As dawn broke, Sesshoumaru alighted once more on the brimstone surface of Toutousai’s volcanic refuge. So, too, did his returning vassal. Catching sight of his lord as he landed, Jakken slipped quickly down from Ah-Un’s far side, concealing himself behind the dragon’s massive foreleg as he pretended to busy himself with tending to the beast.

Sesshoumaru swept back his drenched hair as he broke the surface of the stream. The freezing current flowed around his hips, dampening the fire in his blood. As his muscles tensed at the steadying chill, he combed his claws through his long gleaming locks, moonlight shivering in the droplets that trailed along his skin. His

“…And one cannot speak highly enough of Kimi-sama’s shrewd wit and keen mind for strategy!” Sesshoumaru’s claws bit into Ah-Un’s reins. Perhaps bringing Jakken along with him had been a mistake. Leaving the company of humans for a few days seemed to have invigorated the despondent imp. As tedious as his prolonged suffering silence had been

Later, gathered together with all her friends and allies in Kaede’s hut, Kagome filled everyone in on the events of her journey over dinner. Even Sesshoumaru was in attendance, technically. Leaning against the open doorway, he was about as far from the rest of the group as he could possibly be, his face turned away

Clothed once more, Kagome and Sesshoumaru left the relative privacy of her room and entered the main chamber of the den. All across the vast space, drunken wolves lay scattered—some snoozing from stone ledges, others sprawled on top of pelts or one another. Even shy young Akito had passed out spectacularly. Half his dangling leg

Warm. Rough. Wet. Kagome twitched awake at the slick, scraping sensation–her sleep-fogged eyes blinking slowly to clear. She lay on her side on the soft bed of stacked pelts, Sesshoumaru’s fluffy tail coiled about her like a boa. It was a moment before she realized she was totally nude beneath it–a few moments more before

Sesshoumaru skimmed his claws over the naked swell of her hip. Faintly, she stirred at the caress, but remained sleeping still. Every inch of her skin bore his mark. Every place within her he had claimed with his flesh and his presence. She was his, and he felt the surety of his ownership of her