Rin couldn't help the unending giggling and laughter that came with her first sight of Jaken the next morning. She knew from what Kokoro, Surudoi, and Ringu had told her that he was a strange little imp with an annoying voice and high-and-mighty attitude, but the creature made her smile. Of course, she was more than grateful when Sesshomaru changed his mind and deemed it unnecessary that Jaken take care of Rin. The imp was interesting enough to chat with, but she didn't want to deal with him for every second of the day, especially when she already wanted to throttle the ever insistent Kokoro.
The crane had taken on Kimi's determination since her failed attempt to return home. Both were constantly trying to dress up Rin now in better and prettier clothing, and it had only been less than a day since she'd realized there was no escaping this life! According to Kimi, it was an attempt to get the Lord of the West to pay attention to the young human woman and hopefully take more than just a faint liking to her.
But Rin wasn't the only one happy about this. Mizuki, too, hadn't looked the least bit excited when she'd learned of what the two were up to. It appeared, as Ringu told her after the meeting had ended the previous night, that Mizuki wanted to permanently ally herself with Sesshomaru in the form of marriage. For some strange reason, the thought had sent a bolt through Rin's heart, of which had been ignored in favor of going to chat with Kimi.
Unarigoe had disappeared off the face of the Earth. Nobody had seen him since his leave, and it made Rin nervous as she proceeded to somehow trample through a door that led to the outside world. She'd managed to ditch her two guards, Kokoro, and Jaken, wanting to have some alone time as she visited Ah-Uhn. Some of the workers outside peered curiously at the strange smelling Rin as she made her way to the stables. She ducked inside, silently shrugging off a few layers of the ever bothersome fancy clothes, setting them off to the side as she made her way through the clean building, searching for her friend.
The stables were incredible, Rin thought, her eyes roving over the two rows of beasts on either side of her. In one stall close by, there was a massive stallion, its fiery red eyes watching her with an intensity that made her shudder. But when she passed it, it merely reached over and sniffed at her before nickering, lovingly rubbing its nose against her shoulder. Rin scratched its chin before continuing on her way, fully aware of just how dangerous some of the beasts could get if they decided she smelled better than any other breakfast they'd already had...
Ah-Uhn peeked both heads over a door suddenly and she giggled when the dragon gave a loud roar of excitement, stretching out to reach for her. She jogged over, eagerly clasping one of his heads in her hands and kissing the others' nose. "Hello, there," she greeted. "I'm so sorry I took so long. How are you doing, big guy?"
Ah-Uhn gave a low groan as she began to rub his chins, making her laugh again. A demonic bull in the next stall over huffed in jealousy and tried to look over, and Ah-Uhn proudly glowered at it, showing it that she only wanted him. Rin giggled at this.
She stayed this way for close to an hour before someone finally discovered her location.
"Lady Rin!"
Rin pouted. She'd been discovered. Standing from where she'd been sitting in the stall with the dragon, she sighed and called, "Over with Ah-Uhn, Kokoro." She made a face. Damn, she was not looking forward to having to go back inside, where Sesshomaru was undoubtedly waiting to yell at her.
Kokoro materialized before the open stalldoor, scowling deeply. "Lady Rin, we have been looking for you for so long," she snapped, "Lord Sesshomaru is furious! We thought Unarigoe had gotten you for certain!"
Rin rolled her eyes. Though the idea was a worry of her own, she retorted, "Oh, stop being so dramatic. I was tired of being cooped up inside with people constantly hovering over me so I came and hung out with Ah-Uhn for a while. I don't see anything wrong with that."
Kokoro seemed to puff up with anger, then forced herself to calm down. "Come," she said coldly, "You must come back inside now, before Lord Sesshomaru decides you're more trouble than you're worth."
Rin scowled. "Pretty sure he's already decided that, even before this." She stood, brushing herself off, and paused to kiss both heads' noses. "I'll be back to see you again soon, Ah-Uhn," she told the dragon as she avoided going back for as long as possible. Leaning closer and whispering in one of his ears so she wouldn't be heard by Kokoro, she said, "Hey, maybe next time we can go outside, yes?" Ah-Uhn purred his response, nuzzling her head with the other head.
Finally, Rin turned to look at Kokoro, who gave her a look of exasperation before grabbing Rin's arm and marching her towards the castle. Crossly, she said, "This would not have been an issue had you done as you were supposed to do, Lady Rin. Now we're all in trouble, us because we didn't notice you were missing until it was too late."
Rin pinched the bridge of her nose. "Look, I'm sorry, Kokoro. But I've been traveling all over the world for a couple years now and I'm not used to just staying inside constantly, okay? I need to get outside. I want to run around. And inside just isn't fun."
