Wow, what a response! I honestly didn't think any of my DBZ/SM fans would have bothered with this! Thank yall for your reviews, and thanks again to Sesshy's Mistress for helping me to keep Sesshomaru in character! Go read her fics, they're awesome!
Apparently Kagome hadn't felt well upon waking, but had powered through the day anyway and had fainted just before she'd served supper. She'd roused on occasion, but not for long, and had told Inuyasha that she felt weak—or as the miko had put it, "I feel like I yelled 'okuwari' and you landed on my head."
Serenity strode right into the house the moment Koga had set her on her feet and had every intention of going right to the priestess, but the sight of Sesshomaru standing in the doorway stopped her cold and she lifted the corner of her lip in a silent snarl.
That was met with a growl from the inu lord, and if he hadn't been over a foot taller than her they would have been nose-to-nose when she shoved at him. "Asshole!" She snapped.
"None of that in my fucking house, you hear me, wench!?" Came a male voice from the bedroom, his tone on the edge of panic. "My woman and pup are more fucking important than any dumbass grudge you two have for each other!"
Sesshomaru was actually the one that backed down, but his golden eyes glittered with malice as he stared down the goddess. "The whelp is right. Attend to the miko… if you can. This one highly doubts that you have any power at all."
"Oh, you'll fucking see about that, you mutt! Now get out of my way before I move you!" She snapped.
Only because he could sense his half-brother reaching a breaking point, the Lord of the West slid gracefully to the side but blocked Koga from entering the room when the wolf tried to go in as well. Three in the birthing room was more than was necessary, and he would not have the wolf youkai distracting or upsetting Kagome or Inuyasha. If something happened to either the mother or the child, Rin would be heartbroken, and Sesshomaru wouldn't have that for a moment if he could help it.
Serenity sat at the edge of the bed and looked over Kagome quickly before examining her nails. They seemed thin, just as she'd suspected. "Are they breaking easily?"
"How did you know?" Kagome whispered tiredly.
"Iron deficiency. Thank the gods for that, it's easy enough to fix." Serenity glowed then as she set Kagome's hand down and held her own over the miko's stomach. "It's because of the baby," she informed her absently. "Being part inu, he requires more iron and he's sucking it all out of you, basically. Hm… he seems fine, though, and I don't sense anything wrong with the pregnancy. You just need to eat more iron-rich foods."
"I'll go get 'em for her right now," Inuyasha said hurriedly. "Tell me what they are."
"The body can only absorb so much iron every day, Inuyasha," Serenity informed him gently. "But red meat, eggs and vegetables like spinach. Beans and lentils, too," she added as she wracked her brain. "And for the record," she said quickly, "she shouldn't have been walking so far the other day. Kagome, how much have you slept?"
"Not much," she admitted sheepishly, cringing a little when her mate shot her a look that could kill.
"I'll admit that's mostly my fault," Serenity sighed. "If you were tired the first night you came to the lake, you should have just stayed on the futon. I wouldn't have minded if you'd just sacked out for the rest of the night, honey. You're pregnant with a child that will tax the hell out of your human body because of his lineage. I can fix the exhaustion, though," she added thoughtfully, pulling the blanket that looked like it was made from stars out of her subspace. "You may borrow this until the baby comes in December."
Serenity silenced her as she checked her over completely, and frowned as she discovered something troubling; she hadn't looked over everything in Kagome's body until just then and was grateful that the occasion had risen to do so quickly. "I will give you some of my power," she said simply, not wanting to alarm anyone in the room. "Hold still and lie quiet."
Kagome closed her eyes, lulled into a state of peace by the aura of silver surrounding her as Serenity placed a hand over her heart, and Inuyasha and Sesshomaru merely stayed silent for over a half-hour until Serenity finally opened her eyes and the light faded. "There. Feel a little better, Kagome?"
"Mmm… much, thank you!" The miko said brightly. She frowned when she looked at the goddess, though, and saw how drained she'd become. "You need moonlight, don't you?" She asked knowingly, but the moment she tried to slide out of the bed, Inuyasha growled at her and pushed her gently back down into the covers.
"Your mate is right," Serenity said wearily. "You need your rest, Kagome. I fixed the exhaustion, but I can't just fix a vitamin deficiency. I'm not all-powerful, sorry."
"But you need to get back to the lake, don't you? You shouldn't be walking there by yourself," Inuyasha pointed out. "Stay here for the night and we'll escort you in the morning."
Serenity smiled at that and shook her head. "For reasons I can't discuss, I can't be present in daylight, I'm sorry. And Kagome, he is quite the hottie," she added with a tired grin. "I can see why you chose him." With that, she stood and ignored the youkai in the kitchen, moving until she found a bench to sit on just outside right under the full moon. "Much better," she sighed as she lifted her face to it.
