Music helps me battle writer's block. In particular when I listen to something that matches the theme of what I'm trying to convey. I think I listened to metal when I wrote the battle between Gin and Shiro. So, naturally some suggestive R&B music helped me with this one. LOL

It's all Kagome and Sesshomaru btw.

OoOoOoOoOoO

"Um…" Kagome strained at the demon.

He almost smiled.

Sesshomaru had never been more happy to be in the cover of darkness in his life. He took great pleasure in watching her as his suggestion fermented in her head, wrenching her small features this way and that way before it settled into something that resembled apprehension. Fascinating. Her eyes trembled as she gently held her bottom lip between her teeth, searching in vain and seemingly wanting so desperately to see him. He was engrossed with how much more animated her face became when separated from her most prominent sense, and even more curious, how she apparently forgot that he didn't share the same inadequacy as her in the dark.

Is she afraid? He queried in the dense quiet, over her quickening heartbeat and as her mouth cracked open only to exhale. Kagome did just express her dislike for characteristics he couldn't help or control. And that could prove to be a problem, seeing that it wasn't fair. It's not like he could just override thousands of years of selective breeding and instinct for the sake of mortal sensibilities. She would have to get over it and accept him for who and what he was. Because if just scouting out for an unknown demon in the night was enough to spook her... he was confident that he would be in for a long and tortuous path towards befriending her, let alone making her feel comfortable enough to just lean against himself.

But he suspected a good deal of it was his own undoing. After all, he had played upon her fears, more than once. He even tried to kill her four years ago, confirming his hate for her kind. Sure, he was relatively more friendly these days, but he still scared her half to death the first day they had laid eyes on one another in a long time. And then there was the first night she was forced to oblige the arrangement, after his introduction to the English alphabet. Oh, and the first night he demanded her to remain here, with him, and without any camping supplies, and, that little game of 'stalk the human' in the pitch black of Inuyasha's forest, and, of course, that incident at Ishiyaya's, and…

Come to think of it, Sesshomaru realized that he primarily did two things with Kagome-scare and tick her off. Often one followed the other.

Not exactly the best track record so far.

So if he had any self awareness-and he liked to believe that he most certainly did-that was the reason for her anxiety. Especially in the dark, and with a demon who was more haunting-and silent-than other known evils that tended to go bump in the night. Perhaps, he also pondered, that the threat of physical harm was another reason why she still looked to be thinking, possibly debating with whether or not she should take on hypothermia instead of indulging in the life saving warmth of his body.

Case in point, the terms of their peculiar agreement.

While one was recently rendered null and void-since it was frivolous if not outright dangerous-one was still ongoing. Sesshomaru had roused something within Kagome to such an extent that unless she stated otherwise no contact whatsoever would be allowed. Not even the harmless-from what he interpreted-gesture of sharing the heat of his body was readily accepted.

Some variety of disarray was definitely going on in that head of hers. Strange or not, the girl was merely human at the end of the day, so, unless he could convince her otherwise, her threshold for all things creepy would probably always be too shallow for his tastes. Although, the hanyou seemed to have figured it out just fine, or, maybe it was because he were a half demon, less threatening, therefore making him more acceptable in that sense. Kagome had been close to Inuyasha right from the start. That much he did remember, along with his brother's willingness to protect her...

Hmm…

He was beginning to understand why his brother and father went through all the trouble they endured for their humans, and why his father pestered him for years over having something to protect. Though, the dying because of them part was difficult to swallow. In comparison, female inuyoukai weren't exactly helpless creatures, even the meekest among them still had a degree of cunning and youkai strength.

Suddenly, his musings screeched to a violent halt.

He scoffed internally, backtracking. Their humans, Inuyasha's human, he reflected, his mouth contorting as some alien emotion knocked him upside the head. It was a smidgen of jealousy in all its offensive glory. As if she is still his to claim, he then thought scathingly.

