A/N: Please be warned there are some disturbing scenes in this chapter for anyone
who has been a victim of domestic abuse. Please do not feel alone or embarrassed,
do not believe that any of it is your fault please get out of demoralizing and dangerous
relationships ASAP with the help of family, friends, and/or law enforcement.
Inuyasha
Love's War
Chapter 7
An Irritation
September 21, 2018
Sachi sat in her room looking out over the palace grounds from one of the highest rooms with a very small window. She searched the western horizon looking for her intended Shippou to come rescue her, wondering if the boy Sora had even made it to the Western Castle to tell them what had happened, and wondering if her parents even knew. She sighed the sun was setting and soon she wouldn't be able to see over the protective wall's due to the torch light throwing everything into uncertain shadows beyond the walls.
The sound of a key unlocking her door put her on guard as she stood up suddenly and faced the door. "Oh, my dear sweet Sachi it pains me to keep you locked up, but your escape attempt earlier today makes it impossible to leave the door unlocked." Hotaru said as he walked into her room with a smirk on his face he was going to teach this little fox to love him and to obey him.
"You are holding me against my will Hotaru that makes me a hostage." Sachi said angrily as she glared at him, she had come to earlier in the day and had tried to slip out of the palace to no avail.
"You my dear are my mate to be. The sooner you accept that the better our lives will be." Hotaru said as he walked over to her that fox boy of the West was going to pay dearly for trying to make her his mate.
"I am not, have never been your intended, nor shall I ever mate with you Hotaru." Sachi said as she stepped back putting her chair between the two of them.
"Oh, my sweet look what you made me do." Hotaru said as he raised his hand up to her bruised cheek from where he had knocked her out when he had taken her hostage. "Such a beautiful face shouldn't be marred like this." He said rubbing her cheek gently then taking his hand away and slapping her hard on the other cheek. "You make me do this, just submit to my will my sweet."
Sachi stared at him for a moment then raised her hand to her cheek that had hurt considering her face was already sore. "Go to hell bastard!" she spat out at him as she glared at him.
"You'll see things my way when I kill that runt from the West. I've captured him before he'll be no problem now." Hotaru said with an evil smirk on his face and a sadistic laugh coming from his throat.
"I'll kill you." Sachi said as she kicked the chair at Hotaru then moved quickly grabbing his throat with both her hands trying to drown out the sound of that horrible laughter.
Hotaru grabbed her by her throat and pinned her to the bed. "You'll see, you'll be mine. I'll make you mine." He said switching his hand from her throat down to her arm pulling his other hand up to her other arm as he straddled her using his own legs to hold hers down.
"I'll die before I mate with you." Sachi growled out as she tried in vain to get out from under this stronger heavier male. Realizing she had no way of doing it and seeing that smug look on his face drove her to do something very un-lady like she spit in his face.
"You bitch, you force me to do this, I don't want to harm you, but you refuse to be decent and proper." Hotaru said as he back handed her on the same cheek that was already bruised. "You will love me, you will submit to me, you will be my mate woman don't fight it." He said angrily then leaned down and kissed her forcefully as she squirmed underneath him.
Sachi bit him as hard as she could drawing his blood causing him to yelp and pull back. She spit his blood into his face angering him even more. "Get off me you, sick bastard." She screamed at him as she tried again to toss him off her.
"I will make you regret this." Hotaru said angrily as he got off the bed than drug her out of the bed as well slamming her into the wall before turning and walking out of her room.
Sachi heard the bolt slam home again meaning her room was once again locked and she slid down the wall to sit there silently crying. Where was her rescuers? Where was Shippou? Where was her father and his men?
~*~*~*~ Western Lands ~*~*~*~
"Welcome to the Western Castle Lord Kuzon, Lord Kuro, and Prince Shin." Sesshomaru said as he looked at the two lords who had come to him since Hotaru seemed to be focusing entirely on the Western Lands for the week.
"Such a brazen fool the boy is Sesshomaru." Kuzon said as he crossed his arms over his armor staring at the Western Lord curious as to why he had yet to cross the border into the South.