"This Sesshomaru is curious."
She cracked open one eye and snorted; damn, she hadn't even heard him move! "About?"
"You used a large amount of reiki just to cure exhaustion? This one could sense the level of power you employed."
Serenity sighed and shook her head before gnawing on her lower lip. "You know what? What do you care anyway? According to you, I'm a false goddess. Fucking prick," she added with a mutter.
"What was wrong with the miko that you needed to drain your energies?" Sesshomaru pressed, crossing his arms over his chest in annoyance at her attitude. He waited a long time like that, and was sure she was just going to ignore him when she finally spoke.
"Kagome and Inuyasha can't know," she said softly. "I don't want them worrying needlessly, and I'm sure he would make her batshit crazy if he ever found out."
"You have this one's silence on the matter."
"She had cancer in her breast. It was small and new, which is maybe why I didn't sense it last night, but it was the kind that spreads fast. She would have been dead in a year at the most. Satisfied?" She sighed. She looked up to find him studying her closely, and for the first time since he'd met her he didn't have a violent gleam in his eyes while he was looking at her. Maybe he'd back down; she really didn't feel like fighting anyone to the death. "If you'd like to go back to the clearing, we can finish our little dispute."
"It would be an unfair match after you drained most of your power. This Sesshomaru would fight you at your full strength. I do not needlessly beat on the weak." He smirked slightly when her eyes flickered up at him and burned in anger. "You think to best this one tonight?"
"No," she ground out, "but I'll definitely hit you up next time."
"I'm going back," she said quietly after nearly an hour of soaking in moonlight. It wasn't even close to what she needed to absorb to get back without worry, let alone enough to be at full power… but she couldn't stand the way Sesshomaru kept studying her silently and seemingly refused to leave her alone.
"This one will escort you," he said simply as he moved next to her and gestured for her to walk.
"Like hell you will," she snorted. "Piss off, dog." Serenity started walking as fast as she was able, but when she heard his diligent footsteps following her closely, she stopped and turned to glare up at him. "Apparently you're deaf as well as retarded, so let me spell it out, Sesshomaru. Go away. Now. Don't go away mad, just go away!"
"No."
The utter flatness of that statement had her swinging, but the daiyoukai simply moved like water and slipped out of the way, his lips twitching up in an arrogant smirk. "Why are you following me, anyway?"
"You saved this one the effort of explaining to Rin why her aunt had perished. I assumed that 'cancer' was similar to an incurable cyst. Therefore, I will ensure your safety back to the clearing and forget our agreement to beat each other to death… for now." He watched her roll her eyes at that and smirked again; getting on this woman's nerves was proving to be very entertaining. "I will escort you whether you like it or not, for I will not be blamed if you meet your end along the way," he continued. "So you may as well walk, false megami. Do not force this one to carry you."
"Touch me and you'll lose a hand," she warned before stomping off towards her clearing once more. Really, she'd would have preferred just go to her home; it was much closer than the lake and on the outskirts of the village. But she'd be damned if she'd give that damned uptight youkai any clue as to what she really was… other than a goddess.
They were well into the forest when Sesshomaru noticed that her pace had slowed and her breathing was labored, and he began to debate how long it would be before she collapsed from sheer exhaustion. That was when his inner demon reared up at the very thought and snarled protectively, insisting that he aid the silver-haired woman or face the consequences of the beast taking full control of him. Son of a bitch… this rarely ever happened, and usually only when he was beating on the hanyou too hard. The beast would come up and insist that he back off, that he not kill his own kin, and it was the main reason that Inuyasha was still alive to that very day. Sesshomaru's inner demon had saved the hanyou on several occasions.
"You are going to collapse," he warned her. "Stop and rest awhile."
With a whimper, Serenity shook her head and used the trees as supports as she moved slowly, and she hissed at him like a feral cat when she felt his hand on her shoulder, steadying her as she swayed. "Don't. Touch. Me."
The wild, animalistic display of her baring her teeth actually made him grin momentarily. "If you think to best this one in a fight, woman, be my guest and try it." It was then that her legs trembled like a newborn colts and she fell, but she never hit the ground. Sesshomaru moved faster than she could see and had her cradled carefully to his chest. "You are unharmed?"
A punch to his arm made him decide that she was fine, but she clearly couldn't walk, so he sighed and resigned himself to carrying her, lifting her gently as he stood and he fought down the urge to sniff her. Damned inner demon! Already annoyed with himself for feeling arousal from the simple action of holding her, he grunted when she punched him again… and again. "You test this one's patience."
