InuYasha Fan Fiction ❯ Leaving the Past ❯ Chapter Ten ( Chapter 10 )

Author's Note - I'm sorry that this has taken me so long to update! (I've had many outside commitments to attend to these days.) Thank you for each and every review! Killer Potatoes, you are GREAT for leaving a note after each installment! Dark Phoenix, I would have contacted you privately but your email wasn't listed. I wanted to thank you in particular for your detailed comments (Yeah, I loved putting poor Rin through that angst-drenched farewell with Sesshy! ^_^). Funny as this may sound, I also want to thank you for not automatically giving me perfect marks across the board. It's very rare to get thoughtful reviews/ratings that point out a story's weaknesses as well as strengths. I appreciate you doing that for me! I agree that the basic plot of this story is very similar to many Rin/Sess out there, but I hope that my treatment will continue to be slightly different. To be continued…

Chapter Ten

"Stupid wolves," muttered Inuyasha through clenched teeth.

He was sitting outside the house, back propped up against the wall. Tetsusaiga was stuck upright in the ground next to him.

"Maybe they won't attack this soon," Ichiro fretted quietly to Rin. They were kneeling side by side not far from where Inuyasha was resting. "Inuyasha heals quickly."

"No, they're demons too. They know how quickly a demon heals," Inuyasha answered out loud.

Kagome sat next to him, the baby squirming in her arms.

"Da, Da, Da," smiled Akio, trying to reach for Inuyasha's ear.

Inuyasha was very still.

"It was only a matter of time," he continued, half to himself. "They're driving off all the demons in this area, and I'm sure that includes half-demons too. They would have come eventually." Kagome leaned over and laid her head on his shoulder.

Rin wondered if Kirara and Jiro had found Sesshoumaru.

They waited, silently. Inuyasha closed his eyes. Half an hour passed.

Inuyasha opened his eyes suddenly and stood up, startling Rin. He rocked forward, struggling to regain his balance.

"Kagome," he said, scanning the forest. "Take Akio inside."

"Inuyasha?"

"NOW."

Kagome hugged her son tightly and stumbled into the house.

"They're coming," said Inuyasha.

Rin and Ichiro jumped to their feet.

Rin heard the youkai arrive before she could see them - loud meowing, and the rustling of leaves just ahead as shadows moved among the trees. One by one, glinting pairs of narrow cats' eyes appeared in the black fringe of the forest.

Two figures stepped out of the darkness. Rin's breath caught in her throat. She knew them. She had encountered cat demons before. The dim memory leapt to her mind. Two cat youkai - both now standing before her, the male wearing heavy gold and bronze armor, long black hair curling down his back. Like her former protector, his status and power as a tai-youkai were immediately apparent. Unlike Sesshoumaru however, his face did not express placid if deadly indifference, but distinct malice and cruelty. And, as he appraised them, triumph. The cat lord was clearly not threatened by the sight of a wounded half-demon, or two humans. But it was the female that Rin remembered best - a tall woman, with long shimmery hair, her mouth set in a light but cold smile. A sword dangled from her hip, and in her hands she carried a long white staff. Rin remembered thinking at the time that Sesshoumaru had found the demon attractive. And she was attractive, possessing all the unnatural beauty and grace movement of a tai-youkai herself. Rin even recalled the name by which Sesshoumaru had addressed her: Touran.

"Worthless half-breed," snarled the male warrior. Inuyasha set his teeth on edge. In his grip Tetsusaiga transformed into a large fang.

"Bring it on," he growled angrily.

The demon waited for no further words. He charged Inuyasha, his own curved sword glimmering with red light.

Swords clashed twice, twice again. Inuyasha shouted as Tetsusaiga struck against the cat lord's weapon with a wave of sonic thunder.

With amazed hope Rin watched as the cat was repelled. But hope quickly turned to dread as she looked to Inuyasha. His wounds had reopened - a wet dark stain rapidly spreading along the side of his red fire rat jacket. He was panting, his eyes burning with pain and rage. Rage, and fear.

