Author's Note: Time to get to the grindstone! Inuyasha doesn't belong to me. Don't forget it! Yeah. So…Ikimashou~!

~

The wind whistled by, brushing her hair against her cheeks and tickling her nose. Kagome squinted her eyes to block out the bright, sparkling sun overhead, although she was not quite sure when she had woken up in the first place. It registered in her mind that something was out of place. She tilted her head to the side, opening one eye and staring at the high, scattered grass that surrounded her. The thin green blades protruded into the air and pressed against her exposed arms, another grainy sensation mixing in with the feeling of the sharp grass. Where am I…? She thought wearily, tilting her head in the opposite direction and watching the wispy white clouds roll along in the orangey-red sky. Behind the gently swaying grass she could see endless dunes of sand, and it was only then that she heard the soothing sound of crashing waves a little ways away.

Dazed, but otherwise feeling perfectly fine, Kagome sat up, looking down at herself. She was wearing a soft, simple white cotton sundress. The thin, ribbon-like straps barely concealed her shoulders, but the air was clear and warm and her exposed arms and legs hardly bothered her. She was sitting in a mixture of flattened grass and sand, although much to her surprise, when she checked her back and hair she found that they were both completely dirt free. What am I doing here…?

Before her, the grass waned off and left only smooth and flawless sand, which in turn lead off into the glittering wide ocean. Small waves brushed up rhythmically against the shore, the dull spraying sound fading off into the distance. There was no echoing, and still, there was no silence. If it wasn't the waves, then it was the wind, and if it was not the wind, then it was Kagome's own breathing. The endless sea spanned out before her, but it seemed that her childhood fear had dissipated into the magic of this peaceful place. She could see no boundaries, no limits; everything just spread out around her endlessly. The sun shimmered high in the crimson tinted sky, and the water reflected that fiery tone. Kagome could sense the salt-less air, the feel of the sand and grass beneath her feet and hands, she could recognize the feeling of soft cloth on her skin. Even against her logic's better judgment, she told herself that this place must be real. She had never felt so awake before in her life.

I wonder how I got here…Kagome pushed herself up to her bare feet, savoring the free feeling of the smooth sand beneath her toes. The wind rustled the grass once more, and she turned to look behind her, wondering if she could see the end to the rippling dunes. There was none. The crashing waves brought her attention back to what her mind perceived to be the 'front' of the scene, and she turned her body, unprepared for what had appeared on the golden beach.

Sesshoumaru…? Kagome took a few shaky steps towards him, her legs feeling new and out of practice, as if she hadn't used them in weeks. The youkai prince stood calmly on the shore, his feet just barely out of reach of the ever-extending waves. He stared emotionlessly at her, his long silver hair swaying prettily behind him, and his face bare of all its usual markings. If Kagome hadn't known him for who he truly was, she would not have been able to distinguish him from a human. What was most surprising about his appearance, however, was his simple outfit that varied dramatically from the thick and heavy white silk that he normally adorned himself in. The sleeves of the thin knit shirt he wore were rolled up at his elbows, revealing the pale skin of his wrists. The collar hung low, as did the hem of the shirt, hanging loosely down around his waist. His simple brown pants, resembling those of Kagome's father's before he died, swung down below his angles, concealing all of his legs and most of his surprisingly human feet. She couldn't explain it, but something in Kagome's heart swelled when she saw him standing there like that. It was as if he wasn't royalty. In her almost childish white dress, she wasn't just a stupid human maid. She was just a girl, and he was…he was Sesshoumaru, without the frill.

"Sesshoumaru-sama…?" She asked, unable to conceal the happiness in her voice. "What are you doing here…?"

~

"Sesshoumaru-sama…?"

Sesshoumaru looked up at the noise, swiftly turning his body in the chair, his chest tightening as his eyes flicked to the girl lying wrapped up on his bed. Her face was bright red and hot with a dangerous fever, and perspiration lined her forehead as she rolled her head back and forth in her delusions. He didn't know if he was disappointed or not to see that she was still asleep, if that's what you could call the fever-induced state. She had been mumbling unintelligible things all night, ever since she had passed out earlier in the day. "Whu…errdoin…herr…"

