Adult-FanFiction.org : Inuyasha / Yashahime

The Path of Pins
By : girltype
Category: InuYasha > General
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Disclaimer: I do not own InuYasha, nor make money from this story.
Chapter List
- 7
- 8
- 9
AN: So here we are again.
Chapter 8 was not easy�the writing was, well, let�s face it not that hard. But
there were issues. Big issues. My Beta disappeared (btw if anyone knows
DarDragonFemale let me know if she�s still alive cause I�m a bit worried about her.)
And then finding a new one was difficult. Thanks AsianPuff, you�re a doll. I
mean that. You should all thank Melissa, if she hadn�t inspired me it would
have been months and months longer before you saw this chapter. Sorry about
that. I�m a lazy bum�but a graduated lazy bum! I graduated from college! Woot!
oh and i'm making the proper adjustments to Inu's mommy's name. Oh and I made really really pretty
chainmaille go check it out on my devart account: http:// neverbeen.
deviantart. com/ (take out the spaces)
Review! You too can inspire
me! And I have been known to take requests.
The Path of Pins
Chapter 8
The entire being of a woman
is a secret which should be kept.
-Isak Dinesen
I should have spent the night
mingling; letting the guests catch glimpses of me as I slipped through them,
but I didn�t. I told myself that Inuyasha would be a valuable conquest, a sure
way into the house of the Inu clan, that the monk would be an asset. The truth
was that the gruff and angry Inuyasha would get flustered when I smiled at him
and Miroku had a low rumbling chuckle that made me want to blush.
When the night was over I left
with the promise that I would be back again the next day to accompany them on
their excursion. I didn�t tell Lord Naraku of the invitation �til the next
morning when he called me to his study to discuss the previous night.
�Excellent.� He smiled when I told him as he ran a lock of his own dark hair
through his fingers thoughtfully. �Who will be there?�
�Inuyasha, of course, and a
houshi; Miroku.� Then I remembered something else. �They said another woman
would be coming, Sango, but nothing else was said about her.�
It was almost an imperceptible
darkening of his eyes as his smile dimmed. �Another woman?�
�I believe the houshi is fond
of her, my lord.� There was nothing I could do about who else was invited and
it was too good an opportunity to pass up so I smiled secure in the knowledge
that Naraku would let me go.
�Very well, you will go with
Inuyasha, but I have need of Kohaku.� He cocked his head to the right and
watched my face go slack with shock. �I had not intended for you to go anywhere
today.�
�But you�ve never let me go
anywhere without a guard.� I was sure I looked like a fish as I sat there
staring at my lord with my mouth falling open and closed.
�You�ll be in the home of
Inutaisho. You�ll be under the watchful eye of his favored son, you won�t be in
need of your guard, but I will.� Naraku told me with a smile and a shrug that,
for some reason, made me uneasy.
�I never go anywhere without
Kohaku. I went to pick flowers without him once and you yelled at me for nearly
an hour.�
�You weren�t with a prominent
leader of the realm at the time, were you?� He tilted his head, all mildness
but something under the surface was tense and uneasy.
�But�� his eyes narrowed and
he slammed a hand down, palm open, on his desk.
�As endearing as your
attachment to your guard is, it�s a bit on the side of inappropriate, don�t you
think? When I say I need him for something there should be no questions. You will
be accompanied by a minor guard and that is final.� His voice went soft and he
leaned back steepling his fingers. �Any more protests and I�ll make the change
permanent.�
�Yes, lord.� I bowed low and
backed out of the study. Kohaku was waiting for me in the courtyard.
�So?�
�I go,� I took a breath and
finished, �without you.� I couldn�t look away from my hands, with my long
tapered fingers that were as soft as sakura petals, which were then clenched
together so tightly that they had turned white.
�What? I�ve been training my
entire life for something he won�t even allow me to do?�
�Be quiet.� I ordered before
softening my voice as I put a hand on his arm. �This is neither the time nor
place for such complaints.�
�Kagome how can you��
�I will not lose you over
this.� That stopped him as he stared at me with wide brown eyes, looking lost.
�He can�t. He can�t do that.�
He hissed softly shaking his head in disbelief.
�He is lord, master, and
owner. Is there anything that Naraku can�t do?� I closed my eyes and silently
slipped an arm through his to lead him towards our hallways. He came,
reluctantly, his steps faltering and slow.
