Chapter Eleven – A Teacher Arrives
"Well, if it pleases my lord, shall I continue it?" For the hundredth time since the words fell on his ears, they echoed in his head, adopting the teasingly sweet tone that the miko had used when uttering them the day before. Sesshomaru narrowed his eyes at the rolls of parchment in front of him. 'Wench.' His hand reached for a scroll on a shelf above his head, and again the remembered words darted through his thoughts, whisper-soft against his conscious. 'Insufferable wench.' Sliding the selected roll of yellowed parchment from its place, he turned and strode back toward the desk in the sitting area of the room, the surface of which was already strewn with sheets of abandoned paper. Settling onto the cushion, he carefully unrolled the scroll, being careful of his claws. He was halfway through the reading when the miko's voice burst across his mind again. "Well, if it pleases my lord, shall I continue it?" The irritated rumble he'd been working to suppress passed his lips, a sound of frustration that he knew he didn't make often. 'Insufferable human wench.' He tried to push her out of his mind, out of his thoughts, but despite his best efforts she remained, and the image of her shimmering blue eyes burned his concentration to dust. The tome he'd been perusing now forgotten, Sesshomaru rose from his position with a mental huff of resignation and walked to the balcony just off of the library. He had a view of his gardens from here, and he inhaled lightly as a breeze carried the scent of pine and flowering plants to his nose. 'She knows not what she's done to this one,' he thought, catching the miko's scent as well. She was with his first, and was content. 'She knows not how close she was to being taken.' Gods, how close she had been. He'd been shocked for a few moments at her initial non-reaction to his goading, but the tone of her voice as well as the words she'd spoken had quickly shoved any and all surprise from his system; the blood in his veins had heated and he'd felt his loins tighten at her unintentional offering. And yet, the miko knew nothing of what she'd done. She'd finished her tea, bantering back and forth with him and remaining collected no matter what he did to rile her temper. It seemed that she was taking to his mother's lessons after all, despite the fact that she was obviously intimidated by the woman. 'Perhaps Kotono is teaching her as well…or perhaps she is simply absorbing what she sees in the dragoness.' The thought that the miko might be as intelligent as to soak up Kotono's mannerisms and calm disposition did nothing to soothe the fire he felt for the tiny onna. He had always had a liking for intelligence, after all. "Well, if it pleases my lord, shall I continue it?" He closed his eyes and allowed his mind to run with the images he'd been trying not to entertain for sanity's sake, feeling his groin heat as his manhood stirred to life. She was sitting across from him, that teasing smile tilting her lips in the most enticing manner. He was pleased with the way she looked, her obi tied in the front and the deep red kimono she wore accenting the color of her skin and the hue of her eyes. "There are…other duties you may do to please your lord, little miko," he informed her. Her eyes sparkled with an emotion he couldn't name—nervousness, perhaps—and her small, pink tongue darted out to wet her lips. He followed the movement of her mouth as she spoke. "Then my lord must tell me those duties, so that I may perform them." She was responding as a true courtesan would respond, using her words to entice him, to seduce him. His fingers twitched. "And so I shall," he promised darkly, enjoying the slight flush that colored her cheeks. "But first, you will refill my cup." She immediately did as was demanded, her wrist arched delicately and the small strip of skin stoking the fire in his veins. He wanted to see more of her, all of her… He inclined his head as she returned the decanter of tea to its tray, the porcelain dish making little noise. She watched him with blue eyes that shimmered with expectant curiosity, and he lifted his cup to his lips, watching her watch him. She shifted as he set the cup down again. "Come here." The way she rose instantly from her cushion sparked an intense pleasure in him—she was obedient, and he enjoyed her obedience almost as much as he enjoyed her stubbornness. She came around the table and knelt daintily before him, eyes peeking up at him through thick, sooty lashes. "Closer." She shuffled forward, and her scent wafted strongly to his nose; he inhaled deeply, making no move to hide the acceptance in his gaze as he looked at her. Slowly, deliberately, he lifted his hand and touched the tips of his fingers against her mouth, feeling the shudder that rippled through her frame. "My lord?" she whispered, voice as soft as the lips that his fingers touched. It was a shy utterance, one that belied her innocence in a way that her previous actions and words did not. The contrast between how she spoke and how she really was, was exquisite, a fine line that he would readily destroy just to watch her meld the two together. "This Sesshomaru need not remind you that you have duties to perform," he said lowly in response to her inquiry. She shook her head, the ornaments in her hair tinkling softly with the movement. "My lord need only demand it, and I will do as bid." He let loose a pleased growl, and she averted her gaze, fingers clenching in her lap. "What will you have me do?" Oh, there were a multitude of things he would have her do, a multitude of ways he would simply have her while she lie back and do nothing. But now? Now… Gently, so as not to startle her, he slipped his fingers from her lips and hooked them beneath her chin. Her gaze found his, questioning but full of trust, and he leaned forward until his mouth hovered just a hairsbreadth above her own, until the breath passing from her parted lips entered his own lungs, inhaled and reused by his body. Her eyes closed, and he allowed himself the same luxury, taking in the intoxicating aroma of her rising excitement. "Undress