A/N: Our story takes place when Kira is still a child, and Kohaku and Rin are both teenagers.

ooOoo

There was quiet mist creeping in from the mountain in the early hours of the morning, filtering through the trees and into the valleys. Rin felt cold and clammy for a moment as a chill ran through her, before she remembered why she was out there on that lonely stream bank. It was washing day for her, and she wanted to get her chores done early so she could spend more time with her father when he visited.

She scrubbed her clothes faster in the water as a thrill of excitement tickled her all the way down to her toes. It had already been a month since she had last been visited by her father and she couldn't wait to see him again. He didn't really like the humans in the village, so his visits were short and only once a month. But Lady Kaede made sure she was alright in that lonely little hut, and her father brought her gifts too.

Rin laughed in the silence. Silly father, he thought that he had to bring all sorts of presents to make up for not visiting often enough. He was rather doting, and Rin wondered if that might be a problem in the future. To him she was still his little girl, even though she was already eighteen and a grown up woman.

"BOO!"

Rin jumped a foot in the air. She looked behind her and glared. It was Shippo. "You little scoundrel! What are you doing, running around scaring people out of their wits? If I had a knife with me, I might have thrown it at you, thinking you were an attacker."

He scuffed the ground with his foot paw. "Aw, I was just fooling around. You wouldn't really stab me, would you? Anyways, Kaede said she saw you go out early in the morning, so I thought I'd see what you were doing. And it turns out you were washing clothes; how boring."

She stood up with her basket, towering over him, even though she herself wasn't of great height. "Washing clothes isn't boring. You might try it sometime."

He puffed out his little chest. "No way, that's girl stuff! I never wash my clothes!"

Rin wrinkled her nose. "I can tell. But doesn't Sango do your dirty laundry? She's very kind to do it."

"Yeah, but I babysit her kids in return."

"Well, that's very nice of you Shippo."

"Not really. She always leaves me some of her rice cakes as extra pay for keeping a handle on her rascals."

"Oh, I see."

They walked through the woods, back in the direction of the village. Shippo snapped his fingers. "Oh, yeah! I just remembered! Sango's brother Kohaku is coming back!"

Rin blinked and glanced at him curiously. "When?"

"Today, I think. She got a letter from him a while back."

Rin grabbed his cheeks and pulled. "Why didn't you tell me, you little nuisance of a fox-demon?"

Tears of pain leaked out of his eyes. "Ah diden knaw oo wan'ed oo knaw! Ow, ow, ow! Rin, ur 'urtin meee!"

She dropped him unceremoniously, and he massaged his bruised cheeks. "Ow, Rin, whadja do that for?"

She kept walking and he had to scramble to catch up. "I can't believe you didn't tell me he was coming back!"

"I didn't know you cared so much for him or I would have!"

Rin whirled on him, blushing furiously. "I don't care for him! I mean, I do, but it's because he's Sango's brother! I was just… slightly worried for his safety!" She turned and stomped away.

"Riiiiight, and I'm emperor of the world."

Without turning she shook her head. "I'm serious! I don't care for him like that!"

"Like what?"

"You know perfectly well what I'm talking about!"

Shippo shrugged in an attempt to act innocent. "Maybe, maybe not. I'm just a little guy; I don't know what you're talking about."

"You're not such a little guy anymore— I mean, look at you. You've gotten taller."

He checked himself frantically. "I have not! Have I? Oh, no! I am taller! There goes my cute kid act!"

Rin put her hands on her hips. "I should say so. You're practically a teenager now. A short teenager, granted, but you're getting taller every day. You can't go around getting free food because you're cute anymore."

"I can't?"

"No, you've got to start fending for yourself. Like me. I do my own laundry, I gather my own rice, cook my own food, mend my own clothes, live in my own house, and wash my own dishes. Name one thing you do all by yourself, for yourself."

The little fox-demon scratched his head, squinting. "Er, um, ha-ha, uh, I… I mean, I…" He blew a sigh of frustration. "Ok, so I don't do anything. But I'm still kind of a kid; what can I do?"

"Hmm, I've got an idea. You could live with me, but I wouldn't do any of your chores; you'd have to pull your own weight around, and gather your own rice, and I'd teach you how to cook. In exchange, you get a roof over your head, and experience in living on your own. How's that?"

Shippo rubbed his paws together. "Great! When do I move in?"

Rin smiled. "If you want, right now. Go get your stuff and bring it over to my place. I'll help you get settled in."

"Ok! Be back before you can say 'rice'!" He ran off like a shot.

Just for fun, Rin grinned and said, "Rice—oops, you're late," and headed back to her small house. Everything was quiet and calm as it should be. She put away her laundry, and began making breakfast. "Now, let's see: Shippo won't be able to cook yet, so I'd better make the first few meals for us. I don't want any rice wasted by being over-cooked or under-cooked."

She was completely focused on her work, and as she hung up her laundry to dry, she didn't notice Kirara's landing, or the figure that descended from her back. It wasn't until Kirara reverted to her kitten-form and rubbed against her ankle, mewling, that Rin finally looked up. She choked back a gasp.

It was Kohaku.

He was taller, stronger, and more handsome than she remembered, but it was Kohaku, without a doubt.

