After the lords and lady returned to their households to protect their lands the West immediately felt the affects without Lord Seiichi's fighters. Naraku's demons hit them hard with one of his reincarnations leading the assault. The battle lasted for days and even at the household those inside could hear the fight raging on from the distance. As a safety, a section of the forces had been stationed around the household just in case the enemy managed to slip through and get this far in. They had no doubt that Lord Sesshomaru wouldn't allow that to happen, but their guard was up the entire time for their own good.

Meanwhile, to be sure that no one caught sight of Akiko and in case the enemy somehow managed to sneak a spy inside their walls, the young woman's quarters were moved into a section of the dungeons. The area had not been used in decades, having collected dust and cobwebs as the maids cleaned every square inch of the place before a mattress padding, sheets, pillows, candles, kimonos, and other smaller items that had been in her room were all moved in. A few sheets were hung from the ceiling to block out the wooden bars of an empty cell across from the one she was to sleep in in order for her to use for changing. It was rather dark underneath the estate. There were no windows to even give a hint of light, only coming from the torches in the hallway leading further back out of sight. It wasn't homey. Not in the slightest, but Akiko knew this was only temporary and necessary given the situation. Rin was sad because their rooms were no longer close and that they couldn't venture out to the gardens either. But the child promised to visit her as much as possible and Akiko was thankful for the company.

The only member from the pack around the household was Tatara, who was helping to guard Rin as she went about. She never thought that Sesshomaru would agree to it, with Jaken having been her only guardian for so long when the lord was away. She personally missed Tobi's comfort by her side. But they had to keep up the illusion that with her death the Beta would have no one to guard and would be ripping through the battlefield alongside Aisu. There were few times in the evening when the young woman would slightly wake feeling the shifting of the mattress below her as a large cool body would collapse against her side. Reaching over Akiko's fingers would find Tobi's slightly damp fur from when the blood and dirt had been washed away and would hold on tightly for comfort. Or cuddle into his side, as the Beta would hum tiredly. He wouldn't be the only one to join her in the dungeon, catching sight of the rest of the pack resting in shifts in the open cell and throughout the hallway.

Surprisingly Jaken was kind enough to bring her reading material from the library when there was nothing to do as she waited for news on the outside.

Slowly but surely, Naraku was beginning to spread his forces. The human villages were warned and many fled to avoid the oncoming danger. Of course there were a few that remained behind. Whether it was being stubborn or the fact that they were not in the health to make the trip the decisions were made. A handful traveled enough so to not be far from their home as room was made to accommodate the amount of people moving. Others were bold enough to make the journey far south towards Lady Sanjou's territory where the demon welcomed them. But even if Naraku was pulling back slightly from the West to protect all sides of his location Akiko barely saw the lord.

Rin would ask about his whereabouts when they were together or before she fell asleep beside Akiko in the dungeon. The young woman found it hard to answer because even she didn't know. But one evening she was pleasantly surprised when awaking, even if it was in the middle of the night, to see Sesshomaru crouched down beside the bed. His hand gently caressing her hair was what caused her to stir, slowly sitting up so not to wake Rin or Tatara at the edge of the bed. There was a torch lit at the bottom of the staircase leading up to the main floor, but the two moved in the opposite direction becoming more covered in the dark shadows as they spoke lowly.

"How are things outside?" Akiko asked.

"Progressing," Sesshomaru answered. "Naraku is persistent, yet it is too early to say we are winning."

"Until we cut off his head and burn his corpse that is when I will say we have won." The lord couldn't agree more. "How are our numbers fairing?"

"Not as many casualties as Naraku's. We have killed a handful of his children, but he will send more."

"The pack?"

"All accounted for with minimal injuries."

"And you?" The young woman was certain he had let the demon inside of him out more than once. It was hard to miss his demonic pressure even this deep in the ground. There was even a hum around him now at this moment, the lingering sign of his involvement on the battlefield. No blood, dirt, or sweat was on his person, knowing he had probably taken a bath before coming to visit her based on the fact that this was one of the rare times he wasn't wearing his armor or weapons. It didn't appear he had received any terrible injuries from his many days absent from the household, but that didn't mean the lord wasn't acting for the sake of trying to appear strong. Something was clear though as Akiko reached up with a hand to cup his cheek allowing the thumb to lightly trace under his eye where the slight hint of dark circles were beginning to form. He needed to get some rest and hoped the demon would in the few hours that were left this evening instead of rushing back to his army.

"Nothing I can't handle."

