Attack at The Benbow

Sesshomaru and Saeka had managed to locate an old inn called, The Benbow. With a glance at Saeka, who was half-dead on her feet, he sighed. " I suppose we should go in."

He reached into the pocket of his left sleeve and started forward. Saeka followed, struggling to keep her footing.

He opened the door and stepped inside, Saeka beside him staring ahead placidly.

Inside the inn, there were several scattered tables here and there; a few with people sitting at them, some asleep, and the rest watching them. Sesshomaru ignored them, pulled Saeka around to his other side and headed for the counter where an old woman stood cleaning some glasses. She glanced up as he approached. " Hey. What can I do ya for?" she drawled.

" We'd like a room for the night." He said, lifting three bills onto the table from his sleeve, trying to make it seem as though that were all he had. The woman eyed them. " Those are pure Malsshinyorian. Where'd ya get them?" she snapped.

" I believe that is my business, but I didn't steal them, if that's what you're insinuating." He said low. The woman made a face and snatched up the bills Rin had given him. " Fine. What's your name?"

Sesshomaru hesitated. Rin hadn't told him whether or not he could use his real name or not. Because no other name came to mind that seemed to suit his odd features, he used his real name. " Sesshomaru. Lord Sesshomaru." He said, trying to act as regal as possible. The woman seemed fooled. " Very well, Lord Sesshomaru. And this is…?" she waved her hand at Saeka who looked up wearily.

" My companion, Saeka." He replied. The woman's eyes fell to the countertop where his hand rested. " Awfully long nails, guy." She said. Sesshomaru pulled his hand down. " Never mind that. Are any available. She needs rest." He said, indicating Saeka. The woman raised an eyebrow. " Why? She pregnant?"

" No, but we've been traveling a long time. Is there anything available?"

" Yes. You'll be the only stayin' guests. Just find something, down that hallway." She said, gesturing to her left as though bored. Sesshomaru guided Saeka past the counter, keeping her out of sight of the wayward guests in the inn. The woman at the counter called after them. " Will you be needing anything else?"

Sesshomaru turned and shook his head. " We'll be fine." He turned and continued on.

The first door on the right of the hallway opened without hesitation. He carefully pushed Saeka in and shut the door behind him, locking it securely.

" We should be safe until morning, but we're still in danger of trouble." He said. He turned around to inspect the place. There was a single cot that looked like it was about ready to snap in half. The room had horrible brown fuzz all over it and the single window was so covered in dust, he thought it was part of the wall at first. Saeka had taken a seat on the floor. She was staring at her hands. Sesshomaru carefully approached and knelt down beside her. " Saeka, are you troubled by something?" he murmured. She sighed. " Sesshomaru, I was thinking about how we met." She said.

" Really?"

" Yeah. You were sick, Rin came to get me and I healed you. Then, we couldn't stand each other."

He took a more comfortable seat beside her. " I know. It was a pretty weird situation." He said quietly. Saeka smiled. " Yeah, I'll vouch for that. But that weird situation turned out pretty well, didn't it?"

" I would agree. If only things hadn't happened this way, though. Miharu becoming the kikuurama."

" Maybe she hasn't. Maybe it was another child." Saeka said defiantly. Sesshomaru shook his head. " No. Miharu was the only positive test. But she's only been in Malsshinyor a short while. We still have a chance."

" I sure hope so." Saeka said.

Their conversation was interrupted by a sharp knock at the door. Sesshomaru glanced at his companion and got up to answer. Saeka's face showed worry. " Be careful. In this horrible place, who knows what it could be." She whispered. Sesshomaru unlocked the door and opened it a bit.

Three large men stood outside, each wearing hard metal armor and long black beards. One of them carried a whip, one a club and one a crooked sword. They shoved the door open and stepped inside. " We're the, ahem, soldiers from Malsshinyorian headquarters. We're here for the arrest of Sesshomaro and Saka." The one leading said. Sesshomaru rolled his eyes, resisting the urge to laugh. " Well, if you're looking for them, you have the wrong room." He said. The man glared at him. " I know you're the right guy." He said. Sesshomaru lashed out and shoved the man back out where he lay unconscious in the hallway, a deep gash on his face. The other two stared wide-eyed at the demon. " That's it!" they bellowed. The one with the whip charged him, the butt of the whip aimed at Sesshomaru's face. The demon easily dodged it and caught the man by his neck. The other one slipped by and made a run for Saeka who jumped out of the way and brought her claws down at the man's neck. She missed, but only enough to graze him. He cried out and took a swipe at her with the club, bashing her shoulder and sending her sprawling. She clutched her shoulder and barely rolled out of the way as he brought it down again, this time at her head.

