Blanket Disclaimer: The writer does not own any characters created by Rumiko Takahashi but like everyone else wishes she did. All original characters or concepts are the author's Inuma Asahi De's (with the exception of historical figures).
Chapter Nine
The Mark of the Dog
"I have no choice." Inuyasha gulped internally as he took in the sight of Miss Kagome Dresmont disguised as a man. Her scent came to his nose, tantalizing, he tried to block it out. "I'm sorry, Miss Dresmont, I'm so sorry."
Without preamble Inuyasha bent down and yanked the tied Kagome to her feet, shoving her harshly in front of him. He smelt the confusion enter her scent, the smell of uncertainty and fear causing the demon within him to stir. It screamed, howled, growled, and gnawed at his physic all at the same time, angered that such a smell was melting in with Kagome's beautiful natural scent. Inuyasha grimaced inside, his face unchanging to the men around him who had grown silent. He looked out at their faces and then down to the startled eyes of the young woman with the boy cut hair. He knew this would be harder than anything he had ever had to do.
"This stowaway is no man!" Inuyasha said harshly as he fought the angry demon inside of him for control. The demon was pissed at the rough handling of the girl but he knew it for the best. He heard a wave of shock go through the crew, whispering and gasping apparent in their ranks. His eyes darted between their faces, taking in the first signs of contemplation. He knew what they were thinking, he knew their perverse and sickening thoughts. At the same time, however, he also knew that they really wouldn't believe him without some sort of physical proof.
The thought made Inuyasha feel dirty, he knew he would have to provide that proof. He glanced at Kagome, feeling monstrous, he wanted to apologize, he wanted to explain his thought process before he did what he was about to do and yet—he couldn't. He bit his lip discretely as he tried to think of the best way to expose her. Glancing at her body, he tried to access what part of her would be the most convincing; the answer wasn't one he liked. He practically snarled as he cut the ropes that were tied around her hands and legs, the sound both part of the performance he was putting on and a show of how angry he truly was with himself. With the ropes gone he shoved her completely in front of him onto her hands and knees, so every crewman regardless of his current seat could see her form for just a second. He needed them to see it fully, before he showed them the true figure underneath those clothes—it was the only way to truly convince them.
All eyes focused on the gagged stowaway as the slim figure was shoved into perfect view, his short hair slightly curly, waving as the breeze hit it. They couldn't believe it was a woman—they wouldn't until the physical proof of her womanhood was exposed. And so like vultures they watched her, their eyes glistening with their interest and anticipation.
"Do you think it's a girl?" One of the men whispered from his spot hanging on the riggings, his eyes not moving from the girl in question as he addressed the general population that surrounded him.
"I don't know, does look scrawny don't he?" Another replied from his spot a few feet to the man's left. "Boy's ain't that scrawny unless it's a runt."
The conversation's died out around her when Inuyasha cut the gage from Kagome's mouth, deliberately ignoring the words of the pirates that echoed from every corner of the ship. Kagome dropped to her knees and coughed at the feel, her eyes watering as she took in large lung full's of air. Gasping for breath she turned to look behind her at the Captain, her eyes locked on him, full of confusion and doubt.
"What are you doing, why are you doing this? What happened between yesterday and today?" She wondered as the cold eyes looked at her as if she was the scum of the earth, as if she was something lower under his foot than even soil. Her lip trembled as she took in that stern face. "Not all pirates are bad," She reasoned in her head, but that face, staring at her intently like a predator stocking a bunny rabbit told her different. Perhaps this pirate really wasn't a good man.
Kagome shuddered at the though. When she had first seen him, seen him dressed as a pirate—the man he really was—she hadn't cared. Who cared if he was a pirate? In the end it really didn't matter, he would still be that man she had met before, right? He would still be that married man who had kissed her hand, who had danced with her, who had talked with her, and had eventually kissed her. He would still be that same person, wouldn't he? With shaking fingers she brought a hand to her aching arm, it hurt where he had grabbed her and she was positive she would have bruises shaped like his hand and perhaps scars from where his nails had nicked her flesh.
"Was it all pretend?" She felt the question bubble inside of her as she took in his harshly set jaw. "Was it a façade, a character he played?"
Kagome looked away from those glaring eyes, her eyes looking at the wood of the ship around her. She glanced up and took in the many men, some of the faces were familiar, she had seen some of these men when they were dressed in Navy uniforms but now, they were dressed like privateers. Her heart sunk in her chest, "Was it all a lie?"
"If it is a girl we should get to 'ave some fun with her."
The voice came from behind her, quickly she turned towards it and saw a man with mug in hand, his face red with alcohol, his tongue out licking his lips as he took her in. She gulped, feeling disgusted both with the man and with herself. She felt cheated, she felt stupid. She looked back at the Captain who had turned away from her for a moment, looking somewhere behind him. All the voices around her were growing louder, questioning her sex, talking about what they could do with her.
