Author's Note: Sorry that this is so late! This has been one of the insanely rare weeks where I have been mad busy. I read all of my reviews, and thank you all. Ura, thanks so much for the typo. XD *vicious * Yes! You are a that! Now your cameo is done, so off with you! But anyways…Yes, Kagome really doesn't have a set personality does she? I didn't know what to do with her. So, I guess, if I have to make her different, I'll make her different to how I want her. Gyahaha…But, I mean, what IS IC Kagome? When she's desperately dependent on Inuyasha and doesn't really fend for herself unless it's vital to the plot? *cough* Sorry, Kagome fans…I don't have anything against her, but..You know..
Light was leaking into Kagome's vision, making it impossible for her to stay comfortably asleep. She rolled onto her other side, groaning miserably as she raised her hands to her face. She didn't want to wake up; granted, the three hours sure helped, but they weren't exactly a substitute for the eight hours she had missed the previous night.
"Nng…" Finally she managed to pry her eyes open, flopping onto her back. "Where…?"
She sat up suddenly, looking around her. Sesshoumaru! I'm…wait…why am I on his bed? Blinking down at her position, she looked around. He's not here. But…She bounced up and down on the unbelievably comfortable mattress, smiling at the feeling. Did he put me here?
"Sesshoumaru, you bastard…"
Kagome snapped her head towards the door, eyes wide. Was that Inuyasha?! "Inuyasha, if you have done nothing but come here to argue, I want no part of it. Go find some human to play with."
That was definitely Sesshoumaru's cool voice.
"Don't be a jackass! What do you need a maid for, anyway?! You don't do anything! You don't even go anywhere, so who would you show the power off to?!"
What? Kagome tossed her legs over the side of the bed. A maid…? Is he talking about me?!
"I may not be as unkempt as you, hanyou, but that doesn't mean I don't have tasks to get done."
Quietly Kagome stood, tiptoeing to the door that was, much to her happiness, already open.
The arguing stopped for a minute or two, but Kagome could hear Inuyasha growling low in his throat, and she could almost picture the situation in her mind. Very, very cautiously she poked her head out the door, hair just barely falling over her face. In front of her she could clearly see Inuyasha, but…where was Sesshoumaru?
"Speaking of which."
Kagome paled instantly, shoulders tensing up at the sudden voice and presence to her side. In an instant she felt a claw gripping onto her arm, yanking her violently out into the hall. "Is this the maid you're talking about, Inuyasha?"
The dog-demon's lips twitched as he growled, narrowing his eyes at Sesshoumaru.
"Ah. So tell me, Inuyasha. What is it about this girl that intrigues you so?" The elder youkai moved his eyes down to Kagome before returning them to Inuyasha. "It certainly can't be her charming personality. Even your previous bitch was prettier than this one."
Kagome lowered her head, sighing in defeat. She could never manage to get out of situations that involved Sesshoumaru without being somehow insulted in the process. Although, something did play on her mind. Previous 'bitch'? What does he mean by that?
Before Inuyasha even had the chance to respond, Sesshoumaru had lowered Kagome's arm, pushing her back into the doorway. "Come on, wench." Another sigh from Kagome, which he seemed to notice this time, with the way his grip tightened suddenly. "You have work to do. I'll think of your punishment for eavesdropping on our conversation later."
"Sesshoumaru, wai--…" The sentence wasn't even finished when Sesshoumaru gracefully pulled both his servant and himself into the room, shutting the door quickly in Inuyasha's face.
"…"
Kagome stood uncomfortably stiff, her back and arms pressed hard against the door with Sesshoumaru glaring coldly down at her, his icy gaze never wavering. He seemed to be analyzing her with his eyes, intimidating her with his height and all-around regal appearance. It was a few minutes in silence before he finally let go of her, turning his head away and soundlessly making his way to his desk. He sat in the chair, back now faced to his servant, hand reaching out for his pen in one swift motion.
After watching him return to his documents, Kagome allowed herself to relax a little. That talk about him punishing me..Did he mean it? She let out a puff of air, confused. He let me rest on his bed, and then he threatens me once more. I don't get this man…
The air around her became suddenly cold, and she looked up, having a dreadful feeling approach her. As she had guessed, Sesshoumaru had once more put his attention onto the maid, golden eyes boring deeply into her. "Tell me, human."
Unconsciously Kagome's fists tightened into balls, looking to the side uncomfortably. "Yes?"
He ignored that, running a hand through his silver hair. "What is it about you that intrigues my half-witted younger brother so much?" His lips twisted into something between a snarl and a smirk; which was a lose-lose situation for Kagome no matter what its real intention was. "Is there something I haven't been informed of?"
In reality, Kagome's mind began churning like mad. Does he know…about the promise Inuyasha made me?! Somehow, she managed to look completely unphased by the situation, or at least he didn't seem to notice anything. "I'd imagine Lord Inuyasha is just jealous of Lord Sesshoumaru-sama."
He cocked his eyebrows curiously. "Jealous?"
"Well, isn't it normal? Younger siblings are always jealous of the things their elder parts have that they don't." She let her hands loosen out from the fists, no longer fueled with the anger she had felt before. "It's only natural for a little brother such as Inuyasha to want to be just as good as Lord Sesshoumaru-sama."
The youkai prince watched her expressionlessly for a moment before turning back to his work. "Inuyasha has always wanted things he can't have. It'll kill him someday."
