InuYasha Fan Fiction ❯ Sengoku Babies ❯ Human on the Inside ( Chapter 3 )
[ Y - Young Adult: Not suitable for readers under 16 ]
By: penpaninu 
Rin's fear of female attention to her lord and the daily struggle in a court of demons.
Anime/Manga: InuYasha Fan Fiction | Genre(s): Fantasy | Type: Continuation | Uploaded On: 04.06.2008 | Pages: 2 | Words: 3.5K | Visits: 362 | Status: Work In Progress
Rin's fear of female attention to her lord and the daily struggle in a court of demons.
Anime/Manga: InuYasha Fan Fiction | Genre(s): Fantasy | Type: Continuation | Uploaded On: 04.06.2008 | Pages: 2 | Words: 3.5K | Visits: 362 | Status: Work In Progress
I have a few ideas for this loose sequel to my "Inutaisho Legacy" saga but haven't had time to work on it for awhile. I love writing about Sesshomaru, Rin, and their fears that many people can relate to. Who's ever felt like a stranger in a strange land? Perhaps you moved to a place that you haven't been raised or been at for very long; some people are nice, but overall, you feel like you don't get the point of the culture if you're not from there. And that can be disconcerting. Obviously I've experienced this, and I wanted to encorporate some of this into Rin's perspective. However, she's alittle different because she was raised with youkai since she was a child. I'm just looking at her fear of the youkai view of her position.
Dedicated in part to this bard's fiancee. Lovely wife, this one's for you.
The chapter title comes from the name of a Pretenders song. Give it a listen, it's pretty good.
Disclaimer: Penpaninu does not claim to own the likeness or the characters of Inuyasha, they belong to the solely imaginative Takahashi Rumiko. Her work was the first anime things I saw or read, so thanks!
"Sengoku Babies" chapter three
"Human on the Inside"
Rin walked grandly into the throne room. Her long black hair hung in precise plaits halfway down her back. The hem of her elaborately layered kimono trailed behind her on the polished wood floor. A wave of monstrously formed male and female youkai, delegates and courtiers, all bowed low in unison at her arrival. Rin, Lady of the Western Lands, wife to Lord Sesshomaru, held her head proudly and walked forward softly. Her gait was straight and perfect, her poise admirable. Rin saw several toothy smiles and the direct gaze of sharp eyes, but she kept calm deep in her belly. She learned long ago how to hold her cool in a wave of resentment.
No words had been spoken about her directly in the years she lived there, but behind the gracious words and cool tones, Rin could tell she was not loved by her Sesshomaru-sama's youkai court. They resented her and the resentment grew when Sesshomaru kept her, raised her, schooled her and then mated her. She was the sole person in her lord's multi-hundred year lifespan to receive his mark, and carried it beneath her kimono collar with pride.
Rin felt the eyes on her that mattered, and lifted her gaze to Sesshomaru's still expression. He was up on the high dais waiting, that tall platform with the elaborate table throne. Two flat cushions sat side by side and Sesshomaru was already kneeling at his own. His golden eyes enstilled his usual security and strength. Rin's red lips lifted softly and her slippered feet carried her softly the rest of the distance across the cavernous throne room. Inu youkai royal tradition dictated that the Lord of the Western Lands could have as many wives as possible, but Sesshomaru regarded such petty ideas with a large amount of disdain that his own try to place it on him. Even when Rin was a small girl, he had met this idea with cool hate.
Was he not the heir-son of the great Inutaisho-sama, the formidable Inu youkai with unsurpassable strength? He had proven that tradition ill-kept. Inutaisho had had only one youkai wife, and then Inuyasha's human mother. It may have been that Sesshomaru was raised with only Inutaisho's example, but Rin knew better. He hated anyone he didn't trust, and he didn't trust any of the youkai court. Sesshomaru hated embarrassment and he hated unneeded drama. Many wives would mean she wouldn't have been able to win his heart, and it would have even meant a fatal road for her.
In a world of youkai, strength meant victory. Rin had had a hard time conceiving and carrying Daikousai. If she had had to deal with other wives who would have taken her trials to their advantage, she knew she wouldn't have survived. She could only thank any kami listening that Sesshomaru only wanted her. Rin was his sole wife, and she meant to remain that way.
