'Otherside'
Chapter 3- Out of the Frying pan...
Hey guys! Thank you so much for the positive feedback; it's really been encouraging me to continue faster! This chapter is hopefully going to be even better! Chapter 3 is about Sesshomaru's secret night meetings, and Kagome's increasing interest in him!
DISCLAIMER: I do not own InuYasha or any of its characters or properties
'ZZZZZZZZZZZZZZ-z-z-z-z-z' was the sound that had been driving Kagome nuts all of the past four hours. She shot a glance at the culprit, the little toad Jaken. Despite his ugliness and his creepy loyalty to Sesshomaru, he wasn't so bad...awake anyways. Kagome had resorted to sleeping an hour a day, for any other time, it seemed that they were journeying or Jaken was sleeping.
It was during these hours that Kagome really got enough time to think.
It had been a week and despite their most valiant efforts, their search had turned up nothing...except a few run ins with some less than hospitable humans and demons! It seemed as though they had been inside every cave, mountain and hole in the land, and had yet to turn up a single piece! At least it gave Kagome some time to get to know the troop she was traveling with...
Kagome sat up and rested against a large tree. Rin slept peacefully next to her, huddled for warmth. 'She is so adorable. It almost seems like having her around keeps Sesshomaru in check...even if it is just a little' she thought. Kagome gave little Rin her blanket and stood up, half debating whether or not she should kick Jaken to keep him from snoring...nah. She tried that already. It only caused him to cry out Sesshomaru's name and something about 'fate worse than death'. The only person missing from the scene was Sesshomaru himself.
Every night it seemed that Sesshomaru would disappear as soon as everyone fell asleep. Kagome, however, rarely slept. She had been growing more and more curious about his whereabouts every evening, but as curiosity goes, it got the best of her.
After looking behind her to make sure everyone was asleep, Kagome walked briskly in the westward direction, eager to find him and satisfy her curiosity.
It had been an hour, and Kagome still had not found Sesshomaru. She started to grow nervous at the idea of being lost in the Forbidden Woods (she had an idea of why they were called that...) and she estimated it to be somewhere near four o'clock in the morning, and in three more hours, everyone else would awaken.
Seeing a clearing in the distance, Kagome rushed towards it, ignoring the stinging sensation of the branches tearing at her skin. The clearing seemed to glow, almost beckoning her towards it. As she got within a few feet of it, she stopped. Not more than twenty yards away was Sesshomaru, and he was not alone...
Across from him was the most beautiful woman Kagome had ever seen.
Not only that but was she singing to Sesshomaru?! Kagome dashed ahead and hid behind a rock to get a better view.
The woman was tall and very graceful with long golden hair. She had on clothes similar to Sesshomaru's, obviously royalty. Even from the distance she was at, Kagome could see the woman's flashing yellow eyes. Was she Sesshomaru's mate? Who was she?
Suddenly the woman looked in Kagome's direction, her yellow gaze piercing through Kagome's nervous gray ones. She had been seen! As quickly as she had seen Kagome, the golden woman had disappeared.
Sesshomaru stood up and turned towards Kagome's direction. All she could hear was her heart thumping wildly in her chest. 'Oh well,' she thought. Best to face the music!
Kagome stood and held her head as high as possible and marched toward the silver demon. She knew he would probably hurt her, kill her even, but she would not go down like a coward!
When she was finally face to face with Sesshomaru, Kagome's heart beat so loud, she was sure he could hear it.
Sesshomaru merely eyed her suspiciously.
"Why are you here Kagome? You should be resting with the others," he stated.
Kagome gulped. It always made her nervous when he called her by her name.
"I couldn't sleep, and I-I was curious where you went to every night!" Kagome huffed.
A slow smile crept across Sesshomaru's sharp features.
"I suppose you want to know who that woman was?" he asked casually.
"N-no. It is none of my business."
"No, it is not. Yet because you are so concerned for my well being that you can not sleep at night, my Lady, I will tell you..."
Kagome leaned forward, subconsciously hoping he wouldn't say 'mate'.
"She is my mother."
"Mother?! I didn't know you had a mother Sesshomaru!" Kagome exclaimed, relieved it wasn't his lover.
"Silly woman, where did you think I came from then?"
Kagome blushed, embarrassed at her own words.
"She died when I was young. She was Lady of the Western lands, and the most powerful demon in the area, save my own father."
'So she was royalty!' thought Kagome.
"When she died in a battle with demons from the continent, my father grieved so much that it started to affect his decisions, hence his mating with a human," he said with a distasteful look.
"She is quite beautiful," said Kagome, wanting to get off that subject.
"Yes, though only a spirit now, she comes to me when I am in need of her, singing songs of old."
Kagome openly stared at him, surprised at his honesty. 'So he has a heart after all,' she pondered.
"I have never told anyone of this, and I expect you to do the same," he stated flatly.
"Of course. I'm sorry for sneaking up on you, but I can hardly sleep with Jaken's snoring..."
Sesshomaru smiled, a genuine smile! Kagome was instantly hypnotized by his perfect teeth.
"Yes, that is a nasty habit of his. I do not need sleep necessarily, but Jaken prevents me from thinking about it; another reason I never stay at night."
Kagome laughed out loud, and this pleased Sesshomaru very much, though he did not understand why. He looked down and noticed his Tensaiga glowing brightly in the moonlight.
'What is it Tensaiga, are you trying to tell me something?' He looked at Kagome who was staring at the moon. 'Is she the source of power I have been searching for? Yes, it would make sense. She pulled out the Tetsusaiga, and she may have been the reason I could not easily defeat InuYasha!'
"Kagome."
"Y-yes?"
"From now on, at night you will join me, and me alone."
Catching her jaw in her hands before it dropped, she looked at him to say something, but words did not escape her mouth. He had flashed her that smile again, the one that made her body melt and her heart stop. All she could do was nod her head in agreement.
"Good. The sun is rising, we should return to the others."
Sesshomaru held out his hand in a chivalrous manner, inviting her to go ahead of him for a change.
Kagome forced herself to march one foot at a time ahead of him.
Why did he have such an effect on her? No man, not even InuYasha had made her heart do back flips like this before. Alone with him every night? For some strange reason this made Kagome very happy, but not as happy as she felt when he placed his hand on the small of her back to escort her back to camp!
'Am I falling for him?' she wondered. She turned her head to face him, his eyes staring straight ahead as usual. The only difference was in that he was touching her. This was enough for Kagome though.
Was she truly falling for him?
"I am," she accidentally said aloud.
"Am what, Kagome?" Sesshomaru inquired.
"Oh, nothing!" Kagome blushed, "nothing at all."
Whew! I know it was a small chapter, but there was a lot packed in there wouldn't you say? Sorry, sorry, sorry at the wait for this chapter! I know 4 days is an eternity in fan fiction! LOL. Thank you so much for the positive reviews. This chapter took me 40 minutes to write, but the next one gets good. Sesshomaru 'accidentally' comes upon a bathing Kagome...sound familiar? Well it must be a brotherly thing. Next chapter will be up possibly as early as 10/20, but definitely by 10/21! Keep posting!
Love Sophie