Summary- Years have passed since the incident with Khan. Now Rin is happy, living with her young child, InuTaisho. InuYasha has taken over in Sesshoumaru's absence, and no one knows what has happened to him. Rin still wonders upon the missing youkai, and if she shall truly ever see him again...
Eternity
Prologue
"In three moons, the marking shall be removed...and...you will be free to go."
Rin sighed as she gazed at the moon. Those words he spoke that night before she recklessly left the castle. She was so foolish...if she had not left, then chances are, Sesshoumaru would still be alive. She did not care for what Utsugi said, Sesshoumaru was dead. She watched him get murdered in front of her very own eyes. And what did she speak of, a pathway? It has been nearly four years now. If she had not found a way to see Sesshoumaru by now, then she never would.
"Mommy...?"
Rin turned around at her new 'name' and saw her son, standing in the middle of the doorway, watching his mother with curious, sleepy eyes. Rin smiled softly and walked over to her son. His silver hair glistened in the moonlight, and Rin's heart tightened. That reminded her so much of Sesshoumaru's own hair...unusual and so silky. As if a silkworm had woven it itself.
She picked up InuTaisho and set him upon her bed. She then took his hands away from his eyes and looked into their hazel ones. She gently began to rub his ears that poked out on the top of his head. Sort of like InuYasha's, except these held black tips to them. He also had one stripe upon his cheeks, but that was it.
"What have I told you about wandering the halls this late at night, InuTaisho?" Rin questioned. InuTaisho shrugged and yawned before cuddling into his mothers chest.
"Mommy...tell me a stowy..." InuTaisho asked his mother. Rin giggled at his 'story'. Children spoke so adorably when they were tired...
"Are you sure you can stay up to hear it?" Rin teased. InuTaisho looked up at her and nodded. He then grinned.
"Yeah mommy! I can stay up!" InuTaisho said happily. Rin giggled then looked out the balcony window, looking at the crescent moon. She then hugged her little boy close to her heart. She would not let death claim another one...
"Well...a long time ago, a cruel Lord ruled over these lands. His name was...Sesshoumaru."
InuTaisho paid close attention to the story that his mother spoke of. He frowned at the name of the Lord though. "But mommy, doesn't 'Sesshoumaru' mean bad things?" InuTaisho asked. Rin looked down to him and nodded.
"Yes, it does. Now hush and listen to the story."
"Okay..."
"Well then. The Lord Sesshoumaru ruled over these lands like any other Lord. He kept his people safe, but only by Tribute. Well, one day, a village gave him a Tribute that he could never forgive..."
InuTaisho's eyes widened as his mother continued the story. He smiled when the younger brother spoke to the Lord, amused by the ways the young hanyou spoke. At that, he thought of uncle InuYasha and how similar they were. He frowned though, when one of the young women of the Tribute was cast away into a chamber. His eyes widened as he heard the near ending...
"And so the attack hit the young Lord, disintegrating him right in front of the young human maiden. She fell to the ground as she thought of her love being destroyed. But the evil that had destroyed Sesshoumaru was brought down by the spirits of the Other World..."
Rin stopped speaking and looked to InuTaisho. She smiled as she saw that her son was very interested in what was being spoken. That was a first...
"Come on mommy, what happened next?" InuTaisho begged. Rin giggled at her sons eagerness and merely replied calmly.
"And so the young maiden lived her life, through and through. Never had she found Sesshoumaru again, as she had wished. Not even in the life after that. For eternity she was reincarnated, and for eternity he watched over her, through the Other World. The once monster Lord had learned to love, and perished. But he did not regret his death, for he knew he would always protect the young maiden..." Rin finished. She sighed and looked to InuTaisho. She raised a brow curiously as the young boy stared at her.
"Is that it, mommy?" InuTaisho asked her. Rin looked at him shocked slightly.
"Err...yes it is, Inu. Why?" Rin asked him. InuTaisho pouted, not only that the story was over and he would have to go to bed now, but because she used his nickname. He despised that nickname...