Kagome didn't exactly defend their alleged relationship. At least that's what he understood. Her wording had been weird, as per usual, but the inflection was sort of revealing. She had said that Inuyasha was not her 'boyfriend,' a word he now busied himself with, weighing over its meaning, deliberating if the phrase was interchangeable with 'mate.' Probably not, he assumed with an educated guess, merely a male that is a friend, which he no longer is, he then concluded.

And speaking of things that went bump in the night, the green eyed monster was certainly banging around now, its possessive claws rapping and dragging against a door that housed neglected emotions behind it.

Unacceptable.

He swiftly dropped the subject, as if it were Inuyasha's barrier guarded blade, tucking it away for another day and returning to the matter of protecting a girl who, technically, was now his human. Though, Sesshomaru did try to ignore the nagging reality that she was currently a Miko for rent, acquired via a cutthroat lease agreement with the new moon posing as the landlord. Whether or not it would be up for renewal was up in the air.

He nipped those doubts in the bud. There was the issue of security and the desire to mull over it to address.

Now, protection was a perquisite he could provide and provide well, in addition to other perks too, like food-if she ever were low on supplies-and fast travel. He only thought of a few since Kagome looked to be ready to speak again...

No. False alarm.

Sesshomaru ventured back into his head.

He believed he did a fairly decent job standing in for Inuyasha so far. On second thought, more than decent. I'm far more qualified for the role, he thought arrogantly, imagining himself telling her that. And if she disagreed, he knew he could easily justify his claim.

For one, no demon or animal who valued its life had crossed them, which meant the likelihood of harm was reduced to zilch. On the other hand, with his brother, whenever he happened upon his lot, Kagome always appeared to be right in the middle of some ongoing fuckery, often finding herself injured.

Two, flying smoothly through the air was clearly better than the rough bouncing associated with riding on the back of a running hanyou. But he supposed he could trot about with the girl on his back, if she so wished, in despite of him preferring not to. But then again, that meant his claws would have repeat access to her taut thighs…

Focus, he warned himself.

Three, and this was significant, unlike Inuyasha, he was certain he were the superior conversationalist, possessing a greater deal of intelligence too. He could admit that his listening skills required some rectification, seeing that he had the habit of withdrawing into his mind when knee deep in a conversation, his face unchanged like he were still following closely. Kagome didn't seem too sore over it. Her attempts at getting him to talk had no end.

And four, as far as food went, naturally it would be nothing for him to slay the finest prey items for her benefit. The finest. If the animal had so much as a missing patch of fur it would be deemed unworthy for her.

Funny how his willingness to subject himself to the mentioned kind of snuck up on him.

Sesshomaru could argue, with himself, obviously, that she was somewhat undeserving of it too, but then again he could also recall her snarling at Inuyasha. Kagome had a habit of misplacing her civility and hurling the most furious diatribe at his face too. Still, he offered her comfort or assistance in some way. For example, the girl's hands seemed to be broken these days, she didn't even have to carry her own things.

In a way he should have felt slighted, his likeness relative to a pack mule with wings, but honestly, he lost no sleep over it. Something deep within himself, an instinct maybe, had persuaded him to want to do for her, before he realized it were even a want. It was painless, to make her life here with him easier, especially when she looked up at him with her large doe-eyes, enchanting sweetly. He found an odd enjoyment in her unique...brashness, but when she sweet talked him, basking him in her feminine softness, he could be moved to…

Well, he just knew he'd do whatever was required to have her do it again. If it were all by design he couldn't beat himself up over it either, he wasn't the only inuyoukai who was a sucker for pretty human faces.

Regardless, nearly twenty stifling seconds had passed since she last attempted to speak, so he decided to take a whack at reassuring her.

"I won't bite," she heard him taunt over the high pitched shrill of her flat lining pulse. His rich baritone had strangled the remnants of the awkward and pregnant quiet, leaving only additional gravity and a blanched faced Kagome in its wake.

