Disclaimer: I do not own 'Inuyasha' or any of its characters.

A/N: I was listening to "99 Luftballons" while I was writing this chapter and I had some trouble writing him instead of "ihm" because my brain kept singing in German while writing in English. I managed to switch to the correct language at the end – I hope.

I suggest you listen to the song while reading anyway. I know there's an English version, but it's not the same, so if you do be sure to listen to the German one.

More important: Will Inuyasha remain Sesshomaru's heir or not?

Chapter Twenty-Nine: To Find a Solution

"Sesshomaru, what a surprise. It's not often that you are the one to seek me out," Hayato greeted him as soon as he entered the dog demon's office. He closed the door behind and took a seat in front of him while Jaken proceeded to pour them a cup of tea.

Sesshomaru had immediately requested the elder's presence as soon as he had left his brother's rooms. Chie and another maid who had sworn secrecy were cleaning them from the remains and making sure the stench was gone while Inuyasha's family remained in the gardens with the guards.

As usual, his mother had gone for one of her walks with Etsuho. In reality, she was just waiting for some to approach her and ask about the previous night's events. She was able to gather information from the most innocent demon. So be it, maybe she could really give them something useful at the end of the day.

"Hayato."

"Does this unexpected call of yours have anything to do with the screams that were heard coming from the royal wing before sunrise? The whole castle has been talking about it. They've woken almost everyone up. I expect that by the end of the night the whole valley will have heard something. If the truth will actually reach them... well, I can't promise that. You know how it goes, right? You hear all kinds of things," he joked, but Sesshomaru recognized a more serious tone than usual.

"You are right, Hayato. The past night has been…trying." To say the least. It had its toll on Sesshomaru too and not because of the poison he had to ingest – no, it didn't affect him at all – but mentally he felt drained and he was surprised to realize he had felt fear for the pup. Until circa ten days ago he hadn't even seen him once and now, the mere thought of someone trying to kill him made his blood boil. The fact that they had tried in his castle made him more enraged.

Sesshomaru had despised his brother and the miko for so much sometimes he couldn't even remember when it had started. To be earnest, he hadn't really hated Kagome, he was just bothered by her presence next to Inuyasha but he had then recognized her value even though she was still the same annoying girl. But Inuyasha... Sesshomaru had a long way before he could even start to see his half-brother under a different light. It didn't matter if he now recognized his prowess – for a hanyou anyway – it seemed that old conflicts were hard to die.

Yet, here he was worried about their son.

"What happened?" Hayato promptly asked. Like many others, he had been woken up by the cries and had immediately recognized them as coming from Sesshomaru and Inuyasha's rooms. For a moment he had almost thought to reach them but had changed his mind when the screams had stopped even if he could still hearing the pup's cries. He had not been able to get back to sleep and had been pacing back and forth in his rooms consumed with worry. An attack could hardly be ruled out; not everyone had been happy with the new addition to the court, nor with Inuyasha's display on the battlefield. However, Hayato also knew that it was a hazard to reach for Sesshomaru under certain circumstances and he had remained there the whole night until morning had come and a guard had requested his presence in Sesshomaru's office.

That had been the first sign that something had indeed gone wrong; Sesshomaru had never called him personally if not for something urgent or to discuss something away from prying ears.

Now, in his presence, he could easily sense his unstable aura and the anger he exuded. What could have happened to reduce him like that? Sesshomaru was always collected, no matter what. Even when his father had died, he had remained impassive and had taken over unceremoniously.

Oh, well, Toga surely would have been surprised to see this other change in his eldest.

"Hayato," Sesshomaru started looking at him straight in the eyes, "what I am going to tell you must not come out of this room. There is no risk of eavesdroppers here so I expect you to keep the silence."

"Of course, Sesshomaru, who do you take me for? You know me," he answered slight struck by his lack of trust.

"Hn. Do not take it personally," Sesshomaru added noticing Hayato's posture change at his request. "Tonight someone tried to kill my brother's son." There was no point in beating around the bush, better to get straight to the point.

The hawk demon immediately stiffened, "What?"