Sesshomaru's captain of guards, a large bull youkai known for getting the job done, bowed low on one knee and offered his hoof to Rin. She laid her small pale hand gently over it and used his help up the small flight of steps leading up to the table throne.
"My lady," he rumbled, his eyes lowered respectfully. Rin smiled and delicately rose ot the first step. He gently lifted to aid her better and soon she was ascending to her place at her lord's side. She had always liked this captain, because he unlike others, was sincere in his respects to her. She knew when he came and bowed, that he meant his devotion.
"My thanks, Captain," she whispered. The skin at the base of the Bull's thick neck reddened slightly. Sesshomaru regarded his captain with an icy gaze until Rin knelt at his side. Her layers settled around her in a wide arc and slowly fluttered down around her. Several female youkai smiled indulgently at her dark beauty and flaunted their looks before the throne but Sesshomaru was as unmoveable as stone. Rin felt good knowing he hated such flirtation, but it only made the delegates try harder. She sighed, feeling ice form inside her belly.
She may be his only wife with the most devoted Lord one could ask for, but it didn't meant that many didn't try Sesshomaru's patience.
The youkai lords seemed to send more female courtiers to his lands, and beneath the poetic words and the promises from their lords, they seemed to be out for only one thing. Sesshomaru dismissed their advances, left and right, and punished those responsible for such deliberate bribery with deeming harsh sentences or bodily mutilation. He wasn't one to forgive being crossed, Rin knew, but she knew his sentences, no matter how much they turned her stomach, were made to safeguard her place at his side, and their son's inheritance.
As always, Rin couldn't help from darting her gaze around her surroundings, her gut turning over at the thought of her son. When he wasn't with her, she knew she would always feel this way. Daikousai was hanyou, and as such, would always have a hard life in a world of demons. He wasn't in the throne room today, so Rin relaxed slightly. Jaken was watching him, and was the only one she trusted near her son when she had to be away.
"This Sesshomaru will hear your concerns at this time. Any insult borne in the Western Lands are an insult to this Sesshomaru," Sesshomaru rumbled. His low words reached every sharp ear in the room. Rin kept her eyes forward as the courtiers approached the throne one at a time to voice their exclaimations. The delegations for today had begun.
*****
"Mama! Mama!" Daikousai shouted happily. Rin smiled as she glided alone into her son's nursery. She knelt down, her kimono flaring and held her arms out for her child to crash into.
"Come here, baby," she crooned. Daikousai lurched out of Jaken's grasp and ran on chubby toddler legs, flying up on his last step to knock her back on her heels. "Ohhh! You're so heavy!"
"Hee," Daikousai grinned. His small sharp teeth glinted as he looked into Rin's dark eyes. Rin laughed as he panted when she tickled behind his ears. They wiggled like mad, reflecting his joy. Rin sobered slightly as she stroked the round cheeks of her son's face. His golden eyes gazed back, silent, as he took in his mother's suddenly serious mood.
"Mama sad?" he asked. Rin smiled, her eyes crinkling.
"No, Dai-chan. I was just thinking if your uncle would visit again soon," she said. Daikousai's eyes sparkled at the mention and he wriggled importantly.
"Unc' Yasha coming," he urged. Rin nodded and kissed his sweet-smelling brow.
"He just might be."
"Yeeeah!"
His uncle, the Lord Inuyasha, was a great pillar of strength in upping her son's appearance to Sesshomaru's court, no matter how stuck-up he thought they were. Rin admired his belligerent attitude in dealing with the annoyances she had to maintain with on a daily basis. While she longed to say what she wanted, Inuyasha seemed to speak for all of them in his verbal tongue-lashings.
Plus, he helped explain things any mother would need to know about her half-demon son's upbringing. Inuyasha had been the one to warn her about the nights of the new moon. He had explained to Sesshomaru about his limitations of scent, and even had taught their baby son how to hold certain smells and how to hone the sharp hearing of his puppy ears. He helped with Daikousai almost more than his own son, Inutaro, and Rin could only be grateful. While Inutaro was quarter demon, he was more human by far and could live in Kagome-sama's world with relative acceptance. He was exotic with only a handful of differences that could be easily maintained.
