AUTHOR'S CORNER - I'm back! Dear Kami it only took forever, I'm so sorry guys. I've been exhausted lately, but tomorrow's my first day off in a while, so I'm gonna celebrate by actually sleeping past 8:00am. :) I didn't have a whole lot of time this week, but I managed to squeeze out a short chapter... hopefully things will be easier next week, my schedule will be more even and I won't have the crazy stuff going on that I've had since my promotion... O.o
Anyways, not one of my better chapters, but still... enjoy!
OH! And thank you for all your kind reviews and your emails answering my IYFG question!
Chapter 33
Perhaps it wasn't such a good idea to promise not to kill him… The taiyoukai resisted the urge to sigh aloud at the spectacle in his courtyard. The servants had announced the pending arrival of an extremely skinny man on a three eyed cow who was swerving alarmingly through the clouds. Kagome had rushed around excitedly before finally finding her head again, giving Sesshomaru a calming peck on the cheek and grabbing the poor overly-full neko demon by the hand and dragging her out into the mid morning light.
The cow landed none-too-gracefully on the ground and fairly soon the reason for the erratic flying behavior was brought to light. Two angry voices floated to them from across the yard, though it was very apparent that there was only one person sitting on the cow, or so it appeared.
"Myouga-jii!" Kagome exclaimed, finally recognizing the voice and hurrying over.
"Kagome-sama!" she suddenly felt a prick on her neck and plucked the bothersome flea from his perch nose deep in the flesh of her neck to hold him in her palm. "Kagome-sama! It is so good to see you in such good health! Totosai was refusing to come, but I knew Sesshomaru-sama had to have some forgiveness in him if you were living here! So I insisted that we pay a visit as you had requested!" the little flea was oblivious to the veins popping out in the priestess's forehead.
"Well, that's quite a nice way to greet an old friend," Kagome gritted out and Myouga sweat dropped, realizing his blunder. "Totosai," the old man jerked weirdly from his perch still atop the cow before eyeing his surroundings nervously, "there is no reason to fear, I have extracted a promise from Sesshomaru that you will not be harmed," Kagome smiled disarmingly at him and he relaxed slightly before he noticed the ice youkai himself standing nearby, arms crossed over his broad chest and a cold gleam in his amber eyes. The sword smith opted to stay on his cow for the moment.
"I am so glad you both came, some friends of mine are in a lot of trouble and we need to see if you can fix the sword, Totosai," the bug-eyed man stared at her in confusion while Myouga hopped excitedly on her shoulder.
"Anything for our Kagome-sama!" he said in his most regal voice, which for a flea is not all that impressive. The priestess turned then and took Akiko by the hand, drawing the poor neko forward.
"This, gentlemen is Akiko … and Fubuki," she finished awkwardly, the flea on her shoulder stopped bouncing.
"But Kagome-sama, there is only one person standing there…" he began and Kagome glanced at him imploringly.
"Yes, I know. There is one body standing there, but it currently houses two souls," Totosai's eyes nearly popped completely out of his head. "Akiko, this is Totosai the sword-smith and Myouga the flea advisor to Sesshomaru's family," Akiko bowed at the waist politely.
"Pleasure to meet you both," she said politely, Myouga bowed in return, but Totosai just stared.
"And… Fubuki? Are you paying attention?" Kagome asked Akiko's body.
"Yes, hime," Fubuki's voice came from Akiko's throat. Totosai's eyes bugged impossibly big before he froze completely and fell right off the back of his cow. Myouga was sputtering and pinging around excitedly while servants ran around the side of the cow to help the sword smith to his feet. Kagome shifted nervously.
"Totosai, Fubuki is an elemental spirit whose soul was bound to the blade of a katana. A few nights ago the blade was broken in half by an elemental blade of polar power. Fubuki was saved only through putting him into the injured body of Akiko so that the blade can be fixed." Totosai had finally righted himself and was listening intently to the young miko. He began shaking his head doubtfully before she even finished.
