Entente by Maleficent Descent
The Hunt Begins
α Ω α Ω α Ω α Ω α Ω α Ω α Ω α Ω α Ω α Ω α Ω α Ω α Ω α Ω α Ω α Ω α Ω α Ω α Ω α Ω α Ω α Ω α Ω α Ω α Ω α Ω α Ω α Ω α Ω α Ω α Ω α Ω α Ω
Kagome sighed as she walked her way out of the building to grab her lunch, rubbing the knotted muscles on her shoulders and neck. She had been feeling off all day, a small fever and achy muscles made focusing on writing reports far more tedious than usual. Brushing off the niggling feeling of worry, she walked into the small café, standing in line with all the other patrons during the lunch rush. Briefly contemplating whether the chocolate cookies were worth the calories, she ordered a green tea and a chicken avocado sandwich, and moved over to the waiting area of the café. The overwhelming smell of Alphas dominated the small space, giving her a brief bout of nausea and causing her headache to steadily increase. She inched closer towards the exit, the urge to run away present as she sensed some aggression in the air, along with demonic energy lashing out.
Human Alphas were bad, but demon Alphas were far worse. Much closer to their animalistic nature, demon Alphas were almost always top of the societal ladders, but Prime Demon Alphas ruled society. Stronger, faster, and leaders among demonkind, they were never to be trifled with, and were a Sacred Omegas worst nightmare. While many Omegas were mostly human, the few who were blessed with divine power were coveted more than any other, as they were able to provide full blooded demon heirs. Demon females and males were almost never Omegas, as it conflicted with their very natures.
Despite prayers of being a Beta, Kagome was one of the rare few Sacred Omegas in an Alpha dominated society. Years of hunting and forced matings caused Omegas to become little more than prized pets, many of whom were basically bought by the Alphas in power. Despite the plethora of female alphas, the fertility rate of an Alpha-Alpha pairing was practically non-existent, and the dominate natures of both Alphas were constantly in conflict. Omegas were the perfect housewife, females rare and males even rarer, but all were basically treated as sex slaves or breeding horses, and not given jobs based off of their "delicate constitutions." It sickened her.
It was Betas that Kagome was jealous of. Betas didn't go into heats, could have children, weren't discriminated against, and weren't treated like glass like Omegas were. When maturation hit in the form of a heat at age 14, Kagome swore to herself that she would not be bonded against her will like so many of her sisters. So she drained money on suppressants, using special soaps to remove all evidence of the distinctly sweet omega scent. Mimicking her best friend Sango, she learned the mannerisms, posturing, and attitude that all Betas had that helped her blend in seamlessly, and locked away her Sacred power with special beads made to hide her powers.
However, every 3 months she had to take a week for her heat—no number of suppressants would hide the dewy scent of arousal, nor beads her power from flaring and affecting everything around her. Although Alphas could reason and think like any other normal human beings, many succumbed to their base instinct to rut, whether the omega was willing or not. Not that it made a difference, the heat pheromones warping the omegas to only want to be knotted, bred, and nested with their Alpha. The unfortunate part of Omega biology was the loss of all inhibitions during the heat cycle, causing many an omega to end up bonded to an Alpha they didn't know or want. It was even worse for demonic Alphas, the combination of human biology and animal instinct making them the most dangerous for Omegas to be around; often demonic Alphas would fall into the rut like an Omega, succumbing to their animalistic instincts and mating the Omega, both not realizing the mating until after the fever had passed.
Not that what the Omega wanted mattered at all--It was common knowledge that Omegas weren't safe when they walked the streets alone, many snatched up by families in power without a peep from the police. Many were taken quickly after puberty, but Kagome was one of the odd celibate few who managed to last until she was 25, hiding away with other Omegas when her heat hit in a remote location in the mountains. However, her current slave driver didn’t seem inclined to allow her the more than earned leave without a specific reason, so that celibacy could come into question if she couldn’t get the time off.
Her number was called, and picking up her order to return to her desk, lunch only lasted 30 minutes after all, she rushed out of the café, tea and sandwich in tow before her boss berated her on tardiness (as if being one minute late mattered at all). Sesshomaru had been unusually stubborn about her taking leave, insisting that there was too much work to be done for the business merger coming up in two weeks.
“You are needed here,” he said with finality that only came from being an Alpha, “any personal vacations or commitments can wait until this is done.” Kagome left the office with no small amount of frustration, and she knew her heat was going to come up in the next few days.
I really need to make sure I take the strengthened suppressants, she contemplated worriedly, the last thing I need is to go into heat in the middle of one of those meetings, Kagome thought, pushing the door into the Taisho Corp building, heels clacking as she rushed to the elevator.
