Thy Thralldom Come

by The Monday Child

Two sisters of royal blood are captured by the enemy. Their kingdom is no more. A cruel prince has taken them both for his own, tempting them into depths unexplored by good girls. Their choice is clear: lose themselves or lose their lives.

15. Like a Hook Into An Eye

Fifteen: Like a Hook Into an Eye

"What the fuck?" Inuyasha said, the words muted from having the wind knocked out of him by his fall.

Kagome peered over the side of the bed. "You're clumsy today. Are you coming back up or should I get down there with you? You still owe me your mouth."

The fact that the woman who had been a virgin just moments before was now an insatiable monster should have turned him on, but instead he found himself a little scared. Rather than have Kagome attack him again, he climbed back up on the big bed and pinned her down, glaring at her.

"What did you mean when you said that stuff earlier?"

The newly deflowered slave ran her heel over the back of his calf. Why the hell did that send a shiver down his spine?

"I mean I took your cock into my mouth and even swallowed. You never finished me with your mouth, and you've owed me for so long—"

"Not that!" he said, not wanting to get sidetracked. "Before I fell."

She looked confused for a second before her expression cleared. "Oh, about being married?"

"Yes!" he growled. "That was a little bit of a surprise."

That sent her right back into confusion. Scooting away, she drew the sheet up around herself. Inuyasha found he immediately missed her warmth, and yeah, the view hadn't been bad either.

"How was it a surprise? We completed the cycle."

"We what the what?"

"The cycle," she repeated in a tone that more than suggested she thought he was stupid. "First, you, the man, were on top, like the moon god. Then I was on top, like the goddess of the sun. That is how the goddess took her consort." Kagome scoffed. "I'll admit I was naïve about some things when we met, but even I knew how a marriage is performed. Maybe not the particulars, but that made sense the longer I spent with you."

Inuyasha's head was spinning. This was exactly something that would happen to him this year. Unwittingly, he had gone and participated in a Higurashi marriage ceremony, linking him to some backwoods barbarian maid.

"Wait a minute… If you knew what you were doing, why'd you do it?" Kagome had said she'd hated him, she'd even run and left him, so why had she married him?

She looked away. "Because I wanted to do it again and you weren't doing anything. What else was I supposed to do?"

"Maybe fucking tell me what that meant to you? Fuck, Kagome, I'm not from Higurashi. Inu marriages are just parties and paperwork."

"You were going to take me sooner or later, anyway," she continued. "And as the pr— Uh, pretty younger daughter, my only value to my family was my marriageability. My betrothed would never have me now. Even if you'd never touched me, he wouldn't believe it. And then I'd have nothing. So why not you?"

Her eyes rose and met his hesitantly. That combined with the way she clutched the sheets to herself made something flip in his stomach and warm in his chest. Kagome was never shy, never timid. Especially not when he wished she would be. All the stress and madness of losing her for a whole fifteen and a half days must be making him crazy, but he was almost feeling flattered. And now he'd never have to worry about Kagome going to her hopefully dead and rotting in the ground fiancé ever again.

"Let's get a couple things straight," he said, struggling to keep his voice severe. "I'm not your husband. We're not married. This isn't Higurashi, Kagome."

"Doesn't matter." Her eyes flashed and her spine straightened. "I am Higurashi. And I didn't say I wanted to be married to you. I just wanted what marriage could get me."

It wasn't uncommon in other societies where the virginity of women was more of a big deal than it was in Inu for men to marry a woman solely to fuck her. Inuyasha felt like the women in those arrangements must feel. It wasn't very fun.

"What it got you was a whole lot closer to me." He tugged her into his arms for emphasis. "Try fucking running now, Kagome," he said, words made all the more chilling by how they were murmured like an endearment. "I will always find you."

For a second, there was real fear in her eyes, but it shifted and changed into something softer. "I believe you."

Uncomfortably reminded of vow exchanges, Inuyasha lay down and arranged them in a spooning position with her facing away from him. It was about damn time for him to finally get some fucking sleep. He just had one thing to take care of first.

"Last thing," he said. "You're from Higurashi, so the marriage is valid for you, but not me. So you're married to me but I'm not married to you, okay?"

"What?" she asked. "Wow, you really didn't sleep while I was gone, did you?"

"I'm saying you're going to treat me like your husband from now on," he insisted. "So that means no fighting with me, no denying me, always waiting on me, never ever running from me, and never looking at another man ever again."

"It's a Higurashi marriage, Inuyasha," she said, and he could hear the smile in her voice. "You're not describing a Higurashi wife."

He didn't say anything. Privately, he couldn't have been happier and he knew it.

That was a problem he was going to have to change.

O\o/O

Sesshomaru rose in anger, his feet hovering above the ground without him even noticing the energy he was expelling to do so. He had heard all the cliches about difficult teenagers from various courtiers, but Rin was past the worst of those years and had never acted at all in the way they described. And now here she was, scheming and plotting and even stealing, from the looks of the food she'd dropped, while she planned to leave him. And she'd said his name. Rin had never said his name before, not without a title.

His vision tinted red before sharpening and he felt the change begin. The beast in him wanted to hunt her down like a girl in a foolish peasant's tale told to children only to scare them into behaving. What he would do when he found her, not even the rational part of him knew.

"M'lord, the emperor— Gods in heaven, what happened here?"

"Be gone, Jaken," he was just able to growl. "Rin needs to be brought back to her room. She will not be allowed to leave again."

He had thought it impossible, but somehow the imp's eyes got even larger in their shock. And then he did something that surprised them both: held up his staff and widened his stance in an attempt to block the door.

Sesshomaru barked out a laugh. "I never thought suicide would be how you'd go, but so be it." Raising his hand, he allowed the acid to ooze from his fingertips theatrically as he knew from experience it would cause more fear in his prey. But Jaken did not move other than to tremble.

"My lord," he said, stopping to clear his throat when his voice came out hushed. "M'lord, I cannot let you go after that girl. Not while you are like this. Besides, the emperor has summoned you."

That stalled his hand halfway to crashing through the little bastard's ugly green face. His father summoned him rarely, and never through his personal servant. His rational mind took over and the beast receded as he attempted to pinpoint a reason. Only one made sense, and it did nothing to improve his mood, although it did allow for the ice in him to overwhelm the fire.

The pause he found himself allowing also gave him time to think. Yes, he wanted to follow Rin, but then what? It wasn't like she was going anywhere now that she had no partner in crime. And she had been unusually distraught. Emotions were not something he dealt with on a regular basis, or at all, choosing to keep them at arm's length when encountered externally and forcefully repress them when they sprang up internally. He would prefer to speak with her when she was calm and back to her usual self. Maybe the entire thing would even resolve on its own and Rin would come to the conclusion that she had behaved badly and needed to ask for his forgiveness.

That was the thing he wanted most to happen, so to him it seemed the most likely.

"I will answer Father's summons at once," Sesshomaru said. "Tell the palace guards that Rin may go where she wishes but at no point will she be allowed outside, other than in her garden, unless accompanied by myself."

"Yes, m'lord."

He didn't need to be told where his father was. The emperor only ever summoned people to his office, unless they were being executed or punished in some grand fashion, which is the only time he ever sat in his throne. The emperor's office was a room that seemed far too small for such a grand man, and it was. Once upon a time, it had been just another room, fine enough but undecorated, set aside for the use of any noble who required it. Before his father had assumed the title of emperor, this was where he preferred to do whatever work had been required of him as the second prince, his role much like Sesshomaru's was now. He said the light came through the glass differently here. Sesshomaru figured it was really because it was so far away from anything that people only ever bothered him if it was truly urgent.

"Sesshomaru." Tōga said in greeting, not even looking up at his son's rather dramatic entrance of blowing open the door with the force of his still angry aura. "Take a seat. Izayoi had some caramels imported. Do you still like those?"

"It is your second son who partakes of sweets," Sesshomaru said, continuing to stand. "I do not have long. For what reason have you called me here?"

Tōga leaned back in his chair and chewed on a caramel, lazily eyeing his firstborn up and down. The relaxed posture had Sesshomaru suddenly on his guard. This man was the most dangerous when he was acting like he wasn't.

"A couple things. Your mother tells me your servant girl requested her help in leaving the palace. She has asked me to request fosterage of a noble family, but I know of none in good standing that would be willing. There are few enough human nobles, and the ones that are left are secure and not desperate enough to become a laughingstock in order to curry favor. Perhaps the Hōshi family, once upon a time, but the patriarch bankrupted them and the only son is an unmarried academic."

