Chapter Four: Danger Approaches
Elladan and Elrohir looked at each other confused. "What?" They said in unison.
"That aura." Inuyasha growled.
The twins were dumbfounded.
"They don't sense it." Sesshomaru muttered quietly.
Both twins looked at each other again. They stood and looked around them. "What do you sense?"
"Something dark." Sesshomaru hissed. Walking away from the rivers edge, he sat by a tree and leaned against it, seemingly comfortably. He pulled his leg up and sat there quietly.
The twins stared at Inuyasha for some kind of explanation, but he shrugged. "His moods change all the time. We have to stay alert, I suppose. If he can sense darkness, then evil is around." The twins nodded, quickly speaking in their language.
Rin looked at Sesshomaru quickly, but a slight nod from him eased her worried thoughts, and she began humming quietly as she and Kagome prepared the fish.
"Did you gather any wood, Inuyasha?"
"What?" He spun around and glared at her.
"Well, we need wood to make a fire, you know." She stated pointedly.
"I know that, but you have two feet." A rock flew out of no where and smacked him sharply in the back of the head. Raising his hand and spinning around he glared at the only person who was in that direction. "Sesshomaru!" He snarled. Another rock flew out of Sesshomaru's right hand and landed smack in the center of his forehead. Stumbling backwards he tripped and landed on the ground.
"Get the wood, Inuyasha." Sesshomaru whispered softly.
"What did you do that for?" Inuyasha gathered himself to his feet and glared at his brother angrily.
Sesshomaru fingered another rock and flipped it into his palm. Raising his eyes to Inuyasha his mouth quirked slightly.
"Alright! Alright! I'm going." He growled. Stomping off he entered the woods seething.
"He's sulking." Kagome giggled.
Rin grinned and let her eyes trail after him. "He reminds me of Master Jaken. Lord Sesshomaru always throws rocks at Jaken."
Kagome smiled brightly. Elladan and Elrohir only shook their heads in quiet wonder. Elrohir quickly vanished into the woods, and Elladan sat beside the girls. "Here." He handed Kagome a small dagger. "To clean the fish." Gratefully she took it and watched as Elladan showed Rin how to pull the scales off the fish. Inuyasha came out of the woods with an arm full of wood and dropped them at Kagome's feet.
"See, now that wasn't too hard, now was it?"
He flashed her a full mouth of teeth, fangs and all and snarled. Stalking off to the rivers edge, he sat down and huffed.
"Don't pout Inuyasha." Kagome called out to him.
"I'm not pouting. Mind your own business."
Sesshomaru got to his feet and walked over to the fire, standing behind Rin he looked down and watched as Elladan showed her how to skin the fish. She was smiling. He kept his face expressionless as he watched them, although many unknown emotions raced through him. The feelings were all foreign to him and he frowned confused. Fighting with himself as he watched them, to his surprise he found himself kneeling on one knee before he could stop himself. Placing his hand on Rin's shoulder he felt her jump surprised. She looked over her shoulder and stared at the hand in bewilderment. Raising her eyes she gazed into the golden eyes of her Lord Sesshomaru, she smiled at him.
That smile caught him off guard, although he was uncertain as to why. She had smiled at him many times before, and he knew that it was her grin that was given only to him, when she was happy. Before he could do anything, he felt his mouth quirk up into a small smile of his own, which caused her eyes to widen slightly. Shaking his head, Sesshomaru dropped his hand, and got to his feet quickly. There was something about this world which was causing him to act strangely out of character.
Closing his eyes, he hid away everyone's look of confusion at his small display of affection and he felt a growl rise in his throat, but he swallowed it quickly. Taking a deep breath, Sesshomaru opened his eyes again and came face to face with his brother who stood there scrutinizing him curiously. Narrowing his eyes, he growled. "What do you want?"
"What is with you?" Inuyasha snarled.
Sesshomaru remained silent. Instead he stared at Inuyasha carefully, sniffing softly, trying to detect some of that human blood that had once flown through his veins. Try as he might to detect it, it was gone. Before him stood a full youkai. His nose had never failed him before, so he knew that whatever this place was had made all this happen. Furrowing his brows, he stared at Inuyasha hard. Lifting the corner of his mouth he sniffed again to make sure. "You're not a hanyou any longer, little brother."
Inuyasha's mouth dropped and his eyebrows shot up under his thick bangs. "Wha-?"
