Due to his disdain towards his half-brother, Sesshomaru chose to wash in a separate spring. Inuyasha and Miroku stuck together, keeping to the same pool. When the lord finished (As it did not take him long), he started towards the group. To his surprise, he heard wild laughter. Pausing in the shadows of the forest, the lord chose to listen in.
"She's in denial!"
"Totally, totally!" Kagome agreed, grasping her stomach.
Nazoki stared at them uncomfortably, shifting her gaze.
"So- Tell me this... Do you think he's cute?" Kagome asked, slightly slurring her words. Nazoki peered at Rin and Jaken, trying to think before she answered.
"Come on, tell us... We won't tell him..." Sango added, sounding all to devious to be telling the truth.
"Well... Of course... The Lord's features surpass even the..." Nazoki's voice trailed off, and the two girls erupted into a giddy chorus of laughter.
"See? I told you- I told you she-" Kagome's words were cut off by Nazoki's hand, which clamped over her mouth.
"Shh- I- If you don't lower your voice, he could hear you..."
Sesshomaru wondered why Nazoki could not smell him already, yet assumed it was the pungent aroma of Kagome's weird soaps, which inhibited her senses. He also wondered what was wrong with the women.
"Brothers?" Nazoki asked, and Kagome nodded.
After waiting for the subject to shift from him, he made his appearance. He had heard exactly what Nazoki had said. Even the most beautiful of cherry blossoms or rivers, huh? Well, being the Sesshomaru he was, he would act as if he never heard anything. Walking towards the girls, Sesshomaru ignored the fact that they fell completely silent as he approached.
Nazoki stood up, yet Sesshomaru walked straight past her to the tree he had claimed as his own for the night. Before he could jump into it, a light tug of his sleeve caught his attention. Peering over his shoulder he found Nazoki. The vixen gazed up at him, donning a slight smile.
"M'lord, I trust your bath was well?" She bowed as she spoke, and he nodded in response.
"That's good!" The woman grinned, and Sesshomaru raised an eyebrow at her cheerful demeanor. Instead of continuing the conversation Nazoki turned away, declaring that she would find him some newts or similar food. As she turned around, she stumbled, and Sesshomaru grasped the back of her strange robe.
The woman started to laugh as he pulled her upright, still slightly confused. Though he expected her to straighten herself, she turned, and leaned into him.
"Heh, heh, I almost fell..." In a surprisingly cute manner, she raised her hand to her lips as if she was embarrassed. The lord stared down at her, positive that she was indeed intoxicated. Kagome and Sango got up, and started into the forest, announcing that they were going for a "walk". Right.
Placing her palm on the lord's mokomoko, Nazoki grinned up at the man.
"How did you get so serious? Were you looking so angry when I came over here?" She asked, and Sesshomaru frowned.
"Angry?"
Nodding Nazoki peered up at him, and placed a hand to his jaw.
"You should smile, or something- Maybe laugh... Do you know how to?"
What a ridiculous question. Moreover, the other girls left him with this woman, who was obviously in no condition to be walking around or even speaking for that manner. Shifting his gaze, the lord nodded. Nazoki smiled once more, and soon a devious chuckle parted her lips.
"I should bite you, as payback..." The woman grinned, and Sesshomaru frowned down at her. Like he would let her bite him... Apparently, she had no sense of what she was saying.
"Hey- You're blushing!" She announced, and Sesshomaru stared down at her; slightly alarmed.
"Nazoki, go to sleep." The man commanded. After a second of silence, Nazoki nodded.
Sesshomaru expected her to walk away, and lay down somewhere. To his surprise, Nazoki leaned into his mokomoko, (Still standing, mind you) and closed her eyes. Confusion rippled through the lord, and he continued to stare down at her. This was odd, awkward, even. What was she thinking? The man observed her for a minute, trying to understand what she was going to do. It became apparent that she wouldn't move. She thought she could just lean on him and go to sleep.
"Nazoki..."
"Hmm?"
"What are you doing?" Sesshomaru finally asked.
The woman peered up at him, a cloud of drowsiness hanging in her eyes.
"Sleeping?"
Shaking his head, Sesshomaru gazed down at the woman. When she saw his reaction to her actions, a slight tint spread across her cheeks.
"I- Erm... Excuse me- I did not... Well, I just..." Stammering until she found some lame excuse, Nazoki seemed to realize what she was doing. She stepped away from Sesshomaru, lowering her eyes. Murmuring a slight apology, the woman awkwardly started away.
Sesshomaru sat on the ground, leaning back on his tree. Nazoki had shifted and trotted over to Rin and Shippo, a meter from the fire. The woman had quickly licked Rin's cheek, and laid down beside her. It became apparent that the robe Kagome gave her did not shift with her, so Nazoki had brought it with her and laid inside of it to avoid any slip ups. The only sound was that of small bugs in the forest. Soon, Nazoki positioned herself in the robe, and shifted. As planned, it concealed her properly and she moved to a spot farther from the fire. Apparently, where she was laying was too hot for her liking.
