Chapter Twenty-One: Reach

"Speaking"

Thinking/"memories"/dreams

'Beast speaking'

Sesshomaru's gaze followed the two women closely, watching the red faced kit-girl practically hide behind the silver haired oni. He was curious to her behavior, unsure what would have caused such a bright scarlet to color her cheeks. It wasn't an unbecoming shade on her, but it certainly wasn't one he was used to seeing on anyone. He vaguely recalled the red face of the miko girl in one of their encounters, and came to the conclusion it had to be a human concept. One's face did not simply turn red like that.

If it's because she's part human, how come Rin's face never changes color? He looked around the small field for the child, and the frown on his lips deepened.

"Where's Rin?" He questioned to anyone who would answer.

Silence filled the air, three sets of eyes resting on the inu lord, causing his own pair to narrow, when the girls scent suddenly reached him, as if he had been to blind to smell it before.

"Rawr!" Rin's little voice came out from the cover of the tall grass, and she tackled Jaken to the ground.

"Gah!" Jaken cried out loudly, attempting to work his way out from beneath the child, only to fail as she pinned him in place.

"Master Jaken, I've missed you! Where have you been?" She questioned, cheerfully making herself at home on his back.

"Get off of me!" Jaken cried louder, squirming in place further, causing her to giggle, but eventually she got off of him. "If you must know, I have just returned from my Lord Sesshomaru's home." He huffed, dusting himself off.

"Wah! I wanna go! Jaken, take me next time, I want to see where Lord Sesshomaru lives!" She exclaimed excitedly, shaking the imp now.

"Certainly not! Lord Sesshomaru's home isn't meant for humans." Jaken said.

Rin's displeased cries reached her lords ears, but his focus was quickly settled elsewhere. The two women were retreating into the tree line, Ah-uhn following behind as his reins were tugged. He quickly dashed towards them, stopping their tracks by standing in front of them. He didn't miss Usui's displeased glare at their failed escape.

"Where do you think you two are going?" He questioned. Kasumi had neatly tucked herself behind Usui, hiding behind the older girl. When his gaze fell onto hers, she quickly looked away.

"To wash. And change, Lady Kasumi can't go home dressed and smelling like she does." Usui explained. She had bundles clutched in her hands, which he assumed were the change of clothes.

"She doesn't smell," Sesshomaru pointed out. The scent from earlier still lingered, swirling around the kit and attempting to entice him towards her once again, but he withheld. One slip up was enough for the day.

Usui crossed her arms, staring up at him. He was getting a little annoyed at how defiant the once timid ogre was becoming. He figured it had something to do with Kasumi. She had an unusual effect on people, evident by his earlier actions to… What exactly had been his intensions? His mind wandered again, and he allowed the two to slip past him as he considered his actions. Experience suggested what he was attempting to do was kiss her, but the desire never revealed itself until that moment. When was the last time he wanted to do something like that with a woman? As he wracked his brain for any inclination of previous cravings, he walked back towards Jaken and Rin. She seemed happy to have the imp back to play with, despite the games she enjoyed with Kasumi. Her laughter and his displeased sounds danced around him. Yet still, nothing came to him. He knows he had to have kissed at least one female, but the want or need to give one wasn't there. Not like it had been when the kit was so close to him.

"The string binds you. You have been tied to someone, someone close to you." The old woman's voice rang clear as day into his mind now. "Leashed to another soul. It's slowly wrapping itself around you. It doesn't seem to have fully tied yet, but it will. Soon."

Why am I thinking of this now? She was spouting nonsense about strings, it has nothing to do with this. Still, as his gaze shifted to the splashing he heard in the distance, he again questioned the meaning to the woman's words, a foreboding sensation sinking into the pit of his stomach.

"He did what?!" Usui's loud voice scared a few birds in the trees, sending them flying overhead.

"Shh! You don't want him to hear you!" Kasumi hushed, splashing water at her friend to get her to be quiet.

"I'm sorry for the outburst, m'lady, but it's hard for me to believe. I mean, Lord Sesshomaru kissing someone? I can't comprehend it." Usui squatted at the edge of the river bank, watching as Kasumi dunked her head into the cold water, resurfacing moments later with dripping hair and ears.

