Sesshoumaru did not realize that the gold-winged Angel had risen until he felt the Angel's hand on his shoulder. The other hung limp from his impact on the ground. "My name's Souta. You must be the Sesshoumaru Kagome's always talking about," he said with a pained grin. "Hey, make sure you take good care of my sister, will you? She's the only one I got."
Sister? Sesshoumaru could only nod. Souta then retreated to take care of his injuries, and Sesshoumaru reentered the fray.
Soon, though, Sesshoumaru grew tired of the drawn-out fighting, and slaughtered his way towards one of the still open gates. As if knowing his intentions, the bears often targeted him.
"Sesshoumaru!"
His blade was locked with that of another when he heard the shout. He raised his head to see the two bat youkai diving towards him with claws extended. Sesshoumaru cursed himself. He should have suspected a trap when the bear engaged in a sword fighting duel rather than just trying to kill him.
He tried to pull his blade free, but by the time he killed the bear, he knew the bats would be on top of him. He looked up, and began to attempt to dodge, but found his vision was filled with blue.
Sesshoumaru knew her capable of defeating the two enemies, until he saw her injured arm hanging uselessly at her side. Too late.
One bat screeched as it was impaled on Kagome's sword. She released it to grab her other. As she drew the second blade she slashed the stomach of the second bat, but she was unable to block his attack. Sharp claws raked from shoulder to shoulder, dangerously close to her throat.
As Kagome fell, she twisted away. The bat made a grab for her wings, but met his end on Sesshoumaru's sword.
Sesshoumaru was instantly at her side. She lay unconscious and bled heavily not only from the four jagged cuts across her chest, but from the wound in her arm as well. The scratches had ripped her shirt, and beneath the material and blood he noticed a metal chain that had also been severed. Gently, he pulled the chain from beneath her clothes, and his eyes widened. On the necklace was his ring.
He nearly started when a hand rested against his cheek. His eyes moved to see Kagome's now open ones.
She had raised her uninjured arm to caress his markings with her fingers. "I'm glad to see you safe." As if sensing his worry, she added, "I'll be fine."
He wanted to scold her for her recklessness. He wanted to hide her away where she could never be harmed again. He wanted to hold her to him and never let go.
He wanted to tell her that he loved her.
But before he could, he heard his second call to him. Looking up, he noticed the sinking sun and their armies falling back. The bats had the advantage with their superior night vision, better than all the others combined. "Lord Sesshoumaru, we can't hold them!" If they did not pull back their troops, they would surely lose.
Sesshoumaru stood, carefully picking Kagome up with him, mindful of his armor and her wings. He met the eyes of his father, Lord Yukio, and Kouga across the battlefield, and a silent agreement was reached. They temporarily retreated.
Satu was the first to approach him. "Thank you, Lord Sesshoumaru, but Kagome does not require your help," he stated gruffly. "You may let her down, now."
Sesshoumaru's only response was to narrow his eyes.
"Sesshoumaru, let go of the girl. She is intended for Kouga. He will take care of her." Katsuro motioned for Kouga to step forward.
Sesshoumaru tightened his grip slightly. But his attention was diverted from the men before him when Kagome laid a comforting hand on his arm.
"Let me down, Sesshoumaru," she requested quietly. Reluctantly, he complied.
Despite the blood loss, she forced herself to stand straight and tall. "I can take care of myself. And I don't give a damn what you have to say, Father, you will not be the one to decide my future. Who I mate is my choice, and I will not be mating Kouga." Her eyes remained hard, but her tone softened as she turned to address the wolf prince. "I am sorry, Kouga, but I do not love you, and I will not be forced into a union with you."
Kouga merely looked at her for a moment before nodding in respect to her decision, much to her surprise.
Kagome offered him a shy, grateful smile before walking away.
Sesshoumaru bit back a triumphant grin at Kagome's words, and the stunned looks upon the faces of the elder Lords, as well as Kagome's father. Kagome was unattached now, and free to become his mate. And as far as Sesshoumaru was concerned, he was free to be hers.
He watched with concern as she bolstered herself against her pain and weariness before presumably heading for her tent to heal. He saw Sango approach with a look of horror as she noticed Kagome's wounds. Sango spoke words inaudible to Sesshoumaru, but Kagome shook her head and waved Sango away with a tired smile before continuing onward. Sango watched her go with anxious eyes.
Sesshoumaru was required to attend a meeting of battle strategies for the fight to resume at first light. After, however, he slipped away and tracked down Kagome's whereabouts.
