A/N:: Hello all! I'm sorry I've been totally absent. Well, to be honest, I completely dropped off the radar entirely. Ehehehe, and if it weren't for my lovely sister having stumbled upon this story and demanding (nicely ^_~* though I do remember being persuaded quite effectively) an update, I know this chapter would not exist right now. It'd still be in the back of my brain, fussing over how frustrating this chapter was to write. I'm as pleased with it as I'm going to be for now, but if anyone spots something amiss with Kouga's character, I'm begging you to let me know!

Kouga and I have had a difficult relationship, and I know I don't have him down quite right. Due to this circumstance, I'm not just accepting suggestions or corrections, I'm asking for them. I'd like to hone my 'Kouga' into something more easily him. So, take notes or do whatever you like, but if you happen to have a good suggestion, please let me know in a review or PM! Thanks!

Now that I've gotten the housekeeping out of the way, I'd like to take another moment to disclaim Inuyasha, and emphasize my status of non-ownership in any way (except one movie, featuring plenty of Sesshoumaru-sama -^_^-).

I'm dedicating this chapter to the one and only SableDreamer, in whom I claim all motivation for finishing this chapter to publish! This is for you, dear Imouto~


Kouga growled, the last of his patience having dwindled away in the course of the week he'd waited for Sesshoumaru's reply. Of course, the bastard wouldn't reply, he should have realized it sooner. His thoughts bounded around his mind, unwilling to be quelled.

If... no. I can't go down that road. I will wait to see if anything supports the rumor until I see him in person.

When he'd received word that the Lady Kagome had been seen at Sesshoumaru's residence, Kouga could not believe his ears. He was very sure she'd died, he'd been there during her disappearance... they hadn't found anything in the ruins of Naraku's castle. Even though the damn thing had been a maze to begin with, the smoldering ruins had been simple enough to scour and search every room. However, the stench from the battlefield – burned remains of various servants, and the castle itself, plus all the blood in the air – had made it impossible to prove she'd even been there by scent.

But Kouga knew better.

He knew she'd been there, watching at least some of their battle; the wolf wasn't the best at reading aura's, but her's was one he would never mistake or forget. Kouga knew she'd been there, but also that in the end, she was never found.

Kouga had paced and fumed for days, going back and forth on what to do, before sitting down and grounding out a letter. It was a painstaking process that took Kouga many tries before he managed to force his tone into a semblance of polite respect, so that he could go and make demands in person.

Waiting for a response had been the worst. He'd almost delivered the damn letter himself, just demanding an audience, and dealing with the repercussions later. In spite of his impatience, he managed to hold out. For several days, in fact, before his patience ran out and he decided to settle things face-to-face. For all the insufferable prick had done that had aided them, Kouga still anticipated having to meet Sesshoumaru's refusals at every step in finding the truth behind the rumor surrounding Kagome.

Which was strange, when Kouga thought about it. On the unlikely chance that she was actually in the prick's hospitality, which was laughable to begin with, for the one person who'd been least motivated to start seriously looking for her after that initial search on the battlefield to be this possessive in sharing the news about her reappearance... It really pissed Kouga off. Especially since he was one of the only survivors of the small group that had demanded a large scale search effort. It seriously rubbed Kouga the wrong way, in all the most irritating ways.

The wolf demon's nose caught a passing tendril of wind, telling him he was less than a day away from Sesshoumaru's 'castle'. He mocked the idea of that cold prick residing anywhere other than under a rock, and sped along ahead of his self-appointed 'escorts' as usual. Even without the shards, he was still faster than Ginta and Hakaku, and the idea that he might need their protection was laughable.

Deciding it would be a better show of his appreciation to their devotion, Kouga stopped under a tree to wait. Especially after various personal issues surrounding each of them, the drive to see the proof behind the rumor was strong for them all. They'd all lost someone precious in her on that fateful day, and he owed it to his friends to wait, if just this once.


Sesshoumaru snarled at the letter he'd refolded and placed on the edge of his desk. It had been sitting and waiting for several days, and because it was a request from an old ally, it should have already been replied to. He couldn't, however, find it in himself to refuse an audience for one of the only remaining friends Kagome would have. He argued, in retort, that it wasn't just because of his serious dislike of the wolf, he had to be careful of Kagome's mental health because of her impact on Shippou and Rin. If something were to happen to either of them, Sesshoumaru would kill things.

So, instead of actually writing the refusal he wanted to, he weighed his options and let the wolf come on his own. The Taiyoukai knew there would only be a few days of patience in Kouga, and once he arrived, Sesshoumaru could take better account of the situation and move from there. It would be just as easy to deny him face-to-face as through a letter, he told himself.

And by that, he meant a success chance of nearly zero.

