A/N: And now, to the heart of the matter… PS: If you like InuKag, check out "From the Grave." It is available on MediaMinerOrg and FanFictionNet under my profile.

Dedication: This one's for you Rinseternalsoul! Thanks for all of your help and support. I couldn't have made it this far without you.

WARNING: There is an alternate version of this chapter. This chapter is rated R. For the alternate version, please visit my profile for the alternate link.

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Embracing Ice

Written By: Yabou

Lemon Section Written By: Rinseternalsoul

Chapter Twenty-Five: An Interlude of Love

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"Ikris," Kagome interrupted their morning meditation.

"Yes?"

The young miko frowned at her recent inability to collect her thoughts. "What do you know about Inu behavior?"

Her mentor smiled and opened one eye to give her a teasing look. "I have seen many things, Kagome. I am mated to an Inu."

"Yeah," Kagome paused. "Isn't there a difference though? I mean… Wepwawet is also a god."

Ikris shrugged. "In many ways, Sesshoumaru would also be considered a god among mortals. He is immortal. He holds immense powers. There are many different forms of gods."

"Oh," she sighed and tried to resist fidgeting. "Are you…happy with Wepwawet?"

A smile dance over the older woman's lips as she ran a hand over the slight swell of her stomach, "I do not believe there is a better mate in all the lands of my great country. My love for Wepwawet will extend beyond all boundaries of time."

"How do you know that he really loves you?" Kagome questioned, giving up all hopes of feigning attention toward their current lesson.

Moving to sit on her knees, Ikris took a moment to think before answering. "When I am with my Lord, there is no other. Therefore, my choice is an easy one."

"Will you miss him when he has to go?" the young miko wondered.

She gave a weak attempt at holding back her tears, "more than my heart has ever known."

- - - - -

Ikris stood tall and silent. She wore a look of serenity on her lovely heart-shaped face, but the peaceful appearance was misleading. Only by looking into the depths of her sorrow-filled eyes could one see the truth. Ikris was a very troubled woman.

The small, lush pond was beautifully filled with huge lily pads gracing the surface in serene abundance, each one decorated with a magnificent blossom of crisp white. It was peaceful here with crickets singing in the fading light. The ancient croak of frogs joined the song giving life to the night, while the first flicker of fireflies began their dance amongst the downward sweeping branches of several huge willow trees.

Her love had come. He had saved her and their child from a terrible fate. He had stayed and kept her safe within his strong arms until she felt much like herself again. His power lent speed to the healing of her wounds while the warmth of his big hands sent liquid fire rushing through her veins.

It was so wonderful to have him near, but shadowed by his presence was always the question... When would Wepwawet leave her again?

She feared tomorrow would be that day.

"You are well, my love?"

His voice, deep and resonant - brushing seductively against the shell of her ear - sent a shiver of desire curling into her most secret woman's place. The familiar baritone, while whispered so softly, still held the strength to turn her very bones to mush.

His otherworldly power circulated through the air, caressing her flesh and searing her very soul. She loved him so much. It was impossible for her to do anything less. From the first moment that he appeared in her life, Ikris knew that she belonged to him.

But why did it have to be so hard?

"I am well," she answered, turning into him, allowing him to lend of his great strength.

He would leave her soon; her and her babe. They were cursed with a love so strong that it reached through the plane of this world into the next, but could never become anything more than fleeting glimpses of nirvana. By the will of Osiris, her warrior would continue his eternal fight, while she carried on in this mortal realm without him.

It was the only way, but the knowing did nothing to diminish the hurt of their inevitable separation.

"Ikris, my sweet; my resplendent priestess, how will I exist without you?" His voice was filled with longing and regret, but Wepwawet did not care that his heart was revealed to Ikris. She meant everything to him.

For the thousandth time, Wepwawet cursed his unfortunate fate in the great configuration of life and death. His heart was to be forever torn between this world and the next. His love was to live in the mortal domain, while he was only allowed brief interludes of escape from the underworld with which to share it.

He was a timeless warrior, though; one with purpose and reverence. He was the "Lord of Abydos" and "The Opener of the Way", depended on by his Lord Osiris to lead the Egyptian army into battle. His entire existence revolved around his duty. Without it he was nothing.

Yet in this magnificent human woman he found a place just for him; a place where he was loved and accepted without demand. Within Ikris' arms he was truly alive.

It was extremely selfish for him to possess her as his own, but he no longer cared. He could not let her go.