Well, I blew it, he goddamned to her dazed expression, realizing a declaration of that nature was unlikely to make his odds of comforting her more favorable, and now she's going to freeze to death. Lovely.

But he was mistaken. His posture improved as she nodded without thinking, half-mindedly forgetting and remembering that, yes, he could see her and probably had been watching her the entire time. Conscious of the fact, she stiffened, her face steeling as she beamed in the direction of his voice, to which Sesshomaru also returned amusedly. So much that a soft snort escaped him.

"Okay, what's so funny?" Kagome finally spoke. His mockery apparently helped her find her voice.

"You are looking at the door. I'm a little more to the right," he informed with a sliver of snark. Feeling silly, she purposely looked elsewhere, unknowingly at a wall, and with her lips pulled tight as she held in a muted chuff. It was sort of funny, and needed. It took the weight out the room, her mounting anxiety, and dragged her back down to earth. "You are shivering," the demon then noted, smoothly reminding her of his bid.

"Um...if you really are okay with it..." Kagome replied timidly, somehow feeling his stare baring down on her more than ever, "but first, could you...up," she cleared her croaking throat, "get up for a second, I want to unzip this thing some more." That was difficult.

That thing was her sleeping bag. It could also expand into a makeshift blanket when not used in its traditional fashion. Doing so would have made it large enough for them both to sit on, as well as cover the lower half of their bodies.

The aged wood groaned and creaked as he stood and stepped off the platform.

Kagome struggled to not think of her impending predicament as her frozen, nervous fingers located the zipper and tugged. Intrigued, Sesshomaru watched as she pensively manipulated the strange material, doubling its width before she quickly shoved her tense little body underneath. Sitting very still, her ears scoured for his presence in the gloom, hardly blinking with bated breath as she surveyed for a sign of life. Anything would have sufficed in place of the torturous hush. His disembodied voice, the clang of his swords, a gentle rustle of silk-anything. And as he continued to give her nothing, she thought about her trip back home for a brief visit tomorrow, seriously considering bringing Buyo's collar back with her, making proper use of the tiny bell attached to it.

And she could only speculate what he did under the cover of darkness. He could have been making faces for all she knew. Her mind roamed, conjuring up all sorts of possibilities. Like maybe he just meditated or something. He couldn't have just stood there staring in the black because it brought him some kind of pleasure.

Unfortunately for her, he did exactly that, but only for a short period this time.

When she heard the subtle slip of his clothing and the planks creaking once more, she recoiled and pressed back further into the wall of the pulpit. Good thing it were there, she had to recite a silent prayer, pleading with the Kamigami that her body wouldn't betray her, that the mayhem thrashing around in her skull would go unheard and not color her face.

Because unlike what Sesshomaru had assumed, the cause of her anxiety wasn't founded on fear. It was based on her ever heightening infatuation and attraction to him. True, she thought he were sort of alarming at times, but she also thought he were hot because of it. The allude of his inhibited wildness, the thrill of his perilous demeanor, his unearthly charisma-the hair, she could go on, all captivated her. And just the thought of touching him, being in contact with his body all night and while close enough to smell his crisp scent…

She started to feel warmer already.

Sitting down in the same spot, and still not in contact with her person, Sesshomaru slid his legs under the sleeping bag, pulling it to his waist-which was as far as it could go for him. It wasn't necessary, but he chalked it up as another gesture and obliged her. For some time she hesitated, her features bordering amid some bizarre combination of determination and unease.

"It's okay, Kagome," she heard him say calmly, free from any innuendo.

No it isn't, she fretted, but she couldn't delay the inevitable any longer. So, finally having the nerve, she edged to her right, diligently, painstakingly, until her temple nearly speared itself on a pointed tip. "Ow!" she cried out, wincing in pain and yanking her head away, her hand rubbing the smart. "I think I almost impaled myself on your armor."

