InuYasha Fan Fiction ❯ Unexpected Circumstances ❯ Concentrate ( Chapter 20 )

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CHAPTER TWENTY- CONCENTRATE

 

 

Kagome pushed aside the flap that covered the entrance to her small hut and walked inside slowly. Sesshoumaru was seated in his normal spot, but he was staring straight at her as she made her way to her bedroll. She looked at him from the corner of her eye and saw that he had yet to take his eyes off of her. He was looking at her with a cold intensity, and if she was not mistaken, a bit of perplexity as well. She sat her tired body on her bed and waited for him to say something.

 

There was a heavy silence that filled the hut at the two continued to stare at one another. Kagome was so tired that she really didn't care whether or not he decided to talk; all she wanted to do was lie down and sleep for the next week or so. When she decided to do just that, Sesshoumaru finally spoke up.

 

“You were careless.”

 

Kagome continued to stare, but she could feel an angry bubble starting to swell within her. She took a couple of calming breaths before she said anything that she may have regretted. “What exactly do you mean by that?”

 

“As soon as your training is complete for the day you are to return to the village, not dawdle in the clearing by yourself. It was foolish and you are lucky to be alive.” His facial features never changed and he was still staring at her with detachment. Sesshoumaru watched as Kagome bit her bottom lip and looked towards the floor.

 

“Sesshoumaru…I'm-I didn't mean-”

 

“Do not presume that just because we shared a few intimate moments that I will take your excuses,” he interrupted. “Your concentration is being hindered and I will no longer allow it.” Without giving her a chance to reply, Sesshoumaru lifted him self from the ground and strode out of the small hut to distance himself from Kagome. He would still be supervising her training, but would be sure to remain nothing but platonic around the girl. She was having effects on him that no one should ever have, and apparently he was doing the same to her if her concentration was suffering.

 

Kagome stared at the doorway with an expression of combined hurt and fury on her face. She had done very well in her fight, and granted, if Sesshoumaru hadn't shown up when he did she might have been dead by now, but that didn't mean that she wasn't concentrating. She was outnumbered for god's sakes! Okay, so she probably shouldn't have lingered in the clearing by herself, but it wasn't like she was there much longer after Takahiro left.

 

“Pompous ass,” she muttered to herself. She sighed and thought about going to take a bath, but her tired eyes made the decision for her when they closed and decided to stay that way for the rest of the night. She would deal with Sesshoumaru in the morning. The only thing that was important to her at the moment was catching up on her neglected sleep.

 

 

****

 

 

She didn't know where he went to sleep, but for the past couple nights Sesshoumaru had been avoiding her little hut like the plague. During the day he was no better. She would try and start conversations with him, only to get the cold shoulder. However, she knew that he was keeping rapt attention on her at all times because she could feel his eyes watching her throughout the day. If he was trying to help her concentrate, he wasn't doing a very good job.

 

Kagome found herself thinking about him more often than when he was actually on good terms with her. Even with his more persistent glares and haughty remarks, Kagome could not help but miss him even more when he didn't come into her hut. They used to actually talk—well, sort of. Now she was lucky if she got a small word of encouragement from him.

 

A sharp smack on the back of her hand brought Kagome out of her inner turmoil. “Ow! What was that for?”

 

“You're doing it again!” Megumi berated her while wagging a withered crooked finger in her face. “You need to stop thinking about that demon and start concentrating on your work! Just because you've been spending more time in the shrine the past couple days doesn't mean you're making more progress.”

 

Kagome dropped her shoulders in defeat. “Yeah I know. I just…do you…want to have lunch with me?” she asked timidly.

 

Megumi drew back a little at the request. It dawned on her that the poor girl was probably lonely; the old priestess wasn't blind. She knew that Kagome and the demon had spent a lot of time together, but not in the last couple of days. It was probably a harsh blow to take, considering that he had been her only real friend here when he showed up. As much as she would have loved to join the girl in a meal, Megumi's time was already spoken for by a married couple in the village.

