I don't own these characters.
A/N: this chapter earns that rating again.
10: Let's Roll
Six cities in fourteen days. Kikyo's head was still spinning from that trip. Sesshomaru had treated her like a queen throughout the whole thing. He made sure she got to see everything she wanted to see while they were in certain cities and he also took her to places he figured she would like, even though she had never heard of them. He bought her gifts, even though she did not want any. He showered her with attention without making her feel like she was drowning in it. There never seemed to be an ulterior motive, which she was not used to thanks to her husband.
Sesshomaru wanted to do everything he could for his chocolate-eyed angel. He wanted her to get used to the finer things in life. He would always treat her like the angel she was and he wanted her to understand that from their trip. He figured once she completely believed she was safe with him and that he was not just putting on a front, then she would be open to the idea of leaving her filthy, undeserving bastard husband. She would then be his completely and totally.
Through the trip, he got odd reports on Naraku's movements from the person that he hired to trail the hanyou. He really just wanted to know when Naraku was heading back home, but his servant, a little toad demon named Jaken, called him about the fact that it seemed like Naraku was "being weird." The half-demon visited several banks and it also looked like he was considering purchasing a large plot of land, possibly to have a house built from the different people he spoke to, according to Jaken.
Sesshomaru was only a bit interested in the news. Was Naraku planning on moving? He did not care about that, but he was curious if Kikyo would move with that half-breed bastard. He would not allow Naraku to take Kikyo away from him now. He would challenge that dirty, irksome wretch to a duel in the middle of street and slaughter the crimson-eyed annoyance before he let Naraku take Kikyo somewhere. But, he shook that thought away, as it was only a distraction from his time with Kikyo.
At the moment, the secret couple was on their way back to their lives. Kikyo was asleep on the plane again, leaning against the dog demon. He did not mind, delighting in any portion of her weight against him. He caressed her cheek, which helped to keep her relaxed and asleep. He planned to have her spend the night with him when they landed, even if Naraku was at her home. He was not ready to let her go and he doubted she was ready to go.
Sesshomaru did not want to wake Kikyo up when they landed. He wanted her to remain comfortable, so he grabbed the carryon bags and slung them over his shoulder. He then gathered her in his arms and proceeded to carry her off the plane. The other passengers were incredulous to this display, but Sesshomaru ignored them, knowing the many reasons they stared.
No one could believe a demon was with a human, first of all. Then, they could not believe any guy rather carry his woman rather than wake up her and make her walk. Women quickly turned to glare at their significant others and grumbled little things that Sesshomaru heard, but he paid the angry or envious murmurs no mind.
The dog demon had arranged for a car to pick them up and he carried Kikyo all the way to the car while the driver got their bags. He cradled Kikyo in the car and she curled into his chest. He was as close to smiling as he ever would be in public.
"Beautiful wife you got there, mister," the driver commented.
"Just drive," Sesshomaru commanded.
While he enjoyed having Kikyo referred to as his wife on vacation, they were back in the real world. He was not interested in hearing any compliments toward Kikyo from another male, not interested in reminders that she was not actually his. The driver did not seem to appreciate the order, or so the sudden frown on his face implied. Being a demon himself, the driver decided he was not going to allow anyone, even a patron, be rude to him. One could imagine it was hard for demons to keep service jobs because of their attitudes.
"Although, she is just a little human. Where'd you buy her? Maybe I can get one," the driver remarked with a smirk.
The driver did not know who he was talking to. Sesshomaru was not only a demon male holding a human woman he cared deeply for, but he also had a little sister who was human. No, he held no love for the human race as a whole, but there were things he would not stand for. He disliked hearing any demon even joke about buying a human, which used to go on quite a bit in the past and still existed on the black market. All he could think about was if something like that happened to his little sister or one of her annoying little friends. He would end up killing everyone involved.
"Listen carefully, if you don't want to paint the windshield with your blood and brains, you'll drive the car and keep your mouth shut," Sesshomaru warned the male while cracking his knuckles on one hand. He had plans to let his energy whip fly if the fool wanted to keep at it. The car could crash for all he cared. He would shield Kikyo with his body and feel satisfaction in knowing there was one less fool in the world.
