TO FIGHT THE STRONGEST.
It was a morning like any other. The routine was the same, Akane waking up by the remains of the fire to find that Sesshomaru was gone. Rarely ever here in the mornings, and even if he was, it was clear he had been awake long before the rest of them.
But he wasn't here this time. Not that she minded all that much, because he always returned, and today would most likely be with some kind of food. While most of the time he had them fend for themselves, he at least made sure every few days to bring them meat of some kind. And while it had taken her a while to notice his patterns, now that she knew, it made it easier to tolerate him disappearing.
Akane stood and stretched out with a groan, looking to find Rin still sound asleep and Jaken poking her foot with a stick, instantly putting her into mom mode.
"Cut that out, the kid will get up on her own." She warned, narrowing her eyes as Jaken froze.
"But SHE got to pounce on me yesterday! I'm owed some payback for that!" He snapped while waving the stick, his high screechy voice making Rin twitch and roll over.
"Sheesh, what are you, five?" Akane rolled her blue eyes, crossing her arms in disapproval. "Had I known she was gonna pounce on you yesterday I would have said no, and it doesn't give you the right to poke her awake. I mean it Jaken-san, seriously, how old ARE you? You know better."
"Age has nothing to do with it! In my world it's an eye for an eye, and it's none of YOUR business anyway!" Jaken huffed, and at this point his voice was waking Rin up anyway, but at least she wasn't being poked with a stick. Not that Akane was going to let any of this slide though.
"Are you so petty as to start something with a human CHILD? What would Sesshomaru think of you? I highly doubt he would find that very fit behavior for his servant." She pointed out with a little smirk, baiting him and enjoying watching him fall for it.
The imp paled at the thought with a little gulp, inching away from the girl while looking around just in case Sesshomaru was close. Jaken sent a glare towards Akane, but dropped the stick and stomped off with another loud huff, mumbling under his breath as he went out of sight into the bushes.
Ignoring the green imp as always, she went about folding her travel blanket and placing it in her pack, pulling out a brush and beginning work at the knots in her blonde hair.
~Morning my child, what did I miss?~ Shen yawned in her head, making her smile at the sleepy tone as she watched Rin flop around while lazily waking up.
"Nothing much, just the kids being kids." She joked with a small laugh, tying some of her hair back and putting the brush away, unzipping another pocket and using some much needed deodorant. A girls gotta have the essentials after all. She even kept a toothbrush with her.
~Care for some more training this morning, or would you like a break? I think you've earned a day off considering the improvement on those agility skills.~
Akane groaned and rubbed at her arm muscles a little in thought, still a bit sore from all the flips the previous afternoon, but wanting to improve enough that a certain yokai man would have to take notice. "I dunno, maybe we can work on something else today, I'll find a branch and we can use it like a sword. I'll be wanting one soon anyway, my knifes are pretty useless with yokai, and weren't made for legit combat in the first place."
~Fair enough, just tell me when, I'll be waiting.~
A sound caught her attention, at last Rin sat up with a cute little yawn, rubbing her eyes and offering up a big smile to the world first thing. "Morning!"
"Hey, sleep well?" Akane quickly pulled out another brush, pink with yellow flowers, as opposed to her simple blue one, and walked over to crouch behind the girl. It had become a mission for her to someday tame Rin's messy hair, not that her efforts seemed to last long with all the running around the child did during the day…
"Yup! Rin slept amazing! Thank you for the blanket!" The girl beamed over her shoulder.
"You don't have to thank me every day you know, it's no problem. Now keep still please." Akane giggled, waiting for her to stop waving her arms to some unknown tune, finding it cute that the girl spoke in third person, wondering if she had always done that or if she was copying Sesshomaru's manner of speach.
Rin had been quiet and somewhat shy the first two days after being brought back to life, following around Akane like a duckling whenever Sesshomaru wasn't with them, and doing the same to HIM when he was there. It had been cute to see the absolutely puzzled look on his face, and she got the feeling he'd never been around children much before this.
After a few days though the girl had blossomed like a flower under the sun, and now rarely STOPPED talking, or moving for that matter. "I'm almost done, a few more strokes, if you would wait a little longer." Akane pleaded with a laugh.
"Okaaay! Rin will try to be still as a rock!" To prove her point she completely froze with her hands in her lap, looking straight ahead like a statue.
"You can breathe at least." Akane snorted, causing the girl to let out a long gasp. "Want me to braid it or something different today? It would be less messy."
"But that takes SO much longer! Rin wants to play! Oh and where did Jaken-sama go? Do you think Sesshomaru-sama will bring any food? I'm getting hungry, maybe we can go look for berries!" She began to wiggle around again, and with a sigh Akane gave up for the day, lifting her arms as the girl darted up and ran over to Ah-Uhn.
~Ahh, the energy of the young…~ Shen chuckled in her mind as she started rolling up the other blankets.
