Chapter 7-1/7/12

A/N: For those of you who were mentally nearly fading away with longing for another chapter, I have something to say: Suck it up! I have to wait so long (a week?) for OliviaAR99 to publish a chapter for Their First Encounter, icegirljenni doesn't seem to wanna write for now(which is a shame), and pammazola makes me suffer by taking 1-2 weeks for a The Rising Sun update. So, if I have to go without their beautiful writing for a such an extended period of time, you can handle not having any of my mediocre writing for six days. NEH!

Disclaimer: I do not own any the InuYasha characters (Inukimi, Sesshomaru, Rin), and I receive no gain from writing these stories, whether it's money or fame. Aside from receiving compliments, having an outlet when I feel bored and/or rejected by families/friends, and creating a way for Rin and Fluffy to end up together, I gain nothing I tell you!

Warning: Naked Inukimi. Just wanted to say it so you wouldn't think, Whoa, did not see that coming. ^_^

Womaru's name is now Sato.

End A/N.

Inukimi transformed into her humanoid form and stared down at her conquered foe before grabbing a piece of her shredded kimino. With a smirk, she bent down and saw her nude figure reflected in his lifeless violet eyes as she wrapped the cloth tightly around Sato's neck. In a matter-of-fact tone, she informed the dead demon, "If you had just listened to me and surrendered, you wouldn't have had to suffer so." Looking over him, she clucked her tongue several times before continuing, "Such a shame. Now your unusual yellow hair is ruined. Alas, it shall not matter by nightfall. That is, of course, if my son does not die in the Underworld..."

She slid his equally naked form onto her shoulder and, using the transportation her son occassionally favored, made it quickly to Sesshomaru's manor. Landing as a ball of light on the garden grounds, Lady Mother was met by several sleepy but now wide-eyed youkai servants. The nearest one received a most unexpected gift: Sato's corpse. The short frog demon staggered under the sudden weight dumped on her, but soon caught her balance.

Lady Mother walked to the nearest door and, upon opening it, found herself in the servants' kitchen. She strode through the room and entered the dining room, which was filled to the brim by servants all having their morning meal. Inukimi fought off the smile that attempted to work its way onto her face due to the fact that nearly all the male youkai, and a fair share of the female ones, had stopped eating or talking to stare at her-well, her naked body. And they continued to watch for the entire thirty-three seconds it took her to walk across the room and reach the door.

As she turned into the stone hallway, a body ran into her. Only filled with mild anger, Lady Mother looked down a few centimeters and saw the rat youkai, What's-her-face.

"M-m'lady, I-I apologize! I di-did not mean to-" was all she managed to stammer out before Inukimi wrapped a hand around Eran's throat.

Now, Lady Mother allowed the corners of her mouth to lift upward as the servant's beady brown eyes filled with tears and a silent plea. "Ah, you think I am going to snuff the life out of you? Well, calm yourself, I am not going to kill you," Eran's face immediately brightened, a feat since her brain was still not receiving oxygen, "now, because I need you to do something for me."

At Eran's ethusiastic nodding, Inukimi released her hold on the youkai's neck before continuing. "You will go to the nearest healer and get all of her herbs. No matter what she says or tries to do, you have to bring all of them back. Understand? And do not tell of the state Lord Sesshomaru is in. I feel certain you would have no need to say such, but in my experience, it is best to go over all the points."

"Of course my lady! I shall do exactly as you say," Eran proclaimed before running down the hallway and towards the exit.

Inukimi massaged the bridge of her nose, praying for patience because she really did need a servant to retreive the herbs for her and she herself could not go. But it seemed perhaps sending Eran was not the best choice. "Eran," Lady Mother stated, knowing the demon would be able to hear her.

Withing a few moments, Eran appeared in front of her. "Yes, m'lady?"

"Upon further consideration, I think it best if someone else go and do the task-"

"I agree, Lady Inukimi!"

Giving the servant a dark look, Lady Mother frostily told her, "I did not ask your opinion, servant." She paused to allow the words to sink in before saying, "Find the strongest demon here-well, next to my son and me, of course-and have them brought to Lord Sesshomaru's mate's chambers."

Sure the rat demon would follow her simple instructions, Inukimi continued on her way upstairs. She had almost made it to the staircase before another servant intercepted her, who Lady Mother recognized to be Jaken.

Becoming impatient, she nearly barked at the toad, "What is it, frog?"

*Sweat drop* "Um, I am a toad demon, m'lady, and I was searching for you to ask, uh, what is Utira to do with the-the corpse you gave her?"

When Inukimi simply stared at him with a blank expression, Jaken elaborated, "What is the frog demon named Utira to do with the dead body, also known as a corpse-"

"Do not talk to me as though I am an infant, toad," Lady Mother growled.

Cowering, Jaken swallowed the lump of fear in his throat. "I apologize!" He prostrated himself on the ground before her naked feet and said to the floor/Inukimi, "I thought you needed me to repeat what I said. I meant no disrespect, my lady! Please forgive me." He snuck a quick peek at her face.

