Chapter VI

The next day was overcast and dark clouds hung in the sky like bad omens. The wind had picked up so much that it rattled the windows as it blew against them and the large puddles in the garden indicated that it had rained at some point during the night and the heavy clouds promised more. Sesshoumaru sighed as he looked out the window and put his hands behind his head as he wondered what time it was. It was probably still early as there were no sounds at all from the road just beyond the garden walls, not that there had been much noise at all the day before.

A soft sigh caught his attention and he looked across to the other side of the room where Rin was sleeping. His eyes softened as they landed on the small woman. She lay curled up on her side facing him, her head pillowed on the coat she had been wearing the night before and a small hand curled around the edge of the blanket wrapped around her. Beneath the blanket he could just make out the gentle rise and fall of her chest and watched as she shivered slightly, pulling the blanket around her tightly. She looked very innocent as she slept and Sesshoumaru almost smiled as he watched her sleep.

After a moment, Rin rolled over onto her back and sighed, opening her eyes slowly and looked around as she tried to establish where she was. Her eyes widened as she remembered and her head turned slightly to find Sesshoumaru propped up against the wall watching her with amusement. Smiling slightly, Rin sat up and stretched before falling back onto the makeshift bed and pulling the covers around her.

"Did you sleep well?" she asked, turning on her side to look at Sesshoumaru as she pulled the covers over her shoulder.

"As well as you can sleep on the floor," Sesshoumaru said with a smirk. "Did you?"

"Fine, thank you," Rin replied, shivering slightly. "I can sleep anywhere though."

"You're lucky."

"Don't worry, with any luck you'll be in your own bed tonight."

"I hope so. Otherwise I'm going to have to invest in a bed today so I don't sleep on the floor again tonight."

Rin laughed and sat up, pushing the covers aside and getting to her feet. Sesshoumaru watched as she stretched noticed that she was not only small in terms of height, but he saw that although she had wide hips, her waist was tiny. The woman looked as though she would shatter if not handled with the utmost care, but he knew that her fragility was a deception as she was a feisty woman.

"Do you know what time it is?" Rin asked as she looked through her bag for the hair brush she always carried.

"8am," Sesshoumaru replied as he started folding away the blankets he had been using.

"I overslept," she said turning around and looking slightly perturbed by the revelation.

"I didn't sleep enough. How do you manage getting up so early everyday?"

"It's easy once you get used to it. Shall I wake you up every morning so you can get into the routine?"

"No, it's fine thanks."

Smiling to herself, Rin folded up her blankets and placed them on top of the ones Sesshoumaru had just folded before turning around to look at the tall man.

"Did the man at the station yesterday say what time to come back?" she asked.

"No, we should probably just go and see what's happening."

After leaving the house, Rin and Sesshoumaru made their way down the street towards the station quietly. The clouds over heard seemed to be getting darker and darker and the wind whipped around them relentlessly. By the time they reached the station, Rin's eyes stung from the wind and she was glad when they finally stepped into the warm building. She followed Sesshoumaru over to the ticket desk and stood quietly beside him as she tried to get some warmth back into her.

"Don't get too comfortable in here," Sesshoumaru told her short while later. "The trains are running and ours will be here soon."

"That's a relief," Rin said with a broad smile.

Both Rin and Sesshoumaru had been very glad to get back to the apartment and Rin had decided that after a long hot bath, she would curl up in her comfortable bed for a while before going to work. Sesshoumaru had nodded when she told him her plans and left her to it, planning to be at the bar before her as normal.

When Sesshoumaru was preparing to leave, he noticed that she had yet to emerge from her room and wondered if she was aware of the time. Sighing to himself, he made his way towards her bedroom and noticed the door slightly open, but knocked anyway. Hearing a quiet sound, he pushed the door open only to find her curled up on the bed, her back to the door. At some point during her sleep, she had kicked away the covers and revealed her to be clothed in only her underwear. Why she slept in only that, Sesshoumaru didn't try to understand and merely pulled the covers over her as he sat on the edge of the bed and attempted to wake her up.

"You'll be late for work, Rin," he said when he thought she was waking up.

