Chapter 52

Aftermath

Golden eyes snapped open, a loud, gulping breath of air sucked into his lungs simultaneously. Panicking, those gold eyes traveled around, wondering where he was. He noticed another male beside him, going through much the same reaction he just had.

Slowly, memories began flashing, and once the lord realized what had happened, he noticed something completely different. The bond with his mate was dwindling away rapidly. He grabbed ahold of it, making it halt in its retreat, and he knew, he knew Kagome had done something horrible to save them.

He groaned as he pushed himself up, his hand coming to cover his eyes as the entire room suddenly spun. He was weak, weaker than he had ever been before, but the blinding pain he had felt was gone. He had survived.

Thoughts of living had him searching for Kagome, and when his eyes finally landed on her, his heart just about stopped again. She was lying on the floor between them…lifeless. He scrambled from the soft futon, attempting to get to her, but his limbs were making it difficult and just about refusing to hold him up.

Just before he fell, a warm body leaned against his, and he turned to see Amadeus looking towards him. The guard nodded once and, just like that, the two worked together to reach the fallen woman.

She was laying on her back, her breathing minimal. Even his demon eyes had trouble picking it up. It appeared as if she had been reading a scroll when she had succumbed for her hand was still clutching onto it tightly.

Sesshomaru rested himself against his backside once he reached her and, with the help of Amadeus, she was placed in his lap. A large hand cupped her cheek and he was alarmed at how cold she felt. She had always been warm to the touch.

He placed his forehead against hers, begging her to open her eyes. He never even noticed that Amadeus had pulled the scroll from her, or the fact that he had begun reading it. It wasn't until he began cursing that Sesshomaru finally lifted his head from Kagome's and looked at the guard.

"I'm going to kill him myself!" Amadeus yelled, throwing the scroll with all the strength he had. He was still extremely weak so it merely plopped and rolled a few feet away.

"What does it say?" Sesshomaru asked, his voice tight.

Amadeus sent a look towards Sesshomaru that sent shivers down his spine. He knew he wouldn't like the male's answer. "Your father…he gave her a dark spell to help save us."

"Continue."

"In order for it to work, she would have to give a life for a life." Amadeus stated, then let his shoulders slouch. "Your father told her to sacrifice your pup."

The feral growl that filled the room was deafening, and Amadeus couldn't stop a full-body shiver. Touga would never hear the end of what he had sent to Kagome. That was for sure.

"She would not do that." Sesshomaru soothed, placing a hand on her swollen abdomen. He was rewarded with a swift kick, and he sighed in relief. That is until he realized just what Kagome did.

"Then explain how we are here? We should be dead!"

"Is it not obvious? Kagome has sacrificed her life, to save all of ours." Sesshomaru answered, his eyes slowly closing shut. He was still clinging onto the bond with his female and, quite frankly, he felt as if that was the only thing keeping her alive.

"If she lives, I'll fucking kill her!" Amadeus shouted, throwing his hands up as he fell back to the floor. It was silent for a moment before his voice broke through the tension. "Is she even still alive?"

"Barely. If this one was to let go…" Sesshomaru trailed off, not needing to say anymore.

Amadeus understood. He had never been mated before, but he knew of the bond shared between a mated pair. He had witnessed his parents as they interacted, and he knew just how deep such a connection could run. Sesshomaru was now Kagome's lifeline.

"She did it." A voice whispered, and the two males on the floor looked up to see an angry kitsune and a saddened Mikio behind him. "I knew she would sacrifice herself. There was no way she would let the two of you die."

"Who is running the West?" Sesshomaru asked, shocking all in the room.

"Eiichi. How is that even important?" Shippo asked, anger in his voice.

"You will go inform Eiichi of my resurrection. He is the only one to know. You will also inform him that this one's sire is to be locked in his rooms until further notice." Sesshomaru explained, looking back down to his mate. His fingers gently ran across her face, and he silently wondered if this was how she had felt while looking at him.

"I'll write a letter–"

"No, you will fly. It is the quickest way." Sesshomaru ordered, interrupting the kit.

