I was running through the woods, trying to get away. 'How could he do that?' I thought to myself. I kept thinking about what I had just seen. I kept running, not really caring where I was going. I found myself standing at the edge of a river. "What am I to do? He said he loves me…" I said staring down into the water. I soon went over to a cave that I knew was near by. I curled up and fell asleep.
When I woke up the next day, I smelled smoke. 'Fire?' I thought running toward the scent. I found the source quickly. The village that I was closest to was being attacked. I saw the bandits who were running through the village swinging their swords. I took off to help the village when a blur of white streaked past me. I stopped and watched to see who was going to help them. When the demon stopped at one of the village huts, he picked up a familiar looking girl. "Rin? So that means..." "Lord Sesshoumaru!!" I heard someone shout. I turned toward the woods to see a small toad demon run out. "So it is Sesshoumaru. Perfect." I said to myself running toward the village once more. I easily tracked down one of the bandits. "Why did you attack this village?" I asked him. "Why should I tell you?" he responded, spitting on me in the process. "You, human, should know better than to question a lord's mate." I heard Sesshoumaru say coming up behind me. "This...Is your mate?" the bandit asked. "Yes. Now, I believe she asked you a question." Sesshoumaru replied standing next to me. "We…wanted food." He told us. "And you couldn't simply ask for it?" I asked him. "No." He replied in a small voice. "I'll let my mate deal with you" I said running off. The next thing I knew was someone had me by the waist. I turned to see that it was Sesshoumaru. "Lord Sesshoumaru…" I said relieved. "Who are you?" He asked me, not realizing who I was. "Lord Sesshoumaru, my name is Kagome. I used to travel with your idiot half-brother." I told him. He stared at me for a minute before letting go of me. "You mean you travel with him." He restated. "No. I do not travel with him any more. Seeing someone who says they love you mate another changes you, you know?" I told him coldly. I stared at him, and then I glanced to where his missing arm should be. I reached out to his shoulder and concentrated on his arm. A swirl of pink lights surrounded his shoulder and I saw the outline of his arm. The next think I know, he had his arm back, and I'm on the ground. "Kagome? I... thank you." Sesshoumaru told me picking me up. "You're welcome Lord Sesshoumaru." I told him standing up on my own. I was surprised when he kept his hand on my back to help steady me. "Lord Sess" "Just Sesshoumaru Kagome." He interrupted me. "Ok. Sesshoumaru, I just want to say…" "KAGOME!!" I heard Inuyasha yell. "Can I never finish a sentence?" I asked irritated. "You just did." Sesshoumaru piped up. "Sesshoumaru, you just joked!" I said laughing. I stopped once I saw him smile. 'Oh god. That smile…no…down girl...Inuyasha's brother…but oh shit.' I thought to myself. Sesshoumaru leaned in and whispered in my ear. "You know that as a full demon, I can read your thoughts right?" He asked me. I looked at him and blushed.
"Sesshoumaru get away from her!" Inuyasha yelled out. "No. Sesshoumaru can stay by me thanks. I actually enjoy his company." I snapped grabbing Sesshoumaru's arm. I felt Sesshoumaru jump slightly at the feeling of his new arm. "Kagome get away from him." Inuyasha told me. "No Inuyasha. Go order your mate around. Not me." I told him turning my back to him. 'Sesshoumaru, please take me away from here.' I thought in my head hoping he would help me. The next thing I knew, I was in Sesshoumaru's arms, flying off on his cloud. "Thank you" I said leaning against his chest. "You're welcome Kagome." He replied not looking at me. I looked over his shoulder to see Inuyasha tailing us on Kirara. "Sesshoumaru…" I said looking up at him. "I know." He said still not looking down at me. I looked back toward Inuyasha and saw that he had stopped following us. I felt Sesshoumaru place me on the ground. I watched him turn around. "I'll be back," Was all he said. 'Be careful' I thought, so I knew he would hear me. I saw him stop and turn to me before he left completely. I walked over to a tree and started to climb. I stayed in that tree for 2 hours waiting for Sesshoumaru to return. 'It's getting darker. Where are you Sesshoumaru...?' I asked myself. "I'm right here Kagome." I heard Sesshoumaru say. I looked down and saw Sesshoumaru standing at the base of the tree. I started to climb down to him when he told me to jump. "Are you serious?" I asked turning to look at him. "Jump Kagome. I'll catch you." He told me. 'If this was anyone but him, I'd say forget it' I thought. Then I jumped down, and as he said, he caught me. "Thank you Sesshoumaru. You really helped me out today." I said as he put me down. "It was my pleasure Kagome. Now, I must return to the village. I left Rin there with Jaken. Will you be alright?" Sesshoumaru asked me. "I'm sure I'll be fine. Thank you again." I told him turning to walk to other way from him. 