Separation

Kazuto and Chiyo sat next to each other in the airport, awaiting their flight. Kazuto was enjoying finding reasons to touch her. When they walked through the terminal he kept a hand at the small of her back. He patted her leg a few times experimentally, as if to comfort her. She didn't need much comforting, though. Kazuto wondered if it was just his ego, but she seemed to have gotten more beautiful since he'd held her hand possessively as they left his apartment. She was beaming, blushing, and leaning towards him. She closed her eyes for a few moments, leaning her head on his shoulder. He rested his own head on top of hers and warmth seemed to flood between them.

They didn't talk much. Chiyo, usually a chatterbox by any standard, was quiet. But it was a companionable silence. She pulled her feet up onto the seat and turned toward him. He dared a kiss to her forehead, and she cuddled into him.

"I missed you," She finally said, quietly.

"...I missed you too," He said after a moment. Chiyo sighed.

"Will you stay?" She asked. Kazuto hesitated. What would that mean? Chiyo sensed his hesitation and sat up, eying him warily. "Kazuto, what is it?"

He knew what she was really asking, but he wasn't sure if he should answer. Then again, it felt great to admit to himself how much he cared about her. Would it be so bad to admit it to her? But really, Chiyo herself hadn't been the problem….

"Uh," He started, rubbing the back of his neck uncomfortably. "Your dad."

"My dad." She repeated flatly.

"Yeah."

"My dad is the problem."

"Yeah."

"What did he do?"

"Ummm, he might have threatened me."

"Threatened to do what?" Chiyo seemed astonished.

The taiyoukai's actual threat had involved removing key parts of Kazuto's body, starting with his remaining ear and ending between his legs. Kazuto thought it might not be best to quote.

"Uh," He said, thinking hard. "Grievous bodily harm."

Chiyo blinked at him, wide-eyed. "What? Why?"

Kazuto shifted. This conversation was moving a little more quickly than he'd thought it would. Was an airport the best place to say, I've been fantasizing about you for years? Probably not.

"Can we talk about this later?" He said finally.

"Don't I need to know?" Chiyo asked. "After all, I am going to be the one running interference between you two."

"Chiyo, your dad's very protective." Kazuto said. "And, you know...this.." He motioned between the two of them. "He isn't going to like."

Chiyo reddened a little bit but didn't back down.

"Well he can just get over it, because whatever this…is..." She copied Kazuto's movement, "I like it and I don't want it to stop."

Kazuto couldn't suppress a small grin at her admission.

"So…." She continued. "What is this?"

Kazuto's grin faded. Why couldn't they have left it at that? Talking about his feelings before boarding a twenty-hour flight? With Chiyo? What if she didn't feel the same way? And they'd be trapped in excruciatingly awkward silences for hours on end...on a fucking plane.

Of course, she did just kind of say she felt the same way.

What if she only just now started to like him? What if he admitted to wanting her for years and she got scared?

"KAZUTO!"

"Shit. What?" Kazuto flinched at the sound of his own name. Chiyo had basically barked it in his ear.

"You were doing that thing you do," She said. "Thinking too hard and freaking out."

"I do not do that!" Kazuto said indignantly. Chiyo just laughed.

"Chill out," She said. "You don't have to say anything. I don't want to freak you out."

"I was the one worried about freaking you out," Kazuto grumbled, slumping in his chair.

"Well, you're not going to freak me out. I think I know what's going on...I guess I just wanted to hear you say it."

"I'm not saying anything now." Kazuto said grumpily.

"Ok, I won't say anything either," Chiyo said. Instead she leaned over and kissed him.

It was a short kiss, and awkward due to their positions in the chairs. But her lips her warm and a little wet, and Kazuto scrambled to sit up higher in his chair so he could kiss her back properly. He reached for her, and got a hold of her narrow waist. She gasped a little when his fingers snuck under her shirt to touch her bare skin. Her scent surrounded him, and he couldn't stop himself from deepening the kiss, slipping his tongue into her mouth for an experimental taste. She was amazing, she was delicious, and he decided to hell with people watching and reached to try and pull her right into his lap.

Before he could get her there, though, she'd sat back, staring at him with a flushed and nervous look. She was biting her lower lip. Kazuto's mouth was hanging open; he knew he must look like a total moron but he couldn't help it. Desire for her surged through him, and she blushed, no doubt catching the scent. Kazuto knew the jig was up. What else was there to do? There was no way he was boarding a plane with her in this condition.

"Stay with me," He said, his voice hoarse. Her eyes widened a little bit. "Come back to the apartment with me. We can fly home tomorrow. Or the next day."

Chiyo's blush was brilliant, but she smiled shyly and nodded. Kazuto took her hand firmly in his own, anxious to get her back to his place, back to where she was free to drop her concealment spell because he could think of all sorts of things he wanted her tail wrapped around.

