Insert generic disclaimer here!

Oh my goodness! 900+ views! Are you kidding?! WOW! I feel so blessed!

I'm so honored that many of you enjoy my story!

[I have been forced to block a few people from my story! I had two people/authors send me reviews about how disgusting I am for making Sesshomaru and Rin a pair. These people were huge Kagura and Sesshomaru fans… I will make this PERFECTLY CLEAR! I do not mind the Kagura and Sesshomaru pairing; HOWEVER, that being said, Sesshomaru granted Kagura her freedom instead of saving her. I understand that he may have had feelings for her but that is NOT MY story. If you prefer to think of Sess/Rin as father and daughter; that's your choice! But do not tell me what to and what not to write; this is my story and what I would prefer to happen between Sesshomaru and Rin. If you do not like it; THEN DO NOT READ IT! Do not read my story and then accuse me of being disgusting simply because you have different views on the characters. SO; that being said, heed my warnings and get lost if all you wish to do is stir up drama.]

On a lighter note! A special thank you to sessrinz and Sklgsw for the reviews! Y'all keep me positive and typing like a mad woman!

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Chapter 7- Questions and Answers

"Ooof! Ok! I think that's everything!" Rin exclaimed happily as she set the last trunk filled with her belongings up against her wall. She turned to her doorway where Kaede was standing quietly; as she approached the old miko, Rin noticed unshed tears glossing over Kaede's good eye. Rin sunk to her knees and bowed lowly in respect.

"I have no words that would do your actions and love justice, Kaede. You have been the Mother I lost so long ago; I am thankful to you for claiming me and taking me under your wing." Rin whispered; her own eyes pricking as tears began to form. Kaede too sunk to the ground, wrapping her arms around the young woman she had raised from a small child.

"Ye were the daughter I was never blessed with, Rin. I will love ye for the rest of my days; ye have put a light in this old woman's life." Kaede murmured softly; stroking the silky length of Rin's hair. She pulled back from the embrace and sent a loving smile at Rin.

"I am very proud of ye, Child. Come; let's not keep the demon lord waiting." She said, allowing Rin to help and pull her to her feet.

The two exited Rin's room and approached Sesshomaru who was leaning against the wall nearest to the door with his eyes shut. As they stopped in front of him, his sparkling gold eyes opened slowly and he gestured with his chin towards Rin's room.

"Are you finished packing, Rin?" he asked quietly. Rin nodded and smiled slightly; wiping her eyes on her kimono sleeve.

"Yes, Lord…er… yes, Sesshomaru." She corrected, a slight blush staining her cheeks. It was going to take her some time getting used to calling him by his given name and not as her lord. Sesshomaru made a noncommittal sound in the back of his throat before turning his attention to Kaede.

"Human servants from this Sesshomaru's castle will come in three days' time to collect Rin's belongings." He said impassively. Kaede nodded in understanding but stayed mute on the subject.

"You have this Sesshomaru's gratitude for caring for Rin; I am in your debt." He added, bowing slightly to the old woman; shocking her and Rin at the action. Kaede cleared her throat before returning his bow.

"Take care of young Rin or I shall be forced to set Inuyasha on ye." She warned a slight smirk on her wrinkled face. Sesshomaru returned her smirk before beckoning to Rin.

"This Sesshomaru will see to her every need and whim; have no fear."

Rin sent him a smile and stepped to his side; he held open the door covering for her before ushering her outside. Their pack was waiting outside for them to say their final goodbyes; the children and women crying softly. Rin approached them all and bowed.

"Thank you all for all you have taught and shown me. I am truly blessed to have friends such as you."

Everyone, save for Inuyasha, surrounded her and gave her a group hug. When they pulled away from her; Inuyasha walked forwards, he stared down at her for a moment before his ears lowered to his head and a small whine escaped his throat. He drew Rin into his arms and burrowed his nose into her hair and collarbone; a sad whimper echoed in her ear and Rin fought the urge to cry again. When he withdrew from her; Rin grabbed one of his hands and placed it over her heart.

