A/N: Thank you for everyone who reviewed my first chapter, and favorited/followed it or me! It makes me really happy to see this. I am going to try to put out a chapter every week or so to give me time to write a good chapter, but if I don't make this deadline please don't worry. With the holidays coming up fast work is getting really hectic. Also I have several other stories I work on as well that I have not posted yet. I just write on the one that I get into the mood for. I don't want to force anything out because a story is never good when it seems forced. BUT I will continue working on this story until it is finished! Have no fear!

One more thing before you read! I do take requests for one-shot/short stories for Sesshomaru romance. If interested please send me a message with character details or story details and rating details that you would like included. (Character and rating details must be included! Story details can be discussed) I will reply to requests that interest me and let you know if I will begin working on it or not. Again Thank You for reading and PLEASE PLEASE PLEASE REVIEW! Happy reading

Kaiya came awake at the shocking splash of cold water on her back. The guards had thrown icy water on the blazing skin, and now were unlocking the cuffs around her wrists. She would have fallen to the floor if one of the guards hadn't wrapped an arm around her waist. He helped her to pull the sleeves of her kimono back up her arms and retied it for her so that it was held tightly closed. When he finished she immediately crossed her arms over her chest. Tears had started streaking down her cheeks again at the fiery pain in her back. She had never been beaten by her father, and the unfamiliar pain seemed to throb throughout her whole body.

The guards led her back into the main building of the palace, though this time she was led to the kitchens instead of the bedchambers. The kitchen seemed to quiet when they entered, no one speaking unless they needed to.

"This is the girl?" Kaiya looked up tearily at the old woman who spoke. She was wiping her hands on a towel as she came towards them.

"Yes. Haruka wishes her to begin working here." One of the guards said softly. It was the first noise either guard had made. The woman sighed softly and gestured for Kaiya to come forward.

"Very well. Come on." Kaiya moved forward slowly, trying not to move her back too much. The woman waited until the guards had left before turning towards Kaiya. "My name is Reiko. Old Haruka had you lashed, didn't she?" she asked softly. She sighed at Kaiya's nodded and brushed away the tears on her face with the towel she was holding. "I'm sorry you had to go through that, child. And to make you go to work directly afterward? Tsk. We'll have you wash the floor. The motions are slow; you want to keep moving at least a little so your muscles don't stiffen up, and the motion is repetitive so it shouldn't hurt too much." She finished gently. She showed her where the cleaning rags and bucket were, but Reiko readied everything for her. When the wash water was ready, she folded a towel for Kaiya to kneel on and helped her down. "Just act busy for today, but try to keep moving. No one will bother you."

It was difficult to keep herself from passing out again at first, but once Kaiya got into a gentle rhythm the pain began to lessen. As her back dried from the water she could feel the small cuts where the whip had broken her skin. She only hoped they wouldn't become infected before she had a chance to properly clean. Though how she would manage that she didn't know.

I hope…Lord Sesshomaru returns soon and comes for me…

"Have a tray brought to my office." Sesshomaru ordered as he strode down the hallway. He had just returned from a short patrol of the land around the castle. Before retiring, however, he wanted to go through some of the reports that had been left for him from his extended absence at his fathers' castle. He had ordered food to be taken to his chamber before he had left so he wasn't worried about dealing with her until tomorrow.

"Lord Sesshomaru wants a tray taken to his office," Kaiya heard Haruka order as she entered the kitchens.

"Didn't he already have one sent to his chambers though?" Reiko asked. Her confusion was plain to read in her voice.

"It is not your place to question the masters orders."

Reiko sighed. "Yes, ma'am. I'll have one of the girls take it to him." There was a short pause and suddenly Kaiya felt a soft touch on her shoulder. She looked up at Reiko tiredly. "Come dear. It's time you had something to ea-"

"No."

Reiko looked up startled at Haruka's interruption. Kaiya looked back down dejectedly. It had been almost a full day since she had eaten her small meal in the forest on the way here.

"But she hasn't eaten all day." Reiko argued for her.

