Author's Note: This chapter was somewhat difficult to crank out, so I want to give out a huge thanks to my beta for assisting me! I hope I kept Sesshoumaru as in character as possible.
oOo
For the most part, the grounds were quiet. Only the sound of the gentle storm could be heard and one determined slayer as her frantic steps plodded and splashed her way about the fortress grounds, her ragged breath heaving as she tried to keep up with floating ball of light that was growing smaller in the distance.
Sango looked about her frantically in the hopes of spotting someone, anyone so that they would see what she was seeing. What if they were under attack by some strange, unforeseeable force that was beyond their control?
"Kiyoushi!" she cried, knowing the demon was possibly within the vicinity. If there was trouble then she would gladly accept his assistance.
Sango chased the orb until she realized that she was heading towards the main donjon.
"Sesshoumaru," she gasped and wondered at the alarm that tinged her voice.
"Kiyoushi!" she cried out in desperation as she continued down the wide gravel path.
Sango rounded a small pagoda and came to a dead stop and searched desperately. She stood dumb and watched as the orb was now beginning its ascent along the side of the five-tiered keep.
Sango distinctly recognized the level which held Sesshoumaru's study. If he should be up there...
Sango didn't think further as she plunged towards the main donjon and up the zigzag staircase in the hopes that she might be able to stop whatever this thing was from hurting anyone. Even if it did not, perhaps Sesshoumaru could provide some insight, but a sudden disparaging thought immediately produced the notion that Sesshoumaru would simply dismiss it as nothing; thus leaving the fortress vulnerable because he was too much of a stubborn jackass to listen to anything she, a human, had to report.
Sango recognized a faint orange glow as she quickly approached the fourth level landing. No more thoughts as Sango spied the doorway to the study. She managed to grasp the doorframe and spun with the momentum of speed and wet feet upon the shiny, wooden floor into the study to come to a squeaky, dead stop.
There was nothing.
It was nearly pitch black dark within the room save the dim light from the hallway. She could see virtually nothing. There was no orb, no eerie flash of light.
Panting from her sudden exertion, Sango stood stock still as she peered with strained vision into the darkness.
No Sesshoumaru.
No Kiyoushi.
Nothing.
With a heavy sigh and more than a sense of uneasiness, Sango quickly decided that whatever it must have gone. Of all the individuals that resided within this fortress, Sango simply decided that Kiyoushi was the only one worth seeking out and disclosing these events without being patronized.
Just as Sango began to turn away from the open doorway, it suddenly occurred to her exactly where she was as she gazed back into the familiar room.
Without Sesshoumaru's foreboding presence, Sango was able to appreciate the vastness that lay beyond the dark shadows into the massive library before her. There were thousands upon thousands of scrolls that contained eons of this particular dog demon clan's history. Family trees, bloodlines, pivotal moments, strengths, weakness, it was all just lying in there. Any demon slayer would count his -or herself lucky to be on the precipice of such information.
Sango put her chin up and felt fortunate to have even been in the presence of remarkable chronicles. Of course, she had a naturally driven curiosity for the thousands of year old information. She would know more of dog demons than anyone, demon or human, could ever dream.
Yet the driving want or the need just did not seem to be there like she had expected.
Instead a mass onslaught of guilt at even the consideration to peek came over her and it was in that instant that she realized just how important everyone had become to her. In her mind's eye, she could see them all.
Chiyo's delicately older face with that peculiar look of wisdom. Of all the demons she encountered, never did Sango detect a premise of judgment.
Kiyoushi's gentle demeanor and countenance. He seemed to always lend an ear when he sensed that she was distressed in some fashion.
Kane's scowling expression and gruff exterior. Though he had been quite reluctant, Kane had unwittingly become a wonderful teacher and mentor.
Even those that she didn't know, but could see their quizzical expressions as she passed. In her mind, it would be a great betrayal and she would certainly not be guilty of that crime against those that she'd grown to care for in these last weeks.
And Sesshoumaru. Though he could be a stone-cold jackass, he did not deserve her betrayal.
She turned then, but not without a wary eye, to return to her quarters. She began slowly padding down the hallway, intent to check on Rin once more and even considered sleeping in the child's room just in case that strange orb should appear again.
She stopped for a moment at the top of the stairs, placing a light bracing hand upon the wall.
Her thoughts unexpectedly turned to this demoness that Sesshoumaru had some sort of intention of mating with or marrying or however they termed it within a dog clan. She considered the demoness nearly as unscrupulous as Naraku, but something about the demoness seemed more ruthless.
