Bound by Corruption by BelovedStranger

Nightmares

AUTHOR'S NOTE:

Word Count: 4,017

WITH THE MOON casting its silver rays upon her, Kagome knelt by the river that was situated on the outskirts of the village, nestled between the cliffs. She sighed, weary. The inugami’s last words had been an order, but sleep continued to escape her. The river wasn’t far, and she often came here when she was troubled, not wishing to wake her family whenever she had a restless night. Not intending to stay out long, she hadn’t even bothered changing from her sleeping yukata.

Regrets plagued her.

Such as how she’d left things between herself and Sesshomaru.

There was no telling if the Inu no Kami had heard her prayers, or if he even knew she existed. She’d never seen him, didn’t know of anyone who ever had. He’d never even shown himself to Kikyo, and she’d gone to pray to him on numerous occasions over the years. In spite of his seeming absence, the Inu no Kami was the known protector of the land, and the miko of her village had always prayed to him.

Would Sesshomaru return? They had a contract. Or had he a change of heart? His contempt of her was obvious. Surely, he wanted nothing more to do with her after tonight. That would mean she was free, right? She should be happy, yet she longed to see him.

The desire went beyond the need to apologize. She’d caught a glimpse into his thoughts. He disdained humanity, of miko in particular. After tonight, she’d done nothing to dissuade his prejudices, but rather, solidified his low opinion of them—of her. He saw nothing of value in ningen, least of all her. And some small part of her wanted to prove him wrong.

Foolishness.

How long she sat, deep in thought, she did not know, but after a time, she slowly became aware of the smell of smoke. And it was getting stronger. Looking over her shoulder, her breath caught. Orange and red flames reached towards the night sky in the direction of her village. Knees stiff from kneeling for so long, she lurched to her feet and limp-ran towards the village. Her anxiety intensified when she heard the screams, and the unexpected sound of men shouting and the whinnying of horses.

There hadn’t been a horse left in the village upon her return earlier that day, she was sure of it. Entering the village, all was chaos.

Men, dressed in full war gear, ran through her village with swords drawn, while others galloped on horseback. The strangers were attacking the few remaining villagers! Kagome gasped in horror at the sight of an elderly woman being cut down from behind. Blood spraying in a violent arc, her assailant laughing as the body hit the ground.

Kagome saw that the woman was yet alive, because when she was trampled beneath a horse’s hooves, the woman screamed. The horseman wheeled around, eying the fallen woman. With the stars shining so bright, Kagome could see the cruel twist of his grin as he kneed the horse forward again.

Kagome didn’t have her bow and arrows, couldn’t prevent the horseman from running the poor woman over again. Careless! She ran for home, needing a weapon. She needed to find Kaede.

The bandits had come.

Somehow, she made it back without being attacked. Unfortunately, her home was ablaze. Kagome didn’t hesitate. Running into the burning building, she shouted for Kaede, only to choke on thick smoke. The flames were intense. Trying to avoid the worst of them, she headed towards Kaede’s sleeping quarters that were next to her own just off the main room. Kagome could barely see for the suffocating smoke when she tripped over an obstruction on the ground. There, she came face to face with her obaasan. Her good eye was closed. Unconscious?

Coughing, throat burning and raw from the smoke, she tried to pull Kaede towards the door when her own yukata caught fire. Panicked, Kagome released Kaede to bat at the tiny flames dancing at the hem. She was distracted for only seconds, but the moment the flames were extinguished, she heard an ominous crack from above, before a wooden beam came crashing down. Sparks flew, forcing Kagome back with hands up to shield her face.

Tears streamed from her burning eyes, further obstructing her vision. Kagome looked for Kaede, only to feel her heart sink. The beam had fallen on top of her obaasan, pinned her beneath its great weight. If Kaede was hurt, she made not a sound. Even above the roaring flames, Kagome was sure she’d be able to hear screams of pain. Desperate to get to her grandmother, she cried out as the flames leapt between them.

