Por Fin Termine Mi Dibujo De Los Wreckers 💪🏾

Old artwork, new prints.

For spooky month I included these favs to my prints collection - you can find them in A4, A5 and A6/postcard sizes.

I might take them down after Halloween so if you want one, October is the best month to grab em. I will also be selling them at my artist alley table in London at the end of the month (MCM).

Shop Link Here

Reblogs much appreciated.

His Hero. ~

Megop but I drew the Kotobukiya Bishoujo versions. Inspired by an old anime. Video under the cut.

That meme but it's my bois.

Here is a teaser for an M-rated AU Inuyasha x Sesshomaru fic I am currently working on

With both hands stuffed into his jacket pockets and rainwater dripping from the ends of long dark hair, down his face and off his chin, Inuyasha sauntered through town, keeping to the newly paved sidewalk: a welcomed addition to the place. He now had a wide, even stretch of tar to walk on and would not be trudging through mud and overgrown weeds when he wanted to avoid getting splashed by idiot drivers.

Just as he was appreciating the new addition, Inuyasha realized too late that he’d wandered over to the edge of the sidewalk just as a couple of speed demons came bombing towards him, both shooting muddy water up his front and side while he sputtered and attempted to shield his face with his hands. The action had not done him a lick of good, big surprise there. He actually would have been a little less wet if he’d kept his hands inside his pockets.

Inuyasha stood there and seethed for about five seconds before wiping his mouth with the back of a dripping hand. “Are you fucking serious?” Inuyasha flipped off the direction of the long-gone assholes with both hands, wishing he’d had a rock to throw. He only spit on the ground, ridding his tongue of road grit, and reasoned that they were not worth his time and breath anyway. Also, he was sourly aware that it was possible he was slightly at fault for wandering to the edge of the road… Only slightly. At least the rain would probably wash off most of the mud, thought Inuyasha with a sigh and a mental grumble before he began to walk again.

After picking up bread, milk, and a few cans of beans from the convenience store, the shop on the furthest end of town was Inuyasha’s final destination. The dangling bell rang when he opened the door, as it always did, alerting the old bag who owned the place and sat behind the counter probably reading one of her weird ritualistic, hocus-pocus books. Inuyasha had decided long ago to accept the woman as a tolerable eccentric. Even if she had a screw or two loose, she and that granddaughter of hers had some damn good product. They owned a natural remedy shop and actually did pretty well for themselves considering their choice of opening up in this backwater town where one too many people considered the shop to be associated with the practice of witchcraft.  

The old woman laid her book facedown on the counter, folded her hands together, and frowned at him. “Cutting it a little close, aren’t you, boy?” Impassive, weathered eyes trailed down to his feet where a good deal of water had already sluiced to the wooden floor before her attention flicked back up to his face. “Inuyasha, if I wanted a pool in here I would at least have enough forethought to put it where potential customers will not immediately slip and bash their heads into something.”

Glancing down at his feet with a small smirk, Inuyasha shrugged, set down his grocery bag, and walked up to the counter where he rested his crossed forearms and feigned dejection. “Kaede…” He slowly blinked those long lashes and gave her his look of scolded innocence. “I walk all the way over here in the pouring rain just to see you and you treat me like I’ve pissed in your herb garden. Where’s the love, old hag?” Inuyasha grinned when the thoroughly unamused woman flicked a sunflower seed at him.

“Lord knows you’d never subject yourself to a friendly visit on cleaning day. Though for the sake of my beautiful granddaughter on the other hand…”

“Oh come on, Kaede.” Inuyasha stood up straight and crossed his arms over his chest. “You know by now my type comes with a deep voice and dangly bits. But I guess Hina is okay. For a girl.” Meanwhile, said granddaughter was probably organizing in the back, completely oblivious as usual.

Kaede chuckled and lifted a crate filled with fifteen small bottles of his special order onto the counter. “I do know, you indecent brute. Why do you think I had you help that nice young teacher get his orders to his car last month?” Inuyasha blinked, sort of impressed. The guy had actually been his type. He’d always been into smart men. “You know,” she continued, “in my day, people could get shot for saying things like that aloud.”

Inuyasha snorted, slapped the woman’s money down on the counter, and picked up the crate. “You kidding? They still can.”

Kaede shook her head at him before nodding to the crate in his arms. “Don’t wait this long next time, ya hear? You’re all out, aren’t you?”

Inuyasha nodded slowly with a look that said oh believe me, I know I fucked up this time. He then thanked the woman genuinely, retrieved his grocery bag, and left, ignoring Kaede’s murmured question as to why he had been so late. He’d been drunk so often lately he hadn’t realized how dangerously low his supply of medicine had gotten.

Once out of sight of the shop, Inuyasha set down the crate, wrenched it open, snatched up a bottle, and downed the green slime in record time. Shuddering at the familiar and ever-vile taste, Inuyasha sighed. He’d never let the odd tingling in his skin and muscles last this long before. He couldn’t remember the last time he’d been so careless.

If there was one unforgettable lesson learned from his long-departed mother, it was to always take his medicine. The day he finally asked her what the medicine was for, she told him only that he was born with a very rare condition. Inuyasha would always be healthy and strong, she’d said. And he would age much more slowly than everyone else around him. What his mother had said about his condition had been great news to his ten-year-old self. But then his mother told him one last thing. And this was the part, along with the seriousness of her voice and the gravity in her eyes, that he was meant to remember from that day on—if he did not drink his potion once every five days…he would die.  

x.X.x. 

The torrential downpour battered the ground outside as Inuyasha stabbed the plastic on his TV dinner with a fork at least five times before popping it into the microwave. Now that he was showered, dry, and warm, he didn’t mind the rain so much. As long as he was inside, the sound of it was admittedly nice. It also made Yuki shit faster when he let the black lab outside in rain like this. The dog would swim like there was no tomorrow but Heaven forbid the water from falling from the sky. The bitch probably didn’t like the fact that the rain gave her no choice in the matter of getting wet. He supposed he couldn’t blame her for that though.

Right on cue, Yuki trotted into the kitchen, stretched, and pawed at the doorframe before looking his way expectantly. “Yeah, yeah, I hear ya.” Inuyasha sighed and scratched the top of her head, earning a slobbery lick up his forearm. At least a few minutes on the porch would give that package of microwaved tongue burns some time to cool before he ravenously shoveled it into his mouth.

Pulling on his boots and rain jacket, Inuyasha stepped out through the screen door with Yuki trotting out ahead of him. Even with the rain, the lab still took her sweet time zigzagging and sniffing around the yard. Inuyasha shook his head, wondering just what the hell determined a good spot for taking care of business. Was warding the yard against all the deer and squirrels that might encroach on her territory that much more important than bodily relief?

When she finally squatted, Yuki turned her head and looked right at him like she had somehow caught on to his pointed thoughts and was completely done with his shit.

Inuyasha scoffed and folded his arms. “What? It’s not like you’re forced to come with me when I’ve gotta go. You make the choice to supervise me while I pee all on your own.”

Yuki only sneezed in response and sniffed the spot where she’d gone. Typical. Ignored by the dog. “You done? ‘Cause I’m late for a date with my blanket, the couch, and The Walking Dead.” Suddenly pleased, the way most dogs were when they were the center of attention, Yuki wagged her tail. But instead of skirting back inside, her tail stopped like it’d been grabbed by some kind of invisible force and her head whipped back towards the woods, ears perked. That was the only warning Inuyasha got before she bolted.

“Yuki!” Inuyasha quickly started after her before suddenly changing direction in the slick mud and stumbling back inside to grab his flashlight off the top of the fridge. Hoping Yuki hadn’t been dumb enough to go chasing after a fox or something in the middle of the night and in the pouring rain, Inuyasha bounded across the yard and began jogging through the thick, dark woods, trying not to let his mind vividly remind him that he was making a classic horror movie mistake. He whistled, called out, and combed the trees as thoroughly as he could with the old flashlight. But she was just…gone. Something wasn’t right. Yuki hadn’t run off since her training days, and she had definitely never done so at night.

Unable to see the light from his house anymore, Inuyasha stopped, his hair sticking to his face and his breath coming in harsh pants. He bent and pressed his palms to his knees, catching his lost breath while he listened. The steady rain made it difficult for him to hear much else, but after a few minutes and a handful of steps more, he heard what sounded like a low whine. What followed that small sound was a sure and prominent growl, more animal than anything he had ever heard.

The flashlight flickered and died.

Pounding heart caught in his throat, Inuyasha let the useless light fall to the ground with a thud. Another whine and a bark to his right caught his attention. “Yuki..?” he called in the smallest voice possible. There was no answering sound. Swallowing, he reached down and picked up a good-sized stick, holding it out shakily in front of him while he squinted into the darkness.

Inuyasha just about pissed his pants and was completely prepared to beat something to death with the stick when something bumped up against his leg. Realizing right away that it was the dog, Inuyasha tensed his arm and managed to stop himself from taking a full swing.

“Jesus, dog.” Letting out a fast, relieved breath, Inuyasha dropped his stick club, crouched, and wrapped his arms around Yuki’s furry, wet neck. He’d be damned if he ever let something happen to that dog. Yuki lapped at his shoulder for a minute before wriggling out of his grasp and pawing at his knee. Inuyasha frowned, not understanding what the hell was wrong with her. Had she chased something up a tree?

Inuyasha tipped his head up and scanned the silhouetted canopy, making out nothing but the splotchy dull grey of the stormy sky. His eyes fell bellow the masses of tree branches to a shape ahead he assumed to be a giant boulder. After another squinting glance at the dog, he realized she was fascinated by the boulder for some reason. Or, maybe, whatever she was after was hiding behind it? Hooking his fingers under Yuki’s collar, Inuyasha allowed her to pull him forward a few more steps.

And then he saw it. The large mass before him shifted and a monstrous head rose off the ground and eyes as large as fists, glowing redder than hot coals, opened and settled on him. The creature’s lips pulled back and bared rows of massive teeth. Another unearthly growl shook him out of his frozen terror.

The dog’s collar firmly in his grasp, Inuyasha bolted. Run, run, run. That was the only possible thought in his mind while he tried desperately to escape what could easily be barreling after him, what could easily crush his head in its jaws before he even realized his life was over.He tore towards where he hoped to God his house was.

