Once Upon a Time
Chapter 8
by Aisuru
aisuru_chan@yahoo.com
*****
Author's Note: 387 reviews! Now I feel so guilty for not writing in so long! Let's see what I can do to fix this problem.
*****
Lightening flashed across the sky, illuminating Sesshoumaru. The inu- youkai lord stood as still as a statue, his head held high. Rainwater ran in rivulets down the sculpted angles of his face. His sodden snow-white bangs hung limply over fearless amber eyes. Water dripped off the spikes of his armor, plastered his soggy tail to his shoulder, and rendered portions of his kimono clingy and transparent, but somehow Sango couldn't imagine Sesshoumaru shaking himself dry as his half-brother had done.
"Sesshoumaru-sama," the little girl asked, daring to tug on one of his waterlogged, elaborate sleeves. "Why is the funny lady yelling like that?"
The inu-youkai did not bother himself to answer the little human girl, instead keeping his steady gaze on Sango with the unique mixture of curiosity and bored disdain that only Sesshoumaru could pull off. He raised an eyebrow. Sango stopped screaming.
Sesshoumaru's face resumed his typical blank expression. For long moments the only sounds Sango heard were those of the storm outside the cave and the crackling of the weak fire within. Then Sesshoumaru broke the silence with a voice that dreadfully understated his power and authority. "Rin," he said, addressing the little girl.
The child's face lit up as if, by saying her name, the inu-youkai lord had gifted her with an extraordinary and unexpected surprise. "Hai, Sesshoumaru-sama!" she replied, straightening her posture and turning her face up to look at him. Sesshoumaru kept his unwavering gaze on Sango.
"Go into the cave and warm yourself by the fire."
The little girl's face lit up even more, and she ran eagerly through the Tetsusaiga's barrier and into the cave. Sango shifted her weight to catch the child before she ran any closer to the inner depths of the cave. The girl looked up at Sango, her confusion clearly visible in the wavering firelight. Sesshoumaru, outside the Tetsusaiga's barrier, growled in warning. "Unhand the child," he ordered.
"Um, I don't think this is a very good idea, Sesshoumaru," Sango explained, her voice trembling as she lifted her eyes up from Rin and towards the very angry inu-youkai lord. The Tetsusaiga's force-field crackled and sparked as it counteracted Sesshoumaru's rising youki energy.
Sango raised her hands off of Rin's shoulders and held them up in the air in a sign of surrender. "It's just that this isn't a good time," she explained, fighting to keep her voice from wavering. Your brother is... I mean, Inuyasha has..." Sango cast a nervous glance over her shoulder towards the dark recesses of the back of the cave.
Sesshoumaru was silent for a long moment, during which Rin darted around Sango, stepped over the unconscious man in singed monk's robes, and went obediently to the fire, kneeling on the rock floor of the cave and holding her hands out in front of her, as close to the tiny flames as she dared. When Rin was situated and his youki had returned to their normal levels, Sesshoumaru turned his attention back to the demon exterminator. "The worthless half-breed is none of this Sesshoumaru's concern," he stated regally, ruining the effect with a sneeze.
"God bless you," Shippou whispered from Sango's side where he still clung to the hem of her kimono. He squeaked and jumped behind Sango when the inu- youkai lord turned piercing amber eyes in his direction.
Sesshoumaru gave a dignified sniff that just might have been a sniffle. "And why should He do that?" the inu-youkai lord finally asked, annoyed that such an infantile pup would dare speak to him without being spoken to first.
"That's what some people in Kagome's time say when someone sneezes," Shippou explained, a tremor in his voice as he peered around Sango.
Rin giggled. "God bless you, Sesshoumaru-sama!" she exclaimed.
Sesshoumaru ignored her, narrowing his eyes at Shippou. "Kagome's... time?" he questioned, taking a step into the cave towards Sango. He passed through the Tetsusaiga's barrier with only the slightest sparking of energies, and Sango was forced to recognize just how tall the inu-youkai lord was when his long stride brought him uncomfortably close to her.