"You heard me. I was still in this very office conversing with my mother when we heard my brother's cries. Upon my arrival there, I barely prevented the priestess from touching the very weapon that had been used against her son. The pup was encased in a well-constructed cocoon, a caterpillar beside him. No one had noticed until the pup had started crying."

"They dared…"

"Hn. They didn't lose time and they probably thought to use the son's death against the father."

"How is he? And Kagome-sama?" The screams that been heard throughout the castle had been Inuyasha's then. From the little he had learnt about the couple, he could very well imagine what was going on in their minds right now. Besides, Inuyasha seemed to be very impulsive, much like his father before him; he couldn't believe he hadn't killed half of the court in a blood rage in retaliation yet.

"The pup is out of danger. I personally took care of it. Later, my father's old vassal had assured us that no trace of venom is in his blood anymore. He had been lucky, indeed. Apparently much like every other demon, he reacts strongly when in danger, even if he's only a quarter."

"How did you exactly take care of it, Sesshomaru?" He astounded him the demon in front of him had been the one to help the little Lord. After all, he had neglected his brother for all his life and now he was worried about his nephew? It was very much clear to Hayato that Sesshomaru hadn't been indifferent to the attack.

An improvement for the usual cold and uncaring dai-youkai.

Sesshomaru hesitated for a moment then offered the answer. "I sucked the venom from his blood."

That astounded Hayato even more. "You sucked it? For the love of Gods, Sesshomaru! It must have been extremely painful for the pup." Not to mention that never, in his many centuries, he would have imagined Sesshomaru doing something like that, actually drinking mixed blood.

"Hn. It was the only solution available. We did not have time. The sniffer confirmed that this vermin's venom acts very fast and by the time I arrived – a couple of minutes after the bite – the pup was already showing sign of paralysis and it was affecting his voice too, not to mention the rash."

"It makes you honour, Sesshomaru. You saved your brother's son. But, tell me, why isn't Inuyasha going on a rampage right now?"

The dog demon smirked in response, "I didn't very much, if anything I angered even more."

"As it was expected from you."

Sesshomaru pinned him with a dark glare and Hayato only chuckled. "However… let's say that the fact both his mate and son needed him kept him grounded. I still made my point clear; he cannot go and kill half of my court."

"Well, at least you can let him exert his revenge on the one who is responsible for the attack on his son."

"He cannot," Sesshomaru interrupted the elder before he could continue. "It was not possible to trace its master, thus the impossibility to publicly condemn a demon."

"And how do you suggest calming him down then, Sesshomaru? He will be restless until someone pays for it! You may not be a father, but as a demon and a father myself, I know very well what is currently going on in his mind, not to mention his inner demon. You cannot hope to restrain him for long!"

"I know… he wants to leave the West forever," he confided to Hayato.

"Understandable," Hayato agreed, "but that won't cease their problems anyway and Sesshomaru... I don't think this is a good idea. Sure, if they tried to kill his son, whoever struck wanted them out of their way."

"Hn. That's what the priestess said too and the reason why I called you here." Hayato raised his brow, "I want you to help me coming up with a suitable solution."

"And what you expected me to do?" he laughed. "A hawk has never been a better sniffer than a dog. I cannot find the responsible either."

"Hayato, you know better than me that Inuyasha cannot back down anymore. Not after all the trouble I have gone through to assure he was accepted as my heir. However, in our current situation, he won't come back. I know him, not even his mate will convince him." He stopped and then deemed it safe to add something more, "He didn't want to accept my proposition in the first place for this very reason. He doesn't feel safe here and they had only proved him right."

"Wait… you mean to tell me that you two didn't decide together to make him the heir, you asked him to do it for you?" It was obvious the boy was enraged now! The elder had been surprised at first to learn that the two brothers had buried the hatchet and decided to get along to rule the lands that were once under their father's rule, especially not expecting the younger one to forgive his brother so easily. Yet things seemed to be going well between the two, or at least that was the impression they had given. However, after this revelation, Hayato realized that he had been fooled like everyone else. If that was indeed the case, then there was reason to believe that the relationship between the two was still strained. And now, some days later Inuyasha's accession, there had been an attempt on his son's life. How did Sesshomaru expect his brother not to fly away and never look back?

"I do not want to hear you, Hayato. I acted according to very precise plans."

