Disclaimer: I don't own any of the characters from the Inuyasha universe. Everything else is mine.

Tequila Blackbird's Song for Thought

This chapter: "How to Save a Life" by Nilu (originally by The Fray)

"Where did I go wrong? I lost a friend somewhere along in the bitterness...and I would have stayed up with you all night, had I known how to save a life..."

Chapter Fourteen

She was confused. Everything was happening all at once. The world around her was moving both faster than she could blink and slower than a snail inching its way across a stone courtyard at the same time. It was numbingly silent - worse than the silence from any of her visions thus far.

She could feel the pulse of her heart in the back of her throat, each pound sending another tendril of fear down her spine. She felt cold. Her palms were shaking. Her skin was tingling and covered with a slight sheen of sweat.

She watched as a black wolf leapt towards her, a snarl marring its majestic face. It was the largest one she had ever seen in her life...and It wasn't headed for the two of them together. It wasn't even headed for just Sesshomaru. No...it wanted her.

All at once, she felt herself being pushed to the ground, causing her to land roughly on her palms. She barely registered the crude texture of dirt and twigs digging into her skin. She could vaguely taste soil on her tongue where it covered her lip. She turned around, sweeping the hair out of her eyes as she waited to feel the drool of the monstrous beast fall onto her. Instead, she saw Sesshomaru standing over her, kicking and pushing the wolves off and away from them.

They tried to get around him, but he wouldn't let them. He crouched down, brandishing his dagger and swiping it at them when they began to get too close to the pair. Out of the corner of her eye, Kagome spotted a large branch by the base of a tree.

It wouldn't be the most effective weapon, but she couldn't allow the King to face the wolves alone. As quickly as she could, she crawled away from Sesshomaru's legs and rolled over to the branch, grabbing it just as a wolf pounced on her. She swung it and connected with the wolf's torso, pushing him away from her. A loud crack rang through the air as the tip of her branch broke off from the force of the impact. She nervously swallowed, licking her lips as she came to stand back to back with Sesshomaru.

"Kagome, I need you to run," he growled lowly.

"What?"

"Run!" he bellowed, lashing out at another wolf.

"No," she snarled as a grey wolf leapt towards her. She swung her branch again and yelped when he caught it between his teeth, tugging at it. She quickly glanced around as she desperately tried to pull the branch back. Four more wolves of equal size had appeared from the brush, surrounding them with gnashing teeth and rumbling growls. Their eyes were menacing and filled with death and hatred.

A streak of green flashed before her eyes, and as if by magic, Inu was there in front of her and wrestling with the wolf. He pushed it back towards the others and into the thick of the scuffle. They broke apart, and Inu crouched low before it. His long claws were clenched and poised for the attack.

"Inu," she breathed, her lips trembling as his deep growl filled the air.

"Sesshomaru!" he roared. "Get her out of here! Now!"

Sesshomaru didn't hesitate. He grabbed Kagome by the waist and threw her up over his shoulder, despite her protests and wriggling attempts to escape. She held her head up, watching as Inu let loose a guttural howl and continued biting and clawing and wrestling with the pack of wolves. She cried out to him as he slowly disappeared from her sight. In the last few seconds, she had seen one wolf clamp down on his shoulder and another on his leg. She pounded on Sesshomaru's back and legs, begging him to go back.

Her throat closed and her eyes burned as her vision clouded over. She felt tears run down her face, and she tasted their bitter saltiness as she continued to look back for him. She desperately hoped beyond anything that Inu would appear, running behind them.

Her heart clenched and squeezed tighter with each passing second. Still, he did not appear.

Sesshomaru carried them past the tree line, and she vaguely noticed the greyness in the sky above. He quickly carried her into the castle, closing the door tightly behind them. He put her down, and she immediately lunged for the door. Her nails raked along the frame as she desperately tried to pry it open again. He wouldn't let her.

"Please," she begged as he pushed her away from the door. "We have to go back for him. He'll die!"

"We will do no such thing," he spat, forcing her to back away and step farther into the castle. "Inu made his choice. We have to honor it."