"Yes, the Southern Prince is a fool for sure Kuzon. We need to put this pup in his place and quickly." Sesshomaru said looking between Kuro and Kuzon curiously he knew the Northern Lord was ready to act but was the East he wondered silently.
"Let's get this over with already, Wolf are you ready or not?" Kuro asked angrily as he glared over at Kuzon he was wasting time and his daughter was in danger.
"I believe that Lord Kuzon will suffice Lord Kuro." Kuzon said as he narrowed his eyed at his Northern counterpart putting an emphasis on his title.
"He's anxious Kuzon forgive his bad temper it is his daughter that is being held hostage. Just imagine if it was young Shin here." Sesshomaru said trying to placate the wolf. To successfully storm the Southern Palace, they were going to need the East's help.
"My son would have never been caught." Kuzon said standing up tall and proud.
"No, he probably would have been killed he's not exactly mating material." Kuro said sarcastically as he sneered at Kuzon.
"Not mating material what exactly do you mean by that Fox?" Kuzon said angrily as he turned to his fox elder glaring at him with his hand on his weapon ready to draw it and fight to the death right here and now.
"Father he means I'm not female, I would be no used to Hotaru alive." Shin said as he placed a hand on the end his father's sword handle to keep it in place this wasn't the time or the place for such old rivalries to be brought back up and into the open.
Sesshomaru was growling to himself as he watched the petty bickering between the North and East. The two always seemed to be at each other's throats, course they could say the same about the West and South. "ENOUGH! This is war we are supposed to be united together not squabbling between each other like pups!" he said rubbing his temples lightly glaring at the two of them across from him, the only one who besides himself seemed to have a grasp of the situation was the boy Shin who was several years older than Shippou but younger than Hotaru.
"This fight has nothing to do with the East why should I get involved in another squabble between the West and South?" Kuzon asked irritated as he spun back around to Sesshomaru.
"This is a rescue operation. Hotaru took Princess Sachi of the North and was back behind his walls at the Southern Palace before either of us could get organized we need a strong front to get Hotaru to surrender the young woman." Inuyasha said crossing his arms over his chest with a frown on his face there was too much talking and not enough action in his eyes. "Besides you fought against the West last war don't you own us some kind of debt." He said smirking when Kuzon looked down and to the left ashamed of his previous actions.
"This war has nothing to do with that." Kuzon said still refusing to look at Inuyasha.
"Father we must try and help my friend if nothing else." Shin said as he looked over at him determined to fight even if his father said no.
"Well spoken, young one." Kuro said with a huge smile looking over at the young boy.
"Fine what's the plan?" Kuzon asked curiously after glancing at his son to see the determination there in his eyes. Kagome had pushed for all the young up coming leaders to spend time together to become friends to prevent further war and it worked he saw no sign of old hatreds in any of the young ones.
"We plan on gathering all three of our lands forces and marching on the Southern Palace and laying siege to the palace more than likely though Hotaru will fight back and we will have a long hard drive to get to the palace." Inuyasha said stepping forward noticing that Sesshomaru was slightly distracted looking up at the ceiling he noticed that Kagome was on the move with the young Rin who had returned to the castle just that morning after Sesshomaru's summoning last week.
"How long will it take you to be ready and have your army at the boarder to the Southern Lands?" Kuro asked curiously glancing at Sesshomaru then up at the ceiling trying to figure out what had his attention.
*Cough* "Sesshomaru, our army is already on the Southern border defending our lands against our enemy correct?" Inuyasha said trying to drag Sesshomaru back to the here and now meeting as a small knowing smile crept onto his lips.
"Hn. Yes, the West is ready to move once the North and East are prepared for this war." Sesshomaru said dragging his attention back to the meeting. His mate over doing things wore on his mind he had instructed her to stay in their room and out of sight of the other Lords. They would be able to tell by her sent that she was pregnant, but they didn't need to know how far along she was. This war could give them an excuse to take out his mate and even thought they were in an alliance, that meant nothing he was going to protect Kagome every way he knew how. Assassins had been regularly used in the past to kill mates who were carrying pups, so he didn't put it past either of them to try.
