Thirty Nights Chapter 3: Knight In Shining Armor, an inuyasha fanfic

Disclaimer: I don't own Inuyasha…blah blah blah…

A/N: Urrrrrrrrrrrrrrrrrrrrgh!! FINALLY!! A break from summer school and work and all of that CRAP!! I finally get to work on at least one story. Sorry about the lack of update as of late. I really really really do apologize to keep you guys waiting, especially those waiting for an update to "College Adversity". If this whole break-once-in-a-while thing goes on, I should have an update soon for one of my other fics as well.

Urgh. But anyways, I hope you guys enjoy this long awaited chapter.

O.o

Who's after her…?

Thirty Nights: Chapter Three: Knight In Shining Armor

A trail of blood slid down Rin's throat from the slit he made at the contact of his sword and her skin. It mixed with drops of rain, making the thick, rich fluid turn slightly pink.

"Where's Ino?" the male voice repeated, a bit more impatient.

Rin snorted with disgust. "Are you blind or just plain stupid? If you can't see her, I'm not telling you." Hello. She lay right behind them. Did he really not see Ino's dead, cold body? Or maybe he was just toying with her…reveling in her obvious pain. "I don't have the patience for your games, Naraku."

'Naraku?' The male quirked an eyebrow at her obvious disrespect. "Shouldn't you be calling a man with such power, 'Lord'? Are you not afraid of death, stupid mortal?"

Rin only smiled sneeringly at his words. Without Ino, without anyone else…what was the point of living? She merely shrugged and gave a small, empty laugh. "Death? Afraid of it? Although it is hideous, I must admit, it's becoming more and more endearing."

"Endearing?"

Rin shrugged again. " Exactly. I'd laugh in front of its face." And she really would. She escaped death years ago, and she's been chased by it ever since…it's time she stopped running. There was nothing left to live for in this world…everyone she loved was waiting for her in the next.

"Then start laughing."

Just as he shifted to slice her throat to comply with her wish, something glinted, catching his attention. He began to trace his line of sight down her neck, along her wet chest, and past her taut nipples under her thin shirt, cold from the rain. What he found shocked him. The object around her neck--it couldn't be.

Before he could react or open his mouth to speak, something pierced his waist. For one moment, he let his mask slip. Looking down between him and the woman, he saw the sword that she was once holding slid to the hilt in his torso. His eyes turned red with rage, mirroring the same color of the fluid steadily flowing out from him, although his face remained as passive as ever.

Rin broke into a run, not giving one moment's chance to think or glance back. She made a promise to Ino, and she wasn't about to break it just yet by dying. She sped off as fast as she could, ducking under low tree branches and cutting her way through the thick of the forest.

Her breathing became labored, but her legs didn't feel a thing; no pain, no weariness…just the urgency to run for her life. All the while, her mind repetitively chanted a silent prayer to God that Naraku's injury would slow him down…if even just for a minute, to give her time to escape.

She heard a frightening growl some distance behind her and, if it was possible, ran faster. The speed she was using was almost inhuman, but Rin was too preoccupied with her escape to even notice.

Another growl was heard…this time closer. A strange sensation ran through her body as something tried to force her to look back. With all her might, Rin fought as hard as she could to stop the compulsion. Not paying attention to her footing, she slipped in the mud and hit her head on a root sticking out of the ground. Rin groaned before she remembered that she was being chased. With that realization, she staggered back up to her feet. Her head was now bleeding, the thick substance running down her forehead. Without paying any mind to it, she began her run again.

Another low branch in front of her caught the line of the necklace. It temporarily choked her as it snapped the chain.

Panic ran through her blood, turning it cold. She dropped to her knees and searched the ground desperately for Kiori, knowing she was wasting precious seconds. Rin heard the clinking sound of water hitting crystal, and she turned her head to the source. There on the ground, she found the necklace and its broken chain.

Gathering it into her hand, Rin looked up to see a blurring figure run madly and dangerously fast towards her position. She looked at her surroundings frantically, hoping to find a place to hide. Spotting a thick bush surrounded by other smaller, but still dense, bushes, she crawled under its shelter.

The leaves hid her completely; add in the mud she was covered in and the rain. Oh thank Kami for the rain. It would hide her scent and cover her trail. Not to mention the rhythm it created helped cover any sounds she'd make.

