InuYasha Fan Fiction ❯ To Silently Suffer ❯ One Cold Look ( Chapter 2 )

Disclaimer: I own my parakeet I named Sesshoumaru, but the real thing? Oh, how you tease me so…

Hey, Mr. Bumblebee, do you like bananas… Sorry. Insane ditzy moment there.

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Chapter One: One Cold Look

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"I can't believe this…" Sesshoumaru muttered. "I am not a babysitter."

"It's not babysitting, Okayasu. You will stay with my daughter until she becomes accustomed to male presence."

"Yes, Lord Ceres…" He sighed. This Sesshoumaru is only doing this because you were a friend of my father's. With my luck it'll be some snotty twelve-year-old brat…

"Ah, here's Megami with the Hime…"

Looking up, Sesshoumaru was surprised to see an attractive demoness of his age. Her painstakingly styled hair was black with crimson streaks, in stark contrast to her dull lavender eyes. A rich purple stripe traced up from her jaw to just under her eye on either side. Her lips were cherry colored, and finally she had the shape of a teardrop, the shade of blood, on her forehead.

She is certainly pleasant to look at…Damnit, that's not why I'm here!

"Sesshoumaru, this is my daughter, Naeomi-hime."

"Hajimemashite." A befitting name, Naeomi…Sesshoumaru tried to repress his thoughts, but… Okay, Damnit, so she's beautiful. So what? I've met other beautiful women…

The princess glared at him dully.

"Lord Sesshoumaru, my daughter does not speak. She hasn't for the last twelve months, ever since she was raped."

"Hai…" The taiyoukai acknowledged him.

"Megami and I will let you get acquainted."

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"You can stop glaring at me. I know you hate me, so we can drop the childish bullshit."

Surprised, Naeomi did just that. And with those words, her entire demeanor changed. Timid, submissive and fearful, she bowed on the ground and stayed like that, trembling.

"Wha… " Sesshoumaru was shocked. What did I say? Not revealing his true thoughts, he stared at her emotionlessly. "Get up. You have no reason to bow to me."

With her head down, the princess stood and walked over until she was beside him. At a loss, Sesshoumaru finally said, "Would you like to go outside?"

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It was strangely unnerving to have a woman do whatever you ask without even a single word. It was as if she didn't want to upset you.

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(Naeomi's POV)

Okayasu-sama watched me curiously, even when he thought I didn't realize it. I was taken aback at the unsure kindness he treated me with, as if he wasn't used to doing so. He was handsome, of course, with his flowing silver hair and liquid amber eyes you could stare at forever and not get enough of. Well built, he provided altogether a lovely package and I was sure he wasn't hurting for love.

Still… he seemed lonely to me. But I wasn't ready for anything like that.

…Will I ever be?

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(Sess's POV)

The princess seemed to glide gracefully with each step, followed by a dark shadow of hurt. I was confused by everything I was feeling right then: guilt, anger, lust, and fright.

Guilt that I had caused the woman to completely dissolve her only shield against men: that one hard, cold stare she had used on me.

Anger at the demon who had torn this poor woman's life apart, leaving her to fend for herself while men took advantage of her insecurity.

Lust for the princess… she was beautiful. I'm sure she knew that once.

Finally, fright. They all appeared after just a few hours with her, hitting hard and fast. I was scared of the unknown feelings in me. It was so hard to control them… but I had to. She was getting married to Lord Kagawaki, even I knew that. That threw sadness into the whole mess. Damn! Why couldn't I have just said no to Ceres?! Yet… sometimes, when I saw her eyes… she reflected the feelings in me…

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Naeomi looked disappointed when she couldn't reach the iris through another bush's thorns. Oh well. It's just a silly flower anyway.

Sesshoumaru saw this and inwardly groaned. Damned flower!! Picking it for her, he managed to get a deep scratch in the process. "Here."

She blinked, then accepted it. He didn't have to do that. Why is he so nice to me? Lord Kagawaki wouldn't have even cared… Millions of questions she desperately wanted to ask buzzed in her ears. Noticing the blood on his hand, she tugged shyly on his sleeve.

"What?" Naeomi pointed to his hand. "It's just a scratch."

"Naeomi-hime! Lord Kagawaki is here to see you!" Megami called. "I hope you're not too dirty!"

Reluctantly, she turned away from Sesshoumaru and went inside.

Well, it's my job to follow her.

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"Hime, how wonderful to see you again. Oh, and you are…?" Kagawaki's smile wavered.

