Disclaimer: The characters of Inuyasha are owned by Rumiko Takahashi, but this story belongs to me.

My Child

Assignment # 10:

Your long awaited child will soon be born. But sadly, you get the news from your doctor that you will not live to see him or her born. Write a letter to your child with one important piece of advice. The length of the letter is not important, it can be as long or as short as you feel it needs to be in order to say everything you need to say. Just remember to focus on the content of the letter.

"I'm pregnant," Kagome announced. The group looked at her in stunned silence, they were frozen in place. She opened her mouth to continue speaking when all at once, pandemonium broke out.

"I'm so happy for you!" squealed Sango as she threw her arms around the miko.

"Wait, no, Sango…" She tried to push away from the slayer, but was immediately glomped on by an excited ball of russet fur.

"I'm going to be a brother!"

"Shippo, wait. Listen, there's been a misunderstanding…"

"I'LL KILL YOU!" snarled Inuyasha as he drew his sword.

"I swear it wasn't me!" shouted Miroku as he took refuge behind the giddy demon slayer, barely dodging the sword. "I never touched her! Tell him it was not me, Lady Kagome!"

"I'LL GUT YOU AND EAT YOUR ENTRAILS FOR BREAKFAST!"

"Ewww," Shippo gagged.

"KAGOME!" pleaded the monk as he hid behind her, figuring that she was a much more effective shield against the dog demon than Sango. "Tell him it was not me!"

"GET AWAY FROM HER NOW!"

"Inuyasha… Everyone… please listen to me…"

But no one was paying the girl much attention. After clearing her throat loudly and rolling her eyes, she consulted her homework assignment and began speaking again. This time she spoke louder ("Project," her choir director had once told her) so that she could be heard over the ruckus.

"But the doctor has said that I won't live to see the child be born."

Dead silence.

A stifled gasp.

The clank of a sword falling to the ground.

Hmmm… guess they really were paying attention to her.

"Kagome…"

"It's my next assignment, Inuyasha," she told him quickly before his eyes broke her heart, making sure that she was still between him and Miroku… you know, just in case. "You guys asked what my next assignment was and I was telling you."

"You're… not… you're not are you?"

"Not what, Inuyasha?" She said it innocently enough, (she even managed to bat her eyes a little) but she felt just a little evil for torturing him. "Dying?" He flinched. "Pregnant?" He actually looked a little sick. She took pity on him. He did look awfully miserable. "No, Inuyasha. I'm not sick and I'm not pregnant." He flinched again when she said the 'p' word.

"Just homework?"

"Yes."

He picked up his sword and sheathed it. "Whatever," he said as he jumped onto a low hanging tree branch.

"You're not going to have a baby?" Disappointed tears swam in Shippo's eyes.

Kagome picked up the distraught kit and cuddled him. She pressed a kiss to the top of his head and said, "I'm sorry, Shippo. I'm not going to have a baby just yet."

"When?"

"Er…"

"When? Soon?" His green eyes were bright and expectant.

Sango and Miroku were watching the embarrassed miko flounder with amusement. "Er… I don't know, Shippo. It depends on a lot of things…"

Shippo hopped down and crossed his arms across his chest, scowling up into the tree. "Oh, I get it."

"You do?" Kagome breathed a sigh of relief.

"It depends on when Inuyasha gets his act together. Right?"

"Gack!"

Curious, Inuyasha cracked open one eye to watch her response. She babbled incoherently for awhile (after falling backwards over a fallen log and scrambling backwards like a crab) before getting control of her mouth once more. He wasn't sure if he was hopeful, scared, amused, or insulted.

"Just lots of things. Now," she said in an effort to change the subject, "I have to write a letter to my child and give them one piece of advice." She looked around at her friends, "What advice do you think I should give?"

"It's Inuyasha," Shippo said quietly. Sango, Miroku, and Kirara nodded.

Kagome adjusted her skirt after her fall so nothing was showing. She leaned back in an effort to look casual before asking her question once more. "What advice do you guys think I should give?"

"Always do what your older brother tells you!"

