Katara awoke. Her vison was blurred, and she felt as if she'd drunk half a gallon of vodka. The headache punding through her was enough to make her want to go back to bed.
Ugh, why does this always happen? I help a person, and I end up with the pain.
She shook her head to clear it, and instantly regreted it.
"OHHHHHHHH!", her headache turned into a full-blown migraine.
She began to fall back onto her cot, but felt a strong hand holding her. She looked up into amber-colored eyes.
"Sesshoumaru...ugh! I feel awful!"
Sesshoumaru's face was emotionless as he held up a cup full of hot liquid to Katara's lips.
"Here. It's something I keep by if Rin ever get's sick."
(Yes, he does. Don't even bother arguing with me cuz you ain't gonna win.)
He tipped some of the liquid into Katara's mouth, his eyes on hers. He was surprised to find that there was nothing but trust engraved in them.
'How strange. Why would she trust me so unconditionally? I could be poisoning her for all she knows.'
Katara sputtered and coughed at the spicy liquid that went down her throat. She sat up, instantly feeling better. The headache was gone, and she didn't feel like a limp over-cooked spaghetti noodle anymore. She looked down at her hands, suddenly shy of this demon lord who had helped her.
"Thanks. That really helped."
Sesshoumaru wasn't sure of what to say. Wait, yes he was.
"No Katara."
Katara looked up, wondering what he was going to say next.
"I want to...thank you. You used up all of your strenght in helping me, not worrying about yourself until I was healed."
(Yes, he said that. As I afore mentioned, don't even bother arguing with me about this cuz it's my story.)
Katara blushed, knowing that if the demon lord said thank you, it was because he really meant it. Somehow, Sesshoumaru didn't look like the type that went around saying thank you to everybody. She noticed something. The wound that she'd had at her side was cleaned and bandaged. She looked up at Sesshoumaru, eyes puzzled.
"Did you-?"
Katara saw a smile tugging at Sesshoumaru's lips, but he forced his face to be completely serious. His eyes, however, gave him away.
"While you were sleeping, I took the liberty of cleaning and bandaging your wound, seeing as I didn't think that you'd be up to it when you awoke."
Katara's hands moved up to the bandaged wound, examining it. It was neatly bandaged, not too tight nor too lose. She didn't feel that much pain as her hands ran over the bandages, and when she looked up at Sesshoumaru, there was respect in her eyes.
"You do good work.", she commented.
Sesshoumaru said nothing, but she could see in his eyes that he was pleased. Katara got up to test her strenght, and found that she could walk without feeling pain. Fighting, however, would be another matter. She tried to run a couple of steps, and cringed as she felt the wound open.
"Oh, shit. I don't have enough strength to heal myself. I guess I'll have to change the bandages the old fashioned way."
She went to sit down by a tree, and began to remove her bandages, but a hand stopped her. Amber eyes met pale red ones, and Sesshoumaru said,
"No, I'll do that. I was the one who bandaged you in the first place."
Katara started to protest, but Sesshoumaru cut her off.
"I said, I'll do it."
The finality of his tone shut Katara up. She lifted her tank top up to mid-waist where the wound ended, and Sesshoumaru began to carefully unravel the white turniquete. He was gentle, making sure that he never touched her wound. A couple of times, his fingers brushed against her stomach as he was unraveling the bandage. Katara relished the feel of his touch, even if she thought that it had been an accident. His touch had the curious effect of spreading warmth all throughout her body, and she had to try incredibly hard to suppress a purr.
'Curious how I'm falling for a guy who hates my kind. How the hell do these things happen?' she mused.
Sesshoumaru took a piece of cloth soaked with water and medicinal herbs, and began to gently clean the blood off of the wound. He touched a particularly sensitive spot and Katara winced, but she didn't move a muscle. Sesshoumaru felt that he might have hurt her a bit, and admired that she didn't even move.
'She's got amazing self-discipline'.
He began bandaging her wound, letting his fingers touch her torso as much as he could. He liked the feeling of his skin on hers. Her skin was smooth as silk, and a creamy chocolate color. (okay, so he might not have known what chocolate was, but cut me some slack allright?And remember, it's my story so I can make him do whatever I want within reason.)
He finished attending her wound, and Katara lowered her tank top. Before she could react, she was swept up into Sesshoumaru's arms, bridal style. He paused for a moment, taking in her sweet scent of sakura and vanilla.
