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The Courting of Rin	By : Strawberries Category: InuYasha > General Views: 6583 -:- Recommendations : 1 -:- Currently Reading : 0
Disclaimer: I do not own InuYasha, nor make money from this story.

Chapter List
- 8
- 9
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Chapter Nine: New found Wings
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Sunoo landed amidst the flowers of the royal garden. For a moment he stood,
calmly gazing into the multiude of colors surrounding him, seeing the beauty
that had yet to compare to the one he loved. He sighed and began walking
toward his home, his castle. Sunoo did not get more than a few feet before
a medium size ball of feathers barreled into him, knocking him to the ground.
Grabbing the giggling boy, he began wrestling with him until they
were both out of breath. Breathing hard, he ruffled the short silver
hair of his little brother who was now sitting next to him with a laughing
grin. "Yuki! You scamp! You surprised me that time."
The darkest purple sparkled back at him. "That was too easy! I think you
were distracted. I think you were thinking of your kissy-kissy girlfriend!"
Smirking, Sunoo playfully lunged at his little brother. Yuki squeeked out
a laugh before skillfully dodging and rising into the air. Standing,
Sunoo shook his head. "Where is father? I need to speak with him."
Yuki pointed toward the castle. "Father is in the library looking at old
dusty books. I was just with him and he was mumbling something about an
ageless dead priestess. He told me to go play so I came out here."
Sunoo began walking toward the garden exit that led into the castle. "Arigato,
Yuki."
The musky smell of ancient paper tickled his senses as he entered the library,
seeing his father sitting at the large wooden desk, his silvery black wings
molded neatly against his back.
Without looking up, his father smiled. "Ah, my son has returned. What brings
you home so early, Sunoo? Did your intended send you home with your tail
feathers tucked between your legs?" His father looked up from the book, his
smile softening. "Or is there another reason?"
"You know me well, Father. Yes, I have returned early this day for a reason.
Something...strange has occurred with my Rin."
His father raised a silvery black brow. "My Rin? It is not yet the
second moon of your courting and you are already claiming her as yours?
Has The Lady Rin accepted you before the second full moon?"
Sunoo took a seat across from his father with an inward sigh. "No, Rin has
not yet verbally agreed to be my mate but something has happened, something
I must explain to you in detail."
Leaning back, his father eyed him with an even reserve. "I am listening, my
son."
After taking a moment to gather his thoughts, Sunoo began to explain. "Rin has...
Her form...is changing...into a hakuchou."
His father's sky blue eyes widened a bit.
"What do you mean, Sunoo? Tell me exactly what has occurred."
Sunoo allowed a heavy breath. "When I visited Lord Sesshoumaru's estate this
morning, Lord Sesshoumaru led me to Rin's bedroom. I did not see Rin but I did
see...a cocoon...on the floor. I sensed Rin's essence within the golden weave.
I knew immediately what was happening to her. I knew she was...becoming...one
of us. Lord Sesshoumaru had no idea and was very angered. He insisted I inform
him of his wards condition. I did. I also apologized and respectfully requested
that he allow me to continue with the courtship."
With a serious frown, his father stood. "I am surprised Lord Sesshoumaru did not
kill you, Sunoo. This is very serious. Much dishonor has been placed on our
family because of this. I do not know why his ward is changing.
The change is only to occur on the mating night after the ceremony of joining."
Large silvery black wings flustered outward before settling against his father's
back once more. "What was Lord Sesshoumaru's decision?"
Standing, Sunoo held his father's stern gaze. "He is going to allow the courtship
to continue after Rin is born again."
His father's rigid stance relaxed while he gave a slow nod and looked away.
"This is very fortunate for you, my son. Lord Sesshoumaru had every right to
disallow further contact with his ward. He must prize Lady Rin's feelings above
his regal pride." He walked around the desk to the wall of books and began
scanning. "Even though the situation between you and Lord Sesshoumaru is on
somewhat peaceful terms, we still must find the reason for Rin's premature
change. This is unheard of in our history and we must search for the answer
as to why it is happening." He selected a dark brown, leather bound book, turned,
placed it on the table, then began flipping through pages.

Sunoo eyed his father with confusion. "But Father, how do we find out
the reason for such a thing? The only one with such knowledge would be our
protector, the Water Goddess."
As he leaned forward, his father's jet black hair curtained his features.
His finger slid across the page as he mumbled. Closing the book, he straightened
with a half smile. "Yes, my son, she is the only one and we must speak with her."
Stunned, Sunoo watched his father slowly walk out the door.
--------------------------------------------------------
The fragrance of new jasmine greeted him as they approached the shore. Spread
out almost to the horizon, the water of the Great Lake sparkled back the rays
of the midday sun. His Father stopped, held up his hands, then recited words
unknown to him. A moment later, delicate white clouds hid the sunlight. In
the distance a new light emerged, one the color of starlight. It speckled
the air, growing brighter until it blazed only a few paces from them.
Sunoo caught himself before he backed up, not wanting to seem rude. This, of
course, was his first encounter with such a being. He was in awe.
The light dimmed while forming shape. It was her. Their protector.
She was undescribable. In all his years he had never seen such a wonder:
tall and beautiful, long black hair, dressed in a silks of ocean blue, the
layers of which wavered in the wind as if in a water's current. Her deep green
eyes fell on them.

