What Happened? by susie

Chapter 1

Prompt:  Kagome gets drunk and things happen 

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The pain was outstanding. 

Sesshoumaru hadn’t even opened his eyes yet.  But it felt distinctly like a burly sculptor had placed a chisel directly above his right eye, cocked his mallet wielding fist back as far as he could reach, and BAM! 

His skull wouldn’t split in two, as a mortal’s surely would at such a violent action. 

But that didn’t mean it wouldn’t hurt like a motherfucker. 

Where was he? 

The last time he had felt an agony this astounding, his idiotic half-brother had chosen the most inopportune time to realize the strength of their father’s great fang. 

The resulting consequence had seen him affixed to the forest floor for days; no more able to move from his spot under the great magnolia than the dandelions rooted to the ground beside him.  And no more dangerous. 

Was this Inuyasha’s doing again? 

The two had been arguably on somewhat better terms ever since that particular skirmish.  Most likely even because of it. 

But he didn’t recall engaging in battle with him, or anyone last night. 

So what happened? 

The last thing he remembered was...  

was... 

The sculptor wound up again, and made contact with that bloody chisel.  BAM! 

A pitiful groan escaped the daiyoukai’s lips, which was admittedly a stupid thing to do. 

Until he knew where he was, it would not be wise to alert those around him of his peril.  For any who could render the great Dog Prince of the West to such a sorry state, was surely one to be wary of. 

He had to be on his toes.  But, he conceded, had his opponent wanted him dead, he certainly could have seen to it by now. 

He decided he would do well to uncover where, exactly, he was; so that he could go over his options and devise a plan. 

Easier said than done. 

His first attempt at raising his eyelids ended in miserable failure. 

Through sheer will and moderate physical effort, he found he could not accomplish his simple task. 

It was as if some extra-strength adhesive had been smeared along his lashes, preventing his body from obeying his command. 

But that was impossible.  Even the strongest of bonding agents could not hope to stifle the orders he gave to his own form. 

His second attempt saw the addition of impressive force, using the muscles in his face to force his eyelids apart, albeit with some difficulty.  This time, he was successful. 

But the moment the light broke through to his amber pools, he immediately regretted his decision. 

BAM! 

The light of day was another harsh reality, frying his delicate pupils like an iron in the fire. 

This time, at least, he kept his whimpering to himself.  He was willing to consider it progress. 

But there was an upside to gifting himself with the miracle of sight. 

The familiar pattern of his bedroom ceiling was a comforting one.  Well, as comfortable as one could be in excruciating pain. 

At least he knew where he was. 

At Home.  In his bed.  And presumably, without foe. 

So again, what happened? 

He tried to drudge up his most recent memory.  He couldn’t recall going to bed, or even entering his room.  What was the last thing he remembered doing? 

As the bullet points of yesterday trickled into his consciousness, he grabbed ahold of an especially important one. 

That’s right.  Naraku had been defeated.   

His brother’s pack had been there to aid him in battle, but it was his own skilled hand which delivered the fatal blow.  He tried to preen inwardly at his impressive accomplishment, but his self congratulations was very short lived. 

BAM! 

But the battle had not taken place at his fortress.  It had been miles away, near Inuyasha’s homestead. 

And good thing too.  The collateral damage would ensure it be years before the landscape was returned to its previous self.   

So then, why was he at home? 

The next piece of the puzzle fell into place, as he willed the mystery to unfold. 

Ah yes, the celebration. 

Somehow, in the wake of his triumph, the half breed and his companions had convinced him to hold a ‘small’ victory party in the halls of his fortress. 

Just a few allies, he was assured, to dish out back pats and atta boys.  It was well deserved.  And after the grueling months they had spent tracking the hanyou down in unenviable and usually disgusting conditions, he was informed that the band of eclectic warriors were due their hard-earned reward. 