"Rin will not be going anywhere. It was a misunderstanding that has been clarified."

"About that." By the time he heard the poison dart slicing through the air, it had already pierced his armless shoulder. Sesshomaru held back a gasp of pain that was mostly annoyance. The impact was a nothing that would heal instantly, it was the poisons that would cause him disturbance. "There were reports of you manhandling one of Inuyasha's girls with the intention of murdering her."

"I do not deny it," Sesshomaru said, his tone conveying that he thought this conversation a complete waste of time. "One of his whores was influencing Rin. It was a problem and I dealt with it."

"Izayoi has told me that Inuyasha is very attached to this one and she was the reason he locked down the palace. That alone should have told you that mistreating her was not acceptable. You will apologize."

Sesshomaru sneered. "Inuyasha deserves nothing of the sort."

"Not to him. To the girl."

At that, he couldn't even summon the breath to laugh. "To a human whore?"

"I know it's not the fact that she's a human that bothers you, not after your affection for Rin developed," Tōga said. "So that leaves your brother. Do you hate that he is able to take what he wants without fear? Be it a village or a human woman's love, he does have a way with getting what he wants."

"We're done here."

"I expect a report on that apology on my desk soon!" Tōga called after him cheerfully. "Until then, Rin will be staying with Kagura."

Sesshomaru seethed at the mere idea of his homework.

O\o/O

The other women in the harem were so loud that Kikyo never had to leave her room to glean information. Since she knew she was a better fighter than she was a spy, she was grateful for at least having that much.

"Did you see the prince when last he came?"

"Oh no! It must have been when I was ill. Damn it, Yuka, I told you to get me no matter what whenever he arrives."

"Calm down, Eri, he was barely here and it was just to see his current favorite. Again."

There was a brief pause and Kikyo could practically feel the dog's whores glaring at her door.

"Did you listen in on them, you dirty pervert?"

"Shut up! It's not like that."

"I know he's been gone for so long, but still—"

"The prince has another woman! A secret one. One that he hasn't kept in here with the rest of us."

There was a gasp. "Go on."

"It's that one's sister. From what I gathered, she's the true favorite. She was taken and he was running himself ragged looking for her, gods, you should have seen him. He hardly looked like himself."

"That sounds awful." There was a mixture of genuine sorrow with a little bit of glee thrown in. Perhaps Inuyasha was not as beloved as he boasted of being.

"But that's not all. I talked to one of the eunuch guards, you know, the cute one who came here to investigate with the prince's shadow. Anyway, he said she's since been found and the prince has been holed up with her ever since. And she somehow broke free from her collar and the crown prince himself tried to kill her!"

"That sounds like information that should be kept secret."

"I paid for it. Pulled down my bodice and let him look. But anyway, the prince is distracted by a blossoming first love like a little girl and now we know there's a way around these damned collars."

"Did the eunuch tell you how?"

"No, he didn't know a thing more than what he told me. Useless bastard… We're going to have to get in contact with his woman and have her teach us how to overcome the magic. I want out, but I don't want to go back to my old life. We'll need a bit of silver to get established, but now we know there's a way."

The voices faded as Kikyo studied her Go board more intently. Soldiers. She had been lamenting her lack of subordinates, but perhaps she had been overlooking a chance for allies. From the brief glimpses of the harem outside her room, she had noticed just how vast it was. Whether it was full or not had yet to be determined.

It looked like she would be forced to socialize after all.

"I heard the two of you wanted to meet my sister?" Kikyo said as she opened her door.

The two women stared at her with mouths agape as though they were seeing a ghost. She took that time to study them. Tall and powerfully built, like her. Good. She needed them strong.

"Um, yes," the one with the shorter hair said. She was the bolder one, it appeared. "An introduction would be lovely."

Kikyo did not have it left in her to smile, but she attempted to arrange her expression into something more welcoming.

"Come in. We will have tea and discourse."

Higurashi would have an army once again.

O\o/O

Inuyasha had lost count of the days since he had been reunited with Kagome. They kept no schedule and let themselves be led by their urges alone. When they were hungry, he summoned a servant to the door for food. When they were tired, they slept. The rest of the time was spent getting to know each other. And he had gotten to know her very, very well.

Rolling on his side, he rested his head on his hand and stared down at his recaptured slave. This time, he had tired her out, and she was still sleeping, though the pattern of her breathing and rhythm of her heart told him she was about to wake. The longer he looked at her, the more his smirk faded, thoughts of feeling her up changing to something else.

Gods, she was nice to look at. Waking up to her still felt like a dream. Even though he tried to remind himself that their little bubble of a dream world would have to burst sooner than later, his heart seemed to twist with discomfort. His eyes traced the shape of her lips, her mouth now as familiar to him as his own but still so exciting. He didn't realize how his face softened and his eyes took on a gentle glow to match the feelings that stirred inside.

Kagome opened one eye and squinted at him. "Are you watching me sleep, you creep?"

That flustered him a little. He had allowed himself to get too drawn in, had listened to the ticking of the clock that counted down their time together over the sounds of her waking.

She noticed how his face flushed in his search for words, as fruitless as it was obvious. A mischievous smile on her face, Kagome drew him down to her for a kiss. Over the past week or so, she had learned how to best communicate with Inuyasha. It worked and he relaxed against her, his fingers brushing against one budding nipple.

Kagome took in a shuddering breath. "We should really bathe first…" she said, though her tone more than implied she could be easily persuaded against it.

"I like the way you smell," he said, kissing down her throat before coming to the breasts that had rarely been parted from his hands and mouth since she'd returned. "Sweet."

Kagome threw her head back and moaned as he sucked her left nipple, tongue swirling around it and fangs just shy of pricking her.

"And salty," he continued, nibbling her breast before switching to the other one.

She tangled her hands in his hair and pressed him closer.

"And dripping with want for me."

Kagome barely made contact with his ear, intending to give him the same kind of treatment he was giving her, when he stopped. Being abruptly lifted in the air before she could protest silenced her. In a flash, they were in the tub, and she gasped at the warm water. The perfect temperature every time.

"You knew I wanted a bath and you drew it already!" she said happily, giving him another kiss. "Thank you, Inuyasha."

It was far from their first bath together, and she had since given him many smiles, but he still felt warm inside like it was the first time. He deepened the kiss and stood in the lightly scented water with her just swaying. Inuyasha had never known contentment. Passion, yeah. Romance, sure. But this peace was something entirely new. It was born out of madness, of that he was certain after how he had conducted himself when he thought her stolen from him. And that was dangerous.

"I'll wash your hair," Kagome murmured, distracting him.

"Keh, I don't know why you like doing that so much."

"Because it's pretty!" she said, sounding almost innocent.

Easing her bottom onto the rim of the in-ground tub, she turned him around and forced his head under the water. Inuyasha came up sputtering and shot her a glare. Kagome was laughing at him and her eyes sparkled so he kept it at a glare instead of taking her over his knee like he was sorely tempted to do.

"You can wash it, but I'm keepin' an eye on you."

"Deal."

Lathering her hands with his favorite soap, she began to wash his hair in slow, gently massaging circles. Kagome's nails lightly scraped against his scalp and his eyes nearly rolled back in his head. The sound of her smothered giggle brought him back.

"What?" he asked crossly but with a slight slur. It just felt so good whenever she touched him.

"Such a puppy," she teased. Her eyes flashed with mischief and he nearly shot out of the water when she started to toy with his ear, rubbing it at the base and tweaking at it with the kind of confidence he had done more than enough to instill in her with his responses.

"Can't tell if you wanna get clean or dirty," he said.

"We seem to end up the same way no matter what I want."

Inuyasha reached for her, his keen hearing still not enough for him to pick up on the slight edge in Kagome's tone. All the same, Kagome did not resist when he parted her legs and tugged her forward. She was familiar enough now with what would follow and cried out when he put his mouth on her. His tongue, long and learned, tasted rather than probed. Her stomach lurched when their eyes met and she saw his gaze grow molten.

"I think you want what I want."

"You made me," she whimpered, struggling to maintain at least some measure of defiance to soothe her crippled pride.

His brows came together in what had become a familiar frustration. Giving her one last lick, he rose to his full height, watching the muscles in her limbs twitch in indecision. Captive but comfortable. Anything angry in him melted away the longer he looked at her and left him with just the façade of it that he felt compelled to keep up. Kagome wasn't scared, not anymore. And he didn't want to be someone who scared her or hurt her.

