Disclaimer: I don't own InuYasha.
Kagome rolled the dough and pressed the mounds into small globs. The huge sheets were then placed in the oven and the baked ones were taken out. She shoved her hands into the large mitts and grabbed the tray from inside the oven. The heat wafted out and warmed her up from the cooling night air.
She was the last one in the kitchen. It was late into the night but she had taken the whole day slow, perfecting each delicacy that was placed before her. The cook had told her she was nothing if not a perfectionist.
One by one, she plucked the warming rolls from the pan. A few she drizzled with chocolate and others she filled with a sort of whipped cream. A feeling of serenity overcame her and she understood why her mother loved baking so much. With that thought, her fingers went still and she placed a flower covered hand on her apron clad hip and refused to cry.
She started again with her baking. Her fingers grasped the last pan and placed them inside the oven and shut the door. With her feet she kicked a few more logs onto the fire and the flames illuminate her face.
While they were cooking, she pulled the pack of cheaply rolled cigarettes from her apron pocket. She had smoked before and, while not often, she would buy a pack to calm her nerves.
She pulled one out and placed it close to the fire. The paper lit and a heavy smoke wafted from the end. She took a drag and let the smoke settle before blowing it out. Her back pressed against the counter and she remembered her father that smoked. She shook her head and blinked to stop the tears.
"God, what is it, Tear Tuesday?" She joked, clenching her lips to keep the cigarette from falling while she rolled the dough into a clay tin so it would stay fresh over night. She finished with the decorating of the last few and packed up and cleaned her station. She ducked under her table to put away a whisk. Just as she was about to leave, she jumped when something was placed on the table above. She jumped and her head connected with the wood. She hissed and shuffled out.
Sesshomaru was above her, looking out the window and away from the plate of leftovers he had brought her. She smiled and lead him to the workers table. They sat in silence while she ate. The meat was cold but still rich and the rice complemented it nicely.
"Thank you." She muttered, pulling another cigarette from their pouch. She held one out to Sesshoamru who politely declined. They moved slowly over the window where she pulled a chair over to the window. He followed suit and watched her inhale then exhale, causing a large smoke ring to dance before her face.
"I never knew you smoked." He stated, keeping his eyes trained on the full moon. She just chuckled and when she laughed, a string of smoke trailed out of the corner of her mouth.
"I have many facets. You are lucky to see this, small, but important part of myself." She said quietly before tapping the ash outside the window.
"If you wished to smoke, I could provide better materials." He said and frowned when she looked over at him and blew a cloud right into his face. When her cleared the air, she had a smile on her face. It was not her happy smile nor her rueful one. It was mirthful, the likes of which you might find on the fey and pixies.
"Oh my Sesshomaru, you must understand, it's not the substance people crave, but the instant satisfaction." She rested her feet up on the window sill and he watched her watch the moon flowers bloom. She never looked his way.
He rested his back into the old chair and watched the stars twinkle in the night. He would, every so often, glance her way and catch that smile. Neither talked, just sat and observed the night in companionable silence.
TUH
Yuzuki jumped into action. Her hands shot to her canister and threw her remaining water onto the flames. They sputtered and she stomped out the ambers. The members of her team groaned and questioned her but she just shushed them and dropped to the ground. Her ear hovered over the dirt and she signaled to the people looking at her like she had lost her mind.
"Seventeen coming on horseback from-" She waited a few seconds before she pointed to the sparse line of trees in the distance. "-that direction."
They all pulled out their weapons that gleamed in the darkness. Yuzuki's swords reflected the moonlight and under the full moon, her crew could see the feral look that seemed to consume her pupils.
"Let me take this. Pack up and find cover; I will meet you at Dragon's Pass in one day." She said and they ignored her, planting their feet into the loose soil and raising their swords and assorted weapons. She growled and Cho cowered a bit before spinning her spear around a few times to give herself courage. "I'm not kidding. These men that are coming are not some bandits. You'll just be in the way."
"Don't be so cruel." The twins mirrored, pressing their shoulders together to lend each other their strength. She faced the trees but let her hands sweep out and hold back the others.
"I'm not being cruel, these men are dragons; rebels to make it worse." She revealed and the others glanced over at her with shocked stares. "They will kill you quickly and without mercy. The only way I can win against so many is if I don't have to hold back and worry about so many other people. You have gotten stronger, but not strong enough to take on dragons."
"Besides, this is my quest, I have to finish on my own. Get the tents packed and hide; if they get past me and to our supplies we are finished. Please." She pleaded and they obeyed, retreating after placing reassuring hands on her shoulder. Her swords hummed in her hands and she smirked.
When the men peaked the hill, they witnessed a girl, bathed in the shiver light. Her white hair flittered around her head and crowned her like a fairy queen. Her swords gleamed and seemed to be tinted in blood at her sides. Even from a ways away, they could see her heated gold eyes boarding into there skulls. The leader, mounted on a black steed and covered in a black cloak, pointed with his sword and they charged.
Yuzuki could feel her beast coiling in its cage, shivering in anticipation. She raised her twin blades and the men yelled out a battle cry over the sound of their horses hooves. Her teeth elongated and she growled low in her throat, flashing her fangs to the men.
