A/N: Thank you so much, everyone! :3 You are all so amazing!

DISCLAIMER: All Inuyasha goodness belongs to the amazing Takahashi-san!

The Battle of Heart and Land

By MissKatt

Chapter Thirty-Five: Happiness

"Come on, Sesshoumaru! You're getting slower!" Kagome chimed, running along the field of their beloved lands. Her long hair, which had grown much longer in the past two months, was laced into a braid, swinging behind her as her legs carried her across the grassy area as the sun began to set in the horizon.

He smirked as he watched his miko run from him. His beast enjoyed chasing after their mate, the game both playful and exciting-in a seductive way. This had become their new form of training. The dojo was simply too small for them now. She had become even faster since their physical joining, though it was still of no comparison to his own, and they found themselves running in circles during their sparring lessons. As soon as the first hints of spring began to melt the snow on the field, they had moved their training outside.

She came to a skidding halt and quickly turned towards him, Hogorokkotsu raised in an offensive position. She counted three heart beats before lunging towards him, her thighs beginning to feel the familiar ache of fatigue. She ignored it though, too happy to stop. She swung her sword at him, her sapphire eyes glinting with joy.

She had never been happier in her life. Sesshoumaru made her life feel so…complete. From the first day he took her virginity, and almost every day after that, they had been absolutely amazing. No longer did they have crazy misunderstandings or mishaps. She suspected it had a lot to do with the new, greater strength of their bond. Yes, they bickered every once in a while about country politics or where to increase trade or debating on what was needed for their village and what not, but it was expected with the two of them running the lands. Still, their relationship was better than ever. He had even gone with her to her time and met her family.

"Now, Sesshou, my time is very different from yours. It's loud and Inuyasha used to say that it smelled pretty bad compare to your time." She warned as the blue glow disappeared from the well.

He looked up and saw a wooded roof covering them. It did work; he half expected to still be in his era. He glanced at his miko when he felt her move towards the ladder against the wall. Without giving her warning, he scooped her up and leapt from the well. After he put her down on the ground, he watched as she walked over to the door and slid it open. She stepped out and then turned back to him, smiling at him reassuringly.

Curiously, he walked towards her and blinked as the bright rays of the sun fell upon him and exhaled nosily as the strong scents assaulted his nose. They were so foreign and bitter, yet some were warm and pleasant. The muscles in his jaw tightened when the sounds of 'things' began to scream in his ears. Loud, high-pitched sounds. It was almost like a large bird squawking, but with a higher pitch.

He glanced at the odd stone ground, and then at the few very large huts on the premises. As Kagome grasped his hand and pulled him along the courtyard, he took in everything he could. Everything was so odd and different. They traveled towards a tall hut towards the back of the property and as they did, he got a glimpse of the view of her land beyond the shrine. Where were all the lush green plants? Forests? Pathways for travel? The vast amount of large buildings stood where forests and plants once were; the pathways now a hard, dark substance, with odd moving wagons upon them. He glanced up at the sky. It just wasn't quite as blue as it was back home. Did these humans truly hate what was natural that much? How could his loving mate come from such a hateful place?

Her concern reached him before her words did.

"Sesshoumaru?"

He looked down at her and for once wished she would break their promise to not cross the line into each other's mind. Ever since they had bedded each other, their bond had grown exponentially. If they truly desired, they could glimpse into each other's minds and get an idea of what the other was thinking. They had found this out by accident, by her trying to get his attention when they were in the study. She had been attempting to use the bond, she often liked to experiment with it, to express her desire to question him. She had pushed too hard and she had gained access to his mind, the document he was reading perfectly clear to her. After that, they had tested it and after all had proven true, decided to never do it again, giving the other their privacy.

"Are you okay?" She asked, squeezing his hand tighter.

Clearing his head of the memory, he nodded once. "Your time is…strange." It was not the whole truth of how he was feeling, but he did not want to lie to her either.

