A/N:
Sorry to keep you waiting, and I hope you're prepared for some angst :)
Chapter Twenty-Six
"The prideful Sesshomaru who wields the sword which brings back life from the dead, and a miko who is no longer alive as his companion... I believe that his apparent displeasure to your condition can only mean one thing, Kikyo, as you have most likely already suspected yourself."
The more she analyzed the toxic words in her mind, the more those gathered additional substance and proof to them, remaining strong and heavy in her thinking even long after her enemy had spared her from his appalling presence. In stillness, she fixed her gaze on her silent companion standing before her, observing him through a stern expression for a long moment in which none of them said anything.
"It is true." Sesshomaru eventually confirmed through a low voice, his fierce gaze fixed on her.
Hearing his answer, however, Kikyo simply scoffed, and she only closed her eyes and shook her head to the anticipated reply. But as much as she hated to admit, the verification coming straight from Sesshomaru carried much more impact than she had thought it would, prompting something unnamed inside her to shift as a result.
And yet, it was not anger, sadness, or regret that the priestess found herself charged with at that particular moment. Somehow, and much to her own surprise, the concept of Sesshomaru hiding his intentions by acting suspicious in relation to Tenseiga's disturbance had all struck her with something rather cynical, instead; a shallow feeling that was easier to sustain, a bitter amusement regarding her own once again proven foolishness and failure to properly read into the situation she was in, especially regarding how blind she was to the hidden true nature behind her alliance with this inu daiyoukai.
She indeed, should have seen this coming.
Lured by her human nature and the basic, comforting need for genuine connection, she managed to lose herself somewhere along the way, naively placing faith and expectations where they should have never belonged, allowing this attachment to brew in her mind and cloud her thinking.
And now, once she cast her emotions aside, the true basis for Sesshomaru's odd decision suddenly appeared as clear as crystal before her.
It was all too obvious.
Really... what did she expect?
Kikyo raised her attention once again to him as she studied his features in silence, her now cold gaze inspecting his unreadable expression and his proud posture, soon lowering to his broken armor, which still carried small traces of Inuyasha's youki on it, telling of a recent senseless battle between the two, something that this man seemed to enjoy partaking in.
And yet, suddenly, she found that none of it mattered, anymore.
There was no real point in getting angry, was there? There was no real point in attempting to shed further light on this occurrence, to clear the misunderstanding and move on as if nothing happened, to put any more effort into fostering this bond that they shared –
'Bond, huh...' Kikyo halted, the thought which once bloomed an addictive light feeling of safety in her chest, was now tossed into the pile of words she deemed corrupted, and she hanged her head low as her gaze fell to the grassy earth beneath her, her most recent memories all flashing before her eyes, yet hardly appearing the same as before.
And with that certain understanding, Kikyo sighed, composing herself as much as she could before finding his intense eyes once again.
"I have purchased food and new clothes for Rin in this box." She only informed, her voice clear of any emotion in it as she broke from his gaze and turned on her heel, facing away from his presence, "Make sure you deliver those to her, Sesshomaru."
And adding nothing more to that simple statement, Kikyo began steadily stepping away, ending their exchange altogether.
'Rin...' She mused as quietly as she could, the single memory that she somehow felt the most guilty to discard so easily behind her soon overcame her thought process entirely, 'I shall find the time to come and check up on you... somewhere in the near future... but not now.'
Silent, Sesshomaru's frown deepened as he watched her sudden actions, his vision fixed on her gradually departing back for a moment in which only the look in her eyes lingered before him, his stomach churning with heavy regret to the certain, familiar sight embedded in her pools of deep mahogany brown, something that he never wished for her to direct at him ever again;
The same look of disappointment she had given him back in their very first conversation.
And the more she distanced herself, the more Sesshomaru felt as if a part of his being was somehow attached to her existence, slowly and violently extracting from him to follow after her movement, further away to an unknown location and without any guarantee of the woman's eventual return. Clenching his jaw, his shoulders tensed with urgency, and an unbearable pressure suddenly consumed him, tugging at his thoughts and prompting him to ball his hand into a tight fist as he lifted his head, irritation clear in his expression.
He knew that he had to stop her.
No matter what it took, he could not let her just leave like that.
"Is that it, miko?" The firm words found their way out of his mouth with little effort as Sesshomaru called after her, "Were you not the one who said that we mustn't let the situation escalate beyond our control?"
A silent breath escaped him as he witnessed Kikyo pause to the sound of his voice, and Sesshomaru only patiently awaited her next move, his full attention fixed on her being.
