A Delayed Dawn

Disclaimer: Not 100 mine, but, according to my calculations, it's around 70 mine.

Warning: This story is posted in the mature section for good reasons. If ideas such as vulgar language, descriptive violence, and sexual situations such as rape disturb you, then you are warned now.

Chapter Twenty-Eight Lies

Kagome and Inuyasha flew through the trees and fields. Kagome laughed the whole time, feeling the extra thrill from the rush. Inuyasha enjoyed himself as well. He was able to run fast through the outdoors. He hated the city. This was his escape. His mind was off of the war and everything else that caused him to worry.

"Let's stop here and wait for the others," Kagome spoke into his ear.

He shivered from the warmth of her breath and could only nod his head. It was a good thing too. This allowed him to look away from her, hiding his blush and physical reaction to her. Her lithe body slid down off of his back and he made sure that she landed on the ground without so much as a thud.

Kagome found a nice place to sit underneath the shade of a large tree. She pulled out some snacks she had bought in the town and shared them with Inuyasha. They didn't have to wait too long for Sango, Miroku and Kirara to arrive. They joined in the break.

"Hey, Kagome, we saw a town not so far from here. Is that our destination?" Sango asked.

Kagome couldn't help but smile as she nodded. "Yeah." Kagome stood up and slipped her bag on her shoulders. "Let's walk from here."

Everyone agreed. Inuyasha and Miroku were on high alert. Just in case someone realized that this was there destination. It could be a trap. As they reached the town limit, everyone but Kagome was shocked. Never before had they seen a city like this. Every building and tall skyscraper had fallen to the ground. People had used the materials to build makeshift buildings for their businesses and homes. It was disastrous.

"What town is this Kagome?" Sango asked as they glanced around them as they walked into the city.

"Hiroshima," Kagome stated.

"Seriously?" Sango asked in disbelief. She had seen the pictures of the city after the last war Japan had been involved with. The dropping of the atomic bomb. It had completely destroyed the city. And it looked like it had happened again.

"Yeah. This city was hit pretty hard during the beginning of the war. It was ransacked and destroyed. Everything that had some use to somebody was taken. But because of that, it has been left alone for most of the war," Kagome explained as she glanced around.

They passed through the entire town before heading out to an area of houses and fields. The people here had resorted back to farming for their way of living. The sound of the water filled the air and the smell of fresh vegetables and fruits tickled their noses. It's very pleasant. They kept walking until they reached the end of a dirt path that took them up to a rickety old gate.

"Is this it? What is it?" Sango questioned.

"It's a place," Kagome stated as she opened the gate. She allowed everyone to enter before closing it behind her.

Sango remembered that Kagome had told her that her parents had died when she was young. It would make some sense. The woman who took care of her may have taken care of other children. Many children had lost their parents in the war. Those left alone depended on the care of others or else . . .

They picked up the sounds of arguing. Two boys. One was tall with brown hair and his body was skinny. The other one was shorter, with red hair and a tail.

Kagome smiled. "Every single time you two," she yelled at them.

The two boys stopped and turned to look at who yelled at them. They dash toward the girl as fast as they could with the biggest smiles on their faces.

"Kagome!" They both yelled in unison.

Kagome dropped her bag and went running towards them. All three collided into a massive embrace. The two boys toppled over on top of Kagome. They were laughing and Kagome was crying.

"Oh Kagome. You're safe," the taller dark haired boy said.

"We were so worried about you," the red hair boy spoke.

"Oh, I missed you so much," she answered back as she hugged them with all of her strength.

The red hair boy looked up and saw the three strangers looking down at them. He immediately stood up putting Kagome and the dark haired boy behind him. With his best defensive stance, he puffed his chest out and scowled. "Who are you? And what do you want with Kagome?" He demanded.

The dark hair boy jumped up and joined the red hair boy. "What business do you have with my sister?"

Kagome stood up and knocked both of the boys over their head with her fist. She then took a hold of the back of their shirts and walked them over to the strangers. "Apologize," she ordered them.

The two boys gulped.

"Sorry," the dark hair boy replied.

"Yeah, sorry."

"Fine. Souta, Shippo, these are my friends, that's Sango, her cat Kirara. The man with the staff is Miroku and the leader is Inuyasha," Kagome introduced them. "Guys, Souta and Shippo."

