The Demon Lord Who Never Laughed by Jafndaegur

The Demon Lord Who Never Laughed

a/n: So this is actually my submission for the Sesskag Prompt Raffle! My prompt "Fairytale AU" was submitted by Mythicamagic.

Well... my prompt was originally "Fairytale AU" and while I tried to make it more of an AU of "The Princess Who Never Smiled"... it ended up being more of an...inspired by.

Still I hope you (both Myth and everyone!) enjoy ^^

...

Kagome realized she’d never seen Sesshomaru laugh. The daiyoukai’s odd little group took their own fair share of boisterous noise - Rin’s laughter was easy to pick out. It was jingling and cheery like bells in the winter. And Jaken too had his own cackles that sent chills down her spine and a narrowed glare to her eyes, it was cruel and mocking. Even the dragon Ah-Un had amused little huffs that escaped it when it found joy in a head pat or its favorite meal. But not once from the ragtag team had she heard even the slightest chuffed from Sesshomaru.

Although at the beginning, Inuyasha’s near death could cause the slightest of quirks to his lips. But even now that had ceased to provide what little amusement it may have before. 

Kagome tapped her chin. Regrettably curiosity had always been a strong and overwhelming emotion for her—wanting to understand and question. So when Sesshomaru’s group decided to camp on the outskirts of Kaede’s village for the night, Kagome had a terrible idea to do something. Something she probably shouldn't do. 

But hey. It was a Monday. Everyone else from her’s and Inuyasha’s group was already asleep. So she had nothing better to do. She was clear.

Her feet padded carefully along the ground as she created her own plan of attack. A joke would probably get her mauled and a prank would most certainly find her disemboweled. She wasn’t quiet sure what could get the demonic lord to laugh. But perhaps Rin could lend some light on the subject. The little girl was the stoic dog demon’s constant companion, not the groveling suck-up that Jaken was, but a genuine person interested in her guardian’s friendship. 

It wasn’t until a twig cracked underneath her foot that she heard an indignant squawk and the insufferable nasally voice of Sesshomaru’s steward.

“Wench!” Jaken shrieked. “What are you doing here? Spying? On lord Sesshomaru?”

She was so not in the mood for his shenanigans. And for as terrifying as Jaken liked to huff and puff himself, she knew that in all honesty she could punt the little imp out of existence if she wanted to. So for now, until she could locate Rin, she planned to ignore him. Although that in itself was a feat that she felt was quite on par with making the dog demon laugh. Because the incessant squabbling of the toad practically biting at her ankles was seriously starting to grate at her nerves. 

Just as she finally noted the pinprick of firelight that she assumed was Sesshomaru’s camp—she’d had it up to the end of her rope with the imp. Turning sharply on her toes, Kagome inhaled deeply before delivering the sharpest and hardest kick she could to the tiny creature. 

In all fairness, she should have expected nothing good to come out of this plan.

It was the most opportune time for Rin and Ah-Un to show up, the little girl riding on the back of the dragon with a groggy interest as she rubbed the sleep from her eyes. Kagome had approximately four seconds to twist her foot out of the way as to not kick Jaken directly at the little girl. In turn however, that resulted in losing her balance and  falling on top of the dragon’s tail with a startled yelp. This then led to the dragon rearing back on its hind legs in surprise before taking off in a sprint. 

So picture the image that greeted Sesshomaru—when his ward came barreling into the came, the sheer joy and delight radiating from her squealing giggles—as Ah-Un stampeded into their little camp circle, with Kagome frantically holding onto the two-headed dragon’s tail and Jaken chasing them with his indignant little squawks. 

The daiyoukai stood sharply, drawing all of their attention. His features were as immovable as ever, his brow furrowed and his eyes narrowed.

Everybody stopped in their places. Jaken was mid-step. Kagome fell to the floor from the dragon’s lifted tail. Rin bit her lip to keep the peals of joy at bay while her little sides shook.

It was only a lip twitch, but the young miko felt her soul leave her body. A lip twitch from Sesshomaru meant he was going to kill all of them. And maybe especially her just for good measure. She waited for the rebuke and-or the following fatal blow. 

Instead, his fist balled and she suddenly felt very light-headed. This is it, Kagome thought. He’s going to pummel me to death for disturbing the peace.

But the beating never came. His fist suddenly flew to his face, and his hand covered his mouth as the most undignified snort, flew past his lips. 

It was something a bit like a fairytale, that specially happy miracle happening only after the most absurd occurrence of slapstick. And perhaps in this sense, she was lucky. For the first time in a long time—if ever—Kagome watched as his gold eyes widened and disbelief as his eyebrows raised. The only sound in the camp now was the increasing amount of Rin’s stifled giggles. Sesshomaru swiveled his gaze from his ward, to his steward, and then finally to his tentative ally. After a moment, his expression still kept in that wide-eyed shock, he finally spoke.

“Miko.” His voice muffled behind the shield of his hand. “You will tell no one.”

“If only I can make you laugh again.” Kagome found that an incredibly high amount of smugness and pride fluttered in her chest. 

She smiled widely when Sesshomaru’s shoulders shook as he bit back another snort.