Disclaimers: *opens mailbox* Damn… still no Sesshy. Just have to try again.
Thank you:
Shikome kido mi - It's an interesting experience to ponder, then write about the entire Sess/Kag relationship dynamics. The fangirl in me wants to indulge in a lot of whimsy but the more plot-driven side of me wants to give the story some backbone. I'm honest and not shy to admit that I love reading my own work once it's done, will rarely find fault with it. I don't take things too seriously as I then find the 'fun' element diminishing. I'm glad that you still consider my story entertaining enough to want to continue reading it. You offer an interesting perspective that I can't visualise simply because of the writer's blindspot. I hope that this chapter will move the plot along even if it's really not one of my better ones.
Black Rose Lady - I'm glad you approve my blending of the anime and manga Sesshoumaru. I couldn't fit just one of them in as he was, and so decided to 'redesign' him in that form. If it makes it easier to visualise him, he's more masculine (anime) but has a more obvious sense of humour (manga). Although, it may be argued that Sesshy's sense of humour may be more morbid than playful, we'll let it be. I think I've got enough on my plate without obsessing too much about how accurately I should portray him.
Citryne - Is mine really one of the first "What if Kag met Sess before Inuyasha" fic you've come across? Well, I'll admit that I've not exactly come across that many as well. I just like the whole idea of Sess and Kag pairing up as opposed to the canon Inu-Kag couple. As much as you seem eager for an Inuyasha appearance to complicate matters, I'm afraid that it won't happen. Inuyasha *may* appear but how and where is something I'm not planning to reveal anytime soon.
Claudia - Well, nobody seemed to want to talk about Sesshy's tail so I just had to do it. And like Kagome, I too think about his rear, though to a much greater degree…. =)
Familia-Ficz - Yes, Sess' voice is just too good to be true. Really makes your heart go thumpity-thump. Hmm, Sesshy's see-through shirt shot? Interesting… Now I've got to go check it out. By the way, since when did he become your husband? He's mine!
Pallas Athena1 - Do you really believe that Sess is going to treat Kagome as his equal that soon? Sure he may have been blasted through the door of his study but it could mean that she possessed a strange, threatening power to his position. Anything can happen…
Lunatic Pandora1, Noir, Saria4, iram, Katt, Sesshy lover, Cj, Natori, Circe-Asteria, Nekiochan, Silver Dragonfly, Mala Valvah, Flambeau-Willow, Howe the Brown Cow, luckyneko, Aira^o^, Hinoke, dumdeedum - Thanks for your encouraging words! I certainly plan to take this story further and hopefully not disappoint all my readers out there.
*** The previous chapter certainly pushed up the number of reviews. I've finally pushed this past 100 reviews! *swoons*
Chapter 7: The Hidden Blade – Tessaiga
Over the next few days it became routine for Kagome to groom Sesshoumaru's hair and tail. While she still balked at having to be there while he took his bath, she soon learnt to take it in her stride. After all, he had been providing her with room and board since her arrival in this strange time and place. Since the incident with the broken study door, the other servants had begun to address her by her given name. It was a refreshing change from being called 'wench' and 'girl' but Kagome still felt uncertain of her place within Sesshoumaru's domain. And now, thinking of the tall silver-haired youkai lord was starting to occupy more and more of her thoughts.
Sesshoumaru was polite yet he still maintained his distance. The unreadable mask he constantly wore irked her and Kagome wanted nothing more than to rip it from his face. She knew he had a sense of humour, the wet tail incident from the first bath proved it. She had caught the brief grin after rubbing water out of her eyes. Aside from the bath times, she had to put up with his curt replies and long absences. Kagome had only Toki for company but even then, the servant had her chores to do. Kagome was beginning to feel very lonely.
"Oh stop moping and look for the guy!" she reprimanded herself and got up from the garden bench. "If nothing else, it'll take your mind off things." Satisfied with her decision, she made her way to his newly mended study.
