A/N: So this is the event that will prompt Sesshomaru to leave Rin with Kaede. I was thinking about doing a chapter that actually shows Sesshomaru leaving Rin there, but I don't think I will. The little about bit about Rin's scent changing is something that I'm thinking about using later on in the story . . . so I guess we'll just have to see how it goes.
Thank you to all of you who have reviewed. You are awesome in my book. And as always I hope that you enjoy and review;)
I do not own Inuyasha.
Lord Sesshomaru was on his way back to his companions. It had been close to two months since Naraku had been defeated, and the only things that had been plaguing him recently were petty border disputes and Jaken's incessant chatter. Sesshomaru conveniently ignored the fact that Rin talked as much as Jaken did. As Sesshomaru approached the clearing where he left his retainer and Rin, he noted two things: first, Jaken was panicking, and the only time Jaken panicked was when Rin was involved. Second, something about Rin's scent was off.
Jaken was indeed panicking. Something was wrong with Rin, but damned if he knew what it was. Lord Sesshomaru is going to kill me, Jaken thought to himself. Ever since Rin had joined them, his lifespan seemed to be shortening at a frightening pace. The stupid child is going to be the death of me, he thought looking toward the girl in question. She was currently pressed close to Ah-Un's side asleep. Although Jaken would never admit it, he had grown quite fond of the girl and was extremely worried. What was wrong with her?
Jaken was so busy trying to figure out what was wrong with Rin, that he nearly had a heart attack when he caught a whiff of Sesshomaru's scent. Surely he would know what was wrong with Rin, but then again this might just send him over the edge and end up with me dead, Jaken was thinking to himself as he heard the faint footsteps of his lord drawing nearer. By the time that Sesshomaru was at the edge of the clearing Jaken was seriously considering running away from what would surely be a pissed off Sesshomaru. I could say that I have to go on a journey Jaken thought quickly to himself, but alas he was too late. So wrapped up in his escape plans was he that he failed to notice Sesshomaru standing right in front of him.
"Jaken," said Sesshomaru in his usual monotone voice.
Jaken nearly wet himself right there. He slowly looked up at the majestic creature in front of him. "Yes milord," he replied, his voice was at least twice as high as it normally was because of his fear.
"What is wrong with Rin," Sesshomaru asked, looking off in the direction of Ah-Un and Rin.
"Well milord," Jaken replied somewhat hopefully, perhaps he was going to be reasonable after all, "She seems to have lost all of her strength. Two days ago, her scent began to change, and then this morning . . . she's done nothing but sleep all day. It's such strange behavior, especially for her." Jaken concluded.
That was strange. Rin was normally such a robust child. Hmmm how odd, Sesshomaru thought as he turned and headed for Rin. And her scent, it smelled sweet, too sweet; sickly sweet he thought to himself before coming to an abrupt stop. Could Rin be sick? Demons didn't normally get sick unless they were still babies or on their deathbeds. But humans . . . Well they were such frail creatures.
Sesshomaru continued on his trek until he reached Rin. Once there he knelt next to her, and somewhat hesitantly, reached out a hand to touch her forehead. He had no idea what he was doing; he was only copying what he had seen humans do to those who were sick. Supposedly they were checking for a fever, whatever that was. As his hand came into contact with Rin's skin, he was surprised by how hot she was. He had only touched her face a handful of times, the most recent being when his mother had restored her life to her, but even he knew that she was too hot.
Sesshomaru pulled his hand back and thought for a while. He had no idea how to take care of a sick human, so he would have to use some common sense.
Ten minutes later Sesshomaru and Ah-Un were heading back into the forest in search of a cave; Rin was still asleep, and had been laid on Ah-Un's back. He had figured that it would probably be best if Rin was shielded from the elements while she recovered. Sesshomaru had sent Jaken to Jenenji to get some herbs that would help bring Rin's temperature down - he still didn't know that she had a fever. Hopefully the imp would be back by this evening, or the next morning at the very latest. Sesshomaru had told Jaken that he would kill him otherwise.
The next seven days were very long ones for both lord and retainer. Jaken had returned early the next morning with the herbs and directions for how to use them. But the herbs alone didn't seem to be working. So Sesshomaru tried holding Rin in his arms while wrapping his fur around her. He remembered his mother cuddling with him the one time that he had gotten sick as a child. But Rin didn't want any part of it. Sesshomaru had no idea what to do.
Then Jaken suggested starting a fire. That made no sense to Sesshomaru; why would they need to start a fire if he was offering his warmth to the girl? But as the night drew nearer and Rin curled up into a small, shivering ball, Sesshomaru conceded that perhaps building a fire wasn't such a bad idea after all. This was confirmed when Rin woke up long enough to get closer to the fire and ask for some food, which Sesshomaru promptly sent Jaken out to find. By the time the imp returned Rin had fallen back asleep, this time in Sesshomaru's lap.
All throughout the night Rin tossed and turned; one minute pushing Sesshomaru's furs off her, the next pulling them back up to her chin. He didn't know what to make of it. When he'd been sick he'd stayed nestled up in his mother's furs until the sickness had passed.
The next day brought about the development of a cough. This was even more disturbing to Sesshomaru, who had now clue how human illnesses worked. As he watched a particularly violent spell of coughing shake Rin's small body, he decided that he had never felt so useless in his life. After the spell was over he sent Jaken off to Jenenji's again, this time to find something that would help with her coughing.
It had been three days since Jaken had come back. Rin's temperature had come down, and her coughing spells were becoming scarce. It looked as if she would be healthy enough to resume travel any day now.
Rin had made a full recovery. Sesshomaru still stayed in the cave for an extra three days, in the event that she suffered a relapse. But Rin, it appeared, truly was fine. She was currently sitting in front of the fire, with Sesshomaru's fur wrapped around her whole body, so that only her head and hands were visible. She was teasing Jaken about worrying about her while she was sick.
As Sesshomaru listened to the familiar bickering he felt tension he didn't even know had been there leaving his body. She was going to be alright.
He'd been incredibly worried about her. Her small flushed face had unsettled him; her coughs had frightened him. He had wished that that he could slay the sickness for her, but there was nothing that he could do. He was one of the most powerful demons to ever walk the earth and he didn't like feeling helpless. Watching Rin over the past few days made him feel just that.
The simple fact of the matter was that Sesshomaru was a fighter not a healer. What if she got sick again? What if the next time she got sick, she died because he didn't know how to treat her? Sure, they could go to Jenenji like they did this time, but what if the next time she fell ill there wasn't any time for that? Now that Sesshomaru had acknowledged that she was the most important thing to him, at least to himself, he was not going to let anything, least of all some sickness, steal her away.
And yet he was also a little baffled. It was something that he hadn't allowed himself to think about while she had been ill, but there were times during her illness when Rin's scent strongly resembled that of a demon's. It didn't smell like him; as a matter of fact Sesshomaru had never come across a scent like it before. Furthermore, he wasn't sure if it was the result of her illness, since it had disappeared along with it. He pondered this strange anomaly for a while longer, before getting back to the matter at hand.
He wondered, not for the first time, if she would be better off in a human village.