InuYasha Fan Fiction ❯ Freedom ❯ Soundless serenity ( Chapter 1 )

`So beautiful…' he caught himself staring~ even if it was only a flower. He was not one for gaping, but the flower Rin had presented him just moments before captured his very essence. He knew he was getting softer; his cold exterior braking like the brittle ice in the early days of spring. It didn't bother him in the least; he admired beauty of simple things. The old Sesshomaru would have raised a questionable eyebrow, but kept his emotions to himself; behind the frigid mask of indifference.

 

“My lord, Rin would like to know if the flower Rin has picked for you has pleased you?” The child beside him quietly interjected her questions between the great rifts in his thoughts.

 

“Yes Rin, it does please me.” He replied, patting her on the head gently. She beamed up at him, and gently released herself from the folds of his hakima. It was an accustomed act for them: she would retrieve special flowers for him and he in turn would tell her something nice, it was an unspoken agreement.

 

Sesshomaru wandered through the forest they currently inhabited Ah-Un and Jaken were hindrances to him, and only lived because he could trust no one else, even though Jaken was most unreliable. Drifting through the forest, the grass bending underfoot, he made his way towards a small waterfall he had sensed upon awakening this morning. The sound of rustling water weaved its way through the trees, stifling the harmony of the cricket's song. At times such as these, Sesshomaru truly wondered if he was alive, or simply passing through this world ghost-like and invisible. Alone, he wondered what life truly meant, and why he was immortal, and what that meant. He hadn't really thought of life without Rin, without simplicity haunting him, without his daily bouquet of flowers.

 

`Will I be like Inuyasha? Caught between one good thing and the next? Aimlessly wandering the world waiting for my life to have purpose?' He touched his face. His markings, a sign of the Inutasho, his bloodline, suddenly had no meaning. Alone, he was just a demon, just a soul, wandering the empty forest, living from breath to breath, hoping the next wouldn't be his last. Sitting on a large boulder next to the crystalline water, Sesshomaru stared into the depths of the pebbled river. His reflection stared back at him, as if it was mocking him; his subconscious mind knew what he was searching for, it was teasing him, letting him get closer to his prize, snatching it back before he could taste it.

 

Kicking the water in frustration, Sesshomaru took in his surroundings. Sun was pouring in from the opening in the canopy above his head. Ribbons of light bounced off of the water and struck the shiny undersides of the rocky outcroppings; Sesshomaru took the time to humor himself and tried to think of animals the swiftly changing shapes created. Leaves silently fell in a death procession; their graves chosen by the winds direction, their brethren looked on somberly, swaying in the gentle breeze. Sesshomaru rose from his warmed seat and slowly made his way to the edge of the water. He tested the water with a toe and nodded to himself.

 

Stepping into the water, he forgot all about his problems, his fears, his pain, and all feelings ceased to exist. He continued into the water until he was waist deep, the icy bite of the water long subsided, he lowered his head and dipped it under the water. Opening his eyes, he looked at the silent world in front of him. The swirling mass rushed around him and he could see fish and other water dwelling creatures make their ways through the maze of pebbles.

 

As he surfaced, his hair, clothes and armor were heavy with water. He knew that if he didn't get out of the water he would eventually become cold. Wading back to shore, he shook his hair out, his long tresses would take hours to dry if he didn't do this simple act, but he found it degrading, so dog like, that he only did it in private. Shaking off his outer clothing, he set them on a rock that was warmed by the sun. He had only a cloth wrapped around his legs as pants on, and he felt utterly at peace with the world.

 

As he laid himself down on the ground, he wondered if this is what the true meaning of life was, `Is this what it feels like to be free?' He closed his eyes and sighed. For the first time in his life, Sesshomaru fell asleep a free soul.