Last Time on Cursed
Miroku covertly finds out what happened at Sesshomaru's meeting. Miroku and Sesshomaru squabble over something trivial (again); Kagome, Rin and the others are kidnapped by Susha's agents. Miroku battles a few of them, Sesshomaru is upset that he has left the castle against his 'request'.
Kidnapping.
What a joke.
By the time Sesshomaru and Miroku arrived Inuyasha had disposed of the so called 'abductors'. Inuyasha snorted in disgust. "Why would they send such weaklings after Kagome and the others?"
Suddenly it hit Sesshomaru. This was a distraction, a diversion of sorts. They wanted both Inuyasha and he away from the castle so they could attack. Damn that Susha!
Sesshomaru summoned Ah-Un. "We must return to the castle at once."
Inuyasha glanced at his brother. "Even them?"
Sesshomaru surveyed the wayward band, his eyes meeting those of Sango, his rival for Miroku's attention. He could have killed her, it would be so easy, but would distress Miroku; evidently he was still endeared to her of sorts. It was clear to him that the safest place for them would be under his watch, even with the risk of attack. The castle was fortified, and there were many safe spots that could withstand invasion.
"Yes."
"But why?" Kagome challenged.
Sesshomaru let out a low growl of irritation, heard only by Inuyasha and Shippo.
Inuyasha answered the question for him. "So you can stay out of trouble. It's clear you can't do that on your own."
Kagome huffed indignantly, ready to retort.
Sesshomaru held up his hand to silence her. When they arrived back at the castle, he would instruct his servants to keep all of them as far away from him as possible.
At Sesshomaru's Castle
Deep in the bowels of the castle, the female servant of Susha sat on a pallet. Susha and another servant stood over her.
"So you will be able to work much better in here?" he asked.
She nodded.
"Yes."
" Well it was not too difficult to sneak you in here. I knew that Inuyasha and Sesshomaru would go running to save their companions, but I hadn't expected the monk to go along. I was sure that Sesshomaru would order him to stay."
She smiled. "He did. I could feel his indignation. The seeds of defiance were already there. I just allowed them to sprout. I don't create thoughts; I just amplify those that are present."
Susha laughed. "Well have fun. I'm going to play with that new general of his." He left.
Back in the Woods
"So this was all a distraction?" Inuyasha asked his brother.
"Yes. I am sure he is up to something, which is why he drew us away from my castle. Now we must return at once." Without another word, Sesshomaru took off in the air, with Miroku holding on to his tail, and not fondling it for once. The others followed; Rin and Jaken on Ah-Un and Kagome, Shippo, Sango in Kiarara. Inuyasha of course refused to ride on anything, but was fast enough to keep up on the ground.
As soon as they entered the foyer of the castle, servants came running to meet Sesshomaru. "My Lord, an urgent message from General Tsuyoshi!" The servant said, handing him a scroll. Sesshomaru opened the scroll and read it. His eyes narrowed. He summoned more servants.
"Find accommodations for the guests in the east wing." Far away from him. He waved them all away, expecting Inuyasha and Miroku to follow, which of course they would not. Miroku's head had cleared up when he was out in the woods, far away from the castle, but now that he was back, he could feel that familiar irritation that came and went; only now it was stronger than ever.
"What is it?" Inuyasha asked. "And don't blow me off. I'm in this too. They kidnapped Kagome and made it personal."
Sesshomaru passed the scroll to his brother, and Miroku read it over his shoulder. "Ah, so that new deputy of yours has caught the enemy advancing and routed them. Not bad," Miroku commented.
Sesshomaru eyed Miroku curiously. He had not told Miroku about appointing a new deputy, so how had he found out? Damn that monk. He's set up spies here; I'm not surprised but when I find them they're dead.
"So it was a distraction after all," Inuyasha said, restating the obvious. "And he's on his way-"
They all turned. Entering the hall was a travel stained; battle weary Tsuyoshi and a young female Inu Yokai behind him, dressed in fine attire. Her hair and eyes were as dark as the night sky.
