Nova looked up and saw the unmistakable roof of the well house of the Higurashi Shrine as she sat on the dirt of the dry well. Khendon was sitting on his haunches beside her, silent as she processed everything. No one had been waiting and no one had come so far.
Khendon made a quiet whine and she sighed before using the ladder to pull herself to her feet. Khendon moved to place his front paws on her back and she held his paws before jumping out of the well and set her companion down. Fixing her cloak so it was closed and the hood was up to hide her ears, she slid open the door of the well house.
She half expected the six soldiers who had been shadowing her the past several months but sighed, seeing the courtyard empty. Sighing again, she made her way to the residential building where her aunt for all intents and purposes was, the hint of her pure energy pinpointing her position in the kitchen. Not sure what to expect, she knocked on the door and felt Aiko Higurashi moving towards the door.
"Hello... Nova...?"
"Hey Aunt Aiko," Nova whispered, giving her a weak smile.
"Why did you knock?" She asked as she stepped back for them to come inside. "Kagome had spoken of you several times on her visits back. She was under the impression that you weren't coming back through."
"Unfortunate circumstances required me to," Nova frowned as she pulled back her hood and her ears twitched. "I heard that my boss had been coming by regularly?"
"Oh, you are hanyou..."
"Aunt Aiko..." Nova groaned as a pair of hands immediately gravitated to the ears on top of her head.
"Yes," Aiko spoke, reluctantly pulling away. "The same time every single day, but the past week it has been more frequent. He put out the missing person notice so why would he be coming here and bring your phone?"
"Guess Kagome forget to explain that. Apparently he is actually Inuyasha's older Inuyoukai brother. His past self is the one that has cared for me and a couple months ago, we mated... married, but until time merges, the past and the present have two separate realities."
"Oh...?"
"My boss never mated the version of me in his past but as events have happened to me, he receives flashbacks."
"That would be a lot to process, would you like some tea?"
"No, where is my phone?" Nova winced as pain pulsed through her body. "Side effect of mating with a Youkai, too much time apart and our bodies actually start feeling pain from the withdrawal of each other's energy... more so for me than him..."
"Why?" Aiko asked as she hurried into the kitchen and she followed to see her pull her phone off a charging dock and held it out.
"Because of this," Nova sighed as she opened her cloak to reveal her swollen belly that made her look to be about 20 weeks.
She watched as her aunt's eyes widened before she fainted and Nova caught her easily before she hurt herself. Chuckling weakly, she dialed the number for her boss and put it to her ear as Khendon managed to get Aiko on his back and carried her over to the couch. As Khendon got her on the cushions, she adjusted her as she head the line pick up.
"Hello? Mrs. Higurashi?" she heard the familiar voice and huffed.
"I'm back, sir," Nova spoke and heard a sharp intake of breath.
"I will be there in a moment," she heard him say softly before the line went dead.
"I hope he suffered greatly from all those flashbacks," she muttered and heard Khendon huff in amusement as she pulled the cloak off completely and draped it over the back of a chair before hearing a knock on the door. Feeling her Youkai flair in recognition, she walked over and cracked the door open to see her boss standing there, breathing hard but in his concealed form. "Hello sir."
"Nova..." he nodded and she stepped back so he could enter and closed the door before turning to face him and his eyes studied her before focusing on her stomach. "I was under the impression that you were going to remain in the past..."
"Touran made a call as my pain was no longer able to be hidden. Those aware were worried about the pups," Nova replied as he knelt before her and pressed his nose to her belly. "They're in the middle of what I can only hope is the final battle so I couldn't go to him this time. I have a feeling that the well will close before I am able to return. I am unsure of what will happen when it does, memories and events..."
"We will take it as it comes," Sesshomaru spoke as he finally returned to his feet and she rolled her neck, no longer in pain and he stepped back. "Until you know what it is you want from myself, I will remain respectful of your space."
"Let me guess, flashback of me yelling at Kagome at your private residence?"
"Yes."
"Nova...?" She walked around Sesshomaru to see Aiko sitting up slowly.
"Are you okay, Aunt Aiko?" Nova asked as she sat beside her.
"Overwhelmed. My niece is half daemon and is pregnant with a baby that is most likely three quarter daemon..."
"Babies," Nova chuckled and Aiko's eyes widened. "Two heartbeats can be detected by Youkai senses."
"Oh... so what happens now...?" Aiko asked as her eyes glanced over to her boss.
