Hakama-pants

Obi-tie(think bathrobe-style)

Najuban-lighter, smaller kimono worn underneath outer one, plain, unebroidered.

Note- I am not going to be using Japanese or Chinese honorifics in this because I find them distracting. But I will try to make the Foo-Dog Palace, as well as dress, traditions, etc. as accurate as possible.(also I won't make Sesshomaru say 'this Sesshomaru" because frankly, it makes him sound like he's unsocialized, which I believe he isn't, at least with demons.)

Tiao-Wen- pronounced like tow(as in towel) and wen as in (wren) means streak in Chinese

Wumei-caring in Chinese

Lihai- fierce, tough, capable, sharp.

Solid moon- one month

Half turn- half an hour

It was the beginning of what promised to be a series of bitterly cold winter nights. The wind whipped around the entrance of the cave and nearly snuffed out the small fire he'd coaxed into existence a few hours ago.

Ah-Un grazed a few feet from the small group, completely unmoved by the cold. Sesshomaru did not shiver of course and ignored a griping Jaken, his tail curled firmly around the twelve-year-old body of Rin. She had lived in that disgusting human village for six years before deciding that she wished to continue staying in his presence instead of living among her own kind. She was deep in sleep now and her body was keeping his tail comfortably warm.

Though the nerves in his tail were dulled from age of course- he remembered his father had not been able to feel his tail at all and let Sesshomaru tug at it quite hard once to prove he wasn't lying. The wind began to play with strands of his hair and he gave an irritated snort, gathering it just to the left of his neck with one clawed hand and fishing out his black, mother-of-pearl imbedded comb.

His sixty inches of beautiful silver locks required constant maintenance and there was nothing he enjoyed more than spending a few hours preening, except maybe for crushing his enemy's bones between his jaws. As he moved however the collar of his kasode slipped down on his collarbones.

He put the comb back in his sleeve, wrapped a black ribbon around his hair to keep it preserved and hissed, "Ah-Un." clicking his tongue to indicate he wanted the dragon to come closer. It did and he fished about in one of the saddle's many pockets until extracting a needle and a small ball of snow-white silk. Sesshomaru nodded at the creature and it cleared off again a he set to work threading the needle. This illusion-cloth is more trouble than it's worth, He thought. Having done so he began pulling in the sleeves of his kimono again, another half-inch, same as the night before.

It wasn't the case of course that his clothes were growing and so although he'd been avoiding it until now the fact that his own shoulder span was shrinking struck an odd chord with him. He didn't know what it meant, what he was supposed to do about it, or how to resolve it which was certainly a first for him. Also the constant weariness he'd been feeling as of late-what was that about? He'd certainly been sleeping more than usual the last week or so too. Unfortunately that left him with one option.

One he preferred to avoid at all costs.

Sesshomaru would have to pay Inu-Kimi a visit. Rin stirred in her sleep and grabbed a fold of Sesshomaru's tail, wrapping her arms around it and pulling it under her chin. He watched her for a moment to see if she would move again and when she did not, began on the right sleeve. It pained him to shorten the length of the hand embroidered scarlet trim, but he had no choice.

If he did nothing, it would simply slip down over his shoulders and gather where his armor currently resided.

Not to mention the fact drawing his sword was becoming harder- his fingers kept grasping cloth instead of hilt.

Usually his claws were enough but he preferred to have a quick draw as opposed to slow. He touched the cool hilts of his two swords, bakusaiga and tenseiga and let his claws run over the well-worn metal. As he did he felt an uncomfortable tightening sensation in his gut and a small grumbling noise emanated from his belly.

He blinked in surprise. The demon couldn't remember the last time he'd hunted for actual hunger instead of sport. Oh well. He put the needle and thread beside him and fetched out the comb again. Anything to distract from the journey to that … place is most welcome. As he groomed he pondered what kind of demon flesh he was in the mood for.

He could sense and smell a variety of lower demons nearby and it occurred to him that he was close to that human village where his half-brother and his mate resided. His nose wrinkled in distaste at the fine particles of his half-brother's scent as well as the scent of their child, a human with a slight trace of demon blood. To his nose it was a statement to the dilution of what could have been perfect, pure yokai blood.

