InuYasha Fan Fiction ❯ Teaching Rin ❯ Chapter 5 ( Chapter 5 )

Disclaimer - It doesn't belong to me. Never did. I only own Kaida, and her family, and anyone else that I made up. J

A/N - Thanks so much for the feedback. I was afraid the story would be a bust because of the new characters I put in. I'm glad there are some who actually like it. **blushes**

Special thanks to these people at FF.Net:

Fuji the Hobbit- Yeah, I did have it posted before. Unfortunately, I deleted it on accident. So, I reposted it. I'm glad you think I'm keeping Sesshy in character. He's a tough little puppy for me to write the correct way. Thanks for the review, and I hope you like the new chapter.

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AngelWings - **Ducks as monkey flies over me** NO!!! Keep the evil monkeys AWAY!!!! AHHHH!!! **Grabs a bunch of bananas and throws them far away.** Whoa! That was close! *Wipes sweat from forehead** Here's the next chapter! Just keep the winged primates away from me!! J

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Teaching Rin

Chapter 5

Ronin and Haruto, the Lords of Eastern and Northern Japan respectively, descended the stairs quickly, speaking only to each other when necessary. Lord Ronin, the kitsune ruler of the Eastern Lands, and Lord Haruto, the neko ruler of the Northern Lands, were not on good terms with each other, even on the best of days. And today was no different.

The final meeting had just ended, and Ryu had escorted Sesshomaru down to the courtyard to bid him a safe trip back to his homelands, leaving the two other nobles to deal with each others company. Behind them, the Lord's own sons were following, throwing glares at each other whenever they thought the other was not looking. It was definitely a hostile environment between the two.

As they finally came into the courtyard, their eyes were drawn to the far side where Sesshomaru and Rin were being seen off by the Southern Lord, and Kaida. Much to their surprise, they saw a huge green dragon land in the courtyard not far from where Kaida was standing. The dragon woman then secured her pack on its back while Sesshomaru lifted Rin up onto his own two-headed dragon Ah-Uh in preparation for the flight.

"The half-breed is Sesshomaru's only guard?" Haruto sneered, watching as the departing group hovered in the air for a few minutes. "One guard is hardly adequate, or appropriate for that matter."

"The Lady Kaida is not accompanying Sesshomaru as a guard, Haruto." Ronin said simply, realizing that the Northern Lord had not heard of Kaida's new position.

"What do you mean?" Kiyoshi piped up, stepping up beside his father and looking over to the Eastern Lord.

"Lady Kaida is to be Lady Rin's instructor." Kentaro answered airily, watching as Kiyoshi and Haruto's face grew red with subdued anger. "She's to live in the Western Lands with Lord Sesshomaru and Lady Rin until it is time for Lady Rin's presentation at court."

"Yes. Ryu was quite reluctant to let her go, or so I'd heard." Kentaro's brother Hoshi said, noticing how his younger sibling's eyes stayed on Rin until she disappeared above the clouds. "But she will be safe under Lord Sesshomaru's protection the entire time, so I do not see what his concern is about. No one in their right mind would try to hurt her."

"Besides, Lady Kaida can take care of herself." Ronin said. "Don't you think so, Haruto? You've seen her fight, have you not?"

"Indeed, I have." the neko ground out. "She's quite an adept opponent. Unfortunately, her removal will cause a small problem in the upcoming months." His blood was boiling knowing that his son's soon to be mate had slipped out from their fingers because of some ridiculous human girl.

"Really?" Ronin asked, faking interest in the conversation at this point. "How so?" It was a well known fact that Kaida despised the Northern family, along with most of the other nobles, and was searching for a way out of the arranged marriage.

"Lady Kaida was to join our family within the month." Saburo answered, his eyes sliding over to his brother's taunt form. "However it seems your mating ceremony will be put off until after Lady Rin's court presentation, Kiyoshi." Saburo was the only decent male out of the entire family, and would be a better ruler when his own father finally died, which Ronin hoped would be sooner, rather than later.

"So it would seem." Kiyoshi growled.

