Disclaimer: I do not own Inuyasha or any of its characters.
Tears silently ran down my cheeks as I watched the man I love embrace another woman. I wasn't really surprised. He never actually said he loved me, the words he was now whispering to the dead priestess, Kikyo. Without revealing my presence, I turned away from the hurtful sight and blindly ran further into the forest.
I wanted to yell at him and let him know that he hurt me but I wasn't the woman of his dreams. I am only a reincarnation of his first love. I am only his best friend and that would never change. It makes me angry that he wanted me to stay in the feudal era with him and become his mate. I gave up everything for him and even sealed the well. So, I had no chance of going home to my real time. I was stuck here.
Did he really think he could have us both?
Sango was right. She told me time and time again not to fall in love with a demon. They would only break your heart or eventually get tired of you and kill you. Why don't I listen to the advice of others? Why do I always follow my foolish heart? It has brought me nothing but pain and suffering.
"Hello, Kagome," whispered a voice close to my ear.
Suddenly wishing I remembered to bring my bow and arrows, I turned my body around and stared into a pair of red eyes. I gulped with fear and immediately regretted running off on my own. Didn't I watch enough scary movies to know that? "What do you want, Naraku?" I asked, with fear still evident on my voice.
"Where is your precious Inuyasha? I don't smell his scent anywhere around you. Did you finally come to your senses and leave the bastard?"
I shook my head and my tears returned. I hated letting Naraku see my weakness. "Hush," he spoke softly, pulling me into his embrace. He then cupped my chin and forced me to look within the depths of his eyes. "Join me, Kagome. I would even let you have revenge on the half-breed and the dead priestess."
"No," I spoke, trying to remove myself from his arms. He must have used his miasma on me because I couldn't move my body at all. "I may be hurting inside but I could never do such a thing. Release me and find someone else to fight your battles for you."
Naraku began to stroke my cheek and I shuddered at his touch. "You leave me no choice but to kill you. It's such a pity that I have to destroy such beauty," he spoke, and leaned down to brush his lips against my own.
As soon as he released my lips, I felt a horrendous pain through my abdomen. Naraku released his tentacles and threw me to the ground. "You should have accepted my offer, Kagome. Now, you will die here without anyone to come to your aide. It was nice knowing you." And with those words he vanished in a blink of an eye.
Oh, this was just great. Here am I lying on the ground, dying with a hole in my stomach, while Inuyasha plays with his corpse. Could anything else go wrong today? "Priestess, what are you doing here in this Sesshoumaru's lands?" I heard the icy tone and knew that I spoke too soon.
"Kill me and get it over with. I am sick and tired of being everyone's amusement," I said, trying to hide my wound from Sesshoumaru. Of course, I forgot he was a demon and could sense such things.
Sesshoumaru kneeled next to me and removed my hand. "Who did this to you, Priestess?" he asked me, staring at me with his amber eyes.
"Naraku," I whispered back, becoming a little faint with the blood loss.
Sesshoumaru was quiet for quite a while and continued to stare at me. "There is only one way that this Sesshoumaru can save you. And he will do it with or without your consent."
"Don't you want to kill me? You hate all humans except for Rin. So, why would you even help me?"
Sesshoumaru lifted me into a sitting position and brushed my hair to the side revealing my neck. I watched with fascination as his fangs grew longer and yelled out in pain as his fangs bit into my neck and started to drink my blood. Once he was finished, he pulled away from my neck and used one of his claws to slice open his wrist.
"Drink," he commanded, placing his blooded wrist near my mouth. He sensed my hesitation and forced my lips to his wrist.
I opened my mouth to breathe and his blood flowed through my mouth like honey. Surprisingly, his blood tasted sweet and I had to drink more. I used my hands to grip his wrists and continued to drink his blood. "Enough," he told me, pulling his wrist away from me and watched as his wound healed instantly.
"What just happened?" I asked him, knowing he had the answers that I sought.
Sesshoumaru pulled me to my feet and I was surprised to see that my wound from Naraku had completely healed.
"You are now this Sesshoumaru's mate." he replied coolly.
My mouth fell open as I stared at him. "I'm your what?"
"Do not make this Sesshoumaru repeat himself."
I still stared at him in disbelief. "Why did you save me? I don't understand this at all."
Sesshoumaru lifted one of his eyebrows at me questionly. "You were a half demon but somehow your demon blood made you appear to be human. That is why you drank my blood without getting sick." He moved back away from me. "There is also another thing that this Sesshoumaru needs you for. Your powers alone will destroy the evil being known as Naraku."
