Adult-FanFiction.org : Inuyasha / Yashahime

Camaraderie	By : BlackberryPatch Category: InuYasha > Yaoi - Male/Male > InuYasha/Sessh?maru > InuYasha/Sessh?maru Views: 16228 -:- Recommendations : 0 -:- Currently Reading : 0
Disclaimer: I do not own InuYasha, nor make money from this story.

Chapter List
- 6
- 7
- 8
7
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Forged

Sesshomaru stood on an outcropping of rock and looked down over the landscape, his sharp eyes picking out details even in the dimness of the starlight. Worry ate away at him, and he glanced up at the moonless sky again. He was worried about Inuyasha. His hands curled into fists; he wished he could know what had happened to his brother... and to Rin as well. He spared a moment from his brooding to glance over at Kagome, sitting near the fire regarding the flames pensively. He was not the only one who wanted for news. Casting one last glance out over the sweeping fall of the hill they were camped on, Sesshomaru moved closer to the fire. Kagome looked up at his approach and smiled, though the expression was forced. She was much better, her sickness lasting only a short time- for humans, as he understood, though it seemed to take forever and she was still in the process of healing- and she was the one who had proposed that they continue their traveling. Sesshomaru understood her urgent desire to find the rest of her companions; it moved him as well. She had professed herself well enough to travel and he had been unable, as well as unwilling, to refute her.
"Do you think," Kagome broke the silence, "that we'll find them soon?" Her tone was hopeful, but her voice was resigned.
Sesshomaru hesitated before answering. There was no reason to suspect otherwise; the others were, more than likely, in the same area also looking for them. But there was also no reason to believe that it was true. They could very well be dead, all of them, though the demon's lip curled in anger at the thought. His lips parted, in preparation to answer her, when a distant roaring caught his attention. Turning his head, he tried to follow and identify the sound. Kagome stood where she had been sitting, but did not otherwise move as she watched Sesshomaru, trusting his superior senses to alert her to danger.
Unable to place the strange roaring, Sesshomaru moved back to his perch on the rocks. The sound seemed to be getting closer. He lifted his nose to the wind; he smelled Kouga, vaguely, and rain, and... Inuyasha? Sesshomaru froze, desperate to catch another whiff of that same wind again. Kagome moved a step closer to him, clutching her bow and arrows in her hands, not even noticing that she was gripping them so tightly her knuckles were white. She licked her lips, desperately trying to keep herself from interrupting Sesshomaru but desperate also to know what he knew, to know if some enemy was approaching them or...
"Inuyasha," Sesshomaru whispered, the word sliding from his lips like a breath more than a word.
Kagome sighed, her eyes falling shut. "Where?" she breathed back.
Sesshomaru shook his head; he moved out to stand deeper in the stream of the wind, snarling in annoyance as it suddenly reversed, cutting back and blowing the other direction. He turned to Kagome. "I have lost the scent," he said softly.
She nodded, tensely, and looked up at the moonless sky.
A stray wisp of wind, carrying a noise, caused Sesshomaru to turn back around in time to see Shippou's small form barreling out of the trees. The small demon ran as if all the creatures of hell were after him; pausing, he glanced up and noticed the fire and Sesshomaru watching him. Almost before he could register this information, Sesshomaru had leapt down and lifted him by the scruff of the neck.
He smelled Inuyasha on the kit, and Rin as well. "Where are they?" he demanded.
Kagome approached just as quickly but more soothingly gathered the fox demon in her arms and murmured reassuringly, "Shippou! Where is Inuyasha?"
Shippou shivered, clutching at Kagome's shirt and rubbing his face against her, filling his nose with her scent. "Demon," he mumbled, "It's after us. Kouga... but nothing stops it. Nothing." He shivered some more but suddenly sat up and said more alertly, "Inuyasha is with Rin. He sent me to find you. Kagome, it's a huge monster thing, and it only likes to chase after humans! It smells like water." He made a face. "Everything smells like water these days."
Kagome held Shippou close, looking up to see what Sesshomaru thought of this news, but the demon was already gone.
--