But word had spread quickly.  Before he knew it, it seemed that every ally he had ever acquired had made the journey to his home- at lightning speed- to join the noble fighters in celebration at finally taking down the troublesome spider demon. 

Funny how they were nowhere to be found until after the battle had taken place. 

He should have killed them for such cowardice.  But his elation at finally ridding himself of that vile menace had him feeling much more generous than usual.  So he opened his gates in a very rare display, in order to play host to what had been apparently the party of the millennium. 

And once word got out, many were eager to jump at the chance to join the Western Lord at the small festival being held inside his home.  The unprecedented event was most likely a once in a lifetime opportunity. 

He had to admit, things had gotten out of hand. 

At least, they appeared to be going that way, the last he remembered. 

He’d at least had the foresight to lock away his irreplaceable heirlooms and most expensive possessions. 

The clumsy movements of over-indulgent soldiers assured that those in his employ likely had a long day of cleaning up ahead of them, in order to restore his fortress to its former glory. 

They had run out of sake, and he had just ordered his servant- who was noticeably intoxicated himself- to venture out to fetch more. 

But before the youkai returned, Sesshoumaru had been offered a drink by the Lord of the North; who was one of the few in attendance kind enough to bring his own libations to the party for sharing. 

And then...  

nothing.   

That was the last thing he remembered. 

BAM! 

His eyes slammed shut once more, but only briefly.  For he worried that if he allowed them to close for too long, he may not be able to open them again for some time. 

It seemed that whatever had ailed him was having an effect on his senses. 

He had not been able to discern his surroundings until he had opened his eyes, meaning that his sense of smell had failed him.  Irksome. 

The blood roaring in his ears was hampering his hearing as well. 

But it appeared his sense of touch had finally returned to him.  For, at that moment, the shifting of a body indecently close to his right suddenly got his attention. 

His eyes widened incredibly as the other being in his bed stretched languidly, before curling into his side and placing an audacious hand on his chest. 

“Mn.  Morning.” 

Her hoarse voice was both unrecognizable, and unmistakable. 

Her eyes remained closed, but a silly, sleepy grin appeared on her features as his brother’s miko rubbed her cheek into his shoulder, seemingly quite content to use him as a pillow. 

He was appalled at her temerity.  But more than that, he was appalled to find his own arm had already been wrapped around the young woman’s shoulders, and seemed far too comfortable there. 

Not to mention, his sense of touch was now informing him of the woman’s unquestionable nudity... and his own. 

“Miko..”  he only breathed out.  He did not hide the incredulity in his voice.  In his current state, he doubted he could.  Nor could he control the way his jaw hung open, just staring at the wayward black hair fanned out across his chest as his brain tried to make sense of what his traitorous eyes were telling him. 

At the address, she opened her own eyes to look up at him.  The normally sparkling blue appeared glassy, with red rimming the irises in a way which had him believing- for a brief second- that perhaps mikos had a beast of their own to contend with.  Though even in such a state, her ocean depths were bereft of none of the warmth she always held there. 

The knowledge had him somewhat relieved, though he could not for the life of him consider why. 

Her head remained on his chest, and her smile never left her face.  If anything, it seemed to grow as she took in the sight of him. 

He could only stare down at her for a long, wordless moment.  His brain short circuited as it failed to make the connections he so desperately needed. 

Dragging his tongue across the roof on his mouth, in an unsuccessful attempt to wet the sticky cotton that had apparently taken purchase there, he tried- also unsuccessfully- to not sound moronic as he put voice to the half-realized question arriving stillborn from his mind. 

He kept the tremble out of his tenor, though his breath was unquestionably shaky. 

“Did we...?”  The uncertainty in his tone was foreign to his own ears.  And he could feel her nodding her head as she regarded him smugly. 

“Mm-hmm.”  Her reply straddled the border of gratitude and pride; barely pausing a moment before she saw fit to offer praise.  “And you were incredible.”  She closed her eyes again, and nuzzled into his bare chest even further. 

