Disclaimer: Don't own Inuyasha or any of the characters outside of the OCs that I create.

Chapter One:

"Onii-san!" Kagome hollered to the Taiyoukai as he flew above the village of Edo after stopping in to check on his ward. Sesshoumaru's eyes widened briefly at the title as Jaken was rambling about disrespectful humans causing a growl to escape the inu lord. "Silence, Jaken," Sesshoumaru stated as he shifted his amber gaze back to the sky. Sesshoumaru stared ahead as the name the miko had called him bounced around inside his skull. It unsettled the Taiyoukai for unknown reasons. He knew the miko and his half-brother were due to mate soon so the name fit him, yet it felt…wrong to the Taiyoukai. Why that was he didn't know, but it still bothered him. Eyes narrowing, Sesshoumaru brushed off the unsettling feeling and continued his trek to the West. Not knowing that two unearthly beings were watching both Sesshoumaru and the miko and were far from happy.

Meanwhile between the realm of the living and the dead...

Inu-no-Taisho turned to the small female next to him as he glared at her. "Minami…" the great inu growled at the Kami, "Why has nothing moved forward?" He was absolutely livid that his oldest son's perfect mate was mating the younger sibling. This is not what the Kami had said would happen when the great inu had asked about his children and their futures. Watching the lavender haired Kami of Fate, Inu-no-Taisho noticed a confused light enter the Kami's royal blue eyes before a sigh left her lips. An exasperated sigh left the inuyoukai as he pinched the bridge of his nose and said, "You have no idea, do you?"

Minami looked at the Inu-no-Taisho and nodded the affirmative. Honestly, she could understand the inuyoukai's frustration. She was just as confused and frustrated as he was. Every method they'd used up until now had failed. The current Western Lord was at least coming around at a snail's pace. He had felt disturbed by the miko calling him "Big Brother" which was definitely a good sign and gave the goddess a little bit of hope. She still did not understand why this particular pair of soul mates were the most difficult she'd ever encountered. Of course, due to the fate that had felled the last incarnations, she knew this was going to be challenging, but she hadn't expected it to be this damn complicated.

The wrong brother had been in the vicinity when the girl had first emerged from the well, the wrong brother traveled with her, the wrong brother protected her, and the wrong brother seemingly loved her. Sesshoumaru was stubborn to a fault, a trait that seemed to increase and worsen the more that particular soul was reincarnated. The young lord had been off basically doing nothing but hunting a damn sword he didn't need when the girl had emerged for the first time and it threw everything off balance. Sesshoumaru's obsession with the Teutsaiga had greatly affected the outcome of the two souls and it pissed Minami off.

"Is there nothing else we could try?" Inu-no-Taisho questioned the silent and obviously angry goddess. He actually flinched when the air around the Kami had gone from calm to ferocious in a millisecond. There were few beings amongst the Kami that had any effect on him, but this furious little female terrified the Inu-no-Taisho. Minami was the goddess of Fate and even the deceased knew better than to mess with her. In a way, Inu-no-Taisho felt for the female since there were numerous burdens upon the goddess and he knew his offspring were her biggest ones at the moment.

Minami struggled for a moment as she tried to think of something else to pull the two souls back together. Well, something to pull the owners of the souls together anyway. The souls themselves recognized each other and always gravitated toward the other which was how and why the Taiyoukai and Miko always managed to be in close proximity. However, even that didn't seem to affect the last reincarnations of the souls. An alliance of sorts had built between the two, but nothing beyond that. A thought floated through the goddess' mind and she bit her lip as her head tilted slightly to the right.

Inu-no-Taisho watched the Kami as her teeth met her lip and knew she may have found something they hadn't tried yet. As her head tilted to the right and a thoughtful look crossed her face, Inu-no-Taisho resisted the urge to grasp the woman and hug her out of sheer joy. He settled with a brilliant smile in her direction, but it dimmed a little as the goddess' brow furrowed. "Minami?" he asked quietly, "Did you think of something?"