Fire surrounded her. She was trapped. 

When it began to sink in that she was going to burn alive, she heard another load crash. Wood splintered, falling around her, but all she felt were strong arms scooping her against a firm chest, before catching sight of silver hair glinting in the flame’s harsh light.

Sesshomaru!

With an inhuman leap, the inugami effortlessly jumped through a hole he’d made in the roof. Landing lightly on the burning shelter, she felt the ceiling cave beneath them, but they were already sailing through the air. When they landed several feet away, safe, Kagome struggled in his arms, trying to speak, but could only cough and wheeze. She couldn’t catch her breath! Her chest was on fire. Curling in on herself, she couldn’t stop Sesshomaru from carrying her away from her home, from her obaasan.

In desperation, she did the unthinkable. She called to him using their blood link. We have to go back! Kaede is still in there!

Sesshomaru kept moving further away, but he heard her. “She is dead, miko.”

Kagome shook her head, a denial on her lips, but all that came out was more coughing. Her eyes burned. They felt dry, scratchy, but she was able to see the trio of men running at them, swords drawn. She needn’t have worried. A strange, green light, flashed from Sesshomaru’s claws. Whip-like, it decapitated the men effortlessly.

Ignoring her struggles for breath, Sesshomaru stared down at her with an odd gleam in his eyes. “Do you want them to pay for what they have done? To avenge the deaths of your people? Of your family? Ask it of me, and I shall kill them for you.”

Her lungs seized for a whole different reason. She understood the look in his eyes now. Zeal. Lust. He wanted to kill for her.

When she remained silent, he pressed with eager impatience. “Surely, you are angry. Vengeful. Embrace it, aijin.” His voice was a husky seduction, oozing poisonous temptation.

Kagome shook her head. Coldness crept in, numbing her body and mind. She recognized the symptoms, knew she was in shock. A first for her. Helpless to fight its dulling affects, she floated on a thick cloud. She no longer felt the weight of her body, the burning of her lungs, nor smelled the acrid stench of smoke and burning flesh.

If Sesshomaru spoke further, she did not hear, was barely aware that they were moving again. How long was she held suspended in this un-world of the senseless?

Blind and deaf to everything around her, she found her voice. “When I was a little girl, obaasan would tell me, after my mother had passed away, that there was no death, only a change of worlds. But how can I believe that when death is so ugly and brutal? How can there be another life waiting beyond this one when we are so easily ripped apart in this one?”

A sob tore from her chest, hurting her raw throat. She was starting to feel again, and feeling hurt. Her heart worst of all. She looked up at Sesshomaru, tormented, pleading for understanding. “How can anyone do such harm to another human being?”

There was no comfort in his reply. “It is human nature.”

If he’d meant to fuel the flames of anger within her, he’d accomplished the opposite. She felt only sorrow and disbelief towards a world filled with evil men.

SESSHOMARU FROWNED DOWN at the onna who’d fallen asleep in his arms.

He sat with his back against a dilapidated well a few miles from her village, contemplating her. She was not what he had expected. Was she so unaccustomed to death? Impossible. She was a miko. Yet she’d fallen apart. Not once, but twice now. Perhaps he could understand her fainting spell back at the shrine. He’d been overly…exuberant, massacring those men.

Though her eyes were currently closed, he knew they were a deep brown. The first time he’d peered into them, he knew he would have her.

Perhaps she was weak, he next thought. The old man, the one who’d died upon Kagome’s return, certainly had a low opinion of her, and wouldn’t he know her well enough after living in the same, small village together for years? Enough to blame her for the misfortune that had befallen them.

Utter foolishness. Ridiculous superstitions. Only the arrogance of man could ever believe a kami would condescend to their demands and pitiful bribes.

When Kagome had turned those same accusations upon him, he’d been unsurprised. Ningen were all the same, blaming others for their misfortune. Never taking responsibility. Humans never changed.

