Chapter 47: Romantic Nights Galore

Kaori got out of the spring to find no one in their room. She dressed into her pyjamas and crawled into bed. She hoped Sesshomaru would return and sleep with her. She hated sleeping alone, but she knew he hadn't left the palace; his shirt was still around. Yes, he had gone shirtless before, but she knew he wouldn't go outside shirtless without her.

She sighed one last time, closing her eyes. Oh, if Sesshomaru was there...

Sesshomaru was returning to his room. Walking down the hallway, it was silent, even for him. It was late, yes, but he hated silence. At least earlier he could hear the servants chatting. But now it was nothing. No voices, no footsteps. His, yes, but it was like he was alone. He hated being alone.

He sped up his pace and entered his room, closing the door behind him. He found Kaori turned over on the bed, her back to the door. And him. He sighed as quietly as possible and crawled into bed next to her. Their backs were to each other, and Sesshomaru didn't want to touch her and have her have a bad dream about Naraku. He sighed and closed his eyes. He needed to get some sleep or he wouldn't be able to talk to Kaori civilized tomorrow.

"Sesshomaru?" A quiet voice asked. He felt movement behind him. Turning around, he saw Kaori rubbing her eyes as she turned to see him.

"You need to sleep. Just close your eyes and sleep, all right?" Sesshomaru told Kaori, turning so he didn't face her. He felt more movement and looked to see Kaori sitting up.

"Are you mad at me?" Kaori asked.

"No, just go to sleep," Sesshomaru said, his back to her still.

"You are, aren't you? I knew this would happen," Kaori mumbled to herself and shuffled out of bed. Sesshomaru sat up and watched Kaori get a robe on and open the door.

"Where are you going?" Sesshomaru asked.

"Out," was her simple response before she closed the door behind her.

Sesshomaru leaped from his bed, throwing the sheets off him in a rush. Rushing after Kaori, he saw her turn a corner and roll her eyes.

"Kaori, wait," Sesshomaru whispered harshly. She halted at the corner and nearly had Sesshomaru fall on top of her.

"Look, I just want to be alone, like you did. So I'm going for a walk, if you don't mind," Kaori whispered briskly and walked away from Sesshomaru. He caught her arm quickly.

"It's the middle of the night. Do it in the morning, ok? When you can see where you are walking," Sesshomaru said and tugged her arm towards their room. "Just come back to bed and sleep, or rest."

"Sesshomaru release me at once or else," Kaori ordered. She was not in the mood to be arguing with Sesshomaru.

"You can't do a thing," Sesshomaru snapped, stepping up to her body. Both glared at each other, but Sesshomaru released her arm and she turned away. Walking away, he could hear her whispering some names for him. He let a small growl loose before turning and returning back to the room. He could go for a walk, so she could. Just if she wasn't back soon, whether she liked it or not, he was going out looking for her.

He slammed the door closed and swore in his room as quietly as possible. Why could Kaori be so odd? She hadn't been explaining a thing to him. Yes, he understood earlier today, with the images of Naraku instead of him, but just walking out was a little extreme.

He kicked a box nearby and watched Kaori's jewellery fall out. The thing that made his eyes go wide was her five pieces of jewellery, with the five pearls, also tumbled out. He fell to his knees and picked up the one with the black pearl on it. She was out there with no protection!

He was out of his room in seconds, following Kaori's scent as fast as a speeding bullet. He burst through the doors and stopped. The chill in the air rippled across his bare chest, but he didn't care. He needed to find Kaori!

He ran down the path of the garden. He had just noticed Kaori decided to go walking in a garden. He slowed his pace. The walls were huge, so no danger could enter. But then he remembered any demon can get through anything, if they are determined, and rushed after Kaori. He halted at the corner of the palace wall. She was just there, around the corner and wasn't moving. He peeked his head around the corner and saw Kaori trailing her finger in the fountain. Her hair was on one side, hanging off her shoulder and almost in the water. Her head suddenly jot up and she turned, looking at Sesshomaru. She didn't glare, but she didn't smile. It was more sadness in her eyes than anything else and that worried Sesshomaru.

