Chapter 122

Mai imprisoned



"What is it?" Mai asked, her voice trembling. The pattern on Kaho's belly made her have a bad hunch about all of this. She didn't have to look to know, that exactly the same one was scratched on her own stomach. What was going on?

Kaho looked at her.

"I don't know exactly, but…"

"It is a spell." A female voice from the other corner said. Mai turned her head to look, who said that. A woman sat alone in the other corner, separating herself from the others. She looked older than Mai. Her clothes were dirty and torn, but the girl recognized the miko robes.

"You are a miko?" Mai asked. The woman nodded and laughed humorlessly, causing the other girls shun from her.

"I am. However, under these circumstances, it is nothing to be proud of. I was abducted too." She said, glancing at the window sadly. Mai decided, that she could learn from the miko more than from Kaho. She grabbed the younger girl's arm and went over to the miko. She sat down, gaining the disapproving stares from the other women.

"Hello, I'm Mai." She introduced herself. The miko arched her eyebrow, seeing the determination in Mai's eyes. "Please tell me everything you know, so that I could plan an escape."

"You can't!" Kaho exclaimed suddenly, the fear on her face. "You can't escape Shutendoji. You will be killed!"

Mai glared daggers at her.

"I've always managed to get out of the trouble till now, so I don't see any reason not to do it this time too." She hissed to trembling Kaho. "I'm not going to sit here waiting for the death to come. You have to fight till your last breath!"

The miko observed the exchange of the words and began to giggle. Mai looked at her. The miko grinned at her.

"I see, that you have some spirit, Mai. I wonder, how do you plan to escape?" she asked in a half-mocking tone. Mai narrowed her eyes.

"First, I have to know as much as possible. Who is this Shutendoji and what does he want from us?" she asked. The miko sighed, but was ready to explain everything.

"Shutendoji is an oni, who was cursed by a kuromiko a few decades ago." The miko told Mai. "Because of that curse, his goal is to father a child of a human woman. That's why he kidnaps every woman, who is able to conceive."

Mai paled and felt a wave of disgust wash over her. So the oni was raping the women here?

"And the pattern?" she asked, pointing at her belly. Mai had a hunch, that she didn't really want to know the answer. The miko cleared her throat.

"As I said before, it is a spell. A youkai hag works for Shutendoji and performs a ritual on every new girl, before locking her in here."

"Why?" Mai inquired.

"Shutendoji is a powerful demon and he would hate to father a weak hanyou." The Miko said.

"Sounds familiar." Mai muttered, gesturing the other woman to continue.

"His youkai witch experiments on us. She casts a spell, that allows the woman to conceive only during two or three nights a year, but when it happens, the firstborn child is supposed to possess its father's demon power. In other words, she wants to make a human child give birth to a full demon."

The miko said, looking seriously at Mai.

"Oh." That was the only reply the girl could manage. The news of being experimented on was quite shocking. Kaho seemed to hear this for the first time too. She broke in tears.

"It's horrible!" she wailed. "It's terrible to be raped and made to bear a child, but to give birth to a demon…"

Mai patted the girl's back.

"For the god's sake, stop crying!" she scolded Kaho and turned to the miko. "This place is well-guarded, right?"

"No one managed to escape yet." The miko agreed.

Mai cursed loudly. She figured out, that she wouldn't be able to get out without help, after all. She hoped, that Sesshomaru would get here soon.

Suddenly, a commotion started. The women instantly fled under the walls, crawling from fear behind each other. Mai instinctively did a similar thing – she plastered herself against the wall. Kaho yelped and gripped her arm, trembling from fear.

"What is happening?" Mai whispered to the miko. The woman looked back at her.

"The youkai witch has come." She whispered back.

As the women were all plastered against the walls, Mai could clearly see a room behind bars. The women there looked like wrights, chained to the walls. She could tell, that some were probably trying to starve themselves to death, for there were nothing than skin and bones, contrasting with the swelling of their bellies. All of them were in various phases of pregnancy – and all of them looked like they would rather die.

Then, the door opened with a creak and an old youkai woman entered the room with pregnant women, a knife in her hand. The faint rays of setting sun cast their light on the blade, making it look, as though it was stained with blood. Mai observed the scene with terror. The witch casually walked through the room, looking at the chained girls. She seemed to pay more attention to the ones with the biggest bellies. Finally she approached the one, whose swelling was the largest and put a hand on her belly. The woman was trembling violently, tears in her eyes. The hag shook her head.

"Still no good. Better than the last time, but there is still too much of a human in this one." She muttered and the blade moved swiftly, as the witch buried it in the woman's stomach to the hilt.

Mai muffled herself with her hand, not to scream – she didn't want to draw any unnecessary attention to her. The witch made her way to the exit, leaving the pregnant woman to bleed to death. Her screams were echoing throughout the room. Mai felt like being inside a nightmare. It was so horrible, that it seemed almost surreal.

"The worst comes now." The miko whispered. "The witch will check, if any of us is fertile tonight. If she is, she will spend the night with Shutendoji."

Mai gulped, as the hag went in, accompanied by two ogres, quite small for their kind – so tall like an average human man. The witch looked around, cleaning her knife and hiding it inside her kimono.

"Stand up." She commanded. The women instantly got up and stood straight under the walls. Mai wasn't eager to do that, but she was yanked up by Kaho and the miko. The witch approached the nearest girl, on the opposite side of the room.

"You know, what to do." She said dryly. The girl untied her obi with trembling hands and hesitantly opened the kimono, exposing the bare belly. Mai couldn't see even a scratch on it. The witch frowned and went to the next girl, who also shoved her stomach. Most of them didn't have a sign of the pattern, some of them has faint white lines, that would fade in a matter of days. The hag was coming closer to Mai and her two new friends. The girl felt her heart racing and the palms sweating. She was scared to death of being raped by some oni. The witch approached Kaho, who obediently showed her bare stomach.

The girl yelped and Mai looked to see what scared her so. She noticed, that on Kaho's stomach a pattern was visible – not the scratches, though, but glowing red lines, like a tattoo. The young girl paled.

"No…" she whimpered. "It's not possible."

Before Mai could even react, one of the ogres grabbed Kaho and dragged her to the middle of the room, not even giving her a chance to cover herself. The witch smirked.

"It seems, that we have a lucky one already. Only two more left." She said, turning her attention to Mai. "A new one. Show me your belly."

Mai glared at the hag defiantly. She wasn't going to be like other girls – a sheep waiting for the slaughter.

"Over my dead body." She hissed through her clenched teeth. She dashed forward and punched the witch squarely in her nose. She reached her hand inside the hag's kimono, wanting to get a hold on her knife, but her wrist was crushed in the ogre's grip.

"Bitch." The hag hissed, massaging her face and sending a murderous look at Mai. She turned to the ogre. "Hold her still."

The ogre was pining Mai's both arms above her head. She tried to kick the witch, but she managed to stay out of her kicking range. The youkai hag swiftly untied the girl's obi and parted the fabric of her kimono.

"A double luck." She said with a wide grin. Mai, panicked, looked dawn. All color left her face. On her belly were the glowing red lines, exactly the same, as on Kaho's stomach.
The witch was laughing maliciously, but she stopped after a while.

"What is it?" She asked, pointing at Mai's white underwear, now stained with blood. "You are bleeding today."

Mai looked at her – the witch seemed to be disappointed.

"Release her." She said to the ogre, who let go of Mai's hands. "Such a waste."

To the girl's surprise, the witch turned on her heel, the ogres following her. Kaho was whimpering and crying, as she was being dragged out of their room. Mai pitied the girl – she was still a child and such a cruel fate awaited her. However, she was still mortified. That was a close shave. The miko leaned to her.

"Do you realize, how lucky you are to have your period today?" she whispered. Mai nodded, still in shock. Then, she clenched her fists.

"I will get out of here." She said with desperate determination. The miko sighed.

"There's no use. We can't escape alone and no man can withstand the demons." She told Mai. The girl shook her head.

"You're wrong." She said, looking in the miko's eyes. "Sesshomaru will come for me soon."

The other woman snorted, amused by her words.

"You are naive. This place is situated high in the mountains, it's impossible to reach here. Even if your man somehow managed to get here, he wouldn't stand a chance against Shutendoji and his minions. No man could do that." She said, folding her arms.

Mai smiled widely.

"I didn't say, that Sesshomaru is a human." The girl said. The miko opened her eyes wider.

"A youkai?" she uttered, shocked. Mai nodded.

"He's a strong inu-Taiyoukai. We just have to hold on till he arrives." She answered, somehow satisfied by the look of surprise on the miko's face. Then, the miko got really serious.

"How in the world could you willingly become involved with a youkai?!" the woman hissed with disdain in her voice. "It's an abomination!"

Mai narrowed her eyes.

"First thing, he is only my boss, nothing more. Second, it's nothing wrong to be in a relationship with a demon, if you love him!" she retorted, thinking of Inuyasha's parents – the both were deeply in love, according to Myoga. Inuyasha turned out to have some serious attitude issues, but wasn't definitely any abomination!

"I thought, that you were different." The miko whispered, sitting in the corner. Mai got angry at her reaction.

"Hey, being a youkai doesn't mean, that one is evil. I know some youkai, that are decent and some humans, who turned out to be real monsters. Anyway, it's rude to talk like that of the only person, who could help us escape!" Mai scolded the woman. The miko was staring at her.

"This… this youkai could help us get out of here?" she asked quietly, a glint of hope in her eye. Mai smiled to herself and gently touched her hairpin.

"He will always come for me." She said.



Author Note:

Hello.  
First of all, I'd like to thank all who keep reading the story and commenting. I really appreciate it, guys. As promised, 10 comments, a new chapter. You know, that I'm waiting for you to comment, right? So please do comment. Till the end of the week I'm stuck here, with no possibility of having any trips (sadly), so I'm ready to update as often as you wish...
 

Chapter 123

Sesshomaru and Inuyasha join forces




Mai leaned her back against her wall, focused on thinking. All she had to do is to wait for Sesshomaru and hope, that the horrible mark on her belly wouldn't show. Anyway, her period bought her a couple of days of safety. She knew, that she could hold on for a longer while – at least a week, but she was also aware, that her scent was fading with time, making it more difficult for the dog demon to track her. Of only there was the way to make her scent stronger… Then, an idea popped into her mind. It was kind of gross, but should work.

"What are you doing?" the miko asked, as she saw Mai's bloodied panties fall to the floor. The girl smiled.

"I know, that it's disgusting, but Sesshomaru will surely pick up the scent of my blood. I've got to make this place to reek of it." She answered. She took the blood-soaked cloth and began smearing the blood onto the window frame, gaining disgusted looks of the other women. She shrugged it off, though. It wasn't the time to care, what others thought – getting the hell out of there was a priority.