"I'd fuck 'er, short hair or no."
She heard the voice coming from her left.
"Fuck yeah, a pussy's a pussy, right?"
Another coming from somewhere to her right.
"She's got'ta have small tits to hide 'em."
This one sounded like it was almost above her head.
"Shit tits is tits."
This one was only a few feet away, directly in front of her face, yelling so the other man could hear him. The group erupted into laughter, every man on the ship highly entertained by all their perspective thoughts.
"Shut up!" A voice called out above the din of excitement and instantly the insulting words and laughter ceased. Kagome looked up and saw the Captain had gotten closer to her in the few minutes that had just passed. He looked down at her, his eyes cold as ice and smoldering like white hot fire. He reached down, yanking her up once again, holding her by her arm, his nails cutting into her flesh just like before, she could feel the trickles of blood and apparently the demon's could smell them.
All around her several men erupted into shouts and catcalls as the scent of blood hit their noses', awakening the demon lust within them as if they were sharks taking in the first smell of blood for the day. They became feral, lusty sounds escaping their throats as they shouted at the Captain to show her, to expose her. It seemed that the ship had turned into a blood fueled feeding frenzy, barely contained by the Captain's commanding presence.
"Control yourselves!" He ordered once again as he pulled her closer to himself, his tall stature towering over her, his hands pressing harder into her delicate skin causing her to flinch.
"We want to see!" A man not too far away from her yelled, several men from all corners of the ship chiming in to agree.
The Captain snarled again causing them all to go quiet. "I'll show you soon enough."
The lot of them cheered.
It was with those words that Kagome became a hundred percent certain of the truth. She had fallen for his charm; she had fallen for his 'nice' nature back on the shores of Port Royal. He was a great actor, he had shown her a man that was his complete opposite and she had fallen for it, like a naïve school girl watching a play and believing it real.
"I'm a moron." She thought as the first tears truly built in her lashes. "Why was I so blind?"
How could she not have seen his cruel nature? Why didn't she see the cruel man under the fake smile? In the five days she had known him, why hadn't she seen it or at least seen some clue that it was there underneath the handsome face and strong chin? Was she that dense, was she that trusting, was she really that, stupid?
He had been so kind, so gentle with her, he had listened to her and laughed with her (not at her as even her friends tended too) but now was different, now he held her arm so tight she could already feel the bruises forming on the tender flesh. Now he held her in front of a hoard of likewise angry pirate men—now—he didn't show her any compassion or any emotions for that matter.
She glanced at the men around her and for the first time noticed Peter, standing off to the side. "So he's a pirate too?" She felt faint, it all had been a lie, Peter, the Captain, they were both pirates, they weren't good Navy men, they were horrible pirates. She once again looked at the faces that were familiar, all pirates, all liars and they were sitting now, looking at her like she was a prize, meat to be sold from the slaughter house's door, a slave on an auction block waiting for the highest bid.
These men, they weren't good pirates (If there was such a thing as a good pirate, she was beginning to doubt it now), these men were bad pirates—they were horrible people, looking at her like a woman whose only use was bedding. Kagome felt dense as the Captain's nails dug into her arm even more. How had she not realized? How could she have been fooled so badly? Kagome's mind began to sink, her eyes sinking with it, disappearing behind the black silk curtain of her bangs. "I'm an idiot."
Unaware of her thoughts, Inuyasha prepared himself mentally for what he was about to do. It would never end well, that he knew above all else but still, he hoped she would eventually understand. This was the only option, this was the only way she could really be protected while aboard this ship. He gritted his teeth, wishing he could take her back to Port Royal and dump her with her parents but he knew that going back there would be certain death and probably a mutiny of the crew. He glanced down at her one more time, wondering for only a second why she was here. "Why did you leave Port Royal, Miss Dresmont?" He closed his eyes as a horrible feeling came over him. "I hope to god it wasn't because of me."
Shaking his head he tore himself away from his thoughts, pushing them to the back of his mind for the time being, it was time to act, and he wasn't looking forward to the production. Inuyasha reached up praying his decision was a good one as he put his hands on the old jacket Kagome was wearing. He felt her shudder as he slipped one of his claws between the first button of her jacket and her chest. "I'm sorry."
And with that he ripped every button from her coat in one movement, the little round bone objects falling to the deck, clinging with the force of hitting the wood. The jacket opened instantly, the Captain pulling it aside with force, letting go of her one arm in favor of using both hands to pull the collar of the jacket back and down until the jacket was pulled from her body, resting on her elbows, exposing her to the whole of the crew.
By sheer luck she had thought to put an undershirt on, it saved some of her modesty but not by much. Every pirate on the deck could still distinctly see the ripe curve of a woman's chest through the almost see threw shirt and the subtle pinkish color of her plump breast contrasting against the white cotton.