�But��
�Shh, it�s only for a day, and
I�ll hardly be in any danger while with the beloved child of the strongest
youkai in the land.�
�And the lecher?�
�Harmless�practically,
especially when prostrate on the ground,� I smiled soothingly. �Miroku is a
good man, lecherous but I can hardly complain about that.�
�But��
I shushed him again. �Help me
choose what I�ll be wearing today.� I opened the doors to my rooms and, with a
quick surreptitious look around, pushed him in before me. �Now what color do
you think I should wear? I�m partial to green but I always seem to be wearing
it.� I talked quickly opening my wardrobe and pulling some kimonos out. Kohaku
was staring at me, his eyes narrowed and I almost started babbling again when
he spoke.
�Why are you doing this?�
�It�ll help me if I look good.
Can�t let the chance pass me by, you know.� He lifted an eyebrow saying quite
clearly �A-and?� �They invited me,� I whispered, my hands clenched; wrinkling a
kimono in them, the silk felt strangely course under my skin just then. �No one
has ever just invited me someplace because they liked me, except for you. Even
then what other choice did you really have?�
I could feel the sad weight of
his eyes and then heard his soft step and even softer sigh. His hand came up
and touched a blue, almost gray, kimono with white flowers. �This one,� he said
quietly. �If, you know, you don�t want to wear green.�
I sniffled a little as I
brought it down. �Thank you,� we both knew it wasn�t for the kimono.
When I left I watched Kohaku
out of the carriage�s window. He stood there in the middle of the courtyard
simply staring at me as I left. He looked so lost, he looked like I felt. I
couldn�t remember a time I had gotten into this carriage without him in it with
me.
At the home of Inutaisho�s
family, a servant led me through the palace and while passing a long hallway I
heard a loud squawking, like a crow defending a choice bit of carrion, and
turned to see Sesshomaru talking to a toad demon. At least he looked like a
toad, with green skin, the color of pond scum, and great bulging eyes. The toad
gave another great squawk and ran off, arms waving frantically over his head.
It left Sesshomaru standing there watching the servant disappear, his lips
pulled down at the edges into a frown.
He cocked his head slightly
then suddenly turned, and I found myself staring into eyes the color of sunset.
He blinked, almost looking surprised, before moving to disappear through a
doorway. There was a soft coughing noise and I turned back to the servant who
was leading me. He had stopped ten steps ahead of me when he realized I was no
longer directly behind him. He was looking at me with wide brown eyes as empty
a dog�s, nothing there but patience. Glancing once behind me I followed him
again.
We passed the oshiita I
had seen the night before and I knew where we were, orienting myself with the
map I�d started making in my head. We turned and were in a new part of the
palace, passing corridors and open courtyards we finally came to a stop in
front of a dark brown shoji screen with a crane painted on the thick paper. The
man slid it open and what I saw over his shoulder made my breath catch in the
back of my throat. Scrolls stacked upon scrolls, beautifully, lovingly, taken
care of; the rich wooden shelves gleamed in the lamplight. I entered the
library with wide eyes and an open mouth, barely hearing the mumbled, �Lord
Inuyasha will be here shortly,� before the servant bowed out. On the far wall
there were shelves with books, real books from the continent with pages and
leather binding. I wanted to run my hands along their bindings, feel the hard
leather give beneath my fingertips in a caress softer than anything I�d given
Hiten.
I�d started toward them, when
I heard some sound, the scraping of cloth or a hitched breath, that stopped me.
I glanced around, trying to find where it had come from. The scrolls were
stacked away from the walls, making small aisles that allowed the scrolls to be
stacked two deep and behind one there was a small foot sticking out. It was
pale under a layer of mud and grim, a child�s foot that had known the garden
path. Silently I made my way to the foot, trying not to laugh as I peered
around the scrolls to find a little girl. She looked up at me, hair brown and
wild, a small section was pulled up into a pigtail that sprouted from her head
like a weed. Her eyes were wide and shinning and the smile she beamed at me
showed the gap left by a missing tooth. She covered her mouth when a giggle
escaped. There was squawking from behind me and her eyes pleaded for quiet. I
lifted an eyebrow and turned to the toad, my foot moving to press against hers,
so it disappeared from view.
�Rin!� the toad croaked. �Come
here, you ungrateful brat!� He ignored me as he raced around the room, avoiding
me completely by staying on the other side of the library. �Where are you?�
There was a giggle and I
coughed. He rounded on me, already bulging eyes looking ready to fall out with
the help of one good hit to the back of his head. �Have you seen a little girl,
human?� I smiled pleasantly as I looked down at him. He only came up to my
knee. �Answer me!�
�I don�t see any little girls
here.� He huffed and puffed glaring at me with eyes the color of mud but left
with a shrill �Rin!� I knelt carefully, gracefully, like falling silk,
smoothing my kimono under my knees. I smiled at the little girl, Rin, I
assumed. �There�s a toad looking for you,� I told her.