A kiss instead of words passed between them. She reached for him, and Inuyasha drew her completely into the water.

It was so easy, and that was what made it so difficult for Kagome. She didn't want to like touching him, especially didn't want to like the way he touched her, but she did. Married life would never have been like this with Hojo. The very thought of being with the Hekigan prince the way she was with the Inu prince made her stomach turn.

Inuyasha's grip shifted to her hips and she moved with him so the tip of his cock was lined up with her entrance. Kagome was the one to take action and complete them, crying out at the feeling of him inside her. They locked eyes and she saw the I-told-you-so all over his face.

"Shut up," she said.

"I didn't say anything!"

"You don't have to. I know what you mean."

He laughed and kissed her while she tried not to smile. Her hands went to his shoulders as he began to move them. Together they had explored fast and passionate, like their first time, and slow and intimate. There was still so much more for her to learn from him, with him, and about him. What surprised her even more was what she was learning about herself. In the pleasure-produced haze fogging up her brain, she tried to remember a time when she would have rather these revelations remained uncovered.

"Don't," Inuyasha murmured. "Focus on me. Focus on us."

"I am!" she protested.

Another thrust left her gasping.

"You need to relax." Inuyasha disengaged from her and flipped her around so she was facing away from him. "I can help."

"What are you—oh."

Kagome moaned gently while Inuyasha brushed her damp hair to the side and ran teasing kisses up and down the side of her neck. His arms circled around her and she felt the pulsing rigidity of his cock waiting for her against her bottom. When she brought his hands up and had them cup her breasts, the kisses increased in desperation, becoming hotter and lingering on her skin. His tongue tasted her here and there while his hands massaged her breasts, rough calloused grip scraping across her already hard nipples.

"Enough," she gasped. "I need you."

That was all he needed to hear. Inuyasha grabbed her hair close to the scalp and forcibly bent her over the rim of the tub, her lower body remaining in the water. In another second, he was inside her, and Kagome's mouth opened but no sound came out, all breath stolen away by how sudden their union was. He withdrew and then slammed inside her, sending feelings of molten pleasure through her body, centering in her core and traveling all the way to the end of her limbs.

There was no sound but for the rough splashing of the water and Inuyasha's own snarling grunts. One thing was missing to turn it into music to his ears.

"C'mon, Kagome," he said haggardly, close to his own end. "Lemme know how much you love this."

"S-so good," she said in the smallest voice. Finding the strength to get up on her elbows, she began to push back against him, giving as good as she got. "Do it harder. Make me cum."

Her words flipped a switch he didn't know he had and a shiver ran down his spine. How was it that he had her pinned down but she was still giving him orders? Fuck, it didn't matter anymore. His body was already doing as she had commanded. They created a stormy sea in the water with how his movements churned its depths—and hers.

Kagome's moans were picking up in pitch and frequency in keeping with his thrusts. One of her hands reentered the water and he was glad he hadn't put in any of the foamy bubbles she liked so much because he was able to see her strumming her own clit, playing with herself to heighten her own pleasure and, without being aware of it, his own. His cock throbbed inside her and he was desperate for release, twisting his hips and going weak in the knees, almost losing his footing in his race to get her off. Finally, it happened, and with one particularly well-aimed stab of his cock inside her, Kagome came, her pussy squeezing his cock in a kind of pattern that had no mercy.

Inuyasha cried out her name, the sound one pitch away from a whine, and followed after her like a dog on a leash.

The two of them stayed entwined while his cock throbbed inside her, semen oozing out and clouding up the water. After a long while, Kagome turned and kissed him, her lazy smile making him want to carry her right to bed.

"That was good. You were good."

Inuyasha gave a weak chuckle at her limited post-orgasm vocabulary. "You were great. Are great. Whatever."

She laughed and kissed him again. His gut twisted in a way that wasn't exactly unpleasant. Inuyasha wanted her to keep smiling at him, even after everything.

"My prince, are you finished? We're already two days behind an already altered schedule."

Inuyasha nearly groaned aloud. "I thought I told you to wait for my summons, Sango."

"It's okay," Kagome said. "You go ahead. The sooner you leave the sooner you'll return."

The way she was looking at him made him not want to tell her. More than that, it made him not want to leave. But this was bigger than his wants.

"Uh, actually, I might be gone for a little while."

"Like how long? Will you miss dinner?"

"We're sailing to Hekigan," Sango announced, "on a mission commanded by the emperor himself."

Kagome gave him a flat look. "And you're leaving without me."

"Uh, yeah?" Inuyasha wanted nothing more than to carry her out of the tub and distract her until she was too tired to ask him any more questions.

"Were you planning on telling me or were you just going to let me wake up alone one day?"

"I was gonna let you know! Just not yet."

The light in her sapphire eyes shifted into something that almost made him want to delegate the mission.

"I am your wife, Inuyasha. That means you are not to go traipsing about the world without my enthusiastic approval, and I did not agree to this."

"Wait, what did she just say?" Sango asked, looking at him in horror. "Gods, I knew you didn't want to marry a princess, but this is madness!"

"It's just Higurashi nonsense!" he explained to his shadow. When he turned back to Kagome he instantly fled to the other side of the tub. She was looking at him like she was going to bite his dick again.

"Leave us," Kagome ordered. "Your prince and I need to talk."

Gods, but why the fuck did her calling him someone else's anything hurt like an arrow through the heart?

Sango laughed out loud. "Do you really think you're special because you shared his bed? You forget you are a slave and cannot even command yourself let alone me."

"Get out!" she shrieked.

"Leave, Sango," Inuyasha said. "Don't make it any worse."

"But the emperor—"

"I'll take care of it."

His shadow stayed in place for half a second in indecision before leaving without a word. That was strange. In the past, Sango never would have left him in a situation like this, not even when he ordered it. At least not without a whole lot more arguing.

"Come on," Inuyasha said, making his voice low and soothing like one would with a wild animal. "Let's dry off and get dressed. We have the rest of the day together. We can do anything you want."

Getting out of the tub, he offered her a hand. Some of the clouds in her face cleared and she swam over.

"What I want is to know what is to become of me."

Inuyasha wrapped her in a towel before doing the same for himself. "Whaddya mean?"

"I mean what's going to happen to me when you bring a new woman back from Hekigan? Will I go with my sister?"

Kagome had brought the towel up over her head like a hood. It was big enough that it obscured everything but a small circle of her face. Even though her eyes were fierce, Inuyasha found the sight of her like that made him want to kiss her forehead and hold her close. His smile was one-sided as he did just that before rubbing the towel over her hair to dry the silken lengths.

"First of all, Hekigan women aren't my type." They tended to be fair-haired and lately he found himself preferring inky black tresses. "Second of all, there's no way in hell I'm letting you in the harem. You're still too willful. You'd have them riled up and breaking out in a week, and I've got too much going on to focus on that."

"So I'll be all by myself?" Neither of them could tell whether she sounded hopeful or saddened.

"Nope. I'm gonna have you looked after, and when I get back, we'll pick up where we left off."

"…How long will you be gone?"

Inuyasha wished she'd stop asking so many questions. Tiny drops of water clung to her lashes and glittered and he knew her body would look diamond-studded. He wanted to kiss each one of the water drops off of her.

"Four weeks each way. Don't wanna spend more 'n a day or two in Hekigan. Can't stand it there. I like it here much better." He pulled her forward and tugged the towel off, dropping it to the ground.

Kagome brought her lips to his and he kissed her back urgently, his hands full of the globes of her ass.

"You could take me with you," she suggested.

It was tempting. It was so, so fucking tempting. Why should he spend months away from his new lover on a boring mission he found himself caring less and less about every day? And cabin fever would take on a whole new meaning with her on the ship. It was a nice fantasy, but then his brain came back at him with all the realities. His father had directed just him and Sango to go. Then there was the fact that Kagome had just tried to run from him and her collar was broken. Losing her within the palace had been bad enough, but out on land? Add to that the fact that this whole mission had come about because Kagome had withheld information from him on the whereabouts of the Higurashi royals.

"I can't. I want to, really, Kagome, but I can't."

Kagome hadn't expected anything else. Inside, she found herself relieved. She knew it was her duty to try and do anything in her power to go with him to Hekigan, but she found that she no longer wanted to. Even though she had been the one to set his journey in motion with the letter to Kikyo, restoring Higurashi wasn't something she wanted to think about anymore.