More delays. "Are you hurt?" He could see that she was fine. No blood, but he still felt like he needed to ask, if only to make her feel better.

"Yeah," she hissed, still massaging the indention on her head, "can you take that off?"

"I can," he said, choosing not to stand this time.

Kagome felt his end of the fur go limp as he rolled the covers off. Next, she heard the clatter of his blades as they were removed from his body and set down, the slick lapse of his obi coming undone, his claws clacking softly against enchanted metal as he untied the red threads that held and anchored his chest armor to the offending shoulder plate. She grew more discomfited the more he unfastened. And having only turned away to fold his sash, he now squinted at her, unable to decipher her current expression.

How many… what is he taking off? It sounds a lot more than one piece of armor! She had no way of knowing just how intricate his dress actually was, how luxuriant-and annoying-it was to remove.

Kagome flinched and swung her head away when she heard the hefty clunk of his chest mail hitting the floor, concealing her fluster from him. But the youkai wanted to see, that look was new as well. So, he stealthily leaned towards her, curious of her face as he swiftly, overzealously… regretfully yanked the pauldron over his head.

Sesshomaru lurched. A faint strain sizzed through his teeth, prompting Kagome to look at him, perplexed, her brows wrinkled with a question burning on her tongue. In his haste, a section of his hair caught and snagged itself on his armor.

Embarrassing.

"What?" She had asked him.

"It's nothing," he glowered, untangling his tress and all but hurling the violate pauldron across the shrine. But ultimately, he was now free from all things injurious and grew tired of the stress inducing stalling. "When you are ready," he told her crossing his legs, his back to the pulpit.

Once again, a tight limbed Miko shifted to her right, until her weary hand brushed against the out most of his thigh. Surprisingly, Kagome didn't reel, physically at least. An alarm blared between her ears as she scooted until most of her right were pressed adjacent to his.

Oh, he's so warm, Kagome reveled in the heat that radiated from him. It penetrated her jacket. "This is nice," she murmured as his fur stirred and coiled around them both, just slightly bringing their bodies closer together. "You're a lifesaver," she then complimented, turning to him.

"Mhmm," he mumbled wittingly in her direction, his face closer to hers than ever before.

A thrill shot up her spine, pulling her abdomen tight as it settled in her chest. She knew he were closer, his face to hers. It aroused some involuntary quiver down below. That and the feel of his voice, the vibration of it thrumming low had got her heart throbbing again. He made her feel this way on a few occasions, when the intensity of his likeness was too raw and too near to her, igniting some primal reaction and snatching away all inkling of intelligent thought.

Argh, stupid, get a grip. Nothings' even happening, the Miko told herself. "Goodnight," her voice quavered as she tore her head away and looked straight ahead.

"Goodnight," he said back, feeling victorious but careful to hide it. How ever she felt about his demonic nature, he was still able to rectify his blunder and convince the girl to settle against him, in despite of her pounding heart.

He felt awfully smug about it too.

But then an absolutely delectable smell snared his attention. All of it.

He breathed quietly, deeply, having noticed it before, and just like back then too, he couldn't readily identify what it was. Clearly, she was still nervous, that much he could smell, but her angst swirled with something else, something quite tantalizing. It was that sweet musk of hers, subtle and light. Delightful. He liked the way it wafted from her and how it tended to linger until she eventually walked off to empty her bladder. It was so very distracting, and, it made him feel excitable each time it was detected. Wait...

A premise started to form.

If it makes me feel that way...could it mean... he wavered as a perverse sentiment developed and while glaring at the girl very seriously… is she… He dared to think it. Is she… aroused?

She was.

It was a hunch, but he believed he was right. It couldn't have been a coincidence that some key similarities between her and demoness was pretty darn comparable right now. Flushed cheeks, tittering vitals, a distinctive-albeit milder-aroma, coyness-Sesshomaru had seen that many, many times before. Stimulation. He took a few virgins over the years too. Which reminded him…

Well, some things were certainly starting to make sense to him. It threw him for a loop at first because he weren't familiar with ningen in that way, but now...

