Kagome yelling at sesshomaru and he gets lowkey scared/horny
*I’m sorry that this took me forever. I hope it’s sort of what you had in mind, oh Anonymous prompt giver.*
Title: Bad Entertainment
Pairing: Sess/Kag
Rated: T for language
Fucking with Inuyasha was the only thing that really got him going. It had always been a pathetic way of finding entertainment, cheap, like booting Jaken, but things had recently taken a more interesting turn.
“Sesshoumaru!” The young woman didn’t bother with honorifics, a lack of respect that should have meant her death, but he turned to her, careful not to look too interested. Inuyasha was limp in his grasp, bleeding just enough to make a show of things. He wanted to piss off the wench.
An arrow flew past his ear, singing with sharp power that stirred the air beside him. He dropped his quarry, aware of the way his brother struggled to sit up after a particularly forceful blow to the gut. He allowed her to draw another arrow, watched her power pool at its tip, then quickly crowded her. She didn’t let it fly; the bitch was more bark than bite, and a little nip would hardly wound him anyhow. Once he was too close to fall victim to her ranged weapon, he leaned in, watching panic flutter across her face before she stomped it down and let indignation replace it.
Hnn, good.
He leaned in just enough to bathe himself in her scent – human, sweat, blood from scraped knees, but also a perplexing chemical mix with sweet currents that reminded him of his own poison. He waited for her to react, heard the harsh intake of breath that meant she was about to start yelling in his ear, then vanished.
He watched from above when she gasped, twirled, craned her neck trying to look behind her, and then dropped her weapon all at once – he’d show her what a mistake that was next time – and fell to his brother’s side, fussing over him.
Annoying.
But still good entertainment.
*
Riling up Inuyasha was a good way to rile up the woman, but with the addition of more mortals to their little group, he found her ire harder to focus on. She took more of a backseat role, allowing them to do the work while she lobbied arrows from a safe distance. She grit her teeth while she did it, barely saying anything at all.
Surely he could get more out of her than that.
He brushed off the desire to simply grab her and run. Being saddled with Inuyasha’s woman was not in his plans. He wanted a quick brush with tingling power and a little sass to rile him up, and then he’d be gone.
The group seemed to protect her the most, and he retreated after a measly punch to Inuyasha’s face, anger making him put a little more force than was necessary.
“Inuyasha!” He didn’t need to turn to know she’d run towards the half breed. Irritation mounted. He left before he could do something he’d regret.
It was time for a change in tactics.
*
The group moved slowly with a lot of noise, and Sesshoumaru followed at a sedate pace. Every so often, he’d let tendrils of his youki escape, trailing them over her specifically, and suppressing a chuckle when she’d whip back to glare down the path. The harder he pressed, the more her power bucked, trying to throw him off.
Finally, she spun towards him. Her friends took a moment to notice that she’d frozen, their chatter dying off as they reached for their weapons.
“Is it a shard?”
Inuyasha bounded in front of her, inhaling deeply through his open mouth and impeding Sesshoumaru’s view of her. Taking care to be silent now that they were all on high alert, he skirted the edges of the woods around them and took up position once again behind her.
She spun and Inuyasha herded her back again, ears swiveling as he tried to pick out what was setting her off.
“Is it a shard?” The monk asked.
“I just have this weird feeling,” she shuddered. “It’s not… unpleasant, but it’s strange. It feels like something is messing with me.”
His good mood soured. Messing with a human was beneath him. It wasn’t until he was halfway back to his ward that it sank in. That was exactly what he’d been doing.
Still, it pleased him that she didn’t find his aura unpleasant.
*
It was weeks until he saw them again, despite moving parallel to their group. If he truly focused, he could understand what they were saying.
“I just can’t believe he kissed me!” Kagome was crying to the demon slayer. She sounded mortified.
“Was it at least a nice kiss?”
“I don’t know! It was Hojo! He’s a nice guy but he’s so boring. And then I slapped him!”
“I always slap men when they get too handsy.”
“But Miroku is a lot tougher than Hojo, and now everyone is mad at me, or they’re calling me crazy. It was so embarrassing! And it made me so mad!”
Sesshoumaru tucked away that bit of information like a crow with a treasure. It hadn’t occurred to him that embarrassment could cause such a reaction. He did not wish to manhandle the miko as the monk did the demon slayer and discarded the notion, but the thought of an open palm and soft lips haunted his dreams, so that when the sun began to peek out over the grassy hill his group was hiding in, he felt himself forced to take action.
They slept in a loose circle. His eyes remained trained on the miko when he stepped into the threshold of their temporary domain. She was curled up beneath a shiny yellow blanket, her loose hair spilling like ink across her pillow.
