InuYasha Fan Fiction ❯ Fluffy Love ❯ Things Heard Late At Night ( Chapter 4 )

Chapter 4 - Things Heard Late At Night

The next day was a whirlwind of activity that left her with little time to feel sad. It started off with Moe, Akiko, and Megumi waking her, seeing to her bath, and dressing her, their lively chatter filling her suite the whole time. Next, she broke fast with Jaken, who was clearly enjoying the perks of being a country lord. Watching him try to eat and bark orders at the servants at the same time was so amusing (especially when his makeshift beard began to slide down his chin) that even she found herself giggling.

Atsutane then gave her an extensive tour of the property, filling her in on its history and showing her all of its rooms and gardens, which were indeed some of the most beautiful she had ever seen. The rabbit motif was everywhere-the wall panels, statues in the garden, on the furniture. When she asked about it, Atsutane explained that the man who had built the manor had filled it with images of rabbits to please his wife, who adored the animals. The villagers had nicknamed it the Usagi House for this very reason. Rin found herself falling in love with the manor and said so; Atsutane was delighted.

Moe found her resting in the late afternoon near the pond. They talked for sometime and watched the fat, lazy carp bask in the warm sunlight, their gold, brown, red, and orange scales glittering brightly. She spoke animatedly about her family. Her two sons worked in the stables and her husband was head groundskeeper. Her family had served in this house for nearly a hundred years, not counting the decade or so that it had lain empty when the original family had departed. Rin listened attentively and asked her many questions, enthralled with the handmaiden's life in this house. This also lifted the burden of having to explain her own past, or rather the intricate collection of lies that Jaken had concocted.

When she joined him for dinner in the evening, the toad-like youkai was already regaling the servants with tales of his and his made up ancestors' heroic feats. She tried to be as respectful as was humanly possible, hiding her laughter behind one of her sleeves when the stories bounded on the ridiculous. Her silence was challenged even more when she observed that the servants-warm-hearted, simple people-believed every word that dropped from his mouth. Akiko and Megumi were filled with questions about her father's exploits when she returned to her suite for the evening and she confirmed each of her "father's" outrageous exploits with as straight a face as she could muster.

Within a week's time she had fully regained her optimistic good cheer. All of the servants quickly became enamored with her and within a month the villagers soon praised the beauty of the lady of Usagi Manor to all passersby. As could be expected, many suitors soon came to the manor to pursue her hand in marriage. At first, she was slightly troubled, but Jaken proved to be a very shrewd judge of character who held an extremely high set of standards for Rin's husband-to-be. Most were sent away immediately. Others were permitted to stay for a couple of days for most extensive interviews. In the end, none made the cut and all returned back to their homes empty-handed.

After the latest suitor had been turned away, Rin snuck out of her bed and let herself into Jaken's sitting room, intent on asking him about his feelings on this latest set of suitors. The room was empty, his personal servants having been sent away sometime earlier on, and the doors to the more private areas of his suite were shut. Shadows flickered on the thin walls from inside the bedroom, blocking out the warm lamplight.

She waited patiently, studying the few scrolls adorning the walls in the sparsely furnished space until her curiosity got the best of her and she gathered her robes around her and tiptoed over to the door. Muted voices issued through the walls and she moved closer to hear them better. Jaken often spoke with Atsutane, and when the subjects of discussion were of a more sensitive nature the two of them often turned to the privacy of the master suite. Perhaps they were speaking about the very subject about which she had come to speak to him. A mischievous smile teasing at the corners of her lips, she pressed one ear against the door.

Indeed, she was correct; she could hear Jaken reiterating the names of some of the most recent men who had come in search of her hand. However, the voice that replied was not that of the elderly caretaker. Smile slowly fading away, she pressed her ear more firmly against the thin wood to make sure. Yes, the voice of Jaken's visitor was much too low to be Atsutane's. to speak to him with. d had been replaced by a pleadingt the door.to the privacy of the master suite toAnd Jaken's tone was all wrong. The snobbish, regal quality of speech that he had so eagerly adopted had been replaced by a beseeching whine, one that she was all too familiar with. Heart pounding loudly in her chest, hands quivering ever so slightly, she knocked lightly on the door.

"Otou-sama?" she called hesitantly. The voices immediately ceased, replaced by two sets of footsteps, Jaken's light steps approaching the door and pair of heavier ones receding into the distance. Rin wanted to force the door aside and enter the room, but she did not want to cause a scene lest she insult an important visitor. Something deep inside her, though, told her that the other person was not one of the townspeople, much less human.

