Firebrand

~*~Yay, I've finally updated!!! ^_^ I'm so sorry guys for my very loooonnnnggg absence. But hey, I do have a life ryt? And recently the Fates just doesn't seem to get along with me, so I've been busy with real life problems. :-( Right now, things seem to be going smoothly once again (starting with my having a job back ^_^), and let's all pray that it'll continue that way. But don't worry, 'coz I will still update now and again, whenever my time and mind permits it. ^_^ Now on to the thanx!!!

to DemonKitty: Hi! I wanted to thank u first for e-mailing me about my stories. That meant a lot, and made me want to write again (even though my muse is protesting ^_^). This update is dedicated first to you! I'll see what I can do about ALTTT ok? ;) Hope to hear from you again! Love ya lots!!! *hug*

to katt_jam: Hey! Thanx for reviewing! *hug* I'm sorry for the hiatus, but hopefully I'm back again for good. I'm really glad to see your review too! ^_^ Love ya lots!!!

to Silver: New reviewer!!! *hug* Thanx so much for the review, I really appreciate it. And yes, I am very well now (though still kinda out of sorts &_&) thanx so much for the get-well-soon wish of yours. ^_^ I'm sorry to always keep you waiting; I'm really glad you're still here despite it. Hope to see you again ok? Love ya lots!!!

to catt: Hey, I'm back! ^_^ And I love your comment! hehehe. Let's see what'll happen next, shall we? Thanx for reviewing! Love ya lots!!! *hug*

to MEL: You made me blush with your comment. ^_^ Thanx for reviewing! *hug* And I'm in love with my reviewer's reviews too!!! hehehe. So I hope you drop by again, ne? Love ya lots!!!

to Kuramasbluegurl: Here's the next one for you! *hug* Thanx so much for the comment. It means a lot, and you take care too, ok? ;) Love ya lots!!!

to kiwichan: Thanx for reviewing! *hug* Yeah, Rin's really confusing in this story, isn't she? ^_^ But you've got to admit it's endearing. You should read this one too. See how she goes around with Fluffy. hehehe. And I never tire of hearing those kind of things, y'know. ^_^ Hope you love this chappy too! Love ya lots!!!

to Lina: My ever-loyal reviewer!!! *hug* I'm back, girl! Missed me? ^_^ And I can't wait to read your 'sakura'. When do you think you'll get it posted? I promise to review. 'Till next time, ok? And I hope you'll stay with me here. Love ya lots!!!

to jess: Wow, you reviewed again! *hug* Thanx a lot. I'm sorry for the short chappies, but I hope that doesn't make you not want to read anymore. :-( Anyway, I'll try ok? ;) Love ya lots!!!

to star: Hey, you posted twice! ^_^ Thanx for the review! *hug* And by the way, don't you think the wedding night's over? ^_^ Love ya lots!!!

to VeRoN: You're still here with me, aren't you? *puppy eyes insert here* ^_^ Missed ya, girl! How has it been? *hug* Sorry for the delay ok. And I am so flattered by that one! *blushhyyymeee* Hope you like this one too. Love ya lots!!!

to Shizuka Kaze: I'm updating, I'm updating!!! *pant, pant* ^_^ Loved your review. No, I don't think castration will be in the mix here though. Would you castrate the man of our dreams!? I don't think Kag's that stupid. ^_^ And Rin's really adorable, isn't she? You gotta read this one. I can't wait for your next review. hehehe. Love ya lots!!!

to narria: Are you and narea the same person? Just lyk to know. ^_^ Anyway, thanx for reviewing! *hug* This one's for you. Love ya lots!!!

to Jenn: Hi! Thanx for reviewing! *hug* And yeah, I did notice my lapse, but it was already too late. I fixed it in this chappy, and I'll try to fix the errors in the past chappies too ok? Thanx for pointing it out, and I hope this one doesn't 'irk' you again. ^_^ Love ya lots!!!

to amhor56: New reviewer!!! *hug* Thanx so much for the review. And I'm glad you love the plot. See ya! Love ya lots!!!

to chanda: I am definitely continuing this one. And I hope you continue to review too! ^_^ Thanx so much! *hug* Love ya lots!!!