"A sword of that amount of power is not easily forged. Fixing a broken blade of that kind would be close to impossible," flakes of dead skin went flying as he scratched his balding head with his stunted claws. "Then there's the problem of transferring the soul back into the sword and the binding spell to keep it there…" his eyes took on a glassy look as he contemplated the impossibilities and he missed the crestfallen faces of Kagome and Akiko as his words sunk in. Distractedly, he pulled a pipe seemingly from thin air and went to place the pre-lit, foul smelling thing in his mouth.
His hand reached his face before he realized that the pipe was no longer there and he looked around in confusion until a very cold and irritated Sesshomaru filled his vision nearly making the poor demon's heart stop in his chest.
"This Sesshomaru's promise to Kagome was that you would live as long as you continued to be useful to her," the taiyoukai paused for dramatic effect and the sword-smith swallowed hard, "will you refuse to even attempt to fix the sword of my future mate?" he asked coldly and was satisfied to see Totosai and Myouga's eyes pop out of their heads simultaneously.
"Now if you are quite finished wasting our time," the older demons cringed, "you would do well to preserve your lives and see what can be done to fix the sword." Both nodded vigorously and followed sheepishly as the couple turned to head back inside, followed by their usual entourage. Sho and Daichi exchanged knowing glances before falling in behind the two troublemakers to bring up the rear.
The procession halted suddenly as the lord of the west stopped and cast a glance back over his shoulder, the small miko on his arm giving him a puzzled look which he ignored in favor of catching the sword-smith's eyes in a cold glare that froze the very blood in his veins.
"The cow stays outside." Totosai fell of the animal in question, hitting the ground stiffly with a dull thud as the silver haired lord resumed his march with a reproving fiancé on his arm. The balding demon lay twitching for a few moments while the cow was led away toward the stables. Only Myouga's reminder of the precarious state of his continued health spurred the traumatized demon back into mobility again and they followed the group into the castle.
A few minutes later he was seated cross legged in one of the castle's workshops, a worried and doubtful look creasing his already creased face, the pieces of the broken blade settled across his knobby knees and the dagger responsible sitting quietly in his hand as he regarded it.
"A sword of water and holy energy and a dagger of fire and demon energy…" his forehead creased even more, reminding Kagome of a chow puppy, though less cute. Her attention returned to him as he shook his head, almost as if in disbelief. "Every time a sword is used, whether damaged or not, it carries an irreparable impression of every stroke… most of the time this builds the character of the sword…" he shook his head again, "the damage done may not be able to be undone and will require quite a bit of time until we find out." Finally he looked up from his appraisal and was met with the anxious faces crowded around him, taking in each in turn until his bug-like eyes finally rested on the cold visage of Sesshomaru by the door, nearly cutting himself as he tensed violently. "But I'm sure that with some time and research I will be successful!" he chirped, his voice taking on a high pitched squeak.
"We will wait for your results," Sesshomaru said coldly as he took Kagome's arm and led her from the room, "if my patience holds out," he added softly enough for only Kagome to hear earning himself a poke in the ribs and a giggle. The petite miko glanced over her shoulder in time to see Akiko kneel down quietly near the panicking sword-smith and a sad smile crossed her face as she sent a silent prayer to the Kami's that this would work before returning her attention to the demon by her side.
"You, my lord, are the most egotistical, self-centered and meanest person I know!" she scolded and was rewarded with a trademark sidelong glance. "There was no need to threaten the poor man!" his eyes slid back to the front before he responded.
"I will agree with everything but the self-centered part. I believe I am doing this for you and the sake of your handmaiden's sanity," the little priestess gave him a look, but he continued, "I simply gave him incentive. You cannot deny that he is motivated now," Kagome rolled her eyes and gave an unladylike snort. Before she could take another breath she found her lips pinched in between two long, clawed fingers and proceeded to glower up the length of the white silk clad arm of their owner. "You, my dear, need to be taught lessons in acting like a lady," Kagome attempted a response, but all that came out was a muffled jumble of sounds.
"I'm sorry, my little one, I couldn't understand you, do try to speak more clearly," he missed the death glare Kagome sent him as he turned to speak to an approaching servant, commanding him to collect the lords and herd them to his study for a meeting.
