So, I'm guessing that no one liked my previous chapter hum? Hope you guys like this one :3 Thank you LoveAndFaith for reviewing!

Now to the chapter…

21º - Beautiful

(*)

Inu no Taisho went looking for his family. He needed to hug his mate and calm his nerves before dealing with anything else. He found them behind the fake wall, which had been designed for emergencies. If the castle was under attack, his mate and pups could use this as an escape route because, besides blending in with the castle walls, it led to an exit outside the castle grounds.

Seeing his mate and Inuyasha brought him almost instant relief. He could now deal with all this mess. He told his family everything that had happened that night: the torture, Kagome walking in on them, and the eminent threat that they were now under. Someone was digging into Kagome's past, and that could be very dangerous to all of them. They would have to triplicate the guards and probably prepare for war.

When Aimi discovered what had happened with Kagome, she instantly wanted to run to her and see to her protection. It was Inu no Taisho who stopped her. Since Sesshomaru was with her, anyone who got too close would be ripped to pieces. Obviously, Sesshomaru would never kill Aimi but, depending on how strong his instincts were now working, he could definitely hurt her. After reassuring his mate, both he and Inuyasha would need to start bringing some order within the castle.

'But first,' Inu no Taisho decided, 'let us look for the idiotic guard who had left the cell door open, allowing Kagome to see that horrifying scene.'

(*)

Kagome woke up when the first few rays of sunlight hit her face. Her neck was sore and she felt an excruciating pain when she tried to raise her head. Apparently, she was paying the price for falling asleep outside the previous evening. Slowly, she started turning her head around, trying to ease the pain.

When she was finally able to stand, she went back inside and took a quick shower. Last night had not been a peaceful one. It had been full of nightmares and fear. Closing her eyes, she found Sesshomaru's energy just outside her door. He had told her that he would spend the night there. But she hadn't believed him. She wasn't sure what to expect when she opened her door. Was he sitting or standing? Would he be asleep?

Finishing her shower, she put some clothes on and went for the door. Sesshomaru was standing right in front of it. His eyes were closed, but his ears were twitching too much for someone who was supposed to be asleep. Kagome took a deep breath and stared up at his face. Slowly, he opened his eyes, looked straight into hers, and neither said a word. Sesshomaru was the first one to break the silence.

"I would like to talk to you, Kagome." He sounded the same. Deep and powerful, capable of making her legs melt. 'No, I need to remain focused.' She wanted to know what happened yesterday night. Who was that man, and why was he being tortured? "Kagome?"

When he called her name a second time, she shook her head and realized that she had been staring at him for a long while now. Taking a step back into her room, she moved away from the door and let him in. She then took a seat on the far end of her bed and waited for Sesshomaru to start talking.

Sesshomaru saw her movements and followed her inside the room, closing the door behind him. He could feel her fear and uncertainty. Well, of course she would be fearful. She had seen him torturing a man last night. What did he expect, a warm hug? He wanted to run across the room, hold her in his arms and nuzzle her neck. To prove to her that he was still the same, and that his heart would always belong to her. But her eyes clearly showed him that, that course of action would not be advised.

This shouldn't be so difficult. Taking a deep breath, Sesshomaru started talking. "What you saw last night was exactly what you think it was. We apprehended the man and torture him for hours." Sesshomaru waited for his words to sink in. It was pointless to deny it, and if she was involved in this, she had the right to know what was happening.

Kagome couldn't believe it. 'How straightforward can he be?' She thought he would deny it. Pretend it never happened. Or tell her that he had been forced to do it. She thought that he would create some kind of excuse to justify his behavior. But no. He had decided to tell her the truth. Looking straight into his eyes, she waited for him to continue.

"He was a spy who had successfully infiltrated the castle under false pretenses. Father learned of his true identity and was able to capture him before he was able to flee." So there was a reason. They didn't just torture for sport. "No, Kagome. We do not torture for fun." Her face was easy to read. Her relief was tangible at his assurances. No wonder she had wanted nothing to do with him last night. She'd thought he had enjoyed inflicting such pain on another, despite any justifiable cause.

"I'm sorry." Kagome lowered her eyes in shame. Of course they would not kill for sport. She had been with them for months, and they had been nothing but understanding and polite towards her. Eventually, they had become the family she never had.

"It is of no consequence," Sesshomaru told her, trying to appease her. "As I was saying, he was a spy. We needed to extract information from him, so we did what we had to." And here it was, she mused silently, the cold personality she had been warned about, the side to Sesshomaru she had never seen before, let alone believed existed. The Killing Perfection.

"Would you do it again, Sesshomaru?" Kagome's voice was nothing but a whisper. "Would you torture that man all over?" She didn't want to know. She wanted to tell him not to answer her or to lie to her. But this was the first time she saw him for what he truly was. This was the first time where his voice wasn't made of whisky and honey. This was the killer, the demon, the one who would do anything to get what he wanted. And she needed to know him.

"I would, Kagome." Sesshomaru walked farther away inside her room, resting his back against the wall, closing his eyes and crossing his arms over his chest before continuing. "I do not regret what I did. He was a threat to this family." 'To you.' He never said it, but it was implied. "I want to make this perfectly clear to you. I do not regret what I did, I would do it all over again, and I am positive that a time will come where I will have to do it again."