To her dismay, she heard Naraku stop near her hiding place. The undergrowth of the bush and the thickness of the leaves prevented her from seeing exactly where he was standing. He was breathing heavily, growling as he did so. Rin could hear him sniffing out the area. She then heard a tree snapping and coming down as a result from his frustration. The weight of the tree shook the earth as it hit the ground. It made her breath escape in a rush, forcing a small sound to come out.

Rin bit her lip hard. She ceased her breathing until her curled up body stopped shaking. After a minute, she got her muscles to relax and forced her heart to beat slower. She lay there for some time, not wanting to give anything away that'll compromise her position.

The rain continued its heavy onslaught. Rin used that time to get her mind to work and to stop her body from releasing adrenaline, needing her brain to function and think. Slowly, she lifted her head a bit to try to spot him through the bush. It was then that she realized that she no longer heard him at all.

She placed her clenched fist beneath her in the sloshing mud, pushing her weight up. Kneeling on the soft ground, Rin desperately tried to spot him…or even just for a sign of where he might be. Failing to get anything, she cautiously straightened her body.

There was nothing. Despite her will to get her pulse to return to normal, her heart skipped a beat before it began to hammer in her chest, threatening to give her a heart attack.

Where was Naraku?

She strained her eyes, trying desperately in the dark, rainy night to find anything out of place. Her gaze followed the trail that she had been running from up to the broken tree lying in its path. Looking into the shadows, she strained her vision even harder, wondering if he took refuge in the darkness, waiting for her to make a wrong move.

Nothing.

And that was what scared her. Did he leave without her noticing? Could he even read the signs telling him that she had not ran further? Or was it possible, if even the tiniest bit of luck was on her side, did he think the rain just washed away her trace?

It was a stupid, thoughtless, irrational, and hopeless wish…but she was only human.

She was locked in that stiff position for quite awhile. Rin didn't even know exactly how much time had passed, but carefully, she let her rigid body relax a bit. Naraku surely would've already found her if he was tracking the area, and nothing gave away a sign that told her to be cautious. But that was exactly what frightened her. What now?

Standing up as if in frame-motion, Rin looked around warily. She fixed the chain so that she could wear the necklace around her neck again. The rain glistened off the leaves around her. She finally noticed that it was utterly cold, now that she didn't have a pursuing monster to distract her.

Closing her eyes, Rin took a deep, somewhat shuddering breath. She decided that she'd better move now, or die of hypothermia. Releasing her breath, she opened her eyes again. She took a step forward. As soon as her foot left the earth, a sucking sound could be heard as the mud stubbornly stuck to her shoe.

She paled as she stopped moving again. Rin screwed her eyes shut. She prepared herself, waiting for the moment her head would be sliced off, or for some certain type of pain to pierce her freezing body.

When nothing came, she slowly opened eyes. Glancing around slowly, she swallowed the lump in her throat and lowered her still-raised foot. The sound was softer than before, but she still caught the squishing of the wet mud beneath her shoe. If she had been less frightened, she would've slapped herself on her head.

"Stupid mistake."

Rin froze at the hissed sentence. Now, for sure, the head slicing would come. Before she could help it, she turned to the sound of the baritone voice.

What she saw surprised her. She was expecting an evil, red-eyed, dark haired spawn of hell…not a seething pale, silver haired angel. It was funny how the murderous glint in his eyes did nothing to mar his beauty. If her heart didn't skip a beat because of fear, it was certainly because of the angry Adonis standing not three feet away from her.

Instead of things happening in slow motion - like how dangerous moments like this always appeared when you're watching in the background – everything happened at the same time.

A gasp escaped her, her eyes widened, a prayer sent to Ino to forgive her ran through her head, and a growl that came from behind his throat, happened all in one moment…right before she felt a sharp pain on the back of her neck. It was then, just before the blackness consumed her, that she realized she'd been knocked unconscious. The last thing she saw was his golden eyes.

xOxO

"I don't understand it, m'lord!!"

Rin's right brow creased infinitesimally as a screeching, stingy voice reached her ears.

"Why in the world are we taking –that- along with us?!"

Although the words were a bit muffled, Rin could still hear the venom dripping from question. What "that" was that screechy voice referring to?

