InuYasha Fan Fiction ❯ Yume ❯ Chapter 11 ( Chapter 14 )

Disclaimer: *sigh* Fine. I don't own them. Happy? Now you've made my muse miserable!

**Thanks to my beta, Jaredono, who is prompt and intelligent!**

I HAVE A NEW FIC! "Kissing Booth"

Kagome's boss railroads her into sitting for the Kissing Booth at the company Christmas Festival. What happens when he realizes he can't stand the thought of her kissing anyone but him? It's all in the name of charity...and love! S/K one-shot.

Here's the URL:

http://www.mediaminer.org/fanfic/view_st.php/42377/

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Previously:

Inuyasha fell into a cycle of increasingly vicious and horrifying imaginings, all revolving around one thought: Sesshoumaru probably knew something about what was happening to the Tetsusaiga, which meant that he probably knew about Kagome's dream.

And she was with him now-alone.

Oh, gods, Inuyasha thought, dropping his head into his hands in despair, please, I don't want to lose her.

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Chapter 11

Two days, Sesshoumaru thought dismally to himself. Two days and the wench hasn't shut up.

Nonstop questions, observations, and unwanted comments came pouring from her mouth like a tide of white water. Noisy and destructive.

She is destroying my peace. He growled loudly, not really having any hope of the frightening noise halting her words. After the tactic had proven useless the first few times he had attempted it, he had lost confidence in his animal defenses.

One more indignity I have had to suffer at her hands, he mentally tallied the growing list and his growl rose a few notches to a snarl. Whirling to face the dainty miko, Sesshoumaru turned his iciest glare upon her, and sucked in a sharp breath that had nothing to do with his rising irritation.

Even sweaty and bedraggled from their hike across country, she glowed with life. The demon lord felt an unwelcome tightening in his chest and stomach, vivid flashes of the past two night's dreams inundating his mind. That it clouded his judgment was the only excuse he could come up with later for what happened next.

Seeking only to arrest the flow of sounds passing her pink lips, Sesshoumaru stepped forward and gripped the miko by her shoulders. The feel of the delicate bones under his hands had him unconsciously gentling his touch.

For one miraculous moment, silence descended on the forest as Kagome gazed up at the man who had been the center attraction of her most heated dreams. Her eyes were dark and liquid, the brown of the irises ringed with a lighter honey color, locked onto his face with an almost painful intensity. She seemed as entranced with their sudden proximity as he was. Then her brow wrinkled and those lush lips parted once more.

Kagome inhaled to blurt out a confused, "Sesshoumaru...?", but it came out more as, "Sesshshmff-" for, at that very moment, the taiyoukai growled out, "Would you just shut up?"

His lips descended with an almost desperate gentleness, molding firmly to hers, creating the most effective seal the demon prince had ever wielded.

For her part, Kagome simply stood, passive with the shock of Sesshoumaru-Sesshoumaru -plying his lips to hers as if she were the most delicious treat imaginable. Then the shock wore off and in its wake came the flood waters of remembrance. Night after night of dreaming rushed to the surface, released by the feel of Sesshoumaru's mouth roving softly over hers with small nips and licks.

This, she thought dazedly to herself, I remember this.

Yes, it was just like those dreams. How had she known what Sesshoumaru's kisses would be like? She had never kissed him before, had she?

The miko mentally shook her head, amazed she had any brain capacity left at all during such a mind-blowing kiss. No, she hadn't kissed him before-not in reality, at least. But in her dreams...Yes, in her dreams she had tasted the heat and drugging passion, the devastating combination of gentleness and urgency in Sesshoumaru's touch.

When the object of her ruminations moved his lips down the slender column of her throat to nuzzle at the juncture of her shoulder, her brain short-circuited and she pushed Sesshoumaru away, panting. She was trembling with the force of reactions and needs his unexpected touch engendered in her inexperienced body.

"O-Okay," she said, palms flat against his chest, arms braced to keep him at bay. Or was she trying to keep herself from him? She didn't know, but this had to stop.

"Just hold on a minute." Kagome closed her eyes and concentrated on steadying her breathing.

