I don't own Inuyasha, only my oc characters
The next day, Shiori met back up with the rest of her group. They were still in the same location, so it was easier to find them. Rin and Kohaku met her halfway on the path. They couldn't quite see her face because she kept her head down. Both of them already knew what happened to Kikyo. Sesshomaru informed them that the scent of the wind had change…..meaning Kikyo had died. Kohaku felt terrible for not being able to help Kikyo. He'd really become attached to the priestess. Rin was also saddened by Kikyo's death. After all, she did save her from The Band of Seven.
"I hope she's gonna be okay," said Rin. "I know Lady Shiori and that priestess were friends…..she must feel terrible about her dying like that. I hope she doesn't get sad and leave again."
Shiori stopped and lifted her head to eye level. On her face, was the most serene expression. She didn't at all look sad or gloomy. Her eyes were full of determination, wisdom, and peace.
"She's gone to a much better place now," said Shiori, looking at the human children. "In the end, her soul was saved."
Both of them stared in bewilderment as Shiori walked passed them. They slowly followed after her. They hadn't expected her to be so calm about Kikyo's death. Jaken came walking up to them.
"Hey kid!" he said to Kohaku. "Why are you still here? Don't expect Lord Sesshomaru to string you along too!"
"Oh Master Jaken, I'm sure Lord Sesshomaru wouldn't mind letting him come with us," said Rin with her hands on her hips.
"No, no, no! It's bad enough you travel with us!" Jaken complained. "But now we have another human child? Lord Sesshomaru has better things to do than hang around with human brats!"
"Like…..fraternize with female dog demons?" asked while staring into the sky.
"Yes, like fraternize with female do—huh?" said a confused Jaken.
All of them looked up into the sky. Sesshomaru had transformed into his giant dog form. Shiori was a fascinated by the form. She'd never seen it before. Sesshomaru was flying towards another giant dog demon. As soon as it noticed Sesshomaru, the two of them started swirling around in the sky. Both of them landed back down to the ground in a huge puff of smoke. Shiori and the others sprinted towards them to find out what was going on.
"And just who was that other dog demon?" Shiori wondered, feeling slightly jealous.
When she got closer, she had her answer. Her eyes widened with complete shock.
"It's her…"
"So, it was you, Sesshomaru?" asked the woman.
"Who are you? How dare you address Lord Sesshomaru without a proper title?" Jaken screeched.
"I thought you might be able to tell me of Father's memento, tenseiga," said Sesshomaru casually.
The woman smirked, "So, you're saying you've come to pay your mother a visit, eh?"
"His mother?" Jaken gawked.
"The resemblance is….strong. He looks just like her," Kohaku commented.
Sesshomaru's mother casually stared over at the bunch. She glanced at them all individually—especially at Shiori.
"You….woman," said The Lady. "You're wrapped in a strange energy. What exactly are you?"
"I'm of half tennin, half shinigami lineage," Shiori answered.
"Are you now?" she asked. "Come here."
Shiori didn't move right away. What was this woman up to? Why did she want her to come closer?
"Come, come now," said the Lady with a devilish grin. "I'm not going to bite you…..unless, of course, I get the sudden urge to do so."
A sweat ball dropped down the back of Shiori's head, "This woman is clearly insane! And I, of all people, can recognize insanity when I see it!"
"Come on child, I don't have all day."
She slowly glided towards Sesshomaru and his mother. Shiori stepped down in front of her. The Lady leaned in close and grabbed onto Shiori's face. Shiori gasped at the sudden gesture. What was she doing? The Lady tilted her head up and examined her neck.
"Hmmmm," she said. "Not a mark or scar on you."
The woman lifted the sleeves of Shiori's Kimono and examined her arm. She examined the other one as well. Next thing she knew, Shiori was being circled like a dying animal by a hungry vulture. Shiori looked to Sesshomaru, but he didn't say anything. He was simply watching the scene with curious eyes.