He entered her tent without announcing himself, only to find her asleep on top of a few furs undoubtedly provided by the wolves. She had dressed her wounds herself, and had not taken much care in doing so.
Tenderly, he ran the knuckles of his hands over the smooth planes of her cheeks, and her eyes instantly flew open in surprise. Her gaze softened when she realized who had woken her.
"Allow me to tend to your wounds. You did a rather careless job," he teased.
As he expected, she huffed indignantly. "Wrapping bandages with one arm is not easy I'll have you know."
He smirked. "Which is why I am here to help."
"I can take care of myself," she repeated, though not as harshly as before.
Sesshoumaru's humor fled. "Indeed. But I am only offering you assistance, and I wish you would accept." He interpreted her silence as acquiescence and kneeled to unwrap her poor excuse of a bandage job. She sat up to accommodate him.
She stiffened in pain as some of the already forming scabs were torn away from her arm. He held the appendage gently as he inspected the cut. Dog demons licked their own wounds because their saliva quickened the healing process. He saw no reason why it would not work for Kagome as well. He looked up, but her head was turned away from him. His eyes never leaving her face, he slowly ran his tongue over the still-bleeding gash. Her eyes widened in surprise as she turned to stare at him.
"Sesshoumaru, what are you doing?"
Her blood tasted invigorating on his tongue, but he pulled away to gauge the result of his attentions. He was pleased to find it healing before his eyes, and showed her. If possible, her eyes widened further. "A trait of inu youkai saliva," he explained.
She nodded in understanding, but then glanced nervously at the wrappings just above her breasts.
Sesshoumaru was inwardly perplexed. Did she not wish for him to touch her? Perhaps her feelings had dwindled because of the difficulties she had suffered through? No, he decided, for she still wore his ring, which he now noticed she twisted restlessly in her free hand.
When Sesshoumaru suddenly froze, Kagome followed his thoughtful gaze to the ring. Unexpectedly she spoke. "My father deduced that it was from you and ordered me to get rid of it. I had to hide it beneath my clothes. I wouldn't have taken it off otherwise," she added quickly, her voice dropping.
He placed his forehead against hers and released a low, reassuring growl.
"Kagome," he asked, "do you remember our deal?"
She nodded and blushed. "If you do not find someone you want to mate by the time you see four centuries, I agreed to be your mate."
His eyes, now the color of honey, bore into hers. "I have found someone."
Kagome began to pull away, but he held her still. "It's you, Kagome. I have desired to claim you as my life mate for too long."
"But," she protested feebly, "I thought…" What did she think? She loved Sesshoumaru, had dreamed of spending an eternity with him. She had harbored deep within her soul a selfish hope that he would not find a mate before his fourth century. He was offering to her her most profound longing, so why…
Why did she hesitate? Did she not believe he spoke truthfully? He refused to allow her to belong to any but himself. He leaned in so close that she felt his breath against her lips. "Kagome, be my mate."
She shivered in delight, and nodded. "I would love to be your mate, Sesshoumaru."
Elated with triumph, he licked the spot that would soon bare his mark, before moving to finish treating her injuries.
Sesshoumaru removed the remaining bandages as painlessly as possible. He lowered his head and ran his long, smooth tongue over the claw marks. Her gasp intoxicated him as much as the taste of her blood and smooth skin. Her scent surrounded him, heightening his feeling of rapture.
As the wounds healed, his tongue trailed up and his lips pressed against her throat, and then found hers. His claws tore away what remained of her shirt. Kagome groaned when he broke away and trailed light kisses down to stomach, lingering on her breasts. He stopped abruptly when he noticed the scar just above her hip before focusing his ministrations on the mark. He did not stop until the skin was devoid of any sign of having once been blemished.
Sesshoumaru smelled salt and looked up to see Kagome's shining eyes. Her eyelids hid her sapphire orbs from him and tears leaked from beneath the lashes to flow down her cheeks. "I'm sorry," she said. It was then that he realized the full weight of what that wound had meant.
He pulled her forcefully against his chest and stroked her wings soothingly. "Do not blame yourself, Kagome. If you must, know that I am just as responsible for what happened as you."
She shook her head against his shoulder. "It's not your fault—"
"—then neither is it yours," he asserted before she could condemn herself.
She took a shuddering breath and pulled away to meet his golden gaze. "She was beautiful," Kagome said with a wan smile.
"A girl," he stated breathlessly. Kagome nodded and swiped at her tears.
He kissed her, long and hard. "We'll just have to try again, then," he said seductively.
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