Disgusting. The least he could have done is not dilute it any further. Before he was fully aware of it the sun had bobbed up over the mountains again, an oily slick of orange light and Rin was stirring awake as well as Jaken, who was complaining about how cold the night had been. Sesshomaru slipped the comb back into his sleeve with a sigh.

"And I see you've been letting Rin use your furs again, my lord! What about me?"

He uncurled the tail from her slowly and flicked it over his shoulder as he said coolly, "What about you, Jaken."

He looked off into the distance and his nostrils flared a bit as he caught demon scent. "Take Rin to the Foo-Dog Palace." As usual, he did not tell Jaken where he intended to go, how long he would be gone or when he intended to catch up with them. Rin crawled up onto Ah-Un's back and took a hold of the reins, letting Jaken sit behind her.

"See you later than lord Sesshomaru!" He inclined his head to indicate he'd heard and waited until the dragon took off. As soon as the animal cleared the tree line Sesshomaru shot off into the forest, darting past trees and over underbrush faster than a human eye could track. The land dipped down into a valley and the sclera of his eyes began to darken to full blood-red as he caught sight of his prey. It was a twenty foot tall boar, its side's slick with sweat as it tore down what appeared to be a human village in some kind of rage.

The humans were shooting arrows and the like at it without much success- though they had managed to blind it in its left eye. Sesshomaru approached from that side and took on his true form before leaping and barreling into the animal, crushing a few more houses and humans in the process.

How dare you! The animal raged at him and attempted to roll him off but Sesshomaru caught it just under the tusks and pinned it to the ground with a roar.

I am the second in line to the northeastern Boar tribe and- Sesshomaru snorted and rolled his head to the left, snapping the boar demon's neck in an instant.

-And now you're dinner… The lord of the West finished for him and dragged the body a few feet from the wreckage before tucking in. As he did he was aware of a few humans gathering around which sort of irritated him, but he ignored them until he was finished. As he ate the blood spilled across his snout and stained his claws but he was too hungry to care. When he'd returned to his humanoid form there was barely anything left of the carcass and he realized he still had the demon blood painted across his face and down his neck.

I must be quite a sight. Ah, it had even gotten into his hair.

Now he had to bathe before arriving at the Palace; he couldn't stand being anything other than immaculately clean.

As he made his way back to the edge of the forest a dirty-looking human holding a bow blocked his path.

"I wanted to thank you for-"

"Get out of my way." Sesshomaru snapped and easily side stepped him, sprinting off into the forest towards the nearest stream or river. Another thing that certainly chafed him the wrong way was how humans seemed dearly to want to find a strong demon who wanders the world helping them with their infestations. If they wanted that they should look to his idiotic half-brother, not him. Sesshomaru frowned as he realized he wasn't anywhere near a hot spring. He didn't like taking cold baths but any water would to in a pinch. That was one thing good about the Palace, he admitted to himself- no shortage of hot water to speak of there.

Oh well. What must have been a half-hour later his leather-bound feet touched down near the edge of the moat.

The Foo-Dog Manor was completely surrounded by a four-meter deep moat, topped only by its eight-meter high walls made of mortared, baked brick painted their color- red. Benibana red, actually- the flower responsible for the dye also used on Sesshomaru's kimono. The kind of dye the very wealthiest could only afford. It was often said in the demon world it was Dog Demon Tribe's fault the dye was so expensive for almost pushing the flower into extinction while building the Palace. Sesshomaru had to admit this was probably true.

He walked onto the bridge and waited to be noticed at the Gate of the Golden Phoenix, The Eastern Gate. He was anxious to solve this little problem and be back on his way. As he waited his gaze fell back to the water.

A great may vile and loathsome demons lived in this particular moat but Sesshomaru knew they were familiar with him. A little too familiar, it seemed. The roiling water settled suddenly and the shadows disappeared and it turned a clear aquamarine. As it was, Inukimi was still in charge of the Western territory, which stretched from The Yangtze River down through Bhutan and Bangladesh, and bordered by Mongolia, India, and other lesser countries. Movement caught his attention and another dog demon, obviously a guard by his armor, shouted from the other side of the doors, "Who goes there?"