"Oh," I whispered with disappointment. I thought maybe there was something else he saved me for. I thought maybe he would declare his love for me. What was I thinking? He is only using me for his own benefits. "Wait a minute! What do you mean I was a half demon? That's impossible!"
Sesshoumaru glared at me. "Obviously someone in your family was a full demon. Now come," Sesshoumaru commanded, and I was forced to obey him. It was like my feet had a mind of their own.
He formed his red cloud underneath him and offered his hand to me, lifting me up beside him. I held onto one of his hands as we took off towards the sky. I caught him smirking at my fear of heights and I wanted to punch him. "Hold still. We are almost there," he spoke, trying to calm me and it was so not like him.
Twenty minutes later, we came upon the castle and Sesshoumaru lowered us before the castle gates. I stood there silently. If I entered, I would lose my freedom. I could still make a run for it but more an likely I would be caught and punished by Sesshoumaru. He must have sensed my hesitation for he grabbed my wrist and pulled me through the castle's gate. He then signaled the guards to close it.
"Where's Rin? Usually, she comes running up towards me."
He still held onto my wrist and dragged me behind him. "You will see her later at dinner. There are some things we need to discuss." He stopped at an open door and shoved me inside.
I looked around and noticed a futon in the middle of the floor. My face grew red and I eased myself closer into the shadows. I didn't want him to sense what I was thinking. "So, what did you want to talk to me about? I hope it won't take too long. It's getting late and I need some rest."
Sesshoumaru started to ease himself out of his kimono and instantly I knew what he wanted to do. "Disrobe," he commanded, shedding the outer part of his kimono. "We need to finish the mating ritual. If we don't, you may end up dying and this Sesshoumaru will have to find another."
"Was that supposed to be a joke?" I asked, panicking and running for the door. Once again forgetting that he was a faster then myself. He appeared quickly before me and used his claws to shred my clothes. Before I could say anything else or try to get away from him, he placed his lips upon mine and drew me to the futon. Releasing my lips, he kissed my mating mark and I shivered with delight.
"This is going to hurt," he whispered into my ear. "But it has to be done for the mating to be complete."
I shook my head in disbelief. I didn't know how I got myself into this mess in the first place. The gods must really hate me.
I wasn't focusing on Sesshoumaru like I should have and cried out in pain when he entered me. He didn't move and waited for my pain to pass. I felt really strange and started to move against his hips, moaning in pleasure. He understood what I wanted and started moving faster within me. Once the mating ritual was finished, we just laid on the futon trying to catch our breath.
"Thank you for giving me your virginity," he whispered, kissing my mating mark. "It pleases me to know that you have never known another man's touch."
It felt wonderful to lie in Sesshoumaru's arms and it then dawned on me that he wanted to speak with me. "You wanted to speak earlier and now would be the perfect time to do so."
Sesshoumaru sat up and leaned on his elbow looking at me. "Being this Sesshoumaru's mate, you must have proper manners when greeting important guests. This Sesshoumaru will not have you running your mouth like you did to him earlier."
"I understand, my lord. I do not want to embarrass you with my uncivilized ways," I replied, pissed off. He chose to ignore my anger and continued on.
"Secondly, you will obey this Sesshoumaru's every command. If you chose not to, he will have no problem teaching you your proper place. Do you understand?"
I got pissed off even more when I heard this one. "Of course, my lord," I replied quickly. I wanted to tell him what I really thought. I wanted to tell him to stick it up his ass.
"It is this Sesshoumaru's right to have mistresses within the castle to serve his needs. You will not have any other man but this Sesshoumaru. He needs to know that the pups we produce are his. Even if we do have pups, you will still stay faithful to him. No other shall claim you."
At this point my anger got the best of me. "That is so unfair! I refuse to share my mate with whores! You belong to me! I won't allow it!"
He growled at me and leaped from the bed, grabbing me and pinning my arms behind me. "Be grateful that this Sesshoumaru lets you get off with a warning. Any other outbursts like that and he will have to punish you."
"Sadist," I said, looking right at him. I wasn't going to back down.
"This Sesshoumaru only has one mistress named Asuka. You will treat her with respect that she deserves. You will not threaten or beat her in any way. Understood?"
