InuYasha Fan Fiction ❯ Absolution ❯ In The Time of Great Sorrow ( Chapter 2 )

Sesshoumaru, the great inu youkai, shuddered in the chill night air.

He recalled nothing after Naraku had knocked him, senseless, into the river. He supposed he had floated downstream to the nearest village, whose inhabitants had taken pity on a lone, broken spirit of the forest. When he was able to gain his senses again, he was on a very comfortable palate in a very dark hut. His swords, no doubt taken by Naraku, were not by his side. The only light in the small space was a tiny candle that flickered violently when he sat up.

He growled in pain, confused by the bloody bandage on his left shoulder. He slowly recalled the human attachment being torn off, just before Rin had… No. He didn't want to think about it. He didn't want to think about the human girl who had obviously loved him, and who, whether he liked to admit it or not, he had loved in his own way as well. Now she was gone, ripped into pitiful pieces by a lowly, power hungry, self-righteous hanyou.

I will show him the meaning of power, he thought with grim determination.

In the darkness of the abandoned hut, Sesshoumaru, Lord of the Western Lands, plotted to take his revenge on Naraku.

~~~~~~~~Present Time (Feudal Era)~~~~~~~~

"Damn him to a fiery death!" yelled Inuyasha. He paced back and forth beside the campfire, Sango and Kagome eyeing him warily.

"That bastard… I will kill him and I will enjoy it…" he continued to growl. Kagome sucked in a sharp breath as Sango cleaned her neck wound. Inuyasha tensed for a second at the sound of her pain, but continued pacing and muttering.

Miroku sighed and poked the campfire with a long stick. He, as well as the other members of the shard-hunting party, was quite disturbed and disquieted by the news that Sesshoumaru had been able to take Tetsusaiga from Inuyasha. His eyes darted from the flames to the angry hanyou beside him. "This behavior will do nothing for us, Inuyasha, and nothing can be done while Kagome-sama is being tended to." Inuyasha whirled on the houshi and bared his teeth.

"I'm not trying to do something about the situation, monk. I'm trying to relieve some of my tension by yelling… or do you want me to cut you to pieces instead?" he barked, and Miroku shrank back, shaking his head. "That's what I thought," Inuyasha sniffed, and returned to his fevered pacing.

"All done," chirped Sango. Kagome touched her freshly bandaged cut, and winced. "The poison is strong, and it may be tender for a while. Just try not to aggravate it," Sango said, noticing her pained expression. Kagome only nodded in response.

Seeing that his okaa-san was well again, Shippou came bounding out from his hiding spot behind Miroku. "Kagome! Are you all right now?" he asked as he leapt onto Kagome's lap. She laughed and hugged him to her. "I'm fine, Shippou. Sesshoumaru just scared Inuyasha and I, that's all…" she trailed, and then whispered, "but don't bother him. He's very angry right now." Shippou thought it best to obey his okaa-san, and he curled himself up on her lap, content to watch Inuyasha for the time being.

No one in the little group noticed a shadow watching them from downwind. But Sesshoumaru knew what needed to be done to defeat Naraku… and now he needed this band of fools and his brother.

*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*

Rin… oh, my little one. I could not express my love for you in life, and only your death has brought upon this change of my heart. Why was I so cold to you? I could not accept the fact that I, a Great Lord, could care for a human like you. I would not make my father's mistake of harboring affections for those I considered beneath me. I was such a fool…

From the moment you came into my life I knew things would change. I did not know you would warm my heart so, my child, but you did. And once I let you in, you were snatched away from me, and I could not save your body. But I will save your memory, Rin. I will strike down your murderer with all the fury I possess, and I will avenge your passing.

But I will not be able to do it on my own. I know it even as I know my hatred of Inuyasha must be pushed aside. For even though he is as worthless as any human, he knows what it is to have loved and lost. He avenges his dead priestess as I shall avenge you, my dearest one, and it will take all the strength of the Inuyoukai. For you, my Rin, my child…I go to annihilate my enemy and strike him from this earth…