As disoriented as she was, she was still careful and alert enough to remember that she was in the hands of the enemy. Keeping that in mind, she pretended that she was still asleep. Her eyelids felt heavy, so she wasn't in too much of a rush to end her charade just yet. She even contemplated going back to sleep.

"Jaken…"

At the sound of that voice, Rin nearly slipped up and gave away the fact that she was awake. It literally jolted her back to the world of consciousness.

"Yes, m'lord?" the voice, obviously Jaken, replied.

"Shut up."

"Y-yes, m'lord!"

Now that she was fully awake, the voices were heard more clearly. And her head didn't seem so foggy. Wanting desperately to open her eyes, Rin had to force herself to keep them closed, keep her face serene, and to also make sure her breathing was slow and stable.

It was then that she noticed that she bounced in an up-and-down motion…she was riding something. Her fully alert mind also realized that she was no longer freezing. Opening her left eye ever so slightly, merely a fraction of a centimeter, she looked down to see what was keeping her warm. She saw that a fluffy, white material was wrapped around her body. She even noticed how incredibly soft and luxurious it felt. Seriously…was she still alive?

"Insufferable, miserable, stupid, smelly burden of a mortal…" Jaken muttered under his breath as he paced beside her. Oh yeah…she was alive.

Jaken noticed that her face was no longer serene, but scrunched into a grimace. For a second, he thought that she heard him in her sleep, but when he realized that one of her fists were clenched, his panic quickly dissolved into anger. A vein popped in his forehead as he realized she was probably playing dead…or sleep. However you wanted to put it.

He scurried up to his master and whispered something Rin couldn't make out. When Jaken got the approval he was looking for, he turned back and looked at Rin's "sleeping" figure, smiling evilly. He ran back to her side and put his face close to hers. Rin could smell his putrid breath, but held her ground as if unaware. All she'd have to do was wait for her chance to--

"WAKE UP!!" he yelled in her ear.

"Aahhh!!" Rin yelped as she sat up. One of her hands automatically went up to her ringing ear. Looking down at what had screeched at her, she took in the sight of a two-foot tall green…thing. "Sheesh!! You could've at least shook me. You didn't have to yell in my ear!!" she yelled right back at him.

"Brazen, unmannered girl!!"

"At least I'm not ugl--!!"

"Enough."

Both Rin and Jaken stopped their bantering at the soft spoken order. The calm command sent more shivers up Rin's body than an angry order would've done.

As if afraid to see what she'd find, Rin turned her head ever so slowly. Her brown gaze met his golden one. She dropped it slightly only to notice his maroon-marred cheeks, lower still to his white and red kimono, to the armor around his body, and finally, on a tear in his clothes by his abdomen. A sword cut? Time seemed to stop while she took in the sight of him, although only a second had passed before he spoke again.

"…that you behave yourself if you don't want to die."

Rin blinked and came back to focus, only to catch the end of what he was saying. Something about behaving herself if she didn't want to die. With that said, her supposed savior turned and began walking again. The imp beside her snorted in victory and rushed again to trail behind him. Her brows slightly came in together.

Some knight and shining armor...threatening to kill her if she didn't behave.

Sighing, she decided she comply with his wish if she wanted to live. Her eyes lowered to the crystal hanging around her neck. Oh yeah…Ino. Moisture reached her eyes before she could stop the sting from doing so. She craned her neck so that she was looking at the canopy above her, hoping that it'd prevent the tears from falling.

Jaken noticed a sweet, yet salty, fragrance dance in the air. He sniffed more diligently at it before turning his head to look at the woman behind them. The stupid mortal was crying. Hmph. How typical. But he also noticed his lord look out of the corner of his eye. Although his pace and demeanor never changed, it was weird that his lord even cared to give notice to such a trivial thing.

Irritated by the girl, Jaken merely turned his head back around and shook it slowly. 'Women…'

As soon as the tears no longer threatened to fall, Rin glanced down. As she took notice to her bouncing motion again, she became overwhelmingly curious as to what was moving her. She was sitting in a saddle on a creature with beautiful dark green scales. Looking up, she realized that the creature was a dragon, and that it had two heads.

