ADORATION by Oroyukae

Reunions Can Be Fun

I WROTE THIS PIECE AS A GIFT FOR TANA_SAN AS A MERE TOKEN OF MY GRATITUDE FOR HER KIND WORDS AND FRIENDSHIP. IT WAS SPARKED BY THE WONDERFULLY FLUFFY SONG, "MY EYES ADORED YOU", BY THE FABULOUS FRANKIE VALI AND THE FOUR SEASONS...WHICH I DO NOT OWN IN ANY WAY. HOWEVER, IT IS NOT A SONGFIC: I JUST LIKE TO LISTEN TO MUSIC AS I WRITE. IN ANY CASE, I HOPE SHE LIKES IT.

TANA....THIS IS FOR YOU, MY FRIEND.

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Deep amber eyes scanned the seemingly endless sea of faces yet again, searching for the very person that had made him even consider showing up at the reprehensible event known as his five-year class reunion. Kagome Higurashi; oh, how he had adored her in the days of his misspent youth, deemed as such simply because he had allowed himself to become...distracted during his high school career. The tiny female had been the sole cause for many unfortunate occurrences during that part of his life, beginning with his being held back during his sophomore year, just so he would not graduate before her and find himself heading off to college...leaving her behind. Father had been utterly mortified by that shocking occurrence, claiming that it was humiliating to their family name; he sought to have the problem corrected, but Sesshoumaru fought that at every turn and eventually won said fight to satisfaction. No one knew the true reason for his uncharacteristic change, for he felt it was no one's business but his own.

Aside from that though, said reason was significantly more embarrassing to him than his being retained a year for there were those who would have sought to use that information against him at some point. It made him literally cringe just recalling some of the extreme measures that he had willingly gone to in order to ensure that he remained with the girl as long as was possible. It had been worth the effort though, that he could not, and would not, deny. Looking back on that time even now, he had no regrets whatsoever about allowing himself to be labeled as 'problematic'; it had definitely been well worth it, for he had been granted an extra year in which he would have the small human girl in his life.

If only she had known about his affinity for her, perhaps things might have turned out different for them; maybe, they would have become a couple and he would not have spent the last five years of his life yearning for a woman that was beyond his reach. Unfortunately, during their high school years, the girl had allowed his despicable half-sibling to woo her into a relationship that had been far from productive. He had bore witness to the worthless half-breed's reprehensible treatment of the girl on numerous occasions, treatment that she did not deserve. Inuyasha had been a selfish, spoiled, self-absorbed prick and should not have been allowed the time of day, but Kagome had been deceived by the fucker from the word go and could not see Inuyasha for what he really was then.

So it went; his secret love for the raven-haired goddess who had been unaware that she was even that, or that there was at least one being in the world who worshipped the ground that she walked upon, longing in vain for but one chance to prove himself worthy to worship at the temple that was her perfect, petite form. His half-sibling had no clue as to just what he had in Kagome; that bastard had chosen to make a fool out of the girl on a regular basis, done so with the way he whored around on his female every chance that he got. Kagome had refused to believe the rumors about 'the love of her life', or so she had titled the disgusting cur back then; she had been so very trusting and naive, gods love her. It had devastated her when Inuyasha broke her heart on the night of graduation, telling her that he had chosen to attend a different University than the one that they had agreed upon, and that their relationship had come to an end.

As if that was not bad enough, the cursed brat had decided to humiliate her that night as well; how it must have hurt her to hear him finally admit that he had not been faithful to their relationship. The bastard actually had the stones to smile in her face as he had said it too, offering up dates and times as proof when Kagome said that he was lying to her. Just why the girl had chosen to believe that Inuyasha was fabricating his confession of infidelity remained unknown, but it had happened.  Then...then came the anticipated question as to why the vile creature had seen his way fit to do such a thing to her; why he had deemed it necessary to humiliate her as he had instead of telling her there was a problem so that they might have tried to fix it. Oh; the things that Inuyasha had said to her then were both unnecessary and outright cruel. Who was that cur to tell Kagome that she was too needy and clingy; that she left much to be desired as a lover and needed to take lessons on the subject? Did the fucker not know that such a thing was instinctual and that took a real arts man to coax said instincts to the surface? Apparently not, and it honestly came as no real surprise to Sesshoumaru either; his younger sibling was a spoiled and self-centered individual, it only made sense that those less-than-admirable qualities carried over into the bedroom.