Daikousai was hanyou, and Inuyasha himself could easily relate. They were both half Inu and half human, both neither fully set in one world or the other. Great abilities were had to hold a piece of both sides, but there was always the conflict of being reminded that they didn't belong wholly in either.
"Daikousai-sama! You should get off your mother! Lady Rin, I'm so sorry! He just ran and attacked you!" Jaken fluttered nearby, hopping up and down. Rin smiled and kissed Daikousai's hair. He settled back on his rear, leaning against Rin's chest. She wrapped her arms around his small body. Her wide sleeves covered him all but nearly up.
"It's alright, Jaken-sama. Allow a mother this simple joy when the others aren't around," she asked. Jaken smiled and nodded.
"O-of course, Rin-sama! I would be glad to," he squawked. Daikousai regarded him seriously.
*****
Rin had eaten a simple dinner with Jaken and Daikousai alone in her private chambers, but now that her son was put down and Jaken was on guard, she went in search of her husband. Sesshomaru had been treating with the dignitaries long after he released the court to leave, but he never let it consume his full time.
It was passing strange that he would be gone this long. Rin remembered the knowing looks of the female youkai and tried not to shudder. They may thought they had a chance at her lord husband, but she remembered the day Sesshomaru had sent a bag of hands, all the claws well manicured, back to several of his lords. It was a gruesome memory, but a grim reminder that she was all that Sesshomaru wanted near him.
It didn't help with the daily fears sometimes. Rin glided along in a simpler kimono than the one she wore earlier, her gaze darting from side to side carefully. Usually she would find Sesshomaru in the gardens and it was there that her feet took her. A beautiful waterfall cascaded down into a pool lined with pristine white rocks. The noise of the water silenced most of the youkai world and Rin felt at peace.
Then she heard her husband's low voice around a nearby corner and she halted. A feminine giggle resounded with his tone. Rin swallowed, took a deep breath, and walked around the wall of rock. Sesshomaru stood there, in his elaborate white kimono trimmed with red crystantheums. A curved female stood at his side. Her golden eyes took in Rin insolently and she stopped in her tracks. She wanted to be sick, she wanted to fall down. Sesshomaru's gaze was as unreadable as his court face, but that could mean anything.
Rin wanted to shout, she wanted to throw off her calm exterior and demand what was going on. She recognized the female as one of the visiting dignitaries from the court room today, but she had no right to be alone with her lord. Sesshomaru had never given Rin any reason to doubt his loyalty, so this was unnecessary as it was questionable.
"My lady," Sesshomaru rumbled. His pectoral muscles were rigid, pushing his chest forward against his kimono lapels. Rin's gaze could have sliced him in two. "I have been more than ready to conclude todays business."
He pointedly meant for the youkai woman to scram and fast. The git luckily could take a hint and fell into a graceful bow towards him. Her bow to Rin was sloppily belligerent. "My thanks for hearing me on your own time, Lord Sesshomaru," she simpered.
Rin and Sesshomaru both ignored her. Her footsteps took her away and both stood stock-still long after she vanished around the wall of rock. The cascading water drowned out all surrounding noise, but Sesshomaru cooly inhaled his mate's anger and confusion. He knew she would want some explaining and he readied himself.
Sesshomaru knew Rin couldn't disappoint him, so when she stepped forward and laid her small palm against the silk of his kimono and heard her first question, he wasn't surprised.
"What were you doing along with her?" Rin wanted to know. Sesshomaru looked down into his mate's questioning gaze. Rin was angry, he could tell, but she was hiding a good deal of it behind a wall of calm politeness.
"She had concerns of a minor lord, is all. Why she needed to surprise this Sesshomaru in his gardens is beyond question," Sesshomaru admitted. He had told Rin the truth, he had come out here alone with every intent to clear his mind after the session at court. His pecs pushed against Rin's hand noticeably.
Rin's eyes softened ever so slightly as she felt the heartbeat behind his kimono layers. That double-chambered heart beat solely for her and her fingers carressed the fabric gently.
"Are you sure? You know what these courtiers are like," Rin asked softly. Sesshomaru swept his sole hand behind Rin's neck. His claws twined in her loose hair and he bowed his head down to hers.