"Tits!" One of the men closest to her shouted as the ship was lead into a frenzy all over again, men were hooting and hollering, going on and on with both curiosity and lust.
"It's a fucking woman." A man said who was leaning against the railing not too far from her. "Why's her hair that short?"
"Who cares, look at 'er tits. Nice un' perky." Another man next to the first finished off with a deep throaty laugh.
"Shit, that's the truth!" The first said back and the two men practically knocked each other over with their enthusiasm to get a better look at her.
"What're we gonna do with 'er Captain!" A voice shouted from way above Kagome, in the crow's nest.
Fear went into Kagome's heart, what were they going to do with her? Kagome struggled against the Captain then, trying desperately to get away from him, but his hands were tight on her elbows, keeping her jacket in place so her breast were exposed. Instantly, she felt tears well in her eyes from embarrassment and anger, from confusion and hurt. "Please," She said so softly that she was sure no one had heard her. She tried to pull herself forward again, but couldn't manage, the grip was far too tight and she was far too weak against a man this strong. "Please!" She said louder, "Let me go."
"Ah," A man to her left heard her voice. "The little bitch wants ta be 'et go."
The men around her laughed, their combined voices striking every nerve in Kagome's body, her anger beginning to bubble, her blood pressure sky rocketing, every muscle tensing in complete and utter fury.
"Let me the go damn it!" She screamed as she tensed her whole body, shooting forward in the split second Inuyasha's hands went lax with his own shock. She stumbled forward, landing on her hands and knees only two feet away from him, grabbing her jacket she hastily slipped it back on her shoulders as the men around her laughed heartily with their pure entertainment.
"Feisty, isn't she!" One man's voice was heard above the din, causing others to put their own pennies worth into humiliating her.
"Bet she'd be great in bed!" The men laughed louder.
Kagome ignored them and instead looked back at the Captain in complete anger and contempt. "How dare you!" She yelled into the crowd, causing all the men to quiet as a little human woman dressed in her father's clothing yelled at their giant demon Captain. "You liar, it was all a lie!"
"What?" Someone in the crowed questioned completely confused, the others nodded in agreement equally lost—none of them recognizing the girl from her tour of the ship.
Kagome continued, "You were a pirate all along, a lunatic dressed in Navy clothes, parading around as a high ranking Officer, lying to everyone around you as casually as if you were at a picnic! Why? Why is the world would you do such a thing? Did you delight in it, was it some great amazing game? Why!" She screamed so loud that some of the birds that were resting on the boat actually flew away from fright. "Why are you such a bloody asshole!"
By the time she was finished she had tears running down her face and the ship was quiet, her words confusing to everyone's ears except one.
"Miss Dresmont!" Sango yelled from her spot breaking the silence as realization finally overtook her. She had thought she recognized the stowaway, that something was familiar but it hadn't been till she shouted, it hadn't been till her words registered in Sango's mind that she realized this was Kagome Dresmont, dressed as a man.
"Wouldn't it have been nice, to have been a man?"
"Girl's got great follow-through." Sango commented to herself as she began to push through the crowd of men, shoving them out of the way so she could make her way to Kagome easily. She reached up, taking off her hat and letting her hair fall out so the girl might recognize her easier.
Kagome looked up at the man coming towards her, the one who had yelled her name—her real name—and gasped when she realized who it was—the eyes and the somewhat less manly figure giving her away to Kagome and to top it off, the woman in disguise let down her hair, showing herself to really be a girl. "Mrs. Smith," She called back only to have the men around her thrown into laughter once again, the momentary spell of silence destroyed.
"That ain't no Mrs. Smith." One man yelled from the top of the rigging.
"That ain't no Mrs. Anything!" Another one yelled back from the helm's staircase. "That's jus' ta quarter's wench."
"Shut your fucking face." Sango yelled back, her rage coming out fully fledged. After years at sea she had developed into quiet the woman of battle. All of the men knew she was capable of killing just as well as they were with either pistol or knife. "Or I'll fucking shut it for you."
"I'd like ta see ya try, princess." The man at the helm yelled down and whistled. The other men on the ship started to laugh at her expense.
Sango growled and started for the man, drawing a knife from her waist but was stopped by Miroku stepping in front of her. The man on the helm seemed to lose some of his vigor at the sight of the Quartermaster—you didn't mess with the Quartermaster, if you did your share might be messed with by him.
"Look at 'er standin' be'ind the Mast'r!" A far stupider man called out from somewhere up above in the riggings, a few other men laughed.
"Shut it!" Sango yelled in return. "Be glad he's in front of me or you'd be dead."
"I'd like ta see you tr—,"
"Silence!" Inuyasha yelled causing the man to stop instantly. He eyed them both with rage filled irises, his eyes tinted with red. Every man on this ship knew that look and they knew it well, it was the look the Captain made right before someone died.