Higurashi had been her home. She had loved her land and her people—what little of them she had seen, anyway. But things weren't perfect there. The priestesses were cruel and the caste system had her agreeing with the foreigners who called them barbarians. And what was there to go back to, anyway? Their castle was rubble. Everyone they knew was dead. What could two girls and a gaggle of peasants do against a demon empire's army? She had a better life here as a slave than she could ever dream of having in Higurashi as a princess.

And then there was Kikyo. Kagome felt her heart squeeze in her chest. She was her Queen and deserved her love and loyalty even to the point of giving her life. But what was a Queen without a kingdom to rule over? She had no one to lead but her weak sister and the others without powers. They wouldn't even be able to take on human warriors. And Kikyo had been different after the war. Broken. She needed time to heal and not be forced by the remnant of their people into a role that had always asked too much of her.

"Okay," Kagome said. "I'll stay."

"You will?" Inuyasha said in surprise. He had expected some of her usual stubbornness, at least just to keep in character if not a genuine pushback. The fact that she had so readily and calmly agreed was almost concerning.

"I will," she said, lips quirked up in a smile. "I'll keep the bed warm for you. And every night, my hands will remind me of you and why you're worth waiting for."

Inuyasha swooped her up into his arms and practically ran to the bed. "Guess I've gotta put a few more deposits in your spank bank before tomorrow, then."

Kagome laughed wildly as they bounced on the bed. "I guess you've gotta."

They didn't leave the bed for the rest of the day.

O\o/O

With the dawn came a kind of dread that was foreign to Inuyasha. Normally, he liked to leave the palace. He only returned home maybe one week a month, spent a day with his parents and the rest with his harem. He fought hard, whether on the battlefield or in his capacity as an ambassador on diplomatic missions. When it was time to play, he grabbed for the pleasure as though it would be his last.

But now he wanted more.

Their last night together had exhausted Kagome. She had only fallen asleep a couple hours before. Inuyasha, however, had stayed awake. Working quietly, he had drafted and sent notes to various parties to make sure Kagome would be taken care of properly while he was gone. Even though he was confident everything was ready for his departure, he was still no closer to the door than he had been half an hour ago when he had originally planned to leave.

Moving soundlessly, he approached the bed. The sheets were still rumpled from their last romp, though most of the night had been spent in conversation rather than sex. Kagome's hair was a dark halo on the silken pillow, waving everywhere and turning into ringlets on some of the ends. Fully aware that she would yell at him if she were conscious, Inuyasha still cut off a length of her hair with his claws. The red ribbon he had given her while teaching her archery was used to wrap it up and he quickly stuck it in his pocket. Even if he couldn't bring her, he could bring a part of her.

Sunlight began to creep into the room and Inuyasha knew he had to leave. But then Kagome moaned in her sleep and rolled onto her back. The sheet fell away and exposed one of her breasts. There were marks on her beautifully delicate human skin from his fangs and claws. It looked beastly in the daylight, but only the two of them knew how much they'd enjoyed it when he inflicted them on her. Unable to help himself, he leaned over her and gave her one last kiss, chaste and sweet. It would have to last him until his return.

Kagome moaned and her tongue swiped against his lips. Before he knew what was happening, her arms were around him and he was pressing her into the bed, one knee between her parted legs. Her hands were in his hair and rubbing his ears at just the right spot with just the right pressure to make this encounter dangerous. Just when he was about to say to hell with it and free his cock to bury it inside her, Kagome pressed down on his head. He got the picture and kissed down her naked body until he arrived at her fragrant pussy with a watering mouth.

"Fuck, I'm gonna miss you," he said hoarsely, running his fingers over her wet pussy.

The tiny puff of her bush just above her clit got a kiss, then down her right labia and up her left. His tongue dipped inside her juicy hole and he drank right from the source. Running his tongue up, he danced around her clit, memorizing her inside and out. Sweet fluid dripped onto his face and soon he was covered in it from his nose all the way down to where it had dripped to his neck. A glance up at Kagome had him humping the mattress. Her eyes had gone midnight dark and she was playing with her breasts. Her full tits were palmed, one in each hand, and she pulled at her reddened nipples until they looked so swollen and sensitive he wondered if it felt so good it almost hurt.

"Goddess, Inuyasha," Kagome said in a strangled voice. "Your mouth is my least and most favorite thing about you."

Inuyasha redoubled his efforts and tongued at her, gradually increasing the pace until his jaw hurt. Her pussy was tightening down on him and he could tell from her flushed face that she was very close. The tip of his nose was bumping up against her clit while his tongue was exploring her depths. Abruptly switching it up, two of his fingers replaced his tongue and he focused his mouth on her clit. Feeling almost mischievous, he rubbed one knuckle against her asshole. They hadn't done any kind of play in that area though he'd wanted to. Kagome jerked in response but didn't say anything other than a moan. Taking that as permission, he worked his smallest finger inside her tight rosebud. Her clit swelled in response and he sucked on it, licking it at the same time as fast as he could.

The cry of his name was half choked. Kagome was gasping and still cumming while he rose to his knees and licked his face dry. There were tears in her eyes and she reached for him. Whether they were tears of pleasure or in reaction to their impending parting, he didn't know. All he did was hold her like she silently bade him to.

When she had finally settled down, Kagome smirked at him. "I wanted to have you kiss me there before you left. That way if you met another woman they'd taste me in your mouth and know you were taken."

He barked out a laugh. "Hot and crazy. Just the way I like you."

"I suppose I should do the same for you. Your journey would have an uncomfortable start otherwise."

Fuck it, he was already late. Inuyasha lay down with his arms crossed behind his head and watched Kagome unbutton his trousers. His cock was so eager to be in her mouth that once freed it sprang up so fast it almost hit her in the face. Delicately, with pinky up, Kagome grabbed him at the base. Her hands were so soft and it felt so good to be touched that he hissed at even that slight contact. Pressing a brief kiss to his mushroom tip, she sucked the head into her mouth. His hips bucked and he forced another inch inside her sweet sucking mouth.

Kagome pushed him back down again. Her lips suctioned around him tightly as she bobbed her head up and down, taking him a little further each time. One of her hands snuck up his shirt and her fingers ran over the dark hairs of his happy trail, feeling how the sculpted muscles of his abdomen twitched at how she touched him. Her movements picked up and soon she was deepthroating him, swallowing around his cock for a second before pulling back almost all the way and twirling her tongue around the tip, brushing it against his slit. Like him, she had a mixture of saliva and sex running down her face. She was the hottest thing he had ever fucking seen.

Much too soon, Kagome removed her mouth from him completely. His cry of protest and loss was cut off when another moan was jerked from him as Kagome tongued his balls. Her lips and tongue knew exactly where to go and what to do.

"Fuck, Kagome, please finish me. Please!"

The smile she gave him and that twinkle in her eye told him just how much she was aware of and enjoyed the power she had over him. Instead of taking him in all the way like she had been doing a few glorious minutes ago, Kagome sandwiched his cock between her breasts. His hips raised up again and Kagome started to jerk him off with her pillowy tits. Inuyasha didn't have the capacity for words left, but if he did he would have asked her who the fuck taught her to do that and also beg her to use her mouth at the same time. Thankfully, she was at least thinking along the same lines for half of his thoughts and brought her head down, giving him a single torturous lick.

"I ain't a fuckin' lollipop, Kagome. Suck me dry."

She ignored him. Her tits continued to jerk him off at the same pace. Meanwhile, her tongue licked him faster and faster, encompassing more of his head each time. His cock was so hard and swollen he considered just doing away with her illusion of control and fucking her until he busted in one or two strokes. Her saliva had dripped down the flared head of his cock and was now all the way to the base, mixing with his precum and shining on her gorgeous tits. He was hypnotized and in agony, watching enraptured as she squeezed her breasts together, hard nipples poking through her slender fingers, smothering his cock.

"Where do you want to cum, Inuyasha?" she asked. "You can choose."

"Down your throat." He said it with urgency, but it still came out like a whimper.

The second Kagome put her lips back on him, he lost it. Some of his cum escaped her mouth and dribbled down between her breasts where she continued to jerk him off. Kagome cleaned him with her mouth, making sure to slurp up every bit of his mess. Then she crawled over him, that same twinkle on her eye, and Inuyasha knew that she would never have to worry about other women.

