Devotion and Sacrifice
By Danyealle
(fanfiction/angst)
Chapter 5
:::…6 Months Later…:::
Many things had changed by this point. It was now a bit over a year since Inuyasha’s passing and, finally, Kagome seemed to have put her grief for him and his passing behind her. Yes, she still missed him, very badly at times, but for the most part she had moved on. The spirit and fire she was so well known for had finally returned; as had her laughter and playful nature. Yes, his death had changed her, like any death does everyone, but she was finally able to move on and resume her life.
Sesshomaru’s pack had become as much of a cohesive unit as packs that had been together for years. Though it was much different than when Inuyasha led it, it was still just as much of a family unit as it had been then, just with a few different ‘relatives’. By extension all the members were also seen as members of Kouga’s wolf demon tribe. Sesshomaru, who had always been a loner, found that he now did have a family, one that cared about him very much. Especially Kagome. The feeling was very odd at first but gradually he got used to it. Then he began to really like it, a lot, but he didn’t let it show. In fact, for the first time, other than when it came to Rin, he had beings that cared about him and they didn’t care about his title or power. Yes, he was their protector but they also protected him, not that he needed it. Still it felt good.
After her traumatic first attempt to work with tetsusaiga, Kagome didn’t give up. The progress was slow because of the weird feelings the katana produced but within two months she could produce the Windscar whenever she wanted, just like Inuyasha had been able to.
Because she was too easily distracted and self-conscious, he had worked with the miko alone most of the time but the day they were actually going to try to produce it he had brought Kouga along. At the time Sesshomaru thought she would need the demonic aura and Kouga was fast enough to get out of the blast zone. As Sesshomaru was once again talking her though looking for the Windscar, she could see it though not very clearly, she drew the fang. Already the Windscar was entwining around the blade. Though Sesshomaru found that strange he pressed on. Within five minutes she swung the huge sword how he had taught her and yelled, “Windscar!” Immediately, the signature blast began to eat up the ground between her and Kouga. The ookami almost didn’t get out of the way but at the last minute was able to jump to safety. As expected he had heard Kagome but he also had heard Inuyasha’s voice bellow the same thing. Despite the fact that the hanyou had been gone for over a year there was no mistaking that voice.
Standing off to the side, Sesshomaru was wide-eyed. He too had heard his half-brother’s voice bellow the familiar refrain.
Kagome stood there, tetsusaiga hanging limply from her hands, mouth hanging open, eyes wide. “Please tell me you heard that too and that I’m not loosing my mind,” she said quietly, shaking.
Sensing her distress, Sesshomaru put a hand on her shoulder, “I heard it as well Kagome,” he told her quietly.
“No doubt in my mind that was mutt-face’s voice.” Kouga replied gruffly but he was a bit pale and nervous looking.
Sighing, Kagome sheathed the blade then said, “Good, I thought I had finally lost it,” brightening up, she grinned, “But I did it!”
“You sure did!” Kouga returned her gesture and grinned with her.
“Indeed,” Sesshomaru told her, giving her a simple pat on the back. After the strange occurrences up to that point concerning the katana then hearing what he just had he had doubts that it was all her doing but it was still a big accomplishment.
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Later that night, Kagome had gone to take a bath in a nearby hot spring. Even after she had been with him this long Sesshomaru was still amazed how clean she was. Most humans avoided baths, thinking them to be unhealthy. Yes, he understood her time was different and they were a lot cleaner but it was still odd to him. Though she liked to be clean he also learned that for her soaking in the hot, bubbling water was also her way of relaxing and stress relief. That was something he could understand. Some nights she would bathe quickly then put on that thing she called a bathing suit and would soak and have him sit close so thy could talk. He actually found he looked forward to those conversations. They didn’t talk about Naraku, anything related to him or their quest but everything else was fair game. They talked about all kinds of things and could easily get lost in them for hours.
Like usual, while she was there he stayed close by. His mind wandered to the events earlier in the day and he ended up lost in thought, not noticing the passage of time. It wasn’t until much later that he realized how much time had passed and he had heard nothing from the little miko. Quickly, he hurried to make sure everything was okay. Understanding her modesty, he stopped at the tree line; unable to see her if she was still in the water then called her name softly.
“I’m here,” she called out from somewhere to his right.
Stepping out of the trees, he walked over to where she was sitting with a book open in her lap. She had her flameless torch out and was reading.
Used to things like this with her, he walked over and sat down beside her, “What are you reading?”
“About constellations,” she replied. Seeing his puzzle look she quickly explained to him what she was talking about. When he seemed interested she slid over between his legs with the book and showed him the diagram she was looking at then pointed out the corresponding stars in the night sky.
To anyone who may have observed the two of them, her sitting between his legs like that would have turned heads but for them it was actually normal. They found it easier when she was showing him something in books because they could both easily see what she was trying to point out.
For a while she would point out a diagram on the star chart then point to the same stars in the sky. Because she was using the western constellations, not the Chinese, he hadn’t heard of the names so she briefly told him the stories related to them from Greek/Roman mythology.
On his end, he found the stories she was telling fascinating. Yes, some of the pictures in the sky- she had been right- needed a great deal of imagination to see them, they were interesting on their own, but the tales that related to them were more so.
