Chapter Four: Injuries

(Hey everyone, I just wanted to let you know that this story is coming to an end soon and I was wondering if you guys wanted a sequel, m'kay? Thanks to everyone who stuck with me!!)

Inuyasha had fallen into the habit of waking up earlier than Sesshoumaru, but it was really hard considering the super sensitive ears he had. After he realized the pajamas he wore to bed rustled too loudly, he began with planning pranks he was going to play on Sesshoumaru. But to do this, he needed to know the castle. Exploring around the castle deemed itself a hard job because it was huge, and the corridors seemed to be endless and the same except for the decorations that laced the walls.

During this, he met all servants, every time he met them in the hallway they usually stop and chat for a while unless the servant was in a hurry to do whatever task they needed done. Some have even told him of secret passages they used get to a certain location fast. For some pranks he needed certain materials but did not know where to get them, the servants have helped him (of course, they didn't know it was used for his pranks).

He was also thankful to the servants, around a month ago, Sesshoumaru hadn't even known of this, he was burning up with a fever, Hiin-chan had come in to clean thinking Sesshoumaru and Inuyasha had left the room. After cleaning up the restroom, she went to fix the bed to find a shivering, sweaty and sick Inuyasha. She immediately had a cool cloth on him, and called a few of the other servants to help after Inuyasha's request of no healers. Of course, that day he did not do much but the next he had fully recovered and helped them with some loose chores after he played two pranks on Sesshoumaru; after all, he had a schedule to follow.

Sesshoumaru scowled, he hadn't been rested ever since Inuyasha began to sleep in the same bed with him. Who in Kami's sake wakes that early in the morning anyway? And those pranks, where does he get the materials? Remembering the happy face Inuyasha had on every morning when he woke up made his heart flutter;' what the hell?! ' He ignored it and went back to continuing the work he was doing.

Inuyasha sat on a tree branch belonging to the largest tree of the side gardens. His stash of pranks was running out, and so he was supposed to think of some more, but instead his mind was stuck to Sesshoumaru. He thought back to that first day he was here and fainted a little after their Youkai had claimed each other, when the light shone on him, how beautiful and ethereal he looked. He looked down to his plans and then thought of Sesshoumaru's sleeping face. 'Sess's so beautiful when he's sleeping. '

He gasped. 'Since when did I ever call him "Sess"?'?' And why do I get that fluttering feeling whenever I think about him? I need to talk to Hiin-chan and Dai-kun about this!' He jumped down, running towards the kitchens.

"Hiin-chan!! Dai-kun!!" Inuyasha called as he walked in, the servants in there smiled and waved, Inuyasha waved back as he past, heading towards the couple. They were making some kind of dough at the counter. "Hello, Inuyasha." They weren't calling him 'Lord' because Inuyasha insisted that friends do not call each other with such formal terms.

"I need the answer to a question, you've got to help me, okay?" he asked. They looked at each other, he could see them conversing to each other through the bond they had as mates, then at him, together they nodded at the same time. "Alright, what do you need this time?'

He pouted, so they did know about the pranks. "I haven't planned it out yet, why don't you ask me later? I've got a different question…I-If you get butterflies when you think about someone, what does that mean?"

They smirked and conversed through their minds. Dai-kun thought to Hiin, 'He's finally fell in love with Lord Sesshoumaru, huh?' She smiled back at him, 'Finally, yes.'

"Well, it usually means you love that person. Who is this someone you are talking about, Inuyasha?"

That's what they told him, when they asked him who, he had blushed and torn out of the kitchen, waving bye, and he was back in the tree he had left just under twenty minutes ago. He sat there, their answer echoed throughout his mind, 'in love? With Sesshoumaru? But I've hated his guts for a long time, nearly all my life. ' But he knew it didn't matter, so he sighed and went on. 'Bored, bored, bored, bored, bored!!!! Why does the such a huge palace have to be so boring? I want to run around in the forest again, not this idiotic flower garden!'

Just how long was he going to be trapped here, wait, never mind, for once in his life he cursed his demon blood for making him live for almost an eternity, unless he was fatally injured which probably wouldn't happen because he was TRAPPED! The large tree had a amazing view he found a month ago, overlooking the huge expanse of land where he once traveled with Kagome and Miroku, Sango, and that annoying little kit, Shippo. Well at least Shippo would have been better than air. Dammit it all, he thought, well if there's nothing to do, I'll find something to do!

Having discovered it a couple weeks ago, he had went to the weapon room, getting there was easy. Now that he had become friends with the guards and servants, it wasn't hard to convince them to letting him out for some training on the farther clearings. Inhaling deeply, Inuyasha smiled as the familiar scent filled his nostrils (the garden were full of flowers, Inuyasha hated it because it wasn't 'earthy' enough therefore named it fake.) it was a bow in his hand instead of Tetsaiga, unbeknownst to many; the bow was the first weapon he had learned to use, from his mother. Placing a small target on a tree ten feet away, he shot the arrow, embedding it a few inches away from the desired area. It was expected, after all, he had not touched the bow for more than half a century.

He continued practicing, determined to get his skill back to his old standards; whiles someone's presence loomed nearer to him.

Sesshoumaru glanced out of the window as something changed in a matter of seconds. It didn't seem too near, closer to the outer grounds and did not seem too dangerous so the guards can handle it. His eyes then turned toward the papers again.

Inuyasha huffed as the last of his arrows embedded itself the closest it could have to the little circle he had drawn without entering it. He swore and sat down, pouting at the arrow, as if it would inch over just a bit; Inuyasha didn't realize a dagger was heading towards his head. Sighing, he made to stand up but half-way up the dagger caught him in the arm. The dark figure scowled slightly but jumped swiftly and silently away.

Inuyasha felt like the tree as the dagger embedded itself into his forearm, 'My apologies, tree, I didn't know it hurt so much.' He scanned the skies and trees for the attacker but it seemed there was nobody there anymore. His arm was slowly becoming numb; the dagger had been coated in a poison. He gritted his teeth together, and quickly pulled it out, just like when Kagome had put a "hello-neko" band-aid on his cuts and then ripped it off quickly when it had healed.

He gave a cry, and kneeled over, gasping loudly. He not only didn't have strength in his legs anymore, because the poison was spreading quick and nobody but the guards knew he was here. It hurt to even move as the poison traveled swiftly through his veins and all he could do was lay on the ground, waiting for someone to discover him, applying a pressure, trying to stop the blood flow as much as he could have.

Sesshoumaru sighed and dropped the brush into the ink well, his eyes were drooping. Moving the scroll aside, he rested his eyes against his forearm, slumping back in his chair. Inuyasha flashed through his mind, and he questioned them. It seemed that for the last few months, he warmed up to Inuyasha, to others it seemed rather obvious as the days past, and finally it now occurred to him that he loved Inuyasha. 'I'll arrange something and then tell him.' Slowly, thoughts of Inuyasha lulled him to sleep.