Inuyasha FanFiction
Emotions In Time - Part Ten:
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Sesshomaru was sitting under a tree out in the courtyard, letting Rin braid flowers into his hair, as the sun was just starting to rise. Even though he loathed this, he kept his mouth shut because Rin enjoyed it, and she needed a little joy right now.
They had both just changed out of their mourning clothing. Yasue's funeral had been only moments ago, under the early morning stars, and Rin no longer had her happy spark.
Sesshomaru prayed for something good to happen to her. He hated seeing her so unhappy.
Rin pulled another white flower from the pile by her feet and wove it into Lord Sesshomaru's hair. After a few uncomfortable moments of silence, she began humming as she worked.
"What is that?" Sesshomaru asked.
Rin stopped braiding and humming, "What is what, My Lord?"
Sesshomaru tilted his head back, in her lap, to look up at Rin. "That song," he clarified, "I remember you used to sing it quite often."
"Oh," Rin was caught by surprise. She didn't expect that he would remember something as insignificant as that. "It's just…well…" she tripped over what to say, "When you would leave me by myself with only AuUn, I would make up songs. That was the one I remember best."
"Hmm…" Sesshomaru brought his head forward again, "I see. What do you call it?"
Rin smiled a shaky smile, and began to braid his hair again. "Await Lord Sesshomaru's Return," she told him.
"Can you… sing it?" he asked.
"I think I remember the words…" Rin was hesitant before she started singing, "In the mountains… In the forest… In the wind… In a dream… Where are you, Ses-sho-ma-ru? … With an ally like Mas-ter Jak-en… I will wait alone until you come… Ses-sho-ma-ru, please re-turn…"
When she finished, Sesshomaru sighed.
"What do you think?" she asked in a small voice.
Sesshomaru tilted his head back again. "Lovely," he told her.
Suddenly, a huge gust of wind filled the courtyard. It unbraided Sesshomaru's hair and scattered the flowers. In the midst of the wind, a human-like figure touched down on the grass.
Sesshomaru quickly got to his feet; Rin watched the figure from behind him.
"Lord Sesshomaru… long time, no see…" cooed Kagura the Wind Sorceress.
Rin cam forward to stand next to Sesshomaru. "Hello, Lady Kagura," she greeted with a bow.
Kagura's eyes flickered down to rin, "Hello, Rin."
"What do you want, Kagura?" Sesshomaru snapped.
Kagura looked back up to Sesshomaru. "Well, aren't we impatient…" she commented.
Lord Sesshomaru growled deep in his throat. Rin took his hand in hers to silence him.
"Lady Kagura," Rin called, "We're about to have our morning meal. Would you like to join us?"
Kagura unfolded her fan and waved it around a little. "I'd love to," she said mischeviously.
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Later on, Sesshomaru, Kagura and Rin were all sitting together in the dining hall for lunch. It was uncomfortable for Sesshomaru; Kagura knew this, and enjoyed every minute of it. Rin, of course, was completely oblivious to the unseen tension, and chatted away happily.
"So now I' a Princess, apparently," she said before taking another bite of food.
Kagura swallowed a mouthful. "So it's true," she stated, "Sesshomaru, Lord of the Western Lands, has taken a human as his successor."
"Word travels fast," Sesshomaru commented, staring down at his plate.
Rin looked from Kagura to Sesshomaru as she ate another bite of food.
"Indeed," Kagura replied.
Sesshomaru golden eyes flickered up to meet Kagura's fuschia one. "Kagura? Why are you here?" he asked blankly.
Kagura frowned and set down her chopsticks. "Right then," she said, tucking her hands into her sleeves, "I need to find out where Inuyasha is."
"Inuyasha?" Rin asked, "Why do you need to know where he is?"
"Well, I'm really looking for the Demon Slayer," Kagura explained, "The one called Sango."
Rin's eyes widened, Kohaku's older Sister.
"Why ask me?" How do you expect me to know where Inuyasa is?" Sesshomaru asked coldly.
Kagura shrugged, "It wasn't my ides. Kohaku thought yo—"
"Kohaku?!" Rin jumped to her feet, "He's alive? Where is he? Can I see him?"
Sesshomaru raised an eyebrow at Rin.
Kagura chuckled, "My, you certainly have a thing for him, don't you?"
Red hot blush crept over Rin's face as she slowly sat down again.
"It's all right," Kagura told her, smiling, "You're all he talked about on our journey here."
Rin's face flooded with a darker shade of blush, "R-Really?"
