Rin dragged the brush through her hair. Despite Kagome's lectures of patience and care, she had little in the way of her hair. She hadn't brushed it since dawn, when she'd started working, and it showed. After a few minutes of trying to treat her scalp tenderly, she set the brush down on a smooth stone beside the hot springs, and sighed.
Conditioning the tangles out was a better option. Sure, it wasn't great for her hair, but she no longer possessed the patience to deal with it. Wishing Kagome were here to help, she carefully removed her yukata and placed it on the dry bank, and sank into the water. It felt good on her fingers specifically, after being poked and worked to the bone. Taking a deep breath, she let go - smelling the grass, the moss, the trees, the water.
She washed and deep conditioned her hair with gifts Kagome had made her. To Rin, the gels smelled like water lilies. It was a soft, delicate scent, and bathing in it reminded her of the ends of long journeys with Sesshomaru and Jaken, because the ponds outside of the castle had water lilies growing nearby.
This is much easier, she thought, feeling the brush run through without much resistance. What would have taken ten minutes before now took two. With a jade hair stick that Sesshomaru had gifted her, she wound her conditioned hair up into a bun and secured it.
The surrounding forest became more distinct once her hair no longer needed tending. Behind her, there was a barely perceivable presence of soft white light. To others, it may have been the ambience of the moonlight filtering through sparse leaves overhead, or perhaps the sensation that they were being watched, but Rin was not easily fooled. Lord Sesshomaru needed not Ah-Un to fly.
So he's here.
Closing her eyes, she sank back into the water soundlessly, resting her head against stone. Sesshomaru's observance did not disturb her, for she was sure that by the time she trained herself to notice it, he had been doing it for a while. He had done this many times before, when she had taken the liberty of leaving the castle on her own, most often escape to quiet places such as these. He could find her anywhere. Rin felt safe knowing he could sense her wherever she was; never truly alone, never completely vulnerable. She began to drift off, comfortably blanketed in warm water, knowing protection was near. It warmed her heart.
How long she rested that way with his eyes on her, she didn't know. Her breathing became slow and deep, and she dozed. After some time, her hair became cold and woke her, being such a stark contrast between the hot springs and warm humidity of her surroundings. Sleepily, she unwound her hair and immersed herself in the water again, until she no longer felt the slimy quality of conditioner when she ran her fingers through.
Slightly more awake now, she wondered how long she could keep up a cycle of wetting her hair to warm it as she took little naps in the hot spring. Kagome had warned her of this, bargaining for rest, as she had called it. It was a symptom of sleep deprivation. Working was considerably more important than sleep, at least, until she was mostly asleep. She'd never grown out of disliking idleness, as others had told her she would.
Mind muzzy with tiredness, she debated getting out of the pool. In this stupor, she had forgotten about Sesshomaru's presence.
Rin had spent so many years beside him, she thought she would never be surprised by him again. Neither his indifference nor candor would ever astonish her. Upon later reflection, she supposed she could have assumed that because of those things, he would do what he was about to do.
Sesshomaru stepped out from the darkness into the moonlight before Rin's unfocused gaze, pale and unclothed, his face expressionless. A bit of her numbness ebbed away as she made eye contact with him. She, too, wore no expression - only a pale pink blush tinged her cheeks.
She was, however, surprised. Such a gesture from him was openly romantic. They kept eye contact for a moment before Sesshomaru spoke.
"Rin," he prompted. "Please wash my hair."
His voice matched his face; expressionless and cool.
"Yes, my Lord," Rin responded, surprising herself with how husky her voice sounded. Either she had expected herself to sound like a child, or her emotional response to the situation was audible.
Rin was fully aware that his hair needed neither washing or brushing. He was naturally superior to humans in most ways. She scanned him as he approached, seeing him for the first time completely disrobed.
His pale skin did not change pigment, not even on his face and neck despite constant sun exposure. The same thin purple markings that lined his cheeks and arms also lined his ribs and legs, in symmetrical sets of two. They were the only marks on him, for he had no scars. Every muscle was perfectly proportioned to the next, each movement causing them to ripple beneath the surface. It looked as though he were hewn from stone; something designed to last forever by nature herself. Though she spent most of her life with this being, seldom did they have physical contact, none at all after her becoming a teenager. She could not recall if his skin was as cold to the touch as it looked, as it had been years.
Entering the pool before her, he closed his eyes and submerged himself to completely wet his hair. Upon resurfacing, he faced her, making eye contact again. She tried to stay beneath the water, to cover herself just a little although she knew it was transparent.
Keeping her face impassive, she was acutely aware of how her palms had begun to sweat although they were under water. The unpleasant sharp tingle carried itself up her spine. He did not miss a thing; only a few moments after it had happened, his gaze dropped to study what of her he could see. He said nothing, but turned and instead offered his hair, perhaps as a reaction to her body's betrayal of anxiety.
Just then, it occurred to her that he had said please. He had never asked her for anything, and he never said please. The thought warmed her heart and slightly eased her tension as she picked up Kagome's floral shampoo.
It seemed befitting to her that he, a king, would be bathed in flowers.
His hair was soft, far softer than hers. She noted that his skin was very warm and soft but unforgiving to the touch as she made her way through the task. Although it did not need washing, she did it thoroughly. She conditioned it, and brushed it through, careful to keep the long, silvery mane wrapped around her forearm and out of the water so as to not wash away the conditioner, although it was unnecessary. She noted that while her hair tangled from washing, his did not. It was as smooth and soft as it had been before they'd started. Thinking about how unnecessary it all was, she looked away from his hair to his reflection in the still pool below.
His eyes were closed.
She didn't need to tell him she was finished, and wouldn't have anyway. The softness of his hair in her hands was lovely, the contact soothing and right to her. She could see where the dark purple marks came up along the back of his ribs, ending close to his spine. She wanted to trace them with her fingers, but refrained. The self restraint made her tired again, this time a little worse than earlier. Again, Sesshomaru did not miss a thing.
Just as she began to feel tired, he pulled away, thick silver locks unwinding from her grasp as he did so. She watched him beneath the water as he swam, graceful as ever, noticing that although he did not need to, he had his eyes closed. Though tired, she blushed.