Naraku turned to outrageous manipulations, as she was sure this Lady Emi did, but Naraku enjoyed playing games, whereas Lady Emi was more likely to simply remove any obstacles in her path in the most cold-blooded manner.
This Lady Emi wasn't at all what she appeared to be: the simpering, obedient demoness ready to do the bidding of any dominant male.
No, this Lady Emi meant business whatever she was planning and Sango was certain that she planned something terrible for this particular clan. Whatever that might would be she certainly hoped that Myouga was able to learn. Rin was so frightened of this demoness that Sango simply couldn't leave Rin until she knew that the child was safe.
As Sango lifted a foot to descend the staircase, the walls around her slowly began to brighten to the soft, yet eerie blue glow from earlier. She turned her head slowly, knowing what she was about to find.
The glow had illuminated the entire hallway, completely extinguishing the orange glow from the small flame within the lantern. The source seemed to be emanating from the study.
She turned fully and quickly. In an instant she was at the doorway to find the glowing pin of light had grown to a full orb hovering over Sesshoumaru's desk. As Sango approached the doorway, she noted how the orb seemed to brighten and rise as if to beckon her to enter.
Sango stood still and simply watched as the strange glow dimmed somewhat as it slowly moved around the room, illuminating the shelves that lay in the darkness.
"What do you want?" she asked again, her voice slight rose into a plea.
Out of the need to protect, Sango stepped tentatively with the full intention of seeing this thing leave the fortress for good. She did not wish for this fortress to be compromised by any being by neither anything as great as the centipede demon or infinitesimal as this orb.
The strange, floating entity dimmed once again and then brightened to amazing intensity. Sango instinctively threw up her arm to shield her eyes from the blinding light. She was growing quite frustrated and growled in aggravation, "Show me your true form coward!" she half-shouted, tearing her arm away and braced herself as she faced the bright glare.
Sango waited with anticipation, unaware of what she could end up facing.
In that instant, the light simply vanished, plunging the room in darkness yet again. Sango was left completely blind for the moment and turned erratically to sense what could lie beyond her sight.
But there was nothing. As her eyes gradually adjusted to the darkness she examined the room as closely as she was able. There was nothing to find, but she noted there was another pearlescent light coming from the open balcony. She stopped for a moment as she heard no more thunder, not even the gentle pattering of the rain and surmised that the storm had ceased.
To be certain that the entity was indeed gone, Sango approached the balcony to find that the clouds had parted somewhat to reveal a bright half moon. The rain upon the foliage carried a fresh, green scent through the cool air. Without even thinking, out of sheer whimsy, Sango leaned her forearms on the balcony railing and gazed at the sky.
The moon illuminated the rippling edges of the clouds while leaving the rest darkened in mysterious shadow. There was an ever slight breeze, but just enough for the clouds to move lazily throughout the sky. Sango gazed down at the grounds below. She couldn't see very well as the clouds rolled over the moon, dimming its light somewhat, but she could hear the slight roar of the Cascades in the distance.
It was certainly a grand and different perspective from the high balcony. Sango imagined how many dog demons in positions of power had stood in this very spot contemplating the fate of their clan. She wondered if perhaps Sesshoumaru found himself on this same balcony.
Sesshoumaru.
Just as the clouds rolled away from the moon, Sango finally realized that she'd better return to her quarters before she was caught up here alone.
The moment she turned, Sango's hand flew to her chest as she gasped aloud from sudden panic.
Within the darkened shadows of the study, Sango was able to discern the faint glow of the billowy white form of what could only be Sesshoumaru.
She grasped the railing with her free hand as he slowly approached her.
"Sesshoumaru?"
He said nothing as the moonlight grew in intensity, as did the tension the closer he came until the light fully illuminated his presence.
Sango found herself ridiculously dumbstruck. "Sesshoumaru, I-I can explain," she stuttered stupidly as he neared.
He did not pay the statement any attention. "What are you doing here?" he demanded coolly as he came within a hair's breath of her form.
Sango had to lean away from him over the balcony and crane her head back to look up at him. His face was just as cool and emotionless as usual, but Sango kept sensing an unusual resonance from him that was making her extremely nervous.
She edged slowly along the railing. "I-I was...I-I saw...," she continued to stutter as she edged around him and began backing into the darkness of the study.
Sesshoumaru merely arched a questioning brow as he watched this silly human girl stutter out of some strange nervousness it seemed, and slowly began to step away from him back into the study.
