Kagome fumbled with the piece of paper she tried so determinedly to make into a crane. She sighed. It was just no use. She would never master the art of origami. The girl stuffed the sheet of paper in her pocket absentmindedly. Lately, Kagome had been trying to find a hobby. However, she couldn't seem to find one. The raven-haired teenager had already given up on Inuyasha. She knew his heart would always belong to Kikyou. Which, she decided, was okay with her, just so long as he was happy. Inuyasha had been going to see Kikyou more frequently now, and she just let him go. It was tough, but Kagome was strong, she would be okay. At least she hoped so, anyway. Kagome shook her head and sighed again. Ah, well. That was life. Kagome took out the crumpled peice of paper again, and began trying to make it into a crane.
Kagome had been walking for almost an hour now. She wondered briefly if anyone was getting worried. Maybe she should turn back... Then, Kagome felt the all too familiar tingling sensation, that could mean only one thing: A youkai was nearby. A youkai that wasn't very powerful, but not very weak, either. She began panicking.
'Stupid, stupid Kagome,' the girl scolded herself. 'I didn't mean to walk so deep in the forest..'
What could she do? She had no protection whatsoever... That's when it happened. Kagome heard a deep, growling behind her. Before she could react, she was slammed up against the nearest tree. Kagome started to struggle and scream as the ugly green youkai leaned closer to sniff her, it's sour breath tickling her skin.
Sesshoumaru had heard a sky-shattering scream. Usually, he wouldn't have given a damn who it belonged to, he would've just kept on walking. But Rin, however, just happened to hear it as well.
"Sesshoumaru-sama? What was that?" The little ningen child asked curiously.
Before Sesshoumaru could answer, Jaken cut in. "You filthy, disgusting ningen. What makes you think you have the right to ask Sesshoumaru-sama ques--"
The Lord of the Western Lands kicked him. "A scream, Rin," he answered, turning to the girl.
"Oh! Is somebody hurt? Should we go check on them?"
Sesshoumaru inwardly sighed. He expected her to say that, but was really hoping she wouldn't. Normally, he wouldn't have bothered, but he had grown fond of the ningen that followed him so eagerly, and no matter how much he denied it, he knew he would really do anything for her happiness.
"Stay here, Rin."
The youkai followed the sound of the scream, until he came upon a very odd sight. A ningen girl was being held up against a tree while hideous youkai sniffed her. With one swipe of his sword, the youkai was dead.
Kagome screamed when she hit the forest floor, totally startled from being dropped so quickly. She looked at the slayed youkai in front of her with wide eyes. Then, looking up, her eyes became even wider as she opened her mouth with a soft gasp.
"Sesshoumaru."
The silver-haired youkai glanced at the small onna with slight surprise. She knew his name? Wait..she looks awfully familiar.. Then, realization hit him like a ton of bricks. The small ningen at his feet was the same one who traveled with his baka half-brother.
"Inuyasha's wench," he spat.
A flicker of anger flashed through Kagome's eyes. Suddenly, she stood, drawing herself to her full height while shouting, "I am NOT Inuyasha's wench, never have been, never will be!"
Sesshoumaru almost raised an eyebrow. This girl dare speak against him! She dare YELL at him!
"You will not speak to me in such a manner, wench," he growled.
The spark of defiance in Kagome's grey orbs was replaced with fear. 'Baka! Look what you just did! Sesshoumaru could kill you!' She mentally cursed.
Not wanting to anger him, she bowed respectfully and responded, "Gomen ne, Sesshoumaru-sama."
Once more, the onna surprised him. He hadn't expected her to apologize. "It's good that you know your place, wench," Sesshoumaru replied.
Kagome stared at him nervously.'Why did he save me?' she wondered. "Umm, Sesshoumaru-sama, why did you save me?" she asked timidly.
"You have no business asking this Sesshoumaru questions, wench," he rumbled.
"Well excuse me!" she yelled, then squeaked and covered her mouth. Instantly, he slammed Kagome on the same tree the other youkai had trapped her against.