By now, Sesshomaru had knocked the other one unconscious like his comrade and had noticed Saeka's plight. He went numb when he saw she was injured.

The man brought the club down a third time and Saeka squeezed her eyes shut for but a moment, reopening them to reveal blood red eyes. The man froze in fear as she leapt up, ignoring her broken shoulder blade and charged at him, claws extended toward his eyes. The man flung his arms up to protect them and she slashed her claws down, slicing through his arm and a tendon. The man screamed and ducked out of her way, dashing through the room and out, fleeing like a mouse from the hotel. Sesshomaru quickly shut and bolted the door behind him and turned to Saeka. The demon blood had gotten the best of her and she was glowering at him with bloodlust.

" Saeka." He said. She let out a wolfish growl and charged at him. He'd been expecting this and caught her by the neck, being careful to keep his claws away from the skin. He pinned her against the wall and held her there with just enough force to keep her still, but not choke her. She flailed and struggled, but he didn't release his hold. He knew that she had been protecting herself. Unlike most half-demons, she could control her demon blood much more easily than others like InuYasha or the half-demon children from the island where he'd faced the four War Gods. But while she was stronger than her demonic blood flowing through her veins, she was weakened from the trip and it took advantage of that and controlled her body. Sesshomaru had often wondered what it was like to be a half-demon, not that he wanted to be, and now, being with Saeka sort of gave him a visual of what it was like. He felt sorry for her.

Saeka, rather than calming down, seemed to get wilder. At one point, she sank her teeth into his arm, and he realized that her fangs could come in at times like this, something he hadn't known before.

After about four or five minutes, he decided to try one more thing. Applying more pressure to hold her still, he carefully leaned forward and kissed her gently. When he pulled back, she had frozen, the demon blood being forced back by the true Saeka. Her eyes flickered from red to normal and back again about seven or eight times. Finally, they returned to normal and she slid from his grip to the floor in exhaustion. He quickly bent down beside her and took a look at her shoulder. When he placed his hand on it, he felt a sharp point meet his palm and his heart began to beat faster. Using his claws, he ripped open the seam of her sleeve, revealing her shoulder. He shook his head in empathy. The goon with the club had completely crushed her shoulder blade. It was turning a deep purple in color.

" Saeka." He said. " I can't believe this."

" Can't…believe what?" she murmured. She moved slightly and gasped as the paroxysm of pain swept from her shoulder to the rest of her body. He held her down. " Don't move." He commanded. " You're lucky you're at least a half-demon, this injury will heal itself within the next few hours. But only if you stay still." He said. Saeka nodded. " What happened?" she asked. She looked at him and noticed that his arm was bleeding. There were bite marks in it. Her eyes widened. " Did I…Did I do that?" she exclaimed. Sesshomaru looked away and she mistook the meaning for anger. " No, I'm sorry. I bit you, didn't I? I'm sorry." She whispered.

" It's okay. I'm not mad, Saeka. You were unable to control yourself." He said. He turned her head to face him. She was crying.

" I still shouldn't have done that. But I couldn't help myself, my only powers are to heal and turn into a dragon and I could do neither against him. My only choice was to let my demon blood take over." She said quietly. Sesshomaru sighed. " I understand, Saeka." He said. He carefully lifted her up, being mindful of her shoulder and set her back down on the cot, covering her with the blanket.

" Rest. Let that wound heal. It should only be a few hours." He said. Saeka continued to stare at the ceiling and he realized with dread that she was being consumed by guilt for what she'd almost done.

But as he turned away to stand guard at the door should those thugs decide to try again, her thoughts were mainly concerned with what he'd done to bring her back.

A/N: I had a hard time writing that chapter for some reason. Probably because I had Return to The Sea from Mermaid Melodies stuck in my head. I don't watch the show, but I like the song. Found it on a Sailor Moon clip. Oh, and thanks to Silentmoondemon for answering the question I had about that clip. Oh well. Let me know what you think! And yes, I stole the name Benbow from Treasure Island. Don't kill me, Robert Louis Stevenson! It's only a fanfic! Actually, this is one of my best fight scenes I've ever written. I seem to do better with tag teams.