Inuyasha breathed heavily, Kagome involuntarily whimpered as she took in the sight of his pure unadulterated wrath. Without her consent her body began to shake, she had never seen something so scary in her life; she had never seen eyes so full of absolute anger and disgust. She had never seen anyone with a look that could kill. All of her earlier vigor left her as he turned those cold eyes on her, dangerous fangs showing as he snarled at her and took a step closer. She flinched when his hand reached out and grabbed her arm again, yanking her to her feet.
"That is no Mrs. Smith, there is no Mrs. Smith." He told her, the act so convincing that even Sango and Miroku were watching in captivated disbelief. "Her name is actually Sango—the first mates bitch."
Sango started to protest the label but was stopped by Miroku's hand touching her shoulder. The two glanced at each other as the ship went completely quiet, no one daring to speak. Sango tried to plead silently with Miroku but the man only closed his eyes and turned away, a strange look of self hatred crossing his features. "There's nothing we can do," He barely whispered out but Sango heard him loud and clear. "If we speak, she will die."
Sango felt the tears come over her at his words, "The Captain wouldn't kill her." She whispered back as she looked at Miroku pleading.
The man sighed and put his hand on her shoulder, bringing her close to him so he could whisper in her ear. "But the crew will."
Sango's eyes widened and then closed in anger and acceptance. Finally she bit her lip and turned back to the commotion, her whole body trembling with fear for Miss Dresmont.
Kagome looked at the Captain, her eyes wide and confused, full of fear and terror. Inuyasha continued to look down at her harshly, his mouth in a thin line as the two looked at each other. "Captain Smith?" She said in a small voice—it took everything he had to not stop his hateful act right then. "Please?" Her voice was but a whisper, most of the men on the ship unable to hear her.
Inuyasha felt himself fill with self hatred for what he was about to do but he couldn't show any sign of weakness on his deck, especially for a woman. It was too dangerous for him and especially her. If his men got wind of him being weakened by her, they would use her and they would diffidently defy him. He had to make them believe that this girl meant nothing to him, that she was just a female stowaway, that she was nothing but dirt under his feet. If they thought anything else of her, then they would have an advantage that he was not willing to give them.
Inuyasha took a deep breath to collect himself, he focused on the task at hand, he focused on the act, he focused on the character he was trying to portrayed—he focused on being a complete and utter asshole and then smirked at her down his nose. "The name's Captain Inuyasha."
Kagome's eyes went wide as every childhood story about pirates rushed into her mind at once. Captain Inuyasha had very often been the star on nights her mother wanted her to stay in bed. He had been a phantom, a ghost that stayed in the corner of her room—watching her, keeping her in line for fear of him killing her in her sleep. He was easily one of the most dangerous pirates in the whole of the Caribbean and perhaps the whole of the Atlantic Ocean and he was holding her arm—holding her life in his clawed hand.
Kagome took a deep breath as the reality of her situation hit her. This man had never cared for her, he was the dreaded Captain Inuyasha—a demon who killed for fun, raped, murdered, and looted. He had used her. He had faked the love affair of the century, he was nothing more than a homicidal pirate. Everything that had happened on Port Royal had been a well crafted lie, designed to keep suspicion off himself long enough for him to resupply and fix his vessel. That was why she had heard the cannon fire the day they left the Port Town, he had been holding true to his true nature.
"It all was a lie," She said as her whole body began to go limp with fear or perhaps depression. "The ship, your wife, Peter, the navy, it all was a lie." She said in a small voice as the actuality of the situation hit her in the bottom of her heart making her feel sick.
"Hit the nail on the head little girl." He chuckled as he held onto her arm as tight as he could without actually breaking the bone. He had to make this look real—the hate in his heart doubled as she gasped at the pain.
The men around looked at their Captain in fear, knowing he was a truly hardened man to hurt a woman like this. He glanced at them and loosened his grip slightly; taking great care to make sure the move wasn't seen but only felt by Kagome.
"There's never been a Mrs anything aboard this ship. Never been a Navy either." His voice dripped with venom as he spoke his acting worthy of awards. "But I will change half of that." He smirked and let out a little huff of air. "I might not have a Mrs, but I will have a bitch."
Kagome shook in his grip as the Captain hauled her up towards his side, his fingers were tight on her arm and she felt tears prick her eyes when his claws pushed into her skin once again, the familiar feel of blood welling to the surface of her skin causing her heart to stop in her chest.
Again he loosened his hold, cursing at himself for not realizing how fragile she was.
Kagome looked up at him with confused eyes, noticing the way his body tensed and the way he loosened his tight grip on her. It was all hypocritical to what he was saying. Why was he saying such hateful things and then taking care to let go when he started to hurt her. It didn't make any sense, what was going on, what on earth was he thinking, what on earth was he saying and doing? It was only then that his words truly hit her ears, "Bitch?"
