Just Another Lemon

Inuyasha was not in a good mood. It had been three days since Kagome had left with his half-brother, and her absence was beginning to wear on him. If it wasn't for the tentative truce they had, his claws would already be in Sesshomaru's throat, making sure that the miko was back in Edo where she belonged, with him.

Unfortunately, since the truce, which was mostly Kagome's doing to begin with, her kind nature had seemed to get in the way of their sibling rivalry more and more. And it wasn't helping anything that the bastard kept butting in and playing hero! Not that the hanyou wanted his miko to fall prey to their enemies, but it was his place to be saving her, not Sesshomaru's! He still couldn't figure out what had prompted the pompous ass to begin playing hero to begin with. Sesshomaru wasn't exactly the kind to go rushing around, saving helpless, annoying, damsels in distress.

'So what gives?' the hanyou thought. It was almost as if...as if Sesshomaru had developed some sort of attachment to Kagome. And although Inuyasha was often ignorant of what was going on around him, when it came to the Western Lord, the hanyou always paid close attention. Sesshomaru was cold and calculating, and missing the slightest flicker in his eyes could spell death; so Inuyasha's own golden orbs were often trained on the taiyoukai whenever he was around. He had not failed to see the glances his half-brother had cast in the miko's direction on occasion.

Often, those glances were contemplative, and Inuyasha couldn't help but wonder what the Ice Prince was pondering. He had even tried to broach the subject with the monk, but the lecher's ideas of what Sesshomaru might be thinking were not only disgusting, they were ridiculous.

As if Sesshomaru, frigid, human hating bastard that he was, would ever pine after a human miko, and Kagome, no less! Miroku had even gone as far as to mention that he had seen Kagome glancing at the taiyoukai almost wistfully a few times. Baka! If it wasn't possible to think of Sesshomaru wanting some kind of relationship with Kagome, it was even less likely that Kagome would ever consider the taiyoukai as a love interest.

Inuyasha snorted and chuckled. Kagome was way too sweet and innocent to ever want anything to do with 'The Killing Perfection'. She hated battle, killing, and fighting - and that wasn't only Sesshomaru's life, it was his fucking name!

Then again, he thought, there was a time that she had desired him. He certainly was no creature worth fawning over. As a half-demon, he was powerful and dangerous in his own right, when he wanted to be. Yet there had been many times when he had caught her longing gaze focussed solely on himself.

And he had desired her, as well. Unfortunately, his promise to Kikyou had to come first. Even though only part of the priestess remained on this plane, he could not shun her. She was his first love, and he had promised himself to her long before he had any connection to Kagome.

Soon, he hoped, the Shikon would be completed. He knew, now, that he would not wish to become a full youkai. The few transformations that he had suffered through had taught him that much, at least.

Instead, he would wish for Kikyou to find peace and happiness. Hopefully, that would mean she would live again, and become his mate. Everyone kept saying that it had to be a selfless wish to purify the jewel, and that meant he couldn't wish for anything that would directly bring him happiness. If Kikyou could only find peace by passing on to the next plane, he certainly wouldn't be excited over it.

But, at least, if Kikyou did pass on as a consequence to the wish, he would be free to court Kagome. So, even though it was a selfless wish, it was still a win/win situation for him. Either Kikyou would live and become his mate, or she would die and Kagome would become his mate.

"Hey, dog breath!"

Inuyasha scowled as he was pulled from his musings by a familiar and wholly unpleasant presence. "What do you want, wolf," he sneered.

Kouga cast a toothy grin up at his long time rival, who was currently sitting on a bough of the Goshinboku. He heard the monk, taijiya, and kitsune approaching from behind him, but ignored their collective presence as he didn't smell Kagome's unique, soft scent mingled in with them. Come to think of it, he didn't see or smell her, anywhere.

"Where's my woman?" he shouted up at the dog-eared tree dweller. "I came to visit her."

"Well, you can leave now, 'cause she ain't here," came the terse reply from high in the tree. Inuyasha shifted position, giving the ookami his back and effectively passing the message 'I don't want to talk to you anymore'.

Kouga stared up at the hanyou for a moment, surprised that Inuyasha would attempt to ignore him rather than come down and spar like they usually did.

