***I do not own InuYasha or any affiliated characters***

Love transcends lifetimes

Chapter 1

A pair of dark brown eyes

*1923*

At the far end of the tunnel a man followed him. Sweat dripped from his brow, he knew the assassin, knew he had come for him.

Good. He thought, He followed my traps and now I have him.

The tall figure walked behind at an easy pace, his head bowed beneath his fedora, his long black coat loose, his hands in the pockets of his slacks.

He knew to expect it. He was hired for the express purpose of killing the most dangerous assassin in London. None knew his name or even where he was from. Most who sought him only one of two things, they either wanted to hire the mysterious man or have him killed.

I am Fredrik the best marksman of my time. He reassured himself as the dark figure came closer.

He would kill him where others had failed!

He did not pause nor did he challenge the dark assassin, he simply turned and fired.

The gunshot sounded loud in the silence of the tunnel. The assassin curled in on the impact of the bullet, but the figure did not crumple to the ground

A grin crossed his face. Still a perfect shot.

It was enough to incapacitate, not kill. The assassin would remain alive long enough to answer a few questions

"Who are you? Who are working for?" He demanded of the figure.

No response, instead he stood strait, and began walking towards him with measured steps. His resolve faltered as the stories about this well know assassin began bombarding his mind.

He always killed quickly and efficiently and that assassin was now calmly walking towards him!

Fredrik held his gun up again "Don't move!" he demanded loudly as his mind came closer to panic. Then for just a moment he was sure he saw a flash of red in the figures eyes.

The shadowed assassin stood not more than ten yards before him. He looked very confident of his own strength and abilities. No sign of discomfort showing, even though Fredrik was sure of his shot.

Fredrik swallowed, the gun in his hand aimed at the heart. He glared at the assassin "I know who you are!"

"Indeed?" the assassin calmly replied. "Then why do you ask?"

Was that amusement he heard?

"You will die, but first you will tell me what I need to know!" Fredrik bragged, with more confidence in his voice than he truly had.

The dark figure continued to advance. He pulled the trigger again. The gunshot ringing in his ears.

He looked in disbelief, the assassin had somehow closed the distance between them.

Eyes glazed as his mind tried to figure out how he had gone from shooting the well know assassin to being the one who was dying, a hand through his chest.

Run right through the middle, with a hand? Who does that?

"Wh... what are you?" he asked, trying not to choke on the blood that filled his mouth. As the world became small and dark around him.

"Killing perfection." The words whispered in his mind filling the darkness around him as death claimed the unlucky human.

Sesshomaru staggered out of the small tunnel into the light of early evening. His magic shield flickered in a daze of blood loss.

That fool had actually caused some damage! Damn.

Guns still caused him problems. For all their ingenuity, guns were inelegant and loud, which added another note in his mind why he did not like humans.

"Damn" He looked down at the blood on his hand, the claws faded in and out of existence. He knew that he would heal quickly enough if he could just let go for a moment and let his Yokai work, but he could not do it here, too many potential eyes. But then bleeding all over while his face flashed from a normal human's to his pale demonic marked features wasn't an intelligent idea either.

To his left ran a stretch of low trees. On the far side he could hear the park. The sounds of children laughing, the call of adult voices, and the swings that squeaked loudly. Through the air, rusting iron mixed with the smell of many sun soaked children in their dirty little clothes.

As good of a place as any.

He turned into the shade of a thick little copse of trees that ran through this part of the park. He sat near the center, against a tree, well hidden by the low bushes. Releasing his shield with a sigh of relief, he closed his eyes. Feeling the rush of power that allowed his silver white hair and the demonic markings of his heritage to return. For several quiet moments he was content. All he needed was a few moments to let himself heal and then he could continue.

He glared at the sound of little footsteps and the rustle of the bushes, followed by a gasp caused by fear and concern.

Sesshomaru wondered when his mind would quit returning him to the moment he had met Rin.

It was not the first time she intruded on his mind, causing him to see and hear her all around him. She was like a ghost haunting his everyday life. Though it had been a very long time since the child Rin had haunted his thoughts. He could hear her and could almost feel the child sized heartbeat and smell the worry laced together with her normal scent.