Kagome took advantage of his momentary distraction to pull her lips free from his grasp and bite the offending appendages, taking them securely, though gently between small white teeth. Sesshomaru's head snapped around as the servant beat a hasty retreat. He was suddenly very glad he had chosen a rather loose fitting hakama that morning, otherwise things could have gotten quite a bit more difficult on him. If her biting him wasn't bad enough, just the picture she presented standing there with his slender fingers between her pearly little teeth and perfectly pink lips, a small playful snarl creasing her little nose nearly drove him over the edge.
Removing his fingers one at a time from her grasp, he caught her chin and pulled her close enough to whisper in her ear.
"If you persist in such activities then I might be forced to speed things up to suit my own time table," he whispered huskily against her ear, making the small woman cling to him and shiver slightly, "now, I believe we have somewhere we need to be," he reminded her before running his lips down the bare skin of her neck and then pulling away, pleased with the look of irritation and loss that crossed her features. His features were the picture of control and perfection as he offered her his arm and led the stewing miko away, slightly concerned that he still wasn't able to fully control certain other rebellious parts of his anatomy.
Sesshomaru slid the door to his office study open just in time for he and Kagome to witness Yoko pounce on Toshi and begin pulling on his feathers, protesting loudly about something that neither could quite make out while Takehiko shook his head and rubbed his temples as if he had a migraine building and Matsu watched from safely across the room, his gaze fixed on them in horrified fascination. Yoko stopped tormenting the young noble long enough to give the couple a casual "yo" before resuming her activities, completely ignoring the squawking of the younger man.
The lord of the west seated himself at his desk and Kagome settled comfortably to his right before the two finally finished their squabble, the aquatic lady leaping back triumphantly, a bright orange feather clutched in her nimble fingers and retreating to her cushion across the room.
"Oi! What was that for!" the disgruntled bird demon asked indignantly, rubbing his head where the feather used to be.
"You know exactly what it was for!" the teal haired lady quipped back before sticking her tongue out at him in a rather mature manner. Kagome stifled a giggle before leaning closer to her future mate.
"Should I take lessons in lady-like behavior from Yoko-sama, my lord?" she whispered, hiding her smile behind her hand, though her eyes twinkled cerulean mischief.
"You, I will deal with you later, little one," he whispered back and was disappointed to see that upon turning back Yoko gave Kagome a conspiratorial wink and his own person a thumbs up before settling back in satisfaction, tucking her prize into the hair behind her ear, the orange standing out in stark contrast to the silky blue green that was her long tresses.
"If we are quite finished fooling around this Sesshomaru would like to get down to business," he looked pointedly at all present and receiving no objections turned their conversation to the matter at hand.
"For those of you that were busy or otherwise occupied," be pointedly looked at Yoko who winked and fiddled with the end of her prized feather, "you might not have heard that there is a rather powerful holy group that has assembled." His face never changed, but the little miko by his side could almost feel the self directed irritation he was feeling about what he was to say next and she laid a hand reassuringly on his leg. "Unfortunately this Sesshomaru greatly underestimated both their intentions and their strength, resulting in extreme injuries to my person," he paused. "However, this means that this Sesshomaru has also seen some of their battle tactics and what they are capable of." The whole room leaned forward, listening intently. Kagome knew what it took for the Great Lord Sesshomaru to admit that he was defeated and had made a mistake and she squeezed his leg again before returning her hands to her lap.
Over the next few hours the lords discussed the limits of power that Sesshomaru had witnessed as well as possible weaknesses and battle tactics.
"But Sesshomaru-sama," Toshi interjected, "houshi's and miko's have never really been known to form groups with one another. They have tendencies to help one another out because of their association and holy powers, but a mixed group is a rare thing," he finished and the taiyoukai stared at the claws of his steepled fingers.
"Indeed, and I believe this is part of what makes their group so powerful," all in the room gazed at the beautiful lord in confusion. "In the case of demons, male and females have separate capabilities and specialties. Monks and priestesses are no different. Though they may draw upon similar powers, and some may even have the same Kami's, their usage and strengths are incredibly different. The groups usually have separate goals and are divided by their differences, if they pooled their collective holiness into one objective…"
"Good Kami… they could become a holy army," Takehiko said quietly and Kagome tensed, vague history lessons beginning to surface, nagging at the back of her mind.