"Better keep a good check on her." Hoshi snickered, cocking his head to one side in a typical kitsune like manner. "Kaida is a good demoness. You may lose her affections to a rogue demon in the West if you are not careful." Kiyoshi just nodded, dropping the subject, and wishing he could knock that arrogant smirk off of the fox's face. He would speak with his father when they returned to their own homelands in order to find out how long Kaida would be gone. Her placement as Rin's teacher had angered him greatly, and his father as well b y the looks of things.

'She runs from me, but goes with that mangy mongrel to teach a worthless human!' he thought angrily, following behind his father as they walked to where Ryu was standing in the now empty courtyard. 'That dragon bitch will pay dearly for this. I will have her, and I will break her of such obvious disobedience……'

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The flight back to Sesshomaru's Western Lands was flown in utter silence by the travelers. Kaida's initial nervousness had started to wear off, leaving her more ready to accept the challenges that lay before her concerning Rin. She kept telling herself that it would be worth leaving her homelands and going with that arrogant mutt Sesshomaru if she was guaranteed safe clearance from Kiyoshi for at least six months, and possibly more.

She sighed and looked over at Rin, who was speaking quietly with the Western Lord. Kaida smiled slightly at seeing the minute changes in the two Westerners as they neared their home grounds. They seemed more relaxed and less paranoid once they had passed the border into the West. Well, at least Rin looked a little happier. Sesshomaru was the same, other than the fact his eyes quit darting about every half-second as if searching for an ambush.

Kaida looked down at the vast expanses of forest below her, truly amazed with the healthy green color. Since her homelands in the South were mostly rocky coastline, and there were few patches of trees that were not twisted and gnarled from the ever present sea winds that blew every day, all day long. Her own father had once said that Sesshomaru, although the most unsocial of the taiyoukais, took great pains to keep his domain in pristine condition. And from what she was seeing below her, she saw the truth in her father's words.

The lands were absolutely beautiful, with clean cut dirt roads weaving in and out of the forest, and numerous human villages dotting along the country side. She could see the rice paddies from far up, and pick out the villagers that were harvesting the life sustaining food. There were field after field of other crops, and a few more centralized towns along the way. All in al, it was well-kept land.

When the Western castle finally came into sight, Kaida was once again pleasantly surprised. The castle grounds were quite extensive, at least from her current view point. Numerous buildings were clustered together in groups behind the protective wall around the grounds, along with what looked like hundreds of little rock ponds and koi ponds. There was an extensive part behind the main courtyard that was full of color, and Kaida could only guess it was the gardens. Fruit trees dotted the grounds here and there, and she could see a large number of servants going about their daily routines. 'It's not all that different from my own home.' she thought.

Sesshomaru began to descend into the largest of the open courtyards then, with Ah-Uh and Rin at his side. Kaida, not wanting to impose on the landing area due to the size of her mount, signaled for the great dragon to land fifty meters or so from where Sesshomaru had touched down. Before she ever got to the ground, though, she could already see over half a dozen well-dressed servants attending to the taiyoukai and Rin, who Sesshomaru had carefully helped down from Ah-Uh's back.

Since she was not exactly sure of what she was supposed to do, she dismounted and grabbed her pack, standing next to her dragon until she was acknowledged by Sesshomaru. Unfortunately, it did not take long for her to notice the way Sesshomaru's servants kept shooting nervous glances at her mount; and she held in a chuckle, remembering that most other species of demons believed dragons to be flesh-eating creatures who would go on a rampage if provoked.

"I think you are scaring them, Ishika." she said quietly, patting the dragon's side affectionately. "Go into the forest and find yourself a place to stay. Sesshomaru may not like it, but you're staying with me until this is over with." The dragon gave a snort and she scratched its scaly head, then pointed skyward and towards the South. "Go." The huge beast stood on its hind legs and spread its wings, quickly up-winging to gain altitude. A few seconds later, the huge beast was soaring back Southward. Kaida just shook her head and shouldered her pack, walking over to where Sesshomaru was conversing with one of his servants.

When she got to them, the servants off to the side bowed in respect to her. She nodded in their direction, not used to the sudden formality being used on her. Sesshomaru dismissed the servants in front of him with a wave of his hand, then turned to Kaida.

"Rin will show you to your quarters for the duration of your stay." he said, looking at her carefully. "When you are finished, this Sesshomaru has some matters of importance to speak with you about. Rin will know where to bring you." Kaida nodded and gave a slight bow to him as he turned to walk off.

