It was just as Seiryuu had predicted.
The demons came. First in a trickle, then in a stream. Ridding the land of them proved a grueling, exhausting task—even with the aid of Kohaku and others. Worn down from month after month of constant battle, Kagome felt herself spreading thin. Past mikos had died from such prolonged wars of attrition. But Kagome’s lifeforce remained as unbreachable as Edo village itself, as she relied increasingly upon her transcendent powers to weather the demonic storm.
And to contend with her brother-in-law’s inner savagery.
For Kagome, it was a war on all fronts. But it was this internal power struggle between herself and Sesshoumaru which concerned her most. In this secret battle, she was utterly alone. Between her mounting fatigue and his mounting aggression, Kagome was desperate for a moment’s reprieve. From him. From herself.
From everything.
“About time you showed back up,” Kagome bit out as she strode forward through the trees, her breath puffing out like smoke before her in the chill autumn air.
The timing, in fact, was just perfect.
Frozen halfway in, Hachi slipped his other foot sheepishly through the barrier. “Kagome-sama,” he greeted, slightly pale, “you look well.”
Glaring, Kagome drew to a halt, knowing exactly how she looked—like a bowstring wound too tight. “Where’s my sake?” she demanded without preamble. “Or have you forgotten the terms of entry here?”
“Ah, not to worry!” Hachi said quickly, rummaging through the inner pockets of his haori. “Here you are.”
Extracting a bottle of youkai make, he handed it to her. Kagome snatched it up with a scowl.
“Just the one?” she said, eyeing him sharply. As the tanuki demon paled further, she relented with a sigh. “Fine, just bring more next time—and don’t be so slow about it.”
“H-hai, Kagome-sama,” Hachi said, edging cautiously away from the flare of her aura before trotting off in the direction of Miroku’s temple.
Frowning after him, Kagome felt a flicker of remorse for frightening him so. But she was strung out to say the least. It had been more than a week since she’d last had a drink, and the price she’d paid for it had been high. Suppressing the troubling upthrust of memory, Kagome set off toward a nearby spring with her prize.
Stripping down, she relaxed into the balmy water and drank straight from the bottle. Stronger than the human stuff, the liquor scorched a fiery path down her throat, making her close her eyes and wince. She hadn’t eaten anything at all today, the events of the night before having left her too unsettled. With her stomach running on empty, it was only a matter of minutes until the alcohol seeped, soft and insidious, into her veins.
Even with the dimming effect of the sake, she couldn’t forget the biting way Sesshoumaru had called her ‘sister’, the way his eyes had glowed as they’d slid over her in parting. Perfectly sane and perfectly mad all at once. Clapping a wet hand to her face, Kagome groaned, trying to master her bile-like surge of dread, knowing full well how his predatory focus had come to settle upon her.
She should have seen this coming. She should have known he wouldn’t be content with jerking off forever. What man was? Hadn’t even Inuyasha incessantly pressured her to fuck him, before they were married? Shaming herself for the uncharitable thought even as it surfaced, Kagome took another scalding swig from the flask.
Sesshoumaru was nothing like Inuyasha. This fact had never been more clear to her, no matter how mercifully numbed and unfocused her mind was becoming.
Chasing the blissful sensation, Kagome drank from the bottle again. Flushed from the sake and the hot spring both, she waded over to a slab of rock near the center, dredging herself up onto it in a wet, loose-limbed sprawl. The cool air was a starkly pleasant contrast. As her flesh prickled and her nipples tightened, she considered the image—the prone, naked spread of her body, as if laid out on some altar, like a maiden from the myths she’d studied in school, offered up to appease the appetite of a monster.
A virgin sacrifice—though she was hardly either. Smirking a little to herself, Kagome took another sip, her fingers trailing idly down the damp, flinching plane of her stomach. Sunlight glinted above her, the shape of slit-pupiled eyes appearing briefly in the golden canopy of the trees.
Kagome’s blood burned, her smile steeled. Any monster who happened upon her would get far more than he bargained for.
The mere idea of it inflamed her—even before she felt the sudden surge of youki clash against her senses.
Inuyasha © Rumiko Takahashi
😉
For all my fellow Americans out there, hope you had a happy 4th! <3
That cliff! Girl is a messss
Lol pretty much
<3
Jesus the cliff hangers
Ahh I know!! Sorry I’m the worst XD
<3
It seems like we are approaching another turning point in the story – Kagome beings stretched thin, Sesshoumaru coming at her relentlessly.
It will end in a clash.
