InuYasha Fan Fiction ❯ The Prophecy ❯ The Four Levels of Claiming ( Chapter 31 )
[ X - Adult: No readers under 18. Contains Graphic Adult Themes/Extreme violence. ]
By: mshutts 
Anime/Manga: InuYasha Fan Fiction | Genre(s): Romance / Psychological / Hentai | Type: Yaoi | Uploaded On: 02.12.2006 | Pages: 2 | Words: 3.4K | Visits: 2.1K | Status: Work In Progress
Anime/Manga: InuYasha Fan Fiction | Genre(s): Romance / Psychological / Hentai | Type: Yaoi | Uploaded On: 02.12.2006 | Pages: 2 | Words: 3.4K | Visits: 2.1K | Status: Work In Progress
The Prophecy
By: mshutts
WARNING: incest
Disclaimer: I do not own Inuyasha or any other characters here-in except for Sturaki
A/N: In regards to the claiming levels: I realize that there are parts of different types of mating rituals from different fics included. I have never read one that was used quite this way, but seeing as I have read well over 100 fics that have dealt with mating, I am not entirely sure which ideas I might have borrowed from someone else. As such, I am sorry if I have offended anyone. It was not my intention. If I have taken one of your original ideas, please inform me and I will either give you credit for it or replace it with something else if it really bothers you. Thank you.
* * * * *
Chapter 31: The Four Levels of Claiming
Sesshoumaru could not believe that he had admitted to caring for his baby brother. It was not that he had no feelings whatsoever for the boy, but to say it aloud, in front of a witness no less. His youki was making him crazy. That had to be it.
Then, his little brother was not even willing to let the matter go. He had known that saying anything even approaching something caring towards his brother would be read into entirely too much. As a result, he had been forced into restating what he and Inuyasha already knew to be true about their respective situations in regards to him trying to kill his brother and that witch had the gall to get angry at him?!
It was his right, his duty, to kill his younger brother. As he had told the boy so many years ago, his life was his. He was only alive because Sesshoumaru did not truly desire his death as of yet. As soon as the youkai changed his mind, that would no longer be the case. This witch had no right to question him.
He was just about to give her a piece of his mind when, to his shock, his younger brother jumped in and agreed with him. He had been sure that Inuyasha would have taken the witch’s side. Since when had he agreed with the reasons why it was Sesshoumaru’s duty to kill him? Sesshoumaru had always thought his younger brother did not truly understand. Maybe he had underestimated him.
And then the conversation had returned to that damnable mate issue. Apparently, not only did the witch believe that she had the right to dictate who his mate would be to him, but his little brother believed it to be his right as well.
This angered his youki greatly. Although, he was unsure if it was more angered that his younger brother was trying to tell it who he should mate with or that he was insisting he was not in the running. To top it off, his younger brother taunted him with the accusation that he did not know what he wanted in a mate.
He felt he had been justifiably upset, but, when he had shown his outrage, all it made Inuyasha do was ask more pointed questions. He really hated that boy sometimes. In an effort to once again get the upper hand, he had given his brother the abbreviated list of what he was looking for in a mate only to be scoffed at by not only his baby brother, but that damnable witch as well.
Sesshoumaru really thought they were being unfair. He had given it a lot of thought over the years and believed he had come up with a list of traits that it would be necessary for his mate to possess. True, he had purposefully talked about a female mate despite his youki’s wishes, but that was only because he knew it would irk his younger brother and the witch. He had also listed off the traits on his list that he knew applied the least to his younger brother, resolutely skipping over ones that he seemed to fit perfectly, but he wasn’t going to admit to that either.
However, the witch seemed to have no compunction with giving her entire list of what she thought he should have in a mate, not just the abbreviated version. He listened to the assortment of traits with slight skepticism. He could not believe some of the things she seemed to think he would want in a mate.
Of what possible use could one who understood emotions be to him? Or one who knew how to deal with humans? He saw no point in one that would help those who could not help themselves. Or one who would offer mercy to those who would ask. Why would he want one that would stay a killing blow or protect those that had hurt this one? One who gave forgiveness without it having to be asked was not something he wanted at all; it would make his entire kingdom look weak. As would one who showed compassion.