"I know right? Watching her makes me feel old, and I'm only sixteen! Like damn, maybe next time I'll bring caffeine or something. I swear Aki and I were not THAT energetic when we were…. that young." Akane paused with a sudden feeling of dread and worry. Breath catching as she had to fight off the rush of emotions and thoughts she hadn't expected that simple sentence to bring.
Aki… What would he have been like, had he lived to be sixteen? Did she do him justice when at school? She took up all the sports he had shown interest in as a child, and did her best to act as she thought he would.
But lately, here, with these people, she hadn't been living for Akito very much had she? Would he mind if she was just a little selfish, at least when here in the past…
Akane's throat was suddenly tight as she watched Rin play around with Ah-Uhn, wondering if the curse that followed her only worked on blood family. What would she do if something happened to Rin? If just being near Akane in a family like setting was enough to get another innocent child killed. They weren't related, the prophecy said the cursed female would only bring the downfall to the dragon bloodline, so that meant Rin was safe. Right?
~Hey up there, what happened? There's so much dread radiating off of you that I can feel it.~ Shen's voice broke whatever invisible force had been binding her, and Akane sucked in a breath to calm her nerves, noticing just how tightly she was clutching the rolled up blankets.
Shen was old. Like, centuries old. If anyone would know about the prophecy he would right, so why was she so freaking afraid to ask him about it?
"I'm fine, was just thinking about something." Akane said instead, brushing it off. If she were to ask him if the cursed child thing was real, and it WAS… She wasn't ready for that.
She wasn't sure she EVER wanted to know beyond the shadow of a doubt that she had killed her family, had destroyed it, and might continue to destroy whatever family she tried to make. Just because she was alive, because she had some curse she knew nothing about…
~Thinking of your twin brother I assume? You trailed off after mentioning him. It's healthy to talk about him you know, so there's no reason to hold back.~ Shen tried to pry once more, and this time Akane shook her head to clear away all those dark thoughts.
"I do talk about Aki, when the occasion arises. Rin is allot like how he was, or I should say, how he would have been, since she's a little older then when he passed. There, see? Perfectly healthy talk, I mean what are you, my therapist or something?" Akane said in a rush, rolling her eyes and going on with her task of packing up, teasing him as a much needed distraction from the truth.
Somehow completely unphased by her slightly snappy tone, Shen chuckled knowingly in her mind. ~Very well, you have a point, but no, not therapist. MENTOR. Although, truly, is there much difference? I think not.~
Now it was her turn to laugh, tension fading and emotions going back into that mental black box she did her best to keep them in, this time adding a few more locks before taking in another breath and going on with life.
…..
The small group had went about the morning, cleaning up from the previous night and gathering wood for when Sesshy would arrive in case he had something to cook.
Jaken returned from his sulking with a small amount of wild berries carried in his robes, a possible peace offering from before, and after eating they proceeded to try and teach Rin how to read more words, both he and Akane using the Pokemon game as a way to keep the child interested whenever she showed signs of frustration. Then after that both the girl and imp were entertained watching when Akane began to brush up more on her sword play skills.
It wasn't long into her training when someone came down the road, the sound of multiple crunching boots on the rocks snapping her attention. It was a man in scaled black armor, with three others flanking him, the group paused, looking around and spotting them just off in the trees. The leader stared, studying, glancing behind them and back before approaching with a look of keen interest.
Akane knew the moment he was within her range that he wasn't human. His ears were not as pointed as Sesshy's but close enough, with a patch of what appeared to be scales under one of his yellow green eyes, long sleek black hair in a side braid. He was attractive in a pale almost emo kinda way, and she knew the complexion had to do with whatever yokai he was.
He was radiating a false calm, as if to lure people in, but she could see the predator in his eyes.
"Hello there!" He smiled, raised hands in a submissive stance as he came into their camp, close enough for her to notice the slits in his eyes. "It certainly is unexpected to find two little ladies all alone this far into the woods. Tell me, just where is your master?"
That instantly put her on alert. How did he know they even had a master? Her eyes narrowed, Shen voicing her very question and telling her to be on her toes, but before she could respond and tell this person to fuck off, Jaken cut in.
"It's none of your concern where our master is! B-but he'll be back any minute, so you better just move along!" Jaken snapped with false bravado while stepping in front of the girls, something that Akane appreciated even if he did nothing when it came to intimidating others.
The man cocked his head while looking Jaken over, lips twitching with a hint of barely concealed anger before glancing around again. "Oooh? I come looking for him and he can't be bothered to wait for me? My, how rude of Sesshomaru… But just what is he doing leaving his scent all over two human girls? Bait to distract me, or are you supposed to be an offering?"
At the word "offering" he stared directly at Rin, running an unusually long forked tongue over his lips as the other yokai men behind him chuckled darkly. Akane stiffened and held tighter to the branch she had been using, moving to block the others from this group with her best deadly glare, Jaken happily hiding behind her as his bravery deflated.
