Bliss! by Trouble In Shangri-La

Naked in the Rain

Setting: Feudal Era

Universe: Canon

Feudal Japan revealed itself to Kagome as she pulled herself up through

the old wooden well. She tossed her backpack over the edge, smirking at

its satisfying thump. Her young adult life was a dual existence - in the

mornings she followed doctors around the hospital all day, and in the afternoon

she came here to hunt for jewel shards.

This morning proved particularly disgusting. She had to watch doctors

drill into some poor guy's skull to relieve intracranial pressure. Unfortunately

the poor man was so injured that his brain came gushing right through the

hole. He didn't survive. Kagome struggled to shake the image off and bent

to pick up her supplies. A frown creased her brow when she realized her

little sports bottle was empty. I better go refill this, it's already

pretty hot here. Nodding to herself, she headed for the nearest stream

to go do just that.

Just figures the day I decide to wear makeup to look pretty, Inuyasha

isn't sitting here grousing that I'm late, a small smile curled her

lips at the fond image of Inuyasha being his cranky self. Last night was

a new moon, and as the evening progressed Inuyasha complained of a sore

throat. She idly wondered if he caught the full-blown cold or not.

Her smile faded and she touched a hand to her cheek. Maybe I'm not

as attractive to him anymore. He does have Kikyou...she's still out there,

somewhere.

Signs of a recent battle became more and more apparent as Kagome approached

the stream. By the time she could kneel and refill her sports bottle, the

ground was littered with demon body parts, pieces of Naraku's tentacles

and dead Saimyosho.

I guess I missed out on a fight. I'll just ask Inuyasha about it

when I get to the village. Man, I hope everybody is all right!

Kagome screwed the lid onto her refilled water source and stood up.

When she turned, she swore she saw a flash of silver. Inuyasha?

So she walked towards it, pausing to peer cautiously over the bush.

Sesshoumaru lay sprawled on his stomach, his single arm folded under

his body. He was completely naked, but his clothes formed neat piles on

a rock nearby. His legs were in the water and his long hair fanned beautifully

over his back. He didn't move when Kagome stirred the foliage.

"Oh! Sesshoumaru...sorry!" she darted back.

The demon lord didn't rise. Something felt very wrong about that.

Kagome picked her way through the brush and stood over the inert demon.

Surely he could smell her now. "Sesshoumaru? Are...are you okay?"

When that failed to get a response, she knelt and shook him. Still nothing.

She watched him closely and gasped. He wasn't breathing. Not a flutter.

"Sesshoumaru?!" She rolled him onto his back, pushed his hand off his

neck and touched his throat. He still had a thready pulse, but his face

was snow-white and his lips blue as the veins in his wrist. His eyes were

wide open and rolled back into his head. He gave no response to her touch.

Claw marks drew faint red stripes around his neck.

What the!?

Leaving Sesshoumaru there to die seemed the logical thing to do. The

haughty demon lord only caused trouble whenever he crossed paths with her

and Inuyasha. Yet...he had that little girl to take care of. He was probably

the only family she had. And letting someone who could be helped die was

totally against Kagome's nature.

Kagome tilted Sesshoumaru's head back, pinched his nose and blew into

his mouth. The air went nowhere, like blowing against her own thumb. She

tried covering his mouth and breathing into his nose, but that failed as

well. Frustrated, she tilted his head to the sun, using two fingers as

tongue depressors while peering into his throat. Her eyes beheld something

stuck back there. Any attempts to grab it with her fingers failed.

Kagome spread Sesshoumaru out on his back and pressed her full weight

down on the base of his ribcage. He didn't have enough air in his lungs

to expel whatever blocked his airway.

I have to get him air or he'll die! Panic still seized Kagome

when she studied her supplies. She didn't have the best tools, but what

she had on hand would have to do.

With trembling hands, Kagome broke the head off one of her arrows. She

stretched Sesshoumaru's neck across her knee so his adam's apple stuck

out as far as possible. His eyebrows were drawn into a frown, but of pain,

distress or frustration, she didn't know. She rubbed a finger down below

his adam's apple, feeling for another ridge underneath. Luckily it was

easy to locate. Her target was the tiny, finger's width space between his

adam's apple and that tiny ridge.

Cricoid membrane...okay. Steady, Kagome, steady...

"This might leave a scar...sorry about this." Kagome said, though she

didn't know why she even bothered talking to him. She pressed the arrowhead

over the incision site and sawed a crimson line through Sesshoumaru's flawless

skin. The wound opened like a hungry mouth. Kagome stuck her finger inside,

grimacing at the slimy feel of his naked trachea. Her fingertip brushed

a soft mound. She shoved the arrowhead down, felt a pop and pushed her

finger into his windpipe to hold it open. Snatching up the sports bottle,

she yanked the straw free with her teeth and shoved it into the new stoma.

Sesshoumaru's chest remained motionless. Kagome cussed mentally and

wrapped her lips around the straw. She blew gently, forcing the air into

his lungs. There was a soft gurgle. His pecs began to move up and down.

He respired with difficulty, but he was breathing on his own and his color

looked better already. His lips, blue from cyanosis, slowly pinked up.

The immediate threat to his life had been resolved.

A huge sigh of relief blew past Kagome's lips. Reaching into her bag,

she pulled out a roll of tape and taped the emergency trach in place.

