Chapter 25; The Scars that won't Fade:
The first thing Reiko was aware of was her massive headache. Not only was her head pounding mercilessly, to the point it felt like her heart was beating in her skull, but the swaying her limp body was being subjected to made it so she was not certain which way was up or down. When she found the strength to she opened her eyes, a strange pressure making it so her vision was a fuzzy blur. And she was definitely upside down.
Struggling to move, blink, twitch a finger, she ended up letting out a groan of protest when she found she couldn't do any of these things. This caught the attention of Rin, who had been leading Ah-Un, the saddle of whom Reiko had been unceremoniously slung over like a sack of rice.
"Reiko! You're awake! Rin was so worried!" She shouted, coming over to help the barely conscious woman get right side up.
"...Rin? Whas...hap...Naraku...Kami, my head..." Reiko muttered as the blood that had pooled in her head began to drain away. It was too much too soon, and she began to slide off of the saddle despite Rin's best attempts. The two of them ended up collapsing onto the ground, Rin shrieking as she became pinned under.
"Eek!"
Ah-Un stopped and hissed curiously as they glanced back at the tangle of limbs and hair. Reiko scrambled herself upright, hoping she didn't hurt the child. But before she could ask, Rin beat her to the punch and began fussing over her.
"Oh no! Your arm! Reiko, are you okay?"
"...my arm?" Reiko frowned and glanced down at her right arm. Sure enough, it was bandaged from her wrist, up to and around her shoulder. She wriggled her fingers experimentally, happy to find them working.
What happened? She wondered, feeling herself over and discovering another bandage was wrapped around her head, Wait...Naraku. Naraku found me and had his incarnation Kagura attack me. But they didn't give me these wounds, it was...
She glanced over, finding the culprit responsible at the head of the group. Sesshomaru had stopped and turned around at the commotion, and as usual, his face was an expressionless mask.
"What happened Reiko? Were you and Lord Sesshomaru attacked by Naraku?" Rin asked as Reiko quickly ran through her last waking memory.
Just when she decided to entrust Rin to him, Sesshomaru decided that was the moment he wanted to go back on his word and kill her. It was from him she got these wounds, having used his poisonous claws and whip on her flesh. At one point, it seemed they were going to destroy one another. She could remember the feeling of his hand on her throat, his eyes becoming red and filled with rage. Naraku showed up then, and in fighting of his horde and new incarnation she passed out from blood loss. It was obvious that Sesshomaru had been the one to bring her back to the others.
Why she didn't know, but one thing was certain. Her reiryoku was spent, leaving her powerless and at the mercy of someone who -mostly likely still - wanted her dead.
"Something like that," She growled in answer. Sesshomaru's eyes narrowed at her in warning, sensing her anger. But then Rin patted Reiko's arm, bringing her attention away from the daiyokai.
"Rin was so scared when I saw you covered in blood. But don't worry, Rin knew what to do! I washed your wounds and burned everything that got soaked in blood. Then I put on some of Hanae's salve and wrapped you up!"
Hearing this, Reiko gave inspected herself again. Sure enough, most of her kosode had been ripped away, now more a skirt than anything. But rather than being left in nothing but her chest bindings, Rin had graciously lent her one of her own robes, which was little more than a long shirt for Reiko.
Still, it was obvious that the little girl had tried her best, managing to clean away all the blood and bind the wounds just as Hanae had once taught her to. But peeking under the wrappings, Reiko saw it was unnecessary. As drained as her reiryoku was, it had managed to heal and close off her wounds, possibly while she had been passed out. Unraveling the bandage on her arm, she saw all that was left of her wound was an odd, twisting scar that wrapped around her forearm and four claw marks on her shoulder.
Oh, that's just great. I look like shredded beef and Sesshomaru doesn't even have a dent in his armor. There are so many levels of unfair to this.
"You did a good job, Rin. See?" Reiko said, putting on a smile to comfort the girl as she showed off her arm, tracing the pink flesh of her new scars, "I'm all better."
Rin smiled back, relieved that all was well. With her help, Reiko was able to stand herself up, although just to be safe she leaned against Ah-Un.
"Move woman! We have lost precious time because of you already!" Jaken shouted, waving the Staff of Two Heads at her threateningly until they followed after Sesshomaru as he led them down some forested path.
"Jaken, how long have I been out?"
"Two days. I was certain you were going to die. You look half-dead even now."
Reiko ignored that obvious dig, instead glancing around for signs of danger.
"Have any yokai tried to, you know, attack while I have been out?"
"Hmph! As if any would dare! Lord Sesshomaru would not stand for such insolence. Now move! We are being left behind!" He shouted, and before she could ask any more questions of the imp he scampered up ahead to walk directly behind Sesshomaru.
Silently they went on. Rin walked beside Reiko as she continued to use Ah-Un as a crutch. Chie had popped out her head out of a basket that had been loaded up on the ryu's saddle to Reiko's immense relief. Not only was Chie safe and sound, but so too were all her other belongings. Including her bow, quiver, and knife. So not only did Sesshomaru bring her back to the others, but her weapons as well. Why?
