As the weeks passed all was quiet and the two youkai bonded. Both Sesshomaru and Rin became close enough that they could sense what the other was thinking without even looking. Sesshomaru had grown quite fond of Rin and a sense of longing fell over him. Longing for her to be his, longing for them to have each other until the day they died, longing to be truly connected. He had everything planned out in his head and he knew that on the night of the full moon he would ask her to be his.

"Lord Sesshomaru, I have the kimono that you requested" a servant said after he knocked on Sesshomaru's door.

Once the servant came in and left the kimono with his lord Sesshomaru delicately unfolded it and examined the fine silk fabric to ensure there were no flaws. It was a deep purple women's kimono with white hibiscus flowers and trim. In a few hours dusk would be upon the castle and he would ask Rin to the garden, her favorite place, then upon asking her to be his he would present her with the gift. Sesshomaru had gone to many battles before, but his stomach never went in knots like it was at this moment.

"Sesshomaru, is everything ok?" Rin opened the door slowly, her beautifully sweet voice bringing him back to reality and he made sure to hide the kimono as best as he could. The formality they once had was long gone and Rin knew what she could do without putting the youkai lord into a mood.

"Rin, after dinner I would like you to go to the garden with me. There are some matters that need to be discussed." From the icy tone Rin received she knew it was serious and wondered if she was getting kicked off the premises. She had thought they were getting closer from the way she caught him looking at her when he didn't realize it, but she may have been wrong. There was in fact a real possibility that the Lord of the West was tired of her presence.

"Yes, of course." Rin said with hollowness in her voice which was also felt in her heart. Once she excused herself, Rin quietly went down to her own quarters and placed her few belongings in a bag. I'd rather be prepared than caught off guard, Rin thought as two tears fell. She knew very well that she could be overreacting, but at the same time she could not figure out any matters that Sesshomaru would want to discuss.

Down the hall Sesshomaru could smell Rin's tears, no matter how small, and was genuinely concerned. When she left he could tell her demeanor was off and that something was worrying her. Perhaps she was thinking about how to politely reject me, Sesshomaru mused and the knot in his stomach grew tighter. That was when a realization struck the youkai lord and he understood why there was a knot in his stomach. Fear, this is what fear is. Why is it I am fearful about asking the girl to be my mate? The stray thought came across Sesshomaru's mind causing him to be slightly disgusted. Perhaps he cared enough about Rin that he didn't want her to say no and he didn't want to be alone anymore. From the day Rin found him laying in the clearing she had been slowly melting his icy heart without him realizing it. Up until this point it had never been very noticeable, but now Sesshomaru realized it because he actually felt things instead of obliviously going through life without emotions. He could not think of a time that he felt emotions because his father raised him to be fearless and strong. Being that Sesshomaru was the heir to the throne he could not be caught off guard or he would quickly be killed.

Father could never understand why I was so disgusted about his feelings toward a mortal woman or any woman for that matter; he raised me to be cold and that is how I was. No woman has ever won my affections until Rin.

Rin sat quietly in the garden trying to think of an explanation for Sesshomaru requesting her presence there. Dinner was short without him dining with her and it made her more nervous as the sun disappeared. Across the yard footsteps grew closer and between the two youkai there was much anxiety although neither of them knew why. The moon was high in the sky and it reflected softly against the white lilies making them appear to be glowing.

"Rin, I have known you for many years and have witnessed you turn from a child into a grown woman." Sesshomaru said, getting straight to the point. He couldn't help but notice how the moonlight seemed to radiate from her body making her look like a goddess. Sesshomaru offered her a hand and once she stood they were only inches away from each other. Quietly the youkai lord said, "In those long years I have always been fond of you. You have grown to be a major part of who I am and I want that to last until the end of time. What I am trying to say is Rin, I want you to be my mate." A surprised look came over Rin's face and she grew weak in the knees. She couldn't tell if he had actually said that or if she were merely imagining it.

"Are….are you sure this is what you want Sesshomaru?"

A firm nod confirmed that Rin had not been imagining that moment and the only person she truly loved in the world actually wanted her to be his. "Yes, I want to be your mate more than anything." She said with joyful tears in her eyes and she softly kissed Sesshomaru. To her surprise he returned the gesture and they were both filled with everlasting joy. That was when the world went black for Sesshomaru and his body went numb. All movement of the youkai lord's was not his own, yet he could still see what was going on in the outside world.

You will pay for the day you were born Sesshomaru, I will destroy the only thing you care about with your own hand. The voice had returned and it sounded stronger than before.

Focusing on Rin, Sesshomaru tried to control his body and tell her to run, to get away from the creature that took over his body. At the same time Sesshomaru's body was taken over Rin sensed a change in the Youkai Lord causing her to take a step back. Everything looked normal, but there was just something about his aura that seemed angry and full of hate.

"Sesshomaru, are you alright?"

There was clearly a conflict going on in his mind as his eyes darted back and forth quickly in an almost panicked manner. Rin boldly took a step towards him, but was cut short in her stride by a clawed hand sticking straight through her heart. There was no scream, no angry shout of hatred; one moment she was full of life and the next she was limp on the ground, dead.

Genuine tears streaked down Sesshomaru's face as he looked out from inside his own mind. You could almost see the life in his eyes die as his soul shattered. He no longer wanted power or to be the ruler of supreme conquest, Sesshomaru only wanted that beautiful woman to look into his eyes once more so he could love her like she deserved. His Youkai flared giving him control of his body once more while knocking the shadow demon clear out into the real world. This caught it by surprise leaving just enough time for Sesshomaru to slice it clean in half with his Tokijin. It fell to the ground with a sickening thud and the soil absorbed it leaving no remains.

There was no masking his emotions as Sesshomaru silently looked down at Rin's still body. As his Knees buckled out from under him he let out a painful cry of pure sorrow. No more would she laugh, no more would she love, and no more would he kiss her soft lips.

As Sesshomaru mourned for the loss of his only love, someone kept softly calling his name. "Sesshomaru" it called over and over until he stood and tried to pinpoint the source. It turned out to be the Tensaiga calling to him, trying to get him to pull it out of it's sheath. Curiosity got the best of the Lord of the West and he pulled out the rusty sword causing the minions of the netherworld to appear before his eyes. Quickly, before they could take Rin away he sliced them down bringing her back to life.

He did not understand how Tensaiga was able to bring her back a second time because of the onetime rule, but he did not dare question it and he placed the sword back in it's sheath. After kneeling down to Rin's now waking body Sesshomaru pulled her into an embrace and Rin couldn't figure out what was going on.

"What happened?" She mumbled into his silk kimono and he let her go so she could sit up.

"What happened does not matter now. All that matters is you are alive and I am forever grateful for that."

*Epilogue*

Ever since Rin was brought back to life Sesshomaru never let her go a moment without feeling loved. Once mated, they grew closer and now have two children, Hiroshi and Sashimi. Once Hiroshi became of age he took over the Southern lands which now prospers under his ruling. Sashimi has taken on training from Sasume and is becoming a skilled fighter like Rin.

Author's note: I'm sorry it's been such a long time since I've updated. For those of you who've stuck with the story I hope you enjoyed it and I hope the ending was good enough. Possibly in the future there may be a second story adding on to this one, but that's unclear as of right now. Thanks for reading and HAPPY NEW YEAR!

-Blitz Girl