Chapter Seventeen

"Brother…it has been a long time since we have set eyes on each other, hasn't it?" A cool, velvet voice emerged from the fading shadows of the misty forest.

Inuyasha knew before hearing her voice that it was Ura. His ears had perked up from the echo of distant footfalls, snapping innocent twigs underfoot in her wake. Her scent was evident before any of this, but knowing his sister, she might not have even bothered to come out of the shadows if it had been the night of a new moon.

A smirk dawned at his lips, revealing a single pearl white fang that revealed their family legacy to the dead of night. "Sister, I find it very hard to process that you were so close to this location without knowing Rin was here. Care to explain yourself?"

Inuyasha was currently keeping watch over the house that harbored his family and was gazing up at the black night sky when he glanced sideways at a widening gap in the forest. A slender figure emerged from the abyss of darkness, dressed in an ivory gown that, no doubt, belonged to his wife. A curtain of auburn hair was draped carelessly over her right shoulder, and molten gold peaked through a waterfall of red bangs.

Ura, though often thought of as distant and cold, was merely steady and all knowing…and the smirk that lit up her fare features mirrored that of Inuyasha, and sometimes even Sesshomaru. It was easy to see that they all shared the same lineage.

She stepped toward him without fear. Her feet were naked, as if she had just been roused from sleep and jumped out of bed to inspect a false disturbance. But she remained poised and lovely, despite the angry scars that painted thin lines slanted across her face. The ghostly evidence of her murder still left Inuyasha's blood boiling. "Do not think so hard on my scars, Inuyasha…I have earned my stripes, though not in battle, but because of my own foolishness." Her velvet voice lingered in the air until she finally reached the spot where he had himself perched. Standing stock still, she gazed at her brother's face and sighed. "The reason for my being so near is for the very same reason that you had been so near…to aid our brother in his search for the love he had once lost."

Inuyasha closed his eyes to shield his mind from the influences of his surroundings and managed to process Ura's words. It took him a moment to develop a response. "It's true. We weren't near Sesshomaru, but I could sense him whenever he moved or traveled. I simply followed his path. Not directly, but I did follow it. I'm almost positive that he was aware of us."

Ura nodded her understanding. " Yes…he wanted me close to ensure my own safety. Ever since my murder, he has turned into the over protective sibling that I wish I had grown up with long ago, just like you." Ura smiled in amusement. "Do not get me wrong. You and Sesshomaru are highly aware that I am more than capable of defending myself against all others, but of course, he witnessed the aftermath of my demise. I follow him as well, in hopes that he might find the love that which was taken from him…and that he might gain peace of mind that I can and will survive outside of his castle walls without his assistance."

Inuyasha sighed heavily. "I still can't believe he found her…Kagome knew only minutes after meeting her that Miho is Rin." His eyes opened and he turned them to face Ura. A half smile lingered on his lips. "I didn't even have a clue. Sesshomaru's scent was on her, that I knew, but not enough to guess it out right."

"Rin inhabits another form that is not unlike her own, brother. They have similarities, but this new body of hers will not…" Ura paused, filling the silence with a lingering buzz of unspoken secrets. She closed her eyes and lowered her head to inspect the ground at her feet. "Inuyasha, you must know something is wrong…I know you can sense the same thing that I am able to sense."

Once again, Inuyasha sighed, and then did something uncharacteristic. Instead of staying on his perch at the rocks, he jumped to the ground and became eye level with his half sister. Ura lifted her gaze up to meet his and they gazed at one another for a minute that felt like hours, filled with the pain of their unspoken truths. "I do sense something, Ura…I just can figure out what it is."

Ura's eyes, shimmering with tears yet to shed, gazed into the identical eyes of her half brother and laid out a secret that nearly shattered her resolve. "Rin, in her new form…is not alone in Miho's body. Both Miho and Rin inhabit the same form, Inuyasha. But that is not what is troubling to me." Ura breathed out a shaky lung full of air. "Miho's body cannot support two souls, which is what is happening…both will die if one of the souls being held in Miho's form is not released."

Inuyasha's eyes widened from this new information. "Can they not be spared? Is there a way to save them both?"