"I know it's not as pretty as our lands, but it is my home. This is what I knew first, not running around with youkai," She smiled as she said that. "Now that you're here and your senses are much better than mine, maybe you can find some youkai around here." She was referring to the question he had asked before they were bonded and again before they left.

'Are their youkai in your time?'

She had been unable to answer the question, simply stating that she, personally, had never sensed one, but her powers had never been to what they were now.

He nodded once more and allowed her to continuing pulling him towards her house. He would keep his nose, ears, and aura open to any other youkai that could be around. He refused to believe that humans would outlive youkai. They were all inferior in every way. Well, all but one. He cast a glance at his miko and gave a small smile as she opened the door and announced their arrival.

"I'm back!" She called loudly, bracing herself against him as she removed one boot at a time. She slipped on her house slippers and walked towards the hall closet, rummaging through it for her father's pair. "Ah! I knew Mama still had them." She walked back over to the entry way. She glanced at them and then at her lover's feet and let out a laugh. There was no way that they would fit. "Never mind, just go barefoot."

"Kagome-chan?"Mama asked, coming into the hallway, drying her hands with a kitchen towel. She hadn't seen her daughter since Christmas night! That had been nearly a month ago! "Kagome-chan!" She dropped the towel and rushed towards her daughter, drawing her in for a tight hug.

"Mama!" Kagome happily hugged her mother back, making sure to keep a check on her new strength. She knew she wasn't nearly strong enough to break her, but she didn't want to take any chances with her mother's age. "I've missed you so much!"

"And I you!" She replied and pulled back, blinking when she looked down at her daughter's face, magenta stripes adorning her once flawless cheeks. "Kagome…your face-"

"I know, I know. I have so much to tell you. But, you have to meet someone first!" She smiled and stepped back, grasping Sesshoumaru's hand and tugging him forward. "Mama, this is Sesshoumaru."

"Oh!" Ms. Higurashi said, her hand coming to her mouth as it fell open unintelligently. Her daughter had captured quite the handsome fellow! Where Inuyasha was cute, Sesshoumaru was handsome and strikingly so. She blinked confusingly when she didn't see any triangle ears atop his head. "He doesn't have any dog ears!" She pointed out.

Kagome blushed embarrassingly. "No, Mama, Sesshoumaru is a full youkai."

Realizing that probably seemed rude, she bowed low to him. "It is nice to meet you, Sesshoumaru-sama." Her daughter had told her before that he was a Lord so she remembered to use the honorific.

"The pleasure is mine, Higurashi-san," Sesshoumaru replied, bending into a short bow. He, Sesshoumaru, never bowed for anyone. Even as a pup, he only bowed his head to the Lords and Ladies of other lands. But, this trip meant a lot to his mate and, after the story Kagome told him of her mother helping her escape, she deserved the respect.

Even his voice was sexy! "No formalities here, Sesshoumaru-sama. Please, call me Mama. We are family after all." She said and smiled at him.

"Kagome-neesan!"

The miko turned and smiled wide when she saw her not-so-little brother running towards her. "Souta-chan! Ah! How do you feel? Are you okay? How are you holding up? How's your back? Your head?"

Souta swatted her fussing hand away as it rested on his head. "I'm fine! Good as new!" He said, puffing out his chest. He looked up at his sister and tilted his head when he saw her stripes. "WAH! Mom! See? Kagome got a tattoo, why can't I? Woah! Look at his! Mom, do you see these? I want one!" He said, moving past his sister to look at Sesshoumaru.

"Absolutely not, young man. Wait until you are out of high school. Then we will see." She said, shaking her head.

"So unfair," he pouted and then shook his head. "So, this is Inuyasha's brother? But, he doesn't have any dog ears."

"Half," Sesshoumaru and Kagome replied. They looked at each other and Kagome shot him a brilliant smile, half apologizing for her family's forwardness. She looked back at Souta. "As I was telling Mama, he is a full youkai so he doesn't have them. And they're not tattoos, Souta-chan, they're like birthmarks."

"Then why do you have them?" He countered, eyeing her suspiciously.

