Slip by Mynameishuman

Slip

For some beings, peril followed them around like bad karma – one misstep and down you go. For others, there could only be grace inherent, gliding from place to place like a shadow.

Sesshomaru, finding himself in a precarious state of affairs, could only maintain that neither were true for him currently.

Miko limbs were tangled in his own. Sweet-scented raven hair mingled with silver strands and splashed across his chest, a smear of pitch over white silks.

A pleasant weight was settled haphazardly atop him.

Sesshomaru’s fingers twitched, the soft material of Kagome’s jacket having surrendered beneath his claws as the pair had fallen into a graceless heap.

With an inaudible sigh, Sesshomaru allowed his head to drop onto the slick patch of ice beneath him, reaching up to pass a fleeting hand over his eyes.

“Are you hurt?”

“Um… I don’t think so. You?”

Seeking careful purchase on the ice, Kagome tried to push herself up and away from Sesshomaru’s heat. As luck would have it, Kagome was one of those beings constantly finding trouble.

Her hand slipped, and with a comical squeak her face was pressed into Sesshomaru’s chest once again.

He felt the heat of her embarrassment through his silk, fueling his own.

“I am well,” he said with a subtle attempt at clearing his throat, his mouth having suddenly gone dry.

Taking a moment to fully realize his predicament, his mild discomposure grew. Kagome’s heat was pressed fully against him, permitting him to feel her body in a way he had yet to be allowed. Relaxing his fingers from her jacket, he settled his hand at her waist, hoping to distract from his half-realized erection.

“It seems I owe you new outerwear.”

“Hm?” Kagome’s face remained hidden, her blush blazing over her cheeks, surely as red as a blood moon.

His fingers grazed her hip, almost sensually, and she nearly didn’t feel the winter chill through the new gaps in her jacket.

“The material is ripped,” he said, and she shuddered, finally lifting heavy-lidded blue eyes to meet his.

“Did you mean it? Or… or were you just teasing me when you said –”

“That I would have you for a lover?” He smirked slightly, his free hand trailing gingerly up her clothed arm. Her eyes widened before settling into a smoldering look he’d swear could melt the ice they’d slipped on. “Did you mean it when you said –”

“That I’d accept if you asked? Yes, I meant it.”

Sesshomaru paused, regarding her closely for any sign of discomfort or insincerity and finding only a genuine honesty. And something else. Something he recognized. Something a bit more innate.

He smothered the urge to bare all his teeth in a grin, instead glancing away nonchalantly, absentmindedly spooling a lock of her hair between his fingers.

“It is bold statements such as that one that find us here, on the ice-covered forest floor. You are aware of this, priestess; are you not?”

“Are you saying it’s my fault you slipped and took me down with you?”

Though he didn’t look at her, she could feel the humor behind his words.

“Are you suggesting that I am to blame?”

Kagome didn’t try to hide the victorious smile she directed at him.

“I’m suggesting you heard something that took you so off-guard that you lost your footing on the ice and you slipped. Caring priestess that I am, of course I rushed in to save you.” She sighed, blinking her eyes away with mock guilt. “But it was useless. In the end, I failed and here we are.”

“Hnn… misery does love company.” He was quiet a moment, contemplative as his gaze drifted back to her face. “Are you agreeing?”

Her eyes met his in a flash, not missing a beat.

“Are you asking?”

His fingers tangled more securely in her hair, pulling her closer.

“You should know: I do not share.” His words were a whisper across her lips.

“Not a fan, myself.”

He pulled her closer still, lips nearly brushing.

“Will you consent to being mine, Kagome?”

“I thought you’d never ask,” she breathed before leaning in, capturing his lips in what would be the first of many shared moments just the same.