Rin was bewildered for a moment. It looked fierce…and beautiful! Its scales looked so shiny, it was almost temptation. She wondered what it felt like. Before she could help it, she softly patted the enticingly sleek back of the dragon. One of the heads turned toward her as she did so. Her hand froze in place as she acknowledged that she was caught.

A small amount of fear trickled down her spine as her gaze locked with one of its heads. It almost turned to panic when the other head turned as well. Rin swallowed the lump in her throat. Damn her curiosity!!

Her breathing stopped when the first head moved closer to her face. Oh hell…it was going to bite her head off. She closed her eyes tightly, too much of a coward to brave death with open eyes. But instead of her head getting snapped off, a rough, yet velvet-like, and wet something ran up from her chin to hairline.

Opening her eyes in shock and surprise, it took her a moment before she realized that it licked her!! Taking advantage of her dazed state, it attacked her several more times before she could get a grip on it to hold it back. She held its nozzle with one hand, while she wiped off the saliva with the sleeve of her shirt of the other.

Managing to get almost all of the slimy substance off her face, she glared teasingly at it. "Eww…" she mumbled in its face. It licked her again for a good measure before turning its head back forward.

"Ugh!!" she proclaimed, wiping at her face again. As gross as that was, it quirked the corners of her mouth. Smiling to herself, she resumed petting the dragon.

It whined happily under her attention, not minding at all that it walked the whole day with her on its back.

xOxO

Sesshoumaru was a little more than angry. He was furious. What was the meaning of this?! Why in the world was this girl covered in a dog demoness's scent? What in heaven's name happened to Ino? And why in hell was this…this mortal carrying Kiori?

Was Bokuseno making fun of him? Was the prophecy he gave him another irritating lesson?!

So many questions ran through the demon lord's head as he contemplated on what to do with the situation. His frustration bordered on the edge of control. Taking a deep, calming breath, invisible to anyone else, he decided any rash actions would get him nowhere. Instead, he figured that as soon as she was awake, and after they found a place to rest, would he interrogate her. He neither cared if she would answer submittingly, or if he would have to force it out of her. She will tell him.

It was nightfall by the time they reached one of the many hot springs scattered all over his territorial lands. His questions bugged him all day, not to mention, it was hardly befitting for a demon lord like him to be crusading with a mortal.

Not like it mattered. He'd simply kill any who dared to mock him.

Rin was disturbed by her own questions as well. How in the world would she get out of this one…? She didn't know where the hell she was. She didn't think she'd have any chance to escape. She didn't have any weapons left…that rude, and disturbingly beautiful man probably had fun stripping her of them. She didn't have food or water. She was hopeless.

Her only option was to follow wherever this man was going. Maybe he could possibly help her. Maybe he wasn't that bad of a person…or demon.

As they came to an abrupt stop, she slowly swayed forward as her momentum took its sweet time following. But it was enough to jerk her out of her thoughts. Apprehension made itself known as she unwillingly looked at the silver-haired demon before her.

He merely turned his head so that she was looking at his profile. Rin noticed that his eyes were on the dragon's. Wondering what was going on, she was caught off guard as the dragon tilted its back in order for her to get off. Finally catching up to the unspoken command, she slid off the saddle.

Gently settling herself on the soft grass, she kept one hand clutched in a ring on the seat, just incase her footing was unsteady. Finding that she could function properly, she let go.

"Girl, come here."

Rin snapped her head up towards him. This was it…her moment of death.

He slowly turned around to look at her. She could tell by the frown on his face that he didn't like what he saw. Biting her lip, she realized she must've looked like such a mess.

Suppressing the urge to straighten her hair, Rin returned his gaze with a defiant one of her own.

"Don't make me repeat myself," he said.

Rin nearly blushed as she recalled that he told her to go to him. How stupid. She was already acting like a dumb "mortal". But still, if she was only going to die soon, she decided she'd at least die with dignity.

She sighed for a good measure. "Please…" she said, her voice cracking from the lack of use, "if you're going to kill me, just get it over with already…please?"

He raised an eyebrow, but otherwise said nothing. Rin took it as a sign to continue.

"Look…I'm tired of facing death every five minutes. It gets really tiring after awhile. Not to mention how stressful it is. I already know death is out to get me…and I accept that fact. But can we not play this stupid game anymore?" she asked, frustrated. "Really. I give up. I surrender."