Obviously, Lady Sturaki was quite insane. Despite that obvious flaw, she actually did mention things that he found to be exactly what he wanted. He could see the use in having one that was strong. One that was fearless. One that was incredibly intelligent. Those were all traits he had always wanted, no, believed he deserved to have, in his mate as the Lord of the Western Lands.
Halfway through her list, he noticed his little brother sat down. No, not sat down, for that implied some grace in the movement, his brother had just allowed his knees to give out and fell to the ground. He struggled against rolling his eyes. He agreed with his younger brother’s sentiments entirely. This was an utter waste of time.
However, instead of joining his baby brother in a rather undignified show of disapproval for the way the conversation was shaping up, he waited patiently for her to finish talking. He had been through much more boring meetings in the past. Making a mental note to teach his baby brother how to not make his boredom so obvious, he spent his time contemplating the possibility of making Inuyasha his.
It was perfectly within his rights to claim his baby brother. It always had been. He was the Lord of the Western Lands after all, and no one would dare to go against him. Not even that little idiot half-breed brother of his. The only question was, how far along in the claiming was he willing to go?
Among demon mates there were essentially four levels of claiming, one following the next. Most demon mates never went past the second level, but a very few of the higher level demons went through, or attempted to go through, all four levels and completed the claiming in its entirety.
Sesshoumaru was willing to go through the first level with his brother. It was a simple scent claim. In actuality, if he spent much more time with his younger brother, the scent claim would already be there without him having to even think about it. For, while the scent claim was the initial claim in mating rituals, it was hardly contained to just one individual.
When an individual joined a certain pack, there was a scent claim put on them by the leader of said pack. It was to afford some protection to the individual in the pack even if the leader was not present. Generally speaking, just knowing the identity of your pack leader was enough to scare off many demons, this, of course, all depended on the reputation of the one who had made the scent claim.
Everyone knew that Jaken and Rin were under his protection because of this scent claim. The same as everyone knew that Inuyasha’s little quasi-pack was under his protection due to his own scent claim. Demons understood that if they messed with an individual who had a scent claim on them, they risked the wrath of the one who had placed the scent claim.
As such, if he put a scent claim on his baby brother, it would be understood that he was under the protection of Sesshoumaru. Only one who wanted to take on the youkai lord himself would dare to even touch his little brother after that. It would offer him a significant level of protection while he was in this weakened state, and a scent claim was also one of the easiest to abolish. As such, Sesshoumaru decided that after they left, he would, indeed, put a scent claim on his brother.
The next level, however, was a much stickier situation. The second level of claiming, the physical claim, was the one that mating season was designed specifically to initiate. While it was technically called the physical claim in any demonic text Sesshoumaru had ever had to study on the subject, it was much more commonly known as mating.
The physical claim primarily involved having sexual relations with a certain individual and then claiming him or her with your mark. It was a much more significant level than the scent claim in that it was done exclusively between mates. In higher level demons, there was only a physical claim on one individual at a time. If the demon desired to move on to another demoness, he had to first remove the physical claim before he could do so.
However, unlike the scent claim that was relatively easy to undo, the physical claim was almost impossible to undo without both parties’ consent. It was a long and drawn out process that generally left one party dead which is why he had not wanted to go through with a physical claiming when his father had suggested it all those years ago.
Sesshoumaru had always assumed that, when he found his mate, they would complete the second level of claiming and just stop there. Many demons did that, not wanting the responsibilities or risks that went along with the higher two claiming rituals. He would not be seen as at all unusual in doing so. In fact, he would have been surprised had anyone ever expected him to fully complete the claiming with another individual.
As such, he knew that anyone he performed the physical claim on would be viewed as if the individual had been fully claimed. Although, the longer he was around his baby brother, the less it was looking like he was going to have much choice in the matter. But he’d be damned if he was going to do the physical claim in the middle of the forest like some base animal. He had much more finesse than that.
