InuYasha Fan Fiction ❯ In a Different Light ❯ Of Men and Monsters ( Chapter 13 )

In a Different Light

Chapter 12: Of Men and Monsters

"Do you smell that?" Rin asked.

Sesshomaru didn't answer. Instead, he trained his ears towards the village. To the untrained ear, everything would sound perfectly normal-the chatter, the music, an overly boisterous villager here and there. But to him, with his keen sense of hearing, it sounded as if the celebration was over and a commotion of another type had settled over the small, fishing village.

Rin scoffed. "That was a stupid question. If I can smell it, of course, you can. Something's burning, isn't it?"

He nodded his reply. Yes, something was burning. The village headman's house was burning. According to the village chatter, he wasn't inside when it happened, but he was quite distraught at the prospect of losing nearly everything he owned in one night.

"What do you think it is?" Rin asked.

"For now, it's not our concern."

She nodded and drained the last contents from her teacup.

"You should retire for the night," he stated, as he continued to absorb bits and pieces of conversation from the village. "We have much to attend to tomorrow, and you should be well rested, so that you may be at your best."

Rin nodded again and set her teacup down. She then stood and bowed, bidding him good night.

He inclined his head slightly, then watched as she settled down beside Ah-Un in front of the fire. It was the dragon's responsibility to keep her warm on particularly cold nights, such as this. After both she and the two-headed beast made the necessary adjustments, they both settled into a sound sleep. Soon, he thought, I will be the one to keep you warm.

Sesshomaru then turned his attention back to the village.

Apparently, the headman's house was near the river. And, thanks to villagers with buckets and bowls, the fire was already being contained. But his house was gone, diminished to cinders and ashes, and much of the surrounding land had been scorched. Many were blaming the blaze on an overturned oil lamp or a candle flame caught in an errant breeze . . . But Sesshomaru knew better.

The flames from the Staff of Heads had a very distinct odor, after all. Sulfur, brimstone and methane-fuel for the hottest fires in the seven pits of Hell. A full blast from the Staff would incinerate anything within its path within seconds. It left nothing behind. A less intense blast, like the one Jakken had apparently used, would simply ignite any flammable material, engulfing it in hellfire, reducing it to cinders.

That worthless toad, he mentally cursed. He'd pay for acting without his permission. Now, things would be considerably more complicated. Instead of a mission of vengeance, he was now on a mission of diplomacy.

He sighed inwardly at the thought of the things he would have to do tomorrow to retain his family's honor and restore the honor of his intended.

That miserable minion. He cracked his claws in anticipation of the toad's return. He will suffer tonight for everything I will have to suffer through tomorrow.

He retrained his ears to the surrounding area. The smoke from the village wouldn't allow him to sniff out his servant, but . . . A smirk appeared across his face as he heard the familiar light crunch of leaves, signifying the imp's return. He rose to his feet and silently journeyed to the source of the sound.

Yes, he would make the toad pay for his interference. But not where Rin could hear it. He found him 20 yards from the campsite, the Staff of Heads clutched tightly in his grasp.

"Jakken."

"M-my lord, y-you're smiling?"

* * *

Rin awoke the next morning to go about her normal routine. She pushed herself free from Ah-Un as he continued to snore before the fire. She yawned and stretched, taking note of her other two companions. As was usual, Sesshomaru wasn't there, and Jakken was in his normal position, slumped against an adjacent tree . . . horribly beaten?

"Jakken," she rushed to his side and shook him awake.

"What is it, you dumb girl?" His left eye was swollen completely shut and his right barely opened a crack. His beak-like mouth seemed as if it had been crushed in, and he was covered with cuts and bruises on every inch of green skin Rin could see.

The villagers, Rin thought. InuYasha had said that they sometimes got physical. If some of the more "outspoken" villagers happened to get a hold of him while he was wandering through the woods last night . . . "What happened to you?" she asked gently.

The old imp scoffed. "Mind your own business, you useless thing."