"You acted according to your own agenda!" Hayato rebutted. "And now you want me to convince him to stay here even if your people already showed him what they think of their kind. Let me guess, wasn't this one of the reasons he didn't want to accept? Well aside from the fact that I understand very well why he would be uninclined to help the brother who let him live in the forest alone as a pup in the first place."

"I said... I do not want to hear you. I think you already said too much after my father's death." Oh, Sesshomaru remembered very well the lecture Hayato reserved him. For decades he refused to speak to him after that, and even during council meetings he merely gave his consent or denial to Sesshomaru's proposals – mostly his denials – and had never forgiven him for his choice to abandon his brother, his father's son.

"And you didn't learn anything, apparently. Do you not care about your nephew, Sesshomaru? Would you like them to succeed next time?" he taunted him.

"Of course I do!" Sesshomaru exclaimed, "That's why I am asking you for your cooperation. Help me find a solution to make this place safer for Inuyasha's family and he will not have to renounce his title."

"Are you doing it for you or your brother?"

"Both."

"Well, at least you're sincere." Sesshomaru snorted in response. "Very good. I think we can find something that suits our case. I'd like to see them again and it would be a pity if they left for good, not to mention that you must never give in to your opponents. Listen to me…"

Inuyasha was lying on their fresh-cleaned futon with his mate and son deeply asleep in his arms. According to both Kagome and Myoga, Muteki would sleep a lot more in the incoming days, only waking up to eat. His skin was still very cold and very pale but he remembered very well when his mate and friends had risked dying because of the Poison Master and how they felt. He couldn't remember ever feeling so desperate and so guilty; even Kikyo's alleged betrayal at the time hadn't stung as much. The relief at hearing Kagome's voice again, after so much anguish and after being ready to end it with the band of seven, had been so much that it had brought him to tears – he that never cried since his mother's death – and now he was forced to feel the same with his son too.

The predominant feeling now was guilty, because no matter how much he blamed Sesshomaru, he was the one who had to protect his son and he had failed – again. His son was next to him and he had failed! How could he live in this damn place if he couldn't even sleep without fearing for his son and mate? His life had changed since Naraku's defeat, he no longer felt the need to sleep with an open eye and he faced fewer threats. He had a home and as such, he felt safer. Coming here though...

It made him feel like he was in constant danger again, like he had to defend his life every second and after feeling the difference, after understanding what it meant to really live, he didn't like it one bit. Not to mention that this time he had two other lives to defend and he had no intention of letting them experience the same trials he had dealt with. Always having to keep his eyes open and his ears perked up, moving in a cunning way to avoid attracting attention, hiding in the shadows... it was the kind of life he'd been living until he'd met Kikyo; he'd been forced to. When he'd made Kagome his mate he'd also promised to give her the kind of life she deserved and that certainly wasn't it. Yet Sesshomaru had arrived and messed up all his plans.

Inuyasha was gently trailing his claws through Kagome's hair and was so lost in thought that in the beginning, he didn't notice her waking up.

"Hey," she murmured, raising her face to offer him her lips. Inuyasha gladly accepted and gave her a feathery kiss being mindful of the pup nestled between them; none of them had been willing to let him go and he predicted it would be long before they let him sleep away from them.

"Hey you. How are you feeling?"

She shrugged in response. Saying better wouldn't have been right and he would sniff her anyway; besides, her face gave away how she felt.

Drained. Terrified. Dehydrated.

"I wouldn't mind a glass of water," she mumbled. It was obvious she was feeling like that after all the tears she had shed. She could have actually cried some more but she didn't think she had some left. She peered down at her son and felt his cold skin under her lips; cold was always better than feverish.

"Here," Inuyasha said while handing her a cup of water.

They looked into each other's eyes for a few minutes before one of them decided to speak.

"So..."

"So..."

"Kagome, I..."

"Look, Inuyasha..."

She giggled immediately after and then stole another kiss, "Go on. I already know you won't like what I have to tell you so I am giving you the possibility to tell me everything now."

"Bossy woman," Inuyasha grumbled. "Kagome, I do not feel safe here. I had my reservations before, but now everything has become worse. I can't keep feeling this fear of someone attacking you two every time we are required here at court or living with anxiety, do you realize that's not healthy, don't you? I said goodbye to that kind of life when we got married and I'm not going to start again."

