Chapter Thirty-Three

(Chapter Warning: Something is going to happen and I am not sure how any of you are going to take it, but please note that you have been warned. This is the longest chapter of this series and it took me quite some time to write it. I apologize for any errors in spelling or grammar and request that you inform me if you discover any that I might have missed during my editing.)

"She has been questioned extensively, Rin." Ura sat on the edge of her sister's bed and was currently inspecting the burns on her stomach, possibly seeking out infection.

Frustrated, Rin huffed and folded her arms across her chest when Ura was finished. "There was no hint of hatred in her when we met! It can't be true!"

Ura shook her head and sighed. "You were not the only victim of her obsession, you know?"

"I do know, but it just…seems so ridiculous. She was a friend."

"She was a good liar." Ura spoke harshly and rubbed her hand against her forehead in mock exhaustion. "Aya was betrothed to my brother and when our father died, and that betrothal was voided."

Rin scrunched her eyes shut and shook her head. "Sakuya was her lover before the betrothal and he sought to destroy Lord Sesshomaru the next time he got the chance?"

Ura nodded. "Aya was given our mark and granted a place in Sesshomaru's home as an apology for calling off the betrothal. She figured that if she was around him long enough, he would fall for her and seek to marry again, but you showed up…and Aya got jealous."

Rin scoffed. "That is most certainly an understatement for what she managed to pull off!"

"Sakuya learned not long after she came here where she had gone and he managed to get in with the new recruits. Being a Lord himself, Sakuya was welcomed with great respect, but Sesshomaru never suspected him. When Sakuya had discovered that my brother had taken you as his mate and wife, he felt that Sesshomaru had done Aya such a great injustice. He felt that he had disrespected her by choosing a human over a demon."

"Did he ever speak with Aya?"

Ura shook her head. "Aya denied that they had any conversation before you were murdered."

"But after?"

"She knew that he was going to die for what he did. She sought him out, said her goodbyes and stayed out of Sesshomaru's way."

Rin took a second to process it. "So she tried to avenge him by destroying my chances at coming back?"

Ura shrugged. "It is one tangled web of deceit after another and I just don't know." She sighed and glanced down at Rin's stomach. "How is your little one?"

Rin blinked and thought a moment. "Alive." She grinned happily and Ura returned it. "He's alive." She placed a hand on her stomach, still having trouble believing it. "How is it possible?"

"I didn't think it was possible, and yet here he is."

Rin nodded and laughed. "You're getting another nephew."

"Why couldn't you have conceived a girl?"

"Kagome says to blame Sesshomaru. Apparently, it's not our bodies that determine the sex of our children, but it's the men. Personally, I don't care what I'm having so long as nobody tries to kill me or him again." She frowned. "What is to become of Aya now?"

A moment of silence passed between them. "She has been judged, but her fate is to be decided by you."

Another moment of silence followed before Rin started. "Me?"

"Well…us, really. But I think you deserve to make the decision. It was decided that she will die, but by whose hand is up to you entirely."

Rin lowered her head and stared at her stomach, thinking. "Who has condemned her to death?"

Ura balked. "Who do you think?"

"Do you think she should die for her involvement?"

"Yes." Ura didn't hesitate and stared Rin right in the eye when she looked up from gazing at her stomach. "Yes, I do believe that she should die. Though she was not directly responsible for the murders that were committed, she was involved and she elected to attack you at your most vulnerable. While she lives, you are a target and Sesshomaru will not allow it."

Defeated, Rin nodded. "Then...I will do it."

Startled, Ura drew herself backward from Rin's bed and glared. "You will not!"

Hardly put off, Rin defended her conclusion. "I cannot hand down a death sentence to the man who killed us and my child, so I must, instead, deal the final blow to the other person responsible."

Instead of agreeing, Ura argued, "You are too weak!"