"Jakken . . ." It took every ounce of strength she had not to cry over the toad's beaten, bloody and broken body. He was clearly in pain, and she could hear his breaths struggle to get in and out of his lungs. "Who did this to you?"

He turned away from her. "Stop meddling."

"Jakken," she said more sternly, "if the villagers did this . . ."

"Villagers," he scoffed. "Do you think this Jakken couldn't handle a village of lowly humans?"

She considered his words, worry and unshed tears marring her feminine features. But if the villagers didn't, then . . . "Sesshomaru did this?" Her worry and pity quickly turned to anger. "What did you do, Jakken?"

He turned to meet her gaze with a self-satisfied grin. "This Jakken burned down the headman's house."

She slapped him. "What the hell did you do that for!"

He winced from the pain, but continued to grin. "No one may insult this Jakken's lord and lady."

She wanted to yell more, hit him more, make him feel worse than he undoubtedly already did. But . . . She drew in a deep breath and pushed it out. "Jakken, I know you meant well . . . but do you know what you've done?"

"I burned down the headman's house, stables and field."

You will not strangle him, Rin warned herself. You will not strangle the impudent, little imp. You will not kick him. You will not slap him. You're better than that. Violence is not the answer. Remember Master Li's teachings.

"Jakken, you had no right to do that."

He nodded tersely. "This Jakken acted without his lord's permission and was punished because of it."

Rin stood and cursed beneath her breath. "You know they're probably going to come after us for this, don't you? They're going to raise an angry mob, and they're going to come after us."

"Stop talking such nonsense," he grumbled. "Our lord will protect us."

"That's not what I'm talking about!" The villagers would come, and InuYasha would come with them to keep them from being slaughtered. Sesshomaru would be enraged that the villagers dared come after him after everything they'd said and done to her, and he'd be even more angered that InuYasha was siding with them . . . But what choice did InuYasha have? It was his village, his home, his family's home. He had to defend it . . . and the people in it.

And, in this case, after what Jakken had done, in InuYasha's eyes and in the villagers' eyes, Sesshomaru had done wrong. He'd completely destroyed a man's life, and so he deserved to be hunted down and killed. They didn't care about duty or honor or respect. They only cared that one home had been completely destroyed and theirs could be next.

Sesshomaru was a threat in their eyes. A vicious, deadly threat.

"I don't want him to get hurt, Jakken. And I don't want him to hurt his brother. He's got a family, a nice family." A family like the one she'd lost to the bandits.

The toad scoffed. "Mind your loyalties, lass. Our lord can stand against any enemy. And, as for his no good brother, if he wishes to side with the humans, then he can suffer their fate."

She glared at him. "You horrible, heartless creature."

He turned his nose up at her.

"This is going to be a disaster! Can't you see that? Can't you see what you've done to us? To them? To . . . me?"

He scoffed again. "I did what our lord couldn't do. I taught that worthless human a lesson he won't soon forget. No one speaks ill of the Lord and Lady of the Western Lands while Jakken is around."

"We were going to take care of that today!" she screamed. "We'd go peacefully into the village and have a word with the headman. Sesshomaru would demand that he apologize to me, he would apologize, and that would be that. No bloodshed, no angry mobs, no InuYasha. My honor would be restored, Sesshomaru's duty would be fulfilled, and--"

"The headman would curse you again as soon as your backs were turned."

"Shut up, Jakken!"

"Our Lord Sesshomaru is of the most noble demons. He's strong, he's proud, and he is honorable. Anyone who doubts that . . ."

"Look at yourself, Jakken. You can barely move. You can hardly breathe. And why is that, I'd like to know?"

"I chose to cross our lord," he said simply. "I knew he'd be angered when he discovered what I'd done . . . but it needed to be done. It is my duty as the royal retainer to help uphold the noble name of our lord and all those attached to him."

Rin sighed, gravely shaking her head from left to right. "But you've done exactly the opposite. If they didn't think we were monsters before, they certainly do, now."

