InuYasha Fan Fiction ❯ Time After Time ❯ A Stitch in Time ( Chapter 15 )
[ Y - Young Adult: Not suitable for readers under 16 ]
By: kanna37 
Anime/Manga: InuYasha Fan Fiction | Genre(s): Romance / Drama / Adventure / Action | Type: Divergence | Uploaded On: 03.25.2011 | Pages: 2 | Words: 3.7K | Visits: 416 | Status: Work In Progress
Anime/Manga: InuYasha Fan Fiction | Genre(s): Romance / Drama / Adventure / Action | Type: Divergence | Uploaded On: 03.25.2011 | Pages: 2 | Words: 3.7K | Visits: 416 | Status: Work In Progress
Chapter 15: A Stitch in Time
Kagome instantly took in her surroundings as she landed back at the bottom of the well, and felt nothing but relief when she took in the familiar Sengoku Jidai version of it. She sighed, but before she could even move, a rather frantic daiyoukai landed in the bottom next to her and pulled her startled form into his arms as he jumped back out.
She blinked, eyeing him dubiously as he began looking her over as though he feared she was injured, and another ache bloomed in her heart – she'd just minutes ago witnessed him do the same to another woman, and she wasn't sure she could wrap her mind and heart around the differences. It made her feel awkward – as though she were stealing another woman's male, and she stiffened, suddenly uncomfortable with his nearness.
She smiled uneasily and stepped back away from him, not meeting his eyes, and caught sight of Inuyasha watching, his expression blank, and winced, now feeling even more awkward. She started to speak, when she was cut off by Sugimi's upset growl.
“Why do you flinch from me, Kagome?” he asked. “I have never harmed you – not even when I found you protecting Izayoi.”
Still not meeting his eyes, she grimaced. “So you do... remember.”
“Only just a little while ago. Ever since we met in this time, I have had the feeling that I should know you – that we had met, but I couldn't place it until we realized that you were not in your time, or here, and so must be in another era,” he answered, eyes narrowed on her. “But that does not answer my question, miko.”
She locked eyes with Inuyasha, then, ignoring Sugimi's question, and noted the upset look in his. “You know... don't you? That it was Kikyou,” she said slowly, and her own gaze softened on him when he jerked his head in a nod. “I think... she was trying to seal the well with me on my side of it, but something went wrong, and instead I was sent back even further. But whatever she did doesn't appear to have succeeded, since the well is still working.”
He nodded again without saying anything, and Sugimi frowned, not liking the fact that Kagome wouldn't answer his question, nor indeed even look at him. Something was wrong. He caught his son's eyes, and jerked his head in the direction of the village, indicating that he needed to leave, and the boy simply turned on his heel and walked away, not being able to think of anything to say.
The clearing was silent until Inuyasha had disappeared back into the trees.
“Look at me, Kagome,” he demanded, and waited with impatience as she, with visible reluctance, dragged her eyes up to his face. He scowled. “Why do you avoid my touch and my eyes?”
With another false smile, she shrugged, her discomfort more than obvious. “I... it's just strange, that's all. A lot has happened today... I think I just need a little time to take it all in.”
He eyed her agitatedly, his blood highly disturbed by its chosen's rejection, and sighed. “Very well, I will not press for now. But later, we will speak, and you will tell me what it is that concerns you.”
Kagome didn't answer, merely tugging her pack higher on her shoulder and starting towards the village. I hope something happens to distract him, because I don't think I'll ever want to talk to him about this...
Sugimi took in a deep breath as he jerked his heated blood that was demanding she submit to him back under control, and followed her, inwardly cursing the well and time travel for the first time. Something must have happened back then to upset her... but he had no idea what it could have been. He allowed his mind to play over every detail of that day in an attempt to figure it out, but couldn't come up with a single thing... unless it was something Izayoi had said before he came upon them?
That must be it... because I can't think of anything I said to her that would cause her to be so upset. But what could it have been?
Kagome knew she'd upset him, and she felt badly about it, she really did, but she just couldn't shake the feeling that she shouldn't let herself be close to him, that he belonged to someone else. Oh, her head was well aware that he was a free agent – Izayoi had died almost two hundred years before, and they hadn't been mates, but... she had just seen them together not an hour ago, and her heart wouldn't let her forget it.
He'd looked at her with such softness and caring, and been so protective. She felt like she was pushing herself somewhere she had no business being, and suddenly, she wasn't sure she could continue to allow him to court her. She felt like an intruder...