"Hn….maybe, but it's risky and not easily accomplished either. I may even have to recruit help from Nariko," Minami replied as her royal blue eyes locked with his amber ones, "My question is what is the price you are willing to pay to accomplish this? I have done several favors for you in regards to this situation, Inu-no-Taisho, and in order for this to work, I need a female soul. Would you be willing to part with Izayoi?"

Inu-no-Taisho immediately stiffened then narrowed his amber eyes before growling, "Izayoi has nothing to do with this."

"Ah! But she does. Should I put this new plan into action, then she would be your oldest son's daughter and your grandchild," Minami stated, "Are you willing to pay that price?"

Inu-no-Taisho stared at the goddess as he mulled over the implications. The realm in which the two currently existed caused both he and Izayoi to feel restless as they were neither in the realm of the living or the realm of the dead. The thought of Izayoi once again alive and no longer restless as she was now lightened the blow to the Taiyoukai at the fact that he'd lose her again and permanently by the sound of it. Would he be willing to let her go or be selfish and keep her? Locking his amber eyes to the goddess' royal blue ones, Inu-no-Taisho replied, "Give me time to think about it and discuss it with Izayoi, please, Minami-sama."

Minami reeled back in shock as she looked at the Taiyoukai like he'd gone insane. "Why did you call me that? You haven't used an honorific with me since you came here," she stated suspiciously.

"Hn, I suppose I haven't. However, this is a delicate matter and Izayoi's safety would be in your hands along with whatever fate you hold for her," Inu-no-Taisho stated, "I don't wish to cause further disrespect to you or your station."

Minami stared at the Taiyoukai. She'd tried holding her mirth at his statement in, but it wound up sputtering out of her mouth before she could stop it. Now laughing to the point of tears, the goddess was bent at the waist trying to catch her breath as she clutched his arm to somewhat steady herself. "You…disre…spect…me?" she sputtered through her laughter, "You…are…dense!" She fell onto her knees in the grass still laughing while trying to catch her breath.

Not knowing why the goddess was essentially laughing at him, Inu-no-Taisho stood watching her with a stunned expression on his features before seating himself next to the goddess as she calmed herself from outright laughing to the occasional giggle and asked, "Why do you laugh? I have disrespected you."

Minami nibbled her lip and shook her head at him. "If anything, you have actually helped me, thereby I have disrespected you, Inu-no-Taisho," she stated with a light giggle. Her gaze then shifted to the miko from the future in front of the two as the young woman chased the fox kit around Kaede's hut. A sigh escaped her and she whispered, "I was actually very lonely until you came to ask for help with your sons. I can now say that I have a friend of sorts that doesn't scamper from me when I get anywhere near him. Though not for much longer, your fate is not done yet thus why you and Izayoi are here instead of at rest. I have plans for you yet and when they are accomplished, I will once again be…solitary. I am very grateful you don't run from me even though I terrify you. Too many have and will, but I will always carry the time we've spent together close to my heart."

Inu-no-Taisho watched the goddess as a small smile met her lips. He hadn't had the slightest clue that he had helped her in any way, but his chest swelled with pride as he could see that he had. The first time he'd seen the Kami of Fate, she was withdrawn and so guarded that he never knew what was going through her mind, how she would react, or even what she would do next. Minami strangely reminded him of Sesshoumaru with how detached she had seemed at the time. It had been very hard to read her and he had been a master at anticipating an opponent's mindset, actions, and next move when he was alive. Shaking himself from his thoughts, he turned his attention to the miko Minami was observing. He caught movement from the corner of his eye and smiled as Izayoi sat next to him.

"Hmmm…"Minami stated as she observed the futuristic miko, "If this plan is to work, we have to do so quickly or I fear your youngest will claim her before your oldest will have a chance and that would have disastrous consequences on her time…again."