"The North is ready to move as well." Kuro said then looked over at Kuzon curiously wondering if the foolish wolf had made any preparations to keep his own borders protected from this war if nothing else.
"It will take at least a week to gather my tribes and prepare for war. Some we have already been stationed on the border, but I must gather the rest of the leaders and get them moving." Kuzon said with a small shrug like he had said before this wasn't his war as far as he was concerned so he hadn't pulled his army together yet.
"Foolish wolf." Kuro muttered angrily as he glared away from him over at the wall beside Sesshomaru and Inuyasha.
"What was that?" Kuzon asked irritated as he glared over at Kuro.
"I apologize for how long our preparations will take, but the East is ran very different than the other lands. We have a large network of packs to deal with and it will take time to get them all into order." Shin said glancing at his father with a frown he seemed extremely easy to irritate this morning.
"How can you maintain your borders like that?" Kuro asked looking over at the boy like he was crazy.
"That Lord Kuro is none of your concern suffice to say we protect our borders as vigorously as all the other lands." Shin said raising an eyebrow at the old fox.
Inuyasha burst out laughing unable to control himself. "That boy's definitely a Lord to be. Good job kid." He said chuckling lightly as he laid a hand on the young wolf's shoulder.
"Very well the North and I will go ahead and start pressing Hotaru you Kuzon get ready as fast as you can and join us." Sesshomaru said standing up from behind his desk signaling this meeting over. The other Lords took the hint and excused themselves then left to get their armies ready and into position.
"You kind of spaced out there." Inuyasha said looking at Sesshomaru as the latter walked around his desk heading for the door.
"Hn." Sesshomaru huffed then walked out of his office to weave his way up stairs to find his mate and his young ward. From the scents around his mate he could tell that Sango, Miroku and their pack had arrived as well along with Kohaku. He had expected as much they were sure to come once he summoned Rin back to the Castle because of war. He walked up the stairs then turned into the East wing making his way along the corridor he could see human children running around playing tag in the hall. "Children must play outside." He said as he walked through their game to stop in the doorway.
"Ah sorry Lord Sesshomaru I told them to stay where I can see them." Sango said as she turned and bowed to him.
"You can see them outside your window." Sesshomaru said motioning towards the open window. "They are safe within the Castle walls." He said noticing the children peaking around his leg to see their mother's response.
"I'll go watch them Sango, my rooms stay's set up." Rin said cheerfully then walked over to Sesshomaru and bowed lightly to him. "Good morning Sesshomaru-Sama, I have missed you." She said sweetly as she looked back up at him with that youthful joy of hers still intact.
"Very well Rin, Himeko is on guard duty inform her of you and the children being in the garden." Sesshomaru said stiffly even after all this time he still felt awkward showing public affections. Rin smiled and walked by him when he stepped sideways out of her way then at the urging of his mate he looked at Rin retreating with the three children. "Rin, I am glad to see you are well." He said then watched as she smiled at him over her shoulder than continued on her way to the stairs.
"By the way Lord Sesshomaru I saw on the way in a nice plush chair sitting off to the side of the stairs. It seems to be a strange place for a seating arrangement." Miroku said as he finished putting his clothes away and turned to look at the tall demon lord curiously.
"That is for my unrulily mate who refuses to sleep in our bed chamber if I am not here." Sesshomaru said dryly then looked over at Sango when she giggled and raised an eyebrow at her.
"You expected Kagome to act normal?" Sango asked and giggled again then shied away from Kagome who swatted at her.
"Some friend are." Kagome said picking up a pillow and throwing it at Sango since she was now out of reach.
"You should be resting my mate." Sesshomaru said as he watched the scene unfold in front of him to his amusement. He did like to see his mate have fun and be happy, which seemed easy when her friends were near.
"There is only so much "Resting" I can do dear. I want to see my friends." Kagome said as she rolled her eyes at Sesshomaru being a mother hen again.
"In which case you can see them from a chair." Sesshomaru said motioning to the chair against the wall.