Without a single idea of how he managed it, Inuyasha burst out of the trees and onto his back lawn, gasping for breath in the humid air. The moment he stepped foot inside, he slammed and locked the door behind him before leaning back against it and sliding down to the kitchen floor. His muscles tingled and twitched and his head pounded. It took some serious effort to release his death grip on Yuki’s collar. But once he did, the evidently insane dog only whined and looked at the door.

What. The. Bleeding. Hell.

Clutching at his chest, Inuyasha blinked once, twice, three times. All he could see when he closed his eyes was that glowing, radiating red. And those teeth.

Inuyasha had never been scared of anything so badly in his entire life. It had almost been as though he could feel its power. Which was just crazy.

That…creature. It was… The thing was a giant dog. It had been at least the size of two full-sized horses combined, maybe bigger. And those goddamn eyes…

Inuyasha was in a panic. How could something like that exist? Was he finally going insane after all these years of it being just him and one dog after another? But he could never have imagined stumbling across something like that. If he were to go crazy, surely he would be imagining zombies or even ghosts. He’d never even heard of something like the thing he just ran for his life from. Too large to be unnoticed for long, entirely red eyes that really did glow, and a fur coat the color of moonlight…

Oh.

Inuyasha realized something he had been too frightened at the time to pay any attention to. Now that he was able to breathe and let the scene replay itself in his head, there was no mistaking what he saw. The giant dog was hurt. Badly. That probably explained why the thing had only growled at he and Yuki. It couldn’t have chased them if it wanted to.

God, should he call someone? No. Stupid. Calling someone would be a terrible idea. Drawing attention to himself and his property would be the first thing on his list if he planned on moving anytime soon. And something like this would probably cause mass hysteria. Now he knew what the FBI had probably been dealing with all these years. They would show up at his house, guns a’ blazing, and kill it before the population’s delicate ignorance was ever swayed.

Inuyasha dropped his dazed stare to the floor, realizing that the thought of someone killing it just like that—or taking it to some horrible lab somewhere to be tormented and dissected—bothered him. Sure, the thing looked like the spawn of Satan. But he couldn’t blame it for being on the defensive while it was in that condition. He also couldn’t imagine what might have been able to pose a fight against and wound something as big and undoubtedly powerful as that…

If the thing stayed out there like that, it was only a matter of time before someone else found it or it died of severe blood loss… He could tranquilize it, Inuyasha thought with a strange light in his eyes. While the dog was out, he could stitch up the worst of the gashes and bandage them as best he could. After that, he could leave the thing alone with a good conscience and hope it steered clear of the town.

Beside him, Yuki continued to whine and scratch at the doorframe. For some reason, Yuki hadn’t been afraid of the giant creature at all—she had run towards it like she’d been on some kind of urgent mission. Not once had she appeared threatened. It was insane…but he was sure Yuki wanted to rescue it. She wanted him to rescue it.

Inuyasha gave the daft lab a look of unsettled incredulity before gripping the edge of the counter and forcing himself to stand on jelly-like legs. As much as he suspected a screw crucial to his survival had loosened or even fallen out inside his head, Inuyasha knew it was now or never. He’d made his decision.

You crazy, stupid sonofabitch. 

Steeling his resolve, Inuyasha began to move and hastily scoured his house for anything he might need—backpack, needle and thread, bandages, towels, salve—fuck, where was that other flashlight?

With everything he needed successfully shoved into his bag, Inuyasha grabbed the tranquilizer gun off the top shelf of his closet before he strode back into the kitchen and hooked a leash onto Yuki’s collar. A sweaty hand gripped the metal door handle and stayed there for a minute, a final delay of what could potentially be his lifeless body on the morning news.

His forehead pressed against the window. It was dark out there, and it continued to rain like someone would be floating an arc down the street any day now, but if he was right about Yuki, the lab would lead him right back to where the creature was resting. And if Inuyasha would put his trust into any living thing, it would be a dog.

“Okay, girl…” Inuyasha turned the handle and let the door swing open, exposing them to the damp night air. “Lead me to it.”

                                                       x.X.x. 

Without the charge of wandering around aimlessly in the dark, the distance to the forest’s small clearing proved to be much less than Inuyasha had anticipated. Thankfully, Yuki slowed before they’d gotten too close to the beast where it snarled and bristled and pressed itself low to the ground. Even thirty feet away and without the use of his light, Inuyasha could see those huge crimson eyes squinting over at him through the darkness, fighting to stay open. This exposed and in such bad shape, the creature was afraid to close its eyes, even though rest was something it desperately needed.

With a pitying expression, Inuyasha peered back over at it from around a tree and held Yuki on a short leash. The thing did not seem so fierce to him this time around. After a more thorough look at the degree of blood coating its fur, after witnessing the labored breathing and the relentless tug of unconsciousness, Inuyasha realized with a fair amount of regret that the dog might not last the night.

Inuyasha leveled the tranquilizer gun with his line of sight and took aim. A single dart pierced its thick neck, its glowing eyes slid closed, and the beast went down, sagging limply on its side against the wet, leafy forest floor with a low groan.

Inuyasha’s hands shook a little as he set the gun aside and dug around in his bag for the flashlight. Cautiously, he flooded the clearing with light and approached the still mass of muscle, fur, and blood. To his relief, the beast was still breathing. But in the light, the dirt and blood was even more shocking against the near-white fur. The cuts on its legs and sides were probably worse than they looked. However, the long one across its chest was a real cause for worry. He hoped against all odds its heart had been spared any damage.

When Inuyasha was close enough to touch an outstretched paw, he lurched backward in surprise when the giant dog began to change. Slowly, but surely, the creature shrunk down, losing its paws, its huge ears, its snout, its fur…until what lied unconscious before him was a man. A very bloody, very pale, very naked man.

“W-wha—? Oh, hell…” Inuyasha’s eyes grew large as he forgot how to close his mouth. Not only could this thing turn into a giant dog, it was an actual person. A man who could change into a vicious dog. Some kind of were-creature? Inuyasha ran his fingers through his drenched hair, perplexed and beginning to pace.

Though everything was getting crazier by the second, he could admit he was more than a little intrigued… Against all reason, logic, and science, Inuyasha had already lived for one hundred and thirty seven years without yet looking a day over twenty-two. After all those years, this was the first time Inuyasha had come across something that made even less sense than himself.

He had to save it.

With a newfound spirit he’d assumed had died long ago, Inuyasha strapped his bag to Yuki’s back and knelt down beside the pale man. To be sure he was definitely unconscious, Inuyasha pulled the dart from his neck and brushed dirty hair from his face—a peaceful-looking face with two reddish stripes curving across each cheek, like claw marks, and a blue crescent moon in the center of the forehead. Mesmerized, Inuyasha grasped him by his arms and lifted his back off of the ground before wrapping a towel around his bare shoulders. With more effort than he was proud of, Inuyasha hoisted the he-beast up and over his shoulder and began the trek back to his house. Damn, this guy was heavy.

After throwing down some old towels, Inuyasha tried not to drop the bleeding man as he bent and laid him on the couch. His hand lingered on the man’s neck, feeling for a strong pulse. While the guy was in bad shape, the pulse was still there and showing no signs of stopping. It seemed this guy had resilience on his side.

Yuki stayed sitting beside the couch, staring at the stranger who occupied it, while Inuyasha emptied his bag onto the rug and ran to fill a basin with hot water and soap. Nearly sloshing it, he lowered it to the ground and knelt heavily beside the couch. Though he was rusty, he knew he didn’t have time to be too careful. As quickly as he could, Inuyasha sterilized and threaded his needle, stitching the deepest of the wounds. He began at the chest and ended with a gash that ran up the side of the man’s thigh. By the time he’d finished, Inuyasha’s hands were sticky with dark blood, the stench of it flooding his nostrils. Rubbing his hands together in the basin of soapy water, Inuyasha took a few necessary deep breaths and wet a rag. With it, he cleaned the man’s body of blood and dirt, carefully gliding over each wound as he went and using the basin to rinse the cloth. The heat this body emanated was unreal…

While the cloth roamed, Inuyasha’s eyes did as well. The man was long. Inuyasha himself was an inch under six feet, but this guy had to be at least six inches taller. And while the shoulders were broad, the waist was fairly thin in comparison. Every inch of him was corded muscle—firm, lean, and probably sculpted by the Greeks.

When the man was as clean as he could have been with the use of a cloth, Inuyasha realized upon closer inspection that some of what he’d passed off as cuts before were not actually cuts. They were smooth, claw-like marks that resembled those on the man’s cheeks. Curved pairs of reddish-purple marks around the backs of his calves and thighs, across his forearms just below the elbow, and through his wrists. They were strange…though almost elegant in a way.

After spreading a generous amount of salve into the wounds, Inuyasha bandaged the entire lacerated torso, both biceps, and both thighs. Realizing the difficult parts were officially done, Inuyasha heaved a sigh of relief and wiped the sweat from his brow. A groan followed suit when he caught sight of the trail of blood leading to his current spot and the state of his couch where the haphazardly laid towels had been unable to protect it.

Feeling the high of sleep depravation coming on, Inuyasha got up and lifted the bandaged stranger from the couch to temporarily place him in the recliner chair. From there, Inuyasha wiped up the tile floor in the kitchen, disposed of his supplies and the dirty towels, laid a blanket across the murder scene rug, and put clean sheets and a pillow on the couch.

When he returned the unconscious man to the couch, Inuyasha covered him up to his neck and set a glass of water on the lamp table. After that, he just…sat down in his recliner chair, folded his hands, and stared; all of his own needs forgotten. Yuki the wonder dog was asleep near the man’s feet, which rested on the arm of the couch. Each toe was tipped by a claw, as was each finger. Everything about the man’s body was fierce and weathered. But the face…the face was different. Framing his face in damp strands was the longest, straightest hair Inuyasha had ever seen. Silver in color and stretching down to the upper curve of his ass—if Inuyasha remembered correctly—it was even longer than his own thick mass, and his was pretty damn long. On each side of the silver head were two honest-to-God pointed ears. So deeply asleep and with a motionless face that could have been made of porcelain, Inuyasha imagined the man to be similar to how he imagined an elf would be—calm, patient, kind-hearted…probably into rescuing forest animals.