"We are no such thing! He wouldn't be too happy if you threatened us. If he supposedly knew you were looking for him, and you need to see Sesshomaru-sama, you are free to WAIT, and do so on the other side of the road!" She snapped, slamming her branch into the dirt and holding back the urge to quote Gandalf or something for effect.
The yokai male raised an eyebrow in a challenging way, sly smile taking form and somehow still keeping up that fake friendly look as he stepped closer, locking eyes with her, hands still raised in peace. "Such a brave and unique looking little thing aren't you? I've never seen hair like that before. So, if you are not meant for me that means he must keep you around for a reason. I didn't know his clan made a habit of keeping human pets…"
~Don't let him close!~ Shen said, a low rumble in his voice like the start of a roar as she felt the pendant heat up, warmth spreading to her arms as he readied Akane to defend herself if need be.
"I'm not kept like some kind of pet, I CHOSE to follow him thank you very much, and you can fucking stop moving closer, I'm not buying the act. What business do you even have with Sesshomaru-sama?" Akane said with suspicion, slapping the end of her stick between them on the ground to keep him away.
This seemed to confuse him, and the sly smile turned sweet as he at least paused in his step.
"I sent him a formal challenge a day or so ago, we were to meet at the river today, but along the way there I caught his scent. How interesting it was to find two humans with traces of that scent. I simply want a good look at you, little lady." He said in an overly pouty voice, and she was starting to figure out what he was. Trying to lure her close, trying to make her feel as if there was no threat.
"A challenge? Like, to fight?" She blinked, puzzled and looking him over a bit more, not seeing how this slim built man could stand a chance. "That's kinda stupid on your part don't you think? You want to die or something?"
~Akane…~ Shen groaned in that frustrated tone just as the yokai mans yellow green eyes narrowed, lips pulled tight in a little frown. Clearly insulted as the other men behind him started whispering to themselves until he sent a glare.
"A human like you should hold her tongue." He hissed while moving closer again, his calm friendly allure faltering while slowly dropping his hands back down. "It is natural for our kind to fight for territory we desire. I want this land and, rather then go to war over it as my father would have done, I challenged Sesshomaru directly."
At this, Jaken laughed from behind her, a bit of his bravado returning as he pointed at the man. "What a fool you are! As if someone like you would even be worth half of his power to defeat! Save yourself the trouble and retreat. Milord has never lost a single challenge for his territory and you won't be getting a scrap of land this way!"
Another hiss left him as his eyes snapped to Jaken, slits growing smaller. "I have every intention of winning, and when I do, maybe I'll eat you when I'm done with the dog."
Jaken yelped and hid again, but that threat of eating them triggered something in Akane, a wave of determined bravery filled her with the need to protect as that uncoiling feeling of something deep inside her chest returned.
"Back off snake. Sesshomaru-sama would never lose to you, hell, he'd be so bored with the so called fight that you'd barely get half his attention! There will be no eating for you today if you challenge him, that's for sure. Now, I said you can wait for him over THERE." Akane snapped out in a huff.
Well, it was supposed to be a huff, but what came out was a softer version of Shen's low rumble from before. Some kind of half warning growl that definitely didn't sound human. The sound surprised both of them, and he tried to come closer again until Akane pushed him back three steps by shoving the end of the stick into his stomach.
~Be ready, Akane, we both know he's not waiting.~
To prove Shen's point, the snake yokai grinned at her now, long fangs in full view as he called over his shoulder to the three still waiting on the road behind. "Did you hear that boys? The little growling human thing says we can't eat dog meat today. Whatever will we do?"
Laughter echoed around, and thankfully Jaken was smart enough to start inching himself and Rin closer to the two headed dragon for an escape. However, the movement caught the man's eye, making that grin turn vicious as his alluring mask dropped. He cracked his neck and, before Akane could even see him move, he snatched the branch from her hands and tossed it, stepping so close their chests touched while looking down at her.
"The problem with that is, I'm STARVING." He hissed, that long forked tongue coming out and running up her cheek, sending chills up her spine as she bristled in disgust.
~NOW!~
Without thought Akane slammed her head up and into his chin, causing him to bite his tongue and howl in shock as she stomped his foot and tackled him mid section like a battering ram, knocking the snake to his ass before she turned to bolt towards Ah-Uhn.
~Take to the sky, his kind are not the flying type!~ Shen didn't have to tell her that, it was kinda obvious, since normally only white snakes could do that. He definitely didn't have that level of power to his aura.
Rin and Jaken were already halfway to the two headed dragon, taking the reins, and she was almost relieved until something grabbed her ankle and yanked her hard enough that when she hit dirt she tasted blood in her mouth.
"FUCK! RUN!" Akane yell, and cursed again when the three other snake yokai ran past her towards them. In barely enough time the dragon shot into the air, avoiding grabbing hands and swinging swords, going nearly to the treetops and diving back down as if to come get her.
"Stay up there damn it! Wait for Sesshomaru-sama!" She ordered while flinging her arm to shoo them back.
"But he'll KILL me if you die you fool!" Jaken snapped, Rin clinging to him from behind and trying not to cry.