He refused to open his eyes and look at the nonexistent Rin, she was long dead and the universe had seen fit to keep her from him. In over 300 years he had not seen nor felt her and he had to conclude that reincarnation was not a real thing. While death…well, that was something he was not ready for yet. Their daughter still needed him.

The phantom Rin was stepping closer. He could almost see her dirty old Kimono not yet ripped and bloody from the wolves. He remembered clearly the bare little feet and her dark hair pulled into a crooked mass on the side of her head.

He watched in his mind as she carried an unneeded supply of food for him and the single missing tooth in her smile at his cold words.

Damn.

In disgust, he opened his eyes to prove to his mind that his ears and nose were wrong.

A Pair of deep brown eyes peeked at him over the bushes, her little cap slightly askew. A few dark curls had escaped, while a look of extreme worry pursed her childlike mouth. She was dressed as most of the children in this time were, a pale blue sundress and a pretty little lace cap to cover an abundance of curly dark brown hair.

"Rin!" an adult voice called and Sesshomaru's heart skipped a beat at the sight of HIS Rin looking no more than 5 years old.

At that moment Sesshomaru made a decision. The Universe was an inconsiderate bastard. Why now? Why still a child? Why had he not felt her before?

"Sarah there is a hurt man hiding in here" her little voice called as she turned from him to call to the unknown person who now coming his way.

Damn!

He needed to go now while she was not watching and with a deeply felt pang of regret, he left with every ounce of speed he could muster.

"There is not! Katrina, you are always making up stories!" he heard as he fled.

A glare on his face, he found himself seriously considered killing himself just for the pleasure of meeting whoever it was that was in charge of little things. Like sending Rin back after all this time.

A growl escaped his throat as he headed toward the apartment that Tsukiko had in the city. His daughter was now an author writing about the myth and lore behind her heritage. Most humans called her work fiction but she had lived through most of it, and heard tales from him about the rest.

He did not care if he was a very obvious ball of light flying over the city. He needed to clear his mind now! When he landed on her balcony he simply let himself in through the sliding door and sat down on the couch. Covering his face with his hands he willed his mind to remain calm and push away the long dead memories that threatened to return again.

Several hours later as Tsukiko came in the door she looked up in surprise at the sight of her father sitting on her couch.

"Hello Father, what are you doing here? Did you fly in? Why are you covered in blood? That couch is new. Well, was new, I guess." She rambled in surprise as she knelt in front of him seeking the source of the blood a look of concern on her face. Sometimes she look so much like her mother it almost hurt.

"It is nothing. I need to rest undisturbed so I can heal" he refused to bring up the other reason he was so upset. He hoped the look on his face would warn her that he was not going to say anymore on the matter.

To his relief it seemed too. She smiled and kissed him on his crescent moon. "Well, it's good to see you again anyway, I will get my guest room ready. Try not to cover it in blood too, please." she turned away leaving him alone in the room.

His golden eyes scanned over the furnishings of her rather impressive apartment home. A lush carpet covered the floor, the two couches and the other miscellaneous furnishings were all very well made. Several pieces of art on the walls were new and from this age, bright and cheerful. One thing stood out of place among the modern furnishings.

She still hung the sword, Sashimasu, he had given to her above the fireplace. He couldn't help but smile at the ancient weapon as his tongue instinctively running over the missing fang in his mouth.

Like his own half brother, Sesshomaru's daughter suffers and struggles against the pure demon blood of her father's line. He commissioned Totosia to make the sword for her. He trained her at a very young age to be a master swords-woman.

He stood and walked to the sword, he could feel the aura around it respond as he laid his hand against the hilt.

"Do you still practice?" He asked as she came back into the front room with a pair of spare clothes in her hands.

"Yes, though the need to fight is gone, I do keep up on it" she came to his side and smiled "You were a very good teacher Father, I miss those times."

He nodded running his hand over the sheathed blade.

As do I.

*1528*

Tsukiko sat down hard, a sharp pain in her hind end and glared up at her older brother. His silver hair held tightly back in a topknot a grin on his streaked face, his sword in hand as he stood over her.