"What do you mean she ain't here?" he finally barked out.

"She's gone to the West, with Lord Sesshomaru," Shippo chimed in from behind the wolf, causing him to turn and face the rest of the group.

"Shut up, runt!" Inuyasha hollered down from his branch. "It's none of his business where she went!"

Kouga 'Hrumph'ed the annoying hanyou before addressing the kitsune. "Why would she want to hang out with that dog?" he asked. "If mutt face up there-"

"She's gone to speak with the Lord's young ward, Rin," Miroku interrupted calmly, ignoring the bristling hanyou in the tree. "Sesshomaru-sama requested it of her, and so she left with him. She will be back in two days, Kouga."

"Well, I'll just be going, then," Kouga replied smoothly. "I might trust her to stay with that bastard," his thumb jerked over his shoulder to indicate the tree-sitting hanyou, "but I sure as hell ain't trusting that dog with my woman!"

"She's perfectly-" Miroku started, but Kouga dashed off in a swirl of wind before he could complete his sentence. "Safe with him," he finished lamely, knowing there was no point in saying the words but unable to keep them from spilling from his lips.

Inuyasha turned and watched the wolf's cyclone disappear off in a westerly direction with a slight scowl on his face.

"Inuyasha?" Sango asked as she glanced up at her friend. "Aren't you going to go after him? He's going to go find her, you know." Not that she was particularly worried, she knew Kouga would never do anything to harm Kagome, but it seemed awfully odd for Inuyasha to be acting so apathetic. Hell, he hadn't even come down to wave Tetsusaiga around at Kouga!

"Keh," he mumbled as he jumped down from his perch and started walking towards Kaede's hut. "Why should I care? Sesshomaru will probably rip him apart just for trespassing before he ever even sees Kagome. Let him go get himself killed, no skin offa' my nose."

Sango exchanged a look with Miroku, who simply shrugged his shoulders. It was doubtful that Sesshomaru would bother killing the wolf-prince for such a lowly offence, not when they were both part of youkai high-society...at least, most likely that was the case. Miroku wasn't terribly worried.

~0o0~

As he ran with determination toward the Western stronghold, Kouga took a few moments to do something he rarely bothered with - thinking.

The monk had said Kagome had gone to speak with the Western Lord's ward, and although the ookami could detect no hint of deceit in the houshi's words, something seemed off. Kouga knew of Kagome's association with the young onna, but he seemed to recall the Lord's ward playing more often with the tachi's fox kit than the miko. So why had Shippo been left behind?

Not usually one for deep thought, Kouga had difficulty coming up with a reasonable explanation, and it left him quite unsettled. His pace quickened as he neared the Western castle. He barely trusted his woman's safety to the hanyou back in Edo, and he was certainly not going to let her remain in the care of said hanyou's elder, full youkai brother. Although the taiyoukai often proclaimed his disdain for all things human, there was no question that the Inu's heritage included a propensity toward human females.

'Hell,' he thought as the castle walls came into view. 'He has even taken on that young girl as a ward! Obviously he's full of shit when says he hates humans!'

Kouga's pace slowed as he neared the castle gates, and he carefully sniffed the surrounding area. Though the scent of dog was strong, it was also clear that the taiyoukai had not been in residence for at least a couple of days. Added to that, Kouga could clearly smell the young girl, Rin, was nearby, but Kagome's pleasing scent was particularly lacking.

Before he could think any more on the subject, a less pleasing, and most definitely less clean scent invaded his sensitive nose, causing his scowl to deepen.

"What business have you here, ookami prince?" a gravely voice squawked as it's toad-like owner appeared on the opposite side of the iron barred gate.

"I came for my woman, Kagome!" Kouga spoke up with a slight huff. "I was told she was visiting Sesshomaru-sama's ward and departed in his company."

"You are mistaken!" the toad squawked out, doing his best to appear to be looking down his nose at the much taller youkai. "There are no women here."

'Well, that much is obvious,' Kouga thought as his hackles rose at the defiant toad. But if the retainer might have information of the Lord's whereabouts, the ookami was going to get it.

"Then I wish to seek audience with Sesshomaru-sama," he spoke bitterly, knowing full well the master was not in, but hoping the ugly toad might provide his location.