A sigh of relief escaped her as they crested the hill above the village and the rest of the group walked up to meet her, freeing them from the very uncomfortable silence that had come up between them. She hurried down to them, leaving a very upset daiyoukai behind – one who was well aware that she had been most eager to escape his presence.
It hurt.
He came back to his surroundings to Kagome's voice. “... Sesshoumaru is? I brought back that information he wanted about battles and such... oh,” she said quietly, looking behind her with a strained smile. “You too, of course, Sugimi – I remember that you both wanted it.”
He could see the concerned, confused looks from the slayer and monk at the distance between them, and it aggravated his already agitated instincts. Clamping down hard on them, he managed to nod noncommittally as she swung her bag down and began to dig through it, taking out a thick sheaf of her odd parchment, and separating it, handed one packet to him. He glanced at it, and said, “Sesshoumaru has been patrolling. I will go take over for him, and send him your way.” With one last, searching glance at her, he nodded and turned away, rolling the papers up and tucking them into his sleeve as he did so.
Kagome smiled unconvincingly at her friends as he left, and Sango eyed her determinedly – something was very wrong, so that meant there was only one thing to do... drag her friend to the hot springs as soon as possible to get the story out of her.
Sugimi watched from back in the trees, determined to shadow her and find out what was wrong – he was very worried, and he just couldn't convince himself to leave it alone – his instincts were telling him that he needed to find out the problem before it got worse than it already was.
Turning away momentarily, he flared his aura and waited for Sesshoumaru to appear. When he did, Sugimi asked, “Did you find any sign of Naraku?”
“No. The only enemy within this forest right now is the undead miko – and she is quite a ways away at this time.”
“Good,” the big daiyoukai sighed. “Kagome is looking for you – she has the information on battles that she said she would bring for you.”
Sesshoumaru stared thoughtfully at his sire; it was obvious that something was wrong, but equally obvious that he did not want to discuss it. “Very well, then, father, if there is nothing else?”
He shook his head, dismissing his son, and Sesshoumaru moved away, heading back to the village. Turning back, he once more watched as the younger dai approached the group sitting outside. She speaks to him normally, so it must be something to do with me specifically. But what? Frustration burned in him, and he hoped that she could be convinced to talk about it to someone soon, or he didn't know what he'd do. He couldn't fix something if he had no idea what was wrong in the first place.
He could feel her slipping away from him, and he refused to allow it. Straightening his shoulders, he determined to hover near no matter what she was doing so he could listen until he figured out what was wrong.
I will not let you go, Kagome.
-sSs-
Sango eyed her friend determinedly as she sank down in the heated waters of the spring with a sigh. It hadn't taken much convincing to get her to agree to a bath; they were always her weakness.
“Alright, Kagome, start talking. I want to know what's wrong with you! I mean, I know for a fact that you have feelings for Sugimi-sama, and he's courting you, which means he has feelings for you, and yet... you came back today, and it's obvious something's wrong.” She took note of her friends wince, and finished, “Does it have to do with what happened to you with the well?”
Kagome jerked her head up, staring at Sango with a startled expression. “How did you know something happened with the well? We didn't talk about that!”
“Oh, come on, Kagome,” she rolled her eyes, “it wasn't that hard to figure out. Sugimi-sama was in as close to a panic as I've ever seen from a youkai when he came barreling back into the village and yanked Inuyasha out of here – the only reason he'd have him do anything to do with you is if it had to do with the well, since he can't cross.”
Startled, Kagome stared at her friend for a moment. “He... he was worried... for me?” she asked in a small voice.
“Very, I'd say. So what did happen, anyway?”
Sighing, and slumping down further in the water, Kagome began a detailed re-telling of her day, Sango listening wide-eyed all the way. It took a little while, but she finally got to the end.
“Wow... that's something else,” she said, not sure what to make of it all. “So... you're avoiding Sugimi-sama because...?”
She slanted Sango a quick look, then lowered her eyes back to the water. “Well... I just feel so confused, you know? Just a couple of hours ago, I was watching Sugimi hovering over Izayoi and you could see how much he cared for her – he looked at me with suspicion in his eyes... and no recognition at all. And then I come back here, and within an hour's time, he's looking at me like he looked at her, and I just can't separate it out. I feel...” she closed her eyes sadly, “like I'm taking something I have no right to take when I'm with him. And then I look at Inuyasha, and that makes it even worse - I feel like I'm messing up his family or something!”