He sighed heavily. It was enough just trying to figure out what happened, but with her moaning and groaning every five minutes, bringing on a temporary bout of anxiety each time, it was hard to think. He had returned with Yura only an hour or so after they left, to find that instead of his maid being there, it was Rin, her eyes red and puffy from crying. At that point she had seemed to have gotten a hold of herself, and was just sitting on his bed, idly kicking her legs back and forth. However, the moment she saw Sesshoumaru approaching, tears began flowing down her already wet cheeks once more. As was accustomed for the little girl she latched herself onto his leg, sobbingly confessing that she had 'killed Raven-chan.' When he had finally calmed her down long enough to hear the explanation, she told him (her voice nasally and broken because of her sniffling and hiccups) that after she found Raven unconscious on the floor, and after she couldn't find Sesshoumaru, she got a few kitchen maids to get a nurse, and the nurse had rushed up and immediately brought the girl down to the infirmary, and had ordered her to stay there to wait for Sesshoumaru to come back, but because he wasn't there to clear any procedures there were only a few medical aids they could apply to her, so she wasn't doing very well, and it looked like she was going to die, and Rin, knowing that it must've been her cake that got her sick, broke down once more and sobbed out a long line of apologies, saying it had been an accident and the cake hadn't been meant for her anyway and if only she hadn't given it to her and that now she was dead and she'd never wake up again and the list of confessions just spanned on and on, hardly allowing the suddenly very upset youkai lord a word in edgewise. For the moment unconcerned with the reasons for his maid's sudden illness, Sesshoumaru had rushed down to the infirmary and angrily ordered everyone there to apply whatever medicine, herb, liquid, or treatment it took to make sure the girl stayed alive. It would be a lie to say that she 'got better,' but her throat had been cleared out and she was able to breathe again. Almost immediately, Sesshoumaru arranged for a nurse to be stationed in the room next to them, in case anything happened, and had then proceeded to bring his maid back to his room.

It had been five, maybe six hours since then, and there was no change in her condition. He had allowed the obviously upset and disgruntled Rin to go to bed, since trying to get information out of her between sporadic weeps was just too much of a headache. Besides, right now, all he wanted to do was stay by his stupid little maid's side. Up until now he had been trying to distract himself with documents that he needed to read and memorize for his classes, but the girl's mumbling and calling out had gotten more frequent and desperate, seriously worrying him.

He stood from his desk, walking over to the bed and sitting down next to his maid, pulling the heavy blankets up over her shivering chin. "Sesshmahru…" She repeated quietly, rolling her head to the side and spreading her hair out over the pillow. The youkai lord frowned, looking her face over. For lack of a better word, he regretted everything that happened that night. He didn't know what to do for her, for himself, or for the obnoxious way he was feeling. Whenever she gasped desperately for air, his chest would tighten and he would hold her up with his own arms until the breathing evened out. When the thought that she may die crossed over his mind, he would look over his room and see it suddenly empty. No mattress, no flowers, nothing but the empty desk and empty bed he had been more or less contently living with for his whole life. But ever since she came, he had found amusement that he thought he could never experience. That's right. He told himself, gently resting his palm on Kagome's forehead and feeling the unnatural heat. If she dies…I'll just be bored. His expressionless eyes traveled down to her mouth, which he remembered as always being loud and open.

I wonder how she feels. He idly thought, pulling his hand back and contenting himself with just falling into thought. I wonder if she's in pain.

~

"Sesshoumaru?" Kagome was confused when he didn't respond. He just stood there, staring silently at her, looking small against the spanning ocean behind him. "Well!" She puffed out her cheeks, remembering the argument that they had had earlier. "You don't need to ignore me!"

Still, nothing. Feeling offended, Kagome shakily walked towards him, her feet sinking a little into the sand with each step. The wind died down, leaving only the sound of the waves and Kagome's rustling dress as she stumbled towards her master. Water began to roll up around Sesshoumaru's feet, staining the bottom of his plain cotton pants, although he remained empty and unphased "Sesshoumaru-sama? Is something wrong…?"

"Kagome."

She immediately stopped. "…Wh-what…?"

The tide began coming in at an incredible pace, the reach of the small waves now including the majority of Kagome's ankles and lower calves. She stared down at the temporarily exposed sand, surprised to see that even though it had just been submerged by the sea, it was still dry. "Kagome."

She returned her gaze to him, eyes wide. "How do you…Sesshoumaru!" Unexpectedly, as the water rose around Kagome with every rolling wave, Sesshoumaru started stepping backwards into the sea. And yet, even as Kagome rushed towards his retreating figure, the water fluctuating up to her knees, her thighs, her waist, Sesshoumaru did not sink. His feet remained on the surface of the water, little droplets spraying up onto his pants, but otherwise it looked as if the ocean on which he was standing was only one or two inches deep. "Sesshoumaru!! Sesshoumaru-sama!" She desperately called out to him, retreating further and further into the cold, salty ocean, reaching her arms out in front of her, continuing on through the thick water even as the waves rolled up to her elbows. Sesshoumaru stopped. "Why are you following?"

The ground under Kagome melted away, leaving her to momentarily plunge down into the sea, emerging a few seconds later with her bangs matted down to her face. She flailed her arms around, swimming towards Sesshoumaru, for some reason unable to wade as if some force was pulling her down into the dark depths. "Sesshoumaru!" She gasped, spitting some water out of her mouth, reaching out for his legs. "H-help me up…!"

Silently, he stared down at her, looking completely uninterested. "If you cannot adequately swim, then you should not have come out this far."

