Through the well and back again

Disclaimer: I don't own Inuyasha

A/n: I decided to work on this chapter sooner because I'm currently stuck inside at the moment because of the weather conditions, lol. It's been snowing all day long which gave me the perfect chance to lounge around and work on this, haha. And as promised, Rin is once again back in Kagome's world and is about to face her evil English teacher! I'm just going to keep calling him that until I find a decent name for him, lol. Sorry guys. Anyways, I hope you all are enjoying the story so far and more will come soon, maybe even as soon as tomorrow if I'm stuck inside all day again, lol. As always, please don't be a silent reader and read & review, it would mean so much to me! Please and thank you! :D

Chapter 12:

Standing at the bone eaters well the next day, Rin heaved a sigh, trying to calm her nerves. She had to be completely out of her mind to do this. After what happened with her and her lord Sesshoumaru yesterday, it had encouraged her to go back to Kagome's world and face her problems there, too. If she could stand up for herself and tell her lord her feelings, then she could stand up to her English teacher and deal with that, too.

Taking a deep breath, she squared her shoulders and jumped, loving the view of all the stars and colors as she passed through the well to the other side. When she was through, the sight and creature that greeted her however once she was in Kagome-chan's old shrine caught her so off guard it made her shriek and take an unsure step back, taking care not to lose her balance and fall back in from where she came. It was a strange thing. It tried jumping up on her with what looked to her like so much enthusiasm she almost worried for it and as it looked at her, it wagged it's small tail and was drooling from so much happiness. Actually, she couldn't help herself but admit that even though she didn't know exactly what it was, it was indeed very cute. If she had to guess, it was still a baby and didn't seem to pose as much of a threat. Well, if you counted too much happiness as a threat… Rin was tempted to pick it up and hold it to her chest, seeing as how it was so unbelievably cute but she refrained from doing so, considering she didn't even know what it was yet and wasn't certain if the strange animal would bite or perhaps change into some ferocious beast. As if reading her mind, the creature tilted his head curiously to the side and let out an odd whining sound, as if trying to reassure her that he wouldn't attack her.

Seconds later, Rin was able to hear footsteps outside the shrine and Kagome herself appeared in the doorway, looking out of breath and like she had just run several miles. She also looked frustrated, and when she spotted the creature at Rin's feet she let out a long sigh of relief and her shoulders that looked so tense and ready for anything relaxed and she walked into the small room, grinning at Rin and picking up the small creature, ruffling his pointy ears. The creature let out an excited noise from his mouth and licked the other girl with a long, slobbery tongue.

Rin wanted to shudder, unaware that what the animal was doing was harmless. Kagome noticed her unease and laughed. Rin narrowed her eyes but waited for Kagome to explain. Finally, the other girl did walking over to Rin and handing her the animal. She still felt uneasy about the creature, which turned out to be called a puppy but still held the little animal in her arms, cooing at it. "Wherever did you get him?" Rin wondered aloud, patting the animal lightly on the top his head.

The puppy, apparently named Cooper burrowed his head closer into her chest, looking content as ever.

Kagome smiled, answering her. "My friend Ayumi's dog had a litter of puppies and she gave my family and I this little guy. My little brother just loves him…" Kagome seemed to get a far away, wistful look on her face and Rin frowned, wondering what she must be thinking about to bring on that kind of look.

She decided to give it a go and see what was troubling her friend. "Kagome-chan what's wrong? You seem troubled about something."

Kagome hesitated, thinking of her words carefully before saying anything. "It's just that… well, I've learned to love traveling back and forth from the well and seeing you, Inuyasha and the others but, there are times when I wish things could be different." She looked almost ashamed now.

"Different how?" Rin placed a hand lightly on the girl's shoulder, hoping that would help give her some sort of comfort.

Kagome shook her head, as if trying to clear her mind and give herself time to think of and say her next words carefully. "It's hard seeing Inuyasha go off to Kikyo still and not only that but I just wish… well, sometimes I just wish that I could have my old life back. I want to be able to see my younger brother graduate into high school and I want to be able to take my quizzes properly and even graduate myself if I can and going back and forth between times isn't allowing me to do that."

