Fate's Desire [Sesshomaru x Rin]

XVII: Ode to Protect

Sesshomaru

He had my father's saber. I could feel that familiar darkness that called to me before I even saw it. 

And this was my perfect opportunity to get it back, to kill this bastard. This saber would give me everything I could ever imagine. With it, I would be the strongest demon in the world. It was stronger than even Tetusaiga.

That should have been reason enough to pursue this demon. He stood there, a challenging glint in his eyes. But I was caught off guard by the amount of blood, Rin's blood, that covered his hands, that dripped down the stone. I was frozen at her frail body on the stone.

The demon sneered before disappearing in a cloud of smoke, taking the saber with him.

Usually I would have gone after him. But right now, I didn't care. I rushed to Rin's side, cupping her pale face in my hands

I glanced down at the blood that covered her torn clothing. Her skin was drenched in her own blood, the fair color of her skin unnoticeable underneath it all. 

There is no way she could have survived this. Her breathing, her heart beat, had slowed and was growing more faint by the second.

"Don't worry, my Lord. The wound will close soon enough. That's one of the powers Lord Tatsuo's saber has."

Lord Tatsuo.

Tatsuo.

No wonder he sounded and acted familiar. That arrogant bastard.

I should have known. I should have assumed so. They acted the exact same. This human form he chose to take, it threw me off. I thought he was just another stuck up Lord under the manipulation of a blood thirsty demon. I was wrong.

But it also made me curious as to why he chose to take the form of a human. When I fought him last, his true form was a force to be reckoned with.

And the last time I remembered, he was stronger than he is now. Perhaps he's limiting the use of his own power, relying solely on the saber. Yes, that must be it.

I watched as the girl wiped away Rin's blood with a rag, revealing her bare stomach without a single scratch.

I knew the saber had unmatchable abilities. But torturing a body and then to heal it all over again to inflict pain over and over again was extreme. A strategy created by the gods.

I let the girl finish cleaning Rin off, giving her some space as I stepped outside. I tried to sense the direction the saber had gone off to, but I couldn't even make out a single clue. It was like any trace of the weapon disappeared into thin air.

"Lord Sesshomaru." I turned to see the girl setting down a bucket. Blood covered her from head to toe. I nodded to her.

"Go get cleaned up." I said, walking past her and down into the cellar. 

The servant girl had completely cleaned Rin from head to toe and dressed her in a plain white kosode with blue hakamas. She even cleaned off the blood that stained the stone, even though few remnants of Rin's blood remained.

I approached her slowly, relieved to see that she was sleeping peacefully. I placed my hand over her stomach, feeling the thickness of a new bandage underneath.

I couldn't believe I wasn't able to save her in time, again. Whenever she needed me the most, I either wasn't there, or failed to arrive in time to protect her from harm. I kept telling myself that taking her with me was necessary. I had many enemies, and if they found out I had a connection with a human, I knew they would find her to get to me. And only one was successful in doing so. This proved to me Inuyasha and his human wife were incapable of protecting her. And yet this incident proved that I couldn't protect her the way I wanted to anymore. Taking her with me on this journey just placed her in more danger. She attracted my greatest enemy, and the one weapon I longed to get my hands on.