"Flowers flowers flowers flowers flowers flowers flowers!!!!!" Rin screamed in excitement that afternoon.
"H-hai Rin-chan. If you want you can go pick some- ano- ne?" Kagome asked nervously, trying to hold the child as she danced out of her grasp.
"Will Kagome-chan come with Rin?" Rin asked, pulling on her hand.
"If you want, Rin-chan." She asked, stumbling forward as Rin bounded off, still clasping her hand.
Sesshomaru followed emotionlessly, silently amused by Rin's enthusiasm and Kagome's response.
Off to their left was possibly the widest feild of flowers you had ever seen, over grown to the brim with splashes of color as if painted from an artist's hand.
Kagome was barely able to keep up with the little girl as she rushed to each small patch of flowers to pull one of each from the roots- to give to Jaken-sama and Sesshomaru-sama and Kagome-chan when she was done of course.
Kagome was finally able to yank her wrist from the childs tight hand and automatically fell yards behind the girl.
Rin seem not to have noticed her flower-picking companion's dissapeareance and continued to pull flowers from the ground as Kagome tried to gain back her breath.
Sesshomaru stepped up next to her and grinned slightly as she unceremoniosly plopped down on the ground, huffing from exhaustion. He gracefully sat down beside her and watched her movements from the corner of his eye.
"I didn't *huff* think it was possible *huff* for a child to have so much *swallow* energy." Kagome gasped out.
"Rin.... enjoys this." Sesshomaru said, slightly indicating the garden around them.
"Clearly." Kagome sighed.
He was silent.
Kagome found that he DID speak- but not a word more than was called for.
"When I was a little girl I didn't like flowers so much." Kagome started, smiling a bit.
He glanced at her questioningly, but she didn't pay attention as she continued.
"My father spoiled me and wanted only for my happiness it seems. I adored the flute and the piano, they sounded so pretty. I begged and begged to get those lessons, and finally he gave in, despite the expense. When I began learning, I sometimes despised having to practice or attend lessons, but as I got better, I liked it even more then at first, and finally when I dropped the lessons because I was good enough at it and it wouldn't do for the extra cost, I loved it so much. I played throughout my childhood, I didn't go out much. When I was eleven I tried my hand at watercoloring, and took an art class. My mom had to round together the money though because my father died when I was only six, two years after my first piano and flute lessons, and we didn't last very long like that, so I couldn't continue. I finally found out how much money I was making my mother shed, and that was when I decided I wouldn't try anything else. I would only help out. I got wonderful grades, I did whatever my mother asked of me, I tried to be a good daughter and be strong for her, and for my little brother Souta, and for Granpa. I never cried again. I in fact didn't cry since that time Inuyasha could have died. Then about half a year after that it became so everyday that I stopped crying again. I never had time in my childhood to pick flowers like Rin, and when I might have realized it wouldn't cost any money, still I didn't. When I thought nothing of doing what I loved, it was playing music, and afterwards, I would do apsolutely nothing for myself but only for others." Kagome said, looking at the cloudless sky.
He was silent for a moment.
"There has never been anything I have ever loved." Sesshomaru finally said, emotionlessly as the first day Kagome heard him speak.
"...What about your mother? Or your father?" Kagome didn't name Inuyasha.
"My mother died when I was too young to remember her. I might have loved my father- perhaps looked up to, but that was short lived as he deserted my mother for the human wench and had Inuyasha, my half brother." Sesshomaru spoke.
"You never loved Inuyasha, ne?" Kagome said.
"Hn." He said.
She guessed that meant no.
"Didn't you have a hobby?" Kagome asked.
"Iie. I only trained in fighting." Sesshomaru said icily.
"Oh..." Kagome said, smiling sadly down at her lap before slowly reaching out to touch his shoulder.
She blinked automatically, and her smile suddenly turned to one of delight.
"Ne- Sesshomaru-sama?" She asked excitedly.
He glanced at her curiously, no more ice evident in the endless pools of amber.
"C-can I touch your hair?" She asked.
He blinked curiously at her, then slowly gave a slight nod of consent.
She touched the fine threads of strong slver and smiled as it rolled under her fingertips.
Sliding her lean finger down the length of it, a gust of wind blew it teasingly out of her hands.
As soon as the wind died down she giggled again as she ran her fingers through it smilingly.
She spent the rest of that afternoon playing with his hair, as they watched Rin pick every flower within sight and touch of her greedy hands.
*
Finally night settled over the flowered plain and Rin slept in Kagome's arms, while she in turn slept peacefully against Sesshomaru.
He watched both of them, wondering how he had come across both of them.
Did Fate hate or love him?
He looked at Kagome, watched her still face, heard her steady heartbeat and even breath.
Slowly, but surely, he brought up one of his clawed hands, and touched the velvety smooth strands of Kagome's hair.
Blinking at the contrasting texture of her own to his, he removed his hand, but not beforehe caught Kagome's sudden generous smile and the soft name she called in her sleep.
He blinked as the girl once again surprised him, before closing his eyes in mock sleep, only to hear again and again, her echoed words, "Sesshomaru-sama!"
*
Meditation is stronger than sleep, thought few can achieve it.
The world at your fingertips, you could fly anywhere you chose.
See anything, hear, feel, smell.
The kiss of wind against your features.
A clear mind.
"Sesshomaru-sama..."
Reaching a place untouched by the unworthy.
No inturruption.
No diception.
No responsibility- no care.
"Sesshomaru-sama..."
Nobody can reach me...
No word can touch... My heart...
Surrounded in ice, senses more alerted to reality...
Nobody may touch me without my consent.
"Sesshomaru..."
No such thing...
Alone forever...
Neverending sorrow, pain, happiness...
What is it?
"Sesshomaru-sama!"
This girl plagues my mind with her whisperings!
*
His eyes snapped open, molten gold tainted with frustration.
For an instant Kagome stood in front of him, bracing her hands against her knees, smiling down at him.
Then the darkness before dawn illuminated the mirage and he sighed in surrender.
Kagome still leaned against his shoulder, sleeping without a thought on her mind.
When he turned his eyes up again, they were guarded, devoid of emotion.
"When came the time I had to remind myself about betrayal? Or duty? When did this girl taint me? Pick up where Rin left off. What is this emotion, why can I feel?" Sesshomaru growled under his breath.
"Betrayal?" a bodiless voice laughed at him from somewhere in eternity.
"Or duty, ne?" She spoke again, bell-like laughter evident behind her cheerful voice.
"I promise you, Sesshomaru-sama, if- if-" The voice started breaking up, the words becoming weaker as the cheer drained slowly from the lovely voice.
A spirit has some things it may not say. This one was dearly pushing its limits obviously...
"What?" He spoke quietly, breaking the rules was a freedom he loved to feel, he needed to hear this, displease someone...
"If you let me-!" She broke off again, her prescence bleeding into the regular atmosphere.
"If you let me, Sesshomaru-sama, I will show you a love worth.... all eternity..." It was spoken so softly, he fought to hear it.
Morning rays burst through clouds and smiled on the valley. But something was different.
It was just a valley, not a single rose was within his sight.
The miles of grass blew on the wind- no evidence of a weed or flower ever growing there.
A prescence......
Who...?
"Sesshomaru-sama?" Kagome's sleepy voice sounded like bells next to him, music on the four winds...
His eyes widened.
It was.... her?