Chapter 1: The New Journey
Rin arrived in Japan on a Friday morning. The plane started to descend as she opened the window curtain and looked out into the city that would be her home while she attended school. Sitting back in the seat, she began to think about her parents who she already missed.
Many Hours Earlier:
Beep Beep Beep.
Her phone alarm went off early in the morning. She turned it off and rose from her bed, both excited, and sad she would be leaving her family to attend college in Japan. She got up from her bed, pulled back the covers, and went to take a quick shower. Afterwards she made her way back into her room and got dressed in a pair of light blue skinny jeans, a light pink tank top, and a white quarter sleeve cardigan. She brushed her shoulder length, raven hair into a ponytail, and went out to her balcony that overlooked the ocean. The dark waves washed against the shore, calming her nerves. She was going to miss this and seeing the sunrise and sunset. Her favorite thing was to sit on her balcony with a book and read for hours.
She sat outside for some time unaware of the time passing, until a knock came at her door. She walked back into her room, closing the balcony door behind her. "Come in," Rin called out.
The door opened; it was her mother. "You almost ready sweetie? We have about thirty minutes before we need to leave for the airport," she said.
Rin smiled at her. "I'm almost done."
Her mother walked over to her with a white box in her hand. "Your father and I got something for you. But you can't open it until you're safe in Japan, okay? It's a surprise." Her mother picked up Rin's Michael Kors mini backpack and placed the gift inside.
Rin grabbed her phone and charger and put them in her bag. "Aww mom! Thank you," Rin said, giving her mom a big hug. She then slipped on her white comfy flats. They both walked out of the room, headed downstairs, and headed towards the kitchen.
Rin's father sat at the kitchen table leaned over a steaming cup of coffee flipping through the screens on his phone. He looked up to see her standing with her mother. "Good morning, baby girl! Are you ready to go?"
"Yes, I'm ready dad."
He stood up with the car keys in his hand and they all headed out the front door. The sky was still very dark as they got it into their Lincoln Navigator. It was chock full of Rin's belongings. They rolled out slowly from her mansion in Miami Beach. She glanced over her shoulder, saying a mental good-bye to her house. "Oh there's the paparazzi," Carlotta said with a grin. "Should we tell them where you're going?"
"Tell them I'm going to Spain, or Brazil. I want to be able to make friends with people because I'm me, not because I'm your daughter, mom."
The car rolled to a stop in front of the gate as their security pushed back the cameras and reporters. "Carlotta! Where is Rin going to college?"
"Overseas," her mother said, dignified with the window down.
"Which country?"
"Now why would I answer that?"
"Is it true you're filming in Canada this year?"
"We leave in a few days. Stop by Monday morning for pictures and a full interview," she rolled the window up waving, "trolls."
"Mom!"
"They are," she laughed, reaching back and holding her daughter's hand. The airport was only ten minutes away when Rin's mother spoke, "Do you have your passport ready?"
Rin picked up her bag and pulled out the little blue book. "Right here mom," she waved it a bit and put it away again. They pulled up to the curb of Miami National Airport for the departures for Air Tokyo. She put her mini bag on her back as she got out of the car. Rin's father pulled out the very large suitcase that was in the backseat. Luckily there was a cart that they could put all of her stuff on. Once her things were on the cart she turned to face her parents. She gave them the biggest hug and kiss she could before she checked in for her flight. "I'm going to miss you both so much. I'll let you know when I make it safely to Japan," she cried against her mother's shoulder.
"Be safe Rin and enjoy your stay overseas. Keep us updated on school and please, think about seeing a doctor for the panic attacks? Hopefully you'll make lots of friends there," her mother said.
"Carlotta, we agreed she would make her own choices about that. Take care my little girl and stay safe. Take lots of pictures," her father said.
"I will. I love you both and I'll be fine, mom. I haven't had as many panic attacks recently," Rin said, smiling their way. She gave her parents one last big hug goodbye and then made her way inside. It wasn't very crowded at the check in line. It wasn't entirely true. She had panic attacks but she didn't want to worry her parents. She would be fine and she was starting over. She would do whatever she had to convince herself of that.
