Sesshomaru stood in the burning village, his arm over his mouth and nose. The ash burned his eyes, and the smoke obscured his sense of smell, so finding Kirin was difficult. Sesshomaru ran forward into the town. The noise of cracking wood was all around, and Sesshomaru tuned his ears in, trying to catch any sign of Kirin's presence. "Did she do all of this," Sesshomaru wondered. He ran down the wide street leading toward the center of town. That's when he saw her. Kirin stood in a charred house, leaning over a small baby. She chuckled, and Sesshomaru was surprised by the evil in her voice. What was wrong with her? She raised her claws, preparing to strike out at the baby when she heard Sesshomaru step up behind her. Kirin looked over her shoulder at Sesshomaru, and when she did, a young woman ran over grabbing the now sobbing baby that lie on the hot, dusty ground. Kirin glanced at the woman, but showed no sign of interest in her. She turned to fully face Sesshomaru. "Name yourself," she said in an unusually deep voice which sent a small shiver up Sesshomaru's spine. "Do you not know who I am," Sesshomaru asked calmly. Kirin looked at him questionably. "Should I?" "Maybe," Sesshomaru answered. "Hmp," Kirin grumbled, "I have no time to be dealing with filth like you." She turned and started to walk away when Sesshomaru called to her, "Why are you destroying this village?" She stopped suddenly. Kirin did not know. Her head started throbbing, and she said, "I…I don't need to answer that question. It is none of your business!" "So you do not know yourself," Sesshomaru replied back. "Why you," Kirin growled. She lunged at Kirin, and Sesshomaru swiftly jumped aside. Kirin went crashing into a wall. Sesshomaru realized that she was much faster, and he was still slightly injured from before. "You are not yourself. Stop this nonsense," Sesshomaru said sternly, turning to face Kirin. Kirin looked shocked at this comment, then froze and fell to the ground. "Who…who am I," she asked in her normal voice, her eyes going back to their normal color. "Nooo," she screamed and dug her claws into the ground in pain as her eyes and voice went back. Sesshomaru turned and walked away. "I've seen all that I can," he said. "If you are truly too weak to help yourself, then come find me when you do." He walked away and disappeared into the smoke. Kirin collapsed onto the ground. She felt herself sink into unconsciousness.
Kirin awoke an hour or so later. "Where am I," she mumbled aloud to herself, pulling herself into a sitting position. She heard gasps and realized that the villagers were all around her with weapons. "Uh, hi guys," she said cautiously, "Watcha doin'?" Unexpectedly Kirin noticed that a man had stepped up behind her, smashing the back of her head with a long wooden pole. She fell onto her side in a daze. "What just happened," she wondered, struggling to keep her eyes open, "And why didn't I smell or hear that man behind me?" She heard voices yelling all around her as she once again sunk into darkness. She dreamed. She dreamed a long, troublesome dream about her trying to escape from herself, but she couldn't. She wondered what it meant.
Kirin woke again, still confused about what her dream meant, if it meant anything at all./ All of the sudden, a throbbing pain exploded in Kirin's skull. "That's right," she thought, "That man knocked me out." Kirin tried to lift her hand to feel the bump, which she was certain was there, but she couldn't move it. "Huh," she said aloud, opening her weary eyes. She looked over her shoulder and realized that her hands were bound. "My ankles too," she said quietly to herself. "Shoot," she thought, "What did I do this time." She bit her lip and tried to listen to the conversations around her, but they were all mumbled and hard to pick out. "Why can't I hear them," she thought. She listened in on a few people close to her. She could only pick up a few words. Demon, human, half-breed dangerous, and a few more words that made Kirin curious. What were they talking about? She looked around, now fully awoken by curiosity, and noticed that everyone was staying away from her. "Sh...She's awake," somebody suddenly yelled from above Kirin. Kirin looked up to see a young man glaring at her with fear in his dark eyes. The other men looked over at Kirin, then ran over and began talking with the man who had yelled. "Have we decided what to do yet?" "Yes, we're getting rid of her." "But isn't that like killing one of our own?" No, she may have pretended to be one of us, but she is far from being one of us!" "She destroyed the village." "Yes, and she could change back and do it again." Kirin was so confused. "What the heck is going on." she yelled above the arguing voices. "The voices stopped suddenly, and they all looked at her. One man sneered and said, "As if you don't know. You demons are all the same!" "Yah," another man jumped in, "And to think Saji wanted us to save you!" Kirin's eyes widened. She had forgotten about Saji. She looked around. Was he here? "What are you looking at," a man yelled, and stepped on her head, pushing her face into the dirt. "What is your problem," she yelled, irritated now. "You destroyed our village demon, and now we will destroy you," the headmaster said, stepping forward from everyone else. "What! What are you talking about," Kirin said helplessly, "The village is my home! I would never do that!" "That's enough," the headmaster said, "Throw that corrupted human in. "Human," Kirin thought, "Oh no!" She tipped her body so that she was in clear view of her hand. "No claws," she thought, "I'm human again." Kirin felt her legs move, and she looked over to see the men tying her feet to a large stone. "What are they….," Kirin wondered. Then it hit her. "No, " she screamed, "Don't do that, please! I didn't do anything!" They picked her up, and the stone, and stone and carried her down the road towards the river. The rope drug on the ground in between her feet and the rock. "You humans won't even wait to hear me out," Kirin yelled to headman. "Why should we," he replied coldly, "We all saw you burning our village and chasing down our people!" Kirin went cold. A memory flashed across her, but it seemed distant and weak. She remembered looking down at a crying child, the fire-light illuminating the town around her. "Wha…what have I done," she gasped suddenly in realization. The men turned and looked at her in surprise and question.
Sesshomaru hadn't strayed far from the village after his meeting with Kirin. He stayed right by the edge of the woods. But now he smelled Kirin's scent and was struck curious. Something was different about it. It smelled to him like it was almost….human! The idea struck him as funny, but he knew it was true. "Human," he said aloud, then set out towards the river, and the source of her scent. Kirin herself was in a bit of trouble. Ok, a lot of trouble. She struggled to free herself from the ropes that bound her. "Farewell demon," the headmaster said with a bow, "I hope you find peace in the next world." Kirin looked past him and saw Saji coming down he road. Then the men lifted Kirin and the stone and brought her to the very edge of the river. "Kirin, " Saji cried, seeing her. He ran towards her, but two men grabbed him and knocked him out. "Saji," Kirin cried to him. "Don't you hurt him," she yelled to the headman. Then she felt the men's hand that were holding her let go. She hit the water cold water and her mouth opened in shock. She took a quick breath and sunk, along with the rock, to the bottom.