DISCLAIMER: Inuyasha and co. do not belong to me. I wish they did. But they don't.
SUMMARY: AU. Sesshoumaru/Kagome. Inspired by Inuyasha, the fanfic Yakuza, and various other stories.
With the death of Kagome's father, the Higurashi family found themselves quite tight with money. Souta, in his teen aged attempt to help, lies to go to Tokyo and gambles. However, he finds himself in trouble with a prominent underground figure in both human and youkai society. Kagome gets Souta out of the mess by promising to work the money back with Sesshoumaru... who is not nearly as nice or reasonable as Kagome considered humans to be. Maybe that's because he's not human.
WARNINGS: The following are warnings that I would like to state. If you worry about anything, just don't read the story.
Note the rating. Please. In order to write the story that I would, there are going to be some parts that are especially gory or explicitly... graphic. If this offends your sensibilities, don't read.
Author's Notes: Somebody asked me if I could email them when the next chappie comes out. The answer is yes, I'd love to. And so, now, you can get emails when new chappies get out, too. Just leave a review with your email and tell me that you'd like me to email you about updates.
There is not a different version, since I'm really too lazy to edit--and if you really don't want to read something skip it yourself, because I'm actually not very clear on the difference between the various ratings.
Also, I do apologize for the slowness of this chapter... but school has been getting harder and harder and this chapter is slightly longer than the rest. So... yeah.
by Ethidda
Written 11/2/04
Chapter Four
A part of Sesshoumaru was surprised at how angry he became when he couldn't feel where Kagome was. The other part of Sesshoumaru simply didn't care.
And both of those parts knew that another youkai had taken Kagome, because only youki could conceal Kagome's whereabouts from the blood bond and from Sesshoumaru.
Sesshoumaru continued walking and kept his face impassive; It wouldn't do for whoever still remained to notice the depth of his anger. And he could smell the youki of another youkai around him.
It was a she-youkai.
Sesshoumaru stopped in the street momentarily, and the she-youkai stopped, too.
Quietly, he growled, "Where is she?"
"I didn't take her," came the reply. Sesshoumaru could smell the disgusting smell of the she-youkai in heat. Even without his olfactory sense, he would have been able to see from the glitter in her eyes that she wanted him. This was a game he knew how to play well.
"Who took her?"
"Somebody or other. They looked familiar, but I can't seem to recall from where."
Sesshoumaru turned and walked away without another word.
But just as he knew she would, she ran after him, her breathing heavy even though he had been only walking. One of her hands with blood-red fingernails clasped at his arm, and made as if to tickle him. A coy smile was on her face, "But if you give me enough incentive..." She left off the end of the sentence meaningfully.
He headed across the street towards the hotel he owned under another name.
"Why do we have to stay here?" Inuyasha asked belligerently, when he and Souta arrived at Kohaku's house.
"Because," Souta answered for what seemed like the thousandth time, "neither you or me have the money to stay in a hotel."
"Keh, we wouldn't need to pay for Sesshoumaru's hotel."
"We don't need to pay for this either, and we don't lose the advantage of surprising him. Just be nice," Souta reiterated as he rung on the doorbell.
It had been about three years since Kohaku and her sister had moved away from the house next to the shrine. They had been orphaned when Kohaku was only six, right around the age when Souta had lost his father, too. Because of financial difficulties, Kohaku and his older sister Sango had moved next to the shrine.
Three years ago, Sango had successfully graduated and started working as a nurse in Tokyo. In order for her to commute easier, she had moved to Tokyo with Kohaku.
The door opened to a boy Souta's age and slightly shorter, and of a more slim build. Souta had always been slightly taller than Kohaku, for as long as he could remember, but Kohaku had always carried the kusari-gama, a sickle attached to a long metal chain, and the few times that Souta had caught Kohaku practicing it left no doubt in Souta's mind as to Kohaku's ability for self-defense.
The kusari-gama was on Kohaku's back now.
"Hi, Souta," Kohaku greeted after he recovered from his surprise. "Would you like to come in?"
