He was all but dragging Kagome as they walked through the now whispering crowd, but suddenly he felt her weight shift as she now walked willingly alongside him. She tilted her head forward, and he quickly removed this smirk from his face and looked down at her. He didn't know which reaction he thought he would get, but her smiling at him was not on the list.

"You did that of purpose!" She giggled.

"Indeed,"

"Your mother is pissed,"

"Good,"

Sesshomaru quickly moved to an outside balcony and shut the doors, and released her. He looked out to the sun setting, making the sky orange. "Sesshomaru, this is going to spread like wildfire,"

"I do not care,"

"Ok, who are you, and what have you done with the deadly demon prince I know?"

He looked back at her. "It is I, Miko,"

She half smiled. "You are not acting like yourself,"

"I tired of this,"

Kagome looked back at the party. "I can understand that,"

He looked down at her " You turned down every suiter,"

"I dont want a human husband," She looked down. "Be kinda weird, him growing old and I not,"

He could understand that.

"You want a demon, mate."

"I guess it runs in the family,"

He looked back at Kikyo,

"There is the wolf,"

"He is already promised, and his intended loves them,"

"He apparently does not feel that same,"

"He does; he just doesn't know it yet" She smiled at the sweet thought.

"Then we are the same," He had not meant to say that out loud and to her. He looked away as the sun dipped down and the sky turned from orange to deep dark blue.

"No, im no good alone,"

"And I am?"

"Arnt you?"

"Hn," For now he was, but now he wondered just how far he would go with this at her expense. He had already watched his brother use the girl, and he called him a fool for it, yet here he was doing the same thing. Except he did not lie about it, she knew what he was doing.

"Everyone is staring at us; I can feel it," She looked at the sky, coming to stand next to him.

"Let them,"

How far would she allow him to go? How far did he really want to take this? He could hear the whispers. He could hear the foul language his brother was using, the disapproval of the monks, the concern of his father, and he could feel the heated anger from his mother.

Screw them all.

"Sesshomaru."

He looked down at her as the wind blew her hair behind her shoulder.

"How long do you plan to fool them?" She asked,

"Who said I was fooling Miko,"

She looked away and smirked. "Not funny, Sesshomaru,"

"Who said I was joking,"

She snapped her head to him, "Sesshomaru, this little game is not like you, and while im enjoying the fruit of it all, I won't be a willing pawn in your game," Been there, done that.

"The be my mate instead,"

Suddenly she felt the shift; he was no longer joking.

The gravity of what he just said, the realness of it, made her heart skip a beat; from what she didn't know, fear perhaps?

Whatever it was, it made her weak, she swallowed, and then gravity was no longer there; she fell back.

He caught her, and he wondered, was that a yes or a no?