The driver looked into the rear-view mirror and caught the serious glint in Sesshomaru's golden eyes. Sesshomaru's youki wafted off of him and the driver visibly tensed. He wisely did not open his mouth and focused on driving the car. The dog demon leaned back into the car and enjoyed holding on Kikyo.
The driver did not bother Sesshomaru for the rest of the trip. They arrived at his apartment complex and he had no problem taking Kikyo and the bags upstairs. He put the bags down by the door and carried her to his bed. He placed her down and that was when she woke up.
"Sessho?" Kikyo called out as he started toward the door, going to move their luggage to some place out of the way.
"Yes?" Sesshomaru replied and turned around to face his angel.
"Have we arrived already?" she asked, blinking away her sleep.
"Yes. We're at my home. Go back to sleep." He planned to settle in next to her in the bed in a moment.
She sat up. "What time is it?"
Sesshomaru glanced at his clock by the bed because he had not corrected the time on his watch yet. It was actually the afternoon. She was probably going to want to get up, he reasoned. She glanced over at the clock to see what time it was and she got out of the bed immediately.
"I probably should go home," Kikyo said. She covered her mouth as delicate yawn escaped her as soon as she was finished talking.
"It's all right. Your husband isn't there yet," Sesshomaru replied.
She stared at him with an arched eyebrow. "How do you know?"
He let out a light scoff. "I just know. Would I steer you wrong, angel?"
"No," she easily answered.
"So, relax."
Kikyo nodded. "Sessho, where is my sketchbook?" After that vacation, art wanted to flow out of her like faucet. She needed to put something on paper immediately.
He regarded her with squinting eyes for a moment. "Why?"
"I would like to make use of it. Unless, you won't even allot me that. Then, I might as well buy another one." And possibly reevaluate her relationship with him.
"That's unnecessary."
"I think I would prefer to keep it here."
He nodded. "I'll get it for you."
The dog demon left the bedroom as did Kikyo. She retreated to the sofa while Sesshomaru retrieved her book and one of his own. He handed her the sketchbook and sat down next to her. They began drawing. She worked with pen while he had a charcoal stick. They silently enjoyed each other's company while just drawing together.
-8-8-8-8-
Kikyo was preparing to take a shower before going to bed, still at Sesshomaru's apartment. She hoped Sesshomaru was correct about Naraku not being home yet. It was not that she was afraid of the half-demon, but she did not want to have to deal with him. There was also the fact that if she had to deal with him, he would actually be in the right.
She was the one having an affair, after all. She sighed. How had this become her life? She really did not want to travel down that road in her mind, partially because she knew she would come to the conclusion she did not mind this being her life. Yes, there were all sorts of moral issues in her life now, but at least she was content. At least, she was content when she was with Sesshomaru. And speaking of the nobleman, he stepped into the bathroom.
"Sessho, what are you doing?" Kikyo inquired, pulling her shirt closer to her body. She was being ridiculous, she knew, but it was instinct.
"I thought I might join you," he replied.
Her brow furrowed as she stared at him. "Join me?"
"Yes, join you."
"In the shower?" she asked in a puzzled tone. Why would he join her in the shower?
"Yes."
Kikyo still did not seem to grasp what he meant. He thought that was one of the many endearing things about her, just how naïve she could be while being so intelligent and educated. He knew she would get it in a moment, especially since they had bathed together several times over the vacation. The only difference was those had been actual baths and now she was talking about taking a shower. Not to mention, they had planned those baths where as this was spontaneous.
"Why would you want to join me in a small space like the shower?" Kikyo asked.
Sesshomaru smirked. Why indeed. "I have my reasons."
She did not argue with him and they had a rather hot shower in more ways than one. Kikyo found herself pressed against the tile, Sesshomaru's mouth on hers. One of his hands palmed her breast as the other settled against her thigh, pulling her leg up to his hip. Her hands glided through his wet hair.