"This Sesshomaru knows everyone's false intentions for our own," Sesshomaru murmured. "This Sesshomaru is tired of all of the eyes on the Western Lands. You should not have to be subject to what this Sesshomaru must handle at all times."
Rin sighed and curled her arms up around her husband's neck. She held herself up on her tiptoes to embrace him better. She felt much better when Sesshomaru's arm went full around her waist. She knew Sesshomaru was more open with his affections when they were alone, but even she was surprised at how fast his hand turned her head up to his for a kiss.
Rin melted against the wall of Sesshomaru's strong chest.
*****
It had been been days since that disturbing episode, and while Rin was happier with Sesshomaru's unasking forgiveness for the questionable incident, she still found cause for small concern.
The female youkai had been fortunate not to be dismembered for trapping Lord Sesshomaru alone had remained at the court for several more days longer than her lord's concerns allowed. She had bowed to the Lady Rin as courtesy demanded, but Rin could feel the laughing disdain behind the careful courtier's facade. Sesshomaru felt more agitated through their link, as he doggedly dealt with the legal matters by day and the domestic ones by night. He carried Daikousai close to his chest and doted on him when alone with his family. He showered Rin with touch and embrace, of course when alone from the court and even Jaken.
Rin felt as tight as a coiled wire in his arms. She couldn't keep from feeling Sesshomaru was trying to make up for a tryst, intended or accidental. Even when it didn't match up with his track record of rigid loyalty, Rin knew she had to be wrong. But she couldn't help the nervous dread that was slowly building up in her.
On the night when all the courtiers departed the Western Palace for the season, Rin felt free enough to express herself. When Sesshomaru came to her that night and made to take her into his arm, she was ready for a fight.
"Do you want other woman?" she asked lowly. Sesshomaru cocked his head to the side, his golden eyes questioning. His face was its usual still expression.
"Why does our Lady ask?" he rumbled. Rin hugged her sleeping robe around her curves. She held the garment close together to keep her body from her Lord's gaze. She didn't want his thoughts to go THAT way at a time like this.
"Because your Lady has every right to know when your Lady is your only wife," Rin snapped. Sesshomaru's eyebrow raised high. It was highly unusual for his Rin to exhibit such needless anger. He had to say, it was having the opposite effect on him. His arousal pushed forward slightly at the front of his robe.
Sesshomaru sighed and lowered his golden eyes to Rin's sharp black. "You are this Sesshomaru's only wife. You are the only wife this Sesshomaru needs," he said smoothly.
Rin smacked her palm against his chest. That got his attention again. "Then why didn't you punish that woman that was with you like all the others!"
Sesshomaru blinked. "Did you want her hands?"
"What? No!" This time it was Rin's turn to blink. "Why, did she touch you?"
"No." Sesshomaru's tone was flat. "This Sesshomaru does not give anyone the chance but you."
Rin fisted the fabric of her lord's robe and gazed up into his beloved timeless features. "I can't stand that woman for thinking she could, for trying... what would have happened if I hadn't come to?..."
"Rin!" Sesshomaru barked. He interrupted his wife with an abrupt kiss. He felt her accept him through their mark and he relaxed as she melted against his front. Just as abruptly, he lifted his face from Rin's. She stared at him, confused.
"What?" she asked. Sesshomaru carefully parted her robe open. Rin swatted his hand. Sesshomaru looked back into her eyes. Passion fueled his.
"You are the only one this Sesshomaru wants to be with. You are the only one this Sesshomaru dedicates himself to. Rin... Rin!" Sesshomaru turned his wife's face up to his when she turned away. "Accept that that's the way it is!"
Rin answered by grabbing the lapels of his robe and pulling wide. The silk tore with her abrupt and violent movement, exposing Sesshomaru's pale torso and belly. Part of the robe hung on his pressing manhood. He found he liked this ferocity in his mate.
"Rin..."
"You're going to need a new robe later, my Lord. Accept that THAT'S the way it is," she said. Sesshomaru grabbed Rin up in his arm and pressed her down on the bed. Afterwards, Rin lay curled against Sesshomaru's warm side, her cheek against his chest. She felt deeply connected to her lord and their marks throbbed in unison.
Sesshomaru ran his claws through Rin's black hair. He felt compelled to speak the words to help seal the conclusion to their days of trial but when he parted his lips, Rin touched her mouth to them.
