DISCLAIMER: Inuyasha belongs to Rumiko Takahashi / the television series are produced by Sunrise.
When the sun rose gently the next morning, the rays shone lightly through the trees onto the resting group. The daiyōkai was the first awoken from his light slumber, and he scanned the area for any sense of auras, demonic or not. He came up empty handed, as he had the previous night when he scanned after the miko had said she was running. This put him at ease, but he dare not show any emotion, for there was no reason to worry in the first place it was more out of pure habit. He gazed at the sleeping miko, her arms still protectively wrapped around the ningen child who was cuddled close to her. It truly was a beautiful sight, and he couldn't help it when part of his lip twitched up in a smirk.
He continued to gaze, imagining what life would be like in his grand home with the two ningens laying in front of him. He thought of how their laughter would fill the halls, of how they would make many memories together. Then he frowned, knowing that it would never happen. He wouldn't assume she would accept such a future, for he knew her heart longed for another and he could never take a ningen as a mate. Not only would he have to watch her grow old and die, he would be a laughing stock and lose his lands and status. It wouldn't even matter since she obviously could never love him, he whom attempted to kill her multiple times.
~~~~Back at Kaede's Village~~~~
It wasn't until mid morning that the hanyō slipped back inside the hut where his friends slept, and they were still asleep. Except one, who he realized wasn't present and taken her backpack with her. Panicking, he searched the area for her scent, barely picking it up. It was very faint, as if she left hours ago. He frantically woke up his friends, alerting them of their missing miko, silently cursing himself for leaving in the middle of the night.
"I can barely pick up her scent, but its there. Let's not waste any time." Inuyasha said with a huff.
The demon slayer, monk and kit nodded in agreement. The small two-tailed demon fox trotted outside before transforming into her bigger form, waiting patiently as the demon slayer, monk and kit jumped on her back. Once they were on, the hanyō took off running in the direction of the miko's scent, the demon fox following close behind.
Please be okay Kagome, if anything happens to you I would never forgive myself for leaving last night.
They continued to follow her scent, wondering just how far she'd gone and why she'd run off on her own. The demon slayer had an inkling, but she dared not to voice it. She could smell the dead miko all over the hanyō, she knew where he had been. It wouldn't surprise her that her friend left because of a broken heart caused by the selfish bastard. The monk and kit noticed the smell as well, but they too kept their mouths shut. All they could do was hope she was okay.
By mid afternoon, they came across the same brook that Kagome had stopped at. Inuyasha's nose scrunched up at the smell of his daiyōkai brother, and he growled furiously. Their scent ended here, meaning the western lord had taken her hostage most likely.
"Damnit Sesshōmaru! I'm going to kill him if he hurts Kagome!" The hanyō voiced his irritation, startling the group beside him.
How were they going to find her now? They knew the lands he owned but never knew where his residence was. They could spend days looking and who knows what could happen to Kagome by then!
Unbeknownst to the group, a little flea happened to be in the area and jumped up onto Inuyasha's shoulder before sucking blood out of his neck. Instinctively, the hanyō smacked his neck and flattened the offending flea. When the flea regained his shape, he was pinched between Inuyasha's fingers as the hanyō glared at him
"Hello there master Inuyasha!" He said sheepishly.
Raising an eyebrow, the hanyō retorted, "Feh, why its Myoga the flea. Where have you been?"
"I have been attending to certain errands master Inuyasha, I was merely coming back to you now as I passed by. What brings you to this side of the forest?" The flea inquired, it was odd for them to be out so far from town when Kagome would be going home soon to replenish her supplies.
As if he needed the angry reminder, an angry frown still upon his face, "Kagome is missing, and Sesshōmaru took her. But we don't know where he lives."
"Well I supposed, if he took over for your father, he would reside in the same castle as the great Inu no Taishō once did, yes? Then perhaps I could assist you in finding Kagome." He crossed his arms, staring at the hanyō.
It took all his self restraint not to squish the flea again, "What are you waiting for? Lead the way then!"
~~~~With Kagome and Sesshōmaru~~~~
When the miko rose from her slumber it was already late morning, and the ningen awoke as the miko stretched. They yawned simultaneously and smiled at each other, happy to be in each other's presence. It took a few moments, but then the miko remembered where she was if the ningen child was with her. Her gaze lifted to see the daiyōkai glancing in their direction in curiosity, wondering why he would allow her in his home. Though, he let the child in his home but still, the child wasn't the object of his rage ever. The miko on the other hand, had been on the unlucky other end of a battle with the western lord more times than she wished to count.
Sesshōmaru rose from his seated position, "Let's take our guest home Rin. You and Jaken go ahead of us on Ah-Un, this Sesshōmaru would like to speak to Kagome."
