Part 2: Negotiations

A/N: Thanks for checking out the story again! In this one we'll find out a little more about Sesshy's motivations.

So happy and humbled to see that so many familiar faces reviewed. I thought you would have all forgotten about me. Thank you for reviewing:

Coranam

Idontwannapopuponsearchengines

Overninethousand

Little25victor

Guest (1): So good to be back, hope you enjoy this chapter!

Anonymous Guest 1: We will find a bit more about Sesshoumaru's motivations, but not all of them. I try to keep them in character as much as possible, but sometimes I kind of need to deviate for the sake of the story.

Guest (2): Thank you for reading and reviewing. I'm glad to be back to fanfic writing :)

Disclaimer: No matter how much I wish for it, I unfortunately own nothing except my plot.

"I trust you have no more objections to me leaving, no? My driver is waiting." Sesshoumaru's voice thrust me out of my thoughts. He started walking towards the exit, and this time my father's men respectfully let him pass. I wondered if I was supposed to follow him or something… he was my 'husband' now after all. Just the thought of it was unbelievable to me. Just a few days ago I was harboring a secret crush for him, and honestly not even thinking of ever coming in close enough contact with him to actually talk to him, and now for some reason my father had forced him to bind himself to me.

What the hell had just happened?

"What are you waiting for? Go to him!" Naraku grabbed me by the arm for the third time that night, making extra sure to press hard on the bruise he had left on my flesh earlier. When he pushed me towards the exit, I almost tripped again, and this time there was no Sesshoumaru to help steady me. Luckily I did manage to balance myself at the last second. Did I mention I was named after a dance? Grace should have been my middle name.

"Why did you force me to marry him?" I decided to ignore his order. I knew he had a plan, and I was burning to ask him what it was.

"Oh my dear Kagura…" Naraku raised his hand to gently caress my cheek, making my skin crawl in the process. "I have always had great plans for you, and this is just one of them. Now unless you want my friends," He nodded briefly towards his armed gunmen "to take care of you, go with the shiny new husband I got for you. Not to worry my dear, I will be in touch very soon to let you know what I expect from you. Now here, take this as a reminder." He slipped in my hand what I assumed to be my marriage license or whatever the document I had signed was. I clenched the paper in my palm; I needed an anchor to keep me sane. I still could not believe this was really happening.

I felt a shiver of unease run down my spine. I hated that I really could not figure out what Naraku wanted from me. But since I obviously did not have much of a choice, I bolted out of the room, and really hoped I would be able to catch up with Sesshoumaru. He might have come across as an anti-social ice block to me, but in his defense he had been stuck in a room with me, who due to my ridiculous behavior so far, he must have perceived to be a childish clumsy woman… Maybe deep down he wasn't so bad… or so I hoped.

Despite my high-heeled shoes, I managed to catch up with Sesshoumaru just as he slipped in the backseat of some fancy foreign car. Maybe I should send a thank you note to my Zumba instructor. Those gruesome workouts were paying off!

Why was I not surprised to see the car was the same shade of blue-ish silver his hair was? What a conceited jerk! Obviously my 'husband', still trying to get used to that word, had some kind of narcissistic disorder. Fit in well with what I had seen of his personality so far.

I knew he saw me, but still decided to close the car door after himself, and that pissed me off. Naraku's threat was still fresh in my mind, so I did not hesitate to knock on the tinted glass of the window before the car and its occupant got the chance to evade me. It pissed me off even more when that jerk simply rolled down the window halfway instead of opening the door to me. Some Prince Charming he was shaping up to be…

"Is there something you wanted?" He asked me. 'No', I was tempted to say, 'I just decided to run after you for the fun of it'. Since I knew getting on Sesshoumaru's bad side wouldn't be a good idea, I instead decided to go with something else.

"Naraku told me I should leave with you considering that we're married and all…" I was amazed to see I was able to speak those words without laughing out loud. Good thing I didn't because something told me that he would take it as an offense. I plastered the document Naraku had thrust in my hand on the half of the window Sesshoumaru had left up. Maybe he too was having a hard time believing what had happened, and needed a little reminder.