"Rin..."
"My lord... you already explained. I know," she whispered. Sesshomaru's lips curved in the rare smiles only Rin saw alone in their chambers. The moon shone brightly through their open window as Rin knelt down again.
The next kiss lasted the rest of the night.
End for now
Hope you liked it! Sometimes I like doing a short story or two when marriage, work and my Impoverished Heir saga don't demand my full time :P Obviously Rin has matured to the years of a young woman, but has a longer lifespan thanks to her mated relationship with Sessh. Like it? Love it? Type a review! It only takes two seconds, and believe me, it's author's writing fuel. I thank each review in turn as well, so go on, make my doggy day!
penpaninu 4/06/08
Dedicated in part to this bard's fiancee. Lovely wife, this one's for you.
The chapter title comes from the name of a Pretenders song. Give it a listen, it's pretty good.
Disclaimer: Penpaninu does not claim to own the likeness or the characters of Inuyasha, they belong to the solely imaginative Takahashi Rumiko. Her work was the first anime things I saw or read, so thanks!
"Sengoku Babies" chapter three
"Human on the Inside"
Rin walked grandly into the throne room. Her long black hair hung in precise plaits halfway down her back. The hem of her elaborately layered kimono trailed behind her on the polished wood floor. A wave of monstrously formed male and female youkai, delegates and courtiers, all bowed low in unison at her arrival. Rin, Lady of the Western Lands, wife to Lord Sesshomaru, held her head proudly and walked forward softly. Her gait was straight and perfect, her poise admirable. Rin saw several toothy smiles and the direct gaze of sharp eyes, but she kept calm deep in her belly. She learned long ago how to hold her cool in a wave of resentment.
No words had been spoken about her directly in the years she lived there, but behind the gracious words and cool tones, Rin could tell she was not loved by her Sesshomaru-sama's youkai court. They resented her and the resentment grew when Sesshomaru kept her, raised her, schooled her and then mated her. She was the sole person in her lord's multi-hundred year lifespan to receive his mark, and carried it beneath her kimono collar with pride.
Rin felt the eyes on her that mattered, and lifted her gaze to Sesshomaru's still expression. He was up on the high dais waiting, that tall platform with the elaborate table throne. Two flat cushions sat side by side and Sesshomaru was already kneeling at his own. His golden eyes enstilled his usual security and strength. Rin's red lips lifted softly and her slippered feet carried her softly the rest of the distance across the cavernous throne room. Inu youkai royal tradition dictated that the Lord of the Western Lands could have as many wives as possible, but Sesshomaru regarded such petty ideas with a large amount of disdain that his own try to place it on him. Even when Rin was a small girl, he had met this idea with cool hate.
Was he not the heir-son of the great Inutaisho-sama, the formidable Inu youkai with unsurpassable strength? He had proven that tradition ill-kept. Inutaisho had had only one youkai wife, and then Inuyasha's human mother. It may have been that Sesshomaru was raised with only Inutaisho's example, but Rin knew better. He hated anyone he didn't trust, and he didn't trust any of the youkai court. Sesshomaru hated embarrassment and he hated unneeded drama. Many wives would mean she wouldn't have been able to win his heart, and it would have even meant a fatal road for her.
In a world of youkai, strength meant victory. Rin had had a hard time conceiving and carrying Daikousai. If she had had to deal with other wives who would have taken her trials to their advantage, she knew she wouldn't have survived. She could only thank any kami listening that Sesshomaru only wanted her. Rin was his sole wife, and she meant to remain that way.
Sesshomaru's captain of guards, a large bull youkai known for getting the job done, bowed low on one knee and offered his hoof to Rin. She laid her small pale hand gently over it and used his help up the small flight of steps leading up to the table throne.
"My lady," he rumbled, his eyes lowered respectfully. Rin smiled and delicately rose ot the first step. He gently lifted to aid her better and soon she was ascending to her place at her lord's side. She had always liked this captain, because he unlike others, was sincere in his respects to her. She knew when he came and bowed, that he meant his devotion.
