Author's Corner

Thank you victoriarogue and SissyPerigrin for your reviews on the previous chapters! I meant to update this last weekend but I was busy sorting out my last few contributions to SessKagu Week. I'm pretty proud of myself for completing all of the prompts haha, so if you're a fan of that pairing, feel free to give them a read!

Trigger warning: minor physical and sexual assault.

EIGHTH BLOOD

Chapter 87: Gift

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It took every ounce of his willpower not to skip the briefing and fly straight to the highest reaches of the temple. Once the meeting had concluded, Sesshoumaru wasted no time ascending the ancient and weathered stairwell, fixated on a certain galvanizing scent.

He found her kneeling in front of a pile of rags, which she was in the process of cutting into smaller pieces. The weight on his chest lifted as the smell of mint and lemongrass swarmed his senses. As always, it conjured up images of summer. Sunflowers swaying beneath the blazing sun. Sails blowing in the ocean breeze. A heat shimmer on the horizon.

She smelled like home.

Octavia's face lit up when she saw him standing there, and she immediately scrambled to her feet, discarding the piece of cloth she was holding without a moment's hesitation. It took her four agonizingly slow seconds to close the distance between them and capture him in a crushing embrace. He responded in kind, trapping her waist in the confines of his arms.

When she pulled back to look at him, her cheeks were flushed with happiness, and her smile left him in a daze. "I missed you," she declared.

He'd missed her, too. More than words could ever say.

"What were you doing?" he asked, glancing at the trimmings of old cloth.

"We're all out of bandages, and some of the girls got their periods, so I thought I'd put these rags to good use. We might be fugitives, but that doesn't mean we have to live like—"

Unable to hold back any longer, he leaned forwards and pressed his lips to hers. She took a shallow breath before melting into his ministrations. Her pulse quickened when his thumbs pressed into her sides, whilst her hands rose to caress his jaw. Each touch left flames in its wake.

"What was that for?" she murmured, keeping her arms looped around his neck.

"I have been known to act spontaneously in certain situations."

Subdued laughter bubbled in her throat. It was quickly becoming one of his favourite sounds in the world, second only to her singing.

"How did things go with the panthers?" she asked eagerly.

"Surprisingly well, actually. Their troops have marched on ahead to the rendezvous point. Our clans will converge there at dusk tomorrow."

"Really? That's great! Finally, some good news for a change."

He cocked his head. Her downcast gaze spoke volumes about her visit to his mother's homeland.

"I take it you were unsuccessful, then?"

Octavia sighed. "She hated me."

"Not necessarily. It's best not to overanalyse her actions. Trust me, she behaves that way with everyone."

"I'm not overanalysing anything. You should've seen the way she looked at me. It was like I could see into her mind. I could practically hear her thinking up ways to kill me. It was horrible . . . But as bad as that was, it wasn't the worst part. The worst part was that she couldn't see how much you mean to me."

Her eyes shone with tears, reminding him of leaves in the aftermath of a storm. There was nothing he hated more than seeing her cry. Hadn't she endured enough sorrow already?

"Prejudice is hard to overcome," he pointed out. "It runs in the family."

She shook her head. "It's not just her. No one seems to understand that I would rather die than see you hurt. They all think I'm going to betray you, but the truth is, I'd do anything for you. At least Totosai had the decency to own up to his mistakes."

Sesshoumaru arched an eyebrow. "I don't follow."

Her face brightened rather abruptly, and she dragged him towards a futon in the corner of the room. "The trip wasn't a total waste of time in the end," she explained whilst urging him to sit. "I'll show you why. Now, sit down before you pass out from exhaustion. Don't think I haven't noticed those massive bags under your eyes. When was the last time you slept, anyway?"

He almost accused her of coddling him, but he was far too curious about the reason behind her sudden shift in mood. "I will rest once you have explained what has lifted your spirits so."

"You're damn right you will."