"Please...let me go...I can help him! There are at least six of them! He'll die if we don't help him - he shouldn't die like this! Please, Your Majesty...don't condemn your brother to die this way…"

"I'm not condemning him - I'm honoring him! He can take care of himself...and if he can't, his death will be an honorable one."

"How can you say that?" she cried. "How can you be so accepting of this? Why won't you let me go? Please...you don't have to go, but let me…"

"I'm honoring his wishes," he repeated, chuckling morbidly. "He didn't tell you, did he?"

"Tell me what?"

"Kagome...Inu is dying."

"Of course he is, he's out there figh-"

"-Listen to me, Kagome!" he shouted, grasping her shoulders and giving her a slight shake. "Inu is dying. Why do you think he proposed your little bet, eh? A bet wherein he could die? It's because he has nothing left to lose, Kagome."

"No," she breathed. "No, he's not...he can't be...he seems fine."

"Does he?" Sesshomaru countered sharply. "Think of his behavior: does it seem normal? When we fought, he should have had the upper hand the whole time. Look at me! I'm a fifty-three year old man, Kagome. While I'm still fit and strong for my age, he still has the physique of a twenty-six year old and the strength of a demon. Why wasn't he able to do more, eh? I should have never been able to flip him over. He's getting weaker."

Sesshomaru's words were suddenly beginning to make sense to her - not just the fight, but so much more. His long naps during the day had been a recent development. When he had hit the door and the table before, he should have destroyed them...but he hadn't.

Inu...Inu really was getting weaker, wasn't he?

But that didn't mean he was dying!

"He's weaker, but he's not dying," she hissed. "You want him dead! I don't know what happened between the three of you, but is it really worth letting him die over?"

"I'm not letting him 'die over' anything, Kagome. I'm giving him the warrior's death he wants!"

A low rumble sounded throughout the castle, echoing through the halls. It was beginning to thunder.

"Lies!" she spat, knocking his hands away from her. "You lie!"

Suddenly, the glint of her ring caught her eye. She quickly tugged it off of her finger and brandished it in front of him, shoving it into his open palms. "I want to redeem my favor."

"I can't let you do that…"

"Why not? Does your word mean nothing to you?"

"My word means everything to me," he seethed. "And so does Inu. He's part of what little family I have left! But I won't allow you to disrespect him or his final wishes."

Sesshomaru then firmly grabbed her hand, slipping the ring back onto her finger as another low rumble shook the castle.

"Save your request for something else - something I can help you with."

"You can help me right now and let me back through the door!"

"It's about to rain," he tried to reason. "You'll never find your way back to him in time. Besides, you don't even have a weapon on you! What are you going to do? Play fetch with the wolves?"

"You're right," she whispered, ceasing her struggle against Sesshomaru and finally allowing him to relax.

She didn't have a weapon on her...

But he did.

"Thank you," he sighed as the rain began to fall outside, pounding against the castle walls and door. "When the storm has passed, I-"

She quickly snatched the dagger from his belt and bolted out the front doors and into the pouring rain. She instantly became soaked, but she didn't care - she had to find Inu. She ran as fast as she could for the tree line, completely ignoring Sesshomaru calling after her. She was almost there...and she would save Inu.

She had to!

Suddenly, amidst the brush and the trees and through the cascading downpour of rain, she saw a moving form. It was slowly limping towards the castle.

"Inu!" she screamed through the rain, running to him as he did his best to do the same. They were mere feet from each other when he collapsed into the mud. She dropped to her knees when she reached him, bringing him into her arms.

He looked horrible. His clothes were shredded and they barely clung to his battered and beaten body. Deep bite and scratch marks covered his flesh, and his breathing was labored and shallow.

"Inu," she whimpered, pushing his hair out of his face.

"Kagome," he groaned, a hiss passing through his lips as he raised his bloodied arm to cup her cheek. "You're alright," he whispered faintly, running the pad of his thumb over her trembling lower lip. A faint smile kissed his lips before his eyes closed.

"Inu," she cried desperately, firmly tapping his cheeks. "Inu, wake up…"

He wouldn't.

"Please," she croaked. "Not like this...please...not like this…"

No. She wouldn't allow it.

