Authors Notes: I am…Amazingly happy. My new boyfriend left a voicemail at 2 in the morning saying the first things he wanted me to hear today was that I was beautiful and he cared about me and he couldn't wait to see me tonight. Jesus. It's like a friggin fairy tale. It's. Wow. Yeah. I'll shut up now.
Disclaimer:I don't own Inu Yasha, but I own my oc's and the plot.
Falls On Me
Chapter 23
Sesshoumaru stared at the unconscious girl with horror. She had passed out with the force of her climax and now slept silently, peacefully. A smile graced her flushed, sweaty face.
Had they just rutted together? Sesshoumaru felt an impending sense of doom closing in. He couldn't dishonor her now. He was not that sort of man. But how? WHY? She had flung a simple challenge in his face and he had gone mad, drowning himself in her scent and letting everything go. And worst of all she had said she had loved him. In those moments before she had given her body up to the forces that took her. Took them both if he was honest with himself.
How had this happened? He kept trying to remember the exact second he lost control, but couldn't. Everything seemed tinted in lust that consumed him. Even now he felt himself stirring at that thought of her body moving against his as she moaned his name with wanton abandon.
And he hadn't even been enough in his mind to put up a sound barrier. Everyone in the castle had probably heard them!
Groaning, Sesshoumaru quickly donned his clothing and tried to make Kagome look somewhat decent, though her ripped under robe (had he done that?) made it difficult. Quickly he walked to her room and gently lay her down on the bed. She looked so happy, so peaceful. He envied her for a moment. To be so content in the pleasure that even in sleep she smiled. With another sigh he left the room and closed the door behind him. As he was walking towards his study he encountered Okibi, who after a moment was wearing the biggest smile he had ever seen on the woman.
"Anything interesting happen today Sesshoumaru?" She asked sweetly. He was not in the mood for sweetness and light.
"Lady Kagome and I are to be wed. We will have an Ainu ceremony, as my mother and father did," He told her.
"That will prove difficult seeing as Inu Taisho is no longer among the living," Okibi began.
"Jinchi will substitute," He began.
"And where will she stay until she accepts?" Okibi began.
"She will be moved to the shrine to stay. As soon as possible, I do not want any delays," Sesshoumaru barked as he began to stride past Okibi.
Okibi looked at his retreating back and worried her lips a little. He seemed to angry. What had happened to make him so full of rage? He had just made love to a woman he greatly desired! Most men would be basking in the afterglow!
Okibi quickly hurried in the opposite direction to Kagome's room and opened the doors. The young girl was just beginning to stir from the lethargy caused by such…Enthusiasm.
"Kagome, we have to talk, now," Okibi said quickly as she shut the door behind her. Kagome rubbed her eyes and stretched languidly, a sort of satisfied smile still playing about her features despite the worried tone of the phoenix youkai.
"Yes?" Kagome asked as Okibi took a seat on the futon.
"You're getting married."
"WHAT?" Kagome shouted at the top of her lungs.
"I should think that's what you wanted," Okibi said as she rubbed her temples, trying to get the ringing from that one shout to stop.
"I didn't get sweet words. I didn't get cuddling. I didn't even get a PROPOSAL!" Kagome shouted.
"You're having an Ainu wedding," Okibi began.
"There won't be a wedding at all. Not until he admits his feelings!" Kagome insisted.
"Kagome you have to accept that that may not happen for some time. For now you have to be content. Do you even realize what the Ainu ceremony is?" Okibi asked.
"No," Kagome began doubtfully.
"First of all, you must move some of your clothing into the shrine near here. From now until the wedding you must stay there," Okibi began.
"What?" Kagome gasped.
"Let me finish!" Okibi snapped. Kagome quieted and looked at the youkai expectantly.
"You will make a bowl of rice, most likely tomorrow, eat half of it, give him the other half. Accept the things he gives you and come back when he tells you," Okibi said.
"And then we'll get married?" Kagome asked.
Okibi looked at the woman in front of her dumbly. Didn't the girl realize that was the ceremony. It was very simple, yes, but the inu youkai clan had done it for generations, even she had had an Ainu ceremony. It was the most basic way of a male saying he brought to his bride protection, strength, and food.
"Yes," Okibi said with a sigh. Kagome also sighed and began to gather a few kimono from a chest.
"No, I'll have some brought to the shrine. For now, rest. I must go speak with Jinchi and Sesshoumaru," Okibi told her. Kagome nodded and lay her head back down on the pillow and Okibi exited the room.