"Ah, ha ha ha!" Sango's laugh was forced and false as she attempted a cover-up. She took a step backwards as she spoke, her retreat stalled when she bumped into the still-unconscious Miroku. "Not Kagome's *time*, that makes no sense. Ha ha! He meant that saying 'God bless you,' when someone sneezes is a time-honored tradition among Kagome's people."
"Kagome's... people?" he asked, taking on an air of boredom. As Sango and Shippou watched in surprise, Sesshoumaru used his one arm to unwrap his incredibly long, incredibly soggy tail from around his shoulder. He swung his tail in front of him; then, starting with the tip and moving inches at a time, he meticulously squeezed the rainwater out of his meters of once- fluffy tail. His long white fingers removed every speck of debris put there by the rough winds, and combed through the long fur. Sango and Shippou were helpless but to stare in fascination at the almost delicate care the mighty demon royal gave to the appendage's grooming. Rin, obviously familiar with Sesshoumaru's habits, mimicked him, carefully squeezing water out of her black locks, her tongue sticking out of the corner of her mouth as a sign of her intense concentration. Sesshoumaru ignored all of them..
*****
Inuyasha had frozen in place at Sango's prolonged scream, Kagome's feet dangling inches above the floor from his grasp on the back of the oversized fire-rat haori she wore. In fact, if one ignored his ears, which flattened against his head, he would have appeared very much a statue to anyone who had good enough vision as to pierce the shadows and had bothered to look. Kagome, however, was quite another matter. She kicked her feet and wriggled desperately in his hold, equally anxious to escape Inuyasha as she was to go to her friend's aid.
"Inuy-" she began, but Inuyasha unfroze himself long enough to clamp a clawed hand over her mouth.
He stayed motionless, utterly silent, and on high alert as the human girl- child that smelled of Sesshoumaru entered his cave, as Sesshoumaru's youki crackled against the tetsusaiga's shield when Sango touched the child, and as Rin stepped over an unconscious Miroku -- when had the human male lost consciousness? -- to kneel by the fire. When Sesshoumaru sneezed and sniffled he relaxed considerably, although he kept his two-handed grip on Kagome steady. Taking slow, silent steps, he backed to the far-wall of the cave and sat in the darkest shadows, bringing Kagome down with him. He kept his eyes, ears, and nose trained on Sesshoumaru, but even when the inu- youkai entered the cave himself he stayed relaxed. Once Kagome realized that is was Sesshoumaru in the cave, she was more than happy to stay quiet and still, so he took the hand off of her mouth and adjusted his grip on her to mimic his earlier hold. Even when his clawed hand strayed a little higher up her leg than before, she kept her gaze fixed on Sesshoumaru, who seemed at the moment to be the more significant threat.
*****
"You will now tell this Sesshoumaru about this Kagome and her people," the inu-youkai lord demanded, seating himself beside Rin in front of the fire where he began to systematically dry his very long hair. Rin gave a little squeal of pleasure and cuddled up against his tail, which was once again fluffy but had not been wrapped around his shoulder. Sesshoumaru instead wrapped his surprisingly prehensile tail around the happy girl before utterly ignoring her.
"Ah, ha ha..." Sango laughed nervously. She was still standing, and she nudged Miroku with her foot in hopes of waking him. "I don't know that much," she finally said. "What is it you want to know?"
"Tell this Sesshoumaru where this Kagome's people reside," he ordered.
"Well..." Sango started, obviously stalling, as she gave Miroku another nudge.
Sesshoumaru raised a regal eyebrow. "Kagome's people reside in a well?" he finally asked, his tone almost mocking.
Shippou gasped in horror -- Kagome had told him several times how important it was that the well remain a secret -- and Sango choked on her own intake of breath, making her cough. "No!" she finally managed to sputter. "I mean. we really don't know where she lives, do we, Shippou?" She gave the little kitsune a telling glance.
Shippou shook his head vigorously, even adding a pout to make the lie more believable -- he was a kitsune, after all, a born trickster. "She has never even taken me home with her," he whined. "She takes Inuyasha all the time, but she never takes me..."
