A Mother's Care
3 days had passed since Sesshomaru and his small group left his mother's castle. Sesshomaru had barely spoken in those 3 days, and Rin had wondered why. He had also grown back a new arm, along with a sword which he called Bakusaiga.
I know that I died a second time, Rin thought to herself, and Master Jaken had said that Lady InuKimi had brought me back, when Lord Sesshomaru could not.
"Rin." Sesshomaru said firmly, and Rin lifted her head in surprise.
"Yes?"
"…" Sesshomaru said nothing, he only inclined his head, signaling her to follow him.
She shrugged to herself, and straying away from the rest of the group; she followed Sesshomaru deeper into the woods.
By the time they had stopped, it was late evening; the moon was out, shining brightly in the sky, and the temperature had gone from scorching hot-to comfortably cool.
"Lord Sesshomaru?-"
"Rin." Sesshomaru cut her off, "You are to remain in the next suitable human village we encounter. You can no longer stay with me.
Rin's eyes widened, and her heart seemed to fall into the pit of her stomach. I can't believe what I am hearing! Rin thought to herself, shaking her head madly.
"But…why?" she asked, as tears began to form in her eyes.
"Long ago, I made the mistake of not leaving you in the care of a human village. I am simply rectifying that decision now. You NEED to be with your own kind…you NEED, a mother's care."
A mother's care? Ridiculous! I don't need anyone but Lord Sesshomaru! Rin immediately ran, and grabbed onto Sesshomaru's hand, and she squeezed it tightly.
"PLEASE Lord Sesshomaru! I can take care of myself. I don't need to be with humans, and I don't need a mother's care. If I've made it this far…"
"Rin."
"I can surely make it on my own…"
"Rin."
"and I can improve in everything just to please you, and I can learn to defend myself and-"
"Rin!" Sesshomaru said turning to face her with angry gold eyes, and immediately she fell silent, tears beginning to leak out of her big, brown eyes.
"Enough." He said in a strong voice, and then he turned to gaze back at the luminous full moon. "My decision is final. You cannot stay."
He expected her to start blubbering again, but instead, out of the corner of his eye, he saw her bow her head in defeat, her gaze drifting to the ground, as tears began to pour down her face, and onto dry earth beneath her feet.
"Yes Lord Sesshomaru." She whispered.
"Let's go." He said, swiftly walking past her, towards the main road again.
Rin followed slowly behind, dreading that tomorrow would come.
…
The next day, after about half a day's travel, they approached a human village, and instead of walking well out of its way, like they usually did, they instead walked right through it. Though the small group received many stares from the villagers, Sesshomaru ignored them, and worked his way towards the center of the village.
Sesshomaru told Jaken to stay near the outskirts of the village with Ah-Un, while he took Rin into the center of the village.
Rin kept her head bowed, millions of thoughts running through her head. I feel as if my heart has been shattered into billions of tiny little pieces, and one by one, they are being disposed of. Rin thought to herself.
But, when they reached the very center of the village, near a beautiful water fountain, Sesshomaru told Rin to look up, and when she did, she gasped slightly.
Waiting right by the water fountain, was a young woman, perhaps 19 or 20. Her long black hair was pulled back into a low ponytail, and her blue eyes seemed to hold a warmness that only a mother would hold.
Sesshomaru stopped just a few feet in front of her, and the young woman bowed in greeting.
"You Excellency." She said in a soft, musical voice.
"Rin." He addressed the little girl, and she lifted her eyes to meet his gaze, though it was out of dread, and not willingness.
"This is Nina. She will be caring for you, just as your own mother would." Sesshomaru said, gesturing with his hand for her to follow Nina.
Rin looked up at Nina, with speculating eyes, "Hello," Rin whispered quietly.
"Hello Rin." Nina said kneeling down to Rin's level, "Sesshomaru never told me what a beautiful girl you are. You will make a FINE woman someday. Now, let us get you settled into your new home."
Nina stood up, and began walking out of the center of the village.
Rin looked up at Sesshomaru questioningly, and he nodded his head that she should follow. So, slowly, Rin followed Nina, towards her new home.