�Master Jaken�s not very good
at �seek.� She told me solemnly before laughing, one hand covering her smile. I
looked at that soft pale hand and blinked. She was very human and a demon was
looking for her. A demon who�d been talking to Sesshomaru just moments before.
�I imagine he isn�t,� I agreed
absentmindedly. Jaken wouldn�t have asked a demon lord the whereabouts of some
child, so why�?
�Rin, you have lessons to
attend,� a voice like thunder in the distance broke the thought off and I faced
the entrance of the library to find Sesshomaru there. He was always tall but
looked even more so from my position on the floor. He was looking at the small
head peeking from around the shelf, face blank and bored.
�Lord Sesshomaru!� the little
girl called with the ring in her voice that comes from happy things like gifts
and flowers.
�Go to them now.� Nothing
flickered in his eyes but she grinned and left with a skip. He watched her go
and I stood as if a string was pulled. I cleared my throat and those gold eyes
turned to me. I walked over to him, carefully swaying my hips and I smiled,
just a lift of the corners of my mouth.
�Good day, my lord.� I bowed
low, hands flat on my thighs and eyes on the floor before I stood straight.
He didn�t return my smile.
�You are about much of late.�
�I keep getting invited.
Someone enjoys my company.� He lifted an eyebrow and I simpered, covering my
mouth as I looked at him through my eyelashes. �Not you, of course.�
�Indeed.� There was nothing in
that word, nothing in his face and I wanted there to be something. Some emotion
I could latch onto and shape.
�Of course, you don�t appear
to enjoy anyone�s company.� I very nearly covered my mouth in horror. One does
not speak to lords in such a manner. One of the reasons I have been the success
that I am is because something has always seemed to guide me. It is something
that I�ve never quite understood and there were times that I have wished to
change that fact. I was opening my mouth to apologize when he spoke again.
�Why bother?� his lips
tightened. �So many brief things surround this Sesshomaru.� I attempted another
apology but he went on. �And such lowly ones at that.�
I�d never understood what
people meant when they said they saw red, until that moment. �And that�s reason
for�?
�And what a world when a whore
attempts to rebuke a lord.�
�I�m deserving of some
courtesy, I believe. I�m a human be��
�Even worse.� My teeth were
clenched as I glared up at him, trying not to say the words crowding my throat.
It was not dignified; it was not smart. A shout broke us apart.
�Oy, Kagome! What are you
doing talking to my fucking half-brother for?� It was Inuyasha coming into the
library with a smooth, long stride, one hand resting on his sword hilt as the
other hung in a balled fist at his side.
�Acting grossly inappropriate,
my apologies.� I said gently, bowing to Sesshomaru before turning to Inuyasha
with a smile and another bow. �Good day, lord.�
He turned red and scratched
his head looking distinctly uncomfortable. �Just Inuyasha.�
�Lord?�
�None of this �lord� crap,
just my name!�
�As you wish.� Inuyasha
grinned showing a disturbing amount of fang and grabbed my hand. There was some
small sound from behind me and I turned to Sesshomaru. He was looking at our
hands, eyes narrowed and I blinked turning back to Inuyasha who was talking.
�Come on, Miroku and Sango are
waiting.� I had no choice but to follow. He ignored Sesshomaru completely but I
glanced back one last time to see his face had gone blank once again. I�d seen
the expression though and that was enough.
I eyed the servants as I did
my best to appear graceful but they seemed used to the undignified manners and
actions of their youngest master. I even saw some indulgent smiles.
�What are the plans for the
day?� Inuyasha looked back at me making some �hmph�-ing noise but didn�t
answer. I was starting to ask again when another voice boomed through the hall.
�Why if it isn�t the beautiful
Kagome!� Inuyasha stopped; looking annoyed, and turned to his father with a
huff.
�Does everyone have to stop
and talk to her?�
�Yes, we do.� Inutaisho smiled
at me and didn�t bother to glare at his son. �Everyone should take every
opprtunity to speak to beautiful women.�
�My great lord must get along
wonderfully well with Miroku-san.�
Inuyasha let out a �Feh,� �You
have no idea.�
Inutaisho laughed, throwing
back his head with the force of it, a wonderfully rich sound ringing from the
walls. �We do tend to agree most of the time.�
�We have to go now,� Inuyasha
grumbled tugging my wrist hard enough for it to be a bit uncomfortable.
�Come see me sometime,
Kagome,� Inutaisho called after me. I tried to assure him that I would we were
around a corner before I had the chance.
