The Miko's Daiyoukai
Wandering Miko
The air was still as sunlight soaked the western forest. Few creatures were stirring, and even the morning lark had yet to wake. Cool breeze shook the treetops steadily fanning those below from the heat emanating from the sun. Sesshomaru stood at the edge of his camp, studying the darkness at the roots of the trees around them. Since the last attack, there hadn't been any more wolves within a 20 mile radius. Sesshomaru contemplated on what had happened to the strategy he knew his distant cousins possessed, and why they were attacking as though they had no leader. He remembered the way they seemed to be targeting the miko, as though she was the prey they had been searching for.
What could they want with the miko.. He wondered. She was powerful, there was no doubt about that. More powerful than the daiyoukai had expected, even when wounded. But, killing a miko would bring no glory, nor would it increase their power or land, so what reason did they have with her? She didn't even have the shards of the shikon no tama she typically wore around her neck, so for what reason had they hunted her?
"You spend a lot of time patrolling, huh?" He twitched at the sound of her voice behind him, so lost in thought that he didn't sense her approach.
"Ah, sorry. I didn't mean to startle you." He cursed himself silently for being so transparent, it was unlike him.
"I just woke up.. Rin and Jaken are still asleep, I think Rin spent too long in the bath, she was acting like a drunken old man when we got out." Kagome chuckled to herself quietly, shifting uncomfortably.
"Well anyway, I wanted to thank you for protecting me yesterday.."
Sesshomaru turned to face her, seeing her skin turn bright amber once again. She stood before him wearing only the white inner layer of a kimono that he had bought for Rin months ago. It was far too big and he had offered to get it tailored by the palace tailor, but Rin had refused, claiming the wait only made it more special. On Kagome, the light layer seemed 3 sizes too small, constricting her bust and tightly hugging the shape of her hips. It just barely touched the tops of her knees, hiding slender thighs that Sesshomaru knew from the night before.
"This Sesshomaru took no part in your protection." He r olled his eyes from her thighs to the trees just behind her, trying to ignore the pleasure he felt in the pit of his stomach at the sight of her expression. From the corner of his eye, he could see a smile creep across her cheeks.
"I guess you're right, I did protect myself at the last minute there. But.. I would have been dead in a second had it not been for you." Kagome smiled up at him, and suddenly Sesshomaru was the uncomfortable one.
"Enough." Sesshomaru scoffed as he brushed past her,
"Clearly you are well. The hanyou and his companions are travelling north, they soon near this camp." He had long ago caught the scent of his half brother, but had found no reason to bring it up sooner. He turned once more to face her in time to see the miko's face darken.
"R-Right." Kagome stammered, staring at her feet. "I should get going, shouldn't I."
Sesshomaru struggled to understand the many emotions of the miko, and sat down against a tree adjacent to the cavern instead of pursuing it further. Kagome's blush returned to her cheeks as she hurried back, silently tip toeing around Rin and Jaken. He watched as she quietly snuck to the very back of the cave, looking around to be sure the pair remained sleeping. Had Sesshomaru been human or even a hanyou, he wouldn't have been able to see her at such a distance in the depths of the grotto, but he could see clearly.
Kagome hastily shed the inner layer of the Kimono, revealing supple breasts and creamy skin. Sesshomaru watched, smiling to himself. How many times is the Hanyou's woman to bare her skin to me? Though technically she hadn't known he was watching, Sesshomaru found the situation no different. She fumbled around in the darkness nearly nude, the only thing covering her were the thin, pink panties hugging her hips. Kagome finally found her intended and carefully slipped herself into the yukata she had been wearing when he originally found her nearly dead lying on the forest floor. It hardly covered her chest with tears crossing just beneath her breast, but she simply tied her obi across the torn fabric to hold it together. Once she had dressed, she carefully made her way through to the entrance of the cave and Sesshomaru looked away. Kagome neared him sullenly.
"Okay, I'm ready to go." She whispered. Sesshomaru looked at the miko, then back at the cavern where Rin slept. Kagome followed his gaze and smiled sadly.
"It will be harder to say goodbye than to leave like this." She smiled, but the look in her eyes was devoid of the joy she normally had. He understood the sadness she was experiencing from leaving Rin and stood, looking down at the woman before him.