"Mommy...don't call me that..." InuTaisho whined. Rin smiled and lightly ruffled his hair. She then picked him up and walked across the hall, setting him in his own bed. She then kissed his forehead and looked at him lovingly.
"Good night, InuTaisho. And have sweet dreams..." Rin whispered as InuTaisho yawned again and slowly closed his eyes. Rin smiled and stood up, slowly and quietly walking out of the room. She then sighed as she closed the door and looked to the floor.
"Sesshoumaru..."
Rin shook her head. She had made it four years without him, just the rest of her life to go. Rin walked into her bedroom, which used to belong to Sesshoumaru, and crawled into the bed. She sighed sadly and covered herself up. She then turned over and gazed at the empty spot upon the bed with sadness. How many times had she turned around, hoping that he would be there, saying that it was all a hoax? Too many to count...
"Sesshoumaru...you idiot..." Rin whispered again before going to sleep. She forgot to close the balcony doors and the moonlight poured in to the room, lighting everything with a midnight gaze. Rin's breathing began to slow and eventually, settled into a steady form. She shivered as a cold wind blew into the room and then turned over.
"Rin..."
A ghastly figure appeared in the moonlight, although it was completely transparent. It did not waver from its position near the balcony window and did not move from the moonlight.
"Rin..."
The whispered sound resounded through the castle, although it was barely audible and the phantom's mouth did not move. It simply blinked with golden eyes, staring at the maiden,and then another sharp wind blew, and it disappeared...
-0-0-0-
"Uncle Shippo!" InuTaisho screamed as he ran towards the kitsune. Shippo grinned and then bent down, allowing the young inu-hanyou to leap upon his back. Shippo then proceeded with leaping through the air. Rin and InuYasha sat upon the hilltop, watching the two's shinanigans. Rin then looked up to InuYasha.
"Kagome comes back today from her priestess training, doesn't she?" Rin asked. InuYasha merely nodded. After the incident four years ago with Khan and Sesshoumaru, he and Kagome had not really spoken often. If they did, it was either business, or it was for messages from one to the other.
"Do you think she did well?" Rin asked him, hoping to bring him out of his coma-like state. She didn't know why, but InuYasha just didn't seem to talk as much as he used to. She wondered if something happened to Kagome and himself. InuYasha shrugged before sitting down cross-legged beside Rin.
"I dunno. I hope so, otherwise, knowing your sister, she'll come back here and complain to us about it." InuYasha muttered. Rin nodded. Yup, that was her sister, definitely. Rin then thought for a moment.
"Who was the lady that was supposed to be teaching Kagome again?" Rin wondered aloud. InuYasha closed his eyes in thought as he pondered the subject. He had heard the woman's name only once before...it was on the tip of his tongue...
"You mean Kikyo?"
InuYasha opened one eye and glared at Shippo. Little smart-ass...who did he think he was, answering InuYasha's question like that? Rin smiled and nodded to Shippo, grabbing InuTaisho off of his back.
"That was her name...thank you, Shippo. When do you guys think that Kagome will arrive here?" Rin questioned. So far, so good. InuYasha didn't stop talking yet...
"Hmm...I think that she'll get here around noon. What do you think Rin?" Shippo said. Rin shrugged and then looked to InuYasha, who got his huffy face on now. Rin looked down and saw a necklace around InuYasha. Funny...that wasn't there before...
"Feh, knowing that lazy wench, she'll probably not even get here today. Maybe at the end of the week..." InuYasha muttered.
"Sit!"
"Aack!"
Boom!
Rin and Shippo's eyes widened as InuYasha flew towards the ground. InuTaisho sat there upon his mother's lap, laughing his little heart out. InuYasha groaned and then pulled himself up. He should have known better than to open his big mouth...
"Kagome! What the Hell is wrong with you?" InuYasha screamed. Shippo and Rin looked to each other, then in the direction that the voice came from. Was it really...?
There stood an angry Kagome on the hill beside them. Rin's eyes widened at the clothing that Kagome had and laughed. Kagome quickly began her advance upon them, Rin now noticing the stallion that was with her. Rin smiled as Kagome came towards them and got off the stallion. She then looked to the horse. It was beautiful.