'What is wrong with me? This is not supposed to be! I'm a Lord! I am not supposed to feel these things, especially not towards a hanyou. How the hell do these things happen?'
Little did he know that Katara was thinking something along the same lines. But right now, sitting in his arms, her arms wrapped around his neck and hanging on for all it was worth, she was thinking,
'Oh Kami! What the fuck is he doing?' Sesshoumaru slowly walked over to where Katara had been sleeping before, and then gently layed her down on the cot.
"I just fixed your wound, and I have no intentions of letting it open again. You are not to move until that wound heals more."
Katara stared up at him.
"Why the hell do you care wether I heal or not? A little while back, you would have liked me dead.", she asked amazement mixed with bitterness.
For the first time, Sesshoumaru was flustered. Why DID he care? It's not like this hanyou was his mate. What did he care wether she went and bled to death? He decided not to answer himself, but answered Katara instead.
"I do not like having to repeat something that can get done in one shot. I don't want to have to be delayed from buisness longer than necessary." he replied, making sure his voice was even and emotionless.
But Katara wasn't fooled. Not for one second. She had seen the emotions in his eyes. The confusion was evident, and she smelled it on him, too. But what did it mean?
"Lord Sesshoumaru! Is Katara going to be allright?" Rin came running up to them, concern in her chocolate-colored eyes. Sesshoumaru looked down at the little girl.
"Yes, Rin. She will be fine soon."
Rin seemed a bit unsure with this answer, so Katara stepped in.
"Don't worry Rin! I'll be fine soon. I promise. Although you know, I think some flowers would make me feel a lot better." she replied tactfuly. Rin smiled at the girl, and ran off to find something to do. Katara layed her head down on the floor with a sigh. Sesshoumaru turned.
"I suppose I should leave you resting then." he said, walking away.
"Wait!" Katara's voice rang out. Sesshoumaru turned.
"Could you not? I-I-mean...I hate being alone...and well...You don't have to say anything, just..."
Sesshoumaru enjoyed watching her stumble around like that, but he decided to put her out of her misery, and went and sat down by her. Katara turned her head to look at him.
"I know I said you didn't have to talk, and you don't! But...I just wanted to say thanks again."
Sesshoumaru glanced at her out of the corner of his eye.
"There's no need to do that." Katara's ears perked up, drinking up every word he said. Sesshoumaru went on.
"I am merely repaying a debt. Now we are even." Katara's ears drooped immediately.
This was not unnoticed by Sesshoumaru, but he looked straight ahead, observing Rin as she chased some butterflies.
'It wasn't like I expected him to do this because he wants to. He's a Lord. Of course he has to repay every debt. And come on, why am I so fuckin' bummed? It's not like I like him, or anything! Do I?' she thought to herself uncertainly.
Sesshoumaru detected a scent in the air.
'A demon. I could fight it off, but I need to get Katara to safety first. She can't fight in these conditions.'
Katara also detected the demon. She wondered what Sesshoumaru was going to do. Sesshoumaru called Jaken over.
"Take Rin, and get her to the palace. A demon is coming, and she needs to get to safety. Now, Jaken!"
The little green toad scrambled to do what Sesshoumaru commanded. He didn't dare defy his Lord Sesshoumaru. He could be very dangerous when it came to Rin. Sesshoumaru saw Ah-Un fly off, Rin and Jaken on his back. He Turned to Katara.
"There's a demon coming. I could fight it, but you might get hurt. You're going to ride on my back."
Katara was puzzled.
"Ride on your-?"
She quickly realized what he meant when he transformed into his full demon form. Katara had to gasp. The creature that stood before her was enormous, but it was beautiful. He had silvery fur that glistened, and seemed almost...majestic. Katara felt something soft lift her into the air, and realized that it was his tail. She stroked it, feeling how soft it was, and soon found herself sitting on top of the demon. The big wolf-like dog turned his head to look at her, and nodded as if to say,
"Hold on!"
Katara felt him take off into the air, and soon they were flying high. She began to enjoy it. This was different from leaping. Feeling yourself flying through the air...was magical, almost. For the first time, since her father died, Katara felt truly happy. For a moment, just one moment, she was free of the earth. It seemed as if all her worries were left on the ground. She began to absentmindedly stroke the big wolf-dog's fur. She saw his ear twitch, and withdrew her hand, thinking that "Lord Sesshoumaru" might not like a hanyou to dirty his fur. He gave a whimper, and Katara realized that he DID like her stroking him. She ran her hands through his fur, feeling how soft and whispy it was. She wasn't sure where they were going, but she trusted him.
