Chapter thirteen – Courtship

Kagome stood still as a rock as she tried to absorb what she had just been asked.
Sesshomaru found the silence deafening until she turned to him and said simply
"I thought you were never going to ask Sesshomaru, yes by all means please court me. Nothing would make me happier."
He drew her to him and he began kissing her burning her soul with his passion, she kissed him with all the passion she had in her and felt him stir against her stomach. With that he pulled away again.
"I will go no further with you until the time I will make you my mate. I wish for you to find a way to end the marriage I think you called it to my brother. I cannot have you if you are in any way possible bound to another." Sesshomaru said coldly without meaning to be. He was thankful that idiot brother of his hadn't marked her. Then she would forever been out of his reach.
"Our marriage wasn't really a marriage we just had Miroku perform a blessing and a small ceremony. No certificates were signed or anything else like that." She whispered.
"Certificate?" The man before her inquired.
"Yes, a certificate that proves that a couple is married and was performed by an official priest or monk." She answered.
"So your marriage was hollow and not properly binding?" He asked.
"No, I guess not."
He drew her back for a quick embrace and then he left but not before telling her that he would visit her in her chambers later tonight.

Kagome lay back on the futon she had been sitting on. Her heart racing and her soul burning with desire as she thought. He wanted to be with her. Sesshomaru wanted to be with her, Kagome a human. He wanted to mate her, and bind her to him for as long as she lived. That thought then ruined her mood. As long as she lived. She a human would grow old and die before he even began to become old. Demons had longer lives than humans. She would become old and unattractive. Would he still want her? He who would be as beautiful as this day? This made her cry, of course she would find a way to ruin her happiness. But it was there in the back of her mind now. She would grow old and he would cast her aside.

Sesshomaru had left the palace to fly in his true form. Is this what it is like to be truly happy? He thought. She agreed to be his. He would court her and then mate her. She would help him rule and would care for his children. He knew being human her lifespan was dramatically shorter than his, but he had plans. He wasn't going to let time take her away from him. He was going to find away to bind her lifespan to his own. Now that he knew he now had her, he would not be without her. Something still bothered him thought. The way Kagome had been made to seem like she had betrayed his brother and InuYasha told that he Sesshomaru was with Kagome. Something was amiss and he would get to the bottom of it. For it involved the woman he had grew to love, and nothing would be permitted to harm her.

Kagome was lying in her bed her eyes puffy from crying as she slowly began drifting to sleep. She had tried to stay awake but the exhaustion of crying had won and she fell into a light slumber. Sesshomaru had come to see her and lay next to her. He reached to stroke her hair from her face and noticed that the pillow was wet. At closer inspection her eyes were puffy. He could smell salt and knew she had been crying. Something had deeply upset her. He felt sad himself. It hurt him to know she was sad. He would find the reason for her unhappiness and fix it. She was his heart, he would move mountains for her.

Morning had come and Sesshomaru had his arm wrapped around the sleeping priestess. Her face was so beautiful her eyes no longer puffy. She began to stir and woke to feel someone beside her.
"Sesshomaru." She whispered.
He turned her to face him and kissed her lightly.
"Tell me, why did you cry last night?" He asked as he stroked her cheek.
She closed her eyes at the touch. She didn't want to upset him but she knew every relationship needed honesty.
"I cried because I will grow old while you stay beautiful. I will become undesirable to you and you will cast me aside." She said sadly.
"You say this thinking you know this for certain. Again you presume to know my mind when in fact you don't. I will never cast you aside. Inu mate for life so I will only ever have you as a mate. I only ever want you. We don't need to let aging ruin our happiness." He said as warmly as he could.
She smiled at that, and decided she would worry in a few more years. For now she had him and she was young. She would enjoy her time with him while she could. Sesshomaru didn't tell her that he was seeking a way to give her the same lifespan as if he couldn't achieve it he didn't want to give her false hope just for it to be dashed. He would never leave her nor would he allow her to leave him. He would find a way to stop time if he had to, just to keep her with him.

That afternoon Sesshomaru had left and at dinner he had returned again asking Kagome to join him for a walk in the gardens. She had been surprised when he had taken her hand and they walked hand in hand. He wasn't worried about being seen. They reached the cherry blossom tree she loved to sit under he pulled her in for a kiss. Then took her hands and placed something in them. She opened her hands to see an exquisite necklace with a diamond the size of an egg in her hands.
"Sesshomaru this is beautiful, it is far too much I don't know how to thank you." She breathed.
Taking it from her hand and placing it on her he simply said
"Kagome thank me by being with me always that is thanks enough for me."
She kissed him with tears in her eyes. She had never been happier.

Red eyes observed from a distance. Soon, soon his plan would come into play.