“What do you want?” Inuyasha’s loud voice roused the group.
The object of his obsession yawned, and he caught how pink her lips were, flushed, like she’d been biting them in her sleep. She didn’t seem to notice what was going on around her, groaning deeply as she raised her arms and stretched back, her unbound chest jutting out provocatively beneath a thin layer of strange fabric.
She rubbed her eyes then whined. “Inuyasha? Is everything OK?”
“Just stay back Kagome!”
That made her alert. She moved to her knees, reaching for her bow, but he was already there, looming over her while his brother scrambled and shouted behind him. He had an impressive view down the subtle V of her neckline, but of course he wasn’t interested in looking there.
“Sesshoumaru?” She squeaked, suddenly alert. He let his youki run over her once more, watching when her eyes widened in sudden understanding. If he went to all this trouble and she reacted like anyone else would, he’d be horribly disappointed, so he leaned down and huffed into the curved shell of her ear.
“Pay attention, miko.”
“Wh-?”
Her exclamation was cut off by the forceful surge of his lips on hers. His tongue slid past her open lips, tracing the hard ridge of teeth while she let out a muffled noise. The heat was not unpleasant. He hummed and leaned forward, recognizing a sudden rush of interest in her scent, the fleeting smell of attraction, desire-
A stinging slap broke the spell. Purity rushed forth in her sudden fury. It was everything he’d wanted.
Tears gathered along her waterline.
“What is wrong with you men?” She snapped, springing towards the demon slayer and burying her face in the other woman’s shoulder. Everyone was gaping at him. He righted himself stiffly and wandered back the way he had come, contemplating kisses and why the fact that they worked didn’t make them the right choice.
*
He couldn’t wait even a week before he returned to her.
There was a shift in the way Inuyasha’s group reacted to him. Inuyasha still shouted, but instead of springing forward, he stayed close to the miko. Likewise, they’d stopped leaving her to the rear and now formed a tight circle around her. She eyed him warily, but her weapon was slack in her hands.
Two options presented themselves.
He could say what he needed to say here, in front of her companions, or….
He’d whisked her away in the breadth of a few seconds, taking her skyward so quickly that all he heard was a gasp and Inuyasha’s oath trailing behind them. The wind stole her shrieks, and he tried not to enjoy how her power surged against him in rebuttal to the manhandling washing him in a satisfying tingle, even as she threw her arms around his neck and pressed her nose against the skin beneath his ear.
He slowly came to a stop and waited for her trembling to cease, letting his arm fall so she would know he had no intention of restraining her. She gasped and pushed off him, not realizing that her fingers were tangled in his hair and pulling his face with her.
She was red. Stuttering. Her eyes narrowed and he waited with bated breath for the inevitable flood of power that would accompany her rage.
“Seriously? What’s wrong with you?” She screeched. Inwardly, he preened. Power flared around him. He wasn’t one to feel fear, and he definitely wouldn’t let her know that it made his heartbeat rush.
“Most would not assume to be so forward with this Sesshoumaru.”
“The Sesshoumaru I know wouldn’t behave like this!”
“You do not know me.”
“I know enough.”
He caught the hand that was waving about, and pressed his thumb soothingly into her palm, rumbling when her cheeks heated and he caught her eyes darting to his lips. If he was any weaker, he would run at the blush that brought forth a new wave of power. She was dangerous to him. Adrenaline pumped. He felt like a pup at the site of his first skirmish.
He inhaled deeply, noting her scent. She had liked the kiss, even if his method of stealing it had been wrong. Good.
“Hn, I would like you to know more.” His breath brushed across her forehead, fluttering her bangs. Slowly, so that she could knock his hand away if she wished to, he raised his hand to her face and cupped her cheek. She licked her lips. It was a small, subconscious gesture, but he approved.
“Oh?”
“If you have no complaints.”
“I have several.” She said it with a small frown, but still tugged on his hair and tipped her head, angling it for a kiss.
Synopsis: Kagome is horrified to find Sesshoumaru in her bedroom.
Prompt: “for starters, that’s impossible.”
Kagome frowned at the daiyoukai who had somehow found his way into her bedroom. The inherent wrongness of seeing Sesshoumaru in a room swimming in pink, all his fluff crowding the slight space between her bed and desk, made her head pound in a familiar way. Apparently, both half-brothers could give her a headache.
“How did you get in here?” She asked, pressing a hand over her heart. He could certainly hear it pounding from the short distance between them.
He gazed at her with wide eyes. Like he couldn’t believe what was in front of him.
“I followed you.”
She huffed. “For starters, that’s impossible. Only Inuyasha and I can travel through the well.” He looked visibly shaken, a fact that made it all feel even more surreal. Kagome pinched herself and winced at the sharp pain. A second question occurred to her. “Why?”
