DIS: Hello everyone and welcome back! I know it's been a little bit of a while since I last updated and I apologize, truly I do. I'm glad that everyone is, er, kind of anxious to see what happens with the story. Thanks toIYGU (read my comment at the end of the chapter, please, and that will answer your suspicions,) Midnight Chamber, Kyo-kun AND Hatsuharu are hot, HawkAngel XD, sphinx (I'm starting to think it's going to be a long chapter, instead...), Chew Chew, icygirl2 (yeah, it will probably be a longer story than I thought,) d2shny, EnchantressRai, DaughterofBastet, Moon'sHope, Neko Celes, Angel, and Kagura134.I take your reviews to my heart, hehehe.And now that I have said what I wanted to...Enjoy!

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Important notice! I originally was going to make this a short-chaptered fic, but I think with the plot and ideas I have in mind, it's going to be maybe ten or more chapters. That's all I needed to say!

Chapter Two

Sesshomaru had been sitting on his balcony ever since the phone call with John Reynolds. He supposed he should have expected the call. Thomas Hatton, when he started one of his nasty, sinister schemes, he involved everyone that didn't want to be involved. And just what else was expected of Hatton? The man had his ways with people, most especially the other company owners that he was so acquainted with. Sesshomaru, being the cynical "bastard" as Thomas so enjoyed calling him, was careful not to get caught in the schemes of this certain man. He never knew what he was up to. And he calls me the bastard, Sesshomaru thought to himself.

Snorting softly to himself, Sesshomaru lowered his head and eyed the long expanse of land that was his. Fortune, though it helped him immensely, often reminded him of his fellow wealthy. They, he reflected, act like a dog in heat. Where there was money, they went running. Sesshomaru stood, his eyes veiled by a shadow. The moonlight beat down on him mockingly and with a last dark look to his estate, he turned, thinking to himself, Disgusting.

X

Night had descended upon the city and young Rin, a girl of fourteen, was hastily moving across the street, a bundle of food she had worked for in her arms. Some of it, however, she had stolen. Rin, being an orphan, had to fend for herself. There were other homeless orphans and people that assisted her, but for the most of it, she found her own food and she took care of herself. With difficulty, the female went to the abandoned storage garage and opened the door. It creaked in the silence and banged when she shut it. Rin sighed, shuffling through to where her bed was - or what was considered a bed to her. She sat down and grabbed a flashlight with batteries that were nearly dead. "I guess I'm going to have to steal some more batteries," Rin murmured to herself, opening the bundle she had and eyeing the contents in an almost derisive manner. She had a few small boxes of juice, bread, a pack of five cookies, some sandwich meat, and an apple. It wasn't much, true, but she somehow managed to live off it. I have to make this last for a couple weeks, Rin thought sadly, sighing to herself.

Rin didn't have many choices in life. She had to deal with being homeless and didn't get paid much for working. In fact, her employer simply assumed she was a normal girl. Thanks to an old woman, Mayala, she was able to bathe almost regularly. Mayala, being the sly dog she was, broke into a house daily because the man that lives there works graveyard and therefore, isn't at home. So, people that looked at Rin thought she either didn't know how to take care of herself or was poor. They had no idea how poor she was, though.

Rin ate the apple and then lay down to sleep in her filthy bed. She didn't care what bugs crawled on her anymore. She just wanted to sleep and hope that no one would come and steal her food - or anything else she had in her dump of a home. It's better than the streets, Rin told herself every time such a thought occurred. As she fell asleep, she could hear a police siren from the distance.

X

Sesshomaru Inutaisho was no man to tamper with in the morning. His mood was always foul and the majority of the time, one of his servants either got fatally hurt or even killed. Of course, were it the case of a servant's death, it wasn't anything he couldn't handle. His wealth could cover anything up. This morning he was in a worse temper than usual and everyone knew. He didn't even bother with demanding about where his breakfast was. He disregarded the absent of breakfast and went straight to his daily routine: shower, dress, and leave.

When he left that morning, the driver to his limo had come early, not wishing to anger Sesshomaru. It would be a sad day when anyone messed with him in the morning. Some of the rookies didn't know that yet. Sesshomaru's moods did not come out quite so boldly as others. His face was normal as always - blank with no emotion. That was the problem with him. Unfortunately, however, for Sesshomaru's driver, he did not wish to get a ride today. He wanted to walk, like he normally did on the most terrible mornings. His driver had trembled when he delivered this information, but Sesshomaru ignored that as well. Moving away from his estate, he went to the back roads, not wishing to confront any irritating mortal on the busy streets. After all, he had no desire to even brush up against one of the foul creatures. He was a powerful youkai.

X

Rin had woken late that morning and she knew she had simply by the angle of the sun through the broken windows. Her eyes popped wide and she gasped out, "I'm late!" She groaned in frustration and dragged herself out of the storage garage. She stood there, contemplating what to do when she heard soft footsteps to her left. Rubbing her hair, she glanced to the side to see a handsome youkai walking through the alleyway. He's beautiful! Rin thought enviously. Oh, if only I could look so pretty. She paused. And rich. He looks plenty rich. He was getting closer and she decided she would greet him politely.

