A/N—Hey guys, I hope you like this! It's a continued version of 'Allay My Doubts'! I love you guys! Here you are!

Fluctuation

Kagome was furious. Not to mention confused, slightly scared, and maybe a little bit aroused. Okay, so she was a lot aroused, but that was so not the point. Her traitorous mind kept flitting back to the moment they'd shared against the tree, and how perfectly delicious it had been. Her stupid, stupid brain kept shoving completely indecent fantasies into her head, and frankly, she wished it would just shut up. Kagome was no fool—she knew that Sessoumaru could most likely smell her desire, which was beyond mortifying, but a secret part of her hoped that he had enoyed it as much as she did.

Alas, he had walked ahead of her for hours, not saying one word since their… incident. It was most likely for the best, however, since there was a permanent blush staining her cheeks. She just knew it. Over the days, though, she'd learned to read the subtle tellings of his posture, his eyes, and the movement of his clawed hands. She'd come to admire his stoicism, even if it was infuriating sometimes. If his tensed, very square shoulders were anything to judge by, she'd say that he was a fair bit high strung. Then again, he always was—bringing Kagome full circle in her conflicting emotions.

She had not the courage to ask him what he meant by doing that to her. One, she was just about done with embarrassing situations for the day. And two, she was maybe-slightly-almost terrified of the answer that he might or might not give were she to ask. Sure, she'd been with Inuyasha before—and that was a whole other story that she wished she could set aflame and never ever have to remember—but this was Sesshoumaru, her ex's older half brother with a name to go along with his bloody, regal reputation… And lovely, silver hair.

She sighed, and wished that her damned hormones would at least try to silence themselves, but for some reason they seemed to just scream today. Maybe it was that last roll of his hips, she pondered, trying to fend off the inevitable rise in her body temperature as she remembered. Her brain pushed another random fantasy at her; of Sesshoumaru's face, hovering directly over her, silken sheets at her back, and the weighted heat that was pressing against her…

Oh-kay! Kagome, I think you've had enough now! Best thing to do now is to just ignore it. She screeched at herself, embarrassed. She almost stumbled, and a curse slipped from her lips. She made a mental note to never let her curiosity get the best of her ever again. Her eyes sliding over Sesshoumaru's form, she realized that he had slowed his pace slightly, and was now less than a yard from her.

"Your sense of balance astounds, miko." The deep, sultry baritone of his voice almost caused her to trip again, her knees were so weak. Kami, the way he'd kissed her before he'd turned away… No! No, no, no. Sesshoumaru is not a viable source for my pleasure, and never will be. Kagome tried to reason firmly to herself.

"Thanks." She muttered dryly, glaring at the ground. Her feet hurt, and the sun was dipping below the horizon. "Can we stop soon?" She asked, valiantly continuing to battle her hormones within the confines of her head. Heaven help her if only the sound of his voice almost made her trip; he'd barely done anything to her! Her mutinous brain laughed at her, and she remembered the distinct, wondrous sensation of his hips trapping hers against the tree, and the fluttering kisses against her throat. No… he'd done much more than 'barely', she grudgingly admitted.

"Soon." There was a rasp to his voice that Kagome had never heard before, and her head whipped up at the way it caressed her senses. His eyes were carefully averted to their path. She almost missed the way his fingers flexed and bent at his sides—that only happened when he was really, really tense or irritated. What could he possibly be upset about? She tried to reason that maybe he was just impatient with her pace, but he never had been before, and there was something that prodded at the back of her mind, telling her that maybe it could be something more than that. The fine line of his jaw even seemed harsher with his tension, a subtle tic there made her wonder what exactly had rubbed him the wrong way. Not that she would mind rubbing him the right way, per se…

With another inward curse, her blush renewed itself and she tried to beat her Miroku-like side repeatedly with a blunt object.

Unsurprisingly and annoyingly, it refused to die.