But, just when she was half way-Rin quickly ran back, and wrapped her little arms around Sesshomaru's waist, and she rubbed her head against his stomach for a brief instant, before she let go, and ran to catch up with Nina again.
Sesshomaru's brow slightly creased with…sadness? Why do I feel this way? How could a mere human child, make me feel sad? Ignoring his feelings, and his conscious, he turned around, and walked back, out of the village. He walked away from the busy humans flailing about, away from the continuous stares he received.
He walked away from Rin…forever.
…
It's nearly been a moon since that night. And STILL the feeling of sadness has not passed. Sesshomaru thought to himself.
Little memories of her smile, her brown eyes, and her cheerfulness crossed his mind, which only made him feel even more depressed.
I just need to see her once, to see how she's doing. I must know if she's HAPPY
Sesshomaru stood up from where he was sitting, and looked behind him, towards his small camp.
"Jaken." He called in a steel hard voice, causing the little imp to snort awake.
"Yes milord?"
"Go and patrol the area with Ah-Un. I shall be back shortly."
"Might I ask where you are going milord?" Jaken asked, standing up, and waddling towards Sesshomaru.
"That is none of your concern." With that, Sesshomaru transformed into his dog form, and took to the night skies, heading back towards the human village that he kept himself from going for a long period of time.
…
Sesshomaru arrived at the village within a matter of minutes. The moment he landed, villagers grabbed sacred sutras, and weapons, trying to raid the huge dog demon before them away.
Sesshomaru, who towered over them like a tree, let out an irritated growl, and simply pushed the villagers out of the way with his head, as if they simply weighed nothing.
Of all this ruckus, a young woman, followed by a young girl slowly came out of one of the huts.
"Nina? What's going on?" the little girl asked rubbing her tired eyes.
Immediately, when Nina had taken in the sight before her, she pushed the young child on the ground.
"Rin!" she yelled, "Stay down! There is a demon!"
Rin's eyes looked up, and her eyes widened. Not out of fear of the demon, but out of delight.
Her lips twitched up into a smile, "Lord Sesshomaru!" she rejoiced. Rin scrambled up to her feet, and began running towards the large white dog, and the raiding villagers.
"No Rin!" Nina shouted at her, catching the sleeve of Rin's kimono, and pulling her back, "You mustn't go near that demon! It's dangerous! It'll eat you and swallow you up in one gulp!"
"Lord Sesshomaru wouldn't do that! Let me go Nina!" she ignored the young woman's protest, and yanked her arm free, before she began running down the dirt path, towards the small battle between the dog demon and the villagers.
Rin ignored Nina and the villagers as they protested of her going any further, as she kept running.
Rin was approaching the huge dog now, she was only a few yards away now.
"Lord Sesshomaru!" Rin called out in a loud voice,.
Over the yells of the villagers, and over his own growls and thoughts, the little girl's voice reached Sesshomaru's sensitive ears, and he immediately lifted his head in her direction.
"Lord Sesshomaru!" Rin called again, as she drove her legs on further and further.
Crouching low on the ground, Sesshomaru backed up several yards, and when he reached his stopping point, he began to run, building up speed.
"He's going to trample us!" one of the villagers yelled, followed by many yells and screams as Sesshomaru got closer and closer to the villagers.
But-just as he reached the line of villagers, Sesshomaru sprang up into the air, making a long jump of several yards, and crashed to the ground not 3 yards from Rin.
Dust flew everywhere, and air blew Rin's hair back the moment Sesshomaru's legs touched the ground.
To keep the dust from face, Rin turned away slightly, and draped her arm over her eyes.
When the air and dust ceased, Rin looked up, to see Sesshomaru towering over her, as tall as a tree.
They seemed to stare at each other, until the sound of yells, and rushing footsteps drifted to Sesshomaru's sensitive ears.
He turned his head to look behind him, only to see the village men rushing at him with weapons and sacred sutras. He let out a chilling growl, before turning around, and positioning his body in a protective stance in front of Rin.
"Stop!" Rin yelled as loud as she could, and surprisingly, the villagers all stopped before they reached Sesshomaru.