"And what good will it be if we ALL die?!" As she said this, the three snakes ran back over, trying to reach the floating dragon and causing her friends to go back up whether they wanted to or not, making her sigh in relief.
~Focus on your own safety for once!~ Shen snapped as Akane tried to get back to her feet. She yelped when her body was jerked across the ground backwards instead, turning to find that the man's lower half had changed into the black scaly end of a huge snake, his tail wrapping around her ankle and dragging her back to him as he rubbed the spot on his chin she had headbutted.
"How DARE you attack the great Kazuma!" He hisses, jaw coming unhinged in a nasty way, looking more like a freaking alien then a snake, that tongue swishing around and dripping saliva as he rose up above her.
"Never heard of ya!" She retorted, still tasting her own blood and making her think she must have bit into her cheek when falling, shivering as Shen filled her muscles and body with his power seconds before digging her new talons into the tail on at her ankle, causing it to retract as the snake hissed and dove with clear intention of eating her whole.
SHITFUCKDAMN!
Akane rolled out of the way at the last second and kicked to her feet, feeling her mentors strength as the talons on her fingers thickened and grew longer, lightning sparks barely forming at her fingertips before fading away. They still hadn't figured out how to give her Shen's lightning, which sucked cause that would come in handy right now.
~I'm sorry all I can lend you is physical strength and my talons, make a run for it the first chance you get, our speed should be more then a snakes.~
Akane gave no reply, glancing to see that Jaken was trying to hit the other three now slithering snake men with fire blasts from his staff while flying in circles, at least keeping them off of her for now. One snake she could handle…
Hopefully.
Kazuma got a hold of her leg this time, wrapping tight and lifting her high off the ground before Akane used all her body weight to kick at the tail and twist at the same time, slipping free when it loosened and landing on her knees.
And THIS is why we shouldn't be wearing skirts in the feudal era! What was she thinking, trying to look cute when shit like this could happen at any time?!
Her knees were skinned and bleeding from the fall, and she winced when getting to her feet, looking over her shoulder in time to leap out of biting range and watching the snake land face first into the dirt as his tail thrashed in pain.
~Run now!~ Shen's power warmed her legs, and she darted off despite the throbbing with each movement. With his aid she was doing more flying then running, her leaps long and far much like Inuyasha. Akane seen the others take her lead and start to follow after her in the air. Relief flooded through her as she gasped for breath between leaps.
"Lady Akane look out!" Rin yelled from just behind her, but she didn't have time to react. Something swooped her legs out from underneath as she had went to leap off again, once more sending her crashing to her knees and hands. This time she did let out a sound of pain, shock trying to take her but she ignored it, rolling six times to the side and avoiding a thick black tail from smashing her body flat.
Akane was a little dizzy at this point, but both her mentor's power and adrenaline were on her side while getting to her feet, uppercutting the jaw coming down, sending Kazuma backwards with a wail. He had bit his tongue this time, and she got a sick thrill from it, laughing like a mad woman while avoiding another tail strike.
Looking to see that once again the others were playing a game of chase as a much appreciated distraction with the other three, Akane started running. But this time it wasn't to escape, instead snatching up her branch from before, holding tight with the talons so it was not so easily ripped from her grip, she turned in time to see the snake yokai recover from his little accidental tongue bite.
Kazuma came slithering across the ground with that thick black mass of coils, mouth open once again, if possible even more wide then the first time.
"SO freaking creepy." She muttered, making the dragon laugh in her mind as she plotted her next move. If she could just aim the branch right and shove it hard enough with her currently increased strength… Oh yeah buddy! She totally planned to put it right down the suckers throat!
Preparing to use all her body weight and power, she raised the branch like a spear and took aim, but as the snake yokai dove at her this time, it was slammed into from the side, causing Akane to blink in pure shock as the thing flew into the trees and her hair whipped to the side from the rushing force of whatever had hit it.
~About damn time.~
"W-What…" She felt stupid even saying it. After all, who else would it be? Akane knew the feeling of this yokai aura well enough by now, and her body began to relax despite the aching in her knees as she quickly fixed her hair to look.
The dust settled to reveal Sesshomaru, looking bored and calm as always, holding the other male by the throat as it's lower snake body thrashed and wrapped around him. He gave no reaction other then to start cutting off the others air supply as his claws drew blood.
"Sesshomaru-sama! Thank goodness!" Rin shouted in excitement, also sounding relieved, almost drowned out by Jaken's own cries of joy.
Akane on the other hand was far too distracted by the incredibly sexy look in his eyes to make a sound, fully captivated in the moment as her heart raced from being saved once again by this beautiful and deadly yokai man.
"You said this was to take place by the river, so tell me, Kazuma, why do I find you here?" Sesshomaru said, voice dripping ice as his eyes narrowed, the only change in his calm facial expression despite how tightly he was holding the other mans throat in his grip.
