Bound by Privilege

This story is not for profit. It is purely fanfiction. I don't claim any ownership of the manga or anime Inuyasha, the original story, or the characters created by Rumiko Takahashi.

Chapter 5

Sesshoumaru was becoming aware of the sound of an engine and motion. Trying to open his eyes was more difficult than he anticipated. The momentary success only left him with a blur of movement. The voices that he heard were talking among each other but the conversation was too muffled to understand who was talking. Any attempt to further discern the situation was taking too much energy that he didn't have. Rin nervously tapped her fingers against the steering wheel, waiting for the light to change, and switched her blinker from the left turn she was about to make. Changing her direction, Rin retorted as Jaken let off a protest again.

"My Lady, where are we going?! The hospital is to the left."

"You're just going to have to try to wake him up again."

"What?!"

"Jaken, just shut up and keep trying."

Jaken sighed as they'd hit another bump in the road throwing him to the driver's side floor in the back. He wasn't sure why Rin hadn't listened to him to leave Sesshoumaru at the trails or take him to the hospital. He looked out of the window again and was relieved that no one was following them.

Jaken picked up the small cane he used to maneuver through the crowds and prevent him from being stepped on.

"Wake up you Rogue!"

"Jaken, don't you dare! I swear if you hit him with that cane I will beat you to a pulp with it myself when I get out of this car! Put it down!"

Jaken found Rin's glare from the rearview mirror and he sheepishly placed the cane down before attempting to wake Sesshoumaru again. Rin frowned at Jaken's attempts with mumblings about squirrels, cats, and bacon.

"You're awful at this!"

"I've never attempted to wake an unconscious dog demon before. What am I supposed to do?"

"Try his name."

"Oh, yeah. What was it?"

"Sesshoumaru."

...

Sesshoumaru's eyes felt heavy as he forced them open. His surroundings were unfamiliar. Light flooded into the room beyond multiple pairs of sheer white curtains onto a dark hardwood floor. Letting his eyes adjust to the light he could now see beyond the open curtains to a view of the city skyline. The windows encompassed nearly three-quarters of the room. Just in front of him, he could see a chaise where his bag and some clothes were laid out. He shifted under the cover, the soreness in his left shoulder now reminding him of what took place before his memory faded in and out landing him here. Sesshoumaru's fingers fell against the bandaging surprising him at the thought that he could not remember how this was done much less where all the blood had gone. There wasn't a trace of it from head to toe. He was even able to run his fingers through his hair freely. He let his body adjust to his movements as he sat up breathing in the scent of fresh hydrangeas on the nightstand. Crossing the room he slipped on the jeans. They were new, not the old ones he'd been wearing. He assumed they'd been too blood-stained to save. Like the jeans, the shirt was new too. It was a light blue and a blend of expensive materials that he couldn't name. If the room hadn't said it, the clothes did. There was money where he'd landed and his heart felt like it was sinking. He hadn't been in every room of Takemaru's condo but he suddenly felt as if he was in danger.

Seshoumaru stuck his feet in the boots and grabbed his bag from the chaise before hurrying to the room door. He listened for any movement or talking. Whatever was on the other side was quiet but the demons never made much noise anyway. Sesshoumaru cracked the door to look out. The room wasn't the one that he'd expected but it was still pristine. The expansive living room was accented with white and silver. An empty glass rested on a coffee table but the room was otherwise untouched. He cracked the door further, chancing a better view of the room. The fireplace mantle was adorned with glass music notes for its decor. The pops of color around the room were from art pieces framed and strategically placed to draw the eyes. Opening the door fully, Sesshoumaru realized that he wasn't in Takemaru's home. His sense of smell was telling him otherwise too. Still, he felt anxious to leave. He adjusted the bag over his shoulder and eyed the bowl of fruit sitting on the marble island leading past the kitchen to the front door. The only area he was skeptical of was the hallway just to the left of the front door. He was pretty sure it led to other rooms in the condo. Sesshoumaru kept his steps quiet but casual as he made his way to the bowl, grabbing some of the fruit and placing it in his bag. He'd stopped to listen again for any movement. A collage of pictures on the wall caught his eye. It looked like most typical human family pictures. One of them boasted a little girl with a side ponytail in an orange dress sitting between who he assumed were her parents. They seemed happy. Another picture of the same girl was standing on a stage singing with a microphone in her hand, a few of the others just seemed to be happy moments of them on vacations or playing some game or another. Sesshoumaru closed his eyes for a moment remembering his parents as flashes of them sped through his mind. There were some happy moments but they always seemed to be overshadowed by his father having to leave at Takemaru's side for another fight. He and his mother would be left behind only for her to remove a box from under the bed in their room and begin scrambling at the count of money. His mother would always begin this ritual with a kiss on his forehead and ask him to close his eyes and make her a promise to never tell a soul no matter what.

