He walked in and saw Casa on the bed, relaxing, folding some robes and kimonos. He took a deep breath and asked for Casa's attention. She ignored him.
"Come on, Casa. I need to talk to you," Sesshomaru told her. She looked up at him, her face having no trace of tears. He was puzzled since he just recently heard her crying.
"What do you want to say?" Casa asked, slightly annoyed.
Sesshomaru walked up to her and sat next to her on the bed. "Casa, I'm sorry. I really am," he said.
Casa took in a swift intake of air. She looked closely at him, and then turned angry.
"You're just saying this because you want something from me, correct?" She accused.
"No, I truly am sorry. I didn't mean to get mad at you. I had a bad morning. I'm sorry," he said again.
Her angry expression dialled down slightly. Sesshomaru pulled a beautiful necklace from his pocket and showed it to her. It had clear diamonds around it and a bright blue sapphire pendant. She cheered loudly and smiled. She hugged him, and he smiled. She stopped hugging, and Sesshomaru sat behind her and put the necklace on. It had a clasp that was made of magnetic stones. He put them together and she turned to him to silently ask him how it looked.
"You look beautiful," Sesshomaru told her. She smiled continuously. They looked in each other's eyes and just stared. Sesshomaru started leaning in. He slightly closed his eyes and so did Casa. They kissed lightly and Sesshomaru was delicate with her lips. He deepened the kiss by licking her lips. She smiled and they stayed like that for a while. Neither wanted to push it farther just yet, so they just took it as gentle as possible. They eventually broke apart, both whimpering. Sesshomaru put his arm around her lower back and pulled her closer, leaning his forehead on hers. They weren't in the right mood to go farther, but they did want to do something. They were so peaceful, unlike earlier, during the fight. Sesshomaru remembered a saying his farther once said. "Absence lets the heart grow fonder." This was most likely what he meant. Sesshomaru sighed and they stayed like that the entire night, pulling an all-nighter.
When the sun poured into the room, a note was slid under the door. Sesshomaru noticed it and pulled himself from Casa to get it. She whimpered but stayed on the bed to await his return. His warmth left her and she felt slightly cold. He returned and Casa leaned into him. He read and smiled slightly when finished. The castle was all his. No Rin, no Jaken, no servants anywhere. The servants went on vacation, taking Rin and Jaken with them. They knew that Sesshomaru and Casa stayed in the room all night, and that they had made up. No yelling or screaming was heard and they were in the same room he entire night. Sesshomaru tossed the paper into the open fire on his left, and embraced Casa with his arm again. She smiled and rested against his chest, staring into the fire as the paper burst into flames. She smiled and so did Sesshomaru. They would have the entire palace to themselves. No one would bother them. Not even annoying Jaken. Sesshomaru looked down to Casa. She had just recently looked up to Sesshomaru.
"Sesshomaru, I could really use a bath. May I?" Casa asked. Sesshomaru nodded and she got off the bed. Going over to the door where the closet was, she got a bathrobe and went to the spring. Sesshomaru followed her to the spring. She started to undress, but she could hear Sesshomaru's breathing nearby. Turning around, she saw Sesshomaru standing there calmly. She looked at him puzzling, but he didn't say a word. A nod to tell her to continue undressing. She was shocked and fell into the spring fully dressed. Sesshomaru came to the edge and looked at her surface. She shook her head, spraying water to Sesshomaru's face. He wiped it off, and smiled at her.
"I thought you wanted to bathe without clothes on," he teased.
"You shocked me, sending me backwards," she told him.
"Whatever. Are you coming out to undress?" Sesshomaru asked.
"Well, if you would've left earlier, I would have done it," Casa answered.
"You need protection now that you carry my mum's necklace. That is very precious," he told her.
"This is your mum's? Why did you give it to me? I can't accept it, I'm sorry," Casa said, getting out. Her kimono was now see-through. Sesshomaru could see everything until Casa wrapped herself in the bathrobe. She removed the necklace and handed it to Sesshomaru.