He calmly walked out of his hiding spot and started walking towards Kaori. Almost halfway there, her head turned back to the water in the fountain and she let her finger trail in it again.

"Are you all right?" Sesshomaru asked, reaching Kaori's side. He sat down at the edge of the fountain as well and watched her finger. He then heard a sob and his head jolted up to look at her face. Her hair hid it. "Talk to me Kaori."

"Do you know how it feels to fear your own love? To not want him to touch you, but yet his touch is all you desire?" Kaori sobbed, her head raising to look at him. Tears ran down her cheeks. She tilted her face back down and sobbed a little bit more. "Sometimes it's fine. No memories of that bastard surface. But with other times, I can't even see your face when I close my eyes. I feel his nasty fingers and claws instead of your soft and loving ones. Sesshomaru, this is a nightmare for me!"

She leaned into him and he could only rub her back. He didn't know what she was going through. He had hoped any memories of Naraku had disappeared. He hated that Kaori was upset, that she couldn't be able to enjoy his touches.

"Sesshomaru, we're finally alone, and in a palace that really don't mind any sounds that come from our room. But we can't do anything, we can't enjoy the company. We can barely take a fucking bath!" Kaori snapped. He took a chance and pushed her away, cupping her cheek. She looked up to him with red eyes. "I hate this!"

"Yeah, me too. I have to suffer too. I despise that bastard. He had no right to ruin your life, doing those nasty things. I can't even touch you without resurfacing bad memories. I wouldn't want to push you, or that might lead you to be pushed too far and away. I would never want that. I never want to see you cry. I never want you to hate your life," Sesshomaru said, caressing her cheek. She sniffed and wiped her eyes roughly. "I've tried to be soft and gentle. And I would be rough, but you've never asked for it... Yet. But I just want your happiness. And when you cry, it hurts me. And I just want to rip the heart out of the person who makes you cry. I would love to march over to Naraku and torture him as he has tortured us. But things aren't that simple. Things are more complicated than that. We have a child together and reputations. But Kaori, if there is anything I can do, anything to help, just tell me. Talk to me. Just ask. I'll never decline. If I don't understand, or need some help, I'll have to ask, but I'll always do my best to make you happy. Because, Kaori, your happiness makes me happy. And I feel devastated when you cry."

Kaori sniffed once and looked up at him. His amber eyes shined with love. True, pure love. She let a smirk show and she saw him smile. "If I want something, will you try it? You might not understand, but I'll help you through it. Will you?" Kaori asked.

"What is it?" Sesshomaru asked.

"Wet and, um, wild?" Kaori asked, a blush creeping across her cheeks. She was pulled to his chest and felt his hot breath on her ear, sending shivers down her spine. She placed her hands on his bare chest and closed her eyes, resting her head on his chest.

"Anything. I might just understand that one, but if there is anything you want in particular, I'll try. And not just in the bedroom, Kaori. If you want me to bring you a specific ice cream from your time to cheer you up, I will. But tonight," Sesshomaru whispered into her ear with a smile, pulling Kaori closer, "one thing at a time."

Kaori smiled and was lifted off the ground, carried to their room. She teased, played and nearly screamed the entire night away, and the next day, didn't wake up until noon.

When noon rolled around, Kaori's eyes fluttered open, and then shut closed. She was blinded by the bright light and turned over, covering her head with the covers.

"Hey, sleepy-head, you need to get up," Sesshomaru's voice said into her ear, sending shivers down her spine. She grunted at him and felt his hand caress her bare, lower back. "Come on, we need to get up. Or we'll be swimming in here."

"What are you talking about?" Kaori asked, turning over.

"Uh, your heat," Sesshomaru said, sitting up. His entire chest was stained with blood and Kaori had to laugh. She had completely forgotten about her heat until the end of the night, but it had brought the best part. She remembered how many times she had screamed in the time of fifteen minutes.

Kaori turned over and ran her fingertips over his chest. A pain hit her lower back and she groaned and then sighed.

