The shard hunting group was resting around their campfire with food on their minds. Since it was getting colder Kagome made a deal with Inuyasha; he could eat his fill in ramen that night if they stopped at a village for warmer clothes for everyone. The decision was an easy yes for him. If he thought it through he would have realized that now Kagome had an excuse to go home quicker with the ramen supply down.
Inuyasha was crouched close to the pot of cooking ramen with his nose twitching and tongue hanging slightly out of his mouth. Acting every part like the dog he was. Miroku was meditating by the fire next to Sango who was polishing her boomerang more out of habit then necessity. Shippou and Rin were coloring with crayons by the trees while Sesshoumaru watched over them.
He joined them a few months ago after Rin was kidnapped. Kikyo stole Rin while he was patrolling his lands, in hope to force Sesshoumaru to obey Naraku. The tai-youkai was able to get Rin back after he destroyed Kikyo. Ever since then, Rin only felt completely safe with the presence Sesshoumaru and Kagome; the only mother figure she had.
Kagome was standing with her arms crossed looking down at Inuyasha with an amused expression. She was ready to point out that he was beginning to drool when her head snapped up and her eyes glowed white. She was having a vision.
Miroku and Sesshoumaru noticed her having the vision and began to walk towards her. They both felt her power rise. Ever since she had her complete soul, Kagome's powers were increasing. Sesshoumaru has been training her in many things since he noticed how strong she really was with her entire soul. He claimed that if she didn't train then she could have constant power flares and in turn put Rin in danger. No one knew if that was the real reason or if he was just bored. It didn't matter really because she could fight with a sword or hand to hand combat really well and loved how she could help in fights more.
Kagome's eyes went back to blue as she whispered, "It's them", and turned towards the forest. "What did you see Kagome-sama?" Miroku asked. By then all the adults came over to Kagome to hear what she saw.
Kagome shook her head slightly like she was baffled by something. She was trying to wrap her mind around what she saw when Miroku spoke again. "Sharing is caring I believe you usually say."
She laughed lightly looking at her friends. "Yes you're right. It seems that we're gonna get us some help against Naraku. They come tomorrow." She looked back at the forest.
"This is BULL S-", Inuyasha was stopped mid word from Old Faithful, aka Sango's boomerang. He glared at her and continued to speak. "What I mean is we don't need no help! Hell! We don't need freaking girly man here either!" He yelled pointing at Sesshomaru.
Sesshomaru didn't show any emotion on his face but looked at Kagome and asked her, "What has you worried Miko?" Kagome smiled. You couldn't hide anything from him.
"The help we are receiving …it's just *sigh* I really shouldn't be surprised by anything anymore. The help appears to be a group of vampires; I didn't think they were real. In my time they are just stories about the blood sucking, sun hating, walking dead." Everyone, minus Sesshomaru, slid a glance at Inuyasha at the walking dead bit. "But according to my vision, they are going to be walking in the day light."
Miroku put his hand to his chin mulling over what she said. "If you think these vampire creatures are not true beings, then how do you know these beings from your vision are in fact vampires Kagome-sama?"
"I've been having dreams of these people for the past two nights. I thought they were just dreams. I don't know why- but my mind just screams vampire when I see them. The one woman in the dream told me they were on their way but I thought nothing of it…I mean I've never had a vision in a dream!"
Kagome's blossoming power was unlike any other miko. The theory that Miroku came up with was that since she was the born guardian of the Shikon, she would need to be strong enough to protect the jewel. So she had no idea what to expect when it came to her power's capabilities. Since she was in no danger before her fifteenth birthday, her powers laid dormant. Now that she has her soul back, she needs to be armed and ready for any threat.
Sango reminded everyone that they shouldn't be thinking on empty stomachs. The ramen was passed around and everyone ate in silence thinking what these visitors would be like.
Kagome woke up early to have her usual morning spar with Sesshomaru. After a quick wash she started making breakfast when Shippou walked over to her. "Do you think the vampires will be nice Kagome?" She glanced down at him surprised wondering how he knew about them coming; the kids were coloring when the adults were talking. He just made an 'are you serious?' face and pointed towards his ears. She blushed, forgetting that even though he was young, he still was a demon and responded, "Yes, we have nothing to worry about kit". Shippou just beamed up at her and went on over to Rin. He loved when she called him kit; it made him feel like he was part of a family.
She went back to stirring the oatmeal and was humming a tune that just popped in her head. Then she started to add the words when she got lost in her song. "Man eater, make you work hard, make you spend hard, make you want all of her love. She's a man eater make you buy cars ma—" Kagome stopped mid word when she noticed Sesshomaru standing in front of her with an amused expression on his face.
"Pray tell why you are singing a song about man eating? These creatures, that should be arriving any moment, are in fact man eaters, yes? You are a bizarre human, Kagome." She just smacked her hand to her face and responded, "Ugh, I can't believe I didn't sense you there! And anyway, you should know by now how random things just pop in my head."
"Yes, you do tend to be random." Her jaw dropped and was about to respond when buzzing was heard. They all went in to battle mode. Kagome went to the children and put barrier around them and Jaken, while Ah-Un stayed on the outside to protect them. Sango jumped on Kirara and began attacking the swarm of Naraku's insects with Miroku attacking from below. Inuyasha was attacking Kagura with his sword while Sesshomaru just used his poison whip, in a bored fashion, on anything that dared to come near him. He didn't need to worry about his ward because Kagome's barriers were impenetrable. Said girl was using her bow when she got a hit on Kagura's arm.