"I have died three times in my life. I should not be here, and yet I am! You dare call me weak? I like to think I am the strongest person here for all that I have been through, and you just finished telling me that Aya's fate was to be decided by me! And I have decided!" Rin had her outbursts from time to time, but this instant was different. She was the Lady of Sesshomaru's castle, not Ura. Rin had more power than her sister-in-law and she would be damned if she didn't start to show it. "I will be her executioner. Lord Sesshomaru would not dare take that right away from me and if he tries, he will regret it!"

Ura was stunned. "I..."

Rin stopped her from speaking. "Dismissed!" She glanced around to the guards posted at her bedroom door. "You are dismissed as well. I need to take a walk alone, before I face Aya."

Ura hesitated. "When will you face her? You have never killed anyone before!"

"After my walk." Rin waved her hand toward the door. "You're right, I have never killed anyone. But I cannot condemn the woman to die and not be brave enough to carry out the sentence."

"I could do it for you, Rin. Or Miho could act in your place as executioner?"

"No."

"Think of your child, Rin! You are not strong enough to handle this!"

Rin slipped out of her bed and walked up to her sister-in-law. Ura was still taller than she was. "I have made my decision. Dismissed." Instead of allowing Ura to leave, Rin walked past and out the door, leaving the demon woman in stunned silence.

(An hour later)

Rin wandered…

This was something that she had not been allowed to do for weeks since her awakening. She didn't like to use the term resurrection because it just reminded her that she had been dead for several decades. Several friends and family had since died during her absence and being reminded just left every organ inside of her chest aching with sadness. Though her friends that still lived had their chance to mourn, Rin was just now able to come to grips with the reality that Kaede and Sango were gone, and Miroku and Kohaku were growing older with each passing year. Miroku's children were grown with children of their own and living in distant villages. The idea of a visit was discussed, but until Rin had her strength back, travel was strictly forbidden.

Shippou, though a demon, had grown older as well as taller and it surprised Rin to learn that the once small fox demon now matched her height. And he was a handsome sort too, which irritated Sesshomaru whenever she pointed it out. She didn't do it to get a rise out of her husband; she was just in awe of how much time had changed her friends. It was also a surprise to her to meet her nephew in her own body. Miho's body had been slightly taller, so her first meeting with Ehren gave her the impression that he was short, but inside of her own physical body, Rin was amused to discover that he was not much shorter than she was. That first meeting was a disaster, but Ehren apologized immediately when he was officially introduced to her. Also, when she graciously accepted it, he gave her a warm embrace, which she reciprocated without hesitation. So much like his father and his uncle, she had thought once they parted ways.

Rin stepped out into a hallway of Sesshomaru's castle that she remembered fondly and wandered further. This was the first afternoon that she had been allowed out on her own without guards or nurses. She was grateful for it because she absolutely despised being looked after like a child. The first week after she had been brought back from the dead, she understood the precautions everyone was taking with her, but week two and three just made her want to claw her way through the walls to get a moment's peace. Nobody allowed her to walk without holding onto her arms to keep her steady and she wasn't allowed out of her bed longer than a few minutes at a time. Kagome would visit every so often to check on her stitches and burn scars and would offer Rin a reprieve of all of the attention from Sesshomaru's guards and healers. During those particular visits, Kagome would give Sesshomaru an earful when she found out that Rin was practically a hostage in her bed. Apparently, she had to get up and move in order to heal her wounds properly.

Eventually, Sesshomaru listened (rather reluctantly, of course) and finally allowed Rin to move about freely at her leisure. So today, she bravely dismissed her guards and set out to explore her home again until it was time to face her foe. It didn't surprise her that her old bedroom had been destroyed. She had been murdered there and no doubt Sesshomaru wanted to remove the reminder.