"Think about that while you're gone, okay?"

He laughed. "You don't need to ask me. I don't think I can avoid it." Not for the rest of his life. This moment and a hundred others.

"You better get going." She pressed a kiss to his cheek and he held her close.

"I don't like leaving you." It had taken so much to get like this with her. Would she cling to him when he returned the same as when he left?

"It's not forever," she said, sounding drowsy. "And you'll bring me back lots of presents, right?"

His chest rumbled with a chuckle. But then he thought about it. Presents. He could give her something right now to make sure she would behave and wait for him and wouldn't ever let another turn her head. Inuyasha fixed his pants and got to his feet, going over to the chest at the foot of the bed. It was disorganized and filled with the spoils of his conquests, but there was one thing here that would be perfect for her. Finally, he found it.

"Here's something to tide you over until I get back," he said, smiling so wide it almost hurt.

Kagome smiled back at him. Inuyasha was obviously pleased with himself, hiding whatever it was he wanted to give her behind his back like a child.

"What is it?"

"Hold out your hand."

She did and he slipped a ring on her finger. Kagome blinked at it and sat up. "This is…"

"It's for you! I found it in a forest before we met. Do you like it?"

"I…" The white gold ring was fashioned like a twisted wreath of vines. Diamonds and amethysts studded the band. "You got this where?"

Her voice was faint and Inuyasha frowned at her in concern. She was pale and seemed to tremble. Maybe she was more tired than he had thought. Or was it their parting that was affecting her? His heart jumped. And of course this was an item she had never owned the like of before.

"That's not important," he said. "What's important is that this is a promise, Kagome. You will wait for me with patience and behave yourself. And when I come back, you will be rewarded." Unable to help himself, he kissed her. "We both will be."

Kagome didn't respond to the kiss, still staring at the ring.

It was hers.

The ring had been the only thing she'd owned since birth. It had been a gift from her mother, Queen Midoriko, fashioned before her birth out of materials that were precious to the Goddess. For luck, supposedly, but she had yet to see any evidence of that. It was the only thing she had that her mother had touched, the rest having gone to Kikyo. During their flight from Higurashi, it had been lost with the rest of the things Kikyo deemed unnecessary. She had never thought to see it again.

The presence of the ring on her finger cleared her mind. It was as though she were waking from a deep sleep. Life with Inuyasha had been a dream, but it was foolish. Resentment rose in her chest. This bastard dog had murdered and raped and pillaged her people. Even something as precious as this was nothing more than a trinket to be tossed at a slave, a pacifier. But it hurt. Why did hating him hurt this time? This was so much worse than when he was holding her in the dungeon. Now she wanted to cry instead of scream.

"Get dressed, princess. I'm gonna drop you off at your sitter on my way out." Inuyasha took her hand and tugged her to her feet. Kagome backed away from him. With a roll of his eyes, Inuyasha crossed his arms. "Now ain't the time to get mad about me leaving. Put some clothes on and hurry. Sango's been waiting long enough."

The bubble she had been living in had been burst so spectacularly that Kagome struggled to remember what had become normal behavior for her. Not trusting her voice, she merely nodded. The door to her room had been left open from the last time they'd been in there—thinking of how she had let the dog fuck her on every surface of both their quarters made her stomach turn now—and she closed it as much as she could, knowing if it closed all the way she would not be able to get back out again. Thankfully, Inuyasha hadn't followed her.

Kagome grabbed the thickest pillow she could find, she pressed her face into it and sobbed. Her shoulders shook with the effort of trying to keep herself quiet. Sure, he might be vain and oblivious enough to think she was crying about being left behind, but she didn't want to chance it.

"Hurry up, Kagome! Anything will do."

There was a cloth and bowl of water on the vanity. She made quick use of them, and without even looking through the extensive wardrobe, Kagome grabbed the closest thing to her. It was another indecent thing that the dog had made for her. It was the palest blue with daisies embroidered on the flowy bell sleeves. Slipping her feet into the nearest shoes, she hurried back to Inuyasha.

"Took ya long enough."

Hand in hand, they left the room. For the first time, Kagome didn't walk through the palace in fear. The prince walked like appearing side by side with a slave wasn't an issue. He was hurrying her along, sure, but she wasn't on a leash or being carried like property. When she felt herself begin to slide back into the insanity that had swept her up for the past few weeks, she only had to look at the ring to center herself again.

"Here we are!" Inuyasha announced, flinging open a pair of marble-inlaid doors embellished with gold and jewels.

The space inside was a beautiful creation of natural beauty meets manmade. Baskets of flowers hung from the ceiling by silken ropes. The windows were stained glass and depicted a woman playing a stringed instrument and lulling a giant dog demon to sleep, its head in her lap. Kagome marveled as a brightly colored parrot flew by and landed on one of the baskets.

"Puppy! Your note didn't say you'd be coming too."

Inuyasha stooped down to embrace the woman that Kagome recognized as his mother.

"Kagome, I'll be leaving you in Mother's care while I'm away. She'll keep you occupied and out of trouble. By the time I've returned, you'll know everything required of an Inu lady." Turning to Izayoi, he continued, "Kagome is absolutely one-hundred percent off-limits. No one can touch her, and I'd prefer it if no one saw her as well."

Izayoi raised one fine brow. "What are you planning with her?"

"I'm not sure, but it's something." Giving Kagome a brief kiss, he smiled in a way that she was sure would have other women begging at his feet. It did nothing but repulse her. "Be good while I'm gone. I'll be back before you know it."

Her spine was stiff and she didn't say a word. Inuyasha looked hurt for a moment, but it evaporated as soon as it had come. With a huff, he took off, the crimson of his fire rat cape swirling behind him.

And then they were alone.

"My son also provided a guard for your protection," Izayoi said. "One of the eunuchs."

A parrot landed on her shoulder and she fed it something from her sleeve. Kagome took the opportunity to study the woman. Unlike herself, she was wearing a gown that wasn't sheer. It went to the floor where it trailed behind her, its lively print of blooming flowers bright and beautiful. It was all different shades of purple, emphasizing the woman's unusual violet eyes. She was small but carried herself like she was her son's height. Her skin was like moonlight and Kagome wondered how anyone so ethereally beautiful could produce something as vile as Inuyasha.

Unbeknownst to Kagome, she was being studied as well.

"You're angry with Inuyasha because he left without you?"

Unable to do anything else, Kagome nodded. Yes, she was mad. Yes, she had wanted to go with Inuyasha. But it had nothing to do with the prince of the dogs and everything to do with her, her sister, and her people's liberation by her true love, Hojo.

"I hate boats," Izayoi said abruptly. "I get terribly seasick. And journeys by ship are so boring, anyway. You won't be missing much."

"…I suppose."

"Inuyasha chose a good time to travel this way. The palace is over the part of Inu closest to Hekigan. The seas are calm as well. Even so, my puppy will be gone for so long. Hekigan is just so out of the way from everything else."

Kagome felt a renewed shame at forgetting all about Hojo and replacing him with her enemy. Higurashi was even farther from Hekigan, a three month journey over treacherous land and sea. He had gone through so much just to see her all these years and she had treated him like an annoyance at best.

"I don't know why he wants me to teach you how to be an Inu lady. Inuyasha never cared for them before. Besides, they're so catty. All these wonderful educations and they only make use of them to think up backhanded compliments rather than anything that enriches the world." Izayoi sighed and took a seat on one of her silk-upholstered cushions. "It's their culture. Inu is based on destruction and absorption, not creation. I'd much rather teach you the ways of my people, but that kind of knowledge is reserved for a daughter. That's why I need my puppy to marry fast. Then the emperor can get me with child. It's so stupid, isn't it? In Inu, you cannot have more than one child with a partner until the first is married off. They think it's bad luck or something. That's a very pretty ring, where did you get it?"

Kagome was surprised at suddenly being directly addressed in a way that required a response. "Um, Inuyasha gave it to me."

Izayoi beckoned her closer and held her hand, studying the ring. "Very pretty," she repeated. "It suits you. In Inu, married women wear a ring on that finger."

She shrugged. "Rings in Higurashi are distributed by the Queen. Some warriors wear them on every finger." Kagome herself had once had many. More than a few times she had overheard priestesses grumbling about it, asking why she who was worse than worthless had so many when they had to kill a dozen enemies for each one of theirs.

