Chapter Three

"Will you come back tomorrow?"

Rin awoke to sunlight streaming in through the large window to her left. She yawned, fisting her hands and rubbing the sleep from her eyes. She was in Lord Sesshomaru's castle, she remembered, though she found it odd that she had to call him 'Lord Sesshomaru'. Sighing she climbed out of the large bed, leaving the sheets as they were. She opened her door and peaked her head out, looking both ways down the corridor.

Now would be the perfect time to explore. She had been dying to see just how big this mansion really was.

She carefully tiptoed out of the room and closed the door gently. Grinning, she turned, only be come face to chest with the demon lord himself.

"Oh! Lord Sesshomaru!" She gasped, taking a step away from him. He looked at her suspiciously. She studied his features, attempting to find out what he was feeling, or his thoughts, or something. She found that she couldn't. There seemed to be some sort of mask that he continually kept his true face hidden with. An unbreakable one. This was highly unnerving.

"Are you hungry?" He asked her, emotionless amber orbs regarding her curiously. She shook her head, not too eager to find out what demons ate.

"No thank you." She said politely. Suddenly her stomach gurgled loudly and he raised a fine, silver eyebrow.

"I do not eat raw meat, if that is what you are worried about."

Rin looked at him, pouting slightly. She didn't see how he could do that, read her mind without even trying. She sighed, placing her hands on her hips. "Fine, I'll have something to eat." He nodded slightly, turning and beckoning her to follow. She began walking behind him, studying his back. He was very... different, than what she had heard demons were like. He hadn't tried to kill her, or eat her and he had even let her stay the night and offered to escort her to the edge of the forest. He had to be centuries old. The clothes that he was wearing looked foreign, as well. He was wearing a white haori with almost purple-colored designs on them. A yellow obi was tied around his waist and loose fitting pants billowed down to his ankles, where the legs of the bottoms gathered around black boots. She looked down to the designs of his pants, intrigued by their wonderful pattern. The gentle colors snaked up his leg, ending at about his knee, but Rin didn't let her trek stop there. She allowed her line of vision to move upward, stopping once it reached his backside. The pants were hanging off of him in a way that seemed to emphasize his rear, and the way he walked didn't exactly help. He had this way of sauntering, moving his hips from side to side just slightly without even seeming to realize it. Rin bit her lip subconsciously before noticing that Sesshomaru had stopped walking. He turned and she quickly let her eyes land elsewhere, blushing faintly.

"This was a gift from a lord from a foreign land." He stated, noticing her intense gaze on his clothing. "Do you... like it?" He questioned, curious as to why she had been staring.

Rin was caught of guard by his last question, catching his eyes and shaking her head nervously. "Erm... yes." She stuttered, looking everywhere but at his body. He quirked an eyebrow slightly, before turning and opening the door he was standing in front of. Rin had been so preoccupied with her studies that she had failed to notice that they had reached their destination.

"This is the dining hall." He told her stoically, stepping aside to allow her entry first. Rin walked inside, gasping in awe at the sight that surrounded her. The dining hall was enormous. Another chandelier hung over the table, and the table itself stretched almost the length of the room. The chairs were black, ornate seats that seemed more for decoration than to actually sit in. Idly Rin noticed two seats by the head of the table with twin bowls of soup and some unidentifiable drink. She eagerly took her seat, grinning as the demon lord sat beside her.

"Thanks." She told him, picking up her spoon. "I really was hungry."

"Hn." Was all he said (well, voiced) before he gracefully held his spoon as well, dipping in his soup before bringing it to his lips and looking at her expectantly. She took some soup as well, eagerly placing it in her mouth and allowing the liquid to fill her mouth with its taste. Her eyes lit up and she promptly put her spoon down, opting to slurp the soup noisily from her bowl instead. The taste was delicious, slightly tangy with faint undertones of salt. Once she had finished her bowl, she looked over to Sesshomaru, blushing faintly when she realized how she had been eating.

