a/n: Oh my gosh! It didn't take me a whole year to update! It's a miracle! Hopefully I managed to weed out any typos.
Once again, big thanks to everyone who took the time to leave reviews/comments and favorite and follow. Without you all, I might've accidentally forgotten about this story forever.
There's a more substantial author's note at the end of this chapter. I hope you all enjoy!
SONG OF THE WEST
an Inuyasha fanfic
x.
When Rin opened her eyes the next morning, the sky was calm, the ghost was presumably gone, and Sesshōmaru was standing over her with that idiosyncratic impassive glint of disapproval in his beautiful golden eyes. Sucking in a sharp, panicked breath, Rin jolted to full attention. His sudden looming presence brought back horrible memories from when she was still stuck in the village near Yobetsu, of insatiable hands and the forcefulness of men. She noticed that Sesshōmaru's raised futon was as neat as it was when she had fallen asleep last night and wondered if he even slept at all.
Sesshōmaru merely raised his brow in light annoyance. With a tone deep and brusque, he declared, "If you want to be of some use to my father and I, here's your chance. Cut through the garden to deliver breakfast to my father in Lord Asano's study. A maid will be waiting near the kitchens for this;" he dropped a folded sheet of parchment into her lap, "don't call too much attention to yourself."
It was perhaps the longest sentence the young Lord had ever spoken directly to her. Rin thumbed the letter in her lap gently. Elegant brush strokes, unintelligible to her, faintly showed through to the opposite folded side. Quickly, Rin stood from her makeshift bed on the floor and tucked the parchment into the sleeve of her kosode.
Sesshōmaru's gaze inspected her with distaste. "Fix your hair first," he criticized. He turned away from her to reclaim his seat at the low table across the room.
That was how Rin found herself in the Asano gardens once more. They looked as beautiful as they did the day before, if not a little waterlogged from the recent heavy storm. But Rin didn't have time to stop and admire the dewy blooms as she had before. If she wanted to avoid Sesshōmaru's harsh tongue, she'd have to do everything in order and in good time.
"This place is like a maze!" She whispered to herself. It seemed no matter how far she went, all about her were the same trees, blossoms, and stone pathways that she had just walked past.
Thankfully, Seiten had informed her that the kitchens would be on the other side of the wall that separated the gardens from the rest of the castle, much more direction than Sesshōmaru had given. Still, the garden was so vast and the greenery so dense that it was nearly impossible to tell which way she was going. So far, all Rin could hear was the rustling of the foliage, the trickling of water from the creek that divided the garden, and a chorus of women's gladsome voices in the near distance.
Sesshōmaru's impassive Don't call too much attention to yourself echoed through her mind. Gingerly, she continued to walk into the direction of the kitchens.
But it was too late. As soon as Rin's uncomfortable geta clicked against the planks of the small wooden bridge of the creek, she heard the over-eager, pitchy voice of a mature woman.
"Come, girl!"
Rin tensed, but obediently turned to face the speaker so no one could accuse her of being disrespectful.
In the middle of the garden overlooking the creek was a cozy clearing framed by trees – the same clearing, incidentally, that she had first glimpsed Lady Asano's back the day before. In that clearing was a sizeable wooden pavilion, on which sat a large group of noblewomen, perhaps the wives and daughters of the Asano courtiers with whom Lord Tōga and Lord Sesshōmaru had dined. The women sat on the engawa of the fine wooden structure in all their luxurious fabrics, their long hair trailing behind them. They were drinking tea, reading, and playing music when the lone noblewoman had drawn their attention towards Rin.
This is what the noblewomen do all day, then, the girl thought.
When they saw Rin, each of the women quit their hobbies, finding her a much more interesting curiosity to observe. Remembering the courtesies that Seiten and Lord Tōga had taught her, she gave the sumptuous group and awkward, wordless bow.
"You're the Imperial Lord's serving maid, correct?" The dark-haired woman who called out to her queried. Rin could hear that artificial warmth in the women's voice, and her painted mouth was fixed into a slight but recognizable sneer. "Step forward."
Rin hesitated. The woman's brows furrowed. The other noble ladies looked at the woman with cautious eyes. Many more of them unfurled their intricately embellished uchiwa to hide their amusement and chattering cherry-red lips.
"Let her alone, Lady Aoi. She's a servant of the Imperial Lord, not some common girl you can bother."
