Disclaimer: I, GinKitsune, do Not own Inuyasha or any of the other characters. All Rights to that title go to Rumiko Takahashi-san. This fanfic is solely for fan entertainment only.

A/N: So here I am, not much to say for myself. *rubs back of neck* well I had planned on getting this out two days ago but I hit a road block, and as a result this chapter has kinda come out choppy. I've mentioned in the past chapters that I'm looking for a beta, and I'd appreciate that help if anyone is interested. My friend must get tired of partially taking on the role by this point lol, I'd like to give him a break. Warning: this chapter contains some suggestive themes and minor language. Hope you like this chappy and Please Review.


Chapter 7: July

Sesshomaru wasn't sure what to think about the change in Kagome, sure she hadn't been deadly silent before but that silence was far more often than now. His travel companion softly hummed some song under her breath and would occasionally mumble something about the warm weather, or randomly stare at him curiously before asking him some silly question. Ever since they returned from her family she seemed far more alive than before, and as a result he was given the opportunity to learn more about her. The question was, how much did he wish to know? From day one she was an enigma to him and one he later found he wanted to unravel, but to what extent?

She really was a peculiar girl, well woman he mentally admitted. It was hard to not to recognize that much, even if he wasn't happy to admit to her effects on him. Sesshomaru kick started his mind to another matter and thought back on their little visit to her time, all the things that had occurred that day. This was as good a time as any to venture for more information, and judging by her continuous displays of curiosity towards him he doubted she'd stay silent much longer. Mentally he tacked off the list of things he wished to know, starting with the most prominent question.

"Who is Hojo?" Sesshomaru questioned, glancing over at her beside him. He hadn't missed the little occasion when her mother had called her over to speak with her about all the gifts said person had given her during her absence. After seeing the large pile it sparked his interest, why would someone send her so many things? Did he wish to gain her affections?

"Nani? Hojo… is just a friend, that's all." Kagome responded rather nervously, a small blush crept up into her cheeks as she cast her eyes down to the ground. She fidgeted with the hem of her haori as she chewed on her lip thoughtfully.

"Do all your friends in your time bring you gifts?" The question was very simple even if blunt. Sesshomaru took her moment of distraction with the ground to watch her more closely, clearly the topic was making her uneasy but she could refuse to answer and yet she continued.

"N-no, he..sorta… like likes me" She said nervously, feeling more embarrassed by each passing second. Ah, so the boy- at least he assumed it to be a just a boy, truly was after her affections then. Something inside Sesshomaru growled in protest to this knowledge, he quickly squashed the feeling before any display could be materialized.

"Ah, and how do you feel about that?" He said with the barest hint of irritation creeping into his voice.

"Eh? I'm never home long enough to even consider it… and my attention was directed elsewhere…" Kagome wistfully stared into his golden eyes as she answered, a note of sadness in her tone. Quickly she turned the tables around on him, eager to get out of the spotlight as quickly as possible. "What about you? No Mrs. taiyoukai of the West?"

"No." He said with a cautious eye on her as he slowed his pace a bit and watched her expression change. Kagome quickly stepped in front of him and began walking backwards to keep her position, her brow furrowed in consideration.

After a moment of silence she looked up into his face and continued her questioning, "Why not?"

Rather than answer her intrusive question Sesshomaru coolly side stepped her question and simply stated, "I've been perfectly fine alone." He said in a convicting final tone.

Kagome raised a single eyebrow, his short statement not quite answering her question. "But, don't you ever get lonely?"

"How can I when you're so talkative anymore?" Sesshomaru nonchalantly replied. Her eyes quickly widened in embarrassment, the little display causing his eyes to brighten in light amusement.

Kagome scoffed at his little remark and could swear she saw his lips quirk up for a moment, she tilted her head slightly and made a face, "Ha ha, very funny. So how does it work? Do you have to find a mate or do you know when it's 'The One' or something, or is it only to… breed…?" she treaded, watching the amusement in his gaze swell into silent laughter.