Slipping through the trees, Sesshomaru paused again to check his bearings, silently cursing. The wind blew in the wrong direction to be helpful; it brought him the scents from behind him, of Kagome and Shippou chasing after him. He snarled in fury, unable to do anything more than pick a direction at random. Obviously, the general direction of Shipou's arrival was the place to start, but even this left a great deal of forest to be searched and whatever had been roaring was unhelpfully no longer doing so. In a gesture that was automatic, Sesshomaru rested one hand on the hilt of his sword; some unearthly force drifted his hand past Toukijin and let it grip Tenseiga. His fingers curled around the hilt unconsciously, and almost immediately the sword started humming, letting off a high, keening sound.
Sesshomaru froze, glancing down at the sword, pulling it out in almost the same moment. Both hands closed on the hilt as the conflicting knowledge tore at him that while his desire was impossible he wished for the sword to help him find Inuyasha. Tenseiga pulsed, glowing softly, and suddenly off elsewhere in the forest there was an answering keening. Sesshomaru glanced up, all of his senses focused on the high-pitched noise. He took off at a dead run, Tenseiga grasped in one hand.
It wasn't long before he dodged a particularly large tree, slipped through a dense thicket of underbrush, and suddenly heard Inuyasha grunt in pain. The roaring started again, right on top of him, and Sesshomaru didn't hesitate before leaping out and into the fray. He pulled Toukijin with his free hand, registered a blur of red cloth and dark hair and the smell of human blood- I know this blood- and brought the sword up in front of him as he threw himself between the large, loud creature and its intended prey.
The large, unknown demon seemed to sniff at Toukijin, tasting it interestedly, but did not seem the least bit affected by it as Sesshomaru swung the sword, its blade sliding easily through the creature with no apparent effect. Undaunted, Sesshomaru dodged back a step as the creature touched him, unconsciously bringing Tenseiga up in a double guard position with Toukijin as he tried to think of another line of attack while Shippou's words- "nothing stops it"- ran through his head. But amazingly enough, the creature was shrinking back from him, reaching out with a couple malformed limbs, like some sea creature testing to see if there was danger present, while its main body retreated.
Sesshomaru spared a moment to glance behind him; dropping to one knee beside his brother, who was shakily pushing himself up from the ground, he thrust Tenseiga into the dirt before him and reached out a hand to the half breed, saying softly, "Inuyasha?"
Inuyasha looked up at him, his eyes drawn irresistibly to his brother's face as he whispered in return, "Sesshomaru." Tetsusaiga was still humming softly at his hip and Inuyasha had to shake his head and wonder if he was imagining it. He grabbed the demon by the shoulder, using the support to pull himself to his feet, and looked back at the creature. "Why isn't it attacking?" he asked warily, his weariness evident in his voice as he brushed dark hair out of his face, his hands covered with half-dried blood.
Sesshomaru narrowed his eyes, regarding the creature more carefully. "The kit said that none of your attacks were effective against it."
"Yeah, and nothing Kouga could pull off either." Inuyasha stepped back away from the creature, one hand going to his abdomen to curl protectively around himself as he dropped to his knees again.
"Inuyasha," Sesshomaru murmured, worried more than he wanted to express as he gripped his brother's arm. How badly was Inuyasha injured?
"Not yet," Inuyasha mumbled, seemingly talking to himself. "First we have to get rid of that thing." He glared at the creature, which was regaining its confidence and was probing toward the little group.
Sesshomaru took up Tenseiga again so that he held both swords. "Stay behind me," he whispered to Inuyasha as he started backing away from the creature pointing both swords toward it, at the ready. Inuyasha complied, backing away from the creature, one hand on Sesshomaru's waist as he leaned on his brother to keep from falling over. The creature continued to keep back from Sesshomaru's crossed swords while it tested for a way around the barrier, but Sesshomaru knew that such a guard could not last for long and he searched his brain for some alternative or, better yet, some way of killing this thing.
--

Kagome ran after Sesshomaru, but she couldn't see which way he'd gone and eventually gave up, relying on Shippou's lead to guide her to where Inuyasha was. While he didn't remember much of his mad flight to find Kagome and Sesshomaru, the young demon knew the general direction, and as they traced the path backwards he was able to recognize more of it.
They were moving quickly along, all of Kagome's attention focused before her, on the goal of finding Inuyasha, so she didn't respond immediately when Shippou froze, spun around, and shouted, wide eyed, "Kagome! Get down!"
As soon as the words registered in her mind, Kagome let her legs collapse beneath her, and as she fell in a heap on the ground a familiar attack of wind blades passed just over her head.
"Well, well." Kagura's voice was amused. "Where are you two going in such a hurry?" She floated to the ground, her red eyes glinting in satisfaction that belied her failure to catch Kagome unawares with her attack. "Oh, I wonder if it has anything to do with Naraku's new toy."
Kagome quickly pushed herself back to her feet, tensed and ready for attack. Her eyes widened as she digested Kagura's information, and then narrowed as her thoughts turned to finding a way to get away from the wind demoness and to Inuyasha.
Her lack of a verbal response annoyed Kagura and the demoness narrowed her eyes, getting down to business, banter through. "It is unfortunate that I cannot allow you to see your Inuyasha one last time." She raised her hand, fan at the ready. "But your presence would be most unfortunate." Her hand came down, scattering the wind blades in Kagome's direction, Shippou calling out in fear, as she finished her thought, "You of all are the only one of this motley band with a chance at defeating Bakenoshyuu."
Kagome felt her heart clench in her chest as she tried to dodge Kagura's attack, knowing that she wasn't going to make it. But suddenly something swept her up and she was being carried out of the way of the demoness'attack. Her feet placed back on the ground, she looked up at the owner of the arms that held her.
"Kouga," she murmured to the wolf demon, but she was pushing away from him, heading toward the sudden roar she heard- close- Kagura's words in her head as she mumbled out, "I have to go, I can do it," as her only explanation.
Kouga let her go, not looking after her as she half stumbled away, his eyes locked on Kagura as he grinned, more blood in the expression than humor. She glared back at him, her eyes flashing darkly as her hand twitched her fan to the ready.
"Let's dance, shall we?"

