AUTHOR'S CORNER:

I'm so happy everyone is liking my story! I'm having better responses than I'd ever hoped for!

Inugirl06 - I used a Japanese/english dictionary to come up with the name of her sword and the attacks. You'll see alot more of those in the coming chapters as well as more Japanese named characters. I'll try to remember to put the translation of the name somewhere in the text, if not in an author's note.

Eternityoftears - YES! This is a tie in chapter and next update you'll all have nightclub goodness! X3

Mangadreams - I actually hadn't even thought of that, but it is rather fitting that their swords emit powers opposite to their personalities, ne?

Mad Monk - I will try to keep the updates coming!

Nekoyasha101 and Ktshabatie - thanks for the reviews! You guys are awesome!

I will try to keep my updates on the odd days of the week, so you all can look forward to hearing from me then! One more chapter and then nightclub! X3

Chapter 12

Kagome sat bolt upright staring into the blackness that was her bedroom in the dead of night. A light sheen of sweat covered her lightly tan skin and her raven hair matted itself against her damp neck, shoulders and forehead. What was that?

Her dream had left her more than a little disturbed, though even in the few moments between deep sleep and wakefulness the dream had already begun to fade. She remembered Sesshomaru, that she knew, but there also were shadows of a presence that felt a lot like Midoriko and snatches of information on healing. Dragging her arm across her cold, damp forehead she swung her legs over the side of the bed. Not knowing entirely what she was doing or why, she stood silently and made her way over to her door. Slipping into the 2:00 am darkness that draped the hallway with its velvety shades, she padded silently a few doors down the way and paused.

Nothing around her made a single sound so she tentatively pushed open the door before her. There, sitting upright against the wall next to the closet, his face in profile was the beautiful silvery demon in her dream. His eyes were closed as if asleep, one leg was extended in front of him and the other was bent at the knee, his swords lay nestled between his legs and up against his hip to rest against his right shoulder. One hand rested lightly against the hilts of the swords and his head was lightly tilted back. The light from the moon spilled through the window, catching the silvery texture of his hair and the paleness of his skin, making him glow in an ethereal manner, as if the moon god himself had come down to reside in her guest room.

Without pausing to think, she stepped lightly into the room, crossed the space between them and knelt tremulously down by his left side. If Sesshomaru had heard her, he made no indication.

The demon in question had in fact been awake the entire time. His eyes had been closed in silent meditation when he had heard her sharp intake of breath and the almost inaudible creak of her bed when she had awoken and sat up. Listening to her, he didn't move when he heard her rise from her bed and make her way down the hall. Still refusing to move or open his eyes, he heard her increased heartbeat and slow, laborious breathing as she entered his room and knelt by his side. Wondering what exactly she was doing, he decided to remain as he was and see for himself what the little miko was up to. He heard her shift by his left side and felt small, trembling fingers against his shoulder. Resisting the urge to pull away, he let her run her hands which were so much smaller than his own down his shoulder to where his arm abruptly ended, thanks to his half brother.

Briefly his mind wandered over the previous day and the moments he had caught her glance resting on his severed limb, wondering exactly why she seemed so fascinated with it. It caused him no embarrassment, just slight frustration at its loss.

Small fingers found their way into the short sleeve of his shirt until he felt the soft skin of her finger tips touching the sensitive skin of his arm. He was completely at a loss as to what the girl thought she was doing. Had the girl gone mad? Did she want him to kill her? Just has he was considering pulling away from her and giving her the coldest glare he had in his repertoire of glares he felt a warmth and a tingling begin in the newer skin covering his stump. Her little palms had cupped the very bottom of his arm, right above where the bicep had been sliced through and he felt power begin to radiate from them and into his skin. Finally opening his eyes, he glanced up at her face as she was crouched close to him. Her eyes were closed tightly in concentration, her lower lip was sucked in between her pearly little teeth and her hands rested on either side of his bicep. Looking down, he noticed her hands glowed a light pink. As he watched, the pink intensified until the entire room was basked in the warm light.