No words passed between them, but they were in sync, as they had been all vacation. They did not break the kiss and they had learned the best ways to touch each other already. Kikyo discovered Sesshomaru whimpered if she curled the hair at the nape of his neck around her fingers. When the embarrassing noise escaped him, he slipped his hand in between her legs as revenge. How would she like it when she was the one making humiliating sounds?
Kikyo's breath hitch and she fell away from Sesshomaru's sweet lips as his finger found her pleasure. She yanked him closer with the leg on his hip. She let out a whine while he groaned as their wet bodies pressed together.
"Sessho…" she purred, hips grinding against his hand as sparks sizzled through her.
"You feel so good," he said.
She nodded for lack of a better thing to say. He smiled and put her other leg on his hip. She shivered in anticipation and whimpered. He understood the sound, lining up with her. She went in for a kiss to grant him permission and he swallowed a loud moan from her as he eased into her. He groaned as she surrounded him. Being connected to Kikyo, inside Kikyo, would never cease to be the most incredible thing ever.
"Oh, Sessho…" Kikyo cried out as he moved within her. She clutched his back, holding on for dear life as her world centered on him.
"I have you," he vowed before his mouth found her neck. He wanted to mark her, not possessively, but for her to understand the pleasure his mouth could bring her here, as well as anywhere else on her body.
Kikyo's breath hitched, but she did not say anything, just tried to pull him closer. He responded by moving faster and all too soon Kikyo pulsed around him. He could not resist the pull and gritted his teeth against her flesh as he climaxed right after her. She slumped against him, spent. He smiled as he caught his breath.
"We were supposed to wash up," she said, head resting on his shoulder.
"We still can," he replied, even though it was somewhat pointless. He planned to have his way her at least once more before returning her home.
Kikyo sighed and somehow managed to wash them both while Sesshomaru busied himself kissing her cheeks, neck, and breasts throughout the shower. Things did not stop there. Sesshomaru did not allow his angel to touch the floor when the shower ended. After they toweled each other off, he lifted her up and carried her into his bedroom. They should have one last passionate night before he had to return her to a bastard who did not care about her at all and did not deserve her at all.
The couple was intimate with each other until the early morning. Kikyo fell asleep curled up very close to her paramour, head resting on his chest, listening to his heartbeat. He smiled to himself. Life was supposed to be something like this. Life really was supposed to be where she was his and he did not have to let her leave later on because she had to return to her husband. One day. Too bad today was not that day.
Sesshomaru wondered if he had offended some divine being he did not know about. It would explain why he had met the perfect woman, but she happened to be married to the most annoying and vile creature on the planet. Not to mention, she was also a human. It sounded pretty damn ironic to him. Something that could only be brought on by fate.
"In the end, we are fated to be together," he muttered, fingers drifting across her bare shoulder. She made a noise in her sleep and cuddled closer.
-8-8-8-8-
Rin put her key in the door and turned the lock to be allowed access to the apartment. She put her keys back around her neck as she opened the door and stepped inside. She had made sure to shut the door as quietly as possible since her brother had sensitive ears. She took her low-cut sneakers off at the door and put her skates down beside her shoes. She looked around and was a bit shocked that the place was lifeless.
She suspected her brother had slept in since it was the weekend. It was something her brothers always did. She walked to the back first to go check and see if he might be doing some early morning painting, but he was not in his studio. He was probably still in the bed. She went to go wake him up, just to let him know she was going to be there for a while before heading off to the skate park.
She headed to the bedroom and cracked the door open. She poked her head inside the room and caught a glimpse of someone in the bed that was not her brother. She only got a brief look at the face and knew it was a woman. A very familiar looking woman. Before she could get a better look, her big brother blocked her view.
"Rin, what are you doing here so early?" Sesshomaru inquired as he stepped out of the room, forcing Rin to back up. He was dressed in plain white cotton pants and a sleeveless t-shirt.
"I'm meeting my friends at the skate park in an hour, so I thought I'd lounge around your apartment for a while. Who was that, big brother?" Rin shamelessly asked while pointing in the bedroom.
