A/N: Hey everybody the second chapter is out…

" "...Talking

Flashback

Sesshomaru's Beast

Chapter 2

Chores, What A Bore…

Kagome knocked on the door to Lord Sesshomaru's chambers.

'I can't believe this arrogant monster. He makes me get up before the sun when I don't usually get up until it's high in the sky. Tells me to wait outside the door for him and then he's not even up! The only reason I'm up is because Akemi kept going on about how this was such an honor. Yea right...' Her thoughts became less coherent as she drifted off leaning against the door.

Sesshomaru wasn't asleep. In fact he had heard her approaching his door. He just felt like making her wait. She should have never disrespected him. He waited for about 7 minutes, looking for some kind of outburst from her.

Still nothing…

Had Akemi taken all the fire out of her?

That would be disappointing.

All he could hear is her breathing and heartbeat. Nothing was going on. He stood up and sighed.

'At least yesterday wasn't boring.' He thought while he opened the door. He was surprised when the small body that is Kagome fell into his room. He was so surprised he missed her and she hit the floor.

Upon impact she stirred a little but did not awaken. She curled her body up into a fetal, and a soft snore escaped her.

Sesshomaru stared at her for the longest time. She had fallen asleep waiting for him. Now she was huddled up on the floor of his room. Finally he decided to awaken her. He nudged her in the side with his foot.

No response.

He let out a warning growl and his nudge became a soft kick.

Still no response.

A servant passed by his room and he beckoned her inside. She was quick to comply.

"Wake her." Was all he said. The servant looked at the girl and gasped.

"Kagome?" She called out. What was she doing here?

"Wake her." Sesshomaru said a little more coldly.

"I'm sorry milord, but it's not that easy to wake her, she would probably be able to sleep through torture. You have to startle her into awakening." The servant said.

He gave a short bark that made the servant jump out of her skin but didn't make Kagome move.

"L-let m-me give i-it a sh-shot." The now shaken servant suggested. She thought for a moment and then said,

"Kagome if you don't awaken this instant you will be banned from the hot springs for a week." Kagome shot up,

"What?!" She cried.

Sesshomaru nodded to the servant, both eyebrows raised in amusement.

"You are dismissed." She scurried out.

"Ugh, what happened?" Her groggy mind had yet to process where she was.

"In all your foolishness you fell asleep leaning against my door."

"Oh right that…" She stood up and swayed on her feet.

"Come." He ordered. She wobbled after him. He thought she would give him a rant about ordering her around, but she didn't even give a sound of protest. He gave her a side look and raised an eyebrow, she looked horrible!

"Are you well?" He asked. She jumped.

"What?" She asked.

"Are you well?" He repeated. She stopped walking and looked to be deep in thought. Finally,

"Yea I'm ok just really, really tired." She stumbled to catch back up with him. He noted for future reference that she was most cooperative in the morning when tired.

He started to ascend down the stair to the second floor, when she stumbled. She would have fallen down the 30 steps if he hadn't have caught her. He set her back down.

"Watch your step girl." She nodded, took one step and stumbled again. He then noted that she could not function very well in the mornings. He sighed and picked her up bridal style. He carried her for the rest of the way to the library that no one had used in decades, for her first task, all the while getting strange looks from passing servants and guards.

He set her down in front of the doors, and pushed them open. He waved at the air in front of him, the dust from the room billowing around him. He stopped when it cleared, while he was spared the girl wasn't so lucky, she was covered in dust and sneezing like crazy. He almost felt pity. He could have warned her.

"Girl," He waited until he had her attention, she looked at him.

"Your first task is to dust and clean the shelves and floor of this room. Your supplies are already in there for you, there is also a ladder for the high shelves located in the back." She looked at him.

"You want me to clean in here?" She asked groggily.

"That is what I said, did I not?" She sighed.

"Ok." She walked in and shut the doors behind her. Sesshomaru stared at the closed doors in front of him. Even half dead the girl had the guts to shut the doors in his face. He shook his head. A snort that could have either been from the dust or barely concealed laughter escaped and Sesshomaru started off towards his study at the end of the hall. He would come back around noon.

Kagome looked at the room before her. The room was not overly humungous, but it wasn't tiny either, and it had rows upon rows of books and scrolls. And he expected her to dust the shelves and have time for the floor. He was crazy.

'But maybe if I finish quickly he will never make me wake again so early. If I'm lucky he might even leave me alone forever and I'll never have to go through this again.' With that thought in her head and a new determination Kagome set to work.

.:-:..:-:..:-:..:-:..:-:..:-:..:-:.Noon.:-:..:-:..:-:..:-:..:-:..:-:..:-:.