He had saved her twice.

Now, it was her turn to save him.

She pulled him upright, throwing his arm over her shoulder. His head lolled to the side as she began to drag his boneless form toward the castle.

"Sesshomaru!" she screamed through the deafening downpour. She could do this...she could...but it would be so much easier if his brother could help. Vaguely, she saw him running towards them. He must have run after her when she bolted, but that didn't matter - what mattered was that he could help her bring him inside. "Sesshomaru!" she called out again, "We're over here! I found Inu! We're over here!"

He quickly found them and put an arm around Inu. "We have to get him to the infirmary," he shouted through the rain as more thunder and lightning cracked through the sky. "Quickly!"

They rushed back to the castle, sprinting through the downpour and hoisting him up the stairs. When they were inside, Sesshomaru took Inu from her entirely. He proceeded to frantically run through the castle to the infirmary with Kagome trailing on his heels.

"Light the room," he instructed, selecting a bed close to the fireplace and laying Inu on it. "Then start a fire and get some water into that pot over there - and be quick!"

Sesshomaru pressed his ear over his brother's heart and sighed when he heard a faint thumping. He then began removing the tattered rags of Inu's clothing, stripping him bare. His busy hands stilled when he uncovered a golden locket around his neck that he knew all too well. He quickly removed it and stuffed it into his pocket - his mind was unable to process this new information right now. He heard footsteps just outside the door, and he hurriedly covered certain areas of Inu's body for modesty's sake just as Kagome came back in with the water. He knew his brother would have demanded it, even in a critical situation such as this.

"Start boiling it," he ordered, and she quickly obliged. She then came back to stand on the other side of Inu, across from Sesshomaru.

The King racked his hands through his hair, his eyes wild as he stared down at his brother. Blood was seeping onto the once pristine white sheets, staining them red. It was like looking into a battlefield...and in a way, this was - it was a battle to save Inu.

"Sesshomaru...what do we do?" Kagome whispered, taking Inu's hand and carefully watching the shallow rise and fall of his chest.

"I'm thinking," he breathed.

"Think faster," she urged, smoothing away the hair plastered to Inu's face. "Please…"

"Go into that closet," Sesshomaru instructed, pointing to a door on the other side of the room. "Assuming that he hasn't changed much, there should be some towels in there. Bring them."

Kagome immediately obeyed and returned with as many as she could carry, placing them on a table by Inu's bed.

"Good. Now take this and help me mop up some of the blood so that we can see the true extent of his wounds."

She nodded and started work on his legs while Sesshomaru worked on his chest. As she slowly worked her way up to his lightly fur-covered thighs, her mind finally recognized his state of nakedness. She knew that it was improper for her to be here, but she didn't care about social conventions right now. She just wanted to save him.

Finally, they finished wiping up a good portion of his blood. However, he still continued to bleed. With the extent of the damage that had been done, she was actually surprised that he wasn't bleeding more.

"We have to clean the wounds," Sesshomaru announced. "Take some of the towels and dip them into the warm water. I'll show you how to clean them."

Kagome quickly began wetting towels while Sesshomaru searched through a cabinet. He hastily located clamps, silk thread, and a needle which Kagome assumed he would be using for stitches.

Kagome squeezed out some of the excess water and brought the towels back, handing one to Sesshomaru. He picked it up and then immediately dropped it, shaking his hand from the burning heat.

"What's wrong? Is it too hot?"

"No...it's perfect - the hotter, the better. I just wasn't anticipating it to be quite that hot. Come here...let me show you how to clean this cut."

Sesshomaru quickly taught Kagome how to clean his wounds, showing her how to remove dirt, fur, and other debris. They started with the deepest ones on his chest. As soon as they had finished cleaning one, he would instruct Kagome to begin on another while he began to suture the freshly cleaned injuries. They worked together in silence for what seemed like hours, a mountain of dirty and blood-soaked towels piling up on the floor around the bed.

When they finished his front side, Sesshomaru announced that they needed to flip him over and work on his back. Kagome nodded from her place at his feet and began to push him over when Sesshomaru stopped her.