Before anyone could say anything, Sesshomaru lowered his head to Rin's level, and very carefully, picked up Rin, by the fabric of her kimono, with his front teeth.
As he did this, Sesshomaru's eyes never left the villagers, and carefully lifting his head back up, he began to walk forward, towards the villagers.
"He's taking away that young girl!" one of the villagers yelled, "He's gonna eat her!" another said.
But Sesshomaru let out a low growl, which caused the villagers to step well out of the way, as Sesshomaru continued walking forward, towards the woods ahead.
Everyone seemed to stay silent now, the only sound, the crackling of torches, and the sound of Sesshomaru's paws hitting the ground, each time with a crash that made the ground slightly tremble.
Rin let her arms fall limp to her sides, as Sesshomaru took her out of the village, and into the trees of the forest.
…
Sesshomaru carried Rin in complete silence, his large red eyes focused on the trees ahead of him, his ears draped down, (though they were still alert to hear any slight noise) and his head slightly down.
After what seemed like hours of endless silence, and the CRASH crash CRASH crash pattern of Sesshomaru's gait, he finally halted to a stop, and lowered Rin down onto the ground, releasing the thin fabric of her kimono from his teeth.
She landed on the ground with a small 'thump' before she turned around to face the large white dog standing before her.
"Lord Sesshomaru!" she rejoiced, flinging her little arms around one of Sesshomaru's front legs, her arms not even reaching half way around it.
Sesshomaru's eyes flickered down to her for a brief second, before they flickered back to the forest ahead.
"Rin."
The voice didn't come from his muzzle, instead, it seemed to come from his mind.
"Lord Sesshomaru? Why did you come back for me?" she asked, craning her neck way up to look at him.
"…" Sesshomaru said nothing, he only let out a low rumble, which Rin, obviously, did not know what that meant.
"Why did you leave me in that human village in the first place?" she asked in a sad voice.
"….." again Sesshomaru did not answer, and Rin hung her head in disappointment.
"Because I thought it would be safer for you to reside in a human village." His voice echoed.
Rin looked up at Sesshomaru again, and saw that he was still looking off into the trees, but then his red eyes flickered down to her.
"But I didn't like it in a human village. I didn't fit in." Rin said in a sad voice, but then a smile spread across her face. "It's not like traveling with you Lord Sesshomaru."
"Hmph!" Sesshomaru retorted, and a moment of silence went by.
"Rin." Sesshomaru's voice echoed firmly, yet softly.
"Yes?" she asked, craning her head up at him, her head slightly cocking to the side.
"Let go of my leg."
"Yes my lord." She said cheerfully, and she unwrapped her arms from Sesshomaru's leg, and she stepped off to the side of him, as he began to walk forward.
He took long strides, which every once in a while, Rin had to skip or run a little to catch up with him.
The silence was killing her, and after a few moments of nothing but the sounds of bird chirping in the trees, and the endless patterns of Sesshomaru's and her strides, she just HAD to say something.
"Lord Sesshomaru?"
"What is it Rin?" he kept his eyes locked forward, but his voice was a bit softer than usual.
"What did YOU do while I was in the human village?"
A moment of silence went by
"Nothing that concerns you." He said in a firm, yet gentle tone, and Rin knew that he did not want to discuss the topic.
They again walked in silence for a few more endless minutes.
"Where did you get those bruises?" he asked, and Rin's eyes widened with surprise. The only other time he asked me about my injuries, was when we first met. Rin thought to herself.
"Huh?" Rin said.
"The ones on your arms. They're yellowing slightly, but they're still there." Sesshomaru said, even though he kept his eyes forward.
"Oh," she whispered, running her fingers gently over the blue bruises on her wrist and upper arms. "They're from the villagers." Rin answered, "I suppose they grabbed me too hard."
Sesshomaru let out a quiet, yet menacing growl. He didn't like the idea of ANYBODY causing Rin pain.
Rin, poked one of her bruises, and let out a small yelp of pain, as it still seemed to be tender.
Sesshomaru immediately stopped, his head moving to Rin in surprise.
Slowly, he lowered his head to her level, his large red eyes examining the bruises more closely.
