Kryptonite

By Danyealle

(fanfiction/MF/HC/Abuse)

Chapter 23

…A Couple Days Later…

Sitting in his study, Sesshomaru was ignoring everything on his desk that needed his attention and was watching the gardens below.  The pack, children and a couple of Kagome’s friends were out there playing some kind of game the little priestess had taught them.  Yes, their antics were amusing him but that wasn’t what held his attention.  That was Kagome.  No matter what she did his eyes followed her.  She must have felt his gaze a couple times because the glanced up at the study window, smiled and waved at him.

Because he was alone he sighed deeply aloud.  Kagome…  As he had predicted shortly after taking her from the boy, she was turning his whole world inside out and upside down.  But not in the way he had initially thought. 

Oh yes, things were more complicated when it came to time at the fortress, court and the pack but that was something he could easily deal with.  It was internally, within himself, where the worst of that was happening.  For the first time in as long as he could remember he was confused about what he was feeling.  Well… he wasn’t sure if confused was the right word really.  Unsure was closer but even it wasn’t an exact fit either.  Nor, no matter how much he tried to figure it out, could he sort it out.  Yes, he knew he cared about her as more than a friend, he had admitted that to her, but now it had gone well beyond that now and he could no longer define just what he did feel for her.

With another deep sigh, he forced himself to turn away from the window.  When his eyes landed on the desk they landed on the large, wrapped package that covered most of the surface.  Smirking, his eyes danced a little bit.  It was for the little miko, something he had custom made for her.  He wasn’t sure why but he was getting the urge to send her presents.  The day before he had made sure that her room had been filled with lilacs, her favorite flower he had learned from Rin.

Looking once more at all the things on his desk, he decided nothing more was going to get done so he was going to call it a day.  Just as he was going to send for Jaken and let him know he would be unavailable except for emergencies but was stopped when he heard two feminine voices outside his door.  Quickly, he was able to identify them as Kuni and Anikia, two of Kagome’s friends.  Frowning, he listened to what they were saying.

It seemed that Kuni was telling Anikia that she had to tell him what was going on, that if she did tell him everything that he could and would protect her.  Now he was very curious as to what was going on.  What could a young onna like Anikia know that she would need his protection from?  Sitting back in his chair, he listened to the two talking and waited to see what they were going to do.

After about 15 minutes of discussion, he straightened up and looked like he was busy.  “Enter!”  He barked gruffly when he heard the knock on his door.

Opening the door just enough to slide in, Anikia shut it behind her then walked over to his desk.  After a quick bow, she seated herself in the chair in front of his desk. Twisting a lace hanky between her fingers, she looked at the floor.

Sensing how nervous she was and the tension and fear in her aura he proceeded gently, using the same voice he employed with Rin when she was upset.  “Lady Anikia, what can I do for you?”

Letting out a ragged sigh, she began to swing her crossed feet back and forth a bit.  “I need your help Lord Sesshomaru.  Something is going on and I don’t know where else I can turn to!”  She told him in a voice so soft and quiet that it was barely audible.

“I’ll do what I can to help.”  He told her soothingly.  “Now… tell me what troubles you.”  He nudged her gently.

It took several fits and starts but she eventually began to spill the whole story.  Her mother, Lakumi –who he had banished from the fortress, had been so outraged by what she felt was her ill-treatment at the hands of the taiyoukai that she had done something ill advised.  While at the family’s estate she had been approached by Naraku with a way for her to not only get even with Sesshomaru but circumnavigate around her husband to elevate her social status.  Of course, as one would expect from someone like her, she had jumped at the offer.  No, her mate would never have gone for this, something that the old inu knew well.  To work around his reluctance Naraku had provided her with an amulet to wear.  Once it was on it basically turned the wearer into a mindless zombie.  As soon as Lakumi got it on her mate he began to feed her information about everything that went on at the fortress and between the taiyoukai and miko.  To elevate her social status she had arranged a mating between Anikia and Lord Benhoutu, one the most powerful of the northern lords who was known for his abuse and frank sadism.  As the taiyoukai well knew it was a reputation that was well earned and may well be understated.  He was beyond cruel and took pleasure in his mistreatment of females. 

What the young onna wanted from him was his protection and some way to help her father.  She was doing this to help her father but also because she considered Kagome a friend and couldn’t abide that she may be hurt by information her mother fed to the being she was working so hard to rid Japan of.

By the time she was done talking she was sobbing quietly into her hanky.  Stepping into the hall he had Kuni go in and comfort her friend then sent Jaken to retrieve the pack.  It was his idea that the houshi and miko might well be able to break whatever enchantment may be on the amulet.