"That was not fair" she complained. At the age of 16 she was still considered very young by demons standards but not so by humans. She had to beg and finally convinced her father to allow her to learn, like her older siblings the art of war and fighting.

"Fights are not always fair Tsukiko, he simply took the opening you offered." Her father said from where he stood and watched the fight.

She growled and stood up again taking her stance.

"You lean too much to the right, are poorly balanced, and are easily overtaken." Sesshomaru reminded her as Ichirou came at her again.

This time however it was he that ended up on the ground. At the last moment she had forced her mind to concentrate on her sword Sashimasu. Made from her father's fang, it beat with a life of its own as she made it glow creating a barrier at the last moment that pushed back her brother's attack. This time it was Ichirou who glared

"Using your sword like that is not fair either Tsukiko!" he said under his breath.

"As I said fights are not always fair, son. She is using what is hers to use in order to win the fight." Sesshomaru entered the circle.

Mizuki giggled from her place outside the sparing ring. Looking like their grandmother in her expensive and elaborate kimono. She considered herself a lady of high class. Her attitude in that regard had turned her from the art of war. She had taken only the bare minimum of lessons claiming that she only needed to learn defense. But she did enjoy watching her two siblings fight most every time they trained.

Rin slid the screen open and stepped out onto the engawa, a look of worry on her face at the sight. She had never liked the thought of her daughter fighting but had relented in the end knowing that the life of a hanyo was not a simple one.

"Tsukiko won this round Rin Sama" Mizuki said at her approach causing Rin to smile. His set of twins had at first disliked Rin but as time went on she had won them over with her sweetness and her smiles.

"Mother I beat Ichirou!" Tsukiko yelled to Rin waving excitedly.

Her brother glared at her back as he thought very unkind thoughts. His father's arm on his shoulder caused him to pause. "One should always accept defeat with honor and respect the victor's success" Sesshomaru said before stepping past him to go to Rin side.

"Tsukiko" Ichirou said as he came to his little hanyo sister "You fought well"

She smiled up at him "Thank you, I will never really beat you in a fair fight but at least I'm learning to stay alive" she said offering him her hand. Giving her a short nod he turned and walked away.

He is like me in many ways Sesshomaru thought.

…end…

"How long will you be staying?" Tsukiko asked him pulling his mind back from his reverie of the past. He turned to her surprised to see that she still had the same face she had then. Her hair was the only thing that was different, she had dyed it a lovely shade of black to hide the silvery locks. The shade making her look more like her mothers had once been, her fashionable hat covering her Hanyo ears.

"I think I need a break from my current life. Perhaps a few years." Once again he did not mention that the fact that he had seen Rin was his reason for his sudden appearance.

"Wonderful! It's been so long since we last lived together but you should really change and I'll get rid of your bloody clothes." She said handing him the fresh clothes and pointing him toward the room "Also take a shower you smell" she added with a sweet smile as he turned to do just that.

Showers were by far the most impressive thing that humans had invented so far. Sesshomaru now understood InuYasha's wench Kagome a bit more. Her obsession with bathing made sense if this was what she was accustomed to. As the warm water ran over him his mind wandered over the hundreds of years he had spent without his Rin. He had told her that he would find her again no matter how long it took but so many years... a bit more than he had planned on waiting.

…1533…

She was no longer in the room. The door open and her scent heading out into the garden, a glare creased his brow and he went in search of her. When he found her his heart hurt, she was sitting under the peach trees their delicate blossoms just budding. Her shoulders slumped with the effort it had taken to come this far.

"Rin you need your rest" Sesshomaru said as he came to her side and looked at his beloved worry and sorrow curling its wicked claws around his heart. At the human age of 55 she was still as lovely as ever but her heart had become weak. She spent more and more time sitting propped up on pillows looking out into the garden that she could no longer enjoy. His Rin was withering and while he knew that this would happen watching it progress was unbearable.

She smiled up at his approach and held a hand to him "Sit with me" she asked

He sat at her side and she snuggled in closer to him resting her head against his heart "Sesshomaru when I am gone will you remember me forever?" he did not answer but his arms came around her holding her tightly and Rin smiled.

