At first Rin was sure things would go back to exactly the way they were years earlier. Sesshomaru would take the lead on where they were going, Jaken would talk more than he should have and get beaten by Sesshomaru for it, and Rin would take care of A and Un. Things seemed to slide right back into place, almost as if many years hadn't passed after all.
She thought she was enjoying her old role among the group. It wasn't until one specific night that the dynamics shifted between them, and she knew it couldn't go back to the way it was. One dark and cloudy night, they walked together through a pitch-black forest after the sun had set. Even darker storm clouds quickly rolled in. They stumbled across a clearing through the trees as the scent of rain fast approached.
"What lies ahead, my lord?" Jaken asked.
Sesshomaru didn't answer of course. Instead, he marched on through the clearing as if it meant nothing.
From what Rin could tell through the darkness, it was a human village. Despite the fact that the sun had disappeared for the night, there were no fires burning to keep light or warmth. No murmurs in the air of people talking within their homes, or animals grazing in the nearby fields. There were no signs of life anywhere around.
"How strange," Rin observed, "no one's here." She looked closer at the buildings in the darkness and saw they had been abandoned some time ago.
"It's as if the entire village vanished overnight," Jaken said, glancing around anxiously.
Rin asked, "Sesshomaru, do you know what happened here?"
"No," he answered quickly, "it's been too long. There's no scent in the air indicating anything."
Something's wrong, Rin thought nervously, it almost feels like he lied. No, that can't be it...can it? Would Sesshomaru lie to me? It didn't sit right with her.
"Jaken," he said, "take A-Un to feed in these fields. We're stopping for the night."
"Aye milord," he replied, taking A-Un by his reigns and walking away.
Sesshomaru kept walking through the abandoned village until they were met with a mansion on the far side of town. He walked up the steps with ease, not even bothering to slow down. Rin hesitated. "Should we really go inside? I know no one is here, but this used to be someone's home."
"It's for one night," he answered, opening the doorway, "we'll leave in the morning."
Just one night can't hurt anything, she thought, nodding at him. Besides, it wasn't like someone was going to show up out of nowhere and tell them to leave. No one was around!
Inside the mansion, most of the belongings were mostly untouched. There was even bedding still laid out in the main bedroom. Rin couldn't believe the number of beautiful kosodes she found to use as blankets to stave away the cold.
Just as they were getting settled in for the night, the sky opened up with monsoon level rains. The wind howled and the sky twisted from rain to hail. The storm rippled across the roof of the mansion.
"It's so powerful," Rin said anxiously, "do you think the roof will hold?"
Sesshomaru nodded calmly.
"Do you think Master Jaken and A and Un are okay?" she asked. She wondered where he took the two headed dragon and if they were safe and out of the storm.
"A-Un can sense storms," he said, "Jaken will find cover somewhere."
As the night dragged on and the storm continued, Rin ended up falling asleep to the sound of the pounding rain and wind against the old mansion's wooden structure.
The next time she opened her eyes, the sun was out and shining through the rice paper walls harshly. But that was hardly what surprised her. She set her eyes on something she never thought she would see-Sesshomaru lying beside her fast asleep. She couldn't believe it her eyes.
He's asleep? She thought, astonished at him, I don't think I've ever seen him sleep on purpose. Only when he's injured does he ever relax. Is he okay? She stopped herself. Of course he was okay. What could have happened in the middle of the night in an abandoned mansion?
What surprised her even more was that Sesshomaru's armor was off, both the chest piece and the metal that usually wrapped around his shoulder was set off to the side. His kosode was only loosely tied in the front instead of in it's usual perfect bow. He laid on his right side on top of his fluff, facing her, eyes closed, and fully relaxed.
Without his armor on he seems so...soft, she thought, admiring what she could see of his body.
Her curiosity was peaked. She had never been so close to him for so long before, never mind having seen any of his skin outside of when he regenerated his left arm. This was her chance to see what he really looked like under all the silk and armor he always wore.
Rin carefully moved toward his neck and pulled down the back of his haori and undergarment to reveal his back. His spine flowed down in a gentle curve and muscles rippled out of it so smooth and perfectly.
She could feel her face turning redder. I didn't know someone's back could have so many muscles, she thought, and they're so well defined. She couldn't help herself and reached out to caress the middle of his spine towards his side. His skin was so warm and soft to the touch.
As she gently pulled away, she glanced at his face and saw his eyes were wide open.
"You're awake!" she gasped, nearly falling over backwards, "I'm sorry, I didn't know!" Was he pretending to be asleep this whole time? She wondered to herself.
Instead of being startled or angry, Sesshomaru asked calmly, "Do you like what you see, Rin?"
She nodded, almost wanting to admit out loud that her curiously was not satisfied by only seeing his back. She wanted to see more.
Almost as if he could hear her thoughts, he said, "The front is a better view, do you want to see?"
"Yes." No hesitation.
Sesshomaru opened his robe and Rin took a long glance all the way down his exposed flesh. Her face turned bright red as she turned around and then took off her own kosode, first revealing her own back as she moved her hair away to show him. Then she turned around and revealed her naked body, something she had never done before, not even as a child.
