Chapter 10: Family feuds of the funny sort...

Last time: "Is her husband going with her?" Hojo said (spitting out venom at the word husband)

'Good god boy' she thought. Why hadn't Kagome told her Hojo was so annoying?

"Yes Hojo and both of her children too." And with that she opened her front door and shut it behind her.

"CHILDREN!!" Hojo sputtered.

Lady Nefertiti: sorry for the long update but my computer caught a virus (and personally you don't want to see a panicky Lady Nefertiti about her computer crashing) anyway, enjoy reading everyone!

-Hojo-

Okay so he wasn't accustomed to having the door shut in his face like that and especially the fact that it was Kagome's mother here. This must be her way of saying, 'Okay leave Kagome alone now, she's married so leave her alone! (or her mate will smash you to pieces)' but Kagome was HIS! She was ill and it was his job to take care of her illnesses and bring her cures and ailments. He cared about her and he guessed that this bastard Kagome married was just some guy with money and she didn't even love him. He had to help her! He sighed and walked down the many steps of the shrine. It wasn't like Kagome to vanish on him like that. They were still friends and she'd leave some sort of info to where she was going. Maybe her friends had some info on her. He'd go see them next.

(A/N: persistant isn't he?)

Still Hojo didn't or wouldn't feel happy about ripping Kagome apart from her husband and what if she was happy with him? would he (hojo) feel guilty about taking her away from her husband? NO! he'd go with what he planned. why should he feel guilty about taking what was his? he had seen Kagome first after all. Seriously some people were so thick in the head these days. But come to think of it why would Kagome agree to marry this guy? Was she perhaps forced to marry him because of his money? was she pressured?

Poor Kagome...

-Feudal era- (Sesshomaru's study)

There was a tense silence in the study as Miroku and Sanji were giving each other silent glares, Sango looking miffed at the both (although she didn't mind the attention for once) two guys fighting over her. Was this how Kagome sometimes felt and now she had three guys counting Sesshomaru. Sango knew that Sesshomaru would never let anyone take Kagome away form him. Kagome giving Sesshomaru a look which said to spare Ryou and his family, and Inuyasha...well...

"What the hell is going on here?" yes so typical Inuyasha...gotta love the hanyou and his world famous outbursts...

"You will cease your childish outbursts or you will be removed forcefully and this Sesshomaru will not hesitate to attempt to kill you again." Sesshomaru said.

"Keh! Oh I'm sooo scared..." Inuyasha mocked. Sesshomaru turned towards him with a look and Inuyasha eeped. "Okay...gotcha!" Yeesh sometimes he was too much. Whatever did Kagome see in him? At least it wasn't Kouga...wait, why did he just think that? That Sesshomaru is better than Kouga? 'Damn I must be going senile.' Inuyasha thought. 'Amazing he's quite crazy, thank goodness I didn't get any of that in my genes...' Sesshomaru thought.

"Where does the rest of your family reside?" Sesshomaru said.

"Milord it's just my mother, my little brother and my sister. My father was killed along with my Aniki for thier...disloyalty..." Ryou said, a sad tone in his voice. Losing one's family when you knew they didn't do anything bad was heartbreaking. "They reside in a village near Inuyasha's forest."

-Shippo and Rin- (In one of the many hallways of the palace)

"You got all the stuff we need Shippo?" Rin said in a cute voice.

"Why am I the one carrying these heavy things?" he asked. Rin didn't answer as she looked over her shoulder for servants/guards/or thier punching bag Jaken. They didn't want to get into trouble after all.

"So where you want to do this?" he said.

"Hmm...in the Royal hallway, I think that's where she'll be staying no? She is a 'guest' of the palace after all." Rin said ducking for cover under a table as one of the generals of the army came walking by thinking he heard something but of course he wasn't going to find the both of them, Rin had learned to become 'invisible' she was Sesshomaru's ward after all, the master of being undetected...

-Suddenly-

SMASH! and a vase fell off the table she was hiding underneath.