"My thanks, Captain," she whispered. The skin at the base of the Bull's thick neck reddened slightly. Sesshomaru regarded his captain with an icy gaze until Rin knelt at his side. Her layers settled around her in a wide arc and slowly fluttered down around her. Several female youkai smiled indulgently at her dark beauty and flaunted their looks before the throne but Sesshomaru was as unmoveable as stone. Rin felt good knowing he hated such flirtation, but it only made the delegates try harder. She sighed, feeling ice form inside her belly.
She may be his only wife with the most devoted Lord one could ask for, but it didn't meant that many didn't try Sesshomaru's patience.
The youkai lords seemed to send more female courtiers to his lands, and beneath the poetic words and the promises from their lords, they seemed to be out for only one thing. Sesshomaru dismissed their advances, left and right, and punished those responsible for such deliberate bribery with deeming harsh sentences or bodily mutilation. He wasn't one to forgive being crossed, Rin knew, but she knew his sentences, no matter how much they turned her stomach, were made to safeguard her place at his side, and their son's inheritance.
As always, Rin couldn't help from darting her gaze around her surroundings, her gut turning over at the thought of her son. When he wasn't with her, she knew she would always feel this way. Daikousai was hanyou, and as such, would always have a hard life in a world of demons. He wasn't in the throne room today, so Rin relaxed slightly. Jaken was watching him, and was the only one she trusted near her son when she had to be away.
"This Sesshomaru will hear your concerns at this time. Any insult borne in the Western Lands are an insult to this Sesshomaru," Sesshomaru rumbled. His low words reached every sharp ear in the room. Rin kept her eyes forward as the courtiers approached the throne one at a time to voice their exclaimations. The delegations for today had begun.
*****
"Mama! Mama!" Daikousai shouted happily. Rin smiled as she glided alone into her son's nursery. She knelt down, her kimono flaring and held her arms out for her child to crash into.
"Come here, baby," she crooned. Daikousai lurched out of Jaken's grasp and ran on chubby toddler legs, flying up on his last step to knock her back on her heels. "Ohhh! You're so heavy!"
"Hee," Daikousai grinned. His small sharp teeth glinted as he looked into Rin's dark eyes. Rin laughed as he panted when she tickled behind his ears. They wiggled like mad, reflecting his joy. Rin sobered slightly as she stroked the round cheeks of her son's face. His golden eyes gazed back, silent, as he took in his mother's suddenly serious mood.
"Mama sad?" he asked. Rin smiled, her eyes crinkling.
"No, Dai-chan. I was just thinking if your uncle would visit again soon," she said. Daikousai's eyes sparkled at the mention and he wriggled importantly.
"Unc' Yasha coming," he urged. Rin nodded and kissed his sweet-smelling brow.
"He just might be."
"Yeeeah!"
His uncle, the Lord Inuyasha, was a great pillar of strength in upping her son's appearance to Sesshomaru's court, no matter how stuck-up he thought they were. Rin admired his belligerent attitude in dealing with the annoyances she had to maintain with on a daily basis. While she longed to say what she wanted, Inuyasha seemed to speak for all of them in his verbal tongue-lashings.
Plus, he helped explain things any mother would need to know about her half-demon son's upbringing. Inuyasha had been the one to warn her about the nights of the new moon. He had explained to Sesshomaru about his limitations of scent, and even had taught their baby son how to hold certain smells and how to hone the sharp hearing of his puppy ears. He helped with Daikousai almost more than his own son, Inutaro, and Rin could only be grateful. While Inutaro was quarter demon, he was more human by far and could live in Kagome-sama's world with relative acceptance. He was exotic with only a handful of differences that could be easily maintained.
Daikousai was hanyou, and Inuyasha himself could easily relate. They were both half Inu and half human, both neither fully set in one world or the other. Great abilities were had to hold a piece of both sides, but there was always the conflict of being reminded that they didn't belong wholly in either.
"Daikousai-sama! You should get off your mother! Lady Rin, I'm so sorry! He just ran and attacked you!" Jaken fluttered nearby, hopping up and down. Rin smiled and kissed Daikousai's hair. He settled back on his rear, leaning against Rin's chest. She wrapped her arms around his small body. Her wide sleeves covered him all but nearly up.
"It's alright, Jaken-sama. Allow a mother this simple joy when the others aren't around," she asked. Jaken smiled and nodded.
