So, it's been more than half a year since I have updated this story. There are a few reasons why I haven't written a new chapter for 'Till The World Stops Turning' in such a long time, the main one being that I got irritated with its perspective. For a while I have wondered if I should just rewrite the whole story, but I decided against it in the end.
Though, I still chose to change the POV of this story.
Another problem I have with this story is that I'm unsure about how I should continue it. Originally, I planned for Shizuka to still be a child when canon started. This story was never meant to be especially plot heavy when it came to changing the canon events. Its original purpose was world building and showing how Shizuka's presence could affect the lives of the canon characters.
Some of you have pointed out that this course of action might get boring very quickly and I fear that you might be right. The problem is that despite that, I would still prefer to follow my original plan.
I don't know, perhaps some of you might share your opinions about this with me in a PM or review. That would be helpful.
The last thing I want to say is that 'Till The World Stops Turning' was never meant to be an especially long fic. At the begining I had planned for it to have only a little bit over ten chapters, though I have come to realize that it will probably end up being much longer. Still, I will try keeping it as short as possible. Perhaps that way things won't get too tedious.
Please leave a review.
Beta: Silimaira
Rating for this chapter: K
Summary: Misplaced somewhere I did not belong to, in a body that should have never been mine, I could only wait for the world to finally stop turning. [SI, Self-Insert/OC-Insert as Sesshomaru's daughter.
Enjoy.
Till The World Stops Turning
Chapter 10
Growing Pains
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Where They Moved On
"Nothing is so painful to the human mind as a great and sudden change."
― Mary Wollstonecraft Shelley, Frankenstein
Year 2 Day 9
They spent a few more days with Shizuka's grandmother until her father finally decided that the time had come for them to leave. The reasoning he gave Inukimi for their departure was something about patrols and keeping the lands safe, but neither his mother nor his daughter were fully convinced.
Personally, Shizuka thought that the servants had managed to irritate her father enough so that if he did not leave soon, he would slaughter half of the household. She could not even blame him for this. The small girl herself only came to like a handful of the servants she had met during the stay in her family home.
Shizuka was actually really happy about the fact that they were finally leaving. She would miss her grandmother and perhaps even Mayuri, but that was it.
Still, she tried to keep the huge grin that was slowly forcing itself across her lips from appearing on her face. Inukimi had been a wonderful host and an even better grandmother, so she deserved some restraint from Shizuka.
''You will visit again soon, Sesshomaru,'' said Inukimi as she regarded her son sternly. Then her gaze moved towards Shizuka and softened visibly. ''Pester your father until he agrees to come and see your lonely grandmother.''
The child's lips twitched as she heard the dramatic voice Inukimi used. ''I will, Obaa-sama.''
In a year or so she would certainly ask her father to visit their only other family member. Until then, she would take a rest from the overbearing presence of all the servants.
''Good.'' The woman nodded her head and continued speaking, ''Now, before you leave, I have something for both of you.''
Shizuka smiled brightly. ''A present?''
''Yes, a present.'' Laughing delicately, Inukimi pointed in the direction of the stables. ''Jaken is currently helping the other servants saddle and prepare the dragon you liked so much, little pup. I have also made sure to pack a a few necessities you might need during your travels.
Wide and happy eyes stared up at the older woman. Shizuka could not stop herself from letting out a squeal of happiness. ''Really? Thank you, Obaa-sama!''
The older woman had literally given her a dragon. Inukimi truly was the best grandmother in the world.
''I'm glad you like it.'' She patted the girl's hair. ''As for you, my son, for you I've gotten something a little more special. I have been waiting for a while now for you to be ready to receive it and I had not actually thought that the right moment would come any time soon. You've surprised me.''
Turning towards one of the servants, Inukimi took the object the lizard demon was holding out to her. It was rather long and covered by a silky sheet that did nothing to hinder Shizuka from figuring out what it was.
From what she guessed it had to be some sort of weapon, a sword most likely.
There was something rather sad in Inukimi's eyes once she turned towards her son. ''This is the inheritance your father has left you. The Tenseiga. Supposedly, it can bring a hundred beings back to life with just one swing. At the same time, the blade can hurt no living being.''
And wasn't that shocking; a sword that could defy death.
Shizuka watched her father frown in distaste for just a moment. His gaze strayed from the gift as the little girl grabbed a hold of his hakama.
It was curious, the way his expression immediately shifted to one of acceptance once his eyes fell upon her. Sesshomaru reached out to take the sword from his mother's hands. ''I am honored, Haha-ue.''
(...and the thing was, that Sesshomaru truly was honored...
...
...in another life, the demon might have regarded this sword as a grave insult to his person...
...
...
...but in this life, it took him just a second to come back to his senses and see the true use of this gift...
...
...it took just a look at his fragile daughter and the way her tiny hands clutched his hakama in search of comfort for him to realize how easily her life could be ended and thus what a blessing this sword could turn out to be in the future...)
Year 2 Day 97
It started with an itch.
Her legs and arms tickled uncomfortably from time to time and not even her sharp claws managed to diminish the unpleasant sensation. Scratches marred her skin and only grew more prominent as the periods of reprieve lessened.
She was fortunate enough to have advanced demonic healing, otherwise the injuries on her body might have been more severe. As it was, most of them healed within minutes or a few hours at most.
Shizuka's father did not seem to be worried at all which was both a consolation and irritation.
Asking him about what was wrong with her did not help at all. He just patted her head softly and told her to be patient.
Having no other choice, the toddler tried following his instruction, but that became practically impossible when in addition to the itching, her body started burning up. At first she thought that it was a fever, however, none of the usual symptoms accompanied it. No headaches. No nausea. No shivering. The young demon wasn't even cold for one second. The contrary occurred, actually.
