The Iris and the Orchid by FlugelDerFreiheit

Enthralled

Blue light surrounded Kagome and she let out a small squeak as she surged past the era she was meant to be in. After a few moments, her body came to a stop in a ditch where she made a very ungraceful landing.

“Owww.” She groaned, as a pain surged through her rear. Blue eyes looked up towards the sky which was a baby blue, with plenty of clouds that stretched across it. Crawling from the hole, she made herself stand and brushed off her jeans.

Lush green grass went on for yards before meeting up with a few trees which were rather small, seemingly only a few decades old. Intermingled with them were a couple older trees that seemed to hover over the younger ones, the way a parent hovered over their children. To the right, there seemed to be a pathway in the grass that wove its way around the trees.

Hefting up her bag, Kagome stared towards the gathering of trees. She was pretty certain she was in the same physical location as she always was, but this was not the right era. Turning around she started towards the small hole and jumped back into the area, praying that maybe she could head back…but the gods were not so inclined to allow her return. The black haired girl huffed and began to walk towards the trees.

The grass easily parted under her footsteps as she counted them…20, 21, 22…and then she was facing a tree that was present throughout her travels. Its size was notably less than she had seen before, but the Goshinboku was still big enough for her to recognize; and if simply seeing it was not enough, the energy coming off of the tree remained the same as the energy of her time. Reaching out and stroking the tree, she sighed at the relative warmth it provided. “Well, it’s you and me Goshinboku.” Shrugging off her bag, she sat down at the foot of the tree and began to wonder what era she was in. It was obvious that she was not only 500 years in the past, InuYasha would have been there to greet her, and this definitely did not look the same. The trees were too small, and Goshinboku was missing the scar from where InuYasha was held for so long. ‘Well, I won’t get anywhere if I just sit her like a bump on a log.’ She mused to herself, and stood and headed off in the general direction of the village she was so accustom to.

When she finally made her way to the location of the village in the future, her hopes sank. There was nothing but grass, and a few trees. What was she going to do now? What was the nearest village from here in this time? Tears stung at her eyes, but she was not going to cry. She had been through enough in the past that this was not enough to push her over the edge, or so she hoped.  In the past she had always had her mother and Sango; even through everything with InuYasha, she had been able to depend on someone. The hanyo’s dense personality might have destroyed her without their help. Kagome had finally gotten over him and remained his friend and supporter through his love with Kikyo, who he was happily mated with now.

Taking a deep breath to relax herself, she began to follow the small path, praying that she would find a village before too long.

Lightly humming to herself, Kagome thought of the past and its effect on her future.  This new ‘adventure’ felt like a repeat of the beginning of her journey five years ago. While it had finally ended, she had not been able to make a wish, and instead she held onto the jewel, and continued to pass back and forth between times. Maybe this was the result of her using the well too often?

Kagome was so deep into her thoughts that she did not see the large figure that loomed over her until she was almost a foot away from their figure. She quickly stopped herself, and practically jerked to a stop before them. Holding her breath, she looked up to meet a pair of golden eyes, and see a moon, and two magenta markings that adorned pale flesh.  Her eyes traveled over to see a white fluff hanging over one shoulder and over the other a thick braid of silver hair.

The golden eyes watched her curiously, before taking in her appearance with equal curiosity and a slight amount of was that disgust? “Onna, are you a whore?” There was curiosity lacing his tone, yet it remained cold.

Kagome felt her face go red, and her embarrassment wanted to control her tongue, but she bit it. This was Sesshomaru, and while she disliked what he was saying, she wanted to be able to speak again after she answered his question. “No. I’m not.” Her voice came out stressed, though much calmer than she had anticipated.

“Then why do you dress in such a manner?” Sesshomaru cocked his head to the side in an inquisitive gesture, and Kagome felt herself relax. He was not angry, and did not seem to be in a rampaging mood.

“I fear I lack other attire. And I came here from…a distant place. We do not dress the same.” She cringed, it was not a lie; yet she did not like the idea of even fibbing around this yōkai.

Sesshomaru seemed to ponder her answer for a moment, and then inclined his head towards her. “This one can comprehend what you are meaning. However, this one would also advise you to find suitable attire; humans here are much different than yours it seems.”

