I'm so sorry! I know this is incredibly late (as in late enough that most of you probably forgot all about it). I actually intended to stop writing, but then I looked at my reviews and felt horrible. "Don't leave us hanging" and "update soon" were two of the many wonderful things you brilliant reviewers said that made me feel like crap for stopping. So here I am, trying to relight the flame for this story in my heart. Wish me luck.
Rin stared at his hand, eyes full of doubt. Why would he change him mind so quickly? Hadn't he wanted to kill her not long before? Yet his words were true. If she stayed where she was, she would die, no doubt.
A spark lighted in her soul. She wouldn't die here helplessly in a hole, but she wouldn't give in completely either. Determination in her eyes, she made the painful reach for his hand. And shoved it out of the way.
Using all of the strength she could muster, she gripped the sides of the stone safe house and pulled herself into the fresh air of the cool night. All of her muscles protested angrily and burned with the effort. Once she was outside, panting on her knees, she could move no further and collapsed.
In one swift motion, Hero swung her, rather roughly, under his arm. Rin made a small squeal of protest but then went limp. There was nothing more she could do. Rin's world swirled, nausea threatening to overcome her.
Time went by at a snail's pace until she was dropped roughly on the hard cave floor. Horrific pain shot through her back and side upon impact, and she gasped pathetically, eyes squeezed together tightly.
Hero glanced at her and then to the ground. "Sorry," he spoke quietly. "I have a horrible temper. It takes control sometimes." Remorse filled his eyes, but it wasn't for her. She was human and, in his eyes, meant nothing. The regret he felt was for losing control once again and, even in her weakened state, Rin could see that. He was in a world of his own now, lost in memories.
She stared at him, still speaking…yet not to her. In fact, she realized, he had forgotten she was there altogether. What had he done that had been so horrible in order to cause that much pain in his heart? Suddenly she pitied him, for the moment at least, and wanted to help in some way, no matter how small.
Her quiet voice chimed through the cave before she even realized words were forming on her tongue. "I forgive you."
Hero silenced, and his head shot up the second the word left her lips. He stared into her eyes, and his own locked on hers, full of shock as he truly saw her for the first time. It was then clear to Rin it might very well be the first time he had ever heard those three words.
Hero continued to stare for a few suspended moments before he got to his feet and finally spoke again. "You're hurt pretty bad," he said, refusing to make eye contact again. "I'll go and find you some things to help you heal. For now, just try to keep pressure on the worse of the gashes. I'll be back as quickly as I can."
Rin watched him leave, shocked. If she wasn't mistaken, she had seen tears welling up in the corners of his dark brown eyes.
--
Sesshomaru saw Rin deep in his slunber. He dreamed of her, the love he never wished to have. A symbol of all the feelings that he never wanted or thought would plague him. She stood for all he had shunned and all he had scorned for so many years, and now she was his. And for the first time in his life, he had something to protect. Something worth protecting. Yet still his heart was reluctant; when he thought of her, he felt the shadow of the morals he had betrayed towering over him. He shouldn't love her. He shouldn't even want to save her.
Save her, the words echoed through his train of thought. She was in danger. She had been taken from him and he didn't know how to get her back. He couldn't even fully comprehend where he was, his mind fogged over as it was. One thing he knew for certain though was that Rin's kidnapper would rue the day he laid a finger on her. Rue even looking at her innocent face.
And if she is injured or dead he will pay with a death more horrible then I have ever inflicted on anyone, Sesshomaru promised himself in his slumber.
--
Rin waited for Hero to return, her world swirling from the blood loss as she felt her heart slowing. Rin didn't know how much longer she could make it, as faint as she felt.
Time went slowly and Rin knew that if Hero didn't return soon, she would die without a doubt. She felt vomit rise in her throat, head spinning more violently then before. Her heart picked up its pace and fluttered rapidly like a caged bird. She brought her weak hand to cover her mouth and squeezed her arms against her chest, as if trying to confine her heart. Her body was exerting one last effort to save itself.