Sesshomaru also took a long look, and almost admitted out loud he was curious to see what a human woman looked like.
He extended his arm, welcoming Rin to come closer. She curled up under him and they pulled the covers back on themselves.
Nothing physically happened between them that morning, but it was clear their dynamic had shifted and they weren't ever going to go back to the way things were before. Their moment didn't last long. They eventually redressed and went outside to see the village in daylight.
In the sunlight it was easier to see that the village was clearly abandoned, and had been for at least a few months. The roofs on the homes were showing their age, and weeds had grown up in the walkways and had overground the river in the distance. It made Rin wonder what happened to everyone as she remembered how it felt for Sesshomaru to lie to her the night before.
"Lord Sesshomaru!" Jaken called out from behind him, "I finally found you! I had to take A-Un into one of these abandoned houses last night once that storm really kicked up. And where did you two stay last night?"
"We stayed in the mansion," he answered, starting to walk down the path once again.
As Rin took A-Un's reigns, she asked, "Sesshomaru, did you lie last night when you said you didn't know what happened here?"
To her surprise he stopped walking and turned ever so slightly to face her. "Do you truly want to know where these people went, Rin?" He didn't look at her, only at the scenery surrounding them.
"Yes," she insisted.
"They were eaten by wolves," he answered, turning away from her, "a different band of demons than the ones that destroyed your original human village." He carried on walking down the path.
He can tell all that happened even though it's been a few months? Rin asked herself, making sure to match his pace.
Jaken on the otherhand was more confused than ever. "If you knew that all along, then why didn't you say anything last night?" he asked.
"There was no need," he answered coldly.
Jaken looked at him and then back at Rin, and then looked up at Sesshomaru's back once again. He had no idea what happened between them, but even he could sense something shifted.
It wasn't long before things moved quickly between the two of them. Rin wanted to get married, understanding the fact that being a regular mortal would mean she would die in several decades if she was lucky, while Sesshomaru would continue living on for centuries if he were lucky. She wanted to leave him something permanently behind to make sure he would remember her forever and knew baring him at least one child would do it. Sesshomaru agreed and decided to marry her.
Not long after that, Sesshomaru felt two separate energies growing within her and knew she was going to have fraternal twins. Rin wanted to give birth in Kaede's village surrounded by the humans she knew well, Kagome and Sango.
Months later, the full moon shined across the night landscape of the small town of Edo. Inside Kaede's hut, Rin's contractions grew closer and closer together. Sango and Kagome had come and sat beside her to help her along.
Even from a great distance away, Sesshomaru could sense the energies shifting and could almost smell Rin's pain. He stopped what he was doing and turned to fly toward Kaede's village.
"Where are we going, my lord?" Jaken asked, holding on to his fluff for dear life as they flew through the air.
Sesshomaru didn't answer. Instead, he focused on landing on a grassy plain hill just outside of Kaede's hut. Just as he did, the moonlight from behind him slowly began to disappear. He turned and saw a full lunar eclipse forming. A lunar eclipse, he thought, just like during the night Father died.
It wasn't long before a baby girl was born with white hair, little white puppy ears, and a crescent waning moon on her forehead exactly like her father's. After only a short break, much shorter than Rin would have liked, the second twin was born. She also had white hair and puppy ears, only her crescent moon was waxing instead of waning, the exact opposite of her father's.
"What interesting demon markings," Sango said, marveling at the twins she just finishing wrapping up, "I wonder if the fact that her crescent moon is the opposite of Sesshomaru's means anything."
Rin replied, "I have no idea."
"You did an excellent job, Rin," Kaede said, "both girls are healthy and strong."
Rin said, "They're beautiful. Towa and Setsuna, my eternal moment with Sesshomaru." She kept them in her arms as she laid down to relax after such an ordeal.
Meanwhile, outside of the hut, Jaken said, "My lord, it appears they're fraternal twins just as you've suspected all along." He looked up at Sesshomaru, whose face remained unchanged. "You must be very pleased!"
Sesshomaru turned away and took to the skies in great haste. Jaken had to hold on tight to the sudden shift and change in direction. They flew a short distance away and Sesshomaru landed gracefully at the edge of a cliff while Jaken flopped face first and unceremoniously onto the ground.
"Having a wife," a woman's voice said from the forest behind them, "becoming a father. What happy and joyous occasions, wouldn't you agree, Lord Sesshomaru?" A woman clad in a black off the shoulder kimono and white hair styled in an intracat Chinese bun appeared out of the shadows as the lunar eclipse ended.
"And who might you be?!" Jaken demanded.
Sesshomaru snapped at the woman, "Don't pretend to care, Zero. Why are you here?"
She replied more calmly than he would have liked, "You remember my name, how thoughtful of you. Do you believe in prophecies, Sesshomaru?"
"Watch your tonge!" Jaken shouted, "You better add 'lord' to my master's name when addressing him!"
Sesshomaru ignored his antics as usual and said, "Unlike you and your precious brother, I don't fear what will or will not be."
"You should," Zero huffed and continued, "long before the shikon jewel was wished out of existence, it gave us the prophecy that a descendent of the great dog demon will kill Kirinmaru. Unfortunately for us, it didn't specify which one." She gave him an evil smile and added, "I'm sure Kirinmaru will be pleased when I wake him up and give him the exciting development that you've had your own litter...more descendents that could cause his demise."
