I Found by Momo Rei

I Found

Author's Notes: I've never done a one shot, nor a songfic. I barely know what one is and I've never read one. Still, I heard this song and it got the gears a spinning. This ficlet is set before and after the final Naraku battle. 

I Found

Rated - K

Disclaimer: I do not own Inuyasha.

o ~ o ~ o ~ o ~ o

I Found - by Amber Run

[I'll use you as a warning sign]

He watched her, with a large yellow satchel, disappear into an unremarkable well. Her dark raven hair streaming behind her as she jumped over the ledge and far from his senses, leaving only the light scent of salty tears behind. So that's where the mysterious and equally unremarkable girl hid away.

Sesshomaru had once wondered why his pathetic younger brother would collude with such a strange mortal girl. Then once became twice, and twice became thrice, and so on.

He'd convinced himself that if he discovered the secret, he would be satisfied and could drive thoughts of her from his mind. For what other reason would a great daiyokai have with the affairs of some peculiar girl?

[That if you talk enough sense then you'll lose your mind]

It had taken nearly a week of waiting for Sesshomaru to reap the reward of his patience finally. The girl had not returned to the well right away as he thought she might. What she lingered behind for after his brother's most recent betrayal was beyond him, nor did he care.

He only wanted to see where the gregarious mortal hailed from with bizarre clothes and mannerisms. 

That was the only reason he watched and waited. A daiyokai's sense of curiosity was essential to be appeased. A lowly mortal could not understand the inner workings of a complex being such as himself. 

[And I'll use you as a focal point

So I don't lose sight of what I want]

He'd remained in the area, much to his imp retainer's chagrin, even after the girl did not reappear. 

"Lord, should we not carry on to search for a method to complete the Meidō? Did you not say strengthening Tensaiga was of the utmost importance?" the imp asked. 

Sesshomaru bit back the glare and cutting words he had for his lackey. There was no need to make his ludicrous intentions known. "We shall move at the pace I set." He turned his head and watched the small mortal child playing, oblivious to the reality of the world. 

"But my master Sesshomaru, the girl is complaining of being bored," Jaken advised in hushed tones. "I told her to keep her whining to herself, and you were not to be bothered with her pandering."

"I'm fine!" Rin called out, appearing over Jaken's head. "I like it here," she concluded with a smile.

Sesshomaru nodded at the child who continued to run and play in her own world. 

How odd these humans were. So simple, yet somehow intriguing.

He turned his head unconsciously towards the direction of the well, staring through the trees.

[And I've moved further than I thought I could 

But I missed you more than I thought I would]

Even after defeating the blight Naraku, Sesshomaru felt drawn to the well. He'd noticed his brother's return, but also the lack of the miko. 

She'd been the key to the Sacred Jewel, and it's undoing. 

Perhaps she had been taken into the spiritual realm with the Jewel, or maybe she'd also been erased from existence. Sesshomaru doubted both ideas, settling with the theory she'd just been sent back to her world through the well, her mission here complete.

That would be for the best. A strong-willed woman had no place here. 

Yet, his mind continued to drift to the well.

[And I'll use you as a warning sign

That if you talk enough sense, then you'll lose your mind]

Even after he'd decided to leave Rin in the village with her own kind, he convinced himself he would not go near the old well. It was no place for him.

Sesshomaru still found himself wandering near the well, curious to look down its depths. Would there be something at the bottom, he wondered. Just this once, he would allow himself to wonder.

He had to wait for his brother, lamenting silently over the woman's disappearance, to vacate the premises.

Once the opportunity presented itself, he stalked up close to the well. Sesshomaru stood several feet away, assessing the plain thing. It seemed to have no purpose, sitting old and unused. 

Just one look, and the curiosity will abate. The miko can be purged from my thoughts forevermore, he thought. 

Walking close, Sesshomaru placed his hand on the lip of the well. Whatever he thought he might find was not there. An explanation for the strange sensation whenever he lost himself in the thought of the woman was no longer likely. The magic of the place was now dead. Only her scent lingered, strangely enough.

He inhaled the fragrant aroma of the woman's eerie presence; lavender, he concluded—a calming scent, much like the woman herself.

He sucked in a breath at the notion. It was unfathomable for him, Sesshomaru, to think pleasant thoughts of a human woman. What could possibly draw him to a lowly creature?

And I found love where it wasn't supposed to be

Sesshomaru would pass by the well each time he came to visit Rin in her new home. Each time he would tell himself, no, but he could hardly deny his indulged interest. 

The smell of his brother dissipated from the area. Inuyasha had stopped bothering to visit the well, his hope at the woman's return diminished. It pleased Sesshomaru that he alone had the perseverance to return faithfully—another area where he was superior to the half breed.

The notion held little comfort for him on this day. 

[Right in front of me]

It seemed like a day no different than any other. 

A pleasant visit with Rin deposited him near the well again and thinking of 'her.' He wondered aimlessly at what she may be doing, where her life had taken her. It was a form of solace to ponder at such meaningless and inane things.

His meandering mind prompted him to stay close to the area that night, which also allowed him the extra benefit of the ethereal scent the wind pushed towards him. The aroma permeated through his reflections until morning when he felt a stirring of unexplained sensations.

Sesshomaru strolled towards that perplexing internal commotion. He could see the well in the distance and also his brother sprinting towards him.

He grabbed at Bakusaiga's hilt in preparation for a confrontation, but that never came. For his brother had no eyes for him.

Inuyasha stopped at the well and peered down with hopeful, desperate eyes. 

Sesshomaru watched from his hidden position with a strange twinge in his chest.

He watched as Inuyasha leaned down and extended his arm. Part of Sesshomaru longed for the gesture to be swatted away, but he stared transfixed while his younger, aimless, unworthy sibling pulled her out of the well.

They pulled into an embrace that sent a spasm through Sesshomaru's chest. He casually looked down at himself. What sensation was this? Was he broken? How weak had he become spending his time pandering around a backwater human village and contemplating impossible scenarios?

[Talk some sense to me]

Sesshomaru quickly departed before anyone else could appear and discover his presence. 

He soared through the air, lost in thought. Many of those thoughts revolved around maiming or killing his brother, but Sesshomaru could not wholly fathom why. He'd long put his animosity towards Inuyasha, but something ate at him from the inside out.

His brother, the half breed, had something that Sesshomaru, the daiyokai, did not. 

He'd found what it was little too late. 

Sesshomaru lamented to himself.

And I found love where it wasn't supposed to be

Right in front of me

Talk some sense to me