--

"Inuyasha!" Kagome cried out, stumbling down the incline of a hill as she followed Shippou around a large tree to see the half breed and his brother at the bottom, backing away from the oozing bulk of the creature crashing through the darkness.
Both brothers looked up at the shout, but Sesshomaru quickly returned his attention to his adversary. Inuyasha reached out a hand to Kagome as she joined them in a rush, looking at him worriedly. "Kagome," he breathed, smiling. "You're alright."
"Of course I am," she shot back, worry making her tone short, but she moved on, relating the information she had gathered. "Kagura is nearby; she said this thing is some new creature of Naraku's." Neither Inuyasha nor Sesshomaru looked particularly surprised. Right, she thought to herself and went on. "She said," Kagome glanced over at the monster, "that I could kill it."
Sesshomaru shot her a narrow, evaluative glance but didn't drop his guard in the slightest. Inuyasha looked at her doubtfully, but there was a strange hope overcoming the doubt in his eyes as he murmured, "Kagome."
How she was supposed to be able to hurt this thing didn't really occur to her. There was only one way to attack things that she knew; she drew an arrow and nocked it to her bow. Taking a deep breath, she sighted on the dark bulk of the creature, which, oddly, began to glow in the darkness, outlined and easily visible to her eye.
"Kagome," Inuyasha said again, surprised, and Kagome realized distantly that she was glowing as well.
She drew back the string of the bow and released it in an easy movement, and was rewarded with an unearthly shriek as the brightly glowing arrow embedded itself in the creature. The creature flailed around, oozing out some foul smelling slime as if it had been filled with it and just now punctured. The substance spread out over the ground; Sesshomaru sheathed both swords and gathered Inuyasha and Kagome in his arms as he leapt up, taking them all to higher ground, Shippou "eeping" as he clung to Kagome's shoulder.
Kagome clutched her bow in her hand, slightly dazed and unsure that she had truly managed to defeat the creature. She stared at where it had been, but was unable to see anything in the darkness- the glow that had earlier aided her had dispersed. Suddenly, she remembered Inuyasha, and she whirled around, almost afraid to look at him and whatever injuries he might have received, almost unseating Shippou with her sudden movement. Inuyasha always pushed himself too far on the new moon, holding his human body to even higher standards than his normal self, and tonight was definitely not an exception. He was leaning heavily on Sesshomaru who still held him up with one arm. The demon's other hand was brushing Inuyasha's dark hair away from his face.
"Inuyasha?" he said softly. He wanted to see to his brother's injuries, but that was better done in the safety of the camp; and before they could go there he wanted to find out what Inuyasha had done with his other charge. "Inuyasha, where is Rin?"
Expecting that his brother had stashed her away somewhere where the creature couldn't find her, Sesshomaru was shocked when the front of Inuyasha's haori mumbled, "Lord Sesshomaru?"
Inuyasha sighed as he leaned against his brother. Raising one bloodied hand, he loosened the garment to reveal a slightly battered Rin pressed against his chest; she grinned widely up at her lord. Sesshomaru reached out wonderingly to place a hand on her head. Rin beamed at the contact, but she turned worried eyes on Inuyasha. "Lord Sesshomaru, please help Inuyasha. I think he is hurt very badly."
Sesshomaru nodded mutely. Freeing Rin, he set her on the ground, then gathered Inuyasha in his arms and turned toward the camp.
--

Inuyasha blacked out at some point. He was safe, Rin was safe, Shippou was safe; he could afford to listen to the complaints of his body, and when he did listen the level of complaints overwhelmed him.
When he woke he was lying next to a fire, haori removed and under-kimono pushed aside as tender hands probed as gently as possible at his chest. A nervous pacing shadow slipped into his line of sight and he automatically reached out a hand toward his brother. "Sesshomaru," he hissed out, suddenly aware that his lip had split and was puffy from all the times he'd fallen on his face in his mad race to keep Rin from the creature. Sesshomaru knelt beside him, taking the offered hand. Inuyasha turned to the other side where Kagome was kneeling. "Rin?" he asked softly, wincing as Kagome's probing hands pushed against a broken rib.
"Everyone's fine Inuyasha," she assured him, her voice quiet but warm. She smiled at him. "Even you, though you certainly did a number on yourself." She sighed, and even with his senses twice dulled by this night and the pain he could hear the worry in that sigh. She glanced at the horizon as she reached to stroke his hair gently. "You're not going to die before the sun rises," she said, in an attempt to focus on the upside, "but with the flood we lost all of my medical supplies."
"'Salright," he mumbled at her, trying to reach for her hand too, but his other arm seemed unwilling to listen to him and only twitched slightly. He released Sesshomaru's hand and reached over to touch her face.
Kagome smiled at him, but there was still a helpless sorrow in her face. Leaning over him, she kissed his forehead. She looked up at Sesshomaru for a moment. "I'm going to take Rin and Shippou and get some more water," she said easily, squeezing Inuyasha's hand before she released it and moved off.