Sesshomaru pulled out bakuseiga and cut through her like the paper shinigami she left behind. He didn't use an ounce of his energy. Jaken gasped, "She was just a puppet?!"
As he put his sword away, he explained, "Jaken, that woman was the one who cursed me many centuries ago."
"She's the one who put the happiness curse on you?" he asked, "That means she was mocking you this entire time! I should have burned her on the spot!" He raised his staff as if it would do something now that she was gone.
Vile woman, Sesshomaru thought as he took to the skies so quickly he almost left Jaken behind.
As much as he didn't want to react to Zero's threats, he knew she and her brother Kirinmaru weren't to be trifled with. It wouldn't be long before Rin and his newborn daughters would be directly in the line of fire of whatever they were scheming. If Zero was telling the truth, "a descendent" could be anyone. Him, his own daughters, Inuyasha, or the unborn child Kagome was still carrying. This was going to be a problem.
Sesshomaru fetched A-Un and landed him outside of Kaede's hut. He entered without knocking and saw Rin embracing the newborn twins. He looked around the room to see Sango, Kagome, and Kaede on standby.
"Sesshomaru," Kagome said cheerfully, "all three of them are in perfect health."
"Rin," he said, without addressing anyone else, "can you stand?"
She nodded. She instantly knew by his tone that this wasn't the time or place to ask what was wrong. Things were serious. She turned placed the girls down as she rose to her feet.
"Where are ye taking her, fool?" Kaede demanded hastily, "She shouldn't be moving around yet!"
"Rin, you need to stay!" Sango warned.
Sesshomaru picked up the girls and promptly left. Rin said, "Don't worry everyone, I'll be alright." She waved goodbye as she followed Sesshomaru and was surprised to see A-Un outside waiting for her.
Rin didn't pay attention as they flew through the air, her on the back of A-Un and Sesshomaru taking the lead with their daughters in one arm. She was still so exhausted from giving birth she didn't bother to look ahead. Sesshomaru on the other hand flew to the far side of the mountains in the distance.
A giant demon woman appeared beside them, the demon Joka, and commanded, "I come in the name of Zero! Give me those pups!"
So it had already begun.
Sesshomaru cut off her arms with his whip as they revealed rainbow pearls, silver and gold.
"My rainbow pearls!" Joka shouted, "Give those back to me!"
"These are Zero's tears," Sesshomaru observed.
He made sure Rin was protected as he flew out and found the perfect spot in the middle of a dense forest. It had a river nearby and had a mountain to mostly obsure it's view from others. He landed under the tallest tree around and turned to see Rin and A-Un were right behind him. Rin stumbled over to the tree and sat under it, still so tired. Sesshomaru handed her the newborns and took off once again, this time leaving Jaken behind.
"Master Jaken," Rin said, "I don't understand. What's going on?"
Jaken aimed the staff of two heads and shouted, "Jaken, Jaken! Create a barrier of my will and make your presence known!" He instantly created a barrier around the entire forest and part of the nearby river.
"Why did you create a barrier?" Rin asked, leaning against the tree.
He explained, "R-Madam Rin-you must have heard of Sesshomaru's father, the great dog demon of the west?" She nodded. "Well there is also the great kirin demon of the east, Kirinmaru. From what I've heard, the great dog demon and the great kirin demon would have battles over who would rule over all the land, but being evenly matched they decided to split the country by east and west."
Rin said, exasperated and still exhausted having just given birth to two babies, "Master Jaken, none of that has to do with what's happening right now."
"Right," he said frantically, "I'll get to the point! Apparently, long before the shikon jewel disappeared, it gave Kirinmaru a prophecy stating that a descendent of the great dog demon is going to kill him."
Rin gasped, "So they're targeting my children! But they're babies! They can't kill an all powerful demon!" She hugged them closer to her.
"He's targeting Lord Sesshomaru," Jaken said, "Kirinmaru's older sister Zero is even more brash and will kill everyone in her way just to get what she wants." He remembered when Sesshomaru was like that as well but decided against mentioning that.
Rin looked up at the night sky and remembered how just before she officially left Kaede's home, she had warned her that being by Sesshomaru's side would mean she would be put in danger. Rin was aware, but she still wasn't prepared for anything as drastic as this.
Four Years Later
Rin made a life for herself and her daughters in the forest with the barrier surrounding it. She didn't mind. She had grown up foraging for herself long before she joined Sesshomaru as a little girl. This time she wasn't alone. While Sesshomaru would leave every once in a while with Jaken to make sure Zero and Kirinmaru stayed off his trail, he still spent time in the forest and would often return with human food or kimonos for all of them to wear or fabric for Rin to make her own kosodes. Even A-Un enjoyed his time in leisure.
One evening as the sun set, Rin finished washing up the last of the silk and hung it out to dry. Just as she was pouring out the water from the wash bucket, a strange scratchiness grew in her throat. She turned and saw smoke billowing into the air in the distance, making it hard for her to breathe. A forest fire seemed to be fast approaching.
