I don't own these characters.
2: Gathering clouds
Sesshomaru held Kikyo loosely in their sleep. She was resting on top of him, so he figured that he did not have to hold her too tightly when they had fallen asleep. Besides, he did not want to hurt her ribs since she was pressed on top of his chest.
They had had a day that Sesshomaru had been wishing would take place for the longest. They had stayed in bed on their day off and made love through out the day. They had gotten up a couple of times to stretch, use the bathroom, and eat, but they mostly remained in bed, exploring and discovering new items about each other. It had been quite the fascinating day.
At one point in the day, Kikyo actually cried. The tears had spilled for a few seconds and she could not control herself. When asked about her tears, she had no explanation, except that she felt so incredibly loved and it was an outstanding emotion. He had smiled a bit at her words and reached out a hand to dry her tears with a gentle sweep of his index finger.
Every couple of hours, Kikyo also made confessions of deep love for the dog demon. He believed her, even though she was usually shouting such things while in the throngs of passion. Many of those admissions had been done loudly and forcefully. Once, she even growled to him that she loved him more than any woman ever would. He did not doubt her in that because of the conviction in her voice.
She was not alone in odd behavior that day. Sesshomaru had done some strange things too, like nuzzling her and whispering all of the affections that he held for her, his wonderful, little angel. He had been so into being inside of her that he had to tell her that it was like they were touching souls; he had never said such a thing before, even though he thought it every now and then. He was not one for speaking his emotions, even when it came to his angel, but that day had been different.
More than once, he left everything involved in their activity to Kikyo. She did not disappoint, taking things right where he desired them to be. It was almost as if she could read his mind, he always thought and it was something that he appreciated about her. He even told her that at some point in the day; he could not remember when exactly.
A few times, he did act out, though. He left a dark scarlet mark on her neck, even though he always attempted to not mark up places on her body that someone might see. She had not seen the mark yet, so he had not been reprimanded for doing such a thing. Also, during a rather vigorous set, he accidentally cut into her body, trying to grip her hips and rear. The scratches were luckily not deep at all and did not halt their day. He had apologized almost a dozen times for marring her lovely form, even though she accepted the first apology and understood that it was an accident.
Through out most of the day, they had not talk to each other much aside for commenting on their emotions every now and then. Most of their communications were done through eye contact that day. They read each other better than they would have been able to read a children's book and that was why they had not opened their mouths to speak much of the time.
Their eyes told them things that they were not ready to say to each other, things that they felt unnecessary to voice, and things that words would have never properly explain. Their eyes informed them if things should continue or halt or go at a different pace. Most of all, their eyes always told them that they were important to each other. So, to them, eye contact was always important.
They had fallen asleep that night totally exhausted. It had felt like a chore to Sesshomaru just to pull a cover over them when they decided to call it a night. Kikyo had barely been able to lift her head to kiss him goodnight. He had wanted to put in a request that they do the same thing tomorrow, but she was asleep right after giving him the kiss and he was asleep seconds after he realized that she was out.
In the morning, the couple was taken from their sleep by the usual things. Kikyo had woken up and was looking to get out of bed. Her movement caused Sesshomaru to groan and he tightened his grip on her to get her to stop moving.
"Beloved," he muttered.
"I'm sorry, Sessho. I didn't mean to wake you," she apologized.
"I know. Just relax, angel. We don't have anywhere to be this morning," he pointed out.
"Sessho, according to the clock, it's noon," she informed him. He was not in a position to see the time because his head was buried in the pillow that it was resting on.
"Noon?" he echoed in disbelief.
"Yes, noon."
"What time are you leaving?" he asked curiously. He knew that she had plans to go to the clinic sometime in the afternoon, but he was not sure of the time exactly. He was not even sure why she was going at the moment. His mind was much too cloudy thanks to yesterday.
"I don't know now. I have to meet my sister at three," she answered, reaching up to rub the sleep from her eye.
"Where are you meeting her?"
"She's going to drive to the center."
"And how are you going to get there?" he asked.
"Like I get anywhere," she answered.
"No," he objected.
She either walked or took public transportation when she went somewhere. He did not understand why she did not buy a car. She could drive and she had the money and even if she did not have the money, he did. He would have brought her a car that day, but he was not sure if she would use it.
"What do you have against the bus and train?" she inquired.
"Aside for the smell?" he countered. He hated the way that she smelled when she got off of public transportation, especially if the bus or train was crowded.
"Okay, aside for the smell," she would concede that point to him. She understood that his nose was extra-sensitive, so she could see how the smell might bother him.
"It's dangerous. All sorts of unsavory characters ride on the bus and train. Something could happen to you," he argued. That was the reason why he hated when their little sisters ran around on public transportation. He could not wait for them to be old enough to drive because he was going to make sure that they did just that.
"You worry about me much too much, dearest," she stated.
