Chapter 61

The hot-spring horror



Mai looked at Rin with worry. The child was behaving weird today. Sesshomaru left them again and flew off somewhere, taking Jaken with him and leaving the girls with Ah-Un. She took an opportunity to finally do a laundry, taking the advantage of the fact, that her demonic boss wasn't around to make her wash his clothes.

"Tch! He should make Jaken do those kinds of things, not me." She muttered to herself, as she was hanging her wet kimonos. The girl looked with longing at the direction, where the hot springs were. In the morning Rin went to Jaken and negotiated with him making them. The imp stuck a talisman on the bare stones and touched it with Nintoujou, creating a pond filled with hot water. At first Mai scolded both Jaken and the kid for not telling her before, that the imp could do something like that – she just couldn't get over so many wasted chances to take a relaxing hot bath.

When she finished hanging the last kimono, she fished the soap out of the travelling bag and cheerfully made her way to the hot springs, humming under her nose.

"Mai!" The girl turned around at the sound of the kid's voice. "Mai, can you help me with those characters?"

Mai squinted her eyes to see, what was on the piece of paper, Rin was holding. It seemed, that the child was practicing writing. It surprised her a little, that the kid was doing it of her own will – usually Mai had to coax the child, using some advanced methods of persuasion.

"Of course, snips. We'll handle this together after I get my bath, okay?" the girl flashed a smile and set off to the pond. However, she managed to make only one step, before the little hands firmly gripped her kimono. She turned around and looked down, to see Rin staring at her with unusual determination.

"I want now. Please, Mai. Please, please, please…" child kept whining.

"All right." Mai said quickly, stopping Rin. "We'll do that right now."

"Okay!" the kid exclaimed happily, taking her hand. Mai sighed heavily. Rin was a quick learner – she just made the older girl give in to her demands, using the same technique, Mai used on Sesshomaru: keep nagging until he yields.
Rin made Mai help her practice writing characters, then pose for another drawing, next the girl was teaching the kid steps of a dance. The kid kept her occupied all the time till evening, making it impossible to find a free time to soak in the hot springs. Finally, Mai managed to get a moment for herself, making a supper for Rin and herself. She glanced at the child, who was now spending her time with Ah-Un and turned her attention back to chopping the vegetables.



Rin patted Ah-Un and glanced at Mai, who was making the supper. Good, she was busy, so she wouldn't go bathing now. The whole day the little girl did all she could to keep her friend away from the hot springs, so that she could get her and Sesshomaru-sama bathe together. She had a plan in her mind already and carrying it out wouldn't be difficult. Rin looked at the sky and saw, that the sun was already setting. Sesshomaru-sama would return any time now, so she should usher Mai into the pond. Probably the older girl would soak in the water for over an hour, anyway. Determined, Rin stalked to Mai.



Mai lifted her head and saw the kid stalking to her. It looked quite comically, when the child was mimicking adults in this way.

"Something's wrong?" Mai asked, seeing Rin's focused face.

"I don't want the supper anymore." the child stated, pouting.

"But you said earlier, that you're dying of hunger! Which is it?" Mai scolded Rin. First the kid made her do the stew and now she didn't want to eat it? What is with her today anyway? She was behaving kind of strange.

"I'm not hungry." Rin said. "So you don't need to cook anymore. Maybe you could bathe?" the child suggested.

The older girl sighed heavily. It would be a waste if all those food wouldn't be eaten. It was better to cook it first and save it for later. She stirred the stew.
"I'll just finish cooking." Mai said.

Rin felt, that not everything was going as planned. She cast a quick glance at the sky – the sun was setting and Sesshomaru-sama would be here any moment now. She had to get Mai to go to the hot springs now. What to do?

"Ouch!" Rin exclaimed and feigned tripping, knocking the pot out of Mai's hands, so that the stew landed in dirt. The child sprawled herself on the ground and looked at her friend with her puppy eyes.

"I'm sorry! It was an accident!"