The third and fourth claims, nevertheless, were entirely out of the question. His own father had never performed either one of those claims on his mother. On the other hand, he had the sneaking suspicion that he had performed the third one on Inuyasha’s mother. Unfortunately, it was very difficult to tell if the third or fourth claims had actually been made for there was no outward sign.
Instead of an outward indication, you had to know both the mates very well to find out if they had completed the third and fourth claims. As such, there was much question about many of the mates as to how far in the claiming process they actually were. The third claim was the emotional one and the fourth claim was the spiritual one.
The emotional claim was interesting in that it allowed one mate to literally feel what the other was feeling. Through a special exchange of blood, the mates were joined even more fully than in the second level. There were also rumors that it allowed one mate to always know the other’s location and instinctively know when the one needed the other.
The spiritual claim, on the other hand, was the only one that could not be done by the mates themselves. They had to seek out an outside source of mystical power to perform the ritual necessary for the spiritual claim. As the fourth claim, it was at once the most powerful and the most dangerous claim in existence. Through a spell, the two beings were bound together.
Their lifespans became the same. If one died, the other died without question. The spiritual claim made it impossible for one to live without the other. However, it also ensured that one mate would not die of natural causes before the other. If they were not killed outright, it could essentially become a way to live forever.
In addition, their auras combined. Instead of two, individual, weaker auras, they became one, strong aura that surrounded both. The scents became almost identical and it became incredibly difficult to tell one from the other if you could not see the person in question.
But, for all these obvious gains, there was one overwhelming drawback. Death. The probability for death to both parties for attempting this last claim was enough to make most demons think twice. To Sesshoumaru’s knowledge, there were only a handful of mates out there that had successfully completed the fourth claiming since its first inception.
He had heard of many others who, influenced by the desire for power or relative immortality, had attempted the ritual only to have both die. There were entirely too many variables and, no matter how well the match appeared to be, until the attempt was actually made to complete the fourth claim, there was no surety that it would work.
Because the third and fourth claims were so rare, there was not nearly as much known about them as there was about the first two claims. For many of these reasons, Sesshoumaru had never had any intention of performing them with anyone, let alone his younger brother.
That being said, he idly wondered if his little brother was aware of the levels of claiming. In the past, he would have merely assumed that the boy knew, but, from what he had seen with the instinctual biting, that might not actually be the case. He wondered what that cowardly flea of his father’s had told Inuyasha, if anything about his demonic heritage. What was the point of having a full-demon retainer if he did not explain demonic rituals to his charge?
Then again, he was unsure if the flea actually expected the boy to live to be of proper mating age. Or for anyone to want to be his mate, for that matter. He knew that the flea was not yet mated himself, so it was possible that he did not see Inuyasha getting mated as being a possibility.
If such were the case, he wouldn’t have to worry about his younger brother asking about the other levels of claiming, he would assume that Sesshoumaru knew exactly how the mating worked and would follow his lead without question. Something about the idea of having his little brother at his complete mercy was very appealing to the youkai.
His thoughts stopped abruptly when he realized that the room was now silent. Lady Sturaki had apparently finished her list of requirements for his mate and it appeared that his younger brother had fallen asleep once again, this time on the floor.
Looking to the witch, he asked, “Why does he keep doing that?”
She looked at him, puzzled for a moment. “Why does he keep doing what? Sleep so much?”
At the inclination of his head, she continued. “He is replenishing his youki. If it gets too low, he will die. As for why he is doing it now, he can sense the comforting presence of your aura and feels safe beside his intended mate. He sleeps soundly, knowing you will protect him.”
“Whatever gave him such a foolish idea?” Sesshoumaru did not care if he was feeling protective of the pup, previous experience should have taught his younger brother not to trust him.
She gave him a chiding look, “You are his mate. Of course you’ll protect him.”
“I have agreed to no such thing.”
