Author's Note: Collaboratively written, one sentence at a time with co-authors AshMish111, Sereia13, thetroll and myself. Originally posted on AO3.
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Come Away With Me
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As Sesshomaru dressed for his mother's mating with Kagura, he couldn't help but wish Kagome would be there to see him in his finest regalia.
It was a silly wish, they'd only really just begun to toe the line of friendship and something more, but there it was, in his mind, taking root.
He tried to focus on the task at hand, but her influence was far reaching, the hue of her eyes reflected in the crests on the shoulders of his kimono and the jewels that lined his ears.
It even transposed itself in the color of eyeliner he chose to accentuate his markings for the ceremony and he had little doubt that Kagura, at least, would notice and tease accordingly.
But it was subconscious at this point, this need to mark himself with traces of her in the ways she couldn't, since she was human, so he only chided himself a little when he picked up an obi with small flowers the same color as her reiki to tie around his waist and secure his clothing.
It was time; he had to head out for the ceremony though he privately suspected his mother was likely still getting ready herself.
He stopped for one last look in the mirror, pursing his lips in minor annoyance at just how blatantly he'd covered himself with callbacks to the Miko, but there was nothing for it; no time to change, no chance to flee, he would wear his intentions for the world to see.
It now mollified him somewhat that Kagome wasn't there to see him; she likely wouldn't know what the markings meant, but InuYasha would and seeing as how he had not even presented a suit…well, he had no wish for his chance to be taken from him before his cleverly devised plan could be enacted.
He imagined how shocked she would be when she was finally made aware, how her face would fall open in disbelief before that charming shade of rose she wore so often bloomed across her cheeks and made her eyes sparkle.
"Ah, there you are, Sesshomaru," Kagura said with thinly veiled impatience, tapping her fan against her palm as soon as he'd slid open the door to his room.
He watched as her crimson eyes paused on each item of his ensemble, her lips pulling up into a smirk before she hid her expression behind her fan, a habit she'd no doubt picked up from his mother.
He had been astonished to learn his mother had evidently used her Meido stone to heal and revive the wind yokai, but his surprise had faded the moment he'd learned his mother had immediately set out attempting to seduce Kagura.
He was not surprised his mother had known about Kagura; the former western lady always knew so much more than anyone could predict or anticipate.
"I arranged for a little surprise for you," Kagura said then, drawing him back out of his thoughts as she smirked knowingly at him.
His hackles went up, the hair on his arms standing on end as all his senses went on high alert, as Kagura could be as devious and underhanded as his mother.
Kagura's lips twitched as she noted his reaction, which perhaps was why she continued teasingly, "As your new step-mother, I wish to offer you a generous present for welcoming me, my beloved son."
"I will not be referring to you as such," he droned as she tossed her head back and laughed.
"I rather think you will call me anything I ask once you see what I have brought for you," she replied after a moment, a knowing look on her face as her gaze drew to his makeup.
His eyes narrowed, youkai curling around them in dangerous tendrils as the muscles in his jaw clenched in apprehension.
But then as they reached the end of the hall, a faint tendril of a very particular scent reached his nose, and his eyes widened in realization as he shot a look to an evilly smirking Kagura.
His steps picked up until he could throw open the door and found Kagome standing before him, an bemused look on her face that he found rather enchanting.
His eyes dragged down her form which was draped in layers and folds of rich red silk hand painted with flowers of bright silver and gold, her hair carefully sculpted and secured with combs and pins with deep purple gems inlaid to look like a crescent.
He turned to give Kagura an accusing look, knowing who was responsible for Kagome's attire, but the wind yokai simply patted him on the shoulder as she whispered, "Your mother offers her blessings; you simply have to get her to agree now."
"Is it alright?" she asked him, fidgeting with a fan as her bright, sweet smell was edged with nerves, "I felt like it was too much but Kagura insisted."
Sesshomaru turned to offer Kagome a gentle smile as he rumbled, please in spite of Kagura's interference as the wind yokai left them, "You are perfect."
Her blush rivaled the crimson of her kimono, and his pride surged as she looped her arm through his so he could lead them into the ceremony.
"It's weird isn't it?" Kagome chattered as he led the way. "That Kagura is getting married, I mean, especially everything after all that happened and to your mother no less; the whole situation is kind of weird, especially since Kagura insists on addressing me as her sister and then invited me to the wedding and now, well, I'm here with you and dressed up like this and I—"
He chuckled quietly and placed a hand over hers where it rested in the crook of his elbow, stopping her nervous rambling as he glanced down at her with eyes warm and open.
Her fingers twitched under his, the blush from earlier returning to paint her cheeks a lovely shade of crimson as she stared up at him in awe. "I didn't know you could do that…"
He grinned enigmatically, his voice a low, warm rumble as he said, "There are a great many things you do not know about me, Miko Kagome, but this one invites you to learn them all."
