Demoness: I've done it again! This is the idea of a friend and fellow authoress on AFFN, Weeble, that I decided to tackle and put my own unique spin on. Go check her story out it's "Crimson." The main pairing here is Sess/Rin and there will be a few other minor ones along the way. I've decided to use some of the characters from my other story "Tears of Blood" since it's easier for me to deal with them and their personalities. Rin is about 20 in this fic so she was eight when Sesshoumaru brought her back to life. I love my beta SilentBystander!

"Tears of Blood" Cast waves Hi Everyone!

Demoness: Ok…that was strange. Shakes head Never mind them and let's get down to the story…Oh there is one more thing. If you want the second chapter you're going to have to review for it! At least five would make me a very happy Demoness.

Disclaimer: I'm going to state this once. I do…not own Inuyasha. There I said it, but I do own all my original characters and I will hunt you down if I find them in any other stories without my permission. The story idea belongs to Authoress Weeble.

Chapter One: The loss of Innocence

The pounding of heavy footsteps resounded throughout the darkened forest. The small figure radiated fear with every movement and thought. The scent coated the very leaves and trees themselves, impressing itself upon the path on which she ran. The branches scraped across her body, drawing thin red lines on her skin and tearing her clothing.

Her heart pounded under the constant strain to maintain her fast pace, but she didn't dare stop or slow down. She could feel their hot breath on the back of her neck, the snapping of their jaws as they craved to taste her. She wanted to be with him, to be near him. He would save her. His image appeared in front of her; then turned away without acknowledging her. 'No, please come back! Help me!'

Tears flowed from her eyes, blurring her vision. 'Please…come back.' Her thoughts were desperate as she wished for anyone to save her. The injured demon was nowhere to be found and she knew he wouldn't come. Her tears spilled from her eyes in a mix of fear and frustration. 'Why does everyone leave me?'

Her foot caught on a root protruding from the ground, sending her face first onto the dirt path. She groaned upon impact and tried to get up, but it was too late. She turned over and gazed up as rows upon rows of sharp, glittering teeth came down upon her.

Rin bolted up in bed. Her breathing was labored as she clutched the thin fabric of the robe covering her chest, in a futile attempt to slow her erratic heartbeat. A thin layer of sweat shone on her skin, causing dark brown strands of hair to stick to the sides of her face. She felt the bile rise to the back of her throat as her stomach revolted.

Rin quickly covered her mouth with a slender hand and scrambled out of the bed. Waves of dizziness and nausea overtook her as soon as she was one her feet, forcing her grab the bedpost for support. Teetering her way across the room, she tried to coax her stomach into submission, without much success. Her stomach lurched and she dashed through the door that led to her personal bathing chamber.

Collapsing to her knees in front of the chamber pot, she heaved the meager contents of her stomach into the bottom of the bowl. The bile that came up burned the back of her throat made her gag as rare tears of pain and frustration fell from her eyes. After numerous dry heaves she sat back, grabbing a cloth that had been set on a nearby table. She placed the cloth to her mouth and wiped away the remnants, trying in vain to regain her bearings. Rin couldn't figure out why she had been feeling sick for the past few days and gave up just considering it a reaction to the nightmares that plagued her.

It had been twelve years since that incident, and yet the fear and sensations would not fade. Her Lord had saved her that day, in more ways than one. Yes, he had brought her back to life after being attacked by the wolves, but he also let her stay by his side, following him on his travels. He allowed her to stay in his home without asking for anything in return. Her savior would never know just how grateful she was, and still was, for those kind acts.

"Though," she admitted, "Lord Sesshoumaru is still as big a mystery as he was back then, but I am able to earn my keep now. And he still asks nothing of me."

Rin had watched the soldiers in the army train when she was younger, and picked up on bits and pieces of various defensive and offensive skills. She practiced in secret until one day she was watched by the High General, who found amusement in her eagerness to perfect her slight skills. General Hakunetsu had taken her under his wing and trained her privately for years until he deemed her worthy of challenging some of his soldiers.