Kagura looked at her shocked, but then smirked before taking off. 'I have a chance of being free from Naraku now that she's stronger…', she thought as she flew away.
"HELL YEAH YOU'RE RUNNING AWAY WITCH!" Inuyasha continued to rant about how amazing his sword was against Kagura while Sango and Miroku walked over to Kagome and Sesshomaru.
Kagome could still feel something but wasn't sure what, so she left an arrow strung on her bow while she glanced around. "Do you feel something too?"
"Hn", was all she got from Sesshoumaru. She glanced at him and saw his sword was still drawn. So he too felt something else out there.
"What is it Kagome-chan?" Sango and Miroku were looking around now too, trying to see what they were missing.
"Someone is watching, but isn't coming out." Inuyasha heard this and began to yell for the 'cowards' to come out.
The people from Kagome's vision stepped in to the tree line. There were five of them total. A tall woman with long blonde hair smiled at Kagome showing her fangs. "We meet at last Priestess Kagome."
They all stood around waiting for someone to talk. Shippou and Rin were hiding behind Kagome's legs, while Inuyasha and Sesshomaru stood on either side of her with their hands on their hilts. Miroku moved to stand closer to Sango to be ready to defend her. She just rolled her eyes and muttered, "Men", and pushed him a little away from her.
Inuyasha didn't take his eyes off the other men but said to his half-brother quietly, "We can take them if they make the wrong move". Kagome would have been touched at the fact he said we and not I, but she was focusing at the new comers. Sesshoumaru didn't respond verbally but just smirked. They were of course no threat to him; he was trained since he could walk. He was sizing up the 'vampires' and the smirk fell. They all radiated strength, but the males of the group were almost equal to him. His eyes glowed at the thought of a fight that would actually challenge him.
Kagome' cleared her throat and finally asked her question. "How do you know of me?" She looked again at them and asked, "And why have I dreamt of you the past two days?"
The two women laughed lightly but the men kept a stoic expression. "Yes, we do have much to explain, the main thing being how we are to help you defeat Naraku." Sensing Inuyasha was about to speak, Kagome grabbed his arm and squeezed. The blonde continued to speak unperturbed by the hanyou who was silently seething. "Let us introduce our selves first. My name is Colleen and this is my mate Neil. Our son Aidan is next to him. Liam is Neil's brother and next to him is his mate Colleen." They all looked at Kagome expectantly.
"Oh! Sorry. You somehow all ready know my name…" She muttered creepy under her breath. Aidan looked at her and half-smiled; she didn't notice. "To my left is Inuyasha and at my right is his half-brother Lord Sesshoumaru of the Western lands. Miroku is there at the end and Sango next to him. Behind me are Shippou and Rin." Everyone nodded at their respective name.
Miroku spoke up and asked, "You do not seem to be from these lands. Where have you traveled from to help us?" He was right, they were all extremely fair skinned and they couldn't place their accent.
A deep voice responded, it was Neil, "You are quite right Mr. Miroku, we originally hail from a land far across the ocean. My clan though has been doing some traveling, so our current home is not far from here. The rest of the clan stayed there, since they are not needed in defeating this Naraku." He said his name with such venom it was surprising. None of the Shikon group knew how to respond to that.
Colleen tried to clear the confusion. "Naraku has been near our current home sending out messengers to have us help him gain power. Promising those that helped him more wealth then we could dream." She shook her head, causing her light brown hair to move about her unnaturally beautiful face. "We all thought it was funny, a half-demon coming to us asking to help him gain power. We did not feel he was a threat and forgot about him. Our Volturi could defeat him easily."
Liam took over for his mate, "He attacked our home when most of our males and Volturi were hunting". They all smiled wickedly. "The spider underestimated our women and children and was almost destroyed, but he ran away like a coward. I'm sure you know he can regenerate his body whenever he wants, so we were all thinking up a battle strategy to completely kill the coward when Colleen had a vision of you."
Kagome looked at the tall woman with long blonde hair and blue eyes. She really felt unattractive around these ethereal looking beings. Hell, it was hard enough traveling with gorgeous demons all the time, now she has gorgeous vampires who want to help her out too. "You had a vision of me? I get visions now too, but mine are fragments. Are yours like that as well?"
Colleen smiled at Kagome in a motherly way. "No Kagome, mine are stronger. But fear not, when you gain more control with years of practice, your visions will become clearer. I can become interactive with my visions. I can ask my visions to show me 'what ifs'. Like when I saw you in my vision fighting Naraku, I asked 'What if we helped you', I saw us helping you defeat the cowardly spider. When I asked, 'What if we do not help this woman', I saw you and your companions die. Naraku would then gain the Shikon you possess and become unstoppable. That is something that cannot happen."
Taking all that was said in, she needed to confirm one more thing, "Are you vampires? Where I'm from vampires are just stories. But when I saw you in my vision and in the dream I had, that was all I could think about calling you."
Colleen gave a fanged smile replying, "Yes, we are."
Sesshoumaru's deep voice broke the silence. "We accept your alliance against Naraku." Inuyasha then freaked out. "Who the HELL do you think you are ass hole? Who said we agreed to an alliance?" Sesshoumaru didn't even spare him a glance but said one word, "Alpha".