Immediately, he bowed, knowing that her status far outweighed his own.
His father bowed deeply as well. A voice, soft and light,
harkened. "Please, stand, Sunoo, Kuroi, and tell me why it is you have
asked to see me."
Sunoo straightened. His father did as well and then spoke with a strong gentleness.
"My Lady of the Water, I am here on behalf of my son."
Those depths of sea green settled on him and blinked once. He wanted to look
away but found himself unable to do so. She gave him a small smile.
"You may continue, Lord Kuroi."
"Great Goddess, my son, Sunoo, is courting Lord Sesshoumaru's ward. Their
courtship has not been completed. Yet, The Lady Rin is...changing...into
one of us."
Her smile softened along with the light in her eyes. "I see."
She floated closer to them. Sunoo watched her feet touch the sandy shore. Dark
yellow flowers blossomed under every footfall. His skin tingled with the
brush of heavenly wind as she paused a few paces before him.
The Goddess did not speak for several moments. Instead, she gazed at him
in contemplation. Finally, she spoke. Her tone was soothing yet somewhat
sad. "Lord Sunoo, The Lady Rin is changing into a Hakuchou. When I bestowed
the gift of new life to your people, my reasons were based on love. My love
allowed your people to return, to live again. Only one that truly loves will
become a Hakuchou. The Lady Rin loves you with a pure heart and a pure soul.
You also love The Lady Rin. That love you share has bound her soul to yours and
has changed her form to match yours."
He was speechless. No words would come as his mind whirled with the truth.
Rin loved him....Rin loved him. The very concept hit him hard, yet held him
softly. His heart beat hard in his chest. The only thing he wanted to do
at that one moment was go to her, be by her, stay with her. Yet, his gaze
was still locked with the Water Goddess, waiting in heart pounding awe, hoping
this was not a dream he would soon wake up from.
She rose, turned from him and floated until she was, once again, hovering over
the water's surface. "I must leave you now."
The Water Goddess glided away and vanished into the horizon.
"Sunoo."
His father was eyeing him with a calm smile. "You have
your answer, my son."

------------------------------------------------

The light of approaching dawn began chasing away the darkness.
Sesshoumaru, who had not let his gaze waver from Rin's sleeping profile,
now rose. Sitting up on the softness of Rin's bed, he paused, gazing, taking
in the amazing sight that lay only inches away. She was breathtaking, beyond
any beauty he had ever seen in a female youkai: an orchid in a field of
dandelions and what made her so unique was her spirit: the brightness of a
human soul encased in the power and perfection of a royal demoness.
Rin was now...perfect. Sesshoumaru found himself drawn to that perfection: the
alabaster silkiness of her skin, the wet pinkness of her lips, the sweetest
glow of her body. All of it, he wanted to...
His body leaned closer to the youkai angel before he caught himself and
stopped. Forcing himself to look away, he rose from the bed and left the
room.
Sesshoumaru entered the hall to find Jaken. The toad bowed. "My Lord. How is
Rin this morning?"
"Jaken."
Jaken straightened, peering up at him. "Yes, My Lord?"
"Send word to Lord Sunoo that Rin has changed. I am sure he would like to
see Rin."

--------------------------------------------------------------

Finally, the sun was rising. He had been pacing in his room all
night long and now he gazed out his window to see the clouds pinken with
the dawn. It would only be a few more hours now and he could go see if...

Sunoo climbed on his window sill, ready to fly when a sweet voice made him
pause. "My son."

Smiling, Sunoo stepped down and turned to see his mother standing in the
doorway. "Good morning, Mother."

His mother walked up and gave him a brief hug. "My dear one, are you in
such a hurry? She may not even be born yet and you are rushing off."

She was teasing him again. He shook his head. "You know how I feel, Mother.
I must go see her even if she is still unborn. I need to see her. Lord
Sesshoumaru will allow me to see her at midday. I wanted to wait close by
his estate until that time."

Stepping back, his mother gave a knowing, wistful smile. "You do love her,
don't you?" Her silver demon light glowed faintly in the room's dusky
morning shadow. "I have news, Sunoo. Lord Sesshoumaru's messenger arrived
before the dawn. He informed us that Rin has completed the change and you
may go see her now if you wish to."

