A/N: remodeling this chap and then chapter four, just a head's up. sheesh after a year's worth i finally get around to ironing out the tweaks.. /le-sigh anyway, enjoy the chap!
disclaimer: i don't own InuYasha; my OCs belong to me.
Chapter 03: Lust: My Hands (Love, Love, Love)
"Kori, what practice? Father ended my practice sessions a long time ago." She asked as she watched her admire the blue long bow in her hands, the quiver of arrows in her arms as she ogled her sister curiously.
She rolled her eyes and took an arrow from the quiver, adjusting it in her bow and extending her right arm back so her elbow touched her right cheek, her blue stare fixated on the wooden target yards infront of her. "I had to say something to get you to come with me. You two would've shed blood on the porch otherwise, and right after Yuri-chan and Ayame-chan had just cleaned it this morning before breakfast." The arrow was released, making the wind whistle with the flying projectile as it sailed at the target.
The arrow hit on the outer ring; she furrowed her brow, being handed a second arrow and repeating the same motion. "Besides, Father wouldn't have been too pleased to see that his ploy for getting you two to like each other was backfiring." She added, releasing the arrow, watching it sail in the air.
Bulls-eye.
She grinned, looking at her sister to see she had set the quiver against a thin tree, arms folded in the sleeves of her kimono top; the grin faltered slightly as she saw the brooding look fixed on her pretty face. "Onee-chan," she began quietly.
She shrugged, looking at the target that had been impaled by the sharp heads of the arrows. "Sorry I seemed out of line. I just… I don't understand any of this. First Father basically throws us together in an arranged marriage, and then the man he puts me with is practically impossible! And ontop of that, for some reason unbeknownst to common man or demon alike, he just… he gets under my skin! I don't get how in hell he does it. But all I know is that it's pissing me off and I hate it." She growled the last bit, thin wisps of smoke rising from between her balled fists, her claws grown out of reflex when speaking of that aggravating dog demon.
She might kill me for saying this, but… "Maybe Father was right; it smells like love to me." She mused, slinging the bow over her left shoulder and going to retrieve the arrows she'd shot.
Getsu stiffened, standing stock-still, before her face turned a shade of red. "T-that's the worst thing you've ever said to me!" She stammered, cutting her gaze to the side curtly at such a ridiculous notion.
Korihime smirked at the blushing and stammering sight of her older sister, taking the quiver from next to her feet and placing the arrows in it, slinging the strap over the shoulder that carried her bow. "I'm just calling it like I smell it, onee-chan," she said nonchalantly, hands clasped behind her back as she practically skipped back inside the further recesses of the compound, her sister trailing after her.
"Your nose is on the damn fritz," she growled under her breath.
She chuckled. "At least my innocence isn't on the line here," she replied in a sing-song voice, making her stiffen again.
Her face colored a darker shade of red before she shook her head fervently. "Gee, thanks for reminding me about that part!" She grated.
She smiled serenely, glancing back at her sister. "Honestly though, how are you planning on worming out of this one? The last suitor tried to take advantage of you the moment Father wasn't looking, and the one before that you caught him trying to swindle money." She asked curiously, tilting her head to one side.
She blinked before she quieted, tapping her chin with a finger. "You bring a good point," she mused, thinking.
A lightbulb went on. "Brilliant!" She snapped her fingers.
Korihime cocked her head to one side. "Well that was fast; what'd you come up with?" She asked, ears twitching as she saw a dark light shine in her silver eyes.
Uh-oh.
"Oi."
Something jabbed sharply into his ribs; his gold eyes shot open at the sensation of pain, sleepily lifting up to stare at the perpetrator through sand in his eyes.
The wolf princess stood over him, her hands on her hips.
He growled a curse, sitting up in bed and scowling at her, "What in hell possessed you of all people to come to my quarters?" He demanded tersely.
Getsu pulled something from behind her back, a long cylindrical item and dropped it next to his futon. "Get dressed, we're going to spar." She stated calmly, unperturbed by his terse question, turning to throw open the door of his room that led out into the courtyard.
Sesshomaru grumbled under his breath about her insolence and atrocious behavior, nonetheless doing as told and following her out, noting that she had given him a wooden shinai; he tested the weight in his right clawed hand and scoffed under his breath.
So she wants to challenge me, now? I never expected this from a brat princess like her… There's something off about this. Is she trying…? Of course: she's trying to get me in trouble! He thought, his hand gripping the handle of the shinai in time with his conclusion.
Getsu watched him saunter over to stand opposite her, noting the lean muscles in his arms he flashed with the sleeveless blue kosode he wore over his torso, the baggy black hakama covering his legs. She blushed a little as she recalled the conversation she'd had with Korihime about the aftermath of their… marriage.
She still shuddered at the word.
Regardless, it looked like he wasn't a novice when it came to wielding a sword; his right foot shifted behind him by a few inches, a strong enough sign that he was accustomed to sparring.