As she was telling the story of Orion he found himself gazing down into her face, enraptured. Suddenly, his mind tuned out what she was saying completely and he found himself focused on her beautiful face and how good she smelled. For a while now he had felt an attraction to her, one that he couldn’t explain. Before Inuyasha’s death his beast had found the little miko to be captivating and seemed to have a soft spot for her. Now, it wasn’t an attraction but there was something about her that it found to be remarkable.
After he had gone to retrieve the miko and she began to travel with him, the attraction had begun. Of course, he had ignored it at first, stating what he had for centuries, that she was human and that he most certainly wasn’t interesting in a human female. As would be expected his beast had argued that she was no normal human female. She was clean, smelled good, took care of herself and so many other things humans he normally encountered didn’t. Then there was her gentle, caring nature and how she didn’t care what a being was, she treated them all with the same caring and respect, not seeing the prejudices that others did. She didn’t see him as a taiyoukai that was to be feared but as someone that she perceived to be a friend and treated him as such. Much the way Rin didn’t see the demon in him. Yes, he would admit that Kagome was quite a bit like Rin in so many ways so she was worthy of the respect he showed her. Again, his beast snarled and argued with him. No, Kagome wasn’t like Rin, it was Rin that was like Kagome. He had snarled at that, not willing to admit it but deep down he knew it was true. There had been something about the little miko that he had found intriguing since he had first encountered her.
Like he had many times in the past Sesshomaru had thought Inuyasha was a fool for once again involving himself with a human female, after all the last one had pinned him to a tree for 50 years. So it didn’t appear that he had the greatest judgment when it came to the female of the human species. But this human had been different in so many ways. Then, as she started traveling with him, he had found that, despite not wanting to, that he felt a pull towards her. The more time he spent with her, especially alone, the stronger that pull had become. At this point in time his beast would all but throw a tantrum if she wasn’t close and he felt as though part of himself were missing when she wasn’t near him. Though he wanted to deny it, it was true. Then there were times like now, when she was so close to him. Her miko powers, something that should have been painful to him, seemed to dance across his skin in a most delicious way; making him tingle and setting his blood on fire in a way that made him feel alive like he never had before. He wasn’t sure why or what cause it but he would admit, at least to himself grudgingly, that he liked it.
Pulling himself back to the present, he listened to her finish the myth she was telling him. Then she moved on to the next one, looking up into the sky to find the pattern. This time he didn’t look up, instead he looked at her upturned face, eyes soft.
Sensing his eyes on her, she stopped talking and looked back over her shoulder at him, “Sesshomaru? Is there something wrong?”
Looking into her big eyes, he felt himself getting lost in them. Slipping an arm around her waist he pulled her back against his chest. Cupping her cheek with his other hand, he continued to look into her eyes, quiet, for a minute or so then leaned down and kissed her.
Though shocked, she leaned into the kiss, reaching out and putting her palm on the side of his face.
Breaking away, he looked down into her face again, licking his lips. ‘So sweet’, he thought. She tasted like wild honey. Gently, he pulled the book and torch out of her hands then laid them aside. He turned her around, so she was facing him, he then eased them both to the ground, on their sides. Putting a hand on the back of her head, he inclined his head and once again captured her mouth with his.
Entwining her fingers in his long, silken locks, she pressed her body tightly to his, loving the way he felt against her. A shiver ran down her spine then her body broke out in goosebumps. Suddenly, her limbs felt heavy and a tingle spread throughout her body that seemed to make her feel hot all over. Shivering, she moaned into his mouth, unable to stop herself.
As much as he didn’t want to, he finally forced himself to stop. Pulling her tightly to his chest, he wrapped both arms around her and rested his cheek on her head with his eyes shut. Panting, he fought to keep his self control. He wanted her, badly. Images of her, naked, below him while he pounded into her virgin body flashed through his mind and made his flesh throb. Usually, he wasn’t one to deny himself what he wanted but this time he would. This wasn’t like his other sexual encounters, a one time thing; he wanted more, much more. To have that it would take time. For once he would have to be patient and go slow. This wasn’t some experienced demoness he was dealing with but a human female that was innocent. Slow would be the operative word in dealing with her.
As he held her, he could feel the arousal, anxiety, lust and a bit of fear twisting in her aura but most of all confusion. She hadn’t wanted or told him to stop yet he did. Running his fingers through her hair, her name slipped from his lips. He pulled away slightly then looked down at her.
When she felt him pull away, she looked up into his face. Licking her swollen lips, she was still breathing heavily. “Sesshomaru… WOW!” was all she could manage to stammer out.
“Indeed,” he agreed, puffing up with pride a bit at having caused that reaction. “But I think that may well be understated,” starting to run his claws through her tousled hair, he kissed her tightly on the forehead then told her in a soft voice, “You are a tempting minx. If I hadn’t stopped when I did I’m not sure I would have been able to.”
That statement seemed to relax her a bit. Smiling, she reached up and softly stroked his cheek.
Her soft touch made him shiver a bit, his beast growling in contentment. Holding her a while longer, he then decided, reluctantly, they needed to get back to the rest of the pack. They had been gone much longer than normal and he didn’t want the others to worry.
After leading the miko back to camp, before stepping into the clearing where everyone was, he pulled her into his arms and kissed her softly again. Then they stepped back into the fire lit clearing.