He watched her jog across the room and pick something up from the ground, before carrying it over to him. The object in question was a mysterious bundle that was wrapped in brown cloth and fastened with a piece of fraying string. Before he could ask her what it was, she took a seat beside him and peeled back the layers of fabric, gradually exposing what was inside.

His eyes widened in shock. This was no ordinary set of armour. The protective layer of enamel had once belonged to an immensely powerful Daiyoukai. A member of his species, to be precise. It couldn't be a coincidence. How had she managed to get her hands on something so precious?

"What did you do?" he whispered.

"There might have been some light bullying on my part," she confessed guiltily.

"That doesn't explain how the armour came into existence so suddenly, though. A set like this would ordinarily take weeks to complete. Or months, in Totosai's case. What could have compelled him to finish it so quickly?"

"It was made before I even set foot in his forge. He told me that the sale had fallen through, but I can't help but wonder if that was just another lie." She gestured to the crescent moon on the breastplate, then to the large canine's head that covered the majority of the shoulder plate. "I think he made this armour to protect you. He pretends not to, but he cares about you."

So the old swordsmith had a heart after all, did he? What an interesting turn of events.

"It doesn't let him off the hook completely," Octavia continued. "But I appreciate the sentiment. Therefore, I will try my hardest to refrain from tearing him a new one. For now."

Sesshoumaru's nostrils flared as he once again inhaled the scent of enamel. "The protective coating is most unorthodox," he remarked casually. "The smell is reminiscent of both the Tessaiga and the Tenseiga. Tell me, how did you acquire it?"

"It was given to me."

He frowned. "Given? By whom?"

She told him all about Totosai's ruse to judge her character. Sesshoumaru recalled meeting Kumoshi once when he'd been very small, but it had happened so long ago that he probably would have fulfilled Totosai's request without giving it a second thought.

Thankfully, Octavia was more merciful than he was.

"And these?" he asked, motioning to the cuff bracelets she was wearing.

"A present from Totosai," she explained. "They're basically glorified containers. He said they can store all sorts of energy, including reiki and youki. Pretty handy, right?"

"Indeed."

He was still struggling to fully comprehend her actions. Totosai had been on the receiving end of his temper dozens of times, but Sesshoumaru couldn't recall anyone ever threatening the old weasel on his behalf before. He wished he could have seen it.

"Are you okay?" she asked. "You keep spacing out."

"You did all of that for me?"

"Of course I did."

"Why?"

She seemed frustrated by his lack of understanding. "Why do you think? First of all, I'm the reason you lost your old set, so I owed you a new one anyway. And second, I sure as hell wasn't about to let you march into battle without any. I know you're more than capable of protecting yourself, but I'm not taking any chances. Not anymore. From now on, I'm going to do everything in my power to keep you safe."

Smirking, he ran his fingers along the surface of the plates appreciatively. He couldn't remember the last time he'd received a gift of such fine calibre. "You have done me a great service," he muttered. "I am unsure of how to adequately repay you for this act of kindness—"

Her hands fisted in his haori as she pulled him down for a kiss. His inhibitions vanished the second that her tongue warmed his lips. "Do me a favour?" she asked in a husky voice.

"Anything," he breathed.

"Shut up."

He chuckled against her mouth. That he could do.

Shunting the armour aside for the time being, she shuffled closer and braced her hands on his chest. Heat surged beneath his skin as her kisses became increasingly more desperate, blurring the line they'd been careful not to cross prior to this moment. Ignoring the warning signs, he cupped her face and slipped his tongue into her mouth. The rhythm of her pulse faltered as his tongue brushed against hers sensually, and he marvelled at how responsive she was. Were all humans like this? Or was it something that was unique to her and her alone?

He was one to talk. He was attuned to her every move. Her fingers teased the folds of his kimono, dipping in and out in pursuit of bare skin as she relocated from the floor to his lap. She was so warm. Warmer than anything he'd ever known. He knew he ought to stop her before things spiralled out of control, but he simply couldn't bring himself to.

His breath hitched when she lowered her head and pressed more burning kisses to his neck. "Octavia," he warned as her hands glided down his front to grapple with the knot in his obi.

