Disclaimer: All things Inuyasha goes to the one and only Rumiko Takahashi.
CHAPTER 8
Inuyasha was stupefied, to say the least. How was one supposed to react when a demon licks your hand? He'd expected just a small questionnaire on how he cut himself. Not this. They'd only just gotten started with their training and it a matter of minutes it turned into...something else.
Sesshomaru wasn't lapping at his hand, he started from the side of it, over the cut, to the area between his thumb and index finger. His tongue was flat, surprisingly soft, and he licked in one smooth line.
He'd heard Sesshomaru's explanation behind it but it went in one ear and out the other. It wasn't that easy to concentrate on his words when his actions were blurring them out. He did hear him basically say that this was normal? If that was the case, then every time he was hurt he'd have to get Sesshomaru to lick him back to health. Inuyasha didn't think that he'd be able to deal with that, he'd be better off letting his injuries heal over time.
As Sesshomaru was examining his hand, time seemed to move in slow motion from there. Which almost happened a lot when he was around the demon. And in that frame, he still wasn't able to figure out what exactly he was going to do. Better yet, once Sesshomaru was finished, what exactly was he going to say?
Thanks, I know what to do next time?
And to make it worse, his mind had wandered into the more risque part of his brain.
Sesshomaru retracted his tongue and wiped his thumb across his lips to get rid of any excess saliva. Small, white bubbles began appearing inside the cut letting him know that Inuyasha's body was working overtime to heal it. He let go of the hand and let it fall to the side.
"Take a two-minute water break. Give it enough time to close and we will move on to the focus mitts," Sesshomaru said and walked past him.
For some reason, the half-demon looked as if he was taken aback. It was an Inu custom to heal the wounds of the pack until they reached the age that their saliva was strong enough. Then they would be able to do it on their own. It was rare that a half-demon would be a part of the pack, but even still they would have to get treated. Inuyasha wasn't a part of his pack but as Inu to lesser Inu, he would do onto him this one favor.
Why was he acting as if he'd never done it before?
Sesshomaru remembered sensing Inuyasha's parents at his house last night but he didn't pay much attention as to who was human and who was the demon. Certainly, whomever it was, being Alpha, treated the half-demon's injuries as a child. No? It really didn't matter. He just didn't want Inuyasha's blood to ruin his equipment.
Sesshomaru walked towards the back wall where the pen was and pulled it out from its place. Behind it was a door and once opened, it revealed a small office. Its wooden walls shelved with different trophies and pictures of different fighters. An organized brown desk sat in the middle and a bookcase was behind it. A file cabinet was to the left of the desk and a wooden stool was in front of it. Sesshomaru leaned down and reached for the bottom drawer of the desk. He pulled out a vanilla folder, and measuring tape setting it on the desk.
He exited the office but grabbed two focus mitts from the pen before heading back over to the half-demon. Which he noticed was still standing in the same spot, staring at his hand. Sesshomaru put the mitts on as he took his stood in front of Inuyasha.
"Dehydration does horrible things to the body and mind. You must drink water in-between rounds," Sesshomaru advised the red-faced Inuyasha.
Not caring or wondering why he was blushing Sesshomaru raised his mitten covered hands. Without warning, he swung the mitt out and around to hit Inuyasha on the side of his head. Hard. This broke whatever trance the half-demon was in as he fell onto the mat holding his head.
"What the hell is wrong with you?!" Inuyasha yelped.
"Pay attention or leave. Choose wisely," Sesshomaru spoke, his hands still raised. "Watch your language."
"You could've given me a mini concussion!"
"If you are going to cry like a bitch, the door is behind you."
Sesshomaru almost smirked as anger visibly formed on Inuyasha's face. "Asshole," he grunted as he came at Sesshomaru fist first.
Sesshomaru had already gathered that Inuyasha was hot-tempered from when they first met. Gaining a reaction from him couldn't be easier. Dodging his punches was even easier.
Sesshomaru side stepped each of Inuyasha's fists and struck him on the side of his head with the mitt, thus making him angrier. Making snide comments like "weak" and "too slow" didn't help the situation either. He noted that Inuyasha failed to assume the fighting stance that he was taught and the basic jab/cross. Sesshomaru blocked another fist and sent a low round kick to Inuyasha's calf. The half-demon fell sideways with a thump.