At this he started; his heart stopping in mid-beat for an instant.
All the air rushed out of him and he had to think to begin breathing
again. "She...she is reborn? She is..." With a joyful laugh, he hugged his
mother in a quick tight embrace before heading to the window. "I will be
back this evening, Mother."

-------------------------------------------------------

Rin knew something was different. She felt strange. Her arms and legs
seemed almost weightless, as did her entire body. And..there was something...
on her back...something that wasn't there before but felt as if it had always
been there.

She opened her eyes to see morning's shadows on the wall. Taking a deep
breath, she let it out in a yawn while bringing her hand up to rub her eye.
In mid motion, she paused and stared at her hand. It was so...white and
there was a pink marking on it. Slowly, Rin sat up, immediately feeling
the delicate weight on her back rise with her. She twitched and the weight rustled.
Eyes widening, Rin glanced down and lifted the blanket. She was naked!
And that wasn't all. Her body was so...different...so... Pink lines curled
from her collar to her breasts, down to her navel and then to her...

Rin dropped the blanket then grasped it close to her body while quickly
glancing to the door. She relaxed, seeing it was shut.

Very gently, she slipped out of bed, the rustle close to her ears as she
walked to the vanity mirror. The second she saw the image in the mirror,
she let out a surprised shriek. Wide-eyed and in shock, Rin
stared at the person who was looking back at her. Was this...her? Was this
her reflection? Or was this some sort of dream? The longer she stood there
gazing, the longer Rin began to realize this was not a dream and she was
not going to wake up. It was all so... Her body...Her skin...Her...silver hair...
and her.....wings???!!! She had wings!? At the very thought, they spread
out to either side: large, strong, silvery lined, white feathers. For the longest
moment, she stared at her new feathery appendages until a thought struck her.
Biting her lip, she opened the blanket that was wrapped around her to slowly
reveal and examine her body. Her jaw slightly dropped. She had changed
so much. She was leaner, more slender now. The only thing that seemed to
have remained the same was the shape of her breasts. And her skin! It was so
pale. And the marks. Those pink tear drops falling from her eyes.....
Just like...Sunoo's...

Rin gasped, coming closer to the mirror, her eyes locked on the pastel blue star
on her forehead. She was...a Hakuchou...a royal Hakuchou.

At that very moment, the door opened. Rin whirled around to see her Sesshoumaru-
sama standing in the doorway. For a second, she stood stunned until she realized
she was not dressed. With a squeak, she gripped the blanket around her body
and turned away.

Several moments passed and she did not hear him speak, so she decided to
break the silence. "Sesshoumaru-sama, my lord, I...don't understand. Why...?"

He interrupted her in a flat tone that, to her, hinted of irritation.
"Lord Sunoo will be here shortly. He will explain this...change."

Rin turned to see him slowly walking down the hallway.

As she watched her lord disappear, Rin felt a small ache in her chest.

-------------------------------------------

After finally getting over her shock, Rin began searching for something to
wear. She grimaced while standing in front of her wardrobe. Nothing, Nothing
could fit over these new wings. What could she do? She did not want to cut
holes in her clothes.

A single knock sounded at the door. Rin awkwardly walked over to it.
Gripping the blanket tighter with her left hand, she opened the door with her
right. She was greeted by her Lord .

His stance was rigid, a tint of annoyance flickered in his icy amber gaze.
"Lord Sunoo is here. He is in the garden. Do you wish to see him?"

Rin slowly nodded then bit her lip and looked down.

"Why are you not dressed?"

She didn't know why, but, she was somewhat embarrassed. "I...don't have
anything to wear. None of my clothes will fit with these..."
As Rin trailed off, the wings on her back unfolded and spread out, showing
him without words.

"Rin."

Rin glanced up at her lord to see the edge had softened somewhat.
"I will have a tailor sent to your room." He turned and left.

Rin frowned at his retreating backside. Why was he being so distant?
She sighed while closing the door. He probably didn't like her
new body. Even she had to admit it would take some getting use to. One thing
was for certain, she wanted to know why this had happened to her and Sunoo
knew why. Her lord Sesshoumaru said Sunoo would explain things.

---------------------------------------------

Sunoo paced back and forth, brushing up against the garden flowers as he
did so. Over a thousand times he glanced at Lord Sesshoumaru's castle,
hoping to see his Rin, not wanting to miss another minute without her.
It was well past morning and the sun was almost at its peak in the
bright blue sky. He stopped pacing and sat down on a stone bench next to
the water fountain. Letting his gaze fall to the white stones at his feet,
he tried to breathe the jitters away. It seemed as if he was going to
shake out of his skin. What would she look like? What color would her hair
be? How would he feel when he saw her? Searching his heart, Sunoo realized,
that he would still feel the same no matter what Rin's outward
appearance had become. So, he shouldn't really be so nervous. Should he?

He became lost in thought, so lost that he did not sense Rin until her soft
voice sweetened the air and pulled at his heart.