Neil looked at Inuyasha like he was child having a tantrum. "This is an alliance boyo. We help you, you will help us later. I doubt we will need to call on you though. Our Volturi are help enough against any threat. "
"OK. So we will help you when you need help. Now how did you know about the Shikon? Are these Volturi vampires also? Will they be coming?" Kagome had no problem offering her help later if they were willing to help them now. Fair was fair.
The males growled in irritation while their women just looked a little amused. Colleen told her, "No they are not vampires, but they seem to think so. We created them to help us in a battle against fellow vampires."
Sango, always one for good battle stories asked, "If you don't mind me asking, why were you in a fight with your own kind?"
"I can explain that", Neil started, "Our clan has been in a feud with another for centuries. While I will not go in to the details of the feud, I will explain why we created the Volturi. The Lunar clan created wolf-like creatures they called Children of the Moon. We did not need them having an advantage, so we created the Volturi. They are similar to us for the fact that they have incredible strength, speed, and are nearly immortal. However, we were smarter than the Lunar clan and did not just create a strong being who could eventually revolt against us. They do not have fangs like us, but their teeth are still strong enough to not need them. They cannot use the innate gifts they have against us." He then smiled when he said the last bit. "To make sure they could never hide from us, we made sure that they would shine like a beacon to us in the sunlight."
Miroku put his hand to his chin and said, "That was very clever, I would hate to always be found. However, they could still hide on cloudy days and night time. Why not make sure they were always to be found?"
Sesshoumaru responded for the vampires. "I am sure that they are great hunters like demons. Hunting is a fun past time, but if you have total advantage over the prey it is no longer a hunt."
Liam gave a wicked smile, "Quite right Lord Sesshoumaru. Plus we could not allow these wolves to have an upper hand on the Volturi. The wolves tend to come out at night, so there could not be an easy way for eyes to see them like in the sun."
Cute little Shippou peaked around Kagome's leg and asked Colleen, since she looked nicer compared to the men, "Why do you call them Volturi". Kagome smoothed down his hair in comforting way and smiled at him.
"Well little Shippou, that is a good question. We created them in Volterra, Italy. Now before you ask, they are created from humans who we bit. The venom from our fangs effects humans to change in to Volturi. They can also create more Volturi with their bite. We did not just go around Italy biting people; we knew these humans and they wanted to change in to stronger beings. Gifts that humans have naturally, like empathy towards others, are enhanced when they change to Volturi. There empathy was changed to being able to know what someone is thinking or feeling, to maybe even changing someone's mood if strong enough."
Kagome blushed at a thought that crossed her mind but had to know, "Can you kiss a human without changing them...ya know, because of your fangs?" Sango giggled like a little girl covering her mouth while Miroku said out loud, "Well now Kagome, why ever would you think of that". He wiggled his eyebrows suggestively for extra effect.
She gasped and embarrassed. "I'm just naturally curious! If that's a crime then sue me!" She looked at the vampires again when she remembered something. "And you all never said how you knew about the Shikon…is that a gift of yours or something?"
Aidan, the youngest appearing to be around 16, gave a movie star smile to Kagome. "Why Miss Kagome, I do believe you are trying to change the subject from you wanting to kiss a vampire. You need not worry though; the venom only comes out when we are trying to kill. Like Lord Sesshoumaru and his poison claws. He can hold hands with someone without inflicting damage." Said demon just raised an eyebrow at the vampire child's observation. He did not tell them or show his abilities so how would they know?
Kagome gasped out loud again at the flirty Aidan. "Don't talk to me about kissing vampires!" Stomping her foot for emphasis she continued, "What are you like 16? I'm older then you, respect your elders!" He walked…more like glided towards her and grabbed her hand and rubbed his thumb across her knuckles. "My fair-maiden, I am deeply sorry for offending your sensibilities. I may appear to be 16 to humans but I am 45, still young to other vampires, but older then you." He looked at her slyly and said, "So I think you should apologize to me…maybe with a kiss. Yes?"
Kagome was just looking at him with a dreamy expression. She did feel some connection with him, but he looked younger than her. She was snapped out of her daze by little Rin's question. "Are you really going to kiss him Kagome-sama?" She had wide eyes looking at her mother figure giggling a bit.
"FUCK NO she isn't—", he was stopped mid sentence with a 'sit' from Kagome. Shippou sniggered and kicked his prone form. "No honey, I don't know that boy so it would not be right to do that with him." Kagome was trying to give some good advice for future Rin to look back on and make sure Aidan heard the no too.
Miroku was looking at Aidan with hero-worship showing on his face. Sango decided to smack that out of him. Colleen walked to her son and pulled him away from Kagome. "I am sorry for my son he never acts like this. He did just go through a growth spurt; maybe it is affecting his brain." She looked at him disapprovingly while his father looked at him with pride. Aidan whispered to his family, "She's the one". Everyone but the humans heard him. All the vampires snapped their attention towards Kagome, looking at her in a different light.
Colleen whispered to her mate, "Maybe we are here for more than one reason".
Kagome tried to get the butterflies out of her stomach as she watched Aidan walk away. Not noticing the quiet conversation, she asked, "So back to the original question, how did you know about the Shikon?"