He glanced at her when she whispered it but made no move to explain, he didn't need to. She knew what a bitch was, it was the demon term for mate or wife, but she didn't want to be a bitch against her will. She had run away from that life already—and now, she couldn't run at all.
"This bitch is mine." Every eye on the ship watched the Captain in utter shock, even Kagome. "If you touch her, you will die, if you look at her, I will hang you from the foremast. If you talk to her I will rip out your throat, and if I find out any man has done anything to her, a touch, a laugh, a catcall, he won't rise the next day because he'll either be dead, or so badly hurt he can't move."
The ship was silent, completely silent. The Captain had never taken a bitch before in his life, as far as these men knew. Even Myoga and Totosai, the longest sailing crewmen and the two people who had known him the longest, had not known him to ever take a woman and claim her. The two old men looked at each other in disbelief, they had known both known Inuyasha since he was a pup and he wasn't this man—he didn't act like the man in front of them right now. Totosai scratched his head from his place next to Myoga on the helm deck, what was his master doing?
"Do yuu think, Inuyasha-sama will mark-u her?" Totosai asked his long time friend his thick accent much worse than the much shorter mans own because of his normally silent nature.
Myoga crossed his arms over his chest, his small three foot tall form looking at the large Captain, seeing him as only a little boy. This was not the little boy who had once called him Myoga-jii-jii, this was not the little five year old with the wide smile and love filled eyes. This was not even the adult who had always been nice if not rough around the edges. "Myoga cannot-to even guess." Myoga replied to Totosai, worry in his voice. "There izu no tellin' what iz-u goin' on in Inuyasha-sama head-o now-u."
Inuyasha looked at the men, knowing very well that his actions could lead to trouble, but also knowing that in the current situation it was his best option. He glanced at Miroku and Sango, both of them were looking at him with both anger and disbelief in their eyes. He looked up at Myoga and Totosai, they were looking at him as if he had grown a second head. He looked away and then down at Kagome Dresmont who was looking at the ground, her eyes widened in shock—so she understood, she knew what was going to happen—or at least she realized the connotations of that word, 'bitch'.
The demons on the ship waited, knowing that if the Captain was serious he would literally claim her as his own in the demon fashion. It was customary among demons to leave physical traces, something human's were no longer capable of doing with their body instead opting to use wedding rings as a substitute because of their weak senses.
Human's were not even aware that demon's did something of the sort. Even in demon-human marriages the practice was hardly ever done. It was only done between demon families because demons figured it was pointless to do it with a human, especially one you married only for appearances. The human's on the ship, not understanding or knowing about this strange facet of demon culture, continued to watch transfixed but unaware as the Captain turned towards the girl and looked at her harshly preparing himself to officially place a claim on her.
Inside Inuyasha felt horrible, he felt like yelling and screaming, he felt like throwing himself off the ship for what he was about to do but he also knew it was the only way to keep the girl safe from harm. Forcefully, he brought her head to the side, tilting it so he could easily see her neck. He looked at her neck, the demon inside of him thrilled at the idea—and the human side crying out in anger.
Kagome froze at the action, her whole body panicking as she tried to figure out what he was doing. She felt tears prick her eyes as she thought of the man currently holding her so harshly. She had thought that he liked her, she had thought that he was attracted to her but no—he was just a pirate who had messed with her head. She had been foolish to think otherwise.
A sort of hated built inside Kagome, she felt betrayed, she felt useless, she felt unwanted, and unloved. The combination of these feelings caused her to become uncontrollably angry at this man—she hated him. She hated him for messing with her heart, leaving her bitter and alone in a space filled with hundreds of people. "Bastard."
Inuyasha forced his ears to stay upright on his head, it was hard, very hard but he managed, "You got that right, Miss Dresmont." He said loud enough for the crew to hear. "I am a bastard in every meaning of the word."
The anger in Kagome's heart seemed to turn to fire and she shoved at his arms, trying to push the man off her. Captain Inuyasha only held on tighter as the men around them cheered, calling her names, telling the Captain to get it over with, whatever 'it' was. She kicked and shoved, at one point she even thought to try to bite him but his hands were out of her mouth's range.
"You'll never get away!" One of the men to her right yelled while drinking from his cup.
"No one ever gets away from the Captain!" Another man yelled, many other crew member's yelling in agreement.
Kagome began to feel tired, her resolve weakening as she attempted to kick the Captain in the shins with no success. Her eyes scanned the crowd looking for Mrs. Smith—the woman in disguise—whatever her real name was—she looked for that familiar face. She found it standing next to Peter—or whatever his real name was—the woman was looking down at her feet, her hands were clenched at her sides, unmoving. The man next to her had a hand on her shoulder but also stood frozen, his eyes looking away.