�You�re practically a savage,�
I told the hanyou and he glared at me over his shoulder. �Stop.� I told him
softly and was pleasantly surprised when he did. He looked at me with a mix of
annoyance and curiosity and smiling I took his hand off my wrist.
�What are you doing?�
�Let�s try something else.� I
slipped an arm around one of his, clasping my hands loosely together. My
shoulder rested against his and his face went scarlet.
�I don�t��
�I might cry.�
�What!� I smiled and batted my
lashes up at him, trying not to giggle as he sputtered. Finally he settled down
grumbling and I patted the arm I encircled encouragingly.
�This won�t be quite as
uncomfortable as you pulling my arm out of my socket.�
�I�er�feh.�
�I forgive you.�
If I hadn�t known better I
would have said he was smiling. And so we walked through the halls arm in arm
and came into a room with Miroku lounging on a mat and a woman who sat as far
from him as the room allowed. They turned and for a moment all was silent as
they stared, that was until Miroku spoke up. �Lady Kagome it�s wonderful to see
you again!� He stood and walked over to me with hands extended. I started to
give him my own when he was no longer in front of me. I blinked and looked down
as I heard a moan, Miroku now lay crumpled on the floor rubbing his head
gingerly. �Let me introduce the lady Sango to you.�
The woman was standing, fist
still raised, when I bowed to her. �Good day, Lady Sango.� I was nervous, I
didn�t have much experience dealing with women outside of Naraku�s household.
She waved her hands looking
embarrassed, �oh I�m no lady.� Her hair the color of wet tree bark moved in a
graceful arch around her shoulders and large eyes went even wider as she looked
at me. Her kimono was a soft looking cotton with green and white chasing itself
across her body but beneath these sleeves were tighter sleeves; black and skintight.
I looked at her legs and saw the same fabric peeking out.
Inuyasha grunted at us and
motioned with one hand, �Kagome, Sango. Sango, Kagome,� before he lifted Miroku
off the ground with one hand.
�This is wonderful,� the monk
crowed grinning as he fixed his robes. �We�ll be surrounded by beautiful
ladies. It wouldn�t be right watching cherry blossoms without them!�
�Cherry blossoms?� I blinked
slowly before clapping happily. �Oh I hadn�t realized! This is wonderful.�
Sango and I traded a smile and I felt better at the gesture.
�Is the Lady Kikyou going to
be joining us?� Miroku asked shooting Inuyasha a sly look from the corner of
his eye.
Inuyasha looked at me then
growled hands crossed over his chest and nose pointing down in what looked very
much like a pout. �No, she�s not.�
�Who�s Kikyou?� I asked him.
With eyes darting between Miroku, Sango, and I he stuttered before whirling
around and walking for the door throwing over his shoulder. �She�s no one.� And
it was a lie.
I looked at Miroku who
scratched the back of his neck nervously then to Sango who shrugged. She
motioned to the hanyou; �I think we�re supposed to be following him now.�
�Of course,� I followed
Inuyasha out a door that led to the outside world, trying very hard to think
about nothing but how pretty his hair looked; it was like sunlight glinting off
a river, that flash of blinding white against the darker blue at the hollow of
waves.
Miroku was walking next to me
and Sango was a step behind head bowed and chewing on a lip. I glanced at Miroku
and he was walking slowly holding a golden staff that jingled pleasantly with
each step. He turned and met my eyes then looked away again. �She is his
betrothed,� he said without preamble.
�Is it something he�s unhappy
about?�
Sango hopped forward to catch
up to us. �No,� she said softly to her hands.
�Then why does he seem so
angry?�
�He CAN hear you!� Inuyasha
yelled one fist thrust into the air before he whirled around and growled at
Miroku, who stumbled back with a grin and a cheery wave. Sango followed with a
roll of her eyes and a loud sigh. There was a low rumble and Inuyasha was
suddenly walking beside me. His hands had disappeared into his red haori. He
looked both comfortable and horribly uncomfortable as he looked at me from the
corner of his eye. I just waited.
�Are you a Geisha?� he asked
suddenly and I missed a step, my foot caught on a rock and for a second I was
afraid I would be lying on my face much like Miroku after a failed attempt at
groping.
I looked at him for a moment,
noting the way his eyes were looking at a tree farther down the path, on the
opposite side from where I stood. �No.�
�Are you a��
�Why are you asking?�
He sniffed and feh-ed before
finally answering. �Because� someone said something.� He turned red and
scratched his head, musing the white bangs that hung over his eyes. �Now that I
know they aren�t true I�ll��
�What exactly was said? I�m
not a Geisha but I am�something else.� I�d been called a whore once today, why
would I have a problem with hearing it a second time? I clenched my jaw and
darted a quick glance over my shoulder. Miroku and Sango were far behind us
bickering back and forth.