Sesshomaru turned away looking to the river again. 'This should be interesting.' He mused.
Inuyasha stood there gaping. Sesshomaru turned around and regarded his brother amused. Easing his eyebrows, he shook his head. "That leaves you with a problem, Inuyasha."
"Oh? What's that?"
Sesshomaru smirked and turned away again. "That is up to you to find out."
Growling low in his throat, Inuyasha turned away and sat down beside the fire. The fish was almost cooked and his stomach began to respond to the smell. "That smells good." He sniffed deeply.
Kagome grinned. "I agree, I'm hungry."
Elrohir came out of the woods carrying two packs with him, and placed them next to his brother. Seating himself beside Elladan, he glanced at the fish, but pulled out some lembas for himself and his twin. Rin crawled over to them and inspected the bread like stuff in his hand.
"What is that?" She asked looking up at him with her big brown eyes.
Elrohir smiled. "It's lembas. Would you like to try some?"
She nodded eagerly, her stomach rumbling softly. She giggled and sat back on her heels, holding her stomach. Elrohir broke off a small piece of the lembas and passed it to her winking as she took a bite quickly. "Hey, this is good." She beamed.
Everyone except Sesshomaru was seated beside the fire, eating fish and the lembas that the twins had with them, talking casually. Questions were passed back and forth, and then there were stories that were added. The sun was quickly setting, when Elrohir finally glanced over his shoulder looking at Sesshomaru. "Is he going to eat?"
Inuyasha shrugged. Rin piped up and grinned. "He doesn't eat human food."
Elrohir frowned but shrugged. Getting to his feet, he walked over to the river and started cleaning his hands and face. Rin raced over and followed suit, and he got an idea smiling secretly to himself. Using his right hand, he scooped a bit of water in it and flicked it in her direction. She squeaked and stared at him wide eyed for a second before her mouth dropped open at his innocent look.
She gasped and dropped both her hands into the water and pushed it at him. Elrohir grinned but his smile erased quickly as he got a face full of water soaking him thoroughly. That had done it, the water fight had begun.
Inuyasha shook his head, and looked pointedly at Elladan who laughed quietly. Kagome smiled seeing the girl play in the water, splashing the elf, and him gently splashing her in return. When it was over, they had both managed to soak themselves to the bone, and walked up to the fire dripping.
Sesshomaru had frowned when the first squeak had left Rin, and had turned his head slightly seeing what had caused it. The water began flying in all directions, and he had stepped further away to avoid the splashes. Turning his gaze away, he felt his frown deepen hearing the laughter erupt from both of them. Uncertain as to why it irritated him so much, he walked back over to a tree and sat down leaning his back against it, watching silently.
When they had finished, he had half expected Rin to race to him for his fur to dry off, but she didn't this time. Instead she sat beside the fire as Kagome used a soft blanket supplied by the twins, to dry her off. Frowning, turning his gaze away from the strange sight of Rin being coddled, he closed his eyes.
Rin yawned and stretched, seated in Kagome's lap, and blinked as sleep was beginning to over come her.
"Are you tired?" Kagome whispered.
Rin nodded, yawning again. Elrohir chuckled, and swatted his brother's hand away. "Will you stop that?"
Elladan laughed. "You look like a drowned rat." But he lowered his hand from Elrohir's hair.
Shaking his head, he noticed Kagome wrap her arms around Rin. "Is she cold?"
Kagome smiled and nodded. "You got her plenty wet. Next time, do that when the sun is still up."
Elrohir smiled gently. "Here." He reached into his bag and pulled out a blanket handing it to Kagome.
Wrapping it tightly around the little girl, Kagome placed her close to the fire but far enough away so she wouldn't get too hot. Rin curled up around the blanket and sighed happily. "It smells like cimanim."
Elladan stole a look with Elrohir and chuckled. "At least that and not mint."
Elladan narrowed his eyes. "Careful, you little terror."
Elrohir put on a face of mock hurt. "Who are you calling a terror?" The twins began bantering back and forth while the rest of the group finally fell to sleep, listening to the soft laughter of the elves. Elladan and Elrohir stayed awake, listening to nature and keeping the fire built. Glancing over their shoulders, they noticed Sesshomaru with his eyes closed.
"Do you think he's sleeping?" Elrohir whispered.