Inuyasha sighed, closing his eyes. Everything hurt; at the moment he really wanted some of Kagome's medicine, the kind she called "pain-killers." He knew she felt bad because she couldn't do anything for him, and it wasn't really critical that he receive treatment since after sunrise his demon blood would heal him. He figured she didn't want to be around him when she felt so helpless and he didn't blame her; it wasn't until Sesshomaru lay down beside him that he remembered she'd said she was taking the kids with her.
He opened his eyes, looking over at his brother. Sesshomaru looked back for a long moment, then sighed softly as he lay his head down, his forehead brushing Inuyasha's shoulder, one arm thrown across the half demon's body, lightly so as to not cause him further pain. Inuyasha let the fingers of his good hand drift up to brush the demon's face. "I missed you," he said softly.
"And I you," Sesshomaru replied, hesitating before nuzzling Inuyasha's shoulder tentatively. Inuyasha sighed happily. Everything was alright. They had all survived the flood, and they were- almost- all together again. If he didn't feel like absolute shit at the moment, things would be better, but... He sighed again, repressed a groan, and tried to ignore the stabbing pain in his chest as he turned to glance toward the horizon.
Sesshomaru shifted his hand so that it lay over Inuyasha's abdomen, slipping under his loosened clothing to touch the half breed's skin. Humming slightly in concentration, a soft glow gathered around his fingertips as he spread his fingers over Inuyasha's skin. "Sesshomaru?" Inuyasha asked, trying to prop himself up so he could see what was going on. "What're ya doing?"
"Shhh," the demon murmured.
Inuyasha was about to question him further when the glow began to disperse, and Inuyasha had to gasp for breath as a strange feeling overtook him. And after the strangeness of it had passed, he realized that his pain had lessened. "Sesshomaru?" he asked, wanting to ask more, to know more, but too tired to get out anything beyond that word.
"Sleep," his brother murmured back.
Unable to dispute that word as he relaxed from the tension his pain had held him in, Inuyasha nodded; turning his head toward Sesshomaru he reached for the demon's hair with his hand and tangled his fingers in the silver strands as he closed his eyes.

--

"Kagome," Shippou asked insistently, the reuniting of part of the group reminding him of the question he'd never had answered, "What's a 'physical relationship'?"
Kagome paused and turned to look at him, and Rin as well, who was watching them both with wide eyes, also desirous of knowing the meaning behind the strange phrase.
"Well," she said slowly, thinking through her words. "It means when you love someone so much you really want to touch them, and when you touch them it makes you happier." She smiled, thinking of Inuyasha's face when Sesshomaru took his hand.
Shippou and Rin looked at each other. "So," Rin said hesitantly, "is that like when being around Lord Sesshomaru makes me feel better?"
"Or being around you, Kagome?" Shippou added.
"Not really," Kagome said, frowning. "That's different." She took them each by a hand. "It's probably not something you've felt yet in your life. But don't worry, you will when you're older."
Both children frowned, puzzling this over. "Why was everyone so scared about it then?" Shippou shook his head. "It seems like it's a good thing." He looked up at Kagome. "Isn't it a good thing if Inuyasha and Sesshomaru don't want to kill each other?"
"Yes," Kagome said, "it is definitely a good thing." She frowned thoughtfully. "But sometimes people get scared. Sometimes some people don't want other people to be happy unless it's with them, so they try to hurt the other person. And people think that other people are lying about being happy so..." She suddenly stopped her tirade, glancing down to see if her audience was following her words in the slightest.
Surprisingly, Rin was nodding. "It's like what Miroku told me about why Inuyasha and Lord Sesshomaru were fighting before- they didn't understand, and they thought that someone did something bad, but it was just because they didn't know everything."
Kagome blinked. "Ah, yeah." She smiled. "But now that everyone understands each other, there's no more problems." At least not of that kind, she added mentally.
Rin pulled at Kagome's hand, a thought suddenly in her mind. "Kagome? Does 'physical relationship' mean Lord Sesshomaru and Inuyasha will want to be alone a lot and make strange noises together?"
Kagome stopped dead. "Uh, yeah, I guess," she managed to get out, blushing furiously. "Um, have they done that before?"
Rin nodded solemnly. "While we were traveling here. When they thought I was asleep, they would leave me with Aa-Un and go away together. Sometimes I could hear them making strange sounds." She seemed happy that she'd discovered a connection between this apparently odd behavior and the strange phrase, but she frowned as she remembered the event she was describing more fully. "I think maybe Lord Sesshomaru was in pain."
"Um, I'm sure he was fine." Kagome tried to control her raging blush. Okay, enough with the trying to educate the children. Next time I just make something up. "Seriously, you'll understand it when you get older. For now, just trust that Inuyasha and Sesshomaru know what they're doing." They had reached the river and Shippou was distracted by filling the bucket they'd brought with fresh water. Rin hung from her grip on Kagome's hand, blinking blearily. Recognizing the onset of sleep, Kagome gathered the younger girl in an easy hold, hoisting Rin up on her back for the trip back to the camp. Shippou carefully carried the water, but Kagome suspicioned that he would collapse as soon as they got back.
Her suspicions were confirmed; as soon as Shippou set the bucket down near the fire he sat down, and, sighing deeply, fell asleep before he noticed the sleeping arrangement on the other side of the fire from him.
Kagome lowered Rin down and lay her near the fire, drawing Inuyasha's haori over her. The girl curled up, her hands fisting in the cloth as she pulled it closer in sleep. Kagome looked across the fire; golden eyes were watching her.
Sesshomaru nodded when their eyes met, and Kagome gratefully sank down to lie beside Rin. "If you need me, just... shout really loud," she murmured. He only smirked at her and drew his arm more tightly around Inuyasha's shoulders, the fall of his sleeve covering the sleeping half demon. His bright eyes roamed over the camp as he relished the feeling of Inuyasha warm against him.
--

