"…and the only thing they hear is each other, though no one is saying a word."
— Stig Dagerman, A Moth to a Flame (Burnt Child) (trans. Benjamin Mier-Cruz)
I can't believe I forgot to bring these back inside last night, Rin lamented as she looked at the sopping wet toys that she carried in her arms. She ducked her head and hurried through the rain, her bare feet only slipping on the slick grass once before she righted herself and walked with all the dignity that a woman carrying baby toys could. In the cover of her entryway, she sighed and knelt down to drop her cargo on the ground to sort through. They had brought them outside yesterday while they laid in the grass and enjoyed the day, but once the girls had fallen asleep she had forgotten to go back and pick up the mess they had left. The rain hadn't been exactly kind to them, either.
Luckily for her, the worst of it had died down. Still kneeling in the doorway with the soaked dolls in hand, Rin looked around before deciding to just lay the two small trinkets out to dry and hoped that they would do so quickly. Both of her daughters were sweet girls, but when they wanted their favorite toys they were not shy about letting them know.
Rin sighed, sitting back on her heels and pushing her loose hair back from her face. She stood, snagging the shawl she had abandoned in her hurry and pulling it tight around her shoulders against the cool air of the morning before standing up again. She slowly began to walk back to their bedroom, her bare, damp feet making soft padding noises against the wood floor. It was so odd to be in the house and exist in the silence, especially since it had been anything but quiet for a long time.
Though, to be fair, it was unusual for Rin to be wandering the halls this early. Normally at this time, she would have rolled over and wrapped her legs and arms around her husband and fallen back to sleep but when she had gone to do just that, she had heard the rain on the roof and shot out of bed to go save the toys. The sacrifices I make for my precious, lucky children, Rin thought wryly, smiling to herself.
She approached the room, making efforts to try and walk a little softer. The door was still opened about a hands-width from when she had quickly slipped through and she walked up to it, fingers slipping in to press it open gently, mouth already opening to tell Sesshomaru what had happened, but stopped when she looked up. Standing in the doorway, looking into the room through the opening she had left, Rin watched her husband hold their children.
He was sitting up, the two babies laying with their heads propped up against his crossed knees and their torsos in the small circle that his legs made, their tiny, curious eyes staring up at his. Rin could tell immediately by looking at the two girl's red faces and gentle shimmer of moisture along their cheeks that they must have started fussing while she had been outside frantically gathering up their things.
Sesshomaru was leaning over the two of them, long strands of his hair falling over his shoulder as he gently stroked the back of his finger over Setsuna's cheeks while his thumb brushed over Towa's knuckles that tightly held his other pointer in her little fist. He was not speaking or humming like she usually did when comforting them, but they didn't seem to mind, the two of them looking up at him as if the three were having a psychic conversation that she couldn't understand.
Rin swallowed hard, letting her head lean against the doorframe as she took in the scene before her. She could blame the early morning on her sentimental sniffling, say that she was just more emotional before the sun was up, but in reality, she was so overwhelmed with love as she looked at the small gathering of precious souls sitting on her bed. She had no idea that it was even possible for her to love as much as she did, and every time she was sure that she had finally reached the highest point of her love, more poured in. She was almost reluctant to walk in to join them, so caught up in committing this picture to her memory. She leaned her hip against the door frame and the wood gently creaked, giving her away. He looked up towards her at the sound, though she was sure he knew she had been standing there the whole time, and locked eyes with her.
She smiled, caught red-handed, and softly pushed the door open just enough for her to slip through and smoothly shut it behind her. Rin walked up to him, his warm eyes following her as she approached his sitting form, and wrapped her hands around his head to press him into her stomach. He let her do so, gently pulling his finger from Towa's grasp to return her embrace by slipping his arm around her legs, palm pressing into her lower back. They hung suspended like this for a moment, enjoying the feel of each other. Eventually, Rin released him and walked around to sit across from him, their knees touching.
"Good morning," she whispered, smiling at him.
"Good morning," he responded, inclining his head, eyes sliding along the wet marks on her shoulders. She laughed and waved it off.
"I tried to save their toys but, ah, I was a little late." She sheepishly scratched her cheek before she leaned forward, her hands bracing themselves on his thighs, to kiss him. Unhurried and slow, she brushed her lips over his before pulling back a bit to smile at him again, wishing she had the words to tell him how much she loved him and how happy he made her. Before she could get to work inventing a new language just for him, her daughter began to make unhappy sounds.
She leaned back and looked down at Towa who seemed devastated that her father had taken his finger away from her so cruelly, her lips turned down in the deepest frown that Rin had ever seen. Rin let out a sympathetic sound, cooing softly to her as she leaned down and peppered kisses over Towa's head and cheeks and down her nose.
"They were very sad when you left," Sesshomaru informed her solemnly, a serene expression on his face as he watched her follow the same kissing routine on Setsuna so that she wouldn't feel left out.
"Oh, my poor babies!" Rin exclaimed in a melodramatic fashion as she walked on her knees to come and sit next to Sesshomaru so that she could look at the aforementioned poor babies without giving herself a neck cramp. Rin leaned her face down close to Towa who still seemed like she couldn't decide if she was quite over her earlier sadness, adopting a goofy tone and waving her fingers at her daughter. "Never fear, I have returned and shall never leave you again!" Towa watched her and Rin reached out to gently hold onto the small, chubby hands that were now so empty
Rin began to sing softly, waving little Towa's hands back and forth, smiling triumphantly when she began to giggle and kick her little legs around. Setsuna, like she couldn't help herself, also started to wiggle around excitedly and Rin reached over to take hold of one of her excellent little hands as well. Rin felt Sesshomaru's arm slip around her waist and hold her close, pressing his forehead against her hair as she sang nursery rhymes to their children, and Rin wished that things could be this perfect forever.
I hope you enjoyed this story! It was very therapeutic for me to write haha!