"Rin!" Mai glared at the kid. "Oh, really?"
Rin made her most innocent face. The older girl sighed, unable to really scold the child now.

"Seriously, what's wrong with you?" asked confused Mai, as Rin shoved the soap right into her palm. The girl shrugged her shoulders. "Fine, I'll go bathe. Rin, stay here with Ah-Un, okay?"

The child energetically nodded and waved to her. Mai narrowed her eyes, feeling that something suspicious was going on. She wanted to inquire what it was, but on the other hand, she really missed a hot bath. Well, probably she was worrying needlessly. She smiled to herself and made her way through the forest to the pond. The hot springs were quite far away from the camp – it was weird, that Jaken didn't make them somewhere closer. Not sparing it another thought, she continued her stroll till she reached the springs.

Mai took off her kimonos, carefully folded them and placed on a boulder. She took a soap with her and emerged in hot, steaming water. The girl grinned as she felt her muscles relaxing and all the weariness go away. She would definitely stay a longer while here.



Rin was creeping behind Mai, as the girl was walking towards the springs. The child did her best to be silent as a ninja and not noticed. She hid behind a tree and peeked – Mai was just folding her clothes and placing them on a stone. As the older girl slid into the water, Rin began crawling on all fours towards the kimonos. Luckily, the steam was quite dense, so probably Mai won't notice her. The child silently approached the boulder, where the clothes were and grabbed them. Slowly pulled them towards herself, careful not to alert the older girl, who was relaxing in the hot water. When she finally snatched them, Rin backed away, still crawling. She stood up and hid behind a tree, grinning widely. Most of the plan had been carried out already. Now was only one thing left – get Sesshomaru-sama somehow join Mai. The child wasn't particularly worried about that, as she knew her guardian's weak point. Quietly, she made her way back to the camp.



Mai was lying in the water and gazing at the moon and the stars, that shone brightly tonight. Her thoughts were wandering.

"I needed this." She muttered to herself, contented, that she managed to soak in the hot water at last. Now, that she knew the Jaken's secret, she would definitely make the imp do the trick more often. The girl lifted her palm to her eyes and examined it – the fingertips were already wrinkled from staying in the water too long. Mai sighed, knowing, that it was the time to get out. She stood up and made her way to the stone, where she left her clothes. The girl furrowed her brows. The clothes were not there. She looked around quickly, but the kimonos were nowhere to be seen. Did someone stole them? She covered her breasts abruptly, just in the case, that some perverted stalker was around. Mai got out of the hot springs and circled the pond, searching for the lost kimonos, without a positive effect.

Then she linked a few facts in her mind and sighed, slightly annoyed, but also amused in some way.

"Rin." She said loudly. The kid was behaving odd the whole day and now the kimonos were missing. Probably the child thought, that it was a funny prank to make her run around naked. Mai sighed. Well, she didn't really had another choice, than walk to the camp without clothes on her back. It would be embarrassing, but really there was nothing to worry about, since only Rin and herself were in the camp. If Jaken stayed too, that would be a problem. There was also Ah-Un, but Mai wasn't bothered by being seen naked by a grass-eating dragon. Furthermore, Rin told her, that Sesshomaru and Jaken wouldn't be back till morning.

Feeling slightly embarrassed, she made her way to the camp. Anyway, what was to be embarrassed about? The squirrels would see her breasts and butt?



Rin was hiding in the bushes near the camp, waiting for the right moment. The child stirred impatiently, when she finally saw Sesshomaru-sama landing in the middle of the camp. Smiling to herself, she took out an onion, she was hiding in her kimono and brought it close to her eyes, till the tears started flowing. She stretched the muscles on her face and without any delay, ran towards the silver-haired demon. Rin made a scared face and collided with the inu-youkai's leg, desperately gripping his hakama. The child looked up at him, her face all in tears.

"Sesshomaru-sama…" she whimpered, making her bottom lip tremble. The demon looked warily at her.

