By the Swing of the Sword

Quick little note: I would just like to say that, having perused quite a bit of fanfiction (particulary the Inu variety) it becomes clear that there a more writers than there are good premises for a story. That's not to say that there is alot of bad fiction necessarily, but that there are alot with similar premises. I know that a certian element of this story was inspired from another one that I read (the concept of Kagome and an OC as slaves/POWs/concubines to Sess and Inu) but I am doing a very different thing with it. I guess what I am trying to say is that to my knowledge I am not stepping on anyone's plotlines or re-writing what someone lese has written. I prolly would have posted a similar disclaimer before Check and Checkmate had I come across other fictions with similiar premises before posting it. Basically, smut or no, this is my creation and I would no sooner steal from someone else's creation than I would let someone get away with stealing mine.

I don't own Inu-Yasha. No shit.

~~~~ {@} Darkswansong

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Lord Hiragushi of the Eastern Lands looked down on the wasted battlefield in dismay. Smoke still curled through the air in places, making the injured and their saviors look like wraiths as they stumbled over the bodies and broken weapons to clearer, safe ground. The Western Lords would not be defeated easily, even if by some miracle he could find the time to re-enforce his troops before the next attack. Theirs was a war of vengance, a righteous quest to restore what the East has stolen from them centuries ago. And they were strong enough now that they would suceed. Unless.....

He wheeled his mount about and headed back towards his field camp, his retainer and secretary in swift pursuit. There might be a way......

Centuries ago, but still fresh in the minds of the long-lived Youkai, there had been a particularly brutual campaign lauched from the Eastern Lands. A great deal of the Western kingdom's territory was captured, and their army all but completely vanquished. But these things could be forgiven. What that long-ago King did next could not. He ransacked the Western Palace, bringing sacred treasures of that royal family back as war booty. He invaded the harem, always understood to be the one place war does not reach, and stole away many of the women, including the new Queen. She was dark and beautiful, the most delicate of all the Inu Youkai in the Kingdom, and the King loved her dearly. But they had been together for only a short time before she was stolen away, and forced into the arms of the Eastern Lord. To this day, those that sit the throne in the East have a touch of this dark beauty, and so the legend says, a darker heart.


Lord Hiragushi found the missive he was looking for and unrolled it from its scroll. A comunication with from Lord Sesshoumaru himself.... your request for negociations is not acceptable. The Western Lands will not cease until the wrong done us has been righted, until we avenge our stolen Queen and our honor...

All this over a woman? Perhaps then he could wrangle a way to end this without losing any of his lands back to the West. If there was one thing he had to spare, it was women...


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Carine stood silently, as was her custom as her father spoke, her two younger sisters nervously stood by her.

"....decided that one of you must serve her country in this matter, and may in fact win the war for us, or at least buy us some time. They wish to avenge their stolen Queen, so we will send them one of our princesses to even things out."

The air was tense as they waited the the next bit. Kagome especially was shaking as she snaked her hand over to cling to Carine's.

"Kagome, you are the one I can spare. you will go and-"

"NO!" The twins collasped in a wailing pile on the floor. "Father, please" Kikyo pleaded,"this is madness. She could be killed..."

"This is what I have decided must be done. Every war has it's casulties my dear. That's why I am not sending you."

"Enough." Carine stepped forward. "What was done all those years ago was wrong. You cannot right it by whoring off one of your daughters."

"I am sending her as-"

"A whore. He will not marry her. You know this. If you thought he would, you would have sent your favorite daughter, who would otherwise never be a Queen. He will toy with her for a while, and then decide that the peace offering is not acceptable and return her in shame or kill her. You don't care because it will buy you sometime to gather troops."

"How dare you speak to me-"

"Send me instead."

"What?"

"Send me instead. You would try an replace a Queen with a third-born princess? An insult to the House of the West. If they take offense they may turn her down imediately. That's not what you want. I am the High Princess, the Rising Queen, so send me."