"Sure, thanks." Souta reflected that he probably should have called in advance, but he really hadn't been thinking at that time--except that he needed to save Kagome from Moon's clutches.
Souta gestured at Inuyasha, "This is Inuyasha, and this is Kohaku, a childhood friend. We used to be neighbors."
Kohaku smiled politely. "Please sit. Do you want anything to drink?"
Souta threw himself down on the couch and Inuyasha sat down more carefully. "Just water's fine." When Inuyasha didn't say anything, Souta added, "for both of us."
Kohaku nodded and disappeared into the kitchen.
Souta would have thought that Kohaku would have opened up more, but he had become even more reticent than how Souta remembered him. Souta knew what the death of one parent can do to a child, but he felt that he had mostly recovered already, and had certainly been getting better over the years.
Kohaku came back carrying a tray with three glasses of water. He placed on glass in front of Souta and another in front of Inuyasha, whose ears twitched at that moment, and placed the third glass in front of himself before he took away the tray and seated himself across from Inuyasha and Souta.
Kohaku smiled slightly. "Is this just a social call?" He asked. "Or do you need a favor?"
Souta felt himself blush. "A favor," he answered truthfully. "Um... well..." Souta tried to find a good way of saying it, but there was no good way. He plunged ahead anyway. "To make a long story short, my sister is kinda in trouble, and we are here to help her, but we don't have a place to stay, so..."
"You can stay over here with my sister and me. My sister's not in anyway," Kohaku offered immediately.
Souta felt himself release a sigh of relief. "Thanks," he said.
"So who is she in trouble with?"
"This guy... called Moon..." Despite the many things that came to mind, Souta didn't really know how to describe him.
"Sesshoumaru," Inuyasha corrected, speaking for the first time. "I know him, and he's a fucking bustard."
"Sesshoumaru-sama?" a girl's voice came from the staircase that neither Souta nor Inuyasha had noticed earlier. "He's very nice. Rin loves Sesshoumaru-sama."
The girl entered the living room, wearing a pretty dress with floral patterns. "Rin," Kohaku introduced, "my girlfriend. Rin, this is Kohaku, an old friend and neighbor, and this is his acquaintance Inuyasha."
"I am more than an acquaintance," Inuyasha corrected. "I'm their old friend, too."
Kohaku ignored Inuyasha. He sat next to Rin on the couch and linked hands with her. "They are worried about their sister who is with Sesshoumaru," he explained the situation to Rin.
"Oh, Sesshoumaru-sama would never hurt another soul," Rin exclaimed. At Souta and Inuyasha's unbelieving expressions, she added, "but if you are still worried--which you have no reason to--I can arrange a meeting between you and him."
"Sesshoumaru is Rin's legal guardian," Kohaku explained.
Before Inuyasha could say anything demeaning, Souta answered quickly, "Sure, that'd be a great help."
"Keh," Inuyasha muttered anyway. "Whatever."
"Rin, they are going to stay overnight. I'm going to show them where they can stay."
"Okay," Rin said, and flashed a brief smile at the two guests before promptly leaving the living room again.
"This way," said Kohaku as he led them upstairs to their room. "You are going to have share a room because we only have two guest bedrooms and Rin is in one of them."
Kikyou could feel it.
The blood bond echoed loudly in her blood again, and she froze where she was for a full minute before she came back to reality. Thank goodness she was simply sitting on a bench. She couldn't imagine what she would have done if she was about to get on a bus or something.
She would have thought that after his betrayal and abandonment, the bond would have at least lessened if not disappeared altogether, but it seemed that when the ancient text said "for all eternity," it had meant "for all eternity" and not just when the two people harbored friendly feelings towards each other.
Kikyou almost worried about if even in her next life, without any memory of Inuyasha, she would still be able to feel the bond to him, and somehow feel as if they should be together.
Don't be absurd, she berated herself. It's simply the bond pulling us. It has nothing to do with what we actually think or feel.
