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Chapter 37: Decisions

Darkness had fallen onto the Western castle as the torches and lamps lit up lighting the grounds up in a beautiful glow. Snow had stopped falling and the night was beautifully fresh with the cold air settling instead of blowing around on most days and nights. Heat flared from the rooms and circulated throughout the castle and the barracks. Everything seemed calm that night and at ease even for two beings that currently shared the same space.

Sesshoumaru and Simone had settled down into their opposite cushions propped up enjoying a meal in each other's company. It took some time to get there after Simone's repeated insults for what she called "Tacky Games" and Sesshoumaru dropping her non-to gently down on the floor. After repeated heated glares and insults they both managed to settle down and finally enjoy each other's company.

"So what did I miss in my absence?" She asked as she picked up a piece of bean sprout with her chopsticks and chewed.

"Everything." He simply stated with a smirk as took a sip of his tea.

She narrowed her eyes and put her chopsticks down for a bit and pointed them at him. "You are really going for glory today aren't you?"

He raised his eyebrow at her and smirked and dug into the nice dinner spread laid out for them. Simone wore one of his shirts which looked more like a kimono on her small figure and he simply donned a pair of black pants as they ate in privacy. The fire cackled creating a nice glow around the room but it could not block out the elephant in the room that sat heavily in the wake of past events.

Simone tried her hardest to think of ways to begin to ask him questions. But she didn't want to kill the peace they had in the room. Every now and then she would catch Sesshoumaru staring at her and she would look back but he wouldn't budge.

"What? Do I have rice of something on my face?" She asked as she felt around for any food that may have missed her mouth.

"Where do you come from exactly?" He asked as he sat his chopsticks down and looked at her.

"I beg your pardon?" She asked with widened eyes.

Sesshoumaru glared at her and spoke again. "We have shared memories. I know you are not from this world, where are you from?"

Taken aback at the unsuspecting turn of events she thought carefully on his words. How? Swallowing thickly she sat down her chopsticks and raised her eyes to meet his. "I'm not quite sure how you know that but, you are correct. I am not from Japan or this century. I'm from the western continent in the future." At saying this she felt a ton of weight surprisingly was lifted and she wondered to herself why she felt that way. She grabbed her hot tea and took a sip of it before looking back at him. He didn't look shocked or in disbelief so that was a good sign. "How did you know about that?"

Sesshoumaru picked up his chopsticks and grabbed a piece of okonomiyaki (Japanese pancake) as he responded with a question. "Do you not remember calling for me during your time of strife?"

She watched him eat the morsel as she thought about what he was talking about. Suddenly her eyes widened at the realization of what he spoke about. "You heard me! You heard me reach you!?" She exclaimed. "H-How? You were so far away and Kai…Kai had put up a barrier and everything. How?" She asked genuinely confused about the circumstances of his arrival to the scene.

"I don't know how. I do have a guess. I believe that somehow we are still connected through the courting mark. How is it still active and that you were able to send information to this Sesshoumaru is unknown. " With that said her mind wondered to other questions.

"Is that how you knew to come to see me when I was sick?" She asked.

He nodded as she looked at him with awe. "I wonder if it works both ways?" She looked at him and pointed. "Try it."

He slowly chewed his food while glaring at her and how she so rudly ordered him around like he was beneath her.

"Please!" She pleaded as his glare increased. "Come on don't be a meaner! You're going to need me one day."

"This Sesshoumaru needs no one." He stated coldly looking at her.

Noticing she wasn't making any head way she rolled her eyes and picked up her chopsticks to eat. "I beg to differ. You needed me remember."

Growling he looked away from the self-righteous look on her face at the truth. "You were a necessary means to an end."

Smiling at her victory she picked up a nanbanzuke (marinated fish). "Call it what you want, you still needed me." She laughed as he glared daggers in her direction. As she thought on the memory of their courting facade another question came up. "What all did you see exactly?"

Sesshoumaru thought on this as her memories faded from his mind. Her memories were strange and random that he didn't know how to articulate what he had seen. He thought a little bit more before answering. "I saw tall structures, flying vessels, and strangely dressed creatures. I also saw your arrival here and a few others regarding your stay at the old Dragon's home in the mountains."

Swallowing she looked up at him. "So this leads me to believe our thoughts crossed over. You have seen my memories and I have seen yours."

At the sound of her words he looked up and glared as he sat his chopsticks down. "Speak about what you saw and it will be the death of you?" He icily warned.

Shocked she looked at him and how aggressive he had gotten. "Calm down Lord Ice icicle. I'm not going to tell anyone." Then playfully she jabbed. "You were cute as a pup by the way."

He growled as a warning to her seriously not playing with her about topics that he wished to disengage.

"Oh and I saw your demon by the way. I know all about that…"

Soon as the words came out of her mouth she was heavily pushed to the ground and held by the throat by the demon above her. Her eyes were wide at how infuriated he looked as he stared down at her with cold eyes. "You know nothing." He growled out.

