Reconciliation

by Universally Sound

When Inuyasha is overcome by a new ability he inherited from the Inu no Taishou, Kagome goes on a journey to find and help him only to find that Sesshoumaru has already decided the hanyou's fate and will not be moved. Now, Kagome must reconcile her love, her purpose, and a future she never could have imagined. Post-manga. CU. Slow burn. Gonna be long.

33. Chapter 33 - Separation:Year 1:Autumn 3

Author's Note: I do not own Inuyasha or any of the source material for this story. All are owned by Rumiko Takahashi. This fic is labeled MA per standards for violence, sex, and language so be warned.

Mild NSFW warning on this one. Enjoy.

...

Reconciliation

Chapter 33 – The Separation: Year 1: Autumn: Part IV

A single panted breath disturbed the steam swirling above the heated tub. Feathery sprigs of lowland cypress and lavender flowers turned lazy circles in the circular bath as the now-tepid water slapped the side of the tub. A water-slick bicep flexed, relaxed, and flexed again, plastered with soaked tendrils of silver hair. A frustrated gasp echoed through the private bath…

Splayed before him is a feast of creamy skin, heaving breasts, and flushed cheeks. Her bare shoulders flex, and lean arms reach and grab to pull him down to lie flush with own her heated skin on the expansive futon. An open, pleading mouth asks him to stay, abandon the morning to her, and her head tosses carelessly to the side as his talented fingers continue tormenting the swollen lips of her sex. Her throat, bared and naked as the rest of her, is a testament to her trust and love. She had never guarded herself around him.

Without care and protection, her sapphire eyes, those deep pools of innocence and honesty, would dim with the same forced detachment his whole life had demanded. Never, he promised himself. Only those eyes had been able to see through the murky veil of power and duty to strip him so completely. Her unwavering faith in him was soothing, intimate… and erotic.

The salty taste of sweat coats his tongue as it drags along the long, quivering column of her neck. Her hips buck into his hand, silently demanding more. His fingers are drenched in her desire and his hand slides faster between her thighs, pinching and pressing her clit the way he knows will please her best. Her unstifled moan and the resulting bite of her own swollen lip is almost too much. He yearns to pull his fingers free of her, to taste the slick of her arousal, but she is so close now… so close.

"Please…" she whines. "Please, Sesshoumaru…"

He growls into her ear instead. Begging does not suit her. If she demands it of him, as is her right, only then will he comply. Bracing himself above her, his sunset irises tease to match the quirk of his lips.

"What is it you desire, beloved?"

In the curtain of his silver hair, her watery eyes harden with frustration and he grins in victory. Her fire is a gift and he prods it to life as often as possible. Golden eyes lit with lust and satisfaction suddenly go wide as her lean abs flex and she forcefully sits up, throwing him off balance. With one determined shove to his chest and her blue eyes twinkling with mischievous delight, his ferocious woman pushes him backward. He flinches as the back of his head makes hard contact with the wood floor.

"Have it your way…" she chastises from above.

"What-" he starts.

He scowls, not understanding, but there is no time to reprimand her as he feels her hands press his chest to the floor and the warm, wet embrace of her entirely sheathing his cock in one determined, slick sink of her hips. A slow rumble, oscillating between a moan and a growl, escapes her lover but she swallows it, pressing her sweet mouth against his until her thighs are clenched firmly around his hips. Her tender tongue sweeps the lips she's claimed as her own. Her hair escapes its confinement behind her ears. That short, dark hair Yaeko had always refused to grow-

No. Not short. Beautifully wild and… long?

The scents of mature magnolia blooms and dewy rainwater fill his nose. His eyes close and he inhales deeper to confirm, before they snap open and he fixes the female with a stunned look.

"You…?" he says with a confused knit of his brow.

He is surrounded in a curtain of onyx waves that pool on the floor around their heads. The temptress rises and sits proudly astride him with a flushed but smiling face. The new morning sunlight shines against her hair, lights her eyes, and trails her bare body almost as closely as his eyes.

"Me." she grins coyly.

Even in a daydream, his mouth grows dry as he tries to make sense of her presence. Sesshoumaru growls, annoyed, as his fangs begin to ache, throbbing with the primal need to mark and claim this female he knows is his.

The dark mass of her hair falls over her full breasts as she starts to rock her hips with a determined rhythm. He can only react, steady himself, as she uses him without apology. His thighs grow slick with sweat and her arousal but neither of them cares. He watches her, fascinated, content to merely hold her with his large hands as she rolls her hips again and again. Soon, she shudders as the first tremors of orgasm catch her off guard. Sharp gasps and the rhythm of her hips both become irregular as she fights herself to continue.

His palms slide from her knees, up higher and higher, until they pin her in place. A confused pinch of her brow questions him but his answering grin gives nothing away. Without a word, his fingers dig into the meat of her hips, steadying her as he thrusts from below with a bruising force. He knows what she needs, wonders in the same moment how he knows, but forgets entirely when she calls his name again.

"Ah! Sesshoumaru!"

She cries out and falls forward, bracing her hands against the magenta markings that trail his chest. She's chanting her acceptance of his roughness as he pounds away at that deep place she cannot reach without him. Her head tips down to watch him enjoy himself and their pleasure-soaked eyes meet. His gaze leaves her face to thoroughly enjoy watching the heavy bounce of her pale breasts as he drives them both higher. Blue and gold meet again, and she smiles, silently proud of his heated appreciation.

He can almost physically feel the intimacy they share through those glittering eyes, even now. His hands grip her full hips harder, more desperately, the tips of his claws pricking the sensitive skin of her backside. The tingling, electric feeling of her power begins to dance across his chest where her calloused hands are braced, and she cries out.

"Yes!" she praises.

His thrusts reach a fever pitch and she forgets entirely to control her power. The prickling feeling grows, spreads up and down his body in delightful torture, and he nearly cums before her. As he fights himself to continue, she cries out in ecstasy and climaxes all around him. Her hands, thighs, and core all work together, quivering and clenching, to destroy his control. Her fingernails dig into the muscles of his chest to brace herself upright.

The pain of her blunt nails, the tight squeeze of her core, and the sight of her head thrown back in pleasure is too much. He growls his own release and surges upright, sinking his aching fangs into the flesh of her shoulder and crushing her melting body to his. A moment of deep breaths and the wet sound of his teeth leaving her flesh echo in the empty room.

"Forever, Kagome… You are mine." he purrs, cleaning the fresh Mark with a languid sweep of his tongue.

She silently nods, taking his face in her hands and kissing him with a sweetness at odds with their lovemaking only moments ago. Her forehead rests against his and her small hand cups his cheek.

"And you are mine." she whispers, cradling him lovingly with her whole body. "Forever…"

The rhythmic splashing of the water abruptly ceased and Sesshoumaru panted at its surface, golden eyes blown wide, as his member barely relaxed in the iron grip of his hand.

'The priestess?' he swallows dryly.

Why?

The inudaiyoukai sat up on the submerged bench of the bamboo tub and scrubbed his hands together, gazing curiously down at them as if they had betrayed him somehow. And yet, everything about the space, about himself, was the same as it had always been. Or was it?

His thoughts had drifted occasionally to her well-being, her safety, even to her emotional state but never before had she appeared in his daydreams. Least of all, in such an intimate, pleasurable way. There was only one explanation and he internally damned the truth: if their link was already forged, if the call to claim her fully had really begun to take him, the winter would be unbearably, torturously, achingly long. A dull thud sounds as he sits back in a rare moment of surrender, throat bared and head lolled back onto the ledge, and old memories flood his pleasure-saturated brain.

'Are our energies already bonded? Is that why she has replaced Yaeko in my thoughts?'

The young, black inu's death was no longer laid at his feet. He had made his peace with her end, thanks in part to sharing the trauma with the priestess. No, that wound had healed but Yaeko had been the sole occupant of his fantasies for centuries. If that was no longer the case…

How would the miko feel if she knew? She had agreed to accept his attention in spring but that was primarily for appearances and out of friendship, was it not? In a moment of self-indulgence, he idly wondered what rutting with her would really be like. In less than a year, he would know for certain and the thought made his cock twitch again.

'Enough!' he scowled and sat up straight. 'Indulging this fantasy is pointless and proves nothing.'

The sound of splashing as he rose from the tub was the only noise in the silent family wing. Sesshoumaru slicked the excess water from his skin and stepped up out of the bath. The evidence of his desire had yet to fully shrink and he laid a palm against the wall, steadying himself as the weakness of release was still affecting his legs. The imagined feel of her was still swimming through his conscious mind and if a distraction was not found soon, the same problem from this morning would arise all over again. Instincts were not to be questioned when it came to survival and Mating but that did not mean he couldn't privately curse them for making him painfully, ceaselessly hard at the worst possible time.

With a frustrated growl, Sesshoumaru finished drying off and crossed his quarters to snatch up the dove gray under-kimono and begin dressing for the last hours of the Cardinal meeting.

The attire selected for today was strewn respectfully across three displays in his bedroom. Beyond the displays, his own futon lay idle. Cold and devoid of a partner as it had been his entire life. The first pale light of morning was cresting behind the sand-colored mountain peaks. His future Mate would no doubt still be sleeping comfortably at this hour. The thought of her lying there asleep, warmed by his body, and surrendered to his care made his blood rush south once again.

'Damn this lust!' he scowled to himself, turning away from the offending mattress. 'And this is only the beginning.'

He would be caught, from now until they Bonded, between moments of heated desire and maddening denial that were both out of his control. But the inudaiyoukai was certain now that the call was taking him. Now that she had so gloriously made her appearance in his private fantasies, there was no doubt in his mind. His sexual frustration had been well-contained before this past summer but the scent and sight of his intended Mate, wrapped in the thinnest silk, gazing curiously over at him on the starlit roof in the kitsune village… Those ocean eyes of hers sparkled with an ancient innocence and fury. That moment last summer when his instincts defined this female as 'his' was burned into his possessive, inuyoukai brain and had replayed in his head many times in the last few months.

She was beautiful, he would not deny it. He remembered the contented and welcoming smiles she aimed at him as she talked about her village. His rapid hands slowed in tying the first, thin under-kimono layer closed as he remembered her hammering heart and nervous scent when he arrived.

The way she determinedly faced him in the firelight that same evening to remind him of the strength of her character and her fledgling plans for her own future here in the West…

'So earnest and open.' he remembered. 'So unlike even the other humans.'

Truly, this woman held no ability to deceive, either, since her eyes gave everything away. She was easy to trust, a worthy confidant, and had accepted his good faith. The combination was comforting. She was also intelligent, brave, and rational.

