Kagome’s eyelids felt like sheets of lead as she cracked them slowly open, her throat as parched as the Sahara. Shifting a bit, she felt the pillow behind her move–and realized, as Sesshoumaru’s stoic face swam into view, that it wasn’t a pillow at all. A blush tinged her cheeks as she eased herself up stiffly on her elbows, his tail molding against her shoulders to support her.

“…Thanks,” she rasped shyly as he pressed a cup of water into her hands. After a few blessed sips, she attempted to speak again. “How long was I out?”

“Two days,” the daiyoukai answered curtly.

Kagome spluttered. “Two days?!”

Sesshoumaru winced slightly at her shrillness, the miko grimacing in apology. Though his youkai clothes were mended once more, he still looked decidedly rough–his fair features as besmirched and haggard as they’d been before she’d lost consciousness. Studying him as discreetly as she could over the rim of her cup, Kagome flushed anew.

Has he stayed by my side this whole time…? 

All the giddy heat bled from her face at the chill of his gaze. “You were on the brink of death. What were you thinking, exhausting yourself to such an extent?”

Now it was Kagome’s turn to wince. “…Sorry, I–I just didn’t know what else to do. Things were desperate. Ayame’s grandpa and some other guy were talking about making blood sacrifices to reinforce the gates–I couldn’t stand by and let that happen.”

Snatching back her empty cup, Sesshoumaru refilled it with a glare. “So, you would sacrifice yourself instead? On behalf of these…mongrels.”

“They aren’t mongrels,” Kagome returned hotly, gulping down half the cup in one go. “They’re my friends.”

Sesshoumaru scoffed. Posted nearby, two so-called “mongrels” bristled as well, the daiyoukai quelling them with a look.

“Bring some food for the girl,” he ordered coolly.

At once, the frightened wolves scampered off through the arched doorway, the thick hide curtain slapping shut behind them. Finishing her drink sullenly, Kagome took a moment to look around. The chamber she and Sesshoumaru were in appeared to be an offshoot of the main cavern–a sparkling grotto peppered with candles and outfitted with a bed of luxurious, exotic pelts. Toward the back of the room, she could even see steam rising from a small, private onsen, its dark glassy surface reflecting the light from a bronze lantern perched on its ledge.

Kagome’s vexation toward Sesshoumaru simmered into something else entirely, her heart pounding as she darted a nervous glance at him. It’s like the Feudal Era equivalent of a honeymoon suite in here…

Eyes darkening, Sesshoumaru returned her look with predatory sharpness. As the wolves reentered, a low growl sent them fleeing once more, the huge platter they’d been carrying between them clanging to the granite floor. The savory scent of roasted meat had Kagome’s mouth watering at first whiff. Forgetting all about her other appetites, she practically pounced on the meal–which appeared to be a small pterodactyl, judging by the sheer size of its wings.

“Hmm,” she said, prodding at the roast fowl uncertainly. Without any sort of utensils, this was going to be a challenge…

Sighing in impatience, Sesshoumaru reached out, ripping off a caveman-sized drumstick and handing it to her. As Kagome feasted like a barbarian, amber eyes preyed on her, jitters of desire fluttering low in her stomach as her pace began to slow. Lowering the gnawed hunk of meat, she downed her last bite in a panicky swallow, seizing around for something to say.

“Your tail…it’s gotten a lot bigger, hasn’t it?”

Sesshoumaru leaned back from her, his expression contemplative as he drew Tessaiga. The rusted blade gleamed in the candlelight. “My power has surpassed my father’s. His title is now my own.”

Kagome crooked a smile. “So…does that mean I have to start calling you ‘Inu no Taishou’?”

The daiyoukai’s look was dry. “It would–if ever you were to address me by title in the first place.”

Her smile broadened as he returned Tessaiga to its sheath. He didn’t seem angry with her anymore, at least. Even though there was a frown on his face, she knew, somehow, that it wasn’t directed at her.

“Kagura escaped with the infant,” he said after a while, a curious edge to his tone. “I chose not to pursue her.”

“Oh.” Kagome’s shoulders sank. Biting her lip, she hazarded a glance at him. “…Why not?”

Clawed fingers pulled the forgotten drumstick from her hand. Dropping it back on the platter, he hooked a knuckle beneath her chin, the pad of his thumb swiping a bit of grease from the corner of her mouth. “I chose to protect you, instead.”

Kagome reddened. “Oh,” she said lamely, again.

His tail curved around her hips as he bent toward her. “Does that make me foolish?” he asked her lowly. “I feel like a fool.”

“You’re not a fool,” Kagome whispered, touching a shiny hand to his dirty cheek, her fingertips smudging their prints into his skin.

She had never looked less sexy in her life–even without a mirror around, Kagome knew this for a fact. But as she gazed into his eyes, the raw desire reflected there left her breathless long before he crushed his lips to hers, the hungry prick of his fangs sending jolts of heat lancing straight to her groin.

Had he spent the past two days awaiting this moment? The thought sent a shiver of pure arousal coursing through her. She could only imagine how pent-up he must be. There was no way he wasn’t going to unload all that on her–or in her, her mind corrected perversely.

Thank Kami for birth control, Kagome thought–her eyes flaring wide with horror an instant later.

“Oh gods!” she gasped, shoving him back with both hands. “Two days–I’ve skipped TWO DAYS! Not okay–not okay!”

In the face of this total freak-out, even Sesshoumaru was momentarily stunned. Lurching to her feet, she sprinted barefoot from the room, her horse companion looking up from his snack of hay as she barreled into the main cavern.

“Entei-san!” she panted, swinging up onto his back like there was another force of a thousand demons upon them. “We have to find my backpack–ASAP!”

---

Inuyasha © Rumiko Takahashi

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