Kokoro shook her head. "I'm sorry, Lady Rin, but that isn't a choice we can make. As you've been told, you are Lord Sesshomaru's human. So only Lord Sesshomaru can give you that permission...or Lady Kimi, apparently," she added under her breath.
Rin just huffed as she was led back inside. "Oh, I'm going to talk with them then. I don't want to hang out in here. It's more likely Unarigoe's waiting to ambush someone inside anyways. I'm probably safer going back to Inuyasha and Kagome-" She cut off when Kokoro gave her a sharp look. "What? It's true. I mean, Inuyasha looks ready to murder me half the time because of whatever's wrong with me, but he doesn't have to worry about keeping alliances."
Kokoro shook her head. "Do not speak of such ideas around Lord Sesshomaru, Lady Rin. It will not end well for anyone. He is not one that is tolerant of such rebellious acts."
Rin, in a temper, just clamped her mouth shut and scowled again, falling silent as she followed Kokoro. When they reached the room in which the meeting had been held, Kokoro knocked politely on the door and called, "Lord Sesshomaru? Lady Mizuki? May I interrupt?"
"Enter," came Sesshomaru's voice.
To those who hadn't spoken to Sesshomaru before, he sounded indifferent. To Rin, it sounded terrifyingingly furious. Nevertheless, the duo stepped inside after Kokoro had swung the door open. Running a hand through her reddish hair, Kokoro smiled brightly, her piercing blue eyes sharp. "I found Lady Rin, Lord Sesshomaru. I brought her to you as you requested, though..." She glanced at the scowling Rin. "I suggest you speak with her alone lest she accidentally insult Lady Mizuki in her anger."
Mizuki hummed her amusement, her gaze lingering on Rin. "Nonsense, I wish to see this. It should be quite the entertainment for a bored demoness."
Rin simply gave her a glare. She was part of the group that believed she do what she was told. Rin thought over this for a second, then grimaced. Okay, yeah. She got herself into these situations. She really needed to stop tempting the dog demon's claws. Muttering something under her breath, she simply turned to look at Sesshomaru, meeting his sharp golden gaze without hesitation. Forcing herself to bow and create an apologetic look on her face, she gritted out, "I apologize for my disobedience, Lord Sesshomaru." She might as well suck up to him in hopes that she wouldn't be put to death this time. Not sincerely, mind you. She still had a sense of pride for herself.
Sesshomaru narrowed his eyes irritably. "Do not lie, wretch. It is insulting."
Right. The bastard could smell lies. She had forgotten about that.
Mizuki grinned, clasping her hands together from where she sat as Sesshomaru stood, ordering, "Go, Kokoro. Order the others to cease their searching for her. I shall deal with this momentarily. Mizuki, leave."
Mizuki put a pout on her face, seeming bothered. "But Maru, our discussion- Oh, all right," she grumbled when he gave her a look of upmost annoyance, his lips pulling back in a snarl. "I'm going." Brushing her spotless self off, Mizuki exited the room, tossing some multi-colored hair over her shoulder and letting the door slam behind her in her annoyance at being kicked out of the room. The Lady of the East was in charge of her own territory, but in the land of the dog's, she knew better than to protest.
Kokoro bowed respectfully, then slid from the room as well, leaving the Lord of the West and the human that had been dumped on him alone. Rin stubbornly kept her gaze on the floor, though the demon's lips quirked just barely at the nervous scent she gave off. She knew he was angry. She was learning. Slowly, as if she was a stupid human, but learning. Perhaps, just perhaps, he would have her trained as well as his ward had once been. He frowned. Then again, his Rin had done everything he asked out a willingness to please the demon that had saved her. This Rin was nothing like that. It seemed as if she took pleasure in going against his every word...
Rin inhaled sharply, then said carefully, "Look, I did nothing wrong this time except for managing to get away from Ringu and Surudoi. I wanted to go see Ah-Uhn. I didn't leave the castle or anything. I was with a demon that was just as capable as them. And I mean, yeah, I was kinda outside for a few minutes, but-"
Sesshomaru growled, interrupting her. "You disobeyed me. Again. It is not acceptable."
She arched an eyebrow. "I have my Jihibukai. I'm not completely helpless. Though I didn't bring it with me, so I guess that won't help my argument, will it?" She sighed. "Never mind about that then, though I'm going to start carrying it around. Has nobody seriously found the guy?"
"My men are looking," Sesshomaru said stiffly, sounding annoyed by her question.