His mouth opened, and then snapped shut. He moved towards her, heedless of the way that she jerked back. Power sparked beneath her skin, pulling him to a sudden stop. He breathed through his mouth, scenting the air, and a wicked grin broke out across his face. She’d never seen him smile before. It wasn’t right, like the expression was empty of real sentiment. He leaned forward, towering over her, drawing their faces too close together. “Miko. I was correct.”
A door rattled open downstairs, and Kagome was keenly aware of the sounds of her family coming home, the heavy thud of her brother dropping his things on the floor by the entrance, the bouncing of a soccer ball on hardwood and then her mother’s gentle scolding. Slipper-clad feet bounded up the stairs behind her and she reacted, spinning to close her bedroom door and putting her back to a dangerous enemy in the process.
“Hn. Foolish.”
His hand slipped around her neck, his fingers lazily caressing the delicate skin of her throat. Kagome was hyper-aware of sharpened claws too close for comfort. Through shallow breaths, she managed to grit out a furious demand. “What. Do. You. Want.”
“You were there then, but you are here now. Human. Time-traveler.” His fingers ceased their movement, his thumb resting over her pulse. “Take me back,” he whispered in her ear, his voice pitched low.
Someone banged on the door in front of her face and she jerked back. The motion jostled his hand, and a long line of blood welled. Not enough to kill her. But enough to look like a thread had been wrapped across her neck. He released her and stepped back as she gasped for air.
“Sis?” Souta’s voice was eager on the other side. “Is Inuyasha coming over for supper?”
She turned her neck to look at the impatient lord behind her, realizing with a start that he was not wearing armor at all, but a thin black t-shirt and a pair of loose-fitted white pants. His jaw had widened, his brows thickened, somehow his gaze was harder than it had been before. As always, he was ready to kill for what he wanted. He raised a fingertip to his lips and brushed her blood away with his tongue.
Souta knocked again. Kagome flinched at how sharp her voice was when she answered. She needed to get Sesshoumaru out of her house.
“Not tonight!”
Souta grumbled, but retreated quickly, and Sesshoumaru drew forward, wrapping his arm around her waist, like they were lovers, like he hadn’t just drawn her blood. She caught their reflection in the mirror. Her face was almost as white as his hair. There was something bright and wicked in his eyes. Shuddering, for nothing good could come of this, she answered.
The Department of Love is overwhelmed with work in the weeks leading up to Valentine’s day. Head Cupid Sesshoumaru is struggling to finish his paperwork, but when his underlings fail to find a match for a difficult client, he is forced to step in and resolve the matter personally. A V-day Oneshot.
(Also available on my Dokuga, Fanfiction(dot)net, and A03 under the name ChillinVillin)
The mountain of paperwork on Sesshoumaru’s desk grew steadily, despite the long hours he’d been putting in at the office. He was a workaholic year-round – love was not just a Valentine’s affair after all – but February was always a veritable shit storm, and this year he hadn’t even had a chance to go home to sleep.
He was bent over a file for a widower when a soft knock sounded at his door and his youngest team member popped her head in.
Rin was still new to the Department and there had been an uproar when he promoted her onto his exclusive team. Her youthful demeanor and easy smile made her a target for those jaded by the industry, but she was an excellent matchmaker. Her unending reserve of energy and positive attitude served her well, and she let any hate directed at her roll off. As she should have. She was superior.
She was humming lightly when she stepped into his office, the fairy wand she used as her matchmaking device scattering love dust on his pristine carpet. It was not uncommon for her to bring him lunch, so he was startled when she plopped herself into the chair across from him and placed a manilla folder on the empty corner of his desk.
He couldn’t see her over his stack of paperwork, but he didn’t have to look up to know she was displeased. She worried at the edge of a manila folder and her humming cut off abruptly.
“What ails you?” He asked without looking up from his work.
“As you know, Valentine’s day is approaching quickly.”
He made a noncommittal sound in the back of his throat and gestured to the paper mountain.
“There’s this one woman. Kagome Higurashi. She’s a class A case so she both desires and deserves a proper match,” she flipped the folder open to reveal the fresh face of a smiling young woman. She was pretty enough, he thought, glancing at the photo without looking too closely. She was young enough to be planting the seeds for a future with a first partner, and pretty enough to get one. An easy mark for someone as competent as Rin.
“And there is no one suitable?” he surmised.
“It’s not that! I’ve spent the last week trying to get her together with her childhood friend! He’s already in love with her, so half the equation was solved. He’s kind and attentive and he’s studying medicine, so he’s smart and cares about people. He’s perfect for her, but every time I tried to set them up, she brushed my magic aside like it was nothing and found an excuse to take off!”
