Chapter 6

Four Years Later

Sesshomaru knelt in the tree, completely hidden from sight. His boa hung loosely below the branch, wrapped tightly around his shoulders, his white and red attire pristine despite the weeks of traveling. He had chosen this attire because of the northern wind chills. He was a demon, but even he couldn't escape from the cold. It would not kill him like it would the weak humans he detested, but it was an annoyance that could slow him down.

He had lost track of how long he had been going to the North nearly every three months. His father had created an alliance based on a mutual trade. The North received Sesshomaru and Touga's expertise in battle strategy and fighting, while the West retrieved goods they wouldn't normally have access to, like different metals and fruits. The metals could be melted down to be made into weapons and armor. That had been what interested Touga more than anything. For nearly a hundred years the North and West had benefited from each other.

Of course, that wasn't the only reason Sesshomaru went to the North. Not anymore. Now there was Kagura, the wind demoness. She was the heir, the princess to the North, daughter of Naraku, the Lord of the North. She was beautiful, yet bland. Despite being a demon, she had no features that stood out to Sesshomaru. Her eyes were red, and while rare in demons, it wasn't something unique. She didn't stand out from anyone, and that disappointed him.

Still, the relationship they shared was based on sexual pleasure. There were no emotions involved. That was a disappointment as well. He had wanted something to grow between them, to desire her enough that he could see himself marrying and eventually mating her. However, it never happened.

For twenty years they had been in a physical relationship, and aside of the pleasurable sex, Sesshomaru wanted nothing more from the woman. She had asked for marriage, but he had shoved his cock in her mouth and never let her speak of it again. There was no point. He would not be tied to someone that bored him.

Eyes narrowed, Sesshomaru glared at the reason he was perched in the tree, hiding. Lowering himself so much to hide angered him even further. He was Sesshomaru, the heir to the West, and yet, he was hiding in a tree, remaining unseen.

However, he couldn't bring himself to leave. Kagome was there, in his shiro. She, along with his father, the whore his father mated, and the half breed spawn were at the training grounds. Kagome, the woman that he loathed with every fiber of his being, was teaching the whore and half breed to shoot an arrow.

Begrudgingly he could admit that Kagome was a decent shot. Impeccable really, she could aim as if she had been shooting past her years, but that wasn't possible. At most, she was in her early thirties based on her appearance and the years he had been avoiding her, still a baby compared to him. Distasteful that she would be named his soul bonded.

Knowing he wouldn't be felt, he jumped from his perch and towards another. He wanted to hear her, smell her. He hated these urges within them, but most times he just couldn't fight it. When he was away, when she wasn't in sight, it was easy. He hardly saw her. If he did, it was in passing, and he made sure to leave a scathing remark in her direction. Once or twice a month he would run into her, insult her, and then be on his way. She barely ever said a word to him, which both relieved and annoyed him. He wanted her to go on her way and never come back, but when she refused to even look in his direction, he felt slighted. These infernal feelings had been warring inside of him since he met the woman. He wanted things he didn't want. It was exhausting.

"Keep your elbow tight, but not so much that you're stiff." Kagome pushed on Izayoi's elbow, lowering the woman's arms a millimeter. Sesshomaru's eyes narrowed in confusion. How? Sesshomaru had seen the off centered pose several miles away. He was sure his father had even seen it, but somehow, with her human eyes, Kagome had noticed it and was confident enough to fix it. To any normal human, they wouldn't be able to see a detail as small as that. They would think Izayoi's pose was perfect. They would be wrong.

So many questions. He found himself curious about Kagome, even when he didn't want to be. Why was she so strange compared to other humans? Why, after so many years, did she look exactly the same as she had before? It had been nine years since he met her, and yet, she was still as beautiful and radiant as she had been when she first smiled up at him.

Snarling at himself, Sesshomaru jumped to another branch, getting himself closer. Beautiful? Radiant? Those are not words he would ever use to describe a disgusting human woman. Her genetics kept her beautiful, but soon enough she would begin to age. The moment she did, he would know that soon she would be rotting in the ground and he could pretend he never met her.