"I know, I understand that, but what about what we talked about before coming here? What about what Sesshomaru told us on the other side of the well? Leave now means not coming back ever. What makes you sure we would be safe then? Right now the whole West knows us and if someone would want to hurt us it would be easy to come looking for us. As you said, we are used to living in a certain way in the village and we aren't always vigilant as we should."

"What should I do then? Should I spend an infinity of nights like the one just passed? Do you realize what happened 'Gome? My heart stopped, I thought it was the end for Muteki when I saw him like that. He only has six months and if it wouldn't have been for that fucking fluke – because that was, in what other way could you explain the fact that a newborn was able to call for his spiritual powers – he would have died eaten away by the damn caterpillar's acid. I'll be anxious about for the next several weeks, heck probably months, and you tell me I should keep going on as Sesshomaru suggests? Stay in this place of misfits and try our luck?" It was damn difficult not to raise his voice while his heart threatens to burst out of his chest at the mere thought of what could have happened.

Kagome smiled contritely and cupped his cheeks, locking her eyes with his. "No, I'm not asking you to live a life like that, Koibito. I'm not asking you to stay here now after the attack when, if I must be sincere, my nerves wouldn't stand that too. I want to leave too but at the same time I know we have some responsibilities and as such we must respect them."

"Damn you and these damn promises you make me do," he mumbled.

"You did it for little Rin, remember that."

"It doesn't mean I am willing to put yours and our son's life at risk," he rebutted.

"You won't. Look, Inuyasha, I am offering you a solution, one Sesshomaru won't refuse."

"Let's listen then."

"Muteki and I will stay at home every time your presence will be requested here until the well will close. We will stay on the other side with mom e you'll do what you have to do here. I am not the heir, I have no task at the moment and Sesshomaru can't force me to stay. This way you'll be sure we are safe and you won't breach the terms."

"That bastard won't like it, you know all his bullshit about appear and showing yourself in a certain way blah, blah, blah." He rolled his eyes and snorted.

"So what? I can't blame you. You'll see he will even be glad to have at least averted a bloodbath."

"What then? What when staying at your mother's won't be an option anymore? What will we be doing?"

She shrugged, "We will think about it then, it's not important now."

"Kagome…," he gave her a pointed look, "just another year and you'll be finished with school. A year is not much."

"A year is enough to think about a better solution and make sure nothing like this happens again."

"Those bugs will always find the way to come crawling here," he hissed raising his hands, "how in the seven hells can you underestimate everything when you still have your eyes red from crying and the skin pale from shock? Because, believe me, I who held you trembling in my arms while Sesshomaru literally sucked the poison from our son's body can't do it."

"I'm not fucking underestimating anything, Inuyasha!" she burst out. He instinctively took a step back seeing her blazing eyes and hearing her cursing. "I'm trying to find a solution, something you aren't doing. You can't back off and even if you could I wouldn't let you because you can't change the future and this is what you'd do if you abandon Sesshomaru now."

"You can't talking about changing the future if something still has to happen for us, we aren't speaking about a future version of ourselves that messes up with our life like in those movies you make me watch."

"Considering that I come from the future I think that everything about changing the future suits our case."

Inuyasha ran his hands through his hair, exasperated, why the hell hadn't Sesshomaru stayed and minded his own fucking business for once? Why did he always have to mess up his life? Two hundred years of silence and then he comes bugging him just when he's finally found a way to live comfortably. Typical. "I don't know, Kagome, I don't know."

"I'm offering you a solution. I'm telling you that we won't be coming to the palace anymore, it doesn't matter if they request it. We will stay with mama and then if you want it, we will accompany you or we will stay at the village properly protected, but you can't give up now that we are on the right path," she pleaded with him, her eyes shining and the bottom lip trembling.

"Damn, Kagome, don't look at me like that." Now he felt like a bastard and an egoist even if he had no reason to.

"Like what? Like I'm begging you not to mess everything up? To understand that even if I'm scared shitless I'm still willing to keep going on and not giving in to those bastards out there? Do you think I don't share your fears? Yet I'm not backing out and the Inuyasha I met and fell in love with never did, he always jumped into the fray, even too much if I have to say so."

