Battle of Wills (revised)

Kagome held her head as she awoke from her short lived drunken coma. She groaned softly as she placed a clamy palm against her forehead. Slowly, broken memories from the day before began to fill her aching brain. The tour of the manor, meeting Rin, dinner with Sesshoumaru, and then....'And then what?' She questioned herself as she rubbed her throbbing brain. Flashes of desperate kisses, and clawed fingers wrapped about her thighs began to filter in as well. "Oh my god." She cried out softly as she covered her mouth with her hand. 'What happened last night? Did I....Did we?' She took in a sharp breath and held it as she heard a door open.

"Feeling better?" A familiar deep voice questioned.

"Sesshoumaru?" Kagome questioned as she slowly attempted to open her eyes. "Oh my god." She muttered in a soft joking tone and took in the pictch blackness of her surroundings. "I'm blind." She laughed half hearted as she held her sore head and continued to stare into the pitch black room. Kagome realized as the room remained silent, that in the darkness of the room it was impossible to read the demon lords expression. "Sesshoumaru?" She questioned weakly as she laid in the bed, not wanting to move her body just yet.

"Yes?" He questioned in the darkness adding to the surrealism of the moment.

Kagome laughed softly as she held her head, the pain causing her laugh to slowly fade to a wimper. "Why are the lights off?"

"You were sleeping." Sesshoumaru answered matter of factly.

Kagome silently rolled her eyes at him. "Can we turn them on please? It's hard to talk to you when I can't see you."

"Why?" He questioned in an amused tone.

Kagome felt the bed she was laying on give on its right side. Slowly she ran her hand over the soft cushiony material that seemed to make up the surface until her hand reached a warm hard body. "Is that you?" She questioned in the darkness.

"Yes." He answered in a puzzled tone, while shuddering under her touch, and wondering who else he would let get this close to her. Sesshoumaru moved closer as he felt Kagome's hand grasp his thigh. "Are you feeling better?" He questioned smoothly in the darkness.

"My head hurts." She whined as moved her hand back to her forhead. A shiver creeped over Kagome's body as she felt him press his lips against her forehead.

"I appologize," He whispered softly as he ran his hand over her arm.

"Sesshoumaru...." She began in an unsteady tone. "Did I? Did we...We're we?" Kagome sighed and finally let the words fall into the darkness of the room. "Did we make love?"

The silent laughter that built up in Sesshoumaru's chest shook the bed. "On every surface, and in every room." He responded with a lecherous smirk.

Kagome covered her face with both hands as she felt her skin begin to burn.

Sesshoumaru laughed again, this time out loud. "We did not." He chuckled.

"Liar!" She laughed in a relieved tone as she pushed against his rock hard thigh. "Don't do that to me!" She exclaimed before placeing a palm against her throbbing head once again.

"Sesshoumaru?" She questioned again in a confusion, as silence began to fill the room again. "Am I in a bed?"

Sesshoumaru smiled softly. "Something I wanted to show you." He offered as he pulled himself off the bed and walked over to the dresser that sat against the wall.

Kagome squinted and turned away as a candle burned and lit up the room, and then another. Slowly, she turned back as her sore eyes began to adjust to the light that now slowly began to fill the room. She gasped softly and covered her mouth with her hand as her headache was momentarily forgotten. "Oh...Sesshoumaru...." She whipsered softly in astonishment as she pulled herself out of the bed. She could now see it clearly. And it was beautiful.

The whole room was almost an exact duplicate of her room back home. Certain things, like the walls for example were quite different. Sheer pink fabric hung from the walls, instead of pink paint. The bed was actually quite a bit larger, and obviously wasn't composed of springs. She had noticed as she laid upon it that it seemed to give much more then her bed at home did, but was raised further from the ground then any futon she had encountered. The bed itself was georgous, with its large wooden posts and more of the sheer pink fabric drapped along the canopy. 'No wonder his servants needed all day to put this room together.' She thought as she took in her surroundings.

"I hope the bed will be adequate." Sesshoumaru remarked as he watched her hand play along the wood. "I know it is not exaclty the same as the one in your time."

Kagome turned to him in shock as he she realized just how hard it would have been to put something like this together in such a short amount of time. "Are you kidding?" She questioned as she ran her hand over the fabric of the matress. "Its georgous." She remarked in amazement.

The matress was much lower to the ground then any bed she had ever seen in her time, and it looked and felt more like a large pillow with a wooden frame placed around it to help it keep its shape, but it was extremely comfortable, and the fabric it was made of was smooth and quilted.

"It's amazing." She remarked again as she walked over to where the demon lord stood and threw her arms around him, hugging him tightly. "Thank you so much." She whispered into his chest. "How can I ever repay you?" She smiled as she seperated their bodies and began to run her finger along the framework of the bed again, smiling up at him as she sighed in contentment.

"You need not repay me." He stated softly as he stepped closer, pressing his body against hers. "but I do have a request."

Kagome stared up into his eyes, her mouth going dry as she held her breath, waiting to hear his request.

"What is it?" She questioned with a slight smirk after several moments of silence.