Inuyasha was out of breath and his irritated frown turned became a look of defeat. It almost looked like he was on the verge of tears.
"You know what? I don't care! You can say that I'm some weak half-breed just like everyone else." Inuyasha snapped. "I came here in order to change that but if you're not gonna help me, I ain't gonna beg. I'm outta here."
Sesshomaru took off his mitts and went to put them in the pen as Inuyasha went about crawling in the direction of the door.
"You care far too much about what others think and say about you. Why?" Sesshomaru asked.
Inuyasha ignored him and continued to crawl.
"Exactly what will you change? You can change the way you act or even how you speak. But you can't change who and what you are". Sesshomaru folded his arms and leaned against the pen. "Why is it so easy for others to make you question that?"
Inuyasha paused and slowly sat back on his heels.
"That's not what I meant," he said. "But, problem is, I don't really know who I am, what I am. When others call me "half-breed" they're saying that my demon side is so weak that I may as well be all human. And because of my ignorance, I can't tell them that they're wrong. I come from a home with a single mom who is human through and through so being human is all I know. I feel like maybe if I stuck around, I could find myself through you."
Sesshomaru sighed. What was he going to do with this kid? He would not take the role of alpha in his life, he was his master at the dojo and someone he'd made eye contact with at school. There was no in between and he'd like to keep it that way. Inuyasha has problems at home and mental issues that Sesshomaru refused to allow disrupt the inner peace of the dojo. He should've kept his questions to himself.
"I never called you a half-breed but why must it be me? You have a human mother who has laid with an Inu and yet you don't know anything about them? Your father is not in your life, well then find some way to contact him." Sesshomaru couldn't think of any other students in his class that gives him more problems than Inuyasha had.
"Oh, I guess I left that part out. My mom isn't single by choice. My father died when I was born…"
This just keeps getting better and better.
"…She doesn't like to talk about him at all. I don't know anyone on his side of the family and as far as I know, my mom doesn't have any living relatives on her side of the family. It's just been me and her for as long as I can remember."
Sesshomaru did pity the half-demon and would agree that most of his problems stem from his life at home. However, that doesn't make it fair for Inuyasha to push his problems on someone else. Sesshomaru was a very private person. He didn't bother with small talk, he kept his personal life to himself, and he mostly did things alone. He wasn't one to go out of his way for people and he was perfectly fine with being by his lonesome. Though he was older and much more mature so he could handle things better than Inuyasha probably could. Perhaps, he was being too cold. He sighed again.
"Get up and come into my office," Sesshomaru walked into the office and sat at his desk. He almost rolled his eyes as Inuyasha came in a few seconds later with an idiotic grin on his face. He sat down on the chair and Sesshomaru saw that he had a folder in his hand.
"What is that?"
Inuyasha hesitated for a moment before handing to him. "Don't look inside until I leave," he said.
Sesshomaru took the folder and slid it in one of the drawers before bringing his attention to the folder in front of him.
"I mentioned before that you would need to fill out some paperwork to join the class," He pulled out a form and a packet, "We'll go over it together, you sign it, take it home and have your parent sign it. Then I'll measure you and put in an order for your gear. It'll be here by sometime next week but for now, come in the same attire as you have today."
"Ok," Inuyasha nodded.
After going over the last page of the packet with Inuyasha chicken scratching his name at the bottom, Sesshomaru tucked the packet back into the vanilla folder. He came around the desk with the tape hanging from his hands.
"Stand and face me."
Sesshomaru loosely wrapped the tape around Inuyasha's head.
"Put your arms up." As Sesshomaru moved in to wrap the tape around his body, he noticed Inuyasha frowned and his breathing picked up. Sesshomaru moved the tape down to Inuyasha's waist. When he was about to bring his hands together, Inuyasha slapped them away.
"No! Stop! What are you doing?" Inuyasha took a step back with his hands raised to block Sesshomaru from coming any closer.
This time Sesshomaru did roll his eyes. "Idiot. I'm clearly measuring your waist." Sesshomaru held up the tape up and took a step forward.
"No!" Inuyasha let out again. "I'm not stupid. I can do it myself." He put his hand out and when Sesshomaru held it out to him, he snatched it.
Sesshomaru scoffed, "Don't flatter yourself. You're too young for me."
On the form, he wrote down the measurements for Inuyasha's head and chest.
A/N: Reviews are the bomb!