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Sesshoumaru sensed her presence approaching and wondered at what she wanted. Aside from the baths and grooming to keep her in place, he had essentially kept out of her way. He was busy researching the nature of her power and a means to control it. The girl was too dangerous to keep around without some form of restraint and Sesshoumaru knew that she had an explosive anger – in more ways than one. Jaken had appeared and was now arranging several new scrolls for his reading.
"Jaken, show the girl in. She's at the door," Sesshoumaru commanded, his eyes on the ancient scroll before him.
Jaken scuttled towards the door and opened it. Kagome had a surprised look on her face and her fist was raised with the intention of knocking.
"Sesshoumaru-sama is expecting you," Jaken said self-importantly and stepped aside to let her through. The fact that he no longer called her 'wench' was a small triumph for Kagome. After seeing his master sprawled under broken bits of wood, the little retainer only approached her when required. He was glad that Sesshoumaru had not asked him to baby-sit her, that had been largely Toki's job.
"Um, thanks."
Hearing the smaller youkai clatter off down the corridor, Kagome began to wonder if looking for the obviously busy youkai lord was a good idea. He remained engrossed with his reading and continued to ignore her. Time dragged by as Kagome waited for some sign of acknowledgement but Sesshoumaru continued to remain indifferent to her standing there. When Kagome finally slammed her hands onto his desk, he looked up into her annoyed face. He calmly reached out to pick up the jarred scrolls and continued to watch her face.
"You really should learn to treat people with more courtesy, Sesshoumaru-san. Nobody likes to be ignored, especially when they haven't done anything to deserve it. And even then, it is still rude!" Kagome complained as she leaned over the desk to glare down at the unperturbed youkai lord.
"You came all this way to lecture me about ignoring your presence?" he asked smoothly, his hand reaching for the parchment by his side. "You made no mention of your request but stood there mutely. What did you expect me to do?"
"You could have said 'Hello'. It is a normal greeting to begin with!"
"Then why didn't you?"
Kagome opened her mouth to reply when she realised that he had painted her into a corner with that question. He had a point, she could have easily initiated the first greeting. If he had ignored her then, she would have held the moral high ground, so to speak. Damn it, he got her on that technicality. She sucked in a deep breath to calm herself. He was still watching her with that inscrutable look, but there was a flicker of amusement within the golden depths. 'So it's Sesshoumaru – one, Kagome – none.' At least he was not angry at her disturbance.
"Okay, you got me on that. Shall we start over?" she asked. A slight nod of his head was the only indication of his agreement. Despite herself, Kagome allowed a quick smile to cross her face.
"Hello, Sesshoumaru-san. How are you today?" she inquired politely.
"Good morning, Kagome. I'm well, and how are you?" he replied in a flat monotone, humouring her. He watched a frown mar her brow before deciding to move things along. He wanted to return to his reading.
"Fine, thanks," she replied curtly. "Sesshoumaru-san, I want to thank you for all that you have done for me since my, uh, arrival. But there's something I want to know…" Kagome hit a snag here. She did not quite know how to phrase her question. 'Was it even a question in the first place?' a small voice nagged in the back of her mind.
Sesshoumaru was a little surprise at her expressed gratitude. It was the next half of the question that got his attention. 'What does she want to know? Her power? I still haven't found an answer to that,' he pondered.
In truth, the mystery of this girl Kagome was starting to intrigue him each passing day. He was almost ready to question her directly but since her 'demonstration', he had decided to search amongst the ancient records of the inu youkai lords. It seemed that the time had finally come.
Kagome was gazing off to a corner of the room trying to get her thoughts in order when something caught her eye. It didn't appear to be a trick of the light as it was glowing a soft pink. Sesshoumaru followed her gaze and his eyes widened in surprise. The sacred scroll of InuTaisho was now pulsing with a magical aura and had started to unravel. It then levitated itself and approached the desk where they stood. The glow faded as the scroll gently landed on it.