"What?" she rasped.

"Someone will hear."

"I don't care."

Under ordinary circumstances, neither would he, but there was too much at stake now. The others were finally starting to see her for what she was. She'd worked hard to be accepted into their ranks, and the newfound sense of belonging obviously meant a lot to her. They already treated him like a replacement for his father. He didn't want them to look at her and see another Izayoi.

And yet his hands refused to move from her shoulders. He was frozen in place, unable to do anything but tip his head back and revel in the feel of her mouth on his skin. He'd never allowed anyone so much unrestricted access to his neck before. Exposing one's throat in such a way was the ultimate act of submission amongst his kind, and thus required a certain level of trust to be carried out safely. But Octavia wasn't a Daiyoukai, so she had no way of knowing any of that.

Perhaps that was for the best.

Her lips travelled higher, and he met her halfway, laving her bottom lip with his tongue. She gasped into his mouth as he wrapped his arms around her waist and pulled her flush against him. A better man would leave before things escalated any further. A better man would have the decency to tell her no and mean it. Unfortunately, he wasn't that man. And he never would be.

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Octavia's brow creased when she heard dampened voices floating up the stairs. Breaking away from the kiss, she listened intently and fought the urge to groan once it became clear who they belonged to. "Jesus. Why didn't you tell me they were coming?"

Sesshoumaru said nothing. She gazed into his eyes, searching for answers, but found none there, either.

There was no time to interrogate him. The voices were clearer now, and the sound of their footsteps was drawing ever closer. Panicking, Octavia clambered out of Sesshoumaru's warm lap and tried to salvage her messy hair, but it was no use. Giving up on making herself look presentable, she raced towards the doorway and intercepted the trespassers.

The three half-demons peered up at her with curious expressions. They were probably wondering why she looked so on edge but were too polite to ask outright. Haru seemed particularly suspicious, and narrowed his eyes in a manner reminiscent of Sesshoumaru.

"Is something wrong?" she asked them.

"Aya-san told us to come and tell you that we're leaving at first light," replied Mari.

Octavia's chest constricted painfully. "We are?"

They nodded.

She shouldn't have been surprised. It was a day's walk to the rendezvous point, after all.

"Thanks for telling me," she said with a tight smile. "You guys should get some sleep. We have a long journey ahead of us, and Ah-Un is tired enough without having to lug you three around all the time."

Only Hoka returned the smile. "We'll try," he promised.

"Can we stay here tonight?" Mari pleaded, peering up at her with big, glassy eyes. "Please? We sleep better when we're with you."

Octavia didn't have the heart to turn them away. She opened her mouth to explain why Sesshoumaru was in her room instead of making the appropriate preparations for tomorrow, but closed it when she saw that he was gone. Her lungs felt like they were full of rocks as she stared at the empty futon in the corner. It didn't take her long to notice that the armour was gone, too.

Shifting her gaze to the window, she noted how the setting sun resembled an orange falling from a tree in slow motion.

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The daylight was fading rapidly when the two demonesses who'd been assigned to her entered the bride's bedchamber and signalled for her to follow. As always, their faces were stern and devoid of emotion, and they refused to speak to her, not even for convenience's sake.

Rin swallowed as they arrived at their destination, but stayed silent as the demoness with green hair knocked on the door to announce their presence.

"Come in," Tsunayoshi's voice echoed through the wood.

The pink-haired demoness opened the door and gestured for Rin to enter. She took a deep breath before crossing the threshold. Contrary to what the usurper believed, it was the first time she'd set foot inside Lord Sesshoumaru's private quarters. There were only a handful of people that were allowed inside; most of which were servants who had worked in the castle for centuries. It felt wrong to be invading his personal space like this, but what choice did she have?

The room was partitioned using wooden dividers, mapping out the different areas and making the space seem larger than it already was. The walls were the colour of the night sky, whereas the majority of the furniture was painted grey. Much like her own room, the floor was cushioned by tatami mats, and a row of paper lanterns dangled from the ceiling like strange cocoons.