to hIdDeN rEvIeWeR :^P: I love your review!!! ^_^ It made me laugh. Now for the questions: The real question is: what will happen to Kag when Inu gets a hold of her. hehehe. And yes, Sango will be in this story. Though I won't disclose anything further, even if u torture me. ^_^ You'll find out when the story unfolds ok? No spoilers, sorry. ^_^ And the poor room will be okay... I hope. hehehe. Anyway, thanx for the review. *hug* Hope you'll become a regular reviewer. Love ya lots!!!

to Birdie: Konbanwa! ^_^ You remind me of Master Yoda, by the way.^_^ By your question, the 'ton' refers to the King's court. And my muse has just granted your wish of muse'ness. hehehe. Thanx a lot for the review, and I hope you wirte again ok? *hug* Love ya lots!!!

to LC: Thanx for reviewing! *hug* Aww, that's so sweet of you. And just by that, you've become one of my fave reviewers too. ;) See you again ok? Love ya lots!!!

to asdyhw: Do you mean update? ^_^ And this is the next chappy. Hope you'll like it! Thanx for the review. *hug* Love ya lots!!!

AND TO YOU READING THIS: Wow, 43 reviews!!! I'm so touched by you guys. AND THANX SO MUCH FOR HITTING ME UP TO 3952!!! Just a li'l bit more and it'll be 4000! ^_^ I'm so proud, you know. The enthusiastic response you have for my story leaves me speechless and astounded. I know I don't update that much often anymore, and I always keep you guys waiting, but I'm really so glad to know you all are still here despite my shortcomings. I hope you continue to appreciate my writing; no matter how short, how long you've waited for my update and no matter how ugly it is. ^_^ Arigato once again, and I MISSED YOU GUYS!!! Love ya lots!!! mwaah~*~

Disclaimer: I do not own Inuyasha... I share. ^_^


Firebrand
FaTaLfURy


Chapter Eight—Battle of Wills


Her head felt heavy, her body heavier. Voices drifted in and out of her consciousness, but she could not yet respond to it.

“Mayhap we should get the physician. She doesn’t seem to be recovering quickly,”

“Hush, My Lord! She’s still not ready to get out of her swoon. We’ll wait a little longer,”

A hand touched her forehead.

“It’s close to midday already. We have to get it done right away,”

“Oh but it’s not going to be easy! Do you know she’s got plans of her own?”

Silence.

“Plans? What plans?”

“She wanted me to go and have someone ask for an available ship. Do you know what that means, Inuyasha?”

Silence again.

“She plans to sail to her America?”

There was a hint of hope in that voice.

“That’s not an option, so put it out of your head,”

That one’s cool, hard and unbending. But whyever she can’t go home is beyond her…

“No, you silly man! It means that she wants her wedding to be on a ship! Isn’t that ingenious of her?”

The word ‘wedding’ did it. Everything came back to her. Kagome’s eyes snapped open and she struggled to get away from the hand on her forehead.

“I take it you’ve finished your faint?”

Three pairs of eyes gazed at her.

She discovered that it was the Queen’s hand resting on her forehead. Both males have opted to stand by the window, or rather the King did.

Her soon-to-be groom was pacing around like a caged panther.

‘Wanting to get away, no doubt,’

Kagome thought bitterly. Well, this one should shock him.

“Kagome dear? Are you quite all right now?”

Her attention snapped back to the Queen, who’s now patting her hand concernedly.

“Yes, Your Highness. Forgive me for the worry that I’ve caused you and His Majesty as well. I don’t know what came over me—“

“Pooh! Of course we know what came over you, Kagome. You have no need to apologize,”

“You do?”

The Queen stood to walk towards her husband.

“Yes. You’ve been under a lot of strain this morning haven’t you? What with the excitement and all. By the by, I’ve been telling these men of your plans—“

The King interrupted before his wife could finish.

“Allow me to do the asking, my love. Miss Woodbine, my wife here was just telling us about your inquiry of a ship. Is that true?”

“Yes, Your Highness. But I—“

The King interrupted again.

“Are we to assume that you do plan on getting married inside a ship?”