Stranger still was that she knew yokai from miles over had to have been summoned by the scent of her blood. Dozens if not hundreds. Did Sesshomaru really keep them at bay for the two days she was unconscious? Surely he had to know that if he left her behind on that hilltop she would be dead a thousand times over by now. Hadn't that been what he wanted?
Eventually, Reiko came to the conclusion that it was because of Naraku she was still alive. When he had interrupted their fight, causing her to exhaust herself defending against his horde of yokai, Sesshomaru believed it unsportsmanlike to count that as a victory. So he wasn't really saving her, just keeping her around until he could kill her properly. Which was hardly comforting. Worse, Naraku and his spies were no doubt following her even now, waiting for their chance to 'rescue' her again for whatever nefarious purpose.
"Your counterpart must love you and hate you with their entire being and be anointed in your blood. Only then will you two devour one another, and create something so beautiful."
Reiko shuddered as Naraku's words replied in her mind. That it was him behind Genzo's madness and Rin's death drove her hate for the bastard to new depths. And though she didn't want to admit it, she was afraid too. From what little she could glean from the information he had given her, Naraku was planning on repeating the horror of that day in Hajimari to some degree. He said he had done it to create something beautiful, but knowing his tastes, she could only imagine the carnage she and her counterpart would create when they devoured one another. Whether he meant that in a figurative or literal sense - probably the latter, given her luck - she knew she could never let Naraku's plan for her come to fruition. But as Naraku had been able to find her even with the dong quai in her system, it didn't matter where she went, he would always find her.
The dark voice, which had for so long been blissfully absent, hissed in her mind and fed upon her fear.
Madness. Madness and greed. Greed and suffering. Suffering and hunger. It is too late Blood Maiden. Too late. These things have already found their roost…
She ignored the voice to glance up towards the front of the group, her eyes landing on Sesshomaru. As of this moment, she didn't know if he was an immediate threat. And yet, if he had kept all of the yokai who were after her at bay, didn't that also mean Naraku and his minions? Weak and tired as she was, was Lord Sesshomaru the only thing standing between her and capture?
If she wanted the truth, Reiko knew she had no choice but to go speak with him. Distracting Rin by having her practice her reading flashcards, she left Ah-Un's side to walk ahead. When she caught up to Lord Sesshomaru she waited until the path was wide enough so that she could walk beside him. Almost immediately she could feel his eyes on her, but she remained silent until Jaken fell back to attend to Ah-Un.
"I assume you saved me because you want to continue where we left off before we were so rudely interrupted." She said, keeping her voice low so that the others wouldn't overhear, "In that case, fine by me. I look forward to repaying you for this."
She lifted the short sleeve of the kosode Rin lent her, showing off the winding, snake-like scar his poisonous whip had burned there on her forearm. Sesshomaru gave it an impassive glance before meeting her eye.
"This Sesshomaru expected gratitude, woman. Not threats, however empty."
Though his tone was neutral, Reiko had to repress a shudder as she felt his yoki wash over her, tingling against her skin like electricity. Her reiryoku was too weak to rise and challenge the threat, but it seemed Sesshomaru already knew that by the gloating snarl that briefly curled his lips. This, coupled with the fact she was wearing rags and desperately needing a bath, painted her as the picture of pathetic. Still, she kept her head up and returned his sneer with one of her own.
"I thought you said you couldn't stomach any more of my 'gratefulness'? But if you want it so bad, I could grovel for a bit. Oh Lord Sesshomaru, mighty Lord Sesshomaru, thank you for saving me after you tried so very hard to kill me."
Her sarcasm was ignored as Sesshomaru turned to look ahead. It seemed he couldn't even be bothered to be annoyed by her. Reiko supposed she should be thankful for that, as she didn't much fancy her chances in a fight right now. Still, she pressed her luck and asked the question that had been burning on the tip of her tongue.
"Why didn't you kill me?"
"There was no reason to."
She tilted her head quizzically at his blunt answer.
"But that's what you wanted, right? If I defeated you, you'd look after Rin. If I lost, you would kill me."
"No," Sesshomaru harshly corrected, "My precise words were that if you failed to defeat me, you would forfeit your life to this Sesshomaru."
"Yeah. And?" Reiko frowned, becoming frustrated.
"And you failed. So now your life belongs to this Sesshomaru."
Reiko stopped dead in her tracks. This forced Ah-Un to halt as well. This produced a squawk of protest from Jaken, but before he could berate the Blood Maiden he wisely stopped himself. There was a small crackle of power in the air, not enough to be dangerous, but enough to convey the outrage the Blood Maiden was feeling. Sesshomaru, sensing this too, stopped and glanced back over his shoulder at the enraged woman.
"Belongs? As in you own me?" She asked, visibly shaking, "Never."
Sesshomaru sneered again.
"Do not be a fool, woman. Your power has been measured against this Sesshomaru and has been found lacking. Now accept the consequence."
Reiko was going to argue further, consequences be damned, but Sesshomaru turned from her to look at the imp.
"Jaken!"
"Yes, my lord!"
"This woman is now my servant. Enlighten her on the meaning of obedience."
There was a beat of silence as Jaken blinked slowly up at his lord.
"...she's what now?"
Sesshomaru must have thrown him a dirty look because the next thing Reiko knew Jaken was furiously bowing.