They tagged and labeled her belongings, sending them down the conveyor-belt to the plane that she would soon be boarding. Rin proceeded over to the TSA and took out her passport, identification card and boarding pass. The TSA area was almost empty. Rin didn't even have to wait more than five minutes before she was given the go ahead to her gate. She took her time to get there and bought a huge bottle of water and some snacks for the long flight ahead of her. She finally made it to the gate and saw a small group of people in the seating area. She took a seat next to the big glass window.
After waiting for about thirty minutes they began the boarding process. Rin made her way to the middle of the line. She was antsy and a slight knot formed in her stomach as she waited to board. When it was her turn to board the lady at the counter informed her, "it looks like you have a window seat this time in first class. Enjoy your trip."
"Thank you."
She found her place very close to the cockpit and slumped into her seat and buckled herself in. An hour passed and the plane taxied out to the runway. It waited on the tarmac for twenty minutes before it pulled out at breakneck speed, zooming into the air towards Tokyo. After a few hours Rin shut the window curtain, closed her eyes and fell asleep quickly.
Hours Later:
The plane finally pulled up to the gate of the terminal in Tokyo's airport. They dropped the bridge and opened the door to allow everyone off. Rin picked up her bag of snacks and whatever else she had with her. She then made her way off the bridge, headed inside the airport, used the restroom, and went to find baggage claim. It was an adventure making her way from the terminal, following the signs, riding a train, and finally making it to baggage claim. Everything had to spin like a carousel a few times before she managed to grab all her belongings and place them on a cart.
After getting that done, she finally made her way outside. She needed to find a taxi, since she told her parents no limo pick-ups. She did the New York thing, held her hand out, and a yellow taxi pulled up to the curb. The driver popped the trunk and got out. He came over and helped Rin load her belongings in the trunk. She had to put her suitcase in the backseat with her. Once everything was in the car, Rin got in the backseat.
"Konnichiwa, and welcome to Tokyo. Where to miss?" He asked.
"Konnichiwa. Shikon no Tama Academy please," Rin said. She gazed eagerly at the map directing the taxi driver to her destination. It said the school was thirty minutes away. She relaxed back into the seat and buckled up, taking out her phone and texting her parents in their family group chat. Rin let them know she made it safely to Japan and that she was on her way to school. She hit send and put her phone away.
She gazed out the window. "The city is so beautiful," she thought, excited to begin her new journey. She was really hoping to make new friends while she attended school here. She was a shy girl these days and took a while to warm up to new people. She feared making a fool of herself on her first day. She tried to rally her self-confidence and remember that she would be fine. The thirty minute drive went by fast. The driver pulled up to the curb for drop offs at the school.
Once the car was put into park the driver gave Rin the total. "That will be 10,450 yen," he said. Rin took out her wallet. She paid the fare with her credit card leaving a generous tip and exited the taxi. She reached back in the cab to grab her large suitcase and put it on the curb. She helped the driver to take out her boxes.
Thankfully someone came over with a cart and dropped it off. Rin smiled at the person as a thank you. The driver and Rin loaded everything onto the cart.
"Thank you," she said to him.
"You're welcome, miss. Enjoy your time here," he said.
She smiled at him and pulled out her school map. She needed to find Building F1, where the freshman dorms were housed. Thankfully they sent a map of the school. Rin didn't have to worry about getting lost. Somehow she had managed to be driven right near where her dorm would be. She couldn't wait to see it and she had a funny feeling that someone was watching her. Just as she found the door, the wind blew, sending her hair into a frenzy.
Sesshomaru was heading out of the graduate dormitories when the wind picked up, blowing his hair sideways. He stopped in his tracks when he caught the scent of Japanese cherry blossoms. It was strange, because it was late in the year for them to be blooming. The scent was fresh and made his tongue moisten. His heart fluttered in his chest as if pulsing in time with someone else's. "What is this strange feeling that I'm having? Does this mean my mate is finally here?" He remembered his father telling him that he would feel a twitching feeling in his heart when he picked up his mate's scent. He decided to follow it. The fatuous scent was emanating from the freshman dorms. He was satisfied. Eighteen was old enough for him.