 

“I'm sorry girl, not today,” the old priestess said regretfully.

 

“Oh…it's-it's okay,” Kagome said as she waved a hand in front of her face in reassurance. “I know you're busy, maybe some other time though?” Kagome smiled half-heartedly as she saw Megumi nod.

 

“Okay, then I'll be back in a little bit,” Kagome informed her. “Did you want to meet me at the same tree for target practice?”

 

“Yes girl, your aim's been a little off lately. We should probably work on that a bit.” Kagome nodded and then took her leave of the shrine to head down towards the village for a bite to eat.

 

On cue, Kagome could feel the presence of Sesshoumaru watching her from afar. She shook her head sadly but vowed not to get worked up over it. If he wanted to be that way then she would let him. Far be it for her to ruin his reticent mood. Her steps quickened a bit in a poor attempt to escape his gaze. She only allowed her steps to slow when she reached the small food stand. With a quick order of a bowl of rice and some sweet dumplings Kagome then made her way to a bench under a nearby tree.

 

Kagome sat there, enjoying her lunch when she noticed a couple of village boys, not much younger than she, whispering to each other. She watched them carefully and discretely read their auras to determine their intent. She was relived when she read no malicious intent in them, but more so of embarrassment and hesitance. Kagome waited patiently for them to approach her and smiled when she saw one of the boys push the other towards her.

 

The two of them stood in front of her now and she looked up and smile at them. “Is there something I can help you with?” she asked pleasantly.

 

The boy in the front looked down at his feet and scratched the back of his neck. “I'm-” he began in a slightly high pitched voice. He cleared his throat and then tried again, this time dropping his voice a couple of octaves. “I'm Makio and this is my brother Fuyuki.”

 

“It's very nice to meat you. I'm Kago-”

 

“Yeah, we know who you are,” Makio said shyly. “Look, um…we just wanted to apologize for everything. This town isn't used to outsiders and we all kinda acted out of haste.” The two brothers dropped to their knees and bowed low, touching their heads to the ground. “Please forgive us priestess.”

 

Kagome looked at them shocked, her mouth hanging open a bit. She snapped it shut and then quickly motioned for them to get up. “You guys thanks really, but I already have forgiven the village. Let's try and move on, shall we?” The two boys nodded and she gave them a bright smile that made them both blush madly.

 

“Would you two care to join me for lunch?” she asked them sweetly. They both puffed their chests out with male pride and nodded vigorously before fighting one another for the open seat next to her. Kagome stifled a giggle behind her hand at their antics. Finally it was Fuyuki who came out the victor and took the seat. He grinned proudly and cast a smug glance while Makio took a seat on the ground in front of her scowling.

 

Kagome blushed and shook her head and soon found herself in deep conversation with the brothers. She was finally meeting new people in the small town and it made her feel more like she was a member of the society and not just a temporary visitor and an outsider. Kagome asked the brothers questions about themselves to which they answered fully. So far the only real awkward question that they had asked her was `where are you from' and she covered that with eased practice.

 

“So,” Makio started while he leaned back on his hands, “do you have a suitor?”

 

Kagome's eyes widened at the question and soon a heavy blush overtook her face. What was she to tell them? She and Sesshoumaru had been close, yes, but they never went so far as to give a title to their “relationship”. She remembered all the nice kisses and explorations that she had with him, but she also remembered how he had been acting the last couple days. She was at a total loss. “I…don't know,” she answered honestly.

 

Makio and Fuyuki frowned at her answer before Makio spoke up again. “Do you want one?”

 

“Makio!”

 

“What?” Fuyuki darted his eyes quickly to the side and Makio followed his brother's gaze. Kagome was looking straight ahead of her at the demon that had joined their company. Both brothers stayed rooted to their spots, but fear swept over them as they took in Sesshoumaru's ever-emotionless face. The demon, although not violent, still scared them beyond all reason.