"You're a bit on the short side," she said bleakly.
"I am not short!" Shiori retorted. "I happen to be average height, thank-you very much."
Sesshomaru's mother grabbed a lock of Shiori's hair and yanked it. Her head went jerking forward.
"Hmm, such interesting texture," she casually said. "It's so course and wavy."
"Uh….ow?" Shiori dryly said.
"I've heard legends of Tennin hair before. Is it true that if you cut it, it'll instantly grow back?" The Lady inquired while flexing her claw.
Shiori just stared at her, "no, that is complete fiction! Do not….cut….my hair!"
"I can tell that you're very strong," said Sesshomaru's mother. "You should produce a powerful heir for my son."
"…excuse me?" Shiori gapped.
"What?" shrieked Jaken. "That's preposterous!"
Rin only giggled to herself quietly. Sesshomaru's eyes widened slightly in surprise. Why would she say something so absurd?
"Yes, you appear to have good genes," said the Lady as she forcefully spun Shiori around. She glanced down at her backside. "Though, you do seem a bit large in the buttock."
A flustered Shiori sharply turned back around.
"I am not," she snapped.
"Tell me child," mused Sesshomaru's mother, "are you virgin?"
"Wh….I don't see how that's any of your business!" Shiori retorted.
The Lady eyed her casually, "You're to produce an heir to the Western Lands with my son, so of course it's my business. With that being said, I'll need to know if you're a fit bride or not."
"You don't need to know anything," she answered. "The Lord and I are not mates."
"Oh, you seem a bit hesitant to answer," said the Lady slyly. "Is it because you aren't pure and you're afraid to tell everyone?"
"You know what?" Shiori's voice was slowly started to elevate, which alarmed Sesshomaru.
"I don't have time to discuss such matters," he coldly butted in. "Tell me more about father's memento."
"Well if you want to learn more about tenseiga, then you'd better come with me. I grow weary of this are," she said as she floated up into the sky. "Be sure to bring that woman with you. She's very amusing and things get boring around the castle."
"I am not your source of entertainment," Shiori hissed.
"And I thought Lord Sesshomaru was the only one who could get under your skin!" Jaken laughed. "The Princess of Hell meets the Queen of Hellhounds! Oh the irony."
Shiori gave Jaken an icy glare, and he slowly hid behind Sesshomaru.
"Let's go," said Sesshomaru, while also floating up.
"Wait my Lord!" Jaken rushed to grab hold of Sesshomaru's while pelt.
Shiori watched them fly away.
"I'm beginning to understand why Lord Sesshomaru doesn't visit his mother very often,"
When she looked back down, both Rin and Kohaku were staring at her. Shiori rolled her eyes.
"Yes, that's right…leave the children with me," she sarcastically thought. "It's not like I really mind."
She kneeled down, "Get on…..both of you."
…..
"Sesshomaru, do you not actually hate humans?" his mother asked him.
She was seated up top of a throne, casually looking down at them all. All of them had finally arrived that the Great Dog Demon's Castle. It was a huge, luxurious palace in the sky. Sesshomaru, and the rest of the group, were standing on the long stare case that led to The Lady's throne.
"You have two human children with you. Do you plan on eating them?" she calmly asked.
"Hmph, ridiculous," Sesshomaru retorted. "Father's method of opening the meido, surely you've heard of it before?"
She closed her eyes and played with the locket around her neck, "maybe…I was merely entrusted with this meido seeker, after all."
"Meido seeker?" he curiously asked.
"I was told to use it if Sesshomaru ever stopped by," she casually explained. "Oh yes, and he told me this as well. He said that if I used the seeker, Sesshomaru would be faced with great danger. And that I must not show fear or sadness."
"She doesn't seem that worried," Rin whispered.
"She said this all while smiling," Jaken added. "Somehow mother and son seem a lot alike."