Wait..You mean that worked?! She mentally sighed in relief. "Such as…?"
"You must know that he is only a hanyou. He has been trying desperately to find a way to become full youkai for almost his whole life now." Sesshoumaru didn't look at her any longer, he just began scratching away at his documents with the old ink pen he held as if it were no task at all.
"So…Lord Sesshoumaru-sama had a different mother than Inuyasha-sama?"
Sesshoumaru almost looked exasperated with the question, pausing from his work for a second. Kagome even doubted that he was going to answer. "Yes. My mother was a youkai. That was until my father went insane and decided to take a…"
He paused there, fist tightening around the pen, almost snapping the little device in half. Kagome realized then that she'd get no farther with him, so she'd be better off to just stop talking in general. She already knew what he was going to say; no need to drag it out of him and get herself into even more trouble.
~
The night went by in a flash. Kagome didn't do much other than loiter around the room and do more random tasks for Sesshoumaru. Whenever he seemed to get upset with whatever he was reading, he'd turn and point to the door, telling his maid to go get him something like a new ink well or, most strangely, some more glasses to put on his shelf in case he ran out of the rest of them. Kagome knew he was just using her to vent his energy, and she was being driven further and further towards insanity every time she was called 'oi, you' and 'wench,' which were, again, nearly the only things she ever heard anymore.
When she returned from throwing one of Sesshoumaru's crumpled up papers in the garbage in the kitchen, something was different. He seemed to be concentrating less on what he was doing and more on yelling at her for something stupid she had done that she couldn't quite understand. Of course, he didn't literally yell. He actually spoke quite low and politely, no matter what he was saying. But, his words were harsh enough, and after hearing it for one or two days Kagome was slowly beginning to tell the difference between the 'cool' and 'angry' sides of him. This was definitely one of his 'angry' sides.
"Wench." Kagome, of course, sighed. Oh well..No use fighting it, I suppose.
"Yes, Sesshoumaru-sama?"
"I don't want you going anywhere near Inuyasha. Ever."
Kagome's body froze immediately. Never see Inuyasha again? Was he serious?
Sesshoumaru gazed at her blankly. "So you do have some sort of connection with him."
She wasn't about to rat Inuyasha out, so she just shrugged nonchalantly. "I'm just surprised that Lord Sesshoumaru-sama…" she put an emphasis on the formal title, stressing every syllable. "…has found it necessary to tell this humble servant just who she can and cannot approach."
The youkai lord's eyes immediately narrowed, and Kagome caught the mistake right off. "Not that I would ever question my lord's will! This humble servant will do whatever Lord Sesshoumaru-sama says."
Sesshoumaru kept his stone-cold gaze for a few moments before turning back to his work, beginning to ignore her. Kagome, more than anything else, was actually quite relieved. It's better than being ordered around, I suppose…
She quietly walked to the already open window, which she had previously been told to open and close and repeat a countless number of times as Sesshoumaru's mood changed with the wind (it was just busy work, she knew), and she sat down onto the ledge. Souta…Mom…what would you do if you knew what I was doing right now? What would you say? She sighed to herself, extending her arm out the window, almost expecting to feel rain. The clouds were getting darker, and the air was heavy. We'll probably have a storm later on…
Sesshoumaru growled, annoyed with the random and unexplained actions this ridiculous girl was always taking. He had only had her around for a day and a night, but that was usually all it took for him to understand the mind-patterns of most people. However, he could never tell what this girl was going to do next, and it bothered him to no extent. "Human, what are you doing now?"
Kagome glanced back at him, then back outside. "I think it's going to rain."
The youkai gave a bored look at the window before turning back to the desk once more. "Perhaps."
Kagome took in a deep breath, closing her eyes and leaning forward a little. I want to be running outside with Souta. I want to be helping mom cook dinner. I want to be sitting in the doorway, waiting for the rain to come down.
There was no way Sesshoumaru could concentrate anymore. Having this stupid human in his room was making it impossible for him to get anything done. "Human, you're about ten seconds from falling out that window."
Kagome grumbled quietly to herself, shooting him a look. "Lord Sesshoumaru-sama seems to have problems keeping his mind on his work. Is there anything wrong?"
"You're the one distracting me, wench."
"Then maybe Lord Sesshoumaru-sama has more 'tasks' for me to complete?" She grinned at him, half hopeful and half sarcastic. If having her in the room was becoming a pain for him, it wouldn't be long before he kicked her out for an hour or two.
Sesshoumaru's temper immediately heightened. He was unbelievably close to just standing up and smacking the girl across the face for her horrid attitude. The worthless maid…How dare she, or ANYONE talk to me in that way…?! Somehow, using all the will he could muster, he controlled the anger welling inside him. He would not let this human get the best to him; she really just didn't matter that much. Besides, if he wanted to break her down, he'd have to do it slowly. Going too quickly would kill all of it for him: the effectiveness and the fun.
Kagome crossed her arms, looking back out the window. Damn…he's harder than I thought. She went on pondering about her home and family, rocking back and forth in the window frame, while Sesshoumaru went back to looking over the piles of documents on his desks.
And so, it passed like that for at least half an hour.
It was getting dark now. Kagome thought about things logically. When she had talked to Miroku, he had said it was three o'clock…How long had I been asleep? Three hours or so? Then…that would be six. And I've been doing chores for Sesshoumaru for one or two hours, so…Yes, I suppose it'd be almost 8.
"UWAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAA!"
Kagome twitched, raising her hands to her ears, as she usually did when she heard anything this loud and piercing. What the heck was-…
Sesshoumaru was at the window in a second, his youkai instincts working like mad. He felt something coming; not anything too big or dangerous, but it was invading his territory none-the-less. He grabbed Kagome and pulled her into the room before shoving her off to the side, seeing her only as a nuisance.
The raven-haired girl glared up at him, quickly scattering to her feet and joining him at the window. Rolling back and forth on the ground outside the castle was a furry little fox-boy curled in a fetal position as a large snake youkai crawled up to him. The child had long since dropped his tiny bag of items, which were now scattered all around the grass. Kagome raised her hands to her mouth, horrified. That snake thing is about to…! She looked to Sesshoumaru, desperate. "Sesshoumaru-sama! If you don't help him then-…"
"What business of mine is it what youkai do to get their food?" He turned his head, bored with the whole act, no longer worried about the disturbance. These sorts of snake demons were around everywhere, some bigger and some smaller than the six-foot one that was looming outside. If they were fed, they were happy, and they never bothered anyone in the castle.
"But…Sesshoumaru-sama! He'll get eaten!"
The child was wailing his poor eyes out, trying his hardest to avoid the snaps from the snake that was hovering over him. Any second now, he would become the youkai's lunch. "You want to save him so badly?" Sesshoumaru eyed her, waltzing back over to his chair. "Then help him yourself."
"Wh-WHAT?!"
Sesshoumaru was ignoring her once more, back turned to her, acting as if she didn't exist. Kagome pressed her temples, half listening to her own thoughts and half listening to the wailing of the poor child outside. I want to help him, but…what can I do?! I'll get killed! Her situation suddenly popped into her mind. When she thought of her bleak future as it was, she decided she probably had a better chance with the snake than with Sesshoumaru.
As quickly as was possible for her, Kagome began climbing out the window. The fall wasn't massive; maybe 7-8 feet at most. She dangled against the castle wall, hands gripping the stone as she tried to lower herself down, though she just ended up slipping and landing on the ground with a thud.
The snake-youkai twitched, head shooting up as he looked around for the source of this delicious new smell. "Ssssss…"
Kagome swallowed hard, stumbling to her feet. She hadn't actually taken any time to consider just how she'd do this…In fact, she had no idea that he would notice her so quickly. That is, if it is a he…Immediately she kicked herself for the random thoughts. This was no time to be wondering about genders of vicious youkai.
The snake was at her in a second, giving her next to no time to respond. Out of luck more than anything else she ducked at the right instant, the snake slamming itself into the wall as it aimed it's heavy body towards this new prey. She dashed off the moment she brought her senses back together, straight towards the wailing little fox-demon that had, lucky for Kagome, somehow managed to get up onto its feet.
"Jump to me!" She held out her arms to him, heart beating violently in her chest. "Hurry up!"
He stared up at her with wide, tear-filled eyes before nodding, immediately leaping into the girl's embrace. With the little bundle now close to her, she sprinted off again, hope building in her.
And then, the valiant rescue came to a sudden and abrupt halt.
Everything seemed to slow down as Kagome looked at the grass, seeing a shadow growing over her. No…it couldn't have! With a feeling of dread building in her she looked up, seeing the body of the serpent flying overhead, which was really a ridiculous concept that she would've laughed at, had she not been in the situation herself. In a flash the snake had landed right on the ground in front of her, gracefully turning it's long tail, head swerving back and forth as its long, spear like tongue jutted in and out of it's mouth. "Ssss…"
Kagome stopped herself so suddenly that she fell backwards, clinging onto the little fox-child almost as powerfully as it had been clinging onto her. Her eyes widened as the snake's large diamond head reared back, its fangs glistening as it opened its mouth, ready to strike.
As if to shut the demon out she closed her eyes and gritted her teeth, preparing for the impact of the reptile's teeth sinking into her, killing the fox boy as well. She did feel something, but it wasn't exactly what she had expected. Something wet and warm was suddenly splashing all over her body, and she heard a loud thump in front of her. Oh no…it couldn't be. She opened one eye, Sesshoumaru staring down at her as if she were the lowest piece of scum on the planet, and it took her only a few seconds to realize that the ground around him was stained red. And, as she would only too soon find out, so was she.
For a moment, time itself seemed to stop as she stared up at Sesshoumaru's form, his claws tensed and bloody from just having decapitated the snake invading his back yard. The body was lying curled up next to him, the head right in front of Kagome's feet, the yellow eyes still wide open. …I should've stuck with the snake.
"Waaah! Wah! Wah wah wah wah! Thank you! Thank you so much! Oh thank you!" Kagome was snapped back into reality by the screaming of the child in her arms, who, while still having wide teary eyes, was completely unharmed.
Sesshoumaru scoffed at the child, eyes narrowing. "You worthless thing."
The fox-demon's tail immediately furled up, and he clung onto Kagome once more, his tiny little body shaking. "I-…I'm not afraid of you!"
The youkai prince snarled, raising his claws menacingly. "You should be, you little-…"
Kagome interrupted the pair, patting the little fox on the head. "It's all right! You're safe now, right? You should be very grateful to Lord Sesshoumaru-sama!" She glanced hesitantly at him, hoping that the comment might have cooled his head down a little. "Now then…" She stood, placing the child on the ground. "It was nice to have met you…um…"
"Shippou!" The fox-demon smiled brightly up at Kagome, his body relatively spotless, since Kagome had been hiding him decently well with her body.
