Afterward

There you have it folks. 4 re-writes, and 8 years in the making. I cannot tell you how much of a journey this has been for me. When I started this story, I was 24, just getting back into Fanfiction for the first time since my highschool days. Life changes you in many ways and I can definitely say that writing this story has had a profound effect on my life.

When I started this story, I wanted to create a tale that managed a developing relationship between Rin and Sesshomaru in a way that was as canon-compliant, but also as realistic as possible. I drew inspiration particularly from Pride and Prejudice as well as Emma, both of which feature male romantic leads that are older (but not necessarily wiser or more mature) than the female heroines. I particularly love in those stories how Emma (who is 17 years younger than Mr. Knightly) slowly becomes his equal and how Lizzy slowly warms up to Mr. Darcy. That is the feeling I tried to capture.

I know that might have been frustrating at times: to never hear Sesshomaru utter the words "I love you", to almost never hear Rin say the same, to be worried that there wasn't going to be a kiss. This was by design and I hope that it helped keep their growing mutual affection realistic.

As for original characters, I am simply overwhelmed by the outpouring of support you all had for Tsukiakari, Kongomi, Yoihito, and their friends. I knew going in that I needed to introduce original characters to make sure the Inutaichi weren't distracting from our main characters, Rin and Sesshomaru. Watching them grow and support our two favorites was a treat; I hope you don't mind them sharing the screen time and that they got their happy endings as well. Or, in the cases of Pian and Inukojo, getting what they deserved.

The visceral hate you all expressed for Pian and Inukojo was equally satisfying. ;)

This story has been dark and I would like to sincerely apologize to those of you who read this prior to June 2020. I am so, so sorry for not tagging and rating appropriately until that late in the game. I never realized that Inuyasha was Older Teen/R! But the ratings have been updated and where possible, appropriate tags have been applied. That said, I hope the dark themes were not too much as I tried to replicate the violent world Rumiko Takashi created to serve as the backdrop for this love story.

This has been a treasure to write and I hope you, reader, whether you picked this up back in the beginning (2012), for the final release (2020), or sometime in the future, enjoyed this story.

There is one final element: just like Thinking in a New Light is Rin's prologue to this whole affair, Light at the End of the Day is Sesshoumaru's epilogue. You don't need it to understand this novel, but it does serve as a nice closure.

So thank you again, dear reader for sticking with me all this time. I wish you all the very best during these troubling times. Stay happy, stay safe!

Bigimotik (formerly known as Ksmurf)