An Unexpected Encounter by Leash

That Fateful Night

It had been a long day for the group, with a surprising amount of battles (only two of which got them the coveted shikon shards they were after) and all were exhausted. Of course, Inuyasha, being the stubborn hanyou that he is, refused to stop to make camp... and it was quickly making her very aggrevated with him. If he didn't stop soon she was going to make him stop with a good osuwari... Shaking herself out of her thoughts she realized how tired she really was. Taking another step seemed next to impossible, and she stumbled to the ground with a surprised cry of pain. This caused all but Inuyasha to stop and make sure that she was alright. Sango helped her little sister up, and then smacked the houshi for trying to cop a feel.

The weary miko simply giggled a bit and uttered, "Osuwari." This had the desired effect of stopping the hanyou in his tracks as he plummetted down to the earth to make a lovely Inuyasha shaped crater in the ground. Muffled curses could be heard from the hole, and while he tried to get back up, the rest of the group took it upon themselves to set up camp. Kagome started a fire to boil water for the ramen, which she knew would stop most of Inuyasha's bitching.

A pair of icy amber eyes watched the proceedings of the small band with a little amusement, and he decided this would be a wonderful opportunity to cause the half-breed fool trouble. But what to do... he didn't want to bother with the sword for now, not until he could find a way to remove the seal wich made him unable to touch it. That left him with only so many options. He could beat him to a pulp... but that wasn't anything new. No. He needed a new way to torment his brother. Something better than reminding him who was physically stronger. Catching the scent of the hotsprings nearby, he decided he would go meditate on the issue while having a relaxing soak. He made his way to the springs, which he believed were far enough away that the hanyou would not be able to scent the water. He would not have enjoyed his solitude being disturbed by that fool. Stripping, he slid into the shallows of the spring and began to relax and think on new ways to torment Inuyasha.

Back at the Inu-tachi's camp, things were progressing as usual. The rosary's spell had worn off and Inuyasha managed to climb out of the crater, swearing the whole time, and get his cup of ramen. The rest were already eating, and Miroku had a handprint shaped bruise on his cheek from trying to grab Sango's backside when she bent over to get more wood for the fire. Shippou and Kirara were already curled up, asleep in Kagome's sleeping bag. The girl herself was making another cup of ramen for there hanyou companion, in hopes that she could get him to tell her if there was water nearby for a bath. After searching for shards in demon corpses all day, she desperately needed one. Once the ramen was done, and Inuyasha had finished his first cup, she walked over the the tree he was sulking in and asked him about the water. That got the typical complaining about her and her constant bathing.... Sheesh, you'd think with his nose being sensitive, he wouldn't want her to stink so badly.

"Inuyasha, if you'll tell me where water is, you can have more ramen. I even made beef this time...", she offered, know how weak the hanyou was when it came to his beloved ramen. She smirked inwardly knowing she'd already won.

"Keh, fine wench. About 20 minutes that way, there's a hotspring, now give me my ramen. And don't blame me if some demon eats you for a late snack while you off prancing about for a bath", he grumbled at her, snatching his ramen and jumping up higher into the tree.

Jerk. she thought. He could have at least said thanks. Jeeze. She sighed, knowing that he'd never change. She'd given up hopes of him ever being interested in her in any sort of romantic way, but couldn't he be a little nicer? They were supposed to be friends after all. Well, she had plenty of time to think later, now she needed to get to the spring before dark. She ask Sango if she wanted to go with her, but the slayer declined.

"I'm so tired I don't think I'd make it there, and then you'd have to carry me," she joked.

Kagome nodded in understanding. She herself was tired, but being clean was her first priority right now. Grabbing the big yellow monstosity that is her backpack, she started off in the direction Inuyasha had said to go.

