InuYasha Fan Fiction ❯ Captive Soul ❯ chapter 31 ( Chapter 31 )

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Discla imer: I do not own Inuyasha or any of it's characters

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Chapter 31: Meetings

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Rin went in search of Sesshomaru after Kagome had walked out the door with Inuyasha.

She found him standing in the middle of the cobblestone patio gazing off into the field beyond the borders of the garden.

He did not look at her when she approached but his words, deep and soft with an edge of irritation, carried on the wind. "Has he left?"

Rin walked up to Sesshomaru and took his hand. "He is talking with Kagome in the driveway right now." She bit her bottom lip. "Sess....did you.....talk to him?"

His gaze remained locked to the distant tree line far beyond the field. For several minutes he did not answer.

With an almost imperceptible nod he responded, the hint of irritation fading into a wistful tone. "Yes, we spoke."

The sunlight wavered in his golden irises, shimmering slightly. "My father is still in this world."

"Your father?"

"Yes, he...... resides in our homeland."

Rin moved to stand before him and looked up into his unreadable features. "Sess?"

The light in his amber eyes softened as his gaze fell to rest on her. "Yes, Rin."

She smiled. "Come on, let's go inside."

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Kagome walked back into Rin's house after waving goodbye to Inuyasha.

Rin and Sesshomaru were sitting on the couch. They stood as she stepped into the living room.

She smiled at her sister. "Are you ready to go get your car now?"

Rin nodded. "Yea."

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Kagome drove to the hotel parking lot and pulled her car alongside Rin's. She looked behind her to the backseat before Rin and Sesshomaru got out of the car. "Rin, Momma has ordered a large dinner from a very fancy restaurant. She wants you and Sesshomaru to come over to the house to eat dinner this evening."

Rin smiled halfheartedly and turned to Sesshomaru. "I did promise Momma we would come eat tonight. Do you mind going to Kagome's house for dinner?"

Sesshomaru shook his head once. "I do not mind."

"Rin, you can follow me to the house." Kagome said.

"Okay, Kagome."

Sesshomaru got out the car with his weapons in hand. Rin followed.

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Rin parked her car behind Kagome's in the driveway.

After taking the keys out of the ignition, she sat back and looked to Sesshomaru who was silently staring at Kagome's house.

Rin smiled faintly. "Ready to face my parents again?"

The dog demon gave a small nod. "Yes."

She reached for his hand, taking it lightly. "Worried?"

He blinked from his inward daze. "A little."

"It will be okay, Sess. My parents are kinda open-minded."

"Will they accept me as I am?"

A frown pulled at her smile. "Honestly, I do not know, but I believe they will."

"You speak the truth, Rin. I am ready."

Rin opened her door and got out of the car. She waited until Sesshomaru had retrieved his weapons from the back seat. He held them both in one hand while walking with her to her sister's house.

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When they entered through the front door, her mother snatched Rin up in a tight hug. "My baby!"

Rin hugged her mother back. "Hey, Momma."

Rianna stepped back quickly, looking her up and down. "I didn't hurt you, did I? Are you okay? You don't have any sore places or anything, do you?"

While shaking her head, Rin replied, "No Momma, I am fine. Not even a bruise."

The older woman smiled at Rin and him warmly. "I am so happy you two decided to come have dinner tonight."

Kagome came down the stairs and walked up to them. "Mom, where is Dad? It's five fifteen. Aren't we going to eat at six?"

"He went out to get some ice and some drinks. He will be back in about forty five minutes," Rianna replied.

Rin's mother smiled up at him. "Now, let's sit down and have a nice little chat."

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Sesshomaru glanced at the three women sitting around him. He felt very out of place with all the female banter.

Many times he answered politely throughout the conversation.

The front door opened just as Rianna began asking some very personal questions.

He thanked heaven that it was Kagome's father. Maybe he would save him from this female horde.

William walked into the living room and smiled with a raised eyebrow. "I see all the women in this house have cornered the only male and made him sit through their incessant chatting torture."

Rianna and Kagome stood up with a humph and took the packages from his hands. Rin's mother grinned slyly. "William, you better be nice or you are going to be the one cornered."

The dark haired male backed up a little. "Somebody save me."

Rin jumped up and hugged her father. "I'll save ya, Daddy."

He laughed. "Thanks, Pumpkin."

Kagome and Rianna carried the ice and drinks into the dining room.

William followed with a short glance to them. "I don't know about you two, but I am starved."

Rin reached down, grasping his hand with her warm one. "Come on, Sess, I want to see what Mom and Dad have ordered."

She pulled him into the dining room and to a couple of chairs at the side of the table.

William and Rianna were already seated in the two chairs on the other side.

