Enchanted Orbs
Chapter 34 The Gentle General
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Kagome and Mokuso were on their way back to the clearing holding the lord and generals, and they almost made it, too. Right as the girls were about to crack the tree line of the clearing, Kagome tensed and spun to face a red blur, but she didn't have time to brace herself.
The speed at which Shippo hurled himself at Kagome was unavoidable, and the collision sent her tumbling backwards
The youkai in the clearing heard their approach and sensed the fast approach of the kit, but they didn't expect the miko to tumble into their sight.
Kagome's arms came up to catch him as she skidded and rolled across the ground before three powerful demons.
Coughing and laughing, Kagome cuddled the kitsune into her chest. "Ouch, Shippo, take it easy." She chuckled, but her laughter stopped when she felt the moisture soaking through her shirt.
"Shippo? Shippo, what's wrong? Are you alright?"
Teary green eyes pleaded with her. "Kagome, are you leaving again?"
A sad smile tried to offer comfort to the child. "I have to, Shippo. I'm sorry." She said gently as she ran her fingers through his fur in attempt to soothe him.
Shippo climbed up her shirt and clung to her neck. "But I don't want you to leave me. Can I come with you?"
"No, Shippo, it is too dangerous. I don't want to risk the chance that you could get hurt." Kagome pulled him away from her neck and held him in front of her so she could look into his eyes. "I love you, and if anything ever happened to you, I could never forgive myself." She spoke softly before pulling him to her face so she could nuzzle his check against hers.
He sniffled. "I love you, too." His determination wavered briefly at her confession, but his face set again as he spouted, "But Inuyasha and Kikyou get to go." The child protested.
Kagome's jaw dropped. "What?!" Her head turned to Sesshoumaru.
He lifted his nose a slight bit higher in the air, and she could have sworn she saw him begin to roll his eyes before the lids snapped shut.
She quickly recovered. "Shippo, listen to me. I miss you so much when I'm gone. It really pains me to leave you, but I would rather you be safe than be with me but in danger." She squeezed him a bit for emphasis. Tears were threatening her eyes, but she refused to cry in front of all those watching them. Closing her eyes, she gained determination in her voice.
"Now Shippo, you're going to act like my big boy, and you are going to stay here and protect the village with Sango and Miroku. You're not going to cry any more are you?" She asked as her voice cracked.
"No, ma'am." Shippo sniffed.
Kagome smiled. "That's my big boy. You're growing up so fast." She whispered the last part as she pulled him into a fierce hug.
She desperately wished the child she had come to love as her own could have more of a childhood, but he was brutally ripped from such opportunity with the death of his parents.
"Hey Shippo," She said with hope in her voice. "Would you like to stay with my family while I'm gone?" She paused as she watched his face lengthen with awe. "I found a way that I can bring you through the well. You can stay and play with my brother and Rin." Kagome smiled broadly.
"Could I?" His little eyes lit up with hope.
She nodded enthusiastically.
Shippo's face dropped the hope and pouted as he crossed his arms over his chest. "Well, I guess, but I still don't like you leaving me." He tried not to smile as he protested.
"Oh you!" Kagome squealed as she began to tickle the kit.
As Kagome and Shippo were interacting, the youkai surrounding them were watching intently. Shouron couldn't help but smile while watching Kagome tickle the kitsune.
Mokuso was somewhat shocked. Kagome was, above all else, a miko, and mikos are usually not pleasant to youkai in the slightest. But she knew that Kagome was a very kind person from her willingness to heal her, her insisted offer help to clean the dirty kimono, and their conversations at the river, but it was still strange to her.
Here was a powerful priestess treating a demon child as she would her own, and the kit treated her was his mother. She had never heard of such a thing, but she, too, couldn't help the smile that conquered her face.
'Kagome truly is filled with good, heart and soul.' Mokuso thought as the miko easily brought the distraught kit to a fit of giggles with her tickle attack.
Aishi was torn in his reaction, he was, at first, disgusted that such a blatant display of affections was thrown in his face. It was extremely disrespectful to him and those surrounding him. The blatant disregard the girl had towards the others was screaming at him. The first general still had problems accepting a priestess as one of Sesshoumaru's entourage.
There were extreme prejudices in this time, and the most intense was that between youkai and miko. But because his lord accepted her, he was forced to do so also. But this? This was just too much. A miko and youkai acting as though they were family? He was more than uncomfortable watching the scene.
