Somewhere in Time

The Claim

He was speechless.

The moment their lips met, it was as though the thin veil that separated the past and the present was lifted. He was not the proud Lord of the West and she was not the selfless miko from the future. He was not a powerful daiyoukai and she was not a mortal. They were just a man and a woman who were caught in the moment, lost in their unspoken connection.

Was it just a mere attraction or was it something deeper... like love?

Sesshomaru did not know. He knew nothing of the love that his father had often spoken of. All he knew was that Kagome had become an integral part of his very being. He could not—would not—live without her.

"Kagome," he whispered as the woman pulled back breathlessly, her cheeks a beautiful tinted rose. "I wish to tell you something."

She looked immaculate in the pale morning light. The snow-covered yard behind her made her visage look as if she had been painted by a skilled artist. The snowflakes that fell on her raven hair seemed like small white flowers that only bloomed in the winter. Her bottomless brown eyes spoke of a thousand poetry and they gazed at him longingly.

"What is it, Sesshomaru-sama?" she asked shyly, looking down at the trembling fingers settled on her lap.

He gently put his claw under her chin and slowly lifted it to make her meet his sincere gaze. He could wait no longer. "I wish to court you and claim you as my one true mate."

The miko gasped. Her brown eyes widened and her mouth slightly parted in surprise. "W-what?"

Sesshomaru took a deep breath, tightened his mokomoko around her shivering form, and began to speak. "You have been a mystery to me from the moment we met in my father's tomb. Your selfless nature puzzle me constantly—from the relentless betrayal of Inuyasha, to your invaluable dedication to the Shikon no Tama. You are brave, kind, and compassionate... things that I am not. And our coincidental encounters have opened my eyes to strengths I have often disregarded as weakness."

Throughout this monologue, Kagome's reiki was soaring. Its tendrils caressed his youki invitingly, calming the storm inside the great inu-youkai who was finally opening his heart.

"Kagome, I care for you deeply," Sesshomaru continued, his molten eyes hooded as they fixed on her pale face. "I do not wish to see you cry because of Inuyasha again. He does not deserve your tears. He does not deserve everything you have given him."

"Sesshomaru-sama..." Kagome murmured, her eyes brimming with tears. The daiyoukai gently wiped them away with the back of his hand.

"This is... very hard for me. I know not of the love you want. I have spent centuries without such emotion, but the passion you had brought to my era has found its way to me. I would like to treat you proudly in my own inu way. If you will have me."

Sesshomaru took her hand in his and lightly drew circles on her palm using his thumb. His penetrating gaze never left the miko's brown eyes and he could see the struggle within herself. Uncertainty tainted her reiki, along with the soft prodding of curiosity.

He expected nothing. This was the defining moment of Kagome's rejection or permission.

He desired her more than the tetsusaiga. More than anything.

With baited breath, he awaited her response.

For a long time, Kagome merely stared at their entwined hands on his lap. She was having an inner struggle, this he knew. He also knew that the wound that Inuyasha had caused was still too raw, too painful for her to forget.

Kagome lifted her eyes and looked at him. He could see that she had finally made her decision.

The miko took a deep breath and tightened her hold on his hand. Through the tears, she smiled gently. "I accept your courtship, Sesshomaru-sama."

The daiyoukai's heart fluttered in bliss. And for the first time in a very long time, his lips curved up into a genuine smile.