"Of course, Lord Sesshomaru." she said. "I will be to speak with you within the hour."

"See that you are." he answered coldly, walking off and leaving Rin to show her to her quarters. Kaida looked over to where Rin was waiting, a happy smile on the young human's face.

"Come on, Kaida." she said. "Your quarters are not too far from mine. Lord Sesshomaru thought it would be better if you are closer to me, instead of in the wing where the dignitaries and nobles stay during the meetings." Kaida gave a half smile, not knowing whether to take the arrangements as a blessing or an insult from Sesshomaru. The rooms for the visiting Lords and Ladies were richly furnished in her own home in the Southern Lands, due to the status of the room's occupants, and she had no doubt that the ones here were no different. Sesshomaru did not strike her as the type to skimp on traditional rights and prerogatives.

'Of course I could be a complete witch and demand that I have the rights to the noble's quarters.' she thought. 'But there is no point in it. I spend more time outside anyway. Doesn't really matter what the room looks like, does it?' She shouldered her pack and turned to follow the exuberant girl into the castle.

"Lead the way, Rin." she said.

"Lady Rin, a moment, please." came a gently voice from behind them. Rin turned and nodded at the deer demon that had come to her.

"Yes?" she asked.

"This arrived for you moments before you arrived." she said humbly. "I was given strict instructions to hand it to you personally." The servant held out a small envelope and bowed. Rin took the paper and scanned over the handwriting on the front, her face lighting up in a dazzling smile. "Thank you, Sami."

"Of course, Lady." the deer woman said, backing away and going into the castle. Kaida waited until Rin tucked the letter into the folds of her obi before clearing her throat to get the girl's attention.

"Oh, sorry about that." Rin said, blushing slightly. "I didn't mean to forget about you, Kaida. Let's go get you settled in, shall we? I can read my letter from Shippou and Kagome while you are unpacking."

"Who is Kagome?" Kaida asked, curious. "And Shippou?"

"Oh, Kagome and Shippou are dear friends of mine." Rin said, smiling as they entered into the castle through the open doors. "Shippou is a kitsune who I have known for a very long time. And Kagome is the priestess who raised him from a small child. She is also mated to Lord Sesshomaru's younger brother, Inuyasha." Kaida blinked a couple of times, letting the news settle in. She had not seen Inuyasha, or even heard about him, for over sixty years.

"Inuyasha, huh?" she asked. "Last time I saw him, he was just a pup. In fact, it was not long before his father Lord Taisho died."

"You know Inuyasha?" Rin asked. "I didn't realize that."

"Yes, I remember him from when we were both young." Kaida answered truthfully. She and Inuyasha, as well as her twin brother Keiji, had been regarded as a disgrace by most of the demon rulers at the time because of their tainted demon blood. She remembered the little silver-haired hanyou quite vividly in fact. "Although I seriously doubt he still remembers me much. I was older than he by a few years, and we lost touch after Taisho died. He has a mate, does he? And a priestess at that."

"They make quite the pair, Inuyasha and Kagome." Rin chuckled, recalling the fights and arguments she had seen the temperamental hanyou and the short tempered miko get into on more than one occasion. "They have two children. A boy named Korin, and a girl named Kikieta. Korin is a year older than his sister, and a living replica of Kagome…only male. And Kikieta is like what I would suppose a female Inuyasha would be like."

"Isn't Kagome the miko who completed the Shikon jewel?" Kaida asked, remembering the rumors that had been spreading through the South a couple of years back.

"Yes. That's Kagome." Rin clarified as they walked down a set of steps that lead farther into the castle grounds. "She's the miko that finally purified it. Lord Sesshomaru helped in that battle too, and ever since then, Kagome and I have been keeping in touch with each other through letters since Sesshomaru doesn't like it when Inuyasha comes here." Kaida nodded and filed the information back into her head for further discussion at a later time. "Well, here we are." Rin said, pulling open a door in front of her.

Kaida stepped into the room and looked around, impressed once again. The walls were a dark red color, almost reminiscent of the color of blood. And the floor was black as the night sky. There was a large bed in the center of the room that was made up in what appeared to be silk sheets. Shoji screens were strategically placed around the room, and the light from the evening sun caused shadows to appear on the floor. There was a small vanity table directly in front of the bed and a small armoire off to the side, as well as numerous tables and bookcases.