But, then again, he couldn't help it. It was as if his eyes weren't able to leave the scene. Silver eyes widened obviously when he overheard Kagome confess her love of the demon child. After that statement, he wasn't as disgusted. He was still uncomfortable, but the warm scene did not leave him unaffected.
Try as he might, he could not bring himself to hate the priestess as he had, not when she seemed so incapable of hating.
Sesshoumaru tried not to watch the scene. Ever since the rooftop confession, strange feelings had overtaken him. There was a drive, a need to be in constant awareness of her. Images of her were branded across his memories, and he could not escape them. The bizarre part was he didn't want to run from them.
He liked seeing her through the mental window. The ocean depths of her eyes told him everything he had ever wished to know about her. Her face was always lined with expression, even when she tried to hide it. Everything was perfect, except the confusion.
Why? Why was she frequenting his mind? He had spent much time with her, yes, but this had never happened with anyone else. Sesshoumaru didn't like being confused, so he just convinced himself to rejoice in their impending separation.
The time apart would relieve him of the confusion and the images. But what if he didn't want the images to stop?
Sesshoumaru looked up when he heard her confess her love to the kit. He was immediately unhappy with that, but, again, he didn't know why. There was an unmistakable pang in his chest when the kit openly returned her statement.
That's what it was. The unhappiness was caused by the memory of a similar confession; a confession he never answered which, in turn, caused her pain.
He quickly turned his back on the conversation as another image flooded his mind. Her eyes, her tormented eyes, were terrified at his laughter. He had not laughed in centuries, and he thought everyone incapable of forcing him into such a bold emotion. But she had been able to rip the sound from his throat without even trying.
And his most acute show of emotion, which he had thought she would be ecstatic to see, she was forced into agony by it. Her pain was so intense that her surroundings faded; the danger disappeared.
And she fell. She would have died had he been anyone else.
This tormented him; those eyes, the tears, her trembling, everything about the scene replayed in his mind. He could feel the wind atop the building; he could smell the pollution of her world. And he could see her step away from him again.
All over again.
Aishi watched as Kagome carried the kit towards the well and heard her promise to return shortly. But as he watched, his attention was ripped away when he smelled the spilled blood of his lord.
Both generals snapped their focus to Sesshoumaru, surprised to see him clenching his fists at his sides so forcefully that blood streamed to the ground. His eyes were closed tightly, and he seemed to be fighting something.
"Milord, is there something I can do for you?" Shouron spoke up quickly.
Sesshoumaru instantly returned to reality with his general's voice. His stoic personality returned full force as he answered. "No. Prepare for departure; your group leaves at dawn." The taiyoukai turned and walked into the surrounding foliage.
"Curious." Shouron spoke softly to the other general.
"Indeed." Aishi returned.
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The sun was setting, and Aishi had taken a reprieve from those around him. Only about a mile from the village, there was a lake, and he found this place soothing.
The general rested against a tree as he watched the sun begin to dip behind the shadowy hills in the distance. The splash of light created by the dusk turned the entire lake orange, and he could hear the last songs of birds in the trees surrounding him.
He was troubled, though one could not tell from his outward appearance, so he chose this serene setting to ease him.
His lord was acting strangely, and this bothered him. He had noticed something off about him ever since his return from the well, but today was brutal evidence. This afternoon confirmed everything.
Sesshoumaru was oblivious to everything around him; he seemed distraught about something. His lord, a tower of strength and power, was in such turmoil that he had been torn from his environment.
And this was not a safe habit to continue for one such as him, not when there were many who wanted him dead.
Aishi was pulled from his thoughts when he felt another's approach. He sighed when he realized who it was.
'What is she doing here?' He wondered as Mokuso drew closer.
The scout approached the lake she had sought, but was surprised to see Aishi already there. She halted her steps. He turned to look at her.
"Forgive me if I am interrupting; I'll just go to the other side of the lake." She spoke softly.
But Aishi called out to her before she walked away. "That is unnecessary. You may stay if you wish."
Mokuso wasn't troubled as was the man beside her, but she did wish to clear her mind before nightfall. Tomorrow would begin a trying journey, and she wished to prepare herself mentally for the trip.
She wanted to meditate, so she knew Aishi wouldn't be bothered. She nodded and walked over to the shore.
Aishi watched as she walked past him to the water's edge. She kneeled gracefully then bowed, forehead to the sand, to the lake. After that was done, he saw her bow her head slightly and her arms came to rest in her lap.
The general was pleased that the woman wasn't going to distract him from his thoughts. If she only came to meditate, he figured she wouldn't be a distraction at all.
But he was wrong.