He sort of suspected it, just a little, though, he wasn't ready to venture down to that section of his brain when it first beckoned. It was a hell of a rabbit hole, cavernous, a real doozy, but now, the whole thing with his history, his ancestors, her face and body- he was no longer disturbed by the idea of doing something vigorous with her, or desiring to do it in the first place.

He wondered, or fantasized how that would work, fucking Kagome. I would have to hold back, I'm sure. Not unless my goal was- Her sudden jerk startled him and suspended that thought, as if she heard his looming lechery, but he quickly resumed, scoffing, realizing it was just her head bobbing as she drifted off.

… to pulverise her to death. That thought was even morbid for him, so he didn't linger on that for too long. Sesshomaru wasn't that kind of demon or lover. Although, if requested, he could be many things. From his experience, female inuyoukai liked it rough, if not possessing an all out need to be utterly ruined.

Moving on, he was curious to know if much were different between demoness and ningen in other ways. Like if they cared for the same touch or if they were different, if their anatomy down south were similar, or if her sensitivity to a firm and relentless tongue were the same, oh, and a big one, what noises he could pull from her.

He had to stop there, feeling it twitch and his building heat threatening to set them both ablaze under the covers. It has already been a severely long time for him and there would be no relief tonight. He sighed watching her head settle against the wall.

While Kagome was now dead to the world, out like a light, he knew even getting a sniff, getting intimate with her in that way would require a special breed of charisma and expertise that he currently didn't have. The matter of sex had always been direct and straight to the point for him. A simple "disrobe woman" sufficed many times. But then again, it didn't leave a lot of room for bonding afterwards, not that he sought that out or anything.

Kagome... she was unique, annoying, but endearing, and he kind of liked her presence and her innocent interrogations, and, for now, that was good enough for him.

It was difficult for him to fathom it happening anyway, spreading her wide, pulling her up to his mouth as she were a meal, or, climbing on top of her for that matter. Hell, Inuyasha had access to her heart and her body for nearly four years and he knew he didn't get too far with her.

Why am I thinking of this, of him...with her... he asked himself, too weary to cringe, eyes half shut with the lull of sleep, maybe she does have some prejudice for demons. Befriending our kind is one thing, intimacy is… intimacy...it's another...entirely...

His conscience told him it was time to shut the hell up and go to sleep now. He had been awake for almost two days, and after the day he had it was welcomed. Kagome, next to and on his body felt so good, soothing, purposeful, like she should have been there all along.

And as the room grew darker for him, his lids drooping even more now, he too began to drift off. His eyes were only closed for a few minutes when the soft nudge of the girl's head sliding down the wall and landing on the small of his arm stirred him. She muttered something mostly incoherent, but he did catch a 'sorry' and another remark about his warmth.

Her natural scent was lovely, so was the blend of floral that saturated her hair. He wanted to bury his nose in it, to sniff obnoxiously, but he would settle for resting his cheek on top of her instead.

Sleep did not hesitate to take him.

Regardless, Kagome was still the safest human in all of Japan on that frigid night.

OoOoOoOoO

DAY 3

NEW YEAR'S EVE

Kagome could ignore the light of morning and how it filtered a burgundy hue through her closed lids, but she couldn't ignore the sensation of a cool tickle across her face. She swatted and scratched at it, thinking it were just her hair, but when she stuffed her hand back under the warm fur it was back, irritating as ever. She cracked her eyes and saw that it was white and definitely not hers. Trailing down from his temple, the length of Sesshomaru's hair fanned down her face, blurring her vision and yanking her further away from sleep.

She then felt the weight of him on her head and draped over her shoulders, a steady breath rousing her hair from its roots, a silky warmth swimming through her fingers, and her arm heaving gently as it laid across his firm stomach.

