Kagome breathed a sigh of relief when the same blue lights appeared and their fast fall turned into a slow glide down the well. Sesshomaru for his part, thought the miko must have hit her head when she told him how she traveled here. If he were a different person, he'd apologize for thinking her ill. When they landed at the bottom Sesshomaru looked up and saw that there was now a roof over their heads. His hands were still wrapped around her so he jumped up to the top of the well and made sure she was stable before letting her go and stepping away.
"I'm home! I can't believe it, I never thought I'd get here again."
"Were you not just here a few hours ago?" He asked incredulously.
"Hey, you try getting kidnapped from your home to travel 500 years in the past and not worry about making it back."
He scoffed. "This one would not allow such a thing to pass."
She looked at him with her eyes squinted in anger and her cheeks red. He had the thought that she was adorable before forcefully chastising himself for ever thinking such a thing of a human.
"Hey! There's no need to be a jerk about it. It's not like I can fly or cut people down with my hands. You have an unfair advantage."
"Hn, it is one of the many reasons my kind is superior to yours." He said before leading the way to the door he assumed would get them out of the well house.
"Hey, demons aren't superior to humans, you take that back!"
"No."
She huffed in anger then a few seconds later giggled maliciously when she remembered that he was wrong because if he wasn't, Youkai would still be here and out in the open in modern times. Then she felt terrible because for a second she got enjoyment from that terrible fact.
Sesshomaru was smelling her fluctuating emotions and counting their overactive mental state as another reason the demons were superior to humans when he opened the door and nearly fell over at the terrible odor coming from, well, everywhere. He must have stopped walking at the surprise because Kagome walked right into him.
"What's wrong?"
"What is that terrible stench?" He asked with as much disgust as he was feeling.
"What do you mean?"
"It is disgusting, it's the worst thing I've ever smelt before."
"Oh, that must be the pollution. We've made a lot of advancements in the last half millennia but it's come with a few consequences, pollution being one of them." She took a deep breath and although it wasn't as an extreme reaction as Sesshomaru's, she made a grossed-out face too. It was much cleaner in the past.
'At least there's one plus in being stuck going back there until the jewel is fixed.'
"How do you live like this?"
"I never really noticed it until now, I've lived here my whole life so I never knew any difference until I breathed in the clear air of the past."
"Hn." Sesshomaru thought he might have found the only pro to being a human over a demon and that's because they don't have to be affected by this stench.
Kagome adjusted to the air difference quickly and once she did, her excitement of being home and with her family returned. She ran passed Sesshomaru and towards her house. "Mama? Gramps? Sota? I'm home!"
"Kagome?" Sesshomaru could hear a woman yell from in the house, the relief and excitement were clear in her voice.
Kagome burst through her front door just as her mom was walking out of the kitchen. "Oh, Kagome! You're home, we were so worried! Where on earth were you?"
Kagome kept running until she was in her mother's arms. "Oh Mama, you'll never believe me, I'm not even sure if I believe me."
"Oh sweetheart, it's okay, you can tell me anything and I'll believe you. I'm just so relieved you're okay."
"Sis? Thank Cami you're okay! They thought I must have seen it wrong when I told them what happened." Kagome felt an impact on her side that signaled that Sota joined the hug.
"Oh Kagome, good you're home, we were all worried. Are you okay?" She heard her grandfather ask.
Kagome finally pulled away from the hug to look at her grandfather. "I'm okay, Gramps. I wish I listened to your stories more though, I have a feeling they would have come in handy."
Her grandfather looked so excited and he stood up straight. "Do not worry, I'll tell you them again. Hmm, let's start with the basics…."
"Oh, you'll never believe what happened!" Kagome cut him off and started to tell her story. Her grandfather slouched in defeat. Kagome was only about halfway through when Sesshomaru made himself known. She was too lost in her story to notice, her gramps did though.
"Demon!" He yelled and threw a ofuda at him, which stuck on his face but did nothing to purify him.
Kagome could see the anger growing on Sesshomaru's face and could swear she saw a drip or two of his poison fall from his fingertips so she quickly got in between the two and took the ofuda off of his face and laughed awkwardly.
"Stop that, Gramps. Remember I was telling you about the demon that helped me? This is him, he saved my life!"