"What is it Rin?" he demanded harshly. Rin gripped his hakama tighter.

"A demon attacked Mai by the hot-springs. I ran away, but she's in danger!" the child exclaimed, observing Sesshomaru's face and waiting for the reaction. She released his hakama.

Sesshomaru stiffened at the news of the woman in danger. He picked up her scent, but none other except of small animals. However, the demon knew, that certain minions of Naraku could hide their scent and youki. The woman could be killed. Without hesitation, he set off, following the woman's scent. Something he picked up unnerved him. He smelled her blood – she must be wounded!
Rin grabbed Jaken by his clothing, not letting him go with Sesshomaru.

"Jaken-sama, I'm scared!" she exclaimed, as the silver-haired demon rushed with his demonic speed to Mai. Rin smiled – she knew, that her guardian would go to her friend. Now everything was up to the adults. She hoped, that her efforts wouldn't go in vain.
"Rin," Jaken asked her. "Why do you reek of onions?"



Mai cursed, as the branch scratched her shoulder and few drops of blood appeared on her bare skin. She shivered slightly, as she started feeling cold. Why the damn camp had to be so far away? She clenched her fist. Once she gets back, she will talk to Rin about stealing the clothes – it wasn't that funny to Mai.

Suddenly, she saw a rapid movement, no more than a blur, in the dim light of the moon and the stars she couldn't see clearly, what it was, but it was approaching her. She wanted to turn on her heel and flee, but she didn't have enough time – the shape reached her and stopped not a meter from her. She gawked at the awfully familiar silhouette.

"Sesshomaru?" she uttered, seeing the dog demon in front of her, his golden eyes glowing in the dark and the silver hair reflecting the moonlight.

Sesshomaru did not answer. He kept staring at the woman, who was standing before him in her naked glory, nothing hidden from him. The demon could not help, but let his eyes wander over her bare skin, nicely shaped breasts, seductive hips, naked stomach and dark hair over her spot between her legs. He just could not tear his sight of her, he kept devouring the woman's body with his eyes. He knew, that a well-mannered man should have turned away to grant her some privacy and spare shame, but he could not fight the desire to take advantage of the brief moment, when Mai was too shocked, to hide her assets with her hands. The feeling of the desire spiked in Sesshomaru – the barely controllable want to grab the woman, trace over her seductive body with his hands, lips and finally make her his – here and now.

Mai was like paralyzed. She was just standing there like a deer in the headlights and staring at Sesshomaru. What was he doing here anyway? He shouldn't be back yet! Slowly, she began to grasp the situation – she was totally naked before a grown man. The blush reddened her face and neck, reaching her breasts. Extremely embarrassed, but still in shock, she saw Sesshomaru averting his gaze from her face and his golden eyes wandering all over her naked body.

"Kya!" she finally shrieked, waving with her hands frantically, not being able to decide what to hide from his gaze – her breasts or down there.

Her shriek averted the demon's attention from sinfully lusty thoughts and he looked at the flushed face of panicking Mai. The woman was struggling in an attempt to shield her bare flesh from his eyes. Sesshomaru found this sight quite amusing and observed her actions with a smirk. She tried to glare at him, but failed miserably.

"What the hell is wrong with you! Turn around!" Mai shouted to him, angry that Sesshomaru was still standing there, gawking at her tits. The demon hesitated, but finally turned around, his back to her. The girl panted heavily, trying to regain the clarity of thinking. What has just happened was definitely the most embarrassing situation in her whole life. She doubted, if she would be able to ever look Sesshomaru straight in the face after this. All right, first things first.

"Sesshomaru?" she called the demon's name. He remained silent, but that was normal for him. Mai cleared her throat. "Undress."

The demon stiffened at those words. Did she just told him to undress? Not sure, how he should interpret it, he glanced at her over her shoulder.

"What do you mean?" he asked.

"Don't look!" Mai shrieked. "I mean give me your haori, so that I can cover myself with something."
She was staring at his back with anticipation, as the silence fell. Eventually the demon spoke.
"No." he said simply. Mai heard her anger welling.

