I wrote this a couple nights ago when I was supposed to babysitting my sister when she was playing monopoly with her friends. So I was completely bored which makes this kinda bad. Oh well. Try not to flame me too bad…

Disclaimer: I don't own Inuyasha and I never will, happy?

Chapter 4: Encounter

Sango yawned so loudly that she feared that her ribs might crack. It was almost dawn now and she hadn't gotten a good night's sleep for god knows how long. She probably had dark bags under her eyes, her head felt light, and her limbs felt stiff from all this continuous riding. And Sango was not the only one tired. Kirara was probably twice as worse as her, having to transport both their weight at breakneck pace through the sky.

She really wanted to stop her pet so that they could both just sleep, but no, that couldn't be possible. They were now flying across the ocean, looking for the small island Sango found on a map she possessed of this territory. If her map proved true, they would find an island any minute now. And if they didn't… The taijiya gave an involuntary shudder at the thought of that. The ocean had been beautiful and marvelous at first, but the deep blue salty waters palled on her after a couple of tedious hours. All she wanted right then was the slightest bit of land. Just something she could lay her head on. Even the roughest, most rocky bit of land would be just fine to-

A loud meow tore Sango from her reverie. They had reached the island.

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Sango let out a loud, satisfied sigh as she slipped under the crisp sheets. Finally, she drowsily thought, a small smile on her face, what has been denied from me for so long… The girl immediately closed her eyes, savoring the soft texture of the cotton blankets and the warmth pouring from a bundle of fur at her feet that was Kirara. The smile on her face widened a bit at the thought of Kirara. The fire neko was always with her, had always been with her since the day they met. No matter what the situation was, no matter where she was, Sango could always count on her little cat friend to be there besides her.

A day of not seeing a best friend was perfectly normal for most people, but one day without Kirara caused Sango to pace back and forth, chewing on her nail and creeping close to hysteria. It was an odd sight when it was just Sango alone with no Kirara perched on her shoulder or lurking in the background. The two were inseparable, never apart. Sango and Kirara were the best of friends… No, more than that. They were soul mates.

They were so close that Kirara knew Sango's every intention and movement. She never disagreed with her human companion's actions… until today… A slight frown overcame the taijiya's eyebrows as she recalled Kirara disapproval for her decision to help Sesshomaru… Even though she only thought of the stoical lord in her subconscious mind, Sango's pulse surged forward. Sesshomaru… were the slayer's last thoughts. And because her last thoughts were about him, Sango lapsed into an uncomfortable dream about the inuyoukai she had saved…

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Sango's eyes snapped open as bright red light streamed past her closed eyelids, announcing the near end of day. She woozily yawned while stretching out her limbs. What a lovely dream, she thought, the necessary amount of sleep she had throughout the day putting her in a good mood, But I can't quite remember what my dream was about. Frowning slightly, Sango sat up in her bed and strained to recall the foggy dream…

She had been in an odd, misty meadow of some kind… Was it snow that was making it misty? No, it couldn't have been because the sun had been brightly shining in her dream… Then why was it foggy? Sango's lips pursed together tightly as she remembered approaching someone, a light figure in the distance. In her dream, she had felt so much joy in seeing that person… But who was that person?

The taijiya shrugged off all her confusion and worry, deciding that her dream wasn't that important anyways. She had gotten odder dreams before, so why should she worry about this one now? There was no need for that.

Sango then grudgingly crept out of her bed and switched her long, loose nightgown for her usual green and pink kimono and picked up the ball of fluff that was Kirara off the foot of her bed. "Come on, Kirara," She soothingly whispered to the feline, "I'm starving, how about you?" And then the two best friends walked off to their really, really late breakfast, for it was almost already moonrise.

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Sango sighed as she laid on the cool, flat, grassy meadow, Kirara on her shoulder. The gentle spring had caused many wildflowers to blossom into extraordinary looking pieces of art. The sharp contrast of greens, purples, whites, and blues made the little meadow seem like a rare and extremely beautiful collage. Nothing distressed the taijiya right then. She had just eaten and the warm food felt good in her belly. Put that along with the company of your best friend, the floral aroma of the lush flowers, the soft, comforting grass of the safe meadow, and the relaxing twinkle of stars above and you'd be in heaven. Everything was wonderful. And the best part was that she was on an isolated island that was invisible to demon eyes, so there was no random exterminating of demons tonight. Nope, no demons at all, just warm, welcoming humans.

Just then, a familiar tingly feeling trickled down the slayer's spine, making her immediately jump up, alerted. Kirara felt the odd presence as well and leapt off her friend's back, reverting to her larger form. She bared her teeth in a furious snarl. The presence was so strong that the aura of that demon was flooding through the serene meadow, suddenly making everything dark and cloudy. The aroma of flowers stopped. The lovely music the crickets made ceased to continue. It was dead silent. Only one person in the world could have had an aura that strong. It was obviously Sesshomaru.

Sango quickly glanced around her in a desperate attempt to find any kind of weapon to defend herself. It was useless unless she was to use daisies. The exterminator bit her lip in horror as she saw the small smirk that was beginning to form on the demon lord's stoical face. "So, you're defenseless, is that right, slayer?"

