Rin was skipping along ahead of Jaken, her arms filled with bright yellow flowers she had picked on their way to the stream. The little imp was struggling to carry the heavy clay jug which he had filled to the top with water, and had fallen a good ways behind the little girl.

"Rin, please wait for me!" he called, doing his best to pick up his pace and not spill any of the water. He really didn't want to have to go all the way back. "Sesshoumaru-sama will not be pleased if he finds out you haven't been listening to me!"

Immediately upon hearing the taiyoukai's name, Rin stopped dead in her tracks and turned to face Jaken, nearly dropping her flowers. She glared at the little imp and tapped her foot impatiently. "Hurry up, Jaken! I want to get back and show Sango-chan the flowers I picked for her. I'm going to make her a wreath, to make her feel better. I feel bad for her, she keeps getting injured, and she seems so sad."

Jaken stumbled up next to her and gave the little girl a dirty look. "There is no reason for you to feel bad for the taijiya. She brought all of this upon herself, and I don't understand why she has to be with us, anyway. The last thing we need is another human slowing us down." He shook his head and kept walking. "Come on, Rin. We need to get back before Sesshoumaru-sama wonders what has taken so long."

She frowned and stayed still for a moment, finally following a few paces behind the little imp. "Jaken, she isn't going to slow us down. She's strong, she can help us!"

The little girl looked up and saw the fire appear in the distance and broke out into a run, leaving him to shake his head. He could hear her talking excitedly as he approached, and saw that the taijiya was sitting up, rubbing her eyes as if she had been sleeping. Jaken sat the jug of water down beside Sango without a word, and then went to sit opposite her, keeping the small fire between them. He leaned against a rock and closed his eyes, relieved that at least there was someone else around to watch Rin and he could take a break.

"The flowers are beautiful, Rin," said Sango, stifling a yawn and looking up at the sky. She was surprised to see that the sun was quite low. I must have slept longer than I thought. She removed her boot and rolled up her armor, reaching for the jug of water. Once again she found herself wishing she had a cloth to use, but decided that pouring the cool liquid directly over the throbbing wound on her calf would have to do. Sango picked up the jug easily and tipped it a bit, letting the water pour down her leg. She hissed as it hit the wound, biting back a scream.

"Sango-chan, are you alright?" asked Rin, kneeling down beside the taijiya. "Do you want me to help you?"

Sango nodded her head. "Rin, can you see if you can find me something to use as a bandage? I need to get the bleeding to stop, and I don't have anything."

The little girl immediately untied her kimono and handed the sash to Sango. "Here, you can use this. I don't really like to keep it tied, anyway, it doesn't fit me right."

The taijiya smiled and took the sash, submerging it in the water before tying it tightly around her leg. The pressure took away almost all of the pain instantly, and she let out a sigh of relief. Yawning once more, she laid back on the grass and stared up at the sky. Rin sat down beside her and began to tie the flowers together, humming softly to herself. Sango allowed herself to get lost in the little girl's melody, and soon her eyes had drifted closed again.

She felt a sharp pain in her back, and stumbled forward a few steps before falling to her knees. She turned her head and saw Kohaku standing behind her, the chain from his weapon still in his hands, leading towards her. His eyes were completely blank. She reached around behind her, the movement causing flashes of pain to shoot through her body. She cried out when she felt his blade embedded in her flesh.

"K..Kohaku...why?" she whispered.

The sound of her voice seemed to snap the young boy out of the trance he had been in. "Nee-chan... What have I done?"

He rushed forward, trying to reach her, to help her, but was cut down by a barrage of arrows. She screamed as they hit his small body, and watched him fall in slow motion. Crawling slowly, she moved towards his body, collapsing on top of his still form.

"Kohaku...I'm here...everything will be alright," she said, trying to hold back her tears.

There was no response.

Despite the pain it caused her, she rose to her feet, and took a few steps forward. But before she could reach him, the man who had summoned them to their deaths, the archers let fly another round of arrows. She was driven back as they hit her, landing on top of her brother's body. The world went black...

"KOHAKU!!!!"

She sat up straight, shaking, the world a blur around her. She didn't remember where she was, or what was going on. The scar on her back was throbbing, and Sango screamed out in pain, tears streaming down her face. Suddenly, she felt a strong pair of hands grip her shoulders.

"Taijiya."

She managed to pull herself back together enough to recognize the voice speaking behind her. Sesshoumaru...what is he doing here? And why is he talking to me? Where am I? Sango turned her head, tears still running down her cheeks, and looked into his eyes. "Sesshoumaru..." she whispered, barely able to speak. Then it all came back to her, and she remembered exactly why she was with the taiyoukai. Forcing herself to regain her composure, she leaned forward, trying to dislodge his hands from her shoulders, but he wouldn't let go. "What do you want from me now?"