"Again, Minami-san?" Izayoi asked as she stared wide eyed at the goddess.

Minami nodded. "This is the fourth cycle for these two particular souls and the last three have been less than satisfactory. The first failed due to the fact that both incarnations were completely infatuated with each other to the point that they neglected their duties and the hanyou, Naraku wiped everything out of existence. The second failed because…well…that was technically your incarnation's fault Inu-no-Taisho. Apparently that one thought a union between a Taiyoukai and a human was an insult to the Kami and thus killed them both, which resulted in Naraku becoming a somewhat demi-god, took a month for us to defeat him and was a pain in all of our butts," Minami informed them, "The third failed basically the same way Kikyo and Inuyasha's relationship did this time. He thought she betrayed him and vice versa. It resulted in Kagome taking Inuyasha as her mate and youkai ceasing to exist in the future."

"We are trying to correct the future with a small change at this specific point in the time line. One tiny mistake and everything in both this time and in the miko's time is affected. The last three attempts have obviously failed. This time, so far, has succeeded as far as Naraku's destruction, but it will not be a complete success until this Kagome and Sesshoumaru mate. Their union will guarantee the continued existence of youkai whereas a union between this Kagome and Inuyasha will result in the exact same problem that existed in the third attempt," Minami stated then sighed, "We are trying to keep the balance between youkai and human kind from being completely destroyed. Yin without its Yang is a very difficult thing to manage and has horrendous consequences."

"Where does Izayoi fit into all of this?" Inu-no-Taisho questioned the goddess as she was closely scrutinizing the miko again.

"Simple, yet complicated…" Minami muttered to herself, "Easy. Izayoi will be the pup Kagome will birth in precisely five months' time. Sesshoumaru's pup as a matter of fact."

Inu-no-Taisho and Izayoi reeled back in shock. "How would that be possible without Sesshoumaru and Kagome being intimate?" Izayoi questioned.

"Ah! That, my dear, is where Nariko will come in," Minami stated, "The Kami of Life is able to more accurately create a pup within Kagome's womb. I've spoken to Nariko on various occasions and there is a way to impregnate Kagome without Sesshoumaru and that's where your youngest comes in. He'll be the…vessel, so to speak, that will create Sesshoumaru's pup with the miko."

"I'm not following. If Inuyasha is intimate with Kagome, then the pup would be Inuyasha's not Sesshoumaru's," Inu-no-Taisho said.

"Only if its Inuyasha's seed that goes into her will that happen. However, Nariko would…replace Inuyasha's seed with Sesshoumaru's seed thus creating Sesshoumaru's pup," Minami commented, "This is an absolute last resort and we've only done it one other time which actually resulted in your great grand sire's creation, Inu-no-Taisho."

"How are you so sure it would work?" Izayoi asked.

"Instinct is a very powerful thing. Sesshoumaru is already questioning the feelings he gets when he's around the miko which works very well in our favor. Add his pup and there would be absolutely no way he would allow the miko from his sight, thus resulting in the feelings they both have being expanded upon and strengthened," Minami supplied, "The only thing that may cause a problem is the fact that Sesshoumaru and Kagome have not been intimate and it's a great possibility that Sesshoumaru will feel deceived in some manner."

"Knowing my pup, that's an absolute certainty. Sesshoumaru's a very suspicious creature by nature and for good reason, it's not easy growing up the way he did," Inu-no-Taisho commented.

"Hmmm…I have already anticipated that and that is where your new fate will lay, Inu-no-Taisho," Minami said with a smile. She turned her attention away from the couple and to the scene in front of her. Her smile increased tenfold as Nariko's auburn haired, green eyed form materialized next to her. "I take it the time has come, Nariko?" Minami questioned her elder sister.