Moments passed, Sesshomaru gazed up at the dark sky overhead. The moon was half full, and brightly illuminated the outline of the trees. True silence fell over the man and he allowed his thoughts to take him. though he tried to refrain from thinking of his actions earlier in the day, it seemed impossible to ignore. Positive that the vixen was asleep, he gracefully walked to her side. The man knelt down, and watched her for a moment before hooking a single finger under her strange robe.
He lifted the fabric, and stared at the bite wound, which was barely healing. Through his constant expressionless mask, the man slightly grimaced. It looked worse than it was, but the fact that he had done that... Taking a moment to study the mark, and the calm expression that had taken Nazoki the man sighed.
As he stood up, a leaf beneath his foot crunched. The sound caused the vixen stir, and he watched as she lazily stretched. Soon, she curiously peered up at him, still appearing to be intoxicated, and drowsy.
"M'lord?"
Coldly peering down at her, Sesshomaru shook his head.
"It's nothing. Go back to sleep."
A moment of confused silence followed his words, but soon the woman slowly nodded. She murmured a slight "Okay", laying back down. Ignoring her perplexed stare, the lord walked away.
Fifteen minutes later, the girls returned with Inuyasha and Miroku. It became apparent that they were behaving just as oddly as Nazoki had. Sesshomaru was once again seated under the tree, deep in thought.
"Inuyasha, I'm just saying-"
"NO, Kagome." The man interrupted, sounding more annoyed then before.
"Fine... FINE! SIT SIT SIT SIT SIT!"
Needless to say, the half breed slammed into the ground and all stared at the odd display. The commotion was enough to awaken Nazoki. Without a word, she tiredly pushed herself up and started towards the humans. Sesshomaru watched as she wiped her eyes, and engaged in friendly conversation, which soon turned to his relationship with Inuyasha.
"But how could respect be maintained when-"
"Cause their dad was a huge dog! He could eat anybody who had a problem with it!" Sango cheered, and Nazoki slowly nodded.
"Oh- I see... Well, that is fortunate..."
Her discomfort grew apparent, as the humans settled down. Before Nazoki could sit as well, a hand on her rear caused her to freeze.
"You seem to have taken interest in their history. I could tell you more if we were to go on a short walk together. Wouldn't want to keep everybody awake."
Slowly turning to peer at Miroku, Nazoki stared at him with expressionless disapproval.
Seconds later, she was walking away, and Miroku was sleeping. Apparently, demons can't control their strength when they are intoxicated. Bored, the vixen walked to Sesshomaru. He was staring into the fire, not even bothering to look at her.
"M'lord~" Immediately cheerful, Nazoki sat down beside him. He still paid her no mind, and she shifted her gaze. Without warning, she laid on the ground, and placed her head in his lap. Despite his emotionless expression, the lord was immediately startled. He leaped away from her, landing with almost ten meters between them. Needless to say, Inuyasha wasn't the only one who face planted in front of everybody that night. Nazoki leaned up, frowning in confusion. Inuyasha's group shifted their eyes between her and Sesshomaru, unsure of what to say. He was obviously alarmed, and after a moment of silence started towards the forest. Nazoki had sighed, and laid back down as if nothing happened.
Before Sesshomaru could pass the first few trees, Inuyasha was behind him. Obviously annoyed, the lord turned to face him. Neither spoke for a while, simply stared at one another.
"Soo big brother." The teasing tone on Inuyasha's voice did not lessen the uninterested air around the lord.
"Why would you even take her in if you were just gonna beat her."
Though it didn't show, confusion rippled throughout Sesshomaru. Shaking his head, he glared at his half brother. "I do no such thing."
"Yeah, yeah. It's pretty obvious you got her fallin' all over you, but you don't want anything to do with her. Why don't you just make her leave?" The half-breed inquired in his usual rude tone. Sesshomaru's gaze did not lessen; he simply stared at Inuyasha, completely quiet.
"Better yet, why'd you bite her? It's not like you clai-"
"It was... Unintentional..." Scowling, Sesshomaru cut Inuyasha off. Coldly staring at his brother's widened eyes, the lord remained in place. A gust of wind attempted to lighten the intense silence, which had fallen over the two, yet did not succeed
"You lost control, didn't you?" Inuyasha finally asked.
A bolt of anger shot throughout the lord, though it did not readily reveal itself.
"This Sesshomaru does not need to explain himself to you." After growling the words, he turned back to the forest, and continued away.
Inuyasha returned to the group, and sat beside Sango and Kagome. They seemed to be busy watching Nazoki. She wasn't doing anything, simply laying under the tree, trying to sleep.