"A little bit sore?" Sesshomaru teased. He stroked her hair and smiled down at her.

"An understatement. I think a have a boulder on my back," Kaori groaned, struggling to sit up. Sesshomaru helped until she was up right and Kaori leaned her head on his shoulder. "I now know what the 'wild' part means."

"Hey, if you weren't in your heat, you most likely wouldn't be sore," Sesshomaru said, tilting so he could place a kiss on her lips. She complied and kissed back, but then relaxed on his shoulder.

"Yeah, and if you weren't demon, I wouldn't be so sore," Kaori sighed.

"Well at least the servants know we are now active," Kaori commented, which brought Sesshomaru to raise his eyebrow.

"No, now they know you're active," Sesshomaru said, getting out of bed. He got an angry grunt from Kaori, but he ignored it.

"You howled twice," Kaori told him, crossing her arms.

"Lies," Sesshomaru quickly responded, looking for something to wear. Kaori shook her head and offered a suggestion.

"How about a bath?" Kaori asked. "We're both covered in blood, so a bath would be nice."

"Except ours needs to be cleaned. Remember the 'wet' part?" Sesshomaru asked, finally finding his pants under the bed. He looked at Kaori suspiciously, but she just smiled.

"We got active last night, remember? You probably kicked them under there," Kaori said, shrugging her shoulders.

"Yeah, just like your panties found their way on the mirror," Sesshomaru commented. Kaori looked at the mirror to find the truth.

"Take them off!" Kaori yelled. He smiled, but removed them with a claw.

"Look, I'm going to bring you up something to eat, then go train. Will you be staying in here all day?" Sesshomaru asked, getting his shirt on and sitting on the bed next to Kaori's legs.

Kaori let her fingers run down his arm. "You could be my breakfast," Kaori said in a way that nearly made shivers go down Sesshomaru's spine.

"We had our fun last night. Maybe later," Sesshomaru said, giving a kiss to Kaori. But she kept him locked with her mischievous tongue. He broke away reluctantly and looked at her with some sympathy. "Later."

Kaori pouted, but Sesshomaru had turned his back and started walking out the door. He paused before closing it and glanced inside. "Also, get your jewellery back on. We wouldn't want a serious injury, now would we?"

Kaori smiled, simply waved him off and laid back down. Oh, last night was a night to remember.

Kaori pried her eyes from her book to see Sesshomaru come in after his training. He was drenched in sweat, which was almost a first for Sesshomaru. He sat down next to Kaori's legs again, but this time he ran his fingertips down them.

"Why are you all sweaty?" Kaori asked curiously.

"I couldn't get you off my mind the entire time," Sesshomaru said in a husky tone. He looked up to Kaori and discarded the towel around his neck.

Kaori smiled, placing the book aside and taking his chin into her hand. "Well they fixed the spring. But do we really want to waste it now?" Kaori asked.

Kaori didn't get an answer, but Sesshomaru nearly gave her a concussion pushing her back with his kiss. His fangs were enlarged, somewhat turning Kaori on. She moaned and broke away, caressing his neck while she averted her gaze from his eyes to his lips.

"Look, I really am not in the mood. Just, can we do this later? I mean, perhaps tonight. I'm just a little preoccupied," Kaori said.

"By what?" Sesshomaru growled, more over the delay than anger at her.

"Cramps are killing, so just later, ok?" Kaori said, placing a delicate kiss on his lips. He responded with just the right amount of passion and Kaori smiled. "Thank you for understanding."

"Just, could I have an article of your clothing?" Sesshomaru asked, his voice still husky.

"The panties are still at the dresser," Kaori said with a smile. He smiled back, kissed her once more and left her side. She saw him bend over and pick it up and then disappear into the spring. She couldn't help but smile when she heard him sigh. Grabbing her book off the night table, she resumed reading. Perhaps later that night, if Sesshomaru wasn't tired.

"Get dressed, now," Sesshomaru ordered, slamming the door behind him. Kaori had dinner early and was just finishing the book when she heard Sesshomaru swing the door open.