Jakken remained unmoved. "I said my apologies to our lord," he said. "And I accepted my punishment for defying him . . . Had this Jakken to do it over again, I assure you that I would."

Rin sighed again, rolling her eyes up to the heavens. "I'm going," she said. "I'm changing, I'm doing my exercises, I'm bathing . . . and then I suppose I'll just have to see what happens."

As she made her way to the clearing from the previous morning, she silently prayed. Please, gods, don't let them come for him, and don't let him go to them until I've returned. And I pray to all that's holy that he hasn't already gone to the village to settle things.

* * *

"I've been waiting, Rin. "

She returned to the clearing to find him standing there, dressed in his usual white, wearing a face so fine it seemed impossible that he was just a demon and not the angel she'd always envisioned him to be. He was always so beautiful, so tranquil and calm . . . She didn't want to think about what would happen in the village.

The villagers spitting at them, throwing clods of dirt and shit. The vile names they'd call them. The crude innuendos they'd make.

Why did Jakken have to be such an ass? Why did Takeda have to be such a bastard? Why did Sesshomaru have to be so . . . honorable?

Why couldn't they just walk away from all this and pretend it never happened?

The villagers hadn't come with an angry mob, so maybe they didn't know Jakken had been the one to burn down the headman's house. Maybe they didn't know about everything that transpired last night. Maybe . . . maybe they could just walk into the village and settle things peacefully with Takeda and just leave. Maybe there wouldn't be a confrontation. Maybe the villagers would just stand and stare. Maybe InuYasha wouldn't get involved.

A slight smile crossed her lips. If they didn't know what Jakken had done, what the demon had done, then there was no need to tell them.

Yes, she nodded. No one needed to know. It was the headman's fault, any way. If he hadn't said those things, done those things-leering at her as if she was his for the taking, inferring that she was some type of . . . sex toy to be seduced and disposed of . . . If he hadn't done those things, none of this would've happened, and he would still have his house, stables and field.

Yes, she nodded again. This was his fault. Jakken was only acting out of concern, and from what InuYasha had told her, the toad had every right to be concerned. And, if the headman didn't deserve to lose everything he had simply because of a few ill-chosen words towards her, then he certainly deserved it because of his ill treatment of InuYasha and his family-stalking Kagome, trying to get him and his adopted son thrown out of the village . . . probably the only home they've ever known.

Yes, she finally decided. No one knew, so no one had to know that Jakken had caused the blaze. No one would be able to point fingers at her lord. No one would call them foul names and pelt them with rotten vegetables. Sesshomaru wouldn't attack the village, InuYasha wouldn't have to defend it, and the headman would apologize to her . . . and, if she had anything to say about it, to InuYasha and his family, as well.

"Come, Rin."

She put down her soiled uniform and bath supplies, then fell into step behind her lord.

They walked in shared silence. Sesshomaru's mind was heavy with the things he must say and do to make things right again; Rin was simply happy to walk with him, the wind whipping through their hair, the leaves crunching beneath their feet.

They stopped just outside the village. "You are not to say a word," Sesshomaru instructed. "This is a matter between men."

Rin nodded her understanding.

"Keep your head up at all times and don't back down from a single one of their stares."

She nodded again, throwing her shoulders back, lifting her head high.

"Everything will go as I have planned." He then progressed into the village.

Planned? Rin wondered. What was there to plan?

She kept pace behind him.

They came to a halt outside a medium-sized hut near the edge of the village. Before Sesshomaru could call out to its inhabitants, InuYasha emerged.

He seemed serious, but a slight smile donned his face. "A little early for the festival, aren't we? It won't get started till noon."

"We did not come for the festival," Sesshomaru stated. "We have business with the headman."

InuYasha raised an eyebrow at him. "Oh?" He peered over his brother's shoulder at the young woman standing behind him. "And what would that be?"