Kagome laughed at the fox demon's quick answer. "Shippo…"

But the kit was serious and adamant in his response. "He has to know that when I say jump it is for a good reason. So when I tell him to jump he'll jump out of the way of a demon attack. If he doesn't do what I say, then he can end up hurt! Or dead! The kid has to know that he can trust me, that I'll always take care of him. He's gotta know that I'd never steer him in the wrong direction and that I'll always be telling him stuff so it would help him. I'll teach him everything he needs to know about being part demon."

"Or her," reminded Kagome gently.

Shippo shrugged. "Or her." He sat beside the miko and grinned up at her. "I'll make the best big brother in the world."

"I know you will," Kagome said as she ruffled the hair on top of the head.

Sango sat down on the other side of the miko and cleared her throat. At first she looked away from Kagome before she began to talk, blinking a few times and taking a couple deep breaths.

"My advice," she said quietly, "Would be to cherish your family. They are the most important thing in the world. They watch your back, fight with you, and you will always belong." She ducked her head a bit and nudged Kagome with her shoulder. "Some families are not of blood, but of choice."

Kagome nudged Sango back, giving her a smile. "That is excellent advice Sango." Then she turned to Miroku. "What would your advice be?"

He thought for a moment, flexing his cursed hand. "Enjoy your life. Every moment of it is a treasure. A gift. Do not waste it."

"Be strong."

Kagome looked up, a little surprised that Inuyasha decided to join the conversation on his own with no coaxing. It was rare that he would join these kinds of discussions without a little fang pulling or dire threats.

"Be strong? Anything else?"

"What else is there?"

Kagome snorted. "There is more to life than being strong."

Inuyasha hopped down from the branch and crouched in front of her. They were so close that their noses almost touched. Kagome's heart beat a little harder and a little faster.

Just one more inch… if he just leaned forward just a teeny bit more…

An amused chuckled from Sango woke Kagome up out of her wishful thinking. Hopefully she wasn't blushing. Since she was pretty much surrounded there was no direction she could turn that would hide her pink cheeks. With some effort she lifted her focus to Inuyasha's eyes. She wasn't sure what he saw in her own eyes, but his cheeks turned a bit pink as well.

"Wench," Inuyasha said gruffly, leaning his body back to put some distance between them. "I didn't say that all there was to life was being strong, I said it was the most important piece of advice."

Kagome leaned backwards some as well. "Why?"

The dog demon glared at the forest behind Kagome. "If you aren't strong, you won't survive. What good is any of that other stuff if you're dead?"

"You are stronger with your family behind you," argued Sango.

"Life not treasured is a waste," Miroku said softly, looking melancholy for a moment before giving the girls a charming grin.

"I don't exactly see MY family making ME stronger."

"Uh huh!" laughed Shippo. "The more you fight him the stronger you get! Right?"

Kagome sighed. "I don't think that is quite what Sango meant." She patted his head again and tried not to look directly at Inuyasha. It didn't escape her attention that he hadn't responded to Miroku's comment, but decided against saying anything about it just yet. Getting her hanyou to treasure life was an ongoing battle. "She meant that standing with your family makes you stronger. Like how when we fight together we compliment each other and are able to defeat even the most dangerous enemies. We're strong because we have each other to depend on. And we're each other's family, because we chose to be a family."

"Like you're the mom, Inuyasha's the mean older brother, Sango is the nice aunt, Kirara is the cousin, and Miroku is the weird uncle that everyone tells everyone else to stay away from?"

Sango and Kagome shrieked with laughter while the monk looked offended. Inuyasha huffed and hopped back up into the tree.

"Something like that," Kagome said as she wiped the tears of laughter from her eyes.

"I thought Inuyasha said you keep him from fighting his best though. Doesn't that make him weaker because of you?" He paused. "Of us?"

Kagome inhaled sharply.

Inuyasha cringed and cursed.

"Sometimes… sometimes people have different ideas about strengths and weaknesses." She gave a little laugh, "Don't you think that if Inuyasha really thought we made him weak that he would keep us around?"

"Keh."

Clapping her hands she tried to take everyone's attention away from the seriousness of the subject.

"Okay, so we have family, enjoying life, listening to your brother, and strength. All are very important. So now I have to decide what the most important piece of advice should be for me to tell my child before I die."

It was easier said than done. Each of her friends had a very good point about what was important in life. What did she find the most important thing in life was?

Decisions, decisions.

