A/N: Blah, blah, blah, enjoy!
oOo
The Taijiya's chocolate brown eyes widened in shock. He had saved her. He had risked his life for her.. The monster's eerie laughter echoed throughout the plains.
InuYasha supported Miroku, eyes on the daiyoukai. They were baffled. Why had he saved her? What the hell was going on? InuYasha knew his older brother would never put his life on the line for anybody. To jump into the middle of their battle, save Sango from being outnumbered by those carnivorous demons and annihilating them with such rage in his eyes.. it caught the hanyou off-guard. He had never known his brother to care about anyone before.
InuYasha had never seen such fury in his half-brother's emotionless gaze. He almost felt chilled. It unnerved him to think that Sesshoumaru was that angered about anyone attacking Sango. He noted his white knuckles tightly clutching his Toukijin, eyes flashing red.
His demonic instincts told him to submit to his brother's power, but he was too stubborn to comply. He refused to let Sesshoumaru have all the fun. But.. he knew that if it had been Kagome, he would be down right pissed too. He would've wanted to rip Narau's fucking throat out.
But it didn't make any sense! Why did his cold-hearted brother suddenly care about what happened to Sango?! Unless.. the hanyou gaped at the couple as Sesshoumaru stood in front of the female, protectively. It made sense. All the signs. He should've figured it out sooner, but he was so distracted by damned Kagome.
The usually cool amber hues were blazing, red trickling from his irises to the whites of his eyes. He had never seen his brother so angry before. He almost felt sorry for Naraku. Almost.
The markings along the daiyoukai's face became rigid, no longer the smooth lines they had been. His claws grew. InuYasha frowned.. he wouldn't change into his true form, would he? He only had one arm.. the hanyou shuddered, sensing the enormous amount of youki radiating off of his brother. It illuminted off of him so brightly InuYasha held a hand out to shield his eyes.
The others, excluding Shippou and Kirara, wouldn't sense his insane rage. The hanyou's brows furrowed. With Sesshoumaru as enraged as he was, he would surely lose control. Suddenly, InuYasha's heart thudded against his chest and was afraid. Not for himself, but for the lives of his friends. Who knew what would set Sessohumaru off? The slightest movement could start the killing spree.
InuYasha braced himself. He felt a fight coming on. Kirara bared her fangs, snarling at Naraku. She understood that Sesshoumaru was going to rip Naraku to shreds. Shippou shook with fright in Kagome's arms as they watched from the thicket. They were just as surprised as InuYasha at the lord's appearance and actions.
Kagome was afraid as well; not only because of the animalistic look crossing the daiyoukai's countenance, but because of the glances InuYasha kept shooting him. He looked nervous, which wasn't a good sign for someone who was always so tough and fearless.
Sango stared up at her lover's form, mouth ajar, in awe. She didn't think he would come. She didn't think he cared about her. The fury in his eyes, the snarl on his face.. it was all she needed to know. He would never verbally say it, but she knew that he cared for her deeply now. Another doubt about his loyalty to her would never cross her mind again.
Naraku's lip curled into a smug smile, "What an interesting turn of events.." Sango noticed her lord trembling, heard his low growls. She sat up, swallowing the lump that had formed in her throat. He was going to attack Naraku. The Taijiya feared for her lover's safety.
"S-Sesshoumaru..?" She called out to him, softly. He responded with a grunt, clawed digits twitching. His eyes lifted and landed on the white baboon pelt. With an angry howl, the lord launched himself at Naraku, claws lodged in the depths of the pelt. The two disappeared into the shrubbery surrounding the plain they had been fighting on, "Sesshoumaru!" The girl cried out, and shot up.
She scooped up her large weapon and hurried after her daiyoukai as Naraku's cruel laughter rang in their ears. Sango's eyes widened. InuYasha pushed the injured monk away from him as he sped toward the Taijiya, locking his arms around her waist, "Sango, stop!"
"No, let me go!" She struggled in his grasp. She was definitely strong and he almost wished she was as weak as Kagome so he could get a firm grip on her, "Sesshoumaru!"
"No! He isn't thinking clearly! If you interfer, he'll kill you too!" InuYasha growled in frustration, trying to calm the girl. He managed to knock Hiraikotsu from her hands.
"I don't care, let me go, InuYasha!" Sango squirmed for a moment, but all movement ceased when trees began tumbling down. They were still locked in battle. She had to help her lover, "Sesshoumaru! Get off of me!"
If InuYasha had been at normal capacity, he would've easily been able to restrain the girl. But he had just been battling with Naraku when a horde of youkai had shot at Kagome and Shippou. He had to rescue them. Sango was already on the move, gracefully manuevering around Naraku's damn tentacles, toward the pair.
Sango had been delayed. A tentacle had shot up from the ground, knocking the girl over. She rolled away from the tentacle, but another shot up, and another.. and another, until four tentacles had slithered onto her wrists and ankles, confining her to the ground. She struggled as she was struggling with InuYasha now.