"I can't understand it myself. I wouldn't even really call it a kiss. Our lips barely even touched." Kasumi muttered, thinking back to the brief sensation she got of the inu lords touch. She could still feel his hand in her hair, a warm, strong weight held to the back of her head, ever so slightly leaning her face towards his…

Her cheeks burned bright, and she dunk herself back into the icy river in an attempt to cool herself down.

"If it was so brief, m'lady, why are you blushing so much?" Usui pointed out, and Kasumi had to fight to keep herself from turning redder.

"I'm not blushing," She said, feeling the heat all the way down to her neck, spreading over her toes as if she had dipped them in fire. "It's just warm out today."

An unladylike snort came from the court lady. Kasumi turned to look at Usui, whose amused expression made her feel uneasy.

"Wh-what?" Kasumi stammered, quickly blaming it on the cold and stepping out from the river. She took the robe Usui offered her, wrapping it around herself and reveling in the feeling of warm, clean clothes. She loved Sesshomarus robes, which she will now freely admit, to herself – in her head- but there was something satisfying about washed fabric that hugged her. Maybe I'll wash his robe for him… She mused, gaze turning dreamy.

Usui clapped her hands together, the sound reverberating through the thick trees, and snapping the kit out from her daze.

"M'lady," she said, giving her an almost hard look. Kasumi felt herself shrink at the gaze, turning her eyes away from the court lady as if it'd somehow save her.

"What?" She asked again, gaze fixed onto an intensely enthralling blade of grass, until Usui snapped her fingers to get her to look up. "What?" She asked once more, frowning and feeling uncomfortable beneath her stern gaze.

"Have you ever been kissed before?" The words left Usui's mouth before she could think better of them, and she watched in fascination as Kasumi's face turned ten different shades of embarrassment.

"O-Of course not!" She exclaimed, turning away from the oni to dutifully pout the other way. Usui chuckled, standing up and walking towards her lady. She placed her hands on her shoulders and hugged her tightly.

"Oh, m'lady. Forgive me, I don't mean to embarrass you. It's just, your reaction to it is so… innocent. I had a feeling you hadn't but… well I just didn't think much of it. Please forgive me, Lady Kasumi." Usui waited, holding onto the kit until she eventually turned and hugged back, however hesitant she may have been.

"The only interest men have ever shown to me is by forcefully trying to take me. None so far have attempted to be… warm like Sesshomaru was." Kasumi muttered, recalling all to freshly Takami's slimy fingers up her kimono, or the few times Kaneshi used their closeness on horseback to grope her chest. She huffed, pulling back from Usui's embrace, turning away from her before her expression could be read. "It doesn't matter anymore though. None of those greedy little heathens can touch me anymore. I'm far from everyone's grasp again, and I'm okay with that."

"Not everyone's, m'lady." Usui spoke softly, touching Kasumi's shoulder with gentle warmth. "You aren't out of Lord Sesshomaru's reach, and he seems to be reaching for you. Perhaps… you should reach back?"

Kasumi was the one to snort this time. "Please… I doubt he was serious about it."

"Do you really believe that, m'lady?" Usui asked.

Kasumi fell silent, choosing not to answer as she picked through the kimono's Usui had brought for her to dress in. One of them, of course – the little devil- was the one Kasumi and loomed herself. The red stitches blinding as the sun's rays touched the fabric.

"If you are to be my mate, it wouldn't do for you to call me lord." He had said it so plainly, it was hard to tell how serious he was, but he didn't seem the kind to joke.

He could just be lying to me… a more negative side of her argued, and she frowned.

"I don't want you to treat me above you. You will be an equal." Her mind focused on the equal of his words. She didn't know what it meant to be an equal. She was either above someone, or below someone. She had no equals, a lonely existence for a princess who grew up with no peers. He did explicitly tell me he hadn't been serious when he first suggested it. He's surprisingly honest… for a demon.

"Why would he change his mind…?" Kasumi asked softly, turning her eyes away from her work and up to Usui.

"Change his mind about what?" She asked, kneeling next to Kasumi. The two looked down at the various kimonos she had brought.