The two boys turn to look at each out, silently mouthing out the same word. Immediately they rushed over to Inuyasha. "Are you really Inuyasha?"

"The leader of the Touken, Inuaysha?"

Inuyasha scratched the back of neck, blushing. "Uh, yeah that's me."

"Cool!" The boys yelled out. "You're our hero."

Inuyasha beamed. "Really?" He'd never had fans before.

Kagome stormed up to the two boys and bonked them over the heads again. "You know better than that. Stop being so foolish. They are our guests. Take them up to the house."

"Yes nee-chan." The boys frowned. "Come on," they said to Inuyasha and the group. "Follow us."

"Souta?" Kagome asked in a sweet voice.

Souta, the dark haired boy walked away, leaving Shippo to show their guests to the house. "Yeah?"

"Where's Kaede-baachan?"

Souta pointed. "Gathering herbs."

Kagome picked up her back and thanked Souta before rushing out to the field. Souta hurried to the house. He didn't want Shippo to have all of the fun hanging out with Inuyasha.

Inside, Sango, Miroku and Inuyasha sit around a large dining table, sipping tea Souta and Shippo made for them. It was good tea, they had all decided. The boys just sat staring in awe at Inuyasha. It made Inuyasha a bit uncomfortable, but he still liked the idea that these boys considered him some kind of celebrity.

Kaede entered the house and sat down at the table. Souta gave her a cup of tea and took the herbs into the kitchen. "I'm Kaede," she introduced herself.

Sango smiled. "I'm Sango. This is my cat Kirara."

"Miroku."

"And that's Inuyasha Kaede. Inuyasha. The Inuyasha. He's here. At our house. He's drinking the tea we made. How cool is that?" Souta and Shippo said.

Kaede only nodded her head not as impressed as they were with having this Inuyasha in her house.

"Oi, where's Kagome?" Inuyasha demanded. He didn't like the idea of her being alone when she was still being targeted. He promised that he would protect her. He had failed once and wasn't going to allow himself to do the same.

"She's busy," Kaede replied brushing off the hanyou.

"Ah, I don't want to sound rude, but Kagome had said that she had no family. And yet, here you all are, a family. I just . . . I guess I just never expected Kagome to lie, that's all," Sango said disappointedly.

Kaede sat down her cup of tea. "What purpose would Kagome have to lie to you?"

Sango didn't want to answer. Sure, they had been sent in to spy on her. But Sango came clean and still, Kagome didn't trust her.

Miroku nodded. "I see. She only lied to protect you all."

"Yes," Kaede replied. "Don't take it personally," she directed at Sango. "It's not about trust. The trees and rocks have ears. Anything she said out in the open may have been used against her. We could have been used against her."

Sango smiled. "I understand. Thank you."

Inuyasha stood up. He didn't like this. Leaving Kagome outside alone. She was just so goddamn helpless. He walked over to the door and opened it. Everyone followed. He sniffed the air, catching her scent. He bolted away from the house after her. There were other scents nearby her that he didn't recognize.

Sango and Miroku tried to run after him but Kaede stopped them. "This place is protected with a barrier, as well as ofudas and sutras carved into the fence."

Inuyasha heard what Kaede had and stopped. Kaede instructed everyone to sit down. Inuyasha joined them. He continued to sniff the air. The other scents were strange. Then his eyes went wide. It couldn't be. Could it?

Kaede nodded her head. She could tell that Inuyasha had figured something out. "What do you sense Inuyasha?" She asked him.

Inuyasha was too shocked to even answer. He stood up as he heard Kagome approaching. She was running and laughing with two figures at her feet that were also running and laughing. Children. There were children at her feet.

Miroku and Sango saw what Inuyasha had sensed. "Are those . . . hers?" Sango asked. Kaede answered in the affirmative.

"And the father?" Miroku asked.

"Hojo? The war," Kaede replied.

Kagome plopped down on the bottom step of the house with the children sitting down next to her. They were all laughing and being very content with her presence there. Kagome pulled out her backpack and opened it up. "I have treats for everyone," she pronounced happily. Everyone cheered.

"Okay, Shippo's first," Kagome said as she pulled out a giant brown paper sack and handed it to the red-haired demon.