The fate that had befallen her village was of no fault of his. Or hers.

Sesshomaru had shrugged away the miko’s reaction to the massacre at the shrine. He’d been certain that this time around she’d be enraged. The bandits had killed everyone she’d known—including her elderly kin.

Instead, Kagome’s eyes had glazed over in shock. He’d tried to shake her free from her numbness, to fuel the spark of hatred that undoubtedly lurked within her heart at her loss.

At once, he’s realized his mistake.

Instead of anger and a desire for vengeance, he’d seen her sorrow, had witnessed a baffling innocence at a world filled with cruelty for no other reason than for cruelties sake. Then she’d cried silent tears of despair. She was a strange onna, one he sought to understand.

He’d wanted to curse her apparent weakness, to demand that she dry her tears and give him what he longed for: her capitulation. Her rage. Her bloodlust.

Understanding he would not be getting the reaction he desired from her, he’d done the only thing he could think of. He’d pulled her into his arms, mimicking what he’d seen other ningen do when one of their own wept. He comforted her in a silent embrace. It went against his very nature, but if it would stop her incessant blubbering sooner, he held her all the closer, pressing her face against his chest and stroked the coil of her disheveled braid. 

When all she’d done was cling to him and cry harder, he thought she might be more trouble than she was worth. 

When her sobs had finally subsided, Sesshomaru felt her soon drift off in slumber, having exhausted herself. He continued to sit there, holding her to his chest. Not because he wanted to, but to make sure she did not wake and start crying all over him again. The front of his haori was soaked in the salt of her tears, and he did not relish the thought of having to endure more of her human emotions this night.

Let her sleep. Perhaps come morning, she would give him what he wanted. Only when he was certain she would not wake did he move. Rising with languid grace with an arm beneath her knees and the other supported her back, he made sure her head was resting comfortably against his shoulder before he began walking.

With his back turned to the burning remains of her home in the distance, he walked towards the forest just ahead, and entered. He continued on until he came to a large tree. A god tree, he knew the ningen referred to it as. There, he sat amongst its large roots and rested his broad back against the wide trunk, ignoring the roughness of its bark.

Rather than pass the night out in the open, with the scent of dead a beckon to all manner of creatures, their current position was more secure; though, he didn’t worry of any possible danger. He nearly snorted at the thought. No, he wished only to allow the onna the opportunity to sleep, uninterrupted. Seeing as she wore only a simple sleeping yukata, he kept her close to keep her warm. He’d even removed her sandals, where they’d been discarded amongst the god tree’s roots.

When she woke, things would be different.

He’d done things her way by accompanying her back to her home rather than take her to his domain, but now her village was gone. Her loss did not negate their contract.

Sesshomaru continued to stare down at her.

Her tears had left a clear path down her soot-stained face. He’d witnessed many tears over the centuries. Tears of those in pain, the fearful, the dying, from those begging for mercy. So many tears, and not a one had ever moved him. Not even hers. Such a display was contemptible, no matter the reason behind them.

She was weak.

How often would he be pressed to provide such comfort? It wasn’t that he minded holding her close, but he would much rather it be for a more intimate exchange.

Such thoughts lead to the morning to come. No more tears. He’d make sure of it by stoking the embers of her anger. Her village’s destruction played right into his plans.

He’d awaken the darkness inside this miko and, together, they would revel in it. Then he’d leave her. Or... Once he’d proven to her that her self-righteousness was nothing more than a conceited lie, perhaps he should go a step further in this tangled web they played. After she’d given him everything, her body, her soul, did he not then own her life? Would it not be his for the taking of?

His smile was pure malice as he leaned down, nuzzling her temple.

Tomorrow, she would ask him to kill for her. Never was there a more beautiful sight than seeing the seemingly innocent turn from the light and embrace the darkness within themselves.