Sango blinked, surprised. “Kagome... you know that's not true, right? I mean... Inuyasha's mother died almost two hundred years ago. You're not stealing someone's husband.”
Sighing, she opened her eyes and glanced ruefully at her friend. “My head knows... but my heart... that's another matter. I honestly don't know if I can continue this courting thing – everything's so awkward, now.”
Bothered more than she cared to admit that Kagome was so upset about the whole thing, upset enough to consider terminating the courting, Sango tried to reason with her. “Look... I can see that it would be kind of weird, but really, it's not that big a deal, Kagome. Don't let something like this keep you from happiness.” Casting around in her mind for something, anything, she hit on an idea. “Hey... you know, would you have reacted the same to seeing a painting of his former wife? I mean, if he were a widower that you were courting, which he is, and you saw a painting of his dead wife, would you leave him?”
Now it was Kagome's turn to blink. “Umm... no,” she said doubtfully. “I suppose not.”
“All I'm saying right now is don't do anything rash, like tell him you don't want him anymore. Give it a little time to settle in your mind, and then see how you feel before making a final decision.”
Brow furrowed, Kagome thought about it, then nodded finally. “I guess I can do that.” She relaxed back against a boulder, and closed her eyes again, trying to get rid of her tension. “I almost wish I could just go back home and stay there for a while – but we're too close to Naraku for that... I wonder why he's been so quiet, lately?”
Sango snorted disgustedly. “Because Inuyasha hasn't been able to snitch us out to Naraku's pet dead woman. I bet that damn spider was pissed when she stopped having answers for him,” she laughed.
“Yeah,” Kagome sighed, shaking her head. “The peace has kinda been nice, though. It's been a while since we've had even a moment's worth of it, ne?”
“Mhmm,” Sango hummed. “Now if we could just find and kill him, all that peace could become permanent.”
It grew silent, then, as both girls allowed their minds to wander; both were content with that, though – it was a comfortable silence.
-sSs-
Sugimi almost couldn't believe his ears when he heard what Kagome told the slayer... she was thinking about turning him away because of his wife – who had been dead for almost two centuries?
He could understand how meeting him as he was in the past would have been difficult for her – he remembered well the suspicion he'd looked at her with that day so long ago. But most of that hadn't been over Izayoi – it had been because of that odd sense of recognition he'd felt towards her. At the time, he hadn't really focused on it, nor realized what it meant – he'd been concerned for his wife, and tired from the battle he'd fought with Hyoga.
And since he'd never met her again back then, his so-called death coming a mere four months later, he'd never really had the chance to think on that odd feeling. Now, however, he knew what that feeling had been – his soul had recognized hers. She was his mate.
Perhaps he should take her aside and explain all these things? Explain about mating, and what it meant? Maybe then she'd realize that she had no need to worry, or feel inferior – because he'd heard beneath her words to that fact loud and clear; she felt inferior to Izayoi.
He had a sneaking suspicion that lack of belief in herself was due in great part to his son and that undead wench that he was going to make sure paid for her transgressions as soon as Naraku was on his way to hell.
Gratitude welled up in him as he heard the words of the slayer, encouraging Kagome to hold on and not make any snap decisions based on the way she felt right now, and he made sure to remember to get her something to repay her words – they had saved the group an explosion on the part of his beast if Kagome had tried to turn him away.
He would never accept a no on Kagome's part; he would chase her until she finally caved – even if he had to pursue her through five hundred years, he would not give up... he couldn't. It was not possible for him to be apart from her, now that he had found her.
If only he could get her to understand that.
He let out a frustrated sigh, then. Things would be so much easier had she been youkai; there was an instinctual understanding of these kinds of things within members of his own race that humans did not have. And though he did not truly want Kagome to be youkai – she wouldn't be who she was if she were – he could wish that she had that innate understanding of soul-mates, and the like.
If she did, they would already be mated, and the hell with all this slow crap.
-sSs-
Sesshoumaru watched his father pace and wondered what had caused his upset – he had been this way since the priestess had returned. And with a quick glance towards the miko that was sitting outside the elder miko's hut, he noted her uneasy and distracted countenance, and began to put two and two together – something had happened to cause the onna to feel uncomfortable with his father.
But what?
He was aware, as was everyone, that something had happened with the well that day, but did not know the details, and he was becoming very curious. Had Inuyasha once again done something foolish? But no... his father did not appear to be angry at the little whelp, so it had to be something else.
