Some acknowledgements:

Thank you to liz for your review. I'm glad you're enjoying the story, and I always enjoy hearing from my readers.

And thank you to E. Pierce for interesting conversations. Pierce is fairly new to the site, so everyone make him feel welcome and check out "Demon in Flight".

OoOoOo

Chapter 7:

Sesshomaru settled back on the couch in Tamisé's livingroom with a sigh. He glanced over to the indoor pond, where Shippo and Rin were sitting on the edge, dabbling their hands in the water to frighten the fish.

"Rin…"

"Yes, my lord?"

"You should leave the fish be. They are not for eating."

"Yes, my lord."

Rin came away immediately and sat on the floor at his feet. She picked up the doll she had laid down and began to play with it, pretending it was a baby like Breanna.

Sesshomaru, like his brother, thought Tamisé's house was a wonder. He especially liked the diningroom, where one wall of the room had been transformed into a rock face with water trickling down in many different rivulets into a channel that ended in a small pond at one end. The other end of the channel headed in the direction of the sunken livingroom, with a small, stepped waterfall going down to the livingroom level. There the water pooled into another indoor pond, larger than the one in the diningroom. Both ponds held goldfish, the diningroom fish kept from joining the livingroom fish by a small grid at the top of the waterfall.

The livingroom itself faced the back of the house and had floor-to-ceiling windows and a huge fireplace at the opposite end of the room from the pond. Seating was low and deep, and Sesshomaru felt quite comfortable there.

Before long, the two small boys had finished their dinner and came down the stairs to the livingroom to invite Shippo and Rin to go up to Colin's playroom. The children clamoured out of the room and relative peace descended on the immediate environs.

"The children all get along well together," Tamisé commented, coming down the stairs with a mug of coffee in his hand. "Coffee, my lord?"

"What is…coffee?" Sesshomaru's nostrils expanded as they took in the tantalizing aroma. "Yes… I believe I will try some."

"So much for 'I don't eat human food'," Inuyasha muttered to Kirsten.

"I heard that, little brother," Sesshomaru said, taking the mug from Tamisé. "Typically, I don't eat human food. But Lady Cobra has explained that getting the foods I normally eat would be difficult, if not impossible. And since I can eat human food, I see no reason to starve myself, hmm? Besides, I rather enjoyed those…tacos earlier, despite the fact that they are nearly impossible to eat one-handed, as I'm sure you were aware."

Inuyasha snickered.

A small corner of Sesshomaru's mouth tipped upwards. Jaken would have immediately recognized the threat and taken cover if he had been there.

"I'm sure the stains will come out easily in the wash," Kirsten said mildly. "And at least you had something to change into."

"Hmmph."

The others drifted down into the livingroom, clutching mugs of coffee or tea. No one felt brave enough to sit beside the demon lord except Mavis.

Sesshomaru glanced down at the pretty Chinese girl. She was not at all frightened of him, nor even wary like the others. It was as if she trusted in her ability to keep him in check, or if she had…

"You did something to me – didn't you, wench?" Sesshomaru hissed in her ear. "What did you do?"

Mavis grinned and took a sip of coffee. "I put a geas on you, my lord. It keeps you from taking your temper out on us and incidentally makes you a very tractable demon. I kinda like you this way, to tell the truth."

Miroku raised an eyebrow. "You put a geas on Sesshomaru? That was taking your life in your hands, wasn't it?"

Mavis smiled at him. "I'm a mage, youngling, and don't you forget it."

"Are you sure?" Miroku's gaze was challenging. "You're awfully young."

Kirsten got up to pat Miroku's cheek. "Mavis and I are a lot older than we look, sweetie. The drug we took has kept us from aging at a normal rate. And Tam here is even older than us – but for him, that's normal."

"Should I even ask how old you are?"

Kirsten's smile was brittle. "One thing you should remember is that I hit harder than Sango."

"Let it go, Miroku," Inuyasha said. "You shouldn't ask a lady's age anyway."

"Your pardon, Lady Kirsten, if I have offended in any way."

"Apology accepted."