Elladan shook his head. Before he was able to respond, Rin began whimpering in her sleep. The twins frowned and watched her silently. She was curling up into a tighter ball under the blanket, and her little feet began moving as though she was racing from something. The twins glanced at each other for a moment before her whimpers got louder, and she cried out.
"What would be chasing her in her dreams?" Elrohir whispered softly.
Elladan shook his head, staring at the little girl sadly. Elrohir got up and placed his hand on her back and rubbed it gently. Rin jerked awake quickly with tears in her eyes, and sniffled, remaining still. She noticed that one of the twins was beside her and she lifted her eyes to him curiously. "It's ok, little one." Elrohir whispered, still rubbing her back.
She shivered and curled closer to him. Her eyes trailed over to Lord Sesshomaru and she saw his eyes widen in surprise. Frowning, she closed her eyes again and fell back to sleep.
Sesshomaru had gotten used to her nightmares. He had always left her to fend for herself regarding them, due to her having to fight her own demons. He couldn't fight them for her, especially when they were only dreams. When she had cried out, he had allowed his eyes to slip open, watching her silently. When the elf had gotten up to comfort her, he had grown angry. Frowning, he watched in silence as the one named Elrohir began rubbing her back in comfort. What made him even angrier was when she had curled up closer to the elf, and Sesshomaru felt his heart jump into his throat.
Gasping softly when her eyes trailed over and locked with his for a moment, Sesshomaru felt the strangest feeling enter his chest and remained there long after she had closed her eyes and had gone back to sleep. Confused, he sat there silently and watched them. Elrohir remained at her side, seemingly unaware of him being looked at, while Elladan conversed with him softly.
Looking away, Sesshomaru frowned deeper. Keeping watch across the river, morning came without anymore incident. Standing up taking a deep breath, Sesshomaru disappeared into the woods, quietly pondering what this strange feeling was that had taken over him that night.
It was early morning, and everyone was awake. Rin was prancing about, humming to herself, as the twins prepared breakfast. Kagome and Inuyasha sat side by side looking around for Sesshomaru.
Elladan looked over. "He left early this morning. He wouldn't go far would he?"
Rin danced over. "He is never far." She sang.
Elrohir smiled sadly. "What were you dreaming about last night, Rin?"
She stopped briefly. Placing her finger to her lips she shrugged. "Can't remember." Twirling away, she danced over to where she had seen Sesshomaru the night before. She knew she had had a nightmare, but she couldn't remember what it was about. Every time she had woken before she would always search for Lord Sesshomaru. She would find him in the camp somewhere near her and she would fall back asleep knowing he was nearby. Sighing, she had always felt comforted to know that he was there; last night had been no exception. But last night, the elf had comforted her and she felt happy. Now she felt guilty. Sesshomaru's surprised gaze didn't go unnoticed by her.
Rin looked into the trees, searching and found him standing still looking at the sliver of moon that was faint. He always looked at the moon. Walking over to him she stopped beside him and looked up. "Lord Sesshomaru?"
He didn't move. Sesshomaru had heard her approach, but he was too frazzled by these strange feelings overwhelming him to answer. They stood there for a few long minutes, before he looked down at her. She was staring at the moon also, which made him smile proudly. Wiping the smile off his face quickly, he shook his head and turned away. "Come Rin."
She grinned and raced after him happy that he had spoken to her. So he wasn't angry with her. Happily, she danced back into the clearing and raced back over to the fire. Kagome noticed Sesshomaru's sudden appearance from the trees and felt relieved that he was indeed not far away as Rin had said. She wasn't sure why she even cared, considering how many times he had tried to kill his own brother. But something inside her told her that something was changing with the full youkai.
She stood up and stretched and glanced over the camp. Elrohir was seated in a tree softly humming to himself, while his brother was off doing something. Inuyasha was perched on a rock in the center of the river, pawing at the rushing water, and Rin was now racing around the fire with her arms outstretched. Looking back at Inuyasha, she smiled. She loved him, but she wished he would notice her feelings, or admit his own. Sighing, she wandered over to the river and called out.
"Inuyasha!"
He lifted his head. "What? Want me to get more firewood?" He scoffed.
"Don't get angry, all I wanted was to see what you were doing."
"Who's angry?" He growled, lowering his hand quickly into the river, trying to catch the fish that swam by.