She blushed, one of the several memories of their sex life coming to mind. "I-it's a long story."

"Yeah, yeah, whatever." He replied and then turned from them, heading to the kitchen for a snack.

Mama shook her head before smiling at the couple. "Come, I will prepare tea."

She had been so glad that her family had accepted him with open arms. Well, Ji-chan took a little more convincing. Sesshoumaru had personally taken him aside to speak with him (she still didn't know what he did to make her grandfather accept him) and after that he seemed consenting enough. She had been relieved to find that her grandpa did not hold any ill will towards her after the whole Akito thing. They had privately talked about it and he forgave her while asking for his own forgiveness for not knowing how cruel he was to her. And, despite her being mated to a youkai, they forgave each other and resumed their relationship.

So lost in her thoughts, she forgot she was sparring with her mate. Her thin sword was knocked from her hands and she was tackled onto her butt. She huffed and propped herself up on her elbows to look up at his handsome face, knowing she couldn't be mad at him for long.

"Where is your mind at, Mate?" He cooed as he loomed over her, his tone dangerously seductive.

The mischievous glint in his eyes told her all she needed to know, especially with him currently hovering over her from between her legs. She felt her own arousal spike and bit down on her lip when he leaned in closer to her to run his tongue along her bond mark. Her arms quivered under her as his fang soon replaced his tongue.

Not that she was complaining, but they had sex almost every night and if they didn't, it was usually when they were both swamped with business or when she traveled home for two or three days. Her biggest fear was that he would grow tired of it and then her. Her and her insecurities. She almost rolled her eyes at the thought. Still, she hoped he never did.

"You, of course." She breathed, lifting her hand up to run into his silky hair as his hands wound themselves up to her chest.

"Hey, you tw-AH! Come on! Really?! Other people come out here, y'know!" Inuyasha snapped, quickly turning away from the scene of his half-brother atop of his best friend.

Kagome blushed embarrassingly and buried her face in her lover's shoulder. "How embarrassing." She murmured into his haori.

Sesshoumaru smirked at her bashfulness and stood up from her, grasping her hand to pull her to her feet. He turned back to Inuyasha. Even he had to admit, Taku and Tekkan and done a good job at shaping the hanyou into a refined soldier. Sure, he was still infuriating as always, but he was better at fighting and followed orders well enough, sometimes even without a snide comment. "Did you need something?"

Inuyasha turned towards him and furrowed his brow as his face grew serious. "You have an unexpected visitor."

"Unexpected?" Kagome echoed. "They didn't send word of their intent on visiting?" She had been working enough on the politics of the Four Points to know that no one, commoner or royalty, showed up without an announcement or request. That is, unless, they were specifically asked to come, much like Inukimi summoned her and Inuyasha that one life changing day.

"No, but we know her well enough. It's that Sakura bitch from the North," Inuyasha's gold eyes stared at his brother's face. "She's causing a ruckus in the throne room, demanding to talk to you. Now." He balled his hand into a fist. He wanted so badly to say why she was there, but couldn't. He didn't want to be the one to hurt Kagome again, whether delivering news or not, so he was thankful when Sesshoumaru began speaking again.

"Ruckus? Where is Taku?" He asked, eyes narrowing into slits. He thought he was done with the crazy demoness. Did she not take the hint when he dislocated her arm? Or how about when he ignored the countless letters she continued to send him? Was she that ignorant?

"He's tryin' to deal with her. I tell you, she's gone crazy." He replied with a shrug.

The taiyoukai let his eyes flutter shut briefly as he expressed his annoyance. "What does she want?" He questioned, crossing his arms into his sleeves.

Inuyasha hesitated and glanced at Kagome's worried face before looking back at his brother. "Well, uh, I think you should go find out…on your own." He stressed the last part, glancing at his best friend once more.

Taking the hint, he turned to look at his mate. He felt concern and a sense of insecurity coming from the bond. Her eyes did nothing to conceal that fact. "Kagome-"

"I'm going with you." She cut him off, brows furrowed. Whatever Sakura wanted, she could only assume the worst. She wouldn't let her mate deal with the crazy girl on her own.