Sesshomaru sat next to Rin.

Everyone began filling their plates.

Halfway through the meal's conversation, William addressed him, "Sesshomaru, I was informed last night by Kouga that you are indeed royalty."

Sesshomaru inwardly started at the comment. "Yes, this is true."

A loud clatter hit the air. Rin had dropped her fork on her plate.

He glanced at Rin who was now staring at him in shock with her mouth slightly open.

Rin's father smiled with curiosity. "Tell me, Rin, truthfully, how was it you actually came to know Sesshomaru?"

Rin slowly moved her stare of shock from him to her father. "I...."

Sesshomaru readied himself for the conflict he knew was sure to come, William's disapproval of him and his current status along with a very possible rejection of his and Rin's relationship.

His future mate blinked out of her daze. "Daddy....I.."

She turned back to him, locking her gaze with his. "Daddy, I met Sesshomaru in the marketplace. I bought him there."

William leaned back in his chair. "Rin."

Rin reluctantly switched her attention back to her father.

With a look of concern, her father asked, "You bought another being?"

Rin nodded. "Sesshomaru was a....servant. I bought him with the intention of setting him free."

The older man raised a brow. "Was a servant?"

"Well, technically, he still is. His social status starts Wednesday when I receive his citizenship license card in the mail, but....."

William's brows furrowed. "But?"

Rin continued. ".....physically, he is still a servant until Kagome and I can remove his restraint."

Her mother gasped. "Restraint?"

Kagome rolled her eyes. "Yes, Momma, the black choker around Sesshomaru's neck is a subduing restraint for a youkai."

Sesshomaru swallowed heavily. This was becoming uncomfortable. He felt extremely...exposed....under William's rigid scrutiny.

Small warm fingers grasped his hand under the table as Rin spoke to her father. "Daddy, I want to tell you something."

William rubbed his chin while regarding them both. "What is it, hon?"

His future mate inhaled deeply. "Sesshomaru and I want to become....mates."

"Mates?"

"Yes, we want to marry....after the collar is removed, that is."

For several minutes William regarded Rin and him in fixed contemplation. "And you decided now to tell your mother and I this information?"

A hint of worry lined Rin's delicate features as she gave a slow nod. "Yes."

Rin's father sighed. "I can't say that I am happy about you keeping this from me and your mother, Rin, but seeing as you bought Sesshomaru with good intentions, I am not completely disappointed."

The older male's striking steel gaze lit on him. "You have been living with my daughter?"

"Yes, I have." Sesshomaru replied.

William folded his arms across his chest. "Have you been sleeping with my daughter?"

Kagome spat out a coughing noise and cleared her throat.

Rin's eyes widened in renewed shock. "Daddy?"

He opened his mouth to answer but was cut off by Rianna's scolding interjection. "William! That is none of our business! Rin is an adult. That is her privacy you are asking about."

Sesshomaru spoke freely. "Mr. Higurashi, yes, I am a servant. I have been one for several centuries. I was spelled by a powerful dark miko about five hundred years ago and then sold to a human. I have been a servant to humans ever since. Rin has been the only one to buy me that wanted to lift my curse and set me free. I have come to care for Rin for many reasons. Although it is below my station to ask, I formally request your daughter's hand as a mate.....and, as is her custom, if she wishes, her hand in marriage as well. I promise to guard her from harm for the rest of her life."

Silence reigned for several moments before the hardness in William's eyes softened. A faint smile trailed in his features. "Very well said, Sesshomaru. Your straightforward eloquence is befitting one of your lineage. You have spoken truthfully and respectfully concerning Rin. Saving our daughter's life last night only reinforces my belief in that truth concerning her protection. I thank you Sesshomaru, for saving my Rin. You have proven yourself worthy, son. Your request for my daughter's hand is granted. I will give my full consent to your union."

He gave Rin a warm smile. "Your mother and I love you, honey. We wish you the best."

Rin stood up, went around the table, and then hugged her mother and father. "Thank you, Mom and Dad, this means so much to me!"

After Rin sat down, A spritely gleam lit Rianna's light brown eyes when she smiled at them both. "So, when am I going to see my grandchildren?"

A pink hue tinted Rin's cheeks. "Momma!"

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Kagome sat down on the fluffy cushions of the couch and propped her feet up on the coffee table. Rin and Sesshomaru had left thirty minutes ago and Mom and Dad just retired for the night because they needed to get an early start in the morning.

The clock on the wall quietly chimed eight times.

