InuYasha Fan Fiction ❯ Captive Soul ❯ chapter 32 ( Chapter 32 )

Disclaimer: I do not own Inuyasha or any of it's characters.

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Chapter 32:

Rin hummed as she drove. They were not far from home. Sesshomaru had been quiet ever since they had left Kagome's. She smiled a little. "Sesshomaru?"

The inu youkai did not take his gaze from the passing streetlights. "Yes, Rin?"

"You have been quiet for a while. Is something wrong?"

"No, there is nothing wrong."

Rin inwardly sighed at his distance. Maybe it had something to do with the conversation at dinner. Something had been on her mind since then as well. "Sesshomaru....you never told me you are royalty.

The inu youkai barely shrugged his shoulders. "I am of royal blood....."

She chanced a question. "What are you?"

"What do you mean?"

"Well....what status are you?"

"I have no status."

Rin sighed, shaking her head some while keeping her eyes on the road. "You do have status, Sess. You will be free soon, free to.... return to your homeland if you wish....free to leave...."

Sesshomaru's turned his attention to her, some unknown emotion in his calm gaze. "Are you afraid I might leave you?"

A small lump formed in her stomach as she tapped the steering wheel nervously. "I....well, maybe...a little...yes. Now that you have found your brother, you should return and claim what is rightfully yours. It would be selfish of me to make you stay with me. I love you, Sess. I will not stop you from going home or...... What I am trying to say is....if you want to find someone else....someone more like yourself........I will understand."

Something warm touched her thigh. Rin glanced down to see Sesshomaru's hand. She did not want to look at him for fear of what she might see but glanced anyway with a half-hearted smile. It surprised her to no end to see a glimmer of reassurance.

"I have no desire to find anyone else, Rin."

Rin let out a silent breath, calming her anxious heart. She gave a nod. "So....are you going to tell me what you are? King, Sultan, Lord, Baron, or Knight?"

He let out an amused humph. "If you must know, I was a prince."

She smiled and shook her head. "Prince......You mean you are a prince."

As she glanced back at him, he gave a nod and shrug. "If that is what you wish me to be...then a prince is what I am."

Frustration nudged at her patience. He could really be stubborn when he wanted to be. "Fine, Prince Sesshomaru. Yes, that is what I will call you from now on. Prince Sesshomaru."

"You don't have to be that formal. Lord Sesshomaru will do."

With a hard breath of aggravation, Rin narrowed her eyes at his amused tone. He was messing with her again. So she decided to play along. "Fine. Lord Sesshomaru it is. Will there be anything you need tonight, oh Great One?"

His voice hinted with growing mirth. "Yes, I do believe there is."

"And what would that be?" she huffed.

Rin glanced at him in feigned annoyance, noticing the inu youkai was slightly smirking while looking at her with a raised brow.

"Your submission."

The demand caught her off guard. She cleared her throat. "Submission?"

"Complete."

"And what If I refuse to honor Your Highness with this submission?"

"Then I must teach you how to be submissive."

Rin rolled her eyes. "Is this one of those dog demon things?"

"You could say that. Yes, in a way, it is."

She shook her head with a light laugh. "Uh huh...yea, right, sure. I'll be submissive. NOT!"

For the first time she actually heard Sesshomaru laugh, a deep elegant chuckle. It was one of the most wonderful things she had ever heard. The sound was infectious and Rin couldn't help but laugh with him.

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Rin unlocked the door to their home and entered the foyer. She reached for the light switch on the wall and turned on the light. While placing her purse and keys on the small table nearby, she heard Sesshomaru close and lock the front door behind her then place his weapons by the wall.

She was about to turn to him to say something when two very strong arms picked her up. Rin looked up to see that hint of mischief for the second time that day. "Sess, what are you doing?"

He started up the stairs. Without looking at her, he replied. "Carrying you."

"I can see that. May I ask why?"

Dark honeyed eyes danced with amusement. "So you cannot get away."

"And why would I want to get away?"