"This is nice." Kaida mumbled. "Someone has good taste in furnishings." Rin walked in behind her and waited for her instructor's inspection of the room to end.

"The door over there leads to the hot springs outside." Rin said, pointing over to the open doorway on the farthest side of the room. "You and I are the only ones who will be in there, since Lord Sesshomaru's quarters are elsewhere, and he has his own hot spring to bathe in. My room is two doors down on this side of the hallway, by the way. The servants use the hot springs underneath the castle, and their quarters are in another building not far from here. There is also a futon underneath the bed if you prefer sleeping on it instead, by the way."

"Thank you, Rin." Kaida said, setting her bag on the bed and pulling out some of the clothing she had brought with her, as well as the daggers and other smaller weapons she had brought. The rest of her belongings would be brought tomorrow or the next day by the servants from her own homelands. "I'll just be a moment, then you can take me to see Sesshomaru."

"Take your time." Rin said, waving her hand dismissively as she pulled the letter out of her obi and broke the seal. Kaida began putting her belongings away, occasionally being distracted by a giggle or laugh that would come from Rin as the human girl read the letter. When she was finished, she turned back to Rin, who had finished the note and was waiting patiently.

"Ready?" she asked.

"Let's go." Kaida grimaced. "I can't wait to find out what he's got to say to me." Rin smiled and led the way out of the room and up a flight of stairs until they stopped at a large set of wooden double doors.

Kaida steeled herself for the encounter and took a deep breath. It was not that she was afraid of the Western Lord, she was not. It was just the fact that she knew he was the domineering type who tended to try and use fear to control people.

She held just much status in the demon court as he did, just like all the other nobles and their families, and she was not about to be talked down upon. Especially not by him. Her short temper would get her in trouble if she did not handle this with enough finesse. And considering she was more used to settling disputes with force, rather than intellect, she knew there was a chance every meeting she had with him had the possibility of turning really ugly, really quick.

He liked to intimidate. That was a well enough known fact. And she would not BE intimidated. Oh, yeah, she knew she would wind up in at least ONE good fight with the stoic Lord before her tenure as Rin's instructor was over with, of that she was all too sure of.

"I'll wait here until you are done, okay?" Rin said, nodding at the door. "You shouldn't be too long." Kaida nodded and smiled down at the young girl. It was obvious that Rin adored her guardian, and thought very little ill of him. She knocked on the door and heard a cold 'Enter' from the demon lord inside. She squared her shoulders and entered.

"You wanted to see me, Sesshomaru?" she asked, inclining her head to the seated taiyoukai in front of her as she walked up to him.

"You need to be aware of what this Sesshomaru expects you to teach my ward during your tenure here." he said coldly, looking at her with a calculating glance. "That is why you have been called here." Kaida settled into her customary at-ease position with her hands clasped behind her back and her feet shoulder width apart, then turned her attention back to him.

"What exactly do you want me to teach her?" she asked. "And has she had any previous instructions before now?"

"Rin has had tutors that have taught her history, philosophy, and the like." he said simply. "She knows what she needs to concerning those particular subjects."

"What about politics, debating, and reasoning?" Kaida asked, trying to get a feel of what she had to work with. "Other subjects like those."

"As I said, she knows what she needs to concerning those types of subjects." he said again.

"So what exactly do you want me to do?" Kaida asked, becoming slightly aggravated with his lack of information.

"Teach her how to act as is proper for the nobles of our society." he said firmly. "Proper etiquette. Proper manners when in company with others of her rank and status. She needs to know what will be expected of her when she finally takes a mate."

"In other words, you want me to turn her into a demoness." Kaida said simply.

"For all intents and purposes, yes." he answered. "She must learn what is expected of her in our society."

"I understand." Kaida said, nodding. "So all I'm doing is teaching her how to properly execute what she's memorized when it comes to the mannerisms and etiquette and such."

"Precisely."

"Are there any specific areas you'd like me to focus on?" Kaida asked.

"No." he answered. "What you teach, and when you teach it is at your discretion. This Sesshomaru will sporadically check to see how things are going. If Rin's progress is not satisfactory, you will be sent back to your home, and this Sesshomaru will look elsewhere for an instructor." Kaida blinked for a second before tensing up in anger at the tone of his voice that implied she could not do this to his satisfaction.