He saw her eyes flash red for an instant. “Lord Sesshoumaru, whether you admit to it or not, you already see him as your mate. Your youki has been supporting his this entire time. You carried him here. It is taking all of your willpower to not claim him at this very moment. The only thing that continuing to deny it will do is hurt your intended mate.”
Sesshoumaru glared at her, how dare she think to tell him such things? She continued, “Do you even understand the magnitude of what he is undertaking? He could very well die attempting to complete this task. He is doing everything in his power to give you what you want in a mate and all you do is tell him that he is not worthy.
“You do not deserve such a mate. If it were up to me, you would not have him as your mate. I would not allow it. Sadly, it is not my decision. It is his and he has already made it.” She sighed, “I wish you luck with the claiming. I am sure that Inuyasha will perform magnificently. When you are ready for the fourth level of claiming, I shall perform the ceremony for you.” With that, she turned to leave.
Before she had reached the entrance to her back room, Sesshoumaru interrupted her, “We shall not be returning for the fourth level of claiming.”
“Oh? I would really recommend it. The fourth level is already dangerous enough without having an inexperienced person do it. May I ask who you had in mind if not me?”
“You misunderstand, Lady Sturaki. We will not be completing the fourth level of claiming.”
“So you say, Lord of the West. So you say,” with that, she disappeared from his sight.
Watching the flap that covered the opening for a moment, he shook his head. He did not have time to deal with her right now. Turning his attention back to his sleeping intended mate, he was once again facing the choice of waking him or carrying him.
Deciding it would be better all around if he did not have to listen to his brother’s mouth right now, he once again lifted him, this time heading back for the western castle. It was high time he brought his wayward brother home.
* * * * *
A/N: In regards to Sturaki’s description of Sesshoumaru’s mate: She was, in fact, talking about Inuyasha. If any of the comments made do not seem to fit to you, feel free to ask and I’ll give you my reasoning behind it. I would give the reasoning for all them, but that would most likely make the author’s note longer than the story and I know you’re not here to read the author’s note. As far as why Inuyasha thought they were not talking about him, Sturaki was only listing what she saw as his good traits. I’m not sure if you have noticed, but while everyone is rather quick to point out Inuyasha’s bad traits, they don’t really point out his good traits. Even on the few occasions that Kagome has thanked him for doing something, he doesn’t really accept it as praise. He is so unused to hearing anything positive about himself that he just doesn’t know what to do with the compliment. As a result, he thought the positive traits that were being listed did not apply to him but to someone else.
As always, thank you for reading and/or reviewing.
By: mshutts
WARNING: incest
Disclaimer: I do not own Inuyasha or any other characters here-in except for Sturaki
A/N: In regards to the claiming levels: I realize that there are parts of different types of mating rituals from different fics included. I have never read one that was used quite this way, but seeing as I have read well over 100 fics that have dealt with mating, I am not entirely sure which ideas I might have borrowed from someone else. As such, I am sorry if I have offended anyone. It was not my intention. If I have taken one of your original ideas, please inform me and I will either give you credit for it or replace it with something else if it really bothers you. Thank you.
* * * * *
Chapter 31: The Four Levels of Claiming
Sesshoumaru could not believe that he had admitted to caring for his baby brother. It was not that he had no feelings whatsoever for the boy, but to say it aloud, in front of a witness no less. His youki was making him crazy. That had to be it.
Then, his little brother was not even willing to let the matter go. He had known that saying anything even approaching something caring towards his brother would be read into entirely too much. As a result, he had been forced into restating what he and Inuyasha already knew to be true about their respective situations in regards to him trying to kill his brother and that witch had the gall to get angry at him?!
It was his right, his duty, to kill his younger brother. As he had told the boy so many years ago, his life was his. He was only alive because Sesshoumaru did not truly desire his death as of yet. As soon as the youkai changed his mind, that would no longer be the case. This witch had no right to question him.
He was just about to give her a piece of his mind when, to his shock, his younger brother jumped in and agreed with him. He had been sure that Inuyasha would have taken the witch’s side. Since when had he agreed with the reasons why it was Sesshoumaru’s duty to kill him? Sesshoumaru had always thought his younger brother did not truly understand. Maybe he had underestimated him.