Wepwawet inhaled deeply, taking in the scent of her - the feminine fragrance that was unique to his woman. He pulled her back against his hard length and gloried in her softness, then slowly traced a path around the smooth curve of her hip and around to gently caress the growing swell of her belly. Within her living body there was a child, and that child belonged to him.

His pup.

How glorious it was to feel the proof of their love growing so strong. His gut clenched each time he thought of how close he had come to losing them both. He would have been inconsolable in the face of such grief.

Ikris gasped when her lover turned her swiftly and pulled her into his arms. She looked up and was lost in the depths of his unnaturally blue eyes. There she found hope, for surely there was no other man that could love her with such devoted passion. It was written there, open for her to see, the magnitude of his supernatural emotion for her and her alone.

"I love you," she whispered.

The words, spoken in a breathless sigh, tickled arousingly against his firm lips. Wepwawet groaned deep within his chest as he felt the now familiar stirring in his loins. By Osiris, her beauty never failed to send his body up in flame.

His lips sought hers; feverishly at first, hungry and demanding as he had been long starved of her sweetness, but some small sense of sanity softened the assault on her senses, as he reminded himself of her delicate condition and form.

"Do you remember, my love, when first we came together as one?" Wepwawet whispered against her ear with ragged, strained breaths. "Do you remember your promise to me?"

Through the dizzying haze of desire mounting inside of her body and mind, Ikris responded to her mate's insistent question. "Yes, my lord. I remember it well."

"You promised to love me with every fiber of your being, every part of you. It is a promise that I hold dear above all things, Ikris. Show me now. Show me how much you love me."

His hands roamed over her silk covered body, firmly seeking to renew his memories of each dip and each curve. He became fevered to feel her flesh rubbing against him, and swiftly made away with the strange, foreign clothing she wore, and then his own.

(EDITED FOR SEXUAL CONTENT)

It was with the very first ray of light rising in the east that Wepwawet resigned himself to his duty and regretfully teased his sleeping mate into wakefulness. He feathered soft butterfly kisses over the smooth finely formed jawline. He lightly teased the lobe of her ear with his teeth and felt her mortal body react with a bevy of tiny bumps that erupted all over her smooth flesh.

"Mmm...," Ikris moaned softly as her mind fought its way through the thick fog of sleep. Lazily her hand traced a path over hard chest muscles as her heavy eyelids began to flutter open.

Her lover was watching her with a wicked smile on his perfect lips. His pristine, long hair fell in a silken sheet over her bared breasts, but it was his eyes that gave him away. The twinkle in their fathomless depths had dimmed somewhat and in its place she saw sorrow. It was obvious. He would leave her now.

Her slender fingers caressed the smooth outline of his strong jaw, before winding their way through his thick, raven-black hair and pulling his lips down for a kiss. He met her request with soft tenderness that spoke much of his adoration of her and her alone. By the power of Anubis, she was going to miss him terribly.

His eyes grew wide when she pulled away and asked, "When will I see you again?"

He was surprised that she could read him so easily, but it was strangely comforting as well. "I will return when the time of our child comes. The birth will be hard on you, my love, and I wish that I had the power to make it not so. It is truly unfortunate that I cannot, but I would not have you go through it alone. You may rest assured, that this Wepwawet will come to you then, and together we will see this pup into the world."

A single tear slipped from her eye and Ikris forced herself to smile. "I love you, Wepwawet and I will miss you with all of my heart."

"As I will miss you, my sweet love. As I will miss you."

Ikris shivered as he pulled his warmth from her embrace. She longed to beg him not to leave her, but her pride and the truth of their reality forced her silent acceptance. Her warrior god rose beside her, stretching his physical perfection, and making her mouth water for his touch. It was difficult to restrain her hand from reaching out to touch the thick muscle of his bronzed thigh, but she willed the appendage down, and held the murmur of protest that threatened to escape.

They dressed in silence. Wepwawet donned his black leathers with mortal care, instead of by the magic of his kind. He had learned months ago that his Ikris became somewhat uneasy with such shows of power. As he pulled the final garment on and began to don his armor and weapons, he watched his priestess as she attempted to gain control of her lengthy curling hair.

It was regretful that he had not the time to bed her again, but Lord Osiris had already made his wishes clear. He was to return to Duat where he would receive further orders. It was an order that Wepwawet was well acquainted with - an eternal devotion that sustained his existence on the godly plane.

There was no other choice.