'Guess I won't be staying with him for a while. Oh well. Now…where to?' I thought to myself thinking he had already left. "Would you like to come with me instead?" I heard him whisper in my ear. I turned around to see that he wasn't even an inch away from kissing me. I took a step back a little flustered and smiled. "I would love to go with you if it's ok." I told him blushing slightly. I looked down at the ground for a minute or two before he lifted my face up and smiled at me. "Let's go." He told me turning back toward the village. I walked beside him the entire way. When we got to the village I expected him to leave me there so I went to go ahead and say my goodbyes. "Sesshoumaru, thank you for everything today. I appreciate you letting me tag along for a while. I'll see you around I guess." I told him turning to go east of the village. "Kagome, do you not wish to continue to travel with me?" Sesshoumaru asked grabbing me by the waist. I turned back to him smiling. "You mean you'd let me?" I asked him. He pulled me too him with his new arm. "Kagome, why would I ask if you wanted to if I wouldn't let you?" He whispered in my ear. I melted at what he said and leaned against him. "I'd love to continue traveling with you." I told him when I gained my strength again. I went to pull away from him only to have him pull me back. I looked at him only to have him lean down and kiss me. I was surprised at first, but then I wrapped my arms around his neck and kissed him back. When we pulled away from each other, I noticed that he was panting. I smiled at him and tucked a strand of hair behind my ear. "Sesshoumaru...I…" I tried to think of something to say. When I looked back at him he kissed me softly once more. "Don't say anything. Just come with me." He told me. I nodded my head and let him lead me down to the village.
"Lord Sesshoumaru! You're back!" I heard Rin shout as we were seen. "Miss Kagome!!" She screamed when she saw me. She ran over to me and I picked her up. "Hey Rin. How are you?" I asked her smiling. "I'm great. I'm just glad that Lord Sesshoumaru is back. Where's Shippo? Did you bring him with you?" Rin asked me. I closed my eyes as she mentioned Shippo. I hadn't even realized that now that I'm not there, Inuyasha would be even meaner to him. I put Rin down and walked over to Sesshoumaru. "Sesshoumaru, I want to come with you, but I need to know if I can bring my kit with me. I refuse to leave him with your half-brother." I said looking up to the sky. "When do you wish to go get him?" Sesshoumaru asked me. I looked back to him and smiled. "Could I run and grab him now, and then I'll meet you back here?" I asked. "No." Was all Sesshoumaru said. I was a little put out until I heard what he said next. "I will go with you to get him. We will leave Rin with Jaken once more." He told me. I smiled at him once more. "Thank you Sesshoumaru." I said hugging him from the side. "No problem Kagome. Let me tell Jaken, and then we will leave." He told me kissing the top of my head. 'He's really more affectionate than I would have thought. I think I could really fall for him' I thought to myself again forgetting that he could hear my thoughts. I saw him smile as he walked back to Jaken. After a few minutes, I saw him strike Jaken then walk back to me. "Let's go." He said wrapping an arm around my waist. "Walking or flying?" He asked me. "I don't care. As long as you don't leave me." I told him moving closer to him. He picked me up and I realized that we were flying. I leaned against him and within an hour I could see the camp site. We landed about 50 feet from it. "Thank you for letting me bring him. Do you want to come to the camp with me? Or are you staying here?" I asked him. He smiled and wrapped his arm around my waist again. "I recall you asking me not to leave you. I'll go with you." He told me. I smiled and lead him to the camp site. "Kagome your back!!" I heard Sango shout. The second she saw Sesshoumaru was with me she grabbed her weapon. "Sango it's ok. He's not here to cause trouble. Where's Shippo?" I asked her as I looked for my kit. "MOMMA!" I heard him scream. I turned around and saw him coming from the stream. "Shippo! There's my little kit." I said as he jumped into my arms. This was the one time that Sesshoumaru had let go of me completely, and I immediately missed his touch. "Lady Kagome!" I heard Miroku yell out. I turned to see him getting ready to use his wind tunnel on Sesshoumaru. I turned to see that Sesshoumaru was growling. 'Don't do anything. Please' I thought in my head, remembering that he could hear me. I immediately saw him straighten up and stop growling. 'Thank you. I'll handle this. They won't hurt me.' I thought. The second that Miroku uncovered his hand I stood in front of Sesshoumaru. Miroku immediately rewrapped his hand.
