Title: Spring Born [once Welcome Home, Daddy]
Author: LeapingLion
Rating: T for Teen [Age 13+] Minor Adult Themes and Minor Violence
Paring: Kagome/Sesshomaru
Disclaimer: I own not the Inuyasha or world. [I secretly dream I do]

Kagome woke up in cold sweat. She looked around, terrified for a moment, before sighing and getting up. She had been having the same dream for over a week now. She got up from her bed, picked up a small pile on the edge of the bed and walked to the doorway.

"Tama, wake up, its 8 o'clock!" She yelled down the hall, as she hurried to the bathroom, a towel and a pile of cloths in her hands.

A young girl, about the age of twelve, opened the farthest door of the hall and rubbed her eyes before walking down the hall to another bathroom. Although the light of the hall was dim, you could still see small streaks of silver intermixed with her black hair.

Thirty minutes passed before both of them emerged from the bathrooms and headed down the stairs.

"Tama, I'm sorry, but you won't be able to go to your friend house today. The museum called last night and asked me to come in tonight to show off the Feudal exhibit." Kagome said putting a group of bowls and plates on the table in the kitchen.

"Mom! I've wanted to go to Maeke's house all week!" Tama said, slamming the cereal cabinet door closed.

"I'm sorry Tama, but you have to come with me." For a moment she was quiet before adding, "I'll let you wander around the exhibit. You'll get to see a bunch of stuff related to your father." Tama titled her head before nodding.

"You promise? I haven't seen anything since you moved it all to the museum…" Tama mumbled and poured cereal into a bowl. She heard a 'mhm', making her smile.

'Papa...'

--A couple hours later--

The phone ringing was barley heard above the sound of whizzing arrows.

Kagome ran into the house, grabbing the phone from the hook next to the back door. "Hello?"

"Is this the Higarashi residents?" A feminine voice answered.

"This is Miss Higarashi; may I ask who is calling?" Walking back outside, Kagome watched as her students started to chase each other around with the blunt arrows.

"This is Mai, from the museum, we need you here now to show the museum caretaker your Feudal Japan Exhibit," before Kagome could reject, Mai added that she needed to hurry before the caretaker left for lunch.

"Alright, I'll be there as soon as I can." Kagome replied, hanging up. She sighed and started to dial the parents of her students to come pick up their children.

--45 minutes later--

Tama practically pulled her mother into the museum and begged Kagome to show her the exhibit. Kagome sighed as she told Tama to follow her. Once they reached the exhibit, Tama rushed around to find her father's picture.

"Tama, you fathers picture is right over there. By the swords." Kagome glanced at her daughter briefly before moved towards the front desk.

"Which sword was papa's, mom?" Tama said, looking at both of the swords and paintings

Kagome gave a quick glance at the empty front desk before joining her daughter. She had to take a deep breath before looking at the swords from top to bottom. "The one that gleams, darling. The other is his brothers." She gave a laugh, "His brother never could keep that thing clean!"

"Why did he leave it?" Tama said looking at her mother. Kagome gasped softly as the memories started to build up. "To keep me safe…"

--Flashback--

Kagome sat up in a silk covered bed and stretched. She heard a chuckle next to her, causing her to look over to her partner.

"Sesshomaru! What are you laughing at?" Kagome said as she grabbed the blankets and tugged them up to her neck.

Sesshomaru snaked an arm around her waist and pulled her back to him, kissing her neck. Kagome giggled and snuggled into his warmth. They stayed that way for a few minutes before they were interrupted by a loud knock and an annoying squeaky voice. Sesshomaru gave a growl and got out of the bed. He slipping on a robe and opened the door. Seeing Jaken, he glanced back at Kagome before stepping out.

Kagome got up with a sigh and moved to sit in front of a desk with a mirror. She couldn't stop the smile that spread across her face as her eyes traced the darkening crescent moon on her forehead.

"Sesshomaru?" Kagome asked as the door reopened and the tall youkai stepped into the room. She hurried to her feet and linked her arms around his neck.

"Will you always be there for me?"

Sesshomaru hesitated for a second before looking her straight in the eyes, "Yes I will."

--End Flashback--

"To keep you safe?" Tama raised her hand and laid it on the cool glass over her father's sword. Kagome laid her hand over her daughters and nodded.

--Flashback--

After they had finished dressing and ate breakfast, they packed up and processed with their plan to visit Kagome's time and tell her mother of their union.

However, they ran into some un-expected problems once they reached the well...

