Chapter 1 - Bruises

"You're scum, you know that?"

Setsuna fell to the ground. Her assailant was a boy, a few years older than her. He pushed Setsuna's face into the dirt and she could feel small rocks digging into her cheek. There were two other children, a boy and a girl, possibly the first boy's siblings.

"Yeah, my mom says that kids like you shouldn't even exist." The second boy kicked Setsuna while she was still lying on the ground.

"Why don't you just die already? Or...you could get rid of those stupid dog ears and maybe you could be normal like us!" All three of the children began to pull at Setsuna's ears and hair. She tried hard not to cry or whimper, knowing it would only encourage her tormentors.

"Hey!"

The three children turned to see a teenage boy approaching them. He had black hair like a normal human, but his eyes were golden, and filled with anger. "Get outta here, and don't let me catch you messing with her again!"

The bullies scattered off, leaving Setsuna weak and bruised on the ground. Her ears twitched in pain, and there was a throbbing ache in her side. She tried to call out to her rescuer, but her voice barely came out as a whisper.

"A-Aki-chan?"

"It's alright, kid. I got you." Akihiko lifted Setsuna onto his back. "Come on, your mom's wondering where you are."

Getting targeted by village kids was nothing new for Setsuna. They'd point and laugh, call her names, and sometimes they'd throw rocks at her. But that day marked the first time that she'd actually been hit.

"Hey Setsuna, when those kids pick on you, why don't you ever fight back?" Akihiko asked. "You could if you wanted to. I know you're stronger than them."

"The humans already hate me. If I fought back, they'd just hate me even more. Besides, I don't want to hurt anybody – even if they're the ones that hurt me first." As Setsuna rested her head on her cousin's shoulder, taking in his comforting warmth and scent, she thought about what lie she was going to tell her mother about how she got her injuries. "Aki-chan, if my mom asks you what happened to me, please don't tell her what you saw. Just tell her I fell or something, ok?"

Akihiko wanted to decline but held his tongue and nodded instead. He knew that Rin would be able to effortlessly see through her daughter's lies anyway. So he continued to let her rest on his back until they returned to the village.

The sun was beginning to set. Villagers were finishing up work for the day and parents were calling their children for dinner, but Rin's oldest child was unaccounted for. She stood outside of her home, tapping her foot nervously and keeping her arms folded across her chest. Hisoka, Rin's six-year-old son, tugged nervously at the bottom of her kimono.

"Mommy, can we eat now? I'm so hungry!"

"No, we're waiting for Akihiko to bring Setsuna back." Rin explained calmly. "You're not starving; you can wait a little longer."

The little boy pouted and folded his arms, imitating his mother's stance. "Stupid Nee-san..." He muttered under his breath.

Just at the edge of the village, Rin spotted a young man carrying a small child on his back. She felt as if a huge weight had been lifted from her chest as she ran toward them.

"I got something for you!" Akihiko said with a smile, setting Setsuna down. She still seemed a bit disoriented, but at the very least she was now able to stand on her own two feet. "She was way far out in the woods. But once I caught onto her scent, it was pretty easy to find her!"

Rin knelt down so that she and Setsuna were at the same eye level, and she noticed all of her bruises. "Wait...what happened?!" She lifted Setsuna's arms, inspected her legs, and turned her face here and there.

"Nothing happened, mommy. I just fell while I was playing."

As promised, Akihiko kept silent, but Rin still knew that she was being lied to. Even so, she wasn't going to try to push the truth out. "Now, why were you out so far?"

Setsuna scratched at her ear nervously. "Well, I overheard some grownups saying that there are some really pretty flowers that bloom out in the woods. I know how much you love flowers, so I wanted to pick some for you. But, I don't know, I guess I got lost and I couldn't find them. I'm sorry, mommy."

Rin responded by pulling her daughter into a tight hug. "Thank you so much, Akihiko. Won't you stay for dinner?"

"Yeah, Aki-chan, stay." Setsuna chimed in, her face still buried in her mother's shoulder.

"Oh, no thanks." He politely declined, waving his hand. "My mom is probably waiting for me to come home now. She gets a bit sensitive when I'm not there to eat with her and dad."

"Tell your parents to stop being strangers! I've been waiting forever for them to visit!"

"I'll be sure to pass on the message." He bowed deeply. "See you, Rin-san! Take care, Setsuna-chan!"

As Rin watched Akihiko run off, she thought about how fortunate Inuyasha and Kagome were to have such a wonderful son, and how blessed Setsuna was to have a cousin that was so willing to look out for her.

"I wish Aki-chan was my older brother." Setsuna mused as she and Rin began to walk back to their home.

"Well, he may be younger than you, but you always have Hisoka!"

Setsuna twisted her face in disgust. "Ew, Mommy, Hisoka doesn't count." Rin couldn't help but laugh.

As if she spoke him into existence, Hisoka popped his head out of the entrance to their home. "There you are! Stupid Nee-San, I had to wait for you to come back so I can eat, hurry up!" He yelled.

Setsuna calmly walked up to her little brother and clocked him on the head. "Stop calling me stupid!"