Half expecting his youki to balk at the use of holy power so close and in contact with his person, he readied himself to do battle with his inner beast. Surprisingly, nothing happened, his inner beast didn't feel threatened at all by the presence of the holy powers and momentarily he realized why. Pain erupted deep in the bone of his arm and he knew then that she was using healing powers only, no purifying powers. Normally in the healing process the powers are combined in order to purge the wound of any evil energy and aide in the healing process. Somehow, the miko had been able to differentiate between the two powers and had summoned only the pure cool pink glow of the healing powers.

A look of pure shock crossed his face as the pain of regrowing his arm intensified. Before his astonished eyes, he saw the stump grow longer from beneath her hands, muscles reconnected themselves and joints reformed. The pain was intense, but nothing that he couldn't handle. Gritting his teeth slightly as tendons reattached themselves and continued on past the joint, he watched in fascination as his forearm continued to materialize, even down to the magenta stripes that adorned his wrists. Fingers then claws and it was finished.

Sesshomaru went to raise his arm before his face in inspection of the new limb when Kagome did a face plant right into his chest. Well, that wasn't expected. The girl didn't say a word before or after. She just came into his room, grabbed his arm, starts flashing powers around and then passes out on him. Nice.

Gripping the girl around the waist, he didn't bother to return her to her own room, he simply readjusted her so her body rested against his chest more comfortably then resumed his original intent of inspecting his new arm. It was just as perfect as it had been before, of course he would have to test it out completely in the morning, but flexing it and moving the fingers, everything seemed to be in order. He felt the familiar flush of poison when he cracked his knuckles and was pleased when the claws glowed green and he smelled the acrid stink of his poison.

Looking down at the miko he allowed himself a pleased face as he studied her before closing his eyes again and returning to meditation. Inwardly grinning, he greatly anticipated when she would finally awake once more. Irking her had become one of his favorite hobbies and he couldn't wait to see how she would react to this one. (meheheh, ebil grin)

Sunlight poured in the window and lit up the little miko's face. Squinting her eyes in frustration at having been woken too early she turned away from the offending light and buried her face in her pillow. Strangely enough, it didn't give as much as she had thought it would. It was rather firm and yet soft at the same time, though she didn't remember changing her pillowcase out for one that felt like t-shirt material. Refusing to open her eyes and trying to burrow deeper against her oddly rather warm pillow, the thought slowly occurred to her that she couldn't recall falling asleep sitting up either.

Kagome kept shifting, trying to screw up the courage to open her eyes against the blinding light, but couldn't quite seem to accomplish her goal. However when a very strong, lithe and deadly clawed arm wrapped around her torso and a low growl rumbled from within her pillow, despite all her previous reasons for keeping her eyes closed vanished and said blue eyes snapped open.

Blinking a few times in order to accustom her eyes to the light, Kagome's cerulean orbs were met with the unnerving sight of a very hard demon chest pressed against her cheek. Lifting her head slightly to allow movement, she followed the chest upward with her eyes, up past where the shirt ended and a long expanse of white neck began and then finally resting on the face belonging to the demon she was still currently pressed up against. Gulping slightly her eyes locked with the golden orbs staring silently down at her, an unreadable expression lurking in his amber depths.

Just then, her afore unnoticed body parts decided to report in. Numbly, her mind registered that the entire length of her torso was pressed snugly against the demon lord mentioned in previous statements, and it would need to be duly noted that said demon was capable of killing whomever he pleased in many different and gruesome manners. That having been said, the next part to check in was her waist and hips, which just so happened to be nestled quite nicely, depending on who's opinion you asked, in between dangerous demon lord's thighs. This report also included the nice detail that the sharply clawed arm she had felt earlier was pressed against her hip bone, the palm and fingers wrapped around the small waist to rest against the flat stomach which just so happened to have been exposed slightly during her shifting. Tiny pricks signaled that though his palm was flat against a stomach that was threatening to revolt in the most obvious manner it could think of that his claws were too long and deadly to avoid being noticed.

Her legs decided then to groggily give in their own report. Said noble demon lord with extremely long and deadly claws who was mentioned above in previous statements had for some reason unknown to the lower appendages decided to intertwine his own much longer and much more heavily muscled appendages with them. It was duly noted then that the appendages mentioned were rather bare due to the fact that Kagome had worn shorts to bed and that those mentioned walking accessories were incapable of movement at the current moment due to the fact that dangerous noble demon lord with extremely long, deadly claws and heavily muscled legs had afore mentioned lower appendages wrapped securely around her own, preventing any movement and therefore any means of escape.