"Good," she huffed as she thumped his chest ineffectually once more.
"As the hanyou would put it, 'we can do this the easy way or the hard way.' This one suggests that you choose the former. The latter will prove to be most unpleasant."
"I'll take the hard way all day long, you arrogant fucking cock-sucking bast—AAAAH! PUT. ME. DOWN!" She yelled when he slung her over his shoulder like a sack of potatoes and she pounded away at his back with her tiny fists.
"Mmm… this one has not had a back massage in quite some time. Please, continue."
"OH, YOU ASSHOLE!" Serenity whacked that perfect, tight ass as hard as she could with her open hand and felt a mixture of triumph and fear when he immediately stopped. But she had to admit that her hand was throbbing; holy fucking gods, that ass was hard as a rock! "You want another one, dog? Because I'd be more than happy to spank you like a toddler."
"Hn." With that, Serenity felt a sharp crack on her ass and yelped, knowing that there would be a red handprint on it if she looked. "It seems to me that you are the one behaving like a child, Serenity. Continue and I shall punish you as if you are one." He paused for a long moment before smirking slightly. "Unless, of course… you would enjoy it." He sensed her embarrassment and was momentarily intrigued by the hint of arousal he could smell; after all, her tail end was more than close enough to his nose for him to be able to pick up on it, and it smelled delicious. He didn't let on, however, as he gave her another whack, this one lighter… and sniffed the air again. "Hm… so, you do enjoy it. That is… quite unexpected," he chuckled evilly.
"I do not!" She protested hotly, squirming in his grip once more. She only received another slap to the rear and yelped, ignored how it tingled pleasurably afterwards, and then whacked him in return. "You're damned lucky I'm too weak to put any power behind it," she huffed wearily. "I'd jerk a knot in your ass if I were at full strength."
Feeling her sag in defeat, Sesshomaru smirked and continued on his path. "This one looks forward to your attempt, woman."
She was petulantly silent after that and simply hung there, and she was surprised when he shifted his grip after a mile and was cradling her in his arms once more, curling his mokomoko about her securely. "You were shivering," he grunted when she looked up at him in wide-eyed surprise. Serenity made reply, but she did keep still for the remainder of the walk while Sesshomaru secretly breathed in her scent and tried to make heads or tails of why his inner demon wanted her so badly.
###############################
Once back at the clearing, Serenity waited until Sesshomaru had taken his leave, concentrating on him closely to be sure he was truly and gone and not spying on her before she summoned up a trickle of power and teleported to her home and collapsed into her bed. Letting her hair melt to gold, she immediately felt a sight better since she didn't require the moonlight in her human body, but she was still exhausted from the ordeal of healing Kagome.
Damned cancer, it always took the most out of her since she had to eradicate every single bad cell or risk it coming back later on. It wasn't like healing wounds, where she just repaired the damage and went on about her way; cancer was so much more tedious and time and power-consuming than that.
She slept fitfully; dreams of the silver-haired daiyoukai plagued her and she tossed and turned and wasn't at all rested when she woke, wondering if Pluto's starseed was responsible for some of the dreams. In one in particular, Sesshomaru had looked at her with a soft glint to his golden eyes, then he'd bent down and claimed her lips gently, setting her toes to curl. But in another, they'd been beating the holy hell out of each other.
She was trying to put together something for breakfast when there was a knock, and she sighed and left the pot on the little fire so she could wave her hand to clothe herself in something less fine than the kimono she wore as a goddess. "Yes?" She asked sleepily.
"Usagi-san?"
"Mm? Nani? I didn't sleep well last night, so spit it out, demon," she replied, looking Koga up and down once as if she totally didn't know him. She also used a touch of magic to subtly change her scent before he could get a good whiff of her; the last thing she needed was someone figuring out her secret.
"My name's Koga. The new miko and her mate—er, husband, whatever. She's pregnant, and there were some problems last night, but the moon goddess from the lake healed her."
"Then why in the fuck are you bothering me?" Usagi growled. She tried to slam the door shut in his face, but it was stopped by his boot. "Look, puppy, if Serenity-sama took care of her, then the miko's fine. Just follow any instructions she left and go on about your business. I'll thank her later for saving me the time and effort."
"Look, I normally don't take orders, but Kagome's brother-in-law is here and he wants her checked over by what he calls 'a proper healer.' So if you don't mind…" He spied that breakfast was cooking on her fire and grinned. "We'll even feed you if you like. Sango's over too, and she's quite the cook."
Even thousands of years after the fact, Usagi would never turn down a free meal that didn't taste like shit—namely, one that didn't taste like she'd cooked it. "Deal. Let me clean up over here and get my things. You may come in while you wait."