He was so strong and so…him that she knew he would stay silent he almost always did. "I think I will be gone soon." She sighed "My lord will you promise to always be there for Tsukiko? She is still young and she will be in need of your protection and guidance." She paused as she breathed deeply "Would you take her to see the world I know she would love to."

Sesshomaru gave her a nod as an answer. "Be there for Mizuki and Ichirou too, don't be so strong that you forget they are your children as well." She took another deep breath and closed her eyes.

She wondered if he would speak. If he could speak, her lord had never handled grief well. It was something that she knew all too well from the child they had lost at birth long ago. He had closed himself in the study and refused to come out until she had cried for him. And when he had come, he had been strong for her while she knew that he was hiding his broken heart at the lost of the little son.

"Sesshomaru?" she asked as the sun slid slowly to the horizon. Her hand lay against his chest she could feel the soft heart beat beneath the fine silk. "Do you believe in reincarnation?" He did not answer "I have wondered about it, Kagome told me once that InuYasha had lost the woman he loved but that she was her reincarnated again." She took his hand in hers and brought it to her lips

kissing it softly "Sesshomaru, do you think that love can cross lifetimes?" she asked as she reached up to his face and touched one wet cheek.

She turned to look at him, surprised and deeply saddened to see several tears running down his cheeks unchecked. A look of deep pain crossed his face as she lovingly brushed aside his tears with her frail hand "Do not weep for me my love. You have made my life complete. Filled my days with joy and have given me my daughter. Everything I am I owe to you and I would never change a single choice we made." she leaned in to kiss him to sooth his breaking heart.

He could not make his voice work. His throat was constrained and raw. The feeling like someone was forcibly removing a part of his heart and soul and he could not stop them. He could tell from her smell as well as her look that she would be gone beyond his reach very shortly.

When he felt the warm tears he did not move to stop them as they slowly fell from his golden eyes to drip off his chin. She would be gone. It hurt more than anything he had ever felt in his long life. He was strong…he was the most powerful Daiyokai in all of Japan. Nothing was beyond his reach and he knew it. But as he held her in his arms all of the power and glory of his life were nothing and he knew that in this one thing even he was useless.

With an effort he closed his eyes and commanded his voice to listen to him. After a moment he opened them and looked into her beautiful eyes that were clouded with pain, death creeping in to mar their loveliness. "I will find you again my Beloved nothing will keep me from you. Not death and not time. I will never love again I will only love you." He managed to say as he folded her into his arms and buried his face in her hair his tears falling unchecked for the first and last time in his life.

…End...

Running his claws through his wet hair he pushed back the painful memories. And yet she was born again… So long ago he had planed what he would do when she returned but after so many years he wasn't so sure anymore.

Tsukiko had left him several of his favorite books by the bed side along with the daily paper. Picking it up he glanced over the front page. "Well know and praised professor missing from his mansion home" Sesshomaru glared at the photo. He was a well known demon among his own kind. Hiding his true self as a college professor the Demon was one of the eldest in England. Sesshomaru shrugged, the Demon was most likely changing his place to hide his lack of aging like so many did these days.

He stared out the window looking at nothing the paper lay at his side unread. He knew that he needed to tell his employer that the job was done. Being a hired assassin had its perks but also its draw backs. Venting his frustrations by killing was something he had always done. But these days the population of demons was severely diminished and most humans did not take to senseless killing with the world war only recently over and still fresh on most of their minds.

In this new age he had found that his very unique talents could be used by governments and gangsters alike. When the need to kill came he would go do a "job" to relive his tension. The pay wasn't too bad as far as human money went, making him rather wealthy as well. Though he didn't find a use for it often it was nice when the need did arise.

He heard Tsukiko come in the front door and picked up the paper pretending to be very interested in the current news. She paused in the front room before coming down the hall and opening the door to her guest room. "Good Afternoon father" she said brightly coming to his side kissing his cheek. He glared up at her.