"Just who do you think you are talking to, wench?" he growled.
"Forgive me," she croaked. He was holding her by her neck, which was still sore. Hesitantly, he let go of her throat, watching as she once more fell to the ground with a 'Oomph', then turned around.
Kagome rubbed her even more sore neck, and glared at Sesshoumaru's back. The male youkai had started to walk away, when she shouted at him, "You can't just leave me here!"
The Lord of the Western Lands turned around to face her, arching an eyebrow.
The blue-eyed onna stared at the ground nervously. "Er, I mean, can you please help me find my way back to Inuyasha?"
"No," Sesshoumaru stated plainly. He was about to walk off again, when the onna yelled, "Please!"
"I don't know my way back, and..I could die out here," she confessed.
"What makes you think I'd help you, my baka hanyou brother's wench?"
Kagome sighed. "Well, if..you just left me here, and I died, it's like the whole ten minutes or whatever you spent saving me would be for nothing, just a waste of your time."
'The ningen has a point,' he admitted to himself. After a long argument with himself, he decided to grudgingly help her find her way back.
"Arigatou, Sesshoumaru-sama, I owe you one," Kagome whispered, when he motioned for her to follow him.
'Owe me indeed,' he thought.
Soon, it began to get dark, and Sesshoumaru still had not said a word about stopping, or even resting for that matter. As a matter of fact, he hadn't said anything at all. Long after they had began walking, Kagome decided that he wasn't going to talk to her. So, she took out the old piece of paper and once again began trying to make it into a crane.
After what seemed like eternity to Kagome, Sesshoumaru finally stopped.
"I know ningens require rest," was all he said before stopping and sitting against a tree. Kagome decided to follow suit. She plopped down against another tree, still messing with that sheet of paper. Sesshoumaru watched, interested in the way she folded the paper. Pretty soon, Kagome gave up once more on making a crane. She stared up at the blood-red sky, wondering if Inuyasha was at all worried about her. She looked up at Sesshoumaru, who had his eyes closed. The teenager fidgeted nervously, wondering what she was supposed to do now.
'Doesn't look like I'm gonna be getting out of here any time soon, ' she thought. 'Well, I might as well try to get some sleep. Hopefully, I'll be with Inuyasha at least by tomorrow.'
Kagome laid down on the forest floor, and began tossing and turning. She was very uncomfortable, obviously. The girl opened her eyes, concluding that she wouldn't be able to sleep. She took out the paper again, and began messing with it. She looked at her funny creation, which looked nothing like a crane. Sesshoumaru had been watching her, and finally, his curiosity got the better of him.
"Ningen, what are you doing?"
Kagome looked up at him, surprised. "I'm trying to make a crane, but I can't get it right," she said amusedly.
Sesshoumaru raised his eyebrow. "Why would you do something foolish like that?"
Kagome sighed, for the tenth time that day. "Since Inuyasha picked Kikyou, I've been trying to find something to do to take my mind off of it."
Now it was Sesshoumaru's turn to be surprised. His hanyou brother had picked a dead miko over a living, breathing, one?
'How foolish, ' he thought. Kagome appeared to be in deep thought for a moment, then, unexpectedly, she handed over her creation to Sesshoumaru.
He looked at her questioningly, and she just said, "Here. A token of my appreciation for saving my life." She gave him her tiny creation, then she laid back down.
Sesshoumaru stared at they paper in his hand. It had been folded in a way in which it reminded him of those flowers Rin was so fond of. He glanced at the girl trying to sleep. He couldn't help but wonder why she would thank him. He was her enemy. He also wondered why his brother would pick the dead miko over this one. The male shook all these thoughts away. Sesshoumaru once more glanced at the paper flower in his hand. Maybe, just maybe, he would keep this girl for himself. Maybe, just maybe, he would take care of her, and protect her, just like he did Rin. Maybe, just maybe. But for now, he would keep he token of appreciation. And he would learn more about her, before he returned her, if he even did. Apparently, there was something about him that flowers were attracted to.