"O-of course, Lord Sesshomaru! I will mold her into a proper servant that will be a credit to one as great as yourself!"
Rin, from the saddle of Ah-Un, began to beam.
"Then does this mean you're staying with us, Reiko?" She hopped down the ryu and lunged herself at Reiko, hugging her tightly, "I knew it! I knew you wouldn't leave Rin behind again!"
"Rin, I'm not..." Reiko started, but when she saw the little tears that glistened in the corners of Rin's eyes, all her protest and anger died away. Numbly, she let Rin take her hand and lead her down the path after Sesshomaru.
"Rin is so happy that Reiko will stay! You'll see, it's lots of fun traveling with Lord Sesshomaru!"
"Hmph! Fun for you maybe. But the Blood Maiden is now a servant of Lord Sesshomaru. She'll have duties to perform and rules to follow!" Jaken said with an evil-looking grin, "The first of which is to never keep Lord Sesshomaru waiting! So no more slowing down the group!"
Reiko felt like punting the imp when he swatted her backside with the Staff of Two-Heads, but he wisely kept out of her reach as he began his tirade.
"Rule two, never lie to the lord! Three, never disobey him! Four, always treat Lord Sesshomaru with the respect due to him as your master! Five, taking care of Rin and Ah-Un is now your duty, not mine! Six, any washing, cooking, cleaning, polishing, fire lighting, wood gathering, camp setting, or any other menial task will be done by you!" The imp said with some glee, the power of having someone to boss around starting to go to his head.
Eventually though, he began to run out of ideas.
"Twenty-seven, don't touch my belongings. Twenty-eight, keep your opinions to yourself. Twenty-nine, never lie to Lord Sesshomaru! Thirty-!"
"You said that twice now."
"Well, it's very important!" Jaken barked at her for the interruption. Before Reiko could break rule nineteen - no more hitting Jaken - Rin spoke up.
"It will all be okay Reiko. Rin will help you with the chores. And Ah-Un will let you ride on their back whenever you want. And Master Jaken might not seem very nice, but he can be very funny."
For a moment, Rin's carefree smile almost had Reiko believing everything would be okay. But then she added, "And Lord Sesshomaru will protect always you, so you don't have to worry about anything!"
"Yeah, I highly doubt that. But- HEY!" Reiko shouted, again prodded by Jaken.
"Rule thirty! Never doubt Lord Sesshomaru's power!"
It must have been sometime in the morning Reiko had woken up, for soon enough the hot afternoon sun was burning overhead. Even with the shade of the forest, both she and Rin were sweating as they sat atop of Ah-Un. Thankfully the ryu didn't mind the extra load. Or at least Un didn't, but Ah rather pointedly hissed a few times about how much the Blood Maiden smelled. Reiko couldn't even get mad at them for that, and with each passing minute prayed they would soon be stopping for a break soon so she could wash up and eat.
That, and it might be a good idea to feed Jaken and Ah-Un. Reiko considered, They seem fine now but that could soon change. And if they did, would Sesshomaru protect me against them as he did the others?
Reiko doubted it. But until her reiryoku recovered, she was dependent on Sesshomaru for protection.
And that was an uncomfortable notion at best.
Still, she wasn't dead yet. And if Sesshomaru meant what he said, she wasn't going to be any time soon. But to be his servant? Really?
She had been certain while they were fighting that they were on the brink of killing one another, so Sesshomaru must have changed his mind after she had fainted. It couldn't be that he had taken pity on her. Maybe he wanted to humiliate her for a little while, and then when he got bored he would finish her off.
In that case, the best thing Reiko could do now was recover as quickly as possible. The last time she had used up so much reiyoku was in Hajimari, and it took her a week to get over it. A week of hell, hounded by yokai every step of the way, the constant threat of their hunger forcing her to forgo sleep and food. Compared to that, perhaps remaining in Sesshomaru's company wouldn't be so bad. And with him around, Naraku wouldn't be able to capture her so easily. And even though she would need to feed Ah-Un and Jaken, Sesshomaru wasn't swayed by her curse at all. By his side was probably the safest place someone like her could ever hope for. With him, she could might even-
Oh, Kami no. It's only been a few hours and the Stockholm syndrome is already setting in. I may have voices in my head, but I refuse to go down that road!
Suffering a psychological breakdown or no, Reiko had no choice but to make the best of this. Given that Naraku had previously had hopes that Sesshomaru would make a good counterpart for her, going so far as to try and anoint him in her blood as well, the daiyokai might also be the best chance she had of learning more of Naraku's plan. Not that he would ever willingly tell her, but this was the biggest clue she had gotten to date. For the sake of survival and for learning more about Naraku's schemes, she could swallow her pride and let Sesshomaru think he was the boss of her...which probably meant she shouldn't insult him anymore.
Pity. She had just come up with some really funny ones. At least she could say them in her head.
Fluffy. Fluff-chan. Lord Fluffbottom. These are all too fluff-based, I can come up with better. Hmm...Sessy-pants, like sassy-pants but with his name. Ha. I'm a genius.
Before Reiko could smirk at her so-called genius, she heard Rin's stomach grumble. It was loud enough that Ah-Un turned their heads to give the child a funny look.
