After returning the Miko to her mutt, Sesshomaru started back towards where he left Rin and Jaken. Not to his surprise, Inuyasha leapt from a tree, swinging the Tesseiga around like a mad man. Gracefully jumping out of the way, Sesshomaru took care not to disturb Nazoki. Inuyasha spoke through clenched teeth, glaring at the lord who maintained a disinterested expression.

"There you are! Idiot, where'd you take Kagome!?"

"Inuyasha, stop. He had a good reason." Kagome softly commanded the half-breed, and surprise crossed him. He had not even been paying attention, but Sesshomaru was carrying that Kitsune. The woman was injured, and limply hung in place. Well, at least they had found her. Lessening his offensive stance, Inuyasha stared at his half-brother, as if he expected an explanation. Of course, he knew he would not get one. Kagome placed a hand on his shoulder, and Inuyasha peered at her. The girl wore a wide smile, and motioned to the lord who had started away.
"It's okay. He just wanted to help her." She stated, her voice hinting at deep thought.
Frowning, Inuyasha allowed the Tesseiga to transform to its dormant appearance.
"Yeah? Well she's still fucked up." The half-breed stated, nonchalantly.
"Inuyasha! Wasn't I just telling you to mind your manners! I purified her! She breathed a bunch of miasma!"
"Really? Well you shoulda purified her wounds! She's all cut up, and bloody-"
"INUYASHA SIT!

Ignoring the commotion behind him, Sesshomaru continued about his way. He would put Inuyasha in his place another time. Right now, he would not put Nazoki down. The lord was walking at a leisurely pace, deep in contemplation. Internal dialogue streamed through his head, as he glanced down at the sleeping vixen. She had not even moved. What was wrong with her? Was she about to die? Again? Focusing his gaze on the moon, Sesshomaru tried to think of what he could say to the woman when she awoke. Would she still want to talk about the last time they were together? Or would she act as though it never happened? Whatever the case may be, he just hoped that she would wake up.

'Do you really wish to take her to the pack in such a condition?'
'It is not a pack. They are my servants.'
'Funny that they do not serve you...'
'Be quiet.'
'Take her to the forest, and heal her.'
'This Sesshomaru does not know how she does it.'
'It cannot be hard. Do it.'
'Silence, I need to think.'
'You are thinking. Mark her.'
'The vixen refused my mark.'
'Allow me to mark her; surely she could not heal that.'
'Shut up.'

A low groan interrupted the lord's thoughts, and he stopped as Nazoki gripped his Mokomoko. Gazing down at the woman, Sesshomaru sighed. Well, at least she could still move. When Inuyasha's group was out of sight, the lord turned into a forest. He walked up a small hill, paying close attention to their surroundings. It did not take long to find a small clearing. Nazoki would rest, and he would keep an eye on her. Not that he cared or anything... He just did not want Rin's friend to die... That's all. Her clothes were still damp, and he wondered if she had even been able to dry herself. Without a word, Sesshomaru gently laid the woman on the grass, and sat beside her. They were facing a small clearing of the trees, with a perfect view of the moon.

Silence had fallen over the forest, only lapsing for an occasional breeze, or the scurrying of a nocturnal animal. Glancing at Nazoki, Sesshomaru studied the many cuts and gashes which adorned her body. With one slow, sure movement, the man grabbed her tail. It was exactly how he expected it to be, soft, and warm. But not as warm as she normally was. He shifted his attention to her hand, and held it up to examine her cuts. The clumsy idiot had done it to herself, how foolish. You would think she knew better then to grip the blade of a sword. From her thumb to her wrist was a deep gash, which bothered Sesshomaru. His own sword had done that to her...

The wound on her stomach is what truly intrigued him though. How large was it? Easing one of his nails under the fabric of her yukata the man sneaked a peek at the injury in question. What had happened to her? What did Naraku do to her? Most of all, Sesshomaru wanted to know why. Though the man maintained his usual lack of expression, he inwardly cringed at the sight of Nazoki's torn flesh. Even her ankles were cut. The lord would have grabbed her ear again, but it too had somehow been injured. Tightening his jaw, Sesshomaru averted his gaze. He had seen enough. Most likely, he would need to get Nazoki a kimono. Not another strange yukata, but something nicer... Did kitsune even weave kimonos out of their strange fabric? They had to. If not, what would they do when winter came? Oh, but the body heat thing... Huh.