"Can't you track those women down, Inuyasha?" Miroku asked. The hanyou shook his head and snorted.

"Keh! If you think, that it's that easy, maybe you should try!" the half-demon snapped at the monk, folding his arms. Then, he sniffed the air furrowing his brows.

"This scent…" he muttered.

"Inuyasha!" Kagome called, pointing the opposite direction. Everyone turned their heads where she was pointing.

"Crap!" the hanyou cursed, unsheathing Tessaiga. "Not him again."
Soon the rest of the group saw the newcomer – the lightning ball approached them at a great speed and as it reached the group, it dissolved.

"What are you doing here, Inuyasha?" the silver-haired demon asked, sending the hanyou an annoyed look. Inuyasha narrowed his eyes at the youkai.

"I wanted to ask you the same." The hanyou growled. Sesshomaru glared at his younger brother.

"Are you really that stupid?" he asked, gaining a growl from Inuyasha. "Even you, with your inferior hanyou sense of smell must have picked up this scent."

The half-demon's eyes widened.

"This scent of blood…" he began, while Sesshomaru was already leaping into the air. The inu-youkai looked at him over his shoulder.

"You can come along, if you wish." He called to Inuyasha and took off.

The hanyou turned to Kagome.

"Kagome, get on my back. Hurry!" he said to the schoolgirl. She did, what he said and Inuyasha rushed after the dog demon, Kirara also following them.

"What are you doing, Inuyasha?" Kagome asked.

"Isn't it obvious? We're going to help that bastard!" he answered. Kagome clutched his haori tighter.

"Why?" she inquired.

"This scent of blood… it's Mai's."



"She must gone crazy from fear." Stated one of the women, seeing Mai, who was smearing the blood onto the walls with determination on her face.

The girl flinched, as she saw the other side of the room, where the pregnant women were locked. The one, that was stabbed in the belly some time ago didn't scream anymore, but was still moving. She was so pale, contrasting with the pool of blood, in which she was laying. The woman didn't have long to live. One of the women saw, that Mai was observing the dying girl and came closer.

"They will take her away at dawn." She said quietly. "My both sisters are dead already. I watched them dying all night."

Mai flinched and looked at the woman's face – the dark circles under her eyes, pale – she looked like a ghost. All girls seemed to be broken already. The only one that wasn't was the miko.

Suddenly, Mai heard a creak behind her. She saw the door opening. The women, who were sleeping, woke up instantly and moved closer to the walls. She also made a few steps back and saw the witch standing in the doorframe, accompanied by the two ogres. The hag looked directly at Mai and smirked.

"The lord Shutendoji requests your presence… despite the state, you're in." she said.

Mai widened her eyes, realizing what was happening. No… she wouldn't let them. However, in a heartbeat she was captured by the ogres. The girl struggled desperately.

"No!" she was screaming. "Let me go!"

The ogres weren't moved by her demands. She was dragged by them out of the room and then along the hallway. The witch grinned at her.

"You should feel honored." She said. "To give birth the child of the great Shutendoji, is the best what could happen to a human woman like you."

Mai glared at her, not stopping twisting under the ogres's strong grip.

"Cut the crap, old hag!" she snapped at the witch. "I saw, what you do with those women."
The youkai woman cackled.

"Only because they're failures. Maybe you'll be lucky to live till the childbirth." She said with amused smirk plastered across her face.

"All of you will be dead until then." Mai hissed. The witch laughed again, taking her words as an empty threat.

"We're there." She said with a wide smile, knocking on a door. "Master, I brought the second girl."

"Bring her inside." A male raspy voice said.

The witch slid the door open and stepped aside, bowing.
Mai frowned with disgust, seeing the Shutendoji. He looked like a typical oni – huge, about three meters tall, his skin was red, the face unbelievably ugly and the long, twisted horns on his head. He was sitting on a big bed, dressed in a loose kimono. The oni scanned Mai up and down, grinning lecherously.

"This one seems to be more womanly, than the previous one." He said, chuckling.

The girl heard one more voice – quiet sobbing. She turned her head and saw Kaho, curled in the ball in the corner of the bedroom. The young girl was naked, her body bruised and blood smeared on her tights. She was shaking and sobbing.

"Kaho." Mai whispered, shocked by the sight. The raped girl was a fourteen year old child. She felt a wave of nausea washing over her body, as the oni laughed again.

"The girl was such a disappointment. Crying all the time…" Shutendoji said in a mocking tone. Mai glared daggers at him, clenching her fists.

"You bastard! You'll pay for this!" she screamed at the demon. He stopped laughing and sent her a scolding look.

"I doubt it." He retorted. Mai struggled.

"Sesshomaru will come here and will rip you in shreds!" she threatened, but instead intimidating Shutendoji, she angered him.

"Do not be delusional, girl. No one will come." He hissed, standing up.

Now, when he did, he seemed to be really huge. He stalked to the corner and unceremoniously grabbed Kaho by her hair. He dragged the whimpering girl by it and literally tossed her out of the room. Mai heard a characteristic sound of a cracking bone and Kaho's pained scream.

"Get her here." Shutendoji ordered and Mai was shoved by the ogres into the room. The door behind her slammed shut. She whirled around and leapt to them, trying to open them. She clawed at the wood and desperately attempted to slide them open – they were the only way out of the room. She felt panic overtake her mind. She was about to be raped!

"Stupid!" the oni bellowed and grabbed her shoulder. Then, he shoved her violently onto the huge bed. Mai yelped, more of fear than pain. She flinched at the Shutendoji lusty smile, but struggled to maintain her pride, even in a situation like this. She refused to become another of those lifeless dolls, locked in the dark room. She would fight till the end.

"Even if you have your way with me, Sesshomaru will avenge me." She said, glaring daggers at the oni.

"Enough talking." Shutendoji hissed and approached the bed. Panicked, Mai quickly rolled off the bed and tried to dart off, but the oni grabbed her hair and shoved her back onto the bed. He was gripping her neck with one hand, only to hold her in place and supporting his weight with the other. Mai turned her head away, as he leaned down.

"Sesshomaru…" she whimpered.




Miko Misaki covered her mouth with her hand, as the witch took Mai to Shutendoji. Misaki was sure, that the stubborn girl would be safe for some time, but apparently was wrong. She pitied the energetic person, who had the courage to stand up to their captors – not many women did that. By the sunrise her spirit would be crushed and she would join the lifeless girls in the neighboring room. What a waste…

Suddenly, Misaki heard a noise outside. She rushed to the window to see, what was happening. The miko gasped from surprise at the sight – what Mai said turned out to be truth, not the imagination of the delusional woman. Outside, a battle had just begun. She could see numerous minions of Shutendoji attacking the small group. Two of the newcomers were definitely youkai. She could feel the strong demonic auras emanating from them. Both of the demons were silver-haired and armed with swords. Behind them there was a big cat-youkai, carrying three adult people and a child. However, the two silver-haired youkai were the only ones fighting. She doubted, that such few people could take on the hordes of enemies. Misaki gripped the bars and observed the battle.







Inuyasha and Sesshomaru quickly exchanged glances and leapt into the air.


"KONGOUSOUHA!" Inuyasha yelled, sending a rain of diamond spears in the direction of the enemy, slicing them to shreds. Sesshomaru took the other side. He glared at the numerous oni and let them come closer, so that all of them were near to each other.

"Meidou Zangetsuha!" he cried and the ogres were sucked into the netherworld in a heartbeat.
The both brothers were slowly moving forward, fighting off the hordes of enemies side by side. They were getting closer to the castle at the top of the mountain.

"Inuyasha!" Miroku called, as Kirara flew closer. "Leave them to us! You two go to Mai!"

Sesshomaru and Inuyasha nodded.

"Kaze no kizu!" Inuyasha shouted, sending the blast straight at the castle, making a gap among the enemies. Not waiting for the younger brother, Sesshomaru leapt forward. Inuyasha cursed under his nose and followed the dog demon.

"Hiraikotsu!" Sango cried, sending her weapon whirling around the two silver-haired brothers, cutting the ogres in half.

Kirara turned abruptly. Kagome yelped and slid of the cat-youkai's back. Luckily Shippo jumped after her and transformed into the pink balloon, supporting her. She smiled.

"Thanks, Shippo-chan." She said, taking her bow off her shoulder and aiming at the opponents.

"Anytime!" the fox-demon exclaimed, as Kagome released the bowstring, sending the purifying arrow into the air, doing a lot of damage among the enemy's ranks.

"It's time to finish it." Miroku muttered, unfastening his prayer beads. He reached out with his right hand.

"Kazana!" he shouted and the ogres screamed, being such into the hole in the monk's hand. After a longer while, all of them were obliterated. Miroku quickly fastened the prayer beads back, breathing heavily.



Sesshomaru broke through the stone wall, sending the debris flying in every direction. The scent of blood was very strong here, as though it was covering the whole room. The demon looked around, searching for Mai. Inside, there were about forty human females, some pregnant and chained to the walls. All of them were quivering from fear in the corners, eying him with terror and sobbing. None of them was Mai.

"Mononoke." One of them whispered and trembled from horror, attempting to hide behind another woman.

Inuyasha finally joined his brother, leaping into the room and also looking around. He made a confused face.

"I smell her blood everywhere, but…" he began, earning a murderous glare from Sesshomaru.

"She is not here." The dog demon finished, obviously in horrible mood. Inuyasha could tell, that his older brother was only waiting to slaughter something.

Miko Misaki stared at the two silver-haired demons. They looked very alike, like brothers. Somehow, they managed to defeat Shutendoji's minions, so they had to be extremely powerful. Was one of the one the youkai, Mai was talking about? Hesitantly, she approached them.

"Excuse me…" she began, scared by such strong demons. She doubted, that she would be able to purify them if she tried.

"What?!" snapped the one with the dog ears atop his head. The other one glared at her with killing intent in his golden eyes. Misaki gulped.

"Is one of you, by the chance, the youkai called Sesshomaru?" she asked quietly. The one, that spoke before, pointed the taller one with his clawed finger.

"It's him." He said, eying the door. Misaki forced herself to look at the intimidating demon.
"Mai was taken to the Shutendoji's chambers. You have to hurry!" she told him. His eyes widened at her words and the hand clenched on the hilt of his sword.

Suddenly, the Shutendoji's ogres broke down the door and ran to the room. Without turning towards them, Sesshomaru swung Tenseiga.

"Meidou Zangetsuha." he said, sending a black crescent towards them, that sucked all the enemies in. The women screamed from terror, scared by the dog demon even more than of the ogres. However, More enemies were coming. Sesshomaru gritted his teeth.

"Sesshomaru, go." Inuyasha said, assuming a battle stance. "I'll keep them occupied."

