Disclaimer: Sadly, I do not own Inuyasha.

Edit: September 16, 2018. So… It has been quite a while since I've updated any of my stories. I'm sorry to say that I'm still contemplating abandoning them, but before I make such a finite decision I have decided to edit the existing chapters in an effort to rekindle my passion for telling my own tales.

There you have it. The heavily edited first chapter.

"Love is like wild flowers. It's often found in the most unlikely places."

- Anonymous

- Chapter 1 - Growing up -

Sunset. It's the exact moment when the sun kisses the earth in a splendid sight of light and colors. Sesshōmaru stood on the edge of the cliff, gazing at the setting sun. Golden eyes hard, head held high.

"Sesshōmaru-sama, Sesshōmaru-sama," a girl said in a sing-song voice. She had seen ten winters. Not yet an adult, but not exactly a child anymore. "Can Rin go search for food?" she asked innocently. "Go," he answered. The girl skipped happily into the darkening forest. "Jaken, go with her," he added to the already grumbling toad demon. "Me, always me… What have I ever done to deserve such treatment?"

Rin was happily picking mushrooms from the forest ground. "Donguri korokoro donburiko, o-ike ni hamatte saa taihen*" she sang joyfully. Suddenly, a snake youkai slithered into view, following the smell of the human. "Food… Tasssty food," he hissed in anticipation. Rin panicked, dropping the mushrooms in the process. She yelled, but not just any yell, it was a yell that could make a lower youkai's ears bleed. Too bad snakes did not have ears to hear it. "Sesshōmaru-sama!" 'He is defiantly going to hear that one,' she thought in satisfaction. And hear it he did. In a blink of an eye there was no more snake demon.

Jaken arrived a few minutes later, panting; the tree roots slowed him down. "Sesshōmaru-sama?" he asked. The only response he got was in the shape of a flying rock hitting him on the head and knocking him unconscious. "We are leaving," Sesshōmaru said in a deep voice. "Hai," Rin replied with a smile. 'Jaken could catch up with Ah-Un,' she thought.

sunrises passed, moons waxed and waned, seasons came, and went. "Sesshōmaru-sama!" Rin's voice shrieked. The smell of blood lingered in the air. Sesshōmaru came in a flesh, looking around for the one that dared intrude on Rin's bath. There was none however. "What happened, Rin?" he asked finally. "Rin is bleeding from the inside!" she cried, her voice breaking pitifully at the end of the sentence.

Sesshōmaru froze, his gaze stuck on a spot slightly above Rin's head and to the right. He tenderly sniffed the area and confirmed to himself that yes, humans did indeed go into heat when they were barely done being toddlers. This would require more words than he was willing to offer. "Dress and we shall leave," he said, sniffing the area one last time and turing around. "Hai," she said.

They arrived at the human village in late afternoon. Sesshōmaru entered the village with Rin traveling behind him. Jaken and Ah-Un were left in the forest to wait for their return. The men were gathered in a half circle holding spears and swords, ready to defend their homes and families to the death.

"I demand a human woman," stated Sesshōmaru, looking at the pathetic humans with bordem. The men stared and Sesshōmaru's eyes narrowed. "Why?" asked the one who appeared to be the leader of the village, a brave soul indeed. Silence was his answer. The men started to inch forward, fear coloring their expressions but bravery in their hearts. Impatient with their disobedience, Sesshōmaru took one tiny step forward and lifted his hand, casually flexing his claw-tipped fingers.

"Miko!" someone screamed, and the men froze in place. A young woman came forward not long after. "My name is Ayumi, I am the miko of this village." Sesshōmaru gave a slight nod. He looked down at Rin, noticing her lack of fear. "Go with her," he said, gesturing with his head to the woman. "I will return tomorrow," he said to the village at large, his voice dripping venom. The threat to their lives should they risk his human was unvoiced but clear as daylight. That said, he left.

