*WARNING! LEMON AHEAD!This is, sort of, the end. I plan on including an epilogue soon, but the meat of the story is completed. I appreciate all your wonderful reviews - even the slightly critical one that linked me to a website explaining why Sesshomaru and Rin are father/daughter. I appreciate that there are many people that feel that way; however I do feel I made it clear what sort of story this would be from the beginning, so if you don't like this viewpoint, I encourage you to read something else :D . I really do appreciate it though - I never thought anyone would want to read my writing, as I have much room for growth. Thank you all!
Following her lord, Rin was transfixed by the beauty of the forest. Somehow, the colors were brighter, the sounds were merrier, and the air was cleaner. Nothing could make you appreciate your life more than almost losing it - and with how often it seemed to happen to Rin, she appreciated it more every time. She was trying to keep up with Sesshomaru-sama (who was going very deeply into the forest very quickly), but she continued to be transfixed by the beauty of once again being alive. As she looked ahead once more, she realized that she couldn't find Sesshomaru-sama.
"Sesshomaru-sama! Where are you?" Just as she called out, she stepped into a clearing which was dotted all over with small wildflowers in ankle-deep grass. But that was not what grabbed her immediate attention. Sesshomaru-sama was standing there, staring at her, his eyes intense.
"Rin." That was all he said, but her name carried so much weight that it seemed he was expressing everything he had felt during the time he lost her - and during the time he saw his old beloved, Inuyuki. He looked at the slit and bloodstain on the front of her yukata.
"You were injured," he said, looking at her with concern. He could still smell her blood and Rin could tell that it worried him, though of course he would never say so.
"No, my lord, there is nothing to be concerned about. I was healed, see?" She pulled down the top of her yukata,showing her breastbone. The sudden exposure of her flesh caused Sesshomaru to suddenly tense. Rin, suddenly conscious of this, smiled inwardly. That was why Sesshomaru-sama had brought her here - he intended to finish what had been started the day before.
Rin decided to be bold. Since she was wearing a simple summer yukata, she decided to let it slip down her shoulders, to the top of her navel. Her small breasts lay exposed in the evening air. Sesshomaru's eyes immediately grew red with lust. She smiled slightly.
Encouraged, she allowed it to slide down even further - until it hit her ankles. Slowly stepping forward, she held her arms out to him.
Of course, she didn't need to say anything - Sesshomaru quickly and firmly pulled her to him. His lips met hers once more, and she felt the heat once again burning within her. They both slid, somewhat unconsciously, to the ground, with her nestled firmly in his lap.
Rin was nearly unaware of eveything that was happening - her entire body seemed to be made of electricity. She felt his hands upon her middle, then gently stroking her leg, his tongue upon her breast. She moaned in pleasure, and Sesshomaru responded with a low growl, nipping her gently on the lip.
So lost was she in ecstasy, that she didn't notice that somehow her lord had lost his clothing as well. Sitting upon him, she felt slightly nervous, as she had the last time. He seemed chiseled of the finest ivory, somehow delicate yet harder than diamond. He looked deeply into her eyes, and said, possessively, "You are mine."
Within moments, he had entered her, and she cried out in a mixture of pleasure and slight pain - after all, she had been a maiden but the day before. Expecting this, Sesshomaru showed incredible restraint and went slowly, holding her carefully, the two of them looking deeply into one another's eyes. This time, Rin's position afforded her more freedom, and they moved gently together, holding one another, reaching desperately yet carefully for release.
Then, finally snapping under the strain of holding himself back, Sesshomaru growled, flipped her over to her hands and knees, and entered her from behind. The sudden possessiveness and surprise sent Rin over the edge immediately, sore as she was; it didn't take long before Sesshomaru was feverishly sinking his teeth into the same place he had before on her neck, growling with pleasure.
Completely spent, Rin collapsed and was caught by Sesshomaru. He held her to him, protectively, and shrouded her carefully in his large kimono. Sitting in his arms seemed the most natural thing in the world - and even the silence between them was calming. Yet still, the thoughts she often tried to chase away crept into her mind...
His beauty and strength were far greater than hers - was it truly right for a lowly human to love a youkai?
She remembered the teasing inflicted upon her from the other youths in Inuyasha's village. He had, of course, stopped it immediately when he'd heard about it, but it continued in whispers. One girl had even claimed that it was so strange for a young woman to love a youkai who had once raised her like a father would have - and said that their spiritual incest would make deformed babies. Of course, after hearing this, Kagome had reminded her that it made no sense - youkai weren't humans and didn't see them like that. In fact, Kagome had laughed - after all, Inuyasha's own mother was not even born when Sesshomaru was a child - yet that had not stopped the Inu no Taisho from seeing her as a lover.