The inu-youkai nodded shortly and leapt into the air.

"KAZE NO KIZU!" the hanyou yelled, sending a blast towards the ogres, wiping them out. Sesshomaru swiftly glided over it and landed a couple of meters further. More enemies were about to attack the dog demon, but Inuyasha was already firing another Kaze no kizu at them. The inu-youkai vanished, following Mai's scent.




"Get off me, you shit-face!" Mai screamed, tossing on the bed and trying to free herself from Shutendoji's firm grip. The ogre grinned at her futile attempts.

"Accept your fate!" he said harshly, sticking out his disgusting tongue. He leaned down with the intention to lick her. The girl managed to slip one of her hands out of his clawed paw. Clenching her fist, she delivered a blow in the underside of the ogre's jaw, mainly thanks to the fact, that he wasn't expecting such an action from a woman. Mai hit him with all her strength. Shutendoji bit his tongue and backed away, roaring in fury. He glared at her with hatred.

"Bitch." He hissed, raising his hand to deliver a blow.

Then, Shutendoji turned around, hearing pained screams, coming from behind the door. Mai used the moment, when he was distracted and quietly crawled to the edge of the bed. The ogre noticed it and reached to grab her, but in the very moment the door flew into the room with a loud bang. In the doorframe stood an ominous figure, emitting a murderous aura.

"Who are you?" Shutendoji asked the newcomer, flinching as the powerful youki began swirling around the man, whose red eyes gleamed in the dimmed light. He smirked, making the ogre unwillingly tremble.

"I came for my woman." The demon stated calmly raising his sword. "I will send you to hell."
Shutendoji was about to retort, but the girl was faster.

"I'm not your woman!" she protested. The dog demon turned his attention to her, barely hiding the bewilderment from the tongue-slip.

"You are my servant and a woman." He said quickly, covering the blunder, before glaring at the ogre again. "Come here, woman."

Mai arched her eyebrow, almost convinced by the explanation and, not wasting more time, quickly darted to the inu-youkai. She hid behind his back, readjusting her disheveled kimono. Shutendoji narrowed his eyes at the demon, who dared to barge into his bedroom and steal the woman, he intended to bed tonight.

"I will rip you to shreds!" he threatened the fearsome demon. The man didn't seem to be impressed by his words in the slightest.

"Did he do anything to you?" Sesshomaru asked, glancing at Mai. The girl shook her head.

"No, you came in the last moment." She answered, smiling faintly. "I knew, you will save me."
The dog demon nodded, acknowledging her words and turned away from the ogre, ushering the girl out.

"Don't ignore me!" Shutendoji yelled.

"You do not deserve my attention." The dog demon said calmly. Without turning around, Sesshomaru swung Tenseiga at the ogre, sending the Meidou Zangetsuha right at the startled enemy. He managed to gave out a cry, before being thrown into the netherworld.

Mai looked at Sesshomaru, who stood motionless, glancing at her. His eyes turned back to usual golden color and the ominous demonic aura subsided, once she was safe. The girl could feel the tears welling in her eyes.

"I was so scared!" she wailed, sobbing, as she cuddled into Sesshomaru's armor. She began shivering, as all the stress and fear finally found its release. She grabbed the empty sleeve of the demon's haori and pressed it to her face, wiping the tears, that refused to stop flowing.

The inu-youkai stiffened, startled, that Mai was clinging to him and sobbing into his sleeve. He did not know, how should he understand her strange behavior. Hesitantly, he put his arm around her, pulling her closer to himself. To his surprise, the woman did not protest, but wrapped her arms around his waist. Sesshomaru noticed, that her crying subsided a little once Mai pressed her face to his chest. She grabbed him tighter, clearly unwilling to let go. They were standing like this for a while – embracing each other tightly and neither of them made a move to pull away. Their heartbeat and breaths merged in a brief moment of harmony and peace.

"What the hell?!"

Chapter 124

The unforgettable visit



"What the hell?!" Inuyasha's voice echoed throughout the hallway.

Sesshomaru and Mai stiffened, both of them realizing the position, they were in. They quickly pulled back from each other, as though they were caught red-handed on doing something inappropriate. Mai forgot about crying in a heartbeat and the blush was burning her cheeks – just a while ago she threw herself at Sesshomaru and hugged him. On the top of all, Inuyasha had to see it! Damn the hanyou!

The dog demon thought the same. He glared daggers at his younger brother, clenching his teeth.
Inuyasha was extremely amused, seeing Sesshomaru in such an embarrassing situation. He grinned widely, showing his fangs.

"Did you two forget to tell me about something?" he asked smugly, folding her arms. Mai's face got scarlet and the dog demon was standing still like a statue.

"It's not what you think!" Mai exclaimed suddenly, thinking how stupid sounded, what she just said.

Inuyasha arched and eyebrow.

"Really?" he asked in a mocking tone. Sesshomaru narrowed his eyes.

"Stay out of this Inuyasha." He said coldly. Hanyou's grin even widened.

"Why? You're secretly in love with a human girl, Sesshomaru?" the half-demon asked with a smug smile. Mai blushed even more and the dog demon seemed to be the fury incarnated. His eyes turned red and the youki began swirling around his large frame.

"Do not insult this Sesshomaru like this, pathetic hanyou! You should know my opinion about humans better than anyone." Sesshomaru hissed. Mai stared at him, surprised by the sudden display of anger. It seemed almost like Inuyasha managed to pull some string in him.

"Don't call me names, you bastard! I was covering your sorry ass today!" Inuyasha shouted, putting his hand on Tessaiga's hilt. Sesshomaru did the same – his fingers wandered to Tenseiga.

"If any of us could be called a bastard, that would be you, little brother." The dog demon said with a smirk. Mai saw, that Inuyasha was at the edge of giving in to his anger. If she didn't do anything quickly, the idiot brothers will fight again. Quickly, she moved herself between then, spreading her arms.

"That's enough, both of you!" she shouted. "Behave like adults for once!"
Inuyasha and Sesshomaru stared at her for a while, but, luckily, they took their hands off the swords' hilts. Finally, the inu-youkai broke the silence.

"I will not have a human woman tell me what to do." He said stalking to her and glaring in his most intimidating way. Mai put her hands on the hips and glared back, lifting her head to look at the tall demon.

"I wouldn't have to if a certain demon wasn't behaving like a fool." She talked back to Sesshomaru. The demon was at a loss of words and began growling at her. Mai kept glaring daggers at him. "Your growling isn't going to scare me."

"Woman…" the inu-youkai said in a warning tone, but the girl didn't yield




Then, Inuyasha's uncontrollable laughter echoed throughout the hallways. The hanyou looked like he was going to choke himself – bent in half, clutching his stomach, tears in his eyes. Mai and Sesshomaru were staring at him with baffled expressions on their faces, waiting for him to calm down. When he did, he wiped the tears from the corners of his eyes.

"Seriously, you two are behaving like a married couple!" he choked out and muffled another laughter attack. Mai felt her face burning.

"Inuyasha, you idiot!" she screamed atop her lungs. "Don't you ever say such nonsense! Me with that arrogant jerk, who happens to be your brother? Don't be an idiot!"

She was about to continue her tirade, but she was interrupted, as Sesshomaru suddenly flung her over his shoulder. The startled girl yelped.

"We are leaving." The dog demon stated leaping forward.

As he flew past Inuyasha, he punched the hanyou with his fist, sending him crashing into the wall. Mai saw the half-demon cursing and waving his fist threateningly, before he was left behind. Sesshomaru broke one of the windows and glided into the air, flying over the castle. Mai was a little sad, leaving the poor women without any word, but Inuyasha and the rest would surely help them. She closed her eyes, not wanting to see the distant ground below. She relaxed, ignoring, that her belly was being squished. She didn't know, how long they were flying, about an hour or so. Finally, Sesshomaru glided downwards and landed gracefully, gently placing Mai back on her feet. Mai looked at him, about to thank the demon for saving her once again, but Rin interrupted.

"Mai!" the child exclaimed, running towards the girl and crashing into her legs, wrapping her little arms around her waist. "I knew, that Sesshomaru-sama will bring you back!"

"Mai-sama!" Kohaku also ran to greet her. "Are you all right?"

Mai smiled, patting Rin's back.

"I'm all fine. Sesshomaru saved me right in time." She answered. Jaken also joined their gathering, dragging Ah-Un along. The imp shook his head.

"My, my… You always cause Sesshomaru-sama so much trouble." He muttered.

"We are going." The silver-haired demon decided suddenly. Mai looked at him, surprised – it was still the dead of the night and they had gone through some tough moments just now. Jaken also seemed to be startled by his master's sudden decision. He trotted to the inu-youkai.

"Sesshomaru-sama, where are we going?" he asked. Sesshomaru looked at Tenseiga and frowned.

"I must pay a visit to a certain person." He said with an extremely displeased look on his face. The both servants gawked at him, surprised by such noticeable display of emotions. Who could be the person, who made Sesshomaru show them?



For the next couple of days the dog demon was intensely searching for something, making their group march day and night. Since Kohaku joined their little fellowship, the travelling at night became a real pain in the ass – it was extremely difficult to take shifts sleeping on the dragon's back, when there were four people. The kids were the priority, so Mai had to spend a couple of nights napping, while banging her forehead against Sesshomaru's armor. The dog demon was sometimes carrying sleeping Rin on his shoulder, but the older girl was simply too big for that and she got flung over his shoulder.

This morning Mai was set on bathing in the river at last and managed to convince Sesshomaru to let her do it. The dog demon left Ah-Un with her, as he with Jaken and the children went ahead.

"Woman, do it quick." He told her, before walking away. The moment he turned around, the dragon collapsed on the ground, exhausted by the constant marching. Mai patted the beast's heads.

"Poor thing. He doesn't let you take a break." She said with pity in her voice. Ah-Un roared, agreeing with her. The girl retrieved a bar of soap from the packs and picked up her last green kimono for today – the one, which wasn't damaged yet. She placed it carefully near the riverbank and undressed swiftly. She shivered, feeling the cold air on her skin. Clenching her teeth, she grabbed the soap and went into the river. She jumped in, submerging, but almost immediately stood up, her teeth chattering.

"Oh crap." She muttered.

However, the need to get herself clean was stronger than the cold. Mai began soaping her skin quickly, but thoroughly. She froze, when she reached her belly. The glowing red lines disappeared the next morning after the horrible adventure, but the scratches remained. After a few days there turned into barely visible white lines, but the elaborate pattern was a remainder of terrifying scenes, that took place in Shutendoji's castle. She wondered, what would happen with all the women, that were imprisoned there – she doubted, if even some of them could return to the normal life ever again.

