Chapter 10

What's In A Name?

Kagome felt surrounded by warmth, along with something heavy on either side of her. Her eyes were heavy with sleep, but she managed to pry them open slightly, only to see Sesshomaru hovering above her. Her face flushed, and she tried to sit up, but he blocked her from moving. "S-Sesshomaru..." He only gave her a small smirk before leaning down to the side of her face, growling softly in her ear.

"You're finally awake, miko. I have been waiting for you." She was about to ask what had happened, and why he was currently in her bed, but something sharp scraped against her ear. She gasped. His fang was toying with her soft lobe, sending shock waves through her stomach. She pressed her hands on his upper arms, overwhelmed with the sensations.

"W-what are you doing!" He encased her flesh between his lips, giving it a small suck. His hot breath caressed her inner ear.

"What I've been waiting to do since I first laid my eyes on you this morning." His husky voice danced through her ear. Her memory flashed to when she had been changing, and her impossibly red face felt like it would explode. She hadn't really thought of doing such things with him, but the way his mouth worked on her ear, and, oh...

Kissing trailed her neck, sending sizzling shocks through her body. She couldn't help but release a small groan as she attempted to control her body's impulses. He chuckled into her flesh, moving one hand to her hip, slowly twirling a finger along the fabric's edge of her robes.

Her mind was losing focus. She had never seen him act even remotely similar to this, where was all this coming from? Demons and humans didn't mi- Her thoughts were cut off as she felt the sash around her waist loosen. He moved to look down at her, and she got lost in the hypnotic gold of his eyes. "You are mine, miko." His lips crashed against hers, and her stomach filled with butterflies.

She could think of nothing other than the sensation of his cool lips, and his tongue that ran along hers in a slow dance. She couldn't resist. She wrapped her arms around him, and closed her eyes.

"Miko." His voice seemed to echo in the distance. How could he speak when he was doing these things? "Miko, wake up." Wake up? She wasn't asleep... "Kagome."

Her eyes flew open, and the kissing was over. She saw a previously occupied, currently concerned, dog demon hovering above her.

-S-

It had been nearly a full day, and she was still out. He tapped his foot in the chair by her bed impatiently, even more on edge by his beast that howled mournfully in his head. It called for him to hold her.

He was going to leave her, for he had to speak with his council regarding the events that had taken place, but his beast would drown out his ability to focus on anyone but her, unless he sat by her side. Even then, the beast was driving him crazy.

"My lord, I have brought your dinner for the night." He turned to look at the cat hanyou before him. Her face was scarred, but was healing rapidly thanks to her demon blood. Kaede had treated her as soon as she heard the news. "I have also brought herbal tea and rice for lady Kagome."

Kinu had claimed the miko was not herself, and forced her way out of the room with a blast of power. He had told her to take the night off, but she insisted to aid in Kagome's recovery. His servants were nothing if not utterly loyal.

"How is she, my lord?" She asked, genuinely concerned as she set down the tray on the nightstand near him. He looked back at the sleeping girl, she seemed peaceful, but her excessive sleep concerned him.

"I do not know." His beast howled once again, and growled at Kinu as she tucked in the miko for possibly the hundredth time. He knew she meant no harm, despite the fact his beast did not. "Why do you care for her after what she has done?" Kinu did not blink an eye, smoothing out the edge of the thick comforter.

"She has been very kind to me these past few weeks. I only return the kindness. Do you request anything else from me, my lord?" He shook his head, and Kinu bowed her head, leaving the room.

He turned back to Kagome. The incredible power that had left barely a trace of his enemies was incredible. With one blast of her energy, they would easily be able to take out Naraku's army. Although, he had concerns.

She could barely contain a small flame when they first met, and now, she had been out of sorts and almost destroyed his castle and army. He would have to find a way to help her contain these powers, or she would not be able to stay. He already heard gossip surrounding the miko.

The demon nobility was not happy with a human among them. He knew they would be especially angry after this incident. Before he met with them, he would meet with Kaede for some solutions. Kagome began releasing heavy sighs. He looked over at her, before moving closer.