"We had hoped to visit Higurashi one day," Izayoi said. "Not as enemies, but as allies. That was a very long time ago, back before Inuyasha had even earned his sword. Now we never will." She sighed as though the destruction of Kagome's homeland was a great burden on her soul and then clapped her hands, mood dramatically shifting. "Would it be terribly impolite of me to ask your patience in court lady training? The empress is coming for a chat."

"Not a problem," Kagome said. What would a spy do in her situation? She had finally gained access to the queen, the true ruler of the kingdom even here in a barbarian land, and now she was finding herself upset that she couldn't summon the energy to be likeable rather than storing any possible bit of relevant information for later.

The queen gestured for Kagome to sit on one of the many floor cushions and she did, picking up a book that had been tossed carelessly on the floor in an effort not to appear like she was eavesdropping. Too keyed up from all the many changes the past twenty-four hours had brought, the words were nothing more than a blur of nonsense. Before too long, her reason for the poor cover came crashing through the door with all the drama of a stage actress rather than an empress.

"Great God Canis Himself, Izayoi, you would not believe how awful Sesshomaru is making my life now! He's just as sour as he was when he was a baby."

Leaning over, she casually kissed Izayoi on the lips before settling herself next to her, the long ruffled trail of her gown swirling on the floor at her side. The skirt was high in the front and revealed long slender legs in silken stockings with her family's chivalric symbols printed onto it.

"Oh no! Is it another fight about Rin?"

The queen whistled sharply in a way Kagome found most unroyal and a flock of imps came out with golden trays of tea and other goodies. Setting them on the richly carpeted floors, they proceeded to serve the queen and empress what seemed to be their usual favorites.

"Take care of Kagome, too, please," Izayoi directed, smiling at her charge.

No sooner than the order was given did the imps swarm her, holding up offerings that were finer than even the ones sacrificed in the Goddess' temple. To be polite, she took one of the flowery-smelling cups of tea and something that looked like a bigger piece of chocolate than Inuyasha had given her that time. When she tasted it, she discovered it was cake, and nearly laughed out loud in delight at the realization that the two could be combined.

Inukimi and Izayoi looked at her, the both of them seeming faintly amused, but she didn't notice.

"Did you get a new toy?" Inukimi asked. "I thought you weren't into slaves."

"I'm not. It's only sexy when you exert power over the already powerful." Leaning forward conspiratorially, she whispered, "Inuyasha brought her. He wants me to teach her how to be courtly."

The empress eyed Kagome as she licked the crumbs from her fingers and went back for another piece of cake. "Good luck. It appears as though both our sons are hopeless. I blame Tōga."

"You're probably right." Izayoi took a sip of tea and blotted her mouth with a napkin of gold cloth. "So what's going on with Sesshomaru now?"

"Ugggghhhhh!" Inukimi's eyes rolled to the ceiling as she made a wordless sound of exasperation. "Of course it's Rin. She's the only thing that's wrong with him, aside from his personality. I swear, if I could go back in time I'd stop Tōga from ever giving him that stupid sword. It can't even cut anything! He should just throw it in the trash."

"I think Rin's a cutie," Izayoi interjected before the rant could get any worse. "It would be good for her to get out there and make some friends, though."

"The only ones she speaks to are Sesshomaru and Kagura, and now that Tōga finally listened to me and barred our son from seeing her it's just been Kagura."

Izayoi's brow creased in worry. "Rin's been alone with Kagura? For how long?"

"A few weeks or something, I don't keep tabs on her," she said, waving her hand dismissively. "Boring and annoying. The worst combination."

"Are you sure it's okay for her to be with Kagura all this time? Rin's been very sheltered and Kagura is, well, not."

"Kagura's a lovely woman, even when she's not sober. That girl could learn a lot from her. Oh!" Inukimi perked up, seeming to remember something. "She asked me a few days ago if I could get Rin a staff position. I certainly don't want her, and it wouldn't be good for any of the nobles to get their hands on her. Imagine the gossip! Would you mind taking on another maid?"

"Sure! But would Sesshomaru mind? He's not exactly fond of me and I don't think stealing away his little friend would do anything to help our relationship."

"Oh, no one cares what Sesshomaru thinks until he's the emperor, and that won't be for centuries yet."

O\o/O

"You're not supposed to be here," Kagura said.

Sesshomaru was faintly surprised. Her red eyes showed no signs of the poppy she abused and her voice was normal as well. To add to that, she was fully dressed.

"So you've told me."

He had tried multiple times to gain access to her chambers, but whereas before she would have given anything to have him even glance in her general direction, she continued to deny him entry day after day. Once, he would have simply pushed the door open, but his father had foreseen he would try such a thing and had reinforced the wards with his own energy.

Damn him.

"Emperor's orders, Sesshomaru," Kagura drawled. "Until you say sorry to Inuyasha's girlfriend, I have custody of Rin." It almost seemed like she was enjoying this.

A whiff of the one he sought escaped the room through what he assumed was a crack in Kagura's magic. His reaction was instantaneous. Before the bitch could blink, he had her by the throat.

"Bring her," he growled.

Kagura tried to say something, but his grip was too tight for that. Even once he realized that, he continued to squeeze for a few seconds more, just past the point her face turned a deeper red than the crimson of her eyes. When he released, still keeping a hold on her, she coughed and gasped, struggling to free herself. But it was useless and she knew it.

"Bring me what's mine."

"Let go of her!"

At the sound of her voice, he did just that. Rin was there, just beyond his reach. Her hair was no longer done as she'd fixed it since she was a child but down her back, a glossy dark brown. She wore nothing of what he had given her, instead dressed in one of Kagura's gowns. The dress had been tailored to her, but the sight of it was still displeasing and he sneered in mild disgust. The minute she was out of there, he would see that she was fixed up properly.

"Rin, this has gone on long enough. You are to come with me and we will ignore my father's idea of a joke."

She crossed her arms and glared at him. Was it his imagination, or had even her eyes taken on a reddish tint in imitation of Kagura?

"I don't want to go anywhere with you."

"Uh, did I come at a bad time?"

The love triangle turned to face the intruding guard who had most definitely shown up at the worst moment.

"If you run, eunuch, you might escape a killing blow," Sesshomaru said, holding up his already glowing green hand.

The gangly guard stared at his claws with wide eyes before glancing back and forth between him and the women.

"I can't!" he squeaked. "The queen and empress both have requested the presence of someone named Rin. I'm to bring her straight to them or the empress will find the remains of my manhood and shove them up my—"

"The time has come, Rin," Kagura said gravely. "Do you remember what to do?"

Rin nodded. "What I must."

Sesshomaru tried to make sense of the exchange. "I will accompany you along the way to my mother. And we will have a private conversation," he emphasized, glaring at the guard in such a way that his blade-tipped staff slipped from his grip and nearly went crashing to the floor.

Rin looked at Kagura as if for permission and his wife nodded. "Go. I'll explain."

How was it that he had lost her to such an extent? Sesshomaru could remember when the moment a thought crossed her mind it would also pass her lips and right to his ears. Rin would seek him out and the moment she saw him she'd smile and it was more beautiful than the sun breaking through storm clouds. From the time she was a child, he had known that she was the only thing in this world that he was capable of loving.

"You talk," Rin said, eyes straight ahead as they walk. "But I won't promise to listen."

The tone she used was something he had never heard from her before. It almost stopped him in his tracks.

"My father wants me to make amends to—" he had to forcibly stop himself from calling her his brother's whore "—your friend. But I don't believe my greatest wrong has been against her. Rin, you must understand that I believed I was helping you. I was fixing things. She wanted to take you away, and you don't know what the world is like. You don't belong there. You belong here, with me."

Rin gave him an odd look and they turned a corner. They were close to their destination now. Their guard was very obviously listening, but he didn't care.

"I didn't think you were capable of stringing that many words together in a row, Sesshomaru," she said.

Again, she had omitted his title. They were almost at the queen's private chambers now and he found himself growing desperate. Their paths had crossed for a reason, and he had taken her for himself then. He could just as easily take her now. Rin would hate him, but he would still have her.

Sesshomaru wanted Rin as she had been, smiling and happy.

"Be mad at me if you must, Rin, but everything I do is for your sake. I don't take one step, not a single breath, without thinking of you." They were outside the door now and he grabbed her hand before she could slide it open.

Rin turned angrily startled eyes to him and he again observed the subtle wrongness in those depths. That was what came of too much time apart. "Don't touch me!"