Kazuma attempted to speak, but only gasped and continued to tighten his tail. This got the attention of his men, and they circled Sesshomaru with warning hisses as each took on their true forms, no longer looking half human like their boss. Still, there was no reaction to being surrounded by large black snakes from the Western Lord, but he did slack on his grip enough for their leader to gasp for air.
"Gha- Ah, S-sesshomaru! I was on my way there as we agreed on, yes, but then thought to have caught your scent here you see, and came looking-"
"And instead found my servants unprotected. Did you think killing them would give you some kind of advantage over this one? Ridiculous." Sesshomaru cut in, lifting him further into the air until the tail let go of his legs to support the rest of Kazuma's weight, helping slow his choking.
"Advantage? Never! You of all people wouldn't care less if some humans got eaten. I thought you might have left them for me as an offering to back out of our fight, it wouldn't be the first time someone has done so." Kazuma pleaded, raising his hands and signaling something for only his men to see, the snakes inching closer.
"Look out! He's not playing fair!" Akane called out just as all three snakes went in to strike, but her warning was almost pointless. Sesshomaru somehow flashed out of harms way at the last second, tossing Kazuma aside and making quick work of the three snakes with his claws, his movements almost too fast for her eyes to keep track of.
Ah-Uhn landed at her side, all of them watching in silent amazement like every time they got to see him fight to kill. The snakes tried to avoid his slashing claws while attempting to get in close from different angles, each time failing and getting another chunk of flesh removed instead.
Watching Sesshomaru side step and spin while fighting was like a seeing deadly dance.
"I knew they were no match for milord!" Jaken praised from his spot in the saddle, looking proud and impressed while Rin just gaped in awe, trying to follow the three snakes getting diced to ribbons with her own eyes.
~Not that impressive, considering how low level they are. Now this Kazuma fellow, he might be a challenge.~
Akane nodded, paying more attention to the larger half snake as he recovered from being choked, raising up and simply watching his men die with a look of revenge on his face as Sesshomaru finished. The two men faced one another now, and she could sense anger on both ends despite the calm demeanor of Sesshy. His golden eyes glanced her way, trailing down her body and pausing at her blood coated knees, looking back to the snake with a what she thought might be a small hint of rage just barely kept behind the calm mask.
"You should have known two things about this one before issuing a challenge." Sesshomaru said calmly, flicking the blood and bits of flesh from his claws.
"Is that so?" Kazuma rolled his eyes, squaring his shoulders and flexing fingers that had needle like nails Akane had somehow not noticed before. "Do give me a little lesson on what to expect while we finally start this damn fight!"
Sesshomaru said nothing, simply spread his feet and took on a stance, like a martial artist, preparing to fight with his arm raised and claws spread, causing the snake to laugh and look him over in appraisal before changing his lower half back to that of a man and copying the stance.
"No swords I see. So it's true what they say about you, a beast that doesn't bother with a blade in battle. Now, do tell me what these other things are about you. I'm simply DYING to know after all…" Kazuma sneered as the two locked eyes and readied themselves.
Without warning they went at each other, claws and fangs out, clashing and backing off only to repeat, making Akane suck in a breath and Rin gasp behind Jaken, leaning closer for a better look, nearly climbing over the imp in the process and squashing his head.
"Get off me girl! I can't see!" He snapped in pain and flailed from underneath her elbows.
"Neither can I, Jaken-sama, now stop moving!" She whined, the two starting a little smacking match of their own for the front seat in the saddle.
"Come on you two, we all want to watch Sesshy-sama kick some snake butt." With a small laugh Akane turned and pulled the imp off the saddle and set his flailing body on the ground, and he kicked her leg the second she let go.
"How dare you manhandle me like a child!" Jaken snapped while trying to kick her again, Rin taking his spot in the saddle and going silent as she watched the fight, Akane also ignoring him and his kicks by lifting her legs each time he tried until he gave up and went back to watching too.
Each time the two men clashed with those karate like moves mixed with slashing claws, blood was drawn on both sides, and Akane couldn't help but wonder just what the rules and etiquette to a yokai fight were, or if there were any at all. There seemed to be some kind of mutual understanding, as no dirty moves were used yet and the two seemed to be just testing out their physical strengths as arms and legs were swung and claws scraped skin.
"The first thing to know about this one, is that I never back out from a challenge, so thinking I would have left you an offering in a sign of retreat offends me." Sesshomaru stated while blocking a punch by raising his arm at the last second, following it up with a swooping kick to Kazuma's chest.
"And how dare I offend Sesshomaru of the west! That temper of yours is famous." The snake baited with a taunting grin, but the only reaction was a glare as the two clashed again with a swipe of claws. This time Kazuma tore off a piece of Sesshomaru's kimono collar, barely nicking his throat, crimson blood staining the perfect white robes as the man growled and struck back in retaliation.
This was Akane's first time since watching him fight Inuyasha that she had seen Sesshomaru move like this, but even then it hadn't exactly been this kind of fight.