Sesshomaru only made a tense face. He worried about her too much? Of course he did. She was his angel and he did not want anything terrible to happen to her. There was also the fact that she did not seem to worry about herself enough. She always thought about others; she was at the bottom of her list of individuals that she cared about it seemed.
"I'll drive you to the center," the dog demon told her.
"You mean you're actually going to get out of bed for me on your day off?" she teased him, which earned her a frown from the nobleman.
"Keep it up and neither of us will be getting out of this bed," he seemed to threaten her.
"I have to get out of bed. I can't play with you all day today," she informed him, still in a bit of a teasing tone.
He only snorted, as if he was offended and angry. He reached up to caress her shoulder, just to savor the moment. He would like to just be able to stay in bed again, but that was pressing his luck, especially with the way Kikyo liked to move around.
"I'm going to go take a shower," she announced to him, which was a code for him to release her, so she could get up.
"What makes you think you're going to do that?" he inquired.
She gave him a stern look and he let her go; it would seem that playtime was over. She eased out of bed and shivered because the air around the room was cooler than the musky coat that had covered her and Sesshomaru in the bed. She dashed off for the bathroom, hoping to get into some hot water and erase the chill on her body now.
The dog demon watched her run off into the bathroom that was in the bedroom and then he lay back once she closed the door. He sighed and tried to figure out if he should get up now or just relax for a moment. He was distracted from that thought as his phone began to ring. He reached over on the nightstand where the phone was and glanced at the clock to see that it was noon. Wow, he could hardly believe that they had slept clear through the morning.
"Yes?" Sesshomaru answered his phone and then got a real wakeup call. It was his father that wanted to speak with him.
Sesshomaru listened as his father informed him that he needed to come to the house and they needed to talk sometime that day. Sesshomaru did not argue with that. At least the order was not interrupting the flow of his day and it was open ended. He would have wanted to tear his father's throat out had he made the call yesterday. Well, now he supposed that he needed to get up and start getting ready.
He got up and joined Kikyo in the shower. She was not surprised by the move, even though she did not know that he had been called by his father. They did enjoy the closeness in the shower, though they did not do anything aside for bathe. They washed each other with gentle hands and then exited the shower to get dressed.
They put on their clothes. Kikyo combed her hair and then she combed Sesshomaru's hair for him. He would have done it himself, but she enjoyed grooming him and getting to feel his silky straight sliver hair in her hands. She always thought that touching his mane had to be like running her fingers through moon beams.
It was during the grooming session that Kikyo noticed the mark that her lover left on her neck. She reprimanded Sesshomaru thoroughly for putting such an obvious scarlet blotch on her pale flesh. He took the admonishment because he had been expecting it and he knew that he deserved it, if only a little bit. He did assist her in covering the mark up with makeup, acting as a test subject to tell her if she was covering it up well.
Once they were presentable by their high standards, they left the bedroom and went to the kitchen for some breakfast. Sesshomaru made coffee for both of them while Kikyo made bagels. They did not say anything to each other, mostly just glancing at each other as they tended to do with breakfast.
They left sometime after one and walked down to Sesshomaru's car. He drove her to the medical center that she worked and he parked the car. They sat there for a while, another habit that they. He reached over and caressed her cheek while she turned to face him.
"We should go out tonight," Sesshomaru commented.
"Where do you want to go?" Kikyo asked curiously.
"A new restaurant opened up and it's supposed to be exquisite. We should try it while we have the time."
"You make a point. I would like to go out with you, Sessho, but you have to be a gentleman," she teased him.
"I am always a gentleman, madam," he proclaimed.
Kikyo gave him a skeptical look, which earned her a kiss of all things. He thought that her expression was adorable and that was why he had kissed her. He was one of the few people in life that encouraged her to behave inappropriately, which would surprise people that knew him of course. The whole world swore that Sesshomaru was the very meaning of proper, after all.
"We will go out, angel. What time and where should I pick you up?" he inquired.
"Anytime that is good for you. Call me before hand, even though I'll probably be home by the time you want to have dinner," she answered.
"You be sure to have your busybody older sister drive you home," he ordered.
"Don't call my sister a busybody," she scolded him. He believed that Midoriko was a busybody because it seemed like everyday she was on the phone with Kikyo wanting to know what he was doing with his beloved. Midoriko called it "checking on" her little sister while he called it plain irksome.
"It's what she is. Make her drive you home. If I come in and smell even the hint of a bus ride on you, it's not going to be a fun evening," he commented.
She only gave him a coy look, which he did not like much. To him, it meant that she was going to more than likely take public transportation home just to annoy him. He had created the playful monster that she had become, he reminded himself. But, it was good that she was playful because it showed that she was comfortable with him, more so than anyone else on the planet.
"If you need anything, call me on my cell. I've got to go see my father," the dog demon informed her.