His thoughts left Sesshoumaru as his eyes again traveled to the youkai before him. She was incredibly annoying to him. She made him restless in ways he couldn't describe, but if one asked him why, he could not give you a reason.
From his position, he could see the profile of her face, and he couldn't help but admire her beauty. She had a thin, lithe form that was more than curvaceous enough to attract male attention. Her skin looked so soft, the pale ivory of it gleaming in the ever fading sunlight.
And her neck, he couldn't pull his eyes from the tender flesh. Her hair was graciously pulled away from it, with only a few fresh tendrils of burgundy embracing the back. The flaming red wisps of hair that traced her face hung down just low enough to caress the sides of her neck like a lover's kiss.
Some males had an attraction to legs, some to breasts, and yet others to the ass, but Aishi's favorite part of a woman was her neck. Why? Because it was a bridge, the connection between the mind and heart; a woman would give her body to a man, but her mind was always her own.
The mind was never understood by any but her; the heart was given away, and her neck was a connection between the two, a way of understanding without entering her mind. And, to Aishi, understanding without stealing someone's thoughts was what he wished for in a female.
That's the reason he had forced some in the past. With force, he knew exactly what they were thinking without having to steal it from them. But the woman kneeling in front of him, she was different.
He wanted to know what she was feeling and thinking without force or theft. He wanted to know because she let him know through words, actions, expressions.
And that annoyed the hell out of him. Why her? Why now? This was probably the last time he would see her again. She was to leave for the Eastern Lands at dawn, and upon reaching her homeland, she would stay and not return.
Aishi was an aggressive youkai. He had gotten what he wanted in life by knowing what he sought and fighting for it. But this?
This was different. Aishi wanted her to want this as much as he was beginning to realize that he did. Now he just had to convince her that she did want this which might be difficult. He had seen no signs that she was attracted to him, and he hadn't been extremely kind to her, either.
He inwardly groaned. This might be much harder than he wanted it to be.
Mokuso emerged from her meditation only to see that the sun had disappeared completely. Only the faintest trace of pink tinged the sky above the hills. Orange and purple clouds danced above the fading rose trail of the sun.
She breathed in deeply, drawing strength from nature. She rose slowly, knowing that her feet would probably reject the idea of standing after kneeling for so long.
Mokuso was right, her knees were stiff and her ankles pained her as she began to walk back towards the village. She was surprised to see that Aishi was still resting against his tree. He was in the exact same spot as when she had begun her trance; it seemed as if he hadn't moved at all.
Aishi watched her rise and stiffly walk over to him.
"I wanted to wish you well in your travels, Aishi. I did enjoy the time we spent together." She spoke softly, still fearing the possibility of disturbing him, but she wanted to bid him farewell. This would be her last chance.
The general said nothing, but he didn't meet her gaze either. He was staring intently at her kimono, specifically, the material covering her ankles.
"Do they bother you?" He asked as he finally met her gaze.
Mokuso's eyes widened at him. He was suddenly somewhat caring, and he seemed to be able to sense her pain, however slight. She smiled pleasantly. "Positions of meditation are not meant to be comfortable. If they were, one could not tell if they were properly exercising their mind." She spoke the wisdom taught to her from childhood.
"Do they bother you?" Aishi repeated his question, holding her eyes.
She dropped her head. "Yes. But it will pass."
"Sit." The general's voice commanded softly.
Her eyes met his again, only this time questioning laced their depths. Aishi marveled at her eyes. He had never really noticed them before, but they were unique. No other youkai he had known possessed eyes of her color.
Where his were silver, hers were a deep, shining bronze.
Mokuso kneeled before him; she winced as her weight again settled on her ankles. Aishi shook his head at her.
"I said sit, not kneel. Why do you hurt yourself more?" His voice was firm.
"I thought it was your wish." Mokuso stated as she sat back against a tree. Her knees were pulled up close to her chest.
Aishi could believe her words. She thought he wished her harm. Had he really been that harsh with her? He meant to fix that now. He did not want her to continue those thoughts. She would be shown what his wish was; he just hoped she would read it properly.
He did not want to have to vocalize anything. His words usually weren't kind; he had always had problems verbalizing anything. Action was what he was best at, and he would do little else for fear of offending her.
Mokuso watched as he crawled towards her. He stopped at her feet and carefully grasped on of her ankles. Her leg was pulled across his lap so that her foot hung off the edge of his leg.
She gasped as two hands slid underneath the material of her kimono. Sharp talons tingled over the skin of her feet, and she fought to keep her eyes open. Firm but gentle pressure flowed across the joint as his fingers adeptly worked the ache from between her bones.