"Rin loves her Inuyasha." She relayed in Inu. Inuyasha gave her a sad smile, ears still drooping towards his skull.

"Inuyasha loves his Rin. Always." He replied in the same tongue.

Sesshomaru stepped up to the pair and addressed his pack.

"Rin and I will be returning to my castle; all of you are welcome to visit whenever you see fit. You are this Sesshomaru's pack and his mate-to-be's friends; therefore, you are worthy of staying in our home." He said indifferently; detached as he always was with those who were not Rin. He gave them a slight nod and farewell bark before his Moko Moko wrapped around Rin's waist and drew her to his chest where he then swept her into his arms and rose into the sky. Rin waved once at the group on land before snuggling closer to her Alpha.

A sudden question popped into her head and she asked it without hesitating.

"Sesshomaru? Can we take a few days to reach your castle? I miss sleeping under the stars."

Sesshomaru peered down at her before giving a slight nod and squeezing her gently. The pair flew for some odd hours until the sun began to sink; bathing the landscape in an array of reds, yellows and oranges. Sesshomaru began to search their surroundings for a suitable place to rest when he spotted a hotsprings with lush grass and plenty of trees that offered security and privacy. He descended slowly, careful not to jostle the young female slumbering in his arms. His beast noted the hotsprings in his sub conscience; a very Cheshire cat-like grin pulled its chops over its dagger-like teeth to form what could only be noted as perverse humor on the beasts face.

'Less than appropriate intentions, Pup?' his beast asked slyly. Sesshomaru's upper lip pulled up in a slight, silent snarl.

'I will not dishonor Rin.' The man replied; the beast grumbled in amusement.

'Who said anything about dishonor? I was merely implying; oh what's the word humans use? Ah yes; I was implying that we could have fun.' It barked humorously. Sesshomaru frowned as his feet touched the ground; he fought back the urge to growl.

'I will not make her do anything she is uncomfortable with. And neither will you.' The man said firmly. The beast huffed; turning its snout up.

'I don't see the problem with…'

'Silence!'

'Alright, alright. No need to get defensive.' His beast grumbled; clearing disappointed by the lack of 'fun' they would be having. Sesshomaru ignored the last remark as he bent his head to nuzzle Rin's neck.

"Rin." He called softly. The girl in question yawned and blinked her eyes open slowly before she took in their surroundings and squealed with delight.

"A hotspring!? Oh thank you, Sesshomaru! This is magnificent." She said giddily. Sesshomaru's male-ego preened under her praise as he set her down. Rin immediately went to the water and peered into the clear depths; her reflection mirroring her excitement.

"Are you hungry?" he asked; as if on cue, Rin's stomach rumbled loudly. Rin flushed before covering the protesting area of her body with her hands. Sesshomaru smirked slightly; his amusement evident in his eyes.

"Yes; shall I go find something to eat?" she asked; Sesshomaru's smirk widened before he approached her and kissed her courting mark; his lips barely ghosting over the purple skin.

"This Sesshomaru is courting you, ne? I shall find you sustenance." He whispered in her ear. Rin giggled and pushed on his chest.

"Going to catch your weak human a stag?" She teased; his smirk turned into a downright predatory grin.

"You just wait here, Rrrriiinnnn." He purred out, sending heat coursing through her veins. His beast gave a hunting howl; its tail twitching in anticipation.

'Yes! Let us hunt for our mate!'

Sesshomaru acknowledged its request and, with a small glance in Rin's direction, was gone before she could blink.

A shuddering breath expelled from Rin's mouth; her knees felt weak and the back of her neck glistened with nervous perspiration. She folded her legs underneath her elegantly and sat with her back against a nearby boulder.

She proceeded to replay the last 24 hours in her head; she had woken up this morning as a single maiden living in a small village; and now, she was being courted by the most powerful youkai to walk the earth and traveling to his castle to spend the rest of her very long life with him.

