InuYasha Fan Fiction ❯ Woman & Child ❯ Back to Basics ( Chapter 4 )

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

Rin circled around Jaken and sang merrily. Jaken looked out into the distance hoping to see his master’s regal and handsome form. He would follow Sesshoumaru to the ends of the earth, but babysitter duty was his least favorite task.

“Rin! Calm yourself!” Jaken yelled.

“Jaken-sama! Dance with me.” Rin pleaded.

“I will do no such thing! Dancing is for silly ningen with no sense!” Jaken sneered.

Rin smiled sweetly. “Jaken-sama, if you don’t dance with me I will just have to do this!” Then Rin reached down and pulled the shinwa’s cheek mercilessly. Jaken yelled and tried to escape but Rin caught him and continued her attack, she used the moves Sesshoumaru taught her and easily conquered the retainer. Jaken was defeated.

Sesshoumaru cleared the last hill in which Rin’s scent was on the other side, he waited and watched Rin and surprisingly, Jaken dancing in a circle. Sesshoumaru smiled to himself, it was clear that Jaken’s foolish dancing was not by choice. Finally he decided to recuse the little youkai and made himself known.

“Sesshoumaru-sama!” Jaken exclaimed.

Rin gasped and leapt up from her place. “Sesshoumaru-sama! Your back!”

“Where did you go, Sesshoumaru-sama?” Jaken questioned, even though he knew his Lord wouldn’t answer.

“Rin.” Sesshoumaru said. “Look.”

Sesshoumaru turned and pointed a clawed finger to the hill. Rin stood in stunned silence as she stared right into the dark eyes of Shori.

“S-Shori-okasan?” Rin’s voice trembled. Then with a smile and tears of happiness Rin ran towards the hime with outstretched arms. “Okasan! Okasan!”

Shori smiled happily and caught the girl in her arms and spin around happily. “Rin! Oh my dear Rin! How I’ve missed you!”

Rin looked hopeful. “Are you going to stay with Rin forever?”

Shori smiled sweetly. “That’s my plan.”

Rin smiled brightly and hugged her again. “I’m glad.”

Jaken stood next to Sesshoumaru and watched to the women smile and laughed with each other. “Another ningen to protect, Sesshoumaru-sama?” Jaken asked.

“This ningen does not need my protection.” Sesshoumaru said as he walked away.

“Rin! Get back here!” Jaken exclaimed as Rin jumped into a puddle of water. She was wearing her normal yukata after Shori chastised her for getting her kimono dirty. Shori was disappointed in Rin’s appearance and immediately went to work in cleaning and brushing her hair. She made Rin change and set her off to play while she cleaned. Shori always made sure Rin had something on her feet, saying that only wild children went barefoot. And Rin was not wild. Sesshoumaru watched as Shori and Rin immediately settled into each other like Shori really was the young girl’s mother. Sesshoumaru cast a bored gaze over to Rin and Jaken then watched as Shori walked over with a displeased look.

“Rin!” Shori shouted. Rin immediately stopped jumping and looked at Shori.

“Shoes.” Shori smiled and walked away.

Rin grinned and kicked off her wet shoes and jumped again effectually splashing Jaken. Sesshoumaru watched as Shori made her way to him and Settled besides him.

“You haven’t said a word since we got here three days ago. Did I do something wrong?” Shori asked quietly.

“No.” Sesshoumaru answered. It was true, he stayed away from Shori and Rin most of the time. He had spent eight days alone with Shori and wanted Rin to have the same luxury. Not to mention that he had a lot on his mind. At least Shori could care for Rin when he was away, but what about the night of the full moon? Shori still didn’t explain her true nature, but what if it really wasn’t her behind the blue eyes. What if she hurt Rin and didn’t know it. And he couldn’t have another woman fall in love with him. Something bad always happened when they did. She may not need protection from the physical but he needed to protect her from her own feelings.

“Woman, you should attend to Rin.” Sesshoumaru said without looking at her.

Shori was taken back and reached out to touch him. Sesshoumaru didn’t give her the chance as he got up and walked away. Shori dropped her hand and frowned.

“Damn youkai.” She muttered and turned away to Rin who succeeded in getting completely dirty. Shori sighed and prepared Rin’s change of clothing.

Sesshoumaru continued walking and mentally kicking himself. The woman had done nothing to displease him. She looked at him with love and respect even though she hated his kind. And he repaid her with cold words and indifference. He didn’t like being kept in the dark and if she wanted to be with him she would have to tell him everything. And in exchange he would tell her why she shouldn’t love him. She deserved the choice, because it seemed she never had one before. He found a large tree to rest his back on and thought of the night they kissed.