Sesshoumaru looked at the door in shock. Once again Okibi had managed to destroy the door to his study, and it now reeked of his and Kagome's scents, as well as the heady scent of mating. However, Okibi seemed to ignore these facts as she stalked towards him, her eyes red and full of fire.
"My lady?" He asked coldly.
"You didn't even mention the idea of marriage to her did you?" Okibi snapped.
"No. I assume it is what she wanted so she would be fine with me arranging for it," He began.
"Oh no you don't, you're not getting off the hook that easily!" Okibi screeched. "She has no idea what an Ainu wedding entails. She doesn't know that the ceremony takes three or four days, or even that there is no priest to bless it!" Okibi shouted at him.
"What should it matter?" Sesshoumaru shrugged off her anger with cold indifference.
"She is a miko! For the sake of Ryuujin! Have you considered that perhaps she will not appreciate the fact that you overlooked that? Sesshoumaru you are as dense as a log! If you try this she will not agree," Okibi warned.
"She's right," A new voice said. Sesshoumaru glanced to Okibi's left and noticed Anei stood there, looking rather angry himself.
"I cannot believe you would act like this Sesshoumaru, when given one of the most wonderful women ever. You take too much for granted, just like your father," Anei said, then left the room.
"He's right you fool. Once I told your father that a treasure lay within his hands, but he mistook diamonds for coal, and in the end he regretted it, to the bitter end," Okibi ground out, trying to keep tears from her eyes. Inu Taisho had cared for the Lady Izayoi, but when he had realized what he had lost with Akari, he had thrown himself into battle after battle, until the very end.
"Now you hold a delicate emerald within your palm, yet you see nothing within it!" Okibi snapped and quickly fled the room before he could see or smell the tears that would soon be streaming down her face.
"So you're saying if I don't wish to accept his proposal then I don't eat any rice, don't accept any gifts?" Kagome asked Okibi, a serious look on her face.
"Yes."
"I'm between a rock and a hard place. I might be carrying his child. But I can't marry unless he loves me, unless he's at least willing to show he cares a little," Kagome sighed.
"You will force his hand if you refuse. If you give in now, I fear he may never see what a treasure you are, and I don't want to see another Lady of the Western Lands fading away. Not one so kind as you, so lively and wonderful. Kagome, you have to help him break the cycle," Okibi urged her.
"I know. I won't let it go on. It ends with me, I won't give in to the circumstances Okibi, I promise."
"Then on that note, want to make it a little more difficult for him?" Okibi asked.
"How?"
"Come with either Ferimaru or myself to our castles on the morrow, and he will have to travel far to come to you," Okibi giggled. "An Ainu ceremony would be much harder then."
"I don't think that would be such a good idea," Kagome began.
"Nothing worth it is ever really a good idea. Especially when playing with the temper of a male youkai. But I think this might actually do both of you some good. No matter what you decide, I will stay nearby," Okibi told her. Kagome nodded to the older youkai gratefully.
"I'll go with you then," Kagome told her.
"Then it's settled. We leave at dawn, with or without his lordship's consent," Okibi said the last with a giggle.
Sesshoumaru stared at the servant before him in disbelief. He had gone out to the shrine this morning only to find Kagome wasn't there, had not been there. What was worse, she was nowhere to be found in the castle, and according to this one servant, she was with Okibi. The phoenix youkai in turn, was on her way to the her home. The southern lands!
"You're sure of this?" Sesshoumaru growled. The servant didn't flinch one bit. Once upon a time his voice itself was enough to stir the fear of most of his servants. Now they seemed to be loosing that because of something. Or someone.
"I will be leaving soon, tell Anei that he is to-"
"But my lord, he is gone as well," The servant said with a hint of fear.
"Did he and Lady Kagome elope?" Sesshoumaru asked.
"Goodness no. He's her guard, he wouldn't leave her to any danger, no matter what, despite the fact the Lady Okibi's with her."
"I see. I will be leaving within the hour. I suppose Jinchi is still here?" The youkai lord asked with a raised brow.
"Yes m'lord."
"He is to make sure nothing happens in my absence, understood? Now go."
It had taken all of Mako's courage not to quail under the glaring of her lord, and she quickly rushed out, unknowingly being a balm to his bruised ego as she fled.
"Damn it. Now I have to go chasing after her. Well, they couldn't have gotten too far with the entourage of Okibi's."