“We cannot manufacture attraction,” Sesshoumaru huffed, returning to the file before him. This was basic stuff. “You tried to open her eyes and she declined. Move on to the next best match.” And leave me in peace, he thought, biting his tongue. It wouldn’t do to upset her during their busiest time of the year.
“I did!” She wailed. “I found her someone else. This guy was his opposite. He was fun! Flirty and easy to commit to. He would have given her everything she needed to feel fulfilled as a girlfriend!”
“She ignored him as well?”
“Not only was she not interested; she set him up on a date with her best friend and now they’re going steady!”
He frowned. It was almost unheard of for Rin to strike out twice. He put it down to the overwhelming work of her first season on his team. Perhaps she simply hadn’t learned yet what to do when she hit a snag. He would put someone more seasoned on the case.
“Very well. Move on to your next assignment and send Jaken in.”
He closed the manila folder and returned to his work, not acknowledging the short man who came in for it. He couldn’t see Jaken’s eyes over the top of the desk, but the two heads on his staff, their lips pursed like they waiting for a kiss, danced towards him, and then a small hand felt around on his desk before sliding the file off the edge. Jaken made a lot of noise as he came and went, but Sesshoumaru tuned him out, sighing gratefully when the door clicked closed and he was left in peace.
Considering the problem dealt with, he gave his full attention to the case in front of him.
*
“I’m so sorry sir! Please forgive me!”
The piercing shriek of his subordinate made his head pound. He hadn’t even gone home to shower, and his stomach cramped from cheap vending machine food. The first thing he noticed when he peeled his eyes away from his work was that the staff of two heads looked… wrong.
The heads had twisted apart, the centre cracked like they’d tried to get away from each other. Their kissing faces had devolved into delirious smiles. Jaken clambered up to stand on the chair across from his, waving a folder around. Sesshoumaru cut off his groveling.
“This is not the time for mistakes, Jaken.”
“Please forgive me! I was only trying to do as I was asked, but the task proved to be impossible!”
Sesshoumaru was certain that he hadn’t given anything beyond his subordinate’s abilities. That was why he spent his days (and this time of year his nights) pouring over paperwork.
“It’s that Higurashi woman to blame!” Jaken griped. “I found her a man who was rugged and handsome. He was completely appropriate while presenting enough of a challenge for her to get a sense of satisfaction out of winning his heart. Just as she started to warm up to him, she found out that she was a dead ringer for his ex and got upset.”
“A rookie mistake.”
“Forgive me, but often the second match is better than the first anyway. They appreciate the next match so much more once they’ve had a taste of disappointment.”
It was an old school thought, reminiscent of Sesshoumaru’s father’s ideology from his days running the department. It never would’ve worked for Rin’s childish, bubbling love type, but Jaken’s staff was uniquely designed for two romances in quick succession. The second and more powerful head could not work until after the first had been activated.
“That was not the case?” Sesshoumaru prompted.
“I found her someone similar, but who would be unwaveringly honest in his high opinion of her and who had no prior serious attachments, but she wound up foisting him off on another girl!”
“And your staff?”
“The staff got confused. Since she wasn’t reactive to the first or second match, both heads tried to blast him and he wound up doubly smitten with the new girl. This is a mess.”
Sesshoumaru grunted. This had never happened in the centuries since Jaken had joined the department.
“You cannot work without it, and I need you on the ground. Leave the case and see if Totosai in tech can fix it for you. If it will take more than a few hours, then request assistance from another department to cover your time off. And send Ah and Un in.”
Jaken ran off, leaving the slightly worn folder behind.
A pair of twins slid in several minutes later. Sesshoumaru gestured to the folder without looking up and they whisked it away, disappearing. Ah and Un were a bit of a mystery, but they always got results.
He cursed when they swooped in the next morning and dropped the folder on his desk. They didn’t say anything, and he dismissed them with a wave. The pile had shrunk, but not enough. Valentine’s was only two days away and he had to finish before then.
“Well, well, well,” the soft purr came from the edge of the room. He shot up and glared at the woman who stood in his doorway. His mother smirked at him in all of her finery. She’d long been trying to convince him to join her as a member of the Winter Solstice Department, and 48 hours out from Valentine’s day, when his patience was thinnest, was a bad time for her to try her usual antics.
“What do you want?” He asked, turning his focus back to his desk.
“Poor dear,” she said. Her voice dripped with false sympathy. “Is your little holiday getting the best of you?”
“You know that this is not a good time.”
“Of course. I’ve only come because a request was put in for assistance and I thought I’d offer mine to you, personally.”