Liam looked at her with a strange gleam in his eyes. "We know everything Miss Kagome; all about the Shikon coming from your body, to you traveling from the future."
Jaws dropped. "And how the HELL did you know that!" Inuyasha demanded from them.
Liam, unperturbed, continued to say, "Not all vampires or Volturi have extra abilites. Colleen is able to see the possible future. Neil can see into someone's mind. He can learn anything he wants about someone that is not protected by a mind barrier. Colleen and I don't have an extra ability. We are unsure of Aidan's gift since he is not an adult yet; he probably has fifty more years or so."
Sango moved over to Kagome and muttered, "Great, if Miroku was turned in to a Volturi he would be super hentai". Kagome giggled. She then asked, "Can humans or demons be changed into vampires and not Volturi?"
Aidan responded to her, "Demons could never be changed to either, we don't know why. Humans can be changed in to vampires but we only do that in special circumstances".
She was afraid to ask, but the ever curious Kagome said, "What circumstance?"
He smiled. "If we find our true mate and they are not a vampire all ready, then we can change them to one so we can be together for eternity and not have our human mate die."
Sango and Kagome looked at each other and made an 'aww' face. Miroku wanted to know what the down side to turning in to a Volturi was. "Everything you say sounds great. Humans, who are weak and die easily, can be turned in to something greater. I am surprised that this has not spread to our area, there must be a down side."
Neil spoke, "It all depends on your personal opinion. The Volturi cannot carry children. There have been cases where a human woman becomes pregnant, but she never survived through the labor. No children from a human and Volturi has survived either.
"Another thing to consider is the process being extremely painful; three days of the worst pain you could ever imagine. You are then essentially the living dead. Their bodies are cold to the touch and they don't need to breathe. Like us, they need blood to survive but we eat meat, they can only survive on the blood of animals, demons, or humans.
"We try to limit the amount of Volturi made because they are so unstable when they are 'reborn'. So if a human comes to us, we take their case in to consideration and make sure they know the facts. We are still unsure as to how the Children of the Moon are created, so we do want to keep the Volturi number at a high level if possible."
Hearing Kagome's question via mind read he told her, "I know it may sound strange but changing others in to vampires remains a sacred thing to us. That is why we only use it for mates. Colleen was once human. She is Liam's true mate so she was turned."
She laughed nervously. "So, um, will a stake through the heart kill you or the Volturi?"
They all looked at her quizzically. "No Kagome, though the bit in your world about the sun burning us may come from the fact that Volturi avoid the sun naturally."
Colleen clapped her hands and rubbed them together. "Let us pause the questioning and eat. We can go hunt some food and talk battle strategy after the meal. The battle will take place in three days time."
The vampires went on their hunt while everyone conversed over the information overload. "Can you imagine? Three days and then Naraku will be defeated!" Sango exclaimed as she looked at Miroku lovingly. After the final battle, they will be able to safely have a family. In a rare un-hentai move, Miroku tenderly grabbed her hand and spoke quietly to her about the future.
Sesshoumaru looked at Kagome and told her that he would send Shippou and Rin with Ah-Un to his castle so they would be out of harm's way. That was very ok with her. She said good-bye to the little ones and then set a fire up for camp. They all sat around the campfire. Kagome noticed Sango and Miroku sitting close and smiled. She was happy for them but then felt a little pang of loneliness.
It was weird. She definitely won't be telling anyone, but there was a pull between her and the youngest vampire. She couldn't figure out why but she just had the urge to go in the forest and find him. She shook her head. 'This is crazy! I cannot be crushing on a vampire! Plus I won't ever see him again. The jewel will probably send me home after I put it back together.' Her final thought depressed her.
She would never see her human companions again. She wasn't sure if Inuyasha would live that long. Sesshoumaru and her little Shippou were the only ones that she had a chance to see again. Sensing her mood going downward, Sesshoumaru growled to Inuyasha so only he and Kirara could hear him. Taking the hint from his half-brother Inuyasha broke her thoughts. "Wench, you should tell that Aidan," he said his name in a high pitched girly voice, "That you want no part of him. He keeps looking at you like you're his and it is pissing me off. Are you listening? By you not saying anything negative to the way he acts you're saying you're ok with him." Sesshoumaru would have rolled his eyes if it was in his nature to do so.
Kagome's jaw dropped and Miroku just shook his head at Inuyasha's lack of tact. She was in no mood for a bossy Inuyasha. "Are you an ignoramus?" Sesshomaru actually laughed lightly, everyone else had no idea what that word meant. "He so does not look at me like that! I'm sure you are being delusional and paranoid as always! Who do you think you are, bossing me around?" She pointed to Sesshoumaru. "He is my alpha, not you numb-nuts! And maybe I want him to look at me! If I do want Aidan or any man, you have no say, savy?" She watched a pirate movie when she was home last time, hence the 'savy' bit. She didn't really intend to be mean, but he caught her off guard with the parts about Aidan looking at her in a possessive way. 'Maybe he feels a pull too?'
Sesshoumaru interrupted her thoughts. "While he went about it the wrong way, Inuyasha does speak the truth. He looked at you through the entire exchange. While I know nothing of vampire customs, a demon would act the same way if we wished to court a female. A male will try to touch his chosen female; this puts his scent on her."