"Come and trade places with me," he requested, and she quickly did as asked. She was confused until she saw him place his hand on his brother's hip to keep the covered areas covered. "Ready? One...two...three!"

They flipped him and began the process once more, cleaning his body and his wounds before stitching them up. Finally, after what felt like hours of hard work, Sesshomaru sat down and placed his face in his hands. His body was weary and his eyes were filled with exhaustion. Still, he was not yet done.

"Kagome, you should bathe. You're drenched in rain and sweat and covered in blood. When you're done, I need you to go to his room and find him something to wear...preferably just some very loose pants. And make us all something to eat, would you? And wine - bring some wine. Lots of wine. And water. But lots of wine." He could see the reluctance and the desire to fight him sprawled across her face, so he quickly added, "When he wakes, he'll be famished and want something to clothe himself. It's better to get everything prepared now."

"And you're finished, then?"

"I assure you that I am - if you want to be helpful, please do that."

Kagome reluctantly looked down at Inu, but ultimately followed his instructions. She stalled at the doorway, her fingers gripping the frame. She looked back over her shoulder at the fallen man lying helplessly on the bed, and to his brother sitting beside him. She hoped that they had really saved him.

After she had taken her leave, Sesshomaru sighed and uncovered Inu's hips. He had decided to clean and stitch them up himself. There were some things Kagome just shouldn't do. He quickly lost himself in the rhythm of his stitches. He never thought that he would be doing this, and he just hoped that he was doing it properly.

He vaguely thought back to when he and his brother were teens and they had learned how to tend to and care for various types of injuries. Their father had been rather insistent upon them having a very well rounded education. While he had never had to put this knowledge to use, he had never been more thankful for - what he used to think - his father's insanity.

The exhausted ruler finished the last of the stitches and deftly began bandaging him.

He had just finished his work when Kagome silently placed a basket on the table by Inu.

"How is he?"

"He seems stable," Sesshomaru whispered back, matching her worried tone. "He's lost a lot of blood, so keeping him hydrated and rested will be key to his survival over the next few days. He's far from out of the woods yet. He could still get a fever and his wounds may become infected without proper care...but for now, he's fine."

Kagome ran her fingers through his hair, brushing his wild tresses out of his face. He was incredibly pale. She didn't know how he was still alive, but the steady rise and fall of his chest proved to her that he was. Kagome looked up just as Sesshomaru started going through the basket she had brought, picking up a bottle of wine.

"A bottle for you," he announced, placing it on the table by her. "A bottle for me…And...another bottle for me. You only brought three bottles?"

"You asked for a lot."

"This is hardly a lot," he scoffed, uncorking both his and her bottle. She took out two wine glasses, placing one in front of him and the other in front of herself. Sesshomaru handed back her bottle, raising his. "To the swift recovery of my darling, older brother - may you be back on your feet and terrorizing this poor woman before I leave."

Sesshomaru tapped the neck of his bottle against Kagome's glass before taking a long swig, ignoring the glass she had placed in front of him. She sipped her wine out of her glass and sat on the edge of Inu's bed, continuing to stroke his face and run her fingers through his hair.

"You should eat something," Sesshomaru finally commented, taking out a sandwich and biting into it.

"I'm not hungry," she whispered, shaking her head as Sesshomaru took another long swig from his bottle.

"You'll make yourself sick if you don't eat - you won't be of much use then."

Kagome shot him an irritable glance, but moved off of Inu's bed to grab a sandwich. She sat on the bed a few feet away from Inuyasha's, nibbling at the sandwich. She could feel Sesshomaru still watching her intently while he continued to down most of the bottle of wine, his own food long gone. He laid down on the next bed, crossing his legs. The bottle dangled from his dangerously loose grasp as he rest the other arm under his head, staring blankly into space.

"Tell me something, Kagome…"

His tone immediately set her on edge. There was something about it that made her nervous.

"Yes, Your Majesty?"

"Oh stop with this 'Your Majesty' nonsense already. After today, I don't want to hear it from you again."

"As you wish…" she mumbled, biting her sandwich. Her heart leapt into her throat when Inu moved his head, snuggling it further into his pillow. His body stilled, however, and he continued to sleep peacefully.

