Ice and Snow, Mind and Heart

Chapter 26: Barriers

Yuki and Sesshomaru soon rejoined Rin and Jaken in a large clearing, the human child calling brightly as soon as she spotted the approaching pair: "Look! Here come Lord Sesshomaru and Yuki, now!"

"Oh, Lord Sesshomaru!" Jaken called in delight, perking up visibly as soon as he spotted the dog demon. "Where have you been?"

Sesshomaru ignored him, stopping suddenly in his tracks; Yuki accidentally bumped into his back, not having expected him to stop. He didn't seem to care, remaining still as he stared to the side, and she rubbed her nose as she looked up at him curiously.

"Sesshomaru?" She asked, when she caught it too. It was Kohaku's scent once again.

"I've found him." Sesshomaru murmured, his nose locating the boy quicker than Yuki. Of course, Jaken and Rin, however, had no idea what he was talking about.

"Huh?" They asked, and Sesshomaru repeated impatiently, still looking off in the direction the smell was coming from: "I've found him."

"Er, found who?" Jaken asked in confusion. If it were Naraku Sesshomaru had caught the scent of, Jaken had no doubt his lord would've already been gone, chasing after it. But instead, he stood there, simply staring.

"That little troublemaker." Sesshomaru murmured, and Yuki glanced at him while Jaken cocked his head in confusion.

"... Little troublemaker?" He wondered, and Yuki supplied: "Kohaku."

"Oh! The boy who was with Naraku?" Jaken asked, while Rin repeated: "Kohaku?"

Instead of replying, Sesshomaru turned and started off after the smell, following it as it started to move further away.

"Ah! Please wait, Lord Sesshomaru!" Jaken gasped as he hurried after the dog demon, but Yuki paused as she saw Rin looking after Sesshomaru anxiously.

"Rin?" She asked the child, and Rin looked at her.

"Yuki, do you think Lord Sesshomaru is going to kill Kohaku?" The child asked, and Yuki looked down at the girl in surprise.

"Oh... well, I don't know." Yuki admitted, because she really didn't know. Sesshomaru could be rather unpredictable in that sense – while Yuki was certain she was now able to read when he was about to kill his opponent or not, she had no idea what Sesshomaru would do until he was actually faced with said opponent.

As Rin looked concerned, Yuki added comfortingly: "But, I won't let him. I can't do that to Sango, anyway."

"Who is Sango?" Rin asked questioningly, and Yuki explained: "A friend of mine, who knows Kohaku very well."

"I see." Rin said thoughtfully, and Yuki smiled.

Apparently, Rin had bonded closer with the boy than either she or Sesshomaru had been aware; it made Yuki wonder if Rin had met the boy Kohaku, not the puppet Kohaku. It would explain why Rin seemed to care so much about his fate.

Patting Rin's head, Yuki promised: "I won't let Sesshomaru hurt Kohaku, Rin. Promise."

Rin smiled up, and nodded. "Okay."

"Good. Now come on." Yuki smiled, removing her hand from Rin's head. "Let's go before Sesshomaru leaves us here on our own."

Rin nodded, before she reached up to take Yuki's hand. It surprised the half-demoness, but she didn't comment as, together, the pair walked off after Sesshomaru, and Kohaku.

As they went, Yuki paused momentarily, stopping in her tracks for only a fraction of a second.

In the distance, she thought she could smell Kagome and the others, along with a slight burnt scent. She frowned, wondering if something had happened to them. But there had been no call from Inuyasha, and she didn't smell anything strange from him, so, turning away, she carried on on her own journey.