Otherworld 2 - 6 - The Amorous Stranger



Chapter 6 - The Amorous Stranger

In the afternoon, word came to the Castle about the abduction of three humans, one of them a nursing mother. Shido explained about his son's need for a wet nurse and was sure that she had been taken for Shilo. Hiei, along with Kouga and Kome were searching to the north, while the village was east of their location. Kurama would head a team to go to the village and question the villagers. The village would also be a good starting point for more searches, now that they knew Naraku had been in that area two nights ago. As long as one of her males was with each group, Aara could sense their direction. But with InuYasha down, she now only had two males: Kurama and Hiei.

	Kurama would take Toyna and Kenshin with him to the village. Hiten and Souten would look for Hiei's group and let them know about the village sighting, then they would go out on their own aerial search. Vash asked if he could go. At the last moment, Kaiba also decided to go with them. Rin and Mirago could take care of InuYasha and Keiki, and Kaiba was worried that they might find someone else wounded. It would be a long journey back to the Castle carrying an injured man. They decided to leave tomorrow morning.

That night, Souten went to Vara and asked to be bound to her. He realized that in times of crisis, the bound males were very important, and he no longer had any doubts. With his binding, Vara could sense his whereabouts as Aara could sense her males. Vara wished the circumstances were nicer, but understood the urgency. As gently as she could, she bound Souten to her. They made love only once, since Vara knew that Souten needed his rest for the long journey facing him. In the morning at a final breakfast meeting, Vara told the group that Souten was now her first male. Hiten was surprised but happy for his son. He was sure that Souten would be content as Vara's first male and he knew that Vara had been kind to the Princess' males when she had the care of them. There were murmurs of congratulations, but a celebration would have to wait. They shouldered packs with supplies, Toyna carrying the medical supplies for Kaiba. Vash was going mainly for his daughter. Maybe Ashara had gone bad like his brother but there was a possibility that she was a victim; either way he was going to give her a chance. When he looked at her, he could still see her as the tiny baby he first held in his arms. He kissed Aara and Vara goodbye, Kurama kissed Aara, and Souten blushed as he kissed Vara. This was still very new to him. Then they were gone. The Castle seemed hollow and empty. Very few people, other than guards and servants, were left in the Castle. Yukina was there, but she was pregnant with her second child and kept to her wing. Keiki was just beginning to walk for very short distances, using crutches, which had been brought from the Human World for Kaiba many years ago, but he spent most of his time in bed or resting on his balcony. Rin was almost always with him. Mirago had taken over the care of InuYasha by default. The Dog Demon was sleeping, under the power of Kurama's plant, and beginning to heal. At least bloody froth was no longer coming from his lips. Shido was also left behind because he could not risk being sensed by Ralf or Tyrrl. He was torn between going home or staying at the Castle. He opted for the Castle since home was now an empty shell and the Castle was where he would hear news about his children. He spent quite a bit of the time with Keiki, the men becoming friends. Their friendship was ironic; two of the most feared species learning to trust one another.

The same day that Hiei and Hiten discovered InuYasha, Toya and Suzuki found Sesshomaru near the border between Otherworld and his lands. He was lying on his fur boa in a clearing in the middle of a forest, completely out in the open. From a distance, it was impossible to tell whether he was alive or dead. Scattered in a huge circle around him were Demons, or more accurately, parts of Demons. Over a hundred Demons -- all hacked to pieces -- this was sword work! What had happened? Had they attacked Sesshomaru and had he gotten hurt during the battle? As they approached, they could see no blood or injuries on him. When they got about 100 feet from Sesshomaru, a voice called out.

	"Why don't you just leave him alone? Do you really want to die here?" "What?" said Toya, startled by the voice out of nowhere, "Where are you?" A young man came out of the forest, with an unsheathed sword across his shoulders.

Suzuki called to him, "Did you do this? Are you protecting Sesshomaru?" "Is that his name?" the man said. "If you don't know him, why are you protecting him?" Toya asked. "Just for fun." Toya and Suzuki looked at each other. Fun? Who was this man? "We do not want to harm him. We were looking for him. We are Protectors from Otherworld." They moved closer to Sesshomaru and the man also came closer, but remained in the shadows. He brought the sword off his shoulder, readying it for use. "How do I know you are friends of his?" "You will just have to take our word. We only want to help him and take him back to the Castle where he lives." Suzuki replied. "I thought you said you were going to take him to Otherworld." "The Castle is in Otherworld. The Princess will take care of him." Suzuki was getting exasperated. "Princess? I like princesses! What's she like"? It suddenly began to get colder as Toya iced up, angry over the rudeness of this man. Suzuki held him back. "Come with us and you will meet her. I'm sure she will want to thank you for protecting Sesshomaru." Toya looked at Suzuki in surprise. He was inviting this stranger to the Castle? "Is she pretty?" the stranger asked. "Princess Aara is a beauty beyond compare." Toya stated flatly, glaring at the stranger.



