Chapter 131

The newlyweds

After a considerably long flight, they finally landed. Mai pulled back from the demon, who started walking away, without sparing her another glance. The children and Jaken jumped off Ah-Un and followed him. The girl also hiked her skirts and went after her new husband.

The rest of the day was no different like the times before this unfortunate thing with marriage happened – they walked behind Sesshomaru all day till the sunset, searching for Naraku and set a camp for the night. Jaken made a dinner, all of them except the dog demon ate it and went to sleep. During the whole day the inu-youkai and Mai didn’t even speak a word to each other. 

As the girl was rolling a kimono to make a pillow, readying herself for the rest, she tensed, feeling a glare on her back. She had an idea, who was responsible for that. Just to make sure, she slowly turned around and froze, feeling like a bunny stared at by a wolf. On the opposite side of the campfire Sesshomaru was sitting, staring at her. The most disturbing was, that he didn’t simply observe Mai – he nearly devoured her with his eyes. The girl’s heart began pounding like crazy and her hands began shivering slightly. For some time she stayed still, not breaking the eye-contact with the demon.

Then, she grabbed her pillow and the kimono, that served her as a futon, and moved quickly to Rin’s side. She laid next to the child and hugged the girl tightly. Surely if she was sleeping with the kid, Sesshomaru wouldn’t try anything. Mai shut her eyes tightly.

It was painfully apparent, that she had a huge problem with a certain inu-youkai. Despite his promise, that he wouldn’t do it without her consent, she knew that he wanted to consummate their marriage – it was a matter of his manly pride. As a prideful creature he was, her virginity was in grave danger. Mai realized, that sooner or later she would have to do “it” with him, but she preferred it to be later. She cast a quick glance over her shoulder and saw, that the beast was still observing her warily. The girl swiftly broke the eye-contact and hugged Rin tightly. Oh crap! It seemed, that she had quite a trouble. 

The whole farce with the two of them getting married out of sudden was shocking enough. Adding the little fact, that Sesshomaru was a little bit too eager to become intimate with her instantly, was making it a nightmare. Excluding having two fiancés as Amayami-hime, Mai never had a boyfriend. Damn, no one even gave her a peck on the cheek. She was so green, when it came to THIS matters, as humanly possible. Her whole knowledge about the interactions between a man and a woman was based mainly on TV, books and the internet. She neither got to experience it personally nor talked about it with another person – her mother passed away long time ago and dad wasn’t really a partner for such conversations. Mai didn’t get to chat about this without her only friend, Kagome, either - the girls knew each other for too short period. 

Mai closed her eyes, still feeling Sesshomaru’s intense gaze on her back. Sooner or later she would have to talk to him to settle some matters, including the “intimate-interaction” thing. She would just tell him to cool himself a bit. She wasn’t ready for him to do such shameful things to her. True, she got carried away in the morning and they were terribly close to performing some adult activities, but it was just because she had been too confused to react and the damn demon took advantage of it. But, the way he was embracing her and kissing her neck… she never felt like it before. Given the circumstances, she should be disgusted, repulsed, just like the time she nearly got raped by that ogre Shutendoji. However, she felt no such thing. True, she wanted Sesshomaru to let go off her, but at the same time he wanted him to carry on. Crap, was she weird or what? Did she develop a Stockholm syndrome? Mai touched her neck, her hand slightly shaking. She remembered the hot sensation, when the inu-youkai’s tongue and lips were caressing her here.

“Woman.” The girl flinched, suddenly hearing Sesshomaru’s voice. “If you are unable to sleep, you should come to your husband.”

The girl stiffened. That was an immoral proposal – she was sure of it. She looked at the dog demon over her shoulder and narrowed her eyes, sending him her best poisonous glare.

“No way, you perverted demon.” She hissed out.

The girl wanted to turn back to Rin, not to face her brand new husband, but decided, that it was better to keep an eye o him, just in case he tried to do something weird. The inu-youkai was casually leaning his back against the tree, calmly observing her, despite the fact, she kept refusing to listen to him again. He patted the place beside him.

“Do not make me come for you, you insolent woman.” He said, staring intently at her and making a gesture for her to come. Mai shook her head violently, not eager to wander right into his paws.

“No, thanks. I’m sleepy anyway.” She lied quickly, trying to wriggle herself out of this uncomfortable situation.

Sesshomaru frowned, hearing the obvious lie, but decided to play along.

“I understand.” He replied calmly, fueling Mai’s hope for the uneventful night, only to ruin it after a while. “A wife should sleep beside her husband, therefore get yourself over here this instant.”

The girl’s eyelid twitched. Sesshomaru seemed to be horribly insistent on this one. 

