"Ignorance is bliss..." -Inuyasha to Kagome, when she said she thought she'd marry Hojo

Riutami raced after the boar which was to be his meal for the day. He hadn't eaten since the evening before, and he was starving, as usual. A young man of his twenty-eight years needed all the sustenance he could get. Living in the wild demanded one had adequate strength to thrive in it. Riu would be damned if he allowed the forest to get the best of him. His pride demanded he survive in these woods, for he wouldn't allow death to come to him by anything except a worthy demon.

How he hated demons. They were an abhorrence to the earth and should never have surfaced, but since they were here, he planned on killing as many as he could. If they got in his way, that is.

Throughout most of his life, he struggled to locate a place to situate himself, often finding trouble with malicious beasts within the continents he'd visited. Since his youth, homeless as he was, they desired boys like him. "Easy prey" they called him.

Sometimes, that was the last thing they said.

Now, back home, after being chased away decades ago, all he wanted was some food. So here he was, running, dodging sticks, and fallen branches from the trees above. He pushed away leaves with his bow, then leapt over a rock and slammed onto the ground hard. He winced and sucked in his breath, but continued onward. He could see an opening where the boar was headed, and pushed himself harder. He breathed deeply when he reached behind his back and pulled out an arrow, setting his bow up, and then—

"Lord Sesshomaru!"

He came to an abrupt halt and listened. It was a woman's voice who cried out the name, and it came from the opening the boar was heading toward. Riu was not one to ignore a maiden's cry for help. There could be a beautiful young lady in need of loving, and Riu would be more than happy to oblige her. So he began to run again.

When he was at an opening where the trees parted, revealing a small clearing with a river separating the forest from a cliff, he found a young lady held by a white haired demon.

It was eating her!

Without pause, he aimed his arrow right at the demon's head and fired. It immediately dodged the arrow, leaning down, and covered the woman's body. She let out a soft cry, but the abomination rubbed her back.

After the arrow passed, the demon lifted its head and glared.

"Step away from the girl," Riu ordered.

It didn't even move a muscle.

His teeth ground so hard together, he thought they'd turn to powder. "I said step away from her, demon!"

The demon continued to stare at him, causing a cold sensation to seep through the fabric of his pores.

"Who are you?" he barked.

A toad demon appeared from behind the couple, and glared. "He does not know who you are, Lord Sesshomaru!" It screeched. "Oh, what an insult!"

"I said, who are you?" Riu roared, ignoring the amphibian.

The demon Sesshomaru inclined his head and stood. Riu's arrow followed his every move, yet it remained unfazed.

Finally, it spoke.

"You tried to kill me and wish to know who I am now? Should you not have asked first?"

Riu blushed and explained, "You were hurting her."

Had Sesshomaru been standing, he would have stepped back in shock. The fool thought he was hurting Rin? How laughable. The one time he actually bothered to comfort someone, another confused his rare act of kindness for something perverse. He scowled.

"You must be blind if you could not see that I was healing her."

The man paled. "By eating her?"

Sesshomaru growled. This fellow was a fool. He had no time for this nonsense. "Go away."

"No. I can't leave you alone with her."

Jaken stepped up. "She'd rather have Lord Sesshomaru with her than any human boy," he uttered proudly.

The man seemed to pay no mind to the toad and instead focused on Rin. He noticed her moving beneath the demon. She was staring at him.

Sesshomaru was unappreciative of the man's gaze upon her. He nearly hissed and Rin must have noticed because she lightly tapped his hand and said, "What is wrong, Lord Sesshomaru?"

"This fool thought I was hurting you," he replied.

She frowned and turned to the man. "He was not hurting me," she told him.

His arrow remained poised and at the ready, its wood crackling with the curve.

"He's a demon," he said as if that explained everything. "They are all evil."

"He is not bad."

Sesshomaru did not agree with this statement. He disliked the way the man was looking at Rin and wanted to rip him in two. Or four. These were obviously not the thoughts of a good demon.

The man looked into the woman's eyes. He saw the truth revealed in the brown depths of them and lowered his weapon, but he held it tight in his grip.

He took a tentative step forward. "Well, then. If you're not hurting the girl, may I be of some assistance?"

Sesshomaru went to grab his sword, but Rin touched his leg to stop him. "No," he said, when she whispered, "Yes."

Sesshomaru's brow furrowed. Had he heard her correctly?

"Rin?"

She looked at him. Although weak and fatigued, a blush colored her cheeks. "I haven't eaten at all," she murmured. "Can he—"

"I'll get you a boar!" the man cried, raising one hand in the air. He hoisted his bow into a more comfortable position around his back and then he ran off into the foliage.

Sesshomaru blinked when the youth went away. He kneeled before Rin and said, "I did not know you were hungry. I could have gotten you food."