"RIN! I think you broke something valuable." he said in a worried voice.

"Oh don't worry Sesshomaru-sama's got plenty more of those vases lying around. It's just a couple of thousand years old from some dynasty before us, anyway that doesn't mean we can go smashing around every vase we see ..." Rin said as if it were no big deal.

"Why am I agreeing with you?" he asked aloud.

"Because you're my brother now and you gotta listen to me." Rin said in a haughty and bossy voice.

"I think this is Sesshomaru talking not Rin..." Shippo said sighing shaking his head and followed her still watching for people over his shoulder. They might be royal kids but that didn't mean that they couldn't get into trouble from their father (Sesshomaru) and his wrath was worse than any punishment.

-End Shippo and Rin-

Sesshomaru didn't know why but he was going to let Ryou go easy, maybe it was because of Kagome's (ahem) threat, no it wasn't that he was the man and what he said went! riiggghhttt...

'Baka! just let the poor fool go and be on your way. you know that Kagome's hard-headed and isn't about to let you...' his beast was cut off by Sesshomaru's voice.

"For your honesty for explaining the situation to this Sesshomaru, I have decided to let you go and if you wish to join my army, Sanji's the trainer for the new rookies. I will see to your families safety about bringing them into the western lands and under my protection." Sesshomaru said. Ryou bowed deeply and walked out. Truly he was lucky...very lucky and he knew it. Wait till his buddies from the rookie guard heard. He'd been the only male demon from thier village to have been captured by the evil lord and now his family would be safe too.

SMASH! there was a faraway yell..."Come back here you relentless children! I will not have unruly children running amock in the palace! And the fact that we are faced with forces unknown you must listen to this Jaken!"

Well that was random.

"Thanks Sesshy." Kagome whispered so no one could hear her soft nickname for him and kissed him ignoring Inuyasha's pissed glower. He knew about them but it still irked him to no extent.

"Hnnn." Sesshomaru said not bothered that he was kissing his beloved mate in front of others.

"Keh! do that in PRIVATE!" he said wanting to embarress the 'lord.'

"Sit boy." came a muffled voice. (hey she was busy kissing Sesshy)

BOOM!

Miroku was looking at an amused Sanji who'd never seen a demon subjected before. Hmph the demon kind always thought they had to have the best did they? Sango hated the demon kind! She was a demon slayer not a demon lover...some demons were just thick in the head like that. He could have any human he wanted but not his beloved Sango!

-Sango-

She'd seen the houshi mulling and she looked the other way. She didn't want to break his heart but she couldn't choose who she fell in love with! The demon kind always infatuated her! I mean Sanji was cute and he hadn't tried to grope her once!

'Um yes but perhaps that's because his lord will kill him if he does that...' her conscious said.

"Sango-sama?" a cool voice said, interrupting her less than innocent thoughts.

"Hai?" she said facing Sanji now a blush rising on her cheeks.

"Perhaps you would like to accompany me as I train the new guards?" he said in a hopeful voice.

Kagome grinned inwardly. Awww!! how cute. Not really a date but it was a start.

-Somewhere not in the palace-

The evil Lord was fuming as he threw a glass across the room. Talk about anger management. The pup Ryou and his useless family had been saved from his clutches by none other than his rival and arch-enemy Sesshomaru. Since when did Sesshomaru have a nice streak? Ryou's sister could have been put to good use too... no matter what was important was getting Kagome.

Sesshomaru wasn't about to take everything and everyone away from him. Personally he'd never admit it out loud but he liked having demons in his employ, most of them his slaves who'd do his bidding at his beck and call. And why shouldn't he have the best of the best? Kagome did not belong in the arms of a vile and evil demon lord. She should be his and with her miko powers maybe they'd be powerful enough to finally overthrow the damn demon lord and take over the western lands.

After all, he was the most powerful and influential Daimyo of the Feudal era...

Lady Nefertiti: Chapter 10!

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Word bank:

Aniki: Big brother

Daimyo: Human feudal lords