Ura stared into the troubled eyes of Inuyasha. "Two separate souls remain trapped in a single form. I have never heard of such a phenomenon in my entire life."

"Nor have I." Was the only response given by Inuyasha.

"I am afraid that in the time it will take Jaken to return to Sesshomaru's castle and back, Rin…and Miho will be dead." Ura's eyes began to water. "Like you and Sesshomaru, I was born with the gift of a great power, not in the form of a sword, but in a form that remains invisible to us and cannot be seen. Like Sesshomaru…I can heal the wounds of others, but I cannot bring the dead back to life. If Kagome were to attempt to separate a soul from Miho's body, then I could only heal the body. I could only heal one soul…I cannot save them both. It is not within my power."

Inuyasha growled deep in his throat. "I don't understand! Sesshomaru, just now, laid claim to Rin in Miho's body. His demon essence should sustain them both!"

Ura lifted a slender, gracefully fare hand up to drag softly down her brother's left cheek in a useless attempt to calm his anger. "Oh dear brother…you know as well as I that our poison can only prolong the lifespan of the human flesh…not protect it from an impending death from within. I am afraid that Rin will not live long enough to see her former self again."

"Then we shall leave before the sun rises," a deadly voice broke through the two sibling's moment of silence. "I will not live to see Rin die again."

Ura and Inuyasha separated, almost in slow motion, and turned to face their older brother, Sesshomaru.

Sesshomaru's piercing eyes traveled between his two younger siblings, his expression never changing as he remained cool and resigned in their presence. His voice pierced the silence once again. "The sun will peak over the horizon in less than an hour. There is no time to waste."

Ura nodded before she turned back to face Inuyasha, who was currently watching Sesshomaru with a look of great confusion. "Don't look so perplexed, brother. We have no time to waste."

Inuyasha ignored Ura and took a few steps toward Sesshomaru, who was standing nearly a yard away. Although the great demon lord was cloaked in a veil of shadows, his armored kimono gave off a bright glow as if a full moon hung heavy in the sky and cast its luminous beams directly on him. "Hold on! You're going to leave Rin here to die, alone? What the hell are you thinking, you bastard? That is insane!"

"Calm yourself, little brother!" Sesshomaru snarled venomously while his eyes narrowed into slits that resembled a deadly snake about to strike. "I know what is happening to Rin…what is going to happen to Miho and Rin both, but I can do nothing about it here if that body is slowly withering away from the weight of their souls." He turned his gaze away from Inuyasha and glared into the darkness surrounding them. "Miho…Rin will be coming back to my castle…with us."

Inuyasha's look of confusion returned. "Us?"

The gentle hand of their sister grasped his right shoulder, and Inuyasha turned away from Sesshomaru to face Ura, who bore a sincere look of determination. "This is a rather unusual, if not rare declaration of sibling loyalty, but yes. All of us will be returning to Sesshomaru's home. Come with us, Inuyasha…"

The half demon had no time to dwell on their past sibling rivalries. Two souls were at the mercy of time, and time was not merciful.

Inuyasha closed his eyes, and nodded. "My wife and child will come along too. I will not leave them. Kagome would kill me if I tried."

Sesshomaru didn't even blink. "As you wish."

"Is Rin aware of all of this?" Ura stepped up to stand directly beside her half brother and face Sesshomaru eye to eye. "Does she know that she is dying?"

Sesshomaru was silent as the night for was seemed like an eternity, and he simply gazed out into the faces of his sister and half brother. "She does not even know that she is about to travel down a path that may eradicate her entire existence in this world…and she does not know that her previous body was preserved to receive the soul that once was erased from it…"

Author's Note: Hello, dear friends. I did not mean to take so long. My second semester of college finished up last week, and I have been working with every spare chance I've had to write the newest chapter to my story. This is my early Christmas present to you guys! I hope you are not all angry with me for disappearing like it did into my school work. I did not have a choice when it came to my homework and such. If you have any questions about the contents of this chapter, feel free to ask and I shall do my best to answer them into the next chapter or two as best I can.

Happy early Christmas (or happy holidays to those who do not celebrate Christmas)!

OliviaAR