"Now..." she snagged the chopsticks from her lunch pack, "to get this

thing out of you."

One problem.

Sesshoumaru was regaining consciousness. His eyes closed and fluttered.

He shifted lazily, still groggy from being without oxygen for so long.

Kagome gasped and bent low to his ear, "Sesshoumaru, you're injured.

You can't move until I say so or you may worsen your injuries. I have to

get that thing out of your throat. This might make you gag, but please

rest assured that I'm not trying to hurt you."

Fortune seemed to be on Kagome's side, for Sesshoumaru was too incoherent

to protest. His aimless motions stilled. Kagome separated the disposable

chopsticks. They weren't forceps, but they'd have to do. She turned his

face to the sunlight again and pressed on his chin to hold his mouth open.

Then she pushed the chopsticks towards the back of his throat.

Sesshoumaru remained still. Either he was good at controlling his gag

reflex or didn't have one at all. Kagome worked the chopsticks past his

soft palate, grasped the object lodged behind his uvula and began tugging.

It resisted at first, but a twist popped the obstruction right out. It

was a huge, purple, pulsing chunk of Naraku's tentacle flesh. The bottom

half molded perfectly into the shape of Sesshoumaru's laryngeal tissue.

It had spread itself over his windpipe and formed an airtight seal with

the sole purpose of asphyxiating him.

Kagome used the chopsticks as a tongue depressor to make sure she didn't

leave anything behind. His tonsils looked a little swollen, but his nasopharynx

area was okay.

"Say 'ah' for me."

"Hah?" The sound came out like a question, however the sound lifted

his soft palate and let her see the back of his throat. No unusual swelling.

It looked a little red and sore, but that was all.

"Okay..." Kagome released Sesshoumaru's chin and looked at the tentacle

goo. I wonder how the heck THAT got in his mouth. She wondered while

gently removing the emergency trach. Sesshoumaru coughed and gulped air

through his natural airway. He would have a little trouble breathing until

his windpipe healed up.

Sudden realization of the demon lord's nudity turned Kagome's face bright

red. Out of politeness she kept her eyes from straying below his belly

button. She grabbed his under-kimono from his clothing pile and draped

it over his waist. Gorgeous body though... Then her mind recalled

how soft his lips were when she tried mouth to mouth, gah, bad Kagome!

"How..." Sesshoumaru's eyes were suddenly fixed on her, clear and bright

gold. His voice was a breathy whisper. He sounded surprised...or as surprised

as an unemotional demon could sound. "...how did you save me?"

"Emergency cricothyroidotomy." Kagome blurted without thinking, which

rewarded her with a blank look. She sighed, embarrassed. "You were about

to die. I did some quick surgery to help you breathe."

His delicate hand moved to his throat, touching the slitted surgical

wound. "I see...well, human, your help is no longer required."

Not even a thank-you. Kagome felt tempted to press her finger over the

incision and watch his face scrunch in pain. She settled for scooting away

really fast, causing his head to fall back on the ground. It didn't phase

him, but Kagome ended up seeing way more than she wanted to when he stood

up.

Dear God, he's frigging gorgeous.

"Sesshoumaru?"

Gilded eyes peered at her.

"What happened here?" She gestured to the gore all around.

"Naraku." was all Sesshoumaru offered by way of reply. He dressed himself

quickly, seeming angry at being seen injured. She was amazed at his flexibility

- he tied his obi by using one hand and one foot. Then, quietly, he faced

her, "Why?"

Kagome paused by the water, halfway in the process of washing off the

straw, "Why? Why did I save you?" she cocked her head, "You have that little

girl to take care of...hey, where is she anyway? And that little green

guy and that dragon..."

Sesshoumaru seemed to float past her. "They are elsewhere."

"Ah! Wait!" She jumped in his path.

He glared at her.

"Uh..." Kagome reached up and pointed to his neck, "I should suture

that. You could reopen the wound real easy and it'll get infected."

A narrow, sculpted eyebrow arched. "Sewing the flesh is practical after

surgery," he said matter of factly. Though he looked utterly displeased,

he gracefully folded himself down into a sitting position. "Very well,

but be quick."

Kagome's heart raced under the influence of adrenalin. Being this close

to Sesshoumaru for so long made her feel downright uncomfortable. His aura

seemed to prick at her skin like icy mountain air. "I need to get my stuff

ready. Just a sec."

No reply, but Kagome felt Sesshoumaru's citrine eyes watching her pull

the suture kit from her backpack, thread the curved needle and grasp it

in the tweezer-like needle holders.

"I can numb the skin so you don't feel - "

"I need no such thing." he said coldly. The scabbed wound had already

reopened, cutting his voice to a whisper, "Just sew."

It was probably better that she didn't inject anything. She could still

remember how Inuyasha freaked out at the idea of a shot. Inuyasha....who

had been run through, clawed, stabbed and impaled, was afraid of a needle

that would numb his arm so she could sew a nasty wound shut. How laughable

it would have been if Sesshoumaru had the same phobia. Unbidden, her mind

pictured Sesshoumaru halfway up a tree, angrily stating that he refused

to allow a mere human to force chemicals into his blood.

A glare from Sesshoumaru brought Kagome back to earth. Had she snickered

out loud?