"Lord Sesshomaru? Rin's hungry." Rin announced after she stopped giggling.
"Go and find something to eat then." He answered without glancing back.
Rin frowned in thought, looking up at Reiko. She knew the older girl was hungry too and knew that she would be worried about feeding Jaken and Ah-Un, and there wouldn't be enough in this forest for them all to eat. So as innocently as she could, Rin rubbed her belly and put a little whine in her voice.
"Rin would like some fish, please. Rin is really, really hungry."
Sesshomaru didn't answer this time, but Rin looked happy. Having watched all this, Reiko couldn't help but scowl.
"Does he always ignore you like this?" She whispered in Rin's ear.
"Lord Sesshomaru never ignores Rin," The child grinned, "You'll see!"
Reiko raised a dubious brow, but decided to trust Rin. She had been with Lord Sesshomaru for a while now and probably knew how to read him better. Plus, it was obvious that he had a soft spot for the child. That became certain when Sesshomaru led them off of the path and towards the sound of running water. Soon the forest was broken by a large stream.
"Thank you, Lord Sesshomaru!" Rin shouted, hopping off Ah-Un before smiling up at Reiko, "Come on, let's catch some fish!"
"O-okay. Sure."
Rin and a slightly stunned Reiko tucked up their hems into their sashes and waded in. Between the two of them they caught a small feast of fish. Reiko then got a fire going to roast them, building it away from the shady tree Ah-Un had settled themselves under to cool off. Chie had hopped out of her basket and began splashing around with Rin in the shallow edge of the stream, causing Jaken to yell at the pair of them when he eventually got splashed.
Reiko couldn't help but grin. So far servitude wasn't so bad. Now that the food situation had been handled, next on her list was a bath.
"The fish should be done in just a few minutes," She announced, heading over to Ah-Un, "In the meantime, how about we get washed up?"
"Wash?" Rin frowned, wanting to play more with Chie.
"Yes, wash." Reiko repeated sternly as she grabbed her bathing supplies, "And if you are good and scrub behind your ears and everything, I'll braid your hair the way you like it."
This silenced Rin's protests and she began to strip. Setting the child up to wash herself, Reiko also began to disrobe, creating a pile of clothes to wash once she was done. Everything was sweaty and gross, and she prayed she had one more kosode left in her things, else she might have to put back on her-
"Ack! Have you no shame woman?!" Jaken began shrieking, pointing at her as if she had just murdered his family.
She frowned at the imp.
"Yes, plenty. So you're going to need to be a bit more specific."
"Y-y-y-you're naked!"
"Correction," She gestured to the chestbindings and loincloth she till wore, "I'm partially naked."
"I don't care! It is indecent!" He objected.
Guessing that Jaken really didn't care about her virtue, Reiko glanced over towards Sesshomaru. The imp probably believed she was flashing her skin off to get his attention, but just as she thought, Sesshomaru wasn't even looking her way. In fact, his eyes were closed and he was relaxing beneath the same tree as Ah-Un. While she doubted he was asleep, it was obvious that he was not the least bit seduced by her figure.
Wait, was that one of the rules Jaken rattled off before? Don't try to seduce Lord Sesshomaru? Reiko considered as she waded into the water, Maybe it was, but Kami, who would ever be brave enough to try?
But as she began to scrub away the dirt and sweat from her body, Reiko did feel a pair of eyes on her. Turning, she saw Rin was studying her closely.
"What is it?"
"Rin's never had a bath with Reiko before. I didn't know you had so many scars."
The blunt admission took Reiko by surprise. Looking herself over, she could see why Rin was surprised. A crescent-shaped bite mark on her thigh, another on her right side, a knife wound on the left, two arrow marks on her back, and now the winding scar on her arm and the claw marks on her shoulder. Her body was a tapestry of bad memories. At the uncomfortable twist of shame in her gut, the dark voice once more made itself known.
You were made to be devoured. Born to draw out the monsters so only the good and pure remain, and bit by bit you feed them. You can't escape it. You can't break free from it.
"I know. They're pretty nasty looking, aren't they?" She chuckled loudly, trying to drown out the voice.
"I'll say! So much for Blood Maidens being mighty warriors!"
At the imp's unwelcomed opinion, Reiko gave him a haughty look.
"Maybe. But at least I haven't lost any limbs."
Jaken paled and glanced over at Sesshomaru. It was obvious she was talking about him, but Sesshomaru continued to ignore her as he had since their conversation that morning. But as his most loyal servant, Jaken was more than glad to be offended on his behalf.
"W-well, women with ugly scars like that will never find a husband!"
"I'm so glad you're concerned with my love life, Jaken" Reiko answered back as she began to shampoo her and Rin's hair, "But there is a reason I'm called the Blood Maiden, you know."
"You mean you don't want to get married?" Rin frowned up at her, nearly getting soap in her eye. Reiko smiled as she helped wash the girl's face and hair clean of suds.
"No. Not until I break my curse at least. And it's not like I'm in love with anyone right now anyways."
"No one? Not ever?" Rin asked, her voice laced with curiosity.
Reiko began to brush camellia oil through Rin's hair, taking a moment to give her question some serious thought.