But still, Kikyou could feel herself slipping into memories of a time that had once been, of when she had belonged and felt loved and cherished. Of memories of sharing apples of under cherry trees and strong arms that caught her falls. Of youthful blushes and embarrassed stutters. Of a time when the heart was filled with inexplicable joy and a more subtle sense of calm happiness.
But he had betrayed her. Abandoned her. One day he had been there and the next he was gone. All without a single word to her.
And she had stayed here all those years, almost as if she wanted to be around the shadow of his lingering ghost. As if some stupid part that she hadn't been able to quiet wished and waited for him to come back and to explain that it was all a misunderstanding and that he still and always had loved her.
Kikyou wondered if Inuyasha could feel the pull of the bond. And if it pulled as strongly on him and it did on her.
He probably didn't even know that he had a blood bond with her. It was one of the few things that she had done that had she had kept secret from him. It wasn't even as if she had done it on purpose. They had both been bleeding form the battle, and their blood had simply mixed.
No, he probably didn't feel it, being the obtuse man that he was, and she won't disturb him, since he probably didn't come to Tokyo to find her anyway. But the bond pulled at her and her curious shouted to be satisfied.
Kikyou made a concession to herself: She would see how Inuyasha's doing, but she wouldn't intrude on his life.
And with the blood bond, she knew she could find him in no time.
In the hotel room that Sesshoumaru had led Kagura to, he waited as she clicked shut the door. He saw the lust in her eyes as she let her eyes blatantly rove over his compact body.
"Tell me," he commanded quietly.
She looked up at him through obviously fake eyelashes that batted coquettishly. Her saccharine voice coy, she asked, "Why should I?"
He knew her type, with a fashionably skinny waist and a tousle of hair the color of the darkest midnight. She would be chased after by men begging like puppies. But Sesshoumaru felt no desire, even as he looked at her feverish red eyes, but he could smell her desire and knew what she wanted.
He took a small step towards her, backing her up against the wall. "Because I can give you what you want."
It was an invitation that she responded to instantly. Her red fingernail traced the centerline of his chest as it slid through his shirt. She shivered slightly as she moved onto her tiptoes to like his neck.
She got too close when she paused over his jugular. He didn't like his women that intimate. Or aggressive.
Without a word, his impassive expression unchanging, he pushed her away, turned her around, and slammed her into the wall. He pinned her down with his hands and crowded against her. Next to her ear, he asked in sotto voce, "Tell me." He gave a warning nip to her ear. "I know what you want and I can give it to you."
With an extended claw, Sesshoumaru raked the skin on her smooth back, drawing a crimson line from her right shoulder blade, and followed the curved contour of the artificial body down to her buttocks half way around. He let the toxins leak into his nails. The woman deserved it for trying to play with him.
Then he stopped, neither lifting his hand nor continuing with his exploration. He simply didn't move at all, except to ask her, "Tell me."
She closed her eyes, shielding him from the view of her dilated pupils. Her breathing was ragged and her expression one of intense pain... or pleasure. "Please," she panted softly. "Please."
Behind her, where she could not see, a cold, amused smile appeared on Sesshoumaru's face. His nails piercing her skin, he crushed her hips in his hand as he moved forward and in in one smooth stroke. His other hand was on her breast, kneading it and teasing it and bruising it.
"Tell me," he demanded again in a soft lover's murmur even as he started moving slowly. He could feel her muscles bunching up and that was when he chose to stop.
"Moon," Kagura pleaded, barely managing to get the syllable out. "Moon."
"You know. Tell me."
"Moon," Kagura pleaded again. When he remained still, she shouted uncharacteristically. "It's Kouga. Kouga. Now... please."
With a savage growl, Sesshoumaru bit on Kagura's shoulder, almost spraying blood. His hand drew a symmetrical line down the left side of her back before he started pumping into her again. It was mere seconds before she spent herself as Sesshoumaru forced himself to let go.
Kagura collapsed towards him, but he stepped back before they could touch again, and she ended up as a crumple on the floor.
Sesshoumaru wiped himself on his destroyed shirt and threw the shirt into the garbage. Then, he stepped over Kagura as he left the room.