"Very well." Sesshomaru led her to the edge of the clearing and swiftly began making his way through the brush of the forest. He knew these lands like the back of his hand, having patrolled the forests a million times in his youth. Kagome, on the other hand, found difficulty navigating through the wilderness behind him. He turned to see she had gotten herself stuck on a branch that had entwined itself in her hair. She tugged at it to no avail looked up at Sesshomaru in distress. With a sigh, he reached above her and released her ebony locks from the hold of the tree branch.
"Thanks.." She mumbled, rose colouring her cheeks slightly. He huffed, and continued his walk.
"So.. you know this area pretty well, huh?" Kagome called from behind him.
"Hn. The Lord of The West is not a title simply given." He retorted, thinking back to how much of his life he had dedicated to learning the lay of the lands. If he didn't know it by now, there would be a problem.
"Right.. Right.. Do you live in a castle then? Most lords have castles, right?" Kagome ventured, jumping over a particularly twisted root.
"Does it look to you like this Sesshomaru resides in a castle?" Sesshomaru spat back, disinterested in playing twenty questions. He heard Kagome trip behind him, but this time decided to continue walking.
"Well no," She called, dusting herself off, "but you must have one."
"Hn." He responded, but Kagome continued.
"And if you're a lord, you must have subjects, right? Do you address your subjects when you go to the castle?" Kagome's chatter annoyed the daiyoukai, it was as though he didn't even need to respond, she responded for him.
"That must be pretty exciting, all the youkai of the west waiting to hear you! Kind of like the principal of a school, only with less homework." Kagome laughed at her own joke, a joke that flew completely over Sesshomaru's head. Principal..?
"No, you know what I really want to know," she began, catching herself as she slipped on a patch of moss.
"Do the puppy ears run in the family? Or is it just a one off because Inuyasha's mom is a-"
Before Kagome could finish her question, Sesshomaru spun around and slapped one firm claw around her mouth.
"Your chatter and endless questioning, it annoys me." He growled as kagome shrunk in his hand. She looked at him despondently, sulking at his lack of information. Sesshomaru felt his irritation rise.
"Why do you not fear this Sesshomaru." He roared, eliciting fear in the hearts of a nearby family of squirrels. The squirrels scampered up a tree in fear as Kagome stared back at Sesshomaru, now wearing an expression of exasperation.
"Because I know you won't kill me. Not right now, at least." Kagome postulated, peeling his hand off her lips.
"You wouldn't have gone through the trouble of saving me just to kill me on the walk back." She smiled as Sesshomaru narrowed his eyes. She did have a point. Sesshomaru took one step closer to Kagome, close enough to smell cinnamon and sweet orange, he could tell she was nervous.
"Then, this Sesshomaru will simply kill your mate." He smirked, watching uncertainty sprawl across her face. He had her this time.
"My.. what?" Kagome tilted her head, her look of uncertainty deepening.
"The hanyou. Your mate. Your lover. I have not the time to translate into human terms." Sesshomaru growled back. The ignorance of humans is baffling..
"You mean Inuyasha?" Kagome practically giggled, covering her mouth. The nerve of this woman.. Sesshomaru glared at her, then spun to return his original task. He would rid himself of the miko and her terrible smell.
"No, wait, Sesshomaru!" Kagome called, trying to catch up. "I'm sorry, I didn't mean to laugh!" She called, but her words fell on deaf ears. Sesshomaru had no interest to continue their banter.
"Inuyasha isn't my mate!" She cried, stamping her foot against the mossy earth. The daiyoukai stopped but chose not to turn to face her.
"He isn't my mate." She breathed, stepping over an anthill. "I only laughed because it's really nothing like that anymore, to be honest, he doesn't want me around at all anymore. That's.. that's why I left my camp."
Sesshomaru recalled her feverish mumblings of a 'cruel' Inuyasha, but had thought it just to be a lovers quarrel.
"I'm sure you've encountered Kikyo, uh, the undead version of me. Well, actually no, technically I'm the not-dead version of her." Kagome suppressed a laugh, approaching Sesshomaru's back.
