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Shadowed Nights	By : Huronoryu Category: InuYasha > Yaoi - Male/Male > InuYasha/Sessh?maru > InuYasha/Sessh?maru Views: 19768 -:- Recommendations : 1 -:- Currently Reading : 0
Disclaimer: I do not own InuYasha, nor make money from this story.

Chapter List
- 5
- 6
- 7
Shadowed Nights

By The Black Dragon Queen
Co/Authored by Kallipso

Pairings, Summary, Disc---- Well you all
know them by now� no use beating a dead Hanyou� Inuyasha: �HEY!� er� horse.

A note: I�m so SORRY! I know I said I was going to update more
often, but then my court dates kept changing (Speaking of, my Thursday Court
appearance was changed AGAIN) and if that wasn�t enough, our dogs got
FLEAS! So as a result we have been bug bombing the whole house for a MONTH! And
then! Just when every last flea was smoothed by the silent silver fog of
DOOM-the gods decided to laugh at me and make it rain. So we had a flood�and
not just ANY flood! This was the flood of Noah�s capacity! I mean really!
The waters flowed over the banks and our horse trailer rose like a rusting
silver ghost from its peaceful resting spot under the pine tree, and proceeded
to crash through our fence (much to our horses delight)! The barn was
underwater and I�m not even going to mention the garage! Kallipso�s place faired no better as three sump pumps
wrecked havoc on her sleeping habits by keeping her up at night while they
carried the small lake away from her humble abode.

Please Note that the Chapter �Kuufuku- The amazing flying
Rat� was suppose to be part of this segment but was posted alone because I had
finished it and with no idea how long it would take me to hack out the rest,
feared the mass horde of Kuufuku fans ready to hunt me for not updating. SO
this is a little shorter than most� of course the mass of Author�s notes I
think just about made up for the length. Whoops. (Sorry Sexy4Kitten, I thought
I made it clear!)

BD: *Stares at multitude of cookies * did anyone think to
bring the milk?
Kallipso: Can I have pie instead?
BD: *perks* did someone say pie? Pie?
Where is it? Where�s the Pie? PIE!
Kuufuku: Screw pie, I want chocolate damn it.
*Both authors stare*
Kuufuku: *Innocently* what?

Fonts: �Speaking�� Thinking�� Mind Speak!�

NOW (finally) ON TO THE STORY!

Part Five-- Learning to Get
Along: Chapters 26-30
Chapter Twenty-Six: The
Wonderful World of Goo

�Must kill rat! Must kill rat! Must kill rat! Must kill...�

There wasn�t a single youkai in
all four kingdoms that could not say that Sesshoumaru was anything but
determined. Whenever the Inu decided on a course of action, come hell or high
water he would see it through. If an annoying lesser demon annoyed him, he
would have it executed. If a fellow lord of the four kingdoms�s
pissed him off, he wouldn�t so much as kill him as make his life a living hell.

Sesshoumaru was a headstrong demon that would follow
through on his every threat�

Unless of course there was one
hanyou turned human standing in his way. The youkai�s mantra of mental thought
didn�t as much as stop as much as change direction.

�Protect mate! Kill rat!�
So when the moon fully rose and the strange powers of his youki were released
the Inu Taishou couldn�t help a toothy grin. The
reaction to his enlarged presence was immediate.

�Sesshoumaru! Stop drooling! You�ll ruin the rushes!�

The great dog froze in utter shock
at both the ferociousness and the complete absurdness of the shout.

Hell, even the rat stopped gnawing
on the kitsune�s collar and gave Inuyasha an odd look
at the explosion.

Too bad for Sesshoumaru, however,
that the human wasn�t done with his tirade. �Watch your tail! I don�t want any
of the furniture broken- SESSHOUMARU YOUR TAIL!

Sesshoumaru froze as a familiar
pungent odor filled his nostrils. One of smoke and burning hair� �Oh
FUCK!�

Kitsune and rat went flying as
Inuyasha rushed forward determined to put out the youkai�s flaming tail.
Grabbing the tea kettle that hand been simmering over the flames, Inuyasha used
all of his limited human strength to fling the hot water.

Sesshoumaru had never before had
tears in his eyes as a full Youkai Inu, but the scalding water had practically
thrown him from the fire into the pot! His fur had at least kept the flame from
reaching his most tender flesh while the water just drenched it.

Letting out a painful yelp,
Sesshoumaru instinctively moved away from the source of the �ahem� trauma, much
to Inuyasha�s irritation, and immediately started to lick his wounded pride as
well as his tail.

�Oh for crying out loud,� Inuyasha
rolled his eyes at the large animal�s antics. �It�s just water!�

Sesshoumaru whimpered in response.

Rin started crying in dismay as
she rushed forward towards the youkai with only the thoughts of offering
comfort to her beloved lord.

Inuyasha was slower as a full
human; however he was quick when it counted. He darted forward and grabbed the
girl, quickly pulling her away. It was just in time too as sharp fangs and
deadly drool pierced the area where the girl had been standing.

�SESSHOUMARU! BEHAVE!� Inuyasha shouted angrily as he eyed the bubbling
puddle of melting rock and sizzling rushes.

Sesshoumaru actually managed to
pull an apologetic look and brought his head down letting out a mournful woof.

Inuyasha sighed in relief that Sesshoumaru had been able
to regain his senses as he turned to the distraught little girl and motioned
for Shippo to come over to join the conversation.

�Rin, I�m sure that Sesshoumaru or
Jakken� wait, scratch that, just Sesshoumaru has told you before that you are never, never, never to approach a wounded youkai. No
matter if they are the closest person to you.�

�Yeah,� Shippo piped up. �Survival
Instincts take over and if you�re not careful, you become lunch.�

Inuyasha stared at the little
Kitsune before brought down his fist over the foxes head. Shippo yelped in
surprise and darted in little running circles as he began rubbing at the now
forming bruise. While the kit�s antics were normal, Inuyasha�s were not at the
human just froze up after hitting the small kit.

Sesshoumaru and Rin looked
curiously at the boy before Inuyasha seemed to snap out of whatever daze he had
been in, cleared his throat and turned back to the little girl. �Do you
understand?� he asked gently. �Sesshoumaru didn�t mean it.�

And to affirm Inuyasha�s
announcement Sesshoumaru leaned forward and gave another gentle woof.

�But�But� Sesshoumaru-Sama is in
pain.� Rin whimpered. �Rin just wanted to help.�

�And I�m sure that you did, and
I�m sure that Sesshoumaru is grateful that you are concerned about him,�
Inuyasha said soothingly completely ignoring the slight huff from behind him.
�But you have to remember Rin,� he continued, �Youkai heal a whole lot faster
because they have their youki to help fix everything quickly.� Inuyasha cringed
again but forced a smile. �Do you understand now?�

Rin hiccupped but nodded.

�Okay then,� Inuyasha stood up.
�Then why don�t you two go fetch your futons and you two sleep
in the back caverns tonight?�

�What? Why?� Shippo demanded
irritably. �Why can�t we sleep out here in the main cave like always? Why do we
have to sleep in the back?�

Inuyasha narrowed his eyes at the
boy. �I�m human dork. If anything gets past Sesshoumaru, I won�t be able to
stop them so I want you two safe, alright?�

Shippo puzzled over that logic but
shrugged as Rin had already gathered her pillow and covers and started to head
towards the �Ningen Clubhouse� as Inuyasha had named it after the little girl
had gone in to explore a while back. Shippo had been very upset that there way
a place that he couldn�t go but some dumb girl could.

Inuyasha watched as the two children
and rat disappeared into the darkness and stood silent for a moment or two
until he was sure that the children had traveled far enough into the back
tunnels that they wouldn�t hear him. Then flood gates opened.
�
�FUCKING HELL! OW! OW! OW! OW! OH DAMN IT HURTS! WATER! WATER! WATER!�

Inuyasha dashed forward so quickly
that Sesshoumaru wondered briefly if he had regained his youki in the two point
six seconds he blinked.