Kagome looked lost. "I did nothing though. Plus he did nothing out of the ordinary. He just grabbed my hand and I mean Kouga does…O crap…" She covered her red cheeks with her hands.
Trying to help her best friend she saw as a little sister she told her, "Kagome-chan, demons will give gifts to a potential mate, like food or clothing. Only items that would actually be needed for survival; it shows that they can provide for your basic needs."
"Ok. Well neither Kouga nor Aidan has done these things…granted I just met Aidan a few hours ago…but Kouga hasn't! So that's good. But let's stop talking about me and my non-existent love life 'k?"
Sango was about to speak up when Sesshoumaru spoke. "Everyone has a true mate Miko; or soul mate in the human terminology. You will find someone who completes you but you're right let us converse on what we discovered today." He always called her 'Miko' when he was serious. She just nodded to him in response.
"Feh. I still think we don't need no help! We are doing just freakin fine as we are." Inuyasha crossed his arms for emphasis.
"Are. You. Insane!" Sango stood up and let her temper flare. "That Colleen told us, told us that she saw us die without their help. Excuse me for wanting to live longer and have a family with Mir-…to live longer!" She finished with a blush and sat back down. Her temper gone, now replaced with mortification that she practically told Miroku she wanted to 'bare his children'. Miroku looked at his future bride lovingly. He enjoyed how she was a strong warrior and a blushing girl at the same time.
Not moved at all by the couple, Inuyasha practically yelled, "They could want the Shikon for themselves! What if they kill us all in our sleep and then steal it and complete the jewel! I mean they said they almost killed Naraku…what is stopping them from doing it themselves? Why do we have to be with the creepy vampires?" He finished in a huff.
A deep voice answered him. "Well Mr. Inuyasha, if you were paying attention, we said that Naraku can regenerate. Kagome is strong enough to purify the coward when he gets weak enough. Only that would get rid of his body and soul." Neil answered, as him and his family walked over to them in the only way a vampire could; a predator like glide.
Kagome jumped when she felt someone sit next to her and touch the inside of her wrist; it was Aidan. "I brought you back rabbit Kagome. Neil said you were thinking about having rabbit. Is that ok? Shall I skin it for you?" Aww he looked so cute. Like a five year old asking mommy if she liked his drawing. She glanced at Sesshoumaru. He just quirked an eyebrow, as if to say 'It is up you young one'…if he was Yoda from star wars.
'Focus Kagome! I guess it wouldn't hurt really...though I would be accepting his advances...what the hell. I like me some rabbit and he will skin it? Done.' She finished her wandering thoughts to say, "Ok that would be nice Aidan, thank you".
He gave a fanged smiled and took his knife seemingly out of nowhere, and moved off to the side to get to work on the rabbit. While everyone went about their tasks dealing with food, Kagome looked at all the vampires. She really looked at them; in a non-creeper kind of way of course.
Colleen had long blonde hair, blue eyes, and fair skin. Some freckles touched the bridge of her nose. She, like the rest of them, was extremely beautiful. So, it seems that all demons and vampires had kick ass abilities and looks. How awesomely unfair for humans. Ok, some hanyous weren't all that great looking, and there were some demons too. That was a comforting thought. She has yet to see anymore vampires, or Volturi, to know if they were all blessed with perfection.
Colleen had light brown hair and vibrant green eyes that stood out from her pale face. Both women were very tall; maybe around 5'9. They both also wore loose clothing that would have been comfortable for travel, but still useable in fights.
Their mates, who were brothers, looked very similar. Both were about 6'5 or so and had dark brown hair that was almost black. Neil had hazel eyes, while Liam had brown. They both wore leather pants and shirts with no sleeves; Neil with dark green and Liam with a dark blue shirt. The cold seemed to no effect them.
Now to the boy who was on her mind the most. As she glanced over to him she caught him looking at her. He gave a dashing smile and walked over to the fire pit to cook her food. She assessed him as he moved to the pit. Aidan looked like both his parents. He wasn't done growing yet, so he might become as tall as his father. He had dark hair from his father and blue eyes from his mother. His face had a softness to him that spoke of a young age, though still extremely attractive; he will probably be ruggedly handsome when he becomes an adult.
Colleen clapped her hands and rubbed them together. "Ok. So as I said before, the battle will be in three days. It will be hard but we can win if we stick together and watch each other's backs. Everyone should just be practicing lightly for the next three days so no one is accidentally injured." Everyone nodded.
Aidan lightly touched her shoulder and handed her the food. She smiled in thanks and ate her rabbit making appreciative noises. The older vampires smiled at the exchange. Aidan was never like this with any female. Other female vampires would try to win his attention but it was all ignored. This human girl had caught his eye like no other. He was also subtly putting his scent on her and hunting food for her. It seemed Aidan really had found his true mate. They all knew she lived 500 years in the future, so this was going to be hard on him.
Inuyasha did not like this Aidan. He was way too close to Kagome and his freakin' scent was all over her now. Ugh. He was hoping that the damn wolf came so that pretty boy's face would get messed up.
Ask and you shall receive.
Kagome finished her meal and stretched. "I think I need a spar. Anyone interested?" Aidan jumped at the chance and agreed. They walked off to the side and started sparring lightly; gauging each other's strengths and weaknesses. They paused and just looked each other when Kagome smiled and went at him with more vigor. After about ten minutes of not really getting the upper hand on the other, Aidan saw an opening and kicked Kagome in the side; she went down with a groan. He was about to tell her how to better protect her side when all of a sudden he had a wolf demon in his line of vision.