Kagome's arms were tiring quickly. Her head was submerged under the water again, and she was only barely able to pull herself up again, only to see that Sesshoumaru had continued receding back into the horizon. "Sesshoumaru!"

But the pull was too strong. It was just too hard to keep on swimming. The last thing she saw was Sesshoumaru's head tilted just slightly to the side, his stoic eyes condescendingly boring into hers, mocking her weakness. And then it went black. She plunged down into the icy depths, the darkness surrounding her body, becoming thicker and thicker as she was brought deeper and deeper. Am I dying…? I've felt like this before…She closed her eyes tightly, her lungs screaming for air. She needed to inhale, she needed to try, even if there was nothing but water. Unable to hold out any longer, Kagome opened her mouth and took a deep breath.

~

Kagome abruptly sprung forward, keeling over and coughing. Her face dripped with hot, thick sweat, and her fragile shoulders trembled as she coughed from the deepest portion of her lungs. A surprised Sesshoumaru sat back a little, staring at her with an uncharacteristic look of confusion on his face. Just as soon as the coughing fit died down, Kagome collapsed to the side, her eyelids feeling heavy. Where am I now…? She moved her eyes tiredly around the room, exhausted, unable to find the energy to lift her head. Unexpectedly she felt two hands on her side, grabbing the blankets that she had thrown off of herself and pulling them back around her shoulders.

Wearily aware of the other presence in the room, Kagome weakly nudged her head up, her eyes meeting Sesshoumaru's. Despite herself, she smiled. "…Oh…that's right…I must be in Sesshoumaru's room…" She muttered, not realizing that she had just said it out loud. Sesshoumaru furrowed his brows together. "…How do you feel?"

Unable to maintain the energy it required to keep her head up, Kagome let it fall back down onto the inviting pillow, allowing her eyes to close half-way. How do I feel…? What happened…? She blinked the blurriness from her eyes, trying to remember. Ah, that's right…Rin gave me that cake…And I…

"Did you hear me?"

Kagome opened her dry mouth, forming the words. "…I feel…cold. Weak." All of the images from the beach returned to her. Had it really only been a dream…? "Rest again. You'll feel better when you wake up." Again, Sesshoumaru placed his cold clawed hand down onto Kagome's forehead, causing her to flinch. She moved her eyes up, seeing a small portion of his arm. "Promise…?"

He said nothing. In return, Kagome smiled weakly again, unable to think clearly, nor able to assess the situation. Everything was just a grayish blob in her mind. That's right…She thought. I understand…I understand Sesshoumaru now…

"Nee…" The human girl whispered weakly, eyelids fluttering. "Sesshoumaru-sama…"

"Hm?" Idly, Sesshoumaru brushed some of her wet bangs from her face.

"…I'm sorry…That I got mad at you earlier…"

"Just rest."

Finally, she allowed her eyes to shut, feeling comfort in the encompassing darkness.

"Nee…Sesshoumaru-sama…"

"Hm?"

"…I'm sorry…"

The youkai prince pulled his hand away, placing it onto the side of the bed. He looked away from her, out the window, looking for something else to concentrate on. "You already told me." He could sense her trying to move a little on the bed.

"No…I'm…I'm sorry I couldn't keep…I couldn't keep on swimming…"

He turned his gaze back to her, surprised. "…What?"

She swallowed down the dryness in her mouth, the heat in her head making everything a whirlwind of sounds and emotions and words that she wanted to express to him. "I tried to swim…but I wasn't strong enough…I can't…walk on water, not like Sesshoumaru-sama…"

What is she talking about? "You just need to re-…"

"…It's not because I'm human…" Her voice became meeker and raspier with each word. Everything was so heavy and her ears were just so foggy that she hardly even realized she was speaking. "…S'not because Sesshoumaru-sama is a youkai…He's just…If I want to stay by his side…I'm not strong…"

Sesshoumaru said nothing to this.

"I'm not…like him…I'm not amazing…" As she drifted off into sleep, the words began to slur and tie together. "I just can't reach you…"


~

I know that now. Sesshoumaru doesn't look down on others because of their race. He looks down on them because he is superior. He's strong. Nothing can hurt him, nothing can rival him, nothing can reach him. It's not a fight of youkai against human. It's not a fight of master against maid. There is no fight. Even if I try, even if I try to make things a fight…Even if I try to see things as a struggle, or a competition, it's just because I'm weak. Sesshoumaru isn't saved, or protected, or helped, or comforted. He isn't cold or hateful or distant. He just knows he's better than the rest of the world. It is nothing for him to be great…And even if I keep on swimming for the rest of eternity…All he can do is keep on looking down on me…

~

"Sesshoumaru-sama…" A meek voice called out from behind the door. The solemn youkai looked up, registering the voice as belonging to Rin. "Come in, Rin."

The door creaked open, and in slipped a very tired looking little girl, her head tilted towards the ground. "Sesshoumaru-sama…" She repeated his name quietly. "How is Raven-chan…?"

