Evolution of a Taiyoukai

By Danyealle

(FanFiction/MF/angst)

Chapter 3

As expected, the next day was a very bad one for Inuyasha.  Per usual, Sesshomaru was already awake when he roused himself.  Though the stoic taiyoukai said nothing the looks tossed his direction told of pure disgust.  The looks he got from Miroku and Sango when they woke weren’t much better.  Kagome was allowed to sleep until the effects of the sleep aid wore off with Sesshomaru perched by her like some kind of protective sentinel.

While Sango prepared breakfast Miroku led Inuyasha away to give him a lecture that would have done any self-respecting stern parent proud.  As one would expect, the hanyou felt lower than dirt when he was done.  It was even worse when Kagome woke.  The look she gave him made him feel like shit, pure and simple.  Of course she made it crystal clear that she didn’t want to talk to him either.  Though she did at least let him apologize and nodded when he was done.  When they finally started moving she made it very well known that she wanted to go home and get there as quickly as she could.  As it usually did, especially when she was mad, that agitated him to no end.  Like times in the past he was worried that she would decide not to come back.  Though he knew that was an unreasonable fear, she always came back, he couldn’t help it.  Especially this time, considering the magnitude of his fuck up.

~~~~~@~~~~~

Being as unobtrusive as he could, Sesshomaru spent the day both keeping an eye on the whelp and trying to stick as close to Kagome as he could.  His instinct to protect and shelter her was at an all time high and it was getting hard to manage.  But he was able to exert enough self control to keep a reign on it.

Because the boy seemed to be in grovel mode he was on his best behavior and wasn’t giving the taiyoukai anything he could use.  That was until later that night after they made camp.  As was routine, after the meal the slayer and miko retired to a close hot springs for their nightly talk and bath.  Not long after they left the hanyou got a strange glint to his eyes then took off, professing to collect firewood.  With an arched brow the demon lord watched him go.  After a few minutes, after he was sure there was no danger close, he went in pursuit of the boy. 

Following where his sensitive nose led him, Sesshomaru found the whelp quickly.  As he had suspected it was well worth the time it took to pursue. What he found was the boy and the dead one in a small cusp off trees not far from the camp.  Making sure to stay silent and downwind, he listened and observed.  Within minutes he realized he had hit the proverbial jackpot, twice.  First came when the boy pulled the shoulder of the dead ones shirt off and nuzzled a mark there.  When he pulled away Sesshomaru got enough of a glimpse of it to know what it was; the whelps mating mark.  Rolling his eyes, the terrible taiyoukai gave an internal snort.  As if you could have a valid mating with a dead body was his thought.  But he was sure the two of them thought it was.

Quickly he realized he had struck gold but a few minutes later he found out it really was the mother lode he had really come across.  He hadn’t planned to stay long but, as it turned out, neither had Inuyasha.  The boy told her he couldn’t stay then made arrangements to meet up the following night.  Just what Sesshomaru needed.

Quietly, the demon lord slipped away and was back in camp within minutes, acting as though nothing had happened, but his mind raced over the information and tried to figure out how best to use it.  He was drawn out of his musings by the boys return.  Oh yes, he had firewood with him but he had also learned his lesion it appeared because he had bathed before stepping back into camp as well as trying to stay downwind from the demon lord.  Once again Sesshomaru gave a mental amused snort at that.

Later on that night he found himself not so amused.

After the women returned the whelp snagged the miko and moved to the outer edge of camp to talk to her.  Still in grovel mode, he apologized profusely and got her to thaw out a bit towards him by the time he was done.  It appeared that she was well on her way to once more forgiving him. 

For Sesshomaru that was almost more than he could take.  Especially since she was unaware of the deception he was responsible for.  He couldn’t allow this to go on anymore.  Yes, there was a twinge of guilt at the pain he knew he was going to cause her but he reasoned it would be less than if she found out later on.  Now all he had to do was figure out how to go about it.  Shutting his eyes, he tuned out as much of the extraneous noise as he could then delved into the problem of just how to go about this and cause her the least amount of pain possible.

A few hours later he was pulled back by a soft, tiny sound.  Sensing no danger he opened his eyes and looked around.  It wasn’t until he heard it again that he realized where it was coming from; Kagome.  She appeared to be in the middle of a bad dream of some kind.  Quickly checking to make sure no one was awake; he silently slid over and sat by her head.  Ever so gently, so not to wake her, he put a hand on her head and stroked it, trying to sooth her.  It seemed to work because he gave a soft sigh and relaxed then seemed to settle down. 

Though he knew once she had settled back down and was calm that he should move, he didn’t.  He couldn’t bring himself to leave her.  Just for a while he promised himself, he would only stay for a while to make sure there are no more dreams.  Shifting around, he settled back then began to gently stroke her head.

An hour before dawn he finally forced himself to move.  Crouching down, he stroked her head softly.  “Sleep well Kagome, I give you my word that I’ll always protect you.”  He told her softly before moving back to his place.