The habit of kissing him at every turn still confused as well as upset his decorum. Something he suspected she knew and did for that reason. "Oh don't glare at me it is a good day! I have a letter from Ichirou, it's for you" she said handing him the letter "Although I don't know how he knew you were here" she said with a shrug as he declined to answer.

He looked at the letter from his oldest child, his heir and son. It had been over sixty years since he had last seen him. The elegant pen work clearly the hand of his daughter Mizuki but addressed from the family mansion home.

As times had changed and demons fell into the lore and myth of history his son had moved up in the human world as a very powerful business man, securing his families lands with his money and power. His twin sister Mizuki still stayed with him. She was a well know beauty and had become a famous singer for this century dazzling the humans with her voice.

He smiled at the thought of his three children all had made him proud. His son had proven at a young age that he was more than capable and so when Sesshomaru became tired of the burden of his responsibilities he did not worry about passing on his lands and title to Ichirou.

"Father… I think…" his daughter paused. Sesshomaru could feel her heart beat faster as worry lined her face. "I think mother is back" she finished

Well that was unexpected

"Why do you think that?" he asked managing to make his face as blank as only he could.

"I have felt her" she said sitting at his side on the bed a sad look in her eyes. He didn't answer as he tried to think of a way out of what he knew she would ask. "Don't look at me like I am crazy" she said a glare on her face "I lived beneath her heart for nine months do you really think I wouldn't know her?"

Sorry to have not though about her feeling on the matter he decided that since she already knew... "I have seen her"

"What? Where did you see her and when?" she asked her face brightening with a wide smile. "Why didn't you tell me?" a look of excitement on her face.

"She is still a child, no more than five human years" he said remembering how she used to look and how she looked now.

"How?" she asked her eyes full of delight.

"In the usual human manner I imagine" he shrugged, a small smile escaping as he looked at Tsukiko, who only glared at him "The same way I met her the first time" he amended.

"Really? You got in a fight with InuYasha again?" she laughed at his glare as she stood and taking his hand began to pull him up "Please lets go and see her, I miss mother"

"I hardly think that going to a five year old and telling her of a past life is a good idea."

"Oh really father, I just want to see her!" she said stomping her foot ever so slightly.

He knew that she would not listen to reason but tried to talk reason into her anyway. "Tsukiko I think that she should be allowed to grow up unmolested by us. Let her have her childhood she did not have much of one in her last lifetime."

His willful daughter remained un fazed "Like I said I just want to see her, please father I miss her so much and she has finally returned."

He gave in, besides she was not guaranteed to be in the park this day and he wouldn't know where to look beyond there.

Was that a comfort or regret?

…0…

Tsukiko sighed as she sat on the bench next her father. Rin was not there today as she had not been for the last week. But his daughter had repeatedly pulled her reluctant father out the door every morning to drag him down to the park and watch for her.

Something about stalking a child version of your late mate seemed very wrong to him. He did want her back, but he wanted her to have the childhood she lacked in her last lifetime.

Unfortunately he had never been very good at telling Tsukiko no and sticking with it. Because of this had given in every day part of him hoping she would be there and part of him wishing she would not.

As the sun climbed higher Tsukiko leaned on his shoulder and sighed "How did you meet her this time? I know you didn't get into a fight with InuYasha."

"I had been hurt on the last assignment I did." He began "Recovery was necessary so I went into the patch of trees over there." He said pointing out the spot to her "She came up to me like she did before, unafraid and quiet"

"Do you know the name she was given this lifetime?"

"Someone called her Rin" he said the pang of regret returning at the thought of him leaving her on that day "But then moments later called her Katrina before I was gone."

"Really the same name as well as meeting you the same way?" Tsukiko smiled thinking of her parents love "Do you think history will continue to repeat itself? If that is so you should find her again when she is…19 right?" Tsukiko looked at her father and was shocked to see a look she did not see often on his face.

Panic.

"Father what is wron… Hey wait!?" she said as he suddenly stood and without thinking farther changed into the fasted mode of travel he could. As a ball of light went in search of Rin.

History repeating….

***Chapter one done, this has been difficult mostly because of the flashbacks they will be in no particular order. They will come to him at odd times and for different reasons***