Being the son of a great dog demon, that didn't really surprise her.
A soft breeze stole between the two daiyokai.
"Whenever you're ready, dog breath." She spoke tauntingly.
His lip curled; you have no idea what you're getting into, aren't you? He wondered before he lunged, initiating the spar.
She caught his blow, a loud 'clack' ringing in the dawn's air as their shinai clashed.
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"U-um, milady, just how long has this been going on?" The servant asked hesitantly.
She shrugged, continuing to watch the match, "an hour or so? I lost count." She replied calmly.
"Shouldn't we stop them, before Lord Kiba says something?" She wondered, her eyes darting between the mesmerized princess and the clashing betrotheds.
"Father won't notice, it seems the match is just about over anyway." She replied, her soft blue eyes trained on the swift movements between the unofficial couple.
"Yes, milady," a shuffling of feet before the servant retreated back inside.
Getsu was well trained in wielding a sword; she'd spent at least a century's worth of time mastering the basics of wielding a katana and the other two centuries spent honing her wolf fire and close-combat skills.
But Sesshomaru… he was better, if that was even possible.
Apparently Getsu had done this on sheer willpower, bull-headed stubbornness… this didn't surprise Korihime.
She was always prone to jumping in headfirst; sometimes she wondered if their personalities hadn't been switched at birth, Getsu getting her calm disposition and Korihime getting her spitfire disposition.
Regardless, she had gotten in over her head… Once again.
Dust flew in the air.
The she-wolf panted, dropped into a fighting stance, one leg slightly kneeling on the ground, the other thrust forward by her foot, the shinai clenched tightly in both hands.
The dog demon also panted, mirroring her posture, although he was holding the handle of the shinai in just his right hand's grip.
Smudges of dirt were on both young daiyokai's faces, scratches here or there on their person, rips in the fabric of their clothes.
Sesshomaru's left foot inched back as he prepared to lift himself and strike again, staring at his opponent stonily.
Getsu glowered at him, her kneeling leg lifting stiffly, as her clawed hands tightened on the handle.
She grunted and flew at him, breaking the monotony, swinging the shinai at his side. He growled and narrowly swerved to the side, left leg extending and knocking her knees from beneath her, sending her to the ground.
A growl of frustration escaped her before she saw he was ready to claim his victory; she propelled a foot into his gut, roughly forcing him back as she scrambled to her feet swiftly, taking the chance and going for the killing blow, shinai aimed for his throat.
He slapped the blade away with his left forearm, ignoring the sliver of blood that flew from his instinctive block, his shinai swinging as he kicked her legs from beneath her, forcing her to lose her footing and fall on her back.
Dust flew up into the air a second time.
Both daiyokai panted; she stared at the tip of the wooden sword that was aimed for her throat, glaring defiantly up at the victor.
He smirked widely in triumph, reluctantly removing the blade from her exposed neck and dropping his arm to his side; he extended a hand to help her up.
"You fight well, for a female…" He was silenced as she yanked on his arm and pulled him down, rolling him onto his back in the dirt as she extended her left fist at his face, pausing short of a few centimeters away from his keen nose. He went cross-eyed as he stared at her extended fist, feeling her body heat practically searing into his own as it radiated from her petite body that toppled him, legs spread, her chest heaving with the labored breathing escaping her lungs, beads of sweat dripping down her forehead.
She grinned widely and lowered her fist, fangs glinting as her silver eyes looked smug. "Should've seen that coming." She mused.
His brow contorted into a frown.
Before she could blink, she heard a growl rip from his throat and then she was on her back again, his strong arms caging her to the ground, his gold eyes burning like flames, sweat dripping down his forehead as he panted softly.
He grinned in the same triumphant manner, staring down into her baffled silver eyes. "I could say the same for you."
Korihime smiled to herself at the scene, even though she knew it was highly indecent for a princess of the Western Wolf Clan to behave so provocatively.
Still, this was a sight that she wouldn't trade for the world.
Getsu stared up at his gold eyes, her chest still heaving only not as much as before, silver eyes baffled and reluctantly shining with defeat; there was a small part of her conscious that reminded her of the position she was in… or rather, under. The beast in her whimpered in what sounded like submission, reminding her just how close he was to taking her.
Sesshomaru watched her face become heated with a shade of reddish pink that stained her cheeks, a smug light shining in his gold eyes as he smirked triumphantly, feeling the beast inside him wag its tail in the air like a flag.
"Lunch should be starting soon." She called nonchalantly, jarring both daiyokai's attention back to reality in a flash.
He blinked his gold eyes, looking at the submissive position he had her in before his cheeks flared red; he hopped to his feet, clearing his throat and dusting himself off. Retreating to the porch, he bowed his head respectfully to the younger sister before he disappeared back inside to get dressed.
