The eternal knot chapter 11
"Inuyasha- you're embarrassing yourself." Sesshomaru called over the sound of a variety of attacks from the Tessaiga. Sesshomaru sat cross-legged on the ground while Inuyasha vented, watching as the landscape around them was torn to shreds. Apparently one thing the two brothers had in common was the lack of ability to cope with problems in a non-violent manner (with the exception of Kagome and Rin, of course).
"Oh I'm embarrassing? I'm embarrassing? I'm not the one who banged my own brother!"
Sesshomaru's cheeks reddened in the dark. "For the last time, it wasn't you-it was your full-blooded dog demon."
"It's my body! I don't care whose occupying it- you don't just go around, doing-ugh, god, I'm going to throw up-"Sesshomaru rolled his eyes as he heard retching in the darkness. Drama queen.
"Are you going to let me finish?"
Inuyasha threw up his arms in a gesture of futility. "I might as well! Can't get much worse from here!"
"Good. Like I was going to say, I got rid of your full-blooded dog demon just now, in the purification pool. So from now on, everything should return to normal. No more midnight abductions. Which will be a relief for both of us."
"I'll say! Hold up a tic- " Inuyasha held a clawed finger in the air. Sesshomaru's tail twitched faintly. You could almost see the gears moving in his head.
"Now wait just a damn minute. None of those are- I mean, you're not-" Inuyasha jabbed a finger to indicate Sesshomaru's belly, seemingly lost for words.
Sesshomaru said rather quickly, "No! No, fox kits. Diaozuan's. Not yours." and flicked her hair, putting on her very best poker face while all the while, sweating slightly. If Inuyasha figured it out, she was pretty well screwed. The hanyou wasn't the type to not be involved in anything. And if he figured it out and god forbid, wanted to be involved with the kit in any way well… there went everything. At this point though… Sesshomaru halfway wanted the stupid hanyou to figure it out. It was getting awfully tiring, hiding the truth all the time.
It was getting slightly lighter now, and the sky was slowly turning from deep blue to a timid teal. Light enough certainly for both of them to see each other quite clearly, though most humans would probably still have to squint. The ground was still smoking faintly and the scent of dirt and burning permeated the air.
"You said that awfully fast." Inuyasha said, so very quietly, one hand still resting on the hilt of his sword. That was when you knew you were in trouble: when he used his normal voice.
" I'm tired. Tired of this, tired of you, tired of this weak pathetic woman's body-" Sesshomaru snarled, curling her hand into a fist and feeling the claws dig into the soft flesh. A few drops of bright blue blood went from her fist to the ground and sizzled there faintly.
She stood abruptly, ignoring the way that the belly made it difficult to stand, the way her feet cracked in protest and stared at him levelly.
The sclera of her eyes faded to a deep blood red, while the iris turned to a vivid blue. "Get out of here. Get out before I kill you." She whispered, gritting her teeth and fighting down the Yokai within her own body. It thirsted for blood and death and since Inuyasha was not Gao, their bond no longer existed. Inuyasaha was no longer safe.
Luckily even Inuyasha knew when Sesshomaru's mood had gone from serious to deadly. He sprinted off, but not before dropped a few more curses in Sesshomaru's general direction.
As usual, he headed back to the human village. Sesshomaru turned on his heel and headed back to the Palace, all the while fighting down the demon underneath her human form. Her breathing was hard and fast, and her eyes flickered from red to white, to red again and her jaw was gritted with effort. I've been letting you out too much lately. You're getting greedy.
Her Yokai was shrieking with rage and pain and all of the emotions that Sesshomaru had not let herself feel. Mostly, it was about the loss of Gao, and the want to be near Diaozuan, but Sesshomaru blocked out the howling as best she could. And she was afraid that indeed, she would lose control again as she had before at the foot of the mountain. The loss of control that had brought all this pain in the first place.
She leaned against a tree and put her hands over her ears as if that could block out her demons voice. Shut up! But her Yokai wasn't using words anymore: it was just terrible shrieks of sadness that left Sesshomaru's mind weak and muddled.
Most demons got along well with their Yokai and indulged them often: Sesshomaru by contrast had transformed less than a total of twenty times in his five hundred years of life. So to say that she was a little out-of-sync with her demon, (and by extension, her body's needs and desires) was an understatement.