It's coat was a dark, dark color, but not exactly black. It was more like a majestic midnight blue. It's legs were black, and it's muzzle was white. It's mane and tail were also black, with little midnight blue streaks going through them.
"Wow Kagome...who's horse is this?" Rin whispered in amazement. The stallion reminded her of Utsugi before she was killed by her Father...Rin gazed into it's eyes and her's widened. They were purple! This was one unique horse...
"I am no one's horse, now back away from me, human."
Rin and InuTaisho gasped as the horse spoke to them. It talked? It talked...! Rin jumped back, while InuYasha, Shippo and Kagome laughed. InuTaisho simply became more entranced by the stallion. It looked down to the hanyou and growled. InuTaisho then thought over his plan of approach and backed away...for now.
"Why didn't you guys tell me it was a youkai horse?" Rin yelled. InuYasha and Shippo backed away from her, claiming that they thought she had known. Rin looked to Kagome furiously. Kagome shrugged.
"He helped me, I forgot that you never met a youkai horse before." Kagome stated simply. Rin rolled her eyes. She then looked to the stallion and huffed.
"Listen here, mister. You don't call me human, got it? And you certainly won't growl at my son like that again, nor snap at me. My name is Rin, and that is what you shall address me as from now on." Rin said proudly. InuYasha chuckled and shook his head. Rin was in for a big surprise...he knew this horse. This thing grew up with Sesshoumaru, it wasn't going to back down to a human so easily.
"Be silent, girl. Now then, InuYasha. Where is my master?"
InuYasha's eyes widened. That is right...no one knew of Sesshoumaru's death...
Thonk!
Everyone looked to Rin as a vein began to throb in her head as the youkai horse now held a fairly large lump upon his head. The stallion fumed before shoving Rin to the ground.
"You will not touch Mirowashitawa like that again, is that understood, Rin?" Mirowashitawa asked. Rin blinked. Did he just reprimand her?
"Excuse me?"
"Rin!"
"What?"
"Stop it..."
Rin glared at them as Kagome walked over to Mirowashitawa and slowly began to lead him away, not glancing at InuYasha in the slightest. InuYasha did not seem to care as he grabbed Rin and dragged her away. InuTaisho and Shippo stood in the middle of what would have soon been the battle field and sighed.
Shippo picked up InuTaisho and began to chase after InuYasha and Rin.
-0-0-0-
"Touga, how long do you suppose that we can keep Khan sealed away?" Utsugi questioned as she gazed upon the stone-looking being. Touga glanced away from the water mirror and looked to the stone figure as well. He shrugged his shoulders and looked once more. Sesshoumaru's body was nearly complete...all they needed to do now was find his soul.
"Come now, Utsugi. There is no need for fear. I am sure that Khan will not rise again." Touga assured. Utsugi glanced over to him casually.
"But things always turn out opposite of what you say..."
Touga sweat-dropped. Well...she did have a point there. Touga was quite the gambler...and the loser...
"Just like when I bet you that Sesshoumaru and InuYasha would find someone, you said that they wouldn't because they were both stubborn and too proud to know when someone loved them. You must have had so much faith in your sons..." Utsugi said jokingly. Touga turned and glared at her.
"Leave me alone..." He pouted. His attention immediately snapped to the mirror as it began to ripple, as if something heavy headed their way. Utsugi also quickly made her way over and gazed into the water mirror. The ripples began to worsen...
Touga looked up as he heard something crackling, as if breaking. He looked over to Khan's stone body and his eyes narrowed. He then walked over to it. He couldn't see anything wrong with it...then where was the sound coming from?
"Touga...his back..." Utsugi whispered. Touga slowly made his way to Khan's back and his breath hitched. There lay a large crack from the tip of Khan's head to the heel of his left foot.
"Utsugi...we may have a problem..."
To Be Continued...
If you have at all read Forbidden, then you know my style of writing. I love the cliffhangers... (grins)
Anyway, I hope that you all are satisfied with the story so far...and that you REVIEW it. Anyway, welcome back to me! (grins again)
PLEASE REVIEW!
Wolf of Moonlight logging off