"Towa?" she called, "Setsuna?" Usually they played together nearby, especially when Sesshomaru wasn't within the barrier, but she didn't hear them screeching and playing like usual. They weren't returning her calls.
"Towa! Setsuna!" Rin ran into the forest away from the river and into the trees. The flames were closer than she realized, but her daughters were nowhere to be found. She ran around and continued to call out to them. The heat was beginning to overwhelm her, never mind the smoke choking her out. Where had they gone in such a short amount of time? She could have sworn they were playing right behind her!
Over and over again she called out to them. The smoke was growing thicker. She couldn't breathe! Her limbs grew too heavy to move as her lungs burned. She fell to the ground as the flames drew nearer. No, she thought, I have to find them!
Meanwhile, in Kaede's village, just as Inuyasha was entering his home behind Kagome, the clouds in the sunset shifted suddenly to a dark purple and red. A demon with a massive amount of demonic aura flew above them. Inuyasha demanded, "And just who are you?" Kagome stepped back outside to see what the commotion was all about.
Sesshomaru sensed the energies in the air changing and quickly flew to meet Kirinmaru.
Meanwhile, Kagome readied her bow, anticipating something bad was about to go down. "Go on now," she said, "tell us your name and state your business!"
As Kirinmaru slowly lowered himself to the ground, Sesshomaru appeared in a ball of light between them. "Finally," Kirinmaru said, looking him over carefully, "after all this time you've come out of hiding, Sesshomaru."
"Kirinmaru," he said coldly, "No one is hiding from you. As far as you should be concerned, you have been asleep for so long, Inuyasha does not know who you are. That should tell you that you have no business being here."
Inuyasha asked, "Sesshomaru, you know him?" He stepped out to the side to observe them both.
He didn't answer. Instead Kirinmaru said, "Your little half-brother's ignorance is no matter. I heard the great dog demon had a second son, and here he stands before me, a half breed."
Inuyasha growled and readied the tetseiga. "Being half demon is more than enough to send you to your grave!" Is this another bastard from my old man's time? he asked himself.
Kirinmaru gasped. "You have the dog general's favorite sword?" He glanced at Sesshomaru, "And all this time my subordinates claimed to have trouble finding you, Sesshomaru. They told me you've been wandering the countryside whining and pining for your dead father's dear sword for over 200 years now. You actually wasted two centuries searching for a fang. Even for us demons, that's a long time to waste, and it appears it was all done in vain after all." He paused, hoping to get a rise out of Sesshomaru but he gave him nothing. "And here I witness the second son possesses the tetsiega. I see you weren't strong enough to wield So'unga either, Sesshomaru."
"I disposed of So'unga myself," Sesshomaru said, "and if you're so worried about my dead father's fang, you can take it from Inuyasha and see up close once again how formidable it is."
"I don't seek the fang," Kirinmaru said quickly, "and I know a half demon could never furfil the prophecy."
Inuyasha growled and said, "I don't know anything about some prophecy, but if you really don't care about me, then why the hell are you here?"
"Killing a descendent for good measure is nothing to me," he replied, drawing his own sword.
Just as Sesshomaru was wondering what to do with Kirinmaru now that they were face to face for the first time in centuries, Jaken stepped forward.
"Lord Sesshomaru!" Jaken exclaimed, "There's a bunch of smoke coming from that direction! It looks as though the trees are on fire!" He pointed toward the direction of the forest where Rin and his daughters were hiding. A red glow was coming from the distance as the trees burned.
"Your hiding place isn't so well hidden anymore," Kirinmaru taunted.
Enraged, Sesshomaru flew to him and in a single swipe of his sword, cut off Kirinmaru's other horn. Then flew off toward the forest while Jaken called out to him. There was no time to turn back. He searched for Rin's scent among the growing flames, hoping to find her with the girls.
Left behind, Inuyasha said, "What's the matter, Kirinmaru, aren't you going after him for revenge or whatever the hell you were here for?"
Kirinmaru held his broken horn in pain and said, "Don't bark at me, half dog! My purpose here is done. Damn him and his sword." He flew into the air and disappeared into the clouds.
Meanwhile, Sesshomaru found Rin almost completely surrounded by fire, on her hands and knees, struggling to breathe as the smoke consumed her. "Towa! Setsuna!" her voice hoarse from yelling. He swooped in quickly and pulled her to her feet by her wrists. Instead of relief, she stared deep into his eyes and asked, "Where are the girls?"
"I don't know," he confessed.
"No! Don't save me first!" she demanded, attemping to pull away from him but he was too strong. "Save our daughters!" She turned away in a coughing fit.
"Don't fight me!" he said, coming the closest he had ever been to raising his voice at her. He pulled her in closer and said, "I'll find them." She looked him in the eye once again. "I'll find them," he repeated. His eyes bore into her soul in the way only his could. It was a promise. She collapsed into a coughing fit again.
Sesshomaru swept her off her feet and quickly flew her away from the encrowding fire. He gently put her down, but she fell to her hands and knees once again. "I'm fine!" she insisted, "Go! Find them! Hurry!" She cleared out her lungs and felt the fresh air quell the burning as he disappeared back to the flames.