And then the conversation had returned to that damnable mate issue. Apparently, not only did the witch believe that she had the right to dictate who his mate would be to him, but his little brother believed it to be his right as well.
This angered his youki greatly. Although, he was unsure if it was more angered that his younger brother was trying to tell it who he should mate with or that he was insisting he was not in the running. To top it off, his younger brother taunted him with the accusation that he did not know what he wanted in a mate.
He felt he had been justifiably upset, but, when he had shown his outrage, all it made Inuyasha do was ask more pointed questions. He really hated that boy sometimes. In an effort to once again get the upper hand, he had given his brother the abbreviated list of what he was looking for in a mate only to be scoffed at by not only his baby brother, but that damnable witch as well.
Sesshoumaru really thought they were being unfair. He had given it a lot of thought over the years and believed he had come up with a list of traits that it would be necessary for his mate to possess. True, he had purposefully talked about a female mate despite his youki’s wishes, but that was only because he knew it would irk his younger brother and the witch. He had also listed off the traits on his list that he knew applied the least to his younger brother, resolutely skipping over ones that he seemed to fit perfectly, but he wasn’t going to admit to that either.
However, the witch seemed to have no compunction with giving her entire list of what she thought he should have in a mate, not just the abbreviated version. He listened to the assortment of traits with slight skepticism. He could not believe some of the things she seemed to think he would want in a mate.
Of what possible use could one who understood emotions be to him? Or one who knew how to deal with humans? He saw no point in one that would help those who could not help themselves. Or one who would offer mercy to those who would ask. Why would he want one that would stay a killing blow or protect those that had hurt this one? One who gave forgiveness without it having to be asked was not something he wanted at all; it would make his entire kingdom look weak. As would one who showed compassion.
Obviously, Lady Sturaki was quite insane. Despite that obvious flaw, she actually did mention things that he found to be exactly what he wanted. He could see the use in having one that was strong. One that was fearless. One that was incredibly intelligent. Those were all traits he had always wanted, no, believed he deserved to have, in his mate as the Lord of the Western Lands.
Halfway through her list, he noticed his little brother sat down. No, not sat down, for that implied some grace in the movement, his brother had just allowed his knees to give out and fell to the ground. He struggled against rolling his eyes. He agreed with his younger brother’s sentiments entirely. This was an utter waste of time.
However, instead of joining his baby brother in a rather undignified show of disapproval for the way the conversation was shaping up, he waited patiently for her to finish talking. He had been through much more boring meetings in the past. Making a mental note to teach his baby brother how to not make his boredom so obvious, he spent his time contemplating the possibility of making Inuyasha his.
It was perfectly within his rights to claim his baby brother. It always had been. He was the Lord of the Western Lands after all, and no one would dare to go against him. Not even that little idiot half-breed brother of his. The only question was, how far along in the claiming was he willing to go?
Among demon mates there were essentially four levels of claiming, one following the next. Most demon mates never went past the second level, but a very few of the higher level demons went through, or attempted to go through, all four levels and completed the claiming in its entirety.
Sesshoumaru was willing to go through the first level with his brother. It was a simple scent claim. In actuality, if he spent much more time with his younger brother, the scent claim would already be there without him having to even think about it. For, while the scent claim was the initial claim in mating rituals, it was hardly contained to just one individual.
When an individual joined a certain pack, there was a scent claim put on them by the leader of said pack. It was to afford some protection to the individual in the pack even if the leader was not present. Generally speaking, just knowing the identity of your pack leader was enough to scare off many demons, this, of course, all depended on the reputation of the one who had made the scent claim.
Everyone knew that Jaken and Rin were under his protection because of this scent claim. The same as everyone knew that Inuyasha’s little quasi-pack was under his protection due to his own scent claim. Demons understood that if they messed with an individual who had a scent claim on them, they risked the wrath of the one who had placed the scent claim.