"Ah! You're awake!"

Sesshoumaru immediately turned to see a little green demon walk into the room.

"Who...?"

"Well, who'd you think would be here, other than my Lady of course."

"Where am I?"

"You mean to tell me you don't remember? My Lady Rin saved you and brought you to her home."

Sesshoumaru quickly scanned his memory and bits and pieces of running from Takemaru's demons were fading in and out. It was too hard to figure out much beyond that. It almost felt like Rin was a part of some kind of dream.

"What city are we in?"

"Syla City, Uptown. Why?" "Hey! Wait!"

"Tell Rin thanks for her help, but I can't stay here."

Jaken immediately felt panic as Sesshoumaru left the condo and put his feet into motion.

"My Lady said I needed to make sure you didn't leave before she returned. You can't just walk away."

"There's no way I can stay in this city. You're a demon. You should know that better than anyone."

"I am Jaken. A well-known assistant to Lady Rin and I am respected for that. Don't underestimate my position. Hey! I'm talking to you!"

"Don't follow me."

"But I must, Lady Rin said..."

Sesshoumaru scanned the corridor before quickly making his way to the elevator only to turn away from it and head toward the stairwell exit faster than Jaken's short legs could take him.

"Stop you Rogue! It would take forever to get down 25 flights of steps...!"

Jaken stopped mid-sentence, his mouth dropping open, watching Sesshoumaru look over the railing before jumping it. While it was believable that Sesshoumaru would be fine using his demonic energy to lower him down to the bottom, Jaken shook his head at the young demon's willingness to use his powers so freely.

Sesshoumaru reached the bottom, somewhat glad to be rid of Jaken. Trying the back exit, the door was locked. Flipping the latch would cause the alarm to go off and immediately send everyone into the stairwell. He hesitated but entered the lobby noticing a few of the residents entering and leaving. It was all that he could do to try to blend in. The lobby was quiet and pristine, and it was evident that he was clearly out of place. He'd wondered how Rin and Jaken managed to get him through this area without being noticed. A doorman and security guard was standing next to the front door who were now clearly eyeing him and the security guard was now making his way toward him. Turning away or running would certainly make him look suspicious.

"I don't remember seeing you come in. You live here?"

"No."

"So what are you doing here?"

"Visiting."

"Who were you visiting?"

"Rin."

"Oh, you're a liar for sure. She didn't come through here at any time with company and I saw her leave this morning. So are you going to tell me why you're really here?"

"That's the truth."

"Where's your registration?"

"...I forgot it."

"Huh, we'll see about that."

Sesshoumaru noticed the security guard motion to the doorman to call the police. He tried to remain calm but he started to shift nervously as Takemaru's words surfaced. Sure, he could evade this security guard, and outmaneuver him to the door but then he would surely have a bounty on his head for having displayed an overuse of power to evade security and there were cameras everywhere. Sesshoumaru tried to think of the next best option.

"It's okay Aharu. He's with me."

Sesshoumaru watched Rin approach as she pushed the sunglasses to the top of her head. She seemed calm and almost unbothered by the situation at hand.

"Are you sure? He didn't check in and he doesn't have registration on him."

"I assure you it's fine. We took my private entrance yesterday."

"Yes, ma'am. Understood. Call me if you need anything."

"Thanks."

Sesshoumaru was shocked at how quickly this security guard had dropped the issue, turning away from Rin and himself as she'd nodded to him.

"You might want to come with me."

Rin and Sesshoumaru were met with Jaken as they made their way to the elevator.

"My Lady!"

Sesshoumaru noticed Rin shoot a glare at the little demon.

"Where were you?! I told you to stay with Sesshoumaru."

"But I..."

"I don't want to hear the excuses Jaken."

"It's not his fault. I didn't necessarily want him following me around."

"In this city, everyone knows Jaken is my assistant so nobody questions him. You wouldn't have been stopped if he was with you."

"..."

Sesshoumaru took a mental note as Jaken crossed his arms over his chest and tapped his foot quickly, looking as if he was ready to scold him.

"I told you I wasn't a nobody!"

Sesshoumaru watched Rin try not to roll her eyes as she handed Jaken the bag she'd been holding. The savory aroma alerted him to the fact that it was food. Pride would never allow him to ask but his stomach had other ideas after several days without food and a fight that depleted him. Sesshoumaru looked off trying to ignore the low cries of an empty stomach, but Rin seemed to already be well aware.

"You've got to be hungry. I didn't know what you'd like to eat so I just ordered a few different things."

A/N: My continued thanks for the reviews. I'm going to continue to try to update weekly.