She smiled, a sad, coy thing. "I know, milord. But I didn't want you to leave me. Jaken doesn't know how to catch anything, so I couldn't rely on him."

Jaken gasped, clearly insulted, and stomped off into the forest to prove he too could find her food.

"I'll show you!" he squawked, flailing his staff left and right.

Sesshomaru saw Jaken leave, then returned his focus on his ward. Her eyes remained fixed on his. "Would you like me to continue?" he asked.

"I think I'm alright for now, milord."

Sesshomaru almost sighed. He wanted to continue licking her—everywhere. Despite his aversion toward his emotions, she remained delectable. Indeed, even now his mouth watered.

He glanced at her thighs; cream colored appendages, made for running and fighting. There were dry streaks of blood that could be washed off with a good scrub down. Other than that, the clean areas called out to him, and he found himself loathe to deny their cry.

As he leaned forward, ready to do just that, Rin followed Sesshomaru's gaze and gasped. With her eyes, she traced the red streaks until her kimono stopped her from reaching the V of her body. She covered her mouth with hands that were trembling, comprehending what had happened to her. Her eyes widened and she moaned.

"Oh god."

Struck by the horror in her voice, Sesshomaru stopped and visibly paled. His heart suddenly hurt and there was something wrong with his throat. He found it hard to breathe. He swallowed and reached out to touch her.

"Rin—"

But she slapped his hand away.

"Don't touch me," she choked. "Please."

His hand opened and closed in mid-air since he was uncharacteristically afraid to move, as he suspicioned that his next action could effect her more negatively. He had to think, so aloft his hand remained, until he realized he had to simply do something. Rin did not wish for his pity, he knew this, of course. Yet he could not seem to stop what occurred next, as it happened as if on impulse. In a flash, he grabbed Rin in his embrace, covering her face with his chest so his clothing would dry her tears while she began to cry aloud. She tried to push him away, but he wouldn't let her go.

"I knew you were evil!" Riu roared when he saw the woman trembling in the demon's embrace. She was trying to push it away and it wouldn't let her go! Riu dropped the boar. It fell beside him with a loud thud.

The demon paid him no mind. He continued to hold the woman who was now making nonsensical noises. Riu heard the demon murmur something to her and it sounded as if he were consoling the young lady. The demon told her everything would be alright. This will pass.

Riu stepped toward them, disquieted by her tremors.

"What happened to her?"

"Leave us," Sesshomaru snapped, with eyes the color of blood.

Riu glared but stood fast, undaunted. He plopped himself on the ground, crossed his legs together and set his weapons down. He watched the two for some time, his gaze focused on the woman, and he was able to take proper note of her appearance. Disheveled as she was from whatever ordeal she'd suffered, there was something magnificent about the paleness of her skin, like warm milk. Or the way her dark hair fell past her hips, melding somewhat with the demon's. Her eyes were brown windows, with a kind of depth which made him want to look through them to see all that she was.

His eyes widened suddenly. Something about the girl's appearance caused a spark of nostalgia to ignite itself in his mind and he stopped breathing. A similar image from the past haunted him.

In an instant, he was reminded of his mother.

Lord Sesshomaru caressed Rin while she wept, and whispered soft words that made her find a semblance of her past equilibrium. His voice moved through her and allowed her to feel almost high.

She didn't want to feel anything though. She wanted to be numb to all. The waning pain. And the fact that she was ruined.

But she couldn't forget that.

Silver trails of tears fell down her cheeks, staining Lord Sesshomaru's sleeve. Dirtying him. She lifted her head and wiped them. She blushed when she saw Lord Sesshomaru's achingly beautiful, golden eyes, piercing hers. He looked at her with so much intensity, it made her shiver. Then suddenly, she felt him stiffen and watched, in abject humiliation, as he turned away.

Why did he turn away? she wondered, sadly. Was he disgusted of her now? The gods knew she didn't want to know. It would break her into more pieces than she was already in.

How could those men do this to her? She did nothing wrong. They ruined everything. She was strong before. Now... Well, now she didn't know if she could be. She wanted to be strong for Sesshomaru, but she knew he didn't care for her as much as she wanted him to. And if he did care, it was out of pity. Lord Sesshomaru never pitied anyone—except for weak things that could never grow stronger. If he pitied her, she was tantamount to them.

She fidgeted with her kimono as she gazed down at her calloused white hands. Hands that worked and toiled. Hands that fought for fun, food, and practice. These weren't the hands of a woman good enough to even touch Lord Sesshomaru. They clenched and opened. Clenched and opened.

She didn't know what to say. She wanted Lord Sesshomaru to speak, but he continued to look away. From her.

