I paced more quickly as the full moon reached its peak in the sky. What had Jakken said? Humans were hunting him? Was he alright? Surely they couldn't have gotten him….
Worry nagged at me when I stopped and realized something. Why am I worrying so much about him? It's not like we have any sort of relationship. We've said only one word to each other and it wasn't even HI.
I continued to watch the moon and a ridiculous children's song popped into my head. I scowled at the foreign memory. And another thing! That voice must have tampered with my memory when he ravaged my mind those painful few minutes. Now I know all these songs and stories and the probably the most prominent fact is that I know speak, understand and know how to write in Japanese.
I shook my head and paced again. Where is Sesshomaru? He left this morning and hasn't returned. How big was the group of humans that chased him? I heard a mewl come from near me and stopped my incessant pacing to see Isamu looking worriedly at me. I paused and took a deep breath then smiled down at the little thing as I picked him up and sat on a nearby boulder, in full view of the moon as I sang the cheerful little song.
What was it called? Moon, just moon. I took a deep breath then let the cheery tune flow from my lips, admitting now that my voice really did sound amazing no matter what I sung.
Rising, rising is the moon,
Large & round, large & round, round round one,
Plate-like full moon will rise soon.
I smiled while I sung when I saw that Isamu was swinging his plumed tails in rhythm with the song and continued more good-heartedly.
Hiding, hiding is the moon,
Behind the clouds, dark clouds, black black clouds,
Plate-like full moon will hide soon.
This time when I was singing the last verse, I did notice Sesshomaru's approaching figure, but I couldn't stop midway especially when Isamu seemed to be enjoying it.
Appearing, reappearing is the moon,
Large & round, large & round, round round one,
Plate-like full moon will rise soon.
I stroked Isamu as he purred before looking down at Sesshomaru who was looking up at me with that same unreadable expression that he always wore.
The boulder she sat on appeared like a throne bathed in moonlight only just because she was the one sitting on it. She looked like an empress, even singing that children's song it diminished nothing of her proud air. Yes, already he felt….at peace, complete in a way when he laid eyes on her. The moon only added to her brilliant beauty.
It was obvious what Sesshomaru wanted. He must have her, by whatever means necessary, but preferably consensual. Now how to go about winning her…As he thought about it, she hopped down gracefully, light as a feather from the boulder, landing almost right in front of him, their faces inches away as they looked at each other.
I hopped down from the boulder to stand in front of him, but he was standing too close to the boulder so when I landed our faces were too close. I reached my hand back as I prepared to take a step back for more space, but almost immediately my hand met with the smooth stone of the boulder. I can't move from this position.
Sesshomaru seemed entirely unaffected by the proximity and asked a question as if this were a normal way to have a conversation.
"What is your destination?" My destination? Where am I going? That was a good question. I didn't know. The voice didn't tell me. I decided to answer truthfully, but I looked down, knowing my answer would sound stupid.
"I don't have a destination. I don't even know where I am." My voice was barely above a whisper, but since we were so close I'm sure he had no trouble hearing me. Sesshomaru's expression turned curious and I couldn't help but stare at this new expression. I'd never seen that face in the manga or anime. It was new and unexpected and it looked so cute.
"Where are you from?" I again answered as truthfully as I could.
"Somewhere very far west. I don't think I will ever be able to return. I don't think I will be allowed." My thoughts returned to the mysterious voice that had brought me here. Was that a god?
"If you have nowhere to go and know nothing of this place then why not come with me?" I looked up at him again, shocked. Sesshomaru was asking me? He never asked anyone for anything because he's never wanted anything and now here he is asking if I would go with him.
"You don't even know my name." As soon as the words were out of my mouth the wind picked up, tossing my hair wildly behind me and blowing a few strands in front of my face. I quickly tucked as much as I could behind my now pointed ears, only missing a strand of it which was swirling gracefully in the air between us. Sesshomaru caught it between two fingers and tucked it behind my ear, our skin touching for a scant second before his hand was at his side again.
"Then what is your name?" The word came unbidden to my lips and I spoke without realizing.
"Mio." The name slipped out before I had even thought of it but now that I did, I knew that it meant beautiful cherry blossom. What had made me say that? What happened to my old name? Why couldn't I remember it? I suppressed a sigh as I pinned the fault on the voice again. His eyes seemed to bore into mine as he said my name, his voice soft and oddly warm.
"Mio." I thought that we'd stand there forever, never looking away, but he did and he took a few steps towards the forest.
"I am Sesshomaru. I wish for you to travel with me, if you wish it as well. Will you come?" He held out his hand, the one he had lost for most of the season. That he had it back seemed odd, all of it was odd, surreal, as if this weren't happening but it was too vivid to be brushed off as a dream. I hesitated. What was I getting myself into? What would happen if I went with him? What was waiting ahead?
I closed my eyes and took a deep breath and then reopened them, determination in my mind. I reached my hand out to his trying to keep it from shaking and failing. As soon as I placed my hand in his, he twined our fingers together and pulled me until I was standing next to him. He watched me as if still waiting and I realized I hadn't made my decision aloud even if my actions were obvious enough.