The task was rendered almost impossible by the fact that Sesshoumaru's hands were clasped lightly over hers, trapping them to his chest.

Broad, hard, sexy chest...Gah No Kagome mentally slapped herself. Now is not the time for a hormone overload

By the time the young miko managed to get her wayward thoughts into some semblance of order again, the youkai prince had released her hands...but this was not a good thing. Oh, no. For now, he was trailing those lean, elegant digits down her arms and over her shoulders, her ribcage to...

Kagome's breath hitched in her throat and her heart skipped a couple of beats.

Did he just...? she wondered to herself in shock.

When his fingers brushed the spot again, deliberately, Kagome shivered in reaction. She raised wide eyes to meet Sesshoumaru's glowing golden ones, realization burning brightly within the dark depths.

"Sesshoumaru, you...," her voice was a breathy whisper and she swallowed hard at the question she was about to risk. She wasn't certain if she wanted her suspicions confirmed or not.

"Have you been dreaming of me?"

The taiyoukai considered declining to answer, which would certainly keep his pride intact. After all, to admit to having strange, mysterious...sensual, compelling...dreams about a human...well, the indignity

But the pleading look in her huge, innocent eyes, coupled with the soft flush in her cheeks and the kiss-swollen enticement of her lips was his undoing. Besides, his pride had already taken a battering-at his own hands no less-due to his unruly reactions to her.

As she seemed to be torn on whether or not she welcomed verification of their mutual attraction-even if it was only in a vision-he decided to answer not with words, but by providing some indisputable, unique proof that he was the man in her dream.

So there would be no misinterpretation of his actions, Sesshoumaru slipped one hand under the hem of her shirt. Careful not to accidentally catch her with his sharp claws, he trailed the knuckles of his hand upward against the incredibly soft skin of her side until he reached her lower rib cage. Pausing there, he extended one finger and brushed it along the slight depression just below her ribs, feeling the raised tissue of a scar beneath the pad of his questing finger.

Both Kagome and Sesshoumaru sucked in their breaths simultaneously, the proof that they experienced the same dream in the knowledge the youkai lord just displayed. A familiar scene played before Kagome's mind, of her reaching out to take Sesshoumaru's hand and using his claw to slice open her flesh to retrieve the Shikon no Tama from her body. It had been embedded just under her ribcage, and the evidence was in the scar being lightly traced by the gentle, reverent fingers of a man considered an enemy...until now.

"Oh, gods," the stunned miko breathed, a mixture of joy, discovery, and apprehension clouding her features, "Sesshoumaru, I...I know you probably don't want to hear this but...and I know you're a youkai, but I...," she wanted to say `I think I'm falling in love with you', but trailed off helplessly instead.

Questions and revelations crowded her overtaxed mind, blocking the words until one thought popped to the forefront, clear as crystal, and she groaned.

"Oh, no. Inuyasha "

He would never understand. Best friend or not, Inuyasha would never condone or accept Kagome's illogical, yet undeniable, feelings for his hated brother.

He would view it as a betrayal of trust, the distraught miko realized.

Yet as much as Kagome didn't want to hurt her friend, she was torn between the knowledge that Inuyasha could never be to her what she had hoped, and the newly awakened feelings stirring in her heart for Sesshoumaru.

A complete change overcame Sesshoumaru's features upon hearing his half brother's name on Kagome's lips. Where a moment ago, his eyes had held the soft light of some incredibly gentle emotion, now they were hard and remote. The taiyoukai lord was back in place of the tender would-be lover of a moment ago. The miko cringed inwardly at the about-face.

His golden eyes boring furiously into hers, Sesshoumaru snapped out, "Do not worry, human," he spat out the appellation as if it were the vilest epithet he could imagine, "once your task is completed, you will be free to return to your beloved hanyou. Even though he loves another," he added the malicious afterthought.

"I will need you no longer." The words had the absolute conviction of truth, but deep within his soul, Sesshoumaru knew it was not true. Somewhere among the past month of nights, he had developed a miserable weakness for the pert human-a cavity of the soul that only she could fill.