"You say that you want him dead," Sesshomaru continued after taking another long swig. "So...answer me this: Why do you care so much about his well-being?"

She was silent for a long time, simply watching Inu's chest rise and fall as she ate her food.

"He shouldn't have to die like this."

"Instead, he should die when you kill him," Sesshomaru chuckled, his laugh increasing until he was coughing and gasping for air. "I'm sorry," he cried, sitting up and drinking from this bottle, "But you don't understand how absurd all of this is! You don't want to kill him," he accused, drinking from the bottle again.

"I do."

"You don't!" Sesshomaru countered, finishing his bottle and putting it back on the table. "My dear, while I am no expert in the ways of women - and Lord knows that I never will be - I do know that you don't want my brother dead."

"You sound awfully confident of that fact," she mused, suddenly needing a drink herself.

"If you could have killed me to go to him earlier, you would have."

"Because he didn't deserve to die like that," she insisted once more.

"But he deserves to die?" he scoffed, opening the second bottle.

"Yes."

Sesshomaru shook his head. "My dear, if you truly wanted my brother dead, then you wouldn't have cared about how it happened. No...You fancy him. There's no shame in that…" he mussed, standing up from the bed and walking to the door, stopping at the frame. "You just need to ask a few questions first," he cautioned. "Ask him who Queen Sango is...and ask yourself why you continue this charade of a bet. I'll be back later. I'm covered in blood and need a bath."

Kagome waited until the door closed before she picked up her wine glass and downed the contents. She quickly poured herself another one and downed it as well.

She didn't want to think about Sesshomaru's parting words...but they kept ringing through her mind, echoing in her ears. She sat down on the side of his bed, staring at his sleeping form.

She didn't 'fancy' Inu. Not even a little.

Inu...Inu was her friend, but she didn't want him or desire him…

He drove her mad! Insane! He made her want to pull her hair out and scream! He was frustrating and irksome and sarcastic and sweet and kind and comforting…

She began to run her fingers through his hair again, examining his sleeping face.

He took care of her and looked after her. He saved her, both from death and, at times, herself. He was forgiving. He granted her second chances, and he could have the patience of a saint when he wanted to. He made her feel safe and secure, and he could be so comforting…

He was...confusing. He left her feeling so confused.

She trailed her hand down his face, her fingers ghosting over his features until it came to rest on his jaw. She lightly brushed her thumb against his lower lip, and he leaned into her touch.

His lips…

Her gaze lingered on them as she thought back to how familiar she had become with them recently.

The feel of them pressed against the flesh of her hand...their whispering touches across her cheeks and her face...they were so soft...and they looked so...inviting…

She caught herself as she began to subconsciously lean down to him, straightening her back and leaving his bed.

That didn't mean she fancied him.

No.

It meant that she was a fool - a fool who had lost focus in her true mission.

Inu was drifting in a sea of darkness, surrounded by an everlasting nothingness. He couldn't feel his body, nor could he see or hear. He just simply existed in this plane of eternal blackness. Though he had no body, he was cold...so very cold...as if he were laying in a pile of snow.

He felt lost and alone.

So horribly alone...like he had most of his life.

"The King is dead…" her voice ripped through his mind like a screeching gale of wind in the night. "Long live the King…"

"Where are you?" he snarled into the vast emptiness.

"The King is dead...Long live the King…"

"Stop playing games with me!"

"The King is dead...Long live the King!" she echoed, her haunting laughter filling the air to the point where he felt like he was suffocating.

"You harpy! Come out and face me!" he roared, searching the darkness for his tormentor.

"They're coming for you...You need to get ready…"

"Who?" he demanded. "Who is coming for me?"

"You need to get ready," she chuckled darkly.

"Who is coming for me? Tell me! Tell me!"

Inu bolted upright, his head dizzy and his lungs burning for air. He choked it down like a drowning man gasping for air after resurfacing from the icy grip of the blue water. His eyes were wild and unseeing - he only understood colors and shapes. Searing pain coursed through his whole body, the worst of it being in his sides and abdomen. The soothing sensation of a wet towel upon his brow hardly registered within his mind. He closed his eyes and leaned his head back, his face scrunched in a twisted grimace.