"Oh Rin would be so happy for Kagome-sama to come home with us! Rin will gladly go home first and get a surprise ready for Kagome-sama!" The little child eagerly hopped on Ah Un's back, waiting for the grumpy imp to join her.
At this point, Jaken knew better than to protest so he reluctantly got on Ah-Un's back. When the green imp had secured himself on Ah Un, Sesshōmaru gave a slight nod and Ah Un took off towards the daiyōkai's castle. Once the trio were out of sight, the miko looked expectantly at the western lord, silently wondering why he sent them off. The daiyōkai walked to stand in front of the miko, tilting his head down to stare into her chocolate brown eyes.
"This Sesshōmaru wanted to give you a chance to go back to your friends if you wish, miko. This Sesshōmaru would not want you to think twice and regret staying away from the hanyō, demon slayer, monk and kit. You do not have to go with this Sesshōmaru." He murmured quietly.
She blinked in confusion at first, she didn't expect him to be considerate of her thoughts, "No, it's okay, really. I need time away from Inuyasha..I need time to think about some things...and I can't do that in his presence."
I can't believe that Sesshōmaru would think about my feelings of going with him? Why would that matter to him? Why would it even matter if i went or not..? I mean yeah I want to be alone but..I want to be safe too. And I'll have Rin with me so it can't be so bad right?
"Hnn. Come miko, we will be flying again, it's much faster." He opened an arm to her, gesturing for her to hold onto him again.
She closed the small gap between them, clutching his haori as he curled his arm around her waist and called his yōkai cloud beneath their feet. The wind blew her raven tresses around his chest as they soared through the sky, and she buried her face in his white garments. She was deathly afraid of heights but she would never let him know that, she would just let him think she was afraid of falling. The western lord protectively tightened his grip on her, smelling her fear and attempting to comfort her. He also decided to go slightly faster than comfortable for her, so they would get to their destination faster.
It was almost evening by the time they reached his castle, and he lowered them to the ground in one of the many small gardens that decorated the place. As her feet touched the ground, the miko released her hands from his haori and gazed around her in wonder. His castle was beautiful, the complete opposite of what she expected. She didn't expect so much life to fill the castle, being that he was a very cold hearted person she expected his estate to reflect his personality. The bustling servants and guards proved her completely wrong as they moved around dutifully.
Instead of having one of the many servants at his disposal escort the miko to a room, the daiyōkai escorted her himself. He felt obligated to show her to a room, being that she was his guest and he had asked her to stay. So he gestured for her to follow him as he started walking down one of the many halls in search of a decent room for the miko. She followed close behind him, not wanting to get lost in a place bustling with demons and demonesses alike. It would be naïve of her to assume they wouldn't harm her just because she was in the western lord's residence. She was still a ningen, and everyone knew the inuyōkai had a strong distaste for her people.
Soon, they came upon a room near his study and he slid the door open, content that it would be decent enough for her. He stepped in and looked at the miko expectantly as she looked around the room. She was shocked at how beautiful everything inside it was, and that he would consider such a room a 'guest' room. Everything looked expensive and it probably was, it was very different from what she expected. She didn't even want to touch anything because of how expensive it looked.
"Does this room not please you miko? If you wish for more I could have a room arranged for you." The western lord questioned at her prolonged silence and unwillingness to touch anything.
She shook her head, "It's not that it doesn't please me, it really does. I just couldn't accept the offer to stay in such a lavish room. This is more expensive than the entire shrine and house I live in at home."
"Nonsense, this will be your room while you stay and the kimonos in the closet are yours to keep as well. You deserve nothing less than that. If you need anything, this Sesshōmaru will be down the hall in his study and will have a maid stay outside." He stated firmly before walking back out the door and sliding it shut behind him.
A light knock came from the door not long after the inuyōkai had left, and she turned to see who it was. When she opened the door, she was staring at a beautiful demoness with long blonde hair pulled into a high ponytail, wearing servant's clothing. The demoness bowed and stared at the floor, refusing to make eye contact with the miko.
"Lord Sesshōmaru asked of me to take of you while you visit him, my lady. Should you need any help at all, my name is Misaki and I will gladly assist you." She bowed politely.
Feeling extremely embarrassed to have someone wait on her, the miko waved the maid off, "Thank you, but I won't need help just yet. I'm probably going to bathe first before I do anything else."
"I can assist you in your bathe my lady, or I could help you into a yukata once you are dried off my lady." Misaki stayed bowing, unsure if she should rise or not.
Again the miko waved the maid off, crimson staining her cheeks, "I can bathe myself it's okay. Although I'm not quite sure how to put on a yukata so I could use some help with that."
"As you wish, my lady. I shall escort you to the bathe house and wait for you to need my help. If I may, I believe the lavender yukata would look best on you."