"Good morning, sir!" She greeted with a bright smile as his gaze slid over her casually. His amber eyes narrowed on her in suspicion, but she simply continued to smile at him. Rin didn't mind if she repulsed him. She simply wanted to say hello to this dashing male that had wandered down this alley. When he was out of her sight, she broke into a run to the small site where she worked. Even if it's only being an 'assistant' to the construction workers, it's still a job, she thought as she hurried through the alleyways. I wonder who that man is? Maybe I'll stay to wait and see if he comes by again!

Her employer, Mr. Duos, turned in surprise to see her. "Rin, why are you so early?" He asked as she halted before him, breathing hard. "You're normally ten minutes late."

"What?" She looked genuinely confused. Her boss had never said a thing about her being late. "Why did you never say anything, sir?" Rin asked him, her brow furrowed. He shrugged, adjusting his hat. In all honesty, Rin admired her boss. He was a relatively attractive older man who had a kind heart and was cautious in everything he did.

"I never really cared whether you were ten minutes late or not. It's not that much, anyway," he informed her, his emerald eyes moving over her face speculatively, before he turned and shouted something to the workers. Rin blinked, then went to assist the workers, carrying a toolbox to one of the men that was gesturing to her. He truly is a nice man, she thought with a small sigh.

X

Sesshomaru was frowning to himself in puzzlement when he arrived in his office. Never had there ever been a female outside that abandoned storage garage. The girl had never been in that alley at all, in fact. He didn't want to deliberate over her presence any longer than necessary, so he dismissed the rumpled image of the girl from his mind and turned to the more important he had on hand. Or, to be more specific and literal, on his desk. An envelope with Thomas Hatton's handwriting upon it was placed by his papers and Sesshomaru observed it for a moment. Jaken knocked on the door, and then entered, giving a nervous smile. "Sir? I - " Sesshomaru shot a glance to him, then spoke.

"Jaken. Open this letter and read it to me," he commanded.

"Ah...Yes, sir." Jaken took the letter from Sesshomaru's tesk and his hand instantly turned a dark blue color. Dropping the envelope, Jaken grabbed his hand, eyes wide. "M-my hand! I can't feel it!"

"Mmm." Hm. That was close, but not close enough, Sesshomaru thought with a narrowed gaze. An employee poked their head in the office in curiosity and Sesshomaru said, "Retrieve a doctor." The employee nodded rapidly and hurried away. The color was spreading up Jaken's olive skinned arm. I should have suspected something like this from that human, Sesshomaru thought with a flickered glance to the envelope. He will not get this Sesshomaru so easily, though.

After the doctor had given Jaken an antidote (it was shocking that it had affected him, even though he was a lesser demon,) Sesshomaru eyed his assistant wistfully. Though he didn't like to admit it, he really appreciated the imp's loyalty to him. Jaken would walk through fire and the most deadliest of things if only to serve his master. It was strange, really, this unbreakable devotion Jaken had to him. Sesshomaru treated him as he was nothing but a bug on the bottom of his shoe, however...However, Jaken did not seem to mind it as much as another would have.

"How insolent of them, do you not agree, sir?" Jaken muttered, rubbing his bandaged hand. "Who the devil would have been so absolutely stupid as to – "

"Thomas Hatton," Sesshomaru answered. Jaken looked startled and when he glanced up, he saw that his employer had a small, grim smile on his lips. He knew that when Sesshomaru Inutaisho smiled, something bad was going to happen. And, if he was correct, that could only mean that the youkai intended on getting revenge. "Perhaps I'll pay a personal visit to him."

What is this? Jaken wondered to himself, watching as Sesshomaru glanced from him to the window, his eyes hiding any thoughts that were running through his complex mind. Sesshomaru never voices his thoughts to me, let alone anyone! He must be furious if it was truly Thomas Hatton that had done that. Jaken grimaced and folded his hands in front of him, gazing down at them. Sesshomaru...He has never liked Mr. Hatton. I can only imagine what he intends to do to him.

X

It was lunch and Rin watched as the men left to their small groups – or in some cases, by themselves – and ate their lunches. Rin sat quietly by herself, watching them eat with a small smile on her lips. She was starving, of course, but that didn't mean she was going to go around, begging for food like a lost puppy. She pushed some of her hair from her face and peered up at the sky. The sun's rays beat gently down on her and the earth. It had been raining just the day before and yet today, it was a sunny, relatively warm day. The unexpected weather of spring was rather inconvenient for someone like her. She, after all, had to go out depending on the day's weather, just like every other homeless person. With a sigh, Rin dismissed her depressing thoughts and folded her hands in her lap demurely and stared down at them, keeping to herself quietly.