But she still did not turn back to face him.
"There is no reason for me to stay, Sesshomaru." Kikyo answered him, her voice eerily calm, "You have proven this alliance to be nothing but a fake, and for this fact, it would be better for me to proceed on my own for a while."
Uncertainty flushed over him to her lack of proper reaction, her uncalled-for calmness to the situation causing him to narrow his golden eyes with displeasure.
Her withered and reduced spiritual aura was not enough at that moment.
He needed to know what this woman was thinking;
He needed her to turn around and face him, get angry, yell, share whatever was really going through her mind, anything but separate herself from his presence so easily like that.
But the priestess simply kept her relaxed position, presenting only her back to him.
"A fake, huh." Sesshomaru chose provocation in order to force her to face him, his low voice unintentionally carrying the impatience he attempted to conceal.
And once his aggravating words reached her, the daiyoukai noticed Kikyo tense her shoulders as the grip on her bow tightened, and she turned around to face him at long last, her unbound, long hair swaying after her quick movement while her sharp gaze immediately found his, leveling him with a hard glare.
"Yes, a mere way for you to validate your own abilities and test them on my existence, is it not?" She steadily shot at him, words razor-edged and eyes piercing through his being, "A simple, vacant attempt to achieve something impressive under your endless pursuit of power."
He took a moment to process her bold accusation, his frown shifting into a deep scowl at the distorted way the priestess had managed to read into the situation.
However, noticing the unquestionable frustration embedded in the woman's features, Sesshomaru swallowed harshly as his heart sank in his chest, and before he even noticed, he had already began striding in her direction, quickly closing the uncomfortable distance she created as he stopped to stand before her, his form towering over hers as he observed her in silence for the longest time, neither breaking their stern eye-contact while the entire world around them seemed like it somehow fell into a quiet slumber.
Eyes that were too bright, too fierce and too potent to be dead bore into him, quickening his heartbeat as it pounded against his chest area now only shielded by layers of silky fabric, the close proximity already influencing his internal temperature and sending it to a concerning level, threatening to give all of his secrets away.
Eventually and before that could happen, Sesshomaru clenched his jaw, releasing a deep breath before her, gold staring deep into her mahogany brown.
"Preserving your existence is what I care about, miko." He told her, the words leaving the strangest of tastes in his mouth, something that was neither sweet or bitter, but a strong flavor he knew that he would never want to forget.
And once she heard his answer, Kikyo's eyebrows lowered to a confused frown, her gaze attempting to read further into his pools of intense gold in an attempt to somehow help herself detect a semblance of dark humor in them.
But Sesshomaru's keen eyes held nothing of the sort, emanating nothing but undeniable and raw, unfiltered emotion.
"Have you gone mad, Sesshomaru?" Realization of the true meaning behind his affirmation hit her stronger than any attack she had ever faced before, and Kikyo instinctively sent one foot backwards to support her sudden shock, lowering her head yet maintaining his fierce eye contact as her expression crossed with surprise.
However, Sesshomaru only maintained his quiet position, his golden eyes transmitting his intense emotions clearly through his impassive features.
Overwhelmed with the unlikely information, Kikyo took another step backwards as if to allow herself a better, fuller angle of the situation before her, her eyes never leaving his for even a single moment despite the sheer intensity of the atmosphere between them.
And the more he kept his silence, the more the priestess felt the suffocating warmth spread inside her imitation body, from the very center of her chest to her legs, arms and then her palms, pouring all the way down to her fingertips as those still clasped tightly around her longbow in a desperate attempt to ground her mind back into reality.
And before she let the intoxicating feeling once again cloud her judgement, Kikyo composed herself once more, brushing off whatever unnecessary notion she could in order to force her own thoughts back into order.
With that, she simply lifted her chin before him, further analyzing his being as her memory reached for a certain deduction, one that she found not too long ago;
The feelings that Sesshomaru claimed to possess for her were nothing but a deceptive and highly misleading effect caused by their combined time together, influencing him to witness her in a familiar and appealing light, simply because of the multiple positive experiences they both shared until now.
'This is the most suitable explanation.' She promised herself, a sad, cynical hint of a smile finding its way through her features.
Love in a time of war leads to nothing but tragedy, after all.
She had loved once before, and that single experience was enough; a simpler time that she will now forever cherish and remember, and something that she most certainly currently did not need...
For she is dead, made of clay.
And there was nothing that could change that.