"Well, well, well," a woman's voice said as she appeared before her, "what do we have here? A mortal who has stolen the heart of a demon. Where have I heard that one before?"
Rin looked up and struggled to her feet once again. "Who are you?" she asked. The woman before her wore an intracit style Chinese bun and a black kimono tied in the front, off the shoulders.
"My name is Zero," she said, still walking towards her, "should I kill you right here and now and give Sesshomaru the worst misery he could ever have in his nightmares?" She paused, raising her staff. "No, that would be too quick and easy. I should prolong his suffering."
This is Zero? Rin thought, The woman who cursed Sesshomaru when he was little so he can no longer express happiness. She asked, "What are you planning?" This is too convenient-did she start this fire?
Zero threw a silver scale at her neck and proclaimed, "The silver scale curse will make sure Sesshomaru sees you rot away in agony and ugliness."
"Bakuseiga-!" Sesshomaru shouted as he flew down from behind Rin.
"Do you wish for this woman to die?!" Zero asked.
Sesshomaru landed beside Rin, a crying and wiggly Setsuna in his arms. So he found Setsuna, but where was Towa? Rin didn't have time to ask any questions. Jaken demanded, "Zero, what did you do to Lady Rin!?"
She explained, "I've tied a red string of fate to this woman, kill me and she dies too. Although, if she is dead the silver scale curse will no longer spread across her entire body. It's your choice, Sesshomaru."
"Rin has nothing to do with Kirinmaru's prophecy you fear so much," Sesshomaru said, "Why are you here, Zero?"
"I'm here of my own fruition," she confessed, "it has nothing to do with my brother and his fate. Although, I will be sad to see him go if he doesn't kill you first. Seeing your misery first hand, Sesshomaru, is enough for me." She smiled as she disappeared into the night.
Damn that wretched woman, Sesshomaru thought.
Rin turned to Setsuna and held her in her arms, "My Setsuna!" she exclaimed, "I'm so glad you're okay! Where's Towa?"
Setsuna finally opened her tear filled eyes, "We were running away!" She sobbed. "I let go of her hand and a big tree on fire fell between us!" She took in a shakey breath. "And then she was gone! I couldn't find her! I'm sorry, Mother! She's gone!" She sobbed.
Rin hugged her close and said, "Sesshomaru, she's...?" She couldn't bring herself to say it.
"I can't track her scent," he admitted, "she has no scent of death. It's as if she's vanished." He paused as he saw the silver scale on Rin's neck pulse.
Her face suddenly flushed red as she got lightheaded. Sesshomaru caught her before she could hit the ground. "I'm okay," she lied.
Setsuna wiggled free from her grip and looked up at her face. "Mother, what's wrong?"
Jaken said, "Her condition is already getting worse! We can't stay here! Lord Sesshomaru, I have an idea."
Sesshomaru listened to his plan, the idea of putting Rin inside the sacred tree to keep her safe from Zero while also stopping the spread of the curse wasn't a bad idea. He collected Rin and Setsuna up as Jaken grabbed onto his fur. He flew everyone over to the tree quickly.
As he landed just outside of it's trunk, Rin opened her eyes and looked up at him. "Sesshomaru," she said, "promise me something."
"What is it?"
"Whenever you finally managed to cut the string and break this curse," she said, "spare Zero."
Sesshomaru was so shocked he could hardly breathe. "You want I, Sesshomaru, to give that woman mercy after everything she's done to us?" he asked, nearly choking on his own disbelief.
"No, don't misunderstand me," Rin said with conviction, "I want to kill her myself."
So she hasn't lost her mind, Sesshomaru thought. "Very well then," he said, "I promise you'll get your chance, no matter how long it takes." He looked up at the sacred tree and secretly hoped it would be sooner rather than later.
The trunk of the tree welcomed them, as if it knew this would happen and it wanted Rin to reside in it. Once inside, they saw a spiritual version of the tree encased in blue and white energy. Sesshomaru held onto Setsuna in one arm, and released Rin with the other and the energy engulfed her. She floated inside the spiritual tree and her flushed face disappeared, but the silver scale remained.
Jaken said, "Rin appears to be safe for now, My Lord."
"I feel better," she said anxiously, "but what about our daughters? Zero will still be after them."
For the past four years Rin had done most of the child rearing with their twins. Sesshomaru was almost always off, making sure Kirinmaru and Zero stayed off their trail among other things. This didn't bother Rin, especially since she knew as half demons their girls would spend the majority of their lives with Sesshomaru, but now she was out of commission and the girls had a much stronger bond with her than their own father. Zero was still going to be a problem, nevermind the fact that they had no idea where Towa was.
Jaken asked, "Lord Sesshomaru, what will you do with Setsuna?" She continued to cry behind them.
If she stays with me she'll only be put in more danger than she can handle, Sesshomaru thought.
Rin said, "Have her stay with Kohaku. He'll teach her to be strong." There were times Sesshomaru wondered if she could hear his thoughts, or if maybe he said things out loud he didn't intend to.
Just as Sesshomaru turned to take Setsuna away, she screamed at the top of her lungs. "No! We have to find Towa!" She kicked and fought against being carried and surprisingly he struggled to hold onto her despite his overpowering strength against hers.
