The Light in My Darkness

Many years ago....

"Sakura? Sakura? Where are you?" Sesshomaru yelled out into his vast gardens. She was hiding from him again, his young puppy nose still unable to decipher all the different scents around him. He closed his eyes and focused, just like his father had taught him, and tried to locate only the scent that he knew to be Sakura's. She always smelled of cherry blossoms and fortunatly, he had ordered them removed when she had started sneaking in here. Focusing completely on that smell, he found her. What in the world was she doing in the lavender? he thought. She hated the scent of lavender. It was then another smell hit him, salt and water. Tears. Sesshomaru ran to her without a second thought and fell to his knees beside her. She had her head burried in the palm of her hands, tears running unchecked down her face and arms. "Sakura what happened? Are you hurt?" She turned towards him and shook her head no. "Then why are you crying?"

"Aya is dead."

Sesshomaru understood now. Aya had been a little bluebird that Sakura had become quite attached to over the past few days. "But it was just a silly bird, there will be others."

Sakura let out another sob before reaching out to pick up the little thing."She wasn't just a bird to me Sesshy, she was my friend." He really hated it when she called him that. Thankfully, she only did when they were alone. "Would you like to bury her? We could put her right in the lilies, where you two played the other day." He offered in an attempt to cheer her up. He had a surprise for here that would hopefully help but he wanted to give it to her at the right moment. He knew his offer had worked when she looked up it him with her big blue eyes and smiled. "Thank you."

Although he knew she was still a bit sad, Sakura had started to feel better the moment that had buried the little bird and he led her over to the edge garden to the spring. The sun was just starting to set and he knew that his guards would be looking for him soon. He pulled a little box from the sleeve of his haori and sat it infront of her.

Sakura knew that the puppy had something up his sleeve as he had been more distant that usual but when he sat the little box down infront of her she almost laughed at how correct she was. "What is this?" She asked him. She had lived in the Inu no Taisho's home for three years now and not once had Sesshomaru ever given her a gift. Not even for her birthday. Too excited to allow him the chance to reply, she picked it up untied the little ribbon. He must've tied this himself. She thought. As it was a rather messy bow and when she opened the lid she gasped. Inside the box sat a little round crystal full of green light. "It's like my own little moon." She didn't realize that she had spoken aloud until Sesshomaru replied.

"That's what it is supposed to be. Do you remember when you got lost out here during the new moon?" He saw her shudder and knew that she did. "And do you remember what you told me sitting right here after my father found you?"

"I told you that the moon was precious and that it would beat the sun in a fight anyday because the sun, while it does bring light to the day cannot light up the darkness."

Sesshomaru smiled at the memory."That is why I made this for you. The crystal will never shatter and that is my youki trapped inside it. You will never be completely in the darkness again."

Sakura was overwhelmed. She never had to be afraid of the dark again because Sesshomaru had gifted her her own personal moon. Before she could stop herself she threw are arms around his neck and hugged him tight. He was the only friend that she had ever known, at least the only one that talked back, and now she knew that even though he wasn't technically allowed to say so, he considered her a friend as well. They had played together in his gardens many times but she had always been afraid that he would never truly accept her. Her being a hanyou and all. "Arigato, Sesshomaru." 

Sesshomaru was moving to return the embrace when something invisable ripped him from her arms. "Sakura run!" He screamed, but it was no use. Two demons had already moved from the shadows and they had their hands wrapped around Sakura's arms. Whatever force was holding him back relinquished its hold and he ran for the demons. He couldn't use his newly discovered poision claws recklessly. He still had very little control over the venom and if he so much as scratched Sakura it would likely kill her. Just a little bit closer. "Sakura, DON'T MOVE!" He lept and sliced the head off of the demon holding her left arm, the venom eating away at the demons flesh. He moved to do the same to the second, when a whimper hit his ears. Looking closely he saw the the second demon had a knife pressed to Sakura's throat. "Let her go. She has done you no harm. Take me intead."

"I am sorry, but that is not possible."

Sesshomaru turned as a woman dressed in all black lept out of the woods to land directly between him and Sakura. He growled low in warning." I said, let her go."

The woman scoffed at him. "Do you think that you are capable of defeating me puppy? Give it your very best try. I promise not to enjoy it... too much." He didn't know what to do and he knew the woman could smell his fear. Where was his father? Why had need not come when the barrier had been broken? Who was going to save them?

Just then a powerful aura burst down around them, knocking them all to the ground. Sakura managed to free herself from the demons grasp and ran towards Sesshomaru's voice. She couldn't see anything. Flowers and dirt were being swirled up around her and she was barely moving against the wind. "Sesshomaru? Where are you? I can't see anything."

He could hear her but the wind was preventing even his enhanced sight from locating her. There was no telling how far and energy burst like that could throw somebody and she may have gotten hurt. And then it was gone. Just like that the wind dissapeared. The woman screamed in outrage and killed her so-called demon partner before dissipating herself. Sesshomaru immediatly looked around for Sakura but he didn't see her. He closed his eyes and searched for her scent and her aura and found nothing. No trace of her. She was gone.

"Sesshomaru!?" He heard his fathers voice from behind him but he was frozen in place. What had happened? "Chi-Chi ue, you have to go find her. Sakura was taken by something. Some kind of wind demon I think. I didn't get to her in time. We have to go after her."

The great Inu no Taisho's heart broke for his son as he got down on his knees to look him in the eyes."Sesshomaru, her demonic aura is completely gone. You know what that means." The little hanyou was dead. Where her body was he didn't know but he had felt the little things aura dissipate into nothing.

"I wasnt able to protect her."

"Son. Look at me." The boy was shaking in his anger and grief and he didn't have to see the tears to know that they were there."Sesshomaru. You can't protect everyone." And when his son finally made eye contact with him, what he saw there was simply... nothing.

"Then this Sesshomaru will protect no one."