Breaking from his gaze, Kikyo set her eyes aside to an unfocused spot far into the distance of the reddened woods, washed in the brilliant glow of the setting sun.
Then, she only sighed, turning on her heel as she faced away from him entirely.
"You are more naïve than I thought." She admitted through a whisper.
Hearing her reply, Sesshomaru withheld from saying anything as his gaze ventured over her, his keen eyes noting the uneven shift in her spiritual waves, the same pattern he had been closely observing with his full attention.
Unlike before, it now presented him with an obvious hint regarding her thoughts, and he simply breathed deep before the next words departed from his lips.
"I did not take you for a coward."
He witnessed the spike of powerful energy engulf her at that moment, coursing around her being like fierce waters flowing through an aggressive river, indicating of the woman's unquestionable anger.
And she soon turned her head over her shoulder to collide with his gaze once again through a smooth motion, scowl deep and mahogany eyes burning him against the warm rays of the lowered sun.
"What did you say?" She hissed back at him.
Unfazed, Sesshomaru only narrowed his vision down at her direction.
"I do not think I need to repeat myself before you, miko." He calmly answered.
Be it the use of her own words against her, or the simple tired state she was in after all of the latest occurrences, but in that moment, Sesshomaru noticed something specific changed about the priestess, prompting Kikyo to once again turn fully in his direction, letting out a mocking breath of contempt before him.
"I am dead, Sesshomaru." She harshly reminded him, her gaze pinning him down and her tone much bitter than ever before, "My fate has been long sealed and my current time is already borrowed as my existence no longer belongs on this earth." Her free hand balled into a fist, the gesture not escaping his keen attention, "You are wasting your time... I am rooted to this ground, which I should be resting in."
"Then I shall cut those roots." He retorted, making her eyes widen to his stubbornness.
And she only let out a deep breath.
"Your blind hope is admirable." She shook her head, sarcasm clear in her voice.
But her lack of cooperation did not deter him in the slightest.
"It is hardly hope which drives me, miko." Sesshomaru corrected, narrowing his vision, "I plan to forge a path in this life for you, and I shall succeed in that task."
The more he spoke before her, however, the more the priestess felt her patience gradually fading.
"You are forgetting that I have not asked you to forge that path for me, Sesshomaru." She reasoned with firmness, "Do not be so quick to selfishly dictate the worth of one's life just because you may hold the power to save it."
But a mocking smirk soon crept through his stoic features, and Sesshomaru strode forward towards her once again, already expecting her answer.
"Do not lie to me, woman." He cautioned down at her, blazing gold seeing right through her veil of defense, "I, Sesshomaru, can read you clearly. You long for a path in this world, a way for you to truly live as you wished, with no restraints of any kind, allowing you to walk free from both duty and responsibility."
Kikyo stepped backwards to his unexpected retort, away from his intrusive gaze.
"Your arrogancy truly knows no limits." She countered, the words falling out of her mouth with little control as she let herself get lost in her own frustration with this man in front of her, "Do you realize what you are asking of me, Sesshomaru? Do you realize what closed wounds you are so eagerly attempting to pry open once more? The only way I could move on and focus on my current duty was by accepting my cursed condition, I no longer strive for anything beyond my newfound and single purpose now, I would be a damned fool to wish for something like that!"
However, his eyes simply focused on her hidden emotions in silence, finally allowing him a clear idea of her true opinions on the matter, the same sights he had been constantly seeing throughout their entire shared time together, a certain skill that he had slowly learned to master in order to figure out this unpredictable woman standing before him.
"Your spiritual aura speaks otherwise, as it displays everything I require to know about your true feelings and yearnings, miko." He notified, watching her closely.
The raw emotion ripped through Kikyo's somewhat still composed exterior as she quickly realized her companion had been using his keen senses to study her presence and character through a method she never thought was even possible, suddenly finding sense behind multiple occasions in which she was positive she had properly concealed her musings before him, only to have him somehow see right through her.
Silent, she took one final step backwards, tensing as her back now met against a wide tree trunk behind her, indicating the end of her escape route and forcing her mind to weight the unpleasant truth she was avoiding;
Did she truly not cast these childish wishes aside as she had believed she did?
"You cunning man." She breathed, narrowing her eyes up at him as she felt herself overcome with a suffocating certain feeling to the concept of Sesshomaru watching her so intently like that in order to master such a bizarre skill.
But her expression hurried to ease the more she allowed his other deductions inside, as well as his declaration regarding his emotions from before...
