Hi, have got to say thanks to my Beta Raphsody!
She has helped me to get my story back online.
Chapter 4 Her Determination, His Decision
After tucking Rin in, Kagome began the slow trek to her bedroom. As she did, she contemplated whether or not she would sleep in it. After the nearly violent scene in the dining room, she didn't think she was ready to face Sesshomaru just yet.
'But I'm not going to run away either.' Kagome was determined to stand her ground on the issue.
"Sesshomaru has to realize that this is a serious matter." Kagome whispered, "This is our daughter's fifth birthday!" With the last uttered syllable, Kagome reached her room, grasping the doorknob she inhaled nervously.
'Come on Kagome, you can do this. You know him, you know he'll be in his study. If he is inside, well, just ignore him. Yes, ignore him.'
With a determined expression in place, Kagome entered the lavish room with the small "click" of the golden knob. A small wave of relief washed over her when she headed the familiar sound of empty loneliness. From the dresser on the farthest wall away from the door, she pulled out a black silk nightgown and then headed to the bathroom. Locking the door behind her, Kagome quickly undressed before slipping the smooth silk nightgown over her nude body. She shivered slightly from the sensations of cool cloth against skin still heated from her miko energy. Kagome looked into the mirror and gave a small smile when seeing the vision in black before her.
After five years of marriage, Kagome was proud to claim that she hadn't aged too drastically, at least for a human. She still retained her model, hourglass figure with luscious curves daringly traced by the seductive silk. The thin spaghetti straps accentuated her slim, naturally sculpted, round shoulders. The blackness of the material on top of the smooth healthy tan made her skin look soft and warm. The lace that decorated the deep neck line brought attention to the small amount of cleavage that was subtly exposed. The rest of the gown seemed to float, clinging where it should and flowing away from her body for effect and comfort, ending around her knees. Taking out the ponytail holder, Kagome watched as her raven locks gracefully fell down in waves, caressing and hanging below her shoulders by a few inches. Her bangs ended teasingly above her sapphire gaze, Kagome couldn't help but smile. She still felt like her old self: beautiful, seductive, intelligent, dangerously sexy.
Shaking her head and laughing underneath her breath, Kagome tore her gaze away from her reflection in the mirror and reached for her tooth brush. After brushing her teeth and washing off her light make-up -light mascara and eye shadow-, she exited the restroom. Kagome came to an abrupt stop at the edge of the bed. Just as she had been about to climb into the bed, she noticed a small lump move underneath the silk sheets.
A grin spread on her face she held in a giggle, and slowly leaned over the small lump. She began to expertly and lightly tickle the side of the lump that was lying on her side of the bed. She asked mischievously as the lump began to squirm and giggle.
"Who is this in my bed?" She asked, trying her best to hide her smile and look stern and disapproving. She was failing horribly. She watched as said lump continued to giggle uncontrollably.
Not a moment later, Rin poked her head from under the sheets like a gopher peeping out of its hole. She playfully gave her mother a few over exaggerated sniffs, twitching her nose like a rabbit. Kagome, laughing, lunged onto the bed. Rin squealed in delight when seeing her mother pouncing. The little inuyoukai felt a thrill at playing with her mother. Watching as Kagome made obviously too-slow grabs for her, Rin was assaulted with the overwhelming emotions of love and admiration. Her mother was beautiful, both the on inside and out. When she successfully twisted out of her mother's grasp, Rin rolled across the silk-covered sheets and planted herself on her knees and hands. They both laughed at her position, only proceeding to laugh harder when Kagome mocked her position, taking the act further by lowering her upper body and launching her lower body up into the air. Rin couldn't stop laughing when Kagome wiggled her body, looking very much like an energetic puppy. Glancing at her mother, Rin found herself yearning to turn out just like her. She hoped to attain the same free spirit and loving personality that exuded from her. She hoped to acquire the same sense of confidence within her own abilities. She hoped to become as beautiful as her mother with long, silky raven hair, smooth complexion, and delicate features.
Rin came out of her musings when she felt her mother's strong, slim arms wrap around her securely, effectively locking her to her mother's body. The little inuyoukai gave a small yip of happiness when feeling her mother's warmth, smelling her familiar and yummy scent, and hearing her cooing words whispered gently in her sensitive ears. Rin smiled happily, sleepily, when Kagome whispered to her that she loved her. She yawned and rubbed her eyes as Kagome situated herself until she was sitting upright. Kagome placed her daughter on her lap, still holding her close. Her free hand began combing itself through Rin's hair.
"Rin, sweetheart, what are you doing out of bed?" She whispered softly. It sounded low and melodic to Rin's ears. When she thought about the reason why she was in here in the first place, Rin felt sadness swirl inside her. She shyly looked up, hoping that she wouldn't be punished.