"It is I, lord Sesshomaru, heir to the Western lands."

The dog demon nearly tripped over himself opening the gate "Oh- oh!" and once they were open Sesshomaru recognized him by the tail over his right shoulder- a soft brown with a thin white stripe down the spine. "Tiao- wen."

"Indeed, my lord!" The lesser demon replied cheerfully, unable to control himself as he closed the gate, the feet-thick oak being simple enough to push back for a demon. He hadn't seen Sesshomaru in a good six years and he was a little flushed with excitement. "Did you require an audience with Inukimi my lord?" Sesshomaru paused and stroked his tail once as he observed a small group of younger demon dogs chatting with demon foxes near the gardens.

"Indeed." The dull winter sunlight shone as the two made their way to the inner court within the Palace, separated from the outer courts by the sudden change from marble floors to baked golden bricks.

"She is having an audience with the Rat demon of the East and a few representatives from the Tiger demon tribe, but I will inform her you have arrived. It should be over fairly shortly…" Tiao-wen trailed off uncertainly and Sesshomaru resisted the odd urge to roll his eyes. Things were never 'over fairly shortly' with the Rat demon of the East- true to her zodiac sign she was always very talkative. It was a trait he found annoying and more than once was compelled to tell her as such, but didn't. She, Inukimi, the Tiger demon of the North and the Dragon demon of the South made up the four main demon rulers. Under each two other demon tribes were placed- in the South for example, the monkey and rooster demon tribes were placed, thereby becoming the South-west Rooster demon tribe and so forth.

In all they made up the twelve main Zodiac characters, and the twelve Royal families.

They were usually recognized by either an all-white or all black pelt (or scales, feathers, etc.) usually paired with bright facial or bodily markings. Sesshomaru was fortunate enough to have both. Tiao-wen gave a polite nod to him and entered the meeting hall, closing the ornately carved golden double doors behind him. Sesshomaru waited quietly and looked down at the binding shoes his mother had made for him that he'd consequently altered so his feet wouldn't be completely useless. When the trend had first started it had originally been for all of noble birth, men and women and so Inukimi had broken the arch and bones of Sesshomaru's feet herself.

And when she found she couldn't take his screams of pain she hired the professional who first dislocated the toes entirely, then bound his feet tighter every day until they were hardly three inches long, the perfect 'lotus' feet. It wasn't until a few hundred years later Sesshomaru had decided to stop wearing the ridiculously small shoes and swapped them out for a pair of the same soft deerskin, but larger so his feet could spread and heal.

She had been upset but by then the binding was usually reserved for women so she agreed to allow him to let them heal. It will take a few hundred more years before they're fully healed. He thought and his yellow eyes narrowed.

It was one of the many things he held against his mother. Tiao-wen emerged and Sesshomaru wiped the canvas of his face blank.

"Well?"

The dog demon sighed. "She suggested that she'd be at least another half-turn and that she would see you in her private quarters then. Is there anything else I can assist you with my lord?" Sesshomaru stroked the thick fur of his tail, "I think that will be all for today. I shall go check on Rin. Good day." and nodded, giving the guard permission to leave. "Of course. Good day." The guard gave the standard reply and walked off and Sesshomaru was slightly relieved he didn't interrogate him about his female human companion. Something he was sure his mother wouldn't hesitate to ask about, he was sure. No doubt a human had entered the Palace by his orders was all over by now.

He made his way back to the outer courts. He hadn't wanted to attract any more attention to Rin than need be so he'd ordered her to be placed under the supervision of one of the minor demons, a cat yokai of good descent. He entered the low, simple wood building and was greeted by a snake demon who was quite surprised to see him.

"M-my lord." The male demon was wearing black hakama pants and the short-sleeved brown kimono of a laborer, either a blacksmith or field-worker. "I have come to check on the human girl."