“She might not want it to be inside, after all. Don’t forget the decks, My Lord. The glorious sight of the sea and all. It would be spectacular! Don’t you agree, Lord Grey?”

The Queen reminded the King. The duke stopped pacing to give the Queen an incredulous look. In fact, the three of them gave her identical expressions.

The King closed his eyes and prayed for patience and guidance in an attempt to curb his already rising temper, lest he roared at his wife.

She would have his head then.

“What in heaven’s name are you doing, Sesshomaru?”

“Praying, Elizabeth Rin,”

“For whatever reason?”

The King looked at his wife directly in the eyes when he told her the truth.

“You. ‘Tis the truth you could drive a man crazy with your train of thought,”

‘Not to mention a woman,’

Kagome added in her mind, and tried not to smile at the couple’s antics.

The Queen blushed to the tips of her hair, and gave the King an ‘I’ll-get-you-later-when-we’re-alone’ look but remained quiet otherwise.

“Now where was I? Ah, yes. The wedding to take place inside a ship,”

Kagome stepped forward.

“It was not my intention to mislead the Queen, Your Majesty. I realize that she only wanted to help and had my best interests at heart,”

“But that doesn’t answer my question does it, Miss Woodbine?”

The King was being formal. For weeks now, she had been ‘Kagome’ to him. Now it was back to ‘Miss Woodbine’. That wasn’t a good sign.

She almost lost her nerves right then and there. Kagome had to lower her gaze to escape the King’s piercing stare for a moment and compose herself.

‘This is it. It’s all or nothing now,’

She raised her eyes once again.

“I wanted a ship not for a wedding, Your Highness. His Grace is right; I was finding a ship available to sail to America so that I could go home to my grandfather. Forgive me, but I’m afraid there would be no wedding,”

The silence in the room was deafening. Kagome felt her audiences’ gazes acutely and had the urge to squirm. That would not do. So she held her head high instead.

The Queen broke the silence. She squeezed her husband’s hand, asking him for patience in that small gesture. Then she addressed Kagome.

“But Kagome dear, you can’t do that! Your King is simply trying to do what’s best for you. We cannot let you go unwed. What would your grandfather say? And the scandal! Have you thought of that?”

“I have considered all the ramifications of what I am about to do, Your Majesty. And I strongly believe that sailing home would be the best thing for all concerned. My grandfather loves me, and I am sure that he will welcome me back with open arms. As for the scandal–“

Kagome shrugged and gave a small smile.

“—I will simply be too far away from England to be haunted by it,”

She turned to find the duke’s intense eyes staring at her.

“I have vowed never to be a part of an arranged marriage. I am fulfilling that vow now. You are free to chase after your love, Your Grace. I will not have you for my husband,”


=======================================


~Inuyasha’s POV~

I should’ve been relieved. I should’ve been thankful that the spitfire wouldn’t belong to me. I should’ve been jumping up and down with glee because I was free.

And yet, I wasn’t.

All I could do was stare blankly at her as she made her announcement.

It would seem the girl would rather be a spinster than be married to me.

And that’s what chafed me the most.

Damn it, but didn’t she know that most girls would be clamoring and salivating at the mere idea of marrying a duke? Not to mention me, specifically. Lots of women would do anything to have me where they want me, just as she did now.

And what does SHE do? Renounce him as though he were filth in her eyes.

The chit was a puzzle to me. I vowed to unfold the mystery that was her, in due time. But first things first.

I pretended nonchalance and leaned upon a bedpost with both arms crossed over my chest.

“So that’s it? I’m ‘off the hook’ then, so to speak?”

I appreciated the spark of irritation in her eyes as she confronted me.

“Yes, Your Grace. That, indeed, is it. I am sailing home to America, and you—as you so delicately put it—are ‘off the hook’. So to speak,”

She really must learn to curb that temper of hers (which matches mine, but that’s beside the point), not to mention her tongue. I noticed the trace of triumph in her voice as she explained our circumstances to me.

‘Oh, but you won’t be getting away that easily, Kagome,’

I strode away from the bedpost, stopping somewhere between her and the royal couple.