"I would like this geas removed," Sesshomaru stated, staring down at Mavis.

"I would like it to stay – for now," Mavis replied. "It keeps everyone safe, including yourself. I don't want to be the one who has to clean the mess up after you mistake a subway train for an attacking demon or something. Believe me, you wouldn't win that encounter."

Inuyasha laughed and told the story of his trip through the downtown streets with Sharon, and how he silly he had looked, staring down a subway grate, trying to locate the 'demon'. The story distracted the others into asking questions about the modern world, which Inuyasha did his best to answer with a good deal of humour.

OoOoOo

Mavis smiled as she glanced at the demon lord from the corner of her eye. He was staring out the car window, and trying to look deep in thought so she wouldn't know he was gawking like a tourist.

Everyone had gone out of their way to make sure that she had known how dangerous this man was. Well, he was certainly powerful – she had no doubts about that – but she thought he was less of a danger than someone like Naraku. The more she had heard about that one, the more she became convinced that the world would be a better place without him. Even though Sesshomaru had said that his path was that of conquest, she saw no evidence of him marshalling armies against the humans nor against anyone else. He had put together an army of sorts to defend his lands against invasion, but that was all, according to Myoga. But perhaps things would have been different if he had been the one to wield the Tetsusaiga.

She pulled the car into the driveway of Tayne's property and parked it where Mrs. Willard normally left it. It had been kind of the housekeeper to offer her the use of the car while she was staying there, so she wouldn't have to go through the hassle of renting one, for she did not know how long she would be staying.

Mavis watched as Sesshomaru opened the rear car door and carefully lifted out the sleeping Rin. With Rin over his shoulder like that, he looked like any father carrying his child to bed. He waited patiently as Mavis unlocked the kitchen door to let them into the house, then carried the sleeping child to her room and laid her out on her bed gently.

Jaken came waddling out of his room.

"Milord!" The imp's eyes widened as he saw that Sesshomaru was wearing modern clothes.

"Jaken. We are back."

"Yes sir. Is there anything you need?"

"A bath, Jaken. And there are some items of clothing that I have acquired that will need to be put away. The bags are in the kitchen. Have you eaten?"

"Yes, milord. Mrs. Willard made supper for us all."

Sesshomaru nodded as the imp scuttled off to start the bath.

"I think I'm for a shower myself," Mavis said, lifting her hair from the back of her neck. "It was so hot today." She trilled laughter as the demon lord eyed her warily. "Please, Sesshomaru – I have access to my own bathing facilities. I don't need yours – unless you want company."

He sucked in his breath. "Impertinent wench."

"I'll take that as 'no thanks'." She could feel his eyes on her as she ducked into her own room. He was so uptight at times and that made him fun to tease. But if she remembered correctly, his suite had an oversized tub in it, a legacy from the time that Tamisé and Zia had lived there. If Sesshomaru asked her nicely, she wouldn't be averse to sharing.

Tsk tsk, Mavis! Where did that come from?

OoOoOo

The next morning, TDN Security was treated to the sight of a demon lord's arrival on the premises.

Thorne had a couple of his people hold the main doors open, so Sesshomaru did not have to figure out how to use a revolving door. Jaken, however, was not so wise and was stuck for a few moments before Jonathan managed to get the door stopped and retrieved the imp. If he had been anyone else, Sesshomaru would have smacked his forehead in frustration at his retainer's ineptness. It took another moment to calm the imp enough to take his place once more in front of his master with the Staff of Two Heads held at the proper angle. Rin walked behind him, craning to look at all the interesting new things. Only the measured pace of Tamisé, Cobra and Inuyasha lent any dignity at all to the procession.

Thorne bowed before Sesshomaru and indicated that he should step aside to the Security Desk. The demon lord raised an eyebrow when a security guard went to pin a visitor's badge to his haori.

"I don't think that will be necessary, Salim, thank you," Tamisé said smoothly.

"Sir?"

Tamisé leaned over and said quietly, "I don't think we'll misplace him, hmm?"

Salim grinned and stepped back. "No, sir."