The dark haired human had raced
forward and shoved his arms all the way to the elbow into the barrel of
reserved water they kept for cooking and such. His disturbingly flat teethe
were gritted and bared as he stood completely still for a moment before his
body went completely limp and Inuyasha collapsed to the floor.

Sesshoumaru wasn�t worried about
his younger brother. He didn�t care for the brat at all. Not a bit. Youkai
never �worry� about anyone but themselves.

They just become curious.

�WHAT THE FUCK IS GOING ON?�
Sesshoumaru dashed forward and began to obsessively nose at the limp human. �Inuyasha! You better not be dead!�
Sesshoumaru continued his �inquisitive� demands. �Or I�ll be having Kitsune for
breakfast!�

�I�m not dead�� Inuyasha moaned as
he pushed against the large wet nose from his side. �And don�t underestimate Shippo�
he�s a right pain in the ass.� The human sat up. �Besides, I would think that
Kuufuku would be your top priority if I kick the bucket.�

�Midnight snack.�

Inuyasha smirked as he allowed
Sesshoumaru�s prodding demnads and rolled onto his
back, both hands now shoved between his knees. �Oh god,� he groaned. �Tell me
you have the all powerful Goo.�

�Why do you need the blasted Goo?�
Sesshoumaru demanded. �What did you do now? What
the hell is wrong? And why do you insist on using my Goo? I
only have a little bit left you know.�

�Ungrateful mongrel,� Inuyasha
growled as he rolled to his feet and belly crawled towards Sesshoumaru�s pack.
He shook his head at the demon�s attitude as he rolled his eyes. �Damn,
it�s going to be a long winter,� he thought irritably.

�Where do you think you are going?�
Sesshoumaru demanded as he tried to pick his way across the now completely
furnished cave with out setting his tail or any other needed appendages alight.

�Where do you think? I�m getting
The Goo.�

�Yes, I see that,�
Sesshoumaru drawled. �WHY are you getting The
Goo?�

Inuyasha gave Sesshoumaru a
piercing glare. �That kettle was over the fire you know.�

Sesshoumaru paused as he thought
about it. Inuyasha had grabbed the closest thing to put out his tail. The
closest thing had been the simmering kettle of water. Inuyasha had not stopped
to pick up a potholder.

Sesshoumaru growled as he finally
reached his human companion and peered at the damage with his piercing red
eyes.

�Stupid
human.�

�I heard that!�

�What were you thinking you stupid
little creature? Why did you have to grab the kettle?�

Inuyasha scowled as he continued
searching through Sesshoumaru�s possessions for the all-powerful Goo. �There wasn�t really much time to stop and smell the
roses let a lone think, ya know?�

Sesshoumaru scowled as he nudged
the red clad figure. �That�s your problem,� he scolded, �you don�t think.�

Inuyasha turned his back pointedly
towards the youkai and ignored him for all of two seconds. �Should have let you
burn to a crisp.�

�I heard that!�
Sesshoumaru snapped.

�Well be a little grateful you
jerk!� Inuyasha whirled back around. �You could at least say �thanks� you self
centered-�

�Yes, yes,� Sesshoumaru
interrupted. �I do understand that you did� save me�� Sesshoumaru
immediately began smacking his lips as if there was a foul taste in his mouth.
�And
I do owe you a� oh Kami�� Inuyasha waited
patiently. He knew that this was hard for the older youkai but damn it he
wanted to hear it from the Inu�s own mind.

�� thanks. There
I said it.�

��Technically, you thought it,� Inuyasha
smirked.

�What? You
snotty little-�

�Just kidding.�

Sesshoumaru frowned as much as a
Demon Dog could frown and watched as Inuyasha methodically tore through all his
non-chewed possessions. �Must you toss my things around in such a
careless manor?� he asked as he watched yet another of his prized combs
thrown gracefully across the cave. �It�s not like the rat left me with
much.�

�You know,� Inuyasha huffed
irritably, �you could help me find it a lot faster if you just tell me where
the stupid thing is!�

Sesshoumaru had the decency to
duck his head in a somewhat contrite manor. �I forgot where I put it,�
he admitted.

Inuyasha started in disbelief.
�How could you not remember where you put a whole pot?� he asked in amazement.

Sesshoumaru frowned. �I
never have to remember where I put things,� the Inu snuffed haughtily, �that�s
what servants are for.�

Inuyasha paused as the sudden
image of Sesshoumaru sprawled out in a winged back chair decked out in a
pink-feathered robe and red painted toenails as Jakken
brought him his fuzzy bunny slippers and a martini popped into his head.

Sesshoumaru cast a curious look at
the sudden burst of laughter but Inuyasha waved him off. �I have got
to stop looking at those damn fashion magazines that Kagome leaves everywhere.�

He moved one of Sesshoumaru�s now
Kuufuku�s robes out of the way and shouted in triumph as he spotted the earthen
jar of wonderful, glorious Goo. Sesshoumaru watched
as a look of pure enrapture stole over Inuyasha�s features and wished wistfully
that it was because of him that such an expression on his beloved�s face and
not some mixture of sticky leaves and Kami knew what else.

�Are you just going to sit
there fondling the thing or are you actually going to put any on it on?�
he asked after a long stretch of silence.

Inuyasha huffed as he pulled out
the stopper and rubbed the precious Goo into his
acing hands.

Sesshoumaru began an intense
inspecting his scorched tail but in truth it was just a ruse for watching
Inuyasha with out it being known he was watching Inuyasha who was inspecting
the red lines across his palms.

�I do wish you wouldn�t act
so stupidly,� he sent to the human quietly.

Inuyasha jumped after having his
blissful peace of watching the first winter snow beginning interrupted and
whirled around to face the Youkai. He had had enough! Enough of all the glaring
and the snarling and insults when he had done nothing at all to deserve them!

�God DAMN it! What the hell is
your problem? You leave for days on end and why you finally do come
back you have to criticize and dictate every little thing that I do! Well fuck
you!�

Sesshoumaru ducked as an
unidentifiable knick-knack flew towards him and he cringed as he heard it
shatter against the wall. �This is MY cave!� Inuyasha shouted. �I live here!
I�m the one who allowed you to live here!�

�Now see here-�

�Oh no!� Inuyasha interrupted Sesshoumaru�s protests. �I could have
made a huge fuss when you declared you were going to live here, hell, before
Shippo came I could have just booked it but I have been nothing but courteous
and have listened to all you sneers and insults and I�m not talking about the
ones about my heritage but of the way I live my life!�

Sesshoumaru stared in shock at the
gasping human before him in shock. He hadn�t realized just how upset those
comments he made in passing almost with out though had hurt the younger man. He
wasn�t about to interrupt however as Inuyasha whirled away from him and continued
his tirade as he made a wide sweeping gesture towards the accommodations. �I�m
so sorry if my standard of living is below par to your royal
senses, but I�ll have you know that this cave has been the most elegant and the
very first stable place I�ve ever lived.�

He turned and sharp bronze eyes
glared at him and Sesshoumaru felt any words he would have said die in his
throat as he stormed towards him. �I am not going to stand here and listen to
any of this anymore. I am sick of how you criticize the way I live. When all
I�ve ever lived in were trees, while sleeping where I could when every demon
and crazy human wants me dead!�

Inuyasha�s eyes turned to pure ice
as he stared directly into the crimson eyes. �And it�s you who wants me
dead most of all!� he shouted at the top of his lungs. �I�ve done what was
needed to survive and if you think that living in a cave is such a sacrifice
you can very well GET OUT!�

The two stared at each other;
Inuyasha�s chest heaving and Sesshoumaru had actually managed to squeeze his
massive girth into the smallest corner of the cave in an attempt to retreat
from the angry ningen.

�Um��

The two turned towards the
antechamber�s entrance and at the two wide eyed children standing there.

�Dose this mean I can have the
bigger futon?� Shippo asked while Rin simply held Kuufuku like some odd stuffed
animal with large tears running down her cheeks.