"Often mates are arranged from birth, to strengthen bloodlines and clans, in the lower clans mating is solely for breeding. There have been a few cases of "true mate" the occupants of said cases being intertwined to one another's 'fate'-"

Kagome grinned slyly, "like true love at first sight?" He nodded without interest. "No offence but I don't believe in that love at first sight stuff."

"Aa, neither do I." So there was something they could agree on, that was unexpected.

Kagome launched into another question, wanting to keep him talking; this was the most she had ever gotten out of her silent companion within such a short time frame. "So there's no one you're interested in?"

"Why are you so interested in my relationship status?" Sesshomaru ever slightly raised a single elegant eyebrow and looked down at her.

"Curiosity…you know.. Just trying to understand you, I mean we've been traveling together but I don't know very much about you." Kagome nervously stammered out as she cautiously avoided tripping on a rock behind her.

"Aa," he gazed down into her eyes as she continued to walk backwards in front of him, his response causing her to blush. Was he saying yes about her statement, yes there was someone that held his interest or both? But he didn't give her time to ask him before he threw out his own question, "What was that odd smelling liquid your grandfather was drinking from that strange looking container?" Sesshomaru quickened his pace to take residence beside her, if she kept walking backwards she was sure to trip sooner rather than later. She caught on quickly and turned around to walk properly an arms length along side him.

Kagome took a moment to ponder on what he was speaking of, a small smile lit her face as she concluded what he must be referring to. "You must be speaking of the beer he was drinking, it's a low alcoholic beverage served in my time. The container is made of aluminum, metal shaped into thin hollow cans in factories and then shipped and filled where the beer is made. My grandfather has a little with his meals every now and then, next time we go for a visit I can get you some to try, if you like." Kagome took a moment to survey the taiyoukai at her side, who had seemingly been listening so intently he didn't realize he had moved closer.

Sesshomaru nodded once she finished, his mind drifting onto the possibilities of this said 'can' more than the drink it contained. He had never heard of aluminum before, and so he gave in to his craving to learn more. After all, he wanted to be well educated in every way he deemed worthy and knowledge of her time was certainly something he could get into. "Are there other uses of this Aluminum?" He questioned, pleased when she nodded and smiled up at him and launched into teacher mode again.

This went on for nearly half an hour, remarkable for the demon lord in itself before he stopped his little interrogation. Kagome had answered every question that came at her with the best of her abilities, she knew he had more questions but he didn't push for more answers. What she found unfair though was that he had been asking all the questions while she didn't really get a chance to find out more about him, but she would let it slip for now. She'd get her answers eventually. For now her mind was occupied with all the questions he had asked her, surprisingly, more than half hadn't been about items of the future but pertaining to her.

Sesshomaru learned that she had lost her father at a young age, and that her mother and grandfather raised her and her brother: Sota. He learned various things about her world and about her, but seeing her family he could still tell there was something that made her unique, he knew there was still so much more to learn of her. But he wasn't in a rush and took to their comfortable silence, listening to their surroundings as they continued their trek through the forest surrounding them. They still had a few hours of daylight left, the remainder of that time was spent with his thoughts thoroughly threaded around the woman by his side.

~That Night~

Kagome felt something warm against her and felt oddly comfortable considering she was on the hard ground, or was she? Slowly her brain began to unfold the layers of sleep as her body started to realize she was laying against something too soft and warm to be the ground, the task very hard considering just how comfortable she was and whatever it was smelled so nice. She just wanted to bury herself in whatever it was and fall back into oblivion, but rationality overthrew the idea. Kagome focused on keeping her breathing normal, slowly she cracked open her eye and found herself staring at none other than Sesshomaru.

She forgot to breath for a moment but quickly recovered and forced herself to breath normally as to not alert him of her consciousness, though she was absolutely sure he'd have noticed if not for the fact that he was actually asleep. So Sesshomaru did need sleep after all, the thought vaguely crossed her mind as she gazed up at his unguarded face. Her heart stuttered as a deep blush filled her cheeks, he looked so ….breathtakingly beautiful in his sleep and even a little innocent. She bit down on her lower lip as she resisted the urge to touch his face, that would surely wake him. Kagome settled for just staring at his content expression as he inhaled deeply, his lips quirking unconsciously.