'As long as her anger does not cloud her judgement.' he grinned to himself.

Kagome was beautiful, strong, and they shared a past that no other would ever fully understand. Parts of it were painful, true, but had they not already comforted each other more than once? Successfully? They had already deftly handled more awkward discussions than the future land disputes, skirmishes, and diplomatic missions that would be their shared duty.

Doubt still plagued his mind with regards to her humanity. She was fit to walk beside him… for as long as she could. But for how long? Sesshoumaru finished dressing as the thought formulated. Deep red hakama joined the pale gold kimono, and he shrugged the ebony haori over his broad shoulders, lifting the weighty length of his hair through the collar.

A full Mating Bond was reserved for a lifelong partner. He had been brought up to recognize only a powerful daiyoukai as a potential Mate. A human as a partner instead was his punishment for lacking the foresight to safeguard his position, but the side effect was an equally disturbing punishment in less than a century. Her death. A swift clench of his heart answered the thought and he walked determinedly away from his bedroom, leaving the uncomfortable idea behind. No matter how they felt about each other in the end, losing her would be painful. But there was not time to dwell on this today.

The Cardinal Council meeting would conclude this morning and the tournament would begin. Just like so many other days, this one did not belong to him alone. Contemplation about the miko- no, Kagome's appearance in his fantasies would wait a few days' time until his guests were all gone.

Oddly enough, even thinking of the woman evoked the memory of her scent. His amber eyes swept the room out of curiosity.

'Camelias, mountain rain, and… parchment?'

The door to his rooms snapped open and his mother, Kikuko, stood there with a raised eyebrow and an open fan. Her hair was pulled into a high tail framed with a gleaming crescent moon. The red kimono she wore was dripping with pearlescent white chrysanthemums and her pelt completed the lavish look as it hugged her exposed, pale shoulders. The ebony fan clutched in her slim fingers was beating slowly but snapped closed as she stepped into his rooms.

"Ah, Sesshoumaru. Are you finally finished? It is nearly dawn and there is much to discuss."

Turning away from her with a dismissive jerk of his head, Sesshoumaru resumed dressing as quickly as possible.

"Why does the miko's scent accompany you?" he demanded without turning around.

"Whatever do you mean?" Kikuko grinned.

Sesshoumaru spun and his eyes narrowed threateningly.

"Have you risked the agreement with the North to meddle in affairs that do not concern you?"

"So suspicious and accusatory, Sesshoumaru. And no, I have not. Your priestess sends you a letter which I will hand you if you would stop growling at This One long enough to take it… and finish dressing first." She wrinkled her nose and looked around the room. "Kami, what have you been up to this morning?"

The scent of male pheromones diffusing the room was enough to tell her that even her pup was not immune to the physical call to an intended Mate. The curious tilt of her snow-wreathed head went unnoticed by her son.

'So quickly! Is it loneliness, Sesshoumaru, or has she truly ensnared you?'

"How?" he growled, asking about the letter and ignoring her prying.

Kikuko held the fan across her face to hide an unstoppable, mirthful smile. His youki was unsettled and swirling with uncertainty. Anyone else might write off his silent brooding as impatience or his aloof nature, but not his mother. No, he was contemplating his future with that woman. If she hadn't known before walking into this room this morning, Kikuko was sure now. Soldier's barracks smelled less like sex than her son's room this morning.

Sesshoumaru lifted a cuff of polished silver to bind his hair and the former Lady of the West stepped forward.

"Sit." she commanded with a nod, holding out an open palm for the cuff and the letter in exchange.

Two clawed fingers pinched the plain letter from her hand but the cuff remained firmly in the other. He laid the letter aside on his desk to read later, but allowed himself a covert breath while her scent lingered in the air. The knot of doubt in his chest loosened just a fraction.

"You may as well read it," Kikuko continued, "while I tend to this unruly mass."

"I do not need your help." Sesshoumaru squared his shoulders in front of her, jerking the black haori closed, and raised his chin. "Have not for some centuries."

The way his eyes bored into hers told her that he was no longer speaking only about the cuff.

"Can a mother not show you the slightest attention?"

"Why?"

An exaggerated but telling pout developed on his mother's face and he stared at her. Golden eyes met from across the room. One, suspicious and cold, and the other, serious but regretful. Sesshoumaru remained silent, waiting, as his mother fidgeted.

"I… apologized for my outburst when you visited Miyu no Tsukihana last month. I would be more involved, to aid you, if you allow me." Kikuko admitted with a frown.

A long moment of Sesshoumaru scowling in her direction passed before he raised his chin and responded.

"Aid me by gathering the Lords for the meeting. Now leave."

She was not hurt but resigned. His mother acknowledged that it was a step forward, even if he felt the need to remind her who was now in command of the West. There was time to repair the damage if she was patient. Unlucky for Sesshoumaru, the former Lady was a female with an agenda of her own, as well. Eventually, he would come to appreciate her meddling and if not, no one was the worse off for it. Except maybe young Ren.

"Very well." Kikuko nodded, examining her claws. "I will gather them but I came here, after I agreed to deliver your correspondence from the young Captain Ren, to remind you that new barriers stones need to be placed in the arena before-"

A snarl echoed down the hallway as he sped past his mother.

"Oh dear, was it something I said?" the great inu chuckled. Kikuko pulled her own letter from her obi and flipped it over to study the quick and untidy scrawl of the young female. "Little miko, you have stirred the waters of my son's calm and I will forever thank you for it. I will attempt what you ask out of sheer curiosity. Now, let us hope you are as capable as you are crafty."

Honestly, getting information out of that tiger couldn't be that hard, could it?

…

Everything was a blur as Sesshoumaru sprinted past the servants, the gardens, through the mountain, and into the barracks. Finally, the getaway to the arena and the Captain came into view.

Ren was commanding a small unit to carry necessities in and out of the arena in preparation for the start of the tournament when the unmistakable aura of the Lord of the West raised the hair on his neck. A second later, the burn of rage-fueled youki and the crack of a whip raised the young inu's head just in time to avoid a second slash that gouged the rock wall just to the right of his ear. Spring green eyes went wide and locked onto the source of the attack. A clipped whine built in the back of his throat.

'Shit. Here we go…'

A second later, a rigid forearm was pressed firmly into Ren's chest as Sesshoumaru pinned him roughly to the mountain wall. The young inu coughed and sputtered as he fought his body for control under the immense pressure of a youki many times the strength of his own. Every fiber of his being knew he was in the wrong for disobeying the Alpha, no matter who had asked it of him.

Ren let his head fall to the side and his eyes screwed shut in the most submissive pose he could manage as Sesshoumaru crushed him to the mountain wall. His razor cropped hair dusted the chest plate of his armor as he awaited judgement. Curious gazes of the soldiers nearby were quickly averted and they jogged past when the elder inu's low growl of warning and sideways glare warned them this conversation was private. Ren swallowed when the full fury of the golden eyes of the Lord of the West was turned back on him.

"Explain!" Sesshoumaru growled in the ancient tongue.

"Ka- Kagome-sama commanded me to bring you the letter, my Lord, and also to inform you that Lord Katsurou and Lord Kouhei came to visit her in the village. I accompanied her as they questioned her, ah- as you requested. The visit was brief but unsettling, and she tells me she has recounted it in detail in the letter for your benefit."

'Commanded him? Infuriating woman!' Sesshoumaru cursed internally.

There was no lie. Ren remained submissive but was most definitely telling the truth. Sesshoumaru was familiar with the young male's scent, and the many shades of it, through their many hours spent together. The Captain's nervousness surrounded him with the musty smell of forest moss, and mingled with his natural male scents of young oak and lotus blooms. The young inu was never deceitful and since he was here, it was surely on her orders. The last orders she would be giving anyone, if he had anything to say about it.

The pressure on Ren's chest quickly withdrew after another rough shove and the Captain slumped against the wall for a moment before standing upright once again.

"Hn. Your message is relayed, Captain. Return to Edo at once." The icy citrine stare of the great inudaiyoukai in the twilight was fearsome. His rigid, square posture and scowl demanded silence. "You no longer report to her but remain under my command." Sesshoumaru clenched his left fist and stared down his nose at the nearly trembling Captain. "If you leave your post again before you are relieved in the spring, your position in the West is forfeit. Are my orders quite clear?"

Ren nodded fervently like the scorned pup he was.

"Yes, my Lord. I will return as soon as-"

"Now, Captain! Do not further test my patience!"

Ren flinched again, closed his eyes and bared his throat again but his voice remained firm.

"I am sorry, milord, but the second command of my Lady was to wait for a response from you." Ren cracked an eye open and chanced a question. "Do your new orders supersede-"

"Why?" Sesshoumaru snapped.

"I do not know, my Lord. She refused to explain except to say that you would understand when you read her letter."

The Lord of the West growled again and turned his face to the sky. Had she no sense of self-preservation? Was there ever a moment when she considered her own safety above these childish and pointless games? Ren glanced nervously up and watched the furious amber of his Lord's eyes soften only slightly as he watched the sun rise.

Another moment of calm, and logic won out over the Western Lord's anger at being circumvented once again. At any rate, her request was a simple one. It was one of the few things she had ever directly asked of him and there was still time to-

"Ah, Sesshoumaru-sama." came a familiar voice from the tunnel gateway. "Lady Kikuko has gathered us in the meeting room and we await your arrival to begin." Ryouzou said sternly.

A magenta-striped fist clenched harder at his side. He would not take his frustration out on Ryouzou. He would not. The inudaiyoukai reminded himself that the ancient black dragon was merely doing his job as a retainer.

"Very well." he clipped. "Ren."

The Captain flinched.

"Yes, Sesshoumaru-sama?"

The Western Lord turned toward Ryouzou but stalled, cutting his eyes back at the young inu.

"There have been no attacks?"

"None." Ren visibly brightened. Redemption. "Kagome-sama said there had been nothing to report even before my arrival. I have scouted a wide perimeter several times each day since arriving but discovered nothing. No one unusual or unidentifiable has come through the village or anywhere near it, youkai or human, she says."

"Hm. I will complete the miko's request when the meeting is adjourned and then you will define haste in your immediate return to Edo." he commanded, to which Ren nodded vigorously. "In the meantime, while you are here, resume your close guard of Rin."

"Of course, Sesshoumaru-sama," Ren bowed. "I will report to Lady Rin at once."

