I Do Not Own InuYasha


Aienkien

合縁奇縁

A couple strangely but happily united;

Uncanny relationship formed by a quirk of Fate;

The mysteries of attraction and relationships or bonds between people


II: 3


Year 1581...

Edo, Japan...

It was well before dawn when Rin went about collecting the hidden salves and ointments she had for her lord's wounds. It had taken, between the two of them, a lot of trial and error to discover a salve that helped hide his wounds' scent and aided in healing the wounds. Collecting bandages, needles and thread she also picked up a large bottle of sake before she hurried out of Kaede's hut.

She was well aware she was alone, InuYasha was exhausted lately with Kagome's near constant mating drive in high gear, Kaede would sleep until just after dawn when the village woke, and Sango and Miroku were sound asleep with their brood. None in the village cared about what Rin did, so long as she did not interfere with their lives and was there when they needed her. So, her only quest would be evading Kohaku, which was at times a cumbersome task, but she knew he had night watch and would have fallen asleep about now.

Slipping through the shadows she made her way to A-Un, carefully saddling her dragon friend before she guided him out of the stable. Rin blinked when Kohaku rounded the corner then, and he smiled at her.

"Rin!" he cheered softly. "I was wondering if you might like to join me on a yōkai hunt," he said.

"Not right now Kohaku," she said as A's head came to rest on her shoulder and Un's head was scenting the air.

"Are you going for a ride, perhaps Kirara and I should accompany you," he started.

"That is not necessary, it has been a while since A and Un and I have had time to ride, between Sango's birthing and Kagome's impending birth, I would like a quiet morning with my friend so he and I can reacquaint ourselves," she lied smoothly.

"Rin you shouldn't go riding alone at this hour."

"I'm not alone, I have A-Un with me," she patiently explained. She found Kohaku frustrating, for as kind as he was, he treated her like a delicate flower, and she despised it. Her sex did not determine her strength, and she refused to let Kohaku think it did. Yes, she was weaker than a human male, but she was fierce, and she was trained by her lord, she was swift, and she was brutal. Rin was more than capable of taking care of herself.

"I don't…"

"Kohaku, I am going, alone, if you follow me, I will know and it will not end well," she warned. "And Kirara will not be following me, she is with her mistress this morning and sleeping."

"I… I just don't want anything to happen to you Rin."

"I am more than capable of taking care of myself, Kohaku," she replied tersely as she swung onto A-Un and spurred the dragon to the air. A-Un took in the opposite direction of their lord, going low and bounding fast. They reached the river bend, and landed, Rin looked around as A-Un's heads scanned the area.

"Go," she ordered.

It did not take long for her to find her lord, she had this acute awareness of him most of the time, which made it impossible for her to lose him. Kimi had found this amusing though Rin did not know why, other than the fact her lord's extreme dislike of his political court had him frequently hiding; and apparently even the best trackers could not find him. Which she did not understand because when he traveled with Master Jaken then everything was loud.

Landing on the lip of the cave Rin swung off A-Un when the dragon let out a strange pained, low pitched whine.

Rin had never heard A-Un make that sound before. Something smelled off about this place, and it was an old, faded memory tugging at the back of her mind. Cautiously she walked forward, pulling the small torch she had brought and lighting it. The minimal light did not illuminate much but she gasped at what she saw.

"Sesshōmaru!" she screamed as she dropped the torch and ran for him, he was sitting in a pool of blood! And as the sun started breaking the horizon, she saw it was a lot of blood as the wound snaked up his throat, down his left arm, drenching the silks he wore. Her fingers trembled as she removed the silks, using the kaiken he given her to slice away most his silks she was stunned, the bandages were drenched in red and black, and as she slowly peeled the linens away she was confronted with markings she had hoped to never see again.

"Sesshōmaru!" she shouted his name as her bloody hands gripped his chin trying to get him to open his eyes, there was a small breath from him, and she felt his heartbeat again.

Now she noticed Tenseiga and Baksuagai were not against her lord's shoulder. He always kept them there, instead they were laying deeper in the cave, untouched by the blood of black goo oozing from her lord's curse mark. Sesshōmaru had had a theory that Tenseiga kept Magatsuhi's curse at bay, slowed it down somehow, which was why he had kept the fang rather than discarding it. Rin knew she needed another healer's help, and she needed her lord to be protected, not vulnerable like this. Running for A-Un she did not need to ask her friend for aid as the beast helped her move her lord.

"Rin?" he breathed softly.

"I have you, my lord," she promised as she struggled with his weight, wishing she had asked Kohaku to come for a change. She could use brute strength right now. Once he was on A-Un Rin gathered up Bakusaiga and Tenseiga. Bakusaiga was pulsing rapidly in her hands as she leapt on A-Un and the dragon took off for Edo. Her lord's eyes cracked open and she smiled at him.

"Rin," he murmured, there was blood on his lips now and she felt the tears burning her eyes.

"How did this happen my lord?" she asked as they flew, he did not answer as blood dribbled from the corner of his lips.