"O-of course, Rin-sama! I would be glad to," he squawked. Daikousai regarded him seriously.
*****
Rin had eaten a simple dinner with Jaken and Daikousai alone in her private chambers, but now that her son was put down and Jaken was on guard, she went in search of her husband. Sesshomaru had been treating with the dignitaries long after he released the court to leave, but he never let it consume his full time.
It was passing strange that he would be gone this long. Rin remembered the knowing looks of the female youkai and tried not to shudder. They may thought they had a chance at her lord husband, but she remembered the day Sesshomaru had sent a bag of hands, all the claws well manicured, back to several of his lords. It was a gruesome memory, but a grim reminder that she was all that Sesshomaru wanted near him.
It didn't help with the daily fears sometimes. Rin glided along in a simpler kimono than the one she wore earlier, her gaze darting from side to side carefully. Usually she would find Sesshomaru in the gardens and it was there that her feet took her. A beautiful waterfall cascaded down into a pool lined with pristine white rocks. The noise of the water silenced most of the youkai world and Rin felt at peace.
Then she heard her husband's low voice around a nearby corner and she halted. A feminine giggle resounded with his tone. Rin swallowed, took a deep breath, and walked around the wall of rock. Sesshomaru stood there, in his elaborate white kimono trimmed with red crystantheums. A curved female stood at his side. Her golden eyes took in Rin insolently and she stopped in her tracks. She wanted to be sick, she wanted to fall down. Sesshomaru's gaze was as unreadable as his court face, but that could mean anything.
Rin wanted to shout, she wanted to throw off her calm exterior and demand what was going on. She recognized the female as one of the visiting dignitaries from the court room today, but she had no right to be alone with her lord. Sesshomaru had never given Rin any reason to doubt his loyalty, so this was unnecessary as it was questionable.
"My lady," Sesshomaru rumbled. His pectoral muscles were rigid, pushing his chest forward against his kimono lapels. Rin's gaze could have sliced him in two. "I have been more than ready to conclude todays business."
He pointedly meant for the youkai woman to scram and fast. The git luckily could take a hint and fell into a graceful bow towards him. Her bow to Rin was sloppily belligerent. "My thanks for hearing me on your own time, Lord Sesshomaru," she simpered.
Rin and Sesshomaru both ignored her. Her footsteps took her away and both stood stock-still long after she vanished around the wall of rock. The cascading water drowned out all surrounding noise, but Sesshomaru cooly inhaled his mate's anger and confusion. He knew she would want some explaining and he readied himself.
Sesshomaru knew Rin couldn't disappoint him, so when she stepped forward and laid her small palm against the silk of his kimono and heard her first question, he wasn't surprised.
"What were you doing along with her?" Rin wanted to know. Sesshomaru looked down into his mate's questioning gaze. Rin was angry, he could tell, but she was hiding a good deal of it behind a wall of calm politeness.
"She had concerns of a minor lord, is all. Why she needed to surprise this Sesshomaru in his gardens is beyond question," Sesshomaru admitted. He had told Rin the truth, he had come out here alone with every intent to clear his mind after the session at court. His pecs pushed against Rin's hand noticeably.
Rin's eyes softened ever so slightly as she felt the heartbeat behind his kimono layers. That double-chambered heart beat solely for her and her fingers carressed the fabric gently.
"Are you sure? You know what these courtiers are like," Rin asked softly. Sesshomaru swept his sole hand behind Rin's neck. His claws twined in her loose hair and he bowed his head down to hers.
"This Sesshomaru knows everyone's false intentions for our own," Sesshomaru murmured. "This Sesshomaru is tired of all of the eyes on the Western Lands. You should not have to be subject to what this Sesshomaru must handle at all times."
Rin sighed and curled her arms up around her husband's neck. She held herself up on her tiptoes to embrace him better. She felt much better when Sesshomaru's arm went full around her waist. She knew Sesshomaru was more open with his affections when they were alone, but even she was surprised at how fast his hand turned her head up to his for a kiss.
Rin melted against the wall of Sesshomaru's strong chest.
*****
It had been been days since that disturbing episode, and while Rin was happier with Sesshomaru's unasking forgiveness for the questionable incident, she still found cause for small concern.