His feelings for her... were they true after all?
Observing his quiet existence, Kikyo's gaze scanned his proud being, from the silver, straight hair flowing so smoothly down his shoulders and back, a rare color even for his kind, to his handsome features, the array of markings embedded in his face and his intense, golden eyes that could see right through her, strong jaw and broad shoulders, his impressive, fur sash and pristine youkai attire made from the finest of fabrics, all the way down to the two weapons resting at his left side, indicating of both wealth and his high rank among his peers, altogether.
She eased her body against the tree behind her, taking a long moment to study his being.
Eventually, her keen eyes once again glanced up to meet with his.
"And what of the stark difference between us, Sesshomaru?" Kikyo calmly asked, yet the moment the words left her mouth was the moment she realized how desperately she was grasping at straws before him. Still, she found herself unable to stop, "What of me possessing the specific, lethal power to purify the likes of your kind? Does this fact alone not hold enough of an issue to you?"
Sesshomaru clenched his jaw, and the way a certain look flashed behind his golden orbs was enough to spark hidden embarrassment within her;
A look that she knew already managed to figure her out.
"There is no stark difference between you and I, miko." He replied, voice low yet full with confidence, "I am well aware of your strength, as I am well aware of who you are, and therefore of what also unites us."
"I was never a mere human." Kikyo blinked as her own words surfaced in her mind as if to deliver the finishing blow, forcing her to accept that she had truly lost in this argument.
And she simply fell into silence, exhaling softly.
What was left for her to do now... was to attempt to search through her own thoughts for a proper answer.
How on earth did she, herself... really feel about him?
This was not Inuyasha.
This was Sesshomaru.
And yet, why did this man, of all individuals, manage to spark all of these new and unrecognized emotions within her?
Was their connection perhaps something beyond a simple bond, after all?
Sesshomaru watched as Kikyo's unreadable gaze fell to the grassy earth before her feet, and he could tell the priestess was hunting her own mind for a proper concluded response to the situation.
So, he patiently awaited her next move, drinking in the sight of the wind flowing gently though her silky dark hair that cascaded across her shoulder and all the way down her lower back as a result of her comfortably leaned, yet still graceful position, the scarlet red of her garbs amplified next to the already warm-colored environment, all making it utterly impossible to tear his gaze away from her captivating being.
Eventually, he witnessed her raise her head before him, catching his fierce gaze once again as new intent flashed behind her eyes, and without saying as much as a word, Kikyo dropped her bow to the ground next her feet, sending her hand to the strap of the arrow quiver placed on her back, disarming herself from any of her weapons, completely. Then, she only stepped forward with poise, closing the space and reaching to stand close enough for him to sense her carefully weakened spiritual aura engulfing his being, clashing against his youki in a silent, gentle battle and flooding him with its unique scent; the fresh sage and herbal flowery mixture, a strong remnant of her very life force.
He stood in paralyzed stillness as the sounds of the forest settled all around them, the soft wind making its way through the tops of the trees above as the sun was nearly set behind them, painting their forest with a vivid reddish color, filtered through the trees and caught in her straight-cut bangs as her vision hovered over his broken armor for a moment, evaluating its pulverized state.
Composed, Kikyo released another soft breath, bringing her eyes up to meet with his as those conveyed a silent will to him, mixed with still avid confusion. She allowed herself one last second of hesitation, then, she slowly raised her right hand upwards, delicate fingers left ghosting inches away from the daiyoukai's face.
His gaze sharpened the moment she did, and his golden eyes immediately attempted to decipher her plans, yet with little success.
"State your intentions." Sesshomaru demanded down at her, but his firm voice failed to mask the almost foreign excitement that was gradually building within him ever since the woman unexpectedly decided to share her closeness, swirling in the pit of his stomach and coursing through his entire body.
The priestess blinked to his sudden words as if those yanked her from a certain trance, her vision focusing as her mahogany collided with his gold.
"To test something." Was all she answered him before pausing for a moment more, eventually continuing with her movement once he displayed no further signs of protest, softly pressing her touch against his high cheek bone beneath silver bangs, proceeding to gently trace the distinctive magenta markings that slashed across his face; his youkai stripes which signified who he was and where he came from, his impressive status, and of course, his existence as an enemy species... and yet somehow, at that particular moment and in such close proximity, Kikyo strangely found this fact nothing short of entrancing.
A full-fledged youkai whom she accidentally crossed paths with and the elder, half-brother of Inuyasha, no less... somehow ended up accessing to her in this thorough and intimate manner, like no one had ever succeeded before him.