Tears fell down Kagome's face as she felt a wave of utter loneliness fill her. She felt like an idiot, she felt like a moron, a naïve fool. They all were liars, weren't they? She felt the arms of the Captain take control of her again as she stopped struggling, this man was horrible, this man had taken her heart, held it in his hands, and then torn it apart. She should have stayed in Port Royal, it would have been better to always have thought of this man as her first love instead of a person who faked his attraction to her.
Kagome looked out to the sea and thought on her choice. The tears became bigger—all she had wanted was to be herself for once, she had wanted to live the life of a free woman, she had wanted to go to Charleston and start over, the memory of a good man in her heart. But now—that was over, the memory was dead and she was never going to see Charleston, she was never going to be happy, her happiness was a joke, as much a joke as her gender.
Inuyasha took a deep whiff of her scent and cursed himself over the amount of fear, distress, confusion, and anger that came off of it like a wave. He really didn't want to do what he was about to do but since he had demon crew members he knew he had to mark her for the girls own good. It was the only way to ensure they would never touch her and it was the only way to ensure that he could protect her while she was on this ship.
Unlike Miroku he knew he would never stake a physical claim on the girl. That was the main reason Sango was safe on the ship. Demons respected a man who was having sex with his bitch. They wouldn't touch her, so the man wouldn't have to worry as long as he continued to have sex with her regularly.
There was no way Inuyasha would do that to this girl. He would place a non sexual claim on her for her own safety but he had no idea what he was going to do with her afterwards. He knew there was no way he could personally take her back to Port Royal—it would be a death sentence for him and his crew and on top of that, he had no idea why she had left home in the first place. All he knew was that this had to be done, he had no choice, she had no choice, unless she wanted to be raped, beaten, and at the very worst killed by the unsavory men he employed.
Bending forward he kissed her neck softly, trying to convey to her how sorry he was for what he was doing, trying to tell her that he didn't want to, that he had indeed liked her and that this was all for her own good. She gasped at the sensation both out of a sort of pleasure and also a tremendous mental hurt. He took that moment to wrap his arms tightly around her, pulling her back to his chest so he could keep her secure during the entirety of the process. Finding her pulse point he licked his lips before sinking his fangs directly into her neck. She cried out in horrible pain as his fangs sunk deep into her flash.
Inuyasha forced himself to hold his fangs in her as she attempted to struggle. The smell of her tears hit his nose and he felt like absolute scum as he kept his fangs tight in her flesh, drinking in her blood. He backed away for only a second, his arms holding her firmly in place before he bit the inside of his cheek. The taste of her blood and his own, a distinction that only a demon could really make, mixed in his mouth and he bent forward one more time, placing his fangs in the exact place he had before, he sunk into her again, this time her blood mixing with his own by means of the wound in his cheek.
Kagome felt her anger and confusion towards the Captain make way for complete fear. She was scared of what was happening, she was unsure of what he was doing. Was he trying to kill her? The pain in her shoulder began to go away as he bit down again. As it ebbed she felt a new and strange sensation, something she had never felt before—it was like contentment but stronger, like love but deeper. She pushed those feelings deep down inside of her, choosing to be hurt and angry with him instead.
After several seconds he pulled away and held her out in front of him for all the crew to see. The fang marks on her neck began to shift and change as the crew watched.
From his spot Miroku felt his heart drop to his stomach. He had recognized Kagome the second Sango had called her name. Her sweet eyes the biggest indication. Bowing his head he thought of what the Captain had just done to her. Growing up, being raised by a demon and among demons, he was the only human on the ship who knew what had just occurred.
The bite mark on her neck was a sign of protection, the sign of his demon blood. With that mark, if any man or woman touched her causing her pain or fright, Inuyasha would know within seconds. With that mark no demon would dare to look at her because Inuyasha would know their eyes had stared. It was a dangerous mark, not permanent but close—it was a mark of undying faithfulness, devotion, and permanent protection. As long as that mark was on Kagome Dresmont's flesh the Captain would protect her from all things and be linked with her very soul. Still, the mark could be removed, with time all things can fade but Miroku knew as long as the Captain held a strong will to protect Miss Dresmont that the magic would not fade. It was not the mark of a mate, but it was diffidently very similar and almost as binding.
He glanced up and watched as the bite mark formed into the shape of a dog—like a tattoo on her shoulder blade. Underneath the mark was strange lettering Miroku didn't recognize, it almost looked like scribbled lines but he knew they were much too organized to mean nothing.
"Do you understand?" The Captain yelled as he continued to hold her out towards the men of the ship.
Kagome whimpered as the men around her agreed in different fashions. Although her shoulder did not hurt her she was still in horrible pain. Her heart within her chest was breaking—shattering—her anger melting into confusion.