“You know what, suddenly I’m not feeling sleepy anymore.” She changed her mind.

The inu-youkai arched his eyebrow.

“Maybe you should take a stroll with me then?” he suggested in a tone, that hinted, it wasn’t a request, but an order.

Mai narrowed her eyes at the damn demon. Great, now he wanted to drag her deep into the forest and rape her there. She sighed heavily.

“You just want to do some perverted stuff to me, don’t you?” it was rather a statement.

Sesshomaru looked away. The fact, that he broke the eye-contact, only confirmed Mai’s suspicions. 

“Do not be foolish. Nothing that transpires between husband and wife is inappropriate.” He replied, digging his own grave.

“So you wanted to do it.” The girl muttered mainly to herself, pissed, that Sesshomaru didn’t even make an effort to hide his dirty intentions. “You’re the worst!”

Her last words pulled a string in Sesshomaru. So far the demon seemed to be rather in a good mood, what changed instantly. He glared at her, anger flickering in his golden eyes.

“A woman, who rejects her lawfully wedded husband should not say such nonsense!” he raised his voice.

“Hmpf!” Mai snorted equally loudly. “Maybe we happen to be married now, but I’m not going to be a quiet submissive wife, who will do everything you want. There’s no way in hell!”

Earlier she managed to irritate Sesshomaru, but now Mai got him furious. Hearing her statement, the inu-youkai stood up. The way the campfire was casting its light on his figure, made him seem to be a character out of the nightmarish fantasy. The way he glared added to the threatening aura, he was emitting.

“My patience for your defiance is wearing thin.” The dog demon hissed out in a warning tone.

“It’s your problem!” Mai retorted, angering him even more.

It looked like Sesshomaru was about to come up with another threat, when a loud yawn distracted him and Mai. Rin sat up, rubbing her still-closed eyes.

“It’s too loud to sleep.” The child whined.

“Rin-chan is right.” Jaken joined the complaining girl, speaking in a pained voice, as the imp had enough of listening to the spat between his master and Mai.

Ah-Un roared too, signaling, that it too was woken up too by the loud pair.

Kohaku was the only one, who didn’t voice his annoyance, but it was obvious, that the young demon-slayer was awake as well.

“Sorry for waking you all.” Mai muttered an apology, feeling bad for having everyone listen to her and Sesshomaru arguing.

She opened her mouth to say something more, but then she nearly bit her tongue, as she had been forcefully yanked up. Before she knew it, Sesshomaru approached her and flung the girl over his shoulder.

“Get back to sleep, Rin.” He said gently to the child and headed deeper into the forest, carrying the struggling woman on his shoulder.

“No! Let me go!” the girl kept fussing, hitting Sesshomaru with her small fists and trying to kick him with her foot in the face.

“Be still, you stubborn woman.” The dog demon snapped at her, annoyance in his voice.

“How can I be still, when you’re carrying me into the forest, you wolf!” she shrieked at Sesshomaru, forcefully pulling his silver strands. 

“I am a dog demon.” He informed her, before placing Mai back on the ground. The girl tried to escape back to the camp, but the inu-youkai firmly grabbed her wrist, not intending to let her go. “We will take a stroll.”

Mai hissed with anger, as the dog demon dragged her further into the forest. She suspected, that he wanted to finish, what he started in the morning. However, she would rather die, than let him have his way with her.

“I want to come back!” she stated, trying to flex Sesshomaru’s fingers. Naturally, all her efforts were fruitless. Being a human, Mai was simply too weak to withstand the demon.

The inu-youkai glanced at her over her shoulder.

“Do not complain.” He scolded her. “Be grateful, that I am so lenient towards you.”

Mai furrowed her brows. Lenient? That would be the last word to describe Sesshomaru’s behavior. She decided to share with him her opinion on the subject.

“You’re a dominating jerk.” The girl didn’t hesitate to inform her husband of that. “And you’re definitely  not lenient.”

The dog demon stopped to look Mai in the eye, irritation visible all over his face.

“You are such an insolent, stubborn and defiant woman, that every sane man would discipline you every day. Appreciate, that I am putting up with you.” He said before turning around and beginning to drag the girl after himself.

Mai opened her mouth to protest, but closed it after a while. True, Sesshomaru somehow managed to control his violent habit of throttling her for quite a long time now. She sighed heavily, feeling slightly dismayed.

“Where are you going anyway?” she asked him, exhausted by arguing. The girl had to jog to match the inu-youkai’s pace, as he was taking long strides and she had rather short legs compared to his. Sesshomaru glanced over his shoulder.

“We are strolling.” He explained.