Somehow, she managed to return to the Palace. She had to use one of the tunnels that led to her quarters and under the wall, but she managed not to rouse the suspicion of the guards. Returning to her desk, she sighed when she saw the huge stack of papers waiting. Moving them to the side, she got out a brush and ink stone along with some rice paper.
Diaozuan
She began, and then paused, biting the end of the quill lightly with one fang. Admitting that she would need help when the pregnancy came to an end was not something Sesshomaru could easily put on paper.
Finally she decided to keep it short.
I have something to discuss with you. Meet me at the ruins of the Snake temple outside of the Foo-Dog territories in four moon's time, at sunrise.
Good enough. Besides, it was close enough to the borders of their territories that he should be able to get there without too much inconvenience. Sesshomaru hoped that the war between the foxes and the snakes. Border disputes were always ugly. The document was signed, dated, and dabbed with a tiny drop of her own blood so that he would know she was the one who had written it. Then, she stood, wrapped it carefully in a cord, and went outside to their aviary to find a decent bird to send it.
Tiao-Wen spotted her just as one of the birds had left her arm, a brown falcon. "Lady Sesshomaru! Are you well?"
She frowned slightly. Considering the evening she'd had she wouldn't be surprised if she looked anything less than well. " Tiao-Wen. Get that snake doctor to make me a jasmine potion that will let me sleep." She said finally, stifling a yawn behind her hand and giving a nod of her head to dismiss him before heading back inside. She was so tired. Was it the pups, or everything that had happened the night before? Probably a combination of both. That and keeping the Yokai down.
When he returned she knocked, then placed the cup gently on the edge of Sesshomaru's desk. "Was there anything else my lady?" He asked softly as she wrote furiously on another piece of parchment. Gods above. Maybe she should keep Inukimi around just for the sake of piling her desks with this garbage. The rat and tiger royal Yokai tribes were the worst: no agreement was ever good enough for them.
" Tomorrow I'm going to the Edo village to visit a human. Ah-Un needs to be ready for a few days' trip by tomorrow's sunrise." She wrinkled her nose and added sulkily, " I suppose.. you may accompany me. As long as you're quiet." She added, giving him a glare.
He nodded, " O-of course my Lady." Sesshomaru would have brought LiHai… but for some reason, her gut told her that the horse-demon would be less understanding of his attachment to Rin than Tiao-Wen.
"That is all." He nodded and went back out the front door to guard while Sesshomaru took the cup to her bedroom. Once in bed she downed the whole cup in about three gulps and waited impatiently, the tip of her fluffy white tail flicking on the floor like a cat's.
Finally, it did seem to take effect: she tucked her tail up over one shoulder and drifted into a dead and dreamless sleep, her body seizing the opportunity to get the rest that was desperately needed.
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The next day they set off before the sun had properly risen. Ah-Un had been well taken care of and Sesshomaru was glad to see that the dragon seemed fed and happy… a little bit fat, even. His dark green mane looked well maintained and his scales had been filed and cleaned.
Tiao-Wen sat behind him, yawning and looking sleepy, his tail tucked over one shoulder in the same manner that Sesshomaru's was. His armor was also similar, though he had arm guards and heavier leg gear. His outfit was mostly the reds and whites of the Palace guard uniform but a tiny bit of gold and orange peeked through around his sleeves and waist.
"Sesshomaru, are you going to be traveling this much after the pups are born?" He asked.
Sesshomaru glared at him from the front of Ah-Un. " Tiao-Wen. What did I say about talking."
"My apologies…" He said, glancing down as they took off, streaking through the sky and quickly gaining quite a bit of air. It was silent for quite some time, and dew beaded on their fur an armor. It was still cool despite being spring.
" No. I'll stay at the Palace. That's why I'm getting as much in as I can now." Before it's too late. She thought to herself, sighing a bit. She would not do what Inukimi did and let others raise her pups for her. She would be there for them even if it meant the loss of so much freedom.
The rest of the trip was in relative silence, which Sesshomaru was grateful for considering Jaken was also in the village with Rin. She knew that once they arrived it would be anything but silent.
It took about a day and a half to get to the village, so they stopped to sleep in the forest and arrived early the next morning.
Sure enough, the moment they arrived in the human village, Jaken came running to meet them. "Sesshomaru-sama! It is so good to see you again! It's been absolutely horrible living with these humans, I implore you to take us both back to the Palace at once-"
"Jaken. Where is Rin?" She asked, folding her arms across her chest and raising a brow.