"He chose her instead of me.." The miko murmured, "So, if you want to kill him, it's really no sweat off my back... but, I guess if he's dead I'll have no one to protect me, so it's still a win-win for you.."
He could feel her breath on his back as he smelled the salt from the tears in her eyes. This woman is so emotional..
"Your powers would suffice, the hanyou is unnecessary…" He growled softly with his back to the girl. He could feel heat emanating from her through his hakama as she blushed, clearly surprised by his compliment to her abilities.
".. However, when it comes to combat, you may want to mate the taijiya." Sesshomaru chucked quietly at his joke before taking another step forward. He could sense the whirlwind of emotion going through the miko's aura, and decided it was best they continued on.
"Come. Your camp draws near." He called, ducking beneath a low hanging branch.
"Ah- Y-Yes!" Kagome chimed and skipped to catch up beside him.
They continued their chat as they walked- mostly kagome chatting, but Sesshomaru listened. She told him stories of her world, a world Sesshomaru struggled to comprehend. The miko spoke a dialect he was not privy to, with words he could not understand like 'computer' and 'ramen', but her words were not what intrigued him. It was her passion, overflowing from her reiki with the purest of intention, the compassion he felt burn the surface of his skin. She was a true miko, a powerful miko, yet she didn't even know it. How his brother had gone on without utilizing and developing her powers was beyond him. He considered the possibility that as a hanyou, Inuyasha simply couldn't sense the strength of her reiki and assumed she was solely a detector of the jewel and a hindrance in battle.
Sesshomaru thought back to the undead miko, Kikyo as she called her, and how hard she must have fought to keep Kagome from valuing herself. There was no way she couldn't have sensed such power tucked away in the confines of Kagome's heart; and once she sensed it, he was sure she would have wanted to keep it there.
It's as though she's not from this world.. Sesshomaru thought to himself, as though her power is depraved of the constraints that exist within this realm..
The daiyoukai pushed back a bush and spotted the hanyou, theatrically yelling at the fox kit. He wrinkled his nose as Inuyasha's stench permeated the air, masking the ambrosial scent of sweet orange.
"Oh, we're here." Kagome exclaimed flatly. Sesshomaru met Kagome's expectant gaze, knowing the words she wouldn't say. She was a good keeper of Rin He reasoned, And her miko powers would be useful..
Sesshomaru exhaled, knowing that there was no reasoning to make sense of him allowing another human to accompany him. He was not about to become a keeper of human women just because they asked with batted lashes; impulsivity was not a common trait, and he wasn't about to change that. He took a step into the clearing, immediately feeling Inuyasha sense him. Besides, Kagome may not have wanted to return, but that didn't mean she wanted to travel with his companions instead.
"Bastard." Inuyasha growled from afar, "What the hell are you doing here?"
Before the daiyoukai could respond, Kagome leapt in front of him, calling to Inuyasha.
"Inuyasha! He's here because of me!" Kagome cried. Inuyasha took a step back, stunned by Kagome's sudden appearance, with Sesshomaru no less.
"Kagome!" Miroku, Sango and Shippo cried in unison, standing to face her but not daring come closer. He could feel the fear in their hearts, bitter memories abiding in their minds. Sesshomaru found their fear laughable, after all, it was all thanks to them that he was now an amputee..
"I got lost in the woods. I found Sesshomaru and begged him to help me get back.." Kagome lied through her teeth, dropping her hands at her side. Sesshomaru acknowledged her lie, he was sure the idiots she frequented with would have a hard time believing the truth.
Inuyasha grinned and cracked his knuckles before unsheathing his sword.
"You idiot, he's only here to try to challenge me for Tessaiga! You want to lose another arm, you can come and get it asshole!" Inuyasha yelled, gripping the handle of the sword with two hands. Sesshomaru glared at Inuyasha, practically laughing at his stupidity.
"I need not for your dull sword," he scolded, "I simply return your wandering miko."
With that, Sesshomaru turned to leave, ignoring the cries of the hanyou, the whisper from Kagome and the lingering fragrance of sweet orange and cinnamon.
88
"So are ya gonna explain what the hell that was all about?" Inuyasha barked.