Mai’s eyes widened, when she remembered, that he kept making her jog too, while they were posing as the betrothed pair on the ship. Apparently he thought, that doing something, that was supposed to be affectionate, will make her happier. Quite nice of him… Even though it was painfully clear for her, why he was doing it.

“Sesshomaru, slow down. I have enough walking for today. You made us march the entire day and I don’t want to do that at night too.” She protested, feeling that she had her share of exercise already.

The dog demon stopped and looked for a suitable place to sit. He led Mai towards a fallen tree and seated himself on the large trunk. Then, he unfastened the leather straps of his armor and took it off. The girl sighed with relief, hoping to let her poor feet rest a little. She prepared to sit on the trunk next to Sesshomaru, keeping a certain distance, of course. However, she felt him suddenly pulling her arm and the girl landed on his lap. The girl yelped from surprise and tried to get up, but the inu-youkai grabbed the back of her sash, holding the girl in place.

“Stay where you are.” He said, warning in his voice.

Mai didn’t reply, as Sesshomaru slowly put his arm around her waist, pulling her closer to him. She shifted in his lap and put her hands on his chest, preventing them from getting too close to each other. It felt uncomfortable enough for her to sit on a man’s lap. Her husband, on the other hand, looked very pleased with their current position. 

Sesshomaru relaxed, holding Mai in embrace. She still was reluctant to get closer to him, but at least she was silent for once. He felt, that the woman was very tense, but did not let it bother him. With time she would get used to the intimacy between her and her husband.

“Woman…” he began, not sure, how he should phrase, what he wanted to tell her. Sesshomaru wished to ensure her, that she was in good hands, but wanted to avoid saying it in such a way, that would make him sound weak. After all, he was a warrior and a male – he possessed his pride, so any shameful confessions were out of question.

“Hm?” Mai muttered, wondering, what the dog demon wanted to tell her.

Sesshomaru set his gaze on the trees above her head, avoiding making an eye-contact.

“Whether you like it or not, we are a husband and wife now. You have to know your place as my spouse.” He said in a dead-serious manner.

Mai stiffened even more. She definitely didn’t like the direction, their conversation was going.

“What do you mean?” she asked nervously, afraid to hear Sesshomaru’s answer.

The inu-youkai finally looked her in the eye.

“Your duty is to always stand by my side, to be the mother of our future offspring and to satisfy me.” He said, making Mai’s greater fear come true. 

She perfectly knew, what he meant by “satisfying”. The little fact, that she was currently sitting on his lap, wasn’t making the situation look good. The girl shook her head violently.

“No way! Forget it, you jerk!” he protested in her usual fiery way, trying to get up, but Sesshomaru was holding her firmly. 

He pressed her forcefully closer to his chest, so that her struggling didn’t help her much. Mai winced, as she bumped into his chest.

The inu-youkai mentally cursed. The need to at least kiss her was now stronger than ever, but it was difficult to do it just with one hand. Never in his life he resented his despicable hanyou brother more than in this moment. Having only one arm, he was unable to bring her face closer to his without breaking the hold on her waist.

“Stay still.” He said to the struggling woman. “I am not going to hurt you.”

Mai stopped twisting under his arm only to send him a mistrustful glare.

“You don’t know when to stop, do you?” she hissed out and began to shift again.

“Just be an obedient woman for once!” Sesshomaru was growing impatient with his woman’s constant defiance. She should have been sweet and docile around him now, when they were married. Unfortunately she was not.

“Never!” Mai hissed out through the clenched teeth and kept struggling.

The girl was twisting and shifting, trying to escape Sesshomaru’s tight hold and he was doing everything to keep her on his lap. Both of them were shooting angered looks at each other, throwing insults from time to time. When Mai brought her knees up, so that she could use her legs to push herself further from the dog demon, one of her knees accidentally landed on his crotch, crushing his manhood.

Mai ceased wriggling, as she felt Sesshomaru suddenly letting go off her, his golden eyes widening, as though something happened. 

“Something’s wrong?” she asked, thinking, that he perhaps sensed some hostile presence in the vicinity. 

As she was looking with worry at him, she unconsciously increased the pressure of her knee on the poor jewels. The dog demon let out a pained hiss.

“Damn you!” he snapped at her. “Get off me!”

Mai blinked, not knowing, what was happening. A while ago he was throwing himself at her and now he wanted her to get off? Finally she glanced down and saw, where the problem was.

“Oh!” she exclaimed, blood rushing to her face. “I’m so sorry!”

Instantly she jumped on her legs and looked at Sesshomaru, who was still sitting on the trunk, motionless. He lifted his head and glared at her with resentment.