Inuyasha cursed under his breath
and Sesshoumaru felt himself sag in relief at the interruption.

Something told him the conversation
was far from over and the Inu wondered how in the world he was suppose make the
hanyou fall in love with him when it seemed that he was the last person in
Inuyasha�s life who deserved it.

Chapter Twenty-Seven: Small Spaces

��Is Sesshoumaru-Sama going away again?� Rin
asked in a high, trembling voice.

Inuyasha let out another curse as
he made his way to the girl. �No sweetheart, no one is going anywhere.�

�But you told him to get out!�
Shippo exclaimed. �So why hasn�t he left yet?�

�Shippo!� Inuyasha glared as he carefully picked up the still crying
girl, careful not to use his hands too much or get any of the Goo on her clothes.

�Rin doesn�t want to leave
Inuyasha-Sama!� Rin continued wailing as she buried her face in Inuyasha�s
neck. �Rin-chan doesn�t want Sesshoumaru-Sama to leave and never come back.�

Inuyasha bounced the girl slightly
in an attempt to calm her down. �It�s all right,� he repeated over and over
again. �No one is going to be leaving the cave; we�re not going to leave you
behind.�

Sesshoumaru cringed as he heard
the answering hurt in his brother�s voice as he tried to silence the girls fears and knew that for all those years when Inuyasha
was a pup, that all anyone ever did was leave him.

�Kami, how did I fuck up so
badly?� Sesshoumaru wondered sadly as he though about all the hardships
Inuyasha had to have faced growing up and knowing that with one word on his
part, Sesshoumaru could have changed Inuyasha�s life forever. His attitude
towards the halfling hadn�t really been any crueler than any other demon when
he confronted and humiliated Inuyasha, so why did he feel like such a royal
screw up?

There was an angry squeak at his
feet and Sesshoumaru looked down to find an angry rat running and attacking his
massive paws, biting and clawing with a look of pure murder in his eyes.

Sesshoumaru felt a surge of
triumphant glee sizzle through him at the though of bringing up his giant paw
and squishing the rodent into a gray paste before suppressing the happy
thought. Inuyasha was pissed off enough as it was and it was amusing to watch
the animal bounce off his rather large toes.

Inuyasha never noticed his self
appointed guardian�s attempt to regain his honor as he glared at Shippo�s
newest declaration that if Sesshoumaru wasn�t going to leave then the kit would
make him go.

Sesshoumaru apparently heard
however as the walls of the cave reverberated with the force of his growl.

Squeaking in terror, the small kit
dove towards Inuyasha�s futon and burrowed himself under the worn comforter.

�Sesshoumaru,� Inuyasha started in
exasperation only to start when the rumbling instantly ceased with out Inuyasha
having to say more.

He glanced at the creature but
Sesshoumaru�s eyes gave not impression as to what the youkai was thinking.

Thanking his lucky stars instead
of analyzing what his older sibling was thinking with this latest show of
compliance, he turned to the girl who�s gasping cries
had turned to exhausted sobs.

�Rin, it�s okay. We were just mad
at each other. We didn�t mean anything by it.�

�But,� the girl hiccupped.
�Inuyasha-sama told Sesshoumaru-sama to leave.�

Inuyasha sighed in defeat, knowing
full well how closely to the conversation Sesshoumaru was actually listening
to. �I was just angry I didn�t mean it seriously.�

�But Inuyasha-sama said-� the girl
trailed off, wide eyes staring up pleadingly at him.

�Sometimes adults say stupid
things when they�re angry. I was just mad at Sesshoumaru and I just didn�t want
to deal with him at the moment.�

�You always angry at me and tell
me to go away all the time and you never not mean it!� Shippo�s muffled shouts
emerged from the mound of covers.

Inuyasha groaned as he realized he
had a lot more to deal with than just Rin�s insecurities. �Shippo,� he began
only to have the kitsune spring from the covers like some angry deranged
jack-in-the-box.

�No! You yell at me all the time
and you always mean it! Why should it be different when you�re yelling at
Sesshoumaru?�

Inuyasha could feel a headache
coming on and Sesshoumaru�s innocent quire of whether or not he should eat the
brat was not helping.

�Shippo, there is a lot of
difference from telling some one to �go away for the moment� and to �go away
forever�.� Inuyasha tried to explain. �You should realize that I really never
mean it when I shout at you to leave, it�s just that sometimes people just like
to be alone.�

�Then you must really love
being alone �cuz you tell me to go away all the
time!�

Inuyasha set Rin down and slowly
moved to the angry youko. He was no fool. Shippo may be just a child, but he
was still a kitsune through and through.

�Shippo,� Inuyasha started to try
with yet another explanation when the hurt and anger that shown in the child�s
eyes finally did him in. �I�m sorry, okay? I never really considered your
feelings and I should have.�

Shippo gasped.

Sesshoumaru gasped.

Rin managed to fall asleep
standing up.

And Kuufuku, seeing as his valiant attempts to do
Sesshoumaru bodily harm were having no effect whatsoever, dragged yet another
robe out the door.

Inuyasha looked around the cave
warily. �What? I�m telling the truth.�

�But you admitted it,� Shippo
gapped in awe.

Inuyasha frowned at the statement before rousing Rin and
picked the sleepy girl back up.

�Never show weakness,�
Sesshoumaru�s voice floated through his mind. �Youkai are never raised
with stupid human emotions. Only the strong survive. The kit should realize
that, were he still being raised by his clan, he would be subjugated to much worse things than being scolded and sent away. �

�Yeah well incase you hadn�t
noticed, I am a human.� Sesshoumaru gave him a bale stare. �For the
moment anyway,� Inuyasha huffed.

�What?� Shippo looked puzzled at
Inuyasha�s sudden declaration of being human. Any idiot could see that right
now he was human.

Inuyasha shook his head. �We�ll
talk later,� he sent to Sesshoumaru unwittingly sending the Youkai into
shock that he responded in mind speak.

�I�m sorry that our argument woke
you up as well,� Inuyasha continued as he took the small kit�s hand to lead
them back to bed. �We didn�t mean to wake you.�

�But you didn�t wake us,� Shippo
announced and Inuyasha looked at him curiously.

�Then why were you two awake at
such a late hour?�

�We wanted to ask you where the
tunnel went.�

Sesshoumaru and Inuyasha glanced
at each other in confusion. �It�s just a roundabout passage,� Inuyasha told
him. �You know that.�

�Not that one,� the small whisper
came from the ningen�s shoulder. �The
other one.�

Both of the brothers stopped dead
as they stared at the little girl. Inuyasha looked down at the girl, fear
starting to creep upwards from the pit of his stomach and he could feel
Sesshoumaru standing up and making his way around the furniture to his side.

�What other one?� Inuyasha asked
through the growing lump in his throat.

�The one in the
clubhouse.�
�
�WHAT?� Two voices shouted
simultaneously.

�I though you told me that
there was nothing in that cave!� Sesshoumaru shouted as he stormed
past the small group and tore through the tunnel.

�THERE WASN�T!� Inuyasha shouted
back.

Both children now wide awake
stared at Inuyasha. �Don�t ask,� Inuyasha frowned as he took the children and
followed the stampeding demon. It wasn�t like there was much that Sesshoumaru
could do being youkai and all but it was comforting that Sesshoumaru was taking
their safety seriously.

�It�s the brink of paranoia but
I�ll take it.�

They came upon the oldest youkai
frantically pacing back and forth in front of the smaller cave as close as the
anti-demon wards would allow, peering into the glooming darkness lit only by
Rin�s little night torch.

Setting down the girl Inuyasha
asked if she would show him this new tunnel.

Grinning, the little girl skipped
past her mentor and right though the barrier much to
the hanyou�s amusement and the Youkai�s irritation if the mental grumbling was
anything to go by.

Passing the irritated Inu and
moving smoothly through the barrier with much more dignity Inuyasha couldn�t
help but flick his head slightly tossing his hair in childish manner.

