AN: Ever since my story 'Fallen' I've tried to come up with its sequel. I wasn't planning one initially and was going to leave it open-ended, but over half of the reviews for 'Fallen' requested a sequel or continuation of some sort. I've started this sequel so many times, but the beginning just never seemed right. But I'm trying again with a slightly different approach to the beginning. Let's hope it works out! This will be a three-shot since I don't think everything would fit nicely into one chapter. I hope you enjoy the story.

Also, I'm not going to say that you have to have read 'Fallen' to read this, but it would certainly help!

Disclaimer: I don't own, please don't sue!

Redemption

Kagome sat at her kitchen table with a forgotten bowl of oatmeal in front of her. All that she could think about was the small, round gem that she gently rolled between the table and her pointer finger. Despite being almost black in color, it shone red as the morning sun filtered in through the kitchen window.

She hadn't slept well the night before, so she had been well aware of what time Hiei had left the house.

'At least I was able to use that time to clean the blood off of my floor,' Kagome thought as she sipped her ginger tea.

Part of her wanted to be angry at Hiei. The tiniest part of her wanted him to know exactly how bad he'd hurt her. He had left her. He had broken her heart completely. But she still loved him. She could never deal him a blow like the one he'd dealt her.

'Isn't that exactly what I did though?' She argued with a heavy sigh. 'He did come back...' Kagome chewed her bottom lip as her resolution from the previous night wavered. Placing a hand over her recently rounded stomach, her thoughts wandered. 'This is his baby; our baby. I can't just refuse him from being in their life, can I? Hiei never had a real family. Maybe he would want one now.'

A vision of Hiei's retreating back flashed in Kagome's memory. Fingers tightened over her growing stomach as a sudden wave of grief took her breath away and brought tears to her eyes. But then Kagome remembered his eyes from the night before. He had shown true regret over his decision to leave her.

"I'm so confused," she whispered to the empty room as her hand covered the dark tear gem completely.

A sudden knock on her front door snapped her attention back to reality and she quickly began to wipe the tears from her eyes. Glancing at the time, she knew exactly who it was. Kagome covered the tear gem with her napkin as she stood and made her way towards the door. "Good morning, boys!" She greeted as cheerfully as she was able.

Yusuke was still staring at her recently damaged door when she opened it. "What the hell happened here?" He demanded with a gesture towards the door. He knew Kagome wouldn't be happy that he completely ignored her greeting, but she was his little cousin and pregnant on top of it all. He felt fully justified in his worry.

Feigning shock at the sight of the long gouges running down the length of the door, Kagome said, "I don't know. Teenagers playing a prank?"

Narrowing his eyes, the detective said, "I really wish you would move in with one of us until the baby gets here. I know you can handle yourself, but fighting a demon has to be harder when you have a basketball stuffed under your shirt."

"I'm not that big yet, Yusuke," Kagome defended as she moved to let her cousin and Kuwabara step inside the house.

"You will be," the older boy muttered.

But before either could say anything else on the matter Kuwabara spoke up. "Have you been crying, Kagome?" He asked in a concerned tone.

Yusuke finally saw the red rimming to the young woman's eyes. He leveled her with a serious look as he waited for an answer.

Kagome laughed nervously as she tried to come up with an explanation, but the best that she could come up with was, "Pregnancy hormones; they make your emotions go crazy!"

Though they didn't look satisfied with the answer the topic was dropped for more pressing matters. "Are you ready to go to your appointment?" Kuwabara asked.

Nodding, Kagome answered, "Sure, just let me finish getting dressed."

Kagome had just stepped from the room when Yusuke spied her untouched breakfast. "Did you not eat breakfast again?" He called.

"No," Kagome answered back from the hall. "My stomach wasn't feeling well this morning."

Yusuke sighed as he stepped towards the table and asked, "Again? You should tell your doctor about that." He had just picked up the bowl and napkin to clear the table when something caught his eye. "What's that?" He asked his long-time friend and teammate.

Looking towards the table, Kuwabara picked up the small sphere that caught Yusuke's attention for closer examination. "I don't know," he said with a frown. "It kinda looks like one of Yukina's gems but it's the wrong color and...warm."

When realization hit the two men, it took everything Yusuke had not to shatter the bowl in his hand. "Put it back," he hissed quietly as he replaced the bowl and napkin on the table. If the gem was what he thought it was and Kagome hadn't told them about it, then she must have her own reasons. At the very least it could wait until after her check-up with her doctor and then her second examination with Yukina.

Kuwabara and Yusuke reached a silent agreement not to say anything about it for the moment.

When Kagome entered the kitchen once more looking every bit the glowing mother-to-be, the men smiled at her. "We should go, Kagome," Kuwabara said as he looked to the clock on the microwave.

Kagome nodded and reached for her purse as she asked, "And what are you doing today, Yusuke?"

