Chapter 11

"The cook's nephew," was all Sesshomaru said, his eyes showed clear annoyance.

"He's one of the few people that are nice to me," I shrugged my shoulders, not sure if I wanted to get into the fact that he's been ignoring me since we've gotten here.

He sat silently for a moment before finally saying, "is he courting you?"

"No?" I raised my eyebrows. I was unsure of customs here, so if he was courting me I wouldn't know.

"You sound unsure."

"I don't know the customs here."

"He is interested in courting you. Servants have been whispering about it."

"If he formally asks, I am not going to accept. I have bigger things to worry about besides a romantic relationship." I explained. "Why do you care anyway?"

He raised his eyebrow slightly. "I do not care. I just believe you are worth more than a servant."

"Well, I believe that I can be with whomever I wish-servant or not." I said. "Why are we even talking about this? You're with a concubine most of your time, aren't you?"

He made a sound that I thought could've been a laugh if he had let himself.

"Her and I are not together."

"Oh sorry, having sex with each other." I replied, showing how I annoyed I was. I cursed at myself mentally for showing I was jealous, I wish I could just stop caring.

"That is not the case." He said, slight amusement sparking in his eyes.

"Bullshit, she follows you everywhere." I rolled my eyes at him. "You expect me to believe you two aren't fucking. The minute she walked into your study I have been invisible. You've been so focused on her that we haven't even sat down to accomplish what we came here to do!" I let my frustration get the best of me. I wanted to punch myself.

He stood up, and made his way to me. He bent down and put his lips right beside my ear, causing me to shiver as I felt his breath.

"She is my spy." He whispered to me. "I have had a major problem, she approaches me under the guise of being a concubine. It is the least suspectful, and she plays the part well."

He stepped away from me, a ghost of a smirk on his face. "No need to get jealous Athena."

I felt my whole face heat up and knew that I was bright red from embarrassment.

"I'm not jealous," I lied, and I could tell that he knew I was lying. I just wanted to die. "I just want to hurry up and save my father." I added some truth to the lie, to change the subject.

"Did you find anything?" He asked me, walking back over to the pile of books I brought in.

"I'm not sure," I walked up beside him. "I'd need you to check."

He nodded his head and we began going over the books I had brought in.

"So," I began whispering. "What was the big issue?"

He looked around the room, as if searching for listening ears and then wrote something down on a piece of paper.

There is an enemy among us, plotting a coup. They have been waiting for me to arrive. The paper he had passed me said.

I pursed my lips together, understanding what he was doing. No one would suspect anything if they thought he was spending his time enjoying the company of a woman. I still felt jealous and also like he couldn't trust me. I would've understood if he had told me from the beginning that something major was going on, but still-I couldn't help shake the way he looked at her. I knew I wasn't nearly as pretty as she was, and someone as beautiful as Sesshomaru would want a gorgeous woman by his side. Not a plain looking human.

Shaking my thoughts I wrote back: Do you know who it is? Ipassed the paper back to him.

He quickly pushed the paper back to me. I glanced up at him to see him going through the books, I tried to hold back a little giggle. I felt like I was in middle school, passing notes to a crush while trying to look focused on our work so the teacher wouldn't find out and scold us. Expect, this was not school. Sesshomaru was not a young boy. I was not passing notes to a crush. This could potentially be much more dangerous, which was why we had to be secretive. If the wrong person overheard that Sesshomaru knew who was plotting against him, we don't know what they would do, or even if they would try to run.

Yes. The note said.

I wrote back: Were they responsible for attacking me?

It didn't seem too far fetched, attack the girl who came with Sesshomaru. It was bound to be me or Rin. I'm just glad that if this is the case, they made no move toward Rin, probably because she was constantly surrounded by guards and kept much closer to Sesshomaru since we've been here.

I glanced up at him, lost in my thoughts of how he must perceive me. I wondered if he found it tiresome to keep protecting me. Even though I had all this power, I was useless since I didn't know how to use or control it. He simply nodded his head, as he tossed the paper we were sharing into the burning fireplace beside us.

I also wondered if by the time we found the person who could help me, if we would then part ways. He only offered to help me find them, he never said he'd stay afterwards.

"I found him." He said, breaking me from my thoughts. I should've felt excited, but instead I felt sad, like this was going to lead to us saying goodbye to each other and I wasn't sure when I would see him again.

We sat at the large table we ate at once we had arrived to his home, eating a feast to say farewell to Sesshomaru and me. Sesshomaru was planning on leaving for one week and I was unsure if that meant I would return with him, or if I was going to be left behind.

