An exhausted and perplexed Sesshomaru returned to his castle, so weak he had resorted to travelling on his cloud to avoid transforming again. He had been absent for a few hours in order to talk to his mother, a long conversation that had, if anything, exacerbated his worries.
He flew into the entrance of his castle in an extremely foul temper, storming into his domicile.
He was calmed somewhat when he saw that the willow trees in the front gardens had made it through the barrier trap. The resilient, sturdy trees and the river running through them remained definitely unchanged, the leaves swaying as serenely as they had always done.
Jaken was waiting for him at the castle gates, the one still figure amongst the flurry of tired, fast-paced servants working to yet again repair the castle. "Lord Sesshomaru! Over here Lord Sesshomaru!" Jaken cried, jumping up and down with joy at the sight of his master.
Sesshomaru ignored Jaken and walked on, intent on reaching his room to brood. Jaken trailed after him, sulking slightly at being ignored. Never fully deterred by Sesshomaru's indifference, Jaken began listing the areas of the castle that had started to be repaired, with a list of areas not yet touched.
Sesshomaru was barely listening, it had only been a few hours since he and Kikyo had parted. How long would Inuyasha and Kikyo need to talk? And what would transpire from that conversation? He had not wanted Kikyo to leave with Inuyasha at all, but could think of no reason to prevent this, save for his own jealous feelings.
Sesshomaru made his way to his bedroom, Jaken still babbling at his heels. Sesshomaru tried to tune Jaken out to focus on his hyper-sensitive ears and nose, to see if Kikyo was back yet. It was still early , and he knew he was being overly optimistic. But he felt inexplicably compelled to could neither hear her, not smell her soothing lavender scent. She was still with Inuyasha.
Before he could stop himself, he turned to Jaken, acknowledging his presence for the first time. "Has the priestess returned?" Sesshomaru asked abruptly.
Jaken spluttered and came to a halt, his yellow eyes bulging, "Er, why no. She left with Inuyasha the traitorous woman!" Jaken said passionately, with a streak of his own jealousy palpable.
Sesshomaru nodded, saying nothing and swallowing the bitterness he felt at having to ask.
Catching his masters odd mood, Jaken scratched his green chin with his claws, staring up at his master anxiously. "Are you…er…going to go after her sire?" Jaken asked sullenly, resentment leeching into the little toad's voice.
Sesshomaru considered this possibility for a moment. But no, he could not go running after the priestess, not for what he assumed would be a small talk with Inuyasha. Small doses of unease rippled through him. What if she decided to stay with his brother? Sesshomaru pushed this unsureness aside for now. She had not said she would stay with Inuyasha, and he had a lot to consider before she arrived. He would have to wait and sift through the tumult of emotions he was feeling inside. He almost missed the days when he felt nothing.
"The priestess is free to come and go as she pleases," Sesshomaru replied in a stony voice.
The day seemed intent on being a day of worry. As always, he was worried about Rin, but now he is worried about Kikyo. The priestess, though intelligent and talented, was more vulnerable than he had thought, The barrier his enemies used proved that. During their talk, would Inuyasha manage to keep her safe if their foes attacked again? Sesshomaru hated to admit it to himself, but he knew his brother was capable, he had shown that in the battle against Naraku. And INuyasha had the tessaiga, the sword Sessomaru had once been obsessed with. INuyasha was well equipped to defend Kikyo is he needed to.
Now Subarashi had crawled out of the woodwork and essentially started making demands. Serious life-altering demands that he had to take seriously.
Ordering Jaken out of the room, Sesshomaru began to pace briskly.
He would not be made to look like a fool by Subarashi. BUt he knew he also had to carefully consider Rin's safety, above everything else. Tsumeati, Mikata and Hokai were serious threats to eb sure. And Sesshomaru's deepest fear was that in light of their other schemes failing they would follow in Naraku's footsteps and turn their attention to his daughter. So far he had been confident that if he left Rin with Inuyasha she would be safe, that he could handle the war. Subarashi's interference created a whole new irritating dynamic.
Arrogant and confident in his power and ability to defeat any demon. Sesshomaru could not deny the cold truth, if he faced all the other high-born rulers of Japan he would likely become overwhelmed. If that happened, it seemed possible Tsumetai, Subarashi, Mikata and all the rest of them would turn their eyes to the human population and begin this "culling" his mother mentioned. If that happened, Rin would be in danger.