With Inuyasha there had been anger and other emotions going on, the fight a bit more brutal and less controlled then it was now. And unlike the fights with Inuyasha, Akane could openly cheer for the man she was crushing on. And she DID. Between the three of them watching and then Shen in her head, it was kinda comical the commentary they were all giving, and it was amazing Sesshomaru hadn't told them to shut up yet.
And just as she wondered when they would use their actual yokai powers, Kazuma shifted his lower half back to a snake and managed to wrap around Sesshomaru's waist with his tail, dragging him close and seeming to try and crush him like a boa constrictor as more and more of his serpent half slithered around the other man.
With a look of annoyance and a flash of red eyes, Sesshomaru used his poison claws and dug them deep into the snakes flesh with an audible sizzling sound that made her cringe. She was grateful he really didn't use that move too much when fighting his brother.
"The second thing to know about this one, and do pay attention, as it is most important…" Sesshomaru continued, voice starting to get that dangerous tone as he dug his claws deeper and twisted his hand, making Kazuma scream and uncoil his tail to get away, but not before half of his snake body started to melt from the acid like poison coursing in it's veins.
He quickly changed into a full snake, using his huge jaw to bite off and spit out the infected chunk of his own flesh before it could spread, avoiding a second attempted poison strike from Sesshomaru. Kazuma darted away in a false retreat, turning back around with lightning speed as Sesshomaru followed, and went in for a killing strike to the throat, mouth gaping and fangs glinting in the afternoon sun as his own venomous poison dripped from each pointed tip.
"Never touch what is mine." Sesshomaru finished with that lovely death threat smile, raising his hand to flex his fingers in a way she knew all too well by now, the glow of his energy whip coming into view as he gracefully side stepped out of the snakes striking path with a perfect flick of his wrist. That flick sending Sesshomaru's whip lashing out, cutting the snakes head clean off as both halves landed on the ground with a thud.
A dull hiss filled the air as it's mouth opened and closed, still alive for the moment, tail twitching. He stepped closer to it and the head somehow moved on it's own enough to turn and try to bite in vain, because he simply kicked it away before it could manage. The still moving head made Rin yelp in disgust before she slid off Ah-Uhn, about to start excitedly running over to Sesshomaru until he snapped his gaze to her, a clear "Stop" in his eyes.
Rin obeyed, and they watched as Sesshomaru continued to slice up the snakes remains until it began to fade into dust, as certain yokai did after death. Once he seemed satisfied he walked over to them, studying each for wounds in that ever calm and aloof concern of his.
He looked perfectly calm and composed, like he hadn't just fought someone to the death and won, and was completely unaffected by his own little wounds. But as Akane stared, she noticed most of the cuts and gashes were already closed, the only proof they were ever there was the blood stains and torn collar.
"Welcome back milord! That snake was no match for one such as you, as expected!" Jaken beamed in admiration, practically sparkling as he stared up at the man who was totally ignoring him and going to Akane instead, staring at her bloody knees with a look she hadn't seen before.
"Does it hurt?" He asked, more of a gruff demand then a question, practically glaring at her injuries and taking her somewhat by surprise, she had to take a second before she could answer properly.
"Oh, not all that bad really. The dirt makes it look worse cause it's caked with blood, but I think all I did was scrape them up pretty good. No major damage." Akane blinked and started tugging at her hair a little, smiling like an idiot at his little show of verbal concern.
"And thank you for saving me, again, I almost had him but I am grateful for your arrival. We really shouldn't make this a habit or I'll never be able to repay you some day!"
"Indeed." Was his spacey answer, like he was in deep thought and only half paying attention. Again. But at this point she was used to this from him, and kinda found it cute. Instead of being annoyed by it she just smiled some more, finding a stick in her hair from all the rolling she had been doing and pulling it out, causing him to look at her face rather then her wounded knees, doing that slow blink as he seemed to focus once again.
"Sooo… I get that you and that snake were supposed to fight? Something about territory? Do you do that kind of thing often when you disappear for the day?" She tried again, not really expecting a full answer.
Her question seemed to fully bring him out of thought and back to reality, and she could tell he was debating actually answering or avoiding it, but before he could say anything Rin came up to them, practically bouncing with excitement.
"Did you SEE the way Lady Akane was trying to protect us Sesshomaru-sama? She was so brave! That snake guy tried to be all sneaky but she didn't fall for it! But she got really banged up when he knocked her down-OH! Rin will get the bandages from her backpack!" Rin happily explained while going back to Ah-Uhn for the pack.
Sadly, this reminded him of her knees, and Sesshomaru went right back to staring at them in that odd way.
~I think he's trying to see if you are enough dragon to heal yourself as fast as he can. This is the first time you've been injured like this in his presence.~ Shen piped up from his moment of silence, and his explanation might very well be the reason for the odd stare.
"I'll be fine by tomorrow afternoon, maybe a few scars that will take another day to fade away. I might not heal super fast like a full blooded dragon, but it's still way faster then any normal human would." She decided to say and test the theory behind the look.
