AN: Got a lot of irl stuff going on at the moment so please be patient for updates. I'm starting university at the beginning of September so expect this fic to go on a break around then. I also might be moving soon to find an apartment. ALSO there's Sesskag week to do. So yeah lol thank you for your patience.
Chapter Sixty-Two
Kagome's hands were everywhere. Sesshoumaru didn't especially mind, but it made carrying her a damn sight more difficult when she kept feeling up his chest, abdomen and back.
"You're just so- so solid! Ya know? I wanna be this firm. Gimmie your muscles," she giggle snorted.
"I cannot distribute muscle mass to you," he said with a smirk, walking down a long moonlit hallway towards his room.
When her hand strayed lower to cup his ass, giving one cheek a hearty squeeze- Sesshoumaru jolted and narrowly avoided crashing into a wall.
"Miko-" he hissed, teeth flashing.
"That's firm too! Damn, so this is why Miroku had such a hard-on for tushies," Kagome nuzzled her face into his neck. "How do you get a firm ass, Sesshoumaru? Tell me your secretsss~"
He was about to make a snarky reply, before soft lips grazed the underside of his jaw and he went weak in the knees.
Fuck- not again…
Sesshoumaru stopped, inhaling sharply. He held himself still, trying to regain control.
"Miko," he gritted out, feeling the shape of her mouth keenly on his skin when speaking. "Pull away and kindly keep your hands to yourself, lest I permit my palm to wander."
"Hm?" Kagome sighed dazedly, swaying backward and forcing him to gather her closer beneath her thighs. She instinctively slid both legs around his hips, swinging upright again to bring them flush together. The momentum sent his back colliding with a wall, his blood exploding with adrenaline. Hunger.
Her hips kept squirming against his, throwing every instinct to into flux.
Kagome glanced around, disorientated, "woah, woah...you okay? Was that my bad? Here I'll say sorry," she mumbled, grasping his shoulders.
The screaming inside Sesshoumaru's head roared louder as a pink tongue lathered his cheek, gliding upwards in a wet drag.
His shiny magenta stripe grew bolder, the sensitivity eliciting a sharp inhale. This coupled with her earlier lips on his jaw and squirming body shot arousal straight down his abdomen. Heat pumped through his veins.
"Ah darn…" she slurred, cupping his cheek. "A lick is for 'thank you' not sorry, isn't it? Here, I'll do it again."
Sesshoumaru's mouth parted, sharp teeth grit. Low rumbling escaped his chest, his mind trying to navigate through the haze.
An open mouth pressed clumsily against his lips- smashing them together. The noise sputtered out, muffled by her kiss. It barely lasted a moment, Kagome pulling away with a satisfied nod as though she'd successfully apologised.
Sesshoumaru stared, reeling. She'd just...kissed him, had she not?
His lips burned, mouth becoming dry.
And judging from the haze clouding her eyes, she will not remember- and did not intend anything by it.
The tension leaked from his muscles. Sesshoumaru let out an extinguished sigh, annoyed with himself for getting worked up over the actions of someone inebriated. An impertinent one at that. He pushed off from the wall, hitching her up in his arm.
"We should sleep, miko."
Kagome hugged him tight, cheek resting against his shoulder while stroking his hair. "Mhm..."
They passed by a servant, who stopped and quickly averted her gaze. Sesshoumaru ignored her, padding into his private room with some careful use of footwork- nudging the door open and then shut behind them.
He bent to lay the miko down upon his nest of furs, who hung on around his neck. She then unexpectedly let go, landing with a soft noise, giggling happily and resting both arms above her head.
Sesshoumaru tugged some furs over her. "Sleep, foolish woman," he shifted to stand.
Kagome whined, wriggling and tugging at her kimono. She kicked off the cover, "but it's so hoooot!"
Pale skin became ashen as the colourful obi was tugged, impatient hands trying to loosen it. The miko rolled around with frustration, tangling her legs in the furs and yanking one arm free from the kimono, the sound of material splitting causing her to freeze.
Sesshoumaru sighed when blue eyes filled with tears, quickly kneeling by her legs. "Do not fuss. It can be repaired."
"But I hurt it! I'm the worst," Kagome sniffed, fiddling with the hem of her white nagajuban underlayer. "Help me undress?"
She said it so easily.
Pinching his brow, the Daiyoukai sneered. He summoned his patience and shoved any male reactions deep, deep down. Kagome needed help. Kagome was drunk. Kagome was foolish, vulnerable and trusting. He'd just have to be as objective about the process as she'd been when undressing him.
Sesshoumaru shook himself firmly. Since when was a demon of his standing afraid to undress a woman?