"What?! Why not?!" she shrieked at him. Sesshomaru closed his eyes, annoyed by the high tones that hurt his ears.

"I do not wish for my clothes to smell of a human."

Mai didn't know if her face was red from the embarrassment or rather rage. That damn demonic asshole could stare at her tits, but wouldn't borrow her a haori! She gritted her teeth. Okay, if he didn't want to give her the clothes willingly, she would take them by herself!

Sesshomaru's eyes snapped open, as he felt the rustling of the fabric and someone tugging leather straps, that kept his armor in place. With a loud thud his armor and both swords fell on the ground, followed by the untied obi. The person responsible for this was just pressing her breasts against his back and trying to yank off his haori. What was the woman doing? Instantly, he whirled around, so that he was facing Mai. She shrieked again, covering herself. Sesshomaru summoned his all willpower to look into her eyes.

"Explain yourself." He said. The look of panic and embarrassment on Mai's face slowly was replaced by anger.

"Take off your haori and give it to me." She hissed, glaring daggers at him. Sesshomaru arched his eyebrow.

"I decline." He said, stubbornly. The woman gritted her teeth.

"Then I'll take it myself!" she shouted and, to the demon's surprise, she threw herself at Sesshomaru, gripping the hems of his haori and sliding it of his shoulders. The demon didn't react, till she was nearly done. He growled at her, as a warning, but she ignored him. The youkai put his hand on her back and pushed her on himself.

"Gah!" Mai yelped, as she collided with Sesshomaru's bare chest. Suddenly her face flushed at the realization, that her naked breasts were tightly pressed against his firm, bare chest. Her heart began pounding furiously. Hesitantly, she looked up at the demon, who was gazing at her strangely.
"Sesshomaru, maybe you could give me this haori." She said quietly, trying to control the fierce blush and the unbearable warmth, that was slowly spreading all over her body. The demon nodded, but didn't budge, still holding her in embrace and staring at her with his piercing golden eyes.

"Sesshomaru!" she urged him to do something, slamming her little fist against his chest. Apparently it worked, because the demon freed her and swiftly turned around. He took off his outer haori, leaving the plain white one on his back. He tossed the cloth to Mai. The girl snatched it and put it on. She picked up the obi from the ground and tied it around her waist with some difficulty, as the sleeves of Sesshomaru's haori were much too long for her.

She watched, as the demon stalked to his scattered belongings, his inner haori still disheveled, and picked up his armor. He began fastening it, struggling with one of the straps, apparently having some difficulties due to the lack of the left arm. Mai hesitantly approached him. The demon glared at her.

"Just let me help you." The girl said to him. Sesshomaru looked at her and then turned his head, standing still in place. Taking it as a permission, she came closer and, furrowing her brows, she fastened the troublesome strap and straightened his inner haori. She looked up and met his watchful gaze. Somehow, she felt unable to step back and was standing there, clutching the hems of his clothing in her hands and staring into his eyes. Neither of them made a move for a while, till Sesshomaru slowly began lowering his head.

"Sesshomaru-sama!" squealed Jaken's voice.

Instantly, Mai's and Sesshomaru's eyes widened. Mai let go of his haori and the demon pulled himself back from her. The imp reached them, panting, and Rin was running behind him, screaming at him to come back.

"Sesshomaru-sama, I was worried about you! You weren't coming back for so long, that I was beginning to…" Jaken stopped and he gawked at Sesshomaru, then at Mai and back at his master. The dog demon's swords laid still on the ground and the girl was dressed in his haori, blushing suspiciously fiercely. What has just happened?

Rin caught up with Jaken and also looked at Mai and the inu-youkai. Considering, that the girl was wearing Sesshomaru-sama's clothes, the plan must have worked and the two must have bathed together. However, Rin couldn't tell if they were closer now than before. Maybe she would have to devise another plan to get them closer.