"The Inuyasha you met was completely different and didn't have a son and a mate to protect!"

"Pft, Please! That Inuyasha is still here!" she told him laying a hand on his heart, "You grew softer but you're still reckless and hot-headed, the Inuyasha who doesn't know the meaning of the word 'fear'. And, if we must say, you've always had me to protect and that never hindered you, if anything, it gave you more strength. That's what you have to do it now, draw more strength and courage from this situation, raise your head and show those out there who you really are. Weren't you saying the same before your spar with Shou? Everyone cheered you yesterday. Don't give in to those people because you know better than me that it will always be someone who will oppose the half-demon and the priestess he took as his wife. This here is not you, Inuyasha."

He closed his eyes and brought her flush against him, tucking her head under his chin, "No, it's not me, you're right. But can you blame me if I fear for my son? The Inuyasha you freed from his slumber in the Goshinboku was reckless and didn't know what the word 'fear' meant, but the Inuyasha who was travelling with Kagome learn it the moment that stubborn and equally irresponsible girl dared to challenge the big bad dog demon."

"And in fact, you were the sweetest thing of the two eras those times you lowered your defences and showed concern for me," she told him snuggling against his chest, "those are the moments that kept me going and told me that you cared about me despite the gruffness and taunting words."

"Keh. I was stupid and immature, unable to face my feelings."

"We are speaking about only two years ago," she pointed it out to him, "you are not so much mature now."

"Oi! Take it back! I've matured, all right!" he told her nipping at her lobe in retaliation.

She giggled and fidgeted in his arms, "Sure, sure you are. You show me that every time you fight with Shippo for the last rice ball."

The rest of their stay continued without too many hiccups. Eventually, when Kagome proceeded to explain her proposal to Sesshomaru, they found it the dog demon himself had one for them.

They discovered that he had spoken with Hayato about everything that had happened and the elder had suggested that since there was no way to point it out a responsible but they still have clear evidence of the attack they could still request to eliminate every nest of dangerous insect they could find in the West.

In short, Hayato explained, this kind of request couldn't be refused by the other elders. They had proof that such a thing could harm any demon in the valley – the sniffers themselves had stated so – allowing someone to grow such a bug in the western lands was a danger to anyone living there.

After a subsequent council meeting - which it must be said had been very interesting indeed - they had proceeded to instruct the sniffers to search the dwelling of every insect demon in the valley, and it was no surprise to discover that the only one breeding such creatures was a beautiful butterfly demon who attended Noboru's circle.

Inuyasha had tried to persuade Sesshomaru and the elders to condemn at least Tsubasa because the insects were found on her dwelling but they had said that since none of them had found proof that the demoness was behind the attack she couldn't be accused. In the West, everything worked through direct proof of someone's involvement, without that they couldn't do much and even if they tried to condemn her she could say as a defence that the caterpillar had acted on its own.

It had been difficult for someone accustomed to execute his own revenge to accept such a thing.

Eventually, it had been necessary to publicly reveal the attack on little Muteki, and while some had been indifferent or even disappointed that nothing good had come of it, many others had expressed disgust at the event and expressed their displeasure. In particular, many who knew what it was like to be a mother and fear for their little ones had immediately rushed to make sure the pup hadn't risked a relapse.

Of course, one had to wonder how much of their concern was real, but Kagome had been quiet in their presence, so had Muteki, so Sesshomaru hadn't given it that much thought.

When, finally, the two sniffers who had found the nest attempted to destroy it, Tsubasa had vehemently opposed it stating that in no way would she allow two dogs to destroy her young. She had been on the verge of attacking them but luckily for them, at that point, Sesshomaru and Inuyasha had intervened.

"Would you perhaps wish to oppose orders approved by your council, Tsubasa?" Sesshomaru had asked her, his tone lethally glacial.

"I don't recall the seamstress being asked to kill all of her bugs, so why should they kill mine?" she had replied enraged, not even realizing the way she was addressing the Inu-no-Taisho.