He groaned. Of course she’d snatch up the chance to insert herself into his business. He didn’t have time to put another request in, so he handed her the folder. The edges were bent and there was a coffee ring on it. She poured herself a cup of coffee, emptying the pot of his last dregs of caffeine, and sat across from him.
“Word’s been getting out about the difficulties you’ve been having. Is it true she damaged your righthand man’s Toke of Affection?”
“It is true.”
She flicked through the file, a devious smirk on her face. “Are you certain that she’s interested in men dear? I know that on a long winter night, I often prefer the company of-“
“This is not about your preferences,” he said sharply. Her grin widened. “And it is not about lust. We’re in the business of romance. If you cannot deliver, then leave and send someone who can. Besides, she wouldn’t be in the pile were she not available and desiring a romantic entanglement, and her orientation is clearly marked.”
“Very well. This one shall be kind enough to help you.”
She swept from the room, a cold wind billowing in her wake. He counted the folders piled on his desk. Determination set his jaw. He finished his last coffee and got back to it.
She swung back in in the evening, bristling. “Unbelievable! What a thankless operation this is!” His desk had been completely taken over, so she threw the file on top of the cold coffee pot. “I thought that perhaps she would enjoy a little variety, so I sent her a man known to be a little on the imaginative side. He had a woman with him who was gorgeous and also interested. I thought that the more the merrier was a good call, but she ran off so quickly I didn’t even see her go!”
He grunted, and when she realized that he wasn’t paying attention, she flew from his office, plotting.
*
Sesshoumaru finished his papers with a full twelve hours to spare and finally stood from his desk. His bones popped as he stretched, and he wondered idly how long he had been in the chair. He flicked the lights off and grabbed his coat, intent on having a nice bath and a glass of wine to celebrate his victory. Another year had gone by without a hitch.
*
He always put in an appearance to the Department’s party for his employees. They worked for him, so once he was clean and rested, he returned to the lobby. As always, they had gone all out. The room was swathed in pinks and red, glittering hearts twirled high above the floor that had been cloaked in a plush red carpet. A live band sung romantics ballads and a hearty spread of festive foods were laid out on a banquet table.
He greeted each employee cordially while it sunk in that his work was done. He’d even have a long weekend. Rin ran up and twirled around him. Her wand trailed sparkles behind her.
“Another year is done!” She cried. He accepted a mini cupcake from her and a glass of champagne. He’d earned it and she said as much. “I admit, I am curious who Mr. Jaken found for Kagome Higurashi. She was so tough to crack that the not knowing is driving me crazy!”
Frowning, Sesshoumaru excused himself and brushed past her to find his second hand. Jaken was chatting with a tall, busty woman from the Halloween department. They were an incongruent pair, but it was widely speculated that the appropriate members of the Love Department were excellent lovers, and they all needed to let off steam after weeks of hard labour.
“Sir,” Jaken greeted! He was a little tipsy and didn’t notice his date eye Sesshoumaru up and down with a wicked smirk. “Meet Haru!”
“Yura!” The woman corrected. In one hand she held a black skull. The other she reached towards him. His mouth twitched and Jaken rambled on as if the exchange hadn’t happened.
“Well done! But what did you ever do about that woman who wrecked my beloved staff?”
Sesshoumaru spun on his heel, scanning the crown until his eyes fell on Ah and Un. They nodded to him when he approached their corner.
“What happened to the Higurashi case?” He demanded.
They looked at each other and shrugged.
Rin, Jaken, Ah, and Un had all struck out with her, leaving him to fumble for who he’d assigned her to. He tried to recall what he’d done with her case when it hit him.
Mother.
He hadn’t really been paying attention when she came in, but surely she’d failed too. He raced to the elevator, barely restraining himself while it climbed to his office, and flicked the lights on. The return of the cold fluorescence made his head throb, but he paid it no heed as he searched his deck for the file. It was pristine, as he had left it, without the Higurashi file in sight. He got down on his hands and knees and peered under it, but other than some of Rin’s glitter that the custodians had missed and a couple of dust bunnies, it was empty too. Snarling, he got up and looked around, finally noticing that it had slid behind the coffee maker.
A job failed. A heart left to grow cold on his day. He would not accept it.
He pulled his blade down from the display on the wall behind his desk. He hadn’t used it since he trained Rin. It pulsed faintly in his hand, the familiar energy stirring awake. He strapped it on, grabbed the folder, and raced down the back stairwell to grab a taxi.
He would find Kagome Higurashi and ensure that she had a partner by midnight.
*
Her file was thin. He knew that her family was small, but important to her. She was raised to take over her family’s shrine and that’s what she did. She was a romantic, but she rarely dated. She was outspoken, but kind to a fault. Overall, she was a perfectly good candidate for a love match.