‘Hold on, did Sesshomaru just….try to help me?’ She clenched her jaw to keep it from falling open. “Sesshomaru, do you happen to know of any place I could get clothes?” She paused, ‘Crap, I just called him his name without any honorifics…He is going to-’

Golden eyes fixed steadily on her face, “This Sesshomaru did not state his name around you, onna. How is it that you came to be aware of such a fact?”

Gazing down at her feet, Kagome cringed; she knew she’d mess up eventually, “I had heard about you from where I lived and..” She paused, this was not going well.

“That is a bluff, Onna. Do not think that this one is a fool.” A harsh edge entered his eyes as he stared at her.

“The place I come from is…”Her blue eyes looked up to meet with molten gold. “In the future and I happened to meet you there.” The last part of the sentence was rushed from her lips as she waited for the kill she knew would happen. But it never did. Instead the yōkai stared at her for a moment, then nodded, accepting the explanation without any further questions. Kagome stared at him for a moment, then managed to gasp out, “You…you believe me?”

“This one scents no lies from you, Onna.” His lips quirked into a small smirk. “What is your name, Onna?”

“My name?” Her mind raced, why did Sesshomaru care about her name, he had never asked her in the future, and surely he hadn’t remembered it.

“Yes, unless you wish for this Sesshomaru to continue to call you Onna.” His eyes glittered with humor, a look unfamiliar to the young woman on his face.

Blue eyes widened as she realized her blunder, “My name is Kagome Higarashi. I’m sorry for my rudeness.” She bowed slightly.

“Hn,” He nodded, “Higarashi, you will accompany this Sesshomaru.”

Kagome sighed, ‘yes, this definitely was the same yōkai.’ But really, he hadn’t hurt her, and she knew no one else in this era, and he was safe. So why not go with him? Nodding, she started forward only to be grasped and thrown over a shoulder.

A very unpleasant and annoyed squeal slipped from her lips as her stomach hit the firm muscle and bone of his shoulder. “What are you doing? Where are you taking me?”  She was tempted to dig her nails into him and kick, but she doubted that it would get her anywhere but the grave.

A deep rumble vibrated against her legs as the yōkai answered her, “This Sesshomaru is heading toward his accommodations.” He wrapped a large hand around her jean clad thighs while her fingers dug into his fur, causing the hard muscles under her stomach to stiffen. “Onna, this one is not harming you, release my pelt. His hand tightened momentarily around her leg, but loosened as her fingers relaxed.

A small huff of irritation slipped from her lips. Why did he think it was necessary to throw her over his shoulder like a caveman? She would have went with him had he asked. But then, this was Sesshomaru she was talking about, he was not exactly known for his manners when it came to women.

Her eyes watched as the ground moved steadily under her, the dirt slowly changing colors as they moved closer to the trees and their green and golden leaves mixed into the soil. Within a few moments, the ground changed to grass, and the soft whooshing of the blades as they parted under Sesshomaru’s feet was the only sound he made. His chest rose and fell softly against her thighs, the fabric of her jeans rubbing slightly against his kimono.

His hand released her thigh and the air felt cool as he gently set her on the ground. His body heat had permeated her skin, or perhaps it was his yōkai, though it was odd that her reiki hadn’t flared in response. The fact that she was a miko, and he a yōkai, should have caused her powers to burn him.

Her blue eyes met his golden ones; curiosity and intelligence stared back her through a cage of frozen emotions. If she had not known him from the future, she would have cowered at the seemingly ice cold gaze. Though the deeper she looked, the more passion and heat she found, the outwardly cold man was nothing but a façade.

He inclined his head towards her, his silver hair falling over his shoulder and into his face. The crescent moon on his forehead became blocked by a waterfall of silver as he moved closer, his nose lightly touching her cheek as he inhaled.

Fortunately, she was used to being around Inu’s and similarities to their canine companions, and she stayed still. His hot breath puffed against her cheek as he pulled away, drawing to his full height which towered over her, before brushing by her in order to continue walking towards a rocky enclosure behind her. His feet softly crunched against the dirt, but it was drowned out in her ears by the rapid beating of her heart. For in the moment he had been so close to her, she had been able to see how caged his power really was. His yōkai had flooded over her, and despite her Miko blood, she had been enthralled by it.

Authors's Note:

Originally this chapter was much longer...but I decided to cut it short and type up the rest for chapter two. Please let me know what you think.