On the way, she reflected on her relationships with the members of the little group, and on how she herself had changed since she'd graduated high school and begun spending almost all her time in the Fuedal Era looking for shards and hunting Naraku. The group was her second family really. Shippou was like a son to her, and had been for some time. She loved him, and was happy to take care of him. Then there was Miroku... he was sort of like a really perverted distantly related cousin, she decided. She'd have gone with him being like a wise older brother, if he weren't so perverted, but since he was so fond of groping, distant cousin it was. He did always seem to know what needed to be said when someone was feeling down though. Next was Sango, who had become her sister in the time that they'd been together. They'd forged a strong bond, and told each other everything. Kagome was glad she had Sango in the group. It would have been unbearable to have been the only female in the group all this time. She'd have felt so alone, as the guys were good friends, but they just didn't get some things. And, lastly, there was Inuyasha. He'd had her heart for so long... but last year she'd finally gotten it... he wasn't ever going to love her. Not that he didn't care for her, but he had given his heart to Kikyo, and while her clay form wandered the earth, there was no room in his heart for her. It had been a hard dose of reality to swallow, but she'd eventually managed. When it had first hit her, they'd just had a hard battle with Naraku's minion Kagura, and Kikyo had shown up.

************~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~flashback~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~****************

Kagome saw the silvery white soul-stealers before she saw him sniff the air and stiffen. She watched as he got this longing, far off look on his face. It was that look which crushed her heart, and when he ran off to the undead priestess, he finally killed that last of her love for him. She supposed later she would be glad, but now all she could feel was the pain. She didn't cry though. No, she'd wasted enough tears on him. No more though, she would move on, and she would heal. First though, she would have to make it to Kaede's to have her wounds treated. She was the group's healer, and as she'd nearly died, she didn't really have it in her to heal herself right now. "Sango, can you please lend me Kirara," the heart-broken girl managed to rasp out. That was when the others noticed the state she was in. Bloody gashes covered her, and there were bruises forming on her throat. They had been unable to see much of what was going on, as they're been fighting with the animated corpses Kagura had brought with her, and when the wind demoness had been forced to retreat, they were so relieved they temporarily forgot to check their friend for injuries. Looking around, the two noticed their hanyou leader had disapeared. Sango gave Kagome a questioning look, and the little miko nodded in the direction of the soul-stealers. Her friends sighed in understanding, and Kirara transfromed into her larger form so that she could carry the injured woman back to the village.

"We'll be right behind you on foot," the houshi told her kindly, "and that baka can make his own way back alone." He gently helped her onto the neko, and managed to not grope her for once.

"Yes," Sango said to her, "and don't worry about your things, we'll bring them back."

With that, Kirara took to the skies. After that day, Kagome had distanced herself from Inuyasha emotionally.

**********~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~*******************

She'd moved on, but it had taken time. For months, she wasn't sure she'd be able to. After all, she'd loved him for so long, letting go seemed impossible.

She had managed though, and Inuyasha himself helped the process along (even if it was unknowingly). Every time he compared her to Kikyo, called her weak or stupid, he'd destroyed a bit of the love she'd had for him, which made the whole thing go much faster. Now, at twenty, she could see how he really was, without her feelings to influence her, she wondered how she'd ever thought she could be in love with such a selfish, arrogant jerk. She gave a sigh.

"Well, hindsight is indeed twenty-twenty," she murmured. Glancing at her watch, the woman realized she should be at the springs by now. Stopping, she listened to the sounds around her, searching for some sign or water. Sure enough, she heard what sounded like a small waterfall behind some large bushes to her left.

Kagome walked around the bushes a bit until she found an easy way through them, and after a little bit of a fight with a branch that decided to get caught in her hair, she made it to the clearing with the hotspring in it. Imagine her surprise to turn around and find a demon lord already there.

Fear gripped her, and she froze. Then she noticed something else. He was naked. Very naked. And muscular. And oh my... he's looking at me... crap.

"Do you see something you like, Miko?" he asked her, his voice sliding over her skin and making her shiver.

She was simply to stunned to do anything more than stand there and gape. After all, there was an incredibly handsome, incredibly naked demon in front of her, and he'd yet to kill her for stumbling upon him in such a state.