"We-…" Sesshoumaru grabbed onto Kagome's wrist violently before she could continue on, dragging her towards the house, very nearly gagging from the disgusting scent of the blood on her.
Shippou watched sadly as the girl left, scattering towards the pair very cautiously as they returned towards the castle. He pouted when the youkai lord turned back to give him a threatening look, but it was more than enough to stop him. Don't worry! He gripped his tiny little claws into fists, watching them leave. I'll make it up to you, girl! I promise!
And with that, he scurried back towards the field to pick up all the things he had lost in his escape.
~
Sesshoumaru stared down at his maid with disgust. He was perched up in his window, but there was absolutely no way he was going to let this ridiculous, thick-headed girl track snake blood all over his rug. She was covered from head to toe in the stuff, and needless to say, it smelled horrible. "Stupid wench. This is all your fault."
Kagome looked up at him, a little ashamed. He's right…Kagome, now you're in debt to two people…Stupid, stupid, stupid Kagome…
Sesshoumaru sighed inwardly. The sun had almost completely set, and if he let her wallow out there in filth any longer she would freeze to death. But he couldn't very well let her smear blood all over his room and the hallways, since the youkai population of the castle, (which was the majority) would be furious with the scent. I should just kill her now and save myself the trouble…
He disappeared from the window for a little while, leaving Kagome sitting alone out there, frightened and cold. She smelled like blood, and for all she knew, that might be an attractive offer for any hungry youkai wandering by. Trembling, she wrapped her arms closely around her own body, glancing at her surroundings. There doesn't seem to be anything, but…
"Human."
Kagome blinked, looking back up to the window. There, standing in the opening, was Sesshoumaru, holding a huge bucket of…water?
Before she could respond Sesshoumaru had poured the huge barrel of freezing cold water over her head, almost causing her to fall over with the sudden force of it. In a second her teeth began chattering like mad, slowly lowering herself to a crouching position to try and prevent even more heat from leaving her. "C-c-c-cooold!!"
"Shut up."
Sesshoumaru was gone again, leaving Kagome alone and even colder than before. She wasn't really frightened anymore…Hell, I'd rather face off another snake-youkai than Sesshoumaru.
"GYAA!" Kagome should've been expecting it this time, but for some reason feeling the cold water rush over her body once more made her leap in surprise. Her clothes were soaked and heavy, only adding to her immense discomfort.
"S-s-s-s-sesshouma-maru…s-sama…" She looked up at him, her body shaking even more violently than before.
"Take off those clothes." He smirked at the horrified look that washed over her. "Unless you'd prefer to freeze to death, of course."
He tossed a towel and her nightclothes down at her, turning away from the window and disappearing.
Kagome undressed herself in a rush, pulling on the dry night outfit in a second, sighing at the warm feeling. Much to her dismay, Sesshoumaru hadn't actually given her any new underwear, forcing the freezing girl to just keep what she had on. It wasn't particularly wet, or bloody, but…It still had a cold feeling to it that she would rather have forgotten.
With her hair wrapped in the towel Kagome made her ascent up the castle wall, which was a much harder task than it was to originally go down. Stone by stone she shimmied her way up, until she could finally feel the ledge, her hand searching for something to climb onto. Her skin was close to painfully numb, so when something gripped onto her wrist and pulled her into the air, she was only mildly phased. That is, until she saw Sesshoumaru's stoic face square in front of her.
"Where are the other clothes?"
Kagome stared at him blankly for a minute. Does he mean…the wet, bloody ones? "Go get them."
And so, he dropped her, forcing her to climb up once again, but this time with cold and heavy clothes in one arm and a horrible bruise on the other.
~
Nothing amazingly interesting happened the rest of the night, which was probably for the best. Kagome was finally allowed to eat for ten minutes or so, in a small room where all the servants ate. It was late, and most of the maids had already finished and returned to their other duties. She sat and dined in silence, on food that was surprisingly good for a class she figured to be abused by everyone. Maybe it's just Sesshoumaru…She sighed. What horrid luck. I get stuck with Sesshoumaru, of all people, who's probably planning my death at this very moment.
The emptiness of the dining hall frightened her, and her thoughts weren't helping. Normally, she liked things quiet, especially when she ate…But she felt so starved for understanding right now that she would've probably openly conversed with Kagura about her issues, even though she would undoubtedly regret it the next day. The only other people in the room were a few cooks that seemed to be busy running in and out of the area, every once in a while giving Kagome a smile, and then every once in a while giving her a frown, as if telling her she had had enough.
After she had finished and cleaned her dishes out into the small wooden sink, she went to a third dining hall, as was instructed by one of the hurried cooks. This room, while much smaller than the one she had been in just last night, was much bigger than the servant's kitchen. It was rather beautiful; oriental rugs, golden vases, and beautiful paintings of important looking youkai on the wall.
As was expected, Kagome sat behind Sesshoumaru, forced to another evening of staring at the back of his head. Much to her relief he didn't turn or say anything to her the whole two hours they were there. In fact, he didn't really say much at all, to anyone. She had to admit, this surprised her. He seemed open enough in degrading her, or pointing out her mistakes. He was very calm and controlled, but she wouldn't exactly call him the silent type. At least, not when it came to her.