As such, if he put a scent claim on his baby brother, it would be understood that he was under the protection of Sesshoumaru. Only one who wanted to take on the youkai lord himself would dare to even touch his little brother after that. It would offer him a significant level of protection while he was in this weakened state, and a scent claim was also one of the easiest to abolish. As such, Sesshoumaru decided that after they left, he would, indeed, put a scent claim on his brother.
The next level, however, was a much stickier situation. The second level of claiming, the physical claim, was the one that mating season was designed specifically to initiate. While it was technically called the physical claim in any demonic text Sesshoumaru had ever had to study on the subject, it was much more commonly known as mating.
The physical claim primarily involved having sexual relations with a certain individual and then claiming him or her with your mark. It was a much more significant level than the scent claim in that it was done exclusively between mates. In higher level demons, there was only a physical claim on one individual at a time. If the demon desired to move on to another demoness, he had to first remove the physical claim before he could do so.
However, unlike the scent claim that was relatively easy to undo, the physical claim was almost impossible to undo without both parties’ consent. It was a long and drawn out process that generally left one party dead which is why he had not wanted to go through with a physical claiming when his father had suggested it all those years ago.
Sesshoumaru had always assumed that, when he found his mate, they would complete the second level of claiming and just stop there. Many demons did that, not wanting the responsibilities or risks that went along with the higher two claiming rituals. He would not be seen as at all unusual in doing so. In fact, he would have been surprised had anyone ever expected him to fully complete the claiming with another individual.
As such, he knew that anyone he performed the physical claim on would be viewed as if the individual had been fully claimed. Although, the longer he was around his baby brother, the less it was looking like he was going to have much choice in the matter. But he’d be damned if he was going to do the physical claim in the middle of the forest like some base animal. He had much more finesse than that.
The third and fourth claims, nevertheless, were entirely out of the question. His own father had never performed either one of those claims on his mother. On the other hand, he had the sneaking suspicion that he had performed the third one on Inuyasha’s mother. Unfortunately, it was very difficult to tell if the third or fourth claims had actually been made for there was no outward sign.
Instead of an outward indication, you had to know both the mates very well to find out if they had completed the third and fourth claims. As such, there was much question about many of the mates as to how far in the claiming process they actually were. The third claim was the emotional one and the fourth claim was the spiritual one.
The emotional claim was interesting in that it allowed one mate to literally feel what the other was feeling. Through a special exchange of blood, the mates were joined even more fully than in the second level. There were also rumors that it allowed one mate to always know the other’s location and instinctively know when the one needed the other.
The spiritual claim, on the other hand, was the only one that could not be done by the mates themselves. They had to seek out an outside source of mystical power to perform the ritual necessary for the spiritual claim. As the fourth claim, it was at once the most powerful and the most dangerous claim in existence. Through a spell, the two beings were bound together.
Their lifespans became the same. If one died, the other died without question. The spiritual claim made it impossible for one to live without the other. However, it also ensured that one mate would not die of natural causes before the other. If they were not killed outright, it could essentially become a way to live forever.
In addition, their auras combined. Instead of two, individual, weaker auras, they became one, strong aura that surrounded both. The scents became almost identical and it became incredibly difficult to tell one from the other if you could not see the person in question.
But, for all these obvious gains, there was one overwhelming drawback. Death. The probability for death to both parties for attempting this last claim was enough to make most demons think twice. To Sesshoumaru’s knowledge, there were only a handful of mates out there that had successfully completed the fourth claiming since its first inception.
He had heard of many others who, influenced by the desire for power or relative immortality, had attempted the ritual only to have both die. There were entirely too many variables and, no matter how well the match appeared to be, until the attempt was actually made to complete the fourth claim, there was no surety that it would work.
Because the third and fourth claims were so rare, there was not nearly as much known about them as there was about the first two claims. For many of these reasons, Sesshoumaru had never had any intention of performing them with anyone, let alone his younger brother.
That being said, he idly wondered if his little brother was aware of the levels of claiming. In the past, he would have merely assumed that the boy knew, but, from what he had seen with the instinctual biting, that might not actually be the case. He wondered what that cowardly flea of his father’s had told Inuyasha, if anything about his demonic heritage. What was the point of having a full-demon retainer if he did not explain demonic rituals to his charge?