"Asagi's young produce demonic silk, Tsubasa, the same one you are currently wearing. They have not been considered harmful. Yours, on the other hand... were the only ones in the entire valley that shared the same characteristics as the caterpillar responsible for the attack on my nephew. Should I have reason to hold you equally responsible, Tsubasa?" He had raised an eyebrow questioningly and waited for her to defy him. If she gave him reason to throw her into the dungeon or, even better, give her to Inuyasha to do with as he pleased, all the better.

"You don't have any proof! You found no connection."

"Still, does not it strike you as odd that all traces with their master has been erased and the only one with certain companions is you?" had continued the dog demon undaunted in the hopes that she'd let something slip. Sesshomaru didn't think she was that stupid, but perhaps anger could cause her to make an error in judgment.

"One word, Lady, and I could have you executed in a matter of minutes," Inuyasha had spat out, eyes blazing and body trembling with rage. "I only need you to give me proof and it would be very easy. If you insist on sparing the lives of your little ones then you make us think that you have an interest in raising these wretched creatures, is that the case?"

"I have no connection for what happened to the little Lord," she had said through gritted teeth.

"Very well. So you'll have no problem letting my sniffers eliminate a possible threat to the entire valley. Then again, we would not want one of your young to accidentally escape your control and attack someone else, would we?" he had signalled the two behind him to proceed, and shortly after Tsubasa had had to watch in anger as his precious cocoons were destroyed.

Reluctantly, Sesshomaru had also accepted Kagome's proposal, as long as Inuyasha kept his part of the deal and came to West periodically. After that, they stayed for only a couple of days, the dai-youkai kept explaining to his brother all of his duties and showing him around, while Kagome usually spent most of her time with Asuka, sometimes Kimi too. They both have a greater overview of the whole castle and valley now and when they were together Kagome liked to go for a walk, exploring the several gardens and green patches that could be found. People around them had tried to get to know them better and some others seemed less suspicious now that Inuyasha had at least shown a part of his strength. Apparently, they believed Sesshomaru when he had told them that Inuyasha had still a lot to show them. Unfortunately, it's not like he could use one of his attacks without damage and Kagome was sure the dai-youkai wouldn't have appreciated if his brother was to destroy part of the keep.

Besides, knowing that the half-demon was stronger than he gave away, kept most of them on their toes and refrained them from being reckless. Most of them was trying to observe the couple in silence and learn everything they could, some probably with ill intents too.

Still, their outings were limited and Kagome preferred to spend her days in her private garden rather than in one of the outdoor ones; the scare had been great and while it certainly helped a lot that Tsubasa's cocoons had been destroyed, it would take time for them to fully relax and both she and Inuyasha continued to be very suspicious.

They didn't hear from Noboru anymore during the time they spent there, but they have heard there had been a huge fight between him and Tsubasa. It was probably they would keep it low now, especially after the bug fiasco and showing himself openly against the now royal family wouldn't benefit them. On the one hand, it was also good that Noboru didn't show up during those last days in the West because Kagome was convinced that Inuyasha wouldn't have been able to hold back and would have beaten the crap out of him despite Sesshomaru's warnings.

Shou's family had preferred to avoid them as well and every time Kagome met Keiko and her ever-present two friends, they changed their way or avoided her eyes. Shame was a lot for now. Sesshomaru and his mother were both convinced that this kind of behaviour wouldn't last long anyway. It wasn't the first time they acted like this when something had gone wrong for them; it didn't matter what precisely had happened, they always went back to being the same. Years had proved that they weren't the type to give up easily and much to Kimi's dismay Shou was a hell-bent man on a mission. The dog demoness herself almost wanted to press her son in taking a mate to shake off the Commander and his daughter.

In the end, they had also forgotten that the new moon was coming while they were still in the West. Inuyasha had proposed to hide in their bed chambers all night without revealing themselves, not even to his brother. Kagome had replied saying that he needed to know it because, if he stayed in the dark, he could even schedule their meeting during one of this night and they couldn't risk it. What if one of these nights he was alone in the castle without even her help? Kagome couldn't stomach the mere thought. This way, instead, Sesshomaru could help him avoiding suspicions.