Rin was very happy to have a badge pinned on her by Salim, and Jaken submitted quietly as well. The group passed through the security checks and into the building proper.

Sesshomaru stopped to look around the magnificent lobby. He had never seen such grandeur before. There was a three-storey waterfall to one side, surrounded by potted trees and other greenery. There were plenty of benches spread around for people to sit. On another wall, he could see what appeared to be glass cages moving up and down, each carrying a number of people.

"What are those things?" he asked.

"They are called elevators, my lord," Kirsten replied. "They carry people from floor to floor so we don't have to walk up too many flights of stairs. This building has fifteen floors to it."

"Fifteen!"

But Sesshomaru knew that this building was not very tall, compared to some of the others that had been pointed out to him on their drive into the city proper. The architecture alone astounded him.

Kirsten led the way to an enclosed bank of elevators, and Sesshomaru was momentarily disappointed that they would not be using one of the glass cages.

"Express elevator, Cerberus, if you please," Kirsten said to the air.

"Of course, Cobra. Car seven is available for your use."

Sesshomaru looked about, but could not find the source of the voice. Inuyasha grinned at him.

"Cerberus lives under the building," Inuyasha said to his brother. "He's a machine."

"You speak of Cerberus as if he is alive. How can this be if he is a machine?"

"Cerberus is a very advanced computer, my lord," Kirsten said. "He is a semi-sentient, meaning that he is self-aware and has a very distinct personality. Cerberus has a certain amount of autonomy, but there are things he cannot do without causing himself a great deal of damage. He monitors and maintains a certain temperature throughout the building, as well as controlling lighting and things like the elevators. There are many other things he does as well."

"I see. Will I be able to see this… machine?"

"Perhaps later, my lord. Right now, we would like to have you taught our language to make communication easier."

"I understand that there is a machine that will teach me. I am not sure that I wish to submit. After all, there are enough of you that speak my language."

"Before you say no and dismiss it out of hand, " Inuyasha said, "I want you to think about this…"

Sesshomaru lifted an elegant eyebrow and waited for his brother to continue.

Inuyasha gave him a grim smile. "Think of the tactical advantage."

"Pardon?" His brother was thinking of tactics? Did he even understand the meaning of the word?

"Sesshomaru – how valuable would it be for us to be able to communicate in a language that we know no one else could possibly understand? Naraku's spies would be nearly useless to him, wouldn't they? In the battlefield, we could pass along orders, change plans, and do almost anything without the enemy knowing everything. Kirsty's been teaching me the ways her modern military communicate without words, too. They use hand signs. It looks a little funny, but it's silent and again, the enemy would have absolutely no idea what we're saying."

Sesshomaru mulled that one over for a bit. "Yes, it would certainly be an advantage. I'd like to see this in operation, Inuyasha."

"Well, you've seen part of it in action already. I can tell you're annoyed when I talk to others in English and you can't understand."

"Hmm. Very true."

"Kirsty and I can arrange a demonstration of the other things I spoke of."

Sesshomaru turned to the humans, who were waiting patiently and raised an eyebrow.

"Your brother speaks truly, sir," Kirsten said. "A demonstration can be arranged quite easily."

She turned back to the main lobby and caught the eye of one of the security guards. Sesshomaru watched as she made several signs with her hands. Before he could quite register what was happening, there was a semi-circle of guards around the elevator area, hands on the batons they carried, and looking as if they meant business.

"My lord!" Jaken cried and set the Staff for use.

"Jaken, no."

Kirsten turned to the guards. "Stand down, people. Thank you."

They waited for Tamisé's nod before fading away as silently as they had come.

"Impressive," Sesshomaru said. "Very well then. I will learn your language."

The humans respectfully inclined their heads. Kirsten led the way into the elevator that Cerberus had set aside for them.

Like his brother, Sesshomaru did not like being in such a confined space. He was forced to stand far too close to the other occupants, and their combined scents assaulted him. Rin was nervous as well, and clutched at his hand. He squeezed her fingers in what he hoped was a reassuring manner. But who was going to reassure him?

OoOoOo

An hour later, Sesshomaru put his hand to his head and grunted. Inuyasha put a hand on his shoulder.