"I am Lord Sesshoumaru."

"Oh, yes. I've heard of you. You govern the Western Lands, correct?" It was slight, but Sesshoumaru could hear some sort of bitterness in his voice.

"Hai. Don't worry, I do not intend to get in the way of your marriage to the princess."

Why do I suddenly feel sad? Okayasu-sama couldn't be interested in me…Naeomi swallowed hard. No one would be. Lord Kagawaki just wants my father's power added to his own.

Sesshoumaru felt the gentle change of her emotion. "I can see I am not needed here right now, so I will be outside, Hime."

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What should I do? Even if the Hime and I mated, both of us would be killed. I might be able to escape, but the princess…she seemed so upset when I said I would not compete with him for Naeomi. Why am I even thinking this? I could have any woman I wanted and then some. So why a tossed aside princess? He gazed at the cut on his hand. The tiniest of smiles tugged at his face. Who am I trying to fool? I wouldn't have done that for any girl, maybe even Rin.

He jumped when Naeomi rushed out to his side, shaking again. Why did she run to me?

Lord Kagawaki then appeared. "Now, Hime, is that any way to-" he faltered at the sight of Sesshoumaru. "Tono."

"Frightening your bride is a bad thing, is it not?" He snorted. "Until you can learn how to properly act around women, I suggest you keep away from her, or you will only succeed in pushing her farther from you."

"You seem to have figured out that all for yourself, Okayasu. She's practically flocking to you. Are you that desperate you have to court raped women?"

"Look at you. You're marrying one. And she doesn't like you."

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Once Kagawaki had left, Naeomi stepped out from behind Sesshoumaru. She looked a bit grateful, though she didn't smile.

He watched her restlessly turn her eyes to the palace gates.

"You wish to go out there?"

She nodded once, blushing.

"I'll see what I can do."

Naeomi was beet red by now, overwhelmed by his generosity. What is he thinking?

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Riding with Sesshoumaru on Ah-Un was at first a bit awkward. Then she got used to how close he was and focused on the ground below.

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(Naeomi's POV)

It was breathtaking, being up that high. I was a bit distracted by my own thoughts, though. Why had he done this? Did my father ask him? Or was it something else…

Another distraction was him. Okayasu-sama was directly behind me, touching, in fact. He smelled like… I couldn't describe it. He held the reigns, so his arms were around me a bit, and they were very strong.

I didn't understand why I was so taken with him. It was unlike anything I'd felt before. My whole body was telling me to mate with him, but my brain told a different story. Just hormones, I thought.

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(Sess's POV)

The princess relaxed in my arms and I cursed inside my head. Her smell was everywhere, and my blood was boiling. Shit! We both knew we couldn't have anything, push aside all fantasies of any life together.

While I was trying to keep my arousal at bay, one infuriating scent entered my mind.

Inuyasha.

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"There he is! Kagome, are you sure?" The hanyou spun around.

"Positive."

"Okay, here I go!"

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Inuyasha made an attempt to cut Sesshoumaru's head off. Trying to avoid it, Naeomi overbalanced and fell.

Okayasu-sama!

Sesshoumaru jumped and caught her, landing softly. "Stay here."

Walking to his half-brother, he let his anger at the Hime's endangerment slip. "You idiot! What the fuck do you think you're doing?!"

"Oh, is that your woman? She's easy on the eyes. How much does she charge?"

Red leaking into his eyes, Sesshoumaru attacked his brother.

Okayasu-sama…what's going on? Is he protecting me?

"Sango, she has it! What should we do?"

"She doesn't look too tough. I'll take her." The demon slayer drew her sword and attacked Naeomi. Throwing her arm up, the Hime succeeded in receiving a large cut.

She didn't even try to fight back? What's that all about?

Naeomi backed away, clutching her arm. Why are they hurting me? I didn't do anything. She turned and ran into the trees, hoping they wouldn't follow. Soon she was face to face with a large cat.

"Good job, Kilala. Give us the shard and we'll let you go."

Shard? What is she talking about? Shaking her head no, the princess braced herself for another attack. Instead, she felt the cat grab her collar in its jaws and throw her beside the woman.

No! Okayasu-sama, please help me! Naeomi struggled uselessly, as Sango held her in place.

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"Come on, Inuyasha!" Miroku called over his shoulder. Startled at their sudden retreat, Sesshoumaru looked for Naeomi. All he could see of her was a small pool of blood.

Hime!?

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A/N: Review? Anyone?