Sesshoumaru said nothing. Wanting an answer, Rin carefully walked over to the bed, placing her hands on the mattress and leaning over to the sick girl. "Raven-chan…?"

"She's resting, Rin."

"Oh…" The little girl pushed herself up onto the fluffy bed, sitting up near the pillows and pulling her knees to her chest. "Is she going to be okay?"

Sesshoumaru moved his eyes from Rin to the silent girl sleeping next to where he sat. "I don't know."

"Oh…" Fearfully, Rin reached over and placed her small hand on Kagome's, pulling back when the older girl twitched uncomfortably. Rin temporarily blinked stupidly, as if something amazing just happened. "She's alive…!"

The youkai lord sighed heavily. "Rin…Are you ready to tell me what happened?"

She tensed up at the question, but had obviously gotten over some of her initial horror, nodding all too energetically. "Uh huh. Well…I was downstairs helping out in the kitchen, and this woman came up to me and she said that Sesshoumaru was hungry, so I should make something for him…"

"A woman? Who?"

Rin shrugged. "I dunno. I didn't know her. So I asked what I should make and she said it didn't matter since she had a secret special ingredient that would make anything taste good…"

"I know! I'll make him a cake!" Rin giggled happily. The older woman smiled sweetly, leaning over and placing her hands on her knees. "That's a good girl. Here." From out of a little pouch that was tied to her side, the older woman pulled out a squarish paper bag filled with a thin white powder. "Just sprinkle this onto the cake and it'll taste reaaaaal sweet! It's a secret, though, so don't tell anyone, since I only have enough just for you!"

Rin looked absolutely ecstatic. "All right! I promise! I'll make it and bring it to Sesshoumaru-sama as soon as possible!" An angry look flashed across the woman's face, although it only remained temporarily. "No, he's not in his room right now. Why don't I tell you when he gets back? Then you can make sure he eats it all!"

The little girl pondered the idea for a while before nodding enthusiastically. "Okay! But, how will you know where-" "I'll know." The woman quickly replied. "Now make sure you use all of my special ingredient! He'll absolutely love you for it." Rin's eyes twinkled at the idea. "Thank you! Umm…What's your name…?"

The woman smiled that sugary sweet smile again, standing back up straight. "It's not important. Let's just call this a present from one friend of Sesshoumaru's to another, ne?"

Rin looked embarrassed at the story. "Later on that day, after I made the cake…I dun remember when it was…She came up to me, even though she looked hurried, and she told me she had just seen Sesshoumaru-sama going back into his room…But, when I came, no one was here but Raven-chan, and she said Sesshoumaru-sama had just gone out for a little while, but she promised me that she would give it to Sesshoumaru-sama as soon as he got back, and so I told her she could have some, and she thanked me and I left…"

"Was that all?" Sesshoumaru asked tensely. He wasn't an idiot. It didn't take a genius to accurately guess who this 'mysterious woman' was.

"Uh huh. Well, at least until I came back. I remembered that I wanted to tell you that Jaken-sama had wanted to see Sesshoumaru-sama, so I thought I'd leave the message with Raven-chan…But…The door was open a little and no one answered, so I went in, and Raven-chan was on the floor and she couldn't breathe…I ran away, screaming for Sesshoumaru-sama, but I couldn't find him, so…"

Sesshoumaru knew the rest of the story. He nodded and patted the sniffling girl on the head. "I understand, Rin."

The little girl's lower lip trembled, and she looked admiringly up at Sesshoumaru. "Do you think she'll die? I don't want Raven-chan to die…I know I was supposed to be Sesshoumaru-sama's maid, but ever since she came Sesshoumaru-sama has been so much happier and that's all I want…I mean, I thought I could be Sesshoumaru-sama's maid too, and then he could be twice as happy."

Sesshoumaru flinched at the child's words. Surprisingly deep for a human of her age. He noted, trying to brush off the comments about 'happiness,' which he didn't really appreciate. He wasn't happier with the girl, he thought. She just amused him.

"Rin, you should go back to bed. It's still early, and you'll just make noise." For the first time ever, Rin quietly obeyed the command, posing no opposition. Looking forlornly down at Kagome one more time, she slipped off the bed and walked out of the room. The second he could sense that she was well out of ear-shot, Sesshoumaru growled. "Yura…"

Admittedly, he had had his suspicions about the woman, especially since she had absolutely denied him any passage back to the castle on their tiring little walk. She had vehemently insisted that they stay out as long as possible. Now that he had conformation that it was her doing, things easily fell into place. Yura had given Rin the poison knowing that the only one in the room would be his maid, who would undoubtedly try some of the cake, whether she had been offered any or not. Then, thinking that Rin would leave and Kagome would be poisioned without anyone around to save her, Yura was convinced that she would die there. And, had Rin not found her, she would very well have died that night.