"An army…" Yoko murmured. "Wait, Sesshomaru, didn't you mention that some of the ones present while you were there wielded swords instead of staves?" she asked, her tapered fingers worrying the tip of her feather.
"Not some of them…all of them," Sesshomaru responded more coldly than he had intended, "even the priestesses had them, but they seemed to use them more as a conduit for power than a weapon. All the blades seemed to be enchanted in some manner and had runes unrecognizable to this Sesshomaru adorning the blades."
"Do you think you could remember their shape well enough to sketch them for me," Kagome asked suddenly, speaking for the first time and surprising everyone, "perhaps I could take them and compare them to holy runes used by monks and priestesses I've met on my travels," she reasoned and her taiyoukai nodded his silver head, his eyes dancing with something she couldn't quite pinpoint before he turned back to the room.
"This is a powerful group which uses their powers in conjunction with one another instead of relying solely on their own," Sesshomaru stated, his voice betraying his serious mood. "They have no intentions of talking and consider a demon's death to be a gift or a victory. Though as of now we are not sure of their complete intentions, we do know that they mean ill toward all demon-kind. Measures need to be taken and preparations need to be made. This needs to be treated as if they are starting a war. By attacking a taiyoukai, they have essentially already declared war. Tactics need to be created to deal with powers that are the polar opposite of our own," his eyes were piercing with an inner golden fire.
"My fellow lords… prepare your armies…"
The darkness of the hallway was only broken by the dancing orange and red light that burst free from the partially open screen up ahead. The little miko approached quietly though any sound of her approach was covered by the sound of the fire and the tink and clang of metal against metal. Sliding the door open with a kind of reverence for the work being done within her eyes took in the sight of the bent and wizened figure silhouetted by the flames from the forge as he heated the metal, occasionally blowing his own fiery breath aided by his jug of fluid on the metal he was molding.
Quietly, so as not to disturb her, she knelt down next to the only other person in the room, smiling as the neko demon turned to glance up at her mistress.
"I am sorry, Kagome-san…I have been shirking my duties…" she said quietly before beginning to rise, but the younger woman's hand on her sleeve brought her back to sitting again.
"No, my friend, you belong here," the priestess replied with a reassuring smile. For many long moments the two women watched as the demon worked, the occasional chant or mutter reaching their ears above the din of the fire and metal, the air in the room filled with demon power that washed over them and caressed them with its artistic sense.
"All will be set to rights soon," she assured her friend, squeezing her hand before rising and leaving the room as if she had never been there, the neko watching intently over the progress of her fate.
Soft footfalls were all that signaled the passing of the miko as she made her way down the silent halls of her new home, but that was more than he needed. Her very presence and scent were more than enough for him, though he was sure without them he could still find her…she could never hide from him.
One moment she was walking tiredly down the hallway, silently railing at the Kami's for allowing such complicated garments to be made for women to wear in the feudal era…t-shirts and jeans were so much easier and were even comfortable to fall asleep in if one was even too lazy to remove them… oh yes, she was walking down the hallway when suddenly she was enveloped in white silk and fur, an intense feeling of disorientation coming over her before she realized it was because she was no longer vertical but horizontal and was being moved somewhere incredibly quickly.
Finally the world stopped moving and she found she could see due to the pale light of the moon, however there was no one to see. As quickly as the presence was there it was gone, leaving her to grasp wildly for the railing of the bridge in the gardens she now found herself standing on.
Stupid youkai and their stupid speed and equilibrium… "Alright, Sesshomaru," she huffed and placed her hands on her hips taking on her best 'mother scolding a bad child' look, "I know it was you because you can't completely hide your youki from me anymore… so just come out here." After a few moments of silence and nothing she huffed again and crossed her arms over her chest, beginning to get annoyed. Just what was he doing?