"What is up?" Kaori asked, laying the book down on the bed and getting out of bed.

"Just get dressed. Nicely, if you don't mind. I'll see you later," Sesshomaru said, pulling his usual outfit out of the closet and leaving the room with more mysteries than before. Kaori still stood there, blinking with some shock, but also confusion. She got her rose kimono back out and the rose pin.

She quickly dressed into it, and placed the pin perfectly in her hair. She just had to add some red lipstick, making her lips as luscious as ever. She smiled into the mirror, blew a kiss to her reflection and sat carefully on the bed. Why would Sesshomaru tell her to dress up when he was going to be seeing her later?

Kaori slipped her red heels on just as Mie entered the bedroom. She seemed very dressy, but she still looked a little under-graded. A plain pink one replaced her ripped kimono and she was wearing sandals instead of walking barefoot. Kaori smiled at her, but the girl didn't seem in such a good mood.

"Follow me, please Lady Kaori," Mie said, never making eye contact with Kaori. Kaori raised, a little confused about this girl's behaviour. She followed her outside and Mie stopped. "Just stay here. Someone will come to escort you further."

"Mie, where am I going?" Kaori asked, lightly touching the girl's arm.

"You will soon know. But I must go now," Mie said in a hurry, running back into the palace.

"Princess Kaori, I propose," a male said calmly, galloping into view. He wore some regal clothing, but still it seemed under-graded as well.

"That's me," Kaori said, looking up to the man. He made eye contact, but Kaori didn't exactly have the time to keep it.

"Please, climb on board," the male said, climbing off the horse. He offered Kaori his hand, but Kaori was fine on her own. Plus, she wasn't going to touch a stranger's hand. She was awkward because of the kimono, and told herself to hurt Sesshomaru for keeping it so secretive. "Please relax, Madame. This is not to be worry-some."

'How am I not supposed to worry when I have no clue where the hell I'm going?' Kaori thought to herself, but forced a smile to the male and was lead into the forest.

All the branches seemed to be cut so that none touched her, even on the horse. She could barely see a thing, and was happy she was being lead somewhere instead of finding this place on her own.

She saw a figure up ahead. The horse stopped and the figure slightly turned.

"Leave," the person said. Hey, it was Sesshomaru!

Kaori was ready to talk, but the man left quickly back into the forest. Sesshomaru turned completely and walked over to Kaori, helping her down. She held his arms, even on the ground, looking up to him with pure confusion.

"Where are we?" Kaori asked, looking around.

"Just come. I wanted to show you this," Sesshomaru said, taking her hand and leading her. His smile was sweet and caring, so Kaori just had to follow. But her questions were still surrounding her.

Sesshomaru stopped at the edge of the forestry and led Kaori's hand farther.

"Go ahead," Sesshomaru said with a smile. She looked at him weary, but pushed branches away and stepped into the place.

She was shocked. It was beautiful! The weeping willow off to the side and a bench right under it looked so sweet. The small stream running nearby was a nice touch, but she could only imagine it more exquisite in light. She turned around to look at Sesshomaru as he stepped through the trees.

"Do you like it?" Sesshomaru asked. "I stumbled upon it, I guess you could say, during training. Material dummies get boring after a while, especially if you blow up most of them."

"Sesshomaru, it's nice," Kaori said, looking back at it. But more questions resurfaced. Why would he want to show her this at night instead of the morning? Why had he shown her this?

She felt soft fingers touch her sides. "You see that bench?" Sesshomaru asked in a whisper into her ear. She nodded. "I wanted to see you on it, tonight."

"Do you mean-" Kaori asked, turning to look at him and he nodded. His expression only meant one thing; he was so in the mood.

"We can wash in the stream after we're done and the weeping willow might give us some protection. And plus, it's not like we've never done it outside before," Sesshomaru said with a smile. Kaori's smile faded and she turned her head away, hanging it. His smile faded as well. "What is it?"