Sesshoumaru was not amused. �Very
funny,� he groused. �Care to focus for once in your life?�

Inuyasha tossed an impish glance
over his shoulder and added an extra spring into his step. He figured after the
emotional hurricane the youkai put him through, he could be a little childish.

When he got through the wards
however his face turned serious as he moved over to where Rin was waiting for
him.

He stopped and glanced around
quizzically for any sign of a tunnel. �Um Rin��

The child giggled. �It�s down here
silly!� She said as she pulled her little nest of blankets away from the wall
and pointed to spot.

Inuyasha frowned at the cave wall.
True that the spot was a little darker but the wall still looked solid and
whole.

Rin huffed and taking a hold of
his hand and pulled the hanyou down to the floor. �You can�t see it from up
there.�

Brows furrowing, Inuyasha allowed
himself to be pulled down to the floor watching the spot critically and gasped
in amazement as the wall suddenly shimmered and just disappeared.

�Did you find anything?� Inuyasha
jumped at Shippo�s sudden called.

�What�s there?� came Sesshoumaru�s voice right after Shippo�s question. �Is
there another tunnel? Can you see where it leads? How
big is it? How many-�

Inuyasha huffed out an irritated
breath as he purposefully tuned out the irritated demands of the youkai.

�If you would
give me a moment to breathe!�
Inuyasha called out, �I can tell you that there is another tunnel.�

Inuyasha blinked in surprise at
the multitude of swearwords bombarding his mind. Some even he had never
heard of.

He shook his head at the mantra
and began to study the little tunnel. And it was little. A small tunnel that perhaps only Shippo and maybe Rin could
wriggle though. It was obvious that this was no natural or animal made
tunnel. The walls of the tunnel were too smooth, to rounded.

And the fact that it had an
illusion spell placed on it so you could only see it at a certain angle was a
very large clue.

He squinted but couldn�t see very
far in the darkness. Cursing his weekend human eyes. �Rin? Can you see down this tunnel in the day time?� he
asked.

The little girl shrugged. �Rin
just found it tonight.�

Inuyasha nodded. �Of course you
did,� he murmured absently.

Kuufuku appeared beside him and
darted past the surprised Inuyasha and disappeared into the murky darkness.

�Kuufuku! Damn it! Come back here!�

He turned back to look down the
tunnel and his eyes widened when he realized what it was he was seeing.

Sesshoumaru, meanwhile, was still
pacing in front of the cave. �What is taking him so long?� he thought
irritably.

How long did it take someone to
check if there was a hole in a wall or not?

He scowled at the entrance, a
heighten feeling tingling down his spine. Every one of his senses were on alert for something. Sesshoumaru would say it was
almost like his feeling before going into battle but the angry Inu was ignoring
all his feeling instead focusing on the cave entrance and the ningen that was
still on the other side.

The kitsune was clearly just as
agitated, but still kept a full four feet between himself and the agitated
Youkai. An amazing achievement considering Sesshoumaru�s body took up a good
three quarters of the chamber and the food supplies and other items filled the
rest.

Sesshoumaru snarled slightly at
the kit but it was more a habit than true annoyance at the creature. He hated
feeling that he was helpless should anything hostile emerge from the new
threat.

His senses were pushing to the
forefront incisively and Sesshoumaru actually had to give pause as to wonder
what it was his youki was trying to tell him.

�SESSHOUMARU!�

The shout shook the youkai to the
core as he moved as close to the barrier as he dared when Inuyasha�s for
appeared in the touches light.

Sesshoumaru could not see anything
chasing him but the look of pure fear on the boys face and pleading look for
help in his gold turning eyes was all that it took for Sesshoumaru to realize
the situation!

�INUYASHA!� he
shouted before his own transformation took hold of him.

It was in horror that he watch
Inuyasha just reach the warding spell when he realized that dawn had completely
appeared and Inuyasha was only half way through when the spell took hold.

A scream of pure torment shook the
cavern when the wards flared to life, bolts of electricity shot out from where
the now returned hanyou was trapped and Sesshoumaru dodged the flying bolts of
light even as he tried to reach Inuyasha�s side to pull him to safety. To have
Inuyasha with in reach and still unable to help him tore at Sesshoumaru more than
the pain of the reacting wards.

Suddenly the lights died and all
Sesshoumaru could see was the form of his youki�s chosen mate collapsing in a
heap on the floor.

�On the other side of the
still humming wards.

Chapter Twenty-Eight: Side Effects

�INUYASHA!� Shippo wailed despairingly as he surged forward towards
the unmoving figure.

Sesshoumaru cursed and grabbed the
kit�s collar, hauling him back just as another streak of lightning shot out
from the pulsating force field.

�Let me go, Kisama!�
Shippo struggled against Sesshoumaru�s hold as the Inu pulled the flailing
child to his chest to further restrain the boy, his eyes never leaving
Inuyasha.

Even with only one arm, the
kitsune could not break the youkai�s hold and Sesshoumaru snarled at him. �Shut
up and let me think!�

Shippo
only struggled harder.

Sesshoumaru ignored the child as
his mind desperately tried to think of a way to get Inuyasha through the wards
back onto the main side. If the hanyou was still alive�

�No!� he quickly suppressed
the though. �You can see that he�s breathing.� And he could see
Inuyasha�s chest moving rapidly up and down as he struggled for breath.

�Oh Kami,� Sesshoumaru whispered
and prayed that he was not about to watch Inuyasha die right in front of him
while he could do absolutely nothing.

Inuyasha belonged to him, damn it. He wasn�t going to
allow any one or anything to take his precious otouto away from him!

�Sesshoumaru-Sama!�

Sesshoumaru�s head jerked upward
from the fallen boy to the now hysterical little girl that was running to
Inuyasha�s side and desperately shaking his shoulder in an effort to wake him
up.

�Sesshoumaru-Sama! Help!� the girl continued as she continued her attempts to
wake him.

�Rin!� Sesshoumaru cried, �I need you to come through the wards
for a moment. Youko!� Shippo stopped his struggling in
surprise that Sesshoumaru was actually addressing him. �Go get a damp rag from
the main cave and some snow.�

Shippo
didn�t even bother arguing with the Inu as he darted to fetch the needed items.

The kit on his mission,
Sesshoumaru turned back to the still sobbing girl. He tried not to allow any of
his fear onto his face and struggled to maintain his blank visage but his
insides were tearing apart at the seams with worry.

�Rin,
we need to wake Inuyasha up and you�re the only one who can do it, alright?�

�But,�

�Rin! We have to wake him up, it�s not
good if he stays asleep!� Sesshoumaru knew that their time to wake the hanyou
was getting shorter. He may not be a healer, but he knew Spell wards and though
this one was not one he had ever seen before he knew of one of the effects.

A spell to tear apart a Youkai�s
mind from the inside out and drove them insane while trapped in their comatose
state.

Shippo returned just as quickly as
he left but much more carefully under the weight of the bowl full of snow.

Taking the item from the boy he
thrust the bowl towards Rin. The girl trembled as the bowl was shoved in her
hands.

��Rin,� she looked up at the sound of
Sesshoumaru�s voice full of determination. �You have to be strong. You�re the
only one who can pass through the wards and help Inuyasha.�

�Please,�
Shippo�s voice added to the mix.

Rin looked between the two males,
both full youkai and so much stronger than her and yet she was the only one who
could help Inuyasha-sama.

Nodding, she turned and with
determination went back into the cave and immediately started wiping Inuyasha�s
brow with the cold snow all the while talking to Inuyasha.

Sesshoumaru watched intently for
any change, any sign of movement that would show that Inuyasha was still just
unconscious and not pulled into the poison dreams the wards would cause hoping
that they were not too late.

There! There was a sudden twitch
of Inuyasha�s ear. �Inuyasha!� He suddenly shouted
causing the two children to jump. �Damn you, you brat!
Wake up!�

Rin
frowned as she continued to place the cold snow onto the now shivering hanyou.

