Disclaimer: Nope, don't Inuyasha, Sesshomaru or any of Rumiko Takahashi's wonderful characters.
Chapter 4
Last time:
"I don't know when, but I think I've heard that story before. It's all so familiar," Reiku told her as her glowing eyes watched Sesshomaru. "Only in the version I remember, it was Mr. Daiginkeiko, well, in his angel form, that was in it. Not a youkai lord."
Kagome stopped clapping and stared at the little girl, chills running down her spine. Then a smile curled her lips and she thought, Well, looks like you've got a second chance to take care of her, Sesshomaru. Make the most of it
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Sesshomaru was pleased to hear that Kagome had received an A on her report. He smiled slightly as he walked down the street, and the poor couple that saw it scurried to the other side of the sidewalk nervously. He paid them no more heed than he did his feet, that were carrying him yet again to the children's home.
It had been a little over a month since he had brought Reiku to stay, and he had hardly gone a day without dropping in to just watch her for a while, even if he said nothing to her. As he nimbly ascended the steps to the home, he wondered at his actions.
Why Reiku? He had saved little girls and boys from rape and other horrid things before, a few he had also revealed his youkai form to, but why did he keep coming to see how she was adjusting? Especially when she seemed to be handling the trauma better than most of the children he had saved.
Most needed counseling to even start speaking again, but Reiku had begun smiling and babbling from the start. The only remaining evidence that her life had been less than perfect were the nightmares the overnight staff had informed him that she seemed to have quite frequently. Yet every morning she awoke as cheerful as ever, and not once had she ever mentioned them to him.
Yet he came each day to watch her play or just do her chores or school work, sometimes he did not reveal himself to her, though he suspected she knew he was there. Why did he find such joy in this? Another issue that bothered him was why he had offered Reiku the opportunity to go or stay of her own accord, when he had never offered it to the others? Why was it so important that Reiku choose him and his care?
His employees had begun to talk, him being there so often. His superior hearing caught the whispered rumors, and many employees had lost their jobs because of loose tongues. In fact, it was a new woman at the front desk this afternoon.
"Good afternoon, welcome to Daiginkeiko Children's Home. How may I help you, sir?" she said as he walked through the door.
Surprised, Sesshomaru paused, sliding all thoughts to the back for later consideration, and looked at the woman. She was young, slender and extremely attractive. Sesshomaru was a little disturbed by that thought and qualified it by the addition of "for a human."
"You must be new," Sesshomaru said in his usual emotionless voice matched with one of his better intimidating stares. He was in a hurry today; he had come to take Reiku with him to his office, so he could find out all the information on her for the home. He knew he had been neglecting this, but he had the half-fear that someone would show up to take her if he searched for family.
"And you must be..." she shot right back, scarcely glancing up from the work she was doing on the computer.
Sesshomaru was taken aback. He couldn't remember the last time that glare had failed. Perhaps he was getting a little soft. He made a mental note to go out to his country estate and do some proper training.
"I am Daiginkeiko Reizo, the proprietor of this home," he informed her a little smugly.
He waited for her horrified gasp, reddened cheeks and profuse apologies. However she simply paused in her typing, gave him an appraising look, turned back to her work and said, "Well, then you must be my boss. Okay, now how may I help you, sir?"
Sesshomaru wasn't sure if he should be furious or amused. This woman lacked any of the usual fear and respect his employees and most humans had for him. Deciding that he was a little of both, he said, "I am the owner. I do not need the assistance of a secretary to visit my own home."
At that the woman stopped typing, looked up at him with a slight smirk on her face and asked, "Then why, Mr. Daiginkeiko, did you stop at the front desk?"
Sesshomaru still didn't have an answer to that question when he stopped outside the large playroom where Reiku played, alone. She seemed to prefer it that way. She was friendly with the other kids, but seemed to be a little wary of them. She was most at peace in solitude. Or when she was with him.