"It suited you so well. It's ok, you can keep it," he said, pushing it back at her.
"No. It's over my standards. I can't accept something so fashionable and at a higher quality than my life. I'm sorry. It's my sort of rule," she told him.
"Please wear it. It's at the same value as your life is to me. Please," he begged her.
"Sesshomaru, please. I just can't," she told him.
"Please reconsider," he asked her.
"Maybe later. Hey, I needed to take it off to bathe anyways," she joked. Sesshomaru didn't even crack a smirk. She sighed and forced him out of the spring, finally being able to relax in the spring with some privacy. She removed her clothes and slipped inside. She washed and rinsed. While relaxing, she thought about what they could do now that no one was around. Outside of the spring, Sesshomaru was thinking of the same thing.
He could ask her about the wedding that was the next night and she could teach him how to dance, if she knew herself, or they could just relax in their room all day. He liked option number one, so when she came into the bedroom again, he would inform her on everything. He could even teach her the proper ways of royal weddings. He sighed and continued to daydream.
Casa had emerged from the spring and wrapped herself in the bathrobe again. She saw the necklace on the floor and bent down to pick it up. She admired it and put it around her neck. Clasping it herself, she returned to the bedroom to find Sesshomaru topless on the bed. He had recently discarded it while waiting for her. He got hot from the sun that was shining on him through the open window. She sat next to Sesshomaru and lightly tapped him on his shoulder. He emerged back to reality, and smiled at her.
"Done already?" He asked.
She nodded, then asked, "what were you thinking about?"
"Oh, well yesterday, I got a message a royal wedding was happening soon. I was planning on inviting you to it," Sesshomaru told her.
"Oh, really? How sweet," she sighed.
"Well, there are some rules you have to follow during it. I'll have to teach you them," he told her.
"Well, when is it happening?" She asked.
"Tomorrow night," he told her.
"Well, we better get started. Let's go," she said, urging him to go.
"Aren't you going to get dressed?" He asked her, looking her up and down.
"Oh, yes. Turn," she ordered him.
He turned and heard her rustling through the closet for a kimono. She dressed, fixed the wrinkles out of it, and started to brush her hair. She told him he could turn back around and he did and gasped. Casa chose a nice, long, green robe that had red lace and the red and green pin she quickly put in her hair looked great. She smiled, and threw him his shirt. He put it on and they went down to the dining room. He taught her the rules in the dining room.
"You must never make eye contact with no one other than your mate. In the wedding, I will be your mate. If you make eye contact, you'll be giving them the idea that you are interested. While eating, keep your interests on your food and only speak when spoken to by myself only. If someone tries to engage you in a conversation, ignore them. If you don't, they might think you are interested in them.
"Do not start eating until someone else starts. Be polite and use your fork and knife, understood?" He said.
She nodded and he did a trail run. It didn't really help that no one was around at the time, but the servants should return by tomorrow, so they could have some help. Maybe some lords from the other lands could help, thought Sesshomaru. Overall, Casa did great. She was polite in eating, putting her napkin on her lap and munching silently. She didn't start an conversation when they were in silence and Sesshomaru liked that. Many lords would most likely compliment them.
They moved to the ballroom. Sesshomaru told her that most of the lords would either be talking or dancing with their mates.
"Do not start a conversation with another male. Stay near me, and do not dance with another male. Make no eye contact here either, unless it's with me when we're dancing. During any conversation, do not interfere, no matter how much a person tries to include you. Stay silent throughout this time, unless we're dancing and chatting silently," he told her. She nodded and started leaving, but he grabbed her wrist.
"Where are you going?" He asked.
"Well, this is all, right?" She asked.
"No, I need you to do me a favour," he told her.
"What?" She asked.
"Can you teach me how to dance?" He asked.
"Sure, no problem," she told him, and took his right hand in her left. She went for his left arm but there was nothing there. She gasped and looked up at him.