Mai swiftly washed the soap off and wiped her body with the old kimono. Once dry, she put the pretty green on, the very same Sesshomaru bought her in the town some time ago, and tied a matching obi. She slid her feet into the sandals and fastened her hairpin.

"All right, I'm all clean and ready." She said to Ah-Un, who stood up slowly, displeased, that he could rest only for such a short time. Mai mounted the dragon and he took off, flying very low.
The girl squinted her eyes, seeing two distant white shapes beneath the clouds. They were entwining with each other and flying towards the ground. She could have sworn, that it was Sesshomaru in his true form, but the other one…

"Be careful, Ah-Un." She said to the dragon, fearing, that there was an enemy ahead. However, the beast didn't seem to be afraid in the slightest.

Then, the dragon gave out a panicked roar and sped up, flying higher and higher. Mai clutched the saddle in desperation, wondering, what made Ah-Un behave so. She felt an unpleasant feeling in her stomach, as the crazy flight continued.

Soon Mai saw, what was the cause of the dragon's panic. The creature was slowly catching up to the two huge figures of the dog demons. The one was definitely Sesshomaru – she recognized him. The inu-youkai carried Jaken and the children on his back. Beside him glided the other dog demon. Ah-Un was struggling frantically to maintain his master's pace.

"Was the bastard going to leave us behind?" she muttered, angry, that Sesshomaru just took off not bothering to wait for her and the dragon. She was also wondering, who the other inu-youkai was. Was it the person, her boss was looking for? Mai was a little surprised, seeing another creature of Sesshomaru's kind.

The demons were gliding in front of them, not paying any attention to the dragon, who was flying behind. Rin and Kohaku noticed them and waved to Mai. The girl waved back, before clutching the saddle tightly. The flight was a nightmare, but it used to be much worse in the past. She concentrated on looking in front of her.

Most of the time she saw thick white clouds, but then something began emerging from them – a huge dark shape. When they flew closer, the girl was able to discern, what it was. In front of Mai's eyes appeared an enormous castle, like none other she had seen before. The impressive building seemed to float in the air, above the clouds. As Ah-Un lowered his flight, the girl saw the demon guardians, as they passed the castle walls. They looked up, but didn't seem to be alarmed by the dog demons presence. Finally, they reached the palace at the top of the castle. Sesshomaru and the other demon gracefully landed and Ah-Un clumsily collided with the marble floor, exhausted by the crazy flight. Rin, Kohaku and Jaken slipped off Sesshomaru's back. Mai dismounted the dragon and ran to the children.

"Mai!" Rin called happily. The older girl smiled at the child and turned her attention to the demons, as the purple suddenly flashed, when both of them transformed. She gasped, seeing the other inu-youkai in such form.

In front of their group stood a silver-haired demon woman. She gracefully sat on a throne, straightening the blue uchiki, that was decorated with the white fur, the same like the one Sesshomaru was carrying on his shoulder. Mai's mouth opened agape, as she saw the striking resemblance between those two. The demoness had golden eyes, their cold expression matching Sesshomaru's, long silver hair and similar demon markings – a blue crescent moon on her forehead, but those on the cheeks were slightly different, being a single pink wavy line, instead of twin magenta stripes. Her face was elegant, the beauty breathtaking, but also looked like a female version of Mai's boss's face. The youkai woman had a matching pink lipsticks on her lips, red eye shadow upon her lids and claws painted red. The human girl stared at her, then looked at Sesshomaru and back at the demoness. She had an idea, who she might be. Mai grabbed Jaken and whispered to his ear.

"This woman, who is she?" the girl asked quietly. The imp looked at her and pulled her down to reach her ear.

"Sesshomaru-sama's mother." Jaken whispered back.

Mai's eyes widened at the news. She expected it though, given that Sesshomaru looked like a carbon copy of the woman before them, but actually hearing it was shocking nonetheless. She heard the dog demon mention his father, even the hanyou brother, he despised so much, but never the mother. The girl thought, that she must be dead since centuries or so. The girl saw, how tense the inu-youkai was. She clutched Rin protectively and observed the conversation between her boss and his mother.

"Sesshomaru, I thought, that you despise humans." The demoness said in high-and-mighty tone. "And yet you drag with you three humans. Are you going to eat them?"

At the remark Mai pulled Rin closer, feeling nervous. Suddenly it became clear, where did Sesshomaru get his idiotic ideas about humans from. His mother seemed to be a bitch – both literally and figuratively.

The dog demon ignored the remark and went straight to the point.

"You must have heard from father, that Tenseiga opens the gate to the netherworld." Sesshomaru said.

"Really?" the demoness answered with a question, touching the stone pendant. "He left me only this Meidou Stone."

"Meidou Stone?" the inu-youkai repeated.

"He asked me to use it, if you ever show up." The demon woman said. Mai furrowed her brows. Sesshomaru didn't visit his own mother for two hundred years? What kind of son was he? The girl looked at the woman, who was holding the Meidou Stone in her hands. "Right, he mentioned something else. He said, that when I use it, you'll be in danger. However, I will not be sad because of that."

"She doesn't look worried." Rin whispered. Mai and Jaken narrowed their eyes at the demoness. The girl, thought, that the woman must have had a terribly destructive influence on Sesshomaru's personality. No wonder he turned out somewhat twisted.

"Tell me, Sesshomaru, for I have dilemma." The mother said, closing her eyes. Her son looked irritated.

"Hn." He snorted. "You are talking nonsense."
The demoness opened her eyes and lifted the Meidou Stone, that emitted a gleam.

"Entertain me, then." She said in a dry tone and suddenly a large black shape of a dog sprouted from the Meidou Stone.

Sesshomaru immediately ripped Tenseiga out of the sheath.

"Meidou Zangetsuha!" he cried, swinging the sword at the dog, that was flying right at him and his group. The inu-youkai sent the black crescent at the opponent, but without any effect.

"So that are those gates to the netherworld." The demoness said, casually resting her head on the hand. "There is still a long way ahead, till they open completely."

"What?!" Jaken squeaked. "Sesshomaru-sama's sword can't cut him?!"

"This is a dog from netherworld." The mother explained, turning to her son. "Sesshomaru, it looks like you still cannot use the sword well."

Then everything happened so fast. The last thing Mai saw, was the black dog leaping towards her and children, before the huge jaws opened, showing the sharp teeth.



Author Note:

Hey,
It's great that you're reviewing so enthusiastically - yesterday I had update twice! Please keep on good work. In the meantime I present the "castle-arc" to you. Enjoy reading and leave me a comment please. Goodnight to you!

Chapter 125

The old promise




Everything happened so fast… The huge dog was about to swallow Mai along with Rin, when the girl suddenly felt a strong push from the side. Startled, she let go of the child and fell on the ground. It was Kohaku, who pushed her out of the monster's way. In a moment later, the dog got the kids, swallowing them and leapt through the gate, that Sesshomaru's Meidou Zangetsuha left. Shocked Mai was still sitting on her butt, not moving, as though not believing what just happened.

Sesshomaru leapt after the dog, despite his mother's warning and the gate closed. Mai heard Jaken calling his master's name and the demoness lamenting in a obviously fake, overdone way. The girl narrowed her eyes at the woman. How could she be that cruel to make the dog from netherworld kidnap the kids and send her son to almost sure death? Glaring daggers at the female inu-youkai, she stood up and joined Jaken. The imp began begging the demoness to spare Sesshomaru the cruel fate, but she remained cold. The mother was observing everything, what was happening with her son and the children, in the Meidou Stone and commented it loudly. Jaken was weeping and Mai felt extremely worried for their companions. She was sure, that Sesshomaru would rather obliterate the entire netherworld, than let anything happen to the little girl, but the situation looked poorly. It turned out, that humans were unable to stay living in the other world – Kohaku regained consciousness only thanks to the jewel shard in his neck, but Rin wasn't breathing.

"The girl must die." The dog demoness stated. Mai and Jaken gasped, the girl felt the tears welling in the corner of her eyes. Impossible… Surely, there was something, Sesshomaru could do. There must be something!

"It's impossible!" Jaken exclaimed, still kneeling before the youkai woman.

"She could come back to life, if Tenseiga defeats the guardian of afterlife." The demoness said, restoring hope in Mai's heart. "But that would never happen. The guardian is beneath the darkness and no one managed to return from it. Either way, the girl cannot be saved."

Mai clenched her fists, pissed, by how indifferent Sesshomaru's mother was about Rin's life.

"You're wrong." She said, gaining the youkai woman's attention. "Sesshomaru will save her, no matter what. Even if no one did it before, he will."

The dog demoness send her a piercing gaze, as though she acknowledged Mai's presence just now.

"How could you be so sure of that?" she asked, maintaining her stoic face. Mai looked at her with determination in her eyes.

"Sesshomaru is the most stubborn person, I've ever met. If he wants to achieve something he will do it." She stated, believing the every word she said. The demoness gazed at her for a moment, before turning her attention back to the Meidou Stone.

"So he went into the darkness." She said.

"What will I do, if Sesshomaru-sama won't return?" Jaken wailed. Sesshomaru's mother returned to ignoring Mai's presence.

"Imp." She addressed Jaken.

"Jaken, my lady." Mai's green friend said through the tears.

"I am no cruel monster." The female inu-youkai said. "I will be sad, if my son dies during the training, so I will open a way for him."

"You're amazing, lady mother!" Jaken exclaimed enthusiastically. Mai folded her arms.

"He won't return without Rin sound and safe." She muttered, but no one paid any attention to her.

The demoness lifted the Meidou Stone and the way to the afterworld appeared, with Sesshomaru on
the other side.

"Come, Sesshomaru!" his mother called. "You have the chance to return to our world. However know, that the gates will close soon. If it happens so, you will not be able to return to this world!"

Mai furrowed her brows, having decided to act.

"Sesshomaru!" she shouted. "You have to kill the guardian of the netherworld to revive Rin!"

Mai saw the dog demon nodding, that he understood, and leaving into the darkness. After a short while, the gates closed. Jaken glared at Mai.

"What have you done, stupid!" he scolded the girl. "Do you want Sesshomaru-sama to die?!"

Mai looked at the imp.

"He'll return." She said "I believe in him."

The demoness looked at Mai with strange expression in her eyes, but Jaken gained her attention again.

"What will happen to Sesshomaru-sama?" he asked. The female inu-youkai looked displeased.

"Tch! That fool did not listen to me. He does not want to return." She answered, glaring directly at Mai. The girl gulped. "He ignored his mother's kindness. What a mean child!"

Both Sesshomaru's servants were staring at her dumbfounded. Jaken let out a squeal and Mai began to pity the dog demon – he must have had a tough childhood with such a mother.

