Hi everyone! And welcome to the next installment of WWTTT (or w2t3 as I like to call it). This bit has me slightly nervous because we get inside Lord Fluffy 's overstuffed head. He's a difficult character to keep IN character. XD.
Disclaimer: see chapter 1
"Women and cats will do as they please, and men and dogs should relax and get used to the idea."
— Robert A. Heinlein
"I hate to hear you talk about all women as if they were fine ladies instead of
rational creatures. None of us want to be in calm waters all our lives."
— Jane Austen (Persuasion)
CHAPTER START
Sesshomaru was mildly amused by the light banter being tossed back and forth among the others. If he was an openly emotional demon and marginally less mature he might just have rolled his eyes at his half-brother's brash insults toward the wolf. Even after all his years of being mated he had yet to learn the benefits of silence. Still, he had to admit, Inuyasha had made great progress considering the insults had not led to the unsheathing of teeth and claws, as was unavoidable in earlier years. And he did agree with his half-brother's brash assessment of the wolf's patience, or lack thereof. Really, whining about it was not going to get the man here any faster. Not that he wasn't curious as well, he simply preferred to keep his mouth shut and his senses alert.
In doing so he noticed some strange behavior coming from his half-brother's mate. Kagome's eyes kept darting about the room in a manner that he would have labeled nervous if not for the scent of merriment coming from her person and a mischievous glint in her eye that sparkled brighter every time their mysterious ally was mentioned. The miko was up to something.
Sesshomaru smelled the horse a few moments before the dragon spoke up and he too was puzzled by the lack of a scent from a rider. That meant one of two things. One; there was no rider, or two; the rider had some way of concealing his sent.
Moments later the first possibility was eliminated by the oddly noisy footfalls crunching just outside the cave entrance.
The second possibility then.
Sesshomaru's curiosity was exponentially increased. He had encountered not even a handful of entities who could mask their sent but each encounter had been a memorable one. And something told him -something he couldn't quite pinpoint- that this one would not disappoint.
The footfalls stopped briefly as a figure stepped into the cave entrance. An individual clad in a flowing black cloak paused and addressed the gathered. Sesshomaru, who was still unable to pick up even a whiff of any sort of odder from the cloaked figure, resorted to using his eyes to gather information. The black cloak enveloped any distinguishing features in shadow. It was even impossible to determine the gender of the person much less anything about species or race.
One thing that could be said about the man -Sesshomaru had chosen to refer to the figure as a male even though there was no way to tell- was that he was not very tall. Sesshomaru guessed that, should they stand side by side, the top of the man's head would just barely reach his shoulder. The man's voice also revealed little. It wasn't deep or commanding but it wasn't weak or childish. It hit some sort of medium tone that hummed pleasantly and encouraged trust and peace. He spoke politely but with a subtle hint of amusement. One glance at the sun told Sesshomaru that the man was perfectly punctual and had no obligation to apologize to anyone in the room.
He took several steps into the expanse of the cave and Sesshomaru took special note of the lack of noise accompanying the movement; his sensitive ears could only pick up the slightest rustle of fabric. The man had obviously been making an uncharacteristic amount of noise earlier out of courtesy. The demons of the room already had no way of scenting him. They would be quite uncomfortable indeed if they likewise couldn't hear his approach.
Kagome stood and addressed the new arrival.
"So good to see you again.". The miko was practically beaming ecstatic to see her old friend.
How long did she say she had known him? Sesshomaru looked at his prone-to-overreaction half-brother and was surprised to see no trace of jealousy on his features. Strange; Kagome obviously held considerable affection and respect for the man. Sesshomaru himself had witnessed more than one of Inuyasha's jealous fits. Dog demons were well known for their fierce possessiveness of their chosen mates. Inuyasha may only be half demon, but Sesshomaru knew that youki instincts were strong in him and this was just the sort of thing that should get a rise out of any mated inu-youki. So why didn't Inuyasha look the least bit bothered by his mate showing affection for another male? Then it hit him; that's right. I don't know that he's male at all. I just assumed. Could this figure in fact be a woman?