He opened the door to the library and braced himself for the dust that never came. He looked in awe about the room. It was nearly spotless. He could see his faint reflection on the floor below him. He walked down a couple of the rows of bound scrolls.

They were all clean.

How though? He would have sensed if anyone came in here to help and unless they had the skills to get past his senses she had, had no help.

'I don't think most of the castle occupants even know of this room.'

He couldn't find the girl though. He tried to sniff her out but all he could smell was the cleaning solutions she had used. He would have to just look for her.

He walked down all the rows of scrolls and still couldn't find her. When he got to the end of the last row he heard faint snoring. He followed the sound to an old desk.

But still no girl.

He walked behind it and looked down. She was situated under the desk in a little cubby hole. She was covered in dust and would occasionally breathe deeply in her sleep causing her to sneeze, stir and then go right back to sleep. It was like a cycle. He was going to leave her be, but decided to wake her so she would be able to bathe and change.

She had done a decent job, considering he had not expected her to clean any at all and she had finished the room.

He remembered what the servant did to wake her and racked his brain for something similar. He had an idea.

"Girl wake up, or you will skip lunch and dinner." She shot up.

"But I'm hungry." She whined, still half asleep.

"Then get up, go bathe and meet me in the dining hall. I will have a servant bring you a change of clothes, yours are," He gave her an up-and-down look, "filthy." He finished.

Finally getting her brain to cooperate with her she stood up and face Sesshomaru.

"Whatever, your majesty." She pivoted on her heel and stood through the room and out the door leaving a smirking Sesshomaru thinking of her next task.

She sunk down into the soothing waters of the servants' hot spring. It never felt as good as it did now. She was not used to heavy labor work. Occasionally she would help wash the dishes or clean some clothes. She was not an actually servant here which was why Sesshomaru had probably never seen her. Most of the other servants tried to keep her out of sights from the guards and other higher status people.

-Flashback-

"Hurry Kagome we must keep moving!" Her mother said in a fierce whisper. They were being hunted by a very terrible and scary demon. Her mother was a demon, well not exactly. She was a special kind of warrior not completely demon but she wasn't a half-demon. Her mother refused to tell her what their clan was called only saying that she would learn when the time was right. Although she knew she wasn't adopted, she looked nothing like her mother and she never knew her father. Her mother though was sick with an illness making her weak and unable to fight the demon she could so easily defeat. It had attacked her village roaring for her mother. It had killed almost all of her friends.

"I'm trying mommy, I'm trying!" Her short legs could not quite keep up with her mother's longer graceful ones. She was young at the age of 10 but was relatively short for her age. While she had grown up among demons in a demon village because of her mother, she had no demon traits and exhibited none of the strengths of her friends or family.

'Speed would have been nice right about now though.' She thought trying to keep up with her mother's long strides.

The demon was gaining on them. Her mother stopped suddenly.

"I can't go on Kagome." She gave her a sad smile. A small Kagome tugged on her mother's hand urging her forward.

"I'm sorry my love but my body is going to give out, you must get away I will distract the demon for as long as I can, take this." She took off her bracelet, a small simple silver chain that had a small blue-ish grey stone dangling from the top. She wrapped it around her small wrist.

"Now go and don't look back, there is a village not far from here, show them the bracelet and they will take care of you."

"But mommy," She cried

"No, GO!!" With that she took off!

"I love you Kagome, I will be watching over you with your father, please be safe, my only child." She faced the demon and with a cry started to attack. She defeated the demon but with the cost of her life.

Kagome heard her mother's dying cry and her tears renewed with more vigor. She never made it to the village but a passing woman saw her sitting on a tree stump crying. She asked her what was wrong and she told her the story. She told her she would care for her, but she wouldn't be as wealthy as she once was. Kagome at the time was just happy someone was willing to take care of her, she was different. She never told the lady that her mother was a demon because she thought she was human. It turns out that the lady was walking to that very village to get supplies for the Western Lord.

Together they gathered the supplies and went back to the castle. To her young eyes it was quite the sight. She was shown around the castle in the dead of night always hidden from prying eyes and harsh whispers. Only Akemi her savior knew of her tale and the other servants never questioned further than her name. They all looked after her now. She still to this day 6 years later wears the bracelet her mother gave her.

-End Flashback-

'They did a really good job with that.' She thought grumpily. She had to place the blame somewhere and she wasn't going to put it on herself. Ok maybe she shouldn't have dyed his clothes pink or at least run into his hallway. But Akemi was quicker she should have caught up to her to stop her. It wasn't her first prank and it wouldn't be her last either.

She was thinking of her next diabolical plot when the door to the hot spring opened. Kagome looked back.