I’m still thinking about “That Night” and exactly happened there, it feels like some important pieces are left there…
Sesshoumaru is rather like a freight train XD And Kagome is…well, how she is XD
Glad you’re interested to see where the “That Night” series goes and how it fits into the bigger picture!! Thanks so much for sharing your take!
<3
I feel like kagome is slowing exploring her “dark side” she loathes Sesshomaru indirectly causing Inuyasha’s death and all the innocent girls but her very core wants him sexually so it’s going to epic when or if they have sex!
Yes ma’am 😉
Hope you continue to enjoy the dark ride! 🙂
<3
Is this the bath scene where he watched her bathe in the intro? Are we making a full circle now?
Also, is there a part 4 for “that night” side story, or is it going to be explained in the main plot?
Just head full of questions!! I’m loving the ride!
More, i need more of this!! It’s like when something is answered or explained, there’s heaps more of new questions… just so much twists and turns!
Thanks again for writing!
Great questions!! We shall see 😉
Yep, the “That Night” series still has 3 more parts to go – glad you’re enjoying the suspense of these stories!!
Thanks so much! <3 <3
Okay, I haven’t been here for a few months and paid with a sleepless night since I had to catch up from about ch. 42. And you are going to pay with a review that summarize my thoughts from that point on. 😛
Well, it WAS in the end Sesshoumaru who killed all that girls. And I have no problem admitting that I was one of those who kept believing until the end that it was not him. There were a lot of clues that pointed in his direction but yet it was not overly obvious. You did an amazing job with that, Char! I mean you were already 40 chapters in the story when you finally had mercy with us and let us now who it was and you still could held our interest. And that is something not many could have pulled off that way. Others would have lost their readers after about 10 chapters. LOL.
Back to Sesshoumaru. I don’t see him really being possessed by some sort of external evil spirit/paradise. It is just him and his Beast. The question is what went wrong. I don’t believe that those two forms are supposed to be seperated like that and fight for dominance to the point that the Beast makes what he wants and that for a long period of time. Did they both desire Kagome and created together some dark fantasies about her, but Sesshoumaru didn’t want to make a move so the Beast had to take control? Or did Sesshoumaru always had problems with his Beast? Did he always had to fight against a part of himself? I guess it’s time for Kagome to do some youkai studying. She should probably talk with other full-fledged demons to get a graps on how this whole beast thing works!
I’m sooo happy that you didn’t take the “easy” way out and make Kagome give in. I’m sure most of the writers would have made Kagome like “I have to sacrifice myelf for all the womes out there and therefore will happily spread my legs. No point in fighting it”. I would hate that! It’s way to early for that.
So, Sesshoumaru likes to be dominated? LOL. I just have to laugh about the extend he is willing to go to make her want to punish him. Naughty boy, wait for me on all four! Kagome is enjoying it waaayyy to much. She loves holding that power over him. And to be honest, who wouldn’t? XD
Kagome is not strong enough to kill him. BUT she can always purify his balls and dick to the point that they can’t grow back. I’m sure Eunuch Sesshoumaru would be easier to manage! XD When his libido disappears so will maybe his dark desires too and he will start giving her flowers instead? Hm.
It was that apprentice of Kagome who was getting all the times on my nerves. Though that stunt that Rin pulled! What the hell?! Yes, she trust him and loves him and what else but to blur miko secrets like that JUST to get a praise from Sesshoumaru is stupid, egoistical, naive…you get what I mean. After all Sesshoumaru hasn’t told her about that one chakra point you have to push to kill a youkai immediately without the need of any powers, yeeez!
I don’t see Sesshoumaru taking advantage of that new info. Without the beads Kagome will not be able to subdue and dominate him, but that what he wants. The question is whether the Beast is able to hear what is happening when Sesshoumaru is in controll. Kagome really has to do that youkai-beast-relationship study. LOL.
That whole “you can draw powers from your ancestors ’cause a part of your sould was cast out from you” was just akward. They should probably disappear to that mountain they came from. Freaks. XD
I’m EXCITED for the rest of the story!!!! Looking forward to the next update! You are amazing, Char! <3
Hey, VS!! Thanks so much for sharing your thoughts on the past chapters up through the present! So much enjoyed hearing your reactions and theories!!
So glad you enjoyed the reveal of ‘the Beast’ and have enjoyed how Sess and Kagome’s twisted relationship has been progressing thus far! Yeah, I gotta say, I also tend not to like it when Kagome just gives in…kinda kills the tension, at least for me! XD
I’m so, so excited that you’re stoked to see how the story unfolds from here! Thanks again for taking the time to leave such an awesome review for the series!! Hope you enjoy the chapters to come 😀
<3 <3