Sesshomaru didn't have to wait long to find out because, only a moment after Kagome addressed her friend, glove clad hands emerged from the folds of the black cloak and reached upward to remove the hood that had been obscuring facial features from view. The article was thrown back unceremoniously to reveal . . . the rather beautiful visage of a young woman.
O.K., so since he had just thought of the possibility Sesshomaru wasn't as surprised as he could have been. But still, a huge part of his consciousness was not ready for that.
Hair, black as a raven's wing and shining like obsidian, tumbled out of the hood to rest on the woman's shoulders. It was pulled pack into a high samurai tail; a strange choice for a woman indeed.
The woman smiled brilliantly, and with two long strides toward Kagome, embraced her friend.
"It's been far too long." She took a step back and held the miko at arm's length, looking her up and down. "You haven't changed a bit." A confused look passed over her features as her eyes rested on Kagome's stomach, then realization, then excitement. "I spoke too soon.". The women pulled each other back into the embrace with a renewed gusto. "Congratulations Kagome!". Both women -now beaming in that way only females sharing a delightful secret can- began a rapid-fire exchange of questions and answers.
"How long have you known?"
"Found out yesterday."
"How did he take it?"
"Ha, now that's a story I'll have to tell later."
"A good one I'm guessing."
"Most definitely."
Both women were giggling almost uncontrollably and went on for several minutes in this manner: talking and giggling. Somewhere in the whirlwind of words and secret smiles, Sesshomaru gathered enough information to conclude that Kagome was with child and had discovered the fact only the previous day. How the black-clad female knew was beyond him, however. His nose informed him that his sister-in-law was too early in her pregnancy for her sent to have changed and she was certainly not showing. A thought occurred to Sesshomaru and his eyes flicked toward Inuyasha He wondered when his half-brother was going to inform him that he was an uncle-to-be. Knowing Inuyasha it could have been anytime or never.
Inuyasha's eyes met his. Sesshomaru dipped his head in acknowledgement and congratulations. Inuyasha returned the gesture in thanks and then threw him a sideways grin as if to say, "I have an heir first. I win.".
Sesshomaru felt his eyebrow twitch. He really shouldn't let the jibe get to him. But a part of him -a very primal part- rose to the unspoken challenge and in a uncharacteristic show of emotion he returned the challenge with a look of his own that said, "Just you wait, little brother.".
Sesshomaru and Inuyasha then looked back toward the two chattering females, both waiting patiently for them to finish and knowing better than to interrupt. Koga, on the other hand had not learned that particular nugget of wisdom and had felt as though he had waited long enough and was entitled to some answers.
"So who are you anyway, woman? And why the hell can't I smell you?" The excited chatter stopped abruptly and the two women turned as one to the source of the interruption with less than pleased expressions. It was the woman in black that spoke up first.
She turned back to Kagome. "Well, I suppose introductions are in order.".
Kagome nodded in agreement and turned to address the group. "Everyone, I'd like to introduce you to Aiko, a long time friend of mine whom I believe will be a great asset in the upcoming battles.".
The woman now known as Aiko sported a sheepish grin. "Pleased to meet you. Kagome's told me a bit about all of you and I'm fairly certain I can guess who's who.". She then proceeded to walk up to each person in the room -save Inuyasha with whom she was apparently already acquainted- correctly guess each of their names, exchange a few polite words, and in one way or another express her pleasure in meeting each individual. Sesshomaru watched as each member of the group, even Koga, decided rather quickly that they liked this polite, kind woman. Unusual, considering demons are distrustful by nature. Sesshomaru was the last of the group Aiko came to. She stood directly in front of him and Sesshomaru mildly noted that he was right about her height. She had to lift her head a considerable amount to meet his eyes. She did so boldly, but not disrespectfully.
Her eyes were the deepest of emerald greens.
"I have no doubt I know who you are." She spoke with a hint of laughter in her voice. "Kagome and Inuyasha have spoken of you, Lord Sesshomaru.". She paused and, when she received no response from the Taiyoukai, smiled and continued. "I see your preference for silence was not exaggerated. No matter though, It's a pleasure to meet you. I look forward to working with you.".