"From your first lesson in being submissive to this, Lord Sesshomaru."

As he entered her dark bedroom, the faintest of smirks lit the corners of his mouth. Stopping at the side of the bed, he heavily tossed her on the mattress. She bounced with a giggle. His warm body crawled over her. Long strands of soft hair fell all around. "Sess? What....."

Rin did not get to finish her question as his lips met hers.

The warmth of the tender kiss left her. Deep words, smooth as silk, whispered between them. "I believe we did not get to finish what we started this morning. There will be no interruptions tonight. If that phone rings, ignore it."

It was too dark to see his expression. She gave a slow nod. "Okay."

Rin reached up through the soft strands of hair. With the tip of her finger, she touched his cheek then traced a light caress to his lips. He leaned into her touch, placing a small kiss in the palm of her hand.

He leaned down. The tip of his nose touched hers. "I have thought of nothing but your touch since we left your sister's. Tonight, it will be only you and I. No one else exists. This world does not exist."

Rin felt so many things at once, the beating of her heart, the delicate fluttering in her stomach, and that same aching tingle directly below the butterflies.

Unaware, she licked her top lip, accidentally running the tip of her tongue across Sesshomaru's soft bottom one, drawing out a deep throaty but faint growl from the male above her.

That one touch coupled with his feral growl sent a shiver through her body. She wanted him to kiss her again, but he did not. The rumbling in his chest lingered, a gentle vibration of murmured want. He did not move. His hesitation only excited her more. Their mouths were inches apart. Their breath mingled hotly, the taste of him only a moment away.

Frozen by a sweet yearning, Rin rasped out a wanton plea. "Sess...please...kiss me again."

He heard her plea, the vibration tapered to a lowered purr, the warmth of his tongue slid across the now highly sensitive skin of her heated lip.

Rin returned his kiss fervently. Everything disappeared into the inviting darkness. All that she knew was the tender caresses of male she loved, sending her to a very sacred place.

Far away, a distant ringing echoed, grasping for her attention. Rin smiled as she bared her neck to the sensation of a hot wet tongue trailing down her skin. The ringing went unheeded. It vanished from thought.

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Bright early morning sunlight peeped in between her closed eyelids. Rin groaned at the irritating invasion of light. She grumbled while pulling a pillow over her head.

A hand slid up her thigh and under her nightgown.

She slapped at it.

It smacked her bottom.

With her eyes still closed, Rin grabbed the pillow and chunked it at the male spooned up behind her.

She smiled in victory when the hand left her behind, but her smile fell as a nuzzling nose began to tickle her neck.

Despite her irritation and early morning grogginess, Rin squirmed with a rising giggle. "Sess, your nose is tickling me. Stop that."

He desisted his movements, the warmth of his nose left her neck. His voice, deep with morning sleep, growled out in slight frustration. "As I have said before, this is unfair. You know very well that I have to obey every order you give me."

She nodded with a smile while burying her nose in the pillow. "Yep, you do."

Sesshomaru let out a grunt of displeasure but did not stop his antics. Rin soon found out his wandering hands had minds of their own.

While trying her best to shoo his advances away, the phone rang.

Rin sat up, wavering slightly and halfway opened her eyes. "The phone."

Reaching over, Rin grabbed the receiver and at the same time batting the grasping hands of her bedmate.

With some fumbling, she got the receiver to her ear. "Yea....uh...hello."

"Rin, it's Kagome."

"Hey sis." She scooted to the side of the bed, leaning away from the hand that nearly grazed her chest.

"Sorry to wake you so early, Rin, but I have got to talk to you. It's important."

Rin leaned back against the solid chest behind her. Two arms wrapped around her waist, one fingertip circling her navel as a chin warmed her left shoulder.

"Sure, what time should Sesshomaru and I come over?"

"No, Rin, only you. I want you to come to my house alone. I need to speak with only you."

Something in Kagome's stern tone was starting to bother her. "Why can't I bring Sess? He can wait in the car if you want to talk to just me."