"Whoa, wait just a damn minute." Kaida said, getting angry. "I didn't ask for this job, Sesshomaru, so don't go trying to threaten me. You picked me, remember?" The Western Lord did not grace her with an answer, simply turned around and looked out a window at the land below.

"The lessons will be daily, starting after breakfast and lasting until the mid-day meal." he said coldly. "Should it ever happen that this Sesshomaru is not here, you will be Rin's protection. As for the daily happenings of the grounds, Rin can tell you what happens on a daily basis. If she has not done so already."

"So I'm a bodyguard and teacher rolled into one?" Kaida asked sarcastically. "Great." Sesshomaru shot her a glare that would have made any lesser being melt into a puddle of goo, but Kaida just glared back, silently daring him to say anything else to her. "Anything else you wanted to tell me about?"

"No." he said. "You are dismissed." Kaida only shook her head as he turned to look out the window once again, dismissing her with his body language. She had half a mind to purposely dismiss the dismissal he had just given her and stay right where she was, but she could sense Rin outside the doorway, and she could feel the anxiousness coming off of the human girl in waves. 'So she thought this meeting would turn out messy.' Kaida smirked. 'I can't really blame her.' Kaida turned and walked out of the room, leaving Sesshomaru to his thoughts. As soon as she came out, Rin started in with the questions.

"Did it go well? What did Lord Sesshomaru say?" she asked quickly. "He's not angry is he?"

"Why would he be angry?" Kaida asked, looking at the girl carefully. Rin just shrugged as if to say 'he's always mad about something'.

"So what am I supposed to be learning from you, Kaida?" Rin asked again, walking the demoness down the stairs away from the room she had just exited. "When do we start?"

"Eager little thing, aren't you?" Kaida asked, chuckling at her student's happiness. "Well, he's not exactly forth coming with the information I needed about your previous instructors. So, that means you need to tell me what you've done up to this point." Rin nodded, quickly relaying all the needed information about her previous education and instruction. By the time she was done, Kaida had a good idea as to where she would start.

"How far behind am I?" Rin asked, frowning slightly.

"Not far." Kaida answered. "Whoever taught you your lessons did a very thorough job. I'm impressed. The only thing I'm here to do is teach you the more….domesticated…..aspects of being a lady of the court." She frowned at the statement, but Rin took no notice of her hesitation. "And how to act around nobles like yourself without making an idiot out of yourself like I always do." Rin laughed and caught onto Kaida's easy going nature.

"When do we start?"

"Tomorrow morning, right after the morning meal." Kaida answered. "Sesshomaru told me that the lessons will last from then until after the mid-day meal. Until then, why don't you show me around the grounds so that I don't get lost every time I step out of my quarters?" Rin nodded and quickly led her out of the castle and into the last of the day's sunlight, pointing out all the buildings and their purposes.

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The sun was close to setting by the time Kaida found her way back to the dojo a few hours later. Dressed only in her training gi, she slipped into the circular building and looked around. The walls of the place were covered with weapons of any type she could imagine. Blades of all kinds glinted in the fading evening light. Spears, bows, arrows, and chain sickles also made up a large portion of the arsenal along with swords, battle fans, and numerous daggers.

Although quite impressed with the display, Kaida centered her attention on the twin blades strapped to her sides. After orienting herself to her surroundings, the dragon woman took a deep breath and calmed herself and her mind, quickly beginning her normal set of warm up routines before her work out really began. Her thoughts strayed through the day's events, and she shuddered involuntarily.

After her initial meeting with Sesshomaru, Rin had shown her around the castle grounds, pointing out important places and telling her what usually went on during the day. They had run into Sesshomaru only one other time before dinner, and that had been a disaster waiting to happen.

Kaida had been telling Rin about some of the training she had gone through when she was younger, and Rin had asked Sesshomaru if Kaida could teach her some of the more basic concepts. When the taiyoukai heard that, Kaida had no doubt he would have more than happily shipped her back to the Southern Lands at that exact second. His only response was to tell Rin that Kaida was not there to teach her to fight, but to act accordingly. Of course, Kaida quickly countered that most nobles HAVE to learn how to fight to defend their homelands. The glare that Sesshomaru had shot her would have had anyone else quivering in fear, but Kaida only shrugged, knowing that she was correct.