He vaguely registered the towel being removed, and of someone pushing him back down.

"Shh...shh...there there, Brother...it's nothing more than a fever-induced nightmare."

"Sesshomaru," he breathed hoarsely.

"Inuyasha," he greeted, removing the towel from his face. "How do you feel?"

"Like a Grifleboore gutted me and left me for dead," he groaned, closing his eyes as his brother patted his brow again.

"Nearly," Sesshomaru chuckled. "But it was no ogre, and not quite that vicious and bloodthirsty."

"You've never fought against the Lupoure Viscaroses…"

"Ah...of course not...I simply fled in fear when they struck. I've never seen the Lupoure Viscaroses before - I've only heard whispers about them. They look no different from dire wolves," he mused thoughtfully.

"You'd never know until they were tearing out your throat..." Inu agreed, lost in thought.

"Let me check your wounds," Sesshomaru demanded more than requested, lifting the bed sheet away from Inu's bruised body before he could protest.

"I can get no privacy from you," he teased wearily, bending his knee as his brother started to remove his bandages.

"I could have allowed Kagome to be here for this," he haughtily replied, immediately silencing Inu. He continued his work in peace, removing all of his old bandages and replacing them with clean ones.

"How is she?" Inu finally asked, unable to look his brother in the eye. It was as if he were afraid of his answer.

"Physically? She's unharmed. Maybe a few bumps and bruises from the fight, but worlds better than you. But emotionally...she's been a wreck over the last day and a half."

"She has?"

"She has. If I wouldn't have made her rest in her own bed tonight, she would probably be here again. She slept in the bed next to yours last night. I wouldn't really call it sleeping, though...more like staring at you endlessly."

"She did?"

"She worried about a fever - and rightfully so."

"She stayed by my side," he breathed as Sesshomaru tugged up the loose pair of pants that Kagome had brought him.

"She did. Can you raise your hips?"

"I can try," he replied, groaning as he honored his brother's request. A searing pain rushed through him again as Sesshomaru quickly finished pulling his pants on, finally allowing Inu to collapse back down onto the bed.

"Tell me something Inu: You know the Lupoure Viscaroses a thousand times better than I - why did they attack us? I thought they never crossed through the door, so why were they here?"

"I don't know, Sesshomaru...They only attack for a few reasons: the hunt, self-defense if they are threatened, or revenge. Game is plentiful - and they would never attack a human, even if it weren't. You didn't attack them first and you didn't present yourselves as a threat...so it must be something else. I don't know why they're here either. The last time I saw a Lupoure was in Eurosegia where they belong."

"You don't think…" Sesshomaru paused, his lips gravely pressed together and his eyes full of disbelief.

"What?" Inu urged. "What are you thinking?"

"Sango wouldn't remove the guards from the door, would she? She knows that would be an act of war! What would she stand to gain except…" Sesshomaru's eyes widened and he stood from the bed, running his hands through his hair. "That devious little wench! She'll stop at nothing to have you!"

"What are you talking about?"

"Think Inu - think! You're weak. Dying. She's already set the wheels in motion for a famine and gotten no results. That's not enough to get you to act...because you want us to trade for more food, and she's grown tired of waiting. Oh no...she has to stoop lower. Now she's removed her guards to allow her...her demons to cross over and destroy us one by one, or wait until they finally attack you-"

"-She wants me to invoke the contract." Inu whispered weakly. "She wants me to give myself up or invoke the contract."

"And there's not a damned thing we can do to stop it," Sesshomaru cursed. "Even if I sent my men to guard the door, they are too weak to stop most of her little pets. And you can't do it either. Maybe if you were younger-"

"-I'll do it."

"Inu, you can't guard the door. You aren't strong enough for it. Look at what the Lupoure already did to you!"

"No...I'll give in to her. If her guards are truly gone - by her own volition - I'll do it. Just...just give me some time before I have to negotiate with her."

"You know she'll never admit to doing it."

"I do...which is why I need you to send someone through the door."