Rin seemed to be in thought, about something, as Sesshomaru examined her arm.
His ears, she thought to herself, as her eyes locked on the long white flaps that were on each side of Sesshomaru's head, I wonder…
She heasantly leaned out one hand, and began to scratch behind the one closest to her.
A small breeze drifted to her from behind, and when she turned around, she started to laugh.
Sesshomaru's long white tail was wagging back and forth, creating a small breeze.
"Lord Sesshomaru! You're just like a puppy!" she said throwing her arms around the side of his head.
"Hn" Sesshomaru said, but made no effort to shove her off. He simply waited for her to let go of him, and they continued walking.
A wave of silence went by, and Rin moved to linger farther behind Sesshomaru instead.
A slight thump echoed in Sesshomaru's ears, along with the snapping of a tree root. "OUCH!" Rin said, and immediately, Sesshomaru stopped and whipped his head around, to see Rin sitting on the ground, clutching her ankle.
Rolling his eyes to himself, Sesshomaru turned around, and walked back towards where Rin was sitting.
Slight tears were escaping from the corner of her eyes, as bit her bottom lip, and rocked back and forth, trying her best to keep the cries of pain from escaping her lips.
"Rin." Sesshomaru's voice echoed to her ears, and she slightly lifted her head, but kept her eyes down towards the ground.
"Lord Sesshomaru." She spit out in one breath, as she clutched onto her ankle tighter, a slight whimper escaping from her lips in doing so.
Sesshomaru lowered his head down to the ground, and examined her ankle closely.
"Does it hurt that much?" Sesshomaru asked, though it sounded more like a statement than a question.
Rin nodded her head, her teeth biting into her lip again.
Letting out a great sigh, Sesshomaru plopped down on the ground, but Rin just stood at him idiotically.
"Can you….get on?" he asked after a moment of silence.
"I-I don't know Sesshomaru-sama.."
Rin tried standing up, but just as she straightened herself up, she lost her balance and tipped over.
Like lightning, Sesshomaru's head darted to her side, immediately catching her from the fall.
Trying as best he could, he tried to boost Rin up on his back, and after several attempts, Rin was finally able to scramble up, and sit just behind his head.
"It's ok if you need to hold onto my hair, and if you fall I shall carry you in my mouth." Sesshomaru said.
Immediately, Rin grabbed onto a huge chunk of hair, as Sesshomaru swiftly stood up, and took off into a dead sprint.
Rin tried to lower herself as much as possible onto Sesshomaru's back, hiding herself in his fur, to protect herself from the flying objects that went by them in lighting speed.
After less than 5 minutes of running, Sesshomaru slowed to a walk, and soon came to a dead stop.
"Camp is just ahead." He said, before beginning to walk again.
Rin sat up, and stretched her arms out. Even after only 5 minutes of laying down in that position, she was still sore.
Sure enough, within 2 minutes, they came to a large meadow, where a small fire had been burning.
Jaken and Ah-Un are still gone Sesshomaru thought to himself, as his red eyes skimmed the empty meadow. The sun was just coming up in the east, and a yawn from Rin came from behind Sesshomaru's ears.
She's tired…
So, Sesshomaru walked over near a large tree, plopped down on the ground, and VERY carefully, picked up her kimono in his teeth again, and gently lowered her onto the ground by the tree, before lying his own head down a few feet away. His own eyes began to close with fatigue, and soon, he found himself slipping off into a light doze….
When a slight movement caused his eyes to slightly open.
The noise had come from behind him, and when he turned his head to look at where Rin was lying…he saw that she wasn't there.
Immediately, Sesshomaru jerked his head up, and his eyes began to search around for her, until he felt something press against his side.
His eyes drifted down, only to see Rin snuggled tightly against his side, with her eyes closed, and a peaceful expression on her face.
Even in his yokai form, a warm tingly feeling still crept through him, and if he could smile, he knew he would be now.
Very quietly, Sesshomaru lowered his head down slowly to the ground, bringing it to rest beside Rin's body, and he curled his tail protectively around her, also keeping her warm.
"Goodnight Rin." Sesshomaru whispered, before he found himself also slipping into a deep sleep.
The End