A frown graced her features as she considered the courting aspect; why had he chosen her? She was the very species he despised, despite her immortality; when he mated her, she could still only give him hanyou children. He had never been withdrawn when it came to voicing his opinions on humans and half-breeds; she had been content to know he somewhat cared for her because she had been loyal to him so long without fearing him. Her frown deepened; her Alpha deserved a high-ranking, beautiful demoness. Like Kagura, she thought suddenly. Despair washed through her; she was no fool, she knew that her Alpha had been severely saddened when the wind sorceress had perished, choosing freedom over being saved by her Alpha's heavenly fang. His grief for the demoness had prompted the Tenseiga to call to the swordsmith, Totosai to be reforged as a weapon when its wielder and master had shown true compassion for another.

"Why me?" she whispered; she was so deep in her own thoughts (Inuyasha had warned that someday those deep thoughts of hers would get her in trouble), she failed to notice Sesshomaru's return.

Sesshomaru emerged from the trees surrounding the hotsprings where Rin waited for him; a 12-point buck resting over his right shoulder. He knew it was a little much; but both he and his beast could not resist the temptation of showing off just a little bit to the young female. It was in their nature to want to impress a female. He stopped when his nose picked up the scent of sadness and despair; wafting from the woman that had been his target. He frowned slightly.

"Rin?" he called.

Rin nearly jumped out of her skin when she heard Sesshomaru call her name; she turned her body towards where her Alpha stood; a very large buck with an impressive rack over his shoulder. She sent him a sad smile.

"I'm not that hungry, my lord." She said quietly. His eyebrows shot up at the use of the honorific before he frowned again when she did not correct herself. Rin never made the mistake of disobeying him. He dumped the buck on the ground unceremoniously before crossing the distance between them in four long strides. He crouched down to her level; his elbows resting on his knees before he scented her for injury.

"Why does this Sesshomaru smell sadness from you, Rin? Do you regret returning with me?" he asked. She gasped; reverting back to third person as she rushed to explain.

"No! Rin is very happy to be with Lord Sesshomaru again!"

"But?" he urged. Rin let her gaze fall to the ground at his boot encased feet.

"Rin doesn't understand." She whispered.

"Rin, you will look at this Sesshomaru when you are speaking to him." He commanded; when she lifted her eyes to look at him he continued.

"What do you not understand Rin?" Rin's eyes held unspeakable grief before she answered.

"Why did Lord Sesshomaru pick Rin? Rin is human. Lord Sesshomaru deserves a strong, powerful and beautiful demoness. Not a weak, mediocre human like Rin." Sesshomaru felt his chest clench before he released a small sigh and looked towards the water.

"If this Sesshomaru tells you his reasoning; will you trust his word?" He asked quietly, his eyes shifting back to sad cinnamon.

"Rin trusts her lord." She replied. Sesshomaru gave a tense nod.

"This Sesshomaru is unused to speaking of his emotions. However; I am forced to admit that I have become everything I said I would never be centuries ago." He began. He gritted his teeth before resuming his explanation.

"I swore never to fall from my quest of supreme power. Believing that with supreme power I would find the path I was meant to take. Inuyasha saw to it that I be forcefully pushed from that path." He said, dry humor coloring his usual monotone voice. Rin's eyes widened but she remained mute.

"When Inuyasha injured me with the Tessaiga a second time; the Kami saw fit to wound my pride further. The kami sent you to me in my most damaged state; my most pathetic state." He added darkly. Rin went to speak when he held up a hand, cautioning her to wait.

"You found me broken and unable to move past the point of sitting up. You were the very thing that I had always thought to be inferior to those of my standings. You were weak, tiny and at the time I thought you to be very stupid. You did not fear me." He said quietly.

"Instead of fearing me like any normal creature would; you attempted to aid me. Without knowing it; you proceeded to bruise my already much wounded pride. As the days went on, however, I began to grow curious of you. Which is why, when I found you dead from the wolves, I brought you back to life with Tenseiga." His eyes darted down to his father's fang; Rin glanced at it too before looking back at him, confusion muddling her scent.

"The following months, you never left my side. No amount of danger I seemed to put you in succeeded in pushing you from me. I attempted to reason with myself that I only protected you because you belonged to me. Because you were more proof that I was an unstoppable force of nature; even beating death at its own game. You were merely a possession." The hurt that crossed her face had him reaching out to cup her cheek.