"None of your concern," Sesshomaru answered in his usual tone, but it did not seem so cold when he was addressing Rin. He used to wonder how such a little human could make him seem so unlike himself. He used to even remind himself that she was not really his sister, as if that would help him regain his usual manner when she was around, but that never happened. Even when she was a baby, she had him wrapped around her little finger and he could not longer bother to care.
"I think I know her," Rin said.
With a frown, he craned an eyebrow at her. "You think you know her?"
"I think so, but I didn't get a good look at her," the preteen answered.
"And you won't get a good look at her," he informed her. The quickest way for a secret to get out was when three people knew about it.
"Why not? I won't make the same mistake as I did in front of your last girlfriend," Rin vowed. It was not really a mistake she made in front of his last girlfriend. She had not liked that demoness much because the female was mean and uppity, so Rin mentioned Sesshomaru usually dated much prettier girls and started a world war as far as she could tell. Sesshomaru barely scolded her over it in the end, but he was not happy with her and she knew.
"You're not going to meet her, Rin. Now, you may remain here until you have to meet your friends, but you will not make a lot of noise and you will eat something before you leave," he commanded.
"Actually, I had breakfast at home. Mommy caught me running out of the house and forced me to eat," she told him.
"Good. Now, be very quiet while you're out here." He wanted Kikyo to get as much rest as possible before returning to the stressful situation that was her home life.
"Yes, sir." She grinned at him, giving him a mock salute.
Sesshomaru eyed her suspiciously for a moment before leaving her out in the apartment on her own. He returned to the bedroom and settled back down next to Kikyo. He figured she should be asleep until Rin left.
The only reason he did not want Rin to meet Kikyo was because he thought Rin would run home, telling the tale of how he had a new girlfriend. Their father would then make it his business to know as much about Kikyo as possible and he would find out she was married. His father would not take that news well and Sesshomaru would never hear the end of how disgraceful it was for him to chase a married woman.
Sesshomaru gathered Kikyo up in his arms to enjoy the feel of her against him. His father would not understand their relationship, not right now anyway. She was made for him and it was that simple. She just jumped the gun and got married before they got to meet each other. One day, the mistake would be corrected and all would be right in the world. Then, Rin could tell any and everyone about his girlfriend.
Rin raided her brother's refrigerator, thinking about the woman that was in his bed. She was certain she knew the woman, even though she had not gotten the best look at her face. But, as she thought about it, she doubted it was who she thought it was. The woman on her brain was married and she would never do anything remotely considered wrong. Still, it seemed like the woman that she was thinking.
"It couldn't be," she tried to assure herself.
The preteen watched some television before she got a text message on her cell phone asking where she was. She grabbed her skates and put them on. She put her sneakers over her shoulder and took off for the skate park that was up the street from her brother's apartment.
"Hey, guys!" Rin greeted her friends with a huge grin on her face.
The trio Rin hung out with looked up when they heard her jubilant voice. Two of them wondered how she could sound so chipper early in the morning, even though they did not mind the time. They just did not think it was appropriate to sound so happy. The third member of their group nearly matched Rin's enthusiasm when he replied to her call.
"Hey, Rin!" Shippo replied with a monstrous smile on his face.
Kaede and Kohaku only glanced at the fox demon. They figured his energy was brought by too much sugar in the morning while Rin's energy came from who knew where. Their energy usually did not come until they fell off of a rail a few times.
"Why is it you live the closest to this place, but you're always the last one here?" Kaede asked Rin in a teasing tone and the other girl just shrugged as a response.
Kaede and Rin had been best friends for forever as far as they were concerned. They really could not remember a time they were not friends. They tried to do everything together, which included rides to the hospital when they messed up on some tricks when they were on their in-line skates.
They both knew Kohaku because his sister was friends with Rin's brother and Kaede's cousin. Kohaku was a couple of years older than they were, but he hung out with them because he liked skating as much as they did. They all liked going to the park and jumping off of things with their blades. It was freeing in his opinion and they would agree with that.