Sango interrupted before the too-immature-to-really-be-a-good-trickster kitsune could say anything else foolish. "All that we know about her ti... I mean, her people, is from the stories she tells us."
"Sesshoumaru-sama, will the funny lady tell Rin a story?" the little girl asked, her eyes wide with excitement at the idea of being told a story.
"Um, my name is Sango..."
"Yes," Sesshoumaru interrupted as if Sango had not started to speak. "The 'funny lady' will now relate to us one of this Kagome's stories about her... people." He paused long enough before the last word to make it clear that he was suspicious of their odd slip-ups. Sango swallowed hard before seating herself next to Miroku, who had steadfastly maintained his lack of consciousness despite her repeated prodding. The delinquent priest was such a better liar than she was!
*****
In the back of the cave, well outside the pitiful circle of heat and light the fire provided -- which was just fine with her, given the identity of their latest 'guest' -- Kagome sat upon Inuyasha's lap, trying to ignore his wandering hands as she prayed that Sesshoumaru wouldn't find out about the portal to her world. It was becoming obvious that Sango and Shippou were very poor liars, and she had left her yellow backpack in the fore- section of the cave, filled with marvels from her modern era...
*****
Author's Note: PLEASE READ! I was reading through Fanfiction.net the other day, and I found a story that claimed to be a copy and continuation of someone else's story that had never been updated. I read the story, and was stunned to find that the story was a copy and continuation of "Once Upon a Time." It is true that I took my own sweet time in updating, and it is also true that this is just a fanfiction, so I see nothing wrong with writing a fanfiction about someone else's story. In fact, it would be pretty hypocritical if I got upset about someone writing a fanfiction about my story, since all I am doing is writing fanfiction about a well-known story: Inuyasha. My only complaint is that this author didn't tell which story she/he was basing her/his story off of, not give me any credit in any way. So, if you are reading this (and I'm going to assume that you are, since you obviously are a fan of this story), please give credit to me and my story. Then people that find your story can also find my story, and they'll know exactly which parts were borrowed from me, and which parts were your own unique ideas. Thanks!
*****
Author's Note: 387 reviews! Now I feel so guilty for not writing in so long! Let's see what I can do to fix this problem.
*****
Lightening flashed across the sky, illuminating Sesshoumaru. The inu- youkai lord stood as still as a statue, his head held high. Rainwater ran in rivulets down the sculpted angles of his face. His sodden snow-white bangs hung limply over fearless amber eyes. Water dripped off the spikes of his armor, plastered his soggy tail to his shoulder, and rendered portions of his kimono clingy and transparent, but somehow Sango couldn't imagine Sesshoumaru shaking himself dry as his half-brother had done.
"Sesshoumaru-sama," the little girl asked, daring to tug on one of his waterlogged, elaborate sleeves. "Why is the funny lady yelling like that?"
The inu-youkai did not bother himself to answer the little human girl, instead keeping his steady gaze on Sango with the unique mixture of curiosity and bored disdain that only Sesshoumaru could pull off. He raised an eyebrow. Sango stopped screaming.
Sesshoumaru's face resumed his typical blank expression. For long moments the only sounds Sango heard were those of the storm outside the cave and the crackling of the weak fire within. Then Sesshoumaru broke the silence with a voice that dreadfully understated his power and authority. "Rin," he said, addressing the little girl.
The child's face lit up as if, by saying her name, the inu-youkai lord had gifted her with an extraordinary and unexpected surprise. "Hai, Sesshoumaru-sama!" she replied, straightening her posture and turning her face up to look at him. Sesshoumaru kept his unwavering gaze on Sango.
"Go into the cave and warm yourself by the fire."
The little girl's face lit up even more, and she ran eagerly through the Tetsusaiga's barrier and into the cave. Sango shifted her weight to catch the child before she ran any closer to the inner depths of the cave. The girl looked up at Sango, her confusion clearly visible in the wavering firelight. Sesshoumaru, outside the Tetsusaiga's barrier, growled in warning. "Unhand the child," he ordered.