"Hmph, your words exactly" said Shiori crossing her arms. "The apple doesn't fall far from the tree."
"What will you do Sesshomaru?" she hounded. "Don't keep your mother waiting."
Sesshomaru narrowed his eyes in annoyance, "the thought never crossed my mind."
"In that case, shall we have a bit of fun?" she said with a smirk while holding the seeker.
Suddenly, the meido seeker began to flicker with dark demonic power. From the stone, emerged an enormous black dog. Kohaku and Rin moved back, while Shiori and Jaken stayed closer to Sesshomaru. The hound immediately lunged for Sesshomaru, but he countered with his meido attack. His mother didn't look impressed at all.
"So this is Sesshomaru's meido, huh?" The Lady bleakly asked. "It's nowhere near a full circle."
"What? Lord Sesshomaru's sword didn't even cut it? What kind of creature is that?"
Shiori's eyes were wide in shock, "It's a…hellhound."
"A….a what?" Jaken shrieked.
"Yes," nodded the Lady. "That is a hellhound. No matter what Sesshomaru does, his sword will neither injure nor heal it."
"Lord Sesshomaru, fighting against an actual hellhound?" Shiori smirked. "This is so ironic it hurts!"
The hellhound roared and came running towards Shiori, and Jaken coward behind her leg. But Shiori didn't move, she didn't even draw her weapon. The monster got within an inch of her and sniffed the air. It immediately turned away from her.
"Huh? We're still alive?" Jaken marveled. "Why didn't it attack you?"
"Because I'm the Princess of Hell, remember?" she said in an irritated tone.
A sweat ball dropped down his head as he sheepishly laughed. "Oh yes...surely that dog wouldn't think about killing the ruler of the underworld's daughter right?"
At that moment, the hellound turned its attention towards Kohaku and Rin. Rin hid behind Kohaku as the monster came in their direction. With one giant motion, the dog flew down, swallowed the children up, and zoomed back into the meido. Shiori and Jaken gasped at the sight. Before Shiori could even react, Sesshomaru was already at the meido entrance. He was about to step in when his mother called out to him.
"Just a minute, Sesshomaru," she said. "You intend to pass through a meido, just to save a human life? You really have become soft."
"Feh," he scoffed. "I'm just going to kill the dog."
That being said, Sesshomaru plunged into the darkness. The meido quickly closed up behind him. Shiori could do nothing but watch in complete horror.
"Once the meido closes, it's all over," said The Lady. "He'll never be able to return."
"What?" Jaken gasped.
"Oh, that's why I told him not to go," his mother pretended to whine.
"I don't recall her every saying that!" Jaken thought. "Shiori, can't you do something."
"Lord Sesshomaru will be fine….I'm sure of it," she answered. "If not, I'll go back into the Land of the Dead to save him."
"Willing to follow him into the Land of the Dead, eh?" the Lady casually asked while looking at her seeker. "You must really love him then."
Shiori clutched her fist and evilly stared at the woman. Jaken looked at the Lady of the West and then to Shiori.
"She looks mad enough to pop someone's head off!" he mentally noted. "But she hasn't denied that comment…it couldn't be true…could it?"
"Would you like to know what's happening inside of the meido?" asked the Lady. "I'm watching it all right here in my seeker. Come take a look."
"I don't want to get anywhere near that foul woman," thought an angry Shiori. "She might try to violate me again!"
"Oh come now, look and see" she urged Shiori. "You too, little demon."
"It's Jaken," he corrected.
…Inside the meido…
Sesshomaru found himself on a long windy path in the middle of darkness.
"A road?" he thought.
The long path was surrounded by deep, chasms. He slowly trudged down the dark path in search of the hellhound. He didn't need to look very far; Sesshomaru already picked up on the dog's scent. He lunged forward and found the foul creature. There was a break in the road in between Sesshomaru and the hellhound. It was barring its teeth and violently hissing at him from the other side. Sesshomaru looked closely and saw the pallbears of the underworld parading around the hellhound.
