Beyond the Tears by Aura

Sacrifices of Battle

The spray of the early spring water soaked quietly into the white cloth of his pants, the still chilled water may have been stinging to a human or even a lesser demon but Sesshomaru wasn't concerned for himself. Instead clear amber eyes were settled on a young girl playing a few feet away at the river's edge, eternal patience only for his ward in the ageless depths of his gaze.

Her innocent giggles followed the splash and squeals of protest from the small goblin-like demon that was sending further splashes of the river over it's banks as he attempted to catch the rainbow trout that were migrating by for mating to take place upstream. He seemed to have finally gotten one but was struggling to climb back out of the quick flowing water.

"You shouldn't just dive in the water like that master Jaken." Rin announced as she aided his climb by pulling on the old multi-headed staff he always carried. "You'll get sick."

"Rin." Jaken waited until he'd scrambled back up with the catch to chid her. "A demon like me won't become ill from something as trivial as this."

He did his best to wait until she'd looked away to begin shivering.

"Okay master Jaken." She just agreed, she'd already picked up the fish, thankfully already dead thanks to small imp claws and carried it toward the fire where she could stick it and cook it.

A gentle breeze picked up silver hair, shifting it as if to make it flow to the element's whim. Ashen bangs resettling a moment later to either side of the midnight blue quarter moon mark that rested perfectly on the center of his forehead, easily visible against the milk-white paleness of his flawless skin. High cheekbones were set above a thin nose and similiar lips a slightly pointed chin, his features and pointed ears almost elfin in nature. Wine colored double claw-like lines were set on either side of his regal face. The off-white fur of his tail flowed and tickled his right cheek where it was worn around the shoulder and connected to his body. He wore simple white clothing dyed red in areas where the sakura blossom symbol that represented his house and family was set. A single blade hung lightly off his yellow and blue silk belt, unneeded in the calm situation where they were settled.

His golden gaze turned from his ward and servant as he instead scanned the forest nearby, his nose warned him before his eyes that the harmony wasn't to last. He raised his right hand, used to using it after it being the only one he possessed for years, wine colored marks matching the ones on his face, neat but sharp claws ending in a dangerously graceful perfection. As if despite the years of violent use he'd just had a manicure.

"Jaken." he ordered stoically. "Take cover with Rin and Ah-Un. Move away from here up river and continue there. I will join you shortly."

He waited until they had followed his orders, Rin seeming happy with her slightly burned but cooked fish as they went. Once they were gone he returned his attention to the forests, the scent as it approached was familiar and he knew it's source long before it reached him. He didn't normally concern himself with Inuyasha's group of humans but he knew Rin was fond of this one, and the sent of salt was enough to warn him that she was in a mood he'd rather his young ward not witness.

Kagome meanwhile was completely unaware of where she was going, or that the demon lord of the west wasn't far from where her fast pace was leading her. Making a hole in the river she heard wasn't seeming like too poor of an idea. The sun was up enough that the day was well on it's way to noon and she'd been half-running half-stumbling through the woods sense the night before.

When she'd wished the jewel away she hadn't realized that things would be slightly different than she'd expected. Those that had suffered so much at the jewel's hands had been given a second chance all without her even realizing that would be a side effect.

At first she'd thought that it made things even better, but then Kikyo had returned last night...

...and Kagome was so distraught over the way Inuyasha had run to her again, even after everything they'd been through together. He'd finally made his choice between them and she wasn't it. At first she'd run to the well but the fear that she wouldn't be able to return now that the jewel was gone had given her pause. Instead she'd just dashed off a random direction away from the scene where he'd kissed her. The woman he'd always loved while she was pining over him...it was stupid for her to have ever thought that he would love her in the same way he adored his precious Kikyo.

Though as she thought about it more, as the tears continued to sting down her cheeks as she moved away, she'd cried so much she'd lost tears to cry but continued walking, ignoring the various bushes and branches tearing across her clothes and sometimes causing small scars on the surface of her skin. She'd fought for so long and everyone had gotten what they wanted from Naraku's death but her, she'd only seemed to be penalized somehow, was it the jewel's final strike at her for helping to destroy it?

She could see the water ahead, the clear liquid flowing with a refreshed speed now that the ice was melting after the winter. It would be easy right? She could just let go of everything, she didn't have responsibilities in the past anymore.

Though when she reached the edge of the crystalline water she couldn't help but hesitate. Her friends, her family back in her own time, they wouldn't want her to even think about this. If she never returned to her time that would be horrible for them.

Nonetheless she stared at the river quietly, gauging it's depth and still uncertain as to what she should do...if she could do anything at all that would qwell the continuing tears and the pressure in her chest.

She hadn't even noticed that Sesshomaru was quietly observing her internal struggle from the other side of the stream. Unaware that her personal anguish was being laid out so freely for the stoic audience. Though that ignorance was broken very soon, when he finally deemed to speak.