A nod was Minami's answer as Izayoi seemingly vanished from Inu-no-Taisho's side after they hugged for a brief moment. Minami then walked over to the Taiyoukai and gave him a hug. "Remember, you are a great man, Inu-no-Taisho. Do not take this second chance lightly," she stated as a light surrounded the inuyoukai, "I will miss you and thank you again for keeping me company." Minami then bowed to him causing the Taiyoukai's eyes to widen before he too vanished before both the Kami of Fate and Life.

"It is done, Minami," Nariko stated effectively jolting her sibling back from wherever her mind had wondered. Minami turned a sad smile to her sibling and sighed before beginning to walk around her. Nariko quickly grabbed Minami's arm causing the goddess to stop in her tracks, "I have been instructed to give you a gift, Minami. Father said you deserve it and hopes you enjoy your gift. He also wants you to know that we all love you very much."

Minami's lavender eyebrow shot into her bangs as she looked upon her sister. "What are you talking about?"

"Father instructed me to give you a new life, so that you may never again experience the loneliness of isolation again. However, you will still have your responsibilities to attend to," Nariko said with a smile then hugged the girl as tight as she could, "Enjoy yourself for once, girl."

Before Minami could respond, a bright light surrounded her and she was gone.


Two months later in the village of Edo...

Kagome awoke the moment the light of the sun hit her face. She lay on the futon for a minute before noticing the heat that had been at her back the night before was no longer there. Sitting up, she looked around the hut for signs of her hanyou, only to find the hut vacant. Twenty years old and on the verge of marriage, Kagome felt like a woman for the first time and a smile lit up her features despite her missing fiancé. Her smile faded a bit after a minute. Something felt…wrong about the entire situation. She loved Inuyasha with all of her heart, yet she couldn't help but feel something was amiss with her feeling that way. Dismissing it as getting cold feet, Kagome got up to get ready for another day of chasing kids, gathering herbs, cooking, and healing.

Donning her miko garb, Kagome headed to find Rin and start her training in herbal remedies. Kagome adored the little girl as much as her Shippo and was happy with Rin's progress in the village. There were times though that Kagome could tell Rin missed Sesshoumaru. The little girl would occasionally stare in the direction of the Western lands. Kagome knew she was waiting for her Sesshoumaru-sama to come see her.

A sigh escaped Kagome as she thought of the Western Lord. Sesshoumaru had begun coming around the village shortly after he brought Rin there to study. He came around at least once a week and often interacted with both Rin and Shippo. The oddest part about his visits was the way the lord would look at her. He always seemed to be analyzing her and for some reason, Kagome always blushed when her sapphire eyes locked with his amber ones. She always expected to see disgust in his eyes when he looked at her, but all she ever saw was acceptance or amusement depending on what she was doing.

Kagome stopped in her tracks as she recalled the last visit with the Taiyoukai. He'd had a full and complete conversation with her revolving around Rin and her studies of course, but still it had been surprising that he'd sought her out to speak with her. Kagome recalled the look he'd given her during the conversation and after thinking about it, she'd come to the conclusion that Sesshoumaru had been confused about something. What he was confused about, Kagome had no idea, but it seemed strange that the look of confusion was there from the start of their conversation. Come to think about it though, she had also felt confused during the conversation. Her eyes had been locked with his, but for some reason, she had felt as if she wasn't close enough to the Taiyoukai. Actually, over the last few years, she'd felt that way anytime she was around Sesshoumaru.

The only time she could recall not feeling as if she wasn't close enough was when Sesshoumaru had picked her up with his tail thing and let her ride on it when they were searching for Rin and Inuyasha during the fight with Naraku. She had felt complete contentment at the time and it had unsettled her on more than one level. Of course, it didn't help that the Taiyoukai had looked at her with what could've been contentment in his amber orbs.

Kagome was so wrapped up in her thoughts that she failed to notice just where she was going and ran smack dab into the back of her fiancé. She began to fall then sighed in relief when Inuyasha's red clad arms wrapped around her to stop her descent.

