"You play the hand you're dealt. I think the game's worth while."

C.S. Lewis

Chapter II

The day dawned bright, but bitterly cold and Rin sighed as she rolled out of bed. The day had finally dawned and she almost laughed at how nervous she felt when she thought about the day's events. When she had returned home from work, her parents had not lectured her nor had they ignored her. Much to her surprise, her mother had welcomed her home with open arms and pulled her into her father's study where they told her that the very next day, she would meet the man they had arranged for her to marry. After the initial shock of the statement had worn off, anger raced through her at the thought of them making such a decision for her, but she was ushered out the room before she could protest and as she sat contemplating the idea later, she realised that there was no use arguing as she would end up being brown beaten into marrying the man regardless of how much she protested.

She knew what kind of men her friends had been married off to and she wrinkled her nose in disgust as she thought of them. They had all been middle aged men, unable to find a woman their own age to marry and had resorted to an arranged marriage with a woman half their age. Rin was very glad that her parents were so conscious of the family's reputation and the idea of marrying off their only daughter to a rich middle aged man would probably not be seen as suitable. As she thought about the situation in greater detail, she froze on her way back to her room after a bath. While her parents were conscious of their reputation, they were also keen to get more money into the family so Rin marrying a rich middle aged man would be beneficial to them. The man would surely die before her and all his wealth would be left to her which in turn increased her family's wealth. When she reached her room, she knelt before her bed and said a prayer, hoping that her parents would not let their greed prevail.

*-*-*-*-*-*-*

Sesshoumaru sat silently in the car beside his father as the vehicle came to a halt in front of a large gate. After a brief pause, the large gates swung open and the car moved forward up the driveway through a beautifully landscaped front garden. He stared up at the building looming above them as he stepped out of the car. Not only were this family wealthy, they were clearly very traditional as well which meant that their daughter was probably well past marrying age and had to settle for a younger husband so as not to disappoint her family. Feeling his father's hand on his shoulder, he nodded slightly and followed him towards the door where a servant was waiting to guide them through the house to meet the owners.

"I'm grateful that you considered this, Inutaisho," a shorter man said politely as he shook his hand.

"Not at all, Akira," Inutaisho said, patting the man on the shoulder as they walked forward into the room where the meeting would take place. "It is I who should be thanking you."

Rolling his eyes skyward, Sesshoumaru followed the two men after greeting the shorter man. As he sat quietly beside his father, he took time to consider the man who would soon be his father in law. He was thin and his pale skin made him look almost unhealthy. Grey hair covered his balding head, but his smile was genuine and friendly, despite the somewhat severe impression he gave.

"So you are Sesshoumaru?" Akira said suddenly. Sesshoumaru nodded. "You are so much like your father. I had not expected such a similarity."

"It is an unfortunate resemblance," Sesshoumaru said, not sure what to say.

Akira laughed. "Ah, good. You have a sense of humour, very good."

Puzzled by what the man could mean, Sesshoumaru said nothing. He had not intended to be funny, but clearly his statement had been taken that way. His future father in law seemed happy with the response so he supposed it made no difference what he had meant by the comment. Akira was about to speak again when he noticed suddenly rose to his feet.

"Ah, my wife and daughter have arrived," he said with a smile.

Sesshoumaru turned around slowly, almost dreading having to look at the troll of a woman he was sure to be standing beside Akira's wife. Following his father's example, he bowed to the two women. He tried to avoid looking at either of them until they were all seated and he knew he had no choice but to face his fate.

"Inutaisho, Sesshoumaru, this is my wife, Yuri, and my daughter, Rin," he said proudly as he gestured to the two women.

Feeling his father stiffen slightly beside him caused Sesshoumaru to look at him curiously before turning his eyes to the females. His eyes fell first on the plump woman beside Akira and as he took in her severe look, he prayed their daughter looked nothing like her. Slowly, his let his eyes wander over to the final person sitting opposite him and he felt them widen at the sight.

A slim dark haired woman dressed in the most exquisite kimono he had ever seen knelt beside her mother, her head lowered respectfully. At the mention of her name, her head rose and almond shaped brown eyes met his shyly. Had he been a lesser man, Sesshoumaru knew his jaw would have dropped by now. The beauty who sat before him was definitely not what he was expecting and part of him wondered how such a woman could have come from two such ordinary looking people. When she greeted them, he marvelled at the sound of her voice. It was almost melodic.

Rin sat quietly as she listened to the parents discussing the wedding plans, but she found her eyes drifting over to the man who sat opposite her. She had prayed all day while her mother fussed around her, ensuring that everything was perfect, that the man was not the same as the ones her friends had been married off to. Dread had filled her being as she made her way to her father's study with her mother, but she had been pleasantly surprised when she looked up to find a young man sitting opposite her. To say he was good looking was an understatement, but she knew no other way to describe him.

Once all the details for the wedding had been decided, everyone rose to their feet and made their way towards the front of the house where a car waited for Inutaisho and Sesshoumaru. As Akira and Inutaisho walked ahead, Sesshoumaru found himself walking beside Yuri and Rin and threw his future wife a look from the corner of his eye. Her eyes were cast down and her back was perfectly straight as she walked, but he was surprised to see that she barely reached his shoulders.

"We shall see you in a week's time," Inutaisho said with a smile as he shook Akira's hand once more and bowed to the two women.

"Indeed. It shall be a splendid event," Yuri said with a smile as she looked at her daughter. "I'm sure Rin is most excited."

At the mention of her voice, Rin looked up and glanced at her mother, nodding her agreement before returning her gaze to the wooden floor beneath her feet. Watching the meek gesture, Sesshoumaru couldn't help but wonder if perhaps the timid girl had been forced into this in the same way he had. Although she had nodded her agreement to what her mother had said, her body language showed none of the enthusiasm Yuri spoke of. She had not smiled once and there was absolutely no indication at all of her being keen on the idea.

*-*-*-*-*-*-*-*

"That was a pleasant surprise," Inutaisho commented blandly as the car left the Ishikawa residence. "She was definitely not what I expected."

"Nor I," Sesshoumaru said quietly as he looked out the window, thinking about what his life would bring now that his future had been decided for him.

"She will make you a good wife."

"I hope so."