"Kohaku-san? But, what are you doing here?"

He grinned and pushed away the hair that had fallen in his eyes. "I saw you doing laundry, and couldn't wait to say hello. How are you, Rin? It's been ages since I saw you!"

She smiled back. "I'm alright. How about you?"

He laughed. "Never better, though I wouldn't have been able to say that a month ago."

"Why not?"

"Because a month ago I was getting clobbered by a particularly troublesome boar-demon. He was enormous!"

Rin covered her mouth. "Oh, were you hurt?"

"Eh, not too badly. Mostly bruises and such."

"That's good to hear." She stopped, and her eyes widened suddenly. "Wait a minute! What are you doing here? Why aren't you at Sango's? Good grief, here we are jabbering away, and your sister's probably worried about you!"

"Oh, I wouldn't worry too much about that."

She glared at him. "Well, I would. Your sister's going to kill me if I don't get you to her house right now! Come on, I'll walk you there."

She was about to set off, when Kohaku grabbed her suddenly, swinging her up onto the now-huge Kirara's back. "Why don't we fly there? It'll be faster."

"Isn't Kirara tired from your trip?"

Kohaku laughed. "No, she barely had to do anything. We walked most of the way, and I carried her a lot. A little exercise should do her good."

Rin sighed happily. "This is just like being on Ah-Un!"

"So, what's happened while I was gone?"

She thought a moment before answering. "Well, Kagome and Inuyasha had a baby a few years ago, and they named her Kira. She's really cute and love's playing with her cousins, er, adopted cousins, I mean, Sango and Miroku's children."

"Ah, yes. My nieces and nephew."

"Kaede's thinking about retiring, and we've had only one demon attack here, about two years ago. That's about it."

"Was anyone hurt in the demon attack?"

"Not that I can remember. Your sister and Inuyasha took care of it pretty quickly."

Kohaku looked down on the village as they circled for a landing. "It's been seven years. I can't believe I've been gone this long."

"Well, at least you've completed your training, right? And you have written every once in a while."

He smiled at her as the landed. "Thanks, Rin, for always being so positive."

She grinned back. "No problem! I'm positively glad you're back!"

He groaned. "Really bad pun, Rin."

She tweaked his bangs. "That's what I'm here for!"

She walked him up to the door of Sango's house, before waving. "I'll see you around."

"Don't you wanna come in?"

She shook her head shyly. "Nah, I'll just get back to my laundry. And Shippo's probably lugging his stuff around, wondering where I am. He's moving in with me today."

"Shippo? I bet he doesn't look any older than a little kid."

"No, actually, he's gotten taller. He made a real fuss because he's starting to look like a teenager. No more free snacks."

"Well, I'm sorry you have to walk back. Maybe I could send Kirara with you, and then she could just fly back."

Rin waved her hands, backing away. "No, no! It's ok! I'm sure Sango wants to see Kirara too. Go on! Get in there, I bet she's worried about you." She turned and ran, disappearing behind some of the villagers' houses.

Kohaku watched her go, even after he couldn't see her anymore. Kirara nudged him in the back, purring, and when he looked at her, there was a knowing look in her eyes. She reverted to her smaller form and he picked her up, setting her on his shoulder. "Oh, shut up, Kirara. You don't know what you're talking about." She mewled, and there was a twinkle in her eye.

ooOoo

Rin stopped, breathless from running all the way back to her own house. Shippo was staggering around under the weight of his bundle. He squeaked as his towering pile of stuff almost toppled him over. "Rin! Help!"

"Oh! I'm sorry, Shippo! Here, let me help." She grabbed more than half of the stuff, relieving him immensely.

"Oh, whew! Thanks, Rin. I thought I was gonna collapse under there! Where were you?"

They made their way into the house, and Rin set down the belongings in a spare corner. "There. Oh, Kohaku paid me a visit, so I walked, er, flew him to Sango's house."

Shippo scratched his head. "How did you fly?"

"On Kirara of course."

His eyes lit up. "Kirara's here? Where, where, where?"

"At Sango's house. Why?"

"Because I haven't pet her in ages! Only I know her secret itchy spots!"

"Are you sure about that? After all, Sango and Kohaku have known her all their lives."

"They don't know her special rub spots! I have to pet her!"

He made for the door, but Rin held him fast by his shirt. "Oh, no you don't. You're going to unpack all this stuff and help me hang up the laundry. Good grief! Do you really need all this junk?"

Shippo crossed his arms. "Of course I do. It's all my tricks, not to mention personal belongings."

"Oh, well. It can't be helped, I suppose. Come on, let's get that washing up to dry."

"Er," he said, shuffling his feet. "I, uh, don't really know how to hang up laundry."

Rin smiled kindly. "Don't worry; I'll teach you as we go. Come on then! We've got work to do."

Shippo tried one last tactic. "Do we have to?"

Rin crossed her arms sternly, and her smile disappeared. But there was a bit of a merry twinkle in her eye as she admonished him. "Of course! Now, no complaining, chin in, chest out, that's right! It's a lovely day for drying clothes!"

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This entire fanfic is dedicated to Jaylonni ReAnne (penname: Jaylonni Love), the winner of my Inuyasha contest!