His underlings had left notes, all of them detailing what had worked to catch her attention and what had failed along with a list of the names that hadn’t worked. Someone had written ‘this job sucks!’ across the top of the sheet, which he recognized as his mother’s handwriting. Hn, childish.
The cab pulled to a stop in front of a bar. It was uncharacteristically cold for February, and snow crunched beneath the wheels. There was nothing in the file to help him, so he tucked it away and went in to watch her. He would have to glean the details about her for himself and find her an acceptable partner. All in the next, he checked his watch and hissed, five hours.
It didn’t take him long to find her. She was bouncing around the people on the dance floor, dancing and chatting over the rock band that was playing near the front. She nursed her drink and seemed perfectly in her element, and he found himself relaxing as he watched her from a barstool. He had his own drink, which he’d purchased just to fit in. He could unsheathe his blade and disappear from view, but that was always a poor choice in such crowded venues.
Kagome Higurashi seemed happy and as he watched her, he began to wonder if perhaps his mother had been right. Maybe she really didn’t want anyone. She flitted from person to person, lingering just long enough to have a laugh before scooting along to the next acquaintance. Even from a distance, he could tell that she was charming. She also seemed to interact with anyone and everyone without judgement. Kindness radiated from her. Why had his underlings had a hard time? She was an easy mark.
A couple bounced up to the bar, and he learned quickly that their names were Miroku and Sango, and that Kagome had set them up, and as they chatted he found out that a number of the people his team had tried to set her up with were also there. She was happy for all the couples, gushing over their outfits, valentine’s gifts. It turned out that she had presented chocolate to all of them, so she was receptive to the holiday.
It bothered him that the system could have made a mistake. It had never happened in his time, nor had he heard of such a thing happening in his father’s.
A confident man approached her, his long hair pulled back into a braid, and he offered her his hand to dance. She smiled at him, and the blade thrummed with the potential for a new match, but just as he reached for the hilt, her eyes shot up to his and everything stopped. She blushed at having been caught staring and looked away, and the bubble burst.
Heart pounding, he paid for his drink and went to the dirty bathroom at the end of the long hall.
Perhaps he needed to be more direct, seek her out and ask what she looked for in a partner.
He marched back to the dance floor only to find that she was gone.
Perhaps she was only in the restroom, he reasoned, but as his watch ticked, he stiffened. 3 hours remaining and he’d lost his target.
He burst out the front door into the chilly night and looked around wildly. He froze. There she was, still in her short party dress, leaning against the wall. He expected her to be smoking, but her arms were wrapped around her chest. He noticed that the long sleeves of her red dress were translucent and couldn’t stop himself from addressing her in clipped tones.
“Where is your coat?”
She snorted, an action that startled him. People did not address him so casually. If he was miffed, it passed with her watery smile. She’s been crying.
He slid his coat from his shoulders and held it out to her. “It was too hot in there,” he explained casually. The cold was uncomfortable, but it reminded him of his childhood home.
“It was supposed to be warm today,” she murmured, shaking her head, but a frigid wind blew through the street and she shuddered. Just as it occurred to him that a strange man approaching a lonely woman after dark could be construed as creepy, she reluctantly accepted his coat. Her fingers brushed his and he pulled away at the contact. She tried to push his coat back. “Don’t give it to me if you’re cold.”
“I grew up in much colder climates than this,” he admitted, and slid it over her shoulders, taking care not to touch her. A small smile graced her features and she turned into the collar and sniffed delicately. Warmth bloomed in his chest.
“I always find these gatherings to be oddly stifling,” he volunteered. She relaxed a little further. Perhaps she was the same. They should’ve found her someone more introverted.
“Yeah. I mean, I love my friends and I glad they’re all happy and in love, but it just kind of reminds me that I’m alone, you know? That I’m the exception. I guess I’m oversharing, sorry.”
So her case was not a mistake. Relief flooded him. He couldn’t point out to her that she’d had lots of opportunity over the last few weeks to kindle a romance, so instead he said. “That sounds difficult. Did it not occur to you to find a valentine of your own?”
She crossed her arms and caught his gaze with hers, and he found himself locked in a staring contest with her. “So where’s your Valentine Mr. Love Expert?”
“I do not have time for one.”
She snorted, again. “See! It’s easy to expect people to just find love! It’s not like you can just buy it at the grocery store. You have to find someone you like, who likes you, who you’re attracted to, who will make your life better, and then you have to work and share experiences and find common ground and give it time to grow. And sometimes it doesn’t work out, even after all of that!”
She breathed heavily after her outburst. She was as passionate about love as he was, but she had looked beyond the first flutterings of new love. “Perhaps I could help you find someone.”
