Chapter Nineteen: Traveling Party

"Speaking"

Thoughts/memories/dreams

'Beast speaking'

Asterix ( * ) term word, definition at the end of chapter

Kasumi stirred awake, pressed into something warm, and wrapped around something soft. She had never woken up to something so comforting before, the soft fur around her hugged her tightly, and she nuzzled her nose into her warm pillow. She sighed contently, arms wrapping around something solid, and she squeezed, not expecting it to talk to her.

"If you're awake, then get up." Sesshomaru's voice jerked her awake and she quickly flung herself away from the sound. She landed on hard ground, legs sprawled and entangled in the fluff of his fur wrap. Her cheeks turned a bright red at seeing the annoyed, sleepy look on the lords face. He had taken his armor off at some point in the evening, and she quickly understood he had been her pillow throughout the night.

"L-Lord Sesshomaru!" She exclaimed loudly, quickly scampering and attempting to untangle her legs. He leaned forward slightly and grabbed one of her ankles, lifting her foot up and moving it out from the mokomoko's* grasp. He did the same with her other leg, and she quickly flushed and tried to sit seiza style. The front of her kosode was stained red with blood, and her stomach quickly realized its hurt. She clutched the garment with her fist and leaned forward as the dull ache quickly grew to a sharp, almost unbearable stabbing. She gasped, seizing up as the pain grasped her, when she felt a weight on her back that somehow eased her. She looked up to see Sesshomaru hovering above her, his hand resting against her shoulders.

"It'll pass, just breathe, slowly." He instructed. She tried focusing on her breathing, keeping it even and slow. She sat like that for a few moments longer until the pain became bearable enough she was able to sit up straight.

"Th-thank you, my lord." She flushed, wrapping her arms around herself to keep her body hidden.

He said nothing as he stood up, and Kasumi looked away, deeper into the forest. It was early morning, bright sunlight beaming through leaves, glistening against the morning dew of the grass. She smelled heat and woods, the hard dirt under her legs digging into her shins. She would have been bothered by the pain, if she weren't strangely mesmerized by the feeling.

Something dropped over her head, and she looked up to see that Sesshomaru had given her his kimono, leaving him in only his hakama's, nagajuban*, and the armor he just replaced. He wasn't looking at her, and she flushed at realizing she was embarrassing herself with her appearance, and hastily slipped her arms through the sleeves and tied the kimono.

She tried not to focus on how it smelled. She never once focused so heavily on her sense of smell before now, but she was particularly drawn to Sesshomaru's musk. She didn't hate it, but she didn't want to admit she liked it either. It smelled like outside to her, the rain and sun, the trees and leaves, the dirt and grass. It was everything she loved about being outside, everything about outside she wasn't allowed to experience. For a moment, it reminded her of home, but the scent was so purely Sesshomaru's own that the thought was only fleeting.

"Thank you again, my lord." She stood up, straightening out the kimono and bowing to him. He didn't say anything, turning his back to her and walking away. She stepped up quickly to keep pace with him, hiding the excited feeling of her feet on the dewy grass.

She clumsily followed behind him, stepping on sticks and old leaves - making as much noise as possible. She was astounded how quiet he was ahead of her, carefully avoiding anything that could make noise without even making much of an effort to avoid it. She tried copying his steps, only to be even louder than before.

"Ouch," she muttered, stepping on a stick that poked the arch of her foot a little hard. She placed one hand on the trunk of a tree and lifted her foot up to examine it, making sure she wasn't bleeding. Satisfied she wasn't seriously injured, she put her foot down and looked up.

He had stopped walking and was watching her carefully, concern wafting from him.

"I'm fine, just stepped on a stick." She smiled at him for reassurance, but it didn't seem to calm him.

"I will get you sandals as soon as possible." He told her. "For now, please bear with it." He turned and continued onward, and she frowned, hurrying to catch up to him.

She grabbed his sleeve and stopped him, causing him to look down at her. "Getting me sandals? Aren't we going back home?" She asked. His frown was answer enough for her, and her brows furrowed together. "Why not?"

"It isn't safe." He explained.

"Not safe? How is it not safe? One person tried to kill me, my lord. It's not as if the whole house is out to get me."

"It would be easier if they were. Unfortunately, the one who tried getting rid of you is dead, and his partner is an unknown member of the house. We don't know if there is one, or two, or more. Until they are weeded out, it's better if you remain outside of the house." He turned to start walking again, but she tugged on his sleeve once more.

"What about running the house then?"

"A few days won't make it fall." He started walking again, pulling his sleeve from her grasp.

"I disagree," she hurried around till she was in front of him. "A lot can happen in a few days, my lord. What if something happens and I'm not there to fix it?"