He was aware that the others in the group, particularly the slayer, seemed to be also concerned – the woman was watching her friend very closely, and seemed to be trying to keep her mind occupied.
It seemed that everyone was quite aware of the tension between his father and the miko, and it was affecting the entire group. In an effort to give everyone something else to concentrate on, he spoke.
“What do we plan to do from here?”
The entire group of people turned to look at him in surprise, including his father. “What do you mean, Sesshoumaru?” he asked.
He cast his father a bland look. “We leave in the morning, yes? What are your plans?” he emphasized.
At that, the group of people turned to look at him expectantly, and Sugimi sighed, bringing his thoughts back to the topic of Naraku and the shards, from their former place contemplating his miko.
“I have gathered some information about a possible shard – it is to the south, however, and will take many days travel to reach. I believe it is the final one needed, other than the ones held by the slayer's brother, and the ookami.” His voice showed a certain disdain as he spoke of the wolf, and Sesshoumaru was hard-pressed not to smirk.
“So we go south.” The younger dai turned his cold eyes on the young miko. “Do we have enough supplies for an extended journey?”
Kagome blushed as she realized she'd once again forgotten all about the supplies she had gathered and left in the well house, though at least this time, she had a good excuse. “I... forgot to have Inuyasha go through and grab them. I gathered enough, this time, for a month and a half, if we're careful. We'll need to have someone do some hunting, though, for some of our meals, to supplement what I'm bringing.”
Sugimi sent a glance at Inuyasha, and the hanyou, grumbling, got up and took off, headed for the well. “Then we are all in agreement? We leave for the southern lands at daybreak?”
There were no naysayers, and with that, the next expedition was planned. Sugimi couldn't help his gaze going to Kagome, only to find her looking at him surreptitiously. She flushed when she realized she was caught, and looked down, missing him walk over to her, until an elegantly clawed hand suddenly appeared in her field of vision.
“Come, Kagome – we must speak, you and I,” he said softly. “You know I am right.”
After a moment's hesitation, and a shoulder bump and nod from Sango, she nodded quietly and reluctantly allowed him to pull her to her feet. She shivered at his touch; no matter what happened, she could never deny that this impossibly handsome male affected her like no other ever had, or probably ever would.
Suddenly, thoughts of life without him in it struck her, and she wondered...
Am I making difficulties where there really are none? My head says yes, but my heart is divided – one side afraid to stay, and one side afraid to leave. What do I do?
What path should I follow?
Converting /tmp/phpE8KTkG to /dev/stdout
Kagome instantly took in her surroundings as she landed back at the bottom of the well, and felt nothing but relief when she took in the familiar Sengoku Jidai version of it. She sighed, but before she could even move, a rather frantic daiyoukai landed in the bottom next to her and pulled her startled form into his arms as he jumped back out.
She blinked, eyeing him dubiously as he began looking her over as though he feared she was injured, and another ache bloomed in her heart – she'd just minutes ago witnessed him do the same to another woman, and she wasn't sure she could wrap her mind and heart around the differences. It made her feel awkward – as though she were stealing another woman's male, and she stiffened, suddenly uncomfortable with his nearness.
She smiled uneasily and stepped back away from him, not meeting his eyes, and caught sight of Inuyasha watching, his expression blank, and winced, now feeling even more awkward. She started to speak, when she was cut off by Sugimi's upset growl.
“Why do you flinch from me, Kagome?” he asked. “I have never harmed you – not even when I found you protecting Izayoi.”
Still not meeting his eyes, she grimaced. “So you do... remember.”
“Only just a little while ago. Ever since we met in this time, I have had the feeling that I should know you – that we had met, but I couldn't place it until we realized that you were not in your time, or here, and so must be in another era,” he answered, eyes narrowed on her. “But that does not answer my question, miko.”
She locked eyes with Inuyasha, then, ignoring Sugimi's question, and noted the upset look in his. “You know... don't you? That it was Kikyou,” she said slowly, and her own gaze softened on him when he jerked his head in a nod. “I think... she was trying to seal the well with me on my side of it, but something went wrong, and instead I was sent back even further. But whatever she did doesn't appear to have succeeded, since the well is still working.”