"The soul pallbears?" he thought while looking down at tenseiga.
He drew the sword and flew towards the dog, "Healing tenseiga!"
He sliced through the hellhound's body, knocking it over the head. At that moment, Sesshomaru spotted the bodies of Kohaku and Rin spilling from the remains of the hellhound. They too were tumbling over the edge. Sesshomaru quickly darted down and rescued the two children. He flew back up and placed them down on the road. Sesshomaru knelt down beside Rin and felt her forehead. Rin didn't move; she was still unconscious. Kohaku, on the other hand, was starting to wake up.
"Lord Sesshomaru?" he said while sitting up. "Rin?
"You're able to move?" Sesshomaru marveled. "The power of the Shikon jewel, huh?"
Sesshomaru felt a threat coming and sharply turned around. Demons of the Netherworld were darting towards them.
"Take Rin and run," he ordered.
Kohaku put Rin on his back, "Right!"
Sesshomaru turned back around to deal with the oncoming threats.
…
"Hmm, I think it's very interesting that he used tenseiga's healing abilities," said The Lady, watching the scene from the seeker.
"He must've done it because something happened to Rin," said Jaken to Shiori.
Shiori was silent as she stood beside The Lady's throne. She knew very well that something happened to Rin's life. She saw the soul pallbears gathered around the hellhound.
"That doesn't make any sense," she thought. "Why would the soul pallbears appear to claim a soul while there already in the underworld? Could it be that….these are the shadow realm? Was this all a part of the Great Dog demon's test, or another attempt to bring a jewel shard back into the Netherworld?"
They watched as Sesshomaru defeated all of the demons with tenseiga. From the depths of the darkness sprang more disastrous creatures. Sesshomaru sliced them all with a swing of his blade. Kohaku, who didn't make it that far, was almost attacked by a demon and knocked off the edge. Sesshomaru swooped down and saved him again. Afterwards, they continued walking down the path. The demons suddenly stopped attacking them.
"Why have they stopped," asked Jaken.
"Because the demons want them to go forward," said The Lady. "It's all they can do, seeing as how their return path has been crumbled."
"So what's up ahead?"
The Lady yawned of boredom, "something that will make the meido zangetshua even stronger. It's what Sesshomaru wants, right?"
"Yes…..but I wish he'd at least return for Rin's sake…I don't know how much longer she can survive. If the soul pallbears are involved….then I don't have a good feeling at all," thought Shiori
"Tell me little demon," said The Lady to Jaken.
"It's Jaken," he corrected.
"What is that girl to Sesshomaru?"
Jaken thought for a moment, "well…it's hard to say. I've been travelling with him for centuries, yet he treats Rin more favorably. He treats Shiori more favorably as well!"
"That girl will die," she said coolly, with a slight smile. "A mere human cannot survive in the darkness of the underworld…."
"But Shiori, Inuyasha's friends survived just fine when they went into the netherworld," said Jaken frantically. "Why is Rin going to die…?"
"It seems that Lord Sesshomaru's meido was connected to a place in the netherworld known as the shadow realm."
"The shadow realms?"
"No living human can survive in such a place," she lifelessly answered. "But more importantly….it's another access to the Darkness of Hell."
"What? To Hell?" Jaken exclaimed. "But…I thought the only way to get there was through the gates of Hell."
"Hell is a vast place just like the netherworld," she sadly answered. It has many different regions. Surely you wouldn't think there'd only be one entrance?" she sadly answered.
"Can't the souls of the damned easily cross over to the Shadow realms and escape Hell?"
"No…..that's what those demons are for. They guard the borders of the shadow realms….Besides, the darkness won't let you escape."
"Once they cross over into the darkness of Hell, it'll be all over," said The Lady. "Not even Sesshomaru will be able to return."
"Shiori, can't you do something?" Jaken pleaded. "Can't you call your brethren to stop this?"