He stared down at her, amber eyes examining her frame in the morning light. She had a stubborn set in her expression, one he purposely ignored as he walked past her, rubbing her head as he did so. "A few days is fine."

"What if it doesn't take a few days?" She called after him, walking until she was beside him again.

"As you said, a lot can happen in a few days." He muttered, looking down at her to see her pout at her own words being tossed back. He smiled a little and looked away, moving into a clearing in the center of the woods. "I will get shoes soon."

Kasumi looked down at her feet, buried in the tall grass and squished against exceptionally soft dirt. She squeezed her toes together, feeling the blades of grass brush and tickle her soles, and she giggled softly.

"No, that's okay, my lord. I'll be fine. For a few days." She looked up at him, only to find he was watching her once more. She blushed. He was staring at her an awful lot, like he was concerned she might keel over any moment.

"If you are to be my mate, it wouldn't do for you to call me lord." He said, closing his eyes and turning away from her, leaving her staring at his back.

"What do you mean? Most noble wives do…" She trailed off, watching him curiously.

"Perhaps I haven't made myself very clear to you, kit." He looked at her over his shoulder, and all she could see was the gold in his eyes. "I do not want you to treat me above you. You will be an equal. Not subservient."

"Y-you were serious about that? I-I thought you weren't being honest when you wanted me to be an intended mate…" She looked down at her feet again, only to hide her blush this time.

"I wasn't. At first. However, if you continue to do the job you have been doing at the estate, I should take it more seriously." He admitted, looking away again and she wished she could bring herself to look at his face.

"W-what about returning me to my father…?" She asked quietly.

"I owe him a great deal for past help. My repayment to him could be to take his youngest daughter as my mate."

She pressed her lips together. "So I won't see him…?" She felt a tinge in her heart, a bit of disappointment and even sorrow. She may not know the man, but she wanted to know him. It might've been fearful meeting him the first few times, but she wanted to know the man her mother loved.

"You wouldn't be happy there." At his words, she looked up at him again only to see he was once again watching her.

"What makes you suggest that, my lord?" She questioned, narrowing her eyes a little.

"Tomosue has five children, not including you. They are years your senior, and to them, you would only be a reminder of their father's short comings."

"How would you know?"

He was quiet for a few minutes, looking back to the empty field encased in sun. "Because I was them at one point." He walked forward, and Kasumi watched as he stepped into the light, startled at having learned something about him. "And don't call me lord anymore." He called back at her.

She flushed and quickly ran towards him. "Then call my name instead of kit or girl." She said, and watched as his lips tugged up into a slight smirk.

"I don't think so, girl." He looked at her from the corner of his eyes, her lips turning down into a pout.

"My name isn't that hard to remember, Lord Sesshomaru. You want me to drop the lord then say my name!" She grabbed his arm and he quickly pulled it from her grasp, whirling around to face her. Stunned she looked up at him as his face leaned in close to hers. He gripped her chin, and she felt his nose brush against hers, his eyes intently looking at her with the unexpected heat of a fire.

"Kasumi," he said her name like a whisper, squeezing her heart and causing her to blush. He released her as quickly as he grabbed her, again walking off. He left her glued to her spot, her entire face a beet red. "Hurry up, girl." He called out to her, and she tried to shove her shyness down and hurried up to him. She didn't ask him to call her by name again, content with just following quietly behind him now.

What am I doing? Sesshomaru thought, watching Rin and Kasumi play with one another. It didn't take long for Rin to warm up to the kit. Once she had learned the fox was a friend, her first response was to ask if she could touch her ears. Now the two of them were chasing each other, a game Rin called tag she often forced Jaken into.

Kasumi seemed to be enjoying herself. She was "it" and was running after the small child, ready to tag her and claim Rin as "it". He didn't understand the concept of the game, only knew it entailed chasing one another and touching others in the game. He hasn't spent much time with the kit, but he was enjoying seeing a new side of her. Stubborn, childish, mature… how can a small, young creature display that many traits?

"Uh, Lord Sesshomaru…?" Jaken spoke up, causing him to refocus his attention onto his task. "You will allow me to take Ah-uhn, correct?"

Sesshomaru frowned a little. He was sending Jaken to the estate to find the one working for Utada, and knew it would be quicker if he took Ah-uhn. However, if he did take the two headed beast, it would mean he couldn't leave Kasumi and Rin alone like he normally would.

It also means if there is danger, they will not be able to escape easily. Again, he asked himself what he was doing. He could agree that he wanted to keep both girls safe, but how safe could he keep them if he ran across Naraku? And since Rins kidnapping, he clearly didn't doubt his ability to try doing it again. Only this time, he would have a new target. What am I doing?

"Take him, but return swiftly, Jaken. You have three days to return." He glared hard at the imp, causing him to shiver and mentally letting him know what would happen to him if he didn't come back successfully.