Jaken looked around, his panic mounting. "O-oh uh, she was right behind me my Lady, I swear-" He received a quick bop on the head as Sesshomaru and Tiao-Wen walked quietly through the village, the other human villagers staring at them as they passed. Jaken followed, whining and rubbing the bump that was forming on his head.
Eventually Rin emerged from one of the houses on the corner of the village. A woman in a plain pink and red kimono had tried holding her back, and held her hands to her mouth with worry as she ran towards the two Daiyokai.
"Jaken. Make sure Ah-Un doesn't wander off." Sesshomaru ordered, and the demon scurried away with, "Of course Sesshomaru-sama!"
Rin ran to Sesshomaru with the kind of reckless optimism that only children seemed to have. "Sesshomaru! Look what I made for you!" She scooped the human up, placing Rin on one shoulder as they walked past the woman who seemed to have taken Rin under her wing. As they passed Sesshomaru gave the woman a short glance that said, She is safe with me.
before walking down between two rows of rice fields, taking the little wooden object in her claws and giving it a good look.
It looked like a tiny dog with its jaws open, its tail held high and fluffy. For a child of her age it actually wasn't half-bad either. "It's you, Sesshomaru-sama!" She said excitedly. "You could give it to the babies when they're born to play with!"
"Thank you, Rin. I will." She said, tucking it away safely in the folds of her kimono. "I have something for you, too." She pulled out a black and pink kimono and handed it gently to the human. "You'll probably be growing out of your old one soon. How do you like living with the humans?"
"I don't like it at all! It's so boring! Except when demons try to get into the village, I guess that's kinda fun to watch." She added as an afterthought. Tiao-Wen watched the interactions between the two of them with a kind of timid fascination. Sesshomaru was not like this with anyone.
"Well you're going to have to be patient and give it a while before you decide whose world you would rather remain in. When you get a bit older, I'll move you to one of the richer human families. You'll be able to learn much more there than you can from the village people." Sesshomaru said quietly. If she decided to stay in the human world, he would make sure that she became a woman of the court, so that she would never have to worry about starvation or hypothermia in the winters.
" Hey. What's your name? Are you serving under Sesshomaru too?" Rin asked Tiao-Wen as they walked. He nodded, " I'm her guard at the Foo-Dog Palace. My name is Tiao-Wen."
" It's nice to meet you!" She said, and kicked her feet a little as they walked. Sesshomaru noted that her legs had grown a bit. It wouldn't be much longer until she was a woman, and all the trials and tribulations that came with that. But for now, they could still enjoy this.
They came to the edge of one of the rice fields. It was lined with tall trees, and bordered a large river. Sesshomaru sat at the edge and Tiao-Wen joined them after a moment, taking his tail off his shoulder and setting it on the ground behind them.
"Hey can I touch your tail?" She asked and the dog demon blinked, lifting it out to her.
"Um. Sure."
She lifted it above her head like a big fuzzy boa with a giggle. "Wow! It's almost as long as Sesshomaru's!"
She turned to him. "Are the puppies going to have big fuzzy tails like this too?" Sesshomaru nodded, the slightest redness tinging her ears. "Yes."Multiple, for one of them.
"Yay! I can't wait to see them! I hope it isn't that much longer, I'm tired of waiting…" She said with a slight sigh, draping the dog demon's tail over her shoulders and hugging it.
"As am I." Sesshomaru said, looking out at the water. The afternoon progressed in such a fashion, with Rin asking Tiao-Wen about everything from his armor to his love life, and Sesshomaru watching their interactions with some amusement. The guard didn't seem used to having anyone interrogate him as thoroughly as a child could, and it'd probably be good experience for him.
Rin suddenly paused in the middle of a conversation. "Sesshomaru-sama! You didn't ever tell me when humans were created. You know, after demons?"
"I didn't?" She paused and lifted a claw to her chin. "Ah. I didn't. Well I'm sure that Tiao-Wen knows that story as well as I do. Go ahead." She said, turning to get guard with a slight smirk.