He tapped on the door to alert her to his presence. She looked up and grinned broadly at him, dropping what she had been doing and running over. Sesshomaru didn't say a word to her, he simply turned and walked back down the hall. Reiku followed without a word. No questioning where he was taking her or why, just pure, simple trust that he would not lead her to harm. For the first time in years, he reached up to stroke his fur. An old habit that had been hard to break even after the concealment charm left it undetectable even to his touch. This was the first time he truly missed its comforting presence. No one had placed this much trust in him since her.
As they headed out of the door, Sesshomaru felt a warm, tiny hand slip into his own. He jumped at the contact and looked down sharply at Reiku. She simply looked up at him with a broad smile and squeezed his hand reassuringly. Sesshomaru swallowed, blinked, then slowly returned the gentle pressure. Although strange, it also felt oddly right to hold the delicate hand in his own deadly claws. A smile twitched at his mouth as they headed down the sidewalk together. He didn't even try to stop the warning growls that rumbled in his chest anytime someone passed a little too close to Reiku, and he gripped her hand a little more tightly. No one would take her this time. He would not fail in protecting her.
The silence only lasted until the end of the block. It was then that Reiku began to hum softly a tune that was eerily familiar to the demon lord. He shrugged it off as nothing at first, until she whispered the last phrase, "I will wait alone until you come, Ses-sho-maru-sama, please return."
Sesshomaru stopped abruptly, and Reiku halted once she reached the extent of how far their arms would stretch.
"Mr. Daiginkeiko?" the little girl asked, glancing up at him.
He stared down at her and sniffed her scent. Perhaps he was working too hard and needed to relax, but he could have sworn he heard Reiku say his real name. Maybe she had heard Kagome say it on accident, but then how did he explain the rest of the verse?
"Reiku, where did you learn that song?" he asked.
She smiled at him and said, "That song? Hmmmm, I'm not sure, really. I've just always known it, I guess. Have you heard it before?"
Sesshomaru jerked his head up and inhaled sharply. "Yes, Reiku, I have. A little girl used to sing it to me, a long time ago."
Reiku seemed to pick up on the sadness in his voice. She reached up and tried to cover his hand with her own. "She must have been a very lucky girl to sing songs for you. Where is she now?"
"She's gone. She died a long time ago," Sesshomaru told her, his voice now a whisper.
A gentle pressure on his hand drew his attention back to Reiku, who was staring up at him with a kind smile. "Well, then I will sing songs for you. That way you won't be alone, and she will be glad that you are happy."
Sesshomaru was not sure what to say to her, so he reached out and patted her head, then finally said, "I would like that, I think."
Sesshomaru kept his senses on alert, but his mind was completely focused on the mystery that was Reiku. He replayed the words to her song, over and over in his head. That was definitely the song Rin used to sing to him. It was strange that so shortly after he had received those pictures and visited her grave, that so much would remind him of Rin. His rational mind told him it was pure coincidence and silenced the other half that told him such reasoning was an excuse to not think about painful memories.
"Oh, Mr. Daiginkeiko, look!" Reiku squealed softly, forcing him from his inner debate.
Sesshomaru followed her finger to the colorful display in front of a florist shop. It was a whole bouquet of wild flowers tucked into a handsome ceramic vase. Reiku, put her hand to her chest and said, "Aren't they beautiful? I wish there were more places with flowers in the city. I really like them, but with all the concrete they can't grow."
Sesshomaru glanced down at the little face that stared wistfully at the plants with such longing that he had to look away. "You may go pick one, Reiku, and I will purchase it for you."
She looked up at him, her mouth open in stunned disbelief. He dipped his head, then followed her as she ran over to the display and sorted through them for her favorite. The young lady behind the counter came out to help. She took the money from Sesshomaru and drew out the one Reiku had picked.
The little girl turned and immediately lifted it up to Sesshomaru. "I want you to have it."
Sesshomaru blinked and eyed the thing as though it would bite him. Didn't she want the dead plant? Why give it to him? The clerk misunderstood the hesitation and offered, "Why don't you go ahead and take one for you and for your friend, sweetie?"