~~~~~@~~~~~

The next day Inuyasha pushed them all to move quickly.  What he told everyone was it was so they could get to Edo quickly after so many delays.  From the back end of the pack Sesshomaru had to strangle a snort at that pronouncement but other than that he kept his peace and said nothing.  The boy must have sensed something because he gave a nervous glance over his shoulder at the demon lord.  When he felt or saw nothing untold he seemed to relax.

For his part Sesshomaru kept his eyes trained on the boy.  He had a stomach full of the whelps lies and deceptions.  It had to end and soon.  When he snuck off to the walking dead today the end would finally come and he would have to deal with what he had done.  No, he wasn’t sure how it was going to play out but the time had come for it all to end.

~~~~~@~~~~~

Though it was one of those calm, easy days Inuyasha couldn’t shake a deep sense of foreboding that he had.  He wasn’t sure why he was getting it but it was there, making him break out in a cold sweat from time to time.

What he did know, however, is that whatever it was had to do with that bastard brother of his.  With that he also knew that whatever it was most certainly was not a good thing.

Whatever it was had been building for a long time now and he was just as fucking clueless as to what it was at this point as he had been when he first started feeling it. Nor could he figure out a way he would be able to find out before the fucker chose to reveal it.  All he did know was whatever the fuckhead was up to was huge and it probably didn’t bode well for him.

Giving himself a metal scratch on the noggin, he tried to put together all the odd things he had sensed or seen.  Problem was there was fuck all for them.  The only really solid, concrete one was the assholes stunt the other night about the graveyard soil smell.  That made exactly no fucking sense.  Before that he had smelled it on him plenty of times but the ass hadn’t done or said anything about it.  The worst he had done was shoot him one of those glares of his.  Why all of a sudden announce it to the world?  Made no sense!

Although he couldn’t prove it, he was sure how quickly things had gone to shit with Kagome over the past few days was related but for the life of him he couldn’t figure out how.  That made no sense either.  The only thing he could come up with was to see just how totally fucking miserable the ass could make his life, something he wouldn’t put past that sadistic fucker.  That seemed to be the way he got what little enjoyment there was in his life.  But that really made no real sense.

Sighing mentally once more he gave up.  His brain hurt.  All he was doing was ending up running in mental circles, getting no where.  As much as he hated it, he was just going to have to wait and see.  He didn’t like it but he didn’t have any choice at this point.

~~~~~@~~~~~

By the time Inuyasha found the place he wanted all the humans were dead tired and grateful to make camp, asking no questions about why they stopped early.  After sending Shippo to gather firewood, the hanyou went the opposite direction, professing he was going hunting for their supper.  Everyone else then settled down into their normal, nightly preparations.

After waiting long enough that he was sure the boy was with the dead one, Sesshomaru asked Kagome to follow him.  Quickly he followed the boys trail until he saw the pre-arranged meeting site.  Stopping just before the point she would be able to see what was going on, he put a finger on her lips so she stayed quiet then leaned down and whispered in her ear.  “There is something I want you to see.  I’m not showing you to hurt you or Inuyasha but because I feel you have the right to know.  Understand?”

Confused, she looked up at him but nodded.

Putting a hand on her back, he guided her closer until she could see the clearing where Inuyasha and Kikyo were, wrapped in an embrace, lips locked.  Feeling her stiffen, he rubbed her back then whispered, “Look at her right shoulder.”

Whole body cold, her eyes locked on the walking dead ones shoulder and what was clearly Inuyasha’s mating mark.  Body rigid, she clapped both hands over her mouth as her eyes filled with tears and her world seemed to shatter into a million pieces. 

Sensing her hurt and smelling her tears, he felt like shit at being the catalyst for causing it but kept control of himself.  Picking her up, he left with her the direction that they had come.  By the time they got close to the campsite she was sobbing softly into her hands, whole body shaking. 

Finding a smell open spot away from camp, he sat down and put her, facing sideways, between his bent legs.  Wrapping an arm around her front, her head resting on his bicep, he stroked the back of her head gently and just let her cry, saying nothing. 

Clutching onto his arm with both her hands, she hid her face in his bicep and sobbed, heartbroken.  Never in her life could she remember hurting this badly.  Adding to the hurt was the sense of being used and complete betrayal by someone she had lived and trusted so much.