The melodic words belonged to the young woman who sat on the rectangular-raised dais in the center of the pavilion, on the inside of the opened shoji. Her clothes, though still more opulent than the two maids on either side of her, were slightly more demure than those of her many companions. Her skin was pallid and her hair long and brown, but the most fetching part of her appearance was her deep, lovely blue eyes.
The other woman pursed her lips but obediently stepped away from Rin. "You're right, Lady Asano."
So, this is Sara Asano… She was alluring in the way that Rin supposed noble ladies ought to be, perhaps even well-matched enough to have been Sesshōmaru's bride.
Lady Sara turned to Rin. Blue eyes met brown briefly, and though she had just prevented the older woman from teasing the young girl, she frowned disapprovingly.
"We're sorry to have disturbed you," Lady Sara said. The words were polite, yet somewhat stiff. "Continue about your way."
"Thank you, your Grace," Rin replied gently. She gave a slight bow before exiting the clearing. As she walked away, the women's conversation roared to vibrancy.
"Her parlance! Unmistakably Northern."
"Why, she looks so delicate, as if the wind could blow her over."
Someone chuckled darkly. "Yes, how pliant our Lords must find her – like a willow!"
A few of the woman shushed her with an urgency, fearful of exposing themselves to any salacious utterance regarding their Imperial Lord.
"Pliant?" Another woman asked. "More like malnourished! But, I dare say, with some nutriment and beautification, she might be rather pretty."
There was a loud scoff. "Perhaps, but certainly not pretty enough to tempt the Imperial Lord or the young Lord. Not even that Yanagisawa clansman, for that matter."
The women tittered together.
"I heard His Excellency pardoned a Northern commoner during the trial in Yobetsu. Could it be her?"
Rin's breath hitched. She stopped walking to focus on the women's next words.
"Impossible! Would any of you allow a common girl with no training into your retinue? His Excellency may be generous towards those less fortunate, but allowing a provincial into his retinue is far too extreme."
"Then how else would you explain her feeble appearance? There's something wholly odd about that girl… "
Mindful of the time she had spent listening, Rin resumed her slow search for the Asano kitchens, heart beating harshly in her chest. They had begun to suspect that she wasn't truly a maid, and though she took some comfort in the fact that they didn't seem to know her true identity or the details of her past, they still were accusing her of warming Sesshōmaru's—or, even worse, Lord Tōga's—bed.
She wondered if she should tell the young Lord. No; if she did, then he'd keep her trapped in his guest rooms starting at the ceiling all day for the rest of their mission. Rin figured she'd be better off telling Lord Tōga or Seiten when Sesshōmaru wasn't around.
After a few more minutes of anxious wandering, Rin finally arrived at the large dark grey stone wall at the end of the garden. She could see smoke rising from the other side and smell the meat and roast nuts that the kitchen help were most likely preparing for the noblemen's dinner. When she rounded the corner, a servant girl dressed in a deep black kosode with fine silver embroidery––the same servant, in fact, that had delivered Lady Asano's gift of tea to Lord Sesshōmaru's rooms the evening prior––was waiting. Like Rin, she had an anxious look on her face, and only grew more antsy when she saw Rin walking towards her.
"The letter?" She asked breathlessly.
Rin nodded and reached into the sleeve of her kosode to reveal the folded piece of parchment. The servant girl thanklessly accepted the letter before spinning on the heel of her geta and walking briskly in the other direction.
Rin watched as she walked away, arms crossed in discomfort. The covert exchange was rather anticlimactic after the morning she had spent wandering around the garden. With a sigh, she prepared to head in the direction from which she came to get to the Asano study, making a mental note to avoid the pavilion where the noblewomen more than likely were still gathered.
"Hey!"
Rin whirled back around. An older woman was standing before her with a platter of food in her hands.
"You're the Inu no Taisho's girl, correct?" The woman asked.
Rin responded meekly. "Yes."
"Took you long enough," the old woman huffed before pushing a heavy platter of food into Rin's arms, her grey brow raised. "One moment longer and we would've had to remake it. This is his breakfast platter. Someone will stop by to pick them up around midday, so there's no need to bring them back."
The woman walked away without another word, which made Rin wonder if all the Asano servants were trained to be so terse with one another. With an uncomfortable grunt, Rin set off for the main building once more, the platter of food weighty but fragrant in her arms.