"Rin heard you and Daddy yelling and Rin was scared and you said whenever Rin was scared, Rin can come in Mommy's room." Rin smiled at the last part. Her smile was contagious; Kagome couldn't help but smile back in return.
'No matter what mood I'm in, Rin never seems to fail on putting a smile on my face.'
Kagome replied back, hugging her closer, "And I meant it."
Pulling Rin with her under the silk covers, she began to hum her special lullaby. Rin fell into slumber quickly, lulled by her mother's singing voice. Her breathing pattern evened out – her gentle snores echoed through the room, lulling Kagome into a sense of calm that she hadn't truly felt in two years. Still humming under her breath, Kagome peered down to see that Rin was sleeping. She took her time as she examined her. Rin's childish innocence was present on her peaceful face. Her face was naturally round with baby fat, still maturing physically, running to catch up with the girl's curious, sharp mind. Her cheeks were adorably rosy from their little wrestling match, her skin was basked in a tan glow. proof that she loved to play outside. Her raven-brown hair was swept around her face like a halo. Her small lips parted with every breath she took. Her thick black eyelashes lay gently against her almost nearly invisible cheekbones.
It was at that moment that Kagome came to a decision. Proclaiming to no one else in particular but to herself, Kagome whispered in determination,
"I will not allow you to be hurt. I don't want you to know pain and if I have to get you away from your father to do that, then so be it."
With that said she turned to her other side and turned off the lamp, enveloping the whole room in a deep blackness. Turning back to her cuddling daughter, Kagome leaned over to gently kiss her forehead.
'I love you.'
She slowly drifted off into a dreamland where everything was completely different from what she grudgingly faced in reality.
The silence within the dining room was intolerable – the tension so thick that breathing felt like wreaking havoc. After Kagome's departure from the dining room, Sesshoumaru remained standing where he had been for the past half hour. On the outside, he seemed unaffected by what took place. Internally though, he was furiously raging. His fists were clenching uncontrollably. His sharp claws dug into the strong material of his inu-skin. Deep crimson, almost black blood leaked through his tightly clenched fingers. The small rivulets streamed down steadily to his down-turned knuckles before gathering on the lowest point. He didn't look down to see a few drops land on the expensive Persian carpet. His golden eyes, furious and outraged, continued to stare into a space of nothingness. His mind could be considered to be thousands of light-years away.
He felt torn by guilt and the feeling of being somewhat justified in his actions. A part of the beast in him commanded obedience, demanded submission. Kagome knew full well what his beast was like. The more powerful the beast and the youkai combined the more proud, domineering, and territorial the beast became. With him the eldest son of the Great Dog Demon, Sesshoumaru had a great case of "control freak." Yet on the other hand, he felt rightly foolish for losing control and even attempting to hurt Kagome, his wife- his soul mate. A part of him felt angry for punishing his Kagome, his sweet, caring, gentle Kagome that was a hell of a fire-spitting minx when provoked.
His stubborn pride simply wouldn't allow him to acknowledge that he was wrong.
Growling under his breath, Sesshoumaru kicked out at one of the dining chairs. The wooden chair snapped in half, with no more resistance than a toothpick. Turning away from the mess and mentally making a note to clean it before Kagome or Rin saw it, Sesshoumaru rushed up the stairs, anger obvious in every step but silent, almost calm. His sensitive ears already picked up the even breathing patterns of his wife and pup, he knew that they were asleep.
'How dare she talk to me like that!'
-Mate's upset.-
'Yes, but she doesn't understand.' Sesshoumaru argued with his inner beast. Even though he hadn't marked Kagome as his own yet, in youkai terms, the beast within already knew that she belonged to them mind, body, and soul. Sesshoumaru had never disagreed with his beast calling Kagome "mate" since the first few times they met in person.
-Make mate understand.- The beast admonished him heatedly, stubbornly. To the inu inside, it was black and white. If something was bad, make it right. If pup was unhappy, make her happy. If mate didn't understand, make her understand.
'No.' Sesshoumaru shook his head irately.
-Why?- The beast barked at him, frustrated. Sesshoumaru immediately scoffed at him. He snootily replied,
'I don't have to answer to her.'
-May lose mate and pup.- The beast whined.
Sesshoumaru was more than surprised to hear that the beast was actually whimpering. It became clear to him that the beast was truly afraid that Kagome and Rin would leave them. A surge of heated denial raced through his mind. There was no way Kagome would leave him, more less take Rin with her. The bond between them was far too great to just be cast aside so easily. Nevertheless, he reassured his troubled beast,
'No, we won't.' He was sure of it. The beast, however, was more than skeptic.