You must do this, Sesshomaru reminded himself. Honor demands it. We cannot lower ourselves to the ranks of peasants and . . . animals. "This Sesshomaru has come to make reparations."

Rin's eyes widened.

"Reparations?" InuYasha laughed. "Reparations for what?"

Sesshomaru stiffened his resolve and prepared himself for the words he had to speak. "It... has come to my attention that one of my . . . servants has acted without cause and . . . damaged some of the headman's property."

InuYasha narrowed his eyes. "You," he said. "You had the headman's house burned."

"No!" Rin shouted. "He--"

Sesshomaru silenced her with a glare over his left shoulder.

She lowered her eyes and quickly apologized. He had told her not to speak, she remembered. She then returned her gaze to the forward position.

"As I said," Sesshomaru continued, "one of my servants acted without cause and damaged some of the headman's property. I wish to make reparations."

"Feh, you want to make reparations to the headman."

He inclined his head slightly, signifying his agreement with his brother's statement.

InuYasha chuckled. "Well, hell must've frozen over."

"This is no laughing matter, InuYasha. It is a matter of duty and honor. This Sesshomaru is surprised you didn't detect the handiwork of the Staff of Heads."

The hanyou shrugged. "Maybe I did, and maybe I didn't. Maybe I thought the Fates were just repaying the headman for all the kindness he's shown me and my family."

Rin sighed in relief. So, InuYasha wouldn't be siding with the headman.

"Nevertheless," Sesshomaru said, "my servant is at fault, and it's my duty to make up for his . . . mistake. It's the only honorable thing to do."

InuYasha shrugged again. "Whatever. You wanna kiss Takeda's ass, be my guest."

The demon lord fought back the impending growl from the back of his throat. "This Sesshomaru does not kiss anyone's ass."

"Feh, if you say so." He stuffed his hands in his sleeves. "So, what does any of this have to do with me? You got business with Takeda, take it up with him."

"This is your territory, InuYasha. Considering my situation, it would be . . . impertinent of me to further overstep my bounds."

The hanyou's shoulders shook with laughter. "'Impertinent' of you? When has my opinion ever mattered to you on anything?"

He tensed and flexed his claws. "This Sesshomaru is simply following the proper decorum. This is your territory, and the headman's land falls within those boundaries. To damage his land is to damage your land. We had no cause to do such a thing."

InuYasha again turned his attention to Rin. "So," he said, "you just came to make good with the headman because it's the 'proper' thing to do."

"In these circumstances, yes."

Rin felt the unconscious need to squirm beneath the half-man's gaze.

"And you have no other business with Takeda?" InuYasha asked.

"There is the matter of my intended," Sesshomaru stated. "He insulted her honor, and as her future mate, I've come to demand that he apologize."

"Just apologize?" he asked, raising an eyebrow at his brother.

"If he apologizes, my lady will be satisfied with that, as will I."

"And if he doesn't apologize?" InuYasha asked.

"I will kill him," he said simply.

Rin swallowed hard. Okay, InuYasha didn't care that the headman lost his house . . . but will he just stand by and let Sesshomaru slaughter Takeda if he refuses to apologize?

"It's none of my business," InuYasha shrugged. "Takeda brought this on himself. But," he continued, "if you involve any of the other villagers in this, I'll have no choice but to step in. Can't have you going around wreaking bloody vengeance on innocent women and children."

"This Sesshomaru would do no such thing. I have business with him and no one else."

InuYasha nodded. "And I guess you wanna get this over and done with, now."

Sesshomaru nodded.

"Fine." The hanyou turned and stuck his head back in the hut. "Hey, Kagome, me and my brother got some business to attend to."

"What?"

Rin listened to the woman's somewhat heated reply.

"You two aren't fighting again, are you?" She stepped out onto the stoop, Tomi resting against her shoulder. "Sesshomaru. Rin."

They both inclined their heads slightly towards the woman.

"What's this all about?" she asked.