"Me. He was lying when he told everyone I was going to be his mate. He just… I think he said it to make… certain people go away." She bit her lip, not sure if she was even allowed to tell Usui whom her father was. "It made it easier for me too… more people at the house respect me because they believe he chose me for a reason. I'm just… his property. He said my life is his to do with as he sees fit. I owe him my life for saving me, now I have to give it to him." She shook her head. The demon concept of "mine" was confusing to her. Something could be taken and then claimed as "mine", or something could be saved and then claimed as "mine". "People aren't property though."

Usui smiled at Kasumi's confusion, and she placed her hand on the kits. "If you're so unsure of his intentions, m'lady, why not ask him about it?"

She looked at the oni, and then down at the robes. She quickly shoved the red robe into Ah-uhn's saddle bag and grabbed a bright orange kimono with white, blooming chamomile flowers sewn on the bottom.

Usui sighed deeply, standing up and helping her dress.

Kasumi moved when she was supposed to as she was dressed, mind focused on the simple question her court lady presented to her. How can I simply ask him what he wants with me? She kept asking herself the question, repeating it over and over as if it was a mantra, and that the answer would reveal itself the more she inquired. Before she knew it, Usui was leading her and Ah-uhn back to the others.

Sesshomaru stood amidst the tall grass, the wind swirling around him as if trying to entice him into a dance. However, he was a mountain, unmoving to its gusts as it flattened the tall grass, and raised his mokomoko. Rin was hiding behind him, Jaken taking a protective stance by her side, his beady eyes narrowed. Kasumi couldn't see what the two demons were staring at until it was too late. She felt something grab her from behind.

A scream bellowed its way towards her lips, only to be gated by a hand over her mouth, she turned her face slightly to see Usui dragging her down towards the trees and bushes.

"Shh…" Usui hushed quietly, pointing towards Sesshomaru and the others.
A woman was standing in front of him now, the wind whipping around her as wildly as it had around him, eventually dissipating into a warm summer breeze again. Kasumi's gaze traced the womans figure, trying to picture who she was. She was tall, standing just at his shoulders height, where Kasumi only reached up to his chest. Her raven locks were tied up into a short pony tail at the top of her head, revealing her pointed ears and the jaded beads hanging from her lobes.

She was pretty, Kasumi assessed just from she could see. She frowned at the sight of Sesshomaru and the woman talking, an unsettling feeling weighing in her gut.

"Do you know who that is?" Kasumi whispered.

"It's just a hunch… but I believe that is Kagura of the Wind. I don't leave the estate much, so I'm unsure, but I have heard rumors she's caused issues for m'lord in the past." Usui explained quietly, miffed with herself she didn't have a firm confirmation for her lady.

"She's just caused issues? Then why are we hiding?" Kasumi questioned, her green eyes examining the woman. She seemed incredibly amused, and Sesshomaru seemed incredibly annoyed.

"She's caused issues, and Lord Sesshomaru hasn't killed her yet." Usui pointed out, causing Kasumi to tense slightly. She couldn't hear what the two were saying, but she handed something over to him. He took one long look at his hand, before handing it back and turning away from her. He was facing Kasumi and Usui now, and her heart slammed against her breasts. She swiftly looked away, a hand on her chest. She scooted from Usui and deeper into the trees, trying to be as quiet as a mouse.

The wind picked up once again, whipping the leaves on the trees, smacking branches against braches, and then carried off deeper into the sky, leaving a slightly ruffled field behind as Kagura flew off.

"Kasumi," Sesshomaru called her name, stopping her in her tracks. She turned, facing him. He looked annoyed, but there was hardly a time he didn't.

"Y-yes…?" She asked softly, gazing at his boots before she quickly remembered to look into his eyes.

Warm amber flowed over her, making her melt with a single look. He seemed to know what he was doing to her, as a smirk turned his lips up in amusement.

Stupid, why am I reacting like this? She tried to will her body to behave itself, however, no matter how hard she tried, the heavy resonance in her chest refused to leave. Why won't it go away? She asked herself, swallowing hard. She was flushed, but she wasn't sure from what. He could see it too. The others may not be able to, but his eyes told her enough for her to know he saw everything. Everything she suddenly didn't want him to see.

"Jaken has failed me," he said, the amusement she saw on him earlier faded, leaving him looking annoyed and stern, suddenly reliving Kasumi of the pressure his gaze put on her.

"What does that mean, my lord?" She asked, releasing a breath she hadn't meant to keep in.