Shipp took the bag and opened it up. "Kagome. Candy?" He asked in disbelief. Candy was a luxury. It was a hard find.

"Yep. Now don't eat it all tonight," she warned him as he hurried back to his seat with the bag opened, trying to pick the first candy to eat.

"Souta. For you." She pulled out a brand new soccer ball.

Souta took the ball. "Wow sis. This is. . . wow," he stammered. He hugged his sister tightly. "Thanks."

Kagome started to tear up. "You're making me cry. Now go out and practice or something."

He laughed at her. "Shippo. Eat candy later and let's play."

Shippo scrambled from his seat and followed his older brother out into the grass to kick the soccer ball back and forth.

"Kaede. I hope these are good." Kagome handed Kaede another paper bag.

Kaede opened the bag. "Kagome. Medicine and herbs. These will come in handy."

"There should be seeds too somewhere in there," Kagome told Kaede.

"Aye child. It's a thoughtful gift."

Lastly, it was the two children. They had scooted closer to their mother.

"Well. Did you two behave while I was gone?" Kagome asked the two children. Both nodded their heads. She laughed. "Okay." Reaching into the bag, Kagome pulled out a stuffed bunny rabbit. One of the children reached up for it, grabbed it and snuggled with it. Kagome then pulled out a ball and bat. The other child took this and ran out to Souta and Shippo to show them the new toy they could all play with.

"The boy that ran off is Takeru and this is my most beautiful little girl Amaya." Kagome introduced her children. The boy came running back and gave his mom a hug. "Takeru, Amaya, that is Sango, the man with the stick is Miroku, and the man with the doggy ears is Inuyasha. Say hello to them."

Takeru ran up the steps and collided into Inuyasha, knocking him over. "Uncle Inu!" He yelled out laughing. Inuyasha picked up the boy. The boy stopped laughing when he saw the look on Inuyasha's face. Takeru looked like he was going to cry, but then remembered that he was the man of the house. The man of the house wasn't supposed to cry. So he gave Inuyasha his best scary face that he could.

Inuyasha laughed at the kid. "You're pretty strong," Inuyasha commented.

Amaya was a bit shyer. She walked up to Miroku and Sango and gazed at them silently. Amaya had the same hair as her mother, only pulled up in pigtails. Her eyes were so dark that it didn't look like she had pupils at all. Takeru also had hair that was like his mother, the type of hair that no matter how many times it was brushed, it was never tamed. His eyes were different, a light brown-green color with specks of light brown.

Amaya pointed at Miroku. "You're a bad monk," she said. Miroku chuckled nervously. It was cute coming from a child.

Sango laughed. "Smart girl. Yes, he is a very bad monk."

Amaya grinned at Sango and walked over to Kirara. Amaya plopped down next to the cat and pulled it into her lap along with her stuffed bunny. Amaya petted the cat.

Sango saw how happy Kagome was. "Kagome, I . . . I realize your reluctance."

"It's okay. I had to protect them. I felt guilty lying. I guess you can understand now why I wanted to stop Naraku so badly."

Miroku nodded. He looked at the children and their mother. Seeing them, he realized that there were some things that even war couldn't interfere with. Examining them closer, he saw that the children and Kagome each wore the same bracelet.

"Kagome, your bracelets?" He asked.

"Oh, we made these together a long time ago. It seems silly, but when we are away, it's the bracelets that remind us of each other. It's a way for me to keep in touch with my children."

"Well, with so many mouths to feed, I best be starting dinner," Kaede pronounced as she stood up and entered the house.

"I'm going to go help. Souta, Shippo," she yelled at the boys. The nodded understand what she wanted of them. Kagome stood up and slipped past everyone into the house to help Kaede with dinner.

"Kagome, what brings ye here?"

"Dinner. I want to help," she said ignoring the real question.

"Aye. It's good ye are here. I have something to talk to ye about," Kaede went on as they worked together to prepare dinner. "I don't know how long the barrier around the house is going to last. I can sense it weakening it certain areas."

"I'll check on them tomorrow," Kagome told Kaede. "I'm not sure how much can be done though." Kagome couldn't tell Kaede that she was losing her miko abilities. That the power of the jewel inside her body was fading away to a time when she would be only human.