She offered a smile at that. "Of course. But you're not leaving this dungeon until you promise me you will get some rest." His hand reached up to wrap around the back of hers and gripped tightly. There was a slight intensity in his eyes when he did that before they began to close as his head slightly turned till his lips ghosted the young woman's palm.

"And how will you know what action I take when you are down here?" True, being the Lord of the West his presence on the battlefield was a necessity given the situation. But even lords needed a recovery period before the next battle as Akiko shot him a look.

"If you're going to be difficult, there are plenty of rooms around us that I can lock you inside to be sure you do get some rest, and it won't be comfortable."

They were quiet for a moment before the demon stated, "This is the second time you have said something like that before." Eyes cracking open, they slid in her direction, but the angle of his face didn't change allowing her to continue to feel his lips against the skin. "Will you once again say you will 'improvise'?" If the young woman didn't know any better she would say that Sesshomaru was actually teasing her slightly. So instead of feeding into the question, the reincarnation reacted in order to catch the demon off guard. With the hand still on his face, the other reached up to grip the front of his kimono tightly tugging him down. And he actually moved with the action as his head turned in mild wonder as to what she was doing. Akiko stood on her tiptoes, head slightly tilting and allowing their lips to connect. For a moment he hesitated from the bold action from the human before letting go of her hand to wrap around the young woman's waist to pull them flush against each other. At one point it reminded her of their time in the garden so many days ago. The last time they were connected in this way. But on the other hand it was far less innocent. She clutched him tightly as the two barely came up from air, feeling his tongue invade her mouth and the hand on his cheek moved up to tangle in his hair in order to remain steady. His overpowering nature the young woman tried to control managing to maneuver them without the lord pushing back in the opposite direction.

Sesshomaru inhaled her scent and tried to suppress a growl that threatened to escape. Meanwhile, he could feel his claws digging into the reincarnations kosode, threatening to cut into it from his grasp. But that was the farthest from the demon's mind, wishing to feel more skin against him as something hard and cold pressed against his spine. The lord pulled away causing them to halt for a moment as their lips hovered only inches apart. Her breath was trembling as for a brief moment as Sesshomaru managed to pull his attention away from the mortal and realized that they were no longer standing in the dimly lit hall. Both had become consumed by the shadows in an open, abandoned cell. The lord didn't remember stepping backwards towards the far wall, making eye contact with Akiko once more who gave a little smirk in return.

"It seems I'm good at improvising," she whispered. "All I need to do is lock the door to this prison and then I'll know for sure that you won't return to the front line."

"And when someone comes looking for me and finds us in here?"

"I'll tell them it was for your own good."

His hand shifted, the young woman feeling the sharpness of his claws poking into her spine causing her to arch a bit more causing their lips to brush. And it pleased the demon to see her reaction. The way the young woman's breath slightly hitched and heartbeat increased. "You are playing a dangerous game," he spoke lowly. Akiko wasn't sure what he was getting at, brows slightly pinching at the statement. "Locking yourself in a room with a demon in this manner."

Now it made sense to her, but it didn't throw the reincarnation off guard. "If I didn't want to be alone with you I wouldn't have suggested it."

The response had the demon analyzing her. Sesshomaru wanted more, and her answer left him teetering on the edge of wishing to continue. But not here in the dungeons. And he wanted her to be sure that what she was saying wasn't in the heat of the moment. Slowly, the lord pulled away to stand to full height, causing Akiko's hand to move from the hair to his chest beside the one still clutching his kimono tightly. But she didn't take offense to his actions.

"I won't leave the estate," he stated.

"Do you promise?"

Hand leaving her spine, the demon reached up to tuck a few strands of hair behind an ear. "I won't leave the estate."

"Good." Turning away, the two went to leave when Akiko began to feel the chill of the dungeon seeping through the back of her kosode and questioned, "Did you rip holes in the back of my outfit?"

His eyes flickered down towards the area she was speaking of and noticed the slight tears in the fabric from where his claws had been before looking away and answering, "Possibly."

A smirk came to her lips before letting out a small laugh at that, while shaking her head. The lord didn't even sound apologetic about it and that's what made it amusing. Coming back to the cell she occupied, Rin was still sleeping away sprawled out on top of the makeshift bed. Tatara was still snoring quietly at the end too. Before venturing inside Akiko turned to Sesshomaru, who was already beginning to bend down to kiss her lips.

"I will not see you before I leave," he spoke lowly.

"I know," she whispered. This time she kissed him to savor it, not knowing when the demon was going to be back inside these walls again. Managing to pull himself away, Sesshomaru walked back towards the stairs without another word, taking the torch with him. Akiko watched from the open doorway as he went until completely left in darkness.