"Ha! Yeah right, a demon helping a human? I don't believe it! What do you want from my granddaughter? She's not for sale!"
"What? Sesshomaru doesn't want to buy me! Stop being silly, jii-chan."
Her grandfather's whole demeanor changed once he heard Sesshomaru's name. "Sesshomaru? As in the great Sesshomaru, Lord of the Western Lands? The terrible unforgiving brutal lord that changed his ways and…"
Kagome covered his mouth. "Gramps, you can't tell him his future, I'm positive that breaks almost every time travel law there is."
Sesshomaru was preening at his obvious infamy but twitched his eye in annoyance when Kagome stopped the human from telling him more. He didn't know how he felt about 'changing his ways' and very much wanted to know where that story was going.
"Ahh yes, you're probably correct. Well, either way, the great lord of the West is always welcomed in this house. How lucky we are to have been able to meet someone so important to history."
Sesshomaru was preening again and Kagome sighed in resignation when she saw it.
'Like he needs another reason to think so highly of himself and his own importance. He's going to be impossible to deal with. He's lucky he's so pretty to look at or I'd be a lot more annoyed.' Kagome thought then blushed at having such thoughts. It wasn't easy pretending this draw she had to him wasn't there but she'd been doing a decent job of it so far. Thoughts like that don't help though.
"Well, thank you Sesshomaru-sama for bringing my daughter home safely. I owe you greatly, can I interest you in some oden as a thank you? It's Kagome's favorite and it's almost finished." She said with her soft motherly smile.
"I do not partake in human food. Thank you though." Kagome wanted to laugh because she could see that it was not easy for Sesshomaru to be polite.
"Mhmm oden, yay! I'm so hungry. How long until it's ready?"
"About half an hour, dear."
"Okay, great. I'm going to start packing while you're finishing up."
"Packing?" Her jii-chan asked suspiciously.
Kagome laughed awkwardly while she put her hand behind her head. "Oh, right, I never finished my story, did I?"
"No, you didn't, dear. Please do." Kagome's mother asked kindly, if not uneasily.
"Well, you see, I might have accidentally broken the jewel and since I'm the only person that can see it, and I'm the one that broke it, it's my duty to go back and fix my mistake."
"My granddaughter, the Shikon Miko," Jii-chan said with stars in his eyes before he shook his head and looked back at Kagome. "No, I cannot allow this. It's too dangerous."
Kagome opened her mouth to speak when everyone stopped and looked at Sesshomaru, who was growling angrily. "Do you question my power and ability to protect her?"
By the tone of his voice, it was clear her grandfather should answer that question carefully. "You will be traveling with her?"
"Hn."
Gramps wasn't going to back down that easily though, "You will be her protector, put your life on the line to make sure she's safe?"
"Hai."
"She is very special and means a lot to a lot of people. She is very loved, you must keep her safe."
"I have already given her my word and that is something I do not break." Sesshomaru sounded like he was at the end of his patients so Kagome cut in.
"You don't have to worry ji-chan. Sesshomaru is very strong, I know he'll help keep me safe. Plus, he said he was going to help me to learn more about my abilities too. So he's going to help protect me by teaching me to protect myself."
Jii-chan looked at Sesshomaru approvingly although Sesshomaru looked like he couldn't care less about the human's approval.
"Kagome, may I speak to you in private?" Mama asked her.
"Sure, mama." They both walked into the kitchen although Kagome was pretty sure that Sesshomaru could hear everything they said.
"You are sure this is what you want to do, Kagome? What about your schooling? What about your life here?"
"I don't think it will take too long, mama. The shards couldn't have made it too far. Plus, it's not like I'm planning on just giving up my schooling, I'll take my books with me and study there. I'll make sure I'm here for tests and stuff. I just might have bad attendance for a while. I want to get this done as soon as possible so I don't fall too far behind.
Her mother looked at her long and hard, she was thinking things over and also checking that this was what Kagome really wanted to do. She knew her daughter would always choose other's wellbeing over her own and it was her mother's job to make sure that Kagome still was taken care of and got what she needed.
Eventually, she sighed and looked away. "Okay, Kagome. I'm not going to stop you or try to talk you out of this. I'm proud of you, you're growing into such a kind, strong, honorable, and brave woman."
