Time passed quickly for the Inus in the slayers village as they prepared to take off.
Kagome and Sango had left for the hot springs not too far from the village for "girl time," leaving Sesshoumaru to watch the two children and prepare for their departure. Sesshoumaru wasn't sure if he was being punished as he watched the two heathens chase each other around the hut.
Kagome, meanwhile, was in heaven, relaxing her tense muscles in the steaming water.
"I've missed this. Girl time with my best friend," Sango sighed.
"I agree," Kagome sighed.
"Now that we're alone, spill it dog breath," Sango smirked, turning to Kagome, mischief sparkling in her eyes.
Kagome laughed, "What do you mean?"
"You know what I mean, smiley. You've been almost glowing since Sesshoumaru woke up. What happened?" Sango asked.
Kagome smiled and watched the sunlight shine through the tree tops.
"We completed one of the stages of mating," Kagome said with a large smile.
"Okay, now break that down and explain it to those of us who don't have a complete understanding of demon mating habits," Sango giggled, splashing Kagome.
Kagome squealed in laughter and ducked behind a rock. Once they had calmed down, Kagome faced Sango to explain.
"Inu's have four stages to mating. There is an engagement bond, which takes place when the intended mates state their intentions for the future. That bond allows us to feel the stronger emotions of our mates. The second is an emotional bond that's created when both parties can lay their emotions out for the other. That allows the mates to get a better read on their partners emotions. The third is the physical bond, I don't think I really need to explain that one," Kagome giggled, "anyways, that is supposed to let us get an approximate location on where the other is. The final one is a blood bond. The Inu's create a mating mark by biting their partners neck. This seals the bond and allows the more powerful mark to take over," Kagome finished her explanation with a deep breath.
"Wow," Sango mouthed.
"We're probably going to wait until we take back the West before we finish the bond. Nobles are supposed to do the final step in a specific ceremony. It's stupid, but I don't want to cause problems for Sesshoumaru later," Kagome sighed, her mood dampening slightly.
Sango smiled gently at her best friend, "He adores you, you know?"
Kagome looked up at her in surprise, "What?"
"You'll see. Sessy isn't a man of many words, so I'm sure he'll show you how much he cares," Sango smiled and got out of the spring. "Come on, we need to get ready to head out."
Kagome laughed. "I'd suggest Sesshoumaru never hear you use that nickname," Kagome warned.
"I'm not worried- I'm your best friend. He wouldn't dare kill me," Sango laughed.
0808
When Kagome and Sango walked into the village, both laughing at the others antics, they were greeted with a very frazzled Sesshouamru. His hair was braided with flowers and he had the wild eyes of someone who had seen hell.
"Sesshoumaru, what's wrong? Are the kids okay?" Kagome asked, assuming the worst.
"The children are spawns of Satan," he growled. Then Kagome saw Shippou and Rin running full speed at their mother.
Kagome automatically scooped the children up when they reached her, both talking a mile a minute.
"Did someone give you guys sweets?" Kagome interrupted.
"Gou-san brought us some! He gave it to Rin and I after you left! It was super good!" Shippou chattered, bouncing in her arms.
Kagome set the children on their feet. "Go run off that energy before you come back to the hut, I need to have a few words with Gou," Kagome muttered as the kids ran off, screaming and hollering and trying to get the other kids to join them.
Sesshoumaru sighed in relief. "They've been running wild like this for the past two hours," he said.
Kagome giggled, "Come on, let's get you cleaned up you big baby. How on earth are you going to be able to handle toddlers if you can't death with this?"
Sesshoumaru froze for a moment. "I had never thought about it," he admitted.
Kagome laughed, "Silly men."
Kagome got Sesshoumaru seated and gently started undoing the braid. Sesshoumaru winced every now and then when Kagome pulled on a tender spot.
"That little girl sure did a number on you," Kagome muttered.
Sesshoumaru sighed, "Children are beasts."
"You love them," Kagome giggled as she finished untangling his hair. "What all did you get done before the kids went crazy?"
Sesshoumaru rubbed at his slowly regenerating arm. "I got the herbs packed as well as the majority of our extra supplies," he informed.
Kagome smacked his hand as she walked by. "Stop rubbing, you're going to cause problems," she scolded.
Sesshoumaru growled, "You are such a mother."
"Work on your insults, Koi. Your current ones are falling short," Kagome said over her shoulder as she walked away.
"Sassy woman," Sesshoumaru muttered.
"I heard that, still falling short!"
0808
Night had finally fallen and Sesshoumaru was thanking every god he could think of that the children were finally asleep. They had chased Sesshoumaru for several hours trying to braid his hair again and other such nonsense while Kagome had watched on in amusement.
"You are an evil woman," Sesshoumaru hissed.
"You love it," Kagome smiled. Everything was packed, they would be heading out to try and find Kayo and the army. The bird her mother sent her, which Kagome lovingly dubbed Niji, was perched on her shoulder.
It was a brightly colored demon bird that wasn't native to Japan. The bird took a liking to Kagome immediately and was generally found near her somewhere.
"What's on your mind, Kagome?" Sesshoumaru asked, seeing a far away look in her eyes.
Kagome shook her head, "I'm just worried about Kayo and the others."
Sesshoumaru moved over to Kagome and put a finger under her chin to force her to meet his eyes.
"Kayo is my top general, I have complete trust in her. She is safe and is probably staying low and treating the wounded. Don't worry about her too much," Sesshoumaru soothed. She nodded and hid her head in his neck. He wrapped his arm around around her and kissed her temple. Kagome sighed and wrapped her arms around him
"Sesshoumaru, can I ask you something personal?" Kagome asked, not moving from her position.
"Hn?"
"How did your mother die? I mean you don't have to tell me, I was just wondering," Kagome spat out quickly before she could lose her nerve.
Sesshoumaru froze for a moment, the question shocking him. Finally he sighed a prepared himself to answer.
"My father killed her. Unintentionally, but he caused her death. He broke their mating bond to run off with some human woman. The way he broke the bond left my mother so weak that she got terribly sick. Had she been at full strength she would have been fine, but it was so soon after the bond was broken, it killed her. And then he went and got himself killed protecting the woman and her half-breed son, leaving me in charge of a land who felt abandoned. I resented him until recently," Sesshoumaru left off why he no longer hated his father. He didn't feel it was the time to tell her that he now understood love. He was still angry with his fathers choices, but he wasn't sure if he wouldn't do the same in his position.
Kagome leaned up and kissed Sesshoumaru, surprising him a little. "Thank you. It means a lot that you trusted me enough to tell me that. Thank you," she said quietly.
Sesshoumaru huffed a little and set his chin on top of her head. "Silly girl," he teased.
"Still a little short," Kagome giggled in response.
For the moment, both were content to just stand there, but they knew the moment wouldn't last. They were heading out early and it was uncertain when they would be able to just be again.
0808
Hey everyone! I have several reasons to be happy this week, 1) same sex marriage is legal all over America! How sweet is that guys! 2) It's camp NaNoWriMo month which means I'll be writing a lot more. Once again, you guys have amazed me with your response to both this story! At the time I'm writing this authors note My Mate has 9,613 views! I love you guys so much! This has once again been edited by Dorkfishe97, she is a total goddess and you guys should check her out! Thank you guys so much, and once again, I will see you in the next update. Bye-bye!