"Ah." The demon nodded, his orange-blonde hair falling forward to reveal tiny striped scales at the nape of his neck. "You'll want Wumei then. This way then, if you please- she's in the library right now." Sesshomaru followed the young demon through a series of buildings and connecting outdoor walkway covers until they entered another dwelling. Sesshomaru felt quite at home amongst the books lining the walls and even recognized a few he'd allowed outside from his own collection. "Wumei, the lord is here." Wumei twitched her white tail, the black and orange spots of color bright as she made a move to stand even with Rin in her lap.

"Just a nod is fine- I can see you're preoccupied." Sesshomaru stated and the cat demon gave a half-nod half bow gratefully. "My lord, she just finished reading a section of 'Bandits of Liangshan Swamp'. She's quite good at it for a human her age." "I am!" Rin added with a smile. "Would you like me to read to you lord Sesshomaru?" As she talked, her legs kicked. "Perhaps some other time Rin. I must speak with my mother first." He addressed Wumei again.

"You would not mind looking after her until tomorrow, then. I will not be able to keep her in the imperial city without her causing a stir." And unfortunately, being in some danger. In fact there was still danger here but less so. Besides he would only be here a day and night, two at most.

"Of course my lord. Though I can't guarantee I'll be able to keep her immaculate…" Sesshomaru nodded. He was well aware of Rin's attraction to dirt and vice versa. "Of course not. I shall take my leave, then." Sesshomaru gave them permission to leave with a nod and made his way back through the labyrinth of hallways and buildings until finally he was back in the inner courts, making his way to his own private quarters.

They were quite inaccessible to the general public but were quite a bit less extravagant than his mother's many rooms which was the way he liked it. He nodded at the single horse demon guard outside. Sesshomaru was partial to horse demons in his own guard- they were always underestimated because of their slightly sinewy build and friendly (for a demon) personality.

But an interesting fact about them was even in their humanoid form their hands and feet still remained as hard as their demonic hooves; they could smash through flesh and bone as easily as Sesshomaru would through a delicious pastry. " Lihai." He acknowledged and the guard loosened his grip on his sword slightly. The guard had deep sorrel color in both his hair and the thick horse tail over his shoulder.

"My lord- please tell me if Lady Inukimi's changes to your room are not to your taste."

The lord raised a silver eyebrow. "Changes?"

"Indeed. I did encourage her not to but she can be insistent." One of the narrow horse ears on his head flicked back and forwards again and Lihai's expression held just a hint of amusement. This worried Sesshomaru more than anything else. He swept past him and entered through the ornately carved wooden doors. His rooms were made mostly of phoebe zhennan and namu wood, dark and glossy. The ceilings were decorated in gold leaf with images of the twelve zodiac animals- the floors were of tiles that took ten years to produce and were worth their weight in gold.

His room had been kept as he left it; nothing but a set of wood chairs and desk, a few tapestries he's painted himself on the walls and… Wait a minute. He strolled over to the bed and his nose wrinkled in irritation. His mother had apparently thought his tastes were a bit too simple and had replaced his plain white silks with hand-embroidered red ones, complete with a pattern of dancing phoenix's and dragons.

She had also added curtains around the front of it of the same shade, only a bit less extravagant.

Sesshomaru brought his claws up to his face and gently pinched the skin on the bridge of his nose, thoroughly put-out. His mother had made his room look like a wedding suite. On his desk he also noticed a rather large pile of parchments waiting to be reviewed. He stepped back outside.

"Lihai fetch a palace maid to get rid of these ridiculously extravagant beddings for anything…less so." Since he'd known the horse demon for quite some time he added with a hint of sarcasm,

"We both know nothing particularly exciting will be happening in my bedchambers anytime soon, and therefore there is no reason for such decoration." The guard nodded and smirked, "I had tried to make that argument myself for you, my lord." and left with his armor clinking softly. Sesshomaru went back to his rooms and lit a fire, peeling off his double-lined kimono and armor in favor of the lighter one underneath and settling into his desk chair.