Shaking her head, she turned away, but faced a black chest plate. Looking up, Sesshomaru was looking at her curiously. "Oops." She whispered. "Sorry."
Sesshomaru lifted his head, and turned his gaze to his brother, trying to ignore her. Shaking his head, he noticed his brother was more dog like ever since his hanyou blood changed. Smirking, he turned his eyes to Kagome again. "You know his human blood is gone right?"
She nodded. "Must you remind me of that?"
Sesshomaru nodded. "Seems it is the fate of this blood line. At least one falls in love with a human."
"What would you know about it?" She said angrily. Turning away, she huffed. "This is ridiculous."
Sesshomaru smiled. "Kagome?"
She stopped. "What do you want?"
He waved her over slowly. Leaning over he whispered into her ear. "Tell him to sit."
Her mouth dropped open shocked. "Why?"
"Because he is in the middle of the river, perched precariously on a rock."
She giggled. "I have only done that when he gets out of line."
Shrugging, Sesshomaru looked back over to his brother.
Kagome glanced at Sesshomaru silently pondering his suggestion. Looking back at Inuyasha, Sesshomaru had been right about him being carelessly perched on the rock. His feet were placed wide apart and his hands braced him until he dipped them into the water trying to catch a swimming fish. It would be funny. "Hey, Inuyasha!" She called out to him.
He turned his head slightly his eyes watching a fish carefully.
"Sit boy!"
His face lifted briefly in surprise before the rosary around his neck glowed white and pulled him into the water with a rather large splash.
Sesshomaru felt his lips twitch at the corners. Nodding his thanks to Kagome, he turned away from the river. "I find that rather amusing. It should cool him down a bit."
Inuyasha came out of the water sputtering angrily. "What was that for?" He yelled in outrage. Making his way to the rivers edge, he stalked up to Kagome sticking his nose in her face.
"Why are you asking me? I was asked to do it." Kagome giggled.
Rin stood by the fire holding her hands over her mouth trying to suppress her giggles, while Elrohir had climbed out of his tree and stood there stunned. Sesshomaru looked over his shoulder smiling. "Walk with me, Inuyasha. I needed you to be cool before we spoke."
Inuyasha's gaze trailed after Sesshomaru his eyes narrowing in silent pondering.
"Be a good boy will you?" Kagome grinned patting his head.
Slapping her hand away, he snarled. "Will you stop treating me like a dog?" Storming over to his brother carefully, he slumped against a tree, seating himself with his legs crossed. Sesshomaru stood with his back to him. "What do you want?"
"Always impatient, aren't you?" Sesshomaru placed his hand over his chest thinking.
Inuyasha nodded. "Are you going to tell me? Or leave me to figure it out on my own?"
Sesshomaru looked over his left shoulder slightly. "Have you noticed anything different about this place?"
Inuyasha frowned. "Like what?"
"Strange sensations, feelings, the aura in the wind?"
Inuyasha nodded. "Of course I have, you know that."
Sesshomaru turned around and squatted close to his brother. "I sense evil here." He hissed.
"Keh." Inuyasha sniffed indignantly. "I sense something different with you. That's what I notice."
Sesshomaru nodded. "I must admit that this place has put me through strange sensations." Shaking his head, Sesshomaru narrowed his eyes. "However, that is not why I need to speak with you."
Inuyasha frowned, sniffing the air he locked gazes with his brother. "I smell it also."
"Keep your anger and emotions under control, Inuyasha. You have grown up knowing a hanyou's way of life. It is much different with full youkai blood."
Inuyasha frowned deeper. "I don't understand."
Sesshomaru growled frustrated. "You have seen what I can do, but I had years to learn how to control it. I also had father's guidance. You did not. You have been a full youkai for only a day. If you allow your emotions to control you, you will loose yourself. You remember when you lost Tessaiga and your youkai blood took over you?"
Inuyasha nodded shivering.
"It will happen again, but it will be worse because your human blood has been erased." Sesshomaru stood up and sniffed the air sharply. "Something comes. It is close."
Inuyasha hopped to his feet. "I will remember what you said. If I need help, will you provide it?"
Sesshomaru rolled his eyes. "Have Kagome tell you to sit. I am sure it will knock some sense into you." Pausing he smirked. "If you become too emotional in battle, you will have a bit of assistance from me."
Elladan raced out of the trees at that moment. "Ro! Wargs!"