-Heard mate say she leave if we not here.- It argued, Sesshoumaru rolled his eyes. He still didn't find any real threat in Kagome's parting words.
'Hn.'
-But..- When the beast began to whine once again, Sesshoumaru finally reached his patience's end. He snapped at the beast angrily, annoyed. He successfully silenced him,
'Stop your incessant babbling! I will not change my mind!'
His beast didn't reply. Sesshoumaru wasn't sure if this was a good or a bad thing. Deciding to ignore it, he headed down the long hallway to the master bedroom, intent on 'talking' with his wife again. When he reached the door, Sesshoumaru grabbed fiercely for the golden handle. He stopped momentarily when seeing the dried blood crusted over wounds that had long ago healed, leaving nothing but unblemished skin. He felt irritation prick him. Opening the door, he readied to bellow out Kagome's name, but stopped cold. His eyes softened at the sight before him. Rin, adorably dressed in her favorite pink footed-pajamas, was cuddled up against Kagome, whom looked decidedly delicious and beautiful in her black nightgown. Both of Kagome's arms were wrapped securely around Rin and both held a soft smile on their face, symbols of pleasant dreams.
Sesshoumaru, for the first time, began reconsidering his decision. He shook his head to clear his mind of the stray, ridiculous thought. His long, silver hair rippled with the action, causing it to shimmer against the moon's enchanting rays that filtered through the large bay windows. Glancing up once again, Sesshoumaru's will hardened to match the expression of his face.
'No,' his eyes hardened exceptionally in determination, no longer warm gold but becoming a flinty copper. 'My decision is final.'
Turning his back to his girls, Sesshoumaru walked to his dresser to pick out his favorite pair of navy blue pajama bottoms. He walked briskly to the bathroom to take a shower. The temperature within the bathroom quickly skyrocketed; waves of steam billowed out from the scalding-hot water. He finished his shower in minutes and started drying himself off. He exited the bathroom after donning the pajama pants; the moon's admiring gaze outlined his broad shoulders, chiseled chest, and muscular arms. The rays danced off of his skin, adding an ethereal glow to seemingly marble skin. He looked as though beyond death or life, unreal.
Glancing at the clock that perched on the nightstand, Sesshoumaru decided that he could use a few hours of sleep before starting early for work once again. He expertly slid in between the sheets on the right side of the bed. His body automatically propelled forward to his wife and daughter's shared body warmth. He placed his head on the pillow that was partly being used by Rin. After a few minutes of staring at his girls' features, he almost hesitantly closed his eyes. Inhaling the sweet scent of cherry blossom and spring rain from his wife, as well as the gentle jasmine and forest rain of his pup, Sesshoumaru willingly drifted off to sleep.
Sometime late in the night, Rin shifted from her position in her mother's arms to her father's. The pup gave a happy, familiar smile as her subconscious acknowledged the scent that wafted up into her nose. The smell was definitely masculine. The male scent was intermixed with sandalwood, cinnamon, and tree bark. It was, without doubt, her father's unique scent.
The unexpected feeling of lost warmth nearly woke her. Kagome's face scrunched in discomfort as the chilly air of the room eagerly caressed her warm arms. Shivering, Kagome immediately followed her daughter's retreating warmth. She immediately relaxed when the front of her body touched Rin's back. A satisfied smile spread across her face. Not a moment later, Sesshoumaru's arms subconsciously found their way around Rin and Kagome, leaving Rin sandwiched in the middle. Shockingly, and somehow privately, the corners of his lips tugged upward into a happy, content smile. The family's blissful sleep was never interrupted as they all traveled together to dreamland.
-!%#^$^&&&$^%-
Awwwwww!
This was my favorite Chapter. I also introduced a new character to the story.
He will be introduced either in the next chapter or chapter 5.
Character Info:
Name: Ryu Kazuma
Age: 32 (demon age unknown)
Type: Kitsune Youkai
Mated: No, but was married: Divorced
Children: Shippo (7 years old)
Relationship with Kagome: He was a friend of hers when she was a sophomore in H.S. and he was a junior in college. They met when Kagome spilled her ice cream on his shirt. They've been friends ever since. He wanted to pursue a relationship with her but realized he'd be robbing the cradle. So he just didn't say anything. He met his wife, stopped contact, moved to America, divorced his wife due to cheating and got full custody of their son Shippo. He started his own law firm. Now has branches in America and Japan. He decides to move his headquarters to Japan. He doesn't know Kagome married since he stopped contact when Kagome was only 19.
Physical description: 6'4" lean, muscular. Wavy, long orange hair. 2 red stripes on each cheek, hip, and ankle. Gold eyes that darken due to mood. Long, bushy tail. (Shippo has similar features. Except: Eyes are forest green and no stripes on face.)
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