InuYasha Fan Fiction ❯ The Snow Angel ❯ The Treachery ( Chapter 20 )

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

Chapter 20 - The Treachery *Uniform* (Skye's Weekly Challenges)

"I am tired of telling you 'no', Tsukiko," the Western Lady said in annoyance. It seemed as if every night he had been asking her the same question. "I will not mate you. I have no desire to take on another mate, so I have no intention of doing so. Why can you not accept that?"

The inuyoukai snarled in frustration. He'd spent the last three weeks working on her, but she still denied him, and he was beginning to lose patience. "You have no choice, my Lady," he growled. "It is your responsibility to provide an heir to the West."

"And I have. A perfect one at that."

"I would not consider Sesshoumaru perfect," Tsukiko replied, his tone dark. "Far from it. And you cannot expect the Western people to accept a dead man as their leader."

"What do you mean?" the Lady of the West asked, slowly growing concerned.

"I mean, it has been three weeks since you cast that amusing spell on him. Are you not concerned for his safety?"

Her eyes widened in shock as she realized just how much time had passed since she had last seen her son. She had been far too busy with her own affairs to pay attention, assuming that Sesshoumaru was simply being obstinate as usual. "My pup is strong. He is fine and will return when he is ready to apologize."

The concubine laughed, the sound sending shivers up the Lady's spine. "He cannot return. I erected a barrier around the West designed to keep him out. When you sent me to remove him from the palace grounds, I took the initiative and escorted him a little farther. Your son has been on his own, outside the Western Lands, trapped in the form of a mortal dog for the last twenty-one days. There is no chance he survived."

"You did what?" she hissed. "How dare you?"

"Now that you are fully informed of the situation, perhaps you would like to reconsider your answer. It is your duty to mate and produce another heir, and any pup I sired would be worlds better than Sesshoumaru." He practically spit as he said the taiyoukai's name, his hatred apparent.

The Lady sat silently for a moment, taking everything in, and Tsukiko assumed that she would be changing her tune rather quickly. Thus, he was caught off guard as she screamed, "Guards!" The sound echoed in the large room and, in moments, soldiers dressed in the colors of the West rushed in. "Seize him. Do you know, my dear concubine, what the punishment for treason is?" She watched as the traitor's eyes widened before continuing. "Death, of course. I will allow you to live, but only long enough for my son to return. It is his right to be the one to sever your head, and he will greatly enjoy doing so. Take him to the dungeons!"

"You bitch!" Tsukiko snarled as he fought against the soldiers who held him tight. "You will regret this. Even if he has survived, he will never enter these lands again!"

The Western Lady turned her back to him, ignoring his enraged ranting, which grew quieter the farther he was dragged from her presence. Once he was gone, she turned back to the few remaining soldiers. "Get me the General."

A few minutes later, the General of the Western army entered the study, concern clear in his eyes. "Is there a problem, my Lady?"

"There is. It seems as though my concubine decided that he no longer wished to remain so and attempted to elevate his position by forcing me to take another mate."

"How could he do so?" the inuyoukai General asked.

"He claims to have erected a barrier along the Western borders to keep Sesshoumaru from reentering these lands."

"But, why have we not heard from the Lord then?"

Guilt washed over her face before she hid it away. "Three weeks ago, I cast a spell on my son before ordering Tsukiko to remove him from the palace grounds. Instead, he took him out of the West completely so that he could not return."

The General shook his head, fearing the worst. This was not the first time the Lady Mother had cast this particular, detestable spell on her son. "No, my Lady. Not that spell."

The Lady waved her hand dismissively. "He was behaving like a child, so I punished him accordingly."

Rage rose up inside the General, but he fought to keep it inside. It would do him no good to anger her. He needed as much information as he could get so that he could, if at all possible, save his Lord. Still, his outrage seeped into his voice as he spoke. "So, for the last three weeks, Lord Sesshoumaru had been trapped, outside of the West, in the form of a mortal dog? How could you allow so much time to pass? There was a blizzard! Did you not think of his safety?"

"Watch your tone with me, or you will be joining my concubine in the dungeon," she hissed. Although she knew she was in the wrong, she would not allow anyone to chastise her. She had her pride. "Send your best trackers in every direction, and locate my son. We must keep this quiet. If Sesshoumaru's enemies find out about his vulnerability, he will be killed before we can find him."

"Yes, my Lady," the General said with a bow, hands clutching at his uniform to control himself. "And of the barrier?"

"Summon every witch and miko in the West. Find a way to remove it. If we have not succeeded by the time he is located, I will meet him outside the border to undo the spell."

"Yes, my Lady." He bowed once again before heading out to summon his best men. He could only pray that Lord Sesshoumaru still lived. Alone in such a weak form, exposed to the severe weather of late, with no real experience being a common animal, it was more likely than not that he had already perished. The Lord was strong, yes, and determined, but  if he had died, they would be lucky to find some hint of him. The Western Lord may never be found, and it might never be known how he met his end.