On the other side, submitting to Subarashi's will would make him look weak, and weak he was not.
Sesshomaru stood still in the middle of his bedroom, his eyes closed. All he saw when he closed his eyes was Kikyo's pale, beautiful face. Her dark doe eyes and her breathless smile. He was concerned at his mother's reaction to Kikyo. His other had always been flippant and impertinent, but her comments about KIkoy being dead had been harsh and frequent. And upon their first meeting, had he not been just as harsh? Just as close minded about her existence? Kikyo had endured his words with her usual grace, never complaining. Was he being blinded from the ugly truth because he cared about her? When he first encountered Kikyo, he never would of dreamed of taking her as a mate. Her bdy was made of enchanted clay, it may give the appearance of flesh and blood but truly it was a spell. When he touched her, her skin was cold like glass, warming only from his touch.
His mother, quite rightly, suspected her son of harbouring a more profound, more heartfelt feeling for the priestess. A feeling she had labelled as an "abomination." If he mated with Kikyo, the court demons would obviously view him as some undead-loving degenerate. That was what his mother was insinuating, and why she was directly encouraging him to abandon Kikyo.
Sesshomaru shook his magnificent head wearily, his silver hair swishing. These issues and problems were as frustrating and a knotted piece of string, and would not be solved overnight. One thing he could not deny to himself was that he wanted Kikyo back.
Once she had returned he would decide to tackle Subarashi, figure out how to defeat his enemies and once and for all settle his feelings for Kikyo.
With a more decisive course of action in mind, Sesshomaru left his room with a renewed determination. There was work to be done, he would immerse himself in it until Kikyo came back to him.
Sesshomaru stalked the castle grounds until he found Jaken. He demanded the castle turrets and delicately up-turned roofs were repaired, and that the castle foundations were replaced with more stone. More wood was to be ordered for the hallways and floors within the castle, Sesshomaru insisted that once the wood was placed that each board was buffed until it shined. He yelled for wood, stone and plaster, all to be obtained and painted red, black and gold.
To avoid another trap like the last, Sesshomaur decided to start building more guard houses around the perimeter of his castle.
Jaken trotted after Sesshomaru, looking slightly gob-smacked at the reel of commands now being issued one after another. "Er- Lord Sesshomaru, it might take some time to get all of this done. The turret repairs alone will take days." the little imp said. Hastily writing down notes with a miniature quill.
Sesshomaru's citrine eyes roamed from servant to servant , searching for something to criticise or change. "The servants can work through the night, I want this finished quickly."
Jaken's eyes bulged with astonishment.
"But sire! Most of your servants are still exhausted from the barrier attack! They need time to rest and prepare for whatever Tsumetai throws at us next!"
Sesshomaru looked down and glared at the little imp imperiously.
"Very well, they can work in shifts, day and night with rest inbetween. Just get it done Jaken, or you will suffer the consequences. I want a report in eight hours." Sesshomaru snarled, losing patience.
Jaken puffed and spluttered like a bullfrog. "Er-well…er-Yes Lord Sesshomaru." Jaken said, a little downcast at the prospect of telling the other demons their master's orders
Keen to keep himself occupied, Sesshomaru continued to breathe down the necks of his soldiers and servants. All the demons tried to hide their unhappiness at their lord's over- zealous oversight, Sesshomaru was relentless when he became involved in any day to day jobs, something he never usually bothered himself with. Some demons began hoping the priestess would return soon, knowing that once she did, their master would be too distracted by her to dog their footsteps.
But the hours dwindled by and Kikyo did not show. As darkness permeated the sky, a blanket of doubt began to cover Sesshomaru's thoughts , smothering him.
Too agitated to even hound his servants, Sesshomaru jumped onto the newly repaired roof tiles for some privacy whilst his servants and Jaken looked on anxiously. Sesshomaru gazed out into the mercilessly cold night.
He had tried to keep himself occupied during the day, but there was no hiding from himself the truth: he had been, and still was, waiting for Kikyo to return. The longer he waited the more vexed he became, and time continued to tick by with an agonising slowness. Sesshomaru watched the gates to the castle, his hope evaporating.
