Beyond the Darkness
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A/N: Uggggh! Finally I was able to upload this chapter. I had to reload the page and try again because fanfiction was just not working! DX Rawr! Anyway, again with the rating... it's going to start getting OT+ from here and on out to the next one. I don't know about the future. I think it's going back down to T, but still... don't say I didn't warn you, younger audiences. o-O I'm not your parent, so I can't say what you can and can't read. If you want to read OT stuff and you are under sixteen, then be my guest. I'm not going to stop you, but just beware that OT stuff sometimes gets inappropriate. I'm not writing any lemons, I promise; it just gets a bit sensual in the next chapter. Well, enjoy and R&R please! Chanku and ciao! [: -Michele


::Chapter Thirty-Two::


"Shippo!" squealed Nikala while they had a splash war. Sango and Kagome serenely sat off to the side and watched as Nikala played with both Rin and Shippo. Rin had just recently joined into the splash war, thinking it would be fun. Boy, was she right.

"Ha! Got you, Ma!" exclaimed Shippo excitedly after he had splashed his mother. Nikala shielded her face and gave him a playful scowl.

"Oh no you don't!" she said and swiped her arm at the water.

Suddenly, her ears perked up and she straightened her back, her face serious now. Everyone looked up at her curiously.

"Nikala?" Sango called.

"Lady Nikala? What is it?" asked Rin.

Nikala raised a finger to her lips and shushed them all. She tilted her head to one side—the side closest to the large hedge that blocked them from society—and then suddenly widened her eyes with shock. She immediately ducked into the water, hiding her body in the fog.

"What? What is it?" asked Kagome with worry.

"Ma?" Shippo looked up at her with worry as well.

"We've been peeped on!" she whispered, her face turning beat red. Sango and Kagome turned to face each other, their faces also flushing bright red, but with angry, not embarrassment. The both of them clenched their fingers into fists.

"Who's been peepin'?" hissed Kagome through bared teeth.

"Sesshomaru's caught Miroku and InuYasha," Nikala said, trying to listen in on their conversation. "And it appears that they now know I can hear them. Sesshomaru and InuYasha can hear us speak even when we whisper."

"Oh I do hope they're listening," Sango said viciously.

"You bet," Kagome agreed. "InuYasha…," Kagome started, sucking in a lot of air and standing up, "SIT!"

They bathers heard a loud boom from the other side of the hedge, the ground shaking.

"The subjugation beads sure do come in handy," Sango mentioned.

"And I'm definitely not done yet," said Kagome and prepared herself for a mouthful of sits. "Sitsitsitsitsitsitsitsit!"

The ground shook violently, as if there was an earthquake occurring, as InuYasha was dragged further into the ground by the beads. Kagome made a little humph and sat back down into the water, her arms folded across her bare chest.

"That's what you get for peeping, you sicko," she retorted. Nikala bit her lips.

"Oh, Sesshomaru was scolding InuYasha before you activated the beads," noted Nikala. Kagome flushed a rosy pink.

"Oops!" she said sheepishly. "Sorry Sesshomaru…"

Nikala smiled. "It's okay. I'm sure he'll understand that that was in your fury," she said. Kagome and Sango smiled back at her and nodded.

* * *

Later that night, InuYasha and Miroku were beat up complete with large bumps on their head from the furious fist of Sesshomaru for peeking at his mate, and also a couple of whacks from Sango and Kagome.

"You were right, InuYasha," said Sesshomaru smugly. "You two are both damned to Hell." He growled, baring his teeth angrily at them as he wrapped his arm securely around Nikala's waist, who was nibbling on a piece of dried seaweed, remaining oblivious to what Sesshomaru was speaking of, pretending it never happened. Sango and Kagome, however, had been giving the two of them a very hard time about what they had done and completely agreed that Sesshomaru had done right.

"He should have killed them right then and there. I wouldn't have minded," growled Sango, both she and Kagome giving Miroku and InuYasha evil eyes and making them quiver in fear of them.

"Why'd you have to lead me there anyway?" hissed InuYasha in a whisper to Miroku, sitting apart from the others. "It was all your idea anyway to peep at Nikala! You were just so desperate to see her naked!"

Miroku sighed. "It was well worth it," he said, satisfied. "I just wish that now I can actually feel what that body feels like." InuYasha gagged and turned away from the monk.

"Yeah, if you want Sesshomaru to tear you to shreds. Your funeral, pal," InuYasha remarked.

After their supper, Nikala had put Shippo and Rin to sleep next to A-Un, who was still feeding on a small patch of grass. She draped a blanket over the both of them as they cuddled together in their sleep. The sight made Nikala smile widely.

My sweet, darling children, she thought proudly. I love you both so much.

She kissed the tops of their heads one at a time before rising to her feet. She met Sesshomaru when she stood. He wrapped his arm around her and hugged her close to his chest. Nikala closed her eyes and smiled, sliding her arms around his middle. His white fur grazed her face and the soft touch made her insides swirl. She loved to be graced with his touch.

"Nikala, my love," Sesshomaru started. "Sh-shall we then?"

Of course, they both knew what Sesshomaru meant by this. It was time to prove to InuYasha that their love was indeed real. Nikala thought it ridiculous, however, to have to try and prove something such as love to him. It wasn't their fault he didn't believe that the love they held for each other was real and true. In fact, it wasn't fair to them.

But they wanted to do this. They wanted to try it out and experience, especially Sesshomaru, nervous as he may be. This love-making thing was completely foreign and new to him, yet it was also so exciting and scary. Could he mess up? Was there a way to do this wrong? What if he embarrassed himself? What if he made himself look like a fool and lost Nikala to this stupid session? He bared his teeth and shook his mind of all negative thoughts. Tonight would go well. Nothing was going to go wrong.

Besides, tonight was the night where Sesshomaru's inner dog hormones would release themselves. Mating was in his nature—his true dog demon nature.