Kouga was crouched in front Kagome thinking he was protecting her from an enemy; jumping to conclusions just like Inuyasha. "Get away from my woman!"
Inuyasha's ears perked at the top of his head and grinned evilly. 'Two birds with one stone. I hope they kill each other'.
The vampires moved closer to the trio, but not interfering; Aidan wasn't in danger. Sesshoumaru moved a little closer to Kagome's direction in case he needed to get the wolf away from her. He motioned for Sango and Miroku to stay at the fire.
In a deep voice dripping in anger, Aidan spoke, "Wolf." He said the one word as almost an insult. "You will step away from Miss Kagome now. She is in no danger with me."
Neil looked at his son with pride. He was keeping his anger in check and was proud of his boy. He knew it must be hard for him to do since he felt Kagome was his true mate, and the wolf said Kagome was the 'his woman'.
Kagome was getting up and noticed the exchange. 'Crap', she thought, 'I need to set Kouga straight so that he cannot call me his woman.'
"No danger? Ha! You kicked my woman to the ground and you say she is in no danger? I should show you that real demons protect their women, not hurt them, since they are too weak to do anything else but raise pups." He looked back at Kagome hoping she heard him; thinking he said something she would like. Kouga gulped when he saw her face flushed with anger.
"I am no demon, wolf", he was ready to pounce on him when Kagome spoke up.
"Kouga", she started in a strained voice, "I'm going to forget the statement about women only being good for birthing babies…I know men in this time think differently. What you need to know is that I am not, and will not be your woman. Ever. You are my friend and that is all. You should mate Ayame, she cares for you."
He looked devastated. He needed to hear the straight facts; no sugar coating anymore. Kagome thought she was in the clear until he smiled serenely at her and grabbed her hands. "This is a test right? You want to see if my love is true or not? Am I right my love?"
She gapped like a fish and squeaked, "What?" Her hands were freed when Aidan got in between them. Aidan was just a little taller then Kagome but still shorter then Kouga. Regardless of his lack of height, he radiated pure anger and power; it was all directed toward the wolf. "I will give you a test wolf-boy. It is called survival of the fittest."
Sesshoumaru decided it was time to intervene. "Prince Kouga, Kagome is in my pack and you have not asked my permission to court her, since I am her alpha." Kouga was about to speak when Sesshoumaru continued, "No. You do not have my permission. Leave before I decide to sharpen my claws on you." Kouga didn't know what to do. He looked helplessly at Kagome then at Sesshoumaru. "Before you leave young Prince, give the Miko her shards that she leant you." Begrudgingly he took the shard out of his legs and handed them to Kagome, after he wiped them clean of course.
"I'm sorry for not getting permission Kagome. I will drop my claim from you." With that he turned and went back to his pack.
"WHY THE HELL would you NOT let them fight! For ONCE I could watch that smelly wolf get his ass handed to him. You always have to ruin my fun don't you?" Inuyasha exclaimed to his half-brother.
Sesshoumaru looked at him with a gleam in his eyes. "If it is a fight you want dear brother, a fight you shall get." He lunged at Inuyasha and the crazy sword fight began. Kagome just rolled her eyes and looked at Aidan. He was tense and seemed to be thinking hard. She looked around and noticed the vampires went over to talk to Sango and Miroku. Lightly, she tapped his shoulder. His eyes snapped to her.
His blue eyes became almost black in his anger. 'Hm, so demon eyes turn red when angry, vampire eyes turn black'.
"Are you saddened that Lord Sesshoumaru denied the wolf mating rights to you?" He asked her quietly.
Baffled she responded right away, "No. I only see him as a crazy friend. I always tried to tell him that I was not his, but he didn't listen so I just stopped trying." He seemed to calm at her explanation. "Why are you so worked up about this?"
Instead of answering he said, "Let us walk, yes?" She just nodded and mutterd, "Typical man".
They ended up walking to a village. "This is great!" Kagome said grabbing Aidan's hand. "I can buy some warmer clothes for everyone!" She then dragged him from store to store. She didn't notice the attention she was attracting from the demon village she was in; Aidan did, and kept his eyes on any threats that might be around.
She always had a way with attracting strong demons. Even though she was a miko, she was an incredibly strong one. To a demon mind, she would breed strong pups. There was a handsome dog youkai that owned the stall that was trying to get Kagom's attention. He let them know his name was Isamu.
"Miko-san, why not look at these clothes here? They are close to the miko robes I'm sure you are used to, just in other colors." He grabbed her wrist to guide her to the spot. He could hear the boy that came with her growl at the contact. Isamu just smirked in response.
She was excited; she really did love wearing the miko clothes. Kagome was trying to separate herself from Kikyo's image, so having them in a different color would be great. "Oh this is perfect thank you!" When she started to look through the different colors Isamu spoke quietly to her. "You know miko-san, you should get rid of the boy that you travel with. Would it please you if I took you through the town for the shopping? I, unlike that mere boy, could protect you." He gave her a leering smile.
