Waking the Moon

by Wonder1258

A hundred years after fate ripped them apart, the haunted Sesshomaru and his beloved Kaoru are reunited. But the new world they trek through is more complicated than either could have ever imagined and they will be forced to make the most heart-wrenching choices to protect the ones they love. Will they choice each other despite the consequences, or will they part for good?

9. Chapter 8

Chapter 8:

Lord Sesshomaru

When studying the art of war lead to hunger—as it did for every great lord—Lord Sesshomaru rose from his book and wooden study and made his way down to the dining hall. His study, the zenith of his castle, always proved an irritant to disembark. As a young demon, he would ease this boredom by throwing himself out the study window to land on the ground below. His own weight hurling toward the ground had always proved faster than the stairs. However, now he was the lord of the castle and lords, his mother had always stressed, didn't run inside their castles. "It is unseemly for the Lord of a manor to haste about in his own home. Your subjects look to you in all things. If they see you being frantic for as little as anything in your own manor, they will—whether they realize it or not—doubt your power. It is for you to be poised and graceful in all things and especially in your own home… not to mention your incredible speed will wear the place down and we can't have you living in a hovel."

Thinking of his mother as he strode down the many levels of castle brought a variety of emotions that prove effectively distracting, for soon he was on the third floor—the second largest and grandest of them all after the main hall—where the lodgings resided. It was here where all the Lord's family and guests stayed. As he crossed the hall to the next set of stairs, he passed room after room, each more grand than the last. At the end of the hall, passed the stairs that divided guest rooms from the Lords own space, was his own set of rooms. He had long claimed both impressive chambers as his own. The last door was his personal bedroom, but the one before, with a red door like the ones before it, was the most important, again for the one reason he refused to think on.

On the frame of this door—her door—there was posted a warning: "Unauthorized entry will bring death." Apart from an elderly servant charged with maintaining the room, he was the only one allowed inside. Lord Sesshomaru placed his hand on the door and paused. He closed his eyes for the briefest second and allowed his memories to return. A flood overwhelmed him, nearly sending the great Lord to his knees. His sides throbbed and he yanked his hand away. Turning, he began to head off to his original destination when he heard something.

A rustling inside the room lit his ears on fire and filled his body with rage. He could sense no aura, but now he heard breathing clear as truth. A human, he seethed, must have been in this sacred place. He fought the urge to kick the door in. He braced for entry, careful not to rip the door off it hinges. A human had already defiled her chamber with entry, the last it needed was his destroying the place completely. Slowly, with no sound at all, he pushed open the door and gazed into the dark it held.

On the bed, he saw in the dimmest of light, there was a figure under the sheets. A flood of her smell hit him from inside the room, like she was there, but he dismissed this thought as if it never occurred. It was impossible and it had been so long since he was in the room, it was a reasonable dismissal. He pushed into the room, ready to rip the figure out of the bed and hurl it out the window. Closer and closer he moved, slowing to a speed that was all but standing still. When he was finally over the figure, he put out his hand to ensnarl the interloper. Inch by inch he moved until he could feel the heat off the creature. Then, in one swift move, he jerked the shoulder of whoever was to die, only to stop faster than he'd begun. He was, for the first time in his existence, confused, for staring up at him was the impossible: Kaoru.

He took a step back as she sat up and smiled a nervous grin.

Finding his voice, he uttered, "What are you? Phantom? Ghoul?"

Her smile left and was replaced with a serious line that etched division in her features. "I am neither. I am Kaoru of the North."

And with that he knew it was true. He did not know how or why, but she was there and he was upon her again and pulling her up into his arms. There she was exactly as she had been and so was he. They fit together as they always had and he held her for what felt like another hundred years. And after that he pulled back to look upon her. She was perfect and beautiful. She was the only one in the world. And he kissed her and his whole world went white.