Chapter 27
It was now early spring. Kagome's body had finally healed on its own, but she was still a bit weak. Sesshoumaru had finally gone back to work. She was getting tired of having him by her side all the time. A lovely thought, but tiresome. After much discussion, he had at last, acceded to her wishes and left her alone. To be honest, he wanted to go back to his office high above the city and throw himself in his work. There, at least, he would have control over most situations. With Kagome, he had none...and he hated it.
The twins were in the care of an elven nanny. Kagome did get to see her babies everyday but since they WERE half elf, they had to stay with the elves. It saddened Kagome to have to part with them, but they were special children. She would have no idea on how to raise them. Sometimes she would cry about her babies and it would irritate the hell out of him.
It was not Kagome's fault in any way, he assured her daily, but she needed to chill out with the weeping spells. That was another reason why he fled back to work.
Mostly, it was the fault of that damned shikon jewel. Kagome was at its mercy, especially now that her body was so weak. But there were times when he felt the jewel almost goaded him into doing or saying something harsh to Kagome. At first he thought it was just his imagination, but after a few weeks he noticed that he was thinking differently about her. As if she was beneath him...and he was her superior.
He didn't like his old way of thinking came creeping back up into his brain. He had tried so hard to change his attitudes towards ningens...and yet, it slowly but surely crept to the forefront of his mind. He was Sesshoumaru and very few were good enough to suit him.
In the meantime, Sesshoumaru had made many attempts to mark her, but none of them stayed. The jewel was being very fickle and Sesshoumaru was getting upset with it. One night, she woke to him staring at her chest. When she asked him what the hell he was doing, he told her that he was trying to figure out how to take out the Shikon without waking her up or causing her too much pain.
And he was REALLY sick of waking up in the middle of the night with her body glowing pink. He KNEW it was an underhanded attempt of that damned elf to sneak her away. That and the fact that she would mutter, "Not now Yuki, go away," in her sleep. Bastard! How dare he try to steal her away from under his nose! The very impudence!
One night while they lay in bed, Kagome told him that it was the Shikon's way of testing him, to make sure he deserved her. Sesshoumaru had never heard anything so ridiculous and told her so. He snorted his irritation and turned on his side. He could only be tested so far, he told her. He not allow the jewel or anything else to test him. It was insulting and beneath him to do so. How dare a piece of pink glass dictate if HE was good enough for Kagome!
Sesshoumaru could smell the saltiness of her tears but did not budge. He would not weaken on this. She needed to see that he was her superior; she needed to know her place. You may be the woman I love, but I am still above you. I will not be subjected to such base behavior, he said before dropping off to sleep.
In the dead of night, he woke to find Kagome's side of the bed empty.
Kagome cried herself to sleep after Sesshoumaru's cruel words. He thinks I'm beneath him? I can't believe this. After all this time, I thought he had actually changed. But it had only been something that the jewel had told her, she thought as she sobbed into her pillow. Those weren't MY words...
She had just drifted off to sleep when Yuki's voice drifted softly into her her head.
'Kagome,' he said. 'He's upset you. Please, come to me and I will make your hurt go away.'
But he loves me, she thought to him as she woke little by little. He loves me.
'If he loved you, would he have said those harsh words to you, little one? You are NOT beneath him, Kagome.'
Yuki...
'Come to me, koishii. I will treat you far better than he could.'
Kagome woke, her body glowing, her heart beating in time to the rhythm of the Shikon no Tama that was being drawn by Yuki. 'He calls...I must go to him...'
She slipped out of bed softly, silently, and left the room. Kagome wore nothing except her filmy white nightgown. It brushed the stairs behind her as she descended the staircase and headed out to the gardens.
She didn't stop herself, even if she could. He called and she had to answer. It was the will of the Shikon no Tama. No wonder Sesshoumaru's marks couldn't stay imprinted in her flesh. He had not passed the test of the jewel in order to mark her. Despite the fact that he loved her, he still did not look on her as his equal. To him, she was his property and nothing more. She thought that if Kouga had marked her, it WOULD stay. For Kouga desired her more than anything in this world, treated her gently and loved her with his entire being.
Yuki was waiting for her, his body glowing that gentle blue she had begun to love so much. Without a second thought, she fell into his arms and wept. He held her close, smiling. The jewel was working to his advantage. He had conveniently forgotten to tell Kagome that the Shikon wouldn't allow a potential mate to mark her unless that man, or youkai, passed the test.
The test was designed to bring out the biggest flaw in a miko's potential mate, so the miko could see what her lover was really like and decide if she really wanted that in a mate. In Sesshoumaru's case, his arrogance and hatred for ningens were his main problems. Sure, he had tried to fight it and disguise it, but deep down, the prejudice was still there.
Now it was showing its ugly face to Kagome.
Besides, the jewel already knew how Sesshoumaru treated Kagome when she was his mate. It was only protecting its protector from further damage, originally wreaked by the taiyoukai. It would not be so lenient with Sesshoumaru this time around. When he had marked her the first time, the jewel did not reside within her, so it could not protect her. But now, it was a different story.
Yuki picked Kagome's frail figure up and held her in his arms. He knew Sesshoumaru would discover her absence soon enough. He carried her out of the garden and to his waiting motorcycle. If Sesshoumaru wanted his woman back, he would have to prove that he truly deserved her and treated her as his equal.
He put her on his bike and sat behind her, holding her to him. Then he started the engine and they roared away into the night.