"I can't…..I have no jurisdiction over Hell. I've already told you, I'm not the Princess of Hell," she said with pure somber. "But if there were ever a time when I wish I was…."
Shiori thought about Sesshomaru and Rin being stuck in Hell for all eternity. She remembered her own experience in that terrible place. The images of Sesshomaru's dead body, and Rin's tortured soul flooded her mind.
….
"Lord Sesshomaru," said Kohaku softly. "Rin's not breathing."
Sesshomaru froze in place. A look of absolute horror swept across his face. He slowly turned to face Kohaku.
"Rin is dead?" he thought.
"She hasn't been breathing for awhile," said Kohaku, "and her body is feeling colder."
"Put her down."
Kohaku obeyed him and placed Rin down on the pathway. Sesshomaru stood over her and withdrew his sword. This time, there weren't any soul pallbearers.
"What's the meaning of this?" he thought. "Why tenseiga?"
The pallbearers weren't around, so he had no way of reviving Rin.
"I didn't have to bring her with me," he thought. "Back when I saved Rin's soul with the tenseiga after she was mauled by wolves…If I'd just left her in a human village….at that time…
Suddenly, there was a rumbling sound behind them. The Darkness of Hell was expanding towards them. All three of them were engulfed by it for only a matter of seconds. Soon after, the darkness retreated back, dragging Rin's body along with it. Sesshomaru followed after it, and stepped into the Darkness of Hell. Kohaku followed after him.
….
"Eep!" screeched Jaken. "Didn't you say that once they entered, they could never return? If Lord Sesshomaru dies…..what will I do?"
"Little demon," said The Lady. "I'm not that much of a fiend. I would regret for my precious son to throw away his life while studying his sword."
"Really?"
"Yes," she nodded. "I think I'll open a path for him."
"He won't take the path," said Shiori bleakly.
"Oh, and what makes you save that?" wondered the Lady.
"Because, he's not leaving without Rin," said Shiori. "He could never do something like that."
"Nonsense, he'll come,"
The lady removed the seeker from around her neck and held it out in front of her. Suddenly, a large portal appeared. They could see Sesshomaru and Kohaku on the other side.
"Sesshomaru, if you continue on down that path, you'll never return," his mother profoundly called out to him. "Take this place and return to the land of the living. The path will close soon."
Sesshomaru stared at the path briefly, before continuing on the original pathway.
"Kohaku, you take that path," said Sesshomaru.
But Kohaku chose to stay by his side and ran to catch up with him. The portal made by the meido seeker closed up. Sesshomaru's mother angrily looked at the seeker.
"Where's Lord Sesshomaru?" asked Jaken.
"Hmph, who cares," she scoffed. "That jerk! How dare he ignore his mother's kindness?"
"I told you he wouldn't take the portal," said Shiori.
The Lady eyed her, "I don't know what you see in him, girl. He completely lacks charm, unlike his father."
She didn't respond to her. Shiori was concerned about Sesshomaru and Rin's safety.
"Now, the only way he can save Rin is by defeating the Master of Hell for this region," Shiori answered.
"Hell has a ruler separate from the Netherworld?" Jaken gawked. "It took forever just to kill the Lords of the Netherworld!"
They watched as Sesshomaru and Kohaku continued through the darkness. Suddenly, they caught sight of thousands, if not millions, of rotting corpses. They were being sucked up towards a dark portal. A large shadowy figure toward over the mountain of corpses—it was the master of Hell! It held Rin's body in it's grips and was lifting her up towards a portal above him.
"What's he doing?" Jaken asked. "What's happening?"
"He's attempting to Rin into that portal," Shiori panicked. "If…she goes into that portal, she'll be lost forever…"
"Where does it lead to?"