While it had happened, he had been unable to interfere on his friend's behalf; it had been a matter involving the couple's relationship and therefore, there was nothing that he could do until the last word was uttered and things were officially ended. That part had been so very hard for him to adhere to, he had to admit; his inner self had literally roared in outrage over the way Inuyasha had treated his friend, calling for the hanyou's pain and suffering to atone for the reprehensible treatment she was being subjected to. Only the silent vow to approach her once the matter was finished seemed to ease that part of him, telling himself that they would console her, dry her tears over the vile half-breed, and then announce their long time adoration for Kagome in the hopes that she would be receptive to their affections. It was now his shot at making the girl happy, at making her see that there were good honorable males out there in the world who could recognize a good female when they saw one, and knew just how to treat said female as she deserved to be treated too. Kagome would forget that she had ever associated with the undeserving bastard, his very name would become nothing more than a mere echo in the far recesses of the girl's mind...forgotten and lost to her conscious thought.

His time did not come though, for the girl rushed out in a fit of tears the likes of which he had never seen before. With all that he was, he wanted to go to her but several beings had stopped him, telling him that she needed time alone to deal with the hurt that his half-sibling had inflicted upon her. One of those beings was her very close female friend, Sango; to his own dismay, he had listened to the young woman and refrained from following Kagome that night. As a result, the young Inu Daiyoukai had decided to unleash his raging emotions upon the one being present that deserved it...and unleash them he did. He had held nothing back from the loathsome disreputable creature that bore the same blood as he, and he had felt nothing but immense satisfaction and pleasure from it too. Inuyasha had taken a very brutal beating that night, the very night before he, Sesshoumaru, had departed for college; it took two weeks for the bastard to heal from what Sesshoumaru did to him, and Sesshoumaru had not felt remorseful for doing it whatsoever. Inuyasha had deserved that ass-kicking, and everyone had agreed with him...even their own sire.

He lost contact with her after that night; she had refused his calls over and over again, having started them the very second Inuyasha was unconscious and the healer sought to repair some of the extreme damage that Sesshoumaru had done. Five years had passed since then, and he had allowed himself to become immersed in his studies, working diligently to excel and achieved his degree earlier than anticipated. The bright and successful young man had graduated his way into his position as Vice President of the family business, a position that he had held now for just over eight months. All the while, he had never stopped thinking about the woman named Kagome Higurashi, wondering what might have been. He would not have treated her so despicably; he would have been monogamous, keeping himself only unto her...just as a productive and healthy relationship between a male and a female should be. Had she not given her love to the half-breed, she would have known of nothing but love and happiness on his arm; but she did give her love to Inuyasha, and as a result, he had been powerless to intervene due to familial loyalty and pack rules. It had been for that very reason he could only be but a friend to the girl, watching while Inuyasha made the tiny vision of perfection a complete laughing stock, and hating his half-sibling all the more for it too.

Now though; now was a completely different ball game, for the female no longer belonged to his younger half-brother...she was fair game. That was, if she was not attached to another male; something that he had not been able to acquire any information on whatsoever, even though he had tried to do just that. So, it was on both a hope and a prayer that he bothered to even consider the invitation to relive his high school days in the old gymnasium that still reeked of sweat and musk, despite how the committee had tried to cover the stench up. He had told no one that he was even considering attending, feeling that his lucrative position at Takeshi Corp. would have many a desperate ex-classmate trying to convince him to either give them a job, or to invest in some shady business deal in order to line their pockets. He got that a lot and it only served to make him quite...mean, for lack of a better word. That was not something that he wanted to happen on this particular night; no, he had made plans and being in a foul mood was not part of it.

He sat in the far corner of the place, his aura educating all who dared to entertain the notion that they should approach him for any reason; they were not the person he had come to see and, therefore, needed to keep their distance lest they piss him off. It had not been difficult to spot the hanyou, not when said idiot was making a spectacle of himself like he was. Did those fools that milled around the filthy half-breed not realize that Inuyasha was still just as pathetic as he had been five years ago, sponging off of his father's hard earned money instead of actually lifting a finger to earn it on his own? Worthless, the entire damned lot of them. Sesshoumaru nursed his drink, amazed that they were even serving alcohol at this thing, considering that it was being held in a school. His deep amber eyes scanning the sea of faces that he could have gone the rest of his life without seeing again, looking for one face in particular....the only one that he did want to see again. Kagome had not yet arrived it would seem, so he sat waiting as patiently as he could; he had heard a few others mention that she had responded to the invitation and should be there, and that they could not wait to see the fireworks when the tiny, black haired woman ran into her ex....

If it wasn't so important to him to see her again, Sesshoumaru would have left the yawn-inspiring event long ago; he did not care for anyone there, and had become rather bored with the entire damned affair. Still, his conscious would not allow him to just up and leave without seeing her; he had thought about her for five long years, and could not back out of it now. If there was but one thing that he remembered well about the tiny little female named Kagome, it was that she always kept her word; if she had agreed to be there…then be there she would. It did not matter if he had to sit there all damned night long in wait of his long awaited shot at showing the girl just what a real male was capable of in offering a woman of her caliber in a true relationship.