"Why are you always so clumsy, wench?" Inuyasha asked as he straightened her upright.

"I was thinking, Inuyasha. Sorry for running into you," Kagome stated as he pulled her closer to him and buried his nose into the crook of her neck.

A chuckle left his lips before he sniffed at his female's neck. He'd always loved Kagome's scent. The natural cinnamon and apple smell had always calmed him and with the way things had been going today, he really needed the calming miko. Inhaling as deep as he could, Inuyasha paused for a minute as an extremely light pine and waterfall scent mixed with hers hit his senses. His brow furrowed as he sniffed her again deciding he had to have been imagining the smell. There was something else there and it bothered him that he couldn't quite place it just yet.

Kagome stood in Inuyasha's arms for what seemed like an eternity as the hanyou sniffed at her neck. After the fourth pass of his nose against the crook of her neck, she noticed that Inuyasha had gotten extremely tense. His whole body had tensed up. Another sniff and a light growl escaped the hanyou before he pulled away from her.

"When did you bed Sesshoumaru?" Inuyasha asked with a growl as his golden eyes locked with her sapphire eyes.

"What!?" Kagome screamed at him before she clenched her fists and glared at him, "I did not bed him! You know you were my first and will be my last. How dare you!"

"You had to have, wench. You are carrying his pup!" Inuyasha screamed right back.

A chill swept over the miko as she looked at her hanyou. Pup? She was pregnant? How? She'd never bedded Sesshoumaru, so how was it possible she was having the Taiyoukai's pup? She shook her head at Inuyasha and asked, "Are you one hundred percent certain that I am pupped as you put it?"

"Yeah, there's no mistaking that lavender and chamomile scent. You also have a pine and waterfall scent mixed with yours which clearly tell me it's that bastard's pup!" Inuyasha hollered at her, "Why did you bed him!?"

"I DIDN'T!" Kagome screeched.

"YES, YOU DID!" Inuyasha bellowed as he closed the gap between them again and grabbed her shoulders causing the miko to flinch as his claws dug in, "You bedded that bastard to keep me away, didn't you!?" Kagome flinched again as his claws dug deeper into her shoulder. She realized that Inuyasha was so enraged that he didn't know he was hurting her and tears sprung to her eyes.

"Don't even try that innocent crying act with me, KA-GO-ME! It won't work this time!" Inuyasha shrieked at her.

Terror spread through her system as she recognized the telltale signs of Inuyasha starting to turn. Red had begun seeping into his eyes as he glared at her and she whimpered and attempted to dislodge his claws from her shoulders only to make them sink in further. Blood was now staining her white haori as it seeped into the material, yet the hanyou showed no signs of releasing her. Her miko powers began to surface to protect her and she flinched before forcing them down. She didn't want to hurt him. It all had to be a misunderstanding.

"Inuyasha, please don't," she begged the hanyou, "I don't wish to harm you. Please, just let me go."

"Why? So you can run off and bed the bastard again?" Inuyasha growled at her, "I'd sooner see you dead for your actions than allow it to happen again."

Kagome screamed as Inuyasha's clawed hand raised from her left shoulder and began a descent toward her. She shut her eyes knowing he was going to kill her and begged every Kami she could think of to save her without hurting him. Angry and getting ready to kill her or not, Inuyasha was still her friend and she didn't want to see him hurt. A moment passed and when she didn't feel his claws slice her person in half, she opened her eyes only to gape at the sight in front of her...


Author's Note: Hmmm…This is one of my random stories that just happened to pop into my head. I have a few others as well and may post some of them here and there. I'm also working on a Meddling with a Miko and Taiyoukai sequel and trying to finish Cousins are a Pain in the Rear. Been a loooong while since I've been able to type up more stories, but hopefully, I can find more time to do so now. Review please and let me know if I should keep the story or bury it in my head to never see the light of day again. Thank you! Have a good day! ^_^