"You can't seriously expect me to leave? Can you even stand on your own?" Shippo argued, holding out a hand to motion at the two males who still looked weak as hell.

"If you are so worried about this one, hurry back. However, you will do well not to question your alpha." Sesshomaru demanded, darkening his voice and letting him know that he would not tolerate any more hesitation.

Shippo turned and left the room, grumbling about mad dogs as Sesshomaru turned to Mikio. It was his turn to receive orders. "Fetch the monk. This one has questions that need to be answered."

"Yes, Milord." Mikio bowed before turning away and leaving without a fight. He wasn't as stupid as the kitsune.

"Was it really wise to leave us unprotected?" Amadeus asked, looking at Sesshomaru.

The lord just glared at the guard before pushing himself to his feet. He was still shaky, and partially unbalanced, but his strength was returning. He set Kagome down on the futon he had awaken from before turning back to the pouting male. Sesshomaru threw Amadeus over his shoulder, then dropped him onto his original bedding, ignoring the insults the guard spat at him.

Just before Sesshomaru crawled back into the bed with Kagome, he noticed something on a table by the screen door. It was a pile of scrolls, and he could clearly see the names written on each one. He froze for a moment, wondering if he should read them or not.

He eventually decided against it, not wanting to jinx his mate's survival. Those were meant to be goodbye letters, however, he would not let his mate say goodbye. Not now. Not ever.

So, he curled back onto the futon, wrapping himself around his mate to try and get some warmth back into her. He hated that she felt so cold, like death. It needed to change, before his own youki went out of control.

His beast wasn't even helping him control it. In fact, he was just sitting in a corner, whining about their lost mate. Sesshomaru kept shouting at him that she wasn't dead, and he was going to do everything he could to save her…no matter what.

It took less than an hour before Miroku showed up. He immediately went to Kagome, looking her over. Sesshomaru only moved far enough away to allow Miroku access. Other than that, he was by her side.

Finally, Miroku sat back, a look of defeat on his face. "I'm sorry, Milord, but what she has done…I am not strong enough to reverse it."

"Is there anything you can do?" Mikio asked before anyone else could.

"No, there….perhaps." Miroku started, stopping as he went deep in thought.

"Well, speak up!" Amadeus snapped, breaking Miroku from his musings.

"There may be a way for you to save her without hurting the baby." Miroku explained, looking towards the lord.

"Anything. Just speak of what this Sesshomaru should do."

"Well, you see, it would be much the same way that Kagome bound herself to InuYasha…only different, and much stronger. You would give her your youki, binding her to you. Normally, such a thing wouldn't be enough, and would just make her resistant to youki attacks, however, you two are already mated, meaning that the bond will be much stronger." Miroku started, pausing again to think.

"How would I do this?" Sesshomaru asked, beginning to lose his temper with the monk. There may be a way to save his mate, and the damn male was cutting in and out.

"It would be the same as when you mated her, only, you would inject her with much more of your youki than you normally would. Almost to the point of where you would kill her. Her reiki would react, sending it towards you, and the bond you share would be heightened. No amount of distance will break the bond, no amount of time can weaken it. Not even death would separate the two of you." Miroku finished, and Sesshomaru looked towards his little mate. So far, he hadn't heard anything he would object with.

"Then it is done." Sesshomaru announced.

However, just before Sesshomaru could sink his fangs into her neck, the monk stopped him. "There are side effects you should know about. Even now, you can feel her pain and emotions, but it is a dimmed version. If you do this, that will no longer be the case. You will feel every emotion, every pain, every tear, as if it was your own. You will be connected beyond any ever before, never to be separated. If she were to die, so would you. The same goes for her as well. She will feel you just as strongly." Miroku warned, watching as his lord pulled Kagome back into his lap.

"So be it." Was Sesshomaru's last words before he sank his fangs into his mating mark.

Instantly, blood filled his mouth, dripping out the corner. He could feel the warm liquid running down her back and over the hand holding her up. His eyes bled red, and he growled lowly as he began to send his youki into her tiny body.