"Sorry, was just remembering something kinda funny. Um...could you tilt

your head back just a little?"

He closed his eyes and did so, exposing his face and throat to the sun.

His hair gleamed iridescent against his brow. Maroon stripes drew feral

slashes across his cheekbones and the crescent on his brow seemed to suck

all light into its blueness. Though Sesshoumaru's hair was all silver,

Kagome noticed his eyebrows and long eyelashes were dark. He appeared vulnerable

with his throat exposed to her. Vulnerable and insanely beautiful. Kagome

flushed yet again upon realizing she had to sit in his lap in order to

see what she was doing. She moved so close to him that she heard the air

rushing through his nose and the faint stridor created by his throat incision.

He smelled like thyme and rose petals.

The fact that she was straddling his leg and his knee was right in her

crotch didn't help matters much, either. At least she wore jeans today.

"If you need to swallow or anything, do it now."

He licked his lips and swallowed, making his adam's apple bob. Kagome

found her face warming again when she touched two fingers above and below

the tiny wound to keep the edges approximate. She felt his pulse throbbing

slowly under her palm. His warm, flawless throat tensed at her touch.

"I'm going to start stitching. This will probably hurt."

"Pain is part of life," he said softly, his velvety voice making her

hand tingle.

Kagome pressed the needle into his skin, curved it around and caught

the tip in the needle holders. Sesshoumaru emitted a faint hiss. His

throat must be sensitive, she thought while looping the needle once

to create a knot and began methodically dipping and tugging the thread

through his flesh.

"I just have to ask this...how the heck did a piece of Naraku wind up

halfway down your throat?"

"Naraku attacked me from behind while I was preparing to bathe," he

breathed slowly, "I tore part of his flesh off with my teeth, and he willed

it to suffocate me before I could spit it out. I remember nothing after

that."

That was all he offered as an explanation. He closed his eyes and sighed

slowly, his face betraying nothing while Kagome's needle tugged at his

incision.

"Mm...I guess it's a good thing I came along." Kagome looped the last

stitch into a knot and snipped the thread. She placed a Band-Aid over the

sutures. "Keep that dry. You can pull the stitches out yourself once you

heal up."

Sesshoumaru fixed her in his gilded gaze. Something weird flickered

through his eyes. He flexed his knee, causing a ripple of sensation to

dance down Kagome's spine. Kagome stood abruptly and backed off.

The demon lord got to his feet. Kagome kept her head bowed to avoid

his eyes. She noticed the front guard on his armor didn't hang straight

down. The only way it could slant that way was if he... oh, my God...

she forced herself to look up. He stared passively at her, his expression

bemused.

"Something the matter, miko?"

"No." she gulped and forced herself to meet his eyes. "That should heal

in a few days."

"Half a day," he said back, unaffected. His hand rose and absently stroked

the pelt wrapped over his shoulder, his fingers making small circles in

the soft fur.

Kagome found herself trapped in his unblinking amber stare. The way

he moved his hand made her blush.  "O-Okay."

Without breaking eye contact, Sesshoumaru slipped around her. The spell

of his eyes only broke when he walked out of sight.

Trembling, Kagome hurriedly stuffed her supplies back into her backpack.

Amidst the food and womanly essentials, she also carried a few medical

books, a stethoscope, a bottle of peroxide, spare suture kits, some lidocaine,

a few needles, cloth tape and seemingly endless rolls of bandages.

She chewed the insides of her lips. Tell me that all didn't just

happen.

But the chopsticks and piece of Naraku's flesh didn't lie. Sesshoumaru

really had come inches from choking to death and she saved him with modern

interventions.

Kagome shook her head. ...I better get to that village now.

A loud sneeze burst through Kaede's hut. Then another. And another.

Inuyasha sniffed, wiped his nose and glared over the fire at Kagome.

Not even the liver muck his mother used to make seemed to cure his incessant

sneezing.

"I hate it when I can't smell!" he complained. "My face feels stuffed."

"Shh, you're going to wake everybody else up." Kagome smiled at his

annoyed expression. "Honestly, Inuyasha, even modern medicine can't cure

a cold, so stop whining. It'll be gone in the next two or three days."

She handed him a pack of tissues when he sneezed again. "Cover your mouth!

Do you want everybody else to get sick?"

"In the summer, too. Keh!" He just shot her a dirty look and wiped at

his nose with the tissue. His nose was as red as his fire rat robe from

repeated rubbing. "I'm gonna go sit outside. Ain't like I'll be able to

sleep like this anyway. Yell if you need me."

"Sure."

Sniffling, Inuyasha brushed past her and planted himself beside the

door. She watched him lean over and blow his nose in the grass, one hand

holding his thick silver hair back out of the way. He did it twice more.

Then he spat and used the tissue to wipe his nose dry.

Gross! I guess it's better outside than on a wall somewhere.

And not once did he even notice her makeup. Sometimes he was just so...so....immature!

It was just like the time she made him a special lunch and he threw it

back because she didn't add ramen. Needless to say, Inuyasha wore his food

that day.

A memory of Sesshoumaru's soft skin crept up to nip Kagome's thoughts.

The only people she knew with skin that soft were the newborns in the hospital

nursery. Blushing though she was alone, she squirmed and tried to think

of something else, but that just evoked his little knee flexing thing.

