Chapter Nineteen

Kasumi stared blankly at Kagome for the longest time. So long, in fact, that Kagome was beginning to assume that she was in a trance.

The two women, along with Ura who was currently sitting quietly in the far corner of Miho's bedroom, had been discussing Miho's nearly impossible circumstances. Kagome had just concluded with her long overdue explanation as to why Miho was more special than Kasumi was first lead to believe, when the woman's expression became vacant. "I know that this is a little hard to take in, but you have to understand that Rin has been resurrected in the place of Miho, but Miho has not entirely disappeared."

Kasumi's only response consisted of an exasperated huff and the dropping of her jaw just a few centimeters closer to the floor.

Kagome turned away from the stunned woman to glance at Ura, who only shrugged. "There are two souls inside of Miho's body, Kasumi. They will both die if we don't get one of them out!"

"Yes…but which one?" Was all Kasumi could manage as she regained her composure.

"That would be entirely up to Miho and Rin…" Ura's voice carried a sweet melody across the room.

"Miho could die…"

Kagome reached out to grab Kasumi by the arm to gain her attention. In her softest voice, used mostly to sooth her sons fears of the dark of the forest on special occasions, she whispered, "Both of them could die…"

Kasumi shuddered violently. "She…Miho is like my sister! She has to live! Her life hasn't even started yet!" She buried her face in her hands and groaned. "Does she even know about this? Do they even know about this?"

Kagome assumed that Kasumi meant Miho and Rin, and she nodded while Ura chimed in again. "My brother Sesshomaru has gone in search of them now. Neither Rin or Miho are aware of this cruel twist of fate…and it is best that they don't until we can get them back to where Rin's original body has been stored."

"How did you manage to preserve a body for over sixty years without it turning to dust?"

For the first time all day, Kagome smiled as Kasumi lifted her face out of her hands. "Rin was murdered by a dagger in her abdomen not long after she became the mate and wife of my husband's half brother, the demon lord, Sesshomaru. She was…pregnant at the time, so in a sense, she and their child were murdered. I was getting ready for her funeral, or cremation, if you want to call it that, when I was secretly approached by Sesshomaru's vassal, Jaken." Kagome suppressed a giggle that had been long ignored, which confused Kasumi to a point where her puffy eyes widened with surprised horror. Kagome continued before Kasumi could just to the wrong conclusion about her senses. "Pardon me for my inappropriate laugh. I was asked to embalm Rin's body just shortly before her body was supposed to be burned. Sesshomaru had realized that if her body were cremated, it would be possible to resurrect her using her charred bones and graveyard soil in a way that might resemble what I had gone through with Priestess Kikyo. She would return to her human form, but she would be nothing but an empty shell…hollow and driven by her feelings that she had experience at her death."

"There are two women occupying one body. How do you explain that to them right before you kill one of them, or both?" Kasumi's anger could only be heard, not seen as she buried her face back into her hands.

"There is very little time left for Miho's body. The only reason Miho didn't die sooner was because Rin had been dormant for all of Miho's life, mostly unaware that Rin even existed. Now that Rin has been resurrected and has taken over Miho's body, that body cannot support them both. Miho is still deeply attached to herself. She is in no way gone, just hidden within her own mind while Rin has taken over. If they knew what was happening, it would undoubtedly kill them faster."

Ura stood and made her way across the room. "They cannot know, until it is necessary, that they might die."

"Kasumi, you have been set free from this place…meaning you can come with us and look after Miho if she were to ever wake up in Rin's place. You can explain what is going on, though not in full detail, about traveling. I have sent my two sons on ahead with our oldest family friend, Miroku, to find the quickest and safest path from here to Sesshomaru's home in the western mountains. All that is left for us to do right now is to gather Miho's belongings, pack them into a carriage, and leave this place. Miho will never have to set eyes on this place again, and neither will you if you wish it."

Kasumi's shoulders lifted and dropped as a heavy sigh filled the room. She lifted her face from her hands and looked up at Kagome, then glanced sideways at Ura. Both women stared, cautious as to what she might have to say. Kasumi sighed again, and then looked down at the floor that rested comfortably beneath their feet. "I will not abandon my sister…I'll go…"

Kagome smiled kindly. "Good." She left Kasumi's side and walked over to face her sister in law. "Have you found a carriage, Ura?"

Ura nodded. "Inuyasha found one. He just brought now. It's waiting out front for us now."

"Good, let's start packing."

(Outside the house)

"I…I'm free?" Miho's brain understood it, but Rin was the only one capable of responding to such an astounding declaration. Her knees buckled beneath her weight and she expelled a long breath of air upon impact with the ground. "I mean, I knew I would be eventually, but I share the mind that belongs to this body. From the memories that I have gathered, gaining freedom for Miho is highly unlikely given her current situation."

