So despite my need to marathon Rurouni Kenshin I've found myself in the mood to write Inuyasha. Figures; eh? Well hell, everyone wins. And an update so fast? Unheard of for me hahaha. Good grief... I just reread some older chapters for a quick fact-check and realized I posted this story five years ago and I was certainly writing like a fourteen-year-old with wayyyy too much free time. -sigh- I'm amazed people put up with me. -tsk-

Respectfully,

DoN


The Only Way

Chapter Twelve


Time passed, as it was prone to do, and Kagome awoke one morning to realize, with a bolt of horror, that she'd actually fallen into a routine at this castle. In fact she'd been out, by herself, more than once and hadn't even tried to run. She lay silently on her futon, considering the situation. Why am I not trying to run?

She hadn't fallen for Sesshomaru, that was for sure. He was still just as arrogant and frustrating as always...yet... she almost felt comfortable with him. Perhaps it was the memory of the day he'd knelt in the bathroom while her as she was sick and kept a comforting hand on her back... perhaps it was just the knowledge that all he wanted from her was a playmate and teacher for Rin...

Perhaps it was the fact that he hadn't once called her ugly (not that he had called her pretty, either), hadn't called her stupid in weeks, hadn't shouted at her, hadn't forced her to walk and run and fight for days on end with little or no sleep. As much as she felt dedicated to Inuyasha, she was terrifically tired of hunting shards.

It's my duty... Her mind piped up angrily, I broke the jewel. I'm the only one who can see the shards... and I'm just going to abandon Inuyasha because it's easier to just lay around all day and then get up and play with a child?

Well she was a prisoner...

I know I'm a prisoner, but if I put my mind to it, I can run!

But what if Sesshomaru caught her? When she'd last mentioned it he'd dared her to get fifteen feet before he'd catch her. So when she ran and he snatched her up... then what would he do? He can hurt me, and won't have to kill me or even leave marks... But would he, was the question.

I could take Rin. Take her hostage. Oh yeah. Because something like that would turn out so wonderfully for her. Kagome didn't even want to venture down that path of thought and squashed the idea violently enough that her right temple began to ache.

Rubbing her forehead she sat up, looking around – almost as if needing to check and be sure that Sesshomaru wasn't standing there poised to smack her for even briefly considering the possibility of kidnapping the young girl. She stood slowly, stretching as she gazed around the room again and went to the trunk Sesshomaru had gifted her with a few days ago; it was full of kimonos. So you don't have to bother me for new clothing he had informed her as he set it down in the corner. She'd tried to move it and it had been too heavy for her to even push, so in the corner it stayed.

Something felt funny today. Kagome realized she had a strange feeling of something being "off" as she slid her arms into blue silk sleeves, frowning as she tied the obi. What was wrong? Was she forgetting something special? A birthday? How long had she been here... no, she was months away from any birthdays. So why did she have such a funny feeling?

"Oh knock it off." She snapped at her stomach, rolling her eyes, "Maybe I'm just hungry."

Kagome slid the shoji open, feeling the familiar pop against her skin – dammit, why did Sesshomaru insist on still casting that spell? - and stepped through. She was jumpy as she walked down the dim halls, realizing she'd woken up strangely early today; the sun was still barely coming up, so the natural light the hallways relied on for most of the illumination wasn't there yet.

"Why am I up so early?"

"I could ask the same thing." Sesshomaru's voice came from behind her. Kagome turned, and froze for a moment as a bolt of lust hit her. Pure lust. No ifs ands or buts about it. Following the lust came immediate guilt. He just... looks like Inuyasha right now. That's it.

He was wearing a pair of loose, white, silk pants. For a moment Kaoru wondered why he wasn't wearing a yukata, then she wondered if he'd just pulled the pants on to come investigate and slept without anything, and then she grew even more flustered and just stared at him open-mouthed. He had no shirt on, his pale chest glinting smoothly in the dim light, his long white hair messy, long strands falling into his face.

And those eyes. They fairly glowed, shimmering, standing out even more starkly due to the shadows falling over the rest of his nonchalant face.

"Well?" He prompted softly, stepping toward her. Kagome matched him a step back automatically, a primal reaction, knowing only that he had the look of a predator and she was not up for being prey. "You're acting strangely, Kagome." When was the last time he'd used her name? The ball? It was usually ningen or human or something equally frustrating. "Kagome. What's the matter? Are you running a fever? Did something else happen?" He almost sounded genuinely worried about her. "I've grown used to not being able to silence you – why are you just staring at me? Speak."

She flinched and finally mumbled, "I woke up and thought I had to get up and now I'm up and something doesn't feel right."

"What doesn't feel right?" Sesshomaru was stepping close instantly, eyes narrow, "Do you feel that someone is in danger, here? Are you feeling threatened, or do you feel that Rin is threatened?" Interesting how he didn't name himself as a possible victim. "Listen to the feeling."

"Listen to it?" Kagome gazed up at him, astonished. Inuyasha had never once told her to listen to her feelings. He had just told her to shut up and go back to sleep – and he was the one watching them so he'd wake her if something was actually wrong.

"You're a woman; women have an extraordinary sense for such things, even if you are a human female." Sesshomaru seemed so matter-of-fact about it.

Kagome had never heard something so... positive... toward a woman come out of his mouth. Especially not something that didn't refer to a female as a "wench." Her mouth worked for a moment, and then she bit her lower lip and turned her face away, "I don't know what the feeling is, Sesshomaru. I'm sorry."