He nodded again without saying anything, and Sugimi frowned, not liking the fact that Kagome wouldn't answer his question, nor indeed even look at him. Something was wrong. He caught his son's eyes, and jerked his head in the direction of the village, indicating that he needed to leave, and the boy simply turned on his heel and walked away, not being able to think of anything to say.
The clearing was silent until Inuyasha had disappeared back into the trees.
“Look at me, Kagome,” he demanded, and waited with impatience as she, with visible reluctance, dragged her eyes up to his face. He scowled. “Why do you avoid my touch and my eyes?”
With another false smile, she shrugged, her discomfort more than obvious. “I... it's just strange, that's all. A lot has happened today... I think I just need a little time to take it all in.”
He eyed her agitatedly, his blood highly disturbed by its chosen's rejection, and sighed. “Very well, I will not press for now. But later, we will speak, and you will tell me what it is that concerns you.”
Kagome didn't answer, merely tugging her pack higher on her shoulder and starting towards the village. I hope something happens to distract him, because I don't think I'll ever want to talk to him about this...
Sugimi took in a deep breath as he jerked his heated blood that was demanding she submit to him back under control, and followed her, inwardly cursing the well and time travel for the first time. Something must have happened back then to upset her... but he had no idea what it could have been. He allowed his mind to play over every detail of that day in an attempt to figure it out, but couldn't come up with a single thing... unless it was something Izayoi had said before he came upon them?
That must be it... because I can't think of anything I said to her that would cause her to be so upset. But what could it have been?
Kagome knew she'd upset him, and she felt badly about it, she really did, but she just couldn't shake the feeling that she shouldn't let herself be close to him, that he belonged to someone else. Oh, her head was well aware that he was a free agent – Izayoi had died almost two hundred years before, and they hadn't been mates, but... she had just seen them together not an hour ago, and her heart wouldn't let her forget it.
He'd looked at her with such softness and caring, and been so protective. She felt like she was pushing herself somewhere she had no business being, and suddenly, she wasn't sure she could continue to allow him to court her. She felt like an intruder...
A sigh of relief escaped her as they crested the hill above the village and the rest of the group walked up to meet her, freeing them from the very uncomfortable silence that had come up between them. She hurried down to them, leaving a very upset daiyoukai behind – one who was well aware that she had been most eager to escape his presence.
It hurt.
He came back to his surroundings to Kagome's voice. “... Sesshoumaru is? I brought back that information he wanted about battles and such... oh,” she said quietly, looking behind her with a strained smile. “You too, of course, Sugimi – I remember that you both wanted it.”
He could see the concerned, confused looks from the slayer and monk at the distance between them, and it aggravated his already agitated instincts. Clamping down hard on them, he managed to nod noncommittally as she swung her bag down and began to dig through it, taking out a thick sheaf of her odd parchment, and separating it, handed one packet to him. He glanced at it, and said, “Sesshoumaru has been patrolling. I will go take over for him, and send him your way.” With one last, searching glance at her, he nodded and turned away, rolling the papers up and tucking them into his sleeve as he did so.
Kagome smiled unconvincingly at her friends as he left, and Sango eyed her determinedly – something was very wrong, so that meant there was only one thing to do... drag her friend to the hot springs as soon as possible to get the story out of her.
Sugimi watched from back in the trees, determined to shadow her and find out what was wrong – he was very worried, and he just couldn't convince himself to leave it alone – his instincts were telling him that he needed to find out the problem before it got worse than it already was.
Turning away momentarily, he flared his aura and waited for Sesshoumaru to appear. When he did, Sugimi asked, “Did you find any sign of Naraku?”
“No. The only enemy within this forest right now is the undead miko – and she is quite a ways away at this time.”
“Good,” the big daiyoukai sighed. “Kagome is looking for you – she has the information on battles that she said she would bring for you.”
Sesshoumaru stared thoughtfully at his sire; it was obvious that something was wrong, but equally obvious that he did not want to discuss it. “Very well, then, father, if there is nothing else?”
He shook his head, dismissing his son, and Sesshoumaru moved away, heading back to the village. Turning back, he once more watched as the younger dai approached the group sitting outside. She speaks to him normally, so it must be something to do with me specifically. But what? Frustration burned in him, and he hoped that she could be convinced to talk about it to someone soon, or he didn't know what he'd do. He couldn't fix something if he had no idea what was wrong in the first place.
He could feel her slipping away from him, and he refused to allow it. Straightening his shoulders, he determined to hover near no matter what she was doing so he could listen until he figured out what was wrong.