She found Tsunayoshi sitting on the edge of the bed with his back to her. His head was hidden underneath a long mauve robe that had a flock of dainty-looking birds scattered across it. Remembering Master Jaken's lessons, Rin kept her distance from him and waited to be acknowledged.

The sun finally disappeared behind the hills, paving the way for night to descend over the land like a curtain of stars. Rin gazed past the engawa doors at the cool glow left behind in the sun's wake and bit the inside of her cheek nervously.

"It's beautiful, isn't it?" Tsunayoshi asked softly.

Her eyes flicked back to his murky silhouette. "What is, my lord?"

"The half-light. I've always found it captivating. It's like a dream brought to life."

A chill rushed down her spine as she attempted to study him in the gloom. It was probably just her eyes playing tricks on her, but he looked significantly shorter than she knew him to be.

"Come and sit beside me," he said. "Don't worry, I won't bite."

Holding her breath, Rin tiptoed towards the colossal bed. It was triple the size of hers and stood nearly two feet above the ground.

The closer she ventured, the more she smelled a rat. He was definitely smaller, and that oppressive aura of his was completely absent. Her lips parted in shock when a man she'd never seen before peered up at her from beneath the robe. He looked no older than twenty, with well-proportioned features and seafoam white hair. His eyes were a rather striking shade of violet that was emphasised by his pale and somewhat sickly complexion.

The man smiled. "Well? What do you think?"

". . . My lord?"

"That's right," he replied smugly.

She instinctively reached out to touch his face. His skin was impossibly smooth and warm to the touch. It reminded her of a rock that had absorbed too many of the sun's rays and burned anyone who tried to sit on it. Withdrawing her hand, she discreetly checked her palm for blisters.

"You must have many questions," he said, gesturing for her to sit.

Not really. She'd seen Inuyasha's human form dozens of times now, so it wasn't hard to figure out what was happening. Still, it couldn't hurt to humour him.

"What happened to you?" she asked, perching beside him elegantly.

"It's one of the many drawbacks to being a hanyou," he explained. "On the third night of every month, I lose all of my demonic features and abilities. Fortunately, I still have the powers I inherited from my mother, so I'm not entirely defenceless."

"Are you human?"

He shook his head. "No. My mother came from the sky. I am mortal in this form, though."

Things were starting to make a lot more sense to her now. "Is this why you gave Sesshoumaru-sama seven days to prepare? You let him think that you were giving him a fair chance, but you were just waiting for tonight to pass, weren't you? You knew that if the battle lasted longer than a week, you'd have to face him in this form, which would basically be suicide. Right?"

His violet eyes sparkled. "Indeed."

Rin tilted her head sideways. Now that she'd gotten a closer look at him, she could see traces of the beast she knew and feared. Regardless of what she did, he was always ten steps ahead of her. She wondered what his endgame was this time.

"Why are you telling me this?"

"You're to be my wife," he answered. "All of my secrets are yours now. And vice-versa."

The way he uttered that last part made her skin crawl.

"One of my men was killed earlier," he uttered calmly. "He was found in pieces – torn apart by that rabid feline you call a friend. You didn't have anything to do with that, did you?"

"I had no idea—"

He cracked her hard across the face with his palm. Her cheek burned where he'd struck her, and she lifted her own hand to cradle her throbbing jaw.

"Don't lie!" he hissed. "The room was saturated with your scent."

Tears blurred her vision and threatened to fall.

He sighed. "You're making it very difficult for me to protect you. What were you thinking?"

Trembling, she locked eyes with him and swallowed the lump of anxiety that was clogging her throat. At first, he frowned harder, until understanding flickered in his violet eyes.

"Did he hurt you?"

"He tried to."

"But you stopped him?"

"Yes."

She couldn't help but wince as his fingers closed around her wrist. Sighing again, he tugged her hand away from her cheek and replaced it with his own. "Why didn't you tell me?"

Because you terrify me, she thought. And because there are times when you look at me like you're imagining what my heart would taste like.