When Inuyasha had finally given in, Kagome had called Sesshomaru within their private chambers, dismissing their guards like every time they had reunited with him, and they had explained the problem at hand. Sesshomaru had reassured them saying that while tonight they couldn't do anything, he would at least help them covering the absence of Inuyasha's aura. They had done the right choice, he had told them and appreciated the trust they put in him. He had then assured that the ones who knew that such a thing occurred to half-demons were most certainly few because very little was known about their nature, he himself didn't know that Inuyasha turned human once a month. Finally, when he had inquired if something similar happened to Muteki, they had explained that since he was a quarter demon probably the same thing didn't apply to him. They couldn't be sure of that because they never knew of a half-demon having children with a human, but until now Muteki had never changed so they thought there weren't risks.

Then, much to their relief, the day of their departure came.

"Are you leaving today then, Kagome-sama?" Osamu inquired that morning.

"Yes, Osamu. I can't wait to come back home," she squealed happily, "even if it means I'll have to go back to my studies." The school would start again in a few days, after all. "And then I miss everyone. It's been more than seven days and I haven't seen my babies yet. I hope Shippo didn't burn down the house with his foxfire too," she started babbling. Not to mention she would gladly start to sleep better again, something she couldn't currently do here.

Inuyasha had agreed when she had proposed to spend the rest of her holiday in the future; even in the village, they would likely still have some problems, at least at the shrine they hadn't to fear other demons.

"I'm sure a simple yes would have supplied just fine, koi." Inuyasha came to the guards' help. "You're coming with us to the main gates? We already said our goodbyes to Sesshomaru and his mother. Jaken is bringing us Ah-Uh there."

"Yes, Inuyasha-sama. We are still your guard until you leave the West."

"Let's go then," he said while adjusting Muteki in his sling. It seemed the pup didn't want to leave him this morning.

When they reached the gates Jaken was waiting for them impatiently while Ah-Un was resting peacefully with both of his heads laid down on its front paws. They came closer and Inuyasha noticed that the guard they had met the first time was taking care of this turn again. Inuyasha smirked, maybe he could show off a little bit in retaliation.

"Jaken!" he shouted, enjoying the way the imp leapt up. During this week he had had his fun with him, getting revenge for all those times the imp had thought he could show off to him in the past just because he was Sesshomaru's lackey. He had made it clear that things were going to change from now on and that he couldn't be so obnoxious with them anymore. If everyone in the keep should show them respect, then Jaken would have to be the first one. Besides, Sesshomaru had made the little demon understand that he should also obey any of their orders. Jaken had grimaced at that and Inuyasha had started having his fun. Maybe he would get bored sooner or later, but Inuyasha didn't think that would happen soon. "We are leaving, have you adjusted the saddles on Ah-Un?"

"Yes, my Lord!" he screeched, bowing to him even if with some reluctance. Inuyasha walked towards him, completely ignoring the guards at the gate and caressing the dragon as a greeting. Muteki immediately started squirming in his sling, waving his hands towards the two-headed demon, requesting to be put on his back. Inuyasha brought him closer, letting his pup caressing the dragon too. It had only taken one day for Muteki to fully recover. Myoga's miracle remedy plus the powerful demon blood coursing through his veins had worked wonders, much to his parent's relief.

The scene was so cute that Kagome wished she could take a picture of it; maybe if she still had a camera at home in the village she could take one there and show it to her mother later.

Finally, everything was ready and it was time for them to leave.

"Osamu, Kichiro, it had been a pleasure getting to know you. Thanks for everything," Kagome told them. They bowed and assured that it had been their honour serving them, they will gladly do it again next time they were coming to the West. When the family of three was finally settled on Ah-Uh, Kagome waved goodbye before they started their flight back home.

Finally, they would leave evil plots, nasty bugs and unpleasant ladies behind.

"Shippoooo!" Kagome called as soon as they arrived home. It had taken them another day and a half to make it back because they still had to feed and change Muteki every two hours circa and stop when the pup was tired of staying up in the air.

A red and blu blur was seen and just a second later Shippo had jumped into Kagome's arms. "Kagomee! I'm so happy you're back! We all miss you and we're a little bit worried about you going to West and Sesshomaru being the usual bastard and other full demons being nasty and..." he bubbled. Kagome hugged him in response.

"We're ok Shippo, each of us. We are going to explain everything when Miroku and Sango come here or we could all go to Kaede's like old times."