They met Shippo in school a couple of years back when he was the new kid. He was more fascinated in watching them skate than actually doing any work himself, especially when he saw what happened when they fell. They typically laughed off any injuries, except for when they broke something and they did break quite a few bones. He did not see how they could laugh. He at least thought the girls would cry when they fell, but no, they were the main ones who laughed. Kohaku had a habit of being upset when he got injured, viewing it as a failure rather than worrying about pain from being hurt.
"Hey, Kaede," Rin said.
"Yeah, what?" Kaede replied as she sat down to put on her skates.
"Is your sister still married?" Rin asked.
"Yeah," Kaede answered and then she looked up at her best friend, face scrunched up. "Why would you ask that question?" It seemed like such a weird question.
"No, I just thought I saw her at my brother's apartment, but if she's still married, it couldn't be her," Rin answered. Well, mystery kind of solved. Now, she wondered who her brother's new girlfriend was.
"Why not? Inuyasha and Kikyo know each other, so she might have been there," Kaede commented.
"No, it wasn't Inuyasha's house. I went to Sesshomaru's house and his girlfriend was there in the bed. I thought she looked a lot like Kikyo, but it couldn't be Kikyo if she's still married," Rin explained and then dismissed it all with a wave of her hand. She was pretty sure she was mistaken in what she saw.
"Sesshomaru?" Kaede echoed. "Is he tall with silver hair?"
"Yeah."
"Into art?"
"Yeah, he paints," Rin answered. Her friends did not know her eldest brother too well because of his attitude toward humans. He did not want to know her friends, which was a little heartbreaking in the beginning, but she was used to it by now.
"Holy shit," Kaede muttered as she was struck by a realization. Normally, she would never think to say such profane words, but the thought in her head was just too much. It required a forceful declaration.
"What?" her friends asked. They were all curious now, especially since Kaede had used foul language.
"It might have been Kikyo," Kaede stated. She knew Kikyo had a demon friend and she had said his name a few times, but Kaede had never really listened because she was always going on about museums or art when she talked about him, but she was pretty sure his name was Sesshomaru.
"You're kidding," all three friends said. They had all met Kikyo. There was no way that she would do something like what Kaede was trying to tell them.
"Guys, I hope I am kidding," Kaede said.
"There's a way to find out," Rin suggested.
"And what way is that?" Kohaku asked, knowing she had something mischievous in mind. Rin was always good for something that would get them in trouble at the least and killed at the most.
"We could go in the apartment when it's empty and look around," Rin proposed.
"You mean snoop around," Kohaku corrected her.
"Brilliant idea!" Kaede agreed with her best friend. They gave each other a high-five.
"I don't think this is a good idea, guys," Shippo tried to object because he had heard tales of Rin's eldest brother. He was not a very friendly demon and he doubted an unfriendly demon would like them going through his things. Shippo was ignored by the girls, who knew the fox demon was a coward and they knew Kohaku would go along with just about anything because he was a pretty laid-back guy.
"Lemme just find out when he's going to be gone," Rin said and she pulled out her phone, calling her eldest brother. "Hey, Sesshomaru, is it okay if I spend the night at your place? It's a long weekend and me and my friends are probably going to spend it skating like crazy."
"You are always welcome, Rin. I am not home, though," Sesshomaru replied.
"Well, I've got a key and I'm not going right this second."
"I'm not sure when I'll be back in."
Rin groaned. "I can take care of myself, Sesshomaru."
"As long as taking care of yourself doesn't involve destroying the apartment, I will be back sometime tonight."
"I will not destroy the apartment," she promised. "Bye." She disconnected the call and turned her attention back to her clique. "Guys, we can go right now."
"Let's go," Kaede suggested with wide, sneaky grin.
"Let's hurry because he could come back at anytime," Rin stated.
Kaede nodded and the best friends skated off in a hurry. Kohaku grabbed Shippo and followed behind the impulsive girls. Kohaku situated the little kitsune on his back as he tried to keep pace with the girls. He quietly noted he was going to have to work out more if he was going to have to carry Shippo every time Rin or Kaede got a "bright" idea. Shippo merely spent the time shivering, thinking about what might happen if Rin's brother found them in his home.