Sesshoumaru cursed to himself. This wasn't his fault. It was that stupid girl who started yelling at me. If it hadn't been for her, I would never have gone with the obnoxious woman anyway. That idiotic human doesn't know her place. She deserves to die. I will not have this blood on my hands.

"Kago no naka no tori wa…
Itsu, itsu, deyaru...?"

Sesshoumaru turned his head to the human girl he had just been thinking about, surprised to see that one of her eyes was wide open, staring at him as she hummed almost too cheerily. In comparison to her condition just a few hours ago, she was looking much better. Not good, mind you, but better. "What part of 'rest' do you not understand, girl?"

"I'm thirsty." She said in a childish, innocent voice, a tinge of rasp to it that was most likely brought on by the numerous coughing fits she had experienced since suddenly waking from her strange dream. Sesshoumaru looked dully at her, reaching over to the bedside table and grabbing the half-full glass of water that sat there. "Sit up."

Kagome obeyed, shifting her body up against the pillows, having a little help from Sesshoumaru. He raised the glass to her lips, at which point she shakily grabbed it from him, blushing childishly. "I'm feeling better now. I can do it myself."

"Have it your way." He conceded, letting her take the cup from his hands and sitting back. She delicately sipped, swallowing only a little at the time, wincing with each little movement. "Where does it hurt?"

Kagome lowered the glass to her lap, her face still red with fever and embarrassment. "Oh…My throat is just a little sore…I wonder why." Sesshoumaru took the water from her hands, placing it back down on the side table.

"You were poisoned." He calmly told her, sounding neither upset nor interested by the fact. Kagome replied to it with a similar indifference, looking longingly out the window. "Oh."

Sesshoumaru was puzzled by her reaction. Didn't she care? She cared about everything and everyone else, and yet, when it came to herself… "You don't seem very surprised."

"I guess not." Kagome shrugged nonchalantly, looking back at Sesshoumaru. "Have you been taking care of me?"

He didn't respond, standing and stepping away from the bed, over towards his desk. Kagome knew how to interpret the silent answer, smiling a little to herself. Her head was heavy and throbbing, her ears were blocked up, her arms and legs were weak, and she was nauseous, but other than that she felt all right.

"I guess you'll end up living after all." Rather than a statement to her, he said it as a thought to himself, angering the human girl in its lack of emotion.

"Please, don't sound so broken up inside." She snapped back at him. Without replying, he sat down at his desk, pretending to look at whatever papers happened to be at hand. Kagome let out a large puff of breath. Nothing has really changed, has it? Although, I doubt he'd be all that mean to me in this condition…Might as well take advantage of it.

"Nee, Sesshoumaru-sama…" He inhaled deeply at the familiar term, not even bothering to look back at her. "What is it?"

"Will you read to me?"

Slowly, deliberately, Sesshoumaru turned in his chair. "…Excuse me?"

"I said, 'Will you read to me?'" She repeated her previous question without an ounce of shame. He raised an eyebrow at her, suddenly wishing she was unconscious again. "I understand that you are nothing but a stupid human, but even you should know how to read."

That pretentious little…! Kagome turned her nose up at him. "Of course I can read! But I'm sickly and weak, isn't it your job to tend for me?"

"Do not push your luck, girl." Sesshoumaru turned back to his desk, trying to figure out where this human got the nerve to ask such things of him. No one, not even Rin…He heard her sigh disappointedly behind him, followed by a string of deep, rasping, painful coughs. Rolling his eyes, he turned back to the girl, whose face and all around physique had dramatically been worn away by that last onset of hacking. "What would you expect me to read?"

~

Why am I doing this? Sesshoumaru sat on the side of the bed, with Kagome happily curled up by his side, a wide smile on her face. It had taken a few more coughing fits and some pained moaning, but finally he had agreed to read something for her. "You realize I am just doing this to shut your mouth."

Kagome ignored the implied insult, letting her head drop down on Sesshoumaru's fluffy pillow. "You're the best, Sesshoumaru…" She looked up, noticing the skeptical look on his face and blushing a little. "…sama."

He cleared his throat, taking his eyes off the girl at his side and moving them instead to the document he held in his hands. "July 24. This Contract between the parties of Sesshoumaru of the West Territories of Japan and Kouga of the Northern Wolf Tribe of Japan legally binds and restricts, under the laws jointly established by their respective Emperors, that the latter party acknowledges and respects the legal debt he owes to the individual from which he had formally requested, and received, temporary military aid. In return for aforementioned aid, the latter party has officially pledged a) assistance in matters of war or finance whenever these services are requested b) a previously established item that is of the former party's choosing. Until this item is secured and delivered in person to the individual of whom the debt is owed, the latter party will be territorially restricted to lands of and belonging to the West Territories, unless otherwise required for the attainment of the promised debt, and with the elongated time period in mind, as in order to keep relationships between the two parties peaceful, a gift to the person whom is owed that specific item's choosing will be delivered to that individual to possess until the desired object is achieved by the opposite party, henceforth finishing the deal and forbidding the indebted individual to request for any further favors outside what had been previously agreed in this Contract."