Reiku grinned and selected another, which she tucked behind her ear then proffered the other to Sesshomaru, who finally took it in his hand and studied it thoughtfully.
"Thank you, ma'am. Have a good day!' Reiku called out as she slipped her hand into Sesshomaru's and tugged him into a walk.
They made it the rest of the way to Sesshomaru's office without incident. Reiku was excited and pushed all the buttons in the elevator, much to the consternation of the other passengers who didn't dare complain after a very pointed glare from Sesshomaru. When they arrived at long last on Sesshomaru's floor, the secretary greeted her boss with a rush of phone messages and the verbal message from a colleague down the hall who insisted on speaking with him right away.
Reiku listened to it all, then smiled up at the secretary and said, "Hi, I'm Reiku."
The woman looked down her nose at the girl and grunted, before continuing to speak to Sesshomaru.
"I believe someone has greeted you, Mrs. Toyosawa, it is only polite to respond in kind," Sesshomaru told her coldly, interrupting.
"Hi, I am Mrs. Toyosawa," the secretary said sweetly, all too familiar with her boss's temper. "However, Mr. Daiginkeiko, you must speak with him."
Sesshomaru sighed inaudibly. "Mrs. Toyosawa, you will watch Reiku until I return. She may wait in my office."
The woman opened her mouth as though about to protest, but fell silent and mumbled, "Yes, sir." Though under her breath she added, "All these years of unwavering service, and he has me babysitting."
Sesshomaru heard and made a note to say something to her about complaining on the job. "Reiku, I will return shortly. You may wait in my office for me."
Reiku nodded and ran inside, when Sesshomaru opened the door and propped it so it would remain open.
"And Mrs. Toyosawa, should anything happen to her, I will not hesitate to send you searching for another employer who will not pay you as well or offer you as many benefits as you have received under me," Sesshomaru told the woman as he turned and strode rapidly down the hall.
The secretary sighed and collapsed to her chair. It was not fair to be expected to baby-sit some brat when you were a well-respected secretary for one of Japan's leading businessman. Yet as a leading businessman, he was able to get away with making his secretary baby-sit.
Inside Mr. Daiginkeiko's office, Reiku was trying her very best to behave, but found his office to be fascinating. She had looked out the window first, delighted at being so high over Tokyo. She felt like a bird flying. The next thing she had discovered was his extremely comfortable chair. Reiku climbed up and sat, looking out over the desk with a stern look on her face.
In a deep voice mimicking Sesshomaru's she said, "Mrs. Toyosawa! I want the president of TV and the emperor of the world on the phone right now!"
She smacked her hand on the desk for good measure, then giggled. A little girl in a bright kimono caught her attention and she got on her knees so she could look at the picture better. It was a very pretty little, girl, in Reiku's opinion, and she seemed very happy.
I wonder if that is the girl who used to sing for Mr. Daiginkeiko? Reiku thought to herself.
Finding nothing else of immediate interest on the desk, Reiku turned the chair around and discovered the book shelf. But the best part was what was inside a case on top. A long samurai sword was mounted next to the most amazing doll Reiku had ever seen. She wondered why Mr. Daiginkeiko had such an interesting item on display, when most other offices were just so plain and boring.
Carefully, she moved his chair closer to the shelf and stood on the seat. Still unable to reach the doll, Reiku started to scale the bookshelf. Balanced precariously, she was about to open the case, when a shrill cry almost made her lose her balance.
"What do you think you are doing, you little rat!" the secretary exclaimed. She stood on the other side of the desk with her hands on her hips. "Don't you climb up there and touch those things. I don't care how cute you are, he'll be furious if he finds you messing with his personal items. I've been his secretary for over ten years now, and I know how Mr. Daiginkeiko..."
"And if you would like to add more years to your service record, I suggest you learn that when I say watch her, that does not mean scream at her," Sesshomaru's cool voice interrupted from the doorway.
