It is a short chapter, but it has Sesshomaru/Kagome as well as Inuyasha/Kagome moments in it so I hope that you like it anyway!

Also, Sango WILL appear in this story later on and there WILL BE SANGO x MIROKU attraction like on the show. Just won't happen until a little and their relationship dynamics will be different.

Sections in ITALIC are MEMORIES.


"Would you be a ningen if you could be?" Shippou asked, looking at the flower in his hands. He'd plucked it to give his mama, but instead of going towards her, he'd started to realize that his okasan was just like that flower. She was beautiful and brought joy to those around her, but she would wilt quickly before his eyes and he'd once more be alone.

"Why would I want that?" Inuyasha made a face from where he was tossing stones into the brook. "Kagome-chan says that in the future I want to be ningen to be with some ningen bitch, but I've decided that all I got from that priestess was a headache. If I'd be whole anything, I'd want to be whole demon."

"But you get to be a ningen at the full-moon, Shippou pressed on. "And you get to cross over to mama's time with her when…when…when I can't."

There was the root of the whole problem.

Shippou knew that Kagome wouldn't be able to stay with them forever. Once the shards were collected and the gem completed she'd be sent back to her time and he wouldn't be able to go with her. He'd be alone again.

The kitsune crushed the flower in his paws.

Inuyasha paused in the motion of throwing yet another stone and turned to look at Shippou thoughtfully. "You're right. I get the best of both worlds and I get to pass the barrier. Maybe I'd stay hanyou then. I mean, you're youkai and I can do something you can't."

"Well, don't rub it in!" Shippou shouted, face red with anger.

"It's not my fault you came out faulty and despite the fact that Kagome-chan is ningen you still became a full-youkai." Inuyasha reasoned.

Shippou glared at the hanyou. While he felt proud that everyone had just assumed that he was his okasan's child despite the fact that he was youkai, he couldn't help but wish that they knew the truth, because if they could, maybe they could find a way to help them.

Maybe Sesshomaru can help

"Don't cry, only females cry!"

"I'M NOT CRYING!"

And they started fighting again.


Inuyasha and Shippou were arguing.

That in itself wasn't surprising; those two hadn't spent a minute in each other's presence without arguing since the day they'd met. Only these arguments were different from the arguments they'd had in the future. Now they were like jealous siblings.

Inuyasha was jealous of the different way Sesshomaru treated Shippou, and the kitsune was jealous of the motherly affection Kagome was giving Inuyasha.

They were two small boys used to being a spoiled, and they were adorable.

"How can you sit there and listen to them shout so?" Sesshomaru asked as he appeared behind her from the shadows.

From her place on Kagome's lap, Kirara gave him a little look before yawning and closing her eyes, drifting back to sleep purring now that she was sure he wasn't a threat.

Kagome looked behind her at the tall youkai, giving him a small smile. Ever since that night when he'd come to sleep with Shippou and her, she'd been dreaming peacefully, without the nightmares that'd plagued her up till that moment.

When Shippou had asked why they were being moved into Sesshomaru's room and slept in the same bed with the youkai she'd told him that Sesshomaru kept her nightmares away, and the young kitsune had accepted that explanation with only a little reluctance before jumping up and down on the comfy bed and annoying Sesshomaru to no small extent.

"Even though a ningen's hearing is inferior to that of a youkai, their racket must bother you." Sitting next to her, Sesshomaru kept his gaze on the kit and the inu. "His father, did he have a good relationship with him?"

Kagome was surprised by the question. "I believe so. Shippou was destroyed when he was killed."

There was silence. "And you were not?"

What an odd question. Frowning slightly, Kagome eyed the inuyoukai. "Well, no. I didn't know him so-."

"You didn't know him?" Sesshomaru growled, turning to look at her, narrowed eyes flickering gold to red. "How could you bare him an heir and yet not know him?" His eyes went bled red. "Did he force himself onto you?"

"Huh?" Her eyes went wide when she suddenly understood what he was asking and she stood up rapidly, unknowingly sending Kirara to the ground. "You…you!" She gave a little cry when Sesshomaru clasped his arm around the hand whose finger she was shaking furiously in his face, and pulled her against him. "Sesshomaru! Let! Go!"