Kagome's voice rose in slight exasperation. "No. This is something that I must tell you without the chance of Sesshomaru's youkai hearing picking it up. I am sorry but I need to speak with you in private."

Sesshomaru went rigid in his hold of her. Rin could feel a vibration in his chest. She smoothed her hand over his thigh at her side. "Okay, Kagome. I'll be there. What time?"

"As soon as you can get dressed, I want you to come over."

Rin gave an unnecessary nod while the warmth of Sesshomaru's embrace slid from her waist and shoulder. "Alright, sis, I'll be there in a little bit."

After hanging up the phone, Rin turned to see Sesshomaru lying on the bed, his head propped up by his right hand. He was watching her intently. "That was Kagome."

He gave a slow nod. "I could hear her. She sounded....distressed."

Rin swallowed. She had heard the same thing in her sister's tone. Something was wrong.

Looking away from the intensity of his gaze, Rin got out of bed and went to her dresser. "I need to go to my sister's for a little while."

She stopped at the dresser and looked back to the bed. Sesshomaru had turned and was still watching her but with a hint of worry. She bit her bottom lip. This would be the first time she would leave him alone. Rin did not want to leave him alone. Bad things happened when she left him for only a few minutes. What would happen if she left him for a few hours?

Rin pushed the uneasy and unwarranted feeling from her mind. She was being ridiculous. With a calm and reassuring smile, she stepped over to the bed, bent down, and placed a small kiss on his cheek. "I promise, I won't be long."

The male blinked at her with a faint smile of his own. "I will wait here for you."

She straightened with a quirked brow. "In bed? You are going to wait for me in bed? Is there something you want when I get back?"

His smile grew a tad. "Yes, there is."

Rin shook her head. "You are relentless."

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Sesshomaru gazed at Rin while she dressed, silently observing her delicate movements. It was nice to see her change clothes. He inwardly smirked at the thought of what they might do when she returned.

After Rin had finished putting on a pretty peach skirt and white blouse, she gave him one last peck on the lips before leaving the bedroom.

He stared after her departing shadow for several moments, his ears reaching for the sounds of her fading footsteps, the closing of the front door, and her car starting and rolling out of the driveway.

Sesshomaru sighed deeply and closed his eyes, hoping he would not have to wait long.

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A faint click woke him from the doze he had slipped into.

The dog demon furrowed his brows. Had he fallen into a deep rest while Rin had been gone? He glanced at the clock on the night table. No. Rin had not been gone too long. Could she have forgotten something? He sat up in the bed and sniffed but detected nothing. The front door opened slowly.

Sesshomaru slid off the bed, straightening the waistband of his sweats in the process. He had told Rin he would wait in bed for her, but pouncing on her when she least expected it sounded so much more fun.

He moved stealthily to the door and sniffed again. The scent smelled like Rin, but in his excited haste, he inadvertently ignored the twang of age in its depth.

Crouching, Sesshomaru peered around the door-frame and towards the banister. From his vantage point, he could only see the top part of the front door as it closed.

Ducking his head back, he smirked and waited. Quiet, feminine steps strolled up the stairs. He thought it odd that Rin had yet to call for him but readied himself anyway for the jump.

He was unprepared for the voice that whispered a short command. "Come here, Sesshomaru."

Sesshomaru fell backwards, his behind hitting the wooden floor. That was not Rin's voice.

The inu youkai slowly stood then stepped out of Rin's bedroom. He stopped a few feet short of the female standing at the top of the stairs.

A vicious growl ripped from his throat. "You...."

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Rin knocked on Kagome's door. She would have gone right in, but for some unknown reason she was stalling. Kagome's voice had sounded so.....foreboding.

Kagome opened the door. She was not smiling, a line of worry wrinkled her temple. "Come on in, Sis."

She walked in and shut the door behind her. While following Kagome into the living room, she spoke to her sister with some concern. "Okay, Kagome, what is it? What did you need to tell me? You are worried about something, aren't you?"

Kagome sat on the couch. Rin sat next to her.