Inuyasha felt a twinging pull as the sun rose, but Sesshomaru soothed him back into sleep. He woke again several hours later, blinking up at his brother seated cross-legged beside him. Sesshomaru's eyes were drawn immediately to Inuyasha, and similar golden orbs stared into each other. Moving shakily, Inuyasha pushed himself up on his elbows, then further up until he was sitting. He turned toward Sesshomaru, and almost fell on his brother as he leaned toward him, eagerly seeking out his scent.
Sesshomaru caught the half breed's body as he almost fell, and shivered slightly when Inuyasha's nose pressed against his neck, followed closely by his lips. "I thought maybe I dreamed it," he whispered, bringing his hands up to cup them around the demon's face. "That I found you again."
"No," Sesshomaru whispered back. "You did not." He turned his head to kiss Inuyasha's palm, the half breed sighing, relaxing against his brother. He turned to take in the rest of the camp, but froze when Kagome suddenly walked out from behind a tree carrying a stack of wood, Rin walking beside her, helping carry wood for the fire.
Kagome smiled to see him awake and feeling better, but stopped moving when she noticed his paralysis as he stared at her, wide-eyed, not moving. She wondered what was wrong... but then she took a mental step back and really looked at him. He was sitting practically in Sesshomaru's lap, his hands cupped around the demon's face, Sesshomaru's tongue exploring his brother's hand. She realized suddenly that Inuyasha didn't know that she'd been spying on him and Sesshomaru before the flood. Remembering that night made her blush, and Inuyasha, misunderstanding the cause of her unease, snatched his hands away. Sesshomaru inhaled sharply in surprise, glancing over at Kagome as Inuyasha stood, easing away from his brother and coming to take the wood from Kagome in a needless gesture, turning to set it by the fire. Rin was looking up at him, smiling but slightly puzzled. Inuyasha stepped back, overwhelmed; while he had wanted, desperately, to find Kagome and Sesshomaru again, he supposed he'd never really thought that then he'd have to deal with both of them, at the same time.
Kagome reached for his hand suddenly. "Inuyasha, can I talk to you?" she asked, her voice low. He nodded hesitantly, and she pulled him away from the camp while Rin fed wood to the fire in preparation to make breakfast.
Once they were out of site of the camp, Kagome turned to face Inuyasha as he looked at her warily. "Inuyasha," she began, but seemed at a loss how to begin.
He flinched away from her, then turned back, hesitantly reaching out to take her arm, and, when he received no resistance, pulled her against him. "Kagome," he murmured. "I'm sorry," he continued, not really sure what he was sorry for but paralyzed by the thought that she, his first and best friend, was somehow leaving him again, had decided that he wasn't worth her time... And the need to prevent that, to make her pleased with him, was foremost in his mind. Never in his life had so many people cared about him, about what happened to him and what he though, and he was sure that some part of it wasn't real and would shatter and leave him as fast as it could if he couldn't find some way to hold it together all by himself.
Kagome intuited some of his fear. Gently, she took his arms from around her and held both his hands in hers. "Inuyasha," she said again, now sure of what she wanted to say. "You are my very good friend and I care for you very deeply. I will never reject you, not for any reason, never hate you or be ashamed of you." She reached out and touched his cheek, hesitating before she reached up and brushed one furry ear. He ducked his head, his ears flattening back slightly in chagrin. "But you need to decide who's more important to you." He looked up at her again, alarmed, but she shook her head. "I don't mean that in some stupid petty way, and I'm not trying to make you choose him or me. What I mean is... You love him right?"
Inuyasha glanced away briefly, but met her eyes again. "Yes," he breathed.
She smiled, the expression spreading slowly across her face. "And you want to spend the rest of your life with him?"
He paused a moment, thinking about that. "Yes," he answered, stronger this time, "I think so."
Kagome's smile broke into a full-fledged grin. "Then you have to stop worrying about what I think, what anybody else thinks, and start worrying about what he thinks."
Inuyasha blinked, stunned for a moment, then blushed slightly, yanking his hands from her grip. "I..." he started, but stopped just as suddenly, looking at her. "Thanks," he mumbled, crossing his arms in defiance of needing her help even as he acknowledged her for it.
She grinned. "That's what friends are for."
--