"Eternal damnation….in the fiery pits of Hell,"
"Well, you certainly know a lot about the Land of the Dead," Sesshomaru's mother applauded. "As you should…Defeating the Lord of Hell will not only save that girl's life, but it may also strengthen the tenseiga."
All of them continued watching as Sesshomaru lunged forward. He wasn't about to let Rin die. He unsheathed tenseiga and sliced through the Master of Hell. Rin dropped from its grips as he dematerialized. Sesshomaru caught Rin and landed down amongst the mountain of corpses. She called out to her, but she didn't wake.
"Interesting," mused The Lady of the West. "The Master of Hell has been slain, yet the girl is still dead."
"How can that be?" Shiori asked.
"Is it possible that the girl has been revived by tenseiga before?" asked the Lady.
"Yes," Jaken answered. "She was the first example of tenseiga's power."
"A person's life can only be called back by tenseiga's life just once,"
Shiori felt her heart stop beating and she sunk down to her knees.
"Rin…..can't be saved?" she stammered. "Even after all of that….she still can't be saved."
Sesshomaru's mother calmly looked over at Shiori, "Was that human girl really that important to you all?"
….
"She can't be saved?" Sesshomaru thought as he held Rin's lifeless body in his arms. "What's the point of this now?"
He let go of tenseiga and it slowly fell to the ground. "For something like this...Rin, I let you die."
"To obtain this in exchange for Rin's life," he lowered his head in total anguish and tightened his grip on Rin, "it means nothing…."
At that moment, tenseiga began flickering with a white light. Kohaku, who was watching from above, looked over towards the mountain of corpses. They were sliding down towards tenseiga's light.
"They're clinging towards tenseiga…" he noted.
Sesshomaru looked towards the rotting corpses, "These people are the same as Rin. They wish to be saved too, huh?"
Sesshomaru picked up his sword and swung. The entire area erupted in a powerful white light.
…..
"Huh?" Shiori was sitting down on a bench beside the throne. She'd long since stopped watching. But she felt a sudden disturbance in her soul. "What is it? What's he doing now?"
"He's purifying the souls of the dead with tenseiga," said The Lady.
"Not only has he slain one of the masters of Hell, but he's also purified the souls that are destined for eternal damnation?" she thought. "I know I'm not the only one that felt that disturbance….I sense trouble ahead."
"Meido Zangetshua!" shouted Sesshomaru's voice.
All of them marveled as an enormous meido opened in front of them. Sesshomaru managed to double his meido in size. It wasn't a full circle, but an elongated oval. Sesshomaru stepped through with Rin in his arm and Kohaku by his side.
"Lord Sesshomaru!" cried Jaken in glee as he ran to him.
"So, you've returned?" said his mother rising to his feet.
Shiori didn't move from her spot. She only stared at the group. She observed Rin's lifeless body in Sesshomaru's grip. Her sad eyes met with his. Neither of them spoke, they just stared into each other's eyes for the longest time. It seemed like they were having a mental conversation. Two tears trickled down Shiori's cheeks. Sesshomaru walked over to her and placed Rin down on the bench. Rin's head fell into Shiori's lap. Kohaku and Jaken were also crowding around her.
"What's wrong Sesshomaru?" Sesshomaru's mother inquired. "You look depressed. Just as you wished, tenseiga has matured and meido path has widened. You should be happy. "
"You knew this would happen to Rin, didn't you?" he asked her.
"The girl's life has already been restored once before, correct? Tenseiga can only call back a person's soul once," she answered.
Sesshomaru's face froze over with pain.
"It's only natural," she continued. "Life is infinite. It's not something you can save over and over again. Did you think you were a god, Sesshomaru? As long as you held tenseiga you had no fear of death, did you?"
Shiori stroke Rin's hair. Was Rin really gone?
"It was something you had to learn Sesshomaru. When your heart chooses to save someone, it must feel the sorrow and pain of losing them. Your father said this as well. Tenseiga is a sword of healing. Even wielded as a weapon, you must understand the weight of a life and carry weight and compassion when killing your enemy."