"I lied." He said firmly. She gave a small gasp, her eyes widening.

"I cared for you and was too prideful to admit it. That pride was what led to your second death and to this day I still hate myself for it." He whispered. Rin reached up and cradled the hand on her cheek with hers.

"But you saved me." She insisted. He shook his head.

"No. My father did. My mother may have put that Meidou Stone around your neck that proceeded to give you your life back; but it was my father who somehow knew that whoever had been taken by death, while training with my sword, would have been important in my life. It was he that made certain that the life could be given back when he taught me a hard learned lesson on emotions." He said with a humorless, short laugh. He gazed deep into her eyes.

"I would have lost everything worth living for that day if you had not returned to life." He confessed softly. Rin frowned a little.

"But you did care for Rin as you do now." She pointed out. He sighed softly.

"No. I didn't. I was not aware that you would grow up to play this role in my life. But, I cared for you more than I had ever cared for anyone in my entire, very long life." He said.

"Kagura?" The one worded question had shock flashing through his frame and widening his eyes. His eyes grew slightly sad at the name.

"I'll admit I thought she would be the one I would take as my mate someday. I had planned on courting her after releasing her from Naraku. When I found her in that field; her body disintegrating from Naraku's miasma, I knew that she would rather have her freedom than keep a life that had been very cruel to her. I respected that choice. My feelings for her were fleeting and shallow to what I feel for you, Rin. I did not love Kagura; yes I cared for her but in the end, she made her decision and it was a decision I respected. There is also something that you have earned that she did not, Rin." He said quietly. She cocked her head in a silent question.

"You have earned the approval of my youkai, my true self when I am not in this form." Rin's mouth opened and a small 'oh' escaped with a gust of air.

"Your youkai likes me?" She asked, flabbergasted. Sesshomaru gave her a small smile and shook his head before tracing her courting mark with a single claw.

"No, Rin. My youkai has chosen you." He corrected. Rin then smiled; her doubts flying out of her head quicker than she could comprehend. She launched herself at Sesshomaru, wrapping her arms around his neck tightly.

"Thank you, Sesshomaru." She whispered. Sesshomaru held her tightly, eyes closed as he inhaled her lovely scent, now free of sadness and despair. He pulled back when her stomach rumbled again.

"Enough doubting my feelings for you, RIn; it is time that you ate supper." He declared, releasing her to approach the forgotten buck. He raised his claws, withholding his acid, before swooping down to make quick work of the meat. He carved a steak of shoulder meat before placing it on the boulder Rin rested against. He turned towards the forest before darting away and returning with his arms full of wood for the fire. After assembling a pit and kindling, Sesshomaru struck a rock against his Tenseiga to spark the wood. Five minutes later and the fire roared with heat as he speared Rin's steak with a wood spick and mounted it over the flames. Rin watched him; amusement flickering through her cinnamon orbs as she consumed the berries she had found just beyond the trees. It was quite a change, she mused, she had always fended for herself when it came to mealtimes.

"Why do you never eat?" She asked curiously, watching his lip lift as he attempted to withhold a small smile while he continued to gaze at the orange flames. He turned her meat before glancing at her.

"This Sesshomaru will be eating tonight." He said; his baritone voice ringing with a hint of teasing. Rin coughed as she swallowed a berry too quickly before staring at him in disbelief.

"What will you eat?" That predatory grin was back on his handsome face making her gulp.

"I believe there is still quite a bit of meat left on the buck, Rin." Came his swift reply. Rin let out a sigh of relief before glancing at the carcass lying by the trees.

"Why aren't you cooking it then?"

Sesshomaru attempted to squash the chuckle that was threatening to leap from his throat, to no avail. A deep, hearty and slightly wicked chuckle shook his frame. It was over as quickly as it started.

"This Sesshomaru does not eat cooked meat. You seem to be fooled by my human-like appearances, Rin. I am a beast. Not a man." He reminded her. Rin blushed before nodding her head. Sesshomaru removed her meat from the flames and set it in front of her on a flat slab of rock.

