An Unexpected Spring

Chapter Ten

My mother once told me that procrastination is opportunity's assassin and for the most part, I took it to heart.

Still, it was hard to apply her gentle words of guidance as I made my way towards Sesshomaru's study. Nervously smoothing my hands over the deep navy of my kimono, I felt probably the most conflicted I'd felt since leaving Inuyasha and the rest of the group.

I knew that the richly coloured autumn leaves of my kimono were stunning against their dark backdrop. I knew my hair had been brushed into a gleaming curtain to fall down my back. Most of all, I felt an almost guilty awareness of how easily things had seemed to fall into place here.

Following my conversation with Sesshomaru last night, I felt better than I had in a long time. I felt stronger, more alert and more hopeful that everything would turn out okay. I knew my friends would be worried about me and it just… hurt… to think that they didn't know I was okay. It wasn't fair to them to go on not knowing but at the same time, there seemed to be no alternative.

Despite his role in my current situation, I found the idea of asking Sesshomaru to take me to see them… uncomfortable. He was already doing so much for me, even if it was only right for him to.

Reaching the door to his study, I hesitated only a moment longer before taking a steady breath. 'Excuse me,' I said politely before sliding the fusuma* carefully open.

I wasn't at all surprised to find Sesshomaru's golden eyes on my face from where he sat behind the wooden table, however the way he indicated the cushion opposite him with a brief wave of a clawed hand struck me as a strange thing for him to do.

With a small smile, I carefully closed the door behind me and settled into seiza opposite Sesshomaru. Lifting my eyes, I was stunned to notice that the kimono I wore had Sesshomaru's notice. It wasn't an embarrassing sort of attention; more that it seemed he was lost in contemplation.

The moment passed almost instantly and his eyes lifted to meet mine. 'How is your health this morning?' he enquired a little distantly.

I stared at him in fascination, sure that I would never understand what went on in that head of his. 'I'm feeling so much better,' I admitted, twisting my hands together on my lap. 'I think that… your youki really does make it easier.'

Sesshomaru inclined his head in acknowledgement. 'You appear to have returned to your prior talkativeness,' he replied.

I hesitated, unsure if that was an insult or not. In the end, I decided it didn't matter right now. I smiled at him instead and was a little delighted by the slight suspicious narrowing of his eyes. 'Actually, Sesshomaru, there was something I wanted to ask you.'

He considered my expression for a long moment and I suspected that he was searching for any sign that he should just refuse to hear me out at all. Eventually, he seemed to release a small breath that was almost a sigh. 'You may ask,' he replied at last.

I hovered briefly between amusement and annoyance before I dismissed both. 'Actually, I was wondering if you knew… what sort of demon…' I trailed off, my courage leaving me a little now that I was face to face with him, asking a question that I wasn't entirely sure I wanted to know the answer to.

'You want to know what you are to become,' Sesshomaru murmured, his eyes never leaving my face.

I shifted uneasily under his stare. It was unfair that he was so perceptive and yet so hard to read. Forcing back my hesitance, I nodded briefly. 'Yes,' I said simply.

There was silence in the room for an achingly long minute while the Taiyoukai stared at me thoughtfully and I forced myself to meet his gaze. Then he shook his head minutely, the pale silver strands of his hair brushing over his shoulders. 'Are you really unable to sense the answer to your own question?' he posed.

My eyes widened in surprise. Should I… Was I supposed to know the answer to this question already? It was something I hadn't considered before.

'Excuse me,' a gruff voice broke the sudden silence and I jumped, my heart racing as I twisted on my knees to see the fusuma slide open.

Standing stiffly in the doorway, a middle aged fox demon focused his attention solely on Sesshomaru. I knew instantly from the leather armour that decorated his chest, forearms and upper legs that he had to be here in some sort of defensive capacity. A palace guard, most likely.

'Sesshomaru-sama,' he spoke swiftly but respectfully. 'An armed intruder has been apprehended while attempting to sneak into the castle grounds.'

Turning my head, I saw the controlled fire in the taiyoukai's golden eyes. He nodded sharply. 'Bring them here,' he ordered, his voice as detached as ever.

The fox demon bowed sharply and closed the fusuma once more, returning the room to silence.

I turned apprehensive eyes on Sesshomaru, who met my gaze. 'Sesshomaru—'

'Sit behind me,' Sesshomaru ordered calmly, his tone giving no hint to what his true feelings might be. 'I will not have you getting in the way.'

My mouth dropped open in indignation. 'Just what are you planning to do?' I demanded unthinkingly.

I shut my mouth at the sudden surge of youki from the demon lord, noting the narrowing of his golden eyes. 'Currently, you reside here as my guest; a guest that, it should be duly noted, does not have the authority to interfere in the affairs of my lands. Now, move,' he growled softly, the clipped tones of his voice unnerving me more than a raised voice ever could.

Without another word I got to my feet and moved across the room to a clear space on the tatami matting, my heart racing with… something quite unfamiliar. I felt like I needed to run; just keep running until I could no longer breathe. I bit my lip as I sat down again, truly shaken by my strange reaction. As Sesshomaru had spoken, I'd been both angered by his attitude and yet… almost drawn to it.

No, I decided as we waited in complete silence. My eyes widened. I'd been drawn to the rise of his youki. My hands formed tight fists where they rested on my legs. That had never happened before. Usually, my own miko powers rebelled against any potential oppression by his youki.

So what then did that mean?