I felt His Majesty’s eyes on me, and I inclined my head slightly to let him know that I understood.

I knew what has to be done.

I faced her again.

“Have I no say in the matter, Miss Woodbine?”

The surprise was there in her eyes. In fact, it made them round as saucers as her gaze flew to mine once again.

“I don’t understand, Your Grace. I thought that this was what you wanted too? You’re supposed to be marrying the Lady Winters. Well, now you still can,”

She said matter-of-factly, and I gritted my teeth at the reminder. Damn her.

"I think not,"

I said softly, though her reaction wasn't soft by any means.

Her shocked gaze riveted to me.

"What do you mean, 'you think not'? I thought that this was what you wanted!"

My ears were ringing from her elevated tone. More to the point, the shouting that she's doing. I would imagine the royal couple's ears were aching too. I winced for their benefit.

But the next move was mine.

I unfolded myself from my position and met her gaze. Her eyes were filled with panic while I knew mine reflected confidence and determination. I knew what my silence did to her, and I almost took pity on her.

But what has to be done, had to be done.

I walked slowly towards her, and saw her backing away from me. Each time I advanced, she retreated, her eyes darting to every corner of the room.

Looking for help or an escape route, no doubt.

But she'd have none, by God.

I stopped a mere several inches away from her when I saw the back of her knees touch the bed behind her.

She was cornered. And she knew it.

I wanted to say 'check', but I knew that it would only spark her temper more. I need her to be calm for this.

I breathed deeply and squelched the desire to smile at her predicament. I took her hand instead.

"Kagome?"

Her hand jerked from mine at my calling her by her first name. A surprise, I'm sure, as I never called her anything but 'Miss Woodbine'. But even that had to change.

I held her hand tightly as I said my next words.

"I changed my mind. We're to be wedded,"

I waited for her to explode. For the screaming and the attack that would follow, just like what she did that morning. But none came.

It was as though she was petrified, staying absolutely still. No sound came from her parted lips, and her eyes registered only shock.

It was amusing, and perhaps bit new to me as I never ever thought of the girl to be shocked by anything.

It would seem that I was wrong; I shocked the girl speechless.

I looked behind me to see the royal couple watching us avidly. At my frown however, the King coughed down the smile that I knew wanted to show on his face. And the Queen clapped her hands, delighted at my progress.

"I knew it! I knew you wouldn't let her get away! You do realize that you've got a treasure here, don't you, Lord Grey?"

I wanted to roll my eyes at the Queen, but that would be impolite. So I only smiled.

"Of course, Your Majesty. And because she's such a rare and extraordinary treasure, I want us to get married right away. Would this afternoon be possible, do you think?"

I almost coughed at the word 'treasure'. I was thinking of 'witch' instead.

And my bride had yet to react.

I realize that that in itself wasn't a bad thing, really. She could stay in shock until after the ceremony was over, for all I care. It would definitely quicken things my way.

The King rose from the chair that he occupied and offered his hand to assist his wife. They came to stand before the two of us.

"Well, I guess congratulations are in order then, Inuyasha. And of course, you'll have your ceremony this late afternoon. My wife and your bride will see to it,"

"Come, Kagome. We have so many things to do with so little time! Ooh, I hope that maid of yours is here now. We'll need all the help we can get to make your bride's wedding day a dream come true, you know,"

The Queen addressed the last one to me, and I merely inclined my head at that. I was about to hand my bride over to her when I saw the fire that lit the spitfire's eyes.

I changed tactics and closed my hand over hers in a death grip.

“WHAT!?”

That was the first thing she screamed in my ears. Then she started to pull her hand away.

“Of all the arrogant, chauvinistic—“

I clamped my other hand on her mouth to shut her up. It would seem she has forgotten about our audience.

I turned to the royal couple. The King looked positively cheerful at our antics while his wife stood there, mortified.

“Pardon us, Your Majesties, but will you give me and my beloved bride-to-be a few moments alone? I guess there’re some of the wedding details that need to be cleared between us,”

“Sesshomaru!”

“Come, love. As you can see, some ‘pre-wedding jitters’ need to be resolved,”

The King subtly dragged his wife out of the room and closed the door.