Rin and Jaken were to remain at the fortress, Sesshomaru thought we would travel faster if it was just the two of us. Plus, we didn't know what to expect when we found who we were searching for. Finding out about this news caused Jaken to throw somewhat of a tantrum, only to be met with Sesshomaru's boot on his head. He then reluctantly agreed.

I sat next to Sesshomaru. I expected to see Ichika sitting beside him as well, but she was sitting with the other concubines. I glanced over at them, and if looks could kill I would be dead. Ichika sat elegantly, a slight smirk on her face and she nodded once in my direction before raising her cup and taking a drink. I had no idea what any of that meant, but I assumed it was that Sesshomaru told her I knew what she really was.

I scanned the large room for Kazuiko, but he was nowhere to be seen. It wasn't until a plate was placed in front of me that I heard his voice as he whispered to me, "I can't wait to see how powerful you can truly become. Meet me tonight, by the edge of the garden."

I glanced back, and saw him walking away with a smile on his face as he waved slightly at me. I had a feeling I knew what was going to come of this meeting, and I wondered for a moment if I should go or not. I figured it would be best to tell him that I couldn't be with him, I had priorities that prevented me from doing so and feelings that I would have to sort through before I even considered letting him have a chance.

Sesshomaru must've heard what he whispered to me since immediately after Sesshomaru placed his clawed hand on my leg before quickly removing it. I had no idea what was meant by that. If I had thought Sesshomaru had thought of me as more than just an interesting object, I would have thought he was jealous. However, I felt that that wasn't at all the case. I had a feeling my evening was going to be full of mysteries and unspoken gestures that would leave me wondering for hours what they truly meant.

Tonight, we did something that was unexpected, well, at least to me. Music began to play throughout the room and people began to dance. I smiled as the energy in the room shifted from one of seriousness to one of fun and joy. Even Sesshomaru who was always alert and cool seemed to allow himself to relax and take in the scene of people dancing and enjoying themselves.

I found myself wanting to join in on the fun, but it appeared to be only couples dancing. No one would ask me to dance, Kazuiko was busy working and Sesshomaru didn't seem to be the type to dance. Taking me by surprise, Sesshomaru stood up and stared at me. I felt my heart begin to pound in my chest as I expected him to ask me, but instead he walked over to Ichika and took her hand and led her to the dance floor. She sent me a glance, and I understood what her earlier gesture meant.

I shook my head, trying to push my hurt feelings aside and decided that I didn't need to rely on someone else to ask me to dance. I stood up, the gorgeous kimono that was lent to me making me feel a little odd, but I still confidently walked to the dance floor. I listened to the music and I began to sway and spin in sync with the music.

"She's dancing by herself?"

"How sad."

"How bold."

"Interesting."

People whispered all around, but I did not care. I wanted to dance and have fun, and nothing was going to stop me from taking this one rare moment of truly enjoying myself. The music seemed to take over my body, and once the song finished playing I realized people were staring at me, well more like at the ground below me.

I was confused and looked down to see I had caused a circle of flowers and grass to grow beneath my feet. Once the embarrassment began to take over my body, the flowers began to die and disappear. It seemed everyday I would develop some new addition to my powers and I was starting to grow really tired of it.

The music began to play again and I no longer wanted to partake in the festivities. I scanned the room for Sesshomaru, but he had left. I was a mixture of sad and relieved that he wasn't watching. Sad because I wish he was, and relieved so he couldn't see how awkward I was standing there. All eyes were on me, and with the mixture of embarrassment and my hurt feelings, I left as well. Deciding I should wait for Kazuiko by the garden.

I walked alone for a moment, as the garden was almost on the other side of the fortress. I hated it here. Sesshomaru kept me in the dark and treated me like I didn't exist, but also would do weird things to keep me confused. I was unsure what to do, or even what to say, but I assumed he was taking care of whatever-or whoever-was planning something against him. If they were to try something, I wouldn't be surprised if they did so tonight.

Whoever was trying to plot against him was foolish. Sesshomaru was a powerful terrifying demon when he wanted to be. I could only assume the mystery invader had either never met him, or had forgotten just how strong he could be.

I eventually made it to the garden. It was a spot where couples met since I wasn't the only one here and there were people cuddled up against each other whispering sweet words to each other. I felt myself become nervous since Kazuiko wanted to meet in what was apparently considered the most romantic place on the grounds.

As more time went by I became more and more nervous. I had no idea what he wanted to say or do, but I felt like it was going to lead to confessed feelings and a broken heart. I didn't think he loved me, but he definitely wanted to pursue something I had little interest in.

Eventually more and more time went on, and people left. I was standing alone in the garden and something felt off somehow.

"We finally meet." An old scratchy voice whispered behind me.