Sesshomaru eyed her with his usual blank expression, expecting an explanation as to who this uninvited guest was.
"My Lord," Tsuyoshi bowed. "This is my sister, Amaya. I would like to request permission for her to remain here for her safety."
More guests. More people to annoy him. He was sure somebody would be dead before this was all over. But she looked harmless enough. He nodded.
Tsuyoshi bowed. "I thank you, My Lord. If you'll excuse me I will make myself presentable and then make my report-"
"That won't be necessary. Proceed to my conference room at once." The sooner he got this briefing over with, the sooner he could go and deal with Miroku. "I will meet with you alone," he emphasized.
"Whatever," Inuyasha took off to his rooms, or to find Kagome. Miroku stood in the hall for a moment, apparently in deep thought, rubbing his temples.
Sesshomaru turned. "Is something wrong?" he asked his lover.
Without acknowledging, Miroku strode past him towards his rooms.
Sesshomaru was furious. How dare Miroku just brush him off like that! He was tempted, so tempted to go to his rooms and demand an explanation. But this business had to be handled first.
Miroku's Room
Miroku paced his room, furious at this whole situation. Again and again, Sesshomaru had rebuffed him when he asked to help, either kept him back here or practically glued to his side when they were out. Miroku felt smothered. He had to think. The best way to do that would be to get away from the castle. Whenever he was here, he couldn't think straight. The slightest action by Sesshomaru seemed to tick him off. Take earlier today. He had been annoyed that Sesshomaru wouldn't tell him what went on at his meeting, annoyed again when Sesshomaru asked, or rather told him to come in from the chilly air, and finally disappointed at the way Sesshomaru treated his servants, which he was going to bring up but time had not allowed.
The last straw was when Sesshomaru had refused to let him accompany him to rescue Sango and the others. Just what did Sesshomaru think he was? Some kind of damsel who would wait for her knight in the tower while he went off to do battle? It was clear that Sesshomaru had no respect for him at all, and would never see him as an equal, and refused to be a part of such a relationship. He needed to leave and get his thoughts together.
In the Council room
As Tsuyoshi began his report Sesshomaru found he couldn't focus. At first, he told his deputy to make it brief, and then stopped him all together and instructed him to prepare a written report by morning, he would see him then. By then, his mind would be clear after he found out what was going on with Miroku.
Tsuyoshi didn't understand why his Lord didn't want a detailed report immediately, as he was always a stickler for the details, but in his short time as deputy he had learned to do what was asked.
Miroku's Room
After bathing, cleaning his cut, and changing into his own robes, Miroku made to leave. The sooner he got out of here, the better.
No such luck.
Sesshomaru burst into his room, his anger clearly showing on his face. He stopped, eyeing Miroku's robes. Had he not order those to be thrown out?
"What's the matter, Sesshomaru? Surprised to see me wearing my own clothes?"
"I have provided with you with finer attire."
"I think I'll wear my own garments, thank you. And in future, do not throw my property out without my permission."
"Permission?" How dare this monk suggest that he needed permission to do anything in his own house.
"Yes, permission. You may not dispose of my property without my permission. It's very disrespectful."
Sesshomaru narrowed his eyes at his lover. This was not about the robes; clearly Miroku had some other grievance to discuss. "You've been starting petty arguments over the past few days. I want to know the reason you are being so cold to me. I have done nothing to warrant it, and I will not tolerate it." As soon as Sesshomaru finished the last part of that statement, he realized that maybe he shouldn't have said it. This was confirmed by the look on Miroku's face.
"Perhaps the arguments have been petty, but they are part of a bigger issue that you refuse to see."
"And what issue is that?"
"Where to begin. First, you keep me in the dark about what was going on."
Sesshomaru sighed. This again. He had his reasons. Why couldn't the monk understand that?
"I have my reasons."
"Which are?"
"It doesn't matter." They did matter, but he didn't want to admit why he couldn't share them. He hoped Miroku would understand; one thing that had caught his attention was his gentle and understanding nature, not this defiant version that had replaced him.
"It matters to me. But apparently what matters to me is not important to you."