Sesshoumaru didn�t even realize that he was biting his
lower lip in his worry, an old habit from his school days. They had to get
Inuyasha to wake up. That was the most pressing matter at the moment. He would
worry about everything else later. Such as what the wards may have done to him
physically.

There was no possibility of a
healer anywhere close by and if Sesshoumaru left to get one, even on his spirit
cloud that took him straight back to the palace, there was no grantee that
he could bring them back to the cave in time if he could get back to the cave
at all.

Worse case scenario would be he
would have to take Inuyasha on An and Un but he was
hesitant to move the younger man. He had heard that there was a risk in moving
a person incase of internal damage. It was even twice as harmful to move a
youkai whose youki was damaged.

Sesshoumaru
cursed the fact that he never bothered listening to the old healers teachings.

Not that it mattered even if he
did know a thing or two about healing a youkai�s inner powers if they couldn�t
get Inuyasha or Sesshoumaru through the pulsating wards to the other�s aid.

�Inuyasha!� He
shouted again.

The ear twitched at the sound of
his voice but Inuyasha stayed stubbornly unconscious. Sesshoumaru cursed again.
They continued for what seemed like hours, Shippo running back and fourth
retrieving more and more snow as it melted on Inuyasha�s hot flesh.

�Rin!� he called to the child and
she jerked in surprise. �You need to take off Inuyasha�s haori and put the snow
on his chest. We need to get him awake now!

Rin nodded and began pulling at
the fire rat robes furiously; exposing the hanyou�s chest and she up righted an
entire bowl of snow onto the exposed body.

Inuyasha
gasped and jerked.

�Inuyasha!�

�Inuyasha-sama!�

�BAKA! GET UP NOW!�

Rin poured more snow on the
motionless body in front of her before she frowned in thought.

They were almost there! Inuyasha
was almost awake. Just a little more and he would be all right. Of only she
could figure out a way to wake him up! There was something else that she had to
do! They were so close.

Thinking back, she remember something someone once told her to do if a man ever
attacked her. Hoping it would somehow help, she put her plan into action.

Taking a deep breath, she took a
huge handful of snow and sending up a prayer that Inuyasha wouldn�t kill her if
this worked, grabbed the hem of the fabric with her free hand and shoved the
entire snowball right down his pants.

Sesshoumaru�s shout of
astonishment and Shippo�s yelp of surprise was drowned out by Inuyasha�s
deafening scream of shock.

He tried to jump to his feet but
the fact that his body wouldn�t cooperate gave Inuyasha only one option as he
desperately tried to scramble out of his pants.

�Inuyasha-sama!�
Rin shouted happily, glad that her idea had worked.

�Inuyasha!� Shippo
cried with relief to see his idol wasn�t going to die.

�RIN!� Sesshoumaru
shouted angrily. �Just what did you think you were doing?�

Rin
frowned confused. She had woken Inuyasha-sama up, hadn�t she?

�Sesshoumaru?�

Golden eyes swiveled towards Inuyasha who was staring at
his surroundings in and at his companions on the other side of the glowing
wards. �Wha-What happened?� he stuttered.

�Later,� he snapped. �Tell me. Are
you feeling dizzy? Dose anything feel out of place? Have you sustained any
injuries?�

Inuyasha�s eyes widened as he
began to realize what had happened and immediately began taking stock of all
his appendages.

Sesshoumaru had to mentally slap
himself upside the head as he watched the trail of melted snow flow over
Inuyasha�s muscular chest and tried to force himself to stop staring and search
for injuries.

Inuyasha sighed in relief that
other than being cold and the slight prickling of numbness in his legs,
everything seemed to be working all right. His head was pounding though and he
could feel the dark grip of unconsciousness threatening to take hold of him
once more.

�DAMN IT! DON�T FALL ASLEEP!�
Sesshoumaru roared as he saw Inuyasha�s eyes threatening do close once more.

Inuyasha jerked his head up and
tried to focus on his brothers tall form but it was so
easy to just close his eyes and let it all go.

�Damn
it,� he heard Sesshoumaru curse again. �Rin!�

There
was a second before a fresh clump of snow was thrown right in his face.

�Gyaa!� Inuyasha
sputtered and glared at Sesshoumaru unable to punish the girl for simply
following orders.

�Fuck, the wards still have some
hold over him.� Sesshoumaru cursed again when a thought occurred to him. �Inuyasha! What about that new tunnel? Is it possible for
you to get out that way?�

Inuyasha
shook his head. �Could barely fit my arm inside let alone crawl through it.�

Sesshoumaru
growled as he searched the walls carefully for any possible way that they could
get Inuyasha out safely. If not for the wards, then Inuyasha could just stay in
the cave until the next night of the new moon; able to have meals curiously of
Rin but the wards ongoing threat to consume Inuyasha�s Mind and youki
completely obliterated that idea.

�Hell,
Inuyasha!�

Another
squawk sounded as Rin threw another pile of snow on him.

Sesshoumaru
frowned. �See if you can stand yet, perhaps moving around will keep the ward�s
power at bay for a little while longer.

Inuyasha
nodded as he struggled to get to his feet.

Rin
moved forward to help, allowing Inuyasha to use her small body as a brace and
pull himself to his feet.

Sesshoumaru
released his held breath and continued to search for any possible answer to get
his mate out of the latest hopeless situation he had gotten into.

�Sesshoumaru,�
Inuyasha whimpered. �I don�t think that there�s any way for me to get out of
here!�

�Don�t
say that!� Sesshoumaru snapped. �You�ve found your self in and have gotten out
of worse situations before.�

He
paused and glanced down at the distraught youko. �Hasn�t he?� he couldn�t stop
from asking.

Shippo
nodded and Sesshoumaru was surprised to feel the child climb up his left side
and clung to his shoulder just above his empty sleeve.

He
glanced at the child but Shippo refused to look at him. Nodding in
understanding, he continued to try and come up with a plan that would save the
one they both cared for.

Inuyasha
on the other side of the wards was glad to see that Shippo and Sesshoumaru were
now, if not friends, at lest tolerating each other.

He was
glad that they had found common ground. Granted he wished the common ground
wasn�t trying to save his sorry hide from being killed by anti-demon wards that
he had lived with for months now but who was his to complain?

He
only hopped that if he was killed by this absurd situation that Sesshoumaru
would see to Shippo�s upbringing.

He
laughed slightly at the stupidity of it all. All those youkai, ningens, Naraku, hell even Kagome out for his blood and
here he was, done in by an old ward placed centuries before he had even been
born!

�Damn
it! It�s not fair!� he shouted.

The
other three looked at him with worry but he simply laughed. Sesshoumaru was
frightened to hear a slight edge of hysteria in that laugh.

Inuyasha
was no fool. He new it was only a matter of time before sleep and then the
wards would overtake him. It was inevitable.

�Damn
it, hanyou! Don�t you fucking give up now!�
Sesshoumaru shouted at him. �We didn�t go though all the trouble
getting you up only to have you pass out now!�

�You
can do it!� Shippo shouted encouragingly as well.

Inuyasha
sighed, knowing that as long as they wouldn�t give up, they would not allow him
to do so either.

�Inuyasha-sama?�
Rin asked hesitantly.

�It�s
okay,� he assured her. �Let�s just keep walking.�

Rin
nodded as she tried to shift Inuyasha into a more comfortable position.

Inuyasha
tried to alleviate some of his weight off the small girl but it proved to be
his undoing as his limited balance was thrown off and he stumbled forward.

Sesshoumaru
could feel his heart stop beating completely as he watched Inuyasha wavered and
began falling.

Rin
cried out in dismay and tired desperately to pull Inuyasha back towards her but
it was to late.

Sesshoumaru�s
heart didn�t just stop beating but froze completely as Inuyasha fell forward straight for the wards.

�NO!�
Three voices shouted in despair at the sight before them.

