Sesshoumaru sat on his futon and breathed in the woman’s scent until he could take it no more and had to get out of the den to escape it. The predawn air was fresh and cool, smelling of dew and the forest. It washed away Umeko’s scent and memory of her naked flesh and hard eyes. What did she really want, creeping into his bedchamber like that? He had few things she could possibly value, if thieving was her plan. It occurred to him that she might really have come out of desire for him, but that thought was too repulsive to dwell upon for very long.
        Lord Ryuuko perched in a tree in his humanlike form, golden eyes watching the approach of his Lord’s son. When Sesshoumaru reached the foot of the tree, the snake demon jumped down to show his respect.
        "Lord Sesssssshoumaru," he hissed, "we have had no vissssitorsss in the night. Did My Lord resssssst well?"
        Sesshoumaru replied with a derisive snort. "I had a visitor, Lord Ryuuko."
        The snake grinned. "Wassss sssshe pretty?"
        His response startled Sesshoumaru, who just blinked at him for a few seconds before realizing there was no way Ryuuko could know about his encounter with Umeko in his bedroom. A smirk twitched the corner of Sesshoumaru’s mouth as he replied: "As a matter of fact, she was—if you think of humans that way, which I don’t."
        Ryuuko gave him a suspicious look. "There are only two in Our Lord’sss den at the moment, and I think we can eliminate Lady Sssssshinju, yessss?"
        Sesshoumaru nodded. "Umeko. She was looking for something other than me, I think, no matter what she claimed."
        "What did sssshe claim, My Lord?" Ryuuko asked, cocking his head curiously. "Did the girl offer herssssself to My Lord? I have heard it issss cusssstomary for human femalesssss to do that sssssort of thing. I believe a sssservant would have been ordered by her Lady to come to you, however. Issss that how it wassss, My Lord?"
        Sesshoumaru shook his head. "She told me she was offering herself in the hope that I would think better of her Lady. Lady Shinju didn’t send her, and I wonder if she is aware of her maidservant’s initiative." He brushed the topic aside with a wave of his hand. "But, as I said, I don’t think that was her true purpose. If I wasn’t such a light sleeper, Lord Ryuuko, I might not have detected her approach until she was upon me. Her movements were as silent as a cat’s, and I noticed no scent on her but her own, no perfumes."
        The snake demon hissed to himself as he thought about what all of that could mean. "Ssssilent asss a cat, you say, My Lord?"
        Sesshoumaru nodded. "Sneaking. I wonder why, since what she claimed she wanted with me works much better if both parties are awake."
        Lord Ryuuko snickered: "Perhapssss ssshe wanted to sssssurprisssse My Lord."
        "Ordinarily, I’d say that’s a pleasant way to wake up," Sesshoumaru chuckled, "if the girl wasn’t human."
        "Human or demon," the snake replied, "what doessss it matter? If the girl wantsss you, take her. It’sssss your right assss a Lord."
        "I find humans repulsive," Sesshoumaru snapped back.
        Ryuuko dropped his gaze and apologized. "Ssstill, it might humiliate her."
        "Not if it’s what she wants," Sesshoumaru retorted, then added thoughtfully: "I wonder what she really wanted?"
        "What, indeed," Ryuuko nodded. "The sssssun issss risssing. Lord Nisssshi sssshould be awake now, My Lord."
        Sesshoumaru nodded and returned to the den, his mind still turning over the possible reasons for Umeko’s visit. Surely she hadn’t been planning to steal something from a demon’s bedroom while the demon was in it. Was she just scouting out his room to see what there was of value so she could come back and take it later? No, that was equally foolish. She must know her scent would linger, and he’d know she’d been there and would confront her about it. Could she really have come for no other reason than to offer herself in exchange for his good will toward her Lady? If so, why use stealth? And why come at such an hour? It made no sense!
        His father’s angry voice stopped him with a jolt halfway through the main hall. Why was Lord Nishi angry with him? For refusing Umeko? Did he know? No, that couldn’t be. Umeko would have told him if she’d come at Lord Nishi’s command. Then what? Considering his father’s tone, Sesshoumaru figured he better get on his knees to hear what it was he’d done to offend him.
        "Sesshoumaru!" Lord Nishi growled. "Word has reached my ears that you have been heard uttering curses upon My Lady! You have not only wished daughters upon her but have wished her to die in childbirth! Is this so!"
        "My Lord, I—"
        "Be truthful!"
