Title: Searching his soul, Finding his heart
Authoress: Ladya C. Maxine
Rating: PG-13
Summary: see chapter one
Warning(s): see chapter one
Disclaimer: I do not own Inuyasha or any of its characters. All unrecognizable characters belong solely to me and so do not touch. I am not making any money off of this and I write with the sole intention to entertain.

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She didn't know for how long or far they travelled but Maviku suddenly stopped and with a grunt he simply allowed her to slip off his shoulder, dropping her carelessly. She was fortunate to avoid breaking her neck but the stone ground was unrelenting and she landed with a pain filled squeak which was muffled by the gag. Breathing heavily, she trembled as wave upon wave of excruciating pain washed over her body, begging silently for it to be over.

"Be careful you oaf!" Krisga snapped, slapping the other over his head, long claws tearing the skin. "We need her alive."

Maviku snarled, rubbing his bleeding head.

"Dead or alive, he'll follow her scent and wouldn't know the difference."

"Chieftain wants her at least alive. You can have your fun later. Get a fire going," Krisga, who turned out to be of a higher authority, ordered, taking a seat on a boulder. Folding his hoofed feet, he started to sharpen his claws on the stone, making a teeth-gritting sound.

Growling but knowing better than to cross his superior, Maviku clomped off to find wood, though how he would accomplish that in the pure stone caverns was beyond her.

The side that she had landed on still throbbed painfully and she knew that it was already badly bruised. Ever so slowly, and with much difficulty, she raised herself, resting on her scraped elbows to look around.

They were going deeper into the mountain's stone, that much she was able to figure out while listening to the constant bickering between the two males, who, despite being 'partners', seemed to aggravate one another a lot. They had travelled downwards, via more steep steps or, in certain areas, jumping down completely vertical cliffs, using their hoofed feet to easily land and balance on the small ledges here and there. Maviku had had a great time pretending to accidentally drop her, going so far as actually throwing her off his shoulder and letting her free fall some fifty feet in pure terror before catching up with her, with lighting swiftness, and painfully catching her. Krisga had found it no more amusing than she had and with a feral growl he had put an end to the other's play.

With her aggressor now gone, she tried to inch her way towards the narrow path they had just come from, wriggling on her elbows on the damp ground. Her slow progress was brought to a startling halt when the huge blade of an axe buried itself but a foot from her face, almost slicing off her tied hands. A tearing pain ran down her back as a clawed hand grabbed hold of the back of her now filthy kimono.

"And just where do you think you're going?" Krisga growled, his breath hot and foul, stinging the thin but swollen welts on her face caused earlier by his own claws. More foul air left his fanged mouth when her response was muffled by the gag.

"Well, I suppose I could remove that. No one will hear your screams so deep within the mountains," he proposed, head cocked to one side, gold earrings clinkling in his goat-like ears.

She flinched when her face was once more scraped by his claws which roughly yanked the gag off. The edges of her mouth burned and the rancid taste was still on her tongue, but she was grateful. Somewhat.

"P-p-please...l..let R-Rin go..."

"Now why should I after we have gone through so much trouble to get Rin?" he pointed out, clearly enjoying this.

"S-S-Sesshoumaru-sama i-is going t-to be wor-woried," she stuttered, blinking against his breath.

He tsk-tsk'ed, giving her an almost sympathetic look.

"Poor, poor little mortal. Now what makes you think that the great lord youkai of the Western lands would come looking for you?" While brute force was something his partner practised the most, his tactic was based more of mind games.

"Isn't t-that why you t-t-took Rin? To g-get Sesshoumaru-s-sama?"

"Yes, but he isn't coming for you. He's coming because he is angry. He cares only for his pride which had been injured; him having been robbed of his possession. Personally, he doesn't care for you. Only avenging himself."

"That's n-not true!" she gasped. Sesshoumaru-sama liked her...didn't he?

"If you say so," he shrugged uncaringly. "However, I find it strange that I, a complete stranger, can see this while you, who supposedly know him better, can't."

Yanking his axe out of the stone with surprising strength despite his slender arms, he dragged her over to where he had been sitting and roughly shoved her down before taking his spot on the top once more, now polishing his axe with the cloth they had gagged her with.

Grateful that he was no longer touching her, Rin slumped back against the stone, dark bruises burning at the contact. Wincing, she tried to think of a way out of this all but his words kept on returning:

'...he isn't coming for you....he doesn't care for you...'

'He's lying. Sesshou-sama is on his way to save Rin. He likes Rin.'

She was once again startled when the loud sound of falling sticks echoed through the cavern. Maviku had returned and dropped his load of firewood on the ground. They must have a storage area somewhere beyond her vision.

"Can you be any louder?" Krisga growled irritably.