The petite woman mumbled something and rolled onto her back, dislodging the covers as she moved. Sesshoumaru closed his eyes and tried to chase away the image of her clad in only her underwear from his mind, but failed miserably as his mind immediately called up an image of the dark purple underwear he had glimpsed before covering her. Cracking an eye open, he looked down at her, hoping she was awake and covered, but sighed when he realised that she wasn't. What would it take to wake her up? Giving up all hope of waking her up by talking to her, he reached out and gently shook her shoulder, his other hand covering his eyes as he knew she would not be pleased to be woken up by him when she was only dressed in her underwear.

"What?" Rin asked sleepily, cracking an eye open to look up at the person shaking her shoulder.

"You're finally awake."

Immediately recognising the deep voice, Rin blushed crimson as she remembered that she wasn't suitably dressed and squeaked in surprise as she pulled the covers up around her, not aware that he had already seen it all. When she controlled her blush and racing heart, she looked up at him and smiled to herself as she saw the hand covering his face.

"Is there something you wanted?" she asked quietly.

"You'll be late for work."

"How long have I been asleep?"

"All afternoon I think."

Her jaw almost dropped and she sat up instantly, springing out of bed and pulling on a pale blue dress over her head before rushing around the room trying to get ready and completely forgetting Sesshoumaru who still sat on her bed. Having now lowered his hand, he stared at her as she rushed from one side of the room to the other before sitting down beside him as she pulled on a pair of sandals and tied up her hair in a loose bun. When she thought she was ready, Rin tugged his arm and pulled him out into the living room as she put on a white jacket and once more checked her appearance in the mirror by the door.

"Thank you so much for waking me up!" Rin exclaimed as he ushered her towards the motorcycle outside.

"That's fine, but will it really be alright for you to work dressed like that?"

"It's too late to change now. I should've laid my work clothes out before I fell asleep."

Rin gave him a cheerful smile as she left his side when they reached the bar and darted inside to get ready for her shift. She could hear wolf whistles echoing around the room as she passed through quickly and sighed in relief as she closed the door to the bar behind her. Hanging up her jacket, Rin knew that Sesshoumaru had been right in questioning what she wore as it was low cut and showed more bare flesh that she was willing to let people in this place see. Sighing, she looked around and saw a black button up shirt that the male staff wore hanging up in an empty locker and immediately knew that she had found a solution to her problem. Pulling it from the clothes hanger, she shrugged it; tied the bottom of it up just under her breasts and did up a few buttons so as to cover her cleavage. Rin rolled up the long sleeves to her elbows and smiled at her appearance in the mirror.

After Rin had disappeared into the building, Sesshoumaru had stayed outside for a while longer, lit a cigarette and thought about what he had seen that day. He hadn't intended to see what he did, but now he couldn't get the images of her from his mind. Images of the lacy purple bra and the skimpy briefs popped into his mind at odd moments and were difficult to get rid of; although he wasn't entirely sure he wanted to get rid of them. Truth be told, she had looked incredible and so very enticing. Her skin looked smooth and he now wondered what it would be like to feel that skin beneath his hands, but hastily pushed that thought aside only for it to be replaced by a potentially more dangerous thought. Rin's full breasts had looked even more enticing than her skin and thoughts of what it would feel like for him to cup one of them in his hand were what finally pushed him to a conclusion. Somewhere along the line he had fallen for the tiny woman. He wasn't sure why or when, but he did know that he couldn't deny it any longer.

Pushing the door open, he stepped inside and looked around for the woman who now seemed to be at the centre of his world. Amber eyes widened as they located her standing behind the bar and he breathed a silent sigh of relief as he noticed a black shirt covering her voluptuous breasts, although in his opinion, her dress clung to her curves in the most indecent way that was sure to set the men's imaginations running wild. Resigning himself to watching an evening of fruitless flirtation, Sesshoumaru made his way over to the bar and sat down heavily in his usual seat. Rin appeared in front of him moments later with a beer and a cheerful smile.

"You were right about the dress," she said in a slightly breathless voice and then giggled. "I hope no one needs this shirt."

"It looks good," Sesshoumaru complimented, nodding at her as he lifted the bottle to his lips.

Rin smiled and turned to leave, but paused when she felt a gentle pressure on her arm. Turning around, she noticed that Sesshoumaru's large hand was wrapped around her wrist gently, holding her in place.