He was ever careful to keep his alcohol consumption to the barest of minimum, wanting nothing to impair his mind when he encountered her again after what seemed like an entire lifetime; he would not offer anyone ammunition to use against him, insinuating that his interest in Kagome had been artificially induced. It was indeed possible that she would find his affections to be quite the shock, for he had never told anyone just how much he had cared for the girl, not even his closest of comrades - even though there had not been many to speak of back then due to his reclusive ways. No; she and a very, very select few were all that he had associated with in his younger days for he had been a bit of a anti-social being and still was in many ways. His business was his own, and he preferred to keep it that way.

Of course, he was not averse to sharing any information with Kagome; he would sit her down and tell her his entire life story, the parts that she did not know about anyway. Kagome had known him the best back then, she possessed intricate and detailed knowledge that not even his own father had; which was indeed saying a lot about just how he had felt about her then, for only someone he felt a great affinity for would have access to such...personal information. The demon's anticipation had begun to run quite high by then, eager to start his quest for the female who had eluded him oh so long ago. If things worked out to his advantage, if he walked away from this thing with all that he had wanted, there would be a bottle of the finest spirits awaiting him and Kagome in his hotel room by night's end.

Apparently, there were those who could not interpret the 'stay away or die' signals that he had put out, thereby risking their continued health by stepping up to his table. Inuyasha. The idiot stood there with a drink in his hand, one of many from what Sesshoumaru could tell, and then he dared to open that vile mouth of his to speak to his estranged elder half-sibling; which caused said sibling to flash the punk one of his infamous death glares. "Oi, Maru; I didn't know that you were going to be here tonight."

His hard, citrine colored eyes leveled upon the vile thing that dared to speak to him, hating the very sight of his so-called 'brother'. "My comings and goings are no concern of yours, half-breed."

Inuyasha glared at his brother, his wretched hand clutching his drink just a bit tighter, "When are you going to have that stick removed from your ass? Damn; five fucking years and, still, you are an insufferable bastard."

Sesshoumaru, having grown tired of the conversation already, allowed his eyes to drift off to his left, going straight to the entrance once more, waiting. There was a good chance that, should she arrive while that thing was standing there at his table, she would avoid making her way over to say hello; which would only serve to piss the demon off more than just a little. As luck would have it, the hanyou seemed dead set on having some sort of conversation with him; which threatened to darken the Daiyoukai's mood rather steadily, for the whelp just could not seem to get the hint that he was unwelcomed at that little table in the darkly lit corner. "Where is that reprehensible creature that you call a wife, Inuyasha? Surely she is wondering just how it is that you managed to get off that short leash that she keeps you on? Are you not worried that you will be denied your privileges that she allows you?"

"Fuck you, you bastard; at least I have a wife. What have you got but a cold, empty apartment that..." the hanyou retorted, trying to goad his elder half-sibling into a verbal battle of sorts. Unfortunately for him though, he was facing an opponent who not only out manned him, but out armed him as well. It would appear as though the ignorant fool had forgotten that, for had Inuyasha in fact recalled that Sesshoumaru served as Captain of the school debate team, he would not dare to even try to best him at all...in anything. 

"Penthouse," he corrected the ignorant cur, amazed that he had even bothered at all; it wasn't as if  he really cared what Inuyasha said, it was nothing but insignificant drabble anyway. Perhaps it was his deep love for outing the moron for his mind boggling stupidity whenever the chance presented itself? No; that could not be it, for Inuyasha always made certain to do that on a regular basis on his own... without any outside help whatsoever.

The half-breed snorted loudly, turning his inferior nose up at his elder almost as if he were trying to insinuate that he was, somehow, the better being in the conversation. That, of course was utterly ridiculous, for Inuyasha could never be the better being in anything; which was especially true when a being such as he, Sesshoumaru, was involved in any way, shape, or form. "Whatever. You're just pissed because I've got a fine piece like Kikyo and you don't. You have no one; you are an anti-social, stuck -up, pretentious snob who thinks he's better than everyone else in the damned world. There's not a female within a thousand mile radius that can stand your snooty ass and it is killing you that I found true love and happiness while you continue to go without." huffed the half-breed, thinking that he had something over on his elder. How utterly ridiculous.