"And they're being kind of sucky at their jobs right now," Rin retorted. He snarled at her words and she shrugged. "Honestly. How the hell can you not find him? You're a dog demon, right? Doesn't your nose work right?" The look on his face made her click her mouth shut. "Right, sorry. Bit too far. But seriously." She let her exasperation through now as she met his gaze. "I may be human and I may be under what orders you give, Lord Sesshomaru, but I'm not a pet, okay? Like I told Kokoro, I've been traveling the world for a while now. I like to be outside. I need to get out and enjoy the fresh air. And I don't want to sit inside because you are frightened of something a wolf demon might do!"
His gaze darkened dangerously. "This Sesshomaru," he spat out. "Is not frightened of Unarigoe. I am merely doing as I told my pathetic half-breed of a relative's miko I would do."
"And why is that?" Rin demanded. "Why on Earth would you protect me for either of them? According to what I've heard, you should have killed me long ago."
Sesshomaru growled in his frustration towards the annoying human, then turned away, desperately wanting to slit the girl's throat. "The miko," he snarled, "protected my ward on more thane on occasion." Rin blinked in surprise at this answer, then wary gazed at him when he turned an icy cold look on her. "Have no fears, human wench. You will be returned to the half-breed and the miko shortly. I have no wish to protect one that wants to die." He slid out of the room without another word, and Rin huffed in her annoyance, scuffing the floor with her heel.
"I don't want to die," she muttered childishly.
"You know," another voice commented, startling the human woman. Rin whirled around to see Ayame step into view, her green eyes apologetic for eavesdropping on the two. "It's not unusual for a demon, especially a dog demon, to be so...irritating. Especially with Unarigoe," she scowled at the name, "Running around now. Sesshomaru isn't one who often shows emotion. The fact that he's running his men to the point of dropping dead from exhaustion shows that he at least likes you a little bit, right?"
Rin relaxed. She trusted Ayame. "Eh, I've tried my best to make it be the opposite, so I doubt that," she replied, though she gave the wolf demon a fairly thankful smile. "I do kind of hope he sends me back though. I liked that village. Though...it was kind of awkward having to deal with demons who weren't as unwilling to slaughter me."
Ayame threw her head back and laughed. "I'm sure Kagome helped you out with that." She smiled broadly at Rin, who was relaxing more with every second now that the dog demon was gone. "I've met Inuyasha on occasion. And twice I've wanted to rip his mate's throat out because my own claimed to want her. Neither Inuyasha or I were too happy about that."
"I can see why not," Rin mused. She shook her head. "Makes total sense, especially with how they acted when I saw them with each other. I'm surprised, uh, Lord Koga isn't dead. I'm pretty sure Inuyasha wasn't very willing to let anyone near Kagome."
"Oh, he wasn't. Koga managed to wiggle in there." She wiggled her fingertips playfully, then giggled, her green eyes flashing happily. "Seeing as Sesshomaru's currently being his usual self, would you like to accompany me to the kitchens? I've wanted to see them, but for some reason, even with my nose, I can't find them."
Rin shook her head, a smile appearing. "I don't know my way around. You're looking at the person who was dumped in a room and told to not go anywhere else. I don't know where we're going."
Ayame snorted, waving her words off. "We can become lost together then, Lady Rin. Come, let us be off. Perhaps Lady Kimi can join us on our little adventure if we're lucky enough to come across her." She offered her arm in a playful way to Rin and Rin eagerly wound her arm through the wolf demon's, both making their way towards the double doors.
Perhaps, Rin thought, she had an ally who was willing to mess with the dog demon even just a little bit...
Grumbling, Rin glared at the entrance to her room. It had been locked from the outside this time, so that she couldn't get out at all. And it angered her beyond belief. She sat in the middle of the room, the chest of scrolls on one side of her and her Jihibukai on her other side, thrumming soothingly in an attempt to calm the upset human.
Or, perhaps, she wandered when there was a snarl outside of her room, warn her of something that was coming. Calmly but nervously, she set her scroll aside and scooped her naginata up, her eyes narrowed. She stood quickly, especially when something slammed into her door and there was a rather nasty howl of pain that had her shivering in fear. "Okay," she whispered, readying Jihibukai. "Not good."
The shoji door was slammed open and a smirking yet bloody Unarigoe stepped through. "Oh," he crooned. "Would you look at that. The little human pet has a demonic weapon. Did the precious Lord Sesshomaru acquire it for you, little girl? Or did you steal it?"