THE ONNA WOKE with a terrified gasp. Her heart pounded, her breath was erratic, while her eyes darted around. By her wild look, Sesshomaru guessed Kagome did not see what was around her but saw inward, to whatever nightmares chased her into wakefulness.

Not requiring the sleep, he’d, instead, watched the onna throughout the night, noting each time nightmare gripped her. She would flinch in her sleep or release a small cry of a wounded animal. More than once, she’d curled into his chest, seeking comfort unknowingly. She’d calm as though his nearness soothed her. Did she know, on some primal level, who held her? Or, did she seek comfort indiscriminately?

Perhaps, she dreamed of another…? Then he remembered. There was another man. Someone she desired.

His lips turned down, unaccountably displeased by the notion.

Had the object of her desire burned in last night’s unforgiving fires? Just the thought made him relax.

Her fearful whimpers still echoed in his ears, but he had done nothing to save her from her nightmares, wanting her to remember even in her dreams all that had been taken from her, to build her anger, the need to see blood spilled when she finally woke.

Last night, she’ d been too traumatized, too broken to do anything other than weep. Today would be different, filled with the blood and cries of her dying enemies.

He called to her, refocusing her attention on him rather than the images he could tell where playing behind her eyes. “Aijin.”

He felt her start violently against him before she looked up at him, eyes fearful. For a moment, there was no recognition in her gaze, but then she did. With a small sob, she launched herself at him. Arms around his shoulders, fingers digging into his back, he felt her moist breath against his throat—scented her tears.

Sesshomaru’s felt his eyes go wide at her actions, before dread pooled in his stomach as he tightened his arms around her back. He held her gently when she started to tremble against him.

She was crying. Again. He wanted her angry, dammit.

Reigning back his annoyance, he turned his head to press his lips against her ear, murmuring a compelling compulsion. “Are you remembering, Kagome?” Her name, an intimacy he used against her.

She nodded mutely, rubbing her face against his neck.

Encouraged that she was listening, he continued. “Do you remember the fire? How it consumed everything in its path.” Her whimper was answer enough. “Can you hear them? The screams of the fearful, of those in pain. From the dying. How their murderers laughed as they cut down everyone you once knew?”

“Stop,” she implored softly, her hold on him slackened, but she did not withdraw. Not yet.

He ignored her. “Do you want them to pay?”

His body thickened in want. He couldn’t deny that the thought of her asking him to kill for her, to use him to exact her revenge, called to his dark nature. To bask in the blood of her enemies before lying her down to rut was a temptation beyond bearing, yet he waited, inwardly pleading, demanding that she give in.

The onna tried to pull away, but Sesshomaru wouldn’t let her. He cupped the back of her head and pressed her face against his throat.

Her words were a rejection he didn’t want to hear. “Let me go, Sesshomaru.”

Sesshomaru’s hold tightened, refusing her. Cravings bombarding him, his voice was a harsh rasp. “They killed everyone, your grandmother included. They burned your village to the ground.”

“No more.” Her small hands pressed against his chest, trying to shove him away, but her paltry strength could not move him.

“Do you think it was unintentional? Some kind of accident?” he demanded in a fierce whisper, refusing to let her put space between their bodies. He liked her close, wanted her closer. “Those men knew what they were doing. You cannot deny the destruction they have caused. They took everything from you. Your home. Your family,” he repeated, thinking perhaps she hadn’t understood the first time.

“Enough!” Her shout blasted his eardrums uncomfortably.

She was angry. He smirked. Now they were getting somewhere. “You’re all alone in this world. Because of them.”

He felt her stiffen. Finally, she stopped struggling against him. He pressed harder; though, his offer was spoken gently, coaxing. “They deserve to pay, to suffer as you now suffer.” In feigned comfort, he stroked her hair and down her back, while his nose nuzzled behind her ear. “It’s alright to hate them, Kagome. To want them dead for what they have done. Embrace the pain, the anger. I will kill them for you. You don’t have to.”