 

“Oh, hello Sesshoumaru,” Kagome said innocently. “Is there something I can help you with?”

 

Sesshoumaru eyed the woman coolly. He would never admit the small surge of jealousy he felt when the two miscreants started hovering around her, especially not to her. However, he could always find a way to make the local village men realize no one, besides himself, was allowed to touch the priestess in any way. “A word,” Sesshoumaru stated bluntly.

 

Kagome nodded and excused herself from the boys and followed Sesshoumaru's retreating figure to the edge of the forest. She waited patiently while he remained quiet, most likely trying to rile her a bit for his own perverse entertainment. “Sesshoumaru, I was having a nice conversation with them and I would like to get back to it before I have to train again.”

 

Sesshoumaru narrowed his eyes at her and her attitude. Since when did he become so lax in the way he allowed her to speak to him? “Priestess, I would have thought that you would be more particular in whom you allowed yourself to associate with. Uncouth males with raging libidos do not strike me as the most enjoyable company.”

 

Kagome crossed her arms over her chest and frowned at Sesshoumaru. It was one thing to drag her away from her lunch, but quite another to insult her choice of companions. She didn't see him offering to join her; in fact, he had done quite well in evading her for the past couple days. “I don't need your approval of who I talk to. Now if you'll excuse me…” Kagome turned to walk away when Sesshoumaru grabbed her roughly by her forearm and spun her around before placing a kiss to her lips.

 

He quite honestly didn't know what else to do to make those two nitwits see that she was off limits. Obviously just being an intimidating demon lord was not enough to encourage them to keep their filthy hands to themselves, if the pleased look in their eyes when Kagome was about to go back to them was anything to go by. So he did the next best thing; public displays of affection were not something that he partook in on a regular basis, but when the time called for it, he trusted his instincts.

 

Kagome was surprised at the sudden display of emotion coming from Sesshoumaru, but all too soon closed her eyes in bliss and allowed him to kiss her senseless. His soft, warm tongue played with hers and she allowed a breathy moan to escape her throat. He nipped at her bottom lip and Kagome opened further, deepening the contact. She wasn't sure what brought her out of her current state of mind, but soon she pushed back from him harshly and glared daggers at the demon lord.

 

“What do you think you're doing?! You can't just avoid me for two days and then kiss me like that! Just `cause you're jealous doesn't mean that you can play with my emotions. Do me a favor and leave me alone like you've been doing if that's how you're going to act!” Kagome spun around quickly on her heels and strode off angrily from Sesshoumaru.

 

He clenched and unclenched his fists by his side. That did not go exactly how he had expected. Straightening out his angry features, Sesshoumaru brought a hand to his hair and flicked it behind his shoulder before turning around and walking back into the forest. If Kagome was going to spend her time gallivanting around with the village boys, then he would take this time to get in some much needed exercise. It had been a while since he had run drills.

 

The two boys that had been sitting with her left quickly when Sesshoumaru kissed her, both feeling a little put out at their loss. So when Kagome came back to the bench to find them gone, her temper was fueled even more. She walked angrily back towards the village so she could just hurry up and get her target practice in with Megumi. The quicker that was over with, the sooner she could get her training with Takahiro and Sesshoumaru done. And the quicker she got that done, the sooner she could go back to her hut and brood like she wanted to.

 

Kagome walked up the small main street of the village and saw Takahiro working in the field. She caught his eye and waved, but frowned even further when he quickly looked away and went back to his work. Kagome concentrated on using her newfound skills to read his aura and felt that he was troubled and also felt guilty. For what, she had no clue, but she was in no mood for him to ignore her. Kagome stomped over to him and tapped him harshly on the shoulder. He visibly flinched and then turned around slowly to face her.

 

“H-hey Kagome. How are you?” Takahiro said nervously, clutching his rake to his chest.