"Sunoo?"

Suddenly he did not want to look up, yet with all of his being, he did want to
look. She was there, standing so close, so close that he could smell her
scent, so close that he could feel her body heat. Taking a solid breath,
he found the courage and slowly lifted his gaze.

The sunlight splashed, reflecting, glittering back a softness that glowed
over silver and pearl. She was dressed in the white regal dress of a
princess. Tiny roses adorned the hem of her robe. The perfect embroidered
flowers dotted a single vine, the bright green thread of which curled from
the hem to intertwine upwards, a bordering trail soon lost beneath shining
silver strands of gold laced hair.

His mouth went dry when his gaze finally alighted on her face.
She was so...beautiful. Without thinking, he slid off the stone bench and
to his knees.

She smiled then reached out, her fingertip graced his cheek. For a long
moment, neither said anything until Rin tilted her head to the side,
her smile falling somewhat. "Sunoo, why am I...? Why am I...like this?"

At her question there came an ocean of rustling in his ears. His jaw
slightly dropped when the wings, so like his own, spread outward, catching
the sun's rays to cast a blanket of shadow on the garden floor.
Sunoo slowly stood, his heart pounding hard, his gaze locked to her
shimmering brown eyes. Standing there, he waited, his mind whirling and
his heart nearly bursting. He was unable to stop his next impulse.
Sunoo closed the short distance between them and engulfed her, now so much
smaller, form in his arms. He whispered, "The Hakuchou were blessed many years
ago by a water goddess. Anyone that chooses to mate with a Hakuchou will become
a swan on their mating night. I was going to tell you when you gave your
acceptance to be my mate. It would have been your choice to become one of us
or not. You were supposed to change when we consummated our union but...."
".....but....it happened before that time. I did not know why so my father went
and asked the water goddess why you changed before our skin touched in
consummation."
Her hesitant whisper warmed his ear. "What did...she say?"
Sunoo closed his eyes, smiling in spite of his trembling. "She told me...
you loved me...."
Letting out a sigh, he continued. "....and our love, because it was so
strong, summoned your rebirth."
------------------------------------
Rin melted in the embrace while listening to his words. The last of
which she took notice. "You love me?"
"Yes, Rin, I love you."
At that one moment the world dissapeared and she felt such happiness.
Sunoo loved her and she loved him and it seemed as if her heart would
burst with the knowledge. She needed to tell him. Leaning back, she
took his dark blue gaze, held it, then gave him what was in her heart.
"I love you."
His soft smile was light with wonder as his warm palm cupped her cheek.
"My love."
Moments passed and Rin became lost in his eyes, lost in him. On the edge
of a dream, that dark blue sea pulled her in, closer and closer until...
she felt a warm softness touch her lips. She closed her eyes, feeling him,
feeling his touch, his skin, his warmth, his love.
-------------------------------------------
Sesshoumaru watched them in calm solitude from his study window. The
Swan's kneeling display was most disgraceful. He had to keep his calm
when the Hakuchou embraced his ward. And now, he tasted blood while
watching them....kiss.
He turned away. He did not want to watch anymore.

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Hi all, I first want to say how sorry I am for the long update. I first
had to finish HOP HOI, then start my brain to finishing this story.
Hope you all like this chappie.
scarecrow.
Review responses:

yelly
Caroline: thanks for the compliment. Glad you like.
me
Animegirl007
Dark Phoenix: You got an insight, yea, something must happen.
heh, bad fluffy. :)
SP777: Yea, I liked the first chap alot too, just hope I can
finish the story. I can see Sessy being an in-the-closet romantic.
(shivers with a grin)
Vicious: Nah, he won't screw up again.
Ugly: not ended, heh. :)
Youkai Mistress
KittyCute: Yeah, the swan is a heart throb , is, isn't he. :)
Tigress: had to finish Hop Hoi first. Now I will finish this one.
kitte le sabre: thank you so much for the (in character) complement. I am
trying harder on that one. :)
Dragon Faere: Okay, dragon, this one on Adult fanfic.net may have a lemon
at the end. I am still debating on it. the one on ff.net will not have
one. *shrugs*
hmhm: you will just have to wait and see. ^-^
kiyomay
Shaid: thanks for the complement. Heh, yea, our dog demon does seem to be lacking
in some departments. He is certainly not perfect. Don't know if Rin can fix him
though, he may have to fix himself.
April: good thing, trust me.
anhimals: yea, I think they should be together too. I love Rin and Sess.
New Fan: devoted one? hmmm. Well, I have seen episodes in Japanese where he
was very devoted. Heh heh.
ann: TY
Shinotenshi: Thank you for the wonderful compliments. He is a sweet character.
I like him too.
Kawool: Ty
marnika: you will just have to wait and see if trouble comes. ;)
Maiandra: TY
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The Courting of Rin