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Chapter 36: Veil of Shadow

Rin stepped out of the personal onsen that was connected to her room. Was it her room? Obviously not, but at this point it might as well be. Today was the first that she had gone so stir crazy, so ready to do anything but stare at the ceiling and replay all the reasons why she should leave as soon as possible, that she decided to take a bath. It took those four and half days of developing a hearty scent to convince her, and God knows she needed it, yet the ever-blossoming, rebellious side of her continued to indulge in these days of no responsibility. Besides these walls, Rin was boundaryless. Able to do whatever or what little she wanted. Unfortunately, when such things were limited to staring at the ceiling, it allowed for less ideal thoughts to trickle into her mind.

As she stood from the hot water and grabbed the towel off the wall, her vision grew hazy and the paneled walls—slick with steam—found the weight of her body within seconds.

"Hey, a-are you okay?" the hesitant servant asked through the papyrus door; the one not connected to her room.

Rin could make out his shadowed figure beyond the paper. A dog demon servant who was noticeably wary and rigid around her. It was the servant interactions that really made Rin hesitate leaving her room. She couldn't tell if they were on edge because she was a human brought in—alive at that—by the cruel and ruthless Sesshoumaru-sama, himself, or if it was because they actually ate humans regularly and their resulting regard toward her was poorly trained.

"Yes, I'm fine," Rin replied shortly.

Deep down she knew the reasoning was the former, that the servants were simply uneasy with handling a human on behalf of Sesshoumaru-sama.

"Oh. Alright then... please let me know if I can be of service."

Guilt laced her tongue and Rin puckered her lips at the taste.

The dog demons hadn't resulted to human flesh in centuries apparently, but even if all the wounds of her past had been licked and healed, scars still remained. And each time Rin thought about leaving the room, she remembered those days with Kohaku—with the cruel demons of the oceanside, which was already a scar that had recently been re-sewn.

She rested her forehead against the panels and brought the towel up across her shoulders.

Everything was so… overwhelming.

Footsteps found her ears a hair too late and she turned just as the door opened.

It was him.

The servant was bowed to his feet and elbows before the lord of the Western precipice—Sesshoumaru-sama.

His expression was as it tended to be when under no manic influence. Stoic, analytical, vexing. His eyes found her and his pupils dilated beneath the lantern lights of the bathroom—paper-thin slivers of mystery.

Why was he here, now, of all times?

Rin's heart splintered at every horrid reason flying through her mind. She instantly looked down, where every part of her was covered by the towel, but still she pulled legs even tighter into her body, reluctantly standing.

"S-Sesshoumaru-sama," Rin managed before bowing slightly. It was warm, but her toes were shivering. As the water droplets fell from her hair, and he stepped toward her, she noticed the still yellowish-green of her healing bruises along her legs. Hopefully, if he were here for the less honorable reasons, her afflictions would remind him.

Please don't. She all but said.

To her surprise, his voice was as soft as a caress. "At ease."

Rin hesitantly fell out of her bow, but kept her eyes down. For some reason, while completely naked—save for the thin towel—she felt far less brave in his presence. Maybe he would become unpredictable again.

Surprise seared the back of her throat as his hand found her waist and pulled her close enough for his lips to find her neck.

Panic found her muscles and she squeezed her eyes shut, readying for whatever pain might come, even as he simply drew in a long and heady breath.

He was… smelling her?

He backed away and she opened her eyes, confusion filling every gap in her expression.

"Your body seems to have healed," he said lowly. "In good health, even, and yet…" His eyes narrowed. "...why your scent is still so filled with fear while near me, is not only perplexing, but insulting."

Rin's mouth dried and she choked on her own adrenaline.

He didn't understand—truly—what he had done to her. And this, she attempted to convey in her hardened gaze alone.

His eyes softened somewhat and he lifted a hand—the knuckle of a forefinger—to brush away the accumulating wetness from her cheek.

Had she been crying?

Rin pulled it together enough to look up at him. "Could you... smell me crying even from so far away?"

She thought about the window and how he had glanced up at her right as a tear streaked down her face.

He near laughed, and something about that insinuating humor warmed her heart a bit. "I heard you fall, from my own quarters. It was only once I came in that I noticed."

"Oh," Rin replied, a little embarrassed.

"The scent of rose water overpowers everything else," Sesshoumaru tilted his head toward the polished bath—planks of sealed wood filled with rose petals and spiced water.

Rin nodded, sheepishly. So there were limits to even his power. Rin had to admit, she'd never thought about demons and their limitations.

