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~AM~

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~BURDEN~

Carts being pushed to each food stand, fruits and vegetables placed in to take back to their huts. Sesshomaru watched the bustling of people rushing to aid others, like every other village. Except this village gets attacked multiple of times. Some villagers threw wary glances at the taiyoukai, but he simply ignored them which relaxed their nerves. All except a little girl. She came skipping up to him like Rin does every day, well use to.
"Are you Inuyasha's brother?" she asked innocently.
"Half-brother." he answered correctly. The girl smiled and ran back to her father, who was watching them with worry. Weird, thought the dog demon with confusion. Lord Sesshomaru rose from his position and ran with impossible speed back to Kaedes hut. Rin was looking healthier and better, but Sesshomaru wondered what her reaction will be when she awakes. A scene popped into his head, one where Rin was cowering in the corner and the full-fledged demon leaning over her. The girl was sobbing uncontrollably like on that unfaithful night, where he bruised and bloodied her severely. Sesshomaru shook his head, much to Kagome surprise as she was watching them from the kitchen.
"Kaede? Do you think Sesshomaru has feelings for Rin?" she asked with concern.
"Well it depends. He could have a father figure feeling or a lovers feeling towards the girl." the wise woman considered. Kagome placed the wooden bowl onto the counter and looked outside the small window to see Inuyasha being annoyed by Shippo. The fox demon was on his head, pulling silver hair and weaving them into a braid. Inuyasha noticed Kagome watching them and frowned, thinking she was spying on them. She sighed; it wasn't like Inuyasha would fall for her just like that after Kikyo repeatedly died, though she wished it was possible. Kaede interrupted her thoughts by asking her if she could gather more herbs. She gladly agreed.

Sesshomaru was awakened from his slumber to the yelp of Rin. She was trying to crawl away without being noticed, but Sesshomaru got up silently and wrapped his arms around her waist. He sat down with the child on his lap, watching her shiver from the contact. She was whimpering quietly, small tears forming into her eyes. The dog demon soothed her by stroking her cheek, murmuring about the gifts he bought her. Rin smiled when he mentioned that he'll let her braid his hair and she raised her hands to reach some of his silver strands. He chuckled very low and shifted so he was in front of Rin. The way her hands caressed his hair was dumping him into calmness. When she finished she clasped her hands together in admiration, happy at her work. Sesshomaru grabbed her hand gently and laid her head on his chest. He rubbed his hand against her shoulder which made her murmur his name. The dog demon smirked at this and closed his eyes, listening to her light breathing although she wasn't asleep just yet.
"I'm sorry Rin. Will you forgive me?" Sesshomaru apologised, guilt in his voice. Rin turned her head on his chest so she could see his expression and to her surprise, there was sadness.
"I forgive you Lord Sesshomaru." Rin said, watching a small smile form at his lips.
The ningen closed her eyes and fell asleep while the taiyoukai listened.

Rin was clutching her plush toy that her lord bought for her. She smiled at Inuyasha and rushed with Shippo to braid his hair. The girl giggle at how his dog ears reacted when she tickled them. Everyday, she was healing, both emotionally and physically. Sesshomaru made some time to go hunting and to spend time with his ward. He watched the disgusted look on Inuyashas face when Rin jumped onto his back. The hanyou was trying to resist the temptation to throw her off his back but knew better that Sesshomaru would kill him for that. Finally the girl hopped off. She ran to Sesshomaru and gave him a flower she picked earlier in the forest with Kagome. His golden disks observed the plant before sniffing it. He smiled at Rin before licking her cheek. The girl giggled at the touch before running back to pull on Inuyashas tail. A yelp escaped his mouth when she yanked and she laughed at the sound. Kagome came out and saw Inuyashas pained look before laughing along with Rin. He really looked like a dog when he acted helpless. Shippo went inside to ask Kaede about more legends while Rin went to rest. Sesshomaru positioned the blanket on top of her before he left.
"Sesshomaru-sama? Where are you going?" Rin asked with wonder. Sesshomaru wanted to lie to Rin about the demons inside the village but he couldn't.
"There are demons inside the village Rin. I'll get rid of them." he said before he left her, shocked.