Kagome flinched and her eyes widened at the viciousness of his verbal attack, but was forcefully reminded of Inuyasha at that moment. Her friend always lashed out whenever he was in pain, and the young woman did not think his brother was any different. It was an eye-opening revelation, and it warmed her heart to think Sesshoumaru, proud and noble taiyoukai, felt enough honest emotion for her that his rigidly controlled emotionless facade would crack.

A soft smile graced the lips he had so recently kissed, and she raised her hand to cup his cheek. The demon flinched away from her touch, but Kagome was persistent, showing no sign of reaction or retreat.

"Sesshoumaru," she enjoined gently, "what do you feel for me?"

"For you? Are you under the delusion that I would feel anything but contempt for a human?" he scoffed, his mask reasserting itself with the familiar expression of scorn, but Kagome could sense his conflict and confusion. It gave her the courage to push on.

"I don't know if it's my imagination that you feel anything but perhaps lust for me, Sesshoumaru-I have no way of finding out except by asking you." She paused, making certain she retained his undivided attention, "But I do know what I feel for you...would you like to know?"

She could clearly see the dissonance in his eyes as fierce pride battled with curiosity to assuage the insecurities of his newly-awakened heart. It was almost frightening how she could read thoughts so clearly in a face which had always been an enigma to her before.

At last, Sesshoumaru managed to settle on a inner compromise by snarling out, "I suppose you're going to tell me that you love me," the last two words dripped with so much scorn and sarcasm that Kagome found it hard not to flinch, despite the fact she knew it was a blind-a defense for his scarred heart.

What could have wounded him so badly? She wondered, her own heart aching in empathy. A desperate desire to heal and protect this strong, savage man from the pitfalls of his own loneliness and hurts almost overwhelmed Kagome. She did the only thing she could think of at the time.

Stepping forward to rest both hands on his broad shoulders, the gentle girl from the future looked deep into the eyes of the creature who had tried to kill her on more than one occasion. She told him the truth held in her heart like a precious treasure, knowing he would see it in her eyes.

"Yes, Sesshoumaru. I love Inuyasha, even though I know he will never feel for me the way he does for Kikyou. That is how I know I truly love him-because I wish for his happiness above my own," the taiyoukai's eyes narrowed dangerously and his muscles tensed under her touch, but she cut off any response with her next words.

"But-I don't know how or why it happened, and I can't explain it-I'm in love with you."

He stared at her for a moment, completely stunned by her proclamation. His first reaction, instinctive and self-protective, was to deny her sincerity.

What could this slip of a girl possibly know of love? But the look in her eyes, the expression on her face...he could feel the utter conviction of her words, even if it was only that she believed them.

It did not make her emotion a lasting thing, for hadn't his father's experiences, his terrible grief, brought about more miseries than any marauding or traitorous enemy ever could?

To love is to invite disaster, he repeated to himself, but the phrase, once held as absolute gospel, rang hollow in the face of one tiny, fragile human's radiance. A glow erupted in his chest.

To cover the lapse, he demanded acidly, "What do you know of love? It is a transient emotion, fleeting and disastrous to the soul."

If he hadn't known better, Sesshoumaru would almost swear a light of pity entered the luminescent pools of Kagome's eyes at his cynical words.

"I believe you're referring to `infatuation'," she replied with a slight smile that made the youkai lord want to sip from her lips again.

"There is a difference?" he demanded to distract himself from the temptation offered by those sweet, moist rosebuds, curled seductively in a mysterious smile.

"A difference?" She tilted her head to side a little, contemplating her answer for a moment.

Putting a finger to her chin, Kagome looked at him from under her lashes and answered, "I guess the difference is time."

"`Time'," he repeated flatly, clearly skeptical.

Time was not something his father and his human love had had much of. Then the grief-stricken man had gone off on a necessary mission to protect his borders, but in an irrational and suicidal move, had decided to go alone. His heartbreak had fatally clouded his judgment.

"You know: `True love can stand the test of time'?" At Sesshoumaru's continued blank look, Kagome sighed a bit.

The taiyoukai recovered quickly from the thrill the small sound sent through him and said repressively, "Time is something you humans have precious little of, so I fail to see how you could possibly know what real love is."