"It was very nice." She coaxed herself to say more, at the expense of her blushing cheeks and developing pride. "The bath. And you coming here…"

She decided to change course. "My time here has been spent frivolously and with great luxury. Really, thank you." She didn't meet his eyes, and she gritted her teeth at the last syllable, but she knew she needed to say it. It was deserved, despite their history together. A part of her, albeit a mere sliver, hated herself for what she said next.

"May I… return to Kodachi?"

Although, she wasn't planning to return at all.

His expression fell instantly. "No."

It was so short and crisp that it boiled Rin's blood, but she responded reservedly. "May I ask why?"

Sesshoumaru lifted his chin, gazing down upon her. "You are a liability to me there."

A liability?

"What do you mean?" Rin murmured.

He scoffed and stepped forward again, lifting his hand to her cheek—intentionally stopping just short. Instead, he let it fall to her neck, trailing two fingers down to her collar bones, slowly and suggestively.

She gasped, tingles flying up her spine and along the areas that his fingers traveled. He reluctantly retreated his hand. "Don't act so naive. You know what I mean."

Rin's face flushed with both heat and a lingering fear as she nodded. Despite herself, she did know. Something between them was so, so wrong… so distorted, that it somehow kept feeling right. It both sickened and excited her at the same time.

They stared at each other a moment, and her reply was forced. "Sesshoumaru-sama, I—"

"My lord," a rigid, female voice came from outside the door. "I have folded our guest's clothes on the corner vanity as you requested."

Rin remembered she was practically naked, and her cheeks seared all over again.

He lifted his head, turning to striding out of the bathroom. "Good. Dispose of the rags that she came here with."

Rin pouted slightly from the insult.

"As you wish, my lord," the servant replied.

Sesshoumaru-sama offered Rin a parting glance.

Neutral, yet a "good night," nonetheless.

She was asleep but she knew—she could feel his heat against her chest as he slid beneath the silk cover, onto the futon beside her. Her arms were crossed and her knees curled; a sleeping position that she lost to childhood, after the Okiya made a Geisha out of her.

The tresses of his silver hair fell to her face and she stirred, pretending to be awakened by them. How she had awoken before this, Rin didn't know.

"Sesshoumaru-sama." To her surprise, her voice came out relieved… as if she had anticipated his arrival; as if… she were happy to see him.

"Anata," he addressed her the way lovers would, the way a loyal husband would regard his wife. How InuTaishou-sama had regarded Izayoi in his letters.

The simple gesture was relayed in sweet, barely audible tones of endearment, something Rin never thought Sesshoumaru could manage. Her face caught fire and a warmth she'd never felt before developed in her gut.

Right now, she wasn't afraid of him at all. It was as if years had passed and they were on a new plane, in a new world, untainted by their previous engagements. She reached up and trailed her hand along his striped cheek, up to his hair—her fingers spread on either side of his acicular ear.

"What's wrong?" she asked.

"...You."

Her body froze solid as the room fell beneath a veil of shadow. "What?"

He wrapped his arms around her and pulled her close—every inch of his body a singeing heat against her.

"Sesshoumaru-sama?" Panic found her vocal cords and she shook. Now, she was afraid. What was happening?

His arms, crossed behind her back, squeezed tighter and Rin felt them. His claws. They dug into her skin and she yelped as the hot pools trailed and accumulated in the depression of the mattress.

"Stop!" she tried to push against him but he was immovable; his claws dug deeper, and then it hit. The white hot sting, unbearable and brutal, of the poison seeping into her bloodstream.

"Why are you doing this?!" she wailed, tears streaming down her face as her body convulsed. Her brown eyes found his blood-red, demonic ones. A deranged smile spread across his face, up past his cheekbones and into his hairline as—

Rin's eyes shot open and she fought the urge to scream. It took a couple seconds for her to find her strength, to be able to move, and for her to realize…

...it was just a dream. She heaved a sigh and willed her heart to slow down. She opened her eyes again to see a girl standing at the window. Just as her eyes widened, the girl spoke.

"Please don't be frightened," she said softly, her inflections airy.

Rin sat up and backed away. She stole a glance to the door, and the girl noticed.

"I am not here to hurt you..." Her ghost-white hands held up a beautifully-crafted mirror.

"...I am here to help you escape."

EEEP! RIN! DON'T DO IT! IT'S A TRAP!

Hope you guys enjoyed the chapter! Sorry that they are all a bit smaller, but they just tend to end at a good place. Plus I'd rather give you updates sooner rather than later. Thanks for your reviews! What do you think so far? :)

Love you beautiful sessrin peeps!