Elsewhere . . .

Three demons were standing in the shadows of the village. Well two. One was a human. Kohaku.
"Are you ready Kohaku?"Asked the wind sorceress, Kagura. Her red eyes visible in the darkness. The boy nodded.
"Remember, you have to only capture the girl, Rin. Be unnoticeable. Got that?"
"Yes, Kagura."He answered quietly. Kanna stood with the mirror at her chest.
"The girl is in the healers hut. She is asleep." she informed, the mirror glowing brightly before showing the scene. Kohaku nodded then ran off. "Sesshomaru is approaching." Kanna said ghostly. Kagura smiled. She held her fan up to her lips.
"This should be fun." she stated just as he approached. The dog demon came at an alarming rate of speed but Kagura jumped and swang her fan. "Dance of the Dragon!" Wind tried to slow the demon down but failed. Kagura took the feather out of her hair, enlarged it and jumped onto it with Kanna. Sesshomaru pounced and knocked them off, noticing that Kanna was the girl who skipped to him back then. Kagura did a motion with her hand and they landed gently on the ground. A group of warriors came towards them, assisting the taiyoukai in battle. But their timing was unfortunate.
"Kanna!" yelled Kagura, and the '10 yr old' girl understood. The mirror in her hand glowed and sucked their souls into it, allowing Kagura to use their bodies.
"Dance of the dead!" The bodies rose from the ground, swords pointed at Sesshomaru's chest. They lunged together but Sesshomaru easily dodged. Kagura controlled their movements while Sesshomaru fought against them uselessly. A sacred arrow was headed towards Kanna and Kagura ordered the bodies to protect her sister. As the arrow pierced through them, and they disintegrated. Sesshomaru, expecting it to be Kagome, was wrong and pounced at Kagura, scratching her with his nails from shoulder to wrist. The wind demoness clutched her left arm before hurrying to her feather with Kanna. They left in a hurry, leaving Sesshomaru with the priestess. Kikyo. The taiyoukai was confused. Inuyasha and Kagome said Kikyo repeatedly died in battle but now she was right in front of him.
"How are you still alive?" he asked, masking the emotions on his face and confusion in his voice. Kikyo turned away from him, her hair blowing behind her.
"If you want Rin to stay with you, I suggest you leave now." she said before walking away gracefully. Sesshomaru tensed and sniffed the air. He cursed himself as he found out another person was part of the plot.

Back at Kaedes Hut . . .

Kohaku walked in while everyone was asleep. He walked towards the location of the girl he was supposed to kidnap and entered. Rin was sleeping with a look of worry written on her face. Her breathing was normal and she was alone in the room. Kohaku bent down and wrapped the rope around her wrist and ankles, careful not to wake the girl up. He checked if she breathed through her nose before tying the cloth on around her mouth and neck. While he did that, he noticed a crescent shaped mark on her neck. His face held disbelief but then composed himself before meeting Kagura and Kanna outside the shutters. He threw Rin up towards them, and they caught her gently, placing her on the soft feather.
"Any encounters?" Kagura asked as Kohaku jumped on.
"No, you?" he answered then carried on. Kagura smiled then scowled.
"It was interesting." she replied before transporting them back to Naraku.

Sesshomaru barged into the hut, waking up everyone. Sango lit a lantern and asked in a tired voice, "What's wrong, Sesshomaru?"
He ignored them and rushed to Rins room. It was empty, and there was no sign of struggle so he assumed she was asleep when he kidnapped her. Sesshomaru howled in anguish as he lost Rin stupidly. Inuyasha and the others rushed in and noticed why he was making such a sad sound. Rin was gone. Sesshomaru sniffed the mat and ran out to search for the kidnapper, with the others on his trail. Except for Kaede.

~AM~

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~BURDEN~

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Crystalhearted Girl