Sesshomaru, who had just located the foreign vessel which contained the soul of his mate, stood tall against a background of the neighboring forest of the Geisha house, eyeing Miho with a look of indifference. He knew very well of Miho's situation, as well as Rin's, but he didn't give a damn about anything except preventing Rin's looming death, which taunted his very thoughts to the brink of his sanity. It was a wonder how he could remain calm in such unfortunate circumstances. "Ura has gained remarkable skills in the art of manipulation." He stepped forward with such grace that Rin had to assume that he was floating above the earth to reach her. His long, slender fingers grazed the underside of her chin, forcing her face upward so that their eyes locked. "I have been informed that your things are being gathered and stored on a carriage as we speak. We leave at your discretion, though I strongly urge that you encourage Miho to trust me now, as well as my siblings and their friends and family. Without her trust, both your safety and hers cannot be guaranteed, and I will not risk losing you based on her stubborn pride."

Rin felt the corners of Miho's mouth upturn. 'Miho, I think you and I both know what he is talking about. You cannot take control of us and attempt to defend your body with me here. Demon slayer or not, it is too dangerous for us to engage in a fight if one should occur. Please…for both of us, stay calm…trust them.' Rin knew that Miho had heard her clearly, and she prayed that there would be a reply.

Quietly, Miho's soft voice responded after a few seconds. 'Free…I am free from the cage in which I was brought to, but I am still a prisoner…I am still a prisoner, but now in the cage of my own mind. Why are you doing this to me, Rin? What have I done to deserve this existence?'

Rin closed Miho's eyes and sought out Miho's image in the blackness of her mind. 'I never would have allowed my soul to inhabit your body if I had been given the choice, Miho. You must understand…I am also a prisoner. I am in a foreign body with no idea of how to escape it, but this journey will help us both is freeing ourselves. Please…trust them…trust me…I will not go with them without your approval because this is not my body. It is yours and only you have a say in what happens to us.'

Miho's face appeared before Rin inside of her mind. Finally, both women were given the opportunity to gaze upon each other. Miho was not thrilled. 'You say it is my body to control and yet I do not have control of it. You do, Rin.'

Rin nodded. 'I don't know how to give you back control…this has never happened to me before.'

'Why did you allow that demon to mark me as his mate? I know that that is what has happened.'

Rin felt Miho's face redden. 'I am not entirely sure…but it may have been a heat of the moment, perhaps. Or he might have wanted to give you an immortal life, hoping that it will guarantee that I will not slip away from him again.'

'I suppose I cannot blame him for wanting to protect you…but he did do so without my consent.'

Rin opened Miho's eyes and found Sesshomaru's honey gold orbs staring back at her. 'I take full responsibility for that, Miho. I allowed it to happen without thinking what it might do to you. I will not allow anything like that to happen again. But please consent to trust us, me and my friends…my family? This is no doubt the opposite of what you had envisioned your future to be like, but it is the only option that we both have at the moment. Trust us?'

It took over a full minute for Rin to gain a response from the darkest recesses of Miho's mind. 'What other choice do I have but to give you my full trust? I think that…if I were able to access my own limbs, I would follow them to wherever they are going despite your encouragement. I have nowhere else to go…you, and they, have my trust.'

Rin felt Miho's mouth smile with her happiness. She focused her full attention on Sesshomaru and nodded toward him. "My Lord, we have her trust. Where are Kagome and Ura?"

Though Sesshomaru did not return the smile, his relief danced within his golden eyes. "Convincing Miho's sister to join them. From what I understand, the human Kasumi will be joining us to keep an eye on Miho's body. All three women are gathering Miho and Kasumi's belongings."

"I do not doubt it, my Lord." Rin righted herself onto Miho's feet. "Shall we join them now?"

Sesshomaru never let Miho's hand go. Instead of releasing it, he used it to bring the woman closer so that he could keep Miho's deep brown eyes locked with his. "We will not be joining them, Rin. We are leaving…now!" Before Rin or Miho could fully register what Sesshomaru had spoken, both women felt Miho's heart jolt as her feet instantly felt the ground disappear beneath her feet.

Before both women knew it, they were flying above the treetops, leaving the sight of Miho's former prison fading in the distance, safe within the arms Lord Sesshomaru.

Author's Note: Okay you guys, look...I did not write a lemon yet for this story, so please don't ask about it. I will let you all know if and when I have written one, but now is not the time. Be patient.

Also, if any of you are interested in other Manga/ Anime series, I am currently in the process of writing a Vampire Knight fanfic. I'm thinking it will only be a one shot, but I'm not one hundred percent positive just yet. It is taking me a little time to outline it, and I have only got 6 handwritten pages so far. If any of you guys are fans of Vampire Knight, keep a lookout for my newest fanfic, and I hope you guys like it when I post! It is a Kaname/Yuki/Zero fic, and it will be awesome (I think)!

Oh, and ladies and gentlemen, I have been invited to join another fanfiction site that actually allows me to post my lemon in A Small Twist of Fate. If anyone is interested in seeing the entire story, unedited, I am now a member of the site (Archiveofourown) dot com. My pen name is the same as it is here, OliviaAR99. Come look me up if you'd like!

OliviaAR