�You� you aren�t a� a whore
are you?� His eyes were impossibly wide and his mouth was flapping open and
closed as he said it. I had known it was coming but I tensed for a long moment
waiting for anything else he would have to say. When nothing else came I sighed
and shook my head.
�No, I�m not a whore either.
I�m a courtesan, there�s a difference from either a Geisha or a whore.�
�Oh,� he nodded, crossing his
arms over his chest as he turned down another path with trees bending over the
road like old women whispering together. He cleared his throat and finally
looked at me, really looked. �What�s the difference?� He seemed so incredibly small
just then, as though he couldn�t look at me and see what he had seen last
night, a woman who smiled and played with his ears and didn�t sleep with men
for money.
�Purpose, how things in our
professions are handled.� He just looked at me and fought the urge to hit my
forehead with the palm of my hand. �A Geisha�s main purpose is entertainment.
She spends her time at teahouses entertaining men, giving them a pretty face to
look at and a soft voice to listen to. Yes, a Geisha will, at times, have sex with
a man for money but they�re few and far between and very carefully chosen men
that they remain with for an extended time.� I was moving my hands through the
air restlessly as I talked; a habit that I hadn�t managed to break out of; it
was something I tended to do when I was flustered, normally I was able to hold
my hands together down in front of me, to keep them out of the way. �A whore is
just about sex,� Inuyasha was a shade of red I hadn�t known existed in the
natural world, �everyday all day. They don�t carefully choose their partners
and they don�t cost very much. Any man with enough money can buy a whore off
the street.�
�Then what�?�
�A courtesan is something
between the two.� I cut him off and my hand reached out to clutch at the sleeve
of his haori. He went very still even as he walked next to me; his eyes never
left the pale skin of my hand tangled up with the blood red fabric. �A
courtesan�s main purpose is sport in the bed chamber, but we are also
companions and entertainment. I can choose my patrons and I can be as picky as
I want. There could be weeks without a patron.� I twisted the edge of his
sleeve around my finger watching his eyes watch me. �It takes money and
prestige to make a contract with a courtesan.�
�Oh,� Inuyasha turned his eyes
to the ground chewing on his bottom lip.
�Who told you what I was?� I
asked softly trying not to jar him from his thoughts, slipping the words in so
they were only just heard.
�Kikyou,� he answered absently
then jumped as he realized what he�d just answered. �I uh�didn�t��
�Is that why she isn�t joining
us today?� We walked on for a moment before he nodded reluctantly. �I see.�
Inuyasha�s head snapped up and
his eyes narrowed. �He wanted a discount!�
�What?�
�That damn pervert!� Inuyasha
turned on his heel and took a flying leap. I was left staring at the empty spot
he�d filled for a second before I heard Miroku�s yell.
�What�d I do?�
�You perverted monk!�
�What did he do now?� Sango
asked from beside me and I jumped. She smiled at my surprise looking at her
hands sheepishly.
�Inuyasha just caught up to
something said last night.� She wouldn�t lift her head to look at me but I kept
catching glimpses of brown from the corner of her eye. I had the urge to ask
her why she did it but had the feeling she wouldn�t understand what exactly I
was asking so instead I asked, �What do you do?� I reached out to touch the
black fabric peeking out from beneath her sleeve.
�Oh! I�m a demon
exterminator!� She finally looked at me.
�Inuyasha! Put that down!� A
limb flew over our heads to land on the path.
�And you�re friends with a
demon family?�
�I�m actually in their employ.
I take care of minor inconveniences.� I lifted an eyebrow and she shrugged.
�Lower level demons only, the ones that are only just above animals. Inutaisho
can�t very well run after all the demons running amok.�
�I�ll tear off your arms and
beat you with the wet ends!�
�That�s��
�Strange?�
�No.� I batted my eyelashes at
her. �Amazing was the word.�
�Oh,� her cheeks went pink and
she covered her mouth with her loose fist shyly. �Thanks.�
I slipped a hand through her
arm like I had Inuyasha earlier, just with less tensing. �Come along, all the
flowers will have fallen by the time we get to our spot.�
�That�s completely uncalled
for, Inuyasha!�
�Inuyasha could possibly yell
them from the trees,� she said with a sigh.
�Quite vocal, isn�t he?�
- 7
- 8
- 9
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The Path of Pins	By : girltype Category: InuYasha > General Views: 7418 -:- Recommendations : 0 -:- Currently Reading : 0
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The Path of Pins