Encroaching Darkness

Kagome looked at Sesshoumaru and felt like every second was an eternity. She tried to glare at him, but felt stupid, as she could not even see him, so she crossed her arms and harrumphed.

“You are joking, right?” Kagome slowly stated.

Michiko frowned and looked to the ground before answering, “No my lady, Lord Sesshoumaru is correct. You are the Lady of the West.”

Kagome’s eyes widened. She was a human. From her experience, even though she was from the future, she had always assumed Sesshoumaru as one to be prejudice and find that the only thing worth his time was to that one must have the pure ancestry of a demon coursing through their veins.

“But I am human, a priestess, and above all, blind,” Kagome said.

“The blindness is temporary, and you are no mere human,” the demon lord stated.

“But I do not love you,” Kagome replied sadly. “Do I not get a say in this?”

“Unfortunately, you do not. Love is not an issue at the moment, as we do not have to consummate until you are ready to do so. However, you will be Lady of the West in title only until that has been completed,” Sesshoumaru answered. “I am afraid I can offer you no comfort on an emotional level, but it is the only thing that can be done given the situation that has occurred.”

“This is only thing that can be done? Why not just accept my gratitude? I do not need some fancy title. Believe me that I do not want to be insulting, but I do not think it would be wise,” Kagome fumed, closing her eyes, although she could still sense his overwhelming aura.

“What will you do, Kagome? Will you go back to Edo and live out the rest of your life fighting to survive? You have come here in hope of having this Sesshoumaru train you to be a better fighter. You are worthy of this position regardless of the wrong done to you. Perhaps this Sesshoumaru is being a bit rash, but perhaps your perception will change with time. Most demoness in all of the lands fights for dominance just to have a chance to be Lady of the West. We will spend time together and perhaps have some connection. You are fair in complexion, and agreeable to this Sesshoumaru,” the demon lord explained.

Kagome’s eye widened.

‘Did he just compliment me? Fair complexion and agreeable to him?’ she said to herself, feeling the laughter bubble up.

“Glad that I meet your approval on some sort of strange attraction,” Kagome giggled.
“Hn,” he replied, though Kagome caught a bit of amusement in the short response.

“The paperwork has already been completed and currently the news is being passed to all of the lands. As for this, it is out of honor and you deserve nothing less than the best, my lady,” Michiko tried to explain. “Lord Sesshoumaru is not good with dealing with your emotions and I will say that he will not harm you. You may not know it, but just the fact that you are here means that he cares for you on some level. My lord is no fool and does not believe that demons are without feelings. He has to maintain this so please work with him. You will love it here. You will want for nothing, and you even get to train and travel with him. It is such a high honor!”

Kagome sighed and turned her head away from the two auras in the room. She did not want her life decided for her, but she had to give Michiko credit. His actions did say that he cared for her on some level.

‘It may not be love, but I guess at least being amiable will do. I think I can give him a chance.’

“Okay,” she began, “So, I am the Lady of the West. What will that entail?”

“I will leave this to you, Michiko,” Sesshoumaru said, and then left the room.

“Of course, my lord,” Michiko nodded.

The room grew silent for a bit between the two females, the tension quite thick after Sesshoumaru’s departure.

“He is a busy… being, huh?” Kagome asked, almost calling him a man.

Michiko smiled and replied, “Indeed he is. He has a lot and rarely trusts anyone. You will have a lot to do as well, my lady.”

“Please, I know my status has changed, but when it is just us, can we just be friends and call each other by our names, Michiko?” the dark-haired woman asked.

“Yes, Kagome. I think I can do that for you, but only when it is just us,” the demon replied. “Kagome, you will be the one that oversees how the citadel is run. It is a large task, but you will be able to delegate your duties with the staff. We expect it. Right now, Lord Sesshoumaru runs the household. However, until recently, some of those duties were heavily entrusted to Jaken. I will be covering those duties, but I will also be teaching you. It is not hard and as you have come to know in a short time, I am not a difficult demoness. Duties include arranging banquets when needed, catering to honored guests when they arrive, and taking inventory on the citadel food, clothing, and such and making the necessary calculations with the assistance of a scribe to figure out the tithes needed to run the citadel. In a way, the citadel is a small city in itself.”

“But it is just a large building. It does not seem such a hard thing,” Kagome commented, thinking that just the palace was the only thing she had to worry about.

“You are mistaken, Kagome. It is the whole city surrounding the main estate. From the soldiers to the seamstresses, they are all a part of the Western estate. Lord Sesshoumaru rarely asks for money, but for the subjects to pay in rice and raw materials. We do not exchange money like the humans, but that does not mean that we do not have money. As you know, we do have to walk in disguise amongst humans in all of the lands. Many loyal subjects who rather give money than raw materials are allowed to do so. You are entrusted with those tallies,” Michiko informed her.