I will not let you go, Kagome.
-sSs-
Sango eyed her friend determinedly as she sank down in the heated waters of the spring with a sigh. It hadn't taken much convincing to get her to agree to a bath; they were always her weakness.
“Alright, Kagome, start talking. I want to know what's wrong with you! I mean, I know for a fact that you have feelings for Sugimi-sama, and he's courting you, which means he has feelings for you, and yet... you came back today, and it's obvious something's wrong.” She took note of her friends wince, and finished, “Does it have to do with what happened to you with the well?”
Kagome jerked her head up, staring at Sango with a startled expression. “How did you know something happened with the well? We didn't talk about that!”
“Oh, come on, Kagome,” she rolled her eyes, “it wasn't that hard to figure out. Sugimi-sama was in as close to a panic as I've ever seen from a youkai when he came barreling back into the village and yanked Inuyasha out of here – the only reason he'd have him do anything to do with you is if it had to do with the well, since he can't cross.”
Startled, Kagome stared at her friend for a moment. “He... he was worried... for me?” she asked in a small voice.
“Very, I'd say. So what did happen, anyway?”
Sighing, and slumping down further in the water, Kagome began a detailed re-telling of her day, Sango listening wide-eyed all the way. It took a little while, but she finally got to the end.
“Wow... that's something else,” she said, not sure what to make of it all. “So... you're avoiding Sugimi-sama because...?”
She slanted Sango a quick look, then lowered her eyes back to the water. “Well... I just feel so confused, you know? Just a couple of hours ago, I was watching Sugimi hovering over Izayoi and you could see how much he cared for her – he looked at me with suspicion in his eyes... and no recognition at all. And then I come back here, and within an hour's time, he's looking at me like he looked at her, and I just can't separate it out. I feel...” she closed her eyes sadly, “like I'm taking something I have no right to take when I'm with him. And then I look at Inuyasha, and that makes it even worse - I feel like I'm messing up his family or something!”
Sango blinked, surprised. “Kagome... you know that's not true, right? I mean... Inuyasha's mother died almost two hundred years ago. You're not stealing someone's husband.”
Sighing, she opened her eyes and glanced ruefully at her friend. “My head knows... but my heart... that's another matter. I honestly don't know if I can continue this courting thing – everything's so awkward, now.”
Bothered more than she cared to admit that Kagome was so upset about the whole thing, upset enough to consider terminating the courting, Sango tried to reason with her. “Look... I can see that it would be kind of weird, but really, it's not that big a deal, Kagome. Don't let something like this keep you from happiness.” Casting around in her mind for something, anything, she hit on an idea. “Hey... you know, would you have reacted the same to seeing a painting of his former wife? I mean, if he were a widower that you were courting, which he is, and you saw a painting of his dead wife, would you leave him?”
Now it was Kagome's turn to blink. “Umm... no,” she said doubtfully. “I suppose not.”
“All I'm saying right now is don't do anything rash, like tell him you don't want him anymore. Give it a little time to settle in your mind, and then see how you feel before making a final decision.”
Brow furrowed, Kagome thought about it, then nodded finally. “I guess I can do that.” She relaxed back against a boulder, and closed her eyes again, trying to get rid of her tension. “I almost wish I could just go back home and stay there for a while – but we're too close to Naraku for that... I wonder why he's been so quiet, lately?”
Sango snorted disgustedly. “Because Inuyasha hasn't been able to snitch us out to Naraku's pet dead woman. I bet that damn spider was pissed when she stopped having answers for him,” she laughed.
“Yeah,” Kagome sighed, shaking her head. “The peace has kinda been nice, though. It's been a while since we've had even a moment's worth of it, ne?”
“Mhmm,” Sango hummed. “Now if we could just find and kill him, all that peace could become permanent.”
It grew silent, then, as both girls allowed their minds to wander; both were content with that, though – it was a comfortable silence.
-sSs-
Sugimi almost couldn't believe his ears when he heard what Kagome told the slayer... she was thinking about turning him away because of his wife – who had been dead for almost two centuries?
He could understand how meeting him as he was in the past would have been difficult for her – he remembered well the suspicion he'd looked at her with that day so long ago. But most of that hadn't been over Izayoi – it had been because of that odd sense of recognition he'd felt towards her. At the time, he hadn't really focused on it, nor realized what it meant – he'd been concerned for his wife, and tired from the battle he'd fought with Hyoga.