"Well, I suppose there was one boy back home. He was a chef at a restaurant and seemed pretty nice, but it never went anywhere beyond a crush. As for Miroku," She shook her head and sighed, "I don't know."
"The monk? I thought you said he was a...a leech?" Rin struggled to say.
"Lecher," Reiko corrected with a chuckle as she worked the brush through her own hair, "And yes he is. But he's also smart and understands me better than most people since he is cursed too. But you're right. I don't think I could fall in love with a womanizer. Besides, he wants kids and I can't have any."
"You can't?"
Reiko shook her head again. Once more from the shore, Jaken began his taunting.
"Now you really are doomed! Who would want a scarred and barren woman like-"
He was silenced from saying more when the bath bucket abruptly smacked him in the face, immediately knocking him unconscious. Not satisfied with this, Reiko was about to stomp over and dig her heel into the back of his head when she noticed Sesshomaru's eyes were now open and focused on her.
She swiftly turned away. She could still feel his gaze on her back, but she did her best to ignore it and the imp's words. But they had stung deeply despite her efforts.
Many times she imagined what life would be like after she finally broke her curse. She'd go to college, maybe work towards getting a restaurant of her own or take over the family shrine. But was Jaken right? If she fell in love and that person saw all these nasty scars, and told the truth of how she got them, would they even want her? She would be able to lead a normal life, but she could only ever play at being a normal woman. Not even breaking her curse could change that...
Feeling a hand tug at hers, Reiko looked down to see Rin smiling up at her.
"I think your scars are beautiful! And Reiko is strong and smart and will get married and have lots of babies!"
"Lots huh?" Reiko let out an awkward chuckle but was smiling nonetheless, "Thanks, Rin. And who knows? Maybe the scars will fade."
Despite the bravado of optimism, Reiko could almost hear the dark voice in her mind laughing at her. Nothing of hers would ever fade. Not her scars, not her sins, not her guilt. Breaking her curse may protect her and her loved ones from further harm, but it could never take back what was already done. And what about what Kikyo told her? That without a Blood Maiden in existence, all that suffering and greed would get pushed onto some other, less powerful holy servant. And that the last Blood Maiden, who had somehow managed to defy her fate like she wanted to, only ended up destroying even more lives...
Reiko and Rin finished their impromptu bathing. After making quick work of the pile of laundry, Reiko took her knife and evened out the sections of hair that Sesshomaru had roughly chopped off in his attempts to kill her. She was able to make it look somewhat decent, trimming her bangs with the help of the shiny bottom of her frying pan.
After that, it was finally time for lunch. She made sure that Rin ate her fill before going over to the still unconscious Jaken and stuffing a fish down his throat. He woke up choking but swallowed it nonetheless. As for Ah-Un, she found some plums growing in a tree nearby and sliced them up. Her reiryoku was able to handle that much, and she felt relieved knowing that the yokai of the group wouldn't be vying for her heart anytime soon. But when she looked through Ah-Un's saddlebags, she found there was no more rice left. And worse, the only clothes she had left were her miko robes.
She held up the tell-tale robes of white and red, frowning. These were the last things she wanted to wear, and she was trying to think of some way to work around it when Sesshomaru appeared at her side.
"Woman."
"You know," Reiko groaned tiredly, "I'm starting to miss when you called me 'Blood Maiden'. Let's go back to that."
"We are leaving. Now."
Biting back a protest, she instead slipping on the first layer of her miko robes.
"Very well, Lord Sesshomaru. But where are we going anyway? We don't have any food, and if I'm to be-"
Without another word, Sesshomaru turned and walked away. Reiko felt her brow twitch. With another groan, she finished getting dressed, hoping it wouldn't take a whole week for her reiryoku to heal. She really didn't know much more of Mr. Sunshine she could take.
Oh, another good one. Kami, I really hope we try and kill one another again. I don't want all these to go to waste.
The day progressed into the late evening and the sun finally lowered, giving the strange group of travelers relief from its heat. From behind him, Sesshomaru could hear the Blood Maiden keeping Rin entertained by letting the child teach her a song.
"In the mountain, in the forest, in the wind, in a dream! Where are you, Lord Sesshomaru, with an ally like Master Jaken? I will wait alone until you come, Lord Sesshomaru please return~!"
"That was very pretty Rin. Did you make that up by yourself?"
"Mh-hm! Now it's your turn!"
"Okay." The Blood Maiden laughed before clearing her throat dramatically, "In the mountain, in the forest, in the wind, in a dream! Where are you, Lord Sesshomaru, with a pest like Master Jaken? I bet he did something stupid and now you're beating him black and blue! I will wait alone until you are done, Lord Sesshomaru~!"
"Reiko! That's not how it goes!" Rin giggled, much to the chagrin of Jaken.
"Rule forty-five! No more making up songs about me!"
The two humans laughed and continued to make up more songs, Rin happy to finally have someone who entertained all of her nonsense. As for the Blood Maiden, she seemed to be adjusting remarkably well to her new station.