Raven hair that was braided back from her face, shining blue in the fluorescent lighting, a small but curvy figure waited impatiently for the elevator to chime, cerulean blue eyes darting between her watch and the elevator panel. A merry chime signaled that she had reached her floor, and she rushed out of the elevator to make it to her desk before Sesshomaru noticed.
"Whew, just made it!" she said, glancing at her watch. She ate her sandwich quickly, and surreptitiously took the stronger suppressant, making the queasy feeling in her stomach abate and her headache clear. She began to type the report that was due in his office in 45 minutes, wishing for time to slow down so that way she didn't have to face his irritation. Taking a breath, she grabbed her ultimatum from the locked door of her desk, slowly putting it behind the other reports if he decided to be difficult again. Kagome stood up, rolling her shoulders to ease the tightness, and looked towards the lacquered label that said in cold, bold print:
SesshomaruTaishou, Head of Finance Taishou Corporation.
Now to address His Holiness, she groaned inwardly, slowly making her way to his office. Pausing in front of the door and bolstering her courage, she gave a soft knock.
The smooth baritone voice of her boss answered. "Enter."
Walking inside and closing the door quietly, Kagome went and stood in front of his desk, quietly sitting in one of the leather chairs. His eyes never looked up from his monitor, sending out emails and other information for the board of directors.
When Kagome first started, his dismissive attitude infuriated her to no end--Sango getting many a call about her 'Asshole Boss'--but after years of working with the demon Alpha, she understood that it was just how he was.
His current attitude would have made her reconsider her request, but taking leave from work wasn't going to be an option for him much longer. "Mr. Taisho," she began calmly, "I will be taking my leave after today, I have finalized every document for the merger, including the Orshimi agreement, all that’s needed is your signature."
She placed the folder across his desk, putting her hands back in her lap and cursing the fact that they shook slightly, her anxiety growing at his stoic expression.
Sharp golden eyes pierced electric blue, a raised brow being the only response to her statement. In a bored tone, he flipped through the reports as he spoke. " Ms. Higurashi, we have already discussed this. You will not be able to take leave right now because of the merger—you will be needed for notes and other social functions. A replacement would only waste time and look badly on the company, as the hotel and reservations are already made."
Kagome closed her eyes and took a deep breath, bolstering her patience. You catch more flies with honey than with vinegar, she chanted to herself, and spoke, "Mr. Taisho," she began again, "This is not a request. I need to take leave, and I will be back in time to travel to the function in Shodoshima, so even if you still need me to work I can work from home."
Sesshomaru stood and walked over to where Kagome was waiting for his answer, he crowded her space, using his overwhelming size and Prime Alpha presence to get her to submit, flaring his demonic aura outwards.
I hate it when he does that, she thought, but that's not going to work today. Squaring her shoulders, she met the Alpha's stare head on, gold and blue clashing in a battle of wills, repressing the urge to clash her own holy aura against his. Striking silver hair bracketed his features, the growing scent of aggressive Alpha increasing her growing nausea and fever, causing her to feel slightly dizzy, but she kept her gaze steady.
Gold eyes grew cold as he realized she wasn’t backing down. "Ms. Higurashi," he spoke lowly, "You will get your leave after the merger, and I will not hear of this any more." He walked back around to his desk, and froze as he saw the last report in the file. He turned to look at her, his face blank, and met her cold stare. She stood, and looked him dead in the eye.
"I will leave, one way or another," Kagome said calmly, "Either by using my own paid leave, or by transferring into your father's branch. I've been getting offers to work there for months."
"You will do no such thing, he snarled coldly, the air ripe with Alpha aggression as he stalked towards her. "When exactly did my father offer you a position in his firm? You are aware, Higurashi, that you are under contract and cannot accept job positions for another two years.”
"Yes, but the contract didn't stipulate that I could not change positions within the same company, therefore I would not have broken my contract by working for him instead, and he has agreed to give me the leave I have earned without question." Looking up at the Alpha towering over her, she was surprised to see the depth of anger in his golden hues.
He growled, and grabbed the paper off of the desk, reading through the document, Kagome seeing the wheels turning around in his head, all trying to find a loophole to her ultimatum, growing more and more angry as the options before him. He slowly sat into his chair, finally looking up at her with cold fury in his eyes. He hated losing.
Suppressing the smirk that wanted to arise at his expression, she gave him a smile, put her work cell on his desk, and smugly said, "I'll see you in two weeks Mr. Taishou."
She missed the narrowing of his eyes as she walked out.
α Ω α Ω α Ω α Ω α Ω α Ω α Ω α Ω α Ω α Ω α Ω α Ω α Ω α Ω α Ω α Ω α Ω α Ω α Ω α Ω α Ω α Ω α Ω α Ω α Ω α Ω α Ω α Ω α Ω α Ω α Ω α Ω α Ω
Sesshomaru was more than angry. He glared at his secretaries raven tresses as she sauntered out of his office, repressing the urge to stare at the sway of her hips, growling at the closed door. He glared down at the paper in his hands, wanting to melt her ultimatum with his acid and drag her back to work. Not that that will happen now, he thought, she made it pretty clear she would work with Father if given the chance.