Sesshoumaru, knowing he wouldn't win when it came to this topic, simply nodded and turned towards the castle, Kagome following close behind him.

"Kagome," The second-in-command of the army spoke up, grasping her wrist. "Don't. You don't want to go."

She whirled around to face him. "Inuyasha, I have to go. I need to deal with this girl once and for all. She keeps harassing Sesshoumaru and I'm beyond over it!" She snapped.

He released her wrist as a flare of pink surged around her, green and purple sparks snapping within it. "But-" he paused when her eyes narrowed at him. He sighed and then crossed his arms over his chest. "Fine, but I warned you."

Her eyes softened and she offered him a small smile before running after her mate, who waited patiently for her, and joined him. She laced her fingers with his as they walked, her hand tightening with nerves. He squeezed her hand back reassuringly, trying to calm her down. He was right; she just needed to compose herself. What damage could she really do?

*~~~BHL~~~*

Kagome sat there, mouth agape. She could not believe this. Absolutely could not. No, no, no! This couldn't be true. It wasn't, right? Someone needed to pinch her and wake her up. She dug her nails into her palm, she felt the bite of the pain, but still she did not wake up from this nightmare. She sat helplessly next to her mate in her matching throne, wide, ocean blue eyes full of nerves.

Sesshoumaru felt his mate's over-whelming anxiety and it did little for his own. He simply could not fathom how it had come to be this way. Well, he knew. He had been careless and got caught up in his own selfish need. He had brought this upon him and his mate. He supposed two months was a good amount of time to be happy; apparently the Kami thought so too and decided that he had enough.

Taku himself was at a loss for words. He couldn't have been any more upset with the Kamis for bestowing this cruel fate upon his favorite couple. They had already endured so much, why add more? "Can you please repeat what happened?" He asked for the fifth time. He was hoping to find some slip up of her story, but the evidence was hard to disprove.

Sakura growled aggravatingly. "Again?" She narrowed her eyes when he growled back in response. "Fine, it was six years ago. As you all know," She glanced at Kagome with a smug smirk. "Sesshoumaru-sama and I were physically involved and for years at that." She tucked her short hair behind her pointed ear. "He cut off our relationship, refusing to have anything to do with me. Shortly after that, I found out that I was pupped with his seed. Four months later, I gave birth to Masaru." She gestured her hand to the little boy standing her.

Kagome's hand tightened again, her nails biting deeper into her flesh, as she stared at the child. There was no doubt that it was Sesshoumaru's heir. His short, cropped, white hair was naturally parted to the side, his golden eyes swimming with confusion and fear. Like his parents, a deep blue crescent moon was on his forehead, two magenta stripes on each of his cheeks. He wore white hakama and a dove gray haori with embroidered blue crescent moons around the neck and sleeves.

Sesshoumaru, smelling his mate's blood, turned to her and glanced down at her clenched hands. He reached out to place her hand in his, forcing her hand to unclench as he held it. He then looked back at Sakura, amber eyes burning with a rage. "And why did you not tell me of my pup?"

She flushed and looked down embarrassingly. "You cast me aside as if I was nothing, Sesshoumaru-sama. I was too fearful that you would disown him as your own. Masaru is so special to me. He is my world. I couldn't have you crushing his by abandoning him. I only came to you now because his questions about his father have increased exponentially; I could deny him no longer."

He snarled angrily, releasing Kagome's hand to rise to his feet. His aura pulsed viciously, causing Sakura to tilt her head to the side and then back, exposing her neck in a sign of submission to him. Masaru cowered back, but his eyes held a tint of awe at his father's raw power. Even Kagome leaned away from the power, but showed no sign of submission. "You dare call me simple minded and weak? Imply I am incompetent of caring for my own pup? My first and only son? You have no one to blame for yourself for denying my son of his father."