Why did he do that? Had he smelled her faint arousal? Did he have a point

to prove? Just...why?

She began to wonder what his reaction would be if she kissed or caressed

his neck. Maybe it was an erogenous zone. Oh, haha, Sesshoumaru turning

to putty when I pet his throat. Yeah, right! Next thing it'll be is he

shakes his leg when I scratch behind his ear.

Kagome's face burned hotter. Her mind wouldn't release the images of

Sesshoumaru in various states of sexual bliss. She could still taste him

on her lips from the rescue breathing. Like rain water. His lips were the

softest she ever felt.

Oh, this is getting crazy...the last thing I need is to fantasize

about him. I'm going to sleep!

The next day proved even more hot and humid than the one before. So

hot Kagome opted to forego her makeup, bundled her hair in a bun and dressed

in a halter top and short-shorts. Even still, she felt sweat all over her

forehead and back. One whiff of yesterday's clothes sent her scurrying

to wash them in the river. To be nice, she also washed one of Kaede's blankets.

It needed it after Inuyasha sneezed on it last night. Afterward, she strung

a makeshift clothes line across the clearing and went about hanging everything

up to dry. Fresh perspiration glittered all over her face and neck.

"Yuck! These jeans are gonna take forever to dry." Kagome flopped down

in the shade and sipped from her sports bottle. It didn't bother her that,

not twenty four hours ago, one end of the same straw had been jammed into

a demon's windpipe. And it's not like he's got AIDS or anything, anyway.

It's too hot to be picky.

Instantly her mind conjured up memories of the knee flexing. She bit

her lip. It was so hot that even thinking seemed an impossible effort.

The sticky heat pressed down on Kagome's eyelids. So much that she almost

didn't notice the white hakama-clad legs appearing behind the hanging blanket.

She watched in sleepy fascination as Sesshoumaru examined her bra and panties.

Wait...Sesshoumaru was staring her bra and panties? That seemed

more like something Miroku or Inuyasha might do, not a dignified high demon!

"Hey!"

Sesshoumaru turned, arching a brow. Not even he could escape the heat's

grasp. A perspiration sheen made all exposed skin glow under the sun. The

humidity had a weird, flattening effect on his hair that caused his bangs

to droop in wet clumps against his sweaty forehead. He wasn't wearing his

armor or pelt, and he left his untucked kimono shirt open to let the meager

breeze cool his torso. Kagome didn't blame him for loosening his clothes.

All that unbreathable silk HAD to be suffocating.

The demon lord looked oddly roguish in such a state. Like some wild

man who stole a nobleman's fine robes during a romp in the forest.

"Your clothesline," Sesshoumaru pronounced softly, "is in my way."

"It's high." Kagome groused back. It was too hot to play mind-games

with him. "Can't you duck underneath?"

"Tch. This Sesshoumaru does not bow beneath anything." Raising his hand,

Sesshoumaru snipped the clothesline with his claws and walked through the

space it just occupied. There was no sign of stitches or a Band-Aid on

his throat, but a faint scar indicated he recently removed them. Soon the

scar would fade and all signs of injury would be a memory.

"HEY!" Kagome leapt to her feet to capture the spilled clothes. "Do

you have any idea how long it took me to wash those?" She jumped up on

a log to re-tie the line on another branch, all the while thinking 'asshole,

asshole, ASSHOLE!'.

Next thing she knew, Sesshoumaru held her discarded panties between

two fingers. He stared straight into her eyes while he sniffed the crotch.

Needless to say, Kagome grew embarrassed and furious.

"That's mine, give it back, Sesshoumaru!"

"Why?" He was obviously toying with her. She growled and reached for

her stolen property. He held the lavender panties up overhead, his billowing

kimono sleeve falling away to expose his entire arm. "I will return this

odd item when I see fit."

"It's sexual harassment! Now give my underwear back, if you please."

The demon lord arched a brow.

Kagome climbed onto a tree stump and reached for her panties. Sesshoumaru

held them even higher. She jumped for them, slipped and tumbled right into

him, instinctively wrapping her arms around his neck to catch herself.

He, in the process of stepping back, toppled backwards with the force of

her fall. Kagome woke from her daze to find herself lying on top of Sesshoumaru

with her cheek pressed to his burning, sweat-soaked throat. His thyme scent,

probably a natural body odor, overpowered her senses.

For several seconds Kagome didn't register what just happened. All she

noticed was their close proximity, that her shirt was getting damp and

the fact that he smelled so freaking good while sweaty. And they

were laying in the sun, so he perspired even more. Her slippery exudation

mixed with his.

Sesshoumaru breathed deeply, yet didn't move. Perhaps the heat stifled

him so much that he didn't care to push her off.

"You know," she breathed, "Silk isn't the best material to wear in hot

weather. It doesn't let your body heat dissipate. You can get heat exhaustion.

I hope you're drinking a lot of water - "

He rumbled, "I am not so frail that walking in the heat will render

me unconscious."

"Mm." Kagome picked her head up to peer at the scar beneath his voicebox.

Just a faint, fading line. Her eyes followed a sweat droplet as it rolled

across the scar to pool in the dip between his collarbones. For someone

so tall, Sesshoumaru was remarkably fine-boned. "Mmph, it's so hot that

I don't even want to move." she groaned, pulling her hand out from under

herself.