Also, the hallway where Ura's body had been found was also rebuilt. Fortunately, Sesshomaru agreed with Jaken that his sister needed to be revived to find out the truth in her grisly death. Apparently, it took even longer for Ura to recover from her traumatic experience than it was currently taking Rin to get over hers. Sesshomaru and Inuyasha's sister was in recovery for months. Kagome and Jinenji had come at once to assist with her, but a Priestess and Herb grower could only heal physical wounds. No medicinal herb could fix mental scars.

Luckily, Ura recovered, although she was now the owner of several gruesome claw marks that decorated her face and traveled partway down her chest. Rin didn't know how she found the courage to embrace such vicious marks, but the demon woman wore them proudly. 'Battle scars', Ura had called them. Rin admired her more now than she did back then.

Rin's right hand shot out to brace against a wall to keep herself upright. A sudden fog in her mind caused the hallway to swirl. It was nothing to be alarmed about and was expected after such a long 'sleep', but the dizzy spells always seemed to hit her at the most inopportune times. She paused for a few seconds and scrunched up her face in anticipation. Rin knew that when she set out on her adventure, even though she had dismissed her guards and healers, she was not really truly left to her own devices. All of those in Sesshomaru's employ were given strict instructions to keep close tabs on her and there was no doubt a spy hiding somewhere nearby. If her demon lord husband was not with her, someone else he could trust most definitely was on duty.

Sure enough, a figure emerged from a doorway down the hall. "My Lady?"

Rin shook her head and glanced up through her lashes with a kind smile. "I'm alright."

"Are you sure, my Lady?" The guard was a tall fox demon from Shippou's tribe. The red hair, mischievous green eyes and fox tail gave it away. He currently had a hand on the hilt of a sword that was secured against his left hip.

Rin took a deep breath and stood erect. "Positive. Is Shippou nearby?"

The guard nodded and motioned farther down the hallway. As if on cue, the teenaged looking fox demon Shippou appeared from around a corner. From the looks of him, Shippou had been anticipating her arrival as though he had been informed she was coming. "Rin, what's wrong?"

Rin laughed and rolled her eyes. "I get it, you guys. I died and everyone is just worried. You don't have to follow me around all the time, you know?"

Shippou returned her laugh and stopped in front of her. He extended a hand and she took it. "You can't blame us for being on edge with you." Rin studied his changed face while he led her down the hall. It was so strange how much he had matured. Shippou seemed to be taking it all in stride. "Still can't get over the fact that I'm taller?"

Rin nodded toward the other fox demon guard when they passed him and then glanced back at her childhood friend. "I haven't gotten over a lot of things. Is it time?"

Shippou suddenly frowned and went silent.

Rin understood. "I had hoped to avoid it, you know?"

"She betrayed you, Rin." Shippou turned left and guided her down a closed in bridge within the castle. This area had a few windows that she could glance out of and apparently it was raining. The weather seemed to reflect the mood of the castle perfectly: dark and angry. "It was decided. Only you have power over her fate."

Rin nodded. "I never asked for this."

"Only you can make the choice. Do you truly wish to do this?" They reached the great hall doors and stopped dead. Ura must have informed him of what she had decided.

He released her hand and turned to face her full on. "You may speak with her alone, or with everyone there if it will make you feel safer. Just tell me what you want."

"I'm allowed to see her, alone?" Rin's brow rose quizzically.

Shippou dropped his head down slightly in a partial nod. "You own her life. You own her fate. It is yours to do with as you will. I will wait outside. Sesshomaru, Ura and Inuyasha will be close by just in case."

"Then…I will go alone." Rin swallowed, not sure if she really wanted to be alone with the woman or not but she knew that seeing Aya was inevitable. "I'm ready, Shippou."

Shippou bowed at the waist out of respect for her decision and grabbed the door handle. "Just call for us if you need us, alright?"

"Alright." Rin stepped back until the door was opened and she stepped inside. She waited until she heard it close completely before she took in her surroundings. The great hall was just as vast as she remembered, only this time, there were no demon lords waiting to be received. Last that Rin could recall, this room was the first time she had met the demon who murdered her; Lord Sakuya.