me, little miko," he whispered, releasing her chin only to trail his fingers down the length of her neck. Her skin felt like warm silk, and the pulse that jumped beneath his touch was quick and fluttery, like the heartbeat of a bird. "As my lord wishes," she breathed in response, her voice raspy with growing passion. Her hands were so very tiny, he realized as she lifted them to his shoulders, smoothing his kimono down his arms before tracing back upward and down his chest. His skin responded instantly to her touch, warming beneath the layers of his clothes. He knew that her fingers trembled at the tie of his obi, and the instant the belt loosened, she shivered. He reached up, cupping her face in his hands. "Good girl," he praised, their lips brushing as he spoke. The need to kiss her nearly overtook him, but he grasped at the threads of his control and pulled tight, running his thumbs over the apples of her cheeks. "Now stand." They moved as one, rising fluidly to their feet. He was so much larger than she, but although he remained bent nearly in half, the position caused him no discomfort, and he allowed his hands to fall to the small of her back, never widening the distance between their faces. "Continue." The fingers that lay against his obi moved once more, dropping the silk at his feet. He could hear it flutter to the floor, and the sound only heightened his anticipation; the miko's breathing became heavier. Her hands slipped back up, between his outer and inner kimono, and she removed the outer in one movement, the only thing being that he had to lower his arms to allow her to do so. Now her touch was warmer, closer to his skin, and he took in a deep breath as her fingers brushed the collar of his inner kimono and slipped downward to untie the belt. "No." Instantly, she stilled. "My lord?" He could hear the frightened tremor in her hushed voice, and he soothed small circles onto her hips, assuring her that she had done nothing to displease him. "Worry not, little miko. The time shall come." She nodded, and he moved his hands to her own obi, pulling the ends until the belt loosened. Her breath quickened, and, eyes still closed, he imagined the flush of her cheeks, the parting of her lips. A small tremor shook his own spine, and he slowly removed the long belt from her small waist. Fabric shifted and rustled, and he inhaled deeply, moving, just so, to drag his lips over the line of her delicate jaw. Her breath caught, and he continued despite the severe pace of her heart, dropping his head to inhale the scent of the skin on her neck. She smelled strongly of power and of danger, sweet with erotic promise. It made his mouth water, and he parted his lips, breathing a hot breath against her skin before flicking his tongue out to taste her. Her flavor burst across his senses much as her aura splashed against his conscious, bombarding him with a strong wave of desire. The whimper that left her lips reminded him of the fact that he had yet to kiss those plump petal-soft things, and so he nibbled up her throat and to her mouth. "Do you desire me, onna?" It was a moot question, one that he already knew the answer to, and yet she nodded hesitantly. "Then there is one other thing you must do." He undressed her completely as he spoke, brushing the heavy layers of her kimono away from her fragrant skin and running the pads of his fingers over her exquisite flesh. "My lord needs only demand it, and I will do as bid," she repeated breathily, her voice thick with the desire he could smell wafting from her. She was soft and pliant beneath his fingertips, and he settled his hands on the curves of her hips, noting how they fit perfectly in his palms. He opened his eyes and found hers to be open as well, half-lidded and hazy. The graceful slope of her shoulder enticed him as he looked over her, and he followed it, veering off to the perfect globes of her breasts. He wondered if it were truly possible for a human to have such lovely assets, and upon assuring himself that it was—was he not, after all, witnessing such a thing?— drank them in like a man who had thirsted for lifetimes. Their peaks were pink and puckered, and he had the very strong urge to take one in his mouth and taste it until she cried out for him, until she begged him to take her, to plunge into her soft heat over and over again…But no. There was something he must have her do before then, and he tore his gaze away from those twin mounds of perfection, committing her sight to memory as he met her eyes once more, quickly removing his kimono and murmuring only one thing before he allowed their lips to mesh. "Touch me." And then a stench that did not belong in his shameless musing shoved itself harshly into his nostrils and dissipated the dream—and his arousal—in an instant. He opened his eyes, glanced over his shoulder, and made it clear that he was displeased at the interruption with a low growl. "Jaken." The imp, his oldest retainer, bowed so lowly and so quickly that the tip of his beak-like mouth smashed into the wooden flooring. Sesshomaru had the brief and violent urge to press his foot to the back of the creature's head, but allowed it to pass without acting on it; he would hate to have to replace his floors. "Milord, please excuse this lowly Jaken for disturbing you," the toad groveled, "but there is a guest at the gates, my lord!" "Guest?" "Yes, milord. A-a miko." "Hnn." He paused, simply for the enjoyment of making the youkai squirm in discomfort. "Inform Kotono that she and the twelfth are to meet me at the front gates." "Of course, my lord!" He was gone in the next few moments, and Sesshomaru was grateful for the breeze that swept into the room and cleared it of the toad's offensive odor. In the absence of the retainer, the thought of the miko once more invaded his mind. Idly, he wondered how much longer he would have to wait until she was ready for him. 'It matters not,' he conceded, feeling the heat of desire once more filtering through his veins as he recalled his interrupted fantasy. 'This one shall have her soon enough.' He leapt from the balcony and began to make his way to the front gates.
