The Gorgon and the Dog Demon Chapter 16, an inuyasha fanfic

A/N I do not own Inuyasha or any of the characters. I'm just a storyteller.

Kagome could see the tension currently held in his shoulders. She tried to determine why it bothered her, but she couldn't put her finger on it. Sure, she owed him a lot; he had saved her life. And, sure she owed Sesshomaru too. She had a feeling Yash had no intention of collecting, though, where his brother definitely did. She sat on the corner of the sofa and waited for him to decide if he wanted to talk. It seemed like he was weighing his options or debating where to start. His eyes kept darting to look at her, then glanced away. She really didn't have time for this; she had to go, and soon.

Yash finally plopped down on the floor across from her, letting out a huff.

"Kagome, do you know anything about hanyou?"

She scrunched her forehead and tried to remember. The word sounded familiar, but she couldn't place it. It had been a long 72 hours, and she wasn't sure she would remember if she had. she stripes slightly and shook her head. He let out another ragged sigh, then nodded once.

"A hanyou is a child born of a demon and a human. They are generally looked at as lesser beings. Full demons consider them unworthy, and centuries ago they were commonly killed at birth. If not by the parents or family, then by whoever found them first."

"My father was a daiyoukai, which is a very powerful demon. He ruled the western lands. He had an arranged marriage to another demon named Inukimi. Sesshomaru's mother. They had been together for over a century when Sesshomaru was born. It was another century later when he met my mother. She was a human princess. He said the second he saw her, he knew she was his mate. Inus can detect their mates by scent. He spoke to Inukimi, who told him of course he could have a "pet". They were married and had me after a couple years. One day, my father went out to fight a youkai and he fell in battle. Normally, when an inu mates with someone, they share lifespans. But with my father dead, my mother lived her regular lifespan. Youkai age slower than humans. My mother died when I was still practically a child."

"I spent the next century or so fighting to survive. Sesshomaru finally decided to stop trying to kill me, but that was after we ended up working together to kill the same youkai who killed our father."

"Shortly after that, he met a young human child. He saved her, actually. He had no idea at the time that she was his mate. When she hit puberty and her scent changed he knew. And he ended up asking for my help. I was in a small village where I kept guard. They didn't necessarily trust me, but they didn't hate me. I'd saved enough of their village to earn that much."

"I had the priestess help raise her. When she reached adulthood, he started courting her. Then one day, the village was attacked, and she almost died. I brought her to him, and he marked her. She wouldn't have survived otherwise."

"After that, Sesh let me come live here with him. He and Rin have been married for a long time. No children yet, but I think he's afraid they'll go through what I did. Which, who could blame him? I was almost killed daily for decades. I never imagined I could be happy. I never thought I'd be given that chance."

"Then I met you. I tried to figure out what was so different about you. I'd never felt drawn to someone like that. Then when you were hurt and crying, my youkai tried to take over. After I fought it, I got the message loud and clear. You're my mate. Not that that obligates you in any way. But that's the long and the short of it."

Kagome had sat in absolute silence, entranced by the tale. When he came to a close, she sat back, unable to remember when she had leaned forward in the first place. She sat there dumbfounded for a moment.

"Yash, why did - I mean - Thank you for telling me the story. But why did you?"

A slight head shake was her only answer for a minute.

"Kagome, Sesshomaru is the only person I've ever trusted. But I wanted to confide in you. I don't want you to think that I didn't trust you, especially when I fucked up so much already. If there's anything about me you want to know, just ask. I don't want to keep secrets from you, okay?"

She couldn't hold back the smile, then she nodded softly.

"Okay, why did you bring your brother to my house while I was sleeping? You know, it was more than a bit terrifying waking up with a stranger in my home."

His head dropped, "yeah, I imagine it was. After you scrubbed yourself raw my youkai side tried to come out. I haven't lost control of him in a few centuries. I was worried he might try to claim you and mark you, since he told me you were my mate. I have a sword made from my father's fang that keeps him in check, but I don't carry it. Sesshomaru came over to bring it to me. I originally called him to see if there were any other things that could help me keep him in check. But then I figured he might be able to help you too."

Her head dropped. She had felt so violated, but apparently she had been wrong about everything.

"Oh. I'm sorry, Yash. I guess I was overreacting. And I can understand why you told him about my sight. He was helping me. I'm just not used to people helping me. I've never stayed in one place long enough. Okay, so it's your turn. You ask me a question."

