Sorry about the very long wait. Writer's block. Please don't hurt me. The ninjas have done enough.
Translations:
Onegai: please
Kuso: Shit
Ningen: human
Youkai: demon
Inu-Youkai: dog-demon
Domo Arigato: Thank-you very much
Sayonara: good-bye
Arigato: thank-you
Hai: yes
Iie: no Jijo: Lady's maid
Sumimasen: excuse me
Ohaya gozaimasu: good morning
Kami: god
Hanyou: half-demon
Hentai: Pervert
Aijin: My love
Nani: what
Neko-youkai: cat demon
Onsen: hot spring
It had been a while since she had set foot in his tea room. Of course, she never actually had tea with him. No, she usually arranged for other Youkai to have the pleasure. So she was quite surprised, you see when he invited her to take a seat and a cup.
Rin casually glanced at her lord through her overly long bangs. She had not been this casual with him since she had been child. At twenty-one she should have been used to him, but he always gave her a little shock.
The sunlight gleamed off of his long, full mane of silver hair. His eyes flashed with a hidden mischief, as if he had the whole world in his grasp and he knew it. Gracefully, he poured tea and proceeded to address her.
"Rin" he said almost coldly, "You do not have the report. Why?"
Rin gripped her cup tightly within white knuckles, but she held her ground. "I am sorry my lord, but the Source was not where she was supposed to be. I waited almost until dawn. I could not have waited a moment longer or their wolves would have found me." She spoke in almost a whisper "I do not care for wolves."
He paused and glowered at her. She could feel sweat gathering on the back of her neck, but she met his eyes and went on. "My Lord, the Source is most reliable. If she was not there then something must have happened. The enemy might have become suspicious. Either way, she will be contacting us very soon."
She paused to let him maul this over while she sipped her tea.
"Rin. You may go. I shall send for you when your Source has made contact."
He turned his back on her respectful little bow and withdrew to his study.
Rin sighed and ran a hand through her disheveled hair. I really need a bath she thought as she retreated into the hall. She decided to pack Aun and head home. There was no need to let Sesshomaru know that the Source would contact her first. He already knew.
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"Ahhhhh. That feels much better." Rin sighed, as she sank into her warm bath. "I wish I could have been home earlier to enjoy this." She winced as she felt her neck crack.
Sesshomaru had kept her at the palace to run errands again. When he finally released her, she was so tired and hungry, that she almost fell off of Aun.
Her home was a quant compound on the side of a mountain. It overlooked the palace and the great forest surrounding it.
When she had settled Aun in the stable, she called for her jijo, Rei, and asked her to draw a bath for them. Rei was more than her maid, she was her best friend. When Rin was a child of ten, Sesshomaru had settled into his empire and had hired Rei to look after Rin. Rei was an inu-youkai who had raised Rin as a daughter. After Rin had established her own estate, Rei had accompanied her to look after her home and to keep Rin company. Her graceful and ladylike manner, coupled with Rin's wry sense of humor, always made for an interesting spectacle when guests visited.
Rin was almost asleep, when Rei barged into her bedchamber and made herself comfortable.
Rin cracked and eye and gave her a glower that was so reminiscent of the Great Lord Sesshomaru that she couldn't help but giggle in a most un-ladylike manner.
"Well honestly, you came home so late that I feared you had lost your way. Did the Great Lord wear you out? What exactly did he have you do, Rin-Chan?"Rei eyed her in a most un-ladylike manner.
"And what exactly do you mean by that, Rei-chan?"Rin asked, a pink blush tinting her alabaster cheeks.
"Only that you've known him for so long and that he's rarely, if ever had another female around. What with that crush of yours-
"MY WHAT! Oh gods! What have you been saying to him? Rei, if you so much as hinted that I have any feelings in that way for him I swear I will kill you! I will stomp on your throat and press down until I crush the living light right out of you!" Rin had hastily risen out of the bath in her passion to berate her friend, and so now felt the sharp chill creep up upon her nudity.
Replying sheepishly as Rin lowered herself into her bath water again "Violent much? Of course I haven't said anything to him, honestly! I only meant that he shouldn't be taking advantage of you. I was just wondering if he had made any advances." Rin glanced her way, then back quickly. "You shouldn't get your hopes up, Rin-chan. It may never happen." She paused and then added. "I just want to see you happy."
Rin turned her head back around to glower at Rei with her tear-filled eyes. "I know it will probably never happen. I'm not blind. I can see that he needs a strong inu-youkai wife to complete his empire. I know that the most I could ever be is a mistress, and I could never be happy with that." She sighed and hastily wiped at her eyes.
Rei-chan spoke up while Rin was tending to her broken heart."I don't want to talk about this anymore. We've discussed it a thousand times and the conversation always ends the same. Tell me about your day. What did Sesshomaru-Sama have you do?"Rei smiled to try to ease the tension.
Rin sank her head under the water and groaned. She stayed under a little longer than Rei was comfortable, causing her to peek over the side. She suddenly came back up violently, so that Rei was soaked with lukewarm, lavender-scented water.
Sputtering, Rei glowered indignantly. Rin proceeded as if she had not just inundated her friend with bath water. "He had me do most of Jaken's work, for some absurd reason. Just because Mayoko can't get me that stupid report, he won't allow me to do my rightful duties. It's as if I can't be trusted." Rin sighed and started rinsing her hair.
"Oh! Mayoko arrived a couple of hours ago!"
"What!" said Rin exasperatedly, "Why didn't you tell me sooner!" She hastily grabbed her yukata and ran in the direction of Mayoko's chambers. "I waited for her for hours last night." "It must have slipped my mind." Rei replied, rolling her eyes.
Rin reached the Source's room and promptly threw back the shoji. What she saw made her gasp in horror.
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So? What do think? Not bad for a year of not updating, eh? Review, onegai!