 

Kagome eyed him up and down in suspicion. His aura seemed to worsen now that she stood so close to him; just what was he hiding? “I'm fine Takahiro, but…what seems to be troubling you? You've been ignoring me for a while now, and if it weren't for our training sessions I would probably never see you.”

 

Takahiro stood torn as to what to do. It was obvious she knew something was going on, but he couldn't very well tell her the truth. How do you calmly break it to someone that you're trying to kill them in order to keep your newly resurrected wife? The answer: you don't. Instead, he decided to lie through his teeth and pray that she believes you. “I'm sorry Kagome. It's just that…well, I've uh, met someone.”

 

Kagome's face lit up and she smile brightly at him. “That's fantastic Takahiro! Why would you be upset about that? Unless, you're not happy with her?”

 

“No, no that's not it at all it's just that…umm…Guilty! I feel guilty because ever since you came here I've been attracted to you and now that I have someone I shouldn't be thinking those thoughts,” Takahiro spouted out. He gave himself a mental pat on the back at the not entirely untrue lie. When he saw the look on Kagome's face, he knew that he had gotten away with it too. Her face was bright red and she was biting her lip in thought.

 

“Wow, Takahiro…I'm sorry I interrupted your work. I'll leave you alone now.” Kagome turned tail and all but ran from the field in an attempt to flee the awkward situation. There was no way she was going to tell Sesshoumaru about that little conversation; she'd be short one instructor.

 

Takahiro breathed a deep sigh of relief at seeing her leave. He wasn't sure when he became such a skilled liar, but nonetheless he was glad at that point in time that he was. He still had yet to think of another plan to try and dispose of her, but with Naraku breathing down his neck it seemed he would have to think of one soon. The whole ordeal was wreaking havoc on his moods. A few of his fellow workers had noticed the dark circles under his eyes and found that he was now easy to anger. He often sat up late at night wondering if he were to run away, if Naraku would be able to find him. But he couldn't take that chance; not when he knew that his dear wife was connected to the bastard somehow. The only way to keep his wife was to kill Kagome.

 

May the god's have mercy on his soul.

 

 

****

 

 

Still trudging on, Inuyasha and the group made their way closer to the small village. It was hard to hide the excitement they all felt at the prospect of seeing their friend again; it seemed that just thinking of her brought a smile to everyone's faces, except Kikyo of course. While there was still a bit of animosity between the undead priestess and the rest of the group, save Inuyasha, the atmosphere had definitely brightened.

 

Sango had taken to ignoring Kikyo as much as she could. She acted civil around her but there was just no denying the uncomfortable feeling that came with being around a person who remained forever emotionless and cold. The only time that Kikyo seemed even remotely happy was when it was just her and Inuyasha. Being that the entire group did nothing but travel together those times were few and far between.

 

“Are we there yet?” Shippou asked from his perch atop Miroku's shoulder.

 

Inuyasha turned to look at the young fox from over his shoulder, a twitch making its way in his eye. “For the last time runt, we're getting close. The surroundings are familiar so I think we're only a couple days away. Now quit asking.” Inuyasha turned back around and continued on his way. Shippou had asked him the very same question for the last few hours and it was grating on his last nerve. While they enjoyed the peaceful time they were getting, there was nothing like a good battle to loosen up tight muscles and relieve stress and tension.

 

Shippou pouted and sunk lower onto Miroku's shoulder. “I miss Kagome,” he said forlornly.

 

Miroku gave him a reassuring smile and patted the kit on the head. “There, there Shippou. We'll see Kagome very soon and I'm sure Inuyasha won't argue with staying for a few days,” he said a bit louder than necessary to ensure the half-demon heard him. Inuyasha `Feh'd' and Miroku smiled at him. “You see?”

 

“I guess. I just wish it didn't take so long to get there. I didn't realize we'd traveled so far,” Shippou said.