A strange tangle of emotions shot through the Captain's chest, coloring his face once again. The same anxious, heated feeling that accompanied the unexpected daydreams he'd had in Edo. He hoped neither of the ancient daiyoukai noticed because he couldn't explain it to himself much less them.

'Idiot! This is not the time!'

"Hn." Sesshoumaru said, watching the young male's intense, internal conflict with curiosity.

With one skeptical glance back at the soldier, Sesshoumaru then turned around and followed Ryouzou back toward the Palace. Once the pair of elder daiyoukai was out of sight, Ren heaved a sigh of relief, bending over to rest his hand on his knee before casting his green eyes back over the valley toward Edo.

'Thank the kami I'm still alive! Not as bad is it could have been but damn it all! Kagome, I am never doing this again!'

Without sudden and immediate death looming over his head, Ren allowed himself to be excited over renewing his kinship with the young Lady. He had been the constant guard of Rin for months prior to his assignment to Edo as she solidified an understanding of her new role in the West as a steward.

Their routine was well practiced by the time he left: study all morning when he would sit and listen to her read aloud, a midday meal either separately or together depending on their workload, then language and geography study during which he frequently napped or trained close by. In the afternoon, they attended a meeting with Sesshoumaru when the Western Lord was available, then she would share an evening meal with either himself or Sesshoumaru right before Ren's lighthearted, flirty dismissal for the night. After several weeks, Ren found that he looked forward to her shy smiles when she bid him goodnight.

Different, he considered, from the friendly but guarded smiles of Kagome as she strolled confidently through the village that was her home. Without warning, his heart clenched again, he took a deep breath, and turned pale emerald eyes in the direction of the infirmary.

'I have got to talk to Kenshin before I leave. If this has anything to do with Kagome, I need to know before I go back.'

"Inaba!" Ren yelled, straightening his posture.

The inu soldier dropped two stone benches at the mouth of the arena and jogged over to his Captain.

"Yes, Ren-taii?"

"Take over the distribution of these new barrier crystals." he commanded, handing the crate of oblong crystals to the young soldier. "I will return to activate them before the meeting is concluded this morning."

"Yes, Captain!" the soldier bowed.

Before Inaba had raised his head, Ren shoved the crate into his arms and was off for the Palace to ask his brother some very important questions.

'I have to know…'

…

Inside the Council meeting room, daiyoukai from all four corners of the island were gathered around the antique Cardinal meeting table and discussing the future with varying degrees of interest.

"If the humans continue to press further south," Fushijirou warned, "the nests of the mountain reptilian youkai will be forced out, or they will shed human blood as they conquer the plains. If they are removed from their homes, as you have suggested, Sesshoumaru, they will only seek safer, warmer, and less populated territory."

"You suggest they will attempt to house themselves on the cliffs of the South?" Sesshoumaru asked.

"Indeed, they will and I cannot allow that. We have young chicks and the hope for more. No more blood of my kin will be shed in the Southern Pyre, hear me now."

The Lord of the West nodded in agreement.

"The humans will need to make good on their contract with the West and stop the monks advancing any farther into the South. I will give the order."

"Let us see, then, how willing your humans are to command their own in our favor." Fushijirou said with a doubtful frown.

"Hn."

"I am curious as well, Sesshoumaru." Kouhei leaned forward, bracing a forearm on the table. "Should the human Lords that are our allies fail in their promises, what is the agreed action? We have been threatened already by the human Hosokawa clan. They seek to build shelters beyond the river that has naturally divided our territory for centuries."

"Then they are no longer free of your wrath." Sesshoumaru said seriously. "Our agreements are only to remain isolated from one another, to commence trade when it is favorable, and to respect the existing boundaries of unpopulated territory. They were given maps to outline the existing Lands. Ryouzou, have you not educated him since he reclaimed his leadership?"

Kouhei gaped and looked over to his uncle, who eyed him with a knowing and superior grin. Flipping his long, onyx braid over a shoulder, Ryouzou squared his shoulders.

"I have attempted to, Sesshoumaru, but Kouhei-sama frequently finds more diverting tasks than studying the political documents we have gathered for him."

"Bah!" Kouhei waved a hand. "Emergencies, by definition, uncle, do not allow for the study of old parchment. When Hosokawa and his mercenaries crossed the southern threshold, there was not time to finish reviewing the remaining treaties." Then, Kouhei's silver eyes flashed with opportunity and he leaned forward. "However, I did find one interesting document among our library-"

"Kouhei-sama, now is not the time." Ryouzou said firmly.

"No?" the young dragon blinked. "That was the last of the Land disputes, was it not? Last on our arduous task list is the prospect of Mates and heirs, correct?"

"This Sesshoumaru has news on that account," Sesshoumaru rumbled, snapping nearly all heads in his direction in unveiled curiosity, "but continue, Lord of the East."

A collection of vermilion, emerald, and golden eyes stared unblinking into the impassive face of the Lord of the West, waiting for him to confirm what they suspected he meant by "news." Only Kouhei ignored the implication of the inu's words and sat up straighter so his wavy, cerulean hair brushed the floor at his back. His liquid silver eyes drew each of the others' in the room as he began to speak.

"Sixty years ago," the young dragon Lord began, "the East made a treaty with a nearby human village, which has grown in size since the later years of my sire. The village housed a priestess of great power at the time and my mother grew fearful that one day, the miko's quest for peace, her ceaseless war on youkai, would carry her to the Umbral Cliffs to exterminate us. Our position was weakened at the time by the loss of my grandsire, Ryukotsusei. To prevent this, Aoi the Tempest, my mother, forged a pact with the village that would be called Edo."

'The miko's village?' Sesshoumaru wondered, suddenly interested.

"Get to the point, cub." Katsurou drawled from across the table with his tawny chin atop his hand and a disinterested yawn.

"The point is," Kouhei said sharply, "that the treaty states that the villagers of Edo are protected from interference by youkai outside of the Eastern clan as long as they leave the East in peace."

"Interference?" Sesshoumaru questioned.

"Hm. Apparently, the fabled Jewel of Four Souls was housed in this village at the time and under constant attack. Their promise that the miko would never purify a member of our house came at the price of using our soldiers to drive away lesser youkai clans plotting to ransack the village for the jewel. That is beside the point, however. I would easily consider forced Mating 'interference,' would you agree, Lord Katsurou?"

Katsurou had only been vaguely listening but as his name was called out by the young dragon Lord, the toradaiyoukai put the pieces together and leaned forward over the table.

"I suppose. However, you've much to learn if you think it will be as simple as that, young Lord of the East."

"Why? I see no reason, in light of this contract, that Kagome should be forced to maintain this agreement."

"The miko and I made an agreement, true, but the pretty little priestess does not come from Edo at all does she-" Knowing pale gold eyes shifted to the inudaiyoukai to his right. "-Sesshoumaru?"

Katsurou watched Sesshoumaru consider him carefully. The great silver inu gave nothing away as a long, charged stare passed between them.

'What does he know?' the Lord of the West wondered.

"I know not from where the human hails."

It wasn't a lie. Explicitly. She was from a time and a place he had never seen or touched.

"Nor does it matter." Kouhei bit. "She resides in Edo now, and as a citizen, falls under the protection of my clan. She was never yours to give or take away, and should be freed from this imbecilic vengeance of yours."

Katsurou only leaned forward further, bracing both forearms on the table with a fanged grin and a curious narrowing of his golden eyes.

"Looked deeply into the matter, have you not, little Lord?"

Ryouzou hissed a warning and Katsurou sat back on his rear with a click of his tongue and a frown as the elder dragon stared him down.

"Kouhei-sama is pointing out an unfortunate setback in your plans, Katsurou-sama, which can be easily rectified by choosing a different human to exact your blood payment."

"No!" The tiger's wild, ebony hair brushed his shoulders as he shook his head violently. "No, it will be this one. She is the exact right female. My judgement is passed, all parties have agreed. It is done."

"You would violate the ancient treaties of my clan over one human woman?" Kouhei questioned, his eyes narrowing in frustration.

"You learned well from your grandsire, little dragonling. Ryukotsusei tried to use a human woman to his advantage once, as well, and just as unsuccessfully as you have today, may I add."

"It is you who are using her-" the water dragon accused.

"Kouhei-sama!" Ryouzou barked.

"But," Fushijirou said slowly, interrupting them all, "did Touga-sama not die that day he sought out his human woman? And the dragon Lord was sealed? He failed, did he not?"

"Exactly." Katsurou said triumphantly. "He failed then as you fail now."

"Conniving, vindictive feline!" Kouhei shouted. "You will risk war with the East over the miko?"

"War against you is not a risk, Kouhei," Katsurou drawled, fangs flashing, "but This One wonders why you are so adamant?"

"Oppression and subjugation are the tools of cowards! I vowed when I claimed my title, like my mother, never to employ such barbaric means of rule. You are forcing her into Mating a male she did not choose. Nothing could be more binding or oppressive than a lifetime of servitude to an undesired Mate. Being human, she cannot even Bind him herself. It is a two-fold punishment. Surely you see that?"

Ryouzou cleared his throat and attempted to diffuse the warring youki now buffeting the room.

"Our Lord is very passionate that we try to maintain good relationships with as many of our allies as possible."

"And yet he threatens me?" the Lord of the North scowled, pointing a black claw at Kouhei.

"He presented a logical and reasonable argument that the miko, Kagome, should be freed from her promise and another selected." Ryouzou sat back and folded his pale arms. "It was you who refused without cause."

"It must be her." Katsurou growled, fist pounding the table. "No matter how you press me, I warn you I will not give details. I have my own worries and that human is not one of them."

Kikuko could barely contain her mirth behind the rapidly beating, ebony fan. Sesshoumaru was nearly clawing his own knees beneath the table, Katsurou was growling and twitching, Kouhei was scowling and Ryouzou attempting to calm him, and Fushijirou was not minding any of them as Samidori ran her lithe fingers through his pale golden hair. Finally, something of interest in this dull, political waste of time.

"Perhaps a break is in order, hm?" the wise inudaiyoukai merrily suggested.

In a flash half of the table was gone, leaving only Sesshoumaru, Fushijirou, Samidori, and Kikuko to stare at each other as their clothes and hair fluttered in the breeze made by the hasty exits of the rest of the table.

"One wonders why everyone is so touchy today…" Kikuko mused, rising gracefully and seeing herself out with a grin to find her own disgruntled quarry.

…

Unsurprisingly, Ren found his brother hovering over his desk in the infirmary grumbling and pulverizing something that smelled powerfully herbal. Nightmares of the droughts he had to drink after losing his arm made the bile rise in his throat. He slung his arm across his face, blocking the worst of the offensive scent and marched in with a half-hearted scowl.