Thrumming a soft, soothing growl in his chest, he did his best to sooth and help calm her even though he realistically knew it was a wasted effort.  There really wasn’t much of anything anyone could do to sooth the pain of a broken heart.  From his end he was hurting as well.  It was causing him pain to see her hurting like this and he felt like an ass for being the one that had triggered it been with the knowledge that it was for the best and that she would have eventually discovered it.  To assuage his guilt he vowed to stay with her until she calmed down and was over the worst of it.

It took a while but finally the tears dried up but she didn’t pull away or let go of him.  Instead she held onto him as thought he were a lifeline she would drown without.  “Why?  Why did he do this to me?”  She asked quietly to no one in particular.

“Because the half-breed is an imbecile.”  He replied quietly.  Though his personal assessment was harsher, he thought the boy was lower than scum.

“I feel like such a fool!  I should have figured it out.  I should have realized long ago he would never give her up no matter what he professed to feel for me.”  She said with a deep sigh, a couple more tears trickling down her cheeks.

“The half-breed is a consummate actor and a master at the art of deception.  He hid it well from everyone, even me.”  He told her in a quiet, soothing voice.

Pulling away a bit, she looked up at him with her sorrowful, red-rimmed eyes.  “Why did you show me Sesshomaru?” 

Sighing, he tried to figure out how to best word it.  “Because I felt you had a right to know.  I consider you a friend, probably the first real friend I have ever had, and I can’t abide by someone deceiving you in such a way.  I know I caused you pain but I thought it would hurt worse if I said nothing and you found out later on down the line.”  He told her finally.

A ghost of a smile crossed her face when he said she was his friend.  Even in her grief-clouded mind she understood what he said and agreed with it.  Though it hurt now if it continued on it would hurt much worse later on as she became more attached to him.  Sighing again, she asked the question she wanted to know but was afraid to know the answer to.  “How long did you know?”

“about the mating?  I found out last night when he once more slipped off to see the dead one.  I followed him and that’s when I saw the mark for the first time.  But I’ve known he was slipping away to see her since I joined up with you.  But I believe you all knew about that.”  He told her gently.

Sighing, she nodded.  She had known about the slipping away for a long time but she was thankful that he only knew about the other for a short time.  Shutting her eyes, she rested her head back on his bicep, mind a whirling dervish.

After a while of sitting there quietly, not saying anything, he asked, “What do you want to do Kagome?”

“Can I stay like this for a while longer?”  She asked, clinging to his arm.”

“As long as you wish.”  He answered softly, gently rubbing her back.  “What about after that?”

Sighing, she said quietly, “I want to go home, I need to get away for a while.”

That he expected.  “Understandable.  I can escort you to the well tonight if you would like.”  He offered.

“Thanks.  That would be great.”  She replied, giving his arm a gentle squeeze.

Taking another track, he asked, “You’ll have to go to school and such when you get home, won’t you?  Not be able to just sit and relax?”

Sighing heavily, she nodded.  “Yeah, I will unfortunately.”

That was what he had hoped for.  “You don’t need that Kagome.  You need to have a few days rest to relax so you can heal.”  He told her.  “Why don’t you come spend a couple days with me at the fortress?  You’ll be able to rest and relax then I’ll take you to the well.  Just tell everyone you’re going home.  You will be but not right away.”  He offered.

As strange as the offer sounded it held allure.  At home she would be so busy she wouldn’t be able to rest or relax much.  If she went with him she would be able to do that.  “There isn’t any catch to this, is there?  Nothing funny.”  She asked.  Knowing the way he was she already knew the answer but wanted to hear him say it.

“You have my word of honor there is no catch.  I protect my privacy viciously so we will be able to relax and rest without being disturbed.  Only I and a couple servants will even know you’re there.  I want nothing from you.”  He assured her.  But his heart was hammering a bit faster than normal.  It did very much sound like she was going to accept his offer.  No, there was no strings attached to the offer at all and there was nothing he wanted from her but it was going to be a good situation for him, no doubt about it.  He was going to get to spend time alone with her and to help alleviate the hurt that he had helped to cause.  That was all he really wanted.  Plus he was going to be allowed to show her that all males weren’t the scum the hanyou was.

Thinking for a few minutes, she then nodded.  “OK, sounds good to me.  When do we leave?”

After a smug, internal cheer, he said, “If we leave now not only will you not have to see Inuyasha before you go, you’ll be able to enjoy a nice meal that you won’t have to help prepare.”

Not seeing the deceitful hanyou made her mind up but not having to cook helped.  Sitting up, she rubbed her eyes with the backs of her hands.  “Alright, let’s go.”  She said quietly.

“You won’t regret your decision.”  He assured her, giving her a gentle squeeze.  He stood, helping her to her feet then led her back to camp. 