"Oh, you know, some more baby-proofing," the brunette answered as he lifted a shopping bag of supplies and congratulated himself on keeping the tightness out of his voice.

"Okay then, you know where everything is. Be careful and we'll see you in a few hours," Kagome said as she and Kuwabara walked out the door.

As soon as his cousin was out of the house Yusuke set his bag on the table and picked up the kitchen telephone. He quickly dialed a practiced number and waited impatiently for the other end to be picked up. When a voice finally answered, Yusuke said seriously, "Kurama, we have a problem."

Kurama leaned against his kitchen counter as he spoke with Yusuke on the phone. But nothing that the detective was saying was news to him. "Yes, Yusuke," he said in a calm tone. "I know that Hiei came back."

Pushing off of the counter, Kurama took the few steps needed to glance into his living room. A bandaged and healing Hiei slept on his couch. "He showed up on my doorstep early this morning. He's in pretty bad shape."

"I don't give a damn what kind of shape he's in!" Yusuke shouted into the receiver on his end. "Kuwabara already took Kagome for her appointment, and they'll be gone for a few hours. As soon as we hang up I'm coming over to your place. You better wake the little bastard up before I get there, because I want him to at least see my fist coming."

Kurama sighed wearily before telling Yusuke that he would see him in a few minutes and hanging up his phone.

"I really hope he calms down on the way over," the avatar said to himself as he walked into the living room. He really didn't need any broken furniture or holes in his walls. "Hiei," he called evenly as he stopped beside the couch.

Truth be told, he was still angry at the fire hybrid as well, but he would at least wait until Hiei was healed and could defend himself before he doled out the lashings. Not only had he been shocked at what his friend had done to Kagome, but the shorter demons departure had been a blow to Kurama as well. He had thought that they were better friends than that; close enough to at least warrant a goodbye.

Hiei cracked open a crimson eye and glanced at his one-time partner in crime and teammate. "What?" He asked frankly. His voice was still strained with fatigue, and he knew that he still had several days of healing to go.

Kurama narrowed his eyes marginally. When he had awoken that morning to Hiei's familiar presence he had been shocked. He had been even more shocked to find the hybrid slumped against the wall outside of his front door. Without a word about where he had been or what had happened, Hiei took up a place on his couch and hadn't moved since. "You should at least sit up. Yusuke is on his way over to see you." At Hiei's scoff, Kurama's voice hardened and he allowed some of his pent-up anger to color his tone. "I'm going to do my best to keep him from thrashing you, but you should at least pretend to care. When Yusuke gets here I expect some sort of explanation." He paused for a moment as his back straightened and he looked down his nose at the man on his couch. "You owe us that much."

Hiei watched as Kurama turned sharply and walked out of the room. If Yusuke was coming over then that very likely meant that he had seen or spoken to Kagome. 'What did she have to say about me?' He wondered as he pushed up onto his elbows before planting his feet on the floor. Leaning back into the couch cushions once he sat up, Hiei ran a hand across his tired eyes. What could he possibly have to say to his former teammates? He was still trying to accept the fact that Kagome was going to have his child.

Crimson eyes suddenly glared at the far wall. He wasn't the only one who had explaining to do. Were any of his 'friends' even going to attempt to track him down and tell him that he was going to be a father? They knew he was in Demon World. If they had really wanted to find him, they could have. All one really had to do was follow the trail of blood and bodies. And if that failed, plenty of rumors usually circulated whenever he was in an area. It drew out those looking for a challenge. He merely thought that they had a death wish, however.

But it was that confidence—that cockiness—that almost killed him. He could easily handle a small army of weak opponents and handfuls of strong opponents. But many high-level demons had finally banded together to face him. Apparently someone had grown tired of his training sessions and had hired several mercenary demons to get rid of him. And they had almost succeeded. It was likely because of Kagome that he hadn't bled to death from his injuries.

Hiei touched a place on his chest where he could feel stitches pull and he allowed himself to remember how wonderful Kagome's warm hand felt, even on the brink of death. But the moment was shattered and his hand dropped when Kurama's front door slammed shut.

Yusuke stormed into the living room without a word and the only warning Hiei got was a raised fist. He was able to dodge while Kurama's couch took the brunt of Yusuke's punch. Hiei could feel his cracked ribs groan and he was fairly sure that he had popped a couple of stitches with his quick movement. He pressed one hand firmly into his side to help steady his breathing and kept a close eye on the detective weary of another attack.

Yusuke had only taken a couple of menacing steps when Kurama came rushing into the room to restrain the slightly shorter man. "Let go of me, Kurama!" Yusuke yelled. "He deserves everything that he has coming to him."

Standing behind his ranting friend, Kurama had his arms hooked under Yusuke's with his hands clasped behind Yusuke's head, effectively locking the struggling man's arms above his head. "I already told you that Hiei is in no shape for you to take your anger out on him now."

