InuYasha Fan Fiction ❯ Pinkie Swear ❯ The Secret of the Fang Tessaiga ( Chapter 7 )

Disclaimer: All publicly recognizable characters, settings, etc. are the property of their respective owners. The original characters and plot are the property of the author. The author is in no way associated with the owners, creators, or producers of any media franchise. No copyright infringement is intended.

 

Warning: Character death

 

=#= The Secret of the Fang Tessaiga =#=

 

Blood.

The smell of blood was everywhere; but the only scent he cared about was strangely missing. One by one, he identified the separate strands of individuals: the slayer, the monk, his brother's woman, the little kitsune. The foul smell of Jaken and the grating musk of his brother's sweat lingered in the air…but no sharp, clean fragrance of evergreen and spring rain greeted his nose.

Where was she?!

Wounded and bleeding, he limped through the battle field, searching the faces of corpses and praying he wouldn't find the one he sought among them. The wolf, the fire cat, and the strange one, the brother of the slayer, were among the ones he found, but not her.

Rin.

In the distance, the sounds of furious fighting still going on reached his ears, but he cared not. In his current state, he was more of a hindrance than a help to his brother. Even he, in all his youkai pride, knew to get out of the way of a grief crazed hanyou whose youkai blood was awakened.

He came to stand over the still, cooling corpse of the woman his brother had favored. Droplets of his blood fell across the miko's pale face and onto the battered blade of Tessaiga. For a moment, he was lost in memory, remembering how the fang had rejected Inuyasha upon the eve of the woman's death. Frustrated and furious, Inuyasha had thrown the useless blade down and gone after Naraku with his bare hands.

Curiously, he felt no petty satisfaction at the fact that the blade was no longer Inuyasha's. All he felt was tired; tired and desperate.

Rin.

A small whiff of her scent teased his nose, and he stilled as he carefully looked around him, wondering privately if he had imagined the smell. A gentle heartbeat registered after a moment of intent listening, and with growing urgency, Sesshoumaru focused on locating the source of the sound.

There.

Curled up in a ball underneath the protective shield of the woman—Kagome's—body was an unconscious, but very much alive Rin. Relief flooded his system as he rolled the woman off of Rin and cradled the little girl against him.

Precious.

His little girl was worth more than any empty victory he might achieve by defeating Naraku. Let Inuyasha—who had now thrice lost his love to Naraku—have the cold comfort of revenge. His treasure, Rin's smile, was safe.

What do you protect?

With a demanding throb, Tessaiga pulsed beside him, catching and holding his attention. When he failed to reach out and take the hilt, Tessaiga impatiently pulsed again. Sesshoumaru stared at it a moment, the irony not lost on him that now, of all times, Tessaiga was offering itself up to him. With dawning realization, his gaze fell to the dirt smudged face of Rin.

Was it really that simple?

With tentative fingers, he reached out and gripped the sword's handle, startling when Tessaiga practically leapt into his hand. No angry sizzle of its barrier greeted him; instead, the blade transformed as if eager to please its new master. With an energizing hum, Tessaiga's power thrummed through his being. Disbelievingly, Sesshoumaru hefted the blade, testing its weight in his hand.

The vow to protect.

That was the secret of his father's fang?!

He looked to where his brother fought full out; heavily damaging Naraku without making any real progress towards dispatching the enemy. His brother had lost that which he wished to protect…and had thrown away Tessaiga in order to embrace the chaos of his youkai ancestry. He had finally humbled himself enough to admit he needed a human, forsaking his youkai pride, and found the power he needed to protect that which was so very precious.

Rin.

 

=#=