And although Sesshoumaru was physically spent, he could still feel the frustration in him. His only relief was that Kagura--if she had any sense of self-preservation--would never bother him again. Even if the toxins in his nails didn't kill her, she would have scars where he drew blood. And if she was at all intelligent, she would remember where not to go when she searched for for her next episode of entertainment.
And all Sesshoumaru could feel was his unusual anger at Kouga.
Sesshoumaru knew Kouga, and had warned him before. This time, though, Kouga seriously encroached on Sesshoumaru's territory.
Kagome was his, Sesshoumaru thought tightly. She was his to hurt and to kill, and Kouga overstepped his bounds when he laid his hands on Kagome. Kouga, Sesshoumaru vowed, would pay whatever damage he did to Kagome in tenfold.
Sesshoumaru's movements were controlled and precise as he walked out of his hotel. An eerie red and yellow color that didn't quite mix completely burned in his eyes.
"You really shouldn't," Ginta told Hakkaku.
Kagome paused in her struggle against the rope that bound her to the pole that was in the middle of a very bare and dim basement. She supposed it was the haunt of this 'wolf prince' that the pair had mentioned continuously.
If it weren't for the disgusting gag that they had stuffed into her mouth, Kagome would have offered her own vehement response to what the pair were doing with her.
"So," Hakkaku shrugged. "It's not like we're killing her. We're just priming her up for the prince." He turned to the other men, all dressed in rags and laying hazardly on the floor. "What do you say to that, boys?"
One of those men--who didn't look very companionable--walked up to Kagome and wrapped a strand of her hair around his hand. He leered at her. "She looks delicioius."
Hakkaku nodded. "Don't you want to prime her up for the prince?"
The man's hand was surely going to leave bruises as he grabbed her chin forcefully. "Oh, yeah. She's a nice catch."
Much to Kagome's apprehension, the other men around the room seemed to be gravitating towards her. One of the men pulled at her new black t-shirt and the threads gave easily, leaving her in her bra.
"You don't need that," he man said negligently as he pulled the bra off of Kagome, too.
A third man had somehow relieved Kagome of her skirt, and was now palming at her bottom.
Kagome threw her head around, and would have screamed in a deafening pitch had she not been gagged. She had known that Tokyo was dangerous, and Sesshoumaru's club had, in truth, more than a little disgusted her righteous sense of morality, but this... this was beyond perverse... that was what Kagome thought only happened to people on the television.
Briefly, a detached part of Kagome wondered if her body would be on the news when it was found.
Kagome had a strong urge to close her eyes, but she was not going to let them abuse her passively. She forced strength into her legs as she kicked violently and with no direction or skill at all.
And even if she was to die--or if she would somehow survive this miraculously--she was going to come back and get them each individually until they wished they were in hell.
She ground her teeth and felt her jaw tightening against the wave of unconsciousness that promised to take her to a world without any feelings, where she could be dead and dumb to it all. But Kagome was a fighter.
And though she felt dirty and disgusting as they touched her everywhere, she refused to give up.
At least Ginta stood to the side, looking as if he had no idea what to do. So perhaps the world wasn't entirely dark even in the darkest recesses.
But even as Kagome fought to stay in the present and not let them do whatever they wanted with her, she could feel the bile rise from her stomach. In the next moment, the acidic contents that had just recently been in her stomach was spewed onto the man right in front of her.
"You bitch," he spat on her, backhanding her with a slap.
Kagome's eyes closed as her face jerked from the slap. Tears threatened from the sting of her cheek. She bit down hard on the gag to stop her tears.
In her shame and anger and fear, though, Kagome felt a strange sort of power well up from her anger from within her, almost overtaking all her other thoughts.
But just as Kagome felt that she could longer hold back the wave of impulsiveness--for she had no idea what she would do if she did give in to the recklessness--something wet and warm spattered against her cheek and the eyelids over her closed eyes.
If it weren't for the gag, Kagome's scream would have been piercing, but as it was, she only let out a shriek as she opened her eyes to the carnage in front of her.
