'How could he show up at a time like this?! What's going to happen now?'
Rin backed further into the crevice between her fridge and pantry, knocking a magnet off the fridge when she shimmied into the tiny space.
"Rin?" His voice called out innocently, the sweetness in his tone shadowing the evil he had become.
Rim trembled as his sneakers scuffed along the floors every 3 of his 15 paces towards her.
Rin remained tucked away, trembling even more when his footsteps stopped and she could feel his presence just inches from where she hid.
He slowly stepped towards the crevice where she hid and cocked his head in confusion before sighing.
"It really hurts me to see the love of my life hiding from me. Why don't you come out from there?" He said gently as he extended a hand before her.
Rin stared, eyes wide and full of fright. Deep down, after seeing his face—she wantedto talk. She wanted to understand what he was thinking and why he came back.
'But what will Sesshomaru do? I know he's aware of an unfamiliar male scent in our home. Will he come out?' She sighed. 'Either way it goes…I need this. I need closure.'
In Sesshomaru's Room
'So, he came here on his own? I'm not surprised. He has no idea that I am here...at least not yet. I will level the playing field and let him plead his case to Rin. This is what she would want. The truth, even though it's uglier than she could imagine.'
He sighed and placed his hands on his face. 'Forgive me, Rin. I cannot protect you from the frightened feeling you feel now. But I will mend the wounds the truth will inflict.'
"Please, Rin?" He begged, his voice cracking.
Rin squeezed out of the small space and looked down shamefully at her state of dress.
"Oh!" Kohaku turned away pointedly. "I-I'm sorry. I would've called first b-b-but I didn't think you'd want to see me. I had to do this of my own volition."
Rin sighed. That was the Kohaku she remembered. He was so sweet and shy. She almost pitied him.
"It's alright. Just wait here and I'll change, okay?"
He turned towards the oven to allow her to leave without him seeing her again. "Y-yeah."
Rin hastened to her room, walking past Sesshomaru's bedroom, noticing he wasn't there. She was confused, until she opened her door and saw him sitting by her window.
She let out a surprised gasp, and then a relieved sigh quickly followed. "There you are." She said quietly through her sigh.
"I thought you had forgotten about me." He said, looking off.
"Why? Because Kohaku is here? N-no. I just wanted closure. I know it's awkward but he seems like his old self and I need—"
"I know."
"Huh?" She tilted her head, surprised by how easily he understood.
"I know you. I know how forgiving you are. And I know this is what you need. So go."
Rin threw on an oversized sweatshirt, some leggings and pink slippers. She rushed over to Sesshomaru and kissed his cheek. "I'll put him out after he speaks his peace." She told him as she headed out the room.
"Rin." He called out her name, causing her to freeze. "Do not be fooled by his demeanor. He is no longer who you thought he was."
She sighed before nodding her head. "I know" and she left the bedroom.
Rin walked over to Kohaku, still in the kitchen with his back towards her. He heard Rin's slippers drag across the floor.
"You can turn around." She said, her soft voice merely suggesting rather than demanding.
He shifted slightly before turning all the way around. A wide smile formed on his lips as only a slight curve formed on hers.
"You're still angry with me." He said, noticing the yard long difference between them.
"What happened to you? Why did Sango say you left Tokyo? Do you know how much you hurt me when you left?!" She said, her series of questions spoken in an almost-shout.
"I didn't mean to hurt you! I never did! I always felt so weak and helpless...and useless to you. I wanted to be strong. I was weak all along. I started drinking all the time and it caused me to harm you! I almost killed you!" He said, tears in his eyes. "And you say you were hurt when I left?! More hurt than when I tried to kill you? Is that what you're saying to me?"
Rin nodded slowly.
He knelt before her. "I don't deserve your kindness. Your unrelenting love for me—I constantly took it for granted. I'm a fool, Rin. Please say you'll forgive me—say you'll stick with me." He begged from the bottom of his heart. He reached in his pocket and pulled out a jewelry box. He showed her another flower ring—a red rose, glowing with a mystic radiance that stunned and amazed her.
'Its beautiful.'
"Come with me, Rin. Let's forget everything and start over. We can go anywhere. Europe, America—whatever you'd like! We can have a big wedding, o-or a small one." He spoke quickly, his voice full of anticipation ad excitement. "Let's elope!" he said as he stood. "I stopped drinking, I've changed completely. I'll do whatever you want, BE whoever you want. Let's not throw our years together away. I will continue to get better, I swear!"
Rin stood silent, a look of complete shock on her face.
Kohaku looked on concerned and Sesshomaru listened in from her room, wondering why she hadn't responded.
What was on Rin's mind?
A few hours earlier
Rin had just stepped out of the shower, wrapped in a towel. Her legs were still weak from what just happened, but the tingling sensation in her thighs was worth it.
She stepped out of the bathroom and saw Sesshomaru standing in front of the door, blocking her way.
"Excuse me." She said as she gently brushed past him. He pulled her towel off her as she walked by.
Rin gasped as the cool air from inside hit her still wet body. "There were other towels in the closet!" She informed sternly.