"Don't you think it's gonna be a little bit too crowded now?" Inuyasha interjected.

"I know, but I don't want to tell the story more than once..."

Inuyasha huffed and then passed Muteki to Shippo. "You do your thing, I'm going to tell Miroku to come here and then retrieve both Kaede and Rin. We have plenty of space here, there's no need to fill the old hag's hut."

"Wow!" Shippo exclaimed as soon as they have finished their story. "You defeated him in front of all those people? That would have been so fun to watch." The kit crossed his arms and pouted, "I wish I could have been there too. Can I come with you next time, Inuyasha? Please!" he jumped on his shoulder and tried to convince him.

"I don't see why not, runt. Next time I'll go without Kagome, so you can come with me. There won't be a problem with you being a demon and all," Inuyasha explained. Maybe it was for the best too. Sure, Shippo spent time with other fox demons when he went for training but the half-demon figured that it will be good for him to try and live in a different environment for once.

"Why are you going alone, Inuyasha? I thought you'll still have to go as a family," the monk asked.

"Well, maybe if someone hadn't tried to kill my son we would have," he grumbled, fist clenching and eyes bleeding red.

"WHAT?" Everyone gasped and a moment later more than one set of eyes turned to look at the baby currently nested in his mother's arms.

Inuyasha recounted the events of that dreaded night and Sango's tears and Miroku's rage didn't come as a surprise.

"And you're still going back there after that?" Miroku asked befuddled.

"It's not like they give me so much of a choice," Inuyasha huffed crossing his arms. "At least Kagome will stay at her mother's every time I have to go back and we killed every damn bug in the valley even though we couldn't kill the wretched butterfly. No evidence that pointed out to her." His aura darkened at the mere thought.

"And they are right," Kaede interjected. "Ye accepted your role and as such, ye can't go back. It pains me, however, to hear of the attack on the little one."

"I wish I didn't have to relive the experience, it was awful! And Myoga wasn't even there at the time," Kagome admitted with shining eyes fixed on her son.

"You won't have koi." Inuyasha tightened his grip on her and then placed a kiss on the top of her head. "There will be no next time and I'll find the way to kill Noboru and his lover even if Sesshomaru told me not to. I'll show him what my Tessaiga can do, the spar with Shou was nothing! I am well aware of the dangers that still lurk in the shadows, that's why I'll make sure 'Gome won't be coming so much until the well closes. The longer I can keep them in a safe place the better."

Kagome huffed and bumbled something that appeared similar to "bossy mate" and "I can't take care of myself just fine."

"I'm sure of all of it, Inuyasha. You like to show off, after all," Miroku commented. Inuyasha glared at him.

"Kagome-chan," Rin chirped, "Do you think I'll have the possibility to visit the place where Sesshomaru-sama lives too?" her gleaming eyes held so much hope that it wouldn't have been impossible to give her a negative answer, even if she hadn't known her future yet.

"I'm sure, Rin. Don't worry. You just have to grow up," she winked. Both Kaede and Inuyasha looked at her disapprovingly and she huffed, avoiding their eyes. Kaede didn't like Kagome to give the child false hopes and Inuyasha was afraid she could let herself slip something that she shouldn't. Not to mention that there was no way Sesshomaru would have let Rin come even an inch closer to the castle after having seen what people tried to do with them.

"Well, at least you managed to resolve everything and I am happy to see you back, my friends. Now our life in the village can come back to be the same again." Miroku patted Inuyasha's shoulder.

And it would be, at least for the next few years, even if life for Inuyasha and Kagome would never really return to what it was before.

A/N: The first trip to the West is officially concluded!

If you wanted Inuyasha or Sesshomaru to kill Noboru and Co. I am sorry but I have plans for them so they will keep us company a little more.

Sesshomaru and Inuyasha were a little OOC here but I wanted to stress their reactions to the attack. In particular, I managed to paint the dynamics between Inuyasha and Kagome exactly as I wanted, Inuyasha is certainly not a wimp and doesn't run away from anything or anyone so I welcomed Kagome reminding him of that.

And no, obviously this won't be the last time for Kagome and Muteki in the West, of course, but for now, we had to reassure Inuyasha, didn't we?