“Oh, well that is a lot more. I will do my best,” Kagome said. “Is that all?”

“No,” Michiko laughed. “As uncomfortable as it is to hear this, when you and our lord finally consummate your arrangement, you will be known as his breeder, or as you humans say, mother of his children. You will have assistance in rearing them, but you will help in their early development. We higher demons pride ourselves on our upbringing. I can tell that you are someone who loves children by your interaction with Rin and talking about the kitsune that traveled with our lord’s half-brother. Lord Sesshoumaru was not so lucky as his mother did not have a motherly bone. It is not that she hates her son, but that as you are aware of the story, she is still bitter over the former Inu no Taisho choosing a ningen as a second partner instead of mating the mother of his heir. Lord Sesshoumaru suffered from her bitterness and neglect, hence why she does not live in the Western Domain anymore and lives in a realm guarding Makai.”

Kagome now understood why Sesshoumaru acted so coldly. He had not known loving hand as a pup. She wants to pity him, but he did not deserve it. He deserved a chance from her to open up. She did not hate the taiyoukai at all. She just did not know how to handle him and his aloofness. He was far more untouchable than even Kikyo. He did not even smile unless it was sadistically.

‘I will make him smile. Maybe not in front of his subjects, but I can when it is just between us. I do not know how, but I will try. I am sure I might look foolish, but who cares,’ Kagome smiled to herself.

“You do not pity him?” Michiko wondered.

“Why should I? It is not his fault and he is doing fine as he is, right?” Kagome replied.

“You amazed me, Kagome. You have no idea how many do and I know that our lord has become angry hearing about it. He will be pleased,” Michiko said. “Now that I have told you a general part of your duties, I want to discuss what lessons you will need to know to be the Lady of the West. I would ask you to walk with me, but in your condition, we will have to remain here.”

“Oh, it is okay. I would love to walk. Hopefully in a week or so I can. It is still a bit painful, but I have felt worse,” Kagome smiled.

“You are quite brave, Kagome. Most ningen would whine and let their injuries effect them far more,” the demoness replied. “Some of the lessons are etiquette like tea ceremony and some dancing. We do not have professional performers and usually our lady will be expected to entertain. I have heard you can be clumsy, but when you learn to fight, I am confident that your clumsiness will melt away. With ningen, it is merely getting comfortable and confident with your body. You will also have some history of Lord Sesshoumaru’s line and lessons about the neighboring kingdoms. You will learn protocol on how to receive your guests and how you must conduct yourself while dining. Of course, by having seen your habits myself, you have quite a bit cut out for you.”

“Well, I did live on a shrine with my family. I learned how to do a tea ceremony and how to wear a proper kimono during festivals. It will take some getting use to. Will I expect to be like Lord Sesshoumaru?” Kagome asked, hoping she did not have to act coldly.

“What do you mean?” Michiko asked.

“Will I have to be cold to others? How will I be expected to act?” Kagome explained.

“Oh, no! You will act in a refined manner, but you do not have to be stoic. The Lady of the West is expected to be warm and welcoming, but also refined and respected. I hope that eases your mind, Kagome,” Michiko giggled.

Kagome giggled with her.

“I could not see myself even trying to be that way,” she replied.

“And I agree,” the demoness said.

“How will I be able to fit all of these lessons of etiquette as well as the training that Sesshoumaru will give me?” Kagome wondered.

“It does seem a bit daunting, but I am sure a good schedule can be drawn out and you will get use to it. Of course, you will not be expected to dive right in. I will help you ease into your duties. However, I would recommend focusing on getting closer to our lord. The subjects of the Western Domain have been eagerly awaiting any news that Lord Sesshoumaru would take a mate. He has been alone for a very long time. Within the domain, there is not much opposition, but outside there is plenty. If you become close to him, he will fiercely protect you,” Michiko said.

“I wonder what it would be like to have his protection?” Kagome thought out loud.

“I do too. There are times that I have seen our lord interact privately with Rin that was quite sweet. He is not use to it, but that little girl has done wonders. You are much like Rin as you both possess a positive childlike quality. A match between you and Sesshoumaru will definitely be both strange and possibly difficult, but he needs it. He has only known the harshness. He needs to appreciate all aspects and stop saying that protecting is ridiculous. I know I step out of line, but I care for my lord as if he were a very good friend,” Michiko sighed sadly.

“You are a good friend, no matter what title you have in this place. You care enough, and that is enough,” Kagome replied, and reached out to touch the demoness.

“Thank you for your kind words, Kagome,” Michiko said, and then stood up. “Think about what we have said. I will go draw up a schedule. Get some rest. You will need to be in top condition when it comes time to properly introduced to the court.”