I'm so excited to finally be posting this! It was about two years ago when I first came up with the idea. It's an epic angsty tale of Sesshomaru and Rin's undying love (lol). There is a companion story to this about Inuyasha and Kagome, which is alluded to a couple of times in this story, and which I will probably post after I am done with this one.
Summary: Chapter One: During a summer thunderstorm, Inuyasha "encourages" his big brother to right an old wrong. SessxOlderRin, Rated for foul language (courtesy of Inuyasha) and some thematic elements (whatever they are). Oh right, angst. Not in this chapter as much as others.
Disclaimer: For those of you who have been living in the dark wet places under rocks, Ichigo2491 holds no ownership in the Inuyasha phenomenon. That is the property of Rumiko Takahashi, Sunrise Studios, and assorted other lucky ducks.
(BTW, this story is set like 8 years in the future of Inuyasha, and Naraku is dead). Now let the angstfest begin!
Like A Summer Storm
by Ichigo2491
It was a dark and stormy night. The wind and rain howled through Japan, raging torrents of water flooding the landscape. Wind battered loudly at the frame of InuTaisho Castle, but not loud enough to drown out the sobs of a young woman.
The sound emanated from the bedroom right next to Sesshomaru's. He had come to anticipate this sound; it occurred every night. And every night, the coldhearted dog-demon woke from his nightmares to greet the one he was living.
Tonight seemed no different. Sesshomaru sat bolt upright in bed, his long pale hair soaked with sweat, his breath coming in harsh gasps. He heard, through the sounds of the storm, that girl crying. And as it did every time he heard it, something inside him died. The cries from behind the rice paper walls rose in pitch, to a sort of caterwauling.
As he always did, Sesshomaru abandoned his room and padded barefoot into the corridor. He got halfway to the next door when a candle was lit in that room and he heard the murmuring of a servant, trying to hush the crying girl. As always, he turned back to his own door when he heard the servant.
But tonight he was caught.
"What the hell is that godawful noise?" Inuyasha grumbled from his own doorway.
"Yeah, we're trying to sleep, you know!" the groggy Shippo pitched in from Inuyasha's shoulder.
Sesshomaru cursed his impetuosity in allowing his half-brother and his small companion to visit him. Though Sesshomaru was no longer actively trying to kill his brother, the half-breed could be exceedingly annoying sometimes.
"Oh," said Inuyasha over the continued wailing, as comprehension dawned, "it's Rin, isn't it?" His amber eyes swept over his elder brother's face, seeking any emotion at all.
"Fumiko is handling it," Sesshomaru informed his brother with a customary cold glare.
The half-demon's eyes narrowed and his white ears twitched with irritation. "What the hell is wrong with you, you insensitive bastard?" Inuyasha demanded of Sesshomaru.
Sesshomaru stared at his little brother, stunned. As another loud cry reached his pointed ears, the full-demon narrowed his own eyes, which had started turning red. "Half-breed, how dare…"
"Just because you screwed up with her once, doesn't mean you should keep on letting her down time after time," Inuyasha persisted. Shippo watched the proceedings with wide green eyes. Sesshomaru bared his fangs at Inuyasha, who plowed on, "She's crying for you, if you would only listen to her!"
Sesshomaru looked away from his antagonistic brother. "She has made it clear that she does not want me near her."
"I'm sick of this!" Inuyasha bellowed, yelling over the noise of Rin's crying. "I've put up with this bullshit for over a year now, and I'm not putting up with it any further. You idiot… I won't let you do this to Rin, or yourself."
"On the contrary," Sesshomaru hissed, "this is all for the best. Rin has good cause to despise me. I do not wish to be near her any more than she wishes to be near me."
"What a crock! I wouldn't blame her if she did hate you, but she doesn't," said Shippo, and then he hid behind Inuyasha for protection.
"You are a child," Sesshomaru returned, the red in his eyes fading somewhat. "You know nothing of such matters." Then he turned his face away and closed his eyes. Insomnia, nightmares, and Rin's cries had scraped his nerve endings raw.
"I would give anything for what you have, Sesshomaru," Inuyasha said very quietly, his head bowed.
"I have nothing that a sane being would envy," Sesshomaru replied dully, slightly nonplussed by his little brother's sudden humble behavior.
"You have Rin," said Inuyasha as though it were obvious. "And she was a great kid, before that happened… and I'm damn sick of you flinching every time that's brought up!" he continued, anger taking control again. "You need to stop pussyfooting around this. It was an accident. So you screwed up. You're just making it worse."
"Tell me, Inuyasha," Sesshomaru said in a voice of deadly purpose, "how would you react if the same thing had happened to you and that little bitch of yours?"
Inuyasha looked stunned for a moment, then recovered himself with a fury. "Don't you DARE bring Kagome into this!"
"That's right!" Shippo added angrily. "No one talks about Kagome like that!"
"She's not here to be offended, is she?" Sesshomaru pointed out in a colorless voice.
Inuyasha stared at his brother, slack-jawed. His eyes were bright with rage. "Are you implying that's my fault?"
Sesshomaru shrugged. "I know little about the circumstances of her death."
"She ain't dead!" Inuyasha and Shippo bellowed in unison. Wearing twin expressions of sorrow and rage, they stared at Sesshomaru, who turned away once again with a swish of white hair. He stared at the wall, wanting desperately to return to his room, yell and throw things, and beat Jaken until the green toad turned blue. But he knew if he walked away now, he would be walking out on a fight. A fresh scream from Rin cut into his hazed mind, and he clenched his fist, his claws drawing his own blood without him caring.