"Thank you for being so chivalrous, however, I'm in good hands with the company I brought. I would like to get two of the navy robes please." She finished with a smile. In her head she was thinking differently. 'What the hell is wrong with crazy youkai males? No I will not go with you ya creeper!'
He went to wrap her clothes for travel. Kagome looked at Aidan and rolled her eyes. He relaxed after hearing her response. Obviously he could hear everything, which was the demon's purpose. Isamu probably thought she would go along with his idea and drop 'the boy'.
After they left the store, Kagome made a few more purchases for her group. They were walking back when she started to giggle.
"What, pray tell, is so humorous?"
"Oh nothing really," *giggle* "Just thinking how it will be nicer when you're older and able to protect me better!" She laughed and tried to run away with her package clutched to her chest.
With a predatory gleam in his eyes, he chased after her carrying the rest of the bags. He put all the bags in one hand and scooped Kagome up and over his shoulder. With a lopsided smile, he smugly said, "I think I can protect you just fine Kagome."
The days before the battle were very peaceful. They all got along better after getting to know each other. Inuyasha even began to accept Aidan liking Kagome…not that he had a choice. Inuyasha was present when Aidan asked for permission to court Kagome. He was granted permission from Sesshoumaru, but Aidan didn't ask Kagome yet if she was ok with being courted.
They both got really close in two days time. They would spar together and then take a stroll in woods after, talking about everything and nothing at the same time. It was now night time before the battle. Kagome and Aidan were comfortably sitting against a tree looking at the stars when he decided he needed to ask her.
He grabbed her small hand in his and kissed the back of it. She blushed in response. "Kagome, I want you to know that these past two days have been the best in my life because I feel complete when I'm with you. I know that you are my true mate. I always feel drawn to you and never want to part from you. I all ready asked Lord Sesshoumaru and he gave me permission. Now it is up to you." He paused and looked at her red face and smiled, "Would you allow me to court you… I know we do not know what will happen when the Shikon is complete. I will probably not see you for 500 years, but they will easier to bear knowing that I will have my mate in the future waiting for me."
She smiled widely and hugged him, "Yes, I want you to court me! I know I felt a deep connection to you when we met the other day. I wish we had more time together." She nuzzled her face closer to his neck. "I don't know how I could survive in your position; waiting 500 years to meet again."
He tightened his arms around her waist and adamantly said, "I will remain faithful to you. You need not worry of me straying." She gave him a chaste kiss, "I know, but I would not hold it against you…"
He growled out, "Never. I only want you. Vampires are only intimate with their mates, do not doubt me." She was comforted by his words. Of course she would not want him going to someone else! It's just that he would be waiting 500 years for her and hearing him say that he would wait was what she needed to hear. He was very intuitive to her thoughts and feelings so that's probably why he let her know that he would be faithful to her.
She shot up and hit his chest remembering an important fact. "Vampire!" He looked at her with a confused expression. "Yes little miko, I am a vampire". She gave a great sigh and hit his arm, "I know! What I mean is that is that if we become mates in the future, I would become a vampire right?"
"I do not like how you say 'if we become mates'. When we become mates you will change in to a vampire like me. Do you not want to be with me forever Kagome?" He gave some puppy eyes and a lip quiver for added effect.
"What? Of course I do, I just forget sometimes that you're a vampire and not a demon." She waved her hands in front of herself frantically. "Wait I take that back!"
He growled playfully at her, "It is too late for apologies little miko. I think I need to show you that I am a vampire." She saw his fangs gleam in the moon light and squeaked; she tried to get up but was stopped. She laughed out loud as she was relentlessly tickled. "STOP! Hahaha please Aidan! You're a big scary vampire! Ahaha! OK stop I'm gonna pee on you!" That stopped him. She looked at him triumphantly and flashed a 'V' sign with her fingers for 'victory', and said "Psyche!" as she ran away.
Kagome didn't get far before she ran in to solid Aidan wall. She waved and smiled innocently. "Hi honey" She backed into a tree. "What are you going to bite me now you big mean vampire." He got a surprised look in his eyes that turned wicked. "I actually do need to 'bite' you. I need to place my mark on the spot between your shoulder and neck." He pulled her body closer to his, "It will not hurt Kagome." She nodded shyly.
He started to kiss her neck when she waved her hands around again. "Hey now! You just said a mark and you're getting all frisky. What's your deal?" She demanded this all with a blush on her face. So what if she was 20 years old! They knew each other for almost three days; more time was def needed.
"Well honey", he said slowly, "You agreed to be courted, so a courting mark is placed on the female to show other males to stay away."
"Oh. Well shouldn't I get to mark you? I mean, you're gonna be away from me longer." She thought that she could get out of getting bitten, because that sounded not awesome, if he didn't agree to her somehow marking him. Fair is fair. If he wanted males to stay away from her, she should be allowed to keep bitches away from her man! Hazzah!
He smiled knowing what she was doing. "Yes you can mark me where ever you want. Just use your miko powers to mark me, since you do not have fangs yet." Her face fell but then became determined. "Fine", she growled out as best as a human could. "I'll mark you; I'll mark you real good." Ok now he was nervous. What was she going to do?
She gave him a quick kiss before she started for luck and then grabbed his right hand. She used her pinky to write on his palm. He had huge hands, so she had a lot of space. Luckily there was no pain on Aidan's end, just a warm sensation. He looked at his palm and laughed out loud.