Not that escape had really ever been an option. Kagome blinked a few times in confusion as her body parts finished reporting in and a flush began to rise in her cheeks.

Sesshomaru watched her in fascination as she seemed to mentally assess what was going on and almost grinned when he saw the blush begin to rise in her cheeks because he knew then that she had some idea of her situation. Deciding to sit back and enjoy where this went, he continued to stare at her, waiting for her to speak first.

Painstakingly slowly, the events of the night before began to filter into her head. Her eyes glazed over slightly as she tried to remember all the details. She remembered sitting up in bed after having a nightmare that had something to do with Sesshomaru. Vaguely she remembered getting up and coming into his room and kneeling by his side. With the weight of something heavy being dropped on her head she remembered giving him his arm back.

A look of surprise and elation suddenly crossed her innocent features and she began to squirm in his lap anew, trying to twist enough to see the arm she had returned to him, the one that just so happened to be pressed against her bare stomach. A loud and low growl stopped her movement completely, though the arm around her tightening considerably with steel-like strength had a lot to do with it was well.

Sesshomaru's eyes had narrowed and unfocused slightly. Good Kami, why was he reacting like this. Every time the girl moved in his lap he felt a white hot heat rush to his stomach and an ache begin to form in lower appendages that need not be mentioned. This would be entirely unacceptable since the girl sitting in his arms right now happened to be pressed against that very appendage and would be very embarrassing to dangerous noble demon lord with extremely long, deadly claws and heavily muscled legs. Good Kami, was he just admitting to being embarrassed about something like that? She's a ningen! Why would he care what she thought? Then again, how could a mere ningen incite a reaction out of him like that? Many demonesses had tried and failed.

Forcing such traitorous thoughts from his mind and regaining control of certain body parts, willing them to remain neutral he returned his thoughts in a non-sexual way to the woman still staring up at him from her position in his lap.

During those few moments Kagome had done some of her own assessments and bullied certain body parts into non-reaction. Having more than 50 percent of your body pressed firmly against a very well muscled and extremely sexy demon body will not usually go unnoticed by even the most innocent of people. Though the miko in question is indeed innocent in many ways, she was still aware of the reactions of her own body and couldn't help the rising heat, or rather dropping heat that began in her belly and slowly made its way down to her thighs. Squashing the feeling before it got there, she forced the heat to remain in her belly and tried not to focus on the hard body beneath her own or the long, slender fingers splayed across her belly which seemed to sear her skin with the heat of their intensity.

When both parties had finished schooling themselves into control, completely oblivious of the other's struggles they stared at one another, waiting for the other to speak. Finally Kagome couldn't hold it in anymore.

"Um… good morning?" she could kick herself, Kagome had no idea why she had worded it as a question, but for some reason it seemed oddly fitting. Sesshomaru's head cocked to the side the slightest bit as he regarded her. The silence stretched on.

"Uh… well… did you sleep well?" ignore body, ignore body, ignore extremely sexy demon body pressed against… NO NO NO BAD KAGOME BAD! More silence.

"I did not sleep. I did not need to."

"Oh, so you weren't…"

"No."

"Oh," add one for mortification points for Kagome, "um, how is your arm?" Cocking his head to the side a little more, he studied her for a moment before deciding to ignore the question.

"Why did you return it to me?" he asked instead. Big blue eyes stared up at him for a moment before unfocusing slightly, deep in thought. Momentarily a blush began to stain her cheeks again and she dropped her face, shielding her eyes from view.

"I… well, uh…" she couldn't seem to think of a way of phrasing it without insulting him. "InuYasha and I… well, I felt… I felt that what we had done to you was unfair and that you weren't deserving of it," she paused taking a deep breath. "You seemed to get along fine without it, but watching you teach me over the past few days gave me a sharp reminder of just how much we had taken from you. I know it would grow back eventually, but I figured out how to make it come back faster, so I thought I would do it as a thank you for everything you've done for me." Kagome finished and sat silently, waiting for his response, staring at a very well formed chest instead.