It had been a long time since he'd been with a woman, and honestly this was the only woman he'd ever really wanted to be with.

Sesshomaru would not be happy, but right now Kazuto couldn't really bring himself to care. Chiyo was currently wrapped around his arm, smiling broadly as they made their way back through the terminal. The sight of her made him smile just as broadly, and he couldn't stop himself from chuckling. She looked at him curiously.

"What?" She asked.

"You," He said. "You look like the cat that ate the canary. Did you have this planned the whole time?"

She flushed a little bit again, but tossed her hair proudly.

"Maybe," She said, a little haughtily, "Although I didn't imagine it would take getting you all the way to the airport to realize it."

Kazuto thought about this for a second, brow furrowed.

"What…" He said slowly, putting two and two together, "Are you saying you were trying to seduce me last night?"

"I figured wearing your T-shirt and groping you all night would have been enough, but apparently my seduction skills are no match for your self control."

Kazuto laughed merrily, delighted all over again by the memory of her in his shirt.

"Don't worry," He said, smiling, "I'll get you back in that shirt in no time."

She stiffened a little bit, just enough for him to notice and glance at her. She suddenly smelled nervous, more nervous than she should have been given her boldness just a few moments ago.

"What is it?" He said, suddenly mortified that he'd made an assumption about where they were headed. Had she not realized what he meant when he asked her to go back with him? Apparently not, because she was obviously uncomfortable.

"Chiyo…." He began, "I'm sorry, I thought….."

"No, it's okay. I didn't...did you….do you…" She pulled him to the side of the terminal to get some more privacy. They stood behind a large plant. "Did you want me to come back to…..what did you want to do?"

Kazuto felt acutely embarrassed with himself now that she was asking him to say it out loud. He stammered for a moment.

"I wanted to...I'm fine with whatever," He said nervously. "I mean, you were just saying you were trying to….we could…" He shook his head, trying to clear it. "Chiyo," He said, pitching his voice even lower. "I wanted to take you back to my apartment and make love to you."

Chiyo nodded, gulping slightly.

"That isn't what you wanted?" Kazuto asked gently.

"No, it's….it is….I just….." She was blushing again, and looking around nervously. "Kaz, I haven't...I've never…" She stamped her foot, as though getting irritated with herself. "I was waiting for you!" She finally said, huffing.

Kazuto understood, and although he was pleased to hear that she hadn't given herself to some other man, he was suddenly just as nervous as she was.

"It's okay," He heard himself saying. "I don't mind...if you want to just go home...I can wait."

"I don't want to wait," Chiyo said. "I want it to be you. I'm just nervous." She smiled shakily. "Go easy on me, okay?"

Kazuto pulled her into his arms and buried his face in her sweet-smelling hair. He considered turning her down. Perhaps it was wrong? Her father would kill him, of that he had no doubt. Once Kazuto slept with Chiyo, she would never smell quite the same. Any demon would recognize it. Could he be her first? She wasn't his first. That dubious honor had been granted to a persistent brunette a few years his senior. Since then he'd had a few lovers, mostly human, but none had stayed around long enough for any real attachment. He'd never slept with a virgin before, and certainly no one he cared about as much as Chiyo.

"Kaz, stop thinking about it so much," He heard Chiyo say.

"What?" Kazuto said, pulled out of his reverie.

"Stop thinking about it…." She said again.

"I'm not doing that thing I do!" Kazuto protested. But Chiyo only turned red.

"You've got a….I mean we at least need to get out of the terminal before…."

Shit.

Shit shit shit.

"Sorry…" Kazuto said, turning red and adjusting himself to try to make it less conspicuous. He was usually much more controlled than this!

Chiyo smiled sheepishly and patted his arm.

"It's fine. I'll just step into the ladies room and you can...calm down. Then we'll go home and take it slow, okay?"

"Of course...okay. As slow as you want," Kazuto said quickly, "Don't feel like you have to….I'm not, aww fuck."

"Just cool it for a minute," Chiyo said, smiling fondly at him. "When I come back we'll go home and sort it all out. No worries okay?"

"No worries."

Chiyo disappeared around the corner to the ladies room, and Kazuto stayed behind the plant for a few minutes thinking of baseball and cold showers. He calmed down enough to step back into the terminal and chanced a trip down to a kiosk to ask about whether or not their checked luggage could be pulled off the plane, dropping the Taisho name for good measure. A few minutes later a harried flight attendant arrived with their bags and Kazuto wondered at Chiyo's ability to have people wrapped around her finger.

When she hadn't emerged even after the bags arrived, Kazuto began to get worried. He shouldered both bags and went back to the ladies room to wait for her. Was she feeling sick? God. Maybe the thought of getting intimate with him was literally making her sick.