"You have no left arm?" She asked.
He nodded. "My brother cut it off one battle," he informed her.
"Oh, well, this won't work. Come, I need to help you," she said, going to the hall and up the stairs to the bedroom. He followed her the entire way. She went inside and straight to her bag. Searching through it, she took out some herbs and one scroll. She turned to find Sesshomaru right behind her, watching what she was doing.
"Do you have a bowl nearby?" She asked Sesshomaru. He nodded, left the room and returned with a bowl in hand.
She took it and placed it next to the scroll. She read the instructions while placing the ingredients in the bowl. She chanted an incantation while doing this. The incantation contained odd words like from some different language. Sesshomaru was puzzled and also curious to what these words meant. He sat down on the bed, awaiting until she was done. When she was done, she turned to Sesshomaru and told him to drink it. He didn't want to drink an unknown substance, so he refused. Casa got annoyed at his stubbornness.
"Drink it. It'll help you," she told him.
"What is in it?" He asked.
"It's just some herbs, now drink, before it gets cold," she advised him.
"How could it get cold? You didn't cook it," he told her.
"Agh! Just drink!" She ordered him.
"Why should I?" He asked her.
"Do you want your arm back?" She asked.
"Yes. What does this have to do with my arm?" He asked, unsure of the result.
"If you drink that, you'll arm will be restored. Now drink," she told him.
He finally obliged, well, not exactly. Casa forced it down his throat after he continued to refuse. He started feeling tingling sensations along his left side, but didn't dare to look. It lasted roughly a few minutes, then dissipated. He shook it off, finally glad the sensation was over.
"Woman, look it didn't work," he told her.
"Oh, really? I guess you didn't look," she laughed, sitting next to him on the bed.
"What do you mean, 'didn't look'? Nothing happened, see?" He said, outstretching his new, left arm. He was amazed at how nice it looked and inspected how it was. It was flawless and he was in control of it. Then he remembered last time her got an arm.
"Is this arm a demon's arm or human's? And will it last?" He questioned her.
"Hold on. What do you mean if it'll last? This is your old arm. I conjured it back. It won't disappear or resist your body. It's your arm, no one else's," she told him, grabbing it to inspect it herself. He winced slightly but complied to her soft hands. She first looked at the fingers, then up to the wrist, then to the arm. She looked at the pale skin and she could see the veins there. She moved higher up the arm to where the arm connected to the shoulder. She couldn't see any connection scars, which were good and the skin fit together. She smiled and looked up to Sesshomaru. He just plainly looked down at her. His face showed no emotion and Casa looked puzzled up at him.
"You're hands are soft. The sensations were new to me," he told her and she smiled. She embraced him, and he embraced her back.
"You're so nice, you know that?" She told him.
"Me, nice? Never. Many believe to call me the Ice Lord. I'm so cold, they say," he told her, looking down. He rested his chin on her head and was intoxicated by her smell. It was a mixture of a forest and hot spring. She sighed and rested her head against his chest. His heartbeat could be heard through his chest and clothes. She sighed again. If they ever got mated, this would be the best life for her.
"Weren't you going to teach me how to dance?" He asked her.
"Oh, yeah. I forgot about that. Ok, let's go," she, leaving his arms. She went back downstairs into the ballroom. She memorized the way there last time and awaited Sesshomaru's arrival. He finally came, and she taught him how to dance. She showed him where to put his hands, then the steps. She told him to go with the beat, if there was any. He told her to go to the beat of his heart. So they dance to a heartbeat Casa could hear so clearly against his chest. First Casa led, then once Sesshomaru got the rhythm, he led. She was caught up in the dancing she didn't know how much time had past until a knock was heard at the door. Sesshomaru heard it and turned his attention to the door that was in the hall. He left Casa in the ballroom and went to go answer the door. When he opened the door, his brother and his brother's friends were there, soaking. It was raining harshly outside and they were asking for somewhere to stay. Sesshomaru allowed them to enter and dry off. Casa came from the ballroom to find out who was at the door. She could hear the door closed and hoped Sesshomaru didn't allow them inside. Though when she saw Inuyasha and his friends, she walked up to them, smiling ear to ear.