Kagome felt tears start to enter her eyes. "Oh mama, thank you!" She said as she ran to her mother and gave her a big hug.
Kagome's mother cleared her throat and wiped her eyes when she pulled away from the hug. "Okay, you get clothes that you'll need along with your school work and your cleaning products. I'll get everything else you need to try to survive in the wilderness."
"Okay!" Kagome said then smiled at her mom before turning around, running upstairs, and getting herself packed. She was sure that Sesshomaru wanted to be on his way soon. She kept seeing him scrunch his nose in annoyance. The smell must be getting to him.
While Kagome was upstairs, Sesshomaru was still in the living room looking at all the new inventions he'd never seen or imagined before. Sota saw him looking at the TV and took a deep breath before getting the courage to walk up to the intimidating demon lord.
"Hi, I'm Sota."
After a silence so long that Sota thought he was being ignored, Sesshomaru replied "This one is called Sesshomaru."
"I see you looking around. It must be strange, seeing so many things that don't exist in your time."
"Hn."
"This is called a TV, right now it's on the news channel but there's a lot more cool things to watch and do with it. Look at this!" Sota said before sitting in front of the TV and turning on Sonic the Hedgehog. He patted the spot on the ground next to him, suggesting to Sesshomaru that he sit. He didn't but he did step closer to get a better look at the controller that the child was holding. "Look, see the blue guy right there? I'm controlling him. The goal is to get through the stage and get as many rings as you can."
Sesshomaru wouldn't admit it out loud but he was very interested in this 'video game'.
By the time Kagome came back down as packed as she could be, she saw Sesshomaru sitting next to her brother on the ground with a controller in his hand and Sota leaning over him explaining what each button and nob did on the controller. She held in her laugh and went into the kitchen to find her mama with a huge bag she wasn't sure she'd be able to carry on her own. Her mom turned to her and smiled.
"There, I think I packed everything you could possibly need. Now, sit down, let's get you nice and full before you leave. I'm sure you'll be wishing for some of my home cooking in just a day or two."
"Thanks, Mama! It smells so yummy!"
Her mom called Sota and her grandfather in the kitchen for dinner and they all ate companionly and spoke about light topics. While they were eating, Sesshomaru was sitting outside by the sacred tree waiting for Kagome to be ready.
When they were finished dinner, Kagome gave each of her family members a big hug before telling them all goodbye.
"Don't worry, Kagome, I'll handle your absences from school. I have a few illnesses that they won't want to ask any questions about."
Kagome didn't like how that sounded but her grandfather was trying to be helpful so she just uncomfortably replied, "Thanks, jii-chan. I love you guys, I'll make sure to come back often enough that you don't worry!"
Her mom gave her a look that clearly said 'Of course we're going to worry' but then smiled and said "Be safe, Kagome."
After he was sure the human's goodbyes were done, Sesshomaru wrapped one of his arms around Kagome. He knew he was acting out of character, he wondered why he was putting up with all this, why he was willingly touching a human. The only answer he could come up with was that his beast was drawn to her and his more civilized side was interested as well. He wasn't sure what that meant yet but he just signed himself up for being in close proximity to her for a few moon cycles at least so he'd have time to figure it out. Being as long-lived as he, he had to learn patience early so taking the time to figure it out was no hardship.
The time slip wasn't as shocking to him the second time, and it was only seconds later that he could take a deep breath and not internally cringe from the scent that filled his nostrils. After he got them both out of the well he was not surprised to see Jaken and Ah-Un waiting for him. He noticed Kagome jump in fright, or disgust, he couldn't quite tell, at Jaken and when she saw Ah-Un she was a little weary.
"Come, it is time we leave." He took her bag off him and unloaded it on Ah-Un before holding his hand up to help her onto the dragon. He was surprised when she didn't follow his order though he was starting to get the feeling that her being willful and disobedient to him could quickly become a habit of hers.
"I want to talk to Kaede before we leave, I don't like how we left things. Plus, I just feel like I should be on good terms with her. I kinda feel bad, it must be hard for her to see me. From what I've gathered, I look a lot like her sister."
"Hn, you do."
"You knew her?"
"Of her." He and Inuyasha haven't been on good terms in a long time but that didn't mean he didn't keep an eye on the whelp. He was family, after all.