"Kagome! Go to your time it's safer there!" Sesshomaru yelled to Kagome as he held off a large green youkai.

"No! I won't leave you!" Kagome yelled back as she shot an arrow at the demon, which cracked and fell to pieces as it made contact with the youkai's skin. The youkai's attention shifted to the young woman and snarled before shoving Sesshomaru to the side and racing towards her.

Sesshomaru watched in horror as the youkai charged Kagome, who barley dodged any major injuries, receiving only a deep slash to her leg.

"Kagome!" Sesshomaru gasped and rushed to her side. He looked at her pain filled face before making his way swiftly toward the well. Kagome's eyes widened as tenseiga was pushed into her hands. No! No no no!! The arms holding her disappeared as she fell into the well.

The last thing she heard before the well crossed her through time was, "Be safe, My Mate."

Once Kagome had reached the other side of the well, she broke down in tears and that was how her mother found her. Crying, with a bloody leg, clutching a sword.

--End flashback--

Kagome smiled to her daughter, tears swimming in her eyes. Linking their fingers together, she pulled her daughter away from the sword and towards another part of the exhibit, "I have to find the caretaker's secretary. Be safe and I'll come find you when I'm done." With that, Kagome walked away and Tama wandered off to see the other exhibits.

Tama managed her way around the museum exhibit before stopping in front of a yellow and blue sash. She looked at it for awhile more before remembering that the sash once hung from her mother's bed post. Her mother had often sat and stared at it, even petted it, when she was depressed. Tama gulped and reached for it.

Two hands grabbed at her shoulders.

--

Kagome smiled as she finished putting everything in place. "Finally, perfect," she mumbled to herself as she stepped back to admire her work.

"What are you doing here?! This is an off limits exhibit!" A brown haired woman rushed across the foyer and towards Kagome. Once she reached Kagome, she planted her hands on her hips and glared at her.

"I was called in to speak with the caretaker regarding my exhibit." Kagome said as she picked up her bag and smiled at the woman.

The woman looked at her before flicking a piece of her hair from her face, "This exhibit has no main contributor. Try again."

Kagome gapped at the woman before rushing through her introduction again. The woman 'tsk'ed at her and grabbed her arm, "You're obviously not allowed here. Come along. We're going to see the owner."

"But-!" Kagome tried to pull away and felt her bag fall from her shoulder. She pulled harder, reaching for her fallen bag. The woman huffed and gave jerk, nearly tripping Kagome, and pulled her around a corner. Kagome gave another pull before settling in for the walk to the owner's office. When they finally reached the room, the woman let go of Kagome's arm and puffed up her hair and brushed off her skirt. Smirking at Kagome, she opened the door to a blond haired man sitting behind a desk stacked with papers.

"Mister Taisho, I caught this woman in the Feudal Japan Exhibit. She was touching things and she might have stolen something!" the woman told the man who looked up once the woman started to talk.

"Kasha, please do remember to knock before you enter my office." The man glanced at Kagome before looking back at the woman, Kasha. The woman mumbled out an apology before stepping forward and bowing, "Mr. Taisho, this woman says she is the main contributor to the Feudal exhibit. I had been told that it was a joint effort among the staff. Seeing her messing around with the items, I brought her here to check with you."

Taisho continued to leaf through papers before signing something off and settling back into his chair. Kagome couldn't help but shiver as his gaze stayed on her for a few minutes. She gulped and stepped forward, giving a low bow. "My name is Kagome Higarashi. I have been an employee for no more than a year. I was contacted 3 months ago to help with the Feudal exhibit and was later named the head project manager.

The man gave a small smile before waving his hand at the other woman, who opened the door. Taisho got up from his set, causing Kagome to take a small step back at his unexpected height.

"Miss Higarashi, if you don't mind I would love to see your exhibit now."

--

Tama looked behind her to see a black haired man looking grimly down at her, "I do hope you weren't about to touch a priceless artifact."

Tama looked down, ashamed. Her mother had told her thousands of times not to touch things that weren't hers and that some of the things in the house were so old they might break, "I… I didn't mean to! I just saw it and it looked so much like fathers and mom often-" she rambled on till she heard a snicker from behind her. The hands on her shoulder lifted and the man came to squat in front of her.

"What's your name, brat?" The man gave a grin and then blinked when Tama huffed at him, "I'm not a brat! And my name is Tama!" She turned around and stomped her foot on the ground.