Feeling the need to put the idiot in his place, Sesshoumaru lifted his glass to his lips and sipped slowly; then, he locked gaze with the creature that dared to call himself his blood kin, "Yes, Inuyasha, for it is every man's fantasy to be forever bound to a embittered, over-used, gold digger who holds his balls in the palm of her hands. Tell me; just how hard did you have to beg in order to get permission to use them tonight?" There was no way for the demon to conceal his amusement; it was virtuously impossible and, so, Sesshoumaru did not even try to hide the smirk that appeared upon his face.

The half-demon growled at his brother, prepared to lay into the fucker in a pathetic attempt to defend his pride; however, he did not get the chance to say a thing, for one of his old high school buddies chose to walk over and join the two warring siblings, halting any stinging retort that Yasha had hanging on the tip of his tongue. Instantly, the half breed was pulled into a pathetic, in-depth walk down memory lane and forgot all about the insult that his brother had bestowed upon him; which pleased Sesshoumaru greatly, for it enabled him to resume watching the entrance for the girl.

The demon felt his heart seize the second he saw her, and his breath caught in his throat at the sight the girl made; she was a true vision in that low-cut black dress and spike heeled shoes. Sesshoumaru tried to ignore the way his cock stirred with that first glance, feeling that it was a bit premature for such things; she had only just arrived, and he had work to do before he could even consider the thoughts that ran through his mind at that moment. Still, there was no way for him to deny that his attraction had not lessened over the years; those eyes of hers were still enough to give him a hard on from hell, and he discovered that he was not the only one who was affected by the sight of her either. The sudden scent of arousal wafted around him, and the demon had to suppress his instantaneous rage. Others desired her; he could smell it, and it made him angry. Now, he found himself faced with a possible dilemma; did he wait for her to find him, or did he rise from his seat and approach her? If he waited, it was likely that another would engage her in conversation and monopolize her time; thereby limiting his chances to sweep the girl off her feet like he had planned to do. After all he had endured this night just to have his shot at making Kagome his female; there was no damned way that he would allow anyone the opportunity to fuck it up for him.

Ignoring the whining little whelp that stood just to his right, Sesshoumaru rose from his seat, his eyes trained upon his target; how utterly divine she looked and he felt himself drawn to her instantly. Kagome had not changed at all since he had last laid his demon eyes upon her, and damn if it did not make his inner beast sit up and take notice. He, himself had changed little as well, save for the way he had bulked up a bit over the years due to his rigorous training regime he adhered to in order to quell certain urges that had plagued him in regard to the very woman that was but a few feet away from him. Kagome would be impressed with his physique, of that he was certain; she had always told him he was an attractive Inu male back then, now...now she would find him completely irresistible. Just before he reached his target, an old acquaintance decided that it was necessary to approach him, smiling and asking him something about what he had been up to over the last five years. One scathing glare and the imbecile retreated under the guise of needing to find his woman...or some other inane drabble.

The girl was engaged in a conversation with one of the females from the committee that had put the entire travesty of an event together, commending the overuse of fake greenery in a ridiculous attempt to create a semi-tolerable atmosphere. Clearly the reconstructed, malnourished, still bleached blonde airhead believed that she and her entourage had succeeded, when, in actuality, they had failed...miserably. Sesshoumaru interrupted their conversation with no regard to how rude it was to do so. He was positive that Kagome would prefer to converse with him rather than a woman that had been so very mean to her back when they were still in school together, yet smiled in her face as they discussed just how difficult it was to track everyone down from the graduating class in order for them to attend this debacle...  

"It is good to see you again, Kagome; you are still just as lovely as you were the last time that I saw you," he replied, in the smoothest, silkiest tone that he could manage. From the tiny shiver that he witnessed from Kagome, he could honestly say that the desired effect had been achieved. She had always said that a rich, baritone voice was one of her true weaknesses; which had perplexed him on many occasions, for Inuyasha had a whiny, nasally toned voice that resembled nails on a chalkboard...

Kagome turned toward him, her sapphire eyes shining back at him and causing his heart to seize yet again. It appeared as though the girl was extremely pleased to see him there...most encouraging, he had to admit. "Sesshoumaru? Oh, I am so glad to see you here! I was hoping that you would attend."

That brought a small, smirk-like smile to his face, pleased that she had looked forward to his presence there; it was a good sign, at least to him it was anyway. The demon just could not stop his eyes from sweeping her delectable form once more; she looked good enough to eat, and he was practically starving, willing to settle for even just a sample. "Were you? And... just why would that be?"

Her lip became caught between her bottom lip then, and he knew that he had made her uncomfortable; it reflected in her voice when she spoke to him. Oh how he wished that he could take back his words, whichever ones it was that she had found to be distressing, just so she would return those entrancing orbs of hers to his. "Well...we lost touch after graduation and, I missed you. You were such a good friend to me while we were in school..."