Yet Sesshomaru would be a fool to think she was content with it. He had felt the flicker of anger that brought back her reiryoku from the farthest depths of her well of power, but not even she was fool enough to attempt attacking him in her current state. She would likely wait until her power returned before committing to whatever foolish hope of escape she had, willing for the moment to play the part of her new station for the sake of survival.
Sesshomaru looked forward to her inevitable attempt at escape, as he would then properly teach her what her rightful place was. She was complicit now, but he would have her fear and respect him as was his due.
Perhaps he would add to the tapestry of scars that marred her pale skin? It had pleased him to see his handiwork on her flesh when she had bathed herself in the river, though he was not the first to mark her. It was amazing how many encounters her frail body had managed to survive. She was a small thing by human standards, soft and healthy, a female made for affection but destined to never know such pleasure. No doubt it was the result of her curse. Temptation was woven into her blood and body. She was sin itself, and he wanted that sin again.
Sesshomaru clenched his jaw and banished the thought. Since their battle with one another, he could still feel the aftereffects of succumbing to the Blood Maiden's curse. However temporary it might have been, the lingering sensation of her blood pulsing through his veins, the desire to taste her flesh, still plagued him. In response, a pulse of life beat out from Tenseiga, as if trying to calm him. Sesshomaru cursed it, refusing to let it pity him.
He and the Blood Maiden both thought himself immune to her curse. It was obvious now they both had made a mistake. And yet, Sesshomaru was no longer lost to the mindless bliss of her. If anything, her scent bothered him less, having become accustomed to it. And though plagued with the phantom sensation of her curse, it lessened with every passing minute. He, Lord Sesshomaru, had survived the Blood Maiden's curse. Quite possibly the only yokai in history to ever do so. And the elusive reason as to why plagued him more than the taste of her blood ever could.
If it was the Tenseiga that halted the curse, then it was a testament to the creator of the sword's power. Inu no Taisho was unquestionably a powerful daiyokai, but Sesshomaru wondered if even his father would be able to resist the full sway of Blood Maiden's curse. If so, then if he was to be his father's equal, Sesshomaru would need to overcome what hold the Blood Maiden's curse had on him by his own strength. For he was the master of himself and refused to let anything, not her curse, not the Tenseiga, sway his will.
It mattered little. For now, he would keep the Blood Maiden with him under the guise of servitude and would refrain from severing her head from her enticing neck. A difficult arrangement to be sure, and one he was beginning to second guess. He would head west, to seek the one yokai in this wretched world whose council he valued. After all, he not only had questions about the Blood Maiden but of his latest encounter with Inuyasha as well. And when he had the answers he sought, well, perhaps then he might entertain his previous thoughts of adding more scars to the Blood Maiden's collection.
A loud, long yawn came from behind him, making the Blood Maiden chuckle.
"Looks like someone is getting sleepy." She said, running her fingers Rin's hair as the child fought to keep her tired eyes open, "Hm. It's going to be dark."
When no one agreed with her, the Blood Maiden put it more bluntly.
"We should stop soon if I'm to have time to make Rin some dinner."
"Dinner? The child just had her meal for the day only a few hours ago!" Jaken shrieked. Without even needing to turn around, Sesshomaru could feel the wave of displeasure roll off of the Blood Maiden.
"Her what? You have only been feeding Rin once a day?"
"It's fine Reiko. Rin can always find food in the forest." The child spoke up, hoping to soothe her older companion. But the Blood Maiden only scoffed.
"Oh, my Kami. Have you not had a decent meal until I showed up?"
The silence that followed gave the Blood Maiden all the answer she needed.
"That does it."
The sound of her whispering to Ah-Un caught Sesshomaru's attention, and he turned around in time to see her giggle at whatever the ryu's replying hiss meant.
"Thank you, Ah-Un. At least someone here is helpful."
Dismounting from them, the Blood Maiden then started to dig through the saddlebags of Ah-Un, collecting her basket and a leather pouch fat with coins. Patting her pet bird on the head and giving Rin a wave, the woman started to head off the trail.
"Where are you going?" Jaken called out to her.
"I'm going to get some food. Honestly, you two treat her just as badly as the villagers of Hajimari did before I showed up."
"How dare you compare us to the likes of humans-" Jaken started to uselessly protest, but the Blood Maiden interrupted him as she turned to address Sesshomaru.
"Ah-Un says there's a town not too far from here. I'll buy some things and meet up with you all when you set up camp for the night."
"And you expect this Sesshomaru to trust you will return, is that it?" He frowned in displeasure.
"Not at all," The Blood Maiden shook her head, "But we both know I'm in no condition to fight and you can easily hunt me down if I try to run away. So trust in the fact that I don't want the inconvenience of pissing you off."
Sesshomaru supposed that was true. And while the Blood Maiden was naïve, she wasn't so great a fool to test him while she was so defenseless. Still, that she assumed she had any say in matters was more audacious than her new role allowed. The Blood Maiden seemed to realize this and bowed low.
"I won't take long. Three hours tops. With your permission of course."
When he neither confirmed nor denied her request, the Blood Maiden stepped off the path and headed into the dusky woods.