"My butt's going to be bruised with as much sitting as I do. Give me a break Sessh its unreasonable to be off my feet all day every day." Kagome said with a slight huff accidently using the private nickname she had given him years ago to shorten his name.
"Sessh…" Sango whispered wide eyed as she looked over at Miroku who simply shrugged and picked up the pillow tossing it back onto the bed.
Sesshomaru growled lightly in annoyance it was not proper for a lord of the Lands to have his name changed so easily in front of others he tolerated it in private because it was his mate and she seemed to enjoy the little nickname, but not in public it was unacceptable. "I shall send Himeko to tend to you shortly." He said irritated then turned and walked out of the room then down the hall quickly with his long strides.
"Excuse me." Kagome said as she rushed out of the room to follow her mate. "Sesshomaru wait." She said urgently watching him stop and stand still waiting for her to catch up to him. "I'm sorry it slipped out."
"You know I hate that in front of others." Sesshomaru said narrowing his eyes over at her angrily, he rarely ever got irritated or angry with Kagome it was usually over a matter of pride at being Lord of the West in some way or another.
"I know, I'm sorry it was an accident." Kagome said sadly as she looked up at him hoping her apology would put him in a better mood.
"My Lord the South is on the move again trying to surround the fort in which Shippou is using as his headquarters after breaking through the line." Himeko said as she rushed up the stairs.
"Get Inuyasha." Sesshomaru said briskly then brushed passed Kagome and Himeko to head down the stairs.
"He's already waiting for you by the gate My Lord." Himeko said as she turned to head down the stairs behind him at a more leisurely pace.
"Sesshomaru." Kagome said urgently as she chased him down the stairs as fast as her little pregnant feet could take her as she held onto the rail for balance.
"What is it my mate?" Sesshomaru asked icily as he turned to look at her at the bottom of the stairs.
Kagome didn't slow down as she reached the bottom portion of the stairs, she released her hand hold on the railing and threw her arms around Sesshomaru burying her face into his shoulder. He was stunned by the reaction and just as her weight started to pull on her arms since she was now dangling off the floor he wrapped his arms around her protectively with a small sigh. "I must go." He said softly as he nuzzled the side of her face his irritation at her now gone.
"Please don't leave mad at me, I don't want to be a distraction." Kagome whimpered lightly as she pulled back to look into his amazing amber eyes. She couldn't let him leave while brooding over her indiscretion.
Sesshomaru rumbled deep in his chest as he looked at her and watched the tears building in her eyes. "My mate calm yourself." He said softly then leaned forward and kissed her lips ever so softly. "I am fine. It was a small irritation my love nothing to brood over as you so put it." He said softly as he sat her down on the bottom step, so she could still be close to eye level for him.
"What's the holdup…oh that's the holdup." Inuyasha said at the door confused as to why Sesshomaru still hadn't came out of the castle, then laughed when he realized it was Kagome at the bottom of the stairs.
"My son your forces are already in battle." Tsubaki said softly as she came down the hall from Sesshomaru's study.
"Inuyasha and I are on our way Mother. You and Himeko keep the castle secure." Sesshomaru said after a small annoyed glance at his mother then he returned his attention back to Kagome. "I shall check on Shippou anything you wish told to him?" he asked softly as he reached up and stroked the marking on her left cheek.
"Just to have faith and I miss him, my love." Kagome said softly with a sweet smile on her lips as she reached up and brushed his bangs out of his face lightly then traced down his jaw line. "You and Inuyasha be careful and return home safe." She said as she leaned up on her tippy toes to place a soft kiss on his lips before stepping back so he could leave.
Sesshomaru turned after another long look into Kagome's eyes and a slight nod and walked out of the castle with Inuyasha hot on his heels. "Try to keep up this time." He said glancing at a smirking Inuyasha.
"Figured you would say that, jerk." Inuyasha said then took to the trees leaving Sesshomaru standing there for a moment smirking. Then Sesshomaru was gone and catching Inuyasha easily enough through the trees. Since the on set of this war they seemed to have a competition to see who could get to the battle first. It was always Sesshomaru who arrived first but every time Inuyasha was closer than the time before.