Minding silky furs aside, his hand wrapped around her ankle. Pushing her leg to bend at the knee, dipping upwards- his fingers wrapped around her tabi socks, slipping one off, followed by the other.
Kagome hummed pleasantly, looking at the ceiling. "Your Mom didn't like me~" she grinned.
Lithe fingers slid up to her obi, which proved simple enough to remove- but loosening the more intricate date-jime and koshi-hime ties proved difficult with one hand. "Hn, I may have been the cause of that." Sesshoumaru dipped his head down to her stomach, closing his teeth over the material to pull a tie while working the knot loose with careful ministrations.
"She's so pretty," Kagome sighed, patting the crown of his head. "Oh- and you're pretty too."
Golden eyes narrowed and flicked upwards, her date-jime still clenched between his teeth. With a tug, he managed to loosen it, smoothing his palm beneath her to lift Kagome upright, letting her rest against him.
"You said that like an afterthought."
"Nooo I didn't mean it! No, no! You're of course the prettiest in all the land, Sir Perfection!" she giggled, removing her arm from the second sleeve when he prompted her to, a clothespin pinging off at the back which she'd used to try and secure the collar in place. "Was kinda nice, meeting one of your parents though. We're the same. We won't meet each other's Dads."
Sesshoumaru paused, glancing down at her. As though the subject was too heavy and her mind swayed away from it, Kagome began singing, nonsensically to his ears, since he did not know the song. "I'm just playing games, I know that's plastic love~ Dance to the plastic beat, another morning comes~"
Sliding off the kimono from her shoulders and leaving her in a white underlayer, he inwardly groaned as more koshi-himo ties awaited him. Losing patience, he cut through them with deft plucks of his claws.
"H-hey!"
"Do not complain," he grunted, removing the severed ties. "I trust that is enough?"
Kagome continued wriggling, tugging at her nagajuban. "I'm still in two layers! Too hooot!"
"You are infuriating."
Helping to shed Kagome of her second layer, he tried not to pay attention to the thin material of her hadajuban beneath. He'd seen her naked before in the hot springs. This was no big deal.
"What was your Father like?" he asked, distracting himself.
"So funny! Wish you could've met him. He used to make me laugh soooo much," Kagome smiled nostalgically. "People say I take after him more than Mom, especially cos' I got his eyes."
The second later was peeled off. Supporting her beneath her back with the use of his palm splayed wide, Sesshoumaru guided her down to the bedding. "I see," he said quietly, looking into misty blue eyes. Her pupils were gone. No light in them, a drunken haze clouding the usually vibrant colour.
She yawned, "who are you more like?"
Sesshoumaru hesitated, golden eyes flickering. Every inch of him had wanted to be like Father in terms of strength and magnetic personality. As a boy, he'd sought to emulate the Inu no Taisho- who had been all but a stranger to him.
"Mother, I suppose."
They both had an aversion to being open or vulnerable. Neither yielded emotional ground because of it. He should've known better than to ask her to expose a wound like child-loss to Kagome. He sighed, drawing away. Running a hand through white bangs, Sesshoumaru froze as the miko attempted to shed her hadajuban, material inching up to expose her bare stomach and the underside of her breasts.
His hand immediately locked onto her wrist, preventing movement. Blue eyes blinked dazedly.
"I will sleep elsewhere if you disrobe completely, miko."
She pouted, dropping the material. "No fair, you can sleep top-less."
Sesshoumaru allowed golden eyes to swamp crimson. He eased closer, following Kagome as she rested her head back into lush furs, his nose stopping inches from hers.
"This one told you before, Kagome," her name slid out as a hushed purr between them, "this one is not a Saint. Push just a little further, and you will receive a reminder that the bed you are occupying belongs to a demon."
Kagome gazed up at him trustingly, quietly content, cheeks glowing with a red tinge. Kissable lips curved into a dreamy smile, dark hair fanning around her head. It didn't seem as though his words had registered.
Sesshoumaru's claws twitched, withdrawing from her wrist.
Laying down on his side next to her and allowing some space in between, he pressed his hand to his eyes, scrambled thoughts and desires roaring.
Hands planted on his shoulders.
"What are you-" he tensed as Kagome climbed over him, pressing herself against his back. She slid an arm over his waist, the other sliding beneath his head to touch his damaged arm, stroking it gently with a thumb.
Warm puffs of air wafted against his nape, making goosebumps rise.
"Mnnn…" she nuzzled against his neck, "this okay?" she sighed softly.
It was very much not okay.
Sesshoumaru was rendered speechless, feeling her breasts press against his back as she held him from behind.