He reached into his wood desk and retrieved a small ornately carved pipe which he placed between his teeth as he read the many letters. Most were just of updates concerning the royal families- who was warring with who, who had just been wed and therefore created alliances, etc. Some were inquiries addressed to him personally which he planned on answering later. There were even a few marriage proposals from demonesses to him which he politely and coldly declined. They were not of noble breeding and to send them anything less than a stone-cold rejection would reflect badly on his family's reputation. What's left of it. He thought grimly.

The moment Inu-Taisho, his father had taken a human Japanese woman as his mate was the moment they almost lost control of the Western lands. Even more so when they produced the scum half-breed Inuyasha.

Had Sesshomaru not been born they most certainly would have lost the West. Just as he was about halfway through the pile he realized it was almost past the time he was supposed to meet his mother in her chambers. He sighed and arranged them neatly before slipping his kimono back on against the cold and making his way across another marbled courtyard into the court of Fire Purification.

Unlike his rooms, hers were in every way expressing the wealth of her current position. The tiles on the roof were gold- the building itself was double tiered, with alternating bronze statues of demon dogs and tigers on the rooflines.

He made his way to the throne, which was set five stairs up from the rest of the floor and flanked by two enormous stone pillars the size of trees, meticulously painted red, as well as an ornate gold-leaf backboard.

The throne itself was gold leaf and brass with the backing as interlocking images of the demon form of the four royal families. The arms and legs of the throne were imbedded with the patters of the Foo-Dog Clan- the triple hexagon with the six-petal plum blossom. Among those were also butterflies, bells and birds but Sesshomaru had never looked at it long enough to find everything carved into it. Besides it was the person occupying the seat he was concerned with.

Inukimi was lounging with her legs off one arm of the chair and one elbow holding her up, a porcelain blue-and-white cup of demon blood-sake in her right hand. Her kimono was a deep scarlet with black sleeve ends and a black-and-white plum blossom pattern across the left shoulder.

"I thought this was going to be a private meeting." Golden hair pins holding her silver locks up flashed and the black strings of pearls at their ends twitched as she moved her head.

"This is private."

Sesshomaru's eyes flicked to the two sets of guards on each side of the two halls leading to the court.

"Oh. I'm so used to them by now I actually forget they're there."

She gestured for them to leave, "I suppose we're going to talk about something he'd rather keep quiet. I hope it's a love affair." and though the guards didn't answer Sesshomaru's face still flushed. "Mother."

He waited until the guards had closed the inner doors before continuing, "That's hardly something you need to discuss with the guards."

She sighed dramatically, "Oh it's just that I get so lonely I simply have to discuss your lack of enthusiasm for a mate with someone." She blinked and suddenly set the cup down beside her and made her way to him, picking up and stretching out his sleeve. "Sesshomaru! What have you done to your kimono! I taught you better sewing than this."

"I was in a bit of a rush-" He frowned and stopped when he realized she wasn't going to listen until she was done examining him. He didn't particularly like being touched by her and forced himself to keep still. Inukimi put her hands on his shoulders and brushed outwards. "You're shoulders are smaller…" She picked up his hand and compared it to her own.

"Your hands too. And your scent…"

Something seemed to suddenly occur to her and she snapped sharply,

"Sesshomaru, when was the last time you took a woman to your bed?"

This time he did jerk away from her and a very pretty flush lit up his cheeks as he struggled to keep his face flat.

"I hardly see what that has to do with anything, mother."

She put her hands on her hips. "Don't tell me the last one was that wolf demon a few hundred years ago!" Sesshomaru was having a bit of a hard time remembering himself. "No, I never actually took her…" He looked off at the ceiling and his eyes narrowed a bit in thought.

"I think it was… Ah. It was that tiger demon. You remember the one from the North." He'd never really seen his mother gape at him but she was certainly doing so now.

"You cannot be serious. That was over five hundred years ago! " Her sincere alarm was beginning to unsettle him a bit. "Well it is, so why are you so alarmed?" She slumped back into the throne and picked up the half-empty cup of blood-sake wearily.