Even though he was very displeased with himself for having inadvertently caused her to become distressed, Sesshoumaru felt the need to remind her that it had been she that had severed the ties between them back then. He had made several attempts to see her or talk to her, but she had ignored him almost as if he had never even existed. "You never tried to contact me; I was under the impression that you held...his actions against me, Kagome." he replied rather quietly, unable to stop his eyes from sweeping her diminutive form once again. Damn, did she look fine. He felt his hands flex a few times as if in anticipation, and he had to avert his eyes in order to stop the images inside his head from forcing said appendages into action. It was indeed difficult; that he could not, and would not, deny. "Come; I have a table at the back where we can...reminisce without interruption."

That tiny hand of hers nearly became his undoing, feeling the thing come to rest upon his back as she waded through the small sea of beings that stood around chatting happily, telling their tales of embellished success in order to impress those who had said that they would never amount to much in their lives. Pathetic. Soon though, the two of them were comfortably seated at his table and he flared his aura once again, as a warning for all to stay the hell away from him and the woman that he adored. Yes, he still adored the petite little female, there was no denying that. To his surprise, Kagome slid her chair close to his, so much so that he was able to feel the heat radiating off that sinful body; for a few moments, he simply reveled the feeling, soaking up all that he could. It was so good to see her again.

They had only just taken their seats when Kagome asked the greatly anticipated, as well as expected, question he had somehow just known that she would ask. Everyone always asked the same question when encountering a being that they had neither seen nor heard from in any given length of time. "So, Sesshoumaru; what have you been up to for the last five years? Your father said that you graduated with honors..."

Now, he had not expected her to mention that she had seen or spoken to his sire in the time that had passed by. Just what she had spoken to his father about, he wondered. Perplexed, Sesshoumaru turned a quizzical eye to the girl, desiring more information on what she had just said to him. "When have you spoken to my father, exactly, Kagome? He has not mentioned running into you, and I am certain that he would have told me if he had."

Those blue eyes flitted around uneasily as if she was nervous about something; which, in turn made the demon more than a little apprehensive to say the least. Quickly, she forced the words out in order to try to move on to another topic, "I...I asked him not to; I was afraid that you were mad at me for not keeping in touch."

Sesshoumaru nodded, wanting her to know that he had, without a doubt, been adversely affected by her refusal to see or talk to him knowing that he was about to leave in pursuit of a higher education. In all honesty, he had hoped that she would listen to him, reciprocate his feelings, and maybe give him a really nice going away present back then; unfortunately that never happened, much to his disappointment. Returning his mind to the present, Sesshoumaru cleared his throat and responded to what Kagome had said. "It did upset me that you refused to speak to me; I had something rather important that I wanted to discuss with you before I left, but you would not take my calls. Your mother was a bit less than...pleasant as well."

"She was just pissed off at what Yasha did was all; you know that she always liked you, and she told you that several times. No; I...I was devastated when he did what he did to me, and right in front of the graduating class too -I felt like such a fool. I just did not want to hear you say 'I told you so'." Her azure orbs swept the room as if she was expecting to see the detestable cur walking over to their table, and she shuddered. That had the demon wondering just what was going through her head at that moment; it worried him that Inuyasha had been the reason that she decided to attend this affair, looking as phenomenal as she did. "So...what did you want to talk to me about back then?"

Suddenly, he lost his nerve, deciding to wait before he said a word to her about how he had secretly adored her and wanted to know if there was a chance for the two of them to try their hands at forming a relationship together. For some unknown reason, he felt as if there was a bit of investigating that needed to be done before he exposed his heart like that. Perhaps it had something to do with the way that her eyes flitted around the room, almost as if she were looking for something...or someone? I could be; he had been extremely stressed over wondering if she still housed any sort of residual feelings toward a certain hanyou whom shall remain nameless. Even thinking his name at such a time would ruin his mood. "It will keep; we have the entire evening to discuss such things. Would you like to dance, Kagome?"

"They have dancing at this thing?" Her eyes scanned the room, searching for a place that would be suitable for such a thing. She should have known that the Chairperson of the Committee would have arranged for there to be dancing, Ezria had been the Captain of the infamous Spirit Squad after all.

"Would I ask you to dance if they didn't?" he chuckled, amused with her reaction; she looked so irresistible with her face all scrunched up like that. "Come; I believe that they are playing one of your favorite songs."