Inuyasha shook his head at himself, feeling stupid. Maybe the man looked nothing like an elf—he corrected—aside from those pointy ears. And now he was probably being some kind of racist, trying to get first impressions by using the appearance of his ears.

Potential demeanor aside, the man was beautiful—even in the rough shape he was in. Who knew people like that actually existed? It felt like one of those fake-looking movies where all the main characters are beautiful all the time, even when they are cut up and about to die. If Inuyasha were in that position, he knew he would probably have nasty, splotchy skin and be seeping pinkish drool from his mouth while he babbled feverish incoherence.

Drawing his attention away from thin, parted lips, Inuyasha focused on the guy’s closed eyes, wondering if they would be the same glowing red he saw in the forest once they opened again. While staring, Inuyasha noticed something he hadn’t before. Across each eyelid, just above the line of long lashes, was a thin stripe of the same color as his other markings. The man had undoubtedly borderline feminine facial features. But with the strong jawline, high cheekbones, and perfect nose, every feature just made him look like an Adonis.

Inuyasha nearly had to slap himself to stop his train of thought. He needed his priorities to be snapped back in line. Had it really been that long? And had he always ogled like a man whore? Jesus, the thing on his couch wasn’t even human. Maybe it had the mentality of a dog too. That would be something.

Scrubbing a hand over his face, Inuyasha knew he had been awake for far too long. He leaned back in his chair and kept his heavy gaze focused on the face of the sleeping figure. Against his will, his eyes fell closed.

                                                      x.X.x.

The world spun brilliantly.

When Sesshomaru forced his eyes to open and clawed his way to some semblance of awareness, everything was just a sway of bright and dark splotches. He squinted and clutched at the soft material surrounding him, trying to understand where he was. His teeth clenched, a fang puncturing the inside of his lip and adding to the already prominent metallic taste in his mouth. Pain burned through his muscles and skin, causing bile to rise in his throat.

The scent assaulting his senses stole the breath from his lungs and fueled a sudden panic.

Everywhere—it was everywhere. The scent of a human.

He had been captured.

Adrenaline momentarily overcame his weakness and Sesshomaru bolted upright, his feet meeting the floor while his legs pushed him into a standing position. But that was all he could manage before gravity felled him and darkness descended.

The next time Sesshomaru opened his eyes, he was able to see. As far as he could feel, he was once again lying where he was before. And he was warm. Now able to use his eyes, he realized the soft surface he occupied was a piece of cushioned furniture. Also, he was covered from the neck down by a fur-like blanket.

This could not have been right. Perhaps this was some sort of dream or delusion?

Sesshomaru grasped and threw the blanket to the floor in order to examine himself. To his surprise, neither his hands nor his feet were bound, nor was he tethered or chained to anything. In fact, much of his body was bandaged. He reeked, certainly, but thankfully no part of his scent hinted at festering in his wounds.

This was the work of a human. But why?

Sesshomaru supposed the human’s reasoning was of no consequence. It had sealed its fate by bringing him here. It could not be allowed to live long with the knowledge of him. He knew if he attempted to move again he would not get far. And his enemies were surely lying in wait nearby. As such, he would have to deign to allow this arrangement—for now…

Attempting to sit up, Sesshomaru grimaced when he felt his sliced-open flesh shift with the movement. His wounds had hardly healed at all. The constant throbs and aches were irritating.

Sesshomaru’s eyes darted about the room, absorbing his surroundings. It was small, quaint, plain, and smelled of age, wood smoke, and soap. There was nothing on the wall but a small hearth and an old photograph of a mother and her child. Sesshomaru stiffened when his attention landed slightly behind him on the chair to his right. Completely asleep with his head tipped back and his neck fully exposed sat the human who’d brought him here.

The sight of the human brought memories of pouring rain, delirium, and undeniable fear… He was sure he’d been hunted down. A gun was aimed… And then nothing. Death.

But he’d awoken. Sesshomaru felt the side of his neck curiously, momentarily combing his memories. He then realized with a sense of horror that he had been shot in the neck by a tranquilizer dart and had actually lost consciousness. The only reason such a thing had managed to affect him was due to the amount of poison already in his system. He’d been off his guard during that hunter’s attack. And he’d allowed himself to be slashed and to fall prey to his bane. In the end, he’d been forced to run. And from there…he’d been taken in like some kind of stray. It was disgraceful.

The effects of the poison were still there. The quantity had not quite been great enough to kill him. However, he was severely weakened and would be forced to endure a tremendously slow healing process.

This time had merely been a test of their discovery and development of the poison and of his tolerance to it. If he was met with an attack like that again, it was doubtless he would die.

A small whine at his side drew Sesshomaru’s attention down to a pair of round brown eyes staring up at him. A sizeable black paw padded the edge of the sheet-covered cushion. Sesshomaru glared at the dog.

So it was you who led the human to me.

The dog tilted its head, still silently begging him for his attention, its tongue dangling out of the side of its mouth. Fortunately for the dog—it was apparently a she—Sesshomaru did not resent her. It was in a dog’s nature to be loyal to its pack. And to domesticated dogs, their humans were considered to be pack members. As far as he could tell, only this dog and this one human lived inside the house.

On the small table directly behind him, a tall glass of clear water caught his eye. Swallowing, he was suddenly made very aware of how parched his throat and mouth had become. The water was closer to him than it was to the human; therefore, it must have been left there specifically for him. Sesshomaru reached out and wrapped his fingers around the glass, bringing it forward to examine it. There was a chance it was laced with more sedative. Though with the intense ache of thirst, Sesshomaru decided it was a chance he was willing to take and downed the contents greedily. When he was finished, Sesshomaru returned the glass to the table with an accidental thud. Sesshomaru froze.

The human male stirred and opened his eyes groggily before pausing in what may have been surprise. Their stares locked. The human smirked.

“So they’re gold, then,” said the human softly. A curious thing to say. Curious enough that Sesshomaru raised his brow in response. “Your eyes,” continued the male as he rubbed his own. “I didn’t expect you to wake up so soon. You were only out for a day. How’re you feeling?”

Sesshomaru gritted his teeth. A full day under the watchful eye of this human. Eyes narrowed, Sesshomaru turned his head away, barely refraining from curling white-knuckled fingers around the human’s throat.

“Okay…” muttered the human. Sesshomaru heard him get up. “I’ll be back later. Need to call work.”

                                                    x.X.x.

After about a day of getting absolutely zero responses in the form of words, Inuyasha realized the stranger in his living room probably had absolutely no idea what he was saying.

Great. A language barrier.

As best he could, Inuyasha tried to make the man understand where the bathroom was—hoping to God he would not just go anywhere. Five times, Inuyasha brought water and food to him. So far the food had remained untouched. And only when he left the room would the man drink the water. It was strange. He expected the man to have a huge appetite after all he’d been through. Maybe the guy had a weird diet? If only Inuyasha knew how to communicate with him…

Once again, Inuyasha brought food and a large cup of water into the living room. The silver-haired beauty did not acknowledge him. Scowling, Inuyasha approached the couch and stood there until the guy decided to look at him. Well that was better.

“I know you can’t understand me.” Inuyasha spooned a bite of rice and chicken out of the bowl and held it directly in front of the man’s face. “But you gotta eat something.”

After about three seconds of mutual staring, a clawed hand smacked the spoon away and sent it flying into the wall. “I understand your words, foolish human.”

Inuyasha blinked, too surprised to have heard the man’s voice at first to address what was actually said. His voice was a surprisingly deep baritone. A voice that deep and smooth would normally have been warm, but this one was cold and betrayed very little emotion. Just like those icy golden eyes that never seemed to do anything but stare and calculate. That face had looked so peaceful and serene while the marble-skinned man had been asleep.

At least Inuyasha knew now. This guy was not at all grateful. And for some reason, this seemed to be the last place he wanted to be.

Angry now, Inuyasha thumped the food and water down onto the table and glared down at his increasingly detestable guest. “The name’s Inuyasha, asshole. Why didn’t you say anything if you could understand me?”

“I did not yet possess a reason to speak to you.”

“Oh, and now you do?”  

“Yes. I could no longer stand your bothersome pestering.”

Inuyasha clenched his fists, feeling a rush of heat in his cheeks. This bastard was a piece of work. His previous ideas about the elf-like dog man being kind and understanding shriveled up and died. This guy was a real dick. No good deed really did go unpunished.

Considering counting to ten in his head, Inuyasha massaged his temple. He couldn’t smack a guy he’d just saved, could he? “Okay. I get you don’t like me. For whatever reason. But this is my house. And I saved your a—“

“I would have survived. Do not delude yourself into believing you were needed.”

Inuyasha gawked. “You were bleeding to death. And out in the open!”

“I have more power than you could possibly imagine,” replied the golden-eyed man with a cruel smile. “I would have been fine.”

His eyes searching that emotionless face, Inuyasha wondered how much of a threat that admission had been. “Well—didn’t anyone ever teach you to have gratitude?” That little comment only earned him an irritated glare. Though the guy did not look so fierce all bandaged up and without anything covering his intimacies. “You’re dry and looked after, and no one knows you’re here but me.”

“Can you not see? This is degrading.” Something in the man’s eyes almost hinted at misery. “Why would any sane human bring me to his home after witnessing my other form?”

With a long sigh, Inuyasha stepped away from the couch and sat heavily in his chair. “You’re not the only man who’s got secrets. I guess I thought…I sympathized with you.” More than anything, Inuyasha had wanted to meet him.

The silver-haired beauty stared at him for a long time. So long, Inuyasha was sure he would not speak again. But he did.

“I am no man.”

“Oh.” Inuyasha quirked a brow. The guy sure looked like a man…

“I am an inuyoukai.”

An inuyoukai. Inuyasha’s eyes widened, his mouth going suddenly dry. “A dog demon?”

The youkai nodded, seeming to have expected Inuyasha’s reaction.

Weren’t demons supposed to be…pure evil or something? That would explain the demon’s asshole behavior… Not that Inuyasha had believed in the existence of demons before this. All Inuyasha had to go on was what had happened so far between he and this demon, which hadn’t been much. He only knew the guy had yet to do anything besides spout conceited words at him. The demon had done him no harm.