"Stay back," Rin warned. She sucked in a sharp breath, pointing the weapon at him. Beneath her fingertips, it thrummed with an amount of demonic energy she'd never felt. Unarigoe ignored the naginata, instead smirking and stepping forward. Suddenly, he was on the other side of her, practically breathing down her neck. Shuddering in disgust, Rin somehow managed to maneuver her weapon behind her and jab sharply, making the wolf demon rip away and hiss in pain when it plunged into his arm. Ha! Practicing with it back at the village did pay off!
Her pride at nicking the demon vanished, however, when pain suddenly lanced through her shoulder as he raked his sharp claws across it. She yelped, trying to catch the bastard with Jihibukai, but he managed to avoid her this time. Furious, Rin whirled around the other way in a sudden violent motion, and this time managed to catch him across the belly. He snarled furiously, and Rin met his gaze just as angrily, ignoring the sharp pain in her shoulder and the trickling of blood down her arm. She would worry about it later.
Even as he lunged again, Rin suddenly felt a cold chill run down her back. He wasn't seriously trying to hurt her. He was tiring her out. He was playing with her. And it was working. She missed by a long shot, though when he came at her this time, much to her relief, he was met by a sharp sword landing against his neck, not cutting through, but merely resting dangerously close to it.
Sesshomaru curled a lip with a dark look in his sharp golden eyes, and Rin couldn't help the gasp of relief that escaped her. "I told you, Unarigoe," he said icily, "you were not to touch the human."
He rolled his eyes. Unarigoe, even with his life on the line, simply smirked at the dog demon. "And if I told you that girl was dragged here to kill you? I know how she got here, Sesshomaru. I know how and why this little human pet of yours was pulled into a time that isn't her own." His voice was taunting, bragging, but Rin found suspicion rising within her. He knew how she'd been moved from a crashing plane to here, the Feudal Era. Questions bubbled up to the tip of her tongue, but Sesshomaru cut her off before she even began.
"Silence," he hissed, letting his Bakusaiga dig slightly into the demon's throat. Unarigoe fell silent as instructed. Sesshomaru's nostrils gave what looked like a nearly delicate flare as he inhaled, cautiously taking in the scents around him. Unarigoe. Lyaringu. Surudoi. Kokoro. The older scents of his mother and himself. And the fresh scent of his human's blood. "Rin," he said sharply, shocking the said girl. "You are injured."
"Err, yeah," Rin muttered, her grip still tight around the relaxing Jihibukai. "But it's not too bad. I think. I got him back though, so it's fine."
Sesshomaru simply growled darkly at Unarigoe. He fell silent, his eyes never leaving the wolf demon as he simply settled down to wait for his men to arrive. It didn't take very long. His second in command arrived shortly, followed by a hissing Regitadashi. "Ippan," he ordered. "You and Yoroi will take Unarigoe to where our prisoners are held."
"Yes, sir," the dog demon growled in response with a growl. He waved for the tortoise demon to follow him, each grabbing one of Unarigoe's arms as Koga slid in, demanding to know what was going on.
"Rin was attacked and two of my men are near death," Sesshomaru said, giving the wolf demon a threatening look. "Were you aware of your father's plans?"
"No," Koga said immediately, growling at the accusation. "I wasn't. I was under the impression he'd simply left and we hadn't seen anything of him since the meeting." He paused to glance at Reigitadashi. "The hell are you and Mizuki still doing here anyways? Shouldn't you be heading back?"
"I was on my way out when I smelled blood," Reigitadashi hissed smoothly. His gaze flickered to Sesshomaru. "Have the men been seen to?"
Sesshomaru gave a curt nod, sheathing his sword. "Ippan had some of the others take them to the room of healing." His gaze flickered to Rin, who'd finally dropped her Jihibukai. She now knelt, cringing as she shakily reached up to touch her heavily bleeding shoulder.
"Take the human to the healing room, too," Reigitadashi told him firmly. "We will see to the clean up here...but I don't think we'll be able to touch that naginata of hers."
Sesshomaru contemplated this for a moment, then gave a curt nod. "See to it, then. You may leave as soon as this has been accomplished if you so wish." He turned to study the injured girl, then heaved a massive sigh, not hesitating as he scooped her up. Rin squeaked in surprise, looking utterly astonished at the fact that he'd even touched her.
Ignoring the look on the human girl's face, he stalked out of the room, well aware of the blood that continued to pour from her shoulder. A crease just barely appeared on his brow. It should have at least slowed by now. It was driving him crazy, he thought with a growl, the scent of her blood. Even Reigitadashi, who'd trained himself away from the taste of mortal flesh for hundreds of years, had looked slightly hungry at the scent of her blood.
It was tempting. Very, very tempting, even for a dog demon such as himself, to tear into that girl's flesh along with other things he didn't dare think about at the moment.