"By the kami, what foul potion is it this time?"

Kenshin's shaggy silver hair whipped around and he gaped at his brother, dropping the pestle and wiping his hands on the folds of his robes as he rounded the wide desk.

"Ren? How- What are you doing back here so soon?"

In a flash, Ren was wrapped up in a warm and familiar hug. The Captain chuckled and returned his little brother's open embrace. This was his pack. All of it. And he had missed his brother. His bright green eyes rolled with a quirky grin as he relayed his status of "errand boy."

"Kagome-sama sent me back to deliver letters, of all things."

Kenshin stepped back and tucked his arms in his billowy, indigo sleeves.

"Odd. How is she, our future Lady?"

"Well." Ren shrugged. "Busy and stubborn as always."

"I expect no less." Kenshin grinned, remembering her piercing blue gaze as she questioned them about their mother. "Have you asked her to heal you? How is your arm?"

Kenshin reached a hand out with a questioning brow, Ren nodded, and he began to unbind his brother's left arm. Unwrapping the linen and leather from the stump of his brother's forearm, the chief healer tried not to wince as the memory of stitching it all back together flooded his brain.

"I have and it's fine." Ren said, annoyed. "The pain has all but stopped. Kagome-sama has done some research since returning but I cannot see that it will be enough."

"Still, that she was thinking of a way to help is promising." the chief healer said quietly, still examining his brother's forearm.

"I suppose." Ren said disinterestedly. "I left the necklace with her. Maybe she will have more answers when I return. She brought you back to life." The young Captain grinned. "All I want is a new arm. Is that so hard?"

"Ha! Returning to the village… Oh!" The chief healer's glowing magenta eyes locked on Ren's in mild panic. "Does Sesshoumaru-sama know you are here now?"

Ren rubbed the chest plate of his armor with a wan smile and chuckled.

"Yes. He most definitely knows."

"Oh dear. Was he very angry? Your arm looks well, by the way." Kenshin said with a nod, releasing his brother's left arm to gather the wrapping. "No chafing or bruising."

"I told you so. And he was not terribly angry, all possibilities considered. I have to go back this evening but I wanted to see you first, little brother."

Spring green eyes glowed with mirth as Kenshin's brow crinkled with frustration as he rewrapped Ren's arm.

"How many times do I have to-"

"I know, I know. I promise to stop once my little brother is Mated and settled. You will no longer be my only packmate so I promise not to embarrass you too often."

Kenshin finished buckling the leather armor around Ren's forearm and watched as his brother wandered the rows of beds. The Captain ran his hand across the linen of an unoccupied cot and absorbed the silence of the infirmary. His brother followed him around the edge and sighed.

"Ren… it is not only that. I know, we both know, you wanted to leave to get away from us."

"Alas, I am found out." the young inu lamented with a grin.

"This is not funny. I feel responsible for driving you away."

"Understand me, Kenshin." Ren stepped over and grasped his brother's shoulder. "I am not trying to escape the inevitable. We were born together. We have lived as a pair our entire lives." he shrugged. "Some part of me assumed maybe we always would. We were committed to the paths in life we chose."

"But?" A silver eyebrow raised in curiosity.

"But living in a village, even for only two days, I can see the value in building a pack and raising a family. There are so many human families in that village and they laugh and work and plan for the future together. Tomomi is lovely and you are more contented than I have ever seen you. I apologize if I ruined any small part of your happiness with her. I want to be a part of your new life, too. Make no mistake on that account."

"We want that, too, and yet I sense yet another 'but' forthcoming."

Ren laughed and dropped his hand.

"But if we ignore how frequently your nighttime ministrations disturbed my rest," to which Kenshin snorted and blushed, "I was jealous, if I am honest. You are moving forward. Nearly every male in the army has paired off in this time of peace. I scoffed when it happened to all of them, to General Ryota, to Sesshoumaru-sama, but then it happened to you and my thoughts drifted to the future. I want that for myself now, too. In fact, I may be headed there already."

Owlish, twinkling magenta eyes looked up at him.

"Hm?"

Ren sat heavily down on an empty infirmary cot and stared at the floor.

"Kenshin, when you began to feel the call, what was it like?"

"The call? To take a Mate, you mean?"

"Hm. There have been odd moments lately when I cannot escape my daydreams. I have felt feverish and out of breath for no reason. Not to mention the other uncomfortable side effects I am less prepared to share."

"Kami, in heaven. That is what happens, Ren, and it will only get worse. The call is your youki driving you towards the Mate your heart and your aura have already accepted. Who is it? When did it start?"

"When I arrived in the village." Ren sighed.

"Only then? Who do you…" Understanding lit Kenshin's eyes and Ren's shoulders slumped as a sad and regretful smile lit his usually playful features. "Oh Ren, no. Please tell me this has nothing to do with Kagome-sama."

Kenshin crouched on the floor and sought out Ren's sad, green eyes from below. His refusal to look his brother in the eye told him all he needed to know even before Ren spoke.

"I wish I could." Ren said defeatedly.

"No. That is not only foolish, it is dangerous, brother. Stop it now."

"I have tried!" the Captain yelled, rising from the bed and pacing to the back of the room. "He even warned me to remain distant before I left, almost like he knew! After steeling myself the entire journey against what I assumed to be shallow, adolescent emotions; I was overcome in seconds." He paced faster, scrubbing his right hand down his face. "Every look, every glance, every time she smiles or yells at me or bolts into the woods on her clumsy, human legs…"

Kenshin coughed a laugh, imagining Kagome doing just that, but hid his face as Ren continued his lament.

"I am truly lost. Help me, Kenshin. Please. Before the lust takes over. How do I stop this before I ruin… everything?"

It was Kenshin's turn to flop down on the cot. His pitying look and shallow sigh made Ren scowl.

"Oh Ren… There is nothing to be done if this is truly your youki calling for her. Does her aura accept you?"

The Captain's voice was small, quiet and defeated when he answered.

"I have not had the courage to try. I am afraid of what happens next if it is true."

Kenshin slung an arm around his brother, feeling like the elder of the two for the first time in their entire lives.

"You must. That is the only way to know."

Ren's head slumped to his brother's shoulder and his breath grew ragged, chest shuddering. Kenshin felt the first deep breaths of mourning before Ren gripped him tighter.

"You have to try, Ren." the healer said quietly. "If it is true, tell her. Learn her feelings."

"And if she rejects me entirely?" the muffled worry came from his shoulder.

"It will be painful but I will always be here for you, big brother. Even when you make reckless, damning decisions like falling for the Mate of the Lord of the West."

Finally, a note of defiance hardened Ren's voice and he lifted his glassy, verdant eyes to Kenshin's face.

"She is not his yet."

"No, she is not. They are discussing that today, as a matter of fact. Perhaps, a decision will be made that gives you a chance to freely speak."

"What do you mean, Kenshin?"

"Apparently, you are not the only male in contention for her. Kouhei, the Lord of the East-"

"I know of the damn dragon. What does he want?"

His brother rose, sighed, and Ren's apprehensive green eyes followed him in the pale light. Regretful, deeply pink irises glowed in the light of sunrise when Kenshin faced him again.

"Kagome."

…

The sun was sitting just over the farthest jagged peak. The chill of the high mountain gales felt more like home and gave him peace. Katsurou stretched one leg before him and rested his arm atop the other, thinking hard.

'That young moron Kouhei… I have not waited nearly a century for this one miko to show herself only to have this chance snatched away by a hatchling feeling his prick stir for the first time.'

The demanding brush of an ancient youki roused Katsurou from his brooding on the sheer mountainside high above the Western Palace.

"You might mean well, Lady, but leave me be."

Indigo slippers touched lightly down onto the sandy scree and Kikuko's sharp amber eyes watched the first few pebbles tumble down the mountainside into oblivion. She looked down at the morose tiger and conceded this might have been too obvious an approach. Time was of the essence, however…

"May This One ask one question first?"

The tiger only stared at her suspiciously from his seated pose before nodding.

"Where is your lovely Mate this year?"

"I suspect you know the answer to that if you are asking. None of the Council have asked. No one cares for Haruna here."

"I do." she said incredulously, casting her eyes to the side. "I enjoy her company and her rough handling of you, if I may be honest."

For the first time since arriving, Katsurou looked up at her and grinned with the sad eyes of a man trapped.

"She is isolated in the North for her own safety. My guess would be that you know of her ailment."

"I am aware that it exists but I know no more than that. Hardly pleasant dinner conversation, and you both refuse to visit me at my Palace for my stimulating company alone."

Kikuko ignored the dust and dirt coating the shallow ledge where Katsurou sat, and reclined beside him, retaining her interest in his face. He looked… exhausted, and she found herself suddenly aware that she did care for their well-being. Few were as battle-hardened or ancient as she, but Katsurou was and that gave them a kind of kinship in these rapidly changing times.

"I ask because I am concerned. Perhaps I may be able to help."

"Indeed, you can." he growled, facing her fully. "Convince that whelp to drop his curiosity over affairs that do not concern him."

"This One is capable of such. In return," the great inu sang, "I require some information."

"This Katsurou hardly expected the great Kikuko to lend her claws without demand."

She had considered the miko's letter at length, and the one from last year, and there were many unknowns where the little human was concerned. However, no daiyoukai in history had ever considered Mating a human as punishment before and, intelligent as Katsurou might be, he most likely had not arrived at this decision without suggestion from a third party. Who the third party was might make all the difference.

"Wise of you. Yes, I wish to discuss why in particular this human must be bound to my son. There are other miko, other human women that might vex him as easily, or more perhaps. Why her? And why do you say she is not from that village?"

"Are you fond of the human, as well? Does everyone want that slight, mouthy thing for themselves?" he growled. "I do not see the appeal."

"Hardly. She is an obstacle to my plans but blood payment is required, and you were within your rights to punish both the surviving Mate and the ruling Lord for their failures."

"Hn. You understand then. Very well. It was not I who first recognized the miko's potential, but a long-time aid of my streak: a kitsune named Kuroikage. It was he who informed me last year of the presence of a singularly powerful priestess, free of any bonds of family or a Mate, that was seen in that village. That was how I guessed she was not born there. Sesshoumaru may not know her origins yet, but she is unlike any human I have ever met. There is no chance she was raised by those country simpletons. Wherever she may be from, apparently the kitsune village leader is fond of the human as well and he told me of Kagome's kinship with them. He was most helpful."

"Kitsune are always so willing to lend their aid… for a price." Kikuko drawled curiously. "What was his?"