Then again, he was unsure if the flea actually expected the boy to live to be of proper mating age. Or for anyone to want to be his mate, for that matter. He knew that the flea was not yet mated himself, so it was possible that he did not see Inuyasha getting mated as being a possibility.
If such were the case, he wouldn’t have to worry about his younger brother asking about the other levels of claiming, he would assume that Sesshoumaru knew exactly how the mating worked and would follow his lead without question. Something about the idea of having his little brother at his complete mercy was very appealing to the youkai.
His thoughts stopped abruptly when he realized that the room was now silent. Lady Sturaki had apparently finished her list of requirements for his mate and it appeared that his younger brother had fallen asleep once again, this time on the floor.
Looking to the witch, he asked, “Why does he keep doing that?”
She looked at him, puzzled for a moment. “Why does he keep doing what? Sleep so much?”
At the inclination of his head, she continued. “He is replenishing his youki. If it gets too low, he will die. As for why he is doing it now, he can sense the comforting presence of your aura and feels safe beside his intended mate. He sleeps soundly, knowing you will protect him.”
“Whatever gave him such a foolish idea?” Sesshoumaru did not care if he was feeling protective of the pup, previous experience should have taught his younger brother not to trust him.
She gave him a chiding look, “You are his mate. Of course you’ll protect him.”
“I have agreed to no such thing.”
He saw her eyes flash red for an instant. “Lord Sesshoumaru, whether you admit to it or not, you already see him as your mate. Your youki has been supporting his this entire time. You carried him here. It is taking all of your willpower to not claim him at this very moment. The only thing that continuing to deny it will do is hurt your intended mate.”
Sesshoumaru glared at her, how dare she think to tell him such things? She continued, “Do you even understand the magnitude of what he is undertaking? He could very well die attempting to complete this task. He is doing everything in his power to give you what you want in a mate and all you do is tell him that he is not worthy.
“You do not deserve such a mate. If it were up to me, you would not have him as your mate. I would not allow it. Sadly, it is not my decision. It is his and he has already made it.” She sighed, “I wish you luck with the claiming. I am sure that Inuyasha will perform magnificently. When you are ready for the fourth level of claiming, I shall perform the ceremony for you.” With that, she turned to leave.
Before she had reached the entrance to her back room, Sesshoumaru interrupted her, “We shall not be returning for the fourth level of claiming.”
“Oh? I would really recommend it. The fourth level is already dangerous enough without having an inexperienced person do it. May I ask who you had in mind if not me?”
“You misunderstand, Lady Sturaki. We will not be completing the fourth level of claiming.”
“So you say, Lord of the West. So you say,” with that, she disappeared from his sight.
Watching the flap that covered the opening for a moment, he shook his head. He did not have time to deal with her right now. Turning his attention back to his sleeping intended mate, he was once again facing the choice of waking him or carrying him.
Deciding it would be better all around if he did not have to listen to his brother’s mouth right now, he once again lifted him, this time heading back for the western castle. It was high time he brought his wayward brother home.
* * * * *
A/N: In regards to Sturaki’s description of Sesshoumaru’s mate: She was, in fact, talking about Inuyasha. If any of the comments made do not seem to fit to you, feel free to ask and I’ll give you my reasoning behind it. I would give the reasoning for all them, but that would most likely make the author’s note longer than the story and I know you’re not here to read the author’s note. As far as why Inuyasha thought they were not talking about him, Sturaki was only listing what she saw as his good traits. I’m not sure if you have noticed, but while everyone is rather quick to point out Inuyasha’s bad traits, they don’t really point out his good traits. Even on the few occasions that Kagome has thanked him for doing something, he doesn’t really accept it as praise. He is so unused to hearing anything positive about himself that he just doesn’t know what to do with the compliment. As a result, he thought the positive traits that were being listed did not apply to him but to someone else.
As always, thank you for reading and/or reviewing.