        Sesshoumaru pressed his forehead to the floor and began to sweat. He had said those things but not where anyone could hear him. At least, he hadn’t sensed anyone nearby. How had Lord Nishi heard of it? "My Lord," he began in a humble voice, "I would not wish such terrible things on My Lord’s mate! It is my wish that—"
        "Are you calling Lady Shinju a liar, my son?" Lord Nishi interrupted in a terrifying tone.
        Shinju had heard him? Impossible! He would have smelled her if she’d been close enough to hear him speak. "No, My Lord."
        "A demon’s curse is a powerful thing," Lord Nishi rumbled. "From now on, you will wish only blessings on my mate and our offspring. If I hear such rumors again, Sesshoumaru…"
        Sesshoumaru trembled and said nothing. His silence was agreement enough. But just as his father turned to go, Sesshoumaru asked: "My Lord, was it you who sent Umeko to me early this morning?"
        Lord Nishi stopped and turned around to face his son with a puzzled look. "No. Perhaps My Lady sent her as a gift."
        Sesshoumaru felt brave enough to sit up, but he didn’t meet his father’s eyes. "Umeko didn’t say her Lady sent her."
        "Did she say I sent her?"
        Sesshoumaru shook his head. "No, My Lord. It seemed to be her own idea, but I thought that unlikely, so I asked if My Lord had sent her."
        Lord Nishi couldn’t keep the amusement off his face when he asked: "Did she please you, Sesshoumaru?"
        "I—" he hesitated, then decided to leave out the harsher details of his reaction. "I didn’t take her, My Lord. I was concerned about the way in which she approached me." He looked up to find Lord Nishi watching him with narrowed eyes, so he hastened to continue. "She seemed to not want me to hear her when she came to my door and crept through my room to my side. I thought that was suspicious, so I refused her offer. If My Lord would rather I take her, instead…"
        Nishi considered. "Naturally, had she been armed or attempted any violence against you, My Lady would no longer have the services of her handmaiden," he said with a grim smirk.
        Sesshoumaru smiled. "Fortunately for Umeko, she came to me unarmed, My Lord. How does My Lord wish me to proceed?"
        "I will ask My Lady what she knows about this," Lord Nishi replied slowly, "then give you my answer."
        Sesshoumaru waited until his father left the hall before letting go a sigh of relief. Who could have heard his sentiments about Lady Shinju and reported them to her? She had no servants here but the ones who served Lord Nishi, which meant… "Shiro!" Sesshoumaru clenched his fists, wishing he could confront his father’s servant but knowing it would only get him into more trouble. He would just have to be careful to keep his opinions to himself in future.
        Lord Nishi didn’t get back to Sesshoumaru about the Umeko problem until midmorning, when he sent for him from the Zen garden. The scents of Shinju and Umeko still lingered from the night before, barely discernable in the cool air of the grotto. The Great Demon stood in the spot where his Lady and her handmaiden had sat, talking about Sesshoumaru’s love life and Shinju’s happiness. He turned at Sesshoumaru’s arrival and indicated his son should stand beside him with a wave of his hand.
        "Umeko will not offer herself to you again," Lord Nishi declared without preamble and smiled a little at the obvious relief on his son’s face. "I told her I was displeased that she should do such a thing without orders from me or her Lady."
        "What explanation did she have for her use of stealth, My Lord?" Sesshoumaru asked.
        "She said it was her intention to have you awaken with her beside you," Lord Nishi replied with a note of cynicism in his voice, "and allow you to take her if you wished or order her to leave. I am not satisfied with this explanation."
        "Nor am I, My Lord."
        They said nothing for a few moments, then Lord Nishi turned to face Sesshoumaru and told him carefully: "I was going to order you to take her, Sesshoumaru, if only to make it easier for you to watch her," he held up a hand to forestall his son’s startled objection. "However, I changed my mind for several reasons, the least important being your distaste for humans."
        "Least important—" Sesshoumaru blurted, then quickly cut himself off. "What was the most important consideration, My Lord, if not that?"
        Lord Nishi gave him a reprimanding look for interrupting him, then said: "I didn’t want your firstborn to be anything but a full-blooded demon, just as mine was. When you have your true heir, Sesshoumaru, then you will be free to sow your seed where you will."
        Sesshoumaru took the not-so-subtle hint with a burning face. Lord Nishi could do as he pleased, even taking a human to mate, because he had a full-blooded heir—and Sesshoumaru must accept that fact in silence. He bowed his head and said quietly: "Yes, My Lord. I understand."
        Much to his surprise, Lord Nishi laughed, a low, rumbling chuckle that echoed about the little rock garden. "Aren’t you going to thank me for not forcing you to sleep with a human girl?"
        Sesshoumaru looked up with a start, then chuckled. "Thank you, My Lord."

Chapter 5