The secretary jumped and stiffened, while Reiku waved at him and smiled. "But, sir, what she is doing is clearly unsafe; I was merely trying to keep her from injuring herself."
"I do not pay you to argue with me. You will find a less volatile way of protecting her while I am gone, or I will find someone more capable. You are dismissed now, Mrs. Toyosawa."
She opened her mouth, but a raised eyebrow from Sesshomaru shut it and sent her silently back to her desk. Once she was gone, Sesshomaru turned to look at Reiku. Her smile vanished and she hung her head.
Sesshomaru swallowed the rebuke he had been going to give her, and walked over to his shelf. He plucked her up and set her gently in his chair, then turned back to the case, opened it, and pulled the doll from its stand.
"So, she pleases you?" he asked softly. He looked at it for a moment, admiring the time-worn face and ran a claw over the ragged hair.
"Yes, very much, she reminds me of that pretty Kagome lady."
Odd, Rin had thought that too.
An sudden pulsing sound caught his attention, and Sesshomaru peered up at the ancient sword that had been silent since Rin's death. But it still sat there, silent, as lifeless as the day he had lost her.
He shook his head to clear it, then turned back around to Reiku. "That is an interesting observation because her name happens to be Kagome."
He handed her the doll, watching as her eyes lit with wonder. She cradled the doll in her arms and spoke to it softly, "Well, Kagome, Mr. Daiginkeiko has taken good care of you all this time, hasn't he?"
The air filled with a pulsing sound, then suddenly stars exploded in front of Sesshomaru's eyes. He snarled in anger and reached up to the back of his head where a new lump was surely forming. What the hell?
He turned and saw Tenseiga, lying innocently on the floor, pulsing happily away at him like a friend who had just gotten back from a vacation and was full of stories to tell. His mouth fell open in shock as he just stared at the thing. Reiku got down on her hands and knees, Kagome tucked under one arm, and crawled over to the sword.
She giggled and turned to look up at Sesshomaru with a broad smile and said, "It sounds like it's talking! I heard something about a sword that could talk, and could bring the dead back to life. Funny, all I remember about it are these odd little demon creatures and a bright blue light, though."
Sesshomaru's jaw dropped, and he didn't even feel the heated moisture running down his cheeks. He stared down at the pulsing sword, then at the big, trusting brown eyes and endless smile on the little face that looked up at him. His breath left him in a gasp, and he dropped to his knees, unable to keep himself standing anymore.
He reached out and traced her smile with his finger as he whispered, "Rin? Reiku?"
Her only response was to put a loving hand over his and smile even broader. Choking back a sob, Sesshomaru clutched the girl to his chest as though she would vanish into vapor and inhaled her scent. It was different that Rin's, for this was Reiku, but the heart and soul were the same, sweet, innocent Rin he had known. Unbeknownst to him, Sesshomaru's charm caught on the back of her dress and deactivated. Ebony hair transformed to white, a familiar crescent and stripes appeared on his face, and his thick fur appeared, curled around them both as they knelt on the floor.
As tears wet his cheeks he whispered, "I never forgot you; I will never forget you. And I will not fail you again."
Reiku nuzzled into the welcome embrace and answered, "I know you won't." If she had noted the changes, she did not comment.
Sesshomaru sat there holding her close and stroking her hair as he silently thanked his father over and over for that precious sword. Tenseiga ceased pulsing, but seemed to fill the air with a happy hum. Reiku reached out and began to stroke the softness of his fur, as Sesshomaru continued to run his claws through her hair.
The approaching steps of his secretary caught his ears. Sesshomaru did not even hesitate to think as he, in one unseen motion, swept up Reiku, holding Kagome, and Tenseiga, slid open the window to his balcony, then transformed into his ball of light and vanished into the sky.
"Let us go somewhere better for talking," he explained softly to Reiku, who remained curled tightly against him. A secluded little grove outside of Tokyo came to mind, and he wordlessly adjusted his course.
