Shaken – Part I
Welcome to my 4th Sesshoumaru/Kagome one-shot (though let’s face it…this is probably going to be in two-parts)! Sesshoumaru doesn’t make that much of an appearance but it’s Sesshoumaru/Kagome centric (and let’s face it, we wouldn’t have it any other way!). Please let me know what you think. He’ll have more of a role very soon. ~ Lady Wystaerya
Disclaimer: I do not own Inu-Yasha or any of its components. I simply own the storyline present in this little one-shot (which is probably going to be a two-shot).
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I admire our ancestors, whoever they were. I think the first self-conscious person must have shaken in his boots. Because as he becomes self-conscious, he's no longer part of nature. He sees himself against nature. He looks at the vastness of the universe and it looks hostile.
~~John Shelby Spong
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Kagome winced as Shippo, her little fox-kit surrogate son, took a dive into the hot-spring, splattering water everywhere.
“Shippo, careful, you’ll get soap in your eyes and it’s not going to feel good.” She chided lightly before picking him up and setting him on her lap before running her fingers through his orange-red hair. She’d never seen him shift into his form, but perhaps he was too young to know how to do so. She’d seen Sesshoumaru’s demon form, and as a half-demon Inu-Yasha did not turn into an actual demon. No, he became far more deranged, never mind the lack of control, and how he almost ---
“Kagome? Kago—Ow!”
Kagome drew back sharply, startled, when her fingers caught a small tangle in Shippo’s hair.
“Oh! Sorry Shippo! Are you alright?” she exclaimed.
Sango, straightened, and with a frown, she pulled her wet hair out of her face. The sheepish, apologetic look on Kagome’s face was enough to tell her precisely where her mind went.
“Yeah, it just smarts a little.” The kit winced before hopping off Kagome’s lap and back into the water.
Before Kagome could apologize once more, Sango splashed at her friend once more.
“Kagome – what’s wrong? You haven’t been yourself lately.” Sango remarked, propping herself up on one of the smoother rocks at the edge of the pool. She sat cross-legged with Kilala resting on her lap.
The fire cat-demon’s two tails flicked back and forth while she was in her smaller form – a seemingly innocent little kitten who just so happened to turn into a large enough cat that could carry two people. But, what use was there to be in her larger state when there wasn’t a threat. The largest would-be threat was their current ally – never mind the fact he was a canine, and more than ten times her size. If Kilala could speak – well, she’d tell her Mistress that she and the monk needed to get over themselves already. She would bite Inu-Yasha’s head off and drop it in the undead-wretch’s lap. Oh, and she would pick up Lady Kagome by the scruff of her neck (if she had a scruff), and plop her right into the Demon Lord’s lap. She was a cat – not an idiot. She knew how the two of them looked at each other when they thought no one else was looking.
If only she could speak.
Kilala grumbled under her breath and flicked her tails back and forth. She purred in delight when Sango started scratching behind her black-tipped ears.
Humans. Why do they always make things so damn complicated?
Though, she supposed demons were no better – constantly hiding behind their pride – especially when they had titles and reputations. She would have to defer to Lord Sesshoumaru for that.
Her ears twitched once more when the priestess started talking.
“I was just thinking about Shippo – and his needing to learn how to shift. I’m human. I can’t show him how to change into his demon form. I don’t think his father’s taught him before the Thunder Brothers killed him. “
“I don’t need to learn. As long as I can use my fox-fire and help protect you and everyone else, then I’ll be okay.” Shippo chimed in with a huff.
“Shippo, that’s sweet of you, but I can only offer you so much.” Kagome shook her head. “I’m human. I’m not a demon like you and I can’t teach you the things that you need to know – that you need to learn. You could be hurt, or worse, killed if you don’t harness your full potential. With someone like Naraku – ”
“But I don’t wanna find a kitsune[1] village. I don’t wanna leave, Kagome. You’re my momma.”
“Oh sweetheart, I won’t be leaving you anytime soon.” Kagome sighed, moving to wrap her arms around the small creature.