Sesshomaru felt something sharp in his side, he wasn't sure what it was, since no one had touched him and he wasn't wearing any armor or weapons. "Why would you say such a thing?"
"What else would I say? Every time I inquire about your affairs, you brush me off. I'm left to conclude that you do not care for or have no respect for my opinion."
Sesshomaru could feel his anger rising. "Did I not follow your advice when dealing with my vassals? Or torching the fields? Or from strangling that servant earlier? I have given you an honor that I have never bestowed upon anyone else. What do you want from me?"
"I came here to assist you. But you continue to keep me in the dark."
"I have already told you that I do not need your assistance. And I see you have found other means of obtaining information."
Miroku didn't deny the accusation; he instead confirmed it. "Well if you had shared it with me then I wouldn't have to find out on my own."
"When I find out who has betrayed me, I'll-"
"Kill them, execute them, whatever you want to call it. But you will not find out who they are, so it doesn't matter."
Sesshomaru was immediately on the defensive. "Do you have a problem with how I handle my servants?"
"As a matter of fact I do. Your high-handed methods hardly inspire loyalty."
Sesshomaru stepped closer. "I will notbe told how to govern my own household," he said through clenched teeth.
"Clearly."
This monk's flippant attitude was going to get him hurt. Sesshomaru was finding it more and more difficult to control his temper.
"Shall we move on?" Miroku asked, finding it hard to keep the sarcasm from his voice, which he knew was deliberately irking his lover. "Another issue that pisses me off is the way you keep me at your side when we are out. I can't walk two footsteps without you grabbing me. Are you scared I might run off?"
Sesshomaru was taken aback slightly at the Monk's use of course language, which normally didn't reveal himself unless they were having sex. "I am scared of nothing."
"Then what the hell is your problem then?" Miroku demanded. "And why did you want me to stay here while you went out tonight? What the hell do you think I am?"
"Perhaps I didn't want you to get hurt! Did you ever think of that? And maybe I would rather talk of more pleasant things with you, not this current business that I'm dealing with!" There, he had said it. The thing he had vowed not to say. Now that the monk knew how dear he was to him, he would cease this ridiculous tirade.
No such luck. Instead of calming Miroku down, it had the complete opposite effect.
"How dare you disrespect me like that!" Miroku shouted.
"How have you been disrespected? I'm trying to protect you!" Sesshomaru shouted back.
"I don't need your damned protection. I can take care of myself. I have been doing so since I was a child, and have been just fine thus far. I don't need you to fight my battles for me!"
"Is that so? If I hadn't shown up to tonight, you would have been killed by that pathetic, weak demon."
Miroku had had enough, whatever feelings he thought Sesshomaru had for him were evidently false.
"Fuck you! Find some other toy to play with. I'm done. You know what those demons called me tonight? They called me your doxy. It's true isn't it? What do you think you're going to do with me? Dress me in fancy clothes and fuck me at your leisure? I think not. And if you thought to do so, then let me put you straight right now!"
Sesshomaru had him against the wall in an instant. His head hit the wall with a loud thud and Sesshomaru's claws dug into his skin as he grabbed fistfuls of the Monks clothing.
"You listen to me, monk," Sesshomaru hissed, his eyes wild with rage and his breathing labored and unsteady. "No one speaks to me like that! Least of all in my own house! If you choose to give credence to what those creatures said to you, then perhaps you are not deserving of my affection. Be that as it may, you will never, ever speak to me like that again. Are we clear?"
"Sesshomaru," Miroku replied, his voice deadly calm. "Take your hands off me. Now." Sesshomaru met Miroku's eyes. There were filled with anger…and hatred. Sesshomaru released him, but was still too angry to deal with him more.
"Get out."
"My pleasure." Miroku straightened his clothes, retrieved his staff and left.
From deep within the castle, a woman smiled at her work. One down, one to go.
That didn't end well. Let's take a time out shall we? Is Miroku being unreasonable? If so, why? How will Sesshomaru diffuse his anger? Find out as Cursed continues!