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Sesshōmaru’s eyes snapped open at the sound of the shoji sliding shut. The quiet click sounded like a whimper, and the warm feeling of having his arms wrapped around Rin’s slighter body quickly faded. As he rose to an upright position, he swept his hair over his shoulder with a careless flick of his wrist. A sidelong glance toward the window allowed a view of the velvety black sky without star nor moonlight to give the night color.
Though, that wasn’t all that was missing.
This wasn’t the first night that Rin had slipped from his grasp, and with the growing humidity, as the summer season approaching, it would only worsen. Alone, he sighed to himself. Rin was a practical woman who bore heavy burdens on her delicate shoulders, even as she whittled away at her strength with her fretful worrying. Perhaps she had forgotten the depth of his sentiment for her, but he would take care to remind her thoroughly once she was well. Their blankets did not cover much of his lower half, and they were shucked off as he rose to his feet. He swept out into the hall without a backward glance. A faintly sweet and bitterly undertone scent assaulted his nose as soon as he stepped foot out of their bedroom. Sesshōmaru’s nose didn’t wrinkle, nor did he turn his face away from it instead of following the sound of retching down the hall.
As he reached the bathroom door, he pushed it open with one hand, and the stench hit him in a thick cloud. Though, he hardly thought of it as he saw his wife clutching a wooden bucket for dear life. Her pulse was slow and labored. His eyes trailed down her body, lingering on her back as she hunched over the bucket, gasping for breath. Her short, harsh breaths were louder with the door opened. As she bent over the bucket again, Sesshōmaru reached out a hand to gather her hair from her sweaty neck.
She jumped, panic spiked in her aura, and as he looked at her, regret flickered around her face when she saw him. Her big, round eyes were wide and glazed over with shame as she turned her head away to hide her colorless cheeks.
“Sesshōmaru-sama, I…”
He shook his head, nodding for her to continue. She sniffed and shuddered; her hand flew to her mouth as he held her hair off to the side. This time, she wept with each retch, and he sat beside her, knees pressed against the floorboards. He was sure by now that the contents of her stomach would be emptied. His ear twitched, and he shot a glance behind him at Jaken, who was startled by the sight of him. The imp seemed torn as he shot Rin a sympathetic look, then guiltily looked down at the bowl of water and rag he’d brought. Sesshōmaru raised his brow, and Jaken caved in magnanimously, seeming thankful that his silence was seemingly forgiven. He knelt before Sesshōmaru and set the bowl down, then backed off a few steps before he bowed deeply and scurried off to the kitchen.
When he had gone, Sesshōmaru dipped the rag in the water, then he wrung the excess out of it and began wiping down her neck. She let out a sigh of relief as she sat up, turning to face him as he wiped down her forehead and then folded the rag to wipe her mouth. Once he was done, he draped the rag against the bowl’s shallow rim. He pulled her close to him with an arm draped around her shoulders, letting her lean against his chest as she slumped against him as if all her energy had been lost.
“I’m sorry, Sesshōmaru-sama…”
He looked at her, tilting his head as he tried to find what she needed to apologize for. Though, he felt it was better not to exhaust himself with the possibility of what she could mean. Ensuring her comfort was his primary concern. His lips gently caressed her temples, and he felt beneath his palm, the muscles in her stomach relaxing – the softness of her belly – and the little flutter of two hearts beneath her own.
A small smile hidden against her hair as he held her closer, believing himself to be understood, when she sighed with contentment and pressed her cheek against his chest.