The late Lord Asano's study was effortless to find. The storm doors and shoji were wide open as she approached the engawa, and from her position on the stone pathway leading up to the room, she could plainly see Lord Motozawa and the Inu no Taisho, the morning sunlight glistening against the latter's tied-back hair. At present, the older man appeared to be deep in thought, his brows furrowed as he examined the long handscroll he was holding in his hands.
"A perfect portraiture, is it not?" Lord Motozawa asked. He was seated on the opposite side of Asano's desk, perfectly parallel to Lord Tōga.
"Perfect, indeed," Lord Tōga chimed in. "Lady Asano is a duplicate of her late mother. Who painted this?"
Lord Motozawa waved his hand. "Some traveling artist from the Capital. Lord Asano had it commissioned a few months before his death. I'm unsure of why he never had it hanged."
Before entering the room, Rin paused to perform the proper courtesies. But quicker than she could speak, Lord Tōga noticed her, saying, "Rise and come in."
Swiftly, he organized his desk space so that there would be room for the breakfast tray, allowing Rin to finally relieve herself of the heavy platter. The tray was standard breakfast fare – fruit, rice, and meat – along with another tetsubin for tea, which most likely made the platter so heavy. Perceptible to only Rin, Lord Tōga patted the space next so him so that she could properly pour the water.
Rin found herself a bit anxious again. She hadn't any practice brewing tea, and if the women could tell that something was amiss by merely looking at her, then her failure in Lord Motozawa's presence would surely make or break her usefulness.
With great care, the young woman set upright the tall teacup that came with the platter – one for Lord Tōga, and the other for Lord Motozawa, out of politeness. Then, she scooped the fine herbal powder into each of the teacups and poured the hot water from the tetsubin immediately after.
The two noblemen seemed satisfied with the results. Rin smiled to herself, feeling accomplished, which, in turn, made Lord Tōga release a small sound of amusement.
"Returning to the matter of Lady Asano's potential grooms," Lord Tōga uttered to Lord Motozawa, "has anything changed since yesterday?"
"Yes, Your Excellency. The Furuta, Ashikagai, and Tsutsui clans have all sent new letters of proposals, while four – the Kujo and Usami clans of the North, and the Hasegawa and Fujioka clans of the west – have rescinded their offers in favor of pursuing alternate matches," Motozawa said. He held his cup out for Rin to prepare him more tea. She did.
"How many proposals is that now?"
"Around twenty-two, including five courtiers from this court, Lord Kikkawa, and the young Lord Onigumo."
Lord Tōga scoffed. "Twenty-two – she truly has her pick of the litter! No real reason for her to choose at such a snail's pace then."
"She and her father were very close, Your Excellency," Lord Motozawa lightly excused. "I can't begin to grasp how grieved she must be. Though, the easiest choice, of course, would simply be to marry Lord Kikkawa. Lord Asano, rest his soul, might not have been wholly impressed by him, but at least he's fair and upright and of the Asano lineage, seeing as he's her paternal cousin."
Rin listened to the noblemen's conversation in silence. Despite her own low status within society, she found herself pitying Lady Sara, pressured to marry for political and temporal convenience whichever noble son was bold enough to propose. Back in her village, many of the young women also married out of expediency, usually so their parents wouldn't have any extra mouths to feed come winter or so another family would have extra help around the home. Once, long ago, she had even entertained the thought of marrying in exchange for food and shelter. But her then-status as a detested thief with no family, no dowry, and no domestic skills made that thought a delusion. Needless to say, this was before she had first realized she could exchange sex for money, before….
Rin shuddered slightly. Lord Motozawa glanced at her curiously, as if he had only now begun to fully register her presence in the room. Suddenly bashful, Rin focused her attention on the tetsubin, careful to avoid direct eye contact with the powerful man. Lost within her thoughts, Rin had momentarily forgotten that noble servants were to be barely seen and rarely heard. How stringent life was within the castle walls!
"That damned storm kept us up half the night," Lord Tōga lied, giving a a small-talk excuse for Rin's sudden movement.
Motozawa nodded. "Likewise in my wing. I've even noticed that a few of the other courtiers are rather sluggish today."
Lord Motozawa raised his cup for tea again. As quickly as she could and with as much grace as she could muster, poured more hot water into the tall teacup.
"You've met with them today, then?" Lord Tōga asked.