He was nearing the building when he saw the slender form of the woman that was causing the palpitations in his heart. She was just an ordinary human girl. He was immediately repulsed. He would not mate with a human, not by a long-shot. He hated them, he was meant to reproduce with a pure-blooded youkai like himself. He wrote off the sensation as his mind playing tricks on him. He turned on his heels and headed away from the building. Sesshomaru needed to meet up with his father and younger half-breed brother.
She had missed the automatic doors when she first tried to enter. She was grateful someone pointed them out to her as she walked inside the lobby. It was beautiful inside. There were ancient artifacts in the lobby, demons and humans studying together. She liked the vibe. She headed for the elevator to get to her room.
Once Rin made it onto the third floor, she searched for dorm room number 333. She found it quickly. The door was slightly ajar. She pushed on the door and walked inside. She found her roommate making her bed. The girl had raven dark hair pulled back in a tight bun. She glanced at Rin as she entered the room.
"Oh, konnichiwa. I was wondering when my roommate would show. My name is Koharu. May I ask your name?" Koharu had brown eyes and freckles in the middle of her face. She could tell Koharu was going to be very sweet.
"Konnichiwa, my name is Rin." She hoped they would get along great, just like sisters.
"Here let me help you unload the cart."
"Thank you. Let's get my suitcase first. It's heavier," Rin suggested. With Koharu's help it only took a few seconds to take it off the cart.
"Did you just come from the airport?" She wondered, looking at the tags hanging from the suitcase. They both put all of Rin's boxes next to the bed.
"Yes I did. I flew in from Florida," Rin announced.
"Really? That's awesome. So what are you majoring in?" Koharu asked, curiously.
"I'm studying creative writing. It's my passion. What about you?" Rin asked in return.
"I'm going for a teaching degree. I want to be an elementary school teacher," she announced.
"That's awesome." Rin put the cart out in the hallway and walked back in the room.
"So is this your first time in Japan?" Koharu asked.
"No actually. I visited back when I was seven I believe. So it's been about eleven years. I don't remember much about that trip," Rin explained to her roommate.
"Oh that's neat. I hope you enjoy your stay here."
"Thank you s...a...m...e here," Rin yawned, getting very sleepy. "Uh, jet lag is kicking in," she explained, rubbing her eyes.
"You should try to get some rest Rin. I'm going to go meet up with my boyfriend and my other friends. I'll introduce you to all of them later. Is that okay?" Koharu asked as she headed for the door.
"Sure that would be great, Koharu." First day here and Rin was already being treated with kindness.
Rin unpacked her bedding and made the bed. She closed the curtain to make the room darker. She took off her shoes, got into bed and went to sleep pretty quickly.
Some time later
She was sleeping well, when she heard her phone ringing. She sat up fast, pulled her phone out of her bag to check the collar ID, and it was her mother.
"Hey mom," she said groggily.
"Hi sweetheart. Did I wake you?" Carlotta asked.
"Yes, but it's okay, mom. How are you?" Rin asked as she sat up and looked at the alarm clock. It was three in the afternoon. It would be two in the morning back home in Florida.
"I'm doing great. I wanted to make sure you made it to school safely." Her mother was so caring, waking up so early just to call her daughter.
"Aww mom. I did make it safely. I met my roommate. She's very sweet. Her name is Koharu. I'm going to go meet up with her here before too long. She wants to introduce me to a few of her friends."
"That's wonderful, sweetie. I hope you'll be able to make friends soon. I'm going to go back to sleep and I'll message you after another few hours. I love you baby," Her mother said.
"I love you too," Rin slightly cried. She didn't want her mother to worry. She choked back the lump in her throat to keep her mother from hearing it. As soon as they ended the call, she hung her head into her knees, and sobbed. She sat there for a while thinking about her mother, already homesick. It was to be expected, being in a new place where she didn't know anyone, but even that rationalization didn't make the loneliness bearable. She let herself have a good cry, soaking the knees of her pants until she felt the tightness in her chest release. She forced herself up after a while wiping her puffy cheeks. She headed inside the bathroom to freshen up.