She watched as those burning gold eyes searched hers, as if unsure if it was fair to ask.

"How long have you been in Japan?"

So, he was staying with light topics, huh? The corners of her lips lifted a bit.

"I've been here fifteen years. I have been traveling the world for centuries. I was actually here about 500 years ago. It was beautiful. I miss seeing nature everywhere. Though I do appreciate some of the updates, like running water, and air conditioning. Have you ever left the island?"

He shook his head but remained silent.

He watched as Kagome sat on the corner of the couch, giving him room to sit. He didn't know where to begin. He had been looked down upon by almost everyone. At least everyone who knew the truth. Even his brother had tried to kill him for a few centuries. No humans knew his secret. Not any that were alive, anyway. Not for a very long time. He kept looking to the door. He just wanted to run. Then he'd look at her, and his feet stayed rooted to the floor. She wasn't a youkai, or a human. She was something altogether different. Well, at one point she was kind of half human, wasn't she? A half human who was living with a cursed existence. Maybe she'd understand more than he thought. Maybe, being stuck between worlds like she has been, she would understand.

He plopped himself on the floor across the table from her and let out a huff. He needed to do this. She deserved this.

"Kagome, do you know anything about hanyou?" He could hear the shakiness in his own voice. He hoped she didn't hear it too.

He watched as she scrunched her forehead and seemed to rack her brain to remember, but after a minute or so, she shook her head. He figured. She hadn't lived here that long, and all the youkai and the very few hanyou still hid their identities. Even if she had seen them, she wouldn't have noticed a difference. Even being able to see through their disguises it wasn't something someone knew about.

He let out another ragged sigh and told her the truth. He hadn't ever told this story. He told her about his past, and he tried to skip over a few details that hurt too much. He barely mentioned his father, seeing as how he didn't remember him at all. He glazed over his mother's death, not wanting to get into that. But he made a mental note that when he began speaking about his mother she had sat forward in her seat. He wasn't sure if it was because he was speaking about his mother, or that she was interested in the whole story.

He didn't mention how often Sesh almost succeeded in killing him, but luck must've been on his side. Either that or Sesh never really tried. He knew he was no match for the daiyoukai. He would never admit that out loud. He was close, probably closer than most, but still not powerful enough to ever actually hurt him. Not in his hanyou form, at least.

When his full youkai form took over he had managed to actually hit his brother a time or two. He had done significant damage once or twice in that form, actually, but he really didn't want to tell her about that either. He didn't want her to see him as a bloodthirsty monster.

He told her about actually teaming up with his brother to defeat Ryukotsusei and how it apparently earned him some respect from his elder half sibling. Then he told her about Rin. He didn't go into too much detail. He needed to do this slowly. Even if telling her everything was probably similar to ripping off a bandaid, he needed to give her time to absorb everything.

Now to tell her about her being his mate. Again, not too much detail. Give her the basics, and then he could let her ask questions. After he finished, she sat back in her seat, but never took her eyes off of him. Take a deep breath, idiot. She needs time to absorb it. She needs time to think through the overload of information you gave her and sift through to see what's most important.' His body obeyed his silent demands, and he felt his eyes close. He needed to let her think it through, but his human side was now the part that was practically screaming in his head.

It wasn't like when the youkai side took over, though. It was more like a wall had been torn down and emotions were running rampant in his head. It felt like his human side was begging her to love and accept him. Her voice brought his eyes back open.

"Yash, why did - I mean - Thank you for telling me the story. But why did you?"

He shook his head, he really hadn't explained what he was doing, of course she was confused. Okay, he had told her a lot. He could keep going. Even though this was more his human side's thing. Spewing emotion with every word. He had kept himself safe and alive by keeping his emotions hidden. But she was his mate. She deserved to know everything. He would not hold back. Not for her.

He told her about how he had learned to trust Sesh, and how he wanted him to no longer be the only one he trusted. He told her how he wanted to start this, to apologize in a small way. He had to even the playing field. She deserved better than him as her mate, and he was going to become better. He had to. For her.

The smile that spread across her face and made a cute dimple appear on one cheek was precious, and his heart hammered in his chest. She was perfect. He knew the face he was seeing was a disguise, but he had seen her true face and she was beautiful then too.