"You saw...what?" he questioned in a cool, patronizing manner as he turned to watch her continue to back away from him as if he were a deviant.
Sango silently cursed herself for sounding no better than silly young girl, but she felt suddenly seized by this inane fluttering of the stomach...and the tongue so it seemed. She could see that he wasn't exactly angry, but neither did he seem pleased. She wanted to tell him that she was trying to make certain that this fortress remained safe and somehow instead he'd managed to turn her into a bashful, stuttering twit with only a simple look.
Finally, Sango pulled herself upright, feeling a regained sense of determination and thrust her chin in the air. "There was an intruder," she stated firmly.
Seeming to disregard that information, Sesshoumaru turned fully to face her. "And yet, I find you here," he said as he approached her in a slow, stalking manner. "In my study."
Sango didn't realize that the closer he came to her that she was backing away from him until she felt her shoulder blades come into sharp contact with the shelves behind her. A single scroll was knocked from the shelf and landed with hollow thud upon the wooden floor.
Sesshoumaru barely spared the document a brief glance of consideration as he narrowed his golden gaze on the slayer before him. He noted first that she was hardly frightened, even at being found alone in his study under the cover of night. Her face had flushed into a rather interesting shade of pink, perhaps from embarrassment. He could practically feel the heat emanating from her pale skin.
"Do you realize that I could kill you for this?" he said low as he gained upon her again. He looked down into her nervous, yet determined eyes. "Simply for being who and what you are, that I should kill you."
Sango drew herself up again, which inadvertently brought her closer to his immense form. Though she was practically nose to chest with him, Sango couldn't help feeling that she was this close to Sesshoumaru, not touching him and yet she could feel power oozing out of him in such a way that it seemed tangible. She could practically feel the size of his form without even touching him.
"So what's stopping you?" she asked in a low, but less than convincing tone, but hoped her eyes made up for what her voice lacked.
Instead of feeling exacerbated at her ridiculous sense of martyrdom where he was concerned, Sesshoumaru was half inclined to actually smile at this ridiculous human girl that insisted on provoking him. He knew that she wasn't up here conducting some odd form of espionage. He'd heard her talking to someone with the same obstinate tone that she held now.
His first thought was that, like many humans, she was beginning to lose her barbaric mind. He'd noted no scent, nothing to indicate that there was any sort of intruder as she claimed so confidently. Her heartbeat had become wild when he'd first discovered her, but the more she tried to convince him, the more even her beat became and calmer she seemed. She did not believe herself to be lying.
Sango could see that he wasn't going to respond in any way fashion or form. With a heavy sigh, Sango looked away from him. "Look, I saw something suspicious and I just came to check it out," she insisted tiredly. "Punish me as you see fit," she added as she turned away to leave.
She turned and had no more than taken a step when she felt a tight grip to her upper arm. She whirled to see where Sesshoumaru's clawed hand had caught her left arm and traveled the length of his own arm to his face and nearly gasped.
His eyes were alight with something she'd never before seen on Sesshoumaru's face. One corner of his mouth was ever slightly turned up and his eyes were narrowed without maliciousness.
Was he smirking?
Sesshoumaru bent close to her face with a rather condescending expression. "Why should you, a demonslayer, care what happens to those that reside within this fortress?"
Sango's brow furrowed with aggravation. "Why should it bother you that I do care?" she slung back at him.
"You," he began low as he tightened his grip. "How is it that you have survived so long with such a provocative nature?"
"Call it luck," she bit out.
Sesshoumaru merely grunted his sarcasm, his grip loosening somewhat. "So you say there was an intruder. Why do I not detect an aura or even a scent?"
Sango recognized his implication for what it was. "How should I know? All I know is what I saw and why it led me here I'm sure I don't know."
Sesshoumaru merely grunted again and leaned away from her, his hand still holding her fast. This human girl that thrust herself into their business was becoming annoying. Her purpose here was Rin and for no other, yet she insisted on making a place for herself among them.
"Did you not heed my warning about thrusting yourself into what is truly none of your concern?" he said.
Sango was indignant. "Why do you keep saying that?" she half-shouted as she gave yet another futile tug on her arm. "I'm here because of Rin. Should I not protect my interest?"
"You are here for Rin's amusement and no other," he replied menacingly, not realizing right away that his fingers were absently kneading the flesh of her arm. It was by no means slight like he viewed most human women. The muscle beneath her kimono was firm and having viewed her matches with Kane, knew that it was well-defined in a sleek fashion.