She eyed him suspiciously, then broke into a wide grin. “I have a great idea! Come with me!”
She reached out and gripped his hand. He should have recoiled. This was unprofessional. But her skin was cold that he wrapped it in his own and allowed her to tug him along.
They walked in comfortable silence, before he asked.
“Kagome, where are we going?”
She stopped and gazed at him from under her lashes. “How did you know my name?”
“I overheard one of your friends say it.”
She resumed their pace with a triumphant smile. “I knew you were watching me! Why didn’t you say hi?”
He squeezed her hand. “Is this not acceptable contact?” He teased, though he knew the answer was ‘no’. “And my name, though you have not asked for it, is Sesshoumaru.” She repeated his name softly, rolling the syllables around in her mouth like a fine wine.
“Aha!” They stopped at the mouth of a busy night market. It had also been decorated for Valentine’s day. He was well acquainted with this sort of place as a matchmaking specter, but he found himself in new territory as they strolled the market hand in hand, sampling foods and playing games. She covertly pointed at a woman. “What about her?”
“What are we doing here?”
This was the perfect place for matchmaking, but every man who might have looked at her appreciatively noticed him and scurried along.
“I’m going to be your wingman!” She announced boldly. “Don’t look so shocked! I’m great at it! Just ask my friends. I found them all the perfect Valentine’s dates!” She had no way of knowing that his team had done most of the legwork.
The irony dawned on him that by putting himself into her path as a matchmaker, she had taken up the mantle of trying to find a mate for him. The thought made him chuckle, and then he cracked, laughing so hard that his shoulders shook. He used his free hand to cover his mouth while she gazed up at him. She swatted him playfully. “Don’t be a jerk! I’ll find you someone.” She regarded him for a long moment, then cast her eyes around. “What about her?” She leaned into him and spoke under her breath as they approached a young woman, drawing him in so that his lips brushed her hair.
“Why don’t we look for you instead.”
“I’m not going to play if you’re not. Listen! You’ll be head over heels by the end of the night!” She turned her face up to his, so that their lips almost brushed. He pulled back and dropped her hand, letting the cold sink in. There were rules, even if they felt inconsequential right now. He’d come here for a reason, and he would follow through.
“Very well. Why her?”
The woman was perhaps a little older than Kagome. She was bent over a book beneath a bright streetlight. Her short hair had fallen into her face and she brushed it back behind a small ear. He supposed that she was cute.
“You seem like you need someone who can soften you up a bit. She’s bookish, so she’s probably smart and introverted like you seem to be, but she’s still out here participating in the world.”
“She isn’t my type,” he said. “But I’m sure if she’s very good this year then Cupid will bring her a date next year.”
“I don’t think that’s how it works. Besides, I was good, so why isn’t he helping me?”
He barely stifled his groan. He is trying.
He pointed out three men to her. All seemed kind, handsome, and decent. And each time she shot him down and pointed out a woman for him in return. It made him want to rip his hair out. The temperature continued to drop and without meaning to he drew her closer to him until she was fit comfortably against his side. Their wingman game was interrupted when a young man with light hair and puppy-dog eyes called Kagome’s name. He had a girl with him who glared daggers at Kagome.
“Hey Kagome! So you uh- found yourself a Valentine, huh?”
She blushed and broke apart from Sesshoumaru. “Hojo! Sesshoumaru’s just a friend.”
“Uh-huh,” the men eyed each other up, and something sparked in Sesshoumaru’s mind. This was the childhood friend Rin had tried to set her up with. No wonder why it hadn’t worked. He looked as interesting a bowl of fibre-friendly cereal. Sesshoumaru would be having a chat with Rin when work was back in session.
“Are we going?” The other girl pouted at Hojo, so he bid them a good night and followed her away.
Kagome tucked herself back into his side. “I’m glad he found someone.”
“It will not last.”
“Sesshoumaru! You don’t even know him.”
“I know that he was not good enough for you, yet he still longs for what he cannot have.”
“It isn’t like that,” she murmured. “Hojo is wonderful. He just isn’t right for me. I need someone more... exciting.” She laughed. “Though I’ve had some pretty overwhelming men come onto me in the last month and that’s not right either.”
“You require balance.”
“I want things to be natural.”
He nodded and pulled her along. She had chilled again while they were apart, so he led her out of the market and into a 24-hour café that was teeming with couples. He brought her a hot chocolate and joined her at a bistro table tucked away in a quiet corner.
She moaned when she took her first sip of hot chocolate, and the thrill that went through him at the sound was completely unprofessional.
“Kagome?” He recognized the man who greeted her as one from the party.