"Hello. How is it going?" She asked.
"Casa, how are you and Ice Lord over there doing?" Asked Inuyasha. Sesshomaru growled quietly, but keep his cold posture.
"Oh, not very well. He won't let me do anything. I'm glad you guys came," Casa lied to them. She knew Sesshomaru liked it when she saw a slight smirk before he regained his cold expression.
"What brings you to my lands?" Sesshomaru asked them.
"Well, Kagome sensed a jewel shard this way, and we were following it until the storm broke out. We needed to take cover, so we saw this palace. We didn't know you lived here," Sango explained, wringing her hair out.
"Well, I don't exactly live here. It was my father's palace, so it became mine after he left. I just thought this would be a good place for us," Sesshomaru told them.
"How is the deal going? Is my idea working?" Miroku asked.
"Not really. She bugs me non-stop about how bored she is. The only time she doesn't bug me is when she's in the library or Rin is preoccupying her," Sesshomaru told them
"Where is Rin? I wanted to play with her," Shippo asked Sesshomaru.
"She's out. So is Jaken and all the servants," Casa said.
"Oh, did you kick them out or something?" Inuyasha asked Sesshomaru.
"No, it's their holiday. They took Rin and Jaken with them for some unknown reason. When we awoke, all we saw was a note that said they were gone," Casa informed them.
Sesshomaru directed them to the dining room for some tea and a place to chat. Sesshomaru sat down, but Casa told him to help her find the kitchen. He groaned, then showed her to the kitchen. When they entered, he closed the door, and walked close to her, but not close enough to touch.
"Casa, you need to not say a word about you being happy here, ok? If they find out, they'll think I've gone soft," he told her. Casa nodded, and started on the tea. She made seven cups of tea for them and went back to the dining room. The group was talking quietly and went silent when Casa entered with Sesshomaru behind her. He had his hands on her waist but removed them quickly when the entered. Inuyasha saw it slightly and decided to talk to Sesshomaru secretly about it later. Casa handed out the cups and everyone took them with a thanks. Though when Casa handed Kagome one, she didn't take it.
"Kagome, what's the matter?" Casa asked, putting the cup back on the tray.
"You have a jewel shard, don't you?" Kagome asked.
"Umm, what do you mean?" Casa asked.
"I can sense it somewhere upstairs," Kagome told her.
"Umm, I have only my supplies upstairs and my clothes," Casa said, looking over a Sesshomaru. He just shrugged.
"I'll be back. I'll go check if I have one," she said, standing up and excusing herself.
Sesshomaru looked at Kagome join the conversation that the group was having earlier, though Inuyasha didn't. He moved next to Sesshomaru to chat with him quietly.
"Did I just see you earlier have your hands on Casa's waist?" Inuyasha asked. Sesshomaru's eyes went wide before he started to attack his brother for telling such a rude lie. Casa could hear the fight all the way downstairs as she climbed the stairs. She got to the bedroom door and heard someone inside. Slightly opening the door a crack, she saw a person with black, long, wavy hair and a black robe searching through her stuff. She growled for he was going through her personal stuff and the man turned to her. She gasped and backed away from him. She could fill his powers were powerful but she could also sense he was a half-demon. She got to the beginning of the stairs, and fell down taking one step off balanced. The man followed her as the fell. She screamed as she fell. Sesshomaru averted his battle with Inuyasha to Casa's scream. He ran to her body on the ground, knocked out. He picked her up into his lap. Meanwhile, the man still came down the stairs. Inuyasha and his friends followed Sesshomaru to the stairwell.
"What are you doing here, Naraku?" Inuyasha yelled, as everyone's eyes averted direction from Casa and Sesshomaru to the man walking down the steps.