Here is the final chapter of my SSoD series. I would like to thank Msmes, chronos-girl, kagomethebeautifulmiko, and everyone else that reviewed. Thank you so much. I own nothing.

InuTaisho

Epilogue

A young woman with waist length brown hair drew in a deep breath. With shaking hands, she pushed aside the aged screens that separated her from the Sakaki Well. They creaked open and light flooded the dusty well house. She slowly entered and climbed down the stairs. Once her feet touched ground, she ran to the well and peered down. Her heart sank when she saw only the dirt and not the clear, beautiful skies of the past she had left behind. Tears stung behind her eyes.

Her fingers griped the edge of the well until they turned white. She had been so foolish in originally wanting. She had thought it would have been best for her child, but she had been wrong. Her child needed a father. And she…well, she needed her mate. However, the wish she had made had negated her one true desire.

Sakura let out a sob and dropped to her knees. Her longs bangs fell like a curtain in front of her face. Her shoulders shook as she cried.

It had been five long years. To the day.

At first, she had come every day to the well; however, after a while it went to once a week. Then, once a month. And then, once Saki had been born, she had come back, hoping that the well would open for them. It had not. After that, she had stopped coming. Now, she only came on Saki's birthday and the anniversary of her return. Every year, the well remained the same.

Sakura sighed and looked up at the old, wood ceiling. Saki had literally been her "blossom of hope." She had hoped that her child would allow her to cross back over to the Feudal Area, as Saki belonged in that time. She was wrong.

To keep herself from being crushed by her depression, she thought back to Saki's birth. She had given birth at home, because she had feared how Saki would look. Her parents had easily agreed and had taken her out of school. She had been home schooled her last year of middle school and all her years of high school. Her tutors had been sworn to secrecy about Sakura's pregnancy. They had never seen Saki.

Gramma had called upon a miko friend's daughter to perform the birthing. As she was a miko who knew the truth of yokais, she easily kept Saki a secret.

When Sakura had been asked what the child would be named, she readily told them: Higurashi Saki. Brows had been raised at the Higurashi name, but Sakura did not care. After all, Higurashi was the name InuYasha had given InuTaisho.

Sakura smiled as she thought of her daughter. She looked like InuTaisho. She had his long white hair and inu-ears. Her eyes where golden with aqua flecks in them. Sakura wasn't quite sure where the aqua came from, but she didn't care as she figured it had to do with InuTaisho's yokai blood. She lacked his yokai markings and her fangs and claws were not long or sharp, though she sometimes wondered if that would change as she grew. On her human nights, the nights of the full moon, her hair darkened to chestnut brown and her eyes darkened to chocolate with violet flecks.

Sakura looked over her shoulder when she heard footsteps behind her. On the top of the stairs stood Saki. Sakura smiled.

"Mama, are you okay?" Her golden eyes were wide with worry.

Sakura stood and dusted herself off. "Yes, Saki. I'm fine." She made her way up towards her daughter.

"Are we going to Great Gramma's?" She asked eagerly.

Sakura smiled and kneeled in front of her. "Yes, we will tonight."

Saki smiled. Sakura picked her up and carried her back to the house, not glancing at the well behind her as she closed the screens one-handedly.

X

As darkness swept over the land, Sakura lead Saki out of their home. The nights of the full moon were the only times Saki could go out and they usually did whatever Saki wanted on those nights. This time, Saki wanted to see her great-grandmother, Higurashi-sama.

Sakura had gone back to Higurashi-sama soon after she had returned. She told Higurashi-sama all that had happened in the past. That Kagome was alive again. Higurashi-sama had been delighted to learn that her daughter was alive and well again. Sakura then told her that she was carrying InuTaisho's child, Kagome's grandchild. Needless to say, it was probably the happiest day Higurashi-sama had had in several years.

Now, Sakura continued to keep Higurashi-sama in her and Saki's life. She did it not only because she loved Higurashi-sama, but because Saki needed the connection to her other grandparents. And Sakura did too.

Drawing in a deep breath, Sakura knocked once on the door before entering. Higurashi-sama smiled at her from the front room.

"Sakura. Saki."

Saki ran to her great-grandmother, her arms open. "Gramma!" She squealed.

Higurashi laughed and drew the girl to her, hugging her tightly. She lightly ruffled her great-granddaughter's hair with her wrinkled hands. "Hello, little Saki. How have you been?"

Saki smiled. "I could smell Mommy from a block away the other day!" She exclaimed.

Higurashi looked over the girl's chestnut head, her eyes sad as she gazed at Sakura. Sakura nodded as she numbly sat in a chair across from Higurashi, fighting back her tears. Since Saki was technically only one-fourth yokai, she had not progressed as quickly as how she had assumed InuTaisho or InuYasha had. Her senses where enhanced, but they were not anything like InuTaisho or InuYasha's.

"That's good, sweetie."

Saki nodded. "Daddy came to me in my dream last night."

Sakura froze. "W-what did you say?"

Higurashi leaned back in her seat. "Now, Saki, what do you mean? You've never met your father."

