Silver Moon: Chapter 9: Silence

Disclaimer: I don't own Inuyasha

Claimer: Sheba and Sasha are mine!

Sesshomaru was more than capable of tracking her, but clearly tenseiga had other plans for the neko. Sasha looked up at him with furious green eyes. Sesshomaru smirked, "I will let you have your revenge neko, but first we must find her."

Sasha growled before both demons followed her scent to the edge of his lands. Sesshomaru was pleased to see the creature could keep up with him as he ran through the forest. He heard the neko go silent and stop, "Good, we are close", he thought as he too came to a halt.

Sesshomaru could smell the stench of snake youkai all over the area. He found himself looking at the camp of six of them. He could smell Sheba, but couldn't see her. Then, one of the snake youkai was thrown across the clearing and against a tree. He couldn't see what had done so though… then, he felt it. Fear and anger hit him in waves. Finally, he saw her. She was laid in a heap near the fire, out cold… had she been the one to injure the youkai?

As if hearing his question another snake approached her body and boasted, "How is it none of you have managed to prepare out meal?"

The youkai reached toward her and froze. Horror was blatant on his face as the arm he had reached out with was bent sharply backwards against the direction of the elbow. The loud snap and grinding sound seemed to echo around him, and the screams of the injured youkai that followed.

"Her body is protecting itself…" he thought, satisfied by the fact that this information meant they had not managed to cause her much harm. He unsheathed tokijin and walked into the clearing.

"Oi! Who are you?" one of the snakes asked puffing up his chest.

"I am Sesshomaru, Lord of these lands. You have taken what is mine and you shall pay." Was all he said before slicing through the youkai. He turned and unleashed tokijin on the rest of them. Once they had fallen he sheathed the sword. Now came the challenge, how could he move her without being injured?

The thunder was booming now, it was well after sunset and the temperature was plummeting. He knew she would not survive if she was exposed the cold and the storm. Humans caught illnesses from such things, and in her weakened state she would not have the strength to battle it… to his surprise Sasha walked right up to her. He half expected the cat to be snapped in half, but instead it nuzzled her cheek. He could hear her heart beat quicken. Yes, tenseiga was correct; the feline would be of use to him. If it could rouse her to the waking world he could move her without injury.

Sheba opened her eyes to the sound of Sasha's purring. She frowned and tried to roll away from her kitten, but was wracked with pain. The pain brought up all her memories. Terror filled her mind, where was she, was Sasha ok? She sprang up, but her vision blurred and her mind seemed to be swimming in and out of a million things. Pain, there was a lot of pain. There was pain in her head, her ankle, no her whole leg… her whole body seemed to be trying to face in one direction; as though she was the needle of a compass pointed north. She knew that feeling well, "Sesshomaru…" she murmured before she fell back into the darkness.

Sesshomaru took his chance and lifted her; that was when she mumbled his name. He cradled her in his arm before running back to the palace. The storm was engulfing his lands; his only hope was to out run it. After a few seconds he could feel the cold drops stinging his face. His eyes scanned the land for shelter. He wouldn't let her fall to mother-nature when her was this close… he spotted a cave and ran into it.

He frowned, he was soaked, but at least she was only damp. He took in his surroundings. The cave was deep. He expanded his senses around them. Good, they were alone. He heard the feline enter the cave and shake itself dry. He set her down near the wall of the cave, and then looked at Sasha.

"Go keep her warm", he ordered, the feline immediately curled around its master.

Sesshomaru left the cave and found wood that had not completely been soaked and returned. He started the fire and removed his now soaked haori, and sat near the fire to dry. He could hear that her heartbeat was strong but he had felt the pain that had been radiating from her when he lifted her. He would have to check her for wounds he decided.

First, he inspected her face. There was a scratch on her cheek, but it was just a nick. However, he also found a knot developing at the back of her head on the crown. A frown pulled at his mouth sharply; this could easily be the cause of her pain. It was at this time her lashes fluttered open. She stiffened, she could feel Sasha curled up around her, but she was staring at a man's chest. Granted the chest was wearing the white under hakama shirt, but it was more the fact that her forehead was pressed to it… the pain was back… it shot through her veins and went from her head to her toes.

"Tell me where the pain is", she heard the soft growl of Sesshomaru's voice. She instantly put two and two together and realized the chest belonged to him. She felt another wave of pain wash over her, she reached out and clung to the chest, and a produced a half scream before her voice fell to silence.

"Where is the pain?" he was snarling now.

"My head and my left leg!" Sheba shrieked.

He immediately turned his attention to her leg. Her damn pants were preventing him from finding the wound. He slashed the material away. The leg was heavily bruised. He could actually see the black and blue handprint of the snake youkai defacing the once creamy skin. Then, his eyes fell to her ankle. Her foot was dangling from her leg; the ankle had clearly been crushed… furry filled him. He had never been so angry in his entire life. His eyes bled over as his beast snarled inside him.

"How dare anything touch what is OURS", it roared to him.

"They will all die." He told himself quietly.

Sheba screamed in his grasp again. It was a chilling sound of pain that she seemed to be drowning into. He could do nothing for these injuries but set her ankle. He took her chin as carefully as he could in his rage, and forced her to look at him.

"This will hurt, but it may relieve some of the pain. Do you understand?" he watched her nod through tears. He then untied the sash to his hakama shirt and took hold of one of the straight branches he had found. He took her limp foot and pushed it back into place, and was rewarded by her screams. He then placed the limb along the outside of her ankle and wrapped the sash around it. After wrapping the cloth several times he tied it. She was panting in pain, but he could feel it lessoning.