Setsuna turned and bit him on his left wrist. Then, the little aura she had grew out of her in an attempt to intimidate him. She only had puppy teeth, not enough to break his skin, and of course her aura had no effect.
She growled at him. He took his pointer finger and thumb and pushed her jaw where it hinged, forcing her mouth open and off of his wrist. He managed to grab her arm again and attempted to hold her.
"No! No! No!" she screeched, "I have to find Towa!"
"Setsuna please," Rin said as calmly as she could, "don't fight your father." It hurt her to listen to her daughter crying, and it hurt her even more to know her other daughter was still missing.
Jaken said, "She'll never go with you, Lord Sesshomaru, not as long as she remembers Towa. The dream butterfly can give her memories to someone else and put the other person in an eternal sleep. If we give her memories to her mother, they'll stay safe, and the silver scale curse should stay competely dormant."
"The dream butterfly," Sesshomaru repeated. He couldn't help but feel as though he had heard of it before, but he couldn't remember from where.
"I can fetch it for you," Jaken said, "I'll take A-Un. I know he was in the forest as it caught on fire but he can't be far."
It didn't take long for Jaken to return with a dream butterfly chrysalis. Although Setsuna had finally stopped crying, she hadn't stopped screaming. "I want Towa!" she shouted, "I'm going to find Towa! Let me go!" She attempted to fight against Sesshomaru holding her but it was no use.
When Jaken put the chrysalis on her neck, she went limp and closed her eyes. Sesshomaru, with Jaken, left the sacred tree and took flight. From the air he saw there was nothing left from the forest fire. The few possessions they did own were burnt up.
Sesshomaru flew to the new demon slayer village Kohaku and Sango had just finished putting together by then. Sesshomaru placed Setsuna on the ground outside of Kohaku's home. He decided to leave her something to remember him by, knowing he wouldn't be able to visit too often without Zero figuring out where she was. He took the end of his fur and cut through the last few inches. Yes it hurt, since it was part of his body, but he had felt worse pain before. He then tucked it into the back of Setsuna's obi, imbuing it with his energy to offer some protection.
Just as he turned to leave, Setsuna opened her eyes and watched him fly up into the night sky. "Father?" she asked anxiously as he left her there alone.
"Lord Sesshomaru?" A man's voice called into the night. As Kohaku left his home he could have sworn he felt Sesshomaru's aura, but he wasn't there. Instead a little girl with white hair, dog ears, and a waxing crescent moon on her forehead sat outside his doorway. Her eyes were tear stained.
Kohaku bent down to her level and asked softly, "Oh hello there, who are you?"
"My name is Setsuna," she sniffed.
"Setsuna?" he asked, looking around, "You must be one of Sesshomaru's daughters, but where's Towa?" Sango had told him what happened the night Rin gave birth to half demon twins years earlier, so he knew the girl's names, but that was all.
She asked, "Who's Towa?"
Kohaku gasped. Clearly something happened to this little girl. He decided he would take her in, all the while wondering what happened to her, her sister, and the rest of her family.
Sesshomaru on the other hand immediately began his search for Towa. However, as soon as he passed over the village where Inuyasha lived, he saw a familiar sight that sidetracked him. Zero was standing outside of Inuyasha's humble hut, while Inuyasha stood with his sword drawn, and Kagome was ready with an arrow not far behind him.
Sesshomaru quickly swooped in between them and cut Zero down. The paper shinigami puppet she left behind fell apart before their eyes. "Are you so dense, Inuyasha, that you still cannot tell the difference between a real demon and a mere puppet?" he asked.
"But her scent was real," Inuyasha said, shocked.
Kagome said, "If she's not out here, then where is she?" They turned to the hut to see a woman's silloette through the window.
Sesshomaru made it inside first, Inuyasha right behind him. With the tetseiga out and over his head, Sesshomaru held Inuyasha back by the wrists from behind so strongly he couldn't move.
"Let go of my daughter!" Inuyasha demanded, trying to break free from Sesshomaru's grip.
Zero stood across from him holding a 4-year-old Moroha. She cried in her arms. "Go ahead and try to kill me, Inuyasha," she taunted, "I'm sure Sesshomaru would be so thrilled for you prove yourself so grandly."
"Do not kill her," Sesshomaru commanded.
Inuyasha shouted, "Get off of me and let me at her!"
Sesshomaru pulsed his poison through Inuyasha's wrists, causing his skin to melt and burn. He screamed in pain while Sesshomaru hopped it would make him drop the sword, but he refused.
An arrow flew through the window, just narrowly missing Zero's shoulder. "A sacred arrow?" she asked, dodging the strike, "Well now, you're full of surprises."
"Release Moroha now or the next one goes to your head!" Kagome shouted from outside. "NOW!"
Moroha finally stopped crying and used her own spiritual powers through her hands into Zero's arms. Zero screamed and dropped her hard. "You brat!" she shouted, "Even you have spiritual powers?" She glared at the little girl, who was now happy and toddling back to her father. "I see I've underestimated the lot of you." She blasted a hole in the roof and launched herself into the sky. "Until next time, we'll be in touch, Sesshomaru."