"Only Lord Seikanji – though, as of late, he's always roaming around dumfounded and half-awake."
Lord Tōga gave a slight chuckle at that.
"That being said, I'll leave first, my Lord," Motozawa stood from his seat. "I have a few things around the castle to tend to before the day is over."
Lord Tōga gave a wave of pardon. "Do so then, Lord Motozawa."
The nobleman bowed, then exited the study through the still open shoji.
"Eat. You seem tense," Lord Tōga said, offering her some food. Rin looked up from the desk to see him staring directly at her. He and his son's eyes were remarkably similar, save for the ever-present warmth that bubbled in the older man's. "What's wrong? Don't lie; I'll be able to tell."
"The noblewomen…" Rin started.
Lord Tōga's lips pressed into a thin line. "Did they bother you?"
"I heard them speaking about me in the garden," Rin admitted. She'd spare him the lewder context of their conversation. "They know I'm not a servant from the West."
Lord Tōga's face softened, then he shrugged. "What else would you be then? You're here performing domestic duties for us – the very role of a maid. Besides, I wouldn't worry too much about their tittle-tattle. I'm an Imperial Lord. They don't have the authority to confront me or you."
"So everything's alright, then?" Rin lilted. "I didn't ruin anything?"
"Yes, Rin – you needn't worry about anything," Lord Tōga assured her.
Significantly less worried, Rin plopped a piece of fruit into her mouth. The two ate in silence – Rin devouring all the fruit as Tōga drank tea, ate meat, and looked over paperwork. Eventually, the platter was clear, the tetsubin empty, and it was time for Lord Tōga to depart Asano castle to join Lord Ikeda for more tea at his manor.
"I'd take you with me if not for the terrain and the chance of another storm," Lord Tōga explained as he escorted her back to the guest rooms.
"What'll you do if it storms again, Lord Tōga?" Rin said.
"I'll stay with Lord Ikeda for the night, I suppose," he responded. "But you're needed here in case Sesshōmaru needs you to deliver any more messages."
Rin nodded. No matter how anxious being around Sesshōmaru made her feel, she still had a task to complete, a debt to repay Lord Tōga after he had allowed her to join them on their journey.
When they arrived at the guest rooms, Lord Tōga bid her farewell, and went about his way. Sesshōmaru was absent when she entered his rooms, so instead, she busied herself by tidying up her makeshift bed on the floor. Just as she completed that task and began to prepare herself for another afternoon of boredom, the shoji slid open to reveal Seiten, who she had previously assumed joined Tōga on his expedition.
"I'm going into town to complete a task," Seiten said. "Would you like to join me?"
Happily, Rin jumped from her spot on the ground, and ran to join him at the door.
Lord Ikeda was correct about spies in Asano castle.
They were the chambermaids who cleaned the rooms and changed the bedding, the servants presented their food at dinner and passed them their breakfast in the morning. They were the stableboys who saddled his horse; the guards who opened the gates for him and his father to enter and exit the Asano castle grounds; perhaps even some of the cackling, overeager noblemen's wives and daughters who sat in the gardens and the inner manor of the castle all day, sipping tea and playing music and gossiping to one another, a private communications core.
This wasn't a surprise. Each castle and court had intelligencers. It came with the title and territory. The source and rationale always varied – traitorous courtiers, mistrustful lords, spiteful ladies – but the results were the same. Even Inujima castle had a few at different points in time, for an amalgam of reasons. Still, like insects, those spies had been easy to stamp out. A harsh punishment here or there and a few expulsions from service were typically all that was needed for a suspected mole to divulge information. Pull one string and the whole web fell in on itself. The process had become so predictable that it had stopped being fun when Sesshōmaru was fourteen.
Their operation at Asagawa would move swiftly if they were using his methods to get to the bottom of Lord Asano's death. But his Lord Father believed Sesshōmaru to be too high-handed and overreaching in his tactics. The Imperial Lord preferred to give his vassals a degree of independence, the ability to manage their household and land however they saw fit, within reason. At best, things went smoothly, as it had for a majority of Lord Tokudaiji's reign. At worst, it led to inconveniences like this – a foolish lord who refused to marry off his precious daughter, leading to his suspicious death and a power struggle that others had to clean up.
Sesshōmaru hated this game of caution and how it made it necessary to sneak and meander. He wasn't afraid to admit to his impatience. Even so, he found himself slightly suspicious of Lady Sara's current method of hiding in plain sight.
