So this is what happens when I watch Inuyasha: Final Act and all the movies within 1 week. I tried to stay true to the timelines but of course, I tweak some here and there to suit this story.
I broke this into two parts. Why? I have no clue. *I'm contemplating on a part 3..but we'll see* And this is a Sesshomaru & OC pairing. I have made all the common pairings (Inu/Kag ; Mir/San) But I've steered this towards more into a romance between Sess and my own character.
Please feel free to comment/review and let me know what you think!
Chapter 1
The mighty force of steel clashing against steel sent powerful surges around the plains. The grassy ground was uplifted in chunks; trees were uprooted, some dissolved into ashes. The sky cried out above them as lightning struck the ground and thundered roared.
All this chaos…was caused by only two individuals.
This happened every so often, more often than Asa would have liked, but she was not in the position to comment. Instead, she sat on the sideline, along with the Beast of Burden and the imp she disliked.
As another strike of the golden bolt came in their direction; the imp yelled loudly as if he had forgotten the protective barrier surrounded them kept them out of harm's way.
Asa sigh heavily; the battle between father and son was dragging on longer than usual. No doubt her master, Lord Inutashio, was going easy on Sesshomaru. She understood his need of surpassing his father; doing so would prove that he was the greatest youkai in all of Japan. But she couldn't understand why he wanted to succeed him at such a young age. He had all the time in the world; why did he want to succeed him so quickly? Especially when it was very apparent that he was nowhere near the caliber of his father.
The nudging of the two headed dragon paused her thoughts. Smiling, Asa dug into the pocket of her kimono pulling out a small sack filled with dried vegetables she had prepared for it. By the time the dragon polished off the last of its snack from her hand, Sesshomaru had crashed to the ground.
"Oh no! Master Sesshomaru!" Jaken cried, fleeing to his master's side. The sight of the young master covered in blood and gashes from his father's blade made her cringe. Those would heal in minutes, but the wounds of humiliation and failure would linger a bit longer.
"You still haven't learned, Sesshomaru." Inutashio looked on at his fallen son. He understood why he was determined to defeat him; however, he was not going to allow him to do it so easily.
"Asa." The lord demon called out to his vassal, turning her attention away from his son. Inutashio was done with their battle for today, but he knew he would return again for a rematch.
The young girl looked at Sesshomaru, surrounded by his loyal followers. She trotted along to catch up with her own master.
"Do you think you went a little hard on him, My Lord?" Asa asked when they were out of earshot. The demon lord stopped, holding out his sword still covered in blood, fur, and fibers of clothing. Dutifully, Asa cleaned the blade with a cloth she carried with her.
"Do you think I should have gone easy on him?" the baritone voice was laced with sarcasm. Of course her answer would have been yes; the blows he was delivered, the steel blade cutting at his flesh, his bones breaking with every punch and kick. It made her sad. She truly didn't like seeing the young master hurt.
"No, My Lord." She handed the sword back to him. She looked up at the man, dressed in white and armor. He was strong, there was no doubt about that, and feared by most. He was a great leader and if you had the pleasure of getting to know him, you would find that he was kind in some ways.
"I have business I need to tend to." Inutashio said, sheathing his sword. "Go tend to Sesshomaru. I will come for you shortly." Asa held back a disapproval grunt. No doubt he was going to see that…woman. She was leery of her master's secret affection for the human and worried about her intentions. But again, that wasn't her place to speak. Instead, she bowed and wished him well on his travels.
Sesshomaru eased against the trunk of a tree. He had traveled to the edge of the forest, just a few short feet near a running stream.
"Master Sesshomaru." Jaken came to his master's aide, noticing that he was more exhausted than he was allowing himself to show.
"Leave me!" the young master snapped when Jaken proceeded to touch him. The green imp recoiled, hurt that he was rejected; he retreated into the woods with the two headed dragon.
Again, he was defeated. His father was merciless as he cut away at him. He couldn't recall if he had landed on hit on the old man. Those wounds were healing, but he was exhausted from the battle. He could barely hold his head up.
Why? Why wasn't he stronger?! He had his father's blood running through his veins and yet he made him feel like an inferior puppy compared to him.
Though wallowing in self-pity, he was still well aware of his surroundings. He growled when he heard footsteps coming towards him.
Didn't he tell Jaken that he wanted to be alone?