A chill ran up her spine and the room swirled momentarily, causing Rin to pause for a moment before she glanced up to inspect the center of the room. There were no tables or mats laid out for guests. The walls were bare white and only a handful of windows were opened to receive the cool, moist wind. Only one thing stood out to her as she salvaged her ability to walk in a straight line without help. Aya.

Rin paused, standing before the woman whose obsession cost Rin her life. Apparently, the story behind Sakuya was deeply rooted within Sesshomaru's past and involved Aya in a way that Rin was only now aware of. She had been informed of what had been said a nearly an hour before this moment by Ura. Rin had not accepted a word of it as truth, believing that Aya was somehow wrongfully accused and dared to hope that this was all some big mistake. Nothing alarmed her more than being informed that someone she had trusted so wholeheartedly was involved in the plot that killed her. She refused to really believe it…until now.

Aya appeared to be well tended, but underfed. Her dark hair had grown long since their last encounter, which in Rin's memory, was a happy one. She was dressed in black robes with a white gown beneath them. It saddened Rin to think that they were once friends. Now, Aya was her enemy. Why? Why? "I'm…not quite sure what to say to you."

Rin stood erect, determined to demonstrate her power of authority as Lady of the Western Lands. She was the wife and mate of one of the most notorious and powerful demon lords of the world and her body was beginning to strengthen, which allowed her to exude a sense of confidence and pride. Today was a dark day in her life and she needed all of her strength in order to tackle the obstacle that was determined to beat her down. Ura would not be right. She was not weak.

She faced Aya with a stoned expression, her soft brown eyes hard and cold and shocking to behold. Today, Rin was angry. Today, she was heartbroken. Today…she would say goodbye to a friend and take the life from an enemy.

Rin parted her lips to speak, but Aya was the first to make a sound. "Is it really so shocking to learn the truth?" Her voice was cold and unfamiliar.

Rin blinked in surprise and gazed at the woman on the floor as though she had slapped her. "What truth?" She was amazed at how cold she had become in the span of a few seconds. It sickened her to know that someone could break down her naturally sweet demeanor and poison her voice with ice. "You were betrothed to Lord Sesshomaru when you were both children through an agreement by your fathers?"

Aya stared, unblinking and unmoving. "Yes."

Rin continued. "Sakuya was your lover at the time?"

"Yes."

"Sakuya was jealous, but let you go. But Lord Sesshomaru's father was killed and the betrothal was broken." Rin paused. Aya only stared. "You fell in love with Lord Sesshomaru before that occurred and were heartbroken when he ended it. Am I right so far?"

Aya nodded but said nothing.

Rin continued. "Lord Sesshomaru never met Sakuya and had no idea who he was or what he meant to you."

"He was my friend." Aya glared and tried to get up but the guard behind her slammed a hand down on her shoulder and forced her back down.

Rin held up a hand to make the guard stop and back away. "Yes…but before that, he was your lover." Aya didn't deny it and Rin went on as though nothing had happened. "In order to make it up to you for breaking the betrothal, Lord Sesshomaru gave you a place in his house and granted you the gift of bearing his crescent moon, and you took it, leaving behind your family and the man who was still in love with you."

"Why are you recounting my life to me?" Aya looked at Rin with such loathing.

Rin squared her chin and looked down her nose at her. "To confirm that you were involved in my murder." Rin despised herself for being so cold, but something in her heart sparked when Aya did not even try to defend herself. "You left Sakuya behind and that crushed him, leaving him bitter and he resented the man who 'took you away'. He blamed Lord Sesshomaru even though Lord Sesshomaru had no idea he even existed. You managed to keep him a secret."

Aya only glared as Rin took as step toward her. "And then Lord Sesshomaru left his home in search of his father's bone to recover a sword. Several months…or years later, he returned with the scent of a girl fresh on his armor. You were instantly jealous, but you would not meet this girl until years passed and Lord Sesshomaru returned home with her."