"You've thought of this for some time now." It wasn't a question and in her heart, Rin knew this was true. It was true, she hadn't been traveling with the older girl for long now but for a while, she knew something had been bothering her, she just didn't realize this had been it. Now that she thought about it, though it made sense because she knew that if her lord had been going to see another woman for ages and she had to witness it and watch the confusion on him, she would probably feel the same way as Kagome did now and she wished there was something more she could do for the other girls heart ache.

Kagome nodded and didn't look like she was finished saying what she had to say. Rin's suspicions were confirmed when she said, " and it bugs me to see you doing what I am now, Rin. I know you've been having problems with Sesshoumaru and it's even harder to deal with them when you're traveling through time. I know I asked you to do this but… now I'm asking you to reconsider. You don't have to prove anything by doing this."

Rin gave her friend a wide smile, shaking her head. "Don't worry about me Kagome-chan, I need to do this and I know that lord Sesshoumaru will protect me from the English teacher and more and besides that…" Rin paused, getting butterflies at just the very thought of how her lord had accepted her proposal of courting her. "I told him how I felt and when I went back with him, it was so he could show me his full past and Kagome-chan, I still love him and… and he agreed to courting me." Rin said cheerfully, bouncing excitedly on the balls of her feet as she finished.

Kagome's face brightened at each word Rin spoke and she squealed happily and hugged the girl and now Cooper let out a happy yip being wedged in between the two girls. Inuyasha walked in with his usual scowl and when he saw how excited the two girls were he frowned and shook his head, giving the little puppy a look of deep dislike and mistrust.

"What's all the excitement about?" He demanded, his voice already huffy sounding and irritated.

Kagome looked irritated almost at once and she narrowed her eyes at the half demon, placing her hands on her hips. "If I told you, you'd only get angry and let me tell you, Inuyasha I'm not up to dealing with that at the moment. But, if you must know it's about your older brother and that's all I'm going to say, if Rin wants to tell you, it's up to her."

"What's that supposed to mean? I don't get angry about everything, woman!" He scowled, becoming defensive almost instantly.

Rin's eyes were wide and now she understand why the other girl seemed so unhappy. It seemed like they had already been fighting before she even got here. She wondered if all of this was just over Kikyo or about something else entirely. Politely, she excused herself, putting the reluctant puppy down on the ground and made her way to her bedroom that Kagome and her family had made for her while she was traveling.

Once she was there, some of her resolve about dealing with her horrific teacher seemed to dissolve and she cringed just thinking about it, her stomach churning with fear. Before she had left her home with her lord, she had told him she was going and the only reason he wasn't here right now was because he had a matter to clear up on his lands but he had told her that once it was dealt with, he would be with her soon enough. The thought made her feel better but the waiting was difficult.

Speaking of waiting… she went to her window and pushed it open, breathing in the fresh air and began to hope that he would come through it some time in the night while she slept. Feeling confident that he would, she sat at her small desk and took out her diary and began to put in her days entry when she felt a presence behind her. She spun around, already knowing who it would be and grinned, looking up into a pair of beautiful golden orbs. She beamed up at him until she saw all the cuts and blood all over his body and clothes.

She gasped and was about to call for Kagome when he put a hand quickly over her mouth and stopped her from doing exactly that. Her eyes were beginning to water with worry and she turned in his arms, looking at him with wide eyes. "My lord, what happened to you?" Her voice shook slightly.

"Don't worry yourself, Rin. This Sesshoumaru is fine, I just need rest and quiet." He paused and then said, "there was a small war on my lands and I resolved it, that is all." He released her and made his way over to the bed and lay down. For a moment, she thought he had fallen asleep but he hadn't because he was still watching her.

She wasn't sure if he wanted her to leave or stay so she bowed and began to excuse herself when he spoke again. "Stay with me." He wasn't giving her an option at this point but she didn't need one. It didn't matter if he asked or didn't ask but she would always stay by his side. So, she pulled up her desk chair and pushed it as close to her bed as she could. Sitting down in it, she took his hand in her small one and sat beside him the whole night, not getting an ounce of homework done but she didn't care. As long as she had this, she would be happy. Her worries for tomorrow were almost completely put out of her mind and soon, she fell asleep to peaceful dreams and the knowledge that she was safe by the side of her beloved demon lord.