He had arrived at the venue agreed upon in the letter, precisely at the proper time. Asahiri was as busy as it had been the day he passed through with his father, but without the older man, it was much easier to stave off unwanted attention. People still stared at him, but they were merely quick, silent glances of awe rather than the jubilant crowds that the Inu no Taisho drew. The little urban eating house Sara had chosen was less busy and certainly not one he'd frequent of his own volition. He thought it quaint enough to match the little gamine's tastes.
The young Lord entered the shop silently, pushing past the hanging light-colored noren in the doorway. The building was slightly larger than it appeared from the outside. Sesshōmaru found himself in the middle of a rather large, wood-based room with ample sunlight flowing in from the thin shoji towards the room's front. Sara was already there, sitting at one of the low tables in the corner, dressed in a plain middle-red commoner's kosode, presumable obtained from one of her many maids. She seemed surprisingly at ease, as if she patronized the place often.
The rest of her appearance looked much as it did when they saw each other last as children, only more mature. Her long brown hair was gathered into a low ponytail at her back. Her blue eyes were frantic beneath her thick brown lashes and seemed to perk up when she saw him walking towards her.
"You're here…" Sara greeted simply. There was an unspoken 'my Lord' at the end of her sentence which, if stated, would bring too much attention towards the pair.
Sesshōmaru's brow raised. "As I had stated I would be. How long have you been waiting?"
"Only a few minutes."
Sesshōmaru took a seat across the table from her and waited for her to get to the point. Still aware of his restless nature from their childhood, Sara reached into a burlap sack she had brought with her and pulled out a heap of loose parchment. Each sheet bore the mondokoro of an Asano courtier. From his vantage point, he could immediately spot those of the Fujii, Abe, and Iwashite clans, as well as a few merchants. But any official proposals would go directly to Lord Motozawa and his father in Asano's study at this point.
"These are?" Sesshōmaru asked.
"Personal letters. Many of them marriage proposals," Sara responded, as if it were the most obvious thing in the world.
Sesshōmaru stared at her, waiting for more information.
"You and the Imperial Lord believe my father was assassinated, yes?" Sara said, pushing the papers across the table. "These are documentation of motives."
Sesshōmaru didn't reach for them. "Yes, we'd figured your devotion to a perpetual maidenhood may have been a factor."
Sara cut him a sharp look. Silently, she plucked three sheets of paper from the pile and held them in front of him. It was another letter addressed from Lord Higashikuze.
That was enough to slightly pique his interest.
"Lord Higashikuze has two daughters," Sesshōmaru intoned, accepted the letter to inspect it further.
"Indeed," Sara said. "This proposal was for my father, not me."
"And Lord Asano turned him down, of course."
Sara nodded and sighed. "It happened while we were drinking tea in the garden. My Lord Father had left for a moment when Lord Higashikuze called on the way to Yokotoro's summer festival. They argued about it, as well as my father's unwillingness to accept any proposals on my behalf, naturally. Who would've thought that only a few days later, my Lord Father would suddenly fall from his horse and die after drinking tea gifted to him by Lord Higashikuze?"
Higashikuze's plan of bartering his daughters to improve his social standing might've worked if he were serving any other Lord. Unfortunately for him, Lord Asano was a loyal, cheerless widower with no desire for the affections of a young woman. It was a motive. A weak motive, but one nonetheless.
"Without any sons, killing Lord Asano would foil Higashikuze's plan of gaining access to the Asano seat," Sesshōmaru said.
Lady Sara shook her head. "Yes, technically. But with my father gone, there's no one left to reject marriage proposals on my behalf, save for the court. And I'll only be able to hold off proposals for so long. Higashikuze already has a few of the courtiers under his thumb. I'm sure it was Lord Seikanji and Lord Fujii who secured the poison for him, through the latter's connections with other merchants. They both had their own motives for assisting of course: my Lord Father refused to marry me to the sons of a merchant, and Lord Seikanji's gambling had become so unruly that my father was contemplating removing him from the court. Who knows how many more courtiers Lord Higashikuze has manipulated into working for him by now? There'd be no one to stop him from simply marrying me—"
"Where's the tea?" Sesshomaru inquired, interrupted her monologue.
Sara seemed startled. "What?"
Sesshōmaru's brows furrowed. "The tea Higashikuze gifted to your father. Did you have anyone examine it?"