"You may be right," she agreed and flashed that mysterious smile again. "But I think you would be surprised at how much experience with time I've had, Demon Lord," she put forth dryly, thoughts of an unfathomable well utilizing some arcane magic flitting through her head.

"What do you mean by that, woman?" Sesshoumaru demanded, but the miko simply took a step away from him, waving her hand dismissively.

All she would do was shake her head and instruct him airily, "My name isn't `woman', it's Higurashi Kagome."

Kagome turned to continue in the direction they were headed and, no matter the level of threats he employed, the formidable youkai prince could not convince the stubborn miko to expand on their edifying discussion beyond a thoroughly frustrated, "Look, you wouldn't believe me if I told you, so just drop it, okay?"

Sesshoumaru, leaping at the tiny opening she provided, said, "Try me."

It was the closest he'd come to pleading for information since he was a small child, and his teeth ground together at the realization that one small human woman had brought him so low. But, dammit, he wanted to know what made her so confident in her assertions

So he persisted, yet the only crumb she would throw him was this: "You'll see tomorrow, anyway."

What the hell is that supposed to mean? He wondered with a growing sense of excitement, his wounded youkai pride completely forgotten in the face of the enticing mystery that was Higurashi Kagome.

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The next dawn couldn't come fast enough for Kagome. Sesshoumaru was driving her absolutely insane with his very presence. To cover her incessant itch to wrap herself around him, tangle her fingers in the long silken skeins of his hair, she talked. Nonstop.

Oh, the miko was very aware her chattering irritated the taiyoukai, but the alternative was too embarrassing to contemplate, so she persisted. Besides, if it gained the added bonus of letting her actually learn something about the reclusive lord...who was she to argue? Although she wasn't entirely certain what might she learn would be a good thing.

And then, he had kissed her.

Kagome felt her cheeks flush at the memory of his lips playing over hers. The tenderness of his touch seemed to be straining to tell her something...something monumental and eminently important. In response, she had finally worked up the courage to ask about the dreams.

His reaction had floored her. His delicate touch to the scar below her ribs had ignited a maelstrom of emotion within her breast, and before she knew it, she had blurted out that bit of emotionally revealing...well, foolishness.

She paused at the slightly cynical word, a small smile tugging at her lips as she realized it was something he would use to describe her sentimental confession, even if it was genuine.

"I'm in love with you," she had said.

The beleaguered miko sighed. It was true, wasn't it? Or was it some sort of illusion created by weeks of strange and heated dreams?

Whatever the cause, her other words to Sesshoumaru were true: Only time would tell.

Unfortunately, time was not something Kagome thought they had much of. She could feel it; that prickling on the back of her neck, the fine hairs of her body standing on end. It was the way she felt every time something pivotal was about to happen-"pivotal" meaning "bad", and "bad" meaning "Naraku".

Kagome shivered as the memory of tentacles slithering around her ankle in some sort of sickly caress replayed in a ghostlike way across her skin.

"What is it?" Sesshoumaru asked, his voice low and smooth.

To the young woman's surprise, she did not detect annoyance in the honeyed tones, simply an alertness to her movements.

Kagome shook her head, embarrassed to tell him of her vague and unfounded fears, but the demon prince would have none of it. Swinging around to face her, he locked his golden gaze on her pale face, noting how the delicate skin under her eyes seemed to be bruised and drawn tight.

"Something is wrong," he said, brows drawing down in a frown, "You sense something?"

Again Kagome shook her head, but it was less a denial and more an expression of her uncertainty. Her dark eyes scanned the surrounding landscape, her relief at its familiarity not detracting from her growing nervousness.

"I can't say exactly. It's just a feeling..." she murmured, her hand going to her stomach in an unconscious effort to still the fluttering there.

"Is it a Shikon shard?"

"No." Conviction laced the word, and Sesshoumaru's own sense of unease increased.

If it was not a jewel shard she was sensing, then her miko powers were perhaps triggered by something much more dangerous...and perhaps immediate.

The priestess sighed, rubbing her hands tiredly across her eyes.