"I've made my decision. She will not eat for the next two day either. This is also part of her punishment." After saying this Kaiya heard Haruka's hurried steps travel away from the kitchen.

"Oh, psh." Kaiya looked up in surprise as a thick piece of bread appeared in front of her face. "Eat this, dear. Quickly. You'll only get sick if you go too long without eating, and who knows when the last time you ate was." Reiko said kindly. Kaiya gratefully accepted the offering, but her optimism was thoroughly crushed. Lord Sesshomaru had obviously returned, but hadn't sent for her. Perhaps Haruka had spoken with him and he had agreed with her treatment? In any case, she supposed it didn't matter.

It was almost three hours later before Sesshomaru finally made it to his chamber. When he opened the door the first thing he noticed was the absence of the woman he did not wish to think about at the moment. The room was dark with a cold draft blowing in from the opened balcony, and the full tray of food he had ordered for her sitting on a low table. The woman was no where to be seen.

He narrowed his eyes as he shut the door and began following her lingering scent down the stairs and outside. Anger began brewing in his mind as he scented two males as well as a faint trace of her blood in a side building. Without his mark she would have been unprotected. He drew the scent of the males deep into his lungs to find later and continued to follow Kaiya's scent. It led him back inside and into the kitchens.

All activity stopped when he walked in except for the small woman on the floor scrubbing.

"My lord, was there something you required?"

He barely spared Reiko a glance as he walked over and grabbed Kaiya by her arm, pulling her to her feet. He didn't miss her wince of pain at the movement and gentled his grasp until he could assess where she was hurt. "Why are you not in my chambers?" he demanded.

"My lord." Sesshomaru turned to Reiko then; his annoyance rising as Kaiya only closed her eyes and turned her face away. "Haruka accused the girl of stealing. She had her whipped and brought here." She answered in Kaiya's stead.

Sesshomaru's anger flared to life. "Send Haruka to my office, and the healer to my chambers." He ordered coldly.

Reiko stopped him again before he could turn to leave. "My lord, if I may?" When she had his attention she continued. "Haruka wouldn't allow the girl to eat. I don't believe she's had anything today."

"Send another tray to my chamber." He said shortly before turning to drag Kaiya from the room. The other servants made sure to keep out of his way as he strode past. When Kaiya stumbled next to him, he stopped to lift her into his arms. He carried her against his left shoulder so her legs were under his right arm and his left hand supported her weight from her bottom. This way he wouldn't put pressure on her back.

When they reached his chamber he set her on her feet at the foot of his bed and reached for her kimonos tie. At his touch she cringed and wrapped her arms protectively around herself, stepping quickly away from him. The light saltiness of tears hit his nose and he almost sighed in frustration. Not so much directed at the woman as his head maid and himself. Haruka had overstepped herself, but he also should have presented Kaiya to her when they first arrived so there wouldn't be a misunderstanding such as this.

Sesshomaru accepted his failure in not thinking of it, but frustration flowed through him just the same. He had never had an interest in keeping a personal slave or concubine before precisely because he hadn't wanted the trouble that would inevitably follow, and there was always some demon female vying for attention if he ever felt the need to relieve himself. His inexperience in these matters did not excuse his blunder though. He made a mental note to arrange for Kaiya to be presented to the household as well as his two generals so such a mistake would not happen again.

At the present, however, he took a moment to make sure he didn't take his irritation out on her before he spoke. "I must see what damage was done. I will not hurt you." He kept his voice low so he didn't startle her. He almost did release a sigh when she made no move to step forward again, but then his sensitive ears caught her barely intelligible whisper.

"Why…so….long…?"

Sudden understanding came as to why she was so wary now, as if being whipped was not enough. Did she seriously think he left her to work in the kitchens on purpose? Though his mind quickly deduced that if she had truly been there this long she would have heard his order for a tray after his return several hours ago. It would be a logical conclusion to think he was agreeable to her treatment.

"When I returned, I went straight to my office. I did not know of your absence until just before I came to you in the kitchens." Usually he refused to make excuses for his behavior, but he decided she was deserving of at least that much consideration. It wouldn't due to have her thinking such negative thoughts about him if she was to continue living with him.