"Go away, wolf!" Jaken practically growled through his beak. "The lord in not here, nor is any woman. Any female in milord's company at this time would..."

Suddenly the toad's voice trailed off in an inaudible murmur as his gaze turned inward. The wolf was seeking that insufferable miko from Inuyasha's group? And someone had told the wolf she had left in Sesshomaru-sama's company? Jaken's eyes re-focussed and hardened at the youkai trespasser on the other side of the gate. 'Lies!' he thought bitterly. 'The Lord is in heat, probably off somewhere dominating a beautiful demoness! Not rutting some lowly, worthless, human wench!'

"Any female would what?!" Kouga shouted heatedly. What was the toad talking about?

Jaken snapped back to attention at the wolf's outburst. "You are misinformed, indeed!" the diminutive youkai lectured. "My lord is currently out, certainly with a lovely demoness to relieve the stress of his heat. Not some foul human!"

Kouga's eyes widened in shock, then narrowed and flashed crimson in barely suppressed rage. Sesshomaru was in heat?! And he had Kagome!

In a flash the ookami had jumped the towering gate that stood between himself and the annoying toad. Jaken did not even have time to blink before the prince's claws were gripping his small, green neck.

"Where. Is. He?" the wolf bit out in a halting snarl, shaking Jaken for good measure.

"I don't know!" the retainer panted. Why did these things always happen to him?

"P-please!" Jaken begged, completely forgetting his earlier air of superiority. "Leave this miserable servant his life and...and leave here at once!"

"You will tell me where to find the dog or I will gut you slowly, toad," Kouga promised with a dark glint in his still red eyes. His claws dug sharply in his capture's lumpy green flesh to make clear his threat.

Jaken squawked loudly in alarm as the ookami's grip threatened to cut off his air. Did he dare tell the wolf of Sesshomaru's whereabouts and face his master's wrath? Kouga's claws bit deeper, releasing a small trickle of foul smelling blood from the captive youkai's throat. The scent of his own blood forced Jaken's decision. Better to deal with Sesshomaru-sama later than to die at the hands of the furious wolf now.

"There...there is a cave," the toad whispered hoarsely as he pushed the air out through his strangled windpipe.

Kouga's grip immediately slackened, allowing the retainer enough breath to speak. "A cave?" he prompted.

"Yes," Jaken hissed while panting for air. "South of here, perhaps an hour's journey on foot." His mouth opened to continue, ready to beg the wolf to keep his mouth shut about who gave away his master's location, but closed with an audible click as his backside met the hard ground.

Shakily getting to his feet and rubbing his now sore posterior, Jaken looked up to say something more, only to find the ookami gone. On the other side of the iron barred gate, a dusty plume was all that was left of the wolf in his departure.

"Shit," he cursed as he turned to head back inside the castle's sanctum. "Sesshomaru-sama is going to kill me, then resurrect me and kill me again."


~0o0~


"Stop!" Kagome squealed from her spread eagle position on the pallet.

Her hands were cuffed firmly behind her back, her delicate ankles once more secured with soft cording to the bottom of the bed. Sesshomaru chuckled darkly at the miko's pitiful cry as he wrapped his large, clawed hand more firmly around her left foot before once again running his warm, wet tongue between her first and second toes.

She tasted delicious, fresh from their recent bath; and making his treat all the sweeter was the was she squirmed in vain to escape his new form of torture. Through her protest, however, she was giggling and laughing in fits as the demon squatting by her feet continued his game.

It was amazing how such a small, childish action was actually affecting him. He was aroused greatly by her nakedness, and her inability to keep him from having his way with her; but he also felt light...and happy. Happy to have this little spitfire onna to himself.

Finally relinquishing his hold on her small foot, he stood abruptly and quietly walked to the side on the bed as Kagome regained her lost breath.

As if being completely bound wasn't enough, her demon lover had also seen fit to blindfold her, which meant she completely missed the dangerous, predatory look on his face as he bent to retrieve an item from the ground beside the large pallet.

"Sesshomaru?" she questioned, slightly concerned that he had stopped touching her.

His answering, soft "yes?" made her jolt slightly. Since she couldn't see him, and since he moved with such silent grace, she had not been expecting his close proximity to her head.