Kagome had been so preoccupied with her thoughts that she had forgotten completely about Inuyasha, Sango, and Miroku. She looked thoroughly, or the best she could from her kneeling position, but she couldn't find Miroku. Obviously, that meant Sango wasn't there either. She didn't really notice Inuyasha until she tried to, and much like the previous night, he was sitting across from Sesshoumaru, remaining almost as silent as his older brother. Inutaishou wasn't there; probably because he was the lord of the house, and had more important issues to be looking at, or so Kagome guessed.
Unlike before, Sesshoumaru stood to leave before anyone else. Kagome had well learned her lesson, and would, as Sesshoumaru had so roughly demanded, wait until he left before she followed. This was more of a blessing than anything else, because it meant that she would then be able to see Inuyasha. Even though Sesshoumaru ordered me away from him…
It wasn't until Sesshoumaru was walking away that Kagome realized how out of place she looked. She was wearing her hood, as all maids must do in public, but she was in her pure white nightdress under that. All the other maids, although it was getting closer to midnight, were still in their black day outfits. Whether anyone noticed though, she wasn't sure. If they did, she didn't get any looks or anything. Maybe it just wasn't that important.
After Sesshoumaru had left, Kagome turned her head to Inuyasha, who seemed to be distracted by something going off to the distance. She didn't know how to get his attention, so she just cleared her throat, placing one hand on her lap and holding the other over her mouth, as if she were coughing.
Inuyasha turned to her immediately, brightening up the moment he saw her.
Kagome smiled brightly at him, pulling her hood back just barely. She wanted to call out to him, to tell him that Sesshoumaru had ordered her away from him, but it would be dangerous to speak out loud. Instead, she tried a lame game of charades and arm movements to get her point across. She pointed to the seat in front of her, mouthing the word "Sesshoumaru," which he seemed to get right off. Then, to indicate that they couldn't be around each other, she pointed to herself and then to Inuyasha, right after making a swinging motion with her hand to indicate no. Inuyasha looked utterly and completely lost with this one. This won't work…
She crouched forward as if she were ready to stand, leaning towards Inuyasha as far as she could in the process. He seemed to get the hint, leaning forward as well, as if reaching for something. They weren't exactly close now, by any account, but close enough for Kagome to say something quietly with only Inuyasha hearing.
"Sesshoumaru says I can't go near you." She whispered it, but Inuyasha's sensitive dog-ears were enough to pick it up. He looked at her, a very, very, very pissed off look on his face. Kagome sighed. She knew he was trying to help her, earlier when he was trying to buy her off of Sesshoumaru, but…It would only be dangerous for him as well as her if he kept on interfering. She shrugged sadly, giving him a pleading "I'm sorry" sort of look before she stood and walked off after Sesshoumaru, who had, lucky for Kagome, been stopped in the hall by one of his teachers. This was lucky for Kagome because it kept him distracted, and he wouldn't realize the lapse of time in between him leaving and his maid following after.
~
Kagome returned to Sesshoumaru's room, walking right behind her master, head bowed low in depression more than anything else. Every minute her situation seemed to be getting worse for her. When she entered the door, something caught her eye right off. In the corner of the room, across from Sesshoumaru's bed, was a futon rolled out on the floor.
She stared at it blankly for a moment before sighing, half in relief and half in sadness, since it seemed to her a sign that her stay in this castle was permanent. Keep in mind, Sesshoumaru's bedroom was of a considerable size. It wasn't anything like the futon and his bed were anywhere near each other. The mat was on the opposite wall to where Sesshoumaru's bed was, and there had to be at least 20 feet in between the two of blank, unused space. Not that Kagome minded, of course.
Little to no interaction passed between the two as Sesshoumaru prepared himself for bed. Kagome realized she'd just be sleeping in what she had on, and after politely folding her hood and placing it beside her futon to put away in the morning, she sat down, not quite sure what to do.
She was on the verge of thanking him for the mattress, though she wasn't sure whether that'd do more harm than good. In the end she decided against it, since Sesshoumaru was most obviously in a bad mood, and she wasn't even sure if he was allowing her to sleep. After changing into a robe he just slipped himself silently into his bed, pausing for a few moments before finally addressing his servant. "Put out the lights."
Quickly she stood, rushing to the two sides of his bed, blowing the candles out on either side. They had bigger, more convenient torches that provided much more comfort as far as light went, but they took up a lot of fuel and were often a pain to put on. Because of that, Sesshoumaru usually preferred to keep the numerous candles lighted instead of the torches.
After this was done, the room was silent and dark, other than the blue light that came in due to the moon shining brightly outside. Sesshoumaru hadn't exactly said anything towards the maid as far as sleeping went, and Kagome wasn't going to ask. She silently moved back to her futon, not even bothering to slip under the thin blanket that had been put down on it. The window had been closed after she had crawled in earlier from the snake incident, so it wasn't cold, in any respects.
Her mind turned over her situation before falling back onto her family, whom she missed more than anything else. Souta…Mom…Goodnight…She closed her eyes, picturing her little brother's sleeping face in her mind, and immediately dozed off.