Sesshoumaru's chest heaved up and down in a sigh. "It would seem that

we are in quite the predicament." He went quiet after that.

Kagome became hyper aware of his heartbeat throbbing against her right

breast. "No, a predicament was yesterday's mess."

He snorted derisively. "It will not be repeated."

Suddenly, he shifted his body to a more comfortable angle. Kagome's

dampened halter top slipped across her nipple. She bit her lip.

Sesshoumaru kept looking at her chest. He smirked and met her eyes.

Kagome looked down and grew instantly mortified upon discovering he could

see straight down her shirt. The bottoms of her breasts were sweating right

through the flimsy blue material. She felt drops roll off her forehead

and pool under her chin. Hot sun beat against her back. She wiggled herself

up higher to hide her face in his cool hair.

"Would you kindly..." his stomach muscles hitched, "watch where you

drop your legs?"

"Huh?" Kagome picked her head up. She'd moved her leg and smacked right

into...oh, crap. Her face flushed twenty shades of crimson. The

knee now resting on his crotch remained motionless. As if she feared moving

it would remind him it was there. "Sorry! Sorry...did I hurt - "

"No." his voice was a soft growl.

Kagome thought his small, pink lips looked utterly delicious.

Ha, ha, must be the heat going to my brain!

Putting her head down by his shoulder, she snickered. In doing so she

wound up feeling his moist skin flush against her mouth. The bulge under

her knee literally twitched. Kagome turned her head and licked her lips,

tasting Sesshoumaru's salty musk. She wondered how it would taste when

slurped directly from its source. Sticky, wet heat formed between her legs

at the thought.

The heat is definitely going to my brain. I -

"You smell of arousal."

"I'm all sweaty. I probably smell weird."

"Your ploy may work on Inuyasha's inferior nose," Sesshoumaru said in

an accusing tone. Then his voice lowered a delicious half octave, "but

not mine."

His vocal vibrations shot right through his sternum and ribs. The thrumming

made Kagome's nipples harden under her shirt. "You know...when I first

found you lying on the ground yesterday...I tried to resuscitate you with

mouth to mouth." when he gave her a blank look, she went on, "I put my

mouth over yours and tried to blow air into your lungs."

A pencil-thin eyebrow arched, "....and?"

"Just thought you should know, in case your mouth tasted funny later."

He actually chuckled, a sound felt more than heard. His voice spoke

from barely inches above her ear, "I know you wish to feel my lips again.

You stink of desire."

Growling in her throat, Kagome deftly slid her knee back and forth.

"You say that when you have this thing on display." She felt the full outline

of his erection against her kneecap. He wasn't wearing underclothes, all

that separated his hardened penis from her knee was a thin film of silk.

"Mrrh," Sesshoumaru's pupils dilated. A pink flush appeared on his cheeks,

but Kagome wasn't sure if it was the heat or his arousal.

The sun began to dim. They both looked up as wispy clouds drifted lazily

against the blue expanse.

Sesshoumaru sniffed the air, "It will storm soon."

"Good, maybe the rain will cool it off a bit."

Hot breath whispered across her ear, "Perhaps."

Kagome's memory of the next moment would always be foggy. One moment

she was staring down into Sesshoumaru's intoxicating amber eyes. In the

next...she had bent down and wrapped her lips around his. His smooth, searing

mouth carried the salt of his sweat and musky desire. She ran her tongue

all over his fangs and gums. His incisors teasingly grazed her bottom lip.

She slid her face away and sucked on the side of his neck, the tang in

his perspiration burning her tongue.

Sesshoumaru released a faint moan, arching his hips against hers. He

grabbed her roughly by the bound hair and trapped her in a fierce kiss.

She fisted both hands in his kimono shirt. They ground against each other,

Kagome aching at the feel of him through their clothes. She felt her own

wetness spreading around her damp panties.

Sitting up, Kagome peeled her sweaty halter top off and flung it aside.

She watched Sesshoumaru's eyes drift down to her erect nipples. With agonizing

slowness he lifted his head and took one into his kiss-swollen mouth, making

her sigh his name. His lips and tongue drifted lazily across her coral

pink skin. Tickling, teasing, caressing, tasting, each motion trailing

invisible flames. She almost giggled at how his silky bangs tickled her

collarbones.

All at once, Sesshoumaru pushed her off and sat up, his eyes directed

at the sky. Grass and twigs clung to his silver hair. His hakama sported

an impressive tent, a few wet spots indicating the presence of pre-cum.

Perspiration droplets drew wavy lines down his sparkling face and chest,

making Kagome jealous. He didn't try to wipe them up.

The sun's piercing light dimmed, then faded entirely as dark clouds

obscured it from view. Wind began stirring leaves and grass. A raindrop

hit Kagome in the cheek.

Every inch of the high demon's muscles tensed. His long eyelashes fluttered

as his gold eyes focused on the sky. "Do you feel the energy in the storm,

miko?"

Kagome faced Sesshoumaru, noticing how his attention remained fixed

on the darkening clouds. The blanket on the clothesline billowed gently

behind him. His silver hair and hakama rippled, caressing his thighs and

backside.

"I'm not sure I know what you mean..." she panted, trying to keep up

with her racing heartbeat, "but if you mean feeling excited, then yeah,

I guess so."