Kagura sighed. "It was quite irritating, really," she said with an exhausted edge to her voice, "He was always saying, 'I can't believe she's a Princess', and 'She deserves it, I'm happy for her'."
Rin's eyes dropped to the floor.
"The boy was really getting on my nerves…" Kagura muttered.
Sesshomaru skeptically narrowed his eyes at Kagura, "Kagura… How did Kohaku survive?"
Kagura frowned. "When Naraku first resurrected Kohaku, Kanna was told to trap the boy's soul in her mirror," she explained, "and the Shikon jewel fragement took the place of his soul."
She paused, looking down at her empty plate before she could continue, "It would seem that Kanna took a liking to Kohaku… When the boy ripped his shard from his body, Kanna begged me to bring her his body so she could bond his soul back to his body."
Rin stared at Kagura with wide eyes as her story continued.
"We fixed him up. Had his body looking good as new. But the only way to pull Kohaku's soul from the depths of the mirror was for Kanna to shatter the mirror and end her life," Kagura told them.
"So now, Kohaku is looking for his sister…" Rin whispered.
"Who is living with Inuyasha," Sesshomaru added.
"Precisely," Kagura replied to the both of them.
Rin stood up and turned to Kagura. "I want to see him," she said, staring down at Kagura, "Can you please take me to him?"
Kagura nodded, "Of course. He's right outside the castle wall."
Sesshomaru stood. "I'm coming too," he informed Kagura.
"Well then," Kagura said, rising to her feet and pulling out her fan, "Let's get going."
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Kagome yawned and rolled over, her body sank deeper into soft, warm fur.
She sat up suddenly. It was dark all around her and she had to rub her eyes a few times before her eyes adjusted.
Where am I? she wondered.
When she was finally able to see, Kagome surveyed her surroundings.
She was on a large bed of fur, in a cave that seemed oddly familiar to her. A waterfall covered the mouth of the cave, and all around her were giant, unidentifiable lumps of fur, that looked sort of like…
Kagome gasped, her thoughts finally clicking together, Wolves!
No wonder the cave looked so fammilar! This was Koga's cave, where he and his wolf tribe were now living.
This doesn't make any sense though… she thought, I got bit, the medicine must have made me woozy, but I know Inuyasha took me home.
"Oh, you're awake…" a voice next to her said.
Kagome looked over at the voice. Sitting up against the wall was Koga with his arms folded and his blue eyes locked with Kagome's.
"Koga?" she asked, just to be sure.
Koga smiled at her. "Surprised?" he asked.
Kagome nodded, "Very. What's go—"
"Shh…" Koga cut her off. Then stood up and offered her his hand. "Come on," he whispered, "Let's go for a walk."
Kagome took his hand and allowed Koga to lead her through the cave of sleeping wolves and wolf-demons. Once outside, he took her down the cliffside path and into the forest.
The sun was just coming up, so all was still. Night creatures settled down for sleep, while the day creatures hadn't woken up yet.
"What's going on, Koga?" Kagome asked, "Why did I wake up in your cave? Where's Inuy—"
"Relax, Kagome," Koga said, stretching his arms as they walked, "Inuyasha gave you to me for a couple days."
"He what?!" she shrieked, stopping in her tracks, "Tell me you're joking."
Koga looked back at her where she had stopped. "Um, no. You're mine for three days," he explained, "There are rules, but…"
"Whoa, whoa, whoa, whoa… whoa… Back up," Kagome shook her head in disbelief, "Inuyasha, just gave me up?! Just like that?!"
"Not really," Koga said, "I told you, he made up a bunch of rules—"
Kagome stamped her foot impatiently, "Which are?!"
Sighing, Koga explained, "Number One: I can't sleep in the same bed as you. Number Two: I am not allowed to touch you without your permission. Number Three: The food that's packed in your bag is for you and is not to be eaten by anyone but you, even if you offer. Number Four: I have to be waiting for you in front of the cave in three days time. And Number Five: If you go back to him with even the smallest bruise or scratch or anything, he's allowed to push me off the edge of the cliff."
Kagome blinked.
"He sure is throughout when he wants to be, huh?" Koga asked.
"Apparently so," Kagome replied.
The two began walking through the forest again. Everything was silent around them until Koga spoke.
"I've been meaning to ask you, Kagome…" Koga began, "Why are you still with Inuyasha?"
Kagome looked at him with a confused expression, so Koga changed the question a little. "What's so great about Inuyasha? Why haven't you come to be with me, now that Naraku's dead?"
