A/N: I do not own Inuyasha or Goblin: the Lonely and Great God

Chapter Seven

Sesshomaru stared at the blank wall in front of him, the many paintings that had once decorated the elaborate, crepe-wallpaper were strewn across the ground in shattered amounts of wooden frames and shards of glass. In a fit of rage and a remembrance of his ward, he had saw the beauty in them and found the pieces annoying—hence he rid his presence of them. After five minutes of calming, he found himself in the wrong and realized that he had destroyed several priceless and original works from the Renaissance and the Romanticism eras. A sigh gusted past his lips as he walked around the sofas to pick up the broken frames; a small breath of relief soothed him when he realized that the artworks themselves had not been damaged. Taking two at a time, began the tedious process of moving the works to his study. Once he had properly cleaned the major mess in the living area, he set about sweeping up the splinters into a dustpan before disposing of them properly. If he injured himself later due a carelessness of forgoing tidying after himself, he would only anger himself more. Returning to his office, he removed the paintings from their frames and rolled them into loose spirals so that way the colors of the images would be preserved. He would find proper encasements for them at a later date.

Grabbing his coat from his office chair, the Goblin brushed past the door and appeared into a small alleyway hidden between two store fronts in Central Tokyo. With an irritated wave of his hand, he dispelled the remaining tendrils of smoke that came with his teleportation. It wouldn't do to have any lingering traces and make someone suspicious or cautious by accident. While centuries had given him patience and a more mellow attitude, he did not wish to put up with human quibbling on as to why there was smoke smoldering from his would grate his nerves. Best to avoid that.

The city rumbled in a flamboyant array of cacophonous noise coming from people, machines, and a myriad of other things. Edging against his hearing, the sounds began to agitate Sesshomaru's ears but he forced himself to endure. He had run out of groceries at his home and being that his Goblin body demanded food, he was enslaved to search for it. While food from fancy restaurants pleased him—and the wealth that he had accumulated over the years more than well sufficed as payments for him to indulge in such places—he found it much more pleasant when he cooked for himself. There was some sort of pride in the accomplishment that he could cook a better dish than any Michelin star chef and his restaurant. His ego practically swelled at that idea. So the trip to the market became necessary every other week.

In the many, many years that he had to himself, Sesshomaru found that he enjoyed such mundane things. At times he acknowledged that he dare not even consume human food, the very thoughts had once repulsed him. But as centuries rolled by and the effects his immortality became more and more apparent, he found things such as cooking and walking helped make the days more tolerable and at least slightly enjoyable. It was often such, that he would take hikes into the mountain, allow the remains of his youkai youki to roam wild while his Goblin's youki would spread and branch out just as widely. He could do such an act too, but the fresh air of the forest and the quietness that came with the solitude of the mountains surmised a great relief in him. It was almost as if he could close his eyes and fly back in time to simpler days where all he cared about was conquest and maintaining the House of the West. Of watching a little girl prance around an irritated imp. Of watching the daily lives of others with an air of regality and indifference. Indifference and an eternal sense of distaste had always been his. But now, he found himself more sincere and dare he say sympathetic to the wanderers around him. There lives were too short and difficult for one so misfortuned as he to ignore.

In reality, he should have been bitter. Angry that the mortals, and even the few remaining youkai had ends to their suffering and miserable lives while he was cursed to live on until he find the end of his curse. But instead there had been a rather sharp turn in his outlook to life, no doubt an effect of the passing of his ward and the guidance of his heir.

Speaking of the idiotic kit, his head tilted back and he closed his eyes, letting the sunlight stream through the hairs brushing his forehead. I wonder what he is up to. He has not come visit me in quite some time, nor this one him. This Sesshomaru has not seen the brat since I had lived on the mainland for some time in China...That was such a long time ago.

With a shake of his head, he shrugged and continued his way to the supermarket. No doubt his curiosity will surpass his busyness and he will find some time to annoy me. The company would not be too ill disposed, though, I suppose.