"I quickly tire of apologies. I did not know who you spoke of. This 'Utira' did not proclaim her name when I gave her Sato's body to take care of. Stand already, Jaken." He jumped to his feet, his eyes glued to her-ahem-chest. "And stop staring at my breasts." Jaken blushed guiltily and quicky lowered his gaze to the floor. It was just a bonus for him that he got to glimpse another part of her as he looked downwards.

Fully aware of his wandering gaze, Lady Mother laid a firm hand on his shoulder before turning him around. "I do not appreciate your actions. But I require you to take Ah-Un to my castle and find my personal maid. Once you locate her, tell her I said I need my ritual clothes. She will know what I mean. Bring me what she gives you."

"At once, m'lady!" Jaken exclaimed before scurrying out of her sight, presumably off to the stables where the two-headed dragon was kept.

"Jaken, you were not dismissed."

In an instant, he was within her vision again. Lady Mother made a gesture with her forefinger, and Jaken made a face before turning around and walking backwards towards her.

"Now, as to what the servant Utira should do with Lord Sato's body, you need to know, yes?" Jaken nodded. "Fill a tub with the coldest water you can create, freeze him if possible. Understand?" He nodded again. "Well, then why are you still here? Go!"

Jaken jumped in the air before running off. Inukimi quickly went up the stairs and threw the bedroom door open. Sesshomaru turned to his mother with an arched brow, looked her over once, and said, "I am not even going to ask why you are nude. But I shall ask why did you not simply have a servant kill Sato?"

With a grin, Inukimi explained, "Because I thought it would be fun. And it was! Some of the most enjoyment I've had in years. Decades, even. To feel how much pain they're going through, their squirming, to know you're causing it all...it's simply enthralling!"

Her son released a short sigh. "I have been thinking, and I believe I have at least a basic idea of what you are planning do. Would it not make more sense to infuse a female demon with Rin, sense she is of the female sex as well?"

Lady Mother rolled her eyes before answering. "Really, my son, why would I do that?" She raised a hand before he could even comment. "Using a female will not make much of a difference. Hopefully. Anyway, I refuse to take the life of a female inu youkai. We need as many of them as we can produce so our race will not go extinct. In case you have failed to notice, demons are becoming less and less numerous, because," she looked pointedly between him and Rin, "many male youkai now mate with humans and breed half-demons."

"Much like yourself..." Inukimi muttered quietly, nearly mouthing the words at the wall.

Of course, Sesshomaru heard her nonetheless, and turned to face her. "Do you have a point, Mother?"

"Right, back to our original subject. What I was trying to say was I saw no point in killing a female because they are the ones that carry the children, not the men, and are therefore needed more. Besides, on my way here, I had caught Sato's scent, and I personally hate-hmm, I suppose I should say hated-him, so I thought, Why not kill two bird's with one stone?" Sitting on the futon Jaken had apparently decided put in the room after she had left, Lady Mother said, "Lovely phrase, is it not? I heard one of my youkai servant's human say it, and it just seems so eloquently put. Quite surprising for the humans to phrase something so well-"

Sesshomaru cut in. "Mother, I do not wish to hear your rambling. You seem to have become easily sidetracked in your-how should I say it?-advanced age. And before we begin our normal banter, can we not finally do what you promised to me a full day ago?"

"What's the rush? Yes yes, you're mate is dead, but-never mind." Inukimi stood and walked over to stand beside the bed, across from Sesshomaru, who looked as though he had not slept in days. It was normal for that, since he was a youkai, but somehow it seemed to have for once taken a toll on his physical appearance.

She stared into her son's eyes. Confused, she studied his amber orbs for several seconds, curious about the foreign look of pain and sadness there, something she had not in two centuries, when Inu no Taisho had left her for a human lover. Feeling the stirring of her normally dormant maternal love and the need to erase that look, she stated in a serious and clear voice, "We must wait until we have all the herbs I need. But then, it will be time for you to do your part, something I nor anyone else, can do for you."

A/N: Dang, Inukimi sounded a wee bit pyschotic with the 'it's fun to kill' part, didn't she? But somehow, I could just see her being like that.

*It took me several stories and about a dozen times of seeing 'sweat drop' before I finally understand what the author meant. So, I am going to briefly explain what it is. If you have ever seen InuYasha or Pokemon or just about any other anime, when a character is exasperated, or feels a sibling emotion, a sweat drop appears somewhere on their head, indicating exasperation/similar feeling. When I realized that, I felt like I'd just had an epiphany...

I am so friggin' proud of how long I got this chapter to be! Minus my A/Ns, it's 1,788 words.

Apologies:

Sorry for...

Not releasing my promised songfic.

Not releasing a chapter for Rin's Past, Present, & Future.

Not proofreading this chapter, thus almost ensuring the occurrence of typos and such.

My excuse is this: Stuff happens. (Really, it's s**t happens.)

I typed this chapter in two hours, after I left school, and then Saturday I hung out with a friend (and her cute cousin and her brother), and somehow wasted most of today.

Lot of people probably didn't care about all that...

End A/N.