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Kagome had never seen a creature quite like the one who stood before her now, speaking to Kotono in the most annoying tone ever to disgrace her ears. It was a sickly green color and wore brown robes that did nothing to improve its appearance, its bulbous yellow eyes and beak-like mouth reminding her of an imp Tanaka-sama had claimed haunted the forests at night. She watched it in an odd mixture of curiosity and disgust until it left, and then turned to Kotono with a raised brow. "What was that?" The dragoness smiled. "His name is Jaken. He is my lord's oldest servant." "Oh." Kagome peered down the path, cocking her head to one side. "What did he want?" "There is a guest at the gates. We are to meet Lord Sesshomaru there." Kagome nodded and began to follow the dragoness toward the front gates, the thought that she would get to see Lord Sesshomaru again dredging up a mixture of apprehension and excitement. She'd been bold the morning before, surprising him and then refusing to act the way he expected her to act; she knew it was a dangerous thing for a man—human or youkai—to be caught off guard and continuously thwarted. She could only hope that Lord Sesshomaru was inwardly pleased at how well she kept her temper despite the fact that she'd wanted so very badly to yell and throw a fit. Pushing the thoughts away as they neared the front of the compound, she fell a half step behind Kotono and trained her eyes toward the ground, watching Kotono's geta as they picked daintily over the cobbled path, click clacking as they went. Her own sandals were a matching sound, and only because she was so used to the noise did she look up when a foreign rustle caught her attention. Her breath stalled in her throat. Lord Sesshomaru stood in the main courtyard, sunlight bouncing off of his hair and lighting the crane design on his burnt orange kimono to brilliance, the white creature standing out in stark contrast as it spread its wings in a graceful flight across the inu's chest. His obi was a shade darker than his kimono, and the colors gave his golden eyes a deeper, darker hue that absorbed the sunlight bouncing into them and threw it back in an alluringly beautiful way. Kagome bowed, trying to fight off the blush she could feel rising to her cheeks and failing miserably. She kept her eyes averted from the inu lord when she rose, and instead turned it to the woman in miko's garb. 'My teacher!' she thought, a single burst of excitement making her forget about her previous embarrassment. 'I was wondering when she would get here.' But then the woman's appearance caught up with her, and she fought back a frown. Hashimoto Suzume was not at all what Kagome had been expecting. She was of shorter than average height, and though her brown hair showed a smattering of gray hairs at her temple, she couldn't have been much older than two-and-twenty summers; her face had a youthful cast, and her eyes were a lively shade of gray. "My lord, my ladies," she murmured with a bow. "Hashimoto Suzume, at your services." "You may rise," Lord Sesshomaru said after a moment, and Kagome found her gaze drawn to him and the silver curtain of his hair. Watching it sway lightly in a breeze, she had a brief urge to cross the distance that separated them and bury her fingers into the tresses. She resisted, though she suspected it was only because the inu spoke again, baritone voice floating through the air. "You have one moon cycle. This one trusts that this amount of time is sufficient?" Suzume bowed again. "Of course, my lord." Sesshomaru nodded, and then turned and looked at them. Golden eyes met hers for a moment before sliding to Kotono. "Come." Kotono inclined her head and stepped closer to him, turning to give Kagome a smile. "Be kind to our guest, little one," the dragoness said teasingly, markings glinting in the sunlight as she stood alongside Sesshomaru. Kagome nodded and bowed, and then straightened and watched the two youkai walk away, Kotono beginning to motion lightly as she talked. They turned a corner, and left with the task of entertaining a guest—something she'd most certainly never done before—Kagome turned to the miko and bowed. "If you would follow me, Hashimoto-sama." She led her to her and Kotono's building, and was relieved to see Shinji standing outside of the door. "There is tea inside, my lady," he said lowly, sliding the screen open and bowing. "Thank you, Shinji-san." It wasn't until she and Suzume settled that she floundered, unsure of what to do or what she should say. She licked her lips and settled for being polite. "I trust your journey was not terribly trying?" she asked as she poured the tea, hoping that the miko didn't see the nervous shaking of her hand. "Not terribly," Suzume answered, her voice a lilting, almost high-pitched chirp. "I was held up at the Yumise Pass, but other than that, everything went quite smoothly." Kagome nodded. There was a long, uncomfortable pause, and Kagome shifted, trying to figure out what she could possibly say to break the silence. With some difficulty—was it too soon to do this?—she finally decided that she would ask about her lessons, but before she could speak, a giggle crossed the space between them. She frowned. "Pardon me, Hashimoto-sama, but what—" "You are," the woman interrupted, mirth in her tone. "I know you're no proper lady, at least not yet, so you can relax around me." Pleasantly surprised, Kagome sent up a silent, heartfelt word of thanks to the gods and smiled.
Author's Note: I'll be uploading 21 more chapters today, likely in quick succession, in order to get all of my written chapters up before the new chapter is finished tomorrow. Hold onto your hats, people...This is gonna be a quick ride.
At any rate, thanks for reading, and I hope you enjoyed!
~Aubrey