Sango jerked as if he'd slapped her. "I am no one's plaything!" she shouted, her tone shamefully sounded hurt at his words and found her right hand flying to protest that pain.
Though she was quick, Sango was hardly as fast as Sesshoumaru. He quickly let loose her arm to catch her hand before it landed on his cheek.
'She had thrown her entire body into that swing', he thought, slightly taken aback by her passionate response.
Her wrist held between them in Sesshoumaru's tight grip, tight enough that Sango should be wincing in pain, but instead her face was pulled into a fierce expression, her lips pulled back over gritted teeth.
"You dare attempt to strike me," he said menacingly low and jerked her to him as he forced her arm behind her back in a twist.
Sango winced slightly as her shoulder popped in protest to this unusual circumstance, yet that was the only pain she felt…almost as if he were merely restricting her rather than trying to cause her pain.
For only a moment, she stared into the black of his armor, feeling his breath on the top of her head. In several agonizing seconds, Sango tentatively lifted her lids to look up at him and immediately felt struck by his gaze. Just how many had actually been this close to Sesshoumaru's face and lived to speak of it? She doubted not many.
His countenance was not glowering, but the cool, calm she was used to seeing. How many had seen this exact same look before they died?
His scent was nothing like she would've expected being this close to him. She would've thought his penchant for killing would have at least left some hint of the smell of blood, the slightest scar, anything to mar this impossible perfection that stood before her now.
But instead he smelled…clean. Clean…like fresh water trickling from a melting glacier. Absolute purity in its form, the cold leaving it free from spoil.
As cliché as it had become to compare Sesshoumaru to a block of ice, it was a most accurate description.
Ice was solid and powerful in its own right, its glacial smoothness deceptively appealing to the touch. To touch its bitter exterior would burn with a frozen intensity upon contact.
Sesshoumaru was near to delighting in telling her that her life was his that he could end in a matter of seconds with a simple strike of his poison claw. Something within him was beginning to delight in this cat and mouse game that they played. At first her provocations had simply been annoying and he ignored her senseless ranting as best as possible. But now he was finding that each time he touched her there was a resistance in pulling away.
Suddenly he felt her fingertips lightly graze his cheekbone just above his markings. It was enough to startle him out of his reverie. He very nearly froze; his immediate reaction being to tear her hand away from his face when he was struck by a strange scent that quickly overcame his senses.
There was no more of the slight hint of decay coming from her human body, but a most unusual scent coming from the slayer.
Lilies.
He smelled lilies.
As if he were standing within a field of them and their fragrance was overwhelming his senses with their sweetness.
It was happening again and this time was the last straw. "What are you doing to me?" he snarled, certain that there was some sort of magic at work.
Sango jerked her hand away with a gasp and looked up at him stupidly. "I'm-I'm sorry, I didn't mean to--," she replied dumbfounded with a bit of hesitation.
"That isn't what I mean," he growled and thrust his face closer to hers with a snarl to prod her to confess her conjuring.
Despite his scowling visage, Sango couldn't help gazing upon him with a new appreciation that she hadn't before. The moment she allowed her fingertips to graze over the smoothness of his skin, Sango knew immediately that she'd made a fatal mistake. More fatal than if he'd struck her down in that instant.
Suddenly, Sesshoumaru released her arm as if he'd been singed, but did not move away. Instead he simply stared down at her. He could hear her heartbeat again, each slam somehow emphasizing the pleasant scent of lilies that continued to waft around both of them.
She simply stood there staring at him, no anger or defiance in her eyes, but something akin to intrigue.
And he could feel his own growing into more than mere curiosity. Sesshoumaru felt his brows furrow with the sudden thoughts that began warring in his mind. A maelstrom of confusion rose up inside him, and he wanted her to continue to provoke him - because then anything he did would be retaliation, and he wouldn't have to consider any implications.
What was he thinking?
But her eyes shone with nervous honesty. Her heart beat with it.
It was then he realized that he was becoming more and more aware of her. It didn't matter that she was a woman - she was a nuisance. But she was a woman, and she was strong and soft and something forbidden churned inside him, calling to something that lay buried inside her.
Without a word, Sesshoumaru recoiled from her in his own manner of horror. In that instant, a gust of wind and he was gone, leaving Sango standing in the darkness in absolute bewilderment.
Now what?
oOo
Author's Note: Man, I wish I could draw. I can see some of the scenes of this story so clearly in my mind that would make great drawings. Alas...I can't draw.