She sighed and closed her eyes, laying her head back to rest on the rim of the sofa. A sleepy darkness swept across her mind, a light meditation of sorts. Unexpectedly, two white furry dog-ears and large golden eyes invaded her thoughts. Kagome sighed. Why was she thinking of him? Why was she thinking of how deep the amber in his eyes were? Why was she thinking about his fuzzy little ears and how soft they might be? Would they twitch under her touch? Kagome smiled and opened her eyes while shaking her head. That good-looking hanyou probably had women lined up everywhere.

As Kagome was pondering over a certain half-demon, the doorbell rang.

Kagome got up from the sofa to answer the door mumbling, "Wonder who that could be at this hour?"

Upon opening the door, Kagome was greeted with a welcome sight. "Kaede?"

The old woman smiled. "Yes, child, it is I."

Kagome hugged her long-time mentor. "You haven't visited in ages!" She stepped back from the door. "Come in, come in. What brings you to visit me tonight?"

Kaede stepped into the room and over to the sofa. "I have come for more than just a visit, dear Kagome." From under her arm, she produced a very old leather-bound book. "I have come on a mission of great importance."

Kagome watched as Kaede sat down and set the old book on the coffee table.

Her mentor motioned for her to sit on the couch with her. Kagome sat down next to Kaede.

Wrinkled hands opened the old book in front of them. The smell of ancient dried paper floated up as Kaede flipped through the pages. She stopped flipping near the middle of the book and laid it open. The older woman pointed to an illustration on the page. "Look here, child."

Kagome peered at the yellowed pages and the picture. She blinked several times as her mind tried to clearly process what her eyes were seeing. On the crispy yellowed page right in front of her was a picture.....an exact depiction of Sesshomaru's collar. "Kaede?.....This is a picture of...."

"Sesshomaru's restraint." Kaede finished.

Kagome looked hard at the page, trying to decipher the archaic language. "Where did you get this book, Kaede?"

"It is an old family heirloom. It has been in my family for generations. The book be of ancient writing." Kaede replied.

"Do you know what these foreign words mean? Can you translate them?" Kagome asked.

"Yes, child, I know the words in the book."

Kagome studied the picture carefully. "What does it say about his restraint? Please tell me."

The old miko sighed and settled back against the sofa. "Yonder book relates of long forgotten legends, tales of the past. When I saw the inu youkai's subduing collar today when ye sister and the demon visited me in the marketplace, I immediately recognized the restraint."

"What kind is it, Kaede? What do you know?"

Kaede began her tale. "Long ago, as the legend goes, a dark miko of great power used this unique restraint of black gold to curse a powerful demon into subjugation. Any miko who knows of this historical account has never seen the youkai of legend before, that is, until now. This restraining collar be one of a kind. It be a feeder restraint."

"Feeder restraint?"

"Aye, child, it feeds off a demon's energy, allowing it to use that power to subdue the youkai. Because of this, the curse will last until the youkai's death."

"Does the journal explain who it was that placed the subjugation spell?"

"Nay, it does not for this be a historical record made by another miko several hundred years ago. How this miko knew of the spelled collar I do not know, but she did know of the curse attached to the restraint."

"Curse?"

Kaede sat up and closed the old book, then regarded Kagome intently. "Kagome, what does ye sister plan on doing with the subjugated demon?"

Kagome drew her brows together in concern. "With my help, she plans on freeing him with a releasing spell. Why?"

The old woman closed her eyes and shook her head slowly. "This cannot be."

Now Kagome was really getting concerned. "Why?"

"The subjugation spell placed on the inu youkai is more powerful than any known. It was done by someone with ancient magics. The priestess or dark miko that placed this subduing spell on Sesshomaru had powers beyond mere mortal mikos. By the legend, the miko placed a curse on the collar. Anyone who removes the spelled restraint and releases the demon will be thrown into a living death."

Kagome's mouth went dry. "What?"

"If ye sister frees the demon, she will die a living death."

The bottom fell out of her stomach as she stared at her mentor in rising apprehension. "What does 'living death' mean?"

Kaede sighed with a deep frown. "I be not sure of the meaning, but a suspicion I have. 'Living death' may perhaps indicate a death of the soul or seizure of it in some way. Methinks the body will remain but the spirit will be purged. It is uncertain if one's body could survive such a horrible fate."

"Kaede, are you absolutely sure of this? Are you sure this knowledge is accurate?"

"Aye, child, I be not entirely certain of the curse but the book be written throughout the ages by true and ancestral mikos. What knowledge they compiled for this journal be reliable. I believe in the book and my ancestor's records."

Kagome sat still for a few minutes staring at her old friend before burying her face in her hands. "I must tell Rin about this. I...don't know how she will react. She wanted so badly to set Sesshomaru free."

A warm hand gripped her shoulder gently. "Nay, child, she will lose her life if she frees the inu youkai. This I be sure of."

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