I Do Not Own InuYasha
Ikigai
いきがい
"A reason for being"
'A reason to get up in the morning'
To enjoy the meaning of life - passion, purpose, something one lives for
III: 2
Year 1573...
Edo, Japan...
Rin could feel the summer dying and she was eagerly awaiting it. It was the first time since her parents death that she had stayed with humans, she had been utterly miserable. If it was not for Shippō and InuYasha she'd have gone insane, she knew that. But today was special!
Today, without her lord being aware of anything, because he was not here to collect her, but he would be soon! She had the first red leaf of autumn clutched tightly in one hand as proof, she had been carrying it around since she had found it. But in finding it she had discovered something else, she didn't want to leave Shippō or InuYasha behind yet. She had forgotten how good it was to have brothers, even when they were pains in the butts. So today was the day she would accept being a part of Shippō's skulk.
She and Shippō had talked about it a lot in the past week of her finding the red leaf she was faithfully carrying around. And there was a way, there was a simple way she could be adopted into his skulk, and all that it would require was the exchange of blood and a vow of family. She liked that idea!
Sesshōmaru-sama was her pack, but it had been a long time since she had had a family and if Shippō wanted her as a sister, then she wanted him as a brother.
So they stood there in the clearing of Honekui no Ido as she held up the small knife Jaken-dono had given her when she had been left with the humans.
"Are you ready?" she asked as she tucked the leaf into her obi.
"Hai, are you?" he asked while his tail flicked nervously.
"Hai," she agreed as she produced the tiny knife and handed it to him.
"Just exchange blood and it'll be good," he smiled as he slid the knife over his tiny palm.
"Hai," she agreed, his blood was red like hers she noted. Taking the knife from him she sliced a linear mark on her own palm as they held out hands to shake on it.
Once the blood touched she gasped as it felt like fire raced into her blood, she heard Shippō yelp but she couldn't focus as there was a blast of yōkai energy around them whirling around wildly before it imploded on them and expoloded around them leaving them standing in ruin grass.
"That was…" Shippō said pulling his hand to look at it.
She looked at her own palm and saw a green mark like the violet mark Sesshōmaru had given her.
"That was less painful than I thought it would be," Rin admitted.
"Imouto!" he laughed.
"I'm not younger!"
"You are, I'm the elder kitsune!" he declared.
"I'm bigger!" she shouted as she chased him now.
"Not for much longer!" Shippō shouted as he ran.
"Get back here you squirrel!"
"I'm a fox!"
It was the first autumn after Magatsuhi's attack, the first autumn he had come to collect Rin.
Naraku's defeat in the spring had lead him to leaving Rin behind to seek information on the mark Magatsuhi had put on him. Kaede had been persistent about him leaving Rin entirely, and he had been reluctant to leave at all, but he knew that Rin would have to become accustomed to mortals sooner or later. She was not a kitsune kit or inuyōkai pup, she was a human pup and that meant she would have to know humans. There were probably things about her frail species only they could teach her, and he knew next to nothing about humans. However, Rin was his, and he would not let her go for the sake of appeasing humans who did not understand what it was that she meant to him, and his pack.
Reaching the outskirts of Edo he caught Rin's scent wafting through the forest, and heard her laughter. Instincts had him seeking her out, the mark made it easy to find her which had him looking down at the clearing Honekui no Ido was centered, and saw Rin with the kitsune kit InuYasha and his miko had adopted playing with green kitsunebi. Sesshōmaru stilled as he recognized the game, the elaborate game he and Rin used to play when he was a pup at his grandfather's palace.
The Kami there had thought it funny, and even a wild kitsune there had found it interesting.
Sesshōmaru rested on the tree branch wrapping his mokomoko around it as he watched the elaborate game. Rin laughed as she chased the kitsunebi, occasionally her little mortal fingers seemed to catch it, manipulating the flames around her hands before it fluttered free and she and the kitsune would scamper after it. Their bond was growing, he saw, Rin was displaying yōkai characteristics, not many, but some to make her odd to the humans no doubt, he would have to speak with his mother about this. The onna had been formidable, even if only a fragile human, she was skilled enough at manipulating their bond, drawing on his yōkai energy to be so much more than a mere human. The pup was displaying these skills and abilities, he smiled inwardly as he sent her a flare of energy and watched her laugh as the kitsunebi flared up on her fingertips without burning her. She turned laughing and saw him.
"Sesshōmaru-sama!" she dropped the kitsunebi as she ran for the tree he was in.
"Rin," he greeted.
"You've returned! How was your trip!? Where did you go? Was it long? Did Jaken-dono get poisoned again? When can I go? Can I show you my hut!? Kaede-obaa-san says I'm learning really fast! Oh! I should show you my calligraphy! Did you bring me anything? Is A-Un with you? Is Jaken-dono here!? I have missed Jaken-dono, he was teaching me to gamble, though Kaede-obaa-san says I'm not supposed to, it's not proper. I do not like it here, my lord, can I stay with you?" she rambled. He dropped from the tree before she started climbing up to him and watched her smile as she chattered animatedly.
"Rin," he cut off gently.
"Oh, gomen, I'm so happy to see you my lord!" she smiled as she bowed slightly and he moved his arm a bit which had her running right into his chest, through her arms around his neck. "But can I stay with you?" she asked.
"I'm here to take you for the winter," he said, lifting her with ease. He saw the kitsune's look of disbelief as he ran ahead to alert the village no doubt.
"Oh Thank Kami!" she declared dramatically. "I do not like living in a human village my lord, I miss Jaken-dono and A-Un," she smiled. "And I really miss you, my lord!"
