He wanted to make a contact. He wanted to know what touching her felt like.
He had seen her being carried by InuYasha more times than he cared to remember. He had seen her holding the kitsune in her arms while sleeping. He had even witnessed the Wolf Prince hold her hands in his own twice by now, much to his annoyance.
But he was the great demon Lord of the West. And she was a mere human. He wasn't supposed to desire her touch. And yet.....
The miko now lay before him, unconscious. Her deep breaths a constant rhythm in the dead silence of the night. She was burning. The heat radiated off her in waves as she battled the poison in her veins. Even though she was stable now, she was not entirely out of danger.
It was a fine morning when the snake youkai sent by a dark miko had bitten the unsuspecting miko. The demon had been slayed but the master behind the puppet had yet to be confronted.
InuYasha had taken off immediately. Though he was apprehensive of his brother, right now if he were to choose between Sesshoumaru and the dark miko, he knew what would be safest for her. If he hadn't been consumed by rage, he probably would have found it odd that Sesshoumaru hadn't resisted to the idea of being Kagome's watchdog.
Miroku and Sango had followed InuYasha, leaving behind the kit who now was in the company of Rin. While the children slept in a different room under the protection of Jaken, he was left with the miko in another for the night. The accommodations in the village elder's mansion was decent. And if it would have been lacking in any sense, Sesshoumaru would have himself seen to sheltering the ailing miko in a more than decent castle. She at least deserved that much for looking after his ward for quite a few times now.
She lay on a large futon made for two. Her cheeks were a rosy hue from the feverish heat and he could trace the movement of her eyes under her lids. The soft gold of the candle burning beside her made for a show of a graceful dance of light and shadows that touched her features here and there. Occasional whimpers of discomfort and pain would leave her throat. Her dark strands of hair stuck to her neck and cheeks in sweat. A wet piece of cloth rested on her forehead to provide any coolness it could.
As he watched over Kagome, covered with a blanket to her waist, he couldn't help but think back to the time when they had first met and he had tried to douse her with his own poison. His half-breed brother's wench, a peculiar human with indecent clothing, blue eyes where determination had swam and the manner of speaking that none dared to use against him except for his half-brother and enemies.
He was brought back from his walk down the memory lane when the sound of her deep gasp reached him. He got up and made his way to her. She was still unconscious. He sat beside her on the futon in the corner of the room, intense golden eyes never leaving her feverish face.
He watched every flutter of her dark eyelashes, his gaze lingering downwards gradually. He took in her heated cheeks, then her full lips. It was then that he was struck with an uncontrollable urge to touch her. He had been feeling this urge for quite some time, but now it seemed to have saturated his senses. After silently analysing and debating the issue, he reached the conclusion that this was in fact the best opportunity in InuYasha's absence. Even the miko would not remember.
He lifted his right hand gently and brushed the back of his knuckles against her cheek. For a moment he was surprised at the heat her skin radiated. It was not normal. Yet another unfamiliar feeling crept up into his chest. In all honesty, he wanted her to recover as soon as possible. Concern, was it? No way! Maybe it was impatience. Maybe he merely wanted her to get well soon so they could resume their journey. Maybe..... Or maybe there was something more?
He lingered on her skin for a moment before gently swiping away her sweaty hair sticking to her cheek with one careful clawed finger. She was soft and warm to touch. But there was no way he could miss the electrifying reiki, currently waged in a war against the poison, just beneath her skin. His touch on her skin, just like her enigmatic beauty and her lovely voice was exquisite.
He was no stranger to her deadly powers. He was very well aware of the fact that she could endure it. It was just going to take a little bit of time. And all he could do was wait it out.
When there was no response for a long silent moment, he went on to do something he wouldn't have dreamt of doing in centuries. He removed the piece of cloth and put it the bowl of cold water before returning it onto her forehead. When he placed the cloth, she stirred restlessly and caught him alert and watching her with all his senses.
Her lashes fluttered open to reveal half-lidded feverish blue depths.
"Sesshoumaru?", his name not more than a whisper in a gentle rasp of a voice, like that of the rustling leaves in the night breeze.
He took back his hand and leaned back against the wall behind him without responding as relief washed over him.
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A/N: I don't know what that was. It just randomly came into my mind. I'm having a real tough time now and Dokuga is now my official safe haven. That said, please enjoy this short piece and please take a moment to drop a short review. It would encourage me a lot at this time.
Disclaimer: We all know but here it goes again.... Don't own the characters cause if I did I would have made our fav couple canon!