'Rin has no need to know of such things.' he had said, the anger apparent in his voice. 'She will act as expected, and not like some uncivilized, uncouth female who thinks they can fight. You will teach her nothing of the sort, woman.' He had left them standing in the hallway after that, content in his own mind that his orders would be followed.

Rin had been surprised by the amount of venom in her guardian's voice, while Kaida had just been angered by the way he had all but insinuated she was the 'uncivilized, uncouth female' he had been referring to. Pushing her anger to the side, Kaida had redirected Rin to tell her more about Inuyasha and his family, considering she had not heard anything about him in such a long time.

Rin had spoken highly of the hanyou, even though it seemed as though Sesshomaru loathed the half-demon. She had told of the initial battle over the Tetsusaiga, and how Sesshomaru still got angry when the fang was mentioned, even though the taiyoukai knew he could not wield it even if he held it in front of him.

Kaida had come to the conclusion that although the stuck up Sesshomaru physically favored the late Taisho more than Inuyasha, it was the hanyou who proved who acted more like their sire. Tetsusaiga had proven once and for all which brother favored the great Taisho's temperament. Both the late Lord and his youngest son had cared enough for humans to forgo the stigmas of attaching themselves to a human female. Sesshomaru, though, still seemed to believe that humans were on the lower end of the food chain, so to speak. However, according to Rin, he was not as bad now as he had been when she first came to live with him…..a change that Kaida secretly accredited to Rin, believing her presence in the Western Lord's life had a large part in handling.

'Doesn't that over-zealous bastard realize that Rin's children will also be hanyou if she takes a demon mate?!' Kaida thought angrily. 'Our world is still cold to those of us with mixed blood, and there will come a day when Rin will be forced to reckon with people and demons who will condemn both her and her children because of the human blood in them. She needs to know what she is walking into….what Sesshomaru is asking her to do……what she is going to have to endure for the rest of her life.'

Kaida continued on with her routines, but her mind was elsewhere, and nothing she could do could get her focus on her training. She knew what it felt like to be a child of mixed bloodlines. She knew what it felt like to see people scorning her because of her mother's tainted line. She remembered the rivers of tears her mother had cried because of the demeaning remarks about her children.

The glares.

The pointing.

The whispering.

The snickering.

She remembered all of that, and knew what it had done to her as a child, not to mention the way her mother had suffered. Her father had always been there to help and support them, but it was not the same.

It was easy to believe your parents when they told you that you were special, and that they still cared despite what other people said. But it was harder to believe their reassurances when you heard your mother crying night after night because some high strung noble had insulted and demeaned them.

She suddenly stiffened as a disturbing thought caused her to drop the swords to the floor of the dojo.

Would Sesshomaru ridicule any children Rin bore, simply because of the human blood she had passed on to them.?

Kaida shook her head and gathered her scattered thoughts, picking up the fallen blades in order to try and complete the kata again. Rin was a sweet young woman, still naïve to many ways of the world that she was in. And although Kaida had not known the young woman for long, she could see where that sweetness and naivety could be both an asset and a downfall; a double-edged sword that could be used to either charm her way through any situation, and capture the hearts of many…..or lead her to trouble if she continued to take things at face value, and not look any deeper to find the true meaning of what people meant.

Well, her job was to instruct Rin on the correct way to act according to their society, and she intended on doing just that. She may not be able to teach Rin self-defense, at least in the more physical-literal sense, but she would teach Rin how to defend against what could happen. She could do that well enough….if only to keep Rin and her children from having to endure the humiliating feelings of embarrassment she had felt growing up.

No one, human or demon, deserved to suffer through that.

No one.

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A/N - Hey everyone. I'm really sorry about taking so long to update. But school has started again, and it seems like my creative juices for this fic has dried up. I've kind of lost interest in it, but I don't plan on giving it up for dead any time soon.

I'll try not to take so long to update again. I promise. But I've got this story and two others going at the same time -A Gundam Wing story and a new YuYu Hakusho one I just started planning out…-

Anyhow, please remember to leave a review. I want to know what you guys are thinking. And maybe the feedback will get my interest back going in this story line again……who knows……

Later,

A.A.