Offering the girl his hand, the demon waited patiently for her to accept; how he hoped that she would not refuse him, feeling more than a little nervous about it. He had genuinely looked forward to dancing with the girl with great anticipation. It meant that he would have a valid reason to hold her in his arms without it being questioned, and then he could assess whether she had any...reactions to being there that he could use to possibly discern if he had a chance with her or not. If she remained unaffected; if she showed no response to what he planned to do, then he would know for certain if his hopes were indeed in vain.

Sesshoumaru breathed a very silent sigh of relief when Kagome took his hand with little hesitation, and in no time they had made their way to the dance area. People glanced at them, a few dared to actually stare at them too; which seemed to unnerve the girl more than a little. The demon wondered if it was because Kagome had started to feel a somewhat self-conscious about being there; perhaps she was remembering the night of graduation and the humiliation that his hated half sibling had inflicted upon her that evening five years prior? Of course, that tiny little voice inside of his head, the very one that had always tried to convince him to just take a chance and go for the little miko, decided to offer its own interpretations of just why the girl was acting so strange so suddenly. In the past, the demon had usually dismissed anything that the voice said to him but, for whatever the reason, he did not do that this time. Instead, he actually made an honest attempt to dissect what the voice said and pondered the validity of its words. It was true that the girl had, indeed, been just fine until they had begun to dance and he took her closer to his person; that move seemed to cause a bit of unrest within the small woman's petite frame, he could not deny that. Was it possible that she felt something pleasant from his embrace other than the ones a friend felt for a friend? It was worth some investigating, that was for certain.

Sesshoumaru then formed a plan, one that would allow him to discover if what the voice was telling him was true without having to come right out and ask the girl for the information and, thereby, opening himself up for potential embarrassment or pain. He was known to be quite adept at finagling information from even the tightest lipped individuals, finessing them into revealing anything he either wanted or needed to know without said individual having any clue as to what he was even doing. It was a rather extraordinary talent that he had, and it had served him ever so well in the past; such came in quite handy, he had to say, and he had felt no shame for utilizing that to its fullest.

"I could not help but notice that you arrived with your friend Sango; did your husband not wish to accompany you here tonight?" he slyly inquired, wanting to know if the tiny female that he hungered for was already in a committed relationship that might thwart his plans in any way. The few seconds it took for her to answer his question seemed like an eternity to him, but he waited as patiently as was possible for her to do just that, answer his question.

To his utter delight, the miko that he had befriended some time ago confirmed that she was, in fact, a single female. Oh how his heart soared then; the very second that she looked into his eyes as she told him he had one thing going for him at least. Kagome wet her divine looking lips with her tongue, sweeping those luscious petals and increasing their appeal ten fold or better, “I...I, I'm not married, Sesshoumaru. My work keeps me so busy that I have no time for a social life, let alone a family. God; does that make me sound so...pathetic."

Now for him to assure her that he too was a free being and that there was no one waiting for him somewhere; which was extremely important, considering how the half-breed had played around on the girl from the word go those many years prior. He was certain that Kagome already knew that about him, that he was not the sort to do such disgraceful things, but he had to make sure that there were no doubts there whatsoever, just in case. "You are not alone, Kagome; I too have found it impossible for such things and arrived here without an escort."

"I find that hard to believe; you not bringing a date?" she sounded genuinely shocked that her one-time good friend had not managed to find some eager female willing to accompany him there that night; she would have thought that he would have handsome sleek and sexy supermodel practically glued to his arm. For her to hear that he too had no one, had the girl asking herself the question of if there was something wrong with the universe. "Sesshoumaru Taisho...dateless...What is the world coming to?"

His silver eyebrow rose rather precariously then, perplexed as to why she would be so shocked to hear that he was just as alone as she was. Of course, the girl had no way of knowing that his availability stemmed from a deep attraction and very real need for the very female that stood before him at that exact moment; she had no clue, for he had not provided her with any. "Why do you find it so hard to believe?"

Kagome gave him a rather sheepish grin, trying to find something to focus her cerulean orbs on that did not include him. It was...intriguing to say the least. "B-Because...well, look at you; if someone as attractive and successful as you are can't find a date, then truly the world has gone mad."

Feeling the 'old Sesshoumaru' surge toward the surface, the demon responded with, "I chose not to come with an escort, miko; I did not desire to fight to extricate some over amorous female from my person at night's end. It makes for an unpleasant evening for all." Now, he had known that what he had said, as well as how he had said it, made him sound like nothing more than an arrogant jerk, but he had deemed it necessary. There was no way in hell that he would allow Kagome to believe that he had trouble finding a willing female to be his escort; his male pride would not allow that whatsoever and, so, he had sought to educate the girl on the matter rather quickly. He would not have her believing that there was, possibly, something wrong with him that made him updateable; that would be counter-productive to his cause.