Sesshomaru finally let Inuyasha go. He turned and pointed tetseiga up through the hole she created in the roof and yelled, "Wind scar!"
The entire building disintigrated and blew up under the force of the blast, revealing the night sky as Zero got away unharmed.
"What a waste of energy," Sesshomaru said, looking up at her disappearing, and then back at Inuyasha.
"Inuyasha! Sit!" Kagome said, watching him bash his face into the rubble, "You didn't have to blow the house to pieces! Look at this mess! It's going to take us forever to rebuild!" She gestured to the pile of sticks and stones that used to be their home.
Sesshomaru said harshly, "Listen to me, little brother, you will not be the one to kill Zero. Do you understand? I will not tell you again."
Inuyasha jumped to his feet and said, "If she pulls another stunt like that again there's no way in hell I'm sparing her. Why shouldn't I kill her? If you want to murder her yourself so badly, then why don't you go chasing after her right now?"
"She has tied her life to Rin's," he answered, "kill her, and Rin dies as well."
"Rin?" Kagome asked, liting up at hearing her name, "Is she okay? Where is she?" She looked around, hoping she was nearby like Jaken was, but she didn't see her anywhere.
"She is safe," Sesshomaru added, "but she won't be if you kill Zero."
Kagome thought, The last time he looked that serious he was about to kill Totosai for not commissioning him a sword. But still, how are we supposed to promise we won't kill a demon? Especially if she goes after Moroha like that again! We can't!
Inuyasha asked, "Where is Rin, anyway? Can we at least see her?"
"No."
"Sesshomaru, I know this Kirinmaru guy is after you about some dumb prophecy," Inuyasha said calmly, "and I know his older sister Zero wants to make you miserable-why I don't know. And now you're telling me that if I kill Zero, Rin dies too. Now I'm telling you that if she goes after Moroha like that again there's no way in hell I won't kill her. What the hell is going on here?!"
Jaken walked inbetween them and said, "Let me explain, Inuyasha. Kirinmaru fought your father as his equal long ago. Before Kagome made the shikon jewel disappear, he learned of a prophecy that states he will die at the hands of the great dog demon's descendent. Although it didn't allud to which one, he personally doesn't believe a half demon can carry it out."
Kagome said, "But all of that has to do with Kirinmaru. Why is Zero after us? Do think she's just trying to protect her brother?"
Sesshomaru answered, "She has her own vendetta against me. It would be wise not to get in her way."
"That's all you're going to tell me?" Inuyasha asked, "She was about to kill my daughter-who is your niece by the way-and that's it? Knowing you, Sesshomaru, you must have done something to her at some point and now she's taking her revenge out on me and my family!"
Jaken shouted, "Watch your tonge and mind your business!"
Sesshomaru said, "You're wrong, Inuyasha. I've done nothing to that woman."
"I don't want Rin to die," Inuyasha replied seriously, "but I don't want my daughter to die either."
Sesshomaru glanced at Moroha. She played in the rubble that used to be her home, unaware of the growing tension in the adults around her. He asked, "So you will kill Zero if you get the chance?"
"If I have to," Inuyasha said, staring him down.
Sesshomaru narrowed his eyes. "Then you leave me no choice," he said, "just know this is your own doing, Inuyasha." He stepped forward so quickly Inuyasha couldn't react, then he gouged his finger in Inuyasha's eye to grab the new black pearl and ripped it out.
Inuyasha screamed in pain as he fell backwards. Kagome was so horrified she didn't know what to do. "Inuyasha!"
"Sesshomaru, you asshole!" Inuyasha yelled, covering his now bleeding eye.
"Jaken," Sesshomaru commanded, "the staff! Quickly."
Jaken ran up to him and handed it over. With it, Sesshomaru opened a portal and with his light whip he grapped both Inuyasha and Kagome and forced them into it. He swiftly closed it back up behind them.
Sesshomaru turned to see Moroha still playing in the rubble. She hadn't noticed the commotion at all. But he knew it was only a matter of time before she wondered where her parents were. Should I put her inside the pearl as well? he thought. No. Then she'll grow up weak and always need Inuyasha to save her. That is no way for a part demon like her to be raised.
"What about the girl, my lord?" Jaken asked, remembering when Rin first joined them. Surely he wasn't going to have her follow them around, right?
Sesshomaru looked through the rubble and saw some parchment was originally laid out, ready to use, and an extra bow with a set of arrows. He knew Kagome took hers with her into portal, so this must have been one she was going to give Moroha. He grabbed the calligraphy brush, put it in the ink, and wrote out a note.
Moroha is alone.
He then touched the bow ever so slightly. Kagome's purifying spirit powers wouldn't incinerate him like it would a lesser demon, but it still hurt to touch if she had laced her bow and arrows with her power. Nothing. He wasn't zapped as he grabbed the bow. He tied the parchment to an arrow and knew exactly what to do.
As he stood up he looked around, suddenly Moroha was nowhere to be seen. "Jaken," he said hastily.
"I don't know where she went!" he said, panicking, "Where did she go!? She was right here beside us a moment ago!" She ran around in circles and looked across the field of rubble.
Her scent is right here, Sesshomaru thought, she's still nearby.