Sesshomaru had the glass in his hands, and was taking a small sip, his lips touching the glass delicately, clawed hands holding his cup daintily. She scowled slightly, noticing how everything the lord did seemed to look graceful. He caught her gaze, noticing her stare and she blanched, looking away quickly.

"I'm –er- done." She told him, wiping her face with the napkin beside her bowl. He nodded, standing up and pushing his chair in. "I'm Rin, by the way." She added, noticing that she had never told him her name. She'd spent the night and eaten dinner with him, and he had no idea who she was.

"...Rin." He repeated, as if testing it on his lips.

"Hey, Lord Sesshomaru..." She spoke nervously, twiddling her thumbs. "I was wondering if you could... give me a tour of your home?" Rin looked up at him, pleading her case with the best puppy dogface she could muster. Sesshomaru didn't appear to be paying attention.

"As you wish." He said simply. He turned to face her, brushing a lone strand of silver hair out of his face. "What would you like to see"

Rin put a hand on her chin in thought, looking around the huge house that she was in. "Maybe... do you have a library?"

He nodded, before starting off once more, though this time seemed to be at a much more leisurely pace. As they walked further to the front of the house, Rin began to notice large patches of carpet missing here and there, or pieces of furniture that were wrecked completely. Soon they were walking through a room that was a complete disaster. Pieces of wood were strewn everywhere and the place just seemed to have an eerie, cold feeling about it. There were discolored stains everywhere she looked, and though she couldn't be for sure what they were, she could take a pretty good guess.

Had Sesshomaru done this?

No... he couldn't have done all this. Not by himself, anyways. Time seemed to stop here, she noticed. It was so much different from the rest of the mansion, which upheld a warm atmosphere, despite how cold it's resident was.

"Lord Sesshomaru..." Rin began, her eyes widening as she saw even more destruction. "How... what... what happened here?"

Sesshomaru continued walking, seeming to ignore the scene before him. "That is none of your concern." His voice seemed harsher than usual and she frowned, taking in the sight. What had happened here?

They continued to walk on, in silence before Sesshomaru stopped in front of two large wooden doors.

"This is the library." He spoke, opening the door for her. They went inside and the carnage of the previous room was forgotten as she stared at the enormous supply of books that were stored in this room. The library was two stories high. There was an enormous staircase leading to the upper level, where there were bookshelves stacked as high as the ceiling covering the whole wall. On the lower floor, there were two rows of bookshelves on either side of the stairs, each of them filled to the overflowing point of books.

"Wow..." She breathed, walking over to one and touching the spine of a book. "Where did you get all these?"

He walked over to a large chair as she browsed, sitting down in one fluid motion and crossing his legs. "They've... accumulated, over the years." He said, an amused look in his eyes. Rin nodded, looking through the shelves and finding several that looked interesting. She grabbed one, opening the cover and flipping through the pages. They were slightly worn, but other than that in excellent condition, for a mansion that was so old. She walked up the stairs, letting her hand run over the beautiful banister as she walked. There were ladders, she noticed, to reach the top shelf, most likely. Everything was so wonderfully decorated, lavish colors of red's and shining gold painted the walls. She found herself wondering who had lived here with the demon lord before. Surely he couldn't have been here by himself for forever...

Rin walked over to the large window on one of the walls and looked down, smiling. The glass overlooked a large garden on the side of the mansion with too many wonderful flowers and colors to count. There were several plush chairs to sit in, as there had been on the lower level. Once she was finished exploring, Rin started back down the stairs, opening the cover of the book she had picked out again, and reading the first paragraph.

She stopped, sitting on the bottom stair, finding the novel enticing. Looking up suddenly she frowned, realizing that she didn't have time to read the whole book. Going back over to the shelf she had found it she hesitated, debating on whether to mark her page or not. She probably wouldn't ever be coming back to this fantastical (yes, I said fantastical. Deal with it. -) place.

"You may take one with you, if you would like." He told her, snapping her out of her reverie. She looked at him curiously. His expression was normal, cold, as usual. Though she was positive that there was a glimmer of kindness shining behind his eyes.

Grinning, she held the book to her chest.