"It is not what you think. No blood payment was given to him. Many years ago, I found him dying in a miko's trap in the southern forests of my home. I would have left him there had he not unknowingly appealed to my needs regarding Haruna's affliction."

"How did he know of it?"

"As I said, he was kitsune, as ancient as ever I have known one, and surprisingly from the same clan as-"

Katsurou faltered, glancing at the expectant and focused eyes of Kikuko. There was no going back if the truth was known. The inuyoukai waited patiently as the tiger decided whether or not to trust her. Perhaps, a play for less would yield more.

"Omit what you must." she said. "I only wish to know how I might help."

"I cannot." he hung his head, thinking. "The tale is too involved."

Kikuko leaned forward, catching his eye, as her snow-white ponytail fell forward to brush the rock.

"It might help you to unburden yourself, Katsurou of the North. Has the West not proven its commitment to our alliance? More than that, have I, for as long as you have known me?"

"I suppose you have. This story affects only my Mate and I, understand. Well, and now the miko."

"I do."

Katsurou sat up with a sigh and stared at his lap, considering the fallout of what he was about to tell her. Finding no reason worthy enough to keep this secret, the Northern Lord turned his head and changed the game.

"Kuroikage was a kitsune from the same clan as Haruna's first Mate."

Her golden eyes grew wider as the pieces slowly, carefully, began to come together in her head. What she knew, what Sesshoumaru knew, what the miko had only guessed… it was all related.

And the threat was grave if she was right. History was repeating itself.

…

Thunk!

The small throwing knife buried itself into the support beam of the private family dojo, far to the left of the circular target it was meant for.

"Again, in the wrong place! How did Kagome-sama say to hold it again?" Rin muttered to herself, flexing her left hand.

She had been practicing for days while the meetings and preparations kept Sesshoumaru from discovering her efforts. Rin walked to the wall and wrenched the black steel free with a crackle of splintered wood. Holding it flat in the palm of her left hand, she studied the kanji engraved into the blade. Kagome had warned her that these knives would connect and erupt with the reiki she had imbued them with, erecting a barrier should she need it or trapping an attacking youkai so she could escape. Now if only she could master the damn things…

Everyone was working hard, bettering themselves, and only she felt left behind. Sesshoumaru did not have the time to train her directly, and even if he could, what could she do?

'I do not have the strength of a youkai, the reiki of a miko, or the skill with weapons like Sango-san. What can I do? Write and draw? What good will that do anyone?'

That was how Ren found the young Lady: contemplating a small knife in the palm of her hand, and her aura whirling with uncertainty and sadness. Her scent filled his nose as he breached the doorway with the warm burn of sunshine and the breezy, floral scent of sunflowers. It was calming and comforting in a Palace that was a vortex this week of scents and youki he was much less familiar with, and he inhaled deeper once more before she noticed him. When she turned around, he mused, those inviting brown eyes of hers would fix him with a startled stare and her scent would change to one of embarrassment and anxiety.

Her hair was longer than he remembered as it hung nearly to her hips in a neat braid. She looked so small, all alone in the dojo, but he marveled that her presence was no less for it. Her shoulders were proudly held back, her back straight and her gaze was fierce and determined as she contemplated whatever it was the knife had not done for her. She was becoming a Lady in every sense of the word and soon, these frivolous back and forth moments of theirs would end as she moved on with her life. The thought made him frown.

"What do you plan to accomplish with so small a blade, princess?"

And there it was. Rin jumped and her head whipped around to the doorway sending the hem of her dark green kimono fluttering around her ankles.

"Re- Captain Ren?!"

Overripe figs and the scent of fallen leaves flooded the space between them and he grinned. His charge was a predictable creature in the best way.

"I am practicing." She turned away with a pout so he would not see the dust of blush across her cheeks. "You are not supposed to be here." Rin realized something and her lively chocolate eyes narrowed back in his direction then widened in fear. "Have you abandoned Kagome-sama? Has something terrible happened to her?"

The Captain held up placating hands and took two steps into the room to join her.

"Such a welcome! Calm yourself, Rin-sama. Lady Kagome is well but bid me deliver a letter to Sesshoumaru-sama. I will return tomorrow to Edo and resume my post." Rin visibly relaxed and closed her eyes. "In the meantime, my Lord has bid me return to your side in the presence of so many daiyoukai." He bowed respectfully and righted himself, jerking his chin in the direction of the small blade. "Though it appears you are preparing to relieve me of my protection."

"Hardly." Rin said flatly, in her best impression of Sesshoumaru. "I cannot seem to aim properly. Sango-san made it look so easy…"

"She has practiced many hours for such accuracy. I made the acquaintance of your mutual taijiya friend, Sango-sensei, and I imagine she has practiced longer and harder than even I have. So must you, if you are serious."

"I know that." she pouted. "Stop speaking to me as if I am a child."

"Are you not?"

"I am fourteen this year," the young woman announced with a raise of her chin, "and of marriageable age for a human."

Ren whistled his astonishment and stepped closer.

"I pity the young man, whoever he is. I cannot fathom the Palace without you, but I can scarcely imagine the bal- um, the fortitude of the young male who asks for your hand from Lord Sesshoumaru."

Her scowl was his reward for being honest, and it was adorable. Her pink lips pressed together and that little crinkle of her brow as she did her best impression of the miko's admonishing frown but it fell drastically short of intimidating anyone.

"Is it so hard to imagine someone would want to marry me?"

"It is not that. You are beautiful, my Lady. Talented and intelligent, but my Lord may react poorly to such a request, if ever the time comes. It will be hard for him to lose such a treasure as your company, I imagine."

"Oh. Th- thank you, Ren-taii." Rin smiled, then waved a hand. "Do not worry, though. Sesshoumaru-sama has already promised to allow me to make the decision for myself."

"Has he now? Surprising."

"Yes, and now," Rin turned away from him, no longer able to hide her embarrassment, "if you do not mind, I would like to resume practicing."

"By all means, my Lady. May I remain as I have been commanded? I might not survive another disobedience of my Lord's orders today."

"Okay." Then an idea popped into her head. "Oh! Can you help me?"

"Not if I can help it." Ren chuckled. "My history in training human women is lacking at best and damning at worst."

Rin shivered remembering Kagome's pale, unconscious face and the panicked looks of the brothers as they tried to stabilize her.

"I remember… but I am not asking you to spar with me. Just- just show me how I should be throwing. I miss every target."

Her pleading, chestnut eyes did things to his heart, and he crumbled with a click of his tongue.

"As long as you give me your word you will tell no one, I see no harm." He walked around behind her, centering his frame around her own. "Here, face the target fully and take two steps forward. Shorter distances first for accuracy then you can lengthen your throws as you gain confidence. Relax your stance and gather strength in your core. Firm the muscles in your shoulders." His head craned over her left shoulder and his green eyes searched hers. "Do you work your arms?"

Rin marveled that he switched gears so quickly. This Ren was all business, assessing and strategizing. Sesshoumaru had trained him well and Rin was both impressed at his knowledge, and jealous of his capability. Or she would be if the feel of his armor pressed at her back and the intense bore of his beautiful eyes into hers wasn't nearly giving her a heart attack. A warm breath ghosted over her ear, Rin squeaked her surprise and raised the knife, smacking the Captain in the face with the back of her hand.

"Argh!" "Oh no! Rin is so sorry!"

To her surprise, Ren only burst into laughter, still holding his nose.

"Your strength is more than sufficient, Rin-sama."

"Oh, your nose… I am sorry."

"You have learned more than one thing from Kagome-sama, it seems."

"Hm?"

"Never mind." he chuckled. "Training for your arms and core is necessary for throwing longer distances." he continued, rubbing his nose once more and then dropping his hand. "Start by exercising daily to strengthen yourself."

"Okay…"

"Now, hold the blade upright- Wait, no not like that. Further back and tip the blade down. No- Kami, this is more difficult than I thought."

His hand hovered around hers trying to find the right way to exemplify. He did not touch Rin or the knife, just as he hadn't touched her at all in the last several months, now that she thought about it, and suddenly she wondered why.

"Are you this terrible at training the soldiers?" she chuckled.

"Hmph!" he snorted. "No, I lay hands on them, if you must know, roughly correcting their forms as often as necessary the first several times. Well, a 'hand' now, I suppose… I have not trained as much recently."

"Can you not just place my arm correctly then? It would be easier."

"Ha! If I had a death wish. Lord Sesshoumaru will scent me on your person and flay me alive."

"He would not! Besides, your scent usually accompanies me as my guard. How is this any different?"

"He most certainly would and if you doubt it, you have not watched our sparring sessions closely enough. I can tell the days I have gotten too close. I have more bruises those days." the young inu sighed. "No, even as close as we are now, in a stiff breeze, my scent would leave you but if I touch your clothes, your hair, or your skin; it will linger more heavily and he will know it."

"But he likes you! You are inu, like he is, and he is happy you are here."

"'Happy' may be a stretch but his allowances are a gift I am not willing to test… until Kagome-sama makes me, that is." he winked. "But the orders of the future Lady are orders I cannot deny so here I am."

Rin laughed and Ren smiled with her.

"I think Kagome-sama is good for him." Rin gently grinned. "She challenges him and asserts herself. Milord hates docile females. He told me so himself."

'Little princess, you make it too easy…'

"Speak a lot about milord's mating preferences, do you?"

"Nuh- No!" Rin turned red as a cherry, looked away from him, and readied her knife again. "He simply told me he was pleased she was so intelligent and willful after their last meeting."

"She is truly both of those things." Ren said quietly.

"Back to training, now!" Rin happily diverted. "I am going to change and bathe before the banquet tonight so correct my grip. Please?" Her eyes softened in his direction and Ren lost ground in his stubbornness. "Just show me once and then I can practice on my own."

Those eyes of hers… They reminded him of the deep woods where he had grown up, so open and mysterious. The way they softened and searched him for answers. No female had ever looked at him with expectations, with such admiration, like Rin did. He felt seen when he was with the young ward of Sesshoumaru.

'Who am I to you? You see a very different male from the real one, I'm afraid. Why do you invite my touch so easily?' he wondered.

Something deep in his chest, like a low purr, worked its way up his throat and laced his words. The room grew warmer. The edges of his vision swam until all he could see was her face.

"For future reference," Ren warned, taking a step closer with a cautioning look and sideways tilt of his chin, "directly asking a male that is not pack to place his hands on you is very unladylike."

He began a slow circle around her and she followed his progress with her eyes.