"I wish to be close to you." He stated in an almost pleading tone.

"Sesshoumaru.....I" She began.

He placed a clawed finger against her lip, abruptly stopping her mid sentence. "I am not asking you to give me your body." He smirked softly. "Not for something as simple as this." He gestured toward the room. "I simply wish to be close to you. To share your bed. I request nothing more." He finished his statement in a guarded tone that Kagome recognized all too well.

She sighed internally. Was it really such an unreasonable request? After all, how many times had he saved her life? Considering what they had all ready been through it didn't seem so out of the question. She had pressed her body against his before without succumbing to her desires. If this would make him happy then why couldn't she grant it? She nodded as she made up her mind.

"Just be close to me? Nothing more?" She questioned as she looked up into his cold golden eyes.

He nodded slightly.

She bit her lip. She knew this must be hard for him to request. He was humbling himself to her. The mighty Sesshoumaru was showing a brief moment of weakness, and why? Simply because he wanted to be close to her.

"Very well." She smiled as his features seem to melt before her. "You are welcome to share this bed with me. Lord Sesshoumaru."

He smiled as she addressed him so formally. The title wasn't needed, but he understood her meaning. They had entered into a pact, and she would keep her end of the deal as long as he kept his. "Thank you, Lady Kagome." He answered back as he lowered his lips to hers, placing the slightest of kisses.

Kagome sighed softly as she returned the kiss,wrapping her arms around his neck and leaning against his chest.

Sesshoumaru's breath caught in his throat as she returned the kiss, his need for her once again rising to the surface, her timid return of his advances only fueling his desires. He growled softly as he trapped her against the post of the bed frame, pressing his lips against hers desperately, and roughly grabbing at the kimono that hung loosely against her body. 'Why had I given her clothing?' He growled to himself, as he struggled with the fabric that kept him from the flesh he longed to touch for so long. His hands became more agressive in their movements as he felt her tongue shyly meet his, deepening the kiss further.

Suddenly, he pulled back, red flashing across his golden eyes as his need overtook him.

Kagome gasped as she felt his claws rip the kimono from her body. "Sesshoumaru..." She managed before his hungry lips devoured hers once again. His hand now freely roaming her body as her kimono lay torn and hanging from her arms.

Savagely he began to trail heated kisses down her neck, his left hand buried in her hair as he held her head at an angle, exposing the felsh of her neck to his burning lips. His left hand once again kneeded the flesh of her inner thigh, lighting her leg slightly as he began to pull it against his hip. "Wait...." She whispered softly as she felt his hand travel up her thigh.

He growled loudly against her neck as he continued to trail kisses down her chest and angrily refused to cease his assault.

"Stop." She pleaded in a more forceful tone.

He growled again, taking a step back, his eyes tinted red as he stared at her. "Why?!" He barked as his face twisted into a look of anger and annoyance.

Kagome shook and wrapped her arms around her body as she attempted to cover herself. Never before had she seen this side of him. For a split second she had actually been concerned that he wouldn't stop. The idea made her body tremble. "I-I'm sorry." She stuttered.

Sesshoumaru growled softly as the last bit of red slowly drained from his eyes. The red once again replaced by beautiful pools of amber. "I as well." He stated in a cool tone. He closed his eyes and took a deep breath. How easily she awakened these feelings in him. Feelings he had long discarded. Lately she had become all that preoccupied his mind, and the days of being so close, and yet not, were begining to take their tole. Slowly, he pushed the ripped kimono from her trembling arms, meeting her eyes as he felt her shudder under his touch. "Do you remember what I told you in the ice world Kagome?" He questioned tenderly as he let the robes fall to the floor.

Kagome nodded softly in responce.

"I am still that man." He explained as he lightly ran a finger against the smoothness of her jaw line. "and I will honor that promise." He finished as he lowered his gaze slightly to keep their connection. "Do you fear me Kagome?"

She shook her head shyly, a smile forming on Sesshoumaru's lips.

"Then let us rest." He remarked tenderly as he placed a kiss against her forehead, scooping her up in his arms.

She relaxed in his arms as he carried her over to the bed, burying her head in his chest again.

He set her down softly, kissing her forehead once more before pulling the soft covers over her naked skin.

Kagome closed her eyes and sighed as she listened to him walk around the room, blowing out candle after candle until it was dark again. She bit her lip and listened as he walked to the other side of the bed and began to remove his clothing. She balled her fist and tried to quiet the beating of her heart as she heard him pull back the covers to the bed and slide in next to her. She gasped softly as she felt a clawed hand wrap around her torso and pull her back against him, his hand resting on her hip.

"Are you comfortable?" He questioned in a soft tone as he felt her tense under his touch.

"Yes Sesshoumaru. Thank you." She whispered into the darkness as she tried to relax. Her head still hurt from the previous nights binge, and she found herself slowly drifting into unconciousness again.

He closed his eyes and let out a long staggered breath against her neck as he held her. "Good night Kagome."

"Good night." Kagome whispered as she slowly drifted to sleep in her demon lovers arms.