A fifth tentacle shot out from Naraku's pelt and zoomed toward the immobile Sango. It would've pierced her chest, but Sesshoumaru had seemingly appeared out of nowhere, easily slicing through the tentacles with the Toukijin. Another myriad of Naraku's demons had already begun to surround the woman to feast on her corpse; Sesshoumaru wasted no time in eradicating them as well.
"Sesshoumaru!" The Taijiya screamed, the tears of frustration flooded her eyes as she writhered in the hanyou's firm hold. She was becoming desperate. She needed to knock InuYasha off, but her mind was so wrapped around the thought of her lover that her attempts at escape weren't as precise as they should've been.
She immediately ceased struggling as all movement stilled in the forest. The sounds of their battle were silenced. No more trees toppled over. Sango's eyes widened and she feared the worst. With a sudden burst of energy, the female managed to turn in InuYasha's grip and activated the hidden dagger gauntlet on her wrist. She swung it at his face, causing him to release her.
InuYasha stumbled back as Sango ran into the trees. Kirara let out a tremendous roar and followed her mistress. InuYasha reached a hand to his face. He touched the cut on his cheek and rubbed the blood between his thumb and index fingers. Kagome kept her hold on Shippou and jumped out of the shubbery she had been hiding in during the battle, "InuYasha!"
The girl skidded to a halt when she noticed the motionless form of her dear holy friend. Shippou's eyes widened, "M-Miroku?" His whisper reached the hanyou's ears and it twitched before he turned to look at them. He had just been on the verge of following Kirara and Sango to bring them back when his eyes landed on Miroku.
'Oh no.. oh God, no..'
InuYasha limped over to Miroku and collapsed onto his knees beside Kagome. He saw her trembling hand reaching out to touch his face. InuYasha couldn't process this. When he had been supporting the monk, he didn't seem to bad. His golden eyes clouded over and his brows furrowed.
"M-Miroku.. wake up.." Kagome's soft pleas seemed a million miles away. He watched as she began shaking him a little harder, heard her cries become more desperate as she tried to coax the man out of his permanent slumber, "No! Wake up, Miroku!" She threw herself onto his chest, sobbing her heart out as he refused to open his eyes. Shippou curled himself against Kagome's quivering form, eyes vacant. He stared at Miroku, wondering why he wasn't moving.
InuYasha's eyes clouded over again and he felt something warm sliding down his face. He rubbed his palm against his cheek and inspected the content of his hand. Tears? Was he crying?
oOo
Sango skidded to a halt, eyes frantically searching the area for any sign of Sesshoumaru. There was russling to her left. Her eyes darted in that direction. Naraku's white baboon pelt was dirtied and tattered as it hung off of his shoulder. He had streaks of blood smeared across his face and pelt. He used a nearby tree for support and leaned against it, chest heaving. He was having trouble breathing.
The girl's chocolate orbs scanned the scene for her lover. Where was he? There was no sign of him... did Naraku defeat him? His gaze landed on the Taijiya and their eyes met. Naraku's lips curled into a triumphant smile and in that moment, Sango's heart dropped. Kirara immediately understood their body languages and rubbed herself against her mistress in consolation to her loss.
No.. it couldn't be. Sesshoumaru was a daiyoukai, he couldn't be defeated by a mere half-breed. Naraku took a step toward Sango. The hairs on the back of Kirara's neck stood on end as she hissed dangerously at the man. Kirara's next moves were instinctive. Naraku shot a tentacle in Sango's direction and Kirara intercepted, ferocious mouth closing on it and snapping it in half.
A dozen flying youkai made their way toward Kirara. They weren't moving as fast or precisely as they once had and Kirara knew they were just as battered up and tired as she was but she refused to quit. With a snarl, Kirara shot straight toward them. She manuevered around one and snapped her fangs on another.
Sango was paralyzed. Her eyes watered as she stared at him. In a fit of anguish and fury, the Taijiya sped toward Naraku. The hanyou met her challenge, flying toward her. She swung the retractable dagger on her wrist at his face, nicking his cheek. Naraku unsheathed a sword hidden in his pelt and swipped at her stomach. The Taijiya stumbled back, lowering her wrist to block the blade.
Kirara released a pained yelp and Sango quickly looked around for her. With that minor distraction, Naraku used it to his advantage and stuck the tip of it in her right shoulder, burying a few more inches of it into her flesh. Her eyes widened in shock as her clenched her teeth to keep from crying out. He yanked the blade out, causing her to fall to a knee. She clutched her shoulder, hands drenched in blood.
"Join your family in hell, Taijiya.." His low voice spoke vehemently. He raised a tentacle to finish the job. Suddenly, he was tackled to the ground and Sango fell back. The air was filled with growls and grunts. The hanyou's attacker slammed him into a large tree, causing it to topple over. As it fell, it brought down several smaller trees, and the area was filled with dust.