Sango entered the kitchen completely out of breath. "Smells good." She got herself a glass of water. "Wow Kagome, your kids are sure energetic."

Kagome chuckled. "They are a handful. But I have Shippo and Souta and Kaede here to help me out. Especially since I've been gone for quite a bit, working and stuff."

"Anything I can help out with?" Sango asked. Kaede asked her to help with the broth and this gave Kagome the chance to slip away to check on the children. She stood in the doorway and watched everyone. Takeru was using his bat as a sword fighting against Inuyasha who was using a sheathed Tessaiga as his sword. Amaya was showing Miroku how to make proper ofudas. Kagome chuckled at that. A seven year old showing a twenty something year old how to make ofudas. Souta and Shippo were playing with the soccer ball. Shippo had a sucker sticking out of his mouth.

Sango came out. "Kaede says dinner is ready."

"You better get in there," Kagome warned Sango.

"What do you mean?"

Kagome smiled. "Watch then." She walked to the top of the steps and yelled out. "Dinner's ready!"

Everyone stopped and looked up at Kagome. Sango gulped. Sango had seen something like this before. At the compound, during lunch and dinner hour. Hundreds of hungry men who wanted nothing more than a hot meal.

Amaya stood up from her place next to Miroku. "Last one in is a rotten egg," she yelled before dashing towards the house.

Kagome pushed Sango into the house. Kagome however stayed outside to watch. Takeru dropped his bat and followed his sister. Souta and Shippo left the soccer ball flying through the air as they changed their running toward the house. Miroku stood up and walked quickly, enjoying watching everyone in their race. Inuyasha dropped his sword as Takeru did, but then remembered that his was the real thing, went back, picked it up and hurried to catch up.

Shippo and Inuyasha were really trying to race each other and started to push and shove. The kids laughed from their place on the steps. They had won. Kagome hurried them inside and allowed everyone else to enter first, and then she followed.

Dinner was loud. Inuyasha and Shippo were in each other's face about food. Kagome dished out food for her children first and made sure that they got started. They watched the entertainment of Inuyasha and Shippo. Miroku took the opportunities he had to try and woo Sango. Souta was trying to calm Shippo down saying that there was plenty of food around and that there was no point in trying to go up against Inuyasha.

Souta was finally able to calm Inuyasha and Shippo down long enough for them to actually eat the food off their own plate instead of off of each other's. Kaede decided to take advantage of the noise.

"Kagome, how long do you plan to stay this time?"

Kagome dropped her fork onto her plate and the sound echoed throughout the house. Apparently everyone had heard Kaede's question. Kagome found eight pairs of eyes staring at here, anxiously awaiting her answer.

"Well . . . "Kagome started, unsure of her answer. She then looked down at her children. She had almost died that night. That night, her children would have lost their mother. It was hard to hold the tears back.

Takeru and Amaya reached out and embraced their mother. "We want you to stay," Takeru cried.

Amaya nodded her head. "Please don't go away again mommy."

Sango couldn't help but cry. She allowed Miroku to embrace her, to console her. It too tugged at his heart. He now realized Kagome's determination to stay as far away from anything war related as possible. Inuyasha turned to look away. He just couldn't watch. He suddenly found himself conflicted by the situation. What was he to do?

Naraku only had a piece of the jewel. This meant that their mission wasn't over with. They had to find the remaining pieces before anyone else did, and they needed Kagome for that. She would have to leave again, leave her children and family behind once again.

Inuyasha knew the pain of losing parents. His father died at birth and his mother just a few years afterwards. It was difficult growing up without them. He had to rely on his elder brother for help, and it wasn't much. Sesshoumaru only cared for Inuyasha because his father had ordered him to, a dying request.

Kagome almost died. At the time, he didn't know that she had children and her death would have been bad. But now that he knew she was a mother and had a family, he wasn't sure if he could allow her to travel around on such a dangerous mission. He didn't want her children to suffer the same fate that he, Kagome, Sango and Miroku had all suffered.

Kagome wrapped her arms around her children and smiled down at them. "I'll be here for a while."

They seemed satisfied with that answer. Kaede had gotten up during the silence and she returned carrying a tray of cookies for everyone. This helped the children to get happy once again and not to think about their mother leaving. Everyone started talking and laughing. Inuyasha and Shippo fought over extra cookies. Miroku tried to woo Sango with cookies. Everyone else watched and enjoyed the light atmosphere. They could worry tomorrow. Kagome and Kaede only wanted happy dreams for everyone tonight.