"Y-Yes, my lord!" Jaken scampered up the large beast, Ah-Uhn quickly taking them to the skies. Sesshomaru watched for a moment before his eyes settled back onto the kit and Rin.

Their game had stopped, and now the two of them set admits the field of wild flowers. Rin was sitting on right next to Kasumi, showing the fox how to make flower crowns. He watched as she clumsily tried to imitate Rins decorative head piece, and felt himself almost smile.

"Rin! How can you do that?" Kasumi questioned loudly, frustrated with her ugly result.

"You're really bad at this," Rin laughed and Kasumi frowned deeply at her, causing the human child to laugh louder. "Don't worry, you'll get better at it, I promise. It just takes practice."

Kasumi sighed deeply, looking down at the twisted mess in her hands. "I've never even heard of making these before. I had so many flowers back home, I probably could have." She looked at Rin, who was giving her a concerned look, and she smiled at her. "Oh, don't worry. I'll convince Sesshomaru to let me plant flowers in his gardens. I'll get better, and the next time I see you, I can show you my progress."

Rin smiled back at her. "What's Lord Sesshomaru's house like?" She asked.

"Hm… Well it's very big. And there's a lot of demons there. More than I've ever seen at least." She started thinking about the friends she had made and her smile turned warm. "But everyone I met there has been nice so far. Most don't seem bothered that I'm only half demon, but I suppose its because Sesshomaru brought me there himself. If he's okay with me there, everyone else has to be, right?" She looked at Rin, and she nodded.

"I want to visit his home someday too." She said.

"Well, maybe I can talk him into letting you visit me then." She offered and Rin's face light up with joy at the idea.

"Kasumi, Rin," Sesshomaru called out to them, on the edge of the field near the trees.

"Yes, my lord!" Rin hopped up off the grass carrying her flower crown and ran towards him. Kasumi watched for a moment before she stood herself and followed them.

Rin skipped through the trees, and Kasumi took her place right by his side. It felt odd to her to call it her place, but it had the sense of rightness to it that made her smile to herself. She felt so connected to the lord, as if her place was always to be by his side.

"So, my lord," Kasumi started. "What exactly did you have to tell the imp?"

"He will be finding the one who tried to poison your food," he explained, eyes never flickering over to her.

"Oh, I see. Well, do you mind if I ask where we'll be going?" She questioned. Several minutes of silence passed between them, the quiet of the woods settling around them peacefully. She took this time to gaze between the tree lines, admiring the greens and browns, the yellows and the blues. She never paid much attention to nature before, but now that she wasn't in a state of survival, she appreciated the sounds and colors. She also couldn't mistake the sound of Rin running through the trees, playing a game by herself. She took one look up at the inulord before turning around to join the girl in her games.

Sesshomaru's gaze flicked back to the two, watching as they started hopping on top of tree roots, treating the grassy ground as fire that they couldn't touch. Their joined laughter filled his ears, and perhaps even calmed him.

A few days will be fine… nothing will happen to them in a few days. He reasoned with himself, turning his eyes forward again, their laughter following behind him.

"Why didn't you tell me?" Sesshomaru questioned at the fox in front of him. No, not a fox now. He opened his eyes to glare down at the human woman in front of him. Kasumi looked no different than before when she had her illusions up, she was just missing her two fox ears and her tail. The gem of her eyes had faded into a warm brown, settled into her nervous gaze.

"How was I supposed to know you wouldn't remember?" She questioned, turning her eyes away from his face in favor of the forest floor. "You stayed around me for three months before you returned to your travels."

He had done that, but he also never paid much attention to her during that time until the last month approached. She never left her room, and her scent never really changed for him so he hadn't noticed much of a difference in her. I'm going soft… or I'm so blinded by this girl I see nothing else.

"That still doesn't change why you didn't say something sooner." He said.

She flung her hands into the air and turned her back to him. "It happens once a month, my lord, every half-moon. It's been that way ever since I was a baby. It didn't change while you were still at the house, and it won't change now." She huffed, crossing her arms and he frowned.

It wasn't as bad protecting one human and a half breed, but now two humans? At least as a half breed she could use her claws. Sesshomaru shook his head, looking away from the girl himself. He shouldn't be angry at her, after all it was only one night, what harm could one night do?

"Fine," he sighed. "We'll stop for the night and camp out. You and Rin stay put." He ordered. She turned her head to face him, the stern expression he held stopping her comments before they could come out.

"Yes, my lord." She nodded her head solemnly and he disappeared from her sight. She walked over to where Rin sat, fiddling with her flower crown and sat beside her, resting her chin on her hand.

"Don't worry," Rin said, not looking up from her crown as she fiddled with the leaves.

"Huh?" Kasumi looked down at her, and Rin looked up.

