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"Lord-Sesshoumaru..."
"hmm..."
"That child...she's still following us."
The dog demon, with his long flowing white hair turned to glance behind him. As soon as he did the child coated in blood stopped, looking up at him with her brown eyes. The silver haired lord stared at her, and turned, "Come Jaken, let her follow, she will tire soon enough."
Jaken looked at the girl, waving at her as if to shoo her away. Instead of fear the child cocked her head looking at him in a peculiar way. As soon as the two demons were off the little child trotted on after them. Sesshoumaru sensing this glanced at her too quick for Jaken or the child to notice.
Turning sharply he began to take a more trickier path, filled with stones and scattered twigs. He could hear stumbling, and tiny sounds no doubt the little girl, but she did not make a sound or raise attention to herself. As the ground began to incline he heard the child struggling more, and found himself looking back to see how she was doing.
The blood had hardened on her clothes and looked black. Her feet seemed to be cut up, and her brown her was very tangled. Sesshoumaru turned away from her trudging upward Jaken whispering gleefully, "Oh my lord Sesshoumaru you are so clever! She's falling behind."
Sesshoumaru said nothing.
Soon dawn came and Sesshoumaru with out so much as a word sat down, the pair now at a grassy hill. Jaken gratefully plopped down and began a fire, chattering away. Sesshoumaru looked around, the little girl hadn't appeared. "She sat down a while back, too tired and hurt to go on I suppose," Jaken chirped carelessly.
Sesshoumaru swatted Jaken, who cried out asking what he did wrong. "Be quiet. We shall rest," Sesshoumaru snarled loudly, before flopping on the ground. Jaken couldn't help but notice that even when his lord was carelessly flopping on the ground he still managed to look beautiful. Jaken sighed laying down next to fire, closing his eyes in slumber.
Sesshoumaru however did not sleep, but stared up at the stars. A rustling in the grass gave the little girl's location away. Sesshoumaru sat down and saw the girl heading his way a handful of berries and nuts in her hands. 'So...she only stopped for food then?' Sesshoumaru thought, watching her with sharp cold eyes.
The tiny child plopped on the ground right next to Sesshoumaru, so close that her tiny hands could grab his tail. He watched her, ans she looked down chewing her meal quietly. In her brown eye temptation shone and Sesshoumaru felt something building up in his chest.
The small child, with the very tip of her small finger reached out and successfully poked his tail. She pulled her hand a way and waited, seeing as the handsome demon wasn't mauling her she touched the white fluff with two fingers.
Then three.
Then four.
And then she was petting the tail, chewing and smiling as she wiggled her feet on the ground. The thing bubbling on his mouth rose to his throat and out to his face. A smile, the tiniest of ones, flashed on his face for a moment but then was gone. Standing and scooping up this child all in one motion he walked off leaving the sleeping Jaken.
They walked in silence, and finally the child spoke. "Rin." He looked at her briefly and then looked back strait ahead. "This one is Sesshoumaru." There was a pause and then the tiny child whispered, "Sesshoumaru-sama." Sesshoumaru held her closer and found what he'd been looking for, a stream. Setting the child down he put her at the bank of the stream and turned his back. "Bathe."
"Yes Sesshoumaru-sama!" The child's voice range out. He head nothing at first but then high pitched giggling, and the sound of splashing water. Soon he felt a tap on his shoulder and turning he saw the child back in her rags, and smiling one of her teeth missing. Brushing a thumb over her cheek he looked at her face close. "Yes, you I will keep you." He said, the meaning unknown none even to him, surely Sesshoumaru could not and would not take in a human!
Taking her hand he led her back towards a village. Instructing her to stay he walked into a hut, the people inside screaming. Snarling at them he demanded, "Do you have a daughter? The age of six or eight?" The Woman and Man in the hut clung to each other, the woman heavy with child. A soft sound caught his attention and he turned seeing a small girl just Rin's size. She stared at him neither scared or startled.
There seemed to be something about young children. Heads filled with imagination and dreams prevented fear at this age. Whether it was a curse of blessing it was this child's youthful fancy that kept her alive that night. "Child bring out your finest piece of clothing," Sesshoumaru told her the child obeying. She disappeared in a room, coming back with a yellow and orange kimono, a green sash resting on top of the bundle. She held these up for him, letting her hands stroke his fur.
Sesshoumaru allowed her to stroke the tail once more figuring it fair payment for the clothes, that and their lives.
Sesshoumaru walked back outside pausing a moment to watch the child chase the glowing bugs known as fireflies. A memory stuck him of his brother. When he was little Inuyasha caught one but killed the bug on accident and began to cry. Sesshoumaru remembered quickly reaching out snatching three of four of the glowing bugs from the air and giving them to him. Inuyasha has thanked him leaning on his arm whispering, "Brother I don't want to kill anything..."
Shaking his head fiercely to rid the vile memory from his head he dropped the clothes at the girls feet. He turned again, but too soon he realized she was tugging on his sleeve. Glancing down he saw she could not put the kimono's sash on. Stooping down he finished tying it off, adjusting the kimono on her looking her over. "Rin look nice?" The girl asked smiling. He gave her a quick nod, and walked off the child following after him. When they reached where Jaken was the fire was dying and he still slept.
Sesshoumaru sat and pointed at a spot on the ground for Rin. Knowing what he meant with that point she scooted over to the patch of clearing, curled up, and quietly closed her eyes.
"Sesshoumaru-sama Rin stay?"
"Yes Rin...you stay."
The child fell asleep and Sesshoumaru let his eyes slide to Jaken.
'I will have to beat him extra hard tomorrow,' Sesshoumaru thought, 'Or he will never shut up about the human.'
end