"Was there something else?" she asked, smiling cheerfully again as she turned around to look at him.

"I'll wait for you after work."

"You always do, thank you."

With a quick movement, Rin slipped her hand from his grasp easily and squeezed his hand gently before giving him a final smile and leaving him alone with his drink. As she walked away, she wondered why there seemed to be something different about his behaviour since coming into the bar that day. He never usually told her that he would wait for her, he was just there waiting for her when she stepped out of the bar at the end of her shift and Sesshoumaru never initiated physical contact and yet he had just done so. It baffled her, but it was also endearing and she couldn't help the smile that came to her face as she thought about him.

At the end of the evening, Sesshoumaru stood outside the door waiting for Rin as he usually did. Now that he had discovered his feelings for her, he was at a loss for what to do next. Did he tell her and hope she felt the same? Or did he wait a while and try to bring her around to feeling the same way about him before he told her? He was hopeless when it came to matters of the heart and it annoyed him that he didn't know what to do. The sound of the door opening caught his attention and he saw Rin step out of the building with a man in tow. It was obvious that the man's attention was not focused on her face and his wandering hands were reaching towards her as she stepped out of his reach and smiled tolerantly.

"I'll be fine getting home," Rin said, her eyes showing a slight anxiety about a more persistent than usual pursuer. "You don't need to come with me."

"You don't really want to go home alone, do you?" the drunk slurred as he drew closer to her. "It's going to be awful cold tonight."

"She's not going home alone," Sesshoumaru said in a cold voice as he pushed himself off the wall beside the door and took a step forward.

"Oh?" the drunk queried, eyebrow rising as he recognised Sesshoumaru. "You fancy your chances with the girl too? Sorry boy, I was here first. Try next time, now move along."

Rin took a step back from the drunken man and looked between him and Sesshoumaru anxiously. She had never heard Sesshoumaru use a voice as cold as that before and it sent shivers down her spine. The usual blank look that he kept on his face while at the bar seemed to have disappeared and was replaced by a glare that would've felled the man where he stood if looks could kill. Seeing him with such an expression and hearing his tone of voice, Rin suddenly understood why people warned her away from getting close to him, but she pushed the thoughts aside, knowing that this was not who he truly was. It also struck her that it was unusual for his demeanour to change so drastically when defending her. The last time he had done so, he had simply tripped a man over and after a blow to the back of the neck, sent him running in the opposite direction without showing any expression on his face, but now he was different and she wondered why.

"I'm not going anywhere," Sesshoumaru said in a dangerously low voice and then smirked at the man. "If we're going on a first come first serve basis, then I believe it's you who must move along."

"What?!" the drunk bellowed, anger getting the better of him.

"I don't need to explain myself to you if you are too drunk to understand."

Without another word to the spluttering man, Sesshoumaru turned to Rin who jumped slightly when she realised his attention was focused on her. His gaze softened the moment it landed on her and he held out his hand to her. Hesitantly, she accepted and allowed him to guide her to the car park while the drunken man they left behind shouted angrily and spewed curses at them. Sesshoumaru paused briefly when they reached his motorcycle to give the man a final cold look before swinging a long leg over the machine and settling himself comfortably while Rin looked over her shoulder at the man who was now stumbling towards them.

"He's too persistent," Sesshoumaru muttered and shook his head.

"What will happen?" Rin asked anxiously.

"We go home."

Before Rin could question him, Sesshoumaru had pulled her towards the motorcycle and settled her in front of him as he had done a long time ago when she overworked herself. When he was sure that she was comfortable, Sesshoumaru drove them out the car park, past the stumbling drunk and down the dark streets towards the apartment building while Rin could only bury her face in his shirt again as she tried to understand the change in his behaviour.

The journey back to the apartment was both pleasant and slightly awkward. Rin was unsure how to react to the protectiveness Sesshoumaru had shown back at the bar, but she had had no complaints when he had settled her in front of him on the motorcycle instead of behind as normal. Truthfully, she always felt safer sitting in front of him rather than behind, but she had never told him this for fear he would laugh at her. When the motorcycle came to a stop in the car park beside the apartment building, Sesshoumaru leaned back and looked at Rin who sat still against his chest, wondering what was going to happen next. Fortunately, they had simply made their way up to the apartment in companionable silence and Rin sighed happily as she stepped into the apartment she had come to think of as home.