He tensed at the news.  He supposed he didn’t need the conformation.  Their suggestive position- not to mention the sticky feeling he now realized was saturating his cock- could have told him as much.   

But despite his discomfort, he did not remove his arm from her. 

“How?” was all he could ask.  She seemed far less concerned with the details than he did. 

She lifted a mocking brow. 

“You really need me to explain it to you?” her raspy voice teased. 

He was in no mood for her taunting, and his irritated glare told her so.  It did not have the effect he was hoping for, however, as she didn’t seem frightened in the least. 

“You really don’t remember?” she asked, looking up at him almost sympathetically. 

Jaw still agape, he only shook his head. 

“I guess I shouldn’t be surprised.  You were pretty out of it.” 

He tried to look mortified, but nothing could override the disbelief he felt at having been out of control. 

He could hold his drink.  And he hadn’t really had that much. 

“It’s a shame though.  You had a really good time.” 

Her comment was dripping with suggestion, made all the worse by the way she began drawing ticklish patterns on his pecks with her fingers. 

He grabbed her hand in his to halt her actions, and command her attention. 

“Miko, what happened?” he begged. 

He scooted back to sit up, and she moved with him as he did.  She still clung to his form as they changed their positions. 

The sheet covering them both pooled around her waist.  And he was thrown off by the fact that the usually- despite her revealing outfits- modest woman had absolutely no qualms about exposing her lush breasts to his increasingly shocked gaze. 

He hadn’t the strength to attempt to avert his eyes, or even appear like he was doing so.  She smirked at the attention.  After last night, she had no reason to be shy with him.  They were way past that now. 

She smiled warmly at him as he awaited her response with baited breath.  In a fine act of mercy, she decided to inform him quickly. 

“Your buddy,” she began, taking a moment to lick her lips so that she may continue, “that lord... The loud one from the North-” 

“Yoshi?” he supplied, and she brightened- much more cheerily than he felt the situation warranted. 

“Yes, that’s it!” she smoothed his shoulder, doing her best to placate him.  She only hesitated a moment, before she made her confession.  “I saw him put something in your drink.” 

He scowled as his eyes darkened menacingly.  It would have scared her, but with all they had now experienced together, she didn’t know if she would ever regard him with the same fearfulness again. 

“What was it?” he immediately demanded, failing once again at instilling any measure of terror. 

She shrugged, letting a yawn escape her as she began to answer. 

“Some sort of berry.  Dragon’s berry?  Dragon’s fruit?” 

A dark foreboding came over his features. 

“Dragon’s blood?” 

“Yes, that's it!”  He winced at the conformation. 

She wrinkled her nose, and did her best to keep the mood light.   

“Ew, such a gross name.  Really packs a punch, though.” 

The incredibly toxic berry was potent even to demons.  One or two could ensure a very good time, so they were quite popular among his kind.  But they had never inspired results such as this for him.  Not even close. 

“You had me drugged?!” 

He raised his voice, and the result had both of them grimacing in pain at the volume. 

“No!” she assured him.  “I only watched him do it!” 

Like that was any better.  The two were in cahoots, as far as he was concerned.  Such treason demanded swift- and fatal- retaliation. 

But for the moment, he could only offer his disappointment. 

It seemed that his trust had been misplaced.  Though he was a bit startled to realize the woman had ever held his confidence in the first place.  When had that happened? 

He deflated slightly; slouching his shoulders and tossing her a sidelong pout. 

“Why would you allow such a thing?” 

The defeated hurt in his tone caused guilt to coarse through her. 

His hangover must be terrible for him to betray any emotion, and she was not happy to find it was regret. 

But it wasn’t her fault, and she felt the need to explain herself. 

“Well, by then, he had already slipped one in my drink too,” she explained.  “It had a very liberating effect.”  She forced an incriminating smile, while running a soothing touch up and down his arm.  “It seemed funny at the time...” 