As he waited, considering whether or not to ask a female passer by for help checking on Chiyo, a feather floated down into his vision. He reached out and caught it, a memory stirring in the back of his mind. Feathers always made him uneasy...

A gust of wind burst through the doors of the women's bathroom, accompanied by a scream. It wasn't Chiyo's voice screaming though.

Heart in his throat, Kazuto dropped the bags and burst into the bathroom, which was clear of people save for two figures in the back. Chiyo was on her knees, choking and sputtering. The scent of her fear rolled off of her in waves, so potent that it was overwhelming even to Kazuto's panther-demon senses.

A woman stood over her, and Kazuto thought he knew who it might be. She was tall and thin, dressed in magenta and white, with jade earrings. Her hair was in a tight bun and when she looked back at him with scarlet red eyes, his worst fear was confirmed.

The wind witch.

Apparently she had just released Chiyo from a choke hold. Kazuto could tell why; Kagura's arm was laced with the burns from the acid whip.

With a snarl Kazuto leapt towards Kagura, who dodged him easily. That didn't bother him since it brought him closer to Chiyo. He stood in between her and the witch. Damn the fucking airport! He didn't have his guns or any of his weapons! He cracked his knuckles and shook off his concealment spell to reveal his claws, which he always kept sharp.

"How sweet!" Kagura's voice rang out in the empty bathroom. "Kitty wants to play."

"Get the fuck out of here," Kazuto snarled. "And I might let you live."

"Oh I have no intention of leaving, or dying." Kagura said. "Naraku wants this tasty morsel and I'm honor bound to bring her to him." She whipped out a fan; it glinted threateningly in the dim light.

"I thought you had left Naraku."

"Ah, well," Kagura sighed theatrically, "It was a vacation long overdue, but unfortunately, I can never truly leave him, since we are two parts of the same person."

"My father…" Chiyo choked in a hoarse voice, "Should have killed you long ago…"

Kazuto bent down closer to Chiyo, seeing that Kagura wasn't immediately attacking. She was shaking and white as a sheet, but her grip on his arms was strong as he lifted her up.

"Get out of the way," Kazuto said. "We have a plane to catch."

"I'm afraid you don't." Kagura said sadly. "I don't know who you are, munchkin, but I've tracked this girl from halfway across the world and she's finally landed right where I can get her-"

Before she was even done talking she'd flicked the fan, and Kazuto felt cuts open up all over his body. Blood spurted from his arms and neck and he gasped, knees buckling. Chiyo screamed and sent an acid whip towards Kagura, who hissed when it came into contact with her arm again.

"So rude!" She said. "I'm going to have to put you down-"

But Kazuto was up, stepping around Chiyo to launch himself at Kagura. In close range, he swiped with his claws and kicked mercilessly. She dodged some and took damage from others. He bashed her head into a sink, water gushing everywhere. She sliced his middle open so deep he thought he would bleed out before they were done. Chiyo screamed at the sight of so much blood.

"No, stop! Don't hurt him!" She was crying. Kazuto wanted to tell her that it was okay; he would heal quickly, until he realized why she was yelling.

Two more demons had joined the fray. They were huge, overpowered full demons. Maybe boar demons? Kazuto couldn't be sure. He dropped back towards Chiyo at the sight of them, knowing now that they would just try to separate him from her. She gripped his waist from behind.

"Kaz," She sobbed. "Get out of here. They'll kill you. He wants me alive."

"Fuck no." Kazuto responded, cracking his knuckles. "Stay behind me."

The two burly demons advanced, and Kazuto feinted enough to fool one and land a swipe of the claws. Then both had moved in, and Kazuto was moving faster than he'd ever moved to keep them both occupied and away from Chiyo. He wasn't aware of his breathing, his heart beating, or the sirens outside. He blocked blows and dug claws into any spot of flesh he could find. But he was losing. Each time he missed a block he was hit with what felt like cement bricks. His vision was fading and he couldn't hear well. Blood was pouring out of him, and Kagura was laughing. Chiyo was crying, yelling his name.

Kazuto seemed to slip in and out of awareness. At once he noticed he was only fighting one demon, and turned in horror to find Chiyo, only to realize that she'd basically incinerated the other with acid. She looked like she might faint. Using so much acid was a drain on her body, he knew.

Kazuto landing a killing blow to the jugular, and felled the demon. He stumbled back to where Chiyo lay on the tile floor, lifting her up.

"Chiyo," He said. "Stay with me,"

"I'm here," She said, although her eyes were nearly rolling back into her head.

"I've got you, I've got you," Kazuto said over and over, blood dripping from his face onto hers. He turned to look at Kagura advancing. He gathered Chiyo up in his arms and leapt, attempting to get around the wind witch, but she wasn't called the wind witch for nothing.

Kazuto's head smacked into the mirror and when he woke, he was relatively healed but Chiyo was gone.