Her face was glowing with heat, and she was making soft whimpers and gasps. His beast was silent, but he could feel it's curiosity perk at the noises she made. "S-Sesshomaru.." She had said his name. She had said his name in such a... provocative way. He couldn't help but lean closer, and peer down at her as she writhed in such a way that made his blood rush through his body. What on earth was she dreaming about? The question almost seemed silly.

His beast urged him closer, and he followed without much notice. He was too consumed by her movements and sounds, he was nearly completely on top of her, before he realized what he had been doing. He snapped out of the trace, and came to his senses.

"Miko." He shook her slightly, "Miko, wake up." She barely responded, but it was slightly more than before. He remembered that she had awoken to her name on the battlefield.

"Kagome." It felt odd, but natural on his tongue. He saw her jolt awake and stare at him with wide eyes.

"Uh..." She was completely dumbstruck, and he would have found it humorous if he hadn't just heard a distorted version of her... dreams. Her grey eyes flashed around wildly, and she sat up cautiously. He moved back to sit beside her. Her black hair crowed her face wildly, contrasting the flushed pale flesh. He wanted to pull the strand of hair that stuck to her lip, but refrained. She held her hands to her chest, as if to muffle the erratic heart. However, he heard it loud and clear; he believed his sounded very similar.

-K-

"You are finally awake, Miko." Kagome experienced deja vu, and lifted the covers to her chest. Was this another dream? She sort of stared at him, unsure of what to say. He continued, looking away from her. "Do you remember anything that happened?" She breathed a sigh of relief. He was normal again.

"N-not really." She lightly scratched her forearm, looking around the room nervously. The dream had really gotten to her. "How long was I out?" He reached over, grabbing a cup of tea from the bed stand, and handed it to her. It was still warm.

"Only a day this time. You have caused a stir in the castle, Miko." She reluctantly moved the cup to her lap and looked up at him.

"What do you mean?" She only remembered waiting in the room with Kinu, and now she was in bed. He got up to sit in the chair that had been moved beside her bed.

"You were sleep walking. You managed your way past Kinu, and into the battle." She was shocked. Why didn't she remember something like that? "You were surrounded by a ball of energy, and created a blast that wiped out the enemy forces. Then you passed out." She couldn't wrap her head around this. Why did she keep passing out? She felt really embarrassed.

"Is Kinu alright?" Sesshomaru nodded.

"She will be completely recovered in a few days." Kagome felt a stab of guilt in her heart. She had hurt the only friend she had made in the castle, and she didn't even realize it. She looked down at the cup in her hands, swirling the liquid around slowly.

"Are you alright?" She peaked up at him nervously, and he blinked slowly at her.

"I am fine, Miko." She nodded, and set her tea down, scooting to the edge of the bed. Their knees touched at the proximity. He made no effort to move.

"I'm glad. I..." She picked at the fringe that bordered her blanket. "I was worried when you left for battle." She was nervous, even more so after that weird dream. He probably had no interest in her worries.

"Hn. It was nothing more than a skirmish. I barely got a scratch in before you came along. It was quite impressive." Her face reddened once more and she smiled. This was the first time he had given her any sort of compliment.

"Thank you, Sesshomaru." He leaned forward, touching her face gently. Her smile faded, and her dream resurfaced. She could feel her heart in her throat.

"You change colors quite easily, miko." She tried to speak, but could not. She could only gaze at those eyes of his that expressed so much, but she could not understand what. She wanted to ask him what was on his mind, what he dreamed about, but she could not fathom what his answer would be. So she remained silent. He got up, looking down at her for a few moments. "I have much to do, Kagome. Rest, and I will send the old miko in to check your health."

Her heart skipped. He had said her name. He had enough respect for her to call her by her name. She watched him leave, and waited until he slid the door shut behind him, before turning to her pillow and shoving her face into it. She was so... so full of emotions. She could hardly contain it. The most prominent feeling of all caused a whole mess of confusion; she believed that she had just fallen for the Lord of the West.

AN: I thought I'd give you guys a bit of steamy citrus before a bit of a break for the work-week! I hope you all enjoyed it. ;)