And it had.  But by the time the sneaky lord had informed her of what she consumed, the berry was already taking effect.  If they could render a powerful demon like Sesshoumaru incoherent, the results on a puny human were nothing she was fit to contend with. 

It hadn’t been long before her serotonin was soaring.  Everything seemed quite amusing to her, and terrible ideas indeed seemed like great ones. 

When the lord informed her that Sesshoumaru was the next target, she could only commend the youkai for his genius.  If anyone needed to loosen up a bit, it was the Lord of the Western Lands. 

He was only slightly off kilter from the sake he had consumed.  But it was just enough to distract him from having his drink spiked. 

He eyed her dubiously, as he seemed to size her up and down. 

“If you were given the berry as well, how is it that you can recall the evening, and I cannot?” 

It didn’t make sense.  True, she looked very worn out.  But she did not appear to even have a headache.  And his immune system was far superior in every way.  Maybe mikos could purify demon toxins as well.. 

She looked sheepish as she tried to explain. 

“They told me they only slipped me one.  But a great daiyoukai, they figured, would need far more than that.” 

Her attempts as flattery were getting her nowhere.  And the crease in his brow told her he wasn’t buying it. 

“How many?” he demanded. 

She averted her eyes, trying to recall. 

“I dunno.  Like 10.”  She winced.  “At least.” 

He rubbed his free hand over the length of his face.  That would more than explain his current state. 

On his most degenerate night, he had never consumed more than three.  But though he had experienced a quite stimulating effect, he had always retained perfect control of his faculties. 

She smoothed her hand over his back empathetically, rubbing to and fro to sooth him as best she could.  He allowed her to comfort him for only a moment, before turning to her. 

“Are you not upset?” he asked with a frown.  “Those lords drugged you.” 

The knowledge enraged him anew.   Committing such an offense against him was outrageous in its own rite.  But she was just a tiny girl!  A mere slip of a thing.  Not that she wasn’t powerful; he had long ago conceded that.  But the berries they had used were incredibly strong.  Any male could have taken advantage of her in such a state.  And if had not been him, it surely would have been another. 

Somewhere in the back of his mind, he was relieved she had accompanied him, instead of falling victim to the advances of another amorous male.  But he was not at all pleased with how the circumstances had allowed it. 

He felt ashamed at his actions, though she didn’t seem beside herself with upset. 

“Well, I would have been,” she offered honestly, and a soft smile graced her exhausted features.  “But we had such a great time.” 

He was at a loss for words at the miko’s calm reaction.  She had every right to be upset, with every party involved.  But she was being incredibly understanding, all things considered. 

If she was willing to forgive such a thing, it really must have been some night.  Pity he couldn’t remember it. 

“I never would have guessed you were capable of such passion.”  Her hand on his shoulder pulled him slightly from his defeated slouch.  He was captivated by her sincerity.   

“You never show an ounce of emotion.  But last night...” a dreamy, far off look came over her delicate features.  She looked as if she had to shake herself of the memory before being able to continue her thought.  She grinned shyly, and softly at him again. “You must be saving it all for moments like that.  You were so wild... untamed...”  That dreamy look again had him dumbstruck.  “I didn’t think I’d ever see you out of control like that.  I really, really liked it.” 

A genuine smile accompanied her confession.  He was compelled to respond in kind, but he simply could not.  This was so much all at once, and he was rendered immobile. 

The news did not please him.  It was unacceptable that any would ever witness him in such a state.  He was always in control.  The perpetrators of this indignity would pay dearly for their crimes. 

 But her unyielding acceptance did well at tempering his upset.  He was not entirely sure how to move forward from here. 

He was at least pleased that she seemed to be taking it in stride.  If she could accept what they had done, perhaps he could too. 

“I swear, I wasn’t planning on this,” she insisted.   

He doubted she had been behind it.  It just wasn’t her style.  She appeared to have gotten caught up in this ill-conceived prank just as much as he.  “But you were so charming after that,” she assured him.  “The total life of the party.”  A sly grin met his eyes, while he dreaded her next words.  She bit her lip in a not entirely unpleasant manner.  “Not to mention, you are an amazing dancer.” 