In a movement faster than my eye could catch, he snatched away the document and seemed to bury it deep in his jacket pocket. Maybe he too wanted to a little souvenir of this crazy night. I just hoped he would not be angry at my stunt. I felt a shiver run through me, and hoped it was due to the chilly night air more than the sharp glare he sent my way. Talking about shivers, my spine was rattled with them as a cold breeze picked up. I was really missing my fan. With one flick I would have been able to coat myself in a gust of warm air.

"It is cold outside." I said out loud. Were my teeth shattering? Probably. What I wouldn't do to go inside his car. Instead of doing anything, all Sesshoumaru did was look at me silently for long minutes. Just when I was about to give up and take my chances with Naraku, he finally made his move.

He did surprise me when he pushed the door opened, and scooted over, silently inviting me to climb inside the car, which I wasted no time doing.

"So… can I ask why you decided to marry me?" I asked bluntly once my blood started to thaw out by having my butt on his nice warmed leather seats. Ah the perks of being rich!

I heard a squeak coming from the driver, who I guessed was the person named Jaken. I admit it probably was not the best way for him to find out about his boss's private life but did he really have to express himself with a noise resembling a toad being squashed so much? Annoying.

"Silence." Sesshoumaru snapped. "Drive us home, and spare me your opinions." Glad to know I was not the only person Sesshoumaru spoke to in such a freezing manner.

The driver started the car, and a feeling of unease grew inside me. I knew that I had no other choice but to go wherever my 'husband' wished to go… Naraku had made that more than clear. Still, I didn't know Sesshoumaru at all, and he was obviously quite different from the man I had built up in my head. For all I knew he could be driving me to his secret sex dungeon. While the prospect would have tantalized me just a few hours ago, now the thought of him using his youki poison whip to tie me up terrified me. Okay, I have to admit that as much as I hated it, a part of me was kind of slightly turned on by it. Sesshoumaru had been the main character of so many of my sexual dreams that I could not be blamed for my libido having to catch up with my brain. If he kept on treating me the same way he had since the beginning of this evening, then by the time we got to our destination, odds are my Sesshoumaru obsession would be well and cleared.

"Do you know how this Sesshoumaru has come to grow my empire to be even greater than the one of my father?"

I never liked riddles. Not because I'm too dumb to make sense of them, but rather because I don't have patience for them. Luckily Sesshoumaru decided to answer his own question.

"Whenever I am presented with an opportunity, I seize it."

Okay… I wasn't sure how that answered my own question, but hopefully he would expand on his thoughts. Good thing he suddenly did.

"I am not a fool."

Boy, was I glad to know that!

"I am more than aware that your father has some sort of ulterior motive by… forcing this union." He continued, reaching in his pocket to trail his finger on our marriage document. I was regretting letting him take it. I should have at least read that damned document and its fine print before handing it over.

"Then why did you go along with it?" I asked, truly surprised. Something told me that if he had not felt like it, even Naraku's armed men would not have been able to force Sesshoumaru to sign that damn piece of paper. He could have just done that poison whip thing and reduced Naraku's henchmen to smoky piles of goo in a matter of minutes. I had seen the way he had reduced to cinders the reinforced door after all. Sure, he might have risked getting shot at, and get a bullet to the heart, but wouldn't that beat walking straight into one of Naraku's traps?

"It was an opportunity I simply could not pass. Naraku has unknowingly provided me with a priceless tool." Sesshoumaru's lips broke into a little smile. It was the first time I had seen him smile, and it scared me. This was a far cry away from the charming smile I had imagined him giving me a thousand times in my fantasies. My previous feeling of unease grew even more, but instead of cowering away as any sane descent person would, I became angry. A tool? Did he just call me a tool? Just what a girl wanted to hear on her 'wedding night'!