There lay the source of the anger that he didn't want to admit to himself. While he had a healthy respect for his father, his preference of females steered almost directly in his secretaries direction. Although it was clear that his father loved his Omega step-mother dearly, he had no doubt that the Beta female could turn his father's head. It infuriated him at the old man's presumption.
He had gone through eight secretaries, all of whom tried to use his dick to access his bank account before he finally found a golden egg with Kagome. Always on time, punctual, and more importantly, uninterested in him personally made her the perfect person to have working with him. He wouldn't have to deal with drooling female demons who wanted to rut with him instead of write reports, nor too short skirts and low cleavage practically shoved in his face. It was nauseating, and instead of killing the females for their presumption, he found a sick pleasure in firing them in front of others.
Kagome was a godsend in comparison. Unlike the aggressive alpha females, the Beta female was rather petite and slender with a sweet disposition that was hard to stay angry with, one that would have screamed Omega if she weren’t so stubborn and fiery. He found a grudging respect for her no-nonsense nature, and appreciated her overall lack of interest in him as a potential mate. Highly conservative clothing and minimal interaction made her the perfect candidate, and her attention to detail sometimes outdid his own, and she was extremely gifted with finance management and investing.
He found her lack of interest in him refreshing. Not once did she ever cloud his office with the musky scent of arousal, and her status as a single female meant that he never had to deal with territorial spouses coming to challenge him about her working hours. She never once acknowledged him as a man in her life, viewing him as she viewed others with a sort of caring detachment and caution that served him well on the board.
Recently, however, her lack of recognition of him as a male seemed to grate slightly, his unusual posturing and behavior indicating that his beast thought of her as his even though he never laid claim on the female. He felt calm in her presence, and it was high time that he finally took a mate. While she was not ideal, as she was just a human Beta, the idea of hanyou children didn't bother him. Kagome was the best candidate, and although he didn't plan on falling in love with her, he was never so sentimental, there was something about the fire in her that began to draw him towards her. He found himself enjoying the challenge that she presented, even though her recent ultimatum frustrated him, he respected her so firmly trapping him in a corner.He wanted to see if that fire could be found in other places, if she would continue to be so defiant against someone so much stronger than she. It was distracting, especially recently as the newest member of the board showed more interest in her, not that she ever noticed.
"Why hello Miss Kagome," Kouga purred, gently holding out her chair and leading her into her seat, "It's such a pleasure to have you here." Sesshomaru gritted his teeth, scenting the musk of arousal coming from the Wolf Demon Alpha, his eyes narrowing into deadly slits seeing his secretary blush red.
"T-thank you, Mr. Matsuno," she stammered softly, and sat down, not seeing the displeased look on her boss' face. Totosai viewed the interaction with amusement, repressing a chuckle at the pup's jealous display.
"If you are quite finished," Sesshomaru growled, we would like to get started with the meeting."
Kouga smirked. "Of course," he said generously, and eyed Kagome with a wink, grinning at her wide eyes and flushed expression. She looked away, and cleared her throat, and began to explain the report. She never noticed the subtle posturing between the two Alphas in the room.
His phone rang, breaking him out of his reverie, and he snatched it up with a quiet snarl. "What is it?" he barked, and closed the offending folder with a snap and pushing it away from him.
"Sir, we can't find all the documents confirming the buyout of the Orshimi branch," Said Takeo, "We've looked everywhere and there not on any of the computers. Did Kagome turn them in to you?"
Sesshomaru flipped through the reports that were on his desk, seeing the Orshimi agreement. Wheels turning in his head, he put the document in the locked door of his desk, seeing his loophole through his difficult secretary's ultimatum.
"Sir?"
"No," he said quietly, locking the drawer and pocketing her phone, "No she did not."
α Ω α Ω α Ω α Ω α Ω α Ω α Ω α Ω α Ω α Ω α Ω α Ω α Ω α Ω α Ω α Ω α Ω α Ω α Ω α Ω α Ω α Ω α Ω α Ω α Ω α Ω α Ω α Ω α Ω α Ω α Ω α Ω α Ω
Hey guys....so I wasn't happy with this story, so I'm currently rewriting it to my satisfaction. It will still definitely be MA, but I'm going to change many of the plot devices and location to make some of the events work in a better sequence. As such, I am currently in the process of writing longer chapters for each portion and since a lot of the previous chapters to this one were rushed, the smut scenes will probably not make an appearance until much later. Thank you all so much for the love and support, and please review to let me know what you think!
<3 Maleficent_Descent