She raised an eyebrow, mischief dancing in her eyes before she lifted her chin. "I think I know more about you than you think."
He raised a daring brow, his heart beating a fast tempo as he realized she was teasing him and enjoying herself.
She sat much closer to him than she needed to, he noted with satisfaction, and during parts of the ceremony she found particularly touching, she would lean against his shoulder; but it was the questions she asked quietly that really pleased him, a chance to teach her more about his culture, especially the parts he wanted to share, whether she knew it yet or not.
He would not get his hopes up without asking and yet her interest seemed to signify that she would not turn him away.
"I had no idea inuyokai had such beautiful wedding ceremonies; it almost looks how I dreamed my own wedding as a child," she said, and his hopes threatened to soar anyway.
Curiosity got the better of him and, with little grace, he blurted, "Why did you not marry InuYasha?"
"InuYasha?!" she whispered loudly, giggling into her hand to stifle the sound. "I outgrew him about a year into the Naraku quest."
His brows raised as he murmured, "Your greeting when you returned, however…"
"I was very excited to see him," she replied primly, lifting her nose in the air with a sniff. "You will also remember I kissed Miroku and Sango as well, I'm very affectionate, and I missed them all a lot."
He bit the inside of his cheek, the image of how he would've responded had she greeted him the same way flashing through his mind.
Only rather than a kiss on the cheek, he pictured a kiss on the lips, one he could quickly deepen before slowly making his way to that enticing neck of hers—
Both his mother and Kagura's auras flared in amusement at the same time, no doubt in response to the scent of his surging arousal, so he clamped down tight on his wondering thoughts and instead took to teasing again, looking into Kagome's shining blue eyes and whispering, "I do not remember such an enthusiastic greeting for myself, but you may make it up to me whenever you wish."
Kagome's mouth opened and shut as a fierce blush began to spread and intrigued once more, he wondered how far he could make her blush go.
"Keep in mind miko," he decided to push, "that I have been accumulating offense for quite some time, you'll have to be sure to be thorough."
"Y-yeah?" Kagome managed, her voice shaking but she refused to back down as she continued, "Well just wait; I bet you won't want anyone else to kiss you after me."
The glow of his eyes sharpened and his heart beat fast and strong, but kept his outward reaction reduced to just a small, benign smirk as he said "I will hold you to it."
He couldn't resist teasing her further and added, "I am certain after one kiss with me, you will be begging me for more."
Though her blush was fierce, he caught a smirk tugging at the corners of her lips.
"You're very sure of yourself," she replied, turning back to the ceremonial proceedings, and though he mourned the loss of all of her attention, he reveled in the way her scent had shifted, smelling of excitement, joy and… anticipation.
"I am old enough to know when my interest is being returned," he replied, watching her carefully so he did not miss a thing—and when she shivered slightly, her anticipation growing, he was even surer than he'd been before.
"My lovely?" Kagura leaned close, her lips brushing against her mate's ear, "Do I have your permission to lock them in a room if things don't progress quick enough? Or maybe drop them in a hot spring?"
His mother huffed, snapping her fan closed in deliberate mimicry as Kagura did the same, and groused, "I should hope so or I'll never have grandchildren."
"You children were CERTAINLY chatty during the ceremony," Ajisai said then as she cornered them during the celebration feast, smirking sharply as Kagome's face burned, "That's right, we could hear EVERY sordid word."
Kagome, with the straightest face she could manage, offered a polite bow as she said innocently, "We were discussing your beautiful wedding, of course—by the way, where did you order your gorgeous kimono?"
Aijisai's giggle tinkled like glass as she answered, "Ones such as us do not order our garments, dear; tailors beg for their designs to be chosen."
"And flattery will get you everywhere," Kagura interrupted, stepping in to usher Ajisai away to other guests. "You've bought yourself more time before the interrogation, and no one will miss you if either of you disappear."
The tantalizing blush swept over Kagome's cheeks once again. "Your family is surprisingly straightforward."
"No, humans are infuriatingly slow to the point," he replied with a cocked brow, and he was rewarded with a delightful giggle.
"We can't be blamed for moving at snail's pace; we've only got two legs, you see."
"But much less time to make your moves," he countered, stepping closer into her space, listening for that tell-tale pick up in her heart rate.
Kagome found her gaze drifting to his lips and Sesshomaru's expression was suddenly knowing.
"Would you, perhaps, prefer to move somewhere more private, away from such prying ears and eyes?" He asked, voice lowering and rumbling with mounting want.
All Kagome could manage was a single nod as she began to hope he would do everything his seductive expression was promising.
"Kagome!" a voice called over the crowded reception.
She whirled around, not expecting to hear her name from anyone else at this gathering, her eyes landing on a a very familiar pair of blue eyes.