"Yeah, we have done it outside before. But not after... You know... I really don't want the possibilities of peeping eyes, if you might say. Sesshomaru, he has his ways to watch us. He has-" Kaori started to explain, but Sesshomaru kissed her neck. She sighed. "What are you doing?"

"Trying to get your mind off that bastard. Tonight is our night. Our night to, I guess you can say, explore. Explore our desires, pleasures, bodies. Our night, no one else's. And plus, wouldn't I notice someone nearby?" Sesshomaru said, leaving small kisses on her neck.

She sighed again and stepped away from him. From his touches and kisses. She couldn't stand there and let him explore her and try to get her in the mood when she really wasn't. She didn't mind inside there room, but as she said, Naraku had his ways. Kaori inhaled quickly. Was it possible for Naraku to be watching them all their times in their room?

"Kaori?" Sesshomaru asked, stepping towards her.

"You always say you'll understand. You always say that. But you don't understand this time," Kaori snapped. She turned on her heel to face him. "Explain to me why you couldn't smell Naraku all over me when you saw me? Why you couldn't sense his presence from the village or smell him in the area? He has his ways, Sesshomaru. He can change his scent. He can hide it somehow. He could be standing in the shadows right now, hidden to your nose!"

Sesshomaru sighed, but he knew Kaori had a point. He hadn't smelt Naraku on her. It was one of the reasons he didn't understand. He hadn't sense Naraku, he hadn't even smelt a single scent of Naraku for miles. He sighed again and stepped towards Kaori, placing his hands on her waist.

"I guess you have a point. But if he can see us, if he can watch us without our knowledge, do you not think he's watched us before? In our room? Before he took his chances to... touch you?" Sesshomaru asked, keeping his voice low so that he didn't upset Kaori. But tears streamed down her face as she fell into him.

"I know! I know, I know, I know!" Kaori sobbed. Sesshomaru sighed, closed his eyes and rubbed her back. He was hoping for a tearless night, but it looked like that wasn't going to be happening. He just wanted a quiet, alone night with Kaori. A romantic one. But one can only hope.

"You want to go to the palace?" Sesshomaru asked, opening his eyes when Kaori pushed away. She shook her head no.

"It's bad enough he has touched me, and watched me even. I don't want to lead him back to somewhere I like to be. I rather runs to the ends of the earth than let him follow me home," Kaori spat. Sesshomaru didn't understand. Her house in her time was their home. He saw Kaori's hands slightly spark and he stepped away. "How stupid could you be to think that!"

"Kaori?" Sesshomaru asked, taking another step backwards.

"Why don't I just kill you where you stand? Explain that to me?" Kaori asked. Sesshomaru felt happiness in the air and that started to frighten him. What was going on? Why would Kaori want to kill him?

Kaori suddenly turned and shot a strong blast of lightening that way. None hit the trees, confusing Sesshomaru to great lengths.

"I missed him," Kaori sighed, collapsing to her knees.

"Missed who?" Sesshomaru asked out loud.

"Who do you think?" Kaori spat. Sesshomaru kneeled in front of Kaori, still confused. "Naraku."

Sesshomaru couldn't believe it. She had known that bastard was there? Is that who she had tried to shoot? Then why was she saying she was going to kill him?

"I really didn't mean to scare you. I knew he was there. That bastard," Kaori hissed. "Gosh, why are things so complicated?"

Sesshomaru sighed and closed his eyes. Kaori looked up to him. He seemed so distressed, so stressed. She cupped his cheek and caressed it, hoping for some response. But he only opened his eyes to her concerned ones.

"We'll do something else if you want. Training, reading, games. We don't have to do as planned," Sesshomaru said in a small voice. He turned his head away. He was hoping not to get used to not getting his way, but it seemed he had to. He felt more touches along his body and looked at Kaori to find her closer to him. Her eyes were just staring up into his. "What is it?"

Kaori smiled and leaped to her feet. She looked down at him, a smile across her face. "Get up," Kaori commanded in a happy tone. Sesshomaru didn't understand and furrowed his eyebrows. She rolled her eyes and sprinted into the forest. Sesshomaru jumped to his feet and sped off after her.