No one had ever been permitted to hold him in such a way before. And he could sense it- her lack of sexual intent. She radiated goodwill and affection, albeit muddied by inebriation. She felt soft and pliant, cushioning the hard, tense plains of his back.
"It is...acceptable."
Sesshoumaru remained tense for a while due to the unfamiliarity of the pose. Kagome's foot slid in between his legs, hips shifting, nestling her form tight against his.
"I miss Inuyasha," she mumbled.
He fought the urge to roll his eyes. "You saw him mere hours ago."
"But I miss Inuyasha," Kagome squeezed him around the middle, "and he's never coming back, is he? That cocky guy with a sword."
"...No, miko. He is not."
With a saddened huff, she leapt onto a different topic. Her words often slurred, volume pitching high or low on different sentences. Sesshoumaru listened as she talked about mundane things in the modern era with no rhyme or reason. Classes at school, who her favourite idol used to be, her favourite cafe.
"Me and Papa used to collect toys from these capsule machines. There was this set that had cute little rabbit mascots," she murmured, stroking his arm and making the skin thrum, requesting more. "We weren't close to finishing the complete set or anything- but when Papa had his accident...they found a capsule toy in the wreckage of his car. It's sad...but also nice...knowing he was thinking about me during the day he died."
Sesshoumaru gazed ahead at harsh shadows playing along the shoji screen, listening to her heartbeat. Sadness swirled in her scent, but she did not cry.
He cursed his lack of second arm, desiring to reach behind himself and touch her. With little other options, he bent his head to the available skin of her arm, resting his forehead there briefly.
She'd been loved by her parents, a human emotion.
"The way you speak of him sounds...warm."
When he thought of his parents, he did not feel warmth. Instead, another figure elicited some degree of complicated softness.
Naoko.
Kagome gave a breathy giggle that made the hair at the back of his neck raise. "Yup, very warm. I loved him a lot. Still do, even if it's settled into something kinda muted after so long. It's still there though."
She rested her face against his hair, making a sleepy noise.
Pale lashes drooped a little, muscles relaxed by now. It wasn't so bad. The petite woman could not hope to dwarf his form and she had no powerful jaws to sink into his vulnerable neck.
Sesshoumaru's tired eyes slid shut.
Kagome yawned in his ear. "Gnn...night, Yuki."
Golden eyes snapped open, flashing bright luminous red, giving off their own crackling glow. A distant memory shook itself awake in the recesses of his mind.
He, a pup, standing on a porch with annoyance in his heart, watching Mother laze with a pipe. White flecks gently fell from the sky, floating to the ground and gathering into a white blanket.
"Why did you call this one something so ridiculous, generic, and ill-fitting as Yuki?"
The pale demoness exhaled an icy breath of smoke, watching it merge with a falling snowflake.
"Because you are my little snow-angel," she cooed mockingly, flashing a sharp grin in his direction.
Yuki's childish features flattened. He should've known not to expect a straight answer from Mother.
"I reject such a name. This one chooses his own."
"You cannot do that until you come of age," Inukimi snorted.
Golden eyes narrowed. He would do it sooner. He'd cultivate an image and reputation of strength until that weak name only an infant would appreciate fell into rumour and obscurity, his True Name forever buried, forgotten by all except those who were present for his birth. He would choose a name worthy of him.
Sesshoumaru came back to himself, every nerve ending flaring alive, hackles rising. His breath stuttered, eyes wide.
"Miko. What did you just say?"
Gentle breaths signalled that Kagome had fallen asleep.
Sesshoumaru shifted, rolling over and pressing his nose against hers, desperation clawing at him. "Kagome, awaken," he commanded.
Drowsy blue eyes blinked open, pupils unfocused. "Hm?" she yawned.
"You said...Yuki. Why? Why did you say such a name?"
Why call me that? It could not be…
Ancient blood- the blood of his ancestors- stirred, slinking, lurking. Every fibre of his being perked up and took notice, gazing at the miko and chanting a word he viciously tried to stifle. His fangs ached, claws elongating into talons, fur barely repressed beneath his skin.
Mate.
Kagome giggled, patting his cheek and bringing their foreheads together, alcohol on her breath. "You're pretty, like falling snow or somethin'..." she mumbled, slipping back into sleep before her sentence was finished, snoring gently.
Sesshoumaru stared ahead unseeingly, instincts roaring. He mercilessly clamped down on them, bellowing a loud growl into the room. Mokomoko wound possessively around Kagome's waist, Sesshoumaru pulling her tight against him, chin resting atop her head as his eyes flickered between red and golden within the darkness for the remainder of the night.
He only managed to fall asleep in the late hours of the morning after concluding something that gave him a weak sense of comfort;
Mother must have told her.