"Oh. Right. Well, mine might be a little bit different from how Sesshomaru was told, but generally, it went like this… "
The Dark Pheonix, Fenghuang, and her mate Xueliu were happy with their Royal Families. And for a while, only demons waked the earth: creating and inventing and building. But one day, the Dark Pheonix noticed that the demons were becoming lazy. Cattle demons roamed free in the streets, buildings fell into disrepair, and demons no longer worked hard for anything.
When she asked why, they said, "Why should we? We live for centuries. We have more than enough time in the world for anything, and so does everyone else". And she was worried. She wanted the Twelve Royal Families and all the other creatures to value the time they spent in the world she had created, not waste away their long lives simply because they had so much time.
She went to her mate and explained the problem, and he offered a solution. "If the demons had another race, shorter in life to contend with, they would never be lazy. That other race would value their time and constantly be busy, like the insects and the birds. In order to keep their land the Royal Families would have to change their ways. Will you help me create a new race?" He asked, and she did.
Humans were created from the clay of the earth, infused with the magic of the two gods. Some races were from different soils and looked different: some were very strong and others, incredibly weak. Fenghuang knew that this new race needed a weapon that would help them compete with the Royal Demon families. So she kept dug out a huge pool with her hands, and kissed it, and the water inside became poison to all demons. She taught all humans how to use that water, and many spells and enchantments as well to help them compete with the powers the demons already possessed. And when they were ready, they put the humans with the demons.
And just as they had predicated, the demons now had to fight for their lands and wealth, and changed their ways. And after the fighting was over, the two races were at peace.
"At least, for a little while." He added with a slight sigh and a flick of his tail. The humans had a different creation story, but most demons were pretty sure that theirs was more accurate. Especially considering they had been around longer.
"So we were just created so you guys wouldn't be lazy?" Rin huffed.
"Well that was part of it. But the main idea is, even if you live as long as we do, you should value the time you have. And the people you spend that time with. " Sesshomaru murmured, glancing over at her and then back out at the river. It was unusually calm for this time of year, and with the exception of the occasional fish, reflected the mountains and rice fields like a mirror.
It wouldn't be all that long before Rin was just another memory.
Tiao-Wen looked at Sesshomaru with concern. He'd never seen his master so happy, and yet so sad at the same time.
It was in this way that they spent all of that day, and the next day as well, with Rin.
On the way back Tiao-Wen noticed that Sesshomaru was taking a detour. " My Lady? Where are we going?"
She didn't answer. And when they touched down, she said simply, "Guard Ah-Un, and stay here." Then headed off into the forest. It had been four moon's time, and was at sunrise.
The Snake Temple was as beautiful and terrible as it had ever been. Built eons ago, it held craftsmanship that some of the most skilled demon tradesmen could never hope to replicate. Silver, white, and blue striped limestone jutted from the grass and rocks like slivers of glass. It had been destroyed by the tigers, and was one of the many reasons the two Royal families could never get along.
On one of these chunks the second son of the Fox Demon Tribe sat waiting, his armor gleaming a faint orange. In this light he appeared even more handsome than he had been when they'd first met: the light turning his royal markings a slightly more stunning shade of red, and the caramel of his skin was made even more inviting. His hakama and kimono were shades of black and red as well, complimenting his stripes beautifully.
He turned, stood, and smiled when her scent came in his direction.
"Good morning beautiful."
Her breath caught in her throat slightly. For some reason relief swept through her, and she had to tense up her jaw to keep herself together. Far too much crying had been happening as of late.
He seemed to sense her distress and stood, walking over to her silently and putting his arms around her. She growled lowly in warning at first, but soon gave in.
Diaozuan carried her over to one of the great limestone pieces and sat down in front of it, leaning his back against it. She was tucked up against his chest, her legs hanging over one of his arms and her tail dragging freely. And her eyes were red but this time, it was not from her demon. Even the great lord of the west could only handle so much over such little time.
To her relief, he didn't say anything, no little embarrassing reassurances. He just sat with her and kept his arms around her and very gently, smoothed her hair back from her face with his claws.
He did kiss her temple once though, which earned a small growl from her and a chuckle from him. Thank you. I'm sorry. Thank you. She thought over and over but of course could not say.
Sesshomaru could feel his chest gently expanding and contracting with his breath, and somewhere deeper, the thudding of his heart, slow and soft. And nothing in the world seemed as safe as where she was then.
She nuzzled into the exposed part of his neck. Don't leave me. Please.