Warmth spread over her whole body and caused sweat to gather on her forehead. Her cheeks flushed red and so did the other parts of her skin. Bathing in the cool lake did not do her any good. Even there the warmth continued spreading through her insides, though washing the sweat off her skin was still nice.
''Chichi-ue,'' she began, twisting a strand of hair with her fingers. ''What going on with me?''
Opening his golden eyes, the older demon hummed softly. ''Soon, Shizuka, soon you are going to find out.''
Soon, as it turned out, just so happened to be only a few hours later. Once the sun set, her father forced her to leave the shallow water. The nights were cold this time of the year and although demons rarely got sick, it was still a possibility. Especially for children as young as Shizuka.
By the time she was dressed and ready for sleep, Jaken had already prepared her dinner. The meal consisted of a few fruits and some fresh meat Sesshomaru had procured for her. While the meat wasn't of demonic nature, it still tasted pretty good. From what she guessed, it seemed to come from a duck.
The girl had always liked eating duck meat, even when she wasn't Shizuka.
Sometimes, it was very comforting to notice that not everything had changed. To notice that she was as much Shizuka as she was Miori Anderson.
Wiping some sweat from her brow, the girl lowered herself onto soft furs. Because of how uncomfortable she felt, the young demon did not even try lying down to sleep. She knew that the blissful numbness of sleep would probably elude her for most of if not the entire night once again. For the last few days Shizuka had not slept well.
At the begining of this rather unfortunate situation, the young child had still been able to find some solace once the sun set. Her fragile body wasn't accustomed to staying awake for longer periods of time, not even a slightly irritating itch had been capable of changing that.
But then that itch had changed into a fiery burning and Shizuka suddenly found herself completely restless and practically ready to burst into tears.
The fact that her father seemed to regard her condition as some secret rite of passage did not help at all. Thankfully, he did not leave her alone, although he did not do anything helpful either.
Turning tearful eyes towards her father, Shizuka bit her lip nervously and accidentally broke her skin with one of her canines. They seemed to have gotten sharper in the last few days. As she felt a few droplets of blood gathering on her lips, the young girl reached upward to wipe them away. For once she did not care about the fact that she was staining her kimono irreparably.
She just could not bring herself to care about anything but the worsening sensations plaguing her body. ''Chichi-ue, can't you do something?''
''You just have to wait, Shizuka,'' he answered neutrally, his eyes never straying from the sword in his lap. He was sharpening it with a whetstone, his whole concentration on it.
And suddenly...
...
...suddenly Shizuka felt incredibly angry. She had been suffering from whatever was happening for the last few days and her father did not even deign to tell her what was going on. The man just continued watching over her almost impassively and it was this impassivity that caused rage to well up inside her chest.
Before the girl knew what was happening, a low growl escaped her lips. Normally she would have never acted in such a way towards her father, but at this very moment Shizuka could not control herself. Her whole body was trembling due to her anger and even more growls escaped her mouth.
Sesshomaru looked up from his weapon, his gaze narrowing and zeroing on her face. There was a warning in his eyes, though his lips seemed to turn up in minuscule amusement. It was as if he could not decided whether he should be disapproving of her disrespect or amused by her overall behavior.
This only infuriated her even more.
Incredibly sharp claws dug into her palms, making blood trickle onto the grass bellow. Had she been in her right mind, then Shizuka might have noticed the way the plants sizzled once they made contact with her blood. She might have noticed that the poison that was normally contained in her claws had spread into her blood.
She did not notice, of course, and took a step forward to...
...
...what exactly? Attack her father?
What a joke.
Fortunately, though that was probably a matter of perspective, Shizuka did not manage to get too far as her body suddenly started to literally glow. Softly at first and then hard enough to blind her. The burning intensified impossibly and the small child fell forward onto her knees. Squeezing her eyes shut, she felt the wind blow around her violently.
When she almost felt ready to scream, Shizuka felt her father's aura brush over her skin. It seemed to be urging her to do something. While Shizuka herself had no idea what exactly that something was, her body and instincts did.
What happened next wasn't something she could properly describe. Her body seemed to almost ripple and her breath caught in her throat. Almost impossibly, her vision sharpened and then Shizuka wasn't standing on two legs anymore but four.
Admittedly, what she was doing certainly could not be called standing. It was more along the lines of being sprawled across the ground.
Turning her head to the side, Shizuka focused her eyes on her father, only to realize that she was taller than him. Panicked, she gazed down at her feet and came upon the sight of two fluffy paws.
She was a dog. She was a freaking dog.
Although this should not have surprised her - Shizuka had been expecting this for a while now - the girl still found herself completely flummoxed.
She pushed herself ungracefully onto her feet, no, paws, only to lose her balance and drop onto her side. Her limbs weren't working properly and she ended up incapable of even straightening herself.
A whine escaped her snout as she struggled to roll herself onto her stomach. It was a pitiful attempt that did not yield any results.
This certainly wasn't how she planned to spend her evening.
When help finally came in the form of a strong jaw with incredibly sharp teeth grabbing her neck, the small girl did not know whether she should holler in happiness or cry out in fright. As it was, she froze in place until her father finished helping her stand on her legs and let go of her. He continued supporting her with his snout - even while she was in this form, his head was still several times larger than her whole body. - until she finally managed to catch her balance.
Embarrassingly, Shizuka yipped happily. The sound was high in pitch and more than a little inhuman.
Sesshomaru rumbled approvingly and nudged her softly to show the girl that she should try moving. The sad thing was that this nudge was enough to once again send her toppling onto her furry side.
Shizuka was decidedly not amused.