"Do not go easy her, Tsubame! Strike faster, Rin!" Tsukiyo bellowed as she walked between the young demonesses and Rin. She was overseeing their training in jujutsu. Tsubame was clearly going easy on Rin because she lacked the strength of a demoness. Taiya, as well, relaxed and did not press Rin as ruthlessly as she should. The three were clearly bonding but that friendship had no place on the training ground. "Tsukiko. Replace Tsubame. You have one minute to defeat Rin before I let Taiya and Tsubame assist her." The brown-haired Tsubame backed off, watching her replacement with narrowed eyes. Tsukiko was one of the eldest girls, a few weeks away from adulthood, and Lady Tsukiyo's younger sister. Rin prepared herself, preparing her footing and readying her attack. If she allowed the demoness to make the first move, Rin would have no way to beat her greater strength and speed. Across from her, Tsukiko smiled with predatory glee. She was always ready to please her elder sister and within a few seconds, threw Rin swiftly to the floor after sidestepping Rin's attempt to grab her. Before Rin could recover and get up, Tsukiko was already on top, pinning her down.
"Feint before you attack. At least once. Or change the direction your hands will come from at the last moment. I can predict your moves too easily," Tsukiko whispered into Rin's ear. Both had their long black hair tied in a bun but the young demoness towered a full head over Rin.
"Tsubame, Taiya. You need to be able to attack ruthlessly. The mere fact that she's someone you know does not excuse your behavior. Nor does her being a human. Humans can kill yōkai. Lessons are over for today. Tsukiko, well done. Everyone else, work hard. War is upon us and all of us may soon be called to defend our clan!" All the demonesses and Rin bowed to Tsukiyo before breaking off into groups to wash and change. Tsubame and Taiya stuck by Rin, flanking her like bodyguards.
"It was horrible how Tsukiyo-sama used her sister to make a point against Rin-ojousama. And Tsukiko is one of the best fighters," Taiya said to Rin while she untied her own hair bun. Her long black hair flowed down before Taiya scooped it up and retied it into a ponytail.
"It's okay," Rin said cheerfully, "Now I know what I need to work towards. I don't want any special treatment, honestly." She smiled to show them that she meant what she said but, inside, Rin felt that she might have reached the first insurmountable wall of her life. Every demon here was physically stronger than her. The elderly demons all retained the air of youth but lacked the stamina to fight a prolonged battle, which evenly matched demons often found themselves in. Even the concept of stamina was relative since most could fight longer than Rin could. Any single one of the older demons here could kill her with a single finger. The pups were all bursting with energy but lacked the discipline of their seniors. Even though she was twice their size, any of the young ones could still toss Rin if she let her guard down. Then, there were the ones on the cusp of adulthood like Taiya, Tsubame and Tsukiko. They seemed to have that perfect combination of youthful energy and seasoned discipline. Rin needed a way to beat them, something she had that they didn't. She decided to ask Kohaku about it since he made a living hunting demons.
Rin's plans were waylaid as she left the bathhouse to look for Kohaku. Her adoptive grandmother was waiting outside with Tsukiyo. Rin felt she was better than most humans at reading demons. If she was correct, Tsukiyo was not sure about something that the Inu no Kimi was going to do. "Rin, a lady must be able to defend herself. My dear beloved knew something of this when he gave Tessaiga to Inuyasha, who is unable to equal any noteworthy yōkai. Captain Tsukiyo is graciously tutoring you in the physical and martial arts. But given the situation, I believe you need more than simply becoming physically strong. Please follow me. It is time we visited that windbag, Totōsai." Rin bowed and followed, wondering what new thing she was about to see.
In the short time she had been here at the castle, Rin found herself in awe of just about every inhabitant. Captain Tsukiyo was levelheaded and strong, an ideal warrior, Rin thought. She had none of Sesshōmaru-sama's graceful majesty but she had the gleam of a mighty heroine. Her adoptive grandmother, oddly enough, reminded Rin of Kagome-san whenever she complained about things she missed from the world she had left. The Inu no Kimi made frequent complaints about small things, but Rin believed it was a tactic to hide the depths of her cunning. Sometimes Rin thought that Tsukiyo-san could see through the smokescreen but other times, Rin wasn't so sure. Then there were the oldest girls like Taiya and Tsubame, who were both friends and older sisters to Rin. They spent many hours together when their responsibilities allowed. But as they neared adulthood, they were also subjected to arranged meetings with other families to consider potential husbands. Rin had listened interestedly to learn how life worked here in the castle, but she was sure Sesshōmaru-sama would never push her into any marriage. He seemed to get annoyed every time he had to repeat, "Do as you like." The demon girls, in turn, were eager to learn what it was like to live in human dwellings and what the world below the castle looked like. Only those with permission were allowed to leave the castle and most of the time, those demons were hunters tasked with gathering food or supplies. Then there was Tsukiko, who was bound to be part of Sesshōmaru-sama's retinue when it was time to fight. Her natural skill was undeniable and Sesshōmaru-sama would need every capable warrior in his battles. Rin hoped Tsubame and Taiya stayed back with the ones chosen to defend the castle. She felt some guilt about her feelings every time the girls talked about their dream of marching to war with Sesshōmaru-sama in spring, but Rin wanted them to be safe.