"You do realize what you have done, do you not?" Sesshomaru asked and Kagome froze. Panic threatened to overtake her mind, he didn't like what she'd done! "All of your friends have seen me with only one arm. Tonight when we go out, I will have two. How will we explain that?" Blue eyes widened and her face froze in a look of surprise and panic. She was elated that he didn't hate her for returning the arm, but she had completely forgotten that her friends had no idea he was a demon and she was a miko! What were they going to tell them tonight?

Sesshomaru watched in amusement as different expressions of panic, shock, relief and renewed panic flashed across her young face. He loved baiting her and idly the thought wandered through is mind if it would be this fun to wake up with her in his arms every day. Genuinely he was very pleased to have the arm back, but he wasn't about to tell her that. Returning his attention to the panicking miko in his arms he resisted the urge to smile.

Kagome's face had transformed slightly during his internal musings into an exaggerated look of shock and panic, her mouth formed a slight 'oh' expression, her blue eyes were impossibly wide open and her gaze was unfocused as her mind frantically tried to come up with a solution.

When her mind kept coming up blank she started to really panic. Shifting around in his lap again, almost causing him to groan out loud, but refraining from doing so, she began to pat at his chest with both hands as if trying to get his attention or impress upon him the seriousness of the situation.

"Oh! Sesshomaru what are we going to tell everyone! There just isn't any way to explain having no arm and then suddenly having a perfect, working one only a day later! There's no medical techniques in my time that would do something like that!" Sesshomaru frowned slightly. He hadn't thought of the possibility that it might be unexplainable because of situations in her era. Shrugging a shoulder elegantly and endeavoring to keep the squirming girl still in his lap he clamped down harder with his new arm and held her shoulders still with the other.

"I am sure we can simply tell them they were mistaken," he began but Kagome shook her head dubiously.

"A whole school worth of people? I doubt it. Everyone was oogling you while you were there and remember Hojo saw you in a t-shirt. There was no mistaking that." Sesshomaru looked at her as if she was spouting nonsense.

"I suppose," she continued, "a better way of explaining, though still kind of doubtful would be to tell everyone that you had been injured in the same 'accident' that InuYasha was killed in and that your arm had to be braced tightly against your torso to allow healing," Sesshomaru shrugged elegantly. He really didn't care; the demon knew that anyone who tried to tell him otherwise he would give a glare of death to and that would be the end of the argument. However if Kagome wanted to try and think of an explanation, he would let her.

Kagome finally finished talking and nodded to herself in satisfaction, pleased that she might have come up with a feasible solution. As she sat there, running it over in her mind again, she remembered she was still sitting in Sesshomaru's lap. A blush began to creep its way onto her cheeks again and she started to squirm in his firm grasp.

"Um, Sesshomaru? Do you think you would mind if I … uh… got up?" she asked avoiding his eyes, embarrassed slightly by her body's reaction to her proximity to the demon.

"Why? I thought you were comfortable?" he asked instead of letting her go, thoroughly enjoying the deep flush that spread across her cheeks to her ears and down her neck to disappear into her shirt.

Oh dear, she thought, now what? How to extricate herself without offending a very deadly demon.

"Oh, I … uh, of course I'm comfortable! It's … just that… I … um… you are… uh… I…I just didn't think… you'd want your presence sullied by me…" she tried thinking of things she thought would make him pleased.

Wrong answer.

Kagome grimaced as she saw his face tighten ever so slightly and a tiny frown mar his perfect features. Within the span of a heartbeat she was standing on her feet and he was standing before her with both arms at his sides. Raising one hand he gestured toward the door. Kagome glance down at her hands trying to think of something to say to fix her mistake, but when she looked back up he was gone, the curtains on the other side of the room billowed quietly in the morning breeze created by the now open window.

Suppressing a sigh, she silently left the room to go take a shower.

Sesshomaru leapt into the highest branches of the god tree and closed his eyes, letting the breeze wash over him, blowing his silver curtain of hair over his shoulder to cascade down beyond his back where he was crouched in the tree. Glancing back at the house briefly he pondered what she had said and his own reaction.