She watched him leave and smirked, hopping off the porch to help her sister up. "If I wasn't mistaken, I swear there was a spark there between you two." She mused aloud, helping her to her feet.
She bristled and jerked her hand free of her grip, folding her arms over her chest as she stormed ahead of her inside. "Don't be so damn delusional, there wasn't a spark: it was just a fluke he surprised me like that, that's all." She rebutted stiffly, dusting herself off.
Korihime shook her head softly and sighed as she followed her, "whatever you say, onee-chan."
What was that back there?
Her confused and innocent silver eyes flashed in his mind again for what seemed the umpteenth time within a few hours of their spar. Damn it, he couldn't get those eyes out of his head and it was annoying him!
He couldn't even focus on the words in the book he was supposed to be reading. With a growl of frustration he slammed the book shut and set it down on the wooden surface of the porch rather forcefully; his gold eyes glowered at the closed-in courtyard before him as his claws dug crescents into his palms.
"For a wolf princess she surely is bewitching..." he grumbled aloud.
"My sister has that effect on men my father tries to set her up with," a voice declared calmly nearby, perking his ears and almost making him start.
He mentally chided himself for thinking aloud, looking up at the soft blue stare of Korihime, seeing her arms were crossed at her chest, her cobalt hair gracefully fallen down her left shoulder in a braid. "May I join you?" She asked politely.
He shrugged, looking away and to the courtyard before him again. "It isn't my house," he replied.
She chuckled softly and shuffled to sit next to him, letting her legs dangle over the wooden edge of the porch as she relaxed her posture. "I must apologize for my sister; even though she's the oldest, she doesn't act like it most of the time." She offered.
He smirked a little, "you're telling me. I don't mean to be blunt, but has she always been…?" He trailed off for lack of a word that wouldn't offend his prospective sister-in-law.
"Bull-headed; as stubborn as ten mules?" She guessed.
He nodded. "All of the above."
Korihime chuckled softly, "Sadly, yes; it's one trait I'm sad to say she learned from our father. He wasn't always the charming daiyokai he is now, or at least that's what Mother says sometimes." She shrugged sheepishly, sympathetic towards the young lord.
Sesshomaru nodded again, sighing. "I must apologize this time, if it seems like your sister and I aren't… getting along." He replied, seeing her ears twitch out of the corner of his eye.
She smiled apologetically, "it's all right, I understand. Getsu has never liked any of the men Father set her up with. She's gotten rid of at least half of them through sneaking their true intentions out of them within a week, and Father almost burned the face off the previous one because he was in it for the dowry." She giggled at the memory of her father chasing a thoroughly-frightened suitor around the compound with blue fire screaming at the suitor's backside from his shaking fists.
He shuddered, "if that's the case, I'm at least grateful your father has shown me favor." So that explains the spar, he thought, making a mental note to gloat to that insufferable female whenever they ran into each other sometime later on about besting her.
"As am I, and our mother. Getsu's celibacy is starting to become taxing on their consciences." She mused quietly.
Sesshomaru's ear twitched. "They sound like my own father. His wanting to see me happily married and with a future heir is the reason I was searching for a bride." He chimed.
Korihime blinked and looked at him, "and your mother?"
He huffed quietly, "she doesn't seem to care what I do, so long as it doesn't involve being prone to foolishness." He replied.
She nodded wisely, looking at the greenery of the courtyard. "You got off lucky with my sister, earlier this morning." She said, making his ears twitch.
"You saw the whole thing." It wasn't a question.
She nodded again, "pretty much. But don't underestimate Getsu. She doesn't look it, but Father put her through enough 'rigorous' –as my mother labeled it, leastways—training for a few centuries, close-combat and swordsmanship included." She elaborated with a wry smile.
Sesshomaru nodded, "I'll keep that in mind. With her temper it might even be frightening to piss her off."
Korihime chuckled, smirking. "Ah, you're learning early. Good! Most of the men she's been set up with usually don't learn of her skill until right before Father throws them out."
He tilted his head to one side, "like father, like daughter."
She nodded and smiled, "Getsu is off sulking somewhere, though, at the moment." She mused.
His ears twitched before he exhaled, "I suppose I should go try and be a peacemaker." He grumbled, regretting what he was about to do already.
Korihime chuckled, nodding to him. "Have fun!"
Sesshomaru smiled a little, shuffling to his feet and leaving her. "Ignore the cries of pain; it'll probably be some poor defenseless rodent." He added over his shoulder.
She laughed softly. "I'll alert the press."
Well, at least he had gained a suitable ally in Korihime… the less feisty of the two sisters.
A/N: so yeah i gave Korihime more of a spotlight in this chapter than i have in the last two. she'll stay consistent with the story, worry not. lol and yeah, i had her learn archery. this IS feudal Japan, duckies.
also, edited a couple of spots in this chap and the same goes for the next chapter too. i'm a perfectionist, what can you do? d: