-1A/N: For those who don't remember, here are the instructions to make the drink of Anomedejust to refresh your memory: . The Drink of Anomede is made from the leaves of the tree of Emoceba Anomede. Pluck 13 leaves from the tree, each one from a separate branch. Boil the leaves in a kettle of water retrieved from the spot a spring first pours out water from the ground to form a river. Boil the leaves the entire night of a full moon. Let it cool the whole next day and, at sunset, add a drop of blood from the type of demon you desire the transformation to be into. Contain the liquid in a silver flask and bury it in the ground, three feet deep- one foot of soil for each part of a person's being- mind, body, and spirit. Let it stay under the ground for 200 years so that it shall ferment into the Drink of Anomede A mouthful is all that the human would need to swallow to achieve a full transformation. The transformation itself is gradual, taking seven days to reach full effect

Chapter 14

Kagome awoke the next morning to the sound of birds chirping and felt the eyes of Sesshomaru still intensely watching her. She groaned and tried to get more comfortable in the warm chair. She noticed that a blanket must've been thrown over her during the night and she snuggled deeper into it.

"You're awake," stated Sesshomaru obviously.

"Just barely," yawned Kagome, eyes tightly closed.

"Time to wake up," said Sesshomaru a few minutes of silence later.

"Or what?" smiled Kagome into the soft chair.

Sesshomaru thought about it before replying, "I will have Rin come in and jump on you till you wake up properly.

Kagome shrugged nonchalantly saying, "I could handle that."

Kagome heard the demon lord pick something relatively heavy off a nearby table. She suspiciously opened her eyes to find him holding a pitcher of water over her head. He looked completely amused with the situation, "Then you shall get wet."

Kagome's eyes narrowed, "You wouldn't dare."

"I would," answered Sesshomaru tilting the pitcher until the slightest trickle of cold water fell onto Kagome's forehead. Kagome squeaked when it hit her, which hurt Sesshomaru's sensitive ears, making him flinch, causing more water to spill over the edge of the pitcher and onto Kagome's head.

Kagome, thoroughly awake now thanks to the cold water, hastily got up least more water fall on her head. She glowered at the dog demon who was beginning to learn that one should not mess with a sleeping woman. Nevertheless, he conquered the desire to shiver at Kagome's angry presence and instead decided to distract her.

"Perhaps a warm bath would be desirable. I will lead you to the bath and then I must go greet my ward."

Kagome's face turned to one of pure joy at the mention of the word "bath" and she hastened to follow the departing lord.

Sesshomaru left her to her own after pointing out where she could get fresh towels and a clean bathrobe. She finished soaking thirty minutes later, glad to see that Erucall plant cream off of her skin and saw that her poison ivy was gone too. She returned happily to Sesshomaru's...to her...to their room to await Sesshomaru.

She only had to wait a few minutes before Sesshomaru entered again being trailed by Rin and Shippo, both of whom ran past the demon lord in their haste to greet Kagome. They ran into her open arms for a warm and motherly hug. Sesshomaru waited patiently for them to exchange the most current news- Rin said something about some flower blooming at some time of the year, while Shippo went on and on about his new room and how jealous Inuyasha would be.

The demon lord, however, soon became impatient and dismissed the children, telling Rin to go get breakfast for herself and Shippo and then to take Shippo for a tour of the castle. Rin smile happily up at her lord saying, "Okay Lord Sesshomaru!" The pair ran off hand in hand. As soon as the door closed, Sesshomaru moved in on Kagome, glad that she wasn't covered in that cream anymore. Their bodies locked together-each seemingly afraid to let the other out of their touch. Their lips caught each other hungrily, both breathing heavily. Of course, they should've known by now that each time they tried to capture a romantic moment, they would be interrupted somehow. This time it was by Jaken's screech, "Lord Sesshomaru!" as he entered the room, unaware that he was unwanted.

The toad demon's shock wasn't unwarranted. It wasn't everyday that the retainer walked in on his master in such an uncompromising position-for the demon lord was surely in a quite uncompromising position. In their short romantic burst, Sesshomaru had somehow maneuvered Kagome to his bed and had already pinned her under him. Their clothes were blessedly still on, but Jaken had the distinct impression that if he hadn't of interrupted when he did, those clothes would have been readily discarded. The toad demon only caught a glance of the woman's face before one of Sesshomaru's boots was thrown at the toad by the demon lord. The boot knocked the retainer out of the room and the rush of wind upset by the shoe's momentum slammed the door closed. The toad demon rolled head-over-heels a few times before finally landing in an undignified hump in the hallway. When he finally recovered from his dizziness he took off in a huff down the hallway. It was obvious that the lord did not require his services at this time if the moans of pleasure and squeals of delight coming from the closed door were any indication.

Jaken picked up his dropped staff before making his way down the hallway muttering to himself, "Well I never...a human woman!..THAT human woman! Oh, I still have a lump on my head from our first encounter! THAT WENCH! I'm sure Lord Sesshomaru is only using her for his pleasure...surely he couldn't be serious...I hope." But a possessive pleasure-filled growl rumbled through the hallway causing Jaken to second guess that particular theory.

It was late in the afternoon when the new couple removed themselves from their room to seek nourishment and nearly instantly were intercepted by Rin and Shippo. Rin grabbed Kagome's hand while Shippo climbed onto his favorite shoulder perch.

Rin innocently smiled up at Kagome, her eyes crinkling with pleasure. She grabbed Sesshomaru's hanging hand and put the two together. Giggling, she took a step back to admire her work saying, "Shippo said that Lady Kagome is his new mommy! Can Kagome be Rin's mommy too?"

Kagome looked up at Sesshomaru, who somehow was able to keep all hints of blush of his perfect face. Kagome, meanwhile, was turning red slowly. Her eyes silently asked Sesshomaru if it was okay and he lightly nodded.

Kagome smiled down at Rin and answered, "Yes Rin, I would love to be both of your mothers."

"Yay!" exclaimed Rin, happily skipping around her two elders, "Rin now has a mommy just like Shippo!" Shippo joined the girl's strange dance and soon the pair disappeared around the hallway corner.

Sesshomaru noticed that their hands were still together but surprisingly he didn't really find that he cared if someone saw them like this- he normally didn't hold much for PDA, yet Kagome seemed to make him re-evaluate everything he had thought before. She was truly the only one that could make him do this. She was unique. She was his precious.

"You will be a good mother to them," he voiced.

Kagome laughed nervously at that, "Well, one of our own could be sooner than you think. I mean, we could have already conceived a child with the way you go at it."

"Highly improbable," countered Sesshomaru, forever above the situation at hand.

"Why's that," asked Kagome, looking up into her mate's eyes sweetly.

"As a taiyoukai, I have great control over the reproductive value of my seed," said Sesshomaru nonchalantly.

Kagome bit her lip while deciphering this bit until she suddenly burst out in joyous laughter. "That's a really nice way to say something really dirty."

"Indeed," smirked Sesshomaru, quickly stealing a kiss from his mate.

The pair went down to the kitchen and Sesshomaru had the cook prepare them some food. They ate in comfortable silence and when they were done, Sesshomaru sent a servant to fetch Jaken.

Jaken appeared a few moments later, breathing hard while bowing before his lord. When Sesshomaru motioned him to rise, Kagome caught shape of a boot-shaped bruise covering one half of the toad demons face and she had to hide a smile- she had never been particularly fond of this little demon.

"Milord, you sent for me?"

"Yes, I need you to prepare our things for a week's journey. See that it is done correctly. We will be leaving tomorrow morning. You are dismissed."

Jaken didn't leave though. He stood transfixed as he caught Sesshomaru's mark upon the human's forehead. "Her! Inuyasha's wench!" sputtered the toad demon.

Tokijin was drawn and pressed against the toad's throat in a flash and the retainer gulped nervously against the blade.

Sesshomaru radiated pure coldness and anger, "Kagome is now Lady of the Western Lands. You would do well to address her with due respect. I will overlook your ignorance this once, but if you insult her or her honor again, I will not hesitate to kill you. Do you understand?"

Jaken nodded vigorously as the sword was sheathed again.

Sesshomaru ordered, "Go make our preparations." The toad demon bowed out of the room and did as he was told.

"Journey?" questioned Kagome, her arms wrapping around her dog demon mate. Sesshomaru nuzzled into her neck, taking in her scent- the odd mix between the smell of the first day of Spring and the sweet smell of honey. It was intoxicating , he nearly lost himself in it. Yet he managed to answer her question before he carried her up to their room and they got lost in each other again. "We must find the emergence of a river from the earth to boil the Emoceba Anomede leaves in."

They woke the next morning in each other's arms. They dressed quickly, Kagome in a Kimono Sesshomaru had given her. It was scarlet with his family crest in white on the shoulder, much like his own. They said their farewells to the children, leaving them in Jaken's care under threat of death should anything happen to them. No one except the couple leaving knew were the pair were going- Sesshomaru had decided that it would be for the better- if no one knew, no one could leak the information to Naraku. However, Sesshomaru didn't know about the Saimyoshu in the distance, right outside of Sesshomaru's sensing range, that was secretly watching the pair leave the safety of Inutashio's barriered castle. It continued to follow them as they made their way to a nearby river and began following it up river.

Kagome and Sesshomaru were already making good progress halfway through the day and Sesshomaru estimated that it would only take three days, four at most, as they stopped for lunch.

They began at a brisk pace again right after lunch and Kagome did most of the talking once more, speaking of her time and her family and friends.

"I don't think I'll ever finish high school," sighed Kagome, "I've been jewel shard collecting for three years with Inuyasha and I've just missed so much school. Besides, now that I have you, I don't think Algebra will be all that important..." Kagome went into a list of all her other subjects and what she had learned and what she had yet to learn.

Sesshomaru remained silent though obviously listening. He was, for once in his life, beginning to feel ignorant. He had never realized how well educated Kagome was before- she hid the fact very well.

He was brought out of his silence by Kagome's next question that took him by surprise in its complete randomness, "Sesshomaru, how old are you?"

Sesshomaru squinted at the setting sun, mentally making the calculations, "I am over 900 years old. I've lost count of the exact amount."

Kagome whistled, "Wow. That's old. Hey, that kind of makes you like one of those perverted old guys...or a pedophile."

"Why do you say that?" he asked raising an amused eye brow. "I am quite young for a demon."

"Yes, but I'm only 18 years old. That's a pretty big age difference."

"Perhaps, yet we are both about a quarter of the way through our lives which makes us about equal." Sesshomaru suddenly changed the uncomfortable subject, he was beginning to feel like a "pervert old guy" as Kagome had told him. "The sun will be setting soon so I suggest we find a place to set up camp."

Kagome heartily agreed, throwing herself tiredly under an apple tree that grew by the river. She collected a few apples for them to eat. Sesshomaru took notice of her task and informed her, "Those apples you have gathered have worms in them."

He smiled as Kagome "eeked," quickly throwing the apples into the river and away from her. The dog demon picked up several apples littering the ground that were worm free and handed them to her to sample. She bit in to it experimentally before licking her lips- it was a very good apple.

"How did you do that- tell which ones were good to eat?" she asked in awe.

Sesshomaru never got the chance to answer for a young boy's voice cut off his reply. "Sir, kind sir, could I please have one of you apples, good sir?"

Sesshomaru swung around to meet the sight of the young boy. For a second, he was amazed he didn't sense the boy's approach, but then his memories caught up with him as he caught the strong scent of grass on the air. Sesshomaru growled, "Sasarg, stop playing these games."

Grass swirled around the boy leaving an old man with green eyes and hair in his place. "Sesshomaru!" he joyously greeted.

"So you were the starving boy all along. How foolish of me."

"No, how righteous of you," laughed Sasarg putting an arm around Sesshomaru's shoulders and turning him around in a conspirator's huddle. "So this is the girl, huh? She's pretty! And a miko! You should thank me, old boy. Without my lessons, do you think you would've stood a chance of making her your mate?" Then, without waiting for a reply, Sasarg laughed and removed himself from the demon lord's side. The old guardian began addressing Kagome after lifting her hand to his lips for a quick kiss. "Milady," he said, "so you are the wonderful lady that continuously plagued this moronic demon's thoughts while he was upon my mountain. I think he deserves a special something for that, wouldn't you agree, milady?" Sasarg's eyebrows moved in a inferring manner. The old guardian then winked at the demon lord as Kagome flushed pink. Sesshomaru was about to drag Sasarg away from his mate when the old man disappeared in a wind of grass, reforming out of Sesshomaru's reach. The old guardian said, "I merely came to see the effects of my deeds and I am quite happy with the results. I wish you both luck. Now I must return to guarding my mountain." And with that, the strange man was gone in the wind, the slight smell of grass still lingering in the air.

Kagome recovered from her shock a few minutes later commenting, "Well...he was interesting."

"You have no idea," replied Sesshomaru, setting himself by his mate and pulling her into his lap to sleep.

The next day and a half were quite uneventful- no unexpected drop-ins, no attacking demons, nothing but the couple enjoying the weather and each other's company. Finally, they came to the emergence of the river from the ground. Sesshomaru filled a large container of the flowing spring water, corked it, and stuck it in one of their traveling bags.

They then began making their way back to Sesshomaru's castle, completely unaware that the Saimyoushu that had been following them was now taking his gathered information back to Naraku. The evil hanyou smile in evil glee before sending out his newest incarnation to intercept them.

"Let's see just how powerful you are, Miko," cackled Naraku, sounding every bit like the villain he was.

O0o.o0O

Kagome and Sesshomaru were only about a day from Inutashio's castle. They had sat down to eat lunch when Kagome began to feel something approaching. She nudged Sesshomaru and nodded in the direction it was coming from. "I sense a jewel shard coming," she whispered.

Sesshomaru nodded and climbed to his feet, his hand ready on the hilt of his sword. Kagome whispered to him again, "All I can sense is a human with a pure jewel shard. Can you smell anything?"

Sesshomaru shook his head slightly, "Only that of a dead human."

Whatever they had been expecting, it certainly wasn't the handsome young man that popped out of the bushes a minute later, tripping over a tree root and falling into a thorn bush. The young man hopped to his feet again and then seemed to notice that his clumsiness had an audience. He turned around scratching the back of his head in embarrassment.

"Sorry," he apologized good naturedly, "I didn't mean to disrupt your meal with my clumsiness. Let me introduce myself. I am Daisuke, noting but a humble priest. Do you have anything in need of purification or protection? It would be the least I could do to make up for my intrusion."

Kagome didn't trust this so-called priest, she was very aware that only Naraku, Kouga, and herself had possession of the remaining sacred jewel shards. Something about the man before her caused the hairs on the back of her neck to prickle.

Sesshomaru apparently felt the same way as he emitted a low growl. The priest caught the palpable feeling that he was not welcome and began to back off, holding his hands up in a peaceful way. "I'm so sorry if I disturbed you. I'll just be on my way then."

His retreat was blocked by Sesshomaru's blade on his neck. "Are you another one of Naraku's underlings? Is that why you hide your scent?" growled the fierce demon lord.

The priest's good natured smiled disappeared instantly to be replaced with an evil smirk. Kagome gasped as the once pure jewel shard turned black in the priest's back. The man's eyes turned red and the barrier that was hiding his smell fell revealing the disgusting odor of Naraku.

"Incarnation," hissed Sesshomaru, pressing the blade harder against the man's neck.

"I'm much more complicated then that. My real name is Dainigumo." The man smiled in an insane manner, his red eyes only enhanced the feeling.

The blade was now drawing the man's blood and Sesshomaru's voice was like ice, "Why disguise yourself? You knew we'd be suspicious of you. It seems pointless."

The insane smile continued, even as the blade pressed deeper into the man's jugular, "Because now you're in range."

Sesshomaru's eyes widened in shock for a moment before he brought the blade down while jumping away from the man. He didn't get far for Dainigumo plastered a seal onto his forehead. Sesshomaru was suspended in animation as if he were frozen in time. The sword had severed Dainigumo's neck but the insane man pulled himself from the ground, his wounds healing thanks to the shikon jewel shard in his back.

"NO!" screamed Kagome, bringing her miko powers to her hands. She hadn't brought her bow along believing that she would be perfectly safe under Sesshomaru's care, but now, he was unable to protect her. She threw a wave of her purification powers at the priest. He jumped back away from the arc of purification and away from the frozen Sesshomaru. Kagome moved protectively in front of her stilled mate, her aura rising as she tried to protect the one she loved.

Dainigumo pulled a religious dagger from his sleeve and threw it at Kagome. Kagome erected a barrier from which the dagger harmless whacked off of, falling to the ground. The priest erected his own barrier and slammed into Kagome's. It was a complete dead lock- neither lost nor gained any ground.

"How can you use spiritual powers when you're so tainted with evil?" asked Kagome, still holding her own against Dainigumo's pushing barrier.

"I am two people in one, one of which you know- Onigumo. I am also the priest Daisuke. Our bodies were merged by Naraku and so I can be tainted while using the powers of a pure priest's soul locked within me. We are together, yet we are separate, that is why Naraku called me Dainigumo."