Curiosity.

His mind suddenly turned in a different direct and began to analyze the fact that the miko from his youth stood in time with him. Not old. Not some hag. Not even cursed like he. She lived, breathed, walked, talked, and even looked exactly the same as when she had with her travels companioned by his half-brother. He knew she had been a unique, existing as a reincarnation in a time only fifty years after her predecessor's death, but other than her surprisingly strong reiki, he had not expected much else from her. Especially since given her garb at the time, he would have considered her a tramp—however the modern era had educated him with the knowledge that almost all school girls wore such uniforms. Her attire aside, she should not be running around in the 21st century, period. A sigh escaped his lips. She baffled him. And things that baffled him agitated him to no end.

He had already commanded her to not summon him again (the fact that she could upset him greatly) but given what he could remember of her from back in the days, she was hard pressed to obey anything anyone told her to do. She had a fierce spirit, he had to give her that.

As he thought about he, he realized that he could recollect quite a few things about the miko. Not that he particularly cared about anyone in Inuyasha's group, he could remember all of them nonetheless because to some extent they were pack, but the girl...her name, Kagome, perhaps? Anyways, the girl, it seemed that each moment encountered shined in some way or another because she was always shining. She had always been surrounded by a gentle, dazzling aura. Whenever she interfered he had been enraged at how such a human could have such a light surrounding them. But now he felt inclined to believe that it was the very light always around her that made her specially granted life here in this time. He did not doubt that he would discover soon exactly just why she was here. The girl had always been inclined to run her mouth faster than she could shoot her holy arrows, so he figured when he saw her again—and he knew he would—he would inquire just as to exactly how she survived time's ravages and ended up in modern day Japan.

But for now, he would focus on which bell-peppers he would cook with his fillet mignon.

He gathered into his arms a small carrier basket for his groceries and proceeded to drift in and out of the grocery store isles with silence and poise. Not that he tried to, but that had always been his strong suit. Looking magnificent. From where he stood in the produce section, he could feel the stares of both women and men alike, and his ego preened. Perhaps this was another reason why he had come to enjoy partaking in more public human activities, there was always someone to feed the ego that burned inside him.

His nose sniffed, and he began searching for the best vegetables to serve with his meal. While many of his Inu powers had gone or decreased, some of them stayed with him—his strength, sense of smell, heightened hearing, and even to a degree his sight. However the spiritual and supernatural powers such as his poison whip, the youki cloud, and the thing that made him Inu (the great Dog that once raged inside him) were all gone. He rued their absence. He found himself constantly missing them.

His hand picked through the piles of sweet potatoes, searching for the freshest of the roots, and found himself pleased with three of the specimen. Gathering them and dropping them into his basket, he continued on, searching for sweet apples and raisins. He decided he would make a risotto with sweet potatoes, raisins and sweet apples, as well as a carrot and shredded napa cabbage for the sides to his dinner. With a quick nod at his final decision on food, he carried on to find his ingredients; caution and meticulous care marked every pick he made, searching for only the freshest of items. Half an hour later with a full basket of ripe, red meat, and crisp vegetables, Sesshomaru made his way to the cashier and paid for his items.

He walked to the swing doors and prefered that he should just teleport home keep his items fresh and chilled. As he walked to the sliding double doors, a peculiar tingling sensation overwhelmed him. Something was pulling at his senses, tugging him elsewhere. The moment his foot stepped over the metal threshold, a power took over him, and twists and twirls of lilac smoke pulled from his body. His powers were being used without his will. In the amount of time it took him to blink and reassess the situation, he had already been summoned away from the grocery store. He found himself, both hand burdened with food-filled brown bags, in a very pink room with a very pleased looking miko. With a sigh, the Goblin rolled his eyes. He knew at some point or another, he would see the miko soon, but honestly-this girl and her bright aura had the worst timing.

a/n: Thank you to everyone who reviewed!

Stay frosty my friends;)