"It will pass shortly, brother," he said. "Here, it will help if you use the new language immediately."

"I wish I had not agreed to this, Inuyasha. I do not like this feeling."

Inuyasha gave a short laugh. "I understand. I've been under this machine more times than enough, learning other things. If you think you have problems, try having Kirsty's old lover in your head."

That startled the demon lord into staring at his brother. "Pardon?"

"Some of the tapes they trained me with were supplied by Kirsty's former lover. He was a very strong personality and sometimes, I feel him inside me, like he's talking to me. It caused some problems with me and Jon, I tell you."

Sesshomaru snorted. "I dare say. You are far too familiar with your sensei, little brother. I am surprised that she permits it."

Inuyasha shrugged. "These people are all very affectionate with each other, Sesshomaru. It keeps them strong and unified. I've never seen a group of people work together the way they do. And every single one of them adores Tamisé. They'll do things for him that they wouldn't do for anyone else. He's the heart and soul of these people, Sesshomaru. Some of them were no better than bandits and beggars, but he's given them another chance and helped them to make something worthwhile of themselves. He never gives up on anyone, no matter how bad they seem."

"Oh good. Maybe we can get him to reform Naraku."

Inuyasha laughed at this. "I don't think so. Tamisé would gut him first, for all the harm he's caused innocent people. Nice thought, though."

"Hmmph. Where are we going?"

"Kirsty asked me to take you to her office while she takes Rin and Jaken to the day care. She wants to do a physical on you."

"A what?"

"She wants to examine your body to determine your general health."

Sesshomaru groaned. He remembered that during their initial conversations, Kirsten had mentioned as much and what that would entail.

Seeing his brother's expression, Inuyasha smiled. "It's not as bad as you think, Sess. There's a piece of clothing you can put on so you're not sitting there naked. That's for the mapping thingy they have. I dunno what she calls it, but you stand there naked for a few minutes while a machine scans you and makes a picture of you. Anyway, Kirsty's very good at this, but if you don't want her touching you, she'll call in Spider to do it."

"Spider?"

"Dr. Kelso. You'll get to know him really well, too. He's the one who will work most closely with Kirsty to build your arm. He's really nice, Sess. I think you'll like him."

Sesshomaru sniffed at this.

"Ah come on, Sess!" Inuyasha said jovially. "Admit that these humans aren't as pathetic and awful as you like to think."

"Well, perhaps not Lady Kirsten…"

Inuyasha laughed.

"And stop calling me Sess."

Inuyasha gave his brother a mock salute, then pointed a finger. "Just down this way, brother. Sharon should be waiting for us."

"And who is Sharon?"

"She's Kirsty's assistant. Kirsty's asked her to be one of your attendants while you're here."

"Oh joy. Another human." Sesshomaru rubbed his temple irritably, then stopped suddenly. "I have just realized, little brother… we have been speaking in this… this English all along, haven't we?"

"We have." Inuyasha grinned at him. "See how easy it is? You didn't even notice until you thought about it."

Sesshomaru sniffed once more, then began to walk down the hall again. He was impressed with the technology, but it would not do to let too many people know it. Now he was curious as to what other wonders this modern world held.

But first, he had to understand all these strange words he was hearing. As he and his brother had progressed down the hall, the staff of this strange place had been alternately staring at them and whispering. Obviously, they were not aware just how keen demon ears were, and some of the things they said came to him very clearly. Sesshomaru resolved to ask his brother about some of them. Since Inuyasha seemed so much at home here, he should know what these humans were saying, even if the words did not make much sense.

Inuyasha smiled and raised a hand towards some of the women as they passed them by. He called out to a few of them by name and they waved and smiled back at him.

Sesshomaru frowned. His brother seemed to be popular with these people, and for some reason, he found it irksome. None of them seemed to be aware that a demon lord demanded some form of obeisance, for they did not stop what they were doing to bow to him. Sesshomaru growled low in his throat in irritation and jerked his arm away from Inuyasha when his younger brother laid a hand on him.

"Sesshomaru, I know your head hurts, but don't take it out on them."

