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Chapter 23 - Not So Well

 

Quasi - as if, just as, as it were, a sort of (Stella's Latin Challenge)

 

"So, what was it like?" Sango asked Kagome when she returned several hours later.

 

The miko closed her eyes for a moment and sighed before she began. "It was... weird. It seemed like the whole point of the date was for him to show off his palace and his servants. First we ate and the food; there was more food than ten of me could have eaten. He didn't eat. He just watched me. It was creepy."

 

It really had been, too. She had been incredibly uncomfortable eating alone with someone watching her. It was awkward and she'd been unable to start a conversation the entire time, feeling too self conscious to open her mouth except to carefully put food in it. It felt like she was chewing too loudly, knowing how powerful his hearing was, and in the end she hadn't eaten all that much before declaring that she was done. In fact, she was still hungry!

 

"Then he gave me a tour of the palace. The place is enormous and there's more antiques that I can remember. He told me about each and every one of them. I swear he was bragging. The whole thing was awkward."

 

Temere - blindly, by chance, casually, heedlessly (Stella's Latin Challenge)

 

Inuyasha smirked from where he sat in a tree above the gabbing girls. He knew exactly what Sesshoumaru was doing, but he wasn't going to explain it to the miko. He wasn't going to help that bastard woo his Kagome. Yes, he liked the idea of her no longer worrying about her schoolwork, but not enough to assist the taiyoukai.

 

Sesshoumaru was trying to court Kagome as if she were a demoness; something that he would soon figure out wouldn't work. The miko wouldn't be impressed by his wealth and power. She wanted to get to know him as a person, not what he could offer her as a mate. She wasn't looking for someone to support her, she was searching for love, and so far, Sesshoumaru wasn't showing her what she needed to see.

 

"I didn't learn a thing about him, except that he really is as arrogant as he seems. I can't believe he spent our entire date showing off! He didn't even give me the chance to ask him about himself. It was as if he'd planned the entire thing down to the minute and there was no time for interruptions. It was kind of like going to a museum and getting a guided tour."

 

"So, you didn't enjoy yourself then?" the slayer asked, her tone showing her disappointment for her friend.

 

"The food was incredible, what little I ate, and I learned a lot about antiques and got a few history lessons, but no. It wasn't what I was expecting at all."

 

"Are you seeing him again?"

 

Kagome sighed. "Yeah, he asked if we could do it again soon. I'm hoping it'll be better next time. Maybe he was just nervous, you know? He's got a lot riding on me liking him."

 

"I bet he has no idea how to do this," Sango said.

 

"Oh, come on. He's got to have experience with women. How hard is it to have a normal conversation? That's all I really wanted," Kagome said softly.

 

- Conticesco - to become silent, be stilled, abate (Stella's Latin Challenge)

 

Sesshoumaru frowned from his place in a tree not too far from their camp, sitting in absolute silence. He'd hung around after returning her to her companions, hoping to learn how she thought their date went. He'd been able to sense her discomfort and displeasure the entire time but he'd had no idea what he was doing wrong. Of course, he was too far away to hear her final words. If he had, he might have known what to do next, but as it was, he had no idea what the miko desired of him.

 

As he began to plan their next outing, he tried to think of what a woman might want. He knew what he needed to show her to court her properly, and since he had no real experience wooing a woman, especially a human woman, he decided to go with what his instincts demanded of him. Hopefully she would enjoy herself more on their second date. If not, he was going to be in a lot of trouble.

 

It wasn't as if he could just pick another female. Both he and his beast were in agreement that she was the one. No other would do. He had to convince her to be his mate, which meant he had to earn her love. He didn't necessarily need it for the mating to work, but he wanted it more than he could ever explain. He loved her more than anything, more than his title, his lands, and his power and he ached to have that love returned.

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