"Now that Naraku is gone, the Shikon Jewel is whole," Kagome explained, "I protect the Shikon Jewel with Inuyasha, just as had once protected it with Kikyo."
Koga sighed, "Do you ever think, that's all you are to him? You're just Kikyo, to him. Or rather, Kikyo's replacement?"
"All the time," Kagome whispered, "I always wonder if it's me he's kissing, or Kikyo… If it's me he loves, or Kikyo. I try not to think like that anymore, but the thought of being Kikyo's shadow is always there."
Koga whirled around and stopped in front of her. Taking her hands in his, he pleaded, "Why not me then? Come, stay with me. You wouldn't have to live in anyone's shadow anymore."
Kagome shook her head, "Yes, I would, Koga. I would still be in a shadow because you made a promise to someone long before you met me."
"But, Kagome—"
Kagome smiled at Koga. "Who did you promise, Koga?" she asked.
Koga dropped Kagome's hands. "Ayame," he mumbled to the ground.
A long howl interrupted them from the distance. Both Koga and Kagome looked up at the cliff where the howl had come from.
Koga smirked, "Impatient bastards."
Kagome glanced at Koga, then back at the cliff, then Koga once more. "Is something wrong?" she asked him.
"Hmm? No," Koga answered, "The early morning hunting pack is waiting for me to come lead though."
"We should get back then," Kagome said.
Koga scooped Kagome up in his arms. But, paused for a moment to ask, "Do you mind?"
Kagome smiled, "You have my permission."
"We are not done discussing this though," he informed her, starting to run.
Kagome pouted, "You're just as stubborn as Inuyasha…"
Koga laughed. "That's a little insulting, Kagome," he told her, "But you like stubborn, so it's okay."
Kagome blushed.
Koga took off through the forest and up the Cliffside path. Kagome noticed that Koga was a little slower than Inuyasha, (most likely due to his lack of sacred jewel shards), but the distance it took them an hour to walk, he ran in under 5 minutes.
When they got to the waterfall that cover the mouth of the cave, Hakaku, Ginta, and a bunch of wolves were waiting. Koga set Kagome down to stand next to him.
"Hey Kagome!" Hakaku waved as he ran up to her.
"Glad to see you're back with the living," Ginta teased.
"Yeah," Hakaku agreed, "We thought you were never going to wake up."
"Huh?" Kagome looked up at Koga, "How long was I asleep for?"
Koga frowned, "Well, you know how I said you were only staying for three days?"
Kagome nodded.
"You…kind of…well…slept through the first day," he explained.
"Oh, wow," Kagome said in disbelief, "I must have been overdosed on that herbal painkiller."
"Well, you're awake now," Ginta pointed out, "That's what matters."
"All right you two, time to get going," Koga told them, "Kagome? I don't suppose you want to come with…"
Thinking about it, Kagome decided the idea of watching Koga rip things to death didn't really appeal to her. "Um," no thanks," she said, "I think I'll stay here and have my own breakfast."
"All right, then," he saluted her with two fingers, "See ya." With that, Koga, the wolves and the wolf-demon men left down the cliffside.
When the morning hunting pack was out of sight, Kagome turned to go into the cave. Instead, she came face to face with a wolf-demon man.
"Um… Hello…" Kagome greeted the guy politely.
The wolf-demon man smiled at her. He had strong features, but a kind face, and seem like a nice person to Kagome. "Hello to you," he greeted her back, "Miss Kagome, allow me to introduce myself; I am Kanaye. Koga has instructed me to protect you today, while he is away."
Kagome smiled. That Koga, he certainly worries about me. "All right, well, I'm just going inside to have some breakfast," she told him.
Kanaye stepped to the side so Kagome could go back into the cave, then followed her in.
The cave was beginning to wake up to the new day. Mothers woke their children with kisses and playful nips, while fathers watched on happily. Two teenage sisters brushed each others hair with combs made from animal bone, and teenage boys rough-housed to pass the time.
Kagome watched it all as she made her way to the back of the cave where she had awoken this morning. She smiled at the loving community. There seemed to be more of a feeling of family since the last time she was here, and she wondered why that was, as she let her mind drift off a bit.
They have comb, and wash themselves in the waterfall… Kagome observed, They sure aren't as filthy as Inuyasha thinks…
She frowned, Inuyasha, you're a dead man tomorrow. A Dead. Man.
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"I wonder what Kagome is thinking right now," Inuyasha said out loud to no one.
And no one replied.