"Lord Sesshomaru?"
He started slightly, glancing down at Rin, only noticing then that he had, again, been looking toward the forest where Inuyasha was speaking with Kagome. "Yes Rin?"
She smiled up at him beatifically. "Would you like to eat some breakfast Lord Sesshomaru?" she asked, but she apprehended his distraction and asked also, "Would you like to wait for Inuyasha to come back?"
"Mmm," he answered, his attention again drawn elsewhere; until her words registered on his mind, their order and meaning slightly confused- Inuyasha... come... eat... His head snapped around and he glared at Rin. "What?!"
She blinked at him, guileless. "Would you like to wait for Inuyasha and Kagome to get back before you have breakfast?"
"Yes, that will be fine." Shaking his head, he sank down to sit by the dying fire. He buried his face in his hands, long fingers brushing back aggressively through his hair; perhaps the lack of sleep was taking its toll. Or... No, he was fairly sure it was something else. His brother's scent filled his nose, and he couldn't focus on anything else. More, he didn't want to focus on anything else. He wanted to go to Inuyasha and take him away from the priestess, far away, and possess him utterly, taste him...
Sesshomaru sighed, raising his head to look out over the woods again. No; he had promised that he would provoke no confrontation with the priestess- Kagome, he reminded himself. More than that, she had renounced her claim, conceded to him. And even more than that, he had begun to respect Kagome as a warrior in her own right, and also as a person, human though she was.
Thoughts on this somewhat disturbing development were interrupted as Inuyasha appeared, striding purposefully back toward the camp. Seeing him, Sesshomaru half rose from his seated position, but before he could complete the move Inuyasha was upon him. The half demon seized him, hands forcefully holding Sesshomaru's face between them as Inuyasha leaned over and kissed his brother fully and deeply, his tongue darting out to explore the demon's mouth.
Caught completely off guard, Sesshomaru didn't respond at first. But as soon as realization dawned his hands came up and brushed through the half breed's hair until he found the sensitive, fur covered ears. Inuyasha moaned against him and he shivered, his tongue meeting his brother's in a twisting duet. Finally, Inuyasha broke off the kiss. Sesshomaru could only stare up at him in surprise, his breath stolen away from the intensity of the kiss. Rin was watching them, wide-eyed. Inuyasha turned to grin at her, and she immediately returned his expression of mischievous conspiracy. "I'm gonna borrow your lord for a minute, okay Rin?" She nodded, smiling happily, and Inuyasha placed his hand under Sesshomaru's chin and pulled up, forcing the demon to rise to his feet or risk decapitation. Maintaining this grip, Inuyasha lead his brother into the forest.
--

Shippou was hungry. Returning from foraging for some supplements to the breakfast menu, he was almost run over by Inuyasha and Sesshomaru departing the camp in great haste. Annoyed, he deposited his findings by the fire, slowly dying to embers, where Kagome and Rin were arranging the rest of breakfast. Both girls were grinning wildly and hardly noticed Shippou's annoyance. "Hmph," he grumbled, plopping down by the fire. "Where were they going in such a hurry?"
"I saw it!" Rin said excitedly, coming over to hug Shippou enthusiastically. She kissed him on the cheek impulsively and he looked at her in surprise. "Like you said Kagome," she continued, "when they touch each other it makes them happier." She sat down, more subdued. "Lord Sesshomaru was unhappy before, but he liked it very much when Inuyasha kissed him." Her grin was infectious, her joy at her lord's happiness just as contagious.
--

