After the graduation ceremony the Emperor and Empress threw a graduation party for not only their sons and daughter-in-law but also all of Inuyasha's friends. It also turned into a semi-engagement party when Inuyasha took Kagome aside after the ceremony and proposed to her. It had actually been quite the scene when Kikyo had walked in on the proposal. Rin heard later from Inuyasha that a cat fight had begun, and strangely enough the usually weaker sister had prevailed. Even if Kikyo had won it wouldn't have mattered since he had finally figured out that she really hadn't been interested in him but in competing with Kagome.
So they all rejoiced at finally being finished with college, and also how they would now all be living in the capital again. Miroku and Sango were to be married in only a month, and he had been promised a position with the advisor on theology. In a country so large there were a number of differing religions that often conflicted with each other disturbing the general peace. Sango had been hired by Sesshomaru to protect Rin as she started her work for a pharmaceutical company. It was agreed upon that Rin would give 90 percent of her salary and all of her health benefits from that company to Sango while the remaining 10 percent went to the orphanage she grew up in.
Because of Rin's background, she was also asked to volunteer some time at the local orphanage to inspire the children to believe they could also grow up to be successful despite their backgrounds. Rin at first had denied their claims citing that becoming the Lady of the Western Lands was not something one could aspire to be, but they explained that they had asked her to talk to the kids because she had finished college despite everything going on in her life and still getting a job when she didn't need to.
At the end of the party Shuichi announced to everyone that he was giving his children special gifts for their graduation. "For Inuyasha's gift I will give him one of the highest positions within my court. He will be instrumental in helping Sesshomaru and I. And I hope one day he can help Sesshomaru until his son becomes old enough to help him." Inuyasha gave a smug look to Sesshomaru as if he had beaten him in a fight. "And to Sesshomaru and Rin I will give a one week vacation to a remote resort in the tropics. I know that you were not able to leave your hotel during your honeymoon because of the media circus, so I hope this will be a better second honeymoon." Rin and Sesshomaru were both speechless. Sure, they had just spent a lot of time together the past three months without an argument, but they had expected things to go back to the way they had been, sans the fighting.
Actually, they didn't have anything more to fight about. Rin no longer needed to explain to him how to behave in order to carry out their deception, and Sesshomaru realized after the whole ordeal that Rin was never an obligation but his wife. He may not have loved her like a husband normally loves a wife, but she had given up her own happiness to help him out, which deserved respect.
Days later they found themselves in the tropics. Sesshomaru never did feel comfortable sitting out in the sun all day doing nothing, but Rin was just happy to be somewhere warm where she could fully relax before the stress of life came back to her. For most of the week Sesshomaru had planned activities for them like whale watching and hiking. At night they would walk on the beach looking up at the stars in the sky they were never able to see at home because of the light pollution.
Their last day after a light lunch Rin went upstairs to change into her bikini. She put her clothes back on over her swimsuit and grabbed her sunscreen. Sesshomaru, who was dressed in a pair of shorts, a t-shirt, and sandals, looked very uncomfortable not dressing so formally. He also had a book in his hand. "Are you planning on reading down at the beach?" she questioned him.
"Yes," he answered her simply before exiting the room with her following behind.
At the beach they found they were amongst the only ones there. The rest of the beach bums were too busy enjoying their time to realize who was amongst their midsts. Rin stripped down to her bikini in front of Sesshomaru. He took immediate notice to the fine shaped curves of her body that she had done well to hide from him up until that point. She noticed him staring at her and blushed out of embarrassment because it was becoming clear to her that she was actually turning him on. "Do you like what you see?" she asked him attempting to sound seductive but failing.
Sesshomaru's mouth opened but he closed it immediately afraid that he might say something that might give way to his sudden passions. "I just think it's not appropriate for you to wear...to be wearing out in public," he lied to cover his tracks. "You are to be the future Empress of the Western Lands."
"No one else notices me," she explained to him as she gestured towards where most of the people on the beach were now sitting. She sat down on her knees next to him on the beach facing him. "Or are you afraid that someone might be attracted to my breastases like the spider demon?" She moved just so slightly to bring attention to that part of her anatomy.
"Breastases?" he said wondering about her stranger pronunciation of the word.
"Yeah, breastases." She laughed heartily at her inside joke he couldn't understand. "When I was in high school," she explained. "I worked as a cashier at a grocery store. One night some guys came into my line and one told the other to go get some chicken breastases because they had forgotten them. Since then I've always called them that." He nodded his head in understanding now. "Why was it that the guy was so interested in my breastsases?" she asked him.
"I don't know," he answered. He figured it was because she was quite stacked for a human woman of such small caliber. He had long noticed them, but now he couldn't help but stare at them like he was a hungry infant.
Rin had noticed the looks he was giving her, and it made her feel good. Guys never did look at her before, and now the most gorgeous man in the whole world was attracted to her. But maybe her attentions to him came out of the fact that since he had saved her life things had definitely changed between the both of them. They had in a way become closer. He had actually shared with her how he felt about someone wanting to harm her, how as her husband he felt this desire to be the one to protect her and please her. No longer did he insult her by calling her a human; he actually saw her as a being just like him with fears and hopes and desires.