That was news to Kikyo. "Why?" she asked curiously.
"I don't know. He never makes it a point to tell me."
"I see where you get your attitude from," she commented with a small smile. She often told him that he was just like his father and he never seemed to know whether he should be proud or insulted by her words.
Sesshomaru rolled his golden eyes. "Keep talking and you'll be having dinner alone," he threatened her.
"Horrible dog," she stated, still smiling.
"Seriously, if you need anything," he started to say, but she cut him off.
"I'll call you, beloved. You know I will. Now, am I free to go?"
"Yes, angel," he replied.
"Thank you," she said rather sincerely.
He leaned over and kissed her again. She accepted and returned the show of affection. They were reluctant to pull away, but she did have to go and he did have to go too. They had to remind themselves that they were going to see each other again that night, so it was all right to let the other go.
"Later, beloved," she whispered to him as she finally opened the car door to exit the vehicle.
"Take care, angel," he said.
Kikyo offered him one last gentle smile before going off into the medical center. He watched her disappear into the building before pulling out of the parking lot. He considered that he might go run a few errands before he went to see what his father wanted. He did call his father's home to let the older demon know that he was going to be there in a couple of hours only to find out that his father was not home anyway. So, he concluded that it was all right for him to go run some errands before going home.
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Midoriko arrived at Kikyo's work site and noticed a group of six people hanging out outside of the medical center. How tacky, she thought as she approached the building, because they were hanging around the clinic as if it was a mall. And then it got worse because she walked by the group, several of the guys began making suggestive noises at her. One of them then made the mistake of calling her Kikyo, which just disgusted her more. Great, she thought sarcastically; those idiots actually knew her little sister.
Midoriko entered the medical center and looked around for her little sister, but Kikyo was not around. She went to the front desk where everyone was familiar with her and her reason for being there. They did not know what to tell her about her usually prompt little sister, except that she might have gotten suckered in to helping around the clinic when she had only come in to do some paperwork. Midoriko could see that happening and decided to go grab her sister out of her office, or whatever other office the younger female might happen to be lost in. She did not make it too far because she had a voice behind her calling out for Kikyo, so she thought that Kikyo might be behind her.
Midoriko turned and happened to be facing an ebony-haired male. From the look on his face and the "oops" that escaped his lips, she could guess that he thought she was Kikyo and was calling out for her rather than actually calling her little sister. Upon closer inspection and from a front view, he had realized his mistake sooner than most people.
"Oh, I'm sorry. I thought you were someone else," he told her with a sheepish smile on his face.
"That's quite all right. I get that all the time," she replied.
"Oh?" he said in a stunned tone.
"Yes, I do," she assured him.
"You mean that you get mistaken for people that you're not all the time?" he inquired. He doubted that she could get mistaken for the same person all of the time.
"No, I get mistake for Kikyo all of the time," she answered. She supposed that it could be worse. Kikyo got mistaken for her and their cousin a great deal of the time because Kikyo was in between both of them age-wise and it would seem that she could be either one of them depending on who the person making the mistake wanted to see.
"How is that possible?" he asked in a confused tone.
"Big sister," Kikyo said as she walked up the hall and noticed Midoriko.
The older sibling turned her attention down the corridor and watched her younger sister approach. The sisters embraced each other and that sort of cleared the mystery up for the male in their company. He noted that the family resemblance was beyond strong. They looked almost like the same person.
"Sister, I see you've met Doctor Suikotsu," Kikyo said.
"I wouldn't call it met," Midoriko replied.
"More like making a fool out of myself by calling her you," the male explained with an embarrassed expression gracing his strong jaw.
"Oh, it's a common mistake," Kikyo tried to assure him. He did smile.
"Still, I'm very sorry," he apologized in a very polite manner.
"It's all right. I'm Midoriko. This way, if you see me again, you can take a second guess," the elder sister remarked.
"It's a pleasure to meet you," he said and then he turned his attention to Kikyo. "Are you on your way out?" he inquired.
"Yes, I have a lunch date with my sister that I need to fulfill and I've finished up my other things. Good luck to you since it's so busy around here today," Kikyo said to him.
He laughed a bit and the sisters bid him farewell. He returned that with his own parting words. The sisters then walked toward the exit of the building. Midoriko did glance back at the male doctor and then turned her attention to Kikyo.
"Don't say anything," the younger sister said as they exited the building and then she sighed as they walked by the same group that had behaved so wolfishly with Midoriko.
"Hey, Kikyo," one of the guys in the group said. He was a little thing with waist long ebony hair done in a braid. "When are you going to give Suikotsu the time that he deserves?" he inquired quite bluntly.
Kikyo ignored him and Midoriko followed her lead while they continued on walking. The group did not let up until the sisters were in Midoriko's car. Kikyo sighed as soon as she was in the vehicle.