“Dancer?!”  Both his eyebrows receded into his mussed sliver bangs. 

He did not dance.  Not EVER.   

Great. 

Now, not only did he have to kill the Northern Lord and his henchmen, he had to kill every being who had witnessed his indiscretions at the party. 

What else had he done?  Who else knew that he had taken the miko to his bed? 

Oh, kami.  Did he indulge in shows of affection with her in the company of his guests as well?  He wanted to ask, but he wasn’t certain he wanted to know.  In fact, he was quite certain he didn’t. 

She felt as if she could read his thoughts. 

“You really don’t remember?”  she sadly asked.  She felt terrible for him.  Not because of his actions the night before.  He hadn’t been at all foolish.  He was just having fun.  He never cut loose in his whole life, and he had finally been able to enjoy himself among his peers.  With her.   

It was depressing that he could not recall the fantastic time they’d had together.  Could such a thing ever happen again?  She wanted to find out. 

“If you were able to do all that,” she rubbed his leg, making it clear she was referring to their more private activities, “I am really curious as to what you can do when you are in your right mind.”  The mischief in her eyes could not hide her desire.  “Then again, maybe it’s your instincts taking over that allowed for such a performance.” 

Reminder of the night they’d just shared had the young miko pressing herself closer to him. 

He seemed lost in his musings as she placed open mouthed kisses along his jaw, and made her way down his neck.  He allowed the attention, but likely only because he was so obviously distracted by his own thoughts. 

“It doesn’t seem fair that I get to remember all that, and you are left with nothing but second hand accounts from the best night of your life- your words, not mine.” 

He was furious with the Northern Lord.  What was he thinking doing something so outrageous?  Was he still here?  It would save the demon lord a lot of trouble tracking him down if the audacious youkai happened to pass out in one of his guest rooms. 

He now had to kill him.  And he was not looking forward to breaking in the demon’s young heir who would be forced to take on the position prematurely. 

But he was becoming distracted from his rage by the miko at his side; who was leaning into him to purposefully lick and nip a suggestive path down his chest. 

The arousal she induced seemed to startle him from his murderous thoughts. 

“What are you doing?” 

Eyes shining with faux innocence batted up at him, and she paused- only momentarily- from her journey down his amazing body. 

“Giving you something to remember.”  He huffed, though he made no move to stop her.  She squirmed closer to get herself into a more efficient position. 

She put her lips against his ear, giving a slow lick before she spoke against it.  The action caused him to shiver. 

“You know, they say that an orgasm is very effective in curing a pounding headache.” 

He could only lift his eyebrow in response to that.   

He had definitely heard of worse ways to kill a hangover.  He supposed it was worth a shot. 

He weaved his fingers through her hair as she nibbled lightly on his earlobe; closing his eyes in pleasure for a moment as he basked in her wonderful assault. 

The sculptor did seem to have lowered his chisel, and Sesshoumaru released a relieved breath. 

“Plus, I want to compare you now to last night.”  Her lips tickled his ear again as she kindly whispered lowly into it.  And even kinder, she moved her hand to grab gently at another appendage, which he quickly discovered was now somewhat tender from the night before.   

“I am dying to learn the difference between blackout drunk Sesshoumaru, and fully cognizant Sesshoumaru.” 

He was going to kill those lords who dosed him. 

But, he decided, it could wait until the miko had conducted her experiment. 

With one swift movement, he had her pinned beneath him. 

She giggled as he hovered over her, and finally took her lips with his own. 

He allowed his hands to roam over her body, and she more than encouraged the attention. 

Fully resigned, he put himself to work in doing his best to recreate his actions from the night before. 

They’d already done it apparently, so what the hell?  Maybe this would knock some memories loose for him to analyze. 

He supposed it was only fair to give them both something to remember.