"Let him go, Fox," Hiei said from across the room. Standing up as straight as he could, he reached up to touch his bandana. "I don't have to be in good health to fight."

Thick vines sprang from a nearby pot of ivy to wrap around Hiei's wrist. "You will both stop this!" Kurama announced firmly. "Hiei, Kagome used her time and energy to patch you up last night, and I'm sure that wasn't an easy feat in her condition. Will you let Yusuke put that all to waste? And Yusuke," the avatar said as he tightened his grip on the only slightly calmer brunette. "Whether you like it or not, Hiei is the father of Kagome's child. She is also the one that he needs to repent with first. I say that we leave his fate up to her."

Yusuke finally managed to pull free from Kurama's hold and glared at the fox. "How can you be so calm about this?" He demanded. "You saw what he did to her! I know she comes to you when she wants to talk because I'm not good with that crap; I know you've heard her cry over that asshole."

While he would never admit it, Yusuke's words were hitting Hiei at his core. Kagome's tears had always bothered him. Knowing that he had caused them was like a punch in the gut.

"And what about the rest of us?" Yusuke continued to rant. "He's probably your best friend, Kurama, and he left without a word to any of us. You can't tell me that didn't piss you off." Turning to the source of his anger, Yusuke glared as he hissed, "I warned her not to get involved with you, you know. Hell if I know what she ever saw in you."

Within seconds Hiei had his clawed hand wrapped around Yusuke's neck. He didn't have the strength to haul his ex-teammate against the wall as he wanted to do, so the two men settled for staring at each other almost nose-to-nose in a stand-off.

Kurama was the one who finally pushed them apart and stood between them. "Yusuke, stop. You're only saying things to try to hurt Hiei since you can't hit him."

"So?" Yusuke asked incredulously. "I'm not saying anything that isn't true. And that little bastard," Yusuke pointed forcefully at Hiei, "deserves to hurt. He deserves to hurt like she hurt."

Sighing, Kurama tried to reign in the conversation again. "I already told you that Kagome is the one who should get to decide that. And while I agree with you to an extent," he cut a meaningful look in Hiei's direction, "Kagome is your cousin and we both know that you can be over-protective where certain people are concerned. Kagome is a grown woman and is capable of taking care of herself. She can make her own decision about her relationship with Hiei. I think the best thing to do right now is to allow her the time and space to think without allowing our feelings to color her decision."

Yusuke and Hiei glared at each other for a moment more before Yusuke flopped back onto the couch and Hiei took a place in a window sill. "Damn, your couch is uncomfortable," Yusuke grumbled as he wiggled and bounced to find a comfortable position.

Kurama covered his face with one hand as he said, "That's because you probably broke one of the back supports when you punched it…"

"Yeah, well..." Yusuke mumbled as he stared at the floor. "Hiei should have just stayed still."

The tension in the room mounted as the quiet stretched on between the three men. Finally Hiei snapped out, "Were either of you planning on telling me?"

Yusuke and Kurama glanced at each other before Kurama looked back to his friend and asked, "Honestly?" At Hiei's sharp nod, Kurama bluntly answered, "No."

Trying to keep a handle on his temper and allow his long-time partner to explain himself, Hiei fisted his hands as he growled, "And why the hell not?"

"Because you left, you ass," Yusuke supplied in a sour tone.

"We're going to be adults about this, Yusuke. There's no need for name calling," Kurama admonished lightly.

"Says you," Yusuke scoffed under his breath as he crossed his arms over his chest.

Choosing not to acknowledge Yusuke's more juvenile behavior, Kurama said, "Yusuke is right though, Hiei. You were gone and Kagome was hurting. We could have tracked you down, but at the time we thought that Kagome needed us more than you did." As Hiei sat in silence, Kurama decided to continue. "I had a feeling that you would come back. I just didn't think it would take as long as it did. I didn't think that it would take you nearly dying, either. Originally, I held hope that you and Kagome would be able to work things out and raise the child together. But I'm going to be honest with you, Hiei; you were gone for too long. You may have missed your window to apologize and make amends."

"No," Hiei said with finality.

Kurama was taken aback by Hiei's response. "What?" He asked.

"You heard me," Hiei answered as he fixed his fiery gaze on the fox avatar. "I will find a way to get her forgiveness. I will be there for the child."

Kurama held his tongue. He knew that Hiei had never had a family as a child. He had never known his father and his mother's people had abandoned him as an infant. It made sense that he would want to be part of his own child's life and upbringing. But while Kurama was willing to let it go for the moment, Yusuke was another matter.

"And what about Kagome?" Yusuke asked. Hiei arched a brow in his former team leader's direction and Yusuke knew that he would need to elaborate. "You said that you "would be there for the child," but what about Kagome? Will you be there for her?"