"Oh, okay. You don't mind one last detour?" She asked but didn't wait for a response.
Sesshomaru felt his eyebrow twitch again. The amount of times that happened since he met her is a little worrying to him. She had a talent for getting on his nerves. He did not complain though because he did not care about her making one more stop. He was in no rush. So he walked with her down the trail back to the village. It wasn't until they were close to the sacred tree that he remembered that his brother had awoken while he was saving the miko from the centipede demon.
He internally sighed, once the miko found out his half-brother was awake, he had a feeling she'd want to help him. She was too kind-hearted to leave someone in a situation like that. He had to admit, he didn't like seeing someone of his father's blood stuck like that either. When he first heard of Inuyasha getting pinned to the tree, he used many of his vast resources to try to free him all for naught. That is why he wanted to sigh, he knew not how to free the whelp and she'll want to stay until they figure out a way to do so.
"Sesshomaru! Get over here, I smell you, don't try to hide!" He heard the whelp call from the tree.
"Who was that?"
"My half-brother."
"Wait, the one that killed Kikyo? Isn't he stuck to the tree?"
"Hai."
"Don't you want to free him? Shouldn't we try to help him? Wait, should we? He's a killer after all."
"I have tried." He confessed though he didn't know why. "I cannot get him off. I was surprised when I heard the story of the priestess's death. I did not foresee the half-breed killing one he loved."
"Wait, they were in a relationship?"
"Hn."
They kept walking as they were talking and they finally came into view of the sacred tree. "Sesshomaru, what are you doing here? Did you come here to laugh at me?"
"I did not come here for you at all, little brother."
"Then why'd ya come here ya bast…. Kikyo…"
"I'm not Kikyo! I'm so tired of everyone calling me that! I'm Kagome. Get it? Ka-go-me! Say it with me, Kagome."
Sesshomaru once again felt the urge to chuckle, he enjoyed her fire. He also enjoyed the whelp getting yelled at. Although, in this case, he had to admit, it was undeserved. He could see why the miko would be annoyed with the villagers who kept calling her by the dead miko's name but this was Inuyasha's first time.
"Kikyo, what are you doing with the bastard? Are you going to betray me again? Are both of you working together to kill me?"
Sesshomaru scoffed. "As if this one would need the help of another to wipe you out. And as the miko said, this is not your dead lover, this is Kagome."
Kagome felt a strange shiver go down her spine at her name coming out of Sesshomaru's mouth. That was the first time he'd ever used her name and she had to admit she liked it. She hoped she hid the shiver well but from the quick look both of the brothers gave her, she didn't think so. And of course, because they knew, she became embarrassed and her cheeks grew red. She hated how easy it was for people to tell when she was embarrassed because of her blush. She tried to will it away but had no luck. Thankfully, the two inus were focused on each other again.
Inuyasha inhaled again deeply, he smelt the Miko's arousal but he was able to ignore it and analyze her scent. When he did that, he noticed the small differences that made her different than his Kikyo. If that wasn't Kikyo then….. "Did you say my dead lover?"
"Hn, your attack on her was the cause of her death. She stayed alive just long enough to seal you to the tree."
Inuyasha tried to look strong so he lifted his chin up and looked away "Keh, whatever. I don't care what happened to her anyway. She betrayed me."
Sesshomaru could smell the lies on him and Inuyasha knew it but he was grateful when Sesshomaru didn't call him out on it. Kagome was confused because according to everyone in the village, Inuyasha was the betrayer, not Kikyo. She had a feeling there was more going on there than met the eye.
"What are you waiting for, ya bastard? Get me down from here."
Sesshomaru wasn't going to admit to anyone, especially Inuyasha, that he couldn't get him down. So instead he scoffed. "And why would this one do such a thing?"
Kagome looked at him incredulously, they just talked about him trying to get Inuyasha down. Was this some manly macho thing? She shook her head, whatever, she didn't care. She was going to stop the fight she could see brewing and try to get him down herself. Maybe she could do it because she's the one who put him up there in her past life. She took a deep breath and then started to walk up to the tree. She was stopped less than two feet later.
"What are you doing, miko?"
"What do you mean? I'm going to try to use my miko power to get your brother down."
"Half brother" they both muttered at the same time.
"Whatever. He's your brother, you're my friend and protector. I want to help you."
