Alright-here we go on with the revised version of chapter three. Hope you enjoy it.
XxXxXxXxXx
The sun crept slowly over the tops of the forest trees and poured like a thick soup into the now sun kissed courtyard. A pair of sepia eyes opened to let the light in. a fragile, shaky hand came up to rub the crust away so the girl they were attached to could see.
She felt strangely rested, as though she had been sleeping for days rather than simply hours. She looked around the beautiful room she was in, taking all of the details to memory.
She couldn't remember a time she had ever been in a place as beautiful as this one. There was a carved cabinet that was made out of redwood, and stones carefully covered the wooden walls where there was a comfortable fire lit in the open hearth.
A painting of a woman with long black hair that hung in wild, luxurious tendrils that framed her luscious face hung above the source of warmth, and candles were lit upon the mantle.
Suddenly, the pieces all seemed to fit in this mind-boggling puzzle and confusion hit her like a train; it snapped. A room? She didn't remember falling asleep here, and, as a matter of fact, she didn't remember falling asleep at all. All she remembered was having a fight with Inuyasha…
Finally, the memories all flowed back to her like the ocean's tide. She had fought with him and hit a wall. The straw that broke the camel's back, if she remembered silently, although the fight had been no small matter.
She had run, expecting a chase, but finding nothing but the dead and frightening sound of the empty forest at night. He would not chase her, would not apologize; not this time.
Soon, she had gotten to a dead end, tripping over a tree root. They seemed alive around her, moving almost. They created an impenetrable barrier she could only stare meekly at. She could no longer run from these fears, these horrors.
A rustling in the bushes behind her had tipped her off that she was not alone, and she had risen shakily to her feet, her battered knees and fresh cut throbbed painfully, but she would not wait for the inevitable demise, she would run from it until it caught up.
She was not going to allow herself to die without a fight at least. Turning to her left, she took off as fast as her human legs could carry her.
Soon, she could no longer see, tears blinding her already frighteningly narrow vision. She could feel her feet pounding solid earth one moment and the next, she could feel her foot slip. At that point it was too late. This was to be her fate, then. It was inevitable, after all.
The moment she was sure would be her last, she heard a strange sound behind her that was similar to a footstep in the sand. As she fell, she felt the sheer rock scrape against the skin of her ankle as she watched herself falling in slow motion toward the hungry, gurgling river below.
Prepared to die, now, she closed her eyes, waiting for the whoosh of air that would send her strait to the rock hard surface of the dangerous, inescapable water. That whoosh never came.
She remembered the strong arm that wrapped securely around her abdomen and pulled her flush against a strong, tightly built chest.
She blinked twice, confused as to her luxurious surroundings; the lavishly furnished room. The moment she looked down at the sheets that served as her butterfly's cocoon for the night, she knew exactly where she was.
There was a large crescent moon on the top cover. Midnight blue with glinting silver lining. She was mystified; how did she come to such a dangerous place?
A little demon that was fuzzy and looked like a small dog with entertaining floppy ears and ice blue eyes inched carefully into the room. The demon bowed deeply, to Kagome's complete shock, and introduced himself as Makoto.
He spoke in a low growl that rumbled respectfully through the large room. Motioning towards two large sliding doors on the far right side of the room, he told her one was the entrance to the baths and the other, a closet where she could chose her favorite Kimono.
He then motioned to the sliding door to his left and told her that it led to the outdoor gardens. The door behind him led to the castle hallways.
She was welcome anywhere and should call if she needed his assistance. At that, he bowed and left the same door he entered; the door to the hallways.
Kagome interestedly went to the sliding door over by the large dresser and opened it. She gasped as she saw the large indoor hot spring. It was breathtakingly beautiful and serene.
Black, polished stones covered the floor, molded in place by a lighter colored cement. The steam throughout the room gave it an almost surreal feeling and the hot, cloudy water made her feel as though she was in a scene out of an old movie. It was all too beautiful for words.
A large, oak bucket sat in the corner of the room on top of a stool. The bucket was already filled with steaming hot water, and she surmised it was for her use.
Kagome stepped cautiously into the large room and slid her old, grimy clothes off of her aching body. She folded them as nicely as she could and placed them by the door that led back into her room.
As she made her way over to the single stool and bucket, she found that there was a bit of what looked like soap sitting on a hidden shelf where a single black rock had simply not been placed.
A bowl of fragrant rose petals sat at the side of the spring, she noticed before stepping in. She picked these up and tossed them into the steaming water.
Soon, the whole room smelled like roses and a smile made it's way onto her dirt-clad face. She stepped into the spring and sighed. It felt like being back home in one of the traditional onsen.
Kagome sat contentedly in the cloudy water until she felt her fingers pruning. She stepped out of the large spring and looked around, spotting in a corner she had yet to inspect, a pile of silken towels.
Embarrassed, she pulled the top towel carefully off of the pile of others. The fabric was so expensive…was she really supposed to dry herself with it?
Looking around, she found no other explanation. A towel wrapped around her body and one around her tangled hair, she stepped back out into the much cooler bathroom.
Kagome walked lightly over to the second door on the right wall and slid it open, frightened of what she would find. Hanging on racks were countless silk kimonos, each one more pleasing to the eye than the last.
She pulled out a simple blue kimono, trying to be modest. She could not possibly be expected to wear something grander than this. It was unthinkable.
The moment she had chosen her kimono, there was an almost inaudible call in the hallway; her name. Kagome smiled. "Come in." she answered the call, almost uneasily.
