First of all, before I begin the next chapter, I'd like to think all of those who've reviewed! It's meant a lot to me, and I humbly thank you for your support!
Parsnip – Don't worry, there's much more to come! And Naraku is an evil bastard, what can I say? I'm just trying to make him the epitome of evil Rin should be around 11 or 12 years old, I can't really say for sure, but she's small for her age.
Aeria-Liko – I am planning on getting Kagome used to her other senses, but vibrations is a great idea! The first chapter it's in, I'll be sure to give you credit for that idea!
Jenn. B. – I agree with you, it's kind of silly when people put them together right away. I don't think I'm going to draw it out as long as some people, but already Sesshoumaru has a reason to keep her around, and it'll just grow from there! Thanks for adding me to your favorites; that made my day!
Also thank you to all future reviewers, lol.
And now, on with the story!
center Chapter Four : Ambush /center
center Last timE /center
Letting a feral gleam shine out of his eyes, Sesshoumaru replied, "You're going to help me save Rin, and in doing so I will make sure you get the revenge you so desire."
center This timE /center
The next day, Sesshoumaru brought Kagome back to his castle. He had given her his kosode to protect her from the chill winter air. To Kagome, it was more of an annoyance, flapping constantly and getting twisted around her.
Kagome had seen his castle once before, a few years back. It was a busy place, servants rushing around and cleaning for their master, and Rin decorating everything reachable with a variety of colorful and fragrant flowers. Now, though she couldn't see it, she felt an emptiness equal to that of a downtrodden house, the longing that filled the air was almost tangible, the longing to be filled once more.
Sesshoumaru set her down in front of the door way, and said curtly, "Hold on to my tail. Who knows what might have made this their nest in my absence."
Kagome just nodded, and grasped his ever so soft and fluffy tail in one hand. She followed him as he quickly entered the castle, listening for anything other than their own footsteps. She felt a small wind blow past her, but dismissed it as a breeze through a window. 'This place is too quiet…' she thought, the silence causing a tense uneasiness to permeate through her.
"Watch out!" Came Sesshoumaru's voice suddenly, and was barely able to step aside as he rushed back behind her, the stench of his acid claws clinging to her nose like a disease. 'I never knew that it smelled so bad…' She thought, as she felt another, more intense wind blow by her. 'Now that isn't a normal breeze.'
Sending out her miko powers, an image of pure evil came to mind. A long twisted body, huge curved fangs ripping out of a blood red mouth and dripping a viscous ooze. All at once she saw it move, lithe body running along the wall, and rip past Sesshoumaru, claws entering his side and exiting in one smooth movement, rending it to shreds as a crimson spray spattered the walls.
Both the beings turned towards her, leaving Sesshoumaru panting heavily on the ground. She gasped, backing up down the hall in fear, her powers aiding her in evading the oncoming assault. 'They're just… toying with me…' Kagome thought, but then a sense of urgency took hold. 'If I don't beat them, then Sesshoumaru might die. I'll just have to show them never to mess with me!'
Kagome turned and began to run, letting her powers float like fog on the floor, singing her pursuers feet with every trailing step, effectively slowing down their progress. When they suddenly leaped in unison at her, she ducked down low to the ground, turned in one powerful movement and sent them flying painfully into the wall in front of them with tendrils of purifying energy.
They staggered to their feet, dark blood dripping down their limbs as they pressed themselves into the wall in fear. Kagome grinned, enjoying the new found feeling of complete dominance, and said in a calm, almost menacing voice, "I only have need for one…" And with a feral grin, she ran one of them through, turning it instantly to dust.
Circling the other's throat and claws with more of her power, she added, "If you don't cooperate, I won't have any use for you either."
The creature stared at her with wide frightened eyes, saying in a soft voice, "What do you want of me…?"
"My companion and I shall need some… information." Kagome said, and when she felt the creature nod frantically she walked back to Sesshoumaru, her prize dragging on the floor behind her.
Looking up, eyes tinged crimson, Sesshoumaru was surprised to see Kagome walking towards him, dragging one of the creatures behind her. Pulling himself up to a sitting position leaning heavily on the wall, one hand pressed firmly to his side. "Is the other one still lurking around here?" he asked, sniffing the air for any threat.
"I killed it, there is no need to worry. This one will tell us all we need to know, he knows what I'll do to him if he doesn't." Kagome said, staring at the creature to emphasize her words.
"Good, bring him here, I know exactly what to ask of him." Sesshoumaru said, an evil glint shining from his eyes.