~
It's possible to go into great detail about the next few days, but it would be a little less than entertaining. Things went as usual; Sesshoumaru ordered Kagome around from morning to night, occasionally letting her out for meals and only giving her moments to relax when she looked like she was about to collapse. On the bright side, Kagome was learning a lot about Sesshoumaru's various moods. As Sango had told her, every other day Sesshoumaru went to his classes for the majority of the morning, leaving Kagome alone in the room. Unfortunately he always gave her a list of things to do, which would normally take hours on end, if Kagome didn't some way find shortcuts to get around it all. On the fourth day Sango had a little time on her hands, so she somehow managed to get Miroku to help along with Kagome's chores. Of course she aided as well, though in the end it usually just ended up with Miroku groping Sango and Sango chasing him around with whatever she could get her hands on. It made Kagome's work even harder, but she loved every minute of it.
"YOU PERVERT!" Sango was chasing Miroku around outside, while Kagome scrubbed at the stone wall outside of Sesshoumaru's bedroom.
Kagome sighed inwardly. She was enjoying the show, but if she didn't get this done then Sesshoumaru would just pile even more things down onto her back, as had happened the other day when he was out to his classes. "Guys, I don't mean to intrude, but I could REALLY use some help…"
Sango stopped, shooting Miroku a death glare before walking back over to Kagome. "Of course…I'm sorry, Raven-chan."
"Oh, Raven-sama! You have saved me from my Sango's wrath! How can I ever repay you?!" Kagome rolled her eyes and Sango gave him another look, causing him to raise his hands in surrender. "Uncle!"
They went on like that, chatting casually while they scrubbed the blood from the snake off the wall, which Kagome had already explained to the pair. Sesshoumaru ran out of things to tell her to do (at least with an excuse behind them), so he had her clean off the dried blood from the stone that had been scattered there when the snake was decapitated.
"So, tell me, why were you two so lucky as to be paired together?" Kagome asked, leaning over and getting her rag wet again in the bucket of water.
There was a moment of silence before Miroku cleared his voice, seeming to concentrate more thoroughly on his work all of a sudden. "Well…"
"Oh, let me." Sango sighed, pulling the bucket over to her. "I am…or, I was a youkai exterminator. Youkai used to invade the village I lived in, and it was my job to…well…exterminate them. One day, when I was out on the job…" She hesitated, looking at the ground sadly. "My younger brother was very nearly killed…The only person who could help him was a horrid excuse for a thing, Naraku…Also, the same man who almost killed him in the first place."
"I pleaded with him for my brother's life, which he finally granted me…as long as I would work here, as a maid." She scoffed, fists tightening around the rag she was holding. "He saved him…but he refused to let him go. He's still here…working as Naraku's paperboy…Remember that boy? The first night you came here, the one who announced Inutaishou's arrival?"
An image of a young boy with cute little freckles and a ponytail flashed into Kagome's mind, and she nodded. "Yes…That's my brother, Kohaku."
"I went to work for a man named Onigumo, an underling of Naraku, and probably just as disgusting. He…wasn't very nice to me." Kagome got the idea from this…Sango was probably too strong to admit just what had happened to her, but she could sense the pain in her voice. Sango most likely just didn't want to relive it, and Kagome didn't really want to know.
Miroku stepped in, never stopping his work. "I saw him beating my poor Sango one day, and I knew there was no way I could allow it to continue…! So, I bought her off."
The youkai exterminator glared at him for the way he put it, and he laughed hesitantly. "Well…I didn't really BUY her. I just threatened Onigumo to a point where he would've been a fool not to comply."
Kagome and Sango stared at him with a blank look on their faces before turning to one another. "He blackmailed him, didn't he." Kagome said rather blandly.
Sango just nodded. "Is it that obvious?"
"Heeeey!" Miroku put his hands up in defense. "I just HAPPENED to know about a certain maid that Onigumo had his eye on, that belonged to Naraku…If Naraku knew that Onigumo had come on to this specific maid more than once, he would probably have been beheaded. Onigumo was scared out of his mind, so he just handed her over…" Miroku grinned, putting an arm around Sango's shoulder.
Sango just flinched, but she didn't pull away, a blush growing on her face. "See?" Miroku grinned widely. "Now, aren't you glad that I saved you from the evil dragon?" His hand began to trail down, and he was rewarded with a hard smack in the face.
"Don't push your luck."
They went back to bickering some, and Kagome couldn't help but smile. Even though they were always teasing each other, she could see they cared about each other a lot. She didn't doubt for a second that, if she had the option, Sango would stay with Miroku rather than leave.
Suddenly, something came flying out of the tree above the trio, smacking Kagome right in the back of the head and causing her forehead to ram forward into the castle wall. "Gyaaah!"
Miroku and Sango blinked up at the thing clinging to Kagome's head, before looking at each other quizzically. "Gyaah! Gyaaah! Gyaah! Gyaah!"
Kagome reached up, prying off whatever it was on her head and holding it out. It was the little fox boy she had helped a few days ago. "Oh! Shippou!"
The fox boy squealed in delight when he heard her say his name, leaping out of her hands and nuzzling himself into her neck. "Raven-chaaaaaan!"
Kagome blinked. "Raven? How did you know I was called that?"
Shippou, the twitchy little thing he was, hopped down to the ground, putting his hands on his little hips. "I've been watching you for a little while now, to make sure that the scary demon man wasn't going to come out!"
The scary demon man? Miroku raised a finger. "Sesshoumaru."
"Aa." Kagome nodded, looking down at the fox demon. "So, what are you doing around here anyway?"