"Ah, you see? The one time your mother tells you something important… I suppose you'll have to stay at the outpost, and…" Inukimi seemed lost in thought and Sesshomaru brought her back with a barking,

"If you could tell me what's going on when it tickles your fancy, I'd be most grateful."

Her yellow eyes met his and she said plainly, "It looks like your yokai has taken matters into his own hands. Don't you remember what I told you? That long periods of abstinence trigger a response in royal yokai?" Sesshomaru did not remember, but this was no surprise because most of the things his mother told him were tips on clothing and makeup so he tended to block it out. Apparently he had blocked out something important.

"Get to the point."

She took a sip of her drink. "Plainly speaking, you're yokai is going to turn you into a woman and force you into heat." It was his turn to gape. "It appears your transformation has already started- it should finish in about two weeks, and then the next two weeks afterwards will be the heat period." She tapped her claws on her chin thoughtfully.

"Hm. I suppose to keep the line pure you'll have to be mated to your second cousin, though I'm not even sure if he's still alive…"

"I don't have to mate with anyone!" Sesshomaru spat, his shock having been totally replaced by rage sprinkled with humiliation. "If this is a joke it is the most ridiculous-"

She touched a finger to his lips. "I joke about many things but even I am not so cruel as to make a joke of this. Believe me this is not what I wanted for you." She removed her finger and said quietly, "If you wish not to mate with anyone you'll have to be completely isolated that entire time. If all goes well, by the end you will transform back into yourself and all will be as it should."

At this Sesshomaru visibly relaxed. "Ah. Good. I am quite good at that. I shall leave the palace tomorrow then." Inukimi immediately shook her head. "No- you should stay here where my female yokai can keep you isolated. Do you not understand? You won't be in your right state of mind during the heat. If any demon that appeals to your yokai is anywhere in nearby you will… well…you know."

Sesshomaru blinked. "Enlighten me."

Inukimi sighed. "You will seduce them and mate with them. Probably even keep them captive for a few weeks so there isn't a chance you couldn't have been impregnated." Sesshomaru almost choked on his own spit and a strangely loud bark of laughter escaped his throat.

"Will I? Is there anything else you haven't told me- like perhaps I'll eat them afterwards?"

A flash of red in her eyes told him he was pressing his luck.

"If you end up breeding with anything but a royal dog demon…" She put her claws gently at his throat.

"It will mean the end of our control over the West. I cannot allow that to happen."

He swiped her claws away with a low warning growl. "Perhaps you should keep your claws to yourself. I will be taking this… setback outside of the Palace." The thought of being confined to his rooms surrounded by all female yokai for a solid moon turn made him feel slightly sick. He loved his freedom; one choice he'd never regretted was deciding to roam outside the walls of his home and embrace the world himself, instead of receiving letters about it. The idea of her setting him up with someone he'd only met twice in childhood as his new mate was equally sickening, in fact more so. The last thing he wanted was the responsibility of a pup.

His skin actually crawled at the thought of it.

Crying for food, crying for attention, crying just because it felt like it… Ugh. Rin was at least far from that stage. He turned and prepared to leave.

"Sesshomaru." His mother called. "When you do come back with a belly full of pups, bear in mind that my nose is sharp enough to detect the slightest difference between dog demon… and anything else."

The lord snorted through his nose. "I do not intend to come back with a belly full of anything, least of all some damnable whelp's pups." He stormed out of the Fire Purification courts and back to his own rooms to finish addressing his letters and calm down. Though he hated staying he knew it was rude to leave without at least staying the night. He relit the fire in his room, stuffed his pipe with a little sun-dried tobacco and set to work, the dark grey smoke snaking around his head and shoulders in transparent ribbons.

As soon as the sun began to peek over the mountains he put his armor back on and just as he'd finished with the iron corset Jaken suddenly burst into the room. "My lord! I have searched all over for you!"

"I have been here all night Jaken." He replied without turning around and began attaching the bottom part of his armor to the rest using thick leather straps. "But my lord why are you putting your armor on already? It cannot be that we are leaving so soon- we have only just arrived!" He took the small shallow bowl of freezing water near the fire and drowned the orange flames in the fireplace, releasing a cloud of smoke.