"Um, I don't think this is a very good idea, Sesshoumaru," Sango explained, her voice trembling as she lifted her eyes up from Rin and towards the very angry inu-youkai lord. The Tetsusaiga's force-field crackled and sparked as it counteracted Sesshoumaru's rising youki energy.
Sango raised her hands off of Rin's shoulders and held them up in the air in a sign of surrender. "It's just that this isn't a good time," she explained, fighting to keep her voice from wavering. Your brother is... I mean, Inuyasha has..." Sango cast a nervous glance over her shoulder towards the dark recesses of the back of the cave.
Sesshoumaru was silent for a long moment, during which Rin darted around Sango, stepped over the unconscious man in singed monk's robes, and went obediently to the fire, kneeling on the rock floor of the cave and holding her hands out in front of her, as close to the tiny flames as she dared. When Rin was situated and his youki had returned to their normal levels, Sesshoumaru turned his attention back to the demon exterminator. "The worthless half-breed is none of this Sesshoumaru's concern," he stated regally, ruining the effect with a sneeze.
"God bless you," Shippou whispered from Sango's side where he still clung to the hem of her kimono. He squeaked and jumped behind Sango when the inu- youkai lord turned piercing amber eyes in his direction.
Sesshoumaru gave a dignified sniff that just might have been a sniffle. "And why should He do that?" the inu-youkai lord finally asked, annoyed that such an infantile pup would dare speak to him without being spoken to first.
"That's what some people in Kagome's time say when someone sneezes," Shippou explained, a tremor in his voice as he peered around Sango.
Rin giggled. "God bless you, Sesshoumaru-sama!" she exclaimed.
Sesshoumaru ignored her, narrowing his eyes at Shippou. "Kagome's... time?" he questioned, taking a step into the cave towards Sango. He passed through the Tetsusaiga's barrier with only the slightest sparking of energies, and Sango was forced to recognize just how tall the inu-youkai lord was when his long stride brought him uncomfortably close to her.
"Ah, ha ha ha!" Sango's laugh was forced and false as she attempted a cover-up. She took a step backwards as she spoke, her retreat stalled when she bumped into the still-unconscious Miroku. "Not Kagome's *time*, that makes no sense. Ha ha! He meant that saying 'God bless you,' when someone sneezes is a time-honored tradition among Kagome's people."
"Kagome's... people?" he asked, taking on an air of boredom. As Sango and Shippou watched in surprise, Sesshoumaru used his one arm to unwrap his incredibly long, incredibly soggy tail from around his shoulder. He swung his tail in front of him; then, starting with the tip and moving inches at a time, he meticulously squeezed the rainwater out of his meters of once- fluffy tail. His long white fingers removed every speck of debris put there by the rough winds, and combed through the long fur. Sango and Shippou were helpless but to stare in fascination at the almost delicate care the mighty demon royal gave to the appendage's grooming. Rin, obviously familiar with Sesshoumaru's habits, mimicked him, carefully squeezing water out of her black locks, her tongue sticking out of the corner of her mouth as a sign of her intense concentration. Sesshoumaru ignored all of them..
*****
Inuyasha had frozen in place at Sango's prolonged scream, Kagome's feet dangling inches above the floor from his grasp on the back of the oversized fire-rat haori she wore. In fact, if one ignored his ears, which flattened against his head, he would have appeared very much a statue to anyone who had good enough vision as to pierce the shadows and had bothered to look. Kagome, however, was quite another matter. She kicked her feet and wriggled desperately in his hold, equally anxious to escape Inuyasha as she was to go to her friend's aid.
"Inuy-" she began, but Inuyasha unfroze himself long enough to clamp a clawed hand over her mouth.