“Do you really wish to avoid consummating our marriage that badly, that you are targeting my manhood?” he asked, his foul mood all over his face.

Mai smiled sheepishly, feeling slightly ashamed.

“It was an accident! I didn’t mean it.” She assured the dog demon, before sending him a worried look. “You’re okay?”

“I will live.” Sesshomaru replied dryly. The girl sighed, thinking, that their late-night stroll ended rather badly for the inu-youkai. Well, at least her virtue was still intact.

“Actually it serves you right. When a girl says ‘no’ it means ‘no’.” Mai told the demon, folding her arms and sending him a scolding look. 

Seeing, that the little accident had cooled his enthusiasm, she sat on the trunk by his side. Fortunately, he wasn’t  making any suspicious moves, they were just sitting side by side. The girl sighed, stretching her legs.

“Why do you insist on… doing you-know-what anyway?” she asked after a longer moment of silence, staring at her feet as her face flushed. Mai clenched the fabric of her kimono and began twisting it in her fingers to subside her embarrassment. “It’s not like you want it. I kind of was selfish and didn’t take into consideration, that I’m not the only victim here. It must be horrible for you to have a human for a wife, not the prettiest one at that… so why?”

Sesshomaru abruptly turned his head to look at the woman, surprised by her honest and sad words. He wished her to understand, that he was glad to have her for his spouse, her being a human only as a minor drawback, but admitting that aloud was too much for him. Moreover, it was a pity, that she was that unwilling to accept her new role. In this moment the inu-youkai felt relief, that he did not take her for a mistress. If he was that defiant to become his spouse, making her a mistress would prove itself to be a pure nightmare.

“What is done, cannot be undone.” Sesshomaru stated philosophically. “And it is not horrible to be a husband of such a woman like yourself, despite you being a human. You are insufferable at times, but you are a fine woman.”

The last words barely left the dog demon’s throat, as it was shameful for him to say such things, but apparently his sacrifice did not go to waste.

Mai stared at him, her face getting even more scarlet than before. Her lips unwillingly twisted into a smile, for she felt a stab of warmth in her heart because of the obvious compliment. Well, it was rather a half-assed compliment, but nevertheless it was surprising to hear something like that coming out of Sesshomaru’s mouth. The girl moved a little closer to the inu-youkai, thinking, that he was being really nice right now. It was not like she hated him… Well, she should at least give him a chance.

Unfortunately, the dog demon decided to continue and easily managed to ruin all, that he achieved by telling Mai the compliment.

“Therefore I am not bothered, that we need to consummate our marriage.” He said, sending the girl a meaningful look.

Mai’s smile dropped from her face, when she heard, that the damn asshole just complimented her to open her tightly-shut thighs. That was just low.

“I am bothered. I don’t want to.” She retorted dryly, cooling Sesshomaru’s enthusiasm. 

The demon furrowed his brows, confused by the sudden change of mood. A while ago she was giving him a signal, than she was willing and now she refused him again. Her behavior was simply contradicting.

“Why?” he asked.

Mai narrowed her eyes at him. Was he dumb? 

“Do I really have to explain?” she asked rhetorically, rolling her eyes. Damn, they got married against their wills, so why the hell would she be eager to perform erotic activities all of sudden? With him, at that.

Sesshomaru emitted an irritated growl, apparently losing his patience with Mai.

“Is that not what you wanted?” he snapped. Seeing her confused face, he continued. “You said once, that you wish for family, so accept being my spouse at last and bear my pups! Should that not make you pleased?”

Mai gawked at Sesshomaru, taken aback by his fantastic logic. If getting her pregnant was his idea of granting her happiness, the girl began to pity herself.

“I wanted a family.” She admitted, sending the demon a poisonous glare. “But not with you!”

Hearing this, Sesshomaru glared back at her, extremely displeased with his troublesome spouse. Apparently marrying her did not mean, that she would return his affection immediately. He remembered his mother’s words.

“You will change your mind, once you will be swelled with my pup.” He retorted, snatching her palm. He intended it to be a gesture of affection, but Mai took it for the threat to her virtue.

“Don’t you even try!” she screamed in his face, springing to her feet and trying to wriggle her palm from Sesshomaru’s grip.

The inu-youkai let go off her and stood up, grabbing his armor. 

“I will spare you tonight.” He shared his decision with Mai, while fastening the leather straps of his armor. “But bear in mind, that a man, who is unable to get his own wife to consummate the marriage is considered weak. Do I look weak to you, woman?”

The girl gulped, shaking her head. Once Sesshomaru was done, he headed towards the camp and Mai followed him, cursing her miserable fate.