And since he'd never met her again back then, his so-called death coming a mere four months later, he'd never really had the chance to think on that odd feeling. Now, however, he knew what that feeling had been – his soul had recognized hers. She was his mate.
Perhaps he should take her aside and explain all these things? Explain about mating, and what it meant? Maybe then she'd realize that she had no need to worry, or feel inferior – because he'd heard beneath her words to that fact loud and clear; she felt inferior to Izayoi.
He had a sneaking suspicion that lack of belief in herself was due in great part to his son and that undead wench that he was going to make sure paid for her transgressions as soon as Naraku was on his way to hell.
Gratitude welled up in him as he heard the words of the slayer, encouraging Kagome to hold on and not make any snap decisions based on the way she felt right now, and he made sure to remember to get her something to repay her words – they had saved the group an explosion on the part of his beast if Kagome had tried to turn him away.
He would never accept a no on Kagome's part; he would chase her until she finally caved – even if he had to pursue her through five hundred years, he would not give up... he couldn't. It was not possible for him to be apart from her, now that he had found her.
If only he could get her to understand that.
He let out a frustrated sigh, then. Things would be so much easier had she been youkai; there was an instinctual understanding of these kinds of things within members of his own race that humans did not have. And though he did not truly want Kagome to be youkai – she wouldn't be who she was if she were – he could wish that she had that innate understanding of soul-mates, and the like.
If she did, they would already be mated, and the hell with all this slow crap.
-sSs-
Sesshoumaru watched his father pace and wondered what had caused his upset – he had been this way since the priestess had returned. And with a quick glance towards the miko that was sitting outside the elder miko's hut, he noted her uneasy and distracted countenance, and began to put two and two together – something had happened to cause the onna to feel uncomfortable with his father.
But what?
He was aware, as was everyone, that something had happened with the well that day, but did not know the details, and he was becoming very curious. Had Inuyasha once again done something foolish? But no... his father did not appear to be angry at the little whelp, so it had to be something else.
He was aware that the others in the group, particularly the slayer, seemed to be also concerned – the woman was watching her friend very closely, and seemed to be trying to keep her mind occupied.
It seemed that everyone was quite aware of the tension between his father and the miko, and it was affecting the entire group. In an effort to give everyone something else to concentrate on, he spoke.
“What do we plan to do from here?”
The entire group of people turned to look at him in surprise, including his father. “What do you mean, Sesshoumaru?” he asked.
He cast his father a bland look. “We leave in the morning, yes? What are your plans?” he emphasized.
At that, the group of people turned to look at him expectantly, and Sugimi sighed, bringing his thoughts back to the topic of Naraku and the shards, from their former place contemplating his miko.
“I have gathered some information about a possible shard – it is to the south, however, and will take many days travel to reach. I believe it is the final one needed, other than the ones held by the slayer's brother, and the ookami.” His voice showed a certain disdain as he spoke of the wolf, and Sesshoumaru was hard-pressed not to smirk.
“So we go south.” The younger dai turned his cold eyes on the young miko. “Do we have enough supplies for an extended journey?”
Kagome blushed as she realized she'd once again forgotten all about the supplies she had gathered and left in the well house, though at least this time, she had a good excuse. “I... forgot to have Inuyasha go through and grab them. I gathered enough, this time, for a month and a half, if we're careful. We'll need to have someone do some hunting, though, for some of our meals, to supplement what I'm bringing.”
Sugimi sent a glance at Inuyasha, and the hanyou, grumbling, got up and took off, headed for the well. “Then we are all in agreement? We leave for the southern lands at daybreak?”
There were no naysayers, and with that, the next expedition was planned. Sugimi couldn't help his gaze going to Kagome, only to find her looking at him surreptitiously. She flushed when she realized she was caught, and looked down, missing him walk over to her, until an elegantly clawed hand suddenly appeared in her field of vision.
“Come, Kagome – we must speak, you and I,” he said softly. “You know I am right.”
After a moment's hesitation, and a shoulder bump and nod from Sango, she nodded quietly and reluctantly allowed him to pull her to her feet. She shivered at his touch; no matter what happened, she could never deny that this impossibly handsome male affected her like no other ever had, or probably ever would.
Suddenly, thoughts of life without him in it struck her, and she wondered...
Am I making difficulties where there really are none? My head says yes, but my heart is divided – one side afraid to stay, and one side afraid to leave. What do I do?
What path should I follow?
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