Letting out a deep breath, Kagome turned to her with a hard frown. "Rin, what I have to say will not be easy to take."

The way Kagome was acting was starting to scare her. "What is it, Kagome? Just tell me."

Reaching under the coffee table, Kagome pulled out a large leather-bound book. "This book is Kaede's." She opened the book with a dusty flip of pages. "Kaede came by last night to speak with me after seeing you and Sesshomaru in the marketplace."

Kagome pointed to a picture on the page in front of them. "Look."

Rin looked and blinked. "That's.....Sesshomaru's collar."

With a nod, Kagome sat back and looked at her. "The book is in an ancient writing but Kaede told me last night about the restraint."

A bad feeling began creeping up inside as she asked, "What did she tell you?"

Taking a deep breath, Kagome swallowed before answering, "The choker around Sesshomaru's neck is a feeder restraint. It feeds off his demon energy, using it to control him. It was spelled to be eternal or last as long as Sesshomaru lived."

Rin nodded. "That explains why his powers are absent." She gave Kagome a hard look. "But that is not all you have to tell me, is it?"

Kagome laid a hand on her shoulder. "Rin, listen to me. There is a curse placed on Sesshomaru's restraint." She paused.

"What kind of curse?"

"Sesshomaru's restraint is cursed......anyone who takes his collar off will die a....'living death'."

Everything went numb. "What do you mean?"

Her sister swallowed again. "If you free Sesshomaru, you will die a 'living death'.

Slow winding shock made her whole body feel like it was turning to stone. "What does 'living death' mean?"

"Kaede believes it to mean your soul will be purged or taken in some way. Rin, you will surely die if that happens. Maybe not at first, the body can hold on for a little while but not for too long. If your spirit is taken, your body will slowly die within minutes."

Realization hit Rin hard. For Sesshomaru to be set free.......

...she would have to die.

Raising one trembling hand up, she covered her mouth as her vision began to blur. "No....this.....this......this is not fair."

Kagome reached for her but Rin flinched away and stood up. She walked over to the other side of the room and laid her forehead against the wall. It hurt. It hurt so bad. Scrunching her eyes shut, she let out gasps that soon wrenched into choking sobs. "Not fair.....not fair...."

Her sister spoke with stern compassion directly behind her. "I know it is not fair, Rin, but sometimes things like this happen. Whoever placed the subjugation spell on Sesshomaru booby-trapped it. It must have been a dark miko with great power. She did not want him to be set free, and she made it so anyone who dared do such a thing would pay dearly. Hope is lost for him."

Rin seized all the pain. Forcing it into a tight ball, she pushed it from her mind but was unable to remove it from her heart. "No, hope is not lost to him."

"What are you saying, sis?"

"I want to go through with the releasing spell."

Kagome's voice rose in startled disbelief. "What?!!"

"I said, I want to go through with the releasing spell. I made a promise, Kagome. I will free Sesshomaru."

Fear edged its way into Kagome's tone. "You....Rin....you will die... You can't be serious. Why not let him stay the way he is? You and he can live with each other....."

Agony crushed into anger. Rin turned to face her sister. "NO! He will not stay that way! I will not be able to live with myself if he stays the way he is! You don't know what it's like for him! It hurts him. That damned restraint hurts him!" She let out another sob as hot tears dripped from her cheeks. The anger fell to desperation as she cried imploringly to her sister. "Please, please....you must help me.....help me free him....."

"Rin......I......"

"Please....I am begging you. I have never begged you for anything in my life, Kagome. Please!"

Kagome's eyes misted with unshed tears. "You really do love him, don't you."

With defiant hope, Rin faintly smiled in her anguish. "Yes, I do."

Looking away, Kagome gave a shaky nod. "Okay, I will help you free him."

Rin let out a deep breath and sniffed.

Kagome looked back at her. One tear fell from her right eye. "Sesshomaru may not approve of your decision."

While walking over to the couch, Rin shook her head. "He will not know about this. I will not tell him and I want you to respect my wishes and not tell him as well."