"What do you mean?" He huffed, sticking his little nose up. "I'm protecting you! You saved me, so now I have to make sure nothing happens to you!"
Kagome just laughed. "No, I mean, in general. Do you live around here?"
He nodded, pointing back to the forest. "Me and papa live back out there."
"Ooooh…Then what were you doing getting chased around by that snake youkai?! You could've gotten seriously hurt!"
Shippou winced, scratching the back of his head and smiling cutely. "It was an accident!"
Kagome glanced at the sun before patting him on the head. "I have to get this done before Sesshoumaru-sama comes back, so…"
"Let me help!" Shippou bounced over to the bucket of water, grabbing one of the rags in it and beginning to jump up and down against the wall, pressing the wet piece of cloth against it, doing a surprisingly good job. Kagome just laughed, nodding. "All right! The more help I can get the better, before that no-good-son-of-a-gun Sesshoumaru comes flouncing out here all graceful-like and pointing to some stupid spot on the wall saying 'Oh, you missed one, do it all again.'"
Kagome was gripping the rag so tightly in her hands it was nearly ripping, and everyone else just stared at her, decently frightened. "I swear, if I could I would take that man's neck and just smash it against every single stone of this castle, watching him wince in agony every single time…"
Shippou blinked at Kagome, before turning to Sango and Miroku. "Does she get like this often?"
Sango giggled, and Miroku shrugged. "I think she's just easily excitable."
~
The next day, Sesshoumaru didn't have any plans on going anywhere, and he didn't have any plans on doing anything. Normally, he hated these days. They bored him and made him feel useless, which he hated with a distinct passion. However, now, he had something to entertain himself with. He had his useless maid to order around, and in all honesty she amused him more than anything else he could think of.
"Human, what in the world do you think you're doing? That's no way to roll up a futon."
Kagome glared at him coldly, struggling with the heavy mattress in her arms. It would be a lie to call it a real, traditional futon. It was much, much thicker and, consequently, much heavier. "Then, would Lord Sesshoumaru-sama like to teach this humble servant the correct way to fold a 'futon'?"
Sesshoumaru was reclining in the chair at his desk, staring at his frustrated servant. "It's your job, so learn yourself."
"SESSHOUMARU-SAMAAAAAA!"
The door suddenly burst open, a little girl running in with Jaken following close behind. "Rin, what do you think you're doing?!" The toad squawked as he rushed after her.
Kagome watched them, surprised, before recognition dawned over her. "Oh! Rin!"
Rin paused at the voice, turning from Sesshoumaru to Kagome. "Raven…?" She waved her small little hand, smiling brightly. "What is Raven doing in Sesshoumaru-sama's room?"
Sesshoumaru sighed, raising a hand to his forehead. "Rin, speak more quietly."
The child giggled happily, nodding. "Of course, Sesshoumaru-sama."
"I'm Sesshoumaru's maid, Rin." Kagome was talking to her while still attempting to fold the mattress, which caused for a pitiful sight indeed.
"What?" A hurt look washed over the child's face as she turned to look at Sesshoumaru. "That's not true!! I'm going to be Sesshoumaru-sama's maid! You told me!"
Sesshoumaru looked at her expressionlessly. "You're not old enough now, Rin."
"But…but…Sesshoumaru-sama!" She suddenly seemed on the verge of tears, pointing at Kagome.
"Rin, speak more quietly." He repeated, an almost upset look coming over his face. "You're interrupting me."
"I'm sorry, Sesshoumaru-sama…" She hung her head, going over to his bed and sitting on it, swinging her legs back and forth. Jaken bowed to Sesshoumaru, scooting over to the child. "I'm sorry, Lord Sesshoumaru-sama, this humble servant will get Rin out of here this very instant!"
Rin frowned at the toad-youkai, shaking her head. "I'm going to stay with Sesshoumaru-sama!"
Sesshoumaru looked as if he didn't care either way, turning to his desk.
The atmosphere in the room suddenly got heavy, as Sesshoumaru immediately shut up in the presence of the other two. Whenever Kagome did something clumsy, which he normally would've insulted, he just remained silent. Rin seemed a bit colder to her as well, always pushing her aside and doing things herself, reminding Kagome constantly that she was really the one meant to be Sesshoumaru's maid.
"No! I'm going to fold Sesshoumaru-sama's clothes!" Rin ran over to Kagome, who had just returned from bringing the newly cleaned garments from the washroom.
"But Rin…" Kagome looked back at her, holding the damp clothes in her lap. "They're still wet. I have to hang them up to dry before we can fold them."
Rin blinked at her before nodding. "Fine then! I'm going to hang them up!"
Kagome smiled at the girl as she handed the clothes over, watching Rin rush out of the room to go hang them up outside. Jaken followed closely after, yelling towards the child to slow down before she ran into someone.
Now out of a job, Kagome went to Sesshoumaru's bed, straightening it out from when Rin had crawled in and around it. "Rin sure does love Lord Sesshoumaru-sama a lot. She'll make a good maid."
Sesshoumaru looked back at Kagome, eyes cold. "You seem excited about the prospect of getting out of your job. Though, you should realize, your fate after this will probably be death."
Kagome shot him a look as she pressed out the sheets, trying to flatten out any of the wrinkles. "If it makes Lord Sesshoumaru-sama and Rin-chan happy."
