THIS CHAPTER is dedicated to kaitlynpope77, thanks for the welcome and the reviews! Girl u rock! lol.

Kikyo lovers I'm sorry this is not for you, but it's not that bad so no flames. :-D

Disclaimer: I do not own the series, characters etc.

Rated M for mature. Lemon

Memoirs of the Victors, time of the present

Chapter 3 – Past loves, New loves

Sesshomarou & Inuyasha

As we rested for the night, I knew that only Rin and Kohaku slept. The scents had gone cold and only Rin could track Kagome by feeling the Jewel shard, but over a day of constant travelling, both humans were tired and though he refused to admit it, so was he but he couldn't bring himself to sleep.

He sighed, looking up at the stars. His heart ached in his chest, Kagome, I promised I'd never let u down. He shook his head and looked over at Sesshomarou who evidently couldn't sleep and whilst his face remained expressionless, Inuyasha could tell that the cold, aloof demon was agitated. If he hadn't been in the same situation, Inuyasha would have smirked, if he didn't know any better he would say Sesshomarou was in love with his mate.

Inuyasha sighed, when he thought back to his time with Kikyo, and compared it with his time with Kagome, he would forever be grateful he had chosen Kagome.

In the final battle, after Naraku was killed, Kikyo had come to him again, right after Kagome had been teleported back to her time, wanting him to return with her to hell and it was in that moment he knew, that he would never love her like he used to and that the love he had for her was nothing compared to what he had for Kagome. What they'd had had died along with her 50 years ago and the new love he had was much better, stronger and unselfish. But it had taken Kagome's involuntary sentence back to her era that had thought him that.

He had turned his back on the Miko he had once loved and waited patiently at the well for the Miko he had come to love. He knew, deep down in his being she would return to him and he prayed to the heavens, he promised to treat her better and to stop calling her wench and by her name, if only he could hold her in his arms again.

He sat at the well for three years, rain and sunshine, leaving only to gather food and to interact with Sango and Miroku and their broad. It was the darkest time in his life, because he had lost his Kagome. But he knew even then she would have never left his side, not without being forced and now, someone had taken her.

He released an involuntary snarl and Sesshomarou turned to look at him, his own mae on his mind, Sesshomarou for once, agreed with his Hanyou brother: those who had dared to take the mates of the Inu would die vicious deaths.

He let out a moan and frowned. Kagura was in pain, as was the child. It was the wound, she had been poisoned by the dog demon. If he did not get to his mate soon, she would die, with their pup in her belly. So far, only the Inuyoukai child in her womb kept kagura alive, even as a fetus it was strong enough to use its demonic aura.

"It's time to go!" he stated loud enough to wake Rin and Kohaku, Inuyasha jumped up. "Took you long enough."

Kagura & Kagome

Kagura's eyes flew open as a gasp left her lips. Kagome immediately went to her side. They Wind Demoness had yet to heal sufficiently though it had been over a day, and she seemed to be in pain. Kagome could tell it was the child. Since they had been imprisoned, a tiger youkai had brought them both food, fruits for the human and raw meat for Kagura. But the demoness had refused to eat it. Kagome had shared no such qualms.

"Think of your child Kagura." whispered Kagome. "I am!" she snapped. "I can't eat that…Sesshomarou…has to…" she bit her lip and trailed off, moaning. Kagome having ripped off a piece of her priestess garb, soaked it in some of the water she had been given to drink and wiped the demoness' sweating skin, she burned with a fever.

"Kagura listen, I'm sure Sesshomarou is coming…I'm gonna try something…alright? To tell him to hurry…" Kagura nodded and watched as the miko closed her eyes and sighed and then fell in a dead faint.

Shonen

It was easy enough to follow his father's scent, especially since it was mixed with his uncle's, that made it strong. The hardest part was to mask his own scent, a trick he hadn't completely mastered because it had only been taught to him once and he was only 5 years old.

He travelled as fast as he could, taking the opportunity to hunt while his father stopped. He could sense that his friends Kohaku and Rin were with them but he didn't know why, all he knew was that they were gonna need help and he was gonna prove he was brave.

He was gonna save his momma and the new baby so his father would be proud of him. He wouldn't let that stupid demon win again, even if that demon smelled a lot like his uncle Sesshomarou.

Sesshomarou, Inuyasha and Kagome?

Kagome's spirit glided in a waves of blue light, the spell she had cast leading her to Demon Lord and finding he was a lot closer than she had previously thought, however, the barrier surrounding their location was so strong that it had significantly drained her spiritual powers and now she only had moments to speak to Sesshomarou.

Upon seeing the blue light coming towards them, the gang stopped. Rin gasped, "Lord Sesshomarou, Inuyasha…it's Kagome." she uttered.

"What?" Inuyasha frowned, thinking Rin had lost her mind.

But then the light stopped, right in front of Sesshomarou and took the outline of Kagome. His Kagome!

"Lord Sesshomarou, you have to hurry, Kagura needs you. I doubt she'll live to see another nightfall…but there's a barrier…you wont be able to-"

"Kagome!" Inuyasha's shout distracted her from saying all she needed to say.

"Inuyasha!" she gasped, tears filing her eyes, her spirit glided over to him and cupped his cheek with its blue light. She read the unspoken question in his eyes, "I'm fine so is the baby. We haven't met our captors, just servants. How is Shonen?"

"Fine, I left him with Kaede. He was healing…."

Kagome gasped. "Inuyasha, you can't get pass the barrier none of you can…." then just like that, her spirit faded into the night.

"Kagome!" he rasped.

Sesshomarou cared not, he was already speeding away. He had to find a way to get through the barrier when they got there or his mate would die and with him not there to use tensiaga, she would surely wither away and become dust. He refused to let that happen.