In the end, she decided to say nothing at all.

A tear rolled down her cheek. The usurper disposed of it with his thumb, then leaned in and dragged his clammy lips along her aching jaw. The gesture did nothing to ease the pain caused by his slap, but that hardly mattered anymore.

Not when he just so happened to be ingesting one of the world's deadliest poisons.

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—Earlier that same day—

"What do you mean he gave it to you?"

"I don't know how much clearer I can make it!" the imp squawked impatiently. "I was being incredibly stealthy, but the old prune still managed to sneak up on me. I was pretty sure I was a goner, but when I tried to play it off as a joke, he just handed it over fair and square, no questions asked."

"But that doesn't make sense!" Rin argued, eyeing the vial of scarlet liquid suspiciously. "He must know what it does. Why would he do that?"

"How should I know! I wasn't exactly going to argue with him!" Before she could respond, Master Jaken placed the vial in her hands and folded her fingers over it neatly. "Maybe we're not the only ones trying to make a difference here," he mumbled softly.

The insinuation wasn't lost on her. Could Cyril be playing Tsunayoshi for a fool, after all? It was a perfectly plausible theory. The warlock had served Lord Sesshoumaru's family for centuries. Perhaps Master Jaken was right and Cyril had simply mastered the art of hiding one's true intentions.

"Did he say anything after he'd given it to you?"

The imp rubbed his chin. "Come to think of it, he did, actually."

"What was it?"

"He suggested mixing it with something to disguise the colour, which is all well and good, but there's still the issue of the scent . . ."

She gave him a small smile. "Let me worry about that. I have just the thing for it."

—End of flashback—

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She'd taken Cyril's advice and drained twelve full bottles of torikkusutā, then mixed them together with the akai shi extract. The process had resulted in a sweet-smelling oil with a faint rosy tint, which she'd slathered all over her body until her skin shimmered like the surface of a pearl. Torikkusutā's scent varied depending on what your favourite smell was, but to her, it smelled like wildflowers combined with slightly overripe melons. No one could resist it. Not even Tsunayoshi. It was her gift to him. The first and only gift he would ever receive from her.

"I'm sorry," he whispered. "I shouldn't have done that. Allow me to make it up to you."

Clenching her jaw, Rin closed her eyes and tried to focus on anything but the sensation of Tsunayoshi's lips scraping over hers. A wave of nausea rolled over her when he trapped her face between his hands, preventing her from escaping, and pillaged her mouth with his greasy tongue. Once he felt that his apology was sufficient enough, he removed his hands from her face and drew back to look at her. She reopened her eyes and gazed into his violet ones, which were full of sadness and remorse. The sight of them made her feel angry enough to burst.

"Tell me you love me."

"I love you," she obeyed stiffly.

"Again."

"I love you."

She wondered if Kohaku would be disappointed in her when he found out that her first kiss had been stolen by this beast of a man. Why had she let him take it from her? Why hadn't she fought back? Was she truly so helpless and weak?

Tsunayoshi sent her away after swearing to never hurt her again. She hadn't expected to be dismissed so quickly, but he had promised not to dishonour her before their wedding night. At least he'd stayed true to his word in that regard.

The moment that her head touched the pillow, Rin fell into a deep yet restless sleep. She dreamed that she was warming her hands over the fire in Lady Kaede's house, whilst a ferocious storm rampaged outside. Despite the elderly miko being mysteriously absent, Rin wasn't alone in the hut. Kohaku was sitting in the corner with his old kusarigama in one hand and a thick slab of melon in the other. The storm raged on as their eyes met, and he beckoned her closer.

Choose, the butterfly's voice thundered suddenly, startling her.

Her eyes strayed down to the two objects Kohaku was holding, which were glowing faintly.

Choose, the voice bellowed again. Life? Or death?

Before she could reach out and touch one, the door flew open and an arctic wind swept in from outside. The blast of cold air killed the fire in the hearth and plunged the hut into darkness, marking the end of the dream.

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