Rin intervened and pulled the two bickering children away from one another. "You, stop calling your sister stupid." She said to Hisoka. "You, stop hitting your brother." She said to Setsuna. "Both of you get inside and eat your dinner."

Rin silently watched her children as they ate, not wanting to partake until she was sure they'd had enough. As usual, Setsuna was gingerly picking at her rice, while Hisoka savagely shoved his in his mouth, barely chewing.

"Hey, where's Dad anyway?" Hisoka asked with a mouthful of rice.

"Chew your food, please." Rin said taking a sip of her tea. "When he left this morning he said he would be back late. So by the time he's here, you all might be asleep."

"Excuse me!" An unfamiliar voice called from outside. Setsuna and Hisoka looked questioningly at each other, then at their mother.

Rin put her cup of tea down and stood up to greet the visitor. When she pushed the partition aside, an angry looking woman stood before her.

"Yes, can I help you?" Rin asked politely, stepping outside.

"Sorry for interrupting your evening." The woman said with no remorse. "But my children tell me that your daughter attacked them today, and I'd like you to do something about it."

Rin looked at the woman suspiciously. She had a lot of nerve, interrupting a meal and then making accusations out of nowhere. "With all due respect ma'am, my daughter hates violence. I'm sorry that your children were hurt, but I seriously doubt that it was my Setsuna who hurt them."

Setsuna's words from earlier echoes in her head - Nothing happened, Mommy. I just fell while playing.

"As a matter of fact, my daughter came home this evening looking like someone had attacked her." She told me that she fell, but that isn't what it looked like to me! Are you sure it wasn't your children that attacked my daughter, and not the other way around?!" Rin was getting more and more furious, her voice rising in volume.

The woman then smacked her right in the face.

"Just who do you think you are? Raising your voice at me and accusing my children of harming your clumsy daughter!"

She struck Rin again. Her face was starting to sting. But she didn't retaliate.

"And even if they did, so what? It's not their fault, or even your kid's fault, it's yours! You're the one who decided to sleep around with a demon and bear an unwanted half-breed! Then you have the nerve to force that abomination onto a nice man like Kohaku...he deserves better than the likes of you, that's for certain."

Rin's chest began to tighten, her hands balled up into fists. She wasn't sure whether she wanted to cry, beat this woman to death, or both.

"I'm going to have to ask you to leave." She said, voice cracking.

The woman was silent for a moment. But she nodded towards Rin and bid her good evening.

When Rin stepped back inside, she saw Hisoka sitting right by the entrance with wide eyes, while Setsuna sat next to him, looking completely crestfallen.

"What did I tell you two about listening to adult conversations?!" She snapped. But when she saw the kids shrink back in fear, she knew she shouldn't have. She knew that they couldn't help but hear what was going on even if they weren't curious. She wouldn't have been surprised if the 'guest' had deliberately spoken loud enough just so that they'd be able to hear.

"Are you done eating? Let's get ready for bed."

The siblings glanced at each other as their mother pushed them along towards their futon. Setsuna took her usual spot on the left side, facing the wall. Hisoka took the right side.

"Listen to me," Rin said, taking their tiny hands into hers. "I love you both so very much. And I will always, always be proud to say that you are mine - no matter what anyone says." When she said that last part, she made sure to look Setsuna directly in the eyes. "Do you understand?"

The children both nodded.

"Good." She kissed both of them on the cheek. "Sleep well." After ruffling their hair a bit, Rin went to go stand outside. Once he was sure she was out of earshot, Hisoka spoke up.

"This is all your fault, y'know."

"What are you talking about?" Setsuna turned to face her brother, who was glaring angrily back at her.

"Mommy's upset because of you. If you weren't a half-demon, people wouldn't say bad things about you, and Mommy would be happy."

Setsuna was used to being shamed for her blood by strangers. But to hear something so cold coming from the mouth of her only brother felt worse than a thousand punches or kicks. "I hate you, Hisoka! Shut up and go to sleep!" She whispered furiously, turning over and angrily pulling the covers tighter around her body. She then shut her eyes as tightly as she could, hoping that it would stop the tears that she could feel welling up.

Rin stood outside in the chilly autumn night. She shivered from the cold, but couldn't stay inside and risk the children hearing her cry. She knelt down on the ground, covering her mouth to stifle the sounds of her sobbing. The sound of footsteps slowly approached her. It startled her at first, but she was relieved to see that it was only Kohaku, finally home after a long day of slaying demons. He was covered in dirt, and his weapon was covered in blood. But after years of living with him, Rin was used to the sight.

"Hey, what are you sitting out here for? You need to be inside it's freezing..." When he noticed the tears in her eyes, Kohaku dropped down next to her, dropping his weapon and pulling her into his arms. "Rin, tell me what's wrong."

She remained silent, trying to listen to the rhythm of Kohaku's heartbeat to calm her down. As she did, the words of Setsuna's father began running through her mind.

"She will stay with you."

"It would be for her own good if she were to remain here."

Would it? Rin thought. Did you really make the right decision, Sesshomaru-sama?