She knocked him for a loop when she easily defeated his best fighter in hand to hand combat and out-shot his best archer. She rose through the ranks quickly and earned herself the title of Colonel, a position right under Hakunetsu. Rin was elated because of her accomplishments, though some of the other demons tried to sabotage her, thinking that a human wasn't capable of commanding an all-demon army.

She sure showed them where they could stick that type of thinking. Rin put their qualms to rest when she stayed by their side in a gruesome battle with a southeastern territory. She received injuries same as they did and still kept fighting. She earned their respect from that moment on, and the soldiers had even defended her honor and skills when new recruits made snide remarks.

Through all of this, she rarely spoke to Sesshoumaru, except for going over strategies for an oncoming battle or the reports of past battles they had fought. Tentatively, Rin pulled herself off the floor and stood in front of a mirror that hung on her wall. She gazed at her worn face, which showed evidence of sleepless nights and how sick she felt.

She poured water into a white porcelain basin in front of her, and absentmindedly washed her hands in the cool water as her thoughts drifted back to Sesshoumaru. Rin had never thought of Sesshoumaru as something more than a powerful Demon Lord, who happened to save her those many years ago and a protector, until earlier that year. It was almost as if she saw him through different eyes. Eyes that were attracted to him when they shouldn't be, eyes that saw herself blushing whenever she was close to him, and eyes that had longed for him to acknowledge her as more than a fighter. But she knew it was a hopeless fantasy that would burn out…hopefully.

Rin stared at her reflection in the glassy surface of the water and sighed. "Lord Sesshoumaru would never see a fighter, let alone a human, as anything more than an inferior creature, incapable of doing anything other than being a nuisance."

She paused in her thinking as a memory of a few weeks ago flashed across her mind. "Though," her voice softened to barely above a whisper, "that time a few weeks ago…"

Rin chastised herself for even considering the notion and splashed the cold water on her face, ridding herself of the thought. She continued with her morning rituals and then changed into her training gear.

Rin bound her breasts with a thick cloth that wrapped around her chest and slid into a black kimono that only reached the middle of her thigh. She secured it with a royal blue sash at the waist. Finally, she pulled on a pair of white shorts that were hidden underneath her kimono, concealing the dagger that was strapped to her upper thigh.

Black boots that stopped just under the knees were the next item to be added, and completed her look. Rin took small sharpened spikes and hid them in each of her boots, adding to her protection. She left her main weapon, a sword, until after she pulled her hair into a high ponytail, which was tied with a leather strap.

She smirked at her reflection as she secured the mental protectors around her forearms. 'The looks I received for my choice of clothing in the beginning still amuse me to this day,' she thought with a grin.

She secured her sword at her waist and left her room in the northern wing of the castle and quickly made her way to the barracks and training grounds where her group would be waiting for her. And, low and behold, there they were. Though, she admitted, they looked less then enthused at being up at the crack of dawn.

She steeled her features and put on her well-known stoic mask before approaching the small group of select fighters. As they stood before her, they gave her their attention sourly, hoping that she would go easy on them for the day. Rin looked at each of the four fighters, noting the strengths and weaknesses of each of them.

Today her group consisted of Mangetsu, a master with his naginata, but lacking in areas of hand to hand combat, and Keihatsu, who was a sorceress and an excellent fighter, but lacked in her ability to control her powers in pressured situations. Seidan was the third in line and a master of long range weapons, but quite frankly, she failed with close combat and, last but not least, was Hikaru. He was a master with the sword who could have very well rivaled her own skills, but his inability to keep a level head in fights hindered him greatly.

'I have a feeling that this is going to take quite some time…especially with this bunch.'

Rin set them straight to work training with various partners, and also worked with each of them privately, honing their skills. The morning came and went, yet the group was still out on the fields and had acquired quite an audience. Various soldiers and servants gathered to watch their infamous human Colonel torture her prey, which consisted of a Taka, Kitsune, and two Inu youkai. Even Sesshoumaru stopped and observed from the balcony of his study with Hakunetsu standing next to him.