Sesshoumaru clicked his claws together as he contemplated his feelings for the human child, and the changes she had exacted in his being. Yes, she had changed him, however gradually. He knew what it was to care, and also what it was to care about nothing at all. He preferred caring, truthfully. Caring about something gave one a purpose in life, a motive for one's actions. And caring was leading him directly into the path of his despised brother.

He sighed and dropped from the tree in which he'd been watching the hanyou's frantic pacing. He noticed the tiny kitsune in the miko Kagome's lap, and was reminded of times when Rin would fall asleep on his shoulder as he carried her through the woods of his Western lands. Forcefully he shook the image from his mind, determined to concentrate only on the task at hand.

With Tetsusaiga clasped firmly in his cloth-covered right hand, he strode into the circle of firelight. Kagome was the fist to notice the youkai, and she stiffened, clutching Shippou tighter to her chest. This stirred the sleeping kitsune, and he awoke to find the great demon lord only a few feet from his okaa-san.

"Help, Inuyasha! It's Sesshoumaru! You stay away from my Kagome!" he hissed, and bared his tiny fangs as he crouched into a defensive position.

Inuyasha was in front of Kagome in a second flat. "You bastard, how dare you show your face around here again! You must want to die," he growled, white ears flat against his head.

"Actually, brother, I want nothing of the sort. I have come here for different reasons than the death of anyone in this circle," Sesshoumaru said, seemingly unaffected by Inuyasha's threat. Drawing Tetsusaiga in front of him, he looked at each member of Inuyasha's group. Sango, Miroku, Kagome, Shippou, Inuyasha… even Kirara got a glance before he spoke once more. "I have come here in the hopes that you will join me in my quest to kill the murderous villain, Naraku."

Luckily Sesshoumaru had not expected a hasty reply, for he would have been sorely disappointed. All he received in return for his request was a group-full of shocked stares, and Miroku fell off the log upon which he sat. He sighed. This was going to be just as difficult as he'd imagined.

~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~

A few hours later Sesshoumaru had re-told the events of that fateful afternoon, with Tetsusaiga at Toukijin's place on his hip. His head ached terribly as the horrid memories burst from his lips. It was such a loathsome burden on his heart, and sharing his grief with these humans and his brother did little to lighten his load.

When he looked up, both the women and kitsune were crying, and the monk Miroku looked stricken. Inuyasha could only stare into the ground as he felt the pain of his brother's loss. That was when Inuyasha made his decision.

"Sesshoumaru, we'll help you, if only to defeat Naraku. But… I'm- I'm sorry for your loss, for Jaken and… Rin," he said. He knew how much his brother cared for the human girl, though he figured Sesshoumaru would never admit it to him.

The demon Lord nodded in acceptance of his brother's words. "It… pained me… to come here and ask you for this favor. Though, now I think you may understand that I will do anything… anything, to avenge Rin's death." Sesshoumaru closed his eyes against the prickling sensation there, tilting his face into the moonlight. He had never cried; he would not start now.

Kagome had listened to his story, transfixed and horrified at the same time. Much as the demon before her must have been as Naraku stole his two most faithful companions from him on that warm summer day. She briefly wondered if comforting Inuyasha's elder brother was a foolish idea, but she took a deep breath, stood, and walked over to Sesshoumaru, crouching in front of his feet. She looked into his face, noting the lines that creased his brow as he tried to stifle the emotions raging through him. "Oh Sesshoumaru, I'm so sorry," she whispered, placing a tentative hand on his upturned palm.

His eyes opened, and the miko was in front of him, her hand on his. He looked into the warm, chocolate depths of her eyes, and was taken aback at the compassion and concern he saw there. Suddenly, all attempts to fight his pain seemed very futile, and his eyes closed once again, but this time in resignation. Sesshoumaru, the great stoic, let one single tear fall for the first time in his long life.