"Why are you here?" His tone was bored, whatever it was bothering the girl he could only assume it was some other issue his younger brother had caused. As it was, to him, another chore his brother had inadvertently pushed his way.

"I..." Kagome blinked at the realization that Sesshomaru was standing on the other side of the river, had been there sense she'd arrived and watched her contemplating suicide. She had no idea what to say in reply to him.

"Inuyasha again." Sesshomaru guessed aloud as she stammered, a single leap leaving him next to her on the opposite side of the water from where he'd began. It was amazingly fluid, instant, he moved precisely how and where he wanted and it seemed as if anything that got in the way of that wouldn't be there more than a moment.

She was obviously tired, her body was more sluggish than he normally remembered her, dark circles marked her eyes despite the puffyness and the scent of salt on her was so immediately obvious they might as well have been at the sea. She'd been crying on and off for hours judging by the way she continued to sniffle uncontrollably though she'd otherwise gone silent in his presence. The villiage where Inuyasha frequently kept company with humans and where Rin had taken to being fostered by them while he was on dangerous missions of his own was far enough off that he knew whatever Inuyasha had done to her was something that had left her this way.

"He..." She choked on the words, she couldn't say it out loud yet, she wasn't sure she wanted to really admit it just yet. She was doing her best not to bust down into more tears at the demon lords feet. As it was, the fact that he was speaking with her at all was bizarre, he normally ignored her, which was a step up from when he used to just try to kill her.

"The dead woman." Sesshomaru didn't care overly much of the relationships of such humans and half-breeds but he knew enough of his brother's pathetic tale that he could pick out what had likely come to pass. If he'd been sealed for those 50 years because of her, it was logical that if she'd returned again he'd still want to be near her. Dog demons, even half breeds, unless they were from the lesser stock of the race, became attached to those that they mate. There were of course rare cases of worthless lecher's like his father but they were not common, loyalty was often a trait of his blood that he'd prided. Likely Inuyasha had lead this girl on, more reason for her to have traveled with him for so long a period, but then the apple didn't fall far from the tree in that case.

Of course he wouldn't care, she didn't expect him too, but he didn't need to put it out there so callously. She didn't want to hear it again, she'd been repeating it to herself enough that she felt haunted by the woman who she was suppose to be the reincarnation of. She managed to nod, doing her best to steady her breathing and stop her sobbing, making a fool of herself in the aristocratic demon's presence just seemed like it would make it worse.

"Where are your friends?" Sesshomaru had neither the skill nor the inclination to make the girl feel better, though he knew just leaving her would earn him Rin's ire. She was becoming more difficult to manage as she got older, he just hoped she never became like this.

"They're gone...they all had things they needed to do sense it's spring." Kagome commented with as clear a tone as she could manage, it only broke once. "Miroku and Sango are planning a marriage and Shippou wanted to see if he could find some other fox demons to learn more magic from..."

Talking didn't make the pain easier but it did get her breathing more steady so she could stop sniffling at random moments and compose herself enough to be more comfortable.

"Is there somewhere you'd like to be?" He figured if he offered her a ride on Ah-Un now that she was calming then perhaps Rin would be glad for the visit, it would need to be short though. He didn't want her starting again around the impressional young lady Rin was growing into, teaching her this was acceptable was the last thing he desired.

"Not really...I'm..." She wasn't sure she wanted to go home yet, and she didn't want to tell him about the well. No one but Inuyasha had been able to get through but the idea of Sesshomaru released upon her world made her far too nervous to do that. "...I don't really have anywhere to go."

He would have to kill Inuyasha one of these days. The issues of the Tetsuaiga aside, he'd gotten over it before the final battle with Naraku and now he had his own blade. Bakusaiga was already a more powerful blade than the gift of father to Inuyasha, as far as Sesshomaru was concerned, if he became serious his brother wouldn't make it. He simply still didn't like the half-breed. The latest event wasn't going to help him develop any warmer feelings either. Despite the fact that they'd worked together to destroy Naraku he didn't have issue considering his brother's death or at least minor mutilation for bothering him with such trivial things.

"You can accompany me for a time then." He didn't want to do it, he completely intended on making his brother pay for the inconvenience as soon as he could safely leave the woman at his current home.

"Um..." Kagome blinked in surprise at the comment, it wasn't really a request but more of an order. She wasn't sure what to do, she was tired, sick of crying, and wanted desperately to get even further from the source of her despair. "Okay."

She nodded finally in ascent and began to follow him after he turned to walk down along the riverbank, she didn't have the energy to cry more and was glad to have a few minutes where she wasn't able to after the active night of tears. This wasn't quite what she'd expected, but it was going to take her away for a while, and that was something she needed desperately regardless of circumstance.

She didn't bother glancing back as she fell into step behind the demon lord of the west. Wherever it took her at least she'd be able to avoid the dog earred boy that had finally broken her heart.