The tension was getting stronger. The demoness was gazing at the Meidou Stone, while Jaken and Mai waited for her to say something. The girl was worried more and more, even though she believed with all her heart, that Sesshomaru would save Rin and safely come back. However, a seed of doubt began sprouting in her soul. What if he failed? What if Rin, the ever-cheerful foster little sister died?

What if he would die too? Mai lost too many close people already and didn't want to lose more. She felt, that her palms were sweating.

"It is odd." The demoness finally spoke. "Even though he defeated the guardian, the girl is still dead. Imp." She addressed Jaken.

"My name is Jaken. You are doing it on purpose." He said in a pained voice. The demoness didn't pay any attention to his protests.

"Was the girl revived by Tenseiga already?" she asked.

"Y-yes. What about it?" Jaken replied.

"So she will not return to life." The demoness said in an emotionless tone.

Mai's eyes widened in shock, as she felt a sudden stab of pain in her chest.

"What do you mean?" she uttered. Sesshomaru's mother looked at her coldly.

"Tenseiga can revive a person only once. It seems, that this chance has been used already." She said.

Mai felt her body stiffen and tears began welling in her eyes. Rin was dead? She would never see her happy smile again… never play with her, never teach the child anything new. Another dear person had been taken from Mai. She shook her head, refusing to believe it. No, it couldn't be!

"Meidou Zangetsuha!" Sesshomaru's voice bellowed.

Mai turned her head towards the source of the voice and saw the gate to the netherworld open, much bigger than before. Sesshomaru and the children returned to the normal world – Kohaku was beside the demon, but Rin's lifeless body was hanging limply in the inu-youkai's arm. Mai covered her mouth with her hand, realizing, that it was all true. Sesshomaru didn't manage to save Rin.

"Rin…" Mai whispered, tears streaming down her face, as she approached Sesshomaru. The demon looked at her, sad expression in his golden eyes and shook his head. The girl began sobbing uncontrollably. The inu-youkai carried the body to the throne and carefully laid Rin down. He touched the child's face, silently bidding farewell to his ward, before turning to his mother.

"Did you know, that she will end like this?" he demanded.

Mai ran to the dead child and scooped her lifeless body in her arms, not stopping sobbing. She brushed the dark strands aside, to see Rin's face. It looked so peaceful, as though she was sleeping.
However, her skin was getting colder and colder, reminding Mai, that it was a corpse, she was holding.

Sesshomaru's mother lectured the demon about the importance of the desire to save the beloved person and the pain after losing her. The girl gritted her teeth. Rin died, so Sesshomaru could learn how to master his sword? Mai looked at Sesshomaru's mother with hatred in her eyes.

"How could you let this happen?!" she shouted at the demoness, tears flowing from her eyes. "Rin was an innocent child. She didn't deserve to die!"

The youkai woman looked at her indifferently.

"This sacrifice was needed to help my son master Tenseiga." She replied calmly. Mai glared daggers at Sesshomaru's mother. How anyone could be so cruel?

"You don't deserve to call yourself a mother!" She hissed out to the demoness, clutching Rin's lifeless little body. "A real mother wouldn't do such a thing to her own son!"

The silver-haired woman narrowed her eyes at Mai, irritated by the remark, before turning to her son.

"Are you sad, Sesshomaru?" she asked. The demon didn't answer, but his eyes, as he was gazing at dead Rin, told everything. His mother took off the pendant with the Meidou Stone.

"Do not expect to get another chance." She said, approaching the human girls. Mai looked up, surprised, what did the woman want. Instinctively, she wanted to shield the child's lifeless body from the demoness, but Sesshomaru's mother sent her a sharp look. The human girl didn't move, as the demoness laid the Meidou Stone on Rin's chest. The gem began emitting bright light, that engulfed the child's small frame. Mai gasped, as she saw the kid draw first breath and cough.

"Rin!" she exclaimed, pulling the child closer to her chest and laughing through the tears.

Sesshomaru's eyes widened at the sight of Rin's revival. Jaken and Kohaku also called Rin's name, moving closer to her and greeting her with happy smiles on their faces. Mai released the kid from her tight grip, letting the others welcome the child back among the living. She saw the silver-haired demon quickly walking towards them. He sat at the edge of the seat and gently touched Rin's cheek, his eyes glistening with joy. The child put her small hand on his big one.

"Sesshomaru-sama." She said quietly.

"Everything is all right now." He said.

Mai felt, that she was getting emotional. She wiped the tears from her face with the sleeve. Damn, Sesshomaru looked so fatherly now – he really must have loved the kid. She grabbed Rin and pushed her towards Sesshomaru.

"Here, hug her." She said to the demon, who looked at her quizzically. He stared at her, but when Mai narrowed her eyes, he pressed Rin tightly against his chest, stroking her head with his clawed hand. The older girl smiled widely at the sight. The child looked back at her and reached out.

"Mai." She said. Mai nodded and sat closer to Rin and Sesshomaru, also hugging the child and ignoring how the three of them must have looked like now. It didn't matter. The most important was, that the kid was sound and safe.

Sesshomaru's mother was looking at her son with the two human females with slightly disgusted look on her face. She glanced at Jaken.

"Imp, who is this girl to Sesshomaru?" she asked quietly. The green demon wiped the tears of happiness from his face.

"The child is Sesshomaru-sama's ward." He replied.

"The other one." The demoness corrected herself. Jaken looked at her.

"Mai is his servant, just like me. She's Rin's attendant." He answered. The youkai woman furrowed her brows.

"A servant?" she muttered to herself.



Sometime later, Sesshomaru and his group were preparing to leave. The demon and his companions were just walking away, when the silver-haired youkai called her son.

"Sesshomaru, did you not forget anything?" she asked. Sesshomaru stopped abruptly and tensed.

"My business here is done." He stated, not turning back. Mai glanced behind and saw his mother stalking down the stairs. Personally, she wanted to get out of here as soon as possible. Now, she didn't blame Sesshomaru at all for not visiting his parent in two hundred years.

"Sesshomaru!" the demoness hissed. The inu-youkai hesitantly turned around to face his mother. The woman came closer and glared at her son in familiarly intimidating way.

"We agreed on something." She said slowly. Sesshomaru glared back at her.

"I do not have time for this now." He hissed out. The demoness narrowed her eyes.

"Two hundred years ago we agreed, that you will be free to do what you want, in exchange for one small favor to your poor mother. You swore on your father's grave!" She said. The dog demon looked away.

"I will visit you sometime later." He flipped her words off, turning away and preparing to leave.

"Tch!" his mother hissed. "You ungrateful child! I will not let you get away again. I require your presence at the feast tonight or you can consider our agreement cancelled."

With those words she whirled around and made her way up the stairs. Mai saw Sesshomaru clench his fist. She was eager to know, what the agreement was exactly about. What was that favor, that the demon owed his mother?

The silver-haired youkai didn't move for a while, an annoyed expression on his face. Then, he turned around and followed his mother. Jaken and the humans trotted behind him.

"Sesshomaru-sama?" Jaken asked. "Excuse my curiosity, but what is that agreement about?"
Mai, suddenly interested, looked at the demon, who clenched his teeth. Sesshomaru's mother stopped and turned around.

"Do you want to know, imp?" she asked, with slightly amused look on her face.

"It's Jaken, my lady. Yes, I would like to know!" Jaken said eagerly, gaining a murderous glare from his master. Mai was also curious, what was the mysterious promise, that pissed the dog demon so.

The female inu-youkai smiled.

"I promised my son not to bother him, while he's free to travel, where he wants. In return, he is to marry the maiden, I choose for his bride, once he shows up in my castle."

Jaken and the humans gasped.

Chapter 126

The chaos at the engagement feast




"Marry?!" Jaken squeaked, gawking at Sesshomaru. Mai opened her mouth agape, equally shocked. Sesshomaru and getting married?

The dog demoness send a fake smile at her son.

"If you wish our agreement to remain unchanged, Sesshomaru, oblige. A demon at your age should find himself a spouse and produce a heir, after all and I am eager to see my grandchildren in this century." She said, angering the male inu-youkai more. Sesshomaru was glaring at her murderously, but said nothing to protest. His mother didn't even flinch. "What will you do, Sesshomaru?"
The demon stayed silent for a while, taking part in a staring contest with his mother. Finally, he spoke.

"I have sworn on my father's grave." He said. "Therefore I will not take back my word."

The demoness's eyes brightened and she clapped her hands happily.

"Splendid!" she exclaimed. "You will meet your betrothed at the feast. Come with me. You can take your servants with you, if you wish."

She turned around, swishing with her furry uchike, and began walking away. Sesshomaru followed her instantly and the rest of the group rushed after the silver-haired demon. Mai and Jaken stayed a little behind, letting the children run first.

"I don't believe, that Sesshomaru-sama is getting married." Jaken whispered to Mai.

The girl stared at the silver-haired demon's back for a while. The news needed some time to soak in. It was simply too much happening with Rin dying and being unexpectedly saved. To hear, that due some promise made to his mother, Sesshomaru will be meeting his fiancée today and will marry…

Mai knew, that it was hopelessly stupid, but she felt uneasy and jealous. She touched her silver hairpin – it was a precious item, that reminded her, that the demon could be kind to her and would never leave her in trouble. Now, she felt somewhat guilty wearing it. Once he had a wife, it would be suspicious, if he was rescuing some human girl all the time. His wife surely wouldn't like it. He would have stay with his bride instead of running around, while dragging Mai and Rin with him. The girl didn't want Sesshomaru to marry and leave them – she wanted everything to stay the way it was before.

"Me neither." She whispered back to the imp. "What about the search for Naraku?"

"Don't worry. It is common, that women stay at home, while husbands are away on some missions."

The imp answered. "It's rare for women to travel along."

"Oh." Mai uttered. It was a little bit of a relief, that Sesshomaru's future bride probably wouldn't tag along and their journey would continue till Naraku is dead, but it would never be the same.

Mai sighed. She was quite confused about the reason, why she was that upset. According to Jaken, nothing would really change – they would still travel together and Sesshomaru would still be her boss, but there was something else… Mai's hand wandered to her neck, as the girl wondered, if the kiss marks disappeared already. Almost immediately she scolded herself for even having such thoughts. It was silly to think about how he kissed her that time – he didn't even know, what he was doing! It was totally wrong to get some strange ideas because of that incident. It was not like she was in love with him… She may liked him more, maybe a lot more… but…

"Mai!" Jaken's voice exclaimed and the punch with Nintoujou helped her get back to the reality. The girl didn't even realize, when they reached their destination. She heard her stomach rumbling – a sign, that the feast was needed, despite the little fact, that they would get to know Sesshomaru's brand new fiancée. She tried not to think of it. What right she had to stick her nose into her boss's private life anyway?

The group was standing in front of huge, decorative door, guarded by the youkai soldiers. Out of nowhere some servants appeared, also demons. One of them bowed curtly before Sesshomaru's mother.