He growled lightly in response to her startlement, and the sound was amazingly soothing. In no time at all, Kagome was once more quietly waiting for his touch.

"What are you doing?" she asked. She squinted her eyes in his general direction, though the action proved fruitless as the blindfold stubbornly continued to do it's job.

"I am...moving on," he answered quietly. Before she could demand just exactly what that meant, a light smack rang throughout the cave, followed by a soft hiss and then a bark of laughter.

"Hey!" Kagome protested. "I got that to use on you, not the other way around!"

Sesshomaru's feral grin was completely lost on the blinded miko. His gaze drifted upwards from the slightly pinkened skin of her belly and paused momentarily on her lush breasts before reaching her face. Her pretty, pink lips were drawn down slightly in a pout, and he couldn't stop himself from leaning in to steal a kiss.

When he pulled away, her little from was once again a soft smile, though her delicious lips were now moist and glistening in the soft, blue light of the cave.

Blinking twice to dispel the hold those wonderful appendages had on his gaze, he turned slightly to regard her bare, protruding breasts.

'I wonder...'

*SMACK*

Kagome squealed as the cat-o-nine tails collided with her right breast, but the Western Lord was paying more attention to the way her fleshy mound jiggled under the assault than her little outburst.

"Shh..." he finally consoled. "I know you enjoyed it."

He finished his little vocalization by landing a lash over her left breast, with slightly different results.

Instead of crying out at the sting, this time the miko moaned in pleasure.

'Hn...' he thought. Carefully analyzing the difference between where the two strokes had landed, he quickly deduced the change in her attitude. The first lash had placed on the underside of her breast, while the second had landed squarely across it's twin, grazing her nipple.

'She does seem to enjoy their mistreatment,' he wondered.

Suspicion in mind, the tall youkai bent once more from the waist, dropping the whip in favor of two small, yellow, innocent looking pieces of bent metal.

Gently grabbing her right breast and giving it a firm squeeze, he proceeded to latch on to her sensitive bud and work it over with his teeth and tongue until her nipple became dark and erect. Kagome moaned and cooed as he devoured her flesh.

Pulling back slightly, the demon carefully pinched the ends of the clamp in his hand, causing it to open farther than necessary, before placing it precisely over the onna's nipple and slowly...ever so slowly, releasing his grasp on the clamp.

Kagome sucked in a sharp breath as she felt the pinch of the little contraption on her breast. Her core contracted immediately at the painful, yet pleasurable sensation.

"Ow," she complained. "Oh, Sess...so the other one, too!"

Sesshomaru's grin spread even farther across his face as he complied to her request, showing her left breast the same treatment as he had just bestowed upon her right.

When he released the second clamp, Kagome moaned beautifully for him.

"Does it feel good, little miko?" he wanted to know. Another soft moan and a renewed scent of arousal were his answers.

"Hn."

She looked divine, naked and making soft sounds of pleasure as he looked her over as if to assess his work. Her hair was fanned out behind her head, looking silky soft, though slightly damp and mussed. Her back was arched a bit, seemingly to show off her delightfull breasts, which were now ornately decorated with the little yellow clamps that kept her nipples taught and erect.

Sesshomaru's right hand absently moved to his engorged, pulsing cock and began making languid stroked along it's smooth length as he continued to marvel at his 'captive'.

Kagome's chest rose and fell in a slow rhythm, and even from where he was standing near her head, he could see the slight glistening of moisture on her intimate curls. Everything about her heated his blood to a fevered pitch, and it was at that moment that he decided the little woman who captivated him, who inflamed both his lust and his ire with nary a thought, would not be leaving the cave without his mark upon her.

Yes, now that he had her, he wasn't going to just let her go so easily.

"Kagome..."

It was a soft pant as he said it, but she could almost swear her name sounded different on his lips this time. She wondered what other tortures he might deign to inflict upon her before he finally would allow her the ultimate pleasure of having him deep and burning inside her.

She parted her lips to say his name, but retracted her breath as she felt him reach behind her head to untie the blindfold. She blinked rapidly at the sudden change of light, then looked up to find him already loosening the bindings at her feet.

She watched, curious, as he then moved to her side, helping her to sit up so that he could remove her handcuffs.