Quickly, the pack joined him and was filled in on what was going on.  When they all went into the study the first thing they demon lord did was assure the young inu-onna that she and her father would be under his protection once the spell on him was broken.  Then he let the pack take over the questioning.

As it turned out Miroku did most of it.  Because of the monks smoothness with the opposite sex he was able to get her more at ease plus he was better acquainted with enchantments such as these so he knew what questions to ask.  By the time he was done talking to her he was fairly certain he knew what the spell was and how to break it.

Once the healer was sent for to give her the poor onna a calming draught, he had her escorted to a more secure area of the fortress with Kuni to sit with her and a couple of his guards to keep her safe.  Once she was attended to the pack settled in to decide how to go about this.

After quite a bit of discussion it was decided Miroku and Kagome would stay in the study with him when he confronted the minor lord.  The houshi would be able to tell the spell that was on the amulet.  Kagome, the houshi was sure, would be able to purify it by touching it.  To the taiyoukai this sounded like a very good plan and probably the best and easiest way to go about things.  But, to be on the safe side, he would have a few of his guards outside.  Before he summoned Lord Minisuh he dispatched a squad to arrest Lakumi with someone being sent with a letter to the lord of the lands she was on explaining why.  Though he said nothing about it he full well intended to make an example of the old inu onna and have her executed to serve as a warning to anyone who would ever think about aligning themselves with Naraku. 

When the minor lord stepped into his study the taiyoukai’s hackles rose.  The aura surrounding him was enough to tell him something was wrong with the male but the flat, blank look in his eyes, one that was reminiscent of Kohaku, confirmed it.  A look from the houshi and a bare nod told him their supposition had been correct.  Without giving away what his daughter had told him, Sesshomaru began to question him about some of the things he had been told.  Of course he got flat answer that sounded very much like they had been planted or rehearsed. 

While he did that, quiet as a cat stalking a mouse, Kagome maneuvered around behind him, trying to find a way to grab hold of the gold chain around his neck.  Suddenly she pounced on his back and grabbed the chain with both hands, pouring her miko powers into it.  Both the houshi and demon lord grabbed the older inu and held him the best they could.  Suddenly, he shuddered then dropped like a dead weight to the floor.

Rolling off his back, Kagome sat on the floor panting.  “Get the necklace off him Miroku.  I broke the spell I think.”

Sesshomaru was able to hoist the still unconscious male up enough so the monk was able to slip the now blackened chain over his head.  Holding it up they could see the amulet on the end of it smoking.

Knowing the lord would be unconscious for a while still, it was a powerful spell and breaking it so abruptly was a big shock, he called the guards to carry him to the room next to his daughters then to have the healer see to him.

Once he was out of the way the taiyoukai’s attention was immediately focused on the little priestess.  The monk had helped her over to the sofa and she was sitting there shaking a bit.  Moving over there, he knelt down in front of her and took one of her hands in his.  “Are you OK Kagome?”  He asked quietly.

Nodding, she let out a weary sigh.  “Yeah, I’m fine.  Just tired is all.  That took a lot out of me.”  She told him in a bit of a tired voice.

“Understandable.”  He said with a nod.  Standing up, he helped her to her feet and looped her arm through his.  “I’ll take you to your room so you can get some sleep.”

Nodding, she held tightly to him and leaned against him for support.

Looking at the monk he said, “Gather up everyone and go to the common room in the family wing.  As soon as Kagome is taken care of and I meet with a couple people I’ll be there so we can discuss this.”  When he saw the houshi nod he slowly led the little onna to her chambers where she could get some much needed rest.

…ks…ks…ks…ks…

Lord Minisuh was sitting up in bed, quietly talking to his daughter when Lord Sesshomaru stepped into the room.  Knowing that the demon lord most likely wanted to talk to her father alone, Anikia bowed to the taiyoukai then quietly exited.

Finding a chair, Sesshomaru seated himself then looked at the older inu on the bed.  “How are you feeling?”  He asked after he got comfortable.

“Tired and weak.  Quite a bit disoriented as well but fine other than that.”  He told the taiyoukai with a sigh.  “How’s Lady Kagome?”

“She’s fine, just tired.”  Sesshomaru told him.  “Now, tell me what you remember of what went on.”

With a deep sigh, the minor lord quietly told the taiyoukai everything he could remember from the point Sesshomaru and Kagome left the fortress the last time, leaving nothing out.  As he well knew the most minor details could be of the utmost importance.

Listening tentatively, Sesshomaru kept stopping him to go over some detail again or explain things better which Minisuh did without complain.  When the inu finished talking the taiyoukai leaned back in his chair and looked at him.  “You realize I will show no mercy to your mate.”  He told him in a quiet voice that had a bit more bite to it than it had up to that point.