'I'm not sure how that happened, me trusting someone who can't stand humans, but whatever.'
She looked ahead, and saw a shadow in the distance. She squinted her eyes to see if she could get a better view of it. She did. Looming over the distance, was an enormous white palace, and they were coming coser to it.

Sesshoumaru landed in front of the palace. Katara felt a soft furry tail grab her by the waist and put her on the ground gently. She wished she could have stayed up in the sky. She liked the feeling of the wind rushing through her hair, and feeling completely weightless.
'Maybe if I ask nicely, someday he'll give me another ride.' she thought.
'When pigs fly!' part of her retorted.
Katara took a few steps foward, eager to examine the beautiful white palace that stood before her. She looked behind her, and saw that Sesshoumaru had changed into his normal form. He was examining her face, looking for her reaction.
"This is...your palace?" Katara asked in awe.
Sesshoumaru nodded, eyes never leaving her face.
"I guess you weren't kidding when you said you were Lord of the Western Lands!"
Sesshoumaru shot her a look that plainly said, "As if I'd ever kid."
Katara stared at the palace. It had a grand marble entrance, with collumns on either side. There was a fountain in the middle of the yard, a wolf howling. Flowers were planted along the path that led up the stairs to the entrance. All in all, Katara found it beautiful. Sesshoumaru walked up the path, and beckoned Katara to follow him. The inside of the palace was even more beauiful than the outside. Everything was white and sparkling. Katara was speechless at the beauty of it all.
'This man. This demon...MADE this?', was all she could think.
Sesshoumaru was secretly pleased by her reaction. It had been a while since he had brought anyone to his home, and he liked that someone enjoyed it as much as he did. He led her down a hall, and opened a door. He walked inside, but Katara stood uncertainy at the door.
"Should I...?", she asked.
She wasn't sure whether this might be his sleeping quarters. Sesshoumaru nodded, and she stepped inside.
"This will be your room." was all he said.
Katara walked over to the bed. She touched the bedding, and it was as soft as silk. She walked over to the window and looked down. She saw the garden, full of fruit, flowers, and trees. She turned around to look at Sesshoumaru.
"A room...of my own. I-I-" tears began to flow down her cheeks.
A look of concern crossed Sesshoumarus face, but just as quickly, it was gone. Katara sat down on the bed, and fought for control over her emotions.
"I've been living in the wild for two years...you don't know how grateful I am, Sesshoumaru." Sesshoumaru walked over to her, and used a crooked finger to bring up her face. He searched it, amber eyes never leaving crimson.
"Rin needs someone like you. Someone to remind her that she is human. You are welcome to be here whenever you wish."
At this, tears began flowing down her face again.
'It's almost as if...he's offering me a home.' she thought.
Sesshoumaru's hand reached toward her face, and tentatively wiped away a lone tear. Realizing what he had done, he moved away from her.
'No, I won't let her get to me. She can stay here, but only because of Rin.' he thought fiercely.
"I need to go take care of some buisness. You are welcome to explore the palace as you wish. I'm sure Rin is around here somewhere." He walked out of Katara's new room, leaving a very confused hanyou, her fingers touching lightly on where his had been a second ago.
'This gets more intersting by the second.' she mused. Feeling her stomach growl, she decided to go search for a kitchen.
'Or, whatever they call it here. He's bound to have food somewhere, right?'

Katara walked down the immense halls, confused about where to go. 'This place is bigger than the White House! How does anybody know where anything is?'
Her sensitive nose caught a scent in the air. 'It smells like...bread!' She decided to just follow her nose, and it took her to a small room full of food, kind of like a pantry. 'Oh wow! Look at all this! Loaves and loaves of bread! I better not take too much, or Sesshoumaru won't be happy.' Katara took a small loaf, and walked out of the room, closing the door behind her. As she walked back to where her room was, she broke off bits and pieces of the bread. 'Hmmmm! It tastes heavenly! I guess Sesshoumaru keeps food for Rin, since I suppose he hunts for his food.' By the time Katara got back to her room, she had eaten all of the bread, and she felt sleepy. 'I should take a nap. Restore my energy. When I wake up I'll heal my wound completely.' She walked over to her bed, and threw herself onto it, falling asleep instantly. For those few peaceful hours that she slept, a silver dog slipped in and out of her dreams.