Then she asked a completely legitimate question, 'why had he invited a stranger into her apartment while she was weak and vulnerable?' He had been so afraid of what his youkai side would do, he needed to do something. He had scared her, which if he woke up to strangers in his home less than 12 hours after being attacked, he would be terrified too. He hadn't been thinking like that, though. He knew his brother could help him, and he hoped he would be able to help her too. He told her everything. About the tessaiga and wanting to protect her.

He watched as her head dropped, and his stomach fell with it. What was she thinking? Was she mad because he had no right to invite someone into her apartment? Which was true. They had spoken all of three times when he was in her apartment. Sure, he had saved her. But that didn't mean she owed him her trust. Would she tell him he wasn't enough?

Wait, what? She was sorry? She hadn't been overreacting. He had fucked this up, down, and sideways. He knew she was vulnerable and invited someone else into her place, when she was feeling scared and weak. He had blown every secret she had ever shared with him. She had every right to not want to trust him. But he did have questions. So many questions. But he didn't deserve to know anymore of her secrets yet.

"How long have you been in Japan?"

Her eyes softened in a tiny smile, and her voice was soft and even, "I've been here fifteen years. I have been traveling the world for centuries. I was actually here about 500 years ago. It was beautiful. I miss seeing nature everywhere. Though I do appreciate some of the updates, like running water, and air conditioning. Have you ever left the island?"

He just shook his head. He hadn't ever left. He had no reason to go anywhere. He had nothing out there. He wasn't accepted here, but he wouldn't be accepted anywhere else either. At least here he had managed to make a few friends. Plus, his brother was trying to fix things. Not that he believed it was possible. But the hope his brother had almost gave him hope. Almost. He shook his head. Thinking about all the beautiful things she had likely seen in her travels. She had been alive for a very long time. Over 2000 years, she had said. She had seen empires rise and fall. She had seen millions die in wars, plagues, and famine. She had seen more than he could ever imagine. He wondered how much positive change she had seen in her two millennia. He knew he was old. Older than almost everyone, except Sesh. But she had been alive over 1000 years longer than him.

"Uhh, what made ya leave Japan last time you were here? Ya said it was 500 years ago?"

She nodded and her face dropped to the floor, "Something attacked me, but I didn't know who was trying to hurt me. I was traveling, exploring, seeing all the things my tiny island didn't have. When something hit me. It terrified me. But there was no wound, even though it hurt, badly. I had seen priestesses attack what I knew were youkai, and I had seen blasts of their reiki. I figured a priestess was attacking me, thinking I was one too. I fled. I felt strange for days after that and I got scared thinking a powerful priestess had marked me or something. So I left the island. I went to the mainland, and back across Europe."

He couldn't take his eyes off of her. 500 years ago, a priestess had attacked her? But she had no youki or jyaki. How would a priestess's reiki even hurt her? How would it target her? Unless it was a dark miko. They could attack anyone. Then the thought dawned on him. What if the attack from the other night and the attack from 500 years ago were related? That is something he would need to look into. But not without talking to her about it first. He wouldn't keep making the same mistakes again.

"Kagome, do you know anything else about reiki?"

Her face lifted back up, "ummm, only what I have studied. I mean, when I was traveling back then I was looking for priestesses and witches, basically. I was trying to see if there was any way to break this curse. The witch I had met who helped me with my disguise, told me she couldn't but there would be a power in this land that could. But she was a seer, as well. So, I started traveling. Working my way across the land and learning as much as I could. My mother was a priestess, and I always believed she had reiki. But the curse destroyed her priestess powers before I was born. I thought maybe if I could break the curse, I would, actually, gain some of her powers. That's why I studied. Why do you ask?"

"Well, good priestesses reiki can only target the power of a youkai or monster from what I have seen, unless it is a dark miko. They can target anyone. But the blast from a priestess is generally very painful. So, I was trying to figure out how reiki would attack you. Then I kinda thought about the attack from the subway. D'ya think they're related? I mean, I know it's been 500 years, but if a priestess has sold her soul to demons, she wouldn't age like a human anymore. Mind you, Sesh has managed to wipe out most if not all dark miko in the area, but they could'a sensed you and came back. Especially if they put some sort of tracking spell on ya."

The terror on her face was enough to break his heart for a second. He was on his feet and sitting next to her before he realized he had moved. He decided to listen to his body and not fight it anymore. He wrapped her in his arms and pulled her close.

"Hey, I promised I'd protect you. And you're not alone in this. It's gonna be okay. I promise."