Sesshomaru's body was going through tumultuous emotions he'd never experienced before. He was a demon who gained pleasure in the kill, getting stronger—and being with Rin. He had no time for amorous activities though. In fact, the thoughts a male usually had for another female hardly ever crossed his mind. But with Rin, and her body's quick growth through the past years, it was becoming apparent that he wanted more from her than companionship. And with the thoughts of what they could do if their relationship progressed... Well, his mind wandered at times, and he was easily moved. When her body was pressed against his, while she was crying, he felt such overwhelming pain, had he been anyone else, he would have cried.

And when she looked up into his eyes, with her heart on her sleeve, his breath hitched. His body stiffened. And, oh gods, he blushed. He couldn't let her see that, for it was far too embarrassing to have a being his age blush for anything. No matter that the girl that peered into his eyes was beautiful, lovely and everything he ever wanted in a companion.

So he turned away, not knowing how it tore in two the thin fabric of Rin's soul.

Rin sat up and winced. She was glad he released her from his hold. She didn't want him touching her. She was filthy and she needed to clean herself properly. Her staff was close by, so she grabbed hold of it and lifted herself up. As she did this, Lord Sesshomaru offered to help, but she brushed him off politely. She had to do this on her own. It took only a few seconds, with a lot of exertion, but she managed to stand. Her head was bowed and she focused on the grass. She could see that her feet were covered in mud and possessed countless scratches. Would they scar?

She took a small step away from Lord Sesshomaru and he called her name.

"Where are you going?"

"I need to wash myself," she whispered, not looking up at him.

"I will aid—"

"No," she spun around and rushed out. She breathed in. With an exhale, she muttered, "I mean, I can do it myself."

He canted his head and tried to see her eyes through the shadow of her bangs. She turned away and he frowned. "You are sure?"

She nodded.

Though his frown remained, he said, "Alright, Rin. Call on me if you decide to change your mind."

She headed off toward the river without a backward glance. There was a place where a rock blocked a part of the waters, so she walked behind it, and washed herself from all the blood.

"Demon," Riu said, watching the creature as he purposed all of his attention on the woman bathing behind a large rock. Were the two lovers? It seemed so, considering their proximity. Perhaps he should leave the two alone.

He found, oddly, that he could not. Something drew him toward the couple. He reasoned it was because their union was nothing more than an abomination and he wished to protect the maiden. Surely, this was it. What other reason could there be, after all.

The demon turned to him and narrowed his eyes. He said nothing; his concern solely for the woman and nothing more.

"Do you truly care for the girl?"

Something sparked within the cool depths of the demon's gaze. "That is none of your concern."

"So you do," he muttered. "Why? Why do you care about her? She's just another female."

The demon's eyes practically bled. "Mind your words, human. I can rip you in two in the blink of an eye. Do not tempt this Sesshomaru."

Riu raised his hands, palms out. "Sorry. Didn't mean to make you angry. I was just curious. I've never heard of a demon falling for a mortal. Well, except for one dog guy, who I'm actually in search of and—"

Whatever did he mean by 'fall'? Sesshomaru wondered. Such an odd thing to say. The human no longer piqued his interest, so he ignored him and turned to the object of his desires. Though he could not see much of her through the rock, he knew she cleansed herself. Waves rose and fell where she sat, and crimson darkened the water.

Tears poured down Rin's cheeks as she wiped the blood on her body. Every part of her was sore. When she moved, undulating pulses of pain swam up and down her form.

Oddly enough, the scars were healing. Right before her eyes, wounds mended, as if sewn with invisible hands. It was probably because of Lord Seshomaru's saliva. His abilities amazed her without fail. Everything about him always had.

She covered her hands with her face and wept. Oh god, why did this have to happen to her? Why her of all people? She did nothing wrong. Nothing. She didn't deserve to be sullied.

Jaken once told her that Sesshomaru was planning to form his own kingdom. How could he want her involved in that? Why would he want her? She had a slight chance to be with him before this debacle, but as she was now, no one would want her.

Her hands clenched into fists and she punched the pebbled floor. Her kimono was floating beside her and it was soaked with blood, tears and water. She knew she looked a mess. No matter how hard she cleaned herself, she would always be inadequate. Always.

And Sesshomaru deserved the best.

She wiped the tears from her eyes, then ripped off a piece of her kimono. She dipped it into the water and then rubbed herself, softly at first. As the damned tears continued to fall, she brushed herself with harder strokes, attempting to wash away the filth that was inside her.

When Rin finished, she tried to compose herself. She didn't want anyone to know just how miserable and heartbroken she felt. Especially Lord Sesshomaru. She grabbed her kimono and stood up. She then whistled for Ah-Un to come.

"Ah-Un, can you two blow on this? I need it to get dry."

The demon's two heads stared at her for a few seconds. She stared back, blinking only when it hurt. It bent down and blew on her kimono. After a few minutes, it was nice and dry, so she put it back on.