Sesshoumaru
cried out in pure fear as Inuyasha�s body reached the wards�

�And
passed right though them into Sesshoumaru�s surprised embrace.

�Fuck!� Sesshoumaru cursed again
as he tied to balance Inuyasha�s dead weight barely noticing Shippo fall off
his shoulder with a dull thud.

Inuyasha moaned in pain.
�Sesshoumaru?� he slurred, �what?�

�No clue,� Sesshoumaru bit out as
he hitched Inuyasha over his shoulder and carried Inuyasha back to the main
cavern and as far away from the wards as possible.

Inuyasha had a very nice view of
the Taiyoukai�s ass before darkness finally swallowed him whole.

Chapter Twenty-Nine: Lemons Abound (originally �Bedside Manner� but all my readers have been
asking for it)

Forty-Eight hours later Inuyasha
was still passed out on his futon and Sesshoumaru was ready to kill the kids if
they so much as looked at him funnily.

It didn�t help that between the
three of them, none of them knew the slightest thing about cooking and when
Inuyasha woke, he would find his food stores supporting a rather large dent.

The first twenty-four hours after
the terrible night the children hadn�t so much as moved from Inuyasha�s
bedside. Something Sesshoumaru couldn�t fault them for as he had sat right
along side them

But by day two, Sesshoumaru had
determined that since Inuyasha had survived the first day, that he should have
been past any danger points and was merely now in a healing sleep. With that
announcement and the weight of worry for the hanyou lifted from their tiny shoulders,
the two children�s pent up energy began to build to the surface and nether of
them could sit still for more that four minutes.

Glaring at them had worked for the
first few hours but in the shared worry for Inuyasha, he had to admit that he
and the youko had come to some sort of understanding. Sesshoumaru absently
rolled a small round object as he considered the young kitsune.

Shippo knew an opportunity when he
saw one and was now beginning to talk back to the older Youkai. Granted it
wasn�t like his daily goofing around with Inuyasha but Sesshoumaru had to
admire his gumption to stand up to him. It was pride that would get the
kit killed if he didn�t cut it out but still Sesshoumaru had to admit that boy
was less wary around him now.

He wondered if, after Inuyasha was
awake, he should begin to terrorize the kit more than usual to put the fear
back into those eyes but quickly dismissed it knowing it would take some burden
off Inuyasha if he and the child got along.

He didn�t have to like it,
but for Inuyasha�s sake, he would endure.

It helped that Shippo spent most
of his time with Rin and mostly left him alone.

He bit into his snack he had
scrounged from the back stores, one of the few things that didn�t require
cooking, and continued his vigil over the younger man.

He didn�t know how soon it would
be before Inuyasha awoke, but he was determined to be
there when he did.

Inuyasha and he had a lot of stuff
to discuss starting with how he had fallen through the wards.

It had been so odd. Neither
Sesshoumaru nor Shippo had felt any shift in the wards but Inuyasha had clearly
been able to pass right though them and with out the accompanying light show.

A slight moan turned his thoughts
back from their wandering as he watched Inuyasha�s arm move to rub his
forehead.

�Oh god, what ran over me?�
Inuyasha groaned as he forced his eyes to open slightly. Allowing his eyes to
adjust before focusing on the person next to him Inuyasha groaned in dismay.

�Fuck,� Inuyasha moaned as he
rolled over away from Sesshoumaru�s blank visage. �Tell me it was all just a
dream��

Sesshoumaru frowned and taking his
glass of water poured the entire contents over his chosen�s head. Inuyasha
sputtered in shock as he stared at a smirking Sesshoumaru.

�Are we awake now?� Sesshoumaru
inquired.

�You prick!� Inuyasha growled as
he shook the water off and tilted his head to get the liquid out of his ears.

�Why thank you.� Sesshoumaru said
in all seriousness. �I do believe that is the nicest thing you�ve said to me
yet.�

Inuyasha rolled his eyes as he
threw his damp pillow aside and bundled up a corner of his comforter. �You�re
insane,� he told him.

�I do try.�

Inuyasha could help himself as his
lips quirked upward at Sesshoumaru�s antics. �You enjoy torturing me don�t you?�

�It�s my mission in life.�

�Brilliant, dose this mean I�ll
never be rid of ya?�

Sesshoumaru felt a surge of hope
build but at the same time dread filled him as he tried to determine how to
broach the second item he wanted to speak to Inuyasha about when the two
terrors arrived in their standard loud fashion.

�Inuyasha!�

�Inuyasha-sama!�

�Hey!� Inuyasha yelped as he was
tackled from both side in a tight hug.

�You�re okay!� Shippo told him.

�Well, I�m better than I was,� he
confirmed as he gently pushed the two off of him.

�Inuyasha-sama! Rin is so glad that you�re better!� Rin smiled at him
happily as she threw her arms around his neck.

Sesshoumaru made a pointed cough
and Rin�s happy veneer dimmed somewhat. �Um, Inuyasha-sama?�

Inuyasha turned from his
questioning look at his sibling who was completely ignoring the situation as he
fluffed up a new pillow for him when the girl climbed into his lap and leaned
forward towards one of his ears. �Rin is sorry for shoving snow down your
pants,� the child whispered.

Inuyasha couldn�t help but release
a roar of laughter at the girl�s apology as he hugged her tightly before trying
to fix her inside out robe. �Well, I suppose I can�t fault ya
for it,� he told her. �It did get the job done.�

Rin smiled proudly and held out a
small slice of food. �Would you like some?� she asked politely.

Inuyasha stared at the offering
before shaking his head politely. �You finish it honey,� he told her as he
glared at Sesshoumaru.

�Why don�t the two of you go out
and play in the snow some more.�

The two children nodded obediently
to Inuyasha�s suggestion and Sesshoumaru frowned at the level of respect that
Inuyasha had managed to get out of their ungrateful little hides.

�Sesshoumaru!�

The youkai snapped to attention as
he looked at the irritated man. �Just how long was I out for and what the hell
have you been allowing the children to be doing?�

�Allowing?� Sesshoumaru shouted at
him as he kicked aside yet another runaway sphere. �I haven�t been allowing
them to do anything! They�re quite able to do whatever they damn well
want. I�m not their bloody babysitter!�

Inuyasha raised an eyebrow, �dare
I ask what you�ve been eating?�

Sesshoumaru shrugged, �whatever
doesn�t require to be boiled, fried or cooked.�

Inuyasha huffed as he collapsed
back down again. �Never mind, I don�t want to know.�

They lay in silence for a while
watching as Kuufuku ran past them chasing yet another rolling item.

Inuyasha shook his head at the
sight again and turned to ask Sesshoumaru something when the question died in
his throat.

For the first time since he awoke,
he could see just how haggard Sesshoumaru really was. His normally pristine
hair was a tangled mess and hung in long clumps around his slouched shoulders. His clothes were almost as wrinkled as his brow and the dark
circles under his eyes were deeper than Inuyasha�s had ever been on those
sleepless nights on the run as a child.

Inuyasha reached forward and
placed his had over the tightly clenched fist on the Taiyoukai�s knee.

Sesshoumaru looked up and Inuyasha
gave him a full smile. �Thank you for saving me,� he whispered.

Sesshoumaru�s face immediately
donned a haughty look as he sneered down his nose. �Well don�t get used to it.
I can�t let you die,� Inuyasha waited for the standard �only I am allowed to
kill you� line when Sesshoumaru surprised him by finishing with a �you�re the
only one who can keep those brats under control.�

Inuyasha stared at him in surprise
before allowing a smirk to cross his features. �Ran you ragged huh?�

�How do you keep them under
control?� Sesshoumaru demanded.