"I will come." He squeezed my hand lightly and the action took me completely off guard being as it was so unlike Sesshomaru to do this, any of this. What was happening? His expression seemed to soften and I thought I saw a smile before he faced forwards.
"Then let us be off." He pulled me to him, his free arm twining around me while the other was still wrapped with mine and I let out a small gasp as he leapt into the sky only to land on a silver/gold cloud that created a wispy tail as it moved. I lay my own free hand on his shoulder, under the fur, gripping his shoulder as I looked at the shrinking landscape. I'd never been afraid of heights, but it's not like the prospect of being so high thrilled me either. Sesshomaru's grip around my waist tightened for a moment, making me look up at him.
"This is a cloud made from a dragon's last breath. It is mine to command." I suppose that was his way of saying it was safe. I forced myself to relax a little and looked back to see where Isamu was. He was in his larger form, his feet like burning stars as he leapt across the sky with Jakken hanging haphazardly from one of his tails. Jakken's words were garbled from high altitude and little air.
"Sesshomaru-samaaaa~ wait for me….." I could tell he was yelling it, but it sounded distant so it sounded more like a low whine. I looked back to the front, reassured that Isamu was coming too.
After a while, I had thought that I would get tired of standing, but I didn't. It felt more like I was being suspended in the air and moved in relative comfort. As the moon moved across the sky, I wondered if Sesshomaru ever slept. The only time I'd ever seen him do it, manga or anime, was when he was dying and Rin found him. Did he sleep?
Worry gnawed at me as fatigue from yesterday and events from today wore down on me. What about food? I've never seen him actually eat save for fan comics and such. Did he eat? Other demons ate….they ate people. Does Sesshomaru eat them too? I didn't eat people nor do I feel the urge to. The point was I felt physical needs like food, water, and sleep. I also needed some bowel release, but I did that when he was gone and I did it far away from where I was supposed to wait. What did he want from me anyways? Why did he want me to go with him?
It was all too confusing, coming to this world, looking like a different person, meeting Sesshomaru right off the bat. Not only was my mind exhausted, but my body was still worn from what happened yesterday and what with the added stress of today, I felt about ready to fall asleep on the spot. My fatigue vanished back into a stiff weariness as the cloud began to descend into a particularly thick part of the forest, but my eyes caught a small clearing and in it was a small pond that reflected the sky clearly.
Sesshomaru released me and stepped off the cloud before offering me a hand down. I took it gratefully and hopped down carefully. I expected him to let go of my hand right after but instead he kept hold and led me to the dry moss cushioned roots of a wide tree facing the small pond. The oddly positioned moss made the wide trunk look like a couch. He sat, making me sit with him since he hadn't let go of my hand and he relaxed his back onto the trunk and closed his eyes, taking a deep breath. I immediately felt contrite. Here I was complaining about stress when he was out fighting people who wanted to kill him.
With how long it took him to get back, it must have been a lot. I stared at Sesshomaru a moment more, his face familiar in its calm appearance, before relaxing myself onto the trunk, the moss acting as an amazingly soft cushion. I let out a soundless sigh of contentment and closed my eyes, letting the fatigue and stress carry me off quickly into a deep sleep.
Sesshomaru felt her grip loosen as she fell asleep quickly. She must have been very tired if she fell asleep so suddenly. What had she gone through before he found her?
He let the sounds of the forest envelop him as he kept his eyes closed, his posture relaxed. Only when a soft weight suddenly appeared on his shoulder did he open his eyes to investigate. He thought that perhaps Mio's pet had leapt onto his shoulder or perhaps Jakken had unintentionally bothered him again, but instead he saw that Mio herself had drifted and placed herself on his shoulder. His serious expression softened as he took in her peacefully sleeping face, calm and serene, her lips slightly parted and her breathing deep and even, almost inaudible. At their feet, he saw that the little cat demon was curled in a small ball with Jakken using him as a pillow, his staff securely in his arms.
All was calm, peaceful as Sesshomaru looked up to the star studded sky. Usually on nights like these, Sesshomaru felt nothing, saw nothing that particularly caught his interest, but now everything seemed more vivid, alive, as if everything had suddenly become more detailed and solid with color, even the stars seemed larger in numbers to him. It was as if seeing her had given him a new type of vision that would not disappear.
He looked down at Mio again, his eyes full of wonder. How could he know another person so well without having been with her for more than a day. Yet he knew nothing of her at the same time. She confused him as much as she taught him. All these thoughts, these feelings were so new to him. What was he supposed to do in these situations? What was he supposed to say? Was he supposed to say anything? Do anything specific?
As he thought his eyes wandered to the small pond, his gaze lingering on the white lotus flowers that bordered the small clear pond. They had flourished and bloomed with the sun given to them by the small opening of no trees in this thick clump of forest. His thoughts compared the soft texture of it to Mio's own pale complexion and drifted off to sleep.