Rin grabbed her walking stick and headed towards Lord Sesshomaru and the young man. They were talking to each other. Or rather, the youth was speaking, while he was listening. She decided to look away from her master and observed the man instead. He had to have been no more than twenty-five years of age. His hair was like the night, with eyes as deep as timber. Finely toned, with muscles that rippled; to another, one's eyes would be pleased to view him. He was also fairly brave, considering the specimen he dared to converse with.

She wondered for a moment why he was alone, and then a wave of dread filled her. She would soon be alone, considering Lord Sesshomaru would not want to be near her for long.

Life with him brought her so much happiness. Damn it all, she loved him! She wished and prayed that he loved her, too. That would change everything, because if he felt that way for her, he'd fight for her. He'd help her. And most of all, he'd make her feel worthy again.

But she knew this was only wishful thinking. He never showed any emotion, and when he did—she didn't know why! Sometimes he looked at her with such tenderness, she wanted to weep. And later on, she'd question: why did he do that? Did he still think of her as a child? Did he think of her as a daughter and nothing else? He found her when she was a little girl, but surely he didn't consider her to be his own adoptive child or anything like that... Right?

Rin silently groaned, moving forward. He most likely did. And now that she was ruined, she was an embarrassment to him. He probably planned on disowning her any minute now. She felt a well of tears springing up again and clenched her jaw.

Not again.

She needed to stay calm and sober.

Resolved, she wiped the water from her eyes and coughed. The two males were so absorbed with one another, they hadn't even realized she was standing right next to them.

Sesshomaru looked up at Rin, taken aback. The man had begun a conversation with him about the geography of the area, pulling his gaze away from Rin. He cursed himself a fool.

"Rin." He stood to give her aid, but stopped when her lips tightened. "Are you feeling better?"

She nodded stiffly.

He was watching her every move. She was so hard, resembling granite statues within the many temples of the Isle, and just as cold. He observed that her wounds were gone. For most, only light scars showed any evidence of her ordeal. He wondered if they would remain there forever, then immediately discarded the thought because it mattered not, so long as she was well.

"Are you certain?"

"Your-" She paused. Her cheeks reddened. "Your saliva worked. Most of my cuts have healed."

"Good."

Rin turned away from Sesshomaru and looked at Riu. He was staring at her strangely, and his face was ashen; almost as if he were looking at a ghost. She frowned. "Is there something wrong?" Her frown deepened. "Why are you looking at me like that?"

"You look like my mother."

Amused suddenly, Rin cocked her head to the side. "Such a strange thing to say."

He reddened. "I apologize. I tend to blurt things out when I'm nervous."

"And why are you nervous?"

The man thought this through for a moment, then said, "You are fair."

Rin turned to Lord Sesshomaru, but he wished she hadn't because he wanted nothing more than to assault the man with a thrashing or two. His wrath knew no bounds, and he wondered if he could ask Rin for some time alone with this pest. Just a second was all he needed.

"What's going on, Lord Sesshomaru?"

Never mind.

He swallowed all the ire he felt and replied: "The man is named Riu. He is looking for the whereabouts of a certain half demon."

"What half demon?"

"I was just about to ask this when you arrived."

Riu scratched the lining of his brow. "Good question, good question. But I am not at liberty to say."

"Don't be coy, human. I know the half demon of which you seek."

Riu arched a brow. "How?"

"Because there is only one half breed like that in all the world."

"His name?"

"Inuyasha."

Rin's eyes widened. Grab hold of this distraction. "You wish to see Inuyasha? I know him. What do you want from him?"

Riu blinked quickly, somewhat startled. "Nothing too important. I simply wish to ask him about a family lost ages ago. I've heard tales of him and I am eager to find out what he knows about them."

"Perhaps we know of this family. Care to provide any information?"

Riu hesitated, thinking this was not the best of times to do so, but the woman was clearly interested, so he relented. "He took in a young girl, aged eight, I believe. She was attacked by bandits long ago. I-"

Rin's breath hitched and Riu stopped to ask, "Are you well? I noticed earlier you were wounded. What happened?"

She swallowed thickly, yet did not respond. After some time, he continued. "Yes, well, this family was my own. I heard there were no survivors except one, and I hope to find this girl."

Lord Sesshomaru finally spoke. "What is her name?"

Riu turned to him and clenched his fist. To divulge or not. What harm would it do? He could think of nothing.

"Rinami."

Rin instantly began to tremble. Her face now pallid, she took a step back and gasped. Concerned, Lord Sesshomaru came toward her until she lifted her hand, telling him non-verbally to stop.

"I am in no rush to find him," Riu said, worry over the lady lacing his tone. Her lips quavered, so he rushed out, "I simply need his location."

Rin continued to tremble, until something appeared to spark in her eyes; an idea of sorts. A terribly convenient idea. She leaned forward and grabbed Riu's hand. She squeezed it so harshly, he winced. Then she said, "I know of this person."

At Riu's gasp, she continued.

"May I go with you?"