It didn't end there, but Sesshoumaru figured that his simple maid had fallen asleep or been mentally left behind somewhere in the heady contract. There was a moment of silence before, much to his astonishment, Kagome asked quietly, "That's not the end, is it."

"No." He honestly replied, glancing down at the girl, who was quite awake and contemplative.

"So…That's the document that ended my life." She commented thoughtfully, although Sesshoumaru could not tell if she was upset. "And that's what Kouga meant when he said that he'd come back for me. That it wouldn't be a long time. That's why he said he'd be coming to get me soon in that letter he wrote to you."

"Ah. You did read it." Sesshoumaru placed the contract down on the nightstand, shifting himself further onto the mattress. "I'm surprised you don't sound happier about it."

He heard her laugh a little. "…You know…You told me once, that after I had served my time with you, my fate would be death…"

"Do you believe it?"

Kagome wrinkled her nose, slipping one hand under her head and looking up at her master. "I didn't know what to think. I don't think Kouga would kill me, but then again, you might…" Sesshoumaru couldn't help but grin at this. "Yes. I might."

The heavy air in the room lifted a little when she noted the tiny display of emotion, and she herself couldn't help but smile. "You're tactless, Sesshoumaru-sama. But…Even if you do miraculously grow a soul, I won't be going home."

"How do you know that?" He leaned over and placed his elbows on his knees, staring out at the slowly wilting trees beyond the window. The contract had been made in July, the middle of summer, and since then time had seemed to pass so fast. Already, the world was swiftly diving into autumn.

"Kouga told me." She responded, shifting her body onto her side and looking down at her hands. "I suppose mine was just a life destined to be one of servitude…"

"You're going to become Kouga's maid?"

Again, she wrinkled her nose and stuck out her lower lip, thinking the question over. "Well…Don't put it that way. When you say 'become,' it makes it sound like I'm doing it because I want to…He told me that he'd make me his 'woman' when I got back…"

Sesshoumaru snorted. "His 'woman'? Kouga really has gone low, this time."

"Ah hah." Kagome faked amusement, not in the mood to get in an argument. Her stomach hurt, her head hurt, and her throat felt swollen. Even though she was thirsty, she knew that the water would be hard to get and keep down, and therefore decided against it. "But…well, Sesshoumaru-sama, I've been wondering…Just what is Kouga getting for you?"

"Even if I told you, you wouldn't have heard of it."

The human girl couldn't help but sigh, bringing on another few painful coughs. She groaned, the pit of her lungs sore and tired. "…Humor me."

Gracefully placing his chin in his palm, Sesshoumaru tilted his head ever so slightly, just enough so his eyes could lock with his maid's. "A sword. Tetsusaiga."

…He was right. I haven't heard of it. However, the stubborn Kagome refused to admit it, and just sheepishly looked away from his piercing, golden stare. "Oh." My life will be tossed around, all for the sake of a sword. Mm. Wonderful.

The inwardly gloating youkai would've commented on her lack of knowledge on the subject, but before he got the chance, a few quick knocks on the door interrupted them. "Lord Sesshoumaru-sama!" Squawked Jaken's familiar and unwanted voice. Kagome winced at the piercing sound, feeling the thick throb in her head returning. Without asking for permission, highly uncharacteristic of the little toad youkai, Jaken opened the door and waddled into the room.

"Jaken, what is the meaning of this disturbance?" Sesshoumaru flicked his intense gaze over to his loyal servant, causing the toady man to hesitantly open and close his pointy beak and blink his large yellow eyes. "This, this humble servant is so sorry, Lord Sesshoumaru-sama! Please forgive me!" He bowed repeatedly, coming close to getting on hands and knees. The youkai lord could do nothing but sigh and allow him to speak. "What is it?"

"This humble servant has been trying to get a hold of Sesshoumaru-sama since he returned!" Jaken squawked. "There is news on Kouga."

"Kouga?" Sesshoumaru tensed up at the name, looking ten times more alert. "Is he here?"

Jaken shook his head and continued. "No, but we have just received a letter, and this humble servant believed that Lord Sesshoumaru-sama would like to see it right away."

"Aa." Sesshoumaru glanced from his maid back to his servant, standing from the bed. "Where is it?"

"In your father's office." Jaken quickly replied, blinking his large toad-like eyes once more. "He would not give it to me to deliver."

"Jaken. Keep watch outside this room and make sure no one enters." Sesshoumaru ordered, leaving Kagome's side and walking right out the door without a second glance. Jaken called out his understanding, following him outside and shutting the door behind him, at which point Kagome guessed he waited, just as Sesshoumaru had commanded.

