Chapter 2

A Place to Call Home

The wedding ceremony took place beneath the Sacred Tree.

Rin watched with tears in her eyes as Kagome and Inuyasha whispered their vows of love, holding each other close. Something about their intertwined hands-one clawed, one porcelain, made Rin shudder.

That night, Rin had a visitor.

Kaede was preparing their beds when her eyes darted to the door. "Rin, you have a guest," she said.

Rin sprinted out the door, already knowing who it was. Just as she had expected, Sesshomaru was standing in front of the hut. Jaken, as always, was standing dutifully before his lord.

"Rin."

"Lord Sesshomaru!" she cried happily, throwing herself at him.

"Jaken?"

"Yes, milord!" Jaken bustled past Sesshomaru and Rin, into the hut. Whenever Sesshomaru came to visit Rin, Jaken would be instructed to wait inside Kaede's hut until they returned. Poor Jaken had originally seen it as a warning of abandonment, but now he was just used to his lord abandoning him for the human girl.

Rin hummed contentedly as she followed Sesshomaru. They stopped at the usual clearing within the forest, a grassy circle enclosed by a ring of ancient trees. Sesshomaru stood stoically in the center of this field, face set in his usual expression of passive disinterest.

"Are you well, Rin?"

Sesshomaru's voice cut through the cool night air. Rin's heart trilled with happiness at the sound of it.

"I am very well, Lord Sesshomaru!" chimed Rin cheerfully. "I trust my lord is well too?"

"I am." There was a rustle as he reached into the inner folds of his kimono.

Sesshomaru knelt by Rin, so that their faces were level. Sesshomaru placed a square of silk in her hands, wrapped with a ribbon of darker silk. Rin plopped herself on the ground and carefully untied the ribbon. Nestled in the rich silk was a small bamboo box, and within it a delicate silver comb beset with a single, amber jewel. Rin squealed with delight and lifted the comb into the air. The polished surface mirrored the moon's soft glow.

"Oh, it's beautiful!" she exclaimed, examining it from all sides. "Thank you, Lord Sesshomaru!"

"I am glad you like it," replied Sesshomaru.

"Lord Sesshomaru!" Rin placed the comb back in its box and fastened the ribbon. She crawled to him on all fours, then sat on her haunches with an expectant look. "Lord Inuyasha and Lady Kagome were wed today!"

"Is that so?" Sesshomaru closed his eyes.

"Yes!" Rin nodded eagerly. "It was a most beautiful ceremony! Lady Kagome's kimono was made of the finest silk, in delicate shades of green and pink! Her hair was laced with flowers I chose from the field, and oh, her entire face was glowing with happiness! We all gathered beneath the Sacred Tree…everyone was there, including Master Totosai and Master Myoga and Kohaku and Jinenji and his mother, of course Lady Sango and Monk Miroku and their three children! We all watched as Lord Inuyasha and Lady Kagome whispered their vows, holding their hands, like this."

Sesshomaru's eyes flew open in surprise as a small, delicate hand slipped into his. How was it that her hand was so impossibly small?

"Just like this, Lord Sesshomaru!" proclaimed Rin, squirming her fingers.

Sesshomaru held very still. The claws that Rin held so tenderly had killed hundreds-no, thousands, of demons and humans alike. He dared not withdraw-the way Rin had intertwined their fingers, snapping his hand back may accidentally expose her to the deadly venom of his claws. Finally, Rin loosened her fingers and pulled her hand away.

"Does Lord Sesshomaru think Rin will ever be married?"

The question was innocent enough, but Sesshomaru froze.

"Rin is no ordinary human girl," she said earnestly. "Rin prefers the company of demons, like Lord Inuyasha and Shippo and Lord Sesshomaru."

"Don't say such foolish things, Rin," replied Sesshomaru.

"But Rin can't see herself marrying one of the village boys," she said, her nose scrunching up.

"Rin, are you content here?" Sesshomaru asked. He looked directly at her.

Rin stared into Sesshomaru's golden eyes. "Lady Kaede is very kind to me."

"That didn't quite answer my question," murmured Sesshomaru, a gentle smile curving his lips as Rin fidgeted uncomfortably under his stern gaze.

"The village is very nice."

"My question, Rin." There was a slight note of impatience to his usually emotionless, suave voice.

Rin puffed a sigh. "Yes, Lord Sesshomaru, I am content here. But Rin would very much prefer to be with Lord Sesshomaru!"

"When the time is right, Rin." Sesshomaru paused, and waited for a burst of indignance.

Rin asked a quiet question instead. "Why won't Lord Sesshomaru let Rin travel with him?"

Sesshomaru was taken aback by the solemnity in Rin's young voice. "This Sesshomaru is reclaiming the Western Lands," he answered truthfully. "When such has been done, you may choose…where you would like to reside."

Rin settled comfortably in Sesshomaru's lap. The wedding of Inuyasha and Kagome has given her…hope, he noted. Hope that demons and humans can be happy together forever. He realized that her grasping his hand was no innocent imitation; she had hoped to prove the plausibility of her traveling with him directly to Sesshomaru.

"Lord Sesshomaru?" murmured Rin. "Where was Lord Sesshomaru's home when he was little, like Rin?"

"Why do you ask?"

"Lady Kaede and the others are most kind to Rin," she replied drowsily. "But Rin feels most at home when she is underneath the stars at night…"

A place to call home…mused Sesshomaru. "My home was the Palace of the Western Lands."

"Will Lord Sesshomaru ever show Rin his home?"

"It is long gone."

"So then…Rin and Lord Sesshomaru are very alike," she mumbled sleepily. "Both looking for a place to call home…"

Rin fell asleep. He held her gingerly-humans could be so fragile. Sesshomaru would never admit it to himself, for the sake of his dignity, but the little human girl had touched his heart in ways he could have never fathomed. He delivered the sleeping girl into Kaede's arms, and set out again with Jaken once more.

"Where are we going, milord?" asked Jaken enthusiastically, glad to be by his master's side.

"To conquer the Western Lands," he replied simply. "To reclaim my home."

Jaken simply gawked at the fresh determination burning in Sesshomaru's eyes.

Hurrah!

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