If her weariness wasn't playing games on her, she could've sworn she saw a hint of amusement behind the cold gaze of his eyes.

"You brazen girl!!" Jaken screeched. "How dare you talk like that to the great Lord Sesshoumaru!!"

'Sesshoumaru, huh…' Rin thought.

Sesshoumaru merely lifted his hand to silence the imp. Jaken immediately quieted.

"I thought you laughed in the face of death," he stated monotonously.

She gave a slight frown. Despite the sudden adrenaline making her body nervous and jumpy, her anger couldn't help but show itself.

Crossing her arms, she countered his statement with her own. "I'm done and past that part. It got boring. If you're going to kill me, I suggest you do it now."

The amusement that was in his eyes suddenly vanished as it was quickly replaced by fury. Did she just tell him what to do?

"What did you just say?"

"Kill me now," she taunted.

Sesshoumaru gave her an empty smirk. "Is that a dare?" He placed his hand nonchalantly on the hilt of his sword. Rin thought about it for a moment as she eyed his hand. Damn her and her smart mouth. Great. What did she get herself into this time?

"Take it however you like," she said before she could stop it. Damnit!! Why couldn't she just shut up?! Did she really want to die?!

Sesshoumaru's expression hardened. As much as he wanted to torture her to death, he still had questions. And those questions were essential to his life. Closing his eyes for a moment, he took a deep breath for what it seemed a second time that day. Boy, was this really grating on him. Control was barely contained in his grasp anymore. This useless wench was lucky that her answers were of significance to his life.

As young as he was in his society, Sesshoumaru built a substantial amount of self control. It was this trait, among others, that made him dangerous. Not to mention, highly-respected. No one who's ever seen him lose control lived to tell the tale.

"Girl, I suggest you shut your trap if you truly do not wish to die, for though I have great patience, it is not perfect."

His voice was calm and low. But even Rin could not miss the underlying threat of his "suggestion".

"What do you want with me?" she asked, a little more cautious this time.

"Answers. But before I question you, there is a spring not too far north from here. Go wash up. At least make yourself presentable." With that, he turned to walk away.

Rin looked down when she felt the heat rise in her cheeks. Damn these demons and their acute sense of smell. She completely forgot that she was covered in mud, sweat, and blood. She must've smelled hideous. Hell, she even smelled pretty bad to herself, how much more for Mr. High-and-Mighty?

Uncontrollably, her anger rose another notch. Man, was this guy really good at raising her temper. And she had a terrible one. How dare he order her around like she was some…some type of…slave. She shuddered in disgust at the word.

She glared at him angrily. "No."

At that statement, Sesshoumaru stopped in his tracks. Oh no, she didn't. Turning back towards her, he was slightly shocked to find that she was actually glaring at him. No one ever dared to do that to him. And now this little slip of a woman had the nerve to…

He was not going to take that. Raising his poisonous hand, he cracked his knuckles menacingly. It was meant to frighten her…threaten her. But to his surprise, again, her glare never wavered. This mortal never ceased to amaze him…even if he'd never admit it.

"What did you just say?"

Rin resisted the urge to scoff. For a demon, he was pretty deaf. "Demon lord or not...there's no way in hell that I'll subject to you."

Sesshoumaru smiled at her, but his smile was devoid of everything but murder and evil. "Oh? Then I'll just have to make you."

He stalked towards her with murderous intent. It was then that Rin snapped out of her anger to realize that she just set off a ticking time bomb.

'Oh, Kami…what have I done…?'

A/N: Yesss!! I'm finally done!! With this chapter at least...

Wellz, I hoped that you guys liked this chapter!! It's been so long since I've written anything, I'm pretty sure that I either overdid it, or I didn't do enough. Sorry…but chyea!! Thank you for reading--

Rin: Um…Honey-sama?

Me: Yes, Rin?

Rin: Sorry for interrupting your ending note, but I have a question…

Me: Yes?

Rin: Why is it that death really is after my butt every five minutes? In other fanfics, I'm pretty sure I'm not as…well, helpless.

Me: …Umm…haha…don't you like the change? At least you've got nerve!! Sweat drops

Rin: …not exactly…

Me: Well, anyways, please don't mind the main character of the story. She's just excited…

Once again, thank you for reading!! I'll have another chapter posted as soon as I can!!

xOxO

Island Honey