"Hey Kagome Lord Sesshomaru sent me here with your new clothes." One of the friendlier servants stated.

"I have to say I'm jealous. Not of who you're serving, absolutely not, but look at this fine kimono he making you wear. When you're done can I have it?" He friend Emi asked.

"Of course Emi." She said. They were the best of friends; in fact Emi had actually come up with the idea of dying the clothes but hadn't thought Kagome would actually go through with it.

"Well Lord Sesshomaru says that you're gonna dine with him today and he has guest so he said to 'Be on your best behavior or the consequences will be dire.'" She finished imitating his high and mighty attitude. Kagome got out and dried off while laughing.

"You better not let him hear you say that, or else the consequences will be dire." They both laughed.

"Well anyways you better hurry, I have to go now talk to you later." Before Kagome could reply she was out and gone.

'She's always in a hurry.'

"Goodbye Emi." She said to the closed door.

She looked at the layered kimono and groaned at the work she had cut out for her. She never liked kimonos because of their many layers it made her feel restricted. She was used to the servant robes anyway.

It was a beautiful light blue that faded into white at the bottom giving it a wintery appearance. It was only enhanced with the little snow flake patterns on the left side and shoulder of the right arm. It was a little strange to wear a snow kimono in the spring but she really wasn't in the mood to stalk Sesshomaru and demand answers. So she set out to huddle herself in the 7 layers that started with a dark blue and the second to top was white.

Finally finished she headed towards the dining hall.

Did she mention she didn't learn how to walk in them. They required you to take such small steps while she was always running from Akemi and therefore took long quick strides.

She made quite the sight.

Waddling down the hall like a duck it a ladies kimono. She sighed in relief when she reached the doors to the dining hall. She pushed them open and stepped inside closing the door behind her. She turned to find four sets of eyes on her. Sesshomaru was looking at some imaginary spot behind her head. Or that's what she thought.

'She looks better in royal clothes than those servant rags. The color as I suspected, compliment her unusual blue-grey eyes.' When she started to walk to the table everyone burst into laughter at her obvious struggling. It took everything in his power not to laugh at the sight she made.

"Having some trouble?" He asked casually when she finally made it to the table and sat next to the one of the guest that was the Eastern Lord's son. He was squawking horribly, not surprisingly he was a bird demon, a hawk to be exact. The whole Eastern family consisted of hawks and that was obvious by their beaks and bright yellow eyes and flaming red hair that had a feather mixed in here and there. The Northern Lord was doing his best to not start laughing again as he had just calmed down. Who was this girl; she looked beautiful in that kimono but had a hard time walking in it. She didn't look much like a warrior but if looks could kill than that glare she was giving Sesshomaru would have certainly done him in many times by now.

"This is your fault!" She hissed. "If you had given me my regular clothes or at least men's clothing I wouldn't look so stupid. I Can't Walk In This Suit!!" She wailed. The table erupted into laughter again. Sesshomaru's eyes had a twinkle in them signaling he was laughing at her as well in his own little way.

"I think introductions are in order." Sesshomaru said after everyone had finally calmed down.

"Sitting to your left is the Eastern family consisting of Lord Akio his mate Lady Izumi and their heir Prince Akihiko. Across from you is the Nothern Lord Ryo."

"A pleasure to meet you milady." Lord Ryo said.

'God does he have a sexy voice.' Kagome thought.

"Sit over here girl." Sesshomaru gestured to the seat to the right of him, next to Lord Ryo.

"You expect me to get up and walk to the opposite end of the table?" She asked incredulous. Was he trying to embarrass her?

He growled. It was one thing to defy him. But it was a whole other level when she did it in front of royal guests.

"Hai, girl. Move." He growled out through clenched teeth.

"No. I will not make a fool of myself again. I'll move when they leave." She growled back. The others watched in awe. This petite girl was standing up to Lord Sesshomaru, but more surprisingly she wasn't being murdered or at least maimed.

What was going on here?!

"You will move girl or the consequences will be dire." She mimicked his voice and copied his threat.

He stood up and grabbed her arm.

"You girl have crossed the line and are coming with me."

"Like hell I will!!" She punched him in the chest, and was sadly disappointed but not wholly surprised that it did no damage. He wasn't the most powerful and deadly lord for nothing.

He dragged her out the room with a short bark of excuse us, all the while secretly nursing the bruise on his chest. He wasn't wearing his armor, and though he would never show or admit to her she had one hell of a right hook. He would have to be more cautious around her. Who knows what other strengths she had.

The four demons sat looking at the door. They all felt pity for the poor girl who was probably going to be put through hell. But one thought echoed around the table and it was finally said out loud by the Eastern Lord's son,

"Who or better yet what is she?"

A/N: ...Review...