Then it all stopped, and silence rang in her ears where the sound of her frantically beating heart had been. Rin's eyes widened in realization; she was seconds away from death, and there was no Sesshomaru to snatch her from its grip this time.
As the blood halted in her veins, she felt her body falling to the cave floor on which she sat. Her fogging mind saw the ground coming and prepared for the impact. Yet it never came. Everything went black.
--
Hero entered the cave just in time to see Rin's body falling to the cave floor. Before his brain even had time to register what he was seeing, he dropped all of the herbs and healing materials in his arms and dove for her.
Catching her right before her head hit the hard stone floor, he looked down at her seemingly slumbering face. Wet lines from where the tears had just been falling marked her cheeks, though now her face was smooth and peaceful. And the moisture was the only sign that misery had been there moments before. Rin's body still retained some of the warmth of life in Hero's arms. So it wasn't too late.
Hero laid her on the ground, quickly but gently, and retrieved the supplies he had lost. He knew he had to work swiftly if he wanted the young girl to live. Within seconds he had grasped the part of her kimono that his claws had earlier torn and ripped it apart just enough to reveal the whole wound.
Hero gasped. It was much deeper then he had thought. Deep impressions of his own claws were carved profoundly in her side. Blood was still pooling around the open gashes, though the heart pumped it no longer. That would have to change soon…or she would be lost.
Hero knew that she couldn't lose any more blood, or recovery would go from unlikely to impossible. He took one of the many herbs he had brought, which was green and looked much like an average fern leaf, and placed it on the wound. After that he grabbed the bandages he had stolen and threaded it under her kimono, quickly wrapping it over the herb and wounds multiple times until it was sturdy. It would have taken minutes for an average human, but he did it in seconds.
He knew her heart had to start again soon or she would be lost. Even though he had only been in the cave for a little over a minute, each second made a recovery more and more unlikely.
Hero bushed a strand of hair gently out of her face as he positioned himself beside her. Then he placed his hands onto of her heart, one over the other, and pushed.
One.
Two.
Three.
He knew what he needed to do next, though he was oddly nervous to do it. He dove, placing his lips on hers. For a moment, time froze, and he forgot to breath. There was a suspended second where he remained leaning over her, lips touching hers. Soon he realized what he was doing, and time started for him again as he pressed the much needed air in her lungs.
One. Two. Three. The process went on and on for what seemed like forever. Just as Hero started to give up hope, a small gasp escaped Rin, and her heart started beating without his help.
Though it was not strong, she was alive. Hero reached back for his herbs, breathing a sigh of relief. Then he started to combine some of the odd-looking items and mashed them together in a small wooden bowl.
After maybe an hour of mashing and listening to Rin's quiet breathing beside him, there was an amber liquid in the bowl. He turned quickly to Rin and held the bowl in his left hand. Raising her head gently with his right, he delicately opened her mouth with the edge of the bowl. Then he slowly poured the concoction down her throat, making sure not to choke her.
There, Hero thought. That is all I can do for now. That potion will increase the amount of blood her body makes for awhile. Once she has more blood in her, I can move her back to Mother Wolf's where she will be safe.
Then he realized something that shocked him. It wasn't the knowledge that caused the surprise, but the effect it had on him. Once she was there she would be taken care of, but after she got better, anything could happen to her. The only thing that was for sure was that she wouldn't be with him. He knew all of this before, but what shocked him was that he cared. It upset him and he had no idea why. She was a useless human. Who would care what happens to her, and who would want her around?
…Me, his heart said.
Still shaken from what his subconscious had said, he decided to go on a short walk to get some fresh air. But he refused to walk too far. That would put Rin out from under his protection. And he couldn't have that now, could he?
I'm so sorry this took so long. I know it is short, too. I really hope to make the next one longer. Thank you to anyone who reads this after my disappearance. You are the best and I love you all.
Shout out to osaka-chan2, the greatest editor in the world! Thank you so much! If it weren't for you, I never would have started writing this again. You rock my socks off!