Even in the dim basement, under the florescent lights, she could see the blood, dripping and seeping ominously. The man who had been in front of her--whom she had indeed wished death upon--was now dead. Kagome couldn't see where the head was anymore; It could have rolled into one of the dark corners, or judging by the pile of the dark... mush, it could simply have been crushed and sliced and thrown into what had been a man mere seconds earlier.
The room had become strangely silent, and the usually light humming of the florescent lights seemed unnaturally loud.
And in all the dim lighting and dark clothing and dirt-covered skin, Kagome, in a detached sort of way, saw a man who stood in front her with the mien of a lord, and whose very beauty made him like an angel.
His long, silver hair seemed to have barely settled, and the air current caught soft strands and swayed them slightly. His pale face and immaculate clothing were completely out of place, the brightness seemed to create a glow around him. Yet, his face had a hard set to it and could challenge--and probably win--any other man who was in the room.
And his eyes... his golden eyes glinted with a suppressed fury that came not at all from heaven.
Not a person moved a Sesshoumaru stepped forward towards Kagome. His padded footsteps echoed loudly off the bare walls.
He stopped in front of Kagome and with a single slash of his clawed hand, he cut her gag as well as the ropes that bound her to the pole.
Weak with shock and relief, Kagome felt her knees give out beneath her. But his arms caught her easily, effortlessly, and almost gently.
Sesshoumaru placed his other arm under Kagome's knees as he lifted her up. Without sparing a glance at any of the men that laid, strewn around the room, he walked straight toward the door. At the door, he left his only warning, "Be glad that you prince has not condoned his actions."
Then, he walked out, with Kagome in his hands, and started walking running back to his apartment--and hers for the period of time that she would be working for him. A slight spell insured that people wouldn't question them.
She was so light in his arms. And warm. But he hated how she quivered, even if the fear wasn't from him... especially if the fear wasn't from him. If it hadn't been so urgent to remove her from the scene and calm her down, Sesshoumaru would have gladly killed every single one of those pitiful wolves until the only thing left of them were splatters of blood.
But Kagome was more important. Sesshoumaru didn't want her... broken. He liked the spirit in her eyes, and he intended to harness that same spirit himself.
He would not let another break it.
As he ran near his apartment, he felt Kagome relax slowly within his arms. She trusted him, and Sesshoumaru couldn't refrain from smiling.
It was a sardonic smile, he reassured himself.
When finally he entered the room that was her room, he almost loathed to give up her up to the bed and return the his usual business.
But he was a rational man, and there was no purpose for him to remain there with her any longer.
Kagome stirred back to wakefulness as she felt the warmth that surrounded her starting to pull away. After everything that happened, she could hardly believe that she had actually dozed away, but Sesshoumaru's boa, which she still had no idea why he wore, was so soft and she had been tired and it had been too hard to resist.
Besides, after seeing his cold expression that had made the bad men become silent in terror, Kagome had, for some reason, become even more assured that she would never be hurt while he was around.
She thought wistfully that maybe he was that light even in the darkest of darkness.
But the warmth that surrounded her was leaving, and without even opening her eyes, Kagome tightened her hand on the thick folds of clothing. He gently placed a cool, smooth hand on top of hers, as if to pry her hand away.
Kagome took the opportunity to burrow deeper into his warmth. "Please," she whispered, half hoping that he would hear and half hoping that he wouldn't. "Please don't leave. I'll..." Kagome gulped. "I'll have nightmares if you leave me all alone here."
After a frozen moment, Sesshoumaru's hand squeezed hers almost imperceptibly. She felt the bed beside her dip before she snuggled closer to him. With Sesshoumaru there beside her, Kagome felt so safe, as if nothing would be able to hurt her.
I'm trying to weave more threads into the story... but I'm not sure if it's working.
Also, I need a beta reader who can tell me when something doesn't make sense, when I'm being inconsistent with myself/the anime, knows how to use the change tracking thing in Word, and have a turnaround time under 24 hrs. E-mail me or leave a review, please?
Oh, and review please?
Next up: Inuyasha and Kagome meet... Inuyasha and Kikyou meet... Inuyasha, what will you do?
Review?