Pulse after pulse entered her, not stopping until he was sure every tiny nerve was filled with his being. Just as Miroku projected, he could feel her reiki pouring into him. It was as if she was crawling around inside of him, searching through every part of him, and he loved it.

It told him that she was still alive.

The bond between them continued to grow, going past what they had before and into something he had never expected. This was something the monk hadn't explained. He could hear Kagome's thoughts, and he listened as she began to wake, wondering what was happening.

He knew the moment she was finally aware, even before she moved. He heard her internal gasp, and then he felt the pain in her shoulder. It was excruciating, and the thought that his own fangs were causing said pain almost made him sick.

However, he didn't remove his fangs. He actually bit down harder, sending more of his youki into her. He would make sure she would survive. Her hand snapped up and tangled in his pair, pulling roughly, and he could hear the gasps of the others.

"Sesshomaru!" Her voice called out, and he knew what she wanted. She wanted him to stop, to pull back his fangs and heal her wound, but he wouldn't.

The monk had said she needed to be filled until she nearly died, and that was what he would do. So, he wrapped an arm around her torso, not allowing her to move, as he pulled her to his chest. He could see Amadeus and Miroku grabbing her legs and holding her down as she began to thrash against him.

He had to admit the pain was getting unbearable, but he only had a little further to go.

Mikio was whispering soothing words to her, a hand placed on her stomach to keep an eye out for the pup. His other hand pushed back the hair from her face, helping her to see better. Just when he thought even he couldn't handle the pain anymore, she finally reached her limit.

He pulled his fangs from her skin, and the pain he felt receded instantly. He began lapping at the wound, cleaning it and helping it to heal. Her hand was still pulling on his hair as she sobbed into his neck, making it difficult for him to heal her.

When it was finally done, he rocked his little mate, thankful that it had worked. He tested out his theory and whispered soothing words in her mind. He knew she heard it because she began to calm almost immediately, even nodding when he silently asked if she was alright.

He got the sarcastic reply that he would never be able to escape her now, and they both chuckled, confusing the others in the room. He didn't even care and, instead, covered her lips with his own.

It was at that moment that they realized everyone had survived. That the power of love each being in that room held for one another was able to bring back everyone from the very close call of death.

What had just occurred should have been impossible… Somehow, though, the two beings currently clinging to each other proved it to be possible. What would they do next?

-sSs-

The whole out-of-this-world bond just kinda happened as I was writing this chapter. I really actually like it. It is something that is new, and I feel like it would take time to get used to certain things, which is what the next chapter will focus on. Just because they accept the new bond doesn't mean they don't wonder what all it can do. I didn't have the heart to kill anyone off so you are all lucky. I seriously contemplated it though. Kagome will also be met with Amadeus's wrath at the entire situation as well. Eventually, Sesshomaru will confront his father and demand answers, but it will be about two chapters out. Outlined, I have a total of fifty-nine chapters for this story, sixty if I write an epilogue, so there isn't much left for you all to read. I hope you enjoyed this chapter.

On a side note, I start school August 29. Its cosmetology school and I'm excited. I feel that it really shouldn't cut into my writing time, but we will see as I progress with my learning. If anyone has attended cosmetology school, I will welcome any advice given.

Shout outs:

Slvrphoenx: I hope this chapter answered a few questions you had. Shippo never would have thought his mother to do something so cruel. In fact the only one who would was Touga.

Relena07: I hope you liked this chapter. I know you were anxious for it.

DarkKitKat: Sometimes stories have tragedies, however this is not one of them.

Wren210: Yea, but not everyone reads my shout outs. I only have a bout three people who do. At least that I know of. Lol.

Guest: I hope this was soon enough.

Kelsie504: It won't. It will start picking up soon, then I will finish it off.

Devadenceofmysoul: Thank you for your kind review.

Rawyyy: No more cliffhangers for a while. I bet you're happy. Lol.

I do not own InuYasha.