Sorry everyone. This chapter is fixed now. I'm not sure how I managed to upload the same chapter twice in a row!
They had been traveling for two weeks now, with no sign of jewel shards. It had been four days since they had come across a water source large enough for them to take proper baths in, so when Sesshomaru stopped walking suddenly, hours earlier than planned and said he smelled a hot spring nearby Kagome was about ready to cry in happiness.
"Finally! A bath!" Kagome sighed as she sank her body down into the hot water, finding a nice size rock to sit on and relax. "It feels so nice to be clean."
"That's why Lord Sesshomaru brought us this way. We turned off our path yesterday." Rin swam near her, trying to look innocent, but failing miserably. Sango smiled at Rin's words.
"I noticed that too," she remarked, also giving Kagome an innocent look.
"What are you guys talking about?" Their insinuations went right over Kagome's head. Sesshomaru had a super sensitive nose, of course, he would want his traveling companions to smell nice. Just thinking about all the days they spent walking made Kagome feel sweaty and gross all over again.
"You can not tell me you haven't noticed him watching you. And the way he took care of you when you were sick. He held you all night. He obviously likes you."
Kagome blushed. Everything Sango said made sense, but Kagome knew it couldn't be true. This was Sesshomaru they were talking about, he doesn't like humans. But even as she was trying to rationalize it to herself the thoughts of his actions, of his love for Rin, the way he excepted all of them into his pack, and his teasing in the future kept running through her mind. At this point, she had to just admit to herself that those words were just an excuse to continue ignoring her growing feelings for the Demon Lord.
"I actually don't remember a thing that happened while I was sick. I remember being in the well and he was there, but the next thing I can remember was waking up with his fur around me." Kagome vaguely remembered the feeling of being cradled in warm arms but had been sure that was a symptom of her sickness. The image of his eyes staring into hers was burned into her mind and she once again felt the soft skin of his hand cradling the back of her neck, her hair tangled around his long fingers. When she woke up again she had been on her own in Kaeda's hut, snuggled into Sesshomaru's fur pelt, she had assumed everything else had been just a dream. He had never said a word to her about it, even though they had been together for hours a day since then. Most of the time he was working on continuing her training, she had finally mastered meditating and had erected barriers strong enough to keep even Sesshomaru's attacks at bay, however, she couldn't keep them up for long. Her smaller barriers she could keep up for a few hours, large enough to encompass her and Sesshomaru but only strong enough to keep the wind from assaulting them while she worked on her school work. However, sometimes they would sit together, in various places, just staring into the distance sitting close enough that their knees would touch. Kagome usually filling the silence with random babbling about life in the future, her friends and family there, school and work life, and anything that came to her mind. Even though he never seemed like he was listening to her, he would occasionally interject with questions or sometimes even bring up things she had mentioned in earlier conversations.
"So Kagome, do you like, Sesshomaru?" Kagome felt her cheeks heat up as she looked away. She distracted herself with arranging her soaps, pulling out her shampoo and meticulously massaging it into her hair.
"Sooooo?? Do you?" Rin pushed, not willing to let the older woman ignore her.
The fox kit had been disappointed when the monk had suggested he bathe with the men from now on and leave the women to themselves. He had whined and cried and pleaded. Saying how stupid it was for them to all bathe apart in the first place. Sesshomaru had to agree with the small demon. Normally packs bathed together, he had assumed they did because of his brother's poor leadership skills, though because of the monk's words he realized gendered bathing must be some sort of human thing.
It had been only a few minutes since the women had left, but the kit's crying had already started to irritate him.
"Come kit, we will go bathe" he started walking away, knowing the kit would be close behind him. Ignoring the monk's protests about decency. Despite his protests, the monk would follow as well, he was sure.
The spring was sectioned into four or five smaller springs, each cut off from each other by towering rocks. They could bathe and still allow the women their privacy, much to the dismay of Miroku.
Sesshomaru could feel the tension built up in his muscles slowly fade away as he sank shoulder deep into the hot water of the spring. He leaned his head back and let his eyes closed, for the very first time not bothering to keep up his mask of indifference in front of his pack mates and letting the relaxation he was feeling wash over his features. It was only a few moments before a soft female voice drifted to his ears. His head cocked slightly to the side, eyes still closed as he listened to the words.
"So, Kagome, do you like, Sesshomaru?"The voice was the slayers, he realized, the name of the Miko had been what caught his attention. His eyebrows rose slightly at the question and he could imagine the blush spreading over his little Miko's face at the question. He waited for her answer, more patiently than his ward, who was now begging for an answer. After a few minutes of silence, he had figured she had sensed him nearby and had quickly shut down the conversation. He leaned his head all the way back in the water and started running his claws through his hair brushing it out into the water when her voice was finally raised again.
"I - uh- yeah. I do." She paused for a second, most likely gauging the reaction of her companions before continuing " But I mean, it's just a crush, you know? He's just so damned attractive" Her words were rushed and her tone of voice was embarrassed. Sesshomaru smiled softly to himself at the thought of his little Miko finding him attractive and having a 'crush' on him. He didn't quite understand what the word meant, but he vowed to find out somehow.