Back in his office a very bewildered secretary looked at the empty room, then up at the empty case, then at the open window. Blinking several times, she then backed out, closed the door and sat down at her desk. It was, after all, Mr. Daiginkeiko's office. And he was a rather strange man. It was healthier for one not to question too much of what happened around him.
"It's beautiful!" Reiku exclaimed for the third time as she spun in place.
It was still not quite noon, and a mild sunlight filled the small field surrounded on all sides by dense forest. The grass was tall, brushing against Reiku's knees as she pranced around. Wild flowers speckled the field, filling the air with a floral perfume. Reiku had slipped out of her shoes and socks, which had joined Sesshomaru's coat and tie on the ground beside the demon lord. He sat with his back against a tree, Tenseiga in his lap, and his white hair now loose and drifting on the breeze. He stroked his fur thoughtfully as he watched Reiku. Beside him sat Kagome. The doll seemed happy to have been restored to its customary place, as its faded smile appeared much brighter now.
"I agree. This is where I come often to get away from the smells of the city," Sesshomaru told her.
Reiku bent and picked a flower, lifting it her nose. "It does smell nice here. Lots of flowers are much better than lots of cars."
She gathered an armful of flowers, then sat down beside Sesshomaru and began to sort them by color.
"Reiku, what family do you have?" Sesshomaru finally asked softly. This was a question he feared to ask, because the answer might take her away, but he had to know.
She looked down, her smile fading, and scratched her nose where some of Sesshomaru's loose hair had tickled her. "Um, well, my parents and my brother and sister are dead. It was a car wreck when I was really small. Then I was given to my uncle, but I came home one day and he wouldn't get up from the couch. The police had said something about overdose, but I was scared, so I ran before they could find me. After that, this old lady...she seemed nice..."
"It's okay," Sesshomaru interjected as he noticed her hesitation and the trembling of her voice. "You don't have to tell me. All I need to know is if you have family I would be legally obligated to return you to."
"No," Reiku told him, her fingers mindlessly gathering up the white hairs that kept floating in her face. "No, there is no one else left."
She scooted closer and started to weave one of the flowers into the hair she had gathered. "But I'm not alone anymore!" she added brightly. "And I don't want them to take me away from you, Mr. Daiginkeiko. I've been working really hard, and doing everything I'm supposed to."
Sesshomaru acknowledged this with a nod. He did not intend to let her go either, however he had other questions to ask. "Reiku, why is it you are not afraid to see me like this? Not even when you first saw me, did you show any sign of fear of me."
Reiku hesitated at this question and looked up into his golden eyes curiously. Sesshomaru had the growing suspicion that she was seeing more than most did as she looked at him. She then shrugged and went back to her work with her flowers.
"I don't know. You just don't seem scary." She paused and Sesshomaru could smell the salt of her tears. "I-I was more scared of that man than I was of you. You may have sharp claws and fangs, but he didn't, and the only ones who hurt me are people without them, who look harmless on the outside."
Reiku wiped her eyes quickly. She then picked up one of his hands and ran her fingers over his claws. Sesshomaru tried not to shiver at the intimate touch. "These may accidentally scratch me, but they could never hurt me like that man did, not even if they tore me to tiny pieces. But you would never let them do that to me. I trust you."
She sighed softly and returned to her stroking of his hair. "You don't have to be afraid of me either." Sesshomaru glanced down sharply at her. "I won't hurt you on the inside, like those without claws and fangs usually do. I guess I could, just like your claws could cut me, but I would never do that to you either."
Sesshomaru smiled down at her, enjoying her attentions to his hair, yet a little dumbfounded at the depth of her words. She just seemed wise beyond her years. "I trust you too, Reiku. And I will not allow anyone else to harm you. I want you to trust me to that as well, which is why I would like you to know a very special secret of mine. Reizo Daiginkeiko is a name I use for business. My real name, a very big secret that I'm trusting you with, is Sesshomaru."
"I will wait alone until you come, Ses-sho-maru-sama, please return," Reiku sang softly. She smiled again and added, "Now the song makes sense. Thank you, Sesshomaru-sama, for coming."