Chapter 14
Sesshomaru was patient. He knew where his quarry was, but he wouldn't alert the beast to his own presence. He kept careful control of his yoki, maintained a minor downwind distance. Positioning himself on the low branches of a tree, he waited. He could walk right up to the animal and still win, but he wanted to prove his superiority. There would be one mark on the beast. Death would be swift and merciful, and when done right, the creature wouldn't even know what had happened. By destroying his prey in this manner, Sesshomaru would show Kagome and her pack that he was not only powerful and efficient but that he was merciful and not cruel. A potential courter of his mother's had once brought her a mangled and destroyed corpse as his hunt offering. The foolish yokai believed his overkill made him appear strong and virile, but it only showed him to be cruel and incapable.
Sesshomaru crouched, poised to leap. A massive brown bear lumbered out of the tree line beneath him. He had chosen his prey carefully. This particular bear was nearly as large as his own yokai form. Humans were generally afraid of bears, they were edible to humans, but the humans had a hard time hunting them, as the humans were usually the ones killed for the attempt. His own capture and dispatch of such a creature would show his strength, his prowess, ability, and his mercy. The bear was directly beneath him now. He turned, dropping gracefully and silently to the moss floor below, flicking his wrist and slicing the beast's neck. Before his feet had fully touched the ground, the bear was dead. Sesshomaru sniffed lightly, good. No scent of fear or anger was on the beast. It died peacefully, meaning the meat would be divine. Sesshomaru wrapped the tail end of his pelt around the beast's hind legs and slung it over the tree limb he had been perched upon. He would strip this beast and drain its blood. There would be nothing for the humans to do save cook it as they choose. He would be certain that this would be the best meal they had in many moons. He had grossly misjudged the size of this creature. He heaved it higher into the trees, widening the slit in the throat to drain the blood. This might take a while.
Miroku peaked out the cave mouth, looking in every direction for any sign of the women or the daiyokai returning from his hunt. They had been gone for hours. He shouldn't be surprised, with Kagome's sickness it was unlikely she had bathed in the past week, and if there's one thing he had learned about the Miko over their travels together, she loved her hot spring baths. Miroku's eyes twinkled as he started thinking about his beautiful wife and the vivacious Miko alone and naked together in a hot spring. Truly once a lecher, always a lecher. He used to play inappropriate scenarios through his head when they went to the spring together. This was the first time in over a year that the two women were together and he was allowing his imagination to run rampant. A rustling sound to his left made him jump, and he turned to see Sesshomaru emerging from the woods with a fur sack slung over his shoulder. Miroku smiled awkwardly, unsure how he felt being caught by the hyper-aware daiyokai daydreaming about the two women.
Sesshomaru followed him further into the cave and dropped the folds of the fur, exposing a tanned hide full of prepared meat. Miroku's eyebrows raised.
"Ah, Sesshomaru-sama, that is quite a catch! That bear must've weighed at least a ton."
"Hnn." The daiyokai turned his head towards the cave mouth and stood motionless, back against the wall.
"How did you manage to drain the blood and tan the hide so swiftly?" Miroku looked up expectantly, hoping perhaps the connection he was certain the daiyokai had formed to Kagome would prompt Sesshomaru to answer him.
"We yokai have our ways." He lifted a clawed hand and the acrid scent of poison filled the air as his claws gleamed with the glint of glowing green.
"Fair enough." Miroku bent to assess the hide and the bountiful harvest of meat. "Erm...Sesshomaru-sama...you are aware that, as a human, Lady-Kagome requires her meat to be cooked."
"I am aware." Sesshomaru's eyes shifted towards him. Miroku swallowed but pressed on.
"You, being yokai, I would assume prefer your meat...fresh..."
"Indeed."