More raindrops. Water spots peppered Sesshoumaru's clothes. He faced

her, his small lips curled into something resembling a smile, "Have you

ever stood naked in the rain?"

She blushed and said, "No..."

So much for drying everything in the sun.

Sesshoumaru licked his lips, slid his hand under his kimono top and

shrugged free of the fabric. The sky opened up as his hakama came down

to expose his red-tipped erection. Kagome dropped her shorts as well, both

excited and frightened at being so vulnerable in front of him. Cool rain

fell all over the back of her neck, causing goosebumps to break out across

her body. She watched how the rain plastered his silver hair to his alabaster

skin and weighed his bangs down until they nearly covered his gilded eyes.

Rivulets formed all across his muscles, spiraled off the bowl of his pelvis

and slithered down his long legs. She could hear the rain splatting on

his skin and the earth all around.

Sesshoumaru's form blurred. Kagome gasped at his soaked body pressing

against her back. He thrust a hand greedily over her genitals. Nimble digits

squeezed and caressed her outer core. She stiffened against his assault.

Before she knew it his long finger forced itself between her swollen folds,

tickling her from within.

"Ah!" Kagome gasped. He was rotating his finger in tantalizing circles.

"Ooh..."

"Have some more," Sesshoumaru thrust another digit inside. He caught

her earlobe between his lips and sucked gently, tugging with his teeth.

"Mmh..." the miko trembled, aching for him.

She felt dizzy when he pulled back, placed a hand on her navel and used

his own body to bend her over. His long hair fell in dripping clumps around

her, drooping like weeping willow branches. Her eyes dimly beheld the tree

stump she stood on to hang up the clothesline. She rested her hands flat

on its smooth, pale top. The rain soaked wood made her body tingle. So

cold against her searing skin.

"I will help you feel it," he said, his voice steady despite being extremely

aroused. "All of it."

Kagome arched at new, painful pressure in her core. The storm's first

lightning strike flashed at the same moment Sesshoumaru painfully entered

her. She couldn't distinguish his low moan from the faraway thunder. Rain

splattered a thousand tiny fingers across her back. Sesshoumaru wrapped

his arm around her waist to stabilize her, thus allowing himself to remain

standing, and started thrusting. He pounded into her so hard she rocked

against the stump and her breasts jiggled in unison like fleshy pendulums.

"Oh...Sesshoumaru!" she shrieked over her shoulder. He was so

soaked his hair formed a sheet of silver satin that fell across his forehead

and back. Sopping locks slapped into her each time he rocked his pelvis.

His wild amber eyes darkened with desire, dancing in the lightning. For

a moment all she heard was the wet sound of their slippery, rapidly undulating

bodies slapping together. Warmth from his hips crashed deliciously into

and retreated from her backside. The tickling rain replaced what would

have been his wandering left hand.

Sesshoumaru released her waist, reached up and pinched her nipple. Then

he slipped down to roll her erect nub between thumb and forefinger.

Thunder drowned out Kagome's cry.

"Do you feel it now?" he panted, flicking his tongue across her ear.

Another flash.

Kagome arched. "I..."

He stopped rocking and tortured her by rotating his hips in slow circles.

Aching, throbbing heat tore through her body. She felt her face boil and

wailed at the top of her lungs. He spanked her backside hard and resumed

his thrusts. Intense wind blew his soaked hair straight in her face. Freezing

strands stuck to her skin, intertwining around her neck, arms and stomach

like liquid satin. More strands formed filigree patterns across his arm

and hand and the stump beneath them.

A microburst sent rain beating the forest in sheets so thick she couldn't

see across the clearing. Thunder and lightning crackled all around. The

clouds swirled. Briefly, pea-sized hail crashed down alongside the pouring

rain.

Sesshoumaru caught a handful of the ice pellets. He dumped them across

Kagome's back, making her shriek. Then he cupped them in his palm and greedily

fondled her breasts, puckering her nipples in his icy palm.

"Do you feel it?" he hissed.

"Yes!" Kagome cried over the raging storm. She was melting, breaking

into a thousand pieces and coming back together as a new woman. Her vision

dissolved to stars while he slammed himself into her depths. The weight

in her pelvis exploded, sending sensation racing through her body. Her

muscles tensed, spasms rocked her frame and she dug her nails into the

stump. She threw her head back and shouted, "I-I feel it! Ah! Yes! Oh,

God! I feel it!"

"Yesss," he rubbed her back, his claws tickling her skin.

When the last twitch left her, Sesshoumaru flipped her over, leaving

her prey to the pounding rain. He looked absolutely feral with his

hair hanging raggedly around his face and clinging to his body. His marks

had gone from maroon to bloody crimson like his eyes. He bore his teeth

at her right as a huge lightning bolt crackled above their heads.

Sesshoumaru knelt between her legs and cleaned her overflowing juices

away with his tongue. Kagome moaned at the wet heat of his mouth and pinched

her own nipples. She noticed he was stroking himself while licking her

swollen folds. It made her a little jealous.

"I want..." she panted, gasping when his tongue brushed a particularly

sensitive area. "...you to spill all over me and - " booming thunder drowned

out the rest.

"You want me to spill my seed on you?" he asked, standing up. His hand

continued to work his erection, which was thick and pulsating. Blood left

it so engorged the tip appeared a light purple that faded to red down the

shaft.

