Not So Subtly Subtle by TheMikoShivae

Not So Subtly Subtle

Word Count: 300

She had to admit, it sounded almost foolproof. Not even Inuyasha could screw it up. Heck, all he had to do was taunt his brother, which he did anyways.

Was it worth the risk? Of course it was. If they were successful in their plight, Sesshoumaru would become their ally. But his pride would make any blatant attempts to combine forces almost surely fail. So the humans had decided to subtly discuss it while the Lord was in hearing range. The best way to keep him in range of such conversations was, of course, to have his "bastard brother" call him every name that his meager mind could think of.

Kagome giggled as she went over the plan one last time. If Inuyasha knew she was purposefully leading the group towards his brother, he would undoubtedly throw a fit.

Without warning, Sesshoumaru sprang from the trees and began striking at Inuyasha. It was time. Quickly, Kagome blurted out that if Sesshoumaru couldn't even beat his own brother, how did he expect to beat Naraku alone? For that, she received a piercing glare. The small pack continued to "mumble" about Inuyasha's lack of leadership capabilities, and several other feigned insults towards the two brothers.

Finally, Sesshoumaru had heard enough. He huffed indignantly. It was obvious what they wanted. However much he despised Inuyasha, his honor would not let him walk away. He was their alpha, no matter what Inuyasha tried to say otherwise.

He walked toward the ragtag group, taking his time to give them each a once-over to assess their usefulness. They seemed to be a well rounded team overall. What they were lacking was a tactical mind to lead them in the heat of battle. He would fill that niche better than his little brother could ever dream of.

A/N: I wanted to challenge myself a little further and use the prompt in as many ways as possible without actually using the word itself, and this was the result! Feel free to leave a review. :D :D :D