A/N: Sorry this took so long... but I'm doing my best to fit in writing around summer school. Please bear with me!! The chapter is a little short, but I wanted to give you something... I hope you all like it.
Disclaimer: I do not own InuYasha. But if I did, I'd have lots of fun torturing Sesshomaru... kukuku...
Learning to Love
Chapter Two: The Last of her Kind
By ancient-relic
Kagome groaned, her throat raw. She was lying on the ground; her legs crossed over and splayed out. Her head was pillowed gently on her arm, but her neck protested painfully when she tried to move from her place on the ground.
She sat, looking around, and wondered where she was. Her vision kept fading in and out, trying to refocus itself. When it finally stopped, Kagome found that she was looking at things more clearly than she seemed to remember seeing them. The lines of the tall grass were crisp and clear as they moved in a gentle wind. Their golden hue shone brightly in the sun, though the seemed to be radiating with a light of their own.
"Kagome!" a voice called, causing Kagome to turn her head. "Where are you?"
Kagome strained to hear the voice, as it was faint. It eerily echoed in her ears, and the more she strained to hear it, the more it seemed like she was remembering the voice from a long time ago. She would have banished the voice to her dreams- except that she heard it again.
"Kagome? Where are youuu?"
Kagome struggled to her feet, and fought a wave of nausea at the change in altitude. "What-"
"KAGOME!" The voice was getting closer. And more annoying.
"What?" She replied, her voice rasping. "Why are you calling my name?"
A man in a red outfit with long white hair skidded to a stop in front of her. Kagome's body reacted without her even having to think- she flipped away as he reached out to grab her, and once she was safely away, she slid into a tense position, from which she could bolt easily. However, the kimono she was wearing was stopping her leg from moving backwards, so she cracked her wrist, and ripped it up to her thigh.
"Kagome?" the man asked, taking a hesitant step forward. "Kagome, what's the matter? When did you learn..." his voice trailed off.
Kagome stared up at him with icy eyes. Her hair was a faint blue around her face, and the long leg that was sticking out from her now ruined kimono had a strange blue pattern that swirled across it.
"Who are you? And how do you know my name?" she demanded, her posture relaxing. Standing up, InuYasha noticed that she seemed taller. She held herself with a regal air, and her chin and neck seemed a little finer, more defined.
"Kagome, it's me." He said, his stomach flopping uncomfortably.
"Do not make me repeat myself," she said. InuYasha waited for the slur, but none came. Instead, she stared him down with eyes so cold he felt the hairs on his arm standing up.
"It's me, InuYasha." He said, reaching his hand out slowly. Inching his way towards her, he did his best not to break eye-contact. Kagome's bright blue eyes suddenly began to dim, and though he was alarmed, he dared not make a sudden movement.
"Inu...Yasha..." her voice said the name brokenly. Suddenly, her right eye glowed silver, and her legs collapsed from underneath her. InuYasha lunged forward and caught her before she hit the ground.
The first thing he noticed once Kagome was safely in his arms was that she was heavier. Not overly so- but it seemed like she had put on some kind of mass, and it wasn't girth. The second thing he noticed was that while her body was warm, the air around her was not. He was getting goose-bumps just holding her, and the hair on his arms was on end. The third thing that he noticed was her scent- and he had to inhale deeply just to be sure he had smelt Kagome. A cold, minty scent intermingled with the scent of her humanity, her miko powers, and her strange soaps. It hung thickest about her head, and hair, which it seemed to cling to like an aura.
Shuffling through the grass, he picked up her bag, and dashed off to find Kaede. Something was wrong with Kagome... he just wasn't sure whether or not it was a good thing.
Learning to Love
Sesshomaru scented the air again. Sure enough, the faint scent of mint made it to his nose. He had been sticking just outside of sensing distance of the old priestess, as she was the one with the best range. The other miko, Kagome, was convienently out. However, she was also the source of the mint, and the reason he'd stayed in the vicinity.