Inuyasha grinned. �Bribery. Lots and Lots of bribery.�

Sesshoumaru stared in shock.
�What, no death threats?�

�Only pushes them to try harder.�

Sesshoumaru thought about it for a
moment. �I think I�m beginning to understand what all those �loans� I always
see my councilmen accepting is about.�

Inuyasha laughed. �If there was
anything I learned from my human relatives is that no one is below a bit of
bribery.�

Sesshoumaru blinked in surprise at
Inuyasha�s announcement. He had never before spoken of his mother�s people.
�Bribe the cook for more sweets, did you?�

Inuyasha laughed bitterly. �Hell
no, never would go near that harpy in a million years. She�d soon as kill me as
to look at me for tainting her kitchen. No,� Inuyasha frowned. �I saw a lot of
different things hiding in the shadows.�

Sesshoumaru frowned, a bit
distraught and disturbed by the conversation but didn�t want to point it out to
Inuyasha.

They sat in silence just listening
to the two children playing outside as Sesshoumaru continued eating his fruit.

�So how did you get me through the
wards?� Inuyasha finally asked. Sesshoumaru�s head whipped around to stare at
Inuyasha in disbelief and Inuyasha felt a surge of panic begin to swell. �It
was you who got me out, right?� he demanded. �I mean- I figured you managed to
deactivate it or something.�

Sesshoumaru shook his head. �The
wards haven�t so much as twitched let a lone change that I could see.�

�But, then how did I get out?�
Inuyasha demanded.

Sesshoumaru lifted one shoulder in
a shrug. �I don�t know.�

�But that�s impossible,� Inuyasha
murmured in astonishment. �Isn�t it?�

Again a shrug, �I have learned
that when it comes to you, Inuyasha, even the heavens can rain food from the
skies. Nothing is impossible.�

Inuyasha frowned as he rolled
another brightly colored fruit off his futon and watched as Kuufuku balanced
himself onto of yet another one as he rolled it around the room towards
an ever-growing pile.

�Well,� Inuyasha cleared his
throat nervously as he picked up one of Kuufuku�s run-a-way�s.
�There defiantly enough of these laying about
aren�t there?�

Sesshoumaru frowned in annoyance.
�Those things just keep appearing. I can�t for the life of me figure out where
the children are getting them.�

Inuyasha frowned. �I don�t think
the kids could find these if they wanted to,� he told him as he eyed Kuufuku�s
two-foot tall pile.

Sesshoumaru took another tentative
bite of his own slice, �Just what are they?� he asked curiously. �They
don�t taste like any fruit I�ve ever eaten before and it certainly has never
been served in the palace.�

Inuyasha smirked. �From what Kagome told me, they�re from
a foreign country and the juices are mainly used with sugar to make a sweetly
sour drink. Let me think,� Inuyasha paused. �I think they�re called lemons.�

And while Inuyasha was explaining
to Sesshoumaru the different uses of lemons and laughing at the Inu�s sour
expression as he ate the bitter fruit. (A simple lemon farmer stared in
disbelief at all his denuded lemon trees while a frustrated author banged her
head in complete frustration at the complete denseness of the two happily
oblivious youkai�s.)

AN: Don�t tell me you didn�t
ask for it! *Runs from a sword swinging
Kallipso after she manages to recover from her face
plant.*

Chapter Thirty: A River of
Feeling

Later, Inuyasha watched intently
as Sesshoumaru tried to follow his directions on how to make dinner and sighed
as yet another cloud of smoke rose from the Youkai�s
direction.

�Tried� was the key word. Inuyasha
couldn�t believe what he was seeing as he watched Sesshoumaru bungle yet
another simple dish.

He had assumed that since he
always saw Sesshoumaru traveling as he always did, he had obviously assumed
that the Youkai possessed some cooking skills seeing as how he was still breathing.
Obviously, Inuyasha assumed too much.

This would make attempt number
four as Inuyasha bemoaned his three destroyed pots and one surprisingly dented
frying pan.

Who knew that Sesshoumaru could be
so clumsy in the kitchen?

As the taller man struggled to
make something decent, or at least edible, the children were busy slurping down
their lemonades and giggling as Sesshoumaru waved the smoke away from his face.

�What the hell is wrong with this
thing?� Sesshoumaru demanded pointing an accusing finger at the pot as if it
was some how the cookware�s fault. �All it dose is smoke!�

Inuyasha frowned as he made his
way out of bed to make his way to the fire and laid claim to the saucepan. �Lord
of all you see, ruler of over a hundred lands and yet the great taiyoukai is done in by the simple task of boiling water.�

Sesshoumaru frowned. �You
shouldn�t be out of bed so soon,� he criticized.

��Let me think,� Inuyasha huffed. �Get out of
bed risking strain on my injuries but have a full stomach or stay in bed and
waste away by starvation.� he paused dramatically and Sesshoumaru rolled his
eyes as the children snickered. �Hmm, that�s a tough one.�

Sighing, Sesshoumaru threw up his
hand in defeat. �Okay, I surrender. It�s all yours.�

Inuyasha smiled triumphantly.
�Gee, if I knew that all it took to bring you down to your knees was a simple
home made meal I could have defeated you ages ago.�

Sesshoumaru watched as Inuyasha
delicious rump moved about the room. �That isn�t the only thing to bring me
to my knees.�

Dinner was quick work for Inuyasha
and soon the cave was filled with vibrant chatting as the children scrambled to
tell Inuyasha all he had missed over the past two days.

Sesshoumaru�s first instinct was
to yell at the two to pipe down but for once, bit his tongue and allowed the
children their time with Inuyasha minus any of his usual biting retorts.

As he watched Inuyasha�s happy
face a feeling of pure contentment filled him Everything was all right and it
was enough for Sesshoumaru as he tucked into his delicious, albeit charred,
supper.

He would never admit to how badly
a scare the warded room had caused him. He couldn�t believe that he had nearly
lost his youki�s chosen mate before he himself had
even realized let alone admitted his feelings. It was quite humbling actually.
He had always heard of the expression �not knowing what you have until it was
gone�.

Always having things handed to him
on a silver platter, Sesshoumaru had never before felt such a deep fear.

Shaking the thoughts out of his
head he concentrated instead on picking off the chard pieces of his food and
continued to finish dinner.

Never once did he notice
Inuyasha�s multitude of worried glances as the younger youkai
wondered just what it was that had happened to Sesshoumaru to cause him to be
so silent.

Later that night, Sesshoumaru
sighed gratefully as he burrowed down in his blankets after listening to
Inuyasha taking such a long time tucking the children into bed. They had both
demanded two stories each before finally allowing themselves to go to sleep and
Sesshoumaru had to suffer through all four of Inuyasha�s crazy idea of stories.

It was grateful to finally be able
to just relax and allow all his worries to drift off.

�Sesshoumaru?�

-If only for a moment.

�What are you doing out of bed?�
Sesshoumaru demanded without turning over.

He could feel Inuyasha behind him
and could smell the scent of squeezed lemons from the hanyou.
�Fuck,� he cursed as his youki perked up very
intently at the presences of the answering youki.

He could hear Inuyasha fumbling
behind him before he felt a sharp breeze of cold air until something large,
warm and incredibly tempting slid in behind him. Sesshoumaru nearly bolted
right then and there.

�INUYASHA!� he hissed loudly as he
turned to glare at the man behind him. �What do you think you are doing?�

�It�s cold,� Inuyasha said simply,
�and we have a lot to talk about.�

Sesshoumaru frowned and decided
the best course of action was to completely ignore the tempting creature behind
him.

�You are not getting out of this
by ignoring the situation!� Inuyasha told him.

�Oh believe me, I can�t ignore this!�
Sesshoumaru thought in frustration. He wondered absently if he could smother
himself with his own pillow before he tackled the oblivious koinu.

�Sesshoumaru, why did you demand
this truce? What is there for you to gain?� Inuyasha frowned as Sesshoumaru
stayed stubbornly silent. �I�ve thought about it and thought about it and since
when do you ever care about your image? Or what anyone else thought?�

�I do care about the Image the
Family of the Great Inu Taiyoukai
presents.� Sesshoumaru finally spoke up and mentally groaned at himself for his
weakness in giving in to the rapid questions.