Grumbling words that not even Jaken used, Maviku snorted, long nostrils flaring before he hunched down to start the fire, beady black eyes reflecting the red flames as they sprung up from the dry wood. The glowing red eyes met hers and he grinned evilly, sending a shiver down her bruised spine.

Curling in on herself subconsciously for protection, she buried her face in her arms, sobbing softly.

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Every youkai and beast in the woods stopped their activities, freezing in their tracks, heads raised and alert as they smell his approach. The scent of his death-promising anger was all they needed to run, fleeing into the trees and shadows, out of the path of the youkai lord who moved with such speed that he looked to be flying, long white hair billowing behind him with his tail as his long legs covered great distance.

He had been running without rest for three days and already he could see the river that served as a border for the mountain realm, the mountains growing taller as he neared them with great speed.

One unfortunate beast was foolish enough to remain where it stood in the path, even daring him by growling as he neared. With a mere swipe of his claws he reduced it to but a quivering mass of flesh and bones that rapidly faded from view as he ran on.

Picking up even more speed, he cleared the wide river, easily leaping over the rushing water.

Finally, he was in the forest which belonged to the mountains.

He halted, breathing as even as in sleep and not a sign of fatigue on him. His tail, which had trailed behind him like a great banner, wrapped itself once more over a shoulder and his eyes, which had been glowing red for the past hours, lightened to their original cold golden gaze.

Before him, the forest was silent, all its beasts hidden from view. He could smell them and a few wide eyes peered at him from all around but he couldn't care less, his mind now formulating what to do next.

He had reached the mountains, but what now? Once he got to the higher planes of the mountain terrains the hundreds, if not thousands, of silver-plum trees would easily over-power any signs of his pup. It could take him weeks to search the entire area by simply looking without any leads.

He growled at this. He would not leave her in her captors' hands for so long. Something was sure to hint him off once he reached a certain spot.

As he walked down the path he could hear the footfalls of the creatures as they scattered. The air reeked with the stench of fear and cowardice.

'Simple minded fools,' he thought to himself, shutting them out as he scanned the area. His nose was assailed by the hundreds of smells from the woods.

Still, he easily detected as, while most smells faded as their owners ran from him, one scent grew stronger. Sniffing softly, he was able to tell that it was actually the scent of many travelling in a group.

'Wolves.'

Not caring, he kept on walking, the canines not even on his mind.

A howl broke through the air, followed by another. And another. Soon, the entire forest practically shook with the powerful sounds. Their scents were as strong as ever and he could see their glowing eyes around him, their bodies remaining in the shadows as they followed him just beyond the path.

Indifferent as always, he returned to his task, sniffing the air as he hoped to detect a whiff of his pup's scent or hear something that could be her voice.

Confused but not deterred by their prey's calm, the wolves stalked onto the path, emerging from beneath bushes and behind trees, snouts wrinkled and jaws frothing with saliva as they snapped their teeth, sending the thick substance flying. Within a span of a few seconds their number had grown to around thirty, all none too pleased with his presence, though they kept their distance as they knew enough to recognize this to be a demon lord, similar to their own master.

Sesshoumaru regarded the beasts.

Something smelled very familiar. He knew these wolves, or at least the pack they belonged to. He had smelled them before...when he had found the lifeless body of the small girl he had taken in as his pup. It had been these fell things that had so brutally slain her.

Suddenly, one of the wolves and lunged, jaws snapping and aiming for his throat. It never came within four feet as with a wide swipe of his acid spewing claws, he slashed it to strips of flesh, bone and fur that landed with sickening noises before the paws of the remaining canines, who backed off, unsure but still unrelenting in their stance.

'I should kill them,' he contemplated. 'Kill them like they had killed my Rin, a mere pup who they would have devoured her within minutes had I not rescued her.'

The wolves and the forest around them started to turn red as his demon nature heartedly agreed with his mind. He needed to vent out his concern, anger and frustration on something anyways.

However, his revenge was never carried out as a strong gust of wind broke his train of thoughts. Looking down the path before him, he watched as something was swiftly approaching them. The wolves seemed to know it and they howled in welcome.

He regarded the excited canines before his eyes slid indifferently back to the swirling vortex of air and dust that sped towards them. Through the flying debris, he detected a strong scent that could only be from another demon of a high position and power.

A clawed hand rested calmly on Toukijin as he watched unflinching as the tornado thundered some feet before him. Coming to a halt, the winds started to relent. Along with the gales, the debris lessened, falling back to the forest floor from which they had been stirred.

Sesshoumaru narrowed his eyes slightly when the youkai whose scent he smelled slowly faded into view as the dust settled. A strong, yet arrogant, voice spoke up, blue eyes equally narrowed and arms crossed before an armoured chest.

"Touch one more of my clan and I will personally de-claw you."

tbc...............

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