Seven hours later he was cursing himself for his blind stupidity. Okibi and Kagome were plotting to drive him mad, that or provoke his temper to dangerous heights. Either way they were way ahead of the entourage, Okibi seemingly having taken a more direct route to her home. The entourage had looked more than a little scared when he had left them behind, growling and cursing under his breath.
"I hope he's not too angry," Kagome sighed as she settled into her room in Okibi's home. It was not as big as Sesshoumaru's, though by no means small either.
"Oh he'll get over it. All men do. I should know, I led my mate on a merry chase, one that lasted four weeks. You have nineteen days, and Sesshoumaru may be proud, but not quite as proud and arrogant as my Kasen. You'll meet him soon, he has been ruling in my absence. He's one of the few Pheonix youkai left that is not in hiding or seclusion. Soon we shall intermingle with the other youkai species. Most likely Ferimaru's children, as her features are close to mine. I sometimes see flashes of my grandchildren to be. Alas, my children are still young and arrogant, as are Ferimaru's. They do not yet think of mating, instead they wish to, what was it you said about me and the other council members drinking so much?" Okibi asked.
"Party hardy?" Kagome giggled.
"Yes, that sounds appropriate. Party hardy. You will meet some of my children over the next three weeks or so, depending on how long you stay. They tend to come and go without a word once they reach their fifties," Okibi sighed.
"How many children do you have?" Kagome asked.
"Seven."
Kagome looked at the woman open mouthed in shock.
"What? Too few? I suppose so, especially after so long with Kasen. But after the first few decades I stopped being able to give birth, it seemed to happen to several of the other phoenix youkai at the time too, all at once. I have often wondered if it is the Dragons way of exacting a price," Okibi sighed.
"What do you mean?" Kagome asked solemnly.
"It's a long story that takes place over centuries, but I can give you the short version. Once, many centuries ago, dragons and phoenixes ruled as equals. We were different sides of the coin so to speak. The dragons, they symbolized the male aspect, while the phoenixes were the female. Opposites yet kindred, you understand?" Okibi asked. Kagome nodded mutely.
"Well, youkai and man soon began to populate the earth. Soon however, man began to take over, and they began to hunt the dragons. The dragons, they decided to retreat to the kingdom of heaven, not dead, but merely watching over us and recording or doings. We phoenixes though, we didn't wish to leave earth, for we were not being hunted, yet anyways. So we, with all of our magic, lived on this plain. And soon the men began to hunt us for our meat and plumage, and for our eggs, which look to be solid gold, until we hatch. However they stay as eggs unless we keep them warm. A child that is never truly born, but eternally trapped within the shell."
"Our magic at the time was purely earthen in nature, we could only defend. Soon just defending was not enough, the men knew this, and took advantage of the fact. So we bonded ourselves to youkai with similar features, exchanging blood and becoming youkai ourselves. It was a desperate gamble to change our magic, and it worked. We were able to use not only defensive and offensive magic, we were physically strong. And we could use magic on the minds of youkai and man alike. But something happened to us with the exchange of blood as well. We did not lay eggs anymore. Instead we gave birth as most mammals do, some did not survive the giving birth.
"But something else. At one time, there were only male dragons and only female phoenixes. Males of our species were being born. I remember what a wonder it was for us to give birth to males. And soon the males grew, and since we could no longer reproduce without mating, we took the males as mates, and soon we were giving birth. But I think perhaps our change from pure celestial creatures of the gods angered the dragons, and they did something to keep us from reproducing. But we phoenix are immortal.
"However, we may, if we choose, die of a few things. We can give in and let our life force die. Then we return to heaven as celestial beings, but no longer able to reincarnate because of the taint of youkai blood we accepted into us during the bonding. It is sad, over time several of us were captured and tortured to the point we gave in and allowed ourselves to die. Mates of those who died, we can die of a broken heart too. I'm so happy Kasen has never been captured in battle. He has a reason for his pride, he is one of the best warriors I've ever seen. But if were to die, I know I would soon follow. Sometimes I fear the divine retribution from the dragons. I fear that someday they may take a most horrible revenge upon us for choosing to taint ourselves with the earthly instead of ascending to the heavens with them," Okibi said with a long, sad sigh.
"But they can't become truly angry, not for the fact you chose to stay on earth. From what I've read in my mythology books at school, you and the dragons might be opposites, and yes at times in the mythology you battle, but when it came down to it you two fought together against demons and such. And seeing as half my mythology book is a recording of events that are actually going on now, I guess it just might be right about this," Kagome told her dear friend in an earnest voice. Okibi looked at her oddly.