"I didn't. It was misplaced in the commotion," Sara said simply.
"How could you know Higashikuze poisoned him without the key evidence?" Sesshōmaru interrogated.
Sara crossed her arms and pursed her lips but stood firm beneath the weight of Sesshōmaru's scrutiny. "It's my castle, and now my territory. It'd be a shame if I were the only one without eyes and ears throughout."
That response wasn't satisfying enough for the young Lord. Still, Sara continued: "In addition, Lord Higashikuze aims to marry off one of his daughters to Lord Kikkawa now, in the event his play for my hand fails. If that happens, then who knows? Perhaps he'll attempt to get rid of me as well."
All of this was perfectly plausible, even with Sara's lack of material evidence and the absence of the Eastern involvement he and his father had originally set out to discover. Lord Higashikuze, like Lord Asano, was a widower. It'd be of no issue for him to marry Sara, if he had the proper backing. Still, there was the problem of Lord Motozawa and Lord Koide, who seemed far more interested in the possibility of Sara and Lord Kikkawa's union, and of course, Lord Kikkawa himself, who had no reason to pass up a chance to marry Sara for one of Lord Higashikuze's daughters.
But there was something about Lady Sara's knowledge and perfect explanation that seemed all too convenient.
Sesshōmaru folded the parchment and tucked them into his sleeve.
"It'd be in your best interest to simply wed Lord Kikkawa, then," Sesshōmaru stated, standing up. "Return to the castle. My Lord Father and I will suggest this to Motozawa when we next see him, and deal with Higashikuze, Fujii, and Seikanji."
"Wait," Sara called quickly. "I have a proposition."
Sesshōmaru glanced at her again.
"Even if I marry Lord Kikkawa, the Asano court will always be unstable," she said.
"There'll be no one to stop you and Lord Kikkawa from simply choosing new courtiers once the arrangements have been made."
"I'd like to stay out of Asano court affairs altogether, if I can help it."
Sesshōmaru's brows furrowed. "You plan to give up your title."
"Not exactly…" Sara grew stiff.
It took a few beats of silence for Sesshōmaru to fully understand what she was implying. Once he did, he scoffed and turned to leave again. "How impractical."
"Wait," Lady Sara exclaimed. "If we married, it'd fix everything – Lord Kikkawa would take my father's seat, the Imperial Lord could suggest a match for him, and I'd be free from the courtiers and their wives."
The young Lord's response was brusque and intentionally discourteous. "The same result could be accomplished by you joining a nunnery or going to a shrine. I gain nothing from this."
"You gain peace in your territory," Sara stated.
Sesshōmaru rolled his eyes. "The fate of the West doesn't hinge on who you marry, despite your perceived self-importance. As I've stated, Higashikuze will be dealt with. Whether you want to marry or else abandon your position is your choice, but we will never be tied together in any way."
"Unwilling to split your attentions between two women?" Sara asked suddenly.
Even the unflappable Sesshōmaru was nearly taken aback by the familiarity with which she had begun to speak to him and the bizarre devolution of their conversation.
"I beg your pardon," Sesshōmaru said testily.
To her credit, Sara did not back down. "You brought a girl to the castle with you this time."
"A maidservant," Sesshōmaru stated simply. "Not that she is any of your concern."
It was Sara's turn to scoff. "You and I both know she is no maid of the Tokudaiji household. Though I stayed there so long ago, I still remember the standard to which her Imperial Highness held the servants of Inujima. That girl meets none of them."
Sesshōmaru huffed. Sara, of all people, didn't have to tell him that.
"She seemed quite anxious to join you in your lodgings last night."
"Yes, she is common born," Sesshōmaru said flatly. "She believes in the senseless fables of her people—ghosts and other spirits. I'm told Asagawa has quite a few of them these days. Though, I assume the ghost she saw last night what one of your spies. Perhaps you."
Sara's eyes narrowed, but she did not deny the accusation. "How sweet of her to run to her dear Lord for protection," she mocked.
"Just as you are now," Sesshōmaru countered.
Naturally, he was loath to be associated in any way with the little starveling whore his father had plucked from that Northern village nearly a week prior. He bore no affection, platonic or otherwise, for Rin. However, he didn't care much for Sara outside of the current investigation of her father's death. This air of impertinence the noblewoman had assumed in questioning him about his personal affairs could not be tolerated.