Shori pulled away from the kiss and turned away. “I’m sorry, Sesshoumaru.” The trembling girl said. “I don’t know why I did that.” Sesshoumaru didn’t want to let her go but did anyway when she lightly pushed him away.

“Something is bothering you.” Sesshoumaru said. “Was it our spar?”

Shori gazed up at the waning moon. “I fought a taiyoukai once before. He wasn’t dignified like you. He was brash and uneducated. But he was strong.” Shori sighed. “He was also inu.” She added softly. “After my clan was killed, I was taken as a slave. The lord tossed me to his dogs and let them do whatever they wanted. Then when he was bored one night, he decided to take me. I thought I was safe from that. Because even though he let his clan use me and abuse me, he forbade any of them from taking me to their bed. Little did I know I was being saved for him.” Shori sat in the grass and Sesshoumaru followed. “I had access to the youkai’s poisoning herbs and refined them from ookami knowledge. When I served the youkai his sake I poisoned him too.

“It didn’t kill him, I did. He was about to take me but I fought him off. He was weakened from the poison and didn’t know it. I killed him and fought my way out of the den. The inu died only days later from ingesting the poisons I put in they’re water supply.” Shori looked over to Sesshoumaru. “He almost won, but I didn’t give in to him. I kept my innocence and lost it in the same night.”

Sesshoumaru thought back on the night and breathed in the memory of her scent. Yes, she was strong and cunning. He would give her the choice.

Shori tucked Rin under a pelt that night and hummed her lullaby. Rin fell asleep after a long day of lessons in herbs and pleasant games. Shori had not seen Sesshoumaru for the rest of the day and wondered if this kind of thing happened all the time. Shori looked to Jaken and smiled.

“Jaken. Please look over Rin. I’m going for a walk.” Shori said sweetly.

Jaken grunted a response and Shori took it as a yes. Shori sighed and disappeared in the bush. Jaken sighed and jumped when he saw Sesshoumaru step into the clearing and past him, following after Shori.

‘Oh no!’ Jaken thought to himself. ‘Don’t tell me Sesshoumaru-sama is getting involved with that ningen!’ Jaken grunted his displeasure and turned to Rin. ‘Rin will be please to say the least.’

Shori stretched and sighed happily. She was apart of a pack again. It wasn’t the pack she expected but that was fine. Shori squeaked when Sesshoumaru came up behind her. The former Princess glared at the taiyoukai.

“What do you want!” She demanded.

“What is your true nature?” Sesshoumaru asked with nonchalance.

Shori gasped and looked away. “Why would you ask such a question?” Shori worried the ends of her long sleeves.

“The full moon, what does it do to you?” Sesshoumaru took an intimidating step forward and Shori instinctively stepped back.

“The full moon?”

Sesshoumaru shot himself forward and slammed the frightened girl against a tree. “Do not toy with me!” He snarled. “This Sesshoumaru will not be kept in the dark.”

Then Shori did something unexpected, she snarled and barked a wild and angry bark. “You don’t scare me.” She growled as she snapped at his face.

“You are not a wolf!” Sesshoumaru yelled at her, his patience at it’s end.

“That’s what you think!” Shori yelled back.

Sesshoumaru watched as she stared at the moon and narrowed her eyes. Sesshoumaru felt her muscles shift and change, then she groaned and seemed to be in pain. He stepped back as she fell to her knees. She kept her eyes on the moon and held her stomach.

“Aargh, it hurts.” She looked up at Sesshoumaru with pained eyes. “Sesshoumaru, I’m more wolf then you know.” With that last statement she screamed as she completely morphed into a majestic white wolf with sad blue eyes. Sesshoumaru stepped forward and the white wolf snarled and lunged towards him. Sesshoumaru stepped to the side and the wolf landed and pushed used the momentum to push itself off the ground again and bite deeply into the back of his arm. Sesshoumaru growled and pulled the wolf off him. The wolf took off a good chunk of flesh and dropped it to the ground. Sesshoumaru glared at the wolf as it rushed in for another attack. Sesshoumaru swiped at her and she was thrown against a tree. The wolf howled in pain and passed out. Sesshoumaru took a step closer and was now standing over the unconscious Shori. He sat next to her and pulled her into his lap. His arm hurt but he ignored it. The wound would heal in the morning and hopefully so would Shori. The princess cracked her eyes open for a moment then closed them.

“I-I don’t lose control. I’m still me, I’m sorry I bit you.” Shori breathed heavily. “I can’t control my transformation during the full moon, and it takes a lot of energy to change any other night. I was blessed with a gift that wasn’t completed.” She seemed to be in pain from the impact against the tree. Sesshoumaru caressed her soft cheek. “Now, I’m cursed.” Shori opened her eyes. “And every time I change I lose more of my human self. And someday, I’ll never be human again.”


End Chapter Four
Next Chapter: The Curse