His pelt was softly wrapped around her body, her head was cushioned into his lap. It was then that she felt his claws very lightly scrape the back of her skull as his hand flexed against her slight movement, his fingers lightly entwined into her hair. Rather than try to move away though Kagome couldn't stop the smile that spread across her face, quite the opposite really. She found she really enjoyed the sensation flowing through her from such a simple act. She breathed in slowly and relaxed into him more as she listened to his rhythmic breathing before drifting back off into sleep.


A Couple Days Later~

The breeze played through the trees in a soft caress, as the sun shone down brightly onto our little- not so happy duo. Sesshomaru briskly kept in the lead as he concentrated on every scent other than hers, why did it have to be so damn hard to ignore. He could feel the heat of her stare on the back of his head and though he was aggravated it still surprised him to a degree that she'd be so upset over something that seemed so inconsequential, or at least it should to her. They had just encountered a boar demon yesterday and gained another small sliver of a shard, so shouldn't she be happy right now? It had been right after that short battle that he caught her scent and noticed the change, and it had distracted him since then.

Why was he avoiding her? Kagome mentally questioned again for probably the hundredth time or perhaps more. Everything had been normal- well as normal as can be between the two of them, that is, up until mid morning yesterday. Now he was avoiding her like a plague, keeping a good distance away from her and speaking even less than usual. She had thought he was starting to come out of that indifferent shell of his but of course he defied her beliefs in one day as he reverted back to the icy Demon Lord far in front of her now.

It infuriated her, to the point she was beginning to lose her ability to see straight and she didn't even understand why. Her hands balled into tight fists at her sides in frustration, she pushed back the urge to yell at him and picked up her pace. The sun beamed down brightly in the midday heat, Kagome relaxed a little bit and took a moment to enjoy the sensation as a light breeze played around her and cooled her body down. Her mind picked back up where it left off as she stared at the taiyoukai up front, was he mad at her for catching him in his actions from the other night? Somehow that didn't seem to fit, she was nearly a hundred percent sure that he hadn't woken up so if it wasn't something she did then what was it?

Was he upset at himself for those actions? It did seem odd though, it wasn't really like him to just react on a whim. Though it also didn't seem like him to show that kind of affection, the idea even stranger when directed to someone not conscious. Then again maybe that made it easier, perhaps because she wasn't conscious he felt more relaxed around her and didn't mind showing that affection. Kagome sighed, would she ever really understand what went on in that mind of his?

After taking Rin into his care Sesshomaru had did a little research on humans, so he knew that human females didn't go into heat. He could feel Kagome boring holes into the back of his head as they walked in silence. Sesshomaru learned that humans could reproduce at any time of the year, but still the scent she was producing was making his body want to react and take her. It was absurd, he had been around her while she was in this condition before over their time together, but it hadn't effected him nearly as strongly as now. Maybe it's because you realize you Do want her, whereas before she was just a lowly human. His subconscious mind growled out at him before being silenced.

The wind swiftly picked up and taunted him as it swirled around him, her scent clinging around him in mockery. He had to get away from here, away from her right now before his body caved in on him. A frown marred Kagome's face as she saw him tense up and go ridged, did she stink now? She bit her tongue to refrain her tempter and took in a deep breath, she didn't smell anything bad. Sesshomaru took a moment to whip his control back into order before swiftly turning around.

"Time for a break, stay here." He nearly snapped as he quickly walked off deeper into the forest, leaving a stunned Kagome staring at his back.

What the hell was that? Kagome blinked in confusion before glaring at his retreating back, they had just had mid day break about an hour ago so why was he so eager to stop again so soon? Her temper got the better of her as she stood there for nearly five minutes just fuming and glaring at the direction he had took off in. What was going on with him? Quickly she glanced over at Ah-Un who had landed near by, the dragon stared back at her looking almost amused. Oh that was it, she'd had enough of his odd behavior.

