In the previous chapter, Rin and Shippo get to know each other, and he gets to play the hero when Rin is hurt. Because Rin does not want to leave to the spirit realm, her spirit becomes trapped by the Tatari Mokke.

For the record (ahem): I do not own, in whole or in part, any part of the Inuyasha franchise. Nor do I own any of the characters from said franchise that is used forthwith. The following story is solely based on the ramblings of a college student at a boring job and is not to be taken or believed as part of the true Inuyasha saga. That being said, please enjoy my first attempt at fan fiction. Feel free to critique ad nauseum. (Whew!)

Chapter Five – Plight of the Mu Onna

Rin rubbed her eyes and looked above her. She saw a rounded wall of stone reaching up at least 10 feet above her. Remembering that she had tried to go to Kagome's home, she became slightly upset that she could not get through. Her next thought also upset her; that she was alone. Shippo didn't come down here with me. Is he afraid? I thought he wasn't afraid of nothing.

"Shippo! Help me out!" She called up over and over again, but no one came to help her. Where is he? She tried to climb up the wall, seeing that some of the rocks jutted out a little further than other ones. But the rocks were too far apart for her to get stable footing. I wish I weren't so small. She stood on tip-toe to reach the first rock, and found that if she stretched her body, she could just reach the next stone up. This is going to take forever. Where is Shippo? Is he a coward?

As Rin very slowly edged her way out of the well, she heard the faintest melody whispering on the air. For some reason it didn't startle her, but comforted her. She wanted to get close to the player, and listen up close. The music seemed to help her climb. Rin had no sense of how long it took her to climb to the top of the well, but it couldn't have taken too long. It was still bright day outside.

Finally, she poked her head out of the top of the well and looked around. She stared in amazement, for there was nothing around her. No sign of Shippo or the music player. As she craned her neck to look behind her, she lost her footing. "No!"

Quickly, someone grabbed her hand and pulled her to the top of the well. Rin was frantically crying now, completely afraid that she would not be able to get out a second time. Someone cradled her in warm arms as they walked away from the well to a small stash of nearby flowers. Sitting down, the stranger patted Rin's head, smoothing the dust from out of her hair. Rin no longer heard the music, but the stranger's voice seemed more comforting. And very familiar.

The little girl looked up into the softest brown eyes she had ever seen. The lady has a pretty face. As she stared at the smiling eyes, a sense of familiarity again struck her. I know this lady. Where have I seen her before?

"Feeling better? That must have been a scary fall. But I promise I will not let you fall down there again. What were you doing down there?"

Rin rubbed her eyes. "I was trying to see Kagome-chan's home. Shippo said it was so much fun."

The lady laughed. "You know a girl who lives in a musty old well?"

"No. She has magic that uses the well as a doorway to her home. I don't know where it is though."

"Well, I wouldn't do that again if I were you. You might get hurt. We wouldn't want that now, would we?"

Rin shook her head. I know that voice. That laugh. I heard it when I was little… "Who are you?"

The lady looked thoughtfully into Rin's eyes. She was a little sad for a moment, but the sadness was quickly forgotten as she smiled. "You don't remember me?"

"Sort of. But I cannot remember your name."

"You never called me by my name. You called me mother."

Rin's eyes opened so wide they engulfed her face. "But… you're dead."

The woman hugged Rin to her so tightly she could barely breathe. "Do you really think death could hold me from my daughter? I pleaded with death to let me be with you until you no longer need me."

Rin couldn't believe what she was hearing. My mother pleaded with death to be with me? Is that even possible? "Really?"

Her mother nodded. "No little girl should grow up without a mother. Even death knows that. Without us, you have nobody."

She sat up straight. "I have Sesshomaru-sama."

The lady swept her hand around the empty meadow. "Really? Then where was he when you fell? Why did he not keep you from going in there in the first place?"

Rin, as young as she was, had only one answer for those questions. "He was with Kagome-chan."

"Why wasn't he with you?"