"Fluffy!" Moroha shouted with glee behind him.
Sesshomaru looked down at the end of his fur and saw she was holding on tight and petting him like an animal. No wonder her scent was nearby, she had grabbed onto him! He pulled his fluff away from her, plopping her unceremoniously onto the ground, and said, "Stay."
He then took the bow and arrow and flew away, leaving her behind with Jaken. He flew all the way to outside of the demon slayer village, then shot the arrow into the doorframe of Sango's house. She ducked as it struck. "What was that?" she asked, turning to see no one nearby.
Instead of sticking around, Sesshomaru turned to head back to where Inuyasha lived only to be faced with an ugly ogre of a demon. He stood taller than Sesshomaru, and only wore a loin cloth. His dark blue skin made him harder to see in darkness of the night.
"Sesshomaru!" he spat, "I'm strong enough now to take my revenge on you!"
"Revenge?" he asked, not recognizing the hideous creature in front of him.
"You've forgotten?" he said, "You killed my brother in cold blood!" As he shouted at him, Sesshomaru saw a glimmer in one of his eyes. He didn't want to believe it, but it appeared to be yet another rainbow pearl from Zero's tears.
He asked, "What's in your eye?"
The deman answered, "Your doom!" He jumped up to strike.
Sesshomaru decapitated him with his whip and watched his blood splatter in all directions. He ripped the dead demon's eye out and grabbed the red rainbow pearl. He smiled down at it in contempt. This was almost too perfect.
He flew back to Inuyasha's destroyed hut to see Jaken being attacked with hugs from Moroha.
"Get off of me, child!" Jaken demanded, "I am a proud demon! Get away!" He tried to pry himself away from her but it was no use.
Sesshomaru landed beside them and Moroha squealed, "Fluffy you came back!" He saw she was holding a little clamshell in her fist as she pushed Jaken away. He could have sworn it had human scent on it, and it wasn't just Kagome's he was picking up.
"What's in your hand?" he asked.
"Grandma's rouge," she answered proudly, "Daddy says it was hers, but she died a long time ago."
That was originally Izayoi's? Sesshomaru thought. This was getting more than too perfect. He kneeled down to her level and took out the red rainbow pearl. "You can have this," he said, taking the clamshell from her, "keep it in here."
Moroha asked, "What is that?"
"A rainbow pearl," he answered, "it'll make you stronger." He handled the rouge back to her and then stood back up.
She asked, "Where is Mommy and Daddy?" She looked around and for the first time since Sesshomaru made them disappear, realized they were no longer nearby.
Jaken asked, "Lord Sesshomaru, are you really going to leave her here alone?" It had been a while since he had witnessed Sesshomaru's cruel streak and wondered if he was back at it again.
Sesshomaru said nothing as he took off to the skies. Jaken quickly jumped onto his fluff.
"Mommy?!" Moroha cried in a panic, "Daddy?!"
Sesshomaru and Jaken flew away and began their quest to find Towa.
Meanwhile, in the demon slayer village, Sango grabbed the arrow that nearly shot her in the head out of the doorframe. She took the note off and said, "Miroku, we have to get to Inuyasha's house quickly!"
"Why?" he asked, "What's the matter?"
"This arrow just landed at our door claiming Moroha is all alone," she said, "we need to hurry!"
He understood and together they quickly jumped onto Kirara and raced over to Kaede's village. When they got there, Inuyasha's house laid in ruins. Moroha sat in the middle of it all, crying. "Moroha!" Miroku called out.
"Inuyasha?!" Sango yelled in the distance, "Kagome?! Where are you?"
Seeing them, Moroha perked up and managed to wipe her eyes. "Uncle Miroku! Aunty Sango!"
They jumped off Kirara and surveyed the carnage. "Are you alright?" Sango asked, picking Moroha up, "You don't seem to be injured. What happened here?"
"Mean white haired lady came and grabbed me," she explained, huffing and catching her breath, "and then Mommy shot her with an arrow and she let me go. And then Fluffy was here and the house went BOOM! Fluffy went away and when he came back he gave me this." She opened her rouge to show them the red pearl.
Miroku said, "Whoa, that's a rainbow pearl! Those are so rare! But where are your parents?"
"I don't know," she whined.
Sango asked, "Who's Fluffy?"
Moroha answered, still sniffling, "He's tall and has white hair and a big long fluffy fur going all the way down his back!"
Miroku said, "That sounds like Sesshomaru, but what was he doing here? His motives are always so convoluted. I wish he wasn't so complicated to understand."
"We know he was here, but who was the white-haired woman?" Sango asked, "And we still don't know where Inuyasha or Kagome went. Moroha, you really didn't see what happened to them?" She shook her head.
"We'll ask the villagers if they saw anything," Miroku said, "And if worse comes to worse, we'll take Moroha home with us."
Sango asked, "You think maybe Sesshomaru left us this note?"
"I don't know who else it could have been," Miroku said as they walked toward the village, "but if it was him, since when did he become to thoughtful? This whole senaro worries me."
In the end, the villagers had only heard some explosions and had no idea what happened. Miroku and Sango took Moroha home with them, and learned of Kohaku taking in Setsuna earlier the same day.