Inuyasha was no coward, that was for damn sure. So this guy was a demon. After all the shit he’d seen in his lifetime, what was one creature from Hell? “At least now I know,” said Inuyasha after a full minute of awkward staring. “I’ve been wondering what you were this whole time.” A casual approach to this was best, he was sure.

The youkai just looked at him like he was a complete idiot.

Inuyasha leaned forward, his forearms resting on spread thighs. “What about your name?”

Maybe the youkai was tired, or maybe the youkai simply saw no reason to keep his name to himself. Whatever the reason, he eventually disclosed the word, “…Sesshomaru.”

Well this was a start.

                                                     x.X.x.

About two weeks since Inuyasha had brought home a demon, things were pretty much the same as they had been in the beginning. The youkai, whom Inuyasha now called Sesshomaru or a well-deserved expletive, still hated his guts. Inuyasha couldn’t remember being glared at this much since he’d pummeled and nearly killed a respected politician before accusing him of rape. Back then, he’d been a little less put together, so to speak, and had not been great at keeping to himself. The abused girl had protected the slime ball. And that was that. Deemed a public menace, Inuyasha had moved on again. 

Sesshomaru’s was not the typical glare—it was the kind of glare that used just enough of a shift in the face to make Inuyasha question whether it really was a glare or if that was just the way his face looked a lot of the time. What truly made it a memorable and unmistakable glare was the complete lack of everything but ice. There was no passion, there was no heat. There was no vulnerability in that look. There was only…deep disdain for all that Inuyasha was—human. Something he had come to realize Sesshomaru would never look past. It was deep enough for Sesshomaru to despise himself for being saved because it was Inuyasha who had saved him. He’d seen it in those tired golden eyes, in the way only a man of self-loathing could look when he needed help and would rather gauge his eyes out and drink bleach than ask for it. That realization alone had been enough to stunt Inuyasha’s fury at being hated for no good reason.

Inuyasha had already learned to ignore the way his demonic guest treated him. For the most part. If he was in the right mood.

Inuyasha could admit it hadn’t been all bad. Sure, there was a lot of silence, verbal jabs, and ignoring. But Inuyasha had managed to get a few things out of Sesshomaru over the past several days. For instance, Sesshomaru was about five centuries old. Five centuries. If he’d been human, Inuyasha would have guessed twenty-five.

About the night they’d met, Sesshomaru hadn’t told him anything besides the fact that he’d been attacked and poisoned by something called a hunter. Inuyasha had no idea who or what a hunter was to Sesshomaru, but with the damage he—or she, probably he—had done, Inuyasha hoped the hunter was long gone. Sesshomaru hadn’t said so directly, but Inuyasha had gathered from what Sesshomaru had spouted briefly about the affects of the poison that Sesshomaru was taking much longer than he normally would to heal.

Sesshomaru still refused food. Inuyasha was actually beginning to think the youkai just didn’t eat. But that would be harder for him to believe than anything else he’d learned about the demon. What living thing didn’t eat? To put something on this earth who didn’t eat and/or have the ability to love food was just criminal.

When Inuyasha realized the youkai was able to move around the house without too much difficulty, Inuyasha had tried to offer up his largest shirt and longest pair of pants, seeing as he was forced to look at Sesshomaru’s naked ass every time the demon traipsed by. Inuyasha cursed that hoity-toity backside to the hell where Sesshomaru had definitely been spawned. His attraction to the youkai had been instantly stunted when his juvenile fantasy was shattered by the cruel truth that was Sesshomaru. But even so, was constantly flashing his bits to a grown man really necessary? Surely, a man who spoke like he was some kind of asshole prince who’d lob off the heads of those who dared to defy him would prefer to be wrapped or draped or whatever the hell Sesshomaru would call it. But alas, this was not the case. Sesshomaru refused the clothes. Apparently, the youkai almost never wore any kind of clothing. Sesshomaru also made it very clear that he would rather wear a robe made of live worms than wear something of Inuyasha’s.

Another thing Inuyasha noticed about Sesshomaru was that he was far kinder to the dog than he was to Inuyasha. Where Inuyasha would have pegged the guy as a Nazi when it came to all living things, Sesshomaru surprised him when it came to Yuki. The demon had actually been somewhat…gentle. When Inuyasha was pretending to be completely occupied by something, he would sometimes catch Sesshomaru absently stroking her, allowing her to lap at his hand, or feeding her portions of his untouched food. At least this proved Sesshomaru was not a complete robot. It was weird how happy Yuki had been around the youkai and how often she would lie down beside him. When Inuyasha mentioned to Sesshomaru how much the dog liked him, Sesshomaru informed Inuyasha that dogs in general had always been drawn to his species. It was because of what Sesshomaru was that Yuki had found him in the woods that night. Inuyasha just hoped he wouldn’t be losing his dog to the youkai after all of this.

Inuyasha broke from his thoughts when he realized the main object of those thoughts was staring at him from across the room. He hadn’t noticed Sesshomaru come into the kitchen for a drink of water. “What?” barked Inuyasha from the kitchen table.

“You were making strange faces into your morning brew, human. I wondered if you were having a psychotic episode.”

Inuyasha rolled his sleep-hazy eyes and took a long drink of his coffee. He had given up yelling and threatening whenever Sesshomaru called him “human.” Not once had Sesshomaru called Inuyasha by his name. Not once. Which was absolutely ridiculous and petty. And completely serious on the youkai’s end. It was like Sesshomaru couldn’t be bothered to ever differentiate one human from another. The more time Inuyasha spent with this guy, the more he was able to sympathize with any of the demon’s enemies. Sesshomaru probably made everyone feel like a piece of shit stuck to the bottom of his foot.

“Just sit your ass down so we can get this over with.” Every morning, Inuyasha changed the youkai’s bandages. It was the only time he could touch Sesshomaru without too much worry of having his fingers broken off.

Surprisingly enough, Sesshomaru silently pulled out a chair and planted himself beside Inuyasha, ignoring Inuyasha’s commanding tone. And as expected, Sesshomaru did not look at him. Full-body bandages were something the youkai could not manage by himself. Therefore, Sesshomaru would need Inuyasha until his wounds had healed for the most part. Sesshomaru’s silence during this morning ritual was of the brooding kind.  

Shaking his head, Inuyasha moved his chair so he fully faced the youkai. Starting with Sesshomaru’s chest, he carefully began the process of unraveling the lengths of bandages. Amazingly, there was almost no blood on any of the bandages. None of the gashes had torn open this time and Sesshomaru was well on his way to healing his flesh wounds. A hand lingering on Sesshomaru’s abdomen beneath the long chest wound that stretched dangerously over his heart, Inuyasha smiled a little and looked up. “I’ll be able to take your stitches out real soon. And here’s more good news—you’ll only need bandages for a couple more days. Then I never have to touch you again,” added Inuyasha goadingly before he crossed his arms.

“There are still small blessings, it seems,” replied Sesshomaru with narrowed eyes.

“We’re not there yet though,” added Inuyasha before he gave an obvious smirk and laid his hands on the youkai again to wipe him down, lather him with salve, and redress the nasty wound. The moment Inuyasha was finished, Sesshomaru dumped the remaining contents of the coffee mug over Inuyasha’s head and left the room.

                                                       x.X.x.

His breath fanning across the evening-chilled glass, Sesshomaru gazed at the bright full moon outside. Normally he would be out running in his true form, enjoying the slight surge to his powers given by the full moon. He would run with no destination in mind, free to roam the lands as he was born to do.

Sesshomaru could not remember the last time he had stayed in the same place for so long. He had not even ventured outside since he’d woken up inside this horrid country house. As weak as he had been, as pathetically clad in human-made bandages, he felt he should be a prisoner. Though he knew there was no longer anyone living to show his face to in the outside world, Sesshomaru was too disgusted with himself to yet take one step into the world where he was supposed to be one of the most feared beings alive.

The youkai’s claws dug into his palm while his lip curled, revealing a glinting fang. His dead brethren were surely howling in their defiled, unmarked graves. Never once had he feigned civility to this extent. And never once had he granted the touch of a human—not until now. His pride as an inuyoukai, sacrificed for his own self-preservation.

Sesshomaru refused to allow himself to fall. Their numbers were dwindling. He was one of the last.

As much as he longed to distance himself from this place, his instincts were staying any and all of his actions for the time being. And they always served him well. Piercing through the rage and disgust, his instincts told him one utterly ridiculous thing—he was safe where he was. Safer than he had been in ages. Normally Sesshomaru would pass such a thing off as wishful thinking, but he knew full well he would never presume to be safe in the midst of the enemy.

Waiting was his only option now, whether it be waiting for his body to heal completely or waiting to be attacked while he remained immobile. So far, there was no sign of hunters. No one would search for him there, and the rain had likely washed away all traces of his lingering scent.

How ironic it was that the most rest he’d been allowed in a century was under the watchful eye of the human called Inuyasha.

Sesshomaru was convinced there was something the matter with the human male’s head. Inuyasha was not frightened of him, not in the least. In the past, the very mention of youkai was enough to make a grown man tremble in his boots. But Inuyasha had not been repelled. He lacked the normal levels of caution. It was as though the human had absolutely nothing in the world to lose. Strange, for a creature so young.

Sesshomaru had growled, flashed his eyes, and bared his teeth at the idiot human, to no avail. Very little in this world surprised him, but Inuyasha had managed to do it. As much as it annoyed Sesshomaru, the human touched his skin without hesitation when necessity arose, and lingered on occasion. Those dark gray, sometimes violet eyes would rise to meet his own far too often, unfaltering. The youkai was no exception to the human’s bouts of temper. And no matter Sesshomaru’s own tone, Inuyasha spoke to him as though…as though they were both part of the same world. Inuyasha did not cower, nor did he try to insult Sesshomaru’s dignity by acting any manner of superior. Presumably, Inuyasha considered Sesshomaru to be his equal.

Sesshomaru was outraged when first he realized Inuyasha was treating him as he would another human. Now, however…it was more intriguing than anything, though still rather rankling. It also further solidified his theory that the human was somehow mentally ill.

And there he was, trying to understand the impossible human who asked Sesshomaru many frivolous questions and revealed almost nothing about himself.