"I'm going to change," she said with a smile as she started to make her way towards her bedroom.

"Wait," Sesshoumaru said quietly, catching her hand in his and halting her progress for the second time that night.

"What's wrong?" Rin asked, turning to look at him with a frown.

"Did the do anything to you?"

"Who?"

"The drunk at the bar."

"Oh," she smiled at him and shook her head. "No, he didn't do anything."

"Good."

Sesshoumaru turned away and let go of her hand as he made his way towards the living room, leaving Rin to stare at him in confusion. When she came into the living room a few minutes later, he noticed that she was dressed in her usual pyjamas but this time he could see the purple straps of her bra and images of what lay beneath the sleeveless shirt came to mind instantly. He sat down on the sofa heavily and glared into the glass of alcohol he had poured himself, looking up only when Rin sat beside him. She gave him an unsure smile and tilted her head to one side as she always did when she was curious.

"Is something wrong?" she asked quietly, biting her lip as she waited for a response.

"I was worried about you," Sesshoumaru admitted, not meeting her gaze as it returned to the glass in his hand.

"Why?"

"I thought that drunk did something to you."

"But he didn't."

"Good."

"Are you alright?" Rin asked, her voice unsure as she looked at him carefully.

"I'm fine, why?"

"You seem different today."

Sesshoumaru smirked slightly. "I'm the same as normal, only slightly wiser."

"I see."

Rin narrowed her eyes at him as though she could somehow find answers from him that way since his response was cryptic. She looked down at her hands for a moment and frowned as she struggled to understand him, but eventually gave up. About to get to her feet, Rin was halted when she felt an arm slip around her waist and pull her across the sofa. She looked up in surprise when she collided with Sesshoumaru's broad chest and her eyes widened considerably when his head dropped to her shoulder and he buried his face in the crook of her neck. Her mind seemed to have come to a stand still and she was at a complete loss for what to do and how to react. She could feel his breath against her skin and shivered slightly.

"Sesshoumaru…"

"Hush," he said quietly, his voice muffled. "Just relax."

Feeling her stiffen, Sesshoumaru felt the urge to sigh and instead sat up and placed his glass on the table nearby before turning his amber eyes to the woman beside him. Her eyes were wide and he could see confusion and happiness swirling in their depths. Rin said nothing as he looked into her eyes and then pulled her towards him again, his arm wrapped around her waist tightly and his other hand on her back, fingers playing with the tips of her hair. After what seemed like an eternity, Rin relaxed against him and Sesshoumaru smirked as he buried his face in her neck again and nuzzled it gently. She shivered again and her hands moved from her lap to his chest where they fisted in his shirt and she dropped her head to his shoulder, sighing softly.

"Have you had too much to drink?" she asked quietly, not moving an inch.

"No, why?" Sesshoumaru's voice was muffled once again as he nuzzled her neck again.

"You've never done this before."

Rin got no answer and was instead pulled closer against his broad chest. She had no problems with this kind of contact, but she couldn't help but wonder what had suddenly made him do this. Although he said that he had been worried about her, she doubted that it was the only reason. A squeak of surprise left her lips as he suddenly sat back, pulling her with him until she sat across his lap. Biting her lip, she looked at the buttons on the shirt she currently held onto.

"Don't be frightened, Rin," he whispered huskily into her ear, sending shivers down her spine. "I wouldn't hurt you."

"I know," she replied and gathered enough courage to look up and smile.

Nodding his approval, Sesshoumaru wound his arms around her waist and pulled her closer, smirking when her own arms rose to his shoulders. He almost smiled when he felt her turn slightly to lean against him, pressing her full breasts into his chest and resting her head against his shoulder as she sighed contentedly. This was certainly not how he had expected to be spending the evening, but he wasn't complaining. Having a beautiful woman in his arms was always a feeling he relished, but when that woman was Rin, he didn't want the moment to end. One of the hands at her waist drifted down to rest on her leg, wanting nothing more than to slip beneath the fabric of her dress to feel the skin he had spent part of the evening thinking about, but that would come another time. At the moment he as content with everything as it was; there was no sense in rushing things when they had all the time in the world.