Normally, her response would have been the correct one and would have pleased him ever so slightly, though ningens usually didn't please him at all. But when she had said it, he felt a certain tightening in his chest, as if hearing her say it meant something entirely different.

Did she really think that way of him? He thought he had explained to her that he no longer considered her as being beneath his notice. His referral to her the other day as a lady of noble title had proven that to her. Why did it bother him so that she still thought he hated her? Didn't he though? No. No, he didn't. Of that he was sure now.

Just what that weird feeling he got in his stomach when she laughed or was close to him, he didn't know. It confused him and he hated being confused, but at the same time he didn't want it to stop. Stopping to examine the way he felt, he realized he actually was somewhat offended that she had thought so lowly of him.

Sometimes when he would see how she acted and spoke around him that she knew him even better than he knew himself, though there were times like this that she seemed to completely misinterpret him. He had thought that his actions that morning had spoken for themselves. If he had detested her presence she wouldn't have woken up comfortably nestled in his arms. Now that the warmth of her body had faded from his own, he felt strangely cold and bereft of all warmth.

For quite some time he sat in the tree contemplating the enigma his newfound feelings had created in him.

Kagome could kick herself. She should have known that was not the response Sesshomaru was looking for. He had even told her he had more respect for her than that. Hell, he had come to the future with her, put up with her buying him clothing and dressing him up, going to school with her where he defended her honor, and even taught her swordsmanship. Then she turns around and insults him by accusing him of being honourless and treating her like all the other lesser ningens around him. It still felt odd for her to think this way, but he had seemed offended that she had assumed he would act like the cold youkai he showed everyone else.

A hope sprang up in her chest as she thought that over. Sesshomaru was actually offended that she thought he would treat her coldly, meaning, he was already changing his own perceptions of himself. He knew he was warming up to her! The thought had her on cloud nine as she exited the shower until she remembered that he was still angry with her for treating him like she had.

Kagome decided she would have to convince him she hadn't meant it the way she had intended and that she was simply trying not to offend him. Yes, that's what she would do. Feeling better about her decision, she finished getting dressed and looked around the house for Sesshomaru.

She couldn't find him anywhere. Just then Eri called and asked her to come out and pick out new outfits for that night. Kagome hesitated, wanting to find Sesshomaru and apologize, but Eri was insistent and she promised to meet her and her other two friends in ten minutes downtown. Hurriedly she grabbed her shoes and purse and headed out of the house.

Sesshomaru watched as she crossed the courtyard under his tree and ran down the steps to disappear around a corner. He had heard every word she had spoken on the phone and had heard her hesitation to go out. The demon wasn't sure why she had hesitated, but he had the feeling it had something to do with him. Staring off into space, he also briefly wondered why she would need new clothing for that night. As far as he knew it was a casual type thing. Shrugging elegantly he returned to the house to find Souta parked in front of the television.

Stopping as he began to ascend the stairs, he had a sudden thought. Turning abruptly he headed into the TV room with Souta. The boy jumped slightly when he noticed Sesshomaru suddenly standing beside him staring down at the TV with a concentrated expression on his face. Just as Souta was about to ask him a question Sesshomaru spoke.

"Is it possible to show me current day music and forms of dancing on this tel-e-vis-sion?" he asked the boy. Souta considered the question a moment before he remembered that his sister was taking Sesshomaru to a night club that night and Sesshomaru obviously wanted to know what he was getting himself into. Souta cracked a huge grin.

Briefly explaining a few things to him, he had Sesshomaru sit down on the sofa and let him watch MTV and a few music video stations. Souta pointed out the types of music he'd be most likely to hear in a night club and explained the different forms of dance. Sesshomaru watched the TV intently and soaked up all the information he could so that he would not be caught unawares when he went to the club with Kagome.

After watching the music video channels for an hour, Sesshomaru nodded to himself, satisfied that he knew what he was doing and flipped the TV off. Heading upstairs to wait until Kagome came home, he was pleased with himself and knew that Kagome would be surprised that he would not be unprepared. He had been shocked by some of what he had seen on the television, so he was glad he had done his information gathering before hand. Now he wouldn't have the urge to kill everything in sight because he understood better what would be going on.

Indeed, Kagome would be greatly surprised. He looked forward to it.