"You don't need to do this." She whispered as she watched the movement of his hands, entranced.
"I know," was his only response.
"Why?" Her voice held a tremor.
"Because I want to." His eyes fell on her face.
Her eyes were mostly closed, only a small gap in her lids remained open. That gap paralleled one between two parted lips, and her head was tilted backwards against the bark of the tree she leaned against.
Mokuso vaguely registered Aishi's hands returning her foot to its prior position and take the other across his legs.
He watched her; she seemed to be in a daze of some sort. Her face was flushed, and her breathing was shallower, panting through her parted lips.
Her second leg was carefully returned to the ground, and her eyes fluttered open. Minerals clashed as copper met silver, and she watched as he drew closer to her never losing her gaze.
When he stopped mere centimeters away, his eyes flicked down to her lips. "May I?" He asked, not knowing why he felt the need to ask her permission. Instinct told him to, so he did.
"Please." She whispered as she felt the release of his breath across her skin.
His lips pressed against hers in an act so gentle, she couldn't believe it was General Aishi of the Western Forces. She had heard stories of his amazing skills and his vicious strength, but here, with her, none of those words described him.
A clawed hand came up to slide across her jaw like a feather pulled across her flesh. His fingers rested on her neck behind her ear, tilting her head back.
Aishi had never felt this need. It was not a physical lust, but an undeniable pull from within his chest. He barely touched her, fearing she would pull away with any show of force.
He pulled back and waited for her reaction, but his hand remained on the soft silk of her cheek. He searched her face for any indication of what she was feeling, but soon found himself staring into her eyes again.
They pulled him, drew him in.
And soon they were sharing another.
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Jaken huffed. His lord never treated him with any respect, so why should he expect any now? But still this was just too far.
Staying near the human village?
That was just a cruel place to leave his loyal retainer. And he was completely confused as well. Lord Sesshoumaru just barged into the fortress one day and tells them its time to leave.
They brought no provisions at all, not even a spare change of clothes for the girl. Not that he cared for her comfort, he just didn't want to have to smell her human stench when her kimono was dirty from their journey.
And now? Now, Rin was nowhere to be seen. Sesshoumaru had not gone looking for her, so it is assumed that Jaken wasn't the one keeping her this time.
He didn't know how to take this. On one hand, he was happy that he didn't have to attempt to keep up with her for his lord's absence, but on the other, it meant the trust of keeping his ward safe was given to someone else.
Jaken did not know how to react. But it really didn't matter anyways; its not like he could change his master's mind.
That would be the ultimate death request.
Now he and Ah-Un were stuck in the forest near the filthy human nest of a village. They were to wait here until Lord Sesshoumaru or his generals returned with more orders.
For now his order was to take care of the pack beast, and to guard some silly well in his absence. Why would the great and powerful taiyoukai want a dry well guarded?
He huffed. It just didn't make any sense whatsoever.
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Ok, couple of notes:: So I lied about review responses. For some reason, this server (f f net) won't let me access anyone's email address. So I have NO WAY of getting in touch with you unless you left me an email address, but even if you did...eheh, my mailbox got too full as I tried to keep all the unanswered reviews until I could answer them...and now their all gone because my email program ate them all. SO SORRY!! So the moral of this message is: if you want me to respond to your review (please! I like doing it) you need to leave me a way of getting in touch with you.
BUT: what I was going to tell all you lovely people who reviewed was the reason for my absence...what, two weeks ago? Well, I don't know how many of you know this, but I'm a senior in college. My entire weekend was spent filling out applications to graduate schools. No big just MY ENTIRE FUTURE CAREER on the line. Now I'm anxiously awaiting their replies. Yeah, NERVE RACKING, so I'm a bit tense.
Couple of comments on last chapter: I had two very brilliant people remind me of the laws of physics. Yes, I know that no matter the weight or mass of an object, everything falls at the same speed. So my "because of his greater weight" statement of the "falling" chapter was completely false. Yeah, yeah, I know. I'm a science major, so I've had to take several physics courses. My excuse for the "falsity," I have none. I disliked physics, and my selective memory decided to allow me to forget the laws of gravity. ::grumble:: 9.8 m/ss my ass. Sorry, still tense. So lets just play pretend for a moment shall we? I didn't really describe his positioning, but Sess is diving head first. Kagome however was falling with her back facing the ground. That's how I envisioned it, I just didn't describe it well. Because of wind resistance, he would have been able to catch her.
Love you all.