When she said that, he felt a strange foreign feeling he never felt before, it was a warm feeling in his chest area and it grew stronger when he looked at her. He did not know if he liked it or not. So instead of dealing with it, he answered harshly. "And what do you think a human could do that I could not?"
He felt bad, which was another foreign sensation when the hurt entered her eyes. "I thought since I'm her reincarnation that I may be able to undo what she did but if that's how you're going to act, whatever!" She said as she ripped her arm away from his and stomped away.
He had a feeling he might have made the wrong move there. His brother's laugh cemented it. "Damn, you messed up. I don't know why you of all people are hanging around a human but if you want to keep her around you're going to have to apologize."
Sesshomaru scoffed, as if he would ever apologize, and to a human no less. It was not easy to ignore his beast's whine though. He and his beast had always lived in harmony before but ever since this miko came barreling into his life, it's as if his beast and him are constantly at ends. No one has ever stirred his beast in such a way before. It made him both angry and curious.
It took hearing his half-brother's cackle from behind him to realize he was already walking toward the miko. When he found her she was sitting on the well looking down it sadly. He wondered why she was sad, wasn't she angry just moments ago? Did he make her sad? His beast was quick to show him the look of hurt on her face and in her eyes when he took his frustration out on her.
'Ahh, so this one hurt her feelings. What must I do to make the smell of sadness leave her enchanting scent? Enchanting? Since when do I think any of her is enchanting?' He shook his head, that was a thought for a time he was alone and could dedicate himself to it.
"Miko, come, we must depart." He did not think it would be as simple as that but he thought it was worth a shot. He was wrong.
She stood up and there might as well have been fire coming out of her ears she was so angry.
'At least the sadness has left her scent' He thought ruefully.
"Listen here, dog. I don't care if you think humans are beneath you and that all demons are better than us because you're wrong! I am worth just as much as you! I'm not your pet that you can just order around and expect me to obey! I am a grown woman who can make her own choices and who knows her own self-worth. I won't let you treat me like I'm less than you just because you have a stick up your butt and have an over-inflated self-worth about yourself and demons in general. We're partners, got it? You're not the boss, I'm not your lapdog that asks 'how high' when you say jump. You don't make the decisions, we do that together. Nod if you understand." As she was yelling at him she stomped up to him and started poking him on the chest with every word she said.
To say Sesshomaru was shocked would be an understatement. No one has dared speak to him that way before. No one has been near as disrespectful and the last person that had the audacity to put their hands on him without explicit permission didn't live long enough to regret it. He took the time to look at her and noticed she was panting and her cheeks were red in the most becoming way. His beast was knocking against the walls of his cage trying to break free so that it could make things right between them. His eyes kept flicking to her lips and he had the insane urge to kiss her. He wanted to blame his beast but that didn't make him feel any better because the beast was still a part of him. He knew his eyes had to be tinted red because of how close his beast was to the surface and because of how wide her eyes had gotten. He realized belatedly he was panting too and finally was able to force himself to take a step back. Once he did, he was able to think a little more clearly. He had to admit, he was growing to respect the miko, she was proving herself to be strong-willed and brave. He also had to admit he saw her point. Being a human, it couldn't be easy to be reminded how terrible most of her kind were. She was above them though, for her power alone. Her personality and inner strength made her even more so. So he decided he could give her that much. He already didn't think of her on the same level as the rest of humankind, he could make sure not to treat her as such either. He would never again call her out for being human, though most of her species were weak, smelled terrible, and were useless, she was not.
"You are right, Kagome. I won't treat you thusly again, you are worth more than that." He said her name on purpose, he thought he saw and smelled her arousal when he used it earlier, and he wanted to find out if he was correct.
Well, that was easier than she thought it would be. And, she had to work hard to repress the shiver of pleasure she had at him saying her name again. She knew for a fact that she failed this time because the red in his eyes that just went away came back with a vengeance, and although she'd never seen it directed at her before, she knew what the look of heat in his eyes meant.
"O-okay, G-good then." She stood up straight and decided to ignore whatever just happened between them "Now, I'm going to try to free your brother." 'For you,' She added mentally.
When she turned around to go back to the tree, she didn't see the look of jealousy and possessiveness that entered Sesshomaru's eyes.