Soon it was time for bed for almost everyone. Kaede insisted on going to bed early so she could rise with the sun to work in the gardens. Takeru and Amaya were practically falling asleep in their mother's arms. Shippo and Souta had to wake early as well. Kagome insisted that they get some kind of schooling and a lady who used to be a school teacher would stop by and for a few hours, give them home schooling.

Kagome tucked her children in their bed and kissed them goodnight. She promised that she would be there in the morning for them. Upon closing the door, she was surprised to find Inuyasha standing there. He didn't say anything right away. It made her nervous.

He grabbed her arm and started to drag her down the stairs. "We need to talk." She could only nod as he continued to drag her outside and through the fields. She didn't say anything. She could sense that he was bothered by something and he wanted to tell her about it, in private.

Once he felt that he was far enough from other ears, he stopped and let go of her. He looked at her. This time it was different. She wasn't the girl who reminded him of Kikyou and the night he raped Kikyou. She was Kagome. A determined and stubborn mother who had two bright and wonderful children that loved and missed her very much. She had a family here. One that loved her as much as she loved them.

He took in a big air of breath for he wasn't sure how she was going to react to what he had to say to her. "I want you to give me everything you have or know about the jewel," he demanded.

"What? Why?" She cried out, but not loud enough to draw too much attention to them.

Inuyasha let out that breath. He sat down on the ground and motioned for her to sit next to him. "Isn't it obvious? You're a mother. And that means you need to stay here and raise your pups."

"But Inuyasha . . . "she started but he placed his clawed hand over her mouth to stop her.

"Just listen. Okay?" She nodded and stayed quiet. "My father died when I was born. My mother should have died as well because her mate did, but she somehow stayed alive long enough to make sure that I would survive before she passed away. We both know what it is like to grow up without parents. Now I know that they don't have a father. All they have left is you. And I'll be damned if I let anything happen to you again."

Kagome had tears in her eyes. Oh how he hated it. She seemed to always be crying.

"Don't cry," he pleaded with her.

"It's okay. These are good tears. But are you sure? What about your brother? This mission? And me being a draftee?"

"Keh. You don't need to worry about that shit."

"Are you sure?" She asked hoping that she was actually hearing what she had heard him say.

"Of course," he answered back with a smile.

Kagome leapt up and collided into Inuyasha, hugging him as tightly as he could. He wasn't expecting her to react like this and he ended up falling on the ground, with her on top of him. Closing his eyes, he wrapped his arms around her, returning the hug. He felt comfortable with her like this. Burying his nose into her neck, he took a deep sniff of her scent, truly relishing it for the first time.

It was a nice smell. One that didn't disgust him at all. Many women had the smell of sex from selling their bodies to gang members, or blood from all of the killing, and even both. Kagome didn't have that smell at all.

Kagome realized the position they were in. She quickly sat up, and turned away, blushing. "Thank you," she whispered to him.

Their eyes met and the only sound either of them heard was the heavy beating of their hearts. Kagome darted her tongue out to moist her dry, pink lips. Inuyasha's breath hitched at the sight. His hands roamed up her back, cupping her head and back. In one quick push, he had her lips descend down onto his.

The kiss was unlike anything they had ever felt. It was filled with so many emotions, both good and bad, and it filled both of them with a heat that shot straight down to their cores. Kagome's hand tangled into his silver locks as she pulled him as close to her as she could. Her face felt hot from the sudden and new sensation of the kiss.

It was their need for air that ended the kiss. Kagome examined Inuyasha's facial features and only felt the heat in her grow. How long had she been out there? The others would start to worry. Kagome turned her face away, slightly embarrassed but mostly turned on.

Inuyasha blushed as well. He couldn't say anything back. He didn't have to. There were no more words to be spoken about the matter. He made his decision. She was going to stay here and be a mom. He was going to do his duty. To bring peace to the land once and for all. And now he had a good reason to. For Kagome, her children and her family.

So what did that kiss mean?

& & & & & & & & &

For the names of Kagome's children: Takeru means 'warrior' and Amaya means 'night's rain'.

roshully