"Look, Sesshomaru," Inuyasha said wearily, "we may have done some stupid stuff in the past, but you're still my brother. If I apologize for cutting your arm off, will you listen to me?"
"No," Sesshomaru snapped, massaging his restored left arm. Though he had it back now, the memory that ignominious handicap still stung.
"Well, I'm going to say this anyway," Inuyasha said with a toss of his head, "and I really don't give a damn what happens to you if you don't take my advice, but I am worried about Rin. Like I said, you're my stupid, headstrong jackass of a half-brother, and I guess I'm even stupider than you are. The point is," here Inuyasha had to pause and take a breath, "I ain't gonna sit by and watch you lose Rin the way I lost Kikyo… and Kagome."
Shippo started to cry silently, but tried to wipe away the tears. Inuyasha scooped the fox cub back onto his shoulder.
"I have already lost her," Sesshomaru said, his eyes turning back into burning red as he faced his brother. "I lost her long ago. It was my doing, and it's not any of your half-breed business!"
Rin screamed again, and there was a sound of crashing and of ripping rice paper.
"I give up!" Fumiko shouted from inside the room. "I wash my hands of you! You are crazy! You do nothing but cry and scream and throw things at me. You filthy human bitch, I wish Sesshomaru-sama had finished you off when he had the chance to end your wretched life!"
The serving girl stormed out of Rin's chamber just as a clap of thunder boomed outside. Twisting her kimono in her hands, she started to flee down the hall.
"Fumiko," said Sesshomaru in a deadly voice, halting the maid in her tracks.
"I QUIT! I am leaving your service, milord!" Fumiko shouted. "I have outstayed all the others but the toad, and it's only a matter of time before even he goes crazy! I cannot bear to see that human's face or hear that awful screaming one more time! If I do, I'll kill myself. Even fear of your wrath is not enough to keep me here, Sesshomaru-sama." The young demoness fled the castle sobbing, and Sesshomaru made no move to stop her or to follow.
"Gee," said Shippo after a long silence punctuated by thunderclaps and Rin's howls, "I guess that means the only servant you have left is Jaken."
Sesshomaru's face was dark with rage that he could no longer conceal. "JAKEN!" he bellowed, his eyes a flaming red. The stripes on his face grew jagged in his anger.
"Yes milord?" Jaken could not stifle a huge yawn as he made his way down the passage, weaving drunkenly from lack of sleep. "It is I, Jaken, reporting for duty… yawn…"
"See to Rin's needs," Sesshomaru ordered, his fangs exposed for scare tactic. Jaken was so groggy that he didn't even notice the intimidation routine.
"She will no longer allow me near her, master," Jaken simpered, leaning against the wall for support and heaving another yawn.
"Do it or die," Sesshomaru snarled, seizing Jaken by the robes and then tossing him to the ground.
"Do it yourself," Inuyasha burst out angrily as Jaken scurried for cover. "Or I'll make you even sorrier than you already are."
"Half-breed, you are an insect compared to me," Sesshomaru sneered, but his heart was not in it.
"At your normal strength, I can't beat you," Inuyasha clarified, "But right now, Sesshomaru, you're just a shadow of your former self, and I could kick your ass with relative ease, like you used to do to me." This was not said with any real malice or satisfaction, but with pity... and that filled Sesshomaru with rage.
"I will kill you, half-breed, just to prove you wrong," Sesshomaru growled, flexing his claws. But before he even had a chance to strike, Inuyasha seized him by the throat.
"Damn… you… lowlife…." Sesshomaru choked, digging his claws lightly into his brother's arm.
"Get in there," Inuyasha told his brother fiercely, "and don't come out until things are back to normal."
"Easier said than done, half-breed," Sesshomaru said angrily, "I cannot take reverse my actions."
"Would you if you could?" Inuyasha asked, leveling an intense amber stare at his elder brother.
"Cease crushing my throat," Sesshomaru hissed.
Inuyasha released his brother. "I would give anything for this second chance that you have," he said seriously. "I don't know where Kagome is or if she's safe, or even if she's alive… and I know I'll probably never see her again… but Rin is right here, right now, and she's suffering. You can't just ignore her for the rest of her life. That won't make the problem go away, and you know that as well as I do. "
"Perhaps not." Sesshomaru said grimly, avoiding Inuyasha's eyes.
"Well, then, get gone already!" Inuyasha snapped.
Sesshomaru shot him a scathing look. "Do you presume to order this Sesshomaru around in his own residence?" he said with a raised eyebrow. He was going in, but of course he wasn't going to let Inuyasha feel as though he had influenced his decision. Ignoring his brother's answering snort, and Shippo's giggle, Sesshomaru took a deep breath and stepped into Rin's bedchamber.
End of chapter one! Really sorry about any OOCness from the demonic brother duo, but do keep in mind that personalities may change over 8 or so years and various events! I kinda like the new improved Inuyasha myself, lol. As for the unaviodable question, what the heck happened to Kagome, the answer may take a while to appear, but I assure you we will have Inuyasha's version of events! And the full story will be posted at a later date. Well, just mosey on over to the review section now and do your thang! Constructive criticism would be great! 'Til next time, Ichigo.