Their barriers collided once again with a flash of white light. Still, they were equally matched. Dainigumo backed off some distance, out of Kagome's range for purification. He was not sent here to kill to girl. Naraku said that would be his pleasure alone. Rather, he was sent here to test her powers so that Naraku would be prepared for the next time they met. As for the dog demon- Sesshomaru- Naraku planned on keeping him alive and in stasis, at least until he would release the seal and kill the demon before the miko's eyes. Naraku certainly was cruel and would go to any extent for the most vile revenge.

The priestess was unwilling to leave her mate so Dainigumo taunted her to show more of her powers. "How will you save your mate if I stay here and watch as you die of hunger and thirst? For surely I could. What could you do to stop me?"

Kagome's anger flared seeing as the insane man before her was entirely correct. What she wouldn't give for her bow and arrows. She saw some rocks littering the ground and figured those would have to do. Gathering them up, she infused each one with her purification powers before throwing it with all of her might at the priest. The aimed-for priest merely dodged the hefty stones but noticed a weakness. There! Every time the priestess threw a stone, her barrier would weaken and allow the stone to pass through. It was enough to work with and he timed his attack. Waiting till she brought her hand back right before she threw the last rock in her hand, he charged at her with his barrier up. She didn't have time to stop her attack as his barrier barreled into her weakened barrier. It was just enough to make her barrier crumble- it seemed to dissipate into a pink mist leaving the miko open for attack. Not being one to pass up such an opportunity, another silver religious dagger appeared in the priest's hand and he tried to drive it into the woman's body.

Kagome didn't have time to stop the blade and closed her eyes tightly waiting to feel the pain. But her newly awakened miko powers would not allow her to die so simply. The blade was turned away, breaking the knife in two and a sickening cracked was heard as Dainigumo's wrist plunged into a pure pink light now surrounding the girl. It consumed her, whipping her hair around her face and causing a rush of wind that pushed Dainigumo back 3 feet before whipping him of his feet entiely and throwing him bodily into a tree many yards away.

Dainigumo could feel himself being purified by the aura that still surrounded the girl and realized that his life was in danger. He had too much evil in him now to survive such an intense purification. He retreated silently back to Naraku, the jewel shard already mending his broken wrist and his other oddments of injuries sustained from the miko's unconscious power.

As soon as Dainigumo was out of Kagome's sensing range, her aura subsided and the pink light disappeared. Kagome turned to Sesshomaru's frozen form in tears. She was well-aware that they both had almost lost their lives. She purified the seal on her love's forehead.

The effect was instantaneous. Sesshomaru fell to the ground, Kagome with him as she tried to hug and kiss him as much as possible, her tears falling on his cheeks. Sesshomaru was confused. The last thing he remembered was being attacked by Dainigumo and then...nothing but blackness to this moment. He wrapped his own arms around Kagome trying to soothe her. Finally her sobs seemed to soften and she looked up into Sesshomaru's eyes.

"What happened?" he asked calmly.

Kagome's lip trembled as she answered, "We almost died. That Dainigumo attacked us, he was part Naraku's human side, Onigumo, and part human priest Daisuke. He sealed you and then we fought. I was able to protect you but...but if he had been more serious, I don't think either of us would still be alive."

"More serious?"

"I think he was just testing us, testing our abilities because he fled. He just fled without being beaten."

Sesshomaru pulled her into a closer embrace as she broke out in sobs again. "Shhh...it's okay. I will never make the mistake of getting sealed again. I promise."

Kagome tearfully laughed, "You'd better. We're mates now, and I don't know what I'd do if you died."

"There's no need for us to worry about that now. Let us return to the castle immediately."

Kagome's eyes lit up, "You mean we get to fly again?"

"Yes."

"Why don't you just fly everywhere, Sesshomaru?"

"One, it uses up too much energy. Two, it makes you an easy target for attacks. Walking is much safer, but I think haste would be more valued today," said Sesshomaru, wiping the leftover tears from Kagome's face and then forming a demonic cloud underneath the two and flying off towards Inutashio's castle.

A/N: That's all for today folks. Next chapter: Kagome finally becomes a demon! Yay! Can anyone guess what she's going to look like? I already know, but if anyone wants to hazard a guess, go ahead. If you get it right, you earned two-and-a-half gold stars to put next to your name! If you have a better idea than what I did, I just may use it instead. ttyl