Not fear for himself. Rin thought of Akio - his tiny helpless fists and fangs. Stay near the house. She had to protect Kagome and the baby. Even if it meant her own life. Growls and meows intensified just beyond the brush. There were other demons out there, holding back. Ichiro raised his sickle.

The male demon attacked again. This time Touran joined him, assailing Inuyasha from the rear. The point of her staff punched sharply against the hanyou's left elbow. There was a crunch of breaking bone as Inuyasha screamed in agony. A second blow from her husband knocked him to the dirt.

With Inuyasha momentarily down, the other cats finally burst from the forest. Cat warriors covered in brown fur, claws and weapons extended, screeching as they attacked.

With both hands Rin hurled two balls of poison. They exploded into dust as they impacted against the ground. Covering her mouth, she heard piercing screams as the dust burned their eyes.

"Rin! Get down!"

She reacted instantly, her body instinctively putting into action the years of defensive training with Sango. Rin fell to the ground as Ichiro's sickle soared over where her head had been seconds before, striking two demons in the clearing air behind her. Not wasting any time, she swung her legs around on the ground, tripping a third. She scooped up his weapon - a long wooden pike - slamming him in the head with the blunt end.

Two more demons attacked. She fought them, struggling to catch a glimpse of Inuyasha. She heard him shouting, Ichiro shouting, metal crashing against metal. More demons attacking. From the corner of her eye Rin watched too late as a demon's fist connected with Ichiro's jaw. The boy crumpled to the ground.

A cat swung for her. She jumped back but he caught her side, the blow strong enough to knock her down. He reached for her as she kicked upwards with both feet, deflecting him. Another grabbed for her. Rin's hand flew for her dagger, swiftly pulling it from her side and ramming it upwards and against his chest. She choked back her horrified shock as he staggered away, leaving her hands covered in blood. She scrambled for the pike.

But the cats had paused. They were hissing softly, their attention suddenly focused away from Rin. Several cautiously stepped backwards, closer to the line of trees. She stretched her neck around.

He was standing pale in the darkness, not far from them. A tall figure, dressed in white, the ties of his colored sash moving slightly in the wind.

Sesshoumaru had come.

The cat youkai growled quietly. Both Touran and her husband whirled around.

Relief and love poured over Rin. He had come. He would always come. Even if she couldn't have him in the way she wanted, even so, he would never abandon her. She fought back a joyful urge to call out his name.

Sesshoumaru did not look at her. He was calm, expressionless.

"How touching!" laughed Karan. But her laughter sounded forced. "I should have known you'd come to look after your little brother."

Sesshoumaru narrowed his eyes.

"I don't know why he's here, and I don't need anybody's help," scowled Inuyasha, crawling towards Tetsusaiga.

Rin suddenly understood why Sesshoumaru so often lost his temper with his sibling.

Sesshoumaru looked at him.

"Inuyasha," he said, coolly. "Shut up."

He spoke to Touran, ignoring her companion's surprised glare of hatred.

"I thought you had sworn never again to invade these territories," he said. A slight smile appeared on his lips. "I should have known that a Cat would have no honor."

Karan frowned.

"This was not my choice," she answered. She did not look pleased.

The warrior growled. He lifted his sword and attacked with the preternatural speed of a youkai.

Sesshoumaru moved just as quickly to the right, dodging easily. He pulled Toukijin from his side in the same fluid movement, quickly whipping it around and against the curved red sword of his opponent. Deadly energy crackled from the two weapons as the two tai-youkai struggled, then broke apart.

Sesshoumaru was quicker on the second charge, striking the cat's shoulder guard, the force from Toukijin shattering his heavy breastplate and armor.

From where she crouched, Rin felt the hairs on the back of her neck stand up. Someone was watching her.

It was Touran. The youkai smiled.

"Sesshoumaru," she called out in a ringing voice. "She's quite grown up, isn't she?"

Sesshoumaru's eyes went not to Rin, but to Karan.

The demon raised her staff and pointed it at Rin. A blast of icy blue power hurtled through the air.