Sesshomaru watched out of amusement at how Rin tried to stand up against the waves. For as short as she was, she had no chance against them, but she seemed to be having all the fun in the world trying. He often envied how she could seem to find pleasure in nearly everything. Her life would always be enriched by her outlook.
After half an hour Sesshomaru noticed he hadn't even read through the first page. That was about the time that Rin decided to return back to his side. "Are you ever going to join me?"
"No." He flipped to the next page to make it appear like he was actually reading the book instead of her.
She removed the book from his hands, which came without really much of a struggle. "Come on. It's perfect weather. Come out and enjoy the ocean." She tried to push him to get up, but it was to no avail.
"I'm staying right here," he said as he planted himself to the spot.
Rin then whined, "You could at least pretend to be happy being here." She reached up for his shirt surprising him. "At least sit out here with your shirt off." She tried to pull it off, but he wouldn't allow it. "What are you so afraid of?" she asked him. "I bet you have a very muscular chest that would put all the guys out on the beach to shame."
"I just don't want to." That wouldn't stop Rin though, and after some struggling he started laughing at how stubborn she was. While he was distracted Rin managed to get his shirt off of his back except over his left arm. Instead he grabbed her hands in his large right hand and held them away from him.
"Is there something wrong with your arm?" she asked noticing how tense he was about her getting near it.
His eyes showed fear before going back to their emotionless state. "I don't want you to see it."
"Why not?" she questioned him.
"That's the arm that is damaged." Rin looked at him rather puzzled about what a strong demon like him could mean by damaged. He had always been able to use the left arm like his right arm, and he often had held her close with that arm. What was he truly hiding from her? As if reading her mind he answered, "When I was younger Inuyasha cut it off by accident when we were practicing our sword techniques. The doctors were able to repair it, but there is still a scar."
"Why are you so afraid of showing off your scar?" she asked him, but then the answer hit her like a ton of bricks. He was afraid that she would see him as incomplete, as weak and unable to protect her. She went ahead and moved his shirt sleeve down enough to see the scar. It looked like it had hurt him when it happened because the cut wasn't a clean one. It would have also required reconstructive surgery to repair the blood vessels and nerves. Her hands ran over the surgical scar bumps. "You are certainly braver than I am."
He had been enjoying the feeling of her soft fingers gently running over his skin causing goose bumps to form. Upon her comment he asked her what she meant. "I can't imagine how much it must have hurt," she confessed to him. "And as a young kid that must have been very scary and painful." She put both of her hands around his bicep and ran her thumbs in circular motions on the skin. "I guess that's what makes you such a formidable opponent now." She looked him in the eyes and they stared at each other like that for a good minute before she reassured him, "That's why I trust that you will protect me."
Both of them at that moment realized that things had certainly changed between the both of them. Only months ago they hated each other, and now they trusted each other enough to open themselves up to one another. The sudden look in his eye scared her because she knew that the sexual tension between them was growing. To dispel the moment she stood up and said to him, "Will you please at least step foot in the ocean today?" The smile on her face made him get up and follow her. What had happened to him? Now he was easily ordered about by a human woman, and he felt no shame in it.
He jumped into the water after her and made sure to get his hair entirely wet. When he came up he found Rin trying again to fight the waves to get further out. One of the stronger waves knocked her into Sesshomaru, who easily caught her and held her up against him. Once again they found themselves in a situation where it was difficult to ignore the desire growing between them. Sesshomaru felt her skin underneath of his growing hot just like her breath upon his face. In a matter of seconds his lips crashed into hers in a frenzied desire. They stood there kissing each other like the world around them was crashing.
Once they parted for air he picked her up and speed to their possessions on the beach. They gathered up their few belongings as quickly as they could and he once again carried her to the hotel but at his full demon speed.
He couldn't get the door open fast enough as they started making out again. Everything was dropped by the door and he threw her upon the bed. But as she reached out to touch him he let go of her and bolted up and to a corner of the room. Rin watched him as he paced across the width of the room obviously quite deep in thought. She knew not what to do since it was apparent that he had been desiring her just as much as she had been desiring him.
"We can't do this," he said to her as he stopped his pacing.
She leaned up on her elbows and asked him, "Can't do what?"
"This," he said. "You desire to lose your virginity to someone to loves you, and I don't." Rin just stared at him with her mouth hanging wide open. She knew not what had just come over him. "I can't do this." He went into the bathroom and jumped into a very cold shower. She could hear the thump of his head and forearm hitting the side of the shower as he leaned against the walls. Inside he cursed himself for nearly doing something he couldn't take back. He knew not what love was, but he was sure that what had just come over them was simply lust.
Rin laid back down on the bed and groaned in frustration. Had she done something wrong?
That night they said not a word to each other and did everything they could even avoid looking at each other. The flight home was an even longer trip since they were forced to sit next to each other. So when they got home they immediately went their separate directions. Kagome chased after Rin and asked her, "How was the second honeymoon?"
"It was fine!" Rin said angrily as she slammed the door in Kagome's face.