After that he went back to his bed and pulled out a few drawers built into the wood, drawing out a few extra kimonos and other clothes. He certainly didn't want to stoop to having to buy clothing from another human village, although if worst came to worst he could always slip into a market at another demon's territory.

"Rest assured you will have as much time as you need here, Jaken. I will be going on an expedition alone."

The little demon seemed stunned. "But my lord-!" His sentence was cut off as Sesshomaru stepped on him on his way out. "I expect you to get a hold of the cat demon Wumei and inform her that I cannot be taking Rin with me and will return when a solid moon has passed." Jaken somehow managed, "O-of course lord Sesshomaru…"

The yokai made his way across the courtyard to the stables where Ah-Un resided and snatched up one of the combs from another stall, using it to tame the dragon's unruly dark green locks. Now that he thought about it his nose informed him Ah-Un was due for a bath as well. The animal groaned happily at his touch and he rubbed his horse-like ears with his claws gently.

Out of all his companions Ah-Un was the only one he trusted not to flip out at what was apparently going to be happening to him. He packed the extra clothing into the saddlebags on Ah-Un's demon-leather saddle and picked up his four talon tipped feet one at a time. It seemed that someone had trimmed and polished the long claws and even filed down some overgrown scales near his elbows.

Hn. I'll have to remember to request that stableman again.

Most of the time Ah-Un was so unreasonable no one could get anywhere near him except for his master. He tightened the cinch around the dragons belly and led him by the reins outside. It was another cold morning and Sesshomaru's breath came from his mouth in long silver puffs while Ah-Un's stayed smoky grey. The right head looked at him questioningly as he climbed up.

"Rin and Jaken will not be accompanying us this time. But you will get to see her again soon."

He knew his mount had affection for the girl but really couldn't care less about Jaken. The dragon's feet left the ground and they were off in the direction of the most isolated area Sesshomaru could think of- an abandoned trading outpost at the foot of the Himalayan mountains. He'd actually restored it himself, minimally on the outside but quite a bit on the inside so there were no longer drafts and leaks. It was actually one of his favorite places, since it was almost guaranteed to have very few yokai and humans.

Unfortunately the journey there was quite long; almost four days even by riding Ah-Un. Sesshomaru just hoped that he'd be able to get himself away before the supposed transformation set in.

The thought of another demon stumbling upon him in female form was mortifying- especially if it was his damn hanyou brother. I'd kill him, and then myself if that happened. That was highly unlikely though since Inuyasha was still in Japan and had no reason to come anywhere near this particular corner of the West.

Inuyasha rarely strayed very far from his mate's village nowadays. Sesshomaru didn't blame him- the woman seemed to stir up trouble even worse than the stupid half-breed.

He was surprised she was still alive. The plan is set, then. After a solid moon has passed this will be nothing but an unpleasant memory I shall never revisit.

Luckily the days seemed to pass without incident and Sesshomaru fell back into his old routine- staying up all night to hunt, bathe and attend to anything else that needed to be done and sleeping during the day. Usually he'd manage to find a decent cave or tree and sometimes he just slept on Ah-Un's back as they traveled.

Today was the third day and Sesshomaru was relieved that he'd only be spending one more day this close to so many other demons and humans. He was beginning to notice… changes in his perfect demon body. Something he wouldn't let himself think about fully or even acknowledge. At least not yet.

Sesshomaru sank deeper down into the river he'd found, his tail and hair spreading and floating on the surface. His clothes were piled on a rock just behind him along with his armor and shoes. He certainly did not want to be separated from those, most especially now. The lord had just finished another large meal, this one of a demon caribou and had come to wash off the mess of blood and hair it had left behind on him.

He took a deep breath and dove under the water, scrubbing his face and claws until his white skin shone almost pink with his efforts. Once clean he took a small jade container of his own special soap and lathered up his hair before diving under a second time. The water was absolutely frigid snow-melt, and would have killed a human in a matter of minutes but for Sesshomaru it was just very cool and invigorating.