Maybe a bath would help. Yes, a nice, cool bath to stunt her hormones and oversensitive skin for at least the rest of the night. "Is there water nearby?" She asked, her gaze drifting over the thick foliage all around them. Knowing it was best to wait patiently for an answer; she shoved her hands in the pockets of her jeans and hummed to herself, silently applauding her continued sanity. Maybe if she could just keep herself busy she wouldn't be so bad, she mused.

"Yes." Sesshoumaru said, the same rasp still coloring his voice, but somehow still managing to sound slightly disparaging.

Rolling her eyes, she just continued along her way, unaware that Sesshoumaru had long since stopped walking.

The line between sanity and madness was taunting him, now. He knew not why, but when she'd provoked, he'd countered her. He was not, however, expecting such a… violent response.

Her scent, which had been pleasant before, was curling in heady, thick waves around him. It had been for a while now. He was quite sure it clung to even his hair now, not that he… minded, overmuch. He clearly remembered the tantalyzing softness of her skin beneath his mouth, beneath his fingers. How she'd quivered so delicately in his grasp at the feel of his claws. Her soft moan into his mouth had tested what little self control he had. A female had never confounded him as she did.

Curse it all, the way she had felt pressed against him, even for barely a moment had nearly driven him to the brink. He inhaled deeply and only cursed himself further, for the maddening, dangerously lovely scent of her was everywhere. Just the memory of her lips against his made his fingers twitch; he wanted to curl himself into her and breathe in her scent forever, his father be damned. He heard her irregular, quickened heartbeat a moment before the scent hit him again in a solid wave, and Sesshoumaru fought to keep himself from falling to his knees.

He held still, and breathed very carefully. She almost tripped behind him, and it helped to calm the atmosphere. "Your balance astounds, miko." He murmured, highly aware of how close he was to her now. She muttered a 'thanks' in response, and Sesshoumaru smirked to himself. Clumsy and not shy of stating her opinion, no matter the situation.

She was so very easy to rile, it seemed… and in more ways than one.

He only caught the end of her question, lost in a rather… delicate thought, concerning her. "Soon." He said, and was slightly shocked at his own lessened ability to speak. The scent of her arousal still teased his senses into full alertness.

While trying to block out her scent, a very alien thought approached him. Why deny yourself? Disturbed as he was at the thought, he found himself not so perturbed at it. He had always done what he wanted before, hadn't he?

Despite feeling horrendously aroused for the remainder of their walk, she was slowly pushing it out of her mind and replacing it with thoughts of a bath. Good Kagome, just don't think about it. Maybe I can wash it out of my system. And so she hoped, and unwittingly strode into what seemed like a wall, losing her balance.

Too bad her hope was all in vain the moment Sesshoumaru turned his heavy, honeyed eyes on her. She felt a searing heat jolt through her spine and into the pit of her stomach at the touch of his hands, making her shudder pleasantly. "Sesshoumaru?" A fiery blush stained her cheeks. He seemed to be inspecting her, and as he slowly righted her one hand slid further behind her back, while the other came up to toy gently with her ebony hair. She had never seen him so completely ungaurded before; the soft upturn of his lips and the slight glow to his usally icy gaze sent warmth into her very bones, and she tentatively returned his smile with a stuttering heart.

"Kagome." He said her name as if mulling it over, drawing each syllable out with rasping tenderness that she hadn't been aware he had. Kagome's heart hammered as he leaned in closer, his hair slipping over a shoulder to form an ethereal curtain. The hand on her lower back drew her closer, and suddenly his face was in her hair, gently resting on the juncture between her neck and shoulder. She heard him inhale deeply and felt him nuzzle her, a loud gasp escaping her when his lips brushed against her warm skin.

She smelled of sunlight, warm and heady, and something else so inconcievably good that Sesshoumaru felt his iron control slipping away, falling into tattered pieces as he left it behind. "Kagome." He murmured.

Both of his hands held her close to him, splayed wide against her back. She responded in kind, her arms coming to twine around his neck shyly as she rose up on her tiptoes. "Sesshoumaru." She whispered, a tremor in her voice. Somehow, his gentle touch and silken murmurings had transformed this for her, and now she wasn't so sure it was lust driving her anymore.