He stayed motionless, utterly silent, and on high alert as the human girl- child that smelled of Sesshoumaru entered his cave, as Sesshoumaru's youki crackled against the tetsusaiga's shield when Sango touched the child, and as Rin stepped over an unconscious Miroku -- when had the human male lost consciousness? -- to kneel by the fire. When Sesshoumaru sneezed and sniffled he relaxed considerably, although he kept his two-handed grip on Kagome steady. Taking slow, silent steps, he backed to the far-wall of the cave and sat in the darkest shadows, bringing Kagome down with him. He kept his eyes, ears, and nose trained on Sesshoumaru, but even when the inu- youkai entered the cave himself he stayed relaxed. Once Kagome realized that is was Sesshoumaru in the cave, she was more than happy to stay quiet and still, so he took the hand off of her mouth and adjusted his grip on her to mimic his earlier hold. Even when his clawed hand strayed a little higher up her leg than before, she kept her gaze fixed on Sesshoumaru, who seemed at the moment to be the more significant threat.
*****
"You will now tell this Sesshoumaru about this Kagome and her people," the inu-youkai lord demanded, seating himself beside Rin in front of the fire where he began to systematically dry his very long hair. Rin gave a little squeal of pleasure and cuddled up against his tail, which was once again fluffy but had not been wrapped around his shoulder. Sesshoumaru instead wrapped his surprisingly prehensile tail around the happy girl before utterly ignoring her.
"Ah, ha ha..." Sango laughed nervously. She was still standing, and she nudged Miroku with her foot in hopes of waking him. "I don't know that much," she finally said. "What is it you want to know?"
"Tell this Sesshoumaru where this Kagome's people reside," he ordered.
"Well..." Sango started, obviously stalling, as she gave Miroku another nudge.
Sesshoumaru raised a regal eyebrow. "Kagome's people reside in a well?" he finally asked, his tone almost mocking.
Shippou gasped in horror -- Kagome had told him several times how important it was that the well remain a secret -- and Sango choked on her own intake of breath, making her cough. "No!" she finally managed to sputter. "I mean. we really don't know where she lives, do we, Shippou?" She gave the little kitsune a telling glance.
Shippou shook his head vigorously, even adding a pout to make the lie more believable -- he was a kitsune, after all, a born trickster. "She has never even taken me home with her," he whined. "She takes Inuyasha all the time, but she never takes me..."
Sango interrupted before the too-immature-to-really-be-a-good-trickster kitsune could say anything else foolish. "All that we know about her ti... I mean, her people, is from the stories she tells us."
"Sesshoumaru-sama, will the funny lady tell Rin a story?" the little girl asked, her eyes wide with excitement at the idea of being told a story.
"Um, my name is Sango..."
"Yes," Sesshoumaru interrupted as if Sango had not started to speak. "The 'funny lady' will now relate to us one of this Kagome's stories about her... people." He paused long enough before the last word to make it clear that he was suspicious of their odd slip-ups. Sango swallowed hard before seating herself next to Miroku, who had steadfastly maintained his lack of consciousness despite her repeated prodding. The delinquent priest was such a better liar than she was!
*****
In the back of the cave, well outside the pitiful circle of heat and light the fire provided -- which was just fine with her, given the identity of their latest 'guest' -- Kagome sat upon Inuyasha's lap, trying to ignore his wandering hands as she prayed that Sesshoumaru wouldn't find out about the portal to her world. It was becoming obvious that Sango and Shippou were very poor liars, and she had left her yellow backpack in the fore- section of the cave, filled with marvels from her modern era...
*****
Author's Note: PLEASE READ! I was reading through Fanfiction.net the other day, and I found a story that claimed to be a copy and continuation of someone else's story that had never been updated. I read the story, and was stunned to find that the story was a copy and continuation of "Once Upon a Time." It is true that I took my own sweet time in updating, and it is also true that this is just a fanfiction, so I see nothing wrong with writing a fanfiction about someone else's story. In fact, it would be pretty hypocritical if I got upset about someone writing a fanfiction about my story, since all I am doing is writing fanfiction about a well-known story: Inuyasha. My only complaint is that this author didn't tell which story she/he was basing her/his story off of, not give me any credit in any way. So, if you are reading this (and I'm going to assume that you are, since you obviously are a fan of this story), please give credit to me and my story. Then people that find your story can also find my story, and they'll know exactly which parts were borrowed from me, and which parts were your own unique ideas. Thanks!