"Kagome what are you doing? It's Sesshoumaru!" Miroku yelled out to me. "I am very well aware of who it is. Leave him alone. He's here with me." I told him. I turned back to Sesshoumaru. "Let me just grab a few of my things ok?" I asked him. He nodded his head. "I'll be in this tree when you're ready." He told me stepping closer. Again he kissed the top of my head. "Momma, are you leaving with him?" Shippo asked me sadly. "No Shippo. We are. You and me." I said as I watched Sesshoumaru jump into a tree. I smiled and turned back to Sango and Miroku. "Guys, I'm leaving. I can't stay here with Inuyasha. He mated Kikyo after he said he loves me. But you know, it's ok. I'm going to be ok. Shippo's coming with me. Don't try to stop me. Sesshoumaru won't let you touch me. So Miroku, keep your hands to yourself." I said walking to my things. Shippo jumped down and helped me gather everything up. I looked through it and decided to leave all the food for Sango and Miroku. I also left them the first aid. My clothes and the rest of it, all fit in my book bag, so I thought I'd take it with me. As soon as I went to put it on my back, Sesshoumaru was behind me holding it. I turned to see him holding it with one hand and extending his other hand for me. I laughed at him and placed my hand in his. "Are you ready? Inuyasha's coming. I suspect he caught my scent." Sesshoumaru informed me. I nodded and ran over to Sango. "Sango, you know I love you. Anytime I can I will try to come see you." I told her. I hugged her and ran back to Sesshoumaru. "Now I'm ready." I told him grabbing his hand again. Shippo ran over and jumped into my arms as soon as Sesshoumaru picked me up. The second we started to leave the ground, Inuyasha was in sight. He watched as I clung to Sesshoumaru with my things and Shippo on top of me. I heard him screaming after me but I didn't care. I closed my eyes and waited for us to hit ground again. As soon as we did, Shippo saw Rin and ran to her. I stood on the ground and tried to take my bag from Sesshoumaru. Anytime I reached for it, he'd put it just beyond my reach. "Sesshoumaru can I please have my bag?" I asked him finally. "Here you go." He said smiling at me. I laughed at him and put the bag on the ground. I turned to Sesshoumaru and moved closer to him. "Sesshoumaru, you know I've always liked you." I told him. He simply smiled at me. "Of course you knew." I said laughing. "Kagome, did you know that on the nights you believed you were alone I was there watching you?" Sesshoumaru asked me. I looked at him with wide eyes for a minute. "So it was you that kept leaving me the flowers?" I asked him. When he nodded his head I leaned in to kiss him. "Thank you. You have no clue how long it's been you that kept me going. I looked forward to those flowers" I told him. "Good. Now, we can rest. Do you want to go to the river?" He asked me. I nodded my head and bent down to get my bag only to have Sesshoumaru snatch it from me. "As long as you're with me, you won't be carrying things like this." He told me. I smiled at him and nodded. 'What ever you say baby' I thought to myself. "Baby?" He whispered in my ear. "Oh! I forgot you can read my thoughts." I said a little embarrassed. "I noticed. That's the second thing you've said without realizing I heard it." He told me before walking off. I stood for a minute trying to figure out what the second one was when I realized he had heard the one about me falling for him.