As the both of them continued to stare at it, a string of kanji appeared and continued as though an invisible writer was hurriedly putting his thoughts onto paper. Kagome could only make out a few of the words, the language being that of ancient Japanese, but Sesshoumaru apparently had no trouble. Glancing up into his face, Kagome was surprised at the play of emotions that flew across it. Shock, anger, joy, pain – they all fought for dominance. Kagome glanced down to the scroll but it made little sense to her, furthermore she was trying to read it upside-down.
The writing stopped. Sesshoumaru continued to stare at it, but his eyes were no longer seeing the words. Whatever it was that was written had had a profound impact upon the youkai lord. And Kagome began to worry at the continued silence. She tentatively reached out and touched his limp hand that was on the desk. The contact seemed to snap him out of it and he growled angrily. Kagome snatched her hand back and hoped that he would not repeat the attack on her from before.
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Sesshoumaru had felt the warm touch of her hand and it broke the spell that bound him to the scroll. For him, it was a replay of some of the most painful moments of his life and some of the happiest; the feelings colliding into a powerful emotion he did not know how to handle. A low growl escaped involuntarily and he caught himself. He saw Kagome's fearful look and felt unusually contrite. But instead of apologising, he simply folded his arms within his voluminous sleeves. He wondered if this girl was the one mentioned within the scroll – the one who could lead him to the legendary fanged blade of the Inu clan - Tessaiga.
Kagome relaxed a little when she saw that he was not about to attack her. However, the strangely thoughtful look he gave her sent a shiver of apprehension down her spine. It reminded her of the words he spoke that night when he pinned her to the mattress. 'You look good enough to eat, wench.' Kagome decided to make a break for it when he spoke to her.
"Sit down, Kagome. There is something I must discuss with you."
Kagome worried her lower lip for a moment before pulling a chair to the desk. The scroll remained on the table but neither of them touched it. There was a residual tang of magic in the air and Kagome felt its prickle even now. Sesshoumaru had also seated himself and was silently gazing at her. It was not an uncomfortable stare but rather of one more contemplative. Kagome couldn't help but feel herself being drawn into those amber depths.
'His eyes are so mesmerising,' came the unbidden thought and Kagome twitched slightly as her blush painted her cheeks. Despite that, she still could not pull herself away from his gaze.
'Why is her face turning red?' Sesshoumaru wondered idly as he continued to look into her warm brown depths thoughtfully. 'But it does make her look more fetching…'
Snapping out of his wandering thoughts, Sesshoumaru broke eye contact with the girl across from him. Looking back down at the scroll, he missed the relief that briefly flickered over her face. The scroll's contents held his great father's thoughts and it had been especially enchanted so that only when a youkai and a miko of sufficient power were on amicable terms could it be read. But Sesshoumaru was uncertain about the 'amicable' part. Kagome was usually ready to snap his head off and he had begun to lose patience with her. No, there was something more to this and Sesshoumaru had a feeling that he was not going to like it one bit.
Kagome sat down and tried to get her scattered thoughts in order. The long look he had given her stirred strange feelings in her that she was not ready to even begin to contemplate. The youkai lord obviously saw her as a possible threat and therefore decided to keep her near him to make sure she did not try anything like the last time. Kagome was familiar with the proverbial saying of keeping one's enemies closer and the thought of her being that hurt her feelings. Of all things, the last thing that Kagome ever thought was to be considered as someone's enemy.
Sesshoumaru's attention had drifted away from the scroll and was now focused on the girl facing him. Her eyes were downcast and he could read a strange disappointment and pain in the slumped shoulders. Her ki was dimmed and he wondered where all the earlier energy had disappeared too. As much as he would like to deny it, the girl brought a sense of chaos to his otherwise ordered existence. She brought an excitement that intrigued him while at the same time warning him of the probable danger she posed. She was such an enigma – a conundrum that just begged to be solved. Perhaps now was the time to find out the truth.
"We will leave the fortress tomorrow morning for the Cavern of Shattered Dreams. You will assist me in reclaiming the sword of my clan, Tessaiga," Sesshoumaru said, his eyes hooded in anticipation of her response. He was not disappointed.
Kagome started and stared wide-eyed at the youkai lord. Her mouth opened and for a moment, no words escaped. Then she found her voice.
