Protecting You (An InuYasha Fanfic)

Chapter Four: Kohaku's Surprise Visit

"Rin? Rin? It's morning. Time to wake up!" A gentle voice spoke in Rin's ear.

Rin groaned, rubbing her eyes. Then she realized who was speaking, and sat bolt upright, her eyes now wide and alert. "Lady Rikako!"

Lady Rikako smiled at her from her seat beside Rin. "Good morning, Rin. Did you sleep well?"

The little girl nodded brightly. "Yep! But where were you last night?"

Rikako cocked her head. "Where was I----last night?"

"Uh huh. I didn't see you at dinner. Were you feeling okay?" She asked in concern.

Several mixed expressions crossed over Rikako's face, and she looked like she was carefully searching for the right words to say. "Oh, I was-----taking a walk. I just needed some fresh air, that's all. Don't worry about me."

Rin frowned, then sighed. "Okay." Then an idea popped up in her head. "Can we go fishing today?"

"Okay, Rin. It's heading your way!"

Rin's eyebrows were furrowed in concentration, and she plunged her hands into the water. "I got it!" Sure enough, she withdrew her hands, a wriggling fish clutched in her fingers.

Rikako smiled. Rin's happy grin was so wide and bright it was like staring into a miniature sun. No wonder Sesshomaru is so protective of her. It's no surprise that she's the reason he tolerates humans now. A warm feeling bloomed in her heart, and her eyes widened, her hand moving up to her chest. What exactly was this feeling? 

"Lady Rikako? Is something wrong?" Rin asked, her eyes wide and innocent.

Rikako shook her head. "No, not at all. We should head back and dry off, before you catch a cold, Rin."

And before the younger girl could react, Rikako had scooped her up and seated her on top of her shoulders, fish basket and all. Rin burst into giggles, clutching the basket of fish in her hands, resting it on top of Rikako's head. Rikako held onto Rin's ankles to make sure she didn't fall off, then climbed out of the stream and back towards the village.

"Rikako? Are you not feeling well again?" Kagome asked. "You hardly ate any breakfast, and now you're not touching your lunch either. Are you sure you're fine?"

Rikako snapped out of her trance. "Oh, yeah! I'm fine. I've just never had much of an appetite."

"Is that so?" Kagome smiled, chuckling softly. "If that's the case, then I can't believe you and Inuyasha are relatives. His stomach is like a bottomless pit!"

Rikako hid a soft smirk, staring down at her bowl. That was one thing she could agree on. Jeez, he's just like the males back in the wolf tribe. I suppose men are men, no matter what species.

"You know, Rikako, I'm really surprised." Her sister in-law remarked. "I never would've expected Rin to hang around with wolves the way she does now."

"Huh? Does she not like wolves?"

"No. A few years back, she was attacked by wolves and killed. Thankfully, Sesshomaru saved her with the Tenseiga, but she's been terrified of wolves ever since. At least until you came."

"Really? Now that you mention it, Rin was scared when she first saw my wolves-------"

Kagome picked up a piece of carrot with her chopsticks and ate it. "Well of course she was. Your wolves are enormous compared to Koga's."

Rikako choked on a sip of tea. "E-Excuse me?" She asked, coughing and wiping off her mouth. "Koga's wolves?"

"What? You didn't know? Koga attacked Rin's village a few years back. He-----Rikako? Rikako! What're you doing?" Kagome sprang to her feet in panic.

Rikako blinked, and sucked in a breath. For a split second, she had been so furious at her adopted father that she had literally been radiating demonic energy, her teeth gritted in anger. 

Sango, who had been watching Rikako and Kagome for some time, scootched over. "Rikako, it's great to know you're so protective of Rin, but try to avoid blowing up Kaede's house, okay?"

Rikako's cheeks flushed slightly, and for the first time since her reawakening, she felt a sense of embarassment. "Sorry about that. I just can't believe------I mean, Koga, of all people--------argh! Never mind."

She looked down, sighing. Father, why did you attack Rin? Are you just like all the other demons, who hunger for human flesh? Or were you feeling sadistic and decided to have some entertainment? At that thought, her hair began billowing out again as demonic energy leaked out of her.

Suddenly, someone knocked on the door, allowing Rikako to regain control of herself. Kaede stood up, walked over, and opened the door. "Hello? Who is-------goodness! It's been quite some time, hasn't it?"

"Yes, it has." A voice replied. Rikako hadn't heard that voice before, though it sounded like it belonged to a young boy. Sango, however, instantly paled.

"Is it-------it can't be-------after all these years------" She muttered, her eyes wide.

"Sango?" Rikako asked. "Do you know that person?"

Sango was frozen, listening to Kaede and the newcomer's conversation.

"Um, Kaede, is my sister here?"

"Yes, she is. Come on inside." Kaede opened the door wider, and a young boy stepped into the room. He looked around fourteen years of age, and wore yellowish green armour over a black bodysuit. At his heels trotted a tiny yellow demon cat, with two fluffy tails.

"Kohaku! Kirara!"

"I see." Rikako said, leaning forward. "So you're Sango's little brother."

Kohaku nodded. "That's right. To be honest, this is my first time to visit her."

"Really? Why?"

Kohaku looked down at his lap. "Well, I didn't want to bother her------"

"Kohaku! Are you stupid?" Sango burst out, scolding her brother. "It's been over three years since I last saw you! That's way too long! At least visit more often!" 

 Her twin daughters tumbled over Kohaku's lap, giggling and laughing. "Uncle! Uncle!"

"Sorry about that, Sis. I've just been really busy lately, fighting demons."

Miroku spoke up. "Now that you mention, there's been a noticeable increase in the number of demons recently. We were attacked not too long ago. Any ideas on what's behind it all?"

Kohaku snuck a glance over at Rin and the twin little girls. "Umm, first, why don't we-------"

Rikako caught on, and quickly stood up, picking up one twin under each arm. "Let's go, Rin. They have some important things to talk about. Shall we go pick some flowers?"

Rin cocked her head. "Is it okay to just leave them?"

"Don't worry, Rin. We'll be fine; go have some fun, okay?" Kagome gently gave Rin a shove out the door after Rikako.

"So that's the famous Rikako, right?" Kohaku asked, watching as Rikako left with the three little girls. "She's Inuyasha's and Sesshomaru's half sister, right?"

Inuyasha nodded. "That's right."

"How come I haven't heard of her until now?"

"To tell you the truth, none of us knew about her either until a few weeks ago." Miroku remarked. "Apparently, Sesshomaru found her a couple hundred years ago, and put a barrier around her. Don't ask why; he didn't bother telling us either."

"Huh. So, she's a half demon?"

Kagome nodded. "More or less. Technically, she's three fourths demon, and only one fourths human, though she still calls herself a hanyo."

"Let's cut down to the chase already!" Inuyasha said irritably. "You were about to say something about demons, remember?"