Chapter 2: Only For You
Disclaimer: I do not own Inuyasha, although I would like to own Sesshoumaru… purr
A/N: I just wanted to thank all of you for your reviews already! It helps the writing process a lot. On with the story!
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High above the Western lands, a pair of amber eyes flickered briefly in annoyance as a pungent smell wafted into the nostrils of the viewer. In silent recognition, he descended to a more suitable altitude.
Surveying his lands for unwanted guests had never been a joyful duty for the taiyoukai. But in a time of unrest and with Naraku slinking about with his puppets, one can never be too cautious. So for that reason, he was out here, scouring his lands for days on end to ensure that his lands were kept under his tight control.
It could also be the fact that Rin's constant babble and Jaken's infuriating obsession with his Lord was slowly aggravating the stoic and seemingly emotionless Sesshoumaru to the point where he needed anything to get his mind off things, and more importantly his left eye to stop twitching. Nah…
As he neared the ground he quickly began to make more observations from what he concluded before. Not only was the stench of Naraku still thick and abrasive in the air, but so was that of his hanyou half brother.
'Has the half-breed finally been defeated by the pest Naraku? Or has the little whelp somehow, by sheer luck, succeeded in ridding these lands of the demon?' Sesshoumaru scoffed as he stepped over a pile of lifeless youkai bodies. His nose quickly led him to Inuyasha, who slumped above what seemed to be an unconscious wolf demon. Sesshoumaru took notice that it was Kouga, the prince of the Northern Lands territory whom his half brother was heaped upon and took much satisfaction in giving the unsuspecting canines a slight nudge with his foot. The slight nudge sent Inuyasha's body tumbling off the wolf demon's and it came to rest before a most gruesome pile of severed limbs.
Flaring his nostrils at the unwelcome stench of rotting flesh, Sesshoumaru turned to take his leave. Before he successfully took a step away from the field, another, more prominent scent invaded his senses and stopped him abruptly. The almost electric smell of power, uncontrolled power at that. Finding that the source of this unknown power was coming from the forest's edge, Sesshoumaru casually went to investigate.
'This Sesshoumaru is curious to see what creature has displayed this amount of power on my lands. If it is not already dead, I will see that it is destroyed immediately.' Flexing his claws and keeping his guard up for any sign of an oncoming attack, the taiyoukai proceeded to clear his way toward the still present pulse of power. Flicking out his poison whip expertly, he disposed of what was left of shredded muscle and charred flesh to make his way easier to his destination.
A few meters from him, he could spot a huddled mass lying in congealed blood. He could almost taste the copper tang from where he stood. Stepping closer, he noticed that there was a definite ring of scorched earth around the prone figure bathed in blood ahead of him. With a slight arch of one pristine, silver eyebrow, he stepped closer to what he could tell now was the body of a ningen woman. Well, what was left of the body at least. She was lying almost completely on her stomach, with raven locks coated in the sticky substance of her own blood and matted against her cheek. Her ribs seemed to be caved inwards and her leg was positioned in an odd angle with deep gashes that gave the viewer a nice display of her polished white bone underneath. Undeterred by the gore before him, Sesshoumaru listened intently for any sign that the mass of human flesh was still alive.
'Hn, a slight pulse is still detectable. Ningens,' He scoffed, 'so fragile yet so stubborn in death. What annoying creatures.' His emotionless golden eyes snapped back to the sprawled mass before him when he heard a slight whimper. It had come from under the ningen. Carelessly, the demon lord pushed over the girl with his foot, having her lay on her back.
'Wonderful, now I have hanyou and ningen scent on this Sesshoumaru, how revolting.'
From rolling the girl on her back he was surprised to find a kitsune pup curled into a ball in the pool of blood on the ground. Not like that small amount of emotion registered on his face though, the elegant quirk of his eyebrow was all any onlooker would notice. Upon further inspection he noticed that the kit was not harmed, but the blood coating him was that of the girl that had lay above him.
'Interesting, a ningen protecting a youkai pup. The strong power must have come from the wench then, although hard to believe, but it is certain it did not come from this kitsune. No matter, she will die soon enough from her loss of blood.' With that final thought, Sesshoumaru turned from the pair and casually made his way back to the form of his unconscious half-brother intent on finally claiming what was his. The Tetsuaiga.