By the break of the next morning, Sesshomaru was blazing, his anger smouldering like an uncontrollable fire.
A "talk" in the woods did not take all day and all night. Kikyo had clearly decided to stay with Inuyasha. Sesshomaru's jealousy, previously simmering under the surface all the while Kikyo was beside him, now was exploding within him in her absence. He felt like he was going mad.
Entwined with his jealousy and fury was disbelief. He could not understand how a woman like Kikyo could prefer the company of his dim-witted brother. Inuyasha was coarse, stupid and impulsive. The exact opposite of Kikyo.
He hated this feeling, hated that his frame of mind could be so easily disrupted by the priestess. He was the strongest, most indifferent demon in all of Japan. Apart from Rin, he cared for no one, that was the way it was meant to be. His cold heart kept Rin safe and kept him in control. Now, he felt like he had utterly lost control, and he needed it back. He wanted the waves of longing and uncertainty to cease.
Looking at the beauty around him with a sour hatred, he made up his mind. He vowed to himself that he would cut the cord between himself and the priestess, so he could finally find some peace of mind. He would go to his mother's banquet, meet Natsu and all the other court ladies. He would forget KIkyo by losing himself in beautiful demonesses and regain some normality.
But the banquet was tomorrow night. He did not even have Rin to care for, nothing to occupy himself with. All he could think of was Kikyo and Inuyasha. Even tracking down his enemies could not stop the tempest in his heart.
He would witness Kikyo betrayal with his own eyes.
"We are in serious trouble Hokai and it's completely your fault!" Tsumetai shouted at the corpulent spider striding back and forth in front of him.
The trio were in Mikata's castle, hidden deep in one of the many eastern mountain ranges. The demonesses castle was sprawling and intricately decorated in gold leaf and red paint in the traditional japanese style. It was an impressive place, almost like a mountain village, but it was in a state of severe disrepair and neglect. Whilst Sesshomaru's castle was full of loyal, scurrying servants, Mikata's castle was virtually deserted in comparison. Hokai had learnt later that tantrums that descended into massacres were not uncommon when Mikata was home. For this reason, only the bravest eastern demons would dwell in the castle directly, for fear of her lashing out.
Tsumetai and Mikata sat cross-legged on the tatami mats, in what Hokai assumed was the throne room. The tatami mats seemed endless in this room, which was vastly spacious.
"They won't come after us, not this far east," Hokai reassured his demon allies. This was only a guess, for all he knew Sesshomaru and his mother could be riding the clouds in their canine forms right now, hell bent on vengeance.
They were all of them, in a state of disbelief. They had been so close to defeating Sesshomaru and his dead priestess.
"I had not anticipated that Lady Sora would jump into the fray. You should have advised me, warned me that the silver-haired bitch was likely to get involved. If I had known that, I would have devised a different trap." Hokai grumbled at the two demons. Mikata, who was cleaning her nails with one of her knives, shrugged. Hokai watched her machinations with disgust.
"We didn't think she would get involved, she never has before." Mikata said.
Out of the three, Tsumetai looked the most worried. He was more aware than the others of the inner workings of the high-born demons of Japan.
"This is bad for us. If Sora gets involved, Subarashi could get involved. The two of them are as thick as thieves. We do not want our fight with Sesshomaru to be on their radar."
"Sounds like we are already on their radar," Mikata said unhelpfully, still picking at her nails.
In a rare burst of temper, Tsumetai rounded stormily on his paramour. "Do you have anything useful to contribute, Mik? If not then be quiet! I don't know why you look so calm, if Sesshoamru's bitch mother brings the whole court down on us on us they'll come after you as well!" Tsumetai snapped ferociously. Mikata looked furious for a moment, then huffed at Tsumetai's anxiety.
"Lover, I would just kill them. And speak to me like that again and I'll shove this," she waved her knife around, "right up your-"
"Whilst I admire your bloodlust Mik, you don't know this court like I do," Tsumetai interrupted, eyes closed as if he was summoning patience. "Had you let your brothers live, they would have told you that Subarashi rules the court now. If he wasn't such a cold, anti-social fool, Sesshomaru could have once run the court. We need to find out the court mood, see if they intend to support Sesshomaru," Tsumteati said ponderingly.