"Shippo and I sneaked away to play."

The lady nodded with another smile on her face. "But, where is this Shippo?"

Rin started to tear up. "I don't know. I held his hand as I jumped into the well, but he disappeared." Her chest constricted as she brought her thoughts to the next logical conclusion. "He left me." And then she broke down in tears.

Her mother hugged her close. "I swear I will never leave you again. No one will ever love you as much as I do." She sat there for a long time, just rocking the little girl and stroking her hair.

After a while, Rin sat up, curious again. "Who was playing the music?"

The lady's smile dimmed a little. "That was an evil demon. I made him go away. He wanted to steal you from me." That seemed to satisfy Rin. The lady looked behind them, before standing up abruptly. "Come on. Let me take you home, and I will make you a nice dinner." And the lady picked up Rin and headed home.

"Let go!" She struggled uselessly in his grasp.

Sesshomaru sneered. "Not until you come to your senses." He was holding her, with one wrist in each palm. And not until I stop hurting. He had also learned very quickly to hold her at arms length above the ground as both his knees and his groin were aching from her ongoing attack.

"You had no right to do that to me, you… you…" Kagome was so frustrated that she couldn't think of a thing to say. So she curled her fingers and dug her nails into his fingers. She knew she couldn't draw any blood with her blunt nails, but she was so enraged that she was desperate to hurt him.

I have every right to claim you. You are mine. "Stop acting like a child. If you must fight me, at least calm down enough to use your powers. Acting like an insignificant brat will get us nowhere."

"No," she burst out, sounding suspiciously like Rin, "you calm down." She stopped struggling for a moment. Even I thought that sounded stupid. "You didn't even ask me. I told you I didn't want to be mated with you until we found all of the shards."

"I heard no objections at the time." Least of all from me. He knew that was a reach, but as long as she wasn't listening to him, he wasn't going to waste energy trying to be reasonable.

Remaining stock still and dangling from his hands, She tried to think about what he said. I couldn't object. It felt too good. Wonderful, even… Stop that! Focus! "I… I didn't object because I had no idea what you were doing to me." She lowered her head. "I thought you just bit me."

Sesshomaru lowered her to the ground, now that she was starting to sound more reasonable, but kept her a good distance from him for personal safety. "But you learned pretty fast what that meant." Wait a moment. Someone orchestrated this outburst. "How did you find out so fast? I never told you…"

"Inuyasha," Kagome muttered without thinking.

She was immediately released as Sesshomaru flew into the air. That bastard! He looked around and quickly located Inuyasha sulking in the God tree. Then he pounced.

Inuyasha barely had time to register that something was coming for him before a great white mass descended from the sky. The force of the landing threw both of them off them from the tree onto the ground. Sesshomaru was on top of his brother with his poisoned claws incising into Inuyasha's throat. It's about time, he thought. But he managed to say "What the hell do you want?"

Sesshomaru leaned in close. "Your stupid plan to break us apart came to nothing, little brother. She will never be yours. She is mine. Now and forever."

Inuyasha kicked his brother off and jumped up and back from him. "I don't give a shit if you want to mate with her. Take her, I don't care. But she has a right to know when you have just taken control of her life. Doing it without telling her is something only a coward would do." He sneered at that last remark, seeing a flicker of the old hatred gleaming in Sesshomaru's eyes.

No one noticed Kagome, standing stock still behind the scene. But she heard every word Inuyasha had said. He doesn't care? He doesn't care. He never really loved me… She ran back to Kaede's hut crying.

"Watch your words, you insignificant hanyou."

Inuyasha drew his Tetsusaiga. "Not so insignificant if father left me this. Something you wanted, but can never touch. That is why you took Kagome. Because at least you can touch her. Right?"

Sesshomaru looked at his brother for a moment. What did that mean? When did he start talking so hatefully about Kagome. Could it be… "Your still jealous."

"Am not."

