CHAPTER ONE

Sesshomaru

The day that I met her... Was the day of my twelfth birthday. And it was a day that would certainly change my life forever.

"Sesshomaru! Come in here for a moment." a familiar, bitter-sweet voice called. I sighed, and got up from my comfortable spot on the floor, feeling the coarse wood brush against my palm as I lifted myself to my feet. I took one last glance out the window where the entire view of the palace lay. Wispy clouds drifted past my view, a hazy grey sky bringing their purity to my eyes. I snuffed.

Today, was my birthday.

I've been told in the past, that once a demon reaches a certain age, birthdays will no longer hold any significance. Perhaps the age was earlier than I thought. Because as of today, I just wanted my solitude. I didn't wish for any attention, special or otherwise.

I carried myself over the solid wood of the floor. My room, thick with the rich smell of pine was the one area I would prefer to stay.

Slowly, I made my down into the main room, edging past tapestries that hung from the walls. I didn't care to look at them today. It wasn't exactly a happy day, after all. Now, Mother just had to cause a disruption in my attempt to spend the entire day unnoticed. I heard the quiet press of my bare soles against the cool stairs. The stairway was rather long, and I wasn't very used to going down it. Usually, as Mother was aware, going anywhere other than my own room or the courtyard was tedious work. Not only was the path to either place (or anywhere) within the castle incredibly long and winding, but with her looming over me, it was even more aggravating.

Something already seemed odd. Mixed in with Mother's lavender scent was another. A pleasant, sweet one that made my mouth water just a bit. I recognized the slight tangy fragrance, though not from where.

"Yes?" I asked with another sigh. I at last reached the last stair. Before me stood my incredibly overdressed mother, complete with flowing lavender kimono and cottony fur. I noticed that the woman had something hidden behind her back, but decided not to say anything of it as of yet. She looked at me with a gaze of smug amusement and said,

"Look at who I found for you."

I looked at her a brief moment, studying her, and then replied, "Who? As in... a person...?"

I tried to catch a glimpse what was behind her, but to no avail. With any more attempt, it would suggest that I cared.

She nodded, and pulled out a girl from behind her back with great haste. The fragile-looking girl stumbled, letting out a small cry. Seeing me, she seemed to become even more timid, frail body tremulous. Mother, smiling happily, bent down on one knee to get to the same height as her.

"This is Mikage. As you can see, she is a princess," she said. The girl that she introduced as Mikage nodded quickly and refused to meet eyes with either of us as Mother tapped a long claw against her crown. Her long brown hair hung down past her hips, and fluffy bangs nearly completely covered a thin strip of gold across her forehead- what Mother referred to as her 'crown'. But what stood out to me is the gold sun upon her forehead, and the face marks of a full dog yokai. Pointed elven ears protruded from the thick brown tufts on either side of her head resembling rug tassels. She had light petal pink lips that appeared well-cared for. Her eyes could barely be seen from her timid position, which allowed her bangs to cover them. However, something was off about her supposed royalty. The kimono she wore was white, with a swaying red hakama- the typical attire of a priestess. Beyond this, she was dirty, covered in brown filth.

"Why have you brought her here, Mother?" I asked, bringing my eyes off of the girl. Mother just looked at me and shrugged, her eyelids now closing.

"You like only full demons, isn't that right...? Well... You simply cannot remain alone for the rest of your life. I need an heir after you, and seeing as you're my only son..." she said nonchalantly. I felt my eyes narrow to a squint as my fists clenched.

"Meaning you wish for me to accept this girl as my mate in the future... You cannot be s-" I stopped my words to glance at the girl, who had her head bowed in shyness. She seemed somewhat scared... Or nervous. Trembling, she backed away a bit, uttering a small whimper that sounded much like a lost pup. Since she was so young, I decided not to be too rough. With that, I took a deep breath in and out, my hot breath creating a puff into the cool air. "What is it you wish for me to do...?"