Sesshomaru watched her through her close actions, focusing on the way her clever eyes followed after her cryptic doings, almost managing to read her thoughts as those fluttered in the way she blinked her long eyelashes before him. But her lengthy closeness and the way her touch felt against his skin sent his heart racing in his chest, and the more she caressed him in her painstakingly slow exploration, the more his internal temperature increased, his heartbeat somehow climbing all the way up to his ears.
And once her index finger trailed down to his jaw, Kikyo's palm brushed against his neck, suddenly making the priestess realize the excited state of this man before her as she raised her eyes back to his, his golden orbs showering her with nothing but intense and yet somehow still restrained raw emotion, a certain passionate look that she knew and could already recognize very well.
She swallowed harshly as she ventured deep into that gaze, the unmistakable understanding piercing through all of her walls and reaching straight to the core of her very being;
Sesshomaru was indeed... very much in love with her.
As if flowing through their shared contact, the excitement ignited in her chest as well as desire soon took over her actions, causing all of her excuses to fade, at long last. And with that, Kikyo could only surrender herself to her next impulse, shifting to stand on her toes while she sent her left hand to grab at the collar of Sesshomaru's kimono, supporting her own balance as their faces moved closer and closer until their lips finally met in a soft press.
And just like that, the entire world around them suddenly faded.
Closing her eyes and analyzing her own feelings further, Kikyo held the contact for another moment, sensing Sesshomaru tense against her, his body heat projecting onto her own and prompting her right hand to gently slid under his pointy ear and cup the side of his face for a better hold. Eventually, she broke away from the light kiss, distancing herself back down to stand on her heels as she silently examined his reaction, half-lidded mahogany eyes searching his glazed orbs of gold through a still calm exterior.
But the heavy breaths escaping through his still parted lips clued her a tad too late of his next intentions, and she could only observe as Sesshomaru acted this time, lowering himself down towards her as he seized her lips once again with a smooth, but firm motion, his sole arm lifting to wrap around her lithe waist and pull her closer against him until no space was left between their bodies. Consumed with both new instinct and a need he never knew could prove so strong, the daiyoukai found himself stepping forward, forcing the priestess' back against the same tree not that far behind her as if to promise himself of this unpredictable woman's confirmed capture, making her gasp and break from his kiss, if only for a moment.
"You are mad." Kikyo breathed against him, eyes opening partly to watch as Sesshomaru simply leaned down and kissed her once more in response, tilting his head further to the side and deepening their shared contact. Sensing her legs quickly losing their strength, her left hand etched into the fabric of his garbs for balance as her right one left the side of his face to glide to the back of his head instead, delicate fingers and long nails digging into his endless rivers of silver with surprising roughness that made him all the more eager.
He must have truly lost his mind, was the thought which replayed in his head without rest even during his continued actions.
But even Sesshomaru could not deny the intoxicating feeling of content which released inside of him to the concept of this unforeseeable woman finally reciprocating to him so fully and willingly this way...
Since when did she even possess this much power over him? For the simple sensation of her close touch and her kissing, mere acts of dull physical affection, to send bolts of lightning through his mind like this, for her presence to grip him in a way like no other had ever succeeded before in his life, luring him into this intense and exhilarating spiral of emotions which he attempted to avoid in favor of his pursuit for power...
Did he truly want her so badly, and for so long?
As if reading right through his musings, Sesshomaru felt Kikyo ease herself, answering to his dominant kiss with a rhythm of her own, one much calmer than his, yet still just as curious.
'No, it is hardly only that.' He noted with newfound understanding, opening his golden eyes slightly for a moment;
It was this woman's impressive mind that he wished to unveil and apprehend, above all else.
A mind that complemented his own.
Right then and unfortunately for the daiyoukai's somewhat still coherent thinking process, he felt Kikyo shudder against him, releasing a soft, muffled moan into his mouth. And once the rare sound reached his ears, every last bit of reason and logic escaped him like sand slipping through his fingers as his lips quietly broke from hers to instead begin tracing her jaw and then the crook of her neck, his mindset replaced and overrun with the sole feral purpose of forcing more of these spellbinding noises out of her.
With this newfound intent, the firm grip on her waist eased, and his clawed fingers moved up her back to brush her silky long dark hair away and tug on her haori shirt from behind, exposing more of her smooth alabaster skin before him.