Once there, she began stuffing her things in her pack while taking tings out she was going to leave behind while telling the others Sesshomaru was going to take her to the well. 

One look at her face was enough to tell her friends something had happened and it more than likely had to do with a certain hanyou.

Face hard, Sango asked, “What did Inuyasha do now Kagome?”

Not looking up, Kagome paused.  After a few seconds she resumed then told her quietly, “Let Inuyasha tell you.”

Glancing at the miko then at the demon lord the slayer decided she would do just that.

Once packed, she shouldered the bag then gave everyone a hug.  “I’ll meet you in Edo in a week.”  She said, then began to walk away with Sesshomaru.  As they got to the edge of camp she stopped and looked over her shoulder at her friends.  “Can you do me a favor and tell Inuyasha not to come see me?  I’m sure he’ll understand why.”  When they nodded, she waved to them and vanished with Sesshomaru.

Once they were far enough away from camp that her friends wouldn’t see anything, Sesshomarus topped and took hold of her arm.  His blue light formed around them then they streaked of towards the west.

~~~~~@~~~~~~

Tearing off towards camp, Inuyasha once again gave himself a mental beating.  He wasn’t sure if he could undo the damage this time.  This was bad, this was very bad and he knew it.

While he was holding Kikyo a soft breeze had carried Kagome’s scent and that of her tears to him.  He had spun around quickly and caught a glimpse of her and Sesshomaru leaving.  Instantly his stomach plummeted into his feet and it felt as though he had been kicked in the nuts.  There was no doubt what she had seen.  There was also very little doubt that it was also probably the end of any chance he had with her.  But there was a small chance that he might be able to salvage it and he was going to give it everything he had. 

Not long after Kikyo had returned he had marked her as a mate.  It wasn’t like a normal mating because of love; it was done to show her his commitment to her.  Form the time he had done that he had made Kikyo well aware that he loved Kagome and wanted to be with her.  She ha understood and didn’t care, even privately encouraged the paring.  In fact, she had made the comment several times that she felt Kagome was a good influence on him. 

But from the beginning Kikyo had told him that he should tell Kagome what was going on but he hadn’t.  Each time she caught them together Kikyo had reiterated that but he still hadn’t done it for whatever reason.  Now he was pretty sure it was too late.

Gah!  The last few days had been a fucking nightmare!  Now there was this.  If the stuff with Kagome hadn’t been bad enough Kikyo had given him a good reaming for what he had done to her reincarnation.  Contrary to popular belief, Kikyo held no animosity or hatred towards Kagome.  In fact, she held her in high esteem and admired the little miko from the time yet to come so she had taken him to task for what he had done, telling him that he didn’t deserve her because of the stupid shit he had pulled.  She also told him that he was going to lose her if he didn’t pull his head out of his ass.  Then she had sent him off to try and fix things before it was too late.  But now he was wondering if it already was too late.  Kikyo was right, he should have come clean long ago because so much had built up that he wasn’t sure that it was too much too take and she would be done with him if he finally told everything.

When he stepped into camp and saw the looks on Sango, Miroku and Shippo’s faces he cringed.  But pressed on.  “Where’s Kagome?”  He asked, looking around for any sign of her but saw none.  He also noticed her things were gone as well, making his gut tighten.

“Where do you think she is Inuyasha?  She went home.”  Sango bit out, glaring at him.

“What?!?  You let her go on her own?”  He shouted.

“Do we look foolish to you?  Of course we didn’t.  Sesshomaru escorted her to the well.”  Miroku told him, voice short and clipped like it always was when he was irritated.

OK, that wasn’t good was Inuyasha’s first thought.  In fact it left him with a foreboding feeling. 

“Before she left, Kagome asked us to deliver a message to you.  She said she didn’t want you to go see her, that you’d understand why.”  Sango told him in an icy tone, eyes ablaze.

Ears lowered, he sank to the ground.  It was worse than he thought.  She had never left a message saying she didn’t want to see him before.  He had a sinking feeling that things were beyond repair at this point.  All he could do was hope against hope that her time away would give her time to cool down so he could talk to her when she came back.

For the rest of the night the other three in camp pointedly ignored him other than a few pointed, snide comments directed at him.  That left him alone with his thoughts, something that was even worse.  Over and over, his traitorous mind replayed every single fuck up and stupid stunt he had done since Kagome had freed him from the tree.  It wasn’t until then that he realized just how many there were.  He also wondered why she had stayed with him as long as she had.  She had put up with so much, more than most other females ever would have.  Dejectedly, he understood just how special she was but he was sure that realization came too late.  He doubted he could undo the damage and get another chance with her.  Really, if she decided enough was enough eh couldn’t blame her.  How much could he expect her to take?