"Eat." He commanded. When she picked up her meal and proceeded to rip chunks of meat off the spick with her blunt teeth, Sesshomaru had to turn away and fight a groan.

He made his way back to the buck and sat beside it. Cutting the rest of the shoulder from the carcass, he brought the still warm flesh to his mouth before sinking his dagger-sharp teeth into it.

Rin watched her Alpha devour the flesh from the buck with fascination in her eyes. She supposed it was why he never had eaten in front of her before; it was rather gruesome and a little disturbing but more than that, she found it rather erotic to see his white fangs burrow into the steaming meat before ripping it apart; his chin dripping with blood that plopped to the forest floor. How he managed to avoid any drop of blood from staining his clothing, she'd never know.

When she had finished the meat he prepared for her, she washed her hands and face in the hotsprings; her back arched forward as she balanced on her knees. She was quite unaware how her posture affected the male sitting some 15 feet from her.

'That looks far more appetizing that the flesh we just consumed.' His beast commented, slathering over the full curve that was the young female's ass. Sesshomaru didn't have the heart to disagree; his hakama tightening as he fought his impending erection. He stood quietly before eliminating the distance between the two in a single, silent leap.

Rin felt a warm, solid body press against her from behind. She leaned back, her butt resting on her heels as she looked over her shoulder to see hungry golden eyes. They weren't hungry for the buck, she realized, they were hungry for her. She sent him a sly smile.

"Yes, Sesshomaru?"

Sesshomaru's jaw tensed as he let loose a small growl, the whites of his eyes bleeding red. He grabbed her hips, pulling her back onto his lap before grinding his erection against her beautiful ass. Rin gasped, her face flaming red as desire shot scorching hot from her head down to her toes.

"Sesshomaru." She whimpered. Sesshomaru gave a rough purr before turning her to straddle his hips. He grabbed the back of her neck gently, pulling her face to his before taking her lips in a greedy, demanding kiss. Deepening the kiss; his tongue left his own cavern to run across the seam of her plump lips, earning him a squeak and access to her hot, little mouth. He groaned low and deep in his throat at her taste; she was sweeter than he expected, honey with a hint of mint. But he pulled away abruptly when her inexperience registered just how innocent she was in his brain. Rin whimpered at the loss of contact and Sesshomaru rested his brow to hers.

"This Sesshomaru apologizes. It seems I am having less control with you than I'd like." He murmured. Rin giggled softly.

"That was amazing though." She replied. Sesshomaru smirked at her statement.

"This Sesshomaru must resist. I will not dishonor you before I have properly courted and wed you, Rin." He said seriously. Rin gave a slight nod and sigh before snuggling into his chest.

"Rin understands."

Sesshomaru stood; leaping into a nearby tree before settling his female in his lap. Moko Moko wrapped around them, shielding them from the slight breeze and cocooning the fragile human in its embrace. Sesshomaru began to lightly purr; the effect instantaneous as it began to lull Rin to sleep. Before she completely succumbed, however, she asked another question.

"Will you love our children?"

The question shocked Sesshomaru; his purring ceased and his frame stiffened. The tip of Moko Moko forced her chin up to meet the eyes of her Alpha.

"Our children will be the most beautiful, powerful hanyous of all." He said, sincerity coloring his deep timbre. Rin's eyes watered but she blinked back tears before giving him a swift kiss and nuzzling his nose. She relaxed back into his arms as he began to purr again.

He had not said love; but she knew it was only a matter of time. He just needed a little bit more of a push.

"I love you, Alpha." She whispered. He smiled softly; his beast preened under her confession.

"I know, Little One."

The woman then slipped into a dreamless sleep. The powerful Inu Daiyoukai holding his immortal, human female in his protective embrace continued to gaze at the stars as he contemplated his life.

'You were right father.'

With his silent confession, unbeknownst to him, a plan was set into motion by two very unlikely people.

The time had come.

I'm sorry this chapter wasn't up sooner; I was catching up on sleep lol. Did you enjoy?