When they were out of site of the camp, Sesshomaru belatedly seemed to realize what was going on and he jerked his head out of his brother's hand.
Inuyasha stopped, turning to look at him, his heart suddenly in his throat.
Sesshomaru stared at him; on the one hand he very much wanted to follow Inuyasha to whatever he had in mind, and hopefully it was the same thing he was thinking of. But he also wanted to know what was going on, and whether it was going to leave him sitting again with an uncharacteristically shocked expression on his face when Inuyasha decided he was done. "Sesshomaru," the half breed whispered, and he shivered at the burning in his brother's voice.
"Inuyasha," he murmured in response, and suddenly he didn't care anymore, and all the longing and concern that he had kept inside of him suddenly came tumbling out, and he seized Inuyasha roughly, as he hadn't been able to last night, and pulled the half breed against him, crushing their mouths together. "I was... worried," he murmured against his brother's throat, the confession easier when he wasn't looking in those burning eyes. "I am... very glad to see you again, Inuyasha." He nosed aside the cream cloth of Inuyasha's kosode and sucked the smooth flesh along his brother's collarbone in between his teeth, leaving behind a claiming mark.
Inuyasha shuddered, the heat of Sesshomaru's passion almost overwhelming. He broke the demon's hold on him, raising his arms swiftly, and shoved him so that he fell over, Inuyasha on top of him, pinning his brother to the ground as he kissed him back with a passion just as fierce. "I was worried about you too," he responded, dropping kisses across his brother's face, tracing the crescent on his forehead. "I'm sorry... about earlier," he added, promising, leaning back to look his brother in the eye, "It won't happen again." Sesshomaru raised an eyebrow, slightly skeptical, but Inuyasha held his eyes and the demon had to smile.
He glanced back the way they'd come. "We are still very close to the camp," he observed, holding his brother's gaze to see what the half breed would do. Inuyasha grinned at him, then reached down and, roughly pulling open Sesshomaru's kimono, attacked his brother's chest. Sesshomaru threw back his head, sucking in his breath in surprise, the breath coming out again in a moan louder than the demon had intended as Inuyasha let one hand slide down to slip underneath Sesshomaru's clothes, drifting easily between his brother's legs, as his tongue laved over one sensitive nipple.
Still grinning, Inuyasha pulled back just long enough to remove his own under kimono, casting the garment to the side as he pressed his chest against his brother's, shivering at the contact and reveling in the touch of the demon's skin. He nuzzled against Sesshomaru's throat, but his brother's hands came up suddenly to grip his upper arms and pull him away, the demon taking the moment of respite and using it to draw in a series of deep, shuddering breaths. Inuyasha's grin widened, but he was distracted; his brother's long fingers wrapped tightly around his arms reminded him of something he had wondered about. "Sesshomaru?" He frowned, "You did something to me last night. What was it?"
Returning the frown as his jumbled thoughts took several moments to settle before he could understand what his brother was talking about, Sesshomaru saw Inuyasha's glance directed at the demon's hands and he remembered. Releasing his grip on the half breed he used one hand to prop himself up until he was half reclined, Inuyasha straddling him, and brought the other hand close to his brother's face for inspection. "Poison," he said softly, as the long claws began to glow and drip menacingly. While familiar with his brother's talents, Inuyasha leaned away from that hand with distaste. Sesshomaru curled the fingers in so that the poison dripped harmlessly into his own palm.
"You poisoned me?!" Inuyasha's eyes narrowed suspiciously, glaring at the demon.
Sesshomaru shook his head, though technically that was true. "In small doses, it works as a painkiller." He pulled his hand away, leaning up to kiss his brother. "You were so..." He broke off, looking away. "The pain was so great it would not let you sleep. I wanted you to have that escape at least."
Inuyasha's fingers traced across his brother's face, exploring the delicately refined features, marveling at the strength behind them. Holding the demon's head still he kissed him deeply, exploring him from the inside, their tongues entering with passionate eagerness into the always entertaining activity. After awhile, Inuyasha broke the kiss to taste other portions of his brother's face. Sesshomaru moaned as he shivered deliciously under Inuyasha's ministrations. Suddenly something caught his eye and the demon stiffened slightly in instinctive response as his eyes focused on the shape watching them from just within the shelter of the trees.
Noticing his brother's hesitation, Inuyasha looked up to see Sesshomaru's eyes focused on something in the forest beyond Inuyasha's shoulder. The demon broke eye contact with whatever it was and looked up at Inuyasha, his expression guarded. Puzzled, Inuyasha lifted his head and turned to see what his brother had seen. The breath froze suddenly in his throat as a familiar scent touched his nose just as he picked out the familiar outline behind a stand of trees.
Kikyou stepped out from behind the trees, knowing they knew she was there and knowing there was no point in hiding it. Inuyasha was frozen where he crouched, aware that there was absolutely no way to disguise what he and Sesshomaru were doing- the warmth of his brother's lower abdomen was pressed against the growing heat of his groin, his legs wrapped around the other man's waist as the cut of his hakama bared his thighs without the kosode to fill in the gaps. Sesshomaru's kimono hung from his shoulders and was close to falling off completely as the demon reclined beneath his brother, the half breed's hands splayed out over his chest. Inuyasha looked at his brother, but Sesshomaru's gaze was hooded as his eyes followed Kikyou's movements. His reluctance apparent, Inuyasha returned his eyes to the form of the woman he had once loved.
She regarded him with contempt and loathing. "I should kill you both where you lie," she said, her voice low.
Inuyasha narrowed his eyes, his ears going back. His movements lethargic, Sesshomaru shifted his weight and brought one hand up again, prepared to attack this interrupter but Inuyasha reached out and grabbed his arm. The demon's eyes widened slightly, but he did not look surprised; only displeased. The surprise came when Inuyasha turned back toward him and pressed his lips against the hand he'd seized, his other hand brushing over Sesshomaru's side before splaying in the dirt. Shifting his weight over the one hand, while the other still held Sesshomaru's, Inuyasha leaned down and trailed his tongue down his brother's abdomen before circling the dip in his navel and plunging in.