The female youkai had been fortunate not to be dismembered for trapping Lord Sesshomaru alone had remained at the court for several more days longer than her lord's concerns allowed. She had bowed to the Lady Rin as courtesy demanded, but Rin could feel the laughing disdain behind the careful courtier's facade. Sesshomaru felt more agitated through their link, as he doggedly dealt with the legal matters by day and the domestic ones by night. He carried Daikousai close to his chest and doted on him when alone with his family. He showered Rin with touch and embrace, of course when alone from the court and even Jaken.
Rin felt as tight as a coiled wire in his arms. She couldn't keep from feeling Sesshomaru was trying to make up for a tryst, intended or accidental. Even when it didn't match up with his track record of rigid loyalty, Rin knew she had to be wrong. But she couldn't help the nervous dread that was slowly building up in her.
On the night when all the courtiers departed the Western Palace for the season, Rin felt free enough to express herself. When Sesshomaru came to her that night and made to take her into his arm, she was ready for a fight.
"Do you want other woman?" she asked lowly. Sesshomaru cocked his head to the side, his golden eyes questioning. His face was its usual still expression.
"Why does our Lady ask?" he rumbled. Rin hugged her sleeping robe around her curves. She held the garment close together to keep her body from her Lord's gaze. She didn't want his thoughts to go THAT way at a time like this.
"Because your Lady has every right to know when your Lady is your only wife," Rin snapped. Sesshomaru's eyebrow raised high. It was highly unusual for his Rin to exhibit such needless anger. He had to say, it was having the opposite effect on him. His arousal pushed forward slightly at the front of his robe.
Sesshomaru sighed and lowered his golden eyes to Rin's sharp black. "You are this Sesshomaru's only wife. You are the only wife this Sesshomaru needs," he said smoothly.
Rin smacked her palm against his chest. That got his attention again. "Then why didn't you punish that woman that was with you like all the others!"
Sesshomaru blinked. "Did you want her hands?"
"What? No!" This time it was Rin's turn to blink. "Why, did she touch you?"
"No." Sesshomaru's tone was flat. "This Sesshomaru does not give anyone the chance but you."
Rin fisted the fabric of her lord's robe and gazed up into his beloved timeless features. "I can't stand that woman for thinking she could, for trying... what would have happened if I hadn't come to?..."
"Rin!" Sesshomaru barked. He interrupted his wife with an abrupt kiss. He felt her accept him through their mark and he relaxed as she melted against his front. Just as abruptly, he lifted his face from Rin's. She stared at him, confused.
"What?" she asked. Sesshomaru carefully parted her robe open. Rin swatted his hand. Sesshomaru looked back into her eyes. Passion fueled his.
"You are the only one this Sesshomaru wants to be with. You are the only one this Sesshomaru dedicates himself to. Rin... Rin!" Sesshomaru turned his wife's face up to his when she turned away. "Accept that that's the way it is!"
Rin answered by grabbing the lapels of his robe and pulling wide. The silk tore with her abrupt and violent movement, exposing Sesshomaru's pale torso and belly. Part of the robe hung on his pressing manhood. He found he liked this ferocity in his mate.
"Rin..."
"You're going to need a new robe later, my Lord. Accept that THAT'S the way it is," she said. Sesshomaru grabbed Rin up in his arm and pressed her down on the bed. Afterwards, Rin lay curled against Sesshomaru's warm side, her cheek against his chest. She felt deeply connected to her lord and their marks throbbed in unison.
Sesshomaru ran his claws through Rin's black hair. He felt compelled to speak the words to help seal the conclusion to their days of trial but when he parted his lips, Rin touched her mouth to them.
"Rin..."
"My lord... you already explained. I know," she whispered. Sesshomaru's lips curved in the rare smiles only Rin saw alone in their chambers. The moon shone brightly through their open window as Rin knelt down again.
The next kiss lasted the rest of the night.
End for now
Hope you liked it! Sometimes I like doing a short story or two when marriage, work and my Impoverished Heir saga don't demand my full time :P Obviously Rin has matured to the years of a young woman, but has a longer lifespan thanks to her mated relationship with Sessh. Like it? Love it? Type a review! It only takes two seconds, and believe me, it's author's writing fuel. I thank each review in turn as well, so go on, make my doggy day!
penpaninu 4/06/08