"So I'm basically a pawn for you and my father to toy with…"

Sesshoumaru sent me a weird look, causing my words to falter. Was it pity? I wasn't sure. I hoped not. The last thing I wanted was to be treated with pity by that ice block.

"This Sesshoumaru called you a tool, not a pawn. Pawns are discarded after being used, but tools are looked after...if they prove themselves to be useful." Sesshoumaru paused briefly, allowing the words to sink in. "Your usage will of course be compensated." That little sentence pissed me off more than anything.

"My usage?! So, now I'm a whore!"

"You don't need to worry about that, I have no intention of touching you." His golden eyes traveled from my cleavage to my eyes. Oh yep, that made me feel better about myself.

"Then what the fuck do you want from me then?" He glared at my use of a curse word. Well looks like he didn't like my potty mouth, too fucking bad for him!

He completely ignored my questions, and resumed talking as if I had never intervened.

"Once you help me, I will in exchange give you something you wish for." Hum my father had made such promises to me enough times for me not to trust Sesshoumaru on this one. Besides he could never give me the one thing I truly wanted… then again maybe he could help.

The wheels in my brain started spinning. Sesshoumaru was a wealthy and powerful man. One of the four Great Lords, one of the few people Naraku actually feared. Maybe he could actually help me. Give me the one thing I had truly always wanted.

"What exactly is it you want me to do?" Before I agreed to do anything, I would have to make sure I could, or even would want to do whatever he wanted me to do.

"I first would need to attest to your loyalty. For all I know, you could be a part of your father's little scheme."

Now that he put it like that, it was true that anyone who didn't know the exact nature of my relationship with Naraku could wrongly assume that we actually had a normal filial relationship, cared about one another, or even that I knew what could be going through that asshole's mind. Naraku trusting me, and working along with me?! The mere thought amused me beyond words. For the second time that evening I started laughing maniacally. I was laughing so hard my sides started to hurt.

Sesshoumaru's right eyebrow arched in what I assumed to be annoyance. I could tell he was getting mad, but I was having a hard time stopping my laughter. With great efforts, I finally managed to stop myself when I saw Sesshoumaru's right eye start twitching. I think he was about to reach the limits of his tolerance. I pinched my arm, no matter how crazy the evening was turning out to be, I needed to get control of my emotions, and hold on to my sanity.

"You wouldn't question my abilities to betray Naraku if you knew about my feelings towards my dear old dad. I hate him, and I would love to see him being destroyed."

I figured honesty was the best policy. I needed to trust Sesshoumaru for now. Whatever my father was planning, I would need some sort of alliance if I wanted to come on top. Naraku had essentially kicked me out, and forced me to follow Sesshoumaru around. Considering that all my current possessions were limited to the skimpy red dress and 'fuck me pumps' I had on, I was going to need a place to stay, at least for now. The one thing I missed most was my fan. Unlike animal based demons, as a wind youkai, without my fan I was completely weak. There was a reason why Naraku had forced me to leave it behind. He knew that had I had it, nothing, not even an army of his goons would have forced me to sign that damn paper or make me get in Sesshoumaru's car.

My admission caused Sesshoumaru to flash me a strange little grin. I was shocked when he leaned forward and reached down to grab my chin with his fingers, lifting my face towards his. How in the hell did he manage to move so fast?! I did not really have the chance to ponder on that. In fact I was pretty sure my brain had suddenly decided to take a vacation. All thoughts fled my head, and all I could do was stare back at Sesshoumaru. I could not look away, I was completely lost in his beautiful golden amber gaze as we stared into each other's eyes.

"This Sesshoumaru is actually quite aware of your feelings towards Naraku." I gulped. He was too close, and made me feel uncomfortable. I felt as if his eyes could see right through me. Our faces were so close that had I pressed a bit forward, I would have been able to kiss him. A few hours earlier, this prospect would have filled me with excitement, now all I felt was dread. It was as if the entire conversation we had had so far had been a test. Just like Naraku, Sesshoumaru also had a plan where I was to play some sort of role, whether I liked it or not.