Swallowing nervously, aware that should she say the wrong thing at this point, he would simply drop her and walk away, Rin shakily said, uncertain, "Wh-what do you plan on doing with Unarigoe?"
Sesshomaru's gaze flickered towards her for a moment. "Hn," he said simply, returning his gaze to straight ahead of them. "I will interrogate him personally for reasons as to why he has betrayed even his own people."
"He mentioned that I was brought here to kill you or something," Rin rasped, her grip on his kimono tightening just barely. "He knows why and how I got here. Could you-"
"I will look into it," Sesshomaru muttered, cutting her off. Rin gave him a grateful look, relaxing in his grip as they arrived at what Rin assumed was an infirmary from the looks of it. A demon, already tending to a bloodied Ringu, who was sitting up calmly, glanced up. "Ah, Lord Sesshomaru. I assume this is the human girl I've heard so much about but haven't met quite yet?"
"Chiryoshi," Sesshomaru greeted quietly. Silently, he dumped Rin onto a futon that had been lain out, ignoring her wince and soft yelp of surprise. "Heal her. I do not want as much as a scar on her, is that clear?"
Chiryoshi's lips quirked into a smirk. "Oh, shush you. I helped deliver you from your mother's womb, boy. I know exactly what you want, and we both know that's near impossible."
Annoyance, though not anger, crossed his face, and Sesshomaru took leave without further notice. Chiryoshi smirked smugly, turning her attention onto Rin. "Alright, Lady Rin," she said happily, gently pulling the sleeve down so that her shoulder was revealed. She clucked her tongue, growling. "Ugh. That bothersome demon left quite a bit of dirt on his claws. You'll be lucky not to get an infection." She glanced over her shoulder at the patiently waiting Ringu. "Ringu, are you able to get up and move? It was a nasty blow to the head, but I'm sure you'll be alright."
Ringu waved her words off. "Despite what you might think, I'm fine. What do you need me to grab?" Chiryoshi made a small list aloud, and then turned back to Rin as Ringu set to work on gathering what she needed.
"Alright," Chiryoshi said smugly when she had what she required. "Let's set to work on cleaning up this injury, shall we? Ringu, be a polite demon and look away. Lady Rin will likely need to shed most of the top half of her clothes and I doubt she wants a demon like you seeing her chest."
Flushing, Ringu turned away as instructed, and Rin bit her lip as her cheeks blossomed with red. "Err, thanks, but-"
"I want you back here everyday until this wound has healed completely," Chiryoshi cut her off. "You're a human woman, Lady Rin. It is more than likely that such a wound will become infected with a disease that only demons can handle. Is that clear? I will have Lady Kimi coming to check on you with that nose of hers every now and then as well. Lord Sesshomaru will have my head if you die because I couldn't keep a demonic infection out of your shoulder."
Startled, Rin blinked. "O-okay," she stammered.
"Good." Chiryoshi began to swipe at the injury carefully, ignoring Rin's hiss of pain as she did so. "I am stunned that Lord Sesshomaru brought you here himself. The Sesshomaru I know would leave a human to take care of themselves. Then again. You are the reincarnation of the previous Lady Rin from what I've heard, and never could he say no that little girl." She frowned as she gently began to bandage Rin's shoulder. "It has been quite some time since he has been so calm and gentled. He does not make a good leader when he does not have someone to care for."
Rin's jaw dropped and she gave a slightly hysterical laugh. "You're kidding me," she choked out, "Him? Gentle and calm?" She smirked. "Not him at all. Especially around me."
From where he was sitting nearby on a futon, Ringu snickered. "Lady Rin, before your arrival, he would not have seen to it that we were positively here. He would have allowed those who fight for him to fend for themselves. First thing he did when he arrived was made sure Surudoi and I were sent here. Speaking of which...Chiryoshi? Is Surudoi going to be okay? He has a mate that's expecting a...what the hell do the bird demons call it...a hatchling? Yeah, that. Anyways, he's expecting a young one."
Chiryoshi shook her head, casting Surudoi, who lay unconscious on a futon, a look of concern. "I am uncertain at this point." She pursed her lips. "Surudoi lost a lot of blood, and the bleeding on that wound of his still won't stop." She hesitated. "There are wounds...ah, but my lord would not allow such a thing to happen. A half-demon's mate? In the Western Fortress?" She snorted.
Rin winced when Chiryoshi roughly tied off the bandage. Carefully returning her clothing to its proper place, she turned to face the healer. "What do you mean?"
"There are rumors," Chiryoshi said warily, "of that miko. From what I've heard, her powers have grown even further from the time she beat that nasty half-demon Naraku. If what I've heard is correct, she is able to heal many injuries as long as the patient is still living..."