"Let's just forget it, okay? I'm probably just still spooked from the battle the other day," she said, her falsely bright tone obviously meant to convince him. She failed miserably, but he let it go for now. "Besides, we're almost to where we need to be."

Sesshoumaru looked around with disdain, his lip curling slightly. He knew exactly where they were, but still did not understand why she believed this location would have any shards left in it. The youkai lord despised not knowing things...and this was the second tidbit of crucial information the impertinent young human had kept from him in the span of three days. If he weren't so wary of getting into an argument with the chit, he would have demanded the knowledge forthwith.

He sighed inwardly. But each time he faced her, watched as her cheeks flushed delicately and her eyes sparkled with ire...something primal within him screamed for release. He grimaced. It was a risk he could not take, despite the pretty words she had gifted him with yesterday.

Humans know nothing of love, he scoffed, ignoring the fact that he had to repeat that to himself almost constantly in an effort to keep his instincts at bay.

The words' effectiveness was rapidly dwindling, evaporating under the hot glare of his rising need to possess her in the same manner as in his dreams. Their dreams. The knowledge that they had shared those illusionary interludes only made his control more tenuous.

He realized his attention had wandered when he felt a cool hand on his brow, gently stroking his hair away from his forehead. Lowering his startled glance down, he found the object of his reflections poised before him with a look of sweet concern upon her features.

A soft light glowed in her dark eyes and the morning sun glanced off her hair in a golden halo of radiance. She was mere inches from him, their bodies separated by a narrow margin of rapidly-heating air.

Sesshoumaru lost himself in the liquid pools of her eyes, unconsciously leaning down to breathe in the peace and tranquility that was her unique fragrance. A glow kindled deep within his topaz gaze, reflecting the banked fires of passion that always seemed to flare to life whenever he got within three feet of her.

Unlike every other time, though, he could not dredge up a shred of resentment or anger at his unruly reactions to her closeness. All he could think of was how, despite her seeming delicacy, she remained so vibrant, radiating life and a power that had little to do with her miko abilities. It was a distinctly feminine thing, as mysterious and elusive as a will-o-the-wisp...as bewitching as a siren's song...and he was completely captivated.

After an agonizingly slow descent, he settled his lips over hers in a sweet and tender caress, not demanding in any way. Kagome's eyes fluttered closed and her arms moved to twine around his neck, holding his hard form against her soft one; a study in contrasts.

After an eternity, Sesshoumaru managed to lift his head from the addictive taste of her mouth, resting his forehead on hers and saying lightly, "What are you doing to me, my Kagome?"

She seemed to understand the rhetorical nature of his question, so instead of answering she simply shook her head slightly and replied, "Probably the same thing you are doing to me, my lord."

A mischievous smile flirted around the corners of her lips and a twinkle appeared in her chocolate eyes at her facetious use of his title. The stoic demon lord couldn't repress the answering twitch the sight brought to his own lips as he allowed the temptress in his arms to pull away. He fought down his disappointment at the lost contact, but reminded himself they were not out here for a pleasure stroll.

Besides, he told himself, that hanyou is bound to be out here somewhere.

The knowledge should have acted as a damper for his passions, but all he felt was a sharp sense of anticipation.

Let him come. I will show him what is mine, and mine alone.

His increasingly feral reflections were tamed somewhat by the feel of Kagome's tiny hands wrapping about one of his. Looking down, the Western Lord felt a surge of something alien move through him.

After a moment, he placed the emotion as protectiveness, brought on by the sight of her pale, delicate fingers tangled with his long, strong ones. She was heedless of his deadly claws.

Raising his gaze to her face, golden eyes intense with a jumble of strange sentiments, Sesshoumaru took in her bright smile and open countenance with wonder. Then, like a shaft of blinding light in the dark loneliness of his soul, realization and acceptance burst forth, scattering the shadows of solitude and isolation.

She loves me. He thought with awe. She loves me.

The phrase fell like rain on the parched ground of his heart. The seed that had been planted there by a vision both sensual and horrific broke open, extending tender shoots into the light for the first time.

She loves me, he repeated again, but knew that was not the entire truth.