A bark of a laugh interrupted Rin's deductions. "And you were a scrawny, unworthy little rat, as I recall." Aya laughed again, cutting into Rin's heart like a knife.

"You played the part of a loyal servant well, until Sakuya showed up alongside new warriors and there was your opportunity to remove me from the picture. You fed Ura to the wolves."

Aya grinned. "You were naïve and she was in the way."

"How could you do it?"

Aya rolled her eyes. "I asked him to. He thought Sesshomaru had insulted me by taking you as a mate instead of me. Although I did not return his affection, he wanted to avenge me, regardless of the consequences."

Rin closed her eyes and fought the urge to hurl herself at the woman on the floor. "He sacrificed himself for your love!"

"Feeling sorry for him?" Aya laughed. "He may have been my friend, but he was an idiot. Either way, you and your spawn were out of the picture and I was free to pursue Sesshomaru…until he came back from Inuyasha's village with your body still intact. He had you protected from dusk until dawn of every day until Miho showed up with your soul in her body."

"You knew he would never have you!"

Something in Aya's eyes sparked and she snarled. "If I had been allowed near your body, I would have burned it myself!"

Rin stepped back wide eyed and stunned. "Lord Sesshomaru would have known and killed you."

"Yes, but then you would never have been brought back the way you are now and with that thought, I would have died happy."

Rin closed her eyes again and hung her head. "That is not love, Aya. That is obsession and love does not have the ability to survive in obsession. It is starved and molded into hate and hate is what gets you killed."

Aya scoffed. "I am already doomed, little human."

Rin nodded and turned to stare at her face on. "Sakuya said that I was unworthy of being the mate of Lord Sesshomaru. Those were not his words entirely, were they? They were yours as well? He said those words because of you?"

Aya smirked. "Haven't you been listening? You're even dumber than I gave you credit for!"

Rin nodded. "I may exhibit some moments of stupidity, but at least I am alive and standing before you so that I can say to you what Lord Sesshomaru gave me the power to say. I, Lady Rin, human wife and mate to the great demon Lord Sesshomaru of the Western Lands and the mother of his child-!" Aya's eyes flared at Rin's last declaration. "-do hereby condemn you, Aya, to die through the swing of a demon slayer sword!" Rin stood tall, trembling and hardened.

Aya's mouth dropped so far, it was as though her lower jaw had come unhinged. "Mother?"

Rin glared down her nose at Aya. "I was pregnant when I was killed. My child was connected to my soul at the time of my passing and descended into death with me, without my knowing it. Miho was too untrained to notice that I was not alone when my soul free floated above my body. When she returned me to myself, my child returned with me."

If there were ever a look of pure hate, Aya displayed it perfectly now. "There will be others who will seek to destroy you and your happiness."

Unfazed, Rin stared. "And they will fail, just as you have. Miho?"

Behind her, the great hall doors opened and a long dark haired woman wearing the kimono of a Priestess stepped in. Miho stood tall with her arms outstretched before her and her hands held a long sword, unsheathed and glistening. "My Lady." Rin stepped toward her, hand outstretched, intending to take the sword, but Miho held onto it firmly. She whispered quickly. "Ura informed me of what you plan to do. Are you certain?"

Rin gazed into her familiar eyes, momentarily reminded that she was once on the other side of them and able to read Miho's thoughts as if they were her own. Now, she had no idea what the woman was thinking. "No...I'm not."

Miho nodded and offered a solution. "I will do this for you, Rin. You don't have to do this." She glanced over Rin's shoulder and glared at the demon woman on the floor. "I would be honored to do this." She said it loud enough to make Aya glance up at her. "I was there when she attempted to attack you and am a firsthand witness to her crime."