When at last he pulled her into his arms, holding her close and attempting to pass on some semblance of comfort that would last upon his departure, he sighed and said, "My lovely priestess. How I do hate to part from you, but as you know, it is an unavoidable event. Just remember, that my heart is with you, and I will return."

Ikris smiled up at him with tears shining in her big brown eyes. She wanted to sob out her woe, but stubbornly refused to break down in front of him needlessly. It would only serve to make him worry over her that much more.

"Take care, my love. May it be the will of Ra that you return to me soon."

He took from her one last tender kiss before he stepped back. Ikris watched as his beloved image sparkled and dissolved, leaving her alone in a foreign world once more.

- - - - -

Kagome snuggled deeper in the furrow of Sesshoumaru's embrace. "I never thought it could be like this," she whispered.

"Nor did I," he responded. "I do not understand this place you are from, Kagome, but I believe it impossible not to love you now."

"Lord Konton mentioned that you might be leaving for a few days at dinner tonight. What was he talking about?"

He stared at the vision she made cuddled into the black silk of his clothing resting between his legs as they watched the stars light up the evening sky. For a moment, he felt the inability to breathe at the beauty of her. "We must patrol the area. There was a report from one of the Packs in the south western territories of a gathering of water youkai. We must make sure that they are peaceful." Running his fingers through her glossy, black hair, he added, "Do not worry. It is merely a political visit. Nothing will come of it."

"I'll miss you," Kagome blushed.

"As will I," he rubbed his cheek against the crown of her head. "Will you await my return?"

"Yes," fumbling into the confines of her outer robe, she pulled a length of fabrics from its depth and placed it in his hands. "I… I wasn't sure when I was going to give this to you, but I think now is the time."

"What is this?" He wondered at the magic that leapt over the weave.

"I made it," she turned her face away, "for you. It's supposed to protect you. At least, that's what Ikris said."

"This is the product of your training, is it not?" Sesshoumaru questioned.

"Yes."

Leaning her forward, he stood and untied the obi at his waist. "I am honored to wear a sign of your love, Kagome. Come, will you help me?"

Her hands glided through the smooth fabric, watching the way the blues and golds seemed to swirl together. This was it. This was the sash she had so often seen tied around the youkai lord's waist in the feudal era. 'The future cannot be changed.' A voice whispered, brushing over her skin like water.

Standing at his side, she wound the length of cloth around his waist twice and tied the familiar loop she had so often seen him wear before. "There," she said, stepping back and smiling at her work. It was odd to see one familiar piece of his ensemble among all the black. 'Maybe I'll ask Bishou for a favor.'

"When will you be leaving?" She inquired.

He paused and looked at the position of the moon, "Two days time at most, but do not worry, Kagome," he reassured her. "I will always return to you."

Tears welled up in the depths of her eyes, "Be sure that you do that, Sesshoumaru. You make sure that you."

"Do not cry," his voice softened – his hands wiping away all signs of her sadness. "I am yours, Kagome. I know where I belong."

"I'm sorry," she laughed and tucked herself into the comfort of his arms. "I'm just being silly. I don't know what's gotten into me." Her breath was catching in her throat, and she felt a little lightheaded. Slowly, the pants began to build, and she was gasping for air.

"Kagome," Sesshoumaru lifted her chin. "Kagome, you must breathe. Control your body. There is no reason for fear." Pulling her closer, he ran a soothing hand up and down her spine. "I am here."

Taking deep, gulping breaths, she nodded – her fear dissolving into a fit of hiccups. "I-I'm s-sorr-y."

A low rumble echoed through his chest. "I promise to return to you, Kagome. There is no need to be afraid."

"Do-o you think we c-could spend the day together tomorrow?" She asked with a pink stain highlighting her cheeks.

"Anything you wish," he mumbled. "I will have it arranged."

And so they stood, wrapped in the arms of the one they loved the most with only the sound of the cicadas and Kagome's soft hiccups interrupting the peaceful night.

- - - - -

"I will miss you, my Lord." Bishou whispered into her mate's side.

"We will return soon, my love." He responded and briefly tightened his grip around her waist.

Pulling the blankets higher over their intertwined bodies, she sighed. "It will be hard to test her without you."

"You will do well," he assured.

Bishou nodded distractedly and stared at the ceiling as her lover slipped into a peaceful slumber. "I am sorry, Kagome." She breathed into the darkness.

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A/N: Yeah, we all needed a bit of fluff! Be forewarned, next chapter is fluff and plot crazy!