“But you’re thinking about it! You can’t leave me with Inu-Yasha. And he’s mean. You know how mean he can get!” Shippo fussed, burying his face into this mother’s shoulder. Kagome gave Sango a hopeless look as she rubbed the small kit’s back. She was not ready for this. She was not ready for any of this.
“And it’s not as if Inu-Yasha will help him either, you know.” Sango murmured. “He hates it when you pay more attention to Shippo than him. And you know how he can get. He won’t teach Shippo anything. Never mind the fact that they’re not the same type of demon – Inu-Yasha can’t even control his demon blood without his father’s sword and that makes him a very, very dangerous liability. You can’t trust him with your son.” Sango added, moving to stand and pull herself up and out of the water. She grabbed the towel and wrapped it around her frame before pulling her hair up into a bun.
“I wasn’t going to ask Inu Yasha for help. And you’re right – I can’t trust him.” Kagome answered before she hugged Shippo close. She sighed softly and kept brushing down Shippo’s wet hair, even more carefully than before – she remembered the snag from earlier – she did not want to hurt him again.
“You won’t?” Shippo sniffled, looking up at her.
“Then who?” Sango asked, hands on her hips. “I’m a demon slayer, Miroku’s a monk who’s more of a lecher than a holy man, and you’re a priestess. None of us have what it takes to teach Shippo what he needs to know.”
“Sesshoumaru’s with us.”
Sango visibly paled and Shippo’s bright green eyes widened.
Kagome sat the kit down next to her and moved to stand carefully; she was not going to slip and fall back into the water and she needed to finish some work.
“It’s not ideal and it’s very, very unlikely that he will want to help more than he’s already offered. But it’s worth a try.” Kagome continued before looking towards Shippo, “But that choice is yours, Shippo. I won’t ask him if you don’t want me to – but you need something – for you.”
“I think that’s okay…but Kagome?”
“Kagome – this is a very bad idea. He’s a demon. A demon lord. Even if he does set aside his pride to help you, that doesn’t mean he’s going to be able to teach everything he needs. He’s a dog demon. Shippo’s a fox. Their similarities will only go so far until Shippo will need to learn skills that are unique to his people. And the kitsune are few and far between – most of them are hidden because of the mess that both humans and demons are faced with.”
“I didn’t say it was going to be easy. Besides, what’s the worse response we can get, hm?” Kagome answered. She felt her uncertainty fade to determination as she reached for her own towel that rested with a pile of their things – her bows and arrows, their clothes, Sango’s Hiraikotsu[2] and sword. “At worst, he’ll say no. At best, he’ll say yes and ask a favor in return. And unlike some we’ve met – we know he’s honorable.”
With that, Kagome toweled off quickly and pulled on her priestess’s kimono. The white and red fabric felt better now that it was clean. Like Sango, she pulled her damp hair back, though into a bun at the top of her head before dressing Shippo and gathering their things.
“Kagome – that’s suicide. He’ll kill you.” Sango argued. “And as much as I’m thankful that he’s helping us, he still shouldn’t be trusted.”
“If we can’t trust our allies, then who can we trust?” Kagome answered stubbornly. She brushed her bangs out of her face and sighed. Perhaps Sango was right – this entire ordeal would be a fool’s errand, even if she was doing it for the good of her son.
She paused.
“Shippo – what do you think? Would you like me to ask Lord Sesshoumaru for his help?”
“Only if he promises he won’t take me away from you and only if he still lets me play with Rin.” Shippo answered warily.
Kagome nodded.
“I’ll…have a word with him then.” She answered.
Sango threw her hands up in frustration – or perhaps it was disbelief – before dropping them back to her sides. She warned her friend. Warned her. And if that Demon Lord so much as made a single gesture towards her friend, she would put him down herself – or at least die trying.
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A/N: That’s it for now, my dears! I already know how I’m going to continue this story. I look forward to writing more of my favorite couple!
[1] Kitsune – Japanese fox demon. They’re often considered tricksters due to their ability to shape shift and create illusions.
[2] Hiraikotsu – Sango’s pmain weapon of choice, an oversized boomerang. Directionly trancelates to “flying return bone”, it’s made of purified (cleansed) demon bones.