"I'm gonna go talk to her." Kagome resolved.
"Don't go sticking your nose-"
"She's lonely, Inuyasha. She needs someone to talk to- Another girl!" Unsteadily pushing herself to her feet, Kagome started towards the vixen. Sango silently nodded in agreement, and placed a hand on Inuyasha's shoulder.
"Don't worry- She's good with advice."
Frowning, Inuyasha crossed his arms
"Why the hell would I be worried? Fluffy's the one who should be scared." He retorted, shrugging the drunken hand off.
When Kagome sat beside Nazoki, the woman peered up at her curiously. Watching the odd interaction, Inuyasha frowned. Kagome was up to something. He knew it. The vixen leaned up, and stared at the Miko, occasionally nodding.
After a short walk, Sesshomaru returned to the group. Surprisingly, Kagome was sitting with Nazoki, engaged in some sort of banter. Sango and Miroku were sleeping, unnaturally close to one another, and Kirara was snuggled under Sango's chin.
"How?"Nazoki asked, and Kagome smiled.
"You just gotta go for it! Like..." Placing a single finger to her chin, Kagome looked up at the tree over them.
"When people like each other, they normally do nice things, and kiss. Uh..."
Leave it to Kagome to meddle in the affairs of others. Nazoki seemed genuinely interested, and captivated by the conversation. There was no mention of Sesshomaru, which made him wonder if they were speaking of another. When Sesshomaru approached, the two fell silent. Kagome grinned up at him, and walked away. Internally sighing, Sesshomaru ignored the odd expression Nazoki held. He sat at the base of the tree, as he had done earlier, and peered at Rin, Shippo, and Jaken. The vixen intensely gazed at her lap, not speaking. Silence filled the air, aside from a few stray whispers from Kagome and Inuyasha.
It did not take long for Nazoki to lazily slide her hands through the leaves beneath her, and stretch out. Of course, this time she moved away from Sesshomaru, not towards him. She did not intend to slam her head on the ground again. The lord stared at the fire, which was starting to die down. An occasional glance was spared on the woman, and after a moment he found himself openly staring. It was not until his half brother spoke, that the lord corrected himself.
"Careful, bro, you might accidentally show emotion." Snickering followed the open teasing, and Sesshomaru glared at the half-breed. A slight rustle beside him caught his disinterested attention, and he peered at Nazoki. The thought of her believing Inuyasha's claim annoyed the lord. How dare the half bread say such a thing. The woman stretched beside him, and her tail twitched as she sat up. After catching the lord's gaze, she lowered her eyes. The two stared in opposite directions, neither wanting to be the first to look back.
"M'lord..."
Slowly shifting his attention to the vixen, he was met with her emerald eyes.
"Hn?"
"If I go find you something to eat, will you let me lean on you?"
He was not hungry. Not in the slightest. Yet for her to make such a foolish offer... The man held her gaze, contemplating his answer. Kagome's words flickered through his mind, and he figured he would listen to the girl's suggestion. Instead of responding, the lord leaned towards her, and placed his lips to hers. Though she was surprised, Nazoki did not pull away, she remained in place, unsure of whether she should return his gesture. When he broke the kiss off, Sesshomaru murmured his answer to her request.
"You may rest where you wish..."
Nazoki seemed to consider his words. She offered nothing but another kiss in return. From where Inuyasha and Kagome were sitting, they watched Sesshomaru and Nazoki, murmuring back and forth, which soon turned to light kisses. Nudging Sango, Kagome was just as surprised as Inuyasha.
"Sango- Wake up- It worked..." The girl barely whispered, hoping not to catch the pair's attention. Silently sitting up, Sango gazed at the odd pair, and a lazy grin curled her lips.
"Good job Kagome!" The woman quietly praised.
"Erm... Should we be watching this?" Inuyasha whispered.
"It's fine, it's completely innocent. They're cute!" Excitedly grinning the words, Kagome intensely watched the two.
The force of their kiss increased, and Nazoki turned over; crawling into Sesshomaru's lap. The man did not protest, but wrapped his arm around her back. When the vixen's tongue flicked across his lips, he granted access. The taste of sake graced his tongue, and he slid his hand into her hair. Their kiss seemed to be getting heated... Soon Inuyasha's group was awkwardly blushing, and staring wide eyed. When Sesshomaru turned over and laid Nazoki on the ground, they had seen enough.
"Oh my god... They're gonna..." Kagome turned to Sango, and the woman was just as alarmed as her.
"Right there..." She added, nodding.
Inuyasha was shocked. He did not say a single word. Just sat there, wondering how this could be happening.
Nazoki threw a handful of leaves in the air, which swirled into an illusion. Concealed by a stone building, the two paid no mind to the gasps from the would-be onlookers.
A/N: Special thanks to the lovely NonieBee (4352183) for helping with this chapter! :)