Kagome was shivering, not because it was cold, but because Sesshomaru's voice was just giving her the creeps. She didn't say anything. How could she? Yes, she knew this was a world of war and that bad people existed in it, but wasn't there a way to make it better without killing or torturing a person?

"Kagome?" Sesshomaru called her. He wanted to see her eyes. She, however, was not cooperating. "We are not monsters, Kagome. We are just trying to protect what is most important to us."

Seeing that she wasn't responding to him, Sesshomaru decided to give her some time alone. Releasing a small sigh, he started walking towards the door to leave her alone. Before he reached the door, however, her words stopped him in his tracks.

"Did you get it?" Sesshomaru didn't turn around. He didn't need to. "The information. Did you get it?"

"He talked. But the information itself was worthless."

"And what did you do to him? After the torture, I mean." Sesshomaru felt reluctant to tell her. He turned around and looked her in the eyes again. She was finally looking directly at him, with no fear. At that moment, she looked so powerful and so delicate at the same time. He didn't want to spoil her with gore and evilness. But she deserved the truth from him.

Never diverting his eyes, he answered her. "We did what you always do to spies when they cease to be useful." Kagome knew it already, of course she knew it. Yet, she needed the confirmation from him. She needed to hear him say it.

"Thank you for telling me," she said in a muffled voice.

She didn't ask him to leave, but her silence made it obvious. Making a small bow, Sesshomaru left her room without muttering another other. There was nothing he could say. It was up to her now, how she managed this situation.

Kagome felt her body shaking once more, before her back hit the mattress underneath her. She closed her eyes and involuntary tears started to flow. That was how Ami found her when she entered Kagome's room that morning.

(*)

Two days went by. During that time, the castle was back in order. The three inu demons had looked for more spies within the castle grounds but found none. With some luck, that could have been the only one.

As for Kagome, she had spent those last two days mostly in her room. She was still trying to deal with the idea that this was a war where only the strongest survived. She also didn't want to see Sesshomaru. Not because she was afraid of him, but because she didn't know how to react around him. Who was he? The friend she had come to care for in the last six months, or the killer who tortured his prisoners? She felt conflicted, and until she managed her feelings, only Aimi was able to see her.

This silent treatment was maddening. Sesshomaru wanted to break her door down, take her in his arms, and make her forget what she saw two nights ago. To reveal his feelings towards her, make love to her, and get lost in all she had to offer. But he couldn't because she wasn't ready yet. He had to deal with this silence and endure it.

It had been so long since he last ran free in his true form. Maybe it was time to release his instincts for a bit. So, with his mid set, he told his father he was going out for a few hours and went to the gardens.

Once free from the walls of the castle, he transformed into his true form. His demon form was a huge, silver dog, and it had been a while since he last transformed, so he needed to make sure that he had perfect control over his body. He started by stretching his muscles. After a few seconds of stretching, he set off towards the forest, never realizing that Kagome had been watching him from her bedroom window the entire time.

(*)

Kagome was amazed. She knew about their transformation, but she had never seen it. When Sesshomaru transformed, in his place was a huge, silver dog and Kagome's mouth fell open.

During her afternoon classes with Aimi, Kagome had learned that the most powerful demons were capable of transfiguring into animals according to their family's blood and heritage. Sesshomaru, Aimi, Inu no Taisho, Inuyasha and even Hideo, were capable of transforming into giant dogs just by force of will. When they wanted to transform, all they had to do was picture the demonic image in their mind and release their youki.

Then there were the weaker demons, who had the same ability. However, their transformation would require much more power and concentration. 'Maybe that's why I never saw my former master transform.' It had been a while since Kagome had thought about her life as a slave. The memories weren't happy ones, and the last six months had past in a blur. And yet, she had never told Aimi or Inu no Taisho where she had come from nor the fact that she was a runaway slave.

Kagome drew her attention back to the massive, silver dog, now running towards the forest. He was supreme and magnificent. His silver fur was shining with the rays of sun. All of him was manly, beauty, and power.

"Beautiful, isn't he?" Aimi took her by surprise when she spoke so near from behind. With a small blush on her face, Kagome nodded and stepped away from the window.

"He is sublime." Kagome couldn't stop thinking that maybe someday she, too, would be able to transform into something herself.

At the same time, Aimi couldn't hide the small smile that appeared on her lips. The silver dogs of the West were known for their beauty, and that was one of the reasons they avoided assuming their true forms. There weren't many of them left, so a massive, silver dog running in the forest made them easy targets to human hunters. Of course, most didn't have a chance at hurting them, but trying to avoid human slaughters was the preferred option.

(*)

While Aimi and Kagome talked, Inu no Taisho was reading his most recent letters. There were many asking for help, while others proposed alliances. However, there was one in particular that could mean trouble in the future. According to the letter, it had been eight hundred years since the four cardinal lords had created a peace alliance. Two hundred years ago, the Northern family had been decimated, and Inu no Taisho was certain that one of the other lords had arranged the attack; however, there wasn't enough evidences to support his theory or who might have ordered the deed. So the peace treaty was still valid.

There was also a rule proclaiming that every one hundred years one of the lords would arrange a ball where the entire country, including the noblemen and lords all over the country, would get together. Apparently, this year it would be held in the West. Inu no Taisho took a deep breath. More work to be done.

(*)

*A big thank you to my beta, BelovedStranger! She's absolutely amazing! 3