"Sess? What are you - OW!"

The miko's now free hands flew to her breasts as her lover removed the clamps that had begun to cut off her circulation. They hurt a hell of alot more coming off than going on! She carefully massaged her tender flesh as Sesshomaru chased an invisible line across her cheek with his lips.

When he reached her pouting mouth, his gentle embrace made her forget the pain in her breasts.

Her fingers wove themselves into his long, silky strands as he moved onto the bed. Gently, he pushed her back down onto the pallet as she continued to massage his scalp with her dull, ningen fingernails.

He broke the kiss suddenly, and she watched with bated breath as he positioned himself to enter her. In one, quick thrust, he was stretching her to her limits, and they were both moaning in pleasure.

His large, strong hands settled themselves on the sides of her face, and each of his hands cupped a cheek to hold her face to him. Slowly, he pulled himself from her heated depths before pushing back in at a pace so unhurried that she was unsure if he would ever fill her completely again. It was pleasurable agony, feeling the delicious friction, but waiting for him to bottom out at that spot that made her swoon.

Sesshomaru watched in fascination as Kagome's eyes began to roll back in pleasure before her lids fluttered closed, obscuring his view.

"Look at me," he demanded softly.

Their eyes locked as Kagome instantly obeyed his command, and he began an excruciatingly slow rhythm inside her.

Kagome swooned as he moved. She could swear she could feel every throb of every vein in his hard length as he pushed in and pulled out. She lost herself in his intense gaze as he rocked against her, panting slightly in the effort to keep the pace slow.

'It's like he's looking straight into my soul,' she marvelled. 'What is he thinking?'

"Ka..go..me.." he purred softly before leaning in to once again claim her lips for his own. His tongue danced with hers as he moved, never increasing his languid strokes.

'Oh, kami...' Kagome thought dreamily as her eyes drifted closed once more. 'He's...so wonderful. This must be what heaven feels like...'

Her right hand drifted down from his crown to caress his neck as he continued to pleasure her, her thumb rubbing small, light circles just behind the lobe. The Inu youkai moaned against her mouth as the caress, one of his own hands seeking her side to hold her steady as he began quicker, more forceful thrusts into her aching core.

"Oh, Sesshomaru," she whispered in his ear as his ravishing mouth sought her neck. "Oh, kami...please, Sess...faster."

'Now, he decided. He had been using the slow pace to contemplate what he was about to say. Unfortunately, one thing this wily onna had taught him was that if he simply commanded her to comply with his wishes, she would deny him for spite nine times out of ten. Reluctantly, he had decided instead to leave himself completely vulnerable and ask her like a pleading pup. However, asking for anything was rather foreign to one who usually just claimed what he wanted by force.

"Kagome," he whispered into the shell of her ear while panting softly. "I...desire to...keep you."

Perhaps that hadn't come out quite how he had planned, because Kagome tensed at his admission. He found himself silently pleading with her, and before he could contain it, his silent plea spilled from his traitorous mouth.

"Please, Kagome...let me keep you...forever. Be this Sesshomaru's Mate."

His pace had slowed as he spoke, and now he stilled completely, buried to the hilt inside her burning depths as he waited for a sign of her answer.

Kagome was dumbstruck. 'Please? Be his MATE? Is he serious?'

He had sounded serious enough, but Kagome was not about to have her heart broken by such a lousy trick. She pulled back to search for the truth in his eyes, only to be met with a soft look of longing, and hope.

However, at her delayed response, she watched as that hope seemed to vanish from the golden pools of his soul, and his eyes glazed slightly before once more becoming hard and cold.

"Oh Sess! Please, don't do that!" she admonished as she pulled his head down with both hands so that she could kiss him gently. Her soft whisper against his lips left him reeling with something that could almost be...joy.

"I...I desire you, as well."

"And besides," she half chuckled in nervousness. "I already told you I belong to you, didn't I?"

Her words were met with fire in the form of his searing kiss, and renewed vigor in their passionate lover's dance. He took her fast and hard to the very heights of ecstasy before dropping his head back to her shoulder to lavish nips and kisses along the creamy column of her neck. He stopped just above her collar-line as he found his climax, and sunk his lengthened fangs neatly into her flesh.

