Title: Two for Tea
Author: Linay
Theme: Tuck – Drabble #109
Genre: Romance, Angst, Adventure
Rating: T
Warnings: None
Word Count: 400
Summary: Sesshoumaru tires of Kagome's pity party.
Fearing the future revealed in glimpses through the bone eater's well, the ruling demon clans take desperate measures to ensure the survival of their race – the purging of the human threat. This is the story of Kagome and Sesshoumaru's fight for survival, told in bits and pieces. (twisted canon universe) This is the next installment of my ongoing serial, Divergence, which is found at .net/s/6363259/1/Divergence.
Disclaimer: I do not own Rumiko Takahashi's characters.
Author's Notes: The chapters in this story have largely been written in response to the prompts given at the livejournal community, dokuga contest (see the link in my profile). I am ever so grateful to the moderators of the community for the challenges and inspiration they have provided.
5. Two for Tea
Kagome wondered why it still hurt to breathe.
Since passing through the gates of the Western Citadel, she'd had her every need met with polite deference. There had been food, fresh clothing, a soft futon and a private bathing area – which Sesshoumaru had graciously declared to be hers before disappearing down a long hall of gleaming hardwood floors.
And yet…
Kagome carefully set down her chopsticks. The lacquered breakfast tray that had been set before her yielded the most expertly prepared and pleasingly presented dishes – but she had no desire to eat. How could she when with every intake of breath, she felt the sharp, keen edge of grief twist between her ribs.
Sesshoumaru tested the air with a delicate sniff. The bitter scent of old tears hung about the rooms he had given his human guest. With an irritated huff, he slid the door open with a definitive snap. The woman – Kagome, his mind supplied – was seated beside her futon, listlessly playing with the fraying edge of the kimono he had given her. She did not look up.
"Miko," he said in low disapproving tones, "You dishonour your host."
"Oh!" Kagome started suddenly, startled as if he'd interrupted a daydream. "Forgive me, Lord Sesshoumaru. I was just…"
Her voice trailed off uncertainly as she blinked slowly. With a soft exhale, she rose slowly and bowed in greeting. The corners of Sesshoumaru's mouth turned down. Her movements were achingly slow, and her bearing was like that of a fragile, wounded bird. His eyes slid to her untouched meal.
"Is the food not to your liking, Miko?"
"Oh, it's wonderful, I'm sure," she said, shaking her head with a wry twist of her lips, "But I am…" She trailed off again, her eyes slipping away from his to focus on some unknown point over his shoulder. "It's not that I'm not grateful," she began again, "But I am not…" She lapsed into silence again.
"Not able to finish sentences?" He let out a long-suffering sigh. "You have spent long enough wallowing in self-pity, Miko."
"What?"
He arched a brow. Anger ignited in her eyes, and she fumbled for words. Sesshoumaru was suddenly a mere hairsbreadth away. The world suddenly turned on itself as Kagome found herself neatly tucked under the demon's arm. In three steps, he had launched into the skies, and Kagome did the only thing she could.
She screamed.