After one last longing glance outside, Sesshomaru forced himself to look away, walked into the next room, and closed the door behind him before sitting down on the bed. There was nothing in the room besides the bed, a lamp, a full wooden dresser with piles of books stacked on top of it, a closet, and a single window with a shade. When he’d begun moving around again, Inuyasha had shown him this room. The human had told him to sleep there from then on and left him be, saying nothing more about it. Disliking the openness of the room in which he’d regained consciousness, Sesshomaru had wordlessly accepted the space.

The room smelled as strongly of Inuyasha as the rest of the house, but Sesshomaru had managed to grow accustomed to it. He’d already grown accustomed to more than he had deemed possible. An unsettling thought. And something he would soon have to remedy.

                                                      x.X.x.

“Where the fuck are my sirloins?”

Sesshomaru opened his eyes, his state of meditation broken by the human’s sudden exclamation. He listened as agitated hands rummaged through the refrigerator, shoving aside packages and bottles in search of what was no longer there.

Uncrossing his legs, Sesshomaru smoothed the wrinkled bedspread with clawed fingers and a slight curve of his lips. The refrigerator door slammed shut, rattling its contents before obnoxious footsteps stomped their way to Sesshomaru’s own door. “Sesshomaru.” The addressed youkai raised his brow at the angry voice on the other side of the door, wondering if Inuyasha truly expected him to answer. “I hope you’re decent. Oh wait, you never are.” Sesshomaru had little time to ponder that statement’s dual meaning before the door swung inward and revealed the human standing there stiffly with his arms crossed. Feeling disinclined to rise from the bed, Sesshomaru simply tilted his head at the rude intrusion of his adopted space.

“Sesshomaru.” Inuyasha forced his demand through clenched teeth. “What did you do with my steaks.”

“What has made you believe I would know where your slabs of cow have gone?”

“I swear to God—“ Inuyasha pinched the bridge of his nose and took a breath. “I know it was you, the dog can’t open the fridge. Shit, did you fucking feed them to Yuki?”

“She is far more deserving of them,” replied Sesshomaru with a bored tone. He waited for the human’s face to grow red with exasperation before continuing, “however, she was not the one to indulge.”

“Then what—?”

“It was the first satisfactory thing I have seen you procure. I required nourishment.”

The glower slipped from the human’s face and gave way to skeptical surprise. “You…ate them.”

“You believed I did not eat.”

“You ate them.” Inuyasha barked a laugh then, startling Sesshomaru into blinking and meeting amused, crinkled eyes. The human’s reaction confused him, for he had expected further anger or at least a sign of embarrassment. “You’re right,” admitted Inuyasha between throaty chuckles. “I really was beginning to suspect you didn’t eat. I was even feeling sorry for your ass. I guess it makes sense you like raw fucking meat. You’re a goddamn dog for Christ’s sake. Shit.” The human shook his head a few times with an odd, wry smile on his face before running a hand through one of the lengths of hair that always seemed to fall naturally down his chest. “Why didn’t you just tell me? Your insides must’ve already eaten themselves by now.”

A muscle ticked in Sesshomaru’s jaw. “My state of being is not and will never be any of your concern. Compared to you, I consume hardly any food at all. I decide where and when I eat, and no one else.”

Frowning now, the human stared as his previous amusement dropped completely out of his demeanor. “How can you be so fucked up?” His voice grew quiet. “You’d be willing to starve yourself after almost dying because I’m your only option?”

“Why are you so adamant?” Sesshomaru’s claws tore into the bedspread as he lifted himself to stand and tower over the smaller male. “Your efforts are wasted, human. Do not project your companionless existence onto me. That would be a grave mistake.” Sesshomaru caught the human’s dark eyes as Inuyasha visibly flinched before him. Perhaps the human was afraid after all.

“My co—” With white-knuckled fists clenched at his sides, the human’s face grew unusually callous. “You know what? You’re right. It’s none of my business if you starve yourself to death. I don’t care. Why the fuck would I? You’re a demon. And I’m just a brainless, meager, less-than-piss human, right? Why the fuck are you still here? Your stitches are out now and I ain’t a goddamn charity!” The human’s upturned face hovered an inch from Sesshomaru’s before Inuyasha abruptly turned and rigidly exited the room.

Sesshomaru stared silently at the empty air in the open doorway. And an implacable smile crept over his lips.

                                                       x.X.x.

Slamming the door to his current sleeping arrangement behind him, Inuyasha covered his face with his hands and groaned into the pitch-black space. Was he that transparent? And to a feeling-less demon, no less!

As fucked up as it was, Inuyasha actually did care somewhat for the wellbeing of that dick. Any of his concern had absolutely nothing to do with anything Sesshomaru had said or done. It was even possible that Inuyasha really had lost it—all of his senses, gone. Because something raw and different and hunted had practically showed up on his doorstep. He’d tried to relate to that thing when he still knew next to nothing about it. There was plenty of injustice in the world but sometimes, when something was being hunted, there was a damn good reason for its death sentence.

But there had been no violence. None that Inuyasha had witnessed, not yet. Despite his cruel temperament and the way he always used the appearance of his claws or a fang as a silent warning, Sesshomaru was not an animal. As far as Inuyasha could tell, Sesshomaru gave almost everything a serious amount of thought. And he was almost positive that not all of them were hateful, manipulative thoughts.

The demon did not say an awful lot. So Inuyasha had quickly learned to pay close attention to everything Sesshomaru did. When Inuyasha was able to get passed the evil looks and scathing words, he began watching the youkai’s hands instead of those cold eyes. Almost more than his face, Sesshomaru’s hands betrayed his anger and discomfort. As possible as it was that Inuyasha had just imagined it, he was sure Sesshomaru’s hands had betrayed other things as well. Most of those things, Inuyasha had neglected to pay attention to during his short time spent with the youkai. But those hands had betrayed how careful Sesshomaru could be with whatever he touched. Though everything within the house belonged to Inuyasha, Sesshomaru had only intentionally damaged a handful of things. Inuyasha had watched Sesshomaru do peculiar things like untwist a light bulb from a lamp, examine it, and gently twist it back into place; lightly run his fingers across the page of an old drawing as though he actually took interest in it and wanted to refrain from smudging it; and even watch a spider scurry through his fingers before eventually lowering it to the floor and letting it go. Inuyasha knew he had only lived for a hundred and thirty seven years, but he was fairly sure someone completely dangerous would not treat anything trivial with care and would not gaze at things with such honest curiosity.

Inuyasha sighed loudly and laid down on his thrown-together bed of pillows and an old blanket, nearly squishing Yuki whom he’d forgotten was in there with him. It was rare for him to notice small details about people, and even rarer for him to think about what he’d noticed at a later time. He was better at ignoring people for their bothersome habits than observing people to discover their true natures and their quirks. He never had been much of a deep thinker and preferred to just let things fall where they would and to take action while his blood was hot. When it came to creatures like Sesshomaru, however, Inuyasha was sure he wasn’t the only one who was compelled to adapt in order to understand.

When Sesshomaru moved on—if he hadn’t already—Inuyasha would have no way of knowing what the youkai would do. But his conscience would be clear. He’d lent his help and followed his gut and everything that happened beyond this point was out of his hands.

Inuyasha frowned when the feeling in his gut contradicted his resolve that getting the youkai out of his life was a good and healthy thing for the both of them. At least he was sure any uncertainty would not last for long. His life would be simpler, and the past two weeks would be easy to shove to the back of his mind. Though he was probably going to start believing in ghosts now.

                                                     x.X.x.

Nearly two full fortnights it had been—Sesshomaru’s stay inside the human dwelling. As this night would shroud his imminent departure, the youkai’s stay was about to come to an irrefutable end.

Sesshomaru’s strength was not yet at its peak due to that confounded dose of poison, but he possessed more than enough power to make for the mountains. There was merely one small thing he would have to take care of before he abandoned that wretched property.

Each step across the aged wooden floor was slow and silent, avoiding the areas that never failed to creak beneath Sesshomaru’s weight. At the opposite end of the house, beyond the kitchen and the washroom, there was a single room Sesshomaru had not disturbed within the peasant-sized abode. After receiving the small bedroom adjacent to the human’s main room of living, Sesshomaru had realized that the room on the opposite side of the house belonged solely to Inuyasha. It was where the human slept.

At this hour of the night, Inuyasha was undoubtedly asleep and blissfully unaware of his surroundings. It was pitiful—how simple this would be, for Sesshomaru had given the human no reason to heighten his guard. And even if he had, the results would be the same.

The ebony-haired creature was weak and had not yet been given the chance to experience that which would drain every bit of trust from his young, thrice-damned soul. The human was vulnerable and lived without the awareness that shadowed honed survival instinct. For beasts that lived a luxurious existence and with the bliss of ignorance, this was the natural order.

Sesshomaru lightly gripped the chilled metallic doorknob and turned it. The hinges moaned as the door swung outward, giving Sesshomaru pause. There was movement on the other side of the door, but the clink of metal dog tags soon confirmed that it was Yuki who had awoken to the noise. With Sesshomaru’s intent buried deep beneath his outward calm, the creature barely noticed him as she trotted through the opening and headed towards the kitchen. Confident she would give him no trouble yet, Sesshomaru opened the door the rest of the way, though almost immediately a confused frown replaced his impassive expression. The sight of two tall shelves lining the narrow walls and burdened to their utmost capacity by various necessities, appliances, and random objects met Sesshomaru’s addled gaze. The anticipated master bedroom was no more than a storage closet with boxes piled all the way up the back wall.

The youkai’s eyes fell to the floor of the closet where they landed upon the slumbering form of Inuyasha. Sesshomaru’s brows furrowed at the unexpected sight. As the space was too small for him to stretch his limbs, Inuyasha, who was not small for a human, was curled up on his side and using his arm to rest his head. Lining the human’s back were two flat pillows, unintentionally abandoned where Inuyasha had undoubtedly rolled off of them. And all that covered the unconscious human’s body was a pathetically thin blanket pulled over his shoulder and tucked around his neck.

The absurd display at Sesshomaru’s feet instilled within him something abrupt and foreign at the pit of his stomach that nearly caused his flawless focus to escape him. The sensation, however, was fleeting and easily dismissed. But before the youkai could fully regain his intent, a single word forced its way to the forefront of his mind.