"But I have known you since Sesshoumaru-sama brought me back here. I would consider you a friend, Ren-taii. Are we not friends?"

He stopped in between Rin and her targets, watching her wrestle with his meaning. Something in the room shifted and his youki warred to break free, heating his body uncomfortably just like last time.

"I would easily say we are," he admitted, "but you are a female and the ward of my Lord which more than complicates our friendship. Would you ask me such a thing in front of Sesshoumaru-sama?"

Ren's pale green eyes became glassy and unfocused. He licked his lips, tipped his chin down, and stepped closer.

"In front of the servants, my soldiers, or even my brother?"

Another step. He heard her breathing pick up pace. Watched her eyes dilate.

"You must think before you make such a comment, Rin-sama, for both of our sakes." Ren stopped directly in front of her, still warring with the purr in his chest between every word. Ren hooked a finger beneath her chin and she looked at up at him with equal parts confusion and hope. "You say you are no longer a child, if you believe yourself a grown female, then you must act the part."

Before either of them realized what was happening, Ren's nose brushed hers and he was hovering a hair's breadth from her lips. Rin's eyes slid closed and she waited. Two hearts began hammering in anticipation before a maid's giggling voice two hallways away broke the trance and Ren staggered back, covering his mouth.

'The hell was I about to do?! What is happening to me?'

The emotions he'd kept at bay regarding Rin began to trickle through from the fever dream to reality. What was this feeling? Embarrassment? No. Nervousness? Somewhat. Anticipation? Need? The Captain became irrationally frustrated the longer Rin looked at him with that disappointed hurt in her chocolate eyes. But how could he soothe her worries when he had no control over his own at the moment?

"Forgive me." Ren whispered and bowed, keeping his distance. "I will wait outside until you are finished."

"What did I do-" she tried.

"No. Please. You did nothing wrong." Ren pleaded from the doorway, not turning around. "The fault is entirely mine. I am sorry if I offended you, my Lady."

"No. Rin was- I was…" she trailed off, touching her lips.

So many feelings were running through her head that it was impossible to put her thoughts into words. Confused, happy, scared, worried… and several others her heart and mind were too inexperienced to name yet. Ren watched her try to sort through the mess he had made and cursed himself. Retreat was the best option for now.

"I will be just outside, Rin-sama. Please let me know if you need anything."

Ren escaped with his eyes squeezed shut and posted himself outside the only door to the small dojo. They had never had an encounter like that before. It was always innocent and playful back and forth between them. Always flirting but never committal. Something had changed in him that moment their eyes met across the dojo.

'I am losing my mind!' he mentally screamed.

Had she wanted him to kiss her? And why were his instincts suddenly clambering that he fix this? That itchy, irritated prod of his youki nudging his brain to do something like when it was time to hunt or Sesshoumaru called him from across the Palace. His aura was nearly excited beyond his control. Almost as if…

It couldn't be. His youki was reacting to Kagome… wasn't it? The visions started when he arrived in Edo.

'But I had only just left her here.'

"You must try. That is the only way to know." Kenshin had said.

'Now is not the time for cowardice.' Ren decided.

He slid his eyes closed and focused on Rin's frail aura in the dojo. Carefully, the young inu reached for his youki and let it surround him like a veil of water. A strong flare might alert guards or, worse, Sesshoumaru. The energy built around him until he allowed it to brush against hers.

Rin's aura, normally a pale golden color at rest, immediately flared to life with the brilliant color of a summer sun. She didn't react to the change at first but then stopped readying her blades and laid the back of her hand on her damp forehead, looking around confused. Ren watched her from the doorway without her noticing him yet and was fascinated by her reaction. She had no awareness of her own aura that he knew of and yet the pull was powerful enough for Rin to physically feel the change.

Energies reacting from across the room was one thing but this experiment was far from over. Ren slowly allowed his youki its freedom. Immediately, a trail of spring green shot forward to wrap itself around Rin's raised hand. The Captain's eyes blew wide. His youki left him in thicker and thicker ropes of luminescent energy to surround her aura, to protect it. To claim it. Out in the hallway, Ren slammed his eyes shut and covered his face with his hand.

'It's Rin! Kami in heaven! What now?'

He reined his youki in and stood silently in the hall. Every time one of her blades hit home from that moment on, the Captain flinched from his place against the wall and just outside the door. As the hours passed, Rin's scent drifted more powerfully out into the hall as she started to sweat with the effort of throwing her small knives faster and faster, jogging the fourteen steps to the target to retrieve them before the dull thuds began again. He'd started counting at some point. When had he started counting?

Her scent was strong enough now to completely fill the hallway, overpowering his senses. Warm, sunlit fields of sunflowers combined with the waking dreams he'd had of a raven-haired beauty and Ren lost his footing, sliding down the wall to sit heavily on the floor. This was hell. Had to be.

He tried distracting himself by analyzing her throws. With his soldier's mind, by the sound of it, he discovered she was gaining speed and confidence in her throws. Her timing was more even now than an hour ago, her breaths deeper and more purposeful. Every small noise inside the dojo was amplified in his skull until he lost the battle to remain fully outside and slowly edged his head back into the room just to see her. Just for a moment.

She stood tall in the small dojo wearing the first scowl of concentration he'd ever truly seen on her pale and winsome face. Her neck glistened with the effort of hours of practice. Rin took a deep breath and faced the target, raising the knife behind her. With his practiced soldier's eye, he quickly decided such an attack would never succeed in battle. The thoughts were a welcome distraction from the flush of her cheeks, her panting breaths, and the serious glint in her deep brown eyes.

'Too obvious. Never brandish a weapon of stealth so visibly. And she gave you a chance to tell her such things, moron, but you ruined it by nearly attacking her.'

While Ren guilted himself over nearly dishonoring her, Rin flung the blade and it hit home. Landing just to the right of the center, Rin grinned silently and pumped her fist in the air. In the next second, they locked eyes in the doorway and Rin's face reddened further in both frustration and embarrassment. Ren's open, boyish grin didn't help matters.

"Fo- Forgive me." Ren bowed. "I wanted to see how you were progressing. You have done it! Congratulations!"

"You are making fun of me." she said quietly, looking at the target.

"I am not." he said quickly. "That was a carefully planned, well-thrown knife. Sango-sensei would be proud."

Rin retrieved the blade and examined it, her back still to him.

"I can manage on my own but you can come back in if you wish." she said, hoping it sounded more dismissive than excited. She was so confused. Hurt and confused.

"Thank you… Rin-sama."

Ren settled himself in a corner and stayed silent for another hour while she perfected the feel of the throw. Neither of them said another word until she was finished and he walked behind her to her room so she might bathe and change for the feast. There was no lighthearted flirting or gentle exchange promising to see each other later. No, those eggshell intimacies were a thing of the past. Their friendship just became much more complicated.

…

Taking advantage of the momentary quiet in the Council meeting room, Sesshoumaru thought of the young dragon's odd request. He was fond of her, that was easy to see, but to threaten the North with war over her freedom? Kouhei was showing his age and inexperience if he was so willing to drag thousands into battle for one human woman. If the East declared war, the South would undoubtedly remain neutral, leaving the West to decide the winner. The inudaiyoukai considered the options as he walked silently back to his own rooms.

'If war is declared by the East, Katsurou will crush them. His mountains are easily defensible with winter coming and he will strike without mercy. Then again, the Lord of the East has come into his own power…'

Strategizing for the coming war ground to a startling halt as he seated himself at his private desk and the miko's scent was lifted from the letter lying there in wait. He caught sight of her sloppy handwriting and scowled.

Equally as disturbing as a looming war, Katsurou had known of Kagome's origins outside of the village. How? Who was informed of her history other than the monk and the slayer? Surely, they had not betrayed her. Then who?

'A question to add to the response to whatever ridiculous request she has posed.'

With no expectations, Sesshoumaru sat staring silently at the slip of paper that smelled like Kagome. To supply an answer, first he would need to read it. He eyed the paper with suspicion. The last letter from her had been a girlish request to spend time in her village, and other useless small talk, but some part of him had been relieved at the time that she was well.

What could she want now?

Sliding a claw between the folds of the letter, the paper rustled loudly in the dead silence of Sesshoumaru's private rooms. Before it was fully unfolded, the remnants of her scent poured out and his lungs expanded without his permission, eyes sliding closed while drawing in a deep breath of her. The scents of her home, the forest, the Captain, the ink and paper… it all was second to the comforting rain-drenched camelias that was his future Mate. His youki rose in response but years of practice helped to tame it quickly before the lust reared its head again. Minutes passed in quiet torment but finally, he regained control of his baser emotions and began to read.

He opened his heavy eyes to scan her disappointing penmanship with a scowl and found that her letter was long and rambling, written in haste and poorly organized. She sped through the topics of Ren's arrival, the visit of the Lords, her decision to stay there despite Katsurou's goading…

'She has some sense of self-preservation then. Good.'

To maintain the tournament and the Palace and the guests was taxing enough but to keep Rin and Kagome both out of the claws of other youkai would be a full time occupation all its own. This woman attracted injury and ill attention like moths to a flame.

And the letter was written so sloppily and quickly that he doubted she had spent more than a few minutes thinking of and executing this insult to thoughtful correspondence. Most troubling, however, was the last section.

'I wanted to tell you about everything that's happened but I also wanted to let you know that I'm okay. I'm prepared for whatever happens here, so don't worry even if Ren-taii isn't around. I've been training more than I had in the summer and I've already finished my food prep for the winter. I'll be leaving for a few days after the first snows fall, like I told you, and I'll send Ren back to the West when I go.

Give Rin a hug for me (I know you do that now so don't slack) and obviously I hope you're well, too. Have a happy Christmas and I'll see you in the new year!'

"Christ-mas? New year?" he wondered, still scanning the letter.

'Ren has instructions not to return until you to write me back. What I want is for you to tell me what you're looking forward to the most in the spring. And no cheating! Write what you feel! (^u^)'

"Emotions again? Is that meant to be a drawing? Nonsense."

At the bottom, in tiny scrawl and well below her signature, was another small message.

'I miss you. I hope spring comes early. Come visit when you can.'

He was missed? She was thinking of spring? The warmth of her simple admission spread from his brain to his toes and a tip of a fang gleamed in the midmorning light. He was alone here. There was no one else to see the smirk of satisfaction that she was thinking of him even now. But his initial assumptions were correct, despite her loneliness stroking his ego.

'You ignored your safety to send the Captain back so that I would be forced to indulge your endless emotional needs?'

He was tempted to drop the letter, dismiss her request as a human need for reassurance, but something stopped him.