"Awl, don't get mad at me. What was I so post to call you when I didn't know your name?" The man turned her around to face him and smiled at her. "You said the sash looked like your father's?"

Tama sniffled and nodded, looking back over at the sash. She then watched, shocked, as the man grabbed the sash out of the case and brought it over to her. She reached out, but then reared her hand back before looking at the man. He nodded and she laid her hand on the soft material, "It's like silk!"

The man gave a barked laughter and tied the sash around her waist, "MHz, youkai moth silk is how the legend goes. The mighty dog youkai, Sesshomaru, fought and destroyed a giant moth youkai and gathered the silk for it to be made into a sash that resembled his father's." The man stood up and held out his hand, "The names Inuyasha. May I show my lady Tama the exhibit?"

Tama giggled and grabbed his hand, "My mom talked about an Inuyasha she once knew. 'Cept he had silver hair, and not black.

"Tama!" a frantic yell echoed the room. Tama turned around and caught eyes with her mother. "Mom! Over here!"

Kagome rushed over and picked up her daughter, "Oh thank god. You weren't anywhere I left you. Where did you get this sash? Have you been digging around in the cases? What did I tell you about touching things that aren't yours?" She set her daughter down and untied the sash. She looked over and spotted the case it came from. She quickly set it back in the case and looked to see the black haired man, "and talking to strangers? Have I taught you nothing?" She whispered once she reached her daughter again.

"Forgive her, sir. She's just such a curious thing!" Kagome gave a quick laugh and tugged her daughter towards the door.

"How many times have I told you not to talk to people you don't know." Kagome sighed and then saw her daughter's dejected face. "How about some ice cream?"

Tama looked up and gave a huge smile, "Yes!"

--Back at the Museum--

"Do you think that little girl recognized you?"

"No, let's get back to work getting this place ready for the gala."

Kagome smiled as she watched Tama dig into the chocolate ice cream she had bought. She couldn't help but think how alike they both were.

For one, they both adored chocolate.

She remembered the first time she had given Sesshomaru some of her prized chocolate. Blushing, she looked back down at the bowl of ice cream. That had been a long, if not pleasurable night…

Giggling, she twirled her spoon in the chocolate ice cream, "So Tama, other than getting your hands into your father's sash, what else caught your attention?" Her daughter lit up and started to gab about how much she loved the old kimono's she'd seen and the bones from the 'youkai'.

Kagome laughed and listened, but was suddenly distracted by a tingling in the back of her head. She's felt it before, but couldn't place it till a man bumped the table and sent her daughter's ice cream to the ground. The glass cup it has been in shattered and the ice cream already started to melt and mix with glass shards.

She looked up to see the man walking away, not even seeming to notice the ice cream he'd knocked over or the shattered glass. Fury awakened in her and she found herself already on her feet and stomping towards the man, "Sir! You just knocked over my daughter's ice cream. Aren't you at least going to say sorry!?" The man ignored her and she reached out and grabbed his shoulder, "Sir!"

The tingling jumped and then settled in her stomach, giving her butterflies as the man turned and mischievous brown eyes met hers, "K-Kouga?"

The man smirked and bowed, "The one and only." Kouga looked at Tama and chuckled.

"So Frostbite couldn't make a male on the first try eh? Poor guy, how long did he keep you locked up before he decided to wait for the next pup?"

Kagome blinked before she looked down, lost. "Speak of the mutt, where is he? Let me guess he off at some business meeting. That dog was always working." Kouga gave a laugh but stopped when he didn't hear her laughing with him, "Kagome?"

"I don't know where he is…" was all Kagome could mumble out before she collapsed into a nearby chair, holding back her tears.

"We were on my way to see my family and then we got attacked. He threw me into the well." Kagome sobbed and watched as the tears she tried to hold back fell and landed on her skirt. Tama rushed over and kneeled in front of her mother, "Mom? What happened? Did this guy say something? Should I call Great-Grandpa?"

Kagome shook her head and glanced up at Kouga, "You... you might want to sit down for this." Kouga took a seat, as did Tama, and listened as Kagome told the story she'd held to herself for so long.

--9:00 pm that night--

Kagome sighed and leaned against a wall. The museum had been packed since the grand opening had started at six. She gave a groan as she stretched and moved back into the massive group of people that surrounded the exhibit.

"Mom!" Kagome looked over to see her daughter racing towards her, the sash from yesterday tied around her waist once again. Oh not again. "Tama, what have I told you? Don't mess-"

"With the exhibits. Yes I know mom, but the curator gave it to me!" Tama twirled and then waved to a black-haired man a few feet away. Kagome looked at the man, squinted, and then gasped.