"You are distracted." The statement shook Rin's thoughts and brought her mind scrambling back to the present. "Sesshōmaru may be dense, granddaughter, but he is not unintelligent. You've seen how he has used our clan to cloak you with protection which even the most powerful human would never possess. And even those filthy Panthers will be required to guard you one day, though I will have to make them wash before they step foot inside. That girl was barely cleaner than the mongrel and his wife. Still, I suppose it was a better match than I had expected, and I am curious to see what my grandchildren from that union will look like." She turned to face Rin, her eyes were neither warm nor cold. Rin thought they showed curiosity. "You are a human." She said this as if noticing it for the first time. "We are so very different, you and I, but we feel the same emotions, I think. I still do not understand why my son is taken by you but if your safety and happiness make him happy, that makes my heart glad." Rin opened her mouth to speak and then closed it. Nothing there had been a question and she was so unsure how to properly respond. Then they continued in silence and Rin wasn't sure what to make of her words.
She was still puzzling over what the Inu no Kimi had said when they entered another area of the castle. This courtyard was large like the others, but it was black, soot-covered and more chaotic. Soot-covered demons moved about, each carrying a blade or tray or some tool which Rin couldn't name. "This is our smithy, where each weapon meant for our clan is forged. Sesshōmaru's Bakusaiga is one of the few exceptions as it is …" the Inu no Kimi was interrupted by a loud roar and a tower of fire shot into the air. "That walking fire hazard!" she seethed, turning to the source of the commotion.
Rin saw a wizened old man bending over a blade and blowing fire onto it. Beside him, Kohaku watched with interest as the old man banged repeatedly upon the heated blade with a flat hammer. Kohaku looked up and saw them approaching, waving with a smile. Rin smiled and waved back, not noticing the questioning eyebrow from her adoptive grandmother and Tsukiyo. The flames were charring the flooring and rising high enough to lick the walls of the nearby buildings. The Inu no Kimi pointed to a large bucket of water, meant to quench any sparks or small fires, and Tsukiyo immediately picked it up, though clearly unsure what she was supposed to do with it. The other smiths and demons had stopped to watch the lady of the castle while Tōtōsai continued to blow fire and pound on the blade. Kohaku saw the oncoming danger and began to distance himself as the Inu no Kimi directed her finger towards Tōtōsai. Tsukiyo obeyed and in a few quick steps, towered over the demon smith. As he realized someone was behind him, the cold water tipped over and drenched him.
"That is how you deal with a fire hazard, granddaughter. Douse it with water before it catches fire," the Inu no Kimi spoke as if giving a lesson to Rin, who smiled at her adoptive grandmother with uncertainty. Tōtōsai was a friend of the previous Demon Dog Lord and one of Inuyasha's friends. Rin knew that Sesshōmaru-sama didn't have much to do with Tōtōsai and that her grandmother really didn't like him.
"What was that for?" the old demon demanded.
"My mistress felt you were about to set the castle ablaze, so she directed me to prevent it," Tsukiyo replied haughtily.
"Well, it's a good thing it didn't touch this blade otherwise it'd be a waste! What do you want, young one?" Tōtōsai said, looking at the Inu no Kimi.
Tsukiyo withdrew a sheathed sword from her belt and held it out, hilt first, to the demon smith. He looked from the one demoness to the other before taking the sword and drawing it. Rin wasn't sure what she expected but it wasn't a sigh. "This is a human sword. Absolutely nothing special about it. Foreign design though." It was a shorter than normal sword and looked unlike any of the other curved swords Rin had seen before.
The Inu no Kimi smiled wickedly before replying. "It is a family heirloom. A human from the continent used it to drive our ancestors from the continent. I am told it was pulled from my great-grandfather's belly. Rin will need a sword and, if she continues to grow, that sword is will probably be the best for her. Humans are too weak to use a sword imbued with our powers." Rin and Kohaku wisely chose not to comment that some humans could use weapons made with demon bones. The Inu no Kimi didn't seem like the type of person who took well to being corrected when she wanted to make her point. "Sharpen it for her."
I really dislike how screwy the formatting on FF can become sometimes. A second chapter should go up around next week.