Inuyasha's voice was calm and unruffled, and Sesshomaru marveled once more at the changes that had been wrought in his hotheaded, impulsive half-brother.

"Hey, Sharon!"

Suddenly, Inuyasha was loping down the hall, forgetting any newfound dignity he had laid claim to. He stopped by a desk where a young woman had risen to her feet. They hugged each other affectionately and kissed. Sesshomaru was appalled: how did his brother's mate feel about this behaviour? Inuyasha was speaking quietly in the woman's ear and she let out an excited squeal and hugged him again.

"I'm so happy for the two of you!" she said.

Ah! His brother was telling her about his taking Kagome as his mate. Why it would matter to this female was beyond him. Inuyasha had taken her by the hand and was leading her forward.

"Sesshomaru, this is Sharon."

The woman bowed and addressed him in Japanese. "So pleased to meet you, Lord Sesshomaru. Dr. MacAllister has asked that I be one of your attendants while you are here. If there is anything you need, please let me know."

"Something for this headache would be nice," the demon lord replied.

"Unfortunately, sir, I cannot give you anything until Dr. MacAllister gives her approval. She will determine which medicines are safe for you to have." She smiled up at him. "I can get you tea, if you like, while you are waiting for the doctor."

"Tea would be nice. Green tea, if you will."

"Certainly."

Sharon headed off down the hall.

Sesshomaru raised an eyebrow at his brother. "You were certainly familiar with her. Does Kagome not object to this?"

"No. They know each other well, and Sharon helped me win Kagome as my mate. These people hug and kiss a lot, Sesshomaru. You'd better get used to it."

"I see no reason why I should, little brother. Their behaviour is appalling, sometimes. And their language is… well, some of their words make no sense at all to me – either in English or in Japanese."

Inuyasha shrugged. "Language changes over time, Sesshomaru. Slang terms arise as well. Modern Japanese sometimes sounds like nothing you and I are used to. But meanings become clearer as you get used to it."

"Then perhaps you can explain some of it to me."

"I'll try." Inuyasha opened the door to a room and ushered his brother inside. "We can wait in here for Sharon to bring your tea."

Sesshomaru looked around the strange room. He did not understand any of the equipment he saw, and half the furniture was strange as well. Inuyasha seemed quite at home here, although Sesshomaru noticed that he was very careful about what he touched. He pulled out a comfortable-looking chair for Sesshomaru to sit on, while he perched himself on a table and began to swing his feet.

"So what confused you?"

"Eh?"

"What words did you hear that confused you?"

"Oh." Sesshomaru seated himself in the chair he had been offered. "I heard someone say that they had to 'reboot' something, but they were not carrying any footwear. And they had some interesting terms they directed at the two of us."

Inuyasha folded his arms. "Yeah?"

"You shall have to explain to me what a 'hottie' is."

Inuyasha smiled broadly. "That means an attractive person."

"Oh. So you and I are considered attractive by these humans."

"Many of them think so, yes. Wait until you meet some of the female warriors, Sess. One of them is bound to call you a studmuffin."

"A what? I understand what a stud is, little brother. But what is a muffin?"

And because timing is everything, Sharon chose that moment to come into the room bearing a tray.

"Did someone say muffins?"

OoOoOo

Oh come on! You have to admit it was a pretty good lead-in!

Apple'n'Spice Muffins

2 cups all-purpose flour

1/3 cup packed brown sugar

1 ½ tsp baking powder

1 ½ tsp baking soda

1 tsp cinnamon

½ tsp salt

¼ tsp nutmeg (optional)

1 cup chopped peeled apple

1 egg, lightly beaten

1 cup milk

3 tbsp butter, melted

In large bowl, combine flour, sugar, baking powder, baking soda, cinnamon, salt and nutmeg. Combine apple, egg, milk and butter; add to dry ingredients, stirring just until combined, but not overmixed.

Spoon into lightly greased or paper-lined muffin cups, filling almost to top. Bake in 400°F (200°C) oven for 15 to 18 minutes or until golden and tops are firm to the touch. Makes 12 muffins.