Laying back, Sesshomaru contemplated the events leading up to this moment. When he first met her, he thought she was unusual, yet not a bother. The oddest thing about her had been her nervous tendencies. He still had yet to see her exhibit such behavior with anybody but him. And when he thought she had excluded him, by giving everybody else a pendant... Then she tried to bond with that dreadful kitsune, and the lord called her away. His actions did not make sense. Every time she smiled or laughed with another man, even so much as touched him, Sesshomaru was immediately angered. He knew it would still have the same effect, as just thinking about it, he wished he had done much worse.

Then again, Nazoki had said her ring would affect his emotions... But he didn't have it back when she joined that gathering... When Koga had saved her, instead of the lord, he had contemplated simply shoving his claws into the wolf's neck. Her friend Eiji had quickly fled at the sight of the lord's poison claws. How dare he speak in a foreign language and hide secret conversations from the lord. Right in front of him too! The nerve of that kitsune; to romantically pursue Nazoki. He could not even let her be near Inuyasha; for fear that the half-breed would seduce her. No matter how Sesshomaru looked at it, she was his. She had been his, and he had been hers. Even if she denied his mark.

The vixen had insisted there was a more suited mate for him, but he did not care about her power. Obviously, she had enough to escape Naraku. Cleverly, at that. The man was positive she had perished.

'Mate her.'
'Shut up. This Sesshomaru does not care for kitsune.'

Nazoki had even lasted for a while on her own, sickened by miasma.

'Do you hear your thoughts right now? Heal her.'
'I told you, she has not shown this Sesshomaru how.'
'Then... Kill her?'
'What? No! Why would I-
'You are not doing anything else!'

Growling in response, the lord shook his head. How absurd. Kill Nazoki? Wasn't that the problem? Ignoring the continuous pestering of his beast, Sesshomaru glanced at the woman beside him. She did need to heal. However, if she was not awake, how could he initiate the flow of energy? She had not moved from the spot he had laid her in. The vixen was curled on her side facing him, still completely peaceful. How dare she reject him... Nobody rejected him. Nobody ever had the chance... Nevertheless, she never said it was because she did not want to be with him; simply implied that she was not good enough.

'She loves you.'
'What? She never said that.'
'We love her.'
'WHAT? I never said that!'
'Wake her up. Mate her.'
'Again? You just want to mate her?! She is in no condition to-'
'Then heal her!'
'This Sesshomaru does not-'
'At least try...'

Shifting his gaze from the moon, Sesshomaru stared at the vixen. She was obviously too weak to do anything but sleep. Maybe if he could give her energy, she would be okay. Nazoki had done the same for him, after all, and it seemed that she already had nothing to give when she had. That she gave him her last bit of strength, and retreated to rest. Why had she not accepted his offer to heal? It was obvious that she had been bleeding for days. Her every move would have been enough to open another wound. Vanity must have consumed her, because she had obviously cleaned up after seeing him. He could still smell the herbs on the woman. So foolish; to waste energy on her looks when she was already exhausted. Then again, that is how kitsune work. They adore beautiful things, and Sesshomaru could tell how embarrassed she was to look so poorly.

'Do it.'

Not a single second was wasted as Sesshomaru moved over the woman. Resting on his palm, and knees, he eased his legs between hers, and pushed her to her back.
"Nazoki..."
She did not stir at the sound of his voice. Her heartbeat was faint, only adding to the lord's grief. After a moment of studying the woman's unresponsive behavior, Sesshomaru crashed his lips into hers. She had to wake up. Did she even know he was here? That he had come back for her? Would she never sing of his return with Rin again? Many a day he had heard the pair before he arrived. The lord had chosen to wait, and discreetly listen. His passion received no response. Lowering himself to his elbow, Sesshomaru slipped his hand into her crimson curls. He could not force her to take her strength back. It was useless. She had to do it. Moving his lips to her neck, the lord pulled her hair out of the way. Without hesitation, the man marked her. She would be his, even if she did not recover; her last moments would forever be his.