With her bow in hand Kagome took off towards the direction Sesshomaru had went, fire blazing in her eyes as she began to track the stubborn ass down. After taking a minute to get a lock on his youki Kagome took chase, luckily she sensed he wasn't very far away from her. Anger fueled her to run faster as she ducked and sidestepped trees in a reckless rush to confront him. All her thoughts on giving him a piece of her mind and dragging the truth out of him. "You baka," Kagome growled under her breath, "you can't just run away from me…"

Sesshomaru silently glared at the water as he stood in front of the small spring before him, a cold bath would do him a lot of good. He needed to cool down and get out of the clothes that still had her scent lightly clinging to them, half unconsciously he searched the area around him for a good clean place to put his clothing on. His thoughts lingering on her, why was it his mind thrived on torturing him with images of her smiling up at him. She wasn't in heat, that wasn't possible for humans. He repeated this to himself again, her body was just more fertile at the moment, that's all.

Rin would be going through that same process when she got older, then again he truly knew he wouldn't have this kind of reaction to Rin anyway. Why should it be any different for the young woman he accompanied? It wasn't even as if she knew of her effect on his body, a small sigh escaped his lips as he closed his eyes. In his minds eye he saw her writhing beneath him as he hovered over her, his hand slowly roaming over her soft petite body. Kuso! He mentally cursed as all the blood flowed south, angrily he tugged at his armor and quickly removed it.

He tried to blank out his mind but found the task to be incredibly hard to do, he could still smell her and it was very distracting. Forcefully he began to remove the top of his kimono, swiftly he shrugged his arms out of it and was about to remove the obi when the thrashing of tree branches pulled him from his thoughts and actions. What was she doing here? He told her to stay put! Just then she burst through the tree line and skidded to a stop, a look of utter shock filtered across her face as she took in his appearance.

Kagome stared wide eyed at Sesshomaru, nearly half way through undressing himself. His pale toned chest completely exposed to her, she bit down on her lip as she tried to pull her gaze away but found she couldn't. Blue eyes scavenged over his thin frame, a very deep blush traveled up her cheeks as she caught sight of the bulge in his pants. "S-Sesshomaru…" she tried to speak but her mouth was so dry, she licked her lips and tried to clear her fuzzy brain. Deep blue eyes glued to the well toned pale skin making it hard to drag them up into his eyes, but she managed to do it.

Sesshomaru watched her closely as she stood there, her hands clasped to her chest as her eyes traveled over his body. He wasn't sure if he should feel angry or pleased when a deep blush formed on her cheeks at the sight of his arousal, she spoke so low he could barely make out what she said. He couldn't deal with this, he didn't know if he could handle her being so close right now. Hesitantly she licked her lips and he caught her scent, sweet and spicy and ….oh Kami, she wasn't making this easy. He could smell the light scent of arousal on her now and as her eyes traveled up to his, their depths filled with shock that held a hint of desire and it was then that his control was shattered.

Suddenly Kagome found herself lying on the soft grass of the forest floor, Sesshomaru positioned above her with a look in his eyes she'd never seen before. She gasped as she felt his clawed fingers slipped under her hakama to lightly trail up her ribcage in a light caress, what was going on here? Apparently she did something he felt encouraging because he wasted no time in pulling her body closer to his, a low teasing growl escaped his lips as he pressed his bare chest against her. Kagome raised her hands to meet his chest, her face becoming so red it would make a tomato envious. She stared up into his golden eyes and was trapped, slowly Sesshomaru inched his face down lower to kiss her-

"My my, so sorry to intrude!" A mocking tone echoed through the trees around them, the wind softly blowing the putrid stench down around them. Kagome and Sesshomaru both knew who it was immediately, quickly they both stood up and took a defensive stance as they surveyed the area. Dark humorless laughter snaked around them as white fur could be seen flashing by through the trees. Naraku had come by for a visit.


A/N: Uh oh! Thought you'd see some fluff action eh? On top of that, a cliffer. :o *ducks and hides behind desk* Sowwy but I just couldn't help myself, honestly! Anyway I honestly am going to try and get the next one up before people want to bite my head off. For now I'm spent for the night, don't forget that you thoughts will likely speed up the whole process! Btw feel free to correct me if I make a mistake pertaining to clothing, environment, or just w/e.

Glossary:

Aa - Yes (informal)

Kami - God

Kuso - meaning Shit or often translated to Damn it.

Nani - What?

Think that's it

Please Review!