The ningen hadn't even looked into the wardrobe yet, so she was curious when the demoness offered a suggestion. She walked over to the wardrobe and opened the beautifully carved cedar wood, and her jaw practically dropped. The clothing hanging in the wardrobe looked like those of aristocrats, expensive and beautiful, just like everything else in her room and this castle. Her eyes came across the lavender yukata. A soft gasp escaped her lips, out of everything in the wardrobe that piece would have to be her favorite.
It had deep blue flowers strewn across it, accompanied with light blue koi fish scattered here and there that glistened beautifully in the light. The material was as soft and as light as a feather, and she couldn't wait to wear it after she bathed. The thought of bathing snapped her out of her daze, she definitely needed another bath, since she assumed he actually had naturally heated springs instead of cold river water that needed magic to become warm enough to not get you sick. Though she wasn't as dirty as before, it sounded wonderful to sit in a heated spring.
Once she had pulled out the yukata, she grabbed a towel and another pair of laced panties and put them in a neat pile in her arm, "Thank you Misaki, I think it is absolutely beautiful. Honestly, I wasn't going to use anything in the wardrobe because it looks so expensive and I don't want to ruin anything. But, looking at this yukata I decided I changed my mind, so thank you for your suggestion."
"I am honored to have pleased you, my lady. If you are ready, I will escort you to the bathe house." The demoness replied as she waited for the ningen onna.
It finally dawned on her that the demoness was waiting for permission, and her cheeks brightened red again, "Misaki, please, you don't have to be so formal with me. You can call me Kagome, and please stand up."
"I could never my lady, my lord would be very unhappy if he found out I lost my manners and called you by name." Misaki slowly stood up, but kept her eyes downcast.
With a mischievous smirk on her face and glint in her chocolate brown eyes, the miko placed a hand on Misaki's shoulder, "I won't tell Sesshōmaru if you won't, it will be our little secret how about that?"
"You are too kind to a servant like me, Lady Kagome. Follow me, let us not delay your bath any longer. I am sure you wish to sit in the hot springs we have, you must be exhausted from your travels."
The demoness slid the door of the room open, gesturing for the miko to step out into the hallway. Once Kagome was in the hallway, Misaki closed the door behind them and began walking down the hallway. As they passed a few other hallways and corridors, the demoness began naming off what parts of the castle they were. Most of them led to other rooms for guests, one led to the garden, another led to a dojo, and one of the closer ones to her room led to the dining hall.
~~~~Inuyasha and the gang~~~~
The hanyō grew more irritated as time passed, he hoped his brother hadn't harmed Kagome in any way, considering the daiyōkai was constantly trying to kill him and Kagome whenever they crossed paths. Inuyasha's thoughts were suddenly interrupted when a tornado whizzed to a stop in front of the group. As the dust cleared, it revealed none other than the young leader of the eastern yōkai-wolf tribe, with his long, black hair tied up in a high pony tail and his deep blue eyes scanning the group for a certain someone
"Hey dog breath," Kōga barked at the hanyō, "Where is my woman? If you let anything happen to her I will never forgive you!"
Inuyasha snarled, "She ain't your woman wolf. She wandered off in the middle of the night and my brother kidnapped her. So we're going to get her back!"
"WHAT?! As if one mutt wasn't enough, the older one has to get involved as well! Can't you do anything right you damned puppy." Kōga growled back, "I might as well go get her myself, seeing that I can't trust you not to lose sight of her. What were you doing when she left huh?"
The hanyō wrinkled his nose at Kōga, "It's none of your business what I was doing! We're handling it so go back to wherever you crawled out of and stay out of this."
"As if, you think I would just let you-"
A very angry oni taiji yelled, "Both of you quit arguing! How about for once you both work together and we can all bring her back. The longer you argue the higher the chances are of Sesshōmaru hurting Kagome. So for her sake if you won't do it for yourselves, just shut up and let's keep moving."
The yōkai and hanyō crossed their arms and looked away from each other, both grumbling as the group continued on its journey towards Sesshōmaru's estate. The tension between the two was thick and almost tangible, they'd always been clashing whenever it came to the miko and it was very clear that they disliked each other because of it. But they had to admit, they would take all the help they could get when it came to Kagome's safety.
It was about three more hours or so of walking, before the group decided to rest for the night and set up camp. The monk, onni taiji, and kit got into their sleeping bags that the miko had brought from her time, while the hanyō perched in a nearby tree and the yōkai sat by the fire staring at the moon. He wondered to himself if the miko was safe and waiting for someone to rescue her, as well as what would have led her to wander off in the first place without telling anyone in the group.
A/N: There's chapter 2 for you(: I hope you guys are enjoying the story, please don't forget to leave reviews! As I said previously, I have several chapters already finished. I will probably update here twice a week with chapters until this gets caught up with my Wattpad version, so if you don't want to wait for updates here pm me and i'll send you that way :3
