He is powerful.
The pups' cries echo under the deafening roar of the giant boar, and Kimi knows by the way the voices bounce off each other that she is too far and the youkai too close.
She won't make it in time, and her heart drops to the pit of her stomach even as she tears out of the shiro in her useless effort to save them.
As she reaches the outside and rushes through the garden, the sunlight blinds her to everything but the sight of the pups outside of the gate in the boar's hand, screaming as they are raised to a tusk-ridden, gaping maw.
No. Yellow eyes wide with her terror, she knows in that moment she will never know a greater horror.
But then, there's a streak of light, and it blurs past her so fast that she's knocked off her feet. And before she can right herself, the hand of the boar lands to her side, panic-stricken pups falling out of the now unfeeling fingers and rushing to clamber on top of her as that light once again streaks back toward the gate.
Snatching pups up in her arms, she looks up just in time to see that light explode into the form of her son, and her jaw drops.
He is fast, he is brave, and he is strong.
And he is angry.
Kimi watches with a fascinated horror as Sesshoumaru releases the poison he inherited from her, plunging his deadly claws into the boar's flesh and inflicting unbearable pain before ripping the youkai apart piece by piece, flinging dismember parts behind him as if they weighed nothing. The silver, knotted hair of her apathetic bookworm falls free of the tie holding the heavy mass in place, and she watches as it streaks red with the blood of his enemy.
"What the hell is going on!"
Touga.
Her mate rushes into the garden and spares her and the pups a moment's glance before turning his attention to the carnage occurring before them, and his eyes widen in shock.
"Sesshoumaru?"
He looks back at Kimi, mouth gaping, and then his head whips back around to their son.
They both tune out the indecent language spewing from his mouth.
Minutes later, Sesshoumaru is done and the boar dead, and he retreats to join them. And for a moment, there is just silence. She and her mate stare in shock while the rescued pups stare in awe.
When he has barely wiped the blood from his face, the spell breaks, and Touga scoops him up with a gleeful shout. Arms pinned against his sides by his father's crushing embrace, Sesshoumaru is helpless to do anything as he is bounced around like a pup while his father cackles like a madman.
Kimi almost laughs at his look of horror.
"Release me, now!"
But Touga either doesn't hear or doesn't care. The Great General spins his son around in the garden, shouting nonsense about Sesshoumaru's strength, his own personal relief, and the demise of the boar.
Sesshoumaru meets her eyes and mouths help me.
This time Kimi does laugh and hides her mouth behind her hand. "Touga, put him down."