He growled angrily against her neck, warning her to stop shouting so close to his sensitive ears. "Did…" his voice was hoarse like sandpaper, and beneath her hands the muscles of his body rippled. He was fighting the transformation. "Did…he…force…himself…unto…you?"

"No!" Instead of pushing away, Kagome held onto his shirt, trying to speak softly as to not hurt his hearing, yet forcefully for him to hear the truthfulness in her voice. "I was never withShippou's father."

Sesshomaru went still.

Feeling the rippling of his muscles begin to subside, Kagome pressed on, running her hands up and down his chest in a comforting manner. "Sesshomaru, I thought you all understood. Shippou isn't my son because I gave birth to him, he'd have been a hanyou if that had been so."

His breathing was calming, and his heart had stopped its manic race.

She closed her eyes, breathing in his feral scent that was completely male. "I adopted Shippou." There was silence and Sesshomaru was so still she'd have believed she was holding a statue if she couldn't feel his breath against her cheek. "I adopted him after he joined us on our quest. He needed a mother and I wanted to be that person."

"You are a priestess." His voice was emotionless. "And he is the pup of a youkai, enemies of the holy ningens. And yet you adopted him?"

She pulled away slightly, looking up in his face, surprised to see the confusion there. "He was only a child. I'm not prejudiced. He needed a mother and I loved him. I wanted to protect him, and if adopting him in ningen terms and both youkai terms would secure his relative safety then I was more than happy to do so."

"Youkai terms?" His frown had returned and he placed his hands on her shoulders, claws digging into her skin yet not painfully. "You fool, you could have been killed!"

Kagome nodded, smiling up at him. The future Sesshomaru had told her the same very thing when he'd returned from the Western lands and had discovered the change in both the kit's and her auras and realized what she'd done. "You already told me that."

He frowned darker, eyes searching her face. "You really did go through the Path of Fire for that kit?" When she nodded he looked at the kit arguing with Inuyasha and then back at her. "Not many humans come out of that alive-or sane."

"Not without a demonic familiar to help guide them…"

The sentence rested between them.

She took in a deep breath. "Inuyasha helped me."

Closing her eyes, she relived that day.


"Inuyasha!" Kagome backed up, surprised to see the angry hanyou glaring at her, standing in front of her and the place that she'd sneaked away from the camp to get to without exactly THIS happening.

"I'm not going to let you do this, Kagome." Inuyasha glared at her angrily, yet deep within his golden orbs was intense worry. "Didn't you hear WHAT that old crone said about this place? People who go in don't come out the same. Some people don't come out at all

She took in a deep breath, cursing the fact that he'd brought up the fears she'd managed to bury away. "I'm going to do this, Inuyasha. Shippou needs me to do this."

"So he's injured. We've all been injured." Inuyasha took a step towards her. "But I think he'd prefer to wake up and find his 'okasan' alive and sane next to him than to live with the guilt of knowing that she died or went insane trying to do something stupid for him!"

"Don't make me say 'it'!" She threatened, tears fogging her vision. "Shippou is badly wounded and if I were his mother in the youkai way I'd be able to heal him! If I don't do this he might die and I'd never forgive myself for not taking this chance!"

The hanyou watched her silently before sighing, shoulders drooping in defeat. "You're going to do this whether I want you to or not, huh?"

She nodded, thankful for his understanding her. "He mightn't be my real son, Inuyasha, but I love him as if he was, and I'd do this and more if it would keep him alive and safe."

"Sometimes I—sometimes—I-." Inuyasha's face clouded with sadness as he looked down at his bare feet. "Sometimes, Kagome, I wish the well had sent you back to when Iwas a kid. My life would have been better with you there."

Her heart stopped at the pain he'd allowed to show through his tone of voice and the look in his eyes. Kagome knew she was in love with the hanyou, and while he'd let her know in his own way that he cared about her, this was the closest thing he'd ever come to telling her how important she was to him.

Rushing towards the hanyou, she threw her arms around him and held him closer, their hearts beating rapidly against each other as she stood on her tip-toes just to be closer to him.

Finally getting over his shock, Inuyasha surprised her by hugging her closer to him, burying his face in the crook of her neck, breathing in her scent.

"I'm coming with you." He whispered against her skin. "That crone said that sometimes a demon helping the human and protecting him or her can make it easier, and while I am only a half-demon-."