Sango coughed, shielding her face from the dust particles flying in the air. A loud scream pierced the air and everything went still. As the dust began to clear, Sango heard long heavy breathing. Once it was clear, she sat up and her gaze immediately landed on the bloody corpse of Naraku. Her gaze shot up and her eyes widened to their fullest extent as she gaped at Sesshoumaru.
His garments were ripped to shreds, muscles glistening with sweat. His chest was not covered with its usual armor. His claws were long and jagged, blood dripping from them. His eyes were fully red, snarl present on his countenance, blood smeared on his face, shoulders hunched. The Taijiya slowly stood, not taking her eyes off of him. She took a few steps toward him and stepped on a twig, snapping it. His head snapped in her direction, growling at her.
She held her hands up to show him she meant no harm, "Sesshoumaru," She cooed gently, taking another step toward him, "My love.." His eyes remained focused on her, flexing his clawed digits, huffing. Another step, "Please.." She pleaded, " Sesshoumaru, look at me.." Another step, "It is Sango.. do you not recognize your Taijiya?" Another step. She slowly managed to make her way until she was right in front of him.
Sesshoumaru growled, watching as she reached a trembling hand to touch his arm. He jerked at her touch and roared angrily. She was going to take a step back, but she couldn't. She was going to abandon her lover to this. The daiyoukai narrowed his eyes at her, lividly, "Sesshoumaru.." She planted her palm on his chest, mixing the blood from her shoulder wound with the sweat and grim on his abdomen, "My love.." She reached her other hand up to his face, gently stroking it.
The smell of the blood on her hands.. the soft desperation in her voice, her gentle touch.. the lord blinked. He blinked once more and the red began fading from his eyes, returning them to their previous amber state. His claws shortened, his markings on his face became smooth once more. He stared down at his human.
"Sango.." He muttered. Her eyes lit up and she wrapped her arms around his mid-section. He secured his arm around her waist and his brows furrowed slightly as she shook in his grasp. The daiyoukai pulled away and lifted her chin to stare fully into her face, "What is it?"
"I-I thought he killed you.. I thought you were g-gone.." Her eyes shone brightly, face wet and gleaming with tears, bottom lip quivering. His amber hues searched her visage. His chest swelled at the anguish present on her face. He felt a lump forming in his throat. His heart twisted at seeing his human so distraught over his safety. Nobody had ever showed so much concern about him before.
"I would never allow myself to be slain by the likes of that disgusting hanyou.." His hand brushed the brown hair from her eyes, gently rubbing the side of her face."
"Y-you came for me.."
"You are mine. I will always be there to protect you." She beamed up at him. It was strange. Any words spoken by this daiyoukai were always enough to reassure his human. She always trusted him. He was always enough to make her happy.
The Taijiya tilted her head back and Sesshoumaru brought his lips down on hers, hand tangling itself in her tresses. Their tiers meshed against each other, a growl emitted from the back of the daiyoukai's throat. She moaned quietly against him, arms snaking around his neck. Once their kiss ended, Sesshoumaru hugged her to his chest.
She rested her head against his chest, ear directly above his heart, and whispered, "I love you."
Sesshoumaru's brows furrowed. She loved him. He knew she did but hearing the words was strange to him. They were foreign to him. He had never had to utter them in his life. He had courted her.. on numerous occasions. They had bathed together, she had played with Rin, ate with them, laughed with the young girl. She kissed his entire body, she played with his hair, she hummed in his ear at night. She gave him her mind, body, and soul. She gave herself to him completely. She wanted to belong to him. She thawed his heart of ice. She wasn't afraid of him. She told him about her entire life. She confided in him. She saved him. She made him feel completely at ease.
Was he in love with her?
Yes. He could smile around her and she wouldn't look at him oddly for changing his demeanor. He could chuckle around her. He let her touch his body. He let her hum in his ear. He grew fiercely protective of her. His longing for her grew. He hated seeing her leave each morning. He wanted her to always be near him. He was comfortable around her. He let his guard down around her. The world was peaceful with her near. He never wanted any harm to come to her. He would kill anybody who even thought about hurting her. He did love her. He loved her dearly.
The daiyoukai had never loved another as he loved Sango. And after a year, he felt like he was ready to admit it. He had risked his life for her. And he would do it over and over if it meant her safety.
Sesshoumaru lowered his head, bringing his lips to her ear. His long, silver locks created a curtain around them, shielding them from the rest of the world. He murmurred, "I love you.."
It was so softly spoken, Sango wondered if her tired mind was playing tricks on her. But the protective arm around her waist and the loving kisses he was planting on her forehead was enough. He loved her.
Sango allowed her eyes to close as she listened to his beating heart. And she knew it only beated for her.