"What?" Sesshomaru hissed.

"I need eyes there. I need to know for sure if the guards are gone. I can't send Leala - Sango will know the second I do. After that...We'll plan our next move. I'm not going to give up everything just because of a hunch. If we're right, though...I'll...I'll go through with it."

"Thank you," Sesshomaru smiled softly. "Your country thanks you."

"I'm not doing it for France," Inu snipetly replied, shooting out a dark warning with his eyes.

"I know. You're doing it for Kagome. Still...you have my thanks," Sesshomaru smiled, reaching into his breast pocket. He pulled out the locket he had found around Inu's neck while he removed his clothes. "I found this when I was working on you," he gently informed him, dangling the locket above his head. "It's been a long time since I've seen it. I didn't know you still wore it. Does Kagome know?"

"Did you look inside?" Inu countered, pushing himself up. He hissed as pain seared through him again, and he reached out to take a sip from the glass of water by his bed.

"I did."

"Then why are we having this conversation?"

"We're having it because you still posses it!"

"It's a reminder of my past and nothing more, Sesshomaru."

"And living here isn't a sufficient reminder?" he demanded, his eyes narrowing into dangerous slits.

"You wouldn't understand."

"No...of course not...forgive me...I only married her for her money. Isn't that what you're always saying?"

"I don't love her anymore, Sesshomaru." Inu firmly stated. "I haven't for a long time...but that doesn't mean that I don't miss the way things were before. Do you remember how happy we were?"

"I do," he smiled weakly.

"When I gave this to her...it was right before everything changed. This was the last truly happy moment I had. The picture may have changed, but that moment...everytime I look at it, I go back to that moment."

Sesshomaru opened it and looked inside at the picture of his only child, Rin. On one side was a picture of her as a baby. The other held a more recent one of her.

"I don't love your wife as I did...but I do love my family, Sesshomaru. I know she doesn't know me...I know she doesn't know I even exist...but I still love Rin. She's my niece. How could I not?"

Sesshomaru placed the locket in his brother's hand and watched him clasp it around his neck.

"Power. Justice. Glory." Inu began, holding his hand out to shake Sesshomaru's. It had been years since he had said his family's signet motto aloud.

"The first to draw blood." Sesshomaru finished, taking Inu's hand. "Get some rest - I need you to get better so that I can get home before Sango does something else."

"Sesshomaru…" Inu began uncertainly. "I'll do it if I have to...but if I find a way out of it…"

"I know. I just don't think there is."

Eamonn knocked on the door to the hermit's hut, and shuffling followed by a rhythmic thumping sound echoed from the other side before it finally opened. The hermit poked her head out of the crack, regarding the men with a scrutinizing eye.

"Back so soon, eh?"

"We have everything you wanted, hag," Koga scoffed. "It's time you held up your end of our agreement."

"Pushy, pushy little man...your temperament will be the end of you, boy...If I don't get to you first," she cackled. "You'd do well to watch your tongue, or else you'll be watching me cut it out," she cautioned before turning to address Eamonn. "You brought me the mountain lion?"

"We did," Eamonn confirmed, placing a hand on Koga's shoulder to keep him from saying more. They needed the hermit on their side. Antagonizing the woman would do them no good. "Will you begin tonight?"

"Ah...that I cannot do. The moon is not right. Tomorrow, though...tomorrow is the right moon. Tonight, we prepare it! Bring the lion inside. I'll clear off my table," she instructed, hobbling away from the door. Eamonn and Koga quickly obeyed her request, untying the lion corpse to bring it inside. They haphazardly placed the beast down on its side, stretching their muscles gingerly when they were done.

"Is this alright?" Eamonn asked the hermit as she looked around for something.

"Good...good...very good…" she mumbled, not looking up from her search. "Ah, here we are!" she exclaimed after she had finally found a long, sharp knife and a large bowl. "Roll it onto its back. I need to cut into its chest."