He tightened his grip on her small shoulders and roughly turned the taijiya around to face him, letting his hands drop back to his sides as soon as she was looking at him. Her skin was pale, and her eyes held the look of someone who was in fear for their life. "Come with me," he said, pulling her gently to her feet. "I wish to speak with you, privately." Sesshoumaru cast a glance at Rin and Jaken, silently telling them that if either of them tried to interfere there would be dire consequences. He motioned for her to get to her feet, and she did so as quickly as her injured leg would allow her to.

"Where are we going? Sesshoumaru? What is it that want to talk to me about now? It's not as if you care..." Sango said, stumbling along behind him, her injured leg almost numb because she had Rin's shash tied so tightly around it. "I am not in the mood for a lecture, so if that's what your planning, just let me go back to the camp now and try to find something for Rin and me to eat."

They had walked into a small clearing; the trees were so tall that Sango couldn't see the tops of them, and only a few slivers of sunlight managed to find their way through to the ground. Sesshoumaru motioned for her to sit, and she gladly allowed her legs to collapse out from under her, mentally and physically exhausted. The taiyoukai moved to stand in front of her, never taking his eyes off of her. It felt to Sango almost as if he were trying to see into her soul.

"Sesshoumaru..." she said, but immediately closed her lips when he put his hand up to silence her.

"Who is it that you were calling out to in your sleep? You said someone's name...'Kohaku'. What does he mean, to you?"

The taijiya blinked her eyes in shock. Was he really asking her to tell him about herself, about her family? It was completely unbelieveable that this cold-hearted taiyoukai would want to know anything about her other than that her life, essentially, belonged to him. And yet it had been so long since she had had the opportunity to speak of the ordeals she had been through, she couldn't stop herself, even if he didn't really care.

"Kohaku...he is...he was...my brother. I lost him to Naraku, just like I lost everyone else that I cared about." Sango pulled her knees up to her chest and wrapped her arms tightly around them. "My father, everyone who was there...Naraku made my brother kill them all. And there was nothing I could do about it besides watch. I couldn't stop him, I couldn't stop Naraku, I couldn't do anything!"

She felt as if she was going to burst into tears again at any moment, but wasn't about to allow herself to cry in front of Sesshoumaru yet again. Taking a deep breath, she continued. "Once everyone else was dead, Naraku turned Kohaku against me. He...he attacked me, and I couldn't defend myself, wouldn't defend myself. How could I fight against my own brother, the only family that I had left? I just...I let him defeat me..."

The taijiya swallowed the lump in her throat, and allowed her eyes to lock with the taiyoukai's for a brief moment. The way his golden eyes were staring into her's was almost making her feel uncomfortable, and so she looked back down at the ground, speaking in a whipser. "Naraku persuaded several youkai, with shards from the Shikon jewel, to destroy my village. There was nothing left...nothing at all...I was under Naraku's control too, for a time. I attacked Inuyasha...I was convinced that he was the one who had killed my comrades. Naraku...he's taken everything away from me. My family, my home, myself...and now Miroku, too. But, you wouldn't understand. You don't...care about anyone, or anything..."

Sango got to her feet and turned away from him. She felt foolish for having said anything at all. Why couldn't she have just brushed it off, told him that it didn't matter? "I'm going back. Rin will be hungry, and I'm sure that Jaken isn't going to find anything for her..." She began to walk slowly back towards camp, resisting the urge to turn around and see if he was following.

"Sango, you focus too much on your past," Sesshoumaru said, quickly moving forward so that he was once again standing in front of her, blocking her escape. He did understand revenge, better than anyone else. It was what he lived for, what fueled his desire for perfection every day. "Do not allow yourself to think of what Naraku has taken from you. When the time comes for you to fight against him, your emotions will only get in the way. Forget everything. Live to defeat him. That is the only way you are going to win." Without another word, he turned and led the way back to camp. He didn't know why, but he felt a strange sort of compassion for the young taijiya. His only hope now was that she would take his advice to heart and when they did meet Naraku she would fight with her head and not her heart. Emotions were nothing but a foolish waste of time.

Sango sighed. He made it sound so easy, to just forget it all. Shaking her head in an attempt to clear her thoughts so that Rin wouldn't realize there was anything wrong, she walked slowly behind him, keeping enough distance between them so that she wouldn't feel the urge to speak, and couldn't see those eyes...those cold, piercing eyes.