Jaken's face, fake beard askew, appeared between a small crack in the door. "What is it, Rin?" he snapped irritably.

Rin swallowed loudly. "I'm sorry to bother you, father, but I was curious as to whom you are speaking."

"None of your business! Go to sleep!" he barked, but the slight tremor in his voice and the quick glances he kept shooting back into the room confirmed her suspicions. Before Jaken could shut the door, she grabbed hold of it and pushed it aside. The blood was rushing through her ears, all but blocking out Jaken's enraged cries of protest as she forced her way past him and into the room. Her eyes wandered frantically from side to side, settling finally on the open doors facing the gardens to the rear of the building. She rushed to them, searching the dark outer hallways and the grounds for some sign of her master.

"Sesshoumaru-sama," she sighed as she sank to the floor. Jaken quieted immediately after one look at her dejected face. She turned back to look at him, tears shining in her eyes. "He was here, wasn't he, Jaken-sama?" she whispered.

He looked away uncomfortably and laid a hand on her shoulder. "Go back to sleep, Rin," he said. Worried voices rose from outside and Atsutane, in his bedclothes and looking sleepy, appeared in the doorway.

"I heard shouting, my lord, is there something wrong?" he said concernedly, eyes traveling back and forth from Jaken to Rin. Several of Jaken's servants appeared behind him, looking over his shoulders.

"My daughter had a nightmare and came to see me," Jaken replied, his voice weary. "Please see to it that she is returned to her bed." He gave Rin's shoulder a gentle but authoritative squeeze and, head bowed, she rose silently to her feet and allowed herself to be led back to her rooms. After the halls fell silent again and she was truly alone, she cried for the first time in weeks.

Sesshoumaru had been in Jaken's room. Every time she asked Jaken he denied it, but she had no doubt whatsoever that her master had been there. But why had he left the instant he heard her voice? Old fears rose to the surface to haunt her. Did he find her so disgusting that he wouldn't even show his face to her? He couldn't possibly be frustrated that she hadn't found a husband yet, could he? After all, she had hardly any say in the matter.

These thoughts and many more plagued her, so much so, that she began to loose interest in her other activities. Her diary collected dust; her needlework lay forgotten; her visits to the village grew more and more infrequent; she ceased her gentle teasing of prospective suitors. Jaken scolded her often, urging her to show more spirit or resign herself to being an old maid. His rebukes were only half-hearted, though, as he was just as concerned about her condition as everyone else was.

She wasn't wasting away by any means, but the spark of life in her that made her so attractive and fun to be around was slowly sputtering out. Not a person to remain idle, she filled her free time with long walks around the pond and through the gardens, sometimes accompanied by Moe or one of the other servants, but most often she walked alone, a guard or two always at hand to watch her from a distance. The walking, besides serving to give her a breath of fresh air and a bit of exercise also performed the most needed function of distracting her from the glaring void in her life that she felt now more than ever.

Tonight she had extended her usual path to the very outskirts of the gardens, near to the wall of hoary old pine trees that marked the edge of the great forest. The moonlight was clear and bright, illuminating the tree-shrouded bulk of the mountain. Rin cast her eyes on a spot near its peak, imagining she could see the beautiful, centuries-old palace nestled between the trees despite the protective barrier she knew concealed it. She inhaled the warm air, flagrant with the scents of the hundreds of blossoming flowers. Ah, the gardens were stunning, especially in the evening, but she missed the sharp smell of pine sap and cedar and the dark, moldy odor of moss. Stepping closer, she glanced from side to side in search of the pair of men who were guarding her tonight. Several cherry trees, heavily laden with the delicate pink and white blossoms, hid her from view and she strolled into the forest.

Though she enjoyed being a hime with all of its many privileges and comforts, she sometimes found herself missing her former independence and the nomadic life she had enjoyed for so many years. She knew that Jaken would have granted her permission to wander in the forest, but then she would have to endure the company of handmaidens and guards fussing with her clothing and telling her where to step. This area was safe; the only youkai she had seen since she had come here was Jaken, so it wouldn't hurt to go off by herself for an hour or so. Just to be cautious, she would keep within shouting range of the manor lest she need to call the guards.

She stretched her arms out to the sides and took in the redolent smells of the woodland. Now that was much better. The flowers smelled beautiful, but coupled with the hot air could quickly become overpowering. The air between the pines and cedars was much cooler, and the pine needles that masked the sound of her footsteps gave off only the most spartan and clean of odors. Rin walked deeper into the forest, letting the soft moonlight filtering through the overhanging branches guide her. The sounds of fallen branches cracking and leaves rustling rose as various woodland creatures scampered away and she smiled to herself.