If Sesshomaru was being entirely honest he wasn't sure what to say. Sure he preferred to reserve his opinions and comments until they were necessary, but even he spoke when he was addressed as politely as Aiko had. Later on - much later on: as in a few centuries - he would admit that he hadn't heard a word she'd said since the moment her eyes had met his. Something in him stirred when those eyes were on him, something he refused to put a label on. This would require some considerable introspection on his part.
Later though, right now he was hoping she would keep talking. He may not have heard the words but her voice was a different matter. He rather wanted her to keep talking.
Unfortunately Aiko had taken his silence as an end to the conversation. She gave a polite bow in retreat and turned to Kagome, whom Sesshomaru noticed was grinning like she had just stumbled upon a bucket full of gold. Was that miko always up to something?
Probably, he decided.
Kagome spoke up again. "We decided to make this a weapons-free meeting. Is that okay with you?".
Aiko nodded and Kagome directed her to a corner of the room that already held six small piles of weapons and armor, one for each member of the meeting. Sesshomaru and the rest of her new acquaintances watched carefully as Aiko concisely and expertly removed her weapons. It would have been almost comical for an outsider to watch eyes grow to the approximate size of Buick hub caps as the pile grew to be the largest in the room.
Aiko did travel with several weapons. She would tell you herself that she was a firm believer in using the right tool for the job. She removed her primary weapon first; a simple katana. Not too surprising even though she certainly didn't look the part of a skilled swords-woman. She then removed a quiver of arrows and an unstrung bow. Still not surprising; plenty of swords-men, or women in this case, carried a bow and arrows for hunting. Besides, it had been clearly visible on her back from the moment she walked in the room. It was the following weapons that began to shock her attentive audience.
With a duel shink and a click she removed two short swords, one from each side of her hips, and snapped the unguarded hilts together to form a single sword with two blades that ran parallel about two finger-widths apart. She placed it carefully next to her katana and reached up for her next weapon. Her hands reached the base of her samurai tale. Her black hair fell in rivulets down her back as she removed a thin, but strong metal chain with a small curved blade attached to the end. The weapon was obviously designed to be swung like a small chain-sythe, but was too small to cause any fatal wounds. It too joined the pile. Finally, after just a moment's hesitation she removed three small throwing knifes from the inside of her left boot and tossed them lightly near her quiver.
She turned to Kagome. Said miko sat expectantly with her arms crossed over her chest; Aiko quirked an eyebrow. The two women communicated silently for a moment and with an exaggerated sigh Aiko reached for the ties of her cloak. The swoosh of black fabric was followed by a shocking release of smells. Every youkai in the room inhaled deeply the scent of their new comrade for the first time.
Sesshomaru found himself suppressing an urge -one that he still wouldn't name- that he hadn't experienced in a long time. She smelled strongly of the forest. Not the way that someone who simply spent a lot of time in the place, but as though she was born of it; as though the forest was part of her. She smelled of warm sunlight and cool fresh spring water mixed with something that was entirely her own. Sesshomaru became heady with the scent and had to stamp down sudden dizziness. He frowned; a slight downturn of the corners of his mouth. This woman affected him far too much. He would have to make it a point to limit time spent in her company. But even as he thought this he knew it would be much harder to carry out than it had been to decide.
CHAPTER END
Well there we have it! A little bit longer, this chapter is (Sorry, Yoda keeps grabbing my keyboard). You have now met my OC. We'll learn more about her in the next chapter and find out her fist impression of Sesshomaru. I'm going to be working to keep this story coming to you guys. I'm not going to rush it but I'm going to try to write regularly. Anyway, let me know how you feel about recent developments. Reviews will get this thing out faster. Lol (shameless bribe)
BTW I'm finding that I'm rather angry at myself for killing Rin in the last chapter. Not enough to take back my decision but I absolutely love her as a character. My muse is made of pure evil! EVIL I say! (Secret: I have little to no control over it.)