InuYasha had snapped awake from where he was curled around his mate and pups at the scent of power and blood, there was also a tainted scent that was familiar, it wasn't something he could place though. He heard Rin screaming for help, which was enough to have him up, grabbing a pair of hakama he barely had them secure before he ran out his hut to see Rin landing A-Un with a very bloody Sesshōmaru.

Truthfully, he was startled, a part of his inner yōkai was truly startled; Sesshōmaru was, despite what anyone ever thought, invincible to InuYasha. He had, since puphood, seen his brother take hits which should have destroyed him, and yet Sesshōmaru always came back, calm and collected; same as before but with a bit more ice and ire to inflict upon whatever had inconvenienced him with such injury. The bastard was tough, he had survived losing his left arm; though he had gotten that back, been blown up by the proclaimed War God, encased in hellish energy, been to the heart of Mount Hakurei, and stabbed in the chest by Magatsuhi. And InuYasha had heard the tales from some of Sesshōmaru's youth, which proved him to be a crafty, dangerous Inu no Tashio, perhaps even more respected than their father, Tōga. Yōkai clans revered Sesshōmaru, and in the last eight years humans and yōkai seemed more inclined to follow and listen to whatever Sesshōmaru said. It was maddening, and even more infuriating that InuYasha's inner yōkai had thought Sesshōmaru his 'alpha'. Especially after Sesshōmaru aiding them in defeating Naraku, though he kept that inner thought and omission between himself and his inner yōkai.

To see his 'alpha' in such a state, InuYasha nearly panicked thinking there was a looming threat coming for his mate as well. He ran forward though, helping Rin as he lifted Sesshōmaru. His brother was a surprisingly lithe figure, and light weight. Sesshōmaru had always seemed large with his armor, and the mokomoko; which was now drenched in blood.

"What the hell Rin!?" he snapped.

"I don't know!" she sobbed as she was off the dragon she road and she helped him get Sesshōmaru in the hut. His brother was tall, lean and Kagome was startled awake, clumsily dressing. InuYasha got Sesshōmaru on the wood before he and Rin slowly lowered Sesshōmaru to the ground. Rin was already running back for A-Un.

"What in Kami's name happened to him!?" Kagome sputtered, InuYasha helped his mate get closer to Sesshōmaru with caution. He didn't know how Sesshōmaru would react to people being near when he was so injured. Sure enough, the Inu no Tashio's eyes snapped open, blood red, his marks growing jagged as his fangs were bared. InuYasha put himself between his brother and his mate, also growling warning, even as Sesshōmaru struggled to pull himself away from them.

Rin came flying in again. "Don't you dare!" she screeched which had Sesshōmaru's attention snapping to the human girl.

InuYasha would admit he was never entirely clear as to what Rin and Sesshōmaru were, merely that his brother showered the girl in attentions that he did not give to anyone else. He had never given an indication of being interested in Rin as a pup, merely seeming to find her companionship comforting and acting like a good alpha to provide for her. In recent years though InuYasha had had a feeling that his brother's emotions where Rin were concerned were not the ones of a guardian and ward, Sesshōmaru had never hesitated to give Rin a gift, or a casual sign of affection, though these were rare to be seen, and he listened to Rin. Like now. InuYasha didn't know what to make of that as Rin came forward again.

"You will knock this off, my lord, Kagome and I will help, but if you harm Kagome, I will not forgive you, ever!" she snapped.

That seemed to have his brother growling lowly but all the bristling and gathering yōkai energy dissipated as he fell back in his fur breathing hard.

"What could cause this, Rin?" Kagome asked, he helped his mate to her knees so she could help Rin with the wounds, InuYasha kept an eye on his brother though. The black goo was strange, it was strange and it smelled most fowl, until Kagome touched it.

"Magatsuhi," Rin whispered, there were tears in her eyes and the scent burned his nose.

"Magatsuhi is gone Rin," InuYasha stated.

"Magatsuhi was not yōkai, and yes you two purified and banded the Shikon no Tama but my lord had already been marked and bound to Magatsuhi," Rin whimpered. He saw her fingers trembling violently. "My lord took the hit to the chest, the one which gave him new life and ability to summon Bakusaiga, but the mark had been left, and once bound to the Shikon no Tama…"

Her breath hitched.

"He didn't say he was cursed when we were fighting Naraku and Magatsuhi!" InuYasha snapped furiously.

"We did not know, there had been no time to know," Rin whispered.

"You were a child Rin, don't blame yourself," Kagome soothed.

"This is why he disappears…" InuYasha rapidly deduced. Sesshōmaru had never seemed the Inu no Tashio, rule from the shiro type, he had; in all of InuYasha's memory been a wanderer. But there had been times in the last eight years when no one knew where Sesshōmaru was, when Rin would seem forlorn or say something strange about how she was not where she belonged. Rin was pack, she belonged here, even when she was gone half the year to the InuYōkai shiro with Sesshōmaru. And even then, InuYasha had heard rumors of Sesshōmaru and Rin disappearing and no one in the yōkai court knew where they were.