"Sayuri-sama, everything is ready for your arrival." He said politely, apparently addressing the demoness by her name.

The female youkai nodded and the door was slid open. Mai stopped herself from gasping with all her willpower. That, what she saw, didn't match, what she expected. She thought, that they will participate in some sort of a family dinner, but behind the door was an enormous courtyard, serving as a dining hall.

The sakura trees were in full bloom, what was odd at this season of the year. Inside there were gathered about a hundred well-clad demons, almost everyone in their human-like forms. The servants were standing quietly in the background. The tables were set, but no one touched the food yet. At the sight of various dishes Mai's stomach rumbled even louder. She clutched it discreetly, praying for no one to pay any attention. At the sight of such luxuries, she was relieved, that she decided to wear her best kimono today – it paled in the comparison with other women's attires though. The girl grabbed Rin's hand, motioning the child to stick to her.

Sesshomaru and his mother began walking towards their places in the middle of the courtyard. Jaken trotted right next to his leg. Mai and the kids also rushed after their boss, but the servants blocked their way.

"You will be seated at the other table." The servant said, sending Mai and the kids a look full of disdain. The girl furrowed her brow, seeing, that they let Jaken through without making him any problems – so the issue was, that they were humans. She gritted her teeth.

"Move!" she hissed to the servant, shoving him aside. "We're with Sesshomaru."

Both inu-youkai turned around to see, what caused the commotion. Lady Sayuri arched her eyebrow and turned to her son.

"Did you not teach your humans their place, Sesshomaru?" she asked quietly. The dog demon furrowed his brows, obviously angered at the remark.

"Kohaku," he addressed the most reasonable human. "take the females to their seats."
With those words he turned around and followed his mother, not even bothering to look at Mai. The girl clenched her teeth, pissed how inferior she was treated again. The worst was, that Sesshomaru was totally okay with that.

"Follow me!" the demon servant nagged and Kohaku pulled Mai after himself.

The girl followed the boy, not stopping glaring daggers at Sesshomaru. The servant led them to the furthest table in the corner of the courtyard, where most of the youkai guests were not even able to take the shape close to human – Mai figured out, that they must be some lesser demons. She felt her blood boil at the thought, that they had the worst table. The servant pointed the three empty seats and left without delay. Mai and Kohaku sat on the sides, having Rin sit between them. On the girl's left side was sitting a furry youkai, resembling Chewbacca from Star Wars. She looked at the other guests, that were staring at their little group with disapproval.

"To think, that Sayuri-sama let the humans sit at the same table with us. What was she thinking!" one of the bird-like demons fussed. Her companion nodded eagerly.

"Scandalous!" he agreed. Mai sent the pair the murderous look.

"Peaches!" Rin, exclaimed pointing the fruit and gained Mai's attention, who saw, that the kid couldn't reach. She grabbed two fruit and placed on the child's table.

"Here you go " she said passing Rin the peaches. The child smiled gratefully and sank her teeth in the fruit. Mai felt hateful glances concentrate on her and the kid. She glared back at the demons, refusing to be intimidated by them. She was sure, that no harm would befall the humans, who are Sesshomaru's companions.

"What?" she snapped. The youkai kept sending her disdainful glances, but one of them answered her.

"You are not supposed to start eating before Sayuri-sama and Sesshomaru-sama." The Chewbacca-like demon hissed to her. Mai arched her eyebrow.

"I doubt, that Sesshomaru would want his ward to starve because of a protocol. Take it as an exception." She talked back. The youkai were startled by her attitude – they must have expected her to be terrified and obedient.

"A human has no right to speak in a such an impertinent way to a youkai." The bird demoness said, eying Mai hatefully. The girl returned the glare. No way, that she'd let them treat them so! She spend some time in the Asakura castle, so she knew how to show them, how princessing was done!

"A lesser demon like you has hardly any right to open its beak in the presence of a royal princess."

She said high-and-mighty. She smirked inwardly, seeing, that the demons at the table went red with anger – apparently calling them 'lesser demos' pulled a string. Surely they wanted to rip her in shreds, but the fear of Sesshomaru and his mother refrained them from doing so. Mai felt awfully good, having put them in place – it made her humor better.

"It is Sesshomaru-sama's bride!" the male bird-youkai hissed, pointing someone with his claw.

All the demons abruptly turned to see the mysterious woman. Mai didn't really want to know, who she was, but she felt curiosity too. She craned her neck and straightened her back to see something, because Sesshomaru's table was quite far from theirs. The girl could discern a woman's silhouette. She had beautiful, long hair and wore a colorful multi-layered attire, really impressive. When she turned around to smile at Sesshomaru, Mai saw her face.

"No…" she whispered, clenching her fists, till the knuckles turned white. "Not her."

The woman was the crane demoness Kasumi. Mai was sending poisonous glares at the perfect pair, as Kasumi sat down, nearly glowing at Sesshomaru's side.

"Mai, are you okay?" Rin asked, concerned. Mai averted her hateful gaze from the main table and smiled at the child faintly. She was about to say some makeshift lie, but Kohaku helped her out, distracting Rin.

"Rin, don't bother Mai-sama. Do you want me to peel an apple for you?" he asked. The little girl nodded happily.

Mai set her gaze on the table, putting her hands on her knees and clutching the fabric of her kimono.

Why of all women must it be that smug bitch Kasumi? She would rather have Sesshomaru marry Naraku than that despicable… youkai. The most infuriating was, how pretty they looked together – as though they were born for each other.

The girl sat still for a longer while, not bothering to look up. She heard the youkai feasting and chatting about Sesshomaru and his bride, Kohaku was entertaining Rin. Mai's stomach rumbled, reminding her, that she didn't eat anything since breakfast. She decided to quit mopping and enjoy the feast as well. She just had to distract herself somehow. She looked around, not being able to decide, which dish seemed to be the most delicious. Then, a servant laid a large plate with roasted meat right in front of Rin. Mai's eyes brightened – meat was the thing, she craved for. She cut the piece off, enthusiastically, and put on her plate.

"Rin, Kohaku, do you want some?" she asked the children.

Both of them nodded, also wanting to eat the hot roast. Mai cut off the pieces for the kids and turned her attention to her own plate. She reached to grab a bowl of rice and poured herself some water. Then, she gripped the chopsticks. The girl was about to put the piece of roast into her mouth, when Kohaku suddenly grabbed her wrist, reaching over Rin's head. Surprised, Mai looked at the boy, who had a determined expression on his face.

"Don't eat it, Mai-sama." He said quietly.

"Don't eat it." Kohaku repeated, holding Mai's wrist. When she nodded, he let go of her hand and the girl slowly put the piece of the roast back on her plate. Immediately she pushed away Rin's plate.

"Mai, I wanted to eat that!" the child protested. Mai sent her a scolding look.

"Don't argue, kid. You won't eat that. Period." She said to the pouting Rin and turned to Kohaku, who noticeably tensed. "Kohaku, what's wrong?"

The boy motioned her with a gesture to get closer. She leaned over Rin, so that Kohaku could whisper to her ear.

"This meat… it's a human's meat." He explained whispering. Mai pulled back, shocked, to look at the boy's face.

"Are you sure?" she asked nervously.

Kohaku nodded with a serious expression in his eyes. Mai set her gaze on the roast – at the first sight it didn't look out of ordinary, it could be easily mistaken with pig's meat, but when she looked closer she could make out a shape of a human torso. The girl covered her mouth with her sleeve, feeling a wave of nausea washing over her body. If Kohaku hadn't stopped her, she would have eaten a human meat. What a disgusting thought!

With a corner of her eye she saw Rin reaching for her plate. Mai slapped the kid's hand gently.

"Rin, I said not to eat that." Mai reminded the child.

The Chewbacca-like youkai laughed and the two bird demons, along with other guests at their table joined them. The bird demoness flashed a fake smile at Mai.

"Are you not eating the main course, princess?" she asked in a mocking tone. "This is the specialty of castle kitchen."

Mai glared at the demons angrily. She looked at Sesshomaru, who was sitting calmly between his mother and Kasumi, listening to the crane demoness, that was talking with a graceful smile. Mai furrowed her brows. The asshole left them sitting in some corner, while the demons were happily eating the people like her, Rin or Kohaku. How could he?! She stood up abruptly, grabbing Rin's hand.

"Mai, what…" Rin started, but Mai pulled her closer to herself and turned her attention to the demon-slayer.

"Kohaku, we're leaving." She said firmly and made her way towards the main table. The boy stood up and ran to catch up with her.

"But, Mai-sama, Sesshomaru-sama won't like it!" the boy berated her, but Mai didn't answer. She didn't care whether this demonic bastard would like it or not, but she will not stay any minute longer in the company of the man-eaters. She stalked to where Sesshomaru and the both demonesses sat – his mother and the beautiful fiancée. The youkai seated by the most prestigious table lifted their heads to look at the human girl, who came dragging the children behind. The two dog demons sent her identical cold disapproving glares. Mai locked Sesshomaru on.

"We're leaving." She stated shortly. "By the way, the main course was a killer. I hope, that you choke on it."

Mai turned on her heel, before Sesshomaru even got a chance to think of a reply and made her way towards the exit, dragging Rin behind her and leaving confused Kohaku behind. Rin looked back at the silver-haired demon, feeling torn between him and Mai. Seeing her hesitation, the older girl hurried her.

"Come on, Rin. Do you want to be eaten too?" she asked. The kid shook her head.

"Woman." Sesshomaru spoke, glaring at her. "Go back to your seat."

Mai glanced over her shoulder at him.

"I won't." she said. The demon narrowed his eyes at her.

"I warn you…" he began, but Mai interrupted him.

"Or what? I will serve as a main course?" she snapped at him. Seeing the inu-youkai furrowing his brows, she gave him a hint. "Ask your dear mother, what she gave us to eat."

Sesshomaru glared at Mai for some seconds, before turning to lady Sayuri. He lifted his eyebrow, sending her a questioning look. The demoness called one of the servants with a gesture.

"What is on the guest menu as a main course tonight?" she asked him. The servant bowed deeply, before answering.

"Human, my lady."

Sesshomaru's eyes widened slightly and Mai lifted her chin higher, having proven her point.

"We'll wait in the stables with Ah-Un. Probably that's more suitable place for humans than here." She said and was back on her way to the exit, dragging Rin and Kohaku along. Sesshomaru frowned.

"Get back here." He growled. Mai didn't look back.

"Make me." She said in a mocking tone, not bothering to glance at him.

The demon abruptly stood up and went after Mai. The girl stopped, as Rin hung on her sleeve, dragging the older girl back to the dog demon with all might, the child could muster.

Kasumi gripped the sleeve of Sesshomaru's haori, trying to stop him.