"I can see why you wouldn't want me to say anything if those were the good doctor's friends," Midoriko commented.
"He is the only doctor I have ever met that was also in a gang," Kikyo stated.
"It's a gang?"
"Yes, a seven man gang. He is a nice guy and everything, but I'm happily in love and wouldn't give him the time of day with a gun to my head," the younger sister replied soundly, knowing that Midoriko had probably had it in her head that Kikyo should drop Sesshomaru and give Suikotsu a chance.
Suikotsu's friends made those arguments too. His friends tended to speak up about his interest in Kikyo more than the doctor did. He usually just acted very kind toward her, even though he was like that to everyone else. He just paid her a lot of attention, offering help, even when she did not need it and things such as that. To her, he was a desirable male, but she was in love with Sesshomaru and nothing would change that to get her to even consider dating Suikotsu.
"You could have a handsome doctor, yet you pick that arrogant dog?" Midoriko said as if she did not believe it.
"If you like Suikotsu so much, why don't you pursue him?"
Midoriko stiffened a bit at the suggestion. "He obviously likes you," she replied. As if she would even think about letting someone in a gang into her life.
"Yes, but we look very much alike and are very similar. Surely, he could like you. Besides, you never date, sister."
"And I won't start with a man being pawned off to me by my younger sister," the lawyer replied.
Kikyo only smiled a bit. She did think that it was time for Midoriko to start dating. Kaede was now old enough to look after herself for the most part; at least for a short period of time. Besides, Kikyo was now stable, so she had no problem with sharing the responsibility in looking after and rising their baby sister. It was time for Midoriko to get out there and possibly find the love of her life. She did not have any excuses left in Kikyo's opinion and she left that be known on the ride to the café that they were going to.
Midoriko listened to her younger sister and countered the argument with one of her own. Yes, their baby sister was old enough to look after herself and yes, Kikyo was able to share the responsibility of rising Kaede, but Midoriko also had her career to worry about now. Kikyo only sighed as soon as she was rebuffed with such a weak argument in her opinion.
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Sesshomaru waited for his father in the older demon's office. He had not been there too long before his father entered and took a seat. They stared at each other for a moment before the older demon spoke.
"How's Kikyo?" his father inquired.
"Fine," Sesshomaru answered automatically more than anything else. He knew that his father actually liked Kikyo and was interested in how she was. In Inuyasha's words their father liked to check up on the couple "to make sure that Sesshomaru did not blow it."
"That's good. You make sure she stays that way."
Sesshomaru did not react to that order. "Why did you call me here, Father?" he inquired to get to the subject that they needed to talk about. He would handle his woman with all the care and love that an angel deserved and he did not need anyone telling him how to do that.
"For a task."
"I thought as much," the younger demon commented.
"A friend of mine is sending her daughter to the city to handle some business. You are to show her daughter around."
Sesshomaru tried his best to keep his cool to the order, but it was rather difficult. He ended up frowning because of the command, which did not go unnoticed by his father. His father just did not say anything.
"You want me to show a woman around the city?" Sesshomaru inquired with forced control. His relationship with Kikyo was finally steady and proper and his father was trying to get him to take a woman around the town. Was his father mad?
"Yes, Princess Abi. Her mother is the head of a clan of bird demons," his father informed him.
"I know," Sesshomaru said in a clipped tone. Of course he knew that considering the fact that he used to have to tag along with his father when he was younger on all sorts of business trips.
"You will show Abi around for as long as she is in the area," his father commanded.
"Do you seek to ruin my relationship?" Sesshomaru inquired because that was what it seemed like to him.
"Kikyo is a level-headed woman and as long as you don't do anything foolish, she should understand," his father replied.
Sesshomaru only scowled. Kikyo was a level-headed woman that he had hurt in the past and he knew that he had to be careful around her. He doubted that she would take it well if he were to tell her that he was going to be escorting a woman around the city. So, really, was his father mad?
"Don't give me that look either. You're going to do it, so explain to Kikyo that it means nothing and make sure that it does mean nothing," his father informed him.
"It will mean nothing," Sesshomaru insisted, now on the defensive. As if he would give a damn about any other female that was not Kikyo, especially Abi.
"Make sure it does," his father repeated, knowing that despite how perfect Sesshomaru claimed to be, he was prone to stupid mistakes. It seemed to be a habit with his sons to screw up good things with wonderful women. It was a good thing that they had such kindhearted and understanding ladies in their lives or they would stay in misery. He hoped that Sesshomaru did not go out and prove that he was far from perfect when Abi arrived, although he doubted that Sesshomaru would do anything with the princess that would get him into trouble with Kikyo. If anything, Sesshomaru would do something to get in trouble with him.
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Next time: a brief look at Inuyasha and Kagome arguing before Sesshomaru informs Kikyo that he has to escort a woman around the city for an undetermined amount of time.