The men hastily did as they were told, and Eamonn nervously ground his teeth together as she started to chant something. Her words started out quietly, barely above a whisper. Her voice slowly rose with each cycle of the chant, until she was all but shouting. Without warning, she drove her knife into the mountain lion's body, ripping it down the center. She reached into the red cavern with both hands and cut out the heart. She placed it into the bowl and snatched Koga's hand, now forcefully whispering a new incantation. When she had finished, she sliced his palm with the knife, ignoring his yelps and attempts to pull away from her.

"Blood magic needs blood," she snarled, holding his hand above the heart and letting his blood drip onto it. Both men gasped as they watched the organ blacken and increase in size. She whispered a few more words before announcing that the harvest was done. "Move the body," she then commanded. "I need room to work. I must finish the heart within the hour."

"Where should we take it?" Eamonn asked, eyeing the bloody cavern.

"I don't care - into the woods somewhere. The wolves will eat it."

Eamonn nodded, glancing at the younger man and picked up the lion's front paws. "Let's go, Koga."

He snarled, but he followed without too much resistance. When the men returned to the hut, the hermit had just finished covering the heart with wolfsbane and grave dirt. "The deed is done," she greeted. "Tomorrow, I shall finish it."

"You have my thanks," Eamonn smiled, holding his hand out to shake her worn and knobby one.

She stared at it for a moment before grasping it and shaking, her thin fingers digging into Eamonn's hand.

"I never did catch your name," he observed. '"I can't thank you properly without it."

He watched the surprise flash across her weathered, wrinkled face before it disappeared without a trace. No one had asked for her name in years…

"You don't need it," she croaked, getting some rags to clean her table.

"I would like it all the same."

She eyed him for a moment before finally whispering the one word she hadn't uttered in years, yet longed to more than any other...

"Kaguya."

"Well, Kaguya...You have my thanks."

A/N:

Do we love to hate me? I feel like we love to hate me. I regret nothing.

THE TALK IS COMING. I SWEAR! I've already started it...So it's going to happen. I wrote most of this chapter in like 2 days because I've been looking forward to it since like...January? February? A LONG time…and I seriously hope that you guys enjoyed this chapter as much as I do!

Seriously though. The talk is happening next chapter. And rated T level fluffy fun.

As always...social media plug here. Links in my profile...and remember: A new contest will be starting soon!

A GIANT thanks to TB for editing this chapter and helping make sure that everything was accurate.

And. Of course. A GIANT thanks to all my readers, reviewers, followers, favors, social media finders...EVERYONE! You guys rock!

The INFAMOUS talk will appear on Monday July 20th around 7 pm EST, so look for it!

Ta ta for now!

-SG

Now for the ARs!

To: Seoul

Well thank you! I don't remember who took first place, but I know that it's on FA's website! It was an honor just to have been nominated - to have placed was just the cherry on top! Kagome pushes his buttons...and though he has his moments when he's a brute and a jerk...we all know that on the side, he's a big ol' softy that cares deeply for Kagome. Sango does want him...and it will be a LOT of fun playing that out! Thanks for the wonderful review, and I hope that you enjoyed CH 14!

To: MI cra-cra

LOL! Don't worry...I'm not killing off anyone…..yet. Sango will be a fun little plot point...You're right. If Inu doesn't give her what she wants...then yes. Bad things WILL happen. They didn't have time to go back to the whole "fondly adore" stuff. Because...wolves...but she heard it loud and clear. If she feels the same way, however… And, of course, a happy belated 4th to you too! Thanks for the AMAZING review, and I hope that you enjoyed CH 14 as much as I do!

To: Eternity Guest

Well thank you! It's encouraging to hear that! I hope I'm not too loquacious though…There's a fine line between eloquent and and unreadable. I think you're the first (or at least one of the few) to comment on that, so thank you! I hope that you enjoyed CH 14, and will enjoy CH 15 as well!

To: heartluv

Well, surprise! I'm glad you liked the binge read! Thanks for the review, and I hope that you'll keep coming back!

To the guests!

Yes...His feet are like a dog's. More like a werewolf. I know that I changed them, but I decided to do that to make him seem more physically monstrous….because let's face it...he's a little cutie pie. As for length...I will do my best to make it the right length based off of the content that I want in the story :). Thank you both for your wonderful reviews!