"I haven't been touching you for over ten years now," Sesshomaru said in a low, intense voice. This was it. Everything between them could no longer remain buried and hidden. It was time to celebrate their feelings. "But gods, Rin, how I've wanted to."

"Don't you dare say it, Sesshomaru. Don't decide to be a man now."

"You are the bride of my heart, Rin. All that is good in me belongs to you. It's because of you. Come with me now and things will be different. You need not be alone any longer. Neither of us will be."

Something in her face shifted and he thought he saw his Rin, the one who danced among the flowers and smiled in a way that brought him back to life each time he felt he could not go on. But then she was gone, and her gaze seemed even ruddier than before.

"You'd say anything to get your pet back. A little girl to fluff your ego and make you feel powerful. Well, she isn't going to fall for it anymore."

Snatching back her hand, Rin entered the room. The bow she gave was deep and graceful, not at all like her shy and self-conscious previous obeisance when it came to his mother. The two royal women watched her with impassive faces.

"You're looking well, Rin," Izayoi said. "I suppose Kagura has told you—"

"Rin!" A woman he had previously not noticed sprang up and threw her arms around his servant. "You're okay!"

Rin looked at the woman with an expression of vague annoyance. "… Have we met?"

The crown prince recognized the woman as Kagome, the slave whore he had tried to kill. Any anger he would have felt towards her was consumed by his concern over Rin's reaction to their reunion. She had been so distraught over the loss of her friend that she had left him. He had assumed that was why she had been treating him so coldly.

"Are you joking?" Kagome cocked her head in confusion. "Why haven't you written? Inuyasha told some of the imps to let you know you could contact me, but they said you were gone. I thought you left without me."

Rin was silent for a moment. "Oh. We can reschedule our outing. Please give the prince my regards."

Now Kagome was giving her the same look Sesshomaru was. The both of them stayed silent and studied Rin while Izayoi laid out a list of her duties. They were basic things that Rin had long been doing for herself, like drawing a bath and laying out clothes and delivering correspondence to the appropriate messengers.

"There's something wrong with Rin," Kagome whispered to him.

His first reaction was to finish what he'd started with her for daring to address him directly. But then he thought about it and agreed. Rin had never been this way. When she was hurt, she didn't lash out or give a cold shoulder. She cried and then she apologized even if she had been the one wronged. And Rin had loved Kagome. It pained him to say it, but she had. The bitch was her first friend and Rin had treasured her.

Something was very, very wrong.

"You'll be closer to her than I from now on. It has to be you to find out what's happened. Then you'll report to me."

Sesshomaru wanted nothing more than to take Rin away and make her act like herself again. But there were restraints placed on him. Abstract chains more powerful than iron ones. His title. His father. His role. All those things that had brought them together now kept them apart.

"I'll tell you as much as Rin wants you to know. She's my friend, not you."

"Your 'friend' just looked at you like she had never seen you before."

"Is that alright with you, Sesshomaru?" the empress said.

Everyone turned to look at the two of them.

"I was just relaying my apologies to Inuyasha's slave as father commanded," Sesshomaru said smoothly. "What were you saying?"

"Rin will be staying here in my chambers. My reading room will be hers for the time being," Izayoi said. Though she smiled brightly at the crown prince, he remained stony-faced.

"You are too gracious," Rin said with another bow that seemed too practiced to belong to her.

"Go and make yourself comfortable," Izayoi said. "I'll give you a few days to settle in before the work starts."

Rin left without another glance. Sesshomaru noted how she didn't need to be told the way though she had never been in that part of the palace before.

"I'm glad that's settled." Inukimi rose to her feet, kissing Izayoi on the lips again before crossing the room and kissing her son on the cheek. "Maybe I'll get an actual grandchild by the time the winter festival arrives."

"Over my dead body."

She rolled her eyes. "I'll see you later, Izayoi. Come along, Sesshomaru. The queen has a slave to train."

Again, Kagome and Izayoi were alone.

Kagome tried not to look at Inuyasha's mother. Her book was still open and she again pretended to read. This time, she actually managed to take in some of the words.

In conclusion, the Shikon jewel is a weapon of massive destruction that is capable of destroying even a noble empire the size of Inu. To defend ourselves, we must attack. And attack. And attack. It is not enough to go to the source kingdom directly, but rather take every kingdom and bit of land that lies between us and…

"I'm bored!" Izayoi said suddenly, startling Kagome into dropping her book. "Let's go into town. The oceanfront marketplace has one stall that serves my favorite tea, and there's a lovely restaurant where the chef draws your face in chocolate sauce on a pastry so light it melts in your mouth. I'm sure you'll adore it just as I do." She whistled again and her team of imps assembled almost out of thin air. "Bring a dozen of my favorite maids and as many guards. Plus Kagome's eunuch. We're going out."

And so it was that Kagome found herself in the largest carriage she had ever seen. It seemed big enough for forty, yet the women still had the guards ride in a separate vehicle. Everything was so sudden that Kagome could do nothing but sit stone-still and watch. All the other women knew each other well. Each and every one of them gave her a confused look upon entering the carriage that quickly shifted to disgust when they moved beyond her face and noticed her collar.

"This is my dear friend Kagome," Izayoi said to the mixture of demon and human women, nobles themselves but serving as maids to the queen. She sat beside her and linked their arms. "She hasn't visited the marketplace in Dobhar-chú yet and I'm so excited to bring her!"

The queen's acceptance and enthusiasm were all that were needed to thaw the frost that had set in. Soon, the women were chatting among each other like she wasn't there, which she honestly preferred. They were all so beautiful and polished. Fans and hair and gowns scented with expensive perfumes that were prettier than anything a flower emitted. They all dressed like Izayoi and styled their hair the same way as well. Suddenly self-conscious, Kagome longed to smooth her wild waves and folded her arms over her chest, not liking that her clothing was so light in comparison to theirs.

"Did Inuyasha commission that gown for you, Kagome?" Izayoi asked. "It's gorgeous. Exactly what every Inu girl would give her entire fortune to wear even for just an evening."

Suddenly, all eyes were on them.

"Yes. He's given me many things." It wasn't a boast, she just brought it up for lack of anything else to say.

Izayoi's eyes glanced at the ring again and the smile that curled her mouth seemed almost sad. "He's not usually so generous. I'm glad that he's found a reason to grow up."

"How is the young prince, your majesty?"

"Oh, Kagome would know better than I. They live together. How is he, Kagome? I barely saw him before he left this morning."

The whispers started. The other women had figured out that she was the one Inuyasha had locked down the palace to find, accosting servant and master alike in his search. She felt her cheeks flush, completely unaware of how much prettier it made her appear.

"He's well. Inuyasha has been very…attentive of late. I know he was reluctant to leave, but he hopes for great things to come of his journey."

The eyes of the other women were admiring now rather than dressing her down. Apparently she was articulate enough for them. Submissive enough. Small enough.

Slave enough.

She fixed a pleasant smile on her face. All she had to do was bide her time. Kagome would have much rather escaped with Rin, but this was fine too. Her ring was precious, but she could sell it. And her fine clothes. That would buy her passage to Higurashi. She would find loyal supporters and they would journey to Hekigan, where she would reunite with her one true love and destroy the Inu kingdom.

Destroy Inuyasha.

Her insides mixed in a kind of anxious, agonizing knot she didn't have the strength to undo. She would keep him, she decided. Spare him the terrible fate that would befall every other warrior. And he would be hers. Her slave. Serving her in whatever capacity she demanded.

The carriage gently touched the ground, shaking Kagome out of her thoughts. She had not noticed they had started to descend. The door opened and the guards set up a small set of stairs, standing at attention in a line on either side of the carpet they had laid out so the ladies would not dirty their satin slippers. Izayoi departed first, laughing giddily and chatting with her friends about the things she wanted to buy.

Keeping in character with how she thought a slave should be, Kagome let everyone else depart before her. The other women took off in a group, their guards holding parasols over them so not even the sun's rays could harm them. Meanwhile, Kagome was stuck behind with the eunuch.

"Having fun?" Miroku asked, still trying to get the bent leftover parasol open.

Kagome grabbed it out of his hands and did it herself. "About as much as you are."

He laughed at that and the two of them took off.

"I see you're coming up in the world. The queen doesn't normally keep company with slaves."

She ground her teeth at the word. "And I don't normally keep company with dogs. This war changed a lot of things."