"Yes," Rin murmured as she worked. "We have been looking for a cure for the past five four years," she admitted.


Rin relaxed once they had her lord resting against mokomoko, which had been thoroughly washed of blood by Sango and Kaede when she and Kagome had been working, and the bleeding had slowed to an acceptable pace for this wound again.

The sun was setting now and Rin trembled as she washed and put on a clean kimono, her hair was braided again and she had twisted and stabbed it in place with two of the hair ornaments her lord had given her as gifts before she had returned to Edo. Keeping the kaiken in hand she walked back into Kagome and InuYasha's hut. They had not dared to take him to Kaede's the villagers still needed Kaede's aid and only InuYasha might stand a chance against her lord in this state if he were unnerved or lashed out. He was breathing easier with Tenseiga at his side again, and she picked up Bakusaiga as she knelt beside her lord.

Sesshōmaru's fang rested against her shoulder as a comforting weight as she lifted a hand to his cheek, her fingers tracing his yōkai markings slowly. He wouldn't open his eyes, he hadn't since Kagome had started some sort of purifying ritual on him. Rin pulled her hand back and stared at his ragged breathing.

She knew one person he had not asked for aid who would possibly have answer, actually three persons, but she knew where one was and who could give her immediate answers. Grabbing Bakusaiga she started for A-Un.

"Where the hell do you think you're going!?" InuYasha barked as she stalked out of his hut.

"To get answers!" she spat out furiously.

"Rin!" Kagome caught her hand and Rin was forced to look at the older woman. "You shouldn't go anywhere in this state," Kagome started.

"I'm going, and you cannot stop me! You are not my lord!" she snapped.

"Then take Kohaku with you," Kagome pleaded. "You shouldn't be doing anything alone."

"Where I am going it would be best to go alone, and I have A-Un!" Rin stated as she pulled herself fully from Kagome's grasp, InuYasha shouted for her. A-Un was there though and she swung up on him, he made a sound of protest as she spurred him into the air. There were shouts for her to wait, but she didn't slow.

"Take me to Tōtōsai," she whispered to her friend. "As fast as you can, our lord needs our swiftness," she said.

The dragon seemed to grasp her meaning and she felt him streaking over the skies as they raced for Tōtōsai's, they were going Sesshōmaru speeds and she fought her tears back. She didn't know what had caused Magatsuhi's mark to lash out so violently and suddenly, and she doubted her lord knew either. She had to save him. Rin could not lose Sesshōmaru with everyone else in her family and life.

Sesshōmaru was everything to her!


Year 1308...

Setsuna Castle...

It was a quiet morning in Setsuna, the men were off raging war, and the women were quietly continuing life. She saw some of the children practicing with their bokken, and there were smiths and craftsmen working. Her servants were currently tending to the silks, and Izayoi felt too restless to do flower arranging. Instead she had set about her garden to see what herbs she should leave Setsuna to collect. The surrounding forest was a plethora of herbs useful to her healing arts, but she had to personally go collect them. There were many herbs she could not grow in her own garden, much to her regret.

A sigh escaped her lips as she watched her people, they were so peaceful, so quiet, and she was coming to think of them as hers. They bowed and politely greeted her, she returned the greetings, though she rarely bowed to them. She had taken to keeping a blade in her sleeve for foraging, and though Takemaru had attempted to instruct her in self defense she had not found an appeal in that art.

Izayoi was a healer, and she was appalled that her action could lead to taking a life if she used the blade as a weapon instead of a tool. To her this blade was merely a tool.

Nothing more.

She had, since the dreams had left her restless and uncertain though, been wondering if she should use the blade as a weapon. Such a small blade would not be much aid though against an Inu Daiyōkai, like the one who was plaguing her dreams. She did not understand her mind, and had decided not to dwell on these thoughts.

Besides this deep in Setsuna territory meant there were no InuYōkai here. A fact she found solace in, because if they had been here she did not think she could rest.

"My lady, you should have an armed escort when you leave Setsuna," her handmaiden said as Izayoi made mental notes on the herbs she needed.

"I will be fine, there is no need to take a guard when he is likely to step on the herbs I am collecting."

"I must urge you to reconsider, my lady!" the servant protested while bowing with their head against the wood.

"Very well, if it will make you feel that much better, I will take Kato with me," she offered.

"Thank you my lady," the old woman said.

"Of course, you should rest, Natsumi," she said softly.

"I have much to attend to," the older woman said as she bowed and left Izayoi alone.

She would need to go to the river to get the herbs she needed, she would need many of them, for the wounded should be returning to them soon. Readying her supplies she looked for Kato, and found the young man readying the horses.

"Are they really necessary?" she asked tiredly.

"We should prepare to flee my lady, if the InuYōkai come then it is best to have a swift steed."

"Do not let them near my herbs," she muttered to herself as she let him take her bundle before aiding her up onto the steed.