I looked after him and blushed. I ran after him and grabbed his hand as I caught up to him. He led me over to the edge of the river and we both sat down leaning against the trees. I watched as Shippo and Rin started playing in the water. I looked over to see that Sesshoumaru had his eyes closed. 'Are you asleep Sesshoumaru?' I whispered to him. 'No. Are you?' I heard in my head in his voice. "What the hell?" I asked aloud. I saw Sesshoumaru turn to me smiling. "Kagome, when I choose to, I can speak to you in your mind." He told me. I smiled and moved closer to him. "So does it work even when we're not around each other?" I asked him. "No. The only ones with that power are mates. We could only do that if I were to make you my mate." He informed me looking away. "Oh…I see." I whispered softly, a little disappointed. "Kagome listen. I would take you as my…" "No Sesshoumaru stop. I understand it. I was just curious." I interrupted him. I knew that I was lying to myself, but I didn't want him to know just how fast I fell for him. I smiled sweetly and walked into the water with Shippo and Rin. "Sesshoumaru, is there a spring anywhere nearby?" I asked wanting to go for a swim. "Yea. I'll show you." He said standing up. I walked back over to him and saw him pick up my bag again. He led me off to the left of the river a bit before I saw a gorgeous spring with a waterfall. I smiled and turned to Sesshoumaru. "Can I have my bag? I need to get something out of it." I asked him. He turned to me and handed me my bag. I smiled and pulled out my bathing suit. I saw Sesshoumaru looking at me like I was insane. "I'll be right back. I'm changing into this." I told him hiding behind a tree. I quickly changed into my bathing suit and ran into the water. As I came back to the surface, I saw Sesshoumaru sitting beside the edge of the water. I swam around for a bit before swimming back over toward him. "Enjoying yourself?" He asked me smiling softly. I smiled back at him and nodded. "I haven't had the chance to do this is a long time." I told him walking out of the water. I walked back over to my bag and pulled out a towel. I wrapped myself in it and walked back over to Sesshoumaru and sat down. I stared at the waterfall for a few minutes before closing my eyes and thinking.
I turned to Sesshoumaru to find his eyes were closed. I smiled at him and closed my eyes again. Within a few minutes I could hear his breathe evening out. "Sesshoumaru, I'll be damned if you hear this but I really have fallen for you. This past day with you has been fantastic. I don't know how I'll manage to be around you much longer without actually being with you. I only wish I knew how you felt." I whispered softly to myself. I sighed softly only to jump as his arm came over me. "Kagome…" I heard Sesshoumaru whisper. I looked over a little afraid to find him staring at me. When my face was fully turned he leaned over and kissed me. "Kagome don't be afraid of how you feel." He whispered to me. I smiled at him and closed my eyes. "Sesshoumaru…how do you feel about me?" I asked him quietly. After a few minutes I heard his reply. "Truly and honestly, I really care about you. True I have tried to kill you in the past, also true that when I first started leaving you the flowers it was just to trouble Inuyasha. I soon realized that when I didn't see you it hurt." He admitted sitting up. I smiled and sat up as well. "Sesshoumaru…you have no idea how much it means to me that you said that." I said wrapping my arms around him. He pulled me around to sit in his lap and smiled at me. "Kagome…I know that it would be too early to ask you to become my mate…but would you allow me to court you?" Sesshoumaru asked me. "Well…what all does the courtship include?" I asked him placing my hands on his arms. "I would be technically be flirting with you. I'd bring you flowers, bring you food, and take you places that you haven't been to before." He started telling me. "Oh! So you'd be like my boyfriend?" I asked him smiling. He tilted his head to the side to think for a minute. "Yes. You could say that. I would be your…boyfriend." He said after a few minutes. I smiled more and leaned forward to kiss him. "Yes Sesshoumaru. I will allow you to court me." I told him as I pulled away. He smiled at me once more and leaned back so I was leaning against him. I smiled as I got more comfortable and leaned my head against his chest. I fell asleep within minutes like that.
When I woke back up Sesshoumaru was gone. I sat up quickly and ran to the last place I knew the children to be. I smiled as I saw that Shippo and Rin had both fallen asleep beside a tree and were safe. I sat down beside the river and waited for Sesshoumaru. It wasn't until about 2 hours later that I sensed Sesshomaru had returned. I jumped up only to scare Shippo as I did and ran to Sesshoumaru when he came into view. "Hey. Where'd you go?" I asked standing in front of him. "I'm sorry I left you like that. I didn't wish to wake you. I wanted to get you this." He said handing me a kimono just like his. I stared down at it before looking back into his golden eyes. "I…thank you Sesshoumaru." I said holding the kimono delicately. It had the same pattern that Sesshoumaru's kimono had only it was black instead of the light blue. I smiled up at him and placed the kimono beside my bag.