"Miroku." The Captain called and the man she had known as Peter Woodson stepped up and nodded. "Flog those men for their transgressions." He pointed at the two men who had been fighting to begin with.
"Aye, sir." Miroku said softly and looked at Kagome.
She met his eyes briefly and saw a look of sadness in him, she wondered if he knew her, if he recognized her and felt badly.
"The rest of you, to work!" Inuyasha yelled out and dragged her with him, pulling her arm. He took her directly to his quarters, knowing he needed to try to do some damage control but before he could do anything, before he even opened his mouth to speak, she passed out.
-break-
Inside the office of Mr. Henry Morgan, one figure stood while the other sat contemplating. It had taken two days for the town to calm down after the initial attack by the pirate ship. The fires had been the hardest thing to take care of (even with the great source of water around them) because they had eventually hit an ammunition store on the docks causing an explosion. Mr. Morgan had barely been able to contain the fire at that point. In the end, it had greatly delayed any departure that Mr. Morgan could have taken to track Captain Inuyasha. The man was, after all, the only person in the town who could even hope of containing the fire after an explosion.
But even now that everything was calming he was still really needed here. He had to start the construction on the docks, he had to supervise the funerals, he had to budget to make sure the town could afford such things, and he had to make sure they were safe from any other threats.
Still, they had survived very well, better than he had thought they would. Most of that was due to the fact that the pirates had only decided to attack the dock and the gallows, instead of looting the Port or worse burning the whole Port to the ground. Because of this Mr. Morgan had thought they were in very good shape, that is until Mr. Dresmont had stepped into his office some thirty minutes ago to give a report.
He had thought the man was only going to tell him of the total death count (a number that wasn't very high surprisingly), and the basic cost of damages. And Mr. Dresmont had in fact told him these things but he had also come baring some other, far more disturbing, information.
"So you're telling me your daughter was taken?" Mr. Morgan questioned in a barely contained voice as he tapped his fingers on his desk, his claws hitting the wood causing a strange echo in the room.
"That is what happened." Whispered Mr. Dresmont as he stood in front Mr. Morgan his hat in his hand. The sound of the clicking nails was boring into him, causing him to shake. "She spent some time with them, under the impression that they were good people."
"Spent time with them, I had heard she was becoming familiar with the supposed Captain's wife." Mr. Morgan continued to tap his nails on the desk, the sound creating a strange threat in the room for Mr. Dresmont. "How was she taken?"
"My wife said she was taken in the night."
"She saw the pirate take the young Miss. Dresmont?" Mr. Morgan inquired as he leaned back in his chair, crossing his hands over his chest, a frown permanent on his face.
It was only slightly comforting that the nail ticking sound had stopped. "Yes, she saw him, a phantom in the night." Mr. Dresmont felt a trickle of sweat go down his back as he watched Mr. Morgan in front of him. The older demon was looking at him as if he was ready to strike, a predator about to eat an unsuspecting prey. Mr. Dresmont missed the nail tapping.
"You're sure?" Mr. Morgan pressed, his eyes boring into Mr. Dresmont so hard that the other man was sure he was about to catch fire from the heat of the stare.
"Positive sir." Mr. Dresmont gulped, praying that Mr. Morgan would not be able to see his lie.
Most demons were actually very good at distinguishing between the truthful and the false. However, over the course of many centuries their natural lie detecting abilities had started to vanish, at least in some of the higher social classes. Maybe it was the fact that they had stopped caring about other creatures, or maybe it was because money did the work for them—whatever was the reason, the fact was this: most demons could not tell the difference between someone lying and someone telling the truth anymore. Even though Mr. Dresmont could not be a hundred percent sure, he was almost positive Mr. Morgan's family was one of the ones that had lost the ability to discern fact from fiction in the past few hundred centuries.
He glanced at his boss for clarification and smiled when he noticed the man was not sniffing him. One of the indicators of a demon who could access lying was the way he used his nose when you were talking to him, and Mr. Morgan never used his nose. This meant he could not scent a lie. The next indicators were the ears.
Mr. Dresmont looked at Mr. Morgan's ears, there was not so much as a twitch or tweak, another prime indicator that Mr. Morgan did not know how to distinguish between fact and fiction. Meaning, his ears were not sensitive enough to pick up on the flexes and changes of the human heart beat when lying. Still, there was one more method of detecting lies, and this last method of detection was not something that a human could easily determine working or non working.
Some demons simply had a six sense when it came to the truth and the false. In other words, those demons could simply look at you and know. Mr. Dresmont hoped that Henry Morgan was not one of those demons. In the end though, it looked like he need not worry too much.
"I see." Mr. Morgan leaned forward, placing his elbows on his desk as he cradled his head in his hands. He showed no outward sign of disbelieving Mr. Dresmont. "Our dock is destroyed, our Gallows' obliterated, and my son's fiancé has been abducted by pirates." Mr. Morgan slammed his fist on the table, causing Mr. Dresmont to jump slightly, Mr. Morgan looked at him expectantly.
