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Chapter Seventeen

Rin skipped happily behind Sesshomaru, electing to move around instead of riding on Ah-Un because it was warmer that way. Suddenly, she tripped on a root that was hidden under the snow, but she didn't fall as she expected to. Instead she stumbled into the back of Sesshomaru's leg, causing him to stop and take notice of her.

"I'm sorry, Lord Sesshomaru! I tripped,"

"Are you cold, Rin?"

"Maybe a little..." she tried to put on a tough face, not wanting to be left behind with Jaken. He was such a pain sometimes. Suddenly, he bent and picked the small girl up, wrapping her in his Mokomoko.

"Don't lie to me, are you tired?"

"Yes, my lord."

"You can sleep, Rin."

"Are you going to leave me behind, Lord Sesshomaru?"

"No."

"Am I too heavy?"

"Silly girl, if you were too heavy I wouldn't have picked you up in the first place. Actually, you are very light." He looked down at her and gave her the smallest of smiles. Jaken who was sound asleep on the back of Ah-Un wouldn't have even been able to tell he was smiling. Rin could see the smile in his eyes though as she curled into the chest of her protector.

"Thank you, Lord Sesshomaru." He nodded in understanding at her gratitude. Knowing the hidden meaning.

"Sleep now." She nodded and buried her face in the fur that was wrapped around her. For a few hours, he remained walking before he decided to stop and let Ah-Un rest for a while. The last two times he had to leave Rin, he'd come back and found her a wreck. He'd decided it was likely nightmares that fueled her anxiety. He could leave her during the day just fine. But nights were when she would wake up searching for him and fall apart if he was gone. Trauma from recent events had no doubt contributed to these nightmares. The sleeping girl stirred in his arm as he sat down and leaned against a giant tree trunk. 'Damn that Takemaru. Damn that So-Unga.' He thought time himself. It had been just two months since he and Inuyasha sent the sword back to hell, but the girl was still having nightmares about the army of the dead. Sesshomaru had suggested leaving her at a human village just long enough for her to regain her strength and for the nightmares to cease, but she begged and pleaded with him until he changed his mind. He would never admit it, that a mere human had such sway over him, but the sound of Rin's dissatisfaction was the single worst sound in the world to Sesshomaru. He despised hearing her upset and even worse, the smell of her tears.

"Ridiculous," he murmured aloud. "I suppose I take after father more then I had thought," he grumbled before closing his eyes and falling into a contented sleep, Rin curled up and snoring softly on his chest.

...

Kagome woke to inuyasha kissing her behind the ear and rubbing her shoulder.

"If you wanna 'freshen up' or whatever it is you do in the morning before Shippo wakes up, might wanna go ahead and do it."

Kagome drug her eyes open and saw that he was in fact starting to stir.

"Yeah, you're right. Thanks." She got up and grabbed her back pack, heading down the small hill to the stream. She was back within ten minutes and that's when he got up to help her start a fire. As she was scooping our rice for breakfast, he wrapped his arms around her from behind and nuzzled into her neck.

"I wish you wouldn't use that spraying stuff. It makes your hair smell weird."

"Weird?"

"Yeah, like my nose gets all itchy," on cue, Inuyasha sneezed three times and recoiled.

"I'm sorry, sweetheart. I'll get a different kind. You can even come to the store with me and sniff them if you want."

"Okay deal," he grinned into her neck. "Hey Kagome?"

"Yes?"

"What does that word mean anyways? Sweetheart?"

"It's a term of endearment. Albeit a newer one. Kind of like a pet name."

"So would it be like dearest?"

"Yeah...that's probably the easiest way to describe it. In my time we say 'sweetheart' where in this time you'd hear 'dearest'. Why do you ask?"

"Oh I just didn't know what it meant. Anytime my mother talked about my father she always called him 'dearest'. Never even knew my old mans real name until Sesshomaru told me."

"Really?"

"Yeah. It was always 'my dearest' from my mother and 'Great Dog Demon' from pretty much everyone else."

"What was your fathers name?"

"Inutashio. Or so I've heard. I really don't know for sure."

"Have you and Sesshomaru ever had a normal conversation?"

"On very rare occasions, yes. But it's not common that's for sure."

"Oh...I think about that girl a lot. Rin."

"I know you do, Kagome. I think about her sometimes too."

"Why do you think he keeps her around anyways?"

"I'm not sure..."

"I've never seen him as angry as he was when he came to save her from Takemaru. Anger doesn't even cover it. That was nothing but fury."

"Yeah he touched a nerve that's for sure. One thing is for certain, you don't want to get on Sesshomaru's bad side."

"Do you think he'd be offended if I brought her some warm clothes?"

"Honestly, I don't even think he'd let you get close enough to her to even hand them over if you did."

"We talked a great deal when she was with us. Much to Jaken's dismay."

"Yeah, Jaken is a real piece of work. What'd you talk about anyways?"

"All she could talk about was Sesshomaru. She told me how he brought her back to life. Then she told me how he'd went and got her a new kimono because hers was torn to shreds. And I guess he carries her sometimes too."

"Are you sure she didn't get a bump on the head or somethin'?"

"Yeah I'm sure."

"You're right...that IS weird. I've never known him to show an ounce of compassion for any human. And he bought her clothes? And actually takes care of her? I just figured the kid followed him around aimlessly."

"Apparently not."

"Yeah...let's stop talking about Sesshomaru okay? Kinda gives me the creeps."

"No problem. Breakfast is almost ready."

"Smells good,"

"Thanks," she giggled.

"I'll wake the others," he kissed her between the eyebrows and she grinned.

"Okay...I'll get Shippo."

...