"Look, wench." Sesshoumaru sighed in exasperation, as if Kagome was the stupidest thing he had ever had to deal with. "You can't even straighten out a bed correctly." He pointed to a single wrinkle on the corner opposite of Kagome, glaring at her. "Can you do anything right?"
Kagome gritted her teeth. "I'm sorry, Lord
Sesshoumaru-sama." She stomped over to the wrinkle, flattening it out. "I guess
this humble servant should just throw herself out of the highest tower this
instant to repent for her horrible lack of skill."
Sesshoumaru kept his gaze steady on her before looking out the window, a
strange, uncommon grin showing on his lips. "From the highest tower? No.
Tossing yourself out from here would suffice."
Kagome blinked, noticing the look on his face. Is he actually…Joking with me?
Before she could think more on it, Rin rushed back in the room, smiling brightly. "I hung up Sesshoumaru-sama's clothes!"
Kagome laughed. "Good job, Rin-chan! You're going to be the best maid Sesshoumaru-sama could have!"
Rin forgot her anger at Kagome momentarily and she returned the gesture, nodding energetically. "Yep! I'm going to be Sesshoumaru-sama's maid in no time!"
~
Things actually seemed to get better from then on. Rin would visit often, though she always seemed to be a little mad at Kagome. She was by no means bitter or angry with her, but she would always get this pouty look and refuse to talk to her whenever Sesshoumaru gave Kagome attention that she wanted.
As another thing, Kagome was almost starting to not mind Sesshoumaru's company. He didn't insult her any less, of course, but she felt a bit more open with how she could reply to him. She was beginning to learn how to push his buttons; what to say when she wanted his favor, and what to say when she wanted to annoy him a little. She also began to realize that he acted a lot different around her than with other people. Never had he hesitated to say something demeaning to her, or to just complain about his father or his brother for a few minutes as if it were her fault. However, when he was around others, even if it was just Jaken or Rin, he said as little as virtually possible. Kagome realized, then, that these were the only opportunities she had to get away with things she would normally be 'grounded' for.
Sango, Shippou and Miroku also seemed to become a bigger part of Kagome's life. Almost every other day they spent an hour together, sometime just hanging around and sometime doing work. Well, it was usually just Kagome and Shippou doing work, with Sango and Miroku running around arguing. It had only been a week, so they had only had four get-togethers, but Kagome still treasured the time like nothing else.
~
On the eighth night Sesshoumaru was in a worse mood than usual, and Kagome could sense it. He had just come out of the bath and he was sitting at his desk, eyes narrowed and pointed towards some pieces of paper. The mood in the room was so melancholy that Kagome was afraid to speak; something she wasn't often used to, even around Sesshoumaru.
Frustrated, Sesshoumaru ran a hand through his still-wet hair, placing his elbows down on the desk. "…One of the lords to the East wants to take some of this land, but due to someone leaking false information, we can't seem to make any negotiations…" He sighed heavily, pushing the papers to the side.
Kagome frowned a little, staring at the back of his head. "I know a human like you wouldn't understand such things, but Naraku is causing us problems. If we can't settle things soon, it's most likely going to end up with fighting…and we can't afford that."
Once more he tried to run his hand through his hair, but it just seemed to get caught up in the wet tangles, bothering him even more.
Kagome let out a big puff of breath, walking over to the desk beside Sesshoumaru. He glanced at her, ready to strike if she did anything stupid, but for now holding his tongue. She reached into the desk drawer, pulling out the wooden brush and stepping back behind the youkai prince. Sesshoumaru just growled at her, turning his head. "Human, I can brush my own hair."
She acted as if she didn't even hear him, gently stroking the brush through his hair, but quickly enough so that it would slowly undo the tangles. "Lord Sesshoumaru-sama should try his best not to worry about these things. If he worries, he won't be able to concentrate, and that won't get anyone anywhere."
Using the mirror as a medium for glaring coldly at his maid, Sesshoumaru remained silent. He was in no mood to argue with anyone. Besides, the brush going through his hair in such a fashion actually felt…good.
Kagome smiled a little when she saw his shoulders relax a little. He really did have the most beautiful hair; she just wished he took better care of it.
"What are you grinning at now, human?"
The raven-haired girl shook her head, nearly bursting out with pride. "Nothing, Lord Sesshoumaru-sama."
~
Author's Note: I wanted to continue this a little farther, but, I knew that may take another day tops and I figured I was better off just getting out as much as I could (for now.) Whoo…It took me a while, but it's the longest one yet, I think. 12 pages. Whoo. Was it worth it? Sorry if I kept anyone waiting, and now they're like 'Wow…that was a waste.' I'm doing my best.
Next off the list, a lot of people were confused by whether Sesshoumaru had put Kagome on the bed or not. Well, yes, he did. I'm sorry if I worded it strangely. Some people got it, and some people didn't..So I'm just going to have to change that some day. And look! *points* Shippou! The next chapter is going to have a lot more Inuyasha and Naraku. I want to get Naraku going. You know. 'Cause otherwise it will be a really empty plot and that's no fun, now is it…? Well, ja ne! I'll try to update a lot lot quicker this time. Everyone who reviewed, thank you SO much. You have no idea how much it means to me. *hugs to EVERYONE* And, Kagura, I can't believe you actually printed this out. *teary eyes* That is..the nicest thing..*big big big BIG hugs of appreciation* By~e!