"So in order to have a compassionate heart, Rin had to die?" thought Jaken with tears in his eyes.
"You're crying, little demon?" The Lady marveled.
"It's Jaken…." He sadly answered.
"And you as well, woman?"
Shiori was silently crying as she held onto Rin. She couldn't even speak to her.
"Rin," she whispered. "…..how could this….have happened? How could I have lost you?"
"Sesshomaru? Are you also sad?" she asked while turning to her son.
But Sesshomaru's face was still frozen over with pain.
The Lady sighed and removed the meido seeker from her neck again.
"Don't think I'll ever do this again," she said while putting it around Rin's neck.
The necklace began to glow around Rin's head.
"What is that?" asked Kohaku.
"It's the life of the girl who was left behind in Hell," said The Lady.
Everyone stared in awe as Rin's eyes lids fluttered slightly. Her eyes slowly peered opened and she began coughing. Shiori wrapped her arms around the girl. Sesshomaru knelt down in front of them and gently put his hand to Rin's face. Rin's coughing died down and she looked around.
"Lord Sesshomaru," she said weakly. "Lady Shiori….."
"You're alright now?" asked Sesshomaru.
"Yes….." Rin answered. She sat up and looked at Shiori. "Lady Shiori, you're crying? Why?"
"Because, you silly child, I thought you were dead," said Shiori smiling through her tears. "If you're gone, who's gonna put flowers in my hair in a tacky fashion?"
Rin laughed, "I'm sorry for worry everyone."
Sesshomaru glanced at both Shiori and Rin. He wasn't about to allow anything else to happen to either of them. He'd already loss them both to Hell once, he wasn't going to let it happen again…they were his.
"Come," he said rising to his feet. "Let's go. We're done here."
Sesshomaru walked passed his mother and back towards the stairs. After Jaken heavily thanked her in Sesshomaru's place, he too headed for the exit. Shiori, Rin, and Kohaku also followed in pursuit.
"Just a second, boy," called out the Lady.
Kohaku stopped and turned toward her. Sesshomaru, Rin, and Jaken walked on ahead. Shiori stayed behind with Kohaku.
"How is it that you stayed alive in Hell? That's possible for a demon, but not a mere human."
"My life is bound by a jewel shard," Kohaku replied.
"Oh, then remember this," she stared to explain. "Your life, like that girl's, has been unnaturally prolonged. They are lives that cannot be saved by tenseiga. Do you understand?"
"Yes, My Lady," he nodded.
She turned her attention to Shiori. "Woman, What did you say your name was again?"
Shiori rolled her eyes, "I didn't say…but my name is Shiori."
"Shiori," she said when Sesshomaru was well out of ear shot. "Take care of him."
"Lord Sesshomaru doesn't need anyone to care for him," she said.
The Lady laughed, "That's what he would like you to think, but he needs you and you him."
Shiori nodded before turning to walk away.
"One more thing," said The Lady. "The next time we meet, I expect that large backside of yours to be half it's current size."
Kohaku could've sworn he felt the air next to Shiori grow colder. He'd only seen the calm and collected side of Shiori…..not the angry and lethal side! Shiori angrily turned back around to face the woman.
"I do not have a large backside!" she snapped.
"Of course you do, I can see it from all the way up here," the Lady replied with a smirk. "I pray it's not hereditary…..don't want my grandchildren, the future rulers of this empire, to inherit that."
"Why you—"
"Eh, Lady Shiori? Shouldn't we be following Lord Sesshomaru?" Kohaku wearily asked, while pulling on Shiori's arm.
"You're right," she said turning away from the demoness. "We definitely should. Let's be off."
The Lady of the West watched as Shiori and Kohaku flew off after the rest of their group. When they were all out of sight, she glanced down at the meido seeker.
"She'll be fun to have in the family," she thought to herself as a wicked grin spread across her face.