Rin remembered her father - drunk, foolish, and lazy. She had no love or affection for him. Even as a child, she had not seen Sesshomaru as a father - rather, at first she had seen him as a god, then as a sort of guardian spirit, then as a friend, and then, more recently as more than that.
He had obviously chosen her, hadn't he?
As the thoughts raced through her mind, she noticed that he was looking her squarely in the eye.
"Rin." It was often all he said to her, but the many ways he said her name meant several different things. In this case, he was telling her that she should not keep secrets from him.
"Sesshomaru-sama," she replied, wondering how to word her response without angering him. "How can one as powerful and strong as you are love a lowly human like myself?" She said so shyly, barely daring to meet his eyes. When she finally did, she saw no anger in them, merely incredulity. There was a short silence before he answered her.
"Don't say something that makes no sense." She thought that was all he would say before he added, "I don't understand why a human like you could love a youkai like myself."
Smiling gently, she nestled herself in his shoulder. That was certainly as close as she would ever come to his telling her he loved her. It meant more to her than all the love poems, songs, and flowers in the world.
...
Many times over the course of that night, they made love to one another. Now that the barrier between them had been loosed, they could not ever seem to have time enough. Rin woke early that morning, tired yet satisfied. She dressed herself, sat upon a rock on a nearby small hill (close enough so that Sesshomaru would not worry) and watched the sunrise. It seemed different to her than any other - the new dawn of her new life.
Soon, Kikou joined her. The small brown dog had disappeared after the previous evening, and Rin was worried about him - for she was uncertain if the transformation he experienced would take his life or not. He seemed happy as ever - and strangely enough, he was wearing something around his neck.
It was a necklace, made of hair woven into an incredibly intricate and tiny braid - and attached to it was a pale blue stone in the shape of a teardrop, smooth as glass, brilliant as starfire. It was the stone Inuyuki had described to Rin - the one her mother had given her. Rin looked at it in wonder, then smiled and tied it around her neck. She looked up at the sky.
"Thank you, Inuyuki. I know you gave me this to remember you by - and I could never forget you."
She put it upon herself and headed back to Sesshomaru, who was fully clothed and looking at her imperiously, as always.
"It is time to leave, Rin."
"I need to speak to you about that, Sesshomaru-sama."
Blankly, he stared at her for a moment. "Speak," he said.
"My lord, I will not be able to follow you to the Western Palace. It - it isn't safe there for a human like myself, I know it. And even though I have been properly educated, I will never be suited to living inside the walls of a palace in a seven-layered kimono. I am no queen; I am a peasant girl who is decent at fighting and picking flowers and bringing babies. And..." she wasn't sure how she should say it, but she knew it needed saying, "Someone we both love was betrayed there. I feel that it will be even easier for that to happen to me, since I am human." She waited for his answer.
As always, Sesshomaru betrayed little emotion. "What do you wish, then? Are you trying to part from me?" She knew she saw a flash in his eyes.
"No! Never!" She said it louder than she had meant; but she was desperate not to lose him. "No. I simply would like to request that you travel with me, as we used to when I was a child. I know you are busy with your conquests, but my life will be short and barely a blink of your eye."
She was able to see that he was surprised - and for some strange reason, she had always loved it when she was able to achieve that. It was rare, but showed that his depth of emotion for her was something unique.
"You know that I won't be able to spend every day with you - there are times that I will have to leave."
"I know."
"If you were at the Palace, I could keep you protected."
"But I would be little more than a bird in a cage," she said, sadly. "And do you really think that I would be safe there? I am but a lowly human."
"Where will you go when I cannot protect you?" For the first time ever, she heard true concern in his voice.
"Inuyasha's village. I will never be accepted there, I know - but I will be safe there."
"No," he answered, in a non-negotiable tone.
She lowered her head, defeated.
"I will not leave you. I can rule all lands - North, East, South, West, but they mean nothing to me without you. If this is what you ask, so be it. I will not leave your side."
Surprised, and glad, Rin jumped and clapped her hands, just as she had as a child. "Oh my lord, thank you so!" She knew nothing else needed to be said. As she rushed to him, he held her back for a moment, his eyes surprised. He stared at the jewel she wore.
"Where did you get that?" He said, his voice choking slightly.
"From someone who will be a part of me, until I am no longer a part of this world," she said, looking meaningfully into his eyes.
He turned away momentarily, and she was worried - would he hate her for knowing his past? He knew now that she knew the story. However, his eyes were soft, even slightly loving, as he looked back at her, and said the same words he always had when she was a child.
"Come, Rin."
She smiled.
"Yes, Sesshomaru-sama!"