Sakura blanched, the color draining from her painted face. "S-Sesshoumaru-sama," She dropped to her knees, pressed her pointer fingers and thumbs together and bowed low to the floor, her forehead nearly touching the stone. "Please forgive this lowly one. I have shamed my family by birthing a pup while being unmated. They only tolerated me because of their love for their grandpup.

"Even brining me to social events such as your Mating Ceremony pulled at their pride. They did not want to bring me in fear that the other Lords and Ladies find out about my shame. They had hope that perhaps you might Bond Mate with me one day, but that was crushed when you took the miko as such. Which of course was not your fault," Kagome ignored the insult as the inu continued. "I do not wish my pup to face the same shame as I. He deserves the world and more. He needs his father to guide him and make him stronger. He needs to be recognized as an heir of the West or face a lifetime of ridicule due to our own deeds."

Masaru gasped when Sesshoumaru looked his way. He realized he was still staring at his father and quickly did the same as his mother, kneeling down in the same position to the side of her. He panicked when he heard steps coming his way. When they stopped, he glanced up and saw him standing in front of him, power radiating off of him in waves. "O-O-Otou-sama." He stammered, bowing his head back down.

"Rise, pup," He commanded and watched as the child leapt to his feet. "Masaru," he tested the word. "Meaning 'victorious'. You will live up to your name; I will make sure of it."

Masaru beamed up at his father. "Hai, Otou-sama! I will not fail you!" He said happily before bowing once more.

He nodded at his newfound son and looked back to check on Kagome. He frowned to see her throne empty. She had already disappeared from the throne room. He glanced at Taku and the general just shook his head before turning to go and find his Lady.

Yes, the Kamis were cruel indeed.

*~~~BHL~~~*

Kagome ran fast and hard through the field, desperately trying to reach the forest so she could hide and get a little bit of privacy. She needed to vent off some anger and soon. She reached a small clearing and clenched her hands into fists before releasing a scream. It was a mix of frustration, anxiety, and loathing. As she screamed her power surged, pink swirling around her in a flurry of power. It made her clothes ripple as if a strong current were under her. It lifted her braid into the air, her bangs flipping about. The purple and green sparks snapped against each other angrily, the pure and evil powers clashing. The force snapped apart her hair tie, her hair unraveling and flooding the air with ebony silk.

After her power flare diminished, she sunk to her knees. Her head lolled down and part of her hair fell over her shoulder. She was completely submerged in her own self-loathing and she knew it. Why was it that as soon as things were perfect with Sesshoumaru, and they were actually happy, did something like this happen? Sesshoumaru had a child. Masaru was his first heir and was not a hanyou. She could never give him that. Ever.

She had read enough history on the Four Points to know that her position as Lady of the West and Sesshoumaru's mate was at great risk. A full blooded inuyoukai female gave Sesshoumaru his first heir. His mate, a miko-youkai…thing, could not give him that! The Elders would have to have a meeting about it and see who the better candidate as Lady of the West was.

She gripped the dirt beneath her, jaw clenching tightly.

She already knew the results.

"Kagome-sama?"

She jumped and turned towards the voice. She saw Taku walk towards her and quickly shook her head. If he came closer and asked if she was okay, she would break down. She hated that quality of being a girl. She could try to have a hold on everything, but as soon as someone asked what was wrong, BAM the flood broke free.

He kneeled down in front of her, taking in her jagged markings. She was obviously upset; he could sense it when she released the flare of power a little bit earlier. He offered her a small smile when she looked up at him, the gold rings around her pupils glowing from the moonlight. She was trying to be strong. "Are you alright?"

There it was. Her eyes swelled with tears and she moved forward, falling into his chest as she began to cry. This was so stupid. 'Stop, Kagome, stop! You're stronger than this!' she thought desperately, but the tears would not listen.

Taku wrapped his arms around his Lady, frowning. He knew her fears and worries. Her position was now threatened. The West could lose the lady they had come to love and adore and, even though they still hadn't admitted it to each other, his best friend could lose the only woman he had ever loved.

Edited on 12/5/15