"You're more than enough." Her heart was racing. Was this the start of their future? "You know that I like you just the way you are."

She could feel his blush warm against her skin.

"Yes, well, let's get this over with." Blushing bright scarlet and refusing to meet her eyes, Inuyasha pushed away and pulled out Tessaiga with one hand before shyly grabbed hers with the other.

Kagome smiled up at him, heart beating rapidly. Looking back at the fiery arch before them, she squeezed his hand and took in a deep breath, feeling sure that she'd be fine now that her protector was with her.


"Once again Inuyasha was with you when you needed someone." Sesshomaru was disgusted with himself as they sat on the grass, looking at the two children continue to argue by the brook. "I am beginning not to blame you for not choosing to accept my supremacy in the future. I did nothing to prove my worthiness as a protector or as a provider."

He looked up in surprise when he felt her hand upon his in a comforting way.

"To be fair, Sesshomaru, you were going through a rough time back then." Kagome's voice was soothing, and her eyes held no anger or resentment towards him. "I'd just gotten strong enough with my powers to be able to help you re-grow your arm, and right when you were trying to learn to use it better your kingdom was invaded by the Eastern Lands."

Storing away the information of the future attack from the Eastern Lands, Sesshomaru instead focused on the feel of her skin against his. He shifted his hand so that he was holding hers, running his thumb up and down the curve of her palm. "But you don't understand, ningen, you are my mate. You should have had preference over my kingdom."

She smiled softly at him. "I wouldn't keep it against you for trying to protect those under your care. And anyway, I had Inuyasha to protect me."

Sesshomaru should have been angry that she'd basically said that she didn't need his protection since she had that of his half-brother, but he just couldn't…not when this was the first time she hadn't fought him on the fact that she was his mate.

Was she finally coming to believe and accept that?

Kagome watched him curiously, obviously wondering what had him smiling so smugly at her, but the inuyoukai decided that the longer it took for her to realize on her own what he was smiling about the better. Because when she did realize why his grip on her hand had tightened she'd go red, sputter in embarrassment, and immediately deny being his anything…even if only because she was a contrary ningen.

But she was so beautiful.

"So, what happened next?" Sesshomaru asked. "I always heard that it was dangerous and foolish to enter the Path of Fire, both for demons and ningens, but no one had ever lived to tell the tale of what occurred within, or if they were alive, they were too insane to tell the tale."

Kagome, distracted from her curious wonderings, looked up and smiled, getting more comfortable and not even trying to pull her hand from his as she began. "Well, at first nothing happened."


"Feh," Inuyasha snorted. They'd walked through the fiery archway and once the tunnel had opened into a garden he'd been ready for an attack, yet nothing. They'd been following the flaming path throughout the garden for a while now and nothing had happened except them getting tired from all of the walking. "Is this it? We'll die from exhaustion after walking for so long and go insane with boredom

Kagome rolled her eyes at his manly impatience. "Calm down Inuyasha. I'm sure you'll get to slice at something soon enough."

He keh'd once more before sighing and keeping an eye on their surrounding, swinging Tessaiga around a little in boredom.

Rustling in the bushes to Kagome's side caused the hanyou's ear to turn towards the sound before he growled and pulled Kagome behind him, Tessaiga ready as the bushes shook violently and…

…and tiny little youkai with big bug eyes appeared.

Inuyasha nearly fell. "This is it?" He asked in indignation. "THIS is what we're supposed to fight? Even KAGOME could fight this twerp and win!"

"HEY!" Both Kagome and the youkai cried out, both insulted.

"What?" Inuyasha asked.

Kagome was doing her best to keep the 'sit' from coming out of her mouth.

The inch-high youkai raised his chin and looked at Inuyasha in anger. "Inferior half-breed, show some respect for the Great Lord Kuro!" He then squealed when Inuyasha grabbed him and held him between his thumb and finger, threatening to crush him.

"INFERIOR?" Inuyasha yelled.

"Inuyasha! Don't kill him!" Kagome cried out, tugging at his sleeve. "He might be of some help!"

"Yes! Yes!" The youkai cried out in a squeaky voice. "The great Lord Kuro won't like you killing his messenger!"