"Lord Sesshomaru disappears all the time, but he always comes back. At night when he stops, sometimes he'll search for food for me and Jaken, or he'll get firewood if we're low." Rin explained.

"He does all that?" She asked. Rin nodded.

"Although, sometimes he disappears while Master Jaken and I are still sleeping, and he doesn't come back for a while. Sometimes he leaves during the day and we won't see him for a few days. But no matter how long it takes, Lord Sesshomaru always comes back. Since Master Jaken isn't here, I don't think he'll be gone long. So don't worry." Rin smiled up at her, and Kasumi smiled back.

Just as Rin said, a little while later, Sesshomaru returned with wood for a fire, dropping it at his feet. Rin got up and started piling the wood together, and Kasumi watched in fascination as the girl started up a fire. She was an amazing little girl, and knew how to do a lot more than kasumi ever could at her age.

"Rin, your amazing. Maybe I should start calling you Sensei with all this teaching you're doing." Kasumi teased and Rin laughed at her.

"I'll be back with food," Sesshomaru stated but Rin shot up.

"Ah, wait, my lord! Can't we catch fish tonight? I want to show Kasumi how to catch fish." She said. Both girls looked up at him this time, each with their own unique faces of begging. He couldn't deny the two of them and slowly nodded his head.

"River is that way," he pointed and Rin ran off. Sesshomaru waited until Kasumi stood, and followed only when she was in front of him.

"You dote on her a lot, my lord." She said, carefully watching her steps. Sesshomaru made a face, quickly swiping it away when she looked back at him. "It's not so bad. For a young girl to know what she does, I think she needs someone to dote on her." She smiled at him before she turned and picked up her pace, running after Rin.

"Tch, I do not dote on her…" He grumbled a quiet protest, slowly following behind them.

By the time he was there, both girls were in the water. Kasumi had bunged up the edges of his kimono around her waist to not get it wet, and she was watching Rin intently.

The sound of the river was heavy in the air, rushing water crashing against the gravel, the girls splashing around. Rin's hand ducked into the water and swiftly came out, a fish in her grasp.

"Rin! You caught one!" Kasumi explained, and Sesshomaru could picture her wagging tail.

"Yeah, now you try, pupil!" Rin grinned at her, tossing the fish onto the sand. "You have to be quick when you pull it out of the water, hold it tight. Let it swim into your hands, like this." Rin put her hands back into the water, creating a wide circle a fish could swim through. She waited patiently, Kasumi again watching her intently as a fish swam through the trap and then Rin snatched it, tossing the second fish onto the sand. "Just like that."

Kasumi nodded her head, copying Rin's movements now. She waited longer than when Rin demonstrated her skill, but eventually a fish swam into her trap. She clamped her hands shut and pulled the writhing creature out of the water, flinging it out and onto the sand.

"I did it!" She exclaimed, her and Rin jumping up and down at her success.

Sesshomaru turned around moving into the trees to check on their camp sight, when he heard one of them scream. He sharply turned, only to see Kasumi flat on her back in the water and Rin laughing. She pulled her up, and the kit struggled, sitting up in the river, drenched.

He huffed, calming down once he realized they were safe and walked over to them. "No more playing in the water."

"Oh come on, Sesshomaru." Kasumi said. "It's just a little fun."

He glared down at her. "No more playing."

"Aw… yes my lord…" Rin sighed, stepping out of the water. Kasumi frowned and quickly skimmed her hand across the surface of the water, sending a wave upwards and splashing Rin and Sesshomaru both. Rin giggled, but stopped when she saw the disapproving look on her lords face.

"Kasumi," He started.

"I know, I know." She stood up, squeezing the water from her hair and walking past him. He followed after her, Rin grabbing their fresh fish. "It can't hurt to have a little fun, Sesshomaru." Kasumi said. He grumbled in response, motioning for her to sit close to the fire once they returned to their campsite. She watched as Rin set up their dinner, skewering the fish and lining them up around the fire pit. Sesshomaru sat nearby, his gaze far away while they huddled around the warm glow.

Traveling with Lord Sesshomaru, huh? She looked at him, admiring his profile. It'll be an interesting few days I guess.

Mokomoko: Literally just translates into fluff so the fur thing he always has on his shoulder

Nagajuban: Thin robes worn underneath kimono.

Author Note: Not really an important notice or anything just thought I'd apologize for the last posting. I'd give you a bunch of excuses as to why its taken me this long to post but honestly, it's lack of motivation (can't you tell by the lame ass chapter title?) with a big heaping serving of laziness. I also kinda was stumped a little on this chapter. I mean I knew what I wanted to write I just couldnt type it out, ya know? Anyway, here's the long awaited 19th addition to our tale. There's some fluff thrown in there (no pun intended), so enjoy.