Hokai shook his gruesome head, his eight legs punching the tatami mats underneath him mercilessly. "We need to resurrect Naraku. If we have brought the wrath of the demon courts upon our heads, we will need his sharp mind, his gift of manipulation."
With the barrier trap, Hokai had used every ounce of cunning he possessed, and it had still failed. Naraku was as slippery as an eel with an unrivalled knowledge of black magic, no one could keep up with his deviousness. But Tsumetai was right, it was likely now that Inuyasha would assist his brother and old lover in their next attack. But Lady Sora's plans were currently unfathomable, the demoness had a flighty temperament. Was her appearance merely due to a coincidence, or was she planning on joining the war?
They needed Naraku. And they needed to know if Sora had turned the high-borns against them…
Another plan was needed.
"Tell me more about Lady Sora, Tsumetai. I don't know much about her.I only know that she is Sesshomaru's mother and that she possesses a meido stone."
Mikata answered instead. "That description pretty much sums her up. That, and her love of throwing a million parties."
Hokai absorbed this information with interest. "Have you ever been to one of these parties? Before your brothers took your throne?" he asked.
Mikata looked at Hokai pityingly. "Do I look like the type of the demon who goes to soirees? I'd rather kiss you," she snarled tauntingly.
"The word on the demon vine is that she's hosting another banquet in her castle in the sky," Tsumetai added casually. His grey eyes met Hokai's eight in sudden understanding, and the two demons grinned at each other.
"We want that meido stone, we want to check on the situation with the high-borns. Whilst we are rousing these needs, we must make sure Sesshomaru and Kikyo don't interfere…" Hokai said. This "party" could be just what they need in order to get what they want. The spider had an idea of how to achieve this, but it would have to be gently done, subtly executed.
Mikata eyed the spider pugnaciously. "Let me guess, you have a plan. Except, your plans never really work, do they Hokai?" Mikata drawled from her cushion on the floor, looking and sounding unimpressed.
"Maybe if you shut up and help me we'll succeed this time!" Hokai blurted out without thinking. It was a mistake. Although Tsumateai was probably the more powerful out of the two, Mikata was unpredictably violent, needing constant placating.
Mikata stood up slowly, her eyes taking on a wild glaze of undiluted fury at Hokai's audacity.
Hokai Was saved from Mikata's displeasure by several eastern demons bursting into the throne room, all of them looking alarmed.
Hokai's heart nearly failed him; had Sesshomaru found them?
"My lady, an army of spiders have arrived outside, they are demanding entry," said a green-skinned demon with a mouthful of teeth.
A jolting tenseness overtook Hokai's body. He knew what demon spider was knocking on the door.
Watching Hokai, Mikata grinned and waved her hand in assent. "Let them in."
Sure enough, Kumonosu soon stood before them all, with an entourage of hundreds of spider soldiers following suit, until even the sizeable throne room was packed. Kumonosu faced the trio, checking that his most deadly spiders were by his side.
Hokai had never seen the Weaver look so enraged, his eight eyes shone with fury. When the Weaver looked at Hokai, salvia dripped down his fangs, as if he could not wait to devour his disloyal subject.
"Spinner Hokai, I've finally found you," Kumonosu hissed, he began to circle Hokai like he was a juicy fly. Tsumateai and Mikata watched the proceedings with bemused looks.
Hokai stared back at Kumonosu in shock. He never dreamed Kumonosu would track him down in the eastern lands. Especially with an army at his back. Hokai had no witty remark or excuse, for once he was speechless.
"I'd been wondering where you had scuttled off to, you see. I sent messenger after messenger to find you and tell you to return, but you never did. So naturally I started to look for you," Kumonosu's eyes glittered malevolently and his soldiers jostled around them, trying to get to the front. Hokai could see Chiygo's massive body poised at Kumonosu;s side, staring at him in triumph. "I hear you've been busy. Finding old bones and making large threats."
"Busy avenging my brother's death, and making us allies in the process," Hokai said motioned towards Tsumetai and Mikata. Already he sounded defensive.
Kumonosu gave Hokai a hostile smile. "That's not the way Chiygo tells it. I hear that you've unearthed your worthless brother's bones."
Hokai licked his pincers in agitation. In his joy in finding his brother's remains, he had threatened Chiygo arrogantly. Confident that his new friends would protect him.
"I don't see why recovering my brother's lost remains would prompt you to travel all this way," Hokai said, his heart quavering.