Sesshoumaru leapt away from the male demon and caught the blast on his sword. Blue lightening danced along Toukijin's blade before Sesshoumaru swept it back towards Touran's direction. Touran was hit full in the chest, screaming as she was thrown backwards. Rin scrambled towards Inuyasha's doorway. Too late Sesshoumaru spun around again to face his opponent. The cat demon was already there, his own sword crashing against Toukijin and knocking it from its master's grip. A second blow caught Sesshoumaru on the chest - stopped from cutting him by his armor, but the force of the demonic energy propelling him backwards against the wall of the house. To Rin's horror he did not get up. The cat lord raised his sword again.

"Drop it," ordered Inuyasha suddenly from behind. He smiled grimly as he held Tetsusaiga against Touran's throat. The demoness was half sitting, half lying on the ground. Her eyes flew wide with panic. She looked towards her husband.

His eyes turned to her and Inuyasha. Then his mouth curled into a sneer as he swiftly returned his attention to Sesshoumaru. He lifted his sword to deliver the deathblow.

"Sesshoumaru!" Rin screamed.

Touran's face contorted with anger. Even Inuyasha looked a little taken aback. Karan took advantage of his uncertainty, and slashed him across the cheek with her claws. She lunged for her staff and swung it upward, connecting with Inuyasha's skull and knocking him to the ground.

"Die like a dog," hissed the demon, lifting his red sword into the air.

"No!" Rin cried, throwing herself in front of her former guardian's body.

Sesshoumaru grabbed her arm and flung her aside.

Rin instantly rolled to her feet and screamed, charging the youkai with her fists. He kicked her sharply in the stomach, knocking her back against Sesshoumaru.

TWANG!

The cat demon fell over thrashing in the dust, Kagome's purity arrow lodged in his throat. Kagome stood in her doorway and fitted another arrow to the string.

Stunned, Rin stayed leaning against Sesshoumaru. She could feel his labored breathing on the back of her neck, breathing that would have been imperceptible to anyone not so closely near him. Her own heart was pounding. Rin felt his muscles tense beneath her.

"Touran… help me…" The cat youkai lay wheezing on his back.

Touran's eyes traveled from his prostrate form to Kagome, then to Sesshoumaru and Inuyasha, the latter panting but still standing, leaning on Tetsusaiga for support. She hesitated for a moment, then smiled harshly.

"Panthers of the West, we depart!"

Sesshoumaru sprung into the air, knocking Rin to the side, lashing his poison whip in Touran's direction. Before it reached her, the demon had thrown both arms downward as a barrier of ice rose from the ground, blocking the attack. She laughed and lifted into the air as the wall of ice exploded and hurled towards them. Sesshoumaru somersaulted backwards, as Rin and Kagome dropped to the ground together, shielding their heads with their arms. When Rin raised her head, Touran was gone and more than half of the cat warriors were retreating in the direction of the west. The remaining cat youkai looked at each other in panic.

"KAZE NO KIZU!" screamed Inuyasha, bringing down Tetsusaiga and slaughtering the demons in its path.

"RETREAT!" shrieked a cat, "RETREAT TO THE NORTH!" He gurgled blood as Sesshoumaru's sword slashed through his chest.

"RETREAT!" the cat warriors cried, scattering and running recklessly away from the village.

Sesshoumaru made to pursue them, then stopped, his eyes darting towards Inuyasha. Inuyasha's head was bowed, his breathing loud and rattling. He dropped to his knees, and collapsed face forward on the ground.

"Inuyasha!" Kagome screamed, running and dropping down beside him.

Movement to her right caught Rin's attention. Ichiro had pulled himself to his hands and knees, shaking his head. She looked back to Sesshoumaru. He was standing still, the breeze lifting his long white hair and fluttering in his torn sleeves. His face was impassive, but his eyes were still fixed on his brother's prone body. Rin gazed at him for a long second, afraid that he would disappear the moment she looked away. Then she remembered her responsibilities, hastily scrambled to her feet and stumbled to Kagome's side.

Rin couldn't know it, but as she moved a pair of eyes flew to her. Golden eyes that studied her, with an intensity that their owner would never allow anyone to interpret.