"She'd purify us with that power," Ringu said bluntly.
"But that's just the thing," Chiryoshi protested, "If she has enough control, she can keep that from happening. It will quite literally heal and leave the rest of a demon be. The only problems would be clearing it with Sesshomaru and Lord Inuyasha. I doubt Lord Sesshomaru would allow her into the Western Fortress with Lord Inuyasha, but Lord Inuyasha won't let her in without him!"
Unable to decide whether or not Chiryoshi referred to Sesshomaru as a lord or not, Rin decided quietly, "I'll go find him and ask him. Surudoi's got a young one; he can't say no to that. And I'm sure Kagome's got that half-demon wrapped around her little finger. He can't say no to her, although it may cause some issues as to how they'll get here and back quickly." She paused. "How many people can Ah-Uhn carry?"
"Two, not including Jaken," Ringu replied firmly. "But Lord Inuyasha and Lady Kagome would never take the imp seriously, Lady Rin."
"Then I'll ask if I can go. He'll probably say no, but..." Rin shrugged. "It's worth a shot. If all else fails, we bring her in anyways with Kimi's help."
Ringu shook his head in astonishment. "Lady Rin, you are absolutely determined to get us all abandoned to be an outcast or killed by Lord Sesshomaru."
Rin smirked. "It's what I'm best at apparently." She turned to the uncertain Chiryoshi. "Should I ask or not? Can you get the bleeding to stop or do I need to see if we can bring in Kagome?"
Chiryoshi shook her head. "He won't agree," she said bitterly, "But you may see if he will agree to let Lady Kagome come to the Fortress, Lady Rin."
"Thank you," Rin told her, then sprang to her feet, ignoring the small twinge of pain as she jostled her shoulder. "With Unarigoe locked up for the time being, maybe I'll be able to convince him..."
"No," Sesshomaru said immediately, icy eyes flashing with irritation at the fact that the human woman had dared to ask such a question. "To allow the miko into my home would mean allowing the half-breed to join her. I will not allow such a thing to happen."
"Please," Rin pleaded, ignoring the warning look Ippan gave her as her hand darted out to grab the irritable demon lord's sleeve. "Please, Lord Sesshomaru." She might as well suck up to him to get him to agree to her request! "Surudoi's badly hurt, and Chiryoshi said that Kagome may be able to help him where we can't! Please!"
"The half-breed will not enter my home," the dog demon retorted furiously, ripping free of the human's weak grasp. She winced when it wrenched at her fingers, but persisted. "Surudoi will heal without the miko's help."
"He's sitting there in the...whatever you call it, bleeding to death because Chiryoshi can't get the blood to stop!" Rin cried. "If what Jaken said was true and Ah-Uhn can fly, we can make the trip in less than half a day, even going both ways! I'm sure they'll be willing to leave the second he's healed!"
Kimi, who was watching quietly beside Mizuki with a thoughtful look on her face, said softly, "Sesshomaru, dear. That man did his best at defending Rin. And he is expecting a pup. His mate would not be happy with either of us if he were to perish for the life of a simple human." Rin tried not to feel to stung at her words. Whatever convinced Sesshomaru!
"Please," Rin repeated, then summoned up all of her sincerity with a grimace as she said carefully, already irritated herself with making such a promise, "If you let Inuyasha and Kagome come to fix Surudoi's injury, you can lock me up and I will stay in one place and do whatever you say, Lord Sesshomaru. I won't make a single complaint, and I'll obey whatever order you give." This had better work, because there's not much else I can bargain with!
Much to Rin's surprise, he actually paused, looking as if he was contemplating this. Finally, the lord growled, "Fine. But I want the half-demon out as soon as he is able. If she must, the miko may stay for over a day. But I will not house the half-breed. Is that clear?"
Rin let a relieved smile cross her face. "Crystal," she said firmly, ignoring the confusion that flashed across more than one's face. "I'll go get Jihibukai, and-"
"You are not to accompany my mother on her travel to fetch them," Sesshomaru interrupted. Rin silently moaned in frustration at this comment.
Kimi seemed to be on her side for this argument. "Sesshomaru," she said softly, "The half-demon will not recognize me. I do not have the trust that Rin has with the miko. Allow her to accompany me this once before you lock her up for whatever ridiculous amount of time you come up with. I will guard her, as will her little weapon and Ah-Uhn, as we will be taking the dragon for her to ride upon."
Sesshomaru's eyes, rather than their usual icy look, now held a flaming rage that made Rin want to apologize to him on her knees for the first time since she'd laid eyes on him. "No," he growled. "I will not allow the human to leave my senses, Mother."