They were fragile and new, these moments. Just as breakable to her as she was to him.

It was… satisfying for him to hold her like this. Her soft breaths skittered across his skin, and he could feel her heart beating a rapid staccatto through his haori. His hands drifted lower to settle at the swell of her hips, and he found himself pleased when she gasped lightly against him. Pulling back, he gazed at her in the fading light; her cheeks were still bright pink and her eyes were warm as she met his with a confidence that surprised him. Her palms rested against his chest, her fingertips splayed out as if to take in as much of him as she could through that simple gesture. Her lips curved upwards in a smile, and Sesshoumaru felt new warmth spread in his chest.

Her eyelids fluttered when the pressure of his fingertips increased, concealing the startling blue of her eyes for barely a heartbeat.

She lifted her hand from his chest, and Sesshoumaru would have held his breath if she didn't smell so exceedingly good. When her soft fingertip made contact with his cheek, he sought her eyes. She was tracing one of his fuschia stripes in fascination, sideways toward his cheekbone.

"They're beautful." Kagome had no idea where her new-found confidence was coming from, but she wasn't going to think about it and lose it all in the process. She'd always liked the way his markings had curved over his cheek, perfectly pointed and almost delicate in their shape, and just as soft as the rest of his skin.

Done with her examination, she met curious golden eyes that seemed just a little less heavy than they had been throughout their trip. A shock of heat tumbled into her veins, making her tremble in his grasp.

One hand gently cupped the side of her face, his claws teasing her dark hair. "As are you, Kagome." She dropped her eyes in embarrassment, and Sesshoumaru moved his fingers to tilt her chin upwards, his honey-colored eyes finding her deep blues. Her skin was just as teasingly soft as it had been earlier that day. Her breath slipped out in a nervous exhale, tingling as it brushed across his lips.

He drew her closer to his chest, heavy-lidded gaze so intensely focused upon her that anything else was secondary, and could wait. Her hand had long since dropped back to his chest, and now her fingers tightened themselves in the silk of his haori, her eyes flicking to his, then to his lips and back. With the remembrance of her taste in the forefront of his mind, he pressed his lips gently to hers.

She slowly leaned into the kiss, and Sesshoumaru was swept through with the desire to be as close to her as absolutely possible. His tongue gently teased her bottom lip as he pulled her to him, reveling in her warmth. Her arms moved up to encircle his neck, her fingers twining into the fine silver of his hair as she moaned softly into his mouth.

Weaving through the deep black strands of her hair, he cupped her head as his tongue delved into her mouth, disbelieving that he had ever truly lived before this.

It was too much. He was too good, too too good to be real in this moment. The scent of him alone was enough to put her over the edge; subtle hints of tea and musk, all covered by the silvery scent of thunderstorms, made her gasp and melt further into him. She pulled lightly on his hair, tugging his mouth closer to hers. He made a soft noise in his throat, and suddenly his fingers were dancing along the hem of her shirt again, the tips of his claws sending hot-cold shudders up her spine.

Moaning quietly again at his touch, she gently swiped her tongue against his and was rewarded with an increasingly feral-sounding rumble in his chest. His fingers explored the skin of her waist and back, sliding tauntingly back and forth before settling on her lower back. He needed her; needed to curl in and around her until time itself was no more and until he could no longer decipher where she began and he ended.

Kagome sagged, the warmth of his hand on her sensitive skin making her grasp even tighter onto his hair. She felt heat burning through her belly, consuming her in a furious inferno that was intending to make her fall to pieces before him. She had no qualms with that.

Sesshoumaru growled into her, and the sound vibrated everywhere. He was everywhere. She gasped and twisted in his arms when his fingers moved again, brushing higher and higher until he felt the soft fabric of the contraption that held her breasts. The muscles of her stomach quivered at his touch. Her fingers loosened from his hair, grasping at his shoulders underneath his haori. The softness of her skin against his made him tremble, and a knot tightened itself in his abdomen.