Sesshomaru inhaled, the sound a gasp that exhaled as a satisfied moan. Kikyou grew red, though from anger or embarrassment the demon couldn't tell as he kept one eye on her. She was a threat, and he was not dismissing her as easily as Inuyasha had. His brother had apparently forgotten all about her as he released his hold on Sesshomaru's hand, sliding his body back so that he knelt between the demon's legs, bent slightly at the knee as they spread a little further apart to accommodate his brother's body. Experienced hands found their way familiarly to Sesshomaru's groin, brushing away annoying cloth. Shivering, the demon looked down at his brother as Inuyasha stroked the soft skin of his inner thighs; the half demon reserved the prize flesh for his mouth, his lips closing over the tip of Sesshomaru's hardened length. "Inuyasha," the demon hissed, his hands fisting in the dirt as he bit back a yelp. He'd forgotten; he'd forgotten just how crazy Inuyasha made him, how crazy just being close to his brother made him, let alone touching him... He forgot to keep an eye on Kikyou, forgot that they were probably still within easy hearing distance of the camp and when Inuyasha swallowed him he could not contain the scream that ripped form his throat. He thrust against his brother's mouth, but the soft hands stroking his thighs were suddenly like iron, pinning his hips to the ground. He screamed again, throwing his head back, his hair a cascade of gold-touched silver in the sunlight that broke through the canopy of trees.
Grinning, Inuyasha felt his brother close to his climax. He'd barely started pleasuring the demon, but he understood; Inuyasha was also uncomfortably aroused, merely by his proximity to Sesshomaru. He moaned his own desire, the vibration going straight to Sesshomaru's groin as Inuyasha let the flesh slide from his mouth and swirled his tongue around the head before taking it in again, loosening his grip and allowing some of his brother's desperate thrusting more leeway. Sesshomaru trembled, Inuyasha's name hissed out between gritted teeth as he thrust one last time and came, his body seized and frozen in an expression of his ecstasy, his head thrown back and his chest heaving as he gasped for breath. When he glanced back down at Inuyasha he moaned again to see his brother, in a facsimile of fastidiousness, licking every last drop of come from the demon's length. He looked up from his lowered eyes, shooting Sesshomaru a seductive look.
Sesshomaru shivered. He was only reacting to what Inuyasha did at the moment; he couldn't quite remember when he'd lost control of the situation, but it had happened with a delicious thoroughness. Now that he realized it, he felt a sudden desperation fill him to regain some of that control and he reached out one shaking hand to grab Inuyasha, fisting his hand firmly in the half demon's hair and pulling him close. "What'd ya think?" Inuyasha asked with an impish grin, but Sesshomaru could only crush his mouth against his brother's, transmitting his reply by way of mouth to mouth.
Rising up, he thrust the half breed back, throwing him to the ground as Sesshomaru crouched over him. His mouth traveled down over his brother's bare chest as now it was Inuyasha who could only gasp in reply to the demon's soft whispered question, "And what do you think of it?" Inuyasha shuddered, long fingers brushing through the demon's hair as Sesshomaru continued in his assault, slipping his hands in the open slits of his brother's hakama and caressing the half breed's thighs.
Seizing on the opportunity to render Inuyasha as mindless as had been done for him, Sesshomaru continued to stroke over the soft skin of Inuyasha's inner thighs while he also mouthed over his brother's already present and still growing erection through the heavy cloth of the hakama. Letting his teeth graze over the sensitive flesh through the protection of the cloth, Sesshomaru had to reach up and seize Inuyasha's hands as they sought with desperate frustration to remove the suddenly offensive garment. He pinned his brother's hands to the ground as Inuyasha half growled, half whimpered, thrusting himself up in search of a deeper touch. Grinning, Sesshomaru held both of Inuyasha's hands with one of his, letting the other one continue to stroke his brother's trembling thigh while he moved his head over so that his tongue grazed the other thigh. Inuyasha yelled, a wordless demand, his hands twisting in Sesshomaru's grip as he sought to free himself.
Sesshomaru relented; stroking his hand down over Inuyasha's abdomen, heavy against the half demon's hot skin as he pulled the cloth of his brother's hakama away from his erect flesh and bent in a swift motion to take that flesh wholly in his mouth. Inuyasha screamed his ecstasy, thrusting up against Seshomaru's warm mouth with every muscle of his body, his feet twisting against the hard dirt of the ground as he freed his hands from Sesshomaru's grip. His hands went immediately to the demon's head, burying in his hair, but as both brothers fell into the rhythm of thrusting Inuyasha's hands drifted down, playing with the long strands of Sesshomaru's hair as it poured all around them and over the half demon's spread legs.
Inuyasha shivered every time he recognized his brother's touch- the brush of hair across his knees, the hands again on his thighs that drifted up to caress his stomach, and, not the least, the hot mouth that was pulling his very soul from his body as he answered each foray of Sesshomaru's talented tongue with a moan that was louder than the last. It wasn't long until the controlled motion of his thrusting vanished in wild ecstasy, his body overflowing with his passion as he poured himself down his brother's throat, Sesshomaru drinking him down with eagerness.
They lay still a moment, both reeling from the intensity of the past several minutes. Inuyasha touched Sesshomaru's cheek as the demon rested his head on his brother's thigh, tracing lightly over the markings there. Sesshomaru turned and kissed Inuyasha's fingers, but when the half breed would have initiated further contact, Sesshomaru pushed him away and rose to his feet. "Get dressed," he said softly. "We should get back."
Confused, and more than a bit hurt, a flushed Inuyasha jumped to his feet to argue the point, when Sesshomaru suddenly turned back to him. His hands settled lightly on the half breed's slender waist, and he caressed the top of Inuyasha's thighs as he shivered. "We should get back," he repeated, turning away to pick up his kimono from where it had fallen in the dirt and shaking out the garment.
Inuyasha nodded, shivering himself. The unspoken was understood now; Sesshomaru didn't want to go back any more than he did, but if they stayed here they would stay until they both collapsed, completely sated, from exhaustion. Leaving Kagome alone for that long with Rin and Shippou was not a good idea. Gathering his kosode, Inuyasha shot a glace over at his brother before he put it on. Sesshomaru was standing, staring off into nothing as he tried to compose himself. Inuyasha grinned; pulling the garment around himself, he went to his brother and helped him tie the sash around his waist. The demon looked up at him as he approached, welcoming his aid, and their hands lingered, touching, far longer than was necessary for the task.
Eventually they were presentable and made their way back to the camp. It wasn't until they were a few steps away that Sesshomaru remembered he'd forgotten to keep an eye on Kikyou; he hadn't even noted her leave-taking.

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- 6
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