Several low ridges of rock rose before her and, gathering her clothing around her, she climbed up them. A slight resistance met her small form and she leaned forward into it, stepping around a large rock in her way. Panting slightly, she paused and looked back over the edge of the ridge. The ground was only several feet below and yet she felt somewhat out of breath. She groaned ruefully. It seemed she had been enjoying her new life too much and had fallen out of shape.

The manor was all but invisible at this distance, and marking the large rock in her mind, she turned and walked beside the ridge, which proceeded for some distance in a long curve around the manor's outskirts. The buzz of cicadas rose on all sides, filling the night with their screeching calls. She continued on, treading a careful path next to the ridge. Somewhere in the distance an owl hooted and a flock of birds took into the air. A small stream trickled along its merry path through the forest, and soon she could hear a chorus of frogs.

Laughter issued from her throat and she turned in a slow circle, her long, luxurious sleeves pin-wheeling around her body. How long had it been since she had traveled through a forest and listened to its nighttime music? She began to hum a few notes, then began to sing:

"Yama no na ka,

Mori no na ka,

Kaze no na ka,

Yume no na ka.

Sesshoumaru-sama,

Doko ni ru?

Jaken-sama o-"

She stopped mid-sentence and glanced from side to side. The moon was hidden behind a swath of cloud, leaving the forest in relative darkness. She had thought she had heard something, a large crash as if a tree branch had fallen to the ground. A small wave of fear rippled through her as she stood silent, head cocked to the side, listening intently to the forest. Another crash didn't echo through the forest; there was nothing.

And that was exactly it, wasn't it? There was nothing to be heard. No crashes, no cicadas, no frogs. Except for the distant trickle of the small brook, the forest had fallen completely silent. Rin wrapped her arms protectively around her and peered into the dark depths between the thick tree trunks.

A twig snapped from the trees somewhere in front of her, startling her. The nearly inaudible sound of the blanket of fallen pine needles shifting ever so slightly rose from the trees at her left. Terrified, she turned back the way she came and broke into a slow lope, her heavy geta and robes limiting her speed and range of movement. She tripped over a low rock and fell face-first into the ground.

A high-pitched cackle of excitement issued from where she had heard the first sound. A second, needling call rose, followed by a third, and a fourth. Giving a small cry, she pushed herself to her feet, discarded the geta, and began to run back along the ridge towards the large stone. The sharp rocks that lay along the path cut into the soles of her feet, but she barely noticed the pain as she pushed aside bough and brush to make it back to the marker. The air echoed with the sounds of trees being rent and splintered before some powerful, unseen force. Her mysterious pursuer howled again and was answered by the calls of the others, rising from the higher slopes of the mountain in a wide semicircle around her. Her thick black hair was disheveled, several strands plastered in sweaty tendrils to the sides of her face. One hand clutched at her chest, more in a misplaced effort to still her hammering heart. Her lungs were burning; she grimaced as she swallowed back the vile-tasting phlegm that rose in the back of her throat.

The cries were frighteningly loud and close, a noose of noise tightening around her. The tall stone suddenly swam into view ahead of her and she pressed her body for one last burst of speed to carry her over the ridge and into the protection of the manor house. Distantly she felt that strange resistance that she had encountered earlier pressing against her palms now as she turned to leap over the ridge. Before she reached the edge, a strong hand closed around her ankle, yanking her back away from it. Rin screamed as loudly as her overtaxed lungs would allow her as she fell to the forest-floor.

Her attacker grabbed clumsily at the back of her robes, his fingers slipping over the loose silk. Finally obtaining a good grip, he jerked her savagely away from the ridge and safety. She twisted and wriggled madly, finally managing to pull loose, leaving several of the outer layers of kimono in his grip. She fell to hands and knees and immediately began to claw her way back to the ridge, only to be caught this time by the hair. She screamed again, though this time in pain more than anything else. A large, hairy arm wrapped itself around her chest, squeezing off her cries and pulling her off the ground and back against a massive, inhuman body. She stiffened as a wave of hot, foul-smelling breath washed against one of her cheeks.

"Gotcha," a deep, graveling voice hissed into her ear.

* * * *

Poor Rin! Separated from her beloved Fluffy, forced to live with Jaken, and now taken captive by god knows who. For those craving some Sesshoumaru goodness, the next chapter will be out tomorrow.