"I can see it all in your eyes." He said, his voice barely louder than a whisper. "The hatred you have for Naraku. You defy him, yet you hesitate about betraying your father outwardly. Not for love, for something else. He must hold something over you. Something you treasure enough to stay by Naraku's side despite his treatment of you."

I was shocked that he could see right through me this easily. How could he tell? The only logical explanation was that he must have spied on me for quite some time. Could he already know what I wanted? Could he really grant my wish? I gently slapped his hand away, forcing him to release his hold on me then backed as far away from him as possible. I hated seeming so vulnerable. Obviously I couldn't think straight when Sesshoumaru was this close to me. Even with spies, there was no way he could ever know such intimate details about my family and me.

Just as I was about to ask Sesshoumaru about how exactly he wanted me to prove my loyalty, and what his grand master plan to rid us all of Naraku could be, I was surprised. Growing up in Naraku's mansion, I may have been subjected to horrible treatments, but money was never a problem. Naraku enjoyed spending the money he made. I grew up in an opulent house crawling with servants, but it seemed to be a joke compared to the building the car was driving towards.

As soon as we went through a large metal gate, an actual castle was waiting up the drive. I knew the Tashios were wealthy, Naraku would not have hated them so much otherwise, but seeing the size of Sesshoumaru's residence rendered me speechless. Maybe my naïve thought of him being prince charming was not so far off. No, not a prince… By the size of his home, it seems as if Sesshoumaru was as wealthy as a king… or a freaking emperor. Well, maybe he would be able to afford to give me the thing I wanted most. Perhaps shifting alliances was indeed going to be a profitable venture for me. I was willing to bet it wasn't my father's intention, but it seemed as if Naraku might have landed me in the hands of the one who would grant me freedom.

As soon as the car came to a halt that annoying toad of a driver quickly stepped out, and rushed to open the door for his master. Sesshoumaru glided out of his car without sparing me a glance. I hoped he had not noticed my dropped jaw, and complete ogling of his palace. Since Jaken was not about to open my door, I just did it myself, I did not mind, I was used to doing things for myself.

"Why did you take me to your…home?" I asked him as I also stepped out of his car, and stood in front of steps heading to the massive front door to his house. Considering his reputation as being shrewd and careful, I was surprised that Sesshoumaru brought me to his private sanctum.

"This Sesshoumaru looks after my tools. I need to keep an eye on you if I wish to use you to the best of your abilities." He commented simply as he walked up the stone staircase.

I was glad that Sesshoumaru did not refer to me as his 'wife'. Although, I did not like being referred to as a 'tool' once again. I did however know I had to put up with Sesshoumaru for now lest I ended up with no roof over my head in the middle of the night. I did have my feathers in my bun, so I would be able to fly away, but something told me that even if I showed up at the Onigumo mansion, I would not be allowed inside. Not that the prospect of staying at the Tashio household filled me with pleasure. If Sesshoumaru's household was like Naraku's, he must live with close members of his organization, several goons, and judging the size of the place, an army of servants.

"How long do you intend to stay rooted there?"

Sesshoumaru's question jolted me awake. The tone of his voice was even colder than the wind blowing at my back. I knew I had no choice but to do as he said, even if the prospect of being locked in a house with my father's greatest enemy and his entire household filled me with dread. But, I had never been one to back away from a challenge, so I wasted no time following up after my 'husband', and climbing up the stone staircase leading up to the front door.

As soon as I stepped in the large foyer, I was astounded. The inside of the place looked like an old-fashioned British countryside manor. I loved it. The one thing I was the most surprised about was how warm and homey the house felt. I had expected for Sesshoumaru's house to be all steel and modern architecture with large empty rooms that would feel cold and sterile, but it was clearly not the case. A rug covered grand wood staircase took up most of the entryway along with a few rooms. There was only one opened door to my left. From my vantage point I could spy into what seemed to be a comfortable library. I could even see shadows of an inviting fire flickering against the wall. How I would love to sit down on one of those plush seats and stare into the fireplace, preferably with a mug of hot chocolate in my hands. I glanced suspiciously at my host. Maybe there was more to Sesshoumaru than I had previously thought. Not surprisingly, he did not glance my way as he walked forward.

