tired her mind out enough to fall asleep now, so it was time to call it a night.

How she was going to face Sugimi tomorrow, however, continued to elude her.