"Don't lie to me Spinner Hokai! I will not tolerate another lie coming out of your treacherous mouth. You're trying to bring him back aren't you? So he can replace me. And, despite very clear instructions to avoid the dog demon, you've managed to put the entire clan at risk and entangle us in a war that is not our own," Kumononsu said, every word becoming louder and louder until he was screaming.
So his plans had been revealed, and the Weaver was here to stop him. But he had come too far, fought for too long.
"What I am doing will catapult our clan into greatness. I will restore our true leader Naraku. He is the commander we need, his evil nearly swallowed Japan whole! What do you do? Except slither about, hiding from opportunity?" Hokai bellowed back. The mass of spiders tittered and vibrated with disquiet at Hokai's attitude.
Kumonosu trembled and seethed. "Hokai, you are hereby stripped of your title as Spinner to the wicker clan. You will come back to the hollow. Now. To face my judgement for your treason…And my judgement will be severe Hokai."
Mikata had begun to move in the background, stalking forward like another, one of her knives hidden in her kimono. Hokai's eyes jumped to the faces of the spiders surrounding him. They looked edgy, and glanced at Tsumetai and Mikata often. Kumonosu must have felt that the size of his army would deter any violence from Tsumtai and Mikata, but he had been foolish to think this. Very foolish, to waltz up to the gates of a demoness with Mikata's reputation and start making demands.
"Actually, Kumo, I'm not going anywhere…and neither are you. What do you think, Mikata?" Hokai said, turning towards the demoness, who was a flash of red in a sea of spiders. Skulking in the shadows, the demoness lunged with a maniacal laugh. In one fell swoop, Kumonosu's head had been savagely pierced by Mikata's wakizashi. Green blood gushed from the wound like a geyser and Kumonosu fell to the ground with a sickening crunch of spider legs.
The nearby spiders scattered in alarm. Some of the most loyal, like Chiygo, tried in vain to fight off the attacks Mikata was now raining down on them. Mikata jumped from spider to spider, slicing and hacking with such enthusiasm Hokai and Tsumtai had to yell at her several times to stop her. Mikata's kimono was smeared with wet, emerald streaks of blood.
Pleased he had managed to stop Mikata before she killed every spider in the room. Hokai addressed the now cowering spiders that were left.
"Kumonosu was your leader, but he was weak and fearful. Now, I am your leader! Together, we will revive my brother, the most conniving demon of our time. With his help, we will bring the dog demons down into the dirt where they belong."
There was a stunted silence, followed by a patchy cheer from the terrified spiders nearest to Hokai. All the tension and stress leaked out of Hokai's spidery bones. He was in charge now, the clan members left were too frightened to object. Now his closest nemesis was dead.
Hokai ordered the rest of the spiders out of the room, and was pleased when they followed his commands, Side stepping the green blood now soaked into the mats, Hokai inspected Kumonosu's body curiosity. Kumonosu really was a gargantuan beast, the biggest in the clan with the most potent poison. When Naraku was killed, his body had dissolved into nothing. The meido stone, from what he had read, could not necessarily provide Naraku with a new body. A complication was that Naraku's body was made up of countless demons.
"Tsumetai, freeze Kumonosu's body," the spider said.
Mikata looked up from cleaning her knives. "You want to keep this ugly corpse here?" Mikata said, looking perplexed.
"My brother will need a new body when he returns. It will be a fitting punishment for the former Weaver. Now, who's up for gate crashing Lady Sora's next demon banquet?" Hokai said. He had never felt so victorious.
Tsumetai side-stepped Kumonosu's corpse distastefully. "I'm not sure your plan to get into this party is feasible Hokai. Sora is hardly going to let me attend. She'll invite Subarashi and the rest of them. As you said earlier, Kikyo and Sesshomaru may interfere if they find us."
"Hm. You're right. In that case, I will get Sabu to assist me on this plan. You two can both sit this one out."
Mikata gave a snort with derision. "You couldn't trap the dog and the dead priestess behind one little barrier. You'll never be able to steal the meido stone in front of the whole court and prevent Sesshomaru from interfering without us helping you."
Hokai grinned, his eight eyes already searching for his female right hand Sabu. "Oh you know what parties are like, all sorts of things can go wrong."