"Now Die!" Kagome shouted as she released her purifying arrow at Naraku. Naraku crumbled, and the shards of the sacred jewel that he possessed tumbled to her feet.

Kagome numbly picked it up before rushing to Inuyasha, who had been run through the heart with one of Naraku's deadly tentacles. Her hand fell to his neck, searching in vain for what she knew was not there. There was no pulse. Inuyasha was dead.

Broken sobs wrenched themselves unforgivingly from her throat as she clung to his chest. "I love you Inuyasha, I will always love you" she sobbed into him. Kikyou, who had been standing near, watching the display impassively, turned to walk away. She had nothing to say to the man she claimed to love.

The Lord of the Western Lands watched the girl weep over his half-brother with mild interest. The fact that this weak, pathetic human was displaying affection over his utter disgrace of a brother made him want to hurl, but taking into account that this weak, pathetic human had just single handedly defeated Naraku, he felt it would be in his own personal interest to keep his opinions to his self. He was, of course, far stronger than Naraku ever was, but I don't care who you are, an arrow to the heart hurts.

At that moment Kagome chose to look up into the eyes of the Demon Lord. She looked at him in wonder.

"Se-Sesh-Sesshomaru" she whispered "can, can you save him? With the Tenseiga?" she looked up at him with tear-filled eyes "please" she trailed off

"No." he answered abruptly "I will not restore the life of a fool" she defeated Naraku…

"If you do" she said, her voice gaining in strength "I will give you the wish of the sacred jewel"

"I don't need it" said Sesshomaru, turning away. She did it her self, she did what I could not…

"What do you need?! I'll give you anything I can, please…" she was begging now, pleading, hell she was desperate.

For reasons unknown to him, Sesshomaru couldn't resist her eyes. "my ward," he started slowly "needs a mother. If you will come to my palace and stay as her mother, I will heal him."

Kagome was ecstatic "YES! I mean yes, of course I will. Thank you Sesshomaru, thank you so much" she couldn't believe that he would heal Inuyasha! she was so happy.

Kohaku appeared in the clearing

"Step aside Priestess" said Sesshomaru. And she did

Sesshomaru could see the messengers from hell preparing Inuyasha's body, and in one smooth sweep, they were all slain, and fairly confused when they entered hell themselves.

Inuyasha started breathing again, though it would probably be days before he woke.

Kagome lovingly brushed the stray hairs off of his face when Kohaku decided to make his presence known.

He cleared his throat and took his chain sickle, looked Kagome in the eyes "tell my sister that I remember her and I am sorry. I love her." And without another word, he took his boomerang and stabbed out his jewel shard.

His lifeless corpse crumpled to the ground

Sesshomaru smelt the girl's tears before she shed them. In two strides he had closed the distance between himself and Kohaku's corpse, and before Kagome had time to blink the tears from her eyes, three more of the messengers from hell were making bewildered excuses to St Peter.

She took the last jewel shard (the one that Kohaku had, Kouga had given her his earlier) and held it in her hands with the others as she prayed. The jewel became one.

She looked at him with a slightly sad expression "I'm not going to come back here for a long time am I?" Kagome asked

Sesshomaru stared at her

"No"

Kagome smiled and whispered "my wish on the sacred jewel is this. I wish Kikyou was alive."

Sesshomaru shot Kagome a very puzzled look. Understanding, Kagome said "I love Inuyasha, I want him to be happy." Then she stared blankly at Inuyasha and said:

Love is patient; love is kind
and envies no one.
Love is never boastful, nor conceited, nor rude;
never selfish, not quick to take offense.
love accepts all things, believes all things,

and endures all things.

Love never fails.
In this world, there are three things
that last forever: faith, hope, and love;
but the greatest of them all is love."

"I am ready to go now" she said

And they did.