Kagome leaned over and took the tip in her mouth. She rolled it around

on her tongue, making him growl. Then she drew back and met his crimson

eyes. "Yes. All over me."

"...as you wish." Sesshoumaru lunged forward and captured her in a bruising

kiss. She twined her legs around his hips. He rested on his forearm, let

her guide him back into her depths, and resumed his rough thrusting. Her

back scraped against the tree stump. Kagome wrapped her arms around his

neck. He growled low and threatening in her ear, his grip so tight his

nails cracked the ancient wood. His endless hair stuck to everything.

Kagome lost herself in a second orgasm.

Lightning flashed directly overhead, illuminating Sesshoumaru in all

his soaking wet glory - muscles standing out in sharp relief, eyes crimson,

moon glowing and gleaming fangs displayed through open lips.

He thrust twice more, snarled and pulled out, laying his pulsating member

atop her pubic curls. His orgasmic contractions were so strong she could

see his penis move up and down. Suddenly, wave after wave of hot, thick

fluid splashed across her stomach and chest. She reached up and pinched

his nipples, making him buck against her. The waves became a steady stream

so hot she winced. He let out the most sensual moan she ever heard. It

came in unison with the thunder, as if he and the storm were one. His white

offering spread between her breasts and spilled off her sides as sticky

tentacles, its scent reminding her of sea foam. The rain made it clump

up in tacky globules against her skin.

Sesshoumaru tapped his member against her leg, managing to coax out

one more ivory squirt. Then he pulled back as if admiring her semen covered

form. Kagome swirled some between her fingers and tasted it, never breaking

eye contact. She thought its flavor resembled almonds with too much salt.

Okay, not the most pleasant taste, but nobody said it tasted great.

Kagome thought as she smeared Sesshoumaru's sperm all over her breasts

and stomach. She smirked at the way his deflating penis twitched. "Mmh...that

was...I can't even describe it..."

"Don't try." Flipping his hair over his shoulder, Sesshoumaru walked

to his sopping clothes and methodically dressed himself. Their being soaked

didn't seem to bother him at all. He looked over his shoulder, "Every time

it storms, you will remember this."

Kagome sat up and let the rain blast her clean. She felt both dirty

and sensual at the same time. "Same goes for you, right?"

A curt nod.

"Hey, Sesshoumaru..."

He faced her, clothes clinging to his body. Lightning illuminated him

from the left, casting half his face in eerie shadow. Distant thunder rumbled

as the storm continued its journey northwest.

"Do you," she fidgeted with her mussed hair, unable to meet his icy

amber eyes, "...am I attractive at all to you?"

"Miko," the demon lord approached her, his tone almost incredulous.

"I would not lay with an ugly woman."

Sesshoumaru's words sparkled in Kagome's heart. He wouldn't lie to spare

her any emotional hurt. She grabbed the edges of his kimono shirt and yanked

him down for another slow, sensual kiss. He obliged her, his burning velvet

tongue sliding in and around her mouth.

Against her lips, he whispered, "Consider this payment for your assistance.

I owe you nothing after this."

"I - "

"Kagome!" Miroku called out from far off.

Kagome froze. She'd forgotten that her friends would come looking for

her after such a scary, horrible storm. She scooped up her clothes and

tugged Sesshoumaru's shirt to coax him behind the soaked blanket still

clinging to the clothesline. There, she hurriedly dressed herself.

Miroku shouted her name again. Sango and Shippou joined in. Inuyasha

was probably too hoarse to yell without coughing his lungs out. Kagome

made a mental note to harass him if she found him out in this weather.

Sesshoumaru stood there, soaked to the bone, and watched Kagome struggle

into her clothes. Faint amusement twinkled in his eyes. His silk attire

clung so tightly that the only thing left to the imagination was his skin

color. Like his clothes, his hair also fell flat like a solid silver sheet

against his forehead and back. His bangs practically touched his cheekbones.

"Oh!" She touched his shirt, which was slightly stained by grass and

mud. "It's ruined. These stains will never come out."

He snorted derisively. "I do own more than one set of clothes."

A blush spread across Kagome's cheeks. She took her wet hair out of

its bun and re-wrapped it, trying to appear somewhat presentable. The demon

lord held her gaze. His narrow eyes, she thought, were decidedly effeminate

with the red eyelids and long lashes. He actually had very effeminate features,

even the cheekbones, but they were set against a masculine jaw. There lay

the difference between Sesshoumaru and Inuyasha. Inuyasha's face was all

masculine.

And Sesshoumaru - he was just so...so perfect. Perfect skin, perfect

hair, perfect body...until she got to the empty sleeve swaying in the breeze.

Her face fell slightly.

Sesshoumaru cocked his head at her scrutiny and arched a thin eyebrow.

"Is something wrong?"

Heat returned to Kagome's cheeks. "No, I was just..." she averted her

gaze, "...I'm just wondering which of your parents you take the most after."

His lips tilted, "My moon is a tattoo," he let his sleeve fall away

from his hand, baring the maroon markings, "but my stripes came from my

mother."

"She must have been beautiful."

"Yes." he said softly, though without emotion, "she was."

"I wonder if - "

Another call from Miroku prompted Kagome to peek around the blanket.

She could hear his staff jingling. He was closer than she thought.

