No matter how much I love the Inuyasha series, as do us all, I have no ownership of anything Inuyasha.(sigh)
Chapter Three
Back at the shrine Inuyasha and his father sit in a quiet living room, occasionally glancing at the ceiling. The TV sits before them, screen flashing with commercials and TV shows with the volume muted. Even with their demonic senses, neither can hear a sound from upstairs aside from the occasional creak of a floorboard as someone moves.
After several hours Inutaisho suddenly stands, heading for the stairs.
At the top of the stairs he pauses, sighing. Sesshoumaru sits on the floor across from a closed door, his head in his hands. He had not moved since he had brought Rin back to the shrine, refusing to wait downstairs with his brother and father.
"Any word from Kagome yet?" Inutaisho says quietly. Not looking up Sesshoumaru shakes his head. His son's long white hair is stained in places with blood, his clothes covered in it from carrying Rin back from the mountain.
"You should go wash up." His father says quietly. "You don't want Rin seeing you like this when you get in to see her." He takes his son's arm, pulling him unresisting to his feet. "Go on. I'll stay here."
As soon as the door shuts he begins stripping his clothes, discarding them on the floor randomly. By the time he reaches the bathroom he is nude, stepping under the stream of water. To any normal human it would have been scalding but he hardly feels it. His mind is instead on the other side of the wall. He reaches out, laying a palm briefly against the wall.
He is out in minutes, dressing again with clothes laid out on the bed. He meets his father back in the hall outside the door, his father patting him on the shoulder as he stops beside him.
"Kagome poked her head out a minute ago. She said she'll be done in a few minutes."
"How is Rin?" Sesshoumaru asks quietly. His father sighs, hesitating before answering.
"I won't lie son. She's not in good shape." His father says quietly. He is prevented from saying anymore when the door opens. Kagome steps out, shutting the door behind her slowly before turning to the two demon lords behind her. Her eyes are rimmed from lack of sleep, her shoulders slumped. Her hands, stained with blood, shake slightly.
"Perhaps you should sit miko." Inutaisho says quietly. Kagome nods, pausing long enough to lay a gentle hand on Sesshoumaru's arm.
"You can go in if you like." He nods, waiting until the two had disappeared down the stairs before turning toward the door.
Downstairs Kagome sits beside Inuyasha on the couch, lying back against the couch and closing her eyes. Both men wait silently for her to speak.
"She's messed up pretty bad but she'll live." Inuotaisho and Inuyasha slump slightly in relief as Kagome rises, heading for the door.
"Where are you going?" Kagome glances back at them as she reaches for her bow and quiver beside the front door.
"I can't stay in here any longer."
Sesshoumaru shuts the door quietly behind him, pausing for a moment to scan the room.
Rin lies on a bed across the room near the window, covered in a light blanket. Her arms are on top the blanket, both heavily bandaged. The scent of medicinal herbs and blood is heavy in the air as he strides across the floor silently to sit in an empty chair at the bedside. She shows no sign of recognizing his presence, not even her ears shifting as he reaches out, touching her hand. Even his touch draws no reaction from her.
Why did you not wait for me? He wonders to himself. Sighing heavily he releases her hand, hanging his head.
Darkness engulfs her, encompassing her like a warm blanket. She is dimly aware of others in the area but senses no hostility from them. Then the pain comes. It starts as a twinge at first, barely noticeable, but as time passes it grows steadily worse. The warmth around her grows, stifling her. There is a pressure on her chest, as if someone is sitting on her. She tries to push it away but it stays, a gentle hushed voice piercing the darkness.
"Rin. Rin, it is me. Calm down." A hand grabs hers and her eyes fly open. Her eyes flare red and she snarls viciously, talons extended. A calm pair of gold eyes stares back at her. "Rin, it's me. Sesshoumaru." Hearing his name she calms, slumping forward onto his shoulder.
Sesshoumaru can hear her labored breathing as she clings to his shirt.
"Water please." She whispers. He reaches over to the table, taking a waiting glass, and tipping her back slightly to drink. Once done she leans forward once more, leaning against him.
"Do you need anything?" He whispers.
"Outside." He frowns.
"Outside?" She nods.
"To hot in here." He shifts slightly, wrapping one of the light blankets around her before rising.
"I'll take you somewhere cooler." She nods, wrapping an arm around his neck and leaning against him as he pads silently from the room.
He takes her outside, striding across the shrine grounds to the well house. He shuts the door behind him with a foot before striding down the steps and seating himself on the edge of the well. They both sit there for a time, Sesshoumaru studying the depth of the well. Rin does not move until her hand, once wrapped around his waist, slides down slowly to hang limp at his side.
He glances down at her worriedly, shifting her slightly so he can see her face.