"Sesshomaru, where are you going?" she asked him sharply. "Do not say, that you intend to follow that pathetic humans of yours!"

The dog demon pulled the fabric out of Kasumi's fingers and the demoness frowned.

"The place of a human is on your plate and not by your side!" the crane-youkai reprimanded Sesshomaru, standing up and coming after him.

The dog demon sent her an icy-cold look, but said nothing to defend his human companions. Mai let go of Rin's hand and stalked back to her boss, furious about his lack of reaction. How could he let anyone say a things like that around his little ward! Sesshomaru glanced at angered Mai and then at equally furious Kasumi, considering the options he had.

"This Sesshomaru does not have time for the foolishness of you females." He said, sending both the human girl and the crane demoness a scolding look. "I still have the business to take care of. Farewell, mother."

The last words were addressed to lady Sayuri, who until now sat still behind the table, observing the commotion with discontented face. Hearing, that her son wanted to leave, she stiffened and stood up, glaring at the younger inu-youkai.

"Do you intend to break your word, Sesshomaru?" she demanded. The demons gathered on the courtyard gasped.

"Hn." The dog demon refused to look his mother into the eye. "I merely postpone fulfilling of the promise."

Mai saw, that the faces of Kasumi and lady Sayuri were flushed from anger. The girl didn't really expect the whole situation to turn into such a show – the demon guests were observing the group by the main table with noticeable excitement, like some soccer fans or grannies watching their favorite soap opera. At first, she was focusing only at her own anger, but it was getting really interesting now. She hoped, that Sesshomaru would decide to leave right away.

Kasumi snapped, abandoning her façade of a demure lady. She clenched her fists, so that her claws punctured the flesh of her palms and the blood began dripping onto the floor. There was a flicker of red in her sapphire eyes, as she set her angry gaze on Sesshomaru.

"I will not let you elude me again, Sesshomaru!" she hissed through her clenched teeth. "You made me wait too long and put me through enough humiliation already. You have to marry me now and fulfill the promise."

The dog demon turned his back to her.

"You will not tell this Sesshomaru what to do. I do not wish you to be my spouse." He retorted.

"What?!" Kasumi shrieked "! I was promised to be a mother of your son! My child is to be the strongest demon alive!"

"I am not interested in your plans." Sesshomaru replied calmly. His attitude angered Kasumi even more. The demoness opened her mouth to begin another tirade, but lady Sayuri interrupted her, addressing Sesshomaru.

"Sesshomaru, do you really intend to leave immediately?" she asked, filling a cup with sake. The male inu-youkai looked at her.

"I do." He replied.

Mai smiled inwardly, suddenly feeling a lot better, especially seeing Kasumi boiling with anger and been rejected by Sesshomaru.

"I understand. It your decision." Lady Sayuri said, surprisingly easy complying with her son, given how strongly she insisted on the wedding. She raised the cup filled with sake and slowly made her way to the younger dog demon. She lifted the cup. "Sesshomaru, I offer you this sake as a sign, that we parted in peace."

Sesshomaru took the cup, that lady Sayuri gave him, and nodded. While he was lifting it to his lips, Mai noticed the dog demoness and Kasumi swiftly exchanging glances. Something was not right. The crane-youkai didn't look so angered anymore – she was back to being a perfect and graceful lady, the charming smile back on her lips. The human girl looked back at Sesshomaru's mother, who was also smiling kindly, what was strange considering, that her son just disobeyed her and humiliated in front of all the guests. The two demonesses looked like they were plotting something – the sudden change of their attitude hinted that.

The male inu-youkai emptied the cup with one gulp and handed the cup back to his mother. Lady

Sayuri smiled again and stepped back. Suddenly, she smirked maliciously.

"I did not want to do this to my own son, but you are too stubborn, Sesshomaru, and I really wish to see my grandchildren soon." She said. The dog demon furrowed his brows at her words. Lady Sayuri put the empty cup back on the table and decided to explain. "You've just drunk a potent potion, my son."

The male inu-youkai cast a sharp look at her.

"What potion?" he snapped angrily at his mother. There could be Kasumi's laughter heard. The crane-demoness modestly covered her mouth with the sleeve.

"Do you want to know?" she asked, teasingly. Sesshomaru didn't seem to be amused. Kasumi uncovered her mouth. "I will tell you then. After you drank it, you will be able to father a child only of the woman, who touches you right after the potion begins to circle in your bloodstream. Whether you want it or not, I will become a mother of your son."

"You…" Sesshomaru glared at the crane-youkai, furious, as his eyes turned scarlet and the demon markings on his cheeks jagged.

"Kasumi, it is the time!" lady Sayuri cried, giving Kasumi the signal to execute their plot till the end.

The crane demoness vanished, using her demonic speed, that almost matched Sesshomaru's.
Mai watched with wide-opened eyed, as the dog demon also vanished from the place, where he was standing, in attempt to flee the crane-youkai's grip. The both demons moved so fast, that the human girl's eyes were unable to follow them, seeing only blurred shapes.
Suddenly, the both demons stilled, Kasumi gripping Sesshomaru's wrist with a triumphant smile.

Chapter 127

The unexpected outcome




Mai was staring at the strange scene, dumbfounded. Kasumi was holding Sesshomaru's wrist with a self-satisfied smile on her face and the dog demon's clawed fingers were entwining Mai's palm. The girl gawked at her hand, that was being crushed in the inu-youkai's tight grip. Suddenly, she felt a shot of pain through her flesh in the exact place, where Sesshomaru's skin was touching hers.

"Ouch!" she yelped, trying to pull back the aching palm, thinking, that maybe the dog demon accidentally let out some poison from his claws.

At her cry Kasumi's smile dropped from her face, as she let go of Sesshomaru's wrist.

"I don't understand…" the crane-youkai muttered. The dog demon also released Mai. The girl swiftly pulled back, clutching her palm. As she examined it, the girl saw burn marks on her skin.

Seeing, what had happened, lady Sayuri tensed and, moving with demonic speed, appeared suddenly before Mai. The girl yelped, surprised, and tried to step back.

"Show me your hand." The demoness demanded. The girl shook her head and attempted to hide it behind her back. However, the demoness swiftly grabbed her wrist and brought the girl's hand closer, examining it. When she saw the burns, she gasped, her eyes wide-opened in shock.

"Sesshomaru, what have you done?!" she exclaimed. The dog demon looked at her indifferently.

"If anyone is to blame, it would be you." He retorted. The female inu- youkai glared at her son, fury on her face. However, before she released her anger, she looked around and realized, what show their group was just putting. "The three of you. We will discuss those matters alone."

The demoness started walking away, dragging struggling Mai behind her. Both the crane-youkai and Sesshomaru followed her right away, accompanied by the children and Jaken.

"Let go of me!" Mai hissed to lady Sayuri, but she only send her an intimidating glare, an oddly familiar one, and kept walking. Finally, she reached an empty room and pushed Mai inside, coming in after her. The girl instinctively ran to Sesshomaru and stayed behind his back, along with his other servant and the human kids. She couldn't not notice the murderous looks, that Kasumi kept sending her.

Lady Sayuri sighed and began massaging her temples.

"I think, that we have a delicate situation here." She said slowly, before turning to Kasumi. "Kasumi, you can take your leave now. Your presence is no longer required."

The crane demoness stared at Sesshomaru's mother in disbelief, looking as though she just had been slapped. She glanced quickly at the male inu-youkai, who was standing still like a statue, and then back at lady Sayuri.

"B-but…" she stuttered. "The wedding… I was supposed to marry Sesshomaru tomorrow!"

The dog demoness glared at her.

"Are you an idiot?" she snapped. "I will not have my son marry a woman, who will not be able to bear his offspring!"

Kasumi's eyes began tearing from anger, as she clenched her fists and sent Mai a hateful look.

"You would rather have him marry some weak human female?!" she shrieked, losing control over her behavior and breaking in tears.

Mai gawked at her. What the hell was she talking about? It's not like she was going to marry the demonic asshole just because he grabbed her hand to escape Kasumi, right? The rejected crane-youkai must have gone paranoid and was talking nonsense. Mai snorted at the mere thought of herself getting married to Sesshomaru – it would be surreal. Not to say, that the dog demon would probably rather commit seppuku than become involved with a human like Mai. She relaxed, feeling relatively safe, and observed the turn of the events, that was becoming more and more dramatic with Kasumi sobbing and threatening Sesshomaru's mother. The source of the quarrel, the silver-haired dog demon, stood with indifferent expression on his face.

"Calm down, Kasumi. Your tears will not make me change my mind." Lady Sayuri said coldly, before turning to her son. "I do not like the idea, but you will marry this human girl." She said, pointing with her clawed finger directly at Mai.

After her words, silence fell, but it turned abruptly into chaos. The human girl slowly came to realization, what the demoness just said.

"WHAT?!" Mai and Kasumi exclaimed simultaneously, while Jaken gave out a series of shocked squeaks. Rin and Kohaku opened their mouths agape. The only calm ones were Sesshomaru and his mother. The dog demon's only reaction was furrowing his brows. Lady Sayuri seemed to be irritated by the commotion.

"Enough!" she exclaimed. "My decision is final. The wedding will take place tomorrow."

"I'm not marrying anyone!" Mai shouted, shocked by the unexpected twist of the events. "Especially not this arrogant jerk!"

"A human will not touch my Sesshomaru!" Kasumi yelled, her eyes turning scarlet and demonic aura swirling around her frame. Jaken squeaked, seeing the reaction of the crane-youkai, but he also wanted to defend Sesshomaru's honor.

"Sesshomaru-sama will not lower himself to taking a human as his spouse!" he exclaimed, waving with Nintoujou. Rin frowned at his words and smacked him.

"Congratulations, Sesshomaru-sama!" the child exclaimed cheerfully, happy as never before in her short life.

"ENOUGH!" Lady Sayuri bellowed, silencing everyone. She glared at the noisy group and focused her anger on Kasumi. "Kasumi, go back to your father."

"But…" the demoness began, but closed her mouth, seeing youki swirling around the dog demoness, as she approached the crane youkai.

"Get out." Sesshomaru's mother said calmly, her voice made a shiver go down Mai's spine. Kasumi was also intimidated by the female inu-youkai and, without saying a word, she turned on her heel, storming out of the room. The sliding door nearly broke from the force she put in closing them behind her.

Lady Sayuri looked at her son.

"Tell your servants to wait outside." She said. The dog demon glanced at the green imp.

"Jaken, take Rin and Kohaku out." He ordered. Jaken, slightly disappointed, that he had to leave, ushered the children out of the room. Mai rushed after them, thinking, that if the servants were to wait outside, she was counted in.