"Kagome! There you are!" the monk burst from between the trees. His

robes were wet and made sucking sounds against his skin. He slipped a little

on the wet grass, old mud crusting on his sandals. "Are you all right?"

"I'm fine." she put on a cheery face, "Quite a storm though, eh? Caught

me by surprise."

"Indeed," he cupped a hand to his mouth and turned away, "Sango, Shippou,

Inuyasha! I found her! She is all right!"

Kagome smiled quickly and turned to scratch her leg as an excuse to

glance backwards. Sesshoumaru was gone without a trace. An intangible vacuum

existed where he stood a few seconds previous, leading Kagome to wonder

if the whole experience was all a weird fantasy.

A fresh fire crackled in Kaede's fire pit. Everyone huddled around the

glowing flames for warmth. Shippou, Miroku and Sango soon fell asleep.

Inuyasha chose to sit back in the corner with his arms crossed.

Kagome glanced back at Inuyasha, watching how the flames turned his

hair almost gold. Inuyasha saw her looking and huffed. Earlier that evening,

she'd caught him out in the rain and sat him in the mud. She made him take

a bath in a nearby hot spring and proceeded to wash his hair and brush

it dry. He didn't appreciate the treatment at all. His boyishly handsome

face remained pinched in a scowl.

"What?" he croaked, wiping his nose, "Stop staring!"

She laughed, "Stop pouting, first."

"I'm not pouting."

"Come on," Kagome said, sighing, "Sit by the fire where it's warm."

"I'm - " Inuyasha's face scrunched and his dog ears wiggled, " - fine!"

He sneezed twice in a row, wiped his nose again and crossed his arms until

his sleeves came together like a muff. The way he squared his shoulders

reminded her of Sesshoumaru. The two dog-demon brothers were more alike

than they realized.

"Ah, let him alone." Kaede ducked into the hut and added more wood to

the fire, "I think he's learned his lesson...for now."

"Shut up, you old hag!"

"...or not."

"Why you - "

"Inuyasha? SIT!"

Inuyasha's face hit the floor. He snarled vulgarities until the spell

wore off.

Kagome glanced at the half demon, smiling. Pulling her backpack closer,

she dug around until she found a small bottle of Dimetapp Cold and Cough

formula. She poured a measured amount into a medicine cup and scooted towards

Inuyasha. "Here, this will help unplug your nose and cut down the coughing."

"Ugh, you're going to make me drink something nasty again, aren't you?"

the hybrid's gold eyes studied the red liquid in the medicine cup.

"This stuff isn't so bad."

"That's what you said about the..." his eyes crossed, "Rubbingtussin

- "

"Robitussin?"

"Yeah, that, that was awful! And this stuff is the same color."

Kagome bit her lip and giggled, "Inuyasha, this isn't Robitussin. It's

something else that does the same thing.." She held the cup a little further

forward, feeling as if she was trying to coax a little kid into taking

it, "Please drink it, you'll feel a little better once you do."

Inuyasha finally sighed, grasped the cup in his claws and, cringing,

drank the cough syrup. His eyes blinked open. He licked his lips. "It...tastes

like grapes."

"See? I told you." she patted his head in a way that made him glower

at her.

"Keh!" he snuffled. "Hey, what happened to that face paint you had on

yesterday?"

"My makeup?" Kagome touched her own cheek, "Oh...I washed it off last

night."

The half-breed's head lowered until his bangs covered his eyes. His

silver hair fell all around his shoulders and pooled in his lap. "Mmph,

it was kinda pretty," he said in a small voice, "but I think you look better

without it."

With that he faced the corner, a sign that he wanted to sleep.

Her face warm, Kagome squeezed him in a hug anyway. He groaned and complained

about her getting all mushy, but she knew he secretly liked her hugs. She

rubbed his shoulder and backed off to sit by the door.

Distant lightning caught the miko's attention. She watched the wind

blow as rain poured down harder and harder. In a few minutes the storm

was overhead, the lightning and thunder coming in unison. No hail this

time.

"Every time it storms, you will remember this."

"Same goes for you, right?"

A curt nod.

Kagome leaned against the doorframe with a sigh. Wind-driven rain slapped

on the dirt path outside. She wondered, idly, if Sesshoumaru found a place

to take shelter from the storm. Then she shook her head. Her mind would

only picture him as he looked when they stood naked in the rain.

Glancing behind her, Kagome found everyone else sound asleep. She pulled

up a few rumpled blankets and watched the trees shiver. Lightning illuminated

the world in sparkling clarity. Thunder followed a second later, smashing

into her breastbone the way Sesshoumaru slammed himself against her.

"Do you feel the energy in the storm, miko?"

"I'm not sure I know what you mean...but if you mean feeling excited,

then yeah, I guess so."

"Have you ever stood naked in the rain?"

"No..."

Kagome stripped and walked out into the sky's tears, letting the droplets

pour all over her naked form. Her trembling hands wandered to the soft

curls between her legs. Heat raced up her spine. A low moan escaped her

parted lips. The cool rain prickled on her heaving breasts and made her

nipples stand erect. She touched herself the way he did - spreading her

moist folds and slipping a finger inside. It made her ache for him.

As she climaxed she couldn't help but wonder if Sesshoumaru was out

there, somewhere, getting soaking wet and pleasuring himself to the same

memory.