Having the half-breed unable to protest the demon Lord's actions made it seem unfair and without honor to the taiyoukai. Pondering on this thought, he did not notice the arrival of another in the clearing until the loud slap of their feet against the cold and damp ground stirred him from his thoughts. He turned abruptly with Toujkin unsheathed and ready at his side only to spot his ward, Rin, standing above the pair he had just inspected with Ah Un, his two headed dragon behind her. Sending a cold glare in the direction of the demon, which clearly said 'Why did you not keep her at the castle as were my orders?' he stepped closer to the child that had taken a liking to following the demon Lord around.
Her face was paler than normal, he noticed with a slight frown. She was looking into the face of the ningen girl as she started to shake, and to the demon Lord's dismay, she started to leak from her eyes. 'Ningens and their infernal emotions.' He thought as he fought back the urge to sigh. Thinking nothing of it, he turned to get Ah Un ready for their departure, but was stopped by a harsh tug on his pant leg.
Wide brown tear-filled eyes stared up at him as Rin spoke, "Sesshoumaru-sama! Sesshoumaru-sama! Please save Kagome-neechan like you did Rin!" She cried desperately as she took glances at the blood stained figure not but a few feet away. She knew her Sesshoumaru-sama could save the dying miko, he had done it for her once and he would do it again! Right?
***FLASH BACK***
'Wolves, everywhere… have to run! Rin must run away!' The little girl panted as her small legs pumped faster to keep her pace ahead of the canine pursuers.
The wolves had been feasting earlier on the inhabitants of the village that Rin stayed in since her parents were killed by bandits. The people there had given her shelter and scraps of food that they could spare.
A vision of an angel cloaked in white with a silvery mane and a golden gaze entered her mind as she ran into the depths of the forest. She had been caring for the angel since she found him wounded one day and everyday since she had come with food and water from the village. The little girl thought nothing of it though, even when the villagers beat her for stealing their food for the stranger.
The wolves were closing in on her fast, she could almost feel them nipping at her heels, hungry for her flesh. A root in the forest floor caught her off guard and she stumbled to the ground. The wolves howled in triumph and she only knew pain before the light drifted from her eyes… suddenly though she awoke with no pain. Confused she looked around to find herself staring into molten amber orbs, and then she knew everything would be all right. Her angel had saved her. Her Sesshoumaru-sama…
***END FLASH BACK***
She tugged harder on Sesshoumaru's pant leg, vehemently trying to get him to understand. Another wave of tears spilled over her cheeks and onto the already soaked ground below her.
"Rin will never ask for anything else, Rin swears! Please save Kagome-neechan, Sesshoumaru-sama! PLEASE!" The little girl begged through her sobs as she rubbed her eyes.
Touched more than he would ever admit by the powerful display by his ward, he let a sigh escape his lips as he headed once more toward the motionless body of the wench Rin seemed to care so much for.
"Rin," He spoke firmly as he stood above Kagome's body. The little girl smiled as bright as the sun, still with tears in her eyes as she looked at the demon Lord. Understanding his tone, she skipped lightly over to the two-headed dragon and waited patiently while curling her shoulder length brown hair around her fingertips.
He towered over the human, whose skin was already turning a deathly shade of white. With a final glance at Rin, he unsheathed Tenseiga from his side as it pulsed, the sword eager to return life into this girl, even if it's master was not. With a swift cut through the air above Kagome's unmoving body, he succeeded in driving away the soul eating demons of the afterworld from taking her soul.
Kagome's back arched off the ground as her lungs expanded, taking in precious air into her body. She lay back down on the ground, still unconscious from the massive amount of blood loss. Her skin took on a pleasant glow that ensured Sesshoumaru that indeed the girl would be fine once she awoke. Curious as to what actually transpired here earlier that day, the demon Lord made a decision. Bending down carefully as to not dirty his crisp, clean clothing; he placed his hand on Kagome's forehead. Closing his eyes, he probed at her mental barriers. Surprised at the force he needed to use to bypass them, he focused with more determination than before.
'She is unconscious and yet she can still fight this Sesshoumaru, what an interesting ningen…' He thought as he mentally pounded against Kagome's barriers.