He furrowed his brow, "So this feeling woke you early, chased you from bed, and had you walking down a dark hall looking like you were going to leap out of your frail skin any second... and you have no idea what it's telling you?"

"I've never really had to listen to my feelings much, before. Inuyasha usually took care of it." Kagome admitted timidly, dropping her head.

"Feh." Sesshomaru muttered, "He never taught you a goddamn thing, did he? Useless half-breed."

"I don't think he was concerned with teaching me anything. I think he was concerned with finding the jewel shards."

"Ah." Sesshomaru hesitated, "Kagome."

"Yes?"

"Where are those shards?"

"...Oh my God." She whirled and bolted to her room, tearing through her things before her gaze went to Sesshomaru, who had followed her, "The shards! Where are the shards? Where's the clothing I came here in!? Oh, the ... the gardens!" She tore by him, bolting toward the gardens where she'd gone first after she'd gotten to the castle.

She had put the damn shards in her jeans pocket. But she had no memory of what had happened after that. "Oh God, come on, come on, oh they aren't here!" She was nearly in tears, tearing through grass and flowers as if they would somehow obscure the small bottle full of three-fourths of a Shikon jewel. "No, no, no..."

"They are not here?" Sesshomaru conjectured from behind her, and Kagome didn't bother to look up or answer, darting back and forth over the grass pleading with some unseen person. "Where else could they be, Kagome?" She didn't seem to hear him. Finally he sighed and caught her up by the waist, hauling her up against him and frowning. "Settle down. Where else could they be?" Her head snapped back and forth still, panicked by the lack of shards on the ground. It would have been so much easier. Those shards were sitting all alone for months, no way were they still just fine! Where were they? "KAGOME!"

A low groan escaped the girl and she slumped, "I don't know..." Kagome moaned miserably.

"Yes you do, you stupid girl. Listen to your instincts."

He barely had time to finish his sentence before Kagome was thrashing in his arms, "THE WELL! They're at the well, they must be! I had just come out when you grabbed me, they're at the well!"

Sesshomaru's brows flew up and he stood still for a moment before he let her go and turned, "Climb on."

"...huh?" Kagome managed breathlessly.

"If a demon gets ahold of that much of the Shikon jewel, they may be able to challenge me for my lands. I do not want this to happen. You are the protector of the jewel, and it's calling to you, which tells me if we don't go to it, someone else will. I'd rather you have the jewel and don't fuss over keeping you away from it and having to stop you from wandering out of your room at all hours. Now hurry up."

Kagome hesitated still, staring at his bare back. Finally she closed her eyes and crawled onto Sesshomaru's back, linking her arms around his shoulders. He slid his arms under her knees and without a word of warning they were off, darting at a speed Kagome hadn't known anything remotely humanoid could approach.

She began to feel nauseas as they ran, having a hard time breathing, feeling like all the pressure in the world was compressing her lungs. She moaned miserably on Sesshomaru's shoulder – which, by the way, smelled like something wonderful that at the moment she couldn't name – and then she blacked out.


"I don't even know what these damn shards are supposed to look like... shards or did they fuse into the jewel? How was she keeping them?" Sesshomaru's muttering was what woke Kagome from her unconscious bliss.

She stirred slowly, baffled by the grumblings, and rubbed her eyes as she struggled to her feet. "Sesshomaru? Where--?"

The well.

The well was right there.

She could run. And jump. And go right back home! She could go home and wait Sesshomaru out and come back maybe in a month or so and then return to Inuyasha...

But Sesshomaru could chase her, just as Inuyasha could. If that happened...she didn't want to imagine Sesshomaru in the modern day. Inuyasha's visits were always humorous... Sesshomaru's would be deadly.

So despite the longing to go home, to see her brother and her family and even that silly fat cat of hers... Kagome turned her back to the well. She had to protect everyone from Sesshomaru. She wouldn't dare loose a Inutaiyoukai such as Sesshomaru in a world that he could destroy, or rule, on a whim.

"I'm trying to find your jewel shards." He muttered, "I'm afraid it's much more difficult for me than it would be for you."

"O-oh." Kagome looked around for a moment and then a flood of paralyzing relief hit her and she snatched the small glass vial up from the grass nearby the well. "I can't believe it. I can't believe they're still here!"

Was it... the same thing that kept the well from being noticed by every demon within range? Some sort of cloaking? Had they just gotten immensely lucky and the shards had fallen within that special magic?

Whatever it was, Kagome was grateful. She hugged the shards close, terrifically relieved.

"Is the feeling gone, Kagome?"

"Yes." She whispered softly, "Yes. The feeling is gone. Why did you go so far out of your way for this?"

Sesshomaru hesitated before he finally approached and stood very still, gazing down at her. "I ... if these words are ever repeated, ever, I will end you. Do you understand?" At her nod he continued, "I like you. I don't know why I like you. You are a human, I acknowledge that, but I have the same inexplicable feelings for you as I do for Rin. Therefore I do not want to see you in pain. You were panicked this morning; and this calmed you."

Kagome felt her jaw hanging loose as she stared up at the Lord of the Western Lands, astonished by the words that fell from his lips. "...oh."

"Don't ever repeat that. And don't try to take advantage of it." His voice was ice cold now, "Come, we must return." He turned his back to her and gestured, and Kagome stuffed the shards down the front of her kimono, wedging it in between her stomach and the obi. It was uncomfortable, but she knew the shards weren't going anywhere. Then she crawled onto his back.

And promptly passed out once more as the running and pressure began again.