"Really?" She asked, looking at the enormous supply of reading material. "I wish I could have a chance to look through all of these..." She muttered under her breath. Deciding that she had seen enough of the library at the moment, she spoke again, heading towards the exit, "Alright, lets go somewhere else." She said out loud, beginning to walk out the door. She grabbed the handle, and although Sesshomaru had been far away from the door when she reached it, when she turned he was right behind her. She puffed her cheeks out, pouting slightly.

"No fair..." She grumbled.

They continued their tour, Sesshomaru leading the way as Rin followed him, still in slight awe about how huge the place was. "Where would you like to see next?" He asked her, looking down to her face because of the difference in height.

"Actually..." She said, blushing slightly. "I wanted to see your room. I figured if my room was that big then the master bedroom would be huge..." She trailed off; hugging the book, she carried closer to her chest.

"As you wish."

He sauntered off again, this time back to the hall where she had slept the previous night. Rin paid extra attention to the portraits lining the walls, knowing she probably wouldn't get the opportunity to again. The first one was of a beautiful woman with extremely long black hair and large brown eyes. She was wearing the most beautiful dress, wrapped in tantalizing hues of blue's and pinks. Rin found herself almost envying her bright features, big eyes and long lashes. The next picture showed a young man, with raven-colored hair as well, that reached down to the small of his back. He bore a cocky grin and was wearing simple clothing, in a red color. He was handsome, Rin noticed, smiling slightly. The picture after that was of a man, who bore some resemblance to the previous picture. He had the most wonderful light brown eyes, bearing a smile similar to the picture before him as well. Long, tawny- colored hair was pulled up into a high ponytail.

Once they passed that portrait and reached the next one she almost tripped over her own feet and choked at the same time. This painting... it couldn't be, could it?

It was... Sesshomaru.

He looked slightly... warmer, than he did now. His markings were gone and his hair wasn't the lustrous silver color, instead that same tawny hue of the man before him. His features were just as perfect though, she noticed. However, there was something off, about the Sesshomaru in the portrait. It seemed unlike the normal face she saw.

That's when she noticed the difference.

He was smiling.

"We are here." Sesshomaru told her, making her look in his direction. There was one last picture hanging on the wall, but she disregarded it, opting instead to open the door to the demon lord's room cautiously.

His room was painted lavishly, white and indigo. The sheets that adorned his bed were this color as well, and the nightstand that rested next to it was a cold black, as was every other piece of furniture in the room. However, the room was big. It didn't disappoint and Rin found herself staring at it in wonder, painting's temporarily forgotten.

"I just can't believe that in this whole house only one person lives here." She grumbled to herself. "And he doesn't even jump on the bed!" She turned only to find Sesshomaru regarding her curiously, his eyebrow quirked, again.

She blushed slightly, walking further in to his living space. He had a drawers off to the left, she noticed. Everything in his room was in order. It was hard to believe that someone actually slept here. There was a small bookshelf in his room as well, right next to his bed. Rin found herself unconsciously drawn to the fluffy-looking sheets, running her hands over them gently. They were so... soft. Grinning she sat down reveling in the feeling of her small form sinking into the mattress gently.

'This must be heavenly to sleep on.' She thought to herself while grinning. She looked over to the demon lord, wondering what he was doing while she looked around. He was standing next to the door, leaning against the frame slightly, his head turned in the direction of his window.

"Thank you for showing me your room." She said politely, standing up. She walked over to the door, turning her head back and looking at his extremely comfortable bed enviously. On the inside she was just itching to run back in and throw herself on it.

"I will show you the ballroom now." He informed her, starting off once more. He appeared to be enjoying the little tour as much as she was. Though she couldn't really tell. He was very hard to read.

"Lord Sesshomaru," Rin started, walking beside him. Being in the hallway again reminded her of the portraits, and a question that she wanted to ask him. "Is that... is that you? In the picture?"

She thought she saw his amber colored orbs flicker to the wall, but if could have been her imagination. He hesitated for a moment, before answering her question as if the delay had not been apparent.

"No."

And the conversation ended.