As the towering taiyoukai let the petite miko tug him after her toward their goal, just visible through the thinning trees, he finally admitted the verity of his emotions in their entirety.

I love her.

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A/N: Okay, I meant to have a lot more dialogue, but those pesky tender (and silent) moments kept happening. Besides, I've come to the regrettable conclusion that I'm not good at plots that involve a lot of conversation. I'd much rather open up a character's head and dissect it for all to see, rather than inundate things with a bunch of chatter. *sigh* I really wish I was better at the chatter, though. I'm working on it, I swear. It's just a hard habit to break.

TT: *sigh* There it is, folks. I meant to have a lot more snarling, snapping and blood here, but-

Sess: *suddenly appears* `But'?

TT: Uh...but it just didn't work for me?

Sess: *growls* WHAT?!? You have a contract to fulfil, woman!!

TT: *backing up slowly, considering playing dead if things get too serious* Now, Sess...look at the bright side: You get more practice beating down-um, `you-know-who'. *smiles hopefully* That's good, right?

Sess: *still glaring* I would much rather `beat him down', as you so elegantly put it, in truth!

TT: Um, yes. But look at it this way. Until Rain of Stars gives back your wardrobe, do you really want to film the upcoming scenes in a kilt?

Sess: *pales and blushes* You have an excellent point. *looks thoughtful* Although Mel Gibson did so in Braveheart and no one laughed at him.

TT: Hmmm....Mel...bare chest...bare legs...bare...ummm...

Sess: *waving hand in front of TT's unresponsive face* Ugh. Well, that's done it for today. *turns and walks off* The only thing that will snap her out of it is if you people review. So hurry up and review! *spins around and glares* Well? Why are you still here?!

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Review Responses:

MediaMiner:

river: Thanks for the appreciation! And yes: I scream, you scream, we all scream for Sess in ice cream! *ahem* Or, something like that. ^.~;

karen in ct: LOL I had to go back and find that sentence you were talking about...I didn't remember writing it! Hope it didn't drive you mad! Thanks!

Lady Sesshoumaru: Ah...Shigure...*looks confused* Okay, I think I know who Crawford is (Weiss Kreuz-bad guy?), but who is K? I haven't watched WK yet, and was waffling about getting the anime. But now that I know who some of the seiyuu are (hello! Seki Tomozaki! Kyou from Furuba! Menoumaru from InuMovie1!Think he was in X/1999 & one of the RK OVAs) I've decided to get it. Gotta have my sexy seiyuu fix! And all the bishies, too! Oh! Speaking of sexy seiyuu: Do you remember Takeda, the lord who proposed to Sango? That's Ayame from FB! Wai! I love to hear how the seiyuu get around the different series. I miss Kurama from YYH's voice. (Yeh, I know `he's' a `she', but what can ya do when all the characters are such yummy bishies?) Hmm...Kurama was Yue from CCS, and Yuugi during the first season (the one they won't release in the US due to violence). And Yuki from FB? That's Kero-chan from CCS! I think the most versatile is Nobuyuki Something-or-other...Hiei's voice. He was in RK a couple of times, but was so polite, I couldn't hear the connection! Ahh, but I've rattled on for too long! About FF.net's censoring. I'm no longer posting there. I'm part of a group tryng to gather the facts of what's really happening and organize a boycott. For more info, visit:

http">http://www.geocities.com/animetalessite/main/boycott .html</ u>

That's my rant for now. Thanks for the love (and the emails)!

Sesshoumaru_Lover: Oh! You're South Beach Girl, eh? Ehehehe. Sorry about that! Hmm...I don't know if Naraku will die. Maybe he'll win? *ducks* Just kidding! What I do with Naraku ll depends on which ending I choose. I'm thinking of making a sequel to this...but I'm not sure. Maybe I'll leave it up to the reviewers? Thanks!