"Sesshomaru has some business with the headman," InuYasha replied.

"Oh?"

"It is an affair between men," Sesshomaru replied.

"Yeah, so I'm gonna step out for a couple of minutes," InuYasha said.

"This doesn't have anything to do with Rin, does it?" Kagome asked.

Rin refrained from answering.

"It is a matter between men," Sesshomaru repeated.

Kagome glanced around Sesshomaru to catch Rin's gaze. "Rin, is everything all right?"

"I'm fine," she nodded. She knew her lord had told her not speak, but since Kagome was talking directly to her . . .

"Takeda didn't do anything to you last night, did he?"

"Woman, mind your own affairs," Sesshomaru warned.

"When you come dragging my husband away from our home just after sunrise, I think it is my affair."

Kagome and Sesshomaru glared at one another.

"It's nothing, Kags." InuYasha threw an arm around her and squeezed. "I'll be back before you know it."

She continued to glare. "And exactly what were you planning on doing to the headman?"

Sesshomaru declined to answer.

"It's nothing," InuYasha insisted.

"You're keeping something from me. What is it?"

"It's nothing," he repeated more intently. "Just a matter between men."

She continued to glare at the demon lord.

"Just go back inside," InuYasha finally said. "Nothing bad's gonna happen. My brother just wants a word with Takeda, then we'll all come back here for breakfast."

"I will not eat human food," Sesshomaru stated.

"Well, Rin and I will come back here for breakfast." He kissed Kagome on the forehead. "Go back in, dear. It's kinda cold out here. Don't want Tomi catching cold, do we?"

Kagome sighed, seemingly defeated. She edged her way back inside, then stuck her head out the door. "Rin, I hope you know what you're getting into."

She didn't reply.

Sesshomaru scoffed and turned his nose up at her. "Come, Rin."

She nodded and fell into step behind the two brothers.

"I'm not kidding," Kagome called after them. "I want my mate returned in the exact same condition he left in."

"Stop worrying so much," InuYasha replied.

Yes, Rin thought. I'm worried enough for all of us.

Things had changed, now. It wasn't InuYasha or the other villagers she had to worry about, now. It was Takeda, himself. It wasn't her lord making demands of the hard-headed headman, something he would have no problem doing. But, now, her lord had to . . . apologize to the man. And Takeda, she assumed, had to accept the apology.

There were so many things that could go wrong with that. Too many things.

"Here we are," InuYasha said.

They'd stopped in front of a black, barren patch of ground across from the river. The smell of smoke was heavy in the air, and there were cinders and ashes abound. There wasn't a solid structure in sight, but it was easy to tell where everything had been-the outline of the structures burned into the earth, itself.

It was an eerie sight.

As Jakken had said, he'd burned everything. The only thing left was . . . emptiness. Yards and yards of emptiness. And the trees of the forest behind it, which was doubtless where Jakken had stood to cause such destruction.

"Where is this . . . headman?" Sesshomaru asked.

"Come to gloat, InuYasha?" Takeda appeared from behind a nearby tree. Apparently, he'd been searching the woodland for remnants from the fire. He was covered in ashes and soot, his formerly flawless features blackened and muddied by the fire.

"Feh, I've got better things to do."

"And you," Takeda slowly advanced towards Rin, "you're that pretty, little thing from last night."

A low growl escaped from the back of Sesshomaru's throat.

The headman took a step back into the ashes of his former home.

"Takeda," InuYasha said, "this is my brother, Sesshomaru. Rin's . . . companion." The half-demon took a few steps back and couldn't help smirking. Finally, somebody would give this guy what for. Kagome had always kept him from doing it with his lousy rosary and stupid "Sit" command, but Sesshomaru had no such restraints.

The headman swallowed hard.

"Is this true?" Sesshomaru asked. "Are you the village headman? Was this your property?"

"Stay back," the headman warned.

