InuYasha Fan Fiction ❯ Windows on the West ❯ She's What Love Would Look Like ( Chapter 5 )

[ X - Adult: No readers under 18. Contains Graphic Adult Themes/Extreme violence. ]

Disclaimer:  I do not own the characters of Inuyasha.

-sSs-

Sesshoumaru watched placidly as his ward, and the miko's little kit, played happily in the fragrant grasses of the well clearing.  The little miko had requested a trip home, for supplies, and to further her studies in the place she called 'school'.  He had acquiesced – Naraku had not been seen, nor were there any rumors of him, so there was no reason to deny her.

She had been most grateful; it seemed that his brother had always fought her when she needed to go, and that he had not done so as well had been a very pleasant surprise for her.  She had been most appreciative.  

Glancing at the position of the sun, he noted silently that she would be returning soon – all the better, as far as he was concerned – his brother and the others were even now in the village that lay only a short distance away, and he had no desire to have another run-in with the whelp.

Especially not at this time, as the things that he had been considering about the priestess he now protected once again took center stage in his mind.

How to keep his newest, most fascinating puzzle alive longer than the few meager years her humanity allotted.  There were several different paths by which he might do so, and he had not decided on the best one – but he was in no particular rush, after all, she was young, and he had several years to decide which method would be most appropriate.

He was still caught up in trying to understand the concept of 'love' as she spoke of it.  He had the feeling that when she spoke of that emotion, she meant something different than the usual self-serving and shallow utterances that others did – her definition of that word was unselfish and deep as an ocean... but he did not understand how it could be so.

After all, the baka hanyou half-brother of his had chosen another over her, and yet she was smiling, and happy.  And when he questioned her about it, she would only say that because she loved him, she  wanted him to be happy, even if it was with someone else.  

As far as he was concerned, that was something much deeper than mere 'love'.  But what?  And how could an unassuming little human woman like her be capable of such depth?

He was pulled from his thoughts as Rin and Shippo approached him, and he glanced at his ward, waiting for her to speak.

“Is something wrong, Sesshoumaru-sama?”  came the question finally, and he cocked a brow as he looked more closely at her.

“Why do you ask, Rin?”

She smiled at him as Shippo stayed behind her and quiet, obviously still nervous in his presence, but just as obviously curious.  

Not a bad quality in a youkai,  he thought approvingly.  Knowledge is power, after all.

He resumed listening to Rin as she began to speak.  “It's just that you were frowning, Sesshoumaru-sama, and you usually don't.  So I wondered what was wrong.”

Shifting his bent knee a bit, his hand closed a little, forming into a fist for a moment, then relaxing once more.  It was the only visible marker of his unsettled state of mind.

Perhaps Rin will have some insight into the miko – she is also human, after all.  

“Tell me – what do you think of the miko, Rin?”

Her little smile widened.  “You mean Kagome-sama?  Oh!  Well, Rin thinks that Kagome-sama is like the sun.”

Sesshoumaru blinked, almost confused.  “Like... the sun?”  he questioned.

The little girl nodded earnestly.  “Yup!  Just like the sun.  People need the sun to live, right?  And people need people like Kagome-sama to live, too.”

“Explain.”

Rin plopped down onto her knees before him, and looked up at the sky thoughtfully, her little tongue peeking out of the corner of her mouth as she tried to think of how to explain the whole thing to him.

“Well...”  she said slowly,  “the sun gives light and warmth, makes things grow and helps us see the pretty things around us.  Kagome-sama is the same way.”  She smiled as Shippo nodded, understanding in his eyes.

Odd... the kit, a youkai, seems to also understand the miko.  How is it, then, that this one does not?

“Continue.”

“Kagome-sama's heart gives the same things the sun does – light and warmth, it helps me and Shippo grow strong and happy, and she shows us the pretty things around us.  We wouldn't be the same without her.  It's because she loves us.  Love is Kagome-sama's sunlight,”  she finished.

He turned a mystified gaze on the kit.  “And you, a youkai, understand the miko?  Understand what it is that Rin speaks of?”

The kit nodded solemnly.  “Yeah... why wouldn't I?”

“Because she is human, and therefore, should be incomprehensible to youkai,”  he said.

Shippo giggled, as did Rin.  “Kagome's the easiest person to ever understand,”  he assured the daiyouaki.  “As long as you can understand love.  She's what love would look like if it took a human form and walked around on earth.  She just wants everyone to be happy, that's all.  Just happy.”

He looked down, his brow furrowed.  Perhaps I do not understand, because I do not understand her meaning of 'love'.  He looked back up at the children's excited yells as Kagome climbed over the lip of the well with a happy smile on her face.

“Ohayo, Rin, Shippo!”  She looked over at him, and her smile widened.  “Ohayo, Sesshoumaru-sama.  Is everything okay?”  she asked, a concerned look filtering over her face at his expression.

I wonder...

“The half-breed and your friends are in the village.  Do you wish to see them?”

She tilted her head to the side, crinkling her nose thoughtfully.  “Well, I guess it would be okay, as long as you don't mind,”  she said.

“Why would you care if I... minded?”  he asked, genuinely curious.  

She beamed at him then, looking at him as though the question were a silly one.  “Well, because I know you're not comfortable around Inuyasha, that's why, and I don't want you to be unhappy!  I can always wait to see them until we run into them on the road and don't have much of a choice.  That way, you have to see him less,”  she decided, still smiling happily at him.

Preposterous... she cares about what would make this one uncomfortable?  

“Tell me, miko – is there any limit to what you wouldn't do for another?”  He almost leaned forward in his eagerness for the answer to his question – he needed to know.

At that, her face scrunched up in confusion, but it was obvious from her expression she was honestly considering his words.  “Well... no, I don't think so.  If something I do makes a person happy, who am I to begrudge that?  At least, so far, I haven't come across something that I wouldn't do.  Of course,”  she said, honesty coming to the fore,  “I can't be certain – there might come a time when I might falter, but I don't think so.  I mean, I've already given my life, and even a part of my soul, for others happiness, so what could be worse?”

Her life?  And... a part of her soul?

He relaxed his posture slightly with an inward sigh as he continued to stare at her.  It seemed that he was still no closer to understanding her motives than he ever had been – though he could understand what her actions might be in a given situation... the why's of it still eluded him.

And I find yet another layer, he thought, almost resigned to the fact that he would probably never be able to peel all of them.

It certainly looked as though one of those options for extending her life would definitely be needed – because he was not one to ever give up, and he promised himself in that moment, that no matter how long it took, he would figure her out.

He had completely missed the warmth that had crept over him at her re-entrance into his world...


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