After another moment she lifted her head enough to look into his eyes. He allowed her a minute to absorb his words before slowly holding his hand out to her. Apparently she decided to trust him because she finally took a step forward and slipped one of her hands into his waiting palm. His fingers wrapped around her and he leisurely pulled her closer. He didn't want any hurried movements to frighten her or jar her wounded back. When she was again directly in front of him he reached for her ties and slid the sleeves of her kimono from her shoulders.

She had turned her face to the ground again as she began trembling slightly, and was clutching at the sagging cloth over her breasts. Ignoring her reaction he stepped around her to look at her wounds. The kimono was drooping just enough for him to see her upper back and shoulders, but it was sufficient to judge the extent of the damage. There were several enflamed strips where the whip had landed and broken the skin. They didn't bleed much so he knew they weren't too deep, but any open wound, no matter how minor, always had a chance of infection and fever.

A sudden knock startled the woman and he heard a soft whimper of pain at the movement.

"Release your kimono and lay on your stomach." He kept his voice low and waited for her to obey. Instead she hunched into herself slightly as her shaking became worse. He quickly wrapped an arm around her waist to prevent her fall just as her legs gave out. She gasped in pain as her back brushed against his chest and he adjusted her so her shoulder would support her weight against him instead. Deciding it would just be quicker to do it himself he maneuvered her arms out of the sleeves so the kimono would fall to the ground and settled her on the bed. As he threw a light blanket over her hips and legs to give her a little modesty he quiet called out to grant the healer entrance.

He turned away from the bed when she entered and gave the old woman instructions before striding out. He needed to find the two males who had been with Kaiya and then deal with Haruka.

He tracked the two down while they patrolled around the castle grounds. One of his generals, Satoshi, must have sensed his presence because no sooner had Sesshomaru appeared before the guards than Satoshi arrived at his side. The guards were horrified when they learned the woman they had disciplined had been Sesshomaru's new concubine. They explained everything as they knew it, giving Satoshi all the explanation he needed.

The guards were fairly new to the castle themselves, but should have known that they were to only follow their superiors and Sesshomaru's orders. An order from Haruka should have been ignored and reported to a superior. Sesshomaru reprimanded them harshly and ordered the same punishment they had dealt to each of them. Sesshomaru left Satoshi to see to it and ordered two other guards to follow him to his office.

When he arrived he found Haruka already waiting for him. She was kneeling in front of his desk stoically. When he walked around to kneel behind the desk opposite her she bowed.

Sesshomaru regarded her in silent anger for several moments. Appointing her as the head maid was probably one of his more questionable decisions. Though her work was above reproach, he had needed to reprimand her twice already for overstepping her station. Any complaints were supposed to go directly to Sesshomaru who would decide proper punishment, but she had taken it upon herself to do so. He had made himself perfectly clear the last time it had happened that a third time would not be tolerated.

"Do you know why I summoned you?" he asked coldly.

"Is it because of the thief, my lord?" she asked flatly. There was no sign of regret or guilt in her face or tone, which only proved that she really didn't believe there was anything wrong in her actions and that she hadn't learned from past mistakes. In face of such incompetence, Sesshomaru was left to wonder how he ever thought she was suited to her station.

"That thief was my new concubine." He let this statement sink in before continuing, carefully watching her expression. "Since I myself escorted her to my chambers I know you could not have followed her in under the guise of suspicion. What, then, were you doing entering my personal chambers?" As if what she had done to Kaiya was not enough, it was a standing rule that no one was allowed into the lords personal chambers without first receiving his permission. Only one maid had this, and even then only so long as it took the clean the chamber, and only in the morning once a week.

"I heard-"

A snarl cut off whatever excuse she was about to spew. He had no patience to listen to her. The facts remained that she had overstepped herself with Kaiya's treatment and broken one of his rules by entering his chamber. He needed to know nothing else. "I will not listen to any petty excuses you come up with. You were already warned once what would happen if you stepped above your station again. Not only did you do this, but you also broke one of my rules." Sesshomaru motioned to the guards in the doorway that had followed him. He had already explained his orders to them. One male stepped forward and lifted Haruka to her feet none too gently. "You are dismissed from this castle. You will be escorted off the grounds in the morning. As further punishment, you will receive 40 lashes for your transgressions in my service. Take her away." This last bit was directed to the guards who flanked her and began pulling a suddenly very pale Haruka out of the room.