 

Both Miroku and Sango nodded their heads to that statement. Inuyasha had pushed them quite a long ways, but it was understandable. While Naraku lay dormant it was a good idea to try and find any lead regarding his location that they could. It just so happened that their leads carried them further south then they had intended to go; otherwise their visit to Kagome wouldn't have been put off for so long.

 

Shippou sighed again and Miroku shrugged his shoulder to get the young fox's attention. When Shippou looked at Miroku curiously, the monk tilted his head towards Inuyasha and winked. Shippou's eyes took on a mischievous gleam and he cleared his throat.

 

“Inuyasha?”

 

“Yeah, whadda ya want?” Inuyasha replied gruffly.

 

“…Are we there yet?”

 

 

****

 

 

Kagome rolled her neck making it give a satisfying pop and stretched her arms over her head. Perhaps it had was the mood she'd been in, or maybe she was just getting better at shooting, but today's target practice had gone extremely well and she had to commend herself. She had only missed two targets, a new record for her, and Megumi even congratulated her on a successful day. All-in-all she was feeling much better than she had been earlier so she set out to find Sesshoumaru and try, yet again, to start some semblance of conversation with him.

 

She walked quietly through the serene forest, taking in the sounds of the chirping birds and the slight rustling of the leaves as a soft breeze played through them. She stopped for a moment to close her eyes and revel in the silence that always seemed to accompany the feudal era. She was so used to traveling back and forth through time that she sometimes took for granted the quiet that could be found only here. Kagome took in a couple of deep, relaxing breaths and tilted her head back to the sky. A soft grunting from a distance away pulled her from her meditative position and she decided to see what it was.

 

Upon walking a little further, Kagome came upon what had to have been the most beautiful sight known to man. In front of her, a few yards away, Sesshoumaru was running through what could only be his own training drills. Completely and utterly bare from the waist up, a light sheen of sweat played across his skin as he maneuvered his body gracefully in his exercise.

 

Not wanting to interrupt this perfect sight, Kagome quickly ducked behind a bush and placed a hand upon her fluttering heart. It had to have been a sin to see that. She supposed that not many people were privy to watching the demon lord run drills, for he was always the pinnacle of calmness and sustainability. For him to have even the slightest bit of sweat on his sculpted body meant that he had been working very hard for quite some time now.

 

`I should leave,' Kagome thought in an effort to move her feet. `I should definitely leave and let him practice. Yup. I really should just walk away and find something else to do…after I take one more peek.'

 

Kagome turned around and looked for the best place to watch him without being caught. With some careful manipulation of branches in the bush, she stuck her head in as far as she could and watched Sesshoumaru continued his workout. His face held a look of pure concentration as his muscles clenched and unclenched under taught skin. Kagome felt her throat go dry and she swallowed hard. He flexed the muscles in his arms as he lazily swung his sword around him and if Kagome didn't know any better, she would have thought he did that just to show off for her. Her fingers twitched as she watched as he turned and graced her with a wonderful view of his strong back and rear. For a moment she wanted to take a page out of Miroku's book and squeeze that sculpted butt of his in both her hands.

 

Giving herself a mental shake, Kagome willed her self to look away and decided that she had been a voyeur long enough. She took a step back to remove her head from the bush when she came to an abrupt stop. Her eyes widened a bit and then she tried once again to move backward without success. A bit frantic now, she tugged continuously to try and dislodge her head from the bush, only to find that she was no closer to getting out than she was on the first attempt. A soft whimper escaped her as she felt a tightening around her neck that conveyed to her that her necklace had become tangled within the small branches of the bush, thus restricting her movement.

 

`Think think think, come on Kagome, how are you gonna get out of this?' she questioned herself. `Shit!'