Makoto slid the screen door open carefully and a female youkai in human form slid through the open door, bowing respectfully to me. "None of that, now, please. I do not need such formalities. I am no one special!" she stated uneasily, a hint of laughter in her voice.
The youkai raised her eyes slightly and quickly looked back at the floor. "What is your name?" Kagome inquired curiously. "Sayuri." She answered formally. "May I help you don your kimono, Lady Kagome?"
She felt herself blinking…doki doki…as she kept her head bowed low, almost at a ninety degree angle at the waist. She sighed. She would never be able to get used to this. Kagome decided she would continue working on her later.
"Please" Kagome responded in no more than an embarrassed whisper.
XxXxXxXxXx
After her kimono was, painfully wrapped and re-wrapped around her slender body, Kagome wandered the halls and gardens, trying to get a better perspective on where exactly she was.
She managed to get herself almost completely lost in the beautiful wooden halls and finally found Makoto, who was looking for her.
Kagome smiled kindly to the demon and asked where she could find the master of the castle, and if he could escort her there. The demon bowed and asked her to please follow him in a vibrating baritone. Through endless, mind numbing twists and turns, after roughly five minutes, they arrived at a large sliding door.
Makoto backed away from her quickly and bowed before exiting the scene as fast as his legs could carry him.
The door was made of rice paper painted decoratively with large swirling dogs prancing through an almost consuming mist.
Suddenly, a deep purring voice beckoned her, "Please, come in." Kagome gulped kneeled, practicing what she had seen Sayuri do, and slid the door open before entering with a room with a low bow.
At the sight of the Lord of the Western Lands sitting on a Western looking bed staring her down, she felt her heart rate accelerate and a blush ran over her pale skin.
He was shirtless, which especially caught her off guard. Oddly, she did not feel fright at the moment, rather, exactly the opposite. It felt so scandalous. There were white and blue silk curtains hanging from the ceiling that framed the bed, creating a surreal wall around most of the area.
A hearth also stood in the corner of his room with a large, plush pillow in front of it. A pile of dried wood sat in the corner of the stone fire place, well out of reach of the raging fire.
A tapestry of the same magestic woman took place over the fireplace as in the room she currently inhabited and the walls were the same strong wooden color as much the rest of the castle.
Sesshomaru glanced up at the girl that had just walked into his room. He noticed that she looked around, taking in her surroundings like a sponge with water.
She was obviously intrigued by his castle. Was it possible that she would be equally or even more so intrigued with him? He got off of his bed and smirked as her eyes widened.
He could slightly smell her arousal. She must have just noticed his state of dress and the way his muscles rippled with every movement she made. If nothing else, he would enjoy himself teasing her.
He wandered over to her and reached out a hand, touching her velvety soft cheek he smiled as a shiver ran down her spine. "That kimono suits you, Kagome." The look on her face was officially priceless.
She was staring wide eyed and open mouthed at him. He chuckled softly. This seemed to surprise her even more. He was really getting somewhere with this. Maybe his interest was worth exploring after all.
Kagome was surprised when he had complimented her, but the most surprising thing was when he had chuckled. She had left Inuyasha because of a fight that he would never be able to win. Ironically, the fight had been about Sesshomaru.
Kagome was convinced that Sesshomaru had a good side. Inuyasha had strongly objected to this idea and asked her why she cared in the rudest way he could manage. She had simply told him in a frustrated tone that everyone had a good side… well maybe not Naraku, but everyone else did.
The true reason that she had brought that up was because since the first time she had seen Sesshomaru he had intrigued her; his grace and undeniable beauty. The strength he wielded and his sheer brilliance. Soon he was an obsession-Inuyasha long forgotten.
She had waited for Inuyasha for two and a half years-soon she would be eighteen. She was done waiting. She still loved him, of course. It was simply a different form of love now than it had been before. He was like her brother.
Sesshomaru could see the thoughtfulness in her eyes as she looked at him. He couldn't tell exactly what she was thinking, but he could tell that it was important in some way. He growled inwardly as his inner demon voiced a hope that she was thinking of him, although he could no longer deny his interest in her so stubbornly as he had before.
The moment they had met, he was intrigued by her curious strength. She had fought against a monster like him while there was obviously no hope for her, and had not been killed. She had pulled the Tetsusaiga from the rock while he could not even touch it without burning.
She did not smell fowl as other humans did, either. She smelled of rain, one of the most pure scents on earth. She never seemed to give up on the ones she loved and was obviously willing to risk her life for those people.
She would constantly challenge him, she was not afraid, even now. Just inches from his face…three inches. That snapped them both awake immediately, both startled and almost visibly embarrassed. Both confused as to what had happened.
At the last second, Sesshomaru pulled away. The human kept staring at him. He saw many emotions in her eyes and could smell the confusion, fear, and was that…disappointment? He shook the thought out of his frustrating mind immediately.
Of course she would not be disappointed. She loved his mongrel halfbreed of a brother. The thought peeved him.
Sesshomaru turned away from her quickly to hide the angry blush that colored his porcelain cheeks. "Breakfast will be in twenty minutes. Be there." He turned and left the room hastily, leaving both of them with an uneasy empty space in their hearts.
XxXxXxXxXx
Words:
Onsen: A formal Japanese hot spring. They are found throughout Japan and, nowadays are mostly used by the elderly to help back and muscle pain. Most are in the form of man-heated springs that are communal, but some remain natural.
Doki doki: a sound effect used in many manga and anime. This sound effect represents a quick and confused blinking.