"You were playing with that kitsune kit," he said.
"Shippō and Kohaku are the only ones that play with me, and it's not the same thing," she pouted a bit. "I like our games," she said. "I like hide and hunt, and no one telling me what to do or how to do it, and I miss swimming! It was so hot and Kaede-obaa-san wouldn't let me swim not even a little bit! InuYasha said I'd drown, but Jaken-dono taught me to be the bestest swimmer!"
"The best, bestest is not a word," he said softly.
"I'm the best human swimmer, I never drown," she persisted taking his correction.
"I will speak to them," he promised.
"Arigato, but it won't matter, I'm staying with you, forever and ever and ever!" she smiled.
He raised a questioning brow at her.
"I am!" she persisted. "Jaken-dono said a mortal can't do it, but I'm staying with you my lord, forever and ever."
"Do you really want to stay with an old man?" he asked dryly.
"You don't look that old, my lord," she stated.
He frowned slightly.
"I think people mistake the white hair for old, but you're inu daiyōkai, you have very handsome and pretty, white hair!"
"I am nearly a thousand years old Rin," he said levelly.
"But my lord! You look so young," she persisted.
He chuckled a little, he was young by daiyōkai standards, not even a thousand and already surpassing his father. "Appearances are deceiving," he reminded her.
"My lord has never deceived me," she huffed.
"No," he agreed. "But do you wish to remain with this old man?"
"Forever and ever and ever!" she smiled. "Even when Rin is old and grey like Kaede-obaa-san!"
"You will return in spring," he reminded her as they neared Edo and he set her down. Rin skipped to her place on his left side, but she faltered at his declaration.
"Must I, my lord?" she whined, her fingers tugging on his sleeve in her discomfort at this new information.
"Hai," he nodded. "You must, for me."
"Hai my lord," she said solemnly.
They walked in step him shortening and slowing his steps for her small frame. She continued her lively bantered and he nodded, hummed and responded occasionally. She never seemed put off by his lack of conversation skills, but he had never really developed them. Why should he when he never wanted to manipulate his words, he said what he meant and meant what he said. The humans gasped, dropping to the ground and averting their eyes, he wondered why, but ignored it as he listened to Rin. Until a small toddler ran into his leg, which had him looking down at the new human pup who trembled; the pup was obviously young on sure legs but unsteady, he heard the pup's caretaker gasp in horror, and watched the woman flinch as she pressed into the side of her male companion. Sesshōmaru looked at the pup, and Rin giggled as she shyly waved to the human pup.
"Rin," he said softly.
"Sesshōmaru-sama, this is Junpei," she said with a smiled.
He nodded slowly, he did not remember Rin being so young, and wondered what she had been like at this age. She had obviously been trouble, but still, he wondered. He looked at Rin again, and she smiled happily at the pup who was wobbling on his legs. Sesshōmaru snaked his mokomoko behind the pup when he stepped back and tripped. There was a collective gasp as the pup fell onto him, Sesshōmaru wrapped the pup up and lifted it over the crowd of people to it's caretakers, handing it to the female before there could be more strangeness. The pup squealed in delight as he unwrapped his mokomoko, he growled a bit in discomfort as clumsy fingers tore at his fur, but with the pup successfully detangled he withdrew his mokomoko and inclined his head for Rin to continue.
Rin relaunched into her animated tale of her battle of wills against a fish, and how she had been using Jaken's techniques for her hunt. He was pleased to hear her hunting prowess was still serving her well and that she was wise enough to stay out of the fisheries. She was very enthusiastic about the gardening aspects of her life here when they arrived at Kaede's hut, where the monk, a heavily pregnant taijiya, and InuYasha were awaiting them with the kitsune kit peaking out behind InuYasha's leg.
"Rin is returning to her lord!" Rin declared.
"Rin!" the taijiya gasped.
"That bastard isn't taking you anywhere, get in the hut, Rin," InuYasha stated.
"No! I'm returning to my lord!" she shouted over everyone. "Sesshōmaru-sama promised! And I'm returning!" she stated now slipping behind him, hugging his leg.
"Rin, this behavior is unbecoming," he stated as he assessed the group.
"Hai my lord," she mumbled.
"You will stand at my side, and do not mumble," he ordered sharply.
Rin huffed but stomped to her proper place as he looked at the group.
"Rin is a spirited little girl," the monk chuckled. "But it would not be wise for her to return to travelling with you into the dangers unknown."
Sesshōmaru didn't respond to that as he heard the old miko finally coming towards them.
"My lord," Rin whispered. He tilted his head slightly to indicate he was listening, she continued. "We won't be in another cave for winter will we?" she asked.
"No," he admitted. "My mother has invited you to the shiro," he informed the group.
Somewhere in Musashi Province...
"But this is nothing!" he whined. Oshiro Nori had just received his father's lands and he was miffed at the lack of wealth despite his father's wealthy lands. He would have to implement heavier taxes, and make the villagers work harder, if necessary he would have to hire the needed troops as support and he didn't like this.
There was also the yōkai problem.
"Edo is quite prosperous, my lord," his advisor informed him.
"Why?"
"They have the protection of a hanyō, the last taijya, a powerful monk and a powerful miko, I've heard, they've also brought stability and peace to the region."
"Boring," he yawned.
"You should travel your lands, get to know the people before you dismiss this as trivial, I've heard that hanyō is the younger brother of the Inu no Tashio of the yōkai, he could be a valuable ally."
"I will think about it," he lied. He didn't want to travel his lands. He had other things he wanted, and his father had left these rich lands poor, he would have to fix that.