FF.net

luvsdogz: Oh, goody! Someone stranger than me! *sighs in bliss* I'm not the loony anymore. *pouts* But I want to own YYH & RK! Thanks, I updated just for you! ^.~

Jaredono: My wonderful new beta!! Thank you thank you thank you!!! I'm ging tu see how many gammar and spling errors, I can pit on this ust to annoy you? *laughs* Just kidding! Yes, Inuyasha gets shafted a lot in fics. Poor stupid dog-boy, his tiny brain lacks the capacity for more than instinct and screaming...*sigh* But I'm brave and showed him as I know him to be! Actually, there are many, many authors who depict Inu as a (somewhat) mature and (slightly) rational (occasionally) intelligent *snicker* being. Really! It's just so much easier for the alternate pairing fics to discredit him. Besides, it's how Takahashi-sensei shows him, too, right? And don't forget, you'll be the first to see how Sess and Inu react to eachother!(I'll be takng a page from how my children act. ^^;;) The perks of a beta. I just couldn't let Naraku be the know-it-all. It just ruins all the fun! Thanks! Watch out for those Godzilla-like cabbit paws!

Lady Kaiba: Thanks! Here it is!

Aki no Yume1: Ah, where is everyone going? Hmm...I think I'll keep that one to myself. I let a couple of hints drop in this chapter, though. Can you guess? ^.~

Rain of Stars: ROTFL Ah! A laxative cookie...just what constipated Sess needed! *pouts* But he ate my cookies...and I didn't get to lick the gooey icing off him!!!! Waaahhh! *calms down* Okay, I forgive you for not protecting my reward. Want to know why? Because of that absolutely delicious image of Sess in black silk. *drool* Just as good as the Sess-in-a-kilt or Sess-in-a-vat-of-ice cream pictures! Hope this chappe satisfied your need for fluff! `Cause you ain't gonna get a lot next chappie, hon! Thanks!

DarkPyroPlanet: Reference above comment: "Hope this chappe satisfied your need for fluff! `Cause you ain't gonna get a lot next chappie, hon!" And yes, guys suck monkey butt. Or, as my husband's best friend used to say, `That sucks big, hairy, sweaty doney balls!' *shudder* And if that's not a disgusting image to leave you on, I don't know what is! Bye!

Kayrin: Thanks for the love! I'm trying to move things along quickly, but I just couldn't resist an entire chapter devoted to Sess/Kag fluff. *sigh* It's so...fulfilling. ;)

DemonLady1: Thanks!

Ranmagirl7: *laughs* Yeah, well, you get to see exactly what's on Inuyasha's mind next chapter. (And it ain't gonna be pretty!) Thanks for the support! Hope you're off potato-peeling duty!

TiarellaCordifolia: What an unusual name-so lyrical. I love it! Thanks, I'm coming with more!

Dark Topaz: Thanks, I'll update soon!

Defafaeth Mechqua: *evil laughter* That's the point!!!! BWAHAHAHAHA!!!! I live to make my readers suffer! BWAHAH-*cough, sputter, choke* Ahem. Sorry about that...I can't seem to help it! Thanks!

Dog Demon: *huggles* Thank you so much!

Star*e*Night moon: Oooh! I try to improve them each time, but it's so hard to get around that fluff (and Fluffy)! This was slow, but hope you liked it!

Pigwidgin: Thanks! Was this fast enough?

Danielle: *blushing profusely* I'm truly flattered! Thank you! Hmm...Sess on a sugar high? *shakes head* Can't picture it, but love the idea! And thank you, too for the critique! I welcome criticism...I'm trying to improve my writing, so input is appreciated. (Don't think that age matters, either. The informed opinion of a 16-yr-old is just as valid as the opinion of a 60-yr-old.) I'm trying so hard to work on that...*whines* but it's so hard!!! ;p Thanks!

Youkai Yume: Yes! Update, update, update!!! Thanks!

Dark Whispers: Yes, poor Naraku...maybe I should clue him in...? *thinks for a moment* Nah! I'm coming with more soon!

Nymph Demon: Yum! Chocolate! *dances in joy* I'm such a closet chocoholic! Yes, Inu's not as clueless as he seems...well, not quite as clueless, anyway! ;p

The Fallen Angel of Death: Yes, that's why I'm not updating on FF.net anymore. If the admin would only tell us what the giudelines are...that would be different! Neway! Posting continues on MediaMiner, and also on Destiny's Gateway Archives, so see me there! Thanks!