He had watched the girl below grow and change through the years into a beautiful and strong woman. He was proud of her, but in recent years, he had secretly started to care for her. Sesshoumaru would never admit it, even to her, but he knew what he felt and protected it fiercely. He made sure to guard his weaknesses, and Rin was his only weakness.

He watched her spar with Hikaru and was inwardly impressed with her skills. He had seen them before, but it still amazed him that a human, moreover a human female, was able to achieve such an advanced level.

Rin ducked under Hikaru's swinging sword and dashed around him, hitting him on the back with the hilt of her sword. Rin was going to push his control to the limits, and she knew he was fast approaching it. Hikaru stumbled forward a bit and then turned, with his sword in front of him, glaring at his superior. He wasn't about to let her win and took another shot at her and was greeted with the sound of metal on metal.

Rin stood there with a slight smirk as she easily fended him off with her sword. Pushing him back, she slipped a foot behind his, successfully tripping him. Hikaru fell on his back with an 'oomph' and looked up at his Colonel, who was just standing there smiling at him. That snapped whatever he had left of his control.

He sprung to his feet and bared his fangs at her, his eyes glowing crimson. He discarded his sword as his body twisted and grew, finally taking the shape of a large black dog. He towered over her and snapped his jaws, secreting a vile acidic saliva that dripped from his mouth onto the ground below. The corrosive substance ate away the grass and dirt, leaving a hole in the once perfect earth.

Rin stared up at the beast before her and groaned inwardly at having to deal with it. 'Is it that unreasonable to ask that he keep a level head?'

Normally she would have enjoyed the task at hand, but she was feeling fatigued from only the few previous hours of training and did not wish to compromise herself further. However, as she looked up at the transformed Hikaru, she knew that wasn't an option any longer. Rin held her sword up in defense and waited for him to make the first move; luckily for her, she did not have to wait long.

Hikaru swiped at her with his massive paws, followed by the razor-sharp teeth in his mouth. Rin easily avoided the attacks, running underneath him. She grabbed onto his fur and climbed up so she was situated on his back, moving up to his head. He swung his head from side to side, trying unsuccessfully to dislodge her.

The agile Colonel held on with an iron grip and extracted a spike from her boot, holding above her head. With all her strength, she jammed the spike downward, lodging it in a pressure point located in his neck. The agitated Inu youkai immediately stopped trashing about and quieted. Slowly, his eyes closed and his gigantic body fell to its side, throwing Rin to the ground.

The crowed cheered and applauded when Rin stood up and dusted herself off. She smiled and was proceeding over to her three remaining fighters of her group when she felt her vision start to blur and swim. She felt so very dizzy and stopped, pinching the bridge of her nose, trying to make it go away.

Her fatigue grew and now weighed her down. She couldn't focus on her surroundings as her head spun. The steel sword dropped from her hand as she lost the strength to maintain her hold. Her hands fell limply to her sides as her consciousness slipped away, leaving her body to fall to the ground with a soft thud.

Sesshoumaru and Hakunetsu had turned their gazes away from the battle when Rin stood up and were talking softly when they heard the resounding gasps and cries from the training fields. The Taiyoukai's and the General's attention immediately snapped back and were shocked at the scene they found. Sesshoumaru saw Rin's body hit the ground and not get up as the demons rushed to her.

He and Hakunetsu jumped down from the balcony and raced to her position, pushing through the crowd. Sesshoumaru knelt down and lifted her body into his arms while Hakunetsu checked for injuries, but he was unable to find any. Sesshoumaru looked down at the woman in his arms as a slight breeze blew through the crowd, bringing her scent to his sensitive nose.

He took in her familiar scent of apples and was almost lost in it when he detected of a softer smell. It was subtle, but it was most certainly there. His eyes widened in surprise and he drew back a bit. "She's…pregnant."

Demoness: Well how was that? Remember my stipulation from the beginning. No reviews…no second chapter. Ok? grins

Sesshoumaru: You're a severely twisted individual.