His lips left hers, but before she could complain his absence he was nosing her hair aside and pressing searing, delicious kisses to her neck. His tongue flicked out and he sucked gently on the skin there, and Kagome's knees went weaker than they'd been all day. His hand left her hair to hold her to him, traveling up and down the length of her spine before gently sliding underneath the hem of her jeans to her hips. She shook, gripping his shoulders like a lifeline.

He bit down gently, a broken groan rumbling from his mouth as her fingers slid tentatively over his skin. A heady shudder went through her when the points of his fangs indented in her throat. His breath ghosted heatedly across her neck, raising goosebumps on her flesh. "Kagome," Her name slipped from his lips as a rasped whisper, and his arms encircled her, "Hold on to me." He murmured against her.

Her body was thrumming, every part of her calling out to the predator who held her. He lifted her, and Kagome wrapped her legs about his waist, her heart thundering in her chest. They both shuddered at the sensation, and he bowed his head to her shoulder, his breath sending heat to her core. She felt him, and at that she went hot and cold and tightened her legs around him. "Sesshoumaru." She moaned into his hair, and he growled in response, nipping her skin and enjoying the soft moans it elicited from her.

Leaning back, he rested his forehead against hers with a pained groan. "Kagome, it is not safe here." He said, and the delightful way she moved almost made him forget those very words.

Kagome pressed a soft kiss to the side of his mouth; her arms sliding 'round his neck once again as she pulled closer to him. "Then," She kissed the line of his jaw, "take us somewhere safe?" She murmured, his hands slid underneath her thighs to anchor her to him and she pressed her hips forward.

His shuddering growl told her that she was at least doing something right; but oh, the length that pressed insistently against her belly practically screamed it to her. His lips were everywhere, kissing her lips, her cheeks, her forehead, and finally her nose. She smiled and sought his lips out, drawn in by his gentle touch. Her hands cradled his face, stroking his markings with her thumbs—Kami she loved those—and kissed him deeply, finding no words to express the absolute perfection of it all.

Silver hair slipped over her shoulders, and the cool strands that fell upon her skin gave her an exquisite shock. His golden eyes were bright and warm as they regarded her with careful tenderness. More than lust, her mind whispered, echoing with the feel of his hands upon her and the silken warmth of him. He drew her closer, if that was even possible, and Kagome felt her eyes tear up at his unyielding fervor that was so singularly him. She sniffed, and smiled.

He frowned at her, and briefly wondered if he was injuring her somehow. No, her scent would show it; and she only smelled of arousal and contentment, he momentarily shuddered with pleasure. "You weep."

She met his eyes, a watery laugh slipping past her swollen lips. "I'm… happy." He kissed the single tear away, and if she was standing her knees would have given out.

"I am glad." He said the words haltingly, as if he was just as surprised as she that he was murmuring them. She squirmed, and he groaned in surprise, bowing his head to her neck at the sensation of her moving against his length. She kissed his hair, and with a spurt of confidence she leaned to run her tongue along the tip of his pointed ear. He stiffened, and the noise that escaped him was an animalistic growl. His mouth was on hers with searing heat even as he moved, lightning fast to his destination.

Kagome felt the wind tugging her hair for a few moments, and then a wall was at her back. His mouth was on hers, and then nothing existed but him, and the wonderful pressure that they were building up. The sway of his silver hair, the feel of his claws barely pricking her thighs, his chest pressed against hers, and the taste of his mouth that so divinely explored hers.

When she rolled her hips against him, Sesshoumaru lost his grip on reality, and the only thing that convinced him it was true was her trembling breaths and the shiver of her thighs wrapped around his waist as she tried to keep them close. Her scent became thicker as his fingers skimmed her skin, shoving the thin garment of her shirt up. She lifted her arms, and with infinite care he slid it over her arms, and tossed it aside. She glanced at him from under her lashes as he admired the pale cream of her skin. The frantic beating of his heart stopped at how achingly lovely she was, and he leaned forward.

A/N— Continued next chapter! I hope you liked it, please review!