He studies her, worried, until he sees the gentle rise and fall of her chest. She's just asleep. He reassures himself. His head dips down, slowly burying his nose in her hair. She doesn't stir as he rubs the bridge of his nose against one ear, remembering her explanation for the ears, her chuckling voice echoing through his mind.
"It fooled alot of demons at first, the ears. Seeing them made them think me a hanyou. Trust me, i'm a full demon. When Midoriko had to transform me, i asked her if she could give me these ears." Her ear twitches slightly. "I wanted Kagome to have some visible link to her past, our past you could say." She says quietly. "I was hoping that seeing these ears would remind her of Inuyasha and his promise to her." They sat in silence a moment before she had leaned forward, tipping her head to one side and smiling widely. "And on top of that, they look so cute on me!"
The well door sliding open alerts him and he looks up sharply. His brother stands in the doorway, sliding the door shut behind him and approaching the pair. Sesshoumaru remains silent as Inuyasha leans forward, studing Rin criticially before looking at Sesshoumaru.
"Kagome sent me to check on her." Sesshoumaru nods, both studying the sleeping demon. "She says that because of the blood loss, she'll be sleeping for a long while. It might be better to put her back in bed." Inuyasha suggests lightly. Instead of arguing Sesshoumaru rises, following Inuyasha into the house and returning Rin to her bed.
Kagome comes in later on, not seeing Sesshoumaru sitting in the corner. She leans over Rin, adjusting the blanket over her before turning. She starts when she sees Sesshoumaru then calms, joining him.
"Her wounds are healing too slowly. It must be from her blood loss." Kagome comments to him, kneeling beside his chair. He nods, his eyes looking tired and drawn. His hair is drawn back into a loose, messy ponytail. Several hairs are sticking out haphazardly.
"Isn't there any way we could do a blood transfusion?" He asks quietly. Kagome shakes her head.
"Blood transfusions are difficult with demons. Not only do they have to be closely related by blood like humans do but they have to be the same type of demon as well." Sesshoumaru nods, his mind skimming over her words quickly before he nods.
"Do you have what it takes to do a transfusion here?" He asks quietly. Kagome shakes her head.
"No, I wish I did now though." She comments lightly. Shesshoumaru nods more and rises, moving to Rin's bedside. Curious Kagome follows, leaning over his shoulder slightly to watch. She watches as he uses one slim talon, dragging it slowly down his wrist in a short line toward his elbow. Kagome's eyes widen as blood wells up quickly.
"What are you doing?" She whispers. Seshoumaru does not glance up as he leans forward, over Rin.
"It's the only way for her to heal quickly. It is very unhealthy for a demon to remain wounded and weak like this for long. She will heal faster this way." He turns his attention to Rin, using his other hand to raise her head from the pillow slightly, working his other hand to keep his blood flowing from the wound.
"Rin, wake up. You have to wake up Rin." He says gently, coaxing her awake. She mumbles slightly and he leans close, putting his mouth close to her ear. "Rin, listen. I'm going to give you something. You have to drink it." He says softly but firmly.
Rin turns her head away at first but upon his insistance she slowly lets him put his wrist to her mouth. After a few moments of hesitation Rin suddenly grasps his wrists in both her hands, clinging to it as she takes his blood.
"How can she do that?" Kagome asks. "Rin hates being around blood." Sesshoumaru glances back at her and she can see a tinge of red at the corner of his eyes. Alarmed she almost backs away but he stops her.
"It's the demon in us." He says quietly. She stops to listen. "Her demon nature is taking over, creating a bloodlust of sorts." Kagome studies him.
"Is that why..." He nods.
"That's why my eyes are turning red as well. Its bloodlust."
After several minutes Kagome notices Sesshoumaru's hand on the back of Rin's head begin to tremble and she places a gentle hand on his shoulder.
"You should stop now." She says simply. He nods, begining to draw his wrist away. Rin does not release him at first but relents as Sesshoumaru begins talking to her quietly again. Using one of the damp washcloths beside the bed he gently wipes away a trickle of blood from her lips before rising. Seeing that he is somewhat unsteady Kagome loops his arm over her shoulder. He smiles slightly, nodding thanks as she guides him across the room, letting him drop back into his chair. He leans back, closing his eyes as Kagome slips into the bathroom, swiftly returning with gauze and medical tape. As she kneels beside his chair and bandages his wrist she glances back at Rin.
"Will it work?" She asks. He nods.
"It should." Kagome nods, focusing back on her work.
"If not then you can try again i guess. I do think it would be a good idea if you and Inuyasha went hunting tomorrow or something to help replace the blood you've lost." Getting no reaction she glances up, smiling slightly to see him already asleep.
Finishing with his wrist she silently rises, retrieving a spare blanket from the closet and draping it over him before leaving the room.