He wanted to be close for when she woke up, as he was unsure of what would actually happen. Aare's presence was inside her body, but he was unsure of how much, exactly. He knew her powers were currently dormant- but how long would they stay so once she was awake? As Sesshomaru pondered his insane cousin's decision to bequeath her power to a human priestess, he was greeted only by the ruffling of Solaris' wings.
"Greetings, milord." The wizened youkai bowed.
"Solaris," Sesshomaru nodded from his spot in the shade.
"Might I inquire as to how you're spending your days?" the elder asked, ancient bones creaking as he perched upon a low-resting branch.
Sesshomaru looked at him sharply. The old eagle smirked in response. Nosey old bat, he thought.
"That I am," he chuckled in reply. "But more important than my first question, why does that human girl hold you here?"
Sesshomaru feigned confusion.
"The human girl who travels with your brother. Your senses are attuned on her." He observed. Sesshomaru stiffened.
"Aare was south," he said, after a moment of pregnant silence. "I came in response to a clan-call."
Sesshomaru's answer seemed to keep the old bird silent for a long time, and Sesshomaru had just turned his attentions back to his brother's group when Solaris replied.
"They are dead," Solaris said succinctly. There was a battle in the North that completely wiped out the last remaining ice-inu. You are the last member of the silver inu-youkai."
For the first time in a while, Sesshomaru felt the brief pang of sorrow. Dead? By whom? "Who else is left, Solaris?"
"Well..." the old bird pondered this question for a while. "One might suppose that there are still some wind-inu milling around, but awful hard to come by. The snow-inu have been dead a long time now, but they are descendants of the ice-inu. If what you say is true, and there's still an ice-inu walking on this plane, then you should do your best to copulate with her. Between the two of you, you're the only remaining youkai alive of the four clans."
Sesshomaru considered these words seriously. "And what of other... half-breeds," he spat the word, "like my brother?"
"They are not fit to carry on the lineage." Solaris replied. "Not because they are unworthy, but because the power and DNA becomes irreversibly diluted."
Sesshomaru snorted at the last comment. His mind again turned to the threat at hand... the situation seemed to be getting worse and worse the more time passed. First he learned that he was the Lord of the West in everything but title. Despite it being a little-known fact, if that information got into the wrong hands, there would likely be a war. Then he learned that he would need a mate and a sire to continue (or begin, as the case was,) to rule. To top it off, his breed, the majestic silver-inu, were dying out. Apparently, the last known alive had just died and surrendered her powers to a human wench.
Rising suddenly, Sesshomaru cursed loudly in every language that he knew. Solaris, so startled by the young lord's outburst, lost his footing in the tree, and had to retreat to the ground. However, he couldn't help but chuckle at some of Sesshomaru's choice curses.
"What ails you? I knew not your mouth was fouler than your brother's, Sesshomaru."
Turning to him, Sesshomaru's anger was pushed aside by the inkling of dread that was welling up within him. "Aare died today," he said. The smile slid off Solaris' face like water. "She gifted all her powers to a human, who now carries the aura and power inside her."
"You don't say," Solaris said sombrely, but again, his hand was raised to his face in contemplation. "Well isn't that interesting. I'll see what I can learn about that particular ability of the ice-inu."
He fluttered his wings, and hopped back into the trees, preparing to clear the tree level and take off. "I will be back with news as soon as I can, milord."
Sesshomaru nodded, and started back towards where he had left Jaken and Rin.
"Remember, milord," Solaris said suddenly, "Until the spring comes again." Sesshomaru inclined his head, watching the eagle take off and disappear into the clouds. There was a warning in Solaris' voice that he didn't like.
It was like they thought he couldn't get a girl.
Hn. We'll see about that. He snorted, continuing at a slower gait than usual. The dread he had felt earlier was creeping back.
To Be Continued...
A/N: I would like to remind you that this story is supposed to be mostly Sesshomaru's point of view... because I think it's a refreshing change. That being said, it still needs a little Kagome. So it'll be switching back and forth quite a bit. Just some forewarning. XD
So, another chapter down... please tell me what you think!! And of course... how much you hate me for never updating... (because I deserve it... T-T)
ancient-relic