yay! i finally got around to writing ch. 3! i couldnt think of a title for this chapter, so any suggestions?

Chapter 3:

A strong wind blew, blowing Sesshoumaru's long silvery hair around him. Sesshoumaru stopped, and turned his head. "My lord, what is wrong?" Jaken asked, stopping as well.

Sesshoumaru did not reply, but turned around and headed back in the direction they had come from, Jaken hurrying along after him. He stopped at the edge of the battlefield, and Jaken gasped. "Oh my!" Jaken said, looking around at the field strewn with the bodies of demons and humans.

Sesshoumaru squinted at something in the distance and headed towards it. The man whom Sesshoumaru had talked to the day before, Katsu, was lying on the ground. He was severely wounded, but still conscious. "Where is Rin?" Sesshoumaru demanded, grabbing the man by the throat and holding him up.

"I-I don't know," Katsu gasped. "She ran off that way." He pointed. "I tried to stop her but-"

Sesshoumaru tossed the man aside and headed in the direction he had pointed. He knelt down and laid his hand on the ground where Rin had sat not ten minutes before. He sniffed the air around the ground, and a snarl escaped him. "My lord," gasped Jaken, who had just now caught up with Sesshoumaru. "My lord, Rin is not...dead?"

"No," Sesshoumaru said. He stood up. "Come, Jaken. There is someone we need to visit." Jaken followed after Sesshoumaru, wondering what he was talking about.

Rin looked around the series of cave-like chambers that Akuhei had led her into, and a shiver ran down her spine. "What is this place?" she asked. It was not that the cave was particularly unpleasant, on the contrary, it was very richly decorated and all of the rooms were comfortably furnished, but being there gave her a very bad feeling, kind of like the feeling she got from Akuhei. She shook it off, telling herself it was probably just the chill from not being outside under the sun's warmth.

"This is my home," Akuhei replied. "Do you not like it?"

Rin shook her head. "No, it's very nice."

Akuhei smiled. "Good." He led her into a large room, lit by two plain looking lamps. "This will be your room."

Rin stepped into the room and looked around. There were no decorations, and the room was completely bare except for a futon, the lamps and a small table in one corner of the room. "I left it empty so that you could decorate it how you wished," Akuhei explained.

Rin stifled a yawn and nodded. "Thank you," she said quietly. She looked longingly at the futon. There was a smell in the room, possibly from the lamps, and it was making her very drowsy, or maybe she was just exhausted from the events of the past two days.

Akuhei clapped his hands twice and a young woman entered the room. "This is Takako," Akuhei said. "She will get you anything you need while you are here." He studied Rin. "Would you like her to bring you some flowers to put in your room?"

Rin considered for a moment, but the thought of flowers reminded her with a twang of the many times she had picked flowers for Sesshoumaru. She shook her head.

"Very well," Akuhei said, smiling to himself at the look of pain that had crossed Rin's face at the mention of flowers. Just as he had hoped, she was beginning to turn away from the things she loved because they made her think of Sesshoumaru. He nodded at Takako, and she left the room. "You look very tired," he said gently to Rin. "Why don't you sit down?" He indicated to the futon.

Rin complied, and sat down on the futon gratefully. Her vision was beginning to get a little fuzzy. Akuhei knelt down in front of her. "You are still unhappy," he said. Rin shrugged. "You have finally gotten away from the one person who has caused you such pain. You should be relieved." Rin didn't look up, and she didn't reply, but Akuhei could tell by the look on her face that he had given her something to think about. "You've had a long day," he said. "I will let you get some sleep."

Akuhei stood and left the room, and Rin lay down on the futon. 'Sesshoumaru-sama. Why did you do this to Rin?' she thought before a restless sleep claimed her, and her mind was filled with terrible, twisted dreams about Sesshoumaru laughing at her cruelly as she called his name and ran after him, never able to catch him, until at last she fell on the ground sobbing.

Rin opened her eyes, and blinked at the dark ceiling above her, wondering for a moment where she was until she remembered what had happened. She sat up and rubbed her eyes. She had slept the whole night through but now she felt even worse than she had before. Takako came into the room carrying a cup. "Lord Akuhei said you should drink this," Takako said, setting the cup down in front of Rin and leaving without saying anything else.

Rin picked up the cup and looked in it. It was filled with a strange yellow colored liquid which Rin had never seen before. She sniffed it, and took a hesitant sip. She dropped the cup with a clatter, and doubled over, gagging and coughing. She clutched her stomach in pain, and retched, before losing consciousness and collapsing on the futon.

Takako came into the room from where she had been watching from around the corner. She smiled at the sight of the girl laying on the futon, and picked up the cup, mopping up the spilled drink and the vomit with a towel. Carrying the cup, she left the room, and Akuhei came inside.