The young woman bristled and finally stood, indignant.
"What was your purpose in coming here?" Sara started again. "Did you truly wish to investigate my father's death, or do you simply wish to rub your whore in my face?"
"You are unwell," Sesshōmaru responded. "Let's end this meeting here."
Still, the young woman continued. Her pale hands were now clenching the stack of parchment she had brought with her, allowing Sesshōmaru to notice the slightly, scaly marks of irritation around her knuckles and fingers. "I have half a mind to simply inform Lord Motozawa about our meeting. Perhaps I'll expose you for the rake you apparently are."
"If you must," Sesshōmaru said, eerily calm. "Know that it'll be the word of a purportedly sick girl with an apparent habit of sneaking in and out of her manor for clandestine meetings over the heir to the West."
Sara seemed to falter slightly upon realizing that things were not in her favor.
"This is your territory. But it's the territory my clan has allowed yours to have," he started again. "I too have methods of gleaning information."
The noblewoman pursed her lips and gathered her belongings. "I'll leave first, your Grace," she bade tensely, before leaving the table and exiting the building.
A few minutes later, Sesshōmaru exited the tiny restaurant as well. Near the doorway waiting as Sesshōmaru had asked was Seiten, hiding in plain sight. From the slightly concerned look on his face, he hadn't been noticed by Sara, but had been around to hear the majority of the conversation.
"That went poorly," Seiten remarked, observing as Sara slithered and disappeared into the urban crowd.
"She's hysterical," Sesshōmaru deduced. "Yet, her initial information may be sound." The lack of evidence surrounded the alleged poisonous tea was a problem, but one that could be solved by consulting with Lord Asano's physician.
Something was wrong, though – he had always believed Sara to be muddled, but never that bold and frantic. And the markings on her hands… With her status, she wouldn't be doing much physical labor, at least not enough to cause that much inflammation.
Spies or not, Sara was not being wholly truthful.
"We'll return to the castle and wait for my father to return," Sesshōmaru stated. Seiten nodded in agreement.
Out of the corner of his field of vision, he noticed the girl Rin walking towards them, with snacks from a vendor in her hand. When she noticed him, he scowled at her, causing her breezy expression to falter some.
"Why is she here?" Sesshōmaru asked, annoyed.
Seiten sighed. "Your father doesn't want her cooped up all day."
When Rin finally joined them, Seiten took one of the sweets from her hand and plopped it into his mouth. Sesshōmaru's eyes narrowed. It seemed as if in a week's time, the girl, his father, and Seiten had become quite the merry band.
Before Rin could open her mouth to offer him food as well, Sesshōmaru was already walking down the pathway to retrieve his horse.
a/n: We've finally made it to chapter 10! Slow burns are honestly as rough to write as they are to read. I'm ready to get to all the fluff, but with such a cold/reserved character like Sesshōmaru, it takes a while to make it realistic, especially in an AU like this.
I'm hoping I'll be able to get new chapters out at least once a month, but I really can't promise anything due to school/career obligations. I do have solid outlines for chapters 11-12 and 15-18, so I do know what direction that plot needs to go in.
For those who asked in the reviews last chapter: Yes, I have heard the news about Rin being the mother of the twins (which I'm sure we ALL saw coming, with the exception of certain fans who tried to delude themselves into believing it was Sango or something (I actually saw this on Twitter)). Thankfully, I've managed to bypass all the outrage that apparently came with this news (which, again, is surprising because we ALL should've seen this coming).
I know that you all reading this are clearly SessRin supporters, but I'm still curious as to how you all feel about the reveal, aside from the obvious joyful reactions. I'm alright with it, of course, but I just think it's kinda funny that Rumiko Takahashi (allegedly) decided to make Rin a kid in the original series to avoid another romance subplot (according to something I read on Tumblr when I first started the series years ago – again, this all could be hogwash), only to turn around and make Rin and Sesshōmaru a couple later on. Again, I'm happy, but I also feel like we could've had this A LOT sooner, lol.
I can also get why people are squicked about the "teen mom" aspect (despite its historical accuracy), especially since everyone's so confused about Rin's age. It was always my personal headcanon that Rin might be influenced by Kagome's modern ideals and wait a while to marry and have children, but even Kagome had kids relatively young, lol.
Anyways, feel free to leave a comment letting me know your thoughts! I love reading feedback.
Until next time!