Balance and Imbalance
by vexatively
She had been gone for longer than he had estimated. Sesshoumaru first sent Jaken out to look for her; when the imp failed to return, he became exasperated.
At this rate, he would have to search for her himself. Not because of any attachment to the urchin. He merely had to rectify this imbalance in nature.
Taiyoukai were not wrong.
He had barely stepped into the next clearing when Rin came running up to him. His irritation should have risen. The girl was naïvely cheerful, almost annoyingly so. But instead of infuriation, he felt only relieved that she wasn't hurt… in the most part.
Parts of her kimono were torn, the cloth around her knees was stained with dirt and she had one or two bleeding scratches. But her irrevocably sunny smile was still in place. Perhaps that was what surprised him most of all.
Taiyoukai did not get surprised.
"Sesshoumaru-sama!" Jaken squawked, following Rin, his hand firmly grasping his staff. "My apologies for the lateness, my lord. But this worthless human wanted to—"
"Silence, Jaken. I have no wish to hear any of your excuses."
"Sesshoumaru-sama! Rin has picked flowers!" The cheerfulness in Rin's voice was infectious to anyone with ears.
Taiyoukai were not cheerful.
He looked at the childish bouquet impassively. "I… have nothing to give in return." Growing up, Sesshoumaru had been taught the importance of yin and yang. It was an essential concept in both the political world of youkai and the environment. Do not take more than you give. To every action, there is an equal and opposite reaction. One sows what they reap, and reaps what they sow.
Taiyoukai maintain balance, because it is control.
"Sesshoumaru-sama is silly," Rin chided him. If it were anyone else, they would have been a molten pile of poisoned ashes by now. "Rin doesn't need anything back!"
His hand accepted the proffered flowers warily. "In that case, I give you thanks." His voice betrayed none of the mystification that came with the present. This concept was… foreign to him. For the first time, Sesshoumaru was confused.
He inspected his… gift… carefully. Most of the stalks were bent, their petals bruised. There was nothing special, or magical in their auras. Nothing that could have justified the effort the human exerted in gathering them. There was no balance, no reason. Odd.
"Rin looked everywhere for them," she informed him, beaming with a gap-toothed smile. One of her teeth had fallen out, perhaps a moon cycle ago. "The colors are like Sesshoumaru-sama's crests!"
Nothing is of its nature evil, he had been taught. And nothing is of its nature good. Evil is only excess, good is simply balance. All things are subject to abuse, all things are susceptible to beneficial use. And balance does not consist in denial, or excess of indulgence.
So was she evil, this little girl-child, who caused his world to erupt into such turmoil?
And Sesshoumaru found that he really did not care… whether he lived or drowned in the strange mix of floral scents. Because, for the first time…
"Come, Rin. Jaken. Do not tarry." Without further ado, Sesshoumaru turned around and started walking. For the first time, he did not know where he was going. But did it matter?
… he felt warmth.
Disclaimer: I hereby disclaim Inuyasha. The rights of claiming this little slice of genius goes to Rumiko Takahashi-sama alone. But, I do enjoy playing with the odd character to satisfy my possums.
E/N: Originally posted for the iyfic(underscore)contest's Week 136 (Odd Gifts) theme challenge on March 17, 2008. We passed the 1-month-mark, folks!!