I smiled. I will give her what she deserves alright. He never said I couldn't verbally assault her. "As you wish, Lord Sesshoumaru," I spoke, stepping away from him after he released my arms. "If that is all you have to say, I wish for you to show me to my room. I wish to retire for the evening."
"You will be sharing this room with me, mate. I will give you no other," he replied, quickly replacing on his clothes. "You will join this Sesshoumaru and Rin for dinner. Do not be late."
"Yes, my lord," I spoke, wishing he would leave already.
Satisfied that I wouldn't run away, he left me alone to do as I pleased. I began to punch the wall to release some of my anger. My life wasn't my own anymore. I now belonged to Sesshoumaru. I was his property.
"Kagome, are you in here," I heard a little girl's voice call out to me.
"Yes, Rin. I'm here." I answered her, walking towards the center of the room.
"Jaken told Rin that Lord Sesshoumaru took a mate and it was you. Are you Rin's new mommy?"
Hearing Rin speak made me worry about my little Shippo. I wondered how he was doing without me and knew that Sango would care for him in my place. "Yes, Rin. Look at the time! I better hurry up so we won't be late for dinner. Would you like to help me?"
Rin nodded excitedly and started to twirl around in circles. I laughed and stop her so she wouldn't hurt herself. "Go into the closet and pick out a kimono for me. Meanwhile, I will be taking my bath. I don't want to be stinky, now do I?" Rin laughed and went to perform her task.
I grabbed a robe from the closet on my way out. Reaching the bathing chambers on the other side of the room, I eased myself slowly into the warm water. I sighed out with pleasure and washed myself and hair with the jasmine soap that I found. Once I was done, I hurried out of the water and threw on my robe. I only had fifteen minutes left. Rin smiled at me as she held out a light blue kimono with white sakura blossoms decorating it.
"What should I do with my hair? Should I put it up or leave it down?"
Rin thought for a moment and clapped her hands in glee. "Wear it down with a sakura blossom placed within the strands. Lord Sesshoumaru will be pleased." I brushed out my hair until it shined and Rin placed the sakura blossom within my strands. Once finished, we left the room and walked hand in hand to the dining area.
Upon our arrival, Sesshoumaru motioned for me to sit on his right side while Rin took the place next to me. I figured that the seat that I am currently sitting in was his mate's place. Servants appeared with dinner and we ate in silence. No one wanted to ruin the moment and I was still upset for the way Sesshoumaru treated me.
I felt someone else enter the room and I noticed that Rin's body stiffened. The woman who entered was absolutely beautiful with her white hair and violet eyes. She took her place on the left side of Sesshoumaru. I figured out that this woman was Sesshoumaru's mistress. The other servants wouldn't dare sit at their master's table.
"Are you going to introduce me to your mate, my lord?" she asked him, batting her eyelashes.
"Asuka, this is the Lady of the Western Lands," he answered, continuing to eat the food in front of him.
"It's a pleasure to meet you, my lady. It so nice to have another high ranking female in the house," she spoke, glaring at Rin.
I squeezed Rin's hand with my own giving her comfort. I didn't like this woman at all and I wanted her removed at once. "I hope we can get acquainted well with one another." I told her, lying through my teeth. Sesshoumaru must have sensed my lie because he gave me a warning look.
"I would love too," she answered, giving a coy smile. She inclined her head towards Sesshoumaru. "With my lord's permission, of course." He gave a brief nod in approval.
Rin hid a yawn into her napkin. "I believe that Rin and I wish to retire. It has been a long and tiring day for both of us." Sesshoumaru once again gave a brief nod of his head. We both stood up and bowed before him, showing proper respect. I once again took her hand in mine and we left the dining area.
Reaching Rin's room, I quietly closed the door and readied her for bed. "Mommy, I don't like Asuka. She is mean to Rin."
"Does Lord Sesshoumaru know of this? You should tell him." I told her.
Rin frowned. "Lord Sesshoumaru would not believe me. In his eyes she can do no wrong. I am not that important to him."
"Don't think like that, Rin. Of course he cares for you. I know for a fact that he loves you like a daughter and he probably spoils you like one too."
She laughed. "You're right. Rin is being silly."
I tucked her into the covers and kissed her forehead. "Don't worry. I won't let her near you. I promise."
"Will you stay? Rin doesn't like to fall asleep by herself."
I got in next to her and hugged her close to me. "Of course," I replied, yawning along with her. We both giggled. After making sure she was asleep, it was only then that I gave in and joined her in slumber.
To be continued...