"Sesshomaru, you can drop the concealment. I told her about you when she inquired why you were coming so frequently," Nova spoke and he simply removed the ring from his right hand, his silver hair flowing down to his knees. "As for what happens now, I'm unsure. There is a chance that by the time this battle ends, that the well will close before I can return."
"What about Kagome? If the well closes...?"
"I don't know, Aunt Aiko. I'm almost positive that the two realities will merge when it is no longer possible to go through the well, but I do not know if Kagome would be stuck there or forced to return here once her duties are no longer required as the protector of the Shikon jewel."
"But this is the last battle against that evil halfbreed?"
"It is," Sesshomaru spoke. "Nova, Kaya and Touran will be arriving soon."
"So she kept her promise, good," Nova nodded before getting to her feet.
"Nova, how far along are you?" Aiko asked as she felt her hand touch her stomach.
"Only 10 weeks, but mixed pups grow quickly. From what I've been told, a pregnancy like mine would only be at most seven months but it may vary greatly from four months on as that is considered full term for a pure pup," Nova mused, feeling a nudge against Aiko's hand as there was a knock on the door and Sesshomaru answered it. "Touran. Kaya."
"Nova!" Kaya barreled into her, being mindful of her stomach and hugged her tightly. "Why didn't you tell me you had been leaving?!"
"Touran didn't really give me much options, though every soldier and servant had seen me off. Where you not among them?" Nova inquired as she hugged her back.
"I had been in a village nearby that day checking on some patients."
"Have you no manners Kaya?" Touran spoke suddenly. "Apologies ma'am, I am Touran and she is Kaya. We were in charge of Nova's health and safety in the past."
"I am Aiko. Will you be staying long?"
"Not today," Nova shook her head when Sesshomaru didn't immediately answer. "I will come visit soon."
"If you are able, I want pictures of the babies," Aiko spoke as she got off the couch.
"That won't be a problem, I have the necessary equipment at my office," Kaya smiled.
"Oh, before you go outside," Touran pulled a familiar chain from her sleeve and wrapped it around her ribs, hiding her swollen abdomen. "Figure you'd rather not hide under your cloak."
"Thanks," Nova nodded as she activated the seal to hide her ears and tail while Sesshomaru put his ring back on to con seal his own characteristics. "Bye Aunt Aiko."
"See you soon," Aiko smiled as she walked them to the door and they left.
"Due to you being in the past, your apartment was lost, but we moved everything of yours to the mansion," Kaya spoke as they walked down the long staircase to the road below where Daisuke stood waiting besides the limo.
"Miss Nova, it is a relief to see you safe and sound," Daisuke smiled and she could feel the hint of Youkai under seal from him.
"Thanks Daisuke," Nova smiled as he opened the door and they piled into the car. "Was he ever at the moon Castle?"
"No. He came under employment after the castle was already in ruins a couple centuries ago," Sesshomaru spoke from his place across from her.
"What do we tell people if you had put out a missing person report?"
"Delayed retrograde amnesia from the elevator incident," Kaya spoke. "Takashi found you in Mumbai."
"That's pretty specific."
"We've had several months to plan an alibi if you returned before the timer merger," Touran spoke.
"Do I have to keep hiding my pregnancy?"
"Only if you wish," Sesshomaru spoke.
"And that explanation?"
"That you had a relationship with myself before the incident to explain how far along you appear to be."
"And after an episode of amnesia it could easily explain why I wouldn't be so quick to show outward affection," Nova frowned and he nodded. "What about how far along I am?"
"You are most likely just over a third through your pregnancy now as you would at most go 30 weeks. The growth of the pups should start slowing down now. If you were to go early then, that's easily explained by carrying twins," Kaya spoke.
"How long do you think the battle will last?"
"The final battle took less than a full day. We should know before midnight. Two men will be sent to the shrine to monitor the well. If I remember correctly, the miko was originally sent back immediately after wishing away the jewel," Sesshomaru spoke.
"Did the synchronized attack from the outside happen or help?"
"Yes. It weakened Naraku drastically and destroyed the giant spider form, making it easier to end him."
"Then why was I sent here if it didn't take more than a day?"
"Because it was likely that you would have been sent back through with the miko," Touran answered. "It's better to minimize your stress."
"Fine," Nova sighed as Khendon moved to rest his head in her lap.
"One day at a time Nova."