Kagome winced inwardly as Koga sauntered over, intent on pulling her into a dance—only Kagura got there first and proceeded to pull Koga away by his ear.
His mother followed her with an uproarious laugh, and Sesshomaru sighed out the battle lust that had begun overtaking his body lust, and before they could be interrupted again, he grabbed her.
Only he wasn't fast enough; through the crowd, Jaken spied Sesshomaru and launched himself at Sesshomaru with a jubilant cry of, "My loooooord!"
Claw tips pricked kagome's skin though the ornate material as Sesshomaru's fingers flexed in irritation.
Ajisai's lips thinned and before Jaken could even blink, her fan caught him square in the middle of his forehead, sending Jaken tumbling to the ground in a misshapen crumple.
Before anyone else could call on them, Kagome grabbed Sesshoumaru's hand and ran out the nearest door, unknowing and uncaring where she was headed.
He scooped her up and raced away, heading in the direction of his personal rooms.
"Where are we going?" Kagome managed, breathless as she did her best to hang onto him.
He zipped down various hallways and Kagome gave up trying to keep track of their path, the heat of his chest scorching her hand as silk bunched between her fingers.
"We are going somewhere we will not be disturbed." He finally growled, racing through a door that slammed shut behind them.
A wayward giggle escaped her lips, "Why do I have the feeling there have been people who have interrupted you before and not lived to talk about it?"
Sesshomaru heard her speak but was no longer interested in maintaining general conversation—not when she was here, in his rooms, and looking at him that way.
For quite some time he'd desired her, but he had not pressed his suit on her, thinking she was still waiting on his brother to take notice of her; but knowing that his affections and desires were returned had him unwilling to waste anymore time.
All he could focus on now was ensuring she was willing to proceed with all that he desired and so, to that end, he rumbled, "I desire to mate you, Kagome."
"L-like your mom and Kagura?!" she squeaked in surprise, and he nodded solemnly in answer.
Kagome nibbled on her lower lip as he longed to do and for a moment, she was silent, and then, finally, with a deep blush, she nodded.
He was on her in a flash, his mouth closing over hers as he pressed his body to her curves, growling low in his chest in response to her breathy moan.
His kiss was everything she had hoped it would be—ardent, reverent, demanding but not dominating, fueled by years of longing—yet with a might she didn't know she possessed, Kagome pulled away and whispered against his lips, "S-shouldn't we talk about t-this first?"
"Later," he promised her darkly, bending to kiss her again.
"But isn't this forever?" she whispered as his fangs trailed down her chin, and he managed to answer, "No, longer than that."
Her self consciousness raised its ugly head and she blurted, "How do you know you'll want to be with me that long?"
He paused, lifting his head from her shoulder to regard the worry shimmering in her eyes, "we can spend the night in bed experiencing my devotion or we can spend it going over the finer details of Inuyokai instinct and mating practices, I will defer to your judgment."
Kagome's breath caught as she focused on one word and said softly, "Devotion?"
He dragged his claws through her hair, bringing an ebony lock to his lips without breaking eye contact.
"Hn," he said, and then he leaned back down, bumping his nose against hers and breathing against her mouth, "devotion."
Kagome melted at the love she saw in his eyes then and all other thoughts left her as she wrapped her arms around his neck and reveled in the rightness of it.
The pull was there, it had always been there, but there had always been something getting in the way of her noticing it, understanding it, accepting it.
When his lips met hers once more, she parted her lips and accepted the kiss with everything she had.
Her arms tightened around his neck as she pressed herself against him, moaning softly as his taste exploded on her tongue.
Without thinking, her hands moved to slip into his kimono to touch his chest and she heard his answering groan.
His hands found her hips, one sliding along the edge of her obi to tease the elaborate knot loose.
"Tease!" Kagome accused as he continued to toy with the fabric as he slowly kissed her, in no evident hurry for all his previous haste.
"I have waited for this, for you; you will forgive me for making you wait while I savor."
The look he gave her then was lascivious, full of intent and heated promise.
"But your patience will not be near so agonizing as mine," he whispered, grinding his erection into her thigh as he once more latched onto her neck.
"Just wait until it's my turn," she managed as he nipped her neck teasingly.
Finally he finished untying and unwinding the obi, parting the silk kimonos she'd been dressed in, and as he finally ran his hands along her bare flesh, he whispered hotly in her ear, "Trust that I will keep you here until we've done every wicked thing you or I can imagine."
Kagome melted in his hands then, though he could not be sure if it was due to what he said or the low rumble of how he said it.
The hours wiled away as Sesshomaru made her his over and over, tying their souls together irrevocably in all the ways they'd both dreamed but scarcely hoped for, and when they finally rested sated in his bed, Kagome sleeping peacefully on his chest, Sesshomaru gave in to the unbridled happiness shining from the deepest depths of his soul, and he smiled.