Chapter eight: Hands
A tall dog demon was sitting under a cherry tree in blossom, watching the gardens surrounding his palace. His eyes shifted over the flower beds as soon as they caught a motion in the bushes. A little girl with black hair was running on the path, singing.
"White cherry, pink cherry, red cherry..."
Undoubtedly another song of her own invention.
"Lord Sesshomaru, where are you..." she sang, spinning around and laughing. He didn't make a sound but watched her, his expression revealing amusement. The little girl, so lively, so lovable, turned her head and noticed the demon lord.
"Lord Sesshomaru!"
She rushed toward him, stopping in front of him and taking a small bow.
"Rin," he addressed her. "Welcome... How have you been?"
"Very well, my lord," she replied. She, a human girl, the only creature in the world allowed to come so close to him. She approached, falling onto the mokomoko and looking up at the sky, still humming a song. She stroked the fur with affection.
"Have you ever thought about clouds, lord Sesshomaru?" she asked, not waiting for an answer. She grabbed his arm, putting it over her belly and playing with his slender fingers.
"I wonder where they go... Isn't it funny you'll never see them again, just this one time when you look up at the sky?"
The little girl kept playing with the demon lord's hand, tilting her head from side to side. The oddity of the fact such a small human was in the embrace of the deadly demon seemed lessened in the blossoming gardens.
Lord Sesshomaru allowed her to make a toy out of his own hand. He leaned his head against the tree. Soft breeze blew against their faces. Rin touched the tips of the demon's sharp claws. She was careful, she knew they were lethal.
"But the sun is always there..." she added. "It never goes anywhere."
She run a finger up the demon's forearm, copying the line of the crimson marks on his pale skin. He opened his fist spontaneously and she started drawing the lines of his palm.
"People you meet in your life but don't love are like the clouds," she mused. "And people you love are like the sun. They are there forever."
She rested her head against lord Sesshomaru's chest, putting her tiny arm over him.
"You are like the sun for me, lord Sesshomaru," she said silently.
The demon's face didn't change but he raised an arm, gently caressing her head and playing with a lock of the black hair. She closed her eyes as well, tapping her fingers against his chest, crumpling the tips of his robes with the other hand. They stayed like that, with the sun shining through the cherry branches.
Breeze blew again and a pink cherry blossom flew down from the tree, right on the demon's knee. He watched it thoughtfully. He reached his arm then, picking the blossom up and placing it into Rin's black hair.
Note: This story was inspired by the moments I remember having with my father when I was a small child, playing with his hands and clothes like that. (And ears, but I don't think lord Sesshomaru would like that :-).
I wanted to describe the personal physical contact and that they both feel comfortable about it. Think it only speaks of the close relationship they have. Hey, lucky them!