Coming out of his panicked state, Shippou no longer felt the warm body that used to be surrounding him in a comforting gesture. Remembering everything that took place he scrambled to his little feet and saw right away where the missing person had gone. He found Kagome sprawled on her back next to him lying in a lake of dried blood. He started to panic again when he saw the hunched form of Sesshoumaru over Kagome, looking like he was thinking really hard about something. He jumped when a small voice called to him from his right.
"Shippou-chan! Sesshoumaru-sama is saving Kagome-neechan because Rin asked him to! Isn't Sesshoumaru-sama the best?!" Rin squealed happily as she grabbed onto Shippou's hand and drug him over to play in the tall grass next to Ah Un.
Finally breaking through Kagome's mind block, Sesshoumaru began searching through her recent memories of the present day. He felt each emotion and heard each thought she had as she desperately tried to escape the herd of youkai out for her blood. His inner demon raged at the fact that her mind screamed for his half-brother and how broken her spirit felt when she knew he would not be there to save her. Her mind showed him how the youkai ripped and shredded her skin mercilessly and how she protected the kitsune even as the jaws of another youkai clamped onto her leg. He saw a replay of the power burst she exuded before she collapsed from blood loss and was taken aback from the raw, untapped power ability she had. Yet he was confused as to why it felt like she had no control over it.
'Not only is she beautiful for a human, but her power level is astounding…' He was startled at his own thoughts about the miko's appearance. He, the Western Taiyoukai, had thought a ningen beautiful? Preposterous, yet he could not keep his mind from straying to the first time he saw her with his half-brother.
Raven hair whipped freely around her as she had stood gripping her bow taught with an arrow notched straight at him. A blazing inferno raged in her blue-gray eyes and yet there was a slight fear laced behind her determination. Not a fear of him, he remembered, but a fear of what he would do to her precious hanyou. He scoffed at her loyalty to the mutt. She laid out her love on a silver platter to the half-breed, yet he ignored her and still went in search for the clay imitation of his dead lover. Something inside Sesshoumaru burned with jealousy. He squashed the thought ruthlessly before it could surface. A gruff voice accompanied by a growl brought Sesshoumaru out of his trance-like state.
"What the fuck are you doing to Kagome you bastard?! Get the hell away from her!" Inuyasha yelled as he wobbled from his still recovering injuries. Blood slowly oozed from his healing wound on his shoulder where Naraku tried to spear him through the heart.
Sesshoumaru withdrew his hand from Kagome's warm forehead and slowly stood to his full height, ignoring his whelp of a brother for the time being, which only caused Inuyasha to become more infuriated.
"Well?! You fucking asshole! KAZE NO KI-"
"Oi! Dog-breath, what's all the yelling for?!" Kouga bellowed from his position sitting on the ground. He rubbed the back of his head lightly as he stood and noticed the other person in the clearing with them.
'What's inu-kurro's brother doing here? And why is he standing in front of Kagome? Kagome!' Just realizing what his purpose was in coming here in the beginning, Kouga turned to Inuyasha.
"Hey dog-breath! How come Sesshoumaru has MY woman?!" He growled and bared his teeth at Inuyasha.
Sesshoumaru bristled slightly at Kouga's comment about Kagome, he knew the wolf had no claim on her, but for some reason it still angered him. As Inuyasha and Kouga thoroughly 'discussed' whom Kagome belonged to, Sesshoumaru casually glanced down to take notice of the girl on topic. Her heart rate sped up, indicating her wake from sleep soon. Almost too quickly her eyes blinked open, long eyelashes fluttering across her flushed skin. Sesshoumaru watch in fascination as her emotions were rapidly displayed on her face when she saw him staring down on her, confusion, realization, fear, confusion again and he thought he saw gratitude before she groggily sat up and placed her head in her palm.
"Ouch, someone get the number of the bus that ran me over?" Kagome said quietly as she tried to rub the pain from her head.
"Kagome!" Kouga exclaimed as he swiftly appeared by her side, leaving Inuyasha mouth agape at his sudden disappearance. He kneeled next to her and took her hand in his, "I tried to get to you, but there was this blast and-"
"Shut up wimpy wolf! And get your mangy paws offa her!" Inuyasha yelled as he stepped closer to where Kagome was sitting, still eyeing Sesshoumaru. "And YOU, you bastard! What were you doing to Kagome?!" He demanded as he pointed Tetsaiga at his older half-brother.