Sesshomaru smirked inwardly. Such a cowardly creature. He couldn't smell Takeda's fear, due to the strong scent of smoke and ashes, but his terror was clearly etched on his face. "This Sesshomaru expects an answer, human. Are you the headman of this village?"

"I didn't touch her!" he screamed. "If she said I did, she's lying."

This elicited another growl from Sesshomaru. First, he would imply that she was a whore, and now he claimed she was a liar, as well?

"Help!" Takeda cried. "Demons!"

Sesshomaru was now losing his patience. He wanted to know, explicitly, that this was the village headman, and it was to him he owed reparations.

But Takeda's cry roused some nearby villagers, and they stepped from their homes with pitchforks and various other weapons in hand.

Rin swallowed hard, her hand instinctively seeking out the hilt of her sword. She didn't want to hurt anyone, but she wouldn't let them hurt him either.

"False alarm, folks," InuYasha said. "My brother isn't here to hurt anyone; he just wants to have a word with our 'beloved' headman."

The villagers halted their advance and stood, staring at the spectacle before them. They formed a half circle around InuYasha, Sesshomaru and Rin. Takeda still stood in the center of his ruined house.

"What're you waiting for?" he demanded. "They're monsters," he said. "They've come to kill me, kill us."

Some of the villagers chuckled. They'd known InuYasha for years. True, he was a demon, but he wouldn't hurt them, or let them be hurt by anyone else. And his wife was the village miko. Their old miko, Kaede, had handpicked her, herself, right before her death.

"I'll ask one last time, human," Sesshomaru stated blandly. "Are you the village headman, the owner of this property?"

The villagers waited for Takeda's reply with bated breath.

"Answer the man," one of the villagers at last cried out. "Tell him you're the headman, Takeda."

Takeda was visibly shaking, now. His blue eyes darted around the crowd, desperately seeking some type of support.

"Just answer the man, Takeda. The festival starts in a few hours, and you have to start it off."

"Yeah," the rest of the villagers nodded in unison.

"I'm the headman," Takeda replied in a shaky but loud voice.

Sesshomaru inclined his head and reached inside his haori, just above his armor.

Takeda collapsed to his knees, wringing his hands tightly together. "Please, don't kill me. By the gods, I meant no offense."

Sesshomaru ignored his words and tossed him a small sack of coins.

The crowd stood stunned as Takeda stared blankly at the leather pouch.

"It came to this Sesshomaru's attention that one of his servants acted without cause and... created this mess."

Takeda stared at the bag of coins, then at the surrounding destruction.

"This Sesshomaru hopes that this . . . settles the matter and covers the cost of rebuilding and replacing what was lost."

Takeda's eyes widened in recognition. "You. You did this."

Sesshomaru inclined his head. "As this Sesshomaru has said, one of my servants--"

His words were interrupted by the clang of coins hitting the ground directly in front of him. He raised an eyebrow at the headman, who was now on his feet.

"Did you hear that!" Takeda demanded. "He did this. He burned my house. He destroyed my stables. He ruined my field." He raised a tremulous hand and pointed a finger directly at the demon lord. "This is your doing," he spat out.

"I have already said as much," he replied calmly. "My servant erred, and I am here to make reparations."

He spat at Sesshomaru's feet.

By the gods, Rin mumbled to herself.

"Human," Sesshomaru gritted out, "this Sesshomaru has done nothing to warrant this type of disrespect."

"Nothing!" Takeda declared. "You call this nothing?" He gestured to the land around him-the burnt earth, the former locations of his house, stable and field.

The demon lord inclined his head. "This Sesshomaru sees nothing where you stand."

Takeda spat again.

A low growl worked its way up Sesshomaru's throat, his claws tensing and flexing. "I warn you, human. This Sesshomaru will not tolerate this type of behavior. I came to . . . make amends, not to be spat upon."

Rin swallowed hard. This was going to get ugly-very, very ugly.

"You burn my house, destroy my stables, ruin my fields . . . erase every link I had to my family, and you expect me to be civil?"