Fortunately, Kagome did not see him that way at all; in fact, she actually saw his point, and she made sure that he knew that too. "I agree; I can't begin to tell you just how many times I have had to threaten a date with the use of pepper spray or a knee to the groin just for them to get the hint that the date was over." she laughed, her eyes shining like jewels and stealing the very breath from his body.

Sesshoumaru realized that he had managed to become distracted from his plan to try to make the girl give him a sign that he should pursue her; which he instantly deemed inexcusable, and sought to rectify his mistake post-haste. His arms pulled her even closer to him, initiating more of the very welcomed body contact between them that had his inner beast purring with pleasure. To his extreme delight, Kagome laid her head upon his shoulder, allowing the contact to continue. His fingers splayed outward across the small of her back and ever so slowly raked her flesh through the thin material of her dress...she did not object to that either; which offered the hopeful demon even more encouragement. Gently they swayed to the soft rhythm, his cheek resting against her midnight colored locks of silk, and the Inu would swear that she had sighed in contentment; which had his hopes soaring high within the stratosphere. She was enjoying being there in his arms, he was certain of it; for her to allow him such close contact with her person after five years...well, it had to be a good sign. Right?

The girl seemed so relaxed and at ease to be there in his arms like that, with their bodies pressed so closely together; and if she felt any sort of apprehension or uneasiness at all, she hid it well. So far, Sesshoumaru had to admit that things were going extremely well for him; it would appear as if he did in fact stand a good shot at getting Kagome to at least consider giving him a chance...giving them a chance.  The demon felt encouraged by this, believing that he could walk away from this once thought to be a complete and utter waste of his time with all that he had dared to hope for, wrapped up in one tiny package. When Kagome turned her face toward him, her face practically buried into the curve of his neck, Sesshoumaru simply could not resist rubbing his cheek against the fine ebony silk that adorned her head. Gods; it felt so sinfully soft and smelled absolutely divine that he felt his knees buckle just a bit. Thankfully, Kagome did not notice; he would have been utterly mortified if she had bore witness to such an occurrence, for he did have an image to keep after all.

"This is so nice, Sesshoumaru; it's almost like the time that you escorted me to the Spring Dance when I was a freshman. Remember?" She asked him softly; her velvet lips just barely grazing his heated flesh and making him swallow hard once more.

Sesshoumaru, for the first time in his life, found himself unable to form a verbal response; his tongue had frozen briefly. Kagome must have found his silence as an indication that he did not remember the instance she mentioned and pulled back from him a bit. "Don't tell me that you forgot; how could you forget the way that everyone stared at us and whispered about how strange it was that you were escort to a human?"

Even though he missed having her face buried in his neck, Sesshoumaru did find his ability to speak once more and finally addressed the matter. "I did not forget, Kagome; I merely choose not to recall something as insignificant as the ignorance of those that sought ruin that event for you. I remember it quite vividly, to be precise; you looked positively radiant that night, and I do believe that I told you that several times."

Long lush lashes veiled those erection inducing eyes of hers rather demurely, sending his inner beast into a mild, but controllable frenzy. To him, that was a sign that the female held an interest in him, for body language was an extremely important issue to his kind; it was something that he was almost one hundred percent sure that Kagome knew too, for they had associated enough in the past that it was highly unlikely for her to be ignorant on the matter. However, he still needed more from her than just that though, and he did his best to try to convince that side of him to wait before revealing anything to the female that he lusted for. Shaking his head ever so slightly, Sesshoumaru concentrated on what she was saying to him, effectively blocking out the whining protests from his inner self. "...I still couldn't believe that you agreed to go with me. I heard that your father practically threatened you in order for you to say you would be my escort."

"That is untrue; he did no such thing, because I was the one who brought the subject up. You seemed to have your heart set on going and when you failed to find a male..." he stopped speaking then, watching as her head slowly lowered a bit, and he just knew that he had either embarrassed the girl, or hurt her feelings. "Do not think that I felt any regret about escorting you, Kagome, because I didn't. I was proud to arrive with you on my arm; it was an honor to accompany you."

Sesshoumaru eased her back into his embrace, hoping with all that he was for her to bury her face into his neck once more. Much to his disappointment, Kagome turned her head away from him instead and the demon felt mild panic rise up inside him. He waited for her to say something to him, anything at all, but after many minutes of silence, Sesshoumaru decided that he had to take the initiative in order for them to get back to the point that they had been before he had ruined everything with his big damned mouth.