Saki shook her head, her dark locks spinning around her. "It was Daddy!" She broke away from her grandmother. "He had my white hair and eyes like mine. And red clothes. He told me to go to the well."

Sakura launched herself from the chair. Her hands fisted at her sides. "Saki. Enough."

Saki turned to face her mother, her bi-colored eyes wide. "But, Mommy, it's true."

Sakura shook her head. She wanted Saki to know of her father, she truly did, but…she did not want Saki to be plagued by dreams about InuTaisho. Kami knew that she had enough for the both of them. Especially the first few nights she had slept in her bed…

Wanting to break the uncomfortable silence, Higurashi moved forward in her chair. "Saki, how is aunt Akako?"

Mention of her aunt distracted the child and she turned back to her grandmother. "Auntie Akako got a job as a nurse at the children's hospital!"

Higurashi glanced at Sakura. "Tell me about it, Saki."

As Saki launched into a child's version of how her 'favorite Auntie Akako got the best job in the world helping little sick kids' to Higurashi, Sakura slowly made her way out the back door.

She just had to know…

As she made her well to the Bone Eater's Well, she thought back to how her life had changed after her final return. Akako and her mother had been brought back to life. Everyone had altered memories of their lives. Of course, it was confusing for the whole family as they had both the real memories and the fake memories. Sakura enjoyed having her sister back in her life, but it seemed as if there wasn't enough room for them both. Akako could easily take her place at anytime.

The rest of the world had forgotten about Sakura after Akako came back. After a few months, her friends stopped calling. Boys no longer tried to ask her out. Her friend's became Akako's and her crushes became Akako's. Sakura was a full time mother, house keeper, and shrine keeper.

She tried to not think about the future. She knew she and Saki were burdens to her family. She lived from day to day, never making plans, never looking back. She got through each day that way.

As she ascended the steps, so very much like the familiar ones at her own family shrine, she felt her skin tingle. She pushed aside the doors slowly and the creaked loudly. The tingling became an itch that danced across her skin. She rubbed her arm.

She moved down the steps and towards the well. She grasped the edges of it. Why did her daughter have a dream about InuTaisho? What did it mean?

The itch became a burning as at the very bottom of the well, a spark of blue light flared to life.

She gasped as she stared down at it, the blue light dancing across her pale face.

"Saki!" She screamed.

X

InuTaisho had been visiting Jun earlier that day. He only came because he had been requested…and his parents forced him. Jun was announcing his betrothal to a local village girl. InuYasha seemed happy about it.

Now, InuTaisho found himself at a well that his parents had been reunited multiple times at. Most recently five years ago this very day. He peered down at the forgotten remains of the yokai at the bottom.

'Sakura…'

He wished he could see her one last time. Once more and he could get through his long, drawn out life.

He wanted to also see his pup…Sakura's pup. He wondered if it looked like her. He was glad that she at least had the pup. It was a small piece of him that she would forever have.

And he had his enchanted beads.

He gripped the edge of the well when he felt his yokai rise up in him. He thought he saw a blue light glowing from within the well's depths.

X

Sakura picked her child up, holding her close. Higurashi wiped her eyes. This would be the second girl she had sent back to the past.

"Sakura…tell Kagome hello and that I love her."

Sakura nodded. "Of course." She sat on the edge of the well. "Tell my family…" What?

Higurashi smiled and placed a hand on her shoulder. "They will understand."

Sakura swallowed. "Goodbye, Higurashi-sama."

"Goodbye, Sakura, my daughter. Goodbye, Saki, my love."

Saki peered over her mother's arm. "Bye-bye, Gramma."

Sakura held her closer. Without looking back, Sakura swung her legs over the side of the well and dropped into the darkness below. Blue and white light swirled around her, dancing with the mother and daughter's hair.

X

A familiar scent entered InuTaisho's nose. His eyes widened as he shot his hand down the well; praying, hoping…

She gasped when he felt a small, warm hand encase his own. He pulled and Sakura flew out of the well and into his arms. She held a small child…

"I-InuTaisho!" Sakura cried out.

He held his mate and pup tightly. "Sakura…" He glanced down at the girl, so much like her mother, that stared up at him with wide eyes.

"D-Daddy?" She whispered.

He nodded. He looked back up to Sakura. "What is she called?" He asked.

Tears lined her eyelids. "Higurashi Saki."

InuTaisho ruffled the girl's long hair. "Saki…" He murmured.

His hold tightened on his family, tears spilling from his eyes. Sakura's own dam gave way and her tears fell as well. The tears of joy from the parents fell and mingled together, falling atop the dark head of their love child, who smiled blissfully as she held her long lost father.

Having sensed the presence of two more beings and smelling the tears, InuYasha burst through the trees and into the clearing, Kagome on his back. She slowly dropped to her feet at seeing her son reunited with his mate at the same place she had been reunited with hers so many times.

She leaned onto InuYasha's side, his arm going around her waist.

"They're home." She whispered.

End. It was finally happy, as promised!

~MutantEnemy6789