Inuyasha paused, and let go of his hold on the small youkai, who jumped onto a fallen tree trunk and sighed in relief to still be alive.

"You're saying YOU aren't this Lord Kuro?" the hanyou asked, more interested than angry by now.

"Of COURSE not!" The creature that reminded Kagome more and more of Jaken announced hotly. "My Lord Kuro is the master of the Garden of the Path of Fire, and you, ningen and hanyou, have trespassed into his property!"

"But we were told that to adopt a youkai pup in the youkai way we had to come through here." Kagome bent at her knees so that she was closer to eye level with the small creature. "Were we informed wrong?"

"No." The youkai looked at her and Inuyasha before shaking his head. "I now see, you are a young, married couple who haven't been able to have children of your own-most probably the hanyou's fault since half-breeds usually ARE the ones at fault for everything-and you want to adopt an orphaned youkai."

Kagome stepped in front of the small youkai, keeping Inuyasha from bringing Tessaiga down on him for the 'half-breed' comment. A dark blush covered her face. "In-In-Inuyasha and I aren't married. H-he is just here to help me s-s-so I can adopt Shippou."

"Yeah! Why would I be married to someone like KAGOME?"

Kagome's eye twitched. "SIT!"

Inuyasha cried out as he plummeted to the ground.

The youkai's eyes widened as he saw what she could accomplish with just one word. "A sorceress!" He bowed quickly. "My Lord Kuro will want to attend to you and your disrespectful guard personally. Please, follow me."

They did as told once Inuyasha could pull himself out of the hole he'd made in the ground, going off of the path and into the shrubbery, surprised that once they passed through the hanging vines they stepped into a hall of gold.

"Wow." Kagome gasped, looking around them at the throne room of pure gold and glittering jewels.

Inuyasha raised an eyebrow as he looked around him suspiciously. "Something about this place just doesn't smell right."

Frowning at that, Kagome was going to ask him what he meant when a movement to their right caught her attention and her eyes widened when she noticed for the first time the handsome youkai sitting on the single throne.

He was so beautiful it was painful

Kagome had always secretly believed that Sesshomaru was the most beautiful male she'd ever seen, yet this youkai had done the impossible and was even MORE beautiful than the inuyoukai.

"Who have you brought to me, Masaru?" Lord Kuro asked, sitting languidly in his throne, twirling his scepter idly through his fingers.

"A lady sorceress and her hanyou guard." Masaru announced in his high, squeaky voice, bowing reverently. "She wishes to go through the Path of Fire to adopt a youkai pup."

"A sorceress?" Lord Kuro asked, eyebrow raised as he looked at her up and down in disbelief. "Hard to believe such a young, pretty little ningen could have enough power to be such."

"But it's true my lord!" Masaru exclaimed, jumping to his feet. "I saw her power myself! With one word she felled the hanyou! It left a huge hole in the path!"

Lord Kuro's eyes narrowed slightly at that and he turned to Kagome. "I demand a demonstration of this power of yours."

Inuyasha growled, sick of the males talking as if he weren't there as well. "No way in hell buddy."

"Inuyasha is my FRIEND, not my guard." Kagome explained, fidgeting with her hair nervously. "And while I can make him fall if I want to-I don't want to because it would hurt him, especially on this floor."

Inuyasha spared her a quick smile before glaring at the males.

"Do you DARE disobey my Lord Kuro?" Masaru shrieked. "You-!"

Kuro raised his hand and silenced the creature immediately before raising from his throne and descending down the small steps until he was in front of Kagome, eyes traveling over her body and face, taking in her appearance completely.

The human blushed at such a thorough appraisal.

Inuyasha growled angrily besides her.

"I sense power in you, ningen, but I sense pure power, that of a miko. NOT that of a sorceress."

She looked him in his eyes. "I never said I was a sorceress."

He was silent before a smirk covered his face. "True that is." Clasping his hands behind his back, he looked her over once more. "A miko who befriends a hanyou and wishes to adopt a youkai. What a rarity you are, my beauty."

She blinked, blush growing darker.

Inuyasha growled angrier, his hold on Tessaiga getting so that his knuckles were transparent.

Lord Kuro turned his back on them. "Come, I will take you through a shortcut and get you to where you are supposed to be for your first trial."


TBC