Law and Disorder
I don't own Inuyasha
Chapter 4 - The Conditions
The redhead that passed him in the hall on the way to the elevator bit her lip and winked at him. He barely paid her any attention although she and her friend had made it quite the weekend. As Sesshoumaru walked into the office he noticed several of his colleagues gathered around his father who was perched on one of the desks. He assumed his father was making his usual small talk with his colleagues which he usually didn't take part in. It was such a waste of productive time.
It was nearing the end of the day when Sesshoumaru saw Rin return to the office with Inuyasha. Her gaze was uncharacteristic, lingering like a message to be relayed to the first available listener. It wasn't long after, that Taisho called a meeting in his office.
Rin found herself uncomfortable. What was usually a spacious office was now taken up by the presence of egos. Maybe it was more of the equivalent of placing oneself in the midst of a battlefield. Looking to the left or the right would mean you were taking a side. But she had chosen her side in this battle unbeknownst to the two men sitting on either side.
"Now that we're all here let me get down to the reason that I called this meeting . Of course I'll be headed out of town next week on my usual vacation. Sesshoumaru, the office has been informed that you will be overseeing things while I'm gone. Hiro also has a stake in this as well. He has the role of being my eyes and ears…"
"You expect that he'll tell you the truth."
"Why shouldn't he? Don't tell me you simply expect him to take your word that everything ran perfectly fine under your inexperienced, brash, leadership?"
"Inexperienced? I've won more cases in my three years than you have in ten."
"Experience trumps luck Sesshoumaru."
Taisho interrupted the two as Rin took a deep breath, "Enough of this. You two enjoy good healthy competition which is exactly why I'm challenging the both of you in a mock trial. Prove your cases. Hiro, you're accusing Sesshoumaru of lacking leadership skills are you not? For the sake of making this an actual crime in a mock trial we'll say it's perjury, lying under oath about one's…credentials. And Sesshoumaru, you deny it. Hiro, you'll have three months to build your case and you'll only be allowed three witnesses. Choose wisely. Sesshoumaru, you have to prove Hiro wrong but everyone knows that defending oneself in a trial is a bad omen. You have three months to teach Rin everything you know to get yourself off the hook. If Sesshoumaru is found innocent Hiro, the firm falls into his hands immediately and I get to take an extended vacation. Sesshoumaru, if you're found guilty, Hiro will take lead for six months of which I will require that you work closely with him to gain the experience you need before officially running this firm. Any questions?"
"Three months is not possibly long enough to teach Rin the law."
"But, I can call as many witnesses as I choose right?"
"In your case that might do more harm than help."
"Ah…Sesshoumaru…"
"Look, I'm at more of a disadvantage than Sesshoumaru. I only get three witnesses. I can't even choose Rin. Everyone knows she's the closest thing to getting into his head in this office. I find that these scales are already tipped in someone's favor."
"Huh?" Rin tilted her head as Sesshoumaru ignored the comment all together.
"Hiro, you can't possibly convince anyone that you're scared this girl will make a mockery of you."
"Hey!" Rin looked between the two feeling as if she was being completely ignored.
"Alright, enough. I'm not tipping the scales for anyone Hiro. Sesshoumaru, do the best that you can. It's as fair as it's going to get."
Hiro shook his head as he left the office.
"Sesshoumaru, one last thing. I need a huge favor."
…
Rin listened to Sesshoumaru and his father go back and forth over his having to watch Inuyasha for the better part of three months. After the offer of what she calculated to be the equivalent of her yearly earnings, Sesshoumaru had begrudgingly agreed. She chewed at her lower lip. She felt some obligation to calm the storm. She had put her hand in the fire by agreeing to help out with Inuyasha while Sesshoumaru was teaching her the ins and outs of trying to defend him.
She figured that on some level, she wanted to prove to Sesshoumaru that she could be more than an assistant and show him that she deserved more respect than what he gave. The same went for Hiro. If she could somehow win against him, she could brag on it forever, not that she really would. Still, it sounded good.
Sesshoumaru paced in the lobby outside of the office space then sat on a bench, resting his chin on his fists seemingly plotting on how to make this go away.
"Sesshoumaru?"
"This is a joke. I can't believe you would agree to this."
It wasn't usually her style to let Sesshoumaru's words offend her but this time they did.
"I can do this…"
"You can't win."
"I can't win on my own but if you'd just teach me everything you know I could…"
"Don't worry about it. I'll defend myself."
"That's not even part of the rules. You don't think that I'm smart enough do you? You have no faith in me because I'm just the assistant."
"I didn't say that."
"But that's what you meant. That's why I decided to do this. To show you and Hiro and everyone else here that I'm capable. You walk around here like you're so great, but you don't think anyone else is remotely capable of doing what you do."
"Three months is not nearly long enough to teach you years worth of information on top of keeping the firm organized and taking care of Inuyasha. No."
"Sesshoumaru…"
"Rin, there's no reason for you to try to prove yourself to anyone. Just drop it."
Rin couldn't believe it. Sesshoumaru wasn't even open to the suggestion and he was cutting her off every time she tried to make her own case. If she was going to show him she could win, she had to do it now.
"Sesshoumaru, I'm representing you whether you like it or not…"
"Rin…"
"You have the right to remain silent so don't interrupt me. You are going to teach me every single thing you know even if it kills us both. Hiro is not going win. I am going to prove your innocence even if you're as guilty as the day is long, you got it. So don't tell me you don't have the time or you have too many other responsibilities. You've never made excuses for yourself when it's come to your work so don't make them for me!"
Sesshoumaru leaned back quirked an eyebrow. The young woman standing before him wasn't the most put together or the most confident but she was determined. He had to admit on some level, that he actually kind of liked seeing her take a stand for herself.
"Lesson one down. I hope you're a quick learner."
"Well let's just hope the teacher can teach."
"Of course…"
"Big brother!" Inuyasha cut him off jumping into his lap.
"…ugh"
Rin smirked, and quirked an eyebrow mimicking Sesshoumaru's tone, "Are you sure you're up for it?"
A/N: As always thanks for the reviews :)
Chapter 5: Playing the Game