Touch Me by MomoDesu

Touch Me

A/N: Something I had written for ebony_silks but never posted. It's one of those things I am half pleased with, lol. The organization is a little strange, but I felt if I did too much editing it would lose the idea that I had started with.

MD

-----

Sesshoumaru had never liked to be touched, even by his ward Rin. For the greater part of his life he had gone without the touch of another, no longer enjoying it after he grew to an age that his mother decided he no longer needed coddling. His father hadn't been the most affectionate man either. The caring was there, but they were never a family that would show physical affection for the sake of showing it.

It wasn't until he met the miko that he had learned to enjoy the simple pleasure that touch can bring, the intimacy of skin pressing against skin. The transition had started small; a touch on the shoulder here as she passed him while divvying out dinner or a brush of the arm when she walked next to him as they trekked on to the next village after the latest rumor of Naraku's presence.

Soon it became much more. Kagome had been much more withdrawn from his half brother as Inuyasha's attentions began to revolve more around the completion of the jewel. Holding hands might not be something very big to most people, but for him it was leaps and bounds. One day she had been joking with him and grabbed his hand, and instead of just shaking her off when she didn't release it they continued on that way. That was until the hanyou of the group took notice and stole Kagome away to the head of their little pack.

Slowly over time he was growing to love the simple touches that they shared, the spark of electricity that passed through their fingertips when they accidentally brushed in passing, the gentle caresses of her fingers as they brushed over his skin when she tended his wounds, the steady kneading of her hands as they worked out the knots in his shoulders. Never once did he miss the angry look in his brother's eyes. It wasn't his fault that he had turned down the girl's offers of back rubs.

Giving back rubs soon moved to receiving them in kind. Kagome had never felt anything like his long fingers soothing her sore muscles. That was followed by sharing sleeping space, her curled up in his lap with her nose pressed into his neck while he leaned back on whatever sturdy object was available. She was the first woman to actually sleep with him. Women weren't creatures to be trusted in his mind; a demon lord and a vindictive woman in same sleeping quarters never seemed to have a good end. This creature was far from it, so pure it made him wonder how she had not been sullied by the atrocities that she had witnessed in her time in the era more violent and dangerous than her own. Again, his brother had been less than pleased.

Things took a drastic turn after a more horrific battle against the strongest of Naraku's incarnations to date. The demon slayer and the monk had been nearly fatally injured. His brother was off collecting his thoughts, which had been a steadily increasing habit since the demise of his first love. He was watching over her two sleeping companions when he caught the distant sounds of wails and sobs. Crying women was something else on his list of things he had little to no experience with. Rin was one thing, being a little girl. Kagome was considered a grown woman, having reached the age of nineteen the previous month. Having the confidence that the slayer's feline companion would watch over the two injured warriors he set off in the direction of the sorrowful moans.

There ahead of him, not so calmly sitting in a spring, was the miko. The golden rays of the setting sun gave her skin an almost unearthly glow and highlighted the tears streaming down her face. To this day he couldn't explain why he did what he did next. Slowly, almost as if to give her a chance to tell him to leave her be, he stripped himself of his armor and clothing and joined her in the spring. When Kagome finally did notice him she threw herself into his arms without hesitation and sobbed into his chest. That was the first time he had ever had true full body contact with the miko, and even though he wouldn't outright admit it the sensation was something he wanted to experience again under much better circumstances.

After their first bathing experience the two would steal away whenever possible. It was a secret they would never share, yet he was positive that the slayer and fox kit had caught on fairly quickly due to the lack of Kagome's presence at their usual bath time. Just like the first time it never held any sexual implications, just pure comfort. There were still times that he would hold her as she let out all of her frustrations in the form of tears and sobs, there were others where he would drop his air of of almighty power and let her care for him. The brush of the soapy sponge over his skin, the sweet smell of her soaps, the feeling of her fingernails scrubbing against his scalp...he dreaded having to return to bathing alone once their task was completed.

Their bathing soon led to feather light touches left over the freshly cleansed skin, light tickling touches that didn't do much for comfort. The arousal brought brought to the surface by the touches made way for quick kisses that accompanied the dancing fingers. Sesshoumaru had never participated in these make out sessions, as the miko termed them, yet the feeling of her naked breasts pressed against his chest and the tang of her arousal in the air made the sexual frustration completely worth it in his eyes. Her heated kisses were returned in kind, and the scrapes and later discomfort from being pinned to any boulders if he got overzealous was a bit of a running joke between the two of them. Their other companions were not amused.

Much like the first night he bathed with her, he was not sure what possessed him to take the actions that he did. They had been in the spring for much longer that usual, taking minimal time to bathe and more to explore each other's bodies. Instead of ending it where the normally did and dressing to return to their camp he made love to her on the bank of the spring. Completely forgoing his more animalistic urges was gentle with her fragile human body, relishing in her cries of pleasure.

From that night on he took her at every bath time, wanting to do nothing more that let the world fade away and enjoy the feeling of her damp skin against his. When they were together there was nothing but him, her, and the steamy water that they soaked in. Those springs were his personal heaven.

He opened his eyes and looked down when he felt a light tug on his hand. Beaming up at him was his miko, her brown eyes twinkling in mischief. "You were off in dream land," she said with a giggle.

Sesshoumaru gave her a rare smile and they continued on hand in hand at the back of the shard hunting party. For the first time in his life he came to the conclusion that the touch of another wasn't half bad, especially if it was the miko doing the touching.