Rin watched as InuYasha's hand slowly made his way to his sword. With all these people around, if Sesshomaru went for Takeda, innocent people could get hurt.

Her lord replied through clenched teeth. "This Sesshomaru has done the right thing in making reparations and . . ." Say it, he commanded himself. You will not give this human the satisfaction of disgracing yourself. Apologize and your honor is restored, your debt is repaid. If you do not, word of this will spread, and your reputation will be ruined. Will you let so low a creature sully your good name?

He drew in an unnoticeable breath and pushed it out, forcing himself to relax and his jaw to unclench . . . He hadn't caused Jakken nearly enough pain to cover the humiliations he'd had to endure today. First his brother, then his wench, and now this sniveling human.

But he had to do it. Duty and honor demanded it. "This Sesshomaru wishes to . . . apologize for any harm my servant may have caused. He acted without my knowledge or consent, and has been duly punished . . ." He paused to push the final words from his mouth. "Please accept these coins as payment for the damages done to your property."

My lord, Rin mouthed silently. The great demon lord Sesshomaru apologizing to a human. And not just any human, the very human that had so recently offended both him and his intended. This has to be killing him . . . It was hard enough when it was just me . . . But, this bastard?

"Apology not accepted," Takeda sneered.

The villagers gasped. InuYasha's hand was, now, quite firmly on his sword's hilt.

Takeda now stood a mere four feet in front of the Western lord. "You demons think you can wander around the countryside doing whatever you like. Pillaging, plundering," he turned a pointed glare on Rin, "raping."

Sesshomaru flexed his claws, a red tinge bleeding into his golden glare.

"Destroying villages, ending lives-killing for fun, for food. You disgust me. All of your kind."

One of the villagers behind Rin spoke out. "I'd shut up, now, if I were you, Takeda."

"Why should I?" he demanded. "He's 'sorry.' He destroyed my life, and he's 'sorry.'"

"Do not mock me, human."

"It is you who mocks me, who mocks us," he made a sweeping gesture towards the crowd. "I tell you this, monster. Now, that I know that you are the cause of my . . . misfortune, I shall hunt you down like the dog demon that I know you are. If no one in this village will help me, I know several in others who will."

The human's idle threats soon turned Sesshomaru's anger to boredom. How many such claims had he heard in his long life? "Do your worst, human. For even your worst is nothing to the Lord of the Western Lands."

"Oh, we shall see about that." Takeda tried to walk past him and into the crowd.

Sesshomaru moved to block his path, a white blur amongst the cinder and ash. "Our business is not concluded, human."

Takeda tried to keep his gaze steady and even, but it faltered and fell to the ground. "I've told you! I will not accept your apology."

"It matters not," Sesshomaru said. "The . . . apology has been made, and whether you accept it or not is of no consequence."

"Then what do you want?"

Sesshomaru gestured for Rin to come forward. She came to stand by his side.

"You will apologize to my lady," he said cooly.

"That?" he scoffed. "You wish me to apologize to that?"

The demon lord's eyes narrowed dangerously. "Watch to whom you are speaking, human."

A tremor seemed to work its way up Takeda's spine at Sesshomaru's icy tone, but the headman was determined to remain defiant. "I will not apologize, and I will not accept your apology." He gestured to the bag of coins on the ground behind them. "Why don't you take your blood money and spend it on your whore?"

Sesshomaru's hand shot out and gripped the human around the throat, lifting him three feet off the ground. "You are free to accept or reject my apology. The apology to my intended, however, is not optional."

The entire village watched as Takeda pissed himself. "Come on, somebody. Help! Are you just gonna stand there and let this monster push us around?"

Rin and InuYasha smirked at him. The villagers remained silent.

"Cowards!" Takeda screamed.

"They are not the ones covered in piss," Sesshomaru noted. "Now, my lady is waiting for an apology." He increased the pressure applied to his throat.

Takeda choked and sputtered. "I-I'm s-s-sorry."