Kagome rummaged through her bag, noting that not only had all of her food been eaten, but that she lacked a change of clothes. What she wouldn't do for a toothbrush and a soft bed…
"Hello? Do you even hear me Kagome?" Inuyasha poked at her forehead as Kagome stared back up at him with spite,
"Can't you leave me alone for five minutes Inuyasha?" She grunted back, zipping her bag shut.
"I want to know how and why you were with that.. savage!" Inuyasha growled at Kagome as she rolled her eyes.
"He isn't a savage Inuyasha, he simply helped me get back, then left. End of story." The miko looked over to her other friends for solace but found 6 eyes peering back at her.
"What?" She felt like the only piece of art in a crappy museum.
"Well.. Kagome.. we were also wondering what happened.. you were gone for days." Sango started weakly, averting her gaze.
"We even went looking for you, we couldn't find you anywhere. We came here because we thought maybe you had gone home and the well isn't too far off.." Miroku chimed in, meeting Sango's awkwardness.
Kagome sighed, understanding her friends concern.
"It's really nothing, promise. I begged him to help me get back after I wandered too far, and he did." Kagome looked at her thighs, knowing even she wouldn't have believed such a weak story.
"And I'm sure those claw marks across your yukata were just nothing as well.." Kikyo's sickly voice rose into the air, pricking Kagome's skin like ice. Oh kami.. She thought to herself, just the person I want to see right now.
She had seen the soul stealers, but no sign of Kikyo when she originally returned. The zombie of a woman positioned herself in the shadows of the forest, as though the direct sunlight would melt her clay body.
".. Yeah, I never noticed those before, where did you get those tears on your yukata?" Inuyasha pestered her, now with new vigour for information. Kagome stammered, she didn't want to tell them about the time she spent at Sesshomaru's camp, the time that was supposed to be just for her.
"The Lord himself seemed awfully.. disheveled. Inuyasha, did you notice those stains on his yukata?" Kikyo mused, looking at Inuyasha for input. The demon blushed, blinking back at Kagome.
"S-Stains?" He mumbled, trying to comprehend the idea Kikyo was planting.
"I'm sure the great Lord of the West wouldn't walk a little miko back home for nothing." Kikyo slunk over to Kagome from the darkness, touching the tears on her yukata gingerly.
"I'm sure you gave him his.. reward." She smirked, a pallid smile crawling across her cheeks. Kagome slapped her hand away, pulling her arms over her bosom. Her wounds throbbed to the rhythm of her heartbeat as anger rose in her chest.
"You know what, screw you guys. He didn't do anything to me, and I definitely didn't put out to get a goddamn tour guide!" Kagome yelled, bitterly standing to face the undead. Kikyo threw her hands in the air, callous smile still pasted to her face.
"That's enough Kikyo! Inuyasha! Kagome just got back and you're already shooting accusations at her! Why don't you go take a walk and act like children elsewhere!" Miroku threw his hands up in defence of the miko, receiving a glare from Inuyasha.
"Keh." Inuyasha scoffed and the pair set off towards a nearby hill, leaving Kagome exasperated.
"You don't have to tell us anything until you're ready." Sango smiled knowingly at Kagome, placing her hand on her shoulder.
"Yeah! You don't worry, we'll deal with those bullies!" Shippo piped in, finally emerging from his hiding place behind the taijiya.
Kagome struggled a smile back and felt a tug in her chest. She glanced towards the forest where Sesshomaru had retreated and thought of Rin, even Jaken. They were like one happy little family, and Kagome wondered when they had become the dysfunctional ones. Wind barrelled though the forest, swaying the long, slender treetops with orange tinted leaves. She felt the wind glide right through her skin like rice paper, chilling her down to her bone. Her heart ached, suddenly missing the warmth of a happy home.
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pondering Sessho has been pondering this entire chapter! whew, ok so lots of talking *sweats* but lots of Sessho thought process and the teeniest bit of fluff!? Not gonna just throw the feels in there yet though, gotta have some resistance! Lot's set into motion here though, excited to write the next chapter! See you guys next Friday! Please review and let me know what you'd like to see happen next!