Just wonderful. Kagome pushed herself up into a sitting position, moving her eyes to the window. The leaves had begun to change color and fall from the trees, bringing back melancholy, unwanted feelings. When she had been taken from her home, everything was so bright and green and alive. Had so much time really passed? She could hear a muffled voice from outside the door, belonging to Rin, which sparked up an argument between the young girl and the toad youkai. Apparently Rin wanted to check in on Kagome, to which Jaken vehemently forbade. The jabbering went on for a little while, before it began to fade away, and finally stop.

Kagome paid it very little mind. Instead, she was thinking about Sesshoumaru, and about what she would do. Kouga would take her away soon, she supposed, but until then…I guess nothing will change. Even if I feel like I've figured some things out about him, becoming distant or hateful won't do me any good…I don't care how superior he is…Now that I've lost my freedom, my hope, and my identity as a human being, all I have left to protect is my identity as Kagome. Silly, stupid, boring little Kagome…

There was a noise outside the door, followed by the creaking of the door opening, causing Kagome to turn her head. What is Jaken do-…She suddenly gasped, raising a hand to her mouth. "Y-Yura…?!"

In the open doorway stood a sultry, angry-looking Yura, her arms crossed across her considerably chest, and her normally large eyes narrowed in a deadly glare. "You."

Kagome knew this was dangerous. She began pushing herself out of the bed, even though her weak arms and legs protested wildly. "Aww, poor little human…" Yura sarcastically cooed, strutting over to the bed. Kagome literally tumbled off of the mattress, landing in a tangled mess of blankets and sheets, her efforts to free herself upsetting her chest and throat and throwing her into another fit of coughs. "The poor little human has got herself caught in a trap, has she…?"

The bitter youkai woman leaned over the lump of cloth and grabbed Kagome's wrist, pulling her up into the air, looking her eye to eye. "You should have died last night. Damn humans, they're like rodents. They survive solely on luck."

Kagome's eyes quivered in fear, and she looked around for some way out of this. Where the hell is Jaken?! "Scared?" Yura smiled, her dark eyes sparkling. "Let's play a little game, shall we? We'll have some fun. I'll give you a head start." Bringing Kagome with her, Yura stepped over to the window and pushed it open, breaking the lock that normally held it shut.. "Run, little human. I'll give you a minute." And with that, she unceremoniously tossed the human girl out, watching as she plummeted to the ground and rolled a short distance on the grass.

The battered and sick maid could do nothing but allow her body to continue its trajectory, pushing herself up onto her hands the moment she got a chance. However, the poison still ran rampant through her body, and each movement either brought on a fit of coughs or sent a bolt of pain to the back of her neck. But still, survival came first, and Kagome pushed herself through the heady ache to her feet, and commenced to stumble and trip her way into the forest.

Dammit! Kagome cursed angrily to herself, holding a hand over her mouth as she tried to stifle her heavy, rasping breaths. What…what am I going to do?!

"Raven-chan!" A very unexpected, very familiar voice would prove to be Kagome's last hope. "Shippou-chan!" She gasped out, face flushed from the effort she was exerting on her body.

"Shippou-chan…" She repeated, collapsing down onto her knees, shoulders heaving. "Go…go find Inuyasha…Inuyasha or Sesshoumaru…Sango…Miroku…I don't care, just go find someone…Please…"

The little fox-child could sense that something was seriously wrong with his older friend. "What? Raven-chan, are you okay? What happened?"

"Shippou, PLEASE!" Kagome begged, tilting her head up. "Just go! Please…"

He didn't really understand what was going on, but his large ears twitched uncomfortably at the desperate tone in the human girl's voice, and he quickly scattered off towards the castle. Kagome had no more energy left to run, and so there, on the cold forest ground, she collapsed to her stomach.

Back at Sesshoumaru's window, Yura stood gracefully on the ledge, a skull resting in the palm of her hand. She looked fondly at it, stroking the numerous strands of hair that protruded from the bone, allowing them to wrap around her fingers. "Well, I think that's quite enough time…" She stated before flicking her hand out in front of her, strand upon strand of thin hair shooting from her hand and tying around surrounding tree trunks at several different heights. Then, after slipping the skull into her pouch, she wrapped a few strands around her wrist and leapt from the window ledge, swinging down into the dense trees.

"Aww! You didn't get very far at all, now did you? That wasn't any fun…" Yura landed on a branch over Kagome's head, a simple, childish smile on her red lips, but a dangerous gleam in her eyes. "But then again, I suppose one can't expect much more from a human." As she chided the hacking human she sent more hair out around the area, up to higher branches, down to the ground, surrounding them both in a dangerously sharp net.

"Yura…" Kagome panted, whirling her head to look up at the youkai. "Why are you doing this…?!"