Kagome moaned in pain and put her hands over her ears as Inuyasha's bellowing brought on a raging migraine. She was curious to what happened as the rest of them, but couldn't he wait until she said she was ok?!
"You leave Sesshoumaru-sama alone!" Rin's little voice sounded from a few yards away, "He brought Kagome-neechan back like he did for Rin! Sesshoumaru-same used his-"
"Rin." Sesshoumaru spoke as he locked his icy gaze onto his brother's angry one.
"Yes Sesshoumaru-sama?" Rin asked with a toothy smile as she looked towards him.
"Take Ah Un and go back to the castle." He ordered without a hint of emotion detectable in his voice.
"Yes Sesshoumaru-sama!" Rin chirped and skipped to the two-headed dragon. Before she hopped on she shouted over to him, "Sesshoumaru-sama, will Kagome-neechan and Shippou-chan be coming with us? Please?" When she received no answer, she quietly mounted the dragon and waved goodbye to Shippou as they flew off.
Thinking over Rin's request, he ignored the sputtering protests of his brother and the wolf over the idea of him taking the girl with him. If he did decide to have the girl accompany him, it would anger Inuyasha greatly, and it would give Rin someone to amuse herself with during the days. Not to mention the girl owed him for saving her life. Nodding, he had made his choice.
"The miko will come with me." He spoke with authority, daring them to oppose his decision.
"What?! No way in hell you bastard!" Inuyasha screeched as he positioned Tetsuaiga in front of him, ready to charge at the demon Lord.
"I'm not letting MY woman go with another inu-kurro! It's enough that I have to deal with this mutt-face hangin' around her all the time!" Kouga yelled as he got into a defensive crouch.
"I never said you had a choice. The girl comes with me." Sesshoumaru spoke icily as he glared at his two opponents.
"Like hell!" Inuyasha said as he charged Sesshoumaru with a furious snarl.
"OSUWARI!" Kagome screamed still with her eyes closed and hands rubbing in slow circles on her temples.
THUMP
"Bitch! What'd you do that for?!" Inuyasha sputtered from his face plant on the ground.
Kagome huffed and stood, finally taking notice of the state her clothes were in. Bloody and tattered, they weren't doing a good job of covering her, not that her school uniform accomplished that to begin with. Angered at Inuyasha's lack of display of caring for her well being at the time, she stomped over to his form on the ground.
"OSUWARI!!"
THUMP
"OW, bitch!! Stop that!"
"Did you even think about asking me how I was feeling?! You jerk! If what Rin said is true, then I owe Sesshoumaru for saving my life!" Kagome yelled, she was about to scream more, but a ball of fur jumped into her arms and squealed in delight.
"Kagome!!! I was so worried! You weren't moving and I thought that the demons killed you and I didn't know what to do so I just laid there and then and then…sniffles..then Sesshoumaru showed up and he saved you Kagome! Whaaaa!!!! sniffles I'm sorry I couldn't protect you, don't leave me! Whaaaaaaa!!!" Shippou wailed as he nuzzled further into Kagome's bloodstained blouse.
"Shh, Shippou, it's all right. I won't leave you, I promise." Kagome comforted the kitsune as she cradled him in her arms. She gave Inuyasha a glare as he stood from the ground and dusted himself off. Turning to the stoic taiyoukai, she spoke.
Sesshoumaru had never felt such a feeling course through him as what he was feeling now. He saw the rosy hue adorn her cheeks as she kept her gaze on his and he could sense her growing nervousness. The fire in her eyes, he noticed, had not been extinguished from the last time he saw her, and he also noted that the passion she awoke in him when staring at him with those alluring eyes was still ever present. 'She is just a ningen.' He had to keep repeating to himself as he stared at her heart shaped face, her budding lips and the creamy flesh exposed from her indecent clothing. It took a minute for his brain to comprehend that she was speaking to him.
"Thank you Sesshoumaru-sama for saving my life, I-I don't know how to repay you…" She said as she looked into his amber gaze. The heat of that gaze sent chills up Kagome's spine. Whether they were chills from the fear he arose in her or chills from the desire awakening in her from his intense stare; she didn't know.