"Then you take her back to the village," Kimi said with exasperation. "Mizuki and I can just as easily watch over the Western Fortress while you are away. Heavens know I did it by myself when you were gone the last time."
"Unarigoe is here," Sesshomaru reminded her.
"Then we will have a guard of twenty men around him at all times until your return," Mizuki chimed in, her eyes flashing determinedly. Rin paused in paying attention to the argument. Was that eagerness on the koi's face...? Shaking it off, Rin returned her pleading gaze on Sesshomaru.
Pinching the bridge of his nose with his claws, Sesshomaru sighed. "Jaken," he called suddenly. The imp came scrambling, making their ears ache when he squealed. "Kokoro just left to take care of Ah-Uhn and prepare him for traveling despite the lack of orders to do so. Tell her that it is not necessary." Disappointment crossed Rin's face. He really wasn't allowing her to go with whoever went to get Kagome. But that soon changed to a stunned near fear. "I will travel in my true form with the human girl."
"A-are you sure, my lord?" Jaken squawked uncertainly, looking just as startled as the other demons that were witnessing the entire event. But a sharp glare from Sesshomaru had him fleeing.
"Mother, you are in charge until my return," Sesshomaru growled. "Ippan. Have Rin's naginata brought to her immediately." The lesser dog demon inclined his head before darting off to fetch the weapon, looking uneasy at the prospect of having to pick it up. Sesshomaru turned a look on Rin and Rin met his gaze uncertainly. What, exactly, she thought warily, did he mean by "true form"? "Human." Yep. There went her name. "Follow."
He wheeled around on the heel of his foot and started forward. Rin glanced nervously at Kimi, who smild brightly and waved for her to follow him. "Um, tell Chiryoshi that we're going to get Kagome, please," Rin pleaded, then bounded after him, sticking close as she knew would be important in the next however long they were traveling.
Eventually, they made it outside, and Sesshomaru stepped into the center of the courtyard. Ippan, who'd been waiting for them, hurriedly shoved Jihibukai into Rin's hands. "Here, Lady Rin," he said softly. "When Lord Sesshomaru takes on his true form, then you will most likely have to climb on him. I beg of you not to tug on his fur too much."
Rin's jaw dropped. "Excuse me?"
Ippan couldn't hide the grin that spread across his face. "You'll see, my lady."
"Seriously," Rin muttered, "I'm not a lady." She turned her gaze on Sesshomaru, her eyes widening slightly as she watched. Even she, unable to sense any sort of aura, felt the blast of demonic energy that exploded from Sesshomaru. As she watched, his face seemed to grow along with the rest of him, continuing to do so until a massive dog towered above them. The courtyard had emptied except for she, Sesshomaru himself, and Ippan. Large red eyes rolled down to glare at Rin as she gaped up at him for a moment before the dog demon suddenly lowered himself, huffing impatiently.
"We will see you again upon your return, my lady," Ippan said with a smirk, gently pushing her towards the impatient Sesshomaru. "Remember, be careful of Lord Sesshomaru's...fur." He chuckled, bowing his head before disappearing back inside.
"You're kidding me," Rin said bluntly, even as the ground around her trembled at the force of Sesshomaru's growl. Scowling to hide the nerves she felt, she muttered, "Okay, okay. Chill out, I'm coming." Hesitant, she tucked Jihibukai under her arm, then began the work of carefully hauling herself up onto the large demon. Okay, large didn't even begin to cover it. When she had finally reached a spot between the dog demon's shoulder blades, he stood. She gasped, nearly losing her balance, but grabbed onto some of the fur she was up to her chest in while sitting. Curious, deciding it couldn't be worse than a plane, she peeked down.
Okay, yeah. Way worse than being encased in a metal tube thousands of feet in the air. She was at least a few hundred, she realized. No wonder the courtyard was as big as it was. The Fortress barely reached half way up his foreleg. Despite the fact that she was on him, she giggled. He really was like a dog!
Sesshomaru grumbled his annoyance, and Rin lightly grasped some fur as he trembled beneath her, his muscles bunching up as he crouched down before suddenly springing straight up with a roar. Rin gasped, tightening her grip immediately as he seemed to land on nothing before springing forward. L-lovely. So the dog guy can fly. Just what I needed.
So, in other words, there was no possible way anyone could ever escape the Lord of the West. Not something that was bad, but not something that was too good for her, either. She certainly hoped Sesshomaru didn't expect Kagome to join her on him, because she seriously doubted Inuyasha would go so far as to do that.