Mr. London Duos took a drink of his one-liter Cola and glanced around the workplace. His eyes landed on the young fourteen-year-old. He sighed through his nostrils and lowered his pop. His bushy eyebrows knitted together as he observed her. Mr. Duos doubted that Rin realized it, but he knew very well that she was homeless and that was the main reason he had offered her a job when he found her wandering around the construction site. Since that day, he hadn't seen her bring a lunch and he never saw her eat at all. Almost every night, he kindly offered for her to have dinner with him and his family, but she had simply waved a hand, smiled, and said, "No thank you, Mr. Duos. I'm okay for tonight." It was the same nine-word reply he received every time he asked and he hated that he never insisted.

Rin's job wasn't really ever official. He simply didn't like seeing a girl so young and sweet on the streets. He would remember his meeting with her for the rest of his life.

"Hey, you!" He called. Rin paused, tilting her head and giving him a puzzled look. "What are you doing, loitering about? Why aren't you at school?"

"Excuse me? What did you say? I couldn't hear you, sir." She was polite and when he approached her with his arms crossed, she didn't even flinch. Instead, Rin gave a smile and said, "Hello."

"Shouldn't you be at school, little girl?"

"I'm fourteen," she explained. "I'm not a little girl. And, I don't go to school." He scowled at her, and then realized she wasn't lying. He eyed her for a moment, but she didn't really have the look of a homeless person. She seemed clean enough, but she looked as though she didn't eat well enough. "What are you building here?" She gestured. "I tried asking the workers, but they shooed me away."

"We're building a bank," Mr. Duos told her. He hesitated, before asking, "Tell me, are you interested in a job?"

"A job, sir?"

"Yes. You can be the...assistant...of the workers. How would you like that?"

"Oh, that sounds wonderful!" She beamed at him with pure pleasure. "I'd like that a lot!"

"Good. What you'll do is, basically, get them their tools, help them with some things like...holding the nails or something. Got it?"

"Yes, sir. It sounds fun." He smiled at her.

"I bet it does."

"Do I get paid?"

"Of course you do. I'll pay you a little less than half of what they get paid. Alright?"

"Okay."

Luckily, the workers had no objections to having an assistant. Rin gradually grew on them, until they were treating her as their own daughter.

"Hey, Rin!" One of the workers called. "Come here for a second." The female glanced around, then stood and jogged over to the worker. He said something in a soft voice and gave her something, before shooing her off. She stared at something in her hand as she returned to the wood she had been sitting on. She eventually shoved it in her pants pocket and returned to sitting, though she a foolish little smile on her mouth. Mr. Duos shook his head, thinking, She acts like a child sometimes...

X

The day had been wearing on Sesshomaru after all the human idiots that came to speak with him. Most simply wanted to make alliances with his company, Riue Incorporated. Of course, Sesshomaru was no fool. He wasn't about to make some alliance with other CEO's that he had never heard of. Half of them, he suspected, were probably not even CEO's. So, he did the wise thing: he sent every single one of them away. Many protested and even tried to force their way inside his office, but Jaken held up well, along with his secretary (who, ironically, was a male youkai.)

Irritated, Sesshomaru decided to leave early. As he moved out of his company, a sudden idea came to his mind. His curiosity, which had been forced away earlier that morning, came back at full blast. He couldn't help but wonder whether that same girl would be in that alley. He moved through the alleys, and when he turned into the alley that he was the young female, he frowned, seeing it empty. She must have just been lurking this morning, he decided to himself. As he turned a corner, he was almost crashed into by the girl he had been expecting. She skidded to a halt, surprised that someone else was in the alleys.

"Oh!" She exclaimed, her eyes widening. "It's you from this morning. Hello, sir!" She smiled brightly at him and he eyed her almost suspiciously. She didn't seem like she was up to no good. She was carrying a small white bag in one of her hands and he wondered whether she was taking a shortcut home or she lived somewhere in these alleys. "Have a good evening." She moved around him, jogging down the same alleyway that he had come from. He frowned, standing there for a moment, before returning to his original path, his thoughts wandering to the appearance of the girl. The conclusion he came to when he arrived home was that she was homeless. There could be no other explanation. Though, how she could be so cheerful with such a dismal fate was beyond him. Human emotions made no sense to him and he didn't want to understand them. That was simply how it was.

And that is how it will stay, he told himself silently.

X

DIS: Well, this was a longer chapter and not quite as boring since it had more dialogue.

This is an important announcement! I know this fic may seem like Moving up in the world, but I assure you I am not taking anything from that fic except I am borrowing the idea for Sesshomaru's last name. I can assure you that Rin will not end up as his secretary, nor will she be selling flowers, nor will Sesshomaru's mother, father, brother, or any of the other Inuyasha characters appear. This is more of a drama/suspense/romance one and I know it started out a little like that fic, but it isn't the same. Just wanted to make you all aware that I am not stealing any ideas. Though, that is a very excellent story.

Anyway, finishing with that, I hope that you guys liked the chapter! I must admit that I did a little better with this chapter then with the last. But then again, the first chapters are always a little slow. Any suggestions to make it better would be greatly appreciated. I support criticism, but only if it's going to help me. If it's just 'This could be better,' then...Well, how does that help? Sorry for the rants, guys. (sweat drop) It's kind of late to finish writing this...Please review and tell me how it's going so far! Ciao!