With a shake of her head, Rin dismissed the offer. "The offense was directed toward me, and, though I am honored by your offer, I must decline." She glanced over her shoulder at Aya. "I don't want to do this, Miho. But I have to do this. May I have the sword, please?" She held her hand out and gripped the hilt of the weapon when she felt it slip into her grasp.

Rin was not trained with such a weapon. She had never wanted to learn how use one, though was offered on many occasions to learn from Inuyasha and Sesshomaru when she was younger. Jaken had convinced her to try her hand at knife wielding, but she only ever managed to hurt herself or him in the process. No, the only weapon she could really master was medicine. The art of poison went hand in hand with that type of skill, and she knew how to make certain types that could render demons and humans immobile, but she never found cause to use it.

But the sword seemed to be the death dealer today. It was quick, swift and final.

This sword was heavy in her hands when Miho dropped the weight of it for her to grasp. Though it was not too heavy for her to swing. It was perfect. Rin glanced up at Miho with a stoned expression. "If my aim is untrue with the first swing, will you complete it?"

Miho bowed partly at the waist. "Of course."

Rin smiled quickly. "Thank you." And then she turned around and stepped toward Aya, who was now watching Rin closely with cold green eyes.

Aya refused to break. "So brave you are to take my life."

Rin ignored this. "Do you have any final words you wish to pass on before you are killed?"

Aya nodded, starring her straight in the eye. "Yes, I do. I'm...I'm sorry, Rin."

Rin's eyes widened. Had she really heard those words come from the woman she intended to kill? "What?"

Aya bowed her head, but kept her eyes locked with hers. "You heard me correctly. I'm sorry..." Her eyes, which were emerald green in shade, then turned acid black and venomous. "I'm sorry that I did not kill you myself...I'm sorry that I did not feed you the herbs that I wanted to give you before Sakuya jammed the dagger in your stomach!" Aya sat up straight on her knees and pierced Rin's soul with her eyes. "I had planned on terminating your pregnancy with herbs before he killed you, just to torture you with the knowledge that it was so easy to do! I wanted you to believe that a human woman was not capable of giving Sesshomaru a child, but Sakuya wanted you pregnant when you died."

Rin shook violently, overwhelmed by every human emotion possible.

Aya kept on. "He spoke the truth when he told you that a human was unworthy of carrying his child. He wanted to see you suffer as I had suffered!"

Rin gripped the hilt of sword, trying desperately to cling to her sanity and not be baited to strike.

Aya refused to stop. "You were not worthy of Lord Sesshomaru! You will NEVER be worthy! Filthy HUMA-!" She was cut off instantly by the force of a sharp instrument being rammed through her chest and out the back of her robes.

Red...Rin saw red as she threw her entire weight behind the blade as it struck home. She met Aya face to startled face and shook with adrenaline as she breathed in her face, "For my son!" She rammed the sword in further, causing Aya to gasp. "For Ura!" Another inch of blade disappeared in the sea of blood glistening from the heart of Aya's black robes. "For Lord Sesshomaru!" Another inch vanished. "For me..." With all of the strength Rin had left, she twisted the blade sideways and inflicted the most amount of damage. "And this? This is for you..."

Aya's words drowned in the blood spewing from her mouth and she watched as Rin grabbed hold of the sword's end and coughed out a river and the blade was ripped from her chest, causing Rin to fall backward into Miho. Rin was caught easily and forced upright and both women stared in shock as Aya fell back onto the carpet, dead and still bleeding.

Author's Note: I was originally going to have Miho have the honors of killing her instead of Rin, but Rin has experienced the worst of the situation and I felt that she deserved to kill her the most. Her innocence had been destroyed long ago, and even though she has never hurt anyone in her entire life, I felt it was time that she showed that she was not as soft and weak as everyone was treating her like she was.

Originally, I was going to have Aya's head cut off, but stabbing her through the chest seemed a little more personal. What do you think? Show of hands, who didn't trust Aya from the beginning?

OliviaAR