Why?

Sesshomaru crouched down and silently assessed the oblivious human with a tilt of his head. Trivial human behaviors were not something Sesshomaru had ever intended to familiarize himself with, but even he found himself noting the peculiarity of this senseless act. Why would this human, inside of his own house, elect to sleep on the floor of a closet like some sort bondservant? Surely this position would cause a good deal of discomfort, but Sesshomaru had heard not a whisper of a complaint. Though as the youkai thought more on the subject, he realized he had seen Inuyasha roll his shoulders and neck many times since…

Since Sesshomaru had begun sleeping in the secluded room that smelled too strongly of Inuyasha. The human had given Sesshomaru his only bed.

Perplexed by this realization, Sesshomaru sat fully on the floor by Inuyasha’s bent knees, relaxing the muscles in his arms that had been tensed and prepared to strike the moment he’d opened the door.

It was then Sesshomaru acquiesced to the alternative of not snapping the human’s neck quite yet. The questions plaguing his mind were not the kind he would be able to answer himself. Sesshomaru would be forced to demand answers of the foolish human. Despite his call to move on from this place, and his overall lack of care for human reasoning, Sesshomaru’s curiosity had overpowered his sense of duty as he was determined to hear an explanation. He would see that Inuyasha granted him understanding of this insignificant yet irritatingly groundless act.

                                                   x.X.x.

An aggravating ache in his shoulder and side slowly roused Inuyasha yet again. He was sure the morning hour was ungodly but he forced his eyes to open to the cramped, dark space, knowing it would not be easy to grab ahold of glorious sleep again.

As soon as full awareness hit him, Inuyasha bolted upright, the happenings and exchanged words of the night before playing through his mind. The house would be empty now, wouldn’t it? Aside from the presence of his dog if she hadn’t up and left with the prince of dick holes, thought Inuyasha sourly. Inuyasha had basically kicked the youkai to the curb and Sesshomaru was definitely too proud to stick around after what Inuyasha had said about his place not being a charity, so…

Inuyasha could get on with his life now.

Nodding shortly to himself, Inuyasha kicked his blanket away and felt for the doorknob. The old door complained as usual when he opened it and closed it behind him. With a jaw-cracking yawn, Inuyasha made his way down the short hallway and took a sharp turn towards the sink when he reached the kitchen. Instead of bothering with a cup, he turned on the faucet, held his hair, and drank lazily from the spout, closing his eyes and sticking his tongue out to lap at the cold water as he allowed it to stream down his face.

“Always oblivious to your surroundings.”

With a choked noise and a mouth full of water, Inuyasha nearly jumped out of his skin at the sound of that voice and bashed his forehead into the faucet. Groaning loudly, Inuyasha swallowed the nearly inhaled liquid. “Ow—fuck.”  He pressed a hand to his forehead and dabbed his eyes and face dry with a dishtowel. An irritated glance over at the kitchen table confirmed the truth of what his ears had heard. “Damn it, Sesshomaru,” Inuyasha roughly pulled out a chair and sat down across from the incredibly still youkai. “Do you always gotta sneak up on me?” he muttered tiredly, his heart still pounding. “The hell are you doin’?” Had Sesshomaru been waiting for him?

The youkai folded his hands atop the hardwood table and regarded Inuyasha speculatively. Sensing no forthcoming animosity from the demon, Inuyasha furrowed his brows and leaned forward with slight interest. Instead of responding to him, Sesshomaru just kept looking at Inuyasha as though there was something he could not figure out. Did it have something to do with their last conversation? It seemed unlikely. But before Inuyasha could ask another question, Sesshomaru began with an inquiry of his own, “Why, human, have I been sleeping in a bed while you have been sleeping on the floor of a closet?”

Inuyasha crinkled his brow, taken aback by the question that had left Sesshomaru’s mouth. It was rare for Sesshomaru to ask him anything. And this particular question seemed utterly pointless coming from Sesshomaru who was all about efficiency and disregarding all things that had no effect on him whatsoever. Also, when had Sesshomaru realized where Inuyasha had been sleeping? Inuyasha had been comforted by the fact that he slept nowhere near the youkai and that the youkai was unaware of and uninterested in where exactly he slept.

“Seriously?” Inuyasha sighed loudly and scratched the back of his head with blunt fingernails. “Was the bed not good enough? Do you actually prefer the floor? Because that could’ve been arranged,” snapped Inuyasha with an obvious lack of patience for this idiotic conversation.

Sesshomaru frowned, appearing almost offended by Inuyasha’s response, and a fair bit peeved. “Allow me to rephrase the question,” replied Sesshomaru with more patience than Inuyasha possessed so early in the morning. “Why would you give to me your only bed?” The youkai’s golden eyes continued to search Inuyasha’s increasingly confused face. “I do not understand.”

Inuyasha blinked and blinked again, unable to believe what he was hearing. Did the knowledge that Inuyasha had abandoned his room and taken to sleeping on the floor in a closet actually…bother Sesshomaru? But that couldn’t be it. Could it..?

After a moment of silently attempting to puzzle out what he knew he never would because it was something to do with Sesshomaru, Inuyasha sighed and softened his tone. “I don’t get why you want to know. The reason’s simple…” Inuyasha averted his eyes as he continued. “You’d been through Hell and you needed your rest. Figured I’d lend you the best place I have.” His gaze flicked back to Sesshomaru. “And since you don’t trust me, I knew you’d probably be able to rest easier in a private room.”

“I suppose that is simple,” agreed Sesshomaru. “Why, then, did you subject yourself to that claustrophobic closet? Is the room in which I previously laid now contaminated?” asked the youkai in a faintly mocking tone. 

“As a matter of fact, no,” answered Inuyasha with a roll of his eyes. “I don’t trust you either. And I would have been sleeping too close to you to be comfortable. Not that sleeping behind a closed door has kept you from sneaking up on me in the middle of the night,” mumbled Inuyasha pointedly. “I don’t give a damn that your blood and demon sweat are now permanent parts of my lumpy old couch. I don’t like sleeping out in the open like that, with all the windows and the empty space.” He never did so when he was alone, anyways. After what he had seen and experienced in his lifetime, his caution was reserved for the rocks, the glass, and the gunfire of real, ever-present human beings. Those were what normally lurked in the night. He did not yet have much cause for worry when it came to the magical beasts that haunted the shadows. Inuyasha’s jaw clenched. “That kind of space makes you an easy target,” he continued. “So yeah. Instead of getting a more comfortable sleep, on a thing made for sleeping, where I could stretch my legs, I picked the goddamn closet and curled up on the floor like a goddamn kid. Laugh it up.”

It was no surprise to him when Sesshomaru didn’t laugh at his confession. The closest thing to a laugh Sesshomaru had ever given him was a cruel, humorless smile. But when Inuyasha caught those calm golden eyes, he was surprised to find no amusement or judgment buried there. They continued to stare at him deeply, attentively, without their usual amount of distain.

This was the first time Inuyasha felt Sesshomaru was really looking at him, and not just at a sack of flesh labeled “human.” It was weird. Though he could have just been imagining it.

As suddenly as Sesshomaru had made his presence known, the youkai stood up from the table, startling Inuyasha out of his tired thoughtfulness. “Whoa, wait,” said Inuyasha as he followed suit with much less grace and lifted himself out of the chair, pushing it away from him with a foot. “What are you doing?”

“It is time to move on.”

“…Oh.” Why would Sesshomaru ask him those weird questions if he were only going to take off right afterwards? Inuyasha couldn’t make any sense of it. “Right this second?”

Giving a curt nod, Sesshomaru turned to face the door to Inuyasha’s back porch. “That is my intention, imbecile. I leave you to your simple life and will burden you no further,” concluded the youkai with a strange air to his voice before he strode smoothly towards the door.

Inuyasha’s brow shot up. “Sesshomaru,” he blurted quickly before taking a few steps forward himself. The youkai halted where the door’s window bathed his pale form in morning light, then he turned his head just enough to glance behind himself out of the corner of his eye. “Last night, what I said. I didn’t really…” Inuyasha mentally slapped himself a few times, unable to believe he was about to say this and completely screw up everything he had already decided. “Okay, look. I don’t think it’s a great idea for you to go back out there just yet.”

Sesshomaru narrowed his eyes. “And you believe you have a say in this, why?”

“I know I can’t tell you what to do, okay? But I’ve got a bad feeling about just sending you off. As fucked up as you were when I found you, whoever’s after you is bound to be tearing up the entire area looking for your ass, knowing you couldn’t have gone far. They’ll expect you to make a move when you can, right? Well I say you wait them out—”

“I will not remain here merely to appease your conscience,” snapped Sesshomaru as he turned to face Inuyasha once again.

Inuyasha shook his head before he skirted across the kitchen and moved to block the door. “Fuck my conscience. I know you don’t get it because humanity is a fucked up and fickle thing. But I’ve still got it—humanity. Whoopdy-fucking-doo for me. You’ve got your own version of pride. And I’ve got mine. That, you should be able to get.”

Sesshomaru took another step forward, placing them nearly chest-to-chest, and Inuyasha was forced yet again to look up to meet Sesshomaru’s eyes. “Your persistence is trying. Are you aware of the danger you put yourself in,” challenged the youkai, “every second I am near you? My leaving is a rare favor I will soon revoke if you do not move out of my way.”

“You owe me,” Inuyasha swiftly retorted. “Isn’t that right?” Sesshomaru grew silent at that, though his anger was clearly beginning to well within his stare. “For hiding your ass.” Sesshomaru opened his mouth to deny that fact but Inuyasha cut him off, “you leavin’ here right now isn’t doing me any favors. If they find out you were here after you leave, they’ll probably kill me on the spot, yeah?” Inuyasha figured that wasn’t likely but he had to give the demon some believable reason why he wanted him to stay—a reason someone with very little emotion would understand. No doubt, a guy like this had a good concept of others’ fear. “And if they catch you on the run you might not be able to…” Inuyasha trailed off.

The look Sesshomaru bore into him made Inuyasha feel even smaller comparatively. “You wish for protection,” stated Sesshomaru with narrowed eyes.

Inuyasha nodded once, averting his eyes from Sesshomaru’s. “Yeah.”