And at some point, her Yokai took over in that same smooth, simple transition that was barely noticeable. Sesshomaru's lips parted gently and she placed a light kiss on his neck almost sleepily. And then , her lips drew back and she bit down, a trickle of his blue blood slipping down his neck. From her fangs the tiniest bit of venom slipped into his bloodstream: just enough to claim him as hers.
"Gh-!" He gasped and gripped her arm tight- she seemed to wake up from her dazed state and drew back, covering her hand with her mouth. " Diaozuan! I'm sorry, I-"
She paused as she saw a splotch of color rising on his skin, right between his two collarbones: just under the jugular notch.
It almost looked like a bruise at first, but soon took form: the colors sharpened and refined, and … and it was a blue crescent moon, just like the one that adorned her own forehead. Diaozuan touched it lightly with his own claws, a look of shock and surprise on his face.
"You marked me."
She started panicking as she suddenly began to feel his emotions along with hers: his own surprise, his own amazement. Their demons in sync. They were bonded. He had her Mark. Now, he could never have another mate but her. "No, I didn't mean to, I didn't-"Sesshomaru tried to get up, but sort of half-fell and he caught her, pulling her flush to him.
" Woah! Hey, calm down-" He rubbed her arms and lifted her chin so that she was looking at him.
"It's okay. If your Yokai hadn't have done it, I would have. I was worried about you. Now, we can talk to each other whenever we want." He said, running his fingers gently down her cheek. And this time his lips didn't move as he said, It's all right. But she could still hear the rumble of his voice between her ears.
It made her shiver and she growled, Just talk out loud. " W-well, I was going to talk to you about trying to find a better way to communicate for when the kit is born but I suppose we don't need to worry about that anymore." She said, her tail giving an irritated flick. He looked down at her and she felt his amusement flood her chest. " It's not funny."
"Yes it is. You should just come to my Palace when you're getting close. Better yet, you should just call me. I'll come and get you."
She considered this. It wasn't like there were many good options left anymore. And any pride she had left certainly wasn't worth the price of any of her children. "Fine."
He leaned down and kissed her forehead, earning another small growl. "Thank you. Between the two of us we should be able to keep them safe." He then looked down at her belly and his eyes went soft.
Before she could stop him, he'd dropped to his knees and was hugging her around the waist, a purr bubbling out of his throat.
"Diaozuan!" She bopped him on the head with a closed fist, but he only chuckled and rubbed his cheek gently on her swollen stomach. It was strange to see such a heavily armored daiyokai be so affectionate and gentle. That, combined with their stupid bond, made it pretty impossible for Sesshomaru to actually hurt him. And if she was perfectly honest with herself.. she wasn't sure that she wanted to.
As he purred, the vibrations went through her body, raising the white fur on her tail and the hairs on her head. "Knock it off-" She began to snarl, then paused and bit her lip in surprise as the kits seemed to react, kicking hard. Diaozuan's face broke into a wide elated smile.
" Ha! That riled 'em up. Good." He stood and gave her an affectionate glance that made her fur puff slightly with irritation. " I want them kicking day and night so that you don't forget about me."
"As if I –" Sesshomaru caught herself and hissed, " I'm leaving." walking stiff-legged out of their little meeting spot and resisting the urge to look back.
She head Diaozuan's voice in hear head day quietly, Goodbye dear one.
He sat on one of the stones and watched her go, purple eyes full of worry and affection for the dog demon that had stumbled into his life. The fox demon touched the little crescent moon on his chest with his claws and the faintest smile crossed his face.
Sesshomaru washed in a nearby spring before returning to Ah-Un and Tiao-Wen, but she was pretty sure that some fox demon scent was still on her, judging by the odd look she got from the other dog demon.
"Lady Sesshomaru?" He asked after a moment tentatively. "Your face is all red."
"Tiao-Wen. You're doing that thing I told you not to do. Again." She pointed out with a growl and rubbed her cheeks, trying to get her color back to normal.
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Wolfsvine-Sesshomaru did cry I promise xD But in his own way (the stereotypical beautiful crying with only tears down the cheeks kinda thing). He was basically a different soul in Inuyasha's body. So basically what Inuyasha could have been if he was a flood blood demon like Sesshomaru. If I feel like it I might go back and fix that to make it clearer but yeah~~And I hope you didn't cry for this one!