Yet, he added silently. One day soon, she would kill with him.

But not this time. She would learn. He would guide her in her descent into darkness.

Since she wasn’t fighting him any longer, he leaned back and cupped her left cheek in his large palm, meeting her tormented gaze. There was sadness and anger there. The last quickened his blood. “Let me help you.”

“What would their deaths accomplish?” Her question surprised him. “Will Kaede come back to life, or any of the others? Or are the bandits’ deaths supposed to fill the void they’d caused inside me?” She shook her head. “Killing them would accomplish only one thing. More blood, more senseless death. I have nothing, and killing them—or having them killed—won’t change that.”

Without warning, Sesshomaru stood with her in his arms and flew through the air back to her village, ignoring her cry of alarm. Beneath his feet, a cloud had formed, carrying them through the sky. He landed in the middle of the destroyed village, small fires still eating away at the embers of what remained. The bandits had left the bodies to rot where they’d fallen, allowing the birds and animals to feed on their corpses, but no youkai.

He set Kagome down and demanded, “Look.” Perhaps she needed a visual reminder of the destruction that had occurred the previous night.

When she tried to avert her gaze, he pressed up against her back and cupped her face from behind, making her see. “Look! See what they have done. Do you think they deserve to continue living after all the pain and sorrow they have caused you? To others? Have you never heard the saying, ‘what goes around, comes around’?”

“Stop it!” Fury saturated her voice. Only then did he realize her enmity was directed towards him. She tried to wrench away from him, but he crossed his arms over her breasts, his hands holding onto her shoulders as he kept her against his body.

Let her detest him, he thought angrily, for he abhorred her.

“Where is your anger?” he demanded. “You cry yet do nothing to avenge the dead!” Was she a coward? No, he had assured her that he would do the dirty work for her. He didn’t understand her. “Why do you hesitate?”

Panting heavily, he waited in silence as he stared down at her, watching as she glanced around at the destruction.

“I am angry.” At the soft admission, she slumped against him, no longer fighting to get away.

Sesshomaru blinked, surprised. He thought he’d failed to entice her into violence. He grinned. He hadn’t been mistaken. Of course, she desired revenge. Who wouldn’t in her stead? He opened his mouth, but her words cut off his own.

“I am angry,” she repeated. “But killing them will not make me feel better.”

His arms slacked around her, and she was swift to step away from him. She didn’t go far, only a single step. She turned to face him. This close, she was forced to tilt her head far back to meet his gaze. He frowned down at her, realizing what she was saying, liking it not one bit.

Her gaze implored him, more compelling than her words. “But there is one thing that will. My sister. I have to find Kikyo. She was in the neighboring village when it was attacked the day before. Captives were taken. She might be among them. If she’s alive, if they have her, I have to save her.” She lifted her small hands and clenched his haori. “Help me find her. Help me save her. I can’t do it alone. There’s too many of them. I need you. Please, Sesshomaru.”

He didn’t move or speak for several seconds, his eyes never leaving hers. He saw a glimmer of doubt enter her own, then despair, attributing his silence as refusal. When she would have released him, he wrapped his much larger palms around the backs of her hands. He leaned down closer to her.

“I will help you.” Hope and gratitude metamorphosized her face. When she opened her mouth to speak, he spoke before she could. “However, I will be teaching you the pleasure of revenge along the way.”

She tried to draw back, shaking her head, but he tightened his hands around hers, forcing her to continue holding onto his clothes. “Have you forgotten our contract? You have agreed to cooperate in my attempts to corrupt your soul. You have never tasted the pleasure of vengeance, and I will see to it that you do. I shall show you by killing every one of those bandits, and you are going to watch me. Then, you will know for a certainty the ones who have caused you such pain are gone from this world.”

Kagome didn’t speak, only stared up at him with a bleak sort of horror, while dark anticipation thrummed through him.

Soon, she would understand the merits of revenge—and thank him.