Dinner was prepared and everyone went about their business. Sango and Miroku took a walk to the river to clean the dishes, with Kirara as a chaperone. Shippo took out his crayons and colored a picture of him as a big brother teaching a kid who looked a lot like Kagome but with furry ears on the top of its head. Inuyasha was busy pretending he wasn't watching Kagome.

The miko thought about her friends and their suggestions.

Family was important. Her mom, brother, and grandpa were a big part of her life. Even though she spends more and more time away from them, they will always be a part of her. And her new family was important too. Inuyasha, Shippo, Sango, Kirara, and Miroku were her new family. She glanced sideways at Inuyasha and smirked. Her new pack. And then there was Kouga and his pack. His pack referred to her as 'sister'. And Sesshomaru and the little girl Rin. Not to mention Kohaku. Of course, they were more like extended family.

Kagome smiled as she thought of Shippo's advice. More than any of them, the fox kit needed a sense of family. She hadn't really thought about how he would feel about being a brother though. He sure jumped on that fast. Had he been giving it a lot of thought? Should she even be encouraging his line of thinking? But how do you look at those huge green eyes when they want something to love so badly?

Enjoying life was important too. With all the battles they fought, each day might just be their last. Miroku always has a tangible reminder that life is short. Do any of them bother to take time to just enjoy life? Sango and Miroku seem to find time to enjoy things once in awhile, but not enough. Kirara and Shippo seemed to find time to play. Though most of the time poor Kirara had to play the part of baby sitter or chaperone. And Inuyasha… Kagome wasn't sure Inuyasha really ever had an opportunity to just enjoy life. But she would make sure that he did.

Strength is important, of course. Especially to Inuyasha. One of these days he'd figure out that strength wasn't just physical though. Some things were stronger than steel and muscles. Kagome blushed. Now was NOT the time to be thinking of muscles and Inuyasha. There was homework to be done, no time for daydreaming.

So what was important to her?

Her eyes drifted back to the hanyou who was napping on the tree branch above her. Or possibly just pretending to nap. Yeah, he was most important to her. But she couldn't exactly put THAT in her advice to her unborn child. She smiled and touched her belly as she thought of the child she might one day have. With luck it would have the cute little ears that her own mother was hoping for.

Kagome began to write.

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My Darling Child,

I wish that I had been able to hold you in my arms, to watch you grow. You are a part of me and I love you. Your family loves you, both those related by blood and the ones who we have chosen as family. They will protect you and help you grow strong and wise. I hope you enjoy every moment of your life, it is a great gift.

I want to leave you with one piece of advice.

Accept yourself.

Accept your strengths and continue to grow. Don't take them for granted. Nurture your strengths and don't be afraid of them.

Accept your weaknesses. Everyone has them. Don't be ashamed of them and don't be blind to them. That does not mean that you should give up, however. Once you know your weaknesses, then you will just have to work on turning them into strength.

Accept yourself. Know your own worth. In your life you will run across cruel and narrow minded people who will try to hurt you. You are a wonderous miracle. You are different, and you are special. And most of all, you are perfect just the way you are. Never let anyone tell you any different. Don't let anyone try to make you change. Have faith in yourself, for I have faith in you.

All my love forever,

Your Mother

Shippo crawled into Kagome's lap after she finished reading her letter. "I like it," he said solemnly. "But I don't want you to die."

"Go to sleep, Shippo." She tucked him into the covers of her sleeping bag. "Sweet dreams."

"Aren't you coming to bed too?"

"Not just yet. I want to re-write this so that it looks neater and check for spelling mistakes."

Kagome studied her paper as the others fell asleep one by one. The fire crackled warmly and Kagome closed her eyes, savoring the moment of warmth and being with the ones who meant so much to her. Even in the wilds where a demon could attack at any moment, she felt safe and content. She didn't even try to convince herself that her silver haired companion was the source of those warm feelings.

Unsurprised when she felt the brush of a breath across her neck, Kagome's lips curled into a smile. His voice was gruff, but soft.

"You don't make me weak."

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Author's Notes:

I could have sworn that someone suggest that Kagome write a letter to her child, but I went over the reviews and couldn't find it. It is entirely possibly that I have just gone insane though. Anyhow, I apologize if you are the person who sent in the suggestion and I didn't give you credit.

Thanks for your reviews and suggestions!