Sesshoumaru leaned down toward her ear and felt her tense for all of a moment, "Do you want to know a secret, miko?" he asked her silkily. She did not answer, but the Inu would not be deterred; he continued on as if the girl had given him the go ahead anyway. "I was actually kind of glad that you had to resort to going to that dance with a friend rather than with a date. Do you want to know why?" Still, she did not say a word, but he could tell that he had piqued that infamous Higurashi curiosity; thereby, causing the girl to hang on his every word. "It was because I did not trust any other male to escort you; they would have undoubtedly tried to take advantage of you and I could not stand the thought of that. You were my friend and if that would have happened....I would have been forced to see to it that they regretted their decision. If I had not been needed to accompany you that night, this Sesshoumaru would have went to the dance anyway...just to ensure your safety."

Kagome finally gave the demon what he had wanted, and turned those time-stopping eyes of hers back toward him. Shining as bright as the rarest of jewels, those orbs of blue gazed back at him with that same adoration that Sesshoumaru had not seen in quite some time; it felt truly wonderful. "That is so sweet, Sesshoumaru. Why is it that you never allow anyone to know just how kind and compassionate you can be?"

"You cannot say that I never allow anyone to possess such knowledge, Kagome; the fact that you know negates your statement and therefore renders it completely inaccurate." He sensed that she was about to offer yet another so-called point and, so, he cut her off before she could even get the words out of her adorable little mouth. "To answer your question, all others are unworthy of having such information; which explains why you are the only other being to know that this Sesshoumaru does, in fact, have a heart."

Kagome giggled then, and the sound lightened his heart considerably. It also gave him a bit more courage it would seem, for before he could realize what he was doing, the demon asked Kagome if they could go somewhere after the reunion was over so that they could continue to get reacquainted with one another. The girl asked him if he meant going to his father's estate, but Sesshoumaru shook his head, "No; I am not staying there while I am in town. I thought that, perhaps, we could get some coffee in that little shop you used to work in during our junior year?"

"It closed down. Where are you staying then? Do you have an apartment here for when you visit?" Kagome inquired, interested about just where it was that he laid his silver head when he was in town. Apparently, the girl found it odd that he would not stay in the home that he had grown up in; even though he really wanted to tell her that it was because he simply could not trust himself to refrain from dismembering that annoying thing that father called his youngest son. He and Inuyasha could not get along if someone paid them to; one of them would surely be killed, and Sesshoumaru was certain that it would not be him.

"No; I do not visit so often that would require me to rent an apartment, Kagome." he murmured softly, resting his cheek against her ebony mane and fighting the practically irresistible urge to rub said cheek against it. "I have a hotel room instead; I find it to be more tolerable than staying at fathers because, there, I can actually have peace and quiet."

"Oh; well, why don't we go there instead? Sango and I drove here and my place is too far away or else we could go there..." she offered, her face returning to the very spot that it had been before. Sesshoumaru's brain short circuited then, making it impossible for him to say anything other than 'if that is your wish' or something like that anyway. He could not be one hundred percent positive exactly what it was that he had said; whatever it was though, the miko seemed to be pleased about it.

 Now, in all fairness, he should have been excited about the prospect of having the girl visiting his hotel room; it had been what he had literally prayed would happen as a dying man would pray for salvation, but now that it seemed as though his prayers would be answered, he balked. Just why the hell his insides had decided to start quaking at the thought of the girl being in his hotel room, he would never know. Maybe it had something to do with the fact that they would be in such close proximity to his bed...his king-sized bed? It could be that somewhere deep inside his subconscious mind, he knew that he was reading too much into her suggestion that they go there. It wasn't like Kagome had suggested it with a certain tone in her voice; one that spoke of untold pleasures and sinful acts of debauchery...Oh, he had to stop thinking that way, lest a very embarrassing situation arise concerning the miko and a very intimate part of his person that would not give a damn if they were in a room full of people or not. Pulling the woman tighter into his embrace, Sesshoumaru did his best to purge the erotic images from his mind and focus on their dance.  

Despite the stares and the whispers, Sesshoumaru and the girl managed to find it in themselves to concentrate on having that moment together. On they danced, blocking out all that was around them until nothing and no one else remained...only them. As the song ended, she pulled back from him and it appeared as though she was making an attempt to conceal some kind of reaction, though he could not say just what said reaction was with absolute certainty. Of course, it could have just been his extremely overactive, and embarrassingly over-eager imagination though; however, Sesshoumaru chose to believe the previous explanation to the slight flushed appearance of her cheeks as well as the way Kagome seemed to be quite flustered as he led her toward their table. Once he had her seated, Sesshoumaru excused himself to the men's room making certain that the girl would wait there for him to return. He hated leaving her but, nature called and, so, the Inu did his best to make it as quick as was possible out of his unwillingness to leave a vision of loveliness such as Kagome alone for any longer than he had to.

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