Inuyasha

A part of me wanted to jump for joy that she was alright, but the other part the beast inside me refused to feel anything akin to joy until she was warm and fresh and in my arms. But under it all was the anger and the fear, that I would lose her and that she would never come back.

I remembered when I said my final farewell to Kikyo and how she died again but this time, it was really by my hands...

As I watched my mate and one year old son Shonen law in the grass on the slope beyond the Well where we had come to enjoy so much, I felt an inner contentment that I had always longed for, always missed but could never find until now. Shonen gurgled, that cute baby sound that made my heart swell and brought a smile to his mother's face. He was showing his new canines, pretty soon his mouth would be full and he would be talking sentences that went beyond "mama" and "dada" and he would be running instead of walking on chubby baby legs that only got him so far before he stopped and fell on his padded rump.

I sighed thinking how far we had come in such a short time. The breeze was cool and blew Kagome's now waist length hair all over, the scent of sakura blossoms and various dishes being prepared in the huts of the village not far away permeating the air. Inuyasha sighed, and gently brushed his son's curly dark locks with a gentle finger and innocent gold eyes locked with older, wiser, loving eyes.

"I will protect you Kagome and Shonen too. With my life." he whispered and it earned him a teary smile from his mate and a sweet kiss with the promises of later.

And in the shift of the breeze, I found a scent…the smell of graveyard soul and ash. Kikyo.

Pulling away from Kagome, I could tell she had already figured out who has disturbed us, especially with the soul collectors hovering in the air a few yards away from us. Then she stepped out of the dense vegetation of the forest, her cool face taking in the scene before her.

"Inuyasha…is this what you left me for?"

In my heart, the words struck a nerve. I wanted to sand and defend Kagome and what was ours, but she brought back a side of me that I had thought I had gotten over. Maybe it was my feelings, those of guilt for never protecting her. I blamed myself for what she had become, so different from the kikyo I had first met so long ago.

And so I said nothing at all.

"Inuyasha?" it was Kagome's soft tentative voice, I had not even realized I had got to me feet until I saw she was on hers, with Shonen in her arms. He must have sensed the tension because he had quieted, his baby giggles and coos replaced by a solemn expression.

"Kikyo-"

"Shut up, Inuyasha. You made your choice, now you have to live with it."

And in a second, she had drawn her bow and sent her arrow launching, right at Shonen!

Jumped infront his mate and son, closing his eyes and awaiting the impact but it never came. He opened his eyes to see his mate had put up a barrier.

Kikyo lowered her bow and smirked. "I see the little reincarnation has learned a few tricks over the last decade."

Kagome was livid. She could not believe this, thing, was a part of her soul.

"How dare you! How dare you try to hurt an innocent child!" she shouted at the dead Miko. "He has nothing to do with this! Nothing!" Inuyasha could see her barely restrained anger and apart of him, his beast despite his history with Kikyo, retracted to the threat that had been made to his wife and son and he snarled.

"Inuyasha…you would fight me?" the dead Miko asked with a look of shock, her voice dripping with acidic sweetness.

"Yes Kikyo. You endanger my wife and my son. I can't let you do that." My words seemed to anger her, for she drew her bow again.

"Let's see if your barrier is strong enough to stop this!" spat Kikyo and drew another arrow and fired.

Kagome, instinctively dropped as the arrow came at her, sensing it was different. It went straight through her. Kikyo chuckled. "It is made from the bone of the Miko eating demon, you remember don't you Kagome." she said with a wicked smiled.

Kagome looked at her, wishing she had let the priestess dieback then. But at the time, she had only been concerned with Inuyasha's feelings.

"Take Shonen and go Kagome, this is my battle." said Inuyasha.

"But Inuyasha-"

"I said go!" She scrambled up, clutching Shonen to her chest. He started to cry, knowing that something was wrong.

"I won't make it that easy Inuyasha! You will be mine again and I will eliminate all obstacles before me to get you back!" said Kikyo, firing another arrow. It was all he could do to block the arrow with Tensiaga. Nonetheless, the force of it sent both the arrow and the sword feeling away from him.

"Shit!" he muttered. He knew Kagome had no defence against these arrows and besides that, she had Shonen in her arms.

"Go!" he pushed her and launched himself at the Miko he had once loved. She sent another arrow at him, the regular spiritual arrow. He shifted and fell to the ground in a crouch. She had already drawn an arrow, facing him. "Even if you kill me Inuyasha, you will never be able to save them!" and just as quickly she turned aiming at the retreating figure of Kagome and Shonen.

In that momemt, my heart skipped a beat. I saw my life without Kagome and the world was ablaze in red.

My eyes shifted back to normal as her body fell into my arms, deep claw marks in her clay body. I fell to my knees with her in my arms. "Kikyo-" I rasped, because there was a part of me that mourned the fact that my hands had indeed taken her life but then…

"Inuyasha-" she moaned.

"The Kikyo I loved died over 50 years ago, I just never saw it, as everyone did." he whispered to her. She cupped his cheek, a tear rolled down her cheek.

Then she faded into dust, the graveyard soil and ash from which her figure had been made. And the light of her soul shifted and glided back to the body of his mate, she fell with the force. Inuyasha leapt to her side to ensure she and Shonen were all right.

She looked up into his eyes. Shonen sniffling in her arms, "I love you Kagome." he whispered. She sighed blissfully, she was truly and finally whole again. Kikyo was no more, just a memory of their past and would never again taint their future.

Inuyasha wondered why such a memory filtered into his mind at this time. He frowned, shook his head. He would only think of rescuing Kagome now.

Author's note: Please review. I took 4 hours and wrote this after putting up the first 2, I hope I don't have too many grammatical errors. I still haven't figured out exactly how to review yet, but I'm gonna. lol. hopefully by tonight.