Kikyo flinched and then shivered under the painstakingly slow trail of his unrelenting kisses against such a sensitive spot, the same one he had previously claimed while extracting the flower petal that one night, and she could only draw her right hand from his strands of silver to quickly shield her mouth with the back of her palm, conscious by the notion of a priestess like herself letting out such unthinkable sounds. However, the sensation of his breath on that place sent chills down her spine as it proved far more effective than she had expected, and Kikyo was left helpless against the strong feelings which he sent cursing through her mind in that moment.
But just before Sesshomaru managed to wipe her thoughts completely blank, she bit her lower lip, mahogany eyes fluttering open to try and force herself back into focus.
"Sesshomaru..." Kikyo whispered softly through a heavy breath as her nose brushed next to his ear, her hand desperately tugging onto his garbs in an attempt to seize his attention, "We must stop..."
Hearing her plea for truce, Sesshomaru paused for a single moment, soon resuming his task as he allowed himself to plant one last kiss at the connection between her shoulder to her neck, feeling her arch her back against him as she let out a final cry of unfiltered emotion.
Then, he rose away from her, bits of their bangs still lingering together as they entangled with their lengthy closeness, eventually falling separately into place. Stopping his face not that far from Kikyo's, Sesshomaru was still pressed against her frame, his sole clawed hand now grabbing at the side of her high waist with both of her hands still tugging onto his garbs, their expressions relatively calm, yet their gazes still possessing incredible intensity in them.
And they simply stared at each other as only the sounds of their hard and uneven breathing occupied the space around them, neither of them breaking away from their still shared close contact.
"I apologize for doubting your feelings." Kikyo eventually said, still fighting to regulate her air intake.
Sesshomaru kept his silence to her apology, taken by the way her once cold mahogany eyes now shone with undeniable desire against the softened glow of dusk, expressive and clear and readable before him as the deepest shades of her brown reflected the still warm rays of light all around them, making her seem so otherworldly beautiful to him that it took all of his power to fight against the temptation to lower himself down once again and just continue kissing her.
"I, Sesshomaru, am going to bring your real body back, miko." He stated with a low voice, his golden eyes fixed down on her, "So be prepared, for when that happens, I shall not stop so easily."
Kikyo raised one eyebrow to his bold and outrageous declaration, then, she only rested the back of her head against the tree behind her, her composed gaze studying his close features for another moment in silence.
The bond that she shared with Sesshomaru was apparently far more than she had anticipated, that much she will admit. But a promise to achieve the impossible and return her current existence to a body of real flesh and blood was still so unbelievably hard to accept...
Could she really prove so hypocritical to go against her acknowledgement of her own situation, against her mantra of stretching her journey until Naraku's demise and not any further beyond that; something that she worked so hard to keep as the sole focus of her unplanned roaming upon this earth?
Could she really rekindle her lost hope and let that guide her now, instead?
Kikyo sought his eyes for a wordless advice, letting herself rely on his being as if to assist her in reaching a final decision on the matter, almost as if to convince herself that this leap of faith was indeed, entirely ridiculous just as she had already noted.
But once she met with his intense pools of clear gold, gleaming like embers against the remains of the nearly-set sun and conveying nothing but his familiar, unparalleled and prideful determination before her, the priestess allowed her lips to form a hint of an amused smile, and she finally exhaled with defeat, resigning herself to Sesshomaru's unthinkable ambition and reaching a new clarity, instead;
It was not something as childish as hope which she needed to believe in;
It was her trust in his word and in their strong bond that she now required to rely on, in order to properly forge this new path for herself.
"I shall wait for you to prove your arrogant words then, Sesshomaru." She answered him at long last, granting him with a look that was free of any doubt.
And as soon as the confirmation left her lips, Sesshomaru felt Tenseiga pulse once at his side.
A/N:
Finally, eh?
The headcanon that I've been itching to use regarding Kikyo's character is that when given the chance to grant herself with what she truly wants, she would prove insecure. Mental strength can only go so far, and Kikyo is a flawed character, therefore I personally believe that she would have initially hesitated and turned defensive had anyone put her on the spot like that, especially after she had already went through the painful process of accepting her ultimate fate. Luckily, Sesshomaru takes enough pride in his own abilities to prove as a sure bet for her to place her chips on! (It really is a complementary ship that writes itself, isn't it?)
Lastly, I would like to thank you all so much for your wonderful support for this story, as well for the award nomination in the IY fandom on tumblr! I greatly appreciate it, and will be more than happy to continue exploring them both for you guys.