"It means he has yet to find the member of the house who poisoned you." He explained.

"Oh," the sound of her own voice surprised her. Flat and unsure, a voice that didn't sound like her own. "What does that mean for me, my lord?" She attempted to quietly clear her throat, forcing some sort of curious emotion into her tone.

"It means you're coming home with me," Usui spoke up before Sesshomaru could, causing the inu lord to growl disapprovingly. "My lord, I understand your concerns, but m'lady can't push her duties or lessons aside. You wanted her to learn, and there is still much she has to learn. We haven't even scratched the surface of the history of-"

"I don't care," Sesshomaru cut her off. He reached out and grabbed Kasumi, bringing her to his side and daring the ogre to take her away from him. His glare stopped her argument, and she sighed deeply.

"Lord Sesshomaru," Kasumi spoke up. "I understand you want to protect me, but I really don't want to fall behind even more than I already am. With Usui by my side, there's no way anyone will try a second time."

He huffed, and the stubbornness practically radiated off of him. "No," he insisted.

"I can't sit here and follow you forever, my lord." Kasumi sighed heavily.

"There are other lesson you need to learn. Lessons that don't require reading." At his words, she looked back at him, ignoring the suddenly pestering thumping of her heart.

"What do you mean by that?" She questioned.

"I did tell your father I would train you," he shrugged one shoulder. "You can't go around blindly slashing with your claws. I will send you home when you can at least properly defend yourself."

Kasumi's lips pursed indecisively, knowing well anything she would say or do would only elicit the same stubborn response from him.

"Even if Jaken doesn't find the culprit?" She asked.

"Even if he doesn't, I will send you home." Even he knew he couldn't keep her away from the estate forever (though he strangely wouldn't mind trying forever), and at least offering to train her would placate her oni-court-lady-turned-body-guard enough to go back home.

The short visit from Kagura had been suspicious. She offered him jewel shards once again, and he returned them, once again. She either didn't seem to understand his lack of interest in the jewel, or she was distracting him. It was only when he saw Kasumi after he was done talking to the wind witch that he decided he was thinking too much on it. Her earlier request flitted through his mind, but it was a simple, fleeting thought. He saw no reason to ally himself with her before, he saw no reason to do so now.

He looked down at Kasumi, who was looking right up at him with those big, green eyes of hers. A sweet smell permeated the air once again, a warm tug pulling him to her, leaving him with the sensation of wrapping her up in its comfort, and making her his.

Mine? He let the word linger on his tongue for a moment, deciding he rather liked calling her his.

"He had a close guard on the girl," Kagura said, leaning against a wooden post. "I don't understand why you wanted me to go talk to him." She waved her hand, annoyed her time had been used so wastefully. Naraku didn't care what bothered her… he didn't care much about anyone or thing more than himself or the jewel.

Her gaze briefly flicked to the blackening Shikon no Tama, nearly in its complete state, before she looked back to Naraku.

The smile on his lips sent a shiver up her spine. Kanna was showing him something on her mirror, clearly something that had Naraku's interest piqued. Curiously, she walked around him, looking into Kanna's mirror.

On it, displayed a rather petite fox with black hair. There wasn't much to see, it was a close up of the kit's face, rosy cheeked and pouty lips.

And then Kagura saw why Naraku was so interested. Sesshomaru entered the picture, a hand on the girls head, ruffling her hair and ears, causing her complain to him, which he strangely smiled at before he walked away from her, leaving her in a disheveled state.

"Sesshomaru has a new one following him around?" Kagura asked. The image of the girl faded as Kanna lowered her mirror.

"She's quite interesting, this one. What should we do…?" Kanna asked, turning her gaze slightly up to watch her master's lips curl up.

Author Note: I have some explaining to do i guess, nearly two weeks and no update. Sorry bout that, id come up with an excuse, but none are really valid enough to use. I've kinda not been in a great place right now, my depression has been hella high and a bunch of this other fucked up shit that I don't really want to talk about nor should I really think I should talk about on here.
Anyway, it's not as great as it could be (I guess), however, I think I should all let you know that you're nearing the end of this tale.
Don't worry though, I still have detailed plans for our couple. I plan on making a second book for these two.
Stay tuned, and thanks for the wonderful reviews and follows and stuff!