"It is rude to stare, Miko," he told her, his statement startling her out of her stupor.

She pulled herself together as best she could, even though her virgin hormones were going into overdrive.

"Excuse me, Sesshoumaru-sama, I didn't mean to intrude upon your bath. I was unaware that the springs where occupied. If you don't plan on killing me, I think I'll just go, and let you finish bathing," she managed to get out, sounding much calmer than she was.

"You did not answer my first question...," he paused for a moment, his voice having the desired effect upon her, "Ka-go-me."

She nearly fell to her knees. No one should be able to cause that kind of reaction with just their voice... I mean really, wasn't it bad enough he was the sexiest male specimen she'd ever seen, did he have to sound like it too?

"Um... I... that is... well..." she stuttered. Did he really expect her to answer that?

"Well, Kagome, I am waiting. It is also rude to keep people waiting you know." he told her, looking rather smug.

Crap. Apparently he DID expect an answer. Well this was embarrassing. He would smell it on her if she lied, and that only left one rather unappealing option. The truth. Bleh.

"Well, you are a very handsome man," she finally whispered, "so, I suppose if you must know, then yes. I did indeed see something I like."

He'd been sitting, and thinking about his brother's group. What to do, what to do.. Well, there was the kit and the neko, nothing he could do there, as the hanyou didn't seem to care for them all that much. That left the slayer, the monk, and the miko. The monk was out, and the slayer also, as Inuyasha was not very close to them either. That only left the miko... what was her name? Ah, yes, Kagome. He stretched a bit, having decided on the who, that only left the how and the when. Those to would come to him soon, he knew. He slipped back into his meditations.

A short while later, a rustling sound began to rouse him, and imagine his surprise when the miko he'd just been thinking of stumbled into the clearing surrounding the spring. What a bit of luck for him, he thought.

Hiding his amusement as the woman gaped at him, and his slight repulsion at the scent of arousal coming off her (under the fear, of course), he decided to tease her a bit.

"Do you see something you like, Miko?" he asked the trembling woman before him.

Giving a small smirk when her mouth gaped open like that of a fish, he decided this was rather good entertainment.

"It is rude to stare, Miko," he told her, in a matter of fact way

"Excuse me, Sesshoumaru-sama, I didn't mean to intrude upon your bath. I was unaware that the springs where occupied. If you don't plan on killing me, I think I'll just go, and let you finish bathing," she managed to say, and he applauded how calm she was managing to sound.

"You did not answer my first question...," he paused for a moment, knowing his voice would have the desired effect upon her, "Ka-go-me."

He laughed inwardly as she tried to respond. She really was a funny creature, and her emotions were always so visable on her face. He especially liked the dark blush covering her cheeks.

After listening to her stutter for a bit, he raised an eyebrow at her, and waited. Sure enough, he got his answer.

Well, that was unexpected, he thought as she told him she found him attractive. He could use this to his advantage... he could seduce the woman from out from under the hanyou's pathetic nose... Yes, that would do it. He looked at her, really, for the first time. She isn't unattractive, not as beautiful as some demonesses he'd had, but not ugly. And once she bathes, she smells fairly pleasant. Plus there was the upside of getting laid, something he had not had time to do in a few months. This was indeed a good plan, he decided.

Sesshoumaru stood, allowing the miko to get a good look, and walked over to her prone form. He grabbed her about the waist and brought her towards the spring.

"Well, Kagome, if you plan to bathe, you should undress," he purred into her ear.