�Great!� Inuyasha growled in
exasperation. �Do you mind sharing this wonderful information or are you just
going to leave me wandering in the dark as usual?�

�You wouldn�t understand,�
Sesshoumaru snapped as he tried to bury his over excited youki
under a rather large mental rock.

Inuyasha frowned at the broad back
before him. �And just what won�t I understand?�

Sesshoumaru growled but refused to
elaborate his thoughts turning inwards onto events he thought long buried.

He hadn�t thought of his childhood
in ages. The whispers the eyes full of loathing knowing that he could very well
be their next lord and master as he walked the halls.

The multitude of scathing remarks
at how unworthy their current lord was. That there was a rumor he took a human
for a mate and that she was breeding.

The looks that he would be just
like his father and become weak. Sesshoumaru had vowed that he would never
be weak.

�Damn it, Sesshoumaru. Talk to
me!� Inuyasha whispered furiously in an attempt not to wake the children.
�Things are beginning to happen and I think that there�s got to be a reason for
it! There always is!�

A golden eye peered over his
shoulder to look at the determined hanyou. �What on
earth are you talking about?�

�Everything!� Inuyasha scowled. �It�s just like before when I knew that
mother was dying and that I was in danger if I continued living in the human
lands.� Sesshoumaru twitched. �Or when I first came across the legend of the
Sacred Jewel and that led me to meet Kikyou. Or when
I met Kagome after she released me from the tree and that damn well��

�Well?� Sesshoumaru
wondered absently. �Just what are you blabbering about?�

�Damn it Sesshoumaru, I�m being
serious.� Inuyasha shoved his shoulder angrily. �You can�t tell me that you
coerced me into this little arrangement on a whim. There�s something going on!�

Sesshoumaru frowned at his
unwilling but very tempting bed partner as he thought about the things that had
led them to this point.

It was true that things had moved
from the strange into the land of complete bizarre rather quickly. Worried
about his youki and succumbing to his more primal
needs where Inuyasha was concerned had taken the fore front of his mind but as
he thought back, it had seemed rather odd that very first night in the cave,
damp from the autumn rain and the strange realization that his own locked
transformation occurred on the same night as his brothers.

�Then what do you think it is?�
Sesshoumaru demanded. �Some demented demon out there playing havoc with our
lives?�

�Well how the fuck should I
know?� Inuyasha demanded. �I�ve spent my entire life just surviving. I never
stopped to learn the finer points of my demon heritage.�

Sesshoumaru narrowed his eyes as
turned over onto his back and glared at him. �Couldn�t you have thought of a
better time to have this discussion?�

Inuyasha shrugged, �didn�t want
the kids to wander in on this. I don�t know about Rin,
but Shippo can be smart.� He paused. �Well, when it
comes to keeping secrets from him at least.�

Sesshoumaru scowled at that
thought. �I doubt that.�

Inuyasha glared at him but decided
not to argue about Shippo for the moment. �So what do
you think? There has got to be something going on.�

�What? You think someone knew that
we would find out about each other on the moonless nights? That some one knew
that we would find this cave? That some one knew
that we would end up living here and
warded the cave before hand?�

Inuyasha shrugged. �Possible��

�Hah! I�ll have you know that
those wards are at least five hundred
years old if not more. This was probably a safe haven from some long ago war.�

�Everything is a battle to you,�
Inuyasha stated.

Sesshoumaru waved his hand
absently as he rolled back around away from the enticing man in red. ��S what
I�m trained for.�

Inuyasha�s curiosity peeked, but
he said nothing. They laid there in silence for a few moments. A cloud of
tension steadily starting to creep upon the two and Sesshoumaru scowled as
Inuyasha continued to lie beside him.

�Don�t you have your own bed to return to?� he demanded.

Inuyasha was silent for a beat.
�Your�s is closer to the fire.�

�Great,� Sesshoumaru scoffed and
tried to inch a little further from the hanyou. �I should get a fucking medal for self
restraint.� His youki was annoying the hell out
of him as his instincts chanted �mate� merrily over and over again. �Fuck.�

Inuyasha, oblivious to
Sesshoumaru�s inner turmoil sighed at youkai�s very
unsubtle attempt to move but didn�t mind it anymore. It was actually quite nice
hunkered down in front of a fire on a cold winter night and he wasn�t in a
hurry to return to his own, cold bed.

Much nicer having an extra warm
body too, more heat generated.

�So�� Inuyasha finally broke the
quiet. �Where were you for all those days?�

Sesshoumaru�s eyes snapped open
and he mentally cursed Inuyasha�s inquisitive mind. �Was it to much to hope that he had forgotten that particular fact?�
�Out,� he replied cryptically.

�Okay, I�ll bite. �Out� where?� Inuyasha pressed.

�Oh, what does it matter where I
was? I�m back now aren�t I?� Sesshoumaru argued.

Inuyasha mulled his statement over
for a moment. �I suppose you�re right��

Sesshoumaru sighed in relief that
Inuyasha was willing to drop his unscheduled jaunt in the forest. He had just
closed his eyes, determined that he would fall asleep this time when Inuyasha
piped up again.

�So why did you run out in the
first place?�

Sesshoumaru�s temper began to boil
and fear that he would not escape from Inuyasha before the hanyou
pulled out his secret.� �What business of
it of yours?� he snapped.

�Well maybe because you ran out
right in the middle of our conversation?� Inuyasha asked sarcastically. �What
did I say? Why did you suddenly run out of the cave? Was it something I did or
something?�

Sesshoumaru�s idea of suicide by
pillow was beginning to look really tempting, but he couldn�t let Inuyasha
think that his actions had been the result of his own stupidity. �No, it wasn�t
anything you did.�

�Well something had to have
happened for you to bolt out like that.�

Sesshoumaru knew that Inuyasha
would not allow this line of questioning to drop, especially now that he had
managed to get something out of him. �I just realized something, all right? Now
can we drop it?�

Inuyasha was quiet for a whole
second. �What did you realize?�

Sesshoumaru swallowed heavily. �Nothing.�

�Nothing?� Inuyasha repeated. �Oh for the love of- just spit it out?
Will you?�

Sesshoumaru was undone. His youki bouncing around like a mad rabbit, the scent of
Inuyasha so close behind him, demanding to know the very thing he dreaded
telling him in fear of the hanyou�s reaction.

If Inuyasha wanted to know what
troubled the Inu Taishou of
the west so badly he would tell him.

Or rather show him.

Sesshoumaru whirled around,
shoving Inuyasha flat on his back as he towered over him.

�Sesshoumaru,
what-?� Inuyasha managed to get out
before Sesshoumaru shocked him with the last
thing Inuyasha had ever suspected.

Sesshoumaru leaned down and
covered Inuyasha�s mouth with his own.

The smaller youkai
froze under the feeling of firm lips upon is own, pressing demandingly against
his own, a sharp fang bit harshly into his soft flesh and he shuddered as
Sesshoumaru�s hand came upward from his shoulder to gently stroke a thumb
against his cheek.

Sesshoumaru was starting to
finally relax when suddenly he found him bodily thrown half way across the room
and slammed into the wall with enough force to knock the air from his lungs.

His vision beginning to blur,
Sesshoumaru nursed his bruised jaw and watched as a red blur ran out the cave
into the whiteness beyond.

�Well that could have been worse,�
Sesshoumaru muttered. �he could have had Tetsusaiga.�

TBC~

Short AN: Well there
you go. We�re starting to move along. Very slowly but we�re getting there. There is no� ahem� lemon yet for a while
according to my outline BUT DON'T HURT ME! Things may changes as I go. We Will be introducing a new character that is not a cannon
character but a new person that has popped out of the dredges of my odd little
brain. There actually has already been a hint in previous chapters as to this
person's identity. If any one can figure out who this new character is gets a
cookie and a short Kuufuku tortures Sesshoumaru side
story dedicated to them!
- 5
- 6
- 7
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Shadowed Nights

Shadowed Nights

Co/Authored by Kallipso

NOW (finally) ON TO THE STORY!