She sighed, slightly disappointed. She could have sworn that that was him...

Shaking her head, Rin continued to follow the demon lord, eager to see the rest of his mansion. If they looked at everything, it would probably end up taking all day.

And Rin was fine with that.

Rin was not fine with that, she found.

The two had been in the middle of looking at the extra rooms when Rin realized that her parents and Kohaku still thought she was dead.

"Lord Sesshomaru, please take me home right now!"

Rin was feeling antsy as they walked to the door, wishing that he would go faster (she knew that he could). Once they reached the huge double doors that meant freedom, she yanked them open, running out before looking back for Sesshomaru. He was behind her, waiting for her to continue as he inadvertently tossed the hair that was bothering him over his shoulder. Rin giggled slightly, earning a questionable glance from the demon, but nothing more.

"Follow me." He said, beginning to walk for the tree line. She nodded, figuring that it would be pointless of her to ask him to go faster. Once they reached where the trees began, things immediately began to get slightly awkward. Why wouldn't it be, just walking around with someone you hardly knew? She decided to lighten the mood a little bit. Or at least try.

"I spy with my little eye... something... green." She said, before realizing that everything in the forest was green and frowning. "No, I take it back. Something... yellow." She smirked, confident that he would never guess what it was.

There came no response from the demon and she looked up at him curiously. Perhaps he didn't know how to play? On the other hand, maybe he was just ignoring her. He didn't really seem to be the type to play I spy. But who didn't play that game? It was like, universal! She frowned. Stupid demons with their stupid arrogant rules and their stupid-

"My obi."

Rin looked at him surprised. He had actually said something. "Er... yes."

There was more silence and she realized that her attempt at entertaining them had failed. Therefore, she decided to try again. Keyword here being, 'try.'

"Would you rather burn to death, or freeze to death?"

"Burn." There was a tentative pause, as if he was making a decision, and then, "Would you rather die alone or die young?"

She blinked, staring at the cold-hearted demon in surprise. She really hadn't expected that to work. "Er... young. Okay, new game." She decided. It would appear that there was more to the seemingly cold-hearted demon lord than what he let on. She started a new game and to her absolute pleasure Sesshomaru responded, though whether he was simply patronizing her or actually having fun, she wasn't sure. The walk went on like that, with Rin continuously thinking of new things for them to do, and Sesshomaru going along with it.

Nevertheless, after he beat her three times in the alphabet game she decided to give up, not wanting her pride to get hurt any more than it already was.

"You're to damn smart for your own good." She mumbled, crossing her arms childishly.

For a moment, she thought that she saw some semblance of a smile on his face...

But that was probably her imagination.

All to soon it seemed, they had reached the edge of the forest and she faltered once she saw the outline of her neighborhood in the distance. She looked back at Sesshomaru nervously.

"Well... this is goodbye, I guess." She said, placing her hands on her hips.

"Indeed."

"Thanks again." She told him, turning away, slightly disappointed. She clutched the book tightly in her hands, finding the emotion of sadness surprising. She found herself... curious. She wanted to know about the paintings, and the room in the mansion that was destroyed. She wanted to know how he came to live in that place, and why that portrait had looked so similar to him. And she had really wanted to see the entire mansion; she was determined and dead-set on jumping on his amazingly large bed.

And for some reason that she couldn't fathom...

She wanted to see him again.

"Rin." He said, causing her to turn around and look back at him, a faint glimmer of hope building in her chest.

"Yeah?" She asked, attempting to quirk an eyebrow in imitation of him.

"I will be expecting that book back." He told her, giving her a knowing stare. Her mind went blank, before processing his words. She looked down at the book; Then back at him, realizing what he was implying.

"Oh!" She said, her face lighting up. "Yes! Of course!" She turned around again before she embarrassed herself and continued walking home, the smile staying on her face. She looked over her shoulder once, to get one last glance of the demon lord.

But he was already gone.

foxgirl: sorry about that really long, boring chapter with seemingly no point. Gah! I hate fillers... but there were tiny important details in there. Well, there it goes. Hope you enjoyed!

Vixen: review please.