"Can you tell me what happened?" his eyes were still red with rage.

"I was trying to get some of the flowers from the fire tree for Rin…" she hissed in pain trying to sit up on her own.

"You are far too weak to be wandering that far on your own", he growled.

"I know but Rin was sad, and I knew they would have made her happy…" Sheba was relaxing as the pain became bearable.

"Yes, why was my ward so upset?" he took her chin again; he wanted her to look at him.

"… She saw me crying", she whispered.

He was shocked by the honest confession. But most of all it was the hurt he could see in her emerald depths. He leaned closer, "Why?"

"I miss my friends, I'm confused, and I think that I won't make it through this." Tears were shining in her eyes now.

"You are not telling me everything", he stated, inhaling again; yes there was the faintest hint of nervous tension and anxiety that told him she was omitting something from him.

"It is nothing you would be concerned with… you still needs to drink don't you?" she asked quickly trying to distract him.

He smirked at her attempt. However, dawn was approaching and she had a point. He nodded, and accepted the offered arm. As he drank he could feel her slipping out of the conscious world. But as she drifted away she curled closer to him. He released her arm, and gently settled it at her side. He expected her to drift closer to the neko, but to his surprise her unconscious body squirmed closer to him. By dawn she was cuddling his leg, and over the night her scent had calmed. He was confused by this, but it made that familiar tug return to his chest. He had watched the storm rage on through the night, but now it was breaking up. He scooped her up in his arm and looked to the neko, "Follow", was his simple command.

He was puzzled when she didn't rouse at him lifting her, or when he placed her in her bed. He instructed Minda that she was not allowed out of the Honored wing until the spell was complete. That night Minda had informed him that she had only woken to eat twice and then nothing. He drank from her unconscious body. He could feel her heart weakening each night after.

Until, finally, the last night came. He watched the barely visible raise and fall of her chest. Her heart beat was quiet irregular and slow. Her skin was normally porcelain but it was now missing the healthy flush it once possessed. Her lips were drained of their once pink shade. She looked like a doll; a perfect little doll. He had turned her to a doll…

She had not woken in two days. He lowered himself to his knees at the edge of her bed. He gently took her arm and her sweet blood filled his mouth for the last time. A pulse came from her limb and through to him. Pain flooded his senses. He snarled as he ripped away from her. He looked down to find his arm had indeed returned. He flexed his hand a few times as if to confirm its existence, before Koto and Mai both collapsed into tears together. Then, he heard it. Silence, nothing, no breathing, no heartbeat, the room was silent.

Then, more pain. It felt as though he had been stabbed in the chest; he howled in rage and pain. She couldn't be dead. Sheba was strong.

Pulse.

He looked down at tenseiga. The sword pulsed again. He obeyed the sword for the first time without question. He killed the under-worldlings, and waited. Still, nothing, only mocking silence filled the room. The pain increased and Koto and Mai's weeping became louder.

No, tenseiga never failed. Damn that silence. He couldn't breathe. He had never experienced anything like it. Emotions hit him in waves; he dropped the fang and took hold of the arm. The arm he had taken her life from her with; just to regain his own. He felt nauseated, breathless, and dizzy. His head spun. His vision bled over as a pitiful howl reached his ears. It was a mournful and gut wrenching sound. It wasn't until the second time he heard it that he realize it was not from the maids, but it was his own voice. He had only heard it one other time; when his mother had died.

Moments passed by. Koto attempted to move near the bed, but was snarled at by Sesshomaru. It was a warning. If she approached; she would die. Mai couldn't take it anymore. She lunged at the bed and found herself in front of a seething Taiyoukai.

Suddenly, Minda moved between them and in the harshed tone she could command, "Silence!"

Sesshomaru moved to his chosen head of his household; when he heard it…

Thump

Thump-Thump

No. It could not be…

The pain withdrew to a dull reminder. Koto and Mai flew past him to their mistress. He retrieved the fallen fang and sheathed it before leaving the room. She was alive; that was all he needed to know for now…

…………………………………………..

Kagome was beyond happy Sheba had not returned. They had encountered Naraku. Not a doll but the real Naraku. Sango and Miroku were heavily injured, but alive. They had not defeated him, but in the confusion of the battle Kagome had manage to get one good shot at him.

She had missed.

However, she had hit the jewel. Never in her life had she been so happy to be off on a shot. The jewel had splintered and exploded in all directions. Naraku had cursed her and vowed to make her pay, but he disappeared in a cloud of miasma before Inuyasha could finish him. The key facts were all his jewel shards that were not in use were no longer his, and that made him venerable and weak.

But if they could get Sheba, she could heal their wounds. Otherwise it would take days before they would be able to look for shards. Kagome had set out to get her that night. She made it through the well, and took her mother's car to pick up her friend. But there was something strange as she turned the doorknob to the apartment. The apartment was silent. The t.v. was off. The kitchen sink and dishwasher was empty. Sheba hated doing dishes. She shook it off and moved to the bed room where Sheba slept.

Kagome swung open the door, and gasped at what she saw. It looked like Sheba had been robbed. The room was ransacked, drawers laid open, the bed was tussled, her closet empty, and she couldn't sense the jewel shard.

Panic filled Kagome, her heart hammered in her chest. She flew back home and through the well. She ran straight for a waiting Inuyasha, "Sheba's missing!"

I hope everyone liked it! I really wanted to thank everyone for reviewing. They mean a lot to me. It's almost finals week and I do my best writing when I should be doing something else so I will probably be cranking out chapters faster than normal, (it's my stress outlet).

Plz R&R

~-* Suki