Rin watched her go until Ah-Un trudged forward once more, following their master as he continued to head west. Another hour passed in perfect silence, a relief to the constant chattering. The Blood Maiden remained on the forefront of Sesshomaru's mind, however, not allowing her to escape his senses. Her natural scent was still diminished from the dong quai she claimed hid her from yokai, but due to her having been around the child so much she had taken on Rin's scent, so he focused on that. As the Blood Maiden had said, she headed off in the direction of the nearest human settlement that was but two leagues from where Sesshomaru decided to stop for the night an hour later.
Rin made herself busy by starting a fire, just in time for twilight to discolor the sky. She had even gone so far as to fetch water to boil over the fire to help with the anticipated dinner, but soon got bored waiting and began to play with the chicken. Why the Blood Maiden didn't just cook up the bird was beyond Sesshomaru, but the three hours had nearly come and gone with no sign of her leaving the human settlement to start her return.
If she was attempting an escape, surely she would have continued moving. It was possible she was being attacked by yokai, but with the sutras she always carried for protection and the lack of the scent of her blood on the wind, that was equally unlikely. When Rin's stomach gurgled, which she tried to hide by folding her arms over her belly, Sesshomaru's patience had reached its end.
"Uh, my lord? Where are you..." Jaken called out after him as he left the circle of firelight, but catching the expression he wore, the imp went quiet.
Sesshomaru stalked towards where he sensed the Blood Maiden's location to be, his displeasure rolling off of him in tangible waves. He was not so much irked by her lateness, so much as how to go about disciplining her for it. With his mind and body still trying to dispel the lingering effects of her curse, drawing blood was out of the question. And with the ghost sensation of his hand wrapped around the tender column of her neck still plaguing him, any form of contact would be as tortuous for him as it would be for her.
As he came finally came across the Blood Maiden, cowering and hiding behind a tree, Sesshomaru decided his standby for dealing with Jaken's cowardice would suffice for now. He was about to find a suitable enough stone when the sound of a frantic heartbeat reached his ears. The Blood Maiden was afraid of something, and it was not him. When he came to stand in front of her, her eyes were closed and she lost to everything except trying to slow her shallow breaths, just a moment away from shattering.
"Woman."
The Blood Maiden jolted and her eyes, wide with fright, looked up to meet his. Oddly enough, she let out a sigh of relief, the tension in her body melting away.
"Oh Kami, it's you."
"You said you would only be a few hours."
She frowned up at him.
"...um, yeah?"
"Then what reason do you have for this delay?"
Rather defend herself or make some snide remark, the Blood Maiden surprised Sesshomaru by looking away from him as her cheeks flushed red. When she spoke, she sounded ashamed.
"I just...I needed a moment to recover, that's all."
Sesshomaru's eyes narrowed. Recover from what? There was no danger here as far as his senses could detect. The only thing even close to them were some humans, but that could hardly be the cause. Before he could demand her to explain, the Blood Maiden stood herself up. Hosting her basket onto her hip, she showed off its contents to him.
"I got rice and plenty of vegetables. Even some pork!" She sounded excited as she said this, though why was beyond him. But spotting a gourd sake bottle, he lifted a questioning brow.
"Oh yeah, that," The Blood Maiden flustered, rushing to speak, "I just wondered if maybe Jaken would be more tolerable if he was drunk. Or if I was. Anyway, sorry to have taken so-"
She stopped herself as she caught something moving behind him. Turning, Sesshomaru saw that a group of humans bearing torchers were walking along the edge of the forest close to where they were.
"Where did she go?" One of them muttered before calling out loudly, "Lady Miko? Lady Miko, where are you?"
Sesshomaru glanced back to the Blood Maiden. He had sensed the humans moments ago and had dismissed them as the cause for her distress. But the way her heart wildly hammered in her chest and her body began to tremble proved him wrong, however.
"Have those humans attacked you?"
"What?" She frowned in confusion, "N-no. Why?"
"You are afraid of them."
"No, I'm not." The Blood Maiden shook her head and turned away from him. She began walking away, hoping to end the conversation. In the blink of an eye, Sesshomaru moved to stand in her way, causing her to freeze in alarm.
"Did Jaken not explain to you what it means to be obedient to this Sesshomaru?"
She gave him a slight nod, her dark grey eyes wide with thinly veiled panic.
"Then you know that lying is an offense not to be tolerated."
The Blood Maiden frowned, and it seemed she was getting ready to argue with him. But hearing the group of humans approach closer, her apprehension returned. She let out a reluctant sigh.
"Of course, Lord Sesshomaru. My apologies. I will explain everything." She pleaded, voice soft with unease, "But, please I don't want the villagers to find me."
Sesshomaru would normally not let such a plea sway him, as the presence of humans was no threat to him, and a servant had no place making demands of him. But it was clear the Blood Maiden would be unable to collect herself and provide him an articulate answer otherwise. So with no choice, Sesshomaru turned and walked deeper into the forest, leading her back towards the camp the others had made for the night.
They walked like this for some time, the silence only broken by the occasional swear the Blood Maiden hissed whenever she tripped over a stray rock or root that her eyes could not see. Eventually, when they had left the humans far behind, she began to speak.
"That day in Hajimari, the day you revived Rin...I learned that my curse affects humans as well as yokai. The fighting all started because half of the village thought I was some kind of divine goddess, and the other half thought I was a dark priestess come to kill them all with the yokai army I had tamed. That, and I suppose burning a man's arm and face off in front of them all did not give off the best impression."