"For what?" Sesshomaru asked.

"You're not a whore!" he screamed at Rin.

"Who is not a whore?"

When the headman hesitated, Sesshomaru turned his claws so that they protruded into the flesh of his neck.

"Who is not a whore?" he persisted.

"R-Rin is not a whore."

Sesshomaru growled. "Who are you to call my lady so familiarly?"

Blood trickled down from the sides of his neck. "L-Lady Rin," he corrected himself. "Lady Rin is not a whore."

"Apologize in full," the demon lord demanded.

"I-I apologize for c-calling you a whore, L-Lady R-R-Rin. Th-the Lady Rin is n-not a whore."

Sesshomaru tossed him to the ground. "Worthless." He flicked the blood from his claws into the grass. "We are leaving, Rin. Come along."

She smiled and nodded.

"Somebody get him cleaned up," InuYasha commanded, gesturing to Takeda. "And don't you dare bring him to my house. I'm sure he wouldn't want my 'whore' touching him," he snickered as he walked away, following his brother.

When they were out of earshot from the other villagers, Sesshomaru spoke. "I . . . thank you for your assistance in this matter, InuYasha."

"Feh, don't get all soft on me, Sesshomaru. You may have had to kiss up to Takeda, but you don't have to do the same to me."

"No," he agreed, "I do not."

"But he thanks you just the same," Rin added.

Sesshomaru glanced over his shoulder at her.

"I'm sorry. Am I still not allowed to talk?"

A slight smile tugged at the corners of his mouth. "You may talk as you will."

She smiled at him. "That wasn't nearly as bad as I thought it was going to be."

Sesshomaru directed his eyes back in front of him.

"I thought it was going to be a lot more bloody," she said. "Especially after the villagers appeared."

"Feh, they're useless," InuYasha said. "I'm the only real protection the villagers have."

"And, yet, some of them hate you."

The hanyou shrugged. "Not everybody can get along with everybody else. That's just the way it is."

They could see InuYasha's house up ahead, five huts down.

"Some people will always think they're better than other people for whatever reason," he continued. "Maybe it's because of their social status or their battle skills or their profession. Or maybe it's because they're pure this or pure that with lots of breeding and education . . . Or maybe somebody wronged them some time ago, and they feel the need to take it out on anybody who reminds them of that person."

Sesshomaru ignored his younger brother's prattling. They were finally at the hanyou's hut.

"Or maybe they're just unhappy with who they are," InuYasha concluded. "Well, this is me," he said. "You guys wanna come in for breakfast?"

"No," Sesshomaru replied.

"No thanks," Rin said.

"Well, you guys can come back tonight. There's more festival fun to be had."

Rin looked to Sesshomaru. Was there a reason to go now that the business with Takeda had been settled?

"If you wish to attend, you may. I stand by my previous statement. We will leave in two days."

"I don't wanna go if you're not going," she said.

"We shall just have to wait and see, then." He turned to leave. "Come along, Rin."

"Bye, InuYasha."

"Oh Rin," he gestured for her to come closer.

She watched as her lord continued to walk off into the distance. "What is it?"

"Another reason some people don't get along with other people: they're pompous asses."

"I heard that, InuYasha. Come along, Rin."

Rin giggled, then waved, sprinting after Sesshomaru. "I'm sure he didn't mean you," she said.

And I'm equally as sure he did, Sesshomaru thought. He definitely owed Jakken some more pain for this one.

******************************************************************* ****

Author's Note: Well, that's that. I didn't really expect this chapter to be that long, but Jakken and Takeda didn't wanna shut up . . . hehe. And I'm sorry it took so long, but you know, it's like that Matchbox 20 song-"I wish the real world would just stop hassling me." ^ ^ But the good news is I'll probably have another chapter out by late Friday, early Saturday.

Thank you for reading and reviewing, and I hope I didn't disappoint.

Love, peace and soul,

theMaven :)