Desire welled up in her, and she shuddered. What was a girl to do, with a naked, sexy demon pressed up against her, telling her she should undress? Exactly as he said apparently. Her hands began to strip her clothing off, without her permision of course. Her clothing fell to the ground, and he scooped her up and walked into the spring. She gasped, and turned a nice shade of red at being held by him in such a way. "Um... Sesshoumaru-sama, what are you doing?" she asked him. And then he dunked her under the water, pulling her up quickly, though she sputtered and looked rather indignant. Well, as indignant as someone doing an impression of a drowned rat can. He smiled, and her heart raced. "Why, I am bathing you, Ka-go-me. That is what you came here for, is it not?" he finally answered. He rubbed the mixture he'd used for his own hair earlier on her head, massaging her scalp gently with his claws. She sighed in pleasure, and the scent of her arousal grew. The demon lord was nearly grinning, this was going to be easier than he expected, he never thought she would be so responsive. Her thoughts were all jumbled together, and the feeling of his claws on her was so relaxing, though it was making her more excited than she expected such a thing would. Who knew claws got her all worked up, she thought with a small smile. She decided that whatever happened here tonight, she was happy, and damn it, she deserved some happiness. She melted into him, and with her body leaning against his, she rubbed a bit on his rather hard manhood, making him groan. She gave him a smile, and did it again, just to hear the noise he made. Gods, it was an incredibly powerful feeling, knowing she could affect him as much as he did her.

That sly little minx! She was rubbing herself on his arousal... Well, I suppose, he decided, that means it's time to begin. He moaned, as she brushed her hand against his cock, and growled at her to rinse off before she got soap in her eyes. He was glad that she was doing what she was told for a change, though he did not think that such a miracle would last for very long. As soon as her body re-emerged from the spring, he grabbed her and moved them to a comfortable mossy patch nearby. He laid her body down, while she looked up at him with a mildly dazed expression. He kissed her gently, amazed at how soft she was. She gave in to him instantly, opening her mouth when he gave a light nip to her lower lip. He invaded her mouth, dominated her with his kiss, determined to taste all of her. He moved his hand to her right breast, and began to massage it, stopping every now and again to give the nipple some attention.

She moaned, and he swallowed it with his kiss. She felt like she was on fire. Never before had she felt anything this intense, this passionate. He was making her feel so much at once. She let her hands roam the parts of his body she could reach. He was so strong, you could tell just by touching him... and so soft too, like silk over steel. He was amazing, she thought, as she arched up against him. He'd moved his mouth to her other breast, and was sucking and nibbling her nipple.

He smirked against her nipple when she arched her body up against his. So very responsive, and so submissive too. This was much more interesting than being with demon bitches. They wanted you to beat them into submission, they never just gave in. You had to prove yourself, had to use to much force. This was a rather nice change, he thought.

He slid his hand from her breast, moving it down to the apex of her thighs. He caressed her, made love to her with his hand, while he kissed her senseless.

She gave in to the passion she was feeling, gave in to the moment though she knew she would probably pay for it later. She made small noises of pleasure as he covered her body with his, and gasped at the feeling of him between her thighs. So hot and solid, she thought. He thrust into her, kissing her to distract her from the pain. After a few moments, she adjusted to the feel of him inside her, and moved cautiously against him.

Feeling her move, he began a slow, steady rythm. She moved with him, against him, and it was incredible. Soon he sped up his pace, letting his beast out to enjoy her as well. That was his mistake, his beast grinned wickedly. He wanted them to have the little miko, to truly have her. She would be their mate. He took control, shoving his move rational side into the background. He pounded himself into his mate-to-be's soft flesh, loving the noises of pleasure she made. He was close now... he smirked and moved his hand from her side to slide it in between their bodies, and began to massage her clitoris while he thrust into her. She growled her release, and he sped up his pace, the feeling of her muscles clenching around him speeding up his own orgasm. Just as he came he made her orgasm one last time, and bit deeply into her breast, marking her as his mate.

For Kagome, there was so much intense pleasure, then the sting of his fangs. From the two, she lost consiousness, and he curled her body to his. She was safe, and warm, and he would deal with the rest when she woke. He frowned, knowing he would have to deal with her companions at some point.

Oh well, he thought, it was a little late for second thoughts now. She was his, and they would all just have to accept it. He smirked before kissing his little miko's forehead. Yes, this was definitely an enjoyable way to piss off his brother, though now that would just be a nice bonus, because the real joy was having found his mate.