"Well, then, I will have to meet her." He walked toward them and both stared when as he drew closer. Neither of them had ever seen coloring like his. His hair was short and messy, and a deep, dark red. But it was his eyes that had startled them the most -- they were also deep red and seemed to glow from within. The feel of his power sent prickles down their spines. What the hell was he? They checked Sesshomaru, but the Demon Lord had no visible injuries. He just seemed to be asleep. But when they tried to rouse him, they met with no success. Toya and Suzuki started to lift Sesshomaru between them, when the stranger effortlessly picked him up and put him over his shoulder. "It will be faster if I carry him. Grab his things and don't forget that fuzzy thing he was lying on." He started off in the direction which they had come from, walking very fast. Suzuki and Toya quickly picked up the boa and all of the other things lying around and ran after him. They alternated between walking and running for two days and nights before they reached the Castle. The stranger, who had still not given them his name, never seemed to tire and looked impatient when Suzuki and Toya demanded that they rest for at least a few minutes. When the Castle towers finally appeared on the horizon, both of them breathed a sigh of relief. Let someone else deal with this strange man.

When Suzuki and Toya arrived with Sesshomaru and the stranger, everyone came running. Bakura came down from his tower, Shido came from Keiki's balcony where they had been talking, Rin and Mirago rushed down, and Vara came out of the study. Aara was in the back gardens and word was sent to her. Suzuki told them how he found Sesshomaru and about the stranger that had protected him from over a hundred Demons. Sesshomaru was taken to his room, still in a deep sleep. Bakura went to him with Mirago and Rin following. Vara greeted the stranger and thanked him for his help. He looked at her, with a slightly disappointed look on his face. Suddenly, Aara rushed into the room. Vara quickly told her mother what had happened. She turned to the stranger. "Thank you for your help. You are welcome in my Castle. I am Aara, Princess of Otherworld, and this is my daughter, Vara."

	The stranger's red eyes gleamed when he saw her and he smiled, "It is my pleasure, Princess. I am called Kyo." Aara excused herself and went to see what was happening with Sesshomaru. She asked servants to show Kyo to a room and promised to make time for him a little later. Then she was gone. Kyo watched her leave. She was indeed beautiful beyond comparison.

Bakura examined Sesshomaru. There was nothing wrong physically with the Dog Lord, but his mind was shut down. He simply refused to wake up. Bakura looked at Aara, "I can only surmise what happened. Ashara called him and he was going to her. Then you called him and told him to come to you. He could not refuse either call but also could not obey either call, so he simply shut down. I'm not sure how we will be able to bring him back. Perhaps Kaiba will have the power." Aara nodded, looking at the beautiful Demon Lord sadly. Perhaps she should have never tried to call him. But if she hadn't, Sesshomaru might have fallen into the same trap as Bankotsu. With a sigh, she left his side, Mirago promising to watch over him also. Aara then went to properly greet their visitor. She knocked softly on his door and he asked her to enter. Kyo was startling to say the least, his eyes extremely unnerving. Somehow they were worse that Bakura's -- it must be the strange glow that sometimes appeared in them, lighting them from within. She walked out to the balcony with him, to show him the gardens and explain how to get down to them. He stood very close to her, but for some reason she didn't mind. He kept talking, just above a whisper, but later she would not be able to remember what he had said. He took her hand in his own and kissed her cupped palm. She couldn't stop staring into his glowing red eyes. He came even closer, pressing against her body with his own. He kissed her and she felt her entire body tingle. He kissed her again, deeper, his arms wrapped around her tightly. Suddenly she forced herself out of his spell, moving away from him. She told him good night and quickly left the room. She went quickly to her room and closed the door, leaning against it with a sign of relief. What had just happened??? Kyo stood on the balcony smiling. So the beautiful princess was powerful enough to break his spell. And there were very few that could do that. She was going to be great fun to conquer! But he had limited time; if either her mate or any of her males returned or the Dog Demon woke up, it would be impossible. She would never allow herself to be with him alone again. Kyo calculated that he had two more nights at the most.