Pushing his lips back to hers, the man continued to desperately kiss her. She had to accept his strength. She had not even shrieked, or protested his mark. How had she given him her strength? If nothing else would work, he would try to drain her, maybe then... The second the thought popped into his mind, the man reversed his focus. When a sliver of her energy danced onto his tongue, he knew he had done it. The moment he realized his success, he pushed his strength to her. She was accepting it. He figured it out. Noticing a slight movement, Sesshomaru opened his eyes. The moonlight revealed a furrow of the vixen's brow, and soon, a hand was placed to his jaw.

Nazoki's free hand wrapped around the lord's back, and she tightly pulled him against herself. Relief danced throughout the lord, and he deepened the kiss, passing the energy between the two of them. White light peeked through the wall of his hair; gently caressing the pair's features. When one of Nazoki's legs wrapped around his, the man severed the connection, and moved back to her neck. Of course, his mark had been healed, but he did not care. She was awake, and he would have plenty more time to claim her. As he traced his tongue over the spot he had previously bitten, Nazoki tightened her grasp on the fabric over his back and pulled him closer by the nape of his neck.
"Sesshomaru..."

The murmured tone was like a soothing melody. One which he had heard so many times, that he had assumed would always be there. Days without it had driven him mad. After dragging his fangs across her skin, the lord pulled back, and gazed into the emerald pools of her eyes. Small flecks of light were reflected in them. A second was taken to study the soft expression the vixen held before he spoke.

"Do not allow men to drag you through the forest..."

Staring up at Sesshomaru, Nazoki slowly nodded.
A playful smile curled her lips as she responded..
"Does this Sesshomaru not count?"
Upon hearing the words, a humorous snort escaped the man. It seemed as if he had been holding his breath, and only now could he release it. She was okay. And had chosen to amuse him instead of adding to the dramatic air, which had settled over the pair. Well, that was an unexpected question. Nazoki seemed surprised, and the expression was apparent, but soon she allowed a soft smile to take her once more. The lord's stern, yet gentle gaze seemed to captivate her, and she traced her thumb over his strong jaw line. He was definitely smiling. Not a single doubt remained in her mind, and no matter how small the expression was, she could tell. Without another word, he moved beside her, and she watched his every move. The man had given her a share of what little energy he had left, and she did not know what to say, or how to react. He stared at the moon, and leaned back on his elbow; not bothering to look at her, and acting as if nothing had happened. Though he had done a world of good, and she no longer ached, or felt exhaustion seeping through her limbs, Nazoki wished he had not broken the contact. He had obviously returned for her, and managed to reverse the effects of the miasma. It really had been him, mourning his mate, which only showed that he considered her as such. She wanted to be closer to him; the real Sesshomaru. A breeze rustled the leaves of the surrounding forest, bringing a slight chill with it.

Inching towards the lord, Nazoki leaned up. A second was taken to study the man's calm expression. He was truly lost in thought. His hair beautifully draped over his shoulders, resting on the ground behind him. The light of the sky revealed the deep magenta stripes of his cheeks, and the crescent of his forehead. The man had not washed his own dried blood from earlier away. From the looks of things, he rushed back to get her, not thinking of himself for a single second.
"I'm cold..."

Sesshomaru gazed down at the vixen, knowing it was an excuse. Of course, he did not point it out, simply turned his arm towards her. She gently worked her way into his grasp, and leaned against his Mokomoko. When she had comfortably settled against him, Sesshomaru draped his arm over her waist. Softly grabbing his hand, Nazoki traced the dark stripes of his wrists. The lord gazed down at her as she laced her fingers with his.
"Thank you, Sesshomaru..."

Upon hearing his name, the lord felt the corners of his lips barely turn up again. He returned his eyes to the moon in the sky, secretly enjoying the hand in his, and the soft tracing of his marks.

'We did it.'
'Yes.'
'Now mark her.'
'Shut up.'

A/N: Yaaaaayyy~ So the story has been continued. It's named Lord bound 2 (Cause I'm cliche) If you want more, then check it out! :3
Also- Special thanks to Noniebee (4352183) for helping me with so many ideas for this story. If not for her, it wouldn't even exist :) Check out her stories! (Or Sesshy will be angry O.o lol)

To KyoyaOotoriLover- Thank you for your review, and I am glad you like the story :) I will definitely be adding more chapters, and already have a few different scenes planned out!