Quickly she pulled the knife she had stowed away in her yakuta and used the energy she had gained from his healing methods to break out of his hold. Quickly she flipped him over so he was on his back as she held the knife to his neck and added force behind it.

"Just because a minor slip happened doesn't make me weak, let me make that clear to you Lord Sesshoumaru." She growled out as she pushed the knife up. "I said I wouldn't ever speak a word of what I seen to anyone on my life. As far as I'm concerned, I haven't dare take a look at them except for one. "

Sesshoumaru was taken aback at her increase in strength when he realized that as a side effect she may have gotten more strength than he intended to give. Her brown eyes were tight and the shirt he gave her was slightly open as he hair fell all on one side creating quite an image to demon she now straddled holding a knife to his neck. Not to mention that the heat from her lower uncovered anatomy could be felt on his torso as she sat holding him down. Never had he ever been more shocked and turned on by a slip of a woman in his young life. His hand slowly came up to grip the knife in her hand and he positioned it at the base of his neck.

"If you're going to attempt to harm this Sesshoumaru, do it right." He said unemotionally as he looked into her wide eyes as she responded to his actions. His firm hand gripped around her knife clutched one in a gentle hold. He felt her slowly adjust and pull back a little.

As they continued to look into each other's faces a magnetic pull seemed to captivate them as they both leaned in towards each other.

"What was one memory you dare take a look at Simone?" He huskily whispered as his mouth came up closer to hers. His other hand came up and slowly began to run up her arm as she loosened up to his advances.

She smirked at this as she looked at his lips with a new found agenda. She could feel the tiny bumps appear on her arm at the sensation she hadn't felt in quite a while since their last enticing encounter. She could feel his lips practically dance on top of hers as she moved her own closer to his sensitive pointed ears.

"I saw something that changes my outlook drastically. You now know almost everything there is about my past. As far as I'm concerned, you know what you're dealing with. I'm very different and my future is unclear so if you still want to play this game then don't renege in the future." With that said she moved back towards his lips still inches apart. "The ball is in your court Sesshoumaru, what are you going to do now?"

Smirking he ghosted his lips on top of hers noticing how her hand softened its hold on the knife against his throat. Without hesitation he captured her lips with his own in a hard kiss. His mouth moved firmly with pure demand over her pink ones catching her off guard and without air to gasp. Just as quickly he released her and flipped her over quickly so that she was lying beneath him. He quickly dislodged the knife out of her hands and threw it across the room. He crouched up so he was now straddling her form as he peered down at her with a whole new hunger than before.

Shocked and tussled she lay sprawled beneath him looking up with wide eyes and red lips from the harsh kiss he laid upon her. She made to sit up but he pinned her down with his strength. She lay panting wondering what would be his chain of actions now. Sesshoumaru had turned out to be an enigma, forever throwing her off guard despite his nonchalant attitude.

He looked down at the vision beneath him and never had he felt the urge to conquer new horizons since he came to power after his initiation ceremony as heir to the Western Empire. She lay breathing hard beneath him with the front of his shirt slightly open so you could see the soft indention in the space between where her breasts lay. The lighting from the fire played around with the lighting in the room where the red glow danced on the tan melanin of her skin giving it a heated look. The edges of the garment had risen above her thigh just high enough where her legs crossed to save her modesty from his wondering eyes. Her hair like the midnight sky covered the cushion she now laid upon looking up at him with the widest caramel eyes he had ever seen since she arrived…wanting. Truly the vixen beneath him was compatible with him in more ways than one despite the setbacks of her species. His golden eyes continued to access her in multiple ways before he closed them making his final decision.

Simone looked up at him wondering what could be going through the cranium he possessed. Never had she just given control to anyone willingly and this was a huge step for her. But, she spoke with truth on her tongue as she told him her proposition. When she lay in that dark room after crying her eyes to dryness, one thing brought her back and gave her some hope for her future. It was the one memory…well thoughts he had with his beast. She knew unconditionally that he had stirrings for her but he was just unsure of them. When she found this out, she knew she could not blame him completely for his previous actions. He had been groomed to be a complete warrior and an absolute non-yielding, no mercy force on the battlefield. And this made her fall for him even more as she watched him on the battlefield, in the war room creating plans, and during their sparring sessions. Despite his flaws and all she knew she couldn't fight him anymore. After the whole incident with Kai she came to realize that nothing was set in stone and the future was hers to create. If being with someone in this era is what she desired then to hell with holding back.

Sesshoumaru had thought intensely about the decision he would have to make and he wasn't quite sure if this would be the best one to make given her past and current circumstances. Just like how she came, she could vanish at any moment. The crackling from the wood burning in the pit was the only sound to be heard. The food lay cold and forgotten as the two occupants in the room focused for the first time on each other and their inner desires with their eyes locked on each other for the final say. The wind had picked up outside and howled as if notifying the Western Castle of the climactic moment taking place between the Lord and his Captain, but more importantly between a man and a woman.

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