She spoke like all of this was a sacred confession, but Sesshomaru had already guessed as much from what he had witnessed for himself that day that her curse plagued both human and yokai. However, he found it difficult to imagine the Blood Maiden, with her crippling compassion, slaying a human in such a cruel way. Perhaps under that veneer of innocence, perhaps she was not so pure...
"Since that day, I've avoided other humans as well as yokai. The only other person I had contact with was another miko and she was...well, she wasn't lively company. When you found me with Jinenji, that had been the first I had entered a human village. It didn't go well and I ended up panicking. Just the thought of being around so many people, the noise, and the crowds, I couldn't stand it."
Sesshomaru had to suppress a snarl of annoyance at the mention of the half-breed he had found her with. The Blood Maiden took to walking at his side as the path they walked widened.
"I thought I'd be okay this time around because it was so late, and the market looked mostly empty. But people saw my robes and recognized me as a miko. It's amazing, no matter where you go, someone, somewhere, is always having a baby." She laughed, but it was hollow, and as she continued her words became hurried as if she could not stop them from pouring out, "Anyway, one birth turned into blessing this house, which turned into exorcising this yokai, and that turned into 'oh please Lady Miko, I can't possibly accept your money, just take as much rice as you want' and 'take this bottle of sake Lady Miko, you are so good to have visited our lowly village'! And so on and so forth. I could see it all happening again. The obsession. Like moths to a flame. I started to panic again and I...well, I ran. Which I think the villagers might have taken personally since they had been in the middle of preparing a feast for me."
Glancing down at her, Sesshomaru could no longer hide his dissatisfaction. This was her experience with humans? From the times he had observed her, he had seen how the humans of her village fawned over her and begged her for every little favor. It was clear to him they were overly dependent on her for their protection, but it was more than that. Just as she said, her curse affected humans as well as yokai. Except where the yokai wanted to devour her, the humans wanted to possess her. Perhaps it was only natural that they would greedily cling to her; she the only good thing their short miserable lives would ever know.
The greed of humans obviously frightened her, and that this was what she was afraid of, more than being devoured by yokai, more than him, was beyond infuriating. Pathetic creatures like humans were undeserving of such recognition from one like herself.
"Is that why you wish to break your curse? So that you stay with the humans you now fear?" He asked, surprising the Blood Maiden.
"No. I mean yes," She flustered, "but not with strangers. I'd go back home and be with my loved ones. Lead a normal life. Maybe start a family. I don't know."
"Why?" He snarled.
She looked at him as if he had grown a second head.
"Why? Because that's all I've ever wanted. That's why."
Sesshomaru stopped and looked at her fully. He could not for the life of him understand this madness of hers. Did she really wish to break her curse, to give up all her divine power...so that she could live among humans? The very thought disgusted him. He had remarked before that she was a female made for affection, but neither able to give or take it. But seeing the way she acted with Rin and talked about the men in her life, it was obvious this affection she wanted more than anything. Her curse prevented her from this dream, as it was her fate to protect humanity, not be a part of it. There was no point in fighting it, certainly not for such a petty reason as she had. It also seemed at odds with her desire for the strength to protect her loved ones from all harm, or perhaps she had not yet realized the hypocrisy of it all.
"Hn."
"What? What is it?" She asked, noticing the curious look he was giving her.
"Give up these foolish notions."
"Why?" She immediately bristled, "Because I'll fail?"
"Because you will make for a pathetic servant for this Sesshomaru if you ever become ordinary."
He had said this to serve as a reminder that her life, as of this moment, belonged to him. She still suffered under the delusion that her servitude was just a temporary thing and soon she'd be free to galavant off to break her curse as she pleased. However, the woman chuckled.
"Oh my. That almost sounded like a compliment, Lord Sesshomaru."
Sesshomaru suppressed a snarl. Why did she always twist his words? Was she aware of how much it irked him? Most likely yes. And this was what he had to look forward to until the foreseeable future.
He turned and continued on towards the camp, the woman dutifully following after him. Not for the first time this day he second-guessed this arrangement. And yet, he wondered what other surprises the Blood Maiden had in store for him...
AN:
Sorry for taking so long to update dearies! Things have gotten busy as I'm trying to finalize my thesis before graduation, job interviews, etc. Life, you know? God, I'm old. And stressed. But thank you for sticking with the story and putting us officially at 25 chapters and over 600 favs! As I said before, from here on out, we are going to be getting a lot more Sesshomaru and Reiko. Again, this is a slow burn, and it will take our two mains a while to get used to one another but we can expect some spiciness starting to appear here and there. Again, this is a rated 'M' fic, and as a consideration for when things start to get really spicy, I will put a warning at the start of the chapter.
Please join Reiko and Sesshomaru next time as they continue to adjust to one another. Reiko attempts to make the best of her situation and discern what her new companion knows about her curse and Naraku's plans for her, only to meet the stone wall that is Sesshomaru's stubbornness. But when Reiko ends up getting kidnapped by a yokai - not Naraku - she finds her opinions of Sesshomaru changing when he comes to her rescue.