A pang in his chest angered him even more. Why did he feel distraught at the thought of the woman's death? She was a human, vile and selfish. He wanted nothing to do with their species, and yet, this one woman just wouldn't leave him alone.

The sound of hooves had his eyes flicking towards Nakoa. She looked up at him, pawing the ground. She was frustrated with him just as much as Touga was. Nakoa had been with Sesshomaru since he was a child. She had been given to him by Touga, and together they grew. For over a hundred and fifty years, they had been together. Out of everything that happened with his mother, she was the only one that didn't betray him. Yet, she loved Kagome. Nakoa hated all women, and didn't want any of them near Sesshomaru, especially Kagura. But she had no problems with Kagome.

With a snort of annoyance, Nakoa stepped out into the clearing. Kagome spotted her immediately, smiling at the demonic horse. Eyes narrowing, Sesshomaru bared his fangs at her smile. Kagome didn't smile at him. If she regarded him at all, it was with a frown or furrowed brows. She didn't like seeing him any more than he liked seeing her. They hated each other. Again, that pang in his heart appeared and his frustrations grew. Why couldn't he forget about this woman?

"Hello." Kagome patted Nakoa on the head, brushing her fingers through her blue mane.

"You've met Nakoa?" Touga stepped up to the horse, petting her flank. Nakoa was the offspring of Touga's stallion and the mare that once used to belong to Satori.

"It's been years. I didn't know her name until just now. Sesshomaru wouldn't tell me." Kagome shrugged, still petting Naoka between the eyes. Then she sighed, stepping back. "However, if she is here, that means Sesshomaru is as well."

Sesshomaru was tempted to run away, to keep himself from being seen, but he was no coward. Jumping from his branch, he glared at them all, then focused his eyes on Kagome. "Teaching the whore to defend herself will not matter. She will die soon from her age, and your efforts will be wasted."

Kagome gave Touga a confused look. When he shrugged, she looked back at Sesshomaru, annoyed. "What is your problem? We were literally minding our own business. You came here to us, hiding in the damn tree and spied on us. Don't get pissed about getting caught when you could have avoided us altogether."

Sesshomaru flash stepped to Kagome, hand on her throat before she could react. Touga went to move, but Kagome held out her hand, stopping him. Sesshomaru wasn't choking her, at least not yet. Her eyes were boring into his, trying to read him, to understand why he acted the way he did. Her blue eyes drew him in, so unique. He had never seen another human with eyes that color before.

Breathing heavily, he felt himself give into his rage. Why her? Why did she have to be his soul bonded? A damned human. Had she been a demon, he would have accepted her immediately. He lost his better half because of her, because of what she was. She took away the future he had planned for, and in a moment of pure unfiltered hatred, he lashed out.

Faster than she could react, Sesshomaru clawed at her face over her eye. She was beautiful? He would take that away. Her eyes were unique? He would ruin them. She wanted to understand him? He would strike fear into her. Her blood splattered his face, warmed his skin. The scent of her life force slammed into his nostrils, churning his stomach. He let her go in regret before a fist slammed into his gut, sending him flying back and into a tree that snapped in half from the impact. By time he stood, his father, the one that had hit him, had scooped everyone up and disappeared. Sesshomaru could only stare at his bloody hand, both satisfied and disgusted with what he had done.

Kagome looked at herself in the mirror, her hands peeling away the bandages from her face. Four ugly scars ran from her hairline, over her left eye and down past her cheek. She would scar, would be disfigured. Her eye, while still intact, still able to see, was a milky white. She could barely see it from the swelling, but there was a tiny slit, and she knew she would live with the scar for the rest of her life.

Touga's voice hit her ears as he talked to the healer. She knew he was going to demand that she stay until she healed, but she refused. She needed to get away, to clear her head and her heart. She didn't want to stay where Sesshomaru was. Right then, she wanted her brother.

Pushing the bandages back against her face, she made sure it was secure once more. As she did, she caught a glimpse of something in her reflection. Her soul bond mark. Looking down, she felt her eyes burn as read Sesshomaru's name over and over again.