“I would not expect you to.”  The minor lord said evenly.  “My daughter and I…”

Cutting him off, Sesshomaru said, “Were pawns in her scheme and manipulated to do her bidding, not willing participants.”

The minor lord looked greatly relieved.

Fixing the inu lord with a hard stare, Sesshomaru said, “Far be it from me to interfere in familial decision making, but your daughter’s arranged mating…”

“Will not be happening!”  Minisuh told him in a tone that made it very clear that he was angry and outraged about that topic.  “I love my daughter and would never subject her to an animal like that!  My mate arranged that mating contract though trickery and deception so it’s void!”

Nodding, Sesshomaru reclined a bit.  “Have you any idea who you will arrange a mating with now?”  If the inu didn’t he was going to mention a few names that he knew would not only be well suited to the young inu onna but would elevate their social status as well.

“I believe I will allow Anikia to choose her own mate.  I don’t care about such things as social status.  My daughter has proven she’s a good judge of character and is level headed.  I feel she will probably make a better choice than I could.”

“I believe you’re right.”  The taiyoukai agreed with a nod. Standing, he said, “I’ll leave you to get some rest.”

“Thank you, for everything Lord Sesshomaru.  And, if you would, thank Lady Kagome for me as well.” Minisuh said quietly.

Nodding, Sesshomaru said, “You’re welcome and I will.  But you need to thank your daughter as well.  She’s the one that can really be credited with saving you.”

“I already have but plan to do so again many times.”  Minisuh said with a nod.

…ks…ks…ks…ks…

Two hours later Sesshomaru met the squad of men returning with a furious Lakumi.  Though his normal placid look was firmly in place, his eyes readily spoke of his ire.

Rather than flinch and cower under that gaze like almost all did, the inu onna shot the taiyoukai her own furious look.  “You have no right to do this!  I was not on any lands controlled by you just as you dictated!”

“Oh, I assure you, I have every right Lady Lakumi!”  Sesshomaru told her smoothly.  “Lord Caruku agreed to allow my guards on his lands so they could arrest you.”

“And just what is my supposed crime?”  Lakumi pressed on undeterred.

“I believe you are well aware of what your crime is.”  Sesshomaru shot back then held up the amulet Lord Minisuh had been wearing.

Paling, Lakumi swallowed convulsively and chose to remain silent, knowing it was in her best interest at that point.

“Normally, as all are well aware, I show no mercy to traitors.  In your case, rest assured, there will be none at all.  But, I will give you the option of being allowed to live if, and only if, you provide me with the names of any other being in my fortress or lands that you know of that are working for Naraku.  I will give you 24 hours to think about it.”  Sesshomaru told her in a voice as hard and old as an icy arctic wind.  Nodding to his guards he turned on his heel and made his way back inside while the inu onna was once more led to the dungeons.

…ks…ks…ks…ks…

Making his way to the family wing, Sesshomaru met with the rest of the pack to tell them about what he learned from the inu lord.  No, he realized there really wasn’t anything any of them could do to help ferret out any of those in the fortress that may be in league with Naraku but because the whole thing had to deal with the spider he wanted them to have all the information that he did.  The way he saw it was that they may well pick up on something that he didn’t.

As he had expected, though the whole thing was thoroughly hashed through nothing had come of it other than to have his guards keep an eye out for anyone displaying the signs that Lord Minisuh had.

Once he was done with them he made his way back down to his study to meet with the head of his guards and army to put some things in place to try to sniff out anyone else that may well be working with the spider, be they staff or others.  Once that was done he went through what was waiting for him on his desk to take care of what needed his attention right away.  The rest he planned to leave for the following day.  With all that had happened he was tired and felt he deserved a rest.

Finally, when he was caught up with everything he called Jaken in then left him in charge, letting him know the consequences that would be coming his way if he was called out for something foolish.  Then he grabbed the package on his desk and headed for his chambers.

When he let himself into his chambers Kagome was still in his bed, all curled up under that big, fluffy blanket she had brought him.  Though she was awake she looked like she could go back to sleep at any time.

Putting his swords up, he sat down on the edge of the bed and began to rub her back gently.  “How are you feeling?”

Smiling up at him, she said, “Fine.  I’m just worn out is all.”  Spying the package he was holding her eyes got a bit bigger then she looked back up at him.  “What’s that?”

Smirking, he handed it to her.  “I had this made for you.”

Squealing excitedly, she sat up and took it from him then began to rip the paper off of it like a small child would.  When she got it all off and opened the box her eyes grew bigger and she mouthed the word ‘wow’ then pulled out a stuff dog that was an exact replica of his demon form.  Clutching it to her chest, she wrapped her other arm around him and gave him a tight hug.  “Thank you Sesshomaru!  It’s adorable!  I love it!”  Then she gave him a kiss.