Rin turned on the light and looked in the mirror. She looked like crap. A comb wouldn't fix this mess. She needed a shower to wash off the wear and tear of travel, so she got into her bag of bath supplies and pulled out bath essentials. She was in love with Japanese Cherry Blossom bath wash from Bath and Body-Works. She lathered herself up and cleaned the mess she was before getting dried off and stared at the burn on her back. It started right where the hair on her neck grew and ended in the middle of her back. The scar was a dusty rose color. She would never forget the day she got it.
Rin and her family were driving home from dinner. They were several miles from home when a dragon that was being chased by humans hit her family's car. The impact caused the car to spin out of control and roll across the highway. It slammed into an oncoming semi-truck. Her birth parents died on impact. Her two older brothers died shortly after they were brought to the hospital. That night Rin became an orphan. She had no other living family members. After spending two weeks in the hospital, she was placed with a really wonderful foster family. Five years after her family's death she was adopted.
Thinking about all that was bringing tears to her eyes. She splashed some cold water on her face. With the towel wrapped around her, she went back out into the room. She pulled out her female attire and some denim shorts with a light purple floral tank top and went back into the bathroom to change. She put her hair in a high tight ponytail. She went back into the room to put some socks on and her white ankle sneakers.
She walked down the hallway, for the stairs, deciding to get some exercise in as she did. Once Rin got to the main floor she walked out into the lobby. The room was so serene. Humans and demons were chatting and getting along with each other. It brought a smile to her face.
She was feeling hungry now, so she headed out to find the dining hall. She found a glass sign that had a map on it and found that the dining hall was in the west building. After she ate, she was going to explore the campus more.
She couldn't stop smiling. She was really happy to see everyone getting along. Back home no one got along. She was teased from grade school to twelfth grade for trying to befriend everyone. Mostly demons. Everyone called her the weird rich girl. She didn't mind being called weird, it fit her personality. She planned on writing a story about a woman that would fall in love with a demon and hoped it would be a bestseller. Rin found the dining hall without a problem.
She was getting ready to walk inside when she heard her roommate Koharu. "Rin!" she called out.
Rin turned to see her and a boy coming her way. "Hey Koharu. I was hoping I would run into you," she said.
"Same here. I was getting ready to head to our dorm. I wanted to see if you were hungry. Then I saw you walking towards the dining hall. Oh! I would like you to meet my boyfriend, Kohaku. Kohaku, this is Rin," she announced.
The boy named Kohaku held out his hand. Rin did the same. "Pleasure to meet you Rin. Koharu told me you're from the states," he said.
"It's nice to meet you, Kohaku. Yes I am. I flew in from Florida this morning, or yesterday. With the time difference I'm not sure, Haha." All three of them walked inside.
"Did you get enough rest?" Koharu asked.
"I did. Thank you for asking." The three of them made it into the line to get a late lunch.
"So what part of Florida are you from Rin?" Kohaku asked.
"I'm from Miami." Rin hoped they didn't ask why she was kind of pale. Unlike the other rich girls back home, she spent her time reading instead of sunbathing on the beach.
"Sweet." They finally made it to the counter. "After we get our food, we're going to meet up with my sister Sango and her friends. Hope you don't mind. Everyone from the group is pretty awesome."
"Sure, that sounds great." Rin was excited. She had only been in Tokyo a few hours and was already making friends. She couldn't stop smiling. She knew she would fit in well there. When they all got up to the counter she had many options, out of all of them she chose, a plate of chicken stir fry, asian salad, some white rice, plus a huge cup of tea. Afterwards all three of them paid for their meals and headed back outside. "Where are we meeting everyone?" she asked.
"We're meeting everyone at a huge picnic pavilion. Our group is a mix of humans and demons." Koharu explained.
"I can't wait to meet everyone," Rin said out loud. After a few minutes of walking they made it to the pavilion. There were six other people at the table. Three were human and the other three were demons. There were three boys and three girls. One was a half-demon Rin could tell. He had fluffy ears on top of his silver head.