"You are jealous. But you would never come out and say it, because you never seem to be able to say what you feel. So you did all this so I would fight you."

Inuyasha took his warrior stance. "Then fight me."

Before Sesshomaru could react, he heard the peel of Shippo's voice. "Rin!"

"Rin! Wake up! Help!" Shippo finally made his way to the top of the well, with an unconscious Rin in his arms. As he set her down in the meadow, Miroku and Sango made it to the clearing. Without looking up, Shippo pleaded, "Help me."

Miroku looked down at Rin, who had cuts and bruises all over, and a little trickle of blood coming from her mouth. She isn't awake. He leaned in close to try and hear her breathing. Nothing. He picked up her wrist, but could hear no pulsing from her heart.

Sango picked up Shippo, who was mumbling constantly. "I tried to stop her, but she wanted to see Kagome's home. She grabbed my hand and jumped in. I couldn't stop her. I tried…"

"Shh, Shippo. It's okay. Miroku will help her." Even though she said the words, she couldn't bring herself to believe them as she watched Miroku and Rin.

The monk looked back at Sango, with fear in his eyes. "I feel no pulse. We need to get her to Kaede's before it is too late." He picked her up and dashed toward the village.

Sesshomaru passed them along the way. He took one look at Rin in the monk's arms and a deep growl came from deep in his gut. "What happened to Rin?"

Shippo buried himself deep into Sango's arms, trying to hide. Sesshomaru looked at the kitsune, and a rising hatred flashed in his eyes. He plucked Shippo away from Sango with his claws and held Shippo up to his yellow eyes. "I will not repeat myself, runt."

Sango chimed in. "It was an accident. Rin and Shippo were playing in the meadow and she wanted to see Kagome's home. He tried to stop her but she jumped into the well."

The inuyoukai dropped Shippo, but bore down on Sango instead. "And you were watching them, were you not?"

She stammered. "We were watching them…"

"Down by the river."

"Yes."

"And how did they get as far as the well without you stopping them?"

"I didn't see them leave the river…"

He flashed his teeth. "But you were watching them?"

Sango bowed her head. She had no excuse. She had been too involved at the time with Miroku that she didn't notice them leave for some time. And at the time, she hadn't cared.

"As I thought. You were too busy being seduced by the lecher to watch too small children. I pray you never have children, slayer."

Shippo forgot himself for a moment and puffed out his chest. "I am not a child…"

He picked up the little fox again, unfazed by Shippo's attempts to hit him. "Don't think for one moment I have forgotten about you, runt. No. You are not a child. You are the leader of your clan. You should have stopped her."

Shippo was starting to cry. "I tried…"

"You should have succeeded. She is only a little girl."

The little fox went limp. "I couldn't." And he started wailing.

Sango pulled him away again, sheltering Shippo as she moved away from Sesshomaru. "Stop bullying him. He fell into the well with her. He tried to stop her, but he isn't any bigger than she is. Once she decided to jump, she jumped. There is nothing we can do about it now."

Sesshomaru turned and followed Miroku, who had already made it to Kaede's hut. Maybe there is nothing you can do. Be thankful that I can help her, or I would waste no time tearing both of you apart for letting her get hurt. For the moment, he decided to completely forget pretending that Rin didn't matter to him. He focused on making sure that she would live to see another day.

When he entered the hut, he saw Kaede and Kagome both leaning over the little girl. Kagome looked up and saw the emotions written across Sesshomaru's face. This is the first person that loved Sesshomaru, warts and all. And he wasn't there when she was in danger. "Sesshomaru…"

He ignored her and knelt down beside Rin. "She's dead." Shippo really started crying then, and Sango pulled him and Miroku out of the hut. Sesshomaru stood up and pulled his Tenseiga from its sheath. I will not let them take her. Not like this.

Kaede looked up, knowing what he was going to try to do. "Sesshomaru, it won't work."

"Sesshomaru…" Kagome was again silenced by the look of passion in his eyes. Not passion for her. Put a passion filled with need for the little girl to live.