His palm read, 'Kagome's Vampire'. She was worried that she maybe shouldn't have put that on his hand for eternity, but was relieved when he laughed. That was the point. She wanted to leave him a good memory. "It's so you can just hold your palm up to annoying girls when they want you." He grabbed her hand and kissed her knuckles. "I love it. Now it's my turn. It will not be like the stories you told me from your time. I will make sure you feel no pain, ok?" She nodded her head in affirmation and tilted her head to left in submission.
She got lost in the sensation of him kissing and sucking on her neck, which in the end was the point. She never felt his fangs biting her. He had to take some of her blood and then cut his lip to put his blood in her system. He licked the wound to close it and gave it one final kiss. The fang marks would look like a scar and stay with her as long as she still wanted to be with him. When they mated, it would become a darker and permanent mark.
Before breakfast was even done, everyone sensed Naraku.
The battle was pretty quick with the extra help. Naraku was surprised when he saw the vampires he had wanted for allies. In his egotistical mind, they still had no chance.
Neil looked into his mind and told everyone about the plan that was rolling in Naraku's head. He had youkai hiding in the forest surrounding the group. Liam and Colleen took them all out with help from Sango and Miroku. Sesshoumaru and Inuyasha battled Kagura and a new detachment Naraku brought with him. Aidan stayed by Kagome as she took out Kanna.
Neil and Colleen were double teaming Naraku, who wasn't prepared for the vampires. Naraku got a tentacle around Colleen's throat and held her to a tree while trying to get a hold of Neil. "Kagome! We need you now!" Colleen screamed.
Kagome and Aidan were attacking minor demons after killing Kanna. She looked up at the sound of her name and muttered, "Shit" and ran to Colleen. Naraku was only focusing on the vampire that was causing him damage, so she was able to run up with out notice
Kagome infused her bow with miko ki and swung it at the tentacle holding on to Colleen. When the tentacle disintegrated, Naraku swung his head around to look at her. He gave an evil smirk, "Well little miko, you think you can fight me now? I think not, you are not strong enough to fight me." Neil moved over to Colleen, while Aidan stood next to Kagome. "Is this boy supposed to be a threat to me too? Why don't I save you some anguish at seeing him die? Give me the Shikon and I will graciously let you all live." The smirk on his face was anything but gracious.
Aidan stiffened at the boy comment and growled low in his throat but said nothing. People who spoke in battle were unskilled. They tried to make their opponents mad enough to make a mistake.
Kagome was mad, but she was not messing up today. It was time for all of this to end. Her eyes glowed white as she strung her bow. Everyone else was finished with their opponents and stood behind; watching if anymore demons would be coming.
She looked at Naraku with her power whipping around her like a wind. Her power radiated around her, catching the attention of the shards that were in Naraku's possession. They were starting to purify through his pocket. Pulling back her arrow she spoke in a calm voice, "It's time to end your plague on the earth." She let the arrow fly to him. He set his barrier around and smirked, thinking his barrier would stop the arrow. It didn't. Naraku was purified and the jewel, also purified, fell to the grown
Aidan stood slightly behind Kagome rubbing her back as she held her half in one hand and Naraku's half in the other. Miroku and Sango were holding hands watching their friend solemnly. "What will you do now Kagome-chan?"
Before she could say anything Colleen commanded, "Wait". Colleen's eyes were glowing white. When her eyes went back to her natural blue she told Kagome, "I had a vision about you. Shall I tell you the outcome?"
"Yes, please." She answered immediately.
"If you decided to stay here, the jewel would have to remain broken. This would then lead to the jewel being stolen by a greedy demon who was like Naraku.
"If you put the jewel back together you will be forced to your home. You will see us vampires again however, for it seems we will need to call upon your help. I do not know why you will be helping us or what against."
They all looked at her waiting to hear what decision she would come to. "This is hard," she started as tears began to form in her eyes, "but I know what I must do. I am going to go home to the time period I am from. It is the right thing to do. I can't be selfish." She said more to herself then the others watching her. The jewel subtly began to glow deep inside the pieces.
Sesshoumaru said that he would get Rin and Sippou from his castle so they could say goodbye to their mother figure. As he turned away he heard Kagome shout desperately, "NO, not yet!" The Shikon sensed all of its pieces and began to put its self together. Kagome looked around frantically at all of her friends she considered family. The Shikon was whole and flew back to its protector.
Instead of going to her hip, the Shikon flew to her chest and hid their. Kagome then began to glow and couldn't hear all that was being said to her. She looked at Sesshoumaru and yelled over the wind that was whipping around her, "Tell Rin and Shippou I love them and to stay strong." She looked at everyone, "I love you all." Turning, she looked at Aidan. She shouted out her address and the last date she could remember being home. She yelled, "Find me Aidan!"
Kagome was then flown to the well from the winds that surrounded her and teleported home for the last time.
"Home", she whispered as she opened the door with tears down her face. She naively thought that Aidan and his family would be waiting there for her; they weren't. Souta was there sweeping the stairs at the shrine when he noticed his sister just standing in front of the well house.
"Kagome," Souta whispered to his sister. "Are you all right? How long will you be back this time?"
She smiled sadly at her baby brother, who was now taller than her. She missed a lot of his life. She rubbed the side of his arm, looking at him knowing she did the right thing. "Forever," she whispered.