"That is the case sir." Mr. Dresmont said in a shaky voice in way of answering the unspoken question as he dug his fingers into his hat in front of him.
Henry Morgan grew furious as he watched the timid man. "That is the case?" He mocked as he stood up and walked around his desk, his eyes looking at Mr. Dresmont. "I know it is!" He screamed into the human's face. "But what can we do about the current situation? The engagement was announced, if I don't look for that girl I will lose all standing in the human public eye in Port Royal. I could lose my post and you know what that means Mr. Dresmont?"
Mr. Dresmont shook his head no.
"You will lose your job!" Mr. Morgan finished as he backed away from him and looked out his office window. At one point it had overlooked the docks, now it overlooked a construction site. "We have to go after her, it is the best political move."
A part of Mr. Dresmont was angry that Henry Morgan didn't seem to care for his daughter's safety in any of this. The man was more worried about his career but still, the very fact that he was going to go after Kagome was a big relief for Mr. Dresmont. "You're going to find Kagome?" Mr. Dresmont assumed hopefully as he loosened his grip on his hat.
"I am going to find her." Mr. Morgan nodded in return but the look on his face was still one that sent shivers down Mr. Dresmont's spin. "But I'm only doing it for two reasons." He walked back over the slighter man and leered over him. "First, to look good in the human eye and second," He bared his fangs and let out something that sounded like a very threatening growl. "So I can be the one to capture the great pirate captain, Inuyasha and send him to his death."
With that Mr. Morgan balled his hand into a fist and slammed it again into his desk. A great cracking noise filled the air and Mr. Dresmont flinched before opening his eyes a crack, they immediately became large as he took in the sight of the desk, broken in two, papers floating down creating a strange veil over the scene.
Mr. Morgan smirked and backed away. "It looks like I will have to buy another desk." He commented off handedly before he turned and walked back around the now broken piece of furniture. When he looked back to address Mr. Dresmont again he stopped abruptly. "Naraku?" He questioned the young boy who was currently standing in the doorway.
"Father, did I overhear correctly?" The young man stepped into the room and bowed lightly. "Miss. Dresmont is gone?"
"Yes." Mr. Morgan replied. "I am sorry to say that she has been taken by the pirates."
"How—unfortunate." Naraku said with a smile that greatly stood out. It seemed so inappropriate considering the situation. "Are you going for her?"
"We are." Mr. Morgan indicated Mr. Dresmont. "We will be leaving in a day, as soon as we have supplies."
"I would like to go with you father." Naraku said in a strange tone that gave his father pause. "I should like to be there when she is recovered."
Mr. Morgan nodded at his son, attempting to understand the boy's strange behavior. Naraku had always been slightly off, seemingly a little more animalistic than most demons. "Alright." He agreed as he eyed the boy closely attempting to access the strange behavior. "You shell come with us on the morrow."
"Thank you, father." Naraku bowed at the waist before turning on a heel and exiting the room, a look of misplaced happiness on his face.
End of Chapter
Please Review
Congrats to angel for being reviewer 100! Edited 6/5/2013 for content and accents.
A Comment on Mrs. Dresmont: A lot of you have mentioned that Kagome's mother seems more concerned about her social standing over her daughter. This is extremely true, and very common during this time period but if I may quote my own writing, "The guilt in her heart melted into a feeling of envy." This is the conclusion of Mrs. Dresmont's thoughts on her daughter, the odd child she had raised. I had meant this to show that Mrs. Dresmont envied Kagome's whole personality, she loved her daughter and wished that she could have been more like her, that she could have been strong enough to value her own happiness over her duty. Anyway, I just wanted to explain that encase my writing had failed to; I thought it was an important facet of that character.
Bonus Point:
I finally have a good bonus point for last chapter so here it is now. There is one episode where Sango hits on Inuyasha and ask him to run away with her, what is the name of that episode? Yes, it does exist. ^^
Last Chapter's Bonus Point:
In truth I have always enjoyed Inuyasha's character the most. I absolutely love how deep he really is designed to be. If I had to pick a second favorite it would be Kagome, then Miroku, and last Sango. Still, I love characterizing all of them but mainly I enjoy establishing their bond as friends and a makeshift family, I think they are my favorite anime 'group' so to speak because of the deep connection they really have to each other.
But anyway, congrats to the ones who got it, the answer was INUYASHA!
The Anime Chosen One, celastrina ladon, xvelvetrose, angel, and Warm-Amber92
As for the pole, it seems most of you guys like Kagome or Inuyasha but there were a lot of votes for Sango. I understand, I like the way I'm portraying Sango too, she kicks major ass. Girl power!
Next Chapter:
Ramifications
See you then!
UNEDITED
POSTED 3/4/2011