Kurama reached the village, but gained very little new information. The people had been taken in the dead of night and no one had heard a thing. The woman was asleep next to her husband, but he did not wake up during her kidnapping. From the village, Kurama and his group searched for miles to the east but found no trace. But the village was in the foothills of the high northern mountains and visual tracking was almost impossible. They contacted the Northern Wolf Clan and enlisted the help of those wolves with the tracking. The smoke had obliterated Naraku's scent so even the wolves could not find him. It would only be by chance or design that they would hear from Naraku again. They agreed to spend another two days searching and then return to the Castle.

	The usually calm fox was very frustrated by their lack of progress. Kurama was sure that Naraku had a plan, but he couldn't think of what it might be. Naraku could just be going into hiding again, but he didn't think so. He had been safe with Shido. No, Naraku had made his move. Kurama just had to figure out what it was.

Hiten and Souten told Hiei the news about the village and that Kurama was searching to the east of the village. Hiten himself would search to the north. Hiei and the Wolf Demons might as well continue searching where they were since they had no idea which direction Naraku was heading. He might be going to Demon World, trying for the Eastern Lands. There was no alliance with the Eastern Lands but to get there, they would have to travel through either the Northern Lands (Raizen's lands) which was unlikely or the Western Lands (Sesshomaru's). It was also possible that they were heading into Suzaku since they had Tasuki captive, but that made no sense. They all decided to search for a few days more and then head home. It was too easy to hide in these mountains.

	With Kaiba gone and her charges asleep, Mirago had little to do. She began to spend time with Suzuki and by default, Bakura. His looks no longer bothered her, as a matter of fact, she was beginning to think of him as handsome. His skin was a pale blue, very appealing, and his black hair was long and lustrous. As everyone said, his eyes were the worst, but Mirago soon got used to them.
The mage was very shy at first, but began to warm up to her, giving her little projects to do. He was kind with the girl; never scolding her when she messed up, he just quietly showed her the correct way. She began to look forward to spending time with him. Suzuki noticed that his mentor seemed to like the girl and soon found things to do elsewhere when Mirago entered the tower. He liked Bakura a lot and thought Mirago would be good for him. Maybe she could make him realize that his looks were not terrifying.

The next evening, Aara walked in the gardens as usual. She loved her gardens and spent a great deal of time in them. Her activity was so restricted and she rarely got the chance to travel her own lands, that her gardens kept expanding until now they were almost five miles in depth with a long meandering path through them that was nearly eight miles long. It was a long walk through the entire gardens, but there were several smaller paths that branched from the main path that brought you back to the Castle. Depending on the path you chose, you could walk a mile, three miles or five miles. Aara was currently walking on the three mile path when Kyo caught up with her. She started when she saw him approaching, suddenly realizing she was alone with him.

	"Princess, may I join you?" he asked, knowing she could not refuse. Without waiting for an answer, he took his place beside her. Aara kept her eyes on the path before her, afraid to look up into his eyes. They walked silently for about half a mile. Only one more mile and she could escape to the Castle.

Suddenly Kyo stopped and took her arms. Her natural reaction was to look up -- and she did -- right into his glowing red eyes. She tried to use her power, but it had no effect on him. He didn't even feel it. She was lost! Again, he whispered to her, holding her tightly against his body. He kissed her while his hands stroked her shoulders, her arms, and then found her breasts. Oh! She was drowning in his voice and those eyes! His kissed her throat and then dipped his head further down and kissed the tops of her full breasts. She trembled under his touch. He gently led her off the path and into the concealing growth. He knelt down and pulled her down with him. Before she realized what was happening, her clothes were off and he was kissing her entire body. He moved between her legs and gently spread them apart. He bent down and kissed every part of her and then his tongue dipped deep into her wetness. Aara felt like she was on fire. Is this what her males felt? He soon had her throbbing inside and just when she thought she would faint from the pleasure of it, Kyo sat up and quickly removed his own clothing. She lay there waiting for him, pliant in his hands. This was not her power -- it was all his! Without ceremony, he pushed himself inside and after a few hard thrusts, flooded her with his seed. It was hot! Not painful, but still very hot. His eyes gleamed red gold in the dark as he released and then they changed to a deep red color. He rolled over to lie beside her. "Thank you! It has been such a long time!" he exclaimed.

[Author's Note: Kyo is pronounced "key-oh"]