"Yes, but I wanted this one." He responded as he draped her towel over his shoulders and shut the door behind him.
Sesshomaru inhaled the scent of Rin from the towel. It was such a soul-soothing fragrance that he had quickly become addicted to.
He quickly took his shower, eager to get back to the woman he just made love to.
When he stepped into his room, he was stunned to see Rin sitting on the bed seiza-style, wearing a lacy, half transparent black satin negligee. She looked over at him with a fierce red blush on her face and her long black hair draped over one shoulder.
He raised an eyebrow at her. "Are you trying to start something you cannot finish?"
"Whaddya mean?" She squealed out. "Don't you like it?"
He nodded. "Normally, your sense of fashion is either corporate or frumpy. This is actually refreshing to see."
"Frumpy?" She said with a pout. "I just like to be comfortable."
Sesshomaru shrugged and lied in the bed beside her.
Rin dropped down next to him and stroked his cheek.
He pulled her body close to his and rested his nose on her neck. Rin sighed happily as the warmth from his hot, showered body transferred to her nearly bare skin.
"I had no idea you were so affectionate." She said in a soft, shaky voice.
"Don't be ridiculous." He replied, his voice mostly muffled in her skin. "I'm only doing this because I enjoy your scent."
Rin began to laugh. "Even when you're being nice, you're being mean."
"Hmph."
"Can I ask you a question?"
"What is it?"
"Uh…what now?"
He lifted his head and looked into her eyes. "What exactly are you asking me?"
"I mean what is our future going to be like? You know, after you're officially discharged."
"That depends. What is it you want?"
"Huh? I-I don't want to bore you with my fantasies." She said with a nervous giggle.
"Rin. Speak your mind."
"I want to quit my job, get a big house with a greenhouse and have…children. I want a family. A new, peaceful… at-mo-sphere." She said sheepishly as she looked down.
Sesshomaru sighed and put his nose back on her shoulder. "Fine."
"Is that what you want too?" Rin asked as she slid her fingers between his.
"Doing the things that you want to do seems to work in my favor. So I don't mind." He said as he clutched her hand tighter.
"So you…want to stay with me?" She said excitedly.
"Is it not obvious?"
Rin's face beamed brighter than it ever had. She had no doubt in her mind that they would be together for a long time. Forever, even. She wrapped her other arm around his neck as their bodies tangled as one.
"Rin?"
"Hey, Rin!"
Rin snapped herself back to reality. She looked at Kohaku's eager face as he awaited her response to his proposal.
"I'm sorry, Kohaku." She said as she hung her head down. "I can't go with you."
"What?!" He said, completely shocked by her refusal. "Why not?"
"I've moved on, Kohaku. I found someone that helped me realize I need to move forward. And moving forward with you is a step backward. I want to move forward with the person that can give me more than promises; someone whose actions have shown me that I can trust them with everything I have and not end up hurt in the end."
Kohaku's eyes were glossed over with that demonic evil once again. Rin backed away further when she saw his eyes turn cold just like the day he tried to kill her.
"Ko…kohaku?"
He intensely gazed at Rin as he moved towards her, struggling to meet her eyes as she looked all around the room, avoiding his stare.
"Rin. I just…" He began, finally catching her eyes. "Want…you to be with me."
Rin was frozen where she stood. She remembered experiencing this sensation before, but it was from Sesshomaru. Though, this time, she didn't like it at all. 'Why can't I move?' she wondered, her nerves knotting up as Kohaku was right in front of her face.
"You have to stop trying to fool yourself." He said as he grabbed her chin. "I've been everything you ever wanted for so long. Don't let my past mistakes cloud your judgment now." Just as he was about to pull her in for a kiss, he heard something fall in her room.
He looked directly down the hall at the closed door, and then back down at Rin with enraged flames surrounding his pupils. "Is there someone else here?" He asked as he gripped her chin even harder, forcing her to look up at him.
"Um…"
"Don't stand here and lie to me! Is it him? The guy you've been seeing all of a sudden?" He began to shout. "You've been messing around since before I left, haven't you?!" He accused.
"N-no!"
"I knew it! You…you…slut!" He raised his hand to slap her, when Rin's door swung open and he was flung straight into the kitchen, denting the stove.
Rin gasped upon seeing Sesshomaru's blood red eyes when he turned towards her.
"Are you alright?" He asked her.
Rin just stood there, still in shock, tears coming from her eyes.
Sesshomaru grabbed her and quickly brought her to his bedroom. "Do not come out. No matter what, you understand?"
Rin nodded slowly. "Please don't kill him."
"I do not wish to kill him. I only want mother's brooch back." And he shut the door behind him.
'H…his mother's brooch? But…' Rin gasped in horror. She began to piece things together. "His demonic eyes, the violent actions the…" She gasped again. "Murders! Kohaku murdered Sesshomaru's mother!"
She opened the door slightly, just so she could hear and see a bit of what was happening. 'With all this noise, someone is bound to call the police!' Rin let out a groan as her slow tears turned into a waterfall of cries. 'Why did this have to happen?'
"Get up, you weak human." Sesshomaru said condescendingly as he stood over Kohaku.