A few dismounted and knew their mistake the second they made it when her blades connected with their flesh. She blocked their raised swords and deflected arrows aimed at her heart. She found a man racing at her back and spun quickly on the balls of her feet. Her blade connected with her shoulder and he let out a cry. Another took his place and lashed out with a poorly made mace. It smashed into Yuzuki's stomach and she was thrown backwards. She could feel her hold on her beast shake. With a flash, she had jumped up and ran, bare handed, at a man on a horse. She caught her red-eyed reflection in his pupils right before her claws dug into the sensitive skin of his neck. Her mouth clamped onto his jugular and she restrained her instinctive urge to tear it out.
She shuffle away from the man who was breathing thickly. In all the chaos, his hood had fell back to reveal his face. A boy, no more than seventeen glanced back. In her moment of self-doubt, her beast took root and refused to release its hold.
The battle ground was covered with their blood and a few had passed out. She knew her shirt was covered in blood but she moved onto the next few. They raised their bows and fired. Their arrows connected and splintered against the steel of her swords.
Her face contorted and the dragons watched with horror as her posture went slack then tenses up. When she raised her head, the leader was looking into the eyes of a bloody beast. Her fangs were coated in blood from one of his men and her irises were crimson.
"Let's play boys." She hissed, her words coming out as little more then a growl. Her beast watched with keen eyes and the leader left from his horse and landed on the ground. He raised his sword, as if expecting her to pounce, but she remained planted across from his men. Even in such a primal stage, she could recognize a man who who realized he was out of options.
"If I fight you, you have to promise to let my men go." He reasoned, cutting his palm and letting a few drops of blood mingle with the already soaked grass. The beast raised a bloody hand to her face and when she removed it, a splatter was painted across her cheek. She thought about it and ignored the pounding of her other half.
"Your men will live. The other one is ethical." The beast hiss the last word like it was a curse, never to be said. She walked forward with precise and smooth steps. She stopped before the leader and tilted her head, trying to catch her face below the thick block cloak. He shifted back and held out his bloody hand. "Killjoy."
Her fingers splayed over his hand and brought his palm to hers, which she had slit with her sharpened claws. Their bloods mixed and splattered onto the ground. He nodded and waved his men away.
Yuzuki's beast licked its lips and watched the tasty morsels retreat back into the forest. The man before her was tall, with slim shoulders and waist. She spotted the bulge of his sword under his cloak and the hilt of the other at his back. She cocked her head and ran a hand over her own blades.
"You are a beast?" He questioned, pulling a silver sword from his shoulder. She twirled her blades carelessly, cutting herself on a few occasions. They circled each other and talked, both wanting the fight to be prolonged; the beast for the pleasure of the fight and the dragon for the lives of his men.
"Yes." She hissed, slashing out once and gauging his reaction time. She smirked and blocked a blow and parried it. Both waited, never letting their eyes wonder from sir opponent. "You are a dragon."
"Why are you here?" He asked, startled when she snarled and the playful demeanor vanished. He raised a brow and she stopped moving and placed her sword laden hands on her hips. "What?"
"This is not how it works. You asked your question, it was my turn!" She demanded, flashing forward and digging the tip of her blade into his leg while he plunged a hidden dagger into her shoulder. Both dashed apart and in the flash of pain, Yuzuki regained control. She pulled the knife from her arm and tossed it to he ground along with one of her swords.
The leader seized his chance and sprung forward. She glanced up and reacted on instinct. Her claws moved up and dug into his stomach. His mouth was open wide and he glanced down at her hand. He choked and fell to the ground. She could feel the sob bubble up from her throat at the sight of his life blood flowing from the five puncture marks.
She moved forward and threw back his hood. Her breath was sucked from her lips when she recognized him. He was her future fathers most trusted lieutenant. Her fingers fluttered over his wounds and put pressure on them. His black hair was clinging together when mixed with the bloody ground. She knew he could hear her pleas for him to forgive her.
"Oh god Ryutaro. Oh god!" She whispered and she could feel tears forming. She could remember him sneaking candies into her during boring lessons and teaching her how to scale a wall with only her claws. She glanced into his eyes and saw the confusion boiling in his dark eyes. He didn't know her yet. "You can't die yet! You're meant to live!"
"How...do you...know...?" His question was cut off when he coughed and blood dripped from the corner of his mouth. She just shushed him and ran over options in her head. Her breath rushed out as she thought of one.
"You don't know me but I know you. I can save you if you let me." He didn't respond and she wasn't waiting for him to. Her tongue ran over the bloody marks and he clenched his bloody hands into the grass. She pressed his arching back into the ground and cleaned the wounds, smiling when the blood cleared and the bleeding stopped. Her worried murmurs fell on deft ears.
She glanced up and sobbed when she noticed his eyes had fluttered shut. Her voice was rough and she let out a cry of relief when his chest heaved and he took in a large gulp of air. She collapsed onto his chest and he tried to speak.
"Who...The 'ell are you?" He choked out and she refused to answer. He wanted to reach up and throw her off him, but he couldn't seem to find his hands. Her hair was in his mouth and her breath on his bare chest was causing goosebumps to race down his arm.
"My name is Yuzuki. I know you from the future and boy am I happy you're not dead." She laughed and fell backwards. He glanced over at her with only one thought in his head which he made orally known.
"You're insane."
Yay! Finally, you meet Ryutaro! I am in love with Kagome's part in this chapter!