"That is a ridiculous question. Keep your foolishness to yourself," Hiei dismissed.

Standing up again, Yusuke walked to the window where Hiei sat and towered over the demon. "It's not ridiculous. You left her once, only came back because you thought that you were dying, and now you suddenly want to stick around when you find out that you knocked her up. That sounds like you're staying for the kid and just the kid." Yusuke glared down at Hiei as his fists tightened at his sides. His cousin was kind and caring and deserved better than how Hiei had treated her. If the hybrid didn't want to stay for her, then he was going to stop Hiei from making her more miserable. "So I'm gonna ask you again. What about Kagome?"

He couldn't fight to his full potential until he healed, and with Yusuke standing over him as he was, it made Hiei feel like a trapped animal. Due to his injuries both options of 'fight or flight' were out. Yusuke was young, powerful, stubborn, and fiercely protective of those he cared about; all of this was a bad combination for Hiei at the moment. And so, with his options severely limited, he took the only one left at the moment—he swallowed his pride. "I would give her my life if she asked for it. I shouldn't have left and know that now."

Yusuke was torn. He wanted to be angry at Hiei—and he was doing a good job of hanging onto that—but he wanted Kagome to be happy. As bad as he thought that they were for each other, Yusuke could remember how brightly Kagome had smiled when Hiei was in her life. He wanted to protect her from getting hurt again, and he would do whatever it took to keep that from happening. Ever since Hiei had left, Kagome had been making herself sick with worry and grief, and being pregnant was just making it that much worse. If Hiei really meant what he said and if he was able to earn her complete forgiveness, Yusuke would step aside and let go of his grudge. But that was a big if. "Fine," Yusuke ground out. "You can try to make it up to her. But if I see that she starts to get upset, I'm putting a stop to it." Turning on his heel, Yusuke finally turned to leave once he felt that his decision was made. He paused before he completely left the room and turned back to give Hiei one last hard look as he said, "And if you ever leave or hurt her like that again, there won't be anywhere that you can hide to save your sorry ass."

After Yusuke left, Hiei and Kurama turned to look at each other. "The same goes for me, Hiei," Kurama said as he stood to leave Hiei alone. He already felt worn out and it wasn't even lunch yet.

Yusuke was sitting on Kagome's couch watching TV when she and Kuwabara returned to the shrine. "Bathroom is baby-proofed," he called out when he heard the two enter the house.

"Thanks, Yusuke," Kagome sighed as she plopped down on the couch beside him and rested a hand on her baby bump.

Eyeing the woman over, he asked, "Tired?"

Kagome nodded and stretched a little, but smiled brightly towards her cousin as she said, "Yeah, but I'm fine."

"What did the doctor say?" Yusuke asked as he heard Kuwabara rummaging around in the kitchen.

"She said that everything is good. Another few weeks and we should know if it's a boy or a girl. I think I'd like it to be a surprise though," Kagome answered as she purposely avoided the man's gaze.

As Kuwabara came back into the living room he placed a sandwich, some chips, and a glass of milk on the coffee table in front of Kagome. "The doctor also said that Kagome is still underweight from where she should be," he informed Yusuke as Kagome called him a traitor under her breath.

"You still aren't eating enough!" Yusuke reprimanded as he turned to fully face the woman next to him. "Is it stress?"

"Why would I be stressed, Yusuke?" Kagome asked as though it was the stupidest question she'd ever heard.

Hesitating for only a moment, Yusuke reached into his pocket before placing a small reddish-black gem on the low table in front of them. "Because Hiei is back," he said gently.

The two men watched as Kagome's eyes grew wide with surprise at seeing the tear gem. But her eyes quickly filled with tears and her hand flew to her mouth to suppress her choked sob.

Yusuke knew that this would be hard, but he had to ask for his own peace of mind. "What do you want, Kagome? Do you want him to go? If you do, it's okay. You just have to say so and I'll tell him to get lost."

Kagome turned towards him and shook her head as she softly admitted, "I don't know. I don't know what I want anymore."

Pulling his crying cousin into his arms, Yusuke looked to Kuwabara with a pained expression. He had been hoping that Kagome would flat-out reject the diminutive demon, but if her heart was this torn then he would do his best to help her fix it. Whether her final decision was the one that he wanted her to make or not, Yusuke knew that he would have to give Hiei his chance.

AN: And there we go. Since this is only a three-shot, the next chapter will be set several months in the future and the same for the one after that. So the next chapter should be around Kagome's sixth/seventh month, and the final chapter will be month nine/delivery. I hoped you enjoyed this, especially if you were one of the people who really wanted a continuation of 'Fallen'. I've decided to post chapters as they're done instead of all at once. Hopefully I should have chapter two up in a day or two. Once this is finished I'll get back to 'The Ouran Hostess', I swear! Let me know what you think, and thanks for reading!