After the door closed behind them Sesshomaru leaned back on his heels and sighed. The day was not going as he had planned. After being gone so long and then traveling for the better part of two days he had been looking forward to relaxing in his chamber. Instead he would now be taking care of a concubine whom he had not wanted to begin with.

A little while later a knock sounded on his door. Minami, the old healer, entered after gaining his permission and moved to kneel before his desk.

Perhaps sensing his impatience she immediately began speaking. "My lord, the girl has several lacerations across her back and shoulders. An infection had already started in several the cuts. After I cleaned each of them I applied a poultice that should help the infection as well the pain. She may be left with a few scars, but they are not deep enough to last for long I should think. The real worry now is if she will develop a fever." She gave a tired sigh. "All we can do is wait to see how the night progresses. We won't know anything until she either begins to heal or becomes sick. I will send one of my assistants to sit with her for the night with some medicine if her temperature should rise-"

"No."

Minami looked at him in confusion and the abrupt denial. "My lord? Wha-"

"I will stay with her myself. I want no one else to enter my chambers. Return in the morning to assess her condition."

"Yes, my lord." Minami bowed again in acquiesce. "I made sure she ate, and then gave her a tea that would send her to sleep. That is what she is in need of most at the moment." She said before taking her leave.

Sesshomaru rose as well and walked out to the hallway. He would have liked to leave her care to the healers assistant, but pride moved him to do so himself.

When he reached his chamber he made sure to put up a small ward to prevent anyone from opening the door. He always did this before retiring for the evening. If anything urgent came up, the ward was weak enough for any of the soldiers to break it, but it was strong enough to give him a little more privacy as well as preventing anyone from accidentally walking in to bother him as he relaxed.

He took the time to change into a pair of hakamas to sleep in and blew out the candles around the room before walking to the bed. Though it was now dark he could clearly make out the small figure lying face down. The blanket had been kept down around her hips, probably to keep from wiping away the poultice now covering her back, but the night had a slight chill that was beginning to cause her to shiver. The breezing coming in from the open balcony did not help any.

Sesshomaru debated with himself before deciding the best solution would be to warm her with his own body heat. He would be able to situate her so her back was left bare, and his body heat would keep her warmer than the blanket underneath her.

He climbed onto the bed next to her, leaning back against the wall, and slowly pulling her into his arms. He positioned her so she sat in his lap with both her legs to one side and her chest leaning against his. She was just short enough that her face nestled against his neck. He wrapped his arms around her lightly, and rested his hands on her bottom to keep from touching her back. He then pulled several furs up over their laps.

Kaiya sighed softly against his neck and cuddled closer. When she finally seemed to relax into a deeper sleep, Sesshomaru allowed himself to close his eyes as he leaned his head back.

A/N: These are the pants that Sesshomaru normally wears. So when I say sleeping hakama or just hakama I'm simply referring to the poofy pants he usually wears in the manga/anime. 'Sleeping' is not a different style, just what he uses that particular pair of hakama for. Description courtesy of :

Sashinuki hakama

Sashinuki are a type of hakama that are meant to be worn blousing over the leg and exposing the foot. To accomplish this, they are somewhat longer than normal hakama, and a cord is run through the hem [at the bottom of the leg] and drawn tight, creating a "ballooning" effect . To allow for the body required, more formal sashinuki were six-panel hakama rather than four panels. Technically, this cord around the ankle makes sashinuki a type of kukuri- (tied) hakama. The earliest form of sashinuki were cut like normal hakama (albeit a bit longer) and have a cord running through the hem of each leg. These cords were pulled tight and tied off at the ankle. This was the form commonly worn during the Heian period. Sashinuki were worn by court nobles with various types of leisure or semi-formal wear