Sesshomaru walked along the mountainside as dawn approached. A noblewoman had saved him. A beautiful wolf had saved him.
"Why was she crying?" he asked himself. He asked himself over and over again. He wasn't sure why he cared, or if it was simply that he didn't know.
"Would you really like to know?"
Sesshomaru swung around rapidly to find Ayame, leaning against a nearby tree.
"I implore you not to mistake curiosity for care. It is merely a matter of wanting to know." Or so he told himself.
Ayame nodded. "It's because of… the reason is…" she was trying to grasp how to explain this. It was somewhat embarrassing.
"When I was younger," she continued, "another wolf promised to marry me after saving me. Then, when I needed him most, he had forgotten all about it. Eventually he remembered, but his one-sided love of a human girl caused him to deny me over and over again. That was just one of those times."
Tears were falling rapidly from her eyes. Ayame walked closer to Sesshomaru. His eyes widened slightly. "What is she doing?" he thought to himself.
"Why can't he love me?" she asked weakly, "Am I not pretty enough? Am I too free-spirited? What's so bad about me?"
She then rested her head on Sesshomaru's broad shoulder. "What's so bad?"
This was the first time Sesshomaru had ever come across a situation like this, and he didn't know what to do. However, something-instinct perhaps- told him to hold her. He enveloped Ayame in an awkward hug.
She let out a small gasp, the feeling of his hands taking her by surprise. She then hugged him back, crying into his shoulder. They were both so shocked about what they were doing they didn't hear the small giggles of a little girl.
"Ha!" whispered Rin, "I knew Lord Sesshomaru had a soft side."