Hello to chapter 2 of Playing with Fire. Sorry it took so long. I hope you still know what happened in the first chapter. Otherwise I wish you a lot of fun and good luck.

It was already dark when they reached the camp.
“Master Sesshomaru. "Jaken got up. The addressee gave him an angry look. Jaken pulled away from himself and disappeared without another word.
"What kind of demon was that?" Sesshomaru asked without detours. On the way to the camp he had considered whether he should just leave Rin to her fate, but something stopped him. The stranger had heard his question, she ignored her but completely. // This arrogance in his voice and this condescending look. //
“Do you hear badly? Please answer, "he said briskly.
"Guard your tongue Sesshomaru!"
Anger rose in him. How dare she contradict HIM? Even more in this tone! He grabbed her by the throat and pushed her hard against a tree trunk.His eyes sparkled dangerously.
"You don't expect me to get scared now," she said with a slightly provocative smile. His grip tightened and a low growl came out of his throat. // Maybe I should help him a little. // Suddenly Sesshomaru felt a demon aura, very weak, but it clearly came from her. Slowly he opened his hand.
“So you're a daemon after all. "His voice was expressionless, as always. She smiled slightly. // Sesshomaru, if you only knew what kind. //
"It took you a long time to realize that, but I admit I didn't make it easy for you."
Sesshomaru would have loved to instill a little more respect in her, but the self-control he had trained for centuries prevented this. What a pathetic demon would he be if he let himself be guided by such feelings. Finally he took her hand from her neck.
"Why are you hiding it?"
"Counter question: Why do you live with a human child?"After a few seconds of silence, the young woman walked past Sesshomaru and looked into the fire that Jaken had made before her arrival. The dancing flames made her body light up and for a brief moment it seemed as if she herself was on fire. The faces of all the girls who had previously been kidnapped by the collectors appeared before her spiritual eyes. She couldn't help them. // This time it will be different. // She swore to herself. // Even if it means that I have to work with this arrogant block of ice. //
"Gatherers are demons who wreak havoc every 50 years," she began, still looking into the fire. "However, there is only this one left."
“Just one more? "Sesshomaru had turned and was looking at her.
"Yes." She said, letting the eyes meet. "He collects young human girls. Usually they are older than the little one today, but I have been preventing him from even getting close to people for weeks. therefore the age will probably have been irrelevant to him. ""What happens to the girls?"
“The collector brings them to Kimiko. Kimiko lost her body centuries ago. In order to survive, it takes the girls' years of life. "
Sesshomaru didn't understand what she meant by that.
“She exchanges bodies with the girls. The girl's soul wanders into the old worn body that Kiniko used before and she takes the girl's body herself. The really young girls usually only have a few months, if not weeks, until they die. "
Sesshomaru could hardly believe what he was hearing.
"But to be able to carry out this transmigration of souls, it takes exactly 33 days."
"How can you find KImiko?" Sesshomaru asked further.
“That is exactly where the problem lies. Up to now nobody has been able to find your lock. As soon as a daemon aura approaches the castle, it disappears. "
“Is that why you're hiding your demon aura? "It was more of a statement than a question.
“People cannot see Kimiko's castle.It's different with daemons. If I don't have a daemon aura, then - "
"- then they think you are human and leave the lock visible." Sesshomaru finished her sentence. He weighed up his chances of finding this Kimiko and thus also Rin. He had exactly 33 days to look for the needle in the haystack . // It will certainly not be easy, but - //
"I'll come with you!" The woman tore him out of his thoughts. He hadn't said it, but he didn't need to either. She knew that he would try to save Rin.
,,If you really want. "Everyone in Sesshomaru resisted the thought of going on the road with this woman and he would let her feel that clearly. The only reason he kept her alive was her knowledge.
"You insolently haven't introduced yourself yet, so what's your name?"
"I don't know what that has to do with you!" She said and wanted to go.
"Where are you going?" His voice sounded almost imperious now."Stop pretending I'm your serf!" She replied sharply and left.
Sesshomaru looked after her. // What a terrible woman. // When people hear the word "demon", they immediately think of a wild beast that tears everything and everyone to pieces. Most demons do not. Even if many demons are loners, they fight not necessarily against each other when they meet, but are extremely polite and then go their separate ways again. They also tend to stay away from people. After all, they are inferior and you don't bother with that. Only with the few exceptions, people attack, demons have their bad reputation. Now Sesshomaru met this woman. A demon who protected people and yet was so incredibly rude and disrespectful. He shook his head slightly and was about to sit down when he noticed a small wreath of flowers on the floor. which Rin must have made.He looked closely at the brightly colored flowers and the fine knots that held everything together. // People have strange habits. // With a quick wave of the hand he threw the wreath into the fire, leaned against a tree trunk and stared lost in thought into the flames. // For the first time in a long time, I'm really alone again. No sleeping Rin and even Jaken has not returned yet. // A strange feeling took hold of him. Finally he closed his eyes and inadvertently fell into a light sleep.
A pleasant shiver ran through the woman's body as she slipped into the warm water. She went to a spring, washed her clothes and hung them over a branch to dry. Only now did she feel how exhausted she actually was. She had been after the collector for weeks. The same game day and night for weeks: Search the country in flight for the collector. As soon as he shows himself fight with him until he escapes and then the whole thing all over again.However, she never thought that she would meet Sesshomaru as a result. But what surprised her most was that he was traveling with this little girl. It is said of him that he considers people and everyone who has even a single drop of human blood in them to be inferior. "Now stop brooding over this block of ice." She said to herself and began carefully to clean her blood-stuck plumage. She examined the injury to her right wing. Fortunately only superficially. She took some water, left it over the wound ran and then devoted herself to her other wing. When she had smoothed all her feathers, she got out of the water, got dressed and grabbed a small bottle that she always carried with her and had previously placed next to the hot spring, centuries ago she got this from a monk near the sea
[Review]
This fluid changes the appearance of daemons.Three drops under the tongue are enough. However, it is short-lived. On every full moon night before the moon is at its highest, you have to reapply it. The liquid in the bottle will neither end nor spoil, but as soon as you pronounce your name the bottle will disappear.
[End of retrospect]
She looked at the yellow liquid. Actually, I don't need any physical camouflage anymore. She paused for a moment, but then she said in a firm voice:
"Himiko"
The bottle in her hand lit up briefly before turning into dust that was carried away by the wind.
Himiko looked up at the (full) moon. In a few moments it would reach its highest point. She felt like a very extraordinary lightness flowed through her. // The time has come. // Himiko closed her eyes and took a deep breath. She felt her feet loosen from the ground. She spread her wings. She could feel the lift. With strong flaps of the wing she swung herself into the air.When she opened her eyes again she knew that she had lost her disguise. The moonlight glittered in her now green-brown eyes. Himiko felt the cold wind on her face and dropped into a gliding flight. On the horizon she could see the ice-covered peaks of the shadowy mountains. Her eyes went wide. "The shadow mountains ..." she escaped involuntarily. How could I be so blind. She made a risky curve and flew towards the camp.
So that was the 2nd chapter. I'll admit that the ending seems a bit rushed, but well. I hope you had fun and leave me a little picking point. (By the way, criticism is also welcome. (writing style, etc ...)