"No! no, Cari-"

"Hush". She stood very still and looked her father in the eye. "And I should not go empty handed. Return the treasures of their family."

"What!" The King's face was purple now."No, never. Those are ours now, rightful spoils of war. If you wish to throw your life away in this I cannot stop you, but you will not take the wealth of this family with you!" He paced slightly on his dais. "You speak the truth. Lord Sesshoumaru is proud and would be insulted if I gave him Kagome. Very well. You will go. The caravan will leave on the morrow. Prepare yourself."

"Thank you, my lord."

"I am not done." None of the girls trusted the look in his eye now. "I can't give Kagome to the High Lord, but it occurs to me that he has a younger brother. If I honor him, it might help me in the long run, he could help sway his brother's opinion.."

"Father..."

"Oh be quiet Carine. You are not Queen here yet, and indeed due to that out burst today you never shall be. Your sister is going with you and that is final. I have no need for disobediant daughters. I should thank Lord Sesshoumaru for giving me this oppurtunity. Now get out!"

The slapping of sandals and the choking sobs echoed through the halls as the princesses fled.

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Though the hour was late, Carine did not sleep. The candles' light cast an orange glow over her pale face as it filtered through the gazy curtains surrounding her bed. Her eyes were turned towards the balconey, as if she was memorizing the sight of the city that was now invisiable in the darkness. Her sharp ears heard the rustle of cloth and the padding of feet long before the first of her sisters tendatively slipped into her room. She said nothing, only parted the curtains so that they could clammer up onto the large bed. She closed the curtains behind them, so as to muffle the sounds of their whispers.

Kikyo's eyes gleamed large in the dark. She had been crying since they left their father's chamber. In the pale light of the candles she looked so much like her twin. The only difference was the stubborn set to Kagome's jaw that contrasted her sister's dismayed expression.

"This....this is awful." she whispered, "how could father be so cruel? Didn't he hear you Carine? This won't work....and to sent both of you..." She stopped and clutch Kagome's arm tightly. "It was horrible at first...but now..."

She did not need to continue. The others understood exactly what she meant. The horror of the plan aside, it was no suprise to anyone of them that their father wanted to send Kagome. She was the sun to Kikyo's moon, bright and mischievious, the opposite and compliment to Kikyo's quiet grace. But their father had his favorite.

Carine he could tolerate, though not the son he wanted for his first born, she had the qualities to be a grand Queen, if he had to settle for her as an heir. Kikyo was quiet and so he presumed easy to manipulate. Her exotic beauty, reflective of the Western blood in their line would make her ideal to marry off to a powerful young lord on day. She was his favorite. But Kagome, not only was she not the son the midwife had promised,but her birth had been difficult and her mother had died. According to the laws of the Kingdom any child he would have by another could not take the throne. So he hated her for leaving him with female heirs. And her stubbornness did not help.

"I do not know what will become of me without you two....perhaps if I stay in bed and starve myself Father will reconsider...."

"He will only tie you down and force food down your throat. And that rebellion may cost you your freedom. Without us to compare to, you shall not seem to squeaky clean, sister." Kikyo gave her a feeble smile, but the look in her eyes showed she got Kagome's warning.

"Ah, well. We should get some sleep my dears. The days ahead will be long, though not necessaily as disasterous as I said earlier. I was trying to shock Father to his senses."

"Do you really believe that?" It was all Carine could do to meet her sister's stare, she found that she did not have the words to answer.

"I would rather not leave, actaully." Kikyo's eyes were downcast, she had broken in on purpose, unable to bear hearing whatever Carine might say, for fear she might be wrong.

"That's alright. Come here." The three held each other close for a very long time, and when the night chill drove them to burrow under blankets still the clustered together like a pile of kittens, each holding onto the two others in some way, afraid to let go.

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A/N. I know I haven't finshed C&C yet, I will promise. This just popped into my head the other day and I had to set it free. Should update soon, since I actuslly know where this one is gonna go for the next chapter at least. Oops no smut in this chappie. Sorry. Will cum laters, promise. ^_^