"She will be pleased with your hunt, and I dare say rather impressed." Miroku searched the daiyokai's face for any hints of the emotion he had seen there earlier that day. Sesshomaru, however, was as unyielding as he had ever been. Perhaps it was Kagome's presence that had made the yokai's defenses fall. "May I ask, as the newly appointed alpha of her own pack...what are your intentions with our Miko?" That had done it. Sesshomaru's head turned towards him, slowly followed by his whole body. Miroku took an unintentional step back as the daiyokai's eyebrows pulled together and his head tilted back. He was much taller than the monk already, but at this angle, he was imposing and supernatural. For a moment Miroku wondered if it was wise to provoke him, but he just had to know if his suspicions were correct. Suddenly, Sesshomaru sank gracefully to the floor and motioned for Miroku to do the same. Miroku smiled and sat.
"You claim her as pack alpha?" Sesshomaru's eyes were cold and piercing. Miroku had to be careful how he worded things. He didn't want to upset the powerful daiyokai. He rubbed the back of his head and smiled.
"Perhaps it is too much to call myself HER alpha exactly since I only assumed the position after InuYasha's death and she has been traveling with you since then. However, I did travel with her for many years, and we all protected one another. I view her more as a sister than a pack-mate. You must understand that humans are quite different than yokai, but that doesn't mean we don't love and protect our own," Miroku looked out the cave into the growing twilight, "even if they are misplaced in time..."
Sesshomaru's brows knit together again, "Explain."
"I'm sorry?" Miroku snapped out of his reverie and turned his attention back to the yokai before him.
"You stated 'misplace in time.' You will explain your meaning." Sesshomaru tilted his head back and looked down his nose once again.
"Oh, you weren't aware? Lady Kagome is from 500 years in Japan's future. She traveled here through the well in InuYasha's forest." Sesshomaru looked at him skeptically. "Let me explain a little better, do you remember Kikyo? The priestess that pinned InuYasha to the Goshinboku?" The daiyokai mildly inclined his head and Miroku took that as an acknowledgment a continued, "Kagome is her reincarnation. The shikon-no-tama was burned with Kikyo's body and reborn in the body of Lady Kagome, somehow the shikon-no-tama was still attached to our time period because when Kagome came of age the well called to her and brought her into our time."
Sesshomaru sat in silence for several moments contemplating. "That does explain much." Sesshomaru stood. "She is...unusual."
"That she certainly is." Miroku placed his hands in his lap and patiently waited for an answer to his original question.
"You seem to know much about yokai. Do you understand what I mean when I say my beast has attached to her?" Sesshomaru's eyes slid towards him, locking him with an avid gaze.
Miroku thought about it. He knew that daiyokai had the power to control their power and maintain a human appearance, but deep inside they still had a beast that controlled much of who they were and what they did. He contemplated the few times he had witnessed Sesshomaru's transformation into the massive white-furred dog. It was a truly terrifying sight. He had been around powerful yokai, but Sesshomaru was a step above most. If a daiyokai beast had formed an attachment, perhaps Sesshomaru had no true say in his attentions toward the Miko. "I believe I do. You intend to make her your mate?"
"Hnn." Sesshomaru continued to stare at him.
"Lady Kagome is extremely independent and self-sufficient. She won't be forced into a relationship against her will."
"I realize this. I will court her." Sesshomaru turned his attention back to the mouth of the cave. "She will choose me because she wishes to."
Miroku stood, walking to stand between the daiyokai and the treeline. "I will approve of this if you can tell me one thing." Sesshomaru's attention turned fully on him, his eyes full of distrust. "If you court her and she falls in love with you...well, I know it's different for yokai than for humans...but...Sesshomaru-sama can you promise me that you love her. That you will treat her the way she deserves to be treated." Sesshomaru's eyes softened and he bowed his head once. It was as good a yes as Miroku could have hoped. If there was one thing he knew about the daiyokai it was that he was bound by honor. He would be true to his word, and if this conversation was anything to go by the great Lord of the West was wholly and truly in love with their sweet Kagome. Miroku smiled. This should prove to be interesting.