He whistled low. "What's gotten into you? Missing Inuyasha?" His voice turned dreamy. "I can relate. Sango and I are separated for a whole two months and some days while she traverses the stormy seas, venturing forth to—" Miroku stopped in his tracks. "Kohaku?"

Kagome turned to urge him to hurry up, annoyed. The queen and her ladies were almost out of sight. But then she realized this was as good a break as she was going to get.

"A friend?" she guessed.

Miroku nodded, eyes scanning the crowd as he looked for a sight of the one he'd recognized.

"Go look for them," she suggested. He glanced at her, torn. "It's okay. I'll catch up with the queen. She promised to buy me a whole cake just for myself!" Kagome smiled, praying her mask wouldn't crack and if it did that he'd be stupid enough not to notice.

It took a second, but Miroku relented. "Okay. I'll catch up with you. Don't tell anyone I'm gone!"

Kagome waited until he was absorbed by the crowd himself before walking in the opposite direction. She had never seen the sea before, but Kikyo had described it and she remembered it smelled of salt. And they'd had a large lake in Higurashi so she knew what waves sounded like. Maybe she could offer her ring for passage straight to Hekigan? Or she'd at least find someone who knew of a carriage for rent…

Her thoughts and her steps halted when she saw him.

Even in a crowd full of demons, Inuyasha stood out. His silver hair gleamed in the sunlight and his broad shoulders would have marked him even if it didn't. He was standing by a merchant's table of wares, examining the shiny things. Grabbing one of them, he smiled in a way that would have made her weak in the knees if it had been directed at her. But it wasn't.

Inuyasha was smiling at Sango and holding a hair comb up beside her face. It was beautiful, exactly the kind of thing Kagome would have wanted for herself. Made of silver, it showed a bird in flight at the top. The shape of the comb was designed to evoke images of the crescent moon and was inlaid with mother of pearl. A pink sapphire studded the center. Sango was blushing, eyes downcast in a maidenly fashion.

Kagome gripped her parasol so tight she felt it splinter. She was going to Hekigan, alright. And she was getting there on Inuyasha's ship.

O\o/O

"Inuyasha, you've been looking at these stalls for far too long. The crew is waiting for us."

He ignored her, continuing to browse. He had made a promise, and he intended to keep it. Finally, he found something that caught his eye. Grabbing it, he held it up so it would better catch the light.

"Pink is her favorite color," he said, not realizing he was smiling like a fool. "Do you think she'll like it? I promised Kagome a whole ton of presents when we get back. I want to get her one for every day we're apart. Or is that too much? Would that be weird?"

Sango's fists were clenched and so was her jaw. She made sure to keep her eyes on her feet while she slowly counted to ten the way Miroku had suggested.

Pink was her favorite color, too.

What was surprising was the tears didn't come along with that thought. True, she would put money on Inuyasha not remembering her favorite color or her birthday or anything like that, but they were still friends. More than friends. They saved each other, protected one another from death. So it didn't hurt as much when she thought of their bond as something important like that. Now it was just annoying.

"I'm sure she'll like whatever you get her. Save your silver for Hekigan. There are likely to be better goods there."

Inuyasha snorted and counted out the coins for the merchant. "Like hell. Hekigan can suck it. There's no way I'm giving those bastards even the smallest copper cent."

"You'd empty your purse if that girl even glanced at a bauble," she muttered.

"And that is exactly why Kagome's not coming with us."

O\o/O

It wasn't exactly difficult to keep herself hidden from the dog bastard. The place was so crowded with people and all the different smells that went with them that his nose was useless. And aside from that, his attention was so focused on his bodyguard that he wasn't seeing anything else. Kagome followed the two of them from a distance, weaving in and out of the crowd's edges. Eventually, they led her to the docks and she watched them board their ship.

The ship he'd chosen was small and unassuming. Nothing like Hojo's ships. He had drawn many pictures for her and they were works of art, their interiors like a palace. But this was an old, weathered, barnacle-studded boat. A small crew of men were loading cargo onto it. So it belonged to a merchant. That was smart. Then he could sail without drawing attention to himself. Unlike Hojo, who always took at least three ships when he sailed to meet her and had needed to have his crew defend them from pirates several times.

Kagome huddled in an alley on the other side of the structure closest to where the ships were. From that far back, the people were barely distinct enough for her to tell what they were. All the same, Kagome recognized a cabin boy when she saw one. Scrawny and short, he was about her size and maybe as much as five years younger. He struggled to load a sack of what looked like grain onto the ship, falling once on his way. The other crewmembers laughed but none helped him up. After he got it loaded, he came back out, and Kagome knew to make her move.

"Excuse me!" Kagome said, leaving her alley to flag the boy down. "Can you help me, sir?"

The boy looked around to make sure she meant him. When she smiled and beckoned, he made a beeline for her, face lit up like she had made his week.

"Are ya lost, miss?" he asked.

Up close, she saw how dirty his face was, sweat streaks cutting through the grime. His clothes looked and smelled like he had been living and sleeping and working in them for days upon days.

"I need your help," she said. "This way."

Like a donkey after a carrot, he followed her back to the dark alley.

"What can I do fer ya?"

Kagome dropped her parasol. "I need your clothes. Here." She began to unfasten the strings of her bodice. "You can sell mine, I don't care."

Saying he looked confused would be an understatement. "…Miss, you're pretty an' all, mighty pretty, but I can tell you're much too much for me to afford."

Kagome just stared at him, uncomprehending.

"But if you're willing to take copper," he continued, "I've got almost fifty pieces saved, and a payment plan is ok—"

Finally catching on to what he was attempting to transact, Kagome went with Plan B. She bent over and smiled, knowing that the loosened bodice was showing off most of her breasts. Then she grabbed her parasol and whacked him over the head with it until he went down and stayed down.

The ties of her dress were fancy, yes, but strong, and they made decent bonds for her unfortunate captive. The boy thankfully didn't come to until she had finished dressing in his regrettable clothes.

"I'm really grateful to you," she said sincerely, tucking her hair in the brown cap she'd taken from him. "I promise I don't regularly do this. It's just a special circumstance. I'll get your name from the ship's log and I swear I'll pay you back. I mean it!"

He blinked at her blearily and tried to say something, but one of her silken slippers was stuffed in his mouth and nothing could be made out.

"Thanks again!" Kagome said, taking off.

The activity surrounding the ship had died down to almost nothing. There was one man, a human thankfully, who was holding a scroll and making checks down a list. Kagome hurried past him with her head down and he didn't give her a second look. The ramp to the ship's storage area was still down and she made her way inside. She had timed it perfectly. Right after she found a comfortable space near the sacks of grain behind some wooden boxes filled with who cared what, the men closed up the space and she was safely sealed inside.

Her heart rate began to calm as the waves moved the ship forward and she heard the yells that announced their departure. It was dark, but one of those orb things like were in the dungeon hung in the air, giving everything the dimmest of glows. That would have to be enough. She had come this far without a plan and everything had gone well. Now she had weeks to actually compose something that would save herself, her sister, and her kingdom. She could do this. She could redeem herself. She could—

A rat peeked over the top of one of the grain sacks and squeaked in her face.

Kagome screamed bloody murder and shot to her feet, scrambling back and knocking over a stack of wooden crates. Which smashed into another stack and knocked it over, which knocked over some more, which made a loud sound like breaking ceramics.

The pounding of running footsteps sounded overhead and her safe storage area was illuminated by the strong afternoon sunlight. Three men barged in bearing swords and clubs and murderous glares. Too late, Kagome tried to hide only to realize she had destroyed all the possible places she could have utilized.

"What the fuck?" one of them, a big boar demon, said. "A goddamn stowaway?"

"Stupid fuckin' cabin boy was supposed to check this place. He probably snuck 'im on. Haven't seen his squirrelly face in too long, anyway."

"What'd ya do to our cabin boy, stowaway?"

Without giving her an opportunity to answer, they grabbed her by both arms and dragged her kicking and screaming topside. Assembled on the deck was a mostly demonic crew looking ready to throw her overboard and watch her try and swim back for the fun of it.

Inuyasha was nowhere in sight.

NOTE: I've been picturing InuKimi as a sort of Marie Antoinette type of figure while Izayoi is dressed how she is in canon (though certainly does not conduct herself the same way). Anyhoo, massive thanks to the transcendent splendor that is Heartrush for reading and betaing and being an awesome friend.

The drama's just getting started, ladies. :)