"Of course not," Sango quickly said… Too quickly.

Sesshomaru's slight smirk widened at her response. Glaring at the inuyoukai, Sango quickly tried to change the subject in case it got ugly and there was a very large possibility that it actually might… "So, what are you doing here?"

The dog demon cocked an eyebrow at her in such a way that Sango couldn't help but suddenly feel very stupid. "Are you really that foolish? Do you not know what this place is?"

Sango didn't blush; she just didn't get embarrassed that easily. Sometimes, she blushed around Miroku, but that was because she felt so strongly for that monk. Otherwise, it was really rare that she would turn red. However, standing around talking to Sesshomaru and feeling stupid around the cool, always under control demon aristocrat, a bit of red started to color her usually pale cheeks. Looking away from him, the slayer slowly shook her head.

A long awkward silence passed between the two. Not being able to not see Sesshomaru's reaction anymore, Sango peeked at him from beneath her thick eyelashes… and immediately turned away again when she met the full icy gaze of those stunning topaz eyes. Just the realization that Sesshomaru had been looking at her made the taijiya's face flush red again.

Finally, to Sango's relief, Sesshomaru began to speak again, "You do realize that this is part of the western territory? It's my land. These humans are just living here under my supervision."

"Oh," Sango said, struggling to digest this new information, "Wait," She frowned, a new thought popping into her head, "Why would you let humans on your land? I thought we weren't good enough for demons like you."

Sango could see the demon lord's jaw twitch but other than that, he made no indication that he had heard a word she had just said. A little sigh escaped her lips as she realized that he was not going to answer her question. Then, a smile popped on her face as she thought of a new way to torment him, "What? You're not going soft, are you?"

Those two magnificent golden eyes flashed in anger, "Of course not. Do not accuse me of such pathetic human feelings." He told her, and then flexed his deadly claws in warning.

Kirara took a step forward to be in front of her mistress, growling as she prepared to defend what was hers. Sango rolled her eyes and brushed her feline back. She did not fear Sesshomaru, not even a bit… And now, she wanted to test his patience… To see how he would react. Kirara, knowing Sango better than anyone, immediately knew what her owner was planning and warily gave her a warning look, but it was too late.

"Really?" She questioned, batting her ridiculously thick black lashes at him, "By the way that you are acting, I wouldn't be surprised if you visit here often to meet these humans you supposedly hate. Such a dog. I suppose they pat you on the head and feed you treats when you sit and heel."

She had touched a nerve there because in an instant, Sesshomaru had her pinned against a tall oak tree by her delicate throat. "You dare insult me?" He snarled, his eyes flashing red with rage.

Sango was completely unnerved by his threat, "I think I just did."

"Then prepare to die," Sesshomaru stated, his jaw clenched together in fury.

"Kill me," Sango challenged, her stern cinnamon eyes locked on his.

A moment passed of intense glaring between the two. Butterflies formed in Sango's stomach at the close encounter, but she held her glare and tried to ignore the fact that they both could hear her heart frantically pounding. After a while, Sesshomaru's eyes started to clear up and revert to being cool and golden. "No," He muttered, suddenly finding out how close he was to Sango and leaning back a couple inches so that he couldn't feel her warm breath on his face. Feeling her curious gaze on him, he quickly added, "I would never sink low enough to kill any defenseless human." He took away his hand that lay on her bottom of her neck as he discovered how close that was to her chest.

The taijiya didn't know what came over her to make her plea for her own death, but at that moment, she flicked out her wrist to reveal a glint of sliver hidden in her clothing. A hidden blade. She then made her point that she was a slayer and slayers were never defenseless. Sango cocked her head to the side as if to ask Now what?

An internal battle went on inside the inuyoukai's head, but of course, it did not show on his face. All his instincts and common sense screamed at him to kill the girl, but for some reason, he couldn't bring himself to. A stronger part of him told him not to. Sesshomaru was not sure what that part of him was but he had learned to obey it. That part of him had made him bring back Rin so it obviously must know what's right. Exhaling deeply, Sesshomaru quickly let the girl go and walked away in his usual cool manner.

A grin flooded Sango's face as she watched him do so. Somehow, she had known that he was going to do that all along. She absentminded stroked Kirara's head as the feline meowed loudly in her own confusion. Still smiling, Sango began walking the other way, deciding that she would visit the beautiful shore all the villagers had told her about, thinking about the demon lord the whole time… Maybe he does have a heart after all… She thought, and then quickly chuckled at that thought, Nah! Who am I kidding? Of course he doesn't! She laughed and scooped up Kirara in her arms, but deep within the slayer, she knew that he did.

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Sesshomaru paused briefly to watch Sango's retreating figure. He had forgotten to tell her to stay off his territory like he usually did to everyone else. The Taiyoukai opened his mouth to say the words, but then quickly closed his mouth again. She's too far away to hear me, he tried to tell himself, but that was not the truth. The truth was that he just didn't want her to leave.

Aw, sweet, right? It might have been a bit OOC, so sorry about that. How was that? Am I on the right track? Please review!