“Inuyasha, hey! I saw that you got back together with your ex, congrats!”
Another from the file and he liked this one even less than the last. “Thanks. You were right. I was being stupid. Sorry.”
She shook her head and grinned. “Just don’t screw it up this time, OK?”
“Yeah. I’m glad you found a date too.” A woman who looked remarkably like Kagome approached them. Her straight hair was pulled back and she fixed Kagome with a small smile that struck Sesshoumaru as triumphant. Kagome stiffened slightly and he reached under the table to grip her hand. She relaxed and squeezed his hand back.
Inuyasha lingered a moment too long, until his girlfriend laced their fingers together and pulled him away.
Kagome leaned across the table towards him and spoke in a low voice. “Thanks for not telling them you weren’t my date.”
It hadn’t even occurred to him to correct them. “Another ex?” he asked.
She shrugged. “We didn’t go out for very long. Inuyasha is great in a lot of ways, but he has some growing up to do. Besides, it wasn’t me he wanted.”
Perhaps she needed someone who was more mature, he reasoned. Someone who would not get caught up in a schoolboy crush or use her to rebound from a previous failure. Regardless, he’d be talking to Jaken about making such an incongruent pair.
“You deserve someone who sees you.”
Their eyes met and she smiled sweetly at him. “Thanks.”
She took their empty mugs to the counter and chatted with the barista, who laughed uproariously at whatever she said. Sesshoumaru looked above them at a decorative wall clock and cursed. Only an hour left to find this delightful woman her Valentine’s romance, and he’d been enjoying himself instead of working! He wracked his brain for somewhere with intelligent, mature, fun, attractive people, where he could find a single man for her, and his head was spinning when she approached him and tugged on his sleeve.
“Sesshoumaru? What’s wrong?”
“I just realized I didn’t finish something at work, and it was very important.”
“Do you have to go?”
He grasped her hand and pulled her outside. Snow had begun to fall while they were inside, and the crystals floated to the earth, getting caught in her hair like diamonds.
“No, it’s too late to go back to the office.”
“If we can’t do anything about it then we might as well find you someone hot! Maybe the problem is that we’re looking for love when we should just be helping you work off your tension.”
Was she actually insinuating that he needed to get laid? The thought perturbed him so much that his lip curled up into a sneer. “I’m not a dog. I’m not looking for a quick fuck.”
She flushed at his bad language and dropped his hand, which felt empty without hers. “That’s not what I meant! Ok. It is what I meant. I’m sorry to have offended you. I just thought that maybe – you said you’ve been working hard and you’re clearly exhausted- and.”
“Kagome,” he hummed. “I’m not angry with you, but I’m not looking for that, or anything else.”
After tonight he would go home to his apartment, which was blissfully quiet, and enjoy time to himself. He didn’t need or want company. But he found himself wondering, since failure was imminent, why he hadn’t left her to get some much-needed rest.
He meant to calm her and was shocked when she stiffened in his arms. “Oh my God you’re married aren’t you? And this isn’t a date, definitely not, because I’m your wingman, but we’ve been holding hands and hanging out like a couple and you have a wife at home?”
A middle aged man walking by whistled at her loud exclamation and shook his head at Sesshoumaru. He had to bite his tongue.
He waited until she was panting, her breath fogging the air between them, and then stepped back. “Do you think I would behave like this if I had a separate romantic entanglement?”
He added ‘jumps to conclusions’ on his mental list of her traits.
“No wife?”
“None.”
“Girlfriend?”
“Nonexistent.”
“We have been acting like a couple though.”
He considered their night and sighed. Being forced to acknowledge it meant that it had to end.
“Yes. I’m sorry.”
She stepped closer to him, so that he could feel the heat radiating off her. Her lips brushing his neck when she whispered. “Why are you sorry?”
“I meant to find love for you, and now it is too late.”
“You can’t just find love silly. Remember what I said?”
Attraction. Comfort. Balance. Shared experiences. Was that not all things that they had? He marked off his mental checklist one by one.
Her hands fisted into the front of his shirt as his found its way to the nape of her neck. His thumb settled on her pulse point and he could feel her heartbeat go wild under his touch. Gently, as if she might break, he leaned in and pressed his lips to hers, almost toppling over when she launched herself at him. She wrapped both arms around his neck and pulled him into her, opening her mouth to deepen the kiss. He complied, running his tongue across the roof of her mouth and feeling her melt into him. When they broke apart, he found her flushed and breathless.
“Does this mean I’ve failed as a wingman or that I’ve excelled at it?”
He thought of his upcoming holiday review and pulled her back to him. “I will let you know.”
The clock struck midnight, and technically Kagome Higurashi had found her Valentine.