Kagome nodded, and brought her captive out in front of her. The creature trembled visibly when it came face to face with the lord of the lands.
"My lord, we didn't mean anything by coming into your castle, honest!" It said in a last ditch effort to be spared from what punishment is coming to him.
Sesshoumaru growled out, "Don't lie to this Sesshoumaru, you filthy youkai. Tell me who exactly sent you, and where you are from, or else I'll have my companion here kick you around some more. I'm sure she could make your death much more painful than your friends."
Kagome let a satisfied smirk show when the creature gave a loud yelp, turning his head slowly to look her straight in the face. Yelping once more, he stuttered nervously, "We… uh, I mean my friend and I… We're assassins… I mean, he was an assassin, but he's dead now, as you know… But yea, we're assassins!"
He started to babble on about the daily life of an assassin, from the way they wake up in the morning during training (Having a dagger thrown at their head, to be honest. That's how they weed out the best XD) to the nasty power drinks they have to drink. Tapping his sharp claws on the marble floor and an eyebrow ticking in annoyance, Sesshoumaru finally snapped, wrapping his hand around the creatures neck, effectively shutting off his voice and feeling the purified energy swirl unpleasantly around it. "You will stop that incessant babble! This Sesshoumaru isn't interested in the life of an assassin, so stop talking about it. Who sent you here, and why?"
Gulping, the creature took a calming breath and said, "My lord, Nobu-sama, of the Southern Lands sent my companion and I here after he heard that your lands were in turmoil. When we arrived here, there was no one in sight, and the place was already a disaster, so we decided to stick around for a while to see if you'll eventually turn up."
"Are you and Nobu enemies, Sesshoumaru?" Asked Kagome.
"We were once allies, though some misfortunate events tore us apart many years ago. He's been set on revenge ever since, it doesn't surprise me that he took such an open opportunity such as this to try to take my lands." Sesshoumaru replied, closing his eyes briefly in pain. "What is your name, assassin?"
"I am called Taioset, my lord. If you spare this lowly one's life, I swear that I will do whatever I can to aid you."
"Why would you go against your own lord?" Kagome inquired.
"I have never liked my lord Nobu-sama, and he has never liked me. I am the son of his sister, who he killed when she was to inherit the Southern lands instead of him. He sent me here, knowing that I would never survive. I am sure I can be of much use to you if you spare me."
Pondering it over, feeling no malicious aura, Kagome asked, "What do you think, Sesshoumaru? Should we keep him around?"
Nodding, Sesshoumaru replied, "He will be of great use to us, but just to be sure, put him in the dungeons tonight. I must go and attend to my wounds at the moment, the dungeons are down the hallway and down the stairwell to the left." He got up slowly and walked off, crimson slowly staining his pants as he walked.
Kagome looked at the demon and grinned, saying, "Welcome to the team, Taioset."
Nodding his head, he said, "It will be an honor to serve under the command of a powerful one such as you, my lady."
Kagome laughed, and said, "Don't call me that, my name is Kagome. Please, follow me." After releasing Taioset, she started to walk down the hallway, feeling her way carefully for shards of glass or objects that could cause her to trip. "Taioset, if you'd please go first to the stairwell…" Kagome directed, not noticing the questioning gaze the demon was giving her.
"Do you have trouble seeing in the dark, Kagome-san?" Taioset asked, opening the large oaken doorway, stale air rushing into the hallway along with a cloud of dust.
Coughing slightly, Kagome said softly, "It's not that I can't see in the dark, I can't see period."
Eyes widening in surprise, Taioset bowed once more, "Then I am even more honored to serve you, Kagome-san. If one who cannot see can still defeat two of my kind, they are true warriors."
Smiling at the complement, Kagome said, "Let's get going, I'll find you some blankets and get you food if you are hungry." They walked down the stairs, Taioset helping when she stumbled down a particularly steep step.
Opening one of the barred doors, Taioset went inside and stood quietly as Kagome closed and locked it. "I'll be back with blankets soon. Are you hungry?"
Taioset shook his head and said, "Not at the moment, I ate earlier today."
Kagome nodded, and went out of the dungeons, searching for a linen closet of some sort. After stumbling around for a while, not encountering her other companion, she finally found what she was looking for, and searched for the softest of the blankets to take to her newfound companion. She finally found one, and seriously considered keeping it for herself, but her honor and niceness were against her, so she finally gave in and found her way back to the dungeons.
"Here you go!" Kagome said, handing the blanket over to Taioset, who gingerly took it from her.