Inuyasha tensed, waiting to be thrown out of the way. But Sesshomaru made no move to touch him. Actually, the youkai shifted his weight to one leg and crossed his arms. He looked…resigned. “Do not expect me to abide any requests or charges, human,” said Sesshomaru with a curt tone. “If I am to remain, I do so of my own accord and shall take leave of you when I deem the time to be right. In exchange for continued use of your dwelling, I will defend you against my own enemies and no one else. That is our bargain. Do you concur?”

Unable to believe that Sesshomaru had just been so agreeable, Inuyasha quirked his brow and made a skeptical face. “You mean…you’d really do that?”

“Under the risk of sounding utterly trite, my word is my bond.”

Wait… Was that a joke Sesshomaru just made?

Inuyasha gave the youkai a small smirk and leaned back against the door. “So what you’re saying is…you give me your word that you won’t leave me to die horribly if those hunters catch up to you while you’re here? Really, I’m touched.”

Sesshomaru’s eyelid twitched. “I have not yet given you my word, human. Both of us have yet to agree to anything. Furthermore, you are to reclaim your chamber. It is rife with your stench and I rarely sleep for extended periods when I am well.”

“What, don’t ya wanna share?”

The youkai’s lip curled. “I would rather share bed firs with a troll.”

Inuyasha gave a shit-eating grin. Well damn. It seemed he’d just made himself a deal with a demon. 

Thank you, whoever deigned to read this. I am currently working on editing and expanding this story and thought I would share what I have so far. This story will have somewhat of a slow romantic build. Likely there will be some detailed love-making to look forward to. 

Please, tell me what to think if you wish. Encouragement helps me. 

Little fireworks

Full pics under the cut UwU))

Baby boi getting a good pounding 🥺🥺🥺

Prowldownnn auhgdhasjf

The Way of The Sword (Chapter 1)

18+. 3.5k, half-sibling incest, age difference, trust issues, self-steem issues, heavy flirting, relationship negotiation, making out, unresolved sexual tension, canon-typical violence. part 1/?. AO3 link, part 2, part 3. Let me know if you want to be tagged!

The search for Naraku might be over, but Inuyasha hasn't escaped his past. He drags it around like a ball and chain. Then he crosses paths with his half-brother again, and learns how to let go.

In which Inuyasha and Sesshoumaru go training together, and reach an arrangement of sorts.

Although suitably scenic, the walk to the designated place felt like the longest Inuyasha had taken in his life.

He could feel neither youkai nor humans around. For the first time in quite some time, he was surrounded by nothing but nature and the occasional critter. Once, he would have welcomed the solitude. Inuyasha had never been much of a social creature, despite Kagome's adamant attempts to change that aspect of his nature. Now that she was gone, he found the silence terribly aggravating.

The clearing was difficult to spot. It was far from the roads and secluded in a way that seemed deliberate. The privacy of the setting added to his unease. Complex social situations had never been his forte, and in his book, this was the strangest he'd come across in quite some time. Perhaps ever.

Sesshoumaru's arrival was announced by a shift in the atmosphere. A distinctive electrical smell flooded the clearing as if a storm were approaching. Inuyasha's hair stood on end. He took a deep breath, fighting down the instinctive responses that his half-brother never failed to awaken in him. Daiyoukai could smell that sort of thing, and he didn't feel like making a fool out of himself today.

Inuyasha took a seat on a nearby rock and waited.

Eventually, Sesshoumaru walked out of the foliage, nonchalance painting his every move. Inuyasha stood up and put his hands in his pockets, trying to match his half-brother's energy. Internally, he was trying not to fidget. It still wasn't entirely clear to him what this meeting was about. He thought he had an idea. Double guessing himself was one of Inuyasha's bad habits, though, and one never knew when it came to the Lord of the West.

There was the chance that this would end in broken bones and unnecessary bloodshed, the way it did back in the day. It could also very well be another of Sesshoumaru's psychotic mind games. Although in recent times they'd seemed to reach some type of understanding, Inuyasha knew better than anyone how unpredictable his half-brother could be.

Sesshoumaru showed no outward signs of aggressiveness. Of course, to say that his expression was amiable or welcoming in any way would have been a gross exaggeration. There was, however, an obvious absence of glaring, which was already an improvement from previous interactions.

“This is unexpected,” Sesshoumaru said. “I did not think you'd be so punctual.”

Inuyasha felt his face heat up at the remark. Some of the tension left his body, though.

With time, he had learned to identify the subtle signs that gave away his half-brother's unstable moods. Although teasing, Sesshoumaru's voice betrayed no anger. There was that softness around his eyes that meant he was pleased.

“Khe, y’know me. Always full of surprises,” Inuyasha replied. “‘sides, I like to keep you on your toes.”

“Mmm, you certainly try.”

“So, are we doing this? Or did you make me walk all the way down here just for a chit-chat?” Inuyasha asked, casually unsheathing his sword.

Sesshoumaru was usually not affronted by his bluntness. That was something Inuyasha liked about him. Of course, he was a snob in every sense of the word, but more often than not Sesshoumaru was willing to indulge his boorish behaviors if only to maintain a semblance of peace between the two. Why ever his former nemesis would want to keep things civil between them when they'd always been anything but, Inuyasha wasn't sure. He figured he'd find out if he stuck around long enough.

“I see we are off to a bad start,” Sesshoumaru pointed out.

He didn't draw out his sword, as Inuyasha expected him to. Instead, Sesshoumaru stepped closer, seemingly unconcerned by Tessaiga's proximity. He reached towards the handle of the weapon, covering Inuyasha's hands with his own. The touch was light but insistent. After a moment's hesitation, Inuyasha slacked his grip, allowing his wrists to be maneuvered so that the sword was parallel to the ground. Sesshoumaru placed Inuyasha's right hand firmly on top of the handle, then moved the left one to the bottom.

“That's how you properly hold a sword,” he said. Inuyasha could feel a faint heat spreading down his throat. He was very aware of Sesshoumaru's eyes trained on his face, but couldn't make himself look up. “Keep a grip that's firm enough so that it doesn't slip, but loose enough so you can easily maneuver it.”

“Right. Sounds like a no-brainer.”

“And yet you've been getting it wrong all this time.”

“Oh, fuck off. I knew you'd be an asshole about this.”

When Sesshoumaru first offered to help him polish his technique with the sword, Inuyasha hadn't been sure whether or not it was a joke. The invitation had been quite rude and nothing short of condescending, which gave room to doubt. Yet here they were, and a part of Inuyasha was still expecting his brother to burst out laughing and call it a day. If Sesshoumaru was amused by the situation in any way, he was quite adept at not showing it, though. He seemed neither anxious nor unsure, as if this were just something they did every day.

“Your posture is wrong,” Sesshoumaru said. Without warning, he used his leg to push Inuyasha's feet further apart. “A wide stance makes keeping your balance easier.”

Inuyasha felt a shiver run through him. He was first and foremost a creature of instinct, and being this close to his half-brother had never brought him anything but pain. His gut reaction was to back away. There was something more to it, though. A nagging feeling at the back of his head told him that these touches were not casual. This blatant disregard for personal space was intentional and increasing.

Behind Sesshoumaru’s steady gaze laid an invitation, yet to be spoken. As if he were testing the waters, so to speak, while hiding his intentions behind elaborate excuses. It frustrated Inuyasha to no end. He almost felt like kicking him back. Reluctant as he was to start a physical confrontation today, he went for his next best weapon.

“Hey, hey, careful now,” he said, side-eyeing his brother. “I know I'm quite the catch, but let's not get handsy.”

Sesshoumaru gave him the most unimpressed look he'd ever witnessed in his life.

“Why, I would never,” he replied.

Rationally, Inuyasha knew that nowadays his half-brother had little to no reason to hurt him. Still, there were times he couldn't quite shake off the feeling that he wasn't safe around Sesshoumaru. That there were, perhaps, ulterior motives to this unexpected offer of camaraderie. For the most part, he tried not to let it show. It seemed petty, in a way. As if he were hanging onto resentment while Sesshoumaru, of all people, kept holding his hand out to him.

The whole thing turned out to be a tedious affair. Part of him had hoped for nothing more than a friendly match. It didn't seem like Sesshoumaru was about to entertain that idea, though. He was clearly much more preoccupied with Inuyasha's pitiful stance and the sorry state of his blade. Inuyasha couldn't help but feel a bit affronted.

He thought he'd learned the way of the sword remarkably well, for someone who'd never had a mentor. 

Afterward, they sat together by the banks of a nearby river. The day had morphed into a breezy afternoon, and the sound of rustling leaves and water flowing filled the air.

“Ah. A tengu spirit?”

“Yeah, one of those ugly fuckers.”

Inuyasha shifted to lie on his side, pulling out a piece of grass that had gotten into his ear.

“Is that how you spend your time now?” Sesshoumaru asked, looking down at him from the large stone he'd claimed by the riverside. “Guarding little human villages against filthy critters? How pitiful.”

“Whatever. Keeps me in shape and it's not like it's hard,” Inuyasha replied. “And who are you to trash on my past times? Only thing you do when I'm not around is brood and hang out with an eight-year-old. If anyone's lame here, I can assure you it's not me.”

“I stand corrected, then.”

“Sure you do, asshole. Anyway, it was a big ol' fucker,” Inuyasha continued, unbothered by the interruption. “And I knew they were ugly, yaknow, but goddamn, this one was on a whole other level. Really gave me the creeps. It was just for show, though. Didn’t give too much of a fight.”

“Tengu rarely make for worthy opponents,” Sesshoumaru conceded. “Not all enemies are so easily defeated, though.”

Something in Sesshoumaru's voice made Inuyasha look up.

Not too long ago, he wouldn't have been able to tell that anything was amiss. His half-brother was hard to read as a general rule, and Inuyasha was admittedly quite slow on the uptake when people didn't speak straight to him. Subtlety wasn't a virtue of his. They'd been spending quite some time together as of late, though, and the shift in Sesshoumaru’s demeanor was evident to him.

“What will happen when it's not a filthy crow chasing after you, but a proper Daiyoukai?”