"What's this?! The earth must have stopped spinning. Our dear Sesshoumaru-sama brought a lady friend home!" A young human man with striking blue purple eyes and a ridiculous rat-tail-like small ponytail, commented as he happily sauntered down the stairs. The overly appreciative look he gave my cleavage made my skin crawl.

"Keh! She looks familiar..." That came from a guy who must be related to Sesshoumaru in some sort of way. There were not too many silver haired, amber-eyed inu youkai running around town. I then noticed the folded ears on top of his head, declaring the man a hanyou. At first I thought that maybe the two were not related after all, then it hit me. The man must be Inuyasha, Sesshoumaru's half-brother. I had heard through the rumor grapevine that the man was violent, short tempered and often worked as his older brother's enforcer. According to rumors Inuyasha was able to make anyone who displeased his brother disappear. A feeling of unease suddenly crept down my spine for what felt like the thousandth time this evening. Hard to reconcile the image of Sesshoumaru's right hand man with the one of the smirking young man looking at me.

The two men stopped right in front of Sesshoumaru. The first, whose name I did not know, had a mocking sneer on his lips, and the second, Inuyasha, had his amber eyes rived on me, inspecting every inch of my being.

"Where did you find this delectable creature?" The human guy asked.

"Why the hell does your lady friend smell like that bastard of Naraku?" Inuyasha added, his smile disappearing. Considering that he must hold a high position in his brother's organization, his animosity against my father was not surprising and certainly not unexpected.

I was getting pretty annoyed by the way the two men were talking about me without actually acknowledging my existence. Needless to say that after the crazy night I had just had, I was on edge and my patience was extremely thin. Just as I was about to open my mouth, Sesshoumaru finally decided to intervene.

"Kagura Onigumo, daughter of Naraku. She will be living at the mansion for the time being."

"What the fuck is wrong with you? You brought that scumbag's daughter here?! Where Rin and Shippou sleep?!"

I had no idea who Rin or Shippou might be, but Inuyasha's mention of their names caused a spike of anger to eradiate from Sesshoumaru. It manifested with his eyes briefly flashing red. As quickly as the show of anger appeared, it vanished. I could tell that he had come close to losing control to his inner youkai. I had never seen a demon lose themselves to their more bloodthirsty half, and I had no wish to see it. Sesshoumaru was scary enough in his humanoid form, and meeting his more animalistic side was something I never wished to go through.

"Do not even dare insinuate I would ever put them in danger." The way Sesshoumaru growled out the words made me realize that even if his eyes had gone back to their natural shade, his anger was still close to the surface. "I assure you, Kagura will be on her best behavior while under my roof. She knows she would do well not to displease me." The side look he gave me let me know that if I did anything to displease him I would be in serious trouble. "Beside the wind mistress will come in handy." I guessed the use of a non-insulting name to refer to me was Sesshoumaru's way of trying to placate me. How nice, after he had just threatened me if I dared not to comply with whatever he wanted.

"Keh!" Inuyasha spat out, crossing his arms in a stubborn way. "Fine, I know you take your role of family protector seriously, but did you really have to bring her here? Her father is devious, and dangerous. Who knows if she can be trusted?"

While I understood the hanyou's sentiment, his words pissed me off. I had never been anything remotely close to my father after all, and being compared to him was as great an insult as possible.

"Don't worry, I can be trusted. It seems Sesshoumaru forgot to tell you about our happy news." I bravely stepped forward, and before he could utter any kind of protest, looped my arm around Sesshoumaru's. I felt him tense at the physical contact, but to my surprise he did not pull back.

"He and I just got married, so we're now one big happy family!"

To be continued…

A/N: What are Naraku and Sesshoumaru planning? What did Kagura just get herself into? How will she manage to navigate the situation she is in? Find out in the next installment, named Introductions.