And sure enough he frowned in disapproval, like her being more human then dragon was bothersome. His annoyed gaze was slowly sweeping over her body as if expecting to find more wounds or something.
Suddenly feeling self conscious about her disheveled state, Akane glanced away nervously and started attempting to wipe at the dirt on her clothes and legs, but when she got close to touching her knees he suddenly bent down and grabbed her wrist fast enough to make her jump.
"Don't." Sesshomaru was using his orderly tone, making her look at him in surprise. He seemed to realize how intense he was coming across and glanced away, grip going slack but not letting go yet.
~He has a point, you shouldn't be touching those scrapes until you have water to clean them with.~ Shen pointed out, making her blush a little from being so flustered by Sesshy that she'd forgotten that.
Now they were just standing there, looking at each other as he still held her wrist between them. Thankfully Rin came back with the pack in her arms, the little girl almost unable to bear it's weight, which was cute.
"Here you go my Lady!" Rin paused when noticing the awkward scene, but simply continued to smile as she handed the pack over to Akane, her wrist at last released with a tiny ALMOST embarrassed look from Sesshy as he cleared his throat and stepped back.
"You need to clean that." He stated, frowning while watching Akane pull out her first aid kit and her water bottle, raising a questioning eyebrow as he watched her shake the nearly empty container.
"Yeah, I planned to fill up once we got to the river, but this might be enough to clean my- HEY!" Akane yelped when he pulled her to his side without warning, his one arm slipping around her waist right before he took to the sky, making her fling her arms around his neck with a squeak while somehow still keeping a grip on the water bottle and kit.
Sesshomaru somehow managed to hold her perfectly tight, without seeming to strain at all, pausing mid air to look down at the gaping Rin and annoyed looking Jaken.
"Wait here until our return." He said simply, taking off without bothering to wait for a reply. But they both knew that the other two would obey without question.
"That was rude." Akane snorted and did her best not to choke him despite her secret fear of heights, this was only the third or fourth time he had carried her himself, and she still wasn't used to it.
As expected, he ignored her remark and acted like she wasn't even in his arm to begin with, flying at a moderate pace for about ten minutes until a calm yet wide river came into view. They landed with his usual grace, but he didn't let her go until he walked to the rivers edge, and it was very hard not to be at least a LITTLE flustered about the fact this guy had no trouble carrying her around despite her being a slightly thicker girl.
"Freaking white knight in furry armor…" She mumbled in English with a little sigh when he set on her feet, earning a curious glance from Sesshomaru that she quickly went about ignoring, going and kicking off her shoes so she could stand in the running water and clean the cuts and scrapes from the dried blood and dirt. It stung like hell to say the least, and her right knee was totally shredded with little rocks she'd have to pick out.
~Could be worse, at least you're not dead. While it wasn't a good first fight, you did well enough. With a proper weapon and a bit more physical training…~
"Yeah, yeah, I know. I'm a bit too out of shape for a fight like that. But hey, playing sports isn't the same as a legit life or death fight with a yokai, and I've only been training for a few weeks so give me some credit here." Akane groaned while stepping back on to the riverbank, slipping on a rock and nearly falling backwards until Sesshomaru took her arm and pulled her to him, slamming her body into his armor by accident because of his inhuman strength.
"Yeep!" She held her hands out when making contact with his spiked armor, barely missing the big points and trying not to gape like a freaking moron.
"Were you talking to me just now or… that?" He asked curiously, pointedly looking at the pendant at her neck, not seeming to care how close they were all of a sudden.
Not that it should matter, since they had been this close while flying, but to suddenly be yanked to him like this…
Why did he have to smell so damn good for someone who just killed a freaking snake? He hadn't even broken a sweat had he? It didn't look like it, not that she was LOOKING or anything- aw crap, she was staring again huh?
"That, I mean, him. Shen. Yeah…" She babbled an answer to his question, again flustered, jumping back from him and turning to hide the blush on her face as she went to get her shoes. With a small grunt of pain she sat on the ground and started putting on her socks, shyly glancing up from under her bangs to see him watching her with a raised eyebrow.
~And insert awkward teen moment… now.~ Shen chuckled in her mind, and it only made her blush worse.
"Oh shut up. It's not my fault he's gorgeous and has that whole broody arrogant ass thing going on. He's practically walking sex and I'm a hormonal teenager, I'm allowed to get a little flustered!" Akane whispered with a huff in English.
~Yes, of course. You are allowed your moments, and I am allowed to find them adorable and entertaining.~ He said in a way that caused her to picture a smug grin on his face, despite never actually SEEING his face.
And, as Shen predicted, there was an awkward silence. Which shouldn't have been awkward considering how this man normally rocked the silent treatment, but for some reason this time it did totally feel awkward, and it took all she had not to look at him again. But thankfully she heard his boots on the grass, headed to the river.
~You can breath now.~
Choosing to ignore him this time, she continued her work.