"I just want you to play with her a bit! That is all I wish, my son." She stated, smiling calmly. She tucked her hands inside of her swirl-decorated sleeves, and gazed steadily at me. I didn't like the look that she was giving me. The eyebrow cocked halfway up her forehead, the left side of her red-coated lips drawn into a smile. Frankly, it made me rather uncomfortable.

"I do not 'play'. In case you haven't noticed, I'm a bit more serious then those my age." I said. The top of my mouth pulled up quickly before I let out a snuff of air from both nostrils. "Let her out of here. If I were you, I wouldn't wish to be notorious for abduction." I turned without another word exchanged and began heading up the long stairway yet again.

But at the sound of tiny pounds pursuing me, I froze, my brow creased and my jaw firmed.

She had followed me.

I didn't bother to face her, deciding to instead not move another step until she either left, or explained.

"What do you want?"

There was a pause.

"Um... Here..." I glanced back briefly, eyes hard. She had her eyes averted, her fist thrust before me. Within her grasp were a few lilies.

I stopped to collect the reason for the delicately curved collection of white petals before my sight. Some of the yellow strands that were meant to be sprouting from the middle were bent and crooked, some broken off entirely. When I said nothing, made no gestures, she flashed her sky-colored eyes at me, but brought them down just a few moments later. They were the colors of bluebells, complete with small veins of emerald racing to the center of her irises. But past their bright exterior, something ran deeper. They were almost deadpan, dejected. Across one of her cheeks in the few moments that I saw it, was a scab, crusted and brown, a tad bit of dried red staining the skin around it.

"Why do you offer me these?"

She examined her white socks, gaze searching. After a little while, her voice came again, hoarse and quiet.

"I took them from the flower field. I-I'm sorry."

"Why were you there?"

No answer.

I stared at her. I stared at the reddened wound on her face, at her tense shoulders and grim expression. It was obvious she wasn't about to respond.

I sat on my floor again, the sweet, freshening scent of the wood filling my nose yet again. The girl said nothing. Not another word had been exchanged since we had gotten up here. In addition to that, she hadn't so much as spared a look.

Something was strange about her. If this girl was like mother said, a princess, why was she not in her kingdom? More than that, where was she from? There was no other evidence of her high ranking. She only wore one layer of clothing. Her outfit was dirtied. And upon closer examination, so was her skin. Beyond what I had already seen on her face, her loose-fitted kimono revealed more marks. Fresh, and old.

On top of that, here she was, sitting in my room without permission from me. If she was going to sit in my room, without doing anything, she had better have an explanation.

I took a deep breath, face dour.

"Where are you from?" I asked, gaze fixed upon her. I tried to keep any hostility from my voice; because chances are, if I was as stern as I wished, I wouldn't receive any answers at all.

"T-the Eastern Lands."

"Eastern, you say...?"

"Yes."

I hesitated, unsure of what to make of this. This girl had come from an entirely different direction, and had somehow stumbled all the way here. I supposed that the wounds that covered her could be from that long journey, but I was unsure.

"How did you get all the way here?"

She looked around the room momentarily, clutching her small knees to her chest. Her complexion was pale, and it appeared that she hadn't eaten in a while. Dirt blemished her face. All that could be seen properly of her was that golden sun on her forehead. All other features were either purposely shielded from my sight, or covered by grime.

"I ran."

"You ran?" I repeated, raising my voice in surprise. How could she have run all the way here? I saw her flinch at the sudden volume change, immediately huddling within the corner yet again.

"Y-yes..."

Her voice was tight and quavering as she looked aside. Several clumps of her brown hair hung past her forehead, uneven in length. This girl was piquing my interest, now. So she had traveled all the way here without aid, but for what cause?

"Why did you travel so far?"

Again, no answer. So, I pushed aside my inquiries and just decided to study the outside world again, watching as the sun dipped below the horizon, and the birds reduced their chirps to a comfortable, peaceful silence.