His Tenseiga didn't glow. Nothing. He waited for a moment, and shook it. No reaction. A low growl left him as he turned towards Kagome for answers. "Her soul isn't here. Tenseiga cannot revive her until we find her spirit."

"We are not too late?" Sesshomaru asked.

"We may be. A little soul moves fast." Kaede spoke, finally aware that there was no anger directed at the people in the room, but at himself. "The little girl probably does not know she is separated from her body."

"Do you mean that she is now a ghost?" Kagome got chills, thinking that.

"Aye. And she will remain that way until she either we return her to her body, or she realizes that she is dead."

Inuyasha, who had been in the shadows of the hut, made himself known. "You forget another way, Kaede."

"What are you doing here?" Sesshomaru snarled.

"Hey. I may not like you right now, but that little girl just killed herself to be like your Kagome. Which is something you taught her. I don't think she deserves to die like that."

"What are ye talking of, Inuyasha?"

"The Tatari Mokke. The pied piper of little lost souls. Kagome and I met him in her time. Remember?"

This was the first time he had looked at Kagome in days, and she temporarily lost her speech. "Y-yes. He keeps the souls of children occupied until they can find their way to heaven."

Shippo peaked his head into the hut, having heard everything. "I heard music at the river. Like a flute."

Inuyasha pushed his back off from the wall of the hut and walked a little closer to the lifeless girl. He continued as he stared down into the diminutive form of Kikyou's reincarnation. How could I never have noticed? Is our bloodline to be forever cursed by hers? "But, if the little souls are still there when the Tatari Mokke's eyes open, they go to hell. She has a limited amount of time before she will be pulled down."

Sesshomaru held himself together when Inuyasha said that, pulling his emotions back inside. He sheathed Tenseiga before reaching out and taking Rin's body in his arms. "We will start at the well."

As they started to leave, the voice of his brother stopped him. "I don't think letting Kagome go with you is the best idea."

Again Sesshomaru snarled at his brother. "What I do with her is no concern of yours." And he literally pulled Kagome out of the hut.

Shippo looked at Inuyasha, and jumped up on his shoulder before asking the obvious. "Why shouldn't she go?"

He shook his head as he followed his brother to the well. I just have a bad feeling about the whole thing.

The crew arrive at the well, and Sesshomaru takes out the Tenseiga again, hoping to use it to find Rin's soul. But again, nothing happened. His shoulders slumped, and Kagome barely heard him whisper "How are we supposed to find her?"

Kagome looked around. She closed her eyes and listened for the song their soul makes. She turned away from the well and saw two shadowy forms. One was Rin, that much she knew. Without saying anything to disturb the scene, she tugged Sesshomaru to turn around.

Sesshomaru and the rest turned. Shippo and Inuyasha saw nothing, but Sesshomaru saw his Rin. "Who is that holding her?" he said in a whisper.

Kagome just shrugged. She could not make out a face. Just a ghostly image of someone holding Rin, who looked like she was crying. "What are they doing?"

The form holding Rin looked up when Kagome said this, as if finally acknowledging their presence. There was no face. There is no face! "That is a Mu Onna. She is going to keep Rin!"

As she said this, the Mu Onna and Rin stood and began to go, away from the village. Sesshomaru pointed his sword at the Mu Onna. "Do not take her. She belongs with me." But the souls ignored her as they left the meadow. "Damn it!" He went after the pair, but the faster he got, the faster they got. And he was hampered by Rin's body. Shippo, who felt responsible, dashed after them, determined to help bring his friend back.

"Kagome, wait." Inuyasha stopped Kagome from following her mate. "You can't go."

Kagome's frustration at Inuyasha's icy demeanor hit her full force. "Stop it! I know you are mad at me. But, this is not about us…"

"Damned right this isn't about us. Do you think that you are all I think about?"

Kagome blinked. "What?" These were words she did not expect from Inuyasha.