"Come," said Ayumi with a gentle smile and led Rin into a small hut. "What is your name?" she asked tenderly. Rin looked around the hut, curious to see if there were differences between the house of a miko and the old place she used to call home. "Rin is Rin," she finally said. "And how old are you, Rin?"

"Rin has seen 12 winters, miko-sama."

"My name is Ayumi, Rin," The miko said. Rin gave a small nod and smiled at her, looking eager for an explanation to her plight. "Well, Rin, what do you want to know?" Ayume asked kindly, trying to imagine such a terrifying youkai taking care of a seemingly nice child such as Rin and failing miserably.

Rin looked down, suddenly a little embarrassed. "I am bleeding from the inside," she said in a hushed tone. Ayumi laughed and Rin looked up sharply, mouth agape. "No need to whisper, child. It is natural for maturing women," she said, still smiling widely. It was plain that this child has not lived with humans for a long time.

"How can a bleeding be natural?" Rin asked, embarrassment gone and replaced by childish curiosity about the wonders of the human body. "The bleeding signifies that you are now an adult and able to have children of your own. It also means that you should marry soon and start a family," summarized Ayumi.

"Really? My own family and children?" Rin asked in awe. Growing up as an outcast in a small village, Rin was not ignorant of the ways of the world. Intercourse was not a public affair, but children were expected to grow up quickly, and they learned things when they were young. Her eyes glazed in a dreamy haze as she pictured her own family; they were all laughing while making flower crowns for Sesshōmaru-sama.

"Yes, your own family." Ayumi interrupted her musings, answering her somewhat rhetorical question. "Now you must sleep. Your demon will be back for you in the morning," she continued, wondering how this girl even wandered into the hands of a youkai, a lord if she understood the symbols on his forehead and cheeks correctly. 'The Kami work in mysterious ways,' she thought as she fell asleep.

Sesshōmaru walked through the forest, pondering the inescapable shift this new development would bring. She has grown, he thought. It has been four summers since she found him in that forest, wounded and bleeding. Now, so it seems, it was her time to bleed. Humans did that every month, did they not? The bastard's mother went into heat every month, according to his father. He spotted a large oak tree and sat down against it, one leg bent up, his hand resting on it. 'She can have children now, and mate,' he mused. He never imagined that he'll have to deal with a mating not his own for quite a few more centuries, at the very least. He wondered what his father would have said, his eldest son thinking about the necessity of mating off his human ward.

'Who will be good enough to mate her?' he wondered, head tilted back to lean against the tree. 'She will have to be mated to a lord, if not royalty, nothing less would be acceptable.' The thoughts continued, mixing into one another until they were nothing but a hum at the back of his mind, lulling him into a light but much needed sleep.

He was there at dawn, standing tall and proud, silver hair swaying in the breeze. Rin was already waiting for him exactly where he left her yesterday, smiling brightly up at him. "Are you done?" he asked, looking down at her. "Hai, Sesshōmaru-sama," she answered, smiling even brighter. "Then come," he said as he turned around, starting to walk without looking back. "Goodbye, Ayumi-sama. Thank you!" shouted Rin, running towards Sesshōmaru's retreating form. "Goodbye," Ayumi replied, watching the developing teenager following the demon lord.

"She said I can have a family!" Rin said, her eyes sparkling with excitement. "That is good, Rin," he answered, hoping that agreeing with her will put a stop to the conversation. "It's not that good, Sesshōmaru-sama," she whispered, forgeting for a split second his enhanced hearing. "Oh?" he asked, suddenly very interested in her reply.

"Because I will have to leave Sesshōmaru-sama, and Rin wishes to stay with Sesshōmaru-sama forever and ever." She took a much needed breath and raised her head to look at him with her big choclate eyes.

"Hn."

And she knew, somehow, that he listened and was considering what she said. She smiled and skipped ahead.

*An acorn rolled down and down, / He suddenly fell into a pond. This is an Edo lullaby I found online. I hope it's much better than what that line has previously been. Thank you for reading and remember, reviews are love