"I do… prefer your company, if I'm honest." she had said.

Kagome had shyly and purposefully admitted her feelings, and now she was asking him to do the same. She wanted a true Bond with him then. Had she decided to accept his attention for more than appearances' sake? Did he want to give it to her? Rutting in his dreams was one thing but a mutual Bond was another. It would be wiser to keep her at arm's length, not let her into his heart as a true Mate. Wiser… but lonely. He had spent too many years isolated here in the West.

'I have paid my penance to others. Our Mating was a punishment but your affection would be a gift you give of your own free will.'

"Be that selfish at least." she had requested last summer. She was speaking of him creating pups in his own time, but his desires were extending farther in her direction than either of them had anticipated.

He picked up a brush and thought. What was he looking forward to in the spring? Visions of the unexpected fantasies from this morning flashed in his brain and he growled. No, surely she was not asking him to illustrate his desire. Any promised youkai Mate would be happy to receive such but her? What does a human want from a future Mate?

The memory of her searching his eyes for the truth after their rooftop rendezvous crossed his mind.

"Only if you mean it…" she had said.

'She wants the truth.' he realized.

"Very well. Selfish I shall be, Kagome."

And his brush found the paper, gaining speed as the words formed themselves.

'You wished for honesty and sentiment, priestess, and now you have it.'

In no time, his response was finished, dusted with powder and folded for return. But was his intent to merely reply or to express his commitment to a new kind of relationship? What would communicate his sincerity? His eyes fell on the dressing table in his private room and the collection of odd sundries scattered on its surface. His eyes landed on an indigo ribbon used to bind his hair on occasion.

'Perhaps…'

His gift joined the tight fold of the letter and he laid the reply back on his desk to give to the Captain. Now that Ren was back, Sesshoumaru appreciated not worrying about Rin's safety. The Captain would have to stay until this evening when the closing feast would be distracting most of the guests and Rin could join him until everyone was gone.

Suddenly, a scrap of paper was slipped silently between the doors to his rooms and whispered to the floor. Suspicious, Sesshoumaru rose and snatched it from the floor, noting the familiar scent of one of his spies. Inside, only six words were written.

'Cloaking spell. Guest wing. User unknown.'

A sneer contorted his face. There was an impostor among his guests. The note quickly found its end drowning in corrosive acid in the palm of his hand. This complicated the remaining days of the tournament. Sweeps would need to be arranged, the dinner would be accompanied by soldiers, and his mother would need to be informed to organize her own reconnaissance efforts while he was administering the tournament. Perhaps, the infiltrator would make a mistake and reveal themselves if he was patient. If not, his spies would certainly earn their keep in the coming days.

'The Cardinal Lords have been with us for two days now. Most recent arrivals were the youkai among the nomadic clans. But who? Bear, wolf, lizard, boar, and fox are all here. Who has the most to gain from unsettling the tournament?'

Who indeed? A wicked fanged grin slowly formed. He had always enjoyed a good hunt.

…

Back on the mountainside, Katsurou was enjoying the fierce concentration on Kikuko's normally composed face. Catching the nearly-omnipotent silver inu off guard deserved a commendation of the highest order. Her slender fingers grasped her chin and she thought, silently, as the two daiyoukai adjusted their consideration of each other to include this new revelation. It was only a minute or two until Kikuko faced him with renewed calm and continued their talk.

"Haruna's first Mate? He- or she- is dead now then?"

"He is. She refuses to speak much about the male himself but equally laments the litter of cubs they lost in the battle for his life. Five in total. Her first. Losing him, her cubs, and her place in the clan she called her own drove her near mad. I found her near an endless sleep deep in the forests of the North. My beautiful Haruna was quietly waiting for death, alone in the cold."

"I cannot fathom." Kikuko said solemnly.

"But you have known the loss of a Mate. It is my hope you can relate better to her condition after this day."

"Ah, yes, but This One knows the loss of offspring can be equally devastating, despite never losing any of my own. To lose so much at once…"

"You understand, then, why it affects her so deeply."

"I do, but what does this have to do with the miko?"

"Kuroikage stayed with us for a time, healing his wounds and making himself useful crafting charms and simple youki weapons. The snare which caught him was infused with holy energy, you see. He was scarred permanently, and nearly lost his leg, but still grateful for our assistance. During his stay, he witnessed one of Haruna's fits of terror and suggested that a miko might be able to purge the remaining foreign youki from her and cure the affliction. He said it must be a human of great power, willing to lend their aid, and to wait until the correct one appeared for it to work."

"A broken Bond is not a permanent affliction, Katsurou. I have lived through the loss of a Mate, and while it is painful to distraction, it does not last forever. The Bond fades over time until there is nothing. Nothing left of a promise of eternal partnership. It is almost more cruel."

"Perhaps not for you but for her, every few months, it is torture. Only once, you must understand, my lovely Mate recounted that it was a miko who broke the sacred Bond with her first Mate before killing him."

"Broke it? How?" Kikuko gasped. "What cruelty! Why?"

"To draw out the agony, she said, or perhaps to attempt to kill them both at once. The miko that attacked them knew that our Bonds were life bonds… and knew how to break them."

"How?" she asked, genuinely concerned. "It is a privilege known only to daiyoukai, passed down from parents to pups."

"I do not know. After the deed was done, and they both remained alive, for reasons even she has never been able to decipher, the vengeful priestess then killed her Mate and young cubs. She escaped but the damage was done. Since that day, her hatred for their kind runs deeper than I can imagine."

"How awful. And is it safe to leave her with your pups at such times as this?"

"She does… not know me," he said sadly, "when it strikes but calls out for the dead Mate and cubs. I have borne it for four centuries now but can no longer. Whatever it is that ails her, I need the miko to cure it. Kuroikage said that even miko can be bound to youkai and that under the influence of a Mating Bond, the priestess would be unable to refuse. He suggested to bind one of my vassals to a miko but Kagome was the first I have come across. The Fates aligned to bring her to me at that exact moment. Once her Bond with Sesshoumaru is complete, we plan to appeal to her as an ally to do whatever she can for Haruna's sake. Only then, may she be able to heal fully. There are other miko, Kikuko, but none so willing to help as her. I am more sure of that now than when This Katsurou sentenced her."

"You are most likely correct on that account but why wait? The little human would probably assist now if you demanded it. Why go to such lengths to secure her aid?"

"I have not forgotten the blood payment owed to me. One more year is the bat of an eye compared to what my Mate and I have already endured. Her Bond to Sesshoumaru is still my punishment, Kikuko, and whatever offspring there are, they will be his legacy. A reminder of that which he failed to see, and he will look upon them every day until they die before him."

The hard cut of Katsurou's golden eyes was full of pain but weighted justice. A moment later, his face relaxed into that of a worried male with too much on his shoulders.

"Now that you know of Haruna's affliction, I should not have to relay what losing half of our progeny last year did to her once again. The fit was-" he grimaced and growled. "When Sesshoumaru appeared only days after the hanyou laid waste to my house, it had only just ended. I was exhausted. My fangs were still drenched in her blood, trying to still her fit through submission, but still she fought and cried out for them for days. I had no time to mourn them myself before he darkened our door, demanding my allegiance. The rest, you know."

"I knew there was no way he should have escaped so unharmed." Kikuko said quietly. "To know you had endured so much prior to his visit clears my suspicions."

"You wished me to kill him? I thought you more attached to that pompous, overbearing-"

"Be still!" the inu growled with a grin. "He is still my son. If he died in battle, I would celebrate him but you are justified in your vengeance. He has rarely faced an opponent that is his equal. What would he have made of you in your prime, I wonder?"

"We shall never know now for I am collared like the rest. Shackled by my word, same as you. But in this, for that girl, I will not relent. I have told you my tale. Do I have your word the dragon will be refused?"

"You do." Kikuko smiled impishly. "It is a simple matter and one the inexperienced Lord of the East has not considered."

"Am I to know?"

"I think perhaps your reaction should be genuine but you will enjoy it, I promise you," the inudaiyoukai grinned, her golden eyes sparkling with mischief and purpose. "Rest assured that the meeting will conclude in favor of your contract."

"Kikuko, I am glad we sit at the same table, I admit. It is curious though…"

"What is?"

"Your little human was most interested in my tale when I visited her. One wonders why?"

"Hn." Kikuko huffed. "Humans want more than is good for them, in my experience. Did you tell her?"

"No. I tried to bait her here for the fun of it but she refused. Her guard dog made an excellent case for remaining behind. I almost succeeded though. Ah, the look on Sesshoumaru's face when she would have arrived was almost worth the trouble!"

"His soldiers fear my son more than a tiger. I am pleased."

"Ha!" Katsurou barked a laugh and slapped his knees, rising smoothly and extending a hand to his companion. "The sooner we get back, the sooner this meeting is over and the real reason for dragging my feet here will begin."

"Agreed." she nodded, grasping his hand. "Your grandpup is fighting this year, correct?"

"Kazumitsu will win the tournament for the North, I am certain."

"I am most interested to see him in action. Ietsuna from the South is the favorite, you know." Kikuko mused, dusting the dirt from her kimono and shaking her silvery hair to fall neatly behind her once again.

"Let them all be disappointed." Katsurou rolled his shoulders and stretched. "Kazu will have his choice of a Mate after this is over."

"Ah yes," she grinned, "the young ones are flocking in packs through the halls. Every house seems to have brought two or three unbound females at least. Such a gathering of our kind is so rare now."

They set off, rising gently into the air and floating slowly toward the courtyard at the center of the Palace.

"Ah, youth!" Katsurou grinned boyishly. "I remember being a young cub on the prowl myself."

"Hn. You males and your prowling, indeed. No pride in it." Kikuko scowled, landing gracefully and placing a delicate hand on her hip while the other waved dismissively. "Strutting about with your chests puffed high and your claws out. I find it a wonder any of you ever entice a female to rut with you."

"It all comes down to our stellar personalities," Katsurou dropped the last several feet from the small ledge down the garden and faced Kikuko with a wily smirk, "and that is why your Sesshoumaru is lucky he was assigned a Mate. That tight-lipped, overly serious son of yours would never find one without my help. I doubt if he ever lowers himself to rut her."

"You might be surprised, Lord of the North."

"Gah, I hate surprises." he frowned.

"We shall see." the silver inu winked. "Ah, and I have one small request on the matter of your story."

"Hm?"

"Tell no one else of your need for the priestess's aid."