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Sniffling, Kagome walked over to her sister who was sitting on the couch. She sat next to her younger sibling. Lightly, she reached around her shoulders and pulled Rin towards her. Rin let out a new string of tears, slumped into her embrace and cried on her shoulder.

Unable to stop the painful tears from falling, Kagome rocked her sister in her arms while smoothing stray wet strands of hair from her face. "I love you, Rin."

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Sesshomaru snarled. "What do you want, witch?"

The young woman smirked while dusting some unseen dirt off her dress. She looked up and gestured to the outfit with an open hand. "Like it? Rin let me borrow it last year."

"I care not."

With a frown, she stepped closer, her energy sparking in waves as she approached.

Sesshomaru took a step back, growling.

One dainty finger touched her red smirking lips. "Stop."

He froze.

"Now, do not move from that spot, dog."

She began circling him, looking his body up and down, her eyes taking in every detail of his bare upper chest. He really wished he had a shirt on right now.

Smiling, she whispered, "I told you, didn't I? I told you I would make your life a living hell; and I always keep my promises."

His hackles rose in alarm as the miko stopped directly behind him and began playing with his hair. "Rin will return soon."

In a flat tone, she conceded. "Maybe, Maybe not, and perhaps we have a little while to get to know one another more intimately."

"I do not wish to know you in any way, witch."

Her slow steps went around his right side as he stood in the middle of the hallway. Dark eyes looked up as she halted in front of him.

He glared while narrowing his vision. "I will not touch you. You cannot make me."

"We will see, demon." She shook her head with a wistful smile while gazing at his features. "So alike......yet so different."

Warm fingertips slid up his sides.

She cooed. "Tell me, youkai, have you mated with my cousin?"

Sesshomaru swallowed. "No."

"Have you....touched her?"

He looked away.

Breath heated with a hint of cinnamon floated to his senses. "Tell me."

"Yes."

With a nod, her smile widened. "So, you entertain your master well?"

He hated this woman.

She tilted her head. "Cat got your tongue?" She shook her head once again. "So much alike, both so stubborn. Tell me how you please her."

"I....touch her."

The miko giggled. "What, can't get anymore graphic than that?"

"No."

She shrugged. "No matter. You will show me how you do it, soon."

"I will not touch you in that manner, miko."

Those warm fingertips traveled to his collar, tracing the smooth metal and deep-set engravings. "Either you do or you die. How do you think your poor master will react when she comes home to find her dog lover dead? She will think that collar of yours did you in. It will break her sweet gentle heart to pieces."

"I hate you."

"Make your choice, youkai, one private tryst with me or....your master dies of a broken heart."

For a moment, he put aside his anger and disgust at this woman's threats. Rin loved him. If he died.....would her heart die as well? What he felt from Rin went beyond anything he had ever experienced. Her heart loved....him. It now beat for...only him. The grief his death would bring may kill her.

Trying to squash the nausea, he relented with a hard swallow.

Sesshomaru bowed his head, yielding to the female before him. "You win, miko. What do you wish of me?"

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The midday sun felt warm on her face as Rin left her sister's house. It helped to dry some of the tears as she walked to her car and got in. Wiping at her eyes, Rin searched her purse for a tissue. For several minutes, she dried the tears that spilled. Finally, after a few moments, Rin got control.

She knew she couldn't return home this way. Sesshomaru would know. He would know by her scent something was wrong, and by her tears.

For a while, Rin sat in her car in Kagome's driveway trying to calm her hurting heart. The luxury of grief would have to be put aside. No, she could not let him find out. The sadness she felt would have to be buried deep down, so far that not even his keen nose could pick it up.

Taking a deep breath, Rin closed her eyes and centered herself. Snatching all the pain, she hid it away, far from anyone else's reach to see.

Opening her eyes, Rin suddenly found the world a different place. It felt colder, even with the brightness of the sun and the warmth of her car.

Grabbing the keys, she started the engine and proceeded to drive back home.

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