A slight breeze picked up and she could swear she felt the ghost of a touch running down her shoulders and tracing her figure to her hips, but when she spun around there was no one there. Looking around herself a tad nervously she clasped her kimono more tightly closed with her right hand and gripped the railing of the bridge with the other.
Warm breath on her neck and the barely audible whisper of her name against her ear nearly made her jump out of her skin, but once again upon spinning around there was no one there. Bright color on the railing caught her attention and she saw a single pink sakura blossom resting gently against the wood.
As she leaned and picked the blossom up tenderly she felt slender and strong fingers slide through her tresses from her temple to the tips, but this time she didn't turn. There was no mistaking his aura and he let it wash over her now as she stood with her back facing where she knew he was. Steel-like arms came around either side of her, one pulling her back against him and the other removing the blossom from her fingers and tucking it gently behind one ear.
"You know," his voice was so soft and gentle, like velvet and nearly made her heart melt as she let her weight press her against his warmth, "if you persist in being so perfect then I might not be able to wait…" his voice held playful warning and she couldn't help but smile. His arms came up underneath hers and he held them out in front of them both, her shorter arms resting on his and her petite hands were tiny in contrast with his well muscled arms and larger, clawed hands.
"I don't know what you're talking about," the little miko quipped back and she felt his arms tighten around her, trapping her in his embrace.
"Well then, should I show you?" his voice was husky and sent shivers of anticipation down her spine. Turning in his arms, she placed her small hands on his chest, her glazed eyes taking in his appearance from the smooth, pale and hard chest under his slightly open hakama to the silver hair spilling over one shoulder and brushing against equally pale skin, his stripes and moon standing out in beautiful contrast.
Long pale silver lashes framed his fiery golden eyes that held unmasked and unchecked love for only her, completely stealing her breath away. His hair seemed haloed by the bright light of the moon behind him and dazzled her as he leaned slowly down until his lips claimed her own and her eyes slid shut. The kiss was slow and gentle, making her heart ache for a man that she knew was capable of and had probably killed thousands without another thought.
"Sesshomaru…" she murmured against his mouth, but he didn't pull back yet, instead he gently sucked her bottom lip between his and nibbled on it with a fang, "aaah… oooh… aaah S-sess…" Kagome was having slight trouble maintaining her train of thought. "Sesshomaru… I..." finally he pulled back, but only a little, his breath caressing her still moist lips. "I'm still… a little uncertain…" a look crossed his eyes and she quickly elaborated, "not about you… but about… the whole… demon… marriage thing…" His eyes bore into her and she continued. "I just… um… I mean… Yoko's told me some… but she doesn't know about…. human and… youkai pairings…" she knew she sounded really lame. "Um… I just… I mean… will anything … you know… happen to me?" Sesshomaru wanted to laugh. His miko really was adorable; she was so timid and yet contained a strength that could rival a dragon.
"Then I'm sure our dear friend Yoko told you that youkai pairings require an exchange of blood," the raven head nodded slowly, "and that in the case of strong pairings there is sometimes an exchange of power," she nodded again. "That really is all. You probably won't go through any physical changes," he paused, a slight frown creasing his mouth, "though I am not entirely sure about the exchange of powers…" his pause made her nervous."We happen to be possessed of opposite powers; however they seem to have found a way to co-exist. Perhaps because you are human there will not be an exchange and we will not have to worry. If there is, I am confident that we are strong enough to overcome any squabbling our auras might have…" a small smile snuck its way onto his face and she pushed him playfully.
"They're not like children you know! You can't just tell them to sit in the corner if they misbehave!" she insisted and he smiled.
"That doesn't work with demons anyway," Kagome narrowed her eyes at him and he kissed her forehead. "Sleep and consider, my little one, we will speak another time," he took her arm and began leading her back to the palace at a strolling pace.
"Why do you insist on calling me 'little one' and 'little miko,'" she asked curiously, "not that I'm offended, but they seem to be nicknames I'm stuck with," she smiled up at him and he glanced down at her.
"I call you by those because it should not be possible for so much power to exist in such a small body," he responded, his eyes taking in her slight form, "and I have the overwhelming desire to protect this small person, despite all her power."