Her request sounded lighthearted but the icy, citrine glare of the inu to his right was a warning if ever he saw one. Her chin raised, waiting expectantly for his confirmation, and Katsurou realized her request was anything but. The toradaiyoukai was still contemplating the reason for her seriousness when she cleared her throat and explained. Kikuko wanted to make sure that no others would know about the priestess' power, that was true, but it would help her spies to isolate and follow those who already had this information. If word of Haruna's affliction became common knowledge, weeding out the puppet master that was riling all four Lands would become more difficult.

"Should knowledge of her skill be too freely given," Kikuko explained, "we may have all manner of needs to deal with in the future."

"Odd, but easily done." Katsurou gave a relieved nod. "I have, in fact, never told the tale to anyone before. Unburdening myself was a small relief. I am grateful."

Sesshoumaru appeared before them sauntering through the open breezeway and turning the corner to rejoin the meeting. He spied his mother and Katsurou approaching, and his eyes narrowed in question but Kikuko merely smiled as her fan waved prettily in his direction. Without a word, the Lord of the West turned and climbed the two steps into the meeting room.

"Then I am glad to be of help." she said, still tracking her son with impish, amber eyes. "Enjoy what follows, Katsurou. I know I shall."

A low chuckle followed Kikuko into the meeting room as the daiyoukai all resumed their seats. Katsurou smiled at Kouhei and was unsurprised when the dragon Lord determinedly ignored him in favor of speaking to his uncle. Fushijirou yawned widely as he entered and sat gracefully at the table with his Mate, Samidori. Kikuko restarted their meeting when Sesshoumaru nodded in her direction.

"I believe we were discussing Mates and heirs, were we not? The North and South have brought heirs to participate in the tournament this year but since the East has only just regained its Lord, what news have you on the prospect of Mates, young Kouhei?"

"Having only regained my power this year, we- my uncle thought it best to delay until I have better control." Kouhei said with an air of disappointment.

"Indeed." Ryouzou asserted. "I feel that Bonding to another whilst his youki is still so untrained may be dangerous for both he and his intended. Once his aura has settled, and he can better control himself, we will begin the hunts for a Mate."

Kouhei avoided catching anyone's gaze and stared down into the lacquered surface of the table with his hands in his lap.

"It is no matter, Kouhei of the East." Kikuko soothed. "It was not so long ago that Sesshoumaru was hardening his own understanding of his expanded energy-"

"Mother."

"-resulting the fashioning of his rather unique regenerative abilities and sword. Study well, Kouhei, and you may find yourself capable of greater things than you realize."

"As I have said, Kouhei-sama." Ryouzou added, looking over at his crestfallen nephew who brightened only slightly with a nod of his head.

"And last, then," the elder inu clapped, "I believe Sesshoumaru had something to tell us?"

Without pause and a disinterested glance around the room, Sesshoumaru began.

"Hm. As we agreed long ago, I sought to secure the West with an heir by contracting a kitsune of the South-"

Kouhei perked up and leaned over the table.

"Does Kagome know about this?"

Youki instantly heated the room and bore down on the young dragon Lord across the room.

"Interrupt me again, dragon, about what This Sesshoumaru's future Mate does or does not know, and I will-"

"Enough!" Kikuko rapped her fan on the table, echoing a sharp snap around the room. "If you pups are quite finished raising your hackles at one another, I long to leave this depressing room."

"Agreed." Katsurou nodded. "Enter the damned tournament if you want to bloody your claws."

Kouhei clicked his tongue and sat back quietly. Ryouzou patted his shoulder and looked back at Sesshoumaru with a nod. Samidori and Fushijirou stifled chuckles behind their hands.

"And you thought Kouji was unreserved, beloved!"

"He is, but no less so than these two." Fushijirou said with another yawn. "The kitsune of the South, you say? Chinatsu and her clan?"

"Hm." Sesshoumaru affirmed, then continued. "A contract was negotiated this past summer but the miko, too, was in the village with her ward. We came to an agreement before the contract was sealed, and we have agreed to produce the next heir to the West sometime after the Mating."

"Heir to the West? A hanyou? Are you mad?" "You are surely joking-" "But your father's half-breed was-"

The chorus of dumbstruck denials was expected but the inudaiyoukai's scowl deepened and he felt the stirrings of a growl build in his throat.

"Silence!" Sesshoumaru snarled. "It is decided. As the pups of a Mated pair, they cannot be denied. That is our decision. You agreed to our Bonding, and we agree to produce an heir. Consider yourselves informed."

"The priestess agreed to birth your heir?" Ryouzou asked. "I find that hard to believe, Sesshoumaru, without proof. She could barely breathe when the sentence was passed. Kagome is an agreeable being, but to this? Has so much changed?"

"Hm. I considered proof might be required. She will be visiting in the spring for the Bonding ceremony of our chief healer and his intended, and she agreed that anyone wishing to question her resolve may do so then."

"Under your scrutiny," Katsurou frowned, tipping his chin to the side in suspicion, "who would tell the truth? Perhaps we should visit her once again in her village… alone."

"Do as you will." Sesshoumaru said, golden eyes facing the doubting tiger. "The result will be the same."

Five noses scented the air in unison, trying to detect a lie, but when the inu Lord's scent never changed, thoughtful frowns surrounded the ancient table.

"A hanyou heir in the West…" Fushijirou wondered. "Odd times we live in, Kikuko. What say you?"

The eldest inu winked at Katsurou and sat up to face the table, slowly fanning herself to prevent the impish grin from breaking free too soon.

"It is expected, is it not? He is a virile male promised to a young Mate, human though she may be, and they are within their rights. I cannot say that I am pleased but Sesshoumaru's strength is more than sufficient to sire even hanyou pups with great power, I have no doubt. Besides," she lilted, "the call is hard to deny, even for so stubborn a male as my only pup."

Sesshoumaru froze and stared at his mother, golden eyes wide. Surely, she would not…

"The call?" Samidori's eyes sparkled with affection and she grinned at the Lord of the West. "Your auras are linked already? Truly?"

"The call has claimed so stubborn a male as Sesshoumaru?" Fushijirou asked seriously, examining the young inu's reaction.

"Most assuredly." Kikuko nodded, ignoring the death glare from her son and fluffing her ivory pelt with a flourish. "Why only this morning, when I went to retrieve him, his rooms were positively saturated-"

"Mother!"

Katsurou howled with laughter and fell backward onto the floor, clutching his stomach. Kikuko used her hand to stifle the chuckle she knew would only further anger her son. The Lord and Lady of the South only smiled warmly and gazed at each other. Ryouzou refused to look Sesshoumaru in the eye and Kouhei looked only thoroughly confused.

"Saturated with what? What does Kikuko-sama mean, uncle?"

"We are finished here." the Lord of the West growled, rising to leave. "The tournament begins after midday."

In a flash of gold, silver and black, he was gone and Kikuko continued to chuckle lightly behind her fan. As soon as Sesshoumaru cleared the doorway, Ryouzou looked over at Kouhei who was oddly silent and wore a surly and questioning knit to his brow. Katsurou beat the whelp's uncle in responding as he stood to leave himself.

"As I said, little dragon, there is nothing to be done. That young Lord and the priestess have apparently nearly claimed each other already. Your treaty and protection means little in the face of ancient magic such as that. Give up, cub."

"Enough, Katsurou." Ryouzou growled.

"Ancient magic?" Kouhei asked earnestly. "Uncle? What does he mean? They are not referring to the Bonding. That is next year."

"Come with me to our rooms, Kouhei." the black dragon said, laying a hand on his nephew's shoulder and rising from his cushion on the floor. "It would seem explanations are in order but this is a conversation I would have with you in private."

An undignified snort from Katsurou made Ryouzou frown again.

"Enjoy your lesson, little Lordling…" Katsurou chuckled, stepping lightly out of the room to find his grandcub and start preparing for the tournament. This day was proving to be worth the journey West for the second time in two years.

…

Upstairs in her son's private quarters, Kikuko was partially regretting her speech.

"Your interference was neither welcome nor necessary!" her son bellowed.

Sesshoumaru was redressing for the tournament, pacing- stomping wildly around his private room, while his mother stood rolling her eyes in the anteroom.

"If you are embarrassed, do not be." Kikuko said softly, peering into his room. "She is yours, Sesshoumaru, and no one expects you to be unaffected. That you are is a matter of pride. You are taking your commitment seriously."

"An odd speech, coming from you!" he growled at the doorway.

His mother disappeared, turning around to lean her pale shoulders against the cool, dark wood of the wall where he could not see her regretful eyes.

"Will I never be forgiven?"

Sesshoumaru stopped pacing and scowled at the doorway. Her voice sounded genuinely contrite and his anger began to fade. Kikuko enjoyed her jokes but the fact that he was bonding with Kagome meant Rin was safe and his future life with the miko was made easier.

How then to punish his dam for her spitefulness? An idea occurred to him then. If she was serious… Kagome had already accepted his explanation over why his mother had been so upset, and the miko seemed to be mollified, but Kikuko was unaware of that fact. The temptation- the opportunity- for him to return the embarrassment she had caused was too much.

"It is not I you need to apologize to." he rumbled from within. "The miko regretted her acceptance, regretted saving Rin from Katsurou's punishment, solely because of that childish tirade of yours last year."

His ears caught the sound of that damned fan of hers falling forward and limp against her wrist, and he smiled to himself before turning around and breezing past her to the anteroom while still tightening his armor.

"You want the former Lady of the West to apologize to a human?" she gaped.

The wicked grin on his face answered her question and for the first time in quite a while, Kikuko was speechless.

"No. Absolutely not." she said firmly.

"Your redemption lies in Edo with the priestess. The choice is yours, mother, but no harm is to come to her, whatever you decide."

Then he was gone from the room. When the sound of his rapid footfalls was nearing the mountain pass, Kikuko threw her head back and laughed aloud.

"Ha! Sesshoumaru, you almost broke my act with that bravado. Oh, he truly is in over his head, the poor thing. Asking his mother to apologize to the human… Tsk!"

'She will appreciate your sentiment when I relay it, pup. Perhaps her efforts are getting through to you, after all.'

"Now, let This One see about this little cat the North has been bragging about… Tch! Win the tournament indeed…" the Lady mother muttered, walking out of the family wing toward the arena for the tournament of heirs.

...

AN: This story is not forgotten! I have a month until school starts back up so my goal is to get Autumn and Winter wrapped up during my break. To all of you that sent me messages and reviewed, letting me know you were still interested, it kept me going and I sincerely thank you. Next time, the tournament, the showdown, and what was it Sesshoumaru asked for in his return letter?