Koga stepped inside and looked around, noting that the house was much like Kagome's. It wasn't one room like the other villager's huts and had three rooms, making it rather large by normal standards. The healer obviously did quite well for herself if she could afford such a luxury as separate rooms.
"One of them is a storeroom for all of my healing supplies," she said knowingly as she banked the fire and set the pot of covered rice to the side. "There. I'll get my bag. Just a moment."
"Eh, take your time. Like you said, Kagome's probably just fine. No matter what Sesshomaru thinks, that woman is definitely a goddess," he chuckled. "I didn't see you at the clearing last night, either. Have you ever met her?"
"Serenity and I are good friends," Usagi answered automatically. "Both of us are healers, after all. Sometimes I'll seek her advice for a particularly sick patient. There, I'm ready," she said, slinging a cloth bag over her shoulder.
Koga led her out and blinked in surprise when she stepped from the dark house into the sunlight and her unbound golden hair shimmered and glowed a little. "Wow." Then she blushed and he grinned. "Oh come on, little healer. I'm sure you're bombarded with compliments about your beauty all day long.
"I, um… keep mostly to myself unless I need to buy food in the village," she managed as she remembered that unbelievably hot kiss from the night before. Gods, Koga would be all over her if he found out she was really the moon goddess, too.
Leading the way to Kagome's house, Koga shook his head a little and couldn't take his eyes—or his nose—off the golden-haired beauty. "You're telling me that you don't have the men banging down the door to your hut every day, singing love sonnets and asking for your hand?"
"They did at first, but I chased them off pretty effectively," Usagi snorted. "I have no interest in marrying, thank you very much. I'm happy as I am." Then she looked over to see desire in his eyes and blushed bright red. "And don't you come calling either, wolf."
Koga grinned toothily at that and gave her a wink. "Fine, then. I'll just have to pursue you whenever you're out and about in the village. Though I was hoping to get a date with the goddess… that woman is something else."
"You have no idea, Koga," she snickered. "She would chew you up and spit you out." She outstripped his pace then as they neared their destination and she simply walked right into Kagome's home, smiling at the half-naked hanyou preparing breakfast. "Heh… now that's a sight I want in my kitchen. A sexy shirtless warrior cooking me breakfast."
Inuyasha turned and frowned at her before pointing to the bedroom. "My woman's in there, healer. Though I don't think it's necessary, I want you to check her over." When she lifted a golden brow and stared at him haughtily, he growled and stood to shove at her. "Now, wench! Go!"
"The healer would most likely go if you simply asked her, whelp," advised a rich voice from the other side of the room.
Usagi blushed at the sight of Sesshomaru stepping in from the bedroom, but stayed in character and pretended she didn't know him, dropping a brief curtsy. "I assume that you are Lord Sesshomaru? The wolf mentioned that you did not believe in the goddess's healing powers… let me inform you now that if she said Kagome is healed, then she is. I can be of no further use; Serenity-sama does not fail."
"Even the mikos doubt her; she could not have been much of a goddess if they are even speaking of not venturing to the lake anymore," Sesshomaru countered, lifting a brow at the sight of grief in her eyes. "You know Serenity well," he ventured.
"She is a goddess, Sesshomaru. I know it for a fact, I've seen the full extent of her powers. And you are stupid for doubting her. Now move out of the way if you want me to confirm that Kagome is fine," she sputtered, matching his malevolent glare. When he moved she pushed past him and greeted the miko shortly before examining her. "She's fine," she said. "Do whatever the goddess ordered, and don't call me into the village again if you've had the goddess attend to her first," she snapped at the youkai. "Understood?"
Inuyasha just smirked when she came back into the main room and handed her a bowl of food. "I'm amazed the asshole didn't rip your head off."
"He can try," she snorted. "He'll find me a more formidable opponent than he expected."
Sesshomaru grunted at the sound of those words and would have rolled his eyes if he'd been anyone else; the girl was clearly just a human and would take not a bit of effort for him to break her in half. That was why he didn't even bother giving her the time of day and simply leaned against the doorway between the rooms.
"She's cute, isn't she, Sesshomaru?" Koga chuckled low enough for only other demons to hear him. "And feisty, too, just how I like them."
"That one will put you in an early grave, wolf," Sesshomaru countered with a humorless chuckle.
################################
The damned daiyoukai had been right.
Serenity's lower lip trembled when midnight came and went and no one had come to the clearing to chat with her; not even a village boy had showed up for a kiss or advice, and she felt tears of loneliness tracking down her cheeks. "I hate him," she whispered before sinking into the water to wash her face.