"Why?" Yura stepped off the branch, onto a near-invisible thread of hair, sliding down the arc of the strand. "Because strange human girls should not be talking to Sesshoumaru." And with that, abruptly and unexpectedly, Yura tightened her fist and drew back, suddenly encompassing Kagome with her tight, thin weapon. The feeble clothes that Kagome wore were hardly protection against the cutting threads that pierced through and into the top layers of her skin, drawing blood. Her arms were immediately pinned by her side, and she had to carefully keep her neck stretched out in front of her or else the countless strands of hair wrapped around it would decapitate her in a second.

"Did you know…" Yura sweetly asked, tighting her fist a little more. "That they also call me 'Yura of the Hair'?"
Beads of sweat formed on Kagome's forehead, although this time created out of fear rather than illness. Shippou…Where are you?! "No, I wasn't aware…" Kagome hissed, trying to fight back the building pressure in her chest. She couldn't afford to cough now; she couldn't even move.

"Well." The youkai woman stated, matter-of-factly, "The invisible strings that surround you could slice you into eensy weensy bits, as soon as my will called for it."

"Aa." Kagome's eyes moved up to the hundreds of threads wrapped loosely around Yura's fingers. "You don't say."

Yura looked indignant at the off-hand comment. "Hmph! You obviously don't realize that you're about to die. Humans are so stupid."

Kagome knew that she had to stall her. There was no way she was going to be able to get out of this on her own; not alive, at least. She had to trust that Shippou wouldn't let her down, or else… "So, is it that you love Sesshoumaru?"

The question phased the violent woman, at least temporarily. Not in a shocked kind of way, however, more in a confused one. "Love? Love? I don't love. Sesshoumaru doesn't love. We don't love. We claim territory, and we protect that territory. And I claimed Sesshoumaru as my territory long, long ago."

The human girl couldn't help but wince at the idea. She knew what it probably meant, but for the sake of time, she decided to ask anyway. Even though she didn't want to hear it. "How do youkai 'claim territory'?"

Yura grinned brilliantly at the question, hopping a little on the strand of hair below her and dropping down a few feet. "Oh, I think you know. And I think you're just stalling for time. I would love to humor you, but I'm a busy woman." By shifting her body, Yura dangerously tightened the hair around Kagome's body, cutting her even deeper than before.

Kagome shut her eyes tight, the stinging pain intensifying as the sharp threads tightened around her weak human body. There was nothing left for her to do. She was going to die, and it was highly doubtful that Sesshoumaru would be able to save her this time.

"So please…"

Sesshoumaru…!

Yura raised her hand up, preparing to tighten the deadly fibers one last time.

"Die!"

~

Author's Note: Okay. T_T I guess that last thing was a little silly, but I was thinking about it, and I think she really does say something weird like that in the manga. She has a sword too, which I JUST remembered. Damn. I'm so not correct. All right, a few notes!

Isn't this chapter SURPRISINGLY fast? I know, I know, I'm cool. It's a little short, though. I PLANNED on finishing it later on, after the Yura thing had ended and the Kouga thing began, but the thing is I'll be gone most ALL this week, and I'll be busy with I-search and projects and crap, even though it's vacation. X_x I'm going to visit my friend in New York for a few days, so obviously I can't do it then, and I didn't want to lose my momentum, and yeah…So here you go. Only 10 pages, but I'm proud of them. The beginning was real fluffy and introverted, don't you think? :D But I was glad I had the chance to insert it.

The hardest part of this chapter, by far, was the contract thing. Those are MAD hard to write. With the words and the strange English and all of that, I had to actually look up some company contract for words and grammar. It was weird. Again, I did not spell check this. Well, spellcheck isn't the problem, I didn't grammar/word check it. So please, any big problems, just tell me. :D Please. I would appreciate it. I'll be back for Tuesday, so I can edit things then. The new chapter will…Eh…It might not be up for a while. I-search and projects will no doubt become a huge problem after vacation. So I thought I'd give this for all you out there. As a Valentine's Day present. What else? Hmm…I know a bunch of people still have questions about Tetsusaiga and Kouga, but TRUST me, they'll be answered in the next chapter. I promise. :D Well, maybe not the next chapter, it depends. But trust me, I know what I'm doing now. I do. _ Promise.

Jaa ne! I'll see you all again when I see you, I guess. Questions, comments, anything special, e-mail them to sunshine@chan.co.jp. As always. I appreciate! Keep on reading! I love you all. Really. * big big big hugs* Guys, thanks for motivating me. Especially all of you who cared enough to join the mailing list and review for every chapter. It REALLY makes me feel good. REALLY REALLY. Hontou ni.

One last thing. You know the first scene? With the beach and everything? And the drowning and Sesshoumaru on the water? That WILL play various roles later on. Don't ask me questions about it, since I know you don't understand now, but it will play a part later on. I thought it was important to add that since people might not understand. :D This is just me adding the dorky artistic flare I love. C'mon, admit it. We all do it, right?

JAA MATA NE! Have a great February vacation and Valentine's Day!