He knelt down beside Rin, and placed his hands on her head. At his touch, Rin jerked away, though she remained unconscious. He tried once more, and again she jerked away, with more force this time. Akuhei took away his hands with a frustrated sigh. Takako came in and stood at the doorway. "Did it work?" she asked cautiously.

Akuhei stood up with such suddenness that Takako jumped back. "She is resisting," he said. "This is going to take more than I had thought." He turned and looked at Rin, and then turned back to Takako. "What of Sesshoumaru's actions?"

Takako, who had been watching Rin with hatred, quickly recomposed herself at the sound of Akuhei's voice, but not before he had seen the look. "Right now he is headed towards your home. Once he discovers you aren't there, he will probably come straight here. That should give us plenty of time to do…whatever we need to do." Her eyes flitted back to Rin.

Akuhei grabbed Takako's chin and turned her face towards his with such force that she let out a cry of pain. Akuhei stepped close to her until he seemed to loom over her. "I know that you have feelings for me," he said slowly and quietly, "and you know that I do not return them." He stared into her eyes with a silent fierceness that made Takako cringe. "Do not lose control of your emotions." Takako bit her lip, and nodded. Akuhei let go of her chin. "Stay aware in case Sesshoumaru should come sooner than you expect," he said as he left the room.

Sesshoumaru could tell by the scent on the wind that the man he was looking for was not there before he had even reached the house. Several servants were wandering about outside the house, performing various tasks. When Sesshoumaru approached, they stopped what they were doing and stared at him. At another time, Sesshoumaru might been angered at their lack of respect for the lord of their lands, but right now he was too preoccupied with other things to give it much thought.

Jaken, on the other hand, was not. "What is wrong with you foolish, lowly demons?" he demanded. "Do you know whose presence—"

"Quiet," Sesshoumaru ordered, and Jaken shut his mouth. Sesshoumaru turned to a young kitsune girl who was carrying an armload of wet kimonos. "Where is your master?" he asked her.

"We don't now, sir," the girl said. "Akuhei-sama and his current mistress left a few days ago, but they told no one where they were going or when they would be back."

"I see," Sesshoumaru said, and he left.

"Sesshoumaru-sama! Who is this Akuhei?" Jaken asked.

Sesshoumaru considered ignoring Jaken's question, but decided the toad demon would never shut up about it if he didn't tell him. "Akuhei is my cousin," he said. "His father was my mother's brother."

"Was, my lord?" Jaken asked.

Sesshoumaru glanced at Jaken. "His father was killed in a battle against my father for my father's lands. Akuhei has held a grudge ever since."

"Oh, I see," Jaken said. "And you believe he has kidnapped Rin?'

"Yes."

"That scoundrel!" Jaken exclaimed. "How dare he try to take something that belongs to you for his own petty purposes!"

Sesshoumaru whirled on Jaken so fast that the little imp almost keeled over. "Rin is no one's property," he hissed angrily.

Jaken cowered under Sesshoumaru's wrath. "Yes, of course, my lord! Please forgive me." Sesshoumaru turned away from Jaken, and walked away, and Jaken hesitantly followed after.

A rich smell wafted into the room, waking Rin up. Her stomach growled as she slowly sat up. "Oh, good. You're awake." Akuhei came into the room. "How are you feeling?"

Rin shrugged. "Okay, I guess."

"I am sorry about what happened earlier," Akuhei said. "I did not realize that the juice would make you so sick. Which reminds me—you must be very hungry. Why don't you come eat dinner?"

"Okay. What was that stuff?" Rin asked, standing up.

"It was Ruso Juice," Akuhei told her as they walked through the dim corridors of the cave. "It is supposed to erase unpleasant memories. I had hoped it would help you." He looked at Rin. "You are not upset, are you?"

Images from the dreams she had been having flashed across Rin's mind. "No," she said softly. "I think I would like to forget."

Akuhei nodded. "If you wish, we can try again later tonight." Rin nodded. "Okay," she agreed. Akuhei stopped in front of one of the chambers. "There is food for you in there. I have already eaten, but I will come for you later."

Rin nodded, and went into the chamber, leaving Akuhei in the corridor. "Akuhei-sama," Takako said, walking up to him from where she had been standing further on down the corridor and bowing. "Sesshoumaru is headed this way. At the rate he's going, he will probably be here by noon tomorrow."

"It doesn't matter," Akuhei said. "She seems quite willing to comply."

"What did you tell her?" Takako asked.

"I told her that it would make her forget Sesshoumaru." He smiled wickedly. "It's not entirely untrue. It will make her mind susceptible to suggestions, so I could make her forget if I wanted to."

"You don't want to, though," Takako said.

"Of course not," Akuhei said with a grin. "What would be the fun in that?"