She dodged trees and bushes, but she tripped over a root, falling flat on her face. She spit out some grass and felt someone helping her to her feet. She spit a few more times and smiled weakly. "Things really don't go according to plan for us," Kaori sighed. Sesshomaru shook his head and backed Kaori up until she felt something hard behind her. She didn't have to look; she knew she was against a tree.

"Quiet. That run worked up an appetite," Sesshomaru said, taking Kaori's wrists into each hand and moving in on Kaori. He was slow and delicate, kissing her neck and nibbling. Kaori's head tilted every few moments and she had to moan, especially when his head, and only his head travelled lower. He used his nose to move the kimono a little and his nose snuggled into her chest, rubbing against and between her breasts. She giggled and let her head tilt back and rest like that. She closed her eyes to enjoy the treatment even more. "Enjoying your little treatment?" Sesshomaru asked, moving his head back up to her face. She grunted and got a kiss. "Let's move elsewhere, all right?"

"Oh, really? I really was hoping for different position for once," Kaori whined playfully and saw Sesshomaru raise an eyebrow. His hands released her wrists and she wrapped her arms around his neck. Her bottom was lifted and she wrapped her legs around him. "Guess what?"

Sesshomaru nodded for her to answer and she smiled playfully.

"Somehow, I knew we were going to do something like this. And I didn't wear anything other than this kimono. Another reason is because you took my only pair of panties and haven't returned them yet," Kaori said playfully, resting her head on the tree.

"What, did you think I was just going to take you here? No, I'm not finished yet. Hold on tight," Sesshomaru said, a mischievous smile across his face. Kaori brought her body closer to his, only to get a grunt, but then he jumped to a sturdy tree branch. She looked nervously around as she was laid carefully on the branch.

"Uh, I really don't like it up her," Kaori said, looking down at the ground. He took her chin and brought it to look at him.

"You won't be thinking about that in two minutes. I hope you scream your lungs out," Sesshomaru said, lifting her onto his lap. She smiled and started caressing and licking his neck.

"Really, why is that?" Kaori asked.

"Because I'm not letting you down until you scream my name," Sesshomaru said. Kaori shrugged and Sesshomaru moved so he could look at her, "at least ten times."

"Ten times? I barely scream three times," Kaori said a little panicky.

"Well, I guess we're going to be up here for a long, long time. Hope you trust me," Sesshomaru said husky, pushing Kaori against the trunk of the tree. "Ready?"

"You'll start whether I am or not," Kaori sighed and screamed as he ravished her body like never before. In ten minutes, she had screamed twice. "Oh, Sesshomaru. That hurts."

"Good or bad," Sesshomaru asked huskily. She smiled at him.

"What do you think?" Kaori asked, stroking some hair near his ears. "Please, continue."

That's all he needed and just before the sun rose, Kaori's goal was accomplished; her tenth scream echoed through the nearby villages, even injuring Sesshomaru ears a little.

His head tilted back to rest on the trunk. Somehow, they got switched around and now Kaori was leaning back into his chest.

"Oh my fucking lord," Kaori panted, closing her eyes. "I got no damn sleep."

"Yeah, well, I hope you are up for more," Sesshomaru said into her ear. She turned slightly to look at him with a questioning look. "The stream will be cold, so you'll need my warmth. And I'm not satisfied yet."

Kaori sighed and turned her head to look straight. "How long will it take until you're satisfied?"

"Perhaps twenty-four hours, dear. I bet you'll be sleeping that long after this," Sesshomaru said into her ear with a smile.

"I'll have to stay in bed for that long!" Kaori snapped.

Sesshomaru just chuckled and kissed her ear, calming her. "How about that bath?"

"Will you be softer this time?" Kaori asked in a whisper.

"Why, was I injuring you?" Sesshomaru asked a little worried.

"No, but I'm a little, um, dry and it'll be slightly hurtful if you go as rough as you were," Kaori said in a whisper. He smiled.

"Anything for you."