"What do you mean? We fight demons with the dragons. Do your books from the future speak of a time when the phoenixes and dragons will once again make an alliance?"
"In my mythology book, several times the phoenixes and dragons clash. But something happens, there is a battle where thousands of evil oni, lower youkai, but they join, almost like Naraku did, only worse. And even though man and youkai unite to fight, its not enough, not even your powers are enough, so in the legend the dragons, they descend from their place in the heavens. And correct me if I'm wrong, but their powers are naturally offensive, unlike yours were. And they join somehow with the phoenixes to defeat the monsters," Kagome finished. Okibi looked wistful, but sad at the same time.
"Once we were great friends with the dragons, despite the fact we were opposites of the coin. When the attacks first started, we tried to defend them, they tried to attack, but realized man was spreading too quickly. They still spoke with us often from the kingdom of heaven, almost like a guiding voice, a helpful hand at the back of our minds. But they cut off all contact with us, one by one as we bonded to the youkai in ancient blood rites they themselves had written down and given to us. The dragons, they were warriors, but they were also very wise in many ways, as we phoenixes once were.
"They took our actions as blasphemy in the worst way and without warning we were cut off from them. I remember the feeling, I was the second to bond to a youkai. It felt like a part of me had been ripped away, like a huge chunk of my soul," Okibi sighed. "They will not come to our aid again. How can they hear a call for help when they block us out entirely? Why should they want to help us? We betrayed them in a way. I suppose I can understand their anger. We didn't ascend to heaven with them. In effect we abandoned them at a time when they needed us, their only friends and kindred. And then we left them as a solitary species when we tainted ourselves with youkai blood. Now they are the only truly celestial beings, the only pure forms created lovingly by the hands of the Gods."
"I can't believe you of all people, are going to accept this so easily. I haven't known you long Okibi, but I have known you long enough to know that you would never give up in a fight, not even if it meant dieing!" Kagome shouted passionately. Okibi merely smiled.
"I have lived as long as the world has been in existence my dear. My species, it is dieing. I hide my aura so others do not see me as a threat. Most of my kind has gone into reclusion, preferring to be extinct than be bothered by the pettiness of the world today. The only ones that are still openly alive are myself and my husband and children. Several refuse to accept my husband and children as phoenixes though, because of the youkai blood they were born with. To them I am the last Phoenix, and Lady of the Southern Lands. And I have to be strong. Even if all you read is true, which it probably is not, all of the youkai and men would be able to destroy something like that," Okibi tried to assure the young miko. Kagome nodded, though inwardly she didn't believe a bit of it.
"Okay Okibi, I know. Besides, we have two proud, strong warriors with egos the size of Antarctica. How can they lose when they won't let themselves?" Kagome joked.
Three days had passed. Kagome worried her lip constantly as she watched the western horizon each day. He was fast, he should have already arrived, but he hadn't! What was taking that stubborn male so long! She only had sixteen days left until the council chose a husband for her! And he was taking his sweet damn time!
Once again Kagome tried to calm herself as she watched Ferimaru and Okibi play a game of shogi. Not surprisingly the flighty Ferimaru was losing badly.
"Stop thinking so loud!" Okibi and Ferimaru finally snapped at the same time. Kagome sighed and plopped down on a comfortable cushion.
"But what could be taking him so long?" Kagome whined.
"My dear, Sesshoumaru may be an all powerful taiyoukai. He might be fast. But I guarantee that it takes awhile to get from the western lands to the southern lands, especially this part. He should be here later today or tomorrow possibly. Besides, are you that eager to see him? He'll probably be spitting mad," Ferimaru joked.
"Oh god, you're right. What if he hates me now. I think maybe I'm playing the part of the difficult female to the hilt, and he'll probably decide it's not worth his time and give up! He's probably relaxing in his study and…Doing whatever it is he does!" Kagome snapped.
"I doubt it," Okibi said with a smirk. She had heard rumors of the youkai lord running rampant through her lands, headed straight for her castle. And from what she had heard, he wasn't at all happy either. But anger was one of the most passionate emotions, and could easily be turned into something else. In this case, lust and love.
Authors End Notes: Its iced over here by the way. Everything is covered in ice. It's beautiful. But the power keeps going out. Grrrrrrrr. Hope you liked the chappy. Please review!