Out of the whole group, a girl with a long ponytail spoke first. "Hey Kohaku, Koharu. Did you both get settled in? Oh who's this?" she asked.
"I'm almost unpacked. This is my roommate Rin," Koharu said. "She's having lunch with us."
"It's a pleasure to meet you, Rin. My name is Sango. Come sit with us. We're talking about walking around the city afterward. But let me introduce you to everyone." She pointed to a boy with several red handprints on his face, "this is my boyfriend Miroku." Miroku didn't say anything. He just waved. Sango then pointed to the others going down the line. "Then we have Kagome and her boyfriend Inuyasha. And this here is Ayame and her boyfriend Koga," she announced. The last two were full wolf demons.
Rin smiled at all of them. "Nice to meet you all," she said. They all took their seats on the opposite side of the group.
"So Rin, how come we've never seen you around before? Are you from another part of Japan?" Kagome asked, wondering.
"No. I'm actually from Florida. I just flew in this morning," Rin announced.
"What made you decide to come to school all the way across the country?" she asked.
"I wanted to go somewhere different. So when I looked online for schools overseas, this one stood out. After I applied to the school, I got my acceptance letter a few months later."
"Aren't your friends and family going to miss you being so far away?" The girl named Sango asked.
"My family does miss me. But I'm not the best at making friends. I'm usually a bit shy," Rin addressed.
"You're more than welcome to join our group if you like, Rin. We can show you all the best places to go shopping at," Sango said.
"Sure join the loser group," a boy that was medium height came up to Rin and grabbed her wrist. He pressed it against his chest, "fresh meat. You're American aren't you?"
"Get your hand off me," she ripped her hand out of his.
"Back off Takahiro," Inuyasha rose off the table and was joined by Koga and Miroku.
"Why? Maybe she wants to go out with me."
"No," Rin tried to walk away but was grabbed by the arm.
"Come on baby?"
Her heart started beating faster, her chest tightened. Not now, was all she could think of. The familiar rise of panic was beating into her senses. She grabbed the arm that was holding her, dug her shoulder into Takahiro's side, and threw him over her shoulder rolling on top of him then standing up. He landed with a thwack holding his head. "I said get off me!" she yelled at him as she stood in a ready position.
"Holy shit!" Kohaku yelled, covering his mouth. "What are you a ninja?"
Rin bolted from the group running as fast as her feet could take her. She had seen a dragon farm on the map on campus and the one she had gotten in the mail. She headed for it, running until her body started to feel calm, and fingers stopped shaking. She had hoped to leave men like that behind, men with no respect for anyone, men who thought they could manhandle her.
She ran until her legs were sore and she made it to the farm. She was surprised to see so many dragons there. The fields were very open and the dragons weren't fenced in. When she walked by some of them, they allowed her to pet them. They were so friendly. Most of them all had one head. After petting almost all the dragons and her heart calming down, she reached the very back where she saw a two headed dragon in the middle of the pathway. This dragon had green scales and a black main. They lifted their heads as Rin watched them and walked towards her. Rin remained still not knowing what might happen. When they came to stand in front of her, she held her breath. She allowed them to sniff her body. One of them nudged their head in her hand while she petted the other head. He seemed to enjoy it. Then the dragon on the left wanted to be petted. So Rin lifted her left hand and petted them both. They were so friendly. They must love human attention.
"Funny, they don't tend to like being around humans," a male voice explained.
The sudden interruption to her calm had her swinging a right hook at the figure standing behind her.
He caught her by the wrist before it connected with his nose and she gazed on at him mortified.
She held her chest panting out of fear that it was the same boy that had bothered her earlier, "sorry I thought you were someone else."
The silver haired demon released her hand. He had a crescent moon on his forehead and two stripes on both sides of his cheeks and almost looked like Inuyasha, but without the fluffy ears. "Who is this guy?" Was all she could think of.
Don't forget to follow for more updates and remember to leave a review.
Thank you, elohiniar for being an amazing beta and co-author. Guys, please go check out her stories. They are amazing. Make sure to have a box of tissues with you.