Once he was absolutely sure every nook and cranny of his body was sparkling clean he hauled himself out, his tail dragging behind him over the frozen ground, and dressed in front of the fire.

"I'm sure you're beginning to understand why I decided not to bring those two with us, Ah-Un."

He spoke to the dragon as he finished folding his kimono into his hakama. He was having a little bit of trouble getting the thin garments over his hips. Well that's just wonderful. He thought as he finally managed to get them on. It looked like his hips were getting larger now and they were a bit sore- if he poked one of them the bone hurt like it had been bruised. His dragon gave a little snort and folded one of its head atop the other, his large reptilian eyes staring sleepily at his master. The iron corset was next. It fit well enough, if a bit tightly around his chest, but the bottom part of his armor was impossible to hook around his waist comfortably. The metal and leather cut into his hips and after a few tries he set the piece aside with an angry growl. The corset was the most important part of his armor anyway but he still felt not fully dressed without it.

Well, I have some leather to work with back at the outpost. I can customize it later.

He tied the colorful yellow and blue obi around his waist and settled down against the dragon's side, facing the fire. His tail was curled around the fire as well and he knew it would be at least an hour before his fur dried through all the way but he didn't care. As he sat staring into the orange and yellow flames his mothers words came into his head again and he felt a trickle of apprehension. If what she said was true that would mean he'd soon pass control over himself over to his yokai. Every time that had happened in the past… well…

He looked down at his left arm and flexed it, staring at the space where the stripes on his original arm had been. But surely he could keep himself in control as far away as he was going to be.

Surely his demon would come to realize it was useless to try and force him to mate- that Sesshomaru didn't want the burden of pups or a mate and never would.

Out of curiosity he tried to imagine it- him, holding a pup, letting the child follow him around, teaching him things as InuTaisho had taught him.

Nope. Nothing.

Except dread maybe.

If his mother had lain off a bit on the pressure he wouldn't be in this situation in the first place. It was part of the reason why he'd avoided having relationships with other demonesses- the first being that he was kind of a jerk, and the second that he had no interest in children at all. Whenever he'd discussed his reluctance with them they seemed sympathetic, but unable to understand why his freedom was more important at the moment than his obligations to the Palace.

And their odd mind games- trying to figure him out, trying to slip beneath his cold exterior.

Heh. They never did though. He sighed and leaned back into the dragon's warm uniform scales and ran a clawed hand through his hair. To date he couldn't think of one demoness who had managed to- Oh wait, there was one, but she was dead so it was of little consequence.

Dead and the pup with her. He added, his face once more a mask devoid of emotion except for his eyes.

He'd only found out about it when they'd brought her body back to determine which tribe had killed her. He still remembered it vividly- the unstable torch light, her beautiful golden tail twisted and broken underneath her. The captains and guard clearing the way as he bent down beside her and touched her cool cheek; how he'd barely noticed the strange way the cloth was laying across her abdomen.

How it had looked a bit… stretched.

His hand had immediately dropped to her belly, his claws gently tracing the curve in her body. His eyed had flicked up to the physician and the rat demon had immediately looked away, his jaw muscles tight.

He remembered his screaming, crying and cursing.

He remembered raking his claws across her guard's face, so deep he could see bone,

"Why couldn't you protect her, you useless- you whoreson! I'll fucking kill you!" before blacking out as he was smashed in the back of the head by the wood rod of another captain.

His hand automatically went to the nape of his neck where he'd been struck- his mother had been furious because it had taken him a full week to wake up, and a week after that to become coherent again. He'd never really been the same after that. Sesshomaru yawned, his canines catching the yellow light of the flames and curled up into the fetal position, trying to put that night out of his mind.

At any rate, he needed to sleep- this whole transformation was taking quite a bit from his body. He flicked his tail up around his body and Ah-Un wrapped his scaled tail around the silky white fur to keep it in place.

Soon enough both master and servant were asleep just as the blue light of dawn began to creep across the sky.

Hi there! If you've read this and liked it, please leave a review to let me know. I'd like to know at least a few people are reading before going on with this story ^^