Akane had both socks and shoes on now, and began digging out the rocks in her skin, wincing now and then but happily using it as an excuse to ignore Sesshy. Once that task was done she dug out bandages from her first aid kit to at least cover the worst gashes and avoid infection. Fast healing or not, there was no way she would risk getting some freaky disease or something in a place with no modern doctors.
Halfway through wrapping up her left knee, she jumped in surprise when there was a splashing sound behind her, and before she could turn to see what it was, a flying fish nearly landed in her lap.
"What the fuck!" She flung it away and twisted around to see Sesshomaru on a large rock jutting out from the river, staring intently into the water.
She had never seen him in hunting mode before. Even at this distance she could see him tracking a fish with his eyes, head tilting a bit before that whip came out of nowhere, another two fish suddenly flying at her as he flung them from the water in a single swoop. Akane yelped and got out of the way before one could land on her head this time, the noise catching his attention and making him look up.
"Watch where you fling those!" She called out as Shen cackled in her mind, getting to her feet and placing her hands on her hips with a huffy glare towards Sesshomaru.
The man said nothing, but his eyes widened an a rare look of pure shock, and she could make out the tinge of pink on his cheeks. Clearly he hadn't MEANT to rain fish on her.
In a single leap he was by her side, lips in a cute little frown of embarrassment, looking at the fish on the ground and glaring as if it was all their fault, making her hold back a laugh with a hand to her face before waving it off.
"It's no biggie, just look next time, kay? Tell you what, I'll forgive the fishy rain if you answer my question from before, the one about you going off to fight people. Answer that and I'll forgive you, how's that for a deal?" Akane asked boldly, grinning at the haughty way he was looking at her now and knowing why, she could tell exactly what he was thinking and beat him to voicing it out loud.
"I know, I know, you don't NEED or want me to forgive you for it, you don't care either way. But let me just use this as an excuse to get a little more information about you. It's just a small thing, and after fending off that snake guy today I think to have earned a little something… please?"
Sesshomaru blinked at her request, and the fact she knew what he was going to say, the haughty annoyed look fading back to calm and indifferent as he considered it again, no Rin to save him from answering this time. She could tell he was seriously debating refusing her out of spite, but for one reason or another, he gave in after dropping his shoulders in a sign of defeat. Perhaps too tired to put up his usual fight.
"I seek nothing more than to battle the most powerful beings alive. However, to do this, there is a never ending line of those who claim power, but cannot back it up. It can be most vexing at times." He said with a long sigh of borderline frustration, running his hand through his bangs and glancing in the direction they came from, most likely thinking that snake to be one of the many vexing ones.
"So, yes. I do go and defend my territory, both from minor threats and fools who challenge me." He finished, looking back at her as if expecting a literal thank you or something just because he answered a question.
Completely shocked at a rare open answer, she pried just a little more while she still could. "You want to fight the strongest, but that can't be the only reason. I mean, you just wanting to? That sounds more like something Inuyasha would say. So is it because you have to defend your territory anyway, and would rather fight strong people to do that, instead of a bunch of mediocre yokai?"
Sesshomaru's eyebrows shot up while staring at her, a look of pure surprise on his handsome face. "Very observant of you to say that, you are indeed correct."
At that small praise she beamed with pride, glad that she was at least starting to understand him a little, and enough for him to take notice even!
Akane's blue eyes went wide as a thought hit her, making her smile even wider as she leaned in close, bouncing on her heels with enthusiasm. "Since the weaker ones just annoy you, once I'm strong enough I'll handle them for you! That can be my way of payment to you for saving-"
"No."
She gaped a second at how harsh and quick Sesshomaru cut down her idea, watching his fallback expression return and all signs of emotion wiped clean but for the stubborn look in his eyes. Akane blew her bangs out of her face as her enthusiasm deflated as quickly as it came.
"But with more training-"
"I forbid it." He stated matter of fact, glancing down at her bandaged knees for barely a second before he turned his back to her and began walking off, picking up the fish he'd caught along the way and not looking at her.
"F-forbid? Who do you think you are to FORBID me from anything?" She stuttered in surprised shock, getting frustrated that their little moment was so quickly ruined.
Sesshomaru completely ignored her and started making his way back to the road, not even paying attention to see if she followed him or not, which of course she started to once he was almost out of sight, silently fuming.
They'd had a MOMENT. She had done something that impressed him, shown him that she was starting to understand him, he had saved her life and shown a little actual freaking concern today. Why did he have to just up and tell her no like that? Like she was a child…
~Akane, it very well could be that he just does not want to have you get hurt. He simply… Well let's face it, he's horrid at saying what he means, but I'm sure that-~
"It's fine Shen." She cut in with a little sigh, calming down and catching up to Sesshy. There was no point fighting about it until she was stronger anyway, but once she was, there would be no reason to tell her no anymore. She'd make him see that she wasn't just a human, but a worthy companion and ally, someone he could trust at his side.
"Once I've mastered how to unlock my own power, he'll have to take notice. Soon he won't be the only one who wants to fight the strongest!"