When she came back up, though, she was no longer alone and she blinked at the sight of the wolf youkai waiting patiently at the water's edge. "You're not yelling at me to leave?" Koga chuckled. Then he scented her sadness and realized why. "Sesshomaru's an ass, I know."
"Then why are you here?" She asked suspiciously, staying too far out for him to reach her without getting soaked.
"I came for another good luck kiss," he admitted with a grin. "I'm going to try and court the little healer on the outskirts." He waggled his brows suggestively when she frowned deeply. "What? Don't think she'll go for me? By the way she spoke, you two are friends."
"We are. And trust me, you don't have a chance with Usagi, Koga. Set your sights on someone much more attainable."
He grinned and shed his clothing with demon speed and jumped in the water as she yelped in surprise and swam further away. "Hm… do I detect a hint of jealousy, dear goddess? Did you perhaps want me for yourself?" He teased as he moved towards her.
"Hell no," she answered honestly. If she was attracted to anyone, it would be Sesshomaru, but that guy was such a prick that his looks would never make up for his personality. Hell, he'd even chased away the only company she ever kept!
"Aw… can't say I'm not disappointed. I'd offer to take your mind off of your troubles for a while, maybe change your mind about me, but wolves mate for life," he sighed. Noting the sadness that still lingered around her, he swam a little closer and cupped her face in her hands. "You're awfully lonely, megami."
"Always," she sighed, unable to deny it. She looked him in the eye then and saw compassion there… and maybe a promise of friendship and good company. "Stay with me tonight and I'll give you that kiss. But that's it," she added softly. "I hate being alone."
"Deal," Koga replied gently, dipping his face to just barely press his lips to her. "I'll get the real kiss later," he promised her with a grin. "You hungry? I've got some food in my pack, if you'd like."
"Starving, actually," she admitted. "I would have brought food with me, but the mikos usually bring some and…" She shrugged and felt her throat constricting as she tried not to cry again.
"Come on, woman. Cheer up! Remember, it can always get worse! So come up to the bank, dry off and soak in some moonlight, and I'll fix us something to eat. Sound good?"
Serenity realized that he was right and managed to let go of her depressed mood when she did as she was told and he began to tell her funny stories about his pack, launching into another whenever she looked sad. They ate and she listened to tale after tale as she soaked in the moonlight and they both laid there in the nude, neither of them really paying attention to the lack of clothing between them once the initial assessments were over.
Koga was sexy as hell, but he really wasn't her type; he simply talked too much—even more than her, in fact. But he was definitely a nice guy, even for a demon, and she found herself greatly enjoying his company. "You're welcome here anytime, wolf," Serenity said when the sun began to peek over the sky.
"Good, because I plan on coming back tomorrow! I still haven't told you about how pervy Miroku is; I was saving that one for in case you started actually crying," he snickered as he slid closer to her. "So… my payment?" He asked with a waggle of his brows.
"Kiss away, my dear wolf," Serenity giggled, unable to stop herself from feeling happy; she'd found a new friend and that made up for the departure and the doubt of the mikos. Too bad he wasn't her type. "Though I'm telling you, it won't give you a bit of luck with Usagi."
"Let me be the judge of that," he growled before pulling her naked body flush to his.
Serenity gasped when he grasped a breast the moment their mouths touched, his tongue slipping inside to stroke and tease hers as his groin mimicked the movement and thrust against her. She moaned at that and melt into him, kissing him back, and her head felt like it was spinning when he finally released her. Both of them draw in shaky lungfuls of air, Serenity's arousal perfuming the air; Koga wasn't much better off, the evidence of his own desire jutting proudly into the soft flesh of her belly. "Now that was a fucking kiss," she whispered. "But did you have to grope my tits?"
"Thought it might bring me extra luck," he growled before reaching around and massaging her ass with one hand. "Maybe that will, too." He yelped when he flew back from a burst of white light, but wound up laughing when he watched her fighting the urge to grin at him. "Ok, I deserved that! But can you blame me, beautiful?"
"No, I can't!" She admitted with a laugh.
####################################
Neither the goddess nor the wolf noticed the demon watching them from the trees, his eyes bleeding red the moment that Koga had kissed her. Mine! His demon had snapped, but Sesshomaru had managed to keep him in place and simply observe just as he had been since the moon had risen. The gods—the real ones—only knew why he was reacting this way to her, why he felt aroused and needy whenever he laid eyes on her.
But he was going to get to the bottom of it if it killed him.
And so help him, if another male dared to kiss her like that again, he was going hunting.
I'm not totally satisfied with this one, dunno why, but here it is! R&R if you want more! Remember, your reviews equal my motivation!