"Uhm… Thanks…" He said, holding the revolting thing in his hands. The blanket was the brightest pink he had ever seen, with bright yellow and green rabbits and frogs bouncing all over it.
"What's wrong with it?" Kagome frowned, sensing his uneasiness.
"Oh, it's nothing, nothing at all! You should go and find Sesshoumaru-sama, if you haven't already. Tell him that I'm sorry for causing him such an injury." Taioset said, balling the blanket up and throwing it silently in the corner. "Take care, Kagome-sama."
Smiling happily, Kagome exited the dungeon, searching for the demon lord. Wandering down a dark corridor, the faint smell of iron reached her nose, growing stronger until she reached the end, a door to her left emitting the revolting odor.
Gagging she entered, asking tentatively, "Sesshoumaru? Are you ok?"
A low moan reached her ears, and she rushed forwards, almost colliding with the body laying against the futon on the floor. "Sesshoumaru?" She asked once more, dropping to her knees and reaching forward with a trembling hand. The scent of blood was all around her, and she feared the worst had happened to her companion.
"Kagome…" The demon lord whispered, opening his eyes and looking at her, the scrawny miko who was once an enemy reaching towards him in concern. "I… I can't stop the bleeding… My body's not healing…"
Kagome felt her blood rushing, suddenly fearful for the demon lord. 'Why am I so afraid?' she thought, shaking her head. Trailing her hands down, she found that he had wrapped a cloth around his side, though from the sticky feeling she knew that her hands were now covered in his blood. "Do you have a needle in here, Sesshoumaru?"
Groaning, he asked, "What do you need a needle for?"
"I believe I can save you…" Kagome said, trying to meet his gaze with her own to make him believe her.
"There's a sewing needle… in the drawer… on the wall behind you…" Sesshoumaru said, sensing her urgency and feeling darkness ebb at his conciousness.
Kagome quickly got up and rushed over to the wall, feet sticking to the floor in places where the demon had bled puddles onto the floor, and felt frantically around for the drawer. Her searching hands finally felt the edge of the handle, and pulled, opening it up and quickly felt around for the needle.
"Ow!" She said as she found it, pulling her hand out and then pulling the needle out of her thumb, sucking on it. She crossed the room once more, falling to her knees in front of Sesshoumaru.
"I'm going to need a strand of your hair…" She said, reaching for it.
"I'll do it…" He said sharply, and tugged out a strand of long silver hair, handing it to her. "Are you sure you can do this?" He asked, implying that she might have difficulty with her handicap.
"You won't be able to." She replied, threading the needle using years of practice as her guide. "You're already on the brink of unconsciousness. This will hurt a little, but please be still."
She gingerly unwrapped the cloth from around his side, feeling the surge of blood as it came away from the wound. 'It's not time to think of how gross this is, just focus on saving him!' She felt for the sides of the wound, thanking the gods that it was a clean cut. She felt for any internal breakages, and feeling none, she pinched the sides of it together, and started to sew it together. She paused momentarily as Sesshoumaru growled in pain, but continued, going as fast as possible without messing up. As she stitched the last stitch, she felt his body slacken.
Panicking, she yelled, "Sesshoumaru!" and felt his neck for a pulse, relaxing when the faint yet steady beat of his heart was felt against her fingers. Placing her hand in front of his mouth, she made sure he was still breathing. 'He must have just passed out…' She said, and stood up, wiping her hands on the shirt she was wearing. Placing her hands under his arms, she pulled him up onto the futon behind her, checking the wound in case it was torn. Feeling none, she exited the room, finding the kitchen quickly and filling a bucket with water and grabbing a cloth before she hurried back to the demon lord.
She entered the room quietly, quickly striding over to where Sesshoumaru was sprawled on the bed. She knelt by him, and dipped the cloth into the bucket of water. As gently as she could, she wiped him down, cool hands trailing down towards his wound. After she finished, she dried him off with the sheet on the futon, and sighed, checking his wound once more.
All of a sudden, the days events caught up with her, making her head swim. The image of a Sesshoumaru in peaceful slumber appeared before her just as darkness swallowed her up.
End Chapter Four!
There might be some mistakes in this one, I've had slight writers block XX. It should be gone now, but please let me know what I might have done wrong!
Read and Review please!
Also, many might be wondering why I didn't have Sesshoumaru's wound heal, and you'll learn about it in the next chapter, it'll have something to do with Taioset!
Lots of love,
Albalannae
Update on 4/11/05:
Finally changed the small detail having to do with Sesshoumaru's shirt, thanks to mewl neko () I found out that it's called a "kosode".