"You will return with me to my palace," he spoke quickly to her offer of repayment, "to…teach and befriend Rin." He congratulated himself on thinking of the perfect plan to get the girl to go with him. Not that he actually wanted the ningen around him of course, it was for Rin. 'Yes, for Rin.'
Inuyasha balked at his calmly stated demand and started to growl, before he could yell out his frustrations with the situation, Kagome blinked out of her stupor and addressed Sesshoumaru herself.
"How long would I be there… with Rin?" She asked with a slight gulp. She knew she was trembling, she just hoped the others didn't notice. She was dizzy from yelling at Inuyasha and probably from the amount of blood she lost before. Her body still needed time to recover, and a heated argument with the potential to get violent was NOT the thing she needed at this point in time.
It took a moment for the demon Lord to answer, as he studied her, "Until I am satisfied."
As Inuyasha pushed Kagome out of the way to yell more directly into Sesshoumaru's face, Kouga was quietly thinking about the occurrences as of late. 'Why has Sesshoumaru taken an interest to Kagome? It just doesn't make sense, he hates ningens, but he has a little human girl as his ward…Although, if Sesshoumaru wanted Kagome, there is no way I could fight him in a fair match for her. I will have to take my chances at a later time then.'
"Oi! Sesshoumaru! You better take care of my woman, or else I'll hunt you down and make you pay! See ya later dog-face!" With that said, Kouga took off, a cloud of dust in his wake.
"Keh, wimpy wolf gives up so easily, but I sure as hell wont! Kagome, you aren't going anywhere with this bastard!" Inuyasha sneered as he stood in a protective stance in front of Kagome. He wouldn't lose her to his older brother, especially not when he hadn't sorted out his feelings for her yet. Couldn't she see that he needed her with him?
"But Inuya-"
"No buts wench! We still have shards to find and Naraku to kill! You can't just go with this asshole and forget your duties! It was YOU who broke the shinkon in the first place, wench!" He sheathed Tetsuaiga and crossed his arms over his chest as if his last argument was the winning point in their debate. Kagome, on the other hand, was taking that comment completely different.
'Is that all he thinks of me? His loyal shard detector?' Kagome was feeling very hurt by Inuyasha's confession to what she meant to him, but she was also angry. Angry at him for being so self-concerned and angry at herself for not seeing it sooner. She glared at him heatedly and his ears flattened against his skull, he knew that look, it meant he was eating dirt in about 5 seconds, but after that glare, her features calmed until she was staring blankly at the hanyou. Turning to Sesshoumaru, she spoke quietly again while staring at the ground around her feet.
"May I go home first to retrieve some things to bring along?"
The taiyoukai took in her sullen appearance and her compliance to his demand as he thought over her request. 'She had better not try and get out of this agreement while gathering her things, but I suppose it would do no harm in allowing her this reprieve.'
"You may. I will accompany you and we will take our leave immediately thereafter, and you will not dally." He spoke with an underlying threat of pain if his words were gone against.
"What?! You're actually going with him?! Bitch! I said no!" Face almost as red as his haori, Inuyasha fisted his hands at his sides to keep from shaking the girl next to him. She obviously didn't understand that he wanted her to stay!
Kagome ignored Inuyasha's attempts to change her mind and remained facing Sesshoumaru, "My home is close to the clearing with the bone-eaters well, I'll make my way there and meet you-"
"I will take you. Come." The demon Lord spoke briskly as he extended his clawed hand to her. He locked his amber gaze with Inuyasha as he grasped Kagome by the waist, who still had Shippou clinging to her as if his life depended on it.
Inuyasha shook with rage upon seeing Sesshoumaru hold HIS Kagome so close to him as he prepared to fly off towards the well. Snarling, he unsheathed Tetsuaiga, the sword taking on its larger shape in an instant and glared at his half-brother in a challenge. He was angered further when Sesshoumaru smirked at him and levitated off the ground with Kagome in his arm.
'I have already won, little brother.' Sesshoumaru allowed a small grin of triumph spread across his face as he tightened his hold on Kagome.
A strangled cry of rage from Inuyasha was the last thing they heard as they flew from the clearing.
"KAGOME!!!!!"
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A/N: So how'd you guys like it? J Am I doing ok so far? Lemme know what you think and I'll happily try to incorporate any suggestions! As long as positive reviews keep coming in, I'll take that as a sign to keep writing. Thanks!