Kagome cried out as the Inu Lord, her Inu Lord, bit down. She felt the rapture of her own climax as his hot seed spilled deep within her, but the bite he delivered was exceedingly more painful than she could have imagined. A fire like lava spread from her neck outward into her body, until all she could do was focus on taking her next breath.

"I'm sorry," he whispered as he drew back to lick clean the perfect puncture wounds. He attempted to sooth her with kisses as his poison spread through her system.

Finally, the consuming fire within her died down to a dull ache, before ultimately vanishing completely. Between sobs she managed to bite out "that HURT!", though her words contained no malice.

"My apologies, My Lady," he said as he sought her already bruised lips to console her trembling body. By the time she calmed completely, Sesshomaru was pleased to see his mark already formed on her neck. Between the small, round scars from his fangs stretched a tiny crescent moon, similar in color to his vivid green poison. Now, the little miko carried the mark clearly denoting precisely who she belonged to.

"What about you?" Kagome asked softly as his eyes drifted back to her own chocolate orbs. "Don't I have to mark you, as well?" From what little she could remember of Sango's harangues about demon behavior, she was sure that a mating mark was given by each partner, to each partner, each one giving and receiving a bit of the other's power. Besides, it wasn't fair for him to mark her so painfully if she wasn't allowed to reciprocate!

"It cannot be done," he answered, a hint of regret in his mellow voice. "You do not possess the canines necessary to mark this Sesshomaru."

He soft frown suddenly blossomed into a wicked grin as an idea struck her like an arrow. The sudden change in her demeanor served to throw Sesshomaru off balance enough for her to grab him roughly and pull him back down so she could get at his neck.

"Is that so?" she asked in a smug tone before concentrating fiercely and pressing her dull teeth to his warm, damp flesh.

Sesshomaru roared at the unexpected pain, surprised to feel a petite pair of sharp fangs sinking into his neck. As her power flowed into him, it felt as if his veins were freezing as the path of her power danced through him. Surprised at his sudden fear that she might accidentally purify him, he forced himself to relax under the assault, knowing that the pain would lessen if he kept from fighting against the intrusion.

Although appalled by the fact that she was actually drinking blood...Sesshomaru's blood, Kagome was not about to let her new mate go unclaimed by herself. She sent another small dribble of power to seal the punctures she had just inflicted as she pulled away, but had no time to consider the seriousness of anything that had just transpired.

Her lover, and new mate, still firmly seated inside her body, had amazingly found a new source of arousal and energy. He dominated her in every way as he began a pounding rhythm.

~0o0~

Outside, a wolf prince bristled. He'd found Sesshomaru's barrier easily enough, but had no luck breaking through. He'd redoubled his efforts when he'd heard Kagome's pained cry, but shrank back at Sesshomaru's deafening roar a few minutes later.

"I can't get through!" he growled to himself bitterly. 'Kagome, are you alright? What's happening in there?!'

He scowled at the invisible force field keeping him from his perceived mate. "Well, maybe I can't get through," he growled at the obstruction, "but I know something that can!"

With a quick jolt, a cloud of dust was once again all that the speedy ookami left behind. As he sped in an Easterly direction, there was only one thought on his mind.

'The red Tetsusaiga...'

~0o0~

Back in the cave, Sesshomaru breathed a silent sigh of relief before bringing his bitch to climax once more. He'd felt the disturbance in his barrier, and the energy signatures had told him just exactly who had been trying to barge in. However, his mind had been on other, more important matters at the time, and knowing Kouga would never be able to break through, he had settled on ignoring the wolf's presence.

Gratefully, the barrier had prevented Kagome from sensing the ookami's jewel shards, and her inferior ningen senses had not picked up his growls.

But now, the wolf was gone. 'Good riddance!' he thought, before turning his attention back to the now tuckered out onna beneath him.

Relaxing onto his side, he pulled Kagome tightly to himself as she fought sleep to keep her eyes on him. "Mmmm..." she mumbled as her heavy lids finally began to close. She snuggled her head against his right pectoral as his arm wrapped around her side to hold her close. Her right arm drifted over his abdominals until her hand lay grasping his far side. Giving his side a light, affectionate squeeze, a soft sigh left her just as she found sleep.

"Mine," she whispered.