"Inu…yasha?" The man gave a small smile and walked over. He bowed and when he came up, deep honey eyes looked at her. Kagome's eyes filled with tears and she threw herself into his arms, "Oh god, Inuyasha. Where have you been? Why didn't you come and see me every so often?" She suddenly pushed away and looked down at the perfectly pressed suit he was wearing, "and since when did you dress so…so…professionally? What happened to that fire rat thing that you wore every day I saw you?"

Inuyasha laughed and stepped back, raising his hands in a shrug, "Pops wouldn't let me wear it anymore and forced me to learn how to 'dress proper'." Kagome laughed and then tilted her head, "Pops?"

He leaned back and then turned to his left a little, nodding to the blond haired owner and caretaker of the museum. "My dad, InuTaisho. Or just Taisho as everyone's come to call him. Turns out he wasn't as dead as everyone though." Kagome stared and then brought a hand to smack her forehead. She's talk to Inuyasha's and Sesshomaru's father and probably made a total fool of herself.

Sesshomaru

"Inuyasha… do you… Do you know where your brother is?" Kagome cringed when her voice broke at the end. Looking up, she almost gave a sob at the sorrow and guilt in his eyes. Inuyasha shook his head and she took a step back. He immediately realized his mistake and tugged her into his embrace, "I haven't seen him in at least a century. He was in Norway and then we, me and dad, lost contact. I'm so sorry, Kagome. If I'd known you'd been pregnant, I would have forced him to stay in Japan."

She gave a nod and leaned into his warmth. So much had happened today and the night wasn't even over yet, "Thank you, Inuyasha. At least part of our family has been reconnected. I can only hope someday he'll find his way back."

The blond haired man, Inuyasha's and Sesshomaru's father, walked over and held out his hand. Kagome gave a watery laugh and hugged him. Taisho stiffened before putting his arms around her and holding her close, "My little lost daughter."

Tama, suddenly feeling completely lost in the conversation, tugged at Taisho's shirt, "I want a hug!"

They all laughed and clumped together into a giant hug.

-Two months later-

Birds tweeted and danced through the spring air. Laughing and singing filled the yard in front of the Higarashi-Unoya (Inuyasha and Taisho's latest last name) home. Tama ran around a tree and then gave off a scream when several other kids caught her and dumped a bucket of green colored water on her.

"Haha, that's not fair! It's my birthday; I'm not sopost to get dunked!!" Laughter answered her, causing Tama to huff… and then grin when she pulled several water balloons from behind her back and started to throw them at the children around her, "Mwuaha! I'll get you now!"

Kagome squeaked when one of the balloons landed at her feet, soaking the ends of her pants, "Tama! Watch where you throw those things, more towards your Uncle Inu and Grandpa Taisho." One of the laughs suddenly cut off and a muffled curse followed a loud 'Splat!'

"Ugh! Kagome!" Kagome laughed and moved to check the snack table. A smile rose on her face as she remembered the day she moved into the Unoya household. The huge yard had caused Tama to jump with joy; and the Great Suit she'd been given had brought tears to her eyes. The room looked exactly like her and Sesshomaru's suit back in the Western Keep.

The sudden silence of the yard made Kagome look up and the shocked faces of Inuyasha and Taisho made her eyes follow their gazes.

There, standing at the end of the driveway, was a tall silver haired man. Behind him was an old man, holding open the door to a limousine. The tall man stepped forward, allowing the old man to close it behind him. The tall man looked around the yard till he landed on Kagome. He watched her for a moment before crossing the yard and gathering her in his arms.

"My mate, my Kagome." He buried his face in her hair and took a deep breath. "My Kagome."

She couldn't stop the tears this time. They raced from her eyes and landed on his shirt, "Sesshomaru. Oh, my Sesshomaru!" She gave a sob and clutched at him, mumbling how he'd better never leave her again.

"Mother." A timid voice caused Kagome to lift her head and see her daughter looking at her, desire and fear in her eyes. Kagome gave a laugh and let Sesshomaru go and motioning her closer.

"Sesshomaru, meet your wonderful twelve- no Thirteen year old daughter, Tama." Sesshomaru gave her a quick glance before holding out his hand. Tama looked at it weird before rolling her eyes and jumping into his arms.

"Welcome home, Daddy."

Re-posted: Friday, March 18, 2010