But it only took seconds for the scent of fresh rain and vanilla to hit his senses. She was the last person he wanted to see in the state that he was in.
"Go away." He growled, but he knew that it was futile. She never listened to him…ever.
"You don't mean that." Asa came into his sight, kneeling in front of him; she set the jar of water at his feet.
"Did Father send you here?" he narrowed his eyes as she poured the water from the jug into a cloth. The last thing he needed was for her to feel sorry for him. He was doing that quite well on his own.
"He had something to do. I wanted to make sure you were alright." As she spoke, she moved to his hand.
"I don't need your pity." He seethed, knocking the rag from her fingers. Asa sighed, rolling her eyes; she was not in the mood for his tantrums.
"And pity you will not get." She said calmly, picking up the rag she pushed the dirt from it. "But as least allow me to clean the blood from your skin and clothes."
Sesshomaru didn't answer or give her permission to touch her. Then again, he didn't have to. Asa was different from any vassal that served his family. Her family had served his for ten generations according to his father. Asa was born a few years after him so they were brought up to get. It annoyed him that she did what she pleased; speaking to him with such recklessness. He soon realized that his annoyance turned into something more…something that he was unfamiliar with. Somehow he learned to lock it away, but every time she was around him, it emerged. The same thundering in his ears, the burning of his flesh, and the assault to his senses were driving him mad. He did his best to stay away from her as long as possible.
When Asa's father died of a sudden illness, she took her father's place at his father's side. He was fine with that arrangement. He was finally at peace to concentrate on becoming stronger. Over time, it occurred to him that he missed that unfamiliar feeling that stirred when the girl was around. He had missed the sound of her voice, her laugh. He'd missed their one sided talks they shared. He'd missed the sight of her pink tinted hair, now slightly longer than the last time he had seen her, and those bright grey eyes. He'd missed her feminine scent, her warm touch when she hugged him, though he'd protest every time, he never felt the urge to pull away.
He was envious that his father had the opportunity to see her every moment of his day. Though he treated her like a daughter and nothing more, he was starting to realize that his father was in the way of everything.
Why was he always so close to having what he wanted but never fully able to grasp.
"All done." He heard Asa say. She rang out the rag, now stained with his blood and dirt, and tucked in her pocket.
"I could have done it myself."
"Oh, I know. But I wanted to feel useful to someone." Since his father had been courting a young human, he wasn't around as much as he used to. She was thankful for the break, but she was lonely nonetheless.
"You did very well this time around."
"Hn." Asa watched as golden eyes cast down. His claws pierced the flesh of his palms.
"Hey! I just cleaned your clothes!" Without thought, she opened his hands. Crimson stained his flesh. "Don't feel bad." She said in a calmer state, wiping the blood away. "You're still young and have a ways to go before you'll be at Lord Inutashio's level of strength." There was a long silence between them. Asa knew the subject was a soft spot for the young master but maybe her words would encourage him.
"Yes, even if you reach the peak of your strength, your father will still be stronger and he may knock you down a thousand times and pierce you with his blade over and over. But that shouldn't deter you from achieving what you truly desire."
Sesshomaru stared at her. "If those were your words of encouragement, you did a poor job." She baffled him when she giggled; he found nothing funny about it.
"Yes. I suppose so. My father was better with words than I." When their gaze locked, the familiar unfamiliar feeling came to him. His arm moved without his command; his hand rose grazing her hair wavy hair with feather-like touches.
She had silently prayed that his sharp hearing didn't pick up on her heart's quickened pace. He would probably laugh at her if he knew even being in his presence sent her body ablaze. She had realized, at a young age that she saw Sesshomaru as more than a friend, her master's son. She hid her feelings for the young master well. But every now and again she allowed herself to look at him longer; to envelop his scent around her. Asa fantasied of the day that he would return the same feelings. And then she would laugh at herself. That would never happen; he only had those perfect golden eyes on one prize…and that wasn't her.
"Your father is calling me." She lied as she broke her gaze from his. She moved back. She ran a hand over her kimono before bowing before him.
"I will say this, Master Sesshomaru. Whether you are aware or not, every time you raise your sword to challenge Lord Inutashio, he shows great pride in his eyes."
As Asa walked away, her words lingered. No matter how many times he'd failed, he'd get back up again until he got what he wanted.
He'll never give up.