The Miko was wide awake now, having realized that she was cuddled up against Sesshomaru, her fingers cradling the small of his waist, and his hand resting awkwardly on his lap when it could have easily been on her hip. Even in his sleep he still tried to respect the no touch agreement. She started to blush, hesitant to move because, Kami, the feel of him against her body felt divine.

She slept suspiciously well last night and now she knew exactly why.

But Kagome had a feeling it may have been her own doing, that she instigated their embrace. She knew how he tended to prop himself against trees, remaining perfectly still as he slept-when he slept, so maybe she did creep closer in the night and encouraged him to wrap his arm around her. It didn't explain why she had to stretch her arm over him, across his abdomen, approaching dangerously close to his…situation.

Perhaps, Sesshomaru did raise a good point. This was clearly a double standard.

Whew...time to get up! She jittered, tweaking and unraveling her fingers from his clothing and slowly pulling away from him. Sesshomaru must have been exhausted. He didn't wake. Instead he exhaled deeply, his head lurching momentarily from the lost of her, before it found the wall he leaned on. Kagome carefully untangled her body from his, removing her face from his chest, gingerly-and regretfully-tucking her naughty arm back to its rightful side.

Judging from the light in the room, it must have been a bright and clear day outside. The shrine was brighter than ever as the sun's rays seeped in through various cracks.

Last night was… interesting, she reflected while taking notice of her frozen water bottle on the floor. And since it was daytime she made good use of it and turned to look at Sesshomaru. A groan dragged out in her head. When he slept, the white haired youkai was the epitome of serenity and magnificence. She could only marvel him, flushing, taking her thumb to her mouth, etching the image into her brain. I hope it never gets warm again.

Having satisfied her need to leer, she stood and stretched and proceeded to pull a travel sized pack of kleenex from her backpack. Nature was calling and the last she answered was yesterday afternoon.

She stepped off the platform and speedwalked to the door, the exact moment when Sesshomaru woke up.

"Where are you going?" A deep and groggy voice questioned. Ooh. Kagome would have to appreciate it later, that and his half-closed eyes, because if she didn't get out that door to pee at that very moment it might not be a photo finish.

"Bathroom!" He heard her exclaim as she opened and bolted out the door.

Now it was his turn to stand and stretch.

The first thing he noticed, besides his wrinkled dress, was the scent of her all over his person. Kagome got particularly handsy with him last night. He slept through a good deal of it, since he were dog tired himself, but he did remember when she lifted his arm and snuggled underneath it. It was bold, unexpected, and, when he sleepily asked her what she were doing, she mumbled something about it being okay because Inuyasha let her do it. So, he figured if she wanted similar treatment, damnit, she was going to get it. Although, he didn't anticipate her wrapping her arm around and squeezing his waist so tightly and all night either, or it settling on the peak of his pubic hair for that matter.

That called for some adjustments, and thankfully she didn't embark any lower.

The smirking inuyoukai moved to reequip his armor, intending to relieve himself on a tree when properly suited. He mechanically put on his chest armor, fastening it tight and then pulling the paldron over his head. He hated this part as it was tricky. He normally tied one side of the red binds before he made further adjustments, the obi, naturally was added last.

And as he sifted the sash through his hands, a bolt sparked before his narrowing eyes. Something was close, a youkai, it was moving in fast, and towards Kagome.

He was out the door before the obi even hit the floor.

I'm really excited. The writer's block wasn't too bad this time around and finally, FINALLY my next chapter will be the reason why I started to write this story in the first place. This chapter was a bit shorter than what I've been posting recently, and I was going to combine this with the next chapter, but I'm going to have to go over the next chapter as it will be longer than this one for sure. Plus, I need to read and practice how to convey emotions better. I'm not a very emotional person, like at all, and it's difficult for me to write.

Again, thank you for reading.