“You’re very welcome Kagome.”  He said with a proud smirk.  His beast was crouched down, rump in the air, tail wagging, with it’s tongue hanging out the side of it’s mouth.  Smugly it purred that she though it was adorable.

Stripping down to his hakama, he slid into the bed behind her and wrapped both arms around her, holding her.  Kissing her on top of the head, he then rested his head against hers.

Putting the stuffed dog on the bedside table, she snuggled up as close to him as she could get.  “What all did you find out?”  She asked quietly.

Quickly, he gave her a rundown of what he had discovered about the situation.

Sighing, she shut her eyes.  “Damn Naraku!”  She cured internally.  When he got to the part about Lakumi she didn’t bother to ask what the penalty for what she had done was, she was well aware it was death.  Though she got to see a side of Sesshomaru no one else did she knew how harsh and unyielding he could be.  There was no way he would give her a break.  To do so would send the wrong message and he wanted to make sure that everyone would think twice before pulling a similar stunt. 

Despite being kind-hearted and forgiving, she agreed with him on this case. Naraku had enough advantages as it was, he didn’t need any more.

Not wanting to get any further down that train of thought she forced herself to mentally change topics.  Giggling a bit, she slipped an arm around him and gave him a squeeze.  “Know what?”  She asked him.

Sensing the topic change, he looked down at her.  “What?”

“The stuffed dog is cuddly but I think the real thing, you, is more so.”  She giggled giving him another squeeze. 

“Most would not agree with that assessment Kagome.”  He told her with a smirk.

“Yeah…  Well…  I’m not most people.”  She stated.

“Very true.  And that’s why I like you so much.”

…ks…ks…ks…ks…

By the time the evening meal rolled around, Kagome was still a bit lethargic and low on energy so they decided to stay in his chambers to eat.

That night, rather than do what they usually did and sit across from each other to eat, she sat on his lap and they tried feeding each other.  Quickly, he learned this didn’t work all that well.  Sure they managed to get most of it in each others mouth, most of it.  Both of them ended up with stuff spilled on them and it got even worse when Kagome started giggling. 

By the time they were done both had food bits all over them.  Kagome was laughing uproariously, trying to pick the food bits off both of them.  Though he had his usual stoic mask in place he had to admit it was funny and had been a lot of fun.  Normally, getting messy like this would have bothered him and he would have been upset at the person who caused it but, this time, he felt whatever mess was made was worth it because of the amount of fun both of them had.

…ks…ks…ks…ks…

About midnight as they taiyoukai was in a sound sleep, he was roused by a soft knock on his door.  Quietly snarling his displeasure, he untangled himself from Kagome, taking care not to wake her.  Putting his slippers on, he slipped into his robe then stepped into the hallway, shutting the door quietly behind him.  Seeking Jaken, his eyes narrowed then snarled out, “What?”

“Sorry to disturb you milord.”  The kappa said, bowing.  Though he straightened up right after the bow his eyes remained locked don the taiyoukai’s feet. 

Eyebrow arched, Sesshomaru glanced down to see what was holding the kappa’s attention then gave an internal groan when he realized he had put on the dog feet slippers instead of his regular ones.  “They are slippers Jaken.”  He barked out, trying to jerk the kappa back to what he had come for.

With a squeak, Jaken jerked then said, “Sorry milord!  The jailer is in your study.  There is an emergency situation that needs your attention.”

Instinctively knowing this had to be about Lakumi, he headed towards his study without saying anything else.

When he entered all eyes were on his feet.  Cursing his choice of footwear, the growled to get them focused then sat behind his desk.  “What has happened?”  He asked shortly.

The head guard of dungeon detail stepped forward.  “We found Lady Lakumi dead in her cell a short time ago.”

Sesshomaru’s first though was suicide followed by ‘good riddance’ but he knew if that was the case he wouldn’t have been woken.  “What happened?” was his question. 

“It looks like suicide but…” the guard trailed off.  “I’m requesting permission to proceed with an aggressive investigation.”

Now he understood and nodded.  They couldn’t launch such a thing on just a gut feeling without his permission.  Knowing his staff the way he did he was willing to take their instincts and gut feeling into account.  “Permission granted.  Proceed as you see fit.”  He told them then sent them on their way.

Once the study door closed behind him, he stared at the desk, lost in thought.  He was sure, even though he didn’t know why, that Naraku was involved.  It was his guess that the arachnid was worried the old inu was going to talk to save her own skin and was afraid of what she was going to say.  That told him there were probably other spy’s in the fortress he needed to worry about.  That he did not like.