"She stays." Lady Sayuri decided and Mai stopped abruptly, when she felt Sesshomaru's hand pulling her obi from behind. Hesitantly, she turned around to face the dog demoness. The girl was not eager to stay with her and Sesshomaru – she had a really bad hunch about this.

Once the three of them was alone in the room, the male inu-youkai decided to finally voice his opinion.

"I have no intention of going along with your schemes, mother." He stated. "There will be no wedding."

Mai let out a relieved breath. Thanks god, Sesshomaru wasn't so stupid to agree to this madness as well. However, lady Sayuri didn't look as happy as the girl. She frowned at her son.

"You gave me your word, that you will marry and produce a heir, when we meet again. The circumstances are… unfortunate," she cast a doubtful look at Mai. "but the word is word nonetheless."

"Hn." Sesshomaru narrowed his eyes. "Do you wish to have a hanyou grandson so badly?"

The demoness countered his glare.

"A hanyou grandson is better than none at all." She retorted. "You will marry this human girl!"

Mai observed the stare contest between mother and son. The situation was… weird, to say at least. The girl was still in the first shock and the repercussions of the possible outcome didn't reach her brain yet. Besides, she felt somewhat left out – no one even bothered to ask her, what she thought about the ridiculous issue.

"I don't…" Mai began, but was interrupted by Sesshomaru, who suddenly grabbed her arm and pushed her towards the exit.

"I will not marry the human." He hissed and was about to leave, dragging the girl along, but lady Sayuri blocked his way, appearing before him out of nowhere.

"I will not be lenient, son." She warned him. "I give you two choices: either our agreement is cancelled and you are stuck in the castle instead of me or you will wear your wedding kimono tomorrow. The choice is yours, Sesshomaru."

Mai felt the demon tensing. She expected him to protest and leave right away, but he was standing still, not giving any response. The girl panicked. He wasn't seriously considering this marriage thing, was he? She frantically looked at lady Sayuri, who was glaring at her son, as if intending to break him only with her gaze. Mai cleared her throat.

"It is some joke?" she questioned the female inu-youkai. "You can't really expect Sesshomaru and me to do something like that!"

The demoness glanced at her briefly, before looking at Sesshomaru again.

"Be silent, girl. The decision is not yours to make." She replied dryly. Then she addressed the dog demon. "What have you decided, Sesshomaru?"

"Tch!" the inu-youkai hissed, noticeably pissed. Suddenly, Mai felt him jerking her arm and shoving her towards the demoness. The girl stumbled and fell at the feet of Sesshomaru's mother, giving a small cry of pain. The demon, however, didn't even bother to look at Mai, focusing his attention on lady Sayuri. "Do with her what you like."

Then he stormed off the room, leaving the girl dumbfounded, wondering what the hell was that supposed to mean.

"Hey!" she shouted after the demon, but he didn't even turn around or glance over his shoulder.

Sesshomaru's mother sighed.

"Get up, girl." She said, yanking Mai on her feet and scanning her up and down. The girl tried to follow her boss, but lady Sayuri firmly gripped her wrist, nearly crushing it with her demonic strength.

"Let me go!" The girl hissed, struggling with the female inu-youkai, who seemed to be unimpressed with the fuss Mai was making.

"We seem to have a misunderstanding." The demoness said shortly. "You are not to see your betrothed till the wedding."

Mai stopped struggling and stared at Sesshomaru's mother, the seriousness of her situation slowly reaching her mind, although she refused to believe it.

"What wedding?" she uttered. Lady Sayuri sighed heavily.

"Are you deaf or dumb, human?" she asked harshly. "Tomorrow you are marrying my son."

Mai kept staring at her with a stupid expression on her face, still in shock.

"B-but Sesshomaru would never…" she began, but the female inu-youkai was beginning to grow impatient.

"He consented already." She snapped at Mai. "Now we must place you in your chambers."

The demoness grabbed the girl's arm tighter and dragged her after herself out of the room. They passed numerous corridors and climbed a lot of stairs, before reaching the chambers, that were supposed to belong to Sesshomaru's bride. Mai struggled and protested along the way, but the demonic strength of lady Sayuri was superior to hers. The female inu-youkai pushed her into the large room and left, ushering the servants out. The girl was alone.




Mai sat on the bench near the window and was staring at the sky. Slowly, she began to realize, what would exactly happen to her.

"Oh crap." She muttered. It was still so difficult to believe. The whole situation seemed to be a big joke, but gradually it was becoming more and more real. In short: the demonic mother of the demonic asshole was going to make her marry Sesshomaru. It was so wrong! Mai felt anger welling in her.

She clenched her fist, having decided, that no youkai will order her around and make the most important life decisions for her! No way, she would let them do that! The decision, whom to marry belonged to her and her alone. How in the world did it even happen, that Sesshomaru agreed to this madness?! Right, the bitchy mother blackmailed him to stop him from wandering around if he disobeys.

"Egoistical asshole!" she cursed aloud, clenching the window frame. She refused to marry HIM. The demon was much kinder to her than before and almost likeable, but to have him as a husband… a nightmare. Mai wouldn't be able to stand the man for ten minutes, not to say her whole lifetime.

Besides, he was a demon! A real youkai – with youkai looks, youkai strength, youkai abilities. Damn, she wished to have a normal family, not a demonic husband, that kills everything that stands in his way without any remorse, and a bunch of Inuyasha-like kids. She wanted to escape the guy somehow after Naraku is defeated and the current situation seemed like a life sentence.

Suddenly, Mai heard the sound of sliding door, that made her snap out of thinking about the nightmare she was in. She turned around to see the newcomer and sighed with disappointment, as Sesshomaru's mother came in, carrying a bunch of white clothes. She carefully hanged it on the special stand and the girl saw, what the demoness brought – a snow-white wedding kimono. The girl felt an unpleasant twisting in her stomach.

"This kimono was meant for Kasumi, but it should fit you as well, even though you are shorter." Lady Sayuri said. "There could be some adjustments needed, so you will have to try it on."

Mai glared at the demoness and turned her back to her.

"I won't wear that." She stated stubbornly. The female inu-youkai frowned.

"Of course you will. What else would you like to wear on your wedding day?" she asked. The girl didn't have the slightest intention to yield. Now, when the first shock was over, she was prepared to fight with all her strength.

"I'm not taking part in any wedding." She said. The demoness sat down casually.

"Do not be foolish. The situation is unfortunate, but since you are the only woman, that could be a mother of Sesshomaru's child, it cannot be helped. Neither me nor Sesshomaru are thrilled with this, considering the fact, that you are a human, but we accepted it and you should do so too." She lectured Mai. The girl turned to look at her and sent the demoness her most poisonous glare.

"I will not marry Sesshomaru. Ever." She said loudly and slowly, so that the words would reach Sesshomaru's mother. Lady Sayuri wasn't impressed by her resistance and her face showed no emotions.

"I want to talk to Sesshomaru." Mai demanded.

"He will not see you till the wedding." The demoness responded. The girl felt pissed, that the bastard didn't even have the guts to face her and explain, why the hell did he drag her in his twisted family issues.

"Why won't he? Have you forbidden him?" Mai inquired. The female inu-youkai sighed, tired by the girl's demands.

"It is a custom. Besides, we agreed, that it would be better for you not to see him." She said patiently.

"If he doesn't even want to talk to me, I won't even consider marrying him." Mai responded stubbornly, even though she lied a little bit – under no circumstances she would consider marrying the arrogant jerk.

"I do not understand, why are you so reluctant to marry my son. He is a fine match, after all." She said, examining her red claws. Mai snorted.

"He's a demon." She made her point. The demoness nodded.

"He is. As a Taiyoukai he can give you strong children, stronger, than any human male could." Lady Sayuri responded. Mai narrowed her eyes at the mention of the children. No way she would have Inuyasha-clones running around her future home!

"It's not about it!" she protested. Lady Sayuri sighed.

"He is an attractive man. Do you think otherwise?" she asked. Mai felt a blush appearing on her face, as she remembered the sight of Sesshomaru with only his hakama on… and without it. She couldn't deny, that the dog demon was sinfully handsome, the way it should be illegal. Lady Sayuri smiled, seeing Mai's blush. "You should feel honored to be his future spouse. Many demonesses would kill for that privilege."

The girl stopped blushing at the youkai woman's remark.

"I'm not a demoness." She said stubbornly. "And I will rather die than marry this pompous, arrogant, egoistical asshole. And I won't change my mind!"

She glared at the demoness, as though challenging her, but lady Sayuri decided not to argue.

Maintaining her calm demeanor, she stood up and made her way toward the door. While lingering in the doorway, she glanced at Mai.

"I will leave you for the night to think it over. I hope, that you will change your mind till the morning." She said.

"I won't." Mai declared. Lady Sayuri turned around and left, locking the door to the girl's prison behind her.




After the conversation with Sesshomaru's bitchy mother Mai realized, that the attempt to talk some sense into the demons' thick skulls was totally pointless. Lady Sayuri was so determined to have grandchildren, that she was even ready to marry her son off to a human against the will of both parties. Sesshomaru wasn't better either – he planned to go through the wedding nightmare to be free from his mother's nagging and be able to happily chase strongest demons and battle them. Sacrificing Mai's life dreams was a minor detail, not worth their attention. It was apparent, that the wedding will take place tomorrow, despite the girl's protests. If only she could just vanish from here…

Suddenly an idea popped into Mai's head. It was crazy and utterly stupid, but she didn't have the better plan. She had to escape again. The girl was sure, that she could find an ally in Jaken and most certainly in carrot-loving Ah-Un, so she had to get the hell out of here and find those two. She saw the stables, where the dragon was and she was almost sure, that she could find the way from here. Then, she would just fly away and stay with Inuyasha for a while. Maybe she could return to Sesshomaru, when his mother calmed down…

The girl made her decision – she was escaping! Mai glanced at the door – the only way out. It was locked and there were guards outside, so that way was out of question. However, there was another possibility. She came closer to the window and looked down. Almost immediately she stepped back, feeling, that her head was spinning. Crap, there was over ten meters between her window and the ground. How could she come down? Mai took a deep breath, trying to think positively. A rope. She needed a good rope to use it for climbing down. She looked around the room, looking for something, that would do. She saw a bed, some other furniture, the white wedding kimono and a closet full of clothes. An idea dawned on her, as she approached the closet and opened the sliding door. Inside there were fine kimonos and various obi. The girl took one of it and examined the material – it was thick and long, so it could easily support her weight. If only she tied a couple of these together, it would serve as a good rope. Not wasting any time, she got to work. Swiftly, Mai tied the ends of several obi and estimated the length of her makeshift rope. It should be just enough. She tied one end to the heavy bed and threw her rope outside the window.

She grabbed the silk fabric tightly. She took a deep breath and swung her leg over the window frame.