It did not take them much time to get to Sesshomaru's apartment. They almost got hit by several vehicles on the way there, though. Rin opened the door and motioned for her friends to wait outside. She went in to make sure the coast was clear. She took off her skates and quickly searched the house while calling for her big brother. It seemed it was safe for her friends to come in.
"All right guys, he's not here. Come in and make sure you take your skates off at the door," Rin instructed, waving them in.
The friends all nodded. They walked in as quietly as they possibly could, just in case, and took their skates off, or their shoes in Shippo's case. They looked around the apartment and they could not help feeling as they owed Rin money just for letting them in the glorious place.
"Your brother is loaded, huh?" Shippo said as wide eyes took in the apartment.
Rin scoffed and waved the question off. "All right, let's start looking," she declared, clapping her hands together.
"Looking for what exactly?" Kohaku inquired.
"I dunno. Stuff you recognize from Kikyo," Rin answered.
"And if we don't find anything?" Kohaku asked.
"Well, we still had fun going through someone else's stuff," Rin replied with a laugh. Fun was fun.
Man, she could find a bright side to anything, Kohaku thought as he began to help them with their search. He thought they were wasting their time. He knew Kikyo as well as Rin did and he did not believe she would be seeing Sesshomaru while she was married. She was not that kind of woman.
"This is stupid," Kohaku muttered, blowing a light raspberry as he moved through the living room. He really would rather be skating right now. He had moves he wanted to try out and everything. "You two owe me for this, especially if we don't find anything," he informed the two girls, wagging his finger at them.
"You're so cranky in the morning," Rin teased him.
Kohaku did not respond to that as he started his search in a bookcase. He doubted he would find anything there, even if there was evidence of Kikyo being in the house, which was why he picked that spot to look. He really did not feel like acting like he was some kind of private investigator.
Shippo was too frightened to touch anything, fiddling his fingers and looking around like he expected Sesshomaru to jump out of the walls. He knew that Sesshomaru, being a dog demon, would know they were in his home regardless of the fact if they were gone by the time he got there. He had a working nose, after all. The little fox demon wondered what was going to happen when Sesshomaru realized they were there and worse yet, when he realized they had been going through his things.
"He's going to kill us," Shippo whimpered.
"Stop being such a baby, Shippo," Kaede replied, going through items on the coffee table.
Rin and Kaede could care less than nothing about what Sesshomaru was going to do when he found out that they were in his home. They rummaged through everything, curiosity dying to know if the woman Rin saw was indeed Kikyo. Rin had the eyes and Kaede had the information, so it might have actually been Kikyo.
Rin took the bedroom while Kaede went through the living room. They did not find anything worth much to them. Rin moved on to the bathroom in the bedroom and noticed there were two toothbrushes in there. She used the main bathroom when she stayed at the apartment, so she knew it was not her toothbrush. Hmm, it seemed whoever that was in the bed stayed over enough to need a toothbrush.
"Find anything?" Rin asked as she returned to the outside rooms.
"Nothing," the three friends answered.
"Hmm… where else is there to look?" Rin tapped her chin in thought.
The preteen girl looked at her best friend and it seemed like they were both struck by the same idea. Kaede asked about Sesshomaru's art workshop and Rin pointed to where the room was. Both girls went in there and started going through whatever they could get their hands on. Rin found something interesting first.
"These don't look anything like his sketches," Rin commented as she flipped through a sketchbook.
"Lemme see," Kaede requested and Rin showed her best friend, who gasped.
"What?" Rin inquired.
"That's Kikyo's sketchbook. She never lets it out of her sight," Kaede answered.
Rin glanced back down at the drawing book and the only thing she could think was that Kikyo was a very talented artist. Well, that and Kikyo was cheating on her husband with Sesshomaru. Now they had evidence, it seemed like skating would have been a better idea because now they did not know what to do with such deep knowledge. Ignorance certainly was bliss.
-8-8-8-8-
Next time: Can these guys keep a secret?