"We're going where?" she began. "What's this sword you're talking about? Was it written in the scroll? And why do I have to go with you?"
Holding his hand up for silence, he waited for her to calm down. Mentally editing the scroll's contents, he gave her the only thing that was relevant to her purpose. Sesshoumaru had no intention on airing his family's laundry in public, especially with a human female no matter how special or unique she may be. The business of the Inu youkai clan remained the business of the clan alone.
"The sword Tessaiga is sealed within a barrier that can only be broken by someone powerful enough to offset its own. And since no individual has ever achieved such a feat, it may just be possible that you could be the one capable of doing it," Sesshoumaru stated matter-of-fact.
"Is it because I managed to blast you through the door?"
Sesshoumaru inwardly winced at the question. He was still sore in more ways than one whenever he recalled that incident. Removing the splinters from various parts of his body had taken him the better part of two days. He was certain that there were a couple more embedded but was still not too sure where. But the girl's face demanded an answer and he could not avoid it.
"Perhaps. But I believe it may have to do with your being sent here." There, that seemed like a satisfactory answer. Watching her face carefully, Sesshoumaru could not help but hope that she would take it as that. He did not feel in too good a mood to explain in detail.
Kagome nibbled her lower lip absentmindedly at his explanation. He was hiding something with his response but she could not pinpoint where. But what choice had she in the matter? If she did help him, it might put her in a better situation than where she stood right now. Despite her streak of independence, Kagome yearned to belong someplace, even if it was within Sesshoumaru's domain. She did not delude herself about being able to go home yet firmly held onto the hope that she could, one way or another. If she helped him, perhaps, just perhaps, he would return the favour. With that in mind, she made her decision.
'The girl's emotions are so easy to read,' Sesshoumaru smiled inwardly as he observed the change in her ki and the emotions that flitted across her face. True she had been afraid of him but that fear had dimmed only to be replaced by something else. Lacking a better term for it, he had simply called it 'Kagome'. While her brashness irked him more often than not, he found himself eagerly anticipating the spirited challenge she gave him. For the first time in decades since his father's death, Sesshoumaru felt more alive than he ever had before - Kagome rarely disappointed him on that.
"Okay, I'll help. But I will need to have some travelling clothes."
"Toki will see to it. Now go and rest, Kagome. We have a long journey ahead of us and I won't allow you to hold us back."
"Gee, you're all heart, Sesshoumaru-san," Kagome's reply dripped sarcasm as she pushed herself to her feet before spinning on her heel to stride out of the study. As she closed the door behind her, she could not resist sticking her tongue out at the youkai lord seated behind it.
Staring at the door, Sesshoumaru allowed himself a wide smirk before returning to the business at hand.
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Author's Notes:
Well, back to the story proper after the previous chapter's interlude. This was good in theory but harder in the actual writing. I wanted to make it vague yet at the same time had to leave some understanding for the readers. I'm sorry if it's not exactly brilliant story plot material. Sometimes the actual details cause more problems as I have to sort through it and work with what makes the most sense. This chapter is one such example. I'll eventually find the time (and the effort) to write an Author's Reflection on the overall story and plot. But it's not a promise as yet, just an idea…
I know Tessaiga is supposed to have been created from the fang of Sess' father. However, I've decided to modify things a little bit and use it as the legendary blade of Sess' clan. My reason? It seemed a good idea at the time. Now, it appears that I may have to come up with a little more info about Tessaiga's current existence. Well, I'll just have to sit down and scribble something out and cross-reference it with the assorted notes I made on the rest of the story. Or at least try to… this story is starting to write itself actually.
A little more Sess/Kag interaction but largely sacrificed for the actual plot. Other than that, this chapter can be considered satisfactory given the difficulties encountered while writing it. I hope to hear from you regarding this chapter or even to ask questions. I'm still reeling from the large number of reviews for the previous chapter so I've decided to post this a little earlier. I should be working on my magazine article instead of this… Ah well, all in the name of Fanfiction! Till then, ja mata ne!