Sesshoumaru was clearly not smiling. There was certainly a quiet, predatory edge to his expression though, and Inuyasha wasn't sure what to make of it. He suddenly got the impression that there was something he was missing.

“What you mean?”

Sesshoumaru seemed to carefully consider his next words.

“I mean to say that, for a hanyou, you are a fairly decent warrior." Sesshoumaru managed not to sound condescending, just barely. “But if you are ever to face off a true Daiyoukai, that will not help you. Some levels cannot be reached without proper training.”

“The fuck is that supposed to mean?” Inuyasha said, hackles rising.

It occurred to him, for a moment, that Sesshoumaru was trying to pick up a fight. His brother did not rise to the challenge, though. He merely looked down at Inuyasha’s thunderous expression and chuckled. He looked irritated, but almost in a fond way. As if he wanted to be mad at Inuyasha, but couldn't quite manage.

“You've never had a proper mentor,” Sesshoumaru said. It was not a question. “One can tell from miles away.”

“Well, duh,” Inuyasha replied, crunching his nose. “Who would I ask, dumbass?”

“That is quite unusual, for youkai your age.”

“Yeah, well, you said it.” Inuyasha shrugged, settling back down on the grass. “For youkai.”

Sesshoumaru did not reply. Whatever he'd been trying to convey, he seemingly decided it was not worth the trouble. 

Despite Inuyasha's initial worries, practicing sword fighting with his half-brother hadn't turned into a deadly encounter. It had all been quite dull, actually. His hands and lower back still hurt from all the times Sesshoumaru had smacked him with the sheath to correct his standing. At least they'd eventually progressed to using targets, even if the bamboo sticks did come across as rather underwhelming opponents.

As vicious as Sesshoumaru's scolding was, Inuyasha couldn't complain. He knew better than anyone that his technique was sloppy, and they were far from the worst injuries he’d sustained after an encounter with Sesshoumaru. He'd be as good as new in the morning, anyway.

“Better to get going, I think. My camp is kinda far,” Inuyasha said, squinting at the horizon. It was already late in the afternoon and the sun was setting. Sesshoumaru only nodded.

As Inuyasha made a move to stand, Sesshoumaru reached out. Inuyasha found himself staring blankly at the hand hanging before him. He hesitated for a moment, although he knew it was silly.

Once he thought he'd never see the day his brother would be able to take his hand without feeling disgusted. Just a couple of years ago, Sesshoumaru could barely stand the sight of him. Somewhere along the line things had changed, though. It felt like a big deal, for some reason. As if they'd reached a milestone together.

Inuyasha shook his head and took the offered hand.

Sesshoumaru pulled him up but didn’t release him immediately. As Inuyasha made to move away, he tightened his grip and pulled him forwards. Inuyasha went rigid. Being this close to Sesshoumaru was a peculiar experience. The old familiar scent of electricity was suddenly surrounding him, making his senses tingle. He forced himself to look up and meet his brother's gaze.

“You should know I don't make a habit of it. The chasing, I mean,” Sesshoumaru said. “It's not in my nature. Playing games does not interest me, and I’m straightforward when seeking this type of arrangement. If you tell me you are not interested, don't expect me to insist.”

Inuyasha stared.

He had not thought Sesshoumaru would actually say it out loud.

A number of things became clear to Inuyasha, all at once. He understood now why Sesshoumaru had invited him to practice sword fighting together when they'd never done such a thing in the past. Why he’d chosen this secluded clearing for their meeting, away from interruptions and prying eyes. His half-brother had spoken about proper training and a mentor because he'd been making an offering. Inuyasha wasn't sure what to think. He'd never had a master before, although it was a fairly common practice between youkai warriors. He'd figured it came with the package of being a hanyou.

Despite his mild understanding of it, Inuyasha also knew this type of arrangement went far beyond training. Mentorship had to be traded in for something, and he didn't know if he was ready or willing to give it. Especially to Sesshoumaru.

“I wasn't,” he forced himself to say. “Playing games, that is.”

“Ah, you weren't?”

“No, I just didn't think… didn't think you actually meant it. Like, you were just - I dunno, fooling around,” Inuyasha said, almost dragging out the words. His face felt very hot. “I mean, we ain't got a nice baggage.”

“That doesn't bother me.”

“Oh.”

Inuyasha was very aware of Sesshoumaru still holding his hand. His grip was firm yet careful. He kept rubbing circles on the palm with the pad of his thumb. It'd been a very long time since anyone had touched Inuyasha with such gentleness. He wouldn't have thought Sesshoumaru was capable of it.

“Does it bother you?”

“No, I'm not saying that, it's just-” Inuyasha cut himself off.

He knew what he wanted to say. Knowing it and actually getting it out there seemed like two very different things at the moment, though. This is why he avoided direct confrontations whenever possible.

“Ah. Perhaps this is your way of letting this Sesshoumaru down gently?”

“No, that's not what this is.”

Inuyasha’s eyes were trained on the ground.

“I just… don't get it,” he said. “I'm still me, yaknow? It's not like anything's changed.”

“What hasn't changed?”

“Who I am.  What I am,” Inuyasha replied. He was trying very hard not to sound bitter. “Why would you want this?”

At first, Sesshoumaru kept quiet. Inuyasha wondered if he was pondering what to say, or if he simply had no answer to give. Perhaps Sesshoumaru himself didn't understand the reasoning behind his proposal. It could very well be that he wanted him while still resenting his true nature. Inuyasha knew that sometimes desire and aversion came hand in hand.

It wouldn't be the first time he found himself entangled in that web.

“I thought we had agreed that was in the past,” Sesshoumaru said.

“I… yeah, I guess we did.”

Inuyasha grimaced. He wasn't sure why he felt the need to bring it up again, and now of all times.

In the past, even people who'd genuinely cared about him had found his heritage to be something of an inconvenience. Whether it was the demonic or the human one, they felt the need to choose a side - to pick him apart and build with the pieces something easier to call their own. Kikyo had been the only one powerful enough to make it a reality, but really most people in his life had had the same pretensions, to different extents.

All of them, except Kagome.

Ever since the human girl had gone back to her timeline, Inuyasha hadn't entertained the idea of pursuing anyone else. Building something worthwhile hadn’t seemed possible, with neither humans nor youkai. What right did Sesshoumaru have to ask that trust from him now, after everything they'd done to each other? It didn't seem fair, or rational in any way.

“You said your camp was far away,” Sesshoumaru said, out of the blue.

“Uh… yeah, I said that,” Inuyasha replied.

His brother let go of him, then. Inuyasha frowned as he saw him silently widen the distance between them.

“You should be in your way, then.”

Inuyasha felt his stomach sink. He hadn't meant for his silence to be interpreted as a refusal. For a being over 500 years old, Sesshoumaru did have a rather juvenile habit of reacting poorly whenever he felt rejected. He could see it now in his tight lips, in the barely there frown grazing his forehead.

“Hey, come on, don't get your panties in a twist,” Inuyasha said. He took his brother by the sleeve to keep him from moving further away. “It's not like I’m saying no.”

Sesshoumaru's only response was to raise his eyebrows at him. Inuyasha shifted where he stood.

“Can you just… I dunno, give me some time?”

Sesshoumaru stared at him for a moment, as if sizing him up.

"That would be agreeable," he said.

Inuyasha signed, only then realizing how tense he'd become. Neither of them tried to move away. Inuyasha picked at his brother's robe, fishing for something to break the ice.

“Your pickup lines are super lame, by the way,” he said, eventually. “Not to be a hater, but they are totally getting banned.”

Sesshoumaru didn't quite smile at his attempt at banter. For once, Inuyasha was able to identify the ghost of a smirk playing on his lips, though.

“I'm glad to know I was able to amuse you so.”

Sesshoumaru stepped back into his personal space, hand resting just to the side of Inuyasha’s waist. As intimidating as it could be to have his brother stand so close, Inuyasha couldn't deny there was also a thrill to it. Underneath that primal instinct to flee, there also ran a need to stay and tempt the danger. To bare his neck and submit to the tremendous power Sesshoumaru held.

Inuyasha still wasn't sure how much of those impulses were a result of attraction, and how much of it was nothing but raw instinct. Even now, he didn't think he entirely understood his demonic side. It occurred to him for the first time that if he accepted, this was one of the many things that would become clearer to him, eventually. He wasn't sure whether the way his stomach flipped was due to fear or excitement.

Inuyasha's awareness tunneled as he saw Sesshoumaru leaning forwards. Fingers were curling around his neck, and the scent of rain filled his senses. Inuyasha barely registered their noses awkwardly bumping together as their lips met.

Due to both naivety and lack of privacy, Inuyasha's past relationships distinctly lacked any carnal component. Making out had never felt like the preamble of something else. This was different. Exponentially different. Not at all sure what to do with his hands, Inuyasha found himself gripping the yellow obi surrounding Sesshoumaru's waist. Heat was steadily spreading through him.

Even with the armor on, Sesshoumaru's body felt warm and welcoming around him. As soon as the kiss began, though, Inuyasha could feel him pulling away. He took him by the shoulder, forcing him to stay. To prolong it for just a little longer. Sesshoumaru smiled against his chin and bit playfully into his lower lip. It felt right, in a way. As if Inuyasha were saying, however indirectly, that he did want him back.

As they pulled apart, there was a glint in Sesshoumaru's eyes that hadn't been there before.

“Same place and time, three days from now,” he said, voice unusually low. “If you do not come, I'll know what your answer is.”

Inuyasha nodded, not feeling up to the task of speaking just yet.

That day they bid their goodbyes and parted ways. Inuyasha still wasn't sure what to make of what had been said, or what his answer would be next time they crossed paths. His misgivings, as usual, would not leave him. It was only as he was making his way back to the village that realization dawned on him. During their training, Sesshoumaru laid hands on Tessaiga. Not once, but many times. 

The sword had not burned him.

we healing from this ending so have the inko adopts tenko/izuku-tenko siblings au

other scribbles of it ....... also lol if u think about it this au is kinda the equivalent of the afo-yoichi-kudou dynamic but lighthearted and no actual murder stuff happens .....

AND HERES THE VERY OLD VERSION OF THIS AU LOL i had this around 2022 and had a whole thread about it. im not sure if i even posted this here but whatever. so sorry its kinda Cringey bc of how outdated it is