She hadn't done anything to him. She was born human, and that was enough to have him hating her. She gave him space, avoided him, barely spoke to him, and still he went out of his way to torment her. Now he had attacked her, drew her blood and scarred her. She would have to live with his attack for the rest of her life. Every time she looked at her face, she would feel the claws of her soul bonded. She hadn't done anything to deserve this kind of treatment, and she wouldn't stand for it anymore.

Walking to the tray with the tools the healer had used when treating Kagome's wounds, she eyed the knife. It was clean, used to cut Kagome's bandages to size. Swallowing, she grabbed the knife with a shaky hand.

No longer would she let her soul bonded torment her. He had rejected her, and yet some part of her had still longed for him, hoped that he would change his mind. No longer. Now she was the one that would turn her back on him.

The first slice of her skin had her hissing in pain, but then relief and peace washed over her in a warmth of acceptance. Slice after slice she carved into her skin, ignoring the blood that dripped to the floor, the pain in her arm. She kept going, destroying her skin until there was nothing left, not even Sesshomaru's name. Her soul bond mark was gone, and it was never going to come back.

"Kagome." Touga's hand fell on hers, and she looked up at him. She hadn't realized she was crying. Her tears stung the wound over her eye, but she hadn't felt it. When she looked up into his saddened eyes, she let him take the knife from her. It clattered against the floor, but she scarcely heard as the sob escaped her throat and Touga wrapped his arms around her.

Touga looked down at the knife and the dried blood over it. It smelled strongly of Kagome, and that was what he wanted. He didn't announce himself before he entered his son's room. Sesshomaru would have already known he was there.

"You did it." Touga threw the knife at Sesshomaru's feet, who was sitting on his bed, not looking up from the floor. "Your soul bonded wants nothing to do with you. She took that knife and carved your name off of her wrist." Sesshomaru looked up at him, his eyes wide. Touga felt sorry for his son because Sesshomaru had no idea what he just lost. "You're blaming her for your mother's choice. And now she hates you. You achieved your goal, Sesshomaru. She's gone now, and I'm not sure if she will ever come back. If she does, she won't want anything to do with you."

"She-"

"You will not speak!" Touga snapped, his aura surging out of him threateningly. "You wanted me to leave you alone. You wanted Izayoi out of your life. You want nothing to do with your brother. You wanted your soul bonded destroyed and devastated. You did it all, boy, you managed to do every damn thing you wanted." Touga couldn't remember a time he had ever been this angry. "I will leave you alone. Izayoi will leave you alone. InuYasha will leave you alone. Kagome… will leave you alone. You are alone Sesshomaru, and the only person you have to blame for it is yourself. I hope you're happy with the life you have created." Touga turned then, leaving Sesshomaru's room. He didn't stop to see Sesshomaru's reaction or see his son picking up the knife with a hand that shook. Sesshomaru was on his own now. Not even Touga would be there for him.

...

In my opinion this is the worst chapter. Starting in the next chapter, Sesshomaru starts to understand why he is feeling what he is. However, that doesn't mean he turns around immediately. In total it takes Sesshomaru around fifty years to decided to make things up to Kagome. I think it's thirty to forty years before he realizes how much he hurt Kagome and that he is an ass. Then it takes awhile after that before Kagome even gives him a chance to earn his forgiveness. This is not a quick jump the gun story. There are several more chapters before Kagome can even stand to look at Sesshomaru. By several, I mean at least ten, if not more. With that being said, this is the starting point. Sesshomaru now feels guilt for what he has done. Keep that in mind, because the next chapter isn't pretty either. He feels guilt, but it's only going to piss him off.

On another note, I will rest some of your fears. Several of my readers expressed a worry that Sesshomaru will harm Alastar, Izayoi, or InuYasha. I can promise that won't happen. Physically, he is done harming anyone that doesn't deserve it. Emotionally, his only target is Kagome. All others are safe. They still have a long road ahead of them, so I ask that you be patient. Good will come. It just takes time.

With that being said, I will stop taking up your time. I hope you enjoyed the chapter, despite that hate and angst in it. Your reviews mean everything. I read every single one, and almost all make me smile. Thanks to my editor for making this chapter readable for all my viewers. I'll see everyone next week.