Kohaku groaned as he pulled himself to his feet and got a good look at his assailant. "You! I should have known." He shouted as he drew his swords.
"I've been waiting for you to come here, sniveling about how worthless you are, pleading for Rin to take you back. You're pathetic."
He let out a growl "What do you think you're doing to Rin, you disgusting monster!"
"Hmph. Which one of us is truly the monster?" He asked as he grabbed Kohaku by his neck. "Tell me, how many others have you killed, robbed, or even raped? Why do you get such enjoyment from hurting women?"
"I don't have to answer your questions!" He hardly managed to say.
Sesshomaru grasped his neck tighter. "It would've been wise to clean off the scent of your sister's blood before coming here, as well."
Kohaku used his strength to lift up his swords and stab Sesshomaru in both his shoulders, causing him to drop him.
Sesshomaru let out a grunt as the blades entered his skin, nearly meeting his bones.
Kohaku roughly pulled the blades out as blood spewed out of Sesshomaru's shoulders and onto the kitchen wall.
After wounding him, Kohaku flipped over Sesshomaru in an effort to escape.
Sesshomaru had plenty of fight left in him. He caught Kohaku mid-flip and successfully pulled his leg out of its socket.
Kohaku dropped to the ground, but pulled himself up quickly, limping around the living room with his swords still drawn, knocking things over due to his lack of balance.
Sesshomaru healed his shoulders using sheer will and used his agility to appear behind Kohaku, driving his claws into his back.
Kohaku grimaced in pain as he dropped to the ground again.
"What did you think, boy? That you would be as strong as I am as long as you held the power of the brooch?" He asked as he snatched it out of Kohaku's pocket.
"I am strong!" He groaned out.
"This power is not meant for a low-class being such as yourself." He retorted as he stepped on Kohaku's bleeding back. "You and your clan will never—"
Knock. Knock. Knock.
"Rin?" It was Ayame's voice from outside the door, just like last time.
Sesshomaru, caught offguard by the knocking, let Kohaku slip from beneath his foot and down the fire escape.
Bang. Bang. Bang.
"Rin, are you okay? I keep hearing noise from your apartment! If you don't answer I'm calling the police!"
Sesshomaru rushed to Rin and pushed her out towards the door.
Rin quickly wiped her tears away and unlocked the door, with the chain still on.
"Hey!" Ayame said to her. "What's going on in there?"
"Oh! It's nothing. I just have a few friends over and we were uh…exercising!" She told her with a false smile and giggle.
Ayame shook her head and laughed. "That sounds like a rigorous workout. I almost called the cops! Good thing I stopped by, first!"
"Yes, sorry! We'll keep it down."
"Okay, goodnight!" Ayame said happily as she returned to her apartment.
Rin locked her door and looked around at the messy apartment. Her furniture was all over the place and there were flower pots on the floor.
"Where's Kohaku?" Rin asked as she looked around, sighing sadly when she saw the blood on the kitchen wall.
"He managed to escape when that girl knocked on the door."
Rin examined Sesshomaru, looking for injuries. "You're okay?"
He nodded.
"W-was all that stuff true? About Kohaku? He's the one that was in charge of the Slayers all along?"
He nodded again.
"How long have you known?!" She questioned angrily. "Why would you keep something like that from me?"
"I only found out yesterday, Rin." He responded in a small voice, taken aback by Rin's anger.
"And you had so much time to tell me! I wouldn't have wasted my time asking him all those questions if I would have known he…" Her words became foreign as she cried through her speech.
Sesshomaru grabbed Rin and pulled her close to him as she wept on his shirt, tears staining the spot she laid her head.
She wrapped her arms around him, squeezing as tightly as she could with her weak arms.
"Rin, are you certain you want this?"
"W-what?" She asked, following a sniffle as she raised her head to look up at him.
"I am no different from Kohaku—a monster that has killed."
"No!" She said, shaking her head furiously. "You are not a monster! You are different! The things you did then, you wouldn't do now! You're different from Kohaku! You…you won't hurt me."
"Hmm."
Rin let out a big sigh before putting on a smile. "Let's keep moving forward. We're both okay. You got your mother's brooch back, didn't you?"
He showed her the brooch. It had a lavender crescent moon and a deep red flower in the center, with silver wings spread on each side of it.
"You must be so glad!" Rin said happily.
"Yes. I must tell father that I retrieved it or he will endlessly nag until I contact him."
"Oh! I just remembered something!" She said as she walked towards the stand by the door. "Inuyasha dropped this letter off for you."
Sesshomaru opened the letter and read the contents with his eyes wide. "Interesting."
"Huh? What is it?" Rin asked curiously as she grasped the letter from his hands.
Outside
Kohaku was still on the fire escape, eavesdropping. He was relieved that Sesshomaru hadn't noticed his presence.
'Rin—I will not allow you to be happy with a demon. Just you wait.'
SO WHAT'S THE LETTER ABOUT? WHAT IS KOHAKU PLANNING? WILL THERE BE A PART 2 TO THEIR FIGHT?
What do you all think? Review, give feedback, talk to me!
xoxo
-VQ