 

She tried tugging a few more times and even tried detangling it with her hands, but found that she couldn't see well enough to successfully free herself. During her struggles she failed to notice the lack of a demon lord in the small clearing where he once was. Instead he now had an entertaining view of her bottom sticking up in the air and continued to watch her fruitless struggles to free herself. For a few minutes he did nothing but admire the scenery until he could no longer contain his amusement. With a deadpan voice he finally made his presence known.

 

“May I inquire priestess, as to why you have your head in a bush?”

 

Kagome yelped a little and stiffened in surprise at the sound of his voice. She looked quickly in front of her to where she had seen him running drills and confirmed he was no longer there, but instead standing right next to her. “I, um…was…look…I los-lost something! My earring! I lost my earring and I was…looking for it?” she attempted to lie.

 

Sesshoumaru crossed his arms, though she couldn't see the gesture and he spoke again. “Hn, is that so?”

 

“Yes, that is so,” Kagome stated assuredly.

 

“I see. Priestess, I have been in your company for months and I have yet to see you wear earrings. In fact, I do not believe you have ever worn earrings.”

 

“Really? Oh…right then. Um…the bush…smells nice?”

 

Sesshoumaru raised his eyebrow, and although Kagome could not see him, she knew exactly what he was doing. She heaved a great sigh and relented. “Alright fine! I'm stuck, okay?! Now are you going to help me out or not?”

 

“This Sesshoumaru thinks not. You did interrupt my training.”

 

“You've got to be kidding me?! You are kidding, right...Sesshoumaru?”

 

He didn't answer her, but instead walked towards a nearby tree and leaned back against it. He rather enjoyed seeing her like this and was in no hurry to remedy her situation. Besides, she needed to learn a lesson for being out in the clearing all by her self the other day. If it weren't for him she would no longer be alive and if she wasn't going to take her safety seriously then why not let her suffer for a bit?

 

Kagome whimpered again and renewed her efforts against the damnable bush. She supposed it served her right for being a peeping Tom, but she just couldn't help herself! “Bastard, I can't believe he left me here,” she grumbled to herself.

 

“Speaking to yourself is not going to help you out of your predicament,” Sesshoumaru stated blandly.

 

She squeaked and wiggled around more to get out. “I can't believe you're not going to help me. You really are a jerk.”

 

Sesshoumaru frowned a little as he watched her wiggle around to free herself. Perhaps he should have thought this through more thoroughly before sitting back and watching her. Memories of that backside pressed firmly against him during the massage came flooding back to him and he shut his eyes to try and remove the vision from his sight. Kagome gave off a very impressive, but nonetheless human, growl of aggravation and Sesshoumaru had just about as much as he could handle.

 

Quicker than a few blinks of the eye he called upon his poison whip and reduced the bush around Kagome's head to mulch. With a surprised yelp, Kagome fell forward to the ground at the sudden loss of support. Sesshoumaru stood back and watched as she stood up and dusted herself off before turning around and glaring at him. However, she did not look the least bit threatening with twigs and leaves strewn about in her hair and it made the entire debacle that much more amusing. A small quirk of his lips was the only indicator that he had fully enjoyed himself.

 

“You!” Kagome yelled while pointing at him. “This is all your fault!”

 

Sesshoumaru raised a perfectly sculpted eyebrow and waited for her to continue.

 

“If you hadn't…if you'd just…gah! I'm going to take a bath, I know you're going to follow behind, but don't you even think about coming anywhere near me!” With that, Kagome stomped off in the direction of the distant hot spring, leaving Sesshoumaru to trail behind her.

 

Any other time he would not allow someone to even think about telling him what to do, but he had obtained a great deal of amusement from Kagome's embarrassing mishap that he decided to let her have this one. He shook his head ever so slightly at his thoughts. The priestess was far too liberated in her attitude towards him and he did nothing but allow it. She was definitely not a good influence on his ego. He would be sure to teach her how to properly respect a person of his station…just not now. Maybe tomorrow when she wasn't so riled up.

 

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The moment you've been waiting for comes up in the next chapter! That's right, Inuyasha finds out!