Lifting my eyes, I stared at the back of Sesshomaru's head. Was it possible….? Was I becoming an inu youkai like Sesshomaru? Truly, I acknowledged with a shade of embarrassment, it would make sense. After all, our theory had been that I could survive the transformation by allowing my body to use his own youki as a model. The youki of an inu demon.

'Excuse me,' the same gruff voice came through the door a moment before it was slid open. I tensed as the fox demon from earlier walked in ahead of another trio. Two demons – armoured as the fox demon was – dragged yet another male demon in between them.

The intruder surprised me. In my mind, I'd subconsciously assumed that he would look the part of a low-life villain. Instead, his snow white hair fell softly to his shoulders and his open face was highlighted by the blue light of his eyes.

'Your guards have it wrong,' the demon said quickly to the Western Lord, his eyes wide and earnest.

Sesshomaru remained silent, the weight of his youki as repressive as it had been when he'd rebuked me earlier. Glancing at the intruder, I was surprised to note the persistent tension he kept in his arms – his compliance with Sesshomaru's questioning was feigned, I saw that quite clearly.

'I wasn't planning on stealing anything,' the demon continued, shaking his head from side to side.

'This Sesshomaru was not aware anyone had yet accused you of attempting to steal anything,' Sesshomaru spoke finally, each word carefully weighted.

The white-heard youkai froze, realising his mistake. 'No,' he said, his chest beginning to rise more rapidly with anxiety. 'No, you don't understand. It… no!'

Sesshomaru was on his feet, his right hand glowing green before I'd even realised it.

My eyes widened, a gasp escaping my lips. If there'd been any question of Sesshomaru acting different within the castle walls, of him handing over the responsibilities of execution to one of his guards, that question was now swept aside.

I watched, unable to look away as Sesshomaru stuck in a flash of green, ending the doomed creature's sudden shrieks of terror. The wet sound of his blood hitting the floor made my entire body go cold.

For a long moment, silence permeated the small room. Finally, the guards each bowed deeply and left as though they'd never dragged a man inside in the first place. I sat there froze, my eyes on the closed fusuma. Not once, not even with that display of youki, had I felt any response from my miko powers.

What miko powers? a nasty voice whispered to me. That part of my life was over.

'Miko,' Sesshomaru spoke suddenly.

Flinching, I lifted my eyes to his.

His eyes remained narrowed on my face and I realised he was displeased about something other than the intruder he'd just disposed of. 'You should not flinch from seeing such a thing,' he surprised me by saying. 'One day you will belong to this world.'

My heart stopped for a moment before restarting sharply. 'That… I'm not just going to go around killing people,' I argued weakly, still a little too shocked by what I'd just seen to think clearly.

Sesshomaru was silent for a long moment. I looked away, hoping against all reason that he wouldn't work out the source of my unease. I didn't want him to see how much I'd been affected by his own actions, by his display of power. I didn't know what to think of it and I certainly didn't want to talk about it until I'd at least worked it out for myself.

Finally, Sesshomaru turned his back to me, once more taking a seat at the table. 'You might want to go bathe, Miko,' he said softly, though his voice managed to reach my ears perfectly. 'Unless you'd prefer to leave traces of blood on your face.'

The air seemed to freeze in my lungs. I could picture the tiny flecks of blood over my skin and I suddenly felt lost and alone. Here I was, sitting in Sesshomaru's castle, having just watched him dispose of an intruder. What on earth was I doing here?

Getting to my feet, I made my way silently towards the door. As I reached it, a clawed hand suddenly came up beside me, Sesshomaru resting it pointedly on the frame of the fusuma so that it couldn't be opened. Freezing, I turned my head just enough to meet his golden eyes, fixed as they were on my speckled face.

'Yes?' I enquired softly, my voice barely more than a whisper.

'Once you have washed, prepare yourself to leave before dark,' Sesshomaru instructed, his voice giving no room for refusal.

I stared at him, surprised. 'We're leaving?' I asked. I felt a flutter of hope in my chest and was distantly surprised by how happy the idea made me.

Sesshomaru nodded sharply before dropping his hand. 'Before dark, Miko,' he reiterated before turning away and heading back towards his table.

I hesitated for just a moment before fleeing the room. Ignoring the curious stares of the servants, I quickly climbed the stairs, eager to get out of the castle. We were leaving. I wasn't going to feel so out of my depth anymore.

I was going to be able to be outside again.

It was only as I sunk into a hot bath that one of the servants had prepared for me that I stopped to consider where we might be going. For a moment, my happiness dimmed as I considered that Sesshomaru might have given up on me and decided to return me to Kaede's village.

Almost as quickly as that thought had come though, I dismissed it. Sesshomaru had given me his word and, despite whatever faults he had (the cold arrogance and whole lack of hesitance to kill, namely) I knew that he would not break his promise.

How I knew this, I couldn't be sure. It wasn't as though I'd ever heard the great Taiyoukai made a vow before. Still, if nothing else, I trusted him to honour the one that he had made.

…o…o…o…o…o…o…o…o…o…o

A/N: Haha Sess and Kags are leaving the castle. I feel so excited about the next chapter – like a small child allowed go running around outside in the rain. I hope you all enjoyed this chapter =)

Also – Dokuga! "An Unexpected Spring" has been nominated for best Portrayal - Kagome for the 1st Quarter 2011 at Dokuga ! A very sincere thank you goes to whoever is responsible for that and I'm happy that you've enjoyed reading the story so far. Voting opens Saturday, May 07, 2011 and goes until Saturday, May 21, 2011 at midnight . If you'd like to support me, I think you'll be able to head to the awards section of once voting has commenced. Thank you again!

* Fusuma – traditional Japanese sliding door