Rin sank her teeth into her lower lip, nerves settling in suddenly. She remembered the sudden dropping of the plane when it had begun to go down, and she thought of that now as Sesshomaru silently bounded through the air as if this was something he'd done thousands of times. And, quite possibly, it was.
Suddenly, rather than catching mid-bound, his entire front end dropped forward so that he headed straight for the ground. Rin's breath caught in her throat and she darted forward to hide herself in the thick ruff of his shoulders until he soddenly jostled her enough to send her sliding over his shoulder, her Jihibukai sliding down and crashing onto the ground below. "Damn it, you stupid dog," she spat as she desperately scrabbled at his fur. He quickly twisted, his massive teeth catching her by the back of her multi-layered kimono and accidentally ripping it as he did so. Rin scowled as soon as her feet hit the ground, though she muttered a quiet "thanks" and hurried to shrug off the outer-most layer she wore.
Rin paused to look around them, well aware of the fact that Sesshomaru's form was suddenly shrinking. Even from here she could see the massive tree Kagome had labeled as Goshinboku, the Sacred Tree. The tree Inuyasha had once been pinned to. Quietly, she brushed some hair out of her face, sighing. No wonder he'd landed so far away, she thought dully, noting that some trees had been crushed beneath massive feet. As it was, it wouldn't be long before the half-demon showed up.
Sesshomaru silently sniffed at the air, a patient look upon his face as Rin muttered, "Warn me next time you're going down like that. Freaked me the hell out."
He gave her a look. "Then perhaps," he growled, "You should have a tighter grip." He searched the area around them, and Rin sighed quietly. "The half-breed is aware of my presence. He will arrive shortly. With or without the miko is yet to be determined."
"Got it," Rin murmured, grabbing her weapon and brushing dirt and leaves off of it. Happy to be outside despite the short time she had outside, she made her way over to a tree and immediately climbed on top of it, ignoring Sesshomaru's sharp growl. She might as well enjoy herself until Inuyasha showed up. She walked along the top, balancing carefully as she hummed a soft lullaby underneath her breath. Unaware to the lessening of Sesshomaru's growling as he listened, she suddenly paused, her weapon pulsing in her hands just as a flash of red landed lightly, perching uneasily on a different tree that had been broken down. Beaming now, Rin hopped from her spot on her own tree to stand beside Sesshomaru. "Hello, Inuyasha."
The half-demon ignored her in favor of glaring warily at his half-brother. "The hell you want, Sesshomaru?"
Sesshomaru gave a low growl and Rin forced the smile to remain on her face as she said tightly, "He doesn't want anything. He didn't want to come here to begin with, but it's...necessary, I suppose. May I speak with you and Kagome? Even if it's bringing Kagome out here so he doesn't go near the village." Sesshomaru turned his piercing glare on her and she simply glared right back at him, earning a snicker from Inuyasha.
"Fine," Inuyasha said after a moment. "Go over to the Goshinboku, I'll bring Kagome there. Whatever you want isn't happening though, you hear me? We've got pups to take care of, one of which is still having nightmares every time she closes her eyes. I don't want anything happening to her again."
"We...I want to ask a question, that's all. I promise," Rin said sincerely. She glanced at Sesshomaru, who said nothing, simply watched the interaction with careful scrutiny. He was making sure nothing came near the human girl, Inuyasha realized after a moment, his golden eyes sweeping over them. He was prepared to throw the half-demon around again should he so much as consider laying a finger on her.
Inuyasha smirked as he turned away.
Kagome was going to love interrogating Rin.
A/N
And...Unarigoe turned up again. But he's not gone for good just yet (sadly). And Sesshy's showing a bit of liking towards Rin, yes? ^_^
Names, Meanings, etc.
Chiryoshi (healer) - 1000+ Years Old - The healer of the Western Fortress, takes care of the injured and sick, a lesser (black) dog demon
Reviews
dragonroses: Gotta love Koga. I'm glad you liked the chapter, and hope you enjoyed this one just as much.
rosaji: I believe Sessh showed even MORE affection for Rin in this one, yes? XD We shall have to wait for the dog earred grandchildren, now won't we. ;)
MrsMagnusB: Haven't decided that just yet, quite honestly. How Rin's..."scent" is may result in the first way of thinking, sadly. But the eating bit is for certain. Lol.
Leonhart9: Ah, I believe there was a LOT more of Sessh/Rin action in this chapter than the last few. ;) Was willing to catch her when she fell of of him, wasn't he?
Grumpy DelSan13: And your feeling is correct and will continue to be so. Even now, there will be more of Unarigoe (much to what I hope is everybody's irritation...XD)