He went on. "Despite everything that has happened lately, I am not talking about us. You cannot follow them."

"Why?"

He walked up to her and jabbed a clawed finger at the center of her chest. "That Mu Onna did not know that we were here until you spoke. You are Rin's soul. And she knew that. She can watch for your spirit to come close, as you would have done. But, if you don't go, they might have a chance to get close to Rin. If they can get close, she will go to them." He backed off a little bit, watching Kagome stare at him open mouthed. "But with you there, she is as good as dead."

"Wow. That makes sense." His eyes closed just a little at the insult she had unknowingly thrown at him. "I-I mean, thank you, Inuyasha."

"I wouldn't be speaking to you if it weren't for Rin. She wanted to be you, so she tried to do what you do. And look where it has gotten her. Dead. I hope you are happy."

Kagome began to tear, even though she tried so hard not to. "That was overly harsh."

"Not harsh enough, I think. It's what you like, isn't it?"

She blinked. "What?"

"You like cold, hard, and evil. Right? Is that why you chose him over me?" He turned and started to walk away, disgusted with his own little outburst.

"Inuyasha, wait. Don't be like that…"

Again he turned. "Be like what? Upset that you chose my zombie brother over me? What does he have that I don't?" He was silent for a moment, walking up close to her until they were less than a foot apart. "Is it because he is not half and half?" he said, his voice barely audible above the breeze.

"That's not true, Inuyasha…" She reached out her hand to his shoulder, trying to calm him.

He turned to the side to avoid her hand. "Don't even try to comfort me." He paced back and forth as he tried to put into words what he has been feeling since she was taken. "I know I should have told you how I felt. I moved too slowly. I know that. But I thought you knew how I felt. I knew you liked me. Loved me. I knew it. I still know it."

She nodded. "I do love you, Inuyasha…"

"Then why did you go to him?" He yelled at the top of his voice. "He would never have touched you if you didn't want him to. He doesn't work that way. Sesshomaru doesn't offend, just defends. You had to have done something to make him come to you. You chose him over me overnight." He stopped and looked her full in the face. "You know, that tells me something about you, Kagome."

Kagome was almost afraid to find out what it told him. Maybe I am not worth loving. Maybe I am evil, too. That is why I want to be with Sesshomaru. Even though we aren't speaking to each other now, I would die if Sesshomaru ever left me. "Inuyasha…"

A rustle of leaves behind them interrupted their conversation. Inuyasha instinctively pulled out his Tetsusaiga as a body dropped from the trees. The hanyou stood and sneered. "Oh, you. What do you want?"

A voice of someone still in the trees answered the question. "We have come in response to our master. He wants revenge for the death of Kagura."

Kagome cursed herself for leaving her bow and arrows at the hut. "Not you guys. We have more important things to do than play with you now." She decided to try and ignore them and run back to the hut for her gear.

"I think not, miko." The voice in the trees gestured to the second henchman on the ground, who raised his weapon high. He threw it towards Kagome's back, but it was quickly reflected by Sango's boomerang.

"Stop that! You are no coward, Kohaku. Even under his spell you would not strike someone in the back." She thought on that for a moment. "Again."

Kohaku recouped his weapon and raced towards the group. Inuyasha and Sango blocked him, but Kohaku seemed like a man possessed by many demons. As if he really was upset that Kagura was gone. He was managing to keep both warriors occupied.

The voice in the trees had missed its target when Sango blocked Kohaku. He will be angry. I must bring someone back. And I wanted her for myself. But, a new plan quickly formulated before the voice showed its power.

A dazzling white light immediately filled the entire area. And when it waned, the group stood still, looking around them. And then Sango dropped to her knees and fell over onto the ground. Lifeless.

Coming Soon – Chapter Six – The Souls and the Void

The appearance of two longtime rivals of the troupe hampers their search. A soul is taken in vengeance for a lost sister, and a barter is made. A plot for revenge is thickened by a tug on familial strings.