It would be more satisfying to turn him away in person, to loosen some of the stress the extra political tension had placed on Sesshoumaru. He'd be the last to state that fact, but he knew better than to lie to himself by now. At least in this arena.

As Sesshoumaru approached the front hall of his fortress, there was a commotion he couldn't account for, and changed his destination from sitting room to front gate.


When Ginta and Hakaku had caught up, Kouga let them rest for a moment before jogging with them the rest of the way to the Western Castle.

Until he caught the flicker of an impossibly familiar aura, and sped off without them. Of course, they were close enough to their destination, Kouga didn't have much time to put space between them, so they arrived shortly after.

To find him yelling at the guards and making crude demands.

He needed to know. There was no way it was just a rumor anymore, and the small chance it had been a trap concocted by Sesshoumaru's strategic plans were dashed. No-one could fake her power, this has to be real... Kouga's heart wrenched painfully as he considered the chance that it was just a hallucination.

To find out, Kouga needed to see her in person, which required that the guards stand down and let him in.

Which was a truly foolish demand indeed.

Kouga's expression was painful proof of his emotional situation; there was delicate hope strung along a thin strand of glass that hung over two sides of a cliff's edge. On the one side was a safe, sturdy, solid rock to land on; but the other side's seemingly endless rocky chasm was not exactly the image of 'safe-haven'.

It was during this commotion that Sesshoumaru stepped into the courtyard and gave the command to grant Kouga and his entourage entrance.

"I've been expecting you, wolf," his tone was stretched, almost too careful.

Kouga's strained reply was no better off, "Is she really here?" As he stepped into the courtyard, the wave of air displaced from Sesshoumaru's exit from the castle hit Kouga's senses.

His face twisted from disbelief, to agony, and into relief in a matter of moments, and almost as soon as the relief came, it disappeared. It was replaced with disbelief again, and as much as he wanted to demand answers, Kouga bit his tongue into submission.

Sesshoumaru lifted an eyebrow at the rare show of personal emotions from Kouga, and considered for a moment the satisfaction that would come from denying Kouga outright, before dispelling that tempting desire. His reply was cryptic and toneless, "That depends."

Kouga's patience was wearing thin, and if he didn't know so much rode on him keeping his composure, he would already have been swearing up a storm. As such, his following demand was rather clipped, "On what, Sesshoumaru?" letting his malice slip into that name was the least Kouga could do to keep his leash in place.

"Insurance," the phrase drifted like mist over a cemetery from Sesshoumaru, and the tension was palpable. Saving Kouga breath, he explained himself, "I need to know you will not turn my household inside out all for the sake of reviving what you lost ten years ago."

Kouga nearly snarled with rage, and managed -barely- to restrain himself to simple growls of indignation. "I hardly see what your household has to do with any of this," he declared in defiance, clearly challenging Sesshoumaru's terms upon which he restrained Kouga from meeting Kagome.

Sesshoumaru's snort of derision preceded his strained explanation, coloring his tone with contempt, "Explaining myself to the likes of you is not something done often, so pay attention."

Kouga's retort was lost to his shock, because Sesshoumaru was about to explain himself to Kouga. He swallowed the smirk that begged freedom, knowing the line he tread was a dangerously thin one.

"Because of various events that have occurred within my household in the past decade, my responsibilities now extend to insuring the Miko's mental state does not get out of hand. As I'm sure you can understand," Sesshoumaru swept along verbally, ignoring Kouga's dropped guard, "suddenly returning to consciousness with a false concept of how much time has passed, compounded with the sudden loss of several close comrades is not an easy thing to come to terms with."

Sesshoumaru's voice regained the regal feel that had been lost somewhere in his explanation, "As such, you will understand if I am thorough in screening who is allowed visitation and who is not."

Kouga felt like his gut had been stabbed with a rusty blade, and had been left to fester. Summoning up the pain he'd experienced, and imagining catching up on all that pain in one heartbreaking blow, made the coarse wolf's attitude sober in a wave of depressed realization. It made his respect for Kagome that much greater, knowing the inner-strength that facing all that pain must require. In the same breath, however, he realized that coming to terms with it safely would be impossible without someone there to regulate the flow of pain.

Sesshoumaru.

In a begrudging manner, Kouga accepted that he was not only worthy of his respect, but deserving as well. Sighing outwardly, Kouga ceded the argument, "Can I at least know how she is doing?"

Giving the visiting wolf demon an appraising stare-down, Sesshoumaru accepted, "That may be permissible."

As Sesshoumaru turned to lead Kouga into the castle, a familiar voice brushed over Kouga's ears, and he fought with himself to retain his composure. How he wanted to break down, find Kagome, and hug her until he could no longer stand. Holding onto decorum for as long as he could possibly do so, he distracted himself with what wore the semblance of a conversation, "She's really here, isn't she?" His voice was filled with awe, and Sesshoumaru's silence went unnoticed to the self-absorbed wolf.

Now that he was so close to actually seeing her again, he froze up, his insides demanding that he simply rush out and embrace her as he'd been dying to for so long. It had been so long, he worried that she would not understand the sheer weight of his emotions, and he wasn't sure he could tone them down without simply turning them off.

Ginta and Hakaku's quiet footsteps followed behind the two powerful canine demons, the four of them making their way to the room from which Kagome's voice had drifted.

Sesshoumaru stopped them at the door, telling them to wait for his call. He slipped inside, infinitely grateful that she was not yet aware of who had come calling. Once he'd confirmed that she wasn't in a delicate mood, he called her 'guests' in.

Kouga's ears pricked, hearing every word of conversation, carefully balanced by each of them, obviously following some set of safe rules that governed conversation in a public setting. It was unnatural for Kouga to hear Kagome speaking like that, but he forced the rebellious thoughts of a fake Kagome waiting for him behind a sturdy granite wall, and pressed his hand against the door to open it.

He found himself stepping into a sickly elegant room with seating arrangements and tables fit for a social call. Kouga felt incredibly out of place, despite his own status of lordship, in such a pointlessly elegant environment.

Perhaps, however, the most out of place element of the room, Kouga considered, was the woman dressed in a delicate green kimono that suited her well. Upon closer examination, he confirmed what his senses wanted to deny, Kagome.

Kouga's elation bubbled through his veins palpably and he had to physically introduce tension to his muscles to prevent their rebellious intent to surge forward and embrace her. Their eyes met, and so much tentative pain and searching for the reassurance of each others presence passed between them, Kouga felt as though his heart would overload if it had lasted a second longer.

"Lord Kouga, Lady Kagome," Sesshoumaru intoned, as though making introductions for the first time.

Kouga was reliving the days where he'd definitely lost her, with the knowledge of her absence warring with the equally stubborn and fierce proof standing in front of him. He took a deep breath, reveling in the way her presence invaded his senses.

It was he who spoke first, "Lady Kagome," he breathed, at a loss for anything else to say. He settled for simply proving to himself that she was real, but simply standing there and holding up the appearances of courtly exchange was taxing enough. Coming up with conversation beyond a repetition of her title as provided by Sesshoumaru was out of his reach.

The scent of salt tickled his senses and as he felt a wave of protective instincts come over him, his control slipped.

Kouga moved before Kagome had realized she'd shed any tears.

Sesshoumaru's stony face watched the whole of their exchange, his insides warring for simultaneous control, composure, and to replace the wolf's comforting stance with his own. Despite the foolishness of the latter urge, he ignored the chance to quell it, settling instead for being prepared to punish Kouga if he hurt her.

Kouga's painfully whispered words were spoken just for Kagome, into her ear, but all those present heard them, "I've missed you."


Kagome wasn't entirely sure what to make of Kouga's actions, and the part of her that remembered from what was just months ago for her warred with the part of her that was witness to the present. She didn't want to need to tell him she wasn't his, and never would be. She didn't want to have to tell him that, especially after she'd been so happy to see him she'd wept.

As they pulled apart, and Kouga swept the tears away however, she saw a difference from the past and present: there was less wildness, less of the possession she used to know, and more of the protective desire she might expect from a older brother.

At that realization, she struggled to stifle a giggle, but her eyes shone and sparkled happily: she was just glad to have not lost him. The absence of awkward affection having been replaced with a frightfully determined sense of protective something-or-other was enough to send Kagome into a fit of delighted and relieved giggles.

The sound of her laughter seemed to break the tense spell they were all under, and Kouga stepped back to allow Ginta and Hakaku their greetings as well.

Kagome looked over to Sesshoumaru after Kouga let her go, and was glad to see him relaxing if even just a little.


A/N:: So, How was it? I really hope you enjoyed this latest installment! I'd like to apologize for leaving everyone for so long, and I hope this chapter will make up for at least some of it.

I also have a favor to ask of you, my dear, precious reader. I want to know (in a review or Private Message) some of your ideas on where the story could go. I have a basic outline ready and prepared, but that's where I always run into trouble: the unknown middle!

As I understand it, this is a common ailment: knowing the beginning and end, but the vast middle desert is left quite uncharted. So, even if you just want to leave a few words of advice or